PebHmong Discussion Forum
Entertainment => Books & Magazines => Topic started by: zena on January 02, 2014, 12:30:27 AM
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My ratings: 5 = Amazing, 4 = Really liked it, 3 = Liked it, 2 = It was ok, 1 = Did not like it
Children's Books:
The Adventures of Caterwaul The Cat 3
Plumides, Damon , Boerke, Arthur Mark
Sam the Sneaky 3
Y. Yang
The Stinky Giant 4
Ellen Weiss
Are You My Mother? 3
P.D. Eastman
A Poor Excuse for a Dragon 4
Geoffrey Hayes
My Little Pony: Twilight Sparkle and the Crystal Heart Spell 4
G.M. Berrow
My Little Pony: Rainbow Dash and the Daring Do Double Dare 4
G.M. Berrow
The Wide Awake Princess 4
E.D. Baker
A Little Princess 5
Francis Hodgson Burnett
Fantasy/Sci-fi/Dystopia:
MaddAddam 4
by Margaret Atwood
The Firebird 4
Susanna Kearsley
Mystic City 2
Theo Lawrence
The Rose Garden 5
Susanna Kearsley
The Handmade's Tale 4
Margaret Atwood
The Shadowy Horses 2
Susanna Kearsley
The Winter Sea 3
Susanna Kearsley
The Ghost Bride 5
Yangsze Choo
Mila 2.0 2
Debra Driza
The Ocean at the End of the Lane 2
Neil Gaiman
The Girl of Fire and Thorns 3
Rae Carson
The Crown of Embers 4
Rae Carson
The Bitter Kingdom 4
Rae Carson
The Third Gate 3
Lincoln Child
Legacy 1
Cayla Kluver
Poison Study 3
Maria V. Snyder
Magic Study 1
Maria V. Snyder
The Bone Season 5
Samantha Shannon
Furies of Calderon 4
Jim Butcher
Academ's Fury 4
Jim Butcher
Anathem 2
Neal Stephenson
Neuromancer 4
William Gibson
The Blinding Knife(book 2 of the Lightbringer series) 5
Brent Weeks
The Lies of Locke Lamora (Gentleman Bastard #1) 3
Scott Lynch
Red Seas Under Red Skies (Gentleman Bastard #2) 3
Scott Lynch
The Republic of Thieves (Gentleman Bastard, #3) 3
Scott Lynch
Lexicon 3
Max Barry
Magic Bites (#1) 2
Kate Daniels
Edge of Apocalypse 2
Tim LeHaye
1984 4
George Orwell
Graceling 3
Kristin Cashore
The Red Knight (The Traitor Son Cycle #1) 4
Miles Cameron
Fahrenheit 451 4
Ray Bradbury
Ender's Game 5
Orson Scott Card
Enchantment 4
Orson Scott Card
Brave New World 5
Aldous Huxley
Speaker for the Dead 4
Orson Scott Card
The Giver 4
Lois Lowry
The Broken Eye 4
Brent Weeks
Arena One 2
Morgan Rice
Romance:
Sacred Sins 3
Nora Roberts
Steamed 2
Katie MacAlister
Young Adult:
The Fault in our Stars 4
John Green
Inspiration/Motivation/Self-help:
Thrillers/Mystery
Daemon 2
Daniel Saurez
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo 4
Steig Larsson
Historical Fiction
The Valley of Amazement 3
Amy Tan
You can follow my reviews at goodreads, here (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/27722112-prettypeony).
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MaddAddam
by Margaret Atwood
I liked this last book of the MaddAddam Trilogy but it was kind of too sad for me. I guess I wanted more hope and more action. I got my answer about how and who really started the pandemic though. :)
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Do you read any of the free books from amazon? I'm looking for a good fantasy book to read. :)
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anchor, I do sometimes. Most of them are not that good, especially the romance novels. But, I did find an okay fantasy one called, The Soulkeepers (I reviewed it in the 2013 book review thread). It's the first book in the Soulkeepers series. I rated it a B- because it was kind of slow at first. It's a young adult fantasy. I wanted to read the series but they cost so I'm going to wait and hope they show up at my library (e-library).
Do you read from a Kindle, an e-reader, or another device?
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It's only been 6 days and you read this many books already?
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It's only been 6 days and you read this many books already?
I actually read just the last book of the MaddAddam Trilogy, which was titled, MaddAddam, but I started it on New Year's Eve and finished on New Year's Day.
I've got a couple of books waitlisted that I want to read. Sometimes, I'll slip another book in but I like the feeling the MaddAddam trilogy gave me (plus, I'm debating questions in my head from the storyline) and want that feeling to last so I'm taking a short break before getting back into reading.
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Hmm I've been reading your book reviews on and off.. and I really appreciate your reviews and feedback. Also, it makes me want to start my own review thread too. :)
Thanks. Yes, do star a review. It's always nice to know what others are reading and sometimes I do read books from other's reviews too.
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Sacred Sins B-
Nora Roberts
This was a romance thriller that wasn't so bad. There was actually a good storyline to it and it wasn't too cheesy. Although, of course, because it's romance, it has that romance vibe to it and I wasn't really digging that but otherwise, it was good enough for me to finish.
This story wraps around a detective and a psychologist. The detective, Ben, just detests psychologists in general but when he meets Dr. Tess Court there's something there. They were put on a murder case together and in the end fall in love.
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The Firebird A-
Susanna Kearsley
This novel is not only a fantasy (because of the psychic abilities which can't ever be real in real life) but it is also historical, with true life historical documentations, and romance...the good kind that you want to hold on to and really feel it because it's written so well.
This was really a great book. The problem for me was it took until about 70% until it got really interesting. It dragged on for most of the book. I also felt that a lot of the situations that occurred in the modern day life wasn't enough for me to really enjoy it. But, the historical part was very good. Not the best, just very good. I think I've read better historicals before but I can't remember. I just know that there were lots of questions I had about some of the military leaders and the impress and the Tsar. It was vague somehow but it could just be me but that's just a small matter. Overall, I enjoyed it.
Anyway, in general, the story is about two psychics. Nicola has psychometry abilities, which means that if she touches something, she can see its history, and Rob, who also has the same abilities as Nicola but he can go further and just close his eyes and see the visions. A women comes into Nicola's workplace to see if she could sell a wooden bird that belonged in their family's history for enough money so that she could go on a cruise. Nicola's boss says it's worthless but Nicola held it for a few seconds and saw a rich history behind it. It scared her but at the same time, she wanted to know where it came from and if it was worth enough money for the women's cruise. So she and Rob go on this journey to Russia following the story of the bird to where it was given to the women's family.
I was most in love with the relationship, in the historical parts, between Anna and Edmund. I wanted more...LOL. I really enjoyed learning the history of the Jacobites. The author did well in her research.
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Mystic City C-
Theo Lawrence
A young adult fantasy novel. I think it's a trilogy. The second book is out and the third is either in the works or hasn't been released, but I'm not planning to read anymore from this storyline.
My opinion: predictable. Every scene was predictable.
****BTW, I started a review on Goodreads. I'm also tracking my books for this year on there. I wasn't planning on having a goal because as I mentioned it stresses me out so I end up not enjoying the books but I decided to have a goal anyway but just have to remember that I'm doing this to enjoy it, not to hit a number. I don't know if I will be putting my reviews here anymore. You may have to just read them on my Goodreads page. You can see my page here (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/27722112-prettypeony). I'll continue to add the books here and will probably change my rating system to match the one on goodreads.
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The Rose Garden
Susanna Kearsley
This was an amazing story. A historical fantasy with some romance. I've always loved a good book that contained some truth to the history. The romance is...so very sweet. Very well written.
I'm not sure if it's because of the sadness that I'm going through in life right now, or if it was really just the book, but there was so much in the story that touched me.
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The Handmade's Tale
Margaret Atwood
Sharing a piece of the book that I found interesting. It's in the yellow parenthesis. The yellow circled word, that's just a misspelled word. It's been awhile since I've come across any but they annoy me. :P
(http://motherof2andnomore.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/thtquote.jpg)
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The Adventures of Caterwaul The Cat
Plumides, Damon, Boerke, Arthur Mark
I wanted to add another book to January by reading this fun kids book. There's about 200 pages. I wasn't able to make this into the January reads but it was a really cute fantasy book about cats. Thought about reading it to my kids but there's a part where the cats fight and I don't know if D2 can handle it.
