Top Ten Tuesday: My TTT lists

Hello fellow bookworms!

I am doing this as my weekly link-up with the lovely ladies over at The Broke and the Bookish who host this little get together.

This week the topic is which TTT topics have been your favorite? Since I have not been blogging long enough to really be able to answer this question I thought that I would just simply look through the list of topics and pick one that I want to answer. I ended up choosing my top ten children's books. I have divided the list into picture books and chapter books due to the fact that I can then accurately tell you what my true favorites are!

Picture Books:

1) Goodnight Moon Margaret Wise Brown

2) Anything by Dr. Seuss

3) Old Turtle by Douglas Wood

4) Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst

5) The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister  

6) Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak

7) The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein

8) The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams

9) Sylvester and the Magic Pebble by William Steig

10) Strega Nona by Tomie dePaola

Chapter Books:

1) The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster

2) Hoot by Carl Hiaasen

3) The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame

4) Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Peterson

5) Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer

6) The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes

7) Holes by Lois Sachar

8) Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling

9) A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L'Engle

10) Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

11) The View From Saturday by E.L. Konisburg

Which children's books are your favorite? What are you favorite list ideas thus far? Let me know in the comments.

Happy Reading!

Book Revew: When the Emperor was Divine

Title: When the Emperor was Divine
Author: Julie Otsuka
Publication: October 14, 2003
Series or Standalone: Standalone
Paperback or Hardback: Paperback
Acquired: Bought used from Second and Charles
Pages: 144
Rating: 5 stars





Summary:

On a sunny day in Berkeley, California, in 1942, a woman sees a sign in a post office window, returns to her home, and matter-of-factly begins to pack her family's possessions. Like thousands of other Japanese Americans they have been reclassified, virtually overnight, as enemy aliens and are about to be uprooted from their home and sent to a dusty internment camp in the Utah desert.

In this lean and devastatingly evocative first novel, Julie Otsuka tells their story from five flawlessly realized points of view and conveys the exact emotional texture of their experience: the thin-walled barracks and barbed-wire fences, the omnipresent fear and loneliness, the unheralded feats of heroism. When the Emperor Was Divine is a work of enormous power that makes a shameful episode of our history as immediate as today's headlines.

Review:

When the Emperor was Divine is the companion novel to The Buddha in the Attic which was written first and is her debut novel. I decided to be informed on the back story before I read her first book and I stand by this decision.

I have not read any books in the fiction genre that deal with the existence of the internment camps for Japanese Americans so this novel immediately peaked my interest. I was not sure what to expect but I was  certainly not disappointed. The most gripping thing about this novel is that the main characters do not have names and all the other minor characters have an identity and are acknowledged by the main characters. This goes along with the theme of the story in which the people who were put in these camps by the U.S. government were stripped of their identity. In order to "prove" that they were not spies they were forced to strip down their heritage and denounce all ties to their family back in Japan.

I loved all of the characters and we get to see a little bit from the point of view of the mother, the sister, the brother, and the father. The father was already in a camp at the beginning of the story so we don't really hear from his point of view for a while except through the letters that he sends to his family. The rest of the family is packing up their house in anticipation of being sent to a different internment camp in the middle of the desert. The two children in the beginning are able to keep up their morale and handle things with that sense of childlike wonder and innocence. They understand that they have to go away from home but they do not understand the full significance of what is going on in the world and in the United States. Overall the book does a great job depicting the fear and hopelessness that the people in these camps felt while they were there. I liked that the story continued on after their release and showed the struggles that the main characters faced when they returned home. People were still not very accepting of them because of their heritage which only added to their sadness and loss of identity. The author also focuses on the family unit which is an element that I love to be included in books. I won't say a whole lot on that subject because I do not want to spoil the book for you.

Overall I absolutely adored this book and I read all of it in one sitting so I know that it was good. I highly recommend this book and I hope to read more by this author and more books on this subject.

Happy Reading!

Top Ten Tuesday: My Summer TBR

I am doing this as my weekly link-up with the lovely ladies over at The Broke and the Bookish who host this little get together.

