AHHH IT'S MARCH--CHANGE IS COMING

Hey guys,

It's March! Long time no see! School has been filled with..International Baccalaureate oral exams and that's why I haven't been posting anything (I know, shame on me!).

CHANGE IS COMING!

I'm discussing with a few of my friends about teaming up with me for Scholarberry, so that you will be able to check out Scholarberry daily for new posts!

More on that later, but for now, thanks for reading!

Never Eighteen by Megan Bostic Post

What is the moral of your story?

My main character, Austin is dying of cancer. He wants those he loves to see the value of their own lives and not take it for granted, and he hopes that because of his circumstances that they will listen. He takes a weekend and visits friends and family he feels are dwelling on the past, suffering from addiction or living with abuse, and tries to convince them that life is too short to live that way. That they should live their lives to the fullest, because you only get one shot, and you never know when it will end.

Megan's blog

Buy Megan's book at Amazon!

Spoiled by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan + CONTEST!!!

Read until the end, there's a signed copy for you!!! HERE is the form to enter...Just tell me what you think of my new review and you can get a chance to win a signed copy! *Contest ends November 30th!

TOTAL POINTS: 80/100 points

Storyline & Content (26/30 pts)

The book was awesome! Sometimes it was too exaggerated but it was fun and hilarious! Brooke Berlin, daughter of the famous Brick Berlin, has a new sister! The new sister--Molly--just wants to get along with everyone, but Brooke wants all the attention. Spoiled is a book about sisterhood and coming of age; it's a fun read, and it's fast-paced! Read the summary here.

Engagement Level (15/15 pts)
There were events after events, it was very engaging. I was never bored reading this book.

Author’s Language & Writing Style (6/10 pts)
Well, I liked the authors' language, but sometimes it was too dramatic--maybe some of you enjoy reading books that are super dramatic--not me. Most of the time it wasn't too much exaggeration, so I love the book overall.

Message/Moral (13/15 pts)
I think there are a lot of moral issues and ethics in this book (e.g: Should you ruin your new sister's life or not?) and I feel like Spoiled was a satire to mock teenage angst dilemma :D

But of course, there are many messages in this book, but I believe the ethics thing works out best for this 1st book in the series.

Information (5/10 pts)
It was sorta informative, I learned some things but it didn't stick out to me very much. This is a book of engagement and fun, not informative!

Characters (8/10 pts)
Molly was believable, while Brooke was unrealistic at times. I guess the people I've met aren't as crazy as Brooke, so I don't really believe that there are people like Brooke Berlin. When Brooke started being vulnerable, I think Brooke was real. When it was Molly's thoughts of Brooke, I felt like it was just too much exaggeration. And... I also don't know if there would be parents who'd name their kid 'Arugula', but hey, that's just me ;)

Originality (3/5 pts)
I think the idea of the book is pretty original. I mean, I don't really see this kind of book covering the shelves of bookstores, but there are a lot of other books where there are a couple of girls started out by disliking each other, but ended up liking each other in the end. It reminds me of Gossip Girls, too. Or just girls in high school reading magazines, really.

Movie Material (4/5 pts)
I would LOVE to see this book in theaters! I could just picture this being a movie and it would really bring everything come to life. Spoiled is a real movie material!

+ + +

Words from the authors about how they wrote Spoiled together...

JESSICA: We originally started off with Heather writing the Brooke section, while I wrote the Molly parts, but we abandoned that plan about a week into it -- basically, we both wrote each character. Because what we realized, of course, is that regardless of whose POV we were writing in, in a given chapter, the other character was also IN that chapter, so we had to master both of them. So we really both wrote the entire thing. Basically, the best way to do that for us -- I know other writing teams may do it differently -- was to put together a very, very detailed outline, and then split the work into chunks, and then trade. Because we knew what was happening in the other sections of book, we could then work concurrently and out of order -- thanks to the outline, I knew that when Heather and I traded chunks to write through and edit the other's chapters, I wouldn't get a section where, say, someone was suddenly MURDERED or something. But working with another writer is definitely not half the writing work -- it's more like twice the work. Which is not to say that I would have it any other way. I think that having two sets of eyes on the writing made it stronger, and because Heather and I write together so often and have done so for so long in our day job, we already had a natural sort of mind-meld that made it easy for us to marry our work together.

