Summer Reading List 2013

Since Memorial Day officially marked the beginning of Summer, we thought we would share our Summer Reading List with you!

Have you read any of these books? What did you think?

Book Worm: February Recap

Beautiful Chaos/Beautiful Redemption (Caster Chronicles #3 and #4) by 

Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

The last two books in the Caster Chronicles Series. Ethan is again faced with a dilemma that could mean losing everything.. his family, his life in Gatlin, and of course, Lena. This series was just so-so for me. I loved the characters, but I felt it got to become a bit ridiculous and redundant. I am however interested in how they depict the book in the movies, which I feel might be a bit better.

Unbroken: A WWII Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand

Wow! This was an eye opener for me. Everything about this story was interesting to me, and the best part is that it is a true story. Since it is about World War II, me being from Hawaii and of Japanese ancestry, I felt a deeper connection. Louie Zamperini was a rising Olympic track star when World War II broke out. He was then enlisted into the Air Force where he was put through, pretty much the impossible. But no matter what he was put through, it never broke him or his will to survive. What interested me the most were the POW camps in Japan. I had no idea the conditions that POW's had to live in and the struggles they went through. I highly highly recommend this book. I'm not too much of a war or history buff, but this story is just not worth passing up.

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

I believe this book was part of my High School summer reading, but me being the perfect student and all, didn't read it.. lol Since the movie is coming out soon, I thought I would read it before seeing the movie. It wasn't exactly what I had expected at first. I thought it would be in the perspective of Gatsby himself, but instead the narrator was his neighbor and cousin of Daisy Buchannan (Gatsby's love interest). Mr. Gatsby definitely lives in the lap of luxury, but you can feel the loneliness in him, even though he is always surrounded by tons of people at his house soirees. It has its scandalous moments in the novel, but it ends a bit abruptly. Since it is a classic, it is a good short story to have around the house. 

Read any good books recently?

Book Worm: January Recap

The Twelve Tribes of Hattie by Ayana Mathis
This was the latest Oprah 2.0 Book Club pick which I thought was a pretty decent read. It starts out very tragic which automatically hooks you. The entire book is centered around a woman named Hattie. Each chapter is dedicated to one of her nine children, who each have their own problems, which seem to stem back to their mother. Hattie has clearly lived her life in regret and your taken into her depressing and emotional life. You sort of have to put the pieces together in this book because the chapters don't really have solid endings. I thought this was smart on the writers part because your forced to draw your own conclusions and make you think.

The Hobbit by J.R.R Tolkien
Of course if you liked Lord of the Rings, you would obviously want to read The Hobbit, the prequel to the Lord of the Rings series. Bilbo Baggins is just a small hobbit minding his own business when the wizard Gandalf and his posse of dwarves arrive on his doorstep. Bilbo is taken on an incredible journey to help the dwarves recover what was once lost to them, but it is guarded by an old and powerful dragon, Smaug the Magnificent. Along the way, Bilbo proves to be very valuable in their journey, taking on all types of evil creatures that stand in their path. An epic tale of a lone hobbit and his journey to Middle Earth.

The Fault in our Stars by John Green
I absolutely fell in love with this book and the characters in it. It was witty, truly hilarious, deep, and very emotional. Hazel, a sixteen year old girl was diagnosed with thyroid cancer at the age of thirteen and now at sixteen she has to depend on an oxygen tank and of course her loving parents to keep her breathing and alive. She seems to be very confused about who she really is and how cancer has come to define her life and everything in it. Until she meets a boy, a cancer survivor himself named Augustus Waters. I warn you, this book may be a tear jerker.. just sayin'..

Beautiful Creatures (Caster Chronicles #1) by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
The first book in the Caster Chronicles Series. It is written in the perspective of a fifteen year old boy named Ethan Wate. The town he has grown up in, Gatlin, seems to be picture perfect from the outside, but little does he know that his historical town holds deep secrets. When he meets Lena Duchannes, his world is suddenly turned upside down and he is thrown into a whole different world. There is an instant connection between them that he or she doesn't seem to understand. Lena isn't really what she appears to be and her and Ethan set out to uncover some of Gatlin's most protected secrets.

