Review: The Ghost and the Goth by Stacey Kade

Title: The Ghost and the Goth
Series: The Ghost and the Goth #1
Author: Stacey Kade
Format: Paperback, 281 pages
Pub. Date: May 10th 2011
Source: Little Library


Book Description:

Alona Dare–Senior in high school, co-captain of the cheerleading squad, Homecoming Queen three years in a row, voted most likely to marry a movie star…and newly dead.

I’m the girl you hated in high school. Is it my fault I was born with it all-good looks, silky blond hair, a hot bod, and a keen sense of what everyone else should not be wearing? But my life isn’t perfect, especially since I died. Run over by a bus of band geeks—is there anything more humiliating? As it turns out, yes—watching your boyfriend and friends move on with life, only days after your funeral. And you wouldn’t believe what they’re saying about me now that they think I can’t hear them. To top it off, I’m starting to disappear, flickering in and out of existence. I don’t know where I go when I’m gone, but it’s not good. Where is that freaking white light already?

Will Killian–Senior in high school, outcast, dubbed “Will Kill” by the popular crowd for the unearthly aura around him, voted most likely to rob a bank…and a ghost-talker.

I can see, hear, and touch the dead. Unfortunately, they can also see, hear and touch me. Yeah, because surviving high school isn’t hard enough already. I’ve done my best to hide my “gift.” After all, my dad, who shared my ability, killed himself because of it when I was fifteen. But lately, pretending to be normal has gotten a lot harder. A new ghost—an anonymous, seething cloud of negative energy with the capacity to throw me around—is pursuing me with a vengeance. My mom, who knows nothing about what I can do, is worrying about the increase in odd incidents, my shrink is tossing around terms like “temporary confinement for psychiatric evaluation,” and my principal, who thinks I’m a disruption and a faker, is searching for every way possible to get rid of me. How many weeks until graduation?

Review:

★★★

Well, I more or less got what I expected based off of the cover and the back blurb. This book is a fast read that's pretty predictable and not all that deep, so there's not too much to think about, nor is it something I'm particularly going to remember a week from now.

Alona Dare (yes, that is her name) is the wooooorst. She's shallow. Like, insanely shallow, and judgmental. Girls who kiss a guy must be whores and sluts. Every straight guy wants her, and she doesn't think every lesbian in the school wants her, she knows it. She calls Will a goth (uh, not even remotely?), a psychopath (cool insult bruh), and more than anything else, a freak. Wanna know what her supporting evidence is for him being a freak? He wears a hoodie. With the hood up, inside. Are you not clutching your pearls yet? Well get this. He also wears headphones. A teenager with headphones! Burn the freak! It's also super gross that she's friends with a guy that in her own word grooms young girls to sleep with him before he leaves them. Popular or not, it's super skeezy.

Now, I understand I'm supposed to not like her. This book is, at its core, a reverse "It's a Wonderful Life" where Alona gets to see how much better off everyone is when her rude, shallow ass is dead. Then she changes for the better for a better afterlife. Or she's supposed to. I didn't think she really changed that much. She might be nicer to Will but she's still insulting and rude, even as she's helping people. I expected a better arc for her and I was left disappointed.

Will Killian (yes, his name is Will Kill) is the most likable character in this book and is its saving grace. He's empathetic and a little brooding and mysterious. He has a whole web of secrets and masks to wear and it was admittedly interesting to see where his arc goes. His ability to hear and see ghosts, dealing with his father's suicide and the hospitalization of a friend, a doctor who might not have his mental health in mind after all, tangled with the weird and new feelings he has for the very dead cheerleader. There's a lot to unpack there and I think Kade did a pretty good job with this character. I get why Alona got attached to him.

As much as I have issues with this book, I actually liked the romance element. I liked that Alona and Will learned from each other. Alona gave Will some confidence and helped him get out of some trouble. Alona learned to be a little bit nicer and that her bullying actions did in fact have consequences. I liked seeing them warm up to one another and despite my overall "ugh" feeling of this book, I was rooting for them.

And then there's Joonie. Joonie is Will's one Goth friend. She is written as so unbelievably over the top as a "Goth" that it seems to be the only descriptors given to her. She doesn't really have personality, only traits that seem to be copied and pasted from a Wiki article about "Gothic Subculture". All I could picture in my head was Henrietta from South Park, which made all of her scenes hilarious for reasons I guarantee the author did not intend.

Like a lot of other contemporary set books, this one has a lot of pop culture references that really date this book. She makes references to Johnny Knoxville's (seven Razzie award nominated) version of The Dukes of Hazzard. She watches Joonie go to a MySpace page. There's just a LOT of oughts imagery here that I guess now works as a past setting, but since I was a teen in those years brings back definitely un-contemporary flashbacks of nostalgia.

I have to admit, the author does have my attention. I'd read the second book in this series if it came into my possession, though I won't be seeking it out. I'm just intrigued enough with where the Will/Alona romance is going. But, I don't really recommend this book. If you're into cheerleaders getting hit by a bus or fluffy books that don't take any brain power to get through, maybe you'll like it more than I did.

Review: Let's Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson

Title: Let's Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir
Author: Jenny Lawson
Format: Paperback, 370 pages
Pub. Date: March 5th 2013
Source: Goodwill


Book Description:

Includes a new chapter!

When Jenny Lawson was little, all she ever wanted was to fit in. That dream was cut short by her fantastically unbalanced father and a morbidly eccentric childhood. It did, however, open up an opportunity for Lawson to find the humor in the strange shame-spiral that is her life, and we are all the better for it.

