Feature and Follow Friday: Required Reading

The Feature & Follow is hosted by TWO hosts, Parajunkee of Parajunkee's View and Alison of Alison Can Read.

Today's question is:

Q: Summer Reading. What was your favorite book that you were REQUIRED to read when you were in school?

We weren't required to read many books at school, but one I do remember is "Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck, I was enjoying it so much I read to the end when we were only supposed to read to a certain point for homework, backfired on me when the teacher asked us to say what we thought may happen next though!
I also remember a friend of mine having to read "Flowers for Algernon" by Daniel Keyes, her parents took me on holiday with them, and I ended up reading the whole book instead of her!

Booking Through Thursday: Reading

Booking through thursday is a weekly meme hosted by the blog of the same name.

This weeks question:

A while ago, I interviewed my readers for a change, and my final question was, “What question have I NOT asked at BTT that you’d love me to ask?” I got some great responses and will be picking out some of the questions from time to time to ask the rest of you. Like now. Two questions about your reading habits that just seem to go together.
GigiAnn asks:

Do you have a favorite season of the year that you read more? (Example: during snow storms, rainy weather, or sunny and warm weather) Sorry, that was the best I could come up with.

Lisa asks:

Where is your favorite place to read? On the beach? Inside/outside?

I don't really have a season I read more in, I go through phases of reading sometimes reading loads, sometimes not so much, that will on depend on what else I'm doing, how good the book/s are that I'm reading etc. As for places, I always read in the bath, read in bed most nights too. I love it when its hot outside and I can read out in the garden too. I guess I pretty much read anywhere, the beach and by the pool included.

Review: The Eyes of Kid Midas by Neal Shusterman

Title: The Eyes of Kid Midas

Author: Neal Shusterman

Series: n/a

Publication Date: 1992










 

My Synopsis:

Kevin Midas is badly bullied, so when he goes on a school trip to Divine Mountain he decides he will climb to the top. When he gets there he finds a pair of sunglasses. When he puts them on he finds out they are magic and will do anything he wishes.

With these glasses he can finally become who he wants to be, popular and not bullied, but at what cost?

Why I picked this book up:

I have a few of his other books on my wish list and only heard good things about them so when I saw this I picked it up.

Did it live up to my expectations?

Not really.

What I thought:

This started off really slow, we get a lot of background about Kevin being bullied and it is quite a while before he finds the sunglasses and the action gets started. Once it got started I enjoyed it for a while, but again it went on a bit before coming to an end. I did enjoy the end and thought it quite fitting. Having said that I am not the intended reader age, so maybe would have enjoyed it more if I had been younger, it has a good lesson about getting what you wish for and getting revenge.

My favourite quote/s from the book:

"On its worst days, the world still made some sort of sense, and that was a good thing."

If this book were a song it would be:

 “When Did You Fall” by Chris Rice, slow to start, then good, but gets a bit repetitive and you are glad when it’s over, but glad you listened to it and quite enjoyed it upon reflection.

If this book were a food it would be:

I’m not sure on this one, can’t quite think of a food that would sum it up.

Read if:

You enjoy young fiction, perfect for people aged about 10-12 I’d guess.

Up next for review:

Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry

Review: Entangled by Cat Clarke

Title: Entangled

Author: Cat Clarke

Series: n/a

Publication Date: 6th January 2011

My Synopsis:

17 year old Grace wakes up in a write room with only pens and paper to keep her entertained. She realises she has been kidnapped, but the last thing she remembers is meeting a stranger named Ethan just before she planned to kill herself. She decides to write about what is happening and what has happened in the past that made her want to commit suicide.

Why I picked this book up:

The premise sounded really interesting and it was recommended to me by Librarything.

Did it live up to my expectations?

Yes.

What I thought:

The book had me hooked straight away. It reads a bit like a diary with Grace writing what is happening and what has happened in the past, so you are learning of it as she is remembering/writing it. Because of this you only see her side of the story. The book was a little confusing, especially the end, but I think this added to the book for me, I like a book that makes me think and lets me come to my own conclusions (it does give some kind of ending, it’s up to you how you interpret it.) This book does deal with a lot of issues, but they are not in an your face/after school special kind of way, they add to the story rather than being what the story is about.

I really enjoyed this book and will definitely more by this author.

My favourite quote/s from the book:

“For a brief moment of madness yesterday (after an entirely sleepless night), I did entertain the thought that maybe he is a vampire. Until I remembered that my life isn’t actually Twilight.”

If this book were a song it would be “Many of Horror” by Biffy Clyro, sad, good and slightly confusing, many people will interpret it in different ways.

If this book were a food it would be marmite, you either love it or hate it, but never can figure out quite what is in it. There are also many things like it, but nothing quite like it if you know what I mean.

Read if:

You liked “Scars” by Cheryl Rainfield; both books are about cutting as a way of release.

You liked “Ultraviolet” by R. J. Anderson, both books having you guessing if they are paranormal or realistic YA.

Up next for review:

The Eyes of Kid Midas by Neal Shusterman

Sorry!

Just a quick apology for my followers, I had some issues stopping me from posting on here, hopefully I will get a few reviews up today.

Review: Scars by Cheryl Rainfield

Title: Scars

Author: Cheryl Rainfield

Series: n/a

Publication Date: 31st May 2011






My Synopsis 

Kendra has recently started having memories of being abused; the memories don’t allow her to see the abuser’s face though. To enable to cope with memories she starts cutting, this, her art and her therapist are the only things keeping her sane.

Why I picked this book up:

I haven’t read any books about cutting, and although I have never actually gone that far I can understand the attraction in it.

