Q&A with John Connolly!
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Q&A with John Connolly and YOU ask the questions!
Hello followers!! Well starting May 1st my Young Adult Book Club is going to read The Book Of Lost Things and I was able to get John Connolly to join Goodreads AND stop by my group for a Q&A with the fans! I am so honored he is stopping by to take all our questions since he is a big author and has lots of fans. So please come by and help me welcome him... I would appreciate it! You can start posting comments and questions now!
Q&A with John Connolly!
Q&A with John Connolly!
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Follow Me Friday (#32)
This is the day of the week where we get to know each other better by answering a question devised by our lovely hostesses Parajunkee & Alisoncanread. We also gain new followers by joining each other's sites via GFC, so please let me know if you're a new follower since I automatically follow back. And now for this week's question....
Q: Have you had a character that disappointed you? One that you fell in love with and then “broke up” with later on in either the series or a stand-alone book? Tell us about him or her.
YES I HAVE!! Have any of you read the Queen Betsy Taylor vampire series by MaryJanice Davidson? Yea? They were great weren't they? Then BAM! The last two books stunk to high heaven. The author even know this and apologized in the last book. And promised that one would be better. NO WAY! Here is my review on that book: Undead and Undermined . The strong vampire queen became a self centered crappy character in just two book.. and there is still a third book in this "arch" .
I also really loved the first art work for the book series.. not sure why they changed illustrators? I am sure though that was not the author's choice. Here are the fabulous book covers (which turned me onto the books in the first place). Undead and Unstable is the one I WON'T be reading.
So... what character is on your list???
I also really loved the first art work for the book series.. not sure why they changed illustrators? I am sure though that was not the author's choice. Here are the fabulous book covers (which turned me onto the books in the first place). Undead and Unstable is the one I WON'T be reading.
So... what character is on your list???
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett-Review
Re-read this book on my road trip to Washington DC! Here is the goodreads description:
Mistress Mary is quite contrary until she helps her garden grow. Along the way, she manages to cure her sickly cousin Colin, who is every bit as imperious as she. These two are sullen little peas in a pod, closed up in a gloomy old manor on the Yorkshire moors of England, until a locked-up garden captures their imaginations and puts the blush of a wild rose in their cheeks; "It was the sweetest, most mysterious-looking place any one could imagine. The high walls which shut it in were covered with the leafless stems of roses which were so thick, that they matted together.... 'No wonder it is still,' Mary whispered. 'I am the first person who has spoken here for ten years.'" As new life sprouts from the earth, Mary and Colin's sour natures begin to sweeten. For anyone who has ever felt afraid to live and love, The Secret Garden's portrayal of reawakening spirits will thrill and rejuvenate. Frances Hodgson Burnett creates characters so strong and distinct, young readers continue to identify with them even 85 years after they were conceived.
I have been meaning to re-read this book for a LONG LONG time. My mother read this to me at night when I was a kid and I remember just loving it. It was so magical to me then. I still have my copy of it... looks like it was published in 1988. The copy I owe has fantastic illustrations too. Also.. inside my copy is one of my favorite items from my childhood... a 4 leaf clover!! I found it with my Grandma Rose (who is passed on now) and put it in this book. Funny thing is I had no idea how to press flowers and leaves back then so apparently I just stuck the clover in the book!
And I just love love some of the newer covers for this book!!!! Here are some favs:
EDIT 5/5/2012: I am going to be joining The Book Journey in a The Secret Garden reading discussion!
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Monday, April 23, 2012
Stephen King fans... stop by and vote!
My Stephen King Book Club is ready to vote for May's book... if you are a fan this group is the one to join!! We love to read his books together and discuss them!
Poll
Which Stephen King book would you like to read in May 2012? Saturday, April 21, 2012
Wither by Lauren DeStefano-Review
I read Wither this month because it is the book club pick for my Young Adult Book Club and I liked it! Here is the goodreads description:
By age sixteen, Rhine Ellery has four years left to live. She can thank modern science for this genetic time bomb. A botched effort to create a perfect race has left all males with a lifespan of 25 years, and females with a lifespan of 20 years. Geneticists are seeking a miracle antidote to restore the human race, desperate orphans crowd the population, crime and poverty have skyrocketed, and young girls are being kidnapped and sold as polygamous brides to bear more children. When Rhine is kidnapped and sold as a bride, she vows to do all she can to escape. Her husband, Linden, is hopelessly in love with her, and Rhine can’t bring herself to hate him as much as she’d like to. He opens her to a magical world of wealth and illusion she never thought existed, and it almost makes it possible to ignore the clock ticking away her short life. But Rhine quickly learns that not everything in her new husband’s strange world is what it seems. Her father-in-law, an eccentric doctor bent on finding the antidote, is hoarding corpses in the basement. Her fellow sister wives are to be trusted one day and feared the next, and Rhine is desperate to communicate to her twin brother that she is safe and alive. Will Rhine be able to escape--before her time runs out?Together with one of Linden's servants, Gabriel, Rhine attempts to escape just before her seventeenth birthday. But in a world that continues to spiral into anarchy, is there any hope for freedom?
