Sunday, July 29, 2012

Spotlight Sunday!! Book Challenges

So every Sunday I would really like to do a Sunday Spotlight. It will be about whatever has really caught my attention and what I kind of want to shine a light on. It probably won't always be about book related things, but most of them will I'm sure. :)

This Sunday, what I really wanted to put a spotlight on would be the book challenges that I am a part of and going to do/try. I really like book challenges because they really push you to accomplish more in reading more books, reading different books, and even really looking at the impact books have made in your life.

There are a couple challenges that I am going to be doing:

1. Goodreads.com 2012 Reading Challenge

Even though I am starting the challenge half-way through the year, I have decided that I really want to try and finish reading 50 books by the end of the year! I go back to classes in September, so it's going to be interesting to see how many I can finish! If you have a goodreads account, I definitely recommend checking out this challenge and picking out how many books you want to read by the end of the year and you can choose any number you want! (And if you don't have an account, I TOTALLY recommend getting one! It is a HUGE book community :)  )



2. 30 Day Book Challenge


I found this challenge from http://heckyeahtumblrchallenges.tumblr.com/post/6376613719/30-day-book-and-literature-challenge . Every day for thirty days, you answer a certain question such as -favorite author, -favorite books, etc. I definitely want to try doing this challenge! It will definitely be a lot of work updating this everyday, but I like the challenge of doing that! I'm hoping to start this challenge on Wednesday, the 1st :)



3. Tea Books Reading Challenge


I found this challenge on a fellow blog, http://the-book-garden.blogspot.com/p/tea-books-reading-challenge.html This challenge is probably going to be the hardest actually. In this challenge you try to read as many books over 700 pages as you can and then you have different Tea labeled levels for how many you have read. My REAL challenge for this will be finding books large enough that I am actually interested in reading...we're going to have to see how this goes, but I love tea and books, so I thought it would be fun to try!




Are you a part of any book challenges? Have you tried any? Feel free to link any book challenges that you really liked!!

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Book Clubs...Are They Worth It??

I will admit it. I used to think that book clubs were for stay at home moms or older adults who needed something else in their lives to occupy themselves. Which is exactly how they are portrayed in the media.

BUT...is that what they really are?

Today, there are SO many more options for book clubs. There are the social media outlets to connect everyone all at once. Skype, Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, etc. With the internet, there is no longer so much of a need to all get together at someone's house and make snacks and sit around a living room to talk about a book.

I am currently in two different book clubs on Goodreads.com. If you want to check them out they are Basically Books and Reading With Tequila. I actually really love my book clubs! I don't always like the books that the pick, but the thing that I love the most, is that I get to read books that I would never have otherwise picked out for myself and sometimes find some real gems!

I have always been a very big believer in widening your gaze and opening your mind to further options and possibilities. Everyone always has their favorite genre and author and books, but there is always room to expand your horizons. Maybe you won't like the book, then don't finish it if you don't want to. Put out on the discussion that you didn't like it. It's as easy as that.

You don't have to read all of the books. You don't have to finish them all. But you should at least try to try new things and see what else you might like.

You are never going to know if you like something else if you never try it!

Library Haulin' It!!!

So I just picked up a BUNCH of books from my local library, well kind of from there haha. I am really lucky in that my library is connected to all of the libraries in my county and two or three other surrounding counties. It is REALLY nice because even if I don't have a book available at the library in my town, it is more than likely available at one nearby. This also makes it so that there are more copies of popular books available!

I really think that people underestimate how helpful and convenient a library really is in this day and age!

I just go on to a website that is my connection to my library system and I order every book that I want on there and then I go and pick them up when my library calls me that they are ready. This is especially handy because I cannot seem to find ANYTHING when looking on the shelf at the library in my home town.

Here are the books that I have out from the library right now!

 

 
 

Thursday, July 19, 2012

The Book Fairy Challenge

So I came up with this challenge all by myself :)

I was thinking about the books that I really wanted to add to my collection and there are just sooo many! I wish I had a fairy Godmother to get me them all....unfortunately I don't.

