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Re: Latest book you have finished

PostPosted: October 17th, 2014, 6:30 pm
by laila_6045
The Young Elites (TYE #1) by Marie Lu
Genre : YA period fantasy
Rating: 5/5 ELITE MALFETTO STARSSSSSS!!!! OF COURSE!

it was everything that i hope it would be and even the parts that really gutted me but i understand that in Adelina's world such things are bound to happen one way or another. This is no hero's story...but a story of a villain who rose to power...and believe me i will be rooting for her! and i can't wait to meet other elite malfettos AS IN!!!!!

Re: Latest book you have finished

PostPosted: October 17th, 2014, 6:37 pm
by laila_6045
One More Chance (Rosemary Beach #8) by Abbi Glines
Genre: Adult contemporary romance
Rating : 3/5

There were some parts that were a nice touch and poignant but the angst level was a bit overwhelming and i wasn't so impress with the kind of heroine Harlow is in this book. Grant did a good job at groveling here esp. with the way it ended in the last book. However, it came to the point that both of them are giving Breaking Dawn vibes (-_-) but the biggest shocker of all was the b*tch from hell NAN herself...for awhile there i thought her body was invaded by an alien. no matter that one time "act of service" was duly noted but i'm still unforgiving towards her.
However Blair, Rush and their little Nate are just too adorable and awesome here.

Re: Latest book you have finished

PostPosted: October 19th, 2014, 4:32 pm
by arjaye
I'LL GIVE YOU THE SUN by Jandy Nelson
5/5

Sun? If it wont give you the sun, i don't know what else, since this is one of the most illuminating reads i had ever set my eyes on. No confusion at all, just the right flow of the story. Jumping back and forth of the past and present between the two main characters is sometimes confusing but not Noah and Jude. Their parts were totally aligned, even the POVs were clear as daylight. You know who was telling the side of the story and you immediately jump to his or her account. You immediately relate and you instantly become him or her. Noah or Jude, it doesn't matter.

And why wont you become Noah and Jude? They are interesting characters. Both of which are lovable, witty, funny and artistic, but imperfect in their own ways. Nasty and sometimes cruel, there's always a reason behind those acts. The end justifies the means, as they always say, but these flaws were the ones that made them whole in the end. Both broken but finding their pieces. Situations and things helped them find and put them back together. CSA, Devil's Drop, studio, the church and its pews, Woodbird, leather jacket, meteriotes, ladder and rooftop, oranges and onions, sketches and sandwomen. But mostly, people helped them. "Maybe some people are just meant to be in the same story," no matter how odd their part will be. Mom and Dad, Brian, Oscar, Guillermo, even the parrot too.

One of the more entertaining reads, if i may add. Why so? Because of how the author used words to describe. A lot of words, actually, but thats the point. Clear and lucid and very picturesque. In my mind, Noah and Jude became alive. I love how she painted the world in Noah's sketches, Noah's broken heart and broken dreams. I love how Jude turned herself and her world upside down, and back up again. I love how detailed she become when it comes to setting the mood, the feels, the aches and pains, the elated joy, the overall emotions in the story, rollercoaster ride or calm as a still water. I love how smooth the transition even though the scene was heartbreaking or overwhelming. I love. I love. I love. I could go on and on, but i really would want you to experience it by yourself. That laughing out loud, that harrumphing when annoyed, that disappointed and broken feeling, that squeals and feels for delight, disgust, or mixed emotions. She showed them all, quite comprehensibly.

I cannot help but to love Jandy Nelson, more and more! This is the second book that i read from her, THE SKY IS EVERYWHERE, being the first.
I remember how confused I was with her word-building and too much descriptions back then but now ive realized that was the secret. She did it on purpose so you can thoroughly enter the world she wants you to see and live in. That book took me by storm. I remember how i loved her characters back then, Lennie and Toby, big no. But Lenny and Joe, big yes. Joe Fontaine is such a sweetheart.

But I'LL GIVE YOU THE SUN is another masterpiece.
I just finished reading minutes ago, and i sure feel the good vibes that it left behind. So go ahead, turn that very first page.

Re: Latest book you have finished

PostPosted: October 19th, 2014, 8:57 pm
by ayanamifaerudo
First read: June 22, 2011

I've been going on rereads these past few months. I can't say I regret it since I've been rediscovering old favorites on the way; and also finding out that my reading tastes have also changed over the years what with downgrading the ratings of some books.

