Wrap-Up... Kind of...

So, my last weeks have been chaotic... it was end of term (it was my first term at college, and I am glad to say that I did well) and I have been quite sick (I have been coughing for a week now... I hate it!), but I have managed to read quite a lot (I have read 2 of the books for the Holiday Reading Challenge and a couple of books for my next school term (which will start on January... I am so excited!). In conclusion... get ready for some reviews throughout the next weeks!

Also, I have a challenge with one of my BFFs... we will read Ulysses by James Joyce... we will read a chapter per week or so until we finish it, and we will do comments about it... I know it will take us some time as it is a quite complicated book, but I am looking forward to read and finish it!

Finally, this week is Christmas, so (hopefully) I will receive some awesome books!!

:D

HOLIDAY READING CHALLENGE

I have decided to join to a new Challenge. This time is a Holiday themed challenge hosted by All About {n}, in which I'll read some holiday related books (it doesn't matter if it's about Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa... as long as it's about this season holiday).

I am really excited for this challenge because this is my favourite season of the year. I'll read 1 to 5 books (although, I'll try to read more!). So, here is my sample book-list (perhaps I'll change them a little... but I'll try not to):

1. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (it has been a Christmas classic for me since my dad gave it to me in this season 10 years ago... and the book starts on Christms).
2. A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.
3. This Year It Will Be Different by Maeve Binchy.
4. Miracle on the 34th Street by Todd Strasser.
5. La Vela de Navidad (The Christmas Candle) by Max Lucado.

LET'S HAVE THIS HOLIDAY STARTED!

Read-A-Thon Wrap Up

1. Which hour was most daunting for you? Since 8 am to 1:30 pm, as I was at school...

2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year? It depends on the reader, the books I read were awesome!

3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year? I think it was awesome, but a couple times the links to the Mini-Challenges were broken :S so, checking on that could be great!

4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon? The enthusiasm of all the participants :D

5. How many books did you read? 3 books, 5 short stories and 3 essays

6. What were the names of the books you read?

• Books: Travesuras de la Niña Mala by Mario Vargas Llosa, Harry Potter & the Sorcerer's Stone by J. K. Rowling and The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.
• Short stories: "The Kiss" by Angela Carter, "A Visit to Grandpa's" by Dylan Thomas, "In Love With Raymond Chandler" and "Happy Endings" by Margaret Atwood, and "The Whore of Mensa" by Woody Allen.
• Essays: "Politics and the English Language" by George Orwell and "The Language Mavens" by Steven Pinker.

7. Which book did you enjoy most? It is difficult to chose :S I loved them all, but it was great to read Travesuras de la Niña Mala, a new kind of story for me :D (highly recommended, too... I thinks its title in English is Bad Girl, but I am not sure XD)

8. Which did you enjoy least? Everything I read was great!

9. If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders? Well, I tried to cheer as much as I could, but some pages were blocked by my computer... so it made it quite difficult to comment... but, it was great, because I visited more blogs than the usual ones ;)

10. How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time? Yes, I would love to participate again. Mainly as a reader and an sporadic cheerleader.

Hour 21

We are at Hour 21 of the Read-A-Thon. It is 3 am in Mexico and I am tired. So, I think I am just going to leave it here, as I will not wake up before 11 am and I will celebrate my brother's birthday.

Even though, I managed to finish 3 books, some essays and short stories, made some Mini Challenges, tried to cheer a little (I am having technical problems with my lovely computer) and went through the first half of Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert.

So, my stadistics are:

• Hours spent reading: 13 hours.
  
• Pages read: 968.
• Books read: 3 (Travesuras de la Niña Mala by Mario Vargas Llosa, Harry Potter & the Sorcerer's Stone by J. K. Rowling and The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry).
  
• Other readings: short stories ("The Kiss" by Angela Carter, "A Visit to Grandpa's" by Dylan Thomas, "In Love With Raymond Chandler" and "Happy Endings" by Margaret Atwood, and "The Whore of Mensa" by Woody Allen) and essays ("Politics and the English Language" by George Orwell and "The Language Mavens" by Steven Pinker).

Hopefully, I'll manage to post some reviews soon and to finish Eat, Pray, Love through Sunday.

Wishing all of you to enjoy the remains of the Read-A-Thon, I am off!

