YA Reading Challenge 2010

In 2010 I will also being trying the Young Adult Reading Challenge. Why don't you go one over to J. Kaye's Book Blog and sign up and try it with me? You don't need a blog or anything.

The rules:

1. Anyone can join. You don't need a blog to participate.

2. There are four levels:
--The Mini YA Reading Challenge – Read 12 Young Adult novels.
--Just My Size YA Reading Challenge – Read 25 Young Adult novels.
--Stepping It Up YA Reading Challenge – Read 50 Young Adult novels.
--Super Size Me YA Reading Challenge – Read 75 Young Adult novels.

3. Audio, eBooks, re-reads all count.

4. No need to list your books in advance. You may select books as you go. Even if you list them now, you can change the list if needed.

5. Challenge begins January 1st thru December, 2010.


For this one I'm going to go for the Just My Size again so that is 25 books. What's the worst that can happen? I don't make it right? You guys won't make fun of me will you? Didn't think so. So I'll give it a shot.

1. The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke
2. Romeo's Ex by Lisa Fiedler
3. Strange Angels by Lili St. Crow
4. The Dust of 100 Dogs by A.S. King
5. Inkspell by Cornelia Funke
6. Dull Boy by Sarah Cross
7. Rampant by Diana Peterfrund
8. Wondrous Strange by Lesley Livingston

9. The Dangerous Days of Daniel X by James Patterson

10. Skulduggery Pleasant: Playing With Fire by Derek Landy

11. Shylock's Daughter by Mirjam Pressler

12. Skulduggery Pleasant: The Faceless Ones by Derek Landy

13. Nobody's Prize by Esther Friesner

14. The Return of Captain Conquer by Mel Gilden

15. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

16. Another Faust by Daniel And Dina Nayeri

17. The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan

18. The Reckoning by Kelley Armstrong

19. Generation Dead by Daniel Waters

20. Poison by Chris Wooding

21. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

22. Jennifer Government by Max Barry

23. Blue Girl by Charles de Lint

24. Bloody Jack by L.A. Meyer

25. The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jaqueline Kelly

26. Sir Quinlan and the Swords of Valor by Chuck Black
...

The Tale of Despereaux Movie vs Book

The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
The Tale of Despereaux with Matthew Broderick

Both the book and the movie are basically about a small mouse who does not act like a mouse and because of his uniqueness finds himself on a great adventure.

In both the movie and the book Despereaux sees the world differently than the rest of the mice. He loves music and values honor and virtue, he would rather read a book than eat it. In the movie though he is depicted as having no fear, as being this bold mouse that defies death to spring mousetraps. But in the book he is afraid; in fact he faints a lot. He doesn’t fail to scurry and cower because he is unafraid but because he forgets to because he is thinking about something else. To me that makes him a much better hero. It takes more courage to do something you are afraid of than something you are not. And it is nobler to be motivated by love like the Despereaux in the book than by a sense of adventure.

There were elements added to the movie that I didn’t understand the point of. The mysterious disappearance of the sun, the weird vegetable genie, the gladiatorial like games in the rat city, soup day. I thought they made the story less believable (yes, that’s what I said, believable, or maybe the word is credible) and sillier than the book.

In the book the narrator talks directly to you, addressing you as ‘reader’. The movie keeps the same feel as the narrator speaks to the audience, not quite as directly, but it is more conversational than just relating a story.

The themes of forgiveness and redemption that are brought up in the book are touched on in the movie but I don’t think they are as prominent.

There are other changes too. Two of the characters in the book seem to have been merged into one in the movie, some of the characters had slightly different beginnings or endings and some things had to be changed to accommodate the changes I’ve already mentioned but most of them are minor. But sometimes the characters ended up being less than they were in the book, less evil, less noble, less sympathetic, less whatever.

Although I thought the movie was fun and cute I would have to say that the book had better characters and although similar a slightly better story line.

Support Your Local Library 2010

I've decided to try the Support Your Local Library Reading Challenge again. You should J. Kaye's Book Blog and sign up too!

The Rules:
1. Anyone can join. You don't need a blog to participate.

2. There are four levels:
--The Mini – Check out and read 25 library books.
--Just My Size – Check out and read 50 library books.
--Stepping It Up – Check out and read 75 library books.
--Super Size Me – Check out and read 100 library books.

(Aim high. As long as you read 25 by the end of 2010, you are a winner.)

3. Audio, Re-reads, eBooks, YA, Young Reader – any book as long as it is checked out from the library counts. Checked out like with a library card, not purchased at a library sale.

4. No need to list your books in advance. You may select books as you go. Even if you list them now, you can change the list if needed.

5. Crossovers from other reading challenges count.

6. Challenge begins January 1st thru December, 2010.


I was going to be a baby and just do the 25 but I decided to shoot for 50 and if I don't make it I'll just have to deal with it. It's not like I'm signing anything in blood here. So 50 it is.

1. Company of Liars by Karen Maitland
2. Stones of Summer by Dow Mossman
3. Romeo's Ex by Lisa Fiedler
4. Unfallen Dead by Mark del Franco
5. Shambling Towards Hiroshima by James Morrow
6. Strange Angels by Lili St. Crow
7. Godmother by Carolyn Turgeon
8. The Dust of 100 Dogs by A. S. King
9. House of Wolves by Matt Bronleewe
10. Dull Boy by Sarah Cross
11. Rampant by Diana Peterfrund
12. Wondrous Strange by Lesley Livingston
13. The Book of Joby by Mark J. Ferrari

14. Agents of Light and Darkness by Simon Green

15. The Pencil by Henry Petroski

16. Skulduggery Pleasant: Playing With Fire by Derek Landy

17. "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!" by Richard P. Feynman

