Top Ten Tuesday

This Tuesday's Topic Is

Top ten Favorite Romances

Thank you to The Broke and the Bookish for creating this meme for all of us to have a little fun with. Check them out they are awesome!

I am not a romantic in real life!! The idea of  romance makes  my skin crawl and  I almost break out in hives. However, when it comes to fictional romance/love I am all in. I love TV love,movie love, book love and, I love romantic love songs especially those sung by the Backstreet Boys!! So I was kind of excited when I saw that this weeks top ten Tuesday had a romantic theme.Even though I am so into fictional love I don't read a ton of books about love so I really had to think about these. This time around I'm counting them down in order.
Let's Go

 10.Nicholas Sparks Books
Nicholas Sparks is the closest I have ever come to a romance novel. I know his characters are often interchangeable (as in you can take one from one book and put him into another and never know the difference) but the man can write a romantic male character. The men are usually the strong silent type that just need a gorgeous amazing lady to get them to open up. They then fall totally and completely in love only to end up being torn apart by tragic but very romantic circumstances! Sometimes they find their way back to each other sometimes not but either way it's hella romantic! I can't explain it but Nicholas Sparks books make me all gushy inside.


 9.Dex and Rachel

Something Borrowed
Emily Giffin
OK so for the record in real life I think cheating is the lowest of the low. I despise cheaters and I feel like there is never ever a reason to cheat.  However in this book I feel differently. Dex and Rachel are meant to be and Darcy is standing in the way. Also Darcy doesn't even love Dex and she is a royal you know what to both Rachel and Dex. Anyway I love this opposites attract couple and they are just so cute. Sometimes you have to do a little cheating to find your one true love but only in books, or movies,or television shows never in real life.

8. Darcy and Ethan
Something Blue
Emily Giffin
So in Something Borrowed Darcy sucks like in a giant way but she redeems herself in Something Blue as characters in books often do. Ethan and Darcy pretty much can't stand each other in borrowed but like most great loves the end up realizing they love each other and live happily ever after. I have to question Ethan's common sense a little bit but I guess sometimes love doesn't make sense!

 7. Armand and Reine-Marie 
Inspector Gamache Series
Louise Penny
I dislike every single re-curing character in this series except for Armand and Reine-Marie. Without a doubt the people are cruel, rude, selfish, egotistical, whiny, cheating jerks yet I can't help but love this series. A big part of my love comes from Armand and Reine-Marie. They are so sweet to each other and even after years together and grown children they still truly enjoy each other. If I were to ever fall in love( it ain't gon happen) I want a man like Armand. 

 6. Finnick and Annie
Hunger Games Trilogy
Suzanne Collins 
Throughout most of Catching Fire everyone is pretty sure Finnick is a giant Dbag. However we come to find he is just another victim of the capitol and is actually a pretty good guy (as good as one can be in these circumstances) who is madly in love with a crazy girl. Finnick would literally do anything to save and protect Annie. 

5. Ma and Pa
The Little House Series
Laura Ingalls Wilder
I mean really what do I need to say. This is my first memory of book romantic love. I just love everything about these two. He brings home the bacon and she cooks it on the old wood burning stove Their love is easy and comfortable and everything love should be .What more could you want?

 4. Laurie and Amy
Little Women
Louisa May Alcott
I know a lot of people think it was a travesty when Jo and Laurie didn't end up together but I am not one. I remember when I first read the book I thought Jo and Laurie were meant to be until I realized I was so wrong, Amy and Laurie come out of no where and bam! He is older than her but not in the creepy way and she, is a little bit spoiled but has a good heart it's amazing book love!

 3. Elinor and Edward
Sense and Sensibility
Jane Austen
I know Marianne is the romantic and Elinor is the practical one but I think that is why I love this romance! Elinor seems almost a bit cold and uninterested in love. She has to be level headed because no one else is and that is why when she falls for Edward you just know it's right.

Ok so now I am gonna go all cliche on you and pick 2 very predictable couples but these really are my favorite 2 romances I have ever read at least this far. I am going to rank them but to be honest they are basically interchangable.

2. Lizzie and Darcy
Pride and Prejudice
Jane Austen
Oh man how I love these two. It's so romantic the hating each other first and then slowly realizing how much they actually love each other. I saw the 1995 miniseries way before I read the book and fell in love with them. When I read the book it just reaffirmed everything I loved about them and gave me new reasons to love them. I love stories about people from different classes loving each other so much that they overcome all the obstacles to be together.."Nothing but the deepest love will induce me into matrimony"  preach Lizzie! 


