Saturday, October 29, 2011

Picking Up The Pieces Event Recap

     On Friday October 14th, I attended an event at The Dolphin Bookshop in Port Washington, NY.  It was a wonderful bookstore and spectacular event!  The event lasted from 5:30-9:00 and featured SEVEN different authors including: Gae Polisner, Lena Roy, Arlaina Tibensky, Nova Ren Suma, Michael Grant, Matt Blackstone, and Michael Northrop.  I was only familiar with one or two of the authors at first but, as they all went along with their readings, I really started to like their books!  I'll probably be buying them all eventually, so you guys should defintetely check them out!
     The event was planned and run by Gae Polisner (who happens to be super nice :) .  She did an amazing job!  She held up a card with a specific topic on it and all the authors (including herself) were required to read a passage from their book that related to that topic.  All of the authors had a great sense of humor, so it was a really great event!  Between readings, there were a few breaks to mingle and have refreshments.  I had a few of my books signed (including one for you)!  All in all, I had a great time!  Thanks to Gae Polisner for doing such a great job!  Don't miss the next event at the dolphin! (It can be found here and here)

I have a signed copy of And Then Things Fall Apart by Arlaina Tibensky to give away along with some signed swag from the event!  (Thanks to Arlaina for donating her book!)




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IMM #18

Het Remarkable Readers!  I'm a little early this week! :)Photobucket

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Teaser Tuesday

Shatter Me (Shatter Me, #1)


Juliette hasn't touched anyone in exactly 264 days. The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette's touch is fatal. As long as she doesn't hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don't fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color. 

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war- and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she's exactly what they need right now. 

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior. 

In this electrifying debut, Tahereh Mafi presents a world as riveting asThe Hunger Games and a superhero story as thrilling as The X-Men. Full of pulse-pounding romance, intoxicating villainy, and high-stakes choices,Shatter Me is a fresh and original dystopian novel—with a paranormal twist—that will leave readers anxiously awaiting its sequel.
I always wonder about raindrops.                                                                                         I wonder about how they're always falling down, tripping over their own feet, breaking their legs and forgetting their parachutes as they tumble right out of the sky toward an uncertain end  It's like someone is emptying their pockets over the earth and doesn't seem to care where the contents fall, doesn't seem to care that the raindrops burst when they hit the ground, that they shatter when they fall to the floor, that people curse the days the drops dare to tap on their doors.                                                                         I am a raindrop. 


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Saturday, October 22, 2011

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

Of Mice and MenGenre: Adult or Young Adult Realistic Fiction
Source: Purchased from Bookstore
Series: No, StandAlone
Buy It: The Book Depository The Dolphin Bookshop
Challenge: No
The tragic story of the complex bond between two migrant laborers in Central California. They are George Milton and Lennie Small, itinerant ranch hands who dream of one day owning a small farm. George acts as a father figure to Lennie, who is a very large, simple-minded man, calming him and helping to reign in his immense physical strength. 
     A few years ago, I read the Pearl by John Steinbeck and I hated it.  When I was assigned to read and analyze Of Mice and Men, I thought I would be in for hours of torture trying to get through another book by the same author.  Thankfully, I was pleasantly surprised by this book.  There were a few things that I didn't really like about the book along with things that I loved about this book.  Of Mice and Men is only about 100 pages so it only took me one night to get through while taking notes for class.  
     Honestly, I don't think that any summary of this book really does this book justice.  When I first read the summary, I was dreading the book.  I always hate books about workers on a ranch, especially when set in difficult times, those books just aren't for me.  I'll quickly give you a synopsis in my own words:  George and Lennie have traveled along from ranch to ranch for quite some time.  They always stick together.  Lennie is mentally disabled and George, who has no relation to Lennie, is the uptight man who takes care of him.     That is how I would describe Of Mice and Men even though there is much more to this short story.
     I absolutely loved the characters in this story, Lennie most of all.  Lennie is a very large and strong disabled man.  He loves soft and innocent things and is completely unaware of his own strength.  He makes many mistakes that he cannot help and every time George reprimands him, he simply takes it and moves on.  He is not a grudge holder and I love his innocence.  He doesn't know right from wrong.  He simply acts as a child would but, I loved everything about Lennie.  He had no knowledge but, I think he was one of the best friends I've ever read about.  Regardless of his short temper and uptight personality, I felt sympathetic for George.  It isn't easy having to take care of someone who keeps making the same mistakes over and over.  Lennie and George were a great pair and I really enjoyed their friendship.

