Please update your bookmarks!

So my plan to reveal my new blog and new URL address was an epic fail. As you can see from the last time I posted here, I haven't been updating. Lots of reasons for this. Since I'm changing the blog name, my littlelovelybooks.com URL will not be renewed when it expires in a couple of months. If you want to stick with me, please change your bookmarks to littlelovelybooks.blogspot.com so that when the URL expires you can still find me.

The Walking Dead Vol 1: Days Gone Bye

Title: The Walking Dead Vol 1: Days Gone Bye
Author: Robert Kirkman and illustrated by Tony Moore
Pages: 144, paperback
Rating: I loved it!

I picked up a copy of this for Dewey's read-a-thon but left it in the car. When I wanted to read it, it was after midnight and I wasn't going outside in the dark to get it. I wish I had. It was wonderful! I consider this my first graphic novel even though I loved comics as a kid. 

I am a huge fan of the show so to see what it was based off of was really interesting. The illustrations were good and it was such a fun read. I will definitely be picking up more graphic novels in the future.

I loved how the illustrations not only supported the story but in many instances told the story. That's a really different way for me to read a book and I enjoyed it very much.

Our library system doesn't seem to carry very many graphic novels so I'll be on the lookout for them other places for sure.

Patient Zero by Jonathan Mayberry - thoughts on

Title: Patient Zero (Joe Ledger #1)
Author: Jonathan Mayberry
Pages: Kindle, 421
Rating: 4.5 out of 5, I loved it
Source: My own, paperback and Kindle versions

I'm back on a zombie kick and this was the book I started out with for Dewey's readathon. I probably wouldn't start with such a big book in the future but I really enjoyed it. It's about a police officer who is pulled into a top secret government agency. They are trying to stop terrorists from releasing "walkers" to kill everyone.

Although it's all been done before I liked Joe Ledger's character quite a bit. He's a complicated character. He's had a tough life and you feel for him but he's also tough as nails. He's got some great one liners and you know me and my love of all things sarcastic.

I enjoyed the non stop action throughout and thought that the pacing of the plot was well done. Some info dumps along the way but they were probably necessary. The story is quite terrifying because I can totally see this actually happening....that someone would invent a virus that would make people into zombie like creatures that want to kill everything in site.

The only negative that I had with it was the romance. It was light and it wasn't right away but it was too predictable and quite unnecessary in my opinion.

Overall I really loved this one and wanted to read the second in the series right away. That almost never happens so that is saying quite a bit.

Dewey's End of Event Wrap Up

Another excellent event has come and gone. A huge thanks to Andi and Heather for all their hard work, to the cheerleaders for giving encouragement and to everyone - cheerleader or not - who left comments on my blog. I appreciate every single one of them. 

I'm not sure how many readathons I've done. I specifically planned to split my time between reading and visiting others blog while working on my own blog. I also planned several naps throughout. 

I was more interested in the number of pages read. My goal was 700 pages and I read 808. Way more than I thought I'd be able to read. I enjoyed visiting all the blogs that I got to see too. It was fun to see what everyone else was reading and how they were updating their blog. Was a super fun event as always.

1. Which hour was most daunting for you? Around 2 am
2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year? I didn't have any of those. Tee hee hee. One of my books was really good but really long (Patient Zero)
3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year? No, it was excellent as always!
4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon? For me personally I loved that a specifically split my time between blogs and reading and that I scheduled in naps.
5. How many books did you read? 3 which is way more than I thought I would.
6. What were the names of the books you read? Patient Zero, How to Win the Game of Business and Notorious Nineteen
7. Which book did you enjoy most? Patient Zero. It was non stop action and I'm back on a zombie kick so it was a good choice. A bit long though.
8. Which did you enjoy least? Notorious Nineteen. I was looking for a fluffy book that I could download right away to my Kindle and that was available from the library. They are so silly.
9. If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders? I wasn't officially signed up as a cheerleader this time but my best advice is to open a few tabs at a time and knock them out for a certain period of time and then go back to you reading.
10. How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time? I can't wait to participate again. Hopefully it will fall on an weekend that my boys are at their dad's so that I can fully participate throughout the whole 24 hours. I like splitting my time between reading and visiting blogs so I'll probably sign up as an official cheerleader.