But The Body Finder is not one them. It retains its five-star rating from me.

Re: Latest book you have finished

PostPosted: October 20th, 2014, 9:05 am
by eira
A fitting ending to an epic series. Greek and Roman mythology has never been more alive and enchanting. After all the hardships,sacrifices and suffering, the characters really deserve their happy ending.

Rating: 10 stars (or laurel wreaths, for the Olympians).

Re: Latest book you have finished

PostPosted: October 20th, 2014, 9:38 am
by Super_Mark
Is it fine to call a book beautifully written when all what's in it is suffering and death?

A World War II book that tackled the struggles of lesser known European countries, this is about Lina Vilkas, a 15 year old girl Lithuanian and the struggle she and her family had to go through during the pre-war period. The story started when Stalin of Russia ordered the deportation of thousands of Lithuanian out of their country to be sent to labor camps in Siberia because Lithuania is being annexed to Russia.

Deaths. Deaths. There were deaths everywhere. The travel to Siberia was marked with gruesome details about how life became so miserable to Lina's family. With how they were able to survive starvation and the weather and the hard labor that put to test their determination to stay alive and eventually be free.

Flashbacks about the Lina's family helped me more to understand and better visualize the scenes before the incident happened making me more attached to the characters.

Lina has an good eye for art. She was a budding artist before the war broke out. Being an outspoken child and her now on a place where every word you utter could mean your life, she used her drawings to bring out what she feels about certain situations and to cope with what's happening around her that became too sudden. She also used it to bring hope to herself and hope to be reunited with her father, who was got separated with them prior to them being dragged out of their house. She drew almost everything, from the faces and scenes and she kept it all with the hope that someone would know their story and to avoid it from happening again.

The author....hands down. I can't describe how masterfully this book was written. The novel was easy to read. The characters were just insanely perfect on the book. They were so diverse yet so perfect that made the story even more compelling. The story was to the point making the characterization felt just like real. The author made me feel that I am one of those who were deported and feel he pain that the deportees feel. Feel cold when the weather was below freezing, feel hungry when what they have to eat is a piece of bread, feel sick when someone is being beaten and celebrate with them on simple things that made their life a little easier.

It was like a privilege reading this book. The author went to Lithuania herself to have her research and although there were no true Lina, the premise of the story is factual. It was a privilege to listen to the voices that were unheard of before. It was a privilege to know that there were those sufferings that were not known until just recently. That there were also those little countries like Lithuania whose people were affected. At first, I thought this is just another WWII book but I was mistaken. This book has a life in it. It will make be more appreciative of things, even simple things, that you have or receive.

Going back to my question, is it fine to call a book beautifully written when all what's in it is suffering and death? Yes, because it really is. I would be fooling myself if I said no. I believe that the intention of the book is not just for us to pity those who suffered such injustice during those period but also for the readers to mirror themselves and their lives on the book.

It is a story of strength and love.

It is a story of hope.

It is a story of mankind.

An easy 5/5 for me.

Re: Latest book you have finished

PostPosted: October 22nd, 2014, 11:27 am
by Super_Mark
Coraline

The first Neil Gaiman book that I read.

The novel is about Coraline, a young girl who moved into a new apartment with her family. A young girl, who because of her curiosity stumbled upon an alternate world, after exploring a locked door in her new house, where she needs to battle it out to go out. Backed by her "never-give-up" attitude, stubborness on the side and quirkiness the author presented a character that anyone would hard to forget. The plot even more thickened after she successfully fled out of that world which made the story even more creepier.

Narration is good. Gaiman used simple words but with depth to it. He was able to create a vivid picture of the world with just little words.

The author was able to perfectly execute to have the novel be funny and creepy at the same time. Wordings were made simple that made the novel not only appealing to young audiences but also to adults. Gaiman is very good in characterization. The array of characters were presented in a way that each would have its own spotlight and moment. The novel also has added elements of animals speaking that spiced up the novel even more.

The author was able to portray how children's fear could at times be adult's fear too. The feeling of being left alone, the feeling where there's like no way out, the feeling that life seems to be the boring and the same everyday of your life. And we share the same feeling that during those times we'll do anything to get our way out.

