Dear Readers,
Merry Christmas Eve, Happy 8th Day of Hanukkah, and Happy Holidays to all of you. I saw I have not updated in a while, so I thought the best option would be for me to write a post and seeing as it is holiday season I thought that I would write about the best books to read during the holiday season or at least some of my favorites. So without further ado... here are my top five favorite holiday stories to read during the season.
5. Let it Snow by John Green. Maureen Johnson, and Lauren Myracle.
This book is perfect to read during the holidays. It tells three different stories of being snowed in on Christmas eve and stuck together. Three different people with three different stories all coming together. There is not much to tell about this book except it definitely gets you in the holiday mood. I would recommend this to anyone who is a fan of movies like Love Actually or Valentines Day.
4. On Christmas Eve by Ann M Martin
This is a book by one of my favorite childhood authors. It tells the story of a young girl who is trying to celebrate the holidays season but is upset about her best friends father dying of cancer as well as wondering about the existence of Santa Clause. She does actually get to meet Santa and even ask him for a favor as well as make new discoveries about things she once thought she knew and even learns a lesson in the end of you can't always get what you want. This book is especially for those who are a fan of Ann Martin's writing style and just any kid looking for a short but sweet chapter book talking about the holiday season and lessons we can learn from it.
3. The Nutcracker by E.T.A Hoffman with illustrations by Don Daily
There have been many printed editions of this ballet. My favorite though is the one with illustrations by Don Daily. While the story of a girl on Christmas getting a nutcracker and it coming to life in her dreams and taking her to a magical world, is a beautiful and creative store in itself, the illustration in this edition of the book are extraordinary. The painted pictures are gorgeous and make the characters of Clara and the sugar plum fairies look almost life like. These are all painted pictures and Don Daily does a brilliant jobs of creating paintings that help to bring the story to life. If you are a fan of the ballet or even just a fan of the story and gorgeous illustrations, I 100% recommend this edition of the book to you.
2. The Polar Express
This is not only one of my favorite Christmas books, but one of my favorite childhood stories ever.The movie is even probably one if not my favorite holiday movie. The story is of a young boy who is having trouble believing in Santa Claus. On Christmas eve he gets picked up by a train holding other kids all heading to the North Pole. It is said Santa will choose one child to be given whatever gift they ask for on that night. The boy is chosen and chooses something very unique and special representing the belief someone has for Santa and the season all together. I won't give away the ending but I really do recommend that this book become a classic to read in your home during the holidays. Especially if you are a fan of the movie or beautifully illustrated stories.
1. The Night Before Christmas
The Night Before Christmas is a cliche holiday book pick, but because it is so timeless and classic does not mean it is bad. The story is just what it says, about what happens on Christmas Eve. From children sleeping to milk and cookies to Santa on his sleigh, everything that happens on this magical night. It is a timeless classic that every Christmas loving person should read at least one Christmas Eve. What more can I say then :Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night,"
-Jessica
Wednesday, December 24, 2014
Monday, November 17, 2014
Afterworlds Review
Dear Readers,
I recently read the book Afterworlds and had some interesting thoughts on the book after reading. The book is written by Scott Westerfeld (Author of the Uglies Series) and is split into two parts. The first part is about a girl named Darcy and her experience after getting a 50K publishing deal after writing a young adult novel in a month. She moves to New York City to meet other authors and use that time to write the sequel to her book. The second part of the novel is the actual story that she wrote which is about Lizzie, a teenager who after almost getting harmed in a terrorist attack discovers that she has ability to travel to place called Afterworlds, talk to ghost, and basically become a ghost herself.
Darcy's Story
The Main story is about Darcy and her experience in New York City. I enjoyed this part immensely because of how much I enjoy writing and New York City. I enjoyed the Meta part of this novel as well because it pokes fun at many different authors and writing related events and activities ( John Green Spoof, Nanowrimo Spoof, etc.). Besides the references to relevant authors and writing activities, Darcy having an actual reason to live in an expensive apartment in Manhattan and actually having a realistic budget and money concern (unlike Sex and The City or Glee), and writers real struggles of controversy, worry about book releases, and writers block; something I really enjoy about this book is Darcy's nontraditional love interest. Darcy is a lesbian and falls in love with a fellow writer Imogene. Darcy and Imogene's relationship and struggle in the book is kinda cliche, but creative elements to the story make their relationship something worth enjoying. I really enjoy Darcy' story line because I feel it really does go into the actuality of being a up and coming author at such a young age. Darcy is a very likable character and I like how Darcy uses things from her own life to help create her soon to be published book.
Lizzie's Story
The Lizzy story was less appealing to me. I like sci-fi and fantasy books, but I am very picky about the kinds I read. It has to have a interesting, but understandable story. While the story was interesting, it felt a bit too complicated for me. As far as I can tell the story is about a girl named Lizzie who discovers she can travel to a place called the Afterworld and talk to ghost. She ends up meeting Yamaraj, a cute boy who is like her in the sense that he has powers like her, meets the ghost of her moms childhood friend named Mindy, and tries to help get revenge on Mindy's killer as well as stop a man trying to capture Mindy and other ghost. The story is confusing and kinda skip worthy. In all honesty I was trying to speed read through those portions of the book. That may be though because of my pickyness with fantasy literature. If you like fantasy content you may enjoy this, it just was not my cup of tea.
Final Verdict
Afterworlds is a good book, though I don't think it is my favorite I did enjoy it a lot. I liked seeing Darcy's experiences as a New York City author. I enjoyed her and Imogene's relationship even if it did contain a lot of cliche tropes of typical straight relationships. The fantasy book is okay and decent at best, but the Darcy story line makes up for it. I did however, in the fantasy part, enjoy Mindy and Lizzie's friendship. All in all I would recommend this book, I don't know if I will be re reading it again anytime soon but if you like romance, fantasy, realistic fictions, drama, and meta-ness, then I suggest this book would be to your liking.
-Jessica
I recently read the book Afterworlds and had some interesting thoughts on the book after reading. The book is written by Scott Westerfeld (Author of the Uglies Series) and is split into two parts. The first part is about a girl named Darcy and her experience after getting a 50K publishing deal after writing a young adult novel in a month. She moves to New York City to meet other authors and use that time to write the sequel to her book. The second part of the novel is the actual story that she wrote which is about Lizzie, a teenager who after almost getting harmed in a terrorist attack discovers that she has ability to travel to place called Afterworlds, talk to ghost, and basically become a ghost herself.
Darcy's Story
The Main story is about Darcy and her experience in New York City. I enjoyed this part immensely because of how much I enjoy writing and New York City. I enjoyed the Meta part of this novel as well because it pokes fun at many different authors and writing related events and activities ( John Green Spoof, Nanowrimo Spoof, etc.). Besides the references to relevant authors and writing activities, Darcy having an actual reason to live in an expensive apartment in Manhattan and actually having a realistic budget and money concern (unlike Sex and The City or Glee), and writers real struggles of controversy, worry about book releases, and writers block; something I really enjoy about this book is Darcy's nontraditional love interest. Darcy is a lesbian and falls in love with a fellow writer Imogene. Darcy and Imogene's relationship and struggle in the book is kinda cliche, but creative elements to the story make their relationship something worth enjoying. I really enjoy Darcy' story line because I feel it really does go into the actuality of being a up and coming author at such a young age. Darcy is a very likable character and I like how Darcy uses things from her own life to help create her soon to be published book.
Lizzie's Story
The Lizzy story was less appealing to me. I like sci-fi and fantasy books, but I am very picky about the kinds I read. It has to have a interesting, but understandable story. While the story was interesting, it felt a bit too complicated for me. As far as I can tell the story is about a girl named Lizzie who discovers she can travel to a place called the Afterworld and talk to ghost. She ends up meeting Yamaraj, a cute boy who is like her in the sense that he has powers like her, meets the ghost of her moms childhood friend named Mindy, and tries to help get revenge on Mindy's killer as well as stop a man trying to capture Mindy and other ghost. The story is confusing and kinda skip worthy. In all honesty I was trying to speed read through those portions of the book. That may be though because of my pickyness with fantasy literature. If you like fantasy content you may enjoy this, it just was not my cup of tea.
