Top Ten Books That Were Hard to Read

TTT is a meme created by The Broke and the Bookish.

City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare-I adored this book. It was just so sad! I cried! And I hardly ever cry about books.

A Dark Sky by Giselle Rocha-I also like this book, but the plot was a little slow sometimes. It took me a while to finish! Like, a month. [But that was on-and-off reading.]

The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman-I honestly need to reread this once my TBR cools down. But I read the whole trilogy when I was too young and didn’t understand it all.

The Red Pony by John Steinbeck-If you have been on my blog for a while, you might know that I was in an essay competition about this book. I had to read it for school, and, honestly, I despised it. [Yet I got first place for my age level in the competition.] It was heavy on description and farms, which isn’t my thing.

The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak-Mostly the ending. It just didn’t comprehend.

Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell-Probably the book that I was most emotionally-connected to. It was amazing, but I felt it all when I read it.

Where She Went by Gayle Forman-The angst was just too much. Adam was so bratty and whiny and a jerk. But I had to read it!

The Giver by Lois Lowry-I couldn’t connect with the characters, some things were left unexplained…it was just a bit hard.

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee-The writing is just so heavy.

Requiem by Lauren Oliver-Iiiiit…Waaaassss…Ssoooo…Ssllooooww.

So, what about you? What books were hard to read for you? Tell me in the comments below.

Weekly Wrap-Up #4

Another week has gone by. I’ve had projects due, more homework, and I read a book (or two). I also lent If I Stay and Fangirl to some friends. Let’s get on to the posts!

On Saturday, I did the TCWT blog chain. It was about my favorite book endings and beginnings. Go see the Teens Can Write, Too blog here. The question was really fun and I had a blast [Does that sound weird?] answering the question. If you have a blog and haven’t done the TCWT chain before, do it!

On Sunday, I reviewed Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell, which I loved so much.

On Monday, I introduced 10 simple things to do for a blogger. Dare you to do all ten today! :P

On Tuesday, I participated in Top Ten Tuesday and talked about Banned Books Week. What *banned* books did you read this week?

On Wednesday, I added Chapter Twenty-Three to Nakoma and reviewed Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige. [And my power cord for my computer broke.]

On Thursday, I participated in the first ever linkup for Loony Blurbs, hosted by Emily @ The Loony Teen Writer, whose blog you can see here.

I’m still going at the 100-4-100 challenge…Except I didn’t write yesterday. But I will today! Promise!

Also: I want some beta readers for my novel. I want people who:

1. Will give me honest feedback.
2. Will give me constructive criticism.
3. Know their way around a novel.
4. Have enough time to be a beta reader.
5. Enjoy the plot/genre of my novel.
6. Are supportive.

If you can say YES to at least half of these and are interested, please comment below. I will have to email you each chapter, so be sure you’re comfortable with that. If not, and you still really want to, we can work something out.

Do you participate in TCWT blog chains? Do you like them? Did you read any *banned* books this week? Did you participate in Loony Blurbs? Are you interested in being one of my beta readers? Tell me in the comments below.

Banned Books Week and Top Ten Tuesday

Thank you to Ava for recommending that I post about Banned Books Week.

This week, Sep. 21-Sep. 27, is Banned Books Week!

What is BBW?

Well, I didn’t know until I looked it up. Here is an overview, straight from their official website.

Banned Books Week is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read. Held during the last week of September, it highlights the value of free and open access to information. Banned Books Week brings together the entire book community –- librarians, booksellers, publishers, journalists, teachers, and readers of all types –- in shared support of the freedom to seek and to express ideas, even those some consider unorthodox or unpopular.

Banned Books Week was launched in 1982 in response to a sudden surge in the number of challenges to books in schools, bookstores and libraries. More than 11,300 books have been challenged since 1982 according to the American Library Association. There were 307 challenges reported to the Office of Intellectual Freedom in 2013, and many more go unreported.

This week celebrates the freedom of reading and, mostly, banned books.

 

 

 

 

 

 

What types of books are considered banned?

Here are the top three reasons for banned books:

1. Material considered to be sexually explicit.
2. Material has offensive language.
3. Material is “unsuited to any age group.”

What can I do to celebrate BBW?

