May Wrap Up and Update

Oh hey there!! I am back again! School is finally done and I have been able to read again!! It's a great feeling...minus the fact that I have so many things I want to read I'm a tad bit overwhelmed with options...First World problems.

So I'm going to just go straight into the wrap up and then I will do my official update later!  Let's do this!~

The Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff: 4/5 Pots of honey

I re-read this for a project I had to do for my East Asian Religious Thought class.  I needed to do a project on Hinduism, Buddhism, or Daoism.  Daoism has gotten me through a lot of rough parts of my life, so I decided to read this again and do a book report.  I still really liked this book and I encourage anyone who is interested in Daoism to pick up this book. It's a great way to learn about the practice without being intimidated...It's funny and sarcastic and everyone knows Pooh and his friends!!

Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes: 3/5 Crowns

I FINALLY finished this book!!! Gods be praised!!!! I started this book at the end of December last year and never got a chance to finish it before school started. Now...What to say about this book....It was definitely NOT my cup of tea. The first 100 or so pages were really good...Nice and murdery...but then.....*sigh* all the characters, minus King Gaius, got super annoying and totally flat. I hated ALL of them...minus Gaius...who is the best character because he kills all the annoying, stupid people. >__< The plot was really not that great and the world, though it promised to be interesting, wasn't really talked about at all. I was curious to hear about the magic system and learn more about the world...was it like ours or was it a completely different? It was pitched as being like A Song of Ice and Fire for young adults...Yeah...they had a similar-ish layout...but no...not by a long shot. It was insta-lovey in parts and things that were supposed to be emotional and sad didn't affect me.  I have a couple of Booktubers who felt the same as me and will be trying the second book, so if they give the second book high praise, I might continue...if not....then I shan't be continuing on in the series (Update: I am thinking of dropping this to a 2).

The House of Hades by Rick Riordan: 5/5 Stars

After the crushing let down of Falling Kingdoms, I decided to pick up a book that I knew I would probably like.  I still can't believe that I just read this book recently...it was released, what, 2 years ago?! Shame on me!!! I really liked this installment in The Heroes of Olympus series.  I still have some problems with liking all of the characters and reading their chapters, causing the book to drag in places, but some of those characters grew on me a teeny tiny bit in this book. I loved Percy and Annabeth's trek through Tartarus and Leo...I love Leo.  I also love that Nico (<3 <3 <3) got a chance to shine a bit in this book...I love that dark kid...I could kind of relate to him (the whole ghosty thing) but I really love where Rick Riordan took his character.  I am planning on finishing the last book The Blood of Olympus before the end of the summer and finish off the series before the release of Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard (fangirl squee).  I have been watching this show called The Almighty Johnsons (available on Netflix) and it has to do with Norse Mythology...I'm so pumped for October (and yes, I have pre-ordered it XD)!! I'm super hella nervous for what's going to happen in the last book...but I'm also really excited too. ^^

 

 Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson: 5/5 Epics

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH THIS BOOK WAS EPIC!!!! I can't even express how much I loved this book. I picked it up on a whim and I devoured the first 100 or so pages. Then in the middle something happened and I got annoyed with all the characters. They suddenly when flat and the whole David and his insta-lovey crush on Megan bothered the hell out of me...Then shit happened and I was thrown completely off by what happened...I mean, I guessed some of the things that happened, but not 100%...I had doubts...I SHOULD HAVE NEVER DOUBTED BRANDON SANDERSON AND HIS AMAZING-NESS!! T^T The ending of this was so amazing I had to control my outbursts of shock and excitement. This is why he is one of my top 5 favorite authors. I need to pick up Firefight ASAP!! I just...I can't even think of anything else to say about this...Amazing. Just read it!! XD

So those are all the books I have read in the month of May. I have also started: Heir of Fire by Sarah J Maas (which, oddly, I'm having a hard time getting into)

And I'm 191/272 pages into Red Scarf Girl by Ji-Li Jiang.  I had to read a few bits of it for my Comparative Politics class and I ended up buying my own copy.  It's a non-fiction book about Ji-Li and her growing up during the Cultural Revolution in China during Mao's reign. She lives in a "black list" family and it deals with her dealing with what the country wants of her and her duties to her family.  It's really fast paced book and super easy to read (it's written and set up like a middle grade book)...but it makes me sad...so I'm just kind of taking my time with it.

