30 Day Challenge: Day 1

Hello, hello, dear readers!

We'd like to share some exciting news with you:

For the next 30 (work) days, the staff of Scarletta will be showcasing in a 30-Day-Book Challenge. By participating, we're hoping to see a little more community involvement with the bloggersphere, Twitter, and Facebook. We are just as excited to write about our bookish experiences as we are to read and hear about yours!



So if you have a comment, want to share your own responses, bookish loves and fears, questions, or just want to contribute: DO SO! We encourage it. Help us make this little venture a fun, quirky, and enjoyable experience to fill out the summer.

DAY ONE: BEST BOOK YOU READ LAST YEAR

2012 was a wonderful year for literature. I say that as a twenty-something, fresh-outta-college-new-adult who has always had a fascination with the book world. And amongst the freshest titles--think Gone Girl, The Casual Vacancy, This is How You Lose Her--the title that sticks out the most is a children's picture book.



I loved Candlewick Press' 2012 hit, This is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen

I judge many bookish works on their ability to linger. If a book still finds a place to hide in the corner of my mind months and months and months after the initial reading: I think we've got a winner. The first time I read through this minimal project, I went back through it at least ten times. I'm still so impressed by the cleverness of the art, the brilliant storytelling, and interactive quality that comes from a book that you essentially create for yourself. So, no, my pick may not be the most literary, but it's the only book that could rightfully be named the best I read last year.

-Josh

John Dillinger Slept Here: A Crooks' Tour of Crime and Corruption in St. Paul, 1920-1936 by Paul Maccabee, Minnesota Historical Society Press

2012 was a year of re-reading books I've read many times and finally getting to books on my bucket list, in addition to a few new ones. I loved a lot of what I read and in the end, it was a tough choice, but I just can't get enough of historical fact and true crime. I went through a phase last year, especially watching true crime movies like J. Edgar and other ones from years past. It was so interesting to read about the history of crime in the cities I grew up in -- the references to buildings that have come and gone, and some that still stand; the nitty-gritty whodunnit stories; and the background stories of famous criminals from the 1920s and 30s. It's also my top choice because I would fall asleep nose in book, wake up in the middle of the night with the light on, and pick up the book to read where I left off. That's when you know it's a good book for you.

-Desiree