Tuesday, May 31, 2016

Tangled by Carolyn Mackler | Book Review

Tangled by Carolyn Mackler



Reading Group: Freshman in High School+

Personal Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: Paradise wasn't supposed to suck.

Not the state of being, but a resort in the Caribbean.

Jena, Dakota, Skye, and Owen are all there for different reasons, but at Paradise their lives became tangled together in ways none of them can predict.  Paradise will change them all.

It will change Jena, whose first brush with romance takes her that much closer to having a life, and not just reading about those infinitely cooler and more exciting.

It will change Dakota, who needs the devastating truth about his past to make him realize that he doesn't have to be a jerk just because people think he's one.

It will change Skye, a heartbreakingly beautiful actress, who much come to terms with the fact that for once she has to stop playing a role or face the consequences.

And it will change Owen, who has never risked anything before and who will take the leap from his online life to a real one all because of a girl he met at Paradise...

From confused to confident and back again, one thing's certain: Four months after it all begins, none of them will ever be the same. 

Cover: The cover of this book is a pink, string heart and a blue, string heart coming together and making an area of purple.  One thing I do wish (and I have no idea why this bother me so much but it does) was that the purple was more ombre.  It goes pink, purple, blue and I think it would be better if it faded into purple like the colors slowly came together, the way the characters come together in the book.

My Review: I feel like I was slightly too old for this book.  I enjoyed it, but I know I would have enjoyed it more if I was a freshman in High School versus a freshman in College.  It's probably because all of the characters were around 15-years-old and even though I'm only nineteen there were moments when I was reading where I would just think that they would have such bigger things to worry about once high school was over.  To be honest, I also wasn't a huge fan of Jena and she was the one who started the story off and I thought she would be the one to set the tone for the book.  She was the one that I would just shake my head at and think about how the problems we have at the beginning of high school are so stupid by the time we graduate.  I really liked Dakota and Skye because their problems were less superficial than those of Jena and Owen.  Granted though they still had moments were I was just like what are you doing???  So basically this story took me a little while to get into, but once I did I was able to enjoy it.  Topics like family and grief and loneliness are relatable to a lot of people, but like I said I definitely think a younger me would have appreciated it more than present me.  I think my favorite part about this book is how the characters lives all come together.  The two boys and the two girls happen to be in the same vacation spot in the same week and then for months after they're still connected.  I like the idea that the people you meet in one moment of your life may come back into it and play a bigger role later.  It's kind of like the six degrees of separation and I just find that absolutely fascinating.      

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Tuesday, May 24, 2016

Hollywood Dirt by Alessandra Torre | Book Review

Hollywood Dirt by Alessandra Torre



Reading Group: M for Mature

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5 stars 

Given Summary: Cole Masten. Abandoned by his superstar wife, Hollywood’s Perfect Husband is now Hollywood’s Sexiest Bachelor: partying hard and screwing even harder. Watch out Los Angeles, there's a new bad boy in town. Summer Jenkins. That’s me, a small town girl stuck in Quincy, Georgia. I cook some mean chicken and dumplins, can bluff a grown man out of his savings in poker, and was voted Most Friendly my senior year. We were from different worlds. Our lives shouldn’t have collided. But then Cole Masten read a book about my small town. And six months later, his jet landed on our dusty airstrip, and he brought Hollywood with him. From the start, I knew he was trouble. For our town. And for me. Sometimes, opposites just aren’t meant to attract.

Cover: The cover of this novel shows Summer standing in front of an empty field, but in the distance there are the flashing lights of paparazzi.  I took it as her walking into a new life of fame that the movie was going to being her, but you can tell by the way her hand is placed on top of her head that she's not super confident or comfortable with it.  I think that goes towards her attitude that even though she was a main character in a huge film, she didn't want to make a career out of acting, but she was willing to be in the lifestyle enough to be with Cole.

My Review: I thoroughly enjoyed this novel.  I really like the two-worlds-colliding theme it had going on and the love-hate relationship between Summer and Cole because as I was reading I was impatient for them to get together, but at the same time I liked that it took a while for them to finally admit that they loved each other.  Also, the Rehearsal Dinner from Hell was such an ordeal.  In the grand scheme of the book it wasn't that big of a deal, it was a part of Summer's past, but the way the book led up to it with the little hints and everyone knowing before the reader, made it so suspenseful. Plus, the actual act itself was great.  I personally thought it was a perfectly balanced way to get back at a cheating fiancé because it was big enough that it ruined the night and definitely got the point across, but not big enough that it totally destroyed someone's life or seriously hurt them.  Both Cole and Summer were complex characters that were used to putting up fronts with people, but when they were together they were able to see the other person as their true selves and I think that was an important message in the book.  We all have different personas depending on our situations, but when you're finally able to find someone who can get to know and love the real you, that's the person you want to keep around.  

