Princess books at Lowes

Who knew you could read princess books while sitting in a pink chair at Lowes? ;)

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Our next read aloud!

Lily's catching up on some recommended 5th grade Common Core literature. :) 

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin is our next read aloud! I've never read it before so I'm excited! :)

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I heart Powells!

What I love about buying books from Powells is that even though it's a "used" book, it's still beautiful like a brand new one. That and supporting indie bookstores!!!

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Longing for autumn...

I could do without the snowy winters, but I wouldn't mind having a real fall. 

Who's with me?


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Upcoming reviews!

Upcoming reviews from Atria Books! 

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If You Give a Child a Book...

An easy way to get books into the hands of children - and it only takes a second!

The Big e-Reader Decision :: New Amazon Kindles

Amazon just released it's new line of Kindles today! I have been anxiously awaiting this announcement for months now because I think the Kindle is the e-Reader I'd like to purchase. Plus, this would mean that I could finally the galleys that I get from NetGalley directly instead of on my computer.

An exciting piece of news is that you can borrow books from your public library directly onto your Kindle now! As long as it is a U.S. library that offers digital services from OverDrive, you can borrow books right onto your Kindle. Yay! You can read more about it here.

Please check out Amazon's website for all the quick tour videos. If you pre-order it now, it will start shipping in November. Right in time for Christmas! :)

Disclaimer: I do not claim to be an expert BY ANY MEANS about e-Readers, especially considering how indecisive I've been about it for over a year now. These are just my thoughts and the information that I've gathered from digging through Amazon's website.

Here are some of the interesting features about the new Kindles:

Kindle e-Reader with Wi-Fi, 6"display

 

This model looks like Amazon's response to Barnes and Nobles' latest NOOK because it has very similar specs - 6 inches and e-ink screen. Amazon is touting is as the smallest, lightest Kindle ever. With special offers (aka ads) it is $79 and without it, it is $109.

• Battery life: 1 month
• On-device storage: 2 GB storage space for 1,400 books
• Cloud storage: Unlimited for Amazon content (free!)
• Interface: 5-way controller 

My opinion: I like the idea of have a really small e-Reader because of the convenience of being able to carry it around and the really low price tag makes it quite enticing, but I think I'd like a bigger e-Reader. (Especially since I always carry around a huge purse full of random stuff anyway.)

Kindle Touchscreen e-Reader with Wi-Fi / 3G, 6" E-Ink Display

Touchscreen! YAY! Everything is touchscreen nowadays and every time I've had the Kindle in my hands before, I would find myself poking at the screen even though it wouldn't do anything. I'm so used to using my iPhone that it's hard to have a huge screen that you can't poke around at. :)

• Wi-Fi: With special offers, this one costs $99 and without, $139
• 3G: With special offers, $149 and without, $189. (No monthly fees!)
• Battery life: 2 months
• On-device storage: 4 GB storage space for 3,000 books
• Cloud storage: Unlimited for Amazon content (free)
• Interface: multi-touch

My opinion: The Wi-Fi one would probably be the right one for me because I don't travel very often and don't really need the 3G capabilities. I'm a mama of a young little girl, so we stick closer to home nowadays. The size would be closer to the size of an actual book and I think that would suit me very well.
 

Kindle Fire

THIS is the tablet that everyone has been speculating about for a long, long time. The only thing that Barnes and Noble and Apple had on top of Amazon was the color tablet. Well, it looks like Amazon has their response! Amazon is raving about it's ultra-fast web browsing capabilities via Amazon Silk because of it's fast, dual-core processor. And unfortunately for Apple, Amazon Silk supports Adobe's Flash Player. Apple and Adobe need to make up already! This one costs way less than the Apple iPad and the NOOKColor at $199.

• Battery life: 8 hours continuous reading, 7.5 hours video playback
• On-device storage: 8 GB storage space for 80 apps, 10 movies, 800 songs or 6,000 books
• Cloud storage: Unlimited for Amazon content (free)
  
• Interface: multi-touch

My opinion: I can't seem to escape the lure of the color tablets. I mean, who wouldn't want all those capabilities between their fingers to play with? You could read, listen to music, play games, check your email, flip through full-color magazines, browse the web, and/or watch a TV show or movie! The lure is very, very powerful. My hubby keeps telling me that if I had a tablet, I wouldn't read on it. I hate to say it, but he's right. I'd probably be busy late at night playing Angry Birds instead of reading because I often find myself doing that with my iPhone already. (Even though in my defense, the iPhone is way too small to read on. hehe) I'm hoping that if I had an e-Reader that could only be used to read books, then I'd just be able to read and not be lured away by the games and movies. I do think it'd be cool to be able to read the full-color magazines though. Indecision at it's best (worst)!

