When She Reads

Book Review: The Imam’s Daughter by Hannah Shah

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 09:17:00 +0000

rate } ♠♠♠♠
genre } non-fiction | biography | young adult | abuse
release day } 11th May 2010
acquired } 1st February 2012
publisher } Zondervan
format } hardcover
isbn } 9780310325758
pages } 281 pages
source } bought
age group } pg 18+
interest } G | pg 18+
awards } -
Buy @ Amazon.com | Nolly Book | D BookHaus

The Imam’s Daughter
by Hannah Shah

Via Goodreads
Hannah Shah is an Imam's daughter. She lived the life of a devout Muslim in a family of Pakistani Muslims in England, but behind the front door, she was a caged butterfly. For many years, her father abused her in the cellar of their home.

At sixteen, she discovered a plan to send her to Pakistan for an arranged marriage, and she gathered the courage to run away. Relentlessly hunted by her angry father and brothers, who were intent on executing an 'honor' killing, she moved from house to house in perpetual fear to escape them.

Over time, she converted to Christianity and was able to live and marry as she wished.
Hannah found the courage to live her life free from shame, free from religious intolerance, and free from the abuse that haunted her childhood.
This is a remarkable true story of how a young girl escaped a life of torture ... a story you won't forget.

My 2 Cents
Covers. There are a few different covers for this title and all of them intrigues me. This is however the most what I could say “nice”. She looked happy in this cover. This book has two other covers.

This other cover has a child on it, looking all lonely and intimidated. Enough by itself in making you want to pick it up and read what is wrong.

The other cover looked more grown up and has that look in her eyes, the hidden determination but lost.

Both has the power to entice the reader to pick it up and read.

Now let’s talk about this book. I admit, I have befallen by the title itself. Imam. The head of a small Islamic community. What can go wrong with that right? Wrong! I read the back summary and that was just so heart wrenching.

It’s actually hard to read. Not because it’s a bad book, the people in it are bad. I feel sorry for Hannan (Hannah’s Muslim name) for growing up in such a household and community.

I hope nobody would read this book and say that’s how Muslims are in real life.

Her father tarnished the good name of the Islamic religion. He’s a hypocrite. An arrogant fool! A rapist! An abuser! An ignorant! He doesn’t represent the Islamic world. It saddens me how so brainwashed everybody is in Hannah’s life, that nobody in her own community is willing to help her (except for her best friends) Her brothers refused to helped her when their father raped her nor beat their mother. it appalled me to read her mother seemed to be relieved Hannah got beaten and rape by her husband, so he won’t attack her.

I feel sorry Hannan felt she no choice but leave her own religion just because she’s escaping from her own life, terrified by her own family and her own community just to save herself. It left me angry, that even her social worker (the Muslim guy) didn’t help her at all. He’s probably the defining period for her.

This book left me with that awful after taste at the back of my tongue.

Feature & Follow (10/2/2012)

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 08:12:00 +0000

RULES
To join the fun and make new book blogger friends, just follow these simple rules:

(Required) Follow the Follow My Book Blog Friday Hosts {Parajunkee and Alison Can Read}
(Required) Follow our Featured Bloggers
Put your Blog name and URL in the Linky thing. You can also grab the code if you would like to insert it into your posts.
Grab the button up there and place it in a post, this post is for people to find a place to say “hi” in your comments and that they are now following you.
Follow Follow Follow as many as you can, as many as you want, or just follow a few. The whole point is to make new friends and find new blogs. Also, don’t just follow, comment and say hi. Another blogger might not know you are a new follower if you don’t say “HI”
If someone comments and says they are following you, be a dear and follow back. Spread the Love…and the followers
If you’re new to the follow friday hop, comment and let me know, so I can stop by and check out your blog!

Question:
What would your prefer: reading your favorite book over and over again until you got sick of it OR reading 100s of mediocre books? And why?

This is a hard one. Do I read my favorite book or explore… Well.. I can’t say I won’t read Harry Potter or Oliver Twist or The Christmas Carol or The Count of Monte Cristo and the Goddess Test series over and over again. I know I would never get sick of them.

But that wouldn’t stop me from exploring 100s of mediocre books. Who knows what kind of gems I could find there. For example The Goddess Test. I was weary of Harlequin books that I actually once said I won’t touch them even with the end of a 10 feet pole (don’t ask I got sick of them repetitive theme). My fellow friend ARC reviewer told me I should try it and fish me with the Greek Mythology it has going on. As I read through it, I am actually amazed how wonderful this new brand of book Harlequin is producing. Hence. Yeah.. I’d read through 100s of mediocre books.

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 07:33:00 +0000

Bersimpati kepada mangsa ribut tropika Washi Filipina
dengan menderma BANTU1,5,10,15 & 20 dan hantar ke 38111
atau melalui wap portal: http://portal.bmobile.com.bn/.

Bermula dari 01/02/2012 hingga 15/03/2012.
Sumbangan awda adalah amat di hargai.

