Top Ten Series I Want To Start, but Haven't Yet.... YA EDITION.

I guess, everyone has that guilty (or kinda guilty, because I don't feet that guilty about that) list in head. So here's mine, with teeny-tiny explanations:

1. The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer.

 I know, I know, this series is super popular and got a lot of hype these past few years and I own first 2 books (Cinder and Scarlett), but for some weird reason I keep putting it off. I'll try to read it soon, especially since the 3rd one, Cress, came out recently and I really want to read them back-to-back.

2. Legend Trilogy by Marie Lu.

 I have a little strange reason for this one, but still. I wanted to read this series for such a loooong time, I own all 3 books, thought I researched it well, but, BUT (and I don't even know how I missed that...*idiot*), but I didn't know this series was based on Les Miserables... @-@ And ever since I found out about that, I just lost an excitement... I can't even explain why... 
 But, after all the hype on Booktube started to fade a lil', I want to finally jump on that bandwagon and read all three one after another.=)

3. Chaos Walking Trilogy by Patrick Ness.

 Well, I don't really have a reason for still not reading this trilogy, tbh. And since I own all of the books and don't have an excuse as well. So, *fingers crossed*, I'll read it in 2014.

4. Summer Series by Jenny Han.

 I want to read this series, but little later, maybe closer to summer. And, thanks God, I own only the 1st book.. *fuh*

5. The Archived Duology/Trilogy/Series (who knows!) by Victoria Scwab.

 I'll read it. Soon. Promise.

6. (see what I've done there? haha) Gone Series by Michael Grant.

 There're 6 chunksters in this series, guys. SIX! I own the first book (and it's not me, who done that with cover. I bought it used) and keep preparing myself to read it.

7. The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare.

 Read first 4 books in The Mortal Instruments series in January 2013 and recently got the 5th one. But I want to read this series even more, because a lot of people keep saying that it's even better than TMI... Hm, and I really liked TMI! So, can't wait.

 Own first 2 books, btw.... In Russian.

8. The Fifth Wave trilogy(?) by Rick Yancey.

 Heard mixed reviews, but still plan to read it. Actually this month as a group read.=) My edition is in Russian, btw.

9. Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children trilogy (?) by Ransom Riggs.

 The 2nd book came out recently, but I haven't read the 1st one yet. I know, shame on me. Especially, since I have 2 copies of the 1st book - in Russian (bought) and in English (won). But, people, there're sooooo many good books out there... Oh my. I need more time.

And finally...

10. Uglies by Scott Westerfeld.

 Own all 4 books (3 and companion, Extras), because I'm cray and there was a huge booksale once... So, basically, I NEED TO READ THOSE!!!

 Oh, and Uglies and Pretties form a face together (fun fact for you...). Yay! to Russian editions, once again.=)

 Sooooooo, yeah. It's not all of the book series I have on my shelves, though, it's just a tip of an iceberg... YA tip (because I have an Adult list, too. Will post it later). And I want to read all of them, I just need more time.

 Here they are together. Enjoy the SPINES!

HAVE YOU READ ANY OF THESE? ALL? (I'M SURE YOU ARE....) ANY ADVICE FOR ME WHERE SHOULD I START?

By the way, the realisation of the fact that I OWN TOO MANY UNREAD BOOKS made me apply a new rule: "NEVER, for the sake of sanity, buy more then 1 book in a series at once!!!". Which means, read the first book and then buy next.=)

O.K., TELL ME IN COMMENTS WHAT ARE YOUR TOP UNREAD SERIES, THAT YOU OWN?

Hope you're having a great day, reading awesome book and feeling super cool.

DFTBA!!!

 

A Year In Japan by Kate T. Williamson | Graphic Memoir/Book Review

 I found this book on Goodreads, because it was marked as similar to Tokyo on Foot by Florent Chavouet. So I had a gift card back in the day and ordered both. That's it, that's a story.=D

 O.K., there's a little more. I've read GR description, then looked leafed-through Amazon sample, liked what I saw and...you kow the rest.
 I thought A Year in Japan will be your typical graphic memoir (I haven't read a lot of them, but I know what to expact), but this book is more like a compilation of facts about Japan that author gathered during her stay there.
 It's made in form of show-and-tell journal where you see a drawing and then a little article connected to that drawing on the next page. I'll definitely say that I need a re-read in future, because despite a fact that I always remember a lot of bits'n'bobs - usually those that I don't really need, though - there where a lot of Japanese names for things and if I wanna know them (and I want to know them), I need to read this book again. 
 A Year in Japan was a quick read for sure and I'll recommend this book to all lovers of Japan, cultures&traditions and present day life, and to lovers of art, because in terms of illustrations this book was absolutely beautiful. Saying that I was more of a fan of Williamson's nature drawings, then her drawings of people.
 My favourite illustration without a doubt is this one (sorry for the blur... Damn you, shaky hands!):

 Because I don't know how Kate T. Williamson managed to do that, but for me, it actually feels like I'm looking through the window or standing in real park. Just..gorgeous!!!
 Also I really like this one:

