Inkheart

(note, book photos are now LINKS! except for Girl w/Silver Eyes in post below.)

So apparently, Debbie read this book, mentioned it to Rand, and Rand checked it out of his library and brought it to me. I started it over the weekend, opted not to bring it with me to school yesterday (as it is rather thick), but LO! There were several copies in the classroom where I was teaching. I picked one up, found my place, and proceeded to finish it.

I think what I liked best about this book is that it is literally about the magic of books. Each chapter started with an epigraph (is that the right word?) from a well-known work of literature. They included some of my favorite books...Lord of the Rings, Chronicles of Narnia, The Princess Bride...

I understand that Inkheart is the first of a trilogy, so I'll be looking forward to the rest of the story!

Happy me

I just bought a used copy of The Girl With the Silver Eyes, a book that I simply adored when I was a kid. I read and re-read it many, many times.

For anyone not familiar, it's about a girl with telekinetic powers who feels like a freak because she's different from everyone else. She finds some other kids like her, and they figure out how they got to be the way they are.

I was obsessed with this kind of stuff. Stories about kids with weird powers, ESP, time/space travel, magical worlds. I wanted so badly for it to be REAL.

Anyway...I'm pretty sure my original copy of this book still exists in my parents' attic somewhere, but it's in a pretty bad way.

So very soon, this will be mine:



Yay! :)

Busy reading weekend

This was completely adorable...a YA romance based on "A Midsummer Night's Dream." It's told primarily through best friends Hermia and Helena's e-mails, instant messages and diary entries. The characters' voices were completely distinct, realistic and believable. I almost didn't want it to end. I'd reccommend this to anyone who likes Shakespeare, romance, or movies like 10 Things I Hate About You. ;)



I stayed up too late last night finishing this one. I LOVED it. I loved Emma's voice. I loved Emma's friends, and I loved Michelle Cunnah's writing style. I actually cried a little at the end, even though it turned out pretty much the way I expected it to.

When it comes to chick lit, I really don't mind a predictable ending as long as I enjoy the ride. And I completely, thoroughly enjoyed the ride. :)

Book Meme

Thanks to Celia at warm wine...

A book that made you cry: My Sister's Keeper, Jodi Picoultt

A book that scared you: 'Salem's Lot, Stephen King

A book that made you laugh: Dave Barry Slept Here

A book in High School that you loved: To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee

A book in High School that you hated: I don't recall hating anything I read in high school. I'll go with The Remains of the Day (Kazuo Ishiguro) in college.

A book that challenged your imagination: A Wrinkle in Time, Madeline L'Engle

A book that challenged your morals: Cry Me a River

A book that challenged your identity: ummm....?

A book series that you love: The Chronicles of Narnia, CS Lewis

Your favorite Horror Novel: The Shining, Stephen King

Your favorite Science Fiction Novel: Ender's Game, Orson Scott Card

Your favorite Fantasy Novel: The Lord of the Rings (trilogy), JRR Tolkien

Your favorite Romance Novel: See Jane Date (chick lit), Melissa Senate

Your favorite "Coming-of-Age" Novel: A Ring of Endless Light, Madeline L'Engle

Your favorite book not listed previously: Girlfriend in a Coma, Douglas Coupland

Favorite Book of Poems: Love Poems of Rumi

Undead and Unreturnable

I'm still enjoying Betsy's story, but I have to say that this one felt less like a finished product and more like the middle of a trilogy. I thought the plot was kind of lackluster, like it was just sort of a placeholder for whatever's going to happen next. But will I read Undead and Unpopular when it comes out? Uh, you bet...

Whose Wedding is it Anyway?

This was fun, but not nearly as much fun as See Jane Date. Something about the main character's voice didn't seem right to me. Maybe it's because of the fact that the story was set in the same universe as Jane (main character was Jane's best friend), but had a completely different voice and perspective. I don't know...but this is not to say that I didn't enjoy it. Also, it was a completely different story with a completely different tone. I'm curious to read more of her...

Bridge to Terabithia

Yeah, this is another one of those "picked it up while I was subbing" books. I never read this one as a kid, but I do remember it being a favorite of my ex-boyfriend's.

I read the review (at amazon) from the 8th grader, and I always wonder about these...does his attitude represent that of most kids, or is he (or she) just a particularly unimaginative kid who hates to read? Hm. Anyway.

I didn't love it. I didn't dislike it either. It was sad.

I did like that the kids referenced Narnia when they were building their imaginary kingdom. I thought one of the best moments was when Leslie went to church with Jess's family and remarked on the similarity between the Jesus story and Aslan. (Leslie's family didn't go to church, so she wasn't familiar with the story when she read the Narnia books.)

The silicone chip inside her head...

I picked this up in a classroom while I was teaching last week, and easily finished it within the day.

In a nutshell, this is a story set in a not-terribly-distant future where virtually everyone on Earth has a Feed installed. The Feed is an internal computer that allows people to search the internet, shop, and even instant message each other just by thinking about it. Since people can look up any information they need, literally at any moment, reading has become obsolete.

It's basically a satire of where we are now, and a warning about what we could become.

I enjoyed the story, but I did find the "futuristic slang" the author created sort of annoying. I'd really be interested in knowing what teenagers think of this book.

I also finished one of the chick lit books Lady Turpentine was so kind as to loan me:



It was a thoroughly enjoyable read. The narrator had a great voice, and she truly felt like she was someone I knew (or would want to know). The story was sweet and romantic and funny and everything a good chick lit novel should be.

Agents FAQ

Ok, so I'm not anywhere near ready to go looking for agents, but John Scalzi has an excellent FAQ post about agents. Check it out!

I've not read any of Mr. Scalzi's work, but he's got a fantastic blog. I do intend to get a look at Old Man's War someday soon.

In my own writing news, I had a very productive chat session with my good friend Eden yesterday. Basically, I've got two pretty good (if I do say so myself) ideas for chick-lit type novels. One paranormal, one more straight chick-lit. Chatting with her really helped solidify some of the ideas. I told her that if I actually finish these and get either of them published, she's in the dedication. ;)

Night

I was having a bad blogger day a few days ago...I swear, I tried to post this three times. And poof...it vanished. I have no idea what happened.

Anyway.

There's probably not much I can say about this book. It's sad. Harrowing. Chilling.

And again, I can only ask, "how could this happen?"

Carpe Demon

I cannot believe how fast I burned through this one. I absolutely loved it and am looking forward to the release of the second installment, California Demon. It's a little bit Buffy (all grown up, of course) with a bit of Catholicism thrown in. (Kate was apparently an orphan who grew up in the Vatican. It was the Church's Forza that trained her to be a Hunter.) Kate was supposed to be retired, but finds that she can't escape her destiny. ;)

This also had a bit of a mystery/thriller feel to it.

I'm also going to check out some of author Julie Kenner's other work. (ooh! she has a blog, too!

Sexy

This was very good, although I didn't find it quite as compelling as Big Mouth and Ugly Girl. In addition to not being quite as into the story and not really liking the ending, I really noticed what Rand refers to as "her thing"--said thing being sentences that go on for whole pages. I didn't notice it so much before...so was it that there was more of it in this book, or did I just notice it more because it was called to my attention?

Anyway, this is definitely one to go on a list of good recent YA fiction, along with titles like Speak, The Lovely Bones, and Monster.