To Live Here, You Have To Fight Review

                                                                
To Live Here, You Have To Fight
By: Jessica Wilkerson
University of Illinois Press
Nonfiction (Adult), Politics            
Publish Date 30 December 2018              280 pages
#ToLiveHereYouHaveToFight #NetGalley
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There is no way to sugar coat this book. This book was really boring. The author did a lot of research to back up her findings. In fact the last 22% of the book ha all of her sources.
At first I thought the book was going to be great because she started off with a story that got me hooked and I couldn't wait to find out more about the person and her life. Then it went into facts about the Appalachian Mountains and the miners and the women.
I struggled reading this book. I came real close to DNFing it. The only two reasons I didn't is because they wanted my honest review on this book and the author did a lot of research to write this book.
I gave this book 1 star and unless you are into a book that only really goes into fact then read it but otherwise I don't recommend this book.

The Lying King Review

                                                                  
The Lying King By: Alex Beard
Greenleaf Book Group Press
Children's Fiction  60 Pages
Pub. Date 4 September 2018
#TheLyingKing#NetGalley

I really like this book. The pictures are great and the story is cute. It is real easy to read and I think children will like this story. A child will learn a lesson from this story about lying.  Don't want to give too much detail because it is a short book. It is about a warthog who lies. I recommend this book for your personal library. I gave it 4 stars.

House of Dreams: The Life of L.M.Montgomery Review

                                                                    
House of Dreams: The Life of L.M. Montgomery
By: Liz Rosenberg
Candlewick Press
Children's Nonfiction              352 pages
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This was a great book. It is already out for you to read. It was wonderfully done and I am grateful that I was given the chance to read this for review. It is a biography about the author of the Anne of Green Gable books. I learned a lot about the author that I didn't know much about. I didn't realize that she went by her middle name and had a rough childhood. I also learned that her books are based a lot on her life. I highly recommend that you read this book. I would have read this book in one setting if I didn't have a lot of other things happening this month.
The author of this book draws you in and you just don't want to stop reading.
I gave this book 5 stars and I will be buying this book to keep on my shelves.

Glitter Bomb Review

I received this book from GoodReads give away. I was actually surprised that I finally won a book from them. This book came out on the 2nd of October of 2018. I am a bit behind on giving a review on this book. I actually didn't finish this book until this month. It is  considered a cozy mystery and usually they are quick reads for me but the last few months have been real busy for me and I am trying to play catch up.
I have read most of her other series called Cackleberry Club Mysteries. This is the first book from her New Orleans Scrapbooking Mystery series. I did enjoy this book even though it wasn't the first book. I was able to figure out who was who without too much trouble.
This takes place during Mardi Gras. Just before the big day during one of the many parades one of the floats explodes and kills someone. The main Characters Ex- Husband happens to be on this float so ends up being a suspect. He convinces her to help him out since she is engaged to the investigator.
She comes up with a whole lot of other people who could have wanted to kill the person who died.
I don't want to say too much about this book because it is a mystery and I don't want to give anything away. It is a good read and I recommend you read it. You might want to read the books in order so you can understand the main characters a little better but you really don't have to. I gave this book 4 stars.

Borrowathon Reads

 Here is another readathon that I just finished. This one was going on at the same time as the other I posted a few days ago. This readathon ran from November 4th-November 11th. It was called borrowathon. You could only read books that you borrowed. There were 6 challenges to try to finished. I finished 5 of them. The challenge I didn't complete was to read a book with a name of an animal in the title. Heretics Anonymous completed the challenge of a 2018 release. I gave this book 4 stars. It is a YA book and is about a boy who's father is always moving them around for his job. No he is not in the military. This last place the boy is going to a private school. This school is catholic and the boy does not believe in any religion.  He makes friends with four other students who have similar issues and they try to make changes. It was a little slow at the beginning but them starts to pick up. It was a good book and I recommend it.
 Anya's Ghost completed 2 challenges which were Read a book you've never heard of before and read a book that features a library. This is another YA book but really not a book but a graphic novel. This was a quick read for me which most graphic novels are. This is a little hard to describe because the book was a little weird for my taste. The girl befriends a ghost when she falls into a hole. When the girl is rescued she unknowingly takes a small bone of the ghost body with her. This is how the ghost is able to be with her outside of the hole. The book goes on with how the ghost helps her but then takes a turn. It wasn't bad and if you like that kind of stuff I would recommend that you pick it up.

 The 14th Colony completed the challenge a book you think you're going to love. Well it didn't. Mike recommended the book to me. I really liked his book the Jefferson Key. This book follows the same characters but for one was really slow and the President is leaving office and a lot of things take place. The reason I thought I would love this book is that Steve Berry adds a  lot of history into the story line. He did this time but it was more political and I don't really care about that in my reading because it is boring to me.

