Monthly Wrap-Up/October

Like the falling leaves, October 2010 has blown away. Another memory of what was. There is a chill in the air whispering November's name and the things to come.

October definitely blew by faster than I could ever imagine, while it was not my best month for reading it wasn't bad either.

Books Read/Reviewed in October:

1. The Duff by Kody Kiplinger
2. Twelfth Grade Kills by Heather Brewer
3. Nevermore by Kelly Creach
4. When the Black Girls Sings by Bil Wright
5. Heart with Joy by  Steve Cushman
6.  Carter's Big Break by Brent Crawford
7. Matched by Ally Condie
8. Wicked Girls by Stephanie Hemphill
9. Annexed by Sharon Dogar
10. The Dead Boys by Royce Buckingham
11. I Now Pronounce You Someone Else by Erin McCahan 
12. Pemba's Song: A Ghost Story by Marilyn Nelson and Tonya C. Hegmain
13. FreeFall by Mindi Scott
14. Nightshade City by  Hillary Wagner
15. Deception by Lee Nichols 

Audio Books Finished: 

The Replacement by Brenna Yovnoff  


The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
 
As I said not the most auspicious month, but 17 books read and nine reviews isn't too shabby either. 

As always when it come to picking my favorite book for the month I really have a difficult time. I usually can narrow it down to two or three, but I read and listened to some really amazing books this month. Consequently, I have six favorite reads, all of which I feel have much to offer the YA audience, and I highly recommend them all.

Imagine what it is going to be like for me to pick my top ten books of the year!

Goals for November:

Unfortunately, November is probably going to be a slow reading month for me. I am attending the National Council of Teachers of English Conference in Orlando in a couple of weeks, and then Thanksgiving is the next week after that, so I got a feeling my reading will suffer.

Still I am hoping to get to several books read on my ever growing TBR shelf, and manage to write at least two reviews a week. 

 I am also trying to figure out just what to do for my first Blogoversary (Yep, I have been blogging for a year this December) and birthday (almost a Christmas baby). So if you have any suggestions, let me know. 

 

September in Review

Since beginning school my reading habit has been greatly curtailed. Planning lessons, grading papers, and teaching takes a lot out of me on a daily basis. Weekends seem to be the only time I have a large chunk of time to sit and indulge myself, and of course even then there are other things that pull me away from my books.

Here is a list of books read and or reviewed this month:

Virals by Kathy Reichs

Plain Kate by Erin Bow
Girl Stolen by April Henry  
Firelight by Sophie Jordan
Paranormalcy by Kirsten White
Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare 
Carter Finally Gets It by Brent Crawford
City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
Crave by Laura J Burns & Melinda Metz
Tomorrow When the War Began by John Mardsen 
Losing Faith by Denise Jaden
Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler  

I participated in Blogfest this month, which was loads of fun. I found some amazing blogs and even won a couple of books in the process.


This was also my first year participating in the BBAW. While I did not enter my blog (way too many other book blogs out there who are doing a much better job than I do), I did get to do some judging, which was great, and I loved visiting all the different blogs that were entered.

Once again choosing just one book as a favorite read is difficult because I enjoyed most of them. But the two that stand out the most are...

Firelight by Sophie Jordan

And

Crave by Laura J. Burns and Melinda Metz

Both of these books captured my imagination for different reasons. 

Firelight was unique in its dragon lore, and had a terrific romantic love triangle that I am anxious to read more about.

Crave was also unique as far a vampire books and the budding romance of the two main characters was fantastic. It ended with a shocking cliffhanger that has me craving more. 

My goals for October or should I say goal is to read more. I have way too many books on my TBR shelf, that I really need to whittle  down, and I have more coming. 

Wonder if the IRS will give me a tax break on all the books I buy? 

Finally, as Banned Book Week comes to a close, I want to remind everyone to enter my Bloggers Speak Out Giveaway for a chance to win one of the above three books that have recently been banned or challenged. The giveaway ends 10/3. 

I also want to give a shout out to Natalie at Mindful Musing for organizing this giveaway as a way for book bloggers to protest  censorship. 

Adios August/2010 Monthly Wrap-Up

Another month bites the dust. I have to admit I was not all that happy to see August come in the first place. August is the month that I go back to work, and my reading habits are greatly stifled. 

