Book of a Thousand Days

Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale is a very intriguing book. Once you start you just can’t put it down. There is adventure and romance. The book is written in a diary form, so it is in first person point of view. Out of 1 to 10 (10 being the highest) I would rate Book of a Thousand Days a 9. Enjoy.

The book starts out with Dashti and Saren in a tower. Dashti is a lady’s mucker (someone who heals with songs)  maid, and Saren is a gentry lady. The two of them are in a tower locked away because of Lady Saren’s choice of marriage. She was told, by her father, to marry a lord who she despises. The lord is an evil man, he is vicious and ferocious. So Saren and her maid, Dashti are locked in a tower for seven years. While in the tower gentry men come. One they talk to and welcome, by talking to them through a dump hole for their wast, the other is the evil lord, they stay away from the dump hole as to not get hurt. After about two years, Saren and Dashti’s food run low because rates have gotten into the supply. Because the girls are locked in the dark tower so long, Lady Saren starts to see things that aren’t there. The girls find a way to live and end up having a grand adventure afterwords.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (spoiler alert)

I saw the Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince movie the day it came out. It was really good! (as a movie) They left many things out. For example, Bill and Fleur, Fenrir Grayback, and the big battle at the end. I think the battle at the end would have made a much better ending rather than Harry and Hermione talking on the top of a tower. How are they supposed to start the first part of the seventh book because it starts with Bill and Fleur’s wedding. I don’t even think Bill Weasley is even in any of the movies. They also added many things. For example, when Dumbledore died, everyone held up they wands with light coming from the tips, it was so stupid. I mean come on, who holds up a wand when someone dies? Where they lighting his way to Heaven or something? Also, they added a large amount of comedy, yeah it was funny, but none of it fallowed the book. In the cave when Harry and Dumbledore we retreiving a horcrux, everyone in the theater jumped when the zombie water monster things (sorry I forget what they’re called) grabbed Harry’s writst. I really don’t see how the movie is rated PG, there is blood and scarry scenes. Oh, well just watching it as a movie it was good, but just don’t compare it with the book.

Secret Life of Bees

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd is an amazing book . Her writing style just makes the story form in your mind perfectly.

Summary: The book takes place in 1964. Lily Owens is a fourteen-year-old girl who just wants to fit in. She lives with her father, T. Ray. T. Ray has a peach farm and sells peaches for a living. Lily has been abused by her father. He hits her, yells at her, and makes her kneel on grits. Lily’s mother, Deborah, was killed when she was really young. So Rosaleen, a black nanny, takes care of her. Rosaleen and Lily go into town to register Rosaleen as a voter, but gets arrested. T. Ray says that Lily’s mother left them before she was killed. Lily says that is a lie and runs away and takes Rosaleen with her, by breaking her out of jail. She plans to go to Tiburon, South Carolina. The city is written on the back of a picture of the black Mary. The picture was her mother’s, so Lily plans to go there and learn all she can about her mother. Rosaleen and Lily hitchhike to Tiburon, S.C. They go into a store to get food and lily sees the same picture of the black Mary on honey jars, and she asks the storeowner where he got the honey jars. So Lily and Rosaleen end up going to the house of August Boatwright, the maker of the honey. August lives in a bright pink house with her sisters June and May.  At first Lily doesn’t tell them why she has come she makes up a story that she and Rosaleen are traveling to her aunts in Virginia because both of her parents have died. Rosaleen and Lily stay at the Boatwrights for a long time before Lily finally comes clean about her life and past with August. To find out what happens when they are at the Boatwrights and after they know Lily’s past just read The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd.

Thoughts: This book is a good read for people of all ages. There is romance, adventure, abuse, and tragedy all combined into one book. The writing is easily understood and is very well done. Hope you will keep reading!

LOTR

As I said before, I watched Lord of The Rings for the first time last summer. Well, I just watched it again. It was just as good. But this time I’ve read The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings.

My sister and I noticed many things that we didn’t notice before. Such as in one scene Aragorn has a bloodied scape and then a couple seconds later when you see him again he doesn’t. We were really confused, so we had to go back a couple of minutes and watch it again.  Everything I said before is the same, so no bother in repeating it. One major thing was none of the characters, save the elves, have clean hands. I mean come on. The Fellowship is staying with elves during parts, so you’d guess they would wash their hands, but no they don’t. When The Fellowship is staying with the elves in Lothlorien Legolas (who is awesome) gets this really pretty, and girly, nightgown when everyone else has to stay in all of their travel clothes. I mean come on. What’s with that?

I still love Legolas and his eyebrows!    (that lines gets an entire line hehe)

Well, I like the actors/actresses outfits even more. But not the hobits feet, they are just discutsting. The dresses are so flowy and beautiful. I just want to wear them. Now I really want to be in the show business. Aragorn’s outfits are just awsome, but where did the bow and arrows come from? He didn’t have them in the books. Oh well.

My sister and I have one question that we can’t figure and answer for. If in the Hobbit, Gandalf if friends with these giant eagles and the eagles saved him from the top of Isengard, then why didn’t they just ride on the eagles instead of making the treacherous journey? I mean wouldn’t riding the eagles have been a whole lot faster and easier?

I have to say the movies and better then the books. Sorry for all you who love the books.

Uglies

Uglies is a book by Scott Westerfeld. Uglies takes place in the future, sort of. The world is said to be a perfect world. When you are born you are a littlie. Then at 12 you become an ugly. When you turn 16 you have a surgery and become a new pretty. Then you have another surgery and become a middle-pretty. Next you become a late-pretty. All the  social classes/ age groups are separated into different sections in the city. People use hovercrafts and hoverboards to get around mostly. Everyone has to wear an interference ring which tells the runners of the city were you are, so everyone has to stay inside the city limits.

