Quick Update!

Sorry guys no post today. I am so busy and I have the PSAT and homecoming on the same day in a week so sadly I have no time to write. Of course this makes me sad as I love writing, but sometimes school has to come first. I hope you all have great weeks and just to let you know, I will most likely not be able to post on Thursday either. I am super busy, so I will see you all next week with hopefully an extremely long post! Love you all and happy reading! -Becca

Who Am I?

I have a fun game for you all! As I have been super busy this week (Four tests!) I decided to post a poem I wrote about a famous author for Night of the Notables in eighth grade. I love this poem and if you know me well enough you might be able to guess the author without even reading the poem! Comment your guesses and on Monday I will reveal the subject of my poem! Happy reading!

I am known as a writer

Unusual in my time

But my novels are still famous

I wrote only six before I died

I lived with my family

My sister Cassandra my best friend

My father encouraged me to read and write

Where in other houses this would offend

They say I was funny

With a humor quite subtle

I was a woman very wordy

Always prepared in arguments with rebuttal

My books are romantic

Ironic I must say

For I never married

And I was happy that way

Incorporated in my works

Because it is my style

Realism, irony, and social commentary

Make reading them worthwhile

Two of my novels

Have titles quite alike

With and’s in the middle

And identical first letters of the two words left behind

Even though I died

In Winchester at only 41

My legacy lives on in classic novels

And eager readers who are young

So one last clue

If you still are not able to guess

My last name relates to cities of Texas

Which when I lived did not exist  

AHHHHHHHH-That Moment When You Realize That You Are in a Reading Slump

Guys I'm scared. I finished zero books for all of September. I have a strong urge to curl up into fetal position and rock back and forth or hide under the table. I don't remember the last time this has happened. I know why I didn't read anything, this was the first month of school for me. I have two jobs and the PSAT/homecoming (Both are on the same day this year because they hate us) in less than two weeks. I am taking five IB (international baccalaureate and if you don't know what that is think of AP both with extra self-reflective assignments and a zero hour class) classes. I also have debate twice a week (supposed to be three times a week, but I have to work on one of the days). Now add in football games that I decided to start going to, hanging out with my friends every weekend in an attempt to be more social, and two blog posts a week and playing music and cooking. I have no time!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Okay, okay. I have time. I have time, but instead of reading, I am always too tired and I decide to watch Netflix. This is sad. This is really sad. I am in a reading slump. I haven't been in a slump in so long! I have all these books that I boast are cures for reading slumps and I can't even stand to look at them! Okay I know what I need to do. Finish this blog post and turn off Netflix (which is playing in the background right now because I am an addict) and pick up The Selection. I think part of the problem is that I have all of these books for review and I am trying to read them in order of when I promised I would have them finished by (I am like way overdue because of school, but authors have been warned so...) and I am so not enjoying some of them. A couple of them are great, but I really need to finish the others so it is totally bringing me down. Okay I should go. I really need to read The Selection and try to get out of my slump. Goodbye all. Happy reading!-Becca

Book Relationship Fails versus Real Relationship Fails: the Scary Similarities

So for those of you who don't know, I have a fourteen year old sister, who I love more than anything else in the world. One of the best things about her is the sheer number of inane acts she does, that happen to be hilariously entertaining. Four days ago she announced that she now has a boyfriend who lives in a city around an hour and 30 minutes away from here. They have never met each other and have only known each other through friends at camp and Snapchat. Sound like a YA romance novel yet? It gets better, today she came home to tell me that as she was walking with her friend at school and witnessed him get punched twice in the face. She then decided to break up with her boyfriend due to the distance between here and the place where he lives. Now let us compare this with a YA romance novel. We have the online romance aspect as seen in Will Grayson, Will Grayson by David Levithian and John Green, Simon versus the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli , and Everything Everything by Nicola Yoon. You get your short romance like that of November 9 by Colleen Hoover and The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon. Crazy violence from like every book ever as well as crazy teenagers, which is basically the definition if a YA book. So my sister is basically a YA novel, which is great because I am currently writing a YA novel and I am basing so much stuff on her. Also beware future debate opponents because the hilarious things you say in round will go into my book! Anyways speaking of debate I need (Meaning I want to really badly because I honestly love it) to work on my dramatic interpretation so I have to end this post. Love you all and happy reading! -Becca
   

Terrific Tom Kha Gai (Chicken Coconut Soup)

I am so sorry for not posting on Wednesday! I have been extremely busy and sick as well as my homework load has tripled from last year. So I did not have any time to write a blog post and I did not want to post a draft and have it be bad. I figured it would be better to just wait and post something way better. So in honor of me being sick here is a delicious Tom Kha Gai (or Thai Coconut Soup) recipe. The original recipe is delicious and can be found at http://pin.it/DmmYiq3 by the food blogger Carls Bad Cravings. I did change the recipe to better fit my own tastes and so it would taste more like the version I get at my local Thai food place. Also here are some added benefits to this recipe, it can easily be made vegan, vegetarian, or paleo. It is already gluten free and dairy free! This is great for when you are sick because it will completely clear out your sinuses and definitely will improve your mood. Plus when you are sick it can be hard to taste, but this soup is so flavorful that it will overcome those horrible flu symptoms! Please enjoy and make sure to comment your thoughts and opinions!

