Book Revival

Hello everyone,

It's so sad to look back on this, and know that at the beginning I was so consistent and updated frequently! I'm so sorry. All I can give you is the classic excuse - life got in the way. This is the summer before my senior year in high school, so as you can imagine I've been a little busy! Busy reading, sadly, not so much.

So far this summer, I've read a grand total of seven books, with less than a month left of summer. It's completely shameful.

Here's the list so far, and I'll make sure to give you the grand list (probably with only a few more additions) at the end of the summer.

1. Tortall and Other Lands by Tamora Pierce
2. All-Amerian Girl by Meg Cabot
3. Ape House by Sara Gruen
4. Just Like That by Marsha Qualey
5. A Year in Europe by Rachel Hawthorne
6. 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson
7. This Lullaby by Sarah Dessen

Wow, this list is sad. The only books that I hadn't read before this summer are 1 and 3. Sad.

For school this summer I'm planning on reading All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy. So far I'm on page 3, so I can't give an opinion on it. Maybe when I post my complete summer reading list I'll give a review of it.

A fun book find of the summer though - earlier this week my mom took us to a used bookstore. Hidden away in a corner was a collection of the yellow, hardback Nancy Drew books. These books were my life back when I was around 7 or 8 years old. My mom offered to buy us some books at the store if we found some we wanted to read. I asked her to buy me the bookstore's copy of the first Nancy Drew book, this version published in 1959. I was in heaven. It made me happy, reliving the days when I had more time to enjoy the good books of the world!

I hope everyone else is reading a lot more than I am this summer!
Emma

http://sarahdessen.com/book/this-lullaby/

2010 Summer Reading List

Hello everyone -

Yet another summer has passed. Sadly, I didn't read all that many books this year. Two of the books on this list were read for school, and they took me a while, since I wanted to try to understand them really well and get the most out of them that I could. So, here's my 2010 summer reading list!

1. First Comes Love, Then Comes Malaria by Eve Waite-Brown
2. Bloom by Elizabeth Scott
3. Keeping the Moon by Sarah Dessen
4. Lock and Key by Sarah Dessen
5. Long Live the Queen by Ellen Emerson White
6. Living Dead in Dallas by Charlaine Harris
7. My Soul to Save by Rachel Vincent
8. Night's Edge by Charlaine Harris, Maggie Shayne, and Barbara Hambly
9. Long May She Reign by Ellen Emerson White
10. Sunshine by Robin McKinley
11. Just Listen by Sarah Dessen
12. Riding Lessons by Sara Gruen
13. The Secret Life of Prince Charming by Deb Caletti
14. Every Time a Rainbow Dies by Rita Williams-Garcia
15. Sandpiper by Ellen Wittlinger
16. Hard Love by Ellen Wittlinger
17. Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
18. Kiss Me, Kill me by Lauren Henderson
19. 100 Heartbeats by Jeff Corwin
20. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling
21. Two Way Street by Lauren Barnholdt
22. Gwyneth and the Thief by Margaret Moore
23. Water: Tales of Elemental Spirits by Robin McKinley and Peter Dickinson
24. Absolutely Not: Anthology of Writing and Artwork by East Bay Teenagers
25. Dead in the Family by Charlaine Harris
26. Meagan Meade's Guide to the McGowan Boys by Kate Brian
27. The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things by Carolyn Mackler
28. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
29. New Moon by Stephenie Meyer
30. Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer
31. Better Latte Than Never by Chaterine Clark
32. Love You Two by Maria Pallotta-Chiarolli
33. When Irish Guys are Smiling by Suzanne Supplee
34. Paper Towns by John Green
35. Whip It by Shauna Cross
36. Witch and Wizard by James Patterson and Gabrielle Charbonnet
37. The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
38. Love is the Higher Law by David Levithan
39. Rules by Cynthia Lord
40. The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper

So.
For school: 37, 40
Awesome books that everyone should read!: 11, 13, 17 (SO AMAZING - Read BEFORE the movie comes out please!), 19, 24, 34, 35, 38, 39
Comments:
#11 - This is an amazing book (not like the other books Sarah Dessen has also written.) Her books always turn our really amazing, touching, and just plain awesome. This one felt more emotional than her other books to me, and I really love the relationship of the two main characters. This is seriously an amazing book, and probably my favorite Sarah Dessen books. It's up there with The Truth About Forever
#17 - This is a really awesome, amazing, incredible book. This book has its ups and its downs for the characters, but overall this book is amazing, and it takes you right along for the ride. The first time I read this book, I was basically in tears at the end, because it just...so perfect. So SO perfect. I would reccomend this book to anyone and everyone older than 13 or 14 - But PLEASE, for my sake at the very least, read this book BEFORE the movie they're making for it comes out - PLEASE. When you read this book, you'll understand its greatness and its magic - but the movie (with Robert Pattinson?!?!?! What the....?) will never be able to live up to that standard. So please read the book first.
#19 - This book is incredible. It talks about various endangered/extinct species and its really touching and emotional and SAD when you read about all of these different animals that we're driving to extinction, or that we've already driven to extinction. It's a fantastic read.
#24 -An anthology of literature and artwork from teenagers who live in the East Bay near San Francisco, California. It's really good!
#34 - This book was really good - it actually made me laugh out loud, which doesn't exactly happen that often. I was literally laying in my bed reading this book, and I had to actually make an effort in order to stop myself from laughing. This book is a really good read - I liked this book better than I liked his other book, An Abundance of Katherines, so if you liked that one - this one is even BETTER
#38 - This is a book about three teenagers and their lives right before, during, and after September 11, 2001. All 3 of the teenagers lived in/around New York City, so they were all in New York on that day. This book is really touching and amazing - I would recommend this to any teenager or adult.

Hopefully everyone's summer has been good, and more sunny than it was for me :D

Happy Reading!
Kami

Summer Reading

Hello all -

This past summer, I didn't read as many books as I had hoped to read, and it wasn't even as much as I read last summer! Oh well. Here's the list.

1. Escape from Botany Bay by Gerald and Loretta Hausman
2. Coming Home by Lauren Brooke
3. After the Storm by Lauren Brooke
4. Breaking Free by Lauren Brooke
5. Taking Chances by Lauren Brooke
6. Come What May by Lauren Brooke
7. One Day You'll Know by Lauren Brooke
8. Out of the Darkness by Lauren Brooke
9. Thicker Than Water by Lauren Brooke
10. Every New Day by Lauren Brooke
11. Tomorrow's Promise by Lauren Brooke
12. True Enough by Lauren Brooke
13. Sooner or Later by Lauren Brooke
14. Darkest Hour by Lauren Brooke
15. Everything Changes by Lauren Brooke
16. Love is a Gift by Lauren Brooke
17. Holding Fast by Lauren Brooke
18. Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen
19. Sloppy Firsts by Megan McCafferty
20. Second Helpings by Megan McCafferty
21. A Season of Hope by Lauren Brooke
22. Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nifisi
23. Bloodhound by Tamora Pierce
24. The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things by Carolyn Mackler
25. Lush by Natasha Friend
26. Sandpiper by Ellen Wittenger
27. Conversations with the Fat Girl by Liza Palmer
28. Dead Witch Walking by Kim Harrison
29. The Hob's Bargain by Patricia Briggs
30. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
31. Charmed Thirds by Megan McCafferty
32. The Good, The Bad, and the Undead by Kim Harrison
33. Every Which Way But Dead by Kim Harrison
34. Up at the Villa by W. Somerset Maugham
35. Hunting Ground by Patricia Briggs

I was rereading a lot of these books, but oh well.

Kaminsky

Summer Reading List '08

Hello -

I read a lot of books this summer, and I even made a list, just for kicks! I didn't include anime books on my list.

1. Rules by Cynthia Lord (200 pages)
2. Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin (277 pages)
3. Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr (328 pages)
4. Blood and Chocolate by Annette Curtis Klause (264 pages)
5. Rainbow High by Alex Sanchez (247 pages)
6. Are you alone on purpose? by Nancy Werlin (204 pages)
7. Trickster's Choice by Tamora Pierce (403 pages)
8. Gwyneth and the Thief by Margaret Moore (270 pages)
9. All the Way by Andy Behrens (216 pages)
10. Light Years by Tammar Stein (263 pages)
11. Alias: Recruited by Lynn Mason (211 pages)
12. Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris (260 pages)
13. Someone to Love Me by Anne Schraff (162 pages)
14. From Dead to Worse by Charlaine Harris (359 pages)
15. The Second Virginity of Suzy Green by Sara Hantz (258 pages)
16. How to take the Ex out of Ex-Boyfriend by Janette Rallison (265 pages)
17. Rainbow Boys by Alex Sanchez (233 pages)
18. Beauty by Robin McKinley (247 pages)
19. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time by Mark Haddon (221 pages)
20. The Girl With a Baby by Sylvia Olsen (203 pages)
21. Paradise by Joan Elizabeth Goodman (209 pages)
22. The Geography Club by Brent Hartinger (226 pages)
23. Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld (403 pages)
24. The Order of the Poison Oak by Brent Hartinger (211 pages)
25. Rainbow Road by Alex Sanchez (243 pages)
26. Twelve Long Months by Brian Malloy (316 pages)
27. The Ransom of Mercy Carter by Caroline B. Cooney (244 pages)
28. Wings by E.D.Baker (307 pages)
29. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer (498 pages)
30. New Moon by Stephenie Meyer (563 pages)
31. Cry Wolf by Patricia Briggs (294 pages)
32. Moon Called by Patricia Briggs (288 pages)
33. Living Dead in Dallas by Charlaine Harris (262 pages)
34. Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier (233 pages)
35. Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer (626 pages)
36. Shadow Horse by Alison Hart (230 pages)
37. Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer (754 pages)
38. Dreamland by Sarah Dessen (250 pages)
39. Club Dead by Charlaine Harris (258 pages)
40. Dead to the World by Charlaine Harris (291 pages)
41. Dead as a Doornail by Charlaine Harris (295 pages)
42. Cry Wolf by Patricia Briggs (294 pages)
43. Keeping the Moon by Sarah Dessen (228 pages)
44. The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen (374 pages)
45. Don't Cramp My Style Edited by Lisa Rowe Fraustino (283 pages)
46. Angels Watching Over Me by Lurlene McDaniel (176 pages)
47. Just Like That by Marsha Qualey (233 pages)
48. Too Young to Die by Lurlene McDaniel (166 pages)
49. Goodbye Doesn't Mean Forever by Lurlene McDaniel (166 pages)
50. Life of Pi by Yann Martel (319 pages)
51. Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer (754 pages)
52. The Choice by Nicholas Sparks (272 pages)
53. Definitely Dead by Charlaine Harris (324 pages(