Saga Volume 3 also completed 2 challenges. First it also had a library featured in it and the book was under 150 pages. This is an adult graphic novel. I am slowly into graphic novels. Some are better than others but when there are a few readathons you want to do these are quick reads. I am not sure how to describe this graphic novel because it is the 3rd volume of an on going series. It is almost a Romeo and Juliet retelling but dealing with different forms of beings. That is the best way I can describe it. Again if you like this kind of thing I would recommend that you read it. There is violence and some nudity.
So for this readathon I read 4 books that totaled 1141 pages. Doing these readathons help me to one read more and widen my range of reading. I hope you decide to join this readathon next time. It happens about twice a year. Until next time keep reading.

LaLaThon

I just finished a readathon which was called Lalathon. It went from November 1st thru November 9th. This is from one of my favorite Youtubers that I watch. All you had to do for this readathon is read her favorite books. She had over 200 to choose from. These are the books I decided to read. Flame in the Mist has been on my TBR for a long time and I was finally able to read it. The second book is out and I have it and hope to get it read soon. Milk and Honey is a book of poetry. It is a little dark but a quick read. The Dream Thieves is the second of a series called The Raven Boys.  I gave Flame in the mist 4 stars, Milk and Honey 4 stars and The Dream Thieves 3 stars. I read a total of 1036 pages for this readathon. Not bad for the beginning of a new month.

Hooks Can Be Deceiving Review

                                                           
Hooks Can Be Deceiving   By: Betty Hechtman
Published By Crooked Lane Books     Published Date 11 December 2018
Mystery and Thriller                 320 Pages
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I just love her books. I have read a few of her books and enjoy them. At the end of the book she always has a pattern or two for you try and also recipes. These recipes and pattern are mentioned in the book.
The main character in this book is Molly Pink. She works in a book store which has a yarn area to do projects. Within the first couple of chapters in these books there is always a murder. Molly usually gets herself involved with trying to solve them.
I won't go into too much detail because it is a mystery novel and I don't want to give too much away. The story is about a fellow crocheter who is killed. They want to put it as an accidental death but there are too many discrepancies. Molly gets involves because a friend asks her to do some quite investigating.  Molly finds out some things and more questions come and a lot of other people need to be questioned by the police.
This was one of her better books because it had me guessing all the way to the end and I was surprised by who the murderer was.
I highly recommend this book when it comes out. I gave it 5 stars.

My Heart Belongs In Gettysburg, Pennsylvania Review

                                                     
My Heart Belongs In Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
By: Murray Pura
Publisher: Barbour Publishing, Inc
Published Date: November 1, 2018
256 pages          Christian, Romance
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I greatly enjoyed this book. I gave this book 4 stars. I love history and this book was about the civil war one of my favorite subjects.
Clarissa is a 19 year old girl who has a lot of spunk and energy. She is a conductor on the underground railroad. She has a love interest in Kyle and Liberty. She doesn't know which one to choose. She likes both in different ways. Liberty is also on the underground railroad but she doesn't know what he looks like because he always wears a hood over his head. Kyle is studying to be a clergyman. When the war breaks out she is upset that Kyle won't join the army instead he stays behinds and helps the head clergyman.
During one of the underground escapes with Liberty they are caught and Liberty gets hurt. Who is Liberty? Why does he hide his face?  What happens to Kyle? You need to read the book to find out.
Clarissa has some more adventures during the war. At the beginning of the book I didn't like her but throughout the story she grows and learns, which makes her a better person.
I was able to figure out a few things that happen in the book fairly quickly so it brought down my rating just a little. The author did a great job on the history. I would recommended this book for those who love history and a romance story.

Louisiana's Way Home Review

                                                              
Louisiana's Way Home  By: Kate DiCamillo
Candlewick Press
Published date 2 October 2018
Children's Fiction        Middle Grade      240 pages
#LouisianasWayHome       #NetGalley

I know that this book has already been out in the stores for a while but I just couldn't get my review up before now. I did get the book finished before the publish date though.
I have greatly enjoyed this book and a few others that she has written.
This book is about a 12 year old girl named Louisiana and her grandma, who leave the state of Florida at 3 in the morning. Louisiana doesn't know why just that her grandma woke her up and told her to get into the car. She had to leave behind her friends and pets. She has been told that a curse has been passed down from her great grandfather and that it was time to end the curse. The curse is known as a Sundering. The story goes on to explain how the curse was started and why it is called this name. They travel with no money or means on how to get where they are going.  Grandma ends up needing some dental care and time to recover so she has Louisiana help pay for things by her wit and voice. She has a beautiful singing voice. During this time Louisiana meets some a boy who befriends and they are able to have some fun while grandma recovers. On her trip back from one of the visits her grandma has taken off and left her a note. This note explains somethings to Louisiana that changes her life and questions everything that has happened. What did the note say and what does she do?
I do recommend that you read this book or have your middle grader read it. It is a fun and adventurist book.

