Lauren Henderson
I absolutely love quick feel good stories with some quirkiness, so that's why I picked this book up. IT WAS SO GOOD!! I loved the entire thing. This was the perfect palate cleanser because I have been bogged down in a giant fantasy book. Sourdough is so lighthearted but encouraging with so much emotional depth. Robin Sloan has definitely become a new favorite.
I will admit that I am generally skeptical of witchy books because I expect them to focus on magic too much and forget about the plot and character development.
But... I LOVED THIS BOOK.
The atmosphere Louisa Morgan creates in this book is so romantic. I absolutely loved the entire story as well. The characters are very well developed and connected. The interweaving of generational trauma and individual stories was so subtle and realistic. The magic was almost just a side plot, so it felt like a natural part of this story that instead focused on the lives of the women in this family.. who just happened to be witches.
Perfectly done.
I always love Joshilyn Jackson's books when I first start them. Her story ideas are always great, and this one is no exception. However, I always find myself getting bored and sometimes rolling my eyes about halfway through. And this time I figured out that it's because the morals that she chooses to convey are always forced. But I always keep on reading because I want to find out how it ends, so I can't say that I don't like them. Because the ending is usually very good.
This book is an average story that I can't decide if I'm glad I read or if I wasted my time on.
Nancy drew was/still is everything I want to be. A strong-willed stubborn female who solves problems... and always has awesome adventures. She taught me to love reading. As I child, I read all of the Nancy Drew books and have been an unashamed book-nerd ever since. I think I will have to re-read a few for old times sake. And of course, if I ever have a little girl will let her take a swing at Nancy Drew. And a little boy... Hardy Boys. What is childhood without the adventurous depth of these books? TV/movies will never compare.
This was my first re-read of James and the Giant Peach as an adult. It's still just as great. It's so quirky, and the end is so heartwarming! I can't wait to read it to my child one day.
Sidenote: I never realized how many times the word “ass” is in this book. Ha.
This is one of my less favorite Nicholas Sparks books. It's still good because he's just a great story teller, but it's too predictable and cheesy for me. There's also a slightly stalker-ish aspect to it. But it is a sweet story... especially if you're a military wife.
Warning: Don't read it while your husband is deployed.. unless of course you are looking for an excuse to cry.
I love Lauren Graham's writing voice. And now I want to rewatch the Gilmore Girls reboot knowing the she fought tears while filming the entire thing - I think a lot more of the awkward moments may make sense.
I remember that I read this when it first came out when I was 12, but just vaguely. I can't recall if I liked it back then or even why I didn't finish the entire series. Probably because I was either reading Nancy Drew, Dear America, or my carrying case full of Condensed Classics.
So I mostly count now as my first time reading it. And based on the first book, I'm a little underwhelmed. I mean, yes it's good, and keeping in mind that this is a book written for a younger audience, I've still read a lot of other fantasy/magic books that I prefer. I also think the movie is pretty spot on for this first book - but I still really wish I had read the books before seeing the movie. Thanks to ABC Family, I've seen the movie so many times that I can vividly picture the movies in my head while I'm reading these books. And that just ends up making me frustrated because let's be honest - books are way better than movies.
I have several friends that are Harry Potter book fanatics and I feel ashamed that I call myself a book nerd and have never read them all, so for theirs and my sakes I'm going keep going. My verdict is still out..
2020 Reread: oh so magical.. this was such an enlightening reread. I LOVED.. and I mean super loved this book as a little girl. Now, I can see how this overwhelmingly affected me and shaped me into the reader that I am. It is so full of magic and wonder, so atmospheric. Just takes you away. It's really not dark like my inner child remembered but does deal with some very real issues that have stood the test of time - children who are lonely, adults who have hidden themselves away, and self awakening. So so so good. Still the best book ever. Confirmed.
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I loved The Secret Garden when I was younger. In my child mind it seemed slightly scary though. In my mind I still hear all the squeaky floors and see all the cobwebs. I still feel her loneliness. I wonder if this is how it really is. I think it's time for a re-read to have a fresh view.
Read more at Great Minds Read Alike.
When in the winter of 1979, I entered the Baltimore State Hospital for the Criminally Insane, and the great metal door crashed closed behind me, little did I know what waited at the end of the corridor, how seldom we recognize the sound when the bolt of our fate slides home.
This is how the foreword ends... pretty chilling. I had high hopes for the story after this. It seems like Thomas Harris becomes his characters. Therefore, it's gonna be gruesome and thrilling/horrific, right? Especially being a huge fan girl of the new Hannibal T.V. series, I was excited to get creeped out.
NOT RIGHT... Red Dragon turned out to be more of a character study, to me. It was not nearly as gruesome and detailed as the synopsis leads you to believe. There were a couple parts where things got exciting, but that's about it. Will Graham is not even a very developed character in the book and Hannibal Lecter doesn't make much of an appearance.
