Reading Rut and Box Sets

I am in a reading rut. I hate these. It's like bastard sister of writers block: readers block. I start a book and it can't get my attention! I have the time to read and the desire to read but every time I start a book, I can barely get through one chapter! I don't know if I'm just completely burnt out from reading so much or if all the books I've been reading just...suck. Out of the thirteen books I have on my desk right now, I have started six of them and cannot get motivated to finish them! Shame on me! I'm hoping I can find a book to really kick me in the butt and get me excited about reading soon. I know I have good books on my hands but I just....can't...get through!! Ugh.

In the meantime, I will show off my new pride and joy of my book collection. The newly illustrated 15th Anniversary covers of Harry Potter. Like most everyone my age, these are the books that are the foundation of my childhood. I couldn't even tell you how many times I've read these books. These characters feel like my family. I have almost all of my original copies. I'm pretty sure I lent out my Prisoner of Azkaban and it was never returned so I don't have a complete collection. When they released these new covers (which are gorgeously illustrated by Kazu Kibuishi), I jumped on getting them right away. They have a place of honor on my book shelf at work.

 Isn't it beautiful!?

I love lining up all the spines and having the full silhouette of Hogwarts looking back at me. 

Hopefully I can get motivated to get reading again. In the meantime, what are you reading? What's catching your eye and your heart in the world of literacy?

Weekend Reads September 27th

What are you reading this weekend?! I am back in the reading groove and have three books on tap for this weekend. Now that the weather is getting cooler, it feels like the perfect time to read. And I've got three spooky books to start getting into the Halloween Spirit!

Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson

This book just came out this week and I've jumped on reading it. It is wicked cool. A really cool and unique "boy" book (I hate labeling books based on gender...ugh). This book is about super human beings gone bad. You always expect the superhero to be good but what happens when they get drunk with power? I'm only about 45 pages in and the book has me completely hooked. It's a large and beautiful hardcover and I'm so excited to add this to my home library. 

Dead Reckoning by Mercedes Lackey and Rosemary Edghill 

I'm pumped to read this book. 1867 Texas and zombies are on the loose?! You know I will like this book. Especially because it sounds like there is a lot of girl power in this book. The protagonist, Jett (a girl) goes around disguised as a boy and living as a gambler as she searches for her long lost twin brother. She encounters Honoria who is a fierce inventor who travels the prairie alone. Reviews are saying it's a "steampunk Zombie Western". Um, yes please. 

Freaks by Kieran Larwood. 

I'm a little under halfway done with this one. And I like it. It tells the story of the wolf girl, Sheba, covered in fur and sitting in a sad old Freak Show in a small sea side town. Her owner sells her and she is whisked away to Victorian London where she goes to live with a group of peers; more 'freaks'. This band of performers work together to solve the mystery of why London's poorest children are being snatched by the banks of the Thames River. What is really cool about this book is that it is a Common Core title. If you are involved even remotely with education in the United States, you know that Common Core is a buzz word. This is a well researched books with many real facts about London and the Crystal Palace Exhibition that took place in 1851. A very fun read for kids who need some non fiction done in a cool (and sneaky) way. 

So I've got a lot on my plate this weekend! I can't wait to start. So, what's it going to be for you? Zombie Western? Evil super heroes in Chicago? Or a freak show in Victorian London? Where will you be traveling to this weekend?

Workshops, Giving, and Memories

Today I am going to a workshop on book fairs. I love to hear from people on how they get their kids excited about reading. It is so incredibly important to find the book that will make a child a life long reading champion! 

I have several influential reading champions in my life. Most distinctly, I remember my fifth grade teacher, Mr. Hull. I was the frequenter of our classroom library. Probably twice a week I would check out at least two books to read. It was through this little miniature library that I discovered The Giver by Lois Lowry. I was totally consumed with that book! I read it over and over and over again. I loved the crazy futuristic world that saw no color and where individuality was discouraged. Sometimes I felt like my small Connecticut hometown could have been where Jonah was living. I was obsessed. Mr. Hull noticed how much I loved the book and at the end of the school year he pulled me aside and gave me the well loved copy from his library. I remember him smiling and handing me the book and saying to me "This book should belong to you. Keep reading." I was a lucky kid to have received many books from my family and friends but some reason, this gift really stands out to me. I still have my hardback ) copy of The Giver. It has a place of honor on my nightstand. I'm also super pumped they are making it a movie starring Jeff Bridges! 

How ironic (or convenient) that one of my favorite memories of giving the gift of reading would be about book that gives the gift of memories. 

How can you be a reading champion? Who was your reading champion when you were little?

Stung by Bethany Wiggins

Stung by Bethany Wiggins

Imagine waking up in your childhood bedroom. You are exhausted, your body feels heavy and the feeling of strangeness grows even more when you look at your once white eyelet curtains and see they are yellowed with age. The carpet has a thick layer of dust and there are no sheets on your mattress. You can remember falling asleep a thirteen year old girl but when you look at yourself in the mirror, you have the body of an adult. Four years have passed and you are now awake in your abandoned house. You glance down at your hands and see a tattoo of a bug with ten legs. When you move to go to the bath room you realize there is blood, dried and fresh, on the floor. And you realize, you aren't alone...

 Bees are dying. And when the bees die, nothing will pollinate the flowers and plants and without plants, what will the animals eat? In the Western United States, Fiona wakes up and finds her house abandoned and in ruins. Stranger than the eerie silence of an empty home and abandoned neighborhood, Fiona finds an odd tattoo on her hand, a black oval with five lines on either side. She comes to find that those who bear the tattoo are violent, mindless beasts that consume the unmarked. They live in sewers and in empty streets while a select few live within the high walls of a fortress protected from the monsters. And what is worse, she is one of them. Will she find her family? Can she find protection from the ravenous beasts with their marked hands? Can she find protection from herself in case she turns?


I loved this book. I need something to kick me out of my reading slump. I overloaded with books in the spring, took it easy in the summer, and have been slacking this fall so far! I've started so many books but can hardly get through them because none are catching my attention. But the opening of this book completely changed that. I was so hooked then minute I read the first chapter that I finished the book in just two days. I also love a good dystopian (if you haven't figured that out yet) and this has a new take: apocalyptic sleeping beauty! I also appreciate, like all good dystopians, the element of "Oh crap, this could really happen".