Final Verdict
Afterworlds is a good book, though I don't think it is my favorite I did enjoy it a lot. I liked seeing Darcy's experiences as a New York City author. I enjoyed her and Imogene's relationship even if it did contain a lot of cliche tropes of typical straight relationships. The fantasy book is okay and decent at best, but the Darcy story line makes up for it. I did however, in the fantasy part, enjoy Mindy and Lizzie's friendship. All in all I would recommend this book, I don't know if I will be re reading it again anytime soon but if you like romance, fantasy, realistic fictions, drama, and meta-ness, then I suggest this book would be to your liking.
-Jessica
Monday, November 3, 2014
Nanowrimo! What it is and Why you should Participate
Dear Readers,
November is almost upon us and that means football and turkey dinner for most people, for inspiring writers though it means something else as well. It means National Novel Writing Month or "Nanowrimo." Nanowrimo is also the name of a national novel writing competition. The goal is the write a book that is at least 50,000 words in 30 days. I have already started writing mine and have tries to make myself a goal of 1,00-2,000 words a day at least.
Why should I participate?
One of the hardest parts of writing is finding an idea as well as keeping yourself motivated to a certain idea and to keep on writing. With Nanowrimo it gives you a deadline, a higher goal, and a chance to help you stay on top of your writing. It also can help you achieve your goal of being a published author if you win.
What is the prize?
The prizes vary to book deals, publications, subscriptions to certain programs to help with writing,etc. The prizes vary as well as the ways to win. The main goal is to help finish writing a book. If you can do that than it will feel much more rewarding even if you do not win.
Remember, just because you do not win does not mean you can not try to have your book published. After finishing it you can always send it to publishers, self publish, or keep it for yourself. You can do whatever you want. It is your book and you should feel happy and accomplished with completing it.
-Jessica
November is almost upon us and that means football and turkey dinner for most people, for inspiring writers though it means something else as well. It means National Novel Writing Month or "Nanowrimo." Nanowrimo is also the name of a national novel writing competition. The goal is the write a book that is at least 50,000 words in 30 days. I have already started writing mine and have tries to make myself a goal of 1,00-2,000 words a day at least.
Why should I participate?
One of the hardest parts of writing is finding an idea as well as keeping yourself motivated to a certain idea and to keep on writing. With Nanowrimo it gives you a deadline, a higher goal, and a chance to help you stay on top of your writing. It also can help you achieve your goal of being a published author if you win.
What is the prize?
The prizes vary to book deals, publications, subscriptions to certain programs to help with writing,etc. The prizes vary as well as the ways to win. The main goal is to help finish writing a book. If you can do that than it will feel much more rewarding even if you do not win.
Remember, just because you do not win does not mean you can not try to have your book published. After finishing it you can always send it to publishers, self publish, or keep it for yourself. You can do whatever you want. It is your book and you should feel happy and accomplished with completing it.
-Jessica
Thursday, October 2, 2014
My Favorite Childhood Book Series and Books
Dear Readers,
I apologize for the long wait, I have been creating a new blog that needed my attention. This is a fashion blog I have created, if anyone wants to read it here is the link: http://cutfromsamecloth.blogspot.com/
Anyway, I wanted to make a post about my favorite childhood books and book series.These books are the ones that I read in elementary school mostly ( except the 5th one which I read in elementary and middle school) Books were a large part of my childhood and I wanted to make a post to share with you my favorite books and book series of my younger years. So lets begin:
5. Judy Blume Novels
While that may be a strange place to start, I remember my love of Judy Blume from when I first read the Fudge books. Later I moved onto the classic "Are you there God, It's Me Margret" (Aka a book that I believe almost every preteen girl in the read at least once in their life) and my personal favorite "Starring Sally J. Freedman as Herself."Judy Blume is someone who I grew up reading, from her fudge books to Forever ( did not read that until High School). She is an author who will always have a special place in my heart and on my shelf.
4. Magic Tree House Series
When I was younger next to my number 1 book pick this was the series I read most in elementary school was The Magic Tree House series,The series is about two children who find a tree house in the woods that is filled with books. Once inside they realize that the tree house in magic and that all that books in the tree house can transport them to different times and worlds. They can open a book about dinosaurs and be transported to the Jurassic age or open about space and be transported to the moon. The stories and possibilities were endless and I loved it. My favorite I think was the one with Pompeii, it was educational, interesting, and adventurous all at the same time. I also liked the Shakespeare one and how they kinda change history by making Annie be able to play one of the roles even though girls were not originally allowed to be in plays during that time (at least I believe that is part of the plot of the book). This series is definitely something that I will always remember from my childhood
3. The Polar Express
Polar Express is one of my favorite books I ever read when I was little and something I always have to read and watch every Christmas time. The book is about a magical train that comes on Christmas eve to take kids to see Santa. There, Santa will choose one child and ask him what he wants for Christmas and they will get their wish. The book is a sweet book, with beautiful painted illustrations to go with the words. It is a Christmas classic with a pretty sweet message at the end ( won't spoil it for people who are interested in reading the book). I recommend giving it a read this holiday season to a younger child, sister, brother, or even just yourself.
2. The Kissing Hand
If there is one picture book I remember as a child it is The Kissing Hand. The book is something that my mother read to me the first day of kindergarten. The book is about a raccoon and his mother. The young raccoon is scared to leave his mom to go to school, so the raccoon's mother kisses the palm of her child's hand and says that he know has the kissing hand. This means that whenever he misses her he can look at his palm and remember that his mothers kiss is there and that she is always with him. My own mother actually did the same thing with me on my first day of kindergarten. So while this story has sentimental value to it for me, it is also a cute and nice book with beautiful full page illustrations to accompany the story. If you ever want to know what to read a child on his or her first day of school, I would definitely recommend this book.
And My #1 book series or book as a child...
1. Junie B. Jones Series
As surprising as it may sound I was not always a reader. I used to have to be bribed by my mother to read for 15 minutes when I was younger. Then I discovered the Junie B Jones. The book series changed my life. It was a series that started off my love of reading. The books are about a young Kindergartner by the name of Junie B. Jones, she is cute, funny, annoying at times, and totally relatable to me. I believe that the reason I first did not enjoy reading is because I could not find a book I could relate to and really enjoy. This book I immensely enjoyed and would spend afternoon after afternoon reading. For my birthday, Christmas, and even just random days I would ask my dad or mom to buy me one if we were in Walmart. I think I probably got everyone out of the library and god, I even went to a Junie B. Jones smelly Bus tour ( which had an actress dress up as Junie B. Jones and her kindergarten bus driver and talk to us) at a book store ( which I would like to thank my parents for taking me to even though the book store was most likely an hour or so away because I had never been to it). This book series set off my love of reading and for that I am eternally grateful.
-Jessica
I apologize for the long wait, I have been creating a new blog that needed my attention. This is a fashion blog I have created, if anyone wants to read it here is the link: http://cutfromsamecloth.blogspot.com/
Anyway, I wanted to make a post about my favorite childhood books and book series.These books are the ones that I read in elementary school mostly ( except the 5th one which I read in elementary and middle school) Books were a large part of my childhood and I wanted to make a post to share with you my favorite books and book series of my younger years. So lets begin:
5. Judy Blume Novels
While that may be a strange place to start, I remember my love of Judy Blume from when I first read the Fudge books. Later I moved onto the classic "Are you there God, It's Me Margret" (Aka a book that I believe almost every preteen girl in the read at least once in their life) and my personal favorite "Starring Sally J. Freedman as Herself."Judy Blume is someone who I grew up reading, from her fudge books to Forever ( did not read that until High School). She is an author who will always have a special place in my heart and on my shelf.
4. Magic Tree House Series
When I was younger next to my number 1 book pick this was the series I read most in elementary school was The Magic Tree House series,The series is about two children who find a tree house in the woods that is filled with books. Once inside they realize that the tree house in magic and that all that books in the tree house can transport them to different times and worlds. They can open a book about dinosaurs and be transported to the Jurassic age or open about space and be transported to the moon. The stories and possibilities were endless and I loved it. My favorite I think was the one with Pompeii, it was educational, interesting, and adventurous all at the same time. I also liked the Shakespeare one and how they kinda change history by making Annie be able to play one of the roles even though girls were not originally allowed to be in plays during that time (at least I believe that is part of the plot of the book). This series is definitely something that I will always remember from my childhood
3. The Polar Express
Polar Express is one of my favorite books I ever read when I was little and something I always have to read and watch every Christmas time. The book is about a magical train that comes on Christmas eve to take kids to see Santa. There, Santa will choose one child and ask him what he wants for Christmas and they will get their wish. The book is a sweet book, with beautiful painted illustrations to go with the words. It is a Christmas classic with a pretty sweet message at the end ( won't spoil it for people who are interested in reading the book). I recommend giving it a read this holiday season to a younger child, sister, brother, or even just yourself.
