The Reading Room (35)

The Reading Room is a weekly update on books I'm reading and planning to read, and is posted on Tuesdays.

Let this be a warning to all you bookworms out there: don't be like me and volunteer at a library, even if it seems like a good idea for your required project/volunteer hours for school. Why? Because you spend a whole lot of time putting other people's books away and helping other people find things and entertaining small children and not a lot of time finding and reading books for yourself.

Still, I managed to make a trip down on Friday and pick up a few books. The first thing that caught my eye was Spilling Ink by Anne Mazer and Ellen Potter, which I'm partway through and is one of the best and most inspiring books about fiction writing that I've ever read. I also grabbed Stealing Air by Trent Reedy, which I finished Sunday and was a good way to spend the afternoon, though not the best book I've ever read, and The Innocents, by Lili Peloquin, which I started tonight and can't put down. (Really - I had to pry myself away just to write this blog post.)

Other than that, not much bookish news; I have some birthday money that's just begging to be spent on a Barnes & Noble order, though, so hopefully I'll have some more updates next week. I'll also probably have started on the summer reading list for AP English by then, so be prepared for either gushing or complaining about The Catcher in the Rye. 

~blackandwhitedreamer

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. A new topic is posted each week, and bloggers post their top ten in the category.

Top Ten Books I've Read So Far in 2013

10. My Antonia

By Willa Cather

We read this book for English class during the middle of the year, and I really enjoyed it. The image and description were beautiful - the setting was described with such detail, and it really brought the book to life and made you feel like you were right there with the characters.

9. The Eternal Ones

By Kirsten Miller

I love everything Kirsten Miller does, and this book was no exception. It was beautifully written, haunting, strange, thrilling, and dangerous. I can't wait to read the next book in the series, and I would definitely recommend this one. 

8. The Beekeeper's Apprentice

By Laurie R. King

As a devoted [i.e., obsessed] fan of Sherlock Holmes, I'm always eager to check out an adaptation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's stories, but I also spend a lot of time comparing it to the originals - except in this case, where I was too swept up in the story to be critical. It was a flawless version of the well-known detective and a fantastic read. 

7. Clockwork Princess

By Cassandra Clare

I had been waiting for this book ever since I finished Clockwork Prince back in January of 2012, and it did not disappoint. This book was emotional, suspenseful, superbly written and impossible to put down. I bought it a few days after it came out and carried it everywhere with me until I had finished it. It was just so good.

6. The Curiosities

By Maggie Stiefvater, Tessa Gratton, and Brenna Yovanoff

The best and most unique and creative collection of short stories I've read in a long time - possibly ever. Every single page was filled with the wonderful and strange, as well as the author's hilarious and insightful comments. If you haven't read it, you need to. 

5. The Help

By Kathryn Stockett

This is not one of those books that you read only to find out it doesn't live up to all the hype. It's one of those books you read and then go out and recommend to everyone you know because it's so powerful and there's so much truth in it. 

4. It's Kind of a Funny Story

By Ned Vizzini

Funny, sad, and heartwarming all at once. It makes you think, it makes you laugh, it makes you cry - all of which is pretty impressive for a novel that takes place over such a short period of time, and in a mental hospital. Every sentence is insightful and perfectly paced, and it comes together to make one fantastic story.

3. The Great Gatsby

By F. Scott Fitzgerald

Another one we read for English class that I completely and wholeheartedly fell in love with. The language, the characters, the symbols, the setting - it all blew me away. Much like To Kill a Mockingbird, this is one of those books that I could reread and analyze for the rest of my life, and I can't really remember what my life was like before I read it.

2. The Fault in Our Stars

By John Green

Because with the wise and hilarious John Green (http://www.youtube.com/user/vlogbrothers) creating lines like "You gave me forever within the numbered days," and "What a slut time is. She screws everybody" and "It would be a privilege to have my heart broken by you"...well, how could it not be at least number 2?

1. Code Name Verity

By Elizabeth Wein 

Any attempt to describe this book would spoil the ending, make me cry, and still would not do it justice. I'll just toss out a friendly reminder that it beat The Fault in Our Stars and leave it at that. 

~blackandwhitedreamer

Top Ten Tuesday

 Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. A new topic is posted each week, and bloggers share their top ten in the category.

Top Ten Books Featuring Travel

10. Across the Universe

By Beth Revis

You can't travel much farther than an entirely new world. Though this book didn't quite live up to me expectations for it, I still really enjoyed it. The complex difficulties of life on an isolated ship on a journey that spans hundreds of years were fascinating to read about, and I loved the characters. 

9. Uncommon Criminals

By Ally Carter

The second book in the Heist Society series was just as amazing as the first and had the characters traveling to interesting locations all over the globe. 