HEATHER: Being terrified of missing our deadlines was our most powerful weapon, too. The outline helped that immensely because whoever finished a chapter first could just ship it to the other person and dive into whatever the next untouched chunk was. We also realized that there wouldn't be an even 50-50 split between Brooke sections and Molly sections -- and sometimes we'd switch POV within one chapter -- so it was much faster and cleaner and more consistent to assign it by chapter rather than by character. The only problems that ever arose were if we had a bit of an accidental mind meld in terms of where we set a scene, or the type of jokes we wrote. That didn't happen often, but it did happen. We work together so much that by now we also think alike, so it's only natural. But those problems were also easily fixed. It also helps that, while both of us are incredibly possessive of the overall final product, neither of us is possessive of anything we wrote individually. Our attitude us, make the book as good as it can be. If that means changing up some sections I wrote, so be it. It's very much a Tim Gunn thing: make it work, however that may be. I could see that being a problem for writing duos in general, but after all these years -- and also just how we're wired, as people -- we know enough never to take it personally, so it's never an impediment to the writing or to the relationship. Thank God. Can you imagine?

Reviews coming up...update

Hey guys,

I am reviewing, but it's slowly done because I'm really analyzing it.

11/2/2011 - Spoiled
11/4/2011 - Deadly Cool

From now on, check on the sidebar for the reviews that are coming up! I'm posting a schedule there!

Restructuring Scholarberry

Everybody wants to be different, right? Well, you're not the only one! The hiatuses I've been taking is for the sole purpose of restructuring Scholarberry or school. I've been reading, again, but I don't want to review more books until I restructure my whole blog. I'm going to try to review it differently--I'll try to analyze it like an English book. I promise you'll read a review on Monday...and it'll be fun. :)

WHAT? Conventional Values and Literature

So I was working on my English Perfect Piece writing assignment for Dust Tracks on a Road by Zora Neale Hurston (No. I have not read Their Eyes Were Watching God, but I will). The question that I chose to answer was:

"It is the role of literature to challenge and confront the conventional values of a society." In what ways, and to what extend, have conventional values been challenged in Dust Tracks on a Road?

I finished my perfect piece while listening to Vivaldi's Four Seasons*. Believe it or not, I was trying to race against a year's worth of symphony...and I won. Anyway. I'm trying to post everyday, but I'm not exactly in the mood to write a review today. So I decided to write this "WHAT?" post. Every time I post a WHAT? post, I am seeking your opinion. Think of it like philosophy class...or English class where we discuss our books, really.

The Q: What's a title of a book you read that intrigues you regarding some society's conventional values and what did you think of it?


Also...tomorrow is my school's homecoming dance. This is my senior year at high school, and I've only gone once (and that's because I had to volunteer by selling some brownies during freshman year). I witnessed grinding for the first time...and uh, disliked it. Should I go? I don't have a date and I don't like grinding.

*Vivaldi's Four Seasons lasts about 42 minutes. I finished around the 33 minutes mark. :)

P.S: Should I post my Perfect Piece? Would you be interested in reading it? :)

Music listened to while writing this post: The Story of Us by Taylor Swift

  
╰★╮

What Would Emma Do? by Eileen Cook

Would you ever kiss your best friend's boyfriend?

Well...would you??? I wouldn't, but that's probably because my best friend doesn't have a boyfriend! Just kidding~ I wouldn't even if she has a boyfriend, really. But Emma did---she kissed Joann's boyfriend, Colin. The thing is, Colin is also Emma's childhood friend. The kiss, though...that was accidental. It just kind of happened when Colin and Emma were out shopping for Joann's Christmas present, and of course, Joann would only be mad at Emma and not Colin! <

So Emma doesn't really talk to Joann anymore, and she doesn't really have other friends. Emma also avoids Colin, which means she's on her own. Then Todd Seaver comes....(this is a downside of reading too many books: you know what's going to happen already!!! Of course another boy than Colin would show up...) and he is accused of the strange happenings of girls fainting!

Emma lives in a small town, and news travel fast. Emma doesn't like that--the whole 'small town' thing. She wants to go to big, big city. She wants to be deviant, she doesn't like anything about the town she lives in. Todd was an outsider--he was a new kid. Nobody liked Todd for that, and nobody liked Emma for hating the town so bad.

