Candide: or, Optimisim by Voltaire

Candide: or, Optimism by Voltaire
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
This book was...interesting. There were some really hilarious parts, and its fair share of good quotes I must admit. However, the first half of the book was just incessant action. It was like, "Murder...rape....murder...rape...whippings...murder...whippings...misfortune...misfortune...yada...yada". It's a good thing this book isn't a classic for its plot, or I would be wondering what the heck is wrong with literary critics.

Granted, some of the plot was entertaining. The constant escapades were pretty enthralling, but they got a little tiresome because of how repetitive they were. Some of it kept me reading at times. It got more tolerable in the second half of the book, but then I just felt like the ending was really drawn out because (view spoiler)[ Candide just took forever to get to Cunegonde  (hide spoiler)].

I thought Candide's devotion to Cunegonde was reeeeeally cute <3...for most of the book. Until she got ugly. And then he was like, "Ew. Gross. Even though this entire book has been about me searching for being able to be with Cunegonde, lol I don't want to be with her anymore. But I'll marry her out of duty." Like...wow man. I thought you appreciated Cunegonde other than her beauty unlike everyone else. But no. You suck too.

And can I just mention how blaringly unrealistic this book was? (view spoiler)[ So basically he finds all of these people who he realistically should never seen again MULTIPLE TIMES, in a really far away place which doesn't make sense because most people then would not have traveled that much? Really? And then some of those people he even WATCHES DIE and he still finds them halfway across the world at the exact same spot as him ALIVE?!?!?!. (hide spoiler)] I know it doesn't have to be realistic, but really this was just ridiculous. Come on. Honestly.

The ending was just ugh. Overall, this book just convinced me more of the overall misery and blatancy of death, and life in general. Made me see that life is truly a bitter thing.


Quotes

“It is love; love, the comfort of the human species, the preserver of the universe, the soul of all sentient beings, love, tender love.”

*applause* Wow Voltaire. Who knew you had it in ya.


"I adored him to distraction, to the point of idolatry: I loved him as one can never love twice.”

This is a very beautiful statement that the otherwise seemingly cold Voltaire makes about love. Shocking coming from him.


Funny Quotes:
"My dear young lady, when you are in love, and jealous, and have been flogged by the Inquisition, there's no knowing what you may do."

If you're reading the book, it is hilarious in context.


“I should like to know which is worse: to be ravished a hundred times by pirates, and have a buttock cut off, and run the gauntlet of the Bulgarians, and be flogged and hanged in an auto-da-fe, and be dissected, and have to row in a galley -- in short, to undergo all the miseries we have each of us suffered -- or simply to sit here and do nothing?'
That is a hard question,' said Candide.”

I laughed aloud at this point in the book.


“Martin in particular concluded that man was born to live either in the convulsions of misery, or in the lethargy of boredom.”


“All events are linked together in the best of possible worlds; after all, if you had not been driven from a fine castle by being kicked in the backside for love of Miss Cunegonde, if you hadn't been sent before the Inquisition, if you hadn't traveled across America on foot, if you hadn't given a good sword thrust to the baron, if you hadn't lost all your sheep from the good land of Eldorado, you wouldn't be sitting here eating candied citron and pistachios. - That is very well put, said Candide, but we must cultivate our garden.”

It was such a silly way to end the book.


“If this is the best of all possible worlds, what are the others like?”

Poor Candide is constantly saying this at the beginning of the book.



Quote for Bookish People:

“Fools have a habit of believing that everything written by a famous author is admirable. For my part I read only to please myself and like only what suits my taste.”

So true. Especially in regard to this book. And my feelings on The Hunger Games series.



Philosophical Quotes:

“Work keeps at bay three great evils: boredom, vice, and need.”

I have always been of this opinion, which is partly why I read because it puts my mind to work in periods of inactivity.


“I have wanted to kill myself a hundred times, but somehow I am still in love with life. This ridiculous weakness is perhaps one of our more stupid melancholy propensities, for is there anything more stupid than to be eager to go on carrying a burden which one would gladly throw away, to loathe one’s very being and yet to hold it fast, to fondle the snake that devours us until it has eaten our hearts away?”


“What's Optimism?' asked Cacambo. 'I'm afraid to say,' said Candide, 'that it's a mania for insisting that all is well when things are going badly.”


“It is demonstrable," said he, "that things cannot be otherwise than as they are; for as all things have been created for some end, they must necessarily be created for the best end.”

I agree with some of this...but some of the ways times presented in this book, to that extreme, I do not agree with.

"You're a bitter man," said Candide.
That's because I've lived," said Martin.”

Basically sums up this book.



This book was largely exasperating, not that great, but had some good points. I liked it enough to say that I altogether liked it, but I wouldn't go so far as to say I really enjoyed it.

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Much Ado About Anne (The Mother-Daughter Book Club #2)by Heather Vogel Frederick

Much Ado About Anne by Heather Vogel Frederick
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Much Ado About Anne Review

As usual, Heather Vogel Frederick serves up lots of spice and charm in the second installment of her The Mother-Daughter Book Club series. This was my second time reading this book, as I was rereading this series before I read the last book in the series. I truly missed reading about these girls, and I am so excited to finish the rest of the series, although it's bittersweet because IT'S ALL OVER AND THEY'RE GOING TO COLLEGE WHERE HAS THE TIME GONE OH MY GOODNESS EIGSSGLWYSTSNEKEYS!!!!!! *takes deep breath*

Anyways, it was definitely a different experience reading the first book this time around because I know what happens four books from now, and I know people change and it's weird to see them before they changed. The last time I read this book was probably 2009 and I loved it so much then. It's a little different for me now, since I  am no longer about the same age as the girls in the books, but I can still connect really well to the characters.

