ARC Giveaway: Jeff, One Lonely Guy

I have 1 ARC of Jeff, One Lonely Guy, to give away to a reader!!! Yay! Giveaways! I'm hyper!!!!!!!!1

See my review here.

Rules:

• USA Only
• Fill out the form below
• Ends Thursday April 5, 2012

Good Luck!

Review: The Secret Me Book

The Secret Me Book by Rachel Kempster and Meg Leder
Genre: Journal
ISBN:
Published: April 1 2012 by Sourcebooks
Rating: 4

Discover what makes you, you...

What makes you tick and hum?
What quirks and habits are yours and yours alone?
who do you wish you could be?
who are you now?

The answers make up your "secret me," your soul's fingerprint.

Packed with creative and quirky prompts, ideas, and activities, The Secret Me Book gives you an inspiring way to get to know this core part of you.

Scribble thoughts, make lists, paste pictures, and doodle—all tapping into the real you.

What would you do if you won the lottery?
Is there a movie that defines you?
What's your secret talent?

Here's your secret me book—it's time to celebrate what you're made of.

I liked this book. It was one of those guided journals that give you a starting point, and let you think. It wasn't the best one I've ever done, maybe because I'm already very in tune with myself as a person and in tune with my personalities (what, you didn't know I had more than one?) but I did like it.

I'm not sure if it's aimed towards tweens, teens, or college students, but I feel like anyone who likes journaling and writing and being introspective would enjoy this journal. Writers would get a good use out of it, by using the questions and prompts on their characters rather than themselves (great inspiration!).

All in all I liked The Secret Me Book, just not as much as I liked some of the other guided inspirational journals I've used. It was large enough that there was plenty of space to write, and the layout/format was visually appealing, and that helped a lot.

Review: Jeff, One Lonely Guy

Jeff, One Lonely Guy by Jeff Ragsdale
Genre: Nonfiction, memoir
ISBN: 9781612183244
Published:March 20th 2012 by Amazon Publishing
Rating: 4

In October 2011, Jeff Ragsdale, a down-and-out actor and stand-up comedian, posted a flyer around Lower Manhattan, asking people to call him if they wanted to talk. He thought he’d get a dozen calls; instead, he got hundreds, then thousands once pictures of the flyer went viral on the net. They came from all over the country and from as far away as Spain, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Taiwan, and Australia. Jeff spoke to as many people as he could, answering his phone all day long. Here are the conversations, texts, and voicemails of a particular moment in time—a hilarious, dark, intimate portrait of the way we live now.

Jeff, One Lonely Guy is about a man who made a sign with his cell number and posted it all over town, asking people to call or text him because he was lonely.

Interesting things happen when you pull this stunt. I've done it via Facebook, (and that's how I met my boyfriend) and girls have done it in chat rooms and they've ended up with stalkers. But Jeff's story turned out pretty amazing.

I enjoyed this book, but it was a little confusing. The texts and calls Jeff received were printed, but his responses weren't, so it was difficult to understand what was going on. There were paragraphs of his own reflection/interior monologue in italics sprinkled throughout the book, and they seemed out of place and irrelevant to the one-sided conversations.

However, I got to read snips and pieces of a lot of people's stories, and it was very inspiring.

From a reader's perspective, this book was a bit confusing. From a writer's perspective, this book is a jack-pot of story ideas. From a sociologist or psychologist's perspective, this tiny book could keep you busy and thinking about people and relationships and social structure for days.

Content/Recommendation: Adult content, ages 18+

Exploring Etsy: Being a Writer

There were so many things under the "writer" category… I'll have to do a Part II some time!

Lord Byron "If I Don't Write to Empty My Mind I Go Mad" Literary Writer Quote Writing Necklace

by Bookish Charm

You should also check out their other adorable charms! Look, it's a book!

Alice in Wonderland necklace

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This Lined Paper pillow by Pilosale is the epitome of epic. She's got other really cute pillows too. Check it out!!

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Limited Edition rose notebook by Arminho

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Spring Bookends by Design Atelier Article

I love bookends! Here are two other designs I love:

Check them out!

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Chunky leather notebook by Wee Bindery

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Not sure if anyone out there knows how much I LOVE calligraphy, but just fyi, I LOVE CALLIGRAPHY. I might have to snatch these up.

Antique Fountain Pen Nib Earrings by Pieces of II

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Writer's Blocks… hahahaha… love.

Photo Story Cube for Creative Inspiration by Sin Twister

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Type Writer Necklace by Miniblings

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This is an original illustration. --(with secret message) The word "live" is spelled out in red.

