Month: September 2012

(BBAW) Wrapping up the Week

Posted on by Cindy

Can you believe how fast the week flew by? Its hard to believe that we are doing our wrap up posts.

Thankfully this isn’t good bye but hello. I discovered so many awesome blogs this time around and I think I actually commented on a few of them too so that is a step in the right direction. I have add so many new blogs to my blog roll that I am excited to check out.

In discovering new blogs you also discover new books and I think this week alone I managed to add a ton to my every growing wishlist and books that I had sitting on my TBR pile that need to be brought up further on the list because of so many great reviews.

I love taking part this year and was happy with the no awards this year. Would I like it to be like this all the time? Hmm not sure.

Looking forward to BBAW 2013. I hope you all had fun and enjoyed the week.

copyright 2010, Cindy (Cindy’s Love Of Books)
If you are reading this on a blog or website other than Cindy’s Love Of Books or via a feedreader, this content has been stolen and used without permission.

(Review) The Land of Stories – The Wishing Spell

Posted on by Cindy

Title: The Land of Stories – The Wishing Spell (book 1)
Author: Chris Colfer
Pub Date: July 2012
Publisher: Little Brown Books
Pages: 448

Source: I received an ARC (signed) copy when I attend BEA this year and then I went out an bought a finished copy when it was released.

About the book:
Alex and Conner Bailey”s world is about to change, in this fast-paced adventure that uniquely combines our modern day world with the enchanting realm of classic fairy tales.

The Land of Stories tells the tale of twins Alex and Conner. Through the mysterious powers of a cherished book of stories, they leave their world behind and find themselves in a foreign land full of wonder and magic where they come face-to-face with the fairy tale characters they grew up reading about.

But after a series of encounters with witches, wolves, goblins, and trolls alike, getting back home is going to be harder than they thought.

Photobucket

I have to admit that I am a huge Glee fan. I watch the show weekly  and buy the cds when they come out. I was super excited when I found out that Chris was writing a book and even more excited when I heard that he was going to be at the Children’s Author Breakfast that was happening during BEA. I quickly bought my ticket for the breakfast when they announced it. There was no way I was going to miss out on that event.

As soon as the breakfast was over I quickly made a beeline for the Little Brown booth to find out when the signing was happening. I was quickly informed that there was an “unofficial” line starting so I got in line asap. I had gotten a number ( I think it was 55 or so) and the above picture is what I took as he was signing my book. I was basically gushing telling him how much I loved Kurt and that he was doing an awesome job and that I was dying to read his book.

For taking part in the breakfast I was able to get an advance readers copy of Chris’s book and this awesome tote bag which I love to pieces.

I loved how the arc was presented as it wasn’t  just a book but it was in a cute packaging.

Just before I get into my review I will be adding other pictures to this post that are involved with the book.

I have been wanting to read this book since I got it but held off because I knew that if I loved it, I would be gushing about it non stop and that wouldn’t be far to my friends and family who happen to enjoy Chris and would want to read the book because there would be no way I would lend out my signed copy to anyone.

When I began the book I swore that this wasn’t going to be one of those books I would zip through because I wanted to savour every moment and every word. I think I did really well and read it within a week and limiting myself to reading it just at night.

All I can say is that I loved the book and this is something that I have told Michael he should read one day soon. I loved the idea behind the book and wondered how it would all play out and Chris did a fantastic job.

I loved the cover.

This is the finished copy as you probably already know. I actually love the cover more in person.

This was Chris’s version when he was 10 years old. Some similar items in them both.

Then on the inside cover there is a map:

As you can see Chris’s version and the final version once again very similar and I think that is awesome that the illustator would do that.

Quite honestly I wasn’t sure what to expect and if I would even love the book. I was nervous because I had high hopes for the book and I am so happy that it lived up to my expectations of it. I loved it and honestly I would reread this again.

If your like me when you were little reading those fantastic fairy tales you probably wondered what would happen after the happily ever after right?  Well Chris takes us to that place and we discover what happens and not everything is hunky doory so to speak and that good and evil still interact.

