check this out!

hey everyone, i know it's been a while and i rarely update here anymore (i've been way too busy) but i'm here with a special request.
i was asked by Reggie (a new blogger) to pass her blog along :]
the URL is: http://theundercoverbooklover.blogspot.com/

so check it out! it's a really great blog :D

Banned Books Challenge

this is my list for the banned books challenge 2009 :]

1)Lolita--Vladimir Nabokov
2)Animal Farm--George Orwell
3)Brave New World--Aldous Huxley
4)Catcher in the Rye-- J.D. Salinger
5)Fahrenheit 451-- Ray Bradbury
6)Lord of the Flies-- William Golding
7)Catch-22-- Joseph Heller
8)The Color Purple--Alice Walker
9)A Farewell to Arms -- Ernest Hemingway
10)Slaughter-House 5-- Kurt Vonnegut
11)To Kill a Mockingbird-- Harper Lee
12)One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest--Ken Kesey

so yeah.. i'm quite excited for this challenge:] i think banning books is absolutely ridiculous because i've read many books in the past that have been banned and they're usually absolutely amazing

Audrey Wait! by Robin Benway

from Robin Benway's website: California high school student Audrey Cuttler dumps self-involved Evan, the lead singer of a little band called The Do-Gooders. Evan writes, "Audrey, Wait!," a break-up song that's so good it rockets up the billboard charts. And Audrey is suddenly famous!

Now rabid fans are invading her school. People is running articles about her arm-warmers. The lead singer of the Lolitas wants her as his muse. (And the Internet is documenting her every move!) Audrey can't hang out with her best friend or get with her new crush without being mobbed by fans and paparazzi.

Take a wild ride with Audrey as she makes headlines, has outrageous amounts of fun, confronts her ex on MTV, and gets the chance to show the world who she really is.

i really enjoyed this book and would definitely read it again. i was hooked throughout the whole thing and couldn't put it down. Robin Benway really created a great story line, set of characters and an amazing, intriguing world to step into.

age recommendation: 13+

TBR challenge

for 2009, i am going to participate in the TBR challenge! here is my list of things to read:

i'm gonna mix up this challenge a little and have 2 lists, one of YA books and one of other books (maybe i'll pick and choose, maybe i'll read them all, who knows! :])

YA:
1. Crank -- Ellen Hopkins
2. Peeps -- Scott Westerfeld
3. Glass Houses -- Rachel Caine
4. Kissing Kate -- Lauren Myracle
5. Looking For Alaska -- John Green
6. I Heart You, You Haunt Me -- Lisa Schroeder
7. Naomi and Ely's No Kiss List-- Rachel Cohn and David Levathin
8. Absolute Brightness -- James Lecesine
9. Deadly Little Secret -- Laurie Faria Stolarz
10. Pages For You -- Sylvia Brownrigg
11. Story of a Girl -- Sara Zarr
12. This Lullaby -- Sarah Dessen

ADULT/OLDER BOOKS/NONFICTION/OTHER:
1. The Bell Jar -- Sylvia Plath
2. The Pact -- Jodi Picoult
3. The Secret Life Of Bees -- Sue Monk Kidd
4. The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter -- Carson McCullers
5. On The Road -- Jack Kerouac
6. Travels With Charley -- John Steinbeck
7. The Catcher in the Rye -- J.D. Salinger
8. In Pharaoh's Army -- Tobias Wolff
9. Animal Farm -- George Orwell
10. The Romantic Manifesto -- Ayn Rand
11. Born on a Blue Day -- Daniel Tammet
12.

Happy New Year!

hey everyone!
Happy 2009! this year is going to be filled with fun things-author interviews, contests, book reviews and more! :]

i will be posting a few reviews in the next few days because my computer is acting up, so i can't really do any now, sadly
so keep an eye out for some exciting things and happy new year!

The Earth, My Butt and Other Big, Round Things-- Carolyn Mackler

Fifteen-year-old Virginia Shreves has a larger-than-average body and a plus-size inferiority complex. She lives on the Web, snarfs junk food, and follows the "Fat Girl Code of Conduct." Her stuttering best friend has just moved to Walla Walla (of all places). Her new companion, Froggy Welsh the Fourth (real name), has just succeeded in getting his hand up her shirt, and she lives in fear that he’ll look underneath. Then there are the other Shreves: Mom, the successful psychologist and exercise fiend; Dad, a top executive who ogles thin women on TV; and older siblings Anaïs and rugby god Byron, both of them slim and brilliant. Delete Virginia, and the Shreves would be a picture-perfect family. Or so she’s convinced. And then a shocking phone call changes everything.

I enjoyed this book quite a bit; although it was a bit slow at the beginning, the end made you want more. Immediately after reading this, i wanted there to be a sequal just so that i could follow the characters through more of their life.
4 stars!

age recommendation: 13+

The I Love Your Blog Award!

thanks to Liana, i won the I Love Your Blog Award! :] *cheer* so check out her blog as well: http://lainahastoomuchsparetime.blogspot.com/2008/12/i-love-your-blog-award.html

so here are my nominees: *drum roll please*
*Reading Keeps You Sane
http://readingkeepsyousane.blogspot.com/
*And Another Book Read...
http://andanotherbookread.blogspot.com/
*The Book Muncher
http://thebookmuncher.blogspot.com/
OK FINE. I CAN'T CHOOSE ANY OTHERS... I PICK EVERYBODY. I JUST LOVE THE DIVERSITY AND APPEARANCE OF ALL BLOGS. LOL

so yeah... i know it's dumb, but i really couldn't pick any more lol

now here are the next steps after receiving the award:
1) Add the logo of your award to your blog.
2) Add a link to the person who awarded it to you.
3) Nominate at least 7 other blogs.
4) Add links to those blogs on your blog.
5.) Leave a message for your nominees on their blogs.