Trying to Promote one's Book Blog

Lately I have been trying to promote my blog a little bit more than usual. While writing for only 20 people is fine with me it would be great to share my love of books (and cooking!) with a slightly larger group of people. Well I suck at promoting things because I have no desire to force anyone to subscribe or install some sort of thing where you can only view my full post if you share it, because that is just mean. As I was researching for friendly ways to promote your blog, I found that Pinterest can be a great way to share your blog. I of course, am kicking myself for not thinking of this earlier. I exclusively find my recipes and cooking blogs on Pinterest, but I had not put two and two together of sharing my blog on Pinterest. I had some of my posts up, but with no descriptions and terrible pictures. Now I am going through each post, creating a Pinterest friendly picture with the title of the post on it, and adding it to my posts before posting to Pinterest. I have a few posts up because it takes forever to edit the pics so they look fantastic, but just hang in there every one! I am a total Pinterest addict and I am hoping you guys are too, because I need you all to go add me on Pinterest this very moment! If you want to see what I like outside of book reviews and if you want to see all of my favorite recipes that I didn't create go follow me! Also make sure if you love this blog to repin your favorite blog posts!!!!! This will help my blog grow and allow me to continue to post knowing someone outside of my family is reading these posts! Just remember, I am doing this because I love books and I want to share my love of books, not because I want to make money (because I am definitely not making money!) or because I want to get famous (blogging would be the worst way to get famous! If I wanted to be a star I would be on youtube!). Sharing my blog posts is just sharing the love, which is great! So click that link below and follow me on Pinterest! Have a great Monday and happy reading!
Follow Me!

Sometimes I Wish for a Little Calm in My Life

Sometimes I wish for a little calm in my life

Its ironic though

The girl who does nothing

Wanting peace

They used to call me the most flirtatious

Vivacious, loquacious

Now to them

I’m just a nerd

But I’m more than that word

I’m curvaceous, courageous

Still definitely loquacious

About my voracious reading

Why is it that I do nothing for fun

In their eyes

Reading and writing

Are just for school

Why do I still crave their acceptance

I’ll ignore my friends

Just for a short conversation

With someone “normal”

Why can’t I ask questions

About our discussions

Why is it weird

To have something clarified

Why can’t I have goals

And be confident

In achieving them

Without being considered arrogant

I just want to get to know someone

Be there for them

And truly understand that

They will be there for me too

And I know that life isn’t a romance novel

But sometimes I wish it was

Where the bossy, intelligent, beautiful, nerd

Finally feels like she fits in

And no my life isn’t terrible

In fact it's pretty damn great

Yet I feel as though I hold the whole world on my shoulders

Without any help bearing the weight

Sometimes I wish for a little calm in my life

A little lull where all makes sense

Where I don’t have to prove anything

Yes I know it's ironic right  

Amazing Book Series I Need to Finish Reading Part 2

There are a lot of book series I need to finish reading! You guys really seemed to enjoy my last post about it so I decided to make a part two! (and a part three, four, and five) For those of you who have been asking for my TBR lists for each month, this kind of serves as my TBR list. I hate to be boxed in to a set of books that I have to read with a time limit because it starts to feel like homework. This is why I only take a small amount of books for review at a time otherwise I never get to read books I pick and my blog stops feeling fun and starts stressing me out. For those of you who don't know, this blog is a way for me to share my feelings on books. It is entirely for fun. I don't have adds because I am not trying to make money. This is why I am not obsessed with follower count or having a large reach because as long as at least one person is reading this blog, then I am successful. Receiving books for review is just an amazing added bonus to this fantastic hobby. So because this is a hobby the most amount of deadlines I am going to put on myself is getting up reviews for authors who sent me their books in a reasonable amount of time and posting twice a week. (or every other day in the summer) This is especially important now that school has started for me. I have only had three days of school and I already have lots of homework so my blog is a way to totally decompress and do something I love. It is a good thing too, because my friends were getting really sick of hearing my very confusing book reviews on books they haven't read at 7:00 AM before school!(Though I miss this and I won't have a chance to do it again now that I am taking a zero hour class that starts at 6:45 AM!) Getting back to the matter at hand, I make these lists of books I have not finished instead of making a TBR list and it creates a better outcome for myself. If you really need a TBR list from me then I am going to say all books that look interesting to me in the world! Now time for some spoiler free reviews!

1. Talk About a Kickass Pageant Girl!

I honestly have no idea why I haven't finished this series yet. I love Rachel Hawkins and I own the last book, but for some reason I can't bring myself to read it! I guess the only thing I can say is that you know this series is good because even though Rachel Hawkins is one of my favorite authors, (I freaking love Hex Hall) when I read this book and fell in love with it, I did not see that she was the author! So I don't just love this book because I will read anything the author writes, it is actually really really good! 

Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins
My rating: ❤❤❤❤❤

Readers will adore this entertaining mashup of ancient mythology and southern belles that is Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins. Harper Price has never let anyone or anything get in her way on her path to success, especially not her enemy and school reporter David Stark. So on when some crazy weird events go down during homecoming leaving her without her crown and with insane new powers, Harper stops at nothing to figure out what is going on. But when her research leads her to being the protector of David Stark, she is ready to accept failure for the first time. As she and David start to spend more time together, Harper can't deny the growing feelings between them. There is just one problem, David might be doomed to destroy the whole world. There some things in this world that are just so satisfying to read and Rachel Hawkins writing is one of them. I love the idea of setting magical events in the south and this book fulfills everything I had hoped Beautiful Creatures would be! The adorable characters in this book remind me a lot of the non-daemon and nephilim characters in Sweet Evil. The plot line is pretty easy to follow, but definitely keeps you interested and the magic is honestly really cool. The best part is definitely the humor. Rachel Hawkins always manages to create humor in some of the most dramatic situations without poking fun at the drama. The characters have some pretty predictable character development, but they are so cute that it doesn't really take away from the story. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loved Rachel Hawkin's Hex Hall series and fans of romance, fantasy, and humor!

