March Month End Report

Stats:

female authors: 6 (2 Sophie Kinsella books)

male authors: 3

Total Pages: 2,573 pages

Total for 1st Q of 2011: 6,046

Shopaholic Takes Manhattan

Date read: March 28, 2011 - March 31, 2011
My Edition: 388 pages, 2004
Published by: Dell Books
Rating: 4 kisses


Favorite Quote:
"I stare at my intoxicated, happy self for an instant. and hear a voice inside saying: remember this moment forever. Remember this moment, Becky, because right now, life is perfect."


Review:
I think this was a lot better than the 1st one because me and Becky have more rapport, more history and more familiarity. I still dislike her at times but I feel like a friend who wants to help a friend out. I just want to slap her on the face and make her realize her SICKNESS! haha She seems to hate money a lot, always spending it because she hates it so much! But I actually cried because I felt sad when Becky and Luke broke up. I think they balance each other out. This book showed me a very important lesson, that is if you want to change, you can! As Paulo Coelho said, if you want something all the universe will conspire to help you achieve it. I’m glad that Becky have resolved her problems. Can’t wait to read more of her shopping adventures.


My Soundtrack:
1. Oh Lorie by Alessi Brothers
2. Say by John Mayer
3. Something About the Way You Look Tonight by Elton John
4. Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol
5. What If by Babyface

Confessions of a Shopaholic

Date read: March 25, 2011 - March 28, 2011
My Edition: 350 pages, 2003
Published by: Dell Books
Rating: 3 kisses


Favorite Quote:
"That instant when your fingers curl round the handles of a shiny, uncreased bad - and all the gorgeous new things inside it become yours. What’s it like? It’s like going hungry for days then cramming your mouth full of warm buttered toast. It’s like waking up and realizing it’s the weekend. It’s like the better moments of sex. Everything else is blocked out of your mind. It’s pure, selfish pleasure."


Review:
This is a book wherein the heroine is someone I despise or at least disliked. She’s impulsive and a compulsive liar. HAHA! She spends and spends and I just want to tell her to stop her senseless buying. I’m not this girl. I’m frugal. I can’t connect with her. I love shopping but not to Becky Bloomwood’s level. I’m just glad that she was able to at least redeem herself in the end. She ‘s very lucky that things work out in her favor. One thing is for sure, this girl needs HELP. If you want a funny and irritating (in a way) and you love shopping then this is for you.


My Soundtrack:
1. Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want by The Smiths
2. If I Can't Have You by Adam Lambert
3. Beautiful Dirty Rich by Lady Gaga
4. Friends with Money by Drake
5. Disconnection Notice by Pupil

reading....

Threshold

Date read: March 19, 2011 - March 25, 2011
My Edition: 448 pages, 2003
Published by: Tor Fantasy
Rating: 3 kisses


Favorite Quote: 
“There is beauty in numbers. This beauty is called Regularity, and its essence Predictability.”


Review:
It was an okay book. The first half was really good and exciting. I really loved the Tirzah - Yaqob - Boaz love triangle. The plot was also exciting. I was really anticipating what evil lurks in Threshold. But after Tirzah and Boaz got together and the evil from Threshold was released everything went downhill. The second part was kind of boring. I wished it was shortened by the author. A lot of unnecessary and silly stuff like the Fetizzah. It was really weird. Also the author made use of a lot of deus ex machina using Fetizzah. Maybe editing the second part would make the story better. A little mystery is also good. This is for mature readers who also loves young adult fantasy books.


My Soundtrack:
1. Santeria by Sublime
2. Hot N Cold by Katy Perry
3. Symphony by Marie Digby
4.  That Thing You Do by The Wonders
5. The End Where I Begin by The Script

 haha

I'm drifting off to where the wild things are....

The Ruins

Date read: March 14, 2011 - March 19, 2011
My Edition: 369 pages, 2008
Published by: Vintage Books
Rating: 4 kisses


Favorite Quote: "And rain didn't come from hope - rain came from clouds, white or gray or the deepest black, it didn't matter - they had to be there."

Review:
This came as a surprise for me because I'm not really the horror kind of girl but I was unable to put the book down. It was really exciting. It was not scary but really really creepy. Who likes to be haunted by carnivorous, talking plants? Not me. I wouldn't want to stay in that hill. It made me look at Mexico at another way... creepy Mexico, home of the killer plants. HAHA! It has a nice ending, very open-ended, but if he's going to make another sequel, leave me out. I wouldn't want to read anymore of that creepy plants. I feel that this is a really good, suspenseful movie.


My Soundtrack:
1. Umbrella by Rihanna
2. When You're Mad by Ne-Yo
3. Rolling in the Deep by Adele
4. Impossible by Shontelle
5. Clumsy by Fergie

movie trailer

bye!