So...everybody says that Todd is kinda shady. Did he really caused all the popular girls to faint? Watch the awesome trailer below and get a copy of the book!

Rating: 6/10

A satisfying read; Good laughs, good story, memorable, but not in my all-time favorite list. It was a bit exaggerated for me, and it was also predictable. It wasn't out of ordinary, but all in all a good tale to read. GOOD READ FOR WHEN YOU HAVE A BOYFRIEND (Or when you're thinking of getting one...) I might read it again someday.

307 Page/Simon Pulse/978-1-41697432-1/eilencook.com

Uh...Hiatus?

Hey guys,

sorry for the hiatus without notice...I'll send out the books this weekend. Any of you familiar with Questbridge? That's what I've been doing, that's the reason for the 1 week hiatus. This blog will run again normally starting Monday, October 3rd!

By the way, I was thinking of another way to make memories during my senior year at HS...and I suggested doing a RELAY NOVEL on a whim!!! What's a relay novel, you said? A relay novel is a novel that you pass on! You can write one sentence, one paragraph, one page, it's up to you! When you feel like you've written enough, you pass it on and the next person might change the whole story (Yikes!) (BTW, I don't really know what it's called, but I'm doing it!!!)

But doesn't that sound fun????

On Thursday at HR time we'll decide the domain name...I'm so excited about this! (I'm not starting though! I think I'm taking a break of writing for a while.....I'd be doing lots of college app essays this year anyway -.-)

You Are Not Here by Samantha Schutz

My rank: 9/10
Publisher: Push
Publication: October 2010
ISBN: 978-0-545-16911-0
Page Count: 304 Pages
Age Range: Young Adult
Source: Red Balloon Bookstore

Summary from author's website:

Annaleah and Brian had something special—Annaleah is sure of it. When they were together, they didn’t need anyone else. It didn’t matter that it was secret. All that mattered was what they shared.
And then, suddenly, Brian dies. And while everyone else has their role in the grieving process, Annaleah finds herself living on the outside of it, unacknowledged and lonely. How can you recover from a loss no one will let you have?

- - -

Whenever I read a love story, usually the book begins with the character's meeting or parting (and from then they solve the conflict and get back together). In You Are Not Here, Schutz took a different approach of Annaleah's story.

Brian and Annaleah hooked up a couple of times, but they weren't official. Neither Brian's friends or Annaleah's know each other, and they always hung out in secret. Annaleah lost her virginity to Brian, so it's natural for Annaleah to grieve when Brian died...except for the fact that Brian's family doesn't know about Annaleah.

In You Are Not Here, Schutz wrote about how Annaleah cope with Brian's death and not having anyone to talk to. Annaleah's mind is growing--and this book is filled with philosophical thoughts that will make the reader turn the pages for more.

- - -
What I like about this book: When I read the summary, I was thrilled to read this book. Then I opened the first page and noticed that it was in verses and not normal paragraphs. I was surprised and I thought about putting it down since I didn't think I would like it--but it worked, and I love it.

What I didn't like about this book: To be honest, the ending was a bit predictable. I would've liked it if Schutz didn't end the book the way it ended.

Bad Girls Don't Die by Katie Alender + Interview

My rank: 10/10 :D
Publisher: Hyperion Books for Children
Publication: April 21, 2009
ISBN: 978-1423108764
Page Count: 3522 Pages
Age Range: Young Adult
Source: Publisher

Get a chance to win this book and its sequel here.

I'm one of those people who are easily surprised, so scary (or 'scary') movies and books were never my thing. Then Bad Girls Don't Die came in the mail and even just by looking at the cover, I know this wasn't the kind of book I'd pick up in a bookstore.

Bad Girls Don't Die by Katie Alender is an elegant, spooky story about two sisters--the older is the social outcast and the younger, possessed.

Alexis is the social outcast--she skips school and gets called to the Principal's Office a lot. Kasey has problems--she doesn't have any friends or normal hobbies except taking care of her set of dolls in her room. Also, Kasey will hurt anyone who touches her dolls.

