Follow Friday

Today's featured bloggers on Follow Friday hosted by Alison Can Read and Parajunkee are Bree over at The Magic Attic.  and Skyink.net Congratulations! 




Today's assignment is to post a picture of myself and my current book. I am just starting Five Flavors of Dumb this week-end but I had it in my bag so I grabbed it and asked my husband to snap the photo on my way out the door to school this morning. My cat, Demi, has one yellow and one blue eye.  But it looks like she has one normal, drippy eye and one vacant ghostly one.  Sorry.  Not meant to creep you out.

Now I am heading over to the master list and I will take a look at all your photos!  Happy week-end.

A Big "Thank You" to Books!

Hosted by Beth Revis

Beth Revis is hosting a huge giveaway.  If you want to enter or want more information please click on the picutre above and it will take you to the contest rules.  Thank you Beth for doing this.

Not just because I want to win, I do, but because I love books and I'm grateful for the role they have played in my life, I would like to give a great big shout out to a book for which I am especially grateful.


Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns
This is the book that brought me back to reading after a ten-year-plus hiatus from reading. The language in the book is so descriptive. The characters are so multifaceted and interesting.  The colloquialisms so quaint and funny I almost felt like I reading something written by my grandma. I was so touched by the love in this book between a boy, Will Tweety, and his grandpa.  I loved everything about it.  Best of all it reminded me that books can be good, real good, and that stories can have meanings beyond the pages that are printed.  Cold Sassy Tree created in me a hunger that only well-written books can appease and I've been "hungry" ever since.  Thank you Olive Ann Burns (RIP) for the gift you gave the world and me with this book!

Top Ten books that caused STRONG emotions in me

Hosted by the gals over at The Broke and Bookish

This week's topic: Books that have caused STRONG emotions in me:

1. Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver---I wanted to hurl the book across the room several times as I read it.  The "colonialism" attitude toward Africans made me so angry at the father in the story.
2. Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams---Not sure when I have laughed harder or longer over a book.
3. Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov---The subject matter made me want to cringe but the story was so exquisitely written.
4. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury---Burn books? A world without books!? Wait, isn't that happening now?
5. Nothing by Janne Teller---What happens to the children, when they try to prove that life has meaning, is DISGUSTING!
6. The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery---I don't know what to call the emotion that this book evoked but it seemed to transport me to another plane, one where ART is safe and beautiful and life-changing.
7.  Stolen by Lucy Christopher---This book really played with my emotions.  Was I a victim of Stockholm Syndrome when I started identifying with the abductor?
8. The Help by Kathryn Stockett---This book was eye-opening and it caused my emotions to be all over the board.
9.  A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess---I was so disturbed by this book and all of the senseless violence that I couldn't finish it.
10. Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach---I read this book with near morbid curiosity.  My poor husband, who did not feel that same sense of curiosity, had to suffer through my reading many sections aloud to him.

It's Monday, 10-31-11. and I'm reading...

Sheila at Book Journey is the host of this meme.

Aloha from Hawaii where I alternate my reading location from poolside to beach-side.  It is a tough decision, which is best? Hmmm....

What I am reading-Divergent by Veronica Roth. A new dystopian novel by a first-time author. I am enjoying the drama more than the writing. One of the hottest books in my library this year.

What I recently completed- Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor. OMG I love this book...the storyline is new and fresh, the writing superb, the action is dramatic, the characters are unique and interesting, the setting vivid.  I also finished this week Entwined by Heather Dixon a dark, richly plotted retelling of "The Twelve Dancing Princesses." This book suffered from audiobook syndrome...it took too long "to read" in this format.

What I'm listening to- Flip by Martyn Bedford. A new twist on a old tale of body swapping. This one really poses a serious question, "What would you do if..." I'm actually not listening to this right now but will finish up the audiobook when I return home from vacation. When I complete it I will have completed my whole 2012 Mock Printz reading list.  Woot! Woot!

What is up next- The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz. This book has been on my bedside table for at least three years. Ugh. Now it is an upcoming book club selection so I will finally have an excuse to finish it, though I am sure I will need to start from the beginning again. As a Pulitzer Prize winner I am sure it is well-done but I haven't heard wonderful reports from "the man on the street." Have any of you read it?  Your thoughts?  My goal is to have it half finished by the time I get home. Guess I'd better get reading!

Sunday Salon Hawaiian Style

Aloha from Hawaii! We arrived mid-day Friday. My husband has a conference this week and I tagged along. We are staying at Turtle Bay Resort on the North Shore of Oahu. Heaven! 

I'm listening to: Flip by Martin Bedford. I will finish up with this thought-provoking story when we return on Wednesday.

I'm reading: Divergent by Veronica Roth.  I have finally started this popular, dystopian novel after carrying the book around for weeks.

