Top Ten Characters I wish I could be BFFs with!

Top Ten Characters I wish I could be BFFs with!

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

I'm disappointed in me with this list! It was so easy to think of fictional crushes a few weeks ago. The hard part was narrowing it down. However, when trying to think up BFFs for this list I had a MUCH harder time coming up with names! Apparently I'm pickier about who I'll be friends with than who I have a crush on. I guess that makes sense... crushes can be from afar and you don't ever have to actually speak to them (sometimes it may be best not to!) but a BFF is someone you really have to click with. There are lots of characters that I really admire but wouldn't want to be BFFS with. Hmmm... I still don't know how I feel about this.

1. Elizabeth Bennet from Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

She's smart, fun, witty... I kind of want to be her! I'll settle for being her friend. She's the one whose opinion I'd want to hear.

2. Anne Shirley from Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

Kindred spirit or bosom buddy... either one works for me! She'd keep things interesting.

3. Evie from Paranormalcy by Kiersten White

Two reasons: 1. She's awesome. 2. Tasey.

4. Katarina Bishop from Heist Society by Ally Carter

The whole time I was listening to this audiobook I kept thinking that I wanted in!

5. Mae from The Demon's Lexicon & The Demon's Covenant by Sarah Rees Brennan

I just loved her voice in The Demon's Covenant. Plus, she's loyal to those she cares about.

6. Scarlett from Suite Scarlett & Scarlett Fever by Maureen Johnson

She's got flair. I'd love to just spend a day wandering around New York with her.

7. Beauty from Beauty by Robin McKinley

She's good and kind but not boring. Her bravery would make for some fun adventures.

8. Valerie Russell from Valient series by Holly Black

She's tough and a survivor. Val's the friend you want to have when things go awry.

9. Cammie Morgan from Gallagher Girls series by Ally Carter

She could teach me all sorts of fun spy stuff... need I say more?

10. Alexandra from The Season by Sarah MacLean

I love that she didn't just conform to what a young lady was "supposed" to do. I'd want to be in her group of friends instead of the type that only wanted to land a husband!

Also, it's the LAST DAY to enter my November giveaway. The entry form is here. The prize pack includes the audiobook of Dark Flame by Alyson Noel, a bookmark for Darkest Mercy signed by Melissa Marr, a poster for Jane by April Lindner and more!

In my Mailbox (4)

In My Mailbox

In my Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren. The idea of In My Mailbox is to bring books to the attention of blog readers and to encourage interaction with other blogs.

As I've mentioned I was at the ALAN workshop last Sunday through Tuesday. I shipped home FOUR boxes of books! It was crazy. One arrived on Saturday so I thought I'd share those :)

It’s Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini, Sophomore Switch by Abby McDonald, Fat Cat by Robin Brande, How Beautiful the Ordinary edited by Michael Cart, Paper Daughter by Jeanette Ingold, Skinned by Robin Wasserman, Carter Finally Gets It by Brent Crawford, Fat Vampire by Adam Rex, Hereville by Barry Deutsch, Jumped by Rita Williams-Garcia, Genocide by Jane Sptinger, Nightshade by Andrea Cremer, Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver, Dead is Just A Rumor by Marlene Perez, Silver Phoenix by Cindy Pon, Fallout by Ellen Hopkins, Athena: Grey-Eyed Godess by George O'Connor, Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick, A Conspiracy of Kings by Megan Whalen Turner, Virgin Territory by James Lecesne, Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys, Double Eagle by Sneed B. Collard III, Just One Wish by Janette Rallison, Out of the Blue by S.L. Rottman, Not That Kind of Girl by Siobhan Vivian, The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor, Dark Goddess by Sarwat Chadda, More Than Friends: Poems for Him and Her by Sara E. Holbrook and Allan Wolf, Cate of the Lost Colony by Lisa Klein, How to Build a House by Dana Reinhardt, Ash by Malinda Lo

So, basically I've got a number of books for giveaways! Don't forget to enter my November giveaway here if you haven't already!

On the fly...

