A Month of Reading: April 2010

Friday, April 30, 2010

I saw a post called 'Reading Reflections' for the month of April from Lily @ Lily's Bookshelf. I really liked the idea, so I decided to do one also for myself. Maybe some of you would like to do this as well. Leave your link as a comment if you ever post one.

Books read:
What I Saw and How I Lied by Judy Blundell - review
Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver - review
About a Boy by Nick Hornby - review
Still Alice by Lisa Genova - review
The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan - review
Happiness Sold Separately by Lolly Winston - review
Willow by Julia Hoban - review
The Midnight Escape by Alice W. Flaherty - still writing review
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman - review

Books I Started On But Haven't Finished Yet:

(halfway through) City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

Total Number of Books Read This Month:
9 1/2

Favorite Reads:
I just can't choose one, so I'll choose 3.
- Before I Fall
- The Last Olympian
- Willow

Overall Thoughts:
This was a great reading month for me. In fact it's so great that I discovered one of my favorite YA novels this month which is Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver. I loved this book! It really taught me a thing or two, and made me realize that this quote still holds true; "Be kind to others -- for everyone is fighting a hard battle." It taught me that one thing can lead to another, and we should be careful with our choices, decisions, and overall attitude in life.
Of course, I read The Last Olympian, which was quite a bit of a bittersweet experience for me, since I love the Percy Jackson series and it's finally over. Nevertheless, I am so glad to have discovered such a wonderful series that I can recommend to everyone of all ages.
Also this month, I read two really realistic novels that tackle two very different issues; Alzheimer's disease in Still Alice and cutting in Willow.
I also got to read The Midnight Escape, which is a non-fiction/psychology book. I don't usually go for non-fiction, but I have to admit I was a bit surprised that I really liked it. It's basically a study on the connections between writing&emotion, and writing&the brain. It was really smart, interesting, and thought-provoking.
I am also definitely interested on reading more of Neil Gaiman's works. The Graveyard Book was just an exceptionally written story, and I liked it a lot better than Coraline. Recommendations anyone? :)
By the way, I am halfway through The City of Bones by Cassandra Clare. I decided to stop reading though and skip it for a while, just because I wasn't really getting into it yet. I'm definitely going to pick it up soon though, to finish it. I am still trying to be positive about this one, and hopefully I end up liking it better when I finish it.

**
But that's it for this month's reading. Hopefully you had a great reading month, and discovered a bunch of awesome books. If you did, I'd like to know all about it.
Now I just can't wait for May, for a lot of different reasons. How about you, what do you look forward to in the month of May? What are your reading goals? Do share. Thanks everyone, and have an awesome Friday!

11 comments:

  1. This is a great idea for a recap, I really like it! I think at some point I would also do that at the Bookworms!
    :)

    I still believe you should give City of Bones another chance, I know it was tough getting into it at first. But once you are in, you won't stop!

    I'm sad just like you that the Percy Books are over, and although he's planning a Half-Blood camp spin-off it will never be the same...

    Have a wonderful weekend :)

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  2. I am glad you liked my post! I am happy to see that you've created one for yourself! I alllmost used the same image! :P

    Great reading month for you as well, I see! Have a great weekend! :)

    Oh, and keep an eye out. I'll be posting an award for you soon! ;)

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  3. Just stopped by from the blog hop, already a follower but wanted to check in and see what was new...how are you liking City of Bones? I'm a big fan of the series and Clare in general, hope you're enjoying it!

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  4. 9 1/2 books! That's a great count.

    I finally gave in and bought a copy of Willow, can't wait to get it!

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  5. Aww, sorry to hear that City of Bones didn't capture your interest. It's one of my favorite YA books! Look forward to seeing what you thought of The Graveyard Book. Neil Gaiman is terrific!

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  6. Glad to see TLO gettin' some love!
    You had an awesome month--hope May is just as cool!

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  7. Happy FF! I'm your newest follower. I'd love it if you could come visit/follow me at www.momsbalancingact.com

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  8. Looks like you had a great reading month. Still Alice remains one of my favourite books. Willow is on my wishlist, I keep wanting to buy it but I have so many books to read.

    Here is my monthly post:


    http://web.me.com/quirion/Bookaddict/Blog/Entries/2010/4/30_April_Wrap_Up.html

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  9. I just gave you an award! You can find it here.

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  10. love books. I have more than I can read. Thanks for participating in Friday Follow. Rita @ One 2 Try.

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  11. @Mrs. Vanquish: Thank you! Glad you liked the recap.
    And yes, I'm definitely going to read City of Bones again. I'm thinking I probably just wasn't in the mood for it when I picked it up, but like I said, I'm still feeling positive about it just because everyone keeps telling me how good it is. Hope you had a wonderful weekend!

    @Lily Child: Well, we both read 9 books and Before I Fall, which I loved!
    Oh and as for the award.. thank you in advance ;)

    @Katelyn: I got bored with City of Bones, but I'm definitely going to try to read it again. Maybe I just wasn't in the right mood when I first tried to read it. I'm still positive about it! :)

    @Marie: Willow's a simple but great book, tackling a really important subject matter.

    @Kris: I hope when I get to dive into it one of these days to give it a second try, I'll like it a lot better. Also, I just posted a review for The Graveyard Book. Neil Gaiman is indeed a terrific writer.

    @Amelia: I love the Percy Jackson, but I know he's one of your literary crushes so.. ;) And thank you!

    @Jenna: Thank you, I will go look at your blog.

    @Jennifer: Still Alice is an amazing and important book. And I know what you mean though, I always want to keep buying books -- it's like an addiction! -- even though I have a huge TBR pile still!

    @Letter4no1: Thank you! I'm going to post that up as soon as I can :)

    @One 2 Try: Thanks for following. I'm going to go look at your blog now too.

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