mauritania101-blog

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Reorganizing my books by rainbow theme

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January wrap up and February TBR January Wrap up: January was a pretty good reading month, for the first week or two, I didn't get much reading in though as I did come off break and with the start of the new semester my work load skyrocketed. So the first book I read in January was The Chamber Of Secrets by J.K Rowling which was I decided to reread one because I was in the mood for some real Harry Potter after The Cursed Child I then finished To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee which I do have a reveries up for And lastly I finished the month with The Jewel by Amy Ewing which I started in January and finished in December. I personally felt like it was a good read despite the controversy and the Insta- love. I do plan on reading the second book when I get my hands on it. February TBR: So I know this is the middle of the month but I never got around to writing this so I'm just going to list all of the books I hoped to finish in February, some of them I have read, are in the middle of or plan on reading soon. The Wrath and The Dawn by Renee Ahdieh, a book suggested to me by a lot of people including my sister who adored it. Divergent by Veronica Roth, a reread that I picked up because the first time I read it, I didn't particularly enjoy and would like to give a second chance Walk On Earth A Stranger by Rae Carson Illuminae by Amy Koffman and Jay Kristoff Empire Of Storms by Sarah J Maass, I am reading right now just about to finish in a day or two and will have a review/ reactionary up, unfortunately for those who haven't read the book, it will be completely spoiler instead of my usual spoiler free first part and spoiler let second part as I have a lot to talk about and don't want to make the post too long Heartless by Marissa Meyer which I am currently listening to on audiobook and love it, the voice actress is phenomenal and really makes the story come to life. I also believed she is the voice actress for the lunar chronicles also by Marissa Meyer Thanks Guys, and Happy reading!

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Hey guys so I finished To Kill A Mockingbird and today I have a book review which will be spoiler free and then towards the end I will have my opinion and how I felt about the ending which I have a feeling will be more useful to the majority of the population as most have already read it. As per usual I have a warning when the spoilers start. So with that let's just get into it. To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee is marked as a southern gothic sub genre within the fiction genre. However reading it for myself, I found to be more of a historical fiction with all the prejudice themes played throughout the book. I found out after doing some research online that To Kill A Mockingbird was actually a reflection of Harper Lee’s life which I found was so intriguing and a fun fact I was glad I knew reading Scout’s story. By now, To Kill A Mockingbird is around fifty years old and I actually purchased the 50th anniversary edition to read along with the audiobook which I listened to on occasion to get through the book faster. What I liked about the t0th anniversary edition is that the pages are a lot larger as well as the font and margin sizes which was extremely convenient for my case as I was reading it for a class where we had to annotate. While I would have read it last year with the coming out of Go Set A Watchman (the 2nd book), I knew I was going to have to read it this year so I didn't want to spoil it for myself (which I now find was a crazy notion). However I am planning on ordering Go Set A Watchman Overall I rated To Kill A Mockingbird 4 out of 5 stars. In the beginning I hated, it was boring, confusing and didn't really have a purpose. That was probably the first two chapters. What I did was I reread them and read some of the sparknotes explanations to clear up some confusions which I found really helped. After about the third chapter, the story picked up just a bit however the plot did accelerate when the Tom Robinson case began. So what was To Kill A Mockingbird about? Well if you don't know here's a synopsis sourced by Goodreads and the actual back of the book. In 1930, Maycomb Alabama people were pretty much set on their way of life. Yet when a court case regarding a black man being charged right falls upon the prejudice small town only the wise and benevolent Atticus finch has the courage to stand against all odds. Through the eyes of Scout and Jem Finch, the irrationality of adult attitudes towards race and class in the 1930s is explicited. The conscious of the town steeped in prejudice, violence and hypocrisy is pricked by the quiet heroism of one man struggle for justice but the weight of history will only tolerate so much. As I mentioned before a couple times starting with it, I hated it, it just didn't peak my interest at all. The characters seems flat and meaningless. It wasn't until later when they were further developed and given some dimension especially the Finch family (including Calpurnia). Personally I didn't like To Kill A Mockingbird as much as I would have because I previously read a book similar to it called Roll Of Thunder Hear My Cry which some of you may have read. It's a historical friction as well and the story is seen through the eyes of an innocent nine year old girl named Cassie Logan. The two stories are very similar however I found that ROTHMC took the same historical events and spun a more epic, intriguing and emotionally arousing story. I probably would have liked To Kill A Mockingbird better if I had read it before I read ROTHMC,it just set my expectations a lot higher for historical fictions in general. Here's where the spoilers start so if you haven't read the book read it and come back for my commentary on the ending as well as my favorite quote. Because I was reading on audiobook as I was finishing To Kill A Mockingbird, I didn't see the ending coming. It ended on a highly anticipated climax with Bob Euwell attacking the Finch children and Boo Radley saving the,. I found it the perfect time for Boo to make his debut into society (helping innocent children against a psycho murderer). I have to say I wasn't sad at all when Bob died, he was a racist sucker (excuse my poor language) who deserved to pay for his crimes against not only an innocent man but two young innocent children. I loved the ending and can't wait wait for the second book to arrive! Before I close with my favorite quote of the book I just wanted to pose some of my questions that were never answered. Why didn't Aunt Alexandra ever go back to her home/ estate and what happened in her marriage with her husband? obviously she didn't leave just to “help the Finch children”? So what went on to cause her sudden and long lasting leave. All right I'll finally end with my favorite quote which is so important to mention especially since recently Obama used in his last official speech which I did catch. (yes I caught that!). It's just such an inspirational quote and I believe it's gotten a lot of fame. With that… “ You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view-- until you climb into their skin and walk around in it,” (48) Thanks guys and stay tune for new posts :)