Hour 18

I have been reading for 10 hours now. I have finished Travesuras de la Niña Mala by Mario Vargas Llosa (he is awesome!), Harry Potter & the Sorcerer's Stone by J. K. Rowling (for the 4th time I have loved it!), some short stories ("The Kiss" by Angela Carter, "A Visit to Grandpa's" by Dylan Thomas, "In Love With Raymond Chandler" and "Happy Endings" by Margaret Atwood (she is one of the greatest writers I have ever read, seriously!), and "The Whore of Mensa" by Woody Allen) and a couple of essays ("Politics and the English Language" by George Orwell, and "The Language Mavens" by Steven Pinker), and am through the half of Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. I am quite tired of it, so I'll read a childhood favourite: The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.

I conclusion, I have read 868 pages so far, which is awesome!

And, as a footnote, today, October 10th, is my little brother 13th birthday. He is an awesomely intelligent kid and I am glad of being his sister. I wish him the best!

Title Word Scramble

This Mini-Challenge is hosted by Sheery's Place:

1.Firefly Lane
2.East of Eden
3. Water for Elephants
4.To Kill a Mockingbird
5. The Great Gatsby
6. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
7. The Art of Caring in the Rain
8.The Time Travelers Wife
9. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
10.Diary of a Wimpy Kid
11.A Wrinkle in Time
12. The Polar Express
13.Love Walked In
14.Where the Wild Things Are
15.The Shinning
16.Goodnight Moon
17. Interview with a Vampire
18. The Secret Life of Bees
19. The Search
20. The Help

Mid-Event Survey

1. What are you reading right now? Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
2. How many books have you read so far? Two (Travesuras de la Niña Mala and Harry Potter & the Sorcerer's Stone)
3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon? Finish Eat, Pray, Love
4. Did you have to make any special arrangements to free up your whole day? No, I really had to go to classes
5. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those? Yes, I have brought the books withme everywhere (that is annoying my brother, but I don't care!)
6. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far? How many people is participating!
7. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year? I think it is awesome the way it is!
8. What would you do differently, as a Reader or a Cheerleader, if you were to do this again next year? Cross my fingers, so I don't have to go to school that day
9. Are you getting tired yet? No
10. Do you have any tips for other Readers or Cheerleaders, something you think is working well for you that others may not have discovered? Just enjoy the books you're reading and don't stress over time!

Six Word Celebration

Estella's Revenge is hosting this mini-challenge where you must create a six-word celebration of the 24 hour Read-A-Thon.

So, here is mine:

Books, chocolates, blogs... this is fun!

Still with Vargas Llosa's book... he is an amazing writer, no wonder why he is the new Nobel Prize.

Book Puzzle

This Mini Challenge is from One Librarian's Book Reviews. We have to post an image or group or images illustrating a book, so that people can guess it.

So, I am doing 3 Book Puzzles... try to guess them!

Puzzle 1

Puzzle 2

Puzzle 3

Arm Chair Travelling

This Mini Challenge is hosted by The Adventures of an Intrepid Reader.

The single time I have gone abroad was when I was 5 years old and I went to DisneyWorld with my family (that's 14 years ago, people!), but I have travelled a lot by my reading. And while I'd love to visit Neverland and Lyra's Oxford, my biggest dream since I am a child is to visit the United Kingdom, and I have read a lot of stories settled there, that I'd love to see each place!

But, definately, I want to visit Bath and all those places where Jane Austen's books are located, because, let's face it: her descriptions are amazing!

Let's Get the Party Started

I've just arrived from my English classes and have read 50 pages of Mario Vargas Llosa's book.


I don't know how far I'll get from my reading, but I'll do my best!

Also, I am answering Hour 1 questions, even though we're at Hour 8:

Where are you reading from today?

• Mexico City, Mexico

3 facts about me …

• I am a chocolate addict.
• I am studying English Literature
• I have 3 brothers

How many books do you have in your TBR pile for the next 24 hours?

• 3

Do you have any goals for the read-a-thon (i.e. number of books, number of pages, number of hours, or number of comments on blogs)?

• Finish Travesuras de la Niña Mala by Mario Vargas Llosa and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J. K. Rowling
• Start Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
• Have fun!

Keep tuned, because I'm going to update as much as I can!

Read-A-Thon Time!