2. The Kissing Hand
If there is one picture book I remember as a child it is The Kissing Hand. The book is something that my mother read to me the first day of kindergarten. The book is about a raccoon and his mother. The young raccoon is scared to leave his mom to go to school, so the raccoon's mother kisses the palm of her child's hand and says that he know has the kissing hand. This means that whenever he misses her he can look at his palm and remember that his mothers kiss is there and that she is always with him. My own mother actually did the same thing with me on my first day of kindergarten. So while this story has sentimental value to it for me, it is also a cute and nice book with beautiful full page illustrations to accompany the story. If you ever want to know what to read a child on his or her first day of school, I would definitely recommend this book.
And My #1 book series or book as a child...
1. Junie B. Jones Series
As surprising as it may sound I was not always a reader. I used to have to be bribed by my mother to read for 15 minutes when I was younger. Then I discovered the Junie B Jones. The book series changed my life. It was a series that started off my love of reading. The books are about a young Kindergartner by the name of Junie B. Jones, she is cute, funny, annoying at times, and totally relatable to me. I believe that the reason I first did not enjoy reading is because I could not find a book I could relate to and really enjoy. This book I immensely enjoyed and would spend afternoon after afternoon reading. For my birthday, Christmas, and even just random days I would ask my dad or mom to buy me one if we were in Walmart. I think I probably got everyone out of the library and god, I even went to a Junie B. Jones smelly Bus tour ( which had an actress dress up as Junie B. Jones and her kindergarten bus driver and talk to us) at a book store ( which I would like to thank my parents for taking me to even though the book store was most likely an hour or so away because I had never been to it). This book series set off my love of reading and for that I am eternally grateful.
-Jessica
Friday, September 12, 2014
James Frey, Full Fathom Five, and Why I am Torn
Dear Readers,
Note: Sorry this is later than expected, school work has been hell but here is the post I promised.
So you know that song Torn by Natalie Imbruglia. That song pretty much describes how I am feeling about James Frey, Full Fathom Five, and his new book.
Jame Frey
James Frey is a very controversial author who has published a book A Million Little Pieces. The book was a hit after Oprah started supporting it and slapped her book club sticker on it. The problem, the book was sold as a memoir but actually was mostly fictitious. James Frey had lied about the events in the book and was even called out about it live on Oprah's show. It seems after you have been publicly humiliated and outed as a impostor of a writer on live TV you would have the decency to apologize and not do anything like this again, but with James Frey it gets worse.
The Full Fathom Five
The Full Fathom Five is a publishing company that is basically, in my opinion, a scam and sweatshop for authors. Full Fathom Five is basically a company that publishes books and is in the package publishing business. The book packaging business is not new and has been going on since like Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys books were published. Book packaging is pretty much a group of ghost writers. Now I do not have any problems with book packaging companies itself, this one in particular really gets under my skin. Full Fathom Five basically is a company that signs new writers who dream of having their names in print and on the cover of a book. The problem: They only pay the writers about 250 dollars to complete the book and a percentage of the revenue from the book like any movie deals (40% is idea was thought up by author and 30% if it was Frey's idea from the beginning). The writer does not own the copyright, but does have to deal with any legal action made towards them even if they don't own the copyright. The writers also do not have any control over their publicity, biographical content, or photographs. The writers associated with the company also are not allowed to admit publicly to working with company without the Full Fathom Five permission or they will receive a 500,000 dollar fine.
Why I am Torn?
While I do not like James Frey and believe Full Fathom Five is taking advantage of young hopeful writers who usually sign with them because they want to get their work published, I really am interested in a book that James Frey is coming out with. It is called Endgame: The Calling by James Frey. The book seems at first like a knock off of the hunger games books ( which after looking at the synopsis I can see why people would believe that), but the twist is the books actually are interactive. Inside their are puzzles to complete for the readers. The reader reads the book, but also solves the puzzle. I have even seen and heard some people getting little clues sent to them from the company like puzzles to solve to find more clues. The readers will play along with the game and solve the puzzles to find more clues, the grand prize for the first person to complete all the puzzles and win the competition: 500,000 dollars in gold coins! Now some of you may be saying to yourself: "Screw what Jessica is saying, I am gonna pre-order this book so I can win 500,000 dollars." I advise you though not to do that ( reasons being what I have said previously about James Frey and Full Fathom Five as well as the fact that chances of winning those contest are maybe around or a little better than the chances of winning the lottery). The pros of these books I will admit are appealing, the puzzles and interactive aspect seem new and interesting to me and of course the grand prize is probably something that some people could only dream of obtaining. The cons though are the fact that Jame Frey has proven to be a sketchy and not always trustworthy in my opinion. I have also read that the book is a knock off of the hunger games and is somewhat poorly written ( these are from mixed reviews at goodread.com from people who had gotten early copies of the book). Some have said it is good but many have mixed reviews or negative remarks to say about it. So while the interactive aspect of the series does appeal to me greatly, I am still unsure about purchasing this book and completing the interactive elements because of my dislike for James Frey and Full Fathom Five, as well as the fact that I may just not like the book when I read it.
Decision:
I think I am gonna spend my money elsewhere and wait till the book has been out for a while and see what others think. If the book turns out to have a positive reaction by society, I then may decide to possibly give it a go ( If I can let my dislike for James Frey and Full Fathom Five go, which will be a pretty hard task). For right now though I think I am going to be sticking to reading and purchasing other books that are not from the Full Fathom Five.
-Jessica
PS. Here is a link to a list of books Full Fathom Five has published if anyone is interested in boycotting them like I am ( which is kinda a shame because I was planning on reading one of the books called Dorothy Must Die)
Full Fathom Five Book List Link: http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/45872.Full_Fathom_Five
Sources:
Note: Sorry this is later than expected, school work has been hell but here is the post I promised.
So you know that song Torn by Natalie Imbruglia. That song pretty much describes how I am feeling about James Frey, Full Fathom Five, and his new book.
Jame Frey
James Frey is a very controversial author who has published a book A Million Little Pieces. The book was a hit after Oprah started supporting it and slapped her book club sticker on it. The problem, the book was sold as a memoir but actually was mostly fictitious. James Frey had lied about the events in the book and was even called out about it live on Oprah's show. It seems after you have been publicly humiliated and outed as a impostor of a writer on live TV you would have the decency to apologize and not do anything like this again, but with James Frey it gets worse.
The Full Fathom Five
The Full Fathom Five is a publishing company that is basically, in my opinion, a scam and sweatshop for authors. Full Fathom Five is basically a company that publishes books and is in the package publishing business. The book packaging business is not new and has been going on since like Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys books were published. Book packaging is pretty much a group of ghost writers. Now I do not have any problems with book packaging companies itself, this one in particular really gets under my skin. Full Fathom Five basically is a company that signs new writers who dream of having their names in print and on the cover of a book. The problem: They only pay the writers about 250 dollars to complete the book and a percentage of the revenue from the book like any movie deals (40% is idea was thought up by author and 30% if it was Frey's idea from the beginning). The writer does not own the copyright, but does have to deal with any legal action made towards them even if they don't own the copyright. The writers also do not have any control over their publicity, biographical content, or photographs. The writers associated with the company also are not allowed to admit publicly to working with company without the Full Fathom Five permission or they will receive a 500,000 dollar fine.
Why I am Torn?
