"She blinded me with Library Science"

Eon by Alison Goodman

2011-04-21T19:03:00.000-07:00

Crippled Eon was not much of a candidate for Dragoneye, but he trained hard and studied hard. On the day of the ceremony when the Rat Dragoneye was chosen, Eon was overlooked. To everyone's surprise, another dragon emerged choosing Eon. A dragon that had thought to have lost forever, the Mirror Dragon. But the Mirror Dragon wants something that Eon cannot give, something Eon has been hiding for years, something that will surely kill him. Eon is really Eona, a female Dragoneye candidate, something that is unheard of. Eona must embrace her true self if she is to truly become one with her dragon.
I really enjoyed this novel,I thought that Eon was a very strong female protagonist and I thought that it portrayed a very good message of being true to oneself.I am looking forward to the sequel Eona coming out in April 2011.

The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter

2011-03-21T17:33:00.000-07:00

I got this as an ARC from NetGalley

After years of chemotherapy and struggle, Kate is taking her mother back to her hometown to die. With the insistence of her mother, Kate attends school, counting down the seconds until she can be back with her mother. As a cruel prank, Ave, one of Kate's classmates invites Kate to a "party" in the woods. In the attempt to leave Kate there, something goes horribly wrong and Ava ends up dead. Henry, the mysterious property owner says he can bring Ava back to life-but at a price. Kate must live with him for 6 months out of the year. After agreeing, Kate soon finds her world surrounded with Greek mythological beings. She will be given 7 tests where if she passes she will become immortal, but if she fails she would go home with no memory of what happened. That is, if she isn't mysteriously killed like many girls before her.

From the first page I was hooked on this story. I found the character's to be entertaining, yet realistic. I felt the struggle Kate was going through as she tried to take care of her mother. Although I wished the author developed the character's a little more, I'd like to see more of James or Ava. I found myself constantly trying to guess what Kate's tests were. Although the story ended with everything tied in a nice little bow, I'm very excited to see what Carter's next story holds.

The Gathering by Kelly Armstrong

2011-03-21T17:19:00.000-07:00

I got this as an ARC from the publisher Harper Collins
Mya has always felt a connection to nature. Animals act differently around her, the animals she takes care of at her home tend to heal faster, oh and there's that whole having visions and seeing through the animals eyes thing. With the exception of the visions most people in Mya's small town just accredit it to her being Native American, but there is something more to it. Pretty soon, people start disappearing and Rafe, the loner now kid in town, starts taking extra notice of Mya.

With a different setting but the same secondary characters from her Darkest Powers series, Armstrong has yet another amazing novel that will leave you on the edge of your seat wanting more.

Matched by Ally Condie

2011-03-16T19:41:00.001-07:00

In a Society where every detail of your life is planned out for you; from your meals to your job to who you will marry, one girl must chose to follow or to question everything she has ever known. Cassia follows the rules, she doesn't get infractions, she doesn't question the Society, she does what she is told. At her Match Banquet she sees the face of her match.... Her best friend Xander who is perfect. While looking at Xander's information, another face flashes before her.... Ky, a boy who (according to the Society) can never be matched. Now Cassia has to decide, does she continue to follow the rules and stay with Xander or does she risk it all to be with Ky.

As a person who loved The Giver by Lois Lowery, I really enjoyed this book. I found many similarities between the societies. Cassia, who has to question her entire world and everything she knew, was a wonderful character. The way the book ended has set itself up for a sequel and I am very much looking forward to reading it.

Demonglass

2011-02-11T18:55:00.000-08:00

An outstanding sequel to Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins, Sophie finds herself in England visiting her dad for the summer. With Jenna and Cal (who turns out to be her fiancée!) by her side, Sophie struggles to decide whether or not to go through the Removal. Between someone creating new demons and the Eye getting closer and closer (including Archer) Sophie doesn't know who she can trust. This book was just as good as the first, with the same cliffhanging ending. I would not hesitate to recommend this series to anyone who enjoys young adult paranormal fiction.

Plan B

2011-02-07T19:26:00.000-08:00

I read this as an advanced copy from NetGalley.
Plan B by Charnan Simon is about a girl named Lucy who finds herself 17 and pregnant. Luke, her boyfriend and babydaddy, isn't talking to her, her friends keep rattling about throwing her a baby shower, and her perfectly planned out future is no more. Plan B is part of a series "Surviving Southside" that deals with issues that teens may face in high school. The story was not completely unrealistic, the characters however did not seem real.The reading level seems to be for the younger side of the Young Adult spectrum but the content itself seems to be toward the older side. Overall, I didn't hate the book, but I thought that the author did not develop the story to it's full potential.

