BtVS: How I Survived My Summer Vacation Vol. 1

Book #58

How I Survived My Summer Vacation Vol. 1
A collection of short stories by Cameron Dokey, Nancy Holder,
Yvonne Navarro, Paul Ruditis, and Michelle West

"When sophomore year ended with Buffy's defeat -- just barely -- of the Master, she headed off to spend the summer with her father in L.A. The theme was R&R, parties, and an occasional shopping spree. But things that go bump in the night don't take vacation. So Buffy's trying desperately to keep a lid on things in L.A. -- and to keep her secret identity from her father. Meanwhile, back in Sunnydale, trouble keeps popping up in the darnedest places. Giles wants Willow and Xander to have a "normal" summer, so he and Jenny Calendar, whose budding romance is progressing to full bloom, attempt to stave off the forces of darkness sans Slayer and Slayerettes. And Angel, grappling with Buffy's brush with death, must decide: Does he want to be a more permanent member of the Scooby Gang? Concerts. Picnics. The resurrection of an ancient monster or two. Just your typical fun in the sun."

December 10th to December 22nd - 12 days - 276 pages

Flora Segunda

Book #57

Flora Segunda
by Ysabeau S. Wilce

"Fourteen-year-old Flora Fyrdraaca, whose mother is the Warlord's Commanding General and whose father is mad, kindly helps her house's magical--and long-banished--butler, unaware that he draws strength from the Fyrdraaca will."

November 15th to December 9th - 25 days - 431 pages

God's Debris: A Thought Experiment

Book #56

God's Debris
by Scott Adams

"Imagine that you meet a very old man who -- you eventually realize -- knows literally everything. Imagine that he explains for you the great mysteries of life: quantum physics, evolution, God, gravity, light, psychic phenomenon, and probability -- in a way so simple, so novel and so compelling that it all fits together and makes perfect sense. What does it feel like to suddenly understand everything? God's Debris isn't the final answer to the Big Questions. But it might be the most compelling vision of reality you will ever read. The thought experiment is this: Try to figure out what's wrong with the old man's explanation of reality. Share the book with your smart friends then discuss it later while enjoying a beverage."

November 13th to November 14th - 1 1/2 days - 132 pages

Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox

Book #55

Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox
by Eoin Colfer

"Artemis's mother has contracted a deadly disease -- and the only cure lies in the brain fluid of African lemurs. Unfortunately, Artemis himself was responsible for making the lemurs extinct five years ago. Now he must enlist the aid of his fairy friends to travel back in time and save them. Not only that, but he must face his deadliest foe yet...his younger self."

October 12th to November 13th - 33 days - 391 pages

Gathering Blue

Book #54 (I think. I actually forgot to blog this when I read it.)

Gathering Blue
by Lois Lowry

"Lame and suddenly orphaned, Kira is mysteriously removed from her squalid village to live in the palatial Council Edifice, where she is expected to use her gifts as a weaver to do the bidding of the all-powerful Guardians."

215 pages.

Elsewhere (Audiobook)

***Originally posted 7/9/09, but moved so it could be in the proper month/year I listened to it***

I listened to Elsewhere on the first part of the James roadtrip in 2008, and now decided to blog it because I just starting putting audiobooks down.

Elsewhere
by Gabrielle Zevin

"After fifteen-year-old Liz Hall is hit by a taxi and killed, she finds herself in a place that is both like and unlike Earth, where she must adjust to her new status and figure out how to 'live.' "

Sometime in September? (September 30th, I think) 2008.

85 books read total (re-reads, audiobooks, etc. (since 2007))

The Da Vinci Code

Book #53

The Da Vinci Code
by Dan Brown

"While in Paris on business, Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon receives an urgent late-night phone call: the elderly curator of the Louvre has been murdered inside the museum. Near the body, police have found a baffling cipher. Solving the enigmatic riddle, Langdon is stunned to discover it leads to a trail of clues hidden in the works of Da Vinci…clues visible for all to see…and yet ingeniously disguised by the painter."

5 stars

August 16th to September 25th - 40 days - 489 pages

Notes:
Went to Camp and didn't have too much time to read, then went to Canada and didn't have too much time to read.

The Castle Corona

Book #52

The Castle Corona
by Sharon Creech

"Two orphaned peasant children discover a mysterious pouch, the contents of which lead them to the majestic Castle Corona, where their lives may be transformed forever."

2 1/2 stars

July 8th to August 16th - 40 days - 320 pages

Notes:
Stopped reading for a bit, because Breaking Dawn came out. :D

Breaking Dawn

Book #51

Breaking Dawn
by Stephenie Meyer

"In the fourth and final book in the #1 bestselling teen vampire Twilight Saga, questions will be answered and the fate of Bella and Edward will be revealed."

4 1/2 stars

August 2nd to August 4th - 3 days - 756 pages

Notes:
Waited in line at midnight to get this :D

Tales from the Brothers Grimm and the Sisters Weird

Book #50

Tales from the Brothers Grimm and the Sisters Weird
by Vivian Vande Velde

"Presents thirteen twisted versions of such familiar fairy tales as Red Riding Hood, Jack and the Beanstalk, Hansel and Gretel, and The Three Billy Goats Gruff."

4 stars

July 8th - 1 sitting - 128 pages

The Sisters Grimm - The Problem Child

Book #49

The Sisters Grimm - The Problem Child
by Michael Buckley

"With the help of a long lost relative, and a little magic, Sabrina Grimm and her sister Daphne try to find out who has kidnapped their parents and rescue them."

