Stacking the Shelves | March 2015

It's the end of the month, you know what that means! Another Stacking the Shelves!

I've been in a major reading slump this week, however I have gained a few books. I gained four physical books and two ebooks, and I've actually read 4 of them, so my TBR hasn't grown by that much!

1. Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay 

My school was actually giving away free copies of this book for a discussion. So of course I took the book, but unfortunately I wasn't able to attend the discussion. This is actually, probably, the first nonfiction book I read voluntarily and I really really enjoyed it. I love hearing about other people's views and arguing for my own beliefs so it was really an interesting read. 

2. Soaring Through Stars by Rajdeep Paulus 

Unfortunately I don't have a cover to show you guys, but I will be doing a cover reveal later in the month, so stay tuned for that. This is the third book in Paulus's Swimming Through Clouds series and it was also featured in my 2015 Most Anticipated Releases. It was a fantastic opportunity to be able to get to read this book early and help promote it. I definitely recommend Swimming Through Clouds, it was an absolutely fantastic read. I'll link my reviews to the first two books down below

Swimming Through Clouds 

Seeing Through Stones

3. Fairest by Marissa Meyer 

If you've seen my Stacking the Shelves post last month, you know that I've been obsessed with this series, so of course I had to get this little novella. (Btw my reviews of the Lunar Chronicles still haven't gone up but I promise they will). My entire reasoning behind this purchase was to get to read the little sneak peek of Winter at the end so I could get some Kaider action...of course my version didn't have that one chapter. 

4. Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me by Mindy Kaling 

This book was actually gifted to me by a couple friends (I'm really hoping there was no secret meaning behind it). I've grown kind of an obsession for Mindy Kaling. She's funny, she's quirky and it's honestly so great to read about. Everything about her life is interesting. This book inspired me to watch her show: The Mindy Project, and it's fantastic. I really enjoyed this book. 

5. From the Ashes by Shelby Morrison

This book was sent to be by the author in order to debut for its release on May 3rd! It's a YA fantasy novel, that's about all I know about it, but look at that cover! It's gorgeous! I'm so exciting to read this beautiful book!

6. Everything About You- Moriah McStay

I actually just got this book today from my library to read and review. The premise sounds really interesting, has aspects of parallel universes in it, which I love. I'm really excited to dive into this book as well!

What books have you guys added to your bookshelves this month? Both physical and electronic? Let me know in the comments below! 

Tuesday Talks | Manga/Comic Books

Welcome to yet another post of Tuesday Talks! Tuesday Talks is a Goodreads group started by Janie and Janelle where we discuss book related topics every week. Today's discussion is on manga/comic books.

I will say that I don't really read comic books/manga. So many of my friends have been obsessed with it and have heavily encouraged me to try it, but I don't love it as much as I love the traditional book. That being said, I don't think of it as not reading, but I don't believe it's to the same level as a novel.

A comic book is equivalent to a picture book, I would say. There's nothing wrong with reading it, but I don't think an author can introduce the same depth of theme and problem in these comic books as they can in a novel. I don't read comic books very often, so I could be heavily misunderstood, but from my understanding of comics, the words and picture don't stimulate the brain as much as a book does.

Frequently I'll read a book and just think about it for days, as I did with Hunger Games. I'll think about the themes of debt and rebellion and how that ties in with our society. I just don't think a comic book of the Hunger Games would have the same effect.

What do you guys think? Are comic books considered reading? Let me know in the comments below! 

Free For All Fridays | College Decisions

Ok I know it's Saturday, but I wanted to post this yesterday and I didn't have time to, so it's Free For All Friday on Saturday!

Welcome to another post of Free For All Friday, today we're going to be discussing college decisions. If you're not one of the many seniors going through the arduous process of college application, let me give you the low down. This week is basically the week of death, AKA the week that college decisions come out. Many of them have already been released, however a few major ones are left (All of the Ivy Leagues).

I have applied to a total of seventeen schools. I know that seems like a lot but most of these applications have stemmed from paranoia, paranoia that is completely justified. All my life people have led me to believe that with the right GPA and the right test scores and the right amount of extracurriculars I would get into any college I wanted to, from Harvard to Hopkins. Let me first rid you of this belief: no amount of hard-work and motivation can guarantee you a spot in your dream school.