Monster High

2010-10-19T19:46:00.001-07:00

I would like to say that I had first gotten this as an ARC from Little, Brown and Company.

Monster High, written by Lisi Harrison, alternates between our two main characters, Melody and Frankie. Both girls are starting out at a new school, both like a boy in their new school, and both just want the world to accept them for who they are, the big difference is that Frankie is the great granddaughter of Frankenstein and her parents sewed her together about 15 days ago. Frankie soon discovers that there are more like her, great-grandchildren of famous monsters such as Dracula, the Creature from the Black Lagoon, and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Frankie and her new friends all live in hiding, donning disguises so they can live among the "normies." As much as Frankie wants to show the world just what she is, her life and the lives of all her friends and family would be in danger if she did. Melanie is a "normie" who moved to Frankie's town with her family who is obsessed with symmetry and perfection. She starts to fall for the boy next door, who seems to be just a little strange at times...

I found this book to be a fun read, always trying to guess what famous monster Frankie's friends are related to. The ending was somewhat of a disappointment with it leaving me with a cliffhanger and the next book not already out. Other than that, excellent book, and I think teens will really enjoy it.

Oops

2010-10-08T16:10:00.000-07:00

So it has been quite a while since I last wrote anything period.... So for now, here is a list of books that I am currently reading and hopefully there will be reviews posted about items soon.
*Fallen by Lauren Kate
*Monster High by Lisi Harrison

*sigh* So many books, so little time. I think it would be ideal if I actually got paid to sit around reading books and telling you all what I think of them, but that is not to be... The working world awaits...
Bis Bald,
~Jessi~

Mockingjay

2010-09-02T18:28:00.001-07:00

An excellent ending to an amazing trilogy. This slightly darker novel takes Katniss into District 13 where she heals from the latest Hunger Games. Her body has healed, however her mind is still in disarray. Labeled "mentally disoriented" she is given some leeway, however the president of 13 is getting impatient on Katniss's decision on whether or not she will become the Mockingjay. With her home destroyed, Peeta captured by the capitol, and everyone looking to her for guidance Katniss must make a decision that may cost the lives of her friends and family.

Birth of a Killer by Darren Shan

2010-08-19T15:59:00.001-07:00

I recieved this book as an ARC from "Little Brown books for Young Readers"

Birth of a Killer by Darren Shan tells the tale of Larten Crepsley, a young boy who is living in awful conditions, has to fight for his food, and has a horrible sorry excuse for a person as a foreman. One day at work, his foreman goes too far with his beatings and kills one of the few people Larten cares for. At that moment, something snaps in Larten and he kills his foreman sending him on the run for his life. He is not running long before he meets up with Seba, a vampire who takes Larten under his wing making him his assistant, changing Larten's life forever.

Birth of a Killer is a prequel to Shan's "Cirque Du Freak" series, so fans of the series may recognize some of the characters that made appearances in this book (Larten, Mr. Tall, etc...). One aspect of the book I wish the author elaborated more on was the details of the life of an assistant -the chapters would skip years if not decades of the boys life with little detail of his position of assistant. Now I will admit I had not read the series before, so those details could have been laid out in an earlier book.

I found the book to be entertaining at parts, good enough to finish, but not so much that I had to finish it in one night.

Dead in the Family

2010-06-11T20:21:00.001-07:00

Dead in the family is Charlain Harris' tenth Sookie Stackhouse novel. This time round Sookie is recovering from the Fae War that killed so many of her friends including her fairy godmother and cousin Claudine. Trouble is brewing with Eric's maker and brother coming to town, and to make matters worse a dead body ends up on her land.
Once again, Harris fails to impress me with her characters. I distinctly recall a fight where death is immediate and all Sookie can say is 'Don't kill Claude he's my family and I don't have much of that left.' I could not feel the terror that Sookie should have been feeling, I felt like a bystander which is not the reading experience I want. But I will continue to read her books even if the emotional connection to the characters are flatter than Stanley.