Book Review: Goddess Interrupted (Goddess Test 2); By Aimee Carter

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 06:42:00 +0000

rate } ♠♠♠♠♠ ♥
genre } fiction | mythology | young adult | romance
release day } 27th March 2012
acquired } 22th January 2012
publisher } HarlequinTeen
format } paperback
isbn } 9780373210459
pages } 307 pages
source } ARC
age group } 18+
interest } 18+
awards } -
Buy @ Amazon.com | Nolly Book | D BookHaus

Goddess Interrupted (Goddess Test 2)
By Aimee Carter

Via Goodreads
Kate Winters has won immortality.

But if she wants a life in the Underworld with Henry, she’ll have to fight for it.

Becoming immortal wasn’t supposed to be the easy part. Though Kate is about to be crowned Queen of the Underworld, she’s as isolated as ever. And despite her growing love for Henry, ruler of the Underworld, he’s becoming ever more distant and secretive. Then, in the midst of Kate’s coronation, Henry is abducted by the only being powerful enough to kill him: the King of the Titans.

As the other gods prepare for a war that could end them all, it is up to Kate to save Henry from the depths of Tartarus. But in order to navigate the endless caverns of the Underworld, Kate must enlist the help of the one person who is the greatest threat to her future.

Henry’s first wife, Persephone.

My 2 Cents
I actually finished reading this last week, but I have yet find the time to write a review. Why? I need time to sink in. Cliffhanger hurts so bad. *limp ears*

Most of my friends I have been waiting with anticipation to read this book since I’ve finished reading The Goddess Test last year. It was a wonderful book back then and I wanted to read the sequel. Aimee Carter didn’t disappoint me, but still cliffhanger hurts so bad…

Cover. It is beautiful! enticing and scream want to know my secret? Love it!

Extremely a page turner. Brooding Henry. Hot James. Lovable Kate. Adorable Ava. Intimidating Calliope. Lovable characters. The plot just won’t slow down. When I put it down for chore or work I can’t wait to pick it up as soon as I could. Some scenes are tearjerkers. The ones who have read it would know which and why. I feel sorry for both Kate and Henry…

Overall… wow.. It was just as I have expected and more (the cliffhanger though.. No I won’t let that one go Aimee.. you have hooked me for the next one!)

P/S ADONIS IS HOT!

I can’t wait for the next book! (yeah I know Harlequin and I don’t mix, but this series is just awesome!

Library? Since I’m a high school librarians, as much as I wanted to put this on the shelves, I can’t. :( There are just some scenes (yup those scenes) are the reason why. But yeah, it is a Harlequin.. so I’m not really that surprise either.

Release Day: Up Cat By Hazel Hutchins

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 05:35:00 +0000

rate } ♠♠♠♠
genre } children | picture book
release day } 1st February 2012
acquired } 29th January 2012
publisher } Annick Press
format } paperback
isbn } 9781554513888
pages } 26 pages
source } ARC
age group } general
interest } all ages
awards } -
Buy @ Amazon.com | Nolly Book | D BookHaus

Up Cat
By Hazel Hutchins

You’d be surprised at what a cat gets up to all day!

A cat can get tangled up in all kinds of fun and mischief between wake-up time and nap time. Follow along with the playful text as Cat laps up milk, messes up the house, gets up to no good, stands up to a visiting dog, and finally curls up for a nap in the sun.

The expressive, energetic illustrations against simple backgrounds mirror the spare but rhythmic text that teaches about “up” actions while leading the reader through a day in the life of a cat.

Together with UP DOG, this board book will soon be a favorite of toddlers and preschoolers who adore animals.

Hazel Hutchins has written over 30 books for children and young adults and has received numerous awards for her work. She lives in Canmore, Alberta.

Fanny has illustrated many books for children. She lives in Quebec.

Release Day: Up Dog; by Hazel Hutchin

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 05:06:00 +0000

rate } ♠♠♠♠
genre } children | picture book
release day } 1st February 2012
acquired } 29th January 2012
publisher } Annick Press
format } paperback
isbn } 9781554513895
pages } 26 pages
source } ARC
age group } general
interest } all ages
awards } -
Buy @ Amazon.com | Nolly Book | D BookHaus

Up Dog
By Hazel Hutchins

Uh-oh! Look out, house! This little dog is very busy cheerfully digging up and chewing up everything in sight. It’s a sad little dog who’s locked up in the pen while the house and garden are tidied up. But all is not lost, as he’s cautiously welcomed back up the steps and into the house at the end of the day.

Readers will have fun both watching the antics of this little dog and interpreting the animated facial expressions that range from determination and dejection to joy. While readers follow the dog from bad to good in rhythmic two- or three-word panels, they’ll also learn how to use “up” phrases.

Together with UP CAT, this engaging board book will expand toddlers’ vocabulary while delighting them with everyday scenes in the lives of two adorable animals.