In the beginning of the book, Alexis realizes that there's something weird with Kasey lately. Kasey's...not herself. The shy Kasey suddenly turns out brave and vicious--'hell-bent on murder,' actually. Alexis questions Kasey's new judgment, but Kasey said she only tries to have fun with her nice, new 'friend.'

To stop Kasey from hurting everyone, Alexis bravely investigated and found out the connection of the ghost who possessed Kasey and the antique house they live in. Alexis only has one worry; Kasey's new 'friend' might hurt Alexis before Alexis stops them.

+ + +

So I told Katie Alender about how fascinated I was after reading her book, being someone who doesn't want to even get near scary stories and all.

1. This has probably been the most cliche question ever, but what
inspired you to write Bad Girls Don't Die?

The story came to me as a moment between two sisters, who are isolated
from other kids and from their parents and only have each other to
turn to. They make up stories for each other, and then the younger
sister starts making the stories come to life in a very creepy manner.
The book evolved from there into what it is today!

2. Have you ever stayed, lived or visited a house like Alexis and Kasey's?

Ooh, good question! Not that I can remember. But when I was in Ireland
a few years ago, we stayed in an extremely creepy hotel. It was the
very end of the season and there were only a few rooms rented in the
whole place. So we wandered down these curving, deserted hallways, and
it was SO creepy!

3. Whom are you more similar to; Photography-and-deviant-Alexis or
Pessimist-"Different"-Kasey?

I think I have a good dose of Alexis in me. Mostly in terms of being a
total smart-aleck! I always have a wisecrack, often when none is
called for. ;-) But there's a piece of Kasey in me, too. To be honest,
there's probably a piece of all my characters in me!

4. I DON'T like dolls/creepy stuff. Even Barbie dolls creeps me out
(and the crazy part is that I used to own one back in elementary). Do
you....have a..you know, passion for dolls? What made you centered Bad
Girls Don't Die with dolls?

No, I definitely don't have a passion for dolls. I liked them when I
was younger, although this past Christmas I went through my old dolls
and realized that most of them are incredibly spooky looking! The main
reason I chose dolls for the book is that they have the potential to
be so scary--not just because of what they are, but because of how we
project on them--little miniature personalities and lives. The funny
thing is, after writing the book, I'm much more freaked out about
dolls, because so many people sent me eerie pictures of them after
reading the book, LOL!

5. I see Carter as the normal savior in this book. He might not have
saved Kasey, but he was the one who kind of kept Alexis sane. What
role did you have in mind for Carter and did you accomplish your goal?

In early drafts, Carter was a bit more tied into solving the mystery,
but later I decided that role was better filled by another character.
Carter to me is kind of a bait for Alexis to grow as a person--a hint
at the sweetness and trust that can come from letting people get to
know you a little, instead of isolating yourself all the time.

6. Is it really weird to have a fan that DOES NOT like mystery/creepy
books, but ended up loving your series?

Well, not to me. Because I don't really love creepy books, and I wrote
the series! To me, at its core, this is a book about a girl--not a
book about ghosts. The ghost is a tool I used as a writer to get the
girl (Alexis) where I wanted her.

7. What's your favorite book of all time and why?

"Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen. It's such a sumptuous world to
lose yourself in--and the characters are so interesting and varied.

8. Thanks! This is the last question! What would you like to say to
anyone who has not read Bad Girls Don't Die?

What are you waiting for? LOL! No, I would say, don't be scared off by
the fact that it's called a horror novel. It's really more of a
thriller, in my opinion. The word "horror" turns a lot of people off
(it would have scared me away, for sure!), but this isn't a book with
lots of gore or anything. Just a few little scares!

Remember, you have a chance to win this book and its sequel (From Bad to Cursed) here!

Tired of Reading?

I just want to ask, has anybody (fellow book bloggers, especially) been tired of reading lately?
No offense to all of the authors out there who has sent me their books. I read them all. They're good. You've tried your best, thank you very much for letting me read them.

But they tend to have similar storyline lately, don't they?

Honestly, ever since Twilight came out, everything that covered the Teen sections in bookstores are all paranormal/dark romance. Yeah, it's interesting, but I kind of miss the simple, pure and innocent crush-stories.

I know that the normal love stories are still out there, it's just that the majority of what I've been reading are SIMILAR.

Like everything's based on Romeo and Juliet (the 'star-crossed lovers' part)...

