Wednesday, December 31, 2014
Reading Challenge!
So here's a reading challenge suggested by the lovely Raeleen of padfootandprongs07 :] Personally, I'm aiming to check at least 30 of these off so I can even further diversify my reading! I pasted the entire thing below for reference, so check it out c: I'll be updating this post as I go along my reading in 2015 so I can check stuff off.
Tuesday, December 30, 2014
Reading Goals for 2015
So 2014 is almost over, and I'm about done with my 2014 goal of reading 129 books (I'm on the 129th right now, which is the finale to the Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy by Laini Taylor!!). I'm going to finish Dreams of Gods and Monsters right after I finish this post, so yeah; stay tuned.
2014 was a really big year for me in terms of not only books, but also youtube. This was the year that I truly became an avid watcher of both youtube and also booktube, and whilst I'm not a creator, being a viewer is a huge part of my life. It's a way to stay connected to the world as a person who hasn't been out of her little township area in more than three years. It's a way to formulate opinions and get educated on modern events and things like feminism and activist movements. I connect through youtube, and I guess in way, I'm living my life by watching others live their lives. I'm so deeply connected to all these youtubers who for the most part don't even know I exist, and that's wonderful. The internet is a wonderful thing.
I became vegetarian on August 9th of 2014, because I watched a ten minute video on Youtube. That sole video changed my ENTIRE view on vegetarianism as well as animal rights and slaughterhouses, which I'm not going to get into because I know people get really touchy and annoyed about this subject. I just want to say that 2014 is the year that I finally got connected, and it was the year that I realized exactly how awful ignorance is. Anyway. Back to books.
Without booktube and Goodreads, I'm absolutely certain I never would've read the ginormous amount of books that I did. I think it's a feat, and I think I'm obligated to bragging rights simply because holy shit I read a lot. I found so many universes and I cried over fictional characters and their sorrows and I discovered tons of new authors. Reading is so beautiful, and while I've been actively reading for almost a decade now, I think 2014 is the year that I really pushed my limits.
A Little Reflection on 2014:
2014 was a really big year for me in terms of not only books, but also youtube. This was the year that I truly became an avid watcher of both youtube and also booktube, and whilst I'm not a creator, being a viewer is a huge part of my life. It's a way to stay connected to the world as a person who hasn't been out of her little township area in more than three years. It's a way to formulate opinions and get educated on modern events and things like feminism and activist movements. I connect through youtube, and I guess in way, I'm living my life by watching others live their lives. I'm so deeply connected to all these youtubers who for the most part don't even know I exist, and that's wonderful. The internet is a wonderful thing.
I became vegetarian on August 9th of 2014, because I watched a ten minute video on Youtube. That sole video changed my ENTIRE view on vegetarianism as well as animal rights and slaughterhouses, which I'm not going to get into because I know people get really touchy and annoyed about this subject. I just want to say that 2014 is the year that I finally got connected, and it was the year that I realized exactly how awful ignorance is. Anyway. Back to books.
Without booktube and Goodreads, I'm absolutely certain I never would've read the ginormous amount of books that I did. I think it's a feat, and I think I'm obligated to bragging rights simply because holy shit I read a lot. I found so many universes and I cried over fictional characters and their sorrows and I discovered tons of new authors. Reading is so beautiful, and while I've been actively reading for almost a decade now, I think 2014 is the year that I really pushed my limits.
Reading Goals for 2015:
1) Read 125 books in 2015. I was really pushing it in 2014 with 129 books, and while for the majority of 2014 I was around 10 books ahead of schedule, I helplessly fell behind in the latter years due to school. I was transitioning into a new school in which the workload was maybe double (which was as expected) but then I immersed myself in many extracurricular activities that I felt like I was drowning and burning out at exactly the same time.
I medicated this with Youtube, procrastinating work and trying to convince myself that OF COURSE I had tons of time (in which I didn't, and then I would just sleep less and be more cranky and stressed out and the cycle would continue) I avoided booktubing videos for over three months simply because I hated the pressure that I put upon myself to read. And that's going to change. I still want to read lot, and I'm not certain how the four book difference is really going to have that large of an impact, but I hope that I can pace myself better.