Pottermore :: Interactive Book Experience!

So the time has come and J.K. Rowling finally made her much-anticipated announcement early this morning. As the week progressed, I moved more and more away from the idea that it would be a book especially as I read more online. (Even though, deep down I was still crossing my fingers for a book!) I started to think it would be an online Multiplayer Online Role-playing Experience. Hence, the M O R E.

Turns out, it will be an interactive book experience! You can be a part of the story and my understanding is that you'll be able to shape the story. Release date in October with some early beta testers being invited before then. On a side note, didn't the video of the paper animation look amazing?!

Intriguing! I wonder what it'll be like. It makes me hopeful that there will be something Harry Potter-related that I can look forward to because I've already been mourning the fact that it's the last movie being released in the next month.

What are your thoughts on Pottermore?

Harry Potter Announcement!

I saw on twitter today that J.K. Rowling released a teaser for her big announcement in regards to Harry Potter planned for next week! You can check the official website here!

The official tweet was:
Looks like the owls are getting ready to deliver some exciting news: www.youtube.com/JKRowlingAnnounces



I love, love, LOVE Harry Potter and all things related to it. Words cannot express just how excited I am about this teaser! I wonder what it is?

There are talks online that it might be about Harry Potter finally being accessible as e-books, but that just doesn't sound big enough to me for something like this.

I'm thinking it might a new book! Or maybe I'm just really, really hoping it will be. But why would J.K. Rowling call it "pottermore" if she wasn't going to give us "more Harry Potter"?

What do you think it might be?


You can follow @pottermore on twitter for the latest updates.

The Big e-Reader Decision :: To e-Read or not?

Those of you closest to me have known about my "Big e-Reader Decision" and you would also know that I've had a really hard time making a decision not only which e-Reader to purchase, but whether or not I want an e-Reader at all.

To e-Read or not?

Ever since the first generation of Amazon's Kindle was released, I was very adamantly AGAINST e-Readers. I felt like the integrity of reading was being compromised because the written word was being removed from all the things that I hold dear about reading... turning the pages, knowing how far you are into the book, putting in a bookmark to hold your spot in the book to return to later, flipping back to look at the cover art and understanding more and more about why the illustrator included all the little details as you read, and even the smell of the book... I felt like all those things were being stolen away from what made reading so special to me.

Finally, something in me changed last year as it was hard to ignore the tremendous rise of the e-Readers. The changing point for me in my decision was actually having a baby. I spent a lot of time nursing at the beginning, like many other breastfeeding mothers before me, and I found it very difficult to nurse and read at the same. I figured, I might as well be doing something, anything, while I would sit for hours each day nursing my sweet baby girl.

In addition to that, with the help of PaperBackSwap, my book collection has grown almost exponentially this year and we are quickly running out of bookshelf space in our little home. My husband and I jokingly say that I should call it "PaperBackCollect" because I rarely swap books back unless I didn't like the book or the book is not in the greatest condition.

So, that is how I came about to accept the idea of e-Reading, but now comes the decision I've been grappling with for almost 10 months now, which e-Reader should I purchase? I've been very wishy-washy and I've gone back and forth hundreds of times now. I can't seem to decide, but I am going to make a decision... once and for all. My birthday and anniversary is coming up in the next month and I'm ready to pull the trigger.

I am open to any and all suggestions. What do you think?

If You Like The Hunger Games...

Scholastic has a great link to a list of books that you might enjoy if you loved The Hunger Games like I did. You should check it out if you're looking for more. You can also read excerpts from each book on Scholastic's website.

Out of that list, the one that I added to my to-read list is:

Stolen by Lucy Christopher

Here is a blurb from Goodreads:

Gemma, 16, is on layover at Bangkok Airport, en route with her parents to a vacation in Vietnam. She steps away for just a second, to get a cup of coffee. Ty - rugged, tan, too old, oddly familiar - pays for Gemma's drink. And drugs it. They talk. Their hands touch. And before Gemma knows what's happening, Ty takes her. Steals her away. The unknowing object of a long obsession, Gemma has been kidnapped by her stalker and brought to the desolate Australian Outback.

Stolen is her gripping story of survival, of how she has to come to terms with her living nightmare - or die trying to fight it.


Lately, I keep reading books that are so dark, but yet so good. I think it's time for a more "happy" book. :) Any recommendations?

