Follow Friday #12

Follow Friday is a weekly meme hosted by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read. It is an awesome way to gain new followers and find new blogs to read! This week's question:

Q: Do you read one book at a time or do you switch back and forth between two or more?

I used to be a diehard "one book, and one book ONLY, at a time" kind of girl." However, once I became a blogger/reviewer/library science college student - things kinda had to change a bit. I now read multiple books at a time! Sometimes up to 5 or 6! I usually have my YA Lit book, a library book, and a review book going. Sometimes I have to throw in a children's book as well for my Materials for Children class. Depending on my mood, I will alternate chapters of each book. But sometimes if one of the books is getting really good, or if I'm getting close to the end, I'll just try to finish it up.

How about you? Are you a book juggler? If you're a new follower, be sure to leave me a link so I can follow you back! Have a great weekend! 

Top 10 Tuesday - Playing Hooky!

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme from The Broke and the Bookish. This week's theme is the top 10 books that I would choose to take with me to if I were to "play hooky." We have been having some beautiful weather here - like cloudless sky, low 80's temps....so playing hooky sounds mighty tempting right now! I would have to take my bag of books and a nice comfy lounge chair to a nice quiet park and just read away the day. So, which books would I bring? I decided to choose all books that are already sitting on my own shelf.

1.

2. 

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

How about you? What books make you consider playing hooky on a beautiful spring day?



Review: Chopsticks by Jessica Anthony and Rodrigo Corral

Publisher: Razorbill

Release Date: February 2nd, 2012

Number of Pages: 272

Where I got this book: Library

My rating: 4.5/5

Goodreads Summary:

"After her mother died, Glory retreated into herself and her music. Her single father raised her as a piano prodigy, with a rigid schedule and the goal of playing sold-out shows across the globe. Now, as a teenager, Glory has disappeared. As readers flash back to the events leading up to her disappearance, they see a girl on the precipice of disaster."

Review:

I can honestly say I've never read (er, or looked at, or whatever) a book quite like this one before! Very different from my usual fare! This book is few on words, and the story is mostly carried out through beautiful photographs, in a sort of scrapbook style. It kind of made me feel like a kid again....where I just wanted to drink in all those beautiful pictures. You kind of forget about the lack of words after awhile. It's a really interesting story told in a very beautiful, intriguing way.

Review: Love & Leftovers by Sarah Tregay

Published by: Katherine Tegen Books

Release Date: December 27th, 2011

Number of Pages: 451

How I got this book: Library

My rating: 4.5/5

Amazon Summary:

"My Wish

is to fall

cranium over Converse

in dizzy daydream-worthy love.
(If only it were that easy.)

Marcie has been dragged away from home for the summer--from Idaho to a family summerhouse in New Hampshire. She's left behind her friends, a group of freaks and geeks called the Leftovers, including her emo-rocker boyfriend, and her father.
By the time Labor Day rolls around, Marcie suspects this "summer vacation" has become permanent. She has to start at a new school, and there she leaves behind her Leftover status when a cute boy brings her breakfast and a new romance heats up. But understanding love, especially when you've watched your parents' affections end, is elusive. What does it feel like, really? Can you even know it until you've lost it?
Love & Leftovers is a beautifully written story of one girl's journey navigating family, friends, and love, and a compelling and sexy read that teens will gobble up."

Review:

For some reason, I've really been on a novel-written-in-verse kick lately. I love being able to blow through a fairly thick book really quickly, number one. But, though the pages may have fewer words - they often pack a greater punch when written in verse style (i.e. Ellen Hopkins one of my all time faves). I can't quite put this novel up on THAT high of a level...but I really, really enjoyed it. It wasn't quite as "heavy" as the verse novels I'm used to reading, which was a welcome break. It dealt with the more "traditional" issues teenagers face - being torn between guys, whether or not you're in love, divorced parents, etc. There is a bit of humor/controversy (depending on how you look at it) thrown in - as her dad has recently come out of the closet and left her mother for a much younger man. Her mother is severely depressed and has moved Marcie 2000 miles away from her friends (and boyfriend) to her grandmother's lakehouse. Marcie is bored out of her mind...until J.D. - the cute, popular jock starts paying her lots of attention!

Marcie realizes how lonely she is and how much she needs affection, especially now. But, should she tell her boyfriend who lives 2000 miles away and risk breaking his heart? Would he even find out? Who does she really love anyway?

This was a nice, light, fun read. I loved Marcie - even if I didn't like or approve of all of her choices. I loved Marcie's boyfriend, Linus - especially at the end - it's obvious how much he cared about Marcie. I loved the idea of the "Leftovers" (the high school kids who didn't really belong to any other groups). I actually think that could apply to the "group" I belonged to in high school....so I could relate to them.