College admissions is a combination of chance and statistics. As education is increasingly becoming a business, colleges are adjusting their acceptances in order to maximize their profit. For example, one college I applied to (whose name I will not disclose) wait-listed me. This college isn't particularly hard to get into, especially not for someone with my stats (straight A student, good SAT score, yada yada yada). However the number of accepted students that actually end up attending is fairly low, so in order to increase that number they accepted students more likely to attend rather than those actually qualified.

Other colleges don't offer acceptances based on needs (though they might say they are need-blind). Essentially college admissions is a coin toss, if you get lucky that's great, but if you don't that doesn't say anything about you. It doesn't mean you're a bad student or you don't deserve that college. It simply means that the cards were not in your favor, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.

Anyone who's going through this process: good luck and remember, admissions isn't everything. You can still do everything from a lesser-known school: medical school, graduate school, everything. You can still get to where you want to go, I promise.

Share some stories in the comments below! Have you had any bad experiences with college admissions? I want to hear about them! Let's bond over our experiences. 

Words With an Author | Kim Cormack

Today's Words With an Author features Kim Cormack, author of the Children of Ankh series! 

   1. How did you get into writing? When did you first start writing?

   I’ve been writing since I was a teenager. Most of the time it was songs, or poetry and it progressed to children’s books, and then to this series. I started writing the children’s books because of a dream and I changed genres the same way.

   2. Where did you come up with the idea for The Children of Ankh series? Who/ what is your inspiration?

    “Sweet Sleep” was inspired by a nightmare. The nightmare began at the front door that wasn’t closed, swaying in the evening breeze and I woke up after the creepy song.” After that first nightmare the series sort of evolved by itself. I’ve always been fascinated by ancient symbolism. This series is about the journey of life, and what comes after. It’s about standing back up each time you fall. This series had a great deal of violence, but it serves a far greater purpose. It’s about the evolution of a soul.

   3. Are any of your characters based on people you actually know, if so which ones? 

    Some of the relationships in this series mirror ones I’ve had in the past. I’d say there’s a little bit of my essence in some of the main female characters.

   The friendships are quite close to my own, minus the murder and violence, of course. In real life my friends and I only plot our murder sprees over a glass of red wine and in jest. Nobody has ever gone through with it, that I’m aware of… I’ve never been contacted to hide a body.

   4. Have you written anything before The Children of Ankh series?

    I used to write children’s books. That answer will be totally hilarious once you’ve read the series.

   5. If you had to pick only five books from your bookshelf you could keep, what would they be? 

   I’m going to go full geek and full series on my book choices. How can you pick just one from these series?

   The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring… J.R.R Tolkien is amazing.

   The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe By C.S. Lewis

   The full Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling.

   Those books would keep me busy for a while.

   6. Who is your favorite character from any book and why?

   I’m off in my own little world with my characters; they’re like real in my heart. I’ve fallen in love with them. For me it’s a toss-up between Kayn and Lexy in the Children of Ankh series.

   7. How long did the writing process take for The Children of Ankh series? From conception of the story to final publication?

   The first book in the series took around three years to complete and find a publisher. “Enlightenment,” is coming out this month. “Enlightenment,” being book two in the series. I have a side series beginning in a few months. It revolves around Lexy’s character. Book three in The Children of Ankh series is scheduled to be released before the end of this year. 

   8. Who are some of your favorite authors?

   J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S Lewis. J.K. Rowling, and Stephen King.

   9. What actors/ actresses could you see playing the characters of your book?

   I think mine would have to be all unknown actors.

   10. How did you come up with the title and cover of The Children of Ankh series? Did they morph as you wrote the book, or were they constant?

   Oh, I have so many things planned for this series. I originally queried six books. Everything has changed now. I have a side series starting, and could probably carry on with the Children of Ankh series for quite a long time.

