Back by popular demand, the 2009 Chick Lit Challenge has been expanded for the whole year! From January 1 through December 31, 2009, read at least 10 chick lit books. Books can overlap with other challenges and you can change your list at any time.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Chick Lit 2009
Back by popular demand, the 2009 Chick Lit Challenge has been expanded for the whole year! From January 1 through December 31, 2009, read at least 10 chick lit books. Books can overlap with other challenges and you can change your list at any time.
Vampire Challenge
As if I need another challenge but here's another one I'll be doing. Orginal post from cozymurders
Vampire Challenge
What?
For the Vampire Challenge you will read books with vampires - romance, YA, paranormal, mysteries - anything, as long as there's a or two (or more) vampire in it.
When?
The challenge will start January 1, 2009 and end December 31, 2009.
How?
The goal is to read 2+ books with vampires in 2009, that's it. It's fairly easy, I think. For some inspiration check out cosymurders post on vampires in books.
For the Vampire Challenge you will read books with vampires - romance, YA, paranormal, mysteries - anything, as long as there's a or two (or more) vampire in it.
When?
The challenge will start January 1, 2009 and end December 31, 2009.
How?
The goal is to read 2+ books with vampires in 2009, that's it. It's fairly easy, I think. For some inspiration check out cosymurders post on vampires in books.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Monday, January 19, 2009
Friday Finds
Friday Finds
Here are books that I have heard about/or discover this week? Needless to say, they're now on my wish list.
The Rape of Nanking by Iris Chang
Sunday, January 18, 2009
My Book Collection
I love books. I always have. There was a period of my life growing up when I had so much to deal with that it took all I had to make it through the day. Needless to say my love of reading became non existant. Then one day my mom decided to go to the bookstore. They had a table of discounted books. One of those books was Desperation by Richard Bachman aka Stephen King. It was a hardcover for only $5. Desperation is around 500 pages long and I read it in one night. From that point on my love affair with books have not only been rekindled but has grown into a near obsession. Here a look at my shelves.
The above picture is of my tallest bookshelf. The books are stacked 3 deep! These are mostly romances and a little mystery or crime fiction.
The above picture is of my tallest bookshelf. The books are stacked 3 deep! These are mostly romances and a little mystery or crime fiction.
The above picture is of my ubran lit/or street lit books with a little general and YA fiction on the bottom shelf.
The above picture is of my classic, horror and nonfiction books.
There are also a few book on the shelf of my coffee table (I know, right!). Right now I think I own around 500 books and add at least one new book a month.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Little Children by Tom Perrotta
Little Children
by Tom Perrotta
rating: 3.5 stars
Audio Book 10cds 11.5 hours
back cover:
Meet Todd, the handsome stay-at-home dad dubbed "The Prom King" by the moms at the playground, and his wife, Kathy, a documentary filmmaker envious of the connection Todd has forged with their toddler son. And there's Sarah, a lapsed feminist surprised to find she's become a typical wife in a traditional marriage, and her husband, Richard, who is becoming more and more involved with an internet fantasy life than with his own wife and child. And then there's Mary Ann, who has life all figured out, down to a scheduled roll in the hay with her husband every Tuesday at nine P.M.
They all raise their kids in the kind of quiet suburb where nothing ever seems to happen—until one eventful summer, when a convicted child molester moves back to town, and two parents begin an affair that goes further than either of them could ever have imagined.
My Review
The title of the book is misleading. I thought the book would be about children instead it was about the adults not being happy with the lives. There are two main characters are Todd and Sarah. They engage in an affair under the guise of having play dates with their kids. Todd is unhappy with trying to pass the bar, for he never really wanted to be a lawyer in the first place. Sarah married her husband on the rebound from another relationship after having a pretty dismal after college life. He was escaping from the pressure of face a life he didn't want and Sarah was a different change of pace. Sarah was thrilled to find that someone as good looking as Todd was interested with her. Towards the end of the book they had made a plan to runaway together leaving their families behind. Then events happen to curtail their plan. Todd realized that he really didn't want to leave his family and that he would miss his son terribly. Sarah husband had went away on a trip and decided not to come back. Sarah realized how unfit and selfish a parent she had been. Throughout the novel is a story about a child molester moving into the neighborhood. He actually didn't do much in the book in fact he was the one being harassed. At the end of the book he confessed to molesting and killing a child.