Unblocked!… by Citrus Tree Designs

If you have an etsy shop and would like to be featured, or a favorite etsy shop, please leave a comment with the link! I do a post every Thursday!

Review: Possession

Possession by Elana Johnson
Genre: Dystopian YA Fiction
ISBN: 9781442417618
Published: June 7th 2011 by Simon & Schuster
Rating: ?????

I haven't figured out how I feel about Possession. I'm not sure if it's a 5 star book or a 1 star book.

Short story: It's really good.

Long story: well, that's a bit more involved.

Reasons this book was really good:

• Pacing: Excellent. One thing leads to another, it's almost impossible to put down, and the tension never really goes away.
• Good dialogue, good but concise descriptions, catchy interior monologue.
• Good characters.
• Jag is really sexy.

Reasons I wanted to slam my head against a wall while I was reading it:

• Jag is awesome. Vi is awesome. Their relationship? Extremely dysfunctional. They are freaking bi-polar. One minute they're having a decent conversation, the next someone jumps to a conclusion and gets emotionally hurt and storms off, twenty-four hours and a hot shower later, they're sorry and cuddling and making out. THIS IS NOT A GOOD EXAMPLE OF A RELATIONSHIP. Oh my word.
• I got lost around Chapter 30. Stuff started happening, I could never tell if Vi was Vi or if she was dreaming, sometimes something would happen and it was a little cryptic, and confusing, and one thing stacked on top of another until by chapter 40 I was like "what the crap is going on?" I seriously closed the book and wasn't going to finish but I just HAD to know what happened. (I really should have quit while I was ahead.)
• I got to the point where I couldn't tell who was the good guy and who was the bad guy, and I kind of stopped caring.

Reasons why the ending pissed me off:

• The only bad guy who could have become good, didn't.
• Then, the bad guys won.

Honestly, now that I've finished it, I really wish I hadn't. Luckily I checked Goodreads and found out it was book 1 in a series. Because THAT'S NOT AN ENDING. That was worse than The Hunger Games and Catching Fire endings!!!

Content/Recommendation: Some language and kissing, ages 16+

B & N coupons might possibly save money on Possession.

Waiting on Wednesday: Timepiece

Timepiece by Myra McEntire

I'm dying for this book. Michael is on my list of literary crushes. Emerson is that awesome female protagonist who thinks she's a lot bigger than she is. And the bad guy is just so terrible.

Honestly, I didn't like Hourglass's cover very much, but I like this one more, and I like how they match.

A threat from the past could destroy the future. And the clock is ticking...
Kaleb Ballard's relentless flirting is interrupted when Jack Landers, the man who tried to murder his father, timeslips in and attacks before disappearing just as quickly. But Kaleb has never before been able to see time travelers, unlike many of his friends associated with the mysterious Hourglass organization. Are Kaleb's powers expanding, or is something very wrong?
Then the Hourglass is issued an ultimatum. Either they find Jack and the research he's stolen on the time gene, or time will be altered with devastating results.
Now Kaleb, Emerson, Michael, and the other Hourglass recruits have no choice but to use their unusual powers to find Jack. But where do they even start? And when? And even if they succeed, it may not be enough...
The follow-up to Hourglass, Timepiece blends the paranormal, science fiction, mystery, and suspense genres into a nonstop thrill ride where every second counts.

Expected publication: June 12th 2012 by EgmontUSA | ISBN 9781606841457 | Amazon | Goodreads

Amazon coupons or promo codes may apply for Timepiece

Why I don't hate e-books, but don't own an e-reader

No, it's not because I'm broke.

Let's think for a second about piracy, censorship, and the internet in other countries besides our own.

Many countries today have strict laws about what can and can't be read. Many of those countries are the same ones with very strong controlling governments—China, Iran, Iraq, etc. Now let's pretend that somehow we managed to get an e-book of a political or religious book over to one of those countries. It's distributed by email and file sharing—which, yes, is piracy—and the education resulting from that e-book caused the people to start a revolution, and possibly change the lives of those people and their future generations forever.

Now am I saying piracy is okay? HELL no. But just because something is wrong doesn't mean good things don't come from it.

This has happened in the past. It's repeated through history: A country is over-controlled until they get education somehow some way, and they stand up and do something.

And how does this play into sharing the Gospel? Sharing an e-book of John is a lot easier—and less expensive—than sending a bunch of printed copies oversees, knowing that anyone caught with a copy in their home will be killed.

