My Last Post at Blogger...

Hi guys! So, this will be my last post here at Blogger. I'm going camping for the weekend, and when I get back on Monday, August 1st my blog will officially be at sarahsaysread.com .

I know that I said in a previous post that I'd be able to transfer Google Friend Connect over to Wordpress, but I was wrong. Something about wordpress.com versus wordpress.org, and I guess Wordpress doesn't allow javascript... I don't know. I tried, and it doesn't look like it's going to be possible. So I really, really hope that you guys will come on over to my new blog and subscribe there.

For those of you that use a reader, you probably already know how to add blogs to it - either hit the subscribe button on my blog, or copy the URL and paste into a "add a subscription" type of button on your reader.

For those that only use the Blogger dashboard, copy my URL and then go to your dashboard - click "Add" underneath the blogs that you're currently following, and paste my URL in there.

Sorry that I couldn't make it easier :-/ I tried.


On another note, I'm really excited about my switch to Wordpress. I've been thinking about it for months, and I've slowly been setting it up. My sister Heather at All You Need Designs made me a new header, and it is ADORABLE. You can head over there now - all of my posts have already been imported.

Along with the switch to my new blog, you might see some small changes around Sarah Says Read. For instance, I might include a more personal post every now and then. I have a separate, personal blog on Blogger called Enjoy the Little Things, but I think I'm going to close that down as well, and just do the occasional post-about-me thing on the new blog when I feel like it. My blog will definitely be about books first and foremost! But I hope that those of you who follow me over to Wordpress will enjoy seeing the occasional glimpse into my personal / social life.

For a few weeks, you'll see me participating in more blog hops - I want to get the word out about my new blog, and that's one of the good, fun ways to do it. Even though it will be a bit of a pain, considering that I normally work on Fridays and the work computer sucks... but yes. So expect some more memes during the first month or so that Sarah Says Read is up. This won't affect my review content at all - I'll still read and post reviews as often as I can.

I'll keep Blogger active for a little while, to see that everyone gets the message and has time to switch over to the new blog.

SO, see you guys on Monday at Sarah Says Read ! And thank you to EVERY ONE of my followers who joined me over the past year and a half or so. You guys are wonderful :-)


XOXO,

Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes

So... this was different. I picked it up because I heard that it was recommended reading for sci-fi fans, and that it was on some school reading lists. Basically the book is about Charlie, a slow 30-year old with an I.Q. of 68. Because he shows a lot of motivation and a strong desire to learn, he's chosen to be the first human for an experimental surgery that could potentially increase his intelligence. The surgery went really well for a lab mouse named Algernon, and now it's Charlie's chance. The surgery is considered a success and Charlie's intellingence significantly increases, even past that of the scientists that did it to him. But when Algernon starts to show signs of regression, Charlie has to figure out if he's about to lose all that he gained.

This was really interesting. In the beginning, Charlie's writing is misspelled and full of bad grammer, so as the book goes on and all that changes and you can almost "see" him getting more intelligent. The rate that he learns at is incredible - he learns new languages, and becomes a genius. It's not all great though - as he gets smarter, he realizes how mistreated he was when he was too slow to understand. The people that he thought of as friends were actually really mena to him, always making fun of him and laughing at him. He also almost develops a split personality, so that he actually feels like the old Charlie is watching and waiting to come back.

Even as a genius, he has emotional problems that make this overall a sad book. Whether he's unusually slow or crazy intelligent, he's kind of a tragic character. It definitely makes you think about all of the mentally ill people that you see in the world though, and how sad their lives are.

I definitely recommend this book for middle school or high school students (there's some sex in the book, but nothing really graphic). I think kids have the most to gain from this book, because kids tend to be mean to each other, and I know that a lot of kids pick on the child with mental disabilities if there's one in their school or in their neighborhood. Maybe this book would help kids see that these slow kids are people too, and see how cruel it would be to make fun of them. It also make students appreciate that they have SO much potential to learn, and it shouldn't be wasted because some people never have that chance.