Something I also do with this series is I read all the books they read before I read the book. I read Little Women before I read this first book, I had already read all of the The Complete Anne of Green Gables Boxed Set that they read in this series before, I read Daddy-Long-Legs & Dear Enemy, and Just Patty, and When Patty Went to College (even though I don't really remember if any of the girls in the books read them I wanted too because of the occasional quotations from the other books Ms. Webster wrote in the books. I know, OCD. ;) I also read Pride and Prejudice (which caused me to buy Barnes and Noble's leatherbound volume of all of Jane Austen's works,  Jane Austen: Seven Novels, which I have really enjoyed reading with my book club), and I read the entire Betsy-Tacy series which are definitely my favorites of all of the books I read for this series. =) You can read my pretty bad review for it here: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
but I would recommend researching my later reviews for them (don't worry the spoilers are hidden ;) because they are much better. I also read the three companion novels, Winona's Pony Cart, Carney's House Party: A Deep Valley Book, and Emily of Deep Valley, which were phenomenal as well. And, finally, I read Jane Eyre in preparation for reading the last book of this series (and also for a book assignment for school that was free choice and I actually ended up not liking it; you can see my review here: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...), Wish You Were Eyre, which I still have yet to read because I need to finish rereading the series first. It's so big and final and sad and OHMYGOSH IT CAN'T BE OVER PLEASE HEATHER DON'T MAKE IT BE OVERRRRRR!!!!!! *calms down*

I also read most of this series, with my book club. We're not a mother-daughter book club but we do consist of one adult mom who is not any of our mom's, and we absolutely loved it.

Anyways, about the book. I have to say that this book is not my favorite of all of them. I do love it, I love all of the books, but if I had to pick a least favorite it would be this one. It is a really fun book, but I feel like it was lacking some of the MDBC spark. As I stated earlier, she does serve up lots of spice and charm (I don't think she knows how not to), but I felt like something was missing. Then again, it might just be the fact that things change from book to book, and no book is ever going to be as classic as the first. I did find myself cracking up quite a lot during the course of this book though, which was a good point for me about the book. The escapades were still Mother-Daughter-Book-Club-classic in style, and I feel that overall it was a wonderful addition to the series. Was that a little too contradictory? It's just hard for me to describe how I feel about this book...it's a little bit of a contradictory feeling.

Overall, this book was another amazing installment in The Mother-Daughter Book Club series that I truly enjoyed. You should definitely read this charming and unique sequel in the series;  it is one not to be missed. This series is one every woman should read in her lifetime.


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The Mother-Daughter Book Club (The Mother-Daughter Book Club #1) by Heather Vogel Frederick

The Mother-Daughter Book Club by Heather Vogel Frederick
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was my second time reading this book, as I was rereading this series before I read the last book in the series. I truly missed reading about these girls, and I am so excited to finish the rest of the series, although it's bittersweet because IT'S ALL OVER AND THEY'RE GOING TO COLLEGE WHERE HAS THE TIME GONE OH MY GOODNESS EIGSSGLWYSTSNEKEYS!!!!!! *takes deep breath*

Anyways, it was definitely a different experience reading the first book this time around because I know what happens four books from now, and I know people change and it's weird to see them before they changed. Also, I visited Concord last summer and went to Orchard House (where I got a bookmark with a Louisa quote on it just like in the book that I used while reading this book :). I truly got to experience and see the places described in the book, which was an amazing experience. =D Now I can truly connect with the places and people being described as I read. The last time I read this book was in...let me see...I believe 2008. Probably 2009. The book is still a favorite for me, but it is definitely a little different for me because I am reading about sixth graders, and they no longer seem as relatable as they once seemed to me at the time when I was their same age.

Something I also do with this series is I read all the books they read before I read the book. I read Little Women before I read this first book, I had already read all of the The Complete Anne of Green Gables Boxed Set that they read in this series before, I read Daddy-Long-Legs & Dear Enemy, and Just Patty, and When Patty Went to College (even though I don't really remember if any of the girls in the books read them I wanted too because of the occasional quotations from the other books Ms. Webster wrote in the books. I know, OCD. ;) I also read Pride and Prejudice (which caused me to buy Barnes and Noble's leatherbound volume of all of Jane Austen's works,  Jane Austen: Seven Novels, which I have really enjoyed reading with my book club), and I read the entire Betsy-Tacy series which are definitely my favorites of all of the books I read for this series. =) You can read my pretty bad review for it here: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
but I would recommend researching my later reviews for them (don't worry the spoilers are hidden ;) because they are much better. I also read the three companion novels, Winona's Pony Cart, Carney's House Party: A Deep Valley Book, and Emily of Deep Valley, which were phenomenal as well. And, finally, I read Jane Eyre in preparation for reading the last book of this series (and also for a book assignment for school that was free choice and I actually ended up not liking it; you can see my review here: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...), Wish You Were Eyre, which I still have yet to read because I need to finish rereading the series first. It's so big and final and sad and OHMYGOSH IT CAN'T BE OVER PLEASE HEATHER DON'T MAKE IT BE OVERRRRRR!!!!!! *calms down*

I also read most of this series, but this book for sure, as well as Little Women, with my book club. We're not a mother-daughter book club but we do consist of one adult mom who is not any of our mom's, and we absolutely loved it.

So, as far as the actual book, it is a wonderful, sweet read I would definitely recommend to any middle school girl or girl who enjoys reading middle grade. I even recommend it to mothers of girls of the above age groups. I just love the characters. I think that's something that really gets you. No one is perfect, and every character is realistic, unique, and different. Emma is chubby, Cassidy is a tomboy, Jess is shy, and the mean girls aren't perfect. Sometimes, they can be nice, even, which I think is pretty realistic because not every mean girl is mean all the time. Every character has layers, not just one component to them, even the mothers. Throughout my reading of this series, I feel like I have truly grown to have all of these moms as a second mother to me. I love them like an aunt, they are so sweet and full of hilarious quirks. I sooooooo wish I lived in Mrs. Sloane's house. It's straight out of the pages of a home design magazine! In fact, I wish I was part of this book club with these girls. I wish I lived in Concord with them. But sadly, they are not real people (possibly one of the saddest moments of my life :'( ). Anyways, I am totally in love with the events and people and writing style and everything about these books and I think every woman should read them at least once in her life. =D

Overall, this book series and this book by itself are ah-mazing and there is nothing better than a good fix of these girls. A MUST   read!!!!!!!


