August Readathon Participation Announcement (Monsterthon and Bout of Books)

There are two read-a-thons that are going on this month: the montsterthon and Bout of Books.  The first one is the Monsterthon which is going on from August 4 until August 10th.  Here is a blurb about that:

The Monster Read and Review-a-thons are a great chance for us all to get together, read some fabulous reads, and get to those reviews that we know have been sitting there waiting to be done for a little too long. You can read as much as you want. Review till you cannot review anymore. Whatever works best for you! In addition to the Thons, we will be hosting some fun related challenges, great prizes, and a Twitter party.

Basically, you can pick whether you want to do a review-a-thon or a read-a-thon, or both!  I am choosing to do both because typically I review a book right after I read the book.  It helps me to remember everything that I want to say about a book.  More information about this readathon can be found here.

The second read-a-thon that I will be participating in is the Bout of Books 11 which runs from August 18th until August 24.  This is the first week of classes for college so I do not know how much I will be reading for this read-a-thon.  You may remember that I participated in Bout of Books 10.0 a month or so ago.  I had a blast during that readathon because it was super interactive and there always seemed to be people tweeting about the read-a-thon.  I am excited to be participating in another one.  For those of you who have not heard about this read-a-thon, here is a blurb:

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

Be sure to check out the Bout of Books blog for more information.  You need to sign up for this read-a-thon.  It is amazing!

For both of these read-a-thons, I will be preparing one TBR list for now.  I will also have starting and wrap-up posts for each read-a-thon (and maybe some daily update posts also).  I will also put up personal challenges for myself in these start up posts, so make sure to check those out.  Here is my combined TBR for both read-a-thons:

• Death Note, Volumes 7-12
• Insurgent by Veronica Roth
• Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone by J.K. Rowling (a re-read)
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling (a re-read)
• Wither by Lauren DeStefano
• Gone by Michael Grant
• The Girl Who Never Was by Skylar Dorset (ARC copy from Netgalley)
• Some more books that I have received for review or that I get from the library

Cover Reveal: Edge of Falling by Valia Lind

It is time for a cover reveal!

Release Date: August 13, 2014 (Ebook & Print)

Summary:

For Chance, there's always only been Dakota.

He's been in love with the girl since the day they met. He's tried everything to get her to

notice him and nothing has worked. So when things suddenly start moving in the right

direction, Chance can't believe his luck.

Until Kyle comes along.

Kyle is like a new shiny toy and Dakota loves new and shiny. She falls for the tall, blonde

and gorgeous fast and without looking back. Dating the summer before college wasn't in

the plans, but come on, Kyle is perfect. So why does Chance and his snarky grin keeps

popping up in her mind now that Dakota has found her happiness?

When Chance's world comes crashing down, Dakota proves the strength of their

friendship, surprising herself and everyone around her, by helping him pick up the pieces.

In return, Chance is finally able to crack her hard shell, discovering that not everything is

sunny in Dakota-land. Her world is not what it seems on the outside, and together, they're

able to pull each other to the brink of safety and sanity.

Dakota likes that things are simple with Kyle, so why does she feel more like herself

around Chance?

As graduation grows closer, both Chance and Dakota learn that the plans you make for

your life don't always play out the way you expect them and sometimes, everything starts

to make sense when you find yourself on the edge of falling.


Links:

Goodreads  Blog  Twitter   Facebook  YouTube

You can also pick up book one, Falling by Design:

Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Book Depository

Rafflecopter giveaway for copies of book one, Falling by Design:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Author Bio:

Author. Photographer. Artist. Born and raised in St. Petersburg, Russia, Valia Lind

always had a love for the written word. She wrote her first full book on the bathroom

floor of her dormitory, while procrastinating to study for her college classes. Upon

graduation, she has moved her writing to more respectable places, and have found her

voice in Young Adult fiction. You can visit her online at www.valialind.blogspot.com or

follow her on twitter, where she spends way too much time, @ValiaLind.

I need your help! I am hosting a readathon!

Hey y'all!  I have participated in a number of readathons this summer and I have decided to host my own!  

I will be hosting the Graphic Novel Appreciation readathon from Monday, September 15th to Sunday, September 21st.  

You may be wondering why I would want to run a readathon this week when participants may be in school and/or have other commitments.  There are several reasons:

1. September 18th is my birthday and I wish to host a special giveaway on that day.  
2. I wanted to spend my birthday week doing something that I really enjoy: reading.
3. Graphic novels are often quick reads.  For me, it only takes 30 minutes to an hour to read most graphic novels.  This is a great way to devote a little bit of time to reading and still be able to attend to everything that you need to get done that week (i.e. schoolwork and ect.).

