2018 Reading Challenge Level 3 and 2017 in review

Like many, I can't believe that this year is almost over. It didn't really hit me until I looked over my Goodreads challenge books in review. I didn't quite make the level 3 challenge of last year because I kept getting distracted by other books that I want to read. However, I still have one for the upcoming year. This level has 50 books and two separate versions.

This list can keep even the most book hungry person occupied throughout the year.

With the file size, I have to break it down into separate lists instead of everything on the same list.

How did the challenge go for people this past year? Any favorites I should stick on my radar?

Many of these were re-reads and some were for work.

Worth listening to on audiobook: Percy Jackson and the Olympians
I've read this before with my students and enjoyed it. I get tired of listening to Netflix while I work, so this was a very nice change.

Worth multiple reads: Mistborn Trilogy 1 and 2
The first set of books are on the long side, but they are pretty fun to read and definitely a step up from the usual YA novels floating around. If anything, read part 1 to be able to read Wax's and Wayne's adventures. Steris is reason enough alone to read those books. I haven't related to a character quite that much before.

Worth checking out: The Lunar Chronicles & The Heart of Deception books
All the books in this series are great for at least one read through, except for Fairest. This novella is more than worth skipping and I regret reading it. I can summarize it with this:

Worth skipping...kind of: Caraval
This book was a letdown. The idea of the sisters going into a magical game was intriguing, but the execution fell flat. However, it was good enough that I'd be willing to read the sequel when it comes out.

My list seems to be growing by the day of books to read. I have a couple cued up to finish at the beginning of the new year and have several that I may try. Is Wheel of Time worth the investment? I've tried a couple times, but the book requires an astounding amount of focus that I can't quite give to a book.

Hoping to hear about your year of reading!

2018 LDS Primary Planning Pages, Christmas Multiplication and Division , and Reading Challenge Update

Primary Presidency Planner
Life has been a bit of a kick in the pants lately. I was called as primary president about 2 months ago and we are still getting things in order. I think once the program is out of the way, I'll be able to rest a bit easier.

I've been on the hunt for a primary planning binder for my presidency and me to use, but I haven't found any that I particularly love. There are some super cute ones on Etsy, but they just don't seem like ones I'd really use. So, I've taken bits and pieces from free planners that I liked and have been working on building my own.

I want to be sure that we keep the scripture for the month in mind, so I made sure to include it a few times throughout the pages.

I found a pretty similar idea here at Little LDS Ideas and modified it a bit so that it is more my style.

I also have a basic notes page with spaces to track presidency goals, important dates, and other things that you may want to keep track of.

This is still a work in progress. I am hoping to have it ready for our kick off in January. I'm pretty excited to use it.

What are some of your favorite ways to stay organized as a presidency? If you are interested in having the binder pages, email me at ashtonsmith026@gmail.com and I'll happily send what I've got!

A TPT Christmas

I've been getting a lot of great feedback from teachers that have purchased my mystery picture activities. Seeing the feedback is pretty encouraging and I'm glad to be providing something that is useful to teachers that students enjoy.

When I've taught in the past, I always had a handful of students that struggled with mastering their multiplication and division facts. The only way I could get them to learn them was to have some sort of practice every day in a variety of ways. For the holidays, I have put together a pack of Christmas sheets for multiplication and division practice, plus two sheets that combine both multiplication and division.

What are other ways you incorporate multiplication and division into your classroom?

2017 Reading Challenge: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
I really wish I liked this book more. I've seen Fangirl recommended on a bunch of Pinterest boards and finally gave in to picking it. Full disclosure, I listened to the audiobook since I haven't been able to hit the library. Also, I'm not going to hide any spoilers so if you continue, you've been warned.

What I liked:
I liked the overall premise of the book. Cath is a fanfiction writer about to start college. She is introverted and deals with anxiety. The story is about her navigating college, family, and friends. I've been reading a lot of dystopian fantasy lately, so this was a nice change.

The characters and their relationships were interesting for the most part. Cath and Wren's complicated relationship kept me hoping that they would patch things up. Reagan's and Levi's interactions with Cath were also fun to read. Both are nice to Cath and help her to open up more. Cath's and Wren's relationship with their father was also a draw for me.