 Yeah. Those 2 are my fav. Of course, I liked more than these 2, but I can't add 70% of book here, can I?=D

That being said, I also had a few probs with this book. And both of them have word "writing" in name.
 First of, I wasn't a big fan of a font (or style of writing), because A Year in Japan is made like a hand-written journal and despite my 6 years in Medical University (and you know how doctors write... I had and still write like that...), I couldn't understand some of the words at first, because of the way she connects letters, but I got used to it after first 20 pages, so it wasn't a huge problem.
 But I had a little bigger one with writing style, because this random bunch of facts and the way Kate described them weren't too exciting at first. It became more and more interesting closer to the middle, though.
 But at the end of the day, I had a little feeling, that this book is written by westerner about East, because last couple of articles were spiced with a drop of a snobbery (at least it felt like that for me, especially when she writes about street decorations...). I try not to be a snob myself, so I don't really like to read snob's musings about another countries culture and traditions. But, to be honest, I hope I was wrong about that.

 Other than that, this was a beautiful book, piece of art indeed. I can recommend it as a gift for sure and if it sounded at least slightly interesting to you, give it a go.=)

Add it on Goodreads
You can buy this book here: TheBookDepo  |  Amazon

My rating:
* * *,5.

 I'll read more books about Japan in upcoming months for sure, because I wanna know more and Tokyo on Foot is first on the list (since I own it =)).

HAVE YOU READ THIS BOOK? IF YES, WHAT DO YOU THINK? IF NUH, DO YOU PLAN TO?
AND ALSO, IF YOU HAVE ANY RECS FOR BOOKS ABOUT PRESENT DAY JAPAN AND CULTURE&TRADITIONS of JAPAN in GENERAL FOR ME, I'M OPEN FOR THOSE.

Hope you're having an awesome day, reading your next favourite book and just having a best time of your life.
Keep reading and DFTBA!

Few more words:
Paperback with HUGE French flaps, that form their own layer of cover, 192 pages, published by Princeton Architectural Press in 2006. Bought for ma-self haha.

Wordless Wednesday #1

The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein | Little Book Review

I haven't read it when I was a kid and this is my first read.

This story made me feel sad, because no matter how many years ago it was written, it still stays true up to this day.
People often don't appreciate what they have and keep asking too much. And the ones who love us can sacrifice everything to make us happy.
I think we need to give back and not only take-take-take whatever we want. It might be hard, but we need to try, because our own Giving Tree can become a stump, or in worse case - empty space...

It's truly amazing how sometimes children's books can give us more food for thoughts than some of the adult ones. Hm.

Sad story that made me think...


(1st photo source, 2nd photo source)

I'm sure lots of you have read. What do you think about this little, but not less profound children's picture book?

* * * * .

THE FIVES

 Hey guys! Hope you're all doing well.=)

I saw this on Carrie's (Books and Movies) page and decided to do it myself. It's kinda funny that you can follow the real chain of people getting this post from someone else's blog (an admitting that).=D [well, at least it was funny for me]

5 Books I’ve Recently Added to My TBR Pile:


1. Find Momo: Hide and Seek with an Adventurous Border Collie by Andrew Knapp;
2. Ordinary People by Judith Guest;
3. Ready Player One by Ernest Cline (I don't know why it haven't been there already, considering the fact that it's sitting on my shelf for about a year...:/);
4. Wandering Son. Volume One by Shimura Takako;
5. How to Say Goodbye in Robot by Natalie Standiford.


5 Books I’m Planning to Read in the Near Future:


1. The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss;
2. Tokyo on Foot by Florent Chavouet;
3. The Time Machine by H.G. Wells;
4. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell;
5. The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi (in Russian).


5 Books I Own But Still Haven’t Read:


1. Cinder by Marissa Meyer;
2. Swamplandia! by Karen Russell;
3. The Lollipop Shoes by Joanne Harris (in Russian);
4. Naughts & Crosses by Malorie Blackman;
5. North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell.


5 Books From Series I Need to Finish: 
(maybe it'll be a cheating to mension few books from series, but I don't care, 'cos I don't have to many series I want to finish)

  

1.,2. City of Lost Souls and City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare (this series is awesome, but it need to end!!!) (The Mortal Instruments Series);
3. Requiem by Lauren Oliver; (Delirium Trilogy)
4. Allegiant by Veronica Roth (will come out in Russian in March/April, just don't want to read it in English for some reason...) (Divergent Trilogy);
5. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling, obviously. O.K.,O.K., don't yell! I have my reasons for that, but I'll read this book eventually (I just don't want to ugly cry now).


5 Soon to Be Released Books That I’m Looking Forward to Reading:
(since I'm not really waiting for a lot of new releases, last 4 books will be "soon-to-be-released-in-paperback" ones. Hope you're O.K. with that.=))


1. Half Bad by Sally Green;
2. Perfect by Rachel Joyce;
3. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz;
4. How to Be a Victorian by Ruth Goodman;
5. The Boy on the Wooden Box by Leon Leybon.