While I do not like James Frey and believe Full Fathom Five is taking advantage of young hopeful writers who usually sign with them because they want to get their work published, I really am interested in a book that James Frey is coming out with. It is called Endgame: The Calling by James Frey. The book seems at first like a knock off of the hunger games books ( which after looking at the synopsis I can see why people would believe that), but the twist is the books actually are interactive. Inside their are puzzles to complete for the readers. The reader reads the book, but also solves the puzzle. I have even seen and heard some people getting little clues sent to them from the company like puzzles to solve to find more clues. The readers will play along with the game and solve the puzzles to find more clues, the grand prize for the first person to complete all the puzzles and win the competition: 500,000 dollars in gold coins! Now some of you may be saying to yourself: "Screw what Jessica is saying, I am gonna pre-order this book so I can win 500,000 dollars." I advise you though not to do that ( reasons being what I have said previously about James Frey and Full Fathom Five as well as the fact that chances of winning those contest are maybe around or a little better than the chances of winning the lottery). The pros of these books I will admit are appealing, the puzzles and interactive aspect seem new and interesting to me and of course the grand prize is probably something that some people could only dream of obtaining. The cons though are the fact that Jame Frey has proven to be a sketchy and not always trustworthy in my opinion. I have also read that the book is a knock off of the hunger games and is somewhat poorly written ( these are from mixed reviews at goodread.com from people who had gotten early copies of the book). Some have said it is good but many have mixed reviews or negative remarks to say about it. So while the interactive aspect of the series does appeal to me greatly, I am still unsure about purchasing this book and completing the interactive elements because of my dislike for James Frey and Full Fathom Five, as well as the fact that I may just not like the book when I read it.
Decision:
I think I am gonna spend my money elsewhere and wait till the book has been out for a while and see what others think. If the book turns out to have a positive reaction by society, I then may decide to possibly give it a go ( If I can let my dislike for James Frey and Full Fathom Five go, which will be a pretty hard task). For right now though I think I am going to be sticking to reading and purchasing other books that are not from the Full Fathom Five.
-Jessica
PS. Here is a link to a list of books Full Fathom Five has published if anyone is interested in boycotting them like I am ( which is kinda a shame because I was planning on reading one of the books called Dorothy Must Die)
Full Fathom Five Book List Link: http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/45872.Full_Fathom_Five
Sources:
- http://nymag.com/arts/books/features/69474/index2.html
- http://www.coastreporter.net/photos-videos/james-frey-s-new-young-adult-book-project-includes-gold-coin-payouts-of-more-than-500-000-1.1127640
- http://www.snugglyoranges.com/2014/01/full-fathom-five-boycott-books/
Tuesday, September 9, 2014
Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (and other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling Book Review
Dear Readers,
I know I said I was going to do a review for the book Firecracker, but I had to write this review for an amazingly hilarious book I just read. That book is Mindy Kaling's memoir/biography "Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (and other concerns). The book is written by Emmy Nominated writer and actress Mindy Kaling. Mindy has written and stared in shows such as The Office and The Mindy Project. In the book Mindy recounts memories from her childhood, how she got into comedy writing and acting, her journey so far in the acting business, and even little bits about Mindy and her opinions about everything from men to how she wants her funeral to be. Mindy is honestly a hilarious and funny writer. The book had be laughing out loud which not since The Fault In Our Stars have I laughed out loud while reading a book ( I laughed at some funny parts of TFIOS, so if you are wondering why I was laughing at a book that is known for being sad, but good that is why). I really wish I could write more on this book but It honestly is a speak for itself kind of book. You have to read it yourself to really understand how entertaining this book really is. I love Mindy and cant wait for Mindy Project to return (one more week after new girl season premier, my favorite TV show by the way) as well as see any new TV shows, movies, books, etc. that Mindy may be completing. All in all it was a really good book and I hope you readers think so too.
picture source link: http://lifeofafemalebibliophile.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/is-everyone-hanging-out-with-me-and-other-concers.jpg
4.5 stars out of 5.
-Jessica
PS. There is a second post I will probably be making today or tomorrow. It is about being torn about James Frey, Full Fathom Five, and this book that he is publishing that I am torn about reading. If you don't know about James Frey you can google him and the controversy surrounding him and the Full Fathom Five ( which I will explain in my post but if you want to do some research before you read my post by all mean please do). Please leave comments as well about your opinion on this post and the post I will be making later today or tomorrow.
I know I said I was going to do a review for the book Firecracker, but I had to write this review for an amazingly hilarious book I just read. That book is Mindy Kaling's memoir/biography "Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (and other concerns). The book is written by Emmy Nominated writer and actress Mindy Kaling. Mindy has written and stared in shows such as The Office and The Mindy Project. In the book Mindy recounts memories from her childhood, how she got into comedy writing and acting, her journey so far in the acting business, and even little bits about Mindy and her opinions about everything from men to how she wants her funeral to be. Mindy is honestly a hilarious and funny writer. The book had be laughing out loud which not since The Fault In Our Stars have I laughed out loud while reading a book ( I laughed at some funny parts of TFIOS, so if you are wondering why I was laughing at a book that is known for being sad, but good that is why). I really wish I could write more on this book but It honestly is a speak for itself kind of book. You have to read it yourself to really understand how entertaining this book really is. I love Mindy and cant wait for Mindy Project to return (one more week after new girl season premier, my favorite TV show by the way) as well as see any new TV shows, movies, books, etc. that Mindy may be completing. All in all it was a really good book and I hope you readers think so too.
picture source link: http://lifeofafemalebibliophile.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/is-everyone-hanging-out-with-me-and-other-concers.jpg
4.5 stars out of 5.
-Jessica
PS. There is a second post I will probably be making today or tomorrow. It is about being torn about James Frey, Full Fathom Five, and this book that he is publishing that I am torn about reading. If you don't know about James Frey you can google him and the controversy surrounding him and the Full Fathom Five ( which I will explain in my post but if you want to do some research before you read my post by all mean please do). Please leave comments as well about your opinion on this post and the post I will be making later today or tomorrow.
Thursday, August 28, 2014
Apology
Dear Readers,
Hey guys college just started so I am gonna be super busy with homework and classwork. I am however currently in the middle of a good book called Firecracker by David Iserson. He has written for SNL and my favorite TV show New Girl. When I have time and finish the book I will be posting a review of it. Please BTW comment below about this blog or the books you recommend I should read or whatever. I will hopefully be able to post my review of the book in a week or so but that is at the earliest.
Thanks for understanding and please comment below with questions, concerns, positivity, constructive criticism, or whatever you want.
Thanks,
-Jessica
Hey guys college just started so I am gonna be super busy with homework and classwork. I am however currently in the middle of a good book called Firecracker by David Iserson. He has written for SNL and my favorite TV show New Girl. When I have time and finish the book I will be posting a review of it. Please BTW comment below about this blog or the books you recommend I should read or whatever. I will hopefully be able to post my review of the book in a week or so but that is at the earliest.
Thanks for understanding and please comment below with questions, concerns, positivity, constructive criticism, or whatever you want.
Thanks,
-Jessica
Friday, August 15, 2014
College Book Haul
Dear Readers,
Ahh college...an average of four years of schooling that cost thousands of dollars and will in return provide you with a piece of paper that can hopefully help land you a job, I digress though, I am not saying all college is bad. I mean I am one of the people going to it so why would I bag on it so much. These are honestly what I believe are normal thoughts of an average kid who is going to attend college these days. This post is not to list the pros and cons of college though. It is to discuss books. College books are books that I don't actually want to buy. Now before you freak out and call me a hypocrite let me explain why and what college books I actually do want to buy. Now I am someone who rarely passes up the option to buy a book, if I am at a Barnes and Nobles or a consignment store, the chances are I will end up purchasing at least one book if I have money. College books though are different. The books have rental options and because college is expensive as it is with tuition alone and unless it is a book you really will need/want ( like for your major) or have no other option but to buy it, most people will rent their books. I did a mixture of both for my first year at community college ( I will be here a year or two before I transfer to another school to get my four year degree), I hope to be able to rent most of my books next semester to help save money.
Anyway, I want to talk about my college books and what I got. I know many of my readers may be wondering what is so interesting about college books. The answer is that the books I got are not actually all boring, dull, text books, but plays, guides, memoirs, and books I feel I can actually use in the future of my writing career. Let me first star off by saying I am a Communications/Journalism major. So I am gonna be really exited and intrigued by the writing books I purchased or rented, rather than some people may. I'd also like to get the "boring books" that I deemed not very topical or worthy of long explanations. The first was my math book. I am going to be taking Math 011 and had to purchase a new book for it. At first I didn't understand exactly why I needed a new book and why my only option was to purchase it new rather than having options to rent or purchase the book. I learned today when my books came that It was because it was a workbook that my assignments would be in. Oh and I purchased a calculator Yeah...I told you it was boring.