2) Read at least 38 books by authors of color (around 30% of the books I'm planning on reading) (Basically, read more diversely!!) I'm just starting to notice quite how non-diversely I read, and that's a problem. I want to change that, but I'm not certain just how drastically that's going to happen. I have many books on my tbr that I want to read in 2015, and which I've wanted to read for a long while and are not by people of color, and that's okay. I just want to read more diversely, so that's a goal that I'm setting that I can hopefully accomplish.
3) Read at least 10 non-manga graphic novels. In the whole of 2014, I think I've read probably less than three graphic novels, which is a huge source of shame for me. Graphic novels are awesome, and I can't believe I've barely picked up any. That's needs to change!
4) Attempt to read all the books in A Song of Ice and Fire that are released (A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings, etc) It's a huge regret that I never got to finish A Game of Thrones in 2014 (I'm around halfway through), and I really want to rectify that. I desperately want to watch the TV series, but I've vowed to myself that I wouldn't until I finished all the books that have been released so far in the series. So yeah. This goal's a stretch, but hopefully I can do it.
5) Reread the entire Percy Jackson series. I loved these when I was a kid, and I want to read the Heroes of Olympus, but I can't do that when I don't even truly remember any of the characters. I still remember some of it (jogged by the many Percabeth tumblr posts that roam my feed) but I need to become better acquainted with the whole thing.
So that's all for now. Hopefully I'll be updating and adding more goals as 2015 goes on, but that's all for now!
Monday, August 18, 2014
Review of The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness (CHAOS WALKING #2)
Check out my Bout of Books goals and updates :D
Patrick Ness and his cliffhangers will never fail to disappoint me. Ness is one of those authors that will almost certainly play with my emotions, whether I like it or not.
His writing is stellar, and the way he puts you inside of Todd and Viola's head is also quite stunning. I was drawn into this story in a way I haven't felt regarding books in a long time, and I applaud him for that. Ness made me feel all these sorts of conflicting emotions, and his writing style never fails to create inner turmoil. I understood Mayor Prentiss and Davy Prentiss in a completely different way than I saw them in the first book. I saw the less-evil side of them, although the faking-kindness side was a whole lot more prominent throughout this novel.
Whilst talking about Noise and Spackles and ships, Patrick Ness also talks about more deeper issues. There are so many underlying themes in this series, like genocide, feminsim, and even terrorism. People aren't always exactly as they seem, and I grew quite fond of Wilf throughout this book. I also grew to appreciate Viola, and I absolutely loved the dual point of view in this story. Patrick Ness deals with the issues of "good" and "bad" in a really remarkable way, and the almost numb storytelling from Todd in the majority of the book really opened me up to that.
I don't even know how to describe his writing except forcompletely magical.
This series is meant for children. Many books are meant for children--for adolescents who probably don't have anything else to do in their lives. So many people belittle that these days, saying that Young Adult novels are pointless and are only for happy fluffy feels. I'm sure the Goodreads community completely disagrees with that, and this is just another book to prove that. There are so many deeper issues that books like these portray in subtle ways, and they truly teach people lessons.
Why not? Because ...we are the choices we make
That resonated with me. Todd is constantly trying to prove himself, and his emotions are so crystal clear even while they are being blunted from the horrors in his life. Viola is just trying to pull through with the one she loves in a society that is so different and so biased against people like her. And I'm not only talking about women there, but a lot of other things. Because this book taught me that people are not simple. They cannot be defined, and the "sides" get blurred too often. Because, who was Davy Prentiss? On one hand, you could say he was evil and awful. He did pretty horrific things, but yet... he is so much more than that. And it saddens me to see people not able to see others complexly.
But Todd saw! Todd, the one who can't even read and continuously saves a Spack who wants to murder him. For Viola. To prove his inner goodness. That is what this book taught me, and I think that it is an essential lesson in life.