Hazel Hutchins has written over 30 books for children and young adults and has received numerous awards for her work. She lives in Canmore, Alberta.

Fanny has illustrated many books for children. She lives in Quebec.

TGIF at GReads (27 January 2012)

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 12:03:00 +0000

TGIF is hosted by Ginger at GReads!
Question of the Week:
Buy or Borrow: Where do your books that you read come from? The bookstore? The library? Do you prefer to own a book, or have it on loan?

Putting the cards out, I am a high school librarian, so some of the books I read would be from the library itself. But that’s just on the side, I mostly bought my books, (usually the ones of my favorite author. Support!) But then again, I also get books from my friends or authors to review. I much prefer having my own books rather on loan. But if I could loan, yeah… it’s not I’m keeping everything anyway.

Feature and Follow Friday

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 07:39:00 +0000

RULES
To join the fun and make new book blogger friends, just follow these simple rules:

(Required) Follow the Follow My Book Blog Friday Hosts {Parajunkee and Alison Can Read}
(Required) Follow our Featured Bloggers
Put your Blog name and URL in the Linky thing. You can also grab the code if you would like to insert it into your posts.
Grab the button up there and place it in a post, this post is for people to find a place to say “hi” in your comments and that they are now following you.
Follow Follow Follow as many as you can, as many as you want, or just follow a few. The whole point is to make new friends and find new blogs. Also, don’t just follow, comment and say hi. Another blogger might not know you are a new follower if you don’t say “HI”
If someone comments and says they are following you, be a dear and follow back. Spread the Love…and the followers
If you’re new to the follow friday hop, comment and let me know, so I can stop by and check out your blog!

Question:
Which book genre do you avoid at all costs and why?
Political books. I totally hate them. Too much agendas and dramas, not to forget about spin doctors.

Teaser Tuesdays (24 January)

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 12:17:00 +0000

Goddess Interrupted
By Aimee Carter
Expect Publication March 12, 2012

“She hates you.” Ava squeezed my hand. “It’s the kind of hate that’s all-consuming, and it doesn’t stop for anything. Especially not-reason.”

And the Dragon Year Begins

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 04:29:00 +0000

NF Book Review: 100 Must-Read Life-Changing Books By Nicholas Rennison

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 09:36:00 +0000

rate } ♠♠♠♠
genre } non-fiction | booklist | reference
release day } 25th September 2008
acquired } 22th January 2012
publisher } A&C Black
format } paperback
isbn } 9780713688726
pages } 148 pages
source } borrowed
age group } general
interest } all ages
awards } -
Buy @ Amazon.com | Nolly Book | D BookHaus

100 Must-Read Life-Changing Books
By Nicholas Rennison

Via Goodreads
Novels which transform our ideas about human possibilities, biographies which celebrate the achievements of extraordinary individuals, polemical works of non-fiction which oblige us to alter our views of the world or of human society: all of us can remember reading at least one book which made us think about the world anew. Here, the author of the popular Bloomsbury Good Reading Guide, selects the very best books which may or may not have changed the world, but which have certainly changed the lives of thousands of people who have read them.

Some examples of titles included:
Maya Angelou, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings - a poignant recording of the author's triumph over the obstacles of being black and poor in a racist society.
Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist. Santiago's meeting with the alchemist opens his eyes to the true values of life, love and suffering
The Diary of Anne Frank Half a century later the story of a teenager coming to maturity in the most terrible of circumstances remains profoundly moving.
Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet Gibran's poetic essays reveal his thoughts on everything in life from love and marriage to the enigmas of birth and death.
Robert M. Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance Pirsig's narrator creates a philosophical masterpiece that has the power to change lives.

My 2 Cents
This book was an incidental find. A friend who is far more list crazed than I am have this laying around on her floor. So naturally I picked it up and find another list of books to play with *snickers*

Cover. Honestly, the only one grabby for me is the words Life-Changing. Otherwise it is nothing less than a pass by for me.

This book features books by authors and the “reasons” why they are life changing. Such examples are Elie Weisel’s Night; Virginia Woolf’s A Room of One’s Own; Leo Tolstoy’s The Kingdom of God is Within You; JRR Tolkien’s The Lord if the Rings; and a few others. I’m glad Toni Morrison is also in this list and J.K Rowling too. This book also feature book suggestions after you’ve read the books mentioned. I have to admit, most of the names in this book, are new to me.

Still Durian Season

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 08:17:00 +0000

Love is a Cycle

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 05:37:00 +0000

It’s Durian season in Brunei!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 13:39:00 +0000

And they come in all shape, sizes and color!

