January Book Haul

Book Review-Cruel Beauty

Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

4.5 stars. I really enjoyed this story. I like fairy tales and Greek mythology. So this book was right up my alley. If you like YA, but need a break from the 'series' format common to the genre, give this book go. You won't be disappointed.


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Lexicon by Max Barry

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Lexicon by Max Barry

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

How to review a book about words, using words, without spoiling it for other readers. 'Good' is not a good enough word to describe this book. Among other things, it was intriguing, and mysterious, and confusing,and all the characters were badass. Some more than others. This book reminds me a lot of X-men. Just imagine being able to take control of others by just watching them, by listening to them talk. Imagine telling a stranger exactly who you are,your strengths and weaknesses,by answering a question.
  No the book isn't very fast,but so much happens that boredom is out of the  question. It made me think about what I say to people,and how I use social media to communicate my thoughts,ideas,likes,dislikes,worries,and,passions.

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The BoB 9.0- Day 6 Update

Salaam and Hello,

   So I'm done. I finished my last two books-"The Poison Eaters" by Holly Black, and, "Horten's Miraculous Mechanisms" by Lissa Evans. It being my birthday weekend, I did not do any mini challenges or take part in the Tweet chat. I am still reading. I'm on the second Horten's book, "Horten's Incredible Illusions". Because of my now hectic video schedule, I highly doubt that I will finish this book before the readathon officially ends. My day 7 update will be a wrap up video.

Bout of Books 9.0 Day 5

Salaam and Hello,

   It's my birthday!YAY!! So I managed to shop, and eat- and read. I read one book as planned- "Clockwork Prince" by Cassandra Clare. That brings my book total to 12, and the page count total to 1,803. I will spend Saturday on my 13th book,"The Poison Eaters" by Holly Black. I did not do any mini challenges, and again my tweets at #boutofbooks was poor. But it's my birthday,an occasion that will probably be celebrated all weekend. I hope everyone is having lots of fun:)

Bout of Books 9.0 Day 4

Salaam and Hello,

   Let's get right to it shall we.
NUMBER OF BOOKS READ: 11/14
NUBER OF PAGES TODAY: 477
NUMBER OF PAGES READ TO DATE: 1,543/2,438
FRIDAY'S PLANNED READING: Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare (finished at time of this posting.)
                                                           The Poison Eaters by Holly Black

   I did no mini challenges as I was still not feeling well. Not much activity on Twitter either.

 

Bout of Books 9.0 Day 3

Salam and Hello,

   Update time! Wednesday. Halfway through this readathon and I find myself  a little more than halfway through my TBR. So what books have I finished?
      BOOKS
 1. Snow White by The Brothers Grimm
 2. Alice's Adventures In Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
 3. The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephanie Meyer
 4. A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
 5. The Hogwarts Library(3bks) by J.K. Rowling
 6. Mine To Tarnish by Janeal Falor
 7. Captured by Erica Stevens

   Nine books in three days. 1,066 pages. I didn't participate in any mini challenges or Twitter chat. I didn't even tweet for that matter. I'm more sick than I would like to be at the moment. But I will continue at least to read. I'm so close to achieving my reading goal for the readathon. I can't stop now.

Two Book Review

Mine to Tarnish by Janeal Falor
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
   I loved the first book in Janeal Falor's Mine series-"You Are Mine". So it should come as no surprise that I liked this prequel novella.I love the concept and the characters.The love story in this book was so sweet.I hope that we run into the characters in later installments.Although I hate the world our characters live in, (for obvious reasons), I do like the idea of it. Not that I am in agreement with it, but I find it to be an interesting component of the story.

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Captured by Erica Stevens
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
   I have no idea why Erica Stevens (not the authors real name) couldn't find a publisher for this book.It's amazing.The first in The Captive Series, I liked it so much that I have to get my hands on not only the rest of this trilogy,but also her Kindred Series (4 books) and The Ravening series (2 books thus far,).
  The crown prince of the vampire world's royal family and the daughter of the head of the resistance falls in love, but by the end of the book all that love is destroyed by an evil trick. The crown prince's heart is hardened in one single act, and the girls heart is broken by what she believes is an ultimate betrayal. Both feel as though they've been betrayed, and I am anxious to see how the chips fall, and what happens on their descent.