2. The Best Chapter Titles Ever

This book is kind of a stretch on having not finished the series because I technically finished the Percy Jackson series, I just didn't finish the Hero's of Olympus series. I have like 20 pages left on the Lost Hero and I just couldn't finish it. It felt kind of off compared to the rest of Rick Riordan's writing. Or maybe I just don't like all my mythology being mixed. Who knows, but I really need to finish the series because I know I will love it. Also (Please don't kill me) The Kane Chronicles is way better than Percy Jackson and I really wish he would write more books for that series.  

The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
My rating: ❤❤❤❤❤

If you haven't read Rick Riordan yet then you must be living under a rock, because The Lightning Thief is the perfect blend of Greek mythology and contemporary YA that makes for a fantastic book. Percy Jackson has always been different. He tries and tries to be a good kid, but bad things always seem to happen around him. Pair that with his failure in school due to his dyslexia and you get the makings of a troubled kid. When things go too far on a class field trip, Percy learns that there is a reason he never fit in. Percy is a demigod and the son of Poseidon, which means he gets to stay safe at the awesome camp Half Blood. Percy finally makes some friends and when trouble sets him on a wild adventure to stop all out war between the gods, he can count on them to risk their lives right along side him. I am a totally mythology nut, which is why I am basically in love with Rick Riordan. He combines extremely well done humor with mythology and for me it does not get better than that. While I really liked this book, it is definitely not the best book of the series. The writing gets way better as the series continues and the characters start to become more and more developed. The plot of these books is always full of surprises and is a total thrill ride. Of course my favorite thing is the humor and nothing can ever beat Rick Riordan's chapter titles. I would highly recommend this book for everyone because it appeals to all kinds of readers.

3. How do We Make a Horror Novel Creepier? Just Sprinkle in Some Incest!

I don't know how I survived reading this book. I really hate anything creepy or scary. But somehow I managed to read the first two books and the first like 50 pages of the third book, along with the two extra books that are about Christopher's diary. I couldn't finish the third book because it felt like things were about to delve into the super natural (I have no idea if they do) and I know that would freak me out too much. I do want to eventually finish the series, but I might have to wait until I am an adult to avoid terrible nightmares!

Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews
My rating: ❤❤❤❤❤

Readers will be sucked into this terrifying story that reaches creepy on every level in Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews. Cathy's mamma said it was only temporary. Just until she can get their grandfather to put her back in the will, then they can go back to their perfect lives, then she and her three siblings can leave the attic. But it has been weeks since her Daddy died and they lost everything and her mamma keeps coming back less and less. Its just Cathy, her siblings, and their horrible grandmother, punishing them so they don't follow in the sin of their parents footsteps. So Cathy has to live in the forbidden. forbidden noises, forbidden actions, forbidden love. Her Mamma said it was only temporary, but it turns out that her Mamma has told her was a lie. I hate scary books. I don't like to be frightened, but oh my god I loved this book! It pulled me in and I could not put it down! The characters are horrible and extremely well done. The plot is full of twists and turns and the romance makes you love it even though you want to hate it! The writing is really dark, but still has that child like innocence that makes the whole thing so much creepier. This book is really mature and even though I read it when I was 12 I would recommend it for those who are a little bit older. This book is perfect for fans of horror and thrillers and dark romances.

4. How I Wish All My Romances Would Happen

Wouldn't life be so much easier if we all just wrote love notes and then had everyone we wrote too just tell us if they loved us? No just me? Okay. So I loved this book and the only reason I haven't 

finished the series is because I am not allowing myself to buy any more books until my birthday and my library doesn't have it yet. But I really really want to finish it! This series is so freaking adorable and perfect to lose yourself in if life gets boring or stressful!
To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han
My rating: ❤❤❤❤❤

Jenny Han created one of the sweetest contemporary romance novels when she wrote the completely adorable To All the Boys I've Loved Before. Lara Jean Song has a tried and true way to get over a boy she loves. She writes them a love letter saying why they can not be together and stores them in her mother's old hat box. This way she never has to tell her sister's boyfriend that she is in love with him and she can live her life in peace. But when her letters are mistakenly mailed Lara Jean's life is turned upside down and suddenly all the boys she thought were out of her reach are starting to become possibilities. Jenny Han hit the ball out of the park with this one. While not only is the idea of love letters being mailed great in itself, she created completely three dimensional characters that are very relatable to the reader. The plot is also more than just a romance, which takes this book to a whole new level. Lara Jean might be one of my all time favorite characters because she is just so honest and very real. This book has humor, romance, friendship, and a loving family trying to be its best and in way reminds me of the Penderwick sisters. I love this book and all contemporary romance fanatics will love it too!

