Book Blog #17, The Beast Within (Last book blog post of 2015!)

The Beast Within: A tale of Beauty's Prince                                                            by Serena Valentino

Prince Adam lived a good life. He had servants, money and a castle. Girls swooned over him and he could pick any bride he wanted. He met a young girl named Circe, and he fell in love. When he finds out she is a pig farmer's daughter, he instantly rejects her. Circe and her three sisters come back for revenge. They cast a curse to make sure he can never be human again, and the world will see the judgmental beast he is. The only way to break this curse is to have the kiss of his true love, given and received. The changes are small, but soon everything in his castle haunts him, and no one ventures there any longer. When all hope is lost, Belle arrives.

I enjoyed the book quite a lot, although at some points I would be quite confused. The story was written in segments that would jump around times in his memory. It was a rather fast read, and I rarely got bored with the book, although there was some repetitive ness to it. One thing that I didn't enjoy was that it put a creepy twist on the classic tale of Beauty and the Beast, and I will never think of the movie in the same way. It also changed some parts of the storyline which made it slightly more confusing if they go together.

The prompt I chose for this week is: How did the author create at least one strong character? Describe the character and what you liked about them.

I think that the author did a good job of developing the character of the beast. This is probably because he was the main character, and the book focused on his backstory. I think that one of the reasons that he was such a strong character was that you could feel his emotions strongly in different situations, and you could see how he reacted and thought about things quite clearly. I think another of the interesting things about The beast is that you could see the progression of the curse well and how he changed throughout it.

TBR list:
Water for Elephants   by Sara Gruen
The List   by Siobhan Vivian
Speak   by Laurie Halse-Anderson

Perfect   by Ellen Hopkins

Schizo   by Nic Sheff

Book Blog # 16, Love letters to the dead

Love Letters to the Dead                                                                                                 by Ava Dellaira

Laurel's life has changed quite a bit since her sister May's death. It all starts with the English assignment of writing a letter to  dead person. She writes to Kurt Cobain, May's favorite singer. Her mother moves away and lives the life that the family had always fantasized about. She now has to switch off between her aunt and her dad. She starts to write more and more letters about her new High school experience (She changed High Schools so people wouldn't know about May.) and her friends. She writes about memories of her sister. She slowly starts to except what happened to her sister and to live her new life.

Overall I enjoyed this book quite a bit and t has a good storyline. I like that each chapter the author writes about something different that happened to may, and that there isn't a ton of repetition. he storyline is carried really well throughout and I rarely felt confused about what was happening. I feel like I really know some of the characters and that the author did a good job of making every character have a unique personality.

The prompt I chose: would this be a good movie?

I think that it would be hard to turn into a movie because it is written in letters, and she talks about her thoughts a lot. It could be interesting to do a movie with flashbacks and scenes. It could also be interesting if there were visuals to put with the book and to see the personalities come to life. Overall, I would say that it could only be a movie if it was in a way that fits Ava's writing style.


Warning: There is some language in the book, ad there are sexual references. There is also minor smoking. It wasn't bad, but in parts of it it would get a little overwhelmingly weird.


TBR list

Water for Elephants   by Sara Gruen

Endgame: The Calling   by James Frey, and Nils Johnson Shelton
Speak   by Laurie Halse-Anderson
The List   by Siobhan Vivian
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the galaxy   by Douglas Adams
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time   by Mark Haddon



Book Blog #15, Going Postal, Week #2 (Last school post of 2015!)