by Tom Perrotta
rating: 3.5 stars
Audio Book 10cds 11.5 hours
back cover:
Meet Todd, the handsome stay-at-home dad dubbed "The Prom King" by the moms at the playground, and his wife, Kathy, a documentary filmmaker envious of the connection Todd has forged with their toddler son. And there's Sarah, a lapsed feminist surprised to find she's become a typical wife in a traditional marriage, and her husband, Richard, who is becoming more and more involved with an internet fantasy life than with his own wife and child. And then there's Mary Ann, who has life all figured out, down to a scheduled roll in the hay with her husband every Tuesday at nine P.M.
They all raise their kids in the kind of quiet suburb where nothing ever seems to happen—until one eventful summer, when a convicted child molester moves back to town, and two parents begin an affair that goes further than either of them could ever have imagined.
My Review
The title of the book is misleading. I thought the book would be about children instead it was about the adults not being happy with the lives. There are two main characters are Todd and Sarah. They engage in an affair under the guise of having play dates with their kids. Todd is unhappy with trying to pass the bar, for he never really wanted to be a lawyer in the first place. Sarah married her husband on the rebound from another relationship after having a pretty dismal after college life. He was escaping from the pressure of face a life he didn't want and Sarah was a different change of pace. Sarah was thrilled to find that someone as good looking as Todd was interested with her. Towards the end of the book they had made a plan to runaway together leaving their families behind. Then events happen to curtail their plan. Todd realized that he really didn't want to leave his family and that he would miss his son terribly. Sarah husband had went away on a trip and decided not to come back. Sarah realized how unfit and selfish a parent she had been. Throughout the novel is a story about a child molester moving into the neighborhood. He actually didn't do much in the book in fact he was the one being harassed. At the end of the book he confessed to molesting and killing a child.
The Sisters of APF by Zane
The Sisters of APFby Zane
rating: 3 stars
pages:
back cover:Mary Ann is the daughter of a chicken farmer from South Dakota. She has never been more than fifty miles from home and has led a sheltered life. By the time she goes off to college in Washington, D.C., she has been intimate with only one man -- her high school sweetheart. The resident manager of Mary Ann's dormitory, Patricia, befriends the country bumpkin. She finds Mary Ann amusing, but also senses something intriguing about her, hidden under the surface. After Mary Ann becomes smitten with Trevor, the campus playboy, Patricia is determined to show Mary Ann how not to be a victim, but rather how to outdo the players and heartbreakers. She indoctrinates Mary Ann into the ranks of the sexiest secret society ever: the sisters of APF.
I found this book a bit interesting and it certainly brought the emotions. Mosty frustation. The book is suppose to be about women letting go their sexual inhabitations and owning their bodies. I am all for that. The characters in this novel were sluts and actually I don't have a problem with that either. It is anyone choice to sleep with however many people they chose. The problem I had with this book is the way the women had no problems cheating on the boyfriends or husbands as well as no qualms about whether the men they are sleeping with at the orgies are in relationships. That to me is not a sexual revolvolution but common slut actions.
To be sexual free is to be honest with the people you are sexually involved with. And to be an adult is to be responsible and respectful to yourself as well as those around you. To me that respect extends to other people relationships. Yes, I did like the book overall but I will probably not read it again.
Turbulent Sea by Christine Feehan
Turbulent Sea
by Christine Feehan
rating: 3.5 stars
Audio Book 12cds 14hours 4minutes
The star: Joley Drake was born with a legacy of unexpected magical gifts, but it was the gift of singing that made her an overnight sensation—a rock and roll goddess trapped by fame, fortune, and ambition. Heated by the flush of success, Joley could have any man she wanted. But there’s only man who can give her what she really needs.