The scenes with the fiction professor were also enjoyable. I like that she didn't just favor Cath, but made her work for her grades. I also appreciated that she gives Cath a second chance with the final project when Cath doesn't turn it in during finals week.

What I hated:
I absolutely hated the descriptions of Levi and Nick. Nick sounded like he needed a good pluck job on his eyebrows. Levi's description made me think of this:

but with a badly receding hairline. Whenever their looks were brought up, I wasn't convinced that Cath liked either of them.

Simon Snow was dumb and did nothing for the plot. The sections of fan fiction that we got were pointless. Also, if it was supposed to be the book version of Harry Potter, why does Harry Potter exist in that universe too? Makes no sense.

This book had absolutely no plot. It was just Cath being thrown into situations and having her react to those situations.

This book doesn't really show what it means to be part of a fandom. It was just Cath and her fans. The book doesn't show the community behind it. I had trouble believing the series was as big as the book made it seem. All we see is Cath.

I also couldn't stand Cath's character development. She is a bit winy at different parts of the book and she was too stuck on fanfiction. Seriously, if your professor gives you a second chance on a project, you take it. Who would be like, no way I am meant to write fanfiction and I do it better than the actual author, anyway? You can't make money off fan fiction. You can't have a real career out of fanfiction.

In the end, this book deserved 2 1/2 stars from me.

2018 Reading Challenge
In the next several weeks, I'll be posting a 2018 Reading Challenge and an overall review of the books I've read this past year. Keep an eye out!

Choices and Consequences, Holiday Adding and Subtracting within 10, and books!

Primary: 5th Sunday Edition
Being the 5th Sunday, and our first 5th Sunday in Primary, my counselor and I decided that we would play a game that my mom has used many a time. I'm not sure where she got it from (knowing my mom, she came up with it), so if you know where please share below!

I forgot to take pictures of the board that I had made, so here is the picture of the one my mom made. For the board I made, I made 5 pockets so that we could store the choice cards.

The choice cards are just CTR shields with the choices on the back. Some choices:
1. You stole money from a friend and bought candy.
2. Your mom asked you to help her and you helped her right away.
3. Your brother was being a pest so you pushed him.
4. Your friends wanted to play on Sunday, but you didn't and told them that you can play with them a different day.

The game rules with an introduction and a conclusion. We also gave out stickers for good choices and then candy at the end in honor of Halloween.

In order to make the game a bit more engaging, we added options for doing the consequences with a friend/sibling or with your whole class. Some consequences were pages from the Friend and LDS coloring book. Others were things like do jumping jacks until the quote is ended or putting together a puzzle of a church figure (like Captain Moroni).

Overall, it seemed to be a success! We had investigator kids and they told the missionaries that they want to come back next week (win).

Here are a few of the pages that I printed out for the challenges.

What are some of your favorite 5th Sunday activities?

TPT
What's one of my posts without a section about Teachers Pay Teachers?

I am heading to Chicago with Baby A this coming weekend, so I wanted to make sure I got a few things up before leaving (in case I decide to slack). All three of them are adding and subtracting within 10. I'll just share one at a time so I can spread the love.

I tried making these Thanksgiving-themed puzzles and it was hard! I use Photoshop Elements to make most of the images that I use. Overall, I think I did a fairly decent job. I am pretty excited about them 😀

Multiplication and division are up next on the docket, get ready. It is crazy to think how fast this year has gone by. Find Adding and Subtraction within 10 here. 

"Caraval" by Stephanie Garber: 2017 Reading Challenge

From Goodreads: Scarlett Dragna has never left the tiny island where she and her sister, Tella, live with their powerful, and cruel, father. Now Scarlett’s father has arranged a marriage for her, and Scarlett thinks her dreams of seeing Caraval—the faraway, once-a-year performance where the audience participates in the show—are over.

But this year, Scarlett’s long-dreamt-of invitation finally arrives. With the help of a mysterious sailor, Tella whisks Scarlett away to the show. Only, as soon as they arrive, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind organizer, Legend. It turns out that this season’s Caraval revolves around Tella, and whoever finds her first is the winner.

Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is only an elaborate performance. Nevertheless, she becomes enmeshed in a game of love, heartbreak, and magic. And whether Caraval is real or not, Scarlett must find Tella before the five nights of the game are over or a dangerous domino effect of consequences will be set off, and her beloved sister will disappear forever.

