A New Beginning

OKAY THIS IS REALLY SAD!

Obviously this blog isn't really working for me... I'm not posting regularly, and sometimes I'm not even proud of the content that I am creating. That sucks. No one wants a blog that only posts a once or twice every month. Frankly, I'm not proud of myself, and I'm going to do something about it.

A FRESH START!

I've moved over to wordpress with my good friend Danika and we have a fantastic schedule and everything. It is working out super well so far and I'm excited to continue on with it.

DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS?

This blog will die. The content will still be here, but nothing more will come. This will be my last post on this blog. Ever.

BUT WAIT. WHERE DO I FIND YOU AGAIN?

You can find/contact me at any of the following places:

The Blog : http://abookishescape.wordpress.com
Facebook Page: http://facebook.com/abookishescape1
Business Email: abookishescape@gmail.com
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/12683404-brianna

TOODALOO! I LOVE YOU ALL!

And happy reading ;)

YCJA vs. Touching Spirit Bear

Hello Friends! It's been a while since I've spoken to you... And about that... Let's just see that you will be seeing a post very soon about what's going on.

This is another blog post that I am completing for class. We have been reading the novel Touching Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelson alongside an inquiry on The Youth Criminal Justice Act in Canada. Both things have connections to youth offenders. For this post, I'm going to be making some deep connections between these two things, and invite you on my journey.

Note: This may contain minor spoilers to the novel, so please caution!

If you have read Touching Spirit Bear, you would know that the main character, Cole, was in a fist-fight and was sent to a detention centre. He also faced other consequences/service for recovery, including a sharing circle. What if I was a part of this Justice Circle? What sort of things would sway my decision on what should happen to Cole?

First of all, both Edwin and Garvey have had experience with the very thing that Cole was going through. Both of them had been through the same program because both of them committed an offence. This would be the first thing that gets me listening. What sort of things helped Edwin and Garvey get past this stage in their life? How can we apply this to Cole? However, if none of these things were mentioned, I likely wouldn't be open to the idea of Cole being let back onto the island, et-cetera. He's a dangerous guy, and we need to save the public!

One of the things that I know about the Youth Criminal Justice Act and program, is that they want the best for the youth. That means getting to know them, and understanding what is best for them personally. Since, by reading this book, I am in the mind of Cole, I know and understand him. I do not like him, but I get why he did some of the things that he did. His father's abusive! That's the only thing he's ever known, especially since his mother didn't stand up to him. His father's angry, and he takes that out on Cole. Where does Cole take his anger out? On other people – that's how this began to happen. I feel sorry for him, knowing what's going in his mind. Of course, if I was actually in the book and in the circle I wouldn't know what's in his mind, but since I do I think I would be more open to different ideas. Some specific things that I would consider are:

• Creative Consequences: Taking something he's good at, such as strength, and applying that to his recovery
• Letter of apology: Written for Isaac and his family.
• Donation to a cause of the victim's choice: Cole has enough money, it seems, to complete this. Even if it's only $20.

What do you think should happen to Cole, knowing what's in his mind? What do you know about the YCJA that could connect to this novel? Let me know! And talk to you later... Maybe. 

Top 5 Most Embarrassing Unread Books

So I saw this somewhere a while ago, and I'm sorry for not mentioning you if you were the one ho did this first, but I thought it was super cool, and I really wanted to share with you the books that I find myself very embarrassed not having read. So here they are!

1. The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien: I'm... sorry. That is all I have to say for myself.
2. Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins: I really want to start on Perkins novels, but I just haven't and I am so ashamed! Nest month? Yeah?
3. The Help by Kathryn Stockett: I swear, everyone has read this book but me. And I've heard it's so good too! What is holding me back? I don't know...
4. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak: I don't really know what to say for myself. This is all kinda sad... but it's The Book Theif!!! Okay, this is on top-priority! Especially since the movie just came out!!
5. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee: Oh man... it's a highly-read classic with a beautiful cover, over 1 million ratings on goodreads with an average of 4.23... Where have I been?

I'm really interested to know what sort of books that you haven't read, and that you are totally embarrassed by. Leave a comment below or tell me where to find your own blog post or YouTube video. Thanks for stopping by, and happy reading!

DNF Book Review: Just One Day

Title: Just One Day
Author: Gayle Forman
# of pages: 368
Series #: 1
Reading Span: February 21st - DNF
Rating: DNF

Ugh... How far did I even get into this? A little over 100 pages? Maybe a little less?

This book was so boring!
Okay, so at first I thought it was sort of cool... Whoa! Look at all of the different places that she's going. I love travel, though I don't do it very often (in the "extreme" way like this), so this was super cool for me. Unfortunately, it went downhill from there...