On the up side I have had a great time turning my new students onto all the wonderful books I have been reading.

So here is what I accomplished this month.

Books read and reviewed:

1.  Nightshade by Andrea Cremer 
2. Sweet, Hereafter by Angela Johnson 
3. Personal Demons by Lisa Desrochers
4. Evernight by Claudia Gray  
   
5. Manifest by Artist Arthur 
6. Lucy by Laurence Gonzales
7. Beautiful Dead: Arizona  by Eden Maguire
8.  Infinite Days by Rebecca Maizel
9. Fledgling by Mark Cooper 
10. The Society of the Pink Crystal Ball by Risa Green
11. Paper Town by John Green 
12. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
13. Virals by Kathy Reichs 
14.  Minder by Kate Kaynak 

 I also managed to finish the EW Summer Book Challenge. I read a total of 6 books over the last two months.
 

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Lucy by Laurence Gonzales

The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephanie Meyer

Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok

The Passage by Justin Cronin

The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender 

Monthly Recommendations

Once again I am having trouble picking my favorite book read in August. I really enjoyed Mockingjay, but of the series, Hunger Games definitely remains my favorite. 

I also loved Lucy by Laurence Gonzales it was an amazing story and I have yet to review it as I am not sure I can even begin to do it justice.

I also just finished reading an ARC of Virals by  Kathy Reichs and absolutely loved it, although it is not released yet, I am now a huge fan, and cannot wait to be buy my own copy and put it in the hands of my students. This will definitely be a book I will be recommending for next years Book Battle list at school.

But I think my favorite this month is defintiely Paper Towns by John Green. I listened to this on audio and it was brilliant. Laugh out loud funny, characters that were so real they jumped right off the page. If you have not read this one you really need to because it is a wonderful coming of age story that stays with you long after you have read the last sentence.

My goal for September is to get more reviews written since I was pretty much a slacker when it came to this in August. Definitely not as easy to do with school taking a high priority.

Bye Bye July/2010 Monthly Wrap-Up

Man am I sad to say goodbye to July because it means my summer ends in a week, which will greatly cramp my reading. But all good things must go the way of the Dodo and do I ever have some great books to turn my new eighth graders onto.

On the bright side, July was a very productive month. I read a lot and reviewed most of what I read, so despite my sadness I am pleasantly pleased.

Books read/reviewed in July

1. Beastly by Alex Finn 
2. The Agency a Spy in the House by Y. S. Lee 
3. Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
4. i so don't do spooky by Barrie Summy 
5. Demon's Lexicon by Sarah Reeds Brennan
6. Princess of Glass by Jessica Day George 
7. Wondrous Strange by Lesley Livingston 
8. Darklight by Lesley Livingston 
9. The Gardener by S.A. Bodeen
10. Firespell by Choe Neill   
11. Skinned by Robin Wasserman
12. Sisters Red by Jackson Pearce
13. Brightly Woven by Alexandra Bracken
14. Shade by Jeri Smith-Ready
15. Voices of Dragons by Carrie Vaughn
16. The Last Words of Will Wolfkin by Steven Knight 
17.  Claire de Lune by Christine Johnson
18. A Kiss in Time by Alex Flinn
19.  Gone by Michael Grant
20. Poison Diaries by Maryrose Wood with The Duchess of Northumberland 
21. The Passage by Justin Cronin
22. Linger by Maggie Stiefvater
    
23. Adios Nirvana by  Conrad Wesselhoeft 

I also posted a reviews, of a book I actually read in June but reviewed in July.

Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok 
 

Challenges completed this month:

I still have a few more challenges to finish, but this one was by far the biggest, and I am so happy that I have completed it with five months more to go before the end of the year. I am thinking I won't make 200 books by December 31, but I sure will try for at least 75 more. 

And now for my July recommendations:

Wondrous Strange and Darklight by Leslie Livingston

 

Beastly by Alex Flinn

Adios Nirvana by Conrad Wesselhoerft 

(you definitely don't want to miss this one come October)

 

June Blur/2010 Monthly Wrap-up

June has just sped by and I have a sinking feeling July will do the same. Why is it whenever you get any time off that it seems to go by way too quickly. Slow down Summer!