In this book, there was no "good" side. The Ask? Definitely not? The Answer? Debatalbe, but I believe that side wasn't fully good either. And that was the point! The point was that there are no good sides--ever--but there aren't any bad sides either. At least, that's how I interpreted it. And before I ramble any further, let me wrap up this review. Actual Rating: 4.2 stars
Patrick Ness and his cliffhangers will never fail to disappoint me. Ness is one of those authors that will almost certainly play with my emotions, whether I like it or not.
His writing is stellar, and the way he puts you inside of Todd and Viola's head is also quite stunning. I was drawn into this story in a way I haven't felt regarding books in a long time, and I applaud him for that. Ness made me feel all these sorts of conflicting emotions, and his writing style never fails to create inner turmoil. I understood Mayor Prentiss and Davy Prentiss in a completely different way than I saw them in the first book. I saw the less-evil side of them, although the faking-kindness side was a whole lot more prominent throughout this novel.
Whilst talking about Noise and Spackles and ships, Patrick Ness also talks about more deeper issues. There are so many underlying themes in this series, like genocide, feminsim, and even terrorism. People aren't always exactly as they seem, and I grew quite fond of Wilf throughout this book. I also grew to appreciate Viola, and I absolutely loved the dual point of view in this story. Patrick Ness deals with the issues of "good" and "bad" in a really remarkable way, and the almost numb storytelling from Todd in the majority of the book really opened me up to that.
I don't even know how to describe his writing except forcompletely magical.
This series is meant for children. Many books are meant for children--for adolescents who probably don't have anything else to do in their lives. So many people belittle that these days, saying that Young Adult novels are pointless and are only for happy fluffy feels. I'm sure the Goodreads community completely disagrees with that, and this is just another book to prove that. There are so many deeper issues that books like these portray in subtle ways, and they truly teach people lessons.
Why not? Because ...we are the choices we make
That resonated with me. Todd is constantly trying to prove himself, and his emotions are so crystal clear even while they are being blunted from the horrors in his life. Viola is just trying to pull through with the one she loves in a society that is so different and so biased against people like her. And I'm not only talking about women there, but a lot of other things. Because this book taught me that people are not simple. They cannot be defined, and the "sides" get blurred too often. Because, who was Davy Prentiss? On one hand, you could say he was evil and awful. He did pretty horrific things, but yet... he is so much more than that. And it saddens me to see people not able to see others complexly.
But Todd saw! Todd, the one who can't even read and continuously saves a Spack who wants to murder him. For Viola. To prove his inner goodness. That is what this book taught me, and I think that it is an essential lesson in life.
In this book, there was no "good" side. The Ask? Definitely not? The Answer? Debatalbe, but I believe that side wasn't fully good either. And that was the point! The point was that there are no good sides--ever--but there aren't any bad sides either. At least, that's how I interpreted it. And before I ramble any further, let me wrap up this review. Actual Rating: 4.2 stars
Friday, August 15, 2014
Review of Winger by Andrew Smith!
Rating:
Winger inspires me to succeed in life, and it does so through its humor and its sadness. Andrew Smith is an author who is genuinely hilarious, and with all those monotonous and dull books out there, it feels like a gem. Truly. Never have I met a book that I felt so eager to protect, almost like a... baby?
Okay. That got weird way too fast. Let's backtrack a bit.
This was a hunk of a book, and I picked it up a few hours ago and finished it just now. It distracted me from my completely essential summer work for school, but oh well, because it was pretty fantastic. And for the majority of the time, I acted like a madwoman, letting out bursts of laughter randomly and then shutting up and continuing to read. I loved the illustrations, the graphs, the comic-like drawings, and pretty much everything about it. Andrew Smith sure can channel my inner immature side and bring it out full force, and Ryan Dean was a pretty amazing protagonist.
I thought this would just be a light and fun read, but at the end, it turned out to be so much more. Yes, this book was hilarious and upbringing, but it also sent me in an emotional tailspin once I finished. I didn't know whether to laugh, cry, or just stare into silence and contemplate my life and everything around me. Obviously, I chose the latter.
The ending took me completely by surprise, and I don't really know how to properly express it into these tangible words that you can read and understand. But I'm going to try.