I'm now reading The Shadowy Horses by Susanna Kearsley. I really like her writing style and storyline so I'm going to try to read as many of her books as possible. :)
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The Shadowy Horses
Susanna Kearsley
I was disappointed with this book and it took me forever to finish it too. Here's my review on Goodreads:
It was too slow moving and the conversations kept getting interrupted every time two people were talking. The storyline really lead nowhere. It was almost like a romance novel with very little romance and a historical with very little history. Fabia, the antagonist didn't seem very sinister until the very end but even her part in the story was small and difficult to really understand because not much substance was given to create her character. There were too many storylines with none getting anywhere. Also, the protagonist, Verity, wasn't thoroughly described. I couldn't really put a face to her or a real strong personality even though the author stated (through the other characters) that she had a strong personality like David's mom. I felt neither with either of them. I found this book to be poorly written.
Although there was romance and history to this book, I think it falls under fantasy because of the non-realistic-ness of Robbie's ability to see things that most humans can't see, as well as Verity's ability (I wouldn't call it an ability though) to hear things, and feel things, and eventually see a bit of what Robbie sees. I believe this story of young Robbie continues in The Firebird, where he's a grown man and is able to control his ability and utilizes it to his advantage. In this book, he doesn't have a very big part, but in The Firebird, he's one of the main characters.
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The Winter Sea
Susanna Kearsley
Started out slow. I wasn't big into Carrie's story but enjoyed the historical story. I do like how the author creates a story within a story though. It's neat but I wish her modern story was better.
I love the way the author writes. I read that she was inspired by Mary Stewart. I'm inspired by Mary Stewart too. She was my first fantasy author, with the book, The Crystal Cave, about King Arthur through a young Merlin's eyes. I'm going to reread the saga again. I don't think I ever finished the saga but I'm going to.
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The Ghost Bride
Yangsze Choo
My Good Reads comment: Wonderful read. Wonderful writing. Exciting. Perfectly paced from beginning to almost the end. The ending happened way too fast though and felt rushed but otherwise, I really enjoyed it.
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Mila 2.0
Debra Driza
My review on Good Reads:
This story started out slow and extremely annoying. Mila, apparently a teenager (underneath, she is an military android in human form but she doesn't know it until later on), totally acts like a spoiled brat. I guess I can't comprehend her spoiledness because I've never seen a teenager that way. She seemed always irritated and detested her mom for no good reason. She was also infatuated with Hunter (I still don't know much about him...and almost thought he worked for the other bad guys...whom I still don't know if they are really the bad guys), and the childish fight over him between her and her "best friend" was pathetic. It was made way too obvious that Mila didn't like her mom, but then at the end, she couldn't live without her mom. Just so unrealistic. But, there were things about the mom that I didn't like either. I gave myself a few more chapters of just irritating scenes and dialogue before putting the book down for good and not finish, but the book turned around and got interesting, so I finished it. Not a bad storyline. I wished it was more technical with more details about the android. I also wished more information was provided about Dr. Holland. I still have no idea why he was made to be a bad person. I don't see the military as a bad thing so for Dr. Holland to be a bad person and the military not knowing is just not real. I would think that Dr. Holland would have to report to some higher authority...ma ybe that person would be the good guy or maybe he's the bad guy and Dr. Holland's just doing his job. I won't be reading the series.
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The Ocean at the End of the Lane
Neil Gaiman
This story was confusing. Nothing made sense and nothing was explained. I was hoping to read a big reveal at the end, but there wasn't one. I don't understand who these people are who lived at the end of the lane and have magic and powers. Where did they come from? Why do they have their magic? Why are they living in that town? It said the monster lady gave people what they desired and giving people what they desire is an evil thing, yet, the supposedly good magical people at the end of the lane gave the boy what he desired and somehow that was acceptable. Also, where did the monster lady come from? Yes, they (the little magical girl and the boy) tried to defeat her in the forest but why that forest? And, why did the magical girl take him there anyway? He was a wimp all the way through the story. He depended on this magical family to help him yet at the end, he learned nothing and gained nothing. As for the ocean, I thought there was more to it but again, there was nothing. Nothing that would make me understand it's true importance.
The writing itself wasn't bad. The storyline had so much fault.
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The Girl of Fire and Thorns
Rae Carson
Very interesting story. I'm not so fond of some of the characters and a couple of characters appear as though they have similar traits. For example, Alejandro and Homberto. They have a softness, or a weakness, to them that are equally alike. Same for a couple of the girls, Cosme and Arina. A lot of things don't make sense including the Godstone but I'm curious to know how it ends so I'll be finishing the trilogy. The writing is pretty good.
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The Crown of Embers
Rae Carson
I liked this book better than the first. I enjoyed reading about how Elisa's character became strong-headed and physically stronger as well. Character development was much better in this book than the first. Great storyline that kept me interested.
I also enjoyed the blooming relationship between Elisa and Hector, her personal guard, who is also the commander of her Royal Guard.
After Hector was badly injured from protecting Elisa from an arrow and was said he wouldn't survive, Elisa used her Godstone power and healed him. This was the first time she learned that her Godstone really worked. She also learned that using her power drains her. When she used her power on Hector, she didn't know what she was doing. She just wanted him to live. She had passed out from healing him so when she woke up and saw that he was alive, she realized this:
(http://motherof2andnomore.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/crwnembers_verse_500.jpg)
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The Bitter Kingdom
Rae Carson
Enjoyed this book as well (liked the complete trilogy). I wasn't too fond of the switch in first person from Elisa to Hector though. I felt it weakened Hector's character. He felt so much stronger and wiser from Elisa's view but from his own eyes, he seemed weak. I had really started to like him until the first person switched to him, then it kind of ruined it for me. Elisa always seemed so strong in first person so having Hector describe how he saw her really didn't make any difference since he also saw her strong as well. She was growing into herself and I enjoyed seeing things from her point of view. I didn't think it made any difference to know his exact whereabouts when Elisa and her "friends" went looking for him. They found him anyway and at that time, he could have just told them what happened during one of their nights in the mountains. Overall, not bad though. I enjoyed the storyline and the writing was easy to read.
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The Third Gate
Lincoln Child
Interesting story and characters. It felt like I had just watched a movie, and made me think of the movie, The Mummy. It's about scientists searching for a King's crowns, trying to make history, and things go awry. The writing was nice but the pacing was a little off. I felt it started out too slow and confusing and then near the end, it went really fast.
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Sam the Sneaky
Y. Yang
Read my review on amazon or at Goodreads, here (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/877573243?book_show_action=false).
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Legacy
Cayla Kluver
There was too much childishness in the characters and dialogue. Every conversation contained meaningless bickering dialogue. I tried not to let that get to me but there was way too much of it. The childish gossiping, and giggling was overdone. The idea of the story about two different people and the captured Hytanican returning to his home peaked my interest but other than that there was no real story to this book. I finished this book because I wanted to know how it would end, hoping for maybe a spark of excitement, but the ending was very disappointing. I won't be reading this trilogy.
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Poison Study
Maria V. Snyder
The beginning really intrigued me. The characters were strong and caught my attention. Midway through it got a bit boring and slow but I hung on because I enjoyed the relationship between Yelena and Valek and the the others: Margg, Rand, Ari, Janco, the Commander, the mysterious Irys, etc. I was also curious as to the ending and where it would end before the next book started.
What I didn't like was the writing and dialogue. The story seemed to be set in a distant time in a completely different world yet the language seemed modern. I didn't connect with Yelena. I disagreed with a lot of her choices and feelings and I didn't find her to be very smart or wise.
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Magic Study
Maria V. Snyder
I really wanted to like this book since the first one wasn't that great but this one disappointed me even more. The first book made Yelena's homeland intriguing but once she arrived there, it seemed so depressing and dull. I couldn't wait for her to return to Ixia because she didn't seem to like it in Sitia, but that never happened. She kept reflecting back on Ixia and the people she missed there and how she wanted to go back, yet in the first book, she wanted to run away to Sitia. Now that she's in Sitia, she wants to go back to Ixia. She's never sure of herself.