This week the topic is what books do I have on my summer TBR list? I have so many books that I want to get to sooner rather than later that I decided to categorize them by unfinished series, series I have yet to start and some standalones that have been begging for my attention. Here it goes!

Series that I would like to finish:

1) Uglies series by Scott Westerfield

I have read Uglies and Pretties and I need to read Specials and Extras

2) Ruby Red trilogy by Kristen Gier

I have read Ruby Red and I need to read Sapphire Blue and Emerald Green

3) The Grisha trilogy by Leigh Bardugo

I have read Shadow and Bone and Siege and Storm and I need to read Ruin and Rising

4) The Girl of Fire and Thorns trilogy by Rae Carson

I have read Girl of Fire and Thorns and I need to read Crown of Embers and Bitter Kingdom

5) Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas

I have read Throne of Glass and I need to read Crown of Midnight and Heir of Fire

6) The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare

I have read City of Bones, City of Ashes, City of Glass, City of Fallen Angels, and City of Lost Souls and I need to read City of Heavenly Fire

7) The Darkest Minds trilogy by Alexandra Bracken

I have read The Darkest Minds and I need to read Never Fade and In the Afterlight

8) The Selection series by Kierra Cass

I have read The Selection and The Elite and I need to read The One and The Heir

9) The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

I have read The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer and I need to read The Evolution of Mara Dyer and the Retribution of Mara Dyer

10) Stephanie Perkins companion novels (not technically a series but I just lacked one more having ten)

I have Anna and the French Kiss and I need to read Lola and the Boy Next Door and Isla and the Happily Ever After

Series that I would like to start:

1) Infernal Devices trilogy by Cassandra Clare

I own all the books.

2) Legend trilogy by Marie Lu

I own Legend and Prodigy and I need to get Champion

3) Iron Fey series by Julie Kagawa

I own The Iron King, The Iron Daughter, The Iron Queen and I need to get The Iron Knight

4) The Kingkiller Chronicles by Patrick Rothfuss

I own The Name of the Wind and The Wise Man's Fear

5) A Song of Fire and Ice by George R.R. Martin

I own A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings, A Storm of Swords, A Feast for Crows and I need to get A Dance with Dragons

6) Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

I only own Shatter Me

7) Gemma Doyle by Libba Bray

I own all the books

8) Maus I and II by Art Spiegleman

I don't own either of these graphic novels

9) Modern Faerie Tales by Holly Black

I own all the books

10) Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

I own Outlander and Voyager and I need to get Dragonfly in Amber, Drums of Autumn, The Fiery Cross, A Breath of Snow and Ashes, An Echo in the Bone, and Written in my Own Heart's Blood

Standalones that I would like to read:

1) The Handmaids Tale by Margaret Atwood

2) The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

3) The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak

4) Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

5) The Help by Katherine Stockett

6) Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee

7) Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys

8) To The Lighthouse by Virginia Wolf

9) Anything by Amy Tan or Anne Tyler

10) Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy 


I would mainly like to focus on the series that I need to finish so that I don't have a bunch of unfinished storylines taunting me. These are by no means all of my unread books and I more than likely will not get to all of them by the end of summer. Though it never hurts to have goals!

What books are you itching to get your hands on?

Happy Reading!

Book Review: The Humans

Title: The Humans
Author: Matt Haig
Publication: July 3, 2013
Series or Standalone: Standalone
Paperback or Hardback: Hardback
Acquired: Bought used from Second & Charles
Pages: 285
Rating: 5 stars





Summary:

Body-snatching has never been so heartwarming . . .

The Humans is a funny, compulsively readable novel about alien abduction, mathematics, and that most interesting subject of all: ourselves. Combine Douglas Adams’s irreverent take on life, the universe, and everything with a genuinely moving love story, and you have some idea of the humor, originality, and poignancy of Matt Haig’s latest novel.

