This week's question courtesy of Parajunkee's Follow Friday is:

Q: Let's step away from besties... What is the worst book that you've ever read and actually finished?

'Worst' is such a subjective term so it's difficult to say, and I feel a little uneasy about labeling any one book as the worst. There are some books that I've had trouble finishing but did anyway. The first I'd have to say is Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert. I wasn't reading this in French, although if I did I'd suspect it may have been better. I read it as part of a course in university for my French minor and the beginning of the book was torture for me. I couldn't get into it, wanted nothing to do with it...but admittedly it all came together for me in the last 1/4 of the book. More recently I had big issues with reading Incarceron by Catherine Fisher. Let me say that I wanted so much to like it as the idea of the story was so darned captivating (people trapped inside a hidden prison? what, yes, please!), but the characters for me were terrible and the writing had so many gaps that I had to do a lot of guesswork to keep the plot going in my head. It was a bummer.

"Waiting on" Wednesday is a weekly event courtesy of Breaking the Spine that showcases much anticipated upcoming releases.

from goodreads:
Mara Dyer doesn't think life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there.

It can.

She believes there must be more to the accident she can't remember that killed her friends and left her mysteriously unharmed.

There is.

She doesn't believe that after everything she's been through, she can fall in love.

She's wrong.

When I first read the summary for this one I wasn't convinced. I loved the cover, but the phrasing of the title is what caught my eye and pulled me in. The synopsis is rather short and doesn't tell too much, yet every time I read a review for this book someone else mentions something different that they like: the characters, the writing, the surprise - you name it. This is seemingly a story that's loved by all sorts of different people and so I'm curious to know what makes it so alluring. It's on my to pre-order list for sure.

The Broke & The Bookish loves lists - so do I! 

This is my very first Top Ten Tuesday - I've seen others participate and the questions are always so fun and the answers even more surprising that I toss in my hat and am jumping in along with you all! 


Top Ten Rebels In Literature (characters or authors) – Those people who stood up for what they believed in despite the cost of doing so.

1. Severus Snape (Harry Potter): My ultimate moment with Snape was during the epilogue of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - that's when I really lost it and started crying. "Albus Severus, you were named for two headmasters of Hogwarts. One of them was a Slytherin and he was probably the bravest man I ever knew."
2. Ned Stark (A Song of Ice and Fire): A lot of people have an issue with Ned, saying that he was too stubborn and that it killed him in the end. It takes a lot of strength to never give up what you believe in, and for that I love Ned.
3. Cinna (The Hunger Games): Katniss is a badass, but Cinna is such a quiet backbone of this story that I have to speak up for him. I love his character heaps.
4. Rose Hathaway (Vampire Academy): Oh, Rose. The girl has snark down as an art and went through so much crap but never gave up.
5. Lisbeth Salander (Millenium Series): Lisbeth is superb. We need more Lisbeths in literature 
6. Tris (Divergent): Choosing to leave your family and having to literally fight to live? You go, Tris.
7. Tyrion Lannister (A Song of Ice and Fire): I have a very short list of characters that I'll list as my favorites - Tyrion is very deservedly on that list. He is intelligent (loves to read) and wields sarcasm and wit as his brother does a sword.He's born of an incredibly wealthy and influential family that wants nothing to do with him and for that reason he becomes incredibly self-sufficient. I find myself continually impressed by Tyrion.
8. The Lorax/Dr. Seuss (The Lorax): Dr. Seuss is a brilliant, brilliant author and this book/character was no exception. This line alone speaks volumes to the ideas that he was able to so beautifully capture in this books, "I am the Lorax, I speak for the trees.
   I speak for the trees, for the trees have no tongues..."
9. Alan Moore (Watchmen, V for Vendetta): Well, crap. How do you even begin to speak on Moore and his writing? Rorschach? Even if you don't normally read graphic novels, you should try these. Really.
10. Elphaba (Wicked): This book + this song (why hello Idina Menzel) is perfection. In all of her good moments, her bad moments - everything. 

I have to give up on this post now because I'm singing my heart out along with the Wicked soundtrack. :) (I might have to see it this weekend. Happy birthday to me!)

Author: Cristina García
Publication Date: 07/12/2011
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Pages: 256
Source: e-ARC

Brought together each summer at a boarding school in Switzerland, three girls learn a lot more than just French and European culture. Shirin, an Iranian princess; Ingrid, a German-Canadian eccentric; and Vivien, a Cuban-Jewish New Yorker culinary phenom, are thrown into each other's lives when they become roommates. 

This is a story of 3 paths slowly beginning to cross and merge as they spend the year apart, but the summers together. Through navigating the social-cultural shoals of the school, developing their adolescence, and learning the confusing and conflicting legacies of their families' past, Shirin, Ingrid, and Vivien form an unbreakable bond. 