18. Skulduggery Pleasant: The Faceless Ones by Derek Landy

19. Hold the Enlightenment by Tim Cahill

20. Sandman Slim by Richard Kadrey

21. The Beekeeper's Apprentice by Laurie King

22. Unperfect Souls by Mark Del Franco

23. The House Without a Key by Earl Derr Biggers

24. The Man Who Ate the World by Jay Rayner

25. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

26. Gun, With Occasional Music by Jonathan Lethem

27. The Woman Who Wouldn't by Gene Wilder

28. Dog Days by John Levitt

29. The White Mary by Kira Salak

30. Another Faust by Daniel And Dina Nayeri

31. Skin Deep by Mark Del Franco

32. The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan

33. The Reckoning by Kelley Armstrong

34. 99 Coffins by David Wellington

35. Walking Through Walls by Philip Smith

36. Wicked Plants by Amy Stewart

37. The Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl

38. Generation Dead by Daniel Waters

39. Appaloosa by Robert B. Parker

40. The Passing of the Third Floor Back by Jerome Jerome

41. Poison by Chris Wooding

42. Silver: My Own Tale As Written by Me with a Goodly Amount of Murder by Edward Chupack
43. Monster Planet by David Wellington
44. Let the Right One In by John Ajvide Lindqvist

45. Fragment by Warren Fahy

46. Jennifer Government by Max Barry

47. Weight by Jeanette Winterson

48. Blue Girl by Charles de Lint

49. Bloody Jack by L.A. Meyer

50. Vampire Zero by David Wellington

51. Mouse Guard: Fall 1152 by David Peterson

52. 2% of 2% of All the World's Stories

53. Sky Burial by Xinran

54. Mouse Guard: Winter 1152 by David Peterson

55. Front Porch Prophet by Raymond Atkins

56, The Pets by Bragi Olafsson

57. Resolution by Robert Parker

58. The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly

59. The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey by Walter Mosley

60. Black and White by Jackie Kessler and Caitlin Kittridge

61. Outlaw The Legend of Robin Hood by Tony Lee
62. Dragonbreath by Ursula Vernon

63. Sons of Liberty by Alexander Lagos

64. Boots and Pieces by Emily Ecton

65. The Help by Kathryn Stockett

The Burning Land

The Tome Traveller is giving away 2 copies of The Burning Land by Bernard Cornwell. To enter all you have to do is leave a comment with your email address. For extra entries follow The Tome Traveller or tweet or blog about the giveaway.

Open until January 18th to the US and Canada.

The Friday 56, The Stones of Summer

Rules:
* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of Storytime With Tonya and Friends.
*Post a link along with your post back to Storytime With Tonya and Friends.
* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.


The book this week is The Stones of Summer by Dow Mossman. I'm not sure about this book. It is going very slowly and the end seems very far away. There is a lot of imagery and sort of flowery language I just don't really get. I will probably finish it eventually but when I can't say.

The sentence:

They, his hogs and then him, only stopped here because they liked the acorns growing in the groves of the Lesser Cow River so well.

Sea Serpents galore!

Bookfan is giving away a copy of Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters by Jane Austen and Ben H. Winters. To enter leave Bookfan a comment with your email.

Open to US (stateside) residents
Giveaway ends: 8pm (eastern) Dec. 28

The Friday 56, Catching Fire

Rules:
* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of Storytime With Tonya and Friends.
*Post a link along with your post back to Storytime With Tonya and Friends.
* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.


The book this week is Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins. It's the second in the Hunger Games series and I'm liking it as much as the first. Once again I'm already looking forward to the next book.

The sentence:

I begin to weary of the vastness, the endlessness of this place.

Appropriately dreary for the subject matter I think.

Terminal Logic Review

Terminal Logic by Jefferson Scott


From the back of the book:

“This is your God… I have become displeased with all my worlds… Therefore I will wipe out all participants and begin again.” When this message appears on the screens of millions of GlobeNet users, most see it as the work of a prankster. But virtual reality programmer Ethan Hamilton has discovered renegade artificial intelligence “bots” in his virtual reality gameworlds, and he suspects, and confirms, a situation of nightmarish potential. Soon, Ethan is in a battle with an intelligence bent on the destruction of the human race. Even the FBI and the Dept. of Defense must stand by helplessly while the battle is waged by Ethan and a band of computer experts in the new final frontier – cyberspace.

Terminal Logic is about what happens when virtual reality steps outside its programming and starts interacting with the real world. The dangers of AI and making computers too smart is not a new concept but I think it is a fun one that always has a lot of potential. Terminal Logic is supposed to take place in the future, and did when the book was written, but since it all happens in the year 2006 it is slightly out of date. But if you can ignore the dates it doesn’t really matter. The only other thing that seems to date the book is all the references to movies and TV shows that pop up. They are mostly classics like The Jetsons or 2001: A Space Odyssey so they are recognizable but they are not exactly current. But the story itself is not dated. The dangers of smart programs and having all the computers linked together and cars and houses run by computers still all works today. This is the second in a series. I haven’t read the first and I had no trouble following the story but I do think I would understand the characters better if I had read the first one. The characters talk a lot about things that I assume took place in the first book and some of their motivations seem rooted in those events. It is Christian fiction so many decisions are based on prayer and what God would want them to do. They do talk about their beliefs and their faith and share it with their friends but it never becomes a sermon or gets in the way of the story. The story moves quickly and does grab you right away. I picked it up and was well into the book, both in reference to the number of pages and interest in the story, before very long. You can feel the sense of danger and menace build along the way as you move towards the climax. And even though we are talking about a computer program and virtual reality fighting you are never allowed to forget that there are real world consequences so the feeling of urgency and fear are never lost.

Dark Book Blowout!

Dark Faerie Tales is having a Book Blowout Giveaway. There will be four winners, Grand Prize Winner (4 Books) 1 First Place Winner ( 3 Books), 1 Second Place Winner (2 Books), 1 Third Place Winner (1 Book). The winners will get to choose the books from a big, long, impressive list. Please remember to leave your email address in your comment.

