REVIEW: Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

I really loved this one. I found it to be very sweet. I really loved the way in which Maggie Stiefvater told this story. Large chunks of it I just wanted to read out loud just for the sake of hearing the words spoken. I found Grace and Sam to be very likeable and believable, though Sam was definately the more developed character of the two. I felt like the cold weather was a character in itself and I almost felt chilly reading the book.

Shiver tells the story of Grace and Sam in alternate chapters. After Grace is attacked by wolves and then saved by one in particular, she's become a little obsessed about the wolves. Sam spends the warmer months as a human and the colder months as a wolf until an accident changes him back into a human and he turns to Grace for help. Time is not on their side, as it's getting colder and colder and Sam will not be able to stay human for long.

I picked up this book partly because of the good reviews I'd been reading on blogs, partly because I love a good paranormal romance, and partly because that cover is so darn pretty. I read it in as close as one sitting as I could and I finished it with a smile on my face. I'd like to say that I had problems with the storyline as I was reading it... that Grace and Sam had this intense relationship with each other with no basis that was explained properly, that Grace had no other hobbies or interests besides obsessing over a boy.. but I didn't. None of those things bothered me until after I'd finished the story and I only thought of them as I sat down to write this review. I was just swept away by the story and the romance between Grace and Sam. There were so many cute little moments that they shared together that was balanced nicely with the cold weather and bleak circumstances.


Other Reviews:

Karin's Book Nook
Wondrous Reads
Chick Lit Teens
Frenetic Reader
The Compulsive Reader
The Reading Zone
The Book Smugglers
The Eclectic Book Lover

Stuff on my head Part 6

Why not, right? Big thank you to Oldest who is the photographer for this series of posts! Since we started all of this, he rushes around the room trying to think of other things to put on my head. If I was able, I tried. Most though were a little extreme:

Him: Mommy, mommy! How about the TV? On your head? And I'll take the photo.
Me: I don't think so, child.
Him: How about the sofa? Or the exercise bike? The footstool! Mommy, the footstool!

Still, it's been fun. A family effort!

Back to the library..

Over the last few weeks, I was being silly and trying not to visit the library as much. The goal was to start reading my own books. It worked for a little while, and then not so much. So, to make up for it, I've been to the library twice in the last two days. Here's what I've picked up:

1. The Perfect Man by Sheila O'Flanagan - I like a bit of chick-lit every now and then. I'm sure I haven't read this one yet.

2. Generation A by Douglas Coupland - Kind of hit or miss with Coupland, but this one sounds good. Might have to fight it out with N to read it though.

3. Heroes of the Valley by Jonathan Stroud - Hadn't heard of this title before but loved Stroud's Amulet of Samarkand.

4. Roundabout by Rhiannon Lassiter - Never heard of it before, just liked the cover!

5. Underworld by Cathy Macphail - another one I've never heard of, about 5 kids trapped in a cave. Sounds spooky and just right for this time of year.

6. Dancing Girls by Margaret Atwood - I heart Margaret Atwood. Only ever read her dystopic stuff though and I feel I really should read something else by her.

7. Death at Intervals by Jose Saramago - I really want to read Blindness, but this one will do for now.

8. Road of the Dead by Kevin Brooks (not pictured) - Recently recommended to me by a friend. It's not in the photo because it's on my bedside table! Started it last night.

And I've been acquiring books in other ways as well. Mostly book swapping sites and charity shops, but also the lovely Keris sent me two books! Yay for books in the post :)



1. Candy by Kevin Brooks - Bought for 20p at my library sale based on a friend's recommendation.

2. The Unconsoled by Kazuo Ishiguro - Seems kind of chunky, but I've been liking what I've read of Kazuo Ishiguro.

3. The Disreputable History of Frankie Landua-Banks by E Lockhart - Heard good things about this book.

4. I Heart You, You Haunt Me by Lisa Schroeder - I've already finished this one. Not what I was expecting.

5. Girl With Glasses by Melissa Walsh - a memoir about a girl with glasses (obviously) - one that Keris sent for me. It sounds cute. And I've always been a girl with glasses.

6. Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris - I started watching True Blood a couple weeks ago. Still not entirely sure about the show, but the book must be better.

7. Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick - another one Keris kindly sent. Have already finished it.

8. Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater - another book I've been reading about everywhere. Needed to know what the fuss was about. (Already finished it and loved it!)

9. The Graduate by Charles Webb - Saw this in a charity shop. Have never seen the film. But I was remembering that embarassing scene in Starter For Ten with James McAvoy where he mentions the book and .. oh, that's a silly reason for buying a book, isn't it?

What books have you picked up recently? What's the silliest reason you've had for buying a book?

Stuff on my head Part 5

Sunday salon - bookish movies

Another weekend, another cold :( I woke up this morning with a very
painful sore throat. Luckily N took the boys out this morning and I
was able to curl up on the sofa with my book, Dracula by Bram Stoker.
It didn't last long, I fell asleep before I'd read ten pages! I am
enjoying it though and I'm glad that I'm finally reading a book like
this around Halloween.

I wanted to talk about books being into movies today. With movies like
New Moon, Where the Wild Things Are, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland,
The Lovely Bones and The Road coming out soon I'm getting very
excited. I'm sure others are as well. Which bookish movie are you
waiting impatiently for?

As for me, today, my sky+ box will be keeping me company with some old
bookish movies that I have never seen ... Heart of Darkness, The Red
Pony, World According to Garp and Lolita.

What bookish things are keeping you company today?

First bike

I remember my first proper bike. It was red. It had a white banana seat, and I'm not really sure if the handlebars had tassles or if I only really, desperately wanted tassles so much that I've re-remembered my bike with them because it makes me happy. Either way, I was very happy with my little red bike. I think back on that red bike with very fond memories of cycling around the neighbourhood with friends. The time I tried to go down that steep hill that only the really big kids used, fell off my bike and broke my glasses.

It makes me a little sad/happy that here Oldest is with HIS first bike. I wonder what memories he'll have on that. I hope they're happy and safe memories.


What was your first bike like?

Stuff on my head Part 4

Oh I'm having so much fun with this stuff on my head. I even went up to the loft to pull out all of my silly hats that I've collected over the years. Those are still to come!

It's got me thinking of all the other fun things that grown-ups stop doing when they get older. This is a partial list. Feel free to add anything to it. These things just remind me of having fun as a child and I'm on a mission to incorporate a lot of these activities into my daily life.

Flying a kite
Finger painting
Swinging
Twirling until you're dizzy
Jumping on the bed
Water balloon fights
Making (and eating) Rice Krispie treats
Picking blackberries
Making paper chains
Watching Saturday morning cartoons
Running through the sprinkler
Popsicles
Going camping and making s'mores and swimming in the lake
Spend an entire day reading in bed
Family game nights with board/card games
Explore

There are others, but they're more specific to my childhood. My brother and I would wash cars for neighbours to make money or collect cans and return them to grocery stores for the deposit, our family would go on long walks in the country with the dog, we'd go on long road trips and sing along to the radio, I used to write stories.

What reminds you fun in your childhood?

REVIEW: A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry

I've had my copy of A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry for many, many years. I bought it while still in America, in fact. It was a book that I carried with me in my suitcase when I moved here 9 years ago. At the time I was reading all of Oprah's book club picks, but until very recently I don't ever remember even cracking the cover of this book. I'm sad now that it took me so long to read this beautiful book.

A Fine Balance is set in India around The Emergency, a period of time in the 1970s where a lot of freedom and choices were eliminated from the common people as India struggled with political unrest and the economic times were hard. This book describes in detail a lot of the unjustices and abuse that went on during this time. And it's very heartbreaking. As one character points out, 'it's a fine balance between hope and despair' And these characters really are walking that line, dealing with such atrocities. Police corruption, forced sterilisations, whole neighbourhood's homes knocked down to 'beautify' the city.