In the irreverent Let’s Pretend This Never Happened, Lawson’s long-suffering husband and sweet daughter help her uncover the surprising discovery that the most terribly human moments—the ones we want to pretend never happened—are the very same moments that make us the people we are today. For every intellectual misfit who thought they were the only ones to think the things that Lawson dares to say out loud, this is a poignant and hysterical look at the dark, disturbing, yet wonderful moments of our lives.

Review:

★★★

I wasn't sure what to expect going into this book. I wasn't familiar with Jenny Lawson, or her blog. But, I remember when everyone was reading it and that it's a best seller and had won a Goodreads Award, so I thought that I would check it out. Overall, it was okay.

The first half of this book was absolutely hilarious. Jenny Lawson had an.... interesting childhood to say the least. She has a great voice for telling these childhood stories, where they're relatable, funny, and just wild enough that they still seem believable. I really appreciated that peppered throughout this collection of essays were photos from her past. It makes it that much more "real" which I think drives home how funny they are. In fact, I actually read a few chapters aloud to my mother. I honestly cannot tell you the last time I've done that. It's been years, at least.

There's a good couple of quotes sprinkled in here, like “You should just accept who you are, flaws and all, because if you try to be someone you aren't, then eventually some turkey is going to shit all over your well-crafted facade, so you might as well save yourself the effort and enjoy your zombie books.” Another good one is “In short? It is exhausting being me. Pretending to be normal is draining and requires amazing amounts of energy and Xanax.” Both of these are relatable to me. If nothing else, I appreciate that Lawson has grown into a person who is unapologetically herself. Even if that person is a little exhausting.

The second half, I rapidly lost interest. The stories no longer were quirky, but boring and a bit obnoxious as they shifted from childhood to adulthood. There's a lot of rambling and repetition. I understand that she has an anxiety disorder, and that this is how it presents in conversations. But it needed editing. Plus, the melodramatics of THIS THING HAPPENED TO ME just kidding it was this actual much smaller, normal thing that happens to most people. Then there's a thousand footnotes, and notes to the editor, that also get tiring and don't add much to the narrative.

She's clearly funny. The first half of the book proved that. But I'm also clearly not her target audience. Lots of people seem to like her, but, I was left disappointed by this memoir. She has quite a few more books published since this one came out, but those are going to be a pass from me. It seems very much like something a book club might read. If you had a troubling childhood or were the weird kid growing up, you might like this. Saddle up for profanity and an excessive amount of the word "vagina".

Mini Review: The Prosperous Pagan by Kathy Cybele

Title: The Prosperous Pagan: How to Shed the Myth of Pagan Poverty and Thrive
Author: Kathy Cybele
Format: Paperback, 196 pages
Pub. Date: January 30th 2014
Source: Goodreads First Reads


Book Description:

If spells and rituals were all it took to secure prosperity we'd all be rich! So what is it that separates Pagans who easily generate prosperity from those who keep trying and trying with little success? Highly prosperous Pagans understand how prosperity works and have aligned their belief systems to support a prosperous life and bring success to all their magickal workings. The process of becoming a truly prosperous Pagan is a journey of self-discovery that can be eye opening and life changing. Kathy Cybele offers a comprehensive guide that will help you shift your beliefs about prosperity and assist you in moving into a space where attracting good things comes easily. Through The Prosperous Pagan Kathy Cybele will take you on a journey to: Discover what prosperity means to you. Prepare yourself for prosperity. Learn how to create prosperity. Use magick to enhance your prosperity. Your prosperity journey can begin today! A more prosperous life is within your grasp.

Review:

★★★.

I was interested in reading this book for pretty simple reasons: I'm a pagan, and I could always use a bit more prosperity.

All in all, this was an okay read. There was a certain "if you can dream it, you can do it!" self help type vibe to it, which wasn't really what I was looking for.

Most of the information and recommendations for spells/words were things I've read similarly in other books.

I think this would be good for beginners, but for me it was just an average book.

Thanks to Goodreads First Reads who gave me a copy in exchange for my honest review.

Review: Would You Rather? by Katie Heaney

Title: Would You Rather?: Growing Up, Coming Out, and (Occasionally) Getting It Right
Author: Katie Heaney
Format: egalley
Pub. Date: March 6th 2018
Source: Ballantine Books


Book Description:

A collection of poignant, relatable essays from the author of Never Have I Ever about coming out in her late twenties, entering into her first relationship, and figuring out what it means to be an adult.

When Katie Heaney published her first book of essays chronicling her singledom up to age 25, she was still waiting to meet the right guy. Three years later, a lot changed. For one thing, she met the right girl.

Here, for the first time, Katie opens up about realizing that she is gay. She tackles everything from the trials of dating in New York City to the growing pains of her first relationship, from obsessing over Harry Styles (because, actually, he does look a bit like a lesbian) to learning to accept herself all over again. Exploring love and sexuality with her neurotic wit and endearing intimacy, Katie shares the message that it's never too late to find love--or yourself.

Review:

★★★


I've got to admit.... I'm a little disappointed in this book.

I adored Katie Heaney's first book, Never Have I Ever: My Life (So Far) Without a Date which chronicles her misadventures as to why she's in her 20s and perpetually single. It was clever, funny, and so relatable. It was one of my favorite books of 2014.

Well, since then, she's answered the question of: "Why can't I find a guy to date?" The answer? She's LGBT.

I think there's a huge space for this sort of book. I haven't come across many later-in-life out of the closet books. I think it's a needed space to fill that tells people it's okay if you don't have yourself figured out in your teens when it seems like everyone else is so confident.

