Month: May 2015

May Wrap Up!

Alyssa CohenLeave a comment

Hi everyone!

Today I am here with my surprisingly successful wrap up! I ended up reading 4 full books and half of another one!
At the beginning of the month I read 2 books, then fell into a reading slump until the last week of May!

My initial reading goal was to read my ARCs and I read 2.5 of them! YAY!

The first book I read was Red Scarf Girl by Ji-li Jiang! I read this for my english class, and I enjoyed it! Let me know if you guys would want to see a book review for it!

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The next book I read this month was It’s Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini! I have a book review here, if you want to know my thoughts!

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The first ARC I read was Galgorithm by Aaron Karo! I LOVED THIS BOOK! Review will be coming very soon!

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I then read this ARC entitled Three Day Summer by Sarvenaz Tash. I liked this book, and a review will be coming very soon as well!

Then I finished 200/400 pages of Kissing in America by Margo Rabb. At this point, I don’t really know how I feel about it. I will definitely be finishing this one in the next few days, and doing an honest review soon.

Those were all of the books I read in May!

Good Night Book Owls!

In My Mailbox #4: Penguin Canada!

Alyssa CohenLeave a comment

Hi everyone!

Welcome back to my 4th In My Mailbox, in which I show you what bookish swag has popped up into my mailbox this week!

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I received a lovely package in the mail from Penguin Canada, including 2 middle grade books and 1 YA Book!

The Last Kids on Earth by Max Brallier

The Wild Ones by C. Alexandra London

Don’t Fail Me Now by Una LaMarche

Those are all of the books I recieved in the mail this week! Thank You to Penguin Canada for passing these ARCs along, make sure to check back for their book reviews closer to their release date!

Good Night Book Owls!

Alyssa’s Life: My Birthday!

Alyssa CohenLeave a comment

Hi everyone!

As most of you know, yesterday was my birthday! Many of you wanted to see another Alyssa’s Life post, so I thought that it would be fun to make one for my birthday!

When I arrived at school, I found this on my locker…!

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My friends decorated my locker for my birthday, and it was so cute! And yes… I’m only 13!

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After school, I went over to starbucks to redeem my birthday reward! My favourite drink from starbucks is the “Cotton Candy” frappuccino, so I treated myself to a large one!

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My parents and I than went over to my Aunts house to pick up my birthday gift! She, my uncle and cousins generously bought me a Kate Spade clutch, and inside they put in a $25 Indigo Giftcard, and a $15 starbucks card! My 2 favourite things!

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At around 6:00, we went to The Pickle Barrel, and I had a Corn-Beef Sandwich with Yukon Gold Fries! I always get that there!

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After a long but fun day, we celebrated with some yummy chocolate cupcakes! ALTHOUGH…

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What’s a birthday without a cake?!

I hope that you guy’s enjoyed a new post of my life!

Good Night Book Owls!

Birthday Week: Bookish Birthday Gifts!

Alyssa CohenLeave a comment

Hi everyone!

So, yes! Tomorrow is my BIRTHDAY! So, today I thought that I would share some fun birthday gifts that you can buy for people who love books!

BOOKMARKS:

Wicked witch bookmark. Children gift, Wizard of OZ. legs bookmark. Red slippers for her, for all, mom, kids, granny, mother.

These are super duper cute and stick out of your books. They may be pricy but they are mad cool!

ETSY SHOP: https://www.etsy.com/ca/listing/82444325/wicked-witch-bookmark-children-gift?ref=shop_home_feat_2

Wizard Mini Magnetic Bookmarks

These are SOO CUTE!!!

ETSY STORE: https://www.etsy.com/shop/craftedvan

Book Boxes:

OWLCRATE: http://www.owlcrate.com/

BOOKWORM BOX: http://www.thebookwormbox.com/

And of course, you can just by a giftcard for a bookstore!

I hope you guys enjoyed these birthday bookish gifts!

Good Night Book Owls!

Magnificent May: ITS BIRTHDAY WEEK!!!

Alyssa CohenLeave a comment

Hi everyone!

Welcome to birthday week on Reading, reading, READING! This week, on May 27 it is my birthday, so I thought “Why not make it birthday week on the blog, too?” So, here you have it!

May 26: Bookish Birthday Gifts
May 27: HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!
May 28: Bookish Birthday Haul
May 29: The Birthday Book TAG
May 30: My BIG Birthday Present

I hope that you guys are excited for birthday week!

Good Night Book Owls!

Alyssa’s Reviews – It’s Kind of A Funny Story by Ned Vizzini

Alyssa Cohen3 Comments

Hi everyone!

Instead of doing a book tag, I thought that you all would enjoy a book review much better!

