Can You Keep A Secret?

So cute and silly and funny. Some real emotional moments I could relate to. Can You Keep A Secret? reminded me why I love Sophia Kinsella. I could read the book again right now.

I could relate so much to Emma. I've totally faked my way through a job I didn't understand (I wasn't even sure how I ended up there). I may have acted like I had more more money than I did at that age, trying to impress the "right" people. I've been awkward (I'm still awkward). I've said I liked things when I didn't, just to make someone else happy. That stuff with Emma's family hit a nerve too. It was more extreme, but I think a lot of people can relate to what's going on with the Corrigans.

The story is pretty simple, girl meets boy, girl thinks she's going to die, girl spills all her secrets to boy, they don't die, girl thinks she'll never see boy again, boy turns up at her office. Seriously, that sums up the first bit of the book. Everything that happens after is hilarious and touching. Sometimes I cringed, sometimes I smiled, I laughed, I wanted to know what happened next. I stayed up way too late reading. Even though the plot seems simple, Kinsella packs the books with so much emotion, tension, and laughter, that you can't put it down.

Besides Emma, the other characters are great. Many of them are searching for pieces of themselves, on journeys of discovery. Jack is practically the opposite of Emma, I think. Lissy is trying to be more than what she's been labeled. Maybe Jemima even learns about herself. The ups and downs, the misunderstandings, the tears, were all worth it for them in the end. The ending made me love the book even more. Not just the Epilogue part, which was beyond cute, but the part with Lissy and Jemima. She so deserved it. I'm so happy with my book choices so far this year, I'm excited/nervous about what the next story will bring, though I know that the next book I pick up by Kinsella will surely make me laugh again.

Shopaholic On Honeymoon

Shopaholic on Honeymoon is a perfect little taste of the Shopaholic series.  It is full of Sophie Kinsella's humourous tone and Becky's insanely wonderful personality.  Shopaholic on Honeymoon takes place during the gap of time between Shopaholic Ties The Knot and Shopaholic and Sister. There's an entire year in there where Becky and Luke go on honeymoon.  They travel the world and come home to all of Becky's purchases.  But was it smooth sailing the whole time?  Was it a perfect year?

I love that Kinsella was inspired to write this short story.  I'm glad it was free too!  Though it had what I believe is the desired effect, I want to read more Shopaholic.  I don't own Shopaholic to the Stars yet.  I want now more than I did before.  I'm itching to read more Kinsella.  I do have a couple of her stand-alone books that I haven't read yet.  Maybe it's time for Twenties Girl or Can You Keep A Secret?.  I have been spending some time commuting with strangers this week, maybe Can You Keep A Secret? is the perfect book to be reading.  I think I just need more Sophie Kinsella in my life.

Top Ten Books I'd Like to See Made Into Movies

This week's Top Ten Tuesday topic from The Broke and The Bookish was originally done on April 2011 (wow, I've been doing this meme a long time!)  Here is my original list, plus a few comments:

1. Oryx and Crake, 2. The Year of the Flood – I’d like to see both books made into movies. I think they’d be horrific and disturbing and fantastic films. They’d (hopefully) be the kind of movie that makes an impact, where you never really forget the story, just like the books.

Comment: This still holds.  I don't know if it will ever happen, though.  I'm reading MaddAddam right now and so far could be added to the list too.

3. The Hunger Games – Oh wait. They’re already making this into a movie. Yay! It better be good.

Comment: I really enjoyed The Hunger Games movie and I'm looking forward to Catching Fire.

4. The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo – Oh wait. They’ve already made a Swedish movie, now we’re just waiting for the “Hollywood Blockbuster” to come out. I’ve heard the Swedish movie is amazing. The Hollywood movie better be good.

Comment: I never got around to seeing either version of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.  I don't know why.

5. Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell – Though parts of the book dragged, if you take some of it out, this would make for an exciting movie.

Comment: I think this would still make a good movie, but after reading some awesome books in the last couple years, I might replace it with John Scalzi's Redshirts.

6. Wicked – It’s a musical already, but it’s not as close to the book or as dark as the book. I think a movie could really show Elphaba at her best and worst.

Comment: I would still love to see a dark, movie version of Wicked.

7. Remember Me? – This one might make up for not having a great interpretation of Confessions of a Shopaholic I think the premise and outcome are unique and interesting. It wouldn’t be another formulaic chick-flick.

Comment: I think someone did a TV show with this sort of premise.  It didn't work out.  Instead, I think I'd like to see Wither, though I don't think a movie that has pregnant teenagers would fly.

