Top Ten Tuesday: Words/Topics That Make Me Not Pick Up a Book

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

Eeeek. This is going to be very hard for me, since I always like to try new books. So I'm going to copy the brilliant Emma from Bookworm/Future Author and do a half-and-half. 5 terms that turn me away from books and 5 terms that draw me in! And for once, I'm on time!!

 

Words/topics that make me not pick up a book:

 

1. Horror. I simply cannot read horror, the same way I can't watch horror shows. I'm definitely not the kind of person who enjoys, you know, macabre and all that.

 

2. Graphic novel. I can't read them. At all. Now this is different from picture books--those I can read (not that I read a lot of picture books anymore haha). But those manga novels...I don't know, sometimes I just get completely and utterly confused.

 

3. Romance. This is very important, I don't mean that I dislike books with romance. In fact some of my favorite series have romance: Harry Potter, The Mortal Instruments, Percy Jackson. But a book that is completely centered on romance? Not really my thing.

 

4. Murder Mystery. Ahem, this might qualify as horror, but I can't stand murder mysteries. Not because they're bad--I mean, I know that Agatha Christie writes terrific books. The reason I dislike murder mysteries are they make me scared. I know, I know, I'm a huge coward--but after I read murder mysteries I get all jumpy.

 

5. Poetry. This is kind of a grey area. I get easily bored by poetry, see. I mean, sometimes when a verse or two of poetry is inserted cleverly into a book (like at the beginning of a chapter), it's actually very compelling. But reading continuous long pages of poetry....I just can't get into it.

 

Words/topics that make me pick up a book:

 

1. Magic. Any magic. From Egyptian mythology to Harry Potter wizardry to demon hunting. I love reading books with magic, or supernatural/paranormal elements. Zombies are a huge exception. I dislike zombie books. But I love reading about wizards/witches, or fairies, or mermaids, or... I could go on and on.

 

2. Fairy tale or fairy tale retelling. I absolutely love fairy tales. Grimm, Andersen, you name it. And when it comes to fairy tale retellings, even though I sometimes don't like them, I always have to pick up retellings. Authors like Marissa Meyer do fantastic jobs of fairy tale retellings. I also love books where people go into a fairy-tale land, such as The Sisters Grimm.

 

3. Gymnastics. As a gymnast, I love reading books that show the "insider's view" to a competitive gymnast's life. I absolutely have to pick up gymnastics books--it's just like ingrained in my brain.

 

4. Books. I love books. I immediately am intrigued by books about books. (or book clubs, or bookworms). A book about publishing a book. A book about writing a book. A book about a book club. A book about reading books. Books, books, books!

 

5. Historical fiction with princesses. I love reading books about princesses who lived in earlier eras. Like a fake diary of young Cleopatra, or the fake life of a princess who lived during, say, the Crusades. Princesses are always an intriguing part of literature, combined with fascinating history...love it.

 

--Audrey

 

 



 

Teaser Tuesdays: July 16th

I'm late.
I know.
I keep missing these Tuesday things.
But lately I have been extremely busy with gymnastics--I'm flying to a competition in Kentucky next week! Also, Blogger is still being mean about my China pictures. But those posts are coming very soon, I promise!

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Okay, so I am currently reading Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi.

My teaser:

A few minutes later Pinocchio jumped out of bed quite well; for you must know that wooden marionettes have the privilege of being ill very seldom and of getting well very quickly.

Note: I will be reviewing Pinocchio soon! You have to read it. If you've only seen the cheerful singing wooden puppet it the Disney animation, you don't know Pinocchio at all. Disney completely changed his story. The original Pinocchio is so amazing, so thoughtful, almost sinister... I'll save it for the review, but trust me.

--Audrey

Synopses of My Writing Works

So about a month ago, I posted about my current writing works, which you can visit here.
And here are the synopses/summaries of them! Now, I'm not sure if any of these works are ones I might want to edit and polish up for possible publishing later in my life... But even so, I'm worried about plagiarism since I have no legal rights over my writing... So these might be a little vague. Sorry about that!


Paper Thin:
All she's ever wanted is to be thin. To be skinny. Just like her sister. Bella's mom is obsessed with her being the valedictorian. Bella's dad is in the hospital with a brain aneurysm. Bella's older sister is going to Harvard, and she doesn't care about her little sister anymore. It seems like Bella can't control anything in her life--except her eating. No one can force her to eat.



Aerial:
Five teenagers. Four events. Balance beam. Uneven bars. Vault. Floor.