Our hero, Professor Andrew Martin, is dead before the book even begins. As it turns out, though, he wasn’t a very nice man--as the alien imposter who now occupies his body discovers. Sent to Earth to destroy evidence that Andrew had solved a major mathematical problem, the alien soon finds himself learning more about the professor, his family, and “the humans” than he ever expected. When he begins to fall for his own wife and son--who have no idea he’s not the real Andrew--the alien must choose between completing his mission and returning home or finding a new home right here on Earth.  

Review:

Overall I thought this book was very well done and it definitely had more than a few heart-warming moments. I was recommended this book by one of my friends who warned me that it was a tear-jerker and to be prepared... I did not really see it this way. Yes, there were some touching moments and the character development was top notch, but it did not bring me to tears.

The only problem that I really had with this book was the writing style. It was done in a play on stream of consciousness that I felt did not really work with this book. There are some books where it works and when done right can be very powerful. That was not the case here in my opinion. However, having an engaging storyline and characters that gripped you saved this book from being a flop.

 The story pulls you in from the very beginning and continues on a fairly steady pace. I was happy to see that at no point during the story did the plot-line reach a plateau and the author sink into pages of absolute nothing. That is the kiss of death for a book. The character development that are main protagonist undergoes is extraordinary. He really seems to capture what it means to be human, flaws and all. He also learns what it means to love and be loved. I feel that it this aspect of him learning how to be human and what all that entails that gave the book the heart-warming moments. You see the alien become a better human than the man that he was impersonating and you also get to see the effects that this transformation has on his family members.

Without this type of character development the story would have flat and one-dimensional. This was a necessity for this book.  I rated The Humans five stars because I did enjoy the plot-line and I loved the characters, even if I did have a hard time with the writing style. This was a great read and I do highly recommend this book.

Happy Reading!

On buying pre-loved books

Let me be very clear in that I am going to try and persuade you to go the route of pre-loved. Normally, I just offer my opinion on a subject without persuading one way or another but today I will persuade. By the end of this post hopefully you will google used bookshops in your area and have a "me" day with some books that will find a new loving home.

Here are some reasons why you should buy used:

1) They are cheaper. Let's just be honest in the end it all comes to money and it is also a fact that used books are cheaper. Therefore when you have a set amount of money that you can spend on books you can get more bang for your buck.

2) The thrill of the hunt. A new bestseller comes out, you want the book, you go to the bookstore, you buy the book. Easy and satisfying. However, what you did not get to experience is the thrill of trying to find that book in the midst of a sea of books just waiting for you to read.

3) You get to discover new authors. You are standing there at a thrift store and you see a book with an interesting cover so you pick it up and read the synopses. Sounds pretty good and then you see that it is only $1, so you scrounge up some change and voila you have just discovered a book that you might have overlooked at a bookstore that only sells new books. Sometimes the book is not that great, cause you know people get rid of books they don't want and then there are other times when you fall in love with the book. Hopefully, you will fall in love more times than you will be disappointed by your purchase.

4) Used bookstores are generally locally owned so you are supporting someone's livelihood. This is something that I am working on myself because I tend to frequently haunt Second & Charles which is a national chain store that sells used and new books. I do want to support independent booksellers and I have found quite a few near me. I also want to try my hand at garage sale books because if I can get them for a quarter then all will be right with the world. I wonder if they will serve me tea and cakes like the people over in the UK do? I am seriously jealous that you all get food and books!

5) You are giving books a new lease on life. I am always astounded at the books that people just give away, I mean how could you possibly just give that book away? That is the best book ever! I don't care that I already have a copy at home I am going to take you home with me as well because I will love you better than someone else ever could hope to achieve. This is seriously I conversation that I have with the book and then I have to tell myself to put the book down! You don't need more than one copy unless I am replacing an old worn out copy with a nicer edition. In that case please do buy the book.

6) You are saving trees. Instead of publishers having to print new copies of a book for you to go and buy you just buy an already printed edition. I should probably point out that no trees were harmed in the making of this post. :)

Those are just some of many reasons why it is a lot more practical to buy used books. If you are picky about your books please remember that not all used books are in horrible condition and smell funny. I often find hardbacks that are practically in mint condition. So please next time you just want to go browse for some books try to make it a used bookstore. Your wallet and the planet will thank you!