8. The Paper Bag Princess – If they’ve done Where The Wild Things Are, why not The Paper Bag Princess? Let’s give the girls someone fantastic to look up to. It’s one of my favourite children’s books and I think a movie of it could be wonderful.

Comment: I still would love to see a movie about Elizabeth besting a dragon.

9. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies – This would be so awesome.

Comment:  I don't know if this movie is ever going to happen.  It was, then it wasn't, and now I don't know.

10. A Series of Unfortunate Events – I know they did a movie encompassing the first three books, which was fantastic. I enjoyed the performances of Jim Carrey, Glenn Close and the actors who played the Baudelaire siblings. They’d probably have to start over since the actors have aged so much, but they’re such wonderful books, I think it would be worth it.

Comment: I think a movie of Who Could It Be At This Hour? would be pretty cool instead.

What books would you like to see made into movies?  For those who did this topic before, do your choices still hold?

More Sunny Days! Top Ten Books On My Summer To Read List

This week the topic from The Broke and The Bookish should be very easy.  I'm really looking forward to all the books on my Summer To Read List.  Some of these books relate to my Beach Reads, but they're not all "beachy", but they are definitely books I've had on hold too long and this summer seems like a great time to read them.  I've sorted them by author because I think I feel like binge reading....

By Cassandra Clare:

1. Clockwork Angel

2. Clockwork Prince 

3. Clockwork Princess

4. City of Fallen Angels

5. City of Lost Souls

By Sophie Kinsella

6. Twenties Girl 

7. Can You Keep A Secret?

By Margaret Atwood

8. Oryx and Crake (re-read in preparation for Maddaddam)

9. Maddaddam

By H.G. Wells

10. The Time Machine

Maybes:  H.G. Wells - Under The Knife

Lauren Oliver, Delerium, Pandemonium, Requiem

I may also start reading the Anne [of Green Gables] books.

So, what I've come to learn by making this list is that there are a lot of books I want to read this summer and I'm not 100% sure which ones to prioritize.  Maybe I'll just catch up on the Undead Series. 

Well, I think I might have failed this week's list...

What's on your summer to-read list?

Time to Lounge In The Sun! Top Ten Beach Reads

It seems like every year just as the beach season starts, The Broke and The Bookish want to know, what are your Top Ten Beach Reads.  This will in fact be my third "beach read" list.  This year the topic also specifically asks how YOU define a beach read.  

Usually, if a list is repeated or I've done something similar, I'll try not to repeat the books.  This time, I'm going to think about what I would want in a beach read and see what makes my top ten this week, even if it was on one of the previous lists.  For me, when I want to take something to the beach, I want it to be a page-turner.  It doesn't have to be fluff, it could be anything that will keep me engaged.  It also needs to be something I can put down at any point and come back to without feeling like I need to catch up.  What if I want to take a dip in the water?  Or build a sand castle?  I don't want to feel like I can't leave the story.  In no particular order, my Top Ten Beach Reads.

1. Anything by Sophie Kinsella.

2. The Undead Series, by MaryJanice Davidson

3. The Hunger Games Trilogy, by Suzanne Collins

4. The Divergent Trilogy, by Veronica Roth

5. A Series of Unfortunate Events, by Lemony Snicket

6. The Harry Potter Series, by J.K. Rowling

7. The Chronicles of Narnia, by C.S. Lewis

8. Anything by Jane Austen

9. The Sookie Stackhouse Series, by Charlaine Harris

10. Redshirts, by John Scalzi

Well, apparently I like taking mostly genre books to the beach....  What are your favourite beach reads?

Let's Go! My Top Ten Books Featuring Travel In Some Way

I'm doing this week's Top Ten in order to challenge myself.  Before compiling this list, I didn't think I read a lot of books that involve travelling and I was right.  It's not something I've ever looked for specifically.  After looking at the books I've read, I'm going to tweak this list a little.  I'm going to make this a bit more about "journeys" than about "travel", though they will still be a type of physical journey.  Here are my Top Ten Books Featuring Travel In Some Way, in no particular order:

1. Canada, by Richard Ford - Going from a town in Montana to the middle-of-nowhere Saskatchewan can be quite interesting.

2. Shopaholic Takes Manhattan, by Sophie Kinsella - Becky is excited to go to Manhattan and manages to bring all her London problems with her.

3. Prodigy, by Marie Lu - Traveling through dystopic America, an interesting contrast between two sides/extremes of the country.

4. Fever, by Lauren DeStefano - Another pair traveling through a different dystopic America, one that's really unsettling and possibly even more dangerous.