One of the reason I wanted to have a finished copy of the book was because of the map so I could follow along on the journey Alex and Conner were going to take since there was no map in the ARC. I think having that map was useful for me and adds to the book.

Alex and Conner are twins (brother and sister) and their grandmother has given them this book to look after and its all the fairy tales that they knew and loved since they were little. When one day strange things begin to happen and they are sucked into the book landing in a fairy tale. In order to get back to their normal life the kids have to set out on a journey to recover items to make a spell to go back. While they succeed or be stuck in the fairy tale world? What they discover will surprise them.

I loved how there was just enough action going on to keep you interested and I am sure middle graders would love this kind of book.

I thought Chris did an excellent job on his first book and I would read his next book because he did a great job with the storyline, the characters, describing it all perfectly and staying true to the original fairy tale.

I should also mention that Chris has another book coming out in November (2012) called Struck By Lightening: The Carson Phillips Journal (about the book: Struck By Lightning: The Carson Phillips Journal follows the story of outcast high school senior Carson Phillips who blackmails the most popular students in his school into contributing to his literary journal to bolster his college application; his goal in life is to get into Northwestern and eventually become the editor of The New Yorker.

At once laugh-out-loud funny, deliciously dark, and remarkably smart, Struck By Lightning unearths the dirt that lies just below the surface of high school.

The film Stuck By Lightning is set to be released by Tribeca Film later this year and features Colfer’s own original screenplay. Colfer also stars in the film alongside Allison Janney, Christina Hendricks, Dermot Mulroney, Sarah Hyland, and Polly Bergen.)

Just a reminder the Season Premier is on tonight. I will be watching, will you?

copyright 2010, Cindy (Cindy’s Love Of Books)
If you are reading this on a blog or website other than Cindy’s Love Of Books or via a feedreader, this content has been stolen and used without permission.

Smart Chicks Kick It Tour Coming

Posted on by Cindy

I am super excited that Smart Chicks Kick It tour is coming to my area this coming Saturday September 15th. Its the third and final tour and I am so happy that they included Montreal into this stop.

As soon as this tour was announced I slowly began to add to my books that I wanted to get signed and planned the event out. I am so happy that so many local bloggers and some from Ontario will be coming to the event. Hopefully we can arrange something either before or afterwards with the bloggers.

So this is my must sign pile.

I have been reading Kelley Armstrong’s young adult novel so I want to get them signed plus I have one of her adult books that I will get signed as well. I think I have all of Rosemary Clement-Moore’s books (except Highway to Hell), I have Melissa De La Cruz’s latest book for her to sign (I got to meet Melissa at Salon Du Livre last year and she graciously signed all of her books for me), I have all of Melissa Marr’s books (apart from one that I got signed at BEA in 2010), I didn’t have any of Rachel Caine’s books so I thought I would start with her new series and finally Kami Garci and Margaret Stohl I have them all apart from their new one.

Then if time permits I will get my anthologies signed although I have to go through them because Carrie Ryan was suppose to be coming but had to back out at the last minute. Carrie we will miss you but hope that you can make it out this way soon.

Is anyone else coming to Montreal for the signing? If so are you going with this many books? Am I crazy?

copyright 2010, Cindy (Cindy’s Love Of Books)
If you are reading this on a blog or website other than Cindy’s Love Of Books or via a feedreader, this content has been stolen and used without permission.

Proud Owner of….. #2

Posted on by Cindy

As you probably know from reading my blog you know how I love Vera Bradley and her products. I am always stalking checking out http://www.verabradley.com/ to scope out the newest additions and sales.

Thankfully here in Montreal we don’t have a Vera Bradley store/retailer and the closest one to me would be in Upper New York State and Vermont or else I would be at those retailers all the time.

Recently we had a quick get away to Vermont for a weekend. After we did some sight seeing and hiking we decided to do a little bit of shopping. You don’t have to twist my arm for that. As we were walking in the mall I happened to see a Vera Bradley display set up in a window of a Hallmark store. I was thrilled because I actually saw the Hipster Bag I have been eyeing, sadly they didn’t have the black one that I wanted.