24 Hour Read Your Face Off

I decided to do this challenge that took place on the 8th of September. It started at 9 am and ended on the 9th of September at 8:59 am. I was able to get a lot of reading done. I read 5 books.  These are the books that I read.

                  
These books have been on my to be read pile for a long time and this was a perfect tome to read them. All but one book received 4 stars. Candide received 3 stars. Total pages were 802. As you can see 3 books are about history, one is a classic and the other a novella. I had fun doing this and will most likely do this again next month. This goodread group does a 24 hour reading day once a month. The next one is schedule for the 13th of October. Come join us next month. Until next time keep eading.
                        

                                                         

Barnes and Noble Summer Blow-Out Haul

For Labor Day Barnes and Noble had a huge summer blow-out sale. Mike let me go to the store and buy a few things. He even went with me. I have a membership which saves me an additional 10 %. I also had a 15%  coupon off your entire order. 1 item is missing because it is a gift for Aryan on his birthday and I don't know if he reads my blog but just in case I didn't picture it here. I bought 6 books and two backpacks. The purple bag was free when you bought three books. You could get only one free bag. The backpacks were 50% off and then I got another 10% and 15% off because of my membership and coupon. 4 off the books that I bought were 50% off and then I was able to add my discount and coupon on top of that. Fly Girls was 20% off and then my discount and coupon on top. The Gentleman's Guide to vice and Virtue I paid full price before my discount and coupon. So for everything we spent just under $107. 4 books I don't know too much about but heard a lot of hype about them so want to give them a try. Aryan's book is part of a series he is reading. Fly Girls is a non fiction book about the history of ladies who fly airplanes and the struggles they went through. I hope you able to take part of this sale. Sorry I didn't get this post out earlier for you to know about it.
I will try to better to let you know about sales like this.
Until then keep reading.

September TBR

can you believe it is already September. boy has this year flown by. I know I haven't posted a monthly TBR in a while so I decided to so again. This is only tentative and can change. So here we go with what I plan to read for this month.
The two audio books I will listen to in the car as I run errands and take the boys to and from school. I am a little afraid of listening to Pet Sematary by: Stephen King I hear it is scary. I don't do well with scary but we will see, it will be during the day most of the time. The other one is Seraphina by: Rachel Hartman. I have already started this one. I am only on the third disc. It is a bout a girl who is part human and part dragon. It is a fantasy. I can tell you Aryan is not enjoying this and shaking his head saying that things are impossible.
Strange The Dreamer By: Laini Taylor is one of many books that I am doing a read along for. I heard a lot about this book; some good and some bad. I want to form my own opinion and give this book a try. The second book comes out soon.
The Boys In The Boat By: Daniel James Brown is the book that the library has chosen for their book club. I have already read this book. It is about the 1936 rowing team from Washington who won the gold medal in Berlin. It is good and I will be putting up a review soon.
A Gathering Of Shadows by: V. E. Schwab is another book that I am doing a read along with. It is the second book of a series. I read the first book last month and loved it.
Godsgrave By: Jay Kristoff Is another book that I am doing a read along with. It is the second book to a series. There is to be a third book coming out soon. The first book was NeverNight which I did a review on.
The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue by: Mackenzi Lee is the last book this month for a read along. This is a book about a young man being raised as a gentleman and is having some life issues. It takes place in the 1800's. He goes and tours Europe before he takes over the estate in England. He doesn't get along with father.
The Bane Chronicles By: Cassandra Clare, Sarah Rees Brennan and Maureen Johnson. This book is full of short stories about Magnus Bane from the Series that Cassandra Clare writes. I am trying to read one story a day.
This may change or I may add more books depends on what I am in the mood to read. I can already tell you that it is the 4th and I am already behind on my read along books. That is pretty normal because if the book is good and know that two of them are I will read them quickly. I am not sure about the other though.
Let me know what your reading plans are for the month. I would like to know maybe I will add them to a future TBR.
Until next time keep reading.