5. The Chronicles of Narnia, by C.S. Lewis - Takes us through Narnia.  I'd love to visit.

6. World War Z, by Max Brooks - We travel around the world, post-Zombie War, aka World War Z.

7. Life of Pi, by Yann Martel - If you count floating around in the ocean as travel.

8. The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien - They certainly travel far and there's a lot of walking.

9. The Dark Tower Series, by Stephen King - The Ka-Tet travels farther than any other in Mid-World.

10. The Time Traveler's Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger - TIME Travel.

What books have you read about travel?  Do you have any recommendations for me?

Maybe I'm Not A Light & Fun Reader

This week I found the Broke and The Bookish's top ten topic more difficult than usual.  Apparently, I don't read a whole lot of "Light and Fun" type stories.  There are a few though.  Let's see if I can make it to ten.

1. Anything by Jane Austen - They're classic, but they're romantic.

2. The Shopaholic Series/Anything by Sophie Kinsella - Kinsella's books are hilarious and my go-to read when I want something light.

3. The Undead Series, by MaryJanice Davidson - Undead might be about vampires, but Queen Betsy is hilarious.  I have to catch up on this series.

4. The Southern Vampire/Sookie Stackhouse series, by Charlaine Harris - I started this series when I needed something light to read.  There's a fair bit of violence and sex, but whatever, it was light for me.

5. The Mortal Instruments/The Infernal Devices series, by Cassandra Clare - I've read the first three books in The Mortal Instruments series and I found them quick, fun reads.  Maybe not light?  Again, a fair bit of violence in these books.  

So, not even close to ten...  I find a lot of the Young Adult Dystopian series I've read in the past couple years "fun", in that they are quick and enjoyable reads, but they deal with some heavy/dark subjects and I don't know that they qualify for this list. Even some of the series I have up there might not really be what the topic intends.  I guess I'm not really into "light" books.  Oh well.  Maybe I'll discover some this week looking at everyone's lists.  Any recommendations?

You Must Read These!

I love this week's Top Ten Tuesday topic from The Broke and The Bookish.  I want to encourage reading and I'm always ready to recommend books.  I think my list is pretty diverse.  I try to recommend books based on the person because I like for everyone to have good reading experiences.  These are a selection of books that aren't just favourites, but one's I think other people will like.  In no particular order the Top Ten  Books I Recommend The Most:

1. The Handmaid's Tale, by Margaret Atwood - One of the best books ever.  It's so eerily possible.
2. A Thousand Splendid Suns, by Khaled Hosseini - Another best book ever.  Good if you are interesting in the problems in the Middle-East from the perspective of someone who lived there.  Also good if you're interested in women's rights (and who isn't?).
3. The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins - I've described this book as Extreme Survivor.  That still holds true.
4. The Dark Tower Series, by Stephen King - King's epic.  It's also good for those who don't necessarily like horror, because this lends itself towards fantasy.
5. 1984, by George Orwell - You want to know where "Big Brother" comes from?  Here it is.  It is so scary.
6. The Time Machine, by H.G. Wells - Classic Science-Fiction: Wells' commentary on the British class structure, with our cannibalistic descendants.  I plan or re-reading this one soon.
7. The Shopaholic Series, by Sophie Kinsella - So fun!  Good for the beach, to relax, to forget about the world.
8. Flush, by Virginia Woolf - It is short and clever.  It's a great way to test out Woolf if you're not sure about diving in, probably the least like her other books.
9. Kindred, by Octavia Butler - It's been over a decade since I read it, but the story has stayed with me and I don't think it will ever leave.  To me, that's pretty powerful writing.
10. Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley - Easily my favourite of the classic horrors.

So, read these books.  I highly recommend them.  What do you think I should read?  Recommendations?

Did I Forget To Read You?

I put a similar list together for The Broke and The Bookish's Top Ten Tuesday a while ago.  So I'm going to only list books that weren't on my first list.  It sounds like it will be difficult, but it actually won't be.  In no particular order, the Top Ten books I HAD To Buy...But Are Still Sitting On My Shelf Unread:

