Month: June 2012

ALA Anaheim, CA 2012 Event Recap

Posted June 28, 2012 by Jana in Event Recap / 12 Comments

 

I’d been mulling over the idea of attending the ALA annual conference since January, when I found out it was going to be at the Anaheim Convention Center! I had pretty much decided I could not go, though, since I would have barely been back from my 6 weeks in Europe by the time it was time to pack up again and drive to California. My decision to just go for it came totally last minute, and was completely spontaneous! I’m so, SO glad I decided to go, though, because it was seriously one of the highlights of my life thus far.

My mom and I decided to road trip it, and have a fun little vacation around the conference. My birthday was on the 22nd, so we thought it would be a great way to celebrate! We left home on the morning of the 21st, and drove to Las Vegas to stay in Bally’s before waking up on the 22nd and driving the rest of the way to Anaheim to make it in time for the grand opening of the exhibition floor at 5:30. We were going to make it with hours to spare, but due to the major chemical spill on I-15, we were delayed for 2 hours and I ended up being about 20 minutes late to the conference. I rushed in and immediately met Magan from Rather be Reading, who I just love. I also met her two roommates, Jennifer from Novel Thoughts and Christin from Portrait of a Book. Her other room mate (Lena from Addicted 2 Novels) flew in later that night. We spent the evening meeting publishers, authors, other bloggers, and finding awesome reads! After the conference, my mom and I went to BJ’s in Huntington Beach for a birthday dinner. We totally pigged out on yummy foods, and I even got a candle in my pizookie. Then we went back to the hotel, and I completely crashed.

I woke up the next morning to find out my mom had been throwing up all night from the shrimp dinner she got at BJ’s the night before. Ugh! I was so sad for her. Luckily Magan was sweet enough to come get me from my hotel so my mom could keep the car in case she needed to go get anything throughout the day. Thanks, Magan!

The rest of my time at ALA was like this (haha): woke up super early, stood in line outside the exhibit doors before they opened, either stood in signing lines or constantly walked from booth to booth meeting people and getting amazing books, being completely weighed down by said books, meeting reps, pubs, authors, and bloggers, getting completely exhausted and weighed down, and having an amazingly awesome time for the entire weekend. Seriously, I loved everything, and was even ok going on very little sleep.


From bottom left to bottom right:
Espe (she took this pic), Me, Georgia, Jen, Magan.
Waiting in Tahereh Mafi’s signing of Unravel Me!

Awesome bloggers I met:
Magan from Rather be Reading
Christin from Portrait of a Book
Jennifer from Novel Thoughts
Lena from Addicted 2 Novels
Jen and Espe from Late Bloomer Online
Georgia from Eve’s Fan Garden
H.D. from Reading Writing Breathing
Katie from Katie’s Book Blog
Lauren from 365 Days of Reading
Liz from Consumed by Books
Lisa from A Life Bound by Books

And… SO MANY MORE! I’m so sorry if I forgot to add you to my list. ALA is such a huge blur of amazingness, and I can’t remember all the wonderful people I met!

Amazing authors I met:
Tahereh Mafi, Rae Carson, Rachel DeWoskin, Stacy Bierlein, Jessi Kirby, Nick James, Janet Gurtler, Attica Locke, Leigh Bardugo (again!), Deb Caletti, Talia Vance, Alexandra Bracken, Dan Kronos, Marlene Perez, Kinsey Leavitt, Sarah J. Maas, Marie Lu, Laini Taylor, Lex Hrabe, Thomas Voorhies, Katherine Grace Bond, Miranda Kenneally, Katherine Applegate, Michael Grant, Marissa Meyer (again!), Gennifer Albin, Tamara Ireland Stone, Lisa Schroeder, Malinda Lo, Rachel Cohn, Jessica Khoury, Kami Garcia, and Morgan Matson.

Can I just say how awesome, nice, and likeable authors in general are? I had so much fun talking to all of them! I also met my favorite Macmillan person, Ksenia, who was so sweet. We spent a lot of time discussing books and life. I met Ms. Feiwel of Feiwel & Friends (an imprint of Macmillan), which was so cool! She’s super nice. And I met great people at Simon and Schuster, Penguin, Capstone, Random House, Scholastic, Little Brown, Harper Collins, and more! Bookish people are the best. It was so much fun standing in line and talking books with librarians, library pages, bloggers, authors, and publishers. The final attendance number was 20,134 people! OH MAN! I have never been in a room with so many book lovers!