I was expecting Sitian society to have very strict structured rules because of all magicians who were capable of different forms of magic, but there wasn't. There were Sitians whom did not have magic capabilities, yet they were living equally among those who had magic. It was too easy to use magic badly yet these magicians rarely went to extreme, except for just a few but then those few never accomplished anything.
I was not too fond of the author's voice and the language seemed off. It didn't match the time period or the world they lived in. The language was too modern. I didn't like the unspoken thoughts from Yelena and sometimes felt they were unnecessary, like when she called one of the less nicer magicians a b*ch. Why not used a different word? One that's fitting for that world. Another thing that bothered me was that Yelena was 20 years old but she acted like a 16 year old. The way she angered easily about trivial things or held grudges just didn't add up as someone who went through so much torture. Also, Valek was a disappointment in this book. I really liked him in the first book. He was mysterious, strong, brave, smart, hot, handsome, everything. In this book, he's just some guy. He didn't even seem like the same person and I was annoyed with him always calling Yelena, "Love" and "My love."
I finished the book because I was hoping to maybe at least enjoy the ending, but that didn't happen. I won't be reading the 3rd book.
I don't think I can read anymore of her books. I really wanted to like her style and writing voice but it's too off. I think I'll stick to Brent Weeks (Night Angel and Light Bringer trilogies) and the likes.
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The Bone Season
Samantha Shannon
This was an awesome paranormal fantasy novel. It was fast moving and action packed. I have to admit though, this was my second real paranormal novel so I don't know too much about the rest of them.
I liked the characters, the description of the world they lived in, the dialogues, author's voice, etc. It was a well put together story. I am still grinning from some of the humor...and some were cheesy but it was put together nicely that I found it cute instead of annoying. Warden was pretty cool. I loved everything about him. There was just a few things that wasn't very clear about his situation that I wanted to know more about, like why and how he ended up injured and near death a couple of times. Why him? Did it happen to the others? I know it had something to do with the Emims but maybe I missed something else.
There were a few things about Paige that I didn't like so much, like the negative thoughts she had. She seemed too sarcastic at times and it seemed out of place for her character. I was somewhat disappointed by her lack of heroic-ness near the end. She seemed so strong mentally and physically at the beginning but near the end she slightly became this weakling...not able to use her gift, getting confused, not sure what to do next. She appeared so sure of herself so this was just a bit of a let down.
Overall, it was a great read.
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Furies of Calderon
Jim Butcher
I really enjoyed the storyline. At first I wasn't sure what I was getting myself into but once I got the hang of the story then it was pretty interesting.
This novel is like a cross between LOTR/Hobbit and Avatar. It's a very long read...over 500 600 pages. Great writing with lengthy descriptions and back story.
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I've started on the next book of of the Codex Alera series by Jim Butcher, Academ's Fury. When I read the prologue, I was amazed at such great writing. I've highlighted just what's in the parenthesis because this part alone already says so much, but the rest is pretty good too. It is things like this that really keep my interest...the great writing. I hope this book holds up. I heard that the rest of the serious were better than the first book.
(http://motherof2andnomore.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/afeprologue_500.jpg)
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Academ's Fury
Jim Butcher
The story was good. Nothing too exciting or boring. It's a very typical fantasy book with enough excitement to keep the series going.
Here's a clip of a conversation that made me smile. This was when Amara, the windcrafter, was having a conversation with the Marat leader, Doroga, about her relationship with Bernard, an earthcrafter.
(http://motherof2andnomore.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/afclip_500.jpg)
I'm going to take a break from this series. This books was 720 pages...whew.. .it was long. BUT, the next book I'm reading is even longer at 1008 pages. Let's hope it's good enough to keep me going.
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The Handmade's Tale
Margaret Atwood
Sharing a piece of the book that I found interesting. It's in the yellow parenthesis. The yellow circled word, that's just a misspelled word. It's been awhile since I've come across any but they annoy me. :P
(http://motherof2andnomore.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/thtquote.jpg)
I've seen one misspelled in The Latehomer by that one Hmong author. I have the book but don't want to go back to see where it was....
I wished I have time to read and should think about getting a kindle fire.....
Once I get Sam the Sneaky in the mail this week I will make it part of reading with my kids each night.
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I've seen one misspelled in The Latehomer by that one Hmong author. I have the book but don't want to go back to see where it was....
I wished I have time to read and should think about getting a kindle fire.....
Once I get Sam the Sneaky in the mail this week I will make it part of reading with my kids each night.
LOL! I find that it's even worse finding a misspell in a book.
I'm glad you read to your kids. I haven't read so much to my 7-year-old at bedtime because she has so many other books to read from school and sometimes I will help her read those (like when she's completely exhausted from reading). Husband has been reading to her at night these days but just every so often. Maybe in the summer I'll do the bedtime reading.
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LOL! I find that it's even worse finding a misspell in a book.
I'm glad you read to your kids. I haven't read so much to my 7-year-old at bedtime because she has so many other books to read from school and sometimes I will help her read those (like when she's completely exhausted from reading). Husband has been reading to her at night these days but just every so often. Maybe in the summer I'll do the bedtime reading.
My kids in K and 1st do have their own reading book and assignment which is part of their hw but if time is allowed then we make them pick a book to read before bedtime. I find kids these day are still reading the same books as my oldest was at her age so I didn't have to add or buy more books to the collection because we have enough to choose. I probably will just add a collection for my son when he get to that age that he find a series of collection that he enjoyed. My two little girls pretty sure will just go through my oldest collection of Judy Blume, Judy Moody, etc. which I packed and stored away.
I got the book in the mail today and was able to read two chapter to my kids before sending them off to bed. I guess they like it because they can related to it as being siblings closed in age and going through similar as Sam and twin sister Sarah. I told the kids two chapter each night then we might be done with the book.
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Anathem
Neal Stephenson
Whew...this book was difficult to read. Lots of created vocabulary and long conversations that I felt were meaningless. I'm glad the author included definitions for his vocabularies within the chapters. There were also a ton of math formulas and physics stuff. A total brain book. I have a hard enough time trying to figure out formulas that I can actually look at but this author writes them out.
Here's an example of the authors vocab (in the pink):
(http://motherof2andnomore.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/anword_500.jpg)
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Neuromancer
William Gibson
This novel made me think of the movie, the Matrix. The similarities in the characters: Case = Neo (both computer hackers), Molly = Trinity (black leather, lives to kill, kicks ass), Armitage = Morpheous (wise leaders). The world of Zion, entering the Matrix. etc. It's also pretty cool that the term "Cyberspace" came from this author. I'm amazed at the world the author created back in 1984 when technology wasn't even known to most of society.
BTW, I read that Neuromancer was being made into a movie. That would be interesting since most of the characters already were portrayed in the movie, The Matrix. But, hey, I read the book and now I'm really excited to see the movie! ;D
Also, I'm really amazed that the term Cyberspace was coined by this author. Wow.
Cyberspace: A consensual hallucination experienced daily by billions of legitimate operators, in every nation, by children being taught mathematical concepts... A graphic representation of data abstracted from the banks of every computer in the human system. Unthinkable complexity. Lines of light ranged in the nonspace of the mind, clusters and constellations of data. Like city lights, receding.
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The Stinky Giant
Ellen Weiss
Cute story. Read it with my first grader (had her read most of the story) and she totally loved it.
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Are You My Mother?
P.D. Eastman
A pretty good story. The illustration was cute. Read with my first grader. It was too easy for her and it's considered a first grade level book.
_________
...feeling guilty because these children's books are so short that I don't really want to add them to my goal of 100 books read. But, technically, it's fair.
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My kids in K and 1st do have their own reading book and assignment which is part of their hw but if time is allowed then we make them pick a book to read before bedtime. I find kids these day are still reading the same books as my oldest was at her age so I didn't have to add or buy more books to the collection because we have enough to choose. I probably will just add a collection for my son when he get to that age that he find a series of collection that he enjoyed. My two little girls pretty sure will just go through my oldest collection of Judy Blume, Judy Moody, etc. which I packed and stored away.
I got the book in the mail today and was able to read two chapter to my kids before sending them off to bed. I guess they like it because they can related to it as being siblings closed in age and going through similar as Sam and twin sister Sarah. I told the kids two chapter each night then we might be done with the book.