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My Betsy's Wedding by Maud Hart Lovelace Book Review on Goodreads

Betsy's Wedding: A Betsy-Tacy Story by Maud Hart Lovelace
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Oh dear. I don't know what to say. *sobs with reckless abandon into tissue* I am quite...moved by the ending. Just give me a minute to compose myself. HONK! *blows tears off face and snot out of nose*

Well that was just absolutely the saddest thing I've ever read. Not that anything really sad happened, but the fact that this was the end and what you knew would happen was sad. I'm afraid I'll only be able to review the part of the book that isn't the ending. Only one little snippet about the ending later.

Well, as far as the ending goes I must say I cannot say anything. I believe that the last bit of Anne's review best sums it up. Here's a link to that: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/93168890

The little snippet about the ending: Well, at the end Betsy said somethig about how she could feel the big hill looking down at all the dancers in the chocoloate-colored house. And then I just couldn't help myself. I burst into tears. It was like the end of those movies where some protagonist you have grown close to winks at the camera and it's the sweetest ending ever. I just imagine like a cartoon personified Big Hill laughing jovially and saying, "Those kids! They grow up so fast!" with bittersweet, yet joyful tears as he watches Betsy and her husband, and Tacy and hers, all dance at the house they used to plan about visiting while on the hill for Tib's wedding. And it's just a very come-full-circle moment. Oh this makes me so sad just writing about it! Like a Disney movie would have done. Wait- WHY DIDN'T THEY MAKE MOVIES OF THESE?! That's it, I'm becoming a director. And I'm making sure that Big Hill thing is in it.

Anyways, back to the rest of the book. After a very dissapointing Betsy and the Great World (Betsy-Tacy, #9) (read my review here: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/249835600), I was fully ready for a little Betsy and her Crowd, but especially Joe. And I think Maud realized that she had made a mistake because boy did she make up for her lack of Joe in the previous! Joe was all sweet and overzealous about their marriage, never faltering in his undying devotion to their nuptials. Then from there I was excited to see Betsy take on her domestic duties. Every time she baked and budgeted, and talked about salaries with Joe, I was just so excited. The quaintness of her life was very welcome and exciting for me I guess. Definitely not one to miss out on.

Overall, I felt like this book was just a total closer, not very eventful, but wonderful because of it. I'll never forget the three little girls from Deep Valley who stole my heart away with their antics and fun. I wish we never had to grow up too, Betsy.

RIP: MAUD HART LOVELACE

Just think about that for a minute. It's actually quite sad.

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My Betsy and the Great World by Maud Hart Lovelace Book Review on Goodreads

Betsy and the Great World by Maud Hart Lovelace
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is the only Betsy-Tacy book I didn't give 5 stars to. This book was definitely different than the others. I bet lots of people were definitely dissapointed by this book, but it brings a lot of reality to the series. Main point: The realism in this book will lead to dissapointment by fans.

Reality: Since this series was written closely based on Maud's real life, a lot of realistic components of life's journey went into this series. Most authors would never create a story where the protagonist becomes the only character you can recognize steadily throughout the entire book, because it creates less depth in the story when the characters are always changing. Nevertheless, Maud stuck firmly to real life and her solo tour of Europe, and I must say that this proved hard for the reader. It was definitely confusing and not very fun to go from Betsy's familiar and exciting senior year with Joe Willard to only Betsy. All the others were gone, only mentioned in letters. There were some new characters, but whenever Betsy left that city she would leave them behind and there would be new ones. In a way, this was fun after a while. At first, this approach to the plot was not very interesting, but towards the middle of the book you warmed to this approach. The end strech I found deeply unsatisfying because of the fact that Betsy spent a lot of time in England when I was simply anxious for her to get home. At this time, she wasn't doing much and I was tired of hearing about yet another inn and its inhabitants. Suddenly, the book was not fun. I liked the last two pages when she wrote to Joe, that was definitely a big "FINALLY!" moment for a lot of readers.

Setting: The book skipped 3 years of Betsy's life, which I'm sure many were unhappy about. Completely skipping Betsy's college experience and beginning when Betsy was 21, jumping from when she was eighteen in the previous book. Apparently Maud had a very uninteresting and silly college experience, because she only mentioned it in a couple of pages at the beginning. However, this was a welcome touch of reality, showing that sometimes mistakes can be made in life and there are parts we'd rather erase. Although readers would have loved what every other series would have given them in a description of her college life after reuniting with Joe and the very promising and happy ending to the previous book, Maud stuck to what truly happened.

Joe: This kind of ties into setting. At the end of Betsy and Joe (Betsy-Tacy, #8), Joe and Betsy have reunited in a loving relationship after a long separation. Joe has declared that he is looking forward to a world with Betsy. And then we flash into the next book where suddenly Betsy is at the dock on a ship sailing away to Europe when she should be in college, with some remarks about not thinking about Joe, without any explanation. This was definitely confusing. When we finally find out that we missed the breakup of Joe and Betsy, and even that it happened at all, we are angry. Even more, we are deeply hurt and shocked that Betsy was such a silly duck all through college with that strange character we only hear about in mystical accounts, Bob Barhydt. Betsy is definitely an annoying and silly character at times because she often goes and makes these resolutions, then promptly forgets them and acts like a weirdo (not very creative but I can't think of anything else). She just acts all silly, and then she'll make another resolution. It becomes quite tiring, but again brings a touch of realism about people's real character to the story. I just think that fans were definitely dissapointed in Betsy's behavior in college, and to learn that suddenly she was going off to Europe away from everyone (especially Joe!) was a betrayal of sorts. This was realistic, although not what a truly fictional book would have brought to the table.