Sarah Says: 3 stars


P.S. - The only thing that makes this a "sci-fi" book is the experimental brain surgery that makes people smarter. Otherwise, and book is just like the world now, except in the 1960's because that's when it was written.

Top Ten Tuesday: Books That Tackle Tough Issues

Good morning!!!! It's a great Tuesday, because this is the 2nd day of my vacation :-) A whole ten days off of work... there aren't words to describe the awesomeness. Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and The Bookish, and this week's topic is Top Ten Books That Tackle Tough Issues.

Before I get to the list, just another reminder that as of August 1st, my blog will be at sarahsaysread.com - you can visit there for a preview.

Anyways, ONWARD!

1. The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin: This is an AWESOME sci-fi book, about a traveler that comes to a planet in which there are no genders - the inhabitants only experience gender identities and sexual desires once a month, and during that time they're gender identity could be either male or female. It's one of the great feminist sci-fi books, and definitely a kick-ass read.

2. The Color of Water by James McBride: A great memoir about a bi-racial man and his relationship with his white mom. His mom was a Jewish woman who made the very controversial decision in the 1940's to marry a black man. A great book about bi-racial relationships, and race issues back then.

3. More Guns, Less Crime by John R Lott: A study about the correlations between gun ownership and crime rates, the findings of which that show when citizens are allowed and/or encouraged to legally own concealable weapons, crime rates actually decrease.

4. It's Called a Breakup Because It's Broken by Greg Behrendt: Sadly, repeat relationships are a big issue among men and women. We all know those couples that break-up and then get back together every other week - this book helps you realize that once you break-up, there's never a good reason to get back together.

5. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card: To teach kids that if someone's beating them up after school, to HIT BACK HARD.

6. The Butter Battle Book by Dr. Seuss: I think it's great that Dr. Seuss is the author of one of the greatest books about nuclear proliferation, and how it's possible that the world could be destroyed by a nuclear war.

7. He's Just Not That Into You by Greg Behrendt: Again, this is for those women that just don't seem to realize that the guy she's chasing isn't giving her the time of day. This book will hopefully give some girls higher standards, and make them realize that a guy will make it very obvious if he likes you. They should pass this book out to middle school and high school girls.

8. Beauty Queens by Libba Bray: Man I loved this book. It's hilarious, plus it takes on a bajillion issues.... race, sexuality, consumerism, the media, self-esteem, intelligence, vanity, feminism, sexism, transgender identities, etc....

9. In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan: The author makes the very obvious point that people don't need nutritionists, doctors, diets, etc to tell them what to eat - as humans, we KNOW what to eat - real food, not a lot of it. You know, planets and animals, that's really all you need.

10. Don't Die, My Love by Lurlene McDaniel: I loved McDaniel's books when I was a pre-teen, they all talk about different terminal illnesses. They're actually really sad, I don't know what was wrong with me that I loved these books so much. But this one was my favorite, about a perfect high school couple - except the boyfriend gets a rare form of cancer.

So, those are my tough issues books! What are some of yours? And please, please don't say Thirteen Reasons Why, I have serious issues with that book.

DNF: Barefoot by Elin Hilderbrand

Ahhh... my very first DNF post. Normally, when I decide to quit a book I just don't bother reviewing it. After all, I didn't finish it so how can I give it a fair review? I'm doing it now because this is one of the books that won my July poll. I had actually been looking forward to this book for along time; the premise sounded interesting, and I'll admit it - the cover totally lured me in.

Basically, three women (along with two little kids) go to a beach house on Nantucket to try to escape their problems for a bit and get themselves sorted out. Vicki is a married mother of two young boys, who just found out that she has lung cancer. Brenda (Vicki's sister) was recently fired from her job as a professor for having a relationship with one of her college students. And Melanie (Vicki's best friend) after being told by her husband that he's having an affair, learns that after years of trying she's finally pregnant. These women meet a young college student named Josh, and together they all try to heal, and enjoy their summer on Nantucket.