"Where should we go next?"

"The coffee shop." 

"Great"

"Mhmmm... yummy coffee."

Sure, it's not exactly like that, but that's sure what it felt like to me. And who wants to read about a coffee shop when they can get that themselves?

The bothersome main character...
Man did I dislike her. At first I thought, okay, she's cool. But after reading it and thinking about it I'm so shocked that my feelings took so hard to hit me. She was just so plain, boring, and a wanna be. Okay, okay, I didn't finish the book so I didn't really experience the whole "finding herself" part but come on... I think I'm supposed to like her a little more than that.

"Willem's leaving me!"

"Oh wait, just kidding..."

"Look at my gorgeous friend"

"Look at how plain and ugly I am"

"Let's change my name and be someone else!"

Now I'm sure it goes deeper than that but it bothered me enough that I had to stop reading.

The unrealistic aspect of it all was so, so bad

Once upon a time, there was a girl who went on a trip to Europe with a summer group. Then she meets a guy and decides, oh, I love him because he's attractive. Then the girl decides to go on another trip with the guy she just met... Her parent's would never know, of course, because they are just that oblivious, and the guy isn't a psychopath because psychopath's don't decide to take you on a trip, especially if you just met them.

Sounds dumb, right? Well that's the basic storyline of Just One Day, up until the point I read, at least. It was so unrealistic that I had a hard time caring. That's probably part of the reason that the main character (and other characters too, might I add) bothered me so much. They weren't real.

Ah, the problems...

Despite what I just said above, I think that all of you should check it out. Just One Day wasn't my book, but I can see why it may be yours. Below I have left a list of other review's that I have enjoyed reading about this book as well, all having different opinions. Have fun reading!

Ariel Bissett: Five Star Review (written review)

Christine: Four Star Review (video review)

Bonnie: Three Star Review (written review)

TheBookBasement: Four Point Five Star Review (video review, possible spoilers)

TheBookBasement: Four Point Five Star Review (written review, possible spoilers)

GINS Quote Art

We're almost at the end of our novel study with a post on word art. The purpose of this assignment was to artistically illustrate a quote that spoke to us in our novel. For me, this quote was found on page two. 

"Hold onto your dreams as tightly as you hold to the branches."

This quote holds a great significance to my novel. Tree Girl is all about finding your way when times are tough, and the hardships could, and will happen. The name "Tree Girl" comes from the main character's love of climbing trees, which is what "branches" is referring to in the text. Sometimes, it's easy to let go of your dreams, but this novel (and quotation) expresses the importance of holding onto them tight.

Before I go into why I chose to create my word art the way that I did, I just want to say that I was trying to resemble the cover. I think it turned out quite well, actually. Anyway...

If I had to be honest, my word art is quite plain, but I like it this way. I could have easily changed different attributes of different words, but to be brutally honest, the singular words don't stick out to me. It's the phrase as a whole that brings out meaning and power. By changing some random words, I thought it would look random and distracting, so I kept it the way it is. As for the girl holding her hands up to the tree branches, this is showing her openness to dreaming and climbing the trees. Even the black silhouette was chosen intentionally. I wanted to include the black mystery of it all. That person could be anyone... even you.

GINS Free Write Assignment (7)

Hello everyone! For this post we were assigned an exercise. This exercise was to free-write in the perspective of our main character from our novels for a set amount of time. We weren't to stop writing, or go back and change anything that we may want to (although I did sort of go back a couple of times... That's my OCD brain talking :P). Here is what I wrote:

     I wake up in my bedroom, the walls around me made of mud and rocks. Sunlight is streaming through the tiny window, reminding me that it's the crack of dawn. Yawning, I roll out of my bed – careful not to step on my siblings who are on the floor, wrapped in multiple dirty rags for warmth. I reach the kitchen. My mother is already cooking breakfast for the 6 of us. My father is at the door. Guarding. Waiting watching. My mother and I exchange a nod, and I help by preparing lunches for everyone. For ______ (sister), ______ (brother), ________ (sister). So, I guess not everyone, but pretty much. ________ (older brother) has been taken. Not that I would have to prepare him any food anyway, he's a couple years older than me, and out of school even longer than I. It still pains me now, though, to remember that instead of 3 siblings coming out of the bedroom in the morning, it will only be 4. Always three. It was painful. Terrifying. The soldiers are monsters. They don't care about anyone but themselves. Who are they to take away our culture and families? No, they don't have that right. But they do it anyway.

     Grandmama says it's getting worse. "War is coming on, Gabriella. It will only go downhill from here." For the sake of my family, the village, and myself, I sure to god hope that she's wrong.