Book reviewed this week: 
-Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor.  Loved, loved, loved it. A new favorite!
-Entwined by Heather Dixon. A retelling of the Grimm's Fairy Tale Twelve Dancing Princesses. Surprisingly dark and scary.

Scripture: Psalms 100:4-5 Give thanks with a grateful heart

Around the house:  Our home away from home. A view from our balcony.

From Karl's kitchen: Karl, a friend from college, made BBQ teriyaki beef, chicken, and ribs. He served it to us while we played on a white-sand beach.  Maholo, Karl, it was a special day.  And remember, you promised to send me the marinade recipe!

Off for some snorkeling! Aloha!

Review: Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor is a new favorite book. I am almost at a loss for words to describe how enthralled I am with it. But let me try.

"Once upon a time an angel and a devil fell in love. It did not end well." Those are the opening lines of this exquisitely written book, a book which really defies categorization. It is fantasy, adventure, romance, coming-of-age, mythology, with a bit of humor thrown in for good measure. It contains all those elements of a good story that we crave: good verses evil, though it is never clear who is good and who is evil; forbidden love lost and found, then lost again; and strong characters within a vivid setting. I sighed as I closed the book on the last page wanting to live within it's world(s) longer than the 400 pages given to me here. Lucky for all of us there will be a sequel, though I didn't figure that out until the last page.  Oh yea, I forgot- the opening line warned me to beware, "It did not end well." This sets up the sequel perfectly.

Daughter of Smoke and Bone is not just a love story between a demon and an angel which is a oft told tale, but it is mainly the story of Karou, whose name means hope, a girl who needs to find herself, her roots, her people. In a lot of ways this 17-year-old art student in Prague seems like most other teenagers until she is called away to run an errand for foster father, Brimstone, by a crow with bats wings. The errands are all the same: to retrieve teeth from humans and animals collected by unscrupulous hunters.  Karou does not know what Brimstone does with the teeth.  In fact, she doesn't know much about her past. "Who is she? That is the question that haunts her and she's about to find out." (Book Jacket) At this point she meets Akiva, a gorgeous seraph, who is drawn to Karou as she is to him. Their love and attraction is both steamy and sweet, tender and fraught with problems.

"Karou’s first story ends with an anguished epiphany, the promise of a new adventure and, of course, what Emily Dickinson called 'the thing with feathers' and what Brimstone calls 'the real magic,' hopes," says Chelsea Philpot writing for the NYT Book Reviews. Indeed it is a story full of magic and hope.


Help yourself to the first five chapters by following the link below. Happy reading.

Friday Hops...Follow Friday...TGIF!

It's time to do the Friday Hops!  Hopefully new friends will be made along the way.  First up: Follow Friday hosted over at Parajunkee and Alison Can Read.  The idea is to visit new blogs and to follow (both directions!) In addition there are featured blogs every week.  The featured blogs this week are: In Which Ems Reviews Books and Reading in the Corner. Congratulations.  I am following!  Are you?

Now for the question of the week:

Q:  If you could have dinner with your favorite book character, who would you eat with and what would you serve?

Hmm...So many characters, so little time to dine.  I'd choose... Captain Corelli from Corelli's Mandolin because I want to learn to speak Italian and I want an excuse to make Eggplant Parmesan.  Silly reasons, but true!

TGIF at GReads

Question: Spooktacular Reads: Which books do you consider festive Halloween reads? Which stories have chilled you to the bone?

I am not much of a horror genre reader, nor am I a horror movie goer, for that matter.  But when I do read a book that has some sort of "spook" in it, I get very scared.  Case in point: The Prince of Mist by Carlos Ruiz Zafon, the ghost in the closet/mist/garden had me terrified.

What's hot and what's not in the library now.

It's nearing the end of 1st quarter. Time to take a temperature check. What are students reading?

Our school asks each student to read a book during the summer and then they have an accountability activity once school starts up in the fall. The three books that they read are:

• Uglies by Scott Westerfeld  (10th grade)
• Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (11th grade)
• The Alchemist by Paolo Coelho (12th grade)

These three books are my highest circulating books, for obvious reasons.  Uglies and Hunger Games are the first books in a series.  All the books in these series are very popular here in the library.  That makes me happy.  Our summer assignment works if it gets students to read beyond the assignment.

What's hot...


The list below reflects the most popular books in the library that kids selected themselves.  I skipped over books that were part of an assignment.