1. Allie and Noah
The Notebook
Nicholas Sparks
Seriously people seriously! So in this case I read the book and then saw the movie. I love them in the book and I love them in the movie. I know that in real life war is not romantic but in books it so is! The idea of the clothes and the big band music and the men in uniform that era is just swoon worthy. Here we have another story about rich meets poor and, we have the added benefit of years spent pining for each other and the backdrop of war. Absence makes the heart grow fonder y'all! What more could you possibly need or want in a romance? Plus the man basically builds her a house with his BARE HANDS!
You don't say no when a man builds you a house with his hands!

OK so that's all I got. I know a few of them are a bit cliche and been there done that but they are my favorites at least for now.

Until Next Time

I want to read this (or the one where I see a book I want but I don't know if I want to spend $17 bucks on it cuz what if it's not as good as I think it is? And also I'm cheap!)

The House Girl

By Tara Conklin

Virginia, 1852. Seventeen-year-old Josephine Bell decides to run from the failing tobacco farm where she is a slave and nurse to her ailing mistress, the aspiring artist Lu Anne Bell. New York City, 2004. Lina Sparrow, an ambitious first-year associate in an elite law firm, is given a difficult, highly sensitive assignment that could make her career: she must find the “perfect plaintiff” to lead a historic class-action lawsuit worth trillions of dollars in reparations for descendants of American slaves.It is through her father, the renowned artist Oscar Sparrow, that Lina discovers Josephine Bell and a controversy roiling the art world: are the iconic paintings long ascribed to Lu Anne Bell really the work of her house slave, Josephine? A descendant of Josephine’s would be the perfect face for the reparations lawsuit—if Lina can find one. While following the runaway girl’s faint trail through old letters and plantation records, Lina finds herself questioning her own family history and the secrets that her father has never revealed: How did Lina’s mother die? And why will he never speak about her?Moving between antebellum Virginia and modern-day New York, this searing, suspenseful and heartbreaking tale of art and history, love and secrets, explores what it means to repair a wrong and asks whether truth is sometimes more important than justice.  

I found this book mentioned in the March issue of Essence magazine (the one with LL Cool J on the cover) And the description drew me in immediately. I really like books that go between past and present and I LOVE books about family secrets they are so much fun. Also I am fascinated by the antebellum south and I don't know why but I haven't read a lot about it. I think I may go against my norm and purchase this book. 

 Description and book cover found here at goodreads

Buy it  on Amazon  February 12th 2013

 Until Next Time

 

 

Book Review #5 Banksy The Man Behind The Wall

Banksy The Man Behind The Wall

This is the copy I received

click to see it on goodreads 

click to see it on amazon

Written by Will Ellsworth-Jones

Published by St Martin's Press New York

Official Release date February 12th 2013

I received this copy in a goodreads  (firstreads) giveaway. 

I went into this book knowing nothing about Banksy or graffiti for that matter.

When I started reading the book I decided not to look at any of Banksy's work until I was done. I read a review on Goodreads that said it would have been maybe a better reading experience if the author had included some photos of Banksy's work and I have to agree. After I finished the book and looked at his work online I think it would have been a welcome addition.The bulk of the book is the author telling us about where Banksy's work can be found and where it was and how much it goes for.At one point the author goes on a hunt for Banksy's work all over London and he talks about each stop and tells us whether or not the work is still there. It became a bit tedious after a while. I have to confess by page 60 I did not like Banksy at all and I was a bored. I feel like he takes himself so seriously I mean it's just graffiti no one is curing cancer! There were interesting parts in the book Banksy has a couple feuds with other graffiti writers and there is a falling out of sorts with a long time friend and member of his team. However nothing is really explored in depth. I suppose that is the central issue. Banksy wants to remain anonymous and in so doing takes away the ability to get anything concrete or in depth about him. On the other hand if he didn't remain anonymous would anyone care that much about what he does? This book did nothing to peak my interest in Banksy and by the 11th chapter I was almost ready to check but I don't regret reading it.

I would give it a 2.5 star rating but on goodreads they don't do half stars so I gave it a 3.

Until Next Time

Top Ten Tuesday

This is my second time participating in Top Ten Tuesday! And once again it's so late it's almost Wednesday!
Top Ten Tuesday is a meme created here at The Broke and the Bookish.
This weeks topic:

 Top Ten Best Bookish Memories



Joey the cat who blogs

Every Time I get on the computer this face  must sit in my lap so he can oversee what I am doing.
So I am not your typical book blogger in that I don't buy new books well ever and, I don't anxiously look forward to new releases. I also have never been to a big book event and I have never been to an author signing. So my bookish memories are all related to personal stuff surrounding family and school type things. So without further ado here it is folks.

