Up Since Five.

Up since five. No really particular reason. I heard my parents talking loudly (my room is closest to the living-room and the kitchen, so I always hear everything), and my dogs heard them too and started walking on me and scratching at my door and slamming themselves against it when I told them no on waking up yet. This lasted only about ten minutes though, the talking was too loud so I figured what the heck. I got up and made some hot chocolate for my mom and I, while my dad drank his coffee and got ready for work. Stared at the TV for a good while, then at around seven mom and I decided to go out and get the last of our stuff done. This included grocery shopping, and pet gifts.

The stores we went to weren't as crowded as I thought they might be, so it was pretty simple and enjoyable. :) First stop was grocery store number one, to cash in the change I have been saving all year for the pet gifts. Then grocery store number two, because dad's work gave him a gift card there like they do every year. Then grocery store number three to get the dogs chewie toys for tomorrow because they are the cheapest there. :p Then on over to the bank, and then the bookstore, because the money I got was burning a huge hole in my pocket. :D I had forty bucks. And I spent it all on books.

I definitely knew two of the books I wanted: The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (last copy left!), and Marley and Me. (Please don't laugh at my cover choice, I have a celebrity crush on Owen Wilson right now and I couldn't help myself, lol. Also the movie is what has really driven me to buy the book and not wait on it from the library.) I wasn't even sure if I'd buy a third book today, especially after wandering around the bookstore checking out books I found in the library catalog currently on my TBR list...but being too worried about hating the third book, I didn't buy any of the ones I made a short list of last night that I wanted to look at today. (I did look at all of them though - very very tempting.) I ended up deciding on one that I instantly knew I would love, False Colours by Georgette Heyer. This is one of the first one of her books that I came across, (which the library didn't have, grr!) so I hurried over to the romance section of the store, and I felt so relieved and happy when I saw they had it. So yay. :) I gots new books! I'll probably read them in January. After I finish the big pile on my night stand. :p

Oh, I also considered buying The Watchmen, (graphic novel) by Alan Moore. I came across it in someone's blog the other day, and I thought to myself, "Oh yeah, they're making a movie out of that, I wanted to check into it months ago." (I never did.) I saw it at the bookstore and flipped through it, but it was too much money so I didn't get it. I'm just relieved I put a hold on it at the library (I'm number 38), because it looks really good and will probably get even more popular as the months fly by getting closer to the movie. I also took a longing look at the Inkheart books. Strangely enough, they only had "Inkheart" out in book form; which irked me to no end.

Soooo, after all my wandering there, we went over to Petco, to pick up the rest of the pet gifts. Dog cookies, catnip, and a new seed-bar thing with berries in it for my bird. Then we came home.

Wow, I didn't think this would be such a long post, so I shall end it here. And I still have two more things to write about. Eep!

Highland...Faeries?

First, a Twilight note: while I still don't hate it, I'm not interested enough to keep reading, due to the alarming number of holds on it at the library (over 500!), and the fact that I haven't even touched Inkdeath (18 other library holds, which means I cannot renew it so I must start reading it now, because there is no way I am rushing through the last book, or waiting through 18 other people to finish reading it before I can. No. Way.) I decided I can live with not knowing what happens until the movie comes out. Honestly, I'll probably wait to get the movie from the library, and yes I do realize how long that will be. I'm just not thrilled enough about it. - Speaking of being thrilled over a movie, Guy Ritchie's newest one: RocknRolla starts playing on Friday, I am so there. Gerard Butler and a Guy Ritchie film = Yayness.