There will be daily challenges and weekly challenges.  These challenges are not mandatory, but add to the fun and interaction during the readathon.  The daily challenges will be simple tasks that should take you around 15-20 minutes to complete.  For example, one day's challenge might be to recommend a graphic novel based on a genre or topic (i.e. If you like Fantasy, try the Bone series of graphic novels).  I will be looking for bloggers who may wish to host some of these challenges.  If you wish, you may host a giveaway for those who participate in your daily challenge.  I may not have a daily challenge everyday, but I hope to have one at least every other day.  If you would like to host a daily challenge, please fill out the 1st form below (the blue one) and I will get in touch with you.  More information about the daily challenge is included in the description for the form.

I will also have a few weekly challenges to complete throughout the week.  An example of this would be to read at least one graphic novel from a series that you have never read before.  These are also not mandatory, but I hope it will encourage you to read more throughout the week.

Anyone is welcome to join, whether you are an avid reader of graphic novels or just interested in reading some for the first time.  You do not even have to have a blog to enter!  You can participate in the readathon through Goodreads, Twitter, and/or Facebook.  Sign-up for participants will begin on September 1, 2014.  At that time, I will make another blog post describing how to do this.  If you are interested in signing up for this readathon, please comment below so I can determine the interest level.  Also, do not forget to follow my blog through one of the links on the right side or follow me on Twitter (@blog_gal) for updates on the readathon.

In order for this readathon to be amazing, I need your help!  I am looking for bloggers in countries other than the US that can co-host this readathon with me.  The goal is to be able to have twitter chats and sprints throughout the day so everyone can be active.  If you are interested, please email gna.readathon@gmail.com.  Please use the subject line "GNA Readathon Co-Host Application".

Additionally, I may be interested in doing guest posts on my blog during the readathon with people describing why they like to read graphic novels.  If you are interested in this, please fill out the 2nd form below (the grey one) and I will contact you through email with more information.

Finally, I would like for people who have never read graphic novels to be able to find a few that they would like to read.  Therefore, I would like to share reviews of graphic novels on my blog the week before the readathon.  This will help others to prepare their TBR piles for the readathon.  If you are interested, please email your reviews or links to your reviews for CLEAN graphic novels to gna.readathon@gmail.com and I might post your review on my blog.  Also, if you have read any amazing graphic novel reviews please send me links to the reviews and I will attempt to contact the author of the review to see if they are interested.  Please use the subject line "GNA Readathon Graphic Novel Review" in your email.

If you have any questions about the readathon or any suggestions on how to improve it, please email me at gna.readathon@gmail.com or leave a comment below.  Thank you for your support.

Middle Grade Book Review: The Owner's Manual for Driving Your Adolescent Brain

Book Title: The Owner's Manual for Driving Your Adolescent Brain

Author: JoAnn Deak, Ph.D. and Terrence Deak, Ph.D.

Publish Date: November 25, 2013

Genre: Middle Grade Nonfiction

Plot (from Goodreads):  

Think you know everything about your brain? Think again! In this exciting follow-up to Your Fantastic Elastic Brain, you’ll get the goods on glia and the news about neurons, presented in a fun and engaging format. Hang on to your hemispheres, and prepare to have your mind boggled as you learn about the workings of the brain in its first decade.

Why I Read this Book: I received a copy of this book from the Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.  This in no way influenced my review.

 

Review

Full of information about your brain, this book is great for anyone who is eager to learn.  The authors use analogies that would be easily understood by middle grade children.  The information is accurate and interesting.  The illustrations are fun and informative!  Even as a college student who has taken classes in similar subjects, I learned a few new things.  I am so impressed by the quality of this book.

 

Final Statements

Recommended Reading Age: 10-15, some discussion of hormones related to puberty and how your brain grows during puberty

Overall Rating: 5/5

Thursday Tags: Reading Habits

I found this tag over at Book Junkies. This tag was created by BethJune327 on Youtube. As usual, I tag everyone!  Add links in the comments below.



Question #1: Do you have a certain place at home for reading?
I love reading on the couch or in my bed.  I also read outside sometimes or in the car.  I basically read anywhere.

    

Question #2: Bookmark or a random piece of paper?

If I have a bookmark handy, I will use one.  Otherwise, I just grab whatever I can find to use as a bookmark.