 What I really enjoyed about this book was being kept in the dark.  So often are you reading a book and the back story is giving and you can understand everything. With this book, it is as if you and Fiona have both woken up from a four year coma and you have to figure out what's happening as it comes. It's got a pretty solid romance (though not really my cup of tea) and good relationship building. Just wait until you read the final chapters of the battle in the pits. It's sickening. Sickening for its violent description and sickening because it's so well written.

If you have ever been stung by a bee or liked the taste of honey, you should probably pick up this book. You never know, both of those things could becoming incredibly valuable one day...

End of August Reading

Here are all the books I have picked up within the last week that are on my "To Read" list. I've started Three Times Lucky and absolutely love it so far. I'm so excited for another great year of reading and can't wait to get started! 

Which should I start reading next?

Starters by Lissa Price

Starters by Lissa Price

Imagine a world where everyone between the ages of 21 and 85 were gone. A horrific chemical war where only the very young and very old were vaccinated and survived. But the average age of death has altered as well. The elderly are living to be two hundred years old. The government, still ravaged by chemical warfare, has created laws that forbid young people to work; to ensure that the elderly are employed and useful. If you are a young person and are lucky, your grandparents have claimed you and you live a healthy, stable, life. If you are like the majority, unclaimed, you are on the streets.

Callie is young and has to look after her younger brother whose lungs are slowly failing. They have no money and live in abandoned office buildings. They are desperate for food and for the will to survive. Callie hears on the street of a new and underground practice that the elderly have created: the ability to rent the body of a young teenager. The Body Bank allows a grandparent to slip their mind into the youthful body of a teenager. They can play sports that their arthritic bodies can't play anymore, they can hop from club to club staying up all night to dance and party, they can fall in love with someone young and beautiful but only for one month. In exchange for the use of their buddies, teenagers minds are put to sleep for however long their bodies are rented. Upon awaking, they receive an inordinate amount of cash. All hush hush and under the table, of course.

But what happens when Callie wakes up mid rental? When she finds her body at a late night club with a cute boy on her arm? When she looks into her purse and finds a used handgun? When her elderly renter is still sharing her body and mind?

Starters was a great book to start a new school year off with reading. The concept is very Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind but for teens and with more lip gloss. The book is slow to go in the beginning but as soon as Callie wakes up on the floor of a bar, it get's interesting. Frankly, the best part of this book was the last two chapters. Two huge twists within the last pages makes me want to read the sequel (of course it's a sequel...everything is a sequel). On a vain level, the cover art is pretty cool of this book; definitely very eye catching especially to a young reader.

The creep factor of this book was very similar to the Unwound series by Neal Shusterman. It sort of feels like this could happen. After reading this book, I'm looking at my grandparents in a different light. Frankly, I think middle schoolers and high schoolers should read this book simply to have a different point of view on older generations. Just because your grandma is super cute and loves to knit doesn't mean she doesn't have the secret desire to pour tequila shots into her mouth while wearing sequin booty shorts. Older people don't just have to sit around watching FOX News all day; they want to have a life too! They were young once!

Okay, maybe I'm getting a little too deep on this matter. But this book is worth picking up. It reads quickly and keeps you pretty interested. Plus, the two twists at the end are ones you don't see coming. So often in dystopian set novels, the twists are always: "It was the government the whole time!" or "He was so bad but now he is the hero!". This novel gives a refreshing change to such a popular genre.

Date A Girl Who Reads

Another year, another dollar, another million books to read!

I'm back after a long (but short) summer break and am ready to start reading nonstop. This summer I read ravenously and I'm ready to start reading some of my favorite genres: young adult and children!

I've already pulled out three books to start reading this week and am currently hooked on Graceling by Kristin Cashore (more on that later).

In the mean time, I wanted to share one of my most favorite written works of all time. Like any 20 something, I spend a lot of time mindlessly surfing the internet. This piece caught my eye and I even have it printed out and hanging on my desk (at work and at home). I think it's incredibly poignant to anyone who loves to read.

So to start the year of right, here is Date a Girl Who Reads originally by Rosemarie Urquico and found here on www.goodreads.com 

Date a girl who reads. Date a girl who spends her money on books instead of clothes. She has problems with closet space because she has too many books. Date a girl who has a list of books she wants to read, who has had a library card since she was twelve.

Find a girl who reads. You’ll know that she does because she will always have an unread book in her bag.She’s the one lovingly looking over the shelves in the bookstore, the one who quietly cries out when she finds the book she wants. You see the weird chick sniffing the pages of an old book in a second hand book shop? That’s the reader. They can never resist smelling the pages, especially when they are yellow.

She’s the girl reading while waiting in that coffee shop down the street. If you take a peek at her mug, the non-dairy creamer is floating on top because she’s kind of engrossed already. Lost in a world of the author’s making. Sit down. She might give you a glare, as most girls who read do not like to be interrupted. Ask her if she likes the book.

Buy her another cup of coffee.

Let her know what you really think of Murakami. See if she got through the first chapter of Fellowship. Understand that if she says she understood James Joyce’s Ulysses she’s just saying that to sound intelligent.  Ask her if she loves Alice or she would like to be Alice.

It’s easy to date a girl who reads. Give her books for her birthday, for Christmas and for anniversaries. Give her the gift of words, in poetry, in song. Give her Neruda, Pound, Sexton, Cummings. Let her know that you understand that words are love. Understand that she knows the difference between books and reality but by god, she’s going to try to make her life a little like her favorite book. It will never be your fault if she does.

She has to give it a shot somehow.

Lie to her. If she understands syntax, she will understand your need to lie. Behind words are other things: motivation, value, nuance, dialogue. It will not be the end of the world.

Fail her. Because a girl who reads knows that failure always leads up to the climax. Because girls who understand that all things will come to end. That you can always write a sequel. That you can begin again and again and still be the hero. That life is meant to have a villain or two.Why be frightened of everything that you are not? Girls who read understand that people, like characters, develop. Except in the Twilight series.

If you find a girl who reads, keep her close. When you find her up at 2 AM clutching a book to her chest and weeping, make her a cup of tea and hold her. You may lose her for a couple of hours but she will always come back to you. She’ll talk as if the characters in the book are real, because for a while, they always are.

You will propose on a hot air balloon. Or during a rock concert. Or very casually next time she’s sick. Over Skype.