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Bout Of Books Days 1 & 2

The Hogwart's Library- Review

The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

 How cute. A collection of short stories popular with children in the wizarding world. I found it interesting that while non magical stories, a.k.a fairy tales, tries to hide the truth- setting up an impossibly perfect world, the stories of HP's world tells their readers the truth. That magic is not the answer. And that by having two sides, it can be very unpredictable. I also liked the commentary by Albus Dumbledore. The history he added to each story was very interesting. So funny how, magical or not, books have always faced some pretty stiff scrutiny. Content believed to be questionable, who should be allowed to read them, and revision into more "palatable" version- all things that happen to both magical tales and muggle fairy tales. I really enjoyed this book.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by J.K. Rowling
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Very entertaining. The magic authorities have their work cut out between trying to keep magical beasts alive, and separated from non magical people. Not to mention the work of keeping the more dangerous completely isolated both from magical and non- magical people alike.


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Quidditch Through the Ages by J.K. Rowling
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

   Very interesting.I never thought there was so much to know about the sport.Considering its not a real sport, I am impressed with how J.K. Rowling came up with all the information.


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The One That Made Me Cry

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

   I thought this book was going to be scary. A Monster Calls. It should be scary right? I am in tears. A few years ago I was in the same place as Conner. This book just bought back all those raw emotions.
  People looking at you, but not seeing you. Lying to others so much that you'd slip up for just a moment and fool yourself also. Then come crashing back to reality when you remembered what you knew to be the truth. And then feeling guilty about it. Wreaking havoc whenever you could so others could get a clue as to how you felt, but getting an infuriatingly understanding response over and over. I find it ironic that John Green has a line on the front cover. The subject matter of The Fault In Our Stars,just like the subject matter of this book, is the reason why I can't bring myself to pick up his book. This is the last place I thought I would be faced with my greatest personal demons.


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BoB 9.0 Day 1 Progress Report

Salaam Alaikum and Hello,

   So how was the first day of the readathon? AWESOME!! And busy. The last time I did the BoB I didn't have a one year old. I  actually started reading at 12 am until 2:30 am, then started up again at 4 pm. I have my son to run after all day, then I had to prepare dinner and help my daughter with her math homework. I was literally running after my son the cute little rascal. I'm sure you at the Tweet chat saw my post: "DO NOT tweet and Walk." Yeah. I was following Ibrahim and walked into a door. I can laugh about it now. So what did I get through. The first thing I did was enter to win the Grand Prize. Then I made my entry into today's mini challenge, "Book Buying Spree", hosted by Rachelia at Bookish Comforts. I did the Tweet Chat and man was that fast paced. I had forgotten how fast paced they are. As for the books, I vanquished 3 and I'm working on my fourth.

   Snow White by The Brothers Grimm 80 pgs
   Alice's Adventures In Wonderland by Lewis Carroll 160 pgs
   The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephanie Meyer 178 pgs
   A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness 50/205 pgs
 
   So that is a total of 468 pages. Not bad. I kicked of this readathon exactly as I'd hoped. So that's all for now. Catch ya later:)

The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner-Book Review

The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephenie Meyer
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

  Although the world in this book is one I already knew about- having read the Twilight Saga quite some time ago- it was very good. I,like the author, did wonder about who the little girl was in Eclipse.I was told the back story of everyone else, and wanted to know hers too.Even if she was only a just a blip on the page. I understand that Stephanie Meyer couldn't keep alive in a novella who she had killed off in the series, but that didn't make me not wish for a different outcome. I liked Bree and it saddened me to see her as only a pawn. I wanted her to live.Live and see the world with Diego and Fred. But it was not to be.