Most obviously, read! Read anytime you can, to show others that you can read and you are allowed to. No one can tell you not to. [Except maybe your teacher…] And read banned books. You can find a list of challenged authors from the 21st century, up to 2012, here. J. K. Rowling and John Green make the list! Basically, you can read almost any YA book. Because most contain “offensive language.”

You can also participate in some events. If you live in the USA, here is a list of states and their events.

And you can participate in a Virtual Read-Out. More information about that can be found here.

For TTT, I decided it would be fun to make a list of [in my opinion] top ten books that should be/are challenged. This doesn’t mean I don’t like them; this is for fun!

TTT is a meme created by The Broke and the Bookish.

My Top Ten Banned Books

1. Paper Towns by John Green

2. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

3. If I Stay by Gayle Forman

4. The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare

5. Ink by Amanda Sun

6. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

7. Where She Went by Gayle Forman

8. A Dark Sky by Giselle Rocha

9. The Princess and the Pauper by Kate Brian

10. Geek High by Piper Banks

Sorry I didn’t include pictures. I’m too lazy. XD

This post was extra-long!

[Added after a comment I saw.]

I find the whole concept of BBW to be a joke. These books are normal, everyday books that everyone reads. There’s no point of them being banned, in my opinion.

What are you doing to celebrate Banned Books Week? [BTW, I made up the acronym.] And what books are on your banned books list? Tell me in the comments below.

Top Ten Warnings I Want to See on Books

 

TTT is a meme created by The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten Warnings I Want to See on Books

Note: This is not the TTT from The Broke and the Bookish.

Disclaimer: I got the idea from Verbosity Book Reviews. [And if you are reading this, please note that I loved your idea and I wanted to make my own.]

1. WARNING: This book may cause excessive fangirling and rereading. [Specifically for Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, and Divergent, plus maaaaany others.]

2. CAUTION: It cannot be guaranteed that these pages will remain dry. [Specifically for TFIOS; although I only teared up, I know other people drowned in their tears.]

3. WARNING: This book contains deaths of many loved characters. [Specifically for Harry Potter and Divergent.]

4. WARNING: This book is insanely awesome. [There are too many specifics to list.]

5. CAUTION: Fluffy contemporary ahead. Contains romance, friendship, and possible misunderstandings. [To all the pink and fluffy contemporaries of the world.]

6. YOU’VE READ THIS? HA. YOU HAVE NOW BEEN REELED IN. GOOD LUCK. [To the books with crazy fandoms.]

7. WARNING: This series has either one or more unnecessary books. Proceed with caution. [Hello there, Hunger Games!]

8. WARNING: This is how the world may end up. Better read this book now to learn what to do, right? [Specifically to The Lunar Chronicles, Divergent, and Tomorrow Girls.]

9. CAUTION: Amazing, awesome writing ahead. You will never be better at writing than this author. [*cough* J. K. Rowling *cough*]

10. WARNING: Although this book seems short, it is packed with lots of mind-blowing information that is only barely noticed and you will wonder about. Forever. [Specifically for The Giver.]

Did you like this list? Would you add any other warnings? Tell me in the comments below.

Top Ten Tuesday

TTT is a meme created by The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten Books That Many People Don’t Read But Are Really Good

1. The Apothecary by Maile Meloy

2. His Dark Materials series by Philip Pullman

3. Sisters Grimm series by Michael Buckley

4. The Clockwork Three by Matthew J. Kirby

5. Number the Stars by Lois Lowry

6. The Books of Bayern series by Shannon Hale

7. Gaia Girls series by Lee Welles

8. Ink by Amanda Sun

9. Tomorrow Girls series by Eva Gray

10. The Secret Language of Girls by Frances O’Roark Dowell

A lot of these books are MG (3, 4, 6, 7, 9, 10), which may put older readers off, but they’re actually really good! [I could’ve added pictures, but I was too lazy; sorry.]

What undiscovered books have you read? Tell me in the comments below.

Weekly Wrap-Up #1

I’ve decided to start doing weekly wrap-ups. I will feature what I posted about, and if I saw a post on another blog that I think others should see.

On Sunday, I interviewed Bridgett Spicer. It was fun to learn more about her comic strip and her life! She is a really nice person.