As Always, Jack

Date read: March 13, 2011 - March 14, 2011
My Edition: 179 pages, 2003
Published by: Back Bay Books
Rating: 5 kisses


Favorite Quote: "That's the way I like to remember you best. I've never seen a more beautiful sight in my life than you sitting across the table in candlelight, surrounded by filet mignon and profiterols."


Review:
A really really good non-fiction love story. Emma Sweeney's father is a really good letter writer. It has a tragic end but reading letters made me feel happy and loved. If this guy was alive at this time, at whatever age, I'll probably fall in love with him. His witty, funny, faithful, sure and sweet. Its hard to look for that kind of man nowadays. If you want an easy and happy read then pick this book up. :)


My Soundtrack:
1. Happiness by The Fray
2. Kapayapaan by Tropical Depression
3. The Climb by Miley Cyrus
4. Californication by Red Hot Chili Pepper
5. Shortie Like Mine by Bow Wow ft. Chris Brown

 love love!

The Knot

Date read: March 11, 2011 - March 13, 2011
My Edition: 170 pages, 1997
Published by: Minerva
Rating: 2 kisses


Favorite Quote: "Anna is no such thing. Anna us a mood, the light which is constantly changing, now dark, or gloomy, or a bright golden dazzle, hitting things suddenly, running across the floor."


Review:
Eva Figes is a really good writer…of poems. “The Knot” is very poetic, very melodic? use of words thus it becomes hard to understand at times. I do commend her for making simple life become poetic, worthy of reading but its hard to understand. If it was written in normal prose I might have liked it maybe even loved it. I want to know more about Anna and Daniel but the format of the book made it hard to take a closer look at their personal lives. I can’t keep up with the characters that were not “properly” introduced. It felt like I’m thrown into a conversation with people I don’t know. I was forced to know them. Anna, on the other hand, I know very well. Aside from us having the same name, the book also showed her deepest emotion. She’s weird based on what I’ve read. 

Like Saramago, Eva Figes hates quotation marks but Saramago did it better. This one I just get confused on who’s saying what. Eva Figes also hates describing her characters. I can’t even imagine the characters properly. Their faces kept on changing.


My Soundtrack:
1. Masterpiece by Atlantic Starr
2. Wishing You Were Here by Chicago
3. Drops of Jupiter by Train
4. God Must Have Spent A Little More Time On You by 'N Sync
5. Poker Face by Lady Gaga

off to read!!

Catch a Falling Star

Date read: March 9, 2011 - March 10, 2011
My Edition: 148 pages, 2009
Published by: Anvil Publishing, Inc.
Rating: 4 kisses

Painting by Julie Fain
































Favorite Quote: "Children are quick to spot weakness or oddity, and capable of great cruelty to those afflicted."


Review:
It’s not really a novel but sort of a collection of short stories revolving a central character. It has no sequence and does not have a complete set of story elements. There’s no resolution at the end that makes it quite BITIN. But I did like the stories of Patricia. I really loved “How I Spent My Summer Vacation” story. Overall, the all the stories felt very real as if it really did happen. I can FEEL each story as if all of them happened to me. Patricia is just so “relatable” and lovable.


My Soundtrack:
1, Bubbly by Colbie Callait
2. Pocketful of Sunshine by Natasha Bedingfield
3. Peaceful Easy Feeling by The Eagles
4. Revelry by Kings of Leon
5. Death by White Lies

 by Griet Pearl

Blindness

Date read: March 5, 2011 - March 9, 2011
My Edition: 326 pages, 1999
Published by: Harcourt, Inc.
Rating: 5 kisses


Summary: http://www.bookrags.com/studyguide-blindness/plotsummary.html


A man suddenly goes blind for no apparent reason. As a doctortries to assign an etiology, the condition begins to spread rapidly as if caused by a pathogen. Within days, there are hundreds of newly blind people and within a few months, the entire nation has gone blind. The government responds initially by creating large quarantine areas where infected persons are forcibly held without recourse to medical care or outside assistance. As the diseasesweeps the nation, first social services then law enforcement completely fail, leaving the country in a state of chaos as the strong begin to prey upon the weak. Numerous crimes and outrages are perpetrated even as hundreds of thousands begin to starve and die. One small group of blind people coalesces around the leadership of a woman who - apparently uniquely.....

Favorite Quote: "Because the feelings with which we have lived and which allowed us to live as we were, depended on our having the eyes we were born with, without eyes feelings become something different."