So I decided to look around and hoped to find a wallet but didn’t find out that I really liked or they didn’t have the color I wanted or the price I really wanted to pay. Until I stumbled upon this:

Its called Pocket Zip ID . “Simple and easy does it! The hinged ring clips to a purse strap, keyring or belt loop with ease for quick access to bare essentials. A front snap flap pocket can hold lip gloss or quick beauty aids, as well.”

I love how elegant and simple this little pouch is. Its black and quilted. I think the silver tag on the puch is perfect to make the pouch pop a little bit.

The clear plastic pouch on the back hold your id and no worries of loosing it since you insert it from inside the zipper. You can put anything in there that you want and I ended up going with Michael’s picture from his First Communion.

There is a front puch and its a perfect size to put money, a house key and so much more. I more the likely would use it to put money there when I go to the bank LOL

It was only when I was putting my cards and such in this that I noticed that inside the bag is marked with Vera Bradley. It looks stitched on but its not and I think this is a really nice touch to show that it is indeed an original and not a knock off.

I am so happy with this new little edition to my collection and it will match perfectly when I get the hipster (hopefully soon)

One of the things I love about this is that its nice enough to use on its own if you need to make a quick trip and don’t want to lug a purse which I have done on several occassions since getting this. Plus its nice to have something that no one else has and a few people have commented on it when I have been out.

Do you have a cute little wallet that you use all the time?

*Please note  was on no way compensate for this review. I purchased this product with my own money.  *

copyright 2010, Cindy (Cindy’s Love Of Books)
If you are reading this on a blog or website other than Cindy’s Love Of Books or via a feedreader, this content has been stolen and used without permission.

(BBAW) Where You Interview Me

Posted on by Cindy

As I previously mentioned in an earlier post when I was talking about BBAW I had missed out in signing up for the Interview swap so I asked you my readers to ask me questions and you guys are awesome you left me some questions so I am going to answer them. Thank you for taking the time to ask me them.

Kathy from Bermudaonion asked: What’s your favorite movie?
If you had an extra thousand dollars, what would you buy?

Kathy those are great questions. But before I answer them I just want you guys to know that I have known Kathy since I started blogging and every time we go to BEA we always plan to meet up. She is a super sweet person and what you see online is what you get in real life.

Okay to answer Kathy’s questions. I have a few favorite movies and they are Grease, Pretty In Pink, Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, St Elmo’s Fire, Top Gun, Mary Poppins and a few others. I can watch these over and over again.

The next one is a little tougher, but I think if I had an extra thousand dollars I would definitly buy the black Vera Bradley cross body bag I have been eyeing and probably books and bookcases to hold those books. I would probably take what ever was left and put it towards BEA.

Thanks once again Kathy that was a great question.

Alexia’s Book & Such  asked: What is the one book you would recommend to a reluctant reader? And if you could have dinner wih any five authors, who would you choose?

Thanks Alexia for stopping by to leave your question. Can I just say that you guys are asking some pretty amazing questions. Oh my gosh, I don’t know what I would recommend to a reluctant reader,

Hmm five authors? I think I would love to have dinner with Chris Colfer (I got to hear him speak at BEA this year and he was fantastic and I would love to talk to him a little more), Lesley Livingston (I got to meet her recently and she was so funny and I would love to sit and talk with her longer), Terry Spear (I have read all her books and have had her on the blog so getting to meet her in real life would be awesome), Maureen Johnson (Because she is hilarious) and last but not least Julie Kagawa.

Kim from On The Wings of Books asked: Where is your review for The Land of Stories??? I’ve been waiting and waiting! 😉

Kim, I had a feeling you were going to ask me that and I actually have it schedule to appear on my blog this Thursday to coinside with Glee starting Thursday night. I will tell that I really enjoyed the book.

Freda from Freda’s Voice asked: What book has impacted you the most?

Hmm this is a good question. I guess I would have to say To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee and The Color Purple. I never realized how some people can be so superior in their thinking that they are better then anyone else. For me growing up it didn’t matter what the skin color was, its whats inside that counts. I pass this on to my son. I think we all have to stop and realize that yea we are all different in some shape or form but we are all the same, we are humans and we have feelings and hurt just like everyone does.