I intended to blog more while I was here at the ALAN (The Assembly on Literature for Adolescents) workshop. Really, I did. But honestly? I can't remember ever being this tired. The workshop was amazing. So many fabulous authors. I shipped more than one box of books home! This means that I'll be holding multiple giveaways when I get back :) Still, it's intense. I tried to hear all the author speak and attend the breakout sessions. This kept me BUSY! Tonight I went to the Magic Kingdom. I had never been before. It totally kicked my butt. I didn't even go on any rides. I walked around for a bit, bought a $5.00 hot dog and picked up some gifts for my niece and nephew. That's about it. I decided I wanted to make it back early so I would be all rested up for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter tomorrow. I'm SO excited... almost as excited as I was to meet all the fabulous authors (can I tell you, yet again, how amazing I think Holly Black is?!?) I head home tomorrow night and then have Thanksgiving. Hopefully I'll get a "real" blog up soon :) Like I said, I have books to give away!

ALAN Workshop: Reception

Oh. My. Stars. I've been here for ONE event and it has already been worth my time/money/extra hours waitressing at a chain restaurant that thinks the words "gourmet" and "burgers" belong in the same phrase!

Tonight was the ALAN Reception. It was sponsored by many publishing groups and it was amazing. Here are my highlights...

As I walk in to the lobby, before I even get near the room the event is in, I do a double take. Gary Paulsen is standing there. I repeat... GARY PAULSEN! The man who tricks my middle school boys in to reading and actually liking it! I am so flabbergasted that I just keep walking until I get to the event room. The doors open and we all pour in. After a little liquid courage (two glasses of Diet Coke to be exact) I calm my nerves enough to go and talk to Mr. Paulsen. He was charming and hilarious and I will never in a million years be able to repeat half of what he said to my middle schoolers. The teachers will get a kick out of it though! I have photographic evidence of the meeting but I didn't bring my camera cord so you'll have to trust me.

As I wondered dazedly away from Mr. Paulsen I saw the fabulous Andrea Cremer and went to reintroduce myself and say hello. Second moment of awesome: she recognized me! I've met her twice before and won this prize pack from her (which is the In My Mailbox portion of today's blog too!):



So, either I am a stalker or she is just a really nice person. Let's go with option two.

I wandered around for a bit more and saw authors like Ellen Hopkins and A.S. King (I spoke with them briefly!), Heather Brewer (I wanted to speak with her but didn't get a chance), T.A. Barron, Alyson Noel, and MANY more!

I decided it was time for another glass of Diet Coke (have I ever mentioned that I'm addicted?) As I was waiting for the lady to get it I hear the gentleman next to me jokingly say, "You'd better cut her off!" I look over. Yeah, it's Jack Gantos. We chat. I make him laugh! At this point my heart plummets because I am sure this must be a dream. No way is this happening! I am on awesome author overload!

I make another circuit of the room and meet up with a woman who has been answering questions for me about ALAN and generally helping me out. She worked in the publishing industry for years. We chat and she introduces me to some other publishers she knows. One of them has buttons on her name tag for The Curse Workers and Zombies vs Unicorns. I start telling her how much I enjoyed those books and Holly Black in general. Not a minute later I turn around and Holly Black has appeared. That's right. Not only is she a fabulous author and all around lovely individual... she's magic!

And this is where I realize it isn't a dream. If it was a dream I would make sense while talking to her. Instead, I start to babble. I have no idea what I said. I'm sure it was random and nonsensical. On the bright side, I tend to talk pretty quickly so I'm fairly sure no one else understood what I said. All I know is that I was in fangirl mode. I mean, she is one of the main authors that ignited my passion for YA lit (see previous post here.) She is also likely working on the restraining order as I type this.

So yeah, gushity gush gush gush! I am loving this conference and it hasn't even really started! That happens early tomorrow morning so it is off to bed with me. I'll try to share more tomorrow.

Simone Elkeles

Simone Elkeles

I stumbled upon Simone Elkeles' books shortly after Perfect Chemistry was released. I was browsing the book store and the cover appealed to me. It was on sale so I decided to check it out. I'm very glad that I did! I really enjoyed the story. It takes place in the Chicago area, which appealed to me. The characters were interesting and engaging. Elkeles has a way of taking a serious situation and working humor in that works. It doesn't take away from the gravity of the situation but it gives hope and lets the reader breath a little easier.

Elkeles has written three "sets" of books:

How to Ruin a Summer Vacation, How to Ruin my Teenaged Life, and How to Ruin your Boyfriends Reputation. Amy is a teen girl from Chicago. In the first book she is forced to spend her summer in Israel with a father she barely knows. She learns a lot about herself and her family through the experience and the books that follow. These books are hilarious... the funniest of all Elkeles books. The only one I haven't read is How to Ruin your Boyfriends Reputation. I have the bind up of all three books so I WILL get to it soon!