Event Highlights:

  • Walking onto the exhibit floor for the first time. It was so huge, and there was so much to look at! I was in book heaven.
  • Meeting Magan, who I have been wanting to meet since I started chatting with her on Twitter months ago. And adoring her as much as I thought I would.
  • Picking up my very first book, and feeling like I was stealing it.
  • Meeting my Arizona gals (Jen, Espe, and Georgia) and walking around laughing, sweating, and discussing being book drunk.
  • Georgia worrying that her glued-together flip flops might not make it through the day.
  • Standing in Tahereh Mafi’s signing line and getting the 19th ARC, when they only had 60 total to hand out.
  • When I found Ksenia, she knew who I was immediately, and was so excited to see me that she gave me a huge hug!
  • When I met Leigh Bardugo again, and she remembered me as “the eyelash girl” and then hugged me. (and gave me nail polish!)
  • Walking down the rows of booths and hearing, “I remember That Artsy Reader Girl!”
  • Finding out people have heard of my blog. I swear, I feel like I’m in my own little world here on the blog sometimes. It’s nice to know my thoughts are reaching others!
  • Watching H.D. (Reading, Writing, Breathing) do warm-ups and stretches in line before the exhibit doors opened. He had a specific book in mind, and just HAD to get it. Watching him power walk to Harper made me die laughing.
  • Talking to a librarian from Mississippi about how hot it was in the convention center, and watching her wipe sweat of her face before saying in her Southern drawl, “It’s like ‘nawlins in here!” (Nawlins = New Orleans) I used to live in Louisiana, so I know what that feels like!
  • Going up to one of the ladies at Harper, asking if they had Hidden by Sophie Jordan, and watching her smile before finding it in a cabinet for me! AHHH! So excited to read this one!
  • Talking about books like they were drugs: “Hey, do you have this book?” “Yeah, a few… but don’t tell anyone.” There was so much whispering and subtle book exchanges going on. It really felt like we were dealing drugs! HAHA!
  • Getting the last copy of Maggie Stiefvater’s Raven Boys.
  • Almost tripping on the carpet as I went from one booth to another (some booths had thicker, cushionier carpet, so the differing ground levels made me trip!).
  • The last day, when pubs were giving away finished copies of books they had on display that I really wanted… and the nice guy at Harlequin who gave me my picks early because I wanted them so badly, and did not want someone else to get them first.
  • Sitting in hour-long signing lines to get a book I really wanted and meet that author, making me realize I love reading more than I thought I did!
  • Going back to the hotel completely dead tired and worn out, sleeping harder than I ever have, and waking up with SO much energy to go out again!
  • The convention center was so hot for most of the weekend that people were dripping sweat, and their hair was wet. On the last day, they must have figured out the AC, because it was SO cold, and a lot of the pubs and reps were wearing jackets.
  • Seeing Molly Ringwald!
  • Smacking into so many people with my bags, apologizing profusely, and having them smile at me and say, “Oh, don’t worry. I’ve been to BEA, so I’m way used to this.” They were so nice!
  • Speaking with humble authors who got teary when you told them how much you loved their book(s).
  • Being in one room with thousands of bookish people like me, with so many people to talk to. We all had so much in common, and had read all the same books!

And here are a bunch of pictures I took of the exhibit floor! 


Bloomsbury’s booth, along with Macmillan Kids just behind it.


The Macmillan Children’s booth.


Random House’s booth.


These aisles had all the books! We sat here in the lobby every morning to line up for the doors to open.
(I did not take this photo. Credit goes here.)


Sitting in line waiting for the Crewel signing. The line was SO long, and wrapped around several different booths.


Scholastic’s booth.



Half of Penguin’s booth.


Waiting in line on the last day for Simon and Schuster’s book giveaway. We each got to pick 4 of their display copies for free!


So many books!

