Book Haul

I got 17 books this month, most are from goodwill. I went to three different goodwill's.

First goodwill:

This was the biggest of the bunch.
The first and biggest book is underneath the others, Tim Burton's Nightmare Before Christmas: The Art,The Film, The Vision, I happened upon this one look through it, it not only has the story of how the film was made but also art, sketches, and the lyrics for the songs from the film. Now I will be starting from the top left and go clockwise, first would be Racism, Sexism, and the Media: The Rise of Class Communication in Multicultural America (3rd Edition), I found this book mixed in with the Harlequin-style romance books (I don't think it belonged there), I decided to buy it after flipping through it. The second is Ghost Girl, I had read the spine and took it out thinking it was going to be a different type of story, after reading the summery I decided to get it. The third is David Copperfield, The main reason I picked it up and bought it was because it's by Charles Dickens, the second reason was I've had it on my To Buy List for a while. The forth is Tales Before Tolkien: The Roots of Modern Fantasy, I happened upon the spine and seen Tolkien's name before taking it out and looking through it and had seen it had The Drawn Arrow by Clemence Housman, and The Woman of the Wood by A. Merritt, both of which I have wanted to read for a while. The fifth is Timeless Stories for Today and Tomorrow, I had seen Ray Bradbury's name then read the title and noticed I had it on my To Buy List, it has stories from Roald Dahl, John Steinbeck, E.B. White, as well as many other authors. The sixth is Matilda, I love Roald Dahl books so when I came across this I had to buy it. The Seventh and last book is The Silmarillion, I noticed the Tolkien's name so I read the summery and decided to buy it. I also bought a Algebra and Biology book, but I don't think anybody wants to see those. So that's all for the books from the first Goodwill, now for the next.


From the second Goodwill:

I only found two I wanted from this Goodwill.
First is Great Expectations, I had a different version of this book, but I really liked this one, also I really like hard cover books so I bought this one, It was only $2.99, I gave the other version I had away. The second and last is Jane Eyre, I have been trying to find this book for a while now, I have been wanting to read it for 3 years now, the funny thing is I've been looking at Goodwill's for this book for about a year and a half, two years, and hadn't been able to find it, then after I found and bought this one, the next time I went to a Goodwill I found another one. so those were the only ones I found at this goodwill, now onto the next one.



From the third Goodwill:

I had a little more luck at this Goodwill.
The first book is Fahrenheit 451: The Authorized Adaptation, I loved Fahrenheit 451, so when I was looking through the manga and happened upon this I had to buy it. The second is Across the River and into the Trees, The main reason I bought is it's from Ernest Hemingway, I also have a lot of his books on my To Buy List, and I also have another three of his books on my bookshelf. The third is The Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes, I had Sir Arthur Conan Doyle for 2 years now so when I seen this book I had to buy it, It has nine different Sherlock Holmes stories in it. The forth and last is Memoirs of a Geisha, I rented the movie and had seen about 1 hour of it before it started skipping, I didn't know it was based on a book until watching the special features and decided to put it on my To Buy List, I finally found it at this Goodwill around 5 or 6 years later. Now for the last books of the haul.


From Walmart:

I bought the last one at a different Walmart than the other two, I also bought them all on separate days.
The first book is Divergent, I read and watched so many mixed reviews on this book, I bought it mainly because I want to see the movie and I have a thing about read the books before watching the movie. The second is The Kill Order which is the prequel to The Maze Runner series, I have first book (The Maze Runner), I don't have the other two in the series yet, but I decided to buy it anyway. The third and last book is Vampire Academy, the first in the Vampire Academy series, I heard some pretty good things about this book and the series so I've had this on my To Buy List for awhile, also I seen a trailer for it and it looks like cheesy fun, Although I have some apprehensions about this book because while I like the folklore and mythology of vampires, I like very few movies (the first Underworld, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer), TV shows (most of Buffy the Vampire Slayer), and I have yet to find any fiction books , beside this one and The Vampire Book, that I like or want.

So that was all of the books I got this month. Tomorrow will be my T.B.R. book list for April.