Children Book Review: Garbage! Monster! Burp! By Tom Watson

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 13:04:00 +0000

rate } ♠♠♠♠♠
genre } fiction | picture book | children
release day } 9th March 2011
acquired } 15th January 2012
publisher } Tom Watson
format } e-book
isbn } B004RCNVWG
pages } e-book
source } bought
age group } children
interest } all ages
awards } -
Buy @ Amazon.com | Nolly Book | D BookHaus

Garbage! Monster! Burp!
By Tom Watson

Via Goodreads
A monster at the bottom of a hill eats all of the garbage generated by the town on top of the hill. This provides two important benefits: The monster is happy with plenty to eat and the town stays nice and clean. Unfortunately, as the town grows, so does the amount of garbage the monster must consume. He gets bigger - and he starts burping. This is, as you can probably guess, a bit unsightly and stinky. In the end, the kids figure out how to solve the problem - despite the nasty mayor's doubts and objections.

My 2 Cents
I was surfing through the Kindle collections via Amazon.com when I found this odd (free too) ever so curious little title.

Cover. it does makes me curious when there’s not a peek of said monster on it. So I thought sure.. give it a try. Love the “blue” cover.

Overall verdict, if you like Dr Seuss, you would like this. I do feel sorry for the monster. Such an evil mayor. :( But I do like the way this story goes where it showed kids can make a different.

This would be a good quick read. To bad it’s not available in print, or I would have get it for my school library, cause I know they would actually enjoy reading it

When She BBQ

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 09:56:00 +0000

We decided we have a BBQ today… Yummy! What we had was Crabs, Lambchops and Chicken wings!

YA Book Review: The Lipstick Laws; By Amy Holder

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 15:01:00 +0000

rate } ♠♠♠♠♠ ♥
genre } fiction | young adult | chick lit | bully | high school
release day } 4th April 2011
acquired } 02th January 2012
publisher } Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
format } paperback
isbn } 9780547363066
pages } 240 pg.
source } bought
age group } PG 13+
interest } pg 13 + all ages
awards } -
Buy @ Amazon.com | Nolly Book | D BookHaus

The Lipstick Laws
By; Amy Holder

Via Goodreads
At Penford High School, Brittany Taylor is the queen bee. She dates whomever she likes, rules over her inner circle of friends like Genghis Khan, and can ruin anyone’s life with a snap of perfectly manicured fingers. Just ask the unfortunate few who have crossed her.

For April Bowers, Brittany is the answer to her prayers. April is so unpopular, kids don’t know she exists. One lunch spent at Brittany’s table, and April is basking in the glow of popularity.

But Brittany’s friendship comes with a high price tag, and April decides it’s not worth the cost. Inspiring and empowering, this is the story of one girl who decides to push back.

My 2 Cents
Honestly said.. I’m late in catching up with the fuss when this book came out last year. Little do I know, this turned out to be a very good read. Should have read it earlier. I am surprised this book didn’t made it to any Award list though.

Don’t give me that look. It should have!

If you are looking for a book that has any subject of bullies and high school, I would suggest this book for you.

Cover-wise. Honestly, this is the exact reason why I didn’t pick it up. I was too distracted by the candy bite and that plain no catchy look for me. It turned me off completely from reading it. Yup.. that was sad wasn’t it. But I think that’s one reason this book doesn’t popped out much. Come on… if just judge it by the book cover, you would expect this is a romance book instead of YA. The only reason I remembered having this book around was I was looking for books on bullies.

Characters. I don’t like… make that.. I despise Brittany Taylor. Most of us would have had encountered with our own “Brittany Taylor” at least once in our life time. The backstabbing thorn in our life. But only some of us survive like April Bowers. Brittany’s toy that bit her back. She fought back and yes I like… love it!

Otherwise… I love the way I drowned into this book and enjoy this book. I think I could relate that way, but nevertheless of the I love it. It’s realistic in a way to say, every one of us have our flaw, and we shouldn’t be picking on other’s flaws so you could hide yours.

I’m in a dilemma on to weather get this for my library or not. Why? Because there’s a bit of cursing going on in there hence my reluctant. As good as it is, I’m stuck not knowing to get or not to get. I like to add this book in the school library due to the subjects of bullies but I’m not sure if it’s appropriate with the cursing.

What you guys think?

Teaser Tuedays (10 January 2012)

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 12:35:00 +0000

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Popular
by Alissa Grosso

My heart is racing and my palms are sweating. Not because of Chance, but because I think Hamilton knows, and I don’t want her to know. I don’t want Hamilton involved. I want Chance. And I want him to be pure and untainted by Hamilton.

New York Times (NYT) Most Notable 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 08:06:00 +0000

Read more about each book (including links to NYT reviews) on this page.

FICTION AND POETRY
01. THE ANGEL ESMERALDA: Nine Stories.By Don DeLillo.
02. THE ART OF FIELDING. By Chad Harbach.
03. THE BARBARIAN NURSERIES. By Héctor Tobar.
04. BIG QUESTIONS. Or, Asomatognosia: Whose Hand Is It Anyway? Written and illustrated by Anders Brekhus Nilsen.
05. THE BUDDHA IN THE ATTIC. By Julie Otsuka.
06. CANTI. By Giacomo Leopardi. Translated by Jonathan Galassi.
07. THE CAT’S TABLE. By Michael Ondaatje.
08. CHANGÓ’S BEADS AND TWO-TONE SHOES. By William Kennedy.
09. COME ON ALL YOU GHOSTS. By Matthew Zapruder.
10. 11/22/63. By Stephen King.