This book has some great discussion going on in my book club!! I do like Wither and I will read the next book in the series. There are some holes in the story but the characters were interesting enough for me to continue. I'll be interested to see if Rhine finds her brother, what happens to Cicily, and what will become of Gabriel and Rhine. I wonder what will happen with Rhine's eyes? I feel like eventually that will be a big part of the story. How do you guys feel about boys living 5 years longer then girls? I didn't really understand that. I felt that the book tried to make science into a bad thing. Was it so wrong to dissect Rose's body? I suppose if she didn't donate it to science... but in these circumstances I don't think it's wrong. Now Vaughn giving Linden the fake ashes was wrong that's for sure. What about Rose's baby????? Did Vaughn store some of the virus from Rose and then give it to Jenna??
Rhine... I thought she was an interesting character. I was surprised it took a whole year for her to leave. A WHOLE YEAR! That is a long long time. And then all she did was walk out the gate? And there was no plan for the gate? Really she thought one of the wives scan cards were going to work to get to the outer gate? And her Gabriel barely knew each other! I haven't been in a hurricane so I didn't think her trying to escape during one was that big of a stretch. She just thought everyone would be busy and that would be a good time to go. I guess not being in the situation myself I can't really say why it took a year. Maybe she just needed to work up the courage? I have to agree with the time passage in this book. I couldn't believe that it had been a year at the end of the book. But I suppose it had to be at least 6 months since Cicily had a baby. I do like Rhine... I mean I thought she did care about the people in the house with her.. but if I were her I would've left much sooner.
This book just stirs up a lot of debates! What did you think of it?
Here is my review on Fever
Here is my review on Sever
Time to Vote for the Book of the Month!!
Poll
What randomly selected book would you like to read in June? 
by Lloyd Alexander
by Janne Teller
by Bernard Beckett
by Kelley Armstrong
by Moira Young
by China Miéville
by Laini Taylor
by Jacqueline Kelly
by Rachel Ward
by Vivian Vande VeldeTuesday, April 10, 2012
Sick and Vacation!
So I am sick with a dang cold and then I am going on vacation (yes I will be on vacation sick) so there won't be any posts for a few weeks.... just so you know!
Sunday, April 8, 2012
National Library Week (April 8-11)
Here are some events from their website:
You belong @ your library Six Word Story Sweepstakes
Share your story of why you belong at your library by composing a six word story for National Library Week! Tweet your story at #nlw6words, for a chance to win a copy of Honorary Chair of National Library Week Brad Meltzer's Decoded season 1.Check out the six word story sweepstakes for more information and examples.
Share Your Library Story
You belong @ your library. Do you have a story about how the library has impacted your life? Share your story!Celebrate National Library Week on Facebook
Show support for your library during National Library Week by uploading one of several Facebook cover images available on atyourlibrary.org. 
Other Events During National Library Week
- Top Ten List of Frequently Challenged Books - released in State of America’s Library Report (Monday, April 9)
- National Library Workers Day (Tuesday, April 10)
- National Bookmobile Day (Wednesday, April 11)
- Support Teen Literature Day (Thursday, April 12)
About National Library Week
National Library Week is a national observance sponsored by the American Library Association (ALA) and libraries across the country each April. It is a time to celebrate the contributions of our nation’s libraries and librarians and to promote library use. You can buy this poster on the right!! I love all the stuff for sale here!
Friday, April 6, 2012
Follow Me Friday (#31)
This is the day of the week where we get to know each other better by answering a question devised by our lovely hostesses Parajunkee & Alisoncanread. We also gain new followers by joining each other's sites via GFC, so please let me know if you're a new follower since I automatically follow back. And now for this week's question....
Q. Have you ever bought a book BECAUSE of a bad review?
A. I don't think I have. I have read and loved books that people just loathed. But it wasn't because there was a bad review about it. I feel like that answer was soooo boring!! NOOOO!!!! I promise my reviews are more exciting then that answer!
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
39 Clues Dead of Night by Peter Lerangis-Review
I just love this series! Dead of Night is the third book in the Cahills vs. Vespers series. Here is the goodreads description:
The Vespers have crossed a line. Amy and Dan were devastated when the Vespers kidnapped seven Cahills around the world, holding them hostage until Amy and Dan delivered an impossible ransom. But at least the hostages were Cahills - members of the world's most powerful family, trained to face all odds. Now the Vespers have gone too far. They've kidnapped Atticus, an innocent 11 year old boy and Dan's only friend. Now Dan and Amy are in the struggle of their lives. Because if they can't outwit the Vespers, the unthinkable will happen . . . Atticus will die.
END Spoiler
Not sure what I think about Dan becoming the villain? I mean since he is collecting all of the 39 ingredients what will happen when he takes the serum? I just can't wait for the next book. I never really try to figure out the clues in the books. But here are the ones from this book:
- Part of the star map can be seen at the upper left-hand corner.
- There is a puzzle on the telescope on the inside cover. To read the code you read only the letters with a star over them. It reads: Timbuktu
- On the lens of the telescope two stars are red, Alpha Mensae and Vega. Alpha Mensae is the brightest star in the constellation, Mensa, and Vega is the brightest star in the constellation, Lyra.
- On certain pages there are items from the periodical table. If you decode it from that to numbers, then numbers to letters, it reads: Manuscript Voynich. This is a reference to the Voynich manuscript.
- On the front cover on the lens of the telescope, there are four constellations, Mensa, Orion, Lyra, and Eridanus. If you take the first letter of each constellation, you get the word: MOLE.
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