Merry Christmas!!!!

Well of course for Christmas I asked for books :). And I got..... (drum roll please): The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan, Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, Inheritance by Christopher Paolini and The Lost Stories by John Flanagan!!!!!!!!! Well I can say I've had an exciting Christmas!!
Already started The Lost Stories and so far: AMAZING!!! John Flanagan is absolutely amazing!
Probably won't start Inheritance until I get back from my trip and I have Little Women in e-book format so I am deciding if I will read it that way or wait till I get back for that one too.
I have already read The Lost Hero so I'm not in any hurry to read that one.
Finishing up The Fellowship of the Ring. Good book I really like it. Probably going to bring The Two Towers on my trip.
That's pretty much it.
Merry Christmas!!!!

mlpanichelle

The Shinning Company

Ok so I finished The Shining Company last night.  It was kinda slow and boring and the plot wasn't that interesting so I didn't like it that much. But not a bad book, not a book I would of picked to read myself but it was for school. But its over so I get to move on. Don't know what's next will find out on Monday.

mlpanichelle

New Releases!!!

Sooo since the month began 3 new books have come out. Inheritance, number of the Inheritance series by Christopher Paolini, The Lost Stories by John Flanagan, and the first book of The Brotherband Chronicles also by John Flanagan! Very exciting month. The sad part: I haven't read any of them yet! =( but I hope to soon...
Finished The Throne of Fire last week, awesome book I love Rick Riordan.
Also finished the book I was reading for school called the Flames of Rome. It was historical fiction during the reign if Nero when he was persecuting Christians. Great book I loved it. The author has written other christian historical fiction and I really want to read more by him. It definitely is a young adult book, for the content. A lot of stuff not for younger kids. But great book none the less.
I finally got The Power of Six book 2 of the Lorien Legacies. It followed Four and Six as they run away from the Morgadorians and find a way of meeting up with the other numbers. It also follows Seven as she tries to train herself in Spain. It was a goos read and I can't wait fir the next one to come out in the spring.
Now for school I'm reading The Shining Company by Rosemary Sutcliff. So far it's kinda boring but I'm not that far into it. I don't really know what the plot is yet either but it's for school so I don't have much of a choice in the matter.
That's all folks!
mlpanichelle

School Reading

So....not much reading has been done lately....school officially started and I just finished the first book for English. A cute book call Pictures of Hollis Wood by Patricia Reilly Giff. I liked it a lot. Hollis Wood is a twelve year old orphan girl and an amazing artist, who is by almost every one a trouble maker. Until she spends a summer with the Regans. And there she gets the chance to become part of the family, but last minute she changes her mind and she runs away again. She gets put into a home with an elderly lady named Josie. But Josie forgets things and that threatens Hollis' chance of staying with her. It alternated from "Time with Josie" and "pictures." Each picture was a memory from the summer with the Regans. So it follows Hollis through her stay with Josie as she remembers the life she could of had with the Regans. Very good book, I really liked  it. 
I also recently started reading The Throne of Fire (Kane Chronicles book 2 by Rick Riordan). So far, amazing. Same Riordan style that everyone loves. Haven't finished it quite yet but I am deep into the plot. This one follows Carter and Sadie as they find away to wake up the sun god Ra. And they got a five day deadline, with more than one group of people trying to kill them. Usual Riordan story, but still amazing. It has some new characters which everyone will love and they go to new places that you would never guess to find Egyptian mythology stuff. Great read!
I also recently was given The Lord of the Rings trilogy box set in hardback!!! I was so excited I started reading Fellowship of the Ring immediately. I had read the first two before, but I don't remember much and I thought it would be better to start over then start in Return of the King. Tolkien does write slow and details EVERYTHING, it still has a great moving story. The Fellowship of the Ring I believe has the most differences between the book and the movie in the whole trilogy. And you really don't know the whole story unless you read the book! Highly recommended!!
Still haven't finished Wuthering Heights. But that's OK, I will get there again......someday....maybe. Haha just kidding. I will finish it before the year is over, hopefully. Also getting from the library is one of the original Beauty and the Beast versions EVER. It was written in the early 1700's in French, and I need it for my essay I'm writing for school this year. So I'm going to be reading that too.
OK I think I'm all caught up now!


mlpanichelle

New series!!!!!