She's not. When I reach the school at which I teach at, I don't even need to go inside. Manual is off to the side, along with the students. "Why don't we go learn outside today?" he says. So we do. We walk into the forest on the west for a couple miles until we reach a stream. Then Manual sits the children down on the rocks, and he begins to tell his stories, and teach. He doesn't get too far in his lesson. I am just sitting down myself when we hear gunshots. When I look to Manuel, he's crumbling. In a ragged voice, he lets out one word, "Run".

     I grab a couple of the kid's hands, the rest of them following suit. Then we are off, running upstream and away from the sound of guns. In the distance I hear a few groans, and cries. But then… they stop. Manual is dead.

     We continue to run through the forest, but I know that the students can't take it much longer, so a moment later we settle down and walk instead. Another gun fires. Another child dies. We run again, but by the time that we are free from any of the soldiers, only three of us remain. 12 are dead.

I hope you enjoyed! Happy reading!

Shatter Me Read-a-Long

Hey everyone! Happy with my new posting schedule? I sure am :)

So do you remember that post that I made last year all about Burn for Burn? Well guess what... That's what's going to be happening once again! Oh, and about those special joint-posts that we were supposed to do... Um, yeah... Sorry that didn't happen.

What will we be reading? As the title of this post suggests, Danika and I will be reading Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi.

Goodreads summary: Juliette hasn’t touched anyone in exactly 264 days.

The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette’s touch is fatal. As long as she doesn’t hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don’t fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.
The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war – and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she’s exactly what they need right now.
Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.

When will we be reading? Yay! Here comes all of the details about when we will be reading Shatter Me. Just a heads up... it's coming up very soon...

*All of these page numbers are pertaining to the HarperCollins Paperback edition.*

February 13th – Up to chapter 18; pg. 112
February 14th – Up to chapter 33; pg. 225
February 15th – Up to the last chapter; pg 338; it's a wrap!

I encourage you to look into joining us as we read, and be sure to look for a single joint-post that we will be doing at the end of the read-a-long. Thanks for stopping by, happy reading!

Danika's blog: http://loveliterature713.blogspot.ca

The Best Covers of 2013

After seeing Ariel Bissett's video on this, I had to do it because I read a lot of books this year that have amazing covers. So that's what I'm going to be showing you today. Pretty covers. 10 of 'em (and in order).

1. Angelfall by Susan Ee
2. Splintered by A. G. Howard
3. Crash by Lisa McMann
4. Taken by Erin Bowman
5. Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
6. The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Braken
7. This Song Will Save Your Life by Leila Sales
8. Pivot Point by Kasie West
9. Sisters Red by Jackson Pearce
10. Fault Line by C. Desir

                     

Leave a comment with your favourite covers below, and happy reading!

Top 13 Of 2013

Um, so I'm really sorry... I am such a bad book blogger. I haven't posted all of my 2013/2014 "stuff" yet. Oh well, as they all say... Better late than never!

These books are in order from least-favourite to favourite, and I'm not including re-reads. And I recommended all of them. They were all so fantastic!

My 13th favourite book of 2013 was Scarlet by Marissa Meyer. I liked this book a lot better than Cinder, the first book in the series. It had such great characters, and the plot was amazing. I also really enjoyed the multiple perspectives that this book had to offer. And of course, it's a retelling of little red riding hood, what's not to love? Overall, awesome read!

At number 12 we have The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa. This was my first Julie Kagawa book, and I'm so glad that I decided to pick it up! It was such an interesting take on vampires, and kept my interest the whole time reading. The plot was also so fast-paced! If you are looking for an interesting take on vampires with great characters and story, check this one out for sure!

Down at number 11 I have placed Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher. Although I read this over a year ago, I can remember reading this very vividly in my mind. It was one of those books that I read in one day, that I just couldn't put down. Unlike the first two on my list, it is a contemporary told from a dead-girl's voice on a recording tape. It really was a life-changing book, and if you are looking for something that will pull on your heart strings, this is defiantly something to look into. Full review can be seen by clicking here.

#10 on this list is Partials by Dan Wells. Originally, this would have been much farther up on my list, but after looking back on it the beginning of it took a while to get into, but after the first 20-50 or so pages, I couldn't stop reading, and I finished the majority of this book in one day as well, and this book isn't exactly what you would call small... No wonder I don't get my homework done! Again, it's a dystopian novel, but it takes on a much different angle than any other YA book that I've read before. Highly recommend, and if you don't like the first few pages, just keep pushing yourself!

And my 9th favourite of 2013 goes to Legend by Marie Lu. Again, I'm kind of surprising myself in this not being a 5th or 4th favourite, but if I had to be honest with myself I don't really remember what happened. And if I don't remember what happened... I just think other books are better, you know? What I do remember about this book, though, is that I loved it. Also, looking back at my goodreads review, I see that I cried, which gotta mean it's good, right?