Day later update: I was ill and I finished the last bit of this today. 4/5 stars. Slightly childish writing style (not particularly bothersome though), fairly fast paced, and very interesting. Would recommend if you are interested in China and Mao Zedong/Cultural Revolution.

NOW for the updates:  I will be leaving for Japan on July 1st!! WOOOOOOOOOO!! I'm super hella stoked! I am not sure what my reading will be like there, but I will be bringing a few books with me to read.  I will probably do a "What I'm Bringing to Japan" post when it gets closer to that time.  Also, I'm planning on vloging my experience, so I will be posting that on Youtube. I'm also hoping to launch my Booktube channel before I leave so that's a thing. I know I have been saying that I was starting a Booktube channel for a while now, but I'm heaps serious about it this time!! Phobia or not, I want to do it!! So when that happens, I'll be sure to update my blog with the channel information!~ ^^

I am going to kind of attempt a June TBR (Video/post) soon...I'm not very good at sticking to a TBR as I'm an emotional reader and I feel like TBRs are "required reading" so I tend to become defiant and not do anything I say I'm going to....XD

So that's what's doin' and I hope to see you in my next post! Tootles!~ ^^v

A Random Gift From Penguin??

Soooooooooooooooooooooo, a strange thing happened to me today...

I was minding my own business, watching Flux Buddies (Minecraft with Yogscast Kim and Duncan via Youtube), thinking about starting my own Youtube channel, and my mom comes into my room with a package. A book shaped package. I didn't order any books...how strange?! I looked at where it came from....Penguin?! O.o

So...reluctantly I opened it and inside is this:

Um...WHAT?! Did I just get an unsolicited ARC from a publisher?!?!?!?!? HOLYSHITBALLSBATMAN!!!! > <

I received Vision In Silver by Anne Bishop (release date is March 2015). This is the third book in The Others trilogy (the first book is Written In Red). I have been wanting to read this trilogy for a bit now (Thanks to Lindsey Rey and Sara from Books&Junk), and now I have an ARC of the 3rd book... o-o what.

Which also brings up another thought.....how the HELL did they get my address???? O--O

Now I have to buy the first two books in the series...but I'm really not complaining too much...seeing as how they are on my wishlist. ^^ Unfortunately, it may break my book buying ban a bit, but I think it's going to be ok. ^^v

That reminds me...I have a few more posts I will be posting soon (probably today...XD) I will be doing my #Fridayreads and my 2015 Bookish Resolutions!~ So those will be up super duper soon! (Super duper? What?!? Brain...really? wow.)

Until next time my dearies! ^^v Tootles!~

Above mentioned Youtubers:

Lindsey Rey: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1VyYW1dxsY6z9j-dCWLEwA/featured
Sara(h)(??) aka Books&Junk: https://www.youtube.com/user/booksnjunk/featured
Yogscast Kim (for Flux Buddies and Minecraft): https://www.youtube.com/user/yogscastkim

July Wrap Up 2014

I would say that July was a good reading month for me. I read 7 books and started two more books. I am super proud of myself. And, for the most part, I liked everything I read!~

I've Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella: I really needed a fluffy read after having my soul torn apart by Going Bovine.....So what better book to read than something by Sophie Kinsella?! It wasn't my favorite book ever, but it got me out of my depression! I was going to do a full review on this book, but I decided that it really wasn't worth it to dedicate a whole post on this book.

The Eye of the World Graphic Novel Vol. 1 by Robert Jordan and Chuck Dixon: I have wanted to read this series for a while, but it is super intimidating....so I found a graphic novel!! I was pretty confused, but where it left off, I am super interested as to what is going to happen next!~ This is a very new series, and all....5? of the books they have out, are just the first book...so this GN series is going to be HUGE!!!