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Hey guys so today I went to Barnes and Nobles and while I didn't but anything I saw a lot of books I wanted to buy, so today I have 10 books I plan on buying and reading the next time I walk into a book store. 1) Black Moon: This is the conclusion to the Zodiac series. I have been waiting for this release for months and I believe it is a trilogy but I'm not sure. I'll have to look it up but I'm wouldn't be surprised if it is. The Zodiac trilogy is a sci-fi/ dystopian and I'm not usually a fan of sci-if but I just adore the Zodiac series which takes place in alternate universe where humans live on all of the planets based upon the astrological signs. The zodiac is truly unique from anything I have ever read. 2) Heartless: I have had my eye on this book for a couple months and am sure it will be one of my next reads. Heartless is by Marissa Meyer, author of the lunar chronicles which shockingly I haven't read yet and am planning to start. Heartless is basically a prequel to the Alice and Wonderland story. Basically it is the story of how the Queen of Hearts, once know as Catherine transformed from the illustrious sweet baker into the malicious Queen seen in The Tales of Alice. I am so excited to finally get down and read it. 3) Scythe: From the little ice heard about Scythe I know it is definitely something I want to pick up. I believe it is a dystopian where death doesn't exist and to control population people are trained to become scythes. I would definitely love to live in a world where all I have to worry about is avoiding scythes. 4) Truth Witch 5) Soundless: After I read The Glittering Court by Richelle Mead and completely obsessed over it, I decided to try out some of her other works including Soundless. My sister actually even read it and loved it so I moved it up on my TBR. Soundless is about a village of deaf people isolated from the rest of society though when people start to gain their hearing after people start to leave, they begin to question their ever belief. 6) Of Fire And Stars: Of Fire And Stars is something I want to read to add diversity in my reading. Of Fire And Stars is about a princess who is betrothed to a prince from a land where magic is banned. After an incident where she is saved by his sister, they become friends and their friendship develops into something more. 7) Six Of Crows: I have read the infamous Shadow and Bone trilogy by Leigh Bardugoh and when I hear about the Six Of Crows duo logo I knew I had to check it out. Especially after the synopsis resembling The Raven Boys. 8) Cinder: Finally after years of so many people suggesting this series I have decided to give it a shot despite the fact that it includes robots, a component that has kept me from giving it a chance. From what I have heard Cinder is a retelling of Cinderella except in a world of robots. I also heard something about her being a cyborg? 9) Illuminate: This is a book I have been hesitant to try because of its format of mixed media. Despite this I found a solution; I'm planning on listening to the audio book and then if I like it, I'll try reading the book. For me, the whole mixed media format is just way to confusing for me and I'm not sure if I would like but I have heard such good things about it? I want to give it a chance. 10) Frost Like Night: The conclusion to the Snow Like Ashes trilogy is finally here! Well it's been out for a while but it's taken me some time to notice it. I have been anticipating this release for so long especially after the ending of Ice Like Fire the second book in the trilogy. So those were 10 books I so desperately wanted to but at Barnes and Noble today and I will definitely read sometime in 2017. Some sooner than others. Thanks guys and I should have a January TBR post in a couple days or so. :)

