In Between the Lines

ياسر أحمد by عكس الاتجاه

2013-04-25T17:00:00.000-07:00

Click on picture to go to Goodreads

To start off, I just want to say that I will be adding this book to my FAVORITE BOOKS list. This was my first time reading an Arabic novel since 2006. When I was visiting Egypt last summer, I decided to buy this novel. No regrets.

Reasons why I liked this novel:

1) Fast paced (not what you're thinking): I don't think this book was plot driven. The author focused on analyzing each of his character. Analyzing situations and problems in Egypt. Therefore it was fast paced because each chapter tackled a problem and somehow was linked to the next chapter and eventually to the entire novel. It was just perfect, I don't know how to describe it.

2) The romance in this novel is the type I love: the main character falls in love with Farida. At first, I loved Farida, then I hated her, then I loved her and finally I decided to hate her. This roller coaster is something I never experienced from before. How could I love and hate this character so many times. For the main character, I loved how he looked at Farida. How he liked her for her eagerness to know everything about life and...France. How he respected her and gave her so many chances to fix her broken self so they could be together. It was just beautifully written. I read this book a month ago and it still impacts me how our eagerness towards specific things could turn us blind towards life necessities such as love.

3) The main character's friends especially Hatam. I love Hatam. Hatam represented every young Egyptian struggles. He was so real and so cool. I just wanted to be his best friend.

4) I don't know much about downtown Cairo but now I do. It was well-pictured in this book

5) The unique writing style

This book deserves all the rewards I could think of. I truly enjoyed it.

This book is only available in Arabic.

Waiting on Wednesday (27)

2012-12-12T10:23:00.000-08:00

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine to put a spotlight on upcoming books.

This week's title is:

Taken by Erin Bowman

The synopsis sounds fine

Waiting on Wednesday (26)

2012-12-05T10:19:00.000-08:00

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine to put a spotlight on upcoming books.

This week's title is:

Dead Silence by Kimberly Derting

Jay is awesome and the coolest. Thats why I am reading this series.

Waiting on Wednesday (25)

2012-11-28T10:14:00.000-08:00

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine to put a spotlight on upcoming books.

This week's title is:

This is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith

I only want to know how happy looks like. Just in case I come across it.

Waiting on Wednesday (24)

2012-11-21T10:11:00.000-08:00

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine to put a spotlight on upcoming books.

This week's title is:

Requiem by Lauren Oliver

Pandemonium left off in a very interesting point, so I am very eager to know where requiem picks off from.

Waiting on Wednesday (23)

2012-11-07T10:06:00.000-08:00

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine to put a spotlight on upcoming books.

This week's title is:

Mind Games by Kiersten White

Look at that cover. How could you resist? It true that I haven't read anything by Kiersten White. Sorry. But Mind Games is looking me at the eye and telling me that I must read it or I will regret it. So I will.

Waiting on Wednesday (22)

2012-10-31T10:01:00.000-07:00

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine to put a spotlight on upcoming books.

This week's title is:

Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi

I dont think there is anything better than Tahereh Mafi' writing. Just epic.

Waiting on Wednesday (21)

2012-10-24T09:57:00.000-07:00

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine to put a spotlight on upcoming books.

This week's title is:

Prodigy by Marie Lu

I really did like June in the first book, so I must read to know what happens to her, right?

Waiting on Wednesday (20)

2012-10-17T09:55:00.000-07:00

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine to put a spotlight on upcoming books.

This week's title is:

Nobody But Us by Kristin Halbrook

I can tell you, from experience, that this looks like the perfect book for me. Please, dont let me down.

Waiting on Wednesday (19)

2012-10-10T09:50:00.000-07:00

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine to put a spotlight on upcoming books.

This week's title is:

Boundless by Cynthia Hand

Books 2 wasnt as good as book 1 but I still have faith and book 3 will be the best thing ever. I just know it.

Waiting on Wednesday (18)

2012-10-03T09:45:00.000-07:00

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine to put a spotlight on upcoming books.

This week's title is:

Shades of Earth by Beth Revis

I am little confused of why the cover looks like that, but, anyways, I am excited to see how this series is going to end.

Lucid by Adrienne Stoltz and Ron Bass

2012-09-29T20:21:00.002-07:00

Release Date: October 2nd 2012

Publisher: RazorBill

Age Group: Young Adult

Pages: 342 pages

Source: ARC

Holly cow… this book was just amazing. Reading the end of this book made me feel so sad and happy at the same time.

I was thinking what the ajghajkdghdasd happened? Wait, is it possible? Are human beings capable of doing so. and by so i mean, the whole concept of the novel.

The writing was so pretty and flawless. Usually I hate books that are narrated by 2 or more girls because it is hard for me to distinguish them. But it wasnt the same for this book. The two characters narrating were so unique. I loved them so much. Both of their love interest were interesting and I didnt know which team to be on. Picking teams was going to be pointless anyways...you will know why.

This book will keep you questioning whether all of this is real or not. Which part is real and which is made up or imagined. Personally, I thought everything was real...that both characters were real

Anyways, I really enjoyed reading this book. It was a fun read. Pick it up from a bookstore or a library.