What I Liked:

The idea of Caraval is great! It has sisterly love, romance, magic, and a mysterious game. One sister has to run after the other and win the game before time runs out. The leader of the game could have been a great villain or her father could have been great to string along through more of the story as another villain. I also liked that even though I disliked the author's writing style, characterizations, etc, I still wanted to know how it ended...mainly to know if my predictions were right.

What I Disliked:

The biggest irritation was the author's use of weird descriptions. In the story, the main character sees feelings as colors. For example, she used the term "periwinkle of curiosity." It would have been alright if it was important to the story, but it isn't. It was just odd. 

Another thing that bugged me was that the characters didn't really progress or change outside of a smidgeon at the end. Also, Scarlett claims to be searching for her sister; however, she spends a lot of time worrying about Julian and Dante. She really needed to sort out her priorities. 

In this mysterious and mystifying game, we're also supposed to believe that Scarlett has minimum interactions with the other competitors. She has almost no competition from the beginning! If this was realistic, everyone would be concocting plans and attempt to either take her down or bring her into some sort of alliance. 

The ending was just sort of an exposition dump without any explanation for the magic outside of (basically) I don't know, it just works that way. Are you kidding me?? I mean, I'm all for suspension of belief for a while, but that's too much even for me. 

Will I read the book coming out next year? Probably! I am curious where she will go with the sister's POV and if it'll be better than the first. 

What are your thoughts on the book?

I can go to the temple for my ancestors when I am older and Halloween Math

Primary
The past few weeks have been a jam-packed, busy storm of activity. I've been recalled as primary president, so I've been trying to get things in place and settled. This week's lesson is on attending the temple for our ancestors when we turn 12.

(from Melonheadz)

I printed out this picture and turned it into a puzzle. To start the lesson, the primary children will hunt down the missing pieces and build it on the board.

Next, we're going to go over some vocabulary. I pulled these terms from the Friend and turned them into posters. I feel it's a good idea to go over these words with the kids on a frequent basis (when it ties in) in order to help them learn. I'm planning on asking if they have heard the terms before, where they have heard them, and to explain them to me before revealing the posters. 

After, I'll have the kids look under their chairs for the different ordinances that can be done in the temple. We'll put them up on the board by the ordinances poster. 

I'll bring up how we can go to the temple and get these ordinances when we are older and baptism when we turn 8.

Then, I'll tell a story about a relative passing away before receiving the ordinances and ask what can be done for them. Hopefully, we'll get to the point where they know that their ancestors can still receive the ordinances, but we have to do them for them. 

We'll continue on and go over how we can prepare now to go to the temple for our ancestors. 

I am giving out laughy taffy at the end with a card that says "I can 'chews' to prepare to go to the temple for my ancestors." I haven't decided if we will do the suggested coloring activity yet or not. 

While doing research for this lesson, I really liked the suggestions from Life's Journey to Perfection. There are also some good ideas on Sugar Doodle as well. 

Organization

I haven't been able to find binder covers and organizers that I like online so I may develop ones that work for me. Here's the cover that I have been working on:

I slightly modified one design that I saw online to make this one, but I'm not sure if this will be the final design. 

Teachers Pay Teachers

I am surprised how much TPT took off this month so far. I am glad others are finding the things I develop are helpful in the classroom. 

The adding and subtracting decimals worksheet will probably be the final Halloween-themed item that I put together this year.  I am preparing to move on to Thanksgiving in the next few days! You can find the product here.

I can't believe that it has been about a year since I began Teachers Pay Teachers. I have done much better than I thought, gotten better at developing products, and learned a ton. It will be exciting to see what the next year brings.

Tips for TPT:

1. Make sure you have something for holidays. 

I missed out on a lot of sales the first 6+ months because I didn't have holiday items. If you are starting a TPT account, definitely start making things for the next holiday coming up first. 

2. Pinterest helps A LOT

I never thought much about how Pinterest could help with advertising products, but it helps drive a lot of traffic to the store. 

I debated a lot about getting one of those services that pin for you, because the higher your activity on Pinterest, the more your pins pop up for people. It took a web seminary from Create and Go to make the final decision. They said that they do not use a service because they studied it and you get more exposure when you pin things yourself. 