I was excited to get this book because of the aforementioned adoration, but also because I am queer. I figured, if she was relatable as a heterosexual woman, surely she'll be even more so now that we're both on the same side of the rainbow. And the answer to that assumption is, kind of.

She is relatable on the "but I like dudes how can I like girls" front. I had the same struggle growing up. I didn't understand that it wasn't "normal". I was attracted to actresses or models on TV the same way I was men like NSYNC or Leo DiCaprio. So I felt for her on the whole "WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING WITH ME" thing. I didn't relate so much to the fear of not being queer enough that she went through (trying to find the "perfect lesbian outfit" or feeling like people at a gay bar would know she's not one of them, for examples). But, I understand where that thought process would come from, being pan myself.

In spots it gets sort of political and preachy, which was a bit grating. But, it comes with the territory I think.

One thing that sort of put me off of this book is her tone about reviews. She expresses a torn view point, on which she likes hearing from people who related to her first book, but also feeling pressured by them and annoyed. There's a negative tone about reading reviews, and on one hand: I get it. It has to be hard for any writer to read reviews. This has to be multiplied when your book is nonfiction; I'd imagine there's quite a sense of "these people are judging me and my life". But at the same time, it kind of sounds like a slap in the face to those people who enjoyed it and supported book. Full disclosure: I was one of those people who messaged her.

By her own words, she says she's getting less likable and I have to admit I don't disagree. The quirky and awkward charming sense of humor is gone. Part of that is surely the change of topic. Coming out of the closet and realizing one's self is certainly more serious and life altering. But I went in with that expectation, and by comparison her tone in this book just comes off as harsh.

That said, there's a glimpse of the other book within this one. Every few chapters/essays or so, there's a highlight of a girl that Heaney might have had a crush on. I thought this was really cute, and I totally get it. I look back to my growing up sometimes and can't help but to think "oh... I think I liked that girl". These were sweet and broke up the rest of the text well.

I think it's good for those who are pan or broadly queer or who are older and still trying to find themselves. If you haven't read the other book, you'll probably have a lot less issues with it than I did. I enjoyed reading this story of growth and self-acceptance, but I don't think it's something I'll need to read again in the future.

I received a copy in exchange for my honest review.

Blog Tour Review & Giveaway: Confessions of a Fat Girl by Holly Dae

Title: Confessions of a Fat Girl

Author: Holly Dae

Release date: August 4th 2015

Source: IFB Tours

About the Book:

Smart and ambitious Season Minett was homeschooled, got accepted into college at 16, graduated with a B.A. in English at 20, got a job at a prestigious magazine at 21, and isn’t afraid to go after what she wants. Twenty-two-year-old Season has it made and everyone knows it. Except Season herself.

People can gush over her all day long, but Season knows they’re just being nice. In reality, she’s accomplished nothing. She doesn’t work hard enough, can’t get her book published, and worst of all at 5’6, 180 pounds with a thirty-two inch waist, a forty-four inch hip, and arms too big for her body, she’s fat and ugly. She's such a disappointment that after her mother divorced Season's dad, she went to live with her new, younger boyfriend and left Season to mother the rest of her siblings. So Season is quite bewildered when the guy she sees every weekend at the bookstore shows serious interest in her. And she ends up liking him. A lot.

Season's not naive enough to think love will solve all her problems though. In fact, love seems to be making everything worse because her food obsession is growing more and more out of her control. But that's impossible. There's nothing wrong with counting calories and wanting to be thin. There's nothing wrong with trying to be as perfect as everyone thinks she is. A fat girl can't develop an eating disorder, let alone have one. Right?

Review:

★★★


I admit, the reason why I signed on to read this book is largely the title, no pun intended. I'm a bigger girl, so I figured I would relate to the characters and the premise. Overall, this was a fairly enjoyable read.

There's a growing concern and focus on appearance and health, and I think this story gives a pretty realistic look on the issues that come with having a low view of yourself. Season is moody and closed off. She's self-destructive as she battles with her calorie count and tries to keep in control of her body and her life, with a lot of drama and consequences surrounding her as she tries to get through it all.

Season was a really complicated character for me. I related to her at times, I'll be the first to admit that. I think we all go through a little self-loathing and self-pity at times, and I'm surely no exception. But similarly, I think she represented everything that I hate in myself. She bugged me. She was hard to sympathize with, and hell, maybe I'm hard to sympathize with too. This didn't put me off of the book or her story or anything, but made me think harder about myself whenever Season did something that particularly annoyed me.

The writing was pretty solid. I was engaged throughout the text, and I rarely felt bored. It was well paced and you learned to feel for the characters, whether you loved or hated them. It was a fairly quick book to get through, but it's not a subject to be taken lightly.

In short, I think this book does a decent job of covering an important topic. Eating disorders are a serious problem, and I think that people who have experienced problems with their weight or their self-image can take something away from Season's story. Fat or thin, we can all I think relate to Season on some level.

I was provided a copy in exchange for my honest review.

Get it Here:

Amazon

About the Author:

Stuck in the transition between graduating from college and starting a life called no job, Holly Dae spends most of her free time writing raw and edgy Young Adult and New Adult contemporary novels that deal with rape, drugs, sex, and general psychological ills. When she isn't doing that, she's writing fanfiction for fun and obsessively playing Mario Kart Eight and Pokemon Games.

Website | Twitter

Follow the rest of the tour here!