Leaving Paradise and Return to Paradise Caleb went to juvie for a hit and run drunk driving accident. His twin sister's best friend Maggie was seriously injured when she was hit by the car. On top of trying to get her life back to normal she has to deal with the fact that Caleb was released from juvie early. This means that they'll be around each other again. Can they cope?

Perfect Chemistry, Rules of Attraction and Chain Reaction (coming 2011) In Perfect Chemistry we meet Alex Fuentes. His father was killed in a gang related incident when Alex was younger. Alex is the man of the house and wants to protect his mother and two younger brothers. He's in the gang so that his brothers won't have to be. When Alex is paired up with Brittany (aka Little Miss Perfect) in chemistry neither one realizes just how much it will impact their lives. Rules of Attraction focuses on Carlos, the middle Fuentes brother and Chain Reaction is the youngest's story. I can't wait for it's release!

Simone Elkeles also has a great website and some really fun videos to go with her books. My favorite is below but you can check them all out here.

I meet Ms. Elkeles at a young adult literature conference I attended. She was an engaging panelist with fun stories. She's also an all around nice person! I highly recommend her books.

Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine. It’s a weekly meme that allowsbloggers to talk about what upcoming book they’re most looking forward to reading.

Waiting on Wednesday

November 17, 2010

Wolfsbane

by Andrea Cremer

Release Date: July 2011

Published by: Philomel

Betrayal, loss, pain, fear. How many trials can love endure and still survive?

Wolfsbane is the second book in the Nightshade trilogy. I really loved Nightshade. You can read my review here. For the record, I'm totally Team Ren... kind of. I want him. Calla can have Shay ;)

Such a beautiful cover! It's going to look gorgeous next to Nightshade! I can hardly wait to read it!

In celebration of the cover release I'll be giving away a copy of Nightshade with a book plate signed by Andrea Cremer inside. Once I receive the bookplate I'll post the contest. I got to meet Andrea at a YA lit conference in Naperville and again at her book release party in St. Paul. Will Browning (the actor who played Shay) was there too! Both are delightful people and I wish them both much success.

Top Ten Villains, Criminals, Degenerates

Top Ten Villains, Criminals, Degenerates

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

The characters we love to hate! As I was writing this I realized that there are not a lot of strictly villainous characters in YA. Most that I could think of have another side to them. I liked this realization :) Thank goodness for the criminals and degenerates add on :) A few of the ones listed below aren't exactly characters you might expect to find on the list. I used the terms "criminal" and "degenerate" loosely so I could slip in a few favs ;)


1. Cassel Sharp from White Cat by Holly Black

I'm starting off with one that probably doesn't really fit the intent of the this top ten but he IS a criminal. There's the whole bookie/gambling ring thing as well as being associated with a top crime family. I just really love Cassel and Holly Black's Curse Workers series so I had to include him :)

2. President Snow from The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins
The man's breath smells like blood. This is enough to place him on the list. However, he is also willingly sacrifices children to The Hunger Games and plays cruel mind games with Katniss. Bad, bad man!

3. Voldemort & Severus Snape from Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling

Clearly He Who Shall Not be Named is a villain. Now, on the issue of Snape... I firmly believe he belongs in the villain category (or at least degenerate!) Yes, he did a good thing. No, he is NOT a good man. If it had been Neville who was "The Chosen One" I believe that Snape would have stayed 100% loyal to Voldemort. The only reason that he did what he did was his unhealthy obsession with Harry's mother. I think he would agree that he would rather be a Death Eater than a member of The Order of the Phoenix.

4. Mr. Wickham from Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

He takes advantage of impressionable young girls and then leaves them to suffer societies scorn. Still, he's charming... perhaps the most charming degenerate/criminal you'll ever know ;)

5. Nick from The Demon's Lexicon & The Demon's Covenant by Sarah Rees Brennan

Again, I love him so I had to work him in! He is kind of a degenerate/criminal. I mean, he's a demon. He doesn't really care how you feel at all. Threaten Alan and your dead. This is the behavior of a criminal... or a degenerate... or a sociopath. But not a villain. He's too good looking for me to admit he's a villain. OhmystarsI'msoshallow.

6. Mommy Fortuna & King Haggard from The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle

Confession: I have never read this book. I did however watch the animated movie approximately 153,497 times between the ages of five and six. I'm fairly certain I was the only kid in my kindergarten class who wanted an America CD for Christmas. Still, as much as I loved the movie Mommy Fortuna and King Haggard TERRIFIED me. They were even creepier than the flying monkeys in The Wizard of Oz. Both are undoubtably villains.