The 8th book on my list was actually for-school (kinda) and that book is Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder and holy feels. The characters were absolutely amazing, the plot didn't fail me, and just... *sighs* Why does Valek have to be so old? Since I did read this for school, I do have a more... sophisticated review up. Up to re-reading it in 2014 as well. I need this amazing-ness in my life once again.

We're almost halfway with Truth or Dare (by Jacqueline Green) at number 7! So I haven't read Pretty Little Liars, which this book has been compared to, but wow... Now I really want to get to that series! I was in tears at the end, and the cliffhanger... Basically I need the second book, like, now. Click here to see my full review.

The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black has pulled into 6th place this year and, just... wow. I mentioned this in my December Wrap-Up, but I'm so glad Katytastic recommended this to her viewers. SO SO GOOD. And the ending... that can't be how it ends! And I need more Gavriel in my life.

Now in 5th place there is Pivot Point by Kasie West. I was so intensely engrossed in this story, and the choices that Addie had to make were just over the top FEELS. Again, I need the sequel right now. Unfortunately, that doesn't come out until February. Noooo! But seriously, you need to read this one (I mean, you need to read all of these but... Trevor <3 He's just so perfect)

I first started the Mortal Instruments series in 2013, so of course one of the books has to be on my "top" list. For me, it's City of Glass coming in 4th for my top of this past year. I also read this book in 24 hours, which is crazy. have you seen how big it is? 541 pages... not exactly small... I just couldn't put it down. There were so many crazy twists and turns and defiantly the best in the series so far. I wish it just ended with this great-ness, but oh well.

We're getting down the the nitty-gritty at my third favourite: Amy and Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson. This book was just so adorable and heart-warming. Amy was awesome, and Roger was just so perfect... *swoons* The road trip aspect was also super cool. I can't tell you enough... Read it! Click here to see my full review!

Now of course... The Darkest Minds, by Alexandra Bracken. Pretty much everyone has read this, and pretty much everyone has had this in their lists as well. For me, it's in spot #2. Liam is perfect, Chubs is just great, and, well, perfect. Ruby is so kick-butt and just... Everyone is so awesome, okay? I was bawling at the end. THE TEARS WOULDN'T STOP. Just... Just read it okay?

And last but not least, my #1 pick of 2013 goes to Altered by Jennifer Rush. I actually read this book twice in 2013, just because I love it so SO much. And now Erased is out and I have it and I just NEED IT RIGHT NOW. It's all about a girl and 4 great, genetically altered guys and their journey. Both times I read this, I read it in 24 hours. It's just that amazing. Haven't convinced you yet? Click here to see my review.

And this is where the fangirl-ing ends... for now. I hope that you enjoyed this post, even though it is a tad bit late. I still want to know what books you thought were amazing in 2013! Maybe we can get some book pushing, er, recommending done here. Happy reading everyone!

Epic Recs: February 2014

Okay... So this post is also a bit late... Please forgive me and my absence!

This month is a wonderful month of wonderful things. The first thing being the books that both Danika and I chose for each other to read this month. Danika recommended me Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo. I am super excited for the sequel to the fantastic Shadow and Bone that she recommended me last year in November.

I recommended Danika read two books this month, because one of them is a graphic novel and the other one is really short: Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach and Page by Paige by Laura Gulledge. She asked me to pick something that wasn't too heavy or crazy-insane this month, so I think that these books will be perfect for her.

Now onto the second awesome thing... I joined Epic Recs again! Starting next month (I hope, fingers crossed), I will be rec-ing with both Danika, as well as another girl named Jessica whom I was paired up with by Judith and Amber, the founders of Epic Recs). I am super excited to read some more books and expand my horizons that much more. I'm already thinking about the great books I can push on her. It's just going to be an awesome time.

Let me know what you are reading this month (recommended or not). But until next time... happy reading!

Amber's post: http://www.booksofamber.com/2014/02/epic-recs-february-2014.html
Judith's post: http://www.paperiot.com/2014/02/epic-recs-february/
Danika's post: http://loveliterature713.blogspot.ca/2014/02/january-wrap-up-and-february-tbr-epic.html

January and December Wrap-Up

I'm only 8 days late.... Plus a month...

I apologize for not posting these type of posts, or pretty much anything at all... THINGS WILL CHANGE!