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I love them and they go so well with the themes of the books :) !

Alternative covers for the Throne of Glass series

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Now that I see this I'm going to order them right away. Their so beautiful!

The Australian limited edition of The Hunger Games and also my favourite editions 😍

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After hearing so much negativity surrounding The Cursed Child a fear was instilled in me holding me back from sitting down and just reading the book. But finally by the urge of my cousins I read it and I have mixed feelings about this play/book. This is a review/ reaction that does include some spoilers but I will make sure to have a warning before anything damaging is said if you haven't already read The Cursed Child. Over all I rated The Cursed Child a 2 out of 5 stars. It wasn't complete garbage but it was also pretty bad. The Cursed Child basically follows the son of Harry Potter, Albus Potter and his newly made friend Scorpius Malloy (son of Draco Malfoy) and their adventures of trying to redeem the once illustrious Potter with a deadly and illegal time turner. Despite having sincere intentions the two school boys end up butchering time as we know it threatening the return of Voldemort and his possible child. Going into, I had already know the detailed synopsis, my sister had actually just finished and in fact told me the plot line, 'accidentally' spoiling some parts. Initially I think I enjoyed it more than most people because I went in with low expectations. I had heard from so many people including people whose opinion I trusted that it was horrible so setting low standards for it definitely helped. I think what made it unappealing was a few things first in the beginning, the story was zooming through Albus' years in an unnatural way which does make sense in the fact that The Cursed Child was written for the purpose of being a play. I felt like the way the characters were speaking were just so blunt and many of the characters from the original Harry Potter series said things their true character just wouldn't say which was what bugged me the most. They acted so out of character especially Harry honestly I don't think Harry would have been that bad of a Character. For example when he commanded McGonagall to keep Scorpius and Albus away from each other by any means in such a disrespectful way. I just found it so out of character. Professor McGonagall was one of the people in Harry's life that he looked up too growing up. It was hard to believe he would just denounce her in the uncalled for way that he did.Also how Ron's character was turned into a class clown type. While he did often have some what of a sense of humor in the original series, it was taken to far in the hopes of Ron to take up his brother's position as the class clown. Overall The Cursed Child was pretty distasteful, I just had so many problems with the plot and the integrity of the story in general. Despite this it's definitely something every Harry Potter fan should read. I do still appreciate the fact that the script was published because at least their's more Harry Potter content for us. After finishing The Deathly Hallows personally I had this chronic hunger for more. I was extremely curious especially have read the 19 years later epilogue as to what would happen next. When I first heard about The Cursed Child I was excited that all my questions would finally be answered regardless of my dissatisfaction with the book at least we have something to go off on. I'm not sure how the play is and I'm sure it would be much better than the book but I hope J.K Rowling maybe rewrites The Cursed Child into a book format and adds depth and reason to it because that what I feel is missing from The Cursed Child. So now for the spoiler parts these are basically notes/ comments I mad while reading The Cursed Child these are completely my opinion. If you disagree that's fine you do you. :) - Rose was an annoying snob like her mom at the beginning of the Harry Potter series - OMG I can't believe Hermione is minister of magic!!! - Harry's role as a Dad is completely off he wouldn't act like this - How rude Rose! (scene on Hogwarts train with Scorpius) - too bad Rose, Scorpius and Albus don't become a trio of friends like the Harry, Hermione and Ron trio - I totally expected Rose to be sorted into Ravenclaw - Ron would not act like this - I hate how Harry is being portrayed - During the alternate universes/ realms it is so weird for Ron and Hermione to not be together - Padma and Ron! (LOL) - I wish Albus and Scorpius would just stop messing things up - These rumors about Scorpius' parentage is weirding me out - I am loosing it! Harry doesn't exist any more! What the heck! - Voldemort Day? (LOL) - Nice to see moaning martlet again, some things never change - Harry what are you thinking? Harry is a horrible Dad!!!! - I just love the dream/ scene with Petunia and Harry visiting Lily's grave ❤️❤️❤️ - Nice to see snippets of Lily and James - OK? This whole thing with Delphini being Voldemort and Belatrix's child makes no sense whatsoever despite the fact that I shipped them for numerous reasons I'm not even going to go into - Wouldn't Draco know about Delphi if she was born at Malfoy manor - Umbridge as headmistress WTF?! - Seeing Hermione and Ron as beaten up rebels is hilarious and totally makes sense - No why Snape?! Why?! - Regarding the ending it was disappointing that as per usual Harry saved the day instead of Albus having the chance So anyways thanks guys The Cursed Child was truly an experience in a good and bad way. I hoped the review and some of my reactions helped. Stay tuned for more of my posts :)

