Day 4. Have you read The Twilight Saga? Did you like it? Why?

I have not read any of the Twilight books. I’ve seen the movies and they are entertaining enough. But I’ve never been interested enough to read the books.

Day 3. Have you read Harry Potter? Did you like it? Why?

Yes and Yes.

I started reading Harry Potter when I was in 6th grade for English class. Then, I put it away for a few years but when I picked it back up, I couldn’t stop. At this point, I was reading it for my personal pleasure and not for a class assignment. Since then, I have read all the books and seen all the movies.

I am a big fan. To start, the characters and I were around the same age, we grew up together. I grew up reading Harry Potter books. I  was engrossed in these stories because of the magic, of course. However, there’s more dealt with in these books. Themes of love, friendship, loyalty, sacrifice and courage are very strong throughout these books.

J. K. Rowling did an amazing job with these books. The best parts are the twists in each book. She always surprised us in some way, or hit clues in plain sight which we didn’t notice until the mystery was solved. She did this excellently with the character of Snape. As a reader, you’re never quite sure how to feel about Snape. He seems to hate Harry, but he protects him. When it appears he’s trying to harm Harry, he actually saved him. Then, we all decided to hate Snape when he kills Dumbledore. However, in the bomb of all bombs, Rowling dedicates a chapter to Snape in ‘Deathly Hallows’ and everything makes sense. I have read many statements from Harry Potter fans who say Snape is their favorite character after reading this chapter. Personally, I cried when he died. Even Snape, who seemed to be so dark and detached from emotions, died in the name of love.

Day 2. Worst book you have read. Explain why it is the worst.

I really have to say the worst book I have read was Mockingjay bu Suzanne Collins, which is the third and final book in the Hunger Games series.

Before I go on, I have to put a SPOILER ALERT because I’m going to give it all  away. If you haven’t read the books and don’t want to know what happens yet, stop reading now.

I enjoyed reading The Hunger Games, it was interesting, and it kept you wanting to find out more and more. It was a little boring at times, but overall, a good story. Catching Fire was exciting, Katniss is back in the games and this time the character dynamics are totally different.  It’s full of action and twists, it keeps you guessing. Has Peeta actually turned on Katniss this time? Can she trust the oh so sexy Finnick Odair?

However, the third one is kind of a let down. Monckingjay starts out pretty interesting, we find out that District 13 has survived and are living underground. With Katniss, they plan to rebel against the Capital. Peeta was brainwashed and lost his mind, trying to kill Katniss a few times. Primrose, Katniss’s sister dies. Then, in the end (and this is why this is my least favorite book) when Katniss finally has the chance to kill President Snow, she DOESN’T DO IT!!!!

Why would you she kill this man? Everything she went through, all the people that died, have been for nothing. While President Snow does die, it doesn’t feel like there was any triumph of victory over his death, not for the reader anyway.

The book left me feeling cheated. It seems to go so quickly, and there is so much going on and so much is learned, then it just ends, leaving you unsatisfied.

The 10 Days Book Challenge: Day 1 – Favorite book. Explain why you like it.

For this day in the challenge, I have decided to travel back in time to my childhood. Some may think it’s a cop-out, but these books have stayed with me throughout my entire life. Also, in true Sara O spirit, I couldn’t chose just ONE favorite book, so I decided to write about my top 2.

So, I’ll start with the one that always comes to mind first. Monsters And My One True Love by Dian Curtis Regan.

This is the fourth and final installment in the Monsters of the Month series. The story follows a 13 year old girl who receives a monster toy each month which then comes to life at the worst possible time. The monsters aren’t scary, they are more like pets. In this book, she is trying to hide her monsters as well as dealing with her Aunt’s wedding.

I guess I related to the book because she  has a very free-spirited mother and a father she will be meeting for the first time in this book. I met my dad when I was 10, and although my mom was not AS free spirited as her mother (who changed her name to Sparrow Harmony Earth), I still consider her to be a very free spirit and child at heart even now in her 40’s.  Of course, the book also tugs at my heart strings with the budding romance between her and her friend. What can I say, deep in my heart of hearts, I’m just a big romantic.

My other all time favorite book  is How I Survived Being A Girl by Wendelin Van Draanen.

When I read this book, I was 12 years old, the exact same age as the main character, Carolyn . I was never a ‘girly’ girl when I was younger and Carolyn was the ultimate tomboy. Staying out, getting dirty with her brothers, building forts, digging an actual tunnel in the yard, all those things sound so amazingly fun to me.

There is one thing that will always stay with me when it comes to this book. Towards the end of the book, when she starts to give in to being a girl, she finds out her mother is pregnant. As fate would have it, shortly after finishing this book, I got the news that my mom was pregnant.  Now my sister is 11 and I have passed down this book to her.

It’s funny how the smallest things can trigger such great emotional reactions. I was checking my mom’s e-mail and I saw my little sister was trying to e-mail her friend using my mom’s e-mail address. It came back as undeliverable. It’s such a simple thing, that happens to me all the time at work, but for some reason, it made me so sad.

Happy New Year!

It’s a new year and yet again, I have not made any new year’s resolutions. What is it about commitment that scares so many of us away? Personally, I just don’t like the pressure of HAVING to do something just because.

We’ll see, I just hope 2013 is a better year. 2012 was very tumultuous for so many reasons. Myself and my family have been through so much and although we didn’t ring in the new year in the best way, I’d still like to remain positive that things are going to start getting better.

So if I HAVE to make a resolution, I guess that would be it: To be more positive.

Have a great year everyone!