War: The introduction of the war to Betsy's world right after she left the countries that had declared war was definitely scary. It was actually really boring and strange right in the middle of the otherwise joyous and homebound plot to introduce England and its talk of war. This was, again realistic as this is what happened to Maud in real life. I also enjoyed hearing about the opinion that Americans had that the world was too civilized for war, so there would never be another. I had not known that this was the general opinion at the time, and it was inetersting to learn that.

Overall, a very charming book. I realize I have not mentioned much about the actual story, but there's not much to say. There were so may cities and place she visited that I can't possibly remember much of any of them. If you stick it through, it gets better and interesting to read. At the end, I was just very happy to finally move on to the very pleasant and familiar Betsy's Wedding (Betsy-Tacy, #10) and Tacy's pregnancy! This book was definitely very realistic, although not what the readers may have liked.

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My Betsy and Joe by Maud Hart Lovelace Book Review on Goodreads

Betsy and Joe by Maud Hart Lovelace
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Oh, Betsy. I truly am worried about you. I did not like at all your behavior throughout this book so I think a more appropriate title would be Betsy and Tony . Oh Betsy! What went through your silly little frivolous head that seems to have been going crazy these past four years of high school.

Well, there's not really much to say besides that I hate how Betsy couldn't say no to Tony. Poor Joe! Betsy is just too much of a sucker for her Crowd! I was on edge and my heart was in knots the entire time she was with Tony. And that completely overshadowed any happiness I felt at the beginning about Betsy and Joe being together for a while, happy and romantic for ONCE. And then Tony had to destroy everything and Betsy acted like it was no big deal, so Joe was left feeling betrayed. Although I was mad at Joe at first, looking back I see that (as usual) Betsy was to blame. For the third time, oh Betsy! So sweet, yet so silly and stupid (occasionally).

The part that I really loved about this book was the first pages of the book that talked about growing up.

Quote 1: "...one was growing up so fast that one needed time to think, to correlate all the perplexing changes and try to understand them."

I, myself, can definitely relate to this because I often find myself confused with all the different things happening in my life as I grow up, and I just wish that I could stop my life for a while and make sense of all thse "perplexing changes".

Quote 2: "Betsy had clung to every phase of childhood as it passed. She always wanted to keep life from going forward too fast."

This is me. Wholly and completely. Every little bit of childhood I am concious of, and of its passing. And, unlike most people, I don't ever want to grow up. Because I see already what I will miss, what I already am missing, about happy, blissful, naive times that I would trade everything I have now for. I am so scared of life moving forward too fast. Time is my worst enemy, which is why I sympathize with Betsy when she says things like this.

Quote 3: " 'You grow older in spite of yourself,' Betsy thought resentfully..."

In spite of yourself. Oh were words ever so true. I resent time and life when, in spite of what I want and need, I grow older. And I hate that. I just don't understand why life has to bring so much that ytou don't want.

What's amazing to me is that, even back in a time when growing up didn't bring as many ocnsequences as our modern world, people still dealt with these problems and feelings, which at least makes me feel better knowing that it's not just being in the modern world that makes growing up harder. It always has been for people.

Overall, this book was bittersweet. It was wonderful when Betsy and Joe got together, terrible when for much of the book she was with Tony breaking Joe's heart, and wonderful when Betsy and Joe reunited at the end. Looking back halfway through the last book, I feel like this book was more of a transition for me in the series than anything. Writing this review now, I definitely don't remember much about this book and don't particularly care for it. Nevertheless, I loved this book because it was still, nevertheless, a Betsy-Tacy book. :)

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My Catching Fire (The Hunger Games #2) by Suzanne Collins Book Review on Goodreads

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I know I'm going to forget something but here goes:

WARNING: DO NOT READ WHEN BUSY!

This book was hands-down way better than The Hunger Games (at least for me). If you read my review of it, you will know that too much early exposure ruined the book for me. Luckily, I had no real knowledge of this book before starting and was pleasantly surprised with how it turned out. I must admit, I love it with all my heart.

Last book, I thought that it was odd that the Games were over. I mean, that was all any reader really read for (among other things)! What I did not see coming was that my strange feeling was not in vain, for there was a SECOND Games! And she staged it perfectly. She knew she had to keep the Games in to keep the readers enthralled, but how to do that without it being obvious? Collins used just the right amount of exposition at the end of the first, and then rising action in the second that it made perfect sense. The Quarter Quell idea didn't seem thrown in there just so there could be a second Games, it seemed necessary and well-thought out. If you read my review of the previous book, you will see that I was annoyed that the book didn't just end with the end of the Games. But now I understand why she went on. And it is BRILLIANT!

The whole District 13 thing was absolutely awesome! The idea that they were using old footage? Great. I think the whole rebellion thing made this book that much more exciting and I loved the ending. The Capitol is losing control. And fast.

Katniss is pretty lucky. Surviving TWO Games? That's fierce.

The mockingjay idea of Cinna's and everything else that happened as far as that goes was so exciting and made me love the book even more. And I'm just guessing here, but I think more of that will come in the next book. Oh poor Cinna! I'm going to have a hard time watching that in the movie.

Every act of rebellion that the Capitol had to black out made me so happy. It sent excitement and elation through my veins, plunging me into a reading frenzy. Because when all you read about is the terrible control the Capitol has, it's so incredible when someone finally does SOMETHING to rebel in just the teeniest, tiniest of ways.

At the end, I felt like so much time had passed since President Snow showed up on her doorstep. I strongly dislike that little guy (well maybe not so little). Stupid rigged Quarter Quell. Ahh.

Towards the end, this book just got crazier and crazier. I had a hard time doing much else so just decided to read it out.

Oh, and I am officially Team Peeta. And I think that's mostly because there's not enough of Gale in the book to convince me otherwise.

Overall, completely masterful in every possible way. Highly recommend and think that you should definitely read even if you didn't like the first. After all, there may be some ulterior reason that you didn't like it that won't apply for the second. You'll never know until you try. P.S. These Games were a lot more fun and exciting (the whole clock thing was crazy!) than the previous.

