Shelving Saturday - #11

Welcome to Shelving Saturday

Shelving Saturday is a weekly blog event I have started here at Eastern Sunset Reads.   Each week I will post a shelving dilemma or question and you can join me in the response.

Please feel free to post on your blog and link back here, please be sure to post the link to your response in the comments so I can come and check your Shelving day out!

Over the past couple of weeks we started re-organizing our shelves. I know some of you are already done but for the rest of us -  Lets see your progress.

As you all know I had a crazy busy week last week so I only got one shelf done (and since I missed last weeks post I will add it here).  This week I got two shelves done and then I hit a rock wall :(

So here are all the pre-organizing pictures . . . Look at that mess!!!

So I decided to make the top two shelves Middle Reader/ Young Adult alphabetical by author.

Look how pretty they are all organized! I am actually thinking about making them double deep, we will see what space I still need.

Here are some closer pictures so you can see what goodies I have ;)

And then these two stacks are on my personal challenge list for this year, so once I read them they will be added to the shelves.

So on the next shelf for some reason I decided to jump from young adult to romance! I think its because these are the shelves that I have the easiest access to and I read mostly romance and young adult.

I am honestly not very thrilled with the way this shelf looks, I think I need to replace my HC Merry Gentry Series with PB for a more uniform shelf. We will have to see.

Anywho so I hit a road block with the next shelf.  On it currently are some magazines (which I have now gotten cardboard boxes to stand them upright), the Anita Blake Comic Books (are they still called comic books even though they are for adults?!), and also some antique books I inherited from my Great Grandmother.  I think I want to keep the antique books together.  Should I put the comic books on the romance shelf with the rest of Laurell K. Hamilton's books? Should I put the magazines in the boxes and leave them aside for now?  I think I might have to skip this shelf for now and move on to the other book shelf.

Bedtime Story: Where the Wild Things Are

Synopsis from Amazon: "Where the Wild Things Are is one of those truly rare books that can be enjoyed equally by a child and a grown-up. If you disagree, then it's been too long since you've attended a wild rumpus. Max dons his wolf suit in pursuit of some mischief and gets sent to bed without supper. Fortuitously, a forest grows in his room, allowing his wild rampage to continue unimpaired. Sendak's color illustrations (perhaps his finest) are beautiful, and each turn of the page brings the discovery of a new wonder.

The wild things--with their mismatched parts and giant eyes--manage somehow to be scary-looking without ever really being scary; at times they're downright hilarious. Sendak's defiantly run-on sentences--one of his trademarks--lend the perfect touch of stream of consciousness to the tale, which floats between the land of dreams and a child's imagination.
This Sendak classic is more fun than you've ever had in a wolf suit, and it manages to reaffirm the notion that there's no place like home."

My Review: I think nearly every person since 1963 has read this book. I love the illustrations and I remember wanting a wolf costume when I was a kid.  I haven't seen the new movie and honestly don't want to because I feel like it would spoil this classic book about a little boy's imagination. Hmm I wonder is this where we all go staring contests?!

My Rating: This book definitely earned its place in my Top Ten list and should get Four Paws and a Stump Wag!

Good Night, Sweet Dreams



Review of Golden Healer, Dark Enchantress by Christine E. Schulze

Synopsis from Goodreads: "Chrystine had had more reason than any other time of her life, even when facing one of the rampages of her drunken father. But she wasn't afraid. And that was odd, because although Aaryn, the person asking her that question, was her best friend, he was also a vampire. In fact, she was surrounded by hundreds of vampires."

My Review: So I fully intended to read this book next week, however once I downloaded it and started skimming, I started reading and just didn't stop. Christine Schulze held my attention the whole time. I adore the characters, even the sub characters, and honestly who wouldn't fall in love with Aaryn. I loved Schulze's descriptions, she really took me there and painted the picture beautifully!

Golden Healer, Dark Enchantress was definitely not what I expected, first off it starts out based in modern times, which threw me for a loop considering you learn right at the beginning that Chrystine is an elf. The next was the combination of fantasy and magic with Christianity. I was a little unsure of this combination but wanted to find out more, but Christine Schulze meshed the two beautifully! Bet you all never expected to read a book involving a Christian Vampire!

The book moved along quickly and even the lulls in action were interesting. It was a fantastic story involving the good versus evil, light versus darkness. The only down fall was that I wanted more when it ended! I could read about these characters time and time again!

My Rating: I really enjoyed this one and definitely couldn't put it down until I finished so it deserves Four Paws and a Stump Wag!

Follow Friday & In My Mailbox

 

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Q. What do I do when I are not reading?

Well there are a lot of things that I do when not reading! I work in a law office, I train my dog, Niko (and sometimes the cat, Valerie too - yes she is trained, she comes when called, sits up on command and walks on a leash), I also like to do arts and crafts, particularly drawing/coloring, scherenschnitte (a form of paper cutting) and of course customize MLPs! I also love the outdoors in the summer, especially hiking and fishing and just hanging out with a nice cold beverage.


