Teaser Tuesdays (Jan. 31)

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading. Here's how it works..

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two "teaser" sentances from somewhere on that page.
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure what you share does not give too much away! You don't want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author too so other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Here are my teasers:

There was a long silence after this, and for a moment it seemed that Cordelia had regretted her confession. But then a little mischief began to play at the corners of her mouth.

p.135 Bright Young Things with Bonus Material by Anna Godbersen (nook edition)

Feature & Follow Friday (#3)

Q: Which book genre do you avoid at all costs and why?


I tend to stay away from non-fiction and romances. Non-fiction books usually do not have enough of a story to keep me interested (not all of them). This is probably a stereo type but I just don't gravitate towards non-fiction. I will read the occasional memoir, but only if it is someone I am really interested in. Romances just get repetitive for me so I don't really like to read them. 

Booking Through Thursday: Writing or Riveting?

This week's Booking Through Thursday asks...

Writing or Riveting? What is more important. Good writing? Or a good story? (Of course a book should have both, but....)

I think I'm going to have to go with a good story, because if the story has my full attention I won't pay much attention if the writing is not so great. If the story was not good, even if the writing is great, I think it would be hard for me to get through. 

What is more important to you??

Teaser Tuesdays (Jan. 24)

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading. Here's how it works..

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two "teaser" sentances from somewhere on that page.
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure what you share does not give too much away! You don't want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author too so other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Here are my teasers:

This sounded like a good adventure to Cordelia, but she couldn't be certain if Charlie thought so, too, because he turned his face away from her and changed the subject.

p. 150, Bright Young Things with Bonus Material (nook edition)

"The Book Thief" by Markus Zusak

The Book Thief
by Markus Zusak
550 pages


Short Version: Liesel goes from being illiterate to stealing books from Nazi book burnings. She learns the power of words and is always hungry for them.


Why I Read It: This book was on my wishlist and one day I was in line at TJ Maxx and I happened to see it right next to me. Next thing I knew it was in with the rest of the things I was buying. It was on my TBR shelf for a little while but I'm happy I finally read it.


The Book: From Goodreads
It’s just a small story really, about among other things: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist-fighter, and quite a lot of thievery. . . .

Set during World War II in Germany, Markus Zusak’s groundbreaking new novel is the story of Liesel Meminger, a foster girl living outside of Munich. Liesel scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement before he is marched to Dachau.

This is an unforgettable story about the ability of books to feed the soul.


My Thoughts: I really enjoyed this book. I loved Liesel the moment she took her first book, even though she could not read. The relationship she formed with Hans Hubermann, her foster father, was amazing as he taught her to read- even though he was not a strong reader himself. Liesel's hunger for words was exactly how I feel about books. Although I don't go around stealing them, I can never seem to get enough reading. 
The narrator of The Book Thief was very interesting. It was Death. At first I thought this was a bit strange but as I kept reading I started to enjoy it. Death tells Liesel's story because he has the book she wrote in his possession. Her story encompasses her life from the time she moved in with her foster parents up to the time of the bombing on Himmel Street, where she was living with her foster family. It was told from a different perspective which is always refreshing. Death warns the readers when something bad is going to happen and throws in little tid bits of definitions or facts. As Liesel is coming of age during a horrific time in history, Death is dealing with his job of taking souls as they are ready. Only he can manage the number of souls he had to take during WWII. Liesel's notebook was a way for him to escape from the unbearable duties of his job. 
I like the way Zusak portrayed the history in this book. The reader can see that not everyone was a Nazi. There were Germans who hid Jews in their basement even while risking their own lives. Children in Hilter Youth did not always enjoy it. Parents did not want to send their children away to become an elite class of Nazi Germans. And many men saw it as punishment to be accepted in the Nazi Party and be sent to war.


Overall this was a great read and I recommend it to anyone who has a hunger for reading and words.


4/5 Stars

#3 for Mount TBR Reading Challenge
For full list click here

Feature & Follow Friday (#2)

Q: What is the craziest thing you have ever done to get your hands on any particular book?

I don't think I have ever done anything really crazy to get a book. For The Night Circus I was planning on buying it as soon as it came out, because I couldn't wait to read it. Then I saw it as a give away on Book Trib. So every day I made sure to enter to win. And I found out that I won the day before my birthday! It was a nice little surprise and getting it free was even better!

Booking Through Thursday: Skipping

This week's Booking Through Thursday is about skipping...

I saw this article the other day that asked, “Are you ashamed of skipping parts of books?” Which, naturally, made me want to ask all of YOU.
Do you skip ahead in a book? Do you feel badly about it when you do?

I don't think I have ever skipped ahead in a book. I'm afraid I will miss something really good or important. If I did skip ahead I would probably feel a little bad since I'd be worried I missed something.

Teaser Tuesdays (Jan. 17)

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading. Here's how it works..