I know there's something I'm forgetting (I'm a very forgetful person) but oh well. Alas, there is not time in the world to fret over buzzing bees (my own little saying).

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My Princess on the Brink by Meg Cabot Book Review on Goodreads

Princess on the Brink by Meg Cabot
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Well, I made the mistake of reading all the reviews for this book before I read the book. The only reason I regret doing that is that my opinions that I formed on this book were probably already prebiased as a result.

Well, they were all right. I can't help loving and hating this book. WARNING: DO NOT READ WHEN BUSY!!!!!! Not as enthralling as you might think, but still kind of hard to put down. Kind of.

For one thing, Mia was way too immature in this book. And stupid. And then I started hating Michael. And I hate Lily now. And now I just want Mia to be with J.P. The part that I liked best was where Mia asked her dad if her mom's neck smelled good to him. And that was how Mia knew that if she lost Michael she would end up like her dad, having lost her one and only true love.

Mia started really getting on my nerves and there were parts where I just wanted to kill her. That was the hating part. And there's not really much more I can say on that.

And yet I loved this book because it was still Mia. As much as she annoyed me, she was still Mia writing religiously in that little diary of hers.

Another small reason I hated this book might not even make sense because it contradicts what I just sad. You know in Harry Potter at the end books where you're really sad that Hogwarts will never be the same again? No more Dumbledore. Evil Death Eaters instead. Well, this book was like that except Princess Diaries version. Because the issues Mia dealt with were no longer just the high school girl crazy twists and turns. They were deeper. And there was no turning back. Which made you kind of mad because you lost all that made you love them in the first place. Now this ties back to what I just said. Now you have developed a love for Mia, so you're still tied on. And it's strange how she managed to shift the series without losing you entirely. Though she almost did.

Wow. I just downgraded my rating from 4 stars to 3 stars. But wait, that says that I liked it. Did I? Well, there was that neck thing with the Dad. But for the most part it was just OK, the qualification for 2 stars. Oh well, I can't bring myself to rate it lower anyway.

I don't know and I don't even really care anymore. Read the book if you insist. Do what you would like. I sure don't care.

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My The Sorcerer King by Frewin Jones Book Review on Goodreads

The Sorcerer King by Allan Frewin Jones
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Well, that was strange. Let me tell you something here. Two seconds ago, I found out the author of this book is a guy, which (believe me) when you read it you would have never guessed. I can see why he kind of hid that. Probably a weirdo, I'm not sure. Kind of secretive, though he does appear to have a blog.

Anyway, back to the topic. I was reading Princess on the Brink when I was reading this, so it was hard to get into the very slow storyline. You have to be patient with this book because it's not very exciting at times. Only the end was exciting for me, the rest was just mystic. However, I have found that mysticness makes the book more exciting. The whole journey to Ynis Maw, but especially being there with Lios Foltaigg (I think they were called) was the most exciting part. When they came back, the battle was okay, not that great. I would have liked it to be a bit longer.

Somehow I found the ending a cliffhanger, because I would have liked to have found out what happened when her parents found out about Faerie. That was somehow a cliffhanger, even though it's not that important to the plot.

There's not really much to say about this book except that you have to be a very steadfast and appreciative reader to read this book. Just stick it through and I think you'll find that it has the makings of a classic.

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My Out of Sight, Out of Time by Ally Carter Book Review on Goodreads

Out of Sight, Out of Time by Ally Carter
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

As usual, I have no way to describe this book. Maybe (like usual) I'll sum up a super long review. Maybe. Somehow, I'm not all that sure.

WARNING: DO NOT READ UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES IF YOU ARE BUSY. WILL BE ABLE TO DO ABSOLUTELY NOTHING ELSE!!!!!

I think all I can say is that this book is the number one to read before you die. So read it right now. You never know when that car accident's going to happen.

You better read it. The only thing I really remember was feeling numb, and I felt like Cammie did. Pretty smart of Ally to ellicit emotions that the character feels. All I ever felt was numb. So numb.

This book was so wonderful and terrible because you know that nothing can ever be the same again.

Ever.



Words that have no meaning to you right now but ellicit chills down my spine:
It's true.
Jump.
Circus.
The least we can do is take her to her father.

I don't know what to say and the easiest way to do this is just to say nothing at all (well not much).


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My Party Princess by Meg Cabot Book Review on Goodreads

Party Princess by Meg Cabot

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This book was just as wonderful as the others. The only thing that's different is that as each book progresses, Mia faces more mature issues in the books, so some of the silliness is lost now. For the most part, the books still have the same core things that you've always loved them for though. This book was pretty good, I just had a few issues.



Well, one problem that I really have had with Mia since she started dating Michael is her immaturity. I mean, she really should have known better than to go to Michael's party and do stereotypical party things, because chances are what those things are aren't that realistic. In real life, (if I were her) I would assume that the tales of college parties are probably wrong, or at least wait to see what everyone else is actually doing. She was just acting so immature and me, a couple years younger, was going, "What are you doing?" I just couldn't believe it. And I don't really remember the other books when she was going out with Michael, but I think she did this kind of immature assumption thing before (well as far as Michael goes; I know she does it with everything else). I don't know, but this really irked me (well I guess maybe just because this was the major conflict of the story).



A comment just in general about Mia and the series: I think that the reason people continue to read this book and the series is because of Mia. She is such a personable character, and yesterday I finally realized that there is no Mia Thermopolis in real life. Something about her writing and personal style makes you love her and feel like you are her. GO MIA!



Overall, this book was just as awesome as the others except I was pretty angry with Mia about the whole immaturity thing. Read it if you've read the rest of the series.











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My Betsy Was A Junior by Maud Hart Lovelace Book Review on Goodreads

Betsy Was a Junior by Maud Hart Lovelace

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Okay, so it's been a while since I read this, so this review will probably be shorter.