That's a whole lotta drama, but it all sounded really interesting. Now, I only got through the first 100 pages (book is about 400 pages), so here's why I'm stopping...

1. All the characters sound the same, including Josh. And there aren't really any chapters, so when the story was switching points of view among the characters it was really confusing.

2. One-fourth of the way in, and I have to say that I don't like any of the characters. Vicki strikes me as really negative, self-centered, and kind of stuck up. Melanie is acting like a doormat - her husband confesses to an affair, and instead of raging at him, kicking him out, and divorcing him, she wallows in self-pity and he moves into the guest bedroom. And while I kind of like Brenda for saying what she's thinking and being honest with herself, I can't sympathize with her too much because of course she caused her own problems.

3. The book (well, at least what I've read) occurs for the most part in each character's head - they're thoughts and responses to what's going on. And yet whenever something interesting started to happen, like two of the women arguing with each other, it was glazed over.

That's pretty much it. I don't mind books about tough issues, but this just wasn't for me. It was at turns boring me and annoying me.

Anyways, for those of you that voted for Barefoot... sorry. But July's almost over, and I have a lot of other books I want to get to. I don't want to spend my time dragging through this one. I am open to trying something else by Elin Hilderbrand though, if anyone has a favorite by her that you can suggest.

Since giving this one up, I decided instead to start Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes. I'm about half-way through it, so that review should be up in a day or two.

Voyager by Diana Gabaldon

So, onward with my Outlander-themed re-reads! Keep in mind that this is the third in the series - if you haven't read the first two, it could be pretty spoiler-y.

Also, I own three out of those four covers above... all but the last one, which I believe is the British edition. The plain green is what you find in stores now, but a small part of me really likes the campy old-school covers. This is what happens when I absolutely fall in love with a series though - I will collect has many different copies / editions of the book as possible.

The first time I read Voyager, I didn't like it. The second time I read it, I realized that I actually did like it, and wasn't sure what the deal was with past-Sarah that didn't enjoy it very much. And now on my third time reading it, I have to agree that it actually is one of the best in the series... it's at least as awesome as books 1 & 2.

So at the end of Dragonfly in Amber, Claire, Brianna, and Roger (in 1968) realize that Jamie didn't die at Culloden like they all thought that he did. The first 1/4 of the book contains them all doing further research, to find out if he was still alive - if they could find proof that he was alive roughly 200 years ago, then Claire might be able to travel back through the stones again to him.

That's all the information that the back of the book really gives you... so don't read any farther if you don't want to know what Claire's decision was.


Now seriously, you didn't think this book would be almost 1100 pages long if Claire decided not to go back through the stones, did you? Claire makes the decision to go back and try to find Jamie, so she goes through the stones again and comes out in 1766. Jamie and Claire's being reunited is one of the best things ever - even though this is my third time reading the series, that part of the book totally makes me cry. The reason I think that I didn't originally like this book that much is because from the moment they're reunited, the book gets very hectic. I felt like they never got to take a couple weeks to just catch up and be together. But now I'm all about the fast pace of the book. There's definitely lots of plot, intrigue, and action. Hell, there are PIRATES! Of course that's exciting.

Basically someone dear to Jamie is kidnapped, so Claire and Jamie travel all over the bloody place on a rescue mission. This gets really, really interesting since Jamie is so sea-sick, and almost all of the traveling is on ships. But their adventure also answers some questions that they had, ties off some mysteries / problems, and sets up the next book beautifully.

Some other perks of this book? I love seeing all the different ways in which Jamie and Claire have changed since they've been apart. I love seeing grown-up Fergus. And this book finally clarifies exactly how tall Jamie is - he's 6' 4". I remember debating with the honeyman a while back about how tall Jamie was, so I was excited when I came across that passage.

Anyways, this is a great book in the series. Jamie and Claire are just the best. (I actually miss them when I'm not reading these books.) And despite was Amazon says, it is not the "concluson of a trilogy". There are four more books out, and more to come. I'm already really itching to go re-read the fourth book now, Drums of Autumn, so expect that in the next month or so.