The four main characters include Dina, a woman in her 40s who is struggling to remain financially independent after the death of her husband. In order to do this, she takes in a lodger, Maneck, who is a sensitive student living away from his home, and also hires two tailors, Ishvar and Omprakesh, both of the 'Untouchable' caste. I think what's wonderful about this book, apart from opening our eyes to the cruelties of life during this time, but also how many different topics are touched on during the scope of this novel. The four main characters are all very different from each other in terms of gender, class, religion and over the course of the book transform from people unsure and untrusting of each other to becoming friends, family even. Mistry manages to say something about the true meaning of families and community and loyalty as well. He gives us a sympathetic view of beggars and shows us the power that lies within the human spirit.

It really is a heartbreaking book. One not to miss.


Other Reviews:

Farm Lane Book Blog
Vulpes Libre
The Compulsive Reader
Ramblings of a Bibliophile

REVIEW: One Day by David Nicholls

Let me just say this right away - I loved this book, One Day by David Nicholls. I loved the characters, I loved the format, the dialogue, the humour. I read a review over at Five Minutes Peace (link below) the week before my birthday, hadn't even had a chance to add it to my (much ignored by everyone) wishlist, and a wonderful friend read my mind and bought it for me for my birthday anyway (thanks A)! I flew through this book, and when it finished I wanted to read it again.

One Day is the story of Emma and Dexter, who meet on the last day of university, sort of get together but don't really. Then every year for the next 20 years, on this one day, July 15, we follow their lives as they struggle in careers and relationships and their own friendship with each other. I loved how Emma starts off with such high ideals and expectations of what to do after university and instead struggles with a lack of direction. In fact, I just loved Emma as a character altogether. I read something about this book somewhere that said that no matter which place in life you are in at the moment you will find a way to relate to this book, and I agree with that.

I'd love to write more, but I don't want to spoil this for anyone. If it means anything, this book comes highly recommended from me! It's incredibly sweet, very funny and just a beautiful book.

Other Reviews:

Bart's Bookshelf
Five Minutes Peace

Sunday salon

I am not feeling well today. In fact, that applies to the whole
family. We are a grumpy and ill lot this weekend.

I've managed to read a few pages of my book, The Year of the Flood by
Margaret Atwood, and I've planned my next few books but I can't really
concentrate today. So instead, I've put on the Studio Ghibli film of
Tales of Earthsea. Haven't yet read the books, but I'd like to..

Hope you are all feeling well and happy reading today!

Friday Finds the second

I had so much fun with last week's Friday Finds, that I thought I'd do another one. Here are some of the reviews that I've read recently which made me add the books to my list. Apart from Shiver, these books are a bit different than what I'd normally be interested in ..


Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater reviewed by Suzie at Confessions of a Wandering Heart

OK. So this book has been mentioned a lot on blogs I read recently, but Suzie's review is the first one that I read that made me think 'yes, one to read' mostly because her review is kind of gushy, and I like gushy reviews. And OK, I think the cover is gorgeous.

Amazon says:

For years, Grace has watched the wolves in the woods behind her house. One yellow-eyed wolf--her wolf--is a chilling presence she can't seem to live without. Meanwhile, Sam has lived two lives: In winter, the frozen woods, the protection of the pack, and the silent company of a fearless girl. In summer, a few precious months of being human . . . until the cold makes him shift back again.

Now, Grace meets a yellow-eyed boy whose familiarity takes her breath away. It's her wolf. It has to be. But as winter nears, Sam must fight to stay human--or risk losing himself, and Grace, forever.

The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien reviewed by Arukiyomi

I started reading war books recently. I'm not sure how it came about, but now I feel myself being pulled to war books. Perhaps it's a way to come to understand the experiences that loved ones have gone through, a way to understand how war has changed them. Maybe it's some weird phase I can't explain, but there you have it. I am seeking out war books. Even through Arukiyomi's review says more about his own personal beliefs than what the story seems to be about, he did write this and it's what tipped me over the edge:

The Things They Carried is a poignant and evocative exploration of what it really means to be involved in a war. O’Brien very carefully describes the meaninglessness, the helplessness, the messy business at the sharp end. And, importantly, he shows the impact it makes on a person’s psyche better than any I’ve read.