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Tuesday, May 17, 2016

We All Looked Up by Tommy Wallach | Book Review

We All Looked Up by Tommy Wallach


Reading Group: High School+

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: Four high school seniors put their hopes, hearts, and humanity on the line as an asteroid hurtles toward Earth in this contemporary novel.

They always say that high school is the best time of your life.

Peter, the star basketball player at his school, is worried “they” might actually be right. Meanwhile Eliza can’t wait to escape Seattle—and her reputation—and perfect-on-paper Anita wonders if admission to Princeton is worth the price of abandoning her real dreams. Andy, for his part, doesn’t understand all the fuss about college and career—the future can wait.

Or can it? Because it turns out the future is hurtling through space with the potential to wipe out life on Earth. As these four seniors—along with the rest of the planet—wait to see what damage an asteroid will cause, they must abandon all thoughts of the future and decide how they’re going to spend what remains of the present.

Cover: So the cover of this book is what drew me to it in the store, but I'm not going to lie, now that I've read the book, I'm not a huge fan of the cover.  It's just random people looking at an astroid and I wish it was at least the people who were there at the end of the story.  

My Review: I loved this book, but I also hate fit solely because Peter died.  And I know you could make the argument that they all end up dead, but the fact that Peter died first the day before made me so sad because he was my favorite from the beginning.  Also, there was still a 33.3% chance the astroid didn't hit the earth and if it did, would it wipe out everyone or just people in a large radius of the impact zone?  Like what it the astroid landed straight in the middle of the Pacific Ocean?  Sure there would be ridiculous tsunamis, but I still feel like North Dakota and some other states would be okay.  Your thoughts?
I tend to enjoy books that make you question your life, even through death freaks me out, and this novel was no different.  Life is short and you shouldn't wait until the world id ending or you get diagnosed withs one illness to do the things you want to do.  And it's interesting who people become when it seems that there are no rules.  Is the only reason you're not doing something is because it's illegal?  Is that right?  I like to believe that I am someone who lives in the present and does things that make me happy, but I also have a bucket list of things that will take years to complete, so if the world ended within the next three months I would be in trouble.  I think it's important to know there are things you want to do though because you'll try harder to get them done while you can rather than lying on your death bed coming up with plans that will never happen.
But back to the book.  I loved the way this book was written, I don't have an exact reason why, I just thought it was very nicely written and it makes me want to read Wallach's other book.  The characters were all great and different and real.  Like I went to high school with someone just like each of them.  I would definitely recommend this book to my friends.  

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Tuesday, May 10, 2016

Extraordinary Means by Robyn Schneider | Book Review

Extraordinary Means by Robyn Schneider


Reading Group: 17-years-old+

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: John Green's The Fault in Our Stars meets Rainbow Rowell's Eleanor & Park in this darkly funny novel from the critically acclaimed author of The Beginning of Everything.


Up until his diagnosis, Lane lived a fairly predictable life. But when he finds himself at a tuberculosis sanatorium called Latham House, he discovers an insular world with paradoxical rules, med sensors, and an eccentric yet utterly compelling confidante named Sadie—and life as Lane knows it will never be the same.
Robyn Schneider's Extraordinary Means is a heart-wrenching yet ultimately hopeful story about the miracles of first love and second chances.

Cover: The cover of this book shows the night sky and the woods.  The woods are important because the characters spent time in the woods and it's actually connected to two of the character's deaths.  Charlie dies in the woods and Sadie gets hurt in the woods, which eventually leads to her death.  The characters also talk about stars throughout the story so I like to think that the two shooting stars are for Sadie and Charlie.  