Library Lending on the Amazon Kindle

It was announced last week from Amazon that you will soon be able to read e-books borrowed and downloaded from libraries on the Amazon Kindle. This was quite exciting news because that was one of the few things lacking in the Kindle as an e-Reader compared to all the other ones (NOOK, Sony, etc.)


Here is the blurb from Amazon's website:

Later this year, Kindle customers will be able to borrow Kindle books from more than 11,000 libraries in the United States through the new Kindle Library Lending feature.

When Kindle Library Lending is launched, you will be able to check out a Kindle book from your local library and start reading on any Kindle device or free Kindle app for Android, iPad, iPod touch, iPhone, PC, Mac, BlackBerry, or Windows Phone. Kindle Library Lending will provide the same unique features as Kindle and Kindle books, including the ability to read on any Kindle or free Kindle app, Whispersync technology that synchronizes your notes, highlights and last page read, real page numbers, and more. After a library book expires, if you ever decide to check it out again or purchase it from Amazon, all of your annotations and bookmarks will be preserved.

You'll be able to borrow Kindle library books from any of the more than 11,000 libraries that work with OverDrive, the leading provider of digital content solutions for libraries.

Availability of books and length of loan will vary by library. Kindle Library Lending will only available for U.S. customers at launch.

That is awesome! While I am still mulling over my decision to buy an e-Reader or not, this definitely adds a whole new element to the decision. I was sold on a Kindle last year, but when I found out that it wouldn't read ePubs (which is the file that libraries offer), I quickly changed my mind. I might have to change it back. My birthday is coming up in a few months! *ahem* hubby *ahem*


What do you think about this new feature? Do any of you currently have a Kindle? Does this added feature change anyone else's mind about purchasing on in the future as well?

National Library Week

NYC Public Library by tanism

It is National Library Week this week, April 10-16. I wouldn't have the love for books that I have today if it weren't for my local library as I was growing up. It makes me sad that the funding for libraries keep getting cut in so many cities.


The American Library Association (ALA) is holding a twaiku (twitter haiku) contest asking people to share their love of libraries on twitter in 140 characters or less. Today is the last day of the contest and all tweets must be tagged #nlwtwaiku. Winners will receive an Amazon gift certificate! Also, you follow @atyourlibrary on twitter for the latest ALA updates.

Here is my haiku:

A child who loved books
Unlocked worlds of wonderment
So many thank yous

Feel free to share your own haiku in the comments!

A new beginning...

dazeychic's etsy

This blog has been rolling around in my head for almost a year now. I came across Lenore's Book Blogger Convention Scholarship and decided to finally take the plunge and start a new blog. I have so many ideas and I am excited to get started.

Here is what I wrote in my submission for Lenore's contest:

I always had a deep love of reading. All my life, I’ve been an avid reader. As I’ve gotten older, I have developed a strong desire to share my love of reading with others. On most days, it takes the form of sharing it with my 5th grade students. When I’m not wearing my teacher hat, it’s takes the form of little conversations I share with my friends and family when I’m asking for book recommendations or raving about the latest book that has kept me up all night. Lately, I’ve developed an obsession with sharing my thoughts online about my reading via Goodreads, Facebook, Visual Bookshelf, LibraryThing, PaperBackSwap, etc. I am actually surprised that it’s taken me this long to finally put it all together and decide to start a book blog. The idea of it has been rolling around my head for almost a whole year now. There are many things that I feel like other readers might benefit from if I shared them.

However, there have been many fears holding me back. Mostly, it’s the fear of no one reading my blog, but it’s also the fear of not being the best writer because I am insecure about my writing abilities and even my reading abilities. What if I read too slow or I don't read enough? Whenever the urge would surface to start blogging, I would find myself thinking, “Why would anyone want to hear what I have to say? I am just one very small fish in a very big ocean.” After much encouragement from my husband, I decided a week ago to learn more about book blogging. So, I Googled “how to be a book blogger” and the “book blogger convention” came up. Of course, who doesn’t love a good convention? So I clicked it on it and on the very front page was your scholarship opportunity. I would love to learn all about book blogging at the convention, but even more so, I would love to meet and chat with other book bloggers. You have inspired me to bite the bullet and take the plunge. I finally set up my blog. I am excited and nervous about what it will become. While I still hold many fears and insecurities about this whole process, I am proud of myself for believing I have a voice and also something worth sharing. And even though it would be awesome and such a blessing to win this scholarship, I am mostly thankful for this opportunity and the push to believe in myself. Thank you.

So there you have it... my reasons for starting this blog. Thank you for taking this journey with me.



-Jasmine