I definitely recommend this to people looking for a fun, romantic read!

In My Mailbox #13

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren where we get to show off all the great books we acquired in the past week.

First, here are the books I received in my mailbox from the publishers for review:

Smart Baby, Clever Child by Valentine Dmitriev, PH.D. - (Thank you, Westwind Communications!)

Song of My Heart by Kim Vogel Sawyer (Thank you, Bethany House!)

Here are my library books:

Chopsticks by Jessica Anthony and Rodrigo Corral

Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick

I only got one Netgalley book this week, but it's a good one:

And I only got one freebie this week:

How about you? Did you get any goodies this week? Have you read any of these books? 

Follow Friday #11

Follow Friday is a weekly meme hosted by Parajunkee  and Alison Can Read. It is a great way to get to know other bloggers and gain new followers. The main rule? Someone follows you - you follow them back! It's only fair, right?

The question of the week:

What is the longest book you've ever read? What are your favorite 600 plus page books?

This will be embarrassing. I am not one for seeking out the big giant tomes. I am not big on the classics. War and Peace? Never read it? Stephen King? Not a big fan...soooo...Hmmmm. I guess the longest book I've ever read was:

at 768 pages. Geez, that's humiliating. I don't know there may be more out there, but that's all I got right now. I still have a Hunger Games premiere hangover right now, lol. So my brain is kinda fuzzy still.

How bout you? Do you like big books and cannot lie? Let me know if you're a new follower and leave me a link so I can follow you back!

Review: A Tinfoil Sky by Cyndi Sand-Eveland

Publisher: Tundra
Release Date: January 10th, 2012
Number of Pages: 224
How I got this book: e-ARC from Netgalley
My rating: 5/5

Goodreads Summary:

"Mel and her mother, Cecily, know what it’s like to live rough, whether it’s on the streets or in the apartment of an abusive man.When Cecily announces that they’ve had enough and that they are going to go home to her mother’s, Mel dreams of security, a comfortable bed, and a grandmother’s love seem to be about to come true. But some mistakes cannot be easily forgiven or erased. Her grandmother is not what Mel expects, and though the local library offers sanctuary, a real home seems beyond her grasp. Mel’s determination to rise above what fate has dealt is about to change that.

Cyndi Sand-Eveland’s work with homeless youth gives her characters an authenticity no reader will forget. Ultimately, a story of hope and acceptance, A Tinfoil Sky is a powerful, can’t-putit- down novel."

Review:

First, a big thank you to Tundra and Netgalley for the chance to read and review this book!

I honestly did not expect to be blown away by this book - maybe because of the rather unexciting cover (once again, we can't ALWAYS judge a book by its cover, can we?), but I was. I read this book practically all in one sitting!

The book starts with Cecily and 12 year-old Mel, a homeless mother and daughter, who are fleeing from Cecily's abusive boyfriend. Cecily is hoping to return "home" to her mother whom she hasn't had contact with in 9 years. However, her mother, Gladys, harbors a lot of resentment towards the daughter who stole from her, who led a life of drug and alcohol abuse and took her granddaughter from her 9 years ago. Gladys wants nothing to do with her, and so Cecily and Mel have no choice but to take to the streets. Sleeping in their car, singing on the street corner for spare change, and eating in the soup kitchen - this is their reality.

One day, Mel comes out of the soup kitchen from eating alone and Cecily is nowhere to be found. It turns out that Cecily has once again been caught shoplifitng and is sentenced to 30 days in jail. Mel has no choice but to move in with her grandmother, Gladys. She seems to be just a grumpy old woman who doesn't seem to have any interest in getting to know her. She feels all alone in the world.
My favorite part of the book was when the judge asks Mel if there is anything that she needs and she replies, thinking of the beautiful library she saw in town, "a library card!" I always have a special place in my heart for characters with a love for books and libraries. And Mel is one of these. For her, her local library is a magical place. When she steps into the library, it takes her into another world - one where all her dreams come true. She spends every day that summer at the library and befriends the librarian and the son of the librarian.

I could easily go on and on about this book...but I don't want to tell everything!! Every page was a delight! The characters were wonderful! I loved Mel! I'll admit that I was not a big fan of Gladys for awhile, because I wondered how she could hold a grudge against her granddaughter for something her mother did. It made me really sad for Mel. Then there was Cecily. She was just caught in a a circle of one bad decision after another. You could tell she really loved Mel...but unfortunately she just was not capable of caring for her properly. She was just messed up, and I felt bad for her, but I just wanted her to get help. The twist at the end...it had me biting my fingers...DEFINITELY A MUST READ!!!!!!!

This was truly an impressive read! I would say that kids as young as 10 can read it, however, it can easily hold the attention of a much older audience as well.