First Ever Challenges!

I hope everyone enjoyed their weekend, now its back to the ol'grind. Well, I have decided to enter a few challenges. My FIRST one's ever! So exciting! Here they are:


2011 Support Your Local Library Reading Challenge hosted by The Book Junkie's Bookshelf. Click the link to read more about the rules etc.
As you guys know, all of my books come from the library so this is a pretty straight-forward challenge for me. There is levels and I will be doing "Jumbo Size"-read 50 books.


2011 Wish I'd Read That Challenge hosted by My Love Affair With Books. Click the link to read more about the rules etc.
This is a pretty easy challenge, there is level's and I will be doing "Addicted"-read 12 books.


2011 YA Reading Challenge hosted by For The Love of YA. Click the link for more info and rules.
I only read a odd non-young adult book, so this challenge with include mostly every book I review here. So, I will be doing "The Jumbo Size"-read 40 books.


350 Page Books Challenge hosted by What's Your Story?. Click the link for more info and rules.
There are no levels but I will be going for at least 10 books.

So, are you doing any challenges this year? Drop me a comment, I would love to know :)

Thank you for reading and happy blogging!

In My Mailbox (1)

In My Mailbox is a meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren with some inspiration from Alea of Pop Culture Junkie where we get to post about the books we receive each week through publishers/authors, our own purchases, contests won, and libraries.

What did I get?



For Review:

Caleb + Kate by Cindy Martinusen-Coloma (source-Local Library)

Pathetic  I know, only one book. I am depressed but hey this one is really good so far! So, what's in your mailbox this week?

Review for Sort of Forever by Sally Warner

"Sort Of Forever"


Author: Sally Warner
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
Source: Amanda @Amanda's Writings
136 pages

If you're lucky, at least once you find a "forever friend"--someone you can be angry at one minute and hugging the next, someone you know you'll want to be friends with your whole life. Cady and Nana have that sort of friendship. Nothing could ever stop them from being there for each other--or could it? When Nana is diagnosed with terminal cancer, their friendship undergoes its biggest test... -Summary from Goodreads

   This book is a real tear jerker. Now normally I would not read this book because it is a lower reading level and really short but the story hooked me. Sort of Forever takes the reader on a journey through friendship, how people feel, and makes you appreciate what you already have. Nana and Cady have a special bond, and even as Nana's condition deteriates, that bond stays strong. Cady sticks by her friend and fights the guilty feelings she has...Nana was always there for her and now she wants to be there for Nana. I won't lie, I did cry. And that is really hard to get me to do, so Sally Warner--great writing! The characters are amazing, aside from Nana and Cady, I really liked Cady's little brother, Russell. I loved this book, why didn't I give it a fifth star? It was just so darn sad! I couldn't think of re-reading it..for fear of crying all night. I recommend this book to whoever doesn't mind a tear jerker, lower level reading, and great friendship story! A very inspirational read!

Excerpt:

   Nana reached for the bottle of sparkling cider. "Wait a minute," she said. "I want to make a toast, too."
Cady settled back onto the woolly blanket and waited. Nana lifted the bottle. "To us," she said. "Best friends forever!"
"Forever," Cady echoed.
And somewhere in the distance, a dog began to bark.

Book Blogger Hop (10) Follow Friday (5)

Drumroll please....Hop aboard! Here we go:

Book Blogger Hop:


Hosted by Jennifer @Crazy for books.

This week's question comes from Ivan who blogs at Ivan Bookworm:

 

 "What book influenced or changed your life? How did it influence/change you?"

My answer: I cannot say if a book influenced or changed my life but I remember what book got me into longer-length novels. That changed my life because I wouldn't be here today if it weren't for it! So I guess it counts right? The book was Charlie and The Chocolate Factory, yes I know it's stupid but that's the book! I was in grade four and had to read it for a project and loved it...after I was done I read the next book in the series and bam! I was reading novels of every sort within a month! Ahh good ol' times!

Follow Friday:

Follow Friday is hosted by Parajunkee @Parajunkee's View. The question this week is:

What book(s) have you discovered lately from someone's book blog?

My answer: Haha actually I discovered a book I wanted to read I think it was yesterday, how fitting? It's called Coffeehouse Angel by Suzanne Selfors and I discovered it from Diana @The Lovely Getaway! Check it out if you want!

So what are your answers, comment below! I love hearing from readers! AND I don't want to forget to mention that I have changed my blog...I got a new photo on my profile, changed some headers, and added a Who Am I? page, along with a new Contact page and basically every page has been renovated on...So check it out! I would love to hear your thoughts, do you like it?

Thanks for reading & happy blogging!