That's nice that your girls can share books. My 7-year-old does not seem to like the same books as my 12-year-old when my 12-year-old was her age (like the Disney's or prince and princess stuff...althou gh she does like mermaids, but not the boy and girl relationship stuff as Disney always portrays) so I have to buy or check out different kinds of books. My 12-year-old didn't really get into Blume and Moody when she was younger, although I think she did read a book from each. She was always into fantasy: greek mythology, ghosts, etc., and of course now, she's added YA dystopian sci-fi. It's interesting how kids learn at an early age what genre they like. I think the author's writing style plays a major part in what they read and what genre they eventually lean toward as they get older.
How do you like the book so far? I read it but it wasn't very similar to my kids so I'm not going to read it to them (my kids do not know how to be sneaky like that. They have good hearts and good intentions). They can read it when they are much older though.
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A Poor Excuse for a Dragon
Geoffrey Hayes
Read this story with my first grader (she read with me). She enjoyed it.
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Daemon
Daniel Saurez
The idea was interesting but the story itself wasn't that great. It didn't seem believable and the characters were flat.
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The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Steig Larsson
At first I thought this book was going to be a semi-okay mystery/thriller type book but it turned out to be very interesting. I enjoyed the relationship between Mikael and Lisbeth and how it ended (in this book). The search for Vanger's granddaughter kept me interested. Lisbeth's life is pretty shocking and sad. The story of the magazine company co-owned by Mikeal and Erika wasn't all that great. It felt like it dragged on a little near the end. I plan to read the other two books in the Millennium trilogy.
Here's a clip of what Mikael said about friendship, in the highlighted, that I believe. I kinda have a thing for him (if you can ignore his ways with girls). He reminds me a little bit of my husband. A little bit. ;D
(http://motherof2andnomore.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/gwdt_clip_500.jpg)
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I hope you don't mind me doing a book review.
The Relic
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Synopsis:
A New York Times Bestselling book. The prelude tells the story of doomed expedition in the Brazilian rainforest undertaken by one of the American Museum''s scientist in his search for remains and signs of Kothoga tribe in which a certain lizard god was to be found After a few years, back in civilization under the roof of American Museum of Natural History in New York, where the late professor used to work, unexplainable deaths occur. Along came Liutenant D'' Agosta followed by FBI Special Agent Pendergast to investigate these brutal deaths that are done by removing a specific part of the victim''s brain called thallmus rich in a certain hormones could be found.Under the tutilege of Dr. Frock, Museum Researcher Margo Green together with D'' Agosta and Pendergast worked against time to find the answer behind the murders.
A nosy newspaper reporter named William "Bill" Smithback also assisted in acquiring the last notes of the late scientist from the museum directors. The plot thickens when they found a link between the late scientist''s expedition and the deaths. It is said that before the late scientist died he had sent a package back to the museum. Later on they found out that the package contains leaves(the professor improvised) used as protection for the relic that the scientist found in the rainforest. They thought that the Mbwuan (the creature with a face of a lizard that walks with two hind legs that looks like the relic). Eventually they learn that Mbwuan was really after the leaves in the crate because it is rich in hormones that are the same with our thallmus. And since the recent fire burn the remains of the thalmus producing plant in the brazilian rainforest, the creature couldn''t find any source of thallmus to survive so it travelled a long way to museum in search for it''s life giving leaves. Meanwhile, the museum directors still plans for the grand opening of "Superstition" even with the ongoing murders.
When the attacks came it rendered the security system active therefore locking themselves in the museum under the mercy of the monster.Many died and few survived with the help of Liutenant D'' Agosta and Bill Smithback (under the instructions of Pendergast using blueprint of the sewage directly under the museum) leading the people towards safety while Margo Green and Agent Pendergast stayed to fight off Mbwuan. After a bit of a fight both of them finally manages to kill the beast. The story ends when Lt. D'' Agosta was promoted, Pendergast solve the mystery and Margo Green destroying the remaining Brazilian leaves. In the end, the story has a twist ending revealing that Mbwuan was really the late scientist in the expedition. The Kothoga called the plant Mbwun. Kothoga tribe revers the plant as sacred as when it is induced to the enemy the person becomes the lizard creature that they could control to fight other tribes.The scientist was changed when the Kothoga captured him and made him digest large amounts of Mbwuan. All these information was known by a scientist named Gregory Kawakita who plans to manipulate the plant genetically to form a new kind of medicine that would help humanity grow stronger without the form changing effects. and so starts the plot of Child and Lincoln''s next sequel Reliquary... This novel has been translated into over a dozen languages and was made ino a major feature film by Paramount.
[taken from http://www.shvoong.com/books/novel-novella/1630371-relic/ (http://www.shvoong.com/books/novel-novella/1630371-relic/)]
My review:
4.9/5
I picked this book from Goodwiill meanwhile browsing through the book and movies section. The thing that got me drawn to this book was the title and the picture of the creature in the from cover. I started reading the first page and knew that instance that I had to finish the book. It took me over a month, but was able to finished reading it. The beginning paragraphs as well as the first chapter was very mysterious and had the vibe where it wants you to find out more about the story.
The book was descriptive and gives you the notion of having the pleasure of seeing the whole thing in your mind. It gave me plenty of excitement and at times spooked the living heck out of me. It made me feel as if I was there and the creature was going to pop out of nowhere.
The ending was well thought out and corresponds to the accuracy of a real life situation should the event occur. My impression of the book after reading it was WOW! It had me on the edge of my seat reading the climax portion of the mysterious creature.
This is a must read book if you're looking for some mysterious pleasure of getting the goosebumps.
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I hope you don't mind me doing a book review.
Don't mind at all.
I'll definitely look into this book. It's interesting how the two authors, Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child, collaborated (I noticed they collaborate a lot from my library search). I wonder why some authors do that...it's very interesting. I read a book by Lincoln Child (reviewed in this thread) called, The Third Gate and I think he's an okay author. He seems to drag the beginning and then rush the end, leaving me a bit unclear about a bunch of things. I think part of his style is to leave the reader curious for more but that didn't happen for me. Maybe the collab will bring more out of the book.
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The Blinding Knife (book 2 of the Lightbringer series)
Brent Weeks
I've been waiting forever to finally read this book. After I was able to have access to it at my library, I then was on a waitlist for at least a month! I'm so excited that I finally got to read it and now I can't wait to read the next book!
Here's my review on Goodreads: It was paced perfectly from beginning to end. I loved everything about this book. It made me laugh and cry and everything. There were the cliche's but they weren't overly done. I wasn't too fond of the quick ending but because there are two other books after this one, it totally makes sense.
I want to say so much more about this book but there's just so much information that it would take forever. I like this series more than the Night Angel trilogy (although I really REALLY did like that trilogy too, and still do). The crafting (magic) was explained and there's even a vocabulary and additional information on their magic at the end of the book. That was very helpful.
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My library isn't carrying the 3rd book yet of the Lightbringer series and I sooooooooooo badly want to read it. I might have to just buy it. Amazon and B&N sells it for like $25. That's a lot of money for a book. :-\ The Kindle version is pretty expensive too.
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My Little Pony: Twilight Sparkle and the Crystal Heart Spell
G.M. Berrow
Read with daughter (first grader). Great storyline and wonderful moral.
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The Lies of Locke Lamora (Gentleman Bastard #1)
Scott Lynch
It took me longer than usual to finish this book. I listened to the audio book so that could be why (my first audio since forever so took some getting used to). At first the story was a bit slow and I almost gave up but midway, things picked up, and I actually really enjoyed it.
Now, on to the next book in the trilogy. :)
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My Little Pony: Rainbow Dash and the Daring Do Double Dare
G.M. Berrow
Cute story. Read with my first grader. Rainbow Dash learns a hard lesson.
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Red Seas Under Red Skies (Gentleman Bastard #2)
Scott Lynch
A very long story but wasn't so bad. I listened to the audio...would have preferred to read it. There's a tone of cussing in this book. More than needed I think but it made the characters.