Pirate Latitudes by Michael Crichton: I hated this book. It was poop and I don't even want to talk about it. >___< My goal is to find an excellent pirate book...

The Spiderwick Chronicles - The Field Guide by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi: LOVED THIS BOOK!!! WHAT HAVE I BEEN DOING WITH MY LIFE?!?!?!

Deltora Quest - The Forests of Silence by Emily Rodda: I didn't really like this book....I thought it was kind of boring and it ended too quickly....but I figured that because there was a lot of world building and set up for the other 7 books, so I forgave it for being a bit dull.

The Spiderwick Chronicles - The Seeing Stones by Holly Black and Tony Diterlizzi: This book was amazing!! I could kick myself for not getting the rest of the series...I mean, the third one was missing, but I would have been ready!!! >__< Why didn't I know about this series when I was younger?!?!

Deltora Quest - The Lake of Tears by Emily Rodda: Much much much better than the first book! I actually became excited about the series after reading this book. The first one had me kind of dreading it, but now I have hope that I will enjoy this series! I think I will do a series review on this series when I finish it (Which will be VERY soon).

Delirium by Lauren Oliver: I didn't finish this book yet...I am about half way through it, and was starting to get bored...then I got caught up in Deltora Quest, so I just kind of put this book down for a little while. ^^'' I do want to finish this book and see what happens, but not right now...hopefully I will get back into it before August is done (update 2016: I DNF'd this book).



Well that's everything for now. Like I said, I had a really good reading month and I'm pretty sure August is going to be just as amazing! Until next time!! Byies!

XXXX 


April Brooks's Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwsaI0SG82I59jibp1eO-qg/feed

July Book Haul 2014

Well, it is the first of August, so I guess I should probably post my July book haul. Haha! I was kind of bad in the month of July...but these are either books that I needed for a series or books in a series I wanted to read, so I don't feel too bad.

The Spiderwick Chronicles Bk 2-The Seeing Stone by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi: I had finished the first book a week or so before I got this. I really loved the first book, and I wanted to get the second one as soon as I could....I found this at Half Price Books. I wanted to get the whole series, but the third book was missing...so instead of getting them all minus the third, I just bought the second one....sooooooooooooooooooooooooo mad at myself!!!! >_____<

Deltora Quest - The Forests of Silence by Emily Rodda: I had heard about this series for a year now thanks to April Brooks's channel on Youtube and I have been looking for it ever sense. I couldn't find them ANYWHERE!!! I really wanted the awesome hardcover bind up, but it was too expensive online. Then, at Goodwill, I found the entire series and the both of the spin off series! I was so stoked! >w< (8 Books, the rest are not pictured)

Dragon on a Pedestal by Piers Anthony: After having read the first book in the Xanth Series, I have been slowly collecting the rest of the 40+ book series whenever I find them. I have only ever been able to find them online or at Half Price Books. BUT this time, I found this gem at Goodwill! It is a bit musty (I didn't know this until I got it home and inspected it further), so I am going to try and air it out...if that doesn't work, well, I'm not going to be happy.

 Isle of View by Piers Anthony: This is another book in the Xanth Series that I found at Goodwill! This one is not musty (thank goodness) and I just love the title. XD If you didn't know, this series is a fantasy series that is jam packed full of puns. XD

Castle Roogna by Piers Anthony: This is the third book in the series which I picked up at Half Price books for $1.25. ^^v

 Ready Player One by Ernest Cline: I have officially joined my first book club!! I have joined Little Book Club put on by the Little Book Owl's Cat! This is the August pick, so I had to get it! Plus I have been wanting to read this book for quite some time, so what better reason to buy it than book club. ^^v I am SOOOOOOOOOOOO excited for this book!! 