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Just finished Dumplin' by Julie Murphy, an exceptionally diverse read that any reader would enjoy. It teaches everyone to be comfortable in their own skin no matter their situation, a lesson extremely prevalent in today's society.

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Just started up a Goodreads account with the new year and set up my challenge for 2017: to read 100 books! You can follow me @mauritania101 on Goodreads to check out the books I plan on reading and the books I have completed so far.

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My New Year Book Resolution is read at least five books a month and to read more diverse word impacting books. Happy New Years Guys and repost this including your New Year Book Resolution(s)! :)

New Year Book Resolutions

Name 1 resolution you have for the new year considering your reading/book blogging habits.

Mine is that I want to get through more of the books that I currently own on my TBR before buying any new ones (sequels in a series excluded)

What’s yours?

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So December was a hectic month with the end of the semester and finals and all that junk I didn’t get much reading done it most of the books I did read, I read recently during the break. These are no particular order so with that let’s get into it. A Court Of Mist And Fury: This took me a week as it was a hefty book however when ever I was reading it I was so immersed in it. I have to say it was a truly epic read. Sarah J Maas once again blew my away with this sequel to A Court Of Thrones And Roses questioning whether I preferred the ACOTAR series or the Throne Of Glass series The Cursed Child: I finished this a few days ago and theirs so much to say I’ll have a book review/ talk up some time soon but all I can say now is that it was truly something and I don’t mean in a good way. It’s definitely something any Harry Potter fan should read but beware. Cringe* With Malice: With Malice was a…. I actually don’t know the genre but it was definitely fiction and maybe realistic fiction? Anyways it’s a story about this senior in high school who takes a trip with her school to Italy where she gets in a car accident and the something couple weeks is blacked out of her memory. I can’t say too much without spoiling but it was a really fast read that reminded me off the Amanda Knox story. Any fan of crime investigation shows would definitely love it. Dumplin’: This is actually a book I am reading right now and am close to finishing it I decided to include it in the list. Dumplin’ is a contemporary about a confident “self proclaimed fat girl” living in a small town of Texas with her over bearing patent wining mother. It is definitely a book I don’t usually read and I love it because it’s inspirational message of being comfortable in our own skin though a profound and genuine profound high school story. The light sense of comedy doesn’t hurt either. Of Mice And Men: This was a novella by John Steinbeck I had to read for school and I have one thing to say about it; worst thing to happen to humanity. Seriously though guys I know it’s supposed to be a classic sweet story but it’s just not for me. Harry Potter and The sorcerers stone:<br> Don’t worry guys I have already read The Harry Potter series, several times over but this month I wanted to reread it in preparation for The Cursed Child. I also read The Chamber of Secrets but stopped when I told my cousin about it and she blatantly convinced me it wasn’t worth it which I saw what she meant after I finished it. Harry Potter and The Chamber Of Secrets:<br> If you guys don’t know what Harry Potter is but now I don’t know where you have been maybe living under a rock? But it’s kind of self explanatory a story about the greatest wizard of time doing what he knows best :) I hope to read more next month but for this month I read seven books most of them I enjoyed especially A Court Of Mist and Fury. Thanks Guys and Happy New Years (almost)! Stay tuned for more posts.