OK, since Thursday, I have started Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte. I'm getting through it kind of slow, but it's a harder read then I have been reading and it's a little weird. Recently, I watched Gone With the Wind and Wuthering Heights reminds me of it. Everybody treats each other so horribly, it's ridiculous. I guess I like it, it's just a little weird. It was not written in the style I was expecting. The actual story of Cathy and Heathcliff is being told by a maid from her memories but a nosy visitor 20 years after it all happens. That confused me a little bit but I think I got it now.
So, the title of the post is 'new series,' well that's because John Flanagan (Ranger's Apprentice series) is coming out with a new series called Brotherband Chronicles. It's release date is November 1st and I have been wondering what took me so long to find out about it. From what I can find out off of Barnes and Nobel's website it seems to mostly be in Scandia focusing of a band of outcasts there. Maybe eventually, Flanagan will bring back the rangers made famous in his first series, but we shall see. I really can't wait to read it and "The Lost Stories" coming out October 4th.

mlpanichelle   

5 Books In 4 Days

Finally finished Christy, after taking all Summer to read it. I didn't like the ending. I much liked David more than the doctor, but oh well. Cute book though.
On Monday, I read To Kill A Mockingbird. I loved that book. It was amazing. What I didn't get was the title, it really had nothing to do with the book or story what so ever but I don't care. Awesome book and it deserves an awesome title.
On Tuesday I read From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg. Really cute book about two kids who decide to run away from home and live in the Metropolitan Museum in New York City. They eventually wind up trying to figure out a mystery. The whole book is written from Mrs. Frankweiler's point of view as a letter to her lawyer. It's a great book and really easy read.
On Wednsday, I read, A Year Down Yonder by Richard Peck. Another real easy read as well as entertaining. This book follows 15 year old Mary Alice who goes to spend a year with her grandmother in the middle of know where Illinois while her father looks for a job during the depression. What makes it interesting is her grandmother. She's someone you never know what to expect from her, about anything. You make think you know her, but then she goes and proves you wrong again. I liked it, but it was a little slow for me.
Today I read Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli. I really like this book. It is about Jeffrey Magee who loses his parents in a train crash when he was three, then goes and lives with his Aunt and Uncle. After 8 years of that he runs and way and shows up in a small segregated town. Jeffery is white but makes friends and lives with the black people of the East side of town. When an elderly man gets after him for being different, Jeffrey leaves and joins the west side. The book follows him as he does impossible feat after impossible feat. And the town names him Maniac Magee. Great book and an pretty easy read.
Don't know yet what I'm reading tomorrow, but I think my reading is going to slow down a little bit because I'm leaving for vacation tomorrow. So will give an update when I return.

mlpanichelle

Waste Of A Half-Hour

Barely done any reading since the last post! This summer has gone by so fast it's ridiculous! Gotten farther in The Battle For Scandia. Almsot done with another book called Christy. That one is pretty good. Not a book that I would pick out for myself but it's entertaining. I like it alot.

The other night I picked up this really thin book called the Green Back Book I think. I can't remember the author's name mostly because it was the stupidest book I ever read. And it said on the back that it won some book of the year award! It SOOOOO did not deserve it! It had NO plot, things just kind of happened and it was only 7 short chapters long. So there wasn't any time to have anything happen. And it ended with the same sentence it began with so you could just read it over and over and over and over again and it would flow really smoothly! It was just plain dumb! I was a waste of a half hour.