I'm not dissing any of these books. Anybody understand what I mean...?

Blogoversary giveaway part 2

Hey there!

Sorry I haven't been updating this blog for a while. I do that sometimes when I don't feel like reading. Yes, as much as I LOVE reading...sometimes it can get boring. You know, having to read so many books with SIMILAR themes...

But anyway. I'm not slacking. I've BEEN reading books. I just don't feel like posting the reviews yet... I've just been golfing. A lot. >.> And playing Final Fantasy Crisis Core on my PSP that the Japanese Rotarians gave me.

Aaaand like I promised, here's more books to giveaway! (Again, reviews for these books are coming soon, if not existing).

*PB - PaperBack *HC - HardCover *ARC - Advanced Review Copies *S - Signed/has a signed bookplate attached to it *ALL prize packs also contains some signed random bookmarks/goodies. :)

MYSTERY SOUL PACK: The Body Finder (HC) + Desires of the Dead (HC) + extra Body Finder goodies (S) by Kimberly Derting
DARK PACK: The Forest of Hands and Teeth (PB) + The Dead-Tossed Waves (HC) by Carrie Ryan
VAMPIRE PACK: The Society of S (PB) + The Year of Disappearance (PB) + The Season of Risks (PB) by Susan Hubbard
CURSES PACK: Bad Girls Don't Die (HC) + From Bad to Cursed (ARC) by Katie Alender

...Anybody else notices that somehow these 4 packs are all dark-themed...?

..Anyway. Fill THIS form out to enter. ANYBODY CAN ENTER. THIS CONTEST OPENS INTERNATIONALLY UNTIL AUGUST 30TH. MUST BE A FOLLOWER OF THIS BLOG TO ENTER.

See, if you think this blogoversary giveaway is big...wait until next summer, when I'm off to college (that means I'd have to clean up my room and take only the most beloved books that I can't just part souls with ;D)!!!

My Life Undecided by Jessica Brody

My rank: 8/10
Publisher: FSG for Young Readers
Publication: May 2011
ISBN: 978-0374399054
Page Count: Pages
Age Range: Young Adult
Source: Publisher

Get a chance to win this book HERE!!!

Book summary (from Goodreads):

PLEASE READ THIS! MY LIFE DEPENDS ON IT!

Okay, maybe that was a bit melodramatic, but I’m sorry, I’m feeling a bit melodramatic at the moment.

Here’s the deal. My name is Brooklyn Pierce, I’m fifteen years old, and I am decisionally challenged. Seriously, I can’t remember the last good decision I made. I can remember plenty of crappy ones though. Including that party I threw when my parents were out of town that accidentally burned down a model home. Yeah, not my finest moment, for sure.

But see, that’s why I started a blog. To enlist readers to make my decisions for me. That’s right. I gave up. Threw in the towel. I let someone else be the one to decide which book I read for English. Or whether or not I accepted an invitation to join the debate team from that cute-in-a-dorky-sort-of-way guy who gave me the Heimlich Maneuver in the cafeteria. (Note to self: Chew the melon before swallowing it.) I even let them decide who I dated!

Well, it turns out there are some things in life you simply can’t choose or have chosen for you—like who you fall in love with. And now everything’s more screwed up than ever.

But don’t take my word for it, read the book and decide for yourself. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll scream in frustration. Or maybe that’s just me. After all, it’s my life.

My Review:

My Life Undecided by Jessica Brody is a fun read. Dramatic but simple, it is very engaging and fast-paced. Just like The Karma Club (another book by Jessica Brody), it is one of those books that'll make you laugh out loud! I gave it an 8/10 because it was missing a huge chunk of the story. The whole conflict between Brooklyn and Shayne was explained, but only briefly. It makes the book feels incomplete.

Brooklyn Pierce's life has been filled with bad judgments; so she made a blog and let her readers makes decisions for her. It's a crazy choice to do this--her followers made Brooklyn tried out for the girls' Rugby team, but they also made sure she stayed out of trouble. When "Red" (Brook uses code names on her blog) appears and shows interest on Brooklyn, her reader told her to stay away from Red and keep talking to the other guy whom she never noticed before.

Good: Fun, funny. I kept laughing the whole time, seriously.

