Bout of Books Days 3-6 Update

Well I didn't update Days 3-5, because I did not read or socialize those days. Work kept me so busy that I just came home exhausted and slept.

Day 6: I participated in the Twitter chat which was awesome as usual. I also managed to read 72 pages in These Happy Golden Years and finish it! I also read 15 pages in The Museum of Extraordinary Things.

Bout of Books Day 2 Update

Day 2 Update:  I managed to read 70 pages in These Happy Golden Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder, so not too bad of a reading day!

Bout of Books Day 1 Update and Mini-challenge

Day 1 Update: I managed to make it to the Twitter chat, which was awesome as always! I also did the mini-challenge, which was really fun, and I managed to read 14 pages in The Museum of Extraordinary Things by Alice Hoffman. Not too bad for a 10 hour work day!

Today's Challenge is hosted by Writing My Own Fairy Tale and is the Book to Movie Adaptation challenge. You pick your most favorite adaptation and your least favorite adaptation.

My least favorite would be Beautiful Creatures.

   

It should have been really good. There were good actors, the story had a nice gothic feel, and the movie was terrible. I can usually watch anything, but I had to make myself get through it. It differed from the story too much and did not have the same charm as the book.

My favorite movie adaptation would be Pride and Prejudice.

 

Really it would be more the mini-series by the BBC, but I did really like the version with Keira Knightly. I think they cut just the right parts and still kept the feel of the book. It does not top the Colin Firth version, but it is still one of my favorite quick watches.

Bout of Books 17 Signup

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, August 22nd and runs through Sunday, August 28th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 17 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

This is my twelfth Bout of Books and will be a stressful week, so I am not sure how active I will be, but I hope to read and socialize a bit. I am going to try really hard to participate in the Twitter chat on Monday, because I love those and should be available at that time. Thanks to Amanda and Kelly for hosting!

Re-Readathon #4 Signup

This is hosted by Bex at An Armchair By the Sea and you can signup at this link. I think I have participated in the last two of these and I wanted to make sure to signup again as I love rereading books.
My Reading List:
These Happy Golden Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by JK Rowling

Honestly that is all I will probably get around to rereading, but it will help me to get a jump start on These Happy Golden Years, since I have been finishing them at the last minute. Thanks to Bex for hosting!

Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

I read this one for the Reading Assignment Challenge. It also works for Flights of Fantasy, COYER, Prequel and Sequel challenge, Royal Challenge, Retelling Challenge, for Reading Bingo as Book with Red on the Cover, and Full House as Book You Bought. This is the second book in the Lunar Chronicles series and may have spoilers for Cinder.

Feiwel and Friends

Cinder knows she needs to escape Queen Levana and wants to escape her destiny as the lost princess of Luna. When she stumbles into "Captain" Carswell Thorne's cell and he brags about his ship, she takes him with her in an effort to escape execution. Without telling him the truth, Cinder convinces him that they should try to find the lost princess and that Michelle Benoit may be able to help. Meanwhile, Scarlet, Michelle's granddaughter, is trying to find her grandmother who she fears has been kidnapped. Her only lead is her father's ravings about a man with a tattoo who helped to torture him and who has her grandma. When Wolf appears and Scarlet notices he has a similar tattoo, she makes him promise to help her, but doesn't completely trust him. In the Eastern Commonwealth, Emperor Kai is faced with the consequences of Cinder's escape and Queen Levana's anger. If Cinder is not found, Earth will suffer. In the race to find answers Cinder and Thorne and Scarlet and Wolf will cross paths and will be forced to make difficult choices and will have to decide if they will face Levana, while Kai may have to make the most difficult choice of all.


This was an exciting book and I loved the new characters! I both listened to this on audio and read parts of it and it is definitely a quick read. Cinder took me awhile to get into, but Scarlet really captured my attention and brought to light the true horrors of Levana and the Lunars. I had dreaded reading Scarlet, because Cinder was such a slow read for me, but I am so glad I did! I think with Cinder, the back story took awhile and with Scarlet, you could just plow through the story with just a bit of back story. Scarlet and Wolf are an interesting pair and Thorne provides some needed comic relief. I was also glad to see Iko again. I loved the twists on the "wolf" in this one, particularly the scene with Scarlet's "grandmere," which was a really clever twist on the tale. I also liked that Scarlet seemed to be a bit stronger than Little Red Riding Hood and was a good strong female lead. This is definitely a 5 cups of cocoa read for me and I really need to pick up Cress soon!

Little Town on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder

I am finally getting around to writing my review for Little Town on the Prairie for The Little House Read-a-long. This is also a Newbery read. This is one of the few books I have finished this month.

Harper and Row

Laura's family survived the long winter and their dearest dream is to send Mary to the college for the blind. Laura will miss her older sister, but knows that Mary desperately wants to go. Laura and Pa both take on extra jobs to help pay for Mary to go and it is a bittersweet day when they finally achieve their goal. De Smet is also becoming a small town and with it comes fun activities like socials and the literary society. Laura now almost sixteen is slowly working her way to a teaching certificate, which will help her earn more money for Mary. Surprises are in store for her, when an old nemesis reappears and when a certain young man begins to want to walk Laura home. Laura is finally growing up.

I loved this one, particularly the reappearance of an unlikable character. The bad side of me was glad this character had a bit of comeuppance, but unfortunately this hard luck did not change her personality at all. I also love watching the blossoming romance and think it is funny that the Ingalls don't really know Almanzo's true age and think him a bit too old for Laura. I also loved how Laura is willing to do anything for Mary and how much the sisters truly mean to each other. Laura has a kind heart despite it all. I will admit the one section with black face is really uncomfortable and wrong and again if I was booktalking this one, I would talk to the children about the past and racism. I think it was an acceptable Newbery for its time and there are qualities that make it an important read today. Other than that scene, this is a sweet and charming book and is a 4 cups of cocoa read for me!