August 2018 Wrap up

Okay it is the end of August well actually the 1st of September. I had a great reading month and did a lot of readathons. I read 30 books which totaled 6926 pages. Of those books 16 were female authors and 14 were male authors. I read 2 classics, 6 middle grade, 6 children's, 2 cozy mysteries, 4 young adult, 3 fantasy, 1 novella, 2 mysteries, 1 historical fiction, 1 biography, and 2 horror books.
As you can see I read a variety of different genres this month. Even a few I usually don't read. I will give you a quick reminder of the books that I read and the order that I read them.
Little Lord Fauntleroy By: Frances Burnett
Haunted House By: Jan Pienkowski
A Skeleton In The Family By: Leigh Perry  I have a review up
Persuasion By: Jane Austin
The Lost Continent (Wings of fire #11) By: Tui t. Sutherland
Bob By: Rebecca Stead and Wendy Moss   I have a review up
Hooked On Murder By: Betty Hechtman   I have a review up
The Giraffe and Pelly and Me By: Roald Dahl
Ready Player One By: Ernest Cline
The Red Queen By: Victoria Aveyard
The Shape Of Water By: Guilleimo delToro
Nevernight By: Jay Kristoff    I have a review up
The Hidden Oracle By: Rick Riordan
Freaky Friday By: Mary Rodgers
Hello, Universe By: Erin Entrada Kelly
The Deal Of a Lifetime By: Fredrik Backman
Chato's Kitchen By: Gary Soto
Martin's Big Words By: Doreen Rappaport
Flossie and The Fox By: Patricia McKissack
Hershel and The Hanukkah Globin's By: Eric Kimmel
The Jefferson Key By: Steve Berry
A Darker Shade Of Magic By: V. E. Schwab
The Girl Who Came Home By: Hazel Gaynor
Zora and Me: The Cursed Ground By: T. R. Simon  I have a review on this (comes out 9-11-18)
Wonder Girl By: Don Van Natta Jr.
One Of Us Is Lying By: Karen M. McManus
Coma By: Robin Cook
Blaze By: Stephen King
The Body By: Stephen King
The Raven Boys By: Maggie Stiefvater
I hope you try one or all of these books that I have listed above. I am trying to do more reviews but time is not always on my side. Until next time keep reading.

N.E.W.T.S Part 2

 It is the last day of August so I will report on how well I did on my NEWTS Exams. I was able to get two more exams done. So that means I passed five exams total. This is pretty good in my eyes.
The photo above is what I read for the Potions Exams. First test was to read a book with a color in the title so I read The Red Queen By: Victoria Aveyard. Second test was to read a book with a male lead character so I read The Jefferson Key By: Steve Berry (Yes this book covered a lot of different reading challenges this month.). Final test was to read a book with over 350 pages so I read Nevernight By: Jay Kristoff ( you must read this book it was fantastic).

The last exam I completed was Transfiguration and these are the books that I read. First test was to read a book with a grey cover so I read Persuasion By: Jane Austin. I am pretty sure I am now done reading all of her books. I really don't like her writing style and I am so glad that I am done. Second test was to read a new to you author so  read Hello, Universe By: Erin Entrada Kelly. This book won the Newbery Award for this year. I was not impressed with it. Third and final test was to read a book set in a kingdom/has royals so I read A Darker Shade Of Magic By: V. E. Schwab. Again another book you should read it was great.
There were three exams that I didn't complete and they were Ancient Runes, History of Magic and Muggle Studies. I did get some of the books read but I will tell you about them in my August wrap up. Until next time keep reading.

Thriller-A-Thon and Cosmo Readathon

I have tried to two read-a-thon on the same week and didn't do to well. I also was sick during this week so that didn't help.
There were 5 challenges for the Thriller-A-Thon and 6 challenges for the Cosmo readathon. I tried to double up my books.
First up the Cosmo readathon challenges and the books that I read to meet those challenges.
1. Read a book that suits a song lyric. Didn't complete
2. Read a book set in an environment completely different to yours. I read The Jefferson Key by Steve Berry. It was set in several areas.  Washington DC, New York City, North Carolina, and Canada
3. Read a book that intimidates you. Didn't finish the book. Started reading Coma by Robin Cook
4. Read a book that reminds you of your childhood. Didn't complete
5. Buddy- Read a book. I read The Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab
6. Read any book that has been featured in a Cosmo readers poll. Didn't complete.
Now for Thriller-A-Thon challenges and the books I read to meet those challenges.
1. Read the thriller you're most anticipating. Didn't complete
2. Read the thriller that's been on your TBR the longest.  I read One Of Us Is Lying by: Karen M. McManus
3. Read the thriller you most recently added to your TBR. Didn't complete
4. Read the thriller with best cover. Started but didn't finish Something In The Water by Catherine Steadman
5. Revisit a thriller book or Author. I read Blaze By Stephen King (Richard Bachman)

I was hoping to do a lot more reading but being sick put a big dent into my plans. But for the month I have done really well so I can't complain. There are still four days left in this month so hopefully I can finish what I started. Until next time keep reading.

Barnes and Noble Haul

 Yes I did again. I went to Barnes and Noble. Actually I bought these last month and had coupons. I went for only two books as you can see I came home with a lot more than 2. The R.L. Stine book is new and I know that David likes his writing so I had to pick it up. I have seen it a few times and just never picked it up. I picked up the Stephen King book and The Diabolic because they were marked down and sounded interesting. I have been reading a lot of Stephen King lately. Sea Witch sounded so interesting on some you tube channels that I had to pick it up. It is almost like a little mermaid retelling but not. It is more a Ursula retelling. The next two books are what I went to buy. The Serpentine is another Anita Blake book that I have slowly been reading. I have a long way to go to finish that series I am only on book 12 in this series. I always try to get Sandra Browns newest book when it comes out. She is one of my favorite authors so I always pick up her newest book. Doesn't matter what it is because usually it is good. She hasn't really disappointed me. NeverWorld Wake is another that I have been hearing a lot about. It is suppose to be a thriller. I will have to see if it is any good. The List is a book about a world who are only allowed to speak 500 words a day. It is like The Giver. I liked The Giver so want to check out this book. I might read it David to see if he will like it. The last book is another crochet mystery novel.  