I really had so much fun, met so many wonderful people, and came home with a TON of really exciting books! I’d like to thank all of the publishers for being so generous. I really had no idea what to expect when I signed up for ALA, but they were all so nice and always ready to recommend a book they thought I would love. I met some friends, and made quite a few new ones. Bookish people really are among the nicest in the world, and I was sad to leave such a huge book club and come home to real life. I’m already saving my pennies for ALA 2013 in Chicago! Check back for my ALA Book Haul post! I’ve had many requests for a vlog, so be expecting one soon!


Tempest Rising by Tracy Deebs (Mini Book Review)

Posted June 27, 2012 by Jana in Book Review, Young Adult Fiction / 6 Comments

Tempest Rising by Tracy Deebs (Mini Book Review)Tempest Rising by Tracy Deebs
Series: Tempest #1
Also in this series: Tempest Unleashed, Tempest Revealed
Published by Walker Children's on May 10, 2011
Genres: Paranormal, Paranormal Romance, Romance
Pages: 352
Format: eBook
Source: Purchased
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Tempest Maguire wants nothing more than to surf the killer waves near her California home; continue her steady relationship with her boyfriend, Mark; and take care of her brothers and surfer dad. But Tempest is half mermaid, and as her seventeenth birthday approaches, she will have to decide whether to remain on land or give herself to the ocean like her mother. The pull of the water becomes as insistent as her attraction to Kai, a gorgeous surfer whose uncanny abilities hint at an otherworldly identity as well. And when Tempest does finally give in to the water's temptation and enters a fantastical underwater world, she finds that a larger destiny awaits her-and that the entire ocean's future hangs in the balance.

This is one of those reviews that’s a little hard for me to write, because I just can’t think of a whole lot to say about the book. I liked it, but it did not have me going crazy with love (or hate), so I’m feeling some writer’s block. I absolutely love mermaid books, and have been reading quite a few lately. This one started out a bit slowly for me, though.

I did not love Tempest as much as I had hoped I would. She’s annoying, selfish, lacking in common sense, and completely self-destructive. I enjoy a heroine with a good head on her shoulders, and Tempest was really dumb sometimes. Some of her decisions had me smacking my forehead. Her silly banter/flirting back and forth with Kona seemed forced and unbelievable. I cringed reading it sometimes. You can tell they were trying to tease each other, but it just did not work. And the insta-love. OH MAN. This book is dripping with it. Seriously, this kind of instant “I will die for you or wait an eternity for you to love me back” is completely unbelievable, and I’m getting tired of it! Tempest’s thoughts regarding her mother also really bothered me. Her mom chose to live the life of a mermaid, rather than living on land with her beloved family. Tempest hated her for this, but then goes and makes the same decision (this is not a spoiler… it’s in the book summary on the back of the book). So… why can she do it, but not her mother? It just bothered me. Talk about a double standard. I loved her little brothers. They were so cute, and I really liked her dad. I always love reading about heroines who have extremely strong relationships with their dads.

Kona is wonderful, sexy, and completely swoon-worthy. He’s also a creature of the water, but you’ll have to read the book to figure out what he is. I really liked him and his world, though. He has a lot of honor, compassion, and mystery. I also liked Mark, her other love interest. You know YA novels! They almost always have a love triangle. Mark is also sweet, but I like him more as a brother or best friend than a love interest. Tempest’s guy friends are also a fun group to read about, but we don’t get to know them very well.

I enjoyed Tracy’s descriptions of the underwater world. The sea life and the scenery were so beautifully described, which is what made the story exciting to me (and also what made me give the book an extra star). I never used to enjoy a lot of detail in my stories, but I’m evolving into a lover of world building. I was left wanting more, though. I wanted the focus to move away from Tempest and Kona, and focus some more on those underwater creatures.

Overall, Tempest Rising left a few things to be desired, and left me shaking my head a little bit. The character development and relationships between most of the characters felt forced and made me uncomfortable. I loved the underwater world and would have enjoyed reading more of that than the silly teenage “Who am I? What do I want?” drama. I am planning to read the next book, and hope that Tempest will grow up a little, and that we’ll be able to learn more about merfolk and life under the sea.


