TGIF! (19)

TGIF is brought to us by Ginger at GReads!

It's a way for bloggers to celebrate the end of the week with a nice re-cap of their weekly posts and to answer a random question.

Reading Challenges: Did you sign up for any this year? How has your progression been?

I signed up for my first challenge this year! Amanda hosted the awesome Bout of Books read-a-thon right before school started up for me, so it was a great week for me to squeeze in a last bit of reading before my life became hectic. My progression was less than stellar, but I did what I could. I plan to participate in more read-a-thons in the near future.

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Waiting on Wednesday

I WANT GUEST POSTERS! *

Top Ten Tuesday

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TGIF! (18)

TGIF is brought to us by Ginger at GReads!

It's a way for bloggers to celebrate the end of the week with a nice re-cap of their weekly posts and to answer a random question.

Book Disappointments: Have you ever come across a book you were so stoked to read, but it failed miserably in your eyes?

A Walk to Remember by Nicholas Sparks.

Talk about a disappointment. I shouldn't have watched the movie first.

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New Anna & the French Kiss scene!

National Book Festival: Who's going?

REVIEW! Amy & Roger's Epic Detour

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TGIF! (17)

TGIF is brought to us by Ginger at GReads!

It's a way for bloggers to celebrate the end of the week with a nice re-cap of their weekly posts and to answer a random question.

Books to Television: Which books would you love to see made in to a tv series or movie?

How am I supposed to list these?! There are so many I'd want to watch as either tv series or movies.

Iron Fey series by Julie Kagawa.

Wicked Lovely series by Melissa Marr. 

 TOUCH series by Laurie Stolarz.

The Half-Life of Planets by Brendan Halpin and Emily Franklin.

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins.

Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta.

Five Flavors of Dumb by Antony John.

Jessica Darling series by Megan McCafferty. (Although this would possibly ruin my image of Marcus Flutie forever.)

Secret Society Girl series by Diana Peterfreund.

.... And many, many more.

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Waiting on Wednesday
Ladybird, Ladybird giveaway! *
Where in the world is...?

TGIF! (16)

TGIF is brought to us by Ginger at GReads!

It's a way for bloggers to celebrate the end of the week with a nice re-cap of their weekly posts and to answer a random question.

Making a Difference: Which book(s) would you put in the hands of today's teenagers in hopes of making a difference in their lives?

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson.

I really think that would be my number one choice. I'm not sure anything could top that. It may not be "classic" literature, but it's powerful nonetheless. It's not just a teen read. It's so much more than that. To play off of the title, let the book speak for itself. It's got a strong message, and gets it across in the most relatable way.

This is a must-read.

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Waiting on Wednesday
REVIEW! The Day Before

Bout of Books read-a-thon: end!

In My Mailbox 

TGIF! (15)

TGIF is brought to us by Ginger at GReads!

It's a way for bloggers to celebrate the end of the week with a nice re-cap of their weekly posts and to answer a random question.

Book Associations: Which genre, authors, or particular books do you think people associate with your reading style?

Contemporary, contemporary and more contemporary. I'm the Contemporary Lit Queen. Usually people associate Sarah Dessen as my favorite author, and continually recommend her books (but I've already read all of them, of course). I can't think of any other particular/specific books that people associate with my reading style, though.



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Waiting on Wednesday
REVIEW! The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer
REVIEW! Jenna & Jonah's Fauxmance

Bout of Books read-a-thon: begin!

I'm featured! "Who am I Stalking?" *

TGIF! (14)

TGIF is brought to us by Ginger at GReads!

It's a way for bloggers to celebrate the end of the week with a nice re-cap of their weekly posts and to answer a random question.

The Reviews We Don't Write: Have you ever read a book and not wanted to review it? Are some books too personal that we want to keep our thoughts our own?

Naturally I think, Of course not. I review every book I read. But that's not true. I don't. Firstly, it's impossible. Secondly, sometimes I actually don't want to. Sometimes it's because the books most definitely are too personal, that if I went to review them, my review wouldn't make much sense or accuractely describe the book to unbiased readers. Sometimes it's because the books leave no impression upon me - good or bad, if I have nothing to say about it - at all - then I feel that I shouldn't bother reviewing it. Sometimes it's because I just want to read for the fun of it. Don't get me wrong - it's always fun (both the reading and reviewing.). But there's also this satisfaction with finishing a book and immediately moving on to the next, without a care in the world about what, exactly, I thought of it; it allows me to just feel whatever emotion the book evokes.