So, that's my list, excluding anime books. Would love to discuss any of the above books with anyone!! : )

Kaminsky

Blood and Chocolate - The Differences Between the Book and the Movie

Hey!

Have you ever read a book that you REALLY liked, or even loved, and then you heard that they were making a movie of that book? Well, I have read and reread Blood and Chocolate multiple times, and I love it! When I heard that they were making a movie of it, I was really excited...until I saw the movie.

Blood and Chocolate the movie is very different than the book. The ending, how certain characters act and respond to things, and more. I like the ending of the book - and when I saw the movie and saw that the ending was COMPLETELY different, I almost cried. THAT'S how much I love this book!

If you saw the movie Blood and Chocolate and are interested in reading the book, I suggest that you do read it. BUT - when you read the book, remember this - the book came first!

When you read the book, you may want to completely seperate your image of the movie from your mind. I have a friend who said that when she watched the movie (after reading the book) she considered it to be a completely different story, and this made it more enjoyable than if she had compared the book and the movie to each other. Oh, well.

Read Blood and Chocolate - You'll enjoy it!

Kaminsky

It's My Birthday - And I Got Books!

Hey -

Today was my birthday and I got 10 books!! YAY!!!!

I got:

- The Freedom Writers Diary (A REALLY great book, true story!)
- Gorillas in the Mist By Dain Fossey
- The Ultimate Teen Book Guide (A Book about good books for teens to read! What could be better?!?!)
- The Jane Austen Book Club By Karen Joy Fowler (I also got the movie, which is really good.)
- The Secret Life of a Teenage Siren By Wendy Toliver
- The Ultimate Volunteer Guidebook for Young People
- Big Boned By Meg Cabot (I haven't read the first and second in the series, but that just means that I have to put them on hold at the library soon!)
- Hacking Harvard By Robin Wasserman
- King of the Pygmies By Jonathon Scott Fuqua
AND
- Runemarks By Joanne Harris (This book was signed by the author and was signed to me. That means that inside the books it actually says that it's for me!!)

As you may be able to tell, I like my birthday presents, and it's going to be hard for me to pick which book I want to read first. Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Kaminsky

Rereading

Hi -

Late last night as I was trying to decide which book I should read next, I decided that I was going to reread all of my books that I own that I've already read. I hope that this will encourage me to get rid of books that I don't really enjoy anymore. So far I've reread 3 books. (I've been busy!)

Waking Up To Boys (By Hailey Abbott)
The Perfect Boy (By Hailey Abbott)
and
Getting Lost With Boys (By Hailey Abbott)

The last two books were actually very similar (or at least the characters were) so I've decided to bring those to my dad's house to see if my step-sisters might be interested in them. I'm keeping Waking Up To Boys in my bookshelf at my mom's for now. The last 2 books mentioned had a main character who wanted to be some kind of lawyer, and they had crushes (or ended up with crushes) on boys who were really into music. I'd recomend reading Waking Up To Boys if you are interested in reading any of them.

In case you were wondering, I organize my books by author's last name. That's why I read 3 books by Hailey Abbott in a row.

I've now started rereading City of the Beast (By Isabel Allende) and I'm on page 30.

Thanks,
Kaminsky