Well, there is this pattern I've been noticing that isn't really a great one. At the end of every year, Betsy resolves to be more serious about her schooling and stop putting her social life before the more important things. However,I think that this book was where she really actually learned her lesson and will stick to her resolution next year. After seeing how much Cab had to grow up when his father died, Betsy thinks about how much her entire Crowd has grown up during the year. Betsy knows that she will never lead such a silly, carefree, frivolous social life anymore because everyone's growing up. She knows that her Crowd will never live in such blissful ignorance ever again, for reality is fast at hand for the Crowd. Betsy thinks about what a terrible thing growing up is and how she just can't stop it. This really spoke to me because I consistently worry about growing up and how I can't stop it from happening. One of the things I most grieve about is the fact that all my friends wil grow up, and there will be no one to be a kid with and, in turn, I'll grow up, too. I really could connect to Betsy in this way.



Well, seeing as that's really what I remember, that concludes the essence of my review. I loved this book so much, just like the others. Each next year of high school is better and more exciting than the last, except I expect that for senior year Betsy's life will be less fun and happy and therefore will stop the climaticness of one book to the next.



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My The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins Book Review on Goodreads

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Similar to my friend Arushi on here, I had no desire to read this book whatsoever when I first saw it. And then, just like Arushi, it was everywhere. I put off reading it until almost the entire known world had read every book, because I was so afraid of ruining the experience by not reading it to my fullest. I was curious, like Arushi, about why this book was so amazing. And I gotta say that I was pretty dissapointed. At FIRST. At FIRST. Don't get your knickers in a twist. I shall explain everything .



Well, let's see. I was not impressed by nearly three quarters of the book. I just didn't think it was great . And I think my problems were all a result of one mistake on my part:

That I waited too long to read.



As part of my Kids/Teens Book Club on this site, I read Divergent for the monthly read. And THAT was amazing. I reviewed it on Goodreads, so feel free to check it out. But, alas, it was too similar to Hunger Games for me to enjoy this book when I read it. It was either one or the other to think was great for me, and I read Divergent first because I waited so long to read HG. I had HG on my shelf for forever, I was just waiting to the PERFECT time to read it.



Also, I think I waited so long that I heard a crazy amount of hype. And the reviews and ravings I heard and read, it was just not possible for one book to live up to all of it when you compiled them alltogether. Yes, that was just too much hype for one book, and my expectations were raised too high.



So finally I found the perfect time to read it. In my real life book club, the Smarticle Particles (headed by my friend daredevil69), we decided to read this book as our March read (Feb. 25-Mar. 23) and then see the movie at 7:00 pm on March 23. This is HG AWESOMENESS!



But then all the hype and Divergent got to me and I didn't enjoy it. Until I got to the endish. When I got to the part where she found Peeta I was hooked from then on. It really got crazy for me when Katniss realized that the wolves were all the fallen tributes. And don't even get me started on Rue's death. I think that was probably my FAVORITE part. Not that I liked her dying, it was just so sweet Katiss's defiance of the Capitol and respect for poor Rue (I don't like the actor who they chose for the movie). OH WAIT I FORGOT! Which brings me to the part that I really liked and almost forgot about: the double suicide. Seriously if the Capitol's going to have these games, the possibilities of suicides are very high. There are a LOT of quick and easy ways to kill oneself in that arena, so they really should have taken that into consideration before. In fact, i think it was pretty silly of Collins to do that because the chance that no one had attempted that before? Unlikely. I know I would have the very second the Games started (though that's different). I really liked that whole defiance thing and think that from the beginning of the battle with the wolf-humans to the double suicide attempt, was the BEST part of the book.



But then I expected it to end there. I thought that this book ended with the end of the Games and then we were left wondering how awesome their lives became at the end, waiting anxiously to read the second. Boy, was I wrong. No, there was the whole "must make Capitol think I wasn't rebelling but just madly in love" thing that I didn't expect to happen in this book. More like the second book. (Though I know it does continue into the next book and much of it is about that.) I'm not sure if I liked this flow of events. It was weird and interesting the way it was set up, I guess its just going to make the next book start at an odd time. And am I ever excited to read the next. Because the last part of the book was the part I liked. Katniss is in trouble, and from what I read of the back cover of Catching Fire, this is going to be a book about her and Peeta "tricking" the Capitol, or maybe not tricking but telling the-*gasp*-TRUTH?! And REBELLION! Yay!!! I was just waiting for this to happen.



And the entire time, I was wondering: now I have to figure out why people loved this book so much. And while reading it, I think I found my answer. And I think part of the reason for this is that people covet and desire simplicity and work. People, deep down inside, miss being what we used to be: people who hunted, made, and gathered our food ourselves, or at least had trouble getting it. And the hope that maybe someday we will have to work for it again like our ancestors is so fascinating to people. I don't know if I'm the first to bring this up, but I definitely think it is a valid idea. In today's preserved food and supermarkets, we kind of want, deep down inside, to have to work for our food again, or at least know that it will not always be there. That ancestral desire and instict hasn't gone away just yet. And I succumbed to that ploy too just like everyone else. I think that's why everyone loves that Katniss is a hunter. I know I really enjoyed her desccriptions of the bare meals she enjoyed and the stew in the Seam. It's all part of that inner instict that we may soon lose.



Overall, this book was pretty good. I really liked it (again, overall). I just didn't love it (the description for 5 stars) throughout most of the book. I have a feeling that the next book will be five stars for me though, which is strange because most people say that this book was their favorite. But I hear the end ofMockingjay was TERRIBLE. Can't wait to read more.



P.S. One thing I didn't get: may the oods be ever in your favor. Not that funny or cool. At all.



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My CYRM Every Soul A Star by Wendy Mass Book Review on Goodreads

Every Soul A Star by Wendy Mass
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Wow, well that was amazing to read again. I was rereading this book because it was nominated for the California Young Reader Medal (CYRM) and I read the books so I can vote on the winner. I am so torn this year as to who to vote for. The past 2 years' nominees of this middle school level haven't been that good, but this year is absolutely AMAZING! Waiting for Normal and Revolution Is Not a Dinner Party are so good too! I was sure that Every Soul A Star (as usual, the only good book) would be my vote by a landslide. I thought I wouldn't even have to reread it to make a more refined decision because all the others would be so terrible. Oh, no! That is NOT the case! I have NO idea who to vote for now! They should all win!