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   In My Mailbox is a weekly event hosted by The Story Siren that I have decided to participate in.

How IMM works:
Make your own IMM post! You can post about books you've bought, gotten from the library, received for review... books don't have to arrive via your mailbox. 
I post every week, but you don’t have to. You can do one week out of the month or every other week it’s up to you. 
You don't have to call your post In My Mailbox... (some people don't even have mailboxes!)
I post my IMM on Sunday, but choose a day of the week that works for you.
Once you have your IMM posted, come back to The Story Siren on Sunday and add your link to the list. 
Try to post a comment on other bloggers IMM posts. I don’t expect you to post a comment on every single one, but pick a few!

All book bloggers are welcome, while I’d like to keep the theme to YA literature it’s NOT a requirement.

There is no right or wrong way to do In My Mailbox, you can vlog, you can take fun picture, you can use the books cover art, it’s up to you!

Most importantly HAVE FUN!

 

 

 

I received my very first book for review! Yay! I was contacted by the author on goodreads to review her book and she emailed me a copy to read on my nook.  I will be posting a review later today!

Synopsis from Goodreads: "Chrystine had had more reason than any other time of her life, even when facing one of the rampages of her drunken father. But she wasn't afraid. And that was odd, because although Aaryn, the person asking her that question, was her best friend, he was also a vampire. In fact, she was surrounded by hundreds of vampires."

 

 

Synopsis from Goodreads: " Meet Corrinne. She's living every girl's dream in New York City—shopping sprees at Barneys, open access to the best clubs and parties, and her own horse at the country club. Her perfect life is perfectly on track. At least it was. . . .

This review was already posted ;)

 

Synopsis from Goodreads: "When a vampire asks Sookie Stackhouse to use her telepathic skills to find another missing vampire, she agrees under one condition: the bloodsuckers must promise to let the humans go unharmed. Easier said than done."

 

When Corrinne's father is laid off, her world suddenly falls apart. Instead of heading to boarding school, she's stripped of her credit cards and shipped off to the boonies of Texas to live with her grandparents. On her own in a big public school and forced to take a job shoveling manure, Corrinne is determined to get back to the life she's supposed to be living. She doesn't care who she stomps on in the process. But when Corrinne makes an unlikely friend and discovers a total hottie at work, she begins to wonder if her life B.R.—before the recession—was as perfect as it seemed."

Review of Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder

Synopsis from Goodreads: "Wolves and panthers and bears roamed the deep Wisconsin woods in the 1870's. In those same woods, Laura Ingalls lived with her Pa and Ma and her sisters, Mary and Baby Carrie, in a snug little house built of logs. Pa hunted and trapped. Ma made her own cheese and maple sugar. All night long, the wind howled lonesomely."

My Review: I absolutely love this book! This was one of those books my mom started reading to my brother and me at a very young age. I remember wishing I was Laura. My mom even let us try some of the recipes they used in the book, we made butter they way they did once, with the carrots to dye it, and the candies with the snow. I have actually been seeing a lot about this book and whole series lately on other blogs. Some people raving about how much they love the book, and others were very negative. I think the thing to keep in mind that this was written from Laura's memory with a little bit of fictionalization mixed in, also that it was placed in a totally different time period, similar to Huck Finn or To Kill A Mockingbird. While some of the ideas and language and prejudices that are in the series are not appropriate now, they were common thought then. While I don't agree with some of the things said, I can still enjoy the book for what it is.

Reading Little House in the Big Woods over 20 years since I first listened to my mom read it to us, I love it just as much, and honestly maybe a little more. I almost wish we could go back to a time where families were close, we didn't need the latest and greatest, were satisfied with what we have, and work hard for what we eat and use. I think it would make us all a little more appreciative. I also would love to go back and sit on Pa's knee listening to stories and songs and feel the comfort and safety Laura felt knowing that no matter what Pa had his gun and would always protect the family.

Can I also say that Garth Williams illustrations are genius?! They fit the book so well and it is nice to come along a random illustration that isn't just about what Laura is doing.

My Rating: I love this book and look forward to reading it to my own kids and can't give it a rating any less than Four Paws and a Stump Wag!

Review of Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris

Synopsis for Goodreads: "Sookie Stackhouse is just a small-time cocktail waitress in small-town Louisiana. Until the vampire of her dreams walks into her life-and one of her coworkers checks out....

Maybe having a vampire for a boyfriend isn't such a bright idea. ."