11. THE FREE WORLD. By David Bezmozgis.
12. GHOST LIGHTS. By Lydia Millet.
13. THE GRIEF OF OTHERS. By Leah Hager Cohen.
14. GRYPHON: New and Selected Stories. By Charles Baxter.
15. HOUSE OF HOLES: A Book of Raunch. By Nicholson Baker.
16. THE LAST WEREWOLF. By Glen Duncan.
17. THE LEFTOVERS. By Tom Perrotta.
18. LIFE ON MARS. By Tracy K. Smith.
19. THE LONDON TRAIN. By Tessa Hadley
20. LONG, LAST, HAPPY: New and Selected Stories. By Barry Hannah.

21. LOST MEMORY OF SKIN. By Russell Banks.
22. THE MARRIAGE PLOT. By Jeffrey Eugenides.
23. A MOMENT IN THE SUN. By John Sayles.
24. MR. FOX. By Helen Oyeyemi.
25. MY NEW AMERICAN LIFE. By Francine Prose.
26. 1Q84. By Haruki Murakami. Translated by Jay Rubin and Philip Gabriel.
27. OPEN CITY. By Teju Cole.
28. THE PALE KING: An Unfinished Novel. By David Foster Wallace.
29. PARALLEL STORIES. By Peter Nadas. Translated by Imre Goldstein.
30. SAY HER NAME. By Francisco Goldman.

31. SCENES FROM VILLAGE LIFE. By Amos Oz. Translated by Nicholas de Lange
32. THE SENSE OF AN ENDING. By Julian Barnes.
33. SEVEN YEARS. By Peter Stamm. Translated by Michael Hofmann.
34. SHARDS. By Ismet Prcic.
35. SPACE, IN CHAINS. By Laura Kasischke.
36. STONE ARABIA. By Dana Spiotta.
37. THE STRANGER’S CHILD. By Alan Hollinghurst.
38. THE SUBMISSION. By Amy Waldman.
39. SWAMPLANDIA! By Karen Russell.
40. TALLER WHEN PRONE: Poems. By Les Murray.

41. TEN THOUSAND SAINTS. By Eleanor Henderson.
42. THIS BEAUTIFUL LIFE. By Helen Schulman.
43. THE TIGER’S WIFE. By Téa Obreht.
44. THE TRAGEDY OF ARTHUR. By Arthur Phillips.
45. TRAIN DREAMS. By Denis Johnson.

NON-FICTION
01. AND SO IT GOES. Kurt Vonnegut: A Life. By Charles J. Shields.
02. ARGUABLY: Essays. By Christopher Hitchens.
03. THE ART OF CRUELTY: A Reckoning. By Maggie Nelson.
04. ASSASSINS OF THE TURQUOISE PALACE. By Roya Hakakian.
05. THE BEGINNING OF INFINITY: Explanations That Transform the World. By David Deutsch.
06. BELIEVING IS SEEING: Observations on the Mysteries of Photography. By Errol Morris.
07. THE BETTER ANGELS OF OUR NATURE: Why Violence Has Declined. By Steven Pinker.
08. BLOOD, BONES AND BUTTER: The Inadvertent Education of a Reluctant Chef. By Gabrielle Hamilton.
09. BLUE NIGHTS. By Joan Didion.
10. THE BOY IN THE MOON: A Father’s Journey to Understand His Extraordinary Son. By Ian Brown.

11. CARAVAGGIO: A Life Sacred and Profane. By Andrew Graham-Dixon.
12. CATHERINE THE GREAT: Portrait of a Woman. By Robert K. Massie.
13. CLARENCE DARROW: Attorney for the Damned. By John A. Farrell.
14. COCKTAIL HOUR UNDER THE TREE OF FORGETFULNESS. By Alexandra Fuller.
15. DESTINY OF THE REPUBLIC: A Tale of Madness, Medicine, and the Murder of a President. By Candice Millard.
16. THE ECSTASY OF INFLUENCE: Nonfictions, Etc. By Jonathan Lethem.
17. 1861: The Civil War Awakening. By Adam Goodheart.
18. EXAMINED LIVES: From Socrates to Nietzsche. By James Miller.
19. 1493: Uncovering the New World Columbus Created. By Charles C. Mann.
20. GEORGE F. KENNAN: An American Life. By John Lewis Gaddis.