The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss: No, I haven't read the first book yet, but when I saw this pristine, hardcover copy of the second book in the Kingkiller Chronicles, I had to get it. I have heard so many amazing things about this series from both Catriona and Raeleen's channel , so there is no doubt in my mind that I will love this series.

Persuasion by Jane Austin: I LOVE Jane Austin books, and I think I now own all of her books....if not most? I actually really like the Barnes and Noble Classics books. They seem so, classy. XD

Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor: Again, no, I have not read the first book in the series...but you can see why I bought this (shifty eyes at the price tag). The sticker won't come off though....-____- Damn stickers....

The Diviners by Libba Bray: 

Dear Libba Bray, I keep buying your books even though I know they are probably going to break my heart...Even your most innocent books make me cry. I hate you. I'm kidding...Keep on writing! I do hate you though. -Moriah

I love Libba Bray...I just had to rant a little bit. XP I read the Gemma Doyle trilogy and cried. Read Going Bovine, cried. I swear...if I cry....>___< I hope it's creepy though. Her creepy stuff is good!~



Well, that's all for my haul!~ I have already read a decent chunk of these books and loved them!! I will talk a bit more about them in my wrap up!! Which is coming up next!!!~ Until then!~ <3 XXXX 

April Brooks's channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwsaI0SG82I59jibp1eO-qg
Catriona's Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/LittleBookOwl 
Raeleen's Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/padfootandprongs07 
Little Book Club's Goodreads Page: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/136419-little-book-club

June Wrap up (2014)

June was an awesome month for reading!! I read a lot of children's books, but I also read a lot of really good YA books too! In total I read 7 books!! Wow!!

Black Star, Bright Dawn by Scott O'Dell: I read this book a LONG time ago and loved it. I love anything that has to do with Alaska, Huskies and the Iditarod. This book had all three things~ After rereading it, a lot of it felt random, and there are a couple of conflicts that come up that I didn't even know were problems...but for a children's book, it's ok. ^^

Going Bovine by Libba Bray: One of my favorites this month...still thinking about it and it makes me randomly sad....I didn't know this book was going to give me such strong feels! I had to fight back tears because I was in public!!! >___< But when I wasn't trying not to cry, this book was hilarious!! Cameron, Gonzo and Balder are hilarious, the situations they get into are hilarious, and Libba Bray is a brilliant author. I bet she is a hoot to hang out with. XD This book has a VERY strong message in it and I think people really do need to read it. So....READ IT!!!

Moriah's Pond by Ethel Footman Smothers: This is another reread for me as well. My mom got it for me because it has my name on it, but I was really young when I read it and I didn't really remember what it was about. It wasn't as wonderful as I remembered, but I did still enjoy it. This was the first book I ever read that wasn't written by a white dead guy and it was the first book I had ever read that was written in a dialect.

Mr. Popper's Penguins: Uh, this book....I think I read it at least 10 times when I was younger. I love penguins and this book was hilarious when I was little and it made me really want a pet penguin. I wanted to read this again because I was vague about what happened (I guess that is the theme of this month: Vague details about childhood books XD). People in this book accept things way too easily! \>__</ But I still found myself laughing out loud at penguin shenanigans. XD

Island of the Blue Dolphin by Scott O'Dell: Another foggy childhood reread. This book is depressing!!! I had no idea!!!! Still mostly enjoyed it, but holy hell! I had to read an upbeat book after reading this one (I picked up the penguin book for a good chuckle). Yikes.

Wonder by RJ Palacio: My favorite book of this month! I cried, but happy good feeling tears. I haven't had those kind of tears in a long time! It felt good. ^^ I think everyone should read this book. It's so sweet and real. For more on my thoughts, read my review!~

Wake by Lisa McMann: This is actually the first book I got this month and it wasn't what I expected at all...but it was pretty good. ^^ But for more on that, I have a review on it. ^^

That's is everything I read this month! Until next time!! Bye!!