Now, on to the Highland Faeries part; I found a book yesterday at the grocery store (gotta love those supermarket romances!) titled, "Highland Guardian." I read the back cover description and it intrigued me, so I filed the title in my head and when I got home I looked it up online. It is the second book of a series by Melissa Mayhue: Daughters of the Glen. The books in order:

• Thirty Nights with a Highland Husband: (from amazon.com) Caitlyn Coryell is having a really bad day -- she just discovered her fiancé with another woman! Imagine her surprise when she puts on some sexy lingerie and an antique pendant and Connor appears in her bedroom, begging for her help. He offers a simple yet outrageous adventure: travel to his time, marry him, and return home.
• Highland Guardian: (from amazon.com) Ian McCullough is neck-deep in his own trouble. A half-mortal descendant of Faeries, he's been a Guardian for more than six hundred years, but he's never encountered a woman like Sarah. Assigned to protect her, he finds the job tougher than he could have imagined. Oh, he can handle the stalker, and even the renegade Faeries trying to kidnap her. But falling in love means forsaking his role as Guardian -- which is some-thing he could never do.
• Soul of A Highlander: (from amazon.com) Nine years ago, Faerie Magic saved Mairi MacKiernan at the cost of her dreams of happiness, snatching her from her life in 1272, and depositing her in the twenty-first century. Now, she must save the last Daughter of the MacKiernan family...who was murdered in 1295. Transported back in time at her request, Mairi finds herself captured by the same evil men as before! Is this the price the Faerie Magic requires of her this time?
• A Highlander of Her Own: (According to amazon.com,this title is set for release: Jan. 27, 2009.) From the author's website: Ellie Denton’s world has spiraled out of control. A strange new birthmark, animals talking to her, and her mother’s ex-husband laying claim to the family ranch have her thinking life can’t get more complicated. But Ellie doesn’t know the birthmark’s connection to her Faerie ancestors. Complicated takes on a whole new meaning with her innocent wish to find her true love.

Normally I'm not a time travel kind of girl, but the Highlanders and Scotland settings have me extremely interested in this series. :)

murder and monsters.

Last night I read my two favorite (so far) Sherlock Holmes stories: The Adventure of The Speckled Band, and The Adventure of The Copper Beeches. Very good choice to have made.

Also, I started Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, which I bought a few weeks ago for my birthday. I'm still in the preface though, which is pretty interesting. I've been wanting to read this for the longest time, and now that I've started it I can barely wait to get into the actual story, I'm just so in the mood for a literary thrill. I hope this book will be enough to satisfy that mood. :p

Later today I hope to make it over to the library to pick up The Art of Racing in the Rain, by Garth Stein. I've heard good things about it so I'm happy that my turn finally came up for it. Also, the doggie narrative factor is great because I love dogs. I hope it won't disappoint.

And, speaking of library book turns, I put Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series on hold. I have a very long wait though. Each book has over 100 holds on it already. Ugh. It would be easier just to buy them but I can rarely afford new books. That's why I'm such a library addict. :)

So, I think I'm doing okay with my challenge, considering that around this time last year I wasn't that close at all to having read 22 books. Plus, four short stories. I don't think I read any short stories last year. But this year I've read two Beatrix Potter Tales, and two Sherlock Holmes Adventures. Even if I don't make it to my goal of fifty, I think I'll still feel pretty good about this years reading. But, it is only just the end of July, lots more time to build up the number. :)

wandering the bookstore.

I recently watched the movie version of Little Women, due to my obsession with Christian Bale, and I positively loved it so I decided to finally buy the book. I've been wanting the book anyhow so this time it just seemed right to go ahead and buy it since I had the bit of extra money in my pocket - sort of like an early birthday present for myself. :p Now I can barely wait to get through my Christy Brown books so I can read that. On a silly note; I am thrilled that it is blue. Blue is my favorite color. :p Yay.

I went to Barnes & Noble to get it, because I love their classics books they have going. While I was there browsing around I spotted two books I've been trying to find time for to get them from the library: Twilight, and New Moon. Both by Stephenie Meyer. I've never read her before but I spotted Twilight in the library catalog a bit ago and have wanted to check it out since. I took a look at them and I think I'll probably get them next from the library. Not only does the vampire factor interest me, but the covers are so lovely. It'll probably be a month or so though before I get a chance to get them, because I plan to order some books for my birthday on Saturday. I want to get the last three books of Sadie Montgomery's Phantom series, and that book by Georgina Hambleton on Christy Brown. If I'm able to get them I shall have lots of reading to do this summer. :)

Speaking of lots of reading, I cannot believe I have already read 19 books this year. This may not be a lot to some, but it is for me. Usually I'm only around 10 or 12 this time of year, so I'm quite pleased with myself. :p

another drop.

