Friday Finds #18

Friday Finds is a blog meme hosted over at Should Be Reading that highlights the books you found and added to your To Be Read list, whether you found them online or in a bookstore and etc. They are not necessarily books that you purchased!

Here are the books I'm showcasing for this week!

Heap House by Edward Carey

I found this book thanks to Sanne over at BooksandQuills on youtube. < Here's the link to her video. She starts talking about this book at about 5:28. It sounds too interesting to pass up.

Bitten by Kelley Armstrong

(This has been turned into a tv series that airs soon but I don't know too much more about it.)

Sea of Shadows by Kelley Armstrong

(Expected publication: April 2014)



Top Ten Tuesday #19

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten Worlds I'd Never Want To Live In

AND/OR 

Top Ten Characters I'd NEVER Want To Trade Places With

Warning!!!! Contains spoilers!
If you haven't read the book, you should probably skip to the next one! It's really hard to explain why I wouldn't want to be in a book or a character in a book without giving away a few key points in the story. Apologies if I ruin or spoil anything for anyone!

1. The Hunger Games
I really wouldn't want to live in one of those horrible dystopian government controlled worlds like Panem.

2. Heaven by V.C. Andrews
I read this series 15 years ago but most of it is still pretty fresh in my mind. Heaven grew up extremely poor without a mother, her father sold her to an evil woman and she is seperated from her siblings, there's rape and a ton of other horrible things that happen.

3. The four children from Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews
I read this series after Heaven but it was still a long time ago. Most of you might be more familiar with this one since it has a movie and was recently re-adapted into a Lifetime movie (?) which I haven't seen yet. Those poor children are (sort of) locked in an attic and fed arsenic for years until the youngest boy dies and the oldest two siblings finally decide to escape. 

3. Pi Patel from Life of Pi
I wouldn't want to lose my entire family and then be stranded on a small boat with a tiger. That would NOT be cool.

4. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
I wouldn't want to be any character in this story. Kathy was selfish and horrible, Heathcliff was mistreated and abandoned, Hairton was neglected and hated, and Katherine was taken hostage and forced to marry her dying cousin. 

5. The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
Forget the zombie outbreak. This book is long after zombies have destroyed most of the world. Those left alive are stuck in little fenced in communities in the middle of nowhere with extremely religious leaders. I'd want to run away into the zombie infested world, too.

6. The Road by Cormac McCarthy
It seems like everyone is preparing for the end of the world or zombie apocalypse, but when it comes down to it, there won't be any food, fresh water, or fresh air. Being in that world would not be my cup of tea. 

Stacking the Shelves #19

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews that features the books we bought, borrowed, were gifted, and were given for review. 


I had an eventful weekend last week (I'm a little behind on getting this up). We went to the Manatee  Festival a few towns away and looked at the local arts and crafts vendors. We never leave an event like that without some fresh kettle corn. On the way home, we stopped at the only bookstore within an hour's drive for the first time. It was all second hand books for very expensive prices. I searched the entire store but only found a worn copy of 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas' by Hunter S. Thompson for $5.

After I bought it, the owner told me he had a signed first edition of the same book.

We also stopped at two thrift stores on the way home because we only go driving out that way a few times a year. I spent $4.24 in all at both thrift stores. Here's what I got!

Top Shelf

(Left to Right)

1. Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris
2. Taggerung by Brian Jacques
3. Mossflower by Brian Jacques
4. Mattimeo by Brian Jacques
5. Circle of Magic: Tris's Book by Tamora Pierce

(Top to Bottom)

6. Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder
7. The Misadventures of Maude March by Audrey Couloumbis

8. Becoming Jane by Sheila Kohler

Bottom Shelf:

(Top to Bottom)

9. Changing Planes by Ursula K. Leguin
10. Hokkus Pokkus by Kurt Vonnegut
11. Witch Hunt: History of a Persecution by Nigel Cawthorne (non-fiction)
12. The Nine Lives of Chloe King (Book 1) The Fallen by Liz Braswell
13. The Skin Map by Stephen R. Lawhead
14. The Billionaire's Curse (The Archer Legacy: Book 1) by Richard Newsome

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Have you read any of these? What did you add to your shelves this week? Leave a link below and I will check out your STS and blog! :)

Friday Finds #17

Friday Finds is a blog meme hosted over at Should Be Reading that highlights the books you found and added to your To Be Read list, whether you found them online or in a bookstore and etc. They are not necessarily books that you purchased!

Here are the books I'm showcasing for this week!

Side Effects May Vary by Julie Murphy
The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart
FanGirl by Rainbow Rowell

(I know, I'm way behind on adding FanGirl to my to-read list!)