30 Day Book Challenge

Hey readers! I wanted to participate in the 30 Day book challenge and I was wondering what you guys think would be the best place to do it? Facebook, twitter, instagram, Flickr,etc? Let me know in the comments!

PS- If you haven't signed up for the Readathon yet, what are you waiting for?! Click on the Readathon tab! We still need participants and prize donors !

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Teen Read Week

      In case you guys haven't heard yet, this week is Teen Read Week!  The theme this year is "Picture it at your Library."  I was trying to think of some way to celebrate on the blog while I was surfing some other blogs and then I saw this:





This is a book spine poem and its the first time I've ever seen one!  I thought that this idea was so cool that I've decided to host a BOOK SPINE POETRY SLAM right here on the blog!  All you have to do is take a picture, write the poem, and submit it!  How do you submit it?  If you posted it on your blog, link it in the linky and if you don't have a blog, email your entry to remarkablereads@gmail.com.  I'm really excited to see what you guys come up with!  The Winner will be featured on the blog but, who knows, maybe if I get enough entries then there might be a prize!  What are you waiting for?  Start Creating!
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Monday, October 17, 2011

IMM #16

Here's my latest IMM video!  Sorry, I had to film on my phone so its a little shaky!

What did you get in your mailbox?
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New Idea!

Hey Remarkable Readers!

Besides the old WWW wednesdays, Waiting on Wednesdays, In My Mailboxes, and My regular reviews, I want to do some more posting on this blog :).  I know that once in a while I'll feature a specific indie bookstore or bookish event but, I need some ideas!  I could do a Q & A if you want but, I need you to ask me some questions in the comments!  If you want me to make the bookstore features a regular post on my blog then let me know!  I want to please you, so tell me what you want to see!  I could analyze covers, do Let's Talk Posts, Feature Bookstores, Do an Ask the Publisher Feature, have Guest Reviews, almost ANYTHING!  I just need some ideas!  Get commenting :)
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Thursday, October 13, 2011

Under the Mesquite by Guadalupe Garcia McCall

Under the Mesquite

Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
Source: ARC from Publisher (won on LibraryThing)
Series: No, StandAlone
Buy It: The Book Depository
Challenge: No
When Lupita sees Mami crying over a pesky mesquite growing in her rose garden, she knows something is wrong. Through the kitchen window, she overhears that Mami has cancer
. After an operation, things seem to return to normal for Lupita and her family, and they go on with their lives, going back and forth between attending school, working, and living in the United States and visiting family and friends in Mexico. However, when Mami’s cancer returns, Papi doesn’t know whether he should accompany Mami during her long convalescence at an out of town cancer clinic or stay home to care for Lupita and her seven brothers and sisters. Suddenly, being a high school student, dealing with difficult friends, starring in the school play, even writing, become less important to Lupita than doing whatever it takes to save Mami’s life.

     Under the Mesquite by Guadalupe Garcia McCall had me wonderstruck.  I wasn't shocked when I read that Mami had cancer because I read that in the summary.  I was shocked at the incredible writing found in only 207 pages but, then again, sometimes the best things come in small packages.  This book, possibly a novella, only took me about 2 hours to read.  I was on the train, so it was perfect: small to carry around, easy to finish, and all around great book!    At first, when I won this book from LibraryThing's early reviewers program, I wasn't all that excited because I'm usually not into books with heavy cultural references but, I was pleasantly surprised!
     Under the Mesquite had many characters including Lupita , her mother, father, seven brothers and sisters, friends, cousins, and other family members.  For both your sake and mine, I'll only comment on the major characters along with any others that had a large impact on me.  Lupita was a great character.  The Novel follows her from freshman year in high school all the way to freshman year in college.  I really  liked how honest she was; she was a senior in high school and she wasn't trying to act mature, she let her real feelings pour out and the reader sees how scared she actually is.  I really loved that.  It was also evident that she couldn't handle taking care of seven kids.  I absolutely loved how much adoration Lupita had for her mother.  She was so respectful, too.  Throughout the book, Lupita's true feelings were expressed through stanzas upon stanzas of absolutely brilliant verse.    Mami's character was great, too.  We saw her through Lupita's eyes, thus making her seem like a superhero.  She managed 8 children and her husband, she truly was a superhero.
     Honestly the only thing that I didn't really enjoy about Under the Mesquite was the pacing.  I was a bit confused because on one page Lupita was a freshman in high school and the next, a sophomore.  It went on like this throughout the book, so I recommend that if you decide to read it, you try to pay as much attention to the point in time so you avoid confusion!
     Under the Mesquite may be small, but it packs quite a punch.  It's beautiful verse is sure to hit home.  You need to read this book.  If you have a huge To Be Read stack at home, it doesn't matter.  All you need is about an hour or two.  I promise that you won't regret it!