3. If it's not fun, take a break or change

It's important to keep this fun in the long run. If you aren't having any fun making products, you probably won't keep with it very long. Take a break or try something new if you are feeling overwhelmed or anxious by it. Stop looking at other people's products and success, because that will get you down too. Success will come for you. I'm starting to have success, so it is DEFINITELY possible!

Reading

With everything going on, it is hard to find time to sit down and read for long spaces of time. I am now switching between The Way of Kings and Caravel. I'm not sure when I'll finish, but when I do I'll report. I am excited to give my reviews of the books!

Halloween Multi-Digit Multiplication and Division and More on Terrific Tuesday

Teachers Pay Teachers
I've been trying to crank out more mystery pictures for Halloween. It is really encouraging to see the feedback from other teachers that say how the pictures were helpful and that their students liked them.

I just finished a set of multi-digit multiplication and division worksheets for the upcoming holiday. These are great for centers, individual practice, and more. Each worksheet also has an answer key to help when it comes time to correct the worksheets.

The larger the math problem, the trickier it gets to make the worksheets. I need to figure out an easier way to have the worksheets cover more difficult concepts. 

They are pretty fun to make! After I put the worksheet together, I duplicate the slide so that I can color the image in Photoshop.

You can find the Halloween Multi-Digit Multiplication and Division Mystery Pictures packet on Teachers Pay Teachers.

I am split on what to create next. I've been thinking about translating the worksheets into Spanish for dual-immersion classrooms or Spanish classrooms to use. I've also considered doing Halloween sight words and decimals too. If you have an opinion, comment below!

Currently Reading
It's been a while since I have shared what I am reading and here's why:

This book weighs in at just over 1,000 pages. I haven't read a book this long before and it is smaller print than I am used to. From Goodreads:

"Speak again the ancient oaths,
Life before death.
Strength before weakness.
Journey before Destination.
And return to men the Shards they once bore.
The Knights Radiant must stand again.

Roshar is a world of stone swept by tempests that shape ecology and civilization. Animals and plants retract; cities are built in shelter. In centuries since ten orders of Knights fell, their Shardblade swords and Shardplate armor still transform men into near-invincible warriors. Wars are fought for them, and won by them."

This isn't my first Brandon Sanderson, which is good because I think I would have abandoned this story or not even tried. My current thoughts:
-The characters are interesting so far. Kaladin and Shallan are interesting.
-The style is pretty similar to the first few Mistborn books
-I don't know if I can finish 1,000 pages

Before you read this book, read some others by Brandon Sanderson so you can keep the faith that this book will be good. Book 3 is coming out next month so it would be nice to be done with the first 2 books by then; however, life is crazy and I am easily distracted. haha. We will have to see.

LDS General Conference
We had General Conference September 30th and October 1st. The church leaders speak to all of us on various topics that they want us to hear. You can find them here.

In order to re-listen and try to learn from them (because I am horrible at remembering to set aside time for Gospel study), I have been downloading different audio files of the talks onto my cell phone and then playing them when we go for morning walks. 

This is one of my favorite talks from Conference. You can also find it here.

Being a Mom Update
Naptimes have been rough. Baby A is 1 1/2 years old. She sleeps great at night, but right now naptime is a pain. We are trying to figure out a new naptime because she would only sleep in the morning and then be super crabby by dinner or she would just be on a sleep strike. Any tips out there? Please share below!

Catch up Sunday: Read-alouds and October General Conference 2017

A few favorite read-alouds
There are so many great books out there that it is always nice to hear about ones that were really popular with students.

"For centuries, the evil Shadow Lord has been plotting to invade Deltora and enslave its people. All that stands in his way is the magic Belt of Deltora with its seven gems of great and mysterious power. Now, Leif, Barda, and Jasmine must unite to find the seven gems and save Deltora from an eternity of darkness." -Goodreads

This series is one of the few that my anti-reader little brother actually enjoyed reading and that my mom didn't have to pay him to read. I had originally found this series at a Scholastic Book Fair when I was in elementary school. It was my mom's idea to read these to my 4th-grade class. 

It took maybe 3 chapters (definitely by the end of the prologue) for my class to be hooked. They really enjoyed solving the puzzles in the books too. The books are engaging and adventurous, with some mystery thrown into the mix. 