Synopsis (Goodreads):

Ambitious New York City teenager Craig Gilner is determined to succeed at life – which means getting into the right high school to get into the right job. But once Craig aces his way into Manhattan’s Executive Pre-Professional High School, the pressure becomes unbearable. He stops eating and sleeping until, one night, he nearly kills himself.
Craig’s suicidal episode gets him checked into a mental hospital, where his new neighbors include a transsexual sex addict, a girl who has scarred her own face with scissors, and the self-elected President Armelio. There, Craig is finally able to confront the sources of his anxiety.
Ned Vizzini, who himself spent time in a psychiatric hospital, has created a remarkably moving tale about the sometimes unexpected road to happiness.

REVIEW:

*Before I start, a lot of you who saw my past book review noticed that I didn’t use my new book review format, but that will be in affect June 1.*

THIS BOOK WAS AMAZING. SO GOOD. Side Note- I feel like all of the books that I’ve read have been 5 stars, so I guess I’ve been picking up some goodreads!

I read this in less than 24 hours, and it was gripping through every moment.

I would NOT read this book if you have ever had suicidal thoughts (and since I read it I have obviously never had any :)), because the main theme and majority of this book talks about suicide.

One of my favourite parts of this book was that it really doesn’t fall into a specific genre. And although people call this book a “contemporary”, there really wasn’t a love interest until about the last 100 pages or so.

The characters in this book were absolutely incredible. They were hilarious and although I’m a teenage girl, I really loved the elderly people. I have always been more of a talker with adults than kids my age, so I feel like people like these I would talk to.

Overall:

I absolutley ADORED this book! I reccomend it to people who like Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher, or if you’ve read thirteen reasons why than read this! 5/5 Stars!

I hope that you guys liked this book review!

Good Night Book Owls!

Magnificent May: Favourite Bookish Quotes

Alyssa CohenLeave a comment

Hi everyone!

Welcome back to my blog. A few weeks ago I posted my favourite spring quotes, and today I’m going to be sharing my favourite bookish quotes! Let’s get started!!

  • “A villain is just a victim who’s story hasn’t been told.” -Chris Colfer, The Land Of Stories
  • “Okay? Okay.” -John Green, TFIOS
  • “If you really love something, you never try to keep it the way it is forever. You have to let it be free to change.” -Cassandra Clare, City of Ashes
  • “My mom has always said that the right thing and the easy thing are never the same.” -Kami Garcia, Beautiful Creatures
  • “A brave man acknowledges the strength of others.” -Veronica Roth, Allegiant

I hope that you guys liked this post, let me know if you want to see more of my bookish quotes!

Good Night Book Owls!

In My Mailbox #3: Simon and Schuster Canada!

Alyssa CohenLeave a comment

Hi everyone!

Since a lot of you guys enjoy this feature on my blog, I thought that I would make another post featuring what I found in my mailbox as for books this week.

X-Men meets Heroes when New York Times bestselling author Scott Westerfeld teams up with award-winning authors Margo Lanagan and Deborah Biancotti to create a sizzling new series filled with action and adventure.
Don’t call them heroes.
But these six Californian teens have powers that set them apart.
Take Ethan, a.k.a. Scam. He’s got a voice inside him that’ll say whatever you want to hear, whether it’s true or not. Which is handy, except when it isn’t—like when the voice starts gabbing in the middle of a bank robbery. The only people who can help are the other Zeroes, who aren’t exactly best friends these days.
Enter Nate, a.k.a. Bellwether, the group’s “glorious leader.” After Scam’s SOS, he pulls the scattered Zeroes back together. But when the recue blows up in their faces, the Zeroes find themselves propelled into whirlwind encounters with ever more dangerous criminals. At the heart of the chaos they find Kelsie, who can take a crowd in the palm of her hand and tame it or let it loose as she pleases.
Filled with high-stakes action and drama, Zeroes unites three powerhouse authors for the opening installment of a thrilling new series. – See more at: http://books.simonandschuster.com/Zeroes/Scott-Westerfeld/9781481443364#sthash.XJurxKOw.dpuf

Contemporary fantasy meets true crime when schools of ancient sorcery go up against the art of the long con in this stunningly entertaining debut fantasy novel.
Mike Wood is satisfied just being a guy with broad shoulders at a decidedly unprestigious Catholic school in Manhattan. But on the dirty streets of New York City he’s an everyman with a moral code who is unafraid of violence. And when Mike is unwittingly recruited into a secret cell of magicians by a fellow student, Mike’s role as a steadfast soldier begins. These magicians don’t use ritualized rote to work their magic, they use willpower in their clandestine war with the establishment: The Assholes. – See more at: http://books.simonandschuster.com/The-War-Against-the-Assholes/Sam-Munson/9781481427746#sthash.9zEq9emB.dpuf

I hope that you guys enjoyed this weeks In My Mailbox!

Good Night Book Owls!