Welcome to my blog! I hope you enjoy your stay :]

Monday, October 31, 2011

I should be writing a paper, but...

I can't concentrate! I only have to B.S. a couple more pages, and I can be done. Arg.

We just started a research project-thing in my English class with A House on Mango Street. Consequently, I keep referring to my blog as "Mango's Blog" in my head. But "Mango" is not my nickname (although I would be totally fine with it if it were, mangoes are the single most delicious fruit on the planet). Mato is my nickname (from tomato, also a delicious fruit). You would think I'd be able to distinguish between them. Huh.

This is the last day to enter my Spooktacular Halloween Giveaway!!! If you haven't yet, hop to it. You want XVI. You know you do.

On that note, thank you to all you lovely people! I'm kind of shocked I have so many followers now. It's because you like free books, isn't it? I'm planning an AWESOME giveaway for Christmas time. Seriously, AWESOME. Stick around for that.

Also! I will do a giveaway when I reach 100 followers. Spread the word. If that happens before December (and my awesome Christmas giveaway), that means more chances to win books! Right before the holiday, too, which is convenient, isn't it?

Happy Halloween!

All right, back to my paper . . .

*Edited: Originally I said that mangoes were the most delicious flute on the planet. (The paper I was writing was about jazz flutes.) Though if a flute was mango flavored, I would totally love it.*

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Youtube Tuesday!

My two favorite bad-guy songs:


Ah! Aren't they so evil? I love them. I'm still glad when they get defeated, but the bad guys are just more fun then the heroes.

Who are your favorite animated villains? Do they have amazing songs too?

Sunday, October 23, 2011

Spooktacular Giveaway Hop!



Welcome to my stop on the Spooktacular Giveaway Hop, hosted by I Am A Reader Not A Writer and The Diary of a Bookworm! For the complete list of participating blogs, go to either website.

I am giving away one of my favorite dystopians of 2011, XVI by Julia Karr:



The synopsis from Julia Karr's website :

"In the year 2150, being a girl isn’t necessarily a good thing, especially when your sixteenth (read sex-teenth) birthday is fast approaching. That in itself would be enough to make anyone more than a little nuts, what with the tattoo and all – but Nina Oberon’s life has taken a definite turn for the worse. Her mother is brutally stabbed and left for dead. Before dying, she entrusts a secret book to Nina, telling her to deliver it to Nina's father. But, first Nina has to find him; since for fifteen years he's been officially dead. Complications arise when she rescues Sal, a mysterious, and ultra hot guy. He seems to like Nina, but also seems to know more about her father than he’s letting on. Then there’s that murderous ex-government agent who’s stalking her, and just happens to be her little sister’s dad."

To enter:

If you are under 18 you must have a parent's permission to enter.

Be a follower of this blog and leave a comment on this post with your name and e-mail address, so I can contact you if you win. Open to US only.

Giveaway runs through the 31st, and I'll be announcing the winner shortly thereafter. Good luck, guys!

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Youtube . . . Saturday?

Well, um, should we pretend it's Tuesday? No, becuase that would mean it's not the weekend, and we would have to go through last week ALL. OVER. AGAIN.

Yeah, no.

So may I present to you, for your amusement, Youtube Saturday:


And because I'm five days late, I'll give you another:



Enjoy your weekend, guys! :]

Friday, October 14, 2011

A thought on YA

This week I ordered books! I'm going to have a reading marathon during fall break next month, and I wanted to buy some new books for it. I ended up getting three:

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin
http://michellehodkin.blogspot.com/p/books.html



Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi (Pre-Order)
http://stiryourtea.blogspot.com/p/books.html

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver
http://laurenoliverbooks.blogspot.com/p/books.html



There was a list of new-releases I wanted to buy, but I narrowed it down to two. (Part of my being a "responsible adult.") Then Amazon told me if I spent $3.01 + more, I'd qualify for free shipping. So I added Before I Fall, which I've read before and LOVE and have been wanting to buy. It was the responsible thing to do, guys. I had to. Think of all the money I saved on shipping.

Anyway, I showed my mom the books I was thinking of getting (before it was narrowed down to two) to see if there was one she'd want to read, too. This led to an interesting discovery.