Cry of the Icemark review

2010-06-02T19:54:00.001-07:00

Cry of the Icemark is the story of young Thirrin, a warrior princess to the land of Icemark. Shortly after her 14th birthday, she is officially made heir to the throne in the case of her father's death. Soon after, an army from the south begins to invade north towards Icemark hoping to overtake the small land and claim it as its own. After her father's brave death in battle Thirrin is then faced with the large responsibility of Queen. Knowing she cannot defeat the invading army she reaches out to the most unlikely sources for allies involving the Wolf-folk, the King and Queen of the Vampires, and the Snow Leopards.
This book has the coming of age quality that one would look for in a young adult novel, Thirrin tends to be very unsure of herself at times stating that she hopes people don't notice that she's making this up as she goes. Along with Thirrin is a Warlock who is her age, her Royal Advisor, and must face his decision of turning to the light or the dark. I found the battle scenes quite vivid, and the tension between technology and the unknown thought-provoking. Overall, I didn't love this book, but I didn't hate it either.

My Fair Lazy

2010-05-28T19:51:00.001-07:00

Jen Lancaster does it again, creating a piece of work that leaves us laughing so hard we almost pee our pants *and some of you actually did, but that will just be between us ;-)* We take a journey with Jen in her effort to get "cultured" reading her take on various plays some even including n-a-k-e-d people, her attempts of eating the world, and the hunt for a house. Some of my favorite chapters include RATINMYHOUSE! and of course the Thundercats. With her snarky wit, her footnotes, and her partners in crime, Jen Lancaster is a must read for everyone who loves to laugh.

Yup...

2010-05-09T05:40:00.000-07:00

Well, it's official... as of May 9th, 2010 I graduated with my Masters Degree in Library Science.. yay me!

My life through Dewey

2009-07-24T15:23:00.000-07:00

For those who are librarians or even frequent library users, you will be familiar with the Dewey system and therefore will understand this entry. Others.... well you can try and research it, but it is probably not worth the trouble. I'm just telling you a little about myself...

My name is Jessi (929.44), I was born in April (133.52). I work in a (020) and have two pets, Cassie (636.7) and Millie (595.7). My hobbies include (635), (004), (011.73), and trying to (641) I also love to (910.2). I drive a (629.28722). I studied (371) at (378.73). I studied 7 years in (433.2421). I am not very good at (796) or (641. 5). My guilty pleasure is (791) gossip. I really need to have a better (613.25) and do more (613.7). Currently my greatest worry is never (618.2) because I am having issues with (618.11) and my (612.62) is messed up. I love (792) and really like (813-818). I am absolutely useless at (646.72). And am currently trying to (748.94) because we just recently (728).

This is me, my life through Dewey.... It's random and sporadic, but it's me. I came up with this entry last night, and couldn't stop thinking about it. Ha ha it's like a librarian mad lib :)
Bis Bald
Jessi

School, Lancaster, and Hamilton

2009-06-29T11:24:00.000-07:00

So I just finished 2 summer classes Management and Electronic Materials for kids. I got an A- in Management and a 93.25% in Electronic Materials which apparently equals out to.... a B+! I sometimes wonder in what world does a 93% equal a B+? *rolls eyes*
Now I'm in the Youth Services class which is pretty awesome already. There are only like 4 people in my class so it's going to be real fun! The teacher (Beth) is super awesome *Yes, I said super* She's really excited about what she does, which makes class much more fun... I've had classes where the professor doesn't really care about what they do, and you can tell it...
I'm done with my degree in May, so the end is in sight.
It's been a while since I did a book review, so here is one for ya, it's even non-fiction.

Jen Lancaster "Pretty In Plaid"

This is Jen's 4 memoir, in this book she describes her life using her fashion as the time line, with items such as the Girl Scout Uniform to the golden sorority Lavaliere, Jen keeps you laughing non-stop. I have a special place in my heart for Jen because she lived in Huntington, the hometown I am from. She also went to Purdue, so I look for the familiar places she talks about in her books(Harry's Chocolate Shop). Although I did find it funny that she referred to it as "Cow Town" because there are a lot of farmers in my community. Jen does not disappoint in this book, in fact she is getting better and better the more she writes.

Let's do one more, this one will be fiction.