Dewey's End of Hour Wrap ups

This will be the master post for all of my end of hour wrap ups. I am splitting my day between reading and reading other blogs and updating my own. In years past I haven't split it up that way but this year I want to do more blog visiting.

Hour 1: Reading Patient Zero by Jonathan Mayberry. Read from 21% to 25% on the Kindle and then started doing an update here. I am off to visit blogs until hour 2. Hope everyone is having a great first hour. Happy reading!

Hour 2: Read from 25% to 29% of Patient Zero. Have visited quite a few blogs to leave comments. Seems like everyone is so excited for this round of Dewey's.

Hour 3: Read 29% to 34% of Patient Zero and visited more blogs this hour.

Hour 4: Read 34% to 39% of Patient Zero and visited more blogs. Completed two mini challenges.

Hour 5: a bit of nap to rest my eyes.

Hour 6: No reading. Just visiting blogs.

Hour 7: Read to 52% of Patient Zero. Visited blogs.

Hour 8: I'm up to 69% of Patient Zero and have visited more blogs.

Hour 9: Up to 73% of Patient Zero. Needing to hit a second wind so I might take a nap soon.

Hour 10: forgot to update. Oopsies.

Hour 11: Got up to 90% of my book done. Loving this one. 

Hour 12: Finished Patient Zero. (461 pages) For the next couple of hours I'll be co-hostessing over at the main blog. Come by to say hi!

Hour 13: 39% of How to Win at the Game of Business by Mark Cuban. Co-hostessing over at the main blog and on the main twitter account.

Hour 14: Up to 82% of How to Win and co-hostessed at the main blog and Twitter.

Hour 15: Finished How to Win (67 pages). Read 2% of A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin.

Hour 16: Read 21% of Notorious Nineteen by Janet Evanovich.

Hour 17: Somehow I missed posting an hour.

Hour 18: Up to 42% of Notorious Nineteen. Think I need a nap.

Hour 19: 62% now. Slept for a few minutes,

Hour 20: 77%. Going to sleep for the next hour.

Hour 21:  napped.

Hour 22: napped,

Hour 23: More reading but I can't read the percent on the Kindle anymore.

Hour 24: Finished Notorious Nineteen at 6:34 am EST, my eyes are pretty much done. Actually, my eyes are very much done. I'll do the wrap up post when I wake up later. Well done, everyone! Hope you all had a most wonderful reading day. 

Dewey's Mid Event Survey

I can't believe that the time has passed so quickly. So true that time flies when you're having fun, huh?

Here are my answers to the Mid Event Survey.

Mid-Event Survey:
1. What are you reading right now? Still on my first book of the day, Patient Zero. I've been reading and visiting blogs. I have enjoyed splitting up my time this way. So much fun!
2. How many books have you read so far? None, see above.
3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon? Not sure. Have forgotten what else I have to read. :-)
4. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those? Only ones that I planned. Going to other blogs and taking a nap was scheduled. The rest of the time has been me and my great book.
5. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far? Nothing so far.

Hope that everyone is booking along (see what I did there?) and that you're having a ton of fun. I'll be co-hostessing over at the main blog for the next two hours, stop by to say hi! Happy reading!

Dewey's Readathon Mini Challenge: Shelfie

The Book Monsters posted a great mini challenge for this hour. A shelfie. Here's the top two shelves from one of my book cases. The rest is blocked right now so this will have to do.

Happy reading, ya'll!

Dewey's Opening Meme

It's here! It's here! Dewey's 24 hour read-a-thon is here! We'll officially begin in about 30 minutes. Sorry for blowing up your feeds today but I'll be posting each hour or so for most of the event. To get the party started here are my answers to the opening meme...

