Wishlist Wednesday #5

Property of Pen to Paper

This is a meme hosted by Dani from Pen to Paper where each blog that signs up will post about a book they want to read/cannot wait for to come out. It can be an old or a new one. Basically, it's where on a Wednesday, we will talk about an item on our Wishlist that we hope to own or read in the near future. Click here to see everyone else's beautiful Wishlist Wednesday's! 

(Picture from Goodreads is messing up, sorry!) 

She’s been six different people in six different places: Madeline in Ohio, Isabelle in Missouri, Olivia in Kentucky . . . But now that she’s been transplanted to rural Louisiana, she has decided that this fake identity will be her last.

Witness Protection has taken nearly everything from her. But for now, they’ve given her a new name, Megan Rose Jones, and a horrible hair color. For the past eight months, Meg has begged her father to answer one question: What on earth did he do – or see – that landed them in this god-awful mess? Meg has just about had it with all the Suits’ rules — and her dad’s silence. If he won’t help, it’s time she got some answers for herself.

But Meg isn’t counting on Ethan Landry, an adorable Louisiana farm boy who’s too smart for his own good. He knows Meg is hiding something big. And it just might get both of them killed. As they embark on a perilous journey to free her family once and for all, Meg discovers that there’s only one rule that really matters — survival.

Thanks to another blog (unfortunately, I cannot remember who), I saw this wonderful book! Goodness, there are a couple things that get me excited in the description. 

For starters, I love the name Meg. Might sound stupid, but Meg is just a really good name and I like it better than the full "Megan." I think part of it is because I really like a book who's main character is named Meg and the other part is that I absolutely adore Meg Ryan. You've Got Mail? Timeless. 

WATCH THIS NOW

Also, it is about witness protection program! I already like the whole "girl moves a lot and gets a new identity" story. That story is what made me most excited for Sarah Dessen's What Happened to Goodbye. However, this time, the girl HAS to get a new identity. I want to know what her real name is, what her father did, and of course, I want to know what her love interest, Ethan, is like. 

"...there's only one rule that matters -- survival." <--that line in the description above gets me really, really giddy. 

I hope to get this soon and thank you to whoever posted about this! 

--By the way, sorry about the pictures. I see that it is Blogger's fault and not Goodreads. Only letting me do it this way. Blah. 

What can you NOT wait for? 

Review: AMY AND ROGER'S EPIC DETOUR by Morgan Matson

Amy Curry thinks her life sucks. Her mom decides to move from California to Connecticut to start anew--just in time for Amy's senior year. Her dad recently died in a car accident. So Amy embarks on a road trip to escape from it all, driving cross-country from the home she's always known toward her new life. Joining Amy on the road trip is Roger, the son of Amy's mother's old friend. Amy hasn’t seen him in years, and she is less than thrilled to be driving across the country with a guy she barely knows. So she's surprised to find that she is developing a crush on him. At the same time, she’s coming to terms with her father’s death and how to put her own life back together after the accident. Told in traditional narrative as well as scraps from the road--diner napkins, motel receipts, postcards--this is the story of one girl's journey to find herself.

This book is one of those books where people talk about it all the time. Honestly, when I was looking at other people's Top Ten Fictional Crushes (in case I was forgetting someone important on mine), Roger popped up basically 1 in 3 times. You have to read it then, right? Who doesn't love a male character who makes girls put him in their Top Ten? 

Overall, let me say, the book was good. It wasn't one that made me go, "WOW, I need to buy this NOW." Honestly, not a lot of books do because I'm cheap. What I'm trying to say is that this book didn't give me goosebumps and didn't make me think about it for days. I even forgot to write a review for it until about a week later (so hopefully I remember everything). 

Throughout the book, we jump back either several years or just several months before. It all relates to Amy and her dad. In March, her dad died and all we know is that it was 1. Amy's fault and 2. it involved a car crash. That's it. Obviously, you can put the pieces together and get the gist of "how" it was Amy's fault. I felt for the poor girl though, because I would feel TERRIBLE. 

Amy's twin brother Charlie is in a rehab facility and her mother has already moved to Connecticut, leaving Amy alone in California. Because of the accident, Amy refuses to drive. Her mother needs the car back ASAP since she cannot share a car with her mother (Amy's grandmother) anymore. So that's where Roger comes in. Roger is the son of Amy's mother's friend. Read that again and I promise it makes sense. Of course, since Amy's mother needs the car back pronto, she made a very detailed trip to Connecticut. It supplies all the hotel reservations, highways, eating stops, everything. Honestly, I get why her mother is in a hurry, but CHILL, woman. Although, if you think about it and ignore she's doing it purely for selfish motives, it is nice of her. 