The downfall of this series is that there is a cartoon of it out online. 

We were reading the 4th book when several kids came in and said they didn't want to read the books anymore because they watched the entire series online and knew what was going to happen. The district I was in was super strict about what was shown in the classroom, so there wasn't the option of comparing and contrasting the two.

"Ivan is an easygoing gorilla. Living at the Exit 8 Big Top Mall and Video Arcade, he has grown accustomed to humans watching him through the glass walls of his domain. He rarely misses his life in the jungle. In fact, he hardly ever thinks about it at all.

Instead, Ivan thinks about TV shows he’s seen and about his friends Stella, an elderly elephant, and Bob, a stray dog. But mostly Ivan thinks about art and how to capture the taste of a mango or the sound of leaves with color and a well-placed line.
Then he meets Ruby, a baby elephant taken from her family, and she makes Ivan see their home—and his own art—through new eyes. When Ruby arrives, change comes with her, and it’s up to Ivan to make it a change for the better." -Goodreads

One of my 4th graders wanted me to read this book really badly before she moved. I was surprised how much I liked it. Usually, I like to read the book before I read it out loud; however, I figured since it was a Newberry Award winner I would be okay. I would be wary of reading this book only because there were a few moments that were intense, but impactful. I would avoid this one if the group is K-2. We did have some interesting discussions about what we read.  This book is definitely a good addition to any upper-grade classroom. 

Andrew Clements is a pretty popular author with elementary teachers. I've already talked a bit about Frindle here. The Last Holiday Concert was another that my students really enjoyed. 

"For Hart Evans, being the most popular kid in sixth grade has its advantages. Kids look up to him, and all the teachers let him get away with anything -- all the teachers except the chorus director, Mr. Meinert. When Hart's errant rubber band hits Mr. Meinert on the neck during chorus practice, it's the last straw for the chorus director, who's just learned he's about to lose his job due to budget cuts. So he tells the class they can produce the big holiday concert on their own. Or not. It's all up to them. And who gets elected to run the show? The popular Mr. Hart Evans. 
Hart soon discovers there's a big difference between popularity and leadership, and to his surprise, discovers something else as well -- it's really important to him that this be the best holiday concert ever, and even more important, that it not be the last." -Goodreads

 What I like most about Andrew Clements' work is that the kids involved in the story and the adults all learn lessons from each other. This particular concert was also great to get the students in the holiday spirit in December.

  "Phillip is excited when the Germans invade the small island of Curaçao. War has always been a game to him, and he’s eager to glimpse it firsthand–until the freighter he and his mother are traveling to the United States on is torpedoed.

   When Phillip comes to, he is on a small raft in the middle of the sea. Besides Stew Cat, his only companion is an old West Indian, Timothy. Phillip remembers his mother’s warning about black people: 'They are different, and they live differently.'"  -Goodreads

This book was a lot of fun with my 5th graders; however, our 5th grade had a copy of the audiobook, so I used that for this book. Either way, this book is engaging and had my students begging for more. It was fun to do an audiobook since it was something different. The great thing about this book, besides the lessons it teaches, is that there are many resources available for classroom use to extend the story beyond the pages. 

LDS General Conference 2017

As a presidency, we decided to build a packet of activities for the primary aged kids to use during conference this October. There are numerous options for activity packets, so I just took a few things from the activities I liked the best. 

Who doesn't enjoy coloring? You can find these coloring pages free here!

Life's Journey To Perfection has several conference activities, two great ones are here and here. 

I really liked this last one that has A-Z activities for kids to do. This would be great for senior primary aged kids or to do together with junior primary kids. Find it here. 

5 Clean YA Books Worth Re-reading

In honor of National Read a Book day falling this week, I thought I would share a few of my favorite clean YA books since I know how hard it can be to find something.

(Goodreads)

My mom introduced me to Moonraker's Bride when I was home sick my Junior year of high school. I was a bit skeptical, since the book is "old", but it turned out to be an enjoyable read. The mystery of Nicholas Sabine was intriguing and I liked cheering on Lucy. The ending was surprising and suspenseful, but it has a happy ending, which is important to me.