December
The Hunger Games by Susanne Collins – This was a re-read and... *fangirls* SO FANTASTIC
The Coldest Girl In Coldtown by Holly Black – Katytastic, thank-you for convincing me to read this book. GAVRIEL THOUGH. <3
Fault Line by C. Desir – This book had me to tears... So much to say, yet so much... not to say.
Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo – Why had I not read this book before? Review coming soon!
The Poison Eaters by Holly Black – I should have read this before The Coldest Girl... Black has grown so much!!
Tree Girl by Ben Mikaelsen – I was reading this for school, and it wasn't so great. Then I forgot that I was reading it for school, and I really liked it.
Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers – Danika, WHY DO YOU PUT ME THROUGH THIS TORTURE? Book review coming soon as well.

And the book of the month was... *drumroll* The Coldest Girl in Coldtown! Now don't yell at me for not saying The Hunger Games. Re-reads don't count, okay? In the Coldest Girl in Coldtown, Black creates a scary world with wonderful characters and written with beautiful, lyrical language. I highly recommend it!

January
Unwind by Neal Shusterman – I will forever hold myself accountable for not making myself read this book sooner.
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Saenz – DNF at pg. 158. I really wanted to like this book it just... didn't happen that way. More on this coming shortly.
Burn for Burn by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian – The plot and story was awesome! And, you know, reading along with Danika was pretty great too.
Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell – Excuse me while I sort out my feelings and cry over this lovely piece of literature.
Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon – Had to DNF this one as well at pg. 164. The element aspect was super cool but... Ugh, I'll explain later in another post.
Winnie the Pooh by A. A. Milne – Pooh is such an innocent character, as is all of the rest of them and just... *sighs in relief* This is what I needed after those two DNF's.

And for January, my book of the month was... Winnie the Pooh by A. A. Milne. Overall, it was really hard to choose only one book that stood out to me, but I chose A. A. Milne's work because I think it is completed under-rated, and it is just so heartwarming that everyone needs to read it.

And that was that... Stay tuned for an update on my blog and what's going on. Happy reading!

Top Ten Books That Will Make You Cry

The first Top Ten Tuesday of 2014! Yay! *slow clap* It's been forever since I've done one of these, and this week's top ten is sort of a last-minute decision anyway. Oh well... It's back with the top ten books that will make me cry. Thankfully I have a lot to choose from.

Oh, and just a little disclaimer: I am a very emotional person.

Top Ten Books That Will Make You Cry – Feb. 4th

                                     

Happy reading!

GINS Global Charter Task

As you may know, in school we are doing a project on our GINS novels. These past few weeks we have also been discussing the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and so our assignments have been surrounding the idea of connecting the two topics together. This time around, we were asked to create our own global charter using our knowledge from the lectures we've endured, and the GINS books that we have read. We did this in groups of 3 (or 4) to expand our horizons (as we all read different GINS books). That being said, prior to this activity, we did not know that there was actually a "Charter" for the world, The Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This is what my group created.

A lot of the things that we included in our global charter actually came from the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and are also included in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Things like egalitarian rights (equality) seem especially important, seeing how much they show up on all 3 of the documents being inquired into.

Egalitarian: the belief in the principal that all people are equal and deserve equal rights and opportunities. We chose to use this word, rather than the standard "equal" or "equality" simply because we think that the basic principle is so important, and that is exactly what the word "egalitarian" promotes. By using this word, you almost don't have to state the "anti-discrimination" bullet points.... Almost.

A section that we added into our global charter was the "Government Obligation Rights". We noticed that most of the "bad things" that were happening in all of our GINS books, and around other parts of the world, were happening because the government wasn't doing anything toward enforcing the laws. In fact, often times they were making things worse. By adding this section of the charter, it would hopefully eliminate some of that controversy and make the world a better place.

If you were to make your own Charter, what would you include in it? Leave your comments below, and happy reading.

TBR Update (8) + Viewers Choice

Okay, so change of plans... I suck... That is all I have to say for myself.

Basically, I have decided to crop two of the books on my TBR, simply because I don't feel like reading any winter books at the current time. I am ready to move on. Therefore, I am no longer planning on reading Let It Snow or Winterling this month. I will probably be reading these next year, around christmas time, instead, but don't count on it! I'm sorry if you wanted a review.

To make it up to you all (as much as I possibly can), I want to give you a choice of what other two books that are going to be added to my January 2014 TBR. You can vote for your top two of the following books:

1. Sweetly by Jackson Pearce
2. Uncommon Criminals by Ally Carter
3. Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon
4. Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo
5. Unwholly by Neal Shusterman

Thanks so much for understanding me and my predicament. Happy reading!

Burn for Burn: Post #1

So Danika and I decided that we were going to do a special post every segment of Burn for Burn that we read. For the first part (page 80 / Chapter 7) we decided that we would look more into characters and who they are as far as appearance and personality go. But an in-depth analysis of words and words and words is sort of boring, so instead we are going to be "creating" them, in a sense.