Going Postal                                                                                                               By Terry Prattchett

Moist Von Lipwig (Yes, you heard me, Moist) has been a criminal all of his life, (What can he say, he has people skills. Why is it his fault if they mistake glass for diamonds?). When he is caught by the law, he is sentenced to hanging. So he died. But he lived? Apparently trapdoors really are everywhere. When he woke up he was offered two options by the head of Ankh-Morpork, lord Veterinari. A, become the postmaster, or B, go through a unknown door (A giant pit, basically death). He obviously accepts postmaster. When he shows up at the post office, he realizes that it is in a worst condition than he thought. There are letters shoved in every available crevice and hallway, and no letters have been delivered for years. He starts to deliver the mail, and he constantly finds out more things he has to deal with.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. It's humor helps to move the storyline along, and it only gets minorly boring several times. It goes by fast, regardless of it's length.The way the book is written also suits the story and topic very well. I think most people in our class would enjoy this book and find it funny. I would recommend it to anyone who wants to read a medium length funny book that will go by fast.

TBR list

The Graveyard Book   by Neil Gaiman

The Diary of Anne Frank   by Anne Frank

The elegant Universe   by Brian Greene

The Pact   by Sampson Davis, George Jenkins, Rameck Hunt, and Lisa Frazier Page

Perfect   by Ellen Hopkins

Schizo   by Nic Sheff

I would like to read some of the books that have been on my TBR list for a while like Water for Elephants and Love letters to the Dead over winter break. Pretty much any book that I had on my lists closer to the beginning of the year.

There is only minor cursing (Gabe could read it), and overall it seems pretty clean and like a book anyone in our class could enjoy.

Slice Of Life #1, Winnie the Pooh

Winnie The Pooh                                                                                                            Slice of Life #1

Picture from  http://www.artifactsgallery.com/art.asp?!=W&ID=18694

An eternal optimist, he always gives off the glow of the bright side of life. He is sweet (Probably because he loves honey so much) and he loves and cares about his friends. He also watches out for them. He helps people get through things.

He can also be sad and feel empathy. He understands and listens. Take for instance his interactions with Eeyore. Winnie cares about Eeyore and cheers him up. He also understands that sometimes Eeyore just needs to wallow in life's sadnesses.

All of these traits are traits of friends. I think that Winnie is very good at being nice and making friends, due to his personality. For me he symbolizes happiness, but he is also compassionate and empathetic. Two of the best things that he portrays are understanding and respect. An example of this is his interactions with Owl. Winnie knows that Owl is smart, and he respects that. He of course also has flaws, but they are minor and I am not talking about them right now.

Overall, I aspire to be like him in the ways that he treats others and in the ways that he is happy. I think that he is a great character that should be cherished and loved. I try to be like him in ways like I try to be nice and understanding to friends and the fact that I try to remain happy. I also try to be empathetic towards others, and to work towards understanding. He will always be the bear that makes me smile and laugh when mentioned. He will also always be one of my overall favorite characters (along with the rest of the occupants of the hundred acre woods).

Book Blog #14, Going Postal, Week #1

Going Postal                                                                                                                 by Terry Pratchett

Moist Von Lipwig got hung... But he lived. He wakes up in a room with lord Veterinari, ruler of the Ankh-Morpork section of Discworld. Moist is presented with the choice of either walking through a door, (actually a giant hole in the ground... basically imminent death), or becoming the Postman. He obviously accepts the job of postman. When he arrives at the post office, he realizes that every crevice is stuffed full of letters. Even the hallways and offices are filled with letters. It is his job to build the post office back up to it's former glory. He learns that the post office is "cursed". Will he return the letters and survive the "curse"?
So far I have heavily enjoyed this book. It has kept me laughing and I am constantly intrigued by the storyline. At points it can get a bit long winded, but it is mostly entertaining. It has a very unique storyline and the style in which the book is written fits very well. I would recommend this to anyone who wants a longer, funny book that is very unique. I would also recommend this to you if you would like to read something that is very far out of the box.
Warning: there is some language, although it is minor and it makes sense in the context. Overall, it didn't bother me very much.