1) What fine part of the world are you reading from today? Florida
2) Which book in your stack are you most looking forward to? The Walking Dead graphic novel.3) Which snack are you most looking forward to? chips and dip!4) Tell us a little something about yourself! I am the mom of two of the world's most adorable boys. I enjoy reading (obviously!), watching movies and spending time doing crazy activities with my kids.5) If you participated in the last read-a-thon, what’s one thing you’ll do different today? If this is your first read-a-thon, what are you most looking forward to? I've never written reviews right away but this year I'll write a mini review after each book. I'm also splitting my time between blogs/blogging and reading. I've never done that before. 

Dewey's Read a thon Goals Post

Dewey's Read a thon is this weekend and since it's one of my favorite bookish events, I'm excited to be able to participate. The boys are at their dad's so I can spend 24 hours in stress free, guilt free reading and commenting on other blogs. 

I want to split my time between reading and blogging/visiting other blogs and resting my poor old eyes. Instead of a goal to read a certain number of books, I want to read a certain number of pages. I'd like to read 700 pages. 

I've loaded up my Kindle and have a stack of possibilities too. In year's past I've tried to finish as many books as possible but with the change to pages read instead, I'm not concerned with that. Hoping that will take a bit of stress out of the day too. I feel like a loser when I don't finish a big stack. Especially when I see how many others read. 

I'm posting my List of Possibilities tomorrow and think I've got some good ones on there.

The one where I failed...

My plan to update my blog and move to a new URL was an epic failure. I have the new blog URL but I have done NOTHING over there. With Dewey's Read a thon coming up this weekend, I'm staying put for the time being. You'll see update posts from me throughout the day. The boys are at their dad's and I'm taking the entire 24 hours (plus a few after to sleep) for stress free, guilt free, reading and cheering time. I'll be posting my goals tomorrow. 

Blogging Break

Taking a bit of a blogging break while I take care of a few things. I plan to be back and bigger than ever on October 1, 2014. New URL, new blog name, new look!

Bout of Books - Update Post

8/20 pages read:

books read:

impressions:

8/19 pages read: audio of Focus on the Good Stuff by Mike Robbins

books read: none completed

impressions: Eyes gave out today so I am listening to an audio book.

8/18 pages read: read on Kindle so unsure. Reading Unlimited Power by Tony Robbins and 1 hour of an audio book.

books read: none yet

impressions: today was back to school for my kids and my younger son started kindergarten. It as a busy day so I'm glad I got anything read (or listened to).

Bout of Books 11.0 is almost here! It starts the same day the boys go back to school. This is both good (they are at school) and bad (1st weeks are always crazy) but my basic goal is always the same - to read more than I normally do in any given week. Since my reading is way down, reading ANY book will be a win. 

I'm taking a page from Andi's book and shooting for a certain number of pages rather than a certain number of books. I want to average 100 pages a day so 700 pages total. If my eyes will cooperate, I will hit that fairly easy.

I want to participate in 2 challenges.This depends a lot on the challenges because I find some of them to be so labor intensive, I pass but my goal is to participate in any 2 during the week.

I want to attend 1 of the 2 Twitter chats. In years past I have so enjoyed reading along during the Twitter chats. 

Visit 5 blogs each day and leave a comment. Blogger interaction and comments really makes this event even more fun so this time around, leaving comments will be a priority. 

I am so looking forward to this event. If you're participating too, please leave a comment so I can follow you!

Bout of Books 11 - The Goals Post

Bout of Books 11.0 is almost here! It starts the same day the boys go back to school. This is both good (they are at school) and bad (1st weeks are always crazy) but my basic goal is always the same - to read more than I normally do in any given week. Since my reading is way down, reading ANY book will be a win. 

I'm taking a page from Andi's book and shooting for a certain number of pages rather than a certain number of books. I want to average 100 pages a day so 700 pages total. If my eyes will cooperate, I will hit that fairly easy.

I want to participate in 2 challenges.This depends a lot on the challenges because I find some of them to be so labor intensive, I pass but my goal is to participate in any 2 during the week.

