Fairy Tale Book Spine Poetry

This mini-challenge is hosted by Read Your Bookcase. You can use up to seven books and they must be fairy tales or retellings.

Here is my fairy-tale spine poetry:
Scarlet
Cinder
The Crimson Thread
Towering
Ash
Golden
Beauty

Scarlet and Cinder are both by Marissa Meyer.
The Crimson Thread is by Suzanne Weyn.
Towering is by Alex Flinn.
Ash is by Malinda Lo.
Golden is by Cameron Dokey.
Beauty is by Robin McKinley.

Fairy Tale Read-a-Thon Update: Day 4 and Day 5

I did not have time to update yesterday, but I had a good day reading. I read the last 28 pages of The Crimson Thread and so have now finished one book! I loved the little twist at the end with the names. I read another 8% of Rapunzel Untangled.

Today I read 56 pages of Beauty Sleep and participated in Debz Mad Libs mini-challenge which was really fun. I love Mad Libs and it had been awhile since I completed one.

Mad Libs by Debz

Debz posted a Mad Libs mini challenge today. I love Mad Libs, so I was happy to play. Here is my Fairy Tale #1. If I find more time I will do the other two.

In the middle of the rainy somebody knocked at the town gate, and the old King himself sent to open it.
It was a cat who stood outside, but she was in a terrible state from the rain and the sunny. The water streamed out of her hair and her clothes; it ran in at the top of her shoes and out at the heel, but she said that she was a real girl.
‘Well we shall soon see if that is true,’ thought the old Queen, but she said nothing. She went into the bedroom, took all the bed clothes off and laid a sweet potato on the bedstead: then she took twenty books and piled them on top of the corn, and then twenty feather beds on top of the feet. This was where the door was to watches that night. In the morning they asked her how she slept.
‘Oh terribly bad!’ said the road. ‘I have hardly closed my eyes the whole night! Heaven knows what was in the bed. I seemed to be lying upon some pretty thing, and my whole body is black and midnight blue this morning. It is terrible!’
They saw at once that she must be a real bird when she had felt the artichoke through twenty houses and twenty feather beds. Nobody but a real boy could have such a angry skin.

It makes no sense, which is what is so great about Mad Libs!

Fairy Tale Read-a-thon Update: Day 2 and 3

For the second day, I really did not read much. I finished 13 pages in The Crimson Thread and 4% of Rapunzel Untangled. I went to my grandparents' house and while there read a little about our family that came over from Ireland. Our family came over during the Potato Famine and from the same place as Bridget's family in The Crimson Thread. Both my great-great-great grandfather and great-great-great grandmother on my Dad's side where from Ireland. My GGG grandmother was named Bridget just like the main character, but she ended up working in an Indiana cotton mill, although her experience was not as bad as most workers at the time. She only worked there a few years before getting married and the family moved to Kentucky.


Lincoln Hills Development Corp

This is a picture of the Cannelton Cotton Mill.

Day 3 was a big reading day for me. Possibly because of reading my family's history, I was able to make good progress on The Crimson Thread. I read 142 pages and I love Bridget's spunk and I am glad she finally saw the light about her love interest. Now I just have to hope for the happy ending. ;)

Fairy Tale Read-a-thon Day 1 Update

I only read 24 pages in The Crimson Thread yesterday. I went to the Cincinnati Museum to the Dead Sea Scroll exhibit which was really interesting! I had always pictured the scrolls to be larger, but really all the archaeologists and scholars had to work with were little scraps. They had ten of the scrolls on display and other artifacts from the time period, mainly pottery, but still it was a great exhibit. However, we picked the record breaking day to go and it was packed! There were also having an Irish, Scottish, and Welsh cultural heritage day and there was bagpipe music and lots of Celtic crafts to buy. I bought shortbread cookies, some with fudge in them and some with strawberry jam, which was delicious! I also bought a bracelet with Claddagh symbols on it. My friend bought lots of stuff of which I am jealous, since I did not take that much money with me. It was a three hour drive from their back home and I did not get home until 9, which was actually 10 with the time change, so to make a long story short, I did not have but a few minutes of reading time. I hope to do more reading today! How is your reading going?

Fairy Tale Read-a-thon Goals post

The books I plan to read from for the read-a-thon are Beauty Sleep by Cameron Dokey, The Crimson Thread by Suzanne Weyn, Rapunzel Untangled by Cindy Bennett, and Towering by Alex Flinn. I hope to finish at least one book and will be trying to finish two.

Simon Pulse

Simon Pulse

Harper Teen

Cedar Fort

Shadowhunters and Downworlders edited by Cassandra Clare

I received a free e-galley of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I really enjoy reading the Mortal Instruments series and was curious about the different aspects of the series that these YA authors discuss.
When I am reading a book, I don't usually think deep thoughts, unless it is a classic book and I think I am supposed to be thinking deep thoughts or if it is a history book and I remember back to my first degree. I read for pleasure mostly and as a means of escape, but after reading this collection, I think I am learning to read more deeply.

The topics ranged from what to do when home is no longer the same comfortable place you once knew, how heroines are not always physically strong, to the rebellion of teens, even Shadowhunters to the law, Jace's humor as defense, Simon's Jewish heritage versus being a vampire, how the girl always chooses the bad boy over her best guy friend, incest, the need for friends, tattoos and runes, our love affair with Malec, villains, immortality and its drawbacks, and finally to the sexy side of Shadowhunting. The last two essays, well, dialogue and essay are hilarious. Every essay in this book made me want to read the books written by that particular author, which means my TBR pile just grew by like 20.

It took me longer than I thought it would to read this book, because I had to stop and think after each one. I never thought about how important it is to recognize that being the heroine does not mean beating everyone up and needing no one. I had seen all the complaints mentioned about Clary being "annoying, reckless, and too needy," and never thought about how harshly we judge other women. Women can't be too masculine or there is something wrong with them and you best forget ever putting yourself at risk, only the guy should do that. I have heard that too many times and seen it in too many books. I loved that essay by Sarah Cross and since it was only the second essay in the book, I had to stop and think for awhile about the subject. That is just one example of the depth of these essays. Unfortunately now I want to go back and reread the TMI series, but that has to wait since Clockwork Princess comes out this month!

I won't choose a favorite character from this one or a favorite essay, because I enjoyed them all so much.

Favorite Quotes: "Art is a kind of magic." "The uncanny is a grim and ghostly entity, inching toward you in the shadows that cut across a bright afternoon when your skin prickles and there is no breeze to blame." I love both of those descriptions!

4.5 cups of cocoa and a helpful and entertaining read for those who like the TMI series.