TBR list
Eon   by Alison Goodman
I am the Weapon   by Allen Zadoff
Tiger's Curse   by Colleen Houck
Gone   by Michael Grant
The Ancient One   by T.A. Barron
I am Number Four   by Pittacus Lore
Gone With the Wind   by Margaret Mitchell

Book Blog #13, The Doldrums

The Doldrums                                                                                                           by Nicholas Gannon

Don't let the weight of the book cloud your judgment, as it is a fast, interesting book despite the fact that it weighs five pounds.

Rachel and Ralph Helmsley are the greatest explorers of their age. Archer Helmsley, however, has always wanted to live up to his grandparents title of being a Helmsley. His entire life he has craved adventure and discoveries. He starts to assemble a plan, but many things get in the way. Take for instance, Ms. Murkley, a blood-thirsty teacher who will stop at nothing until Archer and his class are perfect. He assembles a ragtag group of friends to try to rescue his grandparents, (they got frozen to an iceberg). They have to tackle many obstacles to achieve their goals, and have fun doing it. Will they make it to the iceberg?

I did enjoy this book, although it was a little slow at parts. The storyline did remain quite interesting throughout the book, and it was very rarely predictable. Overall, the only thing I was not happy about was that it had an unsatisfactory ending. I would recommend this book to pretty much anyone who wants a fast read that will pull you into a unique storyline.


My opinion is still that it would be interesting to have a science-fiction book group or a dystopian book group. I think that these would be two interesting genres because they are not normally discussed and it would be interesting to hear other's insight on them. I think that it would be fun to do a more rare genre of book for a book group, or a genre that is not commonly discussed.

TBR list
Dark Eden   by Chris Beckett
Stone Mattress   Margaret Atwood
The Vorrh    by Brian Catling
Tenth of December  by George Saunders
The Dog stars   by Peter Heller
Cat's Cradle   by Kurt Vonnegut

Connection poem

Connection in a dark place
by Miles Bourgeois

A look through the fence,
a smile,
happiness in a dark place.

The neighborhood may not seem trustworthy,
she wasn't aware,
enjoyment in a dark place.

Among the others she was with,
she was energetic,
energy in a dark place.

Maybe, just maybe,
if there is so much happiness,
maybe, it is not so dark.

Book Blog #12, Hamlet, week #2

Hamlet                                                                                                                by William Shakespeare

Hamlet's father tragically died and the throne was taken by his uncle, King Claudius. Hamlet, (the prince of Denmark), was visited by the ghost of his father. His father craved revenge for his murder. Hamlet soon discovers that the throne is surrounded by murder and lies, and he has to untangle them. Though romance and MANY characters, Shakespeare weaves an epic tragedy of life on the throne.

Overall, the book is very dense and I got to a point where I lost interest. I did enjoy sections although in parts of it I would get very lost in the writing. The book is challenging in many aspects, the first is that it is written in old English. The second is that the language and phrases used are not commonly known. What made this book most challenging was the fact that to fully understand it you need to read the meanings of words and switch between the meanings and the storyline.

I would be interested in doing dystopian book groups and a Sci-Fi book group. I would be interested in doing a book group with either of these genres because I feel like they are not commonly discussed and they would be interesting to see other people's opinions on them.

TBR List
The List   by Siobhan Vivian
Speak   by Laurie Halse Anderson
The Host   by Stephenie Meyer
The Future of us   by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler
The Archaeology of Weapons   by R. Ewart Oakeshott
The Giver Quartet   by Lois Lowry
Love Letters to the Dead   by Ava Dellaira
The House of Ivy and Sorrow   by Natalie Whipple
To Kill a Mockingbird   by Harper Lee
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Book Blog #11, Hamlet, week 1

Hamlet, week 1                                           by William Shakespeare
Hamlet's father tragically died, and the throne was then ruled by King Cornelius, Hamlet's uncle. King Cornelius had married Queen Gertrude, who less than a month previously had been married to the late king. The Ghost of Hamlet's father shows up in the dead of night, and leaves at the cock's crow. Hamlet talks to the ghost, and learns that the ghost craves revenge for his death. An epic tragedy has been woven by the end. Murder, deceit, and death can be found anywhere, but are especially common on the throne.
Overall, this book has been good and I have liked it. It has been challenging to decipher the old English used fluently throughout. It is a gripping storyline, but it is long and the monologues drag on quite often. I would recommend this book if you enjoy more serious books that will provide quite a literary challenge. I would recommend getting an addition that has translations for some of the words and phrases, as it I easier to understand if you don't have to guess what things mean.
There is minor profanity so far, although you should be prepared for the Shakespearean language. There is also gore when describing death and the violence in the book.