For my English stuff it gets a bit more interesting. I rented two books and bought the third one. The two books I rented were both novels that seem fairly interesting. The one book is Girl Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen, which I have already read and seen most of the movie. I thought it was decent when I read it. I am excited to read it again though. The only problem is if you do rent or buy used, just remember you may have to deal with pen or highlighted areas in the book. That is the issue with my copy, it has many pages with pen markings and side notes on it. While I would not mind a few pages or just highlighting throughout my book, it has at least 50% of the pages with markings on it. It will be a bit annoying, but it is not that bad considering It is a used rental that I paid way less money for compared to if I had bought the book. The second book I rented for my school was a play called The Elephant Man by Bernard Pomerance. Though I have not read it, the book looks interesting and as far as I can tell is about a man who has some kind of deformity and while in the hospital meets someone who tries to help them in life. That is a rough description, but a somewhat accurate one I believe. It seems to remind me of the musical My Fair Lady ( which was based on the book Pygmalion by the way). The copy I got look almost new, even though it was used which can be a fun surprise for some who are renting or purchasing used books. The final book I got for English was an English Writing reference guide. It is a spiral book I bought used that was made specifically for my school. The book is spiral bond and includes tabs that when you turn to certain pages will tell you about how to write in MLA or APA format or about researching, word choice, sentence structure,etc. I bought the book because in the future I think it will be a good reference guide for me to look at for writing, especially if I will be taking more writing courses.
My favorite books I got are definitely for my communications major. The first class I got two books. One I bought and the other I rented. The book I bought for my first Communications class was The Associated Press Stylebook. This book I recommend to anyone going into journalism or PR or some kind of news/media writing career. In the book the first is like a journalism dictionary. You can find almost any word and the description will tell you if you should capitalize it, explain it for the readers, don't have to explain it for the readers, how you should word something,etc. At first glance this stuff may seem like common sense, but you would be surprised when it comes to how certain words should be written to be professional.The book also talks about media law, terms I should know, and resources I can use in my writing or to learn more. I purchased the book because I believe it would help me not just during my college years, but after I graduate and could be used as a reference for later on in my career. The book I rented for the class was the book Writing for the Mass Media. The book is basically self explanatory, It goes over writing in all different forms from newspapers or twitter. It talks about how to write news stories and different kinds, guidelines to follow when writing, and exercises for writing practice, as well as helping you to become a better writer. For my second Communications class I just needed to rent one book entitled Key Readings in Media Today. The book again tells me the types and ways to write news stories, but also is filled with research about different news and media in the past as well as today. All the books I bought or rented for my communications classes seem fascinating and I can not wait to read them.
College is a new experience and so far I am excited about the subjects I will be learning (well except math, but at least most of the math looks algebraic which I am pretty good at). The books, I hope will help me in my journey to becoming a real writer that can hopefully one day see there name on the byline of the front page of a newspaper or byline of a magazine story (or internet news story depending on how technology and print news are in the future).
Thank you
-Jessica
Ahh college...an average of four years of schooling that cost thousands of dollars and will in return provide you with a piece of paper that can hopefully help land you a job, I digress though, I am not saying all college is bad. I mean I am one of the people going to it so why would I bag on it so much. These are honestly what I believe are normal thoughts of an average kid who is going to attend college these days. This post is not to list the pros and cons of college though. It is to discuss books. College books are books that I don't actually want to buy. Now before you freak out and call me a hypocrite let me explain why and what college books I actually do want to buy. Now I am someone who rarely passes up the option to buy a book, if I am at a Barnes and Nobles or a consignment store, the chances are I will end up purchasing at least one book if I have money. College books though are different. The books have rental options and because college is expensive as it is with tuition alone and unless it is a book you really will need/want ( like for your major) or have no other option but to buy it, most people will rent their books. I did a mixture of both for my first year at community college ( I will be here a year or two before I transfer to another school to get my four year degree), I hope to be able to rent most of my books next semester to help save money.
Anyway, I want to talk about my college books and what I got. I know many of my readers may be wondering what is so interesting about college books. The answer is that the books I got are not actually all boring, dull, text books, but plays, guides, memoirs, and books I feel I can actually use in the future of my writing career. Let me first star off by saying I am a Communications/Journalism major. So I am gonna be really exited and intrigued by the writing books I purchased or rented, rather than some people may. I'd also like to get the "boring books" that I deemed not very topical or worthy of long explanations. The first was my math book. I am going to be taking Math 011 and had to purchase a new book for it. At first I didn't understand exactly why I needed a new book and why my only option was to purchase it new rather than having options to rent or purchase the book. I learned today when my books came that It was because it was a workbook that my assignments would be in. Oh and I purchased a calculator Yeah...I told you it was boring.
For my English stuff it gets a bit more interesting. I rented two books and bought the third one. The two books I rented were both novels that seem fairly interesting. The one book is Girl Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen, which I have already read and seen most of the movie. I thought it was decent when I read it. I am excited to read it again though. The only problem is if you do rent or buy used, just remember you may have to deal with pen or highlighted areas in the book. That is the issue with my copy, it has many pages with pen markings and side notes on it. While I would not mind a few pages or just highlighting throughout my book, it has at least 50% of the pages with markings on it. It will be a bit annoying, but it is not that bad considering It is a used rental that I paid way less money for compared to if I had bought the book. The second book I rented for my school was a play called The Elephant Man by Bernard Pomerance. Though I have not read it, the book looks interesting and as far as I can tell is about a man who has some kind of deformity and while in the hospital meets someone who tries to help them in life. That is a rough description, but a somewhat accurate one I believe. It seems to remind me of the musical My Fair Lady ( which was based on the book Pygmalion by the way). The copy I got look almost new, even though it was used which can be a fun surprise for some who are renting or purchasing used books. The final book I got for English was an English Writing reference guide. It is a spiral book I bought used that was made specifically for my school. The book is spiral bond and includes tabs that when you turn to certain pages will tell you about how to write in MLA or APA format or about researching, word choice, sentence structure,etc. I bought the book because in the future I think it will be a good reference guide for me to look at for writing, especially if I will be taking more writing courses.
My favorite books I got are definitely for my communications major. The first class I got two books. One I bought and the other I rented. The book I bought for my first Communications class was The Associated Press Stylebook. This book I recommend to anyone going into journalism or PR or some kind of news/media writing career. In the book the first is like a journalism dictionary. You can find almost any word and the description will tell you if you should capitalize it, explain it for the readers, don't have to explain it for the readers, how you should word something,etc. At first glance this stuff may seem like common sense, but you would be surprised when it comes to how certain words should be written to be professional.The book also talks about media law, terms I should know, and resources I can use in my writing or to learn more. I purchased the book because I believe it would help me not just during my college years, but after I graduate and could be used as a reference for later on in my career. The book I rented for the class was the book Writing for the Mass Media. The book is basically self explanatory, It goes over writing in all different forms from newspapers or twitter. It talks about how to write news stories and different kinds, guidelines to follow when writing, and exercises for writing practice, as well as helping you to become a better writer. For my second Communications class I just needed to rent one book entitled Key Readings in Media Today. The book again tells me the types and ways to write news stories, but also is filled with research about different news and media in the past as well as today. All the books I bought or rented for my communications classes seem fascinating and I can not wait to read them.
College is a new experience and so far I am excited about the subjects I will be learning (well except math, but at least most of the math looks algebraic which I am pretty good at). The books, I hope will help me in my journey to becoming a real writer that can hopefully one day see there name on the byline of the front page of a newspaper or byline of a magazine story (or internet news story depending on how technology and print news are in the future).
Thank you
-Jessica
Monday, August 11, 2014
Reviews: Dangerous Girls
Dear Readers,
I'm Baaaaack!
Good morning or afternoon or night wherever or whenever you are reading this, I just got back from my vacation to Cape Cod and it was awesome. Got to see the movie Lucy (which was pretty good), went shopping, ate lots of sea food, and especially read and finished 3 books on the trip. I was able to finish Gone Girl and Prisoner of Night and Fog (please write comments below about which one I should review next), but also buy and read in about a few hours this book that was so full of twist and turns and WTH moments that I just had to write a review to tell all my readers about it. The book is Dangerous Girls by Abigail Haas.