Beautiful Darkness (Caster Chronicles #2) by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
Following the first book in the series. This second book picks up right where the last one ended. However, Lena starts going into a downward spiral and Ethan doesn't seem to understand why this sudden change. Lena basically is forced to choose between light or dark... good or evil... However, an unexpected character turns up and leads Lena on the wrong path. Ethan and his friends are put through a journey to find Lena and help save her from the darkness. Lots of surprises in this second book.



Have you read anything lately that you would like to share with us?

Book Worm: Goodreads.com

Whether you are an avid reader or a pass the time kind of reader and you haven't heard of Goodreads.com yet.. you need to go there now! It is the most useful source for book worms like myself that I have ever come across! You can keep track of the books you read, create book lists, read reviews, discover new authors, and join book clubs!

I actually always wanted to be part of Oprah's Book Club, and I finally joined through Goodreads.com! I'm currently reading her last book club 2.0 pick which is 'Wild' by Cheryl Strayed (soooo gooood!). I am catching up so I can read her second pick of Oprah's Book Club 2.0 which is 'The Twelve Tribes of Hattie' by Ayana Mathis and finish it by the deadline which is February 3, 2013 where the author will be interviewed by Oprah about the book!

You can post your own thoughts and ask other people questions! Very fun and interactive, and it gets you excited about reading!

I'm actually pondering the idea of reading all of her past book club picks before she added the 2.0.. hmm.. tempting.. But anyways, just wanted to share this little bit of information because if you can't tell, I am super excited about joining my first book club! Yeah!

Thanks for taking the time to listen to my nerdy self! TaTa!

Love,

Jana

Book Worm: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

I know now why this book was on the Barnes and Nobles Top 100 list for practically the entire year!

There were twists and turns everywhere and so many things kept popping up that were so unexpected! It really was a mystery to me and I found myself thinking about what I just read and trying to figure out the ending. I couldn't put the book down for the life of me I had to know the outcome!

The author did a great job with the two main characters, a husband and wife. Their personalities came through well, which is what mostly made it such a great mystery. Trying to figure out who this person really was.

A great read if you love a good mystery book.


Have you read this book also? What did you think?

Book Worm: The Perks of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

LOVED this book! Must see the movie!

I thought this book was written so brilliantly, it really blew me away. Some might find it a bit too honest, but that's basically what this book is.. just pure HONESTY.

It is about a teenager Charlie, who is just trying to find his place in the world and among his peers. Trying to fit in but fails miserably in most situations because of his lack of social skills.

This book touches on the problems teenagers face when they are 'coming of age'. Depression, belonging, drugs and alcohol, peer pressure, abortion, relationships, abuse, etc. etc. But what I thought made this book so great, is it was told in the raw. Whatever Charlie thought, he said out loud  or in his letters to 'Dear Friend'.

The entire book is compiled letters from Charlie, to Dear Friend, which I thought was so unique and genius, I didn't expect it.

While reading, I formed a bond with Charlie, wanting to grab him and steer him in the right direction. This book was also hilarious! But also very insightful. I had so many pages and quotes bookmarked on my NOOK it was ridiculous!

Here were some of my favorite Charlie quotes:

"Charlie, we accept the love we think we deserve."

"And in the moment, I swear we were infinite." 

"The sky was overcast with clouds and the air felt like a warm bath. I don't think I ever felt that clean before."

"I love Twinkies, and the reason I am saying that is because we are supposed to think of reasons to live."

"Old pictures look very rugged and young, and the people in the photographs always seem a lot happier than you are."

"First, I am very interested and fascinated by how everyone loves each other, but no one really likes each other."

"Girls are weird  and I don't mean that offensively. I just cant put it any other way"

"I would die for you. But I won't live for you."

Have you read or seen the movie? What did you think?