I enjoy most genres of books, but lately I have enjoyed fiction books that are mostly serious, but are still fun to read or have some magic in them. Several examples are The Night Circus, Fire and Flood, and Splintered. I have also started enjoying more far fetched realistic fiction like The Martian, 1984, Thirteen Reasons Why, and Flowers for Algernon.


TBR List
Speak
The Host
The Future of us
The Archaeology of Weapons
Son, and the rest of the Giver Quartet
Love Letters to the Dead
The House of Ivy and Sorrow

Book Blog #10, The Night Circus

The Night Circus                                                                                                      by Erin Morgenstern

It arrives without warning. No one can track it, and no one can expect it. On the inside of the black and white striped tents, there is a unique and sensational experience that puts most bystanders in awe. It has the most exquisite acrobats and performers like none you will ever see anywhere else. Every aspect of the performance has been perfected, from the central clock to the lace on the costumes. It is called Le Cirque des Reves, and it is open only at night.
Celia and Marco have been trained since childhood by the best magicians in the world in preparation for the in-avoidable duel. The two fall in love. The epic romance of two loving magicians and an astounding circus combine, to create a gripping story with many twists and turns.
This book was amazing! I really enjoyed it because there were surprises around every turn, and the writing style makes you not want to stop reading. The storyline of the book was also interesting and unique compared to books I have read previously. The characters were very well developed along with the descriptions of most of the settings. At most points of the book, you could actually envision yourself in the circus watching the performances.
There is quite a bit of romance in this book, although it does not take away from the book as a whole. There is also minor language, but yet again it did not make you loose interest or want to stop reading.


TBR List (full quarterly list)
Water for Elephants                                                                                                           The Doldrums
Chains                                                                    The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time
Fahrenheit 451                                                                                                      Endgame: The Calling
Love Letters to the Dead                                                                The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy
The 5th Wave                                                                                                                Leviathan Wakes
This one Summer                                                                                                         Slaughter House 5
The House of Ivy and Sorrow                                                                                                       Legend
Outliers                                                                                                                                    Eight Keys
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon                                                                                          Wonder
Road Rash                                                                                                                                           Salt

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Book Blog #9, Paper Things

Paper Things                                                                                              by Jennifer Richard Jacobson
Ari Hazzard left her adopted home with her brother, and has been dealing with poverty ever since. Gage, her brother, has taken care of her cares for her quite a lot, but he cannot provide a stable home. She jumps from shelter to shelter, always trying to stay on top of school, while having to deal with rough friendships. Her paper things are the only things that give her comfort as she is dealing with all of her emotions. She struggles with making friends and how she will tell them about her homelessness.

I would recommend this book to Maia, because even though it is not fantasy, there is still a lot of meaning behind it, and there are a lot of emotions in the book. I think she would enjoy thinking about the decisions in the book that Ari makes. Other than that, I think that most of the people in our class would enjoy this if they want a fast and easy read that will make them think. I would also recommend this to anyone who wants to think about homelessness in a different way.

TBR list
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
The Doldrums by Nichlolas Gannon
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson

Book Blog #8, The Martian

The Martian                                                               by Andy Weir

Mark Watney's crew abandoned him on mars, after they thought he was dead. He starts to figure out solutions for food, and rescue. Every time that something could go wrong, it does. The tides are turned against Mark, but he wont give up. He starts to figure out how to live, and get things done. Against all odds, will he be able to survive until rescue?