Extra entries:
+10 for promoting the giveaway on your blog, MUST be a Post.
+8 if you add Dark Faerie Tales (or have already) to your blog roll.
+6 if you are already a follower of the blog and Dark Faerie Tales on Twitter.
+4 for becoming a follower of the blog and Dark Faerie Tales on Twitter.
+2 for tweeting about this contest, linking via your sidebar etc...

The contest is open to everyone. It ends January 5th at 11:59 PM EST.

The Friday 56, Company of Liars

Rules:

* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of Storytime With Tonya and Friends.
*Post a link along with your post back to Storytime With Tonya and Friends.
* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.


Okay, so this week the book closest to me is the same book I used last week so I'm going to go with the book second closest to me which happen to be Company of Liars by Karen Maitland.


The sentence:


I was old and I knew it was inevitable, but I had never given it a shape before. Now, as this terrible sickness rolled inexorably towards us, I glimpsed for the first time the form death might assume and felt the panic rising in my throat.


I haven't gotten around to reading this one yet so I have no insight to give on the sentence. You will have to draw your own conclusions.

When Will There Be Good News

Hopefully your good news will come on January 3rd when Dar announces the winners to her contest. Over at Peeking Between the Pages Dar is giving away 3 copies of When Will There Be Good News by Kate Atkinson. To enter all you have to do is leave Dar a comment with a way to get in touch with you. If you want some extra entries you can follow the blog and/or blog or twitter about the giveaway. The contest is open to the US and Canada, no PO boxes. Winner will be drawn on January 3rd 2010. (Am I the only one who is wondering how we made it to 2010 already?) Good luck!

Win Books!

Books Gardens & Dogs is giving away a box of books. But I can't tell you what they are, because I don't know. And you won't know either until they show up at your door (if you are lucky enough to win.) Apparently she has a bunch of ARCs sitting around looking for a new home, they are mostly mysteries (very apropos) and she will put in as many as will fit in the box and ship it to one lucky winner.

To enter:

+1 Leave a comment (with a way to contact you)
+3 New Follower
+2 Current Follower
+1 Stop by and say hello daily
+1 Tweet about it daily and leave the link each time
+1 Repost it on a social site or your blog and leave a link (one entry for each post)

Leave a new comment for each one.

Contest ends December 19th and is open to the US and Canada only.

Win The Maze Runner

The Book Butterfly is giving away 2 copies of The Maze Runner by James Dashner. All you have to do to enter is leave a comment. You can get a bonus entry if you post about the contest on a social network of your choosing. The contest ends December 25th and is open to the US only.

The Friday 56, The Devlin Diary

Rules:
* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of Storytime With Tonya and Friends.
*Post a link along with your post back to Storytime With Tonya and Friends.
* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

This week I'm reading The Devlin Diary by Christi Phillips. It's interesting to read about what they thought of as medicine in 1672. It sounds more like some kind of witch's brew.

The sentence:

She attempts to pull it off, but the ring won't budge. Jenny's eyes grow round as she watches the whore bend back the entire finger - it makes a sharp cracking sound, like a stout branch snapped off a tree - then cut it off with the knife, as expertly as a butcher chopping off a chicken leg.

Ewww, ick, ick, ick. I still have not found out why she would do such a thing. I'm sure she had a very good reason.

The Wrath of Alexander the Great Review

The Wrath of Alexander the Great by Terry McCarthy

From the back of the book:

“The Wrath of Alexander” introduces a bold new character into the realm of hari-raising adventure: The legendary Commander Barkane of Carthage. Combat-trained down to his fingernails, Barkane is the world’s first military commando. He and his highly-trained crew must journey to the famed fortress-city of Tyre and retrieve secrets of the state so valuable that Alexander the Great himself will turn the continent upside-down to get his hands on them. One problem: Tyre is under siege by one hundred thousand of Alexander’s men, each and every one of them hungering for Barkane’s blood. The commandos must somehow break into the city, secure the secrets, and then escape. It is impossible, of course, and Alexander knows it. But Carthage has sent Commander Barkane, and so Alexander is in for a surprise.


It is filled with action. There is fighting, chases, prison escapes, and pig stampedes. There is hardly a moment of rest which keeps the characters, plot and book moving at a great pace. But the characters and the plot are not sacrificed to the action. In Barkane you get a likeable, if smug, hero who always manages to get himself into impossible situations and then think his way out. And he has a worthy advisory who is savvy, if brutal, and gives our hero a run for his money ensuring that things never get too easy. And things are seldom easy, leading to moments when you want to read faster to find out how he will get away this time. McCarthy adds to the sense of anticipation by foreshadowing things to come by using phases like “he was about to find out that…” that make you want to know how he will find out and what he is going to do about it. There is a lot of plotting and scheming and since you get to see the story from the perspective of several characters you hear the plans of both sides and what they think the enemy’s plans are and it becomes impossible to figure out who is outsmarting who until the plans are all played out. The descriptions of the fighting and injuries are real and vivid enough that you have no trouble imagining the pain and fear that the characters must have felt. It is interesting and exciting historical fiction but it not exactly about Alexander the Great. Although Alexander is in the book and is ultimately Barkane’s nemesis to his mission most of the considerable action is focused elsewhere, Alexander takes a back seat to Barkane and his quest and all the unexpected, improbable, and death defying things that happen to him and everyone around him along the way. A very entertaining book that kept me avidly reading through all the twists and turns to a satisfying end.


I want to thank Terry McCarthy for giving me a chance to read his book by making copies available through the Librarything members giveaway program.

J. Kaye's Giveaways, December

J. Kaye has another impressive list of giveaways for this month.

For Cayman Gold by Richard Trout go here. Open to the US and Canada.

For The Blue Pen by Lisa Rusczyk go here. Open to the US only.