I want to attend 1 of the 2 Twitter chats. In years past I have so enjoyed reading along during the Twitter chats. 

Visit 5 blogs each day and leave a comment. Blogger interaction and comments really makes this event even more fun so this time around, leaving comments will be a priority. 

I am so looking forward to this event. If you're participating too, please leave a comment so I can follow you!

Over the Top by Zig Ziglar {thoughts on}

Title: Over the Top
Author: Zig Ziglar
Source: library loan
Rating: 5/5

As someone who loves both Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead, I find it a weird thing that I am so interested in only reading positive books that make me think and grow. It seems as if I wouldn't enjoy shows that are so quite so dark but I do. I think that is is super important to fill our minds with what we want to come out of our mouths and Ziglar is always encouraging.

Although this is only my second book written by Ziglar, I have literally listened to and/or watched many hours of his seminars and talks. No matter how many times I listen to one, I always learn something new. I love the combination of humor, faith and practical life tips.

This book is a continuation of See You at the Top (which I've read but not yet reviewed) and it goes into more depth of the general ideas he teaches. There are many, many Ziglar catch phrases and I've heard some of the stories before but the subject matter is excellent.

Being a more positive person helps in all areas of life and he teaches some basics as well as more "advanced" techniques. One thing that I really liked in this book was his example of his planner page where he lists his top 4 goals and what he's done each day to work towards them.

These types of books are ones that I want to own so I can refer to them again and again. 

Human Remains by Elizabeth Haynes (Thoughts On)

Title: Human Remains
Author: Elizabeth Haynes
Pages: 438
Publisher: Harper
Source: library
Rating: 4/5

Summary from Goodreads:

New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth Haynes returns with a disturbing and powerful tale that preys on our darkest fears.

Police analyst Annabel wouldn't describe herself as lonely. Her work and the needs of her aging mother keep her busy. But Annabel is shocked when she discovers her neighbor's decomposing body in the house next door, and she is appalled to think that no one, including herself, noticed the woman's absence. Annabel sets out to investigate, despite her colleagues' lack of interest, and discovers that such cases are frighteningly common in her hometown.

A chilling thriller and a hymn to all the lonely people whose individual voices haunt its pages, Human Remains shows how vulnerable we are when we live alone, and how easily ordinary lives can fall apart when no one is watching.

I've been craving more adult fiction lately so while perusing the new fiction stacks at the library, this title caught my eye. Then the cover kept my attention. It was the tagline "How well do you know your neighbors?" that made me put it in my bag though. How well do we know our neighbors?

That Annabel's neighbor had been dead in the house next door for so long without anyone noticing is a sad commentary on society. We are so caught up in our Facebook "friendships" and in tweeting every little thing that we don't really look up from our little phone screens.

I'm guilty of not actually wanting to know ANYTHING about my neighbors. I've always thought that there was nothing wrong with just wanting to go in my house and be left alone. This book really made me think though. It's a typical thriller but the subject is really interesting.

It seems that there is more to the story when Annabel goes digging into other cases with severely decomposed bodies. The story is told from multiple points of view and this switch up of narration keeps the tension going. We learn pretty early on who's responsible but the need to know how and why made me read on.

I think that thriller fans will really enjoy this one. I look forward to reading more by this author. It was well written with interesting characters and enough suspense to carry you through the entire book.

Adding to the Stacks #14 - Squeal worthy edition

I was super excited over these books!

Canterbury Tales - awesome illustrated version. I learned the first part of this in old English for a class in college and still love it.

Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis - 7 book box set. Yessss!

Second Star by Alyssa B. Sheinmel - an ARC of this one. Has gotten some good buzz from some of my favorite bloggers. Will be starting this one soon since it's a summer romance type.

Love Letters to the Dead - squeal! I just about shoved a woman aside to get this one and...

Landline by Rainbow Rowell - oh my gosh. Can't believe I found an ARC of this one!

