Drumroll please...

... Well, it's 1:15 a.m., and my roommate's not home yet, but I'm exhausted and about to pass out, and I can't wait any longer.  :-D  So without further adieu, I present the very first book of No Book Left Behind!

.. but first, I must show you the No Book Left Behind Lottery Box, where I have the names of each book folded up and all shook up... Yep, there it is in all its glory. Classy, huh? Straight from my very first trip to Costco last fall. I bought this box about a year ago, and I still have a box of penne regate! Well worth the investment, though. Maybe I'll jazz this box up and decorate at some point. Not tonight, though. I'm way too tired!

Now on to the main event... I'm going to try and take the picture myself... these never turn out, so bear with me!

I tried to take a self-picture, but they all look awful. This is the best I could do:

(Keep in mind, it's 1:30 a.m.)

And here I am (well, here is my hand), picking my very first book!

This is so exciting!!!

The very first title I picked was a bit of a letdown. It was Memnoch the Devil,  by Anne Rice. I've never read her. I have no idea where I got this book. I read the inside cover and within two seconds knew that I would not like it. Aside from that, apparently there are four books in the series prior to this one. So I probably wouldn't even understand the plot anyway. So I decided not to read it. See? That's one down already, 175 to go! See how easy this is???

So I picked again...

... and got this:

And so my very first book for No Book Left Behind is Protect and Defend, by Richard North Patterson. Here's the book synopsis straight from goodreads:

Richard North Patterson, whose legal thrillers have won him legions of devoted mystery fans, shows off his superb pacing and narrative gifts as well as his ability to create vividly realized characters in this compelling novel of late-term abortion, parental consent, and the battle over a nominee for chief justice of the Supreme Court. Unlike Patterson's typical courtroom dramas, the name of this game isn't murder; it's the body politic that's bleeding. When newly elected Democratic president Kerry Kilcannon nominates appeals court judge Caroline Masters to the top spot on the court, he knows he'll have a fight on his hands. Leading the opposition is his political rival, MacDonald Gage, the GOP majority leader who owes his soul and career to the Christian right wing. They're suspicious of Masters even before a politically charged case involving a teenager whose parents refuse to allow her to terminate a disastrous pregnancy ends up in her court. More principled than Gage, but equally adamant, is Republican senator Chad Palmer, who, like Masters, harbors his own potentially career-destroying secret.

Masters is an intriguing character, a woman whose judicial integrity, personal privacy, and political ambitions collide when she casts a tie-breaking vote on the constitutionality of the recently enacted Protection of Life bill. Not only young Mary Anne Tierney's future is at stake: so are the reproductive rights of all women, the resilience of the judicial system, and the personal lives of innocent bystanders who will be sacrificed on the altar of the First Amendment--the public's right to know, and the media's right to tell. Moving swiftly between the courts of public opinion and the federal judiciary, from San Francisco to the nation's capital, Patterson tells a mesmerizing story that's been praised by political and legal luminaries such as Mario Cuomo, Barbara Boxer, and Alan Dershowitz. But don't let that stop you. This up-to-date version of Advise and Consent is a provocative read that will resonate with political junkies as well as those who've made bestsellers out of Patterson's more typical genre thrillers. "

I have absolutely no idea when or where I got this book. But I'll definitely give it a try! I have a few books on my shelves by this author, but haven't read any of them yet. I was kind of hoping I'd get a lighter, more fun first read- this seems kind of, well, like a bit of a serious read if you ask me. Too bad I didn't kickoff No Book Left Behind with a lighter, cutesier book, like a chick lit book or a silly memoir. Oh well. I had a feeling this would happen! And I like legal thrillers, so I might really like this! It looks like it got really good overall rating reviews on amazon and goodreads! (I've learned not to read people's reviews, because they give away too much of the story most of the time!)

Well, I'll give it a shot this weekend and see how I like it. That's the whole point of this, right?

Okay, I'm off to curl up with my book in my nice, freshly washed sheets! Tomorrow I've got a few fun things planned, like making my first-ever smoothie (hopefully it will turn out okay!), reading, maybe trying out a bellydancing DVD that I checked out of the library, a few errands, and then going to the movies with the girls!

Have a good night!