Winger shows life, and that scared me sometimes. It was fun, it was dark, it was almost foul sometimes, but isn't that life? Isn't that just exactly how life is supposed to be? When I finished, I was in complete shock. It got serious all too fast, and (view spoiler in original review) not in a bad way. But yes, it hurt. The ending hurt, but in one of those it-hit-me-right-in-the-feels type way, and not that-made-me-uncomfortable type way. Okay, now I'm just rambling,
So while I am a sucker for a happy ending (there is a reason The Blue Castle is one of my favorite books), the ones that impact me the most are the ones that let me cry. The ones where I sob and sob and sob until my face is just a mess of tears and snot (The Book Thief, anyone?) are the ones that usually end up being my favorites. Because if I can connect so much that a fictional character can have that kind of impact on me, that author has something right going on.
Wednesday, August 13, 2014
Bout of Books 11 Goals + Updates!
Yay, it's Bout of Books time! I've been reading quite slowly for the past few weeks because I've basically been studying for exams and things all day. But now I'm almost done with that whole shenanigans, and I only have one more exam to go (that I'll be taking in a few hours)! So hopefully I'll be able to sneak in lots of reading time while I'm volunteering at camp as a teacher, or just read a lot before and after camp. I'll be participating throughout the entire week (hopefully!), so let's just get on with it :)
My Goals for Bout of Books 11:
•Read all of the following 8 books (my more detailed goals are listed below):
• Participate in two or more challenges!
Detailed Book Goals:
- Finish Amelia Anne is Dead and Gone by Kat Rosenfield, The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness , Monsters of Men by Patrick Ness (optional, but knowing Ness and his cliffhangers, I'll most likely read it as well), Animal Farm by George Orwell, and A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines.
- Read at least 75% of A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin (to page 627).
- Read at least 50% of The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien (to page 199) and also read at least 50% of Perfect Ruin by Lauren DeStefano (to page 178).
So I just did the calculations, and I came to around a total of 2200 pages. Knowing me, it'll probably be even less because I'll be reading these 4 days before the read-a-ton as well. So I would say around 2100 pages in a seven day period (and yeah, I did that simply because I could do math more easily haha). This comes to around 300 pages a day, which I hope to achieve!
Monday, 5/18
Books Read Today: The Ask and the Answer, Monsters of Men, Animal Farm.
Completed: The Ask and the Answer
In-Progress: Monsters of Men and Animal Farm
Challenge: Completed 1 challenge: Book Scavenger Hunt. Check it out on the actual twitter page
Total Books Finished: 1
Total Pages Read: 50 pages of The Ask and the Answer, 116 pages of Animal Farm, and 17 pages of Monsters of Men = 183 pages
Notes: Not bad, considering I read a lot more than I thought I would before Bout of Books! Good progress so far :)
Tuesday, 5/19
Books Read Today: Animal Farm, Amelia Anne is Dead and Gone, Monsters of Men
Completed: Animal Farm
In-Progress: Monsters of Men and Amelia Anne is Dead and Gone
Challenge: In total, completed one (look above!)
Total Books Finished: 2
Total Pages Read: 24 pages of Animal Farm, 85 pages of Amelia Anne is Dead and Gone, and 195 pages of Monsters of Men = 304 pages
Notes: Yay! This is really good.
Wednesday, 5/14
Books Read Today: Monsters of Men
Completed: Monsters of Men
In-Progress: Amelia Anne is Dead and Gone
Challenge: Like This, Try This Bout of Books Challenge: If you like Reality Boy by A.S. King, you should try out Winger by Andrew Smith! Both are enthralling. They are both from a male's point of view, in which he is judged because of a certain aspect of his being, and in which he overcomes the judgement and will eventually succeed. Winger is hilarious, and a bonus is that the authors are actually great friends!
Total Books Finished: 3
Total Pages Read: 327 pages of Monsters of Men
Thursday, 5/15
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Completed:
In-Progress:
Challenge:
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Friday, 5/16
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Saturday, 5/17
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Sunday, 5/18
Books Read Today:
Completed:
In-Progress:
Challenge:
Total Books Finished:
Total Pages Read:
Books Read Today: The Ask and the Answer, Monsters of Men, Animal Farm.