For the audio book I Drink For a Reason by David Cross go here. Open to the US and Canada.

For The Seduction Of Snow White by Cathy Yardley go here. Open to the US only.

For Ghost in the Machine by Patrick Carman go here. Open to the US and Canada.

For Cry for the Moon by William Angelo Woodall go here. Open internationally.

All winners will be posted on December 12th.
You must be at least 18 to enter.

For the complete list of giveaways go here.

Books I Finished in November

Another 8 book month. And some of them were kids’ books. I don’t know what I was doing in November but apparently it wasn’t reading.

Terminal Logic by Jefferson Scott
A little out of date but I could get around that and enjoy the book.

Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Made me want to read the next one. Read my review here.

The Wrath of Alexander the Great by Terry McCarthy
A lot of action and an interesting hero with a little betrayal and romance thrown in to keep things interesting.

The Girl Who Stopped Swimming by Josilyn Jackson
It was okay. The ending was a surprise but I had trouble liking most of the characters.

The Giver by Lois Lowry
It was interesting to read it again after all this time. I found it kind of creepy.

Mistress Shakespeare by Karen Harper
Interesting to read about how William Shakespeare came into his own as a playwright. There is political intrigue and historical facts but it is definitely a love story.

The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
I thought it was a nice story but I don’t really like it when the narrator talks to you. But maybe if I was the age that this book was written for I would have looked at it differently.

Messenger of Truth by Jacqueline Winspear
I’m not a big fan of Winspear’s writing style and I had trouble connecting with the main character so I don’t think I’ll be reading any more Maisie Dobbs novels.

Free stuff!

The Bibliophilic Book Blog is having a wonderful giveaway.

There will be 3 winners. The first winner will get a Sony Pocket Ereader. The second winner will get a surprise book prize pack. And the third winner will get to choose a book from The Bibliophilic Book Blog's library.

You must be a follower to enter so make sure you sign up if you haven't already.

To enter leave a comment with your email address and the answer to the question, "What is the one thing you are most thankful for this holiday season?"

Additional Entries:
+ 1 for twitter, facebook, myspace posts (please link)
+ 1 for a comment on the "Knight of Pleasure Feature or Review" (+ 1 for each)
+ 2 for a sidebar blog post (link please)
+ 2 for new followers (note what kind of follower you are)
+ 3 for people who are already following
+ 5 blog post (on your personal blog) on its own for this giveaway (please link)
+ 5 for referrals both you and the referral...just mention who referred you (blog post referrals count)

Please remember to do all of these things over at The Bibliophilic Book Blog. (As opposed to here.)

Deadline to enter is December 15th.
Open internationally.

The Friday 56, The Tale of Despereaux

Rules:
* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of Storytime with Tonya and Friends.
*Post a link along with your post back to Storytime with Tonya and Friends.
* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

This week's book is The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo. It's a cute story that I managed to finish is one day. I have also seen the movie which turned out to be quite a bit different from the book. But I guess that's the way it usually works so I shouldn't be surprised.

The sentence:

And this time, he did not whisper the word. "I am not sorry. I will not renounce my actions. I love her. I love the princess."

Good for Despereaux. He's not going to be pushed around. Even if he does tend to faint all the time.

More Vocabulary

Once again I have failed to make it to the end of several books without the aid of a dictionary. I do like to learn new words but if this keeps up I might have to start reading more kids' books to make myself feel smarter.

Vanishing Sculptor by Donita Paul

Obstreperous : marked by unruly or aggressive noisiness stubbornly resistant to control


Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry

Chinoiserie : a style in art (as in decoration) reflecting Chinese qualities or motifs; also : an object or decoration in this style


Cleopatra’s Daughter by Michelle Moran

Diaphanous : characterized by such fineness of texture as to permit seeing through

Faience : earthenware decorated with opaque colored glazes

Porphyry : a rock consisting of feldspar crystals embedded in a compact dark red or purple groundmass

Calcareous : 1. resembling calcite or calcium carbonate especially in hardness b : consisting of or containing calcium carbonate
2. growing on limestone or in soil impregnated with lime


Knitting Circle by Ann Hood

Arrondissement : the largest administrative division of a French department, comprising a number of cantons


Do-Over by Robin Hemley

Perspicacity : keenness of mental perception and understanding; discernment; penetration

Dressage : the art or method of training a horse in obedience and in precision of movement

Ashram : 1. the art or method of training a horse in obedience and in precision of movement
2. the persons instructed there

Métier : 1. a field of work; occupation, trade, or profession
2. a field of work or other activity in which one has special ability or training; forte.

Win The Dolphin People

At Home with Books is giving away 2 copies of The Dolphin People by Torsten Krol.

To enter leave a comment and make sure it has your email address so she can contact you if you win.

For extra entries:

*Blog
*Subscribe to Alyce's rss feed, follow her on blogger or subscribe via email
*Tweet on Twitter
*Stumble, digg it, or technorati fave it

Each one you do will get you another entry but make sure you leave a separate comment for each one.

It is open until December 6th.
Open to the US and Canada.

The Hunger Games Review

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

From the book jacket:

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.
Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister’s place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to death before – and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.