This month I did get quite a lot of reading done, which probably helped with the month blurring by. I also managed to write several reviews, but this is still an area that I really need to work on.

Books read and/or reviewed:

Karma Club by Jessica Body
Zan-Gah by Allan Richard Shickman
My Name is Memory by Ann Brashares
Glimmerglass by Jenna Black
Whispers by Phoebe Kitanidis
Spy Glass by Maria Synder
Zan-Gah and the Beautiful Country by Allan Richard Shickman
Jump the Cracks by Stacy DeKyser
The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Amiee Bender
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
The Pony Whisperer:Word on the Yard by Janet Rising
Ivy's Ever After by Dawn Lairmore
The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephanie Meyer
Raised by Wolves by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
The  Compound by S. A. Bodeen
Middleworld by J&P Voelkel  
Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver
Radiant Darkness by Emily Whitman
Libyrinth by Pearl North
i so don't do mysteries by Barrie Summy 
Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok 
Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larrson
A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare

I also reviewed:


The Red Umbrella by Christina Diaz Gonzales
Whisper by Phoebe Katanidis
School of Possibilities by Seita Parkkola

I fully participated in Bloggiesta #3  and really learned lots of cool stuff. The most helpful was getting my reader organized to a point where I can use it effectively to visit the hundreds of blogs I am following, but I also learned how to do gravatar, and favicons, posted a review and disclaimer policy, and cleaned up my labels.


I also joined in on the 48 Hour Read-a-Thon hosted by Mother Reader reading a total of 25 and donating $2 for every hour I read to a school in need of books.


I completed three challenges this month although I am still adding to  two of the challenges:

(81/75)

(6/6)

(16/15)

I read some great books this month and picking one as my most favorite reads is difficult since there are four that really stick out: My Name is Memory by Anne Brashares, Raised by Wolves by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, Girl in Translation by Jeannie Kwok, and Libyrinth by Pearl North. Each of these books are very different in what they offer, but as Duncan McCloud always says, "There can be only one." So my June pick is My Name is Memory by Ann Brashares. I loved the historical aspects of this book and epic love story that spans centuries. Brashare's prose was dazzling too. Definitely an amazing read.

 Some goals I am setting for July:

• post some discussion posts 
• line up some author interviews
• write more reviews.

Yep, June was a blur for me, but I enjoyed every minute of it!

Monthly Wrap-UP/Remembering May

Even though summer is officially twenty-one days away, for me summer is when I wave goodbye to the last bus load of students on the last day of school. 

May is always a busy month so as I look over what I accomplished I am actually surprised I did as well as I did.

15 Books Read and 9 Reviewed:

Storm Glass by Maria V. Synder

The Pigman by Paul Zindel

Prince of Mist by Carlos Ruiz Zafron

Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco X. Stork

We Were Here by Matt De La Pena

The Red Pyramid by Rick Riodan

Pyramid of Souls by Erica Kirov

The Red Umbrella by Christina Diaz Gonzalez

Morpheus Road: The Light by D. J. MacHale
The Cardturner by Louis Sachar

Suddenly Supernatural: School Spirit by Elizabeth Cody Kimmel

The Youngest Templar Keeper of the Grail by Michael P. Spradlin

The Turning What Curiosity Kills by Helen Ellis  (reread)

Heist Society by Ally Cater  
School of Possibilities by Seita Parkkola 
Knife That Killed Me by Anthony McGowan (finished this in April but wrote the review in May)

I still need to do a lot better with writing reviews. Having all summer to read and write I should be able to do this. 

I am also making headway in most of my challenges.

 62/100 completed

62/75 completed

5/6 completed (one more to go)

8/15 completed

23/10 ( I completed this a while back but continue to add to it)

Of all the books I read this month my favorite hands down was The Morpheus Road: The Light by D.J, MacHale. I loved the mystery, the characters, and the tension that gripped me from start to finish. I cannot wait for the next book in this haunting tale.

So Long April/The Wrap-Up

This April was not the most productive month for me. I fell short of my monthly goal reading only 11 books instead of the 12 I had hoped to read, revised this because I did actually finish 12 books; I just forgot one in my list. Correction made after posting the wrap up. I am however  behind in my reviews. Not one to be discouraged, I will try again in May.