3 stars

July 1st to July 8th - 8 days - 292 pages

Wizard's Hall

Book #48

Wizard's Hall
by Jane Yolen

"A young apprentice wizard saves the wizard's training hall by trusting and believing in himself."

3 1/2 stars

June 23rd to July 1st - 9 days - 133 pages

Eclipse

Book #47

Eclipse
by Stephenie Meyer

"Bella must choose between her friendship with Jacob and her relationship with Edward, but when Seattle is ravaged by a mysterious string of killings, the three of them need to decide whether their personal lives are more important than the well-being of an entire city."

4 stars

June 24th to June 27th - 4 days - 629 pages

Absolutely Normal Chaos

Book #46

Absolutely Normal Chaos
by Sharon Creech

"Thirteen-year-old Mary Lou grows up considerably during the summer while learning about romance, homesickness, death, and her cousin's search for his biological father."

4 stars

June 22nd to June 23rd - 2 days - 230 pages

Notes:
(Not good or bad, just things I noticed or thought about while reading.)
The word "Niftiest" was used.
The 90's still don't seem like such a long time ago, but I suppose they kinda are at this point. And I guess this book is getting a little dated then. It's almost 20 years old. (1990.)

**Book Count Update**

So, since this blog is here to help me keep track of my total book count from all the books I've read, and not specifically just the ones from 2007 onward, I wanted to add the books I read in 2006 to my count as well.

So...
Book #41

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
by Ann Brashares.







Book #42

The Second Summer of the Sisterhood
by Ann Brashares








Book #43

Girls in Pants
The Third Summer of the Sisterhood
by Ann Brashares







Book #44

Eragon
by Christopher Paolini








Book #45

A House Called Awful End
by Philip Ardagh

My Secret: a PostSecret book

My Secret: a PostSecret book

compiled by Frank WarrenPostSecret.

June 22nd - Read straight through

Heartbeat

Book #40

Heartbeat
by Sharon Creech

"Twelve-year-old Annie ponders the many rhythms of life the year that her mother becomes pregnant, her grandfather begins faltering, and her best friend (and running partner) becomes distant."

4 stars

June 22nd - 1 day- 180 pages

The Supernaturalist

Book #39

The Supernaturalist
by Eoin Colfer

"In futuristic Satellite City, fourteen-year-old Cosmo Hill escapes from his abusive orphanage and teams up with three other people who share his unusual ability to see supernatural creatures, and together they determine the nature and purpose of the swarming blue Parasites that are invisible to most humans."

3 1/2 stars

June 19th to June 21st - 3 days - 267 pages

Love That Dog

Book #38

Love That Dog
by Sharon Creech

"A young student, who comes to love poetry through a personal understanding of what different famous poems mean to him, surprises himself by writing his own inspired poem."

4 1/2 stars

June 19th - 1 day - 86 pages
♥♥♥

New Moon

Book #37

New Moon
by Stephenie Meyer

"When the Cullens, including her beloved Edward, leave Forks rather than risk revealing that they are vampires, it is almost too much for eighteen-year-old Bella to bear, but she finds solace in her friend Jacob until he is drawn into a "cult" and changes in terrible ways."

3 1/2 stars

June 17th to June 18th - 2 days - 563 pages

A Light in the Attic

Book #36

A Light in the Attic
by Shel Silverstein

"A collection of humorous poems and drawings."

Started it a while ago, finished June 16th - 167 pages

The Artemis Fowl Files

Book #35

The Artemis Fowl Files
by Eoin Colfer

"Two original short stories, plus puzzles, interviews with characters, and other writings that unlock secrets of the Artemis Fowl books, which feature a twelve-year-old evil genius and his dealings with fairies and other magical beings."

2 1/2 stars

June 15th to June 16th - 2 days - 187 pages

Twilight

Book #34

Twilight
by Stephenie Meyer

"When seventeen-year-old Bella leaves Phoenix to live with her father in Forks, Washington, she meets an exquisitely handsome boy at school for whom she feels an overwhelming attraction and who she comes to realize is not wholly human."

4 1/2 stars

June 13th to June 14th - 2 days - 498 pages

Falling Up

Book #33

Falling up
by Shel Silverstein

"A collection of humorous poems and drawings."

I couldn't remember, so I just made up the date of when I read this. It's really June right now.

Where the Sidewalk Ends

Book #32

Where the Sidewalk Ends
by Shel Silverstein

"A boy who turns into a TV set and a girl who eats a whale are only two of the characters in a collection of humorous poetry illustrated with the author's own drawings."

I'm really tired of rating books, so I guess I'll just do it when I feel like it. I also can't remember when I read this. It was a while ago and I never put it on here, so I'm just making up a date and going with it.

PostSecret: Extraordinary confessions from ordinary lives

PostSecret: Extraordinary confessions from ordinary lives

Compiled by Frank Warren

PostSecret.

4 stars

March 6th - 1 day, read straight through - 276 pages

The Sisters Grimm - The Unusual Suspects

Book #31

The Sisters Grimm - The Unusual Suspects
by Micheal Buckley

"Although filled with anger over her parents' disappearance, eleven-year-old Sabrina Grimm-- along with her grandmother, sister, and several fairy-tale characters-- tries to discover who has killed her teacher."

3 1/2 stars

February 16th to February 28th - 12 days - 290 pages

The Sisters Grimm - The Fairy Tale Detectives

Book #30

The Sisters Grimm - The Fairy Tale Detectives
by Michael Buckley

"Orphans Sabrina and Daphne Grimm are sent to live with an eccentric grandmother that they have always believed to be dead."

3 stars

February 11th (10 AM) to February 15th (1:10 AM) - 4 days - 248 pages