My Review: I finally got to read this first of Sookie Stackhouse books, and Loved It! I wasn't sure what to expect but I have heard a lot of great things about True Blood. I adore Sookie, she is such a fun spunky character. It was a book that just grabbed you and wouldn't let you go. I had a hard time putting it down for the Read and React at Sunny Reads and now can't wait to start the next one! There were a lot of things going on, some plot lines that didn't seem to go anywhere (like the Malcolm, Diane & Liam that came to visit Bill) but the main story line kept moving. I was a little surprised at the ending (but wont give anything away). I can't wait to see what happens in the next book!!

 

My Rating: I definitely have to give this one Four Paws! It probably could have been even higher if it didn't have all the odd little tangents, hopefully those are cleared up in the next books!

Review of Where I Belong by Gwendolyn Heasley

Synopsis:"Meet Corrinne. She's living every girl's dream in New York City—shopping sprees at Barneys, open access to the best clubs and parties, and her own horse at the country club. Her perfect life is perfectly on track. At least it was. . . .

When Corrinne's father is laid off, her world suddenly falls apart. Instead of heading to boarding school, she's stripped of her credit cards and shipped off to the boonies of Texas to live with her grandparents. On her own in a big public school and forced to take a job shoveling manure, Corrinne is determined to get back to the life she's supposed to be living. She doesn't care who she stomps on in the process. But when Corrinne makes an unlikely friend and discovers a total hottie at work, she begins to wonder if her life B.R.—before the recession—was as perfect as it seemed."

My Review: I loved how current this book was, dealing with issues we all face today without being all doom and gloom. Honestly I didn't enjoy Corrinne, far to self centered for me but I am glad she worked through it with Kitsy's help. Maybe its just me growing up in that small cowboy town and then moving to the big city on the east coast that didn't mesh with the book. I absolutely love Bubby and Kitsy though! Corrinne and her relationship really reminded me of my own relationship with my brother. He has looked up to me for a very long time and I know I was mean to him a few of those teenage years until I remembered the value of family.The ending kind of left me hanging, maybe there will be a next one. I would really like to know what happens next, what decisions were made, did she break more hearts or did she take a little sacrifice? Where exactly did Corrinne decide she belonged?!

My Rating: It was a fun, easy read but not something that could have held my interest for too long. I only really connected with the sub characters. I think I give this book Two Paws and a Stump Wag due to the fact that it was kept short enough not to loose my interest entirely.

Waiting on Wednesday

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

My Pick:

Heat Rises by Richard Castle

Expected Release Date - September 20, 2011

I love the show Castle and have been wanting to read the Nikki Heat books so as soon as this one comes out I am buying all three and taking a weekend to read them all!

I'm Back!!

Sorry I have been away for pretty much the entire last week. It was a mad push to get everything done for the My Little Pony Fair on Friday and Saturday.  I just wanted to share a little bit of my love of ponies and the pony community with all of you (especially since several of you expressed interest in more info on the ponies).

The MLP Fair was hosted in my home state of Rhode Island at Hasbro's headquarters! 

We did a tour of the headquarters but were not allowed to take an pictures within the building or on the tour. They were very serious about this which was a shame, because their hall of memories was the best part! They had little displays of popular toys from the past! They had the original Monopoly game, GI Joes (including a MIB nurse), Lincoln logs, and Tonka Trucks! Of course a big Mr. Potatohead display too!

We also saw the production center where they produce the advertising, both commercials and print adds. It would be a very cool place to work!

We also saw the design center where they put together prototype toys and even got to talk to some of the people who hand paint the pony models!

Then we got to watch a movie premier of a documentary about pony collecting. That is Julie (aka MustbeJewel) who created the movie in the picture with me! (I did manage to get a copy of the movie for myself too).

After a very late night of finishing customs and getting the last few things together it was time for the vendor day on Saturday! I had a booth with a friend of mine (aka mlpgal13)

That's me in costume behind the booth.  My pony name is Alexia on all the pony forums. I did the pony drawings on the front of our table (another late night adventure this last week). It was a great day for selling ponies!

Now for the most exciting part . . .  the customs contests!

There were 4 different categories to enter this year . .

Artwork and handicraft were two categories, I wasn't able to get a picture of those display tables :(

Then there were the Custom categories

First was Hasbro Inspired, where you re-made a hasbro pony into a different generation, pose, style, etc.

And then the Original Customs, where you had free reign to do as you wanted, sky was the limit for your ideas.

There were many fantastic customs entered! The ponies were voted on by the Hasbro team and Judges and then again by the Pony Fair attendants/ fans.  The top two places were announce for each of them.

I am so excited to tell you that the Hasbro Team and Judges voted my Original Custom, Unity, First Place!!!! What an Honor!!!

And . . . The Fans voted my Hasbro Inspired custom, Bubble Bath, 2nd place!!!

Oh My Gosh! It was so exciting!! To not only have my name announced once but to have it announced twice!! It was never expected!

I hope you all had just as fantastic of a weekend!! I promise to get back to the books now ;)