I have decided to join to the 24 hour Read-A-Thon for the first time, which will happen tomorrow. I am not going to read the 24 hours as I have had a difficult week at school and have English classes in the morning (even though, I'll try to read in my breaks), but for the remains of the day I'll read as much as I can.

I am planning to finish Travesuras de la Niña Mala (Bad Girl) by Mario Vargas Llosa, and read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer Stone by J. K. Rowling and Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. I hope I can finish them all!

I am also being a cheerleader for 6 hours, so I'll be paying attention to all the participants I can besides the ones I was assigned.

It is going to be lots of fun!

Read-Along: Everything Comes to An End

This is my final post for the read-along of one of the greatest books I have ever read!

Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift was an awesome books full of adventures, ironies, wit and incredible things, sadly, it has come to an end.

This book has shown me lots of human aspects, as I said the past post: satirical, political, humanistic... and now the utopian one is showed with the Houyhnhnms (again, a funny weird name), which are clever & sweet smelling horses, they live a clean life without lies, their society is uncorrupted, innocent & polite, and that's why Gulliver likes them and doesn't wants to leave that place.

Also, there lives the Yahoo's, which are human, filthy, vulgar creatures, slaves for the Houyhnhnms. Gulliver compares them with the Houyhnhnms and places himself in the middle, also he is considered over the Yahoo's because of his clothes, meaning that the Houyhnhnms accept him as somthing different, so Gulliver tries to immitate the Houyhnhnms over the Yahoo's.

Then Gulliver explained how are lawyers and goverment, the corruption, the injustice. He lives there for 3 years, although, after an assembly which is hold each 4 years he is asked to leave.

That's how he goes home at last, but nobody believes anything of his trips, his pride is fading and his family is happy to have him with them again.

This book is an ode for the whole humanity, it shows human behavior and some of human's faults and virtues. This book makes you think of everything in the world, no matter if it is a moral, political or social issue. Definitively, a must read for everybody!

I want to say thank you to Allie from A Literary Odyssey for holding this read-along, it was awesome!

A New Read-Along!

Ok, I am going to join a new read-along with Allie from A Literary Odyssey. This time I am going to read the book in Spanish, because it is its original language, but I'll do my posts in English.

Do you want to know the book's name? Cien Años de Soledad by Gabriel García Márquez. This is a well known book here in Mexico and once I promissed to a friend that I'd read it in Spanish, no matter what!

There will be two post days: July 17 and July 31.

Now, free feel to join in. Thank you, Allie, for hosting it!

Corazón, Sangre... Muerte

Muerte de Tinta de Cornela Funke

La trilogía del Mundo de Tinta comenzó a ser editada conjuntamente en Méxicopor el Fondo de Cultura Económica y Editorial Siruela a finales del 2008, y por fin este año logré leer el último libro.

Meggie vive en el Mundo de Tinta a lado de sus padres, Mo y Resa, y, aunque le gusta dicho mundo, siente nostalgia de su mundo. Además, Mo/Arrendajo debe cumplir con su promesa de acabar con el Príncipe de Plata a lado de los Titiriteros. Mientras tanto, Meggie siente impotencia al no poder serle de mayor utilidad a su padre y tener sus propios problemas sentimentales, en los que se incluyen Farid, el joven ladrón extraído de las páginas de Las Mil y Una Noches quien está haciendo todo lo posible por regresar a Dedo Polvoriento de la Muerte, y Doria, uno de los Titiriteros.

Amé toda la trilogía, y he de decir que éste libro me encantó. Sangre de Tinta se me hizo muy triste, pero llegó a una final perfecto. Todos los personajes de la Trilogía resultan impresionantes por lo humano de sus características. Recomiendo ésta Trilogía a todo aquel amante de los libros.

Una de mis cosas favoritas de todo el libro es que al principio de cada capítulo viene una cita de algún otro libro escogida explícitamente por el contexto de cada capítulo.

Read-Along: Travelling More & More

I've got some technical issues and that's why I didn't post it, I am sorry! But, here we are!

This is the third part of Gulliver's Travels, it was really good and interessting but I didn't love it as I did with the first one, but I liked it more than the second one.