The Lost Hero and Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan - I've become a fan of his from reading the Percy Jackson series. These are the 1st two books in the Heroes of Olympus series. Awesome condition hardbacks. The chances of me getting to these soon are slim to none but I just couldn't leave them. I just couldn't!

I'm baaaacccckkk!

I had no idea that I would be taking such a long break from the blog but now I'm back! Getting back into the routine of reading regularly and am looking forward to getting back into the posting groove as well.

Tomorrow I'll be sharing the awesome books I just picked up. Can't wait to get to reading them but first I am going to finish the two I'm working on now...

#GIRLBOSS by Sophia Amoruso. A former ebay seller with a rags to riches story. 

Over the Top by Zig Ziglar. You can never go wrong with the encouragement that is Zig Ziglar.

ARC Envy #19 - Company Town by Madeline Ashby

Every week several of my favorite bloggers post vlogs or whatever of all the great book hauls they've received for the week. Since I'm a tiny little fish in the huge book blogging pond, my mailbox isn't stuffed with all the great ARCs that they get. Dana's ARC Envy is my way of highlighting an ARC that I *wish* had been sent to me too. 

Title: Company Town
Author: Madeline Ashby
Publisher: Angry Robot
Expected Publication Date: September, 2014

Judging a book by its cover:  Love this cover to pieces. 

Know anything about the author?  No, nothing.

Why do I want it?  Love the cover and the plot sounds quite interesting!

Summary from Goodreads:

Meet Hwa. One of the few in her community to forego bio-engineered enhancements, she’s the last truly organic person left on the rig. But she’s an expert in the arts of self-defence, and she’s been charged with training the Family’s youngest, who has been receiving death threats – seemingly from another timeline. 

Meanwhile, a series of interconnected murders threatens the city’s stability – serial killer? Or something much, much worse...?

What ARC are you envying this week?

Dualed by Elsie Chapman {Thoughts On}

Title: Dualed (Dualed #1)
Author: Elsie Chapman
Rating: 2 of 5
Source: Library

Summary from Goodreads:

In the city of Kersh, everyone must eliminate their genetic Alternate twin, raised by another family, before their twentieth birthday. West Grayer, 15, has trained as a fighter, and has one month to hunt and kill her Alt. A tragic misstep shakes her confidence. Guilty, grieving, she feels unworthy, runs from her Alt and from love - both can destroy her.

Dualed was one of my most anticipated debuts of 2013 but after less than stellar reviews started streaming in, it got pushed way down the list. When I saw that the sequel, Divided, was being released, I decided I should probably try it. I'm disappointed to say that I was...disappointed. 

It just didn't make sense. The fact that there are Alts at all doesn't make sense. The "romance" didn't really make sense. West's initial rejection of the "romance" didn't make sense. Do you sense a theme? No sense making. In spades.

The good:

It grabbed me from the first sentence and it was pretty action packed throughout. West wasn't a hugely dislikable character. Chord sounded cute.

Other than those things I spent most of the book scratching my head wondering if I was missing something. I have Divided on my Kindle so at some point I'll continue with the series but sadly, I'm in no rush.     

Bout of Books Update #3

I switched from The House Girl to Dualed by Elsie Chapman. It seems to be sticking. Yay for reading slump busters! I read about 100 pages last night and hope to finish it tonight. I know that it's gotten mixed reviews but I was caught up in it from the first line. It was one of my most anticipated books of 2013 but I'm just now getting around to reading it. 

Updated #2:

Yesterday I read a bit of Kevin O'Leary's Cold Hard Truth. This is an interlibrary loan and a re-read for me. So far I like it just as much as the first time. 

And I got happy mail from Epic Reads. Dodger by Terry Pratchett and Deception (Defiance #2) by C.J. Redwine. I haven't read Defiance so if anyone wants Deception let me know. 

I think I'll be switching to Dodger today. It looks super cute! 