7. Miss Minchin from A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett

What a mean, nasty lady! Poor, poor Sara Crewe. The old bat has it in for her and she still keeps her kind and generous spirit. I wanted to BE Sara Crewe. I also wanted her to push Miss Minchin down the stairs. I was not a normal child ;)

8. The White Witch from The Chronicles of Narnia series by C.S. Lewis

Another childhood villain. I didn't know what "Turkish Delight" was but I knew to leave well enough alone. What was Edmund thinking?!? Winter without Christmas?!?! Only a villain of the worst kind would do that!

9. King Leck from Graceling & Fire by Kristen Cashore

Talk about Creepity McCreeperson. He can trick people in to believing anything he says... that's a recipe for evil if I ever heard one! Plus there's the fact that one of his eyes was red. **shudder**

10. Professor Moriarty from Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
He's Sherlock Holmes' arch-nemesis. A criminal Mastermind. A mafia boss of sorts. He basically rocks all three categories: villain, criminal, and degenerate.

Who are your top villains, criminals and degenerates? Do you love them or just the conflict they create?

Also, don't forget to enter my November giveaway. The blog post and entry form is here. The prize pack includes the audiobook of Dark Flame by Alyson Noel, a bookmark for Darkest Mercy signed by Melissa Marr, a poster for Jane by April Lindner and more!

In My Mailbox

In My Mailbox

In my Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren. The idea of In My Mailbox is to bring books to the attention of blog readers and to encourage interaction with other blogs.

So I know this is a bit late but I'm glad I didn't have time before. Today was a great book day for me!! Here's what I got this week:

Won:

The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting. I won this from a photo contest on Sophie Jordan's site. It came with fun Firelight swag. (My Firelight review here.)

A Visitor's Guide to Mystic Falls short story collection. This is from Kiersten White's blog a few weeks ago but forgot to post it! (My Paranormalcy review here.)

Aries Rising by Bonnie Hearn Hill. Figment had a Twitter contest giving away a few copies of this one. Obviously I won one.

Library:

Princess of Glass by Jessica Day George. I've had this on hold at the library since I read the first one (Princess of the Midnight Ball, a retelling of the twelve dancing princesses.) It FINALLY came in!

Wish by Alexandra Bullen. You may remember that I got an ARC of the companion novel. It looks good so I picked up the first one while I was at the library picking up the audiobook of Zombies vs. Unicorns by a ton of really amazing YA authors.

The Clone Codes by The McKissicks. I've been meaning to read this book since I heard about it at a seminar last year. I received a ARC of the sequel so I grabbed this one from my middle school library.

Bought:

I'm really excited about these! I bought them for a giveaway I'm doing in December because of this post. All are signed copies. I might have to keep one or two :)

The Demon's Lexicon and The Demon's Covenant by Sarah Rees Brennan. I LOVE these books. Sarah Rees Breenan is so talented and all around delightful. I ordered these books from Murder by the Book in Houston.

Evernight, Stargazer and Hourglass by Claudia Gray. I saw Claudia Gray in Naperville, IL at a YA Lit conference and again at Anderson's Bookshop. She was really fun. Anderson's has a huge selection of autographed books in stock. There is a list here but they have even more!

Not a book but kind of book related:

AH! I leave for the ALAN workshop on SUNDAY! I just got a postcard about the ALAN author reception and my Disney transportation info today. I'm so excited! I had to share :) I'll try to blog while I'm there but I'm not sure if I'm going to bring my computer. We'll see :)

Well, that's my week. Sorry it's so late. I picked up some extra shifts at my waitressing job this weekend. It was crazy. If you're a parent... please teach your children that they should tip their servers when they go out to eat with friends! ;)

Since when is stealing okay?

Illegally downloading books. Not something I ever thought I'd write a blog post about. I mean, I never really thought about it, didn't realize there was "debate" about it. It's wrong. Don't do it. End of story... right? Apparently not.

I really started thinking about this topic recently when Claudia Gray tweeted that people were already illegally downloading the advanced version of her upcoming book Afterlife. Understandably she was hurt. Her trust was violated and someone stole from her. That's what it is. They took something that was not theirs without permission. I applaud her for her handling of the situation. She didn't rant about it but did make it clear that it wasn't okay.

Other YA authors have chimed in on the topic. Jackson Pearce (As you Wish, Sisters Red) posted a video about book piracy (see below) on October 4th. She replies to questions and comments that she has received about it from readers. For the record, I agree with her responses.