I haven't been browsing the free e-books on Amazon very much lately so I apologize for not doing the Freebie Friday's for the past couple of months.  I will share if I find anything really good, though! :)



2014 Book Review: Cloud Atlas

Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell

(read in January of 2014)

Genre:

adult fiction

science fiction - fantasy

Published:

2004 by Random House

Awards: Man Book Prize Nominee for Shortlist (2004)

Nebula Award Nominee (2005)

Arthur C. Clarke Award Nominee (2005)

National Book Critics Circle Award Nominee for Fiction (2004)

The Rooster - The Mourning News Tournament of Books (2005)

My Rating:

☆☆☆☆☆

Synopsis:

A postmodern visionary who is also a master of styles and genres, David Mitchell combines flat-out adventures, a Nabokovian love of puzzles, a keen eye for character, and a taste for mind-bending philosophical and scientific speculation in the tradition of Umberto Eco and Philip K. Dick. The result is brilliantly original fiction that reveals how disparate people connect, how their fates intertwine, and how their souls drift across time like clouds across the sky.

MY THOUGHTS:
4.5 stars total

I loved how each story intertwined throughout completely different time periods. All of the stories were interesting but of course some were better than others. There are so many genres within this book that it's difficult to pinpoint to any one genre. The first story was a bit historical, the second set in the 50's and the third in the 70's, I think. (I can't remember now that I don't have the book with me anymore.)
 I was particularly fond of Somni451's story for being futuristic and definitely fit into the science fiction  genre. I enjoyed reading the small changes in words such as shoe being 'nikes' and movies being 'disneys'.
The story of 'Slooshin's Crossin' with Zachry and Meronym was also a favorite for it's post apocalyptic futuristic storyline. Some might have found that story to be a little difficult to read because of the strange wording and dialect but I tend to love reading strange accents and will read them out loud until I have them right.

I read this book so I could watch the movie and I have to be honest and say that I didn't know of this book until I heard that it was being adapted into a movie. I'm a stickler for reading the book first and 9 out of 10 times, it's worth reading the book first.
I REALLY got hooked on the movie trailer (sharing below) long before reading the book so I kind of had some of the actors in my mind for the characters. In the movie, this small group of actors play a bunch of characters in each of these stories and it was fun to see who played who and how different they looked for each role throughout.

Top Ten Tuesday #18

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten Things On My Reading Wishlist 

This topic could have gone any which way I wanted but I chose to make it a list of the top ten books on my wishlist. Physical books. Books that I've wanted for a long time and know I will love when I finally get a chance to read them. 

Roverandom by J.R.R. Tolkien

(I only just recently heard about this children's story by Tolkien but I absolutely need to have it asap)

The Haunted House by Charles Dickens

(I'm a sucker for ghost stories and I'm a big fan of Dickens)

North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell

(I've been putting off watching the movie on Netflix for a couple of years now so I could read the book first but I just can't seem to find it anywhere. I'll have to find a way to purchase it off of the internet soon.)

Heap House by Edward Carey

(Sanne from BooksandQuills described this book as a mixture of Charles Dickens and A Series of Unfortunate Events. Sounds right up my alley.)

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

 The Graphic Novel
by Ransom Riggs

(I loved the original and am currently reading the sequel.)

The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith

(aka: J.K. Rowling. I can't pass up any of her writing)

20th Century Ghosts by Joe Hill

(I've been wanting to read this book since before it came out but my library never got it. It would make a perfect addition to my ghost story collection)

Roald Dahl's Book of Ghost Stories

(I know it's nowhere near Halloween but I can't help that these ghost stories are at the top of my wishlist)

The Neverending Story by Michael Ende

(I loved the movie when I was a kid so I'd love to read the book and have it in my collection.)

The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens

(I'm a bit of a sucker for Dickens and it's difficult to find his more obscure novels.)






I chose to do this topic this way instead of how everyone else has done it because I just couldn't think of enough right off the bat to make a small list.

Now that I've thought about it more and browsed through a couple of other lists, I still don't have any unique ideas of what I would want to see in a book besides more ghost stories or creepy scary stories. I'd like to see more serial killer stories but then again, I avoid the crime mysteries like they are the plague. Maybe I'll leave my comfort zone in the future but for now I can't stand reading about middle-aged adults with careers talking about suspects and laws.
I'd also love to see more graphic novels that aren't like mangas with the Japanese style drawings. I never could get into them easily but I love art and illustration.