In short, yes, there are times that I read books and don't want to review them. And yes, I do believe that some books are too personal and I'd prefer to keep my thoughts to myself.

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REVIEW! Past Perfect

A read-a-thon, Mara Dyer, & other news

Harry Potter Reread, Week 2

TGIF! (13)

TGIF is brought to us by Ginger at GReads!

It's a way for bloggers to celebrate the end of the week with a nice re-cap of their weekly posts and to answer a random question.

Author Block Party: If you could gather a handful of authors to hang out with, who would you choose?

Julie Kagawa, William Shakespeare, J.M. Barrie, Melissa Marr, Stephanie Perkins, J.K. Rowling, John Green.

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REVIEW! The Duff

Waiting on Wednesday

Harry Potter Reread, Week 1

In My Mailbox

TGIF! (12)

TGIF is brought to us by Ginger at GReads!

It's a way for bloggers to celebrate the end of the week with a nice re-cap of their weekly posts and to answer a random question.

Taking it Personal: Which books have affected you on a personal level and lingered in your mind long after you closed the pages?

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson.
Keeping the Moon by Sarah Dessen.
Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk.
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck.
The Great Perhaps by Joe Meno.

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Top Ten Tuesday

Blogoversary giveaway! (*5 days left!)
The Great Harry Potter Reread! Come join us! (*Pretty please?)

In My Mailbox

*Very sorry for my blogging absence/laziness this past week! I've been in a reading slump, which caused a blog slump. The good news is I discovered 290483545 Starbucks in NYC. (AKA paradise.)

TGIF! (11)

TGIF is brought to us by Ginger at GReads!

It's a way for bloggers to celebrate the end of the week with a nice re-cap of their weekly posts and to answer a random question.

Character Envy: If you could be one character from a book, who would you choose & why?

My first, immediate thought was Peter Pan. He gets to be a kid forever.

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REVIEW! Anna and the French Kiss

REVIEW! The Summer I Turned Pretty
Waiting on Wednesday
Blogoversary giveaway!
The Great Harry Potter Reread! Come join us!

In My Mailbox

Coming up this week:

TGIF! (10)

TGIF is brought to us by Ginger at GReads!

It's a way for bloggers to celebrate the end of the week with a nice re-cap of their weekly posts and to answer a random question.

Book Blogger Appreciation: Which book blogs have inspired you or made a difference in your blogging experience?

Bibliophilic Monologues - I discovered Nafiza's blog not long after I started my own. I've always loved her passion for reading and that she speaks her mind. Reading her posts made me realize that it was okay to use my own voice in my posts, rather than a straight-up boring professional tone. I think it's made all the difference.

i swim for oceans - Melissa was the first well-known blogger I discovered. From her, I've learned ways to conduct my blog. (If that makes sense.)  She is always calm, cool and collected. She makes the professionalism of her blog fun. Don't be intimidated by her popular blogger status!

writer, reader, dreamer - Sarah was probably my first blogger friend. We bonded over food, our shared reading interests, and other random things. She made me feel welcome, rather than distanced, in the blogosphere, and that has helped me reach out more to other bloggers.

Planet Print -  I've followed Liz's blog now since I started TGR. It's been awesome to watch both of our blogs grow. She's crazy fun - and easy - to talk to on Twitter for obscene amounts of time, and because of that she's also made me feel more welcome in the blogosphere.

Muggle-born - Cialina's blog is one I've only recently discovered, but I'm so glad I did. She's so sweet and her blog always looks super pretty. I loved our brief chats about internships (she's pretty helpful in that department). Her blog designs inspire me to continually try and better my own.

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REVIEW! Sisterhood Everlasting

Waiting on Wednesday
Top Ten Tuesday

REVIEW! Stay

In My Mailbox

Coming up this week:

TGIF! (9)

TGIF is brought to us by Ginger at GReads!

It's a way for bloggers to celebrate the end of the week with a nice re-cap of their weekly posts and to answer a random question.

Blogger Confession: What's the last book you could not finish? (or had a hard time finishing?)

Going Bovine by Libba Bray. I know, I know. It's an amazing book. It won the Printz award, after all. Plus the writing is catchy. And a kid with mad cow disease? What's not interesting about that? I was hooked until I got about halfway through, and then everything just quickly fell flat for me. I like creepy, crazy, funny, strange. But not the kind that Going Bovine offers. For lack of a better way to say it, the story basically unraveled, along with my interest.