This series I bought from Barnes and Noble website. I couldn't find the whole series in the store. I got them for 15% off plus my member discount and free shipping. This is a series I have been meaning to finish since I read Red Rising a few years ago but never did. So now I will have reread Red Rising before I can read the rest of the series. I am not sure if Iron Gold is part of the series or not but I wanted to be prepare just in case. I can't tell you too much about this series because I have forgotten a lot of it. Can't wait to start this again mostly likely in the new year. I need to finish up some other series first.
So many books not enough time. Until next time keep reading.

Read Your Face Off 24 Hour Read A Thon

 On August 18th I decided to take part in a 24 hour readathon. This readathon started at 9 am on the 18th and went until 8:59 am on the 19th. What makes this readathon different was that there was a bingo board for you to fill out and the challenges were tre for you to pick and choose.

Here are the books that I read a part of or completely. The good thing also about this readathon was that you only had to finish one book. The rest of the challenges let read you read part of a book to work the challenges. I will tell you the challenges that I completed with each book. Aru Shah and the End Of Time By: Roshani Chokshi completed the following book with purple on cover, Book with "R" in Authors name, book with "R" in the title. I read 14 pages in this book. The Jefferson Key By: Steve Berry completed Running Character, "R" in title and author, number 19 drinking a hot drink while reading and it is a thriller. I read 341 pages in this book. The Deal of A Lifetime By: Fredrik Backman completed R in the authors name, art in book, I read it outside, finish a book, find the 2 and 19, beach and dogs. This book has 65 pages.

                                                                                

Flossie and The Fox By: Patricia McKissack completed yellow on the cover, "R" in authors name, finish a book, taken place in summer in the month of August and has a dog. This book has 32 pages.

Chato's Kitchen By: Gary Soto complete yellow on the cover, "R" in the author's name and finish a book. This book has 32 pages. Martin's Big Words By: Doreen Rappaport completed "R" in the title and author's name and finish a book. This book has 32 pages. Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins By: Eric Kimmel completed "R" in title and authors name, finish a book and yellow on cover. This book has 3o pages. Why did I read these 4 children's book, well I have a book that list 100 children's book you should read and I haven't read these. This was a perfect time to read them.

I know this isn't a very good photo of my completed bingo board. I was only able to complete one bingo. As you can see I came close on several more. I think this was a pretty good job considering that we had Missionaries over for dinner on Saturday night and Church Sunday morning. I am always trying to find ways to read more and different genres. I read a total of 546 pages. Completed 5 books.

                              

There is a good reads group for this readathon. It is called Read Your Face Off. They do a 24 hour readathon every month. I don't always join in but try when it works into my schedule. That is how I spent my week-end. Until next time keep reading.

NEWTS (Nastyily Exhausting Wizarding Tests) Part 1

 I have past some of my NEWTS so I wanted to give you the midway update. The firs exam that I have passed is Herbology. I needed to read three books to get an outstanding. These are the ones that I choose. The first one was Hooked on Murder I read this for booktubeathon and posted a review and that was because I needed a book with green on the cover. The second book The Giraffe and Pelly and Me because I needed a book with illustrations. The third book The Shape of Water because I needed a book with a title with light, air, sun, or water. The last book was extremely weird and wasn't thrilled with it. It didn't make since at all.

 The next set of test that I completed was Divination. One book isn't shown. Again I had to read three books. Book one was Ready Player One because it was set in the future. Book two which isn't shown was Freaky Friday because it is under 200 pages. Book three is The Hidden Oracle because it has Mythology.

The last test I have completed so far this month is Care Of Magical Creatures. So that I don't have to keep writing it every test you must read three books to pass. Book one is Little Lord Fauntleroy because there is an animal on the cover. I also read this book for the Booktubeathon. Book two is Haunted House because it is less than 160 pages. Book three is The Lost Continent because I needed a book with dragons.
There are five more tests that I am working on. Two are almost done just missing one book to read. Three I haven't even started. I will keep you posted on my progress.
Until next time keep reading.