 

Question #3: Can you stop reading anytime you want or do you have to stop at a certain page, chapter, part, ect.?

I usually stop reading at the end of a chapter just because it is easier to remember what is going on the next time that I pick up a book.

Question #4: Do you eat or drink while reading?

I will drink water sometimes when I am reading, but usually I am too afraid I will spill something on my nice pretty book to eat or drink while reading.

Question #5: Can you read while listening to music/watching TV?

I love reading while music is playing.  I can rarely read in a quiet environment.

    
Question #6: One book at a time, or several at once?

I always read several books at one time unless I am SUPER interested in a book.

    
Question #7: Reading at home or everywhere?

I read everywhere.

Question #8: Reading out loud or silently in your head?

Silently in my head.  I cannot comprehend well when I or anyone else reads out loud.


Question #9: Do you read ahead or skip pages?

I can never skip anything.  I would not want to miss anything in a book, unless it is a text book of course :)

    
Question #10: Breaking the spine or keeping it new?

Keeping it new.  I love my books to be in pristine shape.


Question #11: Do you write in books?
 
I only write in text books and that still feels wrong to me.

Sunathon Readathon Announcement and Updates (July 21-27)

Yay!  Another readathon!  I have been really in the mood to read lately so I think I will join in on this readathon. Here is the official post about this readathon.

This is a low-pressure readathon with daily book giveaways.  All you have to do to enter the giveaways is to follow Emma Loise on Twitter (@EmmaIsWriting) and retweet a picture of the book that she posts.  The readathon goes from July 21 to July 27 (Monday- Sunday).

Here is my TBR for this week:

1. Finish reading Kingmaker, Kingbreaker by Karen Miller.  This is a compilation of The Innocent Mage and The Awakened Mage. I began reading this during vacation this week.  I am on page 230 of 875 currently.
2.  Finish reading Threatened by Eliot Schrefer.  I also started this book last week.  I am currently on page 79 of 267.

This would mean I would read a total of 845 pages, an average of 120 pages a day.  If I finish these two books, I will begin some books that I have received for review from authors.  Updates on my reading progress will be located at the bottom of this post. 

Monday

• I read pages 230 to 235 of Kingmaker, Kingbreaker for a total of 5 pages.
• I read pages 79 to 97 of Threatened for a total of 18 pages.

Pages read: 23

Tuesday

• I read pages 235 to 246 of Kingmaker, Kingbreaker for a total of 11 pages.
• I read pages 97 to 132 of Threatened for a total of 35 pages.  I had to return this book to the library; I will not be completing this book this week.
• I started and finished I Know My Daddy Loves Me by Scott A. Williams.  I received this middle grade book from the author for review and will be publishing my review on my blog on its release date (October 1, 2014).  I gave this book a 4/5 stars.  This book was a total of 115 pages.

Pages read: 161
Books started and completed: 1

Wednesday

• I started and finished The Lost Boy, a graphic novel by Greg Ruth.  I gave this book a 3/5 stars.  A review will be coming soon on my blog.  This gave me a total of 190 pages read.
• I started and finished a Middle Grade Nonfiction novel that I received for review from Edelweiss.  It is The Owner Manual for Driving Your Adolescent Brain  by JoAnn and Terrence Deak.  I gave this book a 5/5 stars.  I really enjoyed it.  There will be a review coming on my blog soon.  This gave me a total of 59 pages.

Pages read: 249
Books started and completed: 2

Thursday

• I continued reading Kingmaker, Kingbreaker.  Today, sadly, I only read from page 246 to page 248, for a total of... 2 pages!  I had a terrible headache today, so I was unable to read as much as planned. Oh well, that just means I get to allot twice as much time to reading tomorrow, right?

Pages read: 2

Friday

• I started Death Note, Volume 5 and read from page 1 to page 77 for a total of 77 pages.  I plan to finish this book before I go to bed tonight.

Pages read: 77

Saturday

• Finished Death Note, Volume 5 for a total of 122 pages.  This volume was not quite as good as the rest of the series thus far, so I gave it a 4/5 star rating.
• Read a 36 page sample of Afterworlds by Scott Westerfeld.  Other than a few cuss words, the sample, which was the first 3 chapters of the book, was action packed and an excellent read.  I am looking forward to reading the full book that comes out later this year.
• I started Castle Waiting, a graphic novel written and illustrated by Linda Medley.  I read the first 154 pages (out of 456).  It is a decent read so far.  I hope to finish this book on the last day of the readathon.
• I continued Sleeping Beauty and the Beast by Melissa Lemon.  I started this book before the readathon.  It is a book that I received from the author for review.  It is a great book so far.  I read from page 133 to page 181 for a total of 48 pages.  I hope to finish the final 106 pages on the final day of the readathon.