In this book, there is some symbolism even though it is not super obvious. I think one of the first symbolistic parts is when the China National Space Administration give up the Taiyang Shen just to help mark. It is symbolistic because it shows the good side of people, the side that helps others. I think that there are a lot of parts in the book that have a similar meaning, because there are always people on earth that are trying to help him. For instance, the media is rallying for him and his cause, and most of the people in the world care about him.

There is quite a bit of profanity used in this book, but I liked it nonetheless.
TBR list

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

The Doldrums by Nicholas Gannon

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

Book Blog #7, Flowers for Algernon, week 2

Flowers for Algernon                                                                                                     by Daniel Keyes
Charlie Gordon has always had a low I.Q. He has always wanted to just be normal. When he gets offered the chance to go through an experiment that could possibly raise his I.Q., he is eager to partake. His intelligence skyrockets, and he finds out that social life just gets more complicated. He has to deal with difficult friendships, and even harder realizations about life.

I would recommend this book for another book group, mainly because it makes you think about topics like how you judge people, and what the world would be like if everyone became super smart. For me, it made me think about how I treat others, and the social repercussions of your actions to others. I also think that this is a good book group book because there are a lot of sections where it is open for interpretation, and it is interesting to hear other peoples opinions. This book would also be good for individual reading because it will still make you think about most of the same things.

There is a fair amount of romance, and minor language.
TBR list
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time   by Mark Haddon
Water for Elephants   by Sara Gruen
The Night Circus   by Erin Morgenstern
Endgame: The Calling   by James Frey and Nils Johnson-Shelton
Fahrenheit 451   by Ray Bradbury

Book Blog #6, Flowers For Algernon, week 1

Flowers for Algernon                                                                                                     by Daniel Keyes
Charlie Gordon has always has had an unnaturally low I.Q. He has just learned to live with his life and his friends. When he gets offered an opportunity to under-go an operation that has the potential to make him into a genius, and more than double his I.Q., he is eager to accept. A mouse named Algernon has the same surgery, and they start to guess what is going to happen to Charlie, based off of Algernon's results. Charlie slowly starts to become smarter, and starts maturing both emotionally and academically. He starts having emotional relationships and has to figure them out. Follow him as he winds his way around the corners of the maze that is life.
For me, this is a great book. It has a really interesting storyline that has a realistic feeling to it, which makes the book more enjoyable. You also get pulled into Charlie's emotional life, and how he is growing emotionally. I found how his relationships with people change to be one of the most interesting parts because it makes you think about real relationships and how they would change, if someone suddenly became drastically smarter.

There is some romance, and minor language. Overall, it isn't bad.
TBR list
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
The Martian by Andy Weir
Endgame: The Calling by James Frey and Nils Johnson-Shelton
Love Letters to the Dead by Ava Dellaira

Book Blog #5, Salt and Stone

Salt and Stone                                                                                                                By Victoria Scott


Tella has already endured the first two sections of the brimstone bleed. She has only come this far to save her brother, and she hopes that he will stay motivation enough for her too complete the final challenges. She can't tell if she and her companions are growing closer together, or farther apart. She is slowly running out of time and strength. Can she make it to the finish line?

For me, this was only a okay book, but close to a great book, because there were some really interesting details in it, but then it would start to get slower, which released some of the tension that was building. Although I did enjoy the book, and it kept me interested. The ending was okay, but it seemed like the author was running out of ideas on good endings. I enjoyed the first book, Fire and Flood, more than I did this one, but it was still good.

There is quite a bit of romance, but nothing else.


TBR
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Endgame: The Calling by James Frey and Nils Johnson-Shelton
The Martian by Andy Weir
Paper Things by Jennifer Jacobson

Book Blog #4, 1984

1984                                                                                                                 By George Orwell
Winston Smith grew up before the revolution, but lives after with no recollection of his past. He lives in the new world, but he doesn't agree with all of their policies and is curious about his past. The thought police can catch you no matter what, because they can monitor your thoughts. Children are willing to turn their own parents in to the thought police if they see suspicious behavior. Winston has thoughts against the lifestyle, but to think them could be life risking. Will he follow what he thinks is right?