Then I got an idea! I would make a challenge for myself to make a wish list for a "Book Fairy." But how to make it challenging? Hmmm....well first, I would have to limit how many books I would be able to get. Still wayyy too easy. I got it! Since I happen to want a lot of series, I would limit myself to only one book from an author. So here's my list that I would give to a Book Fairy..

1. The Emperor's Tomb by Steve Berry -My FAVORITE author. This is the next book of his that I do not own yet, an absolute must have for my collection.

2. Matched by Allie Condie -I have been eyeing this book and this trilogy since it came out, I just haven't gotten it yet! Definitely a series I want to read and I think I would love to have in my collection.

3. Delirium by Lauren Oliver -Another book trilogy series that I have been wanting to read. I saw a review from EllesGlitterGossip on youtube.com. The book sounds amazing and I really want to have it!!

4. Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang by Chelsea Handler -I LOVE Chelsea Handler. I have her first two books. Not only is she a good author, but she is HILARIOUS! I watch her show all the time too and I just can't get enough. This book is for sure a must have for me.

5. For the Love of Hades by Sasha Summers -This is a book that I just recently found out about. I am pretty obsessed with mythology, I even took a class last fall on it. Hades and Persephone are one of my favorite myths, and I am SO excited to read this book as well as the other ones in her series (this is the second one and hasn't come out yet).

So those are the 5 books that I REALLY want to add to my collection. What books would you have a Book Fairy give you if you could only have 5 and only 1 from an author?? Feel free to tag others and do this challenge yourself! Leave a comment with which books you would pick or a link to your own post of this challenge!!

Sunday, July 15, 2012

Things I am Loving!!

So there are a few things that I've really been loving lately! There are some things that just make reading more enjoyable. These are just a few of the things that have been making reading easier and more fun even for me the past few weeks :)

(Sorry the picture is sideways, I don't know how to change it)
The NUMBER 1 thing that is making my reading so much easier and fun are my new bookmarks! Now I have been a LONG time reader and the number one problem that I seem to ever have is finding a GOOD bookmark. Seriously, how hard should it be to find a good bookmark? Usually, I just end up using whatever scrap paper to keep my space in my book, (I absolutely hate folding down corners on books, it bothers me and I feel like it ruins the pages). BUT my amazing mother found me these amazing bookmarks! They are just soooo cute, and they are pretty much the perfect bookmark for me. You can put them on the top of the page, on the side, wherever and they are thin enough that they do not put an indent in the pages either. Either way, I'm totally in love with these bookmarks, now if only I could find a set with penguins :)

The next thing that I am really loving, is my local library. My local library has a system where they are connected to a bunch of other libraries in our area. So even if my library does not have a book, more than likely, another library in my area will! As a broke college student, the library is my best friend. I unfortunately cannot afford to buy all of the books that I want to read and I obviously still want to read them, so the library has become my best friend. It is also very convenient, because my library has a website that you can do everything from. I don't even have to go to the library until my books are ready for me to pick them up.


The final thing that I am really loving right now, is one of the books I own. It is The Charlemagne Pursuit by Steve Berry. Steve Berry just so happens to be my FAVORITE author! He writes Mystery/Thrillers. The thing that really keeps me so interested in all of his books is the connection to historical people, places, and artifacts. This book is about the pursuit of a possible original culture, which involves information collected by the Nazis, a book found in the Roman emperor Charlemagne's tomb, and Antarctica. I love it. It has totally taken over reading my other books.

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Pointless?


Title: The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
Author: Douglas Adams
Time it took to read: 2 days
Rating 2 out of 5
So I am not the biggest Sci-fi fan. I read this book for one of my Goodread book clubs, and that’s why I read it. So many people say that this is such a classic read that everyone should read it, but honestly I don’t see why anyone should read this book. Just so you know, I have seen the movie before reading this book. All I even remember from the movie is some weird guy with three arms. The movie is not worth it at all. The book is barely worth it more than the movie.
Maybe it is just the writer’s style, but they sound like an idiot. The whole book is pretty much pointlessly about the Earth being destroyed and how one man got off the Earth before it was destroyed and his bungling adventures. I don’t know, maybe the book series gets better, but I just really didn’t like the book much. It was so easy to finish because it took fewer brain cells to read than to work facebook. 
If it’s your kind of thing, then fine, but it’s not mine.