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Loved this trilogy it took my heart

“They are orphans again, with no true home but each other and whatever life they can make together on the other side of the sea.” 

Goodreads | Instagram | Twitter

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A couple books I saw at Barnes and Nobles that intrigued me

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So I just finished The Cursed Child... My reaction: Wow (5 min later) That just happened ( next day) Why J.K. Why?!? Yes guys I finally got down to reading The Child after hearing so much about how it was the worst thing to happen to humanity and as a freakishly obsessive Harry Potter I have a lot of mixed feelings. I should have something posted in a couple days that will be a hybrid of a review and a book talk some parts spoiled because this book needs talking about. So stay tuned for that and I'd love to know how you guys felt about it but personally.... I just don't know what happened right there. Thanks guys :)

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Just starting this new book With Malice by Eileen Cook and I'm 16 pages in so far. I'm loving it! I'll probably have a book review posted for it in a couple days.

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So first things first. Why did I read The Odyssey in the first place? I read it for my English class and it was not pretty. Don’t get me wrong The Odyssey is truly a unique story that anyone who wants to call themselves a reader should read but I did have some difficulties with it as established in the title of this post. Disclaimer: This not going to be a one hundred percent positive review. I am talking about my own experiences as a reader who of this book and specifically The Fagles Translation version.<br> Originally before I read The Odyssey (Fagles Translation) I already had some background on the story and even read another version, a simpler one given to me on my eleventh birthday by a friend. So I already had a pretty good idea of what it was going to be about and was actually quite interested in reading this new version. If you don’t know about The Odyssey or have never heard of it basically it follows the story of a Greek veteran coming from the Trojan War named Odysseus. When Odysseus had left his home begrudgingly left his home Ithaca, he left not only his beloved wife Penelope but their newborn son Prince Telemachus and in this particular translation/ version part of the story follows Telemachus’ journey growing into a man and Penelope’s struggles to uphold her home. The Odyssey begins after the Trojan war and basically Odysseus is trying to get home to his family but the Olympians are doing whatever they can to stop him. He goes to hell and back before he gets home and when he does he finds the ultimate surprise. On Penelope and Telemachus’ end their home is overrun by suitors, noble men of Ithaca vying for the power vacancy left when Odysseus departed. The two struggle to hold not only their home but their country as twenty years pass and even the people criticize their Queen for her selfishness. <p>From the beginning it was difficult to understand what exactly was going on. I couldn’t understand who was speaking and what was happening and really the only way I figured it out was reading the sparknotes summary which I am linking below. What really threw me off was that it started in the point of view of Telemachus and it remained that way until book 5 I believe when Odyssey was first introduced. Looking back it is good for a first time reader because it gives you some background on who Odysseus is and what kind of person he is but to be honest going into it, it was a source of confusion and annoyance. Again just my opinion. My advice to someone who is planning on reading it or has to read is to read a lot of background on it. Perhaps read another version beforehand that may be shorter and definitely use, use, use spark notes. Trust me it really helps. Even after finishing The Odyssey, I use spark it’s for other complicated books we’re reading in English. Basically what it does is for every chapter, book, or section, there is a spark notes summary and for every couple chapters it gives you some Analysis which is really helpful if you have to eventually write an essay on it. <p>I also felt that their was quite a bit of repetition which makes sense because when Homer was telling the tale of The Odyssey way back when he was telling it out loud, each day telling the story to a crowd whom most likely forgot significant details from when he described a chapter weeks before. So the repetition really makes served as a reminder however on the form of a book I find repetition to be annoying. I have to say standing in the position of having read it, it was good but some things were just way to dragged out. Scenes would last way too long and some things were just unnecessary. I also had a huge problem with the ending. I am not going to spoil it but basically, the climax occurred, the story went into resolution and then all of a sudden there was like this second part war. It’s super hard to explain without spoiling it but it’s like the bad guys are defeated and then all of a sudden their accomplices come in and claim revenge. Everything is then finally settled with of course the help of a God but I just had huge problems with how everything went down. It’s just super cheesy and honestly the whole thing should have ended when the bad guys were slain. Bellow I have linked the website to The Odyssey spark notes website which again I find really helpfully a href="http://m.sparknotes.com/lit/odyssey/">http://m.sparknotes.com/lit/odyssey/</a> Thanks and stay tune for more posts