8. 13 Treasures

By Michele Harrison

Tania's grandmother's house is the kind of place I'd want to visit every summer - old, beautiful, mysterious, and filled with fairies and magic. I usually reread these books over the summer, because they provide a fantastic escape from normal life. 

7. Pegasus

By Robin McKinley

Sylvaniiel's journey into the Pegasus country was one of the most well-written, beautifully described, magical stories I have ever read. I loved the whole new world she was exposed to and the wonders she experienced.

6. The Tiger's Wife

By Tea Obreht

I loved all the different settings in this book. The entire world was so lifelike, and the journeys described in it were both fantastic and relatable. It remains one of my favorite books, and the way you feel as if you're traveling through the story with the characters is one of the main reasons. 

5. The Thief

By Megan Whalen Turner

There's not much to say about this book other than the fact that I just really loved it. The journey, the myths, the stories - it was all so fun to read about, and perfectly paced. 

4. Along for the Ride

By Sarah Dessen

This is still my favorite of Sarah Dessen's books and the perfect summer read. Auden is exposed to not only a new location but new experiences, new people, and a new way of thinking and living her life, and all of it contributes equally to the changes she goes through. If it weren't for the travel in this book, it wouldn't be nearly as compelling or lovable. 

3. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

By Douglas Adams

I feel that I don't gush about this book nearly enough compared to other things I gush about (i.e., Maggie Stiefvater, Sherlock Holmes, The Book Thief.) It's a hilarious whirlwind of adventure, and all you can do is hang on tight, enjoy the ride, try not to think too much about what's actually going on and make sure you know where your towel is. 

2. Code Name Verity

By Elizabeth Wein

This book! I cannot even find the words to describe this book. Maddie and Queenie's journey into enemy territory and the incredible way they handle being stranded far from home is remarkable, and their friendship more remarkable still. I would try to say more, but it wouldn't do the book justice. You'll just have to read it yourself. 

1. The Hobbit

By J.R.R. Tolkien

Obvious choice for number one on the list is obvious. The Hobbit contains one of the most iconic journeys of all time, and it's probably one of my favorite stories in existence. I've reread it at least four times, and am able to recall the plot with significant detail purely from memory. It's a fantastic book, and it would take a lot to knock it out of the number one spot. 

~blackandwhitedreamer

I do still exist!

No, the giant pile of homework and crazy end-of-the-year stuff didn't eat me alive, though at times it felt like it was going to. I'm terribly sorry to anyone who follows me for the lack of blog posts and the general decrease in the quality of my blog. It's something I definitely want to fix, so I'll get back to my regular posting schedule soon, and hopefully try to add in some extra posts to make up for it. If you have any suggestions for how I could improve my blog, be sure to let me know. I welcome any and all suggestions!

~blackandwhitedreamer

The Reading Room (34)

The Reading Room is a weekly update on books I'm reading or planning to read. It was inspired by the feature On Myshelf at the blog All By Myshelf, and is posted on Tuesdays.

I ended up with quite a significant book haul this week, and I can't wait to read them all. Yesterday I was still off school for Easter break, so I made a trip to the bookstore, hoping to find Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare, which I've been dying to read for months. I saw it and immediately snatched it up, barely managing not to explode from excitement. I cannot wait to find out what happens and how it ends - the suspense has been driving me insane. While I was there, I also came across Wildwood by Colin Meloy. It had an awesome cover, the synopsis intrigued me, and it was only eight dollars, so I picked that up, too. Both books are sitting happily on my bookshelves, which I reorganized on Sunday.

Then, my mom made a trip to the library in search of something by Jane Austen (she's going through a bit of a phase) and to pick up The Help for my grandmother. Of course, I couldn't resist checking out a few books. I hadn't been there in awhile, so after looking over some of the new titles, I finally settled on The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan, Confessions of a Murder Suspect by James Patterson, and Close to Famous by Joan Bauer. All of them look really good. I'm pretty well-supplied with books for the next week, so hopefully some reviews will be showing up on the blog.

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. A new topic is posted each week, and bloggers share their top ten in the category.

Top Ten Characters I Would Crush On If I Were Also A Fictional Character

I had way too much fun with this topic. I mean, we all know that book boys are just better. My list was really lengthy, and it was extremely difficult to cut down - I felt so bad whenever I had to remove someone from the list. (Finnick, Kishan, Sam, and St. Clair: I'm sorry. I love you guys too.) Anyway, here are my top ten literary loves. 

10. Richard Gansey

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

I knew going into The Raven Boys that all four of the guys were going to be swoon-worthy, and I wasn't disappointed. I loved Gansey - he was such an interesting and complex character. I mean, he's attractive, and he's rich, and he has a really fantastic car. But there's a lot more to him than that, and that's what really makes you fall in love with him.