"On each landing, opposite the lift shaft, the poster with the enormous face gazed from the wall. It was one of those pictures which are so contrived that the eyes follow you about when you move. Big Brother  Is Watching You, the caption beneath it read."
I like this line because it was at the beginning of the book and it helped me to understand what the book is about. it also really helped me to understand where they were living and what it was like. It helped me understand what their communities in general are like, and it also tells me about what they believe.
There is quite a bit of romance, and very minor language.

TBR list
Salt and Stone by Victoria Scott
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Love Letters to the Dead by Ava Dellaira
The night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Remember, Big Brother is always watching.

Book Blog #3, Fire and Flood

Fire and Flood                                                                                                               By Victoria Scott

Tella Holloway was forced by her parents to live in the middle of nowhere. According to her mom, the fresh air would be good for her brother. He has been sick with a curious illness for what seems like forever. One day, a small blue box appears on her bed. What the earpiece says could change her life forever. She is invited to join in a race for "the cure" to save her brother. She has to go through the jungle, desert, sea, and mountains, and she has to beat the other contenders. Her parents seem anxious to destroy the earpiece, but she will do anything to save her brother, no matter what.
I think the author did a really good job with the main character Tella. I think that because throughout the book you can really see how her comfort zone grows, and you can also see how she realizes that she can do more than she thought she could. I also like her as a character because you learn so much about how she used to live, and how different things affect her.

"I spent more time with my family in the last nine months here than I did in ten years living in Boston. And as it turns out, my people are pretty awesome."
To me this sentence shows character growth because it is her looking back before she leaves, and changing her perspective on the move from Boston. It also shows that she is realizing that she was taking her family for granted.
This book has a bit of romance.

TBR list
Fahrenheit 451 by ray Bradbury
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Salt and Stone by Victoria Scott

Book Blog #2, Splintered

Splintered
By A.G. Howard

Alyssa gardener is a descendant of Alice Liddell. After being able to hear plants talking, she thinks that she is going to end up in a mental institute, just like her mother. She visits her mother often, and her mother tells her of her past and that their is a curse on their bloodline that causes them to have certain magical powers. Alyssa goes down the rabbit hole to try to break the curse, only to find that Wonderland is a much scarier place than the original childhood story and that she somehow knows quite a bit about the people that live there and the place.
The first paragraph is:
"I've been collecting bugs since I was ten; it's the only way I can stop their whispers. Sticking a pin through the gut of an insect shuts it up pretty quick."
To me, this is a mystifying introduction, because you wonder why she kills bugs and why she needs to shut them up. For me, this pulled me into the story very quickly because it made it so I had a lot of questions about what would happen next and what her personality is like.
Throughout the book, there is a lot about relationships and the conflicts they create.

To be Read list:
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Love Letters to the Dead by Ava Dellaira
Farenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey

Book Blog #1, Thirteen reasons why

Thirteen Reasons Why     by Jay Asher     realistic fiction

Clay Jensen receives a set of tapes that have Hannah baker's voice on them. But that's impossible, she committed suicide. As he listens he discovers that his name is on the tapes, and that he is one of the 13 reasons why she committed suicide. He listens to them throughout a night that will change his life forever.
I really enjoyed this book because it shows just how much affect your actions can have on others. It is a good storyline that will keep you hooked and reading every available second. It has a good narrative that switches between Hannah's tapes and clay's thoughts and interactions.
This is a good book all though in parts it has sexual content and minor language. It also talks about heavy topics like suicide.

TBR:
the 5th wave by Rick Yancey
Leviathan wakes by James A. Corey
1984 by George Orwell
fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury