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Wednesday, April 25, 2012

If I Tell by Janet Gurtler


"Jasmine Evans knows one thing for sure... people make mistakes. After all, she is one. Jaz is the result of a onenight stand between a black football player and a blonde princess. Having a young mother who didn't raise her, a father who wants nothing to do with her and living in a small-minded town where she's never fit in hasn't been easy. But she's been surviving. Until she sees her mom's new boyfriend making out with her own best friend. When do you forgive people for being human or give up on them forever?"-GoodReads.




Paperback256 pages
Published October 1st 2011 by Sourcebooks Fire
Source: Sourcebook Fire via Netgalley


If I Tell tackles a lot of issues. It addresses wanting to fit in, not really having parents, the danger of keeping secrets and even the danger of telling secrets. But the issue I thought just shined in this story, everyone is not always what they seem and that everyone has a secret. 
Through most of the book Jaz acts like she is the only one going through a hard time. That she was the only different one and the only one holding onto a secret that could ruin lives, which was not true at all. 


This was all good to a point. Sometimes the multitude of issues became a lot to keep up with.
Jaz was also a whiner about all of the issues she was faced with. She complained about not having anyone in her life, but she never made any attempt to get close to anyone. And when anyone tried to get close to her she held them at arms length.
She kind of acted like since bad things happened to her she has the right to hate certain people and mope around complaining all the time. Bad things happen to everyone. You don't like it, you change it. That what I wanted to yell at her multiple times. And to stop jumping to conclusions about everyone before she knows the whole story.


Even though I had some problems with Jaz's character, I did enjoy the book. The writing style was very enjoyable and I did appreciate how everything came together in the end. Though all I could keep thinking was, if you hadn't have kept this secret none of this would have happened...but then there would not have been a book so I suppose that doesn't matter.
If I Tell was a solid contemporary that I enjoyed reading. It is a bit heavy and faces some serious issues, but I suggest giving it a try.


I received this book free of charge from the publisher or author in exchange for an honest review. This, in no way, altered my opinion of the story or my review.

Saturday, April 21, 2012

Bookish Crafts {3}



I love pictures, a lot. Finding new ones to hang that reflect some of the things that I love is always so much fun. The other day while browsing Pinterest I stumbled upon a picture that I want, really bad.
And not only can I have it, I can make it! Which makes it even cooler.
Vintage Heart Framed Picture
(photo found on decorhacks)

A white shadowbox frame gets turned into a piece of art that really reflects my love for books. Simply cut out a heart from where ever in the book you like, could be a passage you enjoy or somewhere random. Make sure you use enough pages so that when you fold the heart in half the pages separate nicely as they do in the picture to give you the 3-D effect.
I have been thinking about using a passage from Pride and Prejudice, the part where Darcy expresses his love, for this project but I know it might be hard for some of you to cut even a heart shape out of book pages. Fear not, there is somewhat of a solution to this if you do not wish to cut up just any book:
I would suggest using one of those really old falling apart books that you can find at a used bookstore or an antique store (just check the copyright and make sure you're not cutting up a first edition of something valuable). I have found tons of old books that the covers are ripped off or the pages are falling off the binding that would be perfect for this project. 

Upcycle and repurpose a book to give it new life :)
Happy Crafting!

Saturday, April 14, 2012

In My Mailbox [#17]

mailbox


In My Mailbox is a bookish meme created by the wonderful Kristi over at The Story Siren for bloggers to feature books we got over the past week, either bought, borrowed, or received in the mail. Make sure to go check out her main post.

I did not get a single book this week, until Saturday. Saturday was books galore.

One of my really good friends told me about a PTA book sale that was going on this weekend. It had about 37 schools participating so there was a ton of books. All the paperbacks were .50 and hardbacks were $1.
I was in Heaven.
See? It was table after table of books.
Here is my loot:


(all adult)


(Christian fiction)






(This pic is being a pain and not rotating...oh well)


(This one neither...boo)




It was a pretty awesome book day. If I had bought all these books in stores the retail value would be about $200...I paid $10.50.
Winning.

So fellow readers, what did you get in your mailboxes this week?


Monday, April 2, 2012

Top Ten Tuesday {#4}


Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. The feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists over at The Broke and the Bookish. They'd love to share their lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

Each week they will post a new Top Ten list that one of the bloggers here at The Broke and the Bookishwill answer. Everyone is welcome to join. All they ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND add your name to the Linky widget so that everyone can check out other bloggers lists! If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Have fun with it! It's a fun way to get to know your fellow bloggers.

Top Ten Books to Read in A Day:
(in no particular order)


Basically this is one of my favorite books. It it such a neat dystopia. Getting to see how this world works with factions is very interesting and there is just enough secrecy and betrayal to keep you hooked all the way to the end. I could not put this book down, and when I HAD to, I just kept thinking about it and what was going to happen next. It sucked me in and I was okay with ignoring everything around me to stay in this story.



Mara went through something terrible...but she can't exactly remember what. Except that her best friends are now dead and she is not. What happened to them? What happened to her?
And then there is Noah. Oh, Noah Shaw. One page I wanted to smack him, the next I wanted to kiss him. We had a complicated relationship at first ;p
Right when you believe some things are starting to be revealed BOOM! something else happens totally twisting everything around. Oh and the cliffhanger ending. As everyone else has said before, cliffhanger of DOOM.
This is the perfect book to curl up with and just relish all day and then have your mind completely screwed with in the end.



It's not legal to marry a book, is it? Hmm, that's too bad. Because I have an undying love for this book. It rocked. John Green is a genius, a master...a heart-ripper-out-and-stomp-on-er!
I guarantee that you will not even think about putting this book down once you start.
Word to the wise: read this in the comfort of your home...alone...with a box of kleenex with you. 



This is the perfect book to start summer off with. Belly's life is so intriguing in the way that it feels so real.
Take this one down to the beach and I'll bet you will have it done in no time.
And if you don't have access to a beach, lay a towel on the floor and put some wave noises on in the background. The story will do the rest.


 

So who walked around talking with a french accent after reading this book? *raises hand*
Yeah, I admit it. Loud and proud. You'll do it too, trust me.
If you've been craving some travel but don't have the means to get away, pick up Anna. Stephanie brings the story to life and makes you feel like you've been whisked away to Paris.
By the end of the day, when you've finished this book, it'll be practically like you were there.
Going to the school, seeing old movies at the local theatre, sightseeing, swooning for St. Clair.



The other 5 books were a roller coaster ride for pretty much everyone that read them. Last Sacrifice demanded all of your attention. Everything was coming to and end and we all wanted to know what was going to happen. I death stared anyone who tried to interrupt me while reading this. It requires one day reading. No joke. So don't make any other plans when you pick this book up.



This was one of the first YA dystopians that I read. That was before it was even out. And the ending has still stuck with me. It's made me nervous to read Pandemonium. I want to find out what happens next, but I'm scared. The story could go so many ways at this point and I'm afraid it's not going to go the way I want. So I guess Pandemonium is going to be a "read in a day" book too ;p



I loved this trilogy and this being the last I couldn't take my time reading it. So many things happened in A Great and Terrible Beauty and Rebel Angels, so many things still were going to happen.
Nothing but reading this and sometimes snacks happened on the day this book came in the mail.



Just so y'all know, the main character and I have the same name: Jessica Lynn. I love when the mc's name is the same as mine. It made it even cooler that her middle name was Lynn, too. That could have been a reason why I couldn't put this down. That and it was hilarious. Megan McCafferty knows how to crack a good teen girl joke. I was enjoying this one and laughing so much I didn't even realize I finished it as fast as I did.



This is most definitely not a YA (if it were a movie it would be at least R), but it is my favorite urban fantasy adult series. Karen sucked me into the world of evil fae and did not let go until the end. I think I was up until 3 in the morning finishing this. I loved that Makayla was my age. It was nice for an adult book to be about a 22 year old instead of all the ones about 40 years old.
Oh, and I'm also in love with Jericho Barrons. He was the most intriguing character, like ever. And I could not get enough of his tall, dark, and mysterious-ness. If anyone figures out how to make characters come to life, let me know. I want him for my own.

So that is what I came up with for my read in day. What's on your list?
Link me in the comments and I'll check your post out :)

Sunday, April 1, 2012

In My Mailbox (#16)

mailboxes

In My Mailbox is a bookish meme created by the wonderful Kristi over at The Story Siren for bloggers to feature books we got over the past week, either bought, borrowed, or received in the mail. Make sure to go check out her main post.

So I kind of forgot to get this post written up yesterday so it's going up a little later than I would have liked. But better late than never right :)
Here's what I got last week.


(I love John Green.)


(I started reading this on S&S GalleyGrab but it ran out right when I got to the middle.
Everyone keeps talking about the incredible ending so I can't wait to finally find out what happens.)










( I don't know if I love Marcus Flutie or the fact that the MC and I share the same name, Jessica Lynn, more...okay, I love both equally.)

What did you get in your mailbox?
Link your post in my comments and I'll be sure to check it out :)
Have a great week!