1. My Mom Reading me the entire Little House On The Prairie series. Reading the Little House books was a tradition for me, my mom and my sister. When I was 5 and my sister 8 we would lay in my parents bed on either side of my mom and she would read to us. She read lots of books but by far my favorites where Little House books. It's maybe my favorite childhood memory of all time.

2. Book Reports:
I loved book reports when I was in school. I would rather do 10 book reports than one oral report. Whenever a book report was assigned I was so happy. I usually had a book I was already reading for fun so choosing a book to write the report on was easy!

3. Writing A Book:
OK so I was in elementary school and it was about horses but man was it fun! I have no idea why I picked horses as I wasn't really a horse lover but it was awesome. We got to bind them and illustrate them I had a blast!

4. Reading Little Women for the first time:
This was the first book I fell in LOVE with. I wish I could experience it again for the first time.

5. Creating a board game based on Little Women:
When I was in elementary school we had this awesome thing called the invention convention. Basically all the kids got to invent anything they wanted and present it the convention with a whole display board and awards and everything. The one I can remember was in the 3rd grade, I made a game board with question and  answer cards and pieces that corresponded to each girl, marmie and Laurie. I even played it with my mom and sister it was awesome!

6. The Babysitters Club:
I can't! This book series was EVERYTHING to me for a giant portion of my childhood and I collected all the books for quit some time. Alas in the  many moves over the years I have lost or gotten rid of every copy but I still have the memories!! These books got me through some tough times!

7. Reading Pride and Prejudice for the first time:
Talk about another book I wish I could read again for the first time. I watched the 1995 miniseries probably 15 years ago when I was a teenager and fell head over heels in love. I don't know why it took me so long to read the book but I didn't pick it up until about 5 years ago and I fell in love all over again. It's without question my favorite book of all time.

8. The library down the road from my middle school:
I will be honest middle school straight sucked hard core! The one bright spot was when they built the brand new library down the road from us.  Lots of the teachers would walk their classes down to the library to do research and check out books. I literally developed a relationship with the librarian that has lasted to this day.


OK so it's not ten but the eight are significant to me. I realized as I was going through these that all but one of them correlates to my childhood. Not sure what that says about me but it's probably Freudian and bad!! I also realized I use the exclamation point way too much but whatcha gonna do?!?



 Until Next Time

Top Ten Tuesday

This is my first Top Ten Tuesday which is a meme created over at The Broke and the Bookish. They are quite creative and came up with a giant list of top ten book related topics that they and other bloggers post about every Tuesday.
Today's topic is....
Top Ten Most Frustrating Characters Ever
So without further ado here is my so late it's almost Wednesday Top Ten Tuesday list in no particular order

1. Mr Bennet from Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
He is so checked out from his wife and kids. I agree that most of his daughters are silly and ignorant but it's kind of his fault. Maybe if he had been a little more "hands on" in the parenting department things would be different! Yeah I know fathers weren't hands on so much back then but that frustrates me too. I think however the worst part is that no one seems to think it's wrong! Even Lizzie who sees most every one's flaws seems to miss this one in her father!

2. EVERY SINGLE CHARACTER in the Hannah Swensen series by Joanne Fluke.
Everyone is so naive and nobody can seem to take a joke or make a good one. The way these people talk I just can't believe it.  Oh and Hannah needs to make up her mind already either marry one of them or break up with both of them sheeesh! Sometimes I spend so much time rolling my eyes I get a headache!

3. Nick from Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
I mean grow a back bone and man up already!! I wanted to slap him and cry for him but mostly slap him! He could have stopped this before it went where it went if he had just stepped up and left the girl a long time ago!

4. Inspector Beauvoir from the Armand Gamache series by Louise Penny
He is so closed minded and judgmental. Even though Gamache is so open minded and reasonable nothing seems to rub off on Beauvoir. And even though his assumptions keep getting proved wrong he is still so hard headed!

5. Aurelia from Palace Council by Stephen L. Carter. 
Girl why did you make Eddie wait almost 20 years? If she had just married Eddie instead of what's his name so many terrible things could have been avoided and some heartache averted! She may not have been wealthy but she would've been happy!

6. Darcy in Something Borrowed by Emily Giffin
Do I need to say why? What a brat you just want to slap her almost every time she is even mentioned. The thing that made me most frustrated was that she reminded me of a relative and yeah that didn't help.

7. Olivier from the Armand Gamache series by Louise Penny (specifically in The Brutal Telling)
This dude lies and lies and lies! He lied to Gabri the man he is supposed to love. He lies to Gamache even though they are in the middle of a murder investigation. He lies to all his friends in town! And then the man has the nerve to get mad at Gamache! FRUSTRATING!!