(Goodreads)

This is by far my favorite retelling of Beauty and the Beast. Beauty is a smart bookworm worth cheering on. I also liked that the author gave her two sisters that are actually nice and that you'll enjoy reading about too. It is a bit slow at the beginning, but the story definitely picks up speed and is well worth it in the end.

Wildwood Dancing and Cybele's Secret are by the same author. I am bummed that there aren't any plans for a 3rd book because I enjoyed them. Both stories are quick to get through. Wildwood Dancing is the first where we meet the 5 sisters: Tatiana, Julia, Iulia, Paula, and Stela. The story is a retelling of the 12 Dancing Princesses and another story that you'll figure out soon after starting, but would be a huge spoiler, so I won't add it here. Cybele's Secret follows Paula and her father several years after the events of the first book and their trip to obtain a rare artifact for a buyer.
I must warn that there is a scene in the first book where the main character gets groped briefly. It's not very descriptive, so it is easy to miss; however, I think her reaction is very important and a good example to readers.

(Goodreads)

The final book is Crown Duel. It originally came out in two separate books: Crown Duel and Court Duel, but was later combined into one novel.

From Goodreads: A deathbed promise to their father sends a daring girl and her brother off to war. Filled with intrigue, romance, and magic, this spellbinding novel is a dramatic coming-of-age story about a girl who rises from impoverished beginnings to take command of her own fate.

The first half is a little slow, but still a fun adventure to read as the brother and sister attempt to overthrow the current, evil government. I like the second half better, however, and how it goes over the aftermath of them taking down the evil ruler. Another important thing about the main girl is that she admits her faults and is willing to learn from her mistakes. It bugs me when the main character does something stupid and then acts so confused as to why things went wrong. The other major players in the story are also fun and add a lot to the story. 

Now that I've shared some of my favorite clean stories, what are some other favorites out there? Post your favorite clean books below!

2017 Reading Challenge: Legend by Marie Lu

Woke up feeling horrid, so I decided to finish Legend by Marie Lu.

From Goodreads: "What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic's wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic's highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country's most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem.
From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths—until the day June's brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family's survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias's death."

The story splits between the perspective of Day and June. This seems to be a popular tool used by authors lately. While I enjoy Lu's writing style, I wish there was more to set the two narrators apart besides the different font color and writing their names at the top of the chapter. June's and Day's parts read so similar to me that they might as well have been the same person.

In terms of cleanliness, the story is overall pretty clean; however, there were a few swear words here and there.

I do enjoy the characters, but I do wish we got a bit more out of the minor characters. I could've used more Metias, Tess, and even Thomas. Just a bit of development would've been great. On the other hand, I did enjoy seeing Day and June grow a bit during the course of the story.

The post-apocalyptic settings were interesting and a bit creepy (but I am oversensitive to creep factors in stories). I felt like this could be part of a neighborhood not too far from me (I am living in southern CA). I did appreciate that the settings were vague enough that I couldn't tell exactly where in California they would be. It's important to me that authors leave some things to the imagination, especially when they use real places as their settings.

I did enjoy reading the story more the second time, but that is most likely due to the fact that I haven't just had a baby and wasn't dealing with postpartum ( and just trying to survive). I started a different story today, but I will be sure to pick up books 2 and 3 in the series to see how the story of June and Day ends!

What did you think of the story? Any books you think I should put on my radar?

2017 Reading Challenge: Rebel of the Sands and Traitor to the Throne

She’s more gunpowder than girl—and the fate of the desert lies in her hands.

Mortals rule the desert nation of Miraji, but mystical beasts still roam the wild and barren wastes, and rumor has it that somewhere, djinni still practice their magic. But there's nothing mystical or magical about Dustwalk, the dead-end town that Amani can't wait to escape from. 

Destined to wind up "wed or dead," Amani’s counting on her sharpshooting skills to get her out of Dustwalk.  (Goodreads) 

Rebel of the Sands was a surprising Barnes and Noble find a few months ago when my parents were visiting. It tells the story of Amani and her escape from the county of Dustwalk. 

I just finished the sequel, Traitor to the Throne, a couple of days ago and thought they would be a series to review next. 

The main character in the story is Amani. She lives in her uncle's house and dreams of escaping the town of Dustwalk. The characters in the story are pretty well developed and I liked seeing how they have changed over the course of two books (with a third on the way). I appreciated how Amani was written, since lately by the second book I am getting sick of the main character. 