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two "teaser" sentances from somewhere on that page.
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure what you share does not give too much away! You don't want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author too so other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Here are my teasers:

"Anxiety, disbelief, paranoia. Each plays its part, and each leads to a sneaking suspicion that a less than heavenly consequence awaits." 

p.199, The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (same book as last week- work is getting in my way of reading!)

D.C. Monument Hopping

Tonight six of my coworkers and I piled into a cab and went monument hopping in Washington D.C. Here are a few pics to share my night time experience of the Nation's capital. (seeing it all at night was pretty awesome!)

US Capital building

Washington Monument

Thomas Jefferson Memorial

Lincoln Memorial

Washington Monument from the Lincoln Memorial. (the moon was so awesome, wish it would have turned out better in my pictures)

White House- there was not enough lighting to get a good picture

Flag on top of the White House- looks like it's floating because it was so dark

Feature & Follow Friday (#1)

Q: Many readers/bloggers are also big music fans. Tell us about a few of your favorite bands/singers that we should listen to in 2012

I mostly just listen to the radio due to the fact that I've never had a CD player in my car. But lately I've really been stuck on Colbie Callait. Her music reminds me of Hawaii (my favorite place ever!)

Booking Through Thursday: Interview Part 2

This week's Booking Through Thursday is an interview...

1. What’s your favorite time of day to read?

I read the most in the evenings but my favorite time to ever read is on a spring day when the weather is perfect and I can sit outside with a book.

2. Do you read during breakfast? (Assuming you eat breakfast.)

Yes if I am not rushing to get to work really early.

3. What’s your favorite breakfast food? (Noting that breakfast foods can be eaten any time of day.)

I love making an egg over easy on top of a piece of toast.

4. How many hours a day would you say you read?

This changes all the time depending on how much I work. When I'm home probably around 4 hours.

5. Do you read more or less now than you did, say, 10 years ago?

10 years ago I was in middle school so I think I'd have to say I read more now, since back then school & homework took up most of my time.

6. Do you consider yourself a speed reader?

I think I read pretty quick when I have the time (work always seems to get in the way of my reading).

7. If you could have any superpower, what would it be?

Hmm I think mindreading would be fun!

8. Do you carry a book with you everywhere you go?

Yes. My nook or a book is always in my purse.

9. What KIND of book?

Mostly fiction with the occasional memoir thrown in.

10. How old were you when you got your first library card?

I was probably in first grade when I got my first library card, so around 7 years old.

11. What’s the oldest book you have in your collection? (Oldest physical copy? Longest in the collection? Oldest copyright?)

I'm not sure about this one. I can't think of it off the top of my head and since I am out of town I can't check my shelf.

12. Do you read in bed?

All the time!

13. Do you write in your books?

Very rarely. If there is something I really like in a book I write it on separate paper instead of in the book.

14. If you had one piece of advice to a new reader, what would it be?

There are books out there for everyone. Don't assume you don't like to read- you just have to find what you like.

Teaser Tuesdays (Jan. 10)

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading. Here's how it works..

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two "teaser" sentances from somewhere on that page.
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure what you share does not give too much away! You don't want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author too so other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Here are my teasers:

"Together, they would watch everything that was so carefully planned collapse, and the would all smile at the beauty of destruction."

"Even when the rest of them resumed their arguments, they were silenced again by the same voice, but now it gained momentum." 

p.408, The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Wishlist Challenge 2012

I've signed up for another challenge, this one to help with my outrageous wishlist! Wishlist Challenge 2012 is hosted by Leeswammes'. Click HERE to sign up.


Here's what you have to do...Read 12 books that you would like to read, but don't already have on your shelf. (simple enough, right?)


Rules: 
1. The challenge runs from January 1st, 2012 to December 31st, 2012.

2. You are to read 12 books from your current wishlist. If you don’t have a list anywhere, write down books that you are eager to read, that you don’t own yet, and choose 12 books off that list.

3. If you can’t find a book that’s on your wishlist (your library doesn’t have it, or you don’t want/can’t buy it) then you can use another book. But: you are not allowed to include any NEWLY added books for this challenge. So, whatever your list is now, that’s it.

I.e. you can’t read amazing things about a book on someone else’s blog, decide you want to read it, then read it for the Wishlist Challenge. The opposite is true: you want to read something for the Wishlist Challenge, so you go to your wishlist, find a book that was on that wishlist before January 1st, 2012, and read it for the challenge.

4. You can overlap with other challenges, as long as you read books that were on your wishlist before January 1st, 2012.

5. Sign up here by leaving a comment with a link to your announcement post for this challenge. I will then add it to the linky list below.

6. When you’ve read your 12 books, come back here and leave a comment with a link to your final post about the challenge. Make sure you’ve done this by January 15th, 2013

I will choose books as I go (that's how I choose books to read on my Nook). You can see my list on my Book Wishlist page by clicking HERE. (I add new books to then end of my wishlist so as long as I choose from like the top 200 on the list I'll be ok for the challenge rules).