Unbreak My Heart by Melissa Walker (Book Review)

Posted June 20, 2012 by Jana in Book Review, Young Adult Fiction / 5 Comments

Unbreak My Heart by Melissa Walker (Book Review)Unbreak My Heart by Melissa Walker
Published by Bloomsbury Children's on May 22, 2012
Genres: Contemporary Romance, Romance
Pages: 232
Source: Publisher (Netgalley)
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Sophomore year broke Clementine Williams’ heart. She fell for her best friend’s boyfriend and long story short: he’s excused, but Clem is vilified and she heads into summer with zero social life.

Enter her parents’ plan to spend the summer on their sailboat. Normally the idea of being stuck on a tiny boat with her parents and little sister would make Clem break out in hives, but floating away sounds pretty good right now.

Then she meets James at one of their first stops along the river. He and his dad are sailing for the summer and he’s just the distraction Clem needs. Can he break down Clem’s walls and heal her broken heart?

So, I noticed the other day that I’m reading a lot of books right now with titles that are also songs. First it was Somebody to Love by Kristan Higgins (Justin Bieber’s Somebody to Love), then it was the one, and next I’m reading Just Say Yes by Philippa Ashley (Snow Patrol’s Just Say Yes). This is causing me to sing more than I read! Seriously, though. I loved this book so much, and even though Toni Braxton’s love ballad thoroughly wedged itself into my mind and remained there for days, it was SO worth it. This is definitely a new favorite of mine, and I can totally see reading this book again. As always, my main points are bolded. :)

1. Melissa did such a good job at capturing the inner turmoil and despair that a teenager goes through after a heartbreaking situation. I’ve been where Clementine is, and I hurt right along with her. It’s amazing how these heartbreaks do control every thought and action. Crying and self-deprecation almost always happen, and sometimes it takes quite a while to get over it. Clem’s world might not have ended, but she sure thought it had. The emotions in this story were real and pure.

2. I was surprised when I came to realize rather quickly that Clem was getting over a lost friendship, and not a lost relationship. I think it made Clem more relatable, though, as I think we’ve all gone through major spats with our best friends. It’s so hard to be a teenager! Haha. I’m so glad I’m done.

3. Clementine was real. She was me, actually. I loved her flaws, and that as she healed she was able to make sense of those flaws and become a better person. I’ve never cheated on anyone, but I know the ramifications of cheating, because I’ve been cheated on. Of course what she did was wrong, but the fact that she recognized that and turned it into something to learn from rather than something to be mad about was refreshing. Her character development was so enjoyable to read about.

4. Clem’s family is amazing. I think part of why I love reading books geared towards young adults is because they are still tied closely to their families. Their parents have influence over them still, and they mostly still live at home. Her parents are wonderful, and I hope that I can have the kind of relationship with my own kids someday that they have with their daughters. Clem’s sister, Olive, reminds me so much of my little sister–always wanting to tag along, looking up to you, silly humor, sweet disposition, biggest fan. It made me reminisce on the times when we would set up forts in the living room or immaculate Barbie cities in our bedrooms… late night dance parties to Britney Spears in the light of my lava lamp.

5. James, a.k.a. Red, is my new favorite young adult male character. If I could wrap him up, and add about 10-12 years to him, I’d take him for myself! What a likeable, happy, artistic, charismatic, and hilarious guy. He knows Clem is sad about something, but he’s giving her the time to tell him on her own. He’s also sad about something in his past, and as the two get to know each other better, they help each other heal. I love his philosophy, which is basically this: you can be sad and you can mourn what you’ve lost, but the memories you created before that loss are yours forever. Never discount the happy times in life, just because they ended unhappily. I can learn a lot from Red. 

6. Don’t get me wrong, this story is not all sad and depressing! Clem and her family spend the summer aboard a sailboat, spending time together, eating disgusting meals made only from canned foods, eating s’mores by blow torch, star gazing, sunbathing, laughing, and bonding. Clem, Olive, and red spend many hours hanging out trying to catch fish, perfecting their Little Mermaid moves, giggling, and teasing each other. An elderly couple is another hilarious addition to the story, and not only made me laugh with the things they said, but warmed my heart with their views on true love. I laughed and smiled a lot. And: ding ding ding! I did not cry. There was no reason to!