The focus of the story is after Will has caught Dr. Lecter and is now trying to catch a guy who calls himself the “Red Dragon”. The Red Dragon's mind is a crazy place the couple of times you get to see into it, I would have liked for the book to concentrate more on that aspect. Other than that it was just this happened then this happened then this happened. The plot is well developed but there was not much character development in any area. That's what bugged me.
Overall, this is a good story. But slightly annoying to read because most situations just don't get fleshed out as much as you would like. I would chalk it up to Thomas Harris being an author who has great story ideas but is not as great a writer as you might think.
I think I'll just keep watching the T.V. show with all their dapper suits.
The ending of this one is my least favorite of all the Strike books. Very lackluster. The story itself was very intricate and creative.. but the ending killed it for me.
I always try to read a book before I see the movie. However, I swore off all young adult fiction after reading the Twilight series. I actually had no desire to even see the Hunger Games movie until my husband watched it and told me it was pretty good. He was right!! So then I decided to read the entire series before I see any other movies.
The book didn't disappoint. I wouldn't say it was the most exciting book ever, but it did add a little more detail to what I've already seen in the movie and sets up an all around great idea for a series.
I really hate my head though, because of course as I was reading I pictured everything the way it was in the movie. District 12 looked like the gray rainy streets in the movie. Katniss was Jennifer Lawrence. Gale was Liam Hemsworth. Peeta was what's-his-name. I guess that's just the way it goes.
Some differences from the movie that I like in the book were:
1. Katniss's relationship with Cinna, her stylist. He really becomes one of the only people in training in the Capitol that she sees as a friend.
2. The expanding on Katniss faking her relationship with Peeta, especially at the end, after they have won. It turns her into less of a badass (I feel like the movie just focuses on her being a badass) and into a girl with a problem that she is going to have to face sooner or later.... can't wait to see how that's expanded on in Catching Fire.
3. The descriptions of the way the Capitol looks. I can't help but picturing it as the “Emerald City” in Wicked:The Musical. It's described as a place full of color and vibrace, a stark contrast from the Districts that all of the tributes come from.
4. Katniss's relationship with Rue is described in more detail and you feel the fierce protection that Katniss has for her after she comes to see her as the sister that she left behind.
If you have resorted to seeing the movies instead of reading the books, I say give it a shot! Take it from a YA hater... this first one was not disappointing. Suzanne Collins is a great writer... the plot never stops moving. She sometimes lacks description, but I maybe that will get better in the next books of the series.
I'm starting to figure out that there are some YA books out there worth reading.
Read more reviews at Great Minds Read Alike blog.
This was one of my favorites when I was younger... That being said, I don't recall many of the details. It's been a while. I believe a re-read is required.
This book is very cool. But very emotional. I love the way that it is organized from the beginning of childhood to the end of life. Some of these are funny, some liberating, and some extremely depressing. I loved the stories that some people emailed about their healing process after sharing their secret. So neat! Great, quick read!
This is a very poor account of the filming of the original Star Wars trilogy, as it was proclaimed to be. Instead it is a lot of whining about how Harrison Ford is hard to read.. so meh. Carrie Fisher is witty at times, and I was intrigued until it got to her diary entries. And then I just wanted to die rather than finish this little stomp down memory lane.
I love this series!! Although the second is still my favorite, this one was great as well! Further review to follow.
Not so bad. Not so great. Was really ready for it to end by about 70 pages from the end. The story line of this was good.. it just had so much potential to be full of emotion, and most of it fell flat.
Diaclaimer: I probably was also disappointed because of how much I loved The Language of Flowers.
I first found out about Felicia Day because I'm a Supernatural fangirl... but as soon as my husband saw her in Supernatural, he husband was like “OHMYGOD!!! It's the girl from The Guild!!!”. Me, of course, “What the heck is The Guild???” So since I fell so hard for Charlie (Felicia Day's character in Supernatural just in case you didn't know), I had to find out more and watch this Guild show. But... well... I'm not a gamer, so I'm sure I didn't appreciate all The Guild has to offer. My husband on the other hand does play WOW, and Felicia Day had a lot to do with my understanding of his gamer life.
While I'm not a gamer, I am a bit of a fandom nerd. So I count myself at least being worthy enough to read about Felicia Day's geekiness and understand at least most of what she is saying. And I'm glad I picked up her book because it was AMAZING. I've always seen her as the super cute, outgoing, confident, geeky girl that she is on screen. But apparently she's not always like that. Duh. The level of work that she had to put in to achieving her dream is pretty inspiring. She truly made me feel like I can achieve whatever I put my mind to.
This book really spoke to me, since I'm in a big transition period in my life. And even lately I have been embracing the world wide web and finding my corner in it via my bookshop which I hope to grow into even more!!! BECAUSE FELICIA DAY SAID I CAN... And if I ever make her a mug, apparently she will keep it forever!! Plus this book just felt like talking to a friend. I LOVE HER.
Amazing, adventurous read. I love this series. I think the detail and sense of adventure is comparable to the Lord of the Rings series. It's that good.