You will smile so hard you will wonder why your heart hasn’t burst and bled out all over your chest yet. You will write the story of your lives, have kids with strange names and even stranger tastes. She will introduce your children to the Cat in the Hat and Aslan, maybe in the same day. You will walk the winters of your old age together and she will recite Keats under her breath while you shake the snow off your boots.

Date a girl who reads because you deserve it. You deserve a girl who can give you the most colorful life imaginable. If you can only give her monotony, and stale hours and half-baked proposals, then you’re better off alone. If you want the world and the worlds beyond it, date a girl who reads.

Or better yet, date a girl who writes.

So it's off to a new school year, a new fall, and new things to read. I hope this inspires you as much as much as it inspires me everyday

Dangerous Women : A New YA Series

According to one of my most favorite blogs, The Mary Sue, there is some big news in the world of literacy! Suzanne Collins, author of the Hunger Games series, has announced she is writing her next series. And the name is...wait for it...Dangerous Women!

How badass does that sound? And the kicker: it's being edited by George R.R. Martin, author of A Song of Ice and Fire aka Game of Thrones! Two of my favorite authors who seek to use feminism in highly different ways in their stories are sure to create an awesome series starring women.

I'm super pumped about this. Not only do I love both of these authors, but I love women and I love stories revolving around strong and dangerous women! Nothing about this sounds bad to me except with how little information is out right now.

Read the whole article here.

P to the S.
Sorry about not updating more often with book reviews. I've been completely invested in this Mortal Instruments City of Bones series. Seriously. I have read four and half books over the course of three days. My eyes are slightly cross eyed and I am totally invested and consumed. I won't stop until I finish the final published book and have to wait for the final installment to be released next year (ugh). The series is great, if not a little dragged on by now, but reviews on those and other books to come soon!

Clockwork Angel : Cassandra Clare

Clockwork Angel 

People. I have been consumed. You know when read a good book and you become totally and completely immersed in it? And you want to read every waking moment and every minute of those moments and you find yourself calculating when the next time you can pick up the book is? That’s been me lately. I’ve got spring fever and can’t focus on anything important but I can focus all my attention on a book. I had randomly grabbed this book from our little library at work and it sat on my desk forever until I eventually worked my way through the pile and started this book. From the first chapter, I was hooked.

Trilogy, trilogy, trilogy. Why do great things come in threes? Clockwork Angel is the first of three books in the Infernal Devices series by Cassandra Clare. It also is essentially a prequel-slash-parallel series to the Mortal Instruments series (of which I am reading now). Clockwork Angel is about Tessa, a young American girl who is called to London by her brother to visit. When she arrives in London, she is taken in by two elderly creep-tastic sisters named the Dark Sisters.  These sisters chain her up and treat her prisoner as they teach Tessa her secret powers. Tessa, as it turns out, is a shape shifter. Not only can she change shapes but she becomes that person and knows their memories and thoughts. The Dark sisters are manipulating her for some dark and menacing purpose until the charming Will Herondale and James (Jem) Carstairs rescue her. They bring her to the London Institute of Shadowhunters; a school that trains shadowhunters in the art of killing, communicating, and reasoning in creatures of the downworld. Through Will and Jem (and other members of the institute), Tessa discovers a world that has been hidden right in front of her with werewolves, vampires, warlocks and demons; a world that she belongs to.

I adore this book. It's a great, fun read. The descriptive elements of Tessa's 19th century London makes you really feel as if you are there. It also has steampunk-esque elements as well. For those of you who do not know, steampunk is a sub genre of science fiction that is retro futuristic. It is essentially Victorian dress with elaborate metal. 

It's not full fledged steampunk but definitely has those elements that really add to the story. This book also has two wonderful complimentary characters in Will and Jem. These two young men are nephilium, half angel half man and are also parabati. Parabati are bound by tradition and sacred ceremony to be more than brothers, more than family, more than blood. These two men could not be more different either. Will is brash, sarcastic and witty. Jem is gentle, calm and compassionate. And of course, there is a delicious love triangle. But you know what, this love triangle never goes the way you want it. Whenever there is a love triangle in a book, you can usually tell which way it's going to lean. We all really knew that Katniss was going to be with Peeta, that Bella would end up a vampire with Edward. But this book keeps you guessing at every turn. And you really don't know Tessa's final choice until the final book! And believe me, it's not what you are expecting at all! 

This is a fun and dramatic read: a love triangle without the mush, a story of brothers with a terrible secret, and an identity that is never quite truly revealed in truth. Not to mention the automaton robot covered in human flesh looking to take over London, this book has it all! Pick this book up and read it as soon as you can. You'll be hooked and read the next two just as fast as I did!

What is also great about this book is that it's predecessor/prequel/sequel/side series (I'm not really completely sure how it is related, but it definitely is), City of Bones is going to be a movie this coming August! I can't wait to see it. I'm reading it now and really like it. I'll definitely be picking up those sequels in the coming week or so! 

Check out the trailer here for The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones.

Weekend Reads : May 23rd 2013

Yes, it's Thursday. But I'm only working a half day today and I'm off on Friday! And Monday! And Tuesday! It's going to be a wonderfully long weekend and I plan on relaxing. And you know that relaxing for me equals lots of reading. So what am I reading this weekend?

A Vera Bradley book? No. This is my beloved Kindle. And yes, I know it is a sin to most bibliophiles to own an e-reader but for me, it's all about the convenience. You have all seen the stacks of books I take home. My bookshelf at home is double parked (books on top of books on top of books). An e-reader is simply a convenience that I need. When I travel, this is a lifesaver. On a two hour plane ride, I can easily start and finish a book because there is nothing else for me to do. Bringing three books on my carry on isn't really an option for travel nowadays. The other great thing about my Kindle is the Amazon market place. Books that aren't easily accessible to me can be costly. However, on Amazon, I can get books for .99 cents. Also, books that freshly come out can be quickly downloaded.

An e-reader does not replace a physical book. The tactile senses engaged when reading are incredibly important but sometimes, it just easier to hold a light weight Kindle in your hands. 

So this weekend I am reading: 

City of Bones (Mortal Instruments) by Cassandra Clare (I'm hooked on this author. I read three of her books the other week and I'm obsessed. This book is being made into a movie and being released sometime this August)

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (I've been reading this book what seems like forever. People are absolutely in love with in and I am too! I just can't find the time to chisel out for this book. I'll be doing that this weekend for sure)

I'm excited for a long weekend. I've had spring fever and I am so ready to relax for summer. Having summers off is such a blessing and we are in the final stretch! At last!