My favourite part was the one when he's at Laputa (a pretty funny name!), the flying island, and he gives us details of how does it moves (this was really awesome to me!). Also, their people are short of attention and they do not realize their women affairs with the people of Balnibarbi (another funny name!) as they are mainly concerned about math and music (it reminds me a little to the whole World Cup Thing -no offense-... my dad and brothers and some friends tend to ignore me while they watch it!). It seems like the whole story is kind of a representation to some excerpts of England's History, and that's good for me, as Swift represents the idea of a possible destruction to Balnibarbi by Laputa, as if it was showing the domain of England over another country.

Even though, he moves along to other countries: Luggnagg and Glubbdibdud (this names are the funnier of the whole book! and they are pretty difficult to write, too!). where he is allowed to see (and talk) with the ghosts of the dead leaders (that's awesome and kind of scary for me! I don't know tho who I'd talk, perhaps Maximiliano de Habsburgo, Porfirio Diíaz, Benito Juárez, Miguel Hidalgo, Mrtin Luther, King Henry VIII, Elizabeth I of England, Anne Boleyn and Catherine Parr) and he can select to whom he's talking to... I liked this part a lot! Then, Gulliver goes to Japan (this is a real country, but I think it is represented as a fantastic and exotic country because of its distance to England) in his way home.

I think it shows more of the human side of wanting and desiring, and how harmful somethings we want or desire can be to our society. I liked it, because in this way Swift is showing some side of humanity (satirical, political, humanistic... let's see what side shows us the fourth part!).

So, now we have one part left... see you then!

Histories of England

Two Histories of England by Jane Austen & Charles Dickens

On 12th June was my 19th birthday and my mum gave me this pretty little book with a double-side cover (pink + blue). it included Jane Austen's The History of England from the Reign of Henry the 4th to the Death of Charles the 1st (which originally was part of her Juvenilia) and Charles Dickens' A Childs History of England (which, in fact, was just an excerpt from the whole book), each had a satiric tone and for me was awesome to read it!

Jane Austen's part were critique spans from some of England's rulers (Henry IV, Charles I, Richard III, Mary Queen of Scots, and may others) I loved it because it shows Austen's wit and a great writing abbility (even though she was 16 when she wrote it). Charles Dickens' book was part of the British school curriculum, and was full of irony and Dickens' passionating words.

So, I must say I loved the whole book (including the Introduction!) and that I recommend it to every Austen or Dickens fan and to every person who wants to read a little of History. Also, it is a funny and excellent reading for all those who like History!

I am glad that my mum gave it to me because of my love for both, Austen & England... it has been one of the best gifts ever! Thank you mum!

Read-Along: Brobdingnag or, How to Be Their Pet

Ok, so, here it is the second post of this Read-Along!

I loved this part... it was like the biggest irony in the whole world to see Gulliver like the little one (they are 12 times his height!)! The only thing thing that I hated was that he was like THEIR pet... they treated Gulliver like if he was nothing!

But then, Gulliver considers the society as mostly a moral people with just some that are jealous or corrupt, the King’s jester, with a little malice at times. Just as others Governments and Kings have been!

One of my favourite parts was when Gulliver discusses the English society and government with the King and he gives Gulliver his view and judgment, comparing them to Brobdingnag. This causes Gulliver to take a different look and view point at the English. This is a more political part than the first one!

I liked this part a lot, but I LOVE the first one the most!

See you on the next post!

Jane In June + Happy Birthday To Me

Ok, so, I am into this AWESOME blog activity called Jane In June at Misty's blog, Book Rat (check it out asap!), and I've got my guest post posted today! Also, today is my 19th birthday!

Jane Austen + Birthday in one day, how good is that?!

I will be posting a couple of reviews of Austen's books somewhere in the next couple of weeks (as soon as I can)... for now... Thank you Misty!

And... HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!!!!!

Read-Along: Travelling to Lilliput

So, way back into May I signed up for two read-alongs at Allie's blog. This one is Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift, and today I am posting my thoughts of Part I: A Voyage to Lilliput.

The whole book is in Gulliver's point-of-view, and in this first part he is telling his adventures & disventures at the little country of Lilliput; the way he has to live in a country where everybody is way-too small for you (barely 6 inches, if I am not wrong).

One of my favorite parts is when the queen's rooms were in fire and Gulliver saves it in a very, errr... inapropiate way, but, well... he saved the palace!

