January reviews

I got this idea from Nevillegirl from Musings From Neville's Navel, where she would occasionally post mini book reviews. And I thought I would join along as well. Except, I'm going to do it every month and quickly review the books I read in that month. Occasionally, there might be a full book review.

One Hundred Years of Solitude

by Gabriel Garcí­a Márquez

One Hundred Years of Solitude tells the story of the rise and fall, birth and death of the mythical town of Macondo through the history of the Buendía family. Inventive, amusing, magnetic, sad, and alive with unforgettable men and women--brimming with truth, compassion, and a lyrical magic that strikes the soul--this novel is a masterpiece in the art of fiction.

My thoughts: I love the magic that is found in this book. And I like how no one questions it. I love Úrsula Iguarán and how she is a strong leader who is still a mother with feelings. I also like how some of the women are not so inclined to make really stupid decisions. Unlike most of the men of this novel.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Why We Broke Up

by Daniel Handler, Maira Kalman

I'm telling you why we broke up, Ed. I'm writing it in this letter, the whole truth of why it happened.Min Green and Ed Slaterton are breaking up, so Min is writing Ed a letter and giving him a box. Inside the box is why they broke up. Two bottle caps, a movie ticket, a folded note, a box of matches, a protractor, books, a toy truck, a pair of ugly earrings, a comb from a motel room, and every other item collected over the course of a giddy, intimate, heartbreaking relationship. Item after item is illustrated and accounted for, and then the box, like a girlfriend, will be dumped.

My thoughts: A light read that is therapeutic to a certain extent. It was very amusing to read some of the breakup stories from other authors in the end.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

City of Heavenly Fire

by Cassandra Clare

In this dazzling and long-awaited conclusion to the acclaimed Mortal Instruments series, Clary and her friends fight the greatest evil they have ever faced: Clary's own brother.
Sebastian Morgenstern is on the move, systematically turning Shadowhunter against Shadowhunter. Bearing the Infernal Cup, he transforms Shadowhunters into creatures out of nightmare, tearing apart families and lovers as the ranks of his Endarkened army swell.
The embattled Shadowhunters withdraw to Idris - but not even the famed demon towers of Alicante can keep Sebastian at bay. And with the Nephilim trapped in Idris, who will guard the world against demons?
When one of the greatest betrayals the Nephilim have ever known is revealed, Clary, Jace, Isabelle, Simon, and Alec must flee - even if their journey takes them deep into the demon realms, where no Shadowhunter has set foot before, and from which no human being has ever returned...
Love will be sacrificed and lives lost in the terrible battle for the fate of the word in the thrilling final installment of the classic urban fantasy series The Mortal Instruments!

My thoughts: This book gave me a lot of feels. And it made me realize that Jem is definitely one of my favorite male characters of all time.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Cress

by Marissa Meyer

In this third book in the Lunar Chronicles, Cinder and Captain Thorne are fugitives on the run, now with Scarlet and Wolf in tow. Together, they’re plotting to overthrow Queen Levana and her army.
Their best hope lies with Cress, a girl imprisoned on a satellite since childhood who's only ever had her netscreens as company. All that screen time has made Cress an excellent hacker. Unfortunately, she’s just received orders from Levana to track down Cinder and her handsome accomplice.
When a daring rescue of Cress goes awry, the group is separated. Cress finally has her freedom, but it comes at a high price. Meanwhile, Queen Levana will let nothing prevent her marriage to Emperor Kai. Cress, Scarlet, and Cinder may not have signed up to save the world, but they may be the only hope the world has.