5. If My Boyfriend was that Hot I Wouldn't Want to Lose My Memories Of Him Either 

This book is the first YA book I read that I liked. I read this in like 5th grade and the only other YA book I had read was the Hunger Games, which I originally hated. This whole series so creative and amazing and I jsut found out there are six books (plus novellas) and there are two more that I haven't read. I own one of them so I just need to get off my butt and read it, but I can't stand for the series to end. Luckily my best friend Albany is going to kill me if I don't read it soon so I have plenty of motivation!
The Program by Suzanne Young
My rating: ❤❤❤❤❤

Readers will be blown away by this dark look on our future and what we will do in the name of preserving humanity that is The Program by Suzanne Young. Sloane can't afford to look sad. Every day of her life must look perfect and happy. If she doesn't pull it off and she shows weakness, she will loose the most important thing in her life, her memories. They say the program is doing good and it is the only known cure to the teen suicide epidemic that has swept the nation. Sloane doesn't care, she will not give up her life with her boyfriend James, the only person she can be real with. But they slipped up, they lost the fight and the depression has taken over. Now the program is going to take everything. I have never read any book like the Program before. This was the first YA book I ever read and enjoyed and it totally changed my life. The story is completely engrossing and the characters have amazing growth. it is insane how much is fit into a 400 page book and it is even crazier how believable the world is. Suzanne Young had me completely believing that our world could resort to stealing our memories to combat depression. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loves science fiction as well as contemporaries and romance. This book is the epitome of a YA dystopian romance novel.

I hope you enjoyed this post! Make sure to comment your thoughts! (Good or bad I just love to get feedback!)

August Reading Wrap Up

I always see people do wrap ups of their feelings on the books they read in the past month and I think that would be fun for me to do! This will lead to some books you have already read spoiler free reviews or full reviews for being featured because I sometimes write about a book immediately, but I hope you can overlook that for me! This summer was definitely not my best in terms of reading a lot of books. My issue was that this summer I not only took a bunch of vacation where I couldn't read, but I also worked, had summer homework, and studied for the SAT. So my reading load was really light. The good news is that of the books I did read they were really really good! I read six books this August, which is pretty light reading for me. My friends on the other hand were amazed because it turns out non-booknerds read around six books per year!

Overall rating for the month:❤❤❤

My favorite book:

• The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli

This was my favorite book of the month. I loved reading this and it got me out of a reading slump. This totally changed my mindset about Becky Albertalli and was really helpful in my reading this month. This book was fantastic and I would highly recommend this to everyone.
The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli
My rating: ❤❤❤❤❤

Readers will love the adorably relatable tale of navigating love in high school that is The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli. Molly has been crushing on boys her whole life. She has harbored unrequited love for 26 boys, which kind of makes her an expert in crushes. Sadly she is an expert in secret crushes and at 17 years old still has not had her first kiss. When two new boys enter Molly's life, her twin sister Cassie is doing everything she can to get them past the crush boundary, especially since one of the boys is friends with a new girl Cassie is interested in. But with all this focus on falling in love and dating, can Cassie and Molly keep their amazing relationship as sisters? Let me start off by saying that I was not expecting much from this book. I did not enjoy Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda and I was only going to read this because my sister was begging me too. I picked it up and read it all in one sitting. I even skipped dinner because I could not put it down and I love food. This book was fantastic and might be one of the most relatable books I have ever read. Molly and Cassie go through really typical high school problems and I felt myself really connecting with Molly. The writing is extremely cute and I loved the humor. I also was really able to relate to the characters about religion. There are not a lot of books where the main character is a teenage Jewish girl set in contemporary time. I have experienced so many of the same things as Molly and reading this book felt like putting on an old comfy sweat shirt. I loved Molly's love interests so much and I definitely understand the fear of rejection. This book was really well done and I highly recommend it to everyone. This is a great contemporary and perfect for all young adults, especially romance lovers!

My least favorite book:

• How To Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster.

I really was not happy with this book. There isn't much I haven't already said in my review. This book is part of why I didn't read as much this summer so you can see why I don't like it.

How to Read Literature Like a Professor: A Lively and Entertaining Guide to Reading Between the Lines by Thomas C. Foster
My rating: ❤❤❤

I was not happy having to read this book. My school summer reading assignment included reading this book and taking notes and I really did not enjoy it. For reading books it wasn't very helpful. For writing essays I'm sure if I had a different assignment and in the future it might be helpful, but it was so boring that I was not happy at all. The reason this is rated three stars instead of two is because it really helped with my writing. I am currently writing a novel and this really helped develop my characters, plot, setting, and reason for writing. Overall this does go in depth into how to unravel a novel. The issue is that the way it goes in depth is by discussing a bunch of books I have not read yet and basically spoiling what happens. The book community does not like people who spoil books. I was already planning on reading Beloved by Toni Morrison, but now I know exactly what happens and I have no desire to read it any more. I am not accurately able to understand how these ideas are being used if it is being discussed with books I have never read. So reading this book and having to take notes sucks. But the bright side was that it really helped with my writing. I just wish it had helped with my reading like it was supposed to.

Reread:

• These Broken Stars by Amie Kauffman

I listened to the audiobook version of this book for like the millionth time and it was amazing as always. I love this book and I always love to listen to it to get rid of stress.

These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman
My rating: ❤❤❤❤

Readers will be dazzled by this beautiful love story and feel that they just like the characters, are fighting to survive in, These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman. Lilac LaRoux and Tarver Merendsen could not be more different. Lilac is the daughter of the richest man in the universe, Tarver is a war hero stationed on Lilac's fathers' ship, the Icarus. When the impossible happens and the Icarus crashes, Tarver and Lilac are the only survivors. Stranded on an uninhabited planet, they must explore their surroundings and uncover the mysteries in order to survive and have hope in being saved. This book is like a science fiction version of the Titanic, except with a fantasy plot twist at the ending. I can't pick a favorite thing about this book because the majority of it was just so well done! I have to say this is the most beautiful cover I have ever seen and the rest of the series also has just beautiful covers. There are two amazing things about this book, the character development and the world building. The character development is obvious from the synopsis, but the world is entirely different from what I had expected. For me, this book feels like a mixture of Alienated, Obsidian, Across the Universe, and Titanic. I loved this book except for the ending because it got very confusing which is why I gave it four stars. I would recommend this book to a certain kind of reader who loves romance, fantasy, science fiction, and plot twists!