Narrated by five aspiring teenagers, Aerial is all about the struggle and intensity that competitive artistic gymnasts endure.



Fade Out:
Paige used to be in total control of her life. She was a successful actress, had happily married parents, an adoring boyfriend, and everything else she could possibly want. One year, one divorce, one move, one breakup, and one hundred snobby wannabe tweens later, Paige's life is falling apart. Her spotlight is fading out.


So, those are my currently-writing pieces! Now for my currently-editing:

Catnlyst:
The title has absolutely nothing to do with the story at all, by the way.
Mayda was an ordinary wizard.
Gemma was an ordinary teenager.
Mayda wants to graduate magic training and become a full-time wizard of the Royal Court.
Gemma wants to graduate high school and major in her passion, journalism.
But fate has other ideas...
Three prophecies. Two girls. One adventure that changes everything.



A Day in the Life:
Naya Duncan is a competitive all-star cheerleader.
Eric Clarkson is on the school football team.
Naya thinks football is one of the dumbest sports in existence, what with all the shoving and pushing.
Eric thinks cheerleading is a stupid girls' hobby that requires little athletic ability.
But when a nosy fairy-in-training pokes around their lives, Naya and Eric both discover that they were wrong. A day in the life of someone is one thing. But to be stuck in someone's body ...is another.




Now, I do have some other works--dormant works--but I won't do those synopses, since those ideas aren't exactly complete. I might post parts of these stories on my blog...maybe.

--Audrey

Awesome M and M Cookies Recipe

Note: this was written a few months ago, I think in April...but I just now got around to finishing it. 
Here's a cookie recipe to start off my day! Well, it's in the afternoon in the USA, but it's around 5 AM for me! Coming back home on July 11!! :)

I've never been much of a baker, even though I love eating baked goods (though I'm not technically supposed to). And I usually don't have time, what  with school and gymnastics... But still, I really enjoy baking, and here is a recipe for fabulous M and M cookies that requires only regular baking ingredients, M and M's, and (optional) Jell-O vanilla pudding mix! Now, the pudding mix is optional, but it does wonders to the texture, shape, and taste, so it's highly recommended.

All pictures and the recipe are not mine! Full credit goes to Jenny from Picky Palate
Click on the picture, it will lead you to the original recipe! :)



Ingredients:

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 large egg

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

3 tablespoons Instant vanilla pudding mix

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

3/4 cup chocolate chips

1-1 1/2 cups M and M’s

(if desired, you can use mini chocolate chips and mini M and M's, they're so cute!)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and line a large baking sheet with a silpat liner or parchment paper. (note: I used a greased cookie sheet and it turned out fine, but it's better to use a liner or parchment paper)
2. In a large mixing bowl cream your butter and sugars until well combined. Add your egg and vanilla, mixing to combine. Add your flour, pudding mix, baking soda and salt, stirring to combine. Add chocolate chips and M and M’s, stirring to combine.
3. With a medium cookie scoop, place dough 1 inch apart from each other. Leave the dough in balls, do not press flat. Bake for 10-12 minutes until cooked through. Let cool on cookie sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to cooling rack. Enjoy!

Makes 2 dozen cookies.

And here is the baking process in picture form:

Butter and sugar :)

Some egg and vanilla....

Dry ingredients!

Vanilla pudding mix. Seriously, you have to use this!

Give the ingredients a good mix! But only until just combined, you don't want to overmix! :)

Delicious.

Colorful candies :)

Best dough ever.

IMPORTANT: Leave your dough like this! Do NOT flatten it out!

Perfection. Enjoy!

--Audrey

The Eleven Questions Tag

I found this tag on the fantastic Seana's fantastic blog. And she is completely correct, this looks suspiciously like a Liebster Award. It is almost exactly the same....suspicious. And I was not technically nominated...but whatever.

 

Rules

1. Thank the person who nominated you and link back to their site.

2. Post 11 random things about yourself.

3. Answer 11 questions from the person who tagged you.

4. Ask the people you tag 11 questions. 

5. Nominate 11 other blogs.

 

1. Thank you Seana! :)

 

 

Now for my 11 facts....