The world of the book is well developed and the author paints the scenes in an interesting manner. It was easy to imagine the desert towns and the oasis. 

The books are pretty clean. I don't recall much in terms of language. The second book does have a scene that gets a little heat, but it ends before anything too salacious happens. 

Another thing to appreciate is that the author isn't long winded. I never felt like the author was carrying on just for the sake of increasing the length of the story. Hopefully, she doesn't ruin it with book 3. I feel like authors should only write a lot if what they are writing adds to the story. There can be too much of a good thing!

If you want to follow the author, Alwyn Hamilton, check out her website here.

I am currently working on Legend and will probably review that, unless anyone wants me to switch to a children's book. What would you rather see next Sunday?

2017 Reading Challenge: Talking as Fast as I can

Today I am reviewing:

From Goodreads: In this collection of personal essays, the beloved star of Gilmore Girls and Parenthood reveals stories about life, love, and working as a woman in Hollywood—along with behind-the-scenes dispatches from the set of the new Gilmore Girls, where she plays the fast-talking Lorelai Gilmore once again.

I've been a fan of Lauren Graham for a while now. I remember watching Gilmore Girls with my mom and sister(s). I finished all of Parenthood while pregnant/after she was born. I haven't really been disappointed by her work until I read Someday, Someday Maybe. It was alright, but I just didn't connect with the main character. I figured I just didn't like her writing style. 

This book was different. 

I decided to give this book a chance, since it had gotten some pretty good reviews on Tumblr (don't base all book decisions off of Tumblr). It was well worth it!

The book is barely over 200 pages long, so it isn't too much of a commitment. It felt like Graham jumped around between events in her life, but she did it smoothly so the reader doesn't get jostled along the way. 

The book covers a bit before Gilmore Girls part one, Gilmore Girls part one, time in between and Parenthood, and finally Gilmore Girls part two. 

There are some spoilers for the revival, if you haven't watched it yet, but to me they didn't feel that significant to the whole story to truly spoil it. 

To me, Graham writes how Lorelai speaks, so the writing was fun and had a lot of moments that made me chuckle. This is definitely a book to read if you are in need of an upper (but these days, who isn't in need of an upper?). 

My favorite part was probably the advice she had gotten on writing. I like the suggestions and I think I am going to try to apply it to this blog. I think doing the scheduled time and adjustments would work for other aspects of life, so I may play around with it. 

What did you think of the book? What were your favorite parts? Any book recommendations floating around out there?

2017 Reading Challenge: The Mistborn Era 1 and Era 2

I finally reread through all of the Mistborn books! I had read the first set last in high school and the second set was soon after I had baby A, so I was overdue for a reread. I'll try to say a bit about each book, but also consolidate when I can. Overall while I enjoyed the books the first time I had read the books, I'd say I loved them even more this time around! WARNING: Mild spoilers ahead!

The first book (in series one) is Mistborn: The Final Empire. From Goodreads: In a world where ash falls from the sky, and mist dominates the night, an evil cloaks the land and stifles all life. The future of the empire rests on the shoulders of a troublemaker and his young apprentice. Together, can they fill the world with color once more? In Brandon Sanderson's intriguing tale of love, loss, despair and hope, a new kind of magic enters the stage — Allomancy, a magic of the metals. 

My brother-in-law introduced me to this series back in high school and it was as good as I remembered it.

In terms of characters, I really like the main crew of characters; however, Vin is the one I relate the most to. She's more of a quiet character who observes and thinks before she acts. She is tough, but is often not quite sure of herself. Vin grows up a lot throughout the first set of books and it's interesting to see how she changes. For the other characters, I really enjoyed their development as well as the wide range of character types. These characters don't disappoint and most anyone will find someone to relate to.

The overall plot for the first book was excellent. The book is lengthy, but I was engaged the entire time and was excited to see what was going to happen to the characters.

This book is fairly clean; however, the author does write some rather gruesome moments. I don't recall any swearing, but there is mention of prostitution and rape (not detailed, just someone mentioning that it happens and certain characters have participated in it).

The Final Empire is definitely my favorite of the first three books and a must read for anyone who enjoys fantasy novels. I'd recommend this for high school readers or above just due to the gore. I'm very sensitive to that, but it didn't bother me too badly here.