Giveaway:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review: Good and Cheap: Eat Well On $4/Day by Leanne Brown

Title: Good and Cheap: Eat Well On $4/Day
Author: Leanne Brown
Format: egalley
Pub. Date: July 14th 2015
Source: Workman Publishing Company


Book Description:

A perfect and irresistible idea: A cookbook filled with delicious, healthful recipes created for everyone on a tight budget—and a cookbook with a strong charitable component: With every copy of Good and Cheap purchased, a second copy will be given to a person or family in need.

While studying food policy as a master’s candidate at NYU, Leanne Brown asked a simple yet critical question: How well can a person eat on the $4 a day given by SNAP, the U.S. government’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program informally known as food stamps? The answer is surprisingly well: Broiled Tilapia with Lime, Spicy Pulled Pork, Green Chile and Cheddar Quesadillas, Vegetable Jambalaya, Beet and Chickpea Salad—even desserts like Coconut Chocolate Cookies and Peach Coffee Cake. In addition to creating nutritious recipes that maximize every ingredient and use economical cooking methods, Ms. Brown gives tips on shopping; on creating pantry basics; on mastering certain staples—pizza dough, flour tortillas—and saucy extras that make everything taste better, like spice oil and tzatziki; and how to make fundamentally smart, healthful food choices.

Download a free PDF copy at http://www.leannebrown.ca/cookbooks

Review:

★★★

Two and a half stars.

First, I'd like to say that I appreciate that (at least as of the time that I'm writing this review) the author has placed this cookbook as a free PDF on her website. Since the point of the book is to eat on 4$ a day and is aimed at those on SNAP, I'm really happy to see that a lot of people will have access to this guide.

That's really how to take this book- as a guide, not so much as a recipe book. The book straight up says that there's a lot of room for variety, and to alter them. Which I would, because a lot of these recipes are vegetarian. There's nothing wrong with that, but it was a bit disappointing to me. I understand that meat is expensive, but I still expected more. A lot of the recipes are very boring and bland sounding.

This book also does start with a disclaimer, that the average of 4$ on SNAP (in the title of the book) isn't everywhere, that all of the ingredients aren't available everywhere, and things of that nature, which is another reason I'd use this as more of a guideline than a cookbook.

One of the issues with this book- through no real fault of the author- is that just because it costs $4 a day to make the dish, doesn't mean it actually costs $4 at the time when you're purchasing your groceries. Some ingredients, such as Dijon mustard and Romano cheese aren't necessarily the cheapest ingredients in the world. While the 1/4 of a cup I'm using for today's portion might only cost $.75 or however much, I'm still going to have to pay the full $6 at the grocery store, because unfortunately you can't just get a dollop of ingredients here and there as you need them. This makes it harder to budget, in my opinion.

On a similar note, I was really surprised that equipment such as food processors made an appearance. I don't have one of those, and I cook quite a bit. How are people who are in serious need expected to have one? Granted, the author does point out that not everyone has one, but the fact that it was entertained at all irks me.

I've been on SNAP. My family has never been rich, and I'm well used to having to shop within small means. Because of this fact, a lot of this cookbook was just common sense. There's a lot of recipes that use things such as hot dogs, eggs, oatmeal, and popcorn. It's pretty much common sense that things like this are cheap. I didn't learn it from looking at this book. I think a lot of people who have lived this way will already know this, but I guess it might be helpful to people who are new to SNAP?

Normally, this is where I'd highlight a few recipes that I'd like to try, but honestly there weren't any. I think the author is doing a great thing, and I genuinely hope that this helps some people who need it to make better food choices and to make the best out of their food stamps. However, as someone who isn't new to a budget, this wasn't anything I didn't already know, and the recipes either didn't sound that great to me or were basic enough that I don't need a recipe for it. I'd recommend it for those looking to cut down on spending and for vegetarians- it's a very veggie-centric book.

I received a copy in exchange for my honest review.

Mini Review: Shh! by Stacey Nash

Title: Shh!
Series: Oxley College #1
Author: Stacey Nash
Format: ebook
Pub. Date: February 23rd 2015
Source: YA Bound Book Tours


Book Description via Goodreads:

Nineteen-year-old Olivia Dean has the perfect reputation, the perfect boyfriend, and an increasingly perfect CV. She has it all, until Christian breaks up with her in public, calling her out as a self-gratifying sexoholic: the kind that plays solo. But Olivia doesn’t do any such thing — the only thing she does at night is sleep … right?

Now all the boys on campus seem to want her attention for the absolutely wrong reason — including resident hottie, Logan Hays. He's pulling out his best moves to gain her attention, so resisting his sexy charm is hard work. With rapidly slipping grades, a disturbingly lurid reputation and demanding parents, Olivia must discover the truth behind her rumoured sleeping problem. If she doesn't, the perfect life she's worked so hard for may slip away, including the one person who has Olivia breaking all her rules — Logan.

What do you do when you’re asleep?

***

Shh! is a story about acceptance, learning to trust and in turn love while facing life's unexpected difficulties.

NB: This book is of a mild heat level, and contains no explicit sex scenes.

Review:

★★★

I will say, I have never read a book that discusses the topics found inside Shh!. That's why I was drawn into reading this book, because I had never heard of such a condition as the one Olivia experiences throughout the course of the book. However, this one wasn't really for me.

The reason why this book and I didn't really gel together is because of the main character, Olivia. I expected more from her. She goes through a lot of rough stuff in this book. There's a lot of really nasty rumors and bullying and I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy. She does stand up for herself... Eventually. For a very large part of the book, she just seems to sit and wallow and feel sorry for herself, which is not a character that I can relate to. It went on too long, and it frustrated me. A large part of this frustration came from the fact that Olivia is quick to talk about how she wants to be a lawyer. That's why she's so concerned with her image and reputation, because she wants to be a lawyer. I was surprised that she was so passionate about something where you have to stand up for what you may or may not believe in (depending on the client) and yet she was still so quick to lay down. (Granted, her parents were the ones pushing her towards this career...)