Final Grade:


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Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Waiting on Wednesday: Darker Still

 Usually, I'm not the biggest fan of historical fiction but, this week's waiting on wednesday pick sounds amazing!!!
Darker Still (Magic Most Foul, #1)The Picture of Dorian Gray meets Pride and Prejudice, with a dash of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
New York City, 1882. Seventeen-year-old Natalie Stewart's latest obsession is a painting of the handsome British Lord Denbury. Something in his striking blue eyes calls to her. As his incredibly life-like gaze seems to follow her, Natalie gets the uneasy feeling that details of the painting keep changing...
Jonathan Denbury's soul is trapped in the gilded painting by dark magic while his possessed body commits unspeakable crimes in the city slums. He must lure Natalie into the painting, for only together can they reverse the curse and free his damaged soul.

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Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Teaser Tuesdays: Under the Mesquite by Guadalupe Garcia McCall


Under the Mesquite

When Lupita sees Mami crying over a pesky mesquite growing in her rose garden, she knows something is wrong. Through the kitchen window, she overhears that Mami has cancer. After an operation, things seem to return to normal for Lupita and her family, and they go on with their lives, going back and forth between attending school, working, and living in the United States and visiting family and friends in Mexico. However, when Mami’s cancer returns, Papi doesn’t know whether he should accompany Mami during her long convalescence at an out of town cancer clinic or stay home to care for Lupita and her seven brothers and sisters. Suddenly, being a high school student, dealing with difficult friends, starring in the school play, even writing, become less important to Lupita than doing whatever it takes to save Mami’s life.
But lately Mami's changed.  A thorny mesquite has sprouted in the middle of her rose garden.  even after she has pulled it out by its roots repeatedly, pricking herself on its thorns each time, it keeps growing back.  Today the resilient mesquite causes her to cry with frustration.  I abandon the journal I've been writing in to kneel beside her on the grass and put my arms around her.

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Saturday, October 8, 2011

Eve by Anna Carey


Eve (Eve, #1)Eve by Anna Carey
Genre: Young Adult Dysotopian
Source: ARC from Publisher
Series: Yes, Planned Trilogy, Book One
Buy It: The Book Depository
Challenge: No
The year is 2032, sixteen years after a deadly virus—and the vaccine intended to protect against it—wiped out most of the earth’s population. The night before eighteen-year-old Eve’s graduation from her all-girls school she discovers what really happens to new graduates, and the horrifying fate that awaits her. 

Fleeing the only home she’s ever known, Eve sets off on a long, treacherous journey, searching for a place she can survive. Along the way she encounters Caleb, a rough, rebellious boy living in the wild. Separated from men her whole life, Eve has been taught to fear them, but Caleb slowly wins her trust...and her heart. He promises to protect her, but when soldiers begin hunting them, Eve must choose between true love and her life.