I haven't completely abandoned it, though. I hope to return to it sometime in the future, because it is in no way a "bad" book. I'm just not feeling it at the moment.

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Vlogging: This is How We Roll

Waiting on Wednesday

REVIEW! The Iron Queen - You must read this; it's fabulous! **

In My Mailbox

Coming up this week:

Review of Stay by Deb Caletti!

TGIF! (8)

TGIF is brought to us by Ginger at GReads!

It's a way for bloggers to celebrate the end of the week with a nice re-cap of their weekly posts and to answer a random question.

Mr & Mrs: Who are your favorite book couples?

YOU. YES, YOU.

Sound familiar? Yes, one of my favorite book couples of all time is Jessica Darling and Marcus Flutie, from Megan McCafferty's Jessica Darling series. Honestly, I think it's pretty much impossible to dislike this couple. (I LOVE THEM. No, seriously.) Or Marcus. I mean, really. Marcus is...perfection - every girl's dream (it's guaranteed that you'll swoon, no lie.). I couldn't get enough of him; I always wanted more. I could babble on and on about him, but I'll just throw a few quotes in here.

"IN OTHER WORDS, MARCUS, WE WERE PERFECT IN OUR IMPERFECTION."

"GONE FOR A WHILE

HOPING, ALWAYS, TO RETURN

IF YOU WILL LET ME"

Another favorite book couple of mine is Suze and Jesse from Meg Cabot's Mediator series. I know. Old school, right? But how can you not love that forbidden human/ghost relationship? They're one of the first couples I really fell in love with.

And, of course, I cannot leave out Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, from the Harry Potter series. They're both absolutely precious. Between his curious quirks, her tough lovin' and their combined compassion, they're a super couple always ready to bring relief.

These are just a few of my beloved book couples. I could go on, but that would take forever! (Plus I'd have a hard time getting myself to stop fawning over Mr. Flutie...)

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Grammar Bit #13

Waiting on Wednesday

REVIEW! Massive

In My Mailbox

Coming up this week:

Review of The Iron Queen by Julie Kagawa!

TGIF! (7)

TGIF is brought to us by Ginger at GReads!

It's a way for bloggers to celebrate the end of the week with a nice re-cap of their weekly posts and to answer a random question.

YA Saves: How do you feel about the "dark" books filling our YA shelves today?

I don't think any of the YA books are "dark." At least, not in the sense "dark" is being taken these days. I think some YA books are "depressing" or "raw" or "insightful." Not "dark."  "Dark" - as it's been used in the past few days/weeks - undermines YA literature.  To say YA books are "dark" is to say that no good comes from them.  As an avid reader of YA literature, I have to disagree; the good comes in many different forms, but it's there, even in "dark" YA books.

Do I personally agree with every action or thought attributed to the heroes/heroines/characters in the "dark" books? No, of course not. There's always going to be that girl that feels she needs to be perfect. There's always going to be that guy (or many guys) looking for nothing but sex. There's always going to be the overlooked best friend that needs you in times of trouble, even though you're fighting. There's always going to be the damsel in distress that makes men appear superior.  There's always going to be the fighter.  There's always going to be the winner and the loser.  But just because there's always going to be these things - these types of characters - it doesn't mean that I have to be, or will be, like any of them. It doesn't mean one, two, three books are going to overturn my own sense of reality and identity.

Even if the issues/problems have never personally happened to me before, it doesn't mean I should be ignorant of them. 

I don't think there's anything wrong with "dark" books filling our shelves. I think it's about time people tackle the issues few are willing to discuss/express out loud or in person. The good's always there. Some just refuse to see it.

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Playing Hurt thank you!

Waiting on Wednesday
REVIEW! For Keeps
In My Mailbox

Coming up this week:

Review of Going Bovine by Libba Bray!

TGIF! (6)

TGIF is brought to us by Ginger at GReads!

It's a way for bloggers to celebrate the end of the week with a nice re-cap of their weekly posts and to answer a random question.

Book Love: Do you share your books with others? Who was the last person you sent a book to?

You're going to think I'm awful, but I don't share my books. I'm terribly OCD/paranoid about their condition(s). I don't want the pages dog-eared, stained, crumpled, etc... And the way the spine gets after opening the book too widely, so then they never lay flat? I hate that, too.