1. Brown Girl In The Ring, by Nalo Hopkinson - When I first saw this book, I knew I had to read it, but it sits untouched on my shelf.
2. The Wolves Of Mercy Falls, by Maggie Steifvater - I saw the box set at a discounted price and I'd heard such great things about the author and the series, but it's still sealed in shrink wrap.
3. Carrie, by Stephen King - I saw the new paperbacks looking pretty on display and there was Carrie.  I've read a fair amount of King's work, but not his first novel.  Why is it still waiting for me to read it?
3. His Dark Materials, by Philip Pullman - I saw the paperback box set on sale (of course).  The price was right and I really want to read the books, but they just sit on my shelf.
4. Twenties Girl, by Sophie Kinsella - I love Kinsella's books, I've read a lot of them, so of course I picked this one up too... and then didn't read it.
5. The View From Castle Rock, by Alice Munro - I picked this up at a charity book sale after reading so many wonderful stories by Munro.
6. What the Dickens: The Story Of A Rogue Tooth Fairy, by Gregory Maguire - I enjoyed Confessions of an Ugly Step-Sister and Wicked, I couldn't resist adding to my Maguire books when I saw this one on sale.
7.  The Gargoyle, by Andrew Davidson - I heard brilliant things about The Gargoyle.  Readers I respect immensely recommend this book, so I picked it up... and put it on the shelf.
8. Girl In Translation, by Jean Kwok - It sounded so much like I book I would enjoy.  I picked it up at the same charity book sale that I bought The View From Castle Rock.
9. Her Fearful Symmetry, by Audrey Niffenegger - The Time Traveler's Wife was great and I wanted to read Niffenegger's follow up and I still want to read it.
10. Girls of Riyadh, by Rajaa Alsanea - I just had to have it.  I wanted to read it so much.  I'm going to read it.  Soon (ish).  Bah!

Has anyone realized I'm a sucker for books with reduced prices?  I'm saving money by buying it, right?  Not really.

What books did you have to have and then didn't read?  Which one of these should I make a priority?

I Want ALL Your Books: The Authors On My Auto Buy List

The topic from The Broke and The Bookish: "Top Ten Authors That I'd Put On My Auto-Buy List (basically an auto-buy list is no questions asked..you love this author so much that no matter what they wrote next you'd buy regardless of genre or subject matter) "

I'm not sure I have ten authors on my Auto-Buy list.  I also don't tend to buy a lot of new releases.  I already own so many books.... I often wait for sales/specials so as to slow the hoarding...  There are also some authors I love that have large back catalogues.  So I aim to eventually buy all their books, but that takes time and money.  

In no particular order, here is my Auto-Buy List.

1. Stephen King (So many books!)

2. Margaret Atwood (See above!)
3. Michael Ondaatje (I haven't read his newest novel yet.)

4. Alice Munro (Working through her many books.)

5. Lauren DeStefano (Probably the newest addition.)

6. Sophie Kinsella (But not Madeline Wickham?  I haven't actually read anything under Wickham, only Kinsella....)

7. J.K. Rowling (I liked The Causal Vacancy)

8 Veronica Roth might make it on to this list.

I couldn't make it to ten.  Maybe I'm too discriminating... maybe I'm too poor.

Who is on your Auto-Buy List?

The Book World to Real Life – Could They Make It?

This week’s topic from The Broke and The Bookish made me think.  A lot.  I considered what obstacles the couples had to overcome, as well as the foundations of their relationships.  I didn’t want to just throw together a list of romantic couples, that would be too easy…  So here we are, my Top Ten (Eight) Couples Who Might Make It In The Real World.

1. Ron and Hermione (Harry Potter series, by J.K. Rowling) – I know it’s almost cliché, but clichés exist for a reason.  They work through the antagonistic feelings to become friends, then from friends to more.  They would be those friends you have to dinner with who tell you how they hated each other, but now, it’s funny to think back on.

2. Eddie and Susannah (Dark Tower series, by Stephen King) – I know they’re not exactly a well known “romance”, but they are a couple that went through a lot.  Not even death could stop them from being together.  Eddie didn’t see Susannah as disabled, he saw her as someone he could love forever.  In the end, they did get a chance to make it in the real world and you’re left with the feeling that they do.

3. Lizzy and Darcy (Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen) – I know everyone will probably have Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy on their list.  But I don’t care.  They are a great couple.  It wasn’t love at first site and that makes is so much more real.

4. Katniss and Peeta (The Hunger Games trilogy, by Suzanne Collins) – I think it’s the epilogue at the end of Mockingjay that really makes me feel like Katniss and Peeta could have a real relationship in the real world.

5. Becky Bloomwood and Luke Brandon (Shopaholic Series, by Sophie Kinsella) – Though exaggerated for the books, Becky and Luke seem to have real problems, like working too much or shopping too much and they work through them.

6. Sookie and Sam (Sookie Stackhouse series, by Charlaine Harris) – Yup, that’s right, I said Sam.  Bill lied and Eric is too selfish.  After Deadlocked I think that’s who Sookie is going to end up with.  Sam is kind and has been a good friend to her no matter which crazy vampire or shifter she’s dated.