Update #1

It's day four of the read-a-thon and this one has been an epic fail for me. I've not been in the mood to read so I've not read much. Started The House Girl by Tara Conklin yesterday but it hasn't grabbed me so far. Not sure what is causing this particular reading slump. Hoping that this weekend will be better. The boys will be at their father's and I'll have the house to myself.

My Goals:

Bout of Books is just days away and this is my official goals post. Going easy on myself this time because I'm not sure how my eyes are going to be. If they are good, I'll get more done, but if they are bad, then oh well. La la la life goes on. I love this bookish event because it is so laid back.

Goals are:

Read at least 500 pages total.
Visit at least 15 blogs on the list of participating bloggers.
Do one of the Twitter chats.
Don't stress if this is an epic fail and I don't read a single page :-)

I don't have a list of books that I'd like to get read...will just go with what I'm in the mood for. Anyone else participating?

Bout of Books Update #2

Yesterday I read a bit of Kevin O'Leary's Cold Hard Truth. This is an interlibrary loan and a re-read for me. So far I like it just as much as the first time. 

And I got happy mail from Epic Reads. Dodger by Terry Pratchett and Deception (Defiance #2) by C.J. Redwine. I haven't read Defiance so if anyone wants Deception let me know. 

I think I'll be switching to Dodger today. It looks super cute! 

Update #1

It's day four of the read-a-thon and this one has been an epic fail for me. I've not been in the mood to read so I've not read much. Started The House Girl by Tara Conklin yesterday but it hasn't grabbed me so far. Not sure what is causing this particular reading slump. Hoping that this weekend will be better. The boys will be at their father's and I'll have the house to myself.

My Goals:

Bout of Books is just days away and this is my official goals post. Going easy on myself this time because I'm not sure how my eyes are going to be. If they are good, I'll get more done, but if they are bad, then oh well. La la la life goes on. I love this bookish event because it is so laid back.

Goals are:

Read at least 500 pages total.
Visit at least 15 blogs on the list of participating bloggers.
Do one of the Twitter chats.
Don't stress if this is an epic fail and I don't read a single page :-)

I don't have a list of books that I'd like to get read...will just go with what I'm in the mood for. Anyone else participating?

Bout of Books Update Post - The One with the Epic Fail

It's day four of the read-a-thon and this one has been an epic fail for me. I've not been in the mood to read so I've not read much. Started The House Girl by Tara Conklin yesterday but it hasn't grabbed me so far. Not sure what is causing this particular reading slump. Hoping that this weekend will be better. The boys will be at their father's and I'll have the house to myself.

My Goals:

Bout of Books is just days away and this is my official goals post. Going easy on myself this time because I'm not sure how my eyes are going to be. If they are good, I'll get more done, but if they are bad, then oh well. La la la life goes on. I love this bookish event because it is so laid back.

Goals are:

Read at least 500 pages total.
Visit at least 15 blogs on the list of participating bloggers.
Do one of the Twitter chats.
Don't stress if this is an epic fail and I don't read a single page :-)

I don't have a list of books that I'd like to get read...will just go with what I'm in the mood for. Anyone else participating?

The Girl Who Came Home by Hazel Gaynor

 
 

Title: The Girl Who Came Home
Author: Hazel Gaynor (Facebook)
Pages: 359
Source: received a copy from TLC Book Tours in exchange for an honest review
Rating: really good

Summary from Goodreads:

 A voyage across the ocean becomes the odyssey of a lifetime for a young Irish woman. . . .

Ireland, 1912 . . .

Fourteen members of a small village set sail on RMS Titanic, hoping to find a better life in America. For seventeen-year-old Maggie Murphy, the journey is bittersweet. Though her future lies in an unknown new place, her heart remains in Ireland with Séamus, the sweetheart she left behind. When disaster strikes, Maggie is one of the few passengers in steerage to survive. Waking up alone in a New York hospital, she vows never to speak of the terror and panic of that fateful night again.

Chicago, 1982 . . .

Adrift after the death of her father, Grace Butler struggles to decide what comes next. When her great-grandmother Maggie shares the painful secret about Titanic that she's harbored for almost a lifetime, the revelation gives Grace new direction—and leads both her and Maggie to unexpected reunions with those they thought lost long ago.