Want to read the book? You're in for a surreal adventure. :)

4/5

Re: Latest book you have finished

PostPosted: October 24th, 2014, 10:40 am
by Super_Mark
A Wrinkle in Time

3.5/5

The novel is about Meg, a misunderstood child of scientists who worked with her sibling Charles Wallace and their friend Calvin in saving her father who was transported to a different world after doing some experiment about time travelling. In their journey they meet loads of characters who some will befriend while some will test them.

The book discussed the relationship between family, friends, society, and one's self. How we try sometime to fit to our family especially if we feel that we're different, to the community that tells you that your diiferent, and to yourself who sometimes you doubt what you can do. It also discussed how we can overcome our weaknesses for the sake of our loved ones. It's a classic story of good versus evil on a distant world.

The author presented a main character who is complex in nature. The growth of the main character in the story is imminent. From being all too stubborn to being brave and patient in dealing with the things that she can't understand which eventually helped her triumph.

I enjoyed it but not as much as how I expected to enjoy it. It is engaging at some point but I had issues maintaining it. Maybe because, I expected too much from it. Some parts were like too abrupt for me. Generally the book was constructed in a way that the parts will perfectly come together but the specifics were not thoroughly discussed and are at some point vague for me. Some parts were not explained as thoroughly as I expected it to be like for instance even just a brief background of the characters and where they came from were not presented. Some characters are lousy and were just like placed in the story for the sake of it coming into being.

Maybe I'm becoming too technical in reviewing the book. My adult self reviewing the book maybe different from me reviewing it 15 years ago. I know that I should take note that this book was intended to be a children's novel. From a children's point of view, it may be a good novel but if you're an adult reading it for the first time and you are the type who is more into details, I guess, you'll have more questions than answers after you read this one.

Overall, I did enjoy the ride with it's themes and values. How they were presented were just a little too cheesy for me as an adult. I hope I had the chance to read the book when I was oyunger. Maybe I would have rated it higher.

3.5/5

Re: Latest book you have finished

PostPosted: October 24th, 2014, 4:24 pm
by Super_Mark
Love & Misadventure

5/5 for me.

First poetry collection that I read.

Short. Sweet. Simple. Magical.

I am rating this poem collection as someone who doesn't read poems.

I have since avoided buying poem collections and reading poem itself for the fact that I just don't enjoy reading it. Even before I was still in school, analyzing poems is what I hated the most. I just hate how alot of mind strength and muscle is required to digest a poem.

But this book changed how I looked into poems. This is a gem. I like how the author made her connection to the readers. How she made the poems very simple. How with simple words he made readers reflect into them.

The whole collection revolved around love. From the time that you meet that someone to the point of almost giving up and fighting again. I like how the emotions were translated to words. Magical.

The author also added short essays which added magic to the book. I am lost with words as to how I'll describe this.

This one hit me the most:

Angels

"One day you meet someone and for some inexplicable reason, you feel more connected to this stranger than anyone else--closer to them than your closest family. Perhaps this person carries within them an angel--one sent to you for some higher purpose; to teach you an important lesson or to keep you safe during a perilous time. What you must do is trust in them--even if they come hand in hand with pain or suffering--the reason for their presence will become clear in due time."

Though here is a word of warning--you may grow to love this person but remember they are not yours to keep. Their purpose isn't to save you but to show you how to save yourself. And once this is fulfilled; the halo lifts and the angel leaves their body as the person exits your life. They will be a stranger to you once more."

Feels. Feels. Feels.

I know that poetry is not for all. And I know that it's not for me but the poems on the book spoke to me. The words spoke to me.

I read the whole collection in less than an hour and I have to reread it again to relieve the magic and hit harder the second time. And for sure I'll reread this again many times in the future.

5/5

"The briefest moment shared with you - the longest on my mind."

"If I feel it, can I un-feel it, now I've felt it?"

"Someday I'll be over you, I know, I know - I thnk."

Re: Latest book you have finished

PostPosted: October 25th, 2014, 11:05 pm
by laila_6045
The Beginning of Everything by Robyn Schneider
Genre : YA, contemporary, romance, adolescent
Rating : 5/5

this was such a pleasant surprise...i didn't expect to enjoy it that much. but i like how Ezra's personal tragedy transformed him through out his senior year and the many pop culture references in this book are a WIN for me. i also got really really sad with what happened to Cooper :( over all i love love the writing style of the author. i look forward to reading more of her works :)