That said, I loved the side characters. I found that her friends, Savvy and Megan, were really the stars of this novel. In a world where everyone is talking smack about Olivia, they are there to help her combat it and stop her from breaking down completely. I also really, really liked the love interest, Logan. He's pretty swoon worthy. There was a great supporting cast of characters, and I liked that they were fairly diverse from one another in regards to personality.

I also appreciate that while this book deals with a medical condition that is sexual in nature (I'm purposely being vague to avoid potential spoilers), there are no explicit or graphic scenes.

All in all, I was left a bit disappointed with this book because I couldn't connect, try as I may, to the main character. However, I'm not sorry I read this book, and I think a lot of people out there will like it. There's an interesting medical condition, clean New Adult romance, and an Aussie university setting that might work really well for you, but just fell short for me.

I was provided with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Review: Serbian Cooking by Danijela Kracun & Charles McFadden!

Title: Serbian Cooking: Popular Recipes from the Balkan Region
Author: Danijela Kracun & Charles McFadden
Format: egalley
Pub. Date: March 28th 2015
Source: Schiffer Publishing


Book Description via Goodreads:

Fifty-three recipes make up this Eastern European cookbook. Inside, find all types of traditional Serbian fare, including potato salad, lentil soup, and an assortment of pita dishes, as well as sauces and a multitude of delectable desserts, such as cr me puffs, baklava, and crepes. Most Serbian cooking traditions are intertwined with the cultures of its neighboring countries. So, don't be surprised if some of these dishes seem similar to some of your own family's traditional recipes. Also, be prepared for some differences. In Serbia, lunch is the biggest meal of the day, while dinner happens to be the lightest, typically focusing on merely cold cuts and bread. Throw in an afternoon snack of a baked pastry and coffee and consider yourself a convert!

★★★

Review:

I'm quite disappointed in this cookbook. I got it because I'm always looking for new recipes to try, plus I have a few Serbian relatives who always bring over really delicious dishes over the Christmas holidays. I was hoping to find some of those recipes in here, but unfortunately that was not the case.

A lot of the recipes are really simple, and I don't mean that in a good way. There are recipes in here for french toast (which gives no instructions as to what kind of bread), coffee (with no special steps), and a cold cut tray that actually says as the instructions just to add meats and the like, without offering any tips or recommendations as for what meats could be found in a traditional Serbian home. Some of the recipes that I was more interested in, such as peach pie and creme puffs, use pre-made brands/ingredients like pre-prepared pie crust. I was expecting more from-scratch recipes for things that I hadn't tried.

I didn't care for the way that the steps were presented. They somehow managed to be both simple and complicated. They were simple in that they were very blunt, like add all these things, serve. But that's not always a good thing. There's no step by step break down, it's written in paragraph form, with little advice on what the textures or techniques should be for each step of the process. This complication was added in the fact that the recipe titles that weren't in English, such as tulumbe had no explanation. I can tell you how to make it and what's in it, but just by looking at the title I have no idea what it is.

The pictures in this book weren't the best of quality (they didn't look professional), but they did give the book a family, home-cooking kind of vibe to the book that I can appreciate. What helps to round this book up (star wise) is the fact that there was a picture accompaniment for each and every recipe. Pictures are hugely important to me while picking a cookbook, and I really did appreciate having a reference for each recipe.

Another plus to this cookbook is that it appeals to both vegetarians and meat eaters. There are recipes that instruct on how to omit or add meat, depending on your personal preference. I'm a meat-eater myself, but I can appreciate the vegetarian options that were provided.

There are a few recipes from this collection that I would like to try, including Plum Dumplings, Chicken Paprikash, and Chestnut Cake.

All in all this is a very, very basic cookbook. The recipes are lacking a bit, but it makes up for it with its abundance of color pictures that pair with each and every recipe in this collection.

Thanks to Schiffer Publishing who provided me with a copy in exchange for my honest review.

Review: Dad is Fat by Jim Gaffigan

Title: Dad is Fat
Author: Jim Gaffigan
Format: Hardcover, 275 pages
Pub. Date: May 7th 2013
Source: Borrowed from Lisa


Book Description via Goodreads:

In Dad is Fat, stand-up comedian Jim Gaffigan, who’s best known for his legendary riffs on Hot Pockets, bacon, manatees, and McDonald's, expresses all the joys and horrors of life with five young children—everything from cousins ("celebrities for little kids") to toddlers’ communication skills (“they always sound like they have traveled by horseback for hours to deliver important news”), to the eating habits of four year olds (“there is no difference between a four year old eating a taco and throwing a taco on the floor”). Reminiscent of Bill Cosby’s Fatherhood, Dad is Fat is sharply observed, explosively funny, and a cry for help from a man who has realized he and his wife are outnumbered in their own home.

Review:

★★★

2.5/5 stars.

The short version of my review is simply: Meh.

I'd been looking forward to reading this for a long time. Gaffigan is one of my favorite comedians, probably because I'm also pudgy and from the Midwest. I love his comedy, and I love books. So I assumed that naturally, I would love his book. Sadly, that's not true.