7. Jane and Rochester (Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë) – If you want to read about a woman who doesn’t change her values just to be with a man, then read this book.  They still end up together.

8. Henry and Clare (The Time Traveler’s Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger) – I know this has been on a lot of lists too, but even without the time traveling, I think they could make their lives work.

That’s it.  Eight.  I can think of lots of couples in books, but I doubt the staying power of their relationships.  I thought of adding Harry and Ginny, but thought one Harry Potter couple was enough, so I picked the one I thought more likely to work.  I know there are people who picked Edward Ferrars and Elinor Dashwood from Sense and Sensibility, but if this were the real world, Elinor would have found someone else ages before Edward came around.  Except for the first two, I kind of doubt my own choices too.  Relationships in the real world are difficult, wonderful and amazing, but difficult.

What do you think?

Don’t Stop! Top Ten Books To Read In A Day

Some of these Top Ten Books are to Read In A Day, because they are quick reads.  Others are for one day reading because it's difficult to put them down.

1.     The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins - You could potentially read the whole series in a day.

2.     Dead Until Dark, by Charlaine Harris - It's easy to fall for Sookie and Bill in one day.

3.     Undead and Unwed, by Maryjanice Davidson - Decide if you love Betsy or can't stand her craziness.  I love her and you can decide in a day.

4.     Confessions of a Shopaholic, by Sophie Kinsella - You can get excited and feel embarrassed with Becky.  Go through this fun Chick Lit adventure easily in one day.

5.     Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, by J.K. Rowling - It's been so long since I read the first Harry Potter book.  It would be nice to sit back and take in Harry's first adventure in just a day.

6.     A Thousand Splendid Suns, by Khaled Houseinni - It would be a long, emotional day and you might cry at the end, but this book is so difficult to put down.

7.     The Gum Thief, by Douglas Coupland - Coupland's writing is so fluid, it is difficult tear yourself away; you want to know what is going to happen to these characters.

8.     Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams - So good and fun and I think it would be easy to read in a day.

9.     The Helmet of Horror, by Victor Pelevin - I read this in a day by accident.  It was such an easy read, I was sitting with my hubby and the next thing I knew it was done!

10. The Penelopiad, by Margaret Atwood - An easy, potentially one-day read, for any Atwood fan.  You really want to know what happens to Penelope in end.

Except for The Helmut of Horror, all of these books took me more than a day to read.  It's been a long time since I've had the kind of time where I can just sit and read my time away.  But if I was without the children, maybe on a vacation or something, I could read any of those books in a day.

Thanks to The Broke and The Bookish for another great topic.

Mini Shopaholic

Someone finally used it! They finally used the word that holds this series together. If you had asked me before, I would have said they'd done it already, but after seeing it I print, I know this is the first time Becky has heard it.

Mini Shopaholic finds Becky and Luke dealing with their rambunctious two-year-old. What I found interesting was learning a bit more about Becky and Luke’s childhoods and how that shaped them as adults.

I really enjoyed this addition to Sophie Kinsella’s Shopaholic series. It’s what I wanted and expected. Life’s been crazy and I needed another happy read. The ending makes it obvious that there will be another book, but without a bunch of loose threads. Mini Shopaholic does a fair job standing on its own, but an even better job making me want more.

The Short Stack

This is probably the easiest Top Ten I’ve ever done. This week, The Broke and The Bookish ask, what books top our fall reading lists? I have a ton of books on my to-be-read list. What I try to do is keep a “short stack”, a small pile of books, usually diverse in genre or topic. Here are the books on my short list; hopefully, I’ll get to all of them this fall.

1. Moral Disorder, by Margaret Atwood
2. Everything’s Eventual, by Stephen King
3. Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Season 8, Volumes 4-6: Time of Your Life, Predators and Prey, and Retreat, by Joss Whedon, etc.
4. The Thousand Orcs, by R.A. Salvatore
5. Mini Shopaholic, by Sophie Kinsella
6. The Silver Chair, by C.S. Lewis
7. The Flying Troutmans, by Miriam Toews

8. Dracula, by Bram Stoker

9. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson

10. Pride and Prejudiced and Zombies: Dawn of the Dreadfuls, by Steve Hockensmith

I did have to add a couple to round it out to ten, but the books I included will likely be added once other books in my short stack are read.

What are you reading this fall?

The Sweet Stuff: The Top Ten “Awww” Moments in Books

The Broke and The Bookish want to know this week, what are the Top Ten "Awww" Moments In Books (those cute lines, charming actions, kisses, or any other sentimental moment that made you say "AWWW!"