On Monday, I learned the difference between a highlighter and a marker, I talked about my reading of To Kill a Mockingbird and I added a dictionary! [Which you can find here.] I loved learning about highlighters and black light.

On Tuesday, I did a book review of To Kill a Mockingbird, participated in Top Ten Tuesday, and passed 2,250 views. I adored To Kill a Mockingbird.

On Wednesday, I reviewed The Giver. Which I also adored.

On Thursday, I posted Part 1 of My Writing Process, Procrastination, and Perseverance.

Since it’s Friday, poll time!

Top Ten Tuesday, Book Review, and An Announcement!

Contrary to the title, I am announcing first. I just passed 2,250 views on my blog! And, yes, I know, many of them are visits from the same person. But it means you care enough to come back! You have faith in me and my writing. So, thank you, to everyone. At least I know you’re there, even if you don’t subscribe or comment. [Take the hint!] Back to the awesomeness.

*Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou*

I love all of you so much! Thank you for reading my posts, for reading my rants, and book reviews, and maybe even stopping by to check out my novel. You are the reason I have over 2,250 views.

TTT is a meme created by The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten Fictional Characters I Would Want to Sit At My [Awesome] Lunch Table

1. Hermione Granger Because we are soul mates. Besides Evi, of course. Won’t forget you, bae. :)

2. Leo Valdez He is my OTP. So, um, duh?

3. Annabeth Chase We can talk about how annoying Hera is. ;) And how Seaweed Brain, is well, a seaweed brain.

4. Cinder She is so amazing! Just to have a conversation with her would be like, woah… But then again, all these people are pretty amazing.

5. Sabrina Grimm She has a wicked sense of humor and sarcasm. We both have little sisters.

6. Isabelle Lightwood Her sense of fashion is truly awesome. She is the best stylish, kick-butt girl I know.

7. Simon Lewis I mean, he just might top Leo Valdez. Although, kinda hard to beat Izzy…

8. Augustus Waters Another OTP.

9. Sadie Kane She’s British. An she can give me tips on hair-dyeing!

10. Tris Prior She is just so cool, I mean, come on.

That was my TTT; I loved doing it, by the way. Sorry I didn’t have pictures! I was too lazy.

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Title: To Kill a Mockingbird

Author: Harper Lee

Number of Pages: 324

Overall Rating: 4/5 stars

Summary From Cover: The unforgettable novel of a childhood in a sleepy Southern town and the crisis of conscience that rocked it, To Kill A Mockingbird became both an instant bestseller and a critical success when it was first published in 1960. It went on to win the Pulitzer Prize in 1961 and was later made into an Academy Award-winning film, also a classic.

Compassionate, dramatic, and deeply moving, To Kill A Mockingbird takes readers to the roots of human behavior – to innocence and experience, kindness and cruelty, love and hatred, humor and pathos. [By the way, “pathos” is actually a word. Crazy, right? It means “a quality that evokes pity or sadness.]

Discussion: God, did I love this book. I heard such wonderful things about it from many other bloggers, and when I found it in my homeroom teacher’s classroom, of course I had to pick it up!

The first few chapters were really too slow for me, and I began to think that To Kill a Mockingbird would be my first bad review. The plot moved slowly and many big words were used that I didn’t understand. Finally, though, the plot sped up with Boo Radley and Dill and such, and I was happily entranced.

Boo Radley fascinated me, along with the trinkets in the tree. In fact, the whole town fascinated me. Each member was lovely in some way, but had their hamartia. Maybe their hamartia wasn’t exactly huge, but I loved how none of the residents were peachy perfect.

I enjoyed seeing Scout and Jem mature, growing up past Boo Radley and ghosts and the like. Jem’s stage of being very adult-like reminded me of myself. My sister (think of her as Scout) is always pestering me to play with her, while I don’t want to (think of me as Jem). I sympathized with Jem, and learned more from Scout about this and why my sister gets sad when I don’t play with her.

Although this book is funny and sweet, it also has some huge themes that I thought were snuck in nicely. Lee didn’t make the book a lesson, but she also told the truth.