Other books read that month:

• Girls Made of Snow and Glass by Melissa Bashardoust

I loved this book and it so far is my favorite book I have been sent for review. It really made my month to have a publishing company want me to review a book!

Girls Made of Snow and Glass by Melissa Bashardoust
My rating: ❤❤❤❤

Melissa Bashardoust hit the ball out the park with the fantastic, feminist fairy tale that is Girls Made of Snow and Glass. All Lynet has ever wanted is to be like her stepmother Mina, but she is constantly compared to the late mother she resembles so greatly. Mina just wants to love and be loved, but the unbeating, glass heart in her chest won't allow her to. Lynet has no desire to rule, so when her father takes away Mina's control of the Southern lands and gives them to her, she wants nothing more than to refuse. When a turn of events cause Mina to hate Lynet, she must go on her own journey to save the only mother she has ever known. This book was so adorable! I am always a fan of feminist fiction, especially when it's fairy tale related. The story felt like a mixture of frozen and Snow White, but still very original. I love how the story was from both Mina and Lynet's point of view, giving the reader different perspectives. Because it was a mixture of both of their stories the characters didn't feel extremely well developed until the very end, but I still felt connected to the them and able to relate to their feelings. The plot felt kind of slow at the beginning and then kind of rushed at the end, but the well done story totally made up for it. As a romance lover, I of course wish there was more of a love story, but it was really well done and a heavy influence of romance might have ruined the message. One thing I felt there was a lack of was comedy. There are very few places that made me laugh and I think it would have been improved if there was just a little more humor. Overall this book was really really good and I would highly recommend this to fantasy and feminist fiction lovers! Disclaimer: I was sent this book for review from the publisher, but it did not effect my review at all. My thoughts are my own and my reviews are always 100% honest.
Read Full Review 

• Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut ❤❤❤❤❤

I loved this book. I read it for my summer reading assignment and I fell in love with Vonnegut's writing style. I am very happy I read this book and it was a great addition to my August reading. I just had to write an essay about it though so I'm not going to write a review.

• PS I Like You by Kasie West

I read this book while I was sick and it made my day. It was so cute and I would highly recommend it to everyone!
P.S. I Like You by Kasie West
My rating: ❤❤❤❤❤

P.S. I like you by Kasie West will make you smile, while warming your heart. Lily lives a crazy life with her insane family and lovable best friend. One boring day in chemistry Lily jots down a song lyric and to her surprise the next day the song is continued, along with a note. Soon Lily and her pen pall are writing everyday; sharing stories, songs, and secrets. Between her pen pall; her crush Lucas finally taking notice of her, and her best friend's ex-boyfriend Cade seeming to be all over her life, Lily's life seems to be blowing up. As her feelings start to grow for her pen pall, Lily must decide what she wants. This book is so cute and adorable that you just want to pinch its cheeks. While the writing is not complicated and the characters are not especially deep, it is exactly what I wanted. The story is comforting and like wearing an old, loved sweater. Lily is a very relatable character to young adults and I loved how sweet she was. The story was kind of predictable, but with this kind of book, this is kind of expected. I loved this book and it was a perfect read for the mood I was in. If you are looking for an intellectual read, this isn't it, but if you want a cute comfort read or just have something for a lazy day, pick up this book!

Started but still reading:

• The Limpet Syndrome by Tony Moyle 
• Kitty Hawk and the Curse of the Yukon Gold by Iain Reading
•  Aaru by David Meredith

Started but never planning to finish: None

Favorite book pics:

Becca's Perfect Pound Cake

I don't know about you, but I love pound cake. Before my dairy allergy emerged, every time I went to Starbucks I would get the lemon pound cake. Sadly I have not been able to successfully create a dairy-free lemon pound cake, but I have made a delicious regular pound cake! So I found a recipe from all recipes that I think was taken down where I got the original recipe from, but I am unable to link it as I can not find it now. Honestly, this is delicious and perfect for dessert and breakfast. (Or if you are me just eat a whole loaf for every meal!) This is a super easy recipe, so beginners have no fear! It only takes around 5 minutes of prep time and 1 hour of baking (Which means 1 hour of Netflix and chips!)

Lately I have been having trouble making time for my blog and its making me very sad. School starts in a couple of days and I have been scrambling to make the most of the end of my summer. This is why I have only been posting poetry because I already have it written. As of today I will be posting only on Monday and Thursday because I am not going to have enough time to post every other day. This makes me super sad because I love blogging, but balancing two jobs, school (I am going for an IB diploma which means like three hours of homework a night!), and debate (I am at practice every day I am not working) means having to give up that third blog post of the week. So Basically no one is as disappointed as I am that I am having to cut down on my blogging, but this will hopefully allow for more reading time and for longer posts. I really hate having to post a bunch of poetry in a row because I didn't have the time to put together a post, because it feels like I am letting you all down. (This is not to say that I don't love sharing my poetry with you all!) In other news, I am writing a book!( I know pretty cool right?) It is a science fiction romance novel with a billion characters and an extremely confusing plotline. So it is basically my perfect book! So writing this book is also taking up some of my time, though because I have no deadines as it is just for fun, I am pretty flexible as to when I write it. So far I have about 50 pages written (Like 13,000 words) and a lot of notes about the characters and the plot! Please don't ask me to post my writing of my book as I am not going to. It will not be read by any one other than my very close friends and family until it is finished, so you are only going to get to enjoy my poetry for now! Now back to the matter at hand, my amazing pound cake! I chose this recipe because it always cheers me up and I am really sad about going to only two posts a week. I hope it is able to cheer you all up too! I was going to take pictures of it as I had some frozen, but before I could get any my mother ate it! Moral of the story, this pound cake is just as delicious after it has been frozen as it was fresh out of the oven! Alright lets get cooking!

