Popping in to announce the winners of the Amazon.com gift cards!

The winner of the $15 card is Becky @ Operation Actually Read Bible

The winner of the $10 card is Barbara H. @ Stray Thoughts

Congratulations to both! And a big thanks to everyone who was part of Fall Into Reading 2012!

In case you haven’t noticed, Christmas is nearly upon us. The last few weeks have been filled to overflowing with school programs, gift-buying, wrapping, list-making, decorating, meal-planning, errand-running and a million other things that seem to be inescapable this time of year. Thankfully, they’ve also been filled with quiet moments by the tree, sneaking in a chapter or two of a good book, celebrating Advent with my family, a Peppermint Mocha or two, and good friends. Of course, along with all the Christmas preparations and activities, this time of year reminds us that it’s time to say goodbye to Fall Into Reading 2012.

I want to thank each person that participated in this year’s challenge. I know I was missing in action most of this fall here on the blog, but I assure you that every time I managed to escape with a good book, I thought about all of you who were also setting aside time for reading. Knowing you’re all out there makes the reading extra-enjoyable.

As we wrap things up, I just have one more thing to ask. Would you please write a final wrap-up post, letting all of us know how Fall Into Reading 2012 went for you?  I would love if you’d take the time to write a final post and link to it using the Mr. Linky below.

There are no guidelines for your wrap-up post, though you can revisit some suggestions I made last year if you need a little inspiration. Once your post is up on your blog, come here and sign up on the Mr. Linky below. Don’t forget—include the URL to your wrap-up post, not just your general blog web address, to make it easy for people to find your post.

And don’t forget…there are still two Amazon.com gift certificates ($15 & $10) up for grabs. To be eligible, please post your wrap-up post (and put it on the Mr. Linky) by midnight EST on December 24th to get your name in the drawing. I’ll announce the winner a few days after Christmas.

Thanks again to all the participants. I’ve enjoyed reading with you!

So here’s the thing. I didn’t finish my Fall Into Reading List. In fact, I didn’t even come close.

But let’s focus on the positive.

I did finish all six fiction books on my list. And I did read two of the books on my non-fiction list. And I read part of two other books on the non-fiction list. AND I read three additional fiction books. Well, technically, I read one and listened to the audiobook version of two others. So it’s not like I completely neglected my reading this fall.

Beginning in October, I took a photography class and it consumed enormous amounts of time and mental energy. There was lots of reading, lots of thinking, lots of practicing, lots of exhaustion. And with all of that…non-fiction reading just fell by the wayside. I’m pretty sure that if I had forced myself to slog through my entire Fall Into Reading list, I wouldn’t have gotten much out of those additional non-fiction books anyway. Not because they have little to offer (I still think they look great and plan to read them), but because I was just so preoccupied that I wouldn’t have been able to absorb very much.

That said, I thoroughly enjoyed nearly all the books I did manage to make it through this fall. Except for Zoo by James Patterson. I can’t really recommend that one at all. I particularly loved The Drowned Vault (by N.D. Wilson) and The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey (by Trenton Lee Stewart). I also really liked The Terrible Speed of Mercy: A Spiritual Biography of Flannery O’Connor (even though I usually steer clear of biographies!).

Thanks for reading along with me. I wish you many days filled with good books this winter, snuggled under a blanket or cozied up with a mug of coffee!

Don’t forget to visit the main wrap-up post to see how other participants did this fall.

I bet you thought I forgot all about my blog and all about Fall Into Reading. I promise, I didn’t. And I also promise, I won’t bore you with all the things that have been taking up my time and pushing blogging right off my calendar.

I AM sorry I haven’t been more faithful in checking in, though. No excuses; I should have done better.

I HAVE been reading, though I will admit to you that I’ve strayed from my initial list quite a bit. It’s just been one of those seasons, I guess. And here we are, right in the thick of Christmas preparations. Before we know it, Fall Into Reading will come to an end!

So I’m popping in here to encourage you to hang in there, keep reading, and try to squeeze in a few quiet moments with a book in the midst of all the holiday craziness.

I’ll be doing the same.

See you back here on December 22nd, when the Wrap-Up Mr. Linky will go live!