On a more local scale…

Sometimes I want to support an author, or buy a book, but I can't afford to pay $18.95 for a new book that I will only read once. Or sometimes an author offers me a review copy of their book that sounds really interesting, but they don't have a physical copy to mail me. Sometimes the school bookstore runs out of the novel I need for literature class, and I need to have it read by tomorrow. E-books to the rescue!

Now here are some valid reasons to buy e-books, but don't affect the reason I don't have an e-reader:

• You can take them anywhere and they don't take up space
• you can't lose them
• They won't burn in a fire if your house burns down

And here are some valid reasons NOT to buy e-books or have an e-reader that don't affect my decision not to have one:

• If you lose it, you lose ALL YOUR BOOKS
• If it runs out of power, you're screwed
• If your house burns down, your e-reader is still dead. your files are still online, but your expensive e-reader is probably ruined.

And here are the reasons I don't have an e-reader (but buy e-books for my laptop if I absolutely have to):

• I'm broke
• Books smell good
• I like walking (okay crawling) into my secret library in the storage closet and seeing books stacked from floor to ceiling
• for non-fiction, I HAVE to underline/write in the margins. In fact in class or when doing homework or studying, I can only concentrate when I am holding a pencil or pen in my hand.

So there you go. There's my random rambling for the day.

Teaser Tuesday: Possession

Today's teaser is from Possession by Elana Johnson.

"My dad broke away from the raiders and grabbed me by the shoulders. I'll never forget his eyes. Panicked and stern at the same time. He said, 'don't let Them control you, son. You have no duty to Them.' then he was yanked away, his hand stretched toward me still. He shouted, 'I love you! Stay true! Be yourself!' And then I watched him die." (page 105)

I'm really liking this book! Review coming soon!

Vi knows the Rule: Girls don't walk with boys, and they never even think about kissing them. But no one makes Vi want to break the Rules more than Zenn...and since the Thinkers have chosen him as Vi's future match, how much trouble can one kiss cause? The Thinkers may have brainwashed the rest of the population, but Vi is determined to think for herself.
But the Thinkers are unusually persuasive, and they're set on convincing Vi to become one of them...starting by brainwashing Zenn. Vi can't leave Zenn in the Thinkers' hands, but she's wary of joining the rebellion, especially since that means teaming up with Jag. Jag is egotistical, charismatic, and dangerous--everything Zenn's not. Vi can't quite trust Jag and can't quite resist him, but she also can't give up on Zenn.
This is a game of control or be controlled. And Vi has no choice but to play.

Possession is available on Amazon for $7.95 Hardcover, and $9.99 for the e-book. No I don't have those backwards. Now that is what I like to see.

Amazon | Goodreads | Excerpt

Just a thought

The Selection plot line sounds a whole lot like the Biblical story of Esther… anyone else agree?

For thirty-five girls, the Selection is the chance of a lifetime. The opportunity to escape the life laid out for them since birth. To be swept up in a world of glittering gowns and priceless jewels. To live in the palace and compete for the heart of the gorgeous Prince Maxon.
But for America Singer, being Selected is a nightmare. It means turning her back on her secret love with Aspen, who is a caste below her. Leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a crown she doesn't want. Living in a palace that is constantly threatened by violent rebel attacks.
Then America meets Prince Maxon. Gradually, she starts to question all the plans she's made for herself- and realizes that the life she's always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined.

Goodreads | Amazon

This Week at The Life and Lies

Here's what I got in the mail 3/19-23:

The Secret Me Book

Discover what makes you, you...

What makes you tick and hum?
What quirks and habits are yours and yours alone?
who do you wish you could be?
who are you now?

The answers make up your "secret me," your soul's fingerprint.

Packed with creative and quirky prompts, ideas, and activities, The Secret Me Book gives you an inspiring way to get to know this core part of you.

Scribble thoughts, make lists, paste pictures, and doodle—all tapping into the real you.

What would you do if you won the lottery?
Is there a movie that defines you?
What's your secret talent?

Here's your secret me book—it's time to celebrate what you're made of.

Jeff, One Lonely Guy

In October 2011, Jeff Ragsdale, a down-and-out actor and stand-up comedian, posted a flyer around Lower Manhattan, asking people to call him if they wanted to talk. He thought he’d get a dozen calls; instead, he got hundreds, then thousands once pictures of the flyer went viral on the net. They came from all over the country and from as far away as Spain, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Taiwan, and Australia. Jeff spoke to as many people as he could, answering his phone all day long. Here are the conversations, texts, and voicemails of a particular moment in time—a hilarious, dark, intimate portrait of the way we live now.