1. I'm currently in China.

2. It's my first Independence Day not in the US.

3. It's my first time in China.

4. I'm having a blast.

5. Except it's really humid and I am so sticky right now.

6. I just ate this delicious pastry. It was sort of like a little pie crust with this scrumptious gelatin-y egg custard-colored...ah, you know, I do not know how to describe it. A photo:

Yummmmmmmmmmmmmm

 

7. I'm going to go right now and get another one.

8. I just ate a second custard pastry thingy.

9. I really don't know what to call that pastry.

10. Actually, I do, it's called a pastry.

11. I totally cheated on these 11 facts.

 

Questions Left For Me:

1. JOHNNY DE-- I mean, uh, that's not a question! For you, what makes a good question?

The question should be interesting and thought-provoking... I really don't know.

 

2. Are you a writer? If so, what is the longest work you have ever finished? (Don't make me jealous.)
I am a writer, as probably evident by the title of my blog. Um, the longest work I've ever finished. As in I successfully wrote the ending? (I HATE endings. I have a writing-post-in-progress about endings). Uh, my 2012 NaNoWriMo novel. 51,312 words. Maybe 80 Word Doc pages?

 

3. Do you get jealous easily?
Oh yes. Very easily. But I should mention that usually my jealousy is very mild and goes away very quickly. Like when my friend bought The Mortal Instruments series, I was jealous. But like an hour later I already forgot about it. But my jealousy of Gabby Douglas's gymnastics shall never fade. Ever.

 

4. What is one thing you dislike about your personality?
Um, I do get jealous easily. Which isn't very good. But, to answer the question properly... I dislike the fact that I overthink things that aren't necessarily very important, and I start almost obsessing over it, and I get distracted.

 

5. What is one thing you like about your looks?
My eyes. They're big and green and remind me of Harry Potter.

 

6. Do you like the set-up/layout of your bedroom?
Sure. I have everything out of the way so I have plenty of room to stretch and warm up in my bedroom. Also, there's a lot of wall space, since I have this collage of gymnastics and book pictures that I am constantly adding to.

 

7. As you type this, what would you rather be doing?
Gymnastics. My god, I miss my home gym. Practicing in China is just not the same.

 

8. Fears?
Serial killers, murderers, terrorists, muggers, other dangerous criminals, bombs, guns, tsunamis, hurricanes, tornadoes, other dangerous natural disasters, blind dismounts off the balance beam, one-and-a-half twists off the vault, other very hard gymnastics tricks....

 

9. What are some words that you only recently learned how to pronounce?
Too many Chinese words to name.

 

10. Have you ever been in love?
Nope.

11. Are you disappointed that this 11th question is really no 11th question at all?
It's still a question... So no, not disappointed.

 

Now, I don't want to put up all the links to eleven other blogs and then go visit all of them and comment, so whoever wants to do this tag, feel free! And if you are, then just do the questions that I found on Seana's blog, which she found on someone named Emily's blog!

 

Blogger is being very mean with format and photos, so I might have to postpone all of my China posts until I get back to the US!

--Audrey



Book Review: Tempest Rising

This post has been sitting around unfinished for far too long, and I finally got around to finishing it up. I'm still unsure of the best way to go about reviewing books, so bear with me. I've also decided to post in colorful font, just 'cause.

I rather like the cover, don't you? Especially that beautiful tattoo.

Book: Tempest Rising by Tracy Deebs

Genre: fantasy
(as you can probably tell due to that mermaid tail. Though there are people who believe mermaids exist, so, you know, I guess it's realistic fiction for them)

Rating: B
or a 4 out of 5 stars. However, 4 out of 5 is an 80%, which, depending on the teacher, is typically a B-minus or a C-plus. So...I don't really know what to say.

Synopsis: Tempest Maguire wants nothing more than to surf the killer waves near her California home; continue her steady relationship with her boyfriend, Mark; and take care of her brothers and surfer dad. But Tempest is half mermaid, and as her seventeenth birthday approaches, she will have to decide whether to remain on land or give herself to the ocean like her mother. The pull of the water becomes as insistent as her attraction to Kai, a gorgeous surfer whose uncanny abilities hint at an otherworldly identity as well. And when Tempest does finally give in to the water's temptation and enters a fantastical underwater world, she finds that a larger destiny awaits her-and that the entire ocean's future hangs in the balance.

Good Stuff: First of all, mermaids. Definitely the thing that caught my interest. There's also surfing, which I think looks fun. I've never tried surfing, despite living near enough to the ocean, due to how ridiculously cold the water is where I live. This book has romance--a love triangle, in fact, between Tempest, Mark, and Kai. But the love triangle is intertwined with the ocean-or-land dilemma, so it's unique. I also found a satisfactory amount of foreshadowing, conflict, and suspense. There wasn't a huge plot-changing shocker, but that's not always necessary (though I personally rather like those). I also liked how the author described how some things worked in the ocean, but not using the horrid info-dump technique mistake, but using (telepathic) communication between Tempest and Kai. I don't want to include any spoilers, but Tempest did something very controversial that haunted her for the rest of the book, which I very much enjoyed reading.