The only way to explain the “Aww” moment is to include spoilers. They’re kept to a sentence or two, but you’ve been warned. So here are my top six in no particular order.

1. When Peeta gave Katniss the pearl in Catching Fire.

2. When Luke gave Becky back the Denny and George scarf in Confessions of a Shopaholic.

3. When Gabriel hides June Beans in Rhine’s meal trays in Wither.

4. The final time Clare sees Henry when she’s an old lady at the end of The Time Traveler’s Wife.

5. When Harry, Ron, Hermione & Ginny are all sitting together in the Gryffindor common room in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and you think, this is how it should always be.

6. When Eric has Sookie’s driveway re-graveled at the end of Club Dead. I know it doesn’t seem like much, but I thought it was so thoughtful.

This one was difficult for me. I guess I don’t read a lot of sweet books. I’m sure there will be a few I’ll see as I look through the lists this week and wonder why I didn’t think of it, but this list was definitely one of the shorter ones for me.

What are your favourite sweet moments?

It’d Be A Nice Place To Visit, But I Wouldn’t Want To Live There

This week’s Top Ten from The Broke and The Bookish: Top Ten Settings In Books (All those real or imagined locations/worlds you loved reading about OR settings you think would be perfect in a book). So, not all these places are where I’d actually like to live, but it would be interesting to see them the way I imagine. Some of them are easier to visit than others. These settings, I think, are all places that really contribute to the story; they have their own character or personality. So, in no particular order, my Top Ten Settings in Books.

1. Panem, from The Hunger Games Trilogy. I’d only like to go here if I had no risk of getting hurt. Each district seems to have its own personality. The Capitol sounds like a crazily over-indulgent city.

2. The English village Samantha Sweeting ran away to in The Undomestic Goddess. I don’t remember the name of it and I can’t seem to find it on the interweb, but it sounds just lovely. This village let Samantha find herself.

3. Staples. Yup, that’s right, Staples. That big box store with all the office supplies. Staples is the setting for Douglas Coupland’s, The Gum Thief. I adored this book. Making the emotional turmoil of the two main characters take place while they work at their job at Staples is just brilliant!

4. Bon Temps from the Sookie Stackhouse Series. It’s just so hot and mysterious.

5. Middle Earth. Do I really need to explain this one?

6. Narnia. Do I need to explain this one too?

7. Mid-World is the world of Roland, the last Gunslinger from Stephen King’s Dark Tower series. I wouldn’t want to live there since it’s falling apart, but I’d have liked to see it in its prime. Now, the strangest, scariest, deadliest things happen there.

8. Faerûn is the world of Forgotten Realms. It’s all magic and legend. There is good and evil, but still the possibility of change.

9. The Cottage that Mikael Blonkvist lived in during The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (minus the serial killer). It just seemed like a good place to read and write and get away from what’s bothering you.

10. Ancient Greece, which is the setting of so many stories. I was thinking particularly The Penelopiad, from Penelope’s point of view. Atwood’s take on it is interesting.

Where would you like to see?

Time For A Vacation! The Top Ten Beach Reads!

This week, the Broke and the Bookish want to know what are the Top Ten Books That Should Be In A Beach Bag (your perfect beach reads!). I think this list is going to be a bit different for everyone. My idea of a beach read and yours might be completely different. In no particular order, here is what I’d read if I had all day to lay outside.

1. The Southern Vampire Mysteries / Sookie Stackhouse series, by Charlaine Harris. – I love Sookie and all the characters in these books. I’d breeze through them, hoping the entire time that Sookie finds happiness.

2. The Undead series, by MaryJanice Davison. – I love Betsy! She’s irritatingly wonderful.

3. The Hunger Games trilogy, by Suzanne Collins. – I love Katniss and Peeta. The books are exciting and sure to make me feel like I’m doing more than lying around.

4. The Shopaholic series, by Sophie Kinsella. – Plus anything else I’ve ever read by her. Kinsella’s books are quirky, funny and light. Just what I’d need after reading about all kinds of supernatural creatures and teenagers killing each other.

5. The Time Traveler’s Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger. – Whenever I think of this book, I can’t help but smile.

6. The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, by Stieg Larsson. – I’d also likely want the other two books in the series, I just haven’t read them yet.

7. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, by Jane Austen & Seth Grahame-Smith – What’s a vacation without some Zombie Mayhem?!

8. The Penelopiad, by Margaret Atwood. – A little more serious, but an easier read than some of her other books. It can’t be all love affairs and bloody violence. I wouldn’t want my brain to go mushy.