Book Worm: The House at Riverton by Kate Morton

This book actually felt like a breath of fresh air, despite the story line which revolves around the mysterious suicide of a young poet. It's actually a fictional memoir told by a then ladies maid of Riverton Manor in the 1920's, who in the novel, is now a 98 year old woman named Grace Bradley (Reeves). She and sisters Hannah and Emmeline Hartford were the only ones who witnessed this horrific event, where the truth has never been revealed until now.

The structure actually reminded me of the movie 'Titanic', how it starts in the present, and then your taken back into time listening to a story surrounding an important event that took place.

I must say, I thoroughly enjoyed Kate Morton's style of writing. It's almost, I want to say, a classic style of writing? Proper? Witty? I don't know the correct words to describe her style, but I know I liked it! =P 

"In real life turning points are sneaky. They pass by unlabeled and unheeded. Opportunities are missed, catastrophes unwittingly celebrated. Turning points are only uncovered later, by historians who seek to bring order to a lifetime of tangled moments."

Her characters were believable and relate-able. She did a great job with the love story that also surrounds the novel. A forbidden love. While other kept secrets are slowly revealed. They should really make a movie based on this novel!

I will definitely be reading more of Kate Morton's novels, in particular 'The Forgotten Garden'. I highly recommend Kate Morton as an author.

Have you read any of Kate Morton's novels? Recommendations on authors similar to Kate Morton? I would LOVE to know!

Book Worm: 'The Last Templar' by Raymond Khoury

The last book fair I visited, I was on a mission to expand my reading horizons! I picked up a few books by authors that I wasn't too familiar with. They were all under $2 so what did I have to lose!

I loved Dan Brown's 'Da Vinci Code' and 'Angels and Demons', so I thought I would get this book in the hopes that it would be similar.

REVIEW

It has the similarities to Dan Brown's 'Da Vinci Code' with many historical references and also a religious spin, which made it a little uncomfortable to read at times because it questions the foundation of Christianity, which I thought came off a bit harsh at times. I got confused whenever the story went back into time, like a reminiscing of sorts, so I had to go back and refresh my memory about who was who.

Although it was a bit hard to read, it did carry a good momentum throughout which kept me going. The chapters are all very short, the structure of a James Patterson book, which helps. And also, I wanted to find out what the heck they were searching for!

The 'love story' that came about in this book was a bit dry and I didn't feel the connection, but I realized why it was thrown in there. It just seemed necessary.

Overall, if you are a Dan Brown fan, you would probably enjoy this read =)

There are I think two other books to this series that didn't get as good reviews from what I've read.. but who knows.. to each his own!

Have you read this book? Are you a Dan Brown fan?

Book Worm: The Watchers Trilogy by Karice Bolton

Here is another short book review for you all!

 I just finished reading this series, but sadly I was a little disappointed.. but I think it was because I had such high expectations for it from reading all the reviews.

This is my short review for the series, I decided to summarize the pros and cons instead of doing a full review.. so I hope you don't get too bored =)

Review

Pros

I could really feel the love between the two main characters in the series. The author did a great job adding emotion and explaining how much they belonged together.

The action scenes were captivating and left me on the brink.

The characters personalities were easily distinguishable from one another.

The ending had an unexpected twist.

Cons

The writing style was a bit hard to follow and it jumped around a lot. I think it needed more explanation.

The build up to the two main characters love I feel was a little too sudden in the beginning.

The main character Ana was wishy washy and was a bit hard for me to relate to.

Overall Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars

Have you read this series? If so, what's your take on it?

Book Worm: Current Reading List

I am such a book worm.. I always have a list of books I am waiting to read!

Just wanted to share my current reading list with you all =) My top 10!

If you've read any of these books, please let me know your opinion!! Worth it or not worth it? I'm hoping to catch up with some reading this weekend!

#1) The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman

#2) Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

#3) The Boy In the Suitcase by Lene Kaaberbol and Agnete Friis

#4) The House at Riverton by Kate Morton

#5) Razorland Series by Ann Aguirre

#6) Private Series by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro

#7) The Century Trilogy by Ken Follett

#8) Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed

#9) In The Shadow of the Banyan by Vaddey Ratner

#10) Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

Any suggestions on some great reads?