Pages read: 360
Books finished today: 1

Sunday

• Continued and DNF Castle Waiting.  I read a total of 178 pages of this book before I DNF it.  I DNF it because it began to mock Jesus Christ.  Other than that, it was 3/5 stars up to that point.
• I started 12 Titanic Lessons for Christians: Lessons to Motivate, Challenge, & Impower by Charles C. Hagan, Jr.  I read the first 45 pages.  It is really great so far!

Pages read: 223
Overall Progress

Pages read: 1095
Books started and completed:

Books continued (started before readathon, have not completed):

Books started (started during the readathon, have not completed) :

 

Books started during the readathon and DNF:

 

Thursday Tags: Questions About Books

I found this tag over at Lauren Reads YA.  I am going to tag EVERYONE on this tag, so don't forget to add links to your posts in the description or put your answers in the comments.

1. What is your favourite book?
Does the Bible count as just one book?  If not, the book of Esther from the Bible :)

2. Who is your favourite author?
I have several.  Ted Dekker, J.K. Rowling, Jenny Nimmo (Charlie Bone series), Neal Shusterman, William Sirls, Cidney Swanson, Kasie West (can you judge an author by only one book read?), Scott Westerfeld, and Marissa Meyer are some of my favorites.

3. What genre do you prefer?
 I read a lot of YA, especially paranormal and fantasy.  I read some YA contemporary.  I also like christian fiction (adult and YA), christian fantasy, and christian inspirational.  I also read some christian historical fiction.  Basically, anything PG :)

4. What is your favourite book series?

Of all time?  Probably Harry Potter. 

5. What books did you hate reading in school?

I love reading, but when it is required it is not as interesting to me.  I never hate reading, but I did not like required reading in school.

6. What is the first book you remember reading as a child?

Anything Dr. Seuss!

7.  Bookstores or libraries?

I love both!  If I had mony to spend, I would buy a lot more books than I do.  I love libraries though because I can read a book and not feel like I am wasting my money if I do not enjoyt the book.  Oftentimes, I just buy the books that I know that I will reread.
 

8.  How many books do you own?

Too many to count... probably around 100 or more.
 

9. Do you read before bed? 

Sometimes

10. What is your most comfortable reading position?

Sitting

11. What is the most recent book you read?

The last book I finished was Death Note Volume 3.

12. What quote from any book will you never forget? Why is it significant?

Mostly, I only remember Bible verses (Jeremiah 29:11, John 3:16, ect.).

13. Science Fiction or Fantasy?

Can I pick both?  I am going to say both.

14. What books do you regret reading?

Anything not PG rated I will not finish reading.
 

15. How large is your bookshelf? 

I have a lot of small bookshelves.

16. On average, how many books do you read per year?

Last year, I read 58 books towards my Goodreads goal of 75 books.  This year, I hope to read 75 books.  So far, I have read 49.

17. What book can you read hundreds of times and never get tired of? 

The Bible

18. Do you like to read outside?

Yes

19. What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned from a book?

There are many lessons that I have learned from the Bible.  Mainly, that God's love is incredible and there is always hope.  From other books, the biggest lesson that I have learned is that friendship is an incredible thing that you should always be grateful for.

20. Of the past year, what is the greatest book you’ve read? 

The best book that I have read in 2014 is either The Exile by Eric Buffington, Cinder by Marissa Meyer, The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, or Pivot Point by Kasie West.  Yes, I am very indecisive.

Children's Book Review Tuesdays: Once Upon a Curse by E.D. Baker

Book Title: Once Upon a Curse

Author: E.D. Baker

Publish Date: October 4, 2004

Series: The Tales of the Frog Princess (Volume 3) ~ Can be read as a standalone

Genre: Middle Grade Fantasy Novel

Plot (from Goodreads):  

Many years ago a slighted fairy placed a curse on a beautiful young princess--a curse that caused her and all her female descendants to turn into mean, ugly witches if they ever touched a flower after turning sixteen. Now, Princess Emma, who is about to turn sixteen herself, is determined to break the spell once and for all. Emma travels back in time to the day the curse was placed on her ancestor in the hope of preventing the curse from being cast. Unfortunately she isn't successful in her efforts, but she does learn how to break it. Armed with this knowledge, Emma returns to her own time full of hope. But disaster ensues and Emma is about to give up completely--until true love shows itself in the most unexpected place of all.