Happy Reading!

Tep Ten New Releases for 2015

I am doing this as my weekly link-up with the lovely ladies over at The Broke and the Bookish who host this little get together.

This week the topic is the top ten new releases that I am most looking forward to in 2015.
Oh good grief there are so many. My bookcases are already groaning in protest of being stuffed even more.

1) Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee: July 14
Originally written in the mid-1950s, Go Set a Watchman was the novel Harper Lee first submitted to her publishers before To Kill a Mockingbird. Assumed to have been lost, the manuscript was discovered in late 2014.

Go Set a Watchman features many of the characters from To Kill a Mockingbird some twenty years later. Returning home to Maycomb to visit her father, Jean Louise Finch—Scout—struggles with issues both personal and political, involving Atticus, society, and the small Alabama town that shaped her.

Exploring how the characters from To Kill a Mockingbird are adjusting to the turbulent events transforming mid-1950s America, Go Set a Watchman casts a fascinating new light on Harper Lee’s enduring classic. Moving, funny and compelling, it stands as a magnificent novel in its own right.

2) Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas: September 1
Sarah J. Maas's New York Times bestselling Throne of Glass series reaches new heights in this sweeping fourth volume.

Everyone Celaena Sardothien loves has been taken from her. But she's at last returned to the empire—for vengeance, to rescue her once-glorious kingdom, and to confront the shadows of her past . . .

She will fight for her cousin, a warrior prepared to die just to see her again. She will fight for her friend, a young man trapped in an unspeakable prison. And she will fight for her people, enslaved to a brutal king and awaiting their lost queen's triumphant return.

Celaena’s epic journey has captured the hearts and imaginations of millions across the globe. This fourth volume will hold readers rapt as Celaena’s story builds to a passionate, agonizing crescendo that might just shatter her world.  

3) Sweet Madness by Trisha Leaver: September 18
Seventeen-year-old Bridget Sullivan is alone in Fall River, a city that sees Irish immigrants as nothing more than a drunken drain on society. To make matters worse, she's taken employment with the city’s most peculiar and gossip-laden family—the Bordens. But Bridget can’t afford to be picky—the pay surpasses any other job Bridget could ever secure and she desperately needs the money to buy her little sister, Cara, passage to the states. It doesn’t hurt that the job location is also close to her beau, Liam. As she enters the disturbing inner workings of the Borden household, Bridget clings to these advantages.

However, what seemed like a straightforward situation soon turns into one that is untenable. Of course Bridget has heard the gossip around town about the Bordens, but what she encounters is far more unsettling. The erratic, paranoid behavior of Mr. Borden, the fearful silence of his wife, and worse still…the nightly whisperings Bridget hears that seem to come from the walls themselves.

The unexpected bright spot of the position is that Lizzie Borden is so friendly. At first, Bridget is surprised at how Lizzie seems to look out for her, how she takes a strong interest in Bridget’s life. Over time, a friendship grows between them. But when Mr. Borden’s behavior goes from paranoid to cruel, and the eerie occurrences in the house seem to be building momentum, Bridget makes the tough decision that she must leave the house—even if it means leaving behind Lizzie, her closest friend, alone with the madness. Something she swore she would not do.

But when Bridget makes a horrifying discovery in the home, all that she thought she knew about the Bordens is called into question…including if Lizzie is dangerous. And the choice she must make about Lizzie’s character could mean Bridget’s life or death.

SWEET MADNESS is a retelling of the infamous Borden murders from the point of view of Lizzie’s Irish maid, Bridget Sullivan.  

4) Walk on Earth a Stanger by Rae Carson: September 22
The first book in a new trilogy from acclaimed New York Times bestselling author Rae Carson. A young woman with the magical ability to sense the presence of gold must flee her home, taking her on a sweeping and dangerous journey across Gold Rush–era America.