The Arc Thrift Shop Book Haul

Here is another book haul for you to enjoy.
I bought these a while ago and forgot to post about them. I have read two of the books. The Book Thief, I read this book a while ago but enjoyed it so much that I wanted to add it to my book shelves.
Plum Lucky I read earlier this year. I have been trying to get through this series but it has been slow going. Not because the series is bad but because there are so many books that I want to read. I also need to break up a huge series so that I don't get bored or tired of the series.
I have started collecting the Sue Grafton series but haven't started reading it yet. I would like to have as many of the books before I start. Nothing worse than to start a series and then you can't continue on because you don't have the rest or you have a long wait before the next book comes out.
I also found two Cornelia Funke books. I enjoyed reading Ink Heart and I also read the other two books in that series but didn't like them as much. I wanted to try her other books and so I picked them up. I will probably read them with David. The Iron Trial By: Holly Black and Cassandra Clare is another book that I will probably read with David is another book that I picked up. I have read a couple of books by both of these authors and want to see how they work together on writing. I am not sure what is about but the back mentions something about magic. David likes magical things so we will give it a try. There is another book to this series so we might wait to see if I can find the second one.
I know this next book has more in the series but it is the first time I saw it in the store so I picked it up. I have also seen the movie so I want to see what the book is like. The book I am talking about is Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children. This is not something I normally pick up to read. The series is about a mysterious island that has an abandoned orphanage. The book has pictures and a strange story to go along with them.
If I stay is the last book in the photo that I need to talk about. Again I have seen the movie already. To be honest I didn't know there was a book so finding the book was a gem. I liked the movie so lets see if the book is even better. For the most part the book is better but sometimes not. The back of the book says, In an instant, Mia's whole world is shattered, leaving her with only questions. What will happen if she leaves? If she loves? If she stays? Heartbreaking, romantic, and ultimately filled with hope, this is a powerful story of love and loss, and finding the courage to make the right decision when your life is literally in your hands. It sounds so good.
Ok those are the books that I bought and I hope this helps you with some ideas for reading. Until next time keep reading.

Booktubeathon reads

I took part in another readathon. This readathon was called booktubeathon. It ran from July 30th -August 5th.
This happens every year in the summer. I tried doing this last year but I was just starting out with readathons and didn't well.
There are seven reading challenges along with video challenges and Instagram challenges. I didn't do any of the video challenges and only ended up doing two of the Instagram challenges.
I will tell you the reading challenges along with the book I matched with the challenge. I will also tell you if I finished the challenge.
1. Let a coin toss decide your first read. This challenge was between Common Sense and The Pilgrim's Progress. The Pilgrim's Progress won this challenge. I did get this book read and gave it 3 stars.
2.Read a book about something you want to do. The book I chose for this was Hooked on Murder By; Betty Hechtman. I want to work in a book store and crochet. I really enjoyed this book and gave it 4 stars. This book has one recipe and a crochet pattern in the back. I plan on doing a review for this book in the future.
3.Read and watch a book to movie adaptation. For this I chose Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.  I gave the book 3 stars and the movie 4.5. I love the movie and Dick Van Dyke. As normal the book and movie don't have a whole lot in common but both were fun.
4.Read a book with a green cover. For this I read Little Lord Fauntleroy. I gave it 3 stars.
5.Read a book while wearing the same hat the whole time. This is a stupid challenge. I am not a hat person. For this I read Persuasion by: Jane Austin.I gave it 3 stars. I am not a fan of her writing but wanted to finish up her books on my shelves.
6. Read a book with a beautiful spine. Okay this may be weird for you but I chose A skeleton in the family. This is a cozy mystery and a quick read for me. It is kind of cute don't you think. I gave this book 4 stars. There will be a review coming soon.
7. Read 7 books. For this I read Common Sense by: Thomas Paine. I gave this 3 stars.
As you can see I did get seven books read. I tried to pick small or quick read to be able to accomplish this. I had fun doing this. I do want to do this again next year and hopefully do more of the Instagram challenges. I hope you will try this readathon next year along with me.
Until next time keep reading.

Barnes and Noble Book Haul

 In July I went to Barnes and Noble twice. They had a 4th of July sale and also I received coupons in the mail. I can't remember which trip I picked up these books so I just have them displayed as I bought them. All of these books I heard about and wanted to read them. Yes I know I have a lot to read but I like a variety to chose from. So let me tell you a little about each book.
Girl Made of Stars by: Ashley Herring Blake is about twins who are very close. The girl twin's friend accuse her brother (the boy twin) of rape. The girl twin doesn't know who to believe. This story takes you through that adventure and has a few surprises. I am not looking forward to read about rape but I am hoping this is a false tale. Long Way Down by: Jason Reynolds is a book told in verse. Not sure what this story is about. The book cover isn't telling you much. I just loved the cover. The Poppy War by: R.F. Kuang is another book I heard a lot about. It is about a girl who has aced the Empire wide test to  find the most talented youth to study at the academics. Everyone is surprised that a war orphan could pass these test without cheating.  This is her story. Eleanor Oliphant is completely fine by: Gail Honeyman is yet another book which has been getting a lot of notice. I want to read this to see what the hype is about. It was also a Reese  Witherspoon Book club pick. She struggles with appropriate social skills and tends to say exactly what she's thinking. My kind of lady. That is all I needed to know.