My thoughts: I like how this book followed the original fairy tale, a bit better than the last two novels. Complete with the hair getting cut off and the love interest going blind. However, there is a Disney’s Tangled twist to it. Instead of a prince, Cress got a thief. This book also made me realize how much I love Kai and Cinder being together.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Glitches

by Marissa Meyer

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. In Glitches, a short prequel story to Cinder, we see the results of that illness play out, and the emotional toll that takes on Cinder. Something that may, or may not, be a glitch…

My thoughts: It made me feel bad for Cinder. I just want to hug her.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

The Little Android

by Marissa Meyer

The Little Android is a retelling of The Little Mermaid, set in the world of The Lunar Chronicles by New York Times-bestselling author Marissa Meyer.
When android Mech6.0 saves the life of a handsome hardware engineer, her body is destroyed and her mechanics discover a glitch in her programming. Androids aren’t meant to develop impractical reasoning or near-emotional responses…let alone fall in love.

My thoughts: I like how it follows the original fairy tale. However, there are still a few twists and turns.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

The Queen's Army

by Marissa Meyer

It is time. The boy must leave his family to serve in the Queen's army. To be chosen is an honor. To decline is impossible. The boy is modified. He is trained for several years, and learns to fight to the death. He proves to the Queen—and to himself—that he is capable of evil. He is just the kind of soldier the Queen wants: the alpha of his pack.

My thoughts: Very well written. A couple of the scenes made my stomach turn quite a bit.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Carswell's Guide to Being Lucky

by Marissa Meyer

A story about Carswell Thorne and Kate Fallow.

My thoughts: Carswell Thorne reminds me of Nikolai Lantsov from The Grisha series by Leigh Bardugo. Except Nikolai actually has power but Carswell doesn’t have that much. I also like his littler self better than his older self, for some weird reason.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Seraphina: The Audition

by Rachel Hartman

The Audition is a free prequel to Seraphina available online. It takes place a few weeks prior to Seraphina, covering Seraphina Dombegh's audition to become Viridius's assistant and thus Glisselda's music tutor.

My thoughts: I like how Glisselda is smarter than what she lets on.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

The Tailor

by Leigh Bardugo

New scene from Shadow and Bone told from Genya's point of view.

My thoughts: This story made me feel bad for Genya. And at the same time make me dislike her quite a bit for what she does at the end. Even though, I kind of get why she does it.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

The Witch of Duva

by Leigh Bardugo

There was a time when the woods near Duva ate girls...or so the story goes. But it’s just possible that the danger may be a little bit closer to home. This story is a companion folk tale to Leigh Bardugo’s debut novel, Shadow and Bone.

My thoughts: I like the plot twist. I also like how it shows some women as evil, but they have a good reason to be. And Magda turned out to be my favorite character, because she’s kind.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

The Too-Clever Fox

by Leigh Bardugo

In Ravka, just because you avoid one trap, it doesn't mean you'll escape the next. This story is a companion folk tale to Leigh Bardugo’s upcoming novel, Siege and Storm, the second book in the Grisha Trilogy.

My thoughts: I like how it doesn’t follow the typical gender roles. And I like how Leigh Bardugo uses loneliness as a weapon. Like what she did for the Darkling’s story, “The Demon in the Wood”.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Little Knife

by Leigh Bardugo

In this third Ravkan folk tale from Leigh Bardugo, a beautiful girl finds that what her father wants for her and what she wants for herself are two different things.
It is a companion story to the third book of the Grisha Trilogy, Ruin and Rising, and the stories “The Witch of Duva” and “The Too-Clever Fox.”

My thoughts: Yeva reminds me of Remedios the Beauty from One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez. However, no one dies from Yeva’s beauty, as far as I know of. I like the plot twist, and how no one falls in love. Like the other two tales, “The Witch of Duva” and “The Too-Clever Fox”.  In fact, for all three of these tales, I like how it isn’t sexist like the original fairy tales. And I like how the women are smarter than the men, and aren’t as greedy or arrogant.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Brimstone and Marmalade

by Aaron Corwin

Just in time for Halloween, we have a funny, sweet, and slightly skewed short story by Aaron Corwin, an up-and-coming writer from Seattle.
All Mathilde wanted for her birthday was a pony. Instead, she got a demon. Sometimes growing up means learning that what you think you want is not always what you need.

My thoughts: I thought the demon, Ix’thor quite funny. And it made me a bit sad in the end.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

And now the weather:

Killer Whale by Smallpools

~ Stacy N.