My Review: I really enjoyed this book and I can definitely see the relation between it and The Fault in Our Stars.  Stories like this definitely remind me how little time we may have with certain people and that we need to make those moments last.  The quote on the cover of the book "Life goes on until it doesn't" sums that up really well.  We all expect a tomorrow and that any mistakes we make can be fixed tomorrow, but that's not always true.  Sadie was lucky that she was able to go to Lane and tell him that she never wanted to break up because it wasn't long after that that she was attacked in the woods.  I think this book also pointed out the importance of friendship and showing that we all have those people that we're willing to break the rules for.  And it's nice to know that people like that are around you.  Life is so much more than resume building and I know that sometimes we don't think about the future at all and other times we think about it too much, but I don't think you should ever do something you don't want to do because it 'looks good' because there are plenty of things that will give you a great future at the same time as making the present awesome.  This story was a great one and a relatively quick read.  It kind of broke my heart, and you all know I prefer a happy ending, but like All the Bright Places there was something about this one that made me want to force my friends to read it,

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Friday, May 6, 2016

Donating My Hair

Over the first weekend in April my college hosted its own Relay For Life and at the event I decided to donate my hair.


So this is my hair straightened and before I cut it all off.  I decided to donate my hair for a few reasons.  My hair grows really fast, so I wasn't worried about being 'stuck' with short hair for a little while, especially if it was going to a good cause.  But more than that, I feel like hair is such a big part of who we are.  Don't get me wrong, my natural hair is the biggest pain in the butt.  It's uncontrollable, frizzy, and unpredictable, but it's mine.  I feel like if I didn't have any hair I would definitely lack self-confidence, so donating my hair to be turned into a wig for people who actually don't have hair was worth it.


So The American Cancer Society has a partnership with Pantene Beautiful Lengths, which donates wigs to women who have lost their hair due to cancer treatments.  What I like about the organization is that the hair loss doesn't need to be permanent for a woman to quality for a wig.  What I had to do was get my hair into ponytails with an elastic above and below where the cut was going to be.  The more ponytails the more even the cut, but by the time I got my hair sectioned off there weren't many elastics left.


Like I said, I couldn't have my ponytail sectioned off as many times as I would have liked, and my hair is really thick, so when my friend cut off the ponytails it wasn't an even cut at all.  I'm not sure if you can tell from this photo, but just trust me.



But thankfully they had some volunteers who could even out the haircuts.

And so this is what my hair looked like when I woke up later that day (Relay went from 6pm-4am) and my mom called it adorable, so what else do I need to say?  Honestly, I currently like it a lot better straight than I like it curly.  For my own preference it's too short when it's curly, but I know it will grow soon enough.  I definitely do not regret my decision to donate my hair and I would recommend anyone to do it.  Many people express themselves throughout their hair, so being able to give someone that opportunity is a really nice gesture almost anyone with long enough hair can do.  


If you're interested in learning more about Beautiful Lengths and donating your own hair click here

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Tuesday, May 3, 2016

The Night We Said Yes by Lauren Gibaldi | Book Review

The Night We Said Yes by Lauren Gibaldi 


Reading Group: High School+

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: A fun, romantic read, perfect for fans of Sarah Dessen and Susane Colasanti! What happens when Matt and Ella reunite one year after their breakup? Are second chances really possible?

Before Matt, Ella had a plan. Get over her ex-boyfriend and graduate high school—simple as that. But Matt—the cute, shy, bespectacled bass player—was never part of that plan. And neither was attending a party that was crashed by the cops just minutes after they arrived. Or spending an entire night saying "yes" to every crazy, fun thing they could think of.
But then Matt leaves town, breaking Ella's heart. And when he shows up a year later—wanting to relive the night that brought them together—Ella isn't sure whether Matt's worth a second chance. Or if re-creating the past can help them create a different future.

Cover: The cover shows four people, presumably Meg, Jake, Ella, and Matt.  It appears they're standing on a beach, which the four did not go to on either night, so I don't really understand that.  However, the sun is setting so their night of saying yes is just starting.     

My Review: I thoroughly enjoyed tho book.  I loved that it went back in forth between past and present every chapter and that it only focused on two days, one in the past and one in the present.  It was such a cute book.  I was rooting for present day Ella and Matt to get back together and past Ella and Matt to kiss from the beginning.  However this book was more than just two people finding each other, it was about discovering themselves.  Having to say yes to any idea that a friend comes up with can be scary and by doing it you definitely learn something about yourself as you find yourself doing things you never would under different circumstances.  Ella was able to learn who she was and who she wanted to be and who she wanted to be with.  She learned to stick up for herself and not follow anyone else's lead.  Friends, boyfriends, and college is a lot to deal with, but if the people around you are there because you want them to be there, decisions aren't so hard to make because you have support and you know that wherever everyone's paths lead, you'll all come back together in the end.  Like is said, this book really only gives you two days, not even days, but nights, and somehow that's enough to understand everything.  Life isn't always about the drawn out situations.  Sometimes a few hours is all it takes to arrive at some fantastic conclusions.  
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