9. W.W. Hale 

Heist Society by Ally Carter

Hale is basically perfect. I love his name, I love the way he cares for Kat and his loyalty to her and her family. He's such a great character in the books - his perfection would be so annoying if it weren't so...well, perfect.

8. Astley

Need by Carrie Jones

I see no issues with being pixie-kissed by this guy. He's so different from all the other pixies - much less frightening, much nicer. Much cuter...sorry, digressing. I haven't read Endure, yet, so I'm not sure what goes down with the whole Zara-Astley-Nick situation (it's not going to be pretty, I can tell you that), but I don't think it would change my adoration for Astley. This isn't about who I think would be best with Zara, this is about Astley being irresistible.

7. Gale Hawthorne

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Let me start by saying that I love Peeta. Really, I do. I just...happen to love Gale slightly more. I loved him as a character from the very beginning of the book, and he just got better and better throughout Catching Fire. (We're not going to talk about the travesty that was Mockingjay.) He's willing to do whatever it takes to protect his family, and Katniss and her family; he's ready to stand up for what he believes in. He's not afraid to fight for what he wants. He uses a bow and arrow and hunts. I mean, it's not really fair to make Peeta compete against someone who is basically a walking embodiment of things I find attractive.

6. Jay Gatsby

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

I think the best way to describe my love for Gatsby is this: my English teacher said that he was a 'sad' and 'pathetic' character, and I spent the rest of the class fuming. Tragic, maybe, but Gatsby is a dreamer, a romantic, and a beautiful character. 

5. Jem Carstairs

The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare

Tessa Gray may just be the luckiest girl in the world. Jem is sweet, caring, kind, and overall just a lovely person. I fell in love with Jem as soon as he was introduced in Clockwork Prince. Plus, he plays the violin. That sealed my crush right there. String instruments (and guys who play them) are automatically attractive. 

4. Adam

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

Yes, I loved Gansey. I loved all of the Raven Boys. But Adam, 100% without question, is the one I loved the most. When I was making this list, there was no way he wasn't going to be on it. I can't even describe why I love him so much - he's just such an amazing character. Like I said, I loved Gansey, but anyone who would choose him over Adam is clearly insane. 

3. Giddon

Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore

It's been a long time since I've read Graceling, so I'll admit I don't remember Giddon's character a lot in that book. In Bitterblue, however, he was absolutely perfect all of the time. There was not a single scene where I didn't love what he was saying, or doing, or just enjoy reading about him. He and Bitterblue definitely had some chemistry, too - I say this because if I can't have Giddon because I'm not fictional, someone who is fictional should have a shot. 

2. Will Herondale

The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare

I've mentioned once or twice before on this blog that it's impossible for me to choose between Jem and Will. In the context of the story, that's true - I don't want either one of them to have to give up Tessa, or be sad for even a second. Still, from my point of view, Will - with his wicked sarcasm and constant references to literature - is more up my alley than Jem, if not by much. 

1. Aramis

The Three Musketeers from Alexandre Dumas

The first book-guy I really, truly, fell in love with, and no one has topped him since. Nearly everything he did in The Three Musketeers made me sigh longingly. He's brave, loyal, intelligent... if you had asked me before I read a single word of The Three Musketeers to describe the perfect guy, I would have ended up with someone a lot like Aramis. 

~blackandwhitedreamer

The Reading Room is a weekly update on books I'm reading and planning to read, posted on Tuesdays. It was inspired by the feature On Myshelf at the blog All by Myshelf.

Starting this post off with a slightly off-topic (but still related) subject: every year, the public library hosts an auction to raise money. They put on a dinner, take donations, and then whatever people pay for the items goes to the library. It's a really great event, and this year, since I'm volunteering at the library for my graduation project, I was there to help out - which mostly consisted of folding 130 napkins and setting 130 place settings the night before and then hovering around incase anyone needed anything that night.

Anyway, here's the part that ties into my reading update: as I was helping to set up some things for the silent auction, I came across this lovely box that someone had put together and donated, filled with a blanket, snacks, a book, a candle, and several other things. During the auction I put in a bid, luckily won, and came home with, among other things, my own copy of The Help. My aunt (a fellow book nerd) told me that it's a fantastic read. I can't wait to start it.

I also added two books from the school library to my reading pile this week: The Curiosities by Maggie Stiefvater, Tessa Gratton, and Brenna Yovanoff, and The Dragon Heir by Cinda Williams Chima. I've already started The Curiosities and absolutely love it - it's so unique, and of course, Maggie Stiefvater is involved, so it's guaranteed to be fantastic. I haven't started The Dragon Heir, but I can't wait to find out what happens next - The Wizard Heir left a lot of questions unanswered.

That's it for this week. Spring break soon, though, which means even more time for reading.

~blackandwhitedreamer