Bad: Again, the conflict between Brooklyn and Shayne (her best friend) wasn't explained thoroughly. It wasn't enough...

Summer Freebies for Blogoversary!

Dear Scholarberry readers! August is Scholarberry's Blogoversary month! This page will be updated each time I have more books to giveaway, so keep reading!
As of right now, I have 8 (and counting) set of freebies to giveaway!

Here is the catch, though...everyone who enters the freebies has to be a Scholarberry follower!

Here is the list of books up for grabs! *Every freebies pack will also include bookmarks/swags. Books which hasn't been reviewed yet will be reviewed soon. CLICK ON THE TITLE FOR REVIEW!

1. ROMANCE PACK Perfect Chemistry (paperback) + Rules of Attraction (hardcover) by Simone Elkeles
2. LIFE PACK My Life Undecided by Jessica Brody (hardcover) + Tangled (hardcover) by Carolyn Mackler
3. BEAUTY PACK Beauty Queens (hardcover) by Libba Bray + Getting Revenge on Lauren Wood (hardcover) by Eileen Cook
4. WOLVES PACK Claire de Lune (hardcover + signed bookplate) by Christine Johnson + ARC of Low Red Moon by Ivy Devlin
5. TALES PACK Wither (hardcover) by Lauren DeStefano + Kiss Me Deadly (13 paranormal tales) (ARC)
6. GREEK PACK The Lightning Thief (paperback) + The Sea of Monsters (paperback) by Rick Riordan
7. TOP 8 PACK Top 8 (paperback) + What's Your St@tus? (paperback) + Unfriended (ARC) by Katie Finn
8. LIAR PACK Signed copy of Flawless (paperback) by Lara Chapman + Poser (ARC) by Sue Whyshynski

Fill out the form HERE! This contest ends August 30th and it's open INTERNATIONALLY! SPREAD THE WORD!

P.S: If all goes well, I might add more prizes :D

Foreshadowing Monday: Happy July 4th, Boston Terrier!

Here is a post for July 4th! Credit goes to the 150 soldiers who serviced USA and sung this!



And here's the random Boston Terrier dog my dad found on youtube....

Pretty random, huh? I have my laughs, lol. It makes some random, unique noise when it's tickled. Here's another weird animal video. To the cat lovers!

So I decided that Monday should be a fun day (since when the school year starts, it's gonna be BORING) and included some literature too. Foreshadowing Monday will be where I post an article, video or anything related to one (or all) of the reviews I'm going to do this week.

As you can see from the video...it will have something to do with animals. xD

Enjoy your 4th of July!

And here's Katy Perry's Fireworks, for everyone who's going to watch fireworks tonight all over USA!!! Happy birthday, USA <3

Lastly....this is a cover of Katy Perry's E.T (this is my favorite song). I think this is two of the best covers out there. xD

Nippon Ichi: Cage of Eden

Hey Scholarberry readers, so Friday is officially Manga Review day for Scholarberry. Nippon Ichi means Japan #1 (As in, anything that's awesome from Japan will be post under that title). Why manga, you might ask? It's a big part of Japanese culture (and also a source to learn about Japan). Plus, it's graphic novel. With manga, the conversations are alive because of the pictures. This is why I chose to start reviewing manga on my blog.

I hope more people can enjoy reading manga and not only see it as something for middle-schooler to read.

The first manga is Cage of Eden (or Eden no Ori). You can read it for free on Mangafox.com here. It is rated MATURE because of the violence and some revealing pictures. I usually don't read ecchi manga because other than the fact that it's unrealistic (some girls in ecchi manga has breasts the size of watermelons...), it's just plain dirty and nothing else. But I was looking for "action" type of manga when I came across Cage of Eden.

Cage of Eden/Eden no Ori - Yamada Yoshinobu

Cage of Eden is made for readers who enjoys reading The Lord of The Flies by William Golding. The students in a high school in Japan goes to a school trip to Hawaii (Culture: The middle school students usually takes trip all over Japan in their last year of middle school while the high school students goes to Kyoto, Tokyo or Oosaka. The private schools often goes out of the country, to places like Hawaii and Australia). The manga started with the scenes in a plane, when the students are ready to depart from Hawaii back to Japan.

Then their plane crashed on an island that's not listed in the map...and hence began their survival time.