Did it live up to my expectations?

Yes.

What I thought:

The book opens with Kendra telling her therapist that someone is following her. She is already unsure if she is being paranoid or if “he” really is after her again. This was enough to pull me in straight away. The emotions in this book are so real and raw that you really feel you know what Kendra is going through. She other issues aside from the abuse, so it interesting to read about those too. I was a bit confused at first as I wasn’t sure if Kendra was a lesbian or not, and when I was sure she was, I wasn’t sure if her parents knew or anyone else for that matter. This is quite glossed over in the book, she admits her mum is homophobic and her parents do mention her being gay, but you are still unsure how many other people know. I also wasn’t as keen on the ending as the rest of the story, throughout the story we are focused on her feelings, but at the end it seemed a lot more action focused and would have liked to know more about how she was feeling then.

Overall a really good book and definitely worth the read. I loved this book.

Read if:

You liked “One Moment” by Kristina McBride; both books are full of raw emotions and about young girls struggling to remember horrific events.

You enjoy realistic YA fiction.

You need a good cry.

Up next for review:

Entangled by Cat Clarke

Feature and Follow Friday: Jumping Genres

The Feature & Follow is hosted by TWO hosts, Parajunkee of Parajunkee's View and Alison of Alison Can Read.

Today's question is:

Jumping Genres: Ever pick up a book from a genre you usually don’t like and LOVE it? Tell us about it and why you picked it up in the first place.

I guess the answer for this one is, not really and quite often! I don't generally dislike any genre, just certain books, and I will have a go at reading anything. So I often pick up genres I wouldn't normally read, thats how I find new books, genres and authors I like, but at the same time there isn't a genre I really dislike, so never pick up a genre I don't like. I hope I've made some sort of sense here!

Review: Temptation by Karen Ann Hopkins

Title: Temptation

Author: Karen Ann Hopkins

Series: Temptation, #1

Publication Date: 26th June 2012













 

My Synopsis:

Rose has to move to the middle of nowhere, in the middle of an Amish community. One her first day there the new Amish neighbours come over to introduce themselves. She instantly falls for Noah, and he for her, but because of their different cultures there is no way to be together. Will they find a way?

Why I picked this book up:

I like a bit of forbidden romance, and this one sounded interesting being about an Amish boy.

Did it live up to my expectations?

Yes and no, read below for explanations.

What I thought:

When I first started this book I was enjoying it, I got to learn a bit about Amish life, the writing seemed good and Rose seemed like a good character. I expected the instant attraction between Noah and Rose, what I didn’t expect was for that to be instant love. They meet a couple of ties in company of family and barely talk, then suddenly they are arranging secret meetings, it seems like chunks of the book were missing, when did they get to know each other, when did they actually tell each other how they felt? All that was missed, it was just assumed by both of them that the other felt the same way so they arranged the secret meetings. Noah then asked her not to tell anyone about them, so she runs home and tells her father? Then we miss chunks again and suddenly her whole family is calling him her boyfriend, although she hadn’t told her brothers anything.

As a character she turned out pretty shallow, I know people talk about Bella in Twilight and how she had no life outside Edward, well this is the same, Rose literally has no life, she doesn’t even know anyone else, she doesn’t think about anyone or anything else, only a boy she has met a handful of times and doesn’t even spend the time to get to know.

Noah I really didn’t like, most of the time I wanted to tell him to grow up, part of it I guess is probably because of his faith, but he is always convinced he is right, at one point telling her if she really loved him she’d turn Amish, but not even considering turning “English”, it was his way or nothing.

Overall not a great book, although I did learn a lot more about Amish culture which was interesting, so I would probably still say worth the read if you are interested.

How it stood as part of a series:

Well it definitely left off with somewhere to go, and I may read the next one to see what happens.

Read if:

You would like to learn about Amish culture. You are a fan of instant love.

Up next for review:

Scars by Cheryl Rainfield

Booking through Thursday: Periodically

Booking through thursday is a weekly meme hosted by the blog of the same name.

This weeks question:

So other than books … what periodicals do you read? Magazines? Newspapers? Newsletters? Journals?
Do you subscribe? Or do you buy them on the newsstand when they look interesting?

I only subscribe to one magazine, The Art of Knitting. I will occasionally buy a magazine if it has a story that looks interesting, but most of my time is spent reading books (and most of my money!)

Review: One Moment by Kristina McBride

Title: One Moment

Author: Kristina McBride

Series: N/A

Publication Date: 26th June 2012

My Synopsis:

Maggie is there when her boyfriend, Joey, jumps from the cliff and dies by accident, the only problem is; she can’t remember anything after getting to the top. We see her trying to deal with her grief and trying to remember what happened, along with trying to keep the rest of her group of friends together.

Why I picked this book up:

I love a book that makes me feel, and I was hoping it would do just that.

Did it live up to my expectations?

I didn’t expect this to be as good as it was, so it far exceeded them. It certainly made me feel.

What I thought:

I started this book at 10.30pm, fully intending to only read for half an hour, I turned out my light at 12.30am having just finished the book. I don’t really know what to say about it, except that I loved it. The characters and emotions felt quite real. It was a little predictable, but that didn’t take anything away from the great story, if anything it may have helped because you are waiting for Maggie to catch up with you, but understand why she can’t make her mind go there.

Read if:

I haven’t read it myself, but readers of “Breaking Beautiful” by Jennifer Shaw Wolf may enjoy this. Anyone who enjoys realistic YA fiction should like this. Basically I think everyone should read this, it’s one great book.

Up next for review:

Temptation by Karen Ann Hopkins