21. GREAT SOUL: Mahatma Gandhi and His Struggle With India. By Joseph Lelyveld.
22. HARLEM IS NOWHERE: A Journey to the Mecca of Black America. By Sharifa Rhodes-Pitts. (Little, Brown, $24.99.)
23. HOLY WAR: How Vasco da Gama’s Epic Voyages Turned the Tide in a Centuries-Old Clash of Civilizations. By Nigel Cliff.
24. IN THE GARDEN OF BEASTS: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler’s Berlin. By Erik Larson.
25. INFERNO: The World at War, 1939-1945. By Max Hastings.
26. THE INFORMATION: A History. A Theory. A Flood. By James Gleick.
27. INSIDE SCIENTOLOGY: The Story of America’s Most Secretive Religion. By Janet Reitman.
28. IS THAT A FISH IN YOUR EAR? Translation and the Meaning of Everything. By David Bellos.
29. JERUSALEM: The Biography. By Simon Sebag Montefiore.
30. THE KEATS BROTHERS: The Life of John and George. By Denise Gigante.

31. KNOCKING ON HEAVEN’S DOOR: How Physics and Scientific Thinking Illuminate the Universe and the Modern World. By Lisa Randall.
32. MALCOLM X: A Life of Reinvention. By Manning Marable.
33. THE MEMORY CHALET. By Tony Judt.
34. MIDNIGHT RISING: John Brown and the Raid That Sparked the Civil War. By Tony Horwitz.
35. MOBY-DUCK: The True Story of 28,800 Bath Toys Lost at Sea and of the Beachcombers, 36. Oceanographers, Environmentalists, and Fools, Including the Author, Who Went in Search of Them. By Donovan Hohn.
37. MY SONG: A Memoir. By Harry Belafonte with Michael Shnayerson.
38. THE NET DELUSION: The Dark Side of Internet Freedom. By Evgeny Morozov.
39. ONE DAY I WILL WRITE ABOUT THIS PLACE: A Memoir. By Binyavanga Wainaina.
40. THE ORIGINS OF POLITICAL ORDER: From Prehuman Times to the French Revolution. By Francis Fukuyama.

41. PAULINE KAEL: A Life in the Dark. By Brian Kellow.
42. PULPHEAD. By John Jeremiah Sullivan.
43. THE QUEST: Energy, Security, and the Remaking of the Modern World. By Daniel Yergin.
44. RIGHTS GONE WRONG: How Law Corrupts the Struggle for Equality. By Richard Thompson Ford.
45. RIN TIN TIN: The Life and the Legend. By Susan Orlean.
46. [SIC]: A Memoir. By Joshua Cody.
47. THE STORM OF WAR: A New History of the Second World War. By Andrew Roberts.
48. THE SWERVE: How the World Became Modern. By Stephen Greenblatt.
49. THINKING, FAST AND SLOW. By Daniel Kahneman.
50. TO A MOUNTAIN IN TIBET. By Colin Thubron.

51. TO END ALL WARS: A Story of Loyalty and Rebellion, 1914-1918. By Adam Hochschild.
52. A TRAIN IN WINTER: An Extraordinary Story of Women, Friendship, and Resistance in Occupied France. By Caroline Moorehead.
53. VAN GOGH: The Life. By Steven Naifeh and Gregory White Smith.
54. WHO’S AFRAID OF POST-BLACKNESS? What It Means to Be Black Now. By Touré.
55. WHY THE WEST RULES — FOR NOW: The Patterns of History, and What They Reveal About the Future. By Ian Morris.
56. A WORLD ON FIRE: Britain’s Crucial Role in the American Civil War. By Amanda Foreman.

Publisher's Weekly Best Books of 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 07:20:00 +0000

The Publisher's Weekly Interactive Guide to the best books of 2011 can be found here.

PW's Top Ten Books of 2011

The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides
The Devil All the Time by Donald Ray Pollock
State of Wonder by Ann Patchett
After the Apocalypse by Maureen McHugh
Bossypants by Tina Fey
Catherine the Great by Robert K. Massie
There but for the by Ali Smith
Hemingway's Boat by Paul Hendrickson
One Day I Will Write About This Place by Binyavanga Wainaina
Arguably: Essays by Christopher Hitchens

Fiction

The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides
The Devil All the Time by Donald Ray Pollock
State of Wonder by Ann Patchett
There but for the by Ali Smith
The Wandering Falcon by Jamil Ahmad
The Hottest Dishes of the Tartar Cuisine by Alina Bronsky, trans. by Tim Mohr
The Sisters Brothers by Patrick DeWitt
Say Her Name by Francisco Goldman
Volt by Alan Heathcock
The Stranger's Child by Alan Hollinghurst
Train Dreams by Denis Johnson
Changó's Beads and Two-Tone Shoes by William Kennedy
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
The Call by Yannick Murphy
The Tiger's Wife by Téa Obreht
Cain by José Saramago
Luminarium by Alex Shakar
Someday This Will Be Funny by Lynne Tillman
I Married You for Happiness by Lily Tuck
Leche by R. Zamora Linmark

