Top 5 Stand Alone Books

1. The Help by Kathryn Stockett a wonderful book about 1960's Jackson Mississippi. 2 black maids and one white woman who decides to write a book about what it is really like to be a maid in 1960's southern states. I would recommend this to someone who enjoys historical fiction and some strong female characters. It is on a more serious note, but also a very enjoyable read.







2. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak which I read very recently and had to include. I loved this book so much. You fall in love with every single character in this book. It is about a girl named Liesel in Nazi Germany. She is taken to live with her foster parents and on the way there she steals her first book. Also a great historical novel but more YA-ish.

3. Looking for Alaska by John Green. I was unsure if I wanted to put looking for Alaska or the fault in our stars here. They are both great contemporary young adult book, but i feel like Looking for Alaska doesn't get enough love. I recommend both, but looking for Alaska is very enjoyable and relatable. It is about a boy name Miles who goes off to a boarding school and learn about life and love. John Green is an amazing writer he is able to put in words what the rest of us cannot. It also has some of my favorite quotes.




4. The boy In The Suitcase by Lene Kaaberbøl and Agnete Friis. A danish crime novel about a boy in a suitcase. This book had me up all night. The main character is a nurse who get's involved in solving a crime when she by coincidence find a suitcase with a little boy inside of it. This book is very thrilling and intriguing.

5. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky. A very nice young adult book, that takes up some very serious problems. This book has it all. It funny, and sad, and everything in between. I feel like any teenager will be able to relate so some parts of Perks. It is about charlie's first year of high school, the friends he meets and about falling in love. Even though this book is also sad it makes you feel good, and you should definitely check it out.







I tried to include a variety of different kinds of books to this list.

-Jamie

The Book Thief - Book Thoughts

OMG It is 01:07 and I just finished the Book Thief by Markus Zusak. I should go to sleep but it is impossible after reading a book like this one. I was expecting The Book Thief to be good but I was not warned that it would hit me hard directly in the face with pain. I have not cried like this since the fault in our stars. But wow was this a good book.

The Book Thief takes place in Nazi Germany, and is the story of The Book Thief: Liesel Meminger.
We definitely need to talk about the narration of this book. It is narrated by death which is something I think could go horribly wrong but it works. At the same time Markus Zusak is able to capture the soul of the 10-year-old girl Liesel in The Book Thief which when you think about the combination of it being told by death and a 10-year-old is very impressive. The way that this amazing story is told is incredible you are constantly on edge since he keeps handing you something to wait for. It is building suspense all the way through. Some has complained about the writing of this book, but personally I feel like it tied it all together.
The combination of child-like adventures and the seriousness that is world war II works so well. It creates an atmosphere which I find very hard to describe. This book forced me to stop reading and think. It made me think about death more than I'd like to. This is part of the reason why I cannot just go to sleep now. This book has definitely had a huge impact on me and I will have to buy a copy of my own so I can reread it when my soul is ready for it. I would recommend this book to anyone(almost). I feel like the whole world should read this book. I am so excited for the movie coming out in November. I will probably do I blog post about that when I get the chance to watch it.
The Book Thief deserved 5 out of 5 stars hands down. It has immediately crammed it's way into being one of my favorites, not only of 2013 but also of all time.
Read The Book Thief - It will blow your mind. Well, I liked it...
And one final thing is that I was intrigued by how well the relationships between the characters were built.  
I am kind of chocked by how good it was.
That is all and goodnight
-Jamie

The playing with your emotions book tag

This tag was created by padfootandprongs07 on the youtubes.

Which book made you feel:

1. Happy: Harry Potter by J. K. Rowling makes med happy - Harry Potter IS my happy place

2. Sad: I am going to go with The Fault in Our Stars by John Green for obvious reasons

3. Angry: The Immortals Series by Alyson Noel. I read the first four books in this series, and they were just not good. Not at all. Therefore they also made me angry with myself because I kept thinking: maybe the next one will be better - it wasn't.

4. Nostalgic: The Shamer's Daughter by Lene Kaaberbøl. I read this when i was younger an it is fantastic.

5. Scared: I don't read a lot of scary books but I did read the Witch Saga by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor when I was about 11. Especially The Witch Returns terrified me.

6. Surprised: The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. It's not because I had low expectations for this book. it just surprised me half way through. I didn't enjoy the first half, I found the main character repulsive - but WOW did that change in a heartbeat.

7. Disappointed: I'm going to say Pretties by Scott Westerfeld. I really enjoyed Uglies and I loved the concept and the world and everything. I was so excited for Pretties and it just wasn't any of what i wanted it to be. I didn't even finish this book. I think it could have been sooo good, and it just wasn't. I know that a lot of people will disagree with me on this one.

8. Distressed: This was a hard one. I'm going with Exile by Jakob Ejersbo - it broke my heart. It was soo good and soo sad, and it made me so angry, because it was sooo sad.

9. Confused: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. I enjoyed this book very much because of the absolutely wonderful magical world. The descriptions were amazing and the writing superb, but I never really understood the plot. I was very confused reading this book...