This might be because I'm not a parent. Gaffigan is from a big family, and him and his wife have more than a few kids themselves. Dad is Fat focuses on family. I thought I'd relate to it more, after all I do love my family. But because I have no intention of having kids, nor am I from a big family myself, this felt like a miss for me. I felt like this book was an outlet for him to complain about other parents and the woes of children, which I mean, a book is a perfectly valid place to do that. However, I feel like most of these gripes are brought on himself. He has five (I think?) kids in a tiny New York City apartment. So yeah, sleeping is rough. Going to the park or out is a hassle because of subways and taxis. But it's a choice to live in such a small place, in the heart of the city, so I ultimately didn't feel much sympathy or humor in the situation.

Actually, I didn't enjoy the overall tone of the book. When he does stand up (to those of you who don't know), Gaffigan does inflictions or changes his voice to make the joke hit harder. Because I had to read this myself, I couldn't hear the tone, and it mostly came of as being extremely smarmy and condescending. It felt like when you're stuck with a group of people you don't know at a party, and they are all in on some information and discuss it with laughs, leaving you clueless until you walk away. That's how this book felt- I wanted to walk away a lot of the time.

That's not to say I didn't enjoy some of it. Gaffigan's a funny guy, and I snickered here and there. I found that the funniest parts to me were in fact recycled sets that he's done in his stand up routines, which is a bit of a bummer. I liked that he talked about his own upbringing and coming up in addition to the family that he has now with his wife. I also really liked that there were illustrations and photographs in this book, I hadn't been expecting that. The family photos, kids' drawings, and blueprints helped me get through the book.

All in all, this isn't a bad book. It's just not something that I personally connected to, despite my high hopes upon opening it. If you are a parent or are from a large family, or even if you are a parent in a large city like New York, you will probably like this a lot more than I did. I laughed, but not as much as I wanted to, making this book a fairly average and slightly disappointing one.

Review: The Pandas and Their Chopsticks

Title: The Pandas and Their Chopsticks: And Other Animals Stories
Author: Demi
Format: egalley
Pub. Date: August 1st 2014
Source: Netgalley & Wisdom Tales


Book Description via Goodreads:

What do polite pandas, cunning kitties, talkative turtles, and hasty hedgehogs have in common? They all feature in the delightful new book of whimsical animal stories by award-winning artist Demi! Adapted from traditional folktales, these lighthearted stories have a universal appeal and will provide valuable lessons for little hearts and minds to absorb. Discover how panda learns the importance of sharing, how turtle discovers the danger of being proud, and how everyone, including tiny hummingbird, has their part to play in life.

Review:

★★★

I'm a sucker for pandas, so when I came across this title I had to check it out. Unfortunately for me, the illustrations outshone the actual text and story telling by a pretty big amount.

This book contains multiple short stories, and I mean short. Each little fable is only about two or three sentences. While I like the morals or lessons that each animal story tells, it felt like no effort was put into the story telling at all. It wasn't very creative and they're very blunt and to the point. I expected more detail and storytelling, even in a children's book.

I did, however, love the illustrations. They were gorgeous and made the brief snippets of text come to life. They're really bright and fun and capture the imagination that the stories themselves are lacking in. For me, the illustrations are what saved this book.

I wouldn't really recommend it, but it's worth a flip through just for the illustrations alone. Thanks to Netgalley & Wisdom Tales for my copy in exchange for my honest review.

Review: Tween Hobo: Off the Rails

Title: Tween Hobo: Off the Rails
Author: Alena Smith, Kate Harmer
Format: egalley
Pub. Date: June 17th 2014
Source: Netgalley & Gallery Books

★★

Two and a half stars.

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Tween Hobo is a book based on the Twitter account @TweenHobo, which follows the tales of a fifth grader who decides that she's had enough of her life in school and starts anew, jumping onto a freight train to travel the rails. Complete with both tweets and prose, this is a book that combines a Justin Beiber obsession of epic proportions, social media, and life stretched across America with snark, humor, and a sense of style.

I think my main issue with this book is that I have no idea who this book's intended audience is. On the surface, it's clearly a middle grade book. The little hobo protagonist is young, has obsessions with things like Twitter, Beiber, glitter, rainbows, and nail polish. So many girls have been through that phase. And yet, there's vocabulary and humor that seems geared towards adults. There's talk of cathouses and women of the night, and the word "dick" is used. Don't get me wrong, I'm not stranger to these themes or language, but when I'm expecting a breezy middle grade read, it's off-putting. Is it satirical? Maybe. I was left laughing at parts because it was humor I got, but then it turned to frustration because I'm not so sure a kid would find it funny for the same reasons.

Though I knew going in that this book was based off of social media, the obsession was a bit much. I don't think anyone should be quite so attached to the internet and social networking as she is, I don't care whether you're twelve or 57. The Beiber obsession, however, was completely dead on. I know girls that age who feel very much the same way about him, for whatever reason.

I found her humor at times to be brilliant. She sometimes seemed like a wise little adult. But then it would go back to talk of tweets and spelling words with z's at the end instead of s's and then the charm would be gone. It was cute at times but also glaringly unrealistic; no parents came after her, her phone was always charged and attached to wi-fi, etc.

I have no idea who to recommend this to, other than Beiber fans or Twitter fanatics. What age? I've got not a clue. All in all, I feel like a book isn't necessary. If you follow the Twitter account, you'll get a sense of the book, and in my opinion it could have all just stayed there.

Thanks to Netgalley and Gallery Books for my copy in exchange for an honest review.

Review: Behind Barres

Title: Behind Barres
Authors: Miriam Wenger-Landis, Amanda Brice, Leslie DuBois
Format: egalley
Pub. Date: September 14th 2013
Source: Netgalley

★★★

Two and a half stars, rounded up.