7. This book makes me want to do great things. It makes me want to get over my own little heartbreaks along the road, and spend more time with my family. It makes me want to value my mom and sister more. And it makes me want to get a sailboat and go sailing all summer! I can finally attest to the fact that long trips altar the person you are. They let you step away from normal life and learn about yourself. I got to experience this on my recent trip to Europe, and I want to do it again! You know that term “wanderlust” that everyone speaks of? It’s not about the love of traveling, I’ve decided. It’s about the love of getting away from your life so that you can discover what you life is all about. Clem got to discover this as well, and I was rooting for her.

Clearly, I loved this story! I love flawed characters who can pull themselves out of their pits of despair and come away better people. I love sweet, simple romances that bloom from deep conversation and friendship rather than instant attraction. And I love it when those romances turn people into better versions of themselves. I love strong families who support one another. This really is the perfect summery beach read that will have you smiling and thinking back on what it was like to be a kid. I think that’s another reason I love YA: it reminds me of the really simple times in life, when I would not have been embarrassed to pretend I’m Ariel, breaking the surface of the water.


June is Audiobook Month!

Posted June 19, 2012 by Jana in Uncategorized / 5 Comments

 

So, June is Audibook Month (I know! I’m way late!), and I think this is a wonderful time to introduce myself to audiobooks! I’ve listened to half of The Da Vinci Code, and got really bored… fell asleep… and that was it! But since there’s an entire month devoted to audiobooks, maybe I need to rethink my decision!

Anyway, there’s this website called audiobooksync.com that is giving away two audio books a week from now until August 22nd. There are some awesome titles on their site, so I thought I’d let you know about them! The titles include Anna Dressed in Blood, Daughter of Smoke and Bone, Sense and Sensibility, A Tale of Two Cities, and more. And they are FREE if you want them! I’m really excited about this!

Here is the schedule. Right now, they are giving away The Eleventh Plague and the Grapes of Wrath.


Cicada by Belle Whittington (Book Review + Giveaways!)

Posted June 18, 2012 by Jana in Blog Tour, Book Review, Giveaway, Young Adult Fiction / 4 Comments

Cicada by Belle Whittington (Book Review + Giveaways!)Cicada by Belle Whittington
Series: Cicada #1
Also in this series: Firefly, Monarch
Published by CreateSpace on September 13, 2011
Genres: Paranormal, Paranormal Romance, Romance, Science Fiction
Pages: 220
Format: eBook
Source: Author
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Summertime for Blair Reynolds and her friends had always been carefree and fun... until the summer they happened upon something that was not human. As they band together in a fight for their lives, Blair's true love becomes something more than human. Something unnatural. And their survival depends entirely upon their ability to keep a secret.

Hello! Thanks so much for stopping by my blog as I help kick off the AToMR blog tour for Belle Whittington’s Cicada, book #1 in an exciting and suspenseful young adult sci-fi trilogy (haha. Long sentence there!)! When you are finished reading my review, make sure to find the complete schedule of tour events at the bottom. Also, find the opportunity to win one of 12 ebook copies of Cicada and/or an electronic firefly in a jar in honor of the upcoming sequel to Cicada, called Firefly. Both Rafflecopters are at the bottom of this review. :)

Going into this book, I was not really sure what to expect at all. I mean… cicadas are bugs. And they are noisy little guys! I used to live in Louisiana, and every summer night was accompanied by the sounds of cicadas in the trees. One time I saw one and flipped out. I’m really against bugs in general. And then I read the book blurb, which does not tell you much, and saw the “not human” and thought: Oooo! Aliens! And sci-fi. And hopefully not huge bugs, because I would have a major problem with that. Cicada surprised me! I was not expecting such a suspenseful, romantic, creepy, mysterious, and exciting story. I’m a huge lover of reading conspiracy theories (I don’t believe most of them, but they are fun to think about!), so when crop circles and aliens and UFOs and secret government agencies came into play, I was up all night reading. This was a great story! As always, my main points are bolded. :)

1. This is a way different kind of story than most sci-fi books I’ve come across lately. It’s kind of a mix of the movie Signs and the Wings series by Aprilynn Pike. Weird, I know. That sounds crazy. Seriously, though! You’ve got the aliens and the crop circles and the “I’m freaking out about the fact that you’re outside in the dark right now” feeling, mixed with the “my boyfriend, who I thought was normal, is not normal at all and is changing and becoming a new person, and I might not see him for a while, but I need to pull through this and be strong” kind of situation.