Now onto the next group of books. Calypso by: David Sedaris is a book that I got for really cheap. That is main reason why I bought it. It is a darker book so I may not like it. I don't tend to read these but I do enjoy listening to Stephen King when it isn't dark outside. Don't like scary at night. I do need to be able to sleep.Listen To Your Heart by: Kasie West is a Young adult contemporary. I have read a couple of her books and they are quick and sweet. Just something to lighten the day and a change up from my normal reads. Vicious by: V.E.Schwab is a fantasy book. I hardly read this type of book but I have read some. I heard she is a great writer so I am hoping that I will enjoy this book. The second book comes out soon and I want to see if I will like her. I have several other her books that I need to read so I am hoping she is good. Here is what the back of the book says. Victor and Eli started out as college roommates-brilliant, arrogant, lonely boys who recognized the same sharpness and ambition in each other. In their senior year, a shared research interest in adrenaline, near-death experiences, and seemingly supernatural events reveals an intriguing possibility: that under the right conditions, someone could develop extra-ordinary abilities. But when their thesis moves from the academic to the experimental, things go horribly wrong. Doesn't that sound exciting. Girl In The Blue Coat by: Monica Hesse. This book is set during the second world war. It is a historical fiction book. At the bottom of the back cover it says beautifully written, intricately plotted, and meticulously researched. This is an unforgettable story of bravery, grief and love in impossible times. That is enough for me to want to read this book. The last two books are a series and I bought them because I loved the this author when he co wrote the Illuminae series. He is a fantasy writer so I am hoping I will like these two books. There is a third book that will be coming out in September. It is basically a book about revenge. A woman is seeking vengeance against the powers that destroyed her family. In this world where she is living the sun almost never sets. Maybe I will like it. It sounds a little like The Mistborn Series. Won't know until I read it.
Well that is all that I bought brand new for the month of July. Hope this gives you some reading ideas.Until next time keep reading.

July Wrap Up

 These are not the only books that I read this month. If you have been reading my previous post you will know that I have done quite a few readathons. These are the books that didn't fit into those readathons. The Stephen King book that I listened to this month was Thinner. I wasn't impressed with this book. The book is about a guy who starts losing weight at an amazing rate after coming in contact with a gypsy. He is pretty sure that he put a curse on him. The other two books I have a review up.

 I also read two classics. I wasn't thrilled with them. Both were slow going. I did enjoy reading Rebound to David. We even laughed in some places. This author wrotes in verse. It is better good once you get use to it.

I finished these the last two days of the month. You have to read Final Girls. It was a great thriller. The other book is short stories about the civil war and the possibility of ghost hanging around parts of where the civil war took place. Some stories are better than others.
So to wrap up I read 26 books that totaled 8799 pages. This average out to 284 pages a day. I read 12 books by female authors and 14 books by male authors. I had a great month of reading and read some amazing books.
Until next time keep reading

O.W.Ls Challenge

This is a new challenge that is out on YouTube that I decided to give a go. This challenge was actually done in April but I didn't find until late June and decided to try it in July. There are twelve exams in this challenge. You are to read a book in each area and you can't double up. I was able to finish eight of the exams. Here are the exams and the challenge .
Ancient Runes: A book with a symbol on the cover and I read the book The Wicked Deep. You will notice I also read this book for the biannual readathon.
Arithmacy: Read a book with a number on the cover or in the title. I didn't get this done
Astronomy: Read a science fiction book. Again I didn't get this done.
Care of Magical Creatures: Read a book that includes magical creatures or features a magical creature on the cover. I read The Mystic Horse. (Not shown borrowed from the library)
Charms: Read a Fantasy Book. Didn't do
Defense of the Dark Arts: Book about/featuring secret societies/clubs. Didn't do
Divination: Read a book featuring prophecies. I read Furyborn
Herbology: Read a book with a natured related work in the title. I read The Sun and Her Flowers. I also read this book for the Read-EH-Thon.
History of Magic: Read a Historical Fiction. I read I Survived the Children's Blizzard of 1888
Muggle Studies: Read a non fiction book. I read Trail Dust
Potions: Read a book about/with alchemy. I read A Clash of Kings (not shown again a library book)
Transfiguration: Read a book that deals with transfiguration/shapeshifting or similar theme or a book with a cat on the cover. I read the Silence in the Library.
I had fun doing this and it got me to read some books I probably wouldn't have read.
This is also in preparation for the NEWTS in August. This is the last exams that happen in the Harry Potter Series. You can do this challenge any time you want but you must do these before you can do the NEWTS. If you want to know about this you can go to You Tube and look up Book Roast and she goes into great detail. These are her challenges and she even has the paper work all ready for you copy to follow.
I hope you give this a try.
Until next time keep reading.