Collins does a great job of making you feel Katniss’s world with her. You can feel her desperation, resolve and strength as she fights to feed her family and to keep her little sister safe in a bleak and dangerous world. You can feel her frustration at the way things are and her inability to do anything about it. You can feel her fear, confusion and conflict when she is thrust into an impossible situation where she will have to literally kill or be killed but she can’t help but admire the food, beautiful clothing and all the wonderful sights she has never seen before. Or knowing that the only one who may know how she feels is a boy who will be in the same life or death struggle so she is afraid to befriend him. The characters all around Katniss are interesting too. They somehow manage to be well developed even though some of them have only small parts. And the people that are helping to run the Hunger Games are so real and quirky that you can’t hate them even though you feel like you should. Even Katniss can’t help but like a man who is dressing her for her death. The very world that these people live in where the government is really out to get you, where trying to feed your family can get you killed, and where The Hunger Games can go on and people treat it like a holiday makes your skin crawl. You want to see them rise up and take their lives back but at the same time you can see why it would be impossible for them to do that. You can understand Katniss’s turmoil because sometimes you feel it yourself. Katniss knows that the way things are is wrong but she does not know what the best thing to do about any of it is. The book is bleak and dark. Horrible, hard things happen. If you have read what the book is about it shouldn’t really come as a surprise but it is still something to think about before reading it yourself or giving it to too young a child. The ending is slightly abrupt. It does bring this chapter in the characters lives to a close but there is obviously more to come. And though I think you will want to know what happens to them next the story has enough of an ending that it will not feel incomplete when you finish the book.

Drey's Library Blogoversary Celebration

Drey is celebrating her blogoversary! And that means we all get a chance to win some wonderful books. In fact there are so many to choose from that I'm not going to list them here so you'll have to go over to Drey's Library and check them out for yourself. For every 10 entries another winner will be chosen up to 10 winners in all.

To enter leave Drey a comment telling her your feelings about extra entries for giveaways. And remember to leave your email address and list the books you want to win in the order of preference.

For an extra entry become a follower. But please remember to tell Drey how you follow and how she can tell it is you because she will check and she has to be able to find you.

This one is open to the US only - no PO boxes.
Ends December 4th 6:00 PM CST.

Lynne's Book Reviews Giveaway

Lynne's Book Reviews is giving away books! Up for grabs right now are:

Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson
The Monster of Florence by Douglas Preston
1776 by David McCullough
The Weight of Silence by Heather Gudenkauf

To enter become a follower of Lynne's Book Reviews and then leave Lynne a comment with your email address, which book you want to win (you have to choose one), and if you are a new follower or an old one.

It is open to the US and Canada.
Winners will be picked on December 2nd so get your entries in before then.

Good luck! And make sure you go back to visit Lynne because there are more giveaways coming.

The Friday 56, Mistress Shakespeare

Rules:
* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of Storytime With Tonya and Friends.
*Post a link along with your post back to Storytime With Tonya and Friends.
* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.


This week's book is Mistress Shakespeare by Karen Harper. I haven't gotten very far yet so I don't have much to say about it. I like the idea of reading about a young William Shakespeare though so I have high hopes for the book.

The sentence:

"Heard tell there's three of them now," he said, when I fumbled for its name.

Okay, so that is not a very exciting sentence. I even thought about cheating and going to get a different book but I was too lazy for that. So this is the sentence you get. I'm sure the rest of the book is more exciting. At least I hope it is.

Skulduggery Pleasant Review

Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy

From the inside flap:

Meet Skulduggery Pleasant, ace detective, snappy dresser, razor-tongued wit, crackerjack sorcerer and walking, talking, fire-throwing skeleton
- as well as ally, protector, and mentor of Stephanie Edgley, a very unusual and darkly talented twelve-year-old. These two alone must defeat an all-consuming ancient evil. The end of the world? Over his dead body.


It was much funnier than I thought it would be. I admit that there is something cool about a fire throwing skeleton who walks around in well tailored suits solving crimes and making wise cracks and I was sold before I knew any more than that. But Landy makes Skulduggery more than just a flashy gimmick and develops him into a wonderful character. He is undoubtedly one of the good guys but he isn’t all sunshine, there is a darkness to him and his past is not pretty.

Stephanie Edgley, the 12 year old who helps Skulduggery, is sarcastic and quick witted without becoming obnoxious and the quick back and forth between her and Skulduggery is what brings much of the humor to the book. It was refreshing to see that she is not neglected or unloved by her parents and they notice that she is acting weird and take an interest in her life.

There are interesting ideas about how Skulduggery became what he is and the effect that had on him, about the nature of vampires, and about the magic having consequences, to get something from it you have to give something up. There are a lot of old ideas that are given a new spin and it makes them feel fresh and unique.

The secondary characters had a lot of potential. Stephanie’s extended family is contemptible, her father quirky, The Elders pompous and self important, and the people who help along the way driven and with a past of their own. They all could be very interesting but most of them were not developed very much and I hope some of them come back in future books so they can be rounded out and used more.

The bad guy is truly creepy, in large part due to how much he enjoys what he does, being evil and inflicting pain. I was slightly surprised at how dark it could sometimes get. I know it is about the possible end of the world as we know it and dark magic and betrayal are to be expected but murder, torture and the horrible stories from the past might not make this the best choice for those who are easily scared. But the darkness does add depth to the book. It makes for true danger to the characters and the evil they fight is a true force to be reckoned with which makes the story more suspenseful and interesting.

There are a few twists and turns and you don’t always know what to believe or who to trust and you can’t always tell what is going to happen next but it was a lot of fun finding out. I’ll definitely be reading the others in the Skulduggery series.

Free book! And you get to choose!

Looking for a great gift for someone? How about a book? Or is there a book you have been dying to get? Then you should head on over to La Femme Readers where they are having a pre-holiday giveaway. There will be two winners and they will get to choose any book they want (that is under $25) and La Femme Readers will order it from Amazon and send it right to your door. Sounds great, doesn't it? So here are a few more things you should know.

For entries:

+1 Comment
+1 Please write your e-mail
+3 New Follower
+5 Already an old follower
+1 Twitter about contest (Leave Link)
+1 Subscribe by e-mail
+1 Subscribe to my RSS Feed
+2 Sidebar about contest (Leave Link)
+10 Make an actual post on your blog (Leave Link)

This one is open to the US and Canada and you have until midnight on December 20th to enter.

