Karenschoice books

This blog post is prompted by a discussion I had at lunch on Friday with my table of friends. We're all book lovers, so it became a passionate discussion. I make myself happy, even when I'm not. If someone were to ask me "Are you happy?" I wouldn't know what to respond. I think because I'm quite bubbly at school, people automatically assume that I'm just always happy all the time. I'd beg to differ: I'm not a very cheery person when I get home. It's because of my introverted-ness. I know you're thinking "What? Then why is she bubbly at school?" Because I like being friendly, but school usually drains out all my social-ness and I recover over the weekend by staying in room all by myself and doing things alone. Back on topic. We asked a question: "Which do you prefer, sad books or happy books?" I said, "I like sad books" And that fired off into passionate "argument". A friend (let's call her C) told...

You all may not know this because I rarely ever mention this, but I do in fact read manga and I have for years. I don't mention it on this blog because I believe this blog is for novels, literary in only words. That's why you don't see graphic novels here. But I do love manga a whole lot. It's a different type of novel, like a film in novel/drawing form. I mainly read shoujo because secretly (not so secret) I enjoy sappy romances. But not the literary YA romances that I read about: the Japanese manga ones that I can actually see. Shoujo mangas are very visual and emotional, tugging on one's heart strings and effectively portray a story. It's because instead of just reading "He blushed profusely" or "she said with dangerous fervour", one can actually see it. I'm not making sense, but facial expressions say a lot more than words and manga-kas (manga "writers") have perfected it. Like right now, I was just reading the latest chapte...

I have horrible news to share with you all. The best book in the entire world, The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho (on my favourites list) is recommended reading in my class and has been for the past two weeks. Of course I, being stubborn and too in love with the book to ruin it through a rubbish study guide, refused to read it for class. It's a parallel reading, which means it's out of class, and thank goodness for that. Teachers + Students Reading Aloud No. Just...I can't stand it. When teachers read aloud, they can read pretty fluently, so that's a positive. However, I don't like it when anyone reads aloud at all. I have my own voice in my head that reads at a musical, pleasant pace. Yet when someone reads aloud, the story dries up. I can't have the lovely film playing in my head or the character's voices speaking to me: because the teacher/student's voice is all I can hear. It's horrible. And when students read: it'll be in a monotone voice with hi...

Hello all! It's time for another giveaway sponsored by an awesome publishing company: Flux. I think this is Halloween themed, but its opinionated. I believes the paranormal concepts allow the book to be tied to the paranormal celebration of Halloween, don't you think? The book is Foxfire by Karen Kincy: it was just released this month, so if you want to, it's available to purchase in stores. Now, I've only read the first book and it's enjoyable but I regret to say that I haven't read the second and not even this one. If you're a reviewer, I'd like to read your review on this! :) In this short, ten day giveaway, any US resident will have a chance to win a copy of the book! Now...it's the third instalment in with two other books before it, so it'll make sense for only those you've read or are planning to read the first two to enter! About the Book: Tavian and Gwen race to find a magical cure in the third thrilling Other novel. Tavian has never ...

book info: ages: 14 and up grades: 8-9 and up years: 10 and up on sale: now copy from: library pages: 258 title: Snow Flower and the Secret Fan author: Lisa See Lily is haunted by memories–of who she once was, and of a person, long gone, who defined her existence. She has nothing but time now, as she recounts the tale of Snow Flower, and asks the gods for forgiveness. In nineteenth-century China, when wives and daughters were foot-bound and lived in almost total seclusion, the women in one remote Hunan county developed their own secret code for communication: nu shu (“women’s writing”). Some girls were paired with laotongs, “old sames,” in emotional matches that lasted throughout their lives. They painted letters on fans, embroidered messages on handkerchiefs, and composed stories, thereby reaching out of their isolation to share their hopes, dreams, and accomplishments. With the arrival of a silk fan on which Snow Flower has composed for Lily a poem of introduction in nu shu, their fr...

Inspired by this post at a Reading Daydreamer, I've decided to finally stop being lazy and actually discuss something important (at least, to me) How Blogging Has Changed: Well, Jen (Reading Daydreamer) specifically mentioned ARCs and how blogging has become very competitive with the most popular blogs being the ones that receive the most ARCs. When I started four years ago (my anniversary is in two days!) many blogs that are huge today were in their early years. Everything was about sharing a love for books. I know that sounds so cliché and ideal, but it really was. Huge blogs gained followers through giveaways, but bloggers who were at my level: we commented on each other's blogs often and discussed books and what we liked and didn't. I've noticed a trend in ARCs. Lots of blogs have already spoken about the courtesy and requests for ARCs that one should follow. For the first year, I was too naive to realise that I could actually get an ARC. I just reviewed books t...

book info: ages: 15 and up grades: 9-10 and up years: 11 and up on sale: now! copy from: the author! signed too! Thank you :) pages: 544 title: Timbuctoo author: Tahir Shah For centuries, the greatest explorers of their age were dispatched from the power-houses of Europe London, Paris and Berlin on a quest unlike any other: To be the first white Christian to visit, and then to sack, the fabled metropolis of Timbuctoo. Most of them never returned alive. At the height of the Timbuctoo mania, two hundred years ago, it was widely believed that the elusive Saharan city was fashioned in entirety from the purest gold everything from the buildings to the cobble-stones, from the buckets to the bedsteads was said to be made from it. One winter night in 1815, a young illiterate American seaman named Robert Adams was discovered half-naked and starving on the snow-bound streets of London. His skin seared from years in the African desert, he claimed to have been a guest of the King of Timbuctoo. Tho...

After over two weeks since I placed the order, I finally got the book I've been waiting for. Four Histories by William Shakespeare (Richard II, Henry IV Part 1 and 2, and Henry V) Though I've already got the grand Barnes and Noble complete set, I wanted one that I could carry around and that had larger print (as opposed to the tiny, minuscule print in the B&N one) it's late, sorry for the poor lighting! little did I realise how thick it was  And of course, the book I'm only a third of the way through that I got AGES ago from the author himself! Signed! I promised a review and I really regret taking this long. This will be done before I start any other book, so next review is over Timbuctoo by Tahir Shah! it's very unique. Thick, nice large print, and even fold out maps! So there is my current stance on reading at the moment! What about you?