Instead, Roger isn't too thrilled with it and likes road trips more relaxed. Amy, for once in her life, goes against her mother's wishes and the two teens go on an "epic detour." 

There were moments that made me smile and moments where I connected with the characters. However, I wanted to slap Roger. Don't get me wrong, he's very sweet. I can picture him as a super cute, very sweet, lovable guy. BUT he is a horrible ex-boyfriend. I understand why he would act that way considering how he was dumped, I really do. Why, though, does he have to act so clingy? I want to tell him, "Move on, already!" Calling her nonstop, stalking her across the country, and staying at her parents' place? That would creep me out. Like I said, I understand, but at the same time I just want him to cross that bridge already and move on. Move. On. Dude.

The other thing is that was there really a point in sharing a bed? It provides cute scenes, but not realistic. She was obviously uncomfortable and there were ways around it. So why not get a different route? At first, I wasn't so against it because I thought of that ridiculously sweet scene in Leap Year where they pretend as a married couple. If you haven't seen that movie, you should! Slow beginning, but a wonderful movie. It also introduced me to the lovely song "Dream a Little Dream of Me." 

**

Anyways, I couldn't help but be confused about the fact that they were TEENAGERS sharing a BED because they "HAD" to. Uh huh, whatever. 

Amy also repeatedly said that while Charlie and her were twins, they weren't close. She was confused because it always seemed to be a competition for them. Well, what do you think, Amy? We were probably supposed to, but even I could tell that she was favored. Charlie was just harboring resentment and feeling bitter. Although Ms. Matson does create a conclusion for them, it didn't feel finished for me. I didn't feel like they resolved most things. 

I DID like quite a few things though. The games in the car were great, the loneliest highway was a very nice touch, and the people they met were even good minor (very minor) characters. Amy and Roger, while I didn't like aspects of them (that I mentioned above), they did feel real. It was great how Amy didn't instantly trust Roger. Sure, there was attraction, but she's not a zombie or anything. She felt normal attraction. But there was a process for them. 

Of course, I have to take away points for the process because they did not handle the ending of the process well for me. At all. It might be for some people, but it didn't feel realistic for me. And while I get why the ending was the way it was, I like to have a more concrete ending. I felt like I was just hanging in the balance. 

"Really, THAT'S the ending?" was my initial reaction. 

I do recommend you reading it for yourself. Lots of people (the majority) have all loved the book. Ms. Matson has great reviews on Goodreads and I push you to go see theirs. Form your own opinion. Maybe it wasn't the best thing for me to forget to write a review because I might have missed a couple things. 

While the characters can be lovable, there are great scenes and "quirks", and I loved the pictures and playlists, it just wasn't up to par for me. Sorry. 

**It would not let me link up the actual clip in the movie. I recommend looking at YouTube and hopefully it's  still there. Even better, WATCH THE MOVIE. 
Word to Parents: mild sex, I think language (but can't remember) 

What do you think of Amy and Roger's Epic Detour? 

Comment below!

College: Where the Crazies Are

I go to a local college about thirty minutes away from where I live. I'm part-time college and part-time high school*, taking only a couple of classes. One of which is Composition 1. It's a small room with only a few rows on each side of the room. We have a projection screen and a dry-erase board. I sit in the second to last row on the end and can basically see the whole room except for the two people who sit behind me.

If you have ever gone or are going to college, you know there's a variety of people. In my composition class, you see it very clearly. Let me describe a few people to you: 

The Hippie. She always has her short, black hair in pigtails, wears some form of tie-dye every class, and has a huge, colorful peace sign tattoo on the back of her neck. Seriously, her tattoo has rays of rainbow coming out of the peace sign. She's also very loud and very annoying. I don't think my professor (let's call her Ms. Oak) even likes her. We just submitted our paper in a week or two ago and she has non-stopped asked for it. Every Tuesday and Thursday: "Ms. Oak, when are we getting our papers back?" And EVERY time, our professor replies with the same day (we always get our papers back after two weeks, no more or no less). 

Well, she asks again on a Tuesday and Ms. Oak says next week. On Thursday, guess what happens. Just guess. That's right, she asks, "Are we getting our paper back today?" 

The girl next to me and I rolled our eyes in unison. I then found out that the Hippie made her paper 10 pages instead of the 2-3 page limit. Goodness. 

Cover Love #2

Property of Bookshelvers Anonmyous

1 Concert
2000 Miles
3 Ex-Best Friends

Alice, Summer, and Tiernan are ex-best friends.

Back in middle school, the three girls were inseparable. They were also the number one fans of the rock band Level3.

But when the band broke up, so did their friendship. Summer ran with the popular crowd, Tiernan was a rebellious wild-child, and Alice spent high school with her nose buried in books.