Happy Weekend and Happy Reading!

Shout out to my Dad for my Vera Bradley medium e-book cover in Plum Crazy! Thanks Daddy O!

Currently Coveting

Alright people. It's officially less than two months til my birthday (I bet my family is laughing at this...Hiii Mom!) and I've been itching to go shopping and splurge on these things. Total impractical and yet completely necessary on all accounts. Does anyone love me enough to get any of these things for me? Great. Thanks.

Pride and Prejudice Book Scarf by storiarts on etsy

Anyone who personally knows me know that I am all about the scarf. To me, it is the perfect fashion accessory: perfect pop of color, not too fussy, and actually practical. I inherit my love of scarves from my mother who borderline hoards them (sorry Mom, just keeping it real). Though I can't poke fun because I'm a frequenter of her collection...Anyways. This scarf is everything I've ever wanted ever in my life ever. First. It's an infinity scarf. Perfect. Second. It's Pride and Prejudice. Even more perfect. Does there need to be any more reason there? Didn't think so. I'm obsessed with this clearly. And for the cool price of only $42.00, it's not too debt inducing! Gimme, gimme.
They also sell a Les Miserables, Sherklock Holmes, Alice in Wonderland, Romeo and Juliet, Little Women, Tale of Two Cities and Jane Eyre scarves for sale. I'll take one of each.

Aquala Bath Caddy from the Literary Gift Company

Holy. Crap. Where has this been my whole life?! I love to take baths and love to read in the bath tub. Is there anything more relaxing that laying in a tub of bubbles reading your favorite book? No, there isn't. Is there anything worse than holding a book when you have wet hands? No, there isn't. I hate hold or touching anything that is dry when my hands are wet. Well, other than a towel...or the obvious shower type items. You get it. So to have something to place my book on when reading in the tub is absolutely perfect. And here is the greatest part about this item....it has a built-in wine glass holder!

Hallelujah!

Can you even think of anything better? Can you even comprehend the pure state of relaxation your body would be in while reading a book in a bubble bath with a glass of wine?! I can't. Sorry if this is a little too excited for a bamboo bath caddy but this is something I pretty much need. Oh yeah, and it comes with a free little rubber duck who is reading a book. Perfect.
Buy it here , Price, but worth it.

Scrabble Coasters from....the internet. 

So now you all know I love wine. I promise I'm not some crazy wino (maybe) but these are too precious. Frankly, I could make these this weekend if I wanted to but instead I'd rather just wine (ha!) about how I want them. I would make mine say read, book, love annnnd...wine. No no, read, book, love, life? How about write, books, lover...wines? Okay, clearly I have something on my mind right now.

Find instructions to make these here. 

Book Print Wallpaper

This is an ambitious project. Frankly, I don't think I would (could) do this but I am obsessed with it. The project involves taking an old book (really several) tearing out the pages and double stick taping them to a wall. What a perfect accent wall! And it's not permanent so if you were feeling really ambitious you could change the book pages every so often! I don't think I could ever tear up a novel to create some decorative art but the craft-er here bought an English Literature text book to spare herself from a moral dilemma. How beautiful would this look in a front hall? Or on an accent wall in a library? I'm dreaming of my imaginary apartment again...
Find out how to make this fabulous statement wall here.

Book Clock from uncommongoods.com

What a better way to lose track of time while reading! This clock is way too cute and I know it would be so precious sitting up on my bookshelf. Only time will tell. Tale as old as time. A wrinkle in time. Time and books seem to go hand in hand. I love the bright colors and it's really the size of a normal book so it would be seamless by other non-ticking books.
What I really love about this item? The price. Only $24.00 here

Paddywax Library Author Candles on paddywax.com

Anyone who knows me knows that I have a weird thing about smells. I always have a candle or scented plug in or weird aromatherapy machine going whenever I am. In fact, at my desk at work I have a secret air freshener hidden. I just have a sensitive nose and need to have a pleasant smell in it. This product is genius. Candles inspired by famous authors. No the Leo Tolstoy doesn't smell like Russian vodka but black plum, persimmon, and oakmoss. Mark Twain is tobacco flower and vanilla! How perfect is that! I cannot even comprehend about how much I want all of these; particularly Jane Austen (surprise) and Charles Dickens. And you know what, they really aren't thaaaat expensive. A 4oz. diffuser is only $28.00. An 8oz glass candle is $25.00 and the 2 wick travel tin is only $8.00! I'd buy all of them in the travel tin.
Buy them all here

Alright people, only 49 more shopping days til my birthday from the moment I post this. I'm just saying.

The Girl of Fire and Thorns : Rae Carson

The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson

Okay. So I never said this blog would be all about books I like. I mean, that's a part of life; sometimes things just...well...suck. There have been numerous books and authors that aren't necessarily my favorite in the world. For example, I'm not a fan of Ernest Hemingway. He's kind of sexist in a blatant way and I've never really admired his work. Maybe tolerate is a better word. Anyways. The Girl of Fire and Thorns was one book I will not be picking up again anytime soon. 

The plot of this book sounds enticing. It's the story of a the youngest princess, Elisa, who has become the secret wife of a handsome king on her sixteenth birthday. The back cover of the book even says "Elisa could be everything to those who need her most. If the prophecy is fulfilled. If she finds the power deep within herself. If she doesn't die young. Most of the chosen do". Heyo! That's dramatic! That's appealing! That's totally not how this book goes. 

The main character, Elisa, is probably the most annoying character I've ever encountered in a book. I really believe that the author, Rae Carson, was genuinely trying to create a character that many girls could relate to. Instead, she made a sad attempt at connecting with young ladies that fails dismally. In fact, the example she sets with Elisa is pretty awful. Elisa is awkward and overweight: the majority of her point of view is her talking about food and how she must look like a sausage in all her dresses. As a girl who loves food, you'd think that this would appeal to me but instead it was just...annoying. Really and truly, Elisa is a character who is trying way too hard to be an awkward girl. It's a caricature of a chubby girl. In the first chapter, Elisa is walking down the aisle to marry her new husband whom she has never met before. Her thoughts the whole time are "I hope my husband is ugly because if he is beautiful I am definitely not living up to his standards. Please have pock marks, please be fat too, please be nasty". Uhh, what? What about that train of thoughts is that of a heroine of a story? Okay, I get it. If there was some positive character development, I might be more lenient with this book. But the only way that Elisa finally get's courage to stand up for herself is when she loses weight! It essentially goes like this "Wow I am so fat but I love scones. But now I live in this castle and I have to walk everywhere. And it's really hot so I'm sweating. I'm still so fat and I hate myself but this cheese plate is so delicious so whatever. Oh hey, I'm skinny now! Forget the scones and cheese, I will now fight for my country and never touch an unhealthy food ever again because I am skinny and pretty now I can do whatever I want! Being fat is obviously the worst and if you are fat you will never succeed ever" Maybe that was an exaggeration but that is basically how it went. How unappealing of a character. I can't help but to think that if Elisa kept a little bit of her chubbiness, I'd like her more. 