-----------------

Feel free to comment if you've read any of these or have recommendations. Link to your Top Ten Tuesday and I'll come check out what books you added! :)

Top Ten Tuesday #17

 

 

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

 

Top Ten Goals/Resolutions For 2014

 

1. Read 100 books

2. Read more classics

3. Read more children's books

4. Read at least 5 books from the 1000 Books To Read Before You Die list

5.  Read at least 5 banned or challenged books

6. Do the 26 book ABC Challenge

7. Dothe Book Genre Challenge

8. Take more pictures of books

9. Read all the books that are being turned into movies

10. Write more of my own book

What have you got planned for 2014?

Series I Started & Series I Finished in 2013

I probably should have gotten all my 2013 posts done before the new year but I was so busy that last week of the year with Christmas, family visits, and birthdays so I'm doing them now!

 

 

First of all, I'd like to start with the series that I finished in 2013 because I want to feel like I've accomplished at least something book related this year besides reading an 1000+ page book.

SERIES I FINISHED IN 2013

 

The Books of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau

The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series by Michael Scott

Divergent trilogy by Veronica Roth

Delirium trilogy by Lauren Oliver

 

 

SERIES I STARTED IN 2013

(sooo many!)

Alex Verus series by Benedict Jacka (1/3)
Warm Bodies series by Isaac Marion (1/?)

The Host series by Stephanie Meyer (1/?)
The Deeds of the Ariane Novellas by Barbara Cool Lee (1/?)
Niebla series by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (1/?)
Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones (1/?)
Miss Peregrine's Home... by Ransom Riggs (1/2)
Mouse Guard graphic novel series by David Petersen (2/?)
Fairytale Retellings by Jackson Pearce (1/4)
The Chemical Garden series by Lauren DeStefano (1/not finishing this series ever)
The Fifth Wave by Rick Yancey (1/2+)
Heroes of Olympus series by Rick Riordan (1/4?)
Spellcaster by Claudia Gray (1/2+)
The Books of Beginning by John Stephens (2/3)
Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes (2/4)
Alfred Kropp series by Rick Yancey (1/?)
The Monstrumologist series by Rick Yancey (2/3)
The Lizzie Blaylock Books by Michael Gallagher (1/?)
Widdershins Adventures by Ari Marmell (1/?)
The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater (1/?)
The Archived by Victoria Schwab (1/2+)
His Fair Assassin by Robin LaFevers (1/2+)
Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead (1/6)
Between(the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea) series by April Tucholke (1/?)
All the Wrong Questions series by Lemony Snicket (1/4)


I'm really hoping that I can fit in some of these series to finish this year! I'm going to have to try my best to NOT start any new series in 2014!

Bout of Books Read-a-thon 9.0

 

A new year means new challenges and I'm ready to start the year off with this read-a-thon!

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, January 6th and runs through Sunday, January 12th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 9.0 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of   Books team

I might be reading Cloud Atlas the first week of the year and it's a 500 page book so I hope I can power through it before this starts or use it as motivation to get through it. I don't really want to rush through my books but I have so many from the library right now and two weeks just isn't enough time to read a stack of 8-10 books. It's a bad habit, I know.

Other than 'Cloud Atlas', I have
The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making

The Black Arrow by Robert Louis Stevenson

Rotters (can't remember author!)

I know now not to have too many goals within a week so 3-4 books is plenty.  



Stacking the Shelves #18

 

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews that features the books we bought, borrowed, were gifted, and were given for review. 



 

Thrift Store Finds

I didn't get any books for Christmas this year so I had to treat myself by going shopping. One of my local thrift stores has a 1/2 price day on everything one weekend out of the month and I used to go for the books but this was the first time I'd been able to go in a while. I got 9 books for about $3 total. My favorite thing about thrift stores is that I never know what I'm going to find.

 

 

From top to bottom:

Guardians of Ga'Hoole: Lost Tales of Ga'Hoole

&
Guardians of Ga'Hoole: The Capture (#1) by Kathryn Lasky

 

Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews

(I read this series as well as the Heaven series as a young teenager and they broke my heart. My copies are so old and damaged from being re-read so many times so I'm glad to have found this one.)

 

Fated by Alyson Noel

(I actually hated her first series so I only picked up this one because of the pretty cover and because it's so hard to find YA novels at thrift stores usually.)

 

Low Red Moon by Ivy Devlin

(This one has an awesome red cover with trees and a moon on it and it kind of just screams werewolf story. I just loved the cover.)

 

Mrs. deWinter by Susan Hill

(I LOVE ghost stories and Susan Hill is best known for The Woman in Black which was recently adapted into a movie. I've read one other of her stories but found it hard to come across her works. When I saw her name, I immediately grabbed it and then found it to be a sequel to Daphne Du Maurier's 'Rebecca' which I just read for the first time in 2013. I'm pretty excited about reading it.)