Sexism actually shows up a lot, and from a feminist’s point of view, I was disappointed with parts of it. Scout is scolded for “acting like a girl,” and then Aunt Alexandra says it isn’t proper for a girl to be wearing pants instead of a skirt. Scout is very sexist, too, but only by listening to her elders and observing those around her.

Racism: the second of two -isms that frequent the pages. The whole second part of the book is about racism. Black people are often referred to as a racist term I cannot repeat, but I bet you can guess. And the whole court trial and the final verdict is about race, and not at all about justice and facts.

I think Scout and Matilda would be best friends. Both are scolded for learning early and are wise beyond their years.

All in all I adored this book, but think the slow parts were a bit…well, slow. They are the only reason I give To Kill a Mockingbird 4 stars. Read it!

Next, I’m reading The Giver by Lois Lowry, and already I’m more than halfway through.

Top Ten Books I Want to Read But Don’t Yet Own and I Am Malala: How One Girl Stood Up For Education and Changed the World Book Review

TTT is a meme created by The Broke and the Bookish.

 

1. Where She Went by Gayle Forman-I mean, I loved If I Stay, so this is a must-have. Kind of obvious…

2. The Giver by Lois Lowry-Every blogger (or at least almost every blogger) has loved this book. It sits on my teacher’s shelf, mocking me.

3. The Infernal Devices series by Cassandra Clare-Yet again, I read The Mortal Instruments, so it’s just…I have to have these!!!

4. Four: A Divergent Collection by Veronica Roth-This slipped between my fingers. It was at Costco when it first came out for, like, eleven dollars, but I was like, I don’t really need it. Now I need it.

5. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell-I have yet to read a Rowell book, but bloggers rave about her. I honestly know nothing about this book.

6. Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell-Another must-read from all the blogosphere and beyond.

7. Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor-Bloggers love this!

8. Hate List by Jennifer Brown-Emily @ The Loony Teen Writer just reviewed this, and it sounds like a great book.

9. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll-Believe it or not, I have never read this book. And I’ve only watched the Hello Kitty version of it when I was really little.

That concludes this week’s TTT. Sorry there’s only nine! Any books you would like to read but don’t have? Tell me in the comments below.

I Am Malala: How One Girl Stood Up For Education and Changed the World (Young Readers Edition) by Malala Yousafzai and Patricia McCormick

Title: I Am Malala: How One Girl Stood Up For Education and Changed the World

Author: Malala Yousafzai and Patricia McCormick

Number of Pages: 193

Overall rating: 4.5/5 stars

Summary From Cover: Malala Yousafzai was only ten years old when the Taliban took control of her region. They said music was a crime. They said women weren’t allowed to go to the market. They said girls couldn’t go to school.

Raised in a once-peaceful area of Pakistan transformed by terrorism, Malala was taught to stand up for what she believes. So she fought for her right to be educated. And on October 9, 2012, she nearly lost her life for the cause: She was shot point-blank while riding the bus on her way home from school.

No one expected her to survive.

Now Malala is an international symbol of peaceful protest and the youngest ever Nobel Peace Prize nominee. In this Young Readers Edition of her bestselling memoir, which includes exclusive photos and material, we hear firsthand the remarkable story of a girl who knew from a young age that she wanted to change the world — and did.

Malala’s powerful story will open your eyes to another world and will make you believe in hope, truth, miracles and the possibility that one person — one young person — can inspire change in her community and beyond.

Discussion: I loved this so much! I devoured it extremely quickly; I never thought that I would enjoy a nonfiction book so much. The only thing that separated me and five stars was that some of the content was missing that was included in her first book.

This Young Readers Edition isn’t as heavy. It also has less names, dates, and acronyms to memorize. I had a lot of trouble with those during her first book!

I recommend reading this first, and if you want to know more, read the original I Am Malala. But this is easier to process and lighter on the intense stuff. You also get more insight into her life before the Taliban.

Sorry this review was so short; I’m tired. I will go write now, though.

Top Ten Books People Have Been Telling You That You MUST Read and If I Stay Book Review

TTT is a meme created by The Broke and the Bookish.