Getting through this book was a struggle. Every time I picked it up, I rolled my eyes and snarled like a beast. Really, this book just tries way too hard. Maybe Rae Carson wanted to make a good book with a main character that no one liked...a lot of franchises have tried that*. Either way, she succeed at making me not like her main character and failed at making a good book. Don't waste your time reading this. 

*Did you know that Stan Lee, former head of Marvel comics, created Iron Man (aka Tony Stark) with the sole purpose of making a hero that characters didn't really like because he was kind of a...douche? Now Tony Stark is considered the man of all mans and is the coolest dude around. Hmm.  

Summer Reads

It seems like the summer months are the time when most people get their yearly reading in. Whether it's poolside, laying in a hammock, snuggled in bed or by the beach, reading is a wonderful practice in the summer. I was one of the rare kids in school who loved summer reading assignments and diligently kept my Summer Reading Journal on a weekly (if not daily) basis.

Summer is also the time when I reread my favorite books. I tend to find something new and take something different when I reread some of my favorites. Here are the books you will always find me reading sometime in the summer:

The Weetzie Bat Series by Francesca Lia Block

One of my, if not absolute, favorite authors. I read the Weetzie Bat books when I was starting middle school they have grown up along with me. Francesca Lia Block writes so poetically and with such rich, decadent descriptions, I find something new to love each time I read any of her books. I love all of her characters and think of them as old friends. These books and quick and easy reads. You can easily finish one book in a day.  Block writes about life in Los Angeles, mythological creatures, magic, and growing up. I firmly believe that every girl should read this series. If you aren't into magic and weird names and glittery 90's punk princesses, this book may not be for you. But if you believe in magic and fairies and mermaids and growing up and that true love and pain go hand in hand, read this books. I couldn't recommend them more.

The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran

The most quotable book of all time. This book is special to me and I pick it up every summer but I also read it whenever I need words of inspiration. The copy I have of The Prophet belonged to my mom when she was younger so this book holds special meaning to me. I've read poems, plays, and sang songs inspired by this text and it always holds true for me. Not only do I read this book in the summer but I read it year long whenever I feel any sort of strife. It sits on my bedside table year round. An essential book for anyone.

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

You all know how much I adore this book (and Mr. Darcy) and I always pull something new from it. These characters are like old friends that I can always revisit. To me, there is nothing more perfect in the world than a rainy day, a hot cup of milky tea, and Pride and Prejudice. If you haven't read it, you just need to. It's necessary for any bibliophile. I'm super hooked now on the Lizzie Bennett Diaries right now. It's a video web blog created as if Elizabeth Bennett was updating on her Mac in modern day. It's so funny and so true to character, any Austen fan will love it. Watch it here.

Do you have any books you read every summer? What do you have on tap for summer reading?

Ship Breaker : Paolo Bacigalupi

Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi

I love when a book feels real. My measure of a good nonfiction book is if I have to stop and think “Whoa, this could happen”. Paolo Bacigalupi (which is probably the best name for an author ever) makes a very real feeling world in his book Ship Breaker.

Global warming is very real in the world of Ship Breaker. You could even say it competes with Nailer as the main protagonist  Nailer is a teenager who scavenges abandoned ships for cash and copper along the Gulf Coast. Nailer is a part of team of other young adults, called a Light Crew, that go to wrecked oil tankers to strip them of their wiring and anything of value. Their treasures are turned over to a boss who sells them to an even higher boss. Nailer is betrayed by one of his team members after finding a lucky strike (a pocket of oil) on a ship when she leaves him to slowly sink into the black ink like substance. Through pure luck, he escapes and earns the name Lucky Boy. Lucky Boy has another run in when one of the many City Killers (massive Katrina like hurricanes) sweeps into his coastal town. He barely survives the storm and happens upon a beautiful freshly wrecked clipper ship with a mostly dead crew on board. I say mostly because the beautiful daughter of a wealthy man barely lives on board.

This vision of the future is deeply rooted in reality. I couldn’t help but to think of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill or the ruin and wreckage of Hurricane Katrina while reading this book and I bet you will too. The setting of this book doesn’t seem so far away from us today. The other thing I really enjoyed about this book was how real the cultures felt. Sometimes when reading nonfiction, cultures and class systems seem a little too far fetched but this felt incredibly real. I can feel the roots of the people of the Gulf but they are stretched and molded into something  fresh. The world building is outstanding. People who live on the outskirts of the beach fighting to survive; indentured to their jobs. Religions with offers to sand and wind and storms. Men with genetically altered DNA made to work hard and only to work hard. Children, young and small boned, crawling through ship ducts to strip a wire of spare copper. This book is exaggerated and big but still so real feeling.

 I’m not sure if it is the environmental threat or the engaging cultures but I really enjoyed this book. It was refreshing to have a male voice narrate and refreshing to not have a heavy focus on romance (but you all still know I’m all about the romance). Sometimes you just have to switch it up and this book does exactly that. This book is perfect for a rainy day at the beach. Just think, that rain could fall harder and you could be stuck in a world like Ship Breaker.

Series Blues

There's been this insane trend of series lately. I feel like every single book I've read lately has been apart of a trilogy. And luckily, for the most part at least, when I start to read the first of the series, all the other books are out already. I know it sounds spoiled but I would probably weep (more) if I had to wait in between each Hunger Games book. I was lucky enough to have those books at the touch of a button (thanks kindle!) within seconds of finishing the last.