Behind Barres is a collection of three separate stories by three unique offers, which all center around a main theme: ballet. These books are: Girl in Motion by Miriam Wenger-Landis, Codename: Dancer by Amanda Brice, and The Queen Bee of Bridgeton Leslie DuBois. All three books are completely different, and give a varied look into the young adult genre.

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This omnibus ended up getting a relatively neutral review, since I loved one book, was indifferent to another, and was definitely not a fan of the third. It falls short for me as a collection, but a few of the stories would stand well on their own.

The first book, Girl in Motion by Miriam Wenger-Landis, tells the story of Anna, who has worked extremely hard to get where she is now as a ballerina. It's her goal to land a position with a professional dance troupe, and gaining herself the lead in the annual performance definitely helps her. But emotions run high and feelings grow more intense as graduation comes ever closer, and a boy enters her life to add more pressure to the mix. This story was okay to me. It was rather boring and predictable, but it was fine enough. I liked reading about the dace life, but I never really got a good sense of who the characters really were.

The middle book, Codename: Dancer by Amanda Brice follows the young teenage Dani as she gains a spot dancing with a celebrity on the reality game show Teen Celebrity Dance-Off. The hype of fame doesn't last her too long- that is, before the threats start coming in. Someone is out to get her, and if she's not careful, they will succeed in ending much more than her career. I found this story to have the most potential, but it was the weakest of the three in my opinion. I am very aware of the fact that this is a young adult story, but the vocabulary used was juvenile, even for a young teen audience. It sounded like when someone's mother tries to be "hip" or relatable but just ends up creating awkward snickers. That's how I felt about conversations in this book as a whole. I liked the plot, but the characters and the way they interacted drove me up a wall.

The final book, The Queen Bee of Bridgeton Leslie DuBois, narrates African-American teen Sonya's struggles at her private, predominantly white school. She worked herself to the bone to become a dancer, trading her cleaning and work skills for ballet lessons when her mother couldn't afford to get them. When she gains the attention of the star basketball player- a Caucasian- the catty, popular girls show just how ruthless they can be against those who encroach on their territory. This story blew me away. The characters were written with depth that made me instantly connect with Sonya. I feel this says a lot, seeing as she is of a different age, race, and is a ballerina. I am not athletic, white, and out of my teens, and I still was able to sympathize with her, and wanted her to overcome the obstacles thrown in her way. True, the romance was a bit over the top, but I feel that the overall writing and concept make up for it.

If you are a die hard fan of dance or ballet stories, or enjoy young teen romance, this collection might be worth a read. But for fans of a later young adult audience and grittier realism will probably be disappointed.

Thanks to Netgalley for my copy.

Stung by Bethany Wiggins

Title: Stung
Author: Bethany Wiggins
Format: ARC
Pub. Date: April 2nd 2013
Source: WinterHaven Books blog

★★

A very difficult 2.5, rounded down.

Fiona wakes up to a world that's different from the world she fell asleep in. She's alone in her dirtied, abandoned room with a tattoo on her wrist- an oval with five lines on either side. She knows she should keep it hidden as she walks out into the barren wasteland that, before the bees, was once her home. She must find out the meaning behind her tattoo, why she has been left alone, and why everyone who sees her mark wants her dead.
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I'm honestly torn here on a rating. I'm going to say a 2.5. It had some really strong points, but too many negatives for me to give it a three.

First, the positives:

+I love the concept. Bees are important, and most of us don't think about the impact that they have on the Earth on a daily basis. It was cool to see how honey became a luxury good, and just how much the world could be in danger if they were simply to disappear (or be modified by the government.....).

+In true dystopian style, I like the conflicting levels in society. The Fecs, who live in the sewers, the beasts, who are dangerous, the criminal raiders, and those who are allowed inside the wall. Each were affected differently by the change, and none of them are an ideal place to be in.

+I love a good fight to the death. A bit like the Hunger Games, those with the tattoo are pitted against each other in fights until only one is standing. There's something morbidly fascinating about children/young adults trying to kill each other, and I liked that addition to this story.

+I love the cover design. It does represent the major plot of the story in a cool if simplistic way.

But for me, that's where the positives end.

-Instant love. Why is that such a recurring theme for the books I read lately? What happened to learning to love someone, or even the old cliche of enemies becoming loves? I found the main couple in this book to be almost nonsensical and a bit over the top, especially considering all of the danger and threats surrounding them.

-The beasts (those injected with the vaccine in the "change") went from being sci-fi creations to being odd fantasy mixtures. Strong, crazy, violent.... With healing saliva? No thanks.

-Arrin/Arris is one of the most insufferable characters I've ever come across. I don't care what gender they are, or what point in the book it is, they're mean and little and always popping up a bit too conveniently. I was very excited at the end of the book when they got what was coming to them.

-It really fell apart for me in the end. I feel like it was somehow both rushed, and yet, didn't answer anything. At the end of soap operas, when they some up all of the crazy shenanigans about twins and comas and alien babies.... Well, that's how this ending felt for me.... But I was left with questions.

*Why am I supposed to hate the government so much? I understand it's supposed to be evil, but there wasn't enough background information for me to feel passionately about their downfall.

*Where were the bees? The book is called Stung. There's a bee on the cover. But really, they weren't discussed very much. I would have liked to learn more about them, or the change, or something.

*Why is there a fairy tale style happy ending at the end of a dystopian novel? Everything was somehow patched up at the end.... I'm not sure if shit's about to go down in a sequel, or if that really is just a very very very wishful thinking type end scenario, but I feel like I was left out of part of the story.

