In My Mailbox (#5)

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme started by Kristi of The Story Siren.

Only one book this week...

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath - I bought this at a thrift store in pretty fantastic condition (and not just for a thrift store) and was really excited when I found it because I've been wanting to read it for a while. Plus, the cover is adorable. =)

Did you get something with a cute cover? Yes? You did? Awesome. Link me to it. 

"Waiting On" Wednesday (#3)

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill of Breaking the Spine.

This weeks WoW is...

The Name of the Star

(Shades of London #1)

by Maureen Johnson

September 1, 2011

What can I say? I'm in love with Maureen Johnson (the author, not the character in Rent). Honestly, I have no more reason for wanting to read this. Like I need it. =)

How about you? What are you waiting on this Wednesday?

Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

Title: Nick & Norah's
Infinite Playlist
Authors: Rachel Cohn
and David Levithan
Publisher: Knopf Books for
Young Readers (May 23, 2006)

It all starts when Nick asks Norah to be his girlfriend for five minutes. He only needs five minutes to avoid his ex-girlfriend, who's just walked into his band's show. With a new guy. And then, with one kiss, Nick and Norah are off on an adventure set against the backdrop of New York City--and smack in the middle of all the joy, anxiety, confusion, and excitement of a first date.*

---

I had always been hesitant to pick up Nick & Norah because of the vastly mixed reviews I've heard. From what I can tell, most people seem to love it or hate it. And I didn't want to read it just to find out that I was in the latter category. After reading (and loving) Dash & Lily's Book of Dares, however, I decided to give it a shot. And, boy, am I glad I did. 

I'm not going to say that I enjoyed every single page of this book, but, as a whole, I thought it was excellent. Rachel Cohn and David Levithan have a certain chemistry that I saw in both Nick & Norah and Dash & Lily. From the characters to the plot development to the little oddities they find to toss in, I was very happy I decided to read it.

The one caveat I have is about the age/maturity level. I'm not going to give you a, "don't read it if you're under...", but I feel as though I should point out the maturity level of the book. There's a fair amount of cursing, along with some sexual content. Just a little warning.

And with that warning in mind, if you're in the same boat I was in, jump out and find a copy of this book. The water's nice and warm.

*summary from Random House 

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

Title: The Adventures
of Huckleberry Finn
Author: Mark Twain
Publisher: 

Since most of us know the basic idea of Huck Finn, I'll leave a summary out. If you really want one, check out SparkNotes. They have a nice overview of it.

There were two reasons I was not looking forward to my English class this year. One was the famous-(to our school, at least)-ly difficult newspaper project (in which you make a newspaper about a person's life). And the second reason? The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. I really had no interest in reading it. And knowing that we would have to take several quizzes and a test, along with writing a paper on it, did not make me look forward to it any more.

Once we started it, however, I actually began to enjoy it. Not so much the random quizzes to make sure we were actually reading and not just SparkNotes-ing. But the book itself proved to be rather good. I would randomly begin laughing out loud as I was reading. I found myself worried about Jim and excited about where Huck would venture to next.

There are only two complaints I had about the book: the dialects and the ending. In case you don't know, Huck Finn was the first book to use dialects. The book also takes place in the South, so almost everyone who talks has a distinct dialect. The worst was Jim. Almost every time Jim spoke, I had to read what he said three times: once just to read, the second to decipher, and the third to put everything together. This made it a lot harder to enjoy because it felt more like normal homework than reading.

The ending was the other thing that really bugged me.
(Spoilers ahead. Highlight at your own risk.)
The entire book was filled with adventures, so I was expecting the book to end with a bang... It didn't. If you've ever read Huck Finn, you probably wondered what the deal was with the ending. It just... ends. In case you haven't read it (remember that you highlighted knowing there were spoilers), basically what happens is Huck says something along the lines of, "Writing a book is a lot of hard work. If I had known that in the first place I wouldn't have started," and then The End. That's it. It just stops. Don't get me wrong. It's a happy ending. I liked what happened. What I don't like is how painfully boring it was compared to the rest of the book. Honestly, I think Mark Twain just got a little tired of Huck and Jim and decided to just... stop. But he couldn't just end it, so he wrote a conclusion chapter. 

Those were just my thoughts. I'd really love to hear others' opinions of the book. Have you read it? Did you have to read it for school? Did you just read it for fun? What did you think of it? How about that ending? I want to know!! So you should tell me. =)

Monday, Monday (#1)

Hey. You. It's Monday morning. Wake up. It's a new day, a new week. Whatever happened last week is done. Perhaps it was amazing. Then again, maybe it was terrible. Either way, you have a new shot at a great week.

I feel bad for Mondays. I really do. I feel like instead of getting the short end of the stick, they don't get any of the stick at all. It's not like it's their fault. They aren't the ones who chose to come right after the weekend. And yet, most people seem to dub Mondays as awful, even though something fantastic could happen. Judge a book by its cover, why don't you?

So in honor of dark, dreary, darling Mondays, I've decided to start showcasing a couple things I love every Monday, just to show my appreciation for them.


Now most have you have probably already heard of this and voted and check up on it weekly, but just last month I discovered the Literary Crush-A-Thon. The tagline describes it all pretty well: "Testing the lengths of Team ______'s Strengths." Basically, if you haven't seen it yet, click on the link. Because it's fantastic.


Monday, Monday... It's a new day, new week. Let's make it a fantastic one.