9. The Gum Thief, by Douglas Coupland. – Again, another more serious choice, but it’s an easy read and I find the style of the book fun and interesting.

10. The Legend of Drizzt series, by R.A. Salvatore. – When I feel like a hero, Drizzt is there. He’ll fight for what’s right and save the day!

I almost included Buffy Season 8, but the problem I think I would have with graphic novels is that I would finish them too fast. I also nearly included the Twilight series, but they’re huge! I don’t mean it would take me long to read them, just that they’d be heavy. This is the only list that’s ever made me kind of want a Kobo or Kindle or some other kind of eReader. I like the idea of taking 40 books with me to the beach. I know I cheated a bit with this list. There are 5 different series on the list. Oh well. What books would end up in your beach bag?

Why Do You Hate Me? – Top Ten Mean Girls In Books

This is a great idea for a list. The Broke and The Bookish present, The Top Ten Mean Girls In Books. This was a fun, but difficult list. It was a stretch for me to get to ten. Because of a couple of the girls I chose there might be minor spoilers while describing them, but hopefully none of them give away too much. In no particular order…

1. Galinda from Wicked. Galinda at first is the typical popular girl and school who makes life difficult for Elphaba, the girl who doesn’t fit in. I really like Galinda, however. She learns real life lessons from her time with Elphaba.

2. Serena Joy from The Handmaid’s Tale. Serena Joy fought for a world that has now subjugated her; taken away all her power and recognition. She fought for a world that has made her into little more than an object. How could she do that to herself and to every woman?

3. Lucy Steele from Sense and Sensibility. I think most people who have read S&S love to hate Lucy Steele. She manipulative and cunning. She’s so mean to Elinor, who doesn’t deserve it.

4. Kitty Bennet from Pride and Prejudice. I almost couldn’t decide between Kitty and Caroline Bingley. Caroline at least wasn’t Lizzy & Jane’s sister! Kitty is self-centred and is constantly looking at herself as better than her sisters, when it clearly isn’t the case.

5. Bernice from The Year Of The Flood. I know Ren and Amanda did a bad thing to her family, but Bernice was never a really good friend to Ren. She pushed Ren around a lot, controlled her, then got jealous when Amanda came along. I thought Bernice’s behaviour was terrible, but there was obviously no parental guidance. Maybe I wouldn’t dislike her so much if she had just let Ren apologize or something when they met again later in life. I almost didn’t include her, but she was definitely a mean girl.

6. Cuckoo from The Good Earth. I always wonder why people in the lower classes try to best each other instead of working together.

7. Prince Ronald from The Paper Bag Princess. Okay, I know he’s not a mean girl. He’s a mean boy. Princess Elizabeth goes through all the trouble of rescuing him and he turns out to be entirely superficial. The Paper Bag Princess was on my list of books I want to see turn into movies, but I can see why they haven’t made this into a movie. Not everyone will want to see the male lead be a loser in the end.

8. Arlene from the Southern Vampire Mysteries. This probably only makes sense if you’ve read up to at least the eighth book, but you would especially need to read the ninth. If you’ve never read the books and only watched the television series, you’re probably wondering what I’m talking about. Let’s just say, if you were Sookie, you’d want to do more than punch Arlene.

9. The Seeker/Lacey from The Host. Stephenie Meyer has a knack for creating really annoying female characters. The Seeker is supposed to help Wanderer. Instead she just infuriates her. By the end you wonder if it was really The Seeker’s personality coming through or Lacey’s annoying behaviour that drove The Seeker crazy.

10. Elinor Sherman from Shopaholic Ties The Knot. Elinor Sherman isn’t a mean girl, she’s a mean adult. She is a nightmarish mother/mother-in-law. Elinor Sherman wants her son, Luke Brandon, to be more like her and is constantly on the watch, wondering if loveable Becky Bloomwood is just in it for the money. You’d cross your fingers that your boyfriend/husband wasn’t into spending a lot of time with his mother.

I enjoy and author who can create such hated characters. These girls definitely deserve a good punch.

Who are your favourite mean girls?

Top Ten Books I'd Like to See Made Into Movies

This week, the Broke and The Bookish want to know, what books we'd like to see made into movies.

1. Oryx and Crake, 2. Year of the Flood – I’d like to see both books made into movies. I think they’d be horrific and disturbing and fantastic films. They’d (hopefully) be the kind of movie that makes an impact, where you never really forget the story, just like the books.