1. The Infernal Devices series

2. The Book Thief

3. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

4. Out of My Mind

5. Trickster’s Choice

6. Eleanor and Park

7. Fangirl

8. Dorothy Must Die

That’s all I can think of! Any other books you really want me to read? Tell me in the comments below. :)

Meanwhile, while the image to the right says I’m reading City of Heavenly Fire, I, uh, actually was reading If I Stay and finished today. I started it last night and finished this afternoon. How awesome is that? And now a bunch of people want to read it, so I’ll be loaning it to some friends. Now on to the book review!

 If I Stay by Gayle Forman

Title: If I Stay

Author: Gayle Forman

Number of Pages: 234

Genre: YA Contemporary

Overall Rating: 5/5 stars

Summary From Cover: On a day that started like any other…

Mia had everything: a loving family, a gorgeous, adoring boyfriend, and a bright future full of music and full of choices. Then, in an instant, almost all that is taken from her. Caught between life and death, between a happy past and an unknowable future, Mia spends one critical day contemplating the only decision she has left–the most important decision she’ll ever make.

Simultaneously tragic and hopeful, this is a romantic, riveting, and ultimately uplifting story about memory, music, living, dying, loving.

Discussion: If there’s any book that gets five stars, it’s this. Because it was so emotional and wonderful and sad and everything. I mean, seriously, it’s a system overload. I read it in less than 24 hours; I was completely hooked. The story is quite unique, and yet something I bet a lot of us think about, yet never think to write about. Maybe it’s too supernatural.

Throughout the story, I was debating whether or not Mia would choose to live. [That is not giving anything away; the trailer for the movie has this in it.] At the beginning, I thought, of course she’ll want to live! But as visitors came by her bedside, telling her to let go if she wants, and how Mia said it’s easier to die then to live, I thought the opposite: that she would die. I changed my mind so much during my reading, but by the end, in the last few pages, my hope for Mia was what she chose.

If I Stay takes place during one day. So it’s hard to write a whole book about it, especially if it’s 24 hours in the life of a somewhat ghost! And that’s why they added the flashbacks. There really wasn’t much backstory leading up to the “big event,” but when Mia is in the hospital, the flashbacks overwhelm the actual happenings. I lost myself in them, forgetting Mia was dying. They really help move the story along and give you insight into the characters lives. I think they are somewhat the root of the story; they hold Mia to earth, in a way.

A great aspect of the story was how vague it was about Mia’s out of body experience. She’s not a ghost, but not a person. She can see herself in the hospital, but isn’t really the girl with tubes attached and blankets on top of her. The reader, and Mia, is never really sure what Mia is. In the beginning, she tries clicking her heels to Hawaii, like a ghost would, but it doesn’t work, and that’s all we know of Mia’s form.

It ended much too soon. I literally was just staring at the page when it ended, gaping.

And it’s a total cliffhanger!!! I need Where She Went, the sequel!

Other news: Malala Yousafzai’s newest book came in today; I’m picking it up tomorrow. Add it to my TBR list!

I’m on page 431 of CoHF. It’s reaaally good; can’t wait to review it!

Oh, and, right before we go, a really helpful video from Kat the booktuber.

Happy Tuesday!

Chloe

Top Ten Tuesday

TTT is a meme created by The Broke and the Bookish.

It’s that time again: Top Ten Tuesday! This week’s TTT is ten books I cannot wait to get my hands on!

Ten Books I Can’t Wait to Read

1. To Kill a Mocking Bird [It is on my teacher’s shelf!]

2. If I Stay [I got it two days ago.]

3. The Blood of Olympus

4. Winter

5. Dorothy Must Die

6. The Infernal Devices series

7. Graceling

8. Eleanor & Park

9. Fangirl

10. The Book Thief [It slipped through my fingers…]

I can’t wait to read any and all of these!

Also, I did not get to finish Love, Stargirl, because all the library books had to be taken back. The consequences of getting too many books at once… BUT on the bright side, I got two amazing books! One being the recently released City of Heavenly Fire for 25 dollars; it was worth it. And the second, If I Stay. So excited to read it and watch the movie! I hope it lives up to the hype…

Note to self: August TCWT chain is on 22nd for me.

I hope you enjoyed my post! Are there any books on my list you want to read, too, or any books you really want to read that aren’t on it? Tell me in the comments below.

Luv ya bunches! Don’t forget to check out my newly added page, “My Somewhat Social Media.”

C