Sarah Rees Brennan (The Demon's Lexicon, The Demon's Covenant) started a bit of a conversation on twitter when she tweeted "People who pirate books are no better than people who burn books. i'm so sorry." in response to Claudia Gray's tweet. Now, notice she did not say that it is the same as book burning. She explained further in these tweets:

"Pirates may want to 'spread information' but they do so in a way that can demolish authors' careers. End result - no more books."

"So pirates destroy books just like book burners do, but bookburners destroy present books, & pirates destroy books OF THE FUTURE."

She had many other responses which you can read by checking out her twitter feed. I agree with her responses as well.

You could also check out Ally Carter's post here. She says it much better than I can.

A.S. King also blogged about the issue here and here. I love her!

This whole topic really frustrates me. From my experience the authors who are out there writing young adult literature... they're great. Why would you want to take something from them? I'm not a writer but I can imagine how much of yourself has to go in to making a book. Your time, your energy, your passion. When a person illegally downloads a book it's like saying there is no value there. This is wrong on so many levels. It's offensive and it's just not okay.

I'm sure that there are people out there who don't see the big picture. I am not trying to judge anyone or say that they are bad people. They love to read. They enjoy a certain author or story and just want to share it. Whatever the reason... it can't be justified. They only person who has the right to decided they want a book to be free is the author (and I'm sure the publisher would have something to say as well.) It's not selfishness that keeps authors from giving their books away. Think about it. This is their job. It's their livelihood and they deserve to get paid for it.

Clearly I'm not an expert here. I just wanted to publicly support the authors out there speaking out against book piracy. I'm sorry it's happening. You deserve better.

I've purchased signed copies of books by the authors I mentioned in this post (Jackson Pearce, Claudia Gray, Sarah Rees Brennan, and I'm still looking for signed copies by Ally Carter.) I'll be giving them away on this blog as soon as they all arrive. This is how you share. Not illegally downloading a copy.

And now I beg...please respect authors and their work. Do the right thing, don't illegally download books.

Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine. It’s a weekly meme that allowsbloggers to talk about what upcoming book they’re most looking forward to reading.

Waiting on Wednesday

November 10, 2010

The Demon's Surrender

by Sarah Rees Brennan

Release Date: May 2011

Published by: Marget K. McElderry

Read Chapter One HERE!!

I LOVE these books! Sarah Rees Brennan's writing style flows so beautifully. I adore her! The U.S. cover was just released last week so I knew that I had to feature it here! Doesn't it look amazing? It goes so well with the first two covers. Also, I love the blurb at the top :)

Nick is on the first cover (***swoon***)

Sin is on book two and now Alan rounds the trilogy out. If you haven't read these yet you really should check them out.

Top Ten Unfortunate Character Names in Books

Top Ten Unfortunate Character Names in Books

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

Why oh why can I not think of these? I know I've read books and thought, "Really? That's what you want to name the character?!?" I just can't think!! Well, one and two were easy. The rest? Quite tough!

**Note: Just because I think the name is unfortunate doesn't mean that I don't like the character/book/author.**

1. Renesmee Cullen from Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer

Do I even need to go in to why this name tops my list? It really, really bugs me. When I polled the teachers I work with every single one who had read the series (which was most of them!) came up with this name. When I hear Renesmee I think Gesundheit.

2. Albus Severus from The Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling

I maintain that Snape was not a nice person and should not have a character named after him. I don't want to give anything away (there are still people out there who don't know right?) so I won't say more. If you want my argument I'll happily discuss it in email. yabibliophile at gmail dot com.

3. Ebenezer Scrooge from A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

The man didn't stand a chance! With a name like that who wouldn't be crabby?

4. Henry York from 100 Cupboards by N.D. Wilson

Henry isn't a bad name by itself. I actually like it. The problem with Henry York is that he goes to live in a town named Henry with his aunt, uncle, and three female cousins. Guess what one of those cousins is named? Henrietta... Henri for short. Talk about unfortunate! Note: It does fit the book and I can see why the author did it.

5. Peeta Mellark from The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Okay, this one was hard to include. I am Team Peeta all the way. I loves him :) Still.... A baker's son named Peeta? Really? I guess he's just lucky in wasn't "Hot Crossed Buns."

6. Eragon from the Inheritance Cycle by Christopher Paolini

When I first read this book I had a really hard time with it. Everything was just so similar to things I had read. The thing that bugged me the most? Eragon... Aragorn... could they be any closer? I did end up liking the book though.