The bodyguard: Ilya Prakenskii, cool, inscrutable, dangerously sexy, and working in the shadow of his infamous reputation—that of a secret Russian hit man on the payroll of a notorious mobster. He’s the last man Joley should get close to, yet when her life is threatened on tour she has nowhere left to turn. But in the seductive safe keep of Ilya’s embrace, is Joley really as secure as she imagines?
The bodyguard: Ilya Prakenskii, cool, inscrutable, dangerously sexy, and working in the shadow of his infamous reputation—that of a secret Russian hit man on the payroll of a notorious mobster. He’s the last man Joley should get close to, yet when her life is threatened on tour she has nowhere left to turn. But in the seductive safe keep of Ilya’s embrace, is Joley really as secure as she imagines?
Shopaholic & Sister by Sophie Kinsella
Shopaholic & Sister
by Sophie Kinsella
rating 3 stars
Audio Book 5cds 6hours
back cover:
What’s a round-the-world honeymoon if you can’t buy the odd souvenir to ship back home? Like the twenty silk dressing gowns Becky found in Hong Kong…the hand-carved dining table (and ten chairs) from Sri Lanka…the, um, huge wooden giraffes from Malawi (that her husband Luke expressly forbade her to buy)… Only now Becky and Luke have returned home to London and Luke is furious. Two truckloads of those souvenirs have cluttered up their loft, and the bills for them are outrageous. Luke insists Becky go on a budget. And worse: her beloved best friend Suze has found a new best friend while Becky was away. Becky’s feeling rather blue—when her parents deliver some incredible news. She has a long-lost sister! Becky is thrilled! She’s convinced her sister will be a true soulmate. They’ll go shopping together, have manicures together.…Until she meets Jessica for the first time and gets the shock of her life. Surely Becky Bloomwood’s sister can’t…hate shopping?
by Sophie Kinsella
rating 3 stars
Audio Book 5cds 6hours
back cover:
What’s a round-the-world honeymoon if you can’t buy the odd souvenir to ship back home? Like the twenty silk dressing gowns Becky found in Hong Kong…the hand-carved dining table (and ten chairs) from Sri Lanka…the, um, huge wooden giraffes from Malawi (that her husband Luke expressly forbade her to buy)… Only now Becky and Luke have returned home to London and Luke is furious. Two truckloads of those souvenirs have cluttered up their loft, and the bills for them are outrageous. Luke insists Becky go on a budget. And worse: her beloved best friend Suze has found a new best friend while Becky was away. Becky’s feeling rather blue—when her parents deliver some incredible news. She has a long-lost sister! Becky is thrilled! She’s convinced her sister will be a true soulmate. They’ll go shopping together, have manicures together.…Until she meets Jessica for the first time and gets the shock of her life. Surely Becky Bloomwood’s sister can’t…hate shopping?
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
The Boss's Christmas Baby by Trish Morey
The Boss's Christmas Baby
Trish Morey
rating: 3 stars
pages: 180
Book Description:
The Yuletide childTegan Fielding is supposed to be masquerading as her twin, not sleeping with her sister's boss! But James Maverick is too sexy to resist. She'll be his mistress—Yet he doesn't know who she really is.
The deception must end; Tegan is falling for the tycoon, and as Christmas approaches she has some news. How will James react when he finds his convenient mistress is expecting a special, seasonal delivery?
My Review:
Morgan and Tegan are twins. When Morgan is denied a week vacation she asks her sister to assume her place. Maverick, Morgan's boss, is suppose to be out of the country on business but to Tegan's surprise is back in the office. Now she is face with the task of not only trying pose as her sister but fight the oh-so-obvious attraction she has for him.
She finally gets through the week only to find out that Morgan has broken leg and is unable to make it back home. Tegan now know that she is in trouble and its name is Maverick. They finally decide to let the fling happening thinking that it would run it course in couple of weeks.
But most things hidden usaully get found. Tegan is pregnant, Morgan comes home early, Maverick is at the door facing the two them. Romance ending standard where Tegan and Maverick fall in love.