Massive June Book Haul!! (2014)

I was VERY bad this month....VERY VERY bad.....I need to curve my book buying swerve in July (which I already seem to have failed miserably.....oops....but I digress). Here is what I got in the month of June and the first day of July.....XD (Most of these were thrift store books. There are a few from Amazon and one from Book Outlet).

Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb: I had watched a video where Regan and maybe Raeleen talk about this fantasy book, so when I found it on my lunch break (I was looking for a book because I left mine at home....) I knew I had to get it. I tried to read the first couple of pages, but I was like "woah...dense..." We'll see how I feel about it when I get back into my fantasy kick.

Wizard's First Rule by Terry Goodkind: Another book I had heard about on Regan and/or Raeleen's channel and I grabbed it on my lunch break. Not craving too much fantasy right now, but I know I will read it at some point (also, it is HUGE!!!).

Kiss of Steel by Bec McMaster: I received the third book last year through a Goodreads giveaway and it looked like something that I would totally love: Paranormal steampunk romance....Yes please!! Oh and it takes place in London. Epic win!!! >w< Hopefully I love this series. I really want to be a fan of this series. DON'T DISAPPOINT ME!!!! \>_____</

Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs: Thanks to Jesse from Jesse the reader, this book has been at the top of my wish list for quite some time. I finally bit the bullet and bought it off of Amazon because I couldn't find a hardcover anywhere...I REALLY wanted the hardcover...It's so beautiful. <3

The Eye of the Word by Robert Jordan (the graphic novel by Chuck Dixon and Chase Conley): I had been wanting to read The Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan (due to my guy friend's request and seeing it pop up everywhere) but let's be real....those books are 1.) Hella huge, 2.) Super dense 3.) Has a million and a half characters and 4.) The series is super duper long....I am one who gets easily confused in fantasy books, so I thought what a better way to see if I can manage the series than by trying the graphic novel (which I didn't know existed until I looked up Robert Jordan on Book Outlet and found it). The art is decent and I'm excited to read a graphic novel. I have read comics and manga, but never a graphic novel. And it's hardcover!!! >w<

  

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson: I finally have all three of the books...but I have this one in hard cover and the others in tall soft covers. But it is soooooooooooo shiny....@-@ I love it. Shiny.....

Supernatural--Bone Key by Keith R.A. DeCandido: This is the 4th book in the Supernatural series? I have no idea what this is about. XD

Supernatural--Witch's Canyon by Jeff Mariotte: This was the first book I picked up that was Supernatural themed. It is the second book in the series and Sam (The guy on the right if you aren't familiar with the show) looks like a total douche on this cover. Just saying. I laughed at this cover for quite some time...still laughing actually. XD I hope this is good.

The Sword of Angels by John Marco: I am soooooooooo good at reading covers and blurbs.....I fail so hard sometimes....So. I found this fantasy book at work, thought it looked cool, checked real hard (apparently not hard enough) to see if it was the first in a series, and bought it thinking it was (which if you have guessed by now, it isn't). Well, I was wrong (XP). It is the third book in a trilogy....it even says "the stirring conclusion..." right on the bloody cover...and it has the first two books printed on the cover and on the inside of the cover...I'm dumb. XP Still looks pretty cool though.

The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield: I had heard about this book on someones Youtube channel and it sparked my curiosity. I never put it on my wishlist though because it was never a high priority. I found it at work while I was cleaning the $1.49 bin and was like, "I want this book!!" But we aren't allowed to hid things or claim things, so I had a friend put it away so I didn't know where it was. About three days later I was digging though the bookshelves (I didn't even remember this book was here) and I found it! I was shocked that it was still here because there was a lot of book buying going on the last couple of days and I figured it would be gone after it was put back on the shelves. but it wasn't and now it is mine! It had a nasty Borders sticker on the cover that has made the cover sticky, but I'll deal. XD

And The Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini: I was shocked when I saw this book (brand new) on our shelves at Goodwill. I thought it would be gone when I went shopping the next day. But oddly it wasn't. A Thousand Splendid Suns was gone, but not this one...I was shocked. My sister doesn't like reading, but she RAVES about Hosseini's books, so I picked it up to try (and mostly to get my sister reading again XD). I love the cover of this book. The colors are gorgeous and it is so velvety soft!~ <3