Premise: Basically, the book is about a group of teenager on spring break. Anna, the narrator, Tate, her boyfriend, and Elise her best friend are all on spring break along with their other friends. When going back to their room they find Elise killed in her room. While the others are able to go free, Anna is being held on trial for the murder of Elise. Throughout the book we are shown into the case of the murder as well as what is happening behind the scenes, flashbacks to Anna's life when she met Elise or started dating her boyfriend or during spring break before the murder,other evidence including text messages and maps of the beach house, and even into some of the news interviews on both sides about Anna on either the opinion of how she is a murderer or how she is innocent depending on the point of view of the interviewer. The book has a lot of twist with who you think the villain is, I feel that because of the fact the reader is so focused on the murderer seeming like one person or another, we as readers do not realize the biggest plot twist of all, who the murderer was all along.
This is where I leave all you spoiler free people.I will be making huge spaces in the next few lines to show that I wrote above major spoilers. If you want to see my closing arguments you can read so at the bottom next to words "closing statements:"
Anyway...SPOILER ALERT TO END OF BOOK! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
Spoilers: So I want to talk about the ending of the book cause it is kinda huge. So like I said before all this time you are thinking one person or the other had committed the murder. We start to get hints of the real true murderer in the 2nd to last chapter and finally the last scene and line of the final chapter. First let me remind you the narrator of this first person book is Anna. It is being told from her perspective. So when you find out the murderer you really are shocked to discover Anna was the one who murdered Elise. This is because most people including myself didn't even think of this as a possibility. There were some clues in the book, but most reviews I have seen seem to agree that they had no idea that Anna was the murderer of Elise. The clues in the book were as I said hidden, but the biggest ones were in the last two chapters of the book. The first is when she is going to the grave to put down the necklace that Elise and her each had identical ones to. This necklace is a pentagram (which was mentioned earlier in the novel) and if that does not give you a clue, when she bends down Elise says "I win." When I read that I will admit I was a bit confused because I did not fully comprehend the fact that Anna could very well be the murderer. Then I got to the ending. And that ending...well what can I say but "What did I just read?" I honestly did not comprehend it at first when I read it. I admit I had to look up exactly if she really was the murderer because honestly it felt I was lied to. It felt like everything I had just spent the last few hours reading was a lie. Then I realized that was the point. It was supposed to show us how Anna was such a crazy and psychopathic person that she had been able to trick even the people she was telling the story to (aka us the readers) that any other possibility,besides her being the murderer, was possible. I think that is honestly brilliant on the writers part because it was creative, unique, and unexpected to the reader for the most part. I have never read a book where the murderer was the narrator and did not flat out say it. That twist still has me baffled and I can not wait to read the book again to try to see more signs of Anna actually lying to us because I am sure there are more hidden in the story I have yet to see.
Ending Statement: Alright, if you read the spoiler part thank you and if not thank you still for reading my review. This book is a sadly underrated book I really hope more and more people read This book has an interesting premise, good story line, and a twist ending you don't see coming. I highly recommend this book and give it 4.5 stars. It is not the best book I have ever read or anything, but it is really good and I definitely want to re read the book.
**** 1/2 stars out of *****
- Jessica
 |
| Dangerous Girls Paperback book cover picture link:https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX0GIRCzJXn0sGGs5pdUtjyTrcTJcS0HHvrKqWqLfBTY_Dwdsh5Z0EvSgs88lPAM7ToZD7L1fupmcO6vT1yABksnxNBUrdorYvkiYqMnDSDbCoDxWCabJZFVnk5QDOpf6HLKUKavhUxbbz/s1600/dangerous+girls+pb.jpg |
This is where I leave all you spoiler free people.I will be making huge spaces in the next few lines to show that I wrote above major spoilers. If you want to see my closing arguments you can read so at the bottom next to words "closing statements:"
Anyway...SPOILER ALERT TO END OF BOOK! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
Spoilers: So I want to talk about the ending of the book cause it is kinda huge. So like I said before all this time you are thinking one person or the other had committed the murder. We start to get hints of the real true murderer in the 2nd to last chapter and finally the last scene and line of the final chapter. First let me remind you the narrator of this first person book is Anna. It is being told from her perspective. So when you find out the murderer you really are shocked to discover Anna was the one who murdered Elise. This is because most people including myself didn't even think of this as a possibility. There were some clues in the book, but most reviews I have seen seem to agree that they had no idea that Anna was the murderer of Elise. The clues in the book were as I said hidden, but the biggest ones were in the last two chapters of the book. The first is when she is going to the grave to put down the necklace that Elise and her each had identical ones to. This necklace is a pentagram (which was mentioned earlier in the novel) and if that does not give you a clue, when she bends down Elise says "I win." When I read that I will admit I was a bit confused because I did not fully comprehend the fact that Anna could very well be the murderer. Then I got to the ending. And that ending...well what can I say but "What did I just read?" I honestly did not comprehend it at first when I read it. I admit I had to look up exactly if she really was the murderer because honestly it felt I was lied to. It felt like everything I had just spent the last few hours reading was a lie. Then I realized that was the point. It was supposed to show us how Anna was such a crazy and psychopathic person that she had been able to trick even the people she was telling the story to (aka us the readers) that any other possibility,besides her being the murderer, was possible. I think that is honestly brilliant on the writers part because it was creative, unique, and unexpected to the reader for the most part. I have never read a book where the murderer was the narrator and did not flat out say it. That twist still has me baffled and I can not wait to read the book again to try to see more signs of Anna actually lying to us because I am sure there are more hidden in the story I have yet to see.
Ending Statement: Alright, if you read the spoiler part thank you and if not thank you still for reading my review. This book is a sadly underrated book I really hope more and more people read This book has an interesting premise, good story line, and a twist ending you don't see coming. I highly recommend this book and give it 4.5 stars. It is not the best book I have ever read or anything, but it is really good and I definitely want to re read the book.
**** 1/2 stars out of *****
- Jessica
Monday, July 21, 2014
Book Haul!
Dear Readers,
I was gonna be writing a book review for Conversion maybe or another book, but I wanted to make a post before that with all the books I got lately. I am gonna have to go on a book buying ban soon cause I can't buy anymore books because I already have like 8 I have to read. Anyway this is just a list of books I will be reading and If you guy could suggest which one of these books I should do a review on after reading that would be great.
1. Prisoner of Night and Fog by Anne Blankman
2. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
3. Why we Broke up by Daniel Handler
4. 10 rules for living with my sister by Ann M Martin
5. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews
6. A Girl like Moi by Lisa Barham
7. the summer i turned pretty by Jenny Han
8. The Key to the Golden Firebird by Maureen Johnson
9. 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson
I think those books will probably be enough to last me about the rest of the summer. I hope that they are at least, anyway please write to me and tell me what books our of those you want a review on. I will try to write the review and choose the book according to what you readers say in the comments about which book you want me to read and review. Anyway I will try to post more soon, but I must warn you my life is kinda a little hectic right now with all the stuff I have to do so please be patient.
Thank you
- Jessica
I was gonna be writing a book review for Conversion maybe or another book, but I wanted to make a post before that with all the books I got lately. I am gonna have to go on a book buying ban soon cause I can't buy anymore books because I already have like 8 I have to read. Anyway this is just a list of books I will be reading and If you guy could suggest which one of these books I should do a review on after reading that would be great.
1. Prisoner of Night and Fog by Anne Blankman
2. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
3. Why we Broke up by Daniel Handler
4. 10 rules for living with my sister by Ann M Martin
5. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews
6. A Girl like Moi by Lisa Barham
7. the summer i turned pretty by Jenny Han
8. The Key to the Golden Firebird by Maureen Johnson
9. 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson
I think those books will probably be enough to last me about the rest of the summer. I hope that they are at least, anyway please write to me and tell me what books our of those you want a review on. I will try to write the review and choose the book according to what you readers say in the comments about which book you want me to read and review. Anyway I will try to post more soon, but I must warn you my life is kinda a little hectic right now with all the stuff I have to do so please be patient.