Unraveling

Two days before the start of her junior year, seventeen-year-old Janelle Tenner is hit by a pickup truck and killed—as in blinding light, scenes of her life flashing before her, and then nothing. Except the next thing she knows, she's opening her eyes to find Ben Michaels, a loner from her high school whom Janelle has never talked to, leaning over her. And even though it isn't possible, she knows—with every fiber of her being—that Ben has somehow brought her back to life.
But her revival, and Ben's possible role in it, is only the first of the puzzles that Janelle must solve. While snooping in her FBI agent father's files for clues about her accident, she uncovers a clock that seems to be counting down to something—but to what? And when someone close to Janelle is killed, she can no longer deny what's right in front of her: Everything that's happened—the accident, the murder, the countdown clock, Ben's sudden appearance in her life—points to the end of life as she knows it. And as the clock ticks down, she realizes that if she wants to put a stop to the end of the world, she's going to need to uncover Ben's secrets—and keep from falling in love with him in the process.
From debut author Elizabeth Norris comes this shattering novel of one girl's fight to save herself, her world, and the boy she never saw coming.

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Other happenings:

• You have four more days to enter the Free Friday giveaway for an ARC of Kiss Crush Collide!
  
• Don't forget to sign up for the summer reading challenge! You have a chance to win some ARC packs and Amazon Gift Cards!
  

Book reviews coming soon. Several of last weeks books are read, I just haven't written the reviews yet. This is the last week of school before my Spring Break! Can't wait!!! I get to spend a week in Apex with "mon petit ami" and his family. <3 Planning on reading tons of books too :)

Special promo codes are often available for this type of genre in literature.

Teens ages 14-19: get paid for your story to be published!

One Teen Story is looking for stand-alone stories 2000-4500 words to publish in their magazine. You could be paid! Click here for more info and to submit!

Free Friday: Kiss Crush Collide

I have one copy of Kiss Crush Collide to give away!

Kiss What Leah did—only she really shouldn’t have—one hot night at a country club party. Crush What Leah has—only she really shouldn’t have—on the guy with the green eyes, the guy who is not her perfect boyfriend, the guy who does not fit in her picture-perfect life, the guy her sisters will only mock and her mother will never approve of. Not in a million years. Collide What happens when everything you always thought you wanted—having cool friends, being class valedictorian and homecoming queen—runs smack into everything it turns out you really do want. Kiss. Crush. Collide. For Leah and Porter, summer is only the beginning.

Published December 27th 2011 by Greenwillow Books | ISBN 9780062062246 |Amazon |Goodreads

Rules:

• USA only, please
• Fill out the form below
• Ends Thursday March 29

Unreview: Kiss Crush Collide

Kiss Crush Collide by Christina Meredith

I was hoping for something a little more unique and individual from this book. As I started reading it, the main character's voice was nearly invisible: it was like she didn't have any character. I couldn't tell if she was haughty or shy, proud or embarrassed, or anything really.

In the first two chapters, stuff happened—but I couldn't tell you what, or why, or in what order, or how it was all related. Her thoughts and memories intertwined with her current experiences, but I couldn't keep track of what was what.

And really, the plot itself is very typical: girl has everything, boy is a mess, they fall in love and create a disaster but the sex is so good that it's worth it.

really?

No thanks.

Exploring Etsy: The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games is coming out! Wheeee!!!!!

 

Pocket Watch

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The Hunger Games book pendants by Book Beads

 

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Hunger Games pin by The Bird & The Bee

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The Hunger Games charm bracelet by Cissy Pixie

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Girl On Fire necklace by jpogodesigns

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The Hunger Games t-shirt by So You Think You Can Rock

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Everdeen Family book of Herbs by Leatherworks

If you find something awesome on Etsy, or would like to be featured, leave a comment with a link!

Review: Knitting Never Felt Better

Knitting Never Felt Better by Nicky Epstein
Genre: Knitting
ISBN: 978-1936096367
Published: Nicky Epstein Books (April 3, 2012)

Rating: 5

With her signature style, the bestselling and beloved needlework author Nicky Epstein offers the best guide to felting. Using ten chic garments and more than 150 stunning sample swatches as examples, she covers the top techniques for turning wool yarn into vibrant and dense textures. Before and after shots show how different fabrics react to the process, and there are patterns, stitches, and techniques for lace, mosaics, cables, plaids, checks, and quilting.A Selection of the Crafter's Choice Book Club.