Mystery/Thriller

The End of Everything by Megan Abbott
Started Early, Took My Dog by Kate Atkinson
Revenger by Rory Clements
Hurt Machine by Reed Farrell Coleman
A Simple Act of Violence by R.J. Ellory
Field Gray by Philip Kerr
The Most Dangerous Thing by Laura Lippman
A Trick of the Light by Louise Penny
Two for Sorrow by Nicola Upson

SF/Fantasy/Horror

After the Apocalypse by Maureen McHugh
Zoo City by Lauren Beukes
Triptych by J.M. Frey
Unpossible by Daryl Gregory
Two Worlds and In Between: The Best of Caitlín R. Kiernan, Vol. 1 by Caitlín R. Kiernan
Erekos by A.M. Tuomala

Non-fiction

Bossypants by Tina Fey
Catherine the Great by Robert K. Massie
Hemingway's Boat by Paul Hendrickson
One Day I Will Write About This Place by Binyavanga Wainaina
Arguably: Essays by Christopher Hitchens
The Convert: A Parable of Islam and America by Deborah Baker
The Anatomy of a Moment by Javier Cercas
The Beautiful and the Damned:A Portrait of the New India by Siddhartha Deb
Blue Nights by Joan Didion
Townie: A Memoir by Andre Dubus III
The Swerve: How the World Became Modern by Stephen Greenblatt
Life Itself: A Memoir by Roger Ebert
A World on Fire: Britain's Crucial Role in the American Civil War by Amanda Foreman
Tiger, Tiger by Margaux Fragoso
Love and Capital: Karl Marx and Jenny Marx and the Birth of a Revolution by Mary Gabriel
The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood by James Gleick
Blood, Bones, and Butter by Gabrielle Hamilton
A Book of Secrets: Illegitimate Daughters, Absent Fathers by Michael Holroyd
Rome: A Cultural, Visual, and Personal History by Robert Hughes
In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin by Erik Larson
Boomerang: Travels in the New Third World by Michael Lewis
Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention by Manning Marable
Believing Is Seeing: Observations on the Mysteries of Photography by Errol Morris
Rin Tin Tin: The Life and the Legend by Susan Orlean
The Long Goodbye: A Memoir by Meghan O'Rourke
The Psychopath Test by Jon Ronson
The Price of Civilization: Reawakening American Virtue and Prosperity by Jeffrey D. Sachs
Charles Dickens: A Life by Claire Tomalin
The Rise and Fall of Ancient Egypt by Toby Wilkinson

Children's Fiction

The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler
Chime by Franny Billingsley
Small Persons with Wings by Ellen Booraem
Beauty Queens by Libba Bray
Missing on Superstition Mountain by Elise Broach, Antonio Javier Caparo
Where She Went by Gayle Forman
Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos
Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai
Legend by Marie Lu
The Apothecary by Maile Meloy, illus. by Ian Schoenherr
A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness, illus. by Jim Kay
The Flint Heart by Katherine and John Paterson, John Rocco
Divergent by Veronica Roth
Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick
Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys
The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater
Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu, illus. by Erin McGuire
The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente, illus. by Ana Jua
The Chronicles of Harris Burdick: Fourteen Amazing Authors Tell the Tales by Chris Van Allsburg et al
Variant by Robison Wells
Where Things Come Back by John Corey Whaley
Blink & Caution by Tim Wynne-Jones
How to Save a Life by Sara Zarr

Poetry, Romance, Comics, Children's Picture, Children's Non-Fiction, Religion, and Lifestyle categories can be found HERE.

List copied from NotableBooks.

2012 Fairy Tales Challenge

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 03:33:00 +0000

January 1, 2012 – December 31, 2012
Hosted by Tif Talks Books
I am so excited to announce that the Fairy Tale Challenge is returning for 2012! For all those who love fairy tales, both in writing and on the screen, this is your opportunity to share your love with other fans. Just as last year, we will have four different levels:

Fairy (Level 1): Read 1 original tale. Read 1 modern tale. Watch 1 film. (Total of 3 selections.)
Dwarf (Level 2): Read/watch any combination of original tales, modern tales, or films, resulting in a total of 6 selections.
Royal Prince or Princess (Level 3): Read/watch any combination of original tales, modern tales, or films, resulting in 9 total selections.
Happily Ever After (Level 4): Read/watch any combination of original tales, modern tales, or films, resulting in 12 total selections.

Here are a few other notes of importance:

The challenge will run from January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2012.
Selections can include any age level or genre, from picture books and classics to young adult and even graphic novels. Creativity is completely acceptable here!
You do not need to determine your list of fairy tales. Go with what moves you at the time!
A blog is not required, but it is encouraged. You are also welcome to keep track of your selections via GoodReads, LibraryThing, Shelfari, or simply the comment section.
Reviews are not required, but are encouraged. Other participants enjoy receiving recommendations!
A Mr. Linky is below for sign-ups. Another post will be made for adding your reviews. Both direct links can be found on the left sidebar.
You can overlap your choices with other challenges.

