First off... Have you seen the new trailer for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows? AMAZING!
Secondly... tonight is a BIG night for those of use who love the Twilight series. I must preface this by saying I have been a fan of this series LONG before the movie hype. I feel in love with the books and passed them on to my family, friends, coworkers (whom have become equally as obsessed) and of course my students. Eclipse is my favorite book out of them all and I am so excited that it is opening
ON MY BIRTHDAY!!!
Pure coincidence I am sure... but thanks David Slade! So tonight I will be going with my mom, my sister, Michaela (one of my former students whom I love) and a bunch of other Twihards to see the triple feature of Twilight, New Moon and at midnight... ECLIPSE!!! Yeah!!
And last but not least, I must thank all of you who voted for my next read. Thanks for your help and as promised Kylie has helped me select winners. Watch below to see if you won and if you did... check your email!!
(I love how when you upload a video it chooses a random moment to be the freeze frame... NOT)
I can't wait to start White Cat by Holly Black! Thanks again everyone and happy reading!
Thanks as always goes out to Kristi at The Story Siren for this lovely MME! This week has been a pretty good week. I got a lot of reading done and feel like I have gotten back on track!
To recap the week...
Check out my review of Nocturne by L.D. Harkrader here.
Check out my review of Sisters Red by Jackson Pearce here.
Check out my review of Sea by Heidi R. Kling here.
AND... my giveaway here... come help me choose what to read next! (closes Tuesday)
Okay... I am finishing Kimberly Derting's The Body Finder very soon and I don't know what to read next so I decided to see what you think I should read next.... BY THEIR TRAILERS! I am going to post the trailers for the books below and then you can vote. I have three prize packs that I will be giving away. I will choose your entries at random on TUESDAY at noon (East coast time baby)... this is a super fast poll!! Good luck everyone!!
The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson
White Cat by Holly Black
Shadow Hills by Anastasia Hopcus
Okay... so there are you three choices and here are the three prizes!
White Cat by Holly Black gloves and 2 post cards
A Scones and Sensibility bookmark and hankie from Lindsay Eland
An autographed bookmark and bracelet from Jennifer Brown author of The Hate List.
Fill out the form here and on Tuesday I will use my 4 year old (haha) to select my winners and let you know what you have all chosen for me to read! Good luck!
Haunted by recurring nightmares since her mother’s disappearance over the Indian ocean three years before, fifteen-year old California girl Sienna Jones reluctantly travels with her psychiatrist father’s volunteer team to six-months post-tsunami Indonesia where she meets the scarred and soulful orphaned boy, Deni, who is more like Sea than anyone she has ever met.
She knows they can’t be together, so why can’t she stay away from him? And what about her old best friend-turned-suddenly-hot Spider who may or may not be waiting for her back home? And why won’t her dad tell her the truth about her mother’s plane crash? The farther she gets from home, the closer she comes to finding answers.
And Sea’s real adventure begins.
I don’t know where to start with this one. I knew it was going to be good, but DANG! Heidi does not disappoint her readers with this amazing debut. Sienna’s journey in finding herself takes readers on a journey through things that many turned a blind eye to because it was so far away. Heidi uses Sienna to not only weave a beautiful story of love, loss, and discovery but to also show the readers the amazing power that words have. Her descriptions of Indonesia and its devastation were riveting and it felt like I was looking through Sienna’s eyes and seeing it all before me. When Deni described running from the tsunami… that was enthralling. I felt the wave coming along with the tears in my eyes when I realized what all he had lost.
Heidi has reminded us that hope lives on within us every day. Sienna had hope that her mother would return in the beginning even though she knew that her mother’s return was nonexistent. Deni had hope that he could go back and live in his home even though there would be devastation around him and constant reminders of what he had lost. In the end, however, they both found hope in ways they were not expecting… miracles of their own.
Each character and setting that you come in contact with throughout Sea are freshly written, described in such a way that you can see it all before you (even the orange converses) and you learn so much along the way. My reading journal is FULL for this book. I love that I learned things and had my interest sparked about Indonesian customs (of which I have a list of in my journal now), Buddhism, Islam, jilbab, Borodubur temple (of which I have a picture of in my journal… beautiful temple), and so much more. The writing was amazing and Heidi has shared with us a fantastic story for her amazing debut. I believe that Sarah Ockler, author of Twenty Boy Summer, said it best when she said, “Sea is a richly woven story as turbulent and beautiful as the sea itself… A touching and romantic debut.”