She thought all the books were weird.

I mean, I know YA isn't the child development and faith development books she reads for her work. It's not that weird, though.

Her problem with them? She thought they were all about girls in distress situations, who had to be saved by a love interest. She also made fun of me because each one had a love interest.

Which made me think, YA does have a lot of love interests. When was the last time I read a YA novel that didn't have romance?

I disagreed about the whole damsel-in-distress angle she claimed they had, though. (The Pledge, Shatter Me, Daughter of Smoke and Bone, and The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer are the books she's talking about.) I'm a girl, gosh darn it, but I don't need to be saved by some guy. Neither do the girls I read about.

After looking at more reviews on-line, she decided maybe they're not just damsels being saved. (Maybe she was just trying to placate me, though.) She still though Daughter of Smoke and Bone looked really weird. She picked out Shatter Me as the one she'd read.

So, anyway, I got an outsider's view on YA, and now I'm going to try and find a YA that doesn't have romance. (Romance is one of the things that is often done poorly in YA, anyway.) Think it's possible?

My books are being shipped in one package, so I won't get them until Shatter Me comes out in November, right before fall break. I can't wait to read them, and see what my mom ends up thinking about Shatter Me.

New look . . . again

I took off the tomato picture. I like this blog design better. It's all tan and calming. Is this just me, or are you feeling the calming-tan-look to?

I'm thinking of putting a picture of my kitty behind the tittle, because she's so darn cute. I'd have to upload it to the computer though, and that takes effort . . .

Friday

Hey guys! It's Friday. My brain is a mess.

1. I was supposed to have a quiz in Animal Science today, but it was postponed to Wednesday. (We found this out on Tuesday.) Anyway, this is really, really good, because last night I had 62 math problems and 2 speech quizzes due by 11:59. I got done at 11:50. Seriously. There would have been no time to study for AVS and sleep, so I love my AVS teacher.

2. I must have set my alarm wrong, because this morning I woke up 30 minutes late. I had 25 minutes to get ready and leave for school. This meant: no shower and no breakfast (I grabbed a pack of fruit snacks and a string cheese, which don't really count). Wonderful.

3. But actually, the no breakfast thing actually was kind of good, because I was able to pay attention all the way through math. Usually I'm fighting sleep in that class.

4. Does this mean I'm skipping breakfast from now on? Not a chance. I love me some cereal.

5. It's Friday, but I have a ton of homework this weekend. A TON. Why does college never end? Can it be fall break yet? Christmas break? Summer break? Hmm, summer.

6. I read Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins this week. (That's why I had so much work left last night . . . ) Anyway, review coming soon.

7. We're reading Shakespeare's "Midsummer Night's Dream" in English. Our teacher put us in groups and we're acting out a scene on Monday. My group is doing the scene where everyone falls asleep in the foggy forest. There are 5 characters. There are 6 of us in my group.

8. That's right. Guess who's the fog?

9. Yup. I'm going to be so amazing.

10. Puck has been added to my "Favorite Shakespeare Characters List." Iago was feeling lonely.

11. Oh, gosh, I love Iago. He's so evil! Last year we watched the production from the globe theatre, and I actually enjoyed it. Watching Shakespeare. It was a first.

12. And now I kind of like his plays more. It must be an acquired taste.

13. Why is this a list?

14. I like the way the numbers look.

15. I want a puppy.

16. Also!  My rabbit might be pregnant! Oh, please, please be pregnant. I want cute baby bunnies.

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Friday, October 7, 2011

Want to read the first few chapters of some upcoming books? You're in luck . . .

Check out Penguin’s Teen Spring Sampler, featuring BORN WICKED & CATASTROPHIC HISTORY, here: tinyurl.com/penguinsneakpeek @jessica_shea
 
By the way, Born Wicked looks AWESOME and it really needs to be February already, because I really want to read it.

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Shall I name thee Youtube Tuesday?


I saw Michael in concert this summer, and it was awesome.

So y'all, this is the third Tuesday I've posted a YouTube video. Shall we make it official and call Tuesdays "YouTube Tuesday?" I think so.

And because I'm so nice, I'll give you another one today as well.


Oh, Gaelic Storm, how I love you.