-To be honest, I didn't find the writing itself to be all that well structured or thought out. The characters felt very shallow and underdeveloped- I didn't really care who lived or died throughout most of the novel. The characters keep referring to the incident that changed America as "before everything changed." I feel like it needed a name, Bee Day or something. Admittedly, whenever I read that line, I actually read "everything changed when the fire nation attacked". The villains were talked up as being super dangerous and rape-y, but the protagonists didn't really seem to have much of a challenge. A quote from the book that sums up the writing in my eyes: “Three minutes,” the doctor says over his shoulder, sounding just like a … doctor." ....Really? All in all I was disappointed with this book. I thought it was going to be a four star read, until the last quarter or so just fell apart for me. I cannot stress this enough I love the concept for this book, and I want to like it. Unfortunately, it fell short. I wouldn't really recommend this, but if you're a fan of books like The Hunger Games or Matched, you may like this. If you didn't like The Hunger Games, I wouldn't recommend getting this book.

Thank you to WinterHaven Books blog for my ARC copy.

Christmas with the Professor by Sue Lyndon

Title: Christmas with the Professor
Author: by Sue Lyndon
Format: ebook
Pub. Date: November 2012
Source: Amazon

★★★

2.5 Stars, rounded up.

Angela sees a Dom inside of her professor, Dr. Taylor. There's something about the glint in his eye and the masculine confidence that he oozes with every action that stirs the once-submissive student in all of the right ways. Can she coax this alpha male out of him just in time to make it the perfect Christmastime treat for her?

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2.5 stars, rated up.

Overall, this was a mediocre short story with both positives and negatives.

-We never got to learn about Angela. She gave small glimpses into her "horrible" past, but it wasn't enough to make her seem like a relatable or even well written character. It actually reminded me, oddly enough, of The Avengers. When Black Widow and Hawkeye mention Budapest, you think to yourself Damn, what the hell happened in Budapest? In this novella it was Damn, what the hell happened to her in France? Only, we'll never know.

-Then too, she seems a bit too damaged to be properly submissive. It came off almost abusive (and not the fun kind) and at some points her fear and discomfort made me feel that way as well.

+This story was overall well written. The author used a wide variety of vocabulary that gave the scene a bit of spice, and a touch of vulgarity without being needlessly crude or crass.

-That being said, about halfway through I started to feel like this was a Fifty Shades of Grey fan fiction. There's nothing wrong with that, but it did stir up old irritations that I felt in that novel. Such as, the use of the word there. No. Just no. Please. Writers, I beg you. No more there.

+The scene was sexy, and so was the professor. I don't blame her for talking herself into staying with him.

My final opinion on this novella is that it sounds like a proposal for a novel. And to be honest, I'd be very interested in reading that. I'd like to see both characters more developed, perhaps a bit more of the relationship between them and less of a rushed finish. But as a stand-alone story it fell a bit flat for me.

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

Title: The Forest of Hands and Teeth (The Forest of Hands and Teeth #1)
Author: Carrie Ryan
Format: Paperback, 308 pages
Pub. Date: February 9th 2010
Source: Libby Blog

★★★

2.5 Stars, Rounded up.

For as long as Mary has remembered, there has only been The Forest of Hands and Teeth. There is only their village, only the Sisterhood, and the Guardians. They are all that remains since the Return. Their village is gated in, keeping the Unconsecrated in the forest. The Unconsecrated were once friends and family, but no longer. Once the bite sinks in, and the infection takes hold, it's only a matter of time before you're one of them- a zombie. But Mary's mother has told her stories, stories of a large body of water called an ocean, and men who have walked on the moon. After she learns of a few secrets that the Sisterhood is keeping from the village, she has to wonder if her mom wasn't so crazy after all. She must decide how much she's ready to risk- her love, her family, herself- in order to find out what lays beyond the forest.

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This book was very difficult for me to rate. I am not a fan of the zombie genre, as a whole, and was hoping that this would be the book that would finally satiate me. Sadly, it wasn't. The book wasn't badly written, nor was it amazing. I found it to be average, and I hope to explain why that is below.

-From the beginning, I felt a major disconnect to the main character. For this reason, I felt disjointed throughout the rest of the novel. I often disagreed with her decisions, and was more often than not indifferent to her as a whole. I found myself agreeing more often with the friends/family that told her to grow up and get real. Maybe I'm just a cynical adult these days.

+That being said, I appreciate that Mary turns into a bad ass when she needs to. When people that she know become infected, she doesn't hesitate to turn into the killer that her village trained her to be.

-I felt like this book was a prequel, not a series-starter. The first two-thirds or so passed by really slow for me, and I was bored for a long time. But in the last third, it kicked into gear, and it seemed like the story actually began.

+The story is very descriptive. I was able to picture the scenes, especially the Forest, very well, and it did help to make me commit to finishing this book. If not for the well written details, I probably would have abandoned it.

-One problem I did have with the writing was the time lapses between chapters. Sometimes it was just over night, sometimes it was a month or a week. It was easy enough to catch up on once the author explained how much time had elapsed, but the inconsistencies did bug me a bit.

Upon finishing this book, I am primarily indifferent. I won't be adding it to my list of favorite books, that's for sure. But, it wasn't a waste of time reading it either. So, my opinion is this: If this book comes into your possession, read it. If it does it, I don't think you're missing out on much. If you like zombies, you may like this book a hell of a lot more than I did. If you're a fan of dystopian books, you may be a bit disappointed. As it stands now, I'm unsure if I would like to continue the series. I think it may be better than the first one, since all of the back story appears to be out of the way.

Thank you to Libby Blog for my copy.