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Four years and counting

Text reads: happy birthday
Picture by monxcheri @ deviantART

Dear my little talks,
On January 8, 2011 you were officially born. Four years and two days later, you're still here despite all the ups and downs and the changes that you've gone through. And I have to thank you, for being the best blog that I've ever had. So let's hope that you're still here four years into the future.

Love,
Stacy N.

Dear everyone who's reading this,
Whether you're a follower, a reader, or even a viewer, I would like to thank you guys. Mainly for sticking around and helping me grow this blog to where it is right now. Honestly, if it weren't for you guys, I would have given up blogging a while ago. So, thank you again.
Have an amazing day or night.

Love,
Stacy N.

And now the weather:
- Beautiful Times by Owl City ft. Lindsey Stirling

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Let's grab some coffee and catch up on all the things we missed, shall we?

Amidst everything that has been going on lately on this blog, suddenly posting again, the New Years posts |x|x|. As well as outside of the blog, homework, and life in general, I forgot to explain the reason why there was a giant break between July and December. And it’s simply because I didn't feel like posting much.

Plus, a lot of things got in my way. Reaching senior year of high school certainly was one of them. With three AP classes, one concurrent enrollment class, a ballroom class, and a few other classes, it required a lot of my attention when it came to homework. Plus there were club meetings that I had to attend during lunch and after school.

And when the beginning of December came two giant projects took up much of my time. The first was the winter dance concert, which required after school dance rehearsals three days before the actual concert. The second was an AP Statistics project, which required a school wide survey and graphs that weren’t easy to make on Microsoft Excel, plus a few other items. And there were college applications to be dealt with. Which got in my way when doing Nanowrimo this year. However I still won with 50,825 words out of 50,000.

Outside of school, there was a bit of family turmoil going on. However, that is now fixed. With a lot of lessons learned along the way. I also found myself occasionally working out, for no particular reason at all. And it was fun, though not enough for me to survive the Hunger Games or a zombie apocalypse. However, in all truth, I don’t think I will ever survive either of those two events.

Also crushes on people who I know will never work out, caught my mind once or twice. But like a match that has been barely lit but quickly blown out by the wind, my crushes on them was gone within the next day or so. That helped me learn a lot about myself though. Like how I might be more asexual than I thought I was. And how I might be a teensy bit interested in girls, making me a bit bi-romantic. As well as a bit more sensual.

Note: I am still trying to figure out what identities fit me, as I change throughout the years. So, don't expect me to stick with one identity just yet. 

When winter break came, and the stress of school dwindled down to nothing more but an ever present candlelight in the distance, I found myself doing last minute Christmas shopping with my siblings in tow. This meant getting distracted by pretty clothes, the deliciousness of Godiva chocolate, a candy store that sold foreign candies including green tea kitkats, and getting stuck in a beauty store with annoying salesmen who failed desperately in trying to sell their fancier products to my older sister.

The last minute Christmas shopping wasn’t the only last minute thing we did this year. We finally set up the Christmas tree on December 23, two days before Christmas. We could have done it earlier, but with the stress of tests and homework that school liked to pile onto us before winter break started, it was hard to find time to actually set up the Christmas tree. So it was easier to do it during the break when there was more free time.

And since there was more free time, I found myself making holiday theme popup cards and giving it too everyone this year. That took a lot of time, because glitter glue took a long time to dry. But, with a blow dryer on hand it was easy to speed up the process.

Christmas was a simpler time this year. Not as many gifts. No pictures were taken. And no fancy dinner. Just movies, good food, and peaceful togetherness that was filled with a lot of talking. In honesty, it was one of my favorite Christmases.