Using the Lord of the Rings character creator on dolldivine.com. This website allows you to dress, and develop characters in an intricate way. So, for each of the main characters (Lillian, Kat, and Mary) we will be creating how we imagine them, and through clothing and facial expression we can show what sort of personality they have. We have created only one rule for ourselves: Do not go off of the cover. And that is it. Sorry for the long intro...

Mary. Since I wanted to make all the characters different, and since Mary was last, it was a bit harder for me to create her. That being said, I really like how she turned out. I love her expression, and I think it especially captures the moment when she sees Reese. Oh, and this goes for all of the characters but I chose this background because it was sort of like what I imagined the court to be like at the school.

Other things that I would add/change if the creator let me:

• Flats – probably just plain pink but maybe black with a bow on it
• Cardigan/Sweater – I don't know... I always imagine Mary with an unzipped cardigan or sweater on, and this creator didn't have that option. I tried to add in longer sleeves to make up for it but I still think it would have been better to have my original thought put into the piece
• Hair – the hair style that I thought best suited her was this one, but in my opinion, it's just not... right. I can't put my finger on it, but with a bit of searching I'm sure I could find it.

Lillia. I'm gonna be real honest. I don't really like Lillian in the story. Sure, she's nice and all, but... I don't know. Not my "type", I guess you could say. I had a lot of fun "making" her though! I really like her hair: it fits exactly the way I see her in my mind while reading! Her face and general look is pretty spot-on too, because I always imagine her wearing a bunch of makeup (rosy cheeks) and sort of... showing off her body a little more than she needs to. I chose to put her in a dress because she seems to me like the type of person that would care about her appearance (more than the other two), and this was the closest that I could get to the type of thing I was thinking of. As for the colour purple... I don't know, I sort of just always associated her with it. Oh, the random butterflies and blue fluff was kind f to make her "stick out" more, since she is "besties" with Rennie.

Other things that I would add/change if the creator let me:

• Outfit – I would probably change the dress to be shorter to show more skin, and probably the style as well (although keep the neck, again, because it "shows"... stuff). I like the colour though!
• Makeup – I so wish that there was an option to do more makeup on this creator! The blush and lips simply isn't enough! I mean, the story specifically points out that she was putting eyeliner on her Asian eyes!

Kat. I love Kat. I loved creating her too, and I think that it turned out super well! Her hair in this is so pretty! I want it!!! Her outfit is pretty spot-on too, because I sort of just imagine her as someone who doesn't really give a <insert bad word here>. I just put her in a red top (I associate her with the colour red... don't know why) and black leggings which looks pretty great I think.

Other things that I would add/change if the creator let me:

• Hair – as much as I love it, it doesn't really fit the way I see her in my mind. I imagine it much much straighter. It's just that the creator didn't have a style like that so I went for this one which is fairly close and... you know... <3

So that is it for my first Burn for Burn post. I'm not really sure what the next post is going to be yet, but that will be coming on Sunday so stay tuned! What did you think about the characters in Burn for Burn? Also, go to the website and try creating your own versions of Mary, Lillia, and Kat. You can share it to me using instagram using the hashtag #burnforburnwithbri, or just post it on your own blog and leave the link below! Oh! Be sure to check out Danika's post as well, which will be going up later tonight. Happy reading!

GINS Connections to the Charter

As you may know, I am doing a GINS project for school. This post is going to be connecting that project to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, another topic that we are looking into. Does Guatemala even have rights and freedoms?

After the genocide, Guatemala continued to try to recover from the genocide, although it was difficult to do with an amnesty law in place. Amnesty: meaning that the authorities took no action against offences. There are a few laws that were put in place after the genocide took place to protect them from anything like this to take place again, but during the genocide there was no such thing.

Still, today there is extreme social inequalities and high levels of crime which are not protected by law in Guatemala. Things such as death penalties, and violent forced evictions that Canada has long let go. It is also known that children do not have human rights, and are subject to death, poverty, and lack of education. And from what I know, there have been no attempts to remedy any of this. In fact, the former Guatemalan President gave a disappointing amount of justice for genocide victims and their relatives, which leads me to believe that he doesn't really care.

There was also a recent news article that I read, the headline: Rios Montt guilty of the Genocide in Guatemala. In short, the government was responsible for over 1, 500 citizens of Guatemala. This clearly states that there was no "Charter".