Let me just start by saying that Wendy Mass's books are awesome! They're so different and they relly are super moving. And educational. Like A Mango Shaped Space (I have a review on here). That was a book about synesthesia (which I promptly looked up on the web) and this one was about the messier objects, planets, galaxies, and ECLIPSES (I also looked this up on the web right afterward, too)!

This book was just so AWESOME! As usual, the second time around was not nearly as good as the first. I still loved this book beyond all measure. How to describe it? Well, for first time readers, this book will drive you insane by the end. Everything fits so perfectly well together and is an extraordinary tale of three strange friends. My favorite part was the friendship of Melanie, Kenny, Ryan, Bree, Jack, and Ally. I would have loved to be there in that shed. It's just kids being alone without grown-ups, and having a ton of fun while being three unlikely science nerds. I'm glad that the author chose not to keep Bree out of that sceen because it just wouldn't have made sense. How does she make up these stories?!

Overall, an amazing read that you should be sure not to miss! Who to vote for? Only time will tell!

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My CYRM Waiting for Normal by Leslie Connor Book Review on Goodreads

Waiting For Normal by Leslie Connor
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book was so awesome!! This is one of those books that you should not read when busy, because I procrastinated all day for what felt like a few minutes but was actually several hours on what I needed to do. It was just that good. I am reading it because it was nominated for the California Young Reader medal (CYRM) and I read the books so I can vote on the winner. I am so torn this year as to who to vote for. The past 2 years' nominees of this middle school level haven't been that good, but this year is absolutely AMAZING! The books Every Soul A Star and Revolution Is Not a Dinner Party are so good, too (look for my reviews on here)! I'd already read Every Soul A Star before and it was one of my favorite books, so I was sure that (as usual)that would be my vote by a landslide. Oh, no! That is NOT the case! I have NO idea who to vote for now! They should all win! Read this book if you're looking for something a little different than all that(if you're my friend on Goodreads) YA popular stuff we're always reading.

This book was really enthralling, and I think part of the reason that was was because I just couldn't wait to find out how bad things got wiht Mommers.

Ally lived in an interesting world. The whole trailer on the corner of a really polluted city and bad neighborhood was really strange, and made the story all the more interesting, and (eventually) sad. I really wish I had a bed like Ally's up on a bunkbed with a CURTAIN! How AWESOME would that be? Other than that, most of the time I was thanking my lucky stars I wasn't Ally.

Positive lessons: I realized how mature Ally was for being a couple eyars younger than me, and it was really eye-opening. I mean, obviously she'd had to mature quickly as a result of her situation, but I could still be a little more independent. I mean she can make pancakes and any other dish for herself with a limited amount of supplies, is good at knowing how to combine limited materials in a sparse way, can take inventory of food effectively, can walk across an urban city successfully in the freezing cold, and so much else. This girl makes me seem like a 5-year-old. I really admired her character for this.

Besides this, I just really loved Ally's world and the trials she faced. I think what was most fascinating for anyone reading this book was the character of Mommers. A more irresponsible or immature mother there never was. It amazed me everything she did, and I think the reason readers stick with or even like this story is because of what makes it possible: Mommers. Everyone wanted to see what her next mistake would be, how Ally would react, and what's more, find out if she was caught or arrested for her behavior by Dwight or the police. She was just such an emotionally, physically (maybe), and mentally unstable person.

Overall, this book was so awesome and riveting. I recommend reading whether or not you think you'll like it. But maybe only if you're a girl. DO READ. NOW.

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My Sweet Sixteen Princess (The Princess Diaries, #7.5) by Meg Cabot Book Review on Goodreads

Sweet Sixteen Princess by Meg Cabot

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


This review will be short because this is a half volume of the series.

Okay, well this book was semi-dissapointing. In most of the other half volumes, Meg was able to develop the plot AND wrap up the conflict effectively. I felt like the opposite was true in this book. I think that the book was promising until the resolution, which I didn't really particularly like.

Mia is turning sixteen and all her friends want her to have a party. Mia just wants to have a dinner with her boyfriend, Michael. Will she ever get her wish? Soon, her Grandmere (grandmother) plans an elaborate party that involves taking a hundred people to Genovia for a crazy celebration that will be featured on MTV. Mia is so frustrated, and furthermore she thinks that it was her best friend Lily's idea to tell Grandmere about this.

Now this is where problems start ooccuring. Suddenly, her Grandmere calls off the party after Mia's dad commands her to. Now in any normal book, this would make sense. But not in The Princess Diaries. In every book, commands and pleas from others have never stopped Grandmere. So why now? This just really confused me. I mean, it was complete character inconsistency. Another problem I found was that after this, Mia got a surprise sweet sixteen party that she liked from her boyfriend that included everyone she knew(except for Grandmere, who was sulking).

First of all, Grandmere would never sulk and not come, because that's admitting defeat. No, she would have pretended it was all her idea to avoid shame. Also, the whole party idea was really unexpected and rushed and then it made the whole Grandmere backing down from her party idea look like a ploy to make this ending happen. It just wasn't like the other endings. Then, Mia kind of acted super uncharacteristic when she was sort of blackmailing Lily. That is something only reserved for Grandmere! And every time she does it, Mia stays strong in not stooping to such lows. But Mia was just so different . I don't know it was kind of a weird book.

Overall, I'll love any Princess Diaries book I come across, so that's why I rated it 2 stars (it was ok). It was okay in the sense that it was still the same hilarious Mia I knew and loved (at least until the climax), just the plot nhad major misgivings. Do read if you've just finished the seventh and are planning to go on to the eighth because it rveals some things Lily starting to go out with J.P. that are nice to know before beginning the eigth book.