 

Dead Reckoning by Charlaine Harris

(I'm slowly collecting this series. I think I have 3-4 so far though I'm not sure which. Someday I'll be able to read them!)

 

Death Comes to Pemberley by P.D. James

(A murder mystery retelling of Jane Austen's 'Pride and Prejudice')

 

The School of Night by Louis Bayard

(I'm not sure what this book is about. Maybe mystery. Maybe historical fiction crossed with modern day. It has a nice cover, though.)

 

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Did you get any good books for Christmas? How about with those gift cards?

The Book Genre Challenge 2014

 

The Book Genre Challenge 2014

hosted by Eternal-Books (tumblr)

 

I don't know if I'll be able to follow this challenge throughout the year but I'm going to try and I thought I'd share it with you guys since it's such an awesome idea for a book challenge!

 

 

I personally don't read much contemporary, romance, or steampunk so I'll think about either changing that genre or finding something out of my comfort zone to read for those genres.

 





 

You can contact Eternal-Books for more information HERE

but if you don't have Tumblr, feel free to ask me questions here

Or if you'd like to do this without joining Tumblr, feel free to keep track of your books on your blog and link back to this post so I can see and discuss what you are reading and vice versa!

Book to Movie Goals 2014

More and more I feel as if my reading goals revolve around reading the latest book before the movie hits the big screen. I just can't help but need to read the book first, though.

Books I Need to Read

 

(haven't read the book and haven't seen the movie/tv series yet)

 

The Maze Runner by James Dashner

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell (movie already released)

The Witches of East End by Melissa De La Cruz

Bitten by Kelley Armstrong

The White Queen by Philippa Gregory

 It's Kind of A Funny Story by Ned Vizzini (movie already released)
Silver Linings Playbook (movie already released)
The Spectacular Now (movie already released?)

 

(books I've read but have movies coming out soon)

 

Horns by Joe Hill

The Book Thief by markus Zusak

Divergent by Veronica Roth

The Fault in our Stars by John Green



 

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Anyone know of any other movies coming out soon that are based off of books?

2014 Books Goals

It's easy to give into the urge to create a New Year's resolution list this time of year. 2013 is gone and I'm ready to go into 2014 with at least a good to-read list. (To be honest, I love making lists for everything so there is no shortage of things to do at any given time.)

BOOK GOALS

(Yes, this is exciting!)

- Read at least 100 books FAIL

-Read More Classics Mostly a FAIL

-Read more children's stories CHECK

-ABC Book/Author Challenge Mostly a FAIL

-Read all Roald Dahl that I own Read 4/5

-Finish 'A Storm of Swords' CHECK

-Read 5 E-books (opt) CHECK

-Read 5 Banned Books CHECK

OR/ALSO

-Read 5 books on 1000 Books list FAIL

-Read more of my own books CHECK
-Re-read at least one book CHECK

 I also have a photography goal to take a photo of a book a day. I own plenty so why not? I might just only post those on my tumblr but we will see how it goes or if I even remember to do it! I will take a photo of whatever book I am reading and on in between days, I will take photos of good books I own, favorite books, and other recommendations or books in my to-read list. It will be it's own little project. FAIL

TO-READ LIST
(Top of the Pile List)

* = (need to read so I can watch the movie/tv show)

UPDATE
Books I've read will be crossed out!

Cloud Atlas*

The Casual Vacancy

The Cuckoo's Calling

Throne of Glass

Matilda

Gone Girl*

Legend of Sleepy Hollow

Phantom of the Opera

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

The Bluest Eye

Beloved

Witches of East End*

The White Queen*

The Maze Runner*

I Capture the Castle

Flowers for Algernon

Amsterdam

The Alchemist

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

Paper Towns

1984

A Tree Grew in Brooklyn
Dark Triumph (His Fair Assassin#2)

A Christmas Carol (read in December)

Survivor / Chuck Palahniuk

Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell

Girl, Interrupted

Chocolat
The Stranger by Albert Camus

Need to read and review soon:
Fall of Sky City by S.M. Blooding (and sequel ebook)
The Exceptionals by Erin Cashman
The Obsidian Blade by Pete Hautman

I wish:

North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell
(I can't find this book anywhere)

Waiting on:

Hollow City (Miss Peregrine's #2) by Ransom Riggs
Untitled (Falling Kingdoms #3) by Morgan Rhodes


--------

Happy New Year!
What bookish goals do you have for this new year?
I've been MIA around these parts for a while so I don't know if there are any cool challenges or read-a-thons coming up yet so feel free to let me know of any or leave recommendations for the new year!