I love the irony & satire that Swift manage at the whole part, is like if he was making fun of England's goverment! That's what I love the most of Literture: the way it reflects the society in its author's words.

So, that's all for this first part, I am looking forward the next!

Another Read-Along!

And I'll be into another read-along in June 8I'll get lots of excellent readings this month, yei!). This is also hosted by Allie (I love her blog, btw).

This time the book will be Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift (which is part of my Getting Started book list for English Literature).The posts will be up the following days:

* June 9: Part 1 "A Voyage to Lilliput"
* June 16: Part 2 "A Voyage to Brobdingnag"
* June 23: Part 3 "A Voyage to Laputa, Balnibarbi, Luggnagg, Glubbdubdrib, and Japan"
* June 30: Part 4 "A Voyage to the Country of the Houyhnhnms"

I'm really excited too read this one too!

So, if you're reading this, join the fun here!

Read-Along!

Ok, so... I'll be part of this awesome Read-Along hosted by Allie at A Literary Odyssey. The book? Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell (yei!).

My post for chapters 1 to 8 will be up at June 15th (three days after my 19th birthday!) and for chapters 9 to 16 at June 30th. I'm so excited! I just have to finish Inkdeath by Cornelia Funke and I'll start with this great book!

If you're reading this, feel free to join the fun here!

Thanks, Allie!

About First Impressions...

First Impressions: A Tale of Less Pride & Prejudice by Alexa Adams

What if Darcy didn't say those awful words about Lizzie...? They'd become friends and short after be in love...? What if Mary found love in a less than expected man...? What if the wicked and handsome Wickham didn't become part of the Bennett family...?

That's what Alexa is telling us... she's answering lots of questions that many lovers of this story had (it is her own idea, perhaps each reader of this amazing story has got its own, I've got my own, but I loved this one).

...more

What if Darcy didn't say those awful words about Lizzie...? They'd become friends and short after be in love...? What if Mary found love in a less than expected man...? What if the wicked and handsome Mr. Wickham didn't become part of the Bennett family...?

That's what Alexa is telling us... she's answering lots of questions that many lovers of this story had (it is her own idea, perhaps each reader of this amazing story has got its own, I've got my own, but I loved this one).

Seriously, it was an awesome (and well written) spin-off of Pride & Prejudice (Jane Austen must be proud). All the characters are amazingly written (as their futures), I'd love to read a little more about Georgiana and Kitty (I adored them, btw). I loved how Mr. Bennett changes for well (as whole the family) and the interactions between Darcy and the Bennett's, it made them look a lot as a family. I fell more in love with Darcy and identified myself a lot more with Lizzie while reading it.

I enjoyed and loved each one of its words, phrases, paragraphs... everything! It has become part of my all-time-favorites!

If Alexa writes more things (please, write more!), I'm going to read each of them, because I loved the way she writes... I'm her fan!

Now, I'm more than happy for winning this book!

Thank you, Alexa!

Extended!

I will be extending the Ridicously Awesome Contest for another 4 weeks!

Check the info here!

I WON

I won First Impressions by Alexa Adams in Fly High's awesome giveaway! I'm so happy, I can't wait to read it! Expect a review as soon as I receive + read it!
Thank you Maria and Alexa! I'm sure I'm going to love it!

Give A Little "Rest" To Me

Okay, so I was beginning to read David Copperfield by Charles Dickens when I was noticed that I've to study for a final Psychology exam (and I don't know the date of it)... so, I put it in a "rest" mood (besides, my mom said to me that I have to give whole my effort for my exam), so, yeah, I'll be reading some light things (AKA some tales books and novellas, just for relax myself a while after a couple hours of studying.

Wish me Luck!

14 Weeks & An Excellent Lesson

Tuesdays With Morrie (Martes con Mi Viejo Profesor) by Mitch Albom

Mitch had a successfull career, and when he know about his old professor (Morrie Schwartz) mortal disease (ALS), he goes and spend all his last Tuesdays (14) with him, learning about live.

My dad made me read this book, and as soon as I began I was so into it that I kept reading almost until dawn (I looked as a zombie at school).

It made me cry, laugh and get angry with myself, I realized I've been such a selfish person and that no matter what I need to apologize all those persons that made me suffer and apologize myself for my mistakes, because it's part of growing up as a person. It's an amazing good story... a superb real life story full of meanings and awesome lessons.

