Thursday, September 19, 2013

Review- Not Pretty Enough



Not Pretty EnoughNot Pretty Enough by Jaimie Admans

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I received a digital copy of this book on a read-to-review basis. I’d like to say a huge thank you to Jaimie Admans and Dianne at http://oopsireadabookagain.blogspot.com
The address to follow the blog tour is: http://oopsireadabookagain.blogspot.c...


What I liked a lot about this story was how relatable it was. I think most of us have been that girl in middle school; awkward, not quite pretty enough, and pining after that perfect guy who would never give us the time of day. Chessie Clemenfield is quite determined to get Lloyd Layton to notice her--and ultimately ask her out. Chessie’s quest involves A LOT of totally humiliating incidents that kept me both cringing and laughing at the comedy-infused situations.

Here’s an excerpt of one such incident:

In technology that afternoon, I’m not concentrating on the block of wood I’m supposed to be sawing, and I don’t even realise I’m still moving the saw until Debs clicks her fingers in my face and says, “Chessie, what are you doing?”
Oops.
I look down and the saw is halfway through the workbench. It’s embedded. In fact, it’s downright stuck. I pull and wiggle it but it won’t come out.
Oh, hell. Why do I always manage to mess something up?
I stick my hand up in the air and hope the teacher won’t make a scene about it. It was an accident, after all. I really don’t need Lloyd thinking that this is another lesson that I’m totally incompetent in. Is it too much to ask that he might think I’m good at something? Even just one thing?
“Miss Clemenfield?” Mr Vale asks in his most patronising voice.
“Sir, I, um, had a little accident,” I say, stepping back so he can see the saw that’s gone right through the wooden workbench.
“Oh dear. A little overzealous with the sawing, were we?”
“I’m sorry,” I say. “I thought I was still doing my block. My mind was somewhere else.”
“Thinking about boys, no doubt, eh? I know what kids your age are like.”
I’m just about to put in that I was actually thinking about ways to improve our technology lessons when suddenly Mr Vale’s voice is booming around the classroom.
“Everybody, gather round,” he’s saying, and gesturing with his hand to come over to our table.
Thirty students gather around us. I can feel Lloyd’s imposing frame right behind me. If I leaned back a little I’d be touching him. I wish I had the courage to do that. I wish we were friends. I wish he’d comfort me and tell me that it doesn’t matter that I’ve embarrassed myself yet again and the teacher is making a scene about it. But I don’t really get a chance, because Mr Vale prods me out of the way a little too forcefully, and I fall off my stool. I go to grab something to hold me up, and horror of horrors, I grab at the one thing that I never wanted to meet with in this way.
I have grabbed Lloyd Layton’s crotch.
Oh, crap.
The entire class is practically rolling on the floor in fits of giggles, and up until now, I would have thought it humanly impossible to turn red so fast.
It occurs to me that it might be a good idea to let go, and I drop my hand and jump back like I’ve been burnt.
Even the teacher is laughing. I don’t dare to look up at Lloyd, but I would imagine he’s gone bright red too. At least he’s not laughing like all the others.
“Sorry,” I mumble in an upward direction, and settle myself back on my stool, trying in vain to hide my head in my hands.
“That’s enough excitement for one day,” Mr Vale says finally, even though he’s still giggling himself. “I just wanted you all to see what happens when someone like Miss Clemenfield pays more attention to Mr Layton’s work than to her own.”
Crap. He noticed that?
Oh well, I don’t see what it matters because my face cannot get any redder right now.
Eventually the class file away and Mr Vale removes the saw from the bench and hands it back to me with a grin. I sneak a glance over towards Lloyd. There is a definite hint of a blush in his cheeks.
Great, not only do I embarrass myself beyond belief but I make him feel bad too.
Perfect.
“At least you can’t say he hasn’t noticed you anymore,” Debs whispers.
“Thank you. That makes me feel so much better.”



Chessie’s quest encompasses the course of a year as her obsession with Lloyd Layton completely takes over her life. Her schoolwork, friendships, and family relationship suffer due to her full concentration on Lloyd. At first, the prospects of capturing Lloyd’s attention seem bleak. Then, things start to look up for Chessie. Lloyd actually starts to notice her. However, Chessie eventually finds herself wrapped up in web of lies that she can’t seem to get out of.

From there, things snowball out of control. Eventually Chessie discovers that Lloyd may not be exactly who she thought he was--and he certainly may not be as perfect as she thought.

(view spoiler on Goodreads)

At times I found Chessie to be a little crazy… and stalkerish. But still ultimately relatable. I mean, come on, who hasn’t secretly followed a guy they liked? x) Her enthusiasm was a bit off-putting at times, but her intentions were always pure which made her likable.