Waiting on Wednesday (17)

2012-09-26T09:41:00.000-07:00

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine to put a spotlight on upcoming books.

This week's title is:

Lucid by Adrienne Stoltz

This book doesnt sound like anything I've read from before.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

2012-09-23T15:58:00.002-07:00

Release Date: February 1^st 1999

Publisher: MTV Books and Pocket Books

Age Group: Young Adult

Pages: 213 pages

Source: Purchased

Ok let's try again.

I tried yesterday to write this review but stopped because I didn’t know from where to start. Actually, I didn’t know on what to focus on. It was just one of those books that impacts you in a way but it gives you hard time to put it in words and I guess that's because…

The perks of being a wallflower celebrates the small things that we all go through but not have the time to notice because it becomes a repeat in our lives that we don’t pay attention to it on purpose.

The perks of being a wallflower will make you laugh and think a lot. And it only touches things on the surface without going too deep in it. because it allows or it gives you the space to think about it the way you want. The way every reader perceives things is different from the other and the author took that into consideration.

I had difficult time picturing Emma Watson as Sam but this is due to obvious reasons.

The book dealt with so many issues that teen face without being skeptical about it. I believed Charlie was a kid with problems. I believed and felt sorry for him.

And at first, I thought this book wasn’t for young adults up until I read that it was Amazon's #1 young adult novel. It's different from other books.

Waiting on Wednesday (16)

2012-09-19T09:38:00.000-07:00

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine to put a spotlight on upcoming books.

This week's title is:

Sever by Lauren DeStefano

One of my favorite series is about to end. So sad.

Waiting on Wednesday (15)

2012-09-12T09:36:00.000-07:00

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine to put a spotlight on upcoming books. Infinite Sky by C.J Flood

This week's title is:

Infinite Sky by C.J Flood

The cover is gorgeous in every possible way. Hopefully the story within those covers turns out to be as good too.

Waiting on Wednesday (14)

2012-09-05T09:31:00.000-07:00

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine to put a spotlight on upcoming books.

This week's title:

The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

I liked the first book. It was full of mystery and unanswered questions. Hopefully this book satisfies my expectations.

Blackwood by Gwenda Bond

2012-09-03T16:34:00.000-07:00

Release Date: Septemeber 4^th 2012

Publisher: Strange Chemistry

Age Group: Young Adult

Pages: 352 pages

Source: ARC

Let's start this review my saying that this book wasn’t my cup of tea…whatever that means. I did not enjoy reading it for a minute. I wanted to stop reading so many times, but I kept convincing myself that it might get better. And half way through, it got a little better. Maybe a little faster. But that wasn’t enough.

The main problem was the characters. The plot was fine, especially the mysterious part of it. The writing style was fine but it didn’t grab my attention. The pacing was very slow…it made me lose interest. Miranda's voice wasn’t strong enough. I didn’t care for her. And maybe that was because I didn’t know much about her background. I like a character more when I know them better. I know their habits, hobbies, etc, and if you asked me about Miranda, I wouldn’t know anything about her except that she had a cat.

Phillips was obviously in love with Miranda. He cared a lot about her. But why. I never knew why Phillips decided to move back to his hometown…just for Miranda. I wish their story was shared to us (readers). They both knew each other well so how did they leave each other and what was between them…I don’t know. And maybe that’s what kept me reading the book. Because I really wanted to know their story.

Sadly, there were parts that were confusing and unrealistic. Therefore, it wasn’t convincing at all. I was really looking forward to this book but it had disappointed me.

The Selection by Kiera Cass

2012-08-06T16:05:00.000-07:00

Release Date: April 24^th 2012

Publisher: Harper Collins

Age Group: Young Adult

Pages: 327 pages

Source: Library- audio book

This book was cute. So cute. It had a prince and possibly a fairy tale for 35 girls that were chosen based on different aspects to have one of them marry the prince.

I fell in love with Prince Maxon. He was a prince in every way. Gentle and nice and amazing. He respected all the girls and treated them equally and well. Although, it is obvious that he is interested in America Singer, he still gave her space and time to make up her heart. No one in his shoes, with such authorities, would do that. But he did because he is awesome.

For America Singer, she reminded me of Katniss. I don’t know if that is a good thing or not. America was an independent character, had her different plan. And wasn’t cheesy like the rest of the 34 girls. She was unique from all of them which well made me like her more.

In the next book, I hope to see more of the political problems that are going on. Information about the war and allies and all of that. Really excited for book 2.

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

2012-07-16T18:39:00.000-07:00

Release Date: September 1^st 2009

Publisher: Scholastic Press

Age Group: Young Adult

Pages: 391 pages

Source: Borrowed

I didn’t know if I should or should not review this book since everyone knows about it and everyone loves it. but hey, why not?

But I need to tell you that this book made me feel something. Something that was totally different than what I felt in the hunger games. I think it is probably the best second book in a trilogy. It topped all second books ever. It was action packed and a great transition to the third book which I cant wait to get my hands on.