2. Welcome to a young adult romance without a love triangle! Do you know how much I loved the fact that the main story was not centered around two boys fighting over one girl? It was glorious! Everett, the geeky guy in the group is Blaire’s best friend, and things develop from that. It’s a natural, common kind of real life relationship and I was very happy to see that surface in a sea of books with love triangles.

3. The characters were a lot of fun, but Blair was not my favorite at all. She was kind of an ordinary heroine to me. Her brother Andrew, though, was so great to read about. He is this sweet big brother who has a whole bunch of secrets, and really adores and protects his sister. Blair’s mom kind of weirded me out. She spoke to Blair a lot in sing-sing rhymes, which I found… well, weird. Haha. David is a baseball stud, whose batting skills came in handy and made me like him a lot. He’s also a very caring friend. Then there’s Natalie… and her role in the story confused me. She and David have a thing for each other, but don’t act on it because college is coming up and they will have to part ways. But they are still cuddly and dependent on each other, and then all of a sudden, the relationship escalates, but we were given no clues that it was happening! That romance was a bit unconvincing, but it’s probably because they are supporting characters, so we don’t get much info on them.

4. The creep-factor in Cicada had this chicken quivering under every blanket she owned. There’s just something about people walking through really dark, dense woods in the middle of the DARK. Plus, as Blair and all her friends started to get more and more involved with this non-human situation at hand, they became targets of a very dangerous group of people who were out to kill them. Now me, I’d hide in my closet. Or I’d move. Join a convent. Flee the country. What did they do? They went searching for these people! They entered mysterious buildings with green lights inside in the MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT. Because surely, waiting until it’s light out is not at all practical. You know how you watch a movie, and the main character hears a noise outside, so they walk out to see what it is? And they’re all, “Hello? Is someone there?” And you’re like, “DUH! GETINSIDERIGHTNOW!” Yeah. Exactly. Would you go snooping around scary city in the middle of the night? No, I think not. I was so creeped out that I called my little sister at 2:00 in the morning and asked her to go with me when I brushed my teeth, so that I would not have to walk across the dark hallway alone (because I swear I heard an alien out there). Yes, I’m admitting this to you. And I’m a chicken. This might be something your mom would read as a bedtime story to a 7-year-old you. Don’t judge me if you read this and are not scared. Toast popping out of the toaster has me practically running in place.

5. I wish there was a bit more substance. There was a lot of riding around “in the darkness” and searching a building and four-wheeling and visiting a storage facility. I wish we had been given some more character development and a few different events. The story was relatively short, though, so maybe we’ll get more in book #2. :)

6. The main climax of the book moved really quickly. It took a while to build up, which I enjoyed, but then BAM! Crazy thing happens, and then crazy thing is somewhat resolved within a few pages. I would have liked a little more time between the crazy and the resolution. We are led to believe (through what the characters say) that fixing this major, major problem is going to be extremely hard, but they do it rather easily within just a few pages. I wanted to go through more turmoil and more worry. I wanted the characters to have to struggle more. This is really hard to explain without spoiling things. If you’ve read the book, you know what I mean.

7. The vague blurb was obviously written vaguely for a reason, so I’m not going to spoil anything for you. I find that sometimes a book’s back cover summary gives way too much away. This one leaves you with a lot of questions, which brings me to my next point: this book has left me with SO MANY QUESTIONS, which really frustrated me! Haha. I’m glad there’s a couple more books coming out in this story, and hopefully I’ll know what’s going on by the end of those. :P

This is a really nice debut from Belle Whittington. Of course, there is room for improvement, but isn’t there always? I’m excited to see what she does with the following stories, and it’ll be fun to watch her writing style and storytelling develop as her books continue. The sign of a great author is that each of their books are better than the ones before. I can see Belle being one of those authors. I enjoyed the story a lot, and am going to be on the lookout for the next one. I’d recommend this to lovers of sci-fi romances and conspiracy theories.
 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Here’s a link to a video of what the electronic firefly looks like. Very cool!

a Rafflecopter giveaway
These giveaways include everyone on every stop of this blog tour, so there is no guarantee that one of my readers will win. Also, I’m not the one in charge of choosing the winners. They are. :)

Follow the tour! Here’s the schedule.