Afterwards my siblings and I went to an indoor children’s playground that was filled with a small rock climbing wall, a grocery store with overpriced groceries, a house with a decent library, a farm with cute hens and fat bees, a pipe system, and other various things that was designed to ignite the fiery imagination that every child has. Once that was all over with, came my always favorite part, the trip to Barnes and Noble. Which as usual took forever because I had to choose the perfect books to bring home with me on the budget of a $25 gift card. However, instead of it ending when I finally got the second books to complete my collection of the The Grisha series by Leigh Bardugo and The Raven Cycle series by Maggie Stiefvater. It ended when my brother received his first ever computer programming book. Which has a very small chance of it actually being read.

A few days after that adventure came the trip to the finally finished, renovated aquarium. It involved going into all the different sections the place had to offer. Developing a very short crush on a kind of cute aquarium worker. Seeing the even cuter penguins that either laid on their stomachs, stood around and pretended to be models, swam, or was fed. Learn how ferocious otters can actually be, but still aww as the three otter brothers swam around in their exhibit. Witness a shark feeding that involved an unfair game about sharks between the adults and the kids. Eating a delicious cookie snack at the aquarium café. Watching my older sister be a little kid again as she played in the indoor playground amongst the other little kids. Getting sprayed by water as I watched a movie about the coral reefs, as part of the 4D experience it offered. And crossing a rope bridge to nowhere in particular. And it was an even better trip to the aquarium because it was now bigger and it offered a lot of things that the previous location couldn’t exactly offer.

That part of winter break eventually faded into more movies, and me trying to finish the book One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez. However, I kept on getting distracted by youtube, tumblr, the games dots and two dots, and now blogging. Which means a lot of trouble for me because I am now scrambling to finish the book before tomorrow, as well as finish the rest of my homework. But I will find some miracle to finish on time. Even if it means sacrificing sleep. Which is not unusual for the end of term.

And now the weather:

- Holy Groundby Taylor Swift

~ Stacy N.

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Hello 2015

Text reads: hello 2015
Picture by So-ghislaine

Happy New Year, even though it’s one day late. I tried to get this posted on January 1, but I ended up sleeping all day, and then when I woke up I cleaned the kitchen floor. After that, I went ice skating with my sisters, getting a bite to eat afterwards. So by the time I came home it was around ten. However, I had to deal with a dead mouse, which somehow ended up under my desk. Once that was dealt with, came the attempt to multitasking. So right now, I’m reading One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez for my English class, catching up on unread blog posts, writing this blog post, and coming up with New Year’s Resolutions for this year.

Generally every year for New Years, I stay up and watch the ball drop on TV. However, a few minutes before midnight strikes I look over my resolutions and see what went wrong, what went right, and what I should improve on next year so I can actually do it. And then a few minutes after midnight I work on my New Year's resolutions.

However, I sometimes end up at other New Years events, like the downtown Salt Lake celebration. Or I just end up watching random videos with my older sister. So I would generally write my resolutions afterwards. However, I didn't do it this year.

Instead of writing down my New Year’s resolutions sometime in the early morning hours, when it’s still dark, I ended up writing it an hour before the new day ends. The main reason is because I have been procrastinating more often, lately. Maybe because I finally contracted the senioritis virus that hits almost every high school senior. But, I eventually do what it is that I’m supposed to do.

So without further ado, here is an unabridged version of my 2015 New Year's Resolutions.

Work out once a week for 15 minutes.

It’s a typical exercise resolution that almost everybody makes once in their lifetime. And there are a variety of reasons of why a person would make it in the first place. For me, it’s because I want to be in shape, especially if there are any zombie apocalypses in my lifetime. It also helps during the skiing season, because I won’t feel so sore the next day. Plus I feel happier when I exercise. Though that doesn’t mean that I’m still any less awkward.

Read at least 24 books this year.

Ever since I moved, the number of books that I have read has gone down. Because I have been getting more and more distracted, mainly because of harder schoolwork. So it would take me a little while to read a book. It also doesn’t help much that I’m not within walking distance of a library and that my school library has a small (but ever growing) variety of books. So, I’m going to try to read more ebooks this year. Even though I’m not a giant fan of them, but I will tolerate them.

Love myself a teensy bit more.