Sesame Street is 40

Well, Sesame Street has turned 40 and to celebrate this historic occasion someone has written a book about it. And to celebrate that A Bookworm's World is giving away a copy. Do you want to win a copy of Sesame Street by Louise A Gikow and learn all sorts of neat stuff about the show? If you do you should rush over and check out the giveaway. To enter leave a comment saying who your favourite character is, (muppet or human). There will be an extra entry for followers or subscribers. Open to both Canada and the US. Closes Sunday December 13th at 6 pm EST. Good luck!

The Friday 56, The Girl Who Stopped Swimming

Rules:
* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of Storytime with Tonya and Friends.
*Post a link along with your post back to Storytime with Tonya and Friends.
* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

I'm nice and early today and still waking up. Thank goodness for spell check or this would be unreadable. Anyway...
The closest book this week is The Girl Who Stopped Swimming by Joshilyn Jackson. I have to tell you. If a ghost showed up and led me to their dead body I don't think I would handle it well. But I guess I can understand why Laurel feels she needs to find out what happened. I'd kind of like to know myself. But no one tell me. I wouldn't want to ruin the ending.

The sentence:

At Laurel's baffled look, he explained, "It's a voice-over IP application. Gamers use it to coordinate attacks."

Ahhh... No, wait. I still don't know what he's talking about.

Books and Needlepoint Giveaways

Books and Needlepoint has several giveaways going on. You should head on over and check them out.

For White Picket Fences by Susan Meissner go here. Comment with a Christian fiction book that you have read this year. Open to the US only. Ends November 24th.

For the audio book Hope for Animals and Their World: How Endangered Species are Being Rescued From the Brink by Jane Goodall go here. Comment to enter. Extra entries available, read the rules to find out how. Open to the US and Canada, no PO boxes. Ends November 27th.

For It Happened One Night by Lisa Dale go here. Comment to enter. Extra entries available, read the rules to find out how. Open to the US and Canada, no PO boxes. Ends November 27th.

For the audio book Cheating Death:The Doctors and Medical Miracles that are Saving Lives Against All Odds by Sanjay Gupta, MD go here. Comment to enter. Extra entries available, read the rules to find out how. Open to the US and Canada, no PO boxes. Ends December 1st.

For the audio book What the Dog Saw by Malcolm Gladwell go here. Comment to enter. Extra entries available, read the rules to find out how. Open to the US and Canada, no PO boxes. Ends December 1st.

J. Kaye's Giveaways in November

Once again J. Kaye's Book Blog has an impressive list of giveaways going.

For The Broken Road by Keifer Bonvillain go here.

For the audio book What the Dog Saw by Malcolm Gladwell go here.

For Pollen and the Ring of Harmony by Francis T. Perry Williams go here.

For the audio book This Book is Not Good For You by Pseudonymous Bosch go here.

For The Cart Before the Corpse by Carolyn McSparren go here.

You must be 18 years or older
US and Canada residents only
Winners will NOT be notified by email.
The winners will be posted on November 28, 2009.
Read the rest of the rules here.

The list keeps growing so make sure you check it out.

The Friday 56, The Hunger Games

Rules:
* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of Storytime with Tonya and Friends.
*Post a link along with your post back to Storytime with Tonya and Friends.
* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

Almost forgot my Friday 56! The closest book to me right now is The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. Children fighting to the death on live TV. Sounds grim. And it is grim but it is also very interesting. And it reads very quickly. I'm already sure I'll be reading the next book.

The sentence:

Haymitch hasn't paid much attention to his platter, but he's knocking back a glass of red juice that he keeps thinning with a clear liquid from a bottle.

Three guesses as to what's in the bottle. I can't really blame him for getting drunk. Things are kind of bleak.

Mini Reviews

These two books have nothing in common so don't bother trying to figure out what the connection is. They just didn't seem like a whole post all by themselves so I put them together.


The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry

Towner Whitney comes back home when her aunt disappears. She is a lace reader, someone who can see the future in a piece of lace. She is also kind of physic. I like how that is said like it is normal. Like we should have expected it, or maybe even known it already. She also has a bunch of holes in her memory. And although she came home to find out what happened to her aunt she ends up learning more about herself and filling in some of those holes. I did figure out what was going on before I was told and someone who actively tries to figure out the mystery in a book would probably have figured it out before I did but that did not lessen the impact on Towner so I was not sorry I wasn’t surprised. At times I almost thought that there was too much going on and we had to shift our focus off of Towner and her past a lot so I wasn’t really sure where the author was putting the emphasis but it wasn’t hard to follow so I didn’t mind too much.



The Shack by William P. Young

It was interesting. I think Young raises some interesting points and explains some things well but there were a couple of times when some of the ideas struck me as just strange (yes, stranger than meeting God in a shack). It will make you think so I think it's worth reading but at the beginning I was a little bored with the story (it did pick up though) and the dialog sometimes sounded staged, they just didn't talk like anyone I've ever met would talk. It's a quick read and though I had no interest in reading it when I first heard about it and I don't know that it has changed my life I'm glad I gave it a shot.

Free books!

At Home With Books is having a shelf cleaning giveaway.

Up for grabs are:

Fire by Kristin Cashore - Paperback
The Maze Runner by James Dashner - Paperback advance copy
Shadow of the Sword by Jeremiah Workman - Hardcover
An Offer You Can't Refuse by Jill Mansell - Paperback advance copy

To enter leave a comment telling Alyce which books you would like to win and make sure you leave an email address.

For extra entries:

*Blog about the giveaway
*Subscribe to the RSS feed, via email, or follow on blogger
*Tweet on Twitter
*Stumble the giveaway, digg it, or technorati fave it

Make sure you leave a separate comment for each one.

You have until November 29th to enter. It is open to the US and Canada.