I thought the friendship/brotherhood between Locke and Jean was pretty cool. They both lost people they loved. Jean saved Locke from dying (in book #1) and in this book Locke saved Jean but not in the same way. In the first book they initially didn't get along. Jean was math smart and bigger and tougher. Locke was a thin skinny guy but he had guts and ideas. I liked how their friendship build.
Quote conversation between Locke and Jean near the end of the book.
“ I want to hug you. And I want to tear your gods-damned head off. Both at once." (said Jean)
"Ah," said Locke. "Near as I can tell, that’s the definition of 'family' right there.”
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The Republic of Thieves (Gentleman Bastard, #3)
Scott Lynch
I read this books because it had a lot of good reviews...and I also liked the cover. :)
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But, I just didn't find the story to be that interesting. Here's my review on Goodreads:
I liked this book but I found it somewhat cliche: the older redhead who's tough and hot and the younger skinny guy who can't resist her. The story between Locke and Sebetha is brought out. I didn't feel their relationship to be that strong though. I felt as though Locke was overly obsessive with Sebetha to the point where it was kind of freaky. It wasn't a romantic true love kind of feeling. Sebetha was too hard and strong willed and she didn't seem like a real person. Her feelings were hidden...or maybe she didn't have much feelings. The author stated that she liked Locke but I'd rather feel what he means. Yeah, she put him on a boat to "protect" him but in the end, after the voting, nothing happened to make me think that the boat incident was a good or not-good decision. In fact, all their fighting was meaningless.
The back story about Locke and Sebetha didn't pull me closer to either. It was an interesting story but nothing too exciting.
At the end with the story about Patience and Falcon, what was that all about? Is there going to be another book about these mages?
The writing, character consistency, and humor is why I'm giving it 3 stars.
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The Valley of Amazement
Amy Tan
My review on Goodreads:
** spoiler alert ** I enjoyed this novel but it was very depressing and hopeless in all directions. The historical parts of it was what I enjoyed the most: the clothing, the descriptions of the homes, brothels, roads, people, etc. They were all very descriptive and created a clear visual of China. I also found it fascinating that Chinese families have this really strong tie to their lineage and heritage and can't/won't break it. There was a part where Lucia told Lu Shing that he wasn't brave because he wouldn't stand up to his parents and tell them he loved her and wanted to be with her. At the same time, Lu Shing was (or felt that he was) dishonoring his family by going to the States and not marrying his contract. I can understand both sides but I felt that Lucia wasn't very understanding. She was 16 at the time, just a teenager, so she probably didn't understand but I don't think that's a good excuse. She seemed so much smarter than to assume that she could go into a strong culture and break it up. I don't know if I was supposed to feel sorry for her or sypmathize with her but I felt neither. She deserved what she got: the loss of her son and daughter, Violet. What mother would trust to leave her children to strangers?
The main story was around Violet and her upbringing. It's about mothers and daughters and men and that most men only want sex and women will give it to them willingly or with money and gifts. It paints a really depressing image of women and a disgusting image of men. Women are only objects to these men...except Edward. He actually cared for Violet. I found it unbelievable that Violet only crossed one good man. Okay, two including Danner. They were both Americans. I got the feeling that the author wanted us to believe American men cared more than Chinese men.
There was so much sex in the book that it overwhelmed me. And then, the depressing things that happened to Violet, her mother, and Violets daughter was too heartbreaking. It was a very sad novel that left me gloomy.
It was a pretty well written novel but when the author wrote from Lucia's first person, I still felt like I was reading it from Violet's.
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Lexicon
Max Barry
Good Reads review:
I liked the idea of the story: words that can make people do things. I was intrigued and enjoyed the story. What I didn't like so much were the flat characters. I really didn't feel for them because there weren't enough substance.
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Magic Bites (#1)
Kate Daniels
Not that great of a book. I was annoyed by the protagonist. I enjoyed the fight scenes but that's pretty much it. I actually read this without reading the synopsis. I'll never do that again. It was about vampires and werewolves. The other creatures I don't mind so much. I actually wasn't bothered by the vampires and werewolves in this book though because the author didn't go into details about them so I was glad for that, although, I wish she would have given some details as to their past.
I won't be reading the series. It was irritating reading the authors writing, especially when she's writing Kate's thoughts. A few times, Kate said "Crap" when it wasn't necessary. Kate's depressing personality was over done.
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Steamed
Katie MacAlister
I liked the idea of the airship and steampunk fashion and how Jack was zapped into the steampunk world. I didn't so much like the relationship between Jack and Octavia. The switch from first person almost every other chapter was extremely annoying and got me confused because they both seemed like the same person in first person. The romance was horrible. Jack seemed creepy always wanting to get into her pants (skirt, rather) and Octavia didn't really seem like she liked Jack all that much. I found it really weird how Jack would care to know how many men Octavia has dated and that he even got jealous. I don't even think that's a guy characteristic . They both talk waaaay too much when they should just make love. I wanted to like this book but unfortunately it didn't do it for it.
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Edge of Apocalypse
Tim LeHaye
It was a bit slow moving. I didn't find it very exciting.
It's about a couple of N. Korea bombs that were diverted using a technology called RTS (return-to-sender) created by a military retired man. Ended up being about terrorists who wanted a hold of RTS.
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The Fault in our Stars
John Green
A serious tear jerker. I cried so much. Reminded me of "A Walk to Remember" by Nicholas Sparks.
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I think I'm going to purchased a kindle fire just to have it to read book. I order a dell one but send it back after a couple of days because the screen navigation is bad every time I out my finger on it will zoom big or take you to another page. Nothing beat a ipad but don't need another one.
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1984
George Orwell
It was a pretty good book considering it was first published in 1949.
Wished I had read this book sooner but it just never crossed my mind until my husband's employee recommended it. The story left a really sad and angry feeling in me. Very powerful stuff. Here is a clip that really made me question power and freedom. Power and freedom happens to be the main points in sic-fi and fantasy novels. That's probably why I'm so drawn to these two genres.
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I think I'm going to purchased a kindle fire just to have it to read book. I order a dell one but send it back after a couple of days because the screen navigation is bad every time I out my finger on it will zoom big or take you to another page. Nothing beat a ipad but don't need another one.
I meant to get back to you on this. Have you purchased the Kindle? I've found it to be the only practical option over reading the actual book. I know there are other devices that might be considered better, but I'm very happy with the plain Kindle Touch. Without it, I couldn't read as much as I have been.
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Graceling
Kristin Cashore
It was okay. I was a bit irritated by the protagonist, Katsa, at first because she was too manly and too unhuman and her personality just didn't make sense, but eventually things got better with her. Overall, I enjoyed the storyline. I was a bit disappointed at what had happened to Po since I got the sense that he could sense things and assumed he would know in advance to maneuver around the animal. The ending ended too fast and there were moments in there when things just dragged on.
Another thing, this book is so much about Katsa not caring to get married. It seemed in almost every chapter, it was about her clearly stating she didn't care for it. It got to the point where it was just annoying as heck. We know already that she's not the type to get married. She doesn't have to answer to anyone who asks but she always ends up in a debate match about it with whomever brings it up. It's almost as if the author wants us to know that anyone with Katsa's personality traits doesn't have to get married. I guess I just don't understand that mind frame that getting married, she'll lose her freedom. I kind of see it that she might actually gain more freedom and wisdom, especially if the marriage is to Po.
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I tried to read the next book in the graceling trilogy, Fire, but it's just not working. The story is just so horribly written. The writing is good, it's the storyline that's absurd. I so wanted to finish this trilogy but it's not gonna happen. :(
Moving on to a new book.
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The Red Knight (The Traitor Son Cycle #1)
Miles Cameron
This was a really fun book to read. I liked how the words flowed. It was almost like poetry. At first I couldn't decide if I liked the Red Knight. He flirts a bit too much with the ladies. The romance between him and the Novice was a bit weak too. But, other than that, I enjoyed the plot, the fighting, the descriptions (esp. about the knights fashion), and the characters.
I read the story on a Kindle and found tons of errors in misspells, double words (the the, etc.), missing or incorrect punctuations, etc. It was annoying. There was even a sentence that repeated. That added some frustration.