Lee Westfall has a secret. She can sense the presence of gold in the world around her. Veins deep beneath the earth, pebbles in the river, nuggets dug up from the forest floor. The buzz of gold means warmth and life and home—until everything is ripped away by a man who wants to control her. Left with nothing, Lee disguises herself as a boy and takes to the trail across the country. Gold was discovered in California, and where else could such a magical girl find herself, find safety? Rae Carson, author of the acclaimed Girl of Fire and Thorns trilogy, dazzles with this new fantasy that subverts both our own history and familiar fantasy tropes.

Walk on Earth a Stranger, the first book in this new trilogy, introduces—as only Rae Carson can—a strong heroine, a perilous road, a fantastical twist, and a slow-burning romance. Includes a map and author’s note on historical research.

5) Zeroes by Scott Westerfeld: September 29
Ethan, aka "Scam," has a way with words. When he opens his mouth, whatever he wants you to hear comes out. But Ethan isn't just a smooth talker. He has a unique ability to say things he doesn't consciously even know. Sometimes the voice helps, but sometimes it hurts - like now, when the voice has lied and has landed Ethan in a massive mess. So now Ethan needs help. And he needs to go to the last people who would ever want to help him - his former group of friends, the self-named "zeros" who also all possess similarly double-edged abilities, and who are all angry at Ethan for their own respective reasons. Brought back together by Scam's latest mischief, they find themselves entangled in an epic, whirlwind adventure packed with as much interpersonal drama as mind-bending action.

6) Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo: September 29
Game of Thrones meets Ocean's Eleven in this brand-new book in the world of the Grisha by New York Times-bestselling author Leigh Bardugo.

Ketterdam: a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price—and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can't pull it off alone...

A convict with a thirst for revenge.

A sharpshooter who can't walk away from a wager.

A runaway with a privileged past.

A spy known as the Wraith.

A Heartrender using her magic to survive the slums.

A thief with a gift for unlikely escapes.

Six dangerous outcasts. One impossible heist. Kaz's crew is the only thing that might stand between the world and destruction—if they don't kill each other first.

7) Carry on by Rainbow Rowell: October 6
Rainbow Rowell continues to break boundaries with Carry On, an epic fantasy following the triumphs and heartaches of Simon and Baz from her beloved bestseller Fangirl.

Simon Snow just wants to relax and savor his last year at the Watford School of Magicks, but no one will let him. His girlfriend broke up with him, his best friend is a pest, and his mentor keeps trying to hide him away in the mountains where maybe he’ll be safe. Simon can’t even enjoy the fact that his roommate and longtime nemesis is missing, because he can’t stop worrying about the evil git. Plus there are ghosts. And vampires. And actual evil things trying to shut Simon down. When you’re the most powerful magician the world has ever known, you never get to relax and savor anything.

Carry On is a ghost story, a love story, a mystery and a melodrama. It has just as much kissing and talking as you’d expect from a Rainbow Rowell story — but far, far more monsters.

8) Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Illustrated Edition: October 6
They are planning on releasing one of these each year so you know that on October 6 I will be getting one of these babies. Pre-order on Amazon here I come! Time to relive some childhood memories but this time complete with pictures!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!









9) These Shallow Graves by Jennifer Donnelly: October 27
Set in gilded age New York, These Shallow Graves follows the story of Josephine Montfort, an American aristocrat. Jo lives a life of old-money ease. Not much is expected of her other than to look good and marry well. But when her father dies due to an accidental gunshot, the gilding on Jo’s world starts to tarnish. With the help of a handsome and brash reporter, and a young medical student who moonlights in the city morgue, Jo uncovers the truth behind her father’s death and learns that if you’re going to bury the past, you’d better bury it deep.





10) Winter by Marissa Meyer: November 10
Princess Winter is admired by the Lunar people for her grace and kindness, and despite the scars that mar her face, her beauty is said to be even more breathtaking than that of her stepmother, Queen Levana.

Winter despises her stepmother, and knows Levana won’t approve of her feelings for her childhood friend–the handsome palace guard, Jacin. But Winter isn’t as weak as Levana believes her to be and she’s been undermining her stepmother’s wishes for years. Together with the cyborg mechanic, Cinder, and her allies, Winter might even have the power to launch a revolution and win a war that’s been raging for far too long.