"This is Where I Leave You" by Jonathan Tropper

This is Where I Leave You
by Jonathan Tropper
339 pages

Short Version: Judd Foxman is dealing with his marriage falling apart and his father passing away when he has to sit shiva with his dysfunctional family.

Why I Read It: A man next to me on a plane was reading this book and the colorful title caught my eye. I read a few lines while sitting next to him then wrote down the book. (This makes me sound like a big creep but I am just a little bit of a book stalker, that's all.)

The Book: From Goodreads
The death of Judd Foxman's father marks the first time that the entire Foxman clan has congregated in years. There is, however, one conspicuous absence: Judd's wife, Jen, whose affair with his radio- shock-jock boss has recently become painfully public. Simultaneously mourning the demise of his father and his marriage, Judd joins his dysfunctional family as they reluctantly sit shiva-and spend seven days and nights under the same roof. The week quickly spins out of control as longstanding grudges resurface, secrets are revealed and old passions are reawakened. Then Jen delivers the clincher: she's pregnant.

My Thoughts: Warning: This book contains quite a bit of sexual content and inappropriate language and behavior.
From the few lines I read of the man on the plane's copy of this book I honestly thought it was going to be a sad one about a father passing away. I was definitely wrong about this. It was actually a very funny book. It is told from Judd Foxman's point of view. His father is the one who passes away and his wife is also cheating on him. Both of these situations are horribly depressing but Tropper makes them laugh out loud funny. The way Judd handles his wife cheating on him with his boss is kind of pathetic but the actions he takes- like smashing a cheesecake up his boss's butt when he walks in on him and his wife- are really funny. When the Foxman family gets together I did not think they would make it through the whole seven days and nights together. As soon as any of them are in a room together the snide comments start. It was like I was there on the outside listening to it all. Throughout the book you find out some of the reasons the family is so dysfunctional, and in the end they somewhat get it together. I really enjoyed this book. I couldn't put it down in the two days I read it.

4/5 Stars

Book #2 of 25 for Mount TBR Reading Challenge
Click here to see my progress

Teaser Tuesdays (Jan. 3)

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading. Here's how it works..

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two "teaser" sentances from somewhere on that page.
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure what you share does not give too much away! You don't want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author too so other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Here are my teasers:

"First there is nothing. A surprising amount of nothing actually."

p. 177, This is Where I Leave You by Jonathan Tropper

A Little Bit of Christmas

The 1st of every month is like a little bit of Christmas for me. Why? Because I get my schedule for the next month and find out what awesome places I may get to go next!

Today's schedule was for February 2012 and I will be heading to Vegas, Marathon, FL (I think this is in the Keys), and back to Vegas. If anyone has recommendations on places to see or especially places to eat, send them my way! Starting Jan. 7 I am extremely busy with work, but that means lots of time to read on the plane!

"The Glimmer Palace" by Beatrice Colin

The Glimmer Palace
by Beatrice Colin
402 pages

Short Version: Lilly is an orphan who survives Berlin in the early 1900s to eventually make her way to being a film star.

Why I Read It: This book has been on my shelf for awhile so I decided to finally read it.

The Book: From Goodreads
As the clock chimes the turn of the twentieth century, Lilly Nelly Aphrodite takes her first breath. The illegitimate, orphaned daughter of a cabaret performer, she finds early refuge at a Berlin Catholic orphanage. From there follows a lifetime of reinventions, from orphan to maid, war bride, tingle-tangle nightclub girl, and script typist. Her eventual transformation into one of Germany's leading silent-film stars, and a partner in a remarkable romance that crosses decades and continents, could ultimately cost her everything she has worked for.

Gripping and seductive like few other literary novels, The Glimmer Palace showcases the glamour, spectacle, and theatrical energy of the brief heyday of the Weimar Republic, while at the same time telling the story of that other great twentieth-century illusion--cinema.

My Thoughts: I really enjoyed this book. I have not read much historical fiction lately and I sort of forgot how much I like it. Once I started reading I immediately liked Lilly. I felt for her the whole way through the book. Born to an actress and her Bavarian lover whose jealousy killed them both, Lilly was sent to the orphanage where she learned to be alone. She eventually makes a friend, Hanne, before the orphanage closes its doors for good. Hanne is the friend who pushes limits but is always forgiven. Sometimes I loved her and other times I couldn't believe how she treated Lilly. But Hanne had what it took to survive Berlin and she passed that on to Lilly. The book is set during World War I, the cabaret era, and the beginnings of World War II. Following the German side of history is not a perspective you get to read too often. I really liked the dark side of it and the turmoils the girls had to go through. It was a new way of seeing the history. The ending was very good but one that you could not believe the betrayal. That is all I will say in fear of spoiling it!

4/5 Stars

Book #1 of 25 for Mount TBR Reading Challenge
Click here to see my progress