The Amazon blurb:

A sequence of stories about the Vietnam War, this book also has the unity of a novel, with recurring characters and interwoven strands of plot and theme. It aims to summarize America's involvement in Vietnam, and her coming to terms with that experience in the years that followed.

My Swordhand Is Singing by Marcus Sedgwick reviewed by Mariel at Where Troubles Melt Like Lemon drops

For this book, I really, really loved how the cover and title completely fooled me (and others) into thinking this book is something that it's not. I'd seen this book around, but not until mariel's review did I learn that it is a vampire/zombie book. That pristine white cover did not make me think 'horror' at all, and it feels like a little surprise in some way. Horror is not normally my thing but I feel like I need to branch out everyone in awhile, it'll be fun. Here'd the blurb from Amazon:

In the bitter cold of an unrelenting winter Tomas and his son, Peter, arrive in Chust and despite the inhospitability of the villagers settle there as woodcutters. Tomas digs a channel of fast-flowing waters around their hut so they have their own little island kingdom. Peter doesn't understand why his father has done this, nor why his father carries a long battered box everywhere they go, and why he is forbidden to know its mysterious contents. But when a band of gypsies comes to the village Peter's drab existence is turned upside down. He is infatuated by the beautiful gypsy princess, Sofia, intoxicated by their love of life and drawn into their deadly quest. For these travellers are Vampire Slayers and Chust is a dying community - where the dead come back to wreak revenge on the living. Amidst the terrifying events that follow, Peter is stunned to see his father change from a disillusioned man to the warrior hero he once was. Marcus draws on his extensive research of the vampire legend which permeates traditions throughout the world and sets his story in the forbidding and remote landscapes of the 17th century. Written in his usual distinctive voice, this is also the story of a father and his son, of loss, redemption and resolution.


Twilight of Avalon by Anna Elliott reviewed by Nymeth at things mean a lot
This was a strange one for me. I'm not really into historical fiction at all. In fact, I'm not even sure who Tristan and Isolde are. Is that terrible? But I feel as though I'm attracted on weird level that I'm not fully aware of to Arthurian legends. And I've that feeling for some time, and just haven't acted on it yet. Here's the bit in Nymeth's review that sold me on the book:

The book deals with several topics I care about: the role of women in society, the effects of sexism, the consequences of war and of a culture of violence, and how all of the aforementioned things are affected by a limiting definition of masculinity that renders acts of aggression mandatory, and considers anyone who behaves otherwise, male or female, weak and inferior.

Sounds great, right? Here's the description from Amazon, which confuses me further:

Hardly a generation after King Arthur's court has had its downfall, Queen Isolde grieves for her slain husband, the High King Constantine, Arthur's heir. Only Isolde knows that Constantine was murdered, and that Marche, his murderer and the scheming frontrunner for the High King's throne, has betrayed his people to an alliance with the Saxon invaders. Isolde must fight for her very life as Marche plots to have her tried and executed for witchcraft in order to protect his secrets. One of her few allies is Trystan, a prisoner who is neither Saxon nor Briton, a young man with as lonely and troubled a past, and as strong a will to survive, as her own. Together they escape, and must find a way to prove what they know to be true - that Marche's deceptions will not only cost them their lives, but will jeopardize the future of British rule...


Friday Finds is hosted by MizB over at Should be Reading.

Ah, September

How are you already over? These monthly recaps seem to come around more and more quickly. And it also seems as though I'm reading less and less. And I really am bad at this whole reviewing thing! Nothing reviewed this month (again). Here are this month's totals:

1. Being Nikki by Meg Cabot
2. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
3. The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness
4. Nocturnes by Kazuo Ishiguro
5. Holly's Inbox: Scandals in the City by Holly Denham
6. A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry
7. One Day by David Nicholls

My usual is about 12 books this month, but two university assignments kept me from focusing on reading this month. I am pleased to annouce that 5/7 of the books I read this month were books I own. Yay for that! Cannot choose a favourite this month. Nocturnes and the Holly's Inbox were just OK, loved the rest. Currently reading The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood and my goals for October are to continue reading my own books, possibly books on the 1001 Books to Read Before You Die, which I have been ignoring for the last few months.


What was your most recent favourite book?