Characters I like

Character Wannabe

I think it would be pretty cool to be one of those people who dye their hair and protest for human and animal rights. People involved in Amnesty International. Or a striving artist who believes in self expression. That is why I really admire the main characters from two books I just recently read, they are exactly how I want to be,
in a sense "role models".

Need
Carrie Jones
*****5 Star

 Zara White suspects a freaky guy is semi-stalking her. She memorizes phobias and chants them when she's nervous. And, okay, she hasn't exactly been herself since her stepfather died. But moving to a shivery Main town to stay with her grandmother is supposed to be the perfect fix-so her mom says.
Except this new plan of getting away to help Zara stay sane? Yeah, not working.
Turns out the semi-stalker is not a figment of Zara's imagination. He's still following her, leaving behind an eerie trail of gold dust. There's something not right — not human — in this sleepy Maine town, and all signs are pointing to Zara. "(Summary from book cover).

I really liked this book, but what I'm really going to be talking about is Zara, one of my favorite characters out of all the books I have read.  Zara is kind of "in the back".  She isn't shy but she doesn't put herself out there. That sounds like shy though, but it's not, very hard to describe. Its kind of like she doesn't care enough to try and get noticed or melt into the shadows, she's just there. She loves to run, used to be very athletic.  She would take morning jogs with her dad. She would tend to wear hand-me-down clothes thrift shop stuff, usually with hippie logos, kind of a "love not war" theme (I have always wanted to dress like that).
She is a dedicated member of Amnesty International, and can list every phobia known to man. I really admire her in many other ways, but if I told you it would give away the book.  I recommend "Need" for ages 12 and up.


All American Girl
Meg Cabot
*****5 Star

TOP TEN REASONS
Samantha Madison
IS IN DEEP TROUBLE

10. Her big sister is the most popular girl in school
9. Her little sister is a certified genius
8. She's in love with her big sisters boyfriend
7. She got caught selling celebrity portraits in school
6. And now she's being forced to take art classes
5. She's just saved the president of the United States from an assassination attempt
4. So the whole world thinks she's a hero.
3. Even though Sam knows she is far, far from being a hero
2. And now she's been appointed teen ambassador to the UN

AND THE NUMBER-ONE REASON Sam's LIFE IS OVER?

1.The president's son just might be in love with her
(Summary from book cover).

This book was really good, some of the jokes cracked me up.
But what I liked the most about this book was the characters, especially the main character, Sam.
Sam is the kind of person who doesn't care what other people think.
A year or two ago, she dyed her entire wardrobe black as sign of mourning for the crudeness of our generation.
She is a dedicated artist and idolizes Gwen Stefani and other bands and singers of that genre. She is also left handed and has a huge dog, who's name sounds somewhat female. She is flunking German and is never without her combat boots. I really admire this character and can't wait to read the sequel,
she has her own spunk that is hard to find these days.  I recommend this book, "All American Girl" for ages 10 and up.

~Olivia

Polo

You probably know that the brand Polo, most likely found in Ralph Lauren, is not just a made up name. But for those of you who do not know, it is actually based on a real sport by the name of Polo. Until today, I didn't know this. I thought that the little man on a horse holding a stick was just a pose created for that line of clothing. But actually its a real thing.
Here is the definition I found on Wikipedia:
POLO~

Polo is a team sport played on horseback in which the objective is to score goals against an opposing team. Players score by driving a small white plastic or wooden ball into the opposing team's goal using a long-handled mallet. The traditional sport of polo is played at speed on a large grass field up to 300 yards in length, and each polo team consists of four riders and their mounts.

Anyway, for the first time I went to a Polo match with my Mom, Dad and part turkey dog. It was really interesting to watch, the riders made it look so easy, whacking the mallet and riding their horses at the same time.








I think it would be a really cool sport to learn.

                         -Olivia

Immortal

Immortal
Gillian Shields
**** 4 Stars

"Wyldcliffe Abbey School for young ladies is elite, expensive, and unwelcoming. When Evie Johnson is torn from her home near the sea to become the newest scholarship student, strict teachers, snobbish students, and the oppressive atmosphere of Wyldcliffe leave her drowning in loneliness.
Evie's only lifeline is Sebastian, a mysterious and attractive young man she meets by chance. As Evie's feelings for Sebastian blaze with each secret meeting, she begins to fear that he is hiding something about his past. And she is haunted by by glimpses of a strange, ghostly girl - a girl who is so eerily like Evie she could be a sister. Evie is slowly drawn into a tangled web of past and present she cannot control. As the extraordinary, elemental forces of Wyldcliffe rise up like the mighty sea, Evie is faced with an astounding truth about Sebastian, and her own incredible fate." (summary from book jacket.)