Supernatural--War of the Sons by Rebecca Dessertine and David Reed: Three Supernatural books within days of each other...pretty awesome if you ask me! Sam looks less douchy on this cover, but these covers are awful. XD

Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane: I had been curious about this movie for a while, but I never saw it, and I never picked up the book. But I saw it at a thrift store for 39 cents and decided to try it. Plus Leonardo DiCaprio is on the cover. XD

The Spiderwick Chronicles--The Field Guide by Tony Diterlizzi and Holly Black: I never read these books as a child, and I always thought they looked pretty cool, so when I found a hard cover version of the first book, I got it. I am super excited!!

Sword-Dancer by Jennifer Roberson: This was in the young adult section of a thrift store I went to, and I didn't know what to think of it....Still don't know if it is young adult or not (not that it really matters all that much), but it sounded really interesting and like it was going to be a really good fantasy read, so I got it! Plus, I kind of like the old looking fantasy cover.

Isle of the Dead (Dragons of Deltora) by Emily Rodda: April Brooks from Youtube has been raving about Emily Rodda and Deltora Quest (which is (I believe) a bind up of all the books, but it is hella expensive, so I guess I am getting them all individually). I found this one and the other book for super cheap. I have no idea where these go in the scheme of things (there are A LOT of different Deltora series and I don't really know what goes where).

The Sister of the South (Dragons of Deltora) by Emily Rodda


 Well that's everything I bought this month (and the first day of July). I really do need to curve my book buying swerve, but we'll see what happens. I really hope I can do it this month. XP Until next time!! Tootles!!



Regan's channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/PeruseProject
Raeleen's channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/padfootandprongs07
Kat's channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/Katytastic
April's channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwsaI0SG82I59jibp1eO-qg
Jesse's channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/jessethereader

Wonder--The Review

August (Auggie) Pullman was born with a facial deformity that prevented him from going to a mainstream school--until now. He's about to enter fifth grade at Beecher Prep, and if you've ever been the new kid, then you know how hard that can be. The thing is Auggie's just an ordinary kid, with an extraordinary face. but can he convince his new classmates that he's just like them, despite appearances? (Taken from Goodreads.com)

*5/5 Stars*

This is officially one of my favorite books. I LOVED this book soooooooo much!! I laughed, I cried a bit, I sympathized and empathized with the characters and smiled though the entire book. I thought it was brilliant. And the little Auggie/additional character doodles are sooooooooooooooooooooooooo cute!! I originally heard about this book from Little Book Owl's channel on Youtube, and I bought it on a whim...actually it was a cover buy. I love this cover!! >w<

Through a majority of the book, Auggie is the narrator. Auggie is hilarious. He is sarcastic, funny, takes things in stride, is incredibly deep and is OBSESSED with Star Wars. I loved all the nerdy Star Wars references and they even played a role in the story! XD That makes me super happy. XD Auggie knows he is different and he knows that his look is hard to get used to, but he takes everything in stride. He kids around with the way he looks and uses it to make other people more comfortable with him. We do see him lose his cool a couple of times though out the book, but we also see how strongly he bounces back from the issues. I think a lot of people could learn a lot from Auggie. 

One thing I wasn't sure about was the fact that the book was written in multiple points of view. I ended up enjoying it because it gave us some insight into the characters who interact with Auggie like; his sister Via, his friends Jack and Summer and some of Via's friends. I thought they would be annoying (Justin, Via's boyfriend was kind of annoying because he didn't use capitol letters or much punctuation, but he did end up being awesome XD), but they added a lot to the story. 

I honestly can't think of any problems with this book...at all...It is currently on my favorites shelf and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys contemporary and a feel good, heart warming book. READ THIS BOOK!! That is all. XD

Cat's channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/LittleBookOwl/featured