Thrift store book haul

 I haven't done a book haul in awhile, so decided to do quick one. These books I bought from the thrift store. The thrift store I go to has a 50% sale every Saturday. I try to go at least once a month to check out the books.  In this photo I have already read two of the books. Those would be To Kill A Mockingbird and Catering To Nobody. I watched the movie to Austinland. The other two just sounded good.

 I found another Roald Dahl book that I haven't read so picked it up. The Lost Boy is the sequel to A Child Called It. Kristen Hannah is suppose to be a great author so I found yet another book that she wrote. This is the fifth book that I have but still haven't read any of them. The last two books are on a list of books that you should read when you are young and I haven't read yet.

Tara got me into this series. I am only on the fourth book in this series. When I see this series at the thrift I just pick them up to add to my pile of to be read. I am enjoying this series because I love the Grandma.
Just wanted to do a quick post. I hope you enjoyed and get in some reading time.

Summer Biannual Bibliathon

This month I have decided to take part in many different readathons. This is the third one that I have done. There are seven challenges in this readathon and I completed five of them.
They are 1. Read the group book. The group book was The Wicked Deep By: Shea Ernshaw. I liked this book. I gave it 4.5 stars. 2. Choose from someone else's TBR. The book I chose was Dread Nation By: Justina Ireland. I borrowed it from the library and had to return it before I could take a picture. I also liked this book and gave it 4 stars. 3. Try the first chapter of 3 books and pick one. For this I read the first chapter of This Adventure Ends By: Emma Mills, One of Us Is Lying By: Karen M. McManus and Low By: Rick Remender. I choose Low because it was short. It is a graphic novel and reads fast but I didn't like it and will not be finishing the series. 4. Read a book that has been on your TBR for over a year. For this I read The Rosie Effect By: Graeme Simsion. It was an ok book. I gave it 3 stars. The first book was a whole lot better. 5. Read a predicted 5 star read. As you probably can tell by the picture I choose Two Little Girls In Blue By: Mary Higgins Clark. She didn't disappoint me and I gave it 5 stars.  I have done a review on this book. The two challenges that I didn't complete were 6. Own voices that is different from me. 7. Read the last book you bought. I ran out of time. That is a lot of reading in one week besides trying to do my normal every day stuff. I did enjoy myself and finally got to some books that I have been wanting to read. Hope you join in next time. The next one is in winter.
Until next time keep reading.

Tome Topple

As the title states I also decided to try the Tome Topple readathon. This is a 2 week readathon. It took place from June 29th through July 12th. Tome Topple is where you books over 500 pages. As you can see I was only able to get two books read for this round. But as you know I was also doing another readathon during this readathon also.
There were 5 challenges and I was able to complete 4 of them with these 2 books.
The challenges were 1. Read more than 1 book. 2. Read a graphic novel (didn't complete this one)
3. Read a tome that is part of series. A Clash of Kings is the book in the Game of Thrones. 4. Buddy read a tome. I buddy read A Clash of Kings. 5. Read an adult novel.
Rob Roy had 501 pages and A Clash of Kings had 761 pages. I gave both books 3 stars. Neither one of these books are my normal reading genres but I am trying to reach outside of the normal. I did have fun doing this though.
Until next time keep reading.

Read-EH-Thon Wrap Up

These are the books that I read during the Read EH Thon. This reading happened from July 1st through July 8th. This was focused on Canadian Authors. I was surprised to know that I had quite a few books written by Canadians. I did have to purchase one book but I have been wanting to read it any way. There were 5 challenges and I was able to complete 4 of them.
The first challenge was to red a book with a red cover. I read The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. This is the book that I had to buy. I really enjoyed this book and makes one think about what could happen. I suggest you read this book if you haven't already.
Challenge 2 was to read a book by a Canadian Woman author. All the books that I read were by Canadian Women  but for this challenge I chose The Sun and Her Flowers by Rupi Kaur. This book is written in verse. If you want a quick read it is an ok book. I really don't have much to say about it.
Challenge 3 is to read a book with "E" and "H" in the title. Try to get them together. Well I couldn't find a book with these letters together. The book I read for this challenge was A Stranger In The House by Shari Lapena. I loved this book. It was great and at first I thought it was going to be like Gone Girl and I was dreading it because I didn't like that book. There were some twist in this story and I thought I had it figured and I was wrong. You must read this book.
Challenge 4 I didn't do because I couldn't find one. The challenge was to read a book by an indigenous author.
Challenge 5 was to read a book set in a province you've never visited. Well this was easy because I live in the US and have only been to British Columbia. I chose Anne of Avonlea by L.M. Montgomery. This book and the rest of the series is set in Prince Edward Island. This is the second book to the Anne of Green Gable series. I enjoyed this book and will continue with the series. This one is about Anne being a teacher and the experiences she has.
I really had fun doing this and found some good authors that I would like to read more of. I have tried doing readathons before but always seem to fail at them so it was nice to finally finish one and do well. I would suggest you try one.
Until next time keep reading.