Have you read any of these? If "yes", what do think of them? If "not", are you planning to?
If you made your own The Fives list, let me know and I'll read it.=)

Have a great day, awesome book and READ!
DFTBA!

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty by James Thurber | Audiobook & Short Story Review

 I'll post here both first thoughts (below) and thoughts after listening to an audiobook version, because they're really different.=)

PLEASE, if you're in any way like me, LISTEN TO THIS SHORT STORY AS AN AUDIOBOOK (it's only 15 min long, guys)!!! Ben Stiller rocks!

IT'S FREE on audible.com (at least now).

Update from February, 19, 2014:
 Hm, now, after listening to an audiobook narrated by Ben Stiller (brilliant narration, btw) I changed my mind about this short story completely and will be increasing my rating to 3,5, maybe even 4 stars (you'll see 4 stars anyway).
 Guess, this story has to be read to you, because whole picture appeared in front of my eyes while I was listening and story itself become understandable and I related to the main character, because who doesn't daydream entering some different worlds or situations, right?:)

 Maybe it's just me, but I don't usually change my rating if I didn't like the story (or just book in general) for the first time and most of the time I don't do a research if I didn't understand something in the book (maybe it's kinda lame, but oh well...), because I think books should be comprehensible for a readers of pretty much any intelligence (at least it suits my idea of books).

 But everything changed with this short story! Because when I was reading it myself almost all the voices sounded the same in my head, but Ben Stiller done an excellent job narrating this story and helped me to like it whole lot. Can't wait to watch the movie now.:)

First thoughts [Feb, 17, 2014]:
Aaarm, I got a feeling that I've missed something, because otherwise I just don't really understand what was that??? I like reading short stories with rich plot, but this one felt like stream of conciousness or throwing random facts in my face... Weird, tbh, because I haven't read anything like this for a loooong time.
Guess I need to re-read this short story someday, when I'm not sleepy or annoyed.::D . [gave it 2 stars back then]

Final rating:

* * * ,5-* * * * stars.

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi | Book Review

Seriously, Goodreads, you need to add 0,5s to your rating system, because all this is getting ridiculous...

More like 2,5/5 in my opinion.
Guys... Over-hyping sucks.
I was expecting so much more from this YA dystopian novel, and for me it turned into some bad romantic X-Men parody or romance in messed up society. I should carve it in stone that I won't read next "Hunger Games" (not in terms of arena, but in terms of amazingly written dystopian novel), no matter how hard I try and search for it. It was unique story, all kind of awesome and no one should compare any other book to "HG" any more. K? 

I don't know why lots of people become team Warner and stuff, maybe it's only after the next novella, but still, he seems to be crazy dude. Like for real.
And one more time in my reading history I liked side character more than main ones (I'm talking about Kenji, if someone's interested). Juliette was too whiny and blushy, like, guys, if I was blushing so many times (3 times on 1 page, man!) I'd thought I have a problem... Also, what a heck, why does she always think about different guy when she's with another one? Didn't get that. Or she's in love with both? Nuts!:/ And with all that fock yeah power, why did she allowed some jerks imprison her. do all that horrible things to her and treat her like she's nothing??? Dang! I wanted another kick ass heroine on my list, but no, not this time.
As for Adam, well, I liked his character way more than Warner,and if I have to choose a team (which I'm sure I don't), I'll be on his side of that cray triangle. But still, I think he's too good. Unbelievably nice. He seems to be flawless and even despite a fact I like him, all that was unrealistic. Maybe I'm too judgmental, but that's what I think. No one is too good these days.:D O.k., O.k., he was fine... (and super hot, and his dark blue eyes... Stop, Juliette, I got it!).

Writing style is another "interesting" thing to talk about... I definitely can appreciate poetically written novel (when it feels like you're reading poem in prose), in fact I love me some more beautiful lines, but this time I felt like author was trying too hard. There was too many lyrical sentences not only for one chapter, but for one page. And I don't know if I enjoyed sitting in poet's head that much. 

As for the plot, it wasn't much of it as well. More like too much back story with slight touch of world building, "touch-me-everywhere" at some unenlightened places and "let's talk"-s. I love my dystopians to be more action packed, because I can read contemporary romances anytime and all those kissy-touchy scenes won't be out of place there.

Overall, it was not bad-not good. Some places made me laugh because things were soo messed up and everything was sooo banal there. Like I've said, only one character made me enjoy this novel at least in some way and don't give it 2 stars and he's not even a main character and he missed big chunk of a book. That's not what I want from dystopian novels, even from YA ones, because I don't judge a book by age groups.
I know that my real-life friends (wow, sounds a bit weird, don't ya think?:)) won't read this book, so I can't really recommend it to anyone outside my social networking world. And even there, I don't think this book will be on my top recs list, ever.
It's kinda sad, because I've wached and read only positive reviews from my online friends. Maybe I have different taste then.

Hope this review wasn't mean, I just tried to speak from my heart. O.K., it had some fun parts, too, but they couldn't change my final thought. 

Have an awesome book in your hand and DFTBA!

* *,5 stars.