Bad Stuff: It seemed a little unrealistic. Unrealistic is the wrong word to use here, because of course it's unrealistic, there are mermaids. (unless mermaids DO exist. a topic to be discussed later, though). But books like Harry Potter, I can imagine them happening. Even though the plot was interesting, it seemed a bit, ah, poorly-executed. Don't get me wrong, I still enjoyed the book, since there were lots of interesting and well-written parts. But it seems like Tempest was living in a planet that was very, very similar to Earth, yet not quite the same. (that doesn't make sense, does it?) And while I liked the foreshadowing, it seemed just a little bit too obvious. The second I read that hint, I totally knew what was coming next, but Tempest didn't seem to realize anything, which seemed, again, unrealistic. Also, I was fine with it, but there was some language. Nothing too horrible, so don't let that stop you from reading this book!

Recommended Readers: I'm never certain what to say here, but I have to go with 12 and up, just because of the mild language. And there's some physical romance, but it's just kissing, so...

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books I've Read So Far in 2013

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

I missed the Tuesday again...but oh well! Here are my top 10 books read so far in 2013! :)

 

 

 

1. Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

I'm a HUGE fan of The Mortal Instruments series by the same author, and Clockwork Angel is the first installment of a companion trilogy. EVEN MORE AMAZING THAN TMI. Wow. I absolutely loved Clockwork Angel! Go read it. Now. Just go. (or, if you haven't read The Mortal Instruments yet, read that first. You don't have to read TMI first, but it's better if you do)

2. Divergent by Veronica Roth
Do I really need to explain this, people who have read Divergent? Divergent is simply amazing. I stayed up until around 2 AM finishing it. There are books that I say that I "can't put down," but this book. I actually could hardly stand putting it down. I have a Divergent review in the works, but it won't be up for another few weeks at least. Everyone, you must go out and read Divergent. Go. Now. Read.
 

3. The Alchemyst by Michael Scott

Yes, this was on my last list of top ten to-read books for 2013! I just finished it a few days ago, and it was fantastic. A wonderful plot that was fast-moving, but didn't leave me confused. Magic, adventure, humor, mystery...really, this book is great! I highly recommend it, and I'll be posting a review soon. Can't wait to read the rest of the series!

 

4. Spells and Sleeping Bags by Sarah Mlynowski

The third book in a series of four! This was by far the best out of the first three. It was absolutely hilarious, witty, shocking, and had a terrific ending. If you haven't read the Magic in Manhattan series yet, you should! (only if you're a girl, though). Even though there's magic involved, I can relate a lot to the narrator, and the book is very well written, with foreshadowing, realistic dialogue, humor, suspense...

 

5. Parties and Potions by Sarah Mlynowski

The last book in the Magic in Manhattan series! I still think the 3rd book was the best, but still, this book was amazing. Mlynowski is a fabulous writer...I'm always laughing out loud when I read her books! And as I mentioned above, very realistic dialogue...I can imagine everything that's happening perfectly in my head.

6. Tempest Rising by Tracy Deebs
This book had to do with mermaids, which I loved, since I am a huge fan of mermaids. There was also lots of conflict, strong emotions, hidden humor, foreshadowing, and a huge surprise in the ending. Overall a good read!

7. Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan
Is an explanation really necessary? This book was by Rick Riordan. Enough said.

8. Into the Dream by William Sleator
This book was published a long time ago...1979, I think. It's not exactly a YA or teen fiction book like I usually read, but it's really, really good. It has to do with ESP, dream telepathy...overall a fun read for people of all ages.

9. The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter
A modern take on Greek mythology. I would definitely recommend people at least in, say, seventh grade to read this book, because there is some mature content and the slightest bit of language. But still, the plot was really interesting, and there was a mystery that added suspense throughout the whole book.

Well, I have read wayyyy more than 9 books this year, but I just can't think of one more book that I really want to include on this list. So, there's my top 9! Right now I'm reading Geek Charming, which was also on last week's list!
Someday soon I'll post about China, but Blogger is being stubborn and I can't upload any pictures. So I might do a pictureless post, or maybe a post about writing.
Any plans for the weekend, anybody? Sound off in the comments! :)

--Audrey