I will say that the sense of anticipation overwhelms me when I'm reading a trilogy or series of books. I vividly remember having my mom drive me to the book store when the newest Harry Potter book came out. She would park the car and I would go into the store (by myself! look out now!) and buy the book with crumpled, sweaty dollars. I would immediately run to the car and start reading in the passenger seat. I can clearly remember getting Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (the final installment) and reading the dedication and WEEPING in the car. My mom thought I was insane, I'm sure. I was so overcome with emotions. That's when you know it's a good book.

Anyways.  The point of this post was I started to read a new series this weekend, loved it, and immediately went to the little library to get the sequel and it wasn't there! Before I went to bed last night, I kept thinking about how I was so excited to get the second book in the morning! But alas, I'm stuck. I will have to wait to actually buy the books later this week. The worst part is the first book left on a killer cliffhanger! Don't you just hate (and love) when that happens? I'll have to patient and wait this week. In the meantime, I'll have to pick something else up!

ps. if you aren't familiar with the dedication of the final book of Harry Potter, I'm including it here. I stayed up til 7: 30am reading that book. I don't even remember eating dinner that night...

I get goosebumps just reading it now. 

Unwind : Neil Shusterman

Unwind by Neil Shusterman

I’m surprised that they bill this book as a young adult novel. It’s pretty twisted. When it comes to a dystopian novel, this takes the cake on originality. No there is no all-powerful nation. No there is no reality show that pits young children against one another. Yes there was a civil war and yes it was fought over abortion rights. Wait, what? Abortion rights? That’s the subject of this young adult novel? Yes.

I was hesitant to read this book. Not for any particular reason; I was just bogged down with lots of books in progress and wasn’t motivated to read this book. I had heard about it for a while and it definitely seemed up my alley book wise but eh, it was always on the bottom of my pile. I eventually powered through my ‘meh’-ness and started reading it and was incredibly intrigued. The concept of this book continually blows my mind.

Unwind takes place sometime in the near future (don’t they all) right after the Second Civil War has been fought. But this Civil War was not fought over slavery but rather abortion rights. The solution to this war was a compromise that allows parents to sign an order on their any of their children between the ages of 13 and 18 to be unwound. Being unwound entails having their body parts taken out and given to those who ‘need’ them. Technically these kids aren’t being killed because their organs are living on in the life of another. There is also the option of storking which states that any parent who is unable to raise a child to the age of 13 (when they can be retroactively aborted), they can leave the child on the porch of another family. If they are not caught leaving the child, the child then belongs to the family. If they are caught, then the biological parent must keep the child.

This story centers around three teenagers on route to be unwound. Connor is sixteen and a rebel and his parents simply cannot control him anymore so they sign him over to be unwound. Risa is a ward of the state who has to be unwound due to budget cuts to the program she belongs to. Lev is from an extremely religiously family who believes that ten percent of everything they own go to the church, including their children to be unwound. Lev is that ten percent. After learning their about their orders to be unwound, two of them “kick it AWOL” (aka decide to not be harvested) and one reluctantly agrees to go along.

Do I have your attention yet? Have you ever heard of a book with a similar concept? Probably not. Not only is this concept disturbing but it also feels oddly real. How many times have you heard of someone “living on” through another person or object? That is essentially what ‘living in a separated state’ of being unwound is. This book didn’t fully disturb me until you discover that these body parts that are harvested really do live on and can sometimes act on their own accord from their former body. Whoa! My favorite part about this book was towards the very end at Happy Jacks Harvest Camp (uh yeah, that what it’s called) and it is incredibly disturbing mostly because the author allows the reader to think of the most horrific thing that could happen.

I don't want to give away too much with this book because it's definitely one that has to be read to grasp the full concept of it. Listening to the radio this morning about another debate over abortion rights, I couldn't help but to think that this book has the slight possibility of maybe coming true. I can’t praise this book enough for its twisted and unique plot. Let's just say, I won't hesitate on picking up the sequel this next time around. 

Beautiful Words

What's your favorite word in the English language? I know my least favorite, that's for sure (who actually likes the word moist...seriously?). I came across this great article/list about the one hundred most beautiful words in the English language. These words were chosen by Robert Beard who has been creating dictionaries and writing poetry for over forty years. Here is the article (and plug for the book to buy) here. But if you are feeling lazy, the list is right here:


Ailurophile A cat-lover.
Assemblage A gathering.
Becoming Attractive.
Beleaguer To exhaust with attacks.
Brood To think alone.
Bucolic In a lovely rural setting.
Bungalow A small, cozy cottage.
Chatoyant Like a cat’s eye.
Comely Attractive.
Conflate To blend together.
Cynosure A focal point of admiration.
Dalliance A brief love affair.
Demesne Dominion, territory.
Demure Shy and reserved.
Denouement The resolution of a mystery.
Desuetude Disuse.
Desultory Slow, sluggish.
Diaphanous Filmy.
Dissemble Deceive.
Dulcet Sweet, sugary.
Ebullience Bubbling enthusiasm.
Effervescent Bubbly.
Efflorescence Flowering, blooming.
Elision Dropping a sound or syllable in a word.
Elixir A good potion.
Eloquence Beauty and persuasion in speech.
Embrocation Rubbing on a lotion.
Emollient A softener.
Ephemeral Short-lived.
Epiphany A sudden revelation.
Erstwhile At one time, for a time.
Ethereal Gaseous, invisible but detectable.
Evanescent Vanishing quickly, lasting a very short time.
Evocative Suggestive.
Fetching Pretty.
Felicity Pleasantness.
Forbearance Withholding response to provocation.
Fugacious Fleeting.
Furtive Shifty, sneaky.
Gambol To skip or leap about joyfully.
Glamour Beauty.
Gossamer The finest piece of thread, a spider’s silk.
Halcyon Happy, sunny, care-free.
Harbinger Messenger with news of the future.
Imbrication Overlapping and forming a regular pattern.
Imbroglio An altercation or complicated situation.
Imbue To infuse, instill.
Incipient Beginning, in an early stage.
Ineffable Unutterable, inexpressible.
Ingénue A naïve young woman.
Inglenook A cozy nook by the hearth.
Insouciance Blithe nonchalance.
Inure To become jaded.
Labyrinthine Twisting and turning.
Lagniappe A special kind of gift.
Lagoon A small gulf or inlet.
Languor Listlessness, inactivity.
Lassitude Weariness, listlessness.
Leisure Free time.
Lilt To move musically or lively.
Lissome Slender and graceful.
Lithe Slender and flexible.
Love Deep affection.
Mellifluous Sweet sounding.
Moiety One of two equal parts.
Mondegreen A slip of the ear.
Murmurous Murmuring.
Nemesis An unconquerable archenemy.
Offing The sea between the horizon and the offshore.
Onomatopoeia A word that sounds like its meaning.
Opulent Lush, luxuriant.
Palimpsest A manuscript written over earlier ones.
Panacea A solution for all problems
Panoply A complete set.
Pastiche An art work combining materials from various sources.
Penumbra A half-shadow.
Petrichor The smell of earth after rain.
Plethora A large quantity.
Propinquity An inclination.
Pyrrhic Successful with heavy losses.
Quintessential Most essential.
Ratatouille A spicy French stew.
Ravel To knit or unknit.
Redolent Fragrant.
Riparian By the bank of a stream.
Ripple A very small wave.
Scintilla A spark or very small thing.
Sempiternal Eternal.
Seraglio Rich, luxurious oriental palace or harem.
Serendipity Finding something nice while looking for something else.
Summery Light, delicate or warm and sunny.
Sumptuous Lush, luxurious.
Surreptitious Secretive, sneaky.
Susquehanna A river in Pennsylvania.
Susurrous Whispering, hissing.
Talisman A good luck charm.
Tintinnabulation Tinkling.
Umbrella Protection from sun or rain.
Untoward Unseemly, inappropriate.
Vestigial In trace amounts.
Wafture Waving.
Wherewithal The means.
Woebegone Sorrowful, downcast.