8. Antonia in The Weight Of Silence by Heather Gudenkauf
Mother's are supposed to protect their children and Antonia doesn't even come close to protection. She allows some terrible things to take place and I just want to shake her.  I get it she is poor and she has a couple of little kids and that makes things difficult but, there are just some things a mother shouldn't allow under any circumstances.

9. Marianne Dashwood in Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
Oh Marianne, Marianne, Marianne. You make bad choices always bad choices! I can't get behind anything she does. I hate Willoughby for obvious reasons but I can't get behind Colonel Brandon either. In my opinion she should have held out just a bit longer and maybe someone else would have come along!

10.  Jonah Robb from the Kinsey Milhone series by Sue Grafton
Men without backbones really annoy me! His wife is a nasty shrew but he wont leave! I don't get it and I want to scream every time the story goes there! 

















 

Book Review #4 for one more day

 

for one more day

Written by: Mitch Albom

Published 2006 by Hyperion

 

Buy It Here
For One More Day is the story of a mother and a son, and a relationship that covers a lifetime and beyond. It explores the question: What would you do if you could spend one more day with a lost loved one?
As a child, Charley "Chick" Benetto was told by his father, "You can be a mama's boy or a daddy's boy, but you can't be both." So he chooses his father, only to see the man disappear when Charley is on the verge of adolescence.
Decades later, Charley is a broken man. His life has been crumbled by alcohol and regret. He loses his job. He leaves his family. He hits bottom after discovering his only daughter has shut him out of her wedding. And he decides to take his own life.
He makes a midnight ride to his small hometown, with plans to do himself in. But upon failing even to do that, he staggers back to his old house, only to make an astonishing discovery. His mother�who died eight years earlier�is still living there, and welcomes him home as if nothing ever happened.
What follows is the one "ordinary" day so many of us yearn for, a chance to make good with a lost parent, to explain the family secrets, and to seek forgiveness. Somewhere between this life and the next, Charley learns the astonishing things he never knew about his mother and her sacrifices. And he tries, with her tender guidance, to put the crumbled pieces of his life back together. (Synopsis Brought Over From goodreads)

This was a book I picked up on impulse at a second hand store just the other day. I confess I have heard of Tuesday's with Morrie and The Five People You Meet in Heaven and they never appealed to me,in fact they seemed like they might be a bit corny. However, I watch a YouTube channel called 1 book 1 review (check it out here ) and she speaks often of Mitch Albom and his books and how much she loves them, so I saw this and decided to give it a try. Much to my surprise and delight I loved this book! It was a bit sentimental but not in a corny way.The synopsis above gives enough info about the plot so I will instead talk about the main characters. Chick could at times be frustrating and spent so much time feeling sorry for himself that he neglected almost everyone around him. He spends most of his time wishing for what could have been and idolizing a father that quite frankly doesn't seem to care about him. Chick's father was a truly unlikable character he didn't seem to care about Chick unless he was playing baseball. Chick's father is in and out of his life while his mother remains there for him and Chick can't seem to see that.His mother was the kind of character you sympathize with one moment and want to yell at in the next. She made some questionable decisions that while I didn't agree with were understandable given the situation her husband put her in. I have never been one who needed to love every character in order to love a book and this was the case in this book. I didn't truly love any of the characters and Chick was down right irritating throughout but I really loved this book. The message is not a new one in fact it's a really old one. We all know the life is short tell the people you love that you love them before it's too late thing and that I believe is ultimately what this book is about. I have to mention the ghost aspect of this book . I don't read paranormal books of any kind. No vampires, witches, ghosts, goblins, fairies, werewolf's, nothing! Because of that I was reluctant to pick this book up but it's not "that" kind of ghost. I was unsure about this book and normally I wouldn't have even picked it up but I am glad that I did. So even if you don't like paranormal books you can still read this one and be OK.

Until Next Time










 

My First EVER #FridayReads

So this is a thing that started on twitter and Bunny Cates on Youtube (Click Me To See Bunny) brought it to youtube and now I am stealing it for my blog!
So basically all you do is talk about what you will be reading for the coming weekend!
Usually I am watching my 2 nephews and 1 neice all day Friday and Saturday but this weekend I get a bit of a break. Guess what that means!? Yup some extra reading.
These are the 2 on my list

Click To See It On Goodreads

 I have tickets to see this on Sunday on stage. I am so excited and have been re-reading it in anticiapation!

 

Click To See It On Goodreads

I just bought this on Wednesday and it sounds really interesting. I think I may dive in tomorrow.

 

 

All right that's what I am planning to read!

Hope you have a happy weekend reading or watching or listening to something great!

 

 UNTIL NEXT TIME