Now let's think about the Canadian Charter. If something like this had been in place during 1982, the time of the genocide, things would have turned out much different. Under "Legal Rights", it speaks of punishment if citizens have done something wrong. The right to remain innocent until proven guilty; The right to the benefit of a lesser punishment if proven guilty; The right to no cruel or unusual form of punishment if proven guilty. Nearly everything that happened in Guatemala at this time went against these rights and freedoms that we have in Canada. In Tree Girl many citizens of Guatemala were raped, tortured, and killed even though they weren't guilty (and even if they weren't guilty, then they still got the "greater punishment"). I suppose they were facing a bit of discrimination as well, as no American's got "punished" or killed for anything that they did – only the Guatemalans.

Gabi, from the book, was forced to leave Guatemala to be free of any of this torture (or rape), which also goes against the mobility rights that we have in Canada. The right to stay or leave the country is stated, and when leaving, citizens have the right to do so. In the book, Guatemalan's were stopped at the border if caught, and suffered severe consequences that also goes against the "Legal Rights" of Canada.

So, in short, Guatemala doesn't really have any rights. The government is corrupt and isn't doing anything to help his citizens in this area of rights and freedoms. I hope, for the citizen's sake, that this will begin to change soon. What do you think?

Sources: Thanks so much for letting me look at your information!

• http://www.freedominfo.org/regions/latin-america/guatemala/
• http://www.amnestyusa.org/news/news-item/guatemala-rios-montt-trial-delay-is-a-letdown-to-genocide-victims
• http://www.ppu.org.uk/genocide/g_guatemala2.html
• http://www.amnestyusa.org/our-work/countries/americas/guatemala
• http://www.freedominfo.org/2006/03/foi-laws-and-development-agend/
• http://www.amnestyusa.org/news/news-item/historic-conviction-brings-long-awaited-justice-in-guatemala
• http://lanorfolk.blogspot.ca/2009/03/us-knews-of-human-rights-abuses-in.html

Burn For Burn Reading Schedule

Finally! The time has come to discuss Burn for Burn and when we will be reading it together. If you didn't already know, I will be reading Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian's Burn for Burn along with Danika @ Books to Dream. This read-along will be from January 8th - January 16th (whatever your time zone may be), and if you would like to join us then feel free to do so!

We will be making special blog posts pertaining the novel, and it will be a lot of fun! If you don't have this book available to you at the moment, do not worry! We will be reading another book together later this month.

As far as actual reading goes, we decided to set page numbers/chapter breaks after a two day period so that it could work with both of our schedules. This is what we came up with:

Jan. 8th - 9th: page 80 / Chapter 7
Jan. 10th - 11th: page 177 / Chapter 18
Jan. 12th - 13th: page 252 / Chapter 28
Jan. 14th - 15th: page 348 / Chapter 40
Jan. 16th: page 256 / The End

Danika and I are reading from the American paperback edition. That is what the page numbers refer to.

Thanks for stopping by my blog! I hope that you consider joining us, and happy reading!

Epic Recs: January 2014

It's a bit late, but here I am with my Epic Recs for the first month of 2014. If you do not know what epic recs is, feel free to take a look at Amber's blog @ booksofamber.com. This month, I have recommended Taken by Erin Bowman to Danika, and she has recommended Unravelling by Elizabeth Norris to me. I am super excited to read this one, along with the rest of the books on my TBR.

I hope that you are all have a happy new year, and of course... Happy reading!

January TBR 2014

I am super excited to start off this year with some amazing books! This year, I am going to be trying to read 7 or more books a month, which I think is a great challenge for me that I will be able to complete. I'm also not going to be doing themes this year, at least to start, because they seem to just get in my way and I don't end up completing them. This way, I think I will be more successful.

This month, I have 10 BOOKS that I want to read. 10. I am crazy. It doesn't seem like a lot looking at my shelf, but just the number... Okay, whatever. I think that I'll be okay. After all, I'm already over half-way through the first book...

1. Unwind by Neal Shusterman: GAH! So good so far and I just can't even... Why have I waited this long?
2. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Sáenz: I've heard some fantastic things about this one, especially from Kalindee @ They Start Revolutions (amazing blog by the way, follow her!) who I'm actually borrowing this book from. Thanks Kalindee!
3. Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell: This accidentally came in as a hold from the library, but I didn't really want it right now but I have to read it and I'm sure I'll love it.
4. Burn for Burn by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian (read-along): I'm reading this along with Danika @ Books to Dream from the 8th to the 16th. Reading schedule will be up soon!
5. Winterling by Sarah Princeas: This is just a winter, middle grade book that I want to read while there is still snow outside.
6. Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard: Yes, finally. I know. *applause*
7. Time Between Us by Tamara Stone: This just sounds so cute and amazing and I just need it now I just can't even...
8. Unravelling by Elizabeth Norris (epic rec): This is my epic rec for this month! For more information visit booksofamber.com
9. Blood Red Road by Moira Young (re-read): A lot of my friends have been reading this lately and it just makes me want to read it again and experience the awesomeness again.
10. Let is Snow by John Green, Lauren Myracle and Maureen Johnson: I really wanted to read it during christmas time, but that just didn't happen because people were hogging it from the library and it didn't come in as a hold... It hasn't even come in yet but I still really want to read it while there is snow. Santa? Are you still there?