     I'm going to start my review where I always start it: The Beginning.  When I first requested an ARC of Eve from Anna Carey (the author) I was very excited to read it and had heard from a few people that it was good.  I'm usually a big dysotopian fan so I was pretty excited to read it.  Since requesting it, I have read several dysotopias so I do think that that was part of the reason that I started losing interest before I even picked up the book.  I feel extremely bad about this so I do recommend that regardless of my review, you give Eve a shot because for me, it was just okay but, you might love it!
     I've started getting sick of dysotopias lately because I feel like each one is so cookie cutter.  In my recent opinion, every one of them is so trite; everything is always the same.  I feel like there is always a cruel government, someone trying to escape (most of the time its a female), and the rest of the story only differs a little.  I must say that Eve definitely resembled Dark Parties by Sara Grant.  I will definitely be reading some other genre for a while but, of course I will still be delivering any of the reviews I promised, regardless of genre.  Anyway, I was really looking for something different than the usual and Eve just wasn't what I was looking for.
     I usually don't say much about the cover of the books I read because of course, you're not supposed to judge a book by its cover but, I do want to tell you what I thought about this one.  I love the color gradient and color scheme and I also love how Eve's hair is red because it contrasts with the colors in the background and makes Eve stand out from other girls.  The Bridge in the background is great because it has a lot of meaning in the story.  There were actually quite a few different bridges in the story and I love that the image has multiple meanings.  I really liked that the cover related to the story and was meaningful to the plot.  The only things that I dislike about the cover are very minor:  I feel like the girl looks very photoshopped and I wasn't really a fan of the title font.  The font would look really cool on something else but, I feel like it takes away from the meaning of the cover.
     I felt like Eve made a pretty good protagonist, although, just like the plot, she was very cookie cutter.  She reminded me of Neva from Dark Parties (Sara Grant), Cassia from Matched (Ally Condie), Amy from Across the Universe (Beth Revis), and a bunch of other dysotopian protagonists.  She was fooled by authority, found out the truth, and tried to escape the cruelty.  On the bright side, it was very interesting to hear what she was taught about men.  It was humorous to hear about all the books that her school twisted and actually reminded me about banned books week (which was last week) !  Caleb was a pretty good love interest but, there wasn't much about him that was very different from any other love interest.  I really liked Leif's character because I wasn't always sure what he would do next.  Leif was very unpredictable and I felt like even though he was a minor character, he had conflicting personalities that made the story a little more interesting.  I also really liked Benny and Silas because of their innocence.
     One of my biggest pet peeves throughout Eve was that I felt like every event was so abrupt.  There was no transitioning throughout the story.  For example, all of a sudden someone would be talking to Eve and I would be left wondering where in the world that person came from!  It really bothered me that I had to keep trying to figure out how things happened, so much that I would probably say that Eve had quite a few [minor] plot holes in it.
     Overall, Eve was just an okay book for me.  I feel bad to pick it apart but, I know that I have to be honest about the way I felt so that you [blog reader] can have an accurate review!  I do hope that you give Eve a try yourself because it was good, there just wasn't anything special about it.

Final Grade:

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Thursday, October 6, 2011

The Strand: Home to 18 Miles of Books

I've been wanting to visit the Strand ever since I read Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan back in December and when I was in NYC for the day, I jumped at the chance.  Upon entering, I discovered carts full of used books for only $1!  Then I went up to the second floor where YA is located and was insanely excited to learn that all the books are new and HALF PRICE!  I bought two hardcovers for $8.50 each, along with a strand button and tote bag to remember my trip.  I'll definitely be visiting again and I'm hoping to get a gift card (for my birthday October 8th) ! :)  Check out the pics below!
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Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Today's Review

     Hey Remarkable Readers!  You're probably wondering where this week's review is. Are You?  Well fear no more because I'm about to tell you what happened to it!  As you may know, I'm currently experimenting with my Review day to figure out what you like best and what works best for me.  So, this week's review will not be posted today but, make sure to check back to find out when I decide to post it!  So you guys have something to read, I sent out a newsletter to GFC followers today and if you aren't subscribed, here it is (but make sue to follow on GFC now before you miss any other newsletters!) :


Hey Remarkable Readers,

     So I just found out that I can send out a newsletter to all GFC followers!!! How awesome is that??!  So for our first newsletter, I wanted to remind you about a few things and ask you a few questions.  First, if you haven't already heard about the Wrapping up 2011 Readathon that I'm hosting in December, you need to click here !  I'd love it if we could get as many signups as possible, so if you know anyone who would like to participate, please spread the word!  Send out a blast on twitter (don't forget to use the hashtag #WU2011R ) , post about it on your blog, anything!  There will be a few giveaways and some fun challenges, plus we'll all get some good 'ol reading done!  I also still need some hosts for giveaways and challenges, so if your interested, make sure you go check out my readathon tab!  
     Second, I wanted to ask what you guys think of Jessie's Remarkable Reads.  My goal is to make this blog as best as possible, so I would love it if you guys could tell me what you like, or don't like about the blog!  Just email me here: remarkablereads@gmail.com .   I'd also love to do a few extra posts here and there apart from the regular routine, such as my event posts or lets talk posts, etc.  If you guys could email me any ideas you have, that would be awesome!!!  
     Third, in 2012 I would love to host a reading challenge (ie- off the shelf challenge) and I'd love ideas for that, too!  What do you want to challenge yourself to do next year?  Why not challenge everyone?!  Definitely send me an email! 
    One more thing:  Lately I've been shuffling around my review days lately and I'd really love to know what you guys like best: Tuesdays, Wednesdays, or Saturdays?  

Thanks so much for reading this and don't forget to enter our Halo Series giveaway and All These Things I've Done Signed ARC giveaway!!!

Happy Reading,

Jessie :)
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Sunday, October 2, 2011

IMM #15




Don't forget to tell me what you think! :)  I was also wondering what you guys think of my reviews since I don't get any responses from them.  Let me know.  I want to hear your feedback! :)
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