This will be a slightly hard one. I never really hated my body but I’ve tolerated with it all these years. But there are still a few flaws that I’m just not happy with. So this year I’m going to try to find some good about them.

Take more selfies.

They’re fun to take. Plus it’s something to do when I get bored. And it’s a simple reminder that I love myself and that I think I’m pretty.

Sleep before midnight, especially on breaks.

Lately, I’ve had a bad habit of staying up way too late on non-school nights. To the point where I now get up past eleven o’clock in the morning. Which kind of disappoints me because I’m missing the quietness that morning offers. As well as Saturday morning cartoons. Plus it’s scary knowing that I’m spending half the day in sleep. So this year, I want to sleep before midnight, with only one exception and that is New Year’s Eve. And I want to try getting up around nine in the morning on weekends and on breaks. So in order to do this, it means setting up an alarm on the weekends and during the break. Though there is a small chance that this will not work at all, because I adore sleep too much.

Procrastinate less often

There is a highly small chance that I will actually stop procrastinating. So I’m going to try to make myself procrastinate less often this year. To do this I’m going to be stricter on myself and not be so lenient when using the chrome extension stayfocused. As in, I’ll use it more often. Because it really does help. But for the phone, I’ll be using focus lock, an android app that locks certain apps for a bit of time, and then you get a break. However, I’m not sure if I can resist the temptation of stories and television this year. 

Be more organized

My desk and bookshelf and school binder has become a mess once more. And the problem is, I don’t clean my desk or bookshelf often. So this year, I plan to spend at least one day of the week to organize my desk. As well as take a few pictures of it, so I can inspire myself to continue making my desk clean. I also plan to create a rough study schedule. This will hopefully help me procrastinate less often. As well as organize my time, and help me not freak out and worry so much about what I need to study next.

Write once a week for at least fifteen minutes.

I love writing. It’s the reason why I do NaNoWriMo every year, why I continue blogging (even after long breaks), do writing challenges that aren’t Nanowrimo and fail at it, and lead me to choose an English major when I reach college. However, I don’t write often. Or at least write more often for fun. Which affects my writing. And in my opinion, making it worse. Even though, I know every writer goes through a period that they cringe at later because they were pretty bad. So, for once a week for at least fifteen minutes, I’ll write a story of some sorts. This is easier than writing a full blown novel, because I never finish those. Plus, I like writing short stories because it’s easier for me to finish. And it gives me a chance to use some aus that I have been saving.

Blog at least once a month

Despite that long break and not really missing blogging, I still like it. I like having the chance to put my thoughts out there, in the hopes that at least one person will listen. And I like finding other people who has the same interests as me. Blogging has helped me open my mind and grow as a person. And I want to continue blogging as well as be more involved in the blogging community, by commenting more often on other blogs. So at least once a month, I’ll post something on here. Whether it’s a video that I like, something that I’ve written, a topic that I want to share to the world, etc. And hopefully, I can post more than once a month if schoolwork isn’t that heavy.

Review this list once a week

How can I do the things on my 2015 New Year's Resolutions list if I don't remember them? 

Also, I hope that this year will be a better year than last year. I hope that you guys feel happy about yourselves, if not that at least okay. I also hope that you don't forget to be awesome (DFTBA).

And now the weather:

- Cool Kids by Echosmith

Meaning behind the song:

“Cool Kids,” …  tells the story of a boy and girl who just want to be noticed, hinging on the lines: “I wish that I could be like the cool kids/’Cause all the cool kids, they seem to fit in.”
Jamie says the message of the song is simple: the coolest thing you can be is yourself. But more often than not, fans tell the band that they relate to the kids they’re singing about. That they feel like the outsider looking in.
“This cry to be like the cool kids… it’s something that everyone kind of goes through whether you want to act like it or not,” Jamie said. “There’s always somebody out there that you kind of wish, ‘If only I could do this, or do that.’ I think that’s why it connects with people so well.”
From radio.com

- Stacy N.
Note: This was written around midnight. So by the time I was finished, I was too tired to edit it, so I went to bed and edited the next day. 

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