Ancient animals--from all the way to dinosaurs' period of time--attacked them. Danger lurks everywhere. They hope to somehow find the plane again to use the radio communicating device.

This manga shows what humans will do if they are put in certain situations. It's for fans of The Hunger Games Series, Battle Royale (it's a Japanese movie--for those who aren't familiar with it, check it out!) and The Lord of the Flies. It is an on-going series. Enjoy!

Huge by Sasha Paley

"Look, I don't want to be friends."

My rank: 3/10
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Publication: 2007
ISBN: 978-1-4424-1718-2
Page Count: 259 Pages
Age Range: Young Adult
Source: Publisher

Wil is a rich brat who doesn't want to exercise. Her parents owns Excalibur Gym, the biggest fitness group in USA. So of course, they would want Wil to be, you know, skinny. Fit.

But Wil does not want to be skinny. Which is the total opposite of April, who saved each of her penny to go to Wellness Canyon--the camp to be fit.

Wil and April ended up being roommates, and when both thought their summer couldn't get worse, they both fell for Colin (the only boy worth drooling and swooning over at Wellness Canyon).

Who will get Colin's heart and will Wil and April survive their summer?

- - -

I love the idea of Huge by Sasha Paley. I didn't watch the show from ABC as I don't have cable (nor I watch that many TV shows), so I don't know anything about the show. The idea is good. Opposites always attracts--in a way. But Huge's character is a little bit too dramatic for me. It's like reading a girl in middle school's diary about pure complaining. DRAMA.

AS: OyMG by Amy Fellner Dominy and Freebie!

"What Jewish girl goes to a Christian camp?"

My rank: 8/10

Publisher: Bloomsbury USA

Publication: 05.11.2011

ISBN: 978-0-8027-2177-8

Page Count: 256 Pages

Age Range: Young Adult

Source: Publisher

The Freebie:

An ARC of OyMG, signed bookplate (attached to the ARC) and bookmarks OR a magnetic poetry of OyMG and bookmarks are available for grabs! Continue reading and you'll find out how to get it! Fill out this FORM!

Ellie Taylor loves to argue. She loves her debate team and was thrilled when she had her chance to go Christian Society Speech and Performing Arts Camp (CSSPA; one of the best summer camps for incoming freshmen to compete on speech and debate teams). There is one chance to fulfill her dreams, and that's by winning the CSSPA scholarship to go to Benedict's.

Zeydeh ("grandfather" in Jewish) lives and breathes Jewish. To Ellie's Zeydeh, it's not just a religion. So when Ellie tells the family she's going for the scholarship, of course Zeydeh protests. But since this is for Ellie's dream, he has to support it whether he like it or not.

Then Ellie met Devon. Devon Yeats--the grandson of Doris Yeats (the one who sponsors the scholarship for Benedict's) and had a sizzle even before Ellie knows his last name. Ellie has to prove herself worthy for the scholarship--but apparently Doris Yeats isn't fond of Jews. Hence, Ellie put "Christian" as her religion.

How will Ellie deal with Zeydeh, Doris Yeats and Devon?

The story is fresh and original. When I first heard about this book, I had my doubts (Religion, after all, is kind of a touchy topic no matter who you are). But I was hooked to read it from the very first page. Dominy's voice kept me going. Quick and witty at times, with a spark of drama that we deal with everyday (even if we don't realize it or not).

Author Spotlight:

1. Ever since you were younger, did you always want to be a
writer? How old were you when you started writing?
I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t writing something. But
the first time I thought about it seriously was when my dad
suggested I submit a story I’d written to American Girl Magazine.
I sent it in when I was thirteen years old—and American Girl
Magazine sent me my first rejection letter. (I still have it!)

2. What inspired you to write OyMG!?
I think most of us grow up feeling different in one way or
another. For me, I was one of the only Jewish kids in my school.
I was proud of my faith, but at times (especially Christmas!) it
was just plain hard. I wanted to be like everyone else.
Then something happened to me when I was Ellie’s age. I
got fired from a babysitting job when the family found out I was
Jewish. Of course that’s stayed with me over the years. It’s hard
to understand hate like that—at any age. The question is how
do we handle it? How far will we go to conform and fit in? What
part of ourselves are we willing to hide? From that question, Ellie
Taylor and OyMG came to life.