Now, just as the girls are about to graduate, Level3 announces a one-time-only reunion show.

Even though the concert’s 2000 miles away, Alice buys three tickets on impulse. And as it turns out, Summer and Tiernan have their own reasons for wanting to get out of town. Good thing Alice’s graduation gift (a pea-green 1976 VW camper van known as the Pea Pod) is just the vehicle to get them there.

But on the long drive cross-country, the girls hit more than a few bumps in the road. Will their friendship get an encore or is the show really over? (description from Goodreads) 

While this has been published for a little while, I haven't seen it since about September (I think). Since it is in Cover Love, I like the cover (no duh). It's simple, doesn't make me go WOW, but it makes me pay attention. The best part of a simple cover is that you can take it all in without wasting about an hour of your life trying to decipher everything. Then you can't go boring simple (which this isn't) or no one will be interested. I do like the short description at the top "1 concert 2,000 miles 3 ex-best friends." It interests me even more. Hello, who does not like road trips and awkward past relationships/friendships?  

Is it just me or do we not have a lot of yellow books? It is a good thing, because if there were too many, my eyes might start to hurt. With this, though, my eyes instantly go to it. Also, I like the color yellow. 

Without sounding freaky, can I say I really like the girls' legs? I like how they are all standing slightly different and you can tell who is who. Of course, we see bags in the background which completes the whole thing. 

Do you like this cover? Why or why not? 

Comment!

Happy Thanksgiving! 

Review: UGLIES by Scott Westerfeld

Everyone gets to be supermodel gorgeous. What could be wrong with that? 

Tally is about to turn sixteen, and she can’t wait. Not for her license–for turning pretty. In Tally’s world, your sixteenth birthday brings an operation that turns you from repellent ugly into a stunningly attractive pretty and catapults you into a high-tech paradise where your only job is to have a really great time. In just a few weeks Tally will be there. 

But Tally’s new friends Shay isn’t sure she wants to be pretty. She’d rather risk life on the outside. When Shay runs away, Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world–and it isn’t very pretty. The Authorities offer Tally the worst choice she can imagine: find her friend and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all. The choice Tally makes changes her world forever. 

When I asked for book suggestions before I headed to the library, I was constantly recommended this book. I had seen it a few times in the library before and my young, prejudice self thought "It’s by a man. And I’m not sure about that title." I know that was horrible of me. But hey, I probably thought that when I was way younger. I never even bothered to read the description, which is even worse. So after I read the description, I didn’t even wait to go to the library. I put the whole series on hold.

Tally is probably like a lot of sixteen year olds in our present society. Insecure, completely waiting and wishing to grow up already, and doesn’t see a problem with doing what everyone else is doing. When everyone turns twelve, they leave their middle-pretty (basically pretties who are middle-aged) parents behind and are sent to dorms. Sixteen is the age everyone looks forward to. Sixteen is when they have an operation on their whole body to make themselves “perfect” which equals pretty. They become new-pretty. They describe the operation a couple times, each time sounding worse to me. Who wants that done? Not even celebrities would do that! They become perfect so that everyone will be equal.

Public Announcement: Holiday Giveaway!

Gillian Berry, blogger and owner of Writer of Wrongs, is hosting a FANTASTIC giveaway. Personally, I would not have heard of it if it were not for my sister, Shelver at Bookshelvers Anonymous, who follows her. So this post is for anybody out there who may also not hear of it. While I want to win, it is the season of giving (although Thanksgiving hasn't passed and that's being thankful which means if we are being thankful, aren't we getting something? No? I don't know, I just like the food). With it being the season of giving, sharing my knowledge and lowering my chances of winning will be a small sacrifice...I guess. 

So why do I like this giveaway so much? 

Wishlist Wednesday #4

Property of Pen to Paper

What if a beautiful vintage dress could take you back in time?

Louise Lambert has always dreamed of movie starlets and exquisite gowns and longs for the day when she can fill the closet of her normal suburban home with stylish treasures. But when she receives a mysterious invitation to a vintage fashion sale in the mail, her once painfully average life is magically transformed into a time-travel adventure. 

Suddenly onboard a luxurious cruise ship a hundred years ago, Louise relishes the glamorous life of this opulent era and slips into a life of secrets, drama, and decadence. . . .

Dreamy and imaginative, The Time-Traveling Fashionista features thirty full-color fashion illustrations to show gorgeous dresses and styles throughout history.


First of all, before I start, I must say that this has been published since 2011. However, I have only heard about it since about September. I could technically go out and buy it. However, due to how I was raised, I can't buy a book without first reading it. So I will have to wait to see if I can get it from the library and lurk at any giveaways. On to the post!