This book is not so much a pattern book as it is an encyclopedia. There are some projects, but the focus is techniques. I love designing my own patterns – I never follow other people's patterns if I can make my own – and this book is perfect for designers who are looking for new ways to felt.

This book shows you how to felt shapes into your work, create patterns and designs, and utilize texture, shape, and color for some really cool effects.

Recommendation: Knitters who are just getting started in felting, or looking for some new techniques to incorporate into their felting.

Waiting on Wednesday: Magic Under Stone

Magic Under Stone

Technically this book is published, I just have to find some money so I can buy it. I've been waiting for this book since I got the ARC forever ago! Here's my review for the first book in the series.

For star-crossed lovers Nimira and Erris, there can be no happily ever after until Erris is freed from the clockwork form in which his soul is trapped. And so they go in search of the sorcerer Ordorio Valdana, hoping he will know how to grant Erris real life again. When they learn that Valdana has mysteriously vanished, it's not long before Nimira decides to take matters into her own hands—and begins to study the sorcerer's spell books in secret. Yet even as she begins to understand the power and limitations of sorcery, it becomes clear that freeing Erris will bring danger—if not out-and-out war—as factions within the faerie world are prepared to stop at nothing to prevent him from regaining the throne

Published February 28th 2012 by Bloomsbury| ISBN 9781599906430 | Amazon | Goodreads

Online Summer Reading Challenge

So, I sort of forgot to sign up for challenges this winter, what with being so busy. This is a short challenge for late May through early August.

Read 10 books, one from each of the following categories:

1. Crime, thriller, or adventure
2. Historical Fiction
3. Novel In Verse
4. Chick Flick
5. Paranormal
6. Classic (100 years old or more)
7. Humor/non-fiction
8. Dystopian
9. On the Beach
10. General Summer themed

For each category you complete, you get 1 point. After you finish all the categories, you can get extra points in any of the others by reading extra books.

At the end of the challenge there will be a drawing. There will be 1 grand prize and 2 small prizes.  The prize packs:

Small prize packs:
2 ARCs, and a $5 gift card to Amazon.com

Grand Prize:
4 ARCs and a $10 gift card to Amazon.com

ARCS up for grabs:

And I'll probably add to the list… I've got more at home!

Rules:

1. One category per book. If your book is a paranormal crime novel, it only counts for one of those categories, not both.
2. To qualify for the small prize, you must sign up and read at least 3 books.
3. To qualify for the grand prize, you must complete all 10.
4. Must be a full length novel, not a short story or a poem. (Obviously the novel in verse is a poem, but it has to be a full length novel-poem.)
5. You don't have to have a blog, but you do have to review the book (or at least tell me if you liked it, and why or why not). Link your review in the comments with the title of the book, the category, and how many points it puts you at. (you can wait until the very end to link them all if you feel so inclined.) You can post the review on your blog, amazon, goodreads, librarything, or anywhere else you can think of.
6. Leave comments to keep track of your points. comment to enter, comment with links to the reviews, and please try to keep track of your points so I don't have to do too much math…
7. You can make a list of the books you want to read, but you don't have to, and you can change it.
8. You can start signing up now, but only books read from 5/4/2012—8/18/2012 count!

Get started by posting about this challenge and grab a button and put it on your sidebar as a picture, link this post as the URL, and leave a comment

 

Here's my list:

1. Fantasy or Urban Fantasy: Shadows Before the Sun
2. Historical Fiction: Redeeming Love
3. Novel In Verse: Tricks
4. Chick Flick: The Next Best Thing
5. Paranormal: White Cat
6. Classic: Paris Underground
7. Humor/non-fiction: Nightlight
8. Dystopian: Mockingjay
9. On the Beach: We'll Always Have Summer
10. Summer themed:  What Happened to Goodbye

Have fun!

Old Friends: Many Waters

Many Waters by Madeline L'Engle

The first sci-fi/fantasy/supernatural book I ever read was A Wrinkle in Time. Years later (like, four years later) I found out that there were WAY more books in the series. I read the next three, but Many Waters was my favorite.

Many Waters is about Meg's two younger brothers. They went into their parents lab to make hot cocoa and accidently transported themselves backwards in time to before the Biblical flood.

Things I remember included traveling through the desert and finding people who spoke an old language and for some reason they could understand it. They were all about 4 feet tall, and didn't wear clothes. The women were sleeping with the angels, and some of them were dying because the children being born were half the woman's size. Then the main female character was sent up to become a star in the sky, because she couldn't go on the boat, and everyone else would be killed.