It takes a lot of unfortunate incidents and a long time for Chessie to realize that she does not need to change herself for a boy. This is great story for young girls to read as it will teach them that they don’t have to change for a boy and if they be themselves, then they’re perfect. This is an important message to get across and I’m glad that Jaimie Admans wrote such a book.







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Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Tune Tuesday!

Today's TT features Anna Dressed in Blood and its sequel Girl of Nightmares.

This one is for the characters Cas and Anna, and no pun intended because Anna is in fact a ghost.



Misguided Ghosts -Paramore

Cas/Anna


Thursday, September 5, 2013

Top Ravenclaw and Slytherin characters from the Harry Potter series

Remember back when Pottermore first came out? And we were all so beyond excited about getting sorted and seeing what house we'd be put in? Well, in the days before Pottermore was accessible, my sister and I would debate back and forth over which houses were best. We discussed all the traits and characteristics that went into each house, and all the pros and cons of each house. Then the day came to be sorted. I have probably never taken a quiz more seriously in my life. xD I probably spent fifteen minutes trying to decide whether I'd want a potion that would give me either knowledge, glory, or power. Ultimately, I chose knowledge.

In the end, I was sorted in Slytherin. My sister, into Ravenclaw.

We were both quite happy with our houses.

So since I like doing Top Character lists, I decided to do a Top Ravenclaws list and a Top Slytherins list.


Top 10 Ravenclaw Characters

1. Luna Lovegood
2. Moaning Myrtle
3. Cho Chang
4. Gilderoy Lockhart
5. Xenophilius Lovegood
6. Filius Flitwick
7. Michael Corner
8. Padma Patil
9. Terry Boot
10. Penelope Clearwater


Top 10 Slytherin Characters

1. Severus Snape
2. Draco Malfoy
3. Regulus Black 
4. Horace Slughorn
5. Phineas Nigellus Black 
6. Lucius Malfoy
7. Bellatrix Lestrange
8. Narcissa Malfoy
9. Young Tom Riddle

10. Dolores Umbridge

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

If You Plan on Reading The Casual Vacancy...

The Casual VacancyThe Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


If you're considering reading The Casual Vacancy:

* DO NOT expect it to be anything like Harry Potter, because it's not at all. It is probably the farthest thing from Harry Potter.

* DO NOT expect a murder mystery. Although the preface of the novel is someone dying, there is no mystery behind his death. His death simply occurs to show us how it directly and indirectly affects citizens of Pagford.

* Keep in mind that this is an adult novel. If you're used to reading only YA novels, you may want to either reconsider reading TCV, or just be mindful that it will not be like the YA books you're used to reading.

* You should know that there are A LOT of characters. Somehow I actually found it pretty easy to keep them all straight in my mind--they are quite distinctive and therefore easy to differentiate. Just keep in mind that you need to concentrate and pay attention in order to recollect all the different characters when the perspective switches between them.

* DO NOT expect a juicy tale of death, deceit, and sultry love affairs. I found that there is very little about this novel that is glamorous and in fact, that is one of the biggest reasons that I liked it. This story is very real. It showcases the realness of life and being human.

* Be mindful that this book is not for kids or young teenagers. Due to the mature content I would recommend that only those who are age 17+ read TCV. Again, it is not juicy mature content that I am talking about; it is raw, gritty, disturbing mature content. Now I understand why JKR kept reiterating in interviews that this is an adult novel, not at all a novel for children. Some of the tough issues tackled in this novel are self-harm, drug addiction, rape, implicated child molestation, extreme OCD, domestic abuse, child neglect, and suicide.

* Realize that this novel is quite long and will not be a swift read. The introductions of all the characters initially takes a long time, but once that's done, the progression of the story picks up.
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I'll be honest. I never would have picked up this novel if J.K. Rowling had not have written it. My interest in it was because of her. My mindset was and still is that she is so amazing, I will read anything she writes. For this reason, I am glad that she wrote this novel because otherwise I would not have been brought out of my book-comfort-zone to read this. Sometimes it's good to come out of your comfort zone and explore something new. Although this is a totally different genre and story than Harry Potter, JKR is still amazing at creating a great story. She proves that she is not limited to one genre and can be a great author of very different projects.



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Tune Tuesday!

This week's edition of Tune Tuesday comes from the same series as the last edition of TT, The Iron Fey series. Whereas the last one was for Meghan/Ash, this one's for Meghan/Puck. 


I just think that this is a cute, sweet song and it's upbeat like Puck is. I could see him dedicating this song to Meghan. He always just wanted to treasure her <3

Treasure- Bruno Mars

Meghan/Puck