Summery: Imagine you live in a perfect world. Well that’s exactly what Tally Youngblood, an ugly, thought. Her best childhood friend , Peris, has already turned into a new pretty and she is feeling really lonely because her birthday is 3 months after Peris’s. When Tally takes an exciting adventure to New Pretty Town, where uglies aren’t allowed, and she causes some commotion. While she is running away from the wardens, people sort of like the police, Tally meets another ugly named Shay. Shay is also very lonely because her friends are all gone, too. Shay and Tally become fast friends. Then even have the same birthday! Tally and Shay share all of their tricks. Shay teaches Tally to hoverboard and they go to the Rusty Ruins which are outside of the city during the night. While at the ruins they have a great time, but when Shay tries to signal a guy named David, Tally starts to think Shay is crazy. Then a week before their birthdays Shay brings supplies to run away to Tally’s dorm. Shay is going to run away with the David guy to a place called Smoke and stay ugly and she wants Tally to come, too. But, Tally wants to stay and become pretty. So Shay leaves Tally a note with directions in code of how to get to the Smoke.  Shay also tells Tally she must never tell anyone about the note or were she went. On Tally’s birthday she is all set to become pretty, but there is a problem. Tally is taken the Special Circumstances, people who everyone thinks don’t exist. Tally is given two choices she must either go to Smoke following Shay’s directions and betray Shay by reveling where Smoke is or stay ugly for life and be an outcast. What will Tally choose?

Thoughts: Uglies is a really really good book. Many people kept saying Uglies was a really good book, but I didn’t think I would like it. But, I was completely wrong! Scott Westerfelf has a great writing style that just catches you attention quickly. If asked I would most deffinetly recomend this book to anyone.

Book Review Apology

I have been looking at other book reviews and now mine will be a lot better, this is the first time I have ever done a book review. Sorry.

River Secrets by Shannon Hale

Okay, so I just finished reading River Secrets by Shannon Hale. It is a great book. Well, any book of Shannon Hale’s is great. Anyway, River Secrets is the third book in the Bayern series. This one is about Isi’s and Enna’s friend Razo. Razo is part of Bayern’s Own, the king’s best army. In Enna’s Burning  there is a way between Bayern and Tira. Because of the war in River Secrets some people go to Tira so they will be living among them. There are may soldiers who go including Razo, the Bayern ambassator, and Enna. In Tira the Bayern keep finding burned bodies. The bodies are put close to the Bayern people, so it looks like the Bayern are burning them with thier “fire witch,” Enna. Razo is given a mission to find who is burning the bodies and stop them before the vote for war. The book is thrilling and exciting. I just couldn’t put is down. If you have nothing to do pick up a Shannon Hale book and read!

Shannon Hale I Love You!

If you have never read Shannon Hale’s book, I really think you should. Her The Goose Girl, Enna Burning, and Princess Academy are all really good.

The Goose Girl is about a girl named Anidori-Kiladra Taliana Isilee who is a princess. Then she is destened to marry an unknown prince from another kingdom, but something happens and Anidori ends up being the kings goose girl not the ruler of the new kingdom. To find out what happens you need to read the book.

Enna Burning is the first sequel to The Goose Girl. Anidori’s best friend from being the goose girl is the main character. He name is Enna. Enna’s brother has a new power. Then two kingdoms are having a war. Enna’s brother is killed from his new found power. Enna then learns her brother’s power and is overwelmbed by it. Enna gets captured by the enemy and betrays a friend. What will happen to Enna? Read Enna’s Burning to find out.

Princess Academy is about a girl named Miri. Miri is a small girl and she always dreams of growing. A teacher comes to Miri’s village and makes a princess academy. At the academy, Miri breaks the rules all the time and is always being made fun of.  When troubles come to the academy and village Miri has to do something, but what will she do? To find out read Princess Academy.

I think everyone should read all of Shannon Hale’s books. I am working on reading them all. Pick up a book and read, hopefully it will be Shannon Hale!

Snow Day

We had a snow day!!! My school hardly ever closes. I got up and got ready for school and I was told we didn’t have school.  I had two of my best friends over. First we worked on a costume for a skit (it is an elephant costume). But after about two hours we gave up. We were having trouble making the elephant costume walk correctly, but that’s beside the point. We decided to go sleding. When we got to the best sleding hill in our town, it was really busy. So we went down hill a couple of times and then found our own little hill through some of the trees. We went down, but couldn’t find a way back up. So we started climbing up the part we went down. All of us kept sliding down because there was ice under the snow and the hill was pretty steep. Eventually my friend was able to find a way up and we followed her lead and went the same way and were able to get up. After a while, a family came over to where we are and went down, but they couldn’t get back up either. We tried to tell them how, but they wouldn’t listen. So they left. That was allright with us, we were happy by ourselves. After the family left, we sled for a little while longer and then walked to the best bakery in town and had great hot chocolate.  All of us were really happy we had a SNOW DAY!!

Cookies!

I made cookies with my mom and sister! One day we made sugar cookies. They turned out to be great. I remember one year when my mom was cooking the cookies and she forgot about them, so they turned out burnt. My entire family was making fun of her. My dad’s response was “They aren’t burnt, they’re just extra crispy.” Well, we’re all glad that episode didn’t happen again this year. The day before we made the sugar cookies we were looking for mini m&m’s but couldn’t find them. It was good that I had some in my Halloween candy left. We also, couldn’t find colored sugars that weren’t about $4 for the smallest package. So we had to use red and green and whatever we had from last year. We also, made chocolate chip and chocolate chip m&m cookies. We had to freeze some sugar, chocolate chip, and chocolate chip m&m cookies for Christmas Eve. If we didn’t they would all be eaten. All of our cookies turned out great!