The second book, The Fell Sword, is out and I want to read it so bad but it's not at my library. It just came out earlier this year, March 2014, so I can understand why it's not at my library yet. I don't know if I can wait. I might have to just buy it but can't decide if I should buy the Kindle version or the actual book. I feel like if I buy the actual book, then I'll have to buy the first book too just to have it. LOL! Oh boy...decision s decisions!
Will be back to share some of my favorite clips.
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Fahrenheit 451
Ray Bradbury
A really good book. A little too short but the story behind it was very interesting.
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The Wide Awake Princess
E.D. Baker
Read with my 2nd grader. She loved it and so did I. The story is basically about some of the famous fairytales with a twist.
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Hey, MA. Some of the books you've listed sounds interesting. I have read one of them, which was "The Handmaid's Tale." When I have more time, I may have to check a few of the other ones out. Thanks. O0
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trouble, what did you think of "The Handmaid's Tale"? I preferred "Oryx and Crake" by the same author. I think she writes interesting (and personally, mind blowing) apocalyptic novels.
If you'd like some recommendation s from my list, try "The Rose Garden" and "The Ghost Bride." :)
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It was an interesting yet horrifying concept that women would/could become pawns to that type of government AND not even having an identity/rights/voice of their own, but are properties of certain elite person(s). It was also only a matter of time and inevitable that people would rebel against the inequalities, unfairness, and disparities in a totalitarian society. Conclusively, I thought it was a good book and thought-provoking.
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It was an interesting yet horrifying concept that women would/could become pawns to that type of government AND not even having an identity/rights/voice of their own, but are properties of certain elite person(s). It was also only a matter of time and inevitable that people would rebel against the inequalities, unfairness, and disparities in a totalitarian society. Conclusively, I thought it was a good book and thought-provoking.
O0
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Ender's Game
Orson Scott Card
Great book. It really tore at me and had a lasting feeling. I finished the book in pretty much two days. Right away I rented the movie and that was pretty good too.
In general, it's a sci-fi story about a young boy, Ender, who is trained to fight an alien race. But, there are lots of twists and turns and really makes you think about war. I totally love Ender's character. I love how the author created him with real human thoughts and emotions that I can relate to or at least understand why he feels those emotions.
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MA, you mentioned that I should check out "The Rose Garden" and "The Ghost Bride." Which of these would you recommend more?
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trouble, they are equally good. "The Rose Garden" is a historical paranormal and "The Ghost Bride" is a cultural/paranormal.
I would also recommend "The Bone Season" by Samantha Shannon, which is a sci-fi post apocalyptic paranormal. I actually like this one better than the two above. Although, they are all very good.
And, of course, "Oryx and Crake" by Margaret Atwood (who wrote "The Handmaid's Tale").
I think I recommended the first two because they were shorter than the others. I tend to read very long books and don't want to overwhelm anyone with crazy long books.
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Enchantment
Orson Scott Card
A twist on the fairytale, Sleeping beauty. It was a good read and I enjoyed it.
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Brave New World
Aldous Huxley
Read this book in high school but re-read it and it was even better this time.
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trouble, they are equally good. "The Rose Garden" is a historical paranormal and "The Ghost Bride" is a cultural/paranormal.
I would also recommend "The Bone Season" by Samantha Shannon, which is a sci-fi post apocalyptic paranormal. I actually like this one better than the two above. Although, they are all very good.
And, of course, "Oryx and Crake" by Margaret Atwood (who wrote "The Handmaid's Tale").
I think I recommended the first two because they were shorter than the others. I tend to read very long books and don't want to overwhelm anyone with crazy long books.
I don't mind too much about the length just so long as it's one, maybe two, book(s) only. I'm not too fond of series, I prefer stories that have some sort of ending. ;D I'll check out some of the ones you've recommended. Thanks. ;)
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I don't mind too much about the length just so long as it's one, maybe two, book(s) only. I'm not too fond of series, I prefer stories that have some sort of ending. ;D I'll check out some of the ones you've recommended. Thanks. ;)
O0
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Speaker for the Dead
Orson Scott Card
It was an enjoyable book. I wished the relationship between Ender and Navinha was talked about more. Author wrote that Ender loved her when he first learned of her but when they finally met, there was no strong connection/storyline to make me feel that they had anything. I also found the relationship he had with Jane a big strange and didn't make a lot of sense to me. The life of the piggies was fascinating and thoroughly thought out.
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The Giver
Lois Lowry
It was an enjoyable book. The ending was a little confusing because there's nothing explaining why he (Jonas) ended up where he was and the significance of it.
I also felt that I couldn't relate or fully understand the characters because there wasn't enough substance in their characters but the idea of the world they live in was frightening yet interesting.
I saw the movie and the movie made more sense than the book. This time, I have to say, the movie out did the book.
I will be reading the quartet so that I can understand how the Giver and Jonas have the ability to do what they do.
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The Broken Eye
Brent Weeks
It was a good read. A few situations in the book annoyed me but overall, I liked it.
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I had some time to think about the book, The Broken Eye, and I'm finding that I actually really liked it...more than just 4 stars but less than 5...so about 4.5 stars. I think I did have some expectations but I also don't think my expectations was what lead me to rate it the way I did. After finishing the book, I reviewed right away. Then, I took a day or two to really allow the full story to sink in. What I confirmed was that there was a scene that was a little like the Night Angel Trilogy. The part where Kip sort of "dies" and goes into another realm. It was too much like the Night Angel Trilogy. If you haven't read that trilogy then you might not have this issue I'm having but if you did read that trilogy, you'd understand the irritation. I think that's really why I couldn't give it 5 stars. I don't dislike that part. It just felt like I was reading The Night Angel Trilogy and I was hoping that The Lighbringer Quartet would be far from similar to the Night Angel Trilogy. The author is amazing though writing such a big book (over 700 pages) with so many twists and turns. I liked the way it ended and hope (yes, expectation) that Kip remains that person he was at the end.
Speaking of Kip, I like him because he sometimes reminds me of myself. I'm sure he reminds a lot of people of who they are. But for me, his clumsiness and forgetfulness and goofiness is how I see myself. I'm that girl who'll say the wrong thing or who's mind drifts in a meeting/classroom and then get picked on to answer the question and have no idea what was just asked, or who doesn't have an answer even though I know what was asked. I'm the one who always says too much only to realize I've embarrassed myself by sharing too much. Kip sometimes comes across tough and strong and then he lets his guard down and he's nothing but scared and unsure of who he is. Yeah, I feel like that too. Will my kids one day learn that I'm not that strong-know-everything-mom and don't have answers to their life or mine? Yet, when push comes to shove, I make pretty quick and firm decisions? How does that work? What if they already know that I don't have all the answers but know that I will have answer when it comes to push and shove? Or, do they not care because I love them and they love me and that's all that matters? Things like that.
I'm excited for the last book though. I think it comes out fall 2015. Maybe if I pay closer attention I might be able to get the author's autograph this time.
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A Little Princess
Francis Hodgson Burnett
A really great book. I loved every bit of it.
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Arena One
Morgan Rice
Not bad but I just couldn't relate to the protagonist and I guess my perception of men/boys is just different. The author made them seem so clueless and stupid that it was just so unreal. The protagonist and the other characters were very one dimensional. The action parts were nice and moved the story along. The idea that two political parties causing so much separation that it leads to an apocalypse was interesting but not believable. Maybe because it wasn't thoroughly researched/thought out?
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I will be re-reading "The Bone Season" by Samantha Shannon very soon. Author will be releasing the second book "The Mime Order" in a couple of weeks so I want to refresh my memory. Can't wait.
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Too lazy to double post reviews on all the books I've read so far since the last book I posted a review on. If you're interested, just follow my good reads (posted link on first page of this topic). I need to hit 100 books this year and I've fallen behind due to having been busy in July and August now I'm just playing catch up. I know I will not be doing 100 books next year...it's quite stressful.
Anyhow, I am currently reading a YA series called, Book of Ember. I finished book 1, The City of Ember, last night (read 8 hours straight +/-). It was intense. Sometimes these simple books (only the interesting ones) do the job for me after I've finished an okay book or large adult trilogy/quartet/series/500+ pages books. The book I read before starting the Book of Ember series was by Nicholas Sparks called, A Bend in the Road, a romance/thrillier/detective book. Not really what I enjoy reading but Nicholas Sparks is an author I can turn to when I need something simple and mellow with a twist. I like his fiction writing voice. The book I read before that was Children of the Mind by Orson Scott Card. It was the last book in the Ender's Game Quartet. It was so good. So well written with many thought provoking words, phrases, conversations, etc. Before that, I finished Emma and Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austin. Both are great classics for a reason. I'm planning on reading Sense and Sensibility but just needed a break. I'm kind of obsessed with sci-fi and fantasy at the moment.
