Top Ten Tuesday

Today I'm participating in Top Ten Tuesday hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten Six Books I'd Recommend As Good Beach Reads

1. The Gallagher Girls Series by Ally Carter.  These books are light, fun, and about girls training to be spies.  I'm quite jealous of their school and all the cool things they get to do.

2. Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins.  This book is just too cute.  Make sure to set a timer to reapply that SPF because you won't want to put this book down.   

3. Sleeping Tigers by Holly Robinson.  While this may not be considered a typical beach read, it is captivating and inspirational.  It's definitely a book you should read this summer.   

4. The O'Malley Series by Dee Henderson.  Full of action and romance, these books will hook you from page one. 

5. Beauty Queens by Libba Bray.  You're on a beach, they're stranded on a beach; it's perfect.  Plus you'll be laughing so much that everyone flock to you to find out what's so funny. 

6. The Lonely Hearts Club by Elizabeth Eulberg.  If your feeling lonely without that summer romance, this book will get you out of that funk.   

I can't wait to hear about your beach reads.  I'm definitely in the mood for some summer fictional romance. 

Review of Paper Towns by John Green

Title: Paper Towns
Author: John Green
Narrator: Dan John Miller
Published by: Brilliance Corporation
Length: 7 sound discs (ca. 8 hr.)
Source: Library
Format: Audio
Rating: 4.5 stars

Summary from Goodreads: When Margo Roth Spiegelman beckons Quentin Jacobsen in the middle of the night - dressed like a ninja and plotting an ingenious campaign of revenge - he follows her. Margo's always planned extravagantly, and, until now, she's always planned solo. After a lifetime of loving Margo from afar, things are finally looking up for Q . . . until day breaks and she has vanished. Always an enigma, Margo has now become a mystery. But there are clues. And they're for Q.

Does the nice guy ever get the girl?  What I've noticed in John Green books is that there is a nice, cute guy chasing, a hot, popular girl.  Paper Towns is no exception. 

Margo Roth Spiegelman is the unattainable next door neighbor to Quentin, "Q."  She's definitely fun, quirky, a bit moody and completely crazy, but in a good way.  She eccentric and fun.  Despite her disregard for other's feelings and her self-centeredness, I did enjoy her as a character.  She was carefree and adventuress.  I think part of me wanted to be her a little bit; to have to worries or cares and to let loose and just have fun. 

As always John Green's characters are FABULOUS.  They are so much fun and so completely real at the same time.  They are refreshingly witty and comical and I promise you'll be laughing throughout the novel.  Ben and Radar are the perfect best friends.  They make a great balance to Q and are almost larger than life, yet they are band geeks.  You can't help but love them. 

As for the story, I loved the mystery.  The clues Margo left were extremely cryptic and it was fun trying to decode them along with Q and his friends.  It kind of felt like a big scavenger hunt or a treasure map.  It was so much fun and I really felt like I was part of it.

The narration of this books was done extremely well.  It had a good pacing and was really easy to follow. 

Under the weather

Sorry for the bit of an absence around here and on commenting.  I have been feeling a bit under the weather lately.  Hopefully I'll kick this thing soon and be back next week. Have a wonderful weekend. 

Top Ten Tuesday

Today I'm participating in Top Ten Tuesday hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Today is Top Ten Rewind which is where we can pick a past topic and go from there.  I'm going to switch it up a little and show you my seven favorite items inspired by books.

These are items that I have purchased:

This is from I Adorn U ^TM: handmade jewels © by Mary Beth Heishman found on etsy.com.  I have this bracelet and absolutely love it. 

I purchased this from the Dallaluna shop on esty.com for a bookmark exchange.  I just loved the dragon and thought it was a great representation for Rhage. 

This is the Sam (Shiver Inspired) necklace from the shop cynthial11 (WhimsicalFiction) on etsy.com.  I like Cole better in the series, but this necklace was gorgeous with the amber colored beads.  I get compliments every time I wear it. 