2012 Dewey Decimal Challenge

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 03:19:00 +0000

January 1, 2012 – December 31, 2012
Hosted by The Introverted Reader

The Challenge: Read any non-fiction book(s), adult or young adult. That's it. You can choose anything. Poetry? Yes. Memoirs? Yes. History? Yes. Travel? Yes. You get the idea? Absolutely anything that is classified as non-fiction counts for this challenge.

I always like levels in my challenges, so here are mine:

Dilettante--Read 1-5 non-fiction books
Explorer--Read 6-10
Seeker--Read 11-15
Master--Read 16-20

2012 The Doctor Reading Challenge

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 10:29:00 +0000

Rules
*challenge runs 1 January to 31 December 2012 - any books must be read in the 2012 calendar year to count
*any format is allowed
*cross-overs between challenges allowed
*link your post/reviews from your blog, goodreads, shelfari, librarything or the comments section (no blog necessary!)
*no list is needed beforehand - you can choose as you go (or change your choices!)

First Doctor - read 2 Doctor Who books
Second Doctor - read 5 Doctor Who books
Third Doctor - read 10 Doctor Who books
Fourth Doctor - read 15 Doctor Who books
Fifth Doctor - read 20 Doctor Who books
Sixth Doctor - read 25 Doctor Who books
Seventh Doctor - read 30 Doctor Who books
Eighth Doctor - read 40 Doctor Who books
Ninth Doctor - read 50 Doctor Who books
Tenth Doctor - read 75 Doctor Who books
Eleventh Doctor - read 100+ Doctor Who books

Teaser Tuesdays; (Jan 3)

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 13:03:00 +0000

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Lipstick Laws
By Amy Holder

"I should call my mom to let her know I'll be a little late," I say in the back of Erin's red Neon.

"Use your cell," Jessica yells over the blasting music.

"Remember, my parents took it away this summer," I yell back. Britney turns down the music. "Let her worry about you. She deserves it. It's her fault you don't have your cell. She shouldn't get mad if you can't call."

YA Book Review: Thirteen Reasons Why; By Jay Asher

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 11:48:00 +0000

rate } ♠♠♠♠♠ ♥
genre } fiction | young adult | realistic fiction | mystery | high school
release day } 1st October 2010
acquired } 05th January 2011
publisher } Sleuth RazorBill
format } paperback
isbn } 9781595141880
pages } 288 pg.
source } given
age group } pg 18
interest } pg 18 + ages
awards } South Carolina Book Award for Young Adult Book Award (2010),Florida Teens Read (2008), Georgia Peach Honor Book Award (2009),Kirkus Reviews Editor's Choice, California Book Award Winner
Buy @ Amazon.com | Nolly Book | D BookHaus

Thirteen Reasons Why
By Jay Asher

Via Goodreads
Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a strange package with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers several cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker - his classmate and crush - who committed suicide two weeks earlier. Hannah's voice tells him that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he'll find out why. Clay spends the night crisscrossing his town with Hannah as his guide. He becomes a firsthand witness to Hannah's pain, and learns the truth about himself-a truth he never wanted to face.

Thirteen Reasons Why is the gripping, addictive international bestseller that has changed lives the world over. It's an unrelenting modern classic.

My 2 Cents
I was given this book as one of my blogger friends “Random Acts of Kindness” (RAoK) program which I have had also participated once a while as well. This was in my wishlist and in my To Be Read pile for a while I think I should apologize for letting other books drowning it out. I’m sorry.

As you have realized, I have been on a binge read to anything that’s around the subject of self-surviving. So this is kind of a different. Post suicide. Sad part is, I can relate to Hannah Baker, the main character of this book. The one who taped the audiotapes for the 13 people who are the reasons of her suicide.

I was actually mad at Hannah for giving up. but after picking it up and read. All I could think was, lots of these people could have changed her decision. Helped her. She wanted help but, I doubt it was arrogance that stopped her from asking for it straightforward but I guess the exact reason was.. nobody seems to give a damn. They are also the contributors of the reasons she took her life. Sad really.

The characters are so memorable, that I actually picture it as a movie, though I kept seeing Alexa Vega playing Hannah Baker. Most of what I remembered what that “scene” she did with her so called friend, Courtney in her room with their erotic conversation, to trap their Peeping Tom, Jessica gotten raped, Hannah and Bryce, and most of all her conversation with her school counselor.

What saddens me the most is, I couldn’t put this book my my school library. It’s a good book and all but it’s not appropriate due to some of 18+sx scenes portraying in some of the chapters. If that’s absent, I am sure 100 % that it would be an awesome book in the subjects of bullying in for the teens.

Quote
“He asked if I was all right, and I forced myself to nod. But my eyes kept starring at the flass---through the glass--- at the spoon. And I kept thinking, over and over, Is this what it feels to go insane?”