I Hope everybody had/has a great day : )

The Werewolf Book Book Review

The Werewolf Book by Brad Steiger

Paperback, 432 pages
Read: Mar. 11 - Mar. 31
Rating: 3/5
Genres: Folklore, Mythology, Supernatural, Paranormal
Summery: With 250 entries, this filmography and resource is the encyclopedic guide to all things lycanthropic and a fascinating compendium of comparative mythology and folklore. Delving into the 15th century to uncover the origins of the werewolf legend, it is an eye-opening, blood-pounding tour through the ages, landing on the doorstep of creatures like hirsute mass-murderer Charles Manson and canine-directed Son of Sam. A helpful chronology of lycanthropic activities dates back 140,000 years, to the first mixing of human and lupine blood.

Review: I loved reading this book. It had so many different topics, not just on werewolves, it had topics including, serial killers, cat, serpent, and fox people, selkies, satanism,and many different legends. It also had some information on movies with shapeshifters as well as actors/actresses in these movies. It was a very enjoyable read, and I learned a few new things about the folklore and mythology of werewolves, whether the information is accurate or not I still enjoyed reading it.

I hope everybody had/has a great day : )

The Lake House Book Review

The Lake House (When the Wind Blows Book #2 of 2) by James Patterson

Hardcover, 376 pages
Read: Mar 28
Rating: 3/5
Genres: Fantasy, Thriller, Mystery, Science Fiction
Summery: The memorable story begun in When the Wind Blows continues in this thrilling new novel, and its one that really soars! Frannie O'Neil, a Colorado veterinarian, knows a terrible secret that will change the history of the world. Kit Harrison, an FBI agent under suspension has seen things that no one in his right mind would believe. A twelve-year-old girl named Max and five other incredible children have powers we can only dream of. These children can fly. And the only place they will be safe is the Lake House. Or so they believe....

Review: This story takes place a few months after the events in the ending of When the Wind Blows, Frannie and Kit are now fighting for custody against the blood parents of the six children, sadly Frannie and Kit loose, and the kids end up with their birth parents. Max knows other secrets about more hospitals doing illegal experiments, and now the people doing these experiments want the kids. I liked this book, it was a good second and last book to this series. I actually liked this one better then the first book. My favorite character in both book was Icarus (Ic), I liked the relationship between Frannie and Kit better in this one, I also liked the relationship between Max and Oz. Also Dr. Ethan Kane not only creepy, but also disgusting/sexiest to me.

Series Rating: 3/5
Series Review: I liked the series, as well as the characters for the most part. the books were not the most well written but they were still very good, and i enjoyed them. They were well paced i ended up finishing the first in a day last month, and this one in a day. They have also made me excited to read the Maximum Ride Series, I know this series and the Maximum Ride series are different in most of the bigger plot points, but they do have some similarities to each other, and I was also recommended to read this series first before I read the Maximum Ride series.


Hope everybody had/has a great day : )

Harry Potter #1 Book Review

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (Harry Potter Book #1 of 7) by J.K. Rowling

Paperback, 223 pages
Read: Mar. 25 - Mar. 26.
Rating: 5/5
Genres: Adventure, Fantasy, Magic
Summery: Harry Potter thinks he is an ordinary boy - until he is rescued by an owl, taken to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, learns to play Quidditch and does battle in a deadly duel. The Reason: HARRY POTTER IS A WIZARD!

Review: This story starts out with the Dursleys' on the day of Lord Voldemort's downfall. It's not until the second chapter (nearly ten years have passed) that we get to harry, and his point of view. I really loved this book, I enjoyed harry as a character. My favorite side characters in the book were Fred and George, the Christmas jumper scene was one of my favorite parts of the book. I also really like Hagrid. This book was a great start to the series. I bought the book with the original title, i'm kinda sad that the title ended up being changed for the Philosopher's Stone to the Sorcerer's Stone, This is the one thing that bothered me.

Before this I had only read the third book in this series. And I own all the movies, but have only seen the first four fully around the time they came out, and have seen snippets of the other four movies.

Book to Movie Rating: 4.50/5
Thoughts on the Book to Movie: I like the movie, It was better than some other book to movie adaptations. There are some scenes in the movie that I wish were more like the book, The Forbidden Forest, and Norbert the Dragon, and a few things involving the trapdoor, the reveal, and the hospital. I also kind of wish that the scene involving Fred, George, and Percy at Christmas from the book was in the movie. It was a good book to movie adaptation.