3. Does religion matter? How much?
Religion has been an important part of my life and it’s definitely
helped define who I am. But I think religion is only as good as
the people who practice it. For me, it’s more important to focus
on being a good person, on trying to accept and understand
people and repair the world in any way possible. It doesn’t
require religion to do those things.

4. What do you want to convey when you wrote OyMG!?
It’s really a story about a girl trying to figure out who she is and
learning to accept herself, differences and all. I hope teens who
read the book will realize that our differences are what make us
special—that it’s okay to speak up and speak out. And hopefully,
to be more aware of how they might judge others.

5. I love speech team! Was this something you did back when
you were in high school, or did you need to research for this
specific novel? Please tell me your experience with speech!
I can understand why you love speech team! I only participated
in one tournament in high school—but it was a dramatic event
because theater was my first love. So when I started this book,
I contacted a speech coach at a local high school and followed his
team to a tournament. After that, I was hooked! Impromptu and
oratory were two of the events I watched the most—and maybe
that’s why I featured them in the story. (And now I’m kicking
myself that I didn’t do speech in high school—so much fun!)

6. I checked your website and know that your second book is on
the way! Would you be willing to give some info about this??? :D
Thanks for asking—I’m so excited for this one! Audition and
Subtraction will be out fall 2012, again from Walker & Company.
It’s about fourteen-year-old Tatum who could lose her spot
in District Honor Band—and her best friend—when a new guy
transfers to her school. Friendships shift and romance sparks in
unexpected places.

7. What do we need to do in order to get the freebie?
An OyMG magnetic poetry is up for grabs. Just leave a
comment…and if you can include a Yiddish word you’ll get a
double entry!

P.S: Don't forget to fill this form!

8. Thank you very much for your time! Is there anything else you
would like to say to OyMG! readers?
Just that I hope you like the book! If you have any thoughts or
comments, I’d love to hear from you at amy@amydominy.com

WANTED: HERO by Jaime Buckley

"I'm ALIIIIVE! AND I'M NAKED!"

My Rating: 8/10
Publisher: On The Fly Publications
Publication: 05.27.2011
ISBN: 978-1-61463-001-2
Page Count: 106
Age Range: YA

WANTED: HERO is a fresh, dramatic and fast-paced tale of Wendell P. Dipmier whose life changed drastically after being kidnapped by an alien named Dax.

Wendell isn't cool--he's always been the sidekick of his best friend, Evan Matthews. Evan is hot, liked by everyone and of course, popular. Wendell is the total opposite of Evan. Wendell's wimpy, not popular and squeaks like a little girl. Oh, and Wendell's a drama queen.

In the first book of the series, Wendell gets kidnapped by Dex (the alien who smokes) and brought to the High Elder (whose skin is blue and wears a 'dress') to get punctured on the heart by a super-sized diamond. Wendell thought he was dead...until he felt the cold floors on his butt. Naked butt.

What I like about this book: It's fast-paced and it's funny. It's kind of weird to have a boy acting as the drama queen, but it works. I also felt like I was reading a comic book the whole time--it was very graphic and the speech was more leaning towards a comic book's style of speech. But hey! It works!!!! :D

What I dislike about the book: The plot was somewhat dragging a little more than it could be. A couple too many pages dwelling on the same scene, but that's alright.

Thanks to Evan Buckley for the ePub copy! :D I look forward to reading the second book!

Original Personalized Bookmarks by M.E.

There's one more thing you don't know about Scholarberry's writer; she loves to draw! I have a deviantart account that is rarely updated since I'm busy (even my journal says I'm still in Japan >.<) but here is the link to my deviantart account!

So...I was bored. The Copic Markers that I bought in Japan was untouched...and POOF! I cut some white thick papers and started drawing. The sign on the lower left says my name in katakana in Japanese. It's a hanko (their version of 'signature') stamp. I carved mine out for a calligraphy lesson in Japan, and since I can't use that to sign in the US...well, I'm gonna make a use out of it anyway :D

I'm thinking to put it as a giveaway every month--maybe a couple of people will get one every month. But I'm also thinking to sell it--name the theme and I'll draw it for you! What do you think? Good enough to sell $0.25 per bookmark?