I loved Morrie, he certainly was an amazing person!

Seriously, a must read in this belicous times.

Thank you daddy for made me reading this, I love you!

And here are my favorite passages of the book (the summarry of each Tuesday), thanks to Young Wisconsin Soul for the translation (I read it in Spanish):

The First Tuesday - We Talk About the World

"The most important thing in life is to learn how to give out love, and to let it come in."

The Second Tuesday - We Talk About Feeling Sorry For Yourself

"I don't allow myself any more self-pity than that. A little each morning, a few tears, and that's all."

The Third Tuesday - We Talk About Regrets

"It's what everyone worries about, isn't it? What if today were my last day on earth?"

The Fourth Tuesday - We Talk About Death

"Everyone knows they're going to die, but nobody believes it. If we did, we would do things differently."

The Fifth Tuesday - We Talk About Family

"There is no foundation, no secure ground, upon which people may stand today if it isn't the family."

The Sixth Tuesday - We Talk About Emotions

"By throwing yourself into these emotions.. you experience them fully and completely."

The Seventh Tuesday - We Talk About the Fear of Aging

"Aging in not just decay. It's growth."

The Eighth Tuesday - We Talk About Money

"Money is not a substitute for tenderness, and power is not a substitute for tenderness."

The Ninth Tuesday - We Talk About How Love Goes On

"Love is how you stay alive, even after you are gone."

The Tenth Tuesday - We Talk About Marriage

"You get tested. You find out who you are, who the other person is, and how you accommodate or don't."

The Eleventh Tuesday - We Talk About Our Culture

"No matter where you live, the biggest defect we human beings have is our shortsightedness."

The Twelfth Tuesday - We Talk About Forgiveness

"Forgive yourself before you die. Then forgive others."

The Thirteenth Tuesday - We Talk About the Perfect Day

"Death ends a life, not a relationship."

The Fourteenth Tuesday - We Say Good-bye

"This..... is how we say.... good-bye.."

Chunkster

So, I already have two other challenges... but I'm going to try the Cunkster Reading Challenge, in which I'm going to read books larger than the normal ones for me.
I'm between two categories:

1. Do These Books Make my Butt Look Big? - this option is for the slightly heavier reader who wants to commit to 4 Chunksters over the next twelve months.
2. Mor-book-ly Obese - This is for the truly out of control chunkster. For this level of challenge you must commit to 6 or more chunksters OR three tomes of 750 pages or more. You know you want to.....go on and give in to your cravings.

So... now I'm reading David Copperfield, which is 700 pages, number of pages I haven't read in my life (neither in Spanish), I'll try with Anna Karenina and The Name of the Rose... I don't know if my previous reading of The Name of the Wind count, but, I also have in my TBR pile East of Eden, Grapes of Wrath, The Lord of the Rings (the three books) and Les Misérables, so I have lots of chunkster readings!

I'm going to try, let's see how I do it.

¿Sólo un juego?

Literati de Barry McCrea

Niall Lenihan tenía una buena vida: una beca el el Trinity College, un buen grupo de amigos y una gran familia, hasta que se obsesionó con lo que comenzó sólo como un juego literario de "adivinar" su suerte, dejando atrás todo ello y poniéndose en riesgo a sí mismo.

Un buen libro, una buena historia y buenos personajes... la idea de este extraño juego de adivinar/averiguar cosas a base de pasajes de libros elegidos al azar es muy novedosa e interesante, pero pocas veces te enteras de los libros que usaban ellos y suele relatar cosas muy triviales en la vida de Niall, lo que puede llegar a resultar tedioso. Fionnuala fue mi personaje favorito: simple, normal y real, es testigo de todo por lo que pasa Niall, y trata de ayudarlo. No puedo decir que amé el libro, pero sí que me gustó bastante.

The Last Song

The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks

Veronica "Ronnie" Miller has to pass her summer at her dad's home, there she's going to find the real meaning of love, friendship and family. Also, she's going to have the biggest heartbreak of her life.

Gosh, what can I say about this book? I't made me cry and laugh, I was so into Ronnie's story and felt (in some ways) identified with her... I adored her!