This ring is made from the corner of pages on the Harry Potter books.  I love wearing this because it's unique and most HP fans recognize it but others don't.  It is from the CraftyMuggle shop on etsy.com

This is one of my favorite shirts.  I laugh every time I wear it.  This shirt can be found at shop.cafepress.com 

I have this brass plated bracelet except my leather cuff is teal.  This is probably my favorite purchase in a long time.  It is a made by  Lenny & Eva and can be found at various boutiques.  The picture is from piccsy.com.

This item is on my wish list:

This cuff is stunning.  I feel like the leather would be really soft but it seems edgier than a metal cuff.  It can be found at the Cjohannesen shop on etsy.com

 

The Most Read Books in the World---Which ones have you read?

I saw this graphic on pinterest and I thought I'd share it with you. 

From flavorwire.com

 I've read 6 of these books/series and parts of the bible.  What about you?

May Monthly Wrap-Up

May is a great month!  Why you may ask?  The school semester is over.  I still have to do research, but no more teaching.  It is a wonderful feeling to get a break after a tough semester.  Hopefully it also means that instead of grading at night I get to read!  What else happened in May?

From Goodreads.com

Books I reviewed:

Lover Enshrined by J.R. Ward--3 stars
Eve by Anna Carey--2 stars

Where it Began by Ann Redisch Stample--3 stars 

Father Mine: Zsadist and Bella's Story by J.R. Ward--3 stars 

The Boy on Cinnamon Street by Phoebe Stone--3.5 stars 

All These Things I've Done by Gabrielle Zevin--4 stars 

Pretty Crooked by Elisa Ludwig--2.5 stars

Bluegrass State of Mind by Kathleen Brook--4 stars 

Spell Bound by Rachel Hawkins--3.5 stars

Bitten by Kelley Armstrong--3.5 stars 

The Dead and the Gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer-- 4 stars

Progress on Challenges:

1. Debut Author Challenge - 12/12
2. Audiobook Challenge - 15/25
3. YA Contemporary Challenge - 7/15
4. TBR Pile Challenge - 10/20
5. Why Buy the Cow Challenge - 4/12 

Top Ten Lists:

1. Top Ten Books I'd like to see Made into a Movie
2. Top Ten Favorite Quotes from Books 
3. Top Seven Ten Authors I'd like to see on a Reality Show
4. Top Ten Blogs/Sites you Read that ARN'T about Books
5. Top Ten Books Written in the Past Ten Years that I Hope People are Still Reading in 30 Years

From geekscape.net

Friday Night Date Night:

X-Men: First Class
The Other Woman
The Fighter

Friday Night Date Night

Friday Night Date Night is a feature on my blog that showcases movie review (mostly movies that were adapted from books). Hopefully some of these reviews will help you decide what to watch on your date night or a night of relaxing at home.

From goodreads.com

 I have dragged my feet about watching this movie.  I was never really interested in reading this book just for the fact it seems a little unlikely for someone to drop everything and move abroad for a year to find themselves.  Don't get me wrong, I'd love to do that, but it isn't possible. 

From imdb.com

 I was pleasantly surprised by the movie though.  I again wasn't to sure about the reality of this jorney being likely but it was a fun to imagine we could all do this someday.  I haven't seen Julia Roberts in a movie for a while and I forgot how much I enjoy her as an actor.  I think she is very versatile and really makes each part her own.  Plus isn't her beauty timeless.   

From allmoviephotos.com

 The scenes throughout the movie were gorgeous.  Just watching parts of this movie left me feeling serene and calm.  Bali was amazingly beautiful and I wouldn't mind finding the love of my life there either.  Plus the food in Italy had me drooling.  Yum!  Maybe I'll add eating my way through Italy to my bucket list. 

From allmoviephotos.com

I love when a movie you are not sure about turns out wonderful.  It makes me so happy!

Want to see more?