This was less like a book and more of a glimpse into a looking glass showing us a reflection of the story of three completely different girls. Through varying situations in their lives they ended up at a posh Swiss boarding school, each wondering just what they could possibly get out of the situation. But more than getting something out of it, their experience changes their worldview and themselves.

To be honest, I finished this book about a month ago and have been struggling with the review ever since. Not because I didn't like it, because I loved it, but more so because this is really something has to be experienced along with the rest of the girls. Frankly, I don't think this is a book that everyone will be able to worm their way into, but if you do, you will love it. It's real and unapologetic and left me curious - I wanted to know even more about the girls and read more of their correspondence. I wanted to cook with Viven, chat with Shirin, and attend a show with Ingrid.

If anyone has any questions about Dreams of Significant Girls I'll do my best to answer them. I apologise for the review that's not quite a review, but, I do urge you to read it if you're a fan of realistic contemporary YA.

Yes, THAT Jim Dale. The very selfsame man of brilliance who did the audio versions of Harry Potter. I almost fell out of my chair with happiness when I saw/heard this:

Why, yes, you do want to listen! (I can't stop listening, myself.)

This next image is borrowed from Erin's blog, but I just have to share with you how in love with this book I am, all over again, by how beautiful the ARCs are:

This Advanced Reader's Edition Entitles The Holder To Unlimited Admission.

Ah, I really need to get my hands on a copy of one of these beautiful creatures. I am so in love with this book. I cannot wait!

I somehow forgot it was Sunday. Sunday is my Saturday and so the weekend is just beginning for me and always throws me off. That said, I've been waiting for today because I have some fabulous things that I've received lately!

The package I've been anticipating from Simon Audio came on Wednesday!

I was ridiculously excited when I saw this, as I'm a pretty fierce environmentalist:

Our Choice, Al Gore

It's signed by the Vice President! The little scratching on the G was from my nail, trying to see if it were printed on or not. It's not. I'll listen to this one next.

This is what I'm currently listening to:

127 Hours: Between a Rock and a Hard Place, Aron Ralston

I've wanted to see this film and read the book since I first heard about it but the timing never worked out. And although I saw this book on at the library so many times I could never check it out as this story is too visceral to know in words. The fact that it's read by the author makes it all the more better. My library has its own theatre for films and will be showing this at the end of the month. On the 27th, I believe, probably not by coincidence. Hopefully I can listen to it all by then. (I'm listening to it now and it's really interesting.)

Thank you so much to Simon & Schuster for these and many more. I'm so thrilled and am really enjoying them.

But wait! I received something else on Wednesday:

The Kingdom of Childhood, Rebecca Coleman

I won a copy of this during Armchair Bea and it just arrived from Harlequin! The cover is gorgeous and matte. I'm looking forward to reading this one as it handles some pretty tough issues, but it will be a nice chance of pace. Goodreads says that it comes out in September, but the book says October.

There's something else that I'll be receiving that I'll leave off until it arrives. Because that'll get a post all of its own.

 A belated Happy Canada Day to all of my northern friends and Happy Fourth of July to all of my fellow Americans! I hope you guys have a great holiday. My birthday is coming up this week (Friday!) and so I won't be around for the weekend. I'll try and get some fun things in before then. I can't wait to see what you've all are up to!

I started this blog in February because I love books. I love books so much that I want to share that feeling with everyone - and every single one of you has made my time here so far so very much worth it. I consider myself blessed, enriched, and so very grateful. Jessica of Jessica's Bookshelf became the newest of my 100 (now 101!) fabulous and thoughtful followers.


I couldn't do this without you guys. Reading is fun, but wanting it to share it with you all and having such fantastic interactions and conversations makes it all worth it.


Yes, I've been a little behind lately due to being rather busy with work and getting all my ducklings in a row for school, but I am here and I am usually not found without a book. Hopefully I will post a couple more reviews over the next few days and there's something else I'd like to start up so we'll see how that goes.


In any case, and most importantly: thank you. I look forward to seeing where this goes, but I'm humbled you're all here along for the ride.

This week's question courtesy of Parajunkee's Follow Friday is:

Q: ACK! Your favorite book/movie character (example Hermione Granger played by the Emma chick) just walked into the room! Who is it and what would be your first reaction? You get extra points if you include visual stimulation.

I'm sticking with a Harry Potter character not because of the question but because my favorite book character is Severus Snape. Well, he's one of my characters of all time, full stop. I think my face would exhibit every possible surprise that it could: raised eyebrows, mouth hanging open and eyes glancing about to see if anyone else was possible witnessing the same moment that I was. They probably would, because Severus Snape doesn't walk, he glides in that tall, graceful manner that he has. He would steal the show, but I would be the one that would have to compose myself and somehow come up with witty repartee in order to keep up whatever conversation I managed in the thirty seconds it would take to cross the room.

We would, of course, have a cuppa and talk for hours. A girl can imagine, right?