Can Cinder, Scarlet, Cress, and Winter defeat Levana and find their happily ever afters?

What books can you not wait for in 2015?

Happy Reading!

Sarah J. Maas's New York Times bestselling Throne of Glass series reaches new heights in this sweeping fourth volume.

Everyone Celaena Sardothien loves has been taken from her. But she's at last returned to the empire—for vengeance, to rescue her once-glorious kingdom, and to confront the shadows of her past . . .

She will fight for her cousin, a w 

Book Review: The Secret History

Title: The Secret History
Author: Donna Tartt
Published: April 13, 2015
Series or Standalone: Standalone
Hardback or Paperback: Paperback
Acquired: Bought new from Books a Million
Pages: 559
Rating: 5 stars





Summary:

Under the influence of their charismatic classics professor, a group of clever, eccentric misfits at an elite New England college discover a way of thinking and living that is a world away from the humdrum existence of their contemporaries. But when they go beyond the boundaries of normal morality they slip gradually from obsession to corruption and betrayal, and at last - inexorably - into evil.

Review:

I found out about this book from Choncey Boddington who has a YouTube channel when she just raved about how much she loved this book. Since we have similar taste in books her opinion was one that I trusted and I knew that I needed to check this book out. I would just like to say that the synopsis on the back is amazing, how could you not want to read this book?

The story starts out confessing the crime that the group of students committed and then jumps back in time to give the events that lead up to the fateful night. By the time that the actual crime happens the reader is fully engrossed in the character's state of mind and can feel the waves of emotion coming off the page. The author did an amazing job with her characterization, even some of the more minor characters just have such addicting personalities that the reader can't help but feel for all of them. While at first the amount of drinking and drugs seems a bit excessive and over exaggerated when I got to thinking about it I could bring to mind a few friends from college who were big partiers. By the end of the book I felt like the characters had always been apart of my life and I could feel my own emotions intertwining with theirs.

In addition to the amazing characterization is a glimpse into the multiple codes of moral conduct that are called into question and the different ways that people deal with grief. The book touches on a variety of topics including murder, incest, addiction, and abuse which are handled differently by each character. Some of them slip into a deeper depression and turn to other evils to help alleviate their pain while other characters are disturbingly awakened by the evil that they commit. While this is disturbing and slightly unnerving it is still believable. That is what makes this book so haunting is that the characters are so well done that they could be people in your everyday life. It calls into question just how well you actually know someone and what lengths they might go to in order to protect themselves and their own interests.

I highly recommend this book and I want to pick up more by this author.

Happy Reading!

Book Review: Emma

Title: Emma
Author: Jane Austen
Published: Sometime in 1815
Series or Standalone: Standalone
Hardback or Paperback: Paperback
Acquired: Bought used from a thrift store
Pages: 474
Rating: 5 stars




Summary:
I never have been in love; it is not my way, or my nature; and I do not think I ever shall.'
Beautiful, clever, rich - and single - Emma Woodhouse is perfectly content with her life and sees no need for either love or marriage. Nothing, however, delights her more than interfering in the romantic lives of others. But when she ignores the warnings of her good friend Mr. Knightley and attempts to arrange a suitable match for her protegee Harriet Smith, her carefully laid plans soon unravel and have consequences that she never expected. With its imperfect but charming heroine and its witty and subtle exploration of relationships, Emma is often seen as Jane Austen's most flawless work.

Review:
I will be very upfront and honest when I say that the writing style took a while to get used to. When I read the first 50 pages it felt like I was just drowning in a sea of words, however it became easier as I progressed. I feel that writers like Dickens, Shakespeare, Austen, Bronte, etc. are people that you either adore and cannot stand. There is not a lot of middle ground with these writers. Are they wordy? yes! Does their signature style take a minute to adjust to? yes! That is because you do not talk like that in modern day language. No one would stick around to hear someone lament for a long period of time over how pretty the sunset is or take a full paragraph to say what could be condensed into one sentence. That is the beauty of these types of writers though is that they do say things in a way that deviates from the norm of everyday speech. I am not saying that you have to pretend this style of writing if you really do not care for it but I still feel like classics are worth reading because they are considered a classic for a reason. I for one want to find out what I can learn from them.