This book is beautiful, full of messages of forgiveness, love, friendship & family, with an awesome group of characters, that it seems so real... and, in some ways, it is... it reflects how real life is: with hard & happy times. I loved it so much that I do not have word to express all what it made me feel... I just wish that Ronnie & Will live happily together until the end of their days, and I know they are not real, but I don't care, I wish the best to them.

So, yeah, I loved the story (even though it made me cry so bad!).

By the way, you know thet the screenplay was written before the book?
I can't wait to see the movie, I think it's going to be great and that the cast is awesome!

LAS PALABRAS

Random House Mondadori sacó un magnífico video sobre las palabras, acá lo comparto (con todo y la transcripción del texto).

Las palabras

Las palabras esconden historias que nos emocionan y nos hacen soñar.

Las une caprichosamente la mano de un autor que decide que érase una vez va antes que una princesa en un reino muy lejano, que pese a las adversidades tendrá un glorioso futuro...

Coge aire…

Las palabras son símbolos, imágenes, pero también son sueños, tus sueños, mis sueños… los sueños de un desconocido…

Me gusta soñar. Me gustan las palabras.

Dejarme llevar a mundos lejanos en el tiempo y en el espacio.

Las palabras causan alegrías, tristeza, risas y lágrimas.

Nos hacen viajar. Nos hacen dudar.

¿Conseguirá escapar? ¿Volverán a encontrarse? ¿Lo logrará? ¿Tendrá un final feliz?

La curiosidad nos deja absortos en la lectura y la intriga se apodera de nosotros.

No puedes parar de leer. ¡Imposible!

Deseas saber como acaba la historia, deseas saber como acaba la historia, pero al mismo tiempo… no quieres que termine nunca.

Alguien llama a tú puerta, vuelves a la realidad.

¿Quién será? ¿Por qué me arranca de mi historia?

Vences a la intensa atracción que te une al LIBRO como a un IMÁN.

Tus pies avanzan hacia la puerta, pero tu mente sigue cautivada por el Relato. Tres pasos, 1, 2, 3. Abres la puerta. :) Sonríes. “Lo siento. Se equivoca”.

No puedes esperar más, te abalanzas sobre el libro como un depredador, ¿qué va a pasar?

Lo abres y ante ti mas de 354 páginas de suspiros, 250.000 frases que haces que tu corazón lata más rápido. Palabras que resuenan en tu cabeza.

Me gusta la intriga, me gusta emocionarme, me gusta el suspense, me gusta dudar, me gusta imaginar… me gusta.

Sí, me gusta leer.

Contest

The Bookologist has an amazing contest where Kristin Walker, author of A Match Made In High School, has kindly donated a MATCH SWAG prize pack to (1) lucky winner. This prize pack includes:

• bookmarks
• pencils
• a fake engagement ring
• post-it matchbooks

Lamento Decirte que las Hadas nos Persiguen

Lamento de Maggie Stiefvater

Deidre Monaghan tiene 16 años, es "invisible" en su escuela y toca el arpa como los dioses, Su verano estaba siendo muy aburrido, hasta que Luke Dillon aparece en su vida, generando una intensa atracción mutua, y todas las cosas cambian: tréboles de cuatro hojas salen por doquier, percibe sombras extrañas y los seres del mundo de las hadas la persiguen a ella y a su mejor amigo James. Pero, ¿hasta que punto le resultará interesante y hasta cual terrorífico?

Lamento es una obra mágica, fantástica y hermosa por sí misma. Maggie Stiefvater logra que ésta novela tenga todo lo necesario para atrapar al lector desde las primeras páginas, e incluso tiene una dosis romántica perfecta e inesperada, sin ser empalagosa. Los personajes son sencillos y "humanos", la historia es rápida pero entretenida y el final es perfecto: inesperado e inconcluso, al grado que te deja deseando leer más sobre Deidre, James y Luke. También habrá que leer la sequela (aunque también han dicho que es novela de acompañamiento) : Balada.

Maggie es una escritora increíble, con una habilidad fantástica para narrar, sin duda alguna, llegará lejos en el mundo literario; espero con ansias poder leer la trilogía de Los Lobos de Mercy Falls.

**Ridiculously Awesome Contest**

So, yeah, I've got a little obsession with contest... and I'm simply in love with this one by Bloody Bookaholic, I want them all!