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour 
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar 
• 1/2 cup butter, coconut oil, or vegan butter alternative (I love earth balance)
• 1/2 cup sour cream or vegan sour cream (I use sour supreme which is by tofutti and is made with tofu)
• 3 eggs (The fresher the better! My friends gave me some of the eggs from their chickens and they were so good!)
• 1 pinch baking soda 
• 1 pinch kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract (Or 1 vanilla bean, which I had a try and they loved!)
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract (This is optional, but I wouldn't recommend not using it)

Directions 

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
• Grease an 8x4 inch loaf pan (I would use Crisco, but butter or coconut oil will work too)
• Cream butter, sugar, vanilla extract, and almond extract until light and fluffy
• Add in sour cream (Putting around 1 tbsp at a time)
• Add in eggs one at time beating well after each one
• Add in flour, salt and baking soda and mix well
• Pour into a pan
• Bake for one hour or until a knife inserted comes out clean
• Create glaze with powdered sugar, almond extract, and milk/milk alternative

Book Recommendation 

Do to a time crunch I couldn't write a recommendation today! This is why I have to go down to two posts a week. Don't worry I will write an extra long recommendation list to make it up to you!  

The World is Like a Bookshelf

The world is like a bookshelf
Holding our stories on musty, dusty, wooden arms
Flowers of opportunity bloom
Off of its sides, curling like vines

It envelops our lives
Protective with its five white walls
Malicious with its open face
Allowing us to catapult ourselves

Ending our book so many pages too short

The world is like a bookshelf
Holding our history on elaborate, tasteful arms
Windows to our hearts sit
Crowded and overpopulated

It envelops our lives
Caring with its open acceptance
Resentful with its limited space
Only nourishing some

Only providing for some

The world is like a bookshelf
Holding our future on musty, tasteful arms
Flowers of opportunities lost
Wilt and fall down it's loving and unforgiving sides

Oneirophobia

the fear of dreams not easily explained

for dreams are something most can not evade  

dreams are the true windows to the soul,

for the one who dreams has no control

the reflections of your desires

cut through you as sharp as briers

your subconscious telling you the truth

expecting you to be the sleuth

a mystery inside your head

will haunt you until you are dead

for the meaning to be truly uncovered

something inside yourself must be discovered

a darkness you not knew you had

maybe a lust that could only go bad

when imagination mingles with the real

a fate that unwanted you just sealed

nightmares haunt the land of dreams

awake you when you should sleep

keep you wondering all through the night

how this could possibly be right  

School Reading

Seeing as that school is starting in a week for me, I decided it was time to talk about school reading. In school we are obviously assigned books that we have no choice in reading. I hate this because I love reading young adult novels and it turns out we never get to really read those in school. I of course still like a bunch of the books that I am forced to read. I loved both One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest by Ken Kesey and 1984 by George Orwell. I also hated Frankenstein by Mary Shelly, The Power of One by Bryce Countenay, and Big Mouth and Ugly Girl by Joyce Carol Oates. My favorite school reading assignment was freshman year when we got to read any three books the whole year and write book reviews of them. This is what got me into writing about books. If I hadn't had this assignment, I would have never started this blog and that would have been a true tragedy! This summer I had my first summer homework assignment since summer before 8th grade. I had to read How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster and any other work of literary fiction (sadly not YA because life sucks) and then write an essay about it. I have to say, I really hated reading How to Read Literature Like a Professor for the purpose of taking notes and writing an essay. It totally helped with my writing (I am writing a book that I will tell you all about later) and I wish I wasn't forced to write about it in a homework assignment. For my other book, I read Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut. I really, really loved it! But because I had to write an essay on it, I had no desire to write a book review on it, which is honestly the worst feeling. I love reading, but being forced to read in school sometimes makes me understand why other people don't want to read. Oh well, this is why I always make sure I have a new, beautiful book and time each day to read it. My biggest fear (besides bees and blood) is starting to hate reading! Luckily the IB reading curriculum looks really interesting so I think I am safe for now! Anyways, I hope you all are having a wonderful time reading and that none of us ever lose interest!

    

Winter

she whispers softly in my ear
sleep gently darling winters here
cold and darkness soon arrive
and frigid stillness gentle stride

secrets swirling in the air
arrive in slumbering death's lair
and as we rest alone and deep
all the little lies we try to keep

sequestered in our own self pride
we envy the leaves that slowly died
for when we are chilled to the bone
we know our hatefulness has grown

fingernails bitten down to stubs
we have forced ourselves into a lonely club
greed will only take so far
before one starts to miss the par

but still we sleep through every night
so when winter comes we will fight
and lose we must for we will go
when winter leaves and melts the snow

Books Everyone Else Likes, but Me

We all know how fun it is to rant about the books we don't like and it turns out it is equally as fun to write about them! Today I picked a bunch of books that are popular with everyone else, but definitely are not on my favorites list. I do have to explain that the main reason I don't like these books stems from the writing and not usually the plot. All of these books have really great ideas, but the way they were written does not work for me. Please do not start to hate me because I don't like your favorite book! I mean no offense to any of you! Books can be perfect for one person and terrible for another, so just because I did not like these books, it does not mean that you will hate them! I hope you enjoy!