Completed: The Ask and the Answer
In-Progress: Monsters of Men and Animal Farm
Challenge: Completed 1 challenge: Book Scavenger Hunt. Check it out on the actual twitter page
Total Pages Read: 50 pages of The Ask and the Answer, 116 pages of Animal Farm, and 17 pages of Monsters of Men = 183 pages
Notes: Not bad, considering I read a lot more than I thought I would before Bout of Books! Good progress so far :)
Tuesday, 5/19
Books Read Today: Animal Farm, Amelia Anne is Dead and Gone, Monsters of Men
Completed: Animal Farm
In-Progress: Monsters of Men and Amelia Anne is Dead and Gone
Challenge: In total, completed one (look above!)
Total Books Finished: 2
Total Pages Read: 24 pages of Animal Farm, 85 pages of Amelia Anne is Dead and Gone, and 195 pages of Monsters of Men = 304 pages
Notes: Yay! This is really good.
Wednesday, 5/14
Books Read Today: Monsters of Men
Completed: Monsters of Men
In-Progress: Amelia Anne is Dead and Gone
Challenge: Like This, Try This Bout of Books Challenge: If you like Reality Boy by A.S. King, you should try out Winger by Andrew Smith! Both are enthralling. They are both from a male's point of view, in which he is judged because of a certain aspect of his being, and in which he overcomes the judgement and will eventually succeed. Winger is hilarious, and a bonus is that the authors are actually great friends!
Total Books Finished: 3
Total Pages Read: 327 pages of Monsters of Men
Thursday, 5/15
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Completed:
In-Progress:
Challenge:
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Friday, 5/16
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Challenge:
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Saturday, 5/17
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Sunday, 5/18
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Tuesday, August 12, 2014
Bout of Books 11 is here!
Yay, Bout of Books 11 is starting next week ♥ So I'm going to participating in that, and you guys all should too :) It's actually happening the week that I'm going to be volunteering as a teacher for camp, but I plan on reading a lot anyway! Next post is probably going to be my goals and things, so stay tuned.
For all of you who don't know what Bout of Books is, here's the basic description:
For all of you who don't know what Bout of Books is, here's the basic description:
The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, August 18th and runs through Sunday, August 24th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 11 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team
It'll be extremely fun, and I can't wait ^^
Saturday, August 9, 2014
Review of Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
Rating: Four Heartbreaking Stars out of Five
Which is why I urge you, if you are considering reading this book, please stick around to at least page 215! That's asking a lot but once you're there, it is completely worth it! If you at least get to Maddie's point of view, it automatically gets better. Things starting making sense. Things start making sense in the most gut-wrenching and sob-inducing way possible.
Note: I will be referring to the main protagonist as Queenie, though her other main names include Verity and Julie.
This novel gets really confusing at points, especially with the switches from first person to third person, and the many different names and people that are mentioned. Although if you can persevere through all that, underneath is quite an elegant and moving story. The friendship between Maddie and Queenie is astonishingly beautiful, and I believe that this was one of the best books that focused purely on the intense, platonic love between the two. I was rooting for both characters to make it out of this novel alive, and I grew so close to Maddie in just the first portion of the novel, simply through Queenie's words and actions. Queenie was truly an amazing character, and if I had ever been in anything like the situation she was in, I wouldn't have been even a quarter as brave as she was.
Maddie was an equally strong character, and the firm way she deals with everything (especially all the discrimination because she was a female pilot, something uncommon at the time) was very admirable. Both friends were so strong and so caring, despite their horrible and unforgiving circumstances. Everything felt so genuine, especially all the codes and locations Queenie gave out. It was so real that at time, it became confusing. This truly doesn't even feel anything like a YA novel, and the plot twists really had my head spinning. Wein was so good at crafting plot twists that not only excited me, but even simultaneously horrified me.
It was quite difficult to get through this novel. It was painful, and I probably will never read it again because of that. And once I realized just how cunning Queenie was, it hurt even more. Code Name Verity was just such a strong and memorable novel, and I don't know any other way to describe it.
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