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Book Buying Spree

Salaam and Hello,

   So I just entered my first mini challenge. It was the "Book Buying Spree" hosted by Rachelia at Bookish Comforts. It was fun imagining for just a moment that I could buy without thinking of price. The senario goes: We had won $100.What would we buy? We had to fill a cart on the Book Depository site with books, taking care not to exceed $100. How far could we make that money srtetch? I got 6 books.Could I have gotten more? Sure. I probably would have bought my lot from BookOutlet though. But the rules were Book Depository- so that's where I did my dreaming.

  Six books. I could have gotten more. But I figured that it's won money. Why not buy solely based on want, without price coming into play. If it had been money from my pocket I would have been more frugal. What books at what price would I like to buy? Trying to get more of what I want at a more affordable price. Not a huge problem. It just means that sometimes I have to wait longer for books I want. Sometimes even waiting the year it takes for the book to be released in paperback all the while praying that I stumble across it at a used bookstore. But the books I picked are on an actual wishlist from another site. And some of them are there because of the price. I can't bring myself to buy one book off my list that is the combined price of two books on that same list. Meaning that if I had the money that one,high priced book would have been mine by now.

   That is just the one of the little bumps a book lover faces. Bumps, not brick walls. You see, if necessary we will wait, or swap, groupon or coupon- even check out if we have to- to read that author or title that we so desperately are interested in. I have many a time, while book shopping, thought to myself, "Oh If only I had just $50 or $100 more, I could add....." So it was nice to daydream, and to read where my and other book lovers tastes overlapped. (And I got leads on other books I might be interested in.) Thanks Rachelia!

Alice's Adventures In Wonderland-Book Review

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

Hated the story,loved the art work. This book gave me such a headache! What nonsense!! I can't imagine a child reading this story, or finishing it if the make the attempt. This is one of the rare times when I prefer the movie over the book. Walt Disney was a genius. How he managed to make heads of this story is beyond me because it's done my head in.


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Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children-Review

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

   Loved it, loved it, loved! Scary, mysterious, intriguing, and sad. The most moving, and defining, moment was at the end when Enoch placed his "very best man" with Victor, pushed his man's head down with his thumb, and the man just goes to sleep. It was as if it this scene was saying this is not the end, only a small intersession-a rest. Soon our world will wake up again. I get a knot in my throat just thinking about it.
  The world of these peculiar children is so interesting. I don't think I will ever be able to go to a fair's sideshow without thinking about this book. And the pictures are so creepy. Without them the book wouldn't have been as good. Being able to see the peculiar children made the story more  believable. Seeing is believing . Isn't that the saying?


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Book Review-Snow White by The Brothers Grimm

Snow White by Jacob Grimm
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This was not the Snow White tale that I thought I knew. Then again, I've never actually read a Grimm's fairy tale before. I've only seen the Disney versions. This book was almost a mixture of Snow White and Goldilocks and The Three Bears. The hatred shown by Snow's step-mother for Snow makes me wonder how this could ever be a story for children. The illustration are a wonderful compliment. They are stunning. They match the story perfectly.

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DECEMBER Wrap- Up

Book Review-Perfect Ruin

Perfect Ruin by Lauren DeStefano
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
4.5 STARS! This is a very interesting story.A world in the clouds. aware of the world below, and seemingly content with watching it but not going there. Or that is what the king wanted his people to believe.It surprised me how complete an existence they lived. Complete with all the lies and deceit found in any civilization claiming perfection. The ending really makes me excited for the next installment expected in October.