1. What Happens When You Mix The Hunger Games, The Fifth Wave, and The Darkest Minds With Bland Writing 

I read this book after a bunch of my friends told me I would love it. It took me forever to read and I only finished it because I hoped the ending would be better. The characters were super extreme and the way they act is so not how fifteen year olds are. I love dystopian novels, but this just felt like overkill. The romance also felt super forced and this is coming from someone who loves romance in every single book. Marie Lu just does not work for me. If you want an alternative to this book, try The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken. Both are fast paced dystopian novels with corrupt governments.     

Legend by Marie Lu
My rating: ❤❤

Leaving readers confused and underwhelmed, Legend by Marie Lu does not live up to the hype. June is from one of the wealthiest families in the Republic. She has been groomed since birth for the elite military that serves her ever at war country. Day, the Republic's most wanted criminal, hails from the slums. He just wants to fight for what he believes is good. When Day becomes the number one suspect in the murder of her brother, June sets out for revenge. As June starts to hunt Day, she sees that he may not be everything the government makes him out to be. As the secrets start to unravel, June and Day must work together to discover what is really going on in their country. I really did not enjoy this book. The characters were completely unrealistic and there was no way for me to relate to them. The story was interesting, but it was really confusing and hard to follow. The setting kind of felt like a bunch of different dystopian novels mixed together. This book did come out before a lot of the other dystopian novels, but by the time I read it, I was really sick of the same type of story. When I finally finished the book, I had no desire to continue with the series. Even though I kind of wanted to see how the story ended, the writing was so bland that it totally outweighed it. I would only recommend this book to people who have already read something by Marie Lu and loved it.

2. And You Thought We Were Liars Was Confusing 

I honestly hated this book. I read it my Freshman year of high school during a week of testing for the other grades. We had big blocks of time to do what we want, so of course I decided to read. I ended up finishing the book during my first period Spanish class (which was entirely full of Sophomores because, I am so cool and a year ahead, so everyone was still testing 😂.) I had nothing else to do so I reread the ending over and over, trying to make sense of it. In order to write a good book, the characters have to be realistic enough for the reader to relate. The characters in this book had no redeeming qualities or anything to make them believable. If you really want to attempt this book, try We Were Liars by E. Lockhart. The plot of this book has the same kind of feel and a lot of the same events seem to happen. If you get through We Were Liars and did not feel at all confused and you really loved it, then try this book.

Suicide Notes from Beautiful Girls by Lynn Weingarten
My rating: ❤

Readers should be prepared for extreme confusion and outrageous characters in the unsuccessful thriller novel that is Suicide Notes from Beautiful Girls by Lynn Weingarten. June and Delia were closer than best friends, until one fateful night broke their bonds. A year later Delia is gone leaving only a suicide note behind. in an attempt to help with her grief June starts to notice some cracks in the story of Delia's death. Soon June is investigating Delia's murder and it seems like everyone in her life is a suspect. As the truth starts to come out, June learns that Delia is not the person she thought she was and there is more to her death than June could ever imagine. This might be the most confusing book I have ever read. I have read and reread the ending and done research and I still do not understand the ending. The characters are insane and completely unrealistic. This book takes a lot of mature subjects and difficult situations and kind of glorifies them. Suicide is completely idolized and all of the characters are bordering on psychopaths. I really disliked this book as it was frustrating, improbable, and slightly horrifying. I would not recommend this book to anyone and to those who really want to try it, you should be issued a trigger warning.

3. If I Wanted to Hear Someone Complain I Would Just Go Find My Sister

The only reason I think this book got popular is that there is a lack of LGBT books, so even the ones that suck are promoted. There is a simple solution to this problem, just write more LGBT books! I just hate the fact that it has taken this long for us to finally have characters in books who struggle with real life issues such as coming out as gay and what we end up with is this. This comment also goes for Will Grayson, Will Grayson. (see below) There are so many better books than this where the main character is going through the same thing as Simon. Try I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson or Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe or The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli!!!!! You want something in the fantasy genre, try Carry On by Rainbow Rowell. (I have a full review of I'll Give You the Sun Here and for Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe and Carry On I have spoiler free reviews on my spoiler free review page!) See, so many better options, including one by the same author. The two good things I have to say about this book are that it was better than Will Grayson, Will Grayson and the cover is awesome. 

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
My rating: ❤❤

Becky Albertalli disapoints readers with a whiny, slow book, that feels a little bit too much like Will Grayson, Will Grayson in Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda. Simon is not ready to come out as gay, so when an email to his mysterious pen pal Blue falls into the hands of trouble maker Martin, Simon has no choice but to submit to his blackmail. Being Martin's wingman isn't easy and it seems like Simon's friends are growing away from him. Simon's junior year shouldn't be this difficult right? This book was boring. There isn't much going on and the problems feel really exaggerated. Simon's life feels like the movie GBF, but without all of the comedy, so its just melodramatic teenage angst. As you can see, there is so little happening in the book that I was barely able to write two sentences describing the plot. Speaking of the plot, it is super predictable. The second Simon mentions writing to a mysterious pen pal you know who it is and the rest of the story is just as easy to guess. The book is fine if you don't like action or real movement of plot. The funny thing is, Becky Albertalli is a really good writer. The Upside of Unrequited is fantastic and her writing style is completely different from Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda. You can read this book if you think it sounds interesting, but if you did not like Will Grayson, Will Grayson then you will not like this book either.