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Born Wicked by Jessica Spotswood was an exceptional fall read. Despite it being December, the story of the Cahill witches could be read at any time any place and still keep you immersed. So what is it about? Born Wicked follows the struggles of 16 year old Catherine Cahill (also know as Cate) and her two younger sisters, Maura and Teresa (Tess) who lost their mother at young ages. Their mother, a witch herself was their only guide to learning magic and how to control it. Now left only with their ignorant father who woul most likely turn them in for witchcraft if he knew, the three witches must conceal their abilities so as to not be prosecuted by the callous “Brothers”, a society of prestigious men working to snuff out the remaining witches of New England.While fighting to keep their magic a secret, Cate, the eldest of the three sisters must deal with her own dilemmas. Their is a prophecy that states a trio of sisters who will come of age before the turn of the century will either wreak havoc upon the world or avenge the fallen witches, the “daughters of Persephone”. Knowing her rare trio of sister witches are the ones mentioned in the prophecy, Cate carries the burden of deciding their future knowing fully well which ever path she chooses could lead to the distraction of everyone she holds dear to her heart. Cate begins “scouring banned books and questioning new rebellious friends all while juggling tea parties, shocking marriage proposals and a forbidden romance” Over all I rated Born Wicked a five star. Coming into it I had pretty high expectations as I had read a lot about it on the internet and saw how much people were raving about it however finishing it, I was completely blown away. I didn’t at all expect the ending to end the way it did which usually I can guess and I hated it but loved it at the same time. The ending was sad and I wanted it to go another way but I am still continuing the series because I was just so intrigued and curious about where the author is going to take things next. It was a pretty fast read (300 pages) seeing I was so emerged in it and the world described by the author. I also found it very easy to follow, at the begging I was a little confused on who were “the brothers” and who were “the sisters” as well as “the daughters of Persephone” but be patient and it is explained later in the story. The genre is young adult/ historical fiction which I personally didn’t know as reading. However you can really see th historical fiction aspects of it. In some parts there are even references to the Salem Witch Trials which I find so fascinating. Tragic but fascinating. The whole story seemed like something that could have taken place during the Salem Witch Trials even though it was meant to take place afterwards. I definitely find it more in the historical fiction side in comparison to YA but that’s just me opinion and take on the book. I am trying to read more historical fiction anyways so it was a great dose of history and an inspiration to read more on the Salem Witch Trials. Some extra information I found helpful after reading the book was that it as actually the first book in a series. The second book is actually called Star Cursed by Jessica Spotswood which I will definitely be reading and have already put on my book wish list. Besides that I found it interesting when I found their was actually a cover change. Originally I read the brown covered book but online I found that there was actually also the pink cover as well. Which surprisingly like because it gives you more of a picture of what the book is about however in the position of which one is more visually appealing I like the brown one just a tad bit more. Bellow I have linked some websistes to look at for the official synopsis of the book and some extra information on the book. I included a website to the audio book, a link to the Good reads page and also a website by Jessica Spotswood herself that features the other cover. <a href="http://jessicaspotswood.com/books/born-wicked/">http://jessicaspotswood.com/books/born-wicked/ <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11715276-born-wicked">http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11715276-born-wicked</a> Thanks guys and be sure to stay tune for more book reviews :)