What are your favorites from the list? My favorites are bucolic, cynosure, mellifluous, petrichor, quintessential, and seraglio.

Don't you want to go write a poem now?

Grave Mercy : Robin LaFevers

Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers

How could you ever deny a book that has the tagline of “Why be the sheep, when you can be the wolf?” with a tough chick with a crossbow on the cover? Grave Mercy is one of the most badass books I’ve read this year. The book genre I first fell in love with when reading was historical fiction. I think I have read every single Philippa Gregory book on this planet. I was so obsessed with Tudor England and Henry the VIII that I went to England in high school and practically wept when I saw the Tower of London. I have a burning love or corsets and gowns and headpieces and all sorts of costume from the 16^th century. So needless to say, this book caught my attention right away.

Seventeen year old Ismae escapes from a cruel and abusive arranged marriage into the refuge of the convent of St. Mortain. The nuns of this convent aren’t Sound of Music gently singing nuns. The god that they serve is St. Mortain, the god of Death. If Ismae chooses to stay at convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as one of Death’s handmaidens. Up until now, Ismae’s tasks have come relatively easy to her until her most important assignment takes her to the high court of Brittany in France. She finds herself incredibly unprepared; not for lack of murdering skills but because her heart is captured by the handsome bastard brother of the duchess.

Have you bought the book yet? It’s insane how great this book is. This book completely exceeded my expectations. Thou shalt not kill turns into thou shalt kill whomever I say and in this specific manner at this specific point in time and thou shalt not commit adultery turns into thou shalt seduce the hell out of anyone if they have some information you may want. Ismae is a character you root for from page one of this book. She is fierce. Period. She is strong and blunt and cuts right to the point. Her naivety when it comes to men is terribly charming as well. I also want all of her weapons. A headband full of poisonous pearls? A knife that fits perfectly into a corset? A mini crossbow the size of a bracelet? I don’t know why I’d ever need these things but I know what is going on my Christmas list this year. Oh and did I mention the lead male character, Duval, is insanely charming? He might have to be added to my list of fictional boyfriends.

This book isn’t for everyone. If you aren’t a fan of political talk or a large range of characters with difficult to pronounce French names, I would maybe skip this one. If you are looking for a vengeful badass nun who not only kills but seduces her victims, get this book.  I’m incredibly excited to continue with this trilogy. It looks like novels that continue this story are told from the point of view of Ismae’s fellow handmaidens about their assassinations and journey’s while following Death.

Also! On Robin LaFevers website, she goes into detail about how a lot of this book is true!

Bye! Off to join a convent of murderous nuns in France!

When I Grow Up : Al Yankovic

When I Grow Up by Al Yankovic

So we all have embarrassing secrets, right? Well, here is mine: I love Weird Al Yankovic. The first live music concert I ever went to was Weird Al and I loved it. I was little, yes, and I hid when there were scary parts (go look up the music video to 'Jurassic Park' by Weird Al...as a seven year old, you'll understand my freak out.) but it was amazing. My love of his witty word play started like most younger siblings favorite things: my brother loved his music first. I thought I was the cool kid listening to witty music (that I didn't fully understand) that my five years older than me brother listened to.

So needless to say, I've kept this hidden part of me tucked away from friends and relatives. Until I totally geeked out when I saw this book. I can't stop talking about.

Most (all) of the books discussed here are young adult novels. Not this. This book is everything you'd want in a book written by Weird Al. Witty word play, virtuoso rhythm and completely laugh out loud humor. This book goes page by page (in beautiful illustrations by Wes Hargis) with Billy telling what he wants to be when he grows up. From a snail trainer to a chef to a gorilla masseuse to giraffe milker, Billy runs the gamut on future careers. Through all it's silliness, this books ending has something that ultimately choked me up and brought a tear to my eye. 

This, to me, is the perfect book to give to a graduating student (elementary graduate, middle school graduate, high school or college!). It's the funnier, sillier version of the classic grad gift Oh the Places You'll Go by Dr. Seuss. I would especially give it to a college graduate who majored in education. It will also make a great end of the school year gift for your child's teacher. Look out teacher friends, here is your next gift. 

I leave you with my absolutely favorite Weird Al song. I know all the words...yeah. 

Words to Live By: Monday

A Song of Ice and Fire aka Game of Thrones gives me a lot of feelings. Good feelings, bad feelings, uncomfortable feelings, holy-crap-his-hand-just-got-chopped-off feelings; just a lot of feelings. My opinions of characters change monthly and chapters always leave me spinning and grasping for more. One of my favorite quotes emerged from George R R Martin's latest installment in the series, A Dance with Dragons. Bran Stark, in response to Jojen Reed's inquiry of his favorite books responds that he only likes some books but never books, where there is lots of kissing and romance, like his sister Sansa enjoys. Jojen simply smiles and says:

A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies; a man who never reads lives only one.