But, I've been known to lend to really close friends that know of my paranoia. I've also participated in blog tours, and we all know those are sent, and arrive, with varying conditions.

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Waiting on Wednesday
REVIEW! Playing Hurt.... +GIVEAWAY!
In My Mailbox

Coming up this week:

TGIF! (5)

TGIF is brought to us by Ginger at GReads!

It's a way for bloggers to celebrate the end of the week with a nice re-cap of their weekly posts and to answer a random question.

Author Love: In 2011, which new/old authors have you discovered & loved?

I think one of my new favorites has to be Sarah Ockler, author of Twenty Boy Summer. I absolutely loved that novel. I'm also coming around to Julie Kagawa (author of the Iron fey series) and her writing style, while I fell in love with Amanda Grace's (author of But I Love Him) style. 

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Armchair BEA: Nurturing Blogging Relationships

Armchair BEA: Top 2011 Reads

Armchair BEA: Who am I again?

Who wants a Kindle?

Wither & Fever - let's win!

REVIEW! What Happened to Goodbye

 

Coming up this week:

REVIEW for Playing Hurt by Holly Schindler!

TGIF! (4)

TGIF is brought to us by Ginger at GReads!

It's a way for bloggers to celebrate the end of the week with a nice re-cap of their weekly posts and to answer a random question.

Back to the beginning: What was the first book you reviewed on your blog? 

Charlie St. Cloud by Ben Sherwood.

Interesting book. Wasn't entirely pleased with it, but also didn't dislike it. I remember reviewing it specifically because of all the hype surrounding it at the time - not for the book itself, but because the movie had just been released. The movie is actually what prompted me to read it.

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It's been a while...Remember me?
Top Ten Tuesday: Minor Characters
Waiting on Wednesday
REVIEW! The Iron Daughter

Coming up this week:

REVIEW for What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen!

TGIF!

TGIF is brought to us by Ginger at GReads!

It's a way for bloggers to celebrate the end of the week with a nice re-cap of their weekly posts and to answer a random question.

Writing negative reviews: Are you guilty of it? 

Of course. As a book reviewer/blogger, I feel that I owe other readers, and the author, an honest review. "Negative," I think, is a harsh term. Most times I don't feel clear-cut negatively or positively about a book; I typically see some good and some bad - pros and cons, which I do my best to point out in my reviews. My main struggle is using a five-star rating system, which gives the appearance that I either really like or dislike a book. I know other bloggers use different styles of rating systems (such as letter grades for every element, including the cover art), and I know others that entirely did away with ratings. I personally use the rating system as a quick-glance judgement for readers; I understand that sometimes people aren't interested in fully reading a review.

Any way I look at it, I will not shy from writing the "negative" review. Of course, I won't bash the author or anything else to that extreme. Never. I think that's when "negative" reviews gain the unpopular views from outsiders, which blurs the lines for us bloggers. But so long as you can keep level-headed and keep the review pertained to the story itself, a "negative" review is perfectly fine.

(My apologies for the rambling!)

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Waiting On Wednesday
REVIEW! Bumped by Megan McCafferty

In My Mailbox

Coming up this week:

REVIEW for The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter!

TGIF!

TGIF is brought to us by Ginger at GReads!

It's a way for bloggers to celebrate the end of the week with a nice re-cap of their weekly posts and to answer a random question.

Cover Lust: Which book covers are you lusting after right now?

Extraordinary by Nany Werlin - C'mon. Look at all those colors! The greens and yellows and white. It's bright, beautiful, and I wish I could go run through those trees, too. Minus the heels. And that font? Love it.

At Face Value by Emily Franklin - I have a feeling this book is just going to keep popping up for me until I actually read it. I love the striking contrast between the deep purple and the bright white. Also, I'm a sucker for fonts and I love the hint of script about the text.

Crossed by Ally Condie - I have not read Matched. I keep picking it up and setting it back on the shelf. However, I love this cover for the upcoming sequel. The blue, the backward R, the shatter. All of it. Very simple and very clean.

That Summer by Sarah Dessen - What's not to like about this cover? It screams summertime. The font combo is fabulous, and the white foam of the ocean is gorgeous. Again, very clean looking.

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Book Blogger Hop & Follow Friday
DISCUSSION! Drawing the line between MG & YA
Waiting On Wednesday
REVIEW! The Secret Year by Jennifer Hubbard
In My Mailbox