The Well of Ascension is the second book of the series. From Goodreads: Vin, the street urchin who has grown into the most powerful Mistborn in the land, and Elend Venture, the idealistic young nobleman who loves her, must build a healthy new society in the ashes of an empire. Three separate armies attack. As the siege tightens, an ancient legend seems to offer a glimmer of hope. But even if it really exists, no one knows where to find the Well of Ascension or what manner of power it bestows.

The Hero of Ages is the final book of the first series. From Goodreads: Tricked into releasing the evil spirit Ruin while attempting to close the Well of Ascension, new emperor Elend Venture and his wife, the assassin Vin, are now hard-pressed to save the world.

In terms of characters, plot, and cleanliness, these next two novels are very similar to the first in the series. However, about halfway through both books I was ready for it to be over. I am all for long books; however, an author shouldn't just keep going for the sake of going. Have a point! I was reading these and just thinking that this guy needs to learn how to edit. If you plan on reading anything else in this series, definitely finish reading these last 2 books even though they feel like they are never going to end. 

I loved this series even more than the first!! While I believe these are kind of apart from the first series, it does help to have read the first series. The first series characters are mentioned throughout the second and it is fun to know the whole backstory. However, not necessary for full enjoyment. I read this series once before rereading the first group and while I did like the story, I was wishing I could remember the characters that were mentioned. 

Alloy of Law: Centuries after the Mistborn trilogy, Scadrial is on the verge of modernity - railroads, electric street lights, and skyscrapers. Waxillium Ladrian can Push on metals with his Allomancy and use Feruchemy to become lighter or heavier at will. After 20 years in the dusty Roughs, in the city of Elendel, the new head of a noble house may need to keep his guns.

Shadows of Self: Shadows of Self shows Mistborn’s society evolving as technology and magic mix, the economy grows, democracy contends with corruption, and religion becomes a growing cultural force, with four faiths competing for converts.

This bustling, optimistic, but still shaky society now faces its first instance of terrorism, crimes intended to stir up labor strife and religious conflict. Wax and Wayne, assisted by the lovely, brilliant Marasi, must unravel the conspiracy before civil strife stops Scadrial’s progress in its tracks.

Shadows of Self will give fans of The Alloy of Law everything they’ve been hoping for and, this being a Brandon Sanderson book, more, much more.

The Bands of Mourning: The Bands of Mourning are the mythical metalminds owned by the Lord Ruler, said to grant anyone who wears them the powers that the Lord Ruler had at his command. Hardly anyone thinks they really exist. A kandra researcher has returned to Elendel with images that seem to depict the Bands, as well as writings in a language that no one can read. Waxillium Ladrian is recruited to travel south to the city of New Seran to investigate. Along the way he discovers hints that point to the true goals of his uncle Edwarn and the shadowy organization known as The Set. 

It is really hard to pick a favorite character from these books. I love how they interact and how we get to see a bit of the story from their points of view, which I believe is pretty hard to do. The author gives you Waxillium and Wayne, a lawman and his side kick,who are pretty funny together. Marasi and Steris (sorry if I spelled the names wrong) are also wonderful, especially Steris in book 3. MeLaan is also a great addition to the team (and from series one). 

The characters all develop well, but Steris has by far the best development so far. I may be biased because she just reminds me a lot of me. I wish I could say more, but I would give away too much of the plot so all I can say is that she is awesome! 

The plot is great and consistent throughout this series, plus it is all pretty streamlined. The author wrote enough to tell the stories well, but ended making me wish there was more. I'd rather want more than wish the story was over already. 

For anyone concerned with this, there is an lgbt character; however, the story doesn't go beyond just saying that the character is lgbt. 

In terms of cleanliness, there are a few swears sprinkled throughout and Wayne can be crude here and there but nothing too scandalous in my option. I would still keep with readers being in high school or older before reading this series. 

I am really excited to see what is going to happen in book 4, but the author hasn't started it yet :( You CAN keep an eye on story progression here. 

Let me know what you thought of the books, or leave other book recommendations, in the comments!! I look forward to hearing from you. I can definitely always use another book 😃

Future blog posts: I am going to make it my goal to post every Sunday; however, you may get more posts sprinkled in depending on how life goes.