Thank you
- Jessica
Tuesday, July 8, 2014
Anna and the French Kiss Book Review
Book Review #1
Book: Anna and The French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
For my first book review I will be reviewing the book Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins. This book I will admit really surprised me.I think this is one of those books that you should really not judge by its cover. I will admit that when I first saw the cover of this book I was not that impressed. I honestly thought it would be another one of those cliche teen romance type stories. Something where boy meets girl and there is some kind of misunderstanding or love life of one of the two leads that is preventing them from being together and then they get together in the end and live happily ever after.
Now do not get me wrong there are those cliches in the book. What I enjoyed about the book though is there is more to just those teen romance tropes in the book. The book I actually thought was pretty funny and had actually some culture and history in it. Before I get into that I want to talk about the story.
A quick spoiler free synopsis of the book is the story of Anna Oliphant, a senior who hopes to grow up to become a film critic and is happy with her life in Georgia working at a movie theater with her crush. Her life is turned around though when her "Nicholas Sparks writer like dad" ships her off to a boarding school in Paris for her senior year. There Anna meets new friends, new bullies, and Etienne St. Claire, the cute and nice boy who unfortunately has a girlfriend. Anna is torn between her new life in France she has a love/hate relationship with and her crush, best friend, mom, and brother at home. She also had to deal with her crush on St. Claire as well as remember her crush at home.
Upon reading my synopsis you may be thinking "How is this not a cliche teen romance story?" Like I said though it does have those themes of young love rom com type of story, but again it is more than just that. The book is actually really funny. I found myself laughing a few times out loud at some of the situations in the book. Like at one part [Spoiler Alert] St Claire had slept in Anna's room ( nothing actually happened btw) and when he wakes up he accidentally hits her boob.That I thought was funny. Another part of the book that I enjoyed was the parts when the characters were actually in Paris and [Spoiler Alert] St Claire was showing Anna around and explaining about the history of certain places in Paris and even the story of how Rasputin had died.
There is not much to say about this book. Honestly I did enjoy it, I was not a whole fan of some of the cliches but I still enjoyed it. I did not see much chemistry between St. Claire and Anna at first, but as the story went on I started to like them together more and more. I enjoyed Stephanie Perkins writing as well and do want to read Lola and the Boy Next Door and the other books she has written.
3 & 1/2 out of 5 Stars
*** 1/2 out of 5
- Jessica
Book: Anna and The French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
For my first book review I will be reviewing the book Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins. This book I will admit really surprised me.I think this is one of those books that you should really not judge by its cover. I will admit that when I first saw the cover of this book I was not that impressed. I honestly thought it would be another one of those cliche teen romance type stories. Something where boy meets girl and there is some kind of misunderstanding or love life of one of the two leads that is preventing them from being together and then they get together in the end and live happily ever after.
| Anna and French Kiss hardcover cover (left) and paper back cover (right) refrence: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiso-e4Py_tjB-SbUztjQgmE4Ig9pGDtyjhZGA_4Zbr_OeAxl6EjUnP4JAlcF9Jtg-0ng1KdyFKFJfnhwYuKFP9BJYZQpMQIWtCdrkX_u8uqeBG3jZvF2vWbysw49TdRz2aMdL8foxoqbk/s320/anna.jpg |
Now do not get me wrong there are those cliches in the book. What I enjoyed about the book though is there is more to just those teen romance tropes in the book. The book I actually thought was pretty funny and had actually some culture and history in it. Before I get into that I want to talk about the story.
A quick spoiler free synopsis of the book is the story of Anna Oliphant, a senior who hopes to grow up to become a film critic and is happy with her life in Georgia working at a movie theater with her crush. Her life is turned around though when her "Nicholas Sparks writer like dad" ships her off to a boarding school in Paris for her senior year. There Anna meets new friends, new bullies, and Etienne St. Claire, the cute and nice boy who unfortunately has a girlfriend. Anna is torn between her new life in France she has a love/hate relationship with and her crush, best friend, mom, and brother at home. She also had to deal with her crush on St. Claire as well as remember her crush at home.
Upon reading my synopsis you may be thinking "How is this not a cliche teen romance story?" Like I said though it does have those themes of young love rom com type of story, but again it is more than just that. The book is actually really funny. I found myself laughing a few times out loud at some of the situations in the book. Like at one part [Spoiler Alert] St Claire had slept in Anna's room ( nothing actually happened btw) and when he wakes up he accidentally hits her boob.That I thought was funny. Another part of the book that I enjoyed was the parts when the characters were actually in Paris and [Spoiler Alert] St Claire was showing Anna around and explaining about the history of certain places in Paris and even the story of how Rasputin had died.
There is not much to say about this book. Honestly I did enjoy it, I was not a whole fan of some of the cliches but I still enjoyed it. I did not see much chemistry between St. Claire and Anna at first, but as the story went on I started to like them together more and more. I enjoyed Stephanie Perkins writing as well and do want to read Lola and the Boy Next Door and the other books she has written.
3 & 1/2 out of 5 Stars
*** 1/2 out of 5
- Jessica
What I've Read and TBR ( To Be Read)
Hey,
So I thought to help for my readers to get a better idea for what kind of books I enjoy and what I have read and what I will be reading, I thought I would make a list for you guys of the books off the top of my head that I owned the the books that are in my TBR ( to be read) pile. I also wanted to inform you all that I am open to recommendations so if there are any book recommendations you have for me please feel free to tell me.
Books I Have Read ( from my own bookshelf or borrowed)
So I thought to help for my readers to get a better idea for what kind of books I enjoy and what I have read and what I will be reading, I thought I would make a list for you guys of the books off the top of my head that I owned the the books that are in my TBR ( to be read) pile. I also wanted to inform you all that I am open to recommendations so if there are any book recommendations you have for me please feel free to tell me.
Books I Have Read ( from my own bookshelf or borrowed)
- Sing Me to Sleep by Angela Morrison
- Brain on Fire by Susannah Cahalan
- Struck by Lightning by Chris Colfer
- Peeled by Joan Bauer
- Looking for J.J. by Anne Cassidy
- Paper Towns by John Green
- The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
- Elanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell
- Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
- Let It Snow by John Green, Maureen Johnson, and Lauren Myracle
- Geektastic by various authors ( large collaboration of authors worked on this book)
- Looking for Alaska by John Green
- Abundance of Katherines by John Green
- Will Grayson Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan
- Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
- Mango Shaped Space by Wendy Mass
- Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell by Chris Colfer
- Carrie Diaries by Candace Bushnell
- The Book Thief by Mark Zusak
- Diva by Alex Flinn
- Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life by Wendy Mass
- Across the Universe by Ann M Martin
- Penelope by Marilyn Kaye
- Misty of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry
- Mixed of Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Koningsburg
- With you and Without you by Ann M Martin
- Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
- Divergent Trilogy (Divergent, Insurgent, Allegiant) by Veronica Roth
- Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin
- Miss Peregrine's home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs
- Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
- Belle Teal by Ann M Martin
- Glee The Beginning by Sophia Lowell
- Glee Foreign Exchange by Sophia Lowell
- Glee Summer Break by Sophia Lowell
- Heaven looks a lot like the mall by Wendy Mass
- Smile by Raina Telgemeier
- Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen
- Someone like You by Sarah Dessen
- That Summer by Sarah Dessen
- Just Listen by Sarah Dessen
- Dream land by Sarah Dessen
- Matched by Ally Condie
- I'd Tell you I Love You but then I'd have to Kill you by Ally Carter
- The Catastrophic History of You and Me by Jess Roth
- Charlottes Web by E. B. White
- Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
- To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
- The Unauthorized Glee Companion Filled With Glee edited by Leah Wilson
- Don't Stop Believin the unofficial guide to glee by Erin Balser and Suzanne Gardner
- Lily B on the Brink of Cool by Elizabeth Cody Kimmel
- Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
- The Clique book series #1-14 by Lisi Harrison