Review:

This is a must-read book for everyone. Its a favorite of mine not because it was a happy book but it was actually a sad book that shows us the evils of men. It showed me that men (and maybe women too ;p) are beasts. It was only observed/SEEN when the characters were BLIND. It taught me that we are currently SEEING things but not really SEEING. We are BLIND to the evil society to the point of taking part in it. It takes a sickness in the form of BLINDNESS to really SEE the world for what it is. This book is a big paradox. I thought I wouldn’t enjoy it since Saramago hates periods and quotation marks (hehe) but I got used to it. Saramago was also able to convey the feelings, the smells, the taste of the blind. THIS BOOK WILL MAKE YOU THINK. THIS BOOK WILL MAKE YOU SEE.

My SOundtrack:

1. Sedona Sunrise by Aerosmith

2. Someone to Save You by One Republic

3. Try Sleeping with a Broken Heart by ALicia Keys

4. All Alone by Chris Richardson

5. Airplanes by B.O.B and Hayley Williams

 will watch the movie

Love is BLINDNESS....u2

February Month-End Review

Stats:

female authors: 6 (because of the dugtungan novel)

male authors: 3
Total Pages: 2,082 pages!!!! HUWAW!
Total total total pages: 3,473 pages for 2 months!

The Alchemist

Date read: March 1, 2011 - March 4, 2011
My Edition: 195 pages, 2002
Published by: Harper
Rating: 3 kisses


Summary: http://www.wikisummaries.org/The_Alchemist

When Santiago, a young shepherd boy from the Spanish countryside of Andalusia , has a dream that reveals the location of a hidden treasure buried at the Egyptian Pyramids his simple life is suddenly torn in two. Part of him wants to take the chance to go searching for it and the other part of him wants to continue his easy life as a shepherd.

A mysterious king named the king of Salem in Tarifa convinces Santiago that he has succeeded in discovering his Personal Legend. The old king tells Santiago that following his Personal Legend to its conclusion is a person’s only real obligation in life.

Santiago listens to his heart and decides to go on a dangerous search for the treasure. He sells his flock of sheep and heads to Africa, where he is quickly robbed of all his gold and left despondent on the streets. He decides that he was foolish to believe in his dreams and quickly gets a job with a crystal merchant in order to save up enough money to go back home.

After almost a year working for the merchant, Santiago has made a success of the shop and has plenty of money to do whatever he wants. As he’s walking the streets to go back home he suddenly decides to take a chance and continue his search for the buried treasure.

He joins a caravan to make the dangerous crossing across the desert and as he rides the long, slow days away he begins to listen to his heart and to the desert. He begins to understand what the Soul of the World is, and how he fits in.

When the caravan makes it to the oasis, Santiago meets a girl he falls in love with the moment he sees her. The local alchemist, a mysterious man who reminds Santiago of the old king, helps Santiago continue his journey across the desert and teaches him more important life lessons along the way. Although Santiago does not know it, he is becoming wise, and a master in the art of living to the fullest no matter what. Although he has left his true love back at the oasis, he is resolved to follow his dream to its end.

After many adventures, dangers, and important life lessons Santiago finally reaches the Pyramids. His joy at finally being at journey’s end overwhelms him, and he is grateful that he got the chance to follow his dream.

He begins to dig deep into the sand looking for treasure, but before he can get far a pack of thieves shows up, beating and robbing him. They force him to continue digging, and then leave when no treasure is found. One of the thieves, as destiny would have it, tells Santiago an important clue and when they’re gone Santiago can’t help but laugh, because now he knows where his treasure truly lies.

It ends up being right back where his journey began, under the very tree where he had the prophetic dream years before. He digs and finds a beautiful chest full of gold and gems. His next and last journey will be back to the desert to be reunited with the woman he loves.

Santiago traveling the desert going to the oasis
































Favorite Quote: "So, I love you because the entire universe conspired to help me find you."


Review:
It was a nice, inspirational book. If you want achieve your dreams or your Personal Legend then this is a book for you. However, I think that “The Alchemist” is highly sensationalized. Almost everyone famous love this book! (maybe because they have attained their Personal Legends?). Due to its popularity, I had very high expectations. I even heard that its going to make you cry. I got disappointed. As I said, its a nice inspiring book but its just that, NICE. Its not great. It actually bored me a bit because its just not what I expected. It felt like a self-help book (if its Coelho’s purpose to help people see the omens and follow their Personal Legend, then its a good self-help book). So if you want to read NICE books then go ahead just don’t expect too much.


My Soundtrack:
1. Rocketeer by Far East Movement
2. Billionaire by Travis McCoy
3. Wanna Be Starting Something by Michael Jackson
4. Kickin' With You by Jason Mraz
5. The Great Escape by Boys Like Girls

go read a book....