3. The Hunger Games – Oh wait. They’re already making this into a movie. Yay! It better be good.

4. The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo – Oh wait. They’ve already made a Swedish movie, now we’re just waiting for the “Hollywood Blockbuster” to come out. I’ve heard the Swedish movie is amazing. The Hollywood movie better be good.

5. Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell – Though parts of the book dragged, if you take some of it out, this would make for an exciting movie.

6. Wicked – It’s a musical already, but it’s not as close to the book or as dark as the book. I think a movie could really show Elphaba at her best and worst.

7. Remember Me? – This one might make up for not having a great interpretation of Confessions of a Shopaholic I think the premise and outcome are unique and interesting. It wouldn’t be another formulaic chick-flick.

8. The Paper Bag Princess – If they’ve done Where The Wild Things Are why not The Paper Bag Princess? Let’s give the girls someone fantastic to look up to. It’s one of my favourite children’s books and I think a movie of it could be wonderful.

9. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies – This would be so awesome.

10. A Series of Unfortunate Events – I know they did a movie encompassing the first three books, which was fantastic. I enjoyed the performances of Jim Carrey, Glen Close and the actors who played the Baudelaire siblings. They’d probably have to start over since the actors have aged so much, but they’re such wonderful books, I think it would be worth it.

I wanted to add that I’ve wanted to see a movie or movies based on the Dark Tower series by Stephen King for years. Now that I’ve discovered what they’re doing, I hope they don’t mess it up.

I also considered adding A Thousand Splendid Suns but I think I’d cry the whole time. It’s probably why I haven’t seen the film version of The Lovely Bones.

Not Quite Right: Top Ten Book Covers I Wish I Could Redesign

This week’s Top Ten Tuesday topic was as difficult as last week’s. I tend to buy editions with attractive/interesting covers, even if they’re a little more expensive. There are a few covers though, that popped to mind, but most I had to work to find. I decided this week that I’d include not just the book title and author, but the publisher too. The publishers, from what I understand, have the final say on the book covers. Sometimes I want to ask them what they were thinking. In no particular order, the Top Ten Book Covers I Wish I Could Redesign.

1. New Moon, by Stephenie Meyer, published by Little, Brown. – Why is it a bloody flower? Shouldn’t it have something to do with, I don’t know, a moon? I understand that all the covers have the deep red theme going on, but maybe a bloody moon to represent the large wolf presence in this story would have been better.

2. Self, by Yann Martel, published by Vintage Canada. – When I ordered the book, I thought I was getting the cover with the purple flower shaped smudge. Instead I got this weird white statue thing.

3. The Bell Jar, by Sylvia Plath, published by Faber and Faber - I thought I was getting a cover with a flower on it (sorry, can’t seem to find a picture), but I got a morose looking girl instead. It fits with the story, but I thought the girl was obvious, where the flower would be symbolic.

4. The Dark Tower: Treachery, by Stephen King, published by Marvel. – This was an amazing graphic novel. The art is spectacular. The problem I have with the cover is that it’s of a girl I’ve never seen before and have no idea who she is. The title is “Treachery” so you think she’s the traitor, but it doesn’t really work out that way. I just wish the cover was more telling of the story, something with Roland and his mother maybe.

5. The Dark Tower V: The Wolves of Calla, by Stephen King, published by Scribner. – (Sorry Dark Tower, you know I love you.) There are two covers that I like and two that I don’t. They don’t seem to go with the other books in the series. Can you guess which they are?

6. Subjective, Intersubjective, Objective, by Donald Davidson, published by Clarendon Press. I know it’s a book about philosophy of the mind, but the cover doesn’t work for me. Maybe it’s not mental enough.

With the next two on the list, the book covers have already been re-designed since they were first published and thank goodness. The old ones were terrible, the new ones are much better. They made it easy to dismiss the quality story-telling in these fantasy novels. I’m not including the pictures of these covers since there are five books in #7 and four in #8. The links will take you to the old covers if you’re interested.

7. The Cleric Quintet, R.A. Salvatore, published by Wizards of the Coast. It could have been worse. Maybe.

8. Legacy of the Drow Series, by R.A. Salvatore, published by Wizards of the Coast. I know Drizzt is around 60 in these books, but that’s Drow years. Drow live for hundreds of years. They should have drawn him as though he was in his late 20s or early 30s.

9. And 10 and 11 and 12…. Any book with the movie poster as the cover. Example of why I don’t like it: Confessions of a Shopaholic. The movie had almost nothing to do with the book. It was so unlike the book; I had to go into watching it, thinking it was something completely different, just so I wouldn’t hate it.

I can wait to see what book covers other people have come up with.