Hope Everybody had/has a good day : )

Nineteen Eighty-Four Book Review

1984 by George Orwell

Paperback, 326 pages
Read: Mar. 18 - Mar. 21
Rating: 4/5
Genres: Dystopian, Science Fiction, Classic
Summery: Written in 1948, 1984 was George Orwell's chilling prophecy about the future. And while the year 1984 has come and gone, Orwell's narrative is timelier than ever. 1984 presents a startling and haunting vision of the world, so powerful that it is completely convincing from start to finish. No one can deny the power of this novel, its hold on the imaginations of multiple generations of readers, or the resiliency of its admonitions. A legacy that seems only to grow with the passage of time.

Review: This story is about Winston Smith, who lives in a dystopian 1984, in a place called Oceania where people, thoughts, feelings are controlled by Big Brother and the Thought Police. In the beginning of the book we find that Winston, while he works and lives in the Outer Party with everybody else who is controlled by Big Brother he is against them, and wishes, and hopes for rebellion. I really love dystopian books like this, they're so well done that you could see how the events of that lead to this world could have a chance of becoming true events. This book reminded me in a way of Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, Which I review last month, the reason it reminds me of Brave New World is the way they used simple feelings of every person to control them, in Brave New World they controlled people with happiness, and in 1984 they controlled them with fear. They also had people, proles that were more or less viewed as animals, and in Brave new world they had Gammas, Deltas, and Epsilons. While I'm sure some people, along with me, wished it had ended differently, but I also liked the way it ended. I liked Winston, but my favorite character was probably Julia.


While I have been reading The Werewolf Book in between the other books I'm going to review that one last most likely.

Hope everybody had/has a great day : )

A Walk In Wolf Wood Book Review

A Walk in Wolf Wood by Mary Stewart

Paperback, 192 pages
Read: Mar. 12 - Mar. 14
Rating: 3/5
Genres: Children's, Fantasy, Magic
Summery: deeper into the magic spell...
Behind John and Margaret lay the paved road, the car, and their sleeping parents. Ahead of them lay Wolf Wood and a fantastic adventure of medieval magic.
There, within the enchanted forest where the romantic long ago and the present overlapped, they met the noble Lord Mardian. Once the Duke's favorite, he was cursed by an evil sorcerer to roam the woods at night as a werewolf.
Only these children from the future and the power of his magic amulet could release him from the spell. But once the spell was broken, they found themselves caught in a fourteenth century world of betrayal and danger...

Review: The story begins with Margaret and John, who are picnicking in a field with there napping parents, when they notice a crying man walking who disappears into the woods (wolf wood) they decide to follow him to see if they an help. While the story was nice I couldn't quite get into it, I liked the characters. It reminded me of The Scarlet Letter in terms of the pacing and my enjoyment of the story.


Hope everybody had/has a great day : )

WorldAfter Book Review

WorldAfter (Penryn and the End of Days Book #1 of 5) by Susan Ee

Paperback, 314 pages
Read: Mar. 6 - Mar. 8
Rating: 5/5
Genres: Fantasy, Dystopian, Supernatural, Romance, Action, Young Adult
Summery: In this sequel to the bestselling fantasy thriller, Angelfall, the survivors of the angel apocalypse begin to scrape back together what's left of the modern world. When a group of people capture Penryn's sister Paige, thinking she's a monster, the situation ends in a massacre.
Paige disappears. Humans are terrified. Mom is heartbroken.
Penryn drives through the streets of San Francisco looking for Paige. Why are the streets so empty? Where is everybody? Her search leads her into the heart of the angels secret plans, where she catches a glimpse of their motivations, and learns the horrifying extent to witch the angels are willing to go.
Meanwhile, Raffe hunts for his wings. Without them, he can't rejoin the angels, can't take his rightful place as one of their leaders. When faced with recapturing his wings or helping Penryn survive, witch will he choose?