Catching fire is one of those books that make you get attached to the characters. Makes you wanting more. You got to see Katniss in many other situations and it is so good to get into Katniss's head and see all those debates that takes place there. Good vs. bad. But what if the thin line between the two sides doesn’t exist at all? That could lead to big, fat confusion.

I was expecting to see more of Gale but that didn’t happen. I think his appearances were important but limited. And when I reviewed this book, I couldn’t make up my mind of which team I am on. And I won't tell you until I read the last book. I think that’s fair (no reason given). Anyways, feel free to tell me which team are you on?

Anyways, I totally recommend this book. Loved it more than the hunger games.

When You Were Mine by Rebecca Serle

2012-07-12T12:42:00.000-07:00

Release Date: May 1^st 2012

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Age Group: Young Adult

Pages: 334 pages

Source: Borrowed

I loved that book and I don’t even know why. Maybe because it was a retelling of Romeo and Juliet. No, I think because it was written from Rose's perspective. We all know who is rose. She is Romeo's first love.

There were some parts in this novel that didn’t feel realistic. There was rush in some parts, unexplained. But the romance in this book was cute and forced me into flipping the pages quickly.

Also the writing style was so amazing. It kept on pulling me deeper and deeper into the book. There were deep messages and I enjoyed reading between the lines.

In addition to that, I liked Rose's friends. They were shallow (for most of the time) but everyone has a problem and they werent excluded for that. Each one of them had their own character and their problems were a reflection of who they are.

In total, I really liked this book. Totally recommend it.

Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver

2012-07-09T13:03:00.000-07:00

Release Date: February 28^th 2012

Publisher: Harper Teen

Age Group: Young Adult

Pages: 375 pages

Source: Borrowed

I just finished Pandemonium and I am in shock. This installment was way and I mean way better than Delirium. Pandemonium had the fun, entertaining, breath-taking aspect to it and I loved it. There were some parts that dragged and stretched forever but it had always ended up perfectly.

I don’t remember if it was in Delirium too but in Pandemonium, the book was divided into 2 parts, the now and then. What happened to Lena in the wild (then) and back to Zombieland (Now). It helped with the pacing of the book and increased the questions in my head.

Lena found a new life but at the same time, she had hard time forgetting about Alex. And I don’t want to spoil it but THE ENDING was huge. And got me teary for some stupid reason and it shocked me. So 5 stars for this overwhelming ending. I kept flipping the last page hoping to stumble upon another page but no I have to wait months upon month to get my questions answered.

The Calling by Kelley Armstrong

2012-07-05T14:34:00.000-07:00

Release Date: April 10^th 2012

Publisher: HarperCollins

Age Group: Young Adult

Pages: 326 pages

Source: Borrowed

I was so disappointed by this installment. I was expecting more and more and more. But no.

If you recall, The Gathering was one of my favorite books in 2011 and so my expectations were up high. But it was boring and confusing and too much text floated right in front of my eyes. Maya wasn’t interesting like in the gathering. Daniel lost his charm in this book. Like why? What happened?

The plot was slow and pointless. I don’t know how this book helped to create a bridge between book 1 and book 3. I really hope book 3 picks up.

I kept flipping the pages to know how long its going to take me to finish the book. I was glad to finish it and I am sorry to say this because book 1 was amazing and epic. Oh well!

Divergent by Veronica Roth

2012-07-02T13:51:00.000-07:00

Release Date: May 3rd 2011

Publisher: Harper Collins

Age Group: Young Adult

Pages: 487 pages

Source: Purchased

It was addicting, gripping and sad.

It might have seemed like a super long book, but when a book is a total page turner, time flies by and the story ends too quickly.

I might have expected more things to happen. It just felt there was so much time spent on the actual training or qualifications to the faction. But the last 100 pages were full of surprises and fun.

The relationship between Tris and Four was so beautiful. It was heart aching for real. Like I wanted them to be together forever. It was so romantic because even though their world is so messed up, they are trying to save each other by offering the help each one needed from the other. It was just beautiful. Four was different only when he was with Tris which happened gradually. And I love like that…gradually I mean.

Of course, I don’t have to say much more about this book because we are all aware that its awesome from the awards its been receiving.

Something Like Normal by Trish Doller

2012-06-18T11:56:00.000-07:00

Release Date: June 19^th 2012

Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Children

Age Group: Young Adult

Pages: 224 pages

Source: ARC

I cant really tell if I liked this book or not. I just need to give my rational first for you to decide whether I liked or not. but here is a hint: it is, by far, my favorite book in 2012.

So we are introduced to Travis who is this complex character but he tries not to show it. he is good at hiding it but not for long. His life is so crazy and all over the place. Here is another hint: His brother stole his girlfriend when he was away in Afghanistan.

Let me tell you this: the way Travis was written made him sound so real. He is the most realistic 19 years old character. He just sounded right in my head. And picturing him was so easy to draw and form in matter of minutes. Basically, I fell for Travis. Though he is not perfect, he is human. And once in a while, I like to read about humans who do mistakes and learn from them.

You are not alone when you decide to re-read the book before even finishing it.

The fire in this book doesn’t simply goes away when you finish reading it, it stays.