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Butterfly Award
Desert Rose from Desert Rose Booklouge has awarded me another award "for the coolest blog I ever know" Thanks!!! I'm glad someone is checking my site out...yay!
This is a meme award to be passed on.
The rules are:
1. Post the logo on your blog
2. Add link to the person who awarded it to you
3. Award up to 10 blogs
4. Add links to those blogs in your award post
5. Leave a message for awardee on their blog
This is a meme award to be passed on.
The rules are:
1. Post the logo on your blog
2. Add link to the person who awarded it to you
3. Award up to 10 blogs
4. Add links to those blogs in your award post
5. Leave a message for awardee on their blog
so here are my picks
1. Michele at A Reader's Respite
2. Monique at The Little Reading Nook
3. ewe_will_write at Pound a Pound
4. Bella Foxx at Bella is reading . . .
5. bookoholic13 at Bookoholic's Boklista
6. kolibri at a young lady's book lounge
8. Leila at black girl with long hair
9.Alyce at At Home With Books
10.Ames at Thrifty Reader
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Wedding Belles by Haywood Smith
Wedding Belles
by Haywood Smith
rating 3.5 stars
from back cover:
Georgia, Linda, Diane, Teeny, and Pru have been best friends since high school, and never have they needed one another more. Georgia’s precious twenty-eight-year-old daughter, Callie, has gone and gotten engaged. Usually this would be cause for celebration. After all, this is the South, where dreams of white dresses and wedding bells are as important as finding the perfect hat. But Callie’s intended groom just happens to be a man they went to high school and college with: Wild Man Wade! These women know more about the groom than the bride does. His drunken shenanigans. His wild oats. And all of his conquests as well as his mistakes. They can imagine him in the most inappropriate of circumstances, but not as a son-in-law!
With absolutely hilarious Southern observances and dead-on wit about mothers, daughters, marriage, and families, Wedding Belles will have you laughing and crying whether you live above or below the Mason-Dixon line
My Review
Georgia has been told by her daughter that she plans to marry 60 year old Wade. Wade is Callie's father best friend. Needless to say, Georgia is none to happy about this. She tries to think of ways to make this wedding not happen. Wade is a recovering alocholic and is just not the type of man she imagine her daughter to be with.
Against the advice of her friends she gets someone to delve into Wade's background. Or rather she asks her friend to find someone for her. She justifies this action thinking that its her job as a mother to find out if Wade has any skeltons in his closet. Eventually Callie finds the file and completely blows up at the mother. Stating that she no longer had a mother and that she did not want her attending any of the engagement parties or the wedding.
At the suggestion of her husband Georgia attends the next event. And though Callie is still giving her the cold shoulder, she agreed mostly because Wade asked her to, to let her be apart of the events but that it didn't mean that there relationship has changed, Georgia is still disowned as her mother.
Finally on the day of the wedding mother and daughter make a mend. The truth about Wade and all the questionable things in his past are pieced together.
The highlights of this book for me were the parts that included the Red Hat Club meetings, especially the jokes.
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Pages for Pounds
Pages for Pounds
The main link for this challenge could be found here ..
Is your TBR overflowing off your shelves? Have you vowed not to buy any books until you read the ones you already own? Did you just receive a lot of books over the holidays? Or maybe, like me, you just have page after page after page of books on your shelfari "Plans to Read" list. If you consider your TBR pile or list to be "overweight" this challenge is for you!*
Pages for Pounds is a fairly basic challenge.
It's quite simple:
1. Take the books on your TBR list
2. Read them
3. Weigh the book using a kitchen scale or go to amazon.com and check the shipping weight.
4. Twice a month report the amount of weight you've read
5. At the end of the challenge see how much weight you've taken off your TBR pile!
See? Fairly simple.You don't need to sign up for this challenge. You may join at any time.
Pages for Pounds officially starts on January 1, 2009 and will end on February 28, 2009.
The official winner is the member of The Challenged Reader who has lost the most weight during the challenge. Even if you aren't declared the winner you're still a winner to have tackled some weight from your TBR!