I think that all people should take this into consideration before dismissing reading as a boring or nerdy activity. Though I am young and haven't physically been many places, I am a world traveler when it comes to reading. I have been to urban chic cities to castles ruled by dragons to futuristic communities crumbling to suburban Arizona to 16th Paris and back again.

Take the time to find a book that will transport you someplace else. I guarantee there is one just waiting for you.  

Weekend Reads : April 19th

TGIF, people. Is it just me or did this week drag by? In light of all the news this week, I definitely need some feel good books this weekend to read. 

This is what I plan reading this weekend:

Okay for Now by Gary D. Schmidy

and

The Drowned Cities by Paolo Bacigalupi (sequel to Ship Breaker)

and

Real Mermaids Don't Wear Toe Rings by Helene Boudreau (there is my fluff)

What are you reading this weekend?

Cinder : Marissa Meyer

Cinder
Book One of the Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer

A big trend in the literacy world lately has been fractured fairy tales. We all grew up listening to and reading stories about princess and princes and dragons and witches and those stories continue on today. What is so great about the trend of fractured fairy tales is the huge creativity and liberties you can take with it. I bet you would never have imagined the white washed Cinderella as an Asian cyborg girl from the future with a mechanical leg.

Cinder is NOT X-Tina (sadly)

Lihn Cinder is a cyborg, meaning, half of her body is mechanical. She lives in the futuristic city of New Bei-jing, capital of the Eastern Commonwealth of Earth after World War Four. The Commonwealth is being ravaged by deadly plague outbreaks that no one has survived. Not only is the Commonwealth slowly dying because of illness, but the threat of the beautiful and powerful Lunars (humans who live on the moon who have special power to manipulate people with their beauty) hover over the city. Cinder owns a small booth in the market place where she does mechanical repairs and her whole life turns upside the day that the charming (and handsome!) Prince Kai comes to get his android fixed. She befriends him and (of course) falls in love with him and things go awry when he asks her to go to the ball.

Cinder is a smart retelling of a classic fairy tale. Rather than a glass slipper, it's a poorly fitted mechanical foot. Instead of a pumpkin turned chariot, we have a beat and rusting old orange car. Cinder is strong and smart; refreshing from the bland Cinderella who only swept floors and sung songs. This book has so many interesting things going on. Biological warfare. Abusive step mother. Evil Lunar queen. Deadly plague. Cyborg-Android human worth status. Political Intrigue. It's a lot. The only problem I had with this story is that I wanted more! I want a 'Visitors Guide to New Bei-jing' to have along side me while reading this. Chinese culture is so huge and the story only briefly touches on the complexity of the culture. Where is the class system, the heavy emphasis on family honor and respect, the debate of socialism versus capitalism!? People gush over this book and frankly, over praise it. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed it! I just don't think that it gave enough. It was like exploring the first four feet of the Marianas Trench.

Just keep swimming!

What I really liked about this book is the author, Marissa Meyer. Her author bio is typical of any young adult novel, except when she mentions she got her love of writing through Sailor Moon fanfiction! I almost fell out of my chair when reading that. We are all secretly (or not so secretly) nerdy and tend to hide our embarrassing likes (yeah, I've watched a lot of Anime...so what). I absolutely love that this author got her start on fanfiction.net by writing romantic Sailor Moon fanfiction. It gives a lot of hope to the millions of young authors chugging through their own creativity and ideas.  You've got to respect a published author who puts a picture of herself as Princess Zelda on her professional website.

In the name of the Moon, I will punish you!

Cinder is just the start of a several book series. The second book, Scarlet, came out in January and frankly, I loved it a lot more than this one. I bet you can guess what fairy tale it plays on! There are going to be four books total. Cinder, Scarlet, Cress, and Winter when put together may just give me the depth that I so desperately want from these books. 

Fire Is Catching

Perks of my job?

Oh just everyone in the office freaking out about the new Hunger Games Catching Fire trailer. We are all fangirl-ing and flailing about it. 

If you haven't watched it, you probably should right now. What do you think? Will the movie live up to the hype? If the trailer is any indication, all signs are pointing to yes right now!

Legend : Marie Lu

Legend  by Marie Lu

So you’ve read the Hunger Games series in a day, watched the movie a thousand times and braid your hair on the regular to emulate the fierce Katniss Everdeen but it still isn’t enough? You are shaking and craving yet another dystopian novel. Get your fix with Legend by Marie Lu.

I, like every other person on earth, loved the Hunger Games and I, like everyone else on earth, have fallen in love with dystopian fiction. Give me a world crumbling and I am there. This is Marie Lu’s debut novel and she has created a phenomenal world that will envelop you.

One hundred years into the future, the United States has been split into two warring nations: the Colonies and the Republic. Natural disasters have ravaged the landscape, biological warfare is creating plagues that are diminishing the population, and the Republic’s biggest hero is a fifteen year old girl named June. June is, indeed, a legend. Though she is young, she is top of her class, rich, intelligent, and (of course) beautiful. Her brother, Metias, is a high ranking solider with a heart of gold. That is until his heart stops beating because of murder (supposedly) in cold blood by the Republic’s most notorious criminals: Day. Day is from the poorest sector of the Republic and has suffered greatly at the regime of his government. His father has been killed and now his youngest brother is suffering from the latest mutation of deadly plague. He is a Robin Hood like figure, stealing and gambling with the rich to give back to the poor. And he is, of course, very good looking and a total flirt. He also, did not actually kill June’s brother.

What I enjoyed about this book was the alternating first person point of view: one chapter by the fiercely intelligent June and the next by the witty and charming Day. Both of these characters have distinct voices and undeniable chemistry. I love the action, adventure, espionage, betrayal, and romance in this story. However, if you are looking for anything groundbreaking in terms of dystopian young adult novels, you are sniffing the wrong book. Though this book doesn’t hold the originality of Hunger Games or Divergent, it is still worth a read.  Frankly, it’s worth reading so you can read the sequel Prodigy. It’s even more kickin’ than this one.

Special note: Legend was inspired by Les Miserables! After reading that fact, you can clearly see the connections. Day is the hot teenage version of Jean Valjean and June a teenage female version of Javert. Can they please write a scene in with the two of them singing “Confrontation”?

Even more special: Marie Lu’s website has her original art work and sketches of her characters. It also has great games and playlists she personally made for each book. Awesome!

http://www.marielu.org/