I went into this book knowing that Emma was meant to be a satire. A young women who defies social norms by making it known that she never intends to marry but has no problem meddling in the love affairs of others, particularly her good friend Harriet Smith. Emma is rich, slightly spoiled, highly judgmental, and also particularly good hearted. It is this good nature that truly just wants to see her friend happy and that cares for others who are not on her level of social status. As for some of her views on the world one must remember that this book was written and published in the 1800's when social status and wealth were of the upmost importance. If one was in good social standing by birth the options were limitless but if they were not in good status by birth then you had better make some friends in high places. That is the social undertone in the book that I feel can often be missed if you get bogged down in the shallow nature of our main character. However, back then that is what was expected of women. They should get married, have children, and take care of the estate. One must remember to judge the book based on the social context of when it was written. I am pretty sure that Jane Austen would have burned at the stake if she had taken too much liberty with her characters.

Personally I absolutely loved the book! The character growth that is achieved by Emma is slightly astounding. In the beginning she is blind to her own feelings about certain people but through the course of the book she begins to change her perception of herself and of the people who surround her. I think that the fact that the character has some flaws and that she is made acutely aware of them is a breath of fresh air. Often in novels a character has a flaw but everyone around them as well as themselves are either blind to them or just simply overlook them. The fact that Mr. Knightley continually calls her out when her flaws show and eventually makes her see that her actions do in fact have consequences just made my heart smile.

Though the writing style was tough I definitely see the merit of this book and hope to pick up more by Austen and others with the same style of writing. Let me know if you are fan of wordy novels or if you cannot stand them.

Happy Reading!

My Version of a June TBR

I have never been one for making a list of books that I want to read during the month, mainly because my tastes change and sometimes I am just not in the mood to read the books that I picked out.

I saw a couple of booktubers who have the same sentiments and will just pick a few bookish things that they want to accomplish during their month. So, I figured that was a good thing to do because it still leaves me room to choose based on my mood.

Here are the 4 things that I want to do during the month of June:

1) Read a book by an author that I have never read before

2) Finish a series

3) Read a book that has been on my shelf for at least a year (this may be a monthly challenge)

4) Read a book that scares me (whether that be because of content, size, etc.)

There ya go! Those are the 4 things that I want to accomplish! Wish me luck.  

Happy Reading!

Top Ten Books That I Want to be Seen Made Into Movies/TV Shows

I am doing this as my weekly link-up with the lovely ladies over at The Broke and the Bookish who host this little get together.

This week the topic is what books do we want to be seen made into TV shows or movies. Personally I do not think that books really make great movies/TV shows and here is why. I feel that a movie does not always have the ability to capture all of the awesomeness that is in the book and a TV show will often embellish just a little bit too much. So my list is going to be books that I believe should be movies because I would rather lose a few things than have so much added that it completely changes the storyline (I am looking at you Vampire Diaries!).

1) Catherine by April Lindner
Catherine is tired of struggling musicians befriending her just so they can get a gig at her Dad’s famous Manhattan club, The Underground. Then she meets mysterious Hence, an unbelievably passionate and talented musician on the brink of success. As their relationship grows, both are swept away in a fiery romance. But when their love is tested by a cruel whim of fate, will pride keep them apart?

Chelsea has always believed that her mom died of a sudden illness, until she finds a letter her dad has kept from her for years—a letter from her mom, Catherine, who didn’t die: She disappeared. Driven by unanswered questions, Chelsea sets out to look for her—starting with the return address on the letter: The Underground.

Told in two voices, twenty years apart, Catherine interweaves a timeless forbidden romance with a compelling modern mystery.

2) The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called "Le Cirque des Reves," and it is only open at night.

But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands.

True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus performers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead.

3) Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee.

Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.

Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha . . . and the secrets of her heart.

Shadow and Bone is the first installment in Leigh Bardugo's Grisha Trilogy.