Well, that's as far as I've gotten so far......

mlpanichelle

Summer Reading Begins

Finished Icebound Land about a week and a half ago and immediately started The Battle for Scandia. Now I'm about half way through that. I can not get over how much I LOVE those books. It's fun to re-read them and see how much Will and Horace grow as people and learn to make a good come back when Halt playfully jabs at them.
OK, for school, I have not gotten into To Kill A Mockingbird yet, but I will soon. I did read, however, a book called After the Dancing Days by Margaret Rostkowski. It was good, I like it. It was about a young girl, Annie, right after World War I and how she adjusts to the changes the war made and makes a friend at the hospital for injured soldiers who aren't able to go home yet. Cute story and had a good lesson. 
I also read a book by Beverly Cleary, a well-known children's author, called Dear Mr. Henshaw. This book was a bout a boy in six grade who is having some problems adjust to a new school and having his parents divorced and his dad gone. It is written in a form of letters half to the boy's favorite author and half to his diary (yes, he calls it a diary). It was OK, definitely an real easy read and not a book I would read for fun.
Next book I'm going to read is Christy, an older book and I can't remember the author right now. But that's all folks!!! =D


mlpanichelle 

The Emperor of Nihon-Ja

Ok, finished Emperor of Nihon-Ja awhile ago, but I got so busy I kept for getting to blog about it. Well, it was a great book. Evenlyn and Alyss are both in it and Flanagan brings back a former character from a past book. It was very interesting since Flanagan used actual Japanese words and culture in the book. I liked it a lot, not my favorite but definitely a good read. The ending was satisfying, and I like it, but with that ending it almost opens it for another book. I hope there is another one, but we shall see...
Still reading The Icebound Land, almost done with it then I will read The Battle for Scandia. Then I think I will take a break from Ranger's Apprentice and work on some extra reading for school, begining with To Kill A Mockingbird. I've heard it's really good, and can't wait to start it.
Well that is it for now....

mlpanichelle

Ranger's Apprentice Over?!?!?!?!?!

Ok, got Emperor of Nihon-Ja in the mail today and I immedietly read the synopsis is the side flap cover. The two things I took from it is 1) Halt will not be in this book and 2) this is the last book in the series!!!!!! I really really really hope it is not the last, I still think that Will should get his own apprentice, which would be amazing! Even if this is the end of the Ranger's Apprentice Epic, John Flanagan is coming out with a book in October called The Lost Stories. It will still be considered part of the series but it is a bunch of stories from in between all the books including more about Halt and Will's relationship, Alyss and hopefully some of Horace. I am excited for that one, but still wishing the series would not end. I did start it and I can confirm that Halt is in it (YAYYYYY!!!!) but to exactly how everything goes and turns out, I (and you) can only read and see.......

mlpanichelle

Ranger's Apprentice book 10: The Emperor of Nihon-Ja is out!!!!!

So yesterday I had a little celebration. The Emperor of Nihon-Ja is out in stores. I bought it last night off of amazon and expecting the package on Saturday!! I can't wait! 

In the past week, I finished Halt's Peril and Emma. I love both of those books despite the drastic differences between them. 

Started The Icebound Land (Ranger's Apprentice #3). Since I read the second I figured I should finish that section of the series. Maybe I will get through this one and The Battle for Scandia before I get the 10th. ;)

Well, nothing exciting really besides the release of that and the 2nd Kane Chronicles book is coming out very soon! Hoping to read that one too!

mlpanichelle

Beauty and the Beast Galore!!!!!

Ok, finished Blank Confession, two days after starting it. It was a short book and I really liked it. Definitely for teens and adults, because of the topics in it, but it is not a bad book.
Started Beast imedietly after finished Blank Confession. It took me a little bit longer to get through, but it was pretty good. It was fascinating how the beast was so much like the lion he looked like. Napoli did an amazing job with it. Again not for kids under 13.
Saturday night, I went to Barnes and Nobel and bought Beastly by Alex Finn. The movie has just recently been released in theaters and I'm hoping to see it soon. The book was fantastic (I finished it last night after starting it yesterday morning), I really liked it. It's written from main character, Kyle's point of view. In the beginning he is the biggest jerk ever! but he gets so much better. Even though I haven't seen the movie I can already tell one difference: the book describes him as hairy with claws and fangs, in the movie he just has scars and tattoos all over his body. Not a big deal, but still. I loved the book and can't wait to see the movie.
For school, I'm reading Emma. I spent most of Friday reading it and got 35 chapters into it, got 20 more to go....I like the story a lot. I've seen the movies so it's not too confusing. Emma has a lot more dialog in it then some of Jane Austen's other novels, which I like a lot. Need to finish it soon then I can get working on Beowulf.
At night when I'm not reading for school, I'm reading Halt's Peril. Just kinda waisting my time till Ranger's Apprentice #10: Emperor of Nihon-Ja comes out (April 19th). Just can't wait!!