Sarah Says: 5 stars :-)

Come Vote! August Poll is Open!

Okay guys, the time is here to vote for the book you want me to read and review in August! The poll is on the right sidebar, and all the descriptions below come from http://www.goodreads.com/.

Also, here's a good place for a small announcement - starting August 1st, my blog will no longer be at blogspot. My new url is http://www.sarahsaysread.com/, which you can preview now. If you follow me via google friend connect, nothing should change for you because I'm going to switch it to the new site. However if you follow me in a feed reader, visit the new site to subscribe via email, or add the URL to your reader. So whichever book wins this poll, when I read and review it I'll be posting it to my new blog.

So, let's get to the poll choices!

Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen - the classic pick

Marianne Dashwood wears her heart on her sleeve, and when she falls in love with the dashing but unsuitable John Willoughby she ignores her sister Elinor's warning that her impulsive behaviour leaves her open to gossip and innuendo. Meanwhile Elinor, always sensitive to social convention, is struggling to conceal her own romantic disappointment, even from those closest to her. Through their parallel experience of love—and its threatened loss—the sisters learn that sense must mix with sensibility if they are to find personal happiness in a society where status and money govern the rules of love.

The History of Love by Nicole Krauss - the contemporary lit pick

"Leo Gursky is trying to survive a little bit longer, tapping his radiator each evening to let his upstairs neighbor know he's still alive, drawing attention to himself at the milk counter of Starbucks. But life wasn't always like this: sixty years ago, in the Polish village where he was born, Leo fell in love and wrote a book. And although he doesn't know it, that book also survived: it crossed oceans and generations, and changed lives." Fourteen-year-old Alma was named after a character in that book. She has her hands full keeping track of her little brother Bird (who thinks he might be the Messiah) and taking copious notes in her book, How to Survive in the Wild Volume Three. But when a mysterious letter arrives in the mail she undertakes an adventure to find her namesake and save her family.

Redwall by Brian Jacques - the childhood pick

As the inhabitants of Redwall Abbey bask in the glorious Summer of the Late Rose, all is quiet and peaceful. But things are not as they seem. Cluny the Scourge, the evil one-eyed rat warlord, is hell-bent on destroying the tranquility as he prepares to fight a bloody battle for the ownership of Redwall. This dazzling story in the Redwall series is packed with all the wit, wisdom, humor, and blood-curdling adventure of the other books in the collection, but has the added bonus of taking the reader right back to the heart and soul of Redwall Abbey and the characters who live there.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams - the sci-fi pick

Seconds before the Earth is demolished to make way for a galactic freeway, Arthur Dent is plucked off the planet by his friend Ford Prefect, a researcher for the revised edition of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy who, for the last fifteen years, has been posing as an out-of-work actor.
Together this dynamic pair begin a journey through space aided by quotes from The Hitchhiker's Guide ("A towel is about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchhiker can have") and a galaxy-full of fellow travelers: Zaphod Beeblebrox--the two-headed, three-armed ex-hippie and totally out-to-lunch president of the galaxy; Trillian, Zaphod's girlfriend (formally Tricia McMillan), whom Arthur tried to pick up at a cocktail party once upon a time zone; Marvin, a paranoid, brilliant, and chronically depressed robot; Veet Voojagig, a former graduate student who is obsessed with the disappearance of all the ballpoint pens he bought over the years.
Where are these pens? Why are we born? Why do we die? Why do we spend so much time between wearing digital watches? For all the answers stick your thumb to the stars. And don't forget to bring a towel!

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury - the re-read pick

Guy Montag was a fireman whose job it was to start fires. And he enjoyed his job. He had been a fireman for ten years, and he had never questioned the pleasure of the midnight runs or the joy of watching pages consumed by flames, never questioned anything until he met a seventeen-year-old girl who told him of a past when people were not afraid. Then Guy met a professor who told him of a future in which people could think. And Guy Montag suddenly realized what he had to do...