Review: The story starts out a little bit after the ending of the first book. I loved this book, and I love this series. I feel so bad for Paige, she's had so much happen to her not only in the first book, but also in this one as well, she seems so sweet too. I still really like Penryn, she always tries her best to protect not only her family but also the people around her, she always seems to try to think not only how an action will effect her but every one around her. I really like Raffe also, he is sarcastic, and his humor is a little corny, and also in this book you get a little bit of background on him, as well as some background into some of his actions in the first book. I really like Dee-Dum, they are hilarious. The sword (Pooky Bear) was great, I found that her having a personality made the story even better. I love the banter not only between Penryn and Raffe, but also the banter between Penryn, Dee, and Dum. Both books are pretty fast paced, and have great action moments, also a little bit of gore. The romance is very nice,there definitely a mutual attraction going on, but it's not like most romances in Young Adult novels, it wasn't love at first sight, there are no love triangles, there's no "I love you, but i don't know why" type of stuff, so I definitely like the romance. This is a great book series so far, and i'm hoping the third book in the series doesn't get pushed back, it has a release date for June, 5th, and i'm very excited for it. I also hope they keep the book cover theme, done by that they have going on, the first cover design was by Milica Acimovic, and the cover base image was by Michael Lorenzo, and the second cover art was by Sammy Yuen, both covers are so beautiful to me. Anyway I love this book, as well as the first and i can't wait to see where Susan takes the story next.


Hope everybody had/has a great day : )

Angelfall Book Review

Angelfall (Penryn and the End of Days Book #1 of 5) by Susan Ee

Paperback, 284 pages

Read: Mar. 2 - Mar. 4

Rating: 4.98/5

Genres: Fantasy, Dystopian, Supernatural, Romance, Action, Young Adult

Summery:It's been six weeks since angels of the apocalypse descended to demolish the modern world. Street gangs rule the day while fear and superstition rule the night. When warrior angels fly away with a helpless little girl, her seventeen-year-old sister Penryn will do anything to get her back.
Anything, including making a deal with an enemy angel.
Raffe is a warrior who lies broken and wingless on the street. After eons of fighting his own battles, he finds himself being rescued from a desperate situation by a half-starved teenage girl.
Traveling through a dark and twisted Northern California, they have only each other to rely on for survival. Together, they journey toward the angels' stronghold in San Francisco where she'll risk everything to rescue her sister and he'll put himself at the mercy of his greatest enemies for the chance to be made whole again.

Review: This story starts off with Penryn, her mother, and her little sister, Paige, exiting their "home" to move up towards the hills of California, where there are less people, and gangs, to be safer. It has been six weeks since the angels of the apocalypse have arrived on earth destroying town, cities, building, and people.Within the first 10 pages the action starts, the story is fast pace, but not to an unpleasing point. I really like Penryn, I like seeing her story and background unfold throughout the book, her thought processes seemed like that of a seventeen year old girl, especially up against what she was up against. I also liked Raffe. I also liked the relationship between Penryn and her family, as well as her relationship with Raffe. The romance wasn't overbearing, like some young adult romances can be. There were some funny moments, and lines. also some parts are kinda gory in description, so be warned, but I really enjoyed the book and can't wait to read the second book. Also I really love the covers, and I hope they stick with them throughout the series.

Hope everybody had/has a great day : )

March T.B.R. List

Here is my March Reading List

#1
Angelfall (Penryn & the End of Days Book #1 of 5) by Susan Ee

#2
Worldafter (Penryn & the End of Days Book #2 of 5) by Susan Ee

The covers are what caught my eye, then I read the summaries and decided to buy them. The third book in this series is expected June 5, 2014, and there are 5 books announced to be in this series so far. Also I love the covers to these books.

#3
The Werewolf Book by Brad Steiger

I love Werewolves and the lore surrounding them, this books goes back to start of the origin of the werewolf.

#4
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (Harry Potter Book #1 of 7) by J.K. Rowling

I have only read the third book in this series, and that was back in  December of 2003. So I've decided to read all of the series.

#5
A Walk in Wolf Woods by Mary Stewart

I happened upon this at Goodwill and read the summery and decided to buy it. It sounds like a good story, and I like the illustrations inside the book.

#6
1984 by George Orwell

I have had this book for about three years and have yet to read it so i decided to read it this month.

#7
The Lake House (When the Wind Blows Book #2 of 2) by James Patterson

This is the second and last book in the When the Wind Blows series, It is also supposedly a prequel to the Maximum Ride series, it seems like from the first book, so I've decided to read this book series before i read the Maximum Ride series.

I have decided to read 7 books this month, most of them are not very long and I will hopefully be able to finish them all before the end of this month.

I hope everybody had/has a great day.