With a bit of courage, a pinch of luck, and of course, a healthy dose of magic, Princess Emma charms her way through the third hilarious adventure in the Tales of the Frog Princess series.

Why I Read this Book: I checked out this book from the library.

 

Review

I picked up Once Upon a Curse from the library as an impulse read.  I was unaware that it was part of a series, but I was in the mood for a cute, light-hearted read.  I was not disappointed.

Once Upon a Curse is a super cute and sweet middle grade fantasy novel about a witch princess named Emma trying to break the curse that has been placed on her family.  Whenever anyone in her family touches a flower, they will turn into a crabby, ugly witch.  I enjoyed the lightness of the read.  Sometimes you just get tired of reading books whose themes are dark and heavy.  I love reading middle grade because often times they are light and cute.  This book did not disappoint!  I am looking forward to reading the rest of this series.

 

Final Statements

Recommended Reading Age: Any Age

Overall Rating: 4/5

Blog Tour and Book Review: A Nation Under Judgement by Richard Capriola

 

Book Title: A Nation Under Judgement

Author: Richard Capriola

Publish Date: April 3, 2014

Genre: Christian Nonfiction

Book Description (from Blog Tour Media Packet):  

What does it mean to be One Nation Under God? Our Founding Fathers believed it was more than a political slogan. Have we strayed from their vision? A Nation Under Judgment focuses on issues currently facing our nation including hunger, poverty, the environment and marriage. These and other issues are reviewed from both a Scriptural point of view and a social policy point of view. Readers are empowered to consider whether our nation is moving away from being One Nation Under God.

Book Excerpt:

Over one hundred and fifty years ago, Abraham Lincoln accepted his party’s nomination in Springfield, Illinois, to run against Stephen A. Douglas for the U.S. Senate. In his acceptance speech before one thousand Republican delegates, Lincoln addressed the issue of slavery and said, “A House divided against itself cannot stand.”

 

Today, the issue that divides us is no longer slavery. Now, it is whether we will live up to the words “one nation under God” and the very meaning of those words. Do we construct our national polices and our laws to honor God’s point of view, or do we develop them based on a political agenda? What does it mean for us to be “one nation under God?” Have the words become merely a political slogan? Do they have value only in times of national crises, when we feel threatened? Have we become a nation asking for God’s protection and blessing while ignoring His point of view?

Our Founding Fathers understood that we could not exist apart from God’s point of view. George Mason warned that providence would punish national sins with national calamities. Thomas Jefferson new that God’s patience would not endure forever when he wrote “I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just, and his justice will not sleep forever.” 

Book Trailer:

 

About the Author:   
Richard Capriola spent many years serving as a hospital chaplain. He completed four years of Clinical Pastoral Education in preparation for his chaplaincy work. In addition to his pastoral care experience, he has served as a mental health counselor at both a regional crisis center and a psychiatric hospital.

 WEBSITE | TWITTER | FACEBOOK | GOODREADS

Why I Read this Book: I received a physical copy of this book as part of a blog tour in exchange for an honest review.  This in no way influenced my review.

 

Review

Is the United States of America truly a nation that follows God's principles?  This is the question that this books seeks to answer.  Filled with scripture and statistics, the overall message of the book was very meaningful and the topics were interesting.  This book has an incredible amount of potential but I believe that it fell short in a few areas.

Throughout the book, I felt like there where too many statistics and quotes and not many original ideas.  There were too many facts and not many conclusions.  I sometimes got lost in the statistics and forgot what point the author was trying to make.

I really enjoyed the Biblical messages throughout the book.  The message of not being gluttonous, greedy, lustful, ect. was a meaningful message.  The parts of the book that included original ideas was very thought provoking.  Although I do agree with much of what this book states, many problems of why the United States is not a God following nation were presented but a solution to this problem was not discussed in this book.  If there were more unique ideas and solutions to the problems presented throughout this book, I would have enjoyed it much more.

Overall, the message was wonderful but the statistics bogged down much of the book.  Even though this book was not the perfect book for me, it may be for you.  I encourage you to give this book a try.

 

Final Statements

Recommended Reading Age: 16+ for adult topics such as abortion

Overall Rating: 3.5/5

Have you read this book?  Discuss this book in our PUYB Virtual Book Club at Goodreads by clicking HERE.