So... that is the first TBR of 2014, and it's a quite... extensive one at that. Leave a link below of your TBR in the comments, or just tell me what you are reading straight on. And as always... Happy reading!

2013 Wrap Up and 2014 TBR

As 2013 draws to a close, it's time to think about what I'm wanting to do in 2014 as far as books go! I am super excited to see what the year brings.

In 2013, I read a total of 78 books, which is 6 books above my goal of 72. I'm super proud with what happened over the course of the year, and I am happy that I got the chance to read so many fantastic books. 

18 of these books were 5 stars (+ an extra book because I read one of them twice)

31 of these books were 4 stars

17 of these books were 3 stars

8 of these books were 2 stars

3 of these books were 1 star

and one of the books was unrated (see the review here)


Overall reading rating: 3.70

6 of these books were graphic novels.

1 of those books was a novella.

18 of these books were stand-alones.

8 of these books made it into my favourites shelf.

About 75% of these books were written by female authors. Wow, us woman are really taking over young adult fiction.

The longest book that I read was Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers at 576 pages.

The shortest book that I read was Free Four, the novella by Veronica Roth at 13 pages.
My total page count for the year was 25 094 pages.

I made a TBR of the books that I was planning on reading this year on my blog in November last year.

• Divergent #3 by Veronica Roth
• Unwind by Neal Shusterman
• The Book Theif by Markus Zusak
• Princess Acadamy by Shannon Hale
• The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale
• Between Shades of Grey by Ruta Sepetys
• Crossed by Allie Condie
• Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
• Ever by Gail Carson Levine
• The Mother Daughter Book Club by Heather Vogel Fredrick
• Gone by Micheal Grant
• The Selection by Kiera Cass
• The Unidentified by Rae Martiz
• Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
• Pride a Prejudice by Jane Austen
• Eon by Alison Goodman
• Eona by Alison Goodman
• Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
• Legend by Marie Lou
• Prodigy by Marie Lou
• Mind Games by Kiersten White
• The Knife of the Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
• The Rules by Stacey Cade
• Ashes of Twilight by Kassy Tayler
• Fury by Elizabeth Miles

I read only 6 of the books I said I was going to, and a lot of the books that I had on there I'm not even interested in anymore.

Here is another thing that I wished to do: "I am also hoping to read more recent releases"

Who knows what "more" means, but I am proud to say that I read 17 books with the release date of 2013, and I am planning on doing the same next year.

Now here comes the fun part: The TBR for 2014. This year, it's going to be a less structured goal (as far as specific books go).

I want to read...

• 12 Re-Reads
• 12 Epic Recs
• 6 Read-Alongs
• 3 Books From The Chick Lit Book Club

Series Challenge: I'm not going to explain all of my choices, I'm just going to say which series I want to finish and what books I have left to read. I'm only choosing series which have all of the books available to me in the coming year. There are a total of 23 books that I will need to read if I want to complete this challenge.

• Legend Trilogy by Marie Lu (Champion)
• The Darkest Minds Trilogy by Alexandra Bracken (Never Fade, Untitled #3)
• Under The Never Sky Trilogy by Veronica Rossi (Through the Ever Night, Into the Still Blue)
• Truth or Dare Series by Jacqueline Green (Secrets and Lies)
• Starcrossed Series by Josephine Angelini (Dreamless, Goddess)
• Fairytale Retelling Series by Jackson Pearce (Sweetly, Fathomless, Cold Spell)
• The Program Series by Suzanne Young (The Treatment)
• Partials Sequence Series by Dan Wells (Fragments, Ruins)
• Heist Society Series by Ally Carter (Uncommon Criminals, Perfect Scoundrels)
• Hex Hall Trilogy by Rachel Hawkins (Demonglass, Spell Bound)
• Delirium Trilogy by Lauren Oliver (Pandemonium, Requiem)
• Breathe Series by Sarah Crossan (Resist)
• Dust Lands Trilogy by Moira Young (Rebel Heart, Raging Star)

And... Last but not least... I want to read a grand total of 84 books (or more) this year. Realistic, but still giving me that extra push.

Look foreword to more posts coming including Top 13 of 2013, My Favourite Covers of 2013, January TBR, and more!

What are your goals for this coming year? Leave a comment down below, and happy reading!