1. Pretties by Scott Westerfeld, #2 in Uglies series
2. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collin, #2 in Hunger Games series
3. Specials by Scott Westerfeld, #3 in Uglies series
4. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins, #3 in Hunger Games series
5. Divergent by Veronica Roth
6. Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
7. Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld
8. Maze Runner by James Dashner
9. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, I'm glad to see a classic on the list!
10. Candor by Pam Bachorz, this was one of my top 20 summer books so I've promoted it.
11. Extras by Scott Westerfeld, #4 in Uglies series
12. Goliath by Scott Westerfeld
13. Graceling by Kristin Cashore
14. The Power of Six by Pitticus Lore
15. Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson
16. Unwind by Neal Shusterman
17. Where She Went by Gayle Forman
18. Amy and Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson, my #1 summer read. I've been pushing it!
19. Bloodlines by Richelle Mead
20. City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare
21. Deadline by Chris Crutcher, a Washington author!
22. North of Beautiful by Justina Chen Headley, another Washington author!
23. Paranormalcy by Keirsten White
24. Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

Looking over the list I'd say that dystopian novels and realism are the hottest books in the library. 
The other thing that is hot in my library right now is my Mock Printz Workshop.  I have over 50 kids participating this year and the books we are reading are always checked out!  It is so cool. None of the 15 books on that list are reflected on this list because I considered them as part of an "assignment." My 2012 Mock Printz list is here.

What's not...

• Books in a series. I've heard more kids complain about all the series they have to keep track of and how they are getting tired of them.
• Paranormal Romances. Though we aren't quite done yet, I'd say that the paranormal romances aren't as hot as in years past.  Evidenced by the fact that the #3 book in the The Wolves of Mercy Falls trilogy, Forever, hasn't even cracked my top 25 books. And kids were crazy for that series last year.
• My three-week due dates!  Kids groan about overdue books. What's a librarian to do?

Review: Entwined by Heather Dixon

 "In the half-magical world of Eathesbury, Azalea is the oldest of 12 daughters and heir to her father's throne. When the sisters' mother dies after a long illness, the siblings find a hidden passageway to an enchanted pavilion under the castle where they can dance all night, secretly breaking the rules of mourning. The mysterious and alluring Keeper makes this possible, but he also seems to have less-than-honorable plans for the girls, especially Azalea."  -Booklist

One book two perspectives. My daughter and I both just finished reading the book Entwined by Heather Dixon. Our reading experiences with the book were very different. I started out listening to the audio version which meant 10 CD's and over 12 hours of recordings.  I usually listen to around 50-60 minutes worth of story per day during my daily commute. If you do the math you'd know that this book would take me around two and half weeks to complete. I shortened up the time near the end because I would read the print version when I wasn't in the car. But it still took me over two weeks to complete. My daughter, on the other hand, picked up the print version of the book before I was even done with it and read the whole book in one day, cover to cover. One book two perspectives.

My perspective:  Entwined is based on the Grimm's Fairy Tale, "The Twelve Dancing Princesses", a fairy tale with which I am unfamiliar. There were many aspects of the story that I found quite fun and compelling. I especially liked the interaction between sisters and the descriptions of their many dances. I thought the dark, brooding atmosphere in of the castle and the plot line added suspense to this Gothic novel. What I didn't like, however, was how slowly the drama unfolded. The book seemed to plod along. The girls got up, ate porridge, had boring lessons, snuck off to dance in the basement where they'd wreck their shoes. Repeat. I also didn't like how Azelea repeatedly got angry, had a fit, and then fainted. At times it felt tedious and mundane, while other times the action was quite intense. That said, I'm guessing that the length of the audiobook contributed to my sense that the story crept along.

Rita's perspective: While the story began a bit slow, with a whiny princess as the "heroine," I quickly began to fall in love with the book. Princess Azalea and her mother both talk about the power of dancing, which is something I find compelling being a dancer myself. To top things off, the story is not all ballgowns and princesses, but full of dark, nightmare-inducing magic of the worst sort. I could not put the book down for fear that the princesses would not make it through to their happy ending. I will admit that I am a hopeless romantic, and grew up wishing that someday I could be a Disney princess, so this book was just up my alley. I have to say that the author is very clever for taking a simple fairy tale and turning it into a novel full of dark magic, interesting twists, and a satisfying ending.

Guess you'll have to read it yourself and then share your perspective below.

"Creepy" books to read at Halloween

Top Ten Tuesday: Hosted at The Broke and Bookish

I don't read many books in the horror genre because I am easily scared by them. But occasionally I end up reading a book that probably wouldn't scare the average reader but it seems to give me the chills.  Here's that list:

1. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
2. Coraline by Neil Gaiman
3. The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
4. The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey
5. Imaginary Girls by Nova Ren Suma
6. Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier
7. The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting
8. Entwined by Heather Dixon
9. Revolver by Marcus Sedgwick
10. The Pit and the Pendulum by Edgar Allan Poe
11. The Legend of Sleep Hollow by Washington Irving
12. Lips Touch Three Times by Laini Taylor

I know, I know.  This list is laughable if anyone is really looking for a good list of horror fiction.  Sorry.  I recognize that most of these tales aren't even classified as horror books/stories.  Oh well.  I enjoyed them and can recommend them with my limited familiarity of this genre.