Saturday, July 7, 2012

Secret Society Girl Series

So this is a book series that I am in LOVE with! I have only read the first three books out of the four because my library system doesn't have the fourth one :(

Book 1: Secret Society Girl
Author: Diana Peterfreund
Time to read: within two days
Rating: 5 out of 5

From the back: In a fabulous blend of the bestselling traditions of Prep and The Devil Wears PradaSecret Society Girl takes us into the heart of the Ivy League’s ultraexclusive secret societies when a young woman is invited to join as one of their first female members. 

Elite Eli University junior Amy Haskel never expected to be tapped into Rose & Grave, the country’s most powerful—and notorious—secret society. She isn’t rich, politically connected, or…well, male. 

So when Amy receives the distinctive black-lined invitation with the Rose & Grave seal, she’s blown away. Could they really mean her? 

Whisked off into an initiation rite that’s a blend of Harry Potter and Alfred Hitchcock, Amy awakens the next day to a new reality and a whole new set of “friends”—from the gorgeous son of a conservative governor to an Afrocentric lesbian activist whose society name is Thorndike. And that’s when Amy starts to discover the truth about getting what you wish for. Because Rose & Grave is quickly taking her away from her familiar world of classes and keggers, fueling a feud, and undermining a very promising friendship with benefits. And that’s before Amy finds out that her first duty as a member of Rose & Grave is to take on a conspiracy of money and power that could, quite possibly, ruin her whole life.

A smart, sexy introduction to the life and times of a young woman in way over her head, Secret Society Girl is a charming and witty debut from a writer who knows her turf—and isn’t afraid to tell all....


That last sentence describes the whole series. You go along with Amy as she tries to find her place in her society and beat all the opposition that comes her way. Witty is probably the best way to describe the author's style. 

The writing is wonderful, but it is the characters that keep you interested. Sometimes you want to just smack the main character over the head, but you cannot help but love her and root for her every step of the way. In the second and third books, the part that really kept my attention and made me love the books soooo much, was the character development. If there is one thing I love in a book, it is character development where you learn more and begin to like the characters more as the story goes on. If every writer wrote characters like this author, I would have a really hard time finding a book that I didn't like!

Book 2: Under the Rose
-same author
-same amount of time to read
-and same rating :)

Book 2 follows Amy as one of her pledge members, unknown to the rest, tries to tell Rose & Grave's secrets to the world, one of her sisters disappears, and they uncover a more sinister plot that may destroy the whole society.

Book 3: Rites of Spring (Break)
-same author
-same amount of time to read
-and same rating :)

Book 3 follows Amy to a private secret society Spring Break where someone is trying to sabotage the girls of Rose & Grave and may even lead to more harm than intended.

A wonderful book series with intrigue and a little romance along the way ;) I would definitely recommend this series to anyone!

Friday, July 6, 2012

Welcome to Rendezvous with a Book




Hi! So this is my new blog. Duh :)


I just really wanted a place where I can review and talk about books. As a college student, reading for pleasure often gets put to the curb in place of ANYTHING that doesn't involve reading after trying to wade through thick textbooks. I have always loved to read though and I consider it an important part of my life.


I have a Goodreads.com account where I keep track of my book list that I have down so far of what I have read and want to read, but I am always open to suggestions! Please feel free to ask for a book review on a book that you would like to possibly read and might do a review on the book! Also, please feel free to read the same books, or if you have already read them, let me know what you think! It's always good to hear other people's view of the same story.


My book reviews will be my honest opinions about how I feel about the book. Not everyone may agree with me, but just like a perfume, not everyone experiences a book in the same way. I do give a rating on a 1-5 scale with 5 being Totally Awesome! and 1 being that I Absolutely Hate it. I do not have any specific way of how I chose that number, just how I felt towards the book.  


Reading is such a personal journey. The reason I love to read is because reading is my escape into the world of what could be, with heroes and mysteries and love around every corner.


Add me as a friend on Goodreads.com! (A great site for book lovers): http://www.goodreads.com/Honesuckle0314

Or follow me on Tumblr (I put up my book reviews as well as other random things on there as well): http://www.tumblr.com/blog/honesuckle0314