Laurell K. Hamilton "Skin Trade"

Anita finds herself in Las Vegas in this book, looking for the psycho super strong serial killer vampire that she was after in a previous book. With her lovers back at St. Lewis, Anita fights to control her audre, gain the respect of the men on the LVPD, and keep her wear-animals *particularly the wear-tigers* under control. I will say right now that this is different than the books she has been putting out lately. The biggest is the sex, what feels like for the past 5 books she has written there were very discriptive sex scenes where you have to skip pages at a time to get to the actual plot; this is not the case in this novel. You actually get to read about the plot as opposed to the other stuff. Many of the main characters are sitting this book out, you don't hear from Richard at all, and you only get to hear Jean-Claude talk to Anita on the phone. An old favorite that comes up is Edward, and the unfortunate appearance of the very creepy Olaf. This was a very good book, and it reminds me of Hamilton's earlier Anita Blake novels, which is a wonderful thing.

-JB-

1/2 way done with grad school

2009-05-01T21:37:00.000-07:00

I just finished my last cataloging class ever! *Celebratory dance, along with ceremonial burning of the AACR2 textbook* This summer I'm taking three classes *which according to the MLS advisers, is not a smart thing to do (I guess three will be too stressful or whatnot)* Whatever... I honestly do not know how this passes as a graduate program... It feels like an undergrad.
Catch ya'll later
-JB-

2009-04-12T05:56:00.000-07:00

Wow, I have been super busy! I looked at my last log in date and it was in JANUARY!!! Holy Cow... It's no excuse, but I've been taking a very time intensive MLS class so it has been very difficult to get here and blog. I'm thinking of taking a different approach to this blog, I have just been doing book reviews which is all nice and good... But it gets somewhat repetitive... So yes, hello... Happy Easter for those who celebrate it.. for those who do not.. Happy Sunday....
-JB -

Dirty Job

2009-01-08T16:46:00.000-08:00

Dirty Job is by Christopher Moore, the same guy that wrote You Suck and Bloodsucking Fiends (two books that I loved!) Dirty Job is about a fellow named Charlie Asher *who kind of reminds me of Woody Allen in the beginning. * He considers himself to be a "Beta Male" and he is the biggest worrier ever, and I found him very annoying. So the story starts out with Charlie and his wife Rachel(who is obviously out of his league) at the hospital after having their baby.
Well, this little bit of happiness just can't last now can it? Charlie walks into his wife's room seeing a man in a mint green suit.... and apparently he wasn't supposed to see him. Pretty soon he starts seeing things glowing red... and people are dying around him.... not to mention that his daughter is going through a ridiculous amount of pets... fish, turtles, even a cockroach! which after they die seem to dissapear into Charlie's neighbor's "flower box" and by "flower box" I mean her dinner...
Charlie finds out later that he is the equivalent to Santa's elves, his little helpers... and by Santa I mean Death....
I eventually got over my annoyance with Charlie and found him likable in the end. I mean the poor guy has to deal with the whole being Death's helper, having Hellhounds in his house, and having his daughter kill anything she looks at with the word "kittie." This book was laugh out loud funny.
Next Up:Plum Spooky
-JB-

I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell

2008-12-30T18:16:00.000-08:00

I stumbled across this book by accident. I can't even tell you what it was I was looking at first when this book came up-I think it was perhaps a Chelsey Handler book, but the point is I found it. One of my friends has been quoted saying "I hope they have a Harry's [Chocolate Shop] in Heaven." For those unfamiliar with the Purdue University campus Harry's is not a chocolate shop it is in fact a bar (a very good bar I might add). So anyway I saw the title of Max's book I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell and I just could not resist a look. I then took a closer look and I read the description it reads...

"My name is Tucker Max, and I am an asshole. I get excessively drunk at inappropriate times, disregard social norms, indulge every whim, ignore the consequences of my actions, mock idiots and posers, sleep with more women than is safe or reasonable, and just generally act like a raging dickhead. But, I do contribute to humanity in one very important way: I share my adventures with the world."

After I saw the above paragraph I was hooked-I mean, how could you see that and NOT read the book? So I ordered this book thinking that this is going to be the funniest thing I have read in a while.... I wasn't wrong...

The entire book consists of stories that are about Tucker, his friends, and the situations he finds himself in... often. The only way I can describe this book is that it is so offensive that it's hilarious. I found myself reading parts of the book thinking "he did NOT just do that!" but laughing my ass off because yes, he did indeed. Reading his stories remind me of some of the best times I had while in college, and had me remembering some of the shenanigans me and my friends had gotten into.