Congratulations Heidi on an amazing debut novel! Can’t wait to see what else you have in store for us. Find out more about Heidi on her website here.
Book Blogger Appreciation was started by Amy Riley of My Friend Amy in an effort to recognize the hard work and contribution of book bloggers to the promotion and preservation of a literate culture actively engaged in discussing books, authors, and a lifestyle of reading.
The first Book Blogger Appreciation was observed in the fall of 2008 and occurs every September. The week spotlights and celebrates the work of active book bloggers through guest posts, awards, giveaways, and community activities. Book Bloggers are encouraged to register their participation for inclusion in a database of book bloggers. (from www.bookbloggerappreciationweek.com)
Why am I doing it?
I came across BBAW last year when my blog was brand new and didn't feel that I could participate, but I feel a little more ready this year. I have one year under my belt and would love to meet more book bloggers and get my name out there and this is a great way to do it! I have compiled a list of reviews, interviews, and other random posts that I think are a good example of some of the work that I am doing here and will post them below. I had fun last year looking though all of the blogs, finding people like Kristi at The Story Siren and being able to really find a (small) voice in the blogging world. I highly encourage all bloggers to participate!!
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (June 7, 2010)
Scarlett March lives to hunt the Fenris-- the werewolves that took her eye when she was defending her sister Rosie from a brutal attack. Armed with a razor-sharp hatchet and blood-red cloak, Scarlett is an expert at luring and slaying the wolves. She's determined to protect other young girls from a grisly death, and her raging heart will not rest until every single wolf is dead.
Rosie March once felt her bond with her sister was unbreakable. Owing Scarlett her life, Rosie hunts fiercely alongside her. Now Rosie dreams of a life beyond the wolves and finds herself drawn to Silas, a young woodsman who is deadly with an ax-- but loving him means betraying her sister and has the potential to destroy all they've worked for.
Twenty-five-year-old Jackson Pearce delivers a dark, taut fairy tale with heart-pounding action, fierce sisterly love, and a romance that will leave readers breathless.
Jackson Pearce has done an amazing job with this one! Set in Atlanta and its surrounding areas, the story of the March sisters is one of fantasy, intrigue, love, and a kick-a** big sister! There is just no other way to describe Scarlett. She carries the scars both physically and emotionally of the attack that she and her sister survived when she was younger and feels that it is her duty to protect others from the vicious werewolves that have done so much damage. Jackson has truly captured the essence of being a big sister in this novel with Scarlett. Being a big sister myself I can completely understand Scarlett’s need to protect her sister and those around her forgetting her needs almost completely. Her sister Rosie, however, has other things planned and feels complete guilt because of those desires.
Jackson’s fresh writing style and use of various narrators completely captivates readers thorough out the novel. We hear from both Scarlett and Rosie throughout the novel which allows the readers to see both sides of the same story which adds layers to the already intriguing story.The action with the sisters, Silas, werewolves and “things with blades” (as someone said at the release party last night) was descriptive and made the reader feel as if they were part of the action.Overall, this is probably one of the best written books out there. I love that Jackson kept the werewolves as what they were created to be… EVIL CREATURES!! Many times authors get away from that (no names mentioned here) and the fact that she kept them true to form was refreshing… amongst other things!
After meeting Jackson (on two occasions now) I can definitely see her personality in her writing. She is an amazing lady and I am so glad that I was able to get down to her release party for Sisters Red. I loved hearing about her writing process, thought process, funny stories and so much more. She is such a delight!Here are some pics from the event…
As you can see I got my book signed, Jackson gave me a signed poster for my classroom, a yummy strawberry forturne cookie (which Kylie and I shared today) with the fortune “Never run from what scares you,” and my reading journal signed. When she signed my journal she said, “This is so cool! You are like the coolest teacher ever!” Now that made my day!
You can visit Jackson here and see what else she has going on and follow her on twitter, subscribe to her on youtube, and visit during her chats for all kinds of fun. Make sure you RUN out and get this book now! After all, who’s afraid of the big bad werewolf?
I am a middle school Reading teacher and coach, an avid reader and book lover, a mom to Kylie and Jaxon, wife to Chris, and am dedicated to getting the good books in the hands of others!