Quotables: For All The Book Lovers

Thought these quotes were worth sharing =) 

You might have seen one of these quotes in our latest Summer Lookbook! Did you catch it?!

Have an awesome week!

Book Worm: The Mortal Instruments Series by Cassandra Clare

I must say... I am definitely a sucker for teen reads! I love reading about fantasy worlds that usually include some sort of vampire, werewolf, wizard, or the like. My friends mom actually gave me the first book of this series 'City of Bones' and I was instantly hooked!

I wasn't going to write about this series until the movie came out, but that is not going to be until summer of next year.. plus there are prequels and sequels to this series, so it's almost like a never ending cycle with these books. There are currently 5 books in the series that have released and the 6th book is being released in 2014.

Since I love this series I thought I would just go ahead and give my opinion on it. I won't even bother trying to write up a summary for it since there are a billion details and I wouldn't want to spoil anything for you!


Here goes...!! Sorry if its a bit looong..

Review


The storyline in the beginning can become a bit confusing, especially if you are unfamiliar with the unique terms used throughout the series such as 'downworlder', 'shadowhunter', 'mundane', etc. However, you will catch on as the book goes along because they explain these terms more in detail the more you read. I feel the author did a good job in building each characters unique traits. You can clearly get a good vibe of what each character is like and how they would react in certain situations. 


Clary Fray who is the main character reminded me a lot of how Bella Swan is in 'Twilight'. She's not the 'coolest' girl in high school, a bit nerdy and awkward, and unaware of her beauty, but yet she's the girl that all the guys want. Simon, who is Clary's best friend is the one who has had the hugest crush on Clary since they were kids. He tries hard to impress Clary and drop hints of his feelings, but he feels he will never be good enough for her. Jace on the other hand who is a 'Shadowhunter' is the complete opposite of Simon. He is overly confident in everything he does and thinks he's the best thing that this world has to offer, yet inside he has a lot of deep emotions but is too 'manly' to confide in anyone about.


Throughout the series, each book starts off exactly where the last one left off, which is usually at a cliff hanger. They each have their own story in itself where there is a new problem to solve or some big thing that is about to take place. Each of the characters you will notice start to change in their own ways and grow, which I thought was really interesting. There are also lots of new characters that are introduced throughout the series, some become powerful allies and others become dangerous enemies.


If you like books like 'Twilight', 'Harry Potter', 'Fablehaven', 'Witch and Wizard', etc. you will probably enjoy this series. If not, you will most likely find this series ridiculous =P

Book List in Order:


Prequel ' Infernal Devices' Series


#1 Clockwork Angel
#2 Clockwork Prince
#3 Clockwork Princess (expected release March 2013)


'Mortal Instruments' Series


#1 City of Bones (movie release August 2013)
#2 City of Ashes
#3 City of Glass
#4 City of Fallen Angels
#5 City of Lost Souls
#6 City of Heavenly Fire (expected release March 2014)


Sequel 'The Dark Artifices' (release date has not yet been announced)




Have you read any of these books? What did you think? I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions too!!

Book Worm: The Help by Kathryn Stockett

One of the best and most talked about books to have come out in 2011, 'The Help' by Kathryn Stockett is a must read for everyone and anyone.


It talks about life in Mississippi during the 1960's through the perspective of three different ladies, Aibileen, Minny and Miss Skeeter. Struggling with battles and secrets of their own, these three ladies come together in the novel to create a piece of history within their small town, and possibly throughout the entire country. It is written in the perfect southern drawl and accent to clearly depict the South. This novel is funny, emotional, inspiring, and deeply moving. Although this is a fictional story, and surprisingly Stockett's first novel to write, the characters, plot and story line are all detailed to perfection.


A great summer read to pass the heat!

If you have read this book, share your thoughts with us in the comments! We would love to hear other thoughts and perspectives! Any suggestions for some good reads?