Fact: I Wanted to be an Author

I really, really did. It was my big aspiration. I loved English. I thought I had what it took. I read every waking second. I did what I could to find out what I should do. Then I discovered I was wrong.

I've been thinking about this a lot during the past couple weeks, and I really wanted to write it down. So I figured I may as well make a post out of it (seeing as I owe you guys a good month or so of blogging). Since I'm not really sure what to say and in what order, I'm just follow each sentence of the caption. Here goes...

I really, really did.

Yes. You read it right. Did. Past tense. No longer. 

It was my big aspiration. 

My plan was to go to college and become a teacher. (Or a librarian. Librarian-ing was also in my thoughts.) But I would write on the side and eventually become a published author.* I had this part all planned out. Some girls have their weddings planned out, from the man to the cake to the dress to their future children. But me? I had my career figured out. 

I loved English.

Although this is in past tense, I still do. I definitely love it more now than I used to. Anyway. It seemed like one more reason to become an author. Now that I think about it, it really wasn't the greatest one. 

I thought I had what it took.

You know how I said I had it all figured out? Well I wouldn't have admitted this, but I knew I would get a book published. Knew it. The whole teacher/librarian thing was just a cover up. That's how dead set on the whole thing I was. I had no doubt that I would make it. 

I read every waking second. 

Good thing read can function correctly in past and present tense. I'm actually pretty sure I read more now than I used to....

I did what I could to find out what I should do.

In other words, I searched authors' websites for tips on writing. I still do this, actually. Partly to write better (even if I don't want to make it a career, it's still a good skill), but more to see what they say. Authors have good advice and clever ways of presenting it. Take, for instance, John Scalzi's 10 Things Teenage Writers Should Know About Writing. Or this page from John Green's FAQs.** Or Maureen Johnson's advice on How to Write a Book. Or FAQs from Meg Cabot. Or (last one) Justine Larbalestier's How to Write a Novel. Just to name a few of my personal favorites. 

Then I discovered I was wrong.

I realized that I didn't actually want to be an author. I just thought I did. (That, or I unconsciously changed my mind... I'm gunning for the first one.) You probably noticed that nowhere did it say, "I wrote every chance I got," or, "Writing was my favorite thing," or, "Nothing made me happier than when I was writing." Yeah. That's because none of those are true. I did write. But not as much as I would have had I actually wanted to be an author. The day I realized I didn't want to be an author was the day I realized that I'm not a writer. I'm a reader. 

*Cliche much?

**Okay, so it's not actually advice. It's more people asking him questions on how he writes. But it's still good.

In My Mailbox (#4)

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi of The Story Siren.

I got a couple things this week that I've been wanting to read for a while, but just never got around to. And they are....

  

The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide by Douglas Adams - I actually borrowed this one from one of my teachers, and I'm super excited about it. It'll probably have to wait a week or two to be read, but I will get to it.

I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore - This I finally got from the library. I figure if I'm going to be constantly hearing about it, I may as well know what it's about, right?

Real Live Boyfriends by E. Lockhart (ARC) - I won this from Claire of Bookworm Readers (check her out!), which explains why I'm just now getting the ARC of a book that came out in December. I will admit to you that I've not yet read the second or third books, so I'll be getting them soon so that I can start in on this. 

And a couple others....

Amelia: A Life of the Aviation Legend by Donald Goldstein and Katherine Dillon

Last Flight by Amelia Earhart

For English class we have to make a newspaper about someone's life. I couldn't really think of anyone I have a particular interest in, so I decided to go with Amelia Earhart. The first book is the one I'm using for my project, but I got the second just because.

How about you? Is your mailbox half comprised of Amelia Earhart? Probably not. Should you link me to yours in the comments? Probably. 

Fixing Delilah by Sarah Ockler (QR)

Title: Fixing Delilah
Author: Sarah Ockler
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for
Young Readers (December 1, 2010)

Things in Delilah Hannaford's life have a tendency to fall apart.

She used to be a good student, but she can't seem to keep it together anymore. Her "boyfriend" isn't much of a boyfriend. And her mother refuses to discuss the fight that divided their family eight years ago. Falling apart, it seems, is a Hannaford tradition.

Over a summer of new friendships, unexpected romance, and the moments that test the complex bonds between mothers and daughters, Delilah must face her family's painful past. Can ever her most shattered relationships be pieced together again?*

---

I have one word for this book: adorable. Simply adorable. I loved every page of it and had trouble putting it down when I had to. Sarah Ockler managed to nail that perfect combination of fighting, loving, and crazy that family is comprised of, which matched just perfectly with the romance and friendship included. 

Delilah was in for a crazy summer when she and her mom left for Vermont. Little did she know that it would turn out to make a beautiful story. 

*summary from inside cover

In Which I Apologize

Why, yes. I did randomly disappear for a month without telling anyone. However, I am back and ready for some serious blogging. (Not tonight. I need sleep. Have play practice in eight hours. But as soon as that is over. I'm back. Anyway...) I just wanted to apologize for that awkward and terrible absence.

Also, I've been thinking about the challenges I was going to do this year. I haven't... actually... started on either of them? So I was thinking that I would stop both of them and do one set goal of how many books I'll read this year (120, maybe?). Let me know what you think in comments. I'm really not sure of what I want to do. Help is needed!

Soooo.... yeah. Sorry. Please forgive me. And help me figure out what to do! I just don't know...