I'm also currently finishing up The Secret Garden by Francis Hodgson Burnett (whom also wrote A Little Princess, which reviewed above). I'm reading this to my kids at bedtime.
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I also finished Xenocide, the 3rd book in the Ender's Game Quartet before starting Children of the Mind. Xenocide was okay. Of this quartet, I'd say the first book, Ender's Game, was the awesomest and then, Children of the Mind, the last book in the quartet, was the second awesomest. :)
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I finished all The Book of Embers quartet. I believe it might be a series but so far, I finished all four available. Really enjoyed the first book. The other three were okay. Read The Celestine Prophecy. It was okay. Saw the movie afterward and liked it much better. Finished The Secret Garden. It was okay. Saw the movie first and somehow like the movie more. Need to rent it so the kids and I can watch it. Finished another kids book and have started on another one.
Currently, I am reading 4 books. One is a re-read (The Bone Season). Just learned that the official release of the second book, The Mime order will be on January 27, 2015. Was sent a request to join The Bone Season forum to talk about the book. So cool!
And currently, there are 7 books wait listed that I can't wait to read. There are a couple more books I'm thinking of adding to my wait list.
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moonangel,
A great classic that I love and perhaps your girls will enjoy is "Black Beauty". It's written from a horse's POV. The movie War Horse reminded me of it. And of course, a movie was made from the book as well.
Some other great classics for your girls:
"Heidi"
"Anne of Green Gables"
"Oliver Twist"
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Thanks, Believe_n_me. I read those books in my childhood too. My 12 year old has read Heidi and didn't seem to like it. She likes the Poison Apple series and anything post-apocolyptic (ie, The Giver, Divergent, Hunger Games). My 7 year old prefers things like My Little Pony with magic and stuff. When I read A Little Princess (a classic) to her, she couldn't sit/lay still. It was too much for her to handle (the sadness, mean-ness, hatefulness, etc, was too much for her to handle). Same with The Secret Garden, although, I think she found it a bit boring because it went in circles. She liked the parts about food though...haha. ..it made her hungry and told me to stop reading otherwise she'd have to get some food.
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Finished The Demon King, a fantasy about wizards. It was okay. The writing was good. The story was fine but the idea was off to me. I'm a believer that if there's magic, there's got to be a side effect, a serious side effect, otherwise, it's unbelievable. In this story, there's no talk of any side effect of using power so the evil wizards just take over...so it makes me wonder, 'Then they should be able to take over quickly and forever because there's nothing stopping them from using their powers...yet, they limit their power usage...why?'. An example of believable magic and power would be the Color Prism, from the Lightbringer series. The more the Color Prism uses his magic, the less magic he'll have in him. So if there's war, he really has no choice but to use as much magic as he can, thus shortening his life. But, that's the sacrifice he has to make...save his people or save his magic and let the evil side rule.
Finished The Illustrated Man, a sci-fi classic and very creative stories within a story. This author really makes one think.
Finished two kids book with 7-year-old daughter (she read most of them since I've been a bit under the weather): Hiedi Heckelbeck is Ready to Dance, and Ruby Lu, Star of the Show.
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Finished The Book of Deacon by Joseph R. Lallo. Not that great. Finished Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood. It was okay. Not as great as her apocalyptic novels. For some reason, my library said that Relic was available but then when I went to download, the book wasn't there. I searched the book and it showed checked out. Wonder what happened. Oh well...I rechecked it out.
The next book I'm reading is called Shattered Promises by Jessica Sorensen. It's a paranormal romance. Someone said it was a good book. Let's hope there's no werewolves or vampires.
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Had a hard time reading Shattered Promises so read another book, a sci-fi called, Dark Space by Jasper T. Scott, and finished it. It was okay. Not good enough for me to read the trilogy/series. Right now reading Fool's Assasin by Robin Hobb. It's starting out slow. It was rated 4.32 out of 5 stars and was selected as a book to vote on for best fantasy book of 2014.
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Finished Fool's Assassin. Not bad. I gave it 3 stars because I thought the beginning was just boring and went for what seemed forever. It got interesting half way through until the end. It ended too quickly and just when I couldn't stop reading wanting more.
Will be reading the next book in the trilogy.
Right now, reading Something Wicked this Way Come by Ray Bradbury. So far can't put it down.
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Finished Something Wicked...It was very good. Simply put: be true to yourself and find happiness in your own life. :)
Next book I'm reading is Fortune's Pawn by Rachel Bach. The 3rd book was on the voting list as one of the best sci-fi so to get to the 3rd book, I must read the first 2. >:( Let's hope it's good enough for me to get there.
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I'm feeling really giddy. I'm so glad I stumbled upon the Paradox Trilogy by Rachel Bach. I finished the first two books: Fortune's Pawn and Honor's Knight back to back and within 3 days, AND gave them both 5 stars. They were both action pact and kept me intrigued. I can't wait to read the 3rd book, the book I was trying to get to in the first place so you can imagine my giddiness. 3rd book still on hold at my library but it seems to be moving a long pretty fast. I can't wait!
In Fortune's Pawn, the story begins by focusing on the relationship between Devi and "The Cook." It's a bit cheesy but I love the way the author writes so I laughed a bunch of times. Loved the sarcasm. It was well done. The s*x was steamy, hot, tense...wow. Loved the fighting scenes. Completely action packed.
In Honor's Knight, there's not so much of relationship going on which was perfect. Too much relationship stuff in books like these and it ruins everything. I'm so glad the author put that on the back burner and brought out the main story. There were lots of fighting action, a little more than the first one. I also liked that the author wasn't afraid to kill a couple of good guys. I would have liked it even more if more good guys were killed.
Downside though was that there was too many different things going on. Got a little confusing as to who was fighting who, who the bad guy/good guys were, which alien race was good/bad. Things like that which I hope clarifies up in the 3rd book.
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Finished Heaven's Queen a couple of days ago. The trilogy was great. The confusion cleared up and it all made sense.
Personally, I was not a big fan of the main character, Devi. She was one bad *ass chick with a mind of her own. A bit cliche with her toughness, foul language, physic, and a total go-getter, even when it came to Mr. Chirkov (The Cook). Having said that, I did like how her character was written. She was different from what I'm used to in a protagonist, even with all the cliche. The trilogy was written in first person from Devi's pov and because I wasn't a fan of her personality, at times, I think that was what made it difficult to agree with her. If it was written from 3rd person, I may have liked her character a little more.
Mr. Chirkov was also very cliche: Tough quiet guy. Handsome. Awesome body. Military background. Amazing fighter. Intelligent. But it was well written that I wanted him for myself...LOL! Oh yeah, I was a bit jealous...haha .
So glad to be done with the trilogy though. It was starting to get tough to read but definitely worth the imagination. I felt like I actually lived in their world a bit there.
Also finished, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. I tried reading this book years ago but for some reason couldn't finish. It was actually pretty good. Planning on reading the next books but will probably take it slow since I did fall asleep a couple of times while reading this one.
Now onto the next book: Falling Into Place, by Amy Zhang.
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Finished Falling Into Place. Not so great. It was about suicide but the protagonist was already a difficult and mean person so I didn't really feel bad for her. I think the author tried to make the reader feel bad for her upbringing but because I personally had a very difficult upbringing myself and never considered suicide, it just didn't seem realistic to me. It felt like she was just not a normal person and needed to be medicated. It was as if her mother chose not to see all this. I didn't feel much for the mother too because I'm not the type to ignore family issues. It's so wrong for the mother to just focus on her job and ignor her child. I gave up my job to watch my kids. I know what it's like to sacrifice one's careers/job to make sure their kids are raised properly and get a bit upset at parents who choose to avoid their kids. The author's writing was also a bit hard to read. It wasn't smooth or poetic but that's just a personal preference.