Review for Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen

"Flipped"
Author: Wendelin Van Draanen
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
Source: A very genorous blogger friend- Amanda@Amanda's Writings
212 pages

Juli Baker devoutly believes in three things: the sanctity of trees (especially her beloved sycamore), the wholesomeness of the eggs she collects from her backyard flock of chickens, and that someday she will kiss Bryce Loski. Ever since she saw Bryce's baby blues back in second grade, Juli has been smitten. Unfortunately, Bryce has never felt the same. Frankly, he thinks Juli Baker is a little weird--after all, what kind of freak raises chickens and sits in trees for fun? Then, in eighth grade, everything changes. Bryce begins to see that Juli's unusual interests and pride in her family are, well, kind of cool. And Juli starts to think that maybe Bryce's brilliant blue eyes are as empty as the rest of Bryce seems to be. After all, what kind of jerk doesn't care about other people's feelings about chickens and trees? -Summary From Goodreads

  This is such a CHARMING read! I loved it! Absolutely and truly loved it!The characters are so well developed that they seem real and the plot is hilarious! I want to thank Amanda for sending it to me...Thank you! Along with the great characters and plot, I loved how the author switched point of views. Now I know this isn't new and many authors do this but the difference is that this author re-does the same scene from the other point of view. And as the reader, you get to see how one scene looked two different ways and how each character felt and thought. I thought that was brilliant! So, I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes a cute, hilarious, quick, beautifully done romance book! Has it come through how much I loved this book?

Excerpt:
  

TOLD IN BRYCES POV (point of view):All I've ever wanted is for Juli Baker to leave me alone For her to back off-you know, just give me some space.
It all started the summer before second grade when our moving van pulled into her neighborhood. And since we're now about done with the eighth grade, that, my friend, makes more than half a decade of strategic avoidance and social discomfort.

She didn't just barge into my life. She barged and shoved and wedged her way into my life. Did we invite her to get into our moving van and start climbing all over boxes? No! But that's exactly what she did, taking over and showing off like only Juli Baker can.
My dad tried to stop her. "Hey!" he says as she's catapulting herself on board. "What are you doing? You're getting mud everywhere!" So true, too. Her shoes were, like, caked with the stuff.
She didn't hop out, though. Instead, she planted her rear end on the floor and started pushing a big box with her feet. "Don't you want some help?" She glanced my Way. "It sure looks like you need it."

Waiting On Wednesday (2)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine where we all feature upcoming books we're eagerly anticipating. 

The cute WoW button comes from Bewitched Bookworms.

So what is my pick?


Title: Wither (Chemical Garden #1)
Author: Lauren DeStepano
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing
Release Date: March 22, 2011
356 pages

What if you knew exactly when you would die?
Thanks to modern science, every human being has become a ticking genetic time bomb—males only live to age twenty-five, and females only live to age twenty. In this bleak landscape, young girls are kidnapped and forced into polygamous marriages to keep the population from dying out.

When sixteen-year-old Rhine Ellery is taken by the Gatherers to become a bride, she enters a world of wealth and privilege. Despite her husband Linden's genuine love for her, and a tenuous trust among her sister wives, Rhine has one purpose: to escape—to find her twin brother and go home.

But Rhine has more to contend with than losing her freedom. Linden's eccentric father is bent on finding an antidote to the genetic virus that is getting closer to taking his son, even if it means collecting corpses in order to test his experiments. With the help of Gabriel, a servant Rhine is growing dangerously attracted to, Rhine attempts to break free, in the limted time she has left.

Yes, I know this has had a lot of hype...but I just couldn't resist putting it up as a WoW. Isn't the cover beautiful? I think so... And this story sounds very interesting. March can't come fast enough!!

What is your WoW pick? Comment below :) I love hearing about new releases that will be coming!
Thank you for reading and happy blogging everyone! Also what do you think of my new signature? :)

Teaser Tuesday (2)

Teaser Tuesday is hosted by Should Be Reading.

Here are the rules:

•Grab your current read

•Open to a random page
•Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
•BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
•Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

1st teaser: "Between mushy chick disease, exploding eggs, and culling, this project was turning out to be the worst!"

2nd teaser: "One hundred twenty two dollars and fifty cents going once...One hundred twenty two dollars and fifty cents going twice...Sold to those two beautiful young ladies for an all time record of one hundred twenty two dollars and fifty cents!"

So what were your teasers for this lovely Tuesday? :)

Thanks for reading everyone and happy blogging!

What to Expect In 2011!

It feels so good to be posting again! I hope everyone enjoyed their holidays!

I've decided to let my readers know a few things about what to expect in 2011!
Here we go:

----I will continue doing Blogger Hop, Follow Friday, Teaser Tuesdays, Waiting On Wednesday and In My Mailbox!

----In the future I hope to have a couple interviews with authors!

----I am hoping to host a giveaway sometime this year!

----I really want to participate in a Challenge of some sort...I think that would be so much fun!

Here are some books that I will be purchasing in the coming couple of months (I'm saving up) AND I will be reviewing these:

--Dash and Lily's Book Of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

--Matched by Ally Condie

--Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly

--Lock and Key by Sarah Dessen

--Just One Wish, My Fair Godmother, My Double Life by Janette Rallison

           

--Wither by Lauren DeStefano

--Inside Out by Maria V. Snyder

--Across the Universe by Beth Revis

 

I assure you though, that by the time I get around to buying these, there will be more...I'm terrible in that regard. My list gets longer and longer when I hear about new books other bloggers are talking about. This is a glimpse of what I have planned! The sky is the limit and I am hoping to touch my ceiling this year! Do you have any must reads? What are your plans for the new year? I would love to hear! Comment below :)

 Thank you for reading and happy blogging!