Pirate Latitudes

The Tome Traveller is giving away 2 copies of Pirate Latitudes by Michael Crichton. All you have to do to enter is leave a comment. Extra entries? Of course! Here's how:

+1 become a follower of The Tome Traveller
+1 tweet giveaway on twitter or blog about it (note that you did in your comment)
+3 fave The Tome Traveller at Technorati
+3 subscribe via Feedburner to The Tome Traveller

You have until midnight on November 20th to enter. Open to the US and Canada, no PO boxes.

Mr. Darcy, Vampyre

The Book Faery Reviews is giving away ONE copy of Mr. Darcy, Vampyre by Amanda Grange to one lucky commenter (thanks to SourceBooks).

Leave a comment on who your favorite classic hero/heroine is for your first entry.

For additional entries you can do the following:
*Tweet (make sure you add in “@farrah1230 #tbfr”)
*Technorati The Book Faery Reviews MAIN page (http://tbfreviews.net)
*Stumble The Book Faery Reviews MAIN page (http://tbfreviews.net)
*Post about the giveaway on your blog or other social networking site and leave the link
*Be an e-mail subscriber of The Book Faery Reviews
*Be an RSS Reader subscriber of The Book Faery Reviews


This giveaway will run until Friday, November 13th. Open to the US and Canada, no PO boxes.

Books Read in October

Slow month. I only made it up to 8 books.


Violet Wings by Victoria Hanley

The Terror by Dan Simmons
Long. Mostly I liked it but at times I did think it went on too long.

Into the Beautiful North by Luis Alberto Urrea

Unquiet Dreams by Mark Del Franco
Second in the series. I really like the characters in these books. They are a lot of fun to read.

The Knitting Circle by Ann Hood
Not my kind of book. I kept waiting for the point and never really got one.

Assassin by Rye James
Nothing here you haven't seen before.

Pompeii by Robert Harris
Nice sense of tension and anticipation because you know about the volcano when the people you are reading about do not.

Do-Over by Robin Hemley
Pretty funny. Hemley knows how to tell a story.

The Friday 56, Terminal Logic

Rules:
* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of Storytime With Tonya and Friends.
*Post a link along with your post back to Storytime With Tonya and Friends.
* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.



This week my book is Terminal Logic by Jefferson Scott. It takes place in the far off future, in the year 2006 when computers take over the world. So, as you might have guessed it is not a new book. Not bad if you ignore the dates. I find the references to movies and TV shows interesting. Kind of old school and futuristic at the same time.

The sentence:

Little yellow blossoms shimmering along the hedgerow. The flag billowing gently atop its silver pole. Nothing out here gave the slightest hint that a fire-breathing dragon lived inside.

A little misleading, that sentence. This is not a medieval adventure. But that doesn't mean you won't run into a dragon or two.

Pure Imagination

Pure Imagination is having a wonderful giveaway.

Up for grabs are:

Wings by Aprilynne Pike
Going Bovine by Libba Bray
Night Runner by Max Turner

One winner will get all three books.

You must be a follower to enter and leave a comment with your email address.

You can get extra entries too!

+3 for anywhere you post about this giveaway(sidebars, blog posts, Twitter etc...)post links!
+2 Add Pure Imagination to your blog roll
+5 Follow Pure Imagination on Twitter

The contest runs through November 4th. It is open to the US and Canada.

The Terror Vocabulary

Some words from The Terror by Dan Simmons that I didn't know. Now I do. I feel so much smarter now.

Sastruga: a wavelike ridge of hard snow formed by the wind —usually used in plural

Orlop: the lowest deck in a ship having four or more decks

Serac: a pinnacle, sharp ridge, or block of ice among the crevasses of a glacier

Deliquesced: 1.to dissolve or melt away
2. to become soft or liquid with age or maturity —used of some fungal structures

Victualler: 1. one that provisions an army, a navy, or a ship with food
2. the keeper of a restaurant or tavern
3. an army or navy provision ship

Drayage: the work or cost of hauling by dray

Dray: a vehicle used to haul goods; especially : a strong cart or wagon without sides

Ebullient: characterized by ebullience : having or showing liveliness and enthusiasm

Priapic: relating to or preoccupied with virility or male sexual excitement

Amanuensis: one employed to write from dictation or to copy manuscript

Abattoir: slaughterhouse

Lost City of Z

Back to Books is giving away an ARC copy of The Lost City of Z by David Grann. This is an ARC so it does not contain the pictures and maps that you would find in the finished book but the text is there. You must be a follower to enter so if you aren't already make sure you sign up. And make sure to leave your email address. For extra entries you can blog or tweet. And for one more entry you can tell everyone where you would go if you could go back in time and go on a great exploration journey or which famous explorer would you travel with. This contest is open until November 6th. Open to the US and Canada only. Hurry up and enter. You'll want to read the book before the movie comes out!

The Friday 56, Do-Over

Rules:
* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of Storytime With Tonya and Friends.
*Post a link along with your post back to Storytime With Tonya and Friends.
* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.


This week my sentence comes from Do-Over! by Robin Hemley. The subtitle is 'in which a forty-eight-year-old father of three returns to kindergarten, summer camp, the prom, and other embarrassments'. He's trying to get them right this time. It's actually pretty funny so far.

The sentence:

"That's from Monty Python and The Meaning of Life."

Nothing better than a nine year old doing Monty Python.

The Little Sleep Review

The Little Sleep by Paul Tremblay

From the back of the book:

Mark Genevich is a South Boston PI with a little problem. He’s narcoleptic, and he suffers from the most severe symptoms, including hallucinations that wreak havoc on a guy who depends on real-life clues to make his living. Clients haven’t exactly been beating down the door when Mark meets Jennifer Times, who walks into his office with an outlandish story about a man who stole her fingers and leaves behind a couple of risqué photos and many unanswered questions.