4) The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken
When Ruby woke up on her tenth birthday, something about her had changed. Something alarming enough to make her parents lock her in the garage and call the police. Something that gets her sent to Thurmond, a brutal government “rehabilitation camp.” She might have survived the mysterious disease that’s killed most of America’s children, but she and the others have emerged with something far worse: frightening abilities they cannot control.

Now sixteen, Ruby is one of the dangerous ones.

When the truth comes out, Ruby barely escapes Thurmond with her life. Now she’s on the run, desperate to find the one safe haven left for kids like her—East River. She joins a group of kids who escaped their own camp. Liam, their brave leader, is falling hard for Ruby. But no matter how much she aches for him, Ruby can’t risk getting close. Not after what happened to her parents.

When they arrive at East River, nothing is as it seems, least of all its mysterious leader. But there are other forces at work, people who will stop at nothing to use Ruby in their fight against the government. Ruby will be faced with a terrible choice, one that may mean giving up her only chance at a life worth living.

5) Saint Maybe by Anne Tyler
In 1965, the happy Bedloe family is living an ideal, apple-pie existence in Baltimore.  Then, in the blink of an eye, a single tragic event occurs that will transform their lives forever--particularly that of seventeen-year-old Ian Bedloe, the youngest son, who blames himself for the sudden "accidental" death of his older brother.

Depressed and depleted, Ian is almost crushed under the weight of an unbearable, secret guilt.  Then one crisp January evening, he catches sight of a window with glowing yellow neon, the CHURCH OF THE SECOND CHANCE.  He enters and soon discovers that forgiveness must be earned, through a bit of sacrifice and a lot of love...


6) Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant by Anne Tyler
Pearl Tull is nearing the end of her life but not of her memory. It was a Sunday night in 1944 when her husband left the little row house on Baltimore’s Calvert Street, abandoning Pearl to raise their three children alone: Jenny, high-spirited and determined, nurturing to strangers but distant to those she loves; the older son, Cody, a wild and incorrigible youth possessed by the lure of power and money; and sweet, clumsy Ezra, Pearl’s favorite, who never stops yearning for the perfect family that could never be his own.

Now Pearl and her three grown children have gathered together again–with anger, hope, and a beautiful, harsh, and dazzling story to tell.


7) The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
Four mothers, four daughters, four families whose histories shift with the four winds depending on who's "saying" the stories. In 1949 four Chinese women, recent immigrants to San Francisco, begin meeting to eat dim sum, play mahjong, and talk. United in shared unspeakable loss and hope, they call themselves the Joy Luck Club. Rather than sink into tragedy, they choose to gather to raise their spirits and money. "To despair was to wish back for something already lost. Or to prolong what was already unbearable." Forty years later the stories and history continue.With wit and sensitivity, Amy Tan examines the sometimes painful, often tender, and always deep connection between mothers and daughters. As each woman reveals her secrets, trying to unravel the truth about her life, the strings become more tangled, more entwined. Mothers boast or despair over daughters, and daughters roll their eyes even as they feel the inextricable tightening of their matriarchal ties. Tan is an astute storyteller, enticing readers to immerse themselves into these lives of complexity and mystery.

8) 1984 by George Orwell
While 1984 has come and gone, Orwell's narrative is more timely than ever. 1984 presents a "negative utopia", that is at once a startling and haunting vision of the world — so powerful that it's completely convincing from start to finish. No one can deny the power of this novel, its hold on the imaginations of entire generations of readers, or the resiliency of its admonitions — a legacy that seems to grow, not lessen, with the passage of time.






9) Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
Cath is a Simon Snow fan.

Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan...

But for Cath, being a fan is her life—and she’s really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it’s what got them through their mother leaving.

Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere.

Cath’s sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can’t let go. She doesn’t want to.

Now that they’re going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn’t want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She’s got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words... And she can’t stop worrying about her dad, who’s loving and fragile and has never really been alone.

For Cath, the question is: Can she do this?

10) Cinder by Marissa Meyer
Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl.

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.


Do you guys agree about not really being down with movie/TV adaptations of books or am I alone on this train? Let me know down in the comments.

Happy Reading!