If you can take a joke and not be offended by swearing, sex, and asshole type comments. Then I say totally read this book, but if you are someone who get's offended by excessive drinking and humiliating and demeaning comments about not just girls but people in general. Then yeah, this book isn't for you.

I on the other hand haven't laughed so hard in a while :)

Next Up: Dirty Job by Christopher Moore
-JB-

Kiss of Shadows

2008-12-30T17:56:00.000-08:00

Anyone who is familiar with Laurelle K. Hamilton's work knows that she does not write the typical characters and plots of boy meets girl... It's more Vampire boy(man?) meets Necromancer girl. Well in her Anita Blake series anyway. Kiss of Shadows is the first of her newest series the "Merry Gentry" series.

Now, I had read her Anita Blake and loved it, and I am happy to say that her Merry Gentry series is just as good. I do admit that I was hesitant to read this series because I am such a fan of the Anita Blake, but it's just too good to resist.

In Kiss of Shadows we are introduced to a world of Humans and Fey(Fairies.) There are also a couple different kinds of Fey, Seelie and Unseelie. When reading I got the impression that the Seelie are considered the best kind of Fey. Unseelie are anyone that the Seelie will not have. Well, not anyone, Merry is considered Unseelie-in fact she is the Princess of the Unseelie Fey, but she is mortal which is looked down upon even in the Unseelie court. So not only do we have a Princess who is different from the rest of her family, but add that she is on the run and in hiding from her aunt that wants to kill her, and we've got ourselves a good story. Add in the quirkey friends, the handsome guards, and of course the evil family members and I'm hooked!
I did have some trouble following the whole Fey hierarchy of Seelie, UnSeelie, and sehid... I think I got the jist of it.

Hamilton continues to impress with her "new" series (I say "new" because it's a few years old-I'm just now getting to it). I'm very excited to read the next in the series.

Next up: I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell by Tucker Max.

-JB-

Seasons Greetings!

2008-12-25T07:26:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope your holiday is full of fun, love, and safety... For your enjoyment, I have included a Christmas tree that you can print and color :) *because let's face it inside we are all 5 years old and love to still color*

Kiss of Shadows is done, but I have to get around to writing a review for it.

Happy Holidays,
-JB-

The Age Old Question

2008-12-15T09:26:00.000-08:00

Does the movie ruin the book or enhance it? Does reading the book ruin the movie for the viewer? Take the book/movie Harry Potter for example, I loved the books, and when the movie came out, the effects they used were wonderful and some of the spells and effects they used I could never even imagine it... so this is how the movie has helped enhance the book! However when I watched the movie, I would go through my mind "That's not right!" or "Where is Peeves?" I could not enjoy the movie because I kept thinking how it was straying from the book and leaving out some of my favorite things from the book *this is the case of the book ruining the movie* my sisters who have never read the books just love the movie, they have no problem with things that are missing... Now another example with Twilight, I can no longer read the book without picturing the actor in Edwards place... And the way the movie portrayed him sparkling in the sunlight.... well, in my mind it was quite different (actually a lot better) Now I that's all I see(the movie's version) when I think about that part of the book... This is a case of the movie ruining the book...
I wanna know... has a book ever been ruined for you by the movie or the movie ruined because you read the book?
Thoughts anyone?
-JB-

P.S. I'm working on Kiss of Shadows and I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell it's just taking a little longer than I thought *you know busy with the season*

Dewey

2008-12-13T19:47:00.000-08:00

The book I just finished up was Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World by Vicki Myron and Bret Witter. This book kind of gave me a Marley and Me feel... with the whole story being an animal that has somehow touched our lives. This storey begins with Vicki, a director of a small library in a small town in Iowa opening the library to find a small kitten shoved into the book drop. Here's the thing, it is January and the cat is almost frozen to death. Vicki helps the kitten until it is in good health. They then decide to adopt him. As I was reading this, it was nice seeing a community bonding over this cat.
The story went on to describe the life of Dewey Readmore Books. The chapters ranged from what he ate, to his quirky habits, to how the community received him. Me being a dog person did find it difficult to get into the book too deeply. I had no experience to draw from when it comes to owning a cat, but I did enjoy the book. It was very well written and even though I do not have experience with a cat, I did snicker a little bit as the author describes the cats antics, and I did shed some tears as the tragedies came. I think anyone who enjoys animal stories such as Marley and Me, We Bought the Zoo, The Cat Lady of Concord, and Rescuing Sprite will enjoy the story of Dewey.
-JB-
Next up: Kiss of Shadows by Laurell K. Hamilton