   11.  Are you planning to write any other books?

    I have a couple of books in the works that aren’t related to this series.  Sometimes, I need a change of scenery in my brain. I’ve got a lot planned for this year, but if I get motivated to finish them, I may find the time to release, “Bring out your Dead.” The other one is called, “The Repopulation Project.”

   12. What would your advice be to someone who's aspiring to be a writer?

   I’d say keep writing, but keep living your life because that’s where your material is going to come from. It’s a long road, but it’s worth it.

   13. Finally, just to wrap things up, what's your favorite color and why?

   Yellow, makes me feel peaceful. It’s always had a calming effect on me. I have no idea why that is...

Tuesday Talks | Audiobooks

It's Tuesday again; time for another Tuesday Talks! Tuesday Talks is a Goodreads group hosted by Jamie and Janelle where we discuss book-related topics every week. Today's discussion is on audiobooks.

Personally I am a fan of audiobooks. They're really convenient when I'm not in the position to read (if my head hurts, I'm driving, etc.) I think it is definitely considered reading since either way we get a story. It's great for multitasking and a great way for "nonreaders" to get involved in the literary world.

Though audiobooks have a lot of pros, they also have a lot of cons. One of the biggest ones is my attention span, or lack of. I'm not as much of an auditory learner as I am a visual one and while an audiobook is playing I frequently zone out and start thinking about random things from homework to life and end up missing a chunk of the book, which isn't really effective. Another thing I don't love about audiobooks is how slow the speakers of the book typically read. Audiobooks can take upwards of ten hours to finish but reading the same book would take me much less time. It's just more efficient for me to read a book than to listen to one.

What do you guys think! Do you think audiobooks are considered as "real" reading? Let me know in the comments below! 

Free For All Friday | Writing Classes

Welcome to the first post of Friday Free For All, a weekly discussion where I pick a random topic to discuss on my blog! 

Today's discussion is going to be focused on writing classes. 

I've taken quite a few writing classes and as a result have written many papers, research papers, "feely" papers, prompt papers, etc. But the subjectivity of a writing class really deters me from loving the subject. 

Are papers graded on content? On grammar? On whether the teacher likes you or not? If I get an A, is it because my paper is actually good or it because the teacher just likes me enough to push my grade up to an A. Consequently, if I get a B, was my content bad or did the teacher just not accept and agree with my opinions. 

Honestly, this is one of the reasons I prefer subjects like math and science. There is one answer, and you're either right or wrong. There not that much room for subjectivity.

Last year, I had an English teacher whose grading system was incredibly confusing. Upon returning our papers, she's make comments about how fantastic our writing was and then we would be presented with a B. If my writing was fantastic, why didn't I get an A? Within the paper, there would be no commentary on any objective things I could improve: grammar, sentence structure, content, etc. That leads me to believe she just didn't agree with my topic, which is mildly annoying. 

I love writing, but the fact that someone else should judge my writing and grade it based on their subjectivity is mildly annoying. 

Do you guys experience the same things with your writing teachers, or is it just me? Let me know in the comments below! 

The Walking Fish | Kopel & Rachelle Burk

A humorous, exciting tale of an ordinary girl who makes an extraordinary scientific discovery—a blind fish that walks

When seventh-grader Alexis catches an unusual fish that looks like a living fossil, she sets off a frenzied scientific hunt for more of its kind. Alexis and her friend Darshan join the hunt, snorkeling, sounding the depths of Glacial Lake, even observing from a helicopter and exploring a cave. All the while, they fight to keep the selfish Dr. Mertz from claiming the discovery all for himself. When Alexis follows one final hunch, she risks her life and almost loses her friend. Walking Fish is a scientific adventure that provides a perfect combination of literacy and science.

Another first in my experimentations of other genres, and once again I was simultaneously surprised and impressed. I was ready to critique it as a middle-grade, not exactly comprehending what exactly that meant, but I went into it expecting a "middle grade read", something I, understandably, would not enjoy. However, it surpassed my expectations. I enjoyed the characters, the plot, the setting. It was a fantastic mix of creative and realistic. 

The protagonist Alexis has so much determination and perseverance, a quality that is incredibly inspirational to younger children. This is definitely a book I would recommend as a cute, young read either for yourself or a younger sibling/child.