4. Why John Green Why?

Okay warning I hate David Levithan. Everything I have read by him I really didn't like. His writing just doesn't work for me. I love John Green. I was so disappointed by this book. I was disappointed for basically the same reasons as Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda. Also Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda has a lot of the same plot as Will Grayson Will Grayson. Gay guy struggling to come out to his friends and familya and in an intense secret relationship with an mystery guy. I wish that only John Green has written this because then I think I would have liked it more. 

   

Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green
My rating: ❤❤

John Green can only work so hard to cover the disappointing nature of David Levithan's writing in Will Grayson, Will Grayson. Will Grayson could not be any more different from the other Will Grayson. One is in love with a girl and is friends with Tiny Cooper, creator of the autobiographical musical Tiny Dancer. The other is in love with a boy he met online and is about to learn that his best friend Maura might not be quite as nice as he thinks she is. Both will meet on one fateful night and their lives will be forever intertwined. John Green does not deserve to have a book rated as only two stars by me. So I am giving all parts written by David Levithan two stars and everything written by John Green three and a half stars. I really did not like where this book went. Will Grayson two (written by David Levithan) was horrible to read about. He was boring and his depression didn't feel real, it kind of felt like it was being made fun of. Will Grayson one was okay, but the real star of this book was Tiny Cooper. He was interesting and fun and totaly extreme. I loved Tiny, but he couldn't pull for everything else in this book that was not good. I know a lot of people love this book because it was the first LGBT books to get really big, but its fame doesn't make the book good. I'm not quite sure who I would recommend this book too as John Green fan don't always like David Levithan and David Levithan fans seem to rarely like John Green. So I would recommend this if you really love them both.

5. The Plot is Fantastic...If Only the Writing Was Good 

This book should have been good, but sadly it wasn't. It desperately needed better writing and some comedy to cut through all the drama. This book is something that I would actually recommend to others, but only if they want something really easy that has a lot of plot twists. If you love comedy, then do not read this book as you will probably hate it. Otherwise, if you can get past the writing, the story is really great.

The Maze Runner by James Dashner
My rating: ❤❤

The Maze Runner by James Dashner shows just how much terrible writing can ruin a great plotline. When Thomas wakes up all he can remember is his name. He is welcomed into a community of all boys, all around his age, all who have had their memories wiped. They live surrounded by a maze full of terrible creatures. Thomas seems perfect for the job of the maze runner, a person who creates a map of the maze before the gates close. When a girl shows up and some how remembers Thomas, they realize that there might be more to their community than meets the eye. I wanted to like this book so badly. The plot was fantastic and the story was fascinating. The writing was awful and at such a low level of vocabulary that it just ruined the whole book. The characters were not that great either. Because they can't remember anything of their past it was kind of hard to get to know them or relate to them. I wish the writing was better because then I think I would have enjoyed it more, but I guess life isn't fair. I would recommend this to fantasy lovers and people who are looking for a really really easy read. I do have to warn you that while the writing is simple, the plot is confusing.

Girls Made of Snow and Glass by Melissa Bashardoust Full Review

Spoiler Free Review:

Girls Made of Snow and Glass by Melissa Bashardoust
My rating: ❤❤❤❤

Melissa Bashardoust hit the ball out the park with the fantastic, feminist fairy tale that is Girls Made of Snow and Glass. All Lynet has ever wanted is to be like her stepmother Mina, but she is constantly compared to the late mother she resembles so greatly. Mina just wants to love and be loved, but the unbeating, glass heart in her chest won't allow her to. Lynet has no desire to rule, so when her father takes away Mina's control of the Southern lands and gives them to her, she wants nothing more than to refuse. When a turn of events cause Mina to hate Lynet, she must go on her own journey to save the only mother she has ever known. This book was so adorable! I am always a fan of feminist fiction, especially when it's fairy tale related. The story felt like a mixture of frozen and Snow White, but still very original. I love how the story was from both Mina and Lynet's point of view, giving the reader different perspectives. Because it was a mixture of both of their stories the characters didn't feel extremely well developed until the very end, but I still felt connected to the them and able to relate to their feelings. The plot felt kind of slow at the beginning and then kind of rushed at the end, but the well done story totally made up for it. As a romance lover, I of course wish there was more of a love story, but it was really well done and a heavy influence of romance might have ruined the message. One thing I felt there was a lack of was comedy. There are very few places that made me laugh and I think it would have been improved if there was just a little more humor. Overall this book was really really good and I would highly recommend this to fantasy and feminist fiction lovers! Disclaimer: I was sent this book for review from the publisher, but it did not effect my review at all. My thoughts are my own and my reviews are always 100% honest.

Recommended Mindset For Reading 

This book is perfect for anyone looking for a fairy tale without all of the men doing the saving. It has very light romance so if you are not into the hot and heavy stuff (unlike me) then this book is perfect for you! I didn't binge this book. I ended up splitting up my reading into a couple of days because it just wasn't the kind of book where you have to read everything all at once. This book is perfect for the start of the school year because you can read a little bit in your free time and spread it out over a couple of weeks. If you are the kind of person who needs humor in everything you read then this is not the book for you as there is very little comedy. I would highly recommend this book for anyone looking for a nice story that fits a more modern perspective with age old fairy tales!