mlpanichelle

Library Trip

OK, been a while, but haven't been doing much reading. I finished Vampire Diaries. It is such a strange book, I seriously can't make up my mind on it. There is so much mystery and old myth going on its hard to keep track, not to mention the constant twists in the story. It is reasonably well written and I like it, just a little shaken after reading it.
Over vacation this past week I started Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility. A timeless classic, one I haven't gotten the chance to read yet. I love the movie and the book it written beautifully, but it is a very slow read and can get boring easily because of the little dialog, which I tend to be fond of. She doesn't describe the scenery much, but the characters shes goes into full detail about them, even if it takes the whole book to finish.
From the library today, I got Blank Confession by Pete Hautman and Beast by a Donna Jo Napoli. Started Blank Confession this afternoon. Its about a kid named Shayne Blank who walks into a police station and confesses to killing someone. It goes back and forth from him and the detective to the story told from a kid named Mikey's point of view. Its confusing and a little weird, but the story seemed interesting and I like it so far. Beast is the story "Beauty and the Beast" with a twist. Napoli has written several books and all of them are old stories from over a thousand years ago retold with her personal twist. I am a huge fan of Beauty and the Beast and just had to read it.
Though I haven't read much recently, I'm trying to pick up on it, I miss my books. =)

mlpanichelle

Looking Back on Ranger's Apprentice

OK, so about a week ago I finished The Burning Bridge (book 2 of the Ranger's Apprentice Series by John Flanagan). I have read at least once before (maybe twice) and it's definitely my favorite out of the series, closely followed by the ninth. Gillan is a bigger character, and Halt (sadly) is a little bit smaller of a character then most would think him, and Flanagan introduces a new character: Evenlyn. A servant girl, whose mistress has been killed, that Horace, Gillan and Will run into in Galica, though Gillan isn't so quick to entirely believe her story. This continues straight from the first after the fight with the Kalkara to the battle against the Wargals.
Got the second volume of the Vampire Diaries from the library last Monday. Getting through it kinda slow, but it's an interesting book. Looking forward to finding out how it ends. 

Pegasus

Finished Pegasus last Thursday. Would of posted something then, but I was in Jamaica, so I couldn't. Well, now I'm home and can write. Pegasus took me a while to get through. I had slight problems following the plot, or even figuring out the plot. In the synopsis she leads for one plot then she starts a different plot in the beginning of the book, then that turns out to be just a bunny trail then continues with the original plot, but doesn't explain why some things are happening. And things happen that have nothing to do with the plot and she just seems to be rambling. So I can't say that I liked the book, but it wasn't bad. I didn't like her writing style and couldn't find dots to connect to figure it out. It also lacked an ending. It's obvious that she meant to have a sequel. I think it's suppose to come out later this year or early next year. Will I read it? Of course, I never miss an opportunity to read a new book. =)
Right before leaving for Jamaica, I started Vampire Diaries. I had watched some of the TV show and curiosity on how close it is to the books drove me to get it from the library. To start off, I don't like the main character, Elena. She so self centered and her friends are so gullible. I didn't like her in the TV show either, because the way the show her reminds me so much from Bella in Twilight which just annoyed me to no end. The book is a romance novel and it has some pretty freaky parts, definitely not for anyone under thirteen. Altogether I thought it was a good book, it intrigued me from chapter 1. Book one and two have been finished (The Awakening and The Struggle) and I eagerly await the next one.

Unfortunately I got tied into the other TV show Pretty Little Liars, also based off a book series. As soon as I finish Vampire Diaries, I intend to read that series. It's a strange show and I expect the books to be same, not sure what it will turn out to be.....