- Baby Sitters Club by Ann M Martin ( basically I own about 50-75 books in the series)
- The Clique Summer Book: Dylan by Lisi Harrison
- The Clique Summer Book Claire by Lisi Harrison
- The Clique Summer Book: Massie by Lisi Harrison
- Main Street: Welcome to Camden Falls by Ann M Martin
- Main Street: Needle and Thread by Ann M Martin
- Main Street: Tis the Season by Ann M Martin
- Main Street: Best Friends
- Main Street: The Secret Book Club
- Main Street: Summer Surprises
- Main Street: Special Delivery
- Main Street: Coming Apart
- Leap Year by Wendy Mass
- Nancy Drew Series ( I own about 17 of the original books) by Carolyn Keene
- Nancy Drew Files Case 37 Last Dance by Carolyn Keene
- Nancy Drew Files Case 40 Shadow of Douby by Carolyn Keene
- Nancy Drew Files Case 41 Something to Hide by Carolyn Keene
- Nancy Drew Files Case 101 The Picture of Guilt by Carolyn Keene
- Nancy Drew Girl Detective: Without a Trace by Carolyn Keene
- Nancy Drew Girl Detective: A Race Against Time by Carolyn Keene
- Nancy Drew Girl Detective: False Notes by Carolyn Keene
- Nancy Drew Girl Detective: High Risk by Carolyn Keene
- Nancy Drew Girl Detective Super Special Edition (Secrets can Kill,Deadly Intent, Murder on Ice) by Carolyn Keene
- Nancy Drew Super Mystery #2 Once upon a Crime by Carolyn Keene
- Nancy Drew Mystery Stories # 68 The Elusive Heiress
- Nancy Drew on Campus #116 The Case of the Teddy Bear Twins by Carolyn Keene
- Nancy Drew Digest #134 The Secret of The Forgotten Cave by Carolyn Keene
- Nancy Drew Digest # 143 Mystery on Maui by Carolyn Keene
- Nancy Drew Digest # 151 The Chocolate Covered Contest by Carolyn Keene
- Nancy Drew Digest # 162 The Case of the Lost Song by Carolyn Keene
- Nancy Drew Digest #173 Danger on the Great Lakes by Carolyn Keene
- Nancy Drew Digest #175 Werewolf in a Winter Wonderland by Carolyn Keene
- Nancy Drew Ghost Stories by Carolyn Keene
- Nancy Drew Sleuth Book by Carolyn Keene
- Lilly B. on the Brink of Love by Elizabeth Cody Kimmel
- Starring Sally J Freedman as Herself by Judy Blume
- American Girl Series
- Soul Surfer by Bethany Hamilton
- This Star Won't Go Out by Esther Grace Earl
- Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone by J.K Rowling
And that is just books I mostly own, that is not even counting every book I own or the books i have borrowed from the library or from friends and family
To Be Read ( Books I own but are currently sitting in a pile waiting to be read)
- Conversion by Katherine Howe (Currently Reading)
- Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews
- The Summer I turned Pretty by Jenny Han
- The Key to the Golden Firebird by Maureen Johnson
- An Abundance of Katherines by John Green
- Sarah's Key by Tatianna De Rosnay
- The Interns: Truth or Fashion by Chloe Walsh
- Land of Stories: The Enchantress Returns by Chris Colfer
- Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
- The Story of the Trapp Family Singers by Maria Augusta Trapp
- Breaking Night by Liz Murray
Finally, Books I want to read that have not come out yet or books I have not bought from book store yet
- Prisoner of Night and Fog by Anne Blankman
- Everything Leads to You by Nina LaCour
- The Glass Sentence by S.E. Grove
- Find Me by Romily Bernard
- Sisters by Raina Telgemeier ( Out August 2014)
- Lola and The Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins
The next post will probably be a book review. Currently I am reading Conversion and when I am done that I will probably write a review. Before that is finished though I will be reviewing one of the books I have already read. If you have any book suggestions for me or suggestions about what I should review from the list of books I have read or just want to comment please feel free. I love getting comments on my post.
Till next time dear readers,
- Jessica
Monday, July 7, 2014
Welcome!
Welcome,
If you found the time to click on this blog thank you for your interest. This is just a little tidbit about me and what I will be writing on this blog. I am gonna try to update this book blog as often as I can and I even may start "book tubing" ( basically making a youtube channel about books). The blog that hopefully you will come back and read is about just that reading. I will be talking about basically all things books. Some times it will be updates about book hauls and what I have got this week or month or even just a trip to the book store, book reviews or recommendations, my opinions about book related issues like e-books or independent book stores vs. online shopping, etc. I will be basically just blogging about books. So I thought just to get started I would do a little book blog Q& A for you to answer any questions that you may have ( of course you can always comments about questions you have for me or reactions to what I wrote,etc).
Anyway...
Q: What is your favorite book?
A: My number 1 favorite book is The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, 2nd is Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, & 3rd is To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee.
Q: Who are your favorite Authors
A: John Green is my number 1 favorite author. Other authors I enjoy though are Joan Bauer, Chris Colfer, Sarah Dessen, Ann M Martin, Rainbow Rowell, Wendy Mass, and Maureen Johnson.
Q: Do you enjoy writing
A: I actually want to go into journalism as well as one day actually start and finish a novel that I can maybe publish. I am not asking to be like J.K. Rowling famous or rich, but It would be nice to have a book published even if it did not end up a bestseller.
Q: What else do you enjoy besides reading and writing?
A: I enjoy going on social media (Twitter, Facebook,etc.), watching shows on Netflix ( my favorite show is New Girl), eating chocolate, playing video games ( Wii or Nancy Drew computer games), Watching movies especially musicals ( my favorites are Rent, Funny Girl, and Sound of Music), watching musicals on YouTube ( Legally Blonde the musical is awesome by the way), watching YouTube videos in general ( web shows, musicals, old TV shows or clips, movie clips, music videos,etc.), and just hanging out with my friends. I also have a job ( grader for Kumon Learning Center) and college starts in fall ( community college for two years and then I will be transferring to another school for my bachelors degree).
Q: What are you majoring in?
A: Communications with a focus in Journalism
Q: What can you not live without?
A: Books,Wifi, TV, Computers, Phone, and Chocolate
Q: E books or Print books?
A: I will probably make a post about my opinion on this soon, but for now Print books (I'll explain in the post later).
Q: Will you take book recommendations?
A: Absolutely! I can not make any promises, but I will try to at least see if I can find the book to read and if I can, I will at least try to read it. If I get a lot of recommendations I can not promise I can fulfill every one and that I will enjoy every book, but I will at least try to read each book recommendations I get and if I have strong enough feelings about it I may even write a review on it.
Q: Why are you writing this blog?
A: I am writing this blog because I love books and I want to be able to share my opinions about books and recommendations with all my readers. I also hope that I can help others find books they will love.
- Jessica
Anyway...
Q: What is your favorite book?
A: My number 1 favorite book is The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, 2nd is Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, & 3rd is To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee.
Q: Who are your favorite Authors
A: John Green is my number 1 favorite author. Other authors I enjoy though are Joan Bauer, Chris Colfer, Sarah Dessen, Ann M Martin, Rainbow Rowell, Wendy Mass, and Maureen Johnson.
Q: Do you enjoy writing
A: I actually want to go into journalism as well as one day actually start and finish a novel that I can maybe publish. I am not asking to be like J.K. Rowling famous or rich, but It would be nice to have a book published even if it did not end up a bestseller.
Q: What else do you enjoy besides reading and writing?
A: I enjoy going on social media (Twitter, Facebook,etc.), watching shows on Netflix ( my favorite show is New Girl), eating chocolate, playing video games ( Wii or Nancy Drew computer games), Watching movies especially musicals ( my favorites are Rent, Funny Girl, and Sound of Music), watching musicals on YouTube ( Legally Blonde the musical is awesome by the way), watching YouTube videos in general ( web shows, musicals, old TV shows or clips, movie clips, music videos,etc.), and just hanging out with my friends. I also have a job ( grader for Kumon Learning Center) and college starts in fall ( community college for two years and then I will be transferring to another school for my bachelors degree).
Q: What are you majoring in?
A: Communications with a focus in Journalism
Q: What can you not live without?
A: Books,Wifi, TV, Computers, Phone, and Chocolate
Q: E books or Print books?
A: I will probably make a post about my opinion on this soon, but for now Print books (I'll explain in the post later).
Q: Will you take book recommendations?
A: Absolutely! I can not make any promises, but I will try to at least see if I can find the book to read and if I can, I will at least try to read it. If I get a lot of recommendations I can not promise I can fulfill every one and that I will enjoy every book, but I will at least try to read each book recommendations I get and if I have strong enough feelings about it I may even write a review on it.
Q: Why are you writing this blog?
A: I am writing this blog because I love books and I want to be able to share my opinions about books and recommendations with all my readers. I also hope that I can help others find books they will love.
- Jessica
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