 Books Read and Reviews Finished

1. Dwarves by Markus Heitz 4/4
2. Lament: The Faerie Queen's Deception by Maggie Stiefvater 4/5
3. Fang by James Patterson 4/7 
4. Wabi A Hero's Tale by Joseph Bruchac 4/10
5. Boost by Kathy Mackel 4/10
6. Airhead by Meg Cabot 4/10
7. The Magic Half by  Annie Barrows 4/12
8. The Summer of Skinny Dipping by Amanda Howells 4/20
9. The Knife That Killed Me  by Anthony McGowan 4/24  
10. The Turning by Helen Ellis 4/25
11. The Graceling by Kristin Cashore 4/30
12. Mistwood by Leah Cypess 4/30 

I also finished my review of Gringolandia by Lyn Miller-Lachman which was my month recommendation for March.

My April recommendation is definitely Graceling by Kristin Cashore. I totally loved this book and will be reading it again simply because it is an amazing story with tremendous characters who I absolutely adored. In fact this will end up on my top ten this year.

I joined two new challenges this month and am happy to report that I am only one book away from my goal of five for the Once Upon a Time Challenge, and the Summer Challenge hasn't really started so I am in good shape for that one.

In other challenges I am certainly gaining ground too.

I have read 48/75 books for the 2010 Young Adult Challenge and 48/100 for the +100 Reading Challenge, so all is well. I also added another 2 books to the Library Challenge making a total of 17/25

Finally I am soooo excited! I actually reached 100 followers this month. That is very cool, and I am currently holding my very first giveaway. My Thank You Giveaway is to show my appreciation to everyone who has been so supportive since I began blogging last year.  The giveaway ends May 6, so make sure you enter.

Monthly Warp-Up/March 2010

 It's hard to believe that March is over. This has definitely been a very productive month for me partly because I spent my entire spring break reading (and loved every minute of it), and partly because I reached over 50 followers. Thank you to everyone who stops by and is now a follower and to everyone who stops by and leaves a comment. I love you all and I appreciate any and all comments you make. 

So here is March in Review.

Books Read: 14

1. Secret Society by Tom Dolby
2. Dream Life by Lauren Mechling 
3. Past World by Ian Beck
4. This World We Live In by Susan Beth Pfeffer
5. Eternal by Cynthia Leitich Smith
6. The Forest of Hands and Teeth  by Carrie Ryan
7. Standing Against the Wind by Traci L. Jones
8. Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins
9. The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting
10. The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson
11. Killer Pizza by Greg Taylor
12. Sing Me to Sleep by Angela Morrison 
13. Gringolandia by Lyn Miller - Lachmann 
14. The Folk Keeper by Franny Billingsley 

Books Reviewed: 8
Secret Society by Tom Dolby

Past World by Ian Beck

This World We Live In by Susan Beth Pfeffer

Eternal by Cynthia Leitich Smith

The Forest of Hands and Teeth  by Carrie Ryan

Standing Against the Wind by Traci L. Jones

Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins

The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting

Author Interviews: 2
Sharon Draper 
Leah Cypess

This Month's Recommendations:

Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins

The Body Finder by Kim Derting

This World We Live In by Susan Beth Pfeffer
Sing Me To Sleep by Angela Morrison  
Gringolandia by  Lyn Miller - Lachmann 

My Book of the Month Pick for March is Gringolandia by Lyn Miller - Leachmann. This is one of the most powerful stories I have read in a long time. It took me less than eight hours to finish and would have only taken half that if I hadn't had to work and sleep. Since I just finished it, I have not yet written a review, but it will be coming soon. Lyn has also agreed to let me interview her about the book.

Challenges:

I read 14 books for both these challenges, bringing my grand total to 36.





I read 2 books for this challenge this month for a total of 6 out of the 25 I will be reading,

I read 4 books for this challenge bringing my total to 15 out of the 25 I signed up for,

and I read 5 this month books for this challenge, and although I only signed up for 10 I am continuing to add to this one.

I also began a new challenge this month (as if I needed any more), and read 1 book and have 4 more to go.

So goodbye March and hello April. How was your month?