Inspired by true events, The Girl Who Came Home poignantly blends fact and fiction to explore the Titanic tragedy's impact and its lasting repercussions on survivors and their descendants.


The story of the Titanic has always fascinated me. The tragedy on that ship is almost more than I can imagine. This novel was based on true events and it was interesting to see how the author made it work. Both Grace and Maggie were interesting, likeable characters but Maggie's story was more interesting to me. I loved her transition from Ireland to the ship. The fears and struggles that she had were so real. It wasn't a big portion of the book but it was so emotionally powerful.

I enjoyed the way the stories were told and felt it was well thought out and easy to follow. I have found that some books that switch from the past to the present and vice versa are too jumpy and don't feel quite as seamless a story. 

The ending and epilogue were satisfying. I was a bit worried that it would end not to my liking knowing the history of the ship but it was good.

I think that anyone with a love of historical events and especially the Titanic, of course, will enjoy this story. I am unsure specifically what was not actual events but I enjoyed the story.
 

Bout of Books Goals Post

Bout of Books is just days away and this is my official goals post. Going easy on myself this time because I'm not sure how my eyes are going to be. If they are good, I'll get more done, but if they are bad, then oh well. La la la life goes on. I love this bookish event because it is so laid back.

Goals are:

Read at least 500 pages total.
Visit at least 15 blogs on the list of particiapting bloggers.
Do one of the Twitter chats.
Don't stress if this is an epic fail and I don't read a single page :-)

I don't have a list of books that I'd like to get read...will just go with what I'm in the mood for. Anyone else participating?

Book Clean Out Challenge

I don't speak for all book bloggers when I say this but since becoming a book blogger, I have acquired even more books than I already had. Good problem to have except that looking at these stacks and stacks of unread books makes me feel really super guilty. Especially if they are unread ARCs that authors or publishers have sent to me.

Lately my reading time has changed and I'm simply not reading as many books as I was. I've mentioned before that my eyes have been bothering me. This makes it even harder to get as much reading done as I'd like.

So I'm challenging myself to get rid of some books before I get ANY more. There are some books that I know I won't read (or re-read) and these will be the first to go. Then I'm planning to separate them out a bit into must reads, maybes and keepers. I'd also love to get another book case so that they aren't double stacked.

If you've ever done a book clean out project, what did you do? Give them away? Sell them? Share some tips because I need them!

Bout of Books Ya'll!

Bout of Books is my other favorite bookish event so I'm thrilled to post my intention to participate again! 

From the official page:

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, May 12th and runs through Sunday, May 18th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 10 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

 Hopefully by May my mojo will be back. I will do a goals post closer to time. Let me know if you're playing along!

The Farm by Emily McKay (Thoughts On)

Title: The Farm (The Farm #1)
Author: Emily McKay
Pages: 496
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Source: Christmas gift from My Favorite
Rating: 4/5

Summary from Goodreads:

Life was different in the Before: before vampires began devouring humans in a swarm across America; before the surviving young people were rounded up and quarantined. These days, we know what those quarantines are—holding pens where human blood is turned into more food for the undead monsters, known as Ticks. Surrounded by electrical fences, most kids try to survive the Farms by turning on each other…

And when trust is a thing of the past, escape is nearly impossible.

Lily and her twin sister Mel have a plan. Though Mel can barely communicate, her autism helps her notice things no one else notices—like the portion of electrical fence that gets turned off every night. Getting across won’t be easy, but as Lily gathers what they need to escape, a familiar face appears out of nowhere, offering to help…

Carter was a schoolmate of Lily’s in the Before. Managing to evade capture until now, he has valuable knowledge of the outside world. But like everyone on the Farm, Carter has his own agenda, and he knows that behind the Ticks is an even more dangerous threat to the human race...

I was interested in this one from the first time I heard it mentioned. A different take on the (now tired) vampire theme sounded fun. I di