Mark Genevich is narcoleptic. And he doesn’t just fall asleep at odd times. He also has vivid hallucinations, loses control of all his muscles and becomes paralyzed, and sometimes he looks like he’s awake when he isn’t and still manages to do things like take notes so no one even notices. It’s a very interesting concept. And leads to some major complications when it comes to solving a case. Mark can never be sure if what he remembers actually happened. He is missing important pieces of information that were passed on to him while he was incapable of hearing them. He is trying to solve a case without even knowing what the case actually is. And guessing at what goes in the gaps leads him into trouble. And on top of all of that he tends to fall asleep at inopportune times. Which all adds up to a very interesting story. I like a flawed hero. I like that he isn’t super smart or super observant. He makes mistakes and pays for them. He really has to work to get anywhere. The case turns into a battle for Mark, not just against a shadowy enemy but against himself and his past as well. Mark does tend to fall into self pity but he also uses self deprecating humor that stops him from becoming whiny (most of the time anyway) and you root him on. When I first read what this book was about I thought it was going to be funny. It isn’t. There is some humor, but it is definitely not a comedy. It is too gritty for that. Even lines like ‘My cigarette is almost dead. I know the feeling well’, ‘For many narcoleptics, laughter is a trigger for the Godzilla symptoms, the ones that flatten Tokyo,’ or ‘The photos and film reunited and it feels so good,’ that could tend to go goofy are pulled off by the deadpan delivery and dark tone and tension of the book. It has a noir feel to it and definitely harkens back to Chandler. It has thugs, mysterious women, friends who aren’t what they seem, old secrets coming back to haunt people, witty banter (it could have been wittier but was pretty good), and a smart mouth detective. There were even times when you weren’t sure Mark was going to win. And in the end you aren’t really sure that he did. If you like noir mysteries this is definitely worth a look. I found Mark a compelling hero and would like to see his next adventure.

Giveaways at Patricia's Vampire Notes

There are some wonderful giveaways going on over at Patricia's Vampire Notes and you should go check them out.

She is having a giveaway in celebration of Halloween. There will be 5 books given away to 5 different winners (one book each). It runs until October 31st. Go here to check it out.

For a chance to win one of 2 copies of Day by Day Armageddon by J.L Bourne go here. Open until October 31st to the US only.

For a chance to win one of 5 copies of Hellbound Hearts edited by Paul Kane and Marie O'Regan go here. Open until October 31st.

For a chance to win one of 3 copies of The Midnight Guardian by Sarah Jane Stratford go here. Ends November 4th.

There is also a Spine-Chilling Book Giveaway. 3 winners will each get a set of 5 books. Open until November 8th to the US and Canada, no PO boxes. Go here to get details.

Life After Genius

Interesting in reading Life After Genius by M. Ann Jacoby? There are a couple of places you can go and win a copy.

I'm Booking It has 5 copies to give away.

Leave a comment to enter.

For another entry, subscribe via RSS or e-mail, or follow on Twitter.
One more entry if you let other people know about this giveaway! On your blog, on Twitter, another social site.
As a bonus (for an additional entry) tell about your favorite book about someone with an ability outside the usual. Super smart, extra athletic, otherwise outside the mainstream.

Open until November 5th.

Books and Needlepoint also has 5 copies to give away.

For first entry - Leave comment with email address.
+2 Current Followers
+1 New Followers
+2 Follow on twitter (kherbrand) and tweet
+2 For a blog post - leave the link please.
+1 If you say how you heard about this giveaway.

Open until November 6th

These books are coming from Hachette Books so the giveaways are open to the US and Canada only and PO boxes are not allowed.

Pigeons

One day these two guys started hanging around outside my window at work. After a while there were two eggs. That hatched into these guys...

Aren't they cute? They would squawk up a storm when one of the parents came back to feed them. They didn't even seem to mind when I would go right up to the window to watch them. Then they grew into these guys...

Who grew into full fledged pigeons, one grey and one white just like their parents. They have since flown away. I miss my little pigeon family. Is that weird?

The Friday 56, The Knitting Circle

Rules:

* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.

* Turn to page 56.

* Find the fifth sentence.

* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of Storytime With Tonya and Friends.

*Post a link along with your post back to Storytime With Tonya and Friends.

* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

This week my sentence comes from The Knitting Circle by Ann Hood. This is not really shaping up to be my kind of book but we will see where it goes. I have my doubts.

The sentence:

She remembered lying in bed with Dylan and gasping slightly, taking his hand and pressing it to her stomach.

Obviously there's a baby in there. Well, maybe not obviously if you consider some of the other books I've blogged about but this time nothing creepy or weird, just a baby.

Life After Genius

The Tome Traveller's Weblog is giving away 5 copies of Life After Genius by M. Ann Jacoby. Just leave a comment to enter. But that only gets you one entry, if you want more do some of these things:

+1 become a follower
+1 tweet giveaway on twitter or blog about it (note that you did in your comment)
+3 fave the blog at Technorati (click on the little green box on the left sidebar)
+3 subscribe via Feedburner
+1 leave a comment on the review

If you already are a follower or any of the other things on the list you get the extra entires too.

You have until October 28th to enter. Open to the US and Canada, no PO boxes.

Eyes Like Stars

The Book Butterfly is giving away a copy of Eyes Like Stars by Lisa Mantchev. The winner will not only get the book but a a signed bookplate and bracelet from Lisa as well. It's easy to enter. All you have to do is leave a comment. An extra entry can be had for linking to or posting about the giveaway. It all ends November 6th. This one is open to everyone!

Cirque Du Freak

Drey's Library is giving away 2 copies of Cirque du Freak Book Set (3 titles in one book) by Darren Shan. Winners will also receive a Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant Locker Mirror. All you have to do to enter is tell Drey why you want to win. For extra entries share about the giveaway, follow Drey's blog and/or vote for your favorite t-shirt slogan.

You have to be at least 13 to enter and it is open to US mailing addresses only. You have until 6:00 pm CST October 26th to enter.