If you read A Wrinkle in Time, or any of the other books, I sincerely recommend Many Waters. You don't have to read A Wind in the Door and A Swiftly Tilting Planet in order to read this one, because it's about the twins, not Meg or Charles Wallace. (and for that matter, #2 and #3 were a little odd anyway.)

FYI, the cover of this book says A LOT. It's like the whole story, all the symbolism, the biblical references, all on one page. I wish they made covers like this now…

Published May 1st 2007 by Square Fish (first published 1985) | 9780312368579 | Amazon | Goodreads | Series

Things to do when you have a sprained ankle

I sprained my ankle, as I mentioned before.

So here are some things, for those of you who may sprain your ankle in the near future (though I would hope you don't) or those of you who are already on crutches.

1. drink lots of coffee, because sitting in one place for an extended period of time will put you to sleep.
2. get ahead on your blog meme posts. (I have my Waiting on Wednesday and Old Friends and Exploring Etsy posts for the next month saved as drafts and ready to go live. This will save me time during finals week)
3. Study your French verbs in Passe Compose. (there should be acute accents over the "e"s but I don't know how to put them there)
4. Do Pilates. You don't need your Fibularis Brevis to do pilates: all you need are your Abdominals and Gluteus Max, Med, and Min.
5. Play Angry Birds.
6. Read books
7. Crochet an obnoxious amount of Bunsweaters (I've made like eight over the past two days)
8. Knit matching leg warmers to go with the bunsweaters.
9. Work on your upper body strength by hauling yourself around on crutches. (My arms hurt worse than my foot right now)
10. Make lists on your blog.

Any other ideas? I'm a little desperate. Leave them in the comments.

And as the Kitty hath wrote, Thxbyebye!

Teaser Tuesday: An Uncommon Education

An Uncommon Education by Elizabeth Percer

I mostly read YA fiction, but I made an exception for this one, because it sounded really interesting (especially because I'm an English major) because it had to do with Shakespeare!

A young woman tries to save three people she loves in this elegant and remarkably insightful coming-of-age debut.

Afraid of losing her parents at a young age—her father with his weak heart, her deeply depressed mother—Naomi Feinstein prepared single-mindedly for a prestigious future as a doctor. An outcast at school, Naomi loses herself in books, and daydreams of Wellesley College. But when Teddy, her confidant and only friend, abruptly departs from her life, it's the first devastating loss from which Naomi is not sure she can ever recover, even after her long-awaited acceptance letter to Wellesley arrives.

Naomi soon learns that college isn't the bastion of solidarity and security she had imagined. Amid hundreds of other young women, she is consumed by loneliness—until the day she sees a girl fall into the freezing waters of a lake.

The event marks Naomi's introduction to Wellesley's oldest honor society, the mysterious Shakespeare Society, defined by secret rituals and filled with unconventional, passionate students. Naomi finally begins to detach from the past and so much of what defines her, immersing herself in this exciting and liberating new world and learning the value of friendship. But her happiness is soon compromised by a scandal that brings irrevocable consequences. Naomi has always tried to save the ones she loves, but part of growing up is learning that sometimes saving others is a matter of saving yourself.

An Uncommon Education is a compelling portrait of a quest for greatness and the grace of human limitations. Poignant and wise, it artfully captures the complicated ties of family, the bittersweet inevitability of loss, and the importance of learning to let go.

 

On the day after my mother's death, I returned to 83 Beals Street for the first tiem n fifteen years. I had stolen something from there when I was almost nine years old and kept it long after my father was well again and it was clear that my mother was in the final stages of her decline. I suppose it was one of many talismans, real and imagined, I began collecting around that age to help me believe that what I told myself just might be true. ~ Page 3, ARC, of An Uncommon Education

 

Expected publication: May 1st 2012 by Harper | 9780062110961 | Amazon | Goodreads

This Week at The Life and Lies

Books for review this week:

nothing new came! Which is good because I've got enough on my plate.

 

Interesting news:

I sprained my ankle. I have crutches. Did I mention I go to college in the mountains, and teach ballet? I NEED MY FEET TO WORK.

sigh.

 

Check out my etsy, I've been knitting and crocheting up a storm (since that's really all I can do at this point in time)

Free Friday: ARC Giveaway!

I have an ARC of Jessica Rules the Dark Side. I didn't read this one because it's been so long since I've read the first one that I couldn't get into the second one. So I'm sending it to a new home :)

1. Fill out the rafflecopter form below
2. USA only
3. Ends 3/22/2012

Good luck!