Time of my Life

2008-11-23T17:08:00.000-08:00

Time of my Life written by Allison Winn Scotch I found to be a great book. I found it to be very inspirational as well. Jillian has it all, a home in suburbia, a great and faithful husband, and a daughter; but when she hears that her ex boyfriend is getting married, she has to think "What if?"-what if she stuck it out, what if she never married Henry (her now husband), what if she never had Katie(her daughter). On a visit to a masseuse he goes to unblock her chi and is whisked back to seven yeas earlier-she has yet to meet Henry and is still with her ex. She thinks that she is going to do things different this time round, but then everything starts to go wrong and Henry keeps popping up in her life over and over again... She later finds out that everything that she was unhappy about was her own doing. That her life was in her hands and she had a choice to be herself or to be what they wanted her to be. That is the part that I find inspirational. Everyone needs to know that being who they want you to be is not going to make you happy, you've got to be true to yourself first.
This book was very well written and a very easy read. I would recommend anyone who likes chick-lit to read it.

-JB-

Next up: Dewey

Walking in Circles Before Lying Down

2008-11-19T16:14:00.001-08:00

This book, written by Merrill Markoe first got my attention from the back of the book summary "her Life Coach sister provides perpetual interference, and her eccentric parents need parenting." Plus any book where a dog is talking to you and sassing you is always fun... (plus my sister decided that she wants to be a Life Coach... gulp!)
So the gist of the book is this woman is not very lucky in love, with a crazy family... the one thing that is a constant good in her life is her dog. With her latest "love" walking out, she turns to Chuck her shelter dog for comfort, who then starts talking with her. Whether or not this was really happening or if she was becoming a head case was never really sorted out.
Hands down, my favorite part of this book is when Dawn(the main character's name BTW) accidentally burns one of her client's kitchen (she dog sits/washes/walks, etc...) She tells Chuck that her dad is coming to help fix the kitchen and not to freak out when he knocks on the door.
What do you know, when her dad knocks on the door the dog goes crazy barking... only you can understand what he is saying..
"Someone's at the door! Someone's at the door!.. Get away from the door you miserable jack-off, I'll rip your ass in half.... We hate you. We hate you. We hate you. We hate you"
...and then as soon as Dawn opens the door
"Come on it! Great to see you again! Thank God you're finally here! We missed you. Where have you been?"
This part of the book had me laughing so hard I was in tears... I still giggle when I think about it. Just the 180 that the dog does from hating and wanting to rip someone in half to being so happy and excited... well, it reminds me of my dog :)
For the most part the book was pretty good. I was able to stay interested in it. It was not one of my favorites though.

Next up: Time of my Life by Allison Winn Scotch.

-JB-

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

2008-11-03T19:26:00.000-08:00

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is by Sherman Alexie. This is a book I had read for my Children's Lit class. I first want to say that the whole reason I picked this book was for the illustrations. One of the things that draw me to books are if they are not written like a typical novel (The Cheese Monkeys, and Extremly Loud and Incredibly Close are two other examples.) I enjoyed this book because the author told part of the story through illustrations which were hilarious (my favorite being the main character Junior throwing a book at the geometry teacher.) Although this book was funny, the author would be making you laugh one minute and then in the next sentence say something that would make you reread it and go "oh no!" This book also looked at some of the serious cultural issues faced today among the remaining Native Americans, poverty, alcoholism, and a loss of culture that Junior's teacher describes as "killing the Indians."
Even though this book is classified as a young adult, this is something that adults can enjoy and appreciate as well.
-JB-
Next up: Walking in Circles before Lying Down by Merrill Markoe

Blood sucking Fiends and YOU SUCK!