Throughout the challenge there may be occasional opportunities to lose some extra weight. I won't tell you how just yet, but you'll find out when these opportunities arise.
There will be check-ins twice a month to report your progress and for the admins. to tally up the pounds. Only report the books that are finished. If you're still reading a book save it until the next check-in. All books count. There isn't any specific criteria just read what you want to read and what's already on your TBR (or any new books you can't possible refrain from adding to your TBR). Since you don't need to sign up for this challenge whenever you join just post your results at the next check-in.
Please report the weight of the actual edition you read. If you read a hardback you can report the weight of the hardpack. If it's a paperback, or mass market edition report the weight of those particular books. Audiobooks count as well. For audiobooks the weight is the weight of the audiobook itself. You can weight the audiobook in the case or use amazon.com. During the check-ins post if it was a hardback, paperback, mass market, audiobook, or electronic reader edition.
There won't be any prizes given to the winner, but you will receive bragging rights and if you have a blog or a webpage a special graphic to show off your dedication to reducing your TBR.
Any questions? Feel free to let us know!
* Even if you don't consider your shelf or list to be overweight and, unlike a lot of us, are able to refrain from buying books that consume all your space, you may still participate in all the fun. =P
Okay, for books read on Kindle, or any other electronic reader, we decided to use the mass market paperback edition (or if it's only available in regular paperback, then that one). We decided that since both electronic readers and mass markets are easily carried around those would count the same.
Books with weight
Shopaholic & Sister 3.5 ounces
The Boss's Christmas Baby 0.8 ounces
The main link for this challenge could be found here ..
Is your TBR overflowing off your shelves? Have you vowed not to buy any books until you read the ones you already own? Did you just receive a lot of books over the holidays? Or maybe, like me, you just have page after page after page of books on your shelfari "Plans to Read" list. If you consider your TBR pile or list to be "overweight" this challenge is for you!*
Pages for Pounds is a fairly basic challenge.
It's quite simple:
1. Take the books on your TBR list
2. Read them
3. Weigh the book using a kitchen scale or go to amazon.com and check the shipping weight.
4. Twice a month report the amount of weight you've read
5. At the end of the challenge see how much weight you've taken off your TBR pile!
See? Fairly simple.You don't need to sign up for this challenge. You may join at any time.
Pages for Pounds officially starts on January 1, 2009 and will end on February 28, 2009.
The official winner is the member of The Challenged Reader who has lost the most weight during the challenge. Even if you aren't declared the winner you're still a winner to have tackled some weight from your TBR!
Throughout the challenge there may be occasional opportunities to lose some extra weight. I won't tell you how just yet, but you'll find out when these opportunities arise.
There will be check-ins twice a month to report your progress and for the admins. to tally up the pounds. Only report the books that are finished. If you're still reading a book save it until the next check-in. All books count. There isn't any specific criteria just read what you want to read and what's already on your TBR (or any new books you can't possible refrain from adding to your TBR). Since you don't need to sign up for this challenge whenever you join just post your results at the next check-in.
Please report the weight of the actual edition you read. If you read a hardback you can report the weight of the hardpack. If it's a paperback, or mass market edition report the weight of those particular books. Audiobooks count as well. For audiobooks the weight is the weight of the audiobook itself. You can weight the audiobook in the case or use amazon.com. During the check-ins post if it was a hardback, paperback, mass market, audiobook, or electronic reader edition.
There won't be any prizes given to the winner, but you will receive bragging rights and if you have a blog or a webpage a special graphic to show off your dedication to reducing your TBR.
Any questions? Feel free to let us know!
* Even if you don't consider your shelf or list to be overweight and, unlike a lot of us, are able to refrain from buying books that consume all your space, you may still participate in all the fun. =P
Okay, for books read on Kindle, or any other electronic reader, we decided to use the mass market paperback edition (or if it's only available in regular paperback, then that one). We decided that since both electronic readers and mass markets are easily carried around those would count the same.
Books with weight
Shopaholic & Sister 3.5 ounces
The Boss's Christmas Baby 0.8 ounces
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