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#Fridayreads (1/3/14)

New Year,New Question

Salaam Alaikum and Hello,

   So 2013 is gone. How did my year end and how did 2014 begin?
   My new year's eve was horrible, but not as bad as Lauren Destefano's. She rung in the new year as a popsicle. She tweeted that her heat went out in the wee hours of the morning. She waited for the repairman all day only to find out that the repair company lost her order. By the time I hit the sheets at 8 pm- yes, 8 pm- it was 30F in her house. She was frozen and almost in tears. I hope she found warmth somewhere else.
   My evening drove me to the sheets. First, I drove 45 minutes only to find my B&N had closed at 6:30. On the way back home I ordered hot wings from my fave wing place in an effort to cheer myself up. The girl forgot parts of my order, and my husband forgot to check all was in order before leaving the counter. So when I got home I had wings and homemade chips but no Blue Cheese or Ranch. There are so few things I am adamant about. But if I am paying you,I expect you to give me what I payed for. And no I couldn't just go back. The restaurant is 30 minutes from my home. So after eating, I go in search of the flossers in the bathroom. When eating wings toothpicks don't cut it. I have tight teeth and flossing is the only way. They're not there. I look everywhere- where the bag of flossers could be and a few places where they couldn't. I do have kids who put things in the craziest of places. I finally ask my husband only to find out that he'd dropped the whole lot into the toilet. Mental notes:(1) Raid dentist's old- fashioned floss stash. (2) Keep an emergency stash of floss in my bedside table.
   So there they are- my three strikes. No sweetness in between strikes either. It was a 1-2-3 punch that just felt all wrong considering my day had been going along so unremarkable. So after saying a little prayer for Lauren, I turn in.Maybe January first will be better. Man was I wrong.
   I woke up to the sad realization that last night had actually happened. And after 15 hours of somewhat uninterrupted sleep, (I woke up for Fajr and to feed Ibrahim breakfast. The kids slept), I am still exhausted. (Big shout out to winter break and PMS.) Ibrahim wakes up WELL rested and bouncing with joy. The kids wake up ravenous, and I can't feed them fast enough. My son is content with his massive bowl of cinnamon flavored cereal. My daughter pushes away the cereal, and begs for waffles and ice cold milk. Fine. Out of the freezer comes the waffles, into the freezer goes the milk. So far an ordinary morning washes away a disappointing evening.
   My husband, feeling bad about the sad turn of events last night, calls to say he'll duck out early and we'll do what we had planned to do yesterday- B&N ,coffee and sandwiches ,reading, all that jazz. Oh the joys of owning one's own business. Sounds delightful. Wait. Are those screeching breaks I hear getting closer?? Yep. My son, true to his procrastinator form, says he needs to do homework. He could bring his work to do at B&N you suggest? NO. The last time I allowed that he forgot the materials necessary for two of the four assignments. And that was just the last incident. Whenever he does his homework somewhere other than home he can't finish it. He does his homework at home where there is everything he needs except excuses. Ten days of no school and he doesn't do a thing? Just when I felt our last sit down with him had finally worked, I realize I am going to have to return to my life as a barnacle on his back. I call to cancel with my husband, and sit down to write this blog post with a bag of Hershey's kisses.
   And here you find me dear reader. My laptop in my lap and a considerably lighter Hershey bag by my side. My son having finished his homework, sadly finds himself on KP (kitchen patrol). It's dark outside. The sun having set on my day if discontent. I don't know if it's PMS, or if I have a valid reason for being so upset. Is it possible to ask for something and have it come off with out a hitch? To have it come off period? It seems like more and more personal things happen in my life as a result of a glitch. I am in no way implying that I wish I did not have children or that I was not married. I do know that family life is hectic and trying,but also beautiful and satisfying. But, is it selfish to want something that is personally gratifying to happen without a problem? Is it bad to be sore at the fact that while I make efforts for other peoples personal wants, mine hit snags and brick walls? Do the snags happen because no one cares or because that is just the way things are? I can't make heads or tales of it when I can't get to a bookstore for the past two days for coffee, a sandwich, and a book. It would seem as if every time I want to do something for myself I am asking to win the lottery.
   So. Is is bad to want something that is personally gratifying to happen without a problem? To say, " I want to do,or I want to accomplish ...." and it occur without running into any bumps? Especially if it is a simple thing. Weigh in guys. Let me know if I'm over reacting.