7. Prince Humperdink from The Princess Bride by William Goldman

"Humperdink, Humperdink Humperdink!" Oh what a name. Again, how could he not be the bad guy? I did a project with middle schoolers using scenes from this book. The giggles were uncontrollable when Humperdink was in a scene!

8. Winnie the Pooh from Winnie the Pooh A.A. Milne

What the heck is a "pooh?!?" Ummmm, never mind. Let's not go there.

9. Stanley Yelnats from Holes by Louis Sachar (Thanks to David Lubar for reminding me!)

Oh Stanley. You poor, poor thing you. As if your life wasn't hard enough! I don't care how many generations it's been in the family... don't do that to your kids! Also, well done Mr. Sachar! It's perfect for the boy and the story!

10. Ever Bloom from The Immortals series by Alyson Noel (Thanks to Bree @ All the Books I can Read for the reminder!)

An immortal named Ever Bloom.... as much as I love Alyson Noel this is just too cheesy for me!

11. Capricorn Anderson from Schooled by Gordon Korman

This name is totally appropriate for the story/character.... Still, very unfortunate!

In My Mailbox

In My Mailbox

In my Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren. The idea of In My Mailbox is to bring books to the attention of blog readers and to encourage interaction with other blogs.

I'm pretty excited about the books I have this week! I just don't know which one to read first!

Pegasus by Robin McKinley

So, the publishers of Pegasus (Putnam) hosted this really amazing promotion. If you plan a "Pegasus and Cake" event (a get together to talk about Pegasus/McKinley books and eat goodies) they will send out a free copy of the book and a poster of the gorgeous cover. I am hosting two with my students and I received the book this week. It's so pretty!

The Dark Divine by Bree Despain

The ebook version of this book was under $3.00 at http://www.barnesandnoble.com/. I just got a Nook so I couldn't pass it up! I've been meaning to read it for some time. Hopefully I'll get to it soon.

The next two books are from the Scholastic book fair that I'm running at my school this week.

How I, Nicky Flynn, Finally get a Life (and a Dog) by Art Corriveau

Art Corriveau is going to be at the ALAN workshop in Orlando at the end of this month. I'm really excited about it. I've been trying to read as ma

ny of the books as I can. This one looks great for my middle school students!

if i stay by Gayle Forman

This book has been on my list forever! I was super excited to see it on the book fair! Kiersten White recommended it on her blog and on twitter. I knew that I had to have it!

I'm sure that I'll but more from the book fair but I'm limiting myself for now... of course, it's only been "open" for one day.

November Giveaway

Oh November, how I've been looking forward to you! You see, the ALAN (Assembly on Literature for Adolescents) workshop is this month and I AM GOING!!! I've never been before but I hear all kinds of fabulous things about it. Plus, it's in Orlando! I love Wisconsin but Florida in November will be a nice change.

So many AMAZING authors are going to be there! The list includes but is not limited to:

Holly Black

Ally Carter

Andrea Cremer

Kristin Cashore

David Levithan

Rachel Cohn

Cinda Williams Chima

Ellen Hopkins

Cassandra Clare

Lisa McMann

Alyson Noel

Carrie Ryan

Heather Brewer

and many more!

I am so excited! To celebrate I am offering November prizepack! ONE winner will get the following:

The Audiobook of Dark Flame by Alyson Noel and some yummy hot cocoa!

**note: the audiobook is opened but not damaged**

Poster for Jane by April Lindner

SIGNED: Bookmark for Darkest Mercy by Melissa Marr.

UNSIGNED (but still cool!) bookmarks for Simone Elkeles, Radiant Shadows by Melissa Marr,and Paranormalcy by Kiersten White

Eat, Prey, Love sticker for Carrie Ryan books

Hope you like it! Contest ends November 30. To enter fill out the form below:

Clarity

Clarity

by: Kim Harrington

Review from uncorrected proof . Publication date March 2011.

About the book:(from inside cover)

Clarity "Clare" Fern sees things. Things no one else can see. Things like stolen kisses and long-buried secrets. All she has to do is touch an object and the visions come to her. It's a gift.

And a curse.

When a teenage girl is found murdered, Clare's ex-boyfriend wants her to help solve the case — but Clare is still furious at the cheating jerk. Then Clare's brother — who has supernatural gifts of his own — becomes the prime suspect, and Clare can no longer look away. Teaming up with Gabriel, the smoldering son of the new detective, Clare must venture into the depths of fear, revenge, and lust in order to track the killer. But will her sight fail her just when she needs it most?