Also finished, Shattered Promises. Horrible. Just horrible. During one conversation (and there were many like this), the main character asks the guy she likes, "Who am I?" and he replies with, "Who are you?" I was like, 'that's it, I'm just skimming it since I'm almost done.' I mean, he could have at least said, "You're human." Then she could have said, "I meant besides being human, what else am I?" OR something like that. Every time the main character asked a question, the guy either answers with, "I'll tell you later..." or he completely avoids her questions. And, those questions rarely get answered. Even at the end, not much was revealed.
I tried hard to like these two books hoping each new chapter would get better but they got worse and it's just unfortunate because I'm always trying to be positive about some of these authors. I cannot wait to read another good book. I think I'm done for a few days with Thanksgiving coming and all.
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Read a whole bunch of books:
The Golden Compass (His Dark Materials #1), The Subtle Knife (His Dark Materials #2), and The Amber Spyglass (His Dark Materials #3)by Philip Pullman. They were pretty good. I enjoyed the first book more than the second two.
Lulu's Mysterious Mission by Judith Viorst. Cute kids book. Read it with my 7 year old who loved it.
The Magicians (The Magicians book #1) by Lev Grossman. It's like a grown up version of Harry Potter but badly done. I enjoyed the fantasy about it (magic, wizards, potions, etc.), I just didn't care for the storyline and the inappropriate language. Won't be reading the triligy.
The Courage of Sarah Noble by Alice Dalgliesh. A true story about a little girl back when the land still belong to the Indians. Read with daughter whom loved it. I liked it too!
Clockwork Angels (The Infernal Devices #1), Clockwork Prince (The Infernal Devices #2), and Clockwork Princess (The Infernal Devices #3) by Cassandra Clare. It was okay. The love story wasn't very strong. I think this trilogy would have done well without the love story or maybe a whole different love story all together. It just wasn't very strong. I didn't feel connected to the protagonist. Well, maybe I did. She was a bit confused about who she was and I was a bit confused about who she was too...LOL. The action scenes seemed like a blur. Nothing really stood out.
Gathering Blue (The Giver #2) by Lois Lowry. I liked it. It didn't continue from The Giver as I thought it might. This book was about a young girl with a bad leg who's artistically talented. I believe the next two books in the quartet connects the first book with this book. There were some things that was a bit cloudy in this book, like why only a few of these young kids have special talents and why are the adults so cruel and distant. I'd like to know how this came about.
Currently reading Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Harry Potter, #2) by J.K. Rowling. After this book, I'll have one more book to go, and then I'll be done with my goal of 100 books for the year!!!!!!
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Finished The Chamber of Secrets. It was good. Liked it much better than the first book. A lot of things were clarified.
Just downloaded The Game of Thrones (The World of Ice & fire) by George R.R. Martin but will wait a day or two to read it. An author of a sci-fi book just asked me to read and review a book for her so I'm going to do that first.
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Finished Overload Flux by Carol Van Netta. Author asked me to read and review it and I was nervous but it was good so it made it easy. It was enjoyable and I'm excited to read the next book once it's out.
BTW, I've completed my 100 books for 2014!!! What a relief!!!
Even though I am done with my challenge, I am not done reading. I have 8 books lined up to be read. They all became available from the library just days after each other. Wool by Howey Hugh is one of those books. I've been waiting since late summer/early fall for this book so I'm moving it up to be read next.
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It's beautiful outside. It's snowing and completely white.
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O0 ... kekeke ... :o
Moonangel,
That's some serious reading there. In two postings, you've probably read more books than me, or the average person.
I never enjoyed reading. It has always been laborious, and as you mentioned, makes me sleepy a lot of the times.
And now, being older, I tend to steer from fictional, sci-fi, and fairy tales. But I use to love them growing up though I preferred short stories over books and novels.
Good work. It's inspiring, for me to read more. Nowadays, I am more into researching though -- all things Hmong/Miao ... kekeke ... 8) ( Only if I could read as diligently as you, I'd finish most/ALL my initial research already ... kekeke ... 8) )
Sidenote:
I read a New York Times best seller, 4.5/5, book once and was rather disappointed afterwards. Don't recall the title, but it is about a grieving father, whose daughter was kidnapped and murder. He eventually met and spent time with God, yes -- your Biblical God -- who helped him cope, forgive, and embrace his tragedy. Yup. Happy ending. Nope. Not making this up. And nope, I don't believe in Jesus, or God. Not your "white", all loving blah blah blah one that's for sure.
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Happy New Years Eve! I can't believe this year went by already. Anyway...
Finished A Game of Thrones (A Song of Fire & Ice #1)by George R.R. Martin. Loved it. I'm not new to fantasy of this kind but I still loved it. What's fascinating is how the author brought the characters to life. I feel for them in so many ways. Needed to take a break but the 2nd book, A Clash of Kings, was available (no holds!) so I downloaded it and started reading. I realized just after dl-ing the 2nd book that I needed to get reading on Wool, the sci-fi mentioned earlier, before it expires. I originally wanted to read Wool first first but forgot that it was an online book that I must read on my desktop. I don't like reading on my desktop. So thus I went with the fantasy book by Mr. Martin. But, I do need to finish Wool because the whole point was to get to the 3rd book in the trilogy or series, having heard that it was pretty good.
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O0 ... kekeke ... :o
Moonangel,
That's some serious reading there. In two postings, you've probably read more books than me, or the average person.
I never enjoyed reading. It has always been laborious, and as you mentioned, makes me sleepy a lot of the times.
And now, being older, I tend to steer from fictional, sci-fi, and fairy tales. But I use to love them growing up though I preferred short stories over books and novels.
Good work. It's inspiring, for me to read more. Nowadays, I am more into researching though -- all things Hmong/Miao ... kekeke ... 8) ( Only if I could read as diligently as you, I'd finish most/ALL my initial research already ... kekeke ... 8) )
Sidenote:
I read a New York Times best seller, 4.5/5, book once and was rather disappointed afterwards. Don't recall the title, but it is about a grieving father, whose daughter was kidnapped and murder. He eventually met and spent time with God, yes -- your Biblical God -- who helped him cope, forgive, and embrace his tragedy. Yup. Happy ending. Nope. Not making this up. And nope, I don't believe in Jesus, or God. Not your "white", all loving blah blah blah one that's for sure.
Thanks! Yeah, it's been a challenge but it was a goal and I couldn't let myself down. There were times when I wanted to stop but I'm glad I didn't because it feels great knowing that I can still finish goals I make for myself...LOL.
I know what you mean by getting sleepy when reading. I've been sleepy too so I tend to read late at night when I have too much on my mind and can't sleep. That's why I prefer to read on the Kindle instead of the desktop. Actual books are preferred too over the desktop.
That's interesting that you are staying away from sci-fi and fantasies but I can understand how you would do that being that you read them when you were younger. I am that way too except the opposite. I was going for my Master's in creative non-fiction and all my assignments were reading non-fictions and writing non-fictions. It was hard already reading each true story written so beautifully and metaphorically but to have to re-read them to do the assignments, which was to evaluate and break them up, dissect them, etc. It was too much. I cried way too much. Fiction in the form of sci-fi and fantasy are good for me because they are gory and just full of craziness: deaths, murders, torture, etc., but I know it's not real so I can handle it. It's also helped me deal with real life pain. My dad and grandma are both in the hospital - dad had a stroke and grandma has heart failure - dad has been having heart problems for a couple of years now and it's hard to deal with it. I don't know how actually. So, reading these books about deaths and stuff helps.
I"m glad you are starting to read more. Reading is good no matter what subject...exce pt of course, reading for school is a pain...to me.
I don't go by what the New York Times Best Sellers recommends. Sometimes I do but rarely. And, I don't like books about God or Jesus or real life religions (even though I am a church going person and pray often). I like made up religions but mostly I stay away from any book that tries to persuade me to believe differently. I want to simply live in the author's imagination, not be told how to be or what I should believe in. :)
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I'm still reading, A Clash of Kings, by George R.R. Martin.
This year, my reading goal is only 25 books. Last year, I literally stopped everything I was doing and read every free minute I had. This year, I've got a lot of things to catch up on so I'm heartbroken that I can't read as many books as I'd like to but at least I'm going to try to get 25 books in.