2008-11-03T19:09:00.000-08:00

These two books are part of a series, so I'm just going to do a review for both of them in one post... Because let's face it.. with these two books, once you read the first one you are dying *no pun intended* to read the next one.
These two books are written by Christopher Moore, it's about Jody a women who get's changed into a vampire and meets C. Thomas Flood (Tommy) who becomes her minion AKA her daytime bitch... A few characters include
Elijah who is portrayed as the "bad guy,"
the Animals who are a bunch of oddballs work with Tommy,
The Emperor-a homeless guy who "protects" the city of San Fran from the vampires,
Blue *appears in You Suck* a Vegas Call girl who is well... blue....
Abby *appears in You Suck* Tommy's goth minion.
There are other characters, but they were not very important to me.... So both books are about Jody and Tommy's hilarious adventures trying to adjust to their relationship both while living and undead...
My favorite part of both books is when Tommy and Jody are trying to see how truthful the vampire books are.... Such as Tommy rubbing garlic on Jody while she is passed out...
Pretty good book, recommended by my husband... Once again a very funny book.
-JB-

Next up: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

The Host

2008-10-22T18:01:00.000-07:00

The Host is about a girl named Melanie living in a world taken out of Invisian of the Body Snatchers (well, I've never seen that movie, but from what I have heard about it, this book is similar.) Another character we are introduced to is Wanderer... The "alien" that had taken over Melanie's body.
Ok, so first off, this is by the chick that wrote the Twilight series, which I am completely in love with. So I was a little hesitant to read this because I would be thinking "This is not Twilight!" Well luckely this was not the case :) I will admit this book was a little bit harder to get into at first but once I did get into it I could not put it down *my poor husband had to sleep many the nights with lights on while I finished "just one more chapter".*
I was pleased with the ending and it did end differntly than I had thought it would *which isn't always a good thing but in this case it was.*
The characters were likeable and the plot was good.
I would recommend this book for anyone who likes Sci-Fi
-JB-

Next up: Bloodsucking Feinds (I'm on a Vampire kick)

Ok, I'm gonna geek out a little bit...

2008-10-13T18:23:00.000-07:00

Holy shit! I actually had an author reply to my post!!!!

To quote Keanu Reeves... "Whoa!"

Yeah, had to geek out a bit....

Oh yeah, the "crass language", that was her words... not mine:)

-JB-

Quiet, Please: Dispatches from a Public Librarian

2008-10-11T20:14:00.000-07:00

This book was a laugh out loud memoir of Scott, a public librarian. He takes us through the very beginning as a lowly page trying to get the respect of the librarians to actually becoming a librarian himself. He makes us cringe with tales of a powerless power hungry co-worker, the new guy who is so eager, he would believe anything you told him, the old librarians who are afraid of change and technology, and management that pretends to listen, but still does what they want anyway(all things we can relate to in any profession.)

Douglass goes on to tell us about his patrons, the homeless, the teenagers, the crazies. Anyone who has worked in a public library or any kind of service setting can spot and name someone who fits into the categories he talks about.

I rather enjoyed this book. I did have a co-worker who has read this book as well and noted that they stopped reading due to the crass language, so be forewarned for that. I, however, was not bothered by the few bad words in this book, so it could be an age thing.

If you do read this book, read all the way to the end, past the acknowledgments and all, because the laughs keep going until the very end.

Next book up... The Host by Stephenie Meyer.

-JB-

A different version...

2008-09-29T18:32:00.000-07:00

Books on tape are fabulous. Yes, they can never replace the actual book in your hand, but they have many great attributes that I feel I must share with you.
-The first and probably the best thing about books on tape is that the best sellers such as an Evanovich or a Patterson is most likely to be checked in than the printed book. You have the choice of either waiting months for the printed copy to come in or you can get the book on tape right then and there, and for a person who is as impatient to read the newest tome it is a great thing.
-What normally takes me two days to a week to read, I can listen to it within a day.
-You never have to find a new radio station when traveling great distances.
-It gives a voice to the characters..When I'm reading, the characters have my voice... but with the books on tape, each character has their own voice.
If you haven't read a book on tape you should at least try it once. It can be a way to get so many more books read at a time, and for a person who loves to cross off a book from their list like I do, it's a great means to an end.
-JB-

Hello, Hello

2008-09-28T18:57:00.000-07:00

Wow, here is my little area of cyberspace... Actually, I have a few more areas, but let's not be picky shall we? Let me introduce myself, I am a circulation clerk, soon to be a librarian. I love to read, (surprise surprise right?). My husband thought it would be good for me to share my thoughts of these books... so thus the website jbsbookthoughts. I'm JB...

Now, because this blog is new, I probably do not have any readers... So I will be reading what I want, but I am always open to suggestions. The genre I enjoy mostly is Chick Lit... However at the moment I am in the midst of reading Scott Douglass's Quiet Please.

So Welcome, and enjoy :)

-JB-