Immortal is a very good book, though the story line is typical there is something twisted and dark about this secret romance.  Like darkness is hiding in the shadows of every page turned, ready to leap out, out of the text and drape you in an opaque blackness. It is a great story to read by the sea because there are a lot of watery images from her memories of the ocean.  It is very descriptive and seemingly more vivid when by a big puddle of water yourself.
But the reasons I gave it a four star, were because some times you knew what was coming next. You don't want that in a book, you want a surprise at every turn.  It gave you the sense you had read the book before. Another thing, was some parts of the text were too cheesy. The main character would get too poetic, I mean if someone you care about is about to die, for example, you don't add cheesy similes in with your thoughts of panic and horror. She's only 16, I don't know any typical teens who are poetic in their thoughts, let alone their every day lives(i am sorry to those poetic teens out there this is very stereotypical) . Also the love scenes were way too cheesy, she fell in love with him too fast. And the way she thinks of him gives me headaches.
But other than that it was a pretty good book, even though it looks and sounds like I gave it a harsh rating, I found it very refreshing a guarantee you will too. Its like a modern version of Romeo and Juliet mashed with Pride and Prejudice than mixed together with some random elemental fantasy. So I recommend Immortal, no matter how cheesy.
                                                             -Olivia

The Significance Of 463

I think you should know by now i'm a big reader (having a book review blog and all that). That usually means one has a big collection, (at least in my case) . Because I have 463 books in my room.

I know it doesn't look like much, I took the picture weird because its like 6:00 in the morning right now (when I typed this) plus I used my laptop to take the picture. But it is in the hundreds, and it takes some serious hard core reading and access to the money bank to develop this collection in only 2-3 years. Still, these are the only ones my mom let me buy in the first place. I mean I can see why she would say no once in a while. Because I could guarantee, that if we sold all these books for the same price that I bought them at. With the total amount of money, we could probably buy a car (i'm not joking, 8 of these books equals a $100.98).

Say No To Life Size Celebrity Stand ups

Eclipse, Gives Me The Creeps

I have never favored Edward Cullen, he is good looking in a strange way. Except he isn't good enough (in my opinion) to play Edward from the book. Stephanie Myers set her bar high for actors in the movie making of Twilight. Some of you may not agree with me, except Robert Patterson is only the best of the worst.
But that is not my point right now. Anyway I never favored "Edward," and I think he knew that. Because he gets his revenge through life size stand-ups of himself and other cutouts of the Twilight crew. Example:
 I was in an iparty store, browsing around by myself, and I wandered into the back. I turned a corner to find Edward standing in front of me! But it was a life-size stand up, but I hadn't realized that yet and ran screaming into a shelf. Ever since, I have disliked Twilight stand ups. Until I got one in the mail, from my aunt and cousin. So now whenever I walk into my room, I jump because it looks like Jacob is standing right there.

But it is useful in a way, if you position it just right in a dark room, it will scare your victim right out of the living. Examples: grandmothers, mothers, aunts, cousins-grandpas are usually off limits for they may be faint of heart. I also suggest to keep them away from fathers, men usually do not shriek and run away like the above. They tend to defend themselves against "threats" like that, usually physically.

                                                                    -Olivia

Lament

Lament
Maggie Stiefvater
*****5 Star

Sixteen-year old Deirdre Monaghan is a prodigiously gifted musician. She's about to find out she's also a clover hand-one who can see faeries.
Unexpectedly, Deirdre finds herself infatuated with a mysterious boy names Luke who enters her ordinary life, seemingly out of thin air. But his interest in her might be something darker than summer romance. When a sinister faerie named Aodhan shows up with deadly orders from the Faerie Queen, it forces Dee fight into the midst of faerie. Caught in the crossfire with Deirdre is James, her wisecracking but loyal best friend.
Deirdre had been wishing her summer weren't so dull, but taking on a centuries-old Faerie Queen isn't exactly what she had in mind.

This book was chock full of imagination, romance and detail. My favorite character was Luke, the way the author described him made him sound like the most perfect person on earth. I also liked all the surprises along the way. Just when the story began to calm down and you thought the trouble was over. Something shocking would happen, I can't tell you what but some of them you just really didn't          expect.                                                                                                        I don't care that the cover is
                                                                                                                  in another language. The pic. is
                                                                                                                               much cooler.                                                                 
                                                                                                                                          
If you love romance, bloodshed and faeries, Lament has it all.

Eyes Like Stars
Lisa Mantchev
*****5 Stars

Welcome to the Theatre Illuminata, where the characters of every play ever written can be found behind the curtain. The actors are bound to the Theatre by The Book, an ancient and magical tome of scripts. Bertie is not one of the actors, but they are her family. And she is about to lose them all because The Book has been threatened, and along with it the Theatre. It's the only home Bertie has ever known, and she has to find a way to save. But first, there's that small problem of two handsome men, both vying for her attention. The course of true love never did run smooth.

This book was amazing, it was funny and descriptive. Every character had its own personality, none alike.
It almost makes me want to read Shakespeare to find out more about some of the characters in the book. I really enjoyed the treatment of Bertie's two love interests towards each other. My favorite character was Bertie, because she reminded me of myself, only she could do anything she wanted without getting in trouble. Example: Dying hair blue, blasting a cannon through the ceiling, taking a bath in a Jacuzzi hanging form the ceiling. She is very headstrong and is always doing something crazy.
I loved this book, it is a must read for those who need a good story and a definition of Hamlet.