Thanks guys for asking me these questions. I had alot of fun answering them.

I also just checked the BBAW site this morning and saw these questions so I thought I would add them as well.

Do you snack while you read? If so, favorite reading snack?

-Yes I occassionally snack while I am reading but not very often as I tend to read in bed at night. When I do snack I tend to eat granola bars, pretzels or fruit.

Do you tend to mark your books as you read, or does the idea of
writing in books horrify you?

-This is a huge pet peeve of mine. I cringe when I see someone marking in their books. I can undertstand a work book or text book but not a novel. For me if I want to remember something I will use a piece of paper and leave that in the book.

How do you keep your place while reading a book? Bookmark? Dog-ears?

-Another pet peeve of mine is seeing someone dog-ear their books. For myself, I always use a bookmark, a piece of paper, a business card, a post it flag to mark my books, basically anything that won’t damage the book is how I keep my place.

Laying the book flat open?

-I never lay the book flat open. I hate cracked spines.

Fiction, Non-fiction, or both?

-I am a fiction kind of girl and the only non fiction books I read are cookbooks.

Hard copy or audiobooks?

-I prefer hard copy. I have tried audiobooks but realized that I would always get up and start doing other things in another room. Audiobooks become back ground noise for me.

Are you a person who tends to read to the end of chapters, or are you
able to put a book down at any point?

-I have to read to the end of the chapter before I can put the book down. This is more so at night but I guess if I am reading during the day and will be back to the book right away I can put it down at any point.

If you come across an unfamiliar word, do you stop to look it up right away?

-Of course I do because if you don’t know what the word is, you have no idea where the author is going in context.

What are you currently reading?

-I am currently reading Brimstone by Rosemary Clement-Moore

What is the last book you bought?

-The last book I bought was Brimstone by Rosemary Clement-Moore for this weekends signing.

Are you the type of person that only reads one book at a time or can
you read more than one at a time?

-I am the kind of person who can only read one book at time. I have tried several times and I just can’t get into the story. So I guess you can say I am a monogomous reader.

Do you have a favorite time of day and/or place to read?

-I wish I had more time to read during the day but I don’t so I tend to save my reading for night time in bed or on the couch.

Do you prefer series books or stand alone books?

-It would depend on the books but I have to say I prefer stand alones, although I do read series.

Is there a specific book or author that you find yourself recommending over and over?

-I am always recommending Kelley Armstrong, Terry Spears and Kristine Grayson’s books over and over again.

How do you organize your books? (By genre, title, author’s last name, etc.?)

-Currently I have no real organization happening although I do have separate shelves for the books I got at BEA and books I got for review books (sorted by release date) and the rest is basically just placed on the shelf although if the author has several books I tend to keep them together. I am hoping that once the renos are done in the basement and bookcases are up that I will organize some how.

copyright 2010, Cindy (Cindy’s Love Of Books)
If you are reading this on a blog or website other than Cindy’s Love Of Books or via a feedreader, this content has been stolen and used without permission.

(BBAW) Day 1= Appreciation Day

Posted on by Cindy

This is Day 1 of Book Blogger Appreciation Week and today’s topic is:

Appreciation! There are no awards this year, but it can still be hard to navigate the huge universe of book blogging. Share with your readers some of the blogs you enjoy reading daily and why.

I am really not a huge fan of awards and I was really happy to see this change this year for numerous reasons although this is another thing I really don’t like because it feels like you are picking and choosing amongst your friends and saying one is better then the next but its not. I love you guys.

So in not particular order here is my list of ten that I pretty much check out on a daily bases:

  1. Kathy from Bermudaonion and she was one of the very first bloggers I found and she is a regular commentor on my blog. I have had the prvilage of meeting Kathy at BEA in 2010 and we are always in touch. She is super sweet online and in real life. I am always in total awe of Kathy because she does so much in real life and still has time to read.
  2. Tina from Bookshipper. She was one of the first bloggers I met in real life, and was part of the original Montreal Book Blogger group. Tina has turned into a really good friend over the years and we are partners in crime and go on wild NYC adventures. Without her I don’t think NYC would have been so much fun. Tina and I have similar taste in books and magazines.
  3. Laura from Library of Clean Reads . She is a local Montreal author and blogger. I was so thrilled to have been asked by Laura to read her book a few years ago and I am honored to call her a friend and I have to say my first author friend.
  4. Jennifer from Jenn’s Book Shelves . I love reading Jenn’s blog especially when her son does a guest appearance because when he does I show Michael his posts in hopes that it will inspire him to make an appearance on mine. I also got to meet Jenn at BEA in 2010 and I am known to occassionally post a “It’s Monday, What are you reading? post.
  5. Sheila from Book Journey. I don’t know how I ever stumbled upon Sheila but I am so happy because I love reading her blog daily. Not only does she do reviews but she talks about everything. I think I have been  stalking following her for several years and I just have to say I finally got to meet her in real life at BEA this year and she is super sweet and awesome.
  6. Lucy from Moonlight Gleam’s. Lucy is a Montreal book blogger and its hard to believe I have only known her for a year but it feels like I have known her forever. She is an awesome blogger and is such a hard worker on keeping her blog current. I am honored to call her a friend.
  7. Cindy aka Tynga from Tynga’s Reviews is also another Montreal blogger. I have also been following her blog for some time and only got to meet her last year. I love reading her Stacking the Shelves each week and the various authors she gets on her blog. If you love paranormal/urban fiction you should check her out.
  8. Ashely from Steps to Perfection . This is not a book blog but a heauty blog and I love going to Ashley’s blog because she is my go to girl on all beauty box subscription services here in Canada and what is available to Canadians.
  9. Kate from Midnight Book Girl. Kate is another blog that I have been stalking  following mainly at first because of her blog design but then because of her reviews. Kate reads the same kind of books as me. Plus she was my roomie in NYC this year.
  10. And last but certainly not least Kim from On The Wings of Books.  Kim was one of my roomies in NYC and a total hoot. She had me laughing the whole week in NYC and whenever I read her reviews its almost like I can hear her. We both of similar taste in books and most often we feel the same way about a book.

So that is just a few of the blogs I follow on a daily bases. I wish I could add you all to my list but I can’t sorry. What do you think of my list? Did you discover someone new? Is so which ones?

copyright 2010, Cindy (Cindy’s Love Of Books)
If you are reading this on a blog or website other than Cindy’s Love Of Books or via a feedreader, this content has been stolen and used without permission.

(MEME) Sunday’s In Bed With…… #14

Posted on by Cindy
I was just getting some posts ready when I realized I had to do a Sundays In Bed With…. post. I am sorry that I am late in posting this and it will be back posted. I have been in a blogging funk lately.

The awesome blogger behind this is Kate from Midnight Book Girl   not only is she an awesome blogger but she is was one of my roommates for BEA. YAY!!

Midnight Book Girl

Sundays In Bed With….is a meme I’ve started to share the book we’re spending the morning in bed with, or the one we’d like to stay curled up in bed with all Sunday if only our busy lives would allow! For fun, take a picture of the book in your bed, or simply write up a post or comment below sharing your Sundays in Bed With book. Quoted from Kate’s blog

I have been trying to figure out what I was going to read next and not quite sure. Its not that its due to the lack of books (cause it certainly isn’t)  but perhaps its due to the fact that I have way to much to read both of books I bought and have for review. So I figured that I would pick this up to read:

This is Brimstone by Rosemary Clement-Moore. Inside is two stories Prom Dates from Hell and Hell Week both books that have been previously released and put into a bind up. Rosemary will be coming to my next of the woods next Saturday along with other authors for a huge signing and I will be going. I am so excited.

Hope your having a good long weekend and that you manage to find some time read this week. Its hard to believe that this is the last long weekend of the summer. Where did the time go?

copyright 2010, Cindy (Cindy’s Love Of Books)
If you are reading this on a blog or website other than Cindy’s Love Of Books or via a feedreader, this content has been stolen and used without permission.