Bridget Jones' Diary - Book Thoughts

Bridget Jone's diary was a quick read, and a very entertaining one as well. You fall in love with the awkward, calorie-counting, unlucky, but strong woman - Bridget Jones. You can't help it, this character is just so great. It was a lovely adaption of 'pride and prejudice'.
I saw the movie before I read the book which is something that rarely happens, but in this case I don't feel like it ruined the reading experience one bit. I found this book very funny and I even laughed out loud a couple of times, which is always a good sign.
But at the end of the day, that is really all that it was. A fun little read. It is definitely not one of the best books I have read. I would still recommend this to a friend, since it honestly is very enjoyable and I really liked it.
Not every book needs to be super deep and heartfelt. I guess you call this type of book a chick-lit, which isn't exactly my favorite genre (I actually can't think of any others I've read), but it took me by surprise, but I am not going to read the sequel since it didn't leave me wanting to know more, I was very satisfied with where it ended. I have a feeling that it'll only go down hill from here. (But what do I know?)

Soooo... this was a messy rambling, I hope some of it made sense. All in all it was a very entertaining book, but thats about it. Definitely a feel-good book.

-Jamie

Inside & Out book tag

I saw this tag done by little book owl on youtube - you should check her out, she's great.
It was originally created by MathomBooks on youtube.

So each letter in 'Inside & Out' has a book-related question, and i'm just gonna dive right in there:

I: Inside flap/Back or the book summaries: too much info? or not enough?
Part of me really likes to start a book without knowing anything. Most of the time I choose books because I've heard a lot of great things about them or they've been recommended to me. I think it is much more exciting when you haven't read the back of the book. It's not like it's actually too much information very often, it's just more than I like to get.

N: New book: What form do you want it in? Audiobook, E-book, Paperback, or Hardcover?
Either Paperback or Hardcover. I do enjoy listening to audiobooks but that's mostly just listening to Harry Potter over and over again. I despise reading off a screen so E-book is not even an option for me. I don't really care if it's hardcover or paperback. I think paperbacks can be much more practical, and they don't weigh as much, but on the other hand hardcovers are not as easily ruined. I just really like books so it doesn't matter in the end.

S: Scribble while you read? Do you like to write in your books, taking notes, making comment, or do you keep your books clean clean clean? 
I keep my books clean clean clean. All of them. Always. I think it is heartbreaking to see writing in a book. I'm kind of in love with how cool it is to find an old book with lot's of personal notes i them, but I just can't write in mine. They are way too beautiful.

I: In your best voice, read for us your favorite 1st sentence from a book
You will have to do without the voice for obvious reasons.
"The circus arrives without warning"
From The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern.

D: Does it matter to you whether the author is male or female when you're deciding on a book? What if you're unsure about the author's gender?
I have never given it any thought at all. Not the gender, the age or anything else. It just doesn't make a difference.

E: Ever read ahead? or have you ever read the last page before you got there?
I must admit that in this matter I am a sinner. I am a sinner to the bones. I used to always (i mean ALWAYS) read the last word or sentence before I started a book. I still often do, but I try not to since I have spoiled my self more times than I can count. If i stop reading for the evening i'll sometimes flicker ahead and read a little before reminding my self that I shouldn't. I don't know why I do it, it is so stupid.

&

O: Organized bookshelves, or Outrageous bookshelves?
Fairly organized bookshelves. I would like them to be organized much much better, but it's hard to keep up with. I love organizing my books. I would prefer for them to in alphabetical order according to the authors last name, but the many different sizes of my bookshelves won't allow me.

U: Under oath: have you ever bought a book based on the cover (alone)?
I have. I have even bought books that I new I wouldn't read just because they looked so gorgeous. This includes a collection of poems from 1918.

T: Take it outside to read, or stay in?
I really enjoy sitting on the deck in the summertime (drinking a coke) and reading all day long, as long as I can have my head in the shade. This is in fact an ideal summer day for me. But since we in Denmark only have about two weeks every year where you don't freeze you but off. I stay inside most of the time.

Those were all of le questions
Goodebye
- Jamie

The Casual Vacancy by J K Rowling - Book thoughts

It took me far to long to get my self together and actually get started reading this book. I was so excited when it just came out and i got it for my birthday in December last year. I honestly don't know why I didn't get started on the casual vacancy earlier - I wish had.

It is true that it takes a long time to get into the book. I would say that you have to have patience enough to read at least 200 pages before it really gets interesting. I still wasn't sure if I really liked it until I finished it, but I kept reading so it couldn't have been all bad, you know. Normally, I like to find one character who I just fall in love with when reading, but with this one it just wasn't possible for me to thoroughly like any of the characters. But, I do believe that it only made the book more interesting and realistic.
I would probably rate this book 4 out of five stars, since i really liked it, but I wish i'd known that I did before i turned the last page. The casual vacancy is a great book and Jo really shows that she is able to write - and write good. In this book everything is tied together very nicely, which I think is a special talent of the authors.

I am reading more at the moment and it fills my heart with joy even though I am not reading a crazy amount of books since I am very busy with school at the moment. I am really looking forward to the break in a week. I really need a week away from school.

I am really enjoying BriBry's adventure time at the moment. Dreamy.

- Jamie