Annnnddd..... VOTE!

Top Ten Tuesday: Books That Teens Should Be Required to Read

Hey ya'll! So today is a good day for two reasons: Firstly, it's the 2nd day of me & the honeyman's 4 Year Anniversary! (Yes, our anniversary is actually 3 days long... I'll tell that story some other time). So you know, yay :-) Secondly, it's time for Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by The Broke and The Bookish. This week's topic is awesome, and I might have trouble limiting myself to only ten picks... it's Ten Books That Should Be Required Reading for Teens.

(Also it should be noted that while a lot of these books are suggested reading for teens now, I never read any of them in school. How the hell that happened, I have no idea.)

1. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card: This book is kind of kick-ass. In a world where kids are trained for battle, Ender himself stands out. I'd make kids read this to teach them to be compassionate and nice, but to defend themselves against bullies. I think the issue of bullies today is really being blow out of proportion, but this book shows what you should do if another kid is beating you for no reason.

2. Beauty Queens by Libba Bray: I just recently read this book, and am obsessed with how much I love it. I think it'd be an important read for teen girls, and it addresses so many issues - beauty, race, gender identity, sexuality, pressure from parents and society, etc... and I think it'd be interesting to see what teen boys could learn from it.

3. The Autobiography of Malcolm X: An awesome book about a really important civil rights figure. Middle schools annoyingly tend to skip Malcolm X and instead harp on and on about MLK Jr., so by the time teens get to high school they should be able to learn about another side of the same issues. Also, one of the best autobiographies I've ever read. It's interesting, thought-provoking, and really illuminating.

4. any Jane Austen book: I wasn't exposed to Austen until I was 22 or something crazy like that. Instead of high schools trying to focus on Shakespeare, they should go the route of Austen instead and leave Shakespeare for college students. That way they're still exposing teens to classic lit and an older version of language, but it's just easier. Plus, it would give the teen boys a hint to be more like the Austen heroes :-)

5. To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee: Do I really even need to explain this one?

6. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury: A good and really interesting book about what it'd be like to live in a world where you aren't allowed to read books. Hopefully will give the teens an appreciation for books and the ability to read them.

7. Anthem by Ayn Rand: Yes, Rand is kind of a controversial author. But I think that for teens, this could be a really important read. It's about someone living in a uniform society, where everyone is the same, and discovering the idea that he is an individual.

8. 1984 by George Orwell: Can you tell yet that I'm a big fan of teens reading classics and dystopians?

9. Einstein's Dreams by Alan Lightman: One of my high school teachers gave me this book to read, and stupidly I ignored him. I read it like 7 years later, and it was really good. Definitely makes you contemplate time and such, and I think it'd be good to get more teens thinking about complex scientific issues.

10. The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula le Guin: About a visitor coming to a planet where there are no genders. Can you even contemplate what it would be like to live in a genderless society? Exactly.

OKAY, I have to go over ten... these are some others that should be suggested reading for teens... Harry Potter, The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran, The Giver by Lois Lowry (duh), The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood, Lamb by Christopher Moore, The Princess Bride by William Goldman... okay I think I've run out of steam now.

Also... here are the books that I think teens should NEVER be subjected to. Why some of them are forced on high school kids, I'll never know.

Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton: The only book I've ever read that makes a very good case FOR adultery, and it has possibly the stupidest suicide method ever.

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger: Ohmygod, I think teens are whiny enough, thank you very much. Although maybe this would give them a taste of their own medicine and make them less whiny. Hmmm....

Moby Dick by Herman Melville: Unless you want teens to end up hating reading, of course.

Go Ask Alice by "Anonymous": This is so obviously some adult trying to scare kids away from drugs. And I hate to tell you, but teens are not stupid enough to swallow this crap. I read it in high school and was insulted that my teachers thought I would believe such a blatant scare tactic.


Anyways, what do you think teens should or should not be required to read?