My thoughts:

Clarity is author Kim Harrington's debut young adult novel. I was thrilled to receive an ARC from Scholastic. I had heard about it during their Spring 2011 preview and marked it as to read. After finishing the book I immediately went to Kim Harrington's website to make certain there would be a follow up book (book 2 coming spring 2012!) Clarity is a complete story, however, it leaves you knowing that there is more in store for the characters.

Speaking of the characters... I enjoyed the way that they interacted. There is a lot of sarcasm and wit but you can tell that they truly care for one another. I especially liked Clarity/ex-boyfriend/new-boy-in-town dynamic.

There were a number of times when I thought I was clever and had figured something out only to be proven wrong and left wondering again. This kept me reading. I had to know how everything was explained. I wasn't disappointed.

Clarity was an engaging read that kept me turning the pages trying to unravel the mystery Harrington wove. The characters were interesting and flawed in the best possible ways (not the too perfect annoying types!) The ending answers enough of your questions to feel satisfied yet leaves enough unknown to leave you wanting the next book. Oh, the downside of ARC reading... the wait is longer!

Follow the author on Twitter @Kim_Harrington

Paranormalcy

Paranormalcy

by: Kiersten White

About the book: (From inside jacket flap)

Weird as it is working for the International Paranormal Containment Agency, Evie’s always thought of herself as normal. Sure, her best friend is a mermaid, her ex-boyfriend is a faerie, she’s falling for a shape-shifter, and she’s the only person who can see through paranormals’ glamours, but still. Normal.

Only now paranormals are dying, and Evie's dreams are filled with haunting voices and mysterious prophecies. She soon realizes that there may be a link between her abilities and the sudden rash of deaths. Not only that, but she may very well be at the center of a dark faerie prophecy promising destruction to all paranormal creatures.

So much for normal.

My thoughts:

I purchased this book before heading to a young adult lit conference at the end of September. Kiersten White was going to be there and I wanted to get it signed. I didn't have a chance to read more than a chapter or two before heading down but I was hooked! The conference was on a Saturday and Kiersten was going to be at a local bookstore again on Sunday. I met her and thought that she was delightful. I knew that I wanted to see her (and Sophie Jordan and Claudia Gray!!) again on Sunday. They were such lovely people and fabulous authors! Meeting them just added to my love for their books... and

I loved this book. A lot. I'm going to limit my reasons why to FIVE:

1. Evie (pronounced as a short version for Evelyn NOT like Eve.) Since she can see through glamours she's the girl they send out to "bag and tag" paranormals so that humans won't learn of their existence. Also, I totally have a girl crush on her. I mean, I kinda want to be her! She's tough and can take down a vampire/werewolf/gremlin/whatever but totally girly too. She loves the color pink and bad TV. How can you not love her? For those of us who are tired of female characters being simpering and girly OR tough and anti everything girl Evie is a welcome change. Plus she's funny. Which is, you know, a bonus.

2. Actually, pretty much all of the characters. Shapeshifting Lend is oh so crushworthy. Bad boy faery Reth gets under Evie's skin for some seriously enjoyable dialog. (Umm, did I just type "bad boy faery?!?" Somehow that phrase seems wrong!) And Lish, oh Lish, with her bleeps and well, all around mermaidness. What's not to love?

3. The vampires don't sparkle. Enough said.

4. The variety of paranormal characters. Sure, you've read plenty of books about vampires, werewolves, and faeries (all are also in this book.) You may even have read a few mermaid books. But gremlins? Hags? Seriously underrepresented in literature today!

5. It's just plain good. It's smart, funny, addictive AND totally clean! I can give it to my middle school students and know they'll love it and that there isn't anything I have to warn them about (except Reth!) The same can be said for giving it to high school students. It's rare that I find a truly good book (especially a paranormal one!) that both middle school and high school students can enjoy. Thank you Kiersten White.

You can find Kiersten on twitter @kierstenwhite or check out her fabulously fun blog here.

Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine. It’s a weekly meme that allows bloggers to talk about what upcoming book they’re most looking forward to reading.