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My The Princess Present (The Princess Diaries, #6.5) by Meg Cabot Book Review on Goodreads

The Princess Present by Meg Cabot

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This review will be short because it is a half volume of the series.

Well, I don't know what was wrong with the people who made my edition, but the summary on the inside flap was completely innacurate. There was never anhy problem with Mia finding a present, it just happened to be that it was a silly one. The plot was definitely that overdone "sold their most prized possession to buy the other person something and so now the gift that the other person got them for their prized possession makes no sense". So, as far as that romantic part of Christmas aspect of the plot, it was pretty muchn a fail. As far as the rest of the plot though, I found it pretty hilarious. I loved the spoiled royal kids and Lily ruining everything. Strip bowling was the climax, for me at least.

Overall, I think that the end was pretty dissapointing for me, but the rest of the book was pretty funny. The one thing I liked about the end was Grandmere finding a friend and actually being moved by a *gasp* commoner *faints dignifidely*.



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My Valentine Princess (The Princess Diaries, #4.25) by Meg Cabot Book Review on Goodreads

Valentine Princess by Meg Cabot

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This review will be very short considering it's a quarter volume of a book.

This book was one of the better mini stories, I think largely because I can connect very personally to a lot of her struggles with having to try and share a special Valentine's Day with someone who thinks it's a "Hallmark Holiday". That's why I decided to give it five stars, for it's personal value for me and the lessons it taught me. I truly thought that this book's plot was actually kind of original, and cute. I loved the idea of them having a romantic dinner together on February 15th at the end. I thought that was the sweetest way to end the story! I really enjoyed learning about the various speculated histories of Saint Valentine's Day, and thought that this was a cute way to incorporate educational value into the story. If only my Saint Valentine's Days could end like hers did. *sigh* Well, there's always high school!

Overall, this story was a timeless story of what Christmas- er, Saint Valentine's Day is all about. Not flowers, not chocolate, not cards, but the pure joy of telling someone you care and apreciating their love (unlike Lily)is what the holiday is really about. I hope that I will be able to incorporate this lesson into next Saint Valentine's Day, as I read this yesterday when the holiday had just recently passed.



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My Heaven to Betsy by Maud Hart Lovelace Book Review on Goodreads

Heaven to Betsy by Maud Hart Lovelace

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Okay, so I've been putting off writing this review for a while, but not because I didn't like it. This book was so amazing and there was so much I liked about it that I don't even know how to approach describing it. First thing's first: I really loved this book with all of my soul, and even took a late night to finish it.



This book was mainly a very lengthy description of Betsy's newfound popularity. She has a "Crowd" that she hangs out with every day. Betsy is now a mature young woman, who is into boys and social engagements of all sorts. I really enjoyed this book because it was so freshly relatable in comparison to all the other books. Now that Betsy is a more mature girl, you could really connect wih her on more levels.



Much of this book was about boys and parties. Betsy was such a busy person, and she dealt with heartache over a boy she fell head over heels for but loved another girl. I was really able to connect with her opinion on social engagements, her attitude towards being invited to one and being there. I was also able to reflect how similar her opinions were about boys.



I was also really able to relate to Betsy's love of writing, and competing with it. I always feel much the same way about my own writing when it is put up against other works. Betsy and I share that prideful feeling. I really took to heart Betsy's words at the end about, if she didn't exercise it, her writing would be lost to her forever. That part really inspired me to write more, because I haven't worked on my private works in over a year. I really want to take to writing poems and small works or observances like Betsy. I'm currently not to happy about my stories, which is kind of why I stopped (a bit of writer's block), but maybe I could just practice with mini works.



Anyway,this brings me to my main point, the essay contest. As I read this, it made me think about how I've been procrastinating on my 20 hours of history homework that I have to do, and the dire consequences that I could have as it had for poor Betsy. It made me realize that I can't just rush and do it, I'll need lots of time to create something good (like Betsy later realized). Which reminds me that I must work on it after I finish writing this.



Overall, this book was heartwarming and hard not to love. This book was superior to the rest so far because of how easy it was to connect and relate to the plotline and its even greater complexity than the previous.



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My Betsy and Tacy Go Downtown by Maud Hart Lovelace Book Review on Goodreads

Betsy and Tacy Go Downtown by Maud Hart Lovelace

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


One of my favorite books ever. As I mentioned in my review of Betsy and Tacy Go Over the Big Hill I thought that it would be hard for me to watch them grow up and yet still be little kids, at least until high school. I was wrong. I feel like that book was just an awkward transition book for me. I was still coping with the fact that they're not little kids anymore, but they're not quite grown either. This book was different. Even though they were still only twelve and not in high school yet, I found this story not sad because they had already grow up in a way. There was no awkward dolly playing with yet love affairs like the previous. I felt like in this book I could just sit back and read.



This book focused a lot on Victorian society, which I liked a lot. It catered to my deep love for reading books that deal with ideas and inventions that the characters consider amazing (or unamazing depending on if it's historical or dystopian). When you read about, say how novelic it was to see a "horseless carriage" or use/own a telephone it makes me just brim up with happiness at the simplisticness of society, and gives me a deeper understanding of feelings/thoughts during that time period.



Really, this book just follows Betsy, Tacy, Tib, and a little bit of their newfound side friend, Winona, through the downtown area and all the marvelous things and experiences they discover there. Betsy goes to a library and eats lunch out at Heinz's Restaurant all by herself, they all got to a matinee and act in one, they ride in a horselss carriage, they use and own telephones, they go to parties and visit the wealthiest woman in Deep Valley, Mrs.Poppy, and they go Christmas shopping! The girls go throughout society, and it's like their first exposure to this whole new world.



There is no more doll-playing or game inventing, only the wonders of downtown.



Overall, this book was a joy for its (unusual for the series before this point) societal glimpses. My favorite so far because they finally grew up and their adventures are now more exciting (and easier to connect) with than ever! I'm sure Heaven to Betsy will exceed all my expectations with its even more relatableness and sophistication!



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