BBAW - Community Appreciation!

[Book Blogger Appreciation Week or BBAW is the brainchild of My Friend Amy. This year marks the fifth year of the event. This week is all about showering book bloggers with appreciation--it's a blogging event I always look forward to each year.]

Monday's Topic: Appreciation! There are no awards this year, but it can still be hard to navigate the huge universe of book blogging. Share with your readers some of the blogs you enjoy reading daily and why.

First, I would like to note that that exclamation point after "Appreciation" is not mine but I like to think that Ms. Amy is channeling a little bit of Trish enthusiasm. !!!!!

Second, since this is my fourth time actively participating in Book Blogger Appreciation Week and I've highlighted some of my favorite blogs every year and they are still all my favorite blogs, I'm going to do things a little differently this year and focus on blogs I've learned about in the past year.

Les from Prairie Horizons - Ok, this is a major oversight because I can't believe that Les and I have been blogging in similar circles for the past five and a half years and I'm just now getting to know her. We have similar reading tastes and interests and while I'm sad that it's taken me this long to get to know her I'm so glad I have. She never fails to warm my heart and put a smile on my face.

Andi from Estella's Revenge - Andi is another blogger who has been around longer than I have with similar blogging friends who I am just recently connecting to. But the best news about Andi is she lives relatively close to me which means that I've met her! Twice! She is so much fun and I adore her kickass, carefree attitude. Also check out her and Heather's Estella Society! Seriously--it's a "playground for Book Bloggers."

Laura from Devouring Texts - I met Laura this past year during a giveaway hop and have since connected with her on twitter and via her blog. We have similar reading tastes and her posts are so full of energy and life. Ya--no wonder I can relate to her!

Beth from Too Fond - Beth is a really new-to-me blogger who I connected with during Weekend Cooking and the recent North and South readalong. She is a expat living in France and has a great mixture of fiction and her life living abroad. I look forward to getting to know Beth more.

Amy from Sunlit Pages - Amy is another really new to me blogger who I connected with during a recent Where in the World Are You Reading post. She is very warm and friendly and we've read a lot of the same books. I love her mixture of bookish and personal included on her blog.

Tze-Wen from Always Cooking Up Something - Tze-Wen, also known as Chinoiseries, and I connected with during Weekend Cooking and have loved discovering her wonderfully written posts as well as getting to know her better on twitter. She isn't a new blogger and again I'm sad that it's taken so long for me to connect with her (would you believe that I'm easily intimidated?!). On her blog you will find a great mixture of cooking and bookish posts.

As always I wish that I could list everyone but the list would be huge and changes nearly daily. And I know that you've probably noticed my commenting going way down this past year, but know that I'm still reading--just a little more silently than I'd like to be.

But because I like getting mushy and emotional, I'd love to thank you all for making blogging such a joy for me. There's lots of silliness and fun but also great support and friendship as well. You are the ones who have made this more than just writing about the books I've read. Group hug??

What are some new to you bloggers that you'd love to share? Or any oldie but goodies that I might be missing out on?