Waiting on Wednesday

October 27, 2010

Out for Blood

by Alyxandra Harvey

Release Date: Dec. 21, 2010

Published by: Walker Books for Young Readers

Hunter Wild is the youngest in a long line of elite vampire hunters, a

legacy that is both a blessing and a curse at the secret Helios-Ra

Academy, where she excels at just about everything. Thanks to her

friendship with Kieran Black, Hunter receives a special invitation to

attend the coronation of Helena Drake, and for the first time, she sees

the difference between vampires that must be hunted and vampires that

can become friends—or even more. When students at the academy fall

victim to a mysterious illness, Hunter suspects they are under attack

from within. She will need someone she can trust to help her save the

future of Helios-Ra . . . help that shockingly comes in the form of

Quinn Drake, a drop-dead gorgeous vampire. Who said senior year would

be easy?

I posted here about how much I enjoyed the first two books in The Drake Chronicles. I read them on August and have been looking forward to this release ever since. The countdown on my blog kinda gives it away, huh?

Top Ten Books That Made me Cry

Top Ten Books That Made Me Cry

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

As I stated last week, I am the biggest baby in the world. While that made scary books hard for me I thought this week would be a cinch! Turns out I was wrong! I really wanted to narrow it down to books that really got to me. I mean, seriously, I've been known to cry at Hallmark commercials. Don't even get me started on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition! I wanted to think of books that really got to me. They are listed in the order I read them.

**Note: As I tried to write about them I realized that I would be giving away a lot about the titles if I really went in to why they made me cry. I didn't want to do that so explanations may be vague!**

1. Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery: From the first book to the last... pretty sure I cried at every one! The first and the last were the worst (best?)! This summer I made the trip to Prince Edward Island with a coworker and fellow Anne fan. It was so much fun and it made the books even more real. I'm sure I'll cry when I reread them again!

2. The Magic Garden by Gene Stratton Porter: My aunt got me started on Gene Stratton Porter's books when I was younger. I think this one is my favorite (but Girl of the Limberlost is a close second!) They're simple and sweet and I love them! Oh, John Guido!

3. The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks: In general I don't read Nicholas Sparks' books. They hurt too much and, after a few, I felt like I was reading the same thing over and over. This book is the exception. It was released when I was in high school. I remember checking it out from our school library and bawling my eyes out! I'm talking hardcore sobbing! It's the first book that I remember spending my own money on so that I could have it to read again and again. I even made my dad read it. I have no idea why I thought he'd like it (he didn't) but it seemed like a good idea at the time.

4. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling: This isn't the first Harry Potter that made me cry but it's the one that really sticks out. I read it while babysitting for my cousins. My oldest little cousin (she's 18 now... not so little!) was also reading it. She wasn't as far in to the book as I was. When I got to the part that made me break down I was trying SO HARD not to cry because I didn't want to give anything away. There I was sniffling, sobbing, and trying to pass it all off as allergies. When the girls went to bed I put a pillow over my head and let it all out!

5. Deadline by Chris Crutcher: I know, I know... the tag line of this book gives it away. Still, I wasn't prepared. When I was done with it and had stopped sobbing enough to allow oxygen to flow to my brain once again I was reminded of what my dad said when a middle school me came out of Titanic with a tear streaked face, "Heidi, honey... you knew how it ended!!!"

6. Looking for Alaska by John Green: Why John? Why?

7. The Alison Rules by Catherine Clark: I don't know who asked me to order this book for my LMC or why I picked it out to read it. I wish I did so I could kick them. That wouldn't even begin to make them hurt as much as I hurt while reading this book! I had to stop because I was crying so hard I couldn't see the page!The worst thing was that I wasn't expecting it. I thought I knew what was happening. Boy, was I wrong! It was a great book but I'm never reading it again!

8. Fire by Kristen Cashore: This was another one that surprised me. I wasn't expecting to events to take the turn they did. I really loved Graceling but I think Fire is my favorite of the two. I'm eagerly awaiting Bitterblue.

9. After Ever After by Jordan Sonnenblick: I don't know if there are words to express how much I love Jordan Sonnenblicks' books. Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie, Notes from the Midnight Driver and After Ever After are some of my all time favorites. This one in particular made me bawl. It also made me laugh so hard I cried. That is why Sonnenblick is so fabulous. He's witty and funny but he gets to the heart of the reader as well.

10. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins: Really I could substitute any of the titles from this trilogy. I just loved the characters so much. Mockingjay haunted me for so long after reading it. It still hurts to think about!

Well, there you have it. There are so many more... Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater, 13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher, Num8ers by Rachel Ward, and so on and so forth.

But enough about me... what about you? What books made you cry? Do you like it when a book makes you cry? Let me know in comments!