These are too many book drops for me. Ugh. Anyhoo, I'm not going to read The Dangerous Gentleman after all, because the Christy Brown books I put on hold at the library are starting to trickle in. (Yayness!) So I shall save it for another day. I was only one chapter in, anyway. I don't think I was really in the mood for a romance anyhow. I hope to pick up the first book (The Poems of Christy Brown.) that has arrived already, today. I need to return some things anyway, so it will work out okay. I have 8 more of his books coming though, I hope I won't have to go back and forth all week! I love going to the library, but it's so hot out there lately! lol. Oh well. :p

Even though I'm very excited to be finally getting his books to read, I'm not quite sure I'll like them. (His fiction books, anyway. I'm quite sure I'll like the poetry.) Yesterday I went on to amazon.com, and looked up his books to see if they had the "search inside" option for any of them, which I never thought to look at before - why, I don't know; but I looked yesterday, and they have that option for "Wild Grow the Lilies." I looked inside and I'm just not sure whether I liked it or not. I'm hoping it's one of those stories that will suck you in as you get further into it. I just don't want to be disappointed by them, because I am highly fascinated by his life.

new journal.

just a little note...

so I went to the library yesterday as planned. yayness. I got all four books I wanted. I was going to start with The Russian Concubine, but opted out since I decided I am more in the mood for an adventure, so I'm going to start reading The Whale Road either tonight or tomorrow.

I went to Barnes & Noble today, looked around a bit and ended up just getting a new journal. I decided to get a somewhat different kind this time. the only difference is the size (8x11) and look of it. there's no design, it's just solid black. obviously, all of my others have had a design on them. and they've been the smaller "standard" size. here's a little peek:

I really like the basic look of it though. :)

'tis all.

upcoming books.

Here is a little info on my upcoming books for my challenge:

1 - The Russian Concubine, by Kate Furnivall: I don't quite remember where I first heard about this book, but I am glad even by the description that I did hear about it.
- Description from Amazon.com: "A sweeping novel set in war-torn 1928 China, with a star-crossed love story at its center. In a city full of thieves and Communists, danger and death, spirited young Lydia Ivanova has lived a hard life. Always looking over her shoulder, the sixteen-year-old must steal to feed herself and her mother, Valentina, who numbered among the Russian elite until Bolsheviks murdered most of them, including her husband. As exiles, Lydia and Valentina have learned to survive in a foreign land. Often, Lydia steals away to meet with the handsome young freedom fighter Chang An Lo. But they face danger: Chiang Kai Shek's troops are headed toward Junchow to kill Reds like Chang, who has in his possession the jewels of a tsarina, meant as a gift for the despot's wife. The young pair's all-consuming love can only bring shame and peril upon them, from both sides. Those in power will do anything to quell it. But Lydia and Chang are powerless to end it."
I find this very interesting indeed, and I cannot wait to see how things unfold in this book. Kate Furnivall will be a new-to-me author and I hope I don't find her disappointing.

2 - Swan Island, by Elizabeth Gill: I believe I found this in the library catalog last month or so.
The first in a trilogy, here is the description from Amazon.com: "The first in a new trilogy from a well-loved author - 1920s, Durham. Ellas happy childhood in Swan Island is abruptly ended when her father dies, leaving the family bankrupt and forcing them to leave the area. Over the years Ella settles into domesticity with her husband, but she has never forgotten Harry, whom she met in the early years of the Second World War. In 1951, he comes back into her life..."
I can't help but wonder and speculate who Harry was to her and how they meet again and what happens between them when they next meet.

3 - My Sister's Keeper, by Jodi Picoult: I have been hearing and hearing about this author, so I decided to finally read one of her books. This one sounded the most interesting, especially seeing as how I have four sisters. I hope I don't find it disappointing, though some creeping feeling just tells me I might find it so. I don't know why, but I just get that feeling.

4 - The Whale Road, by Robert Low: I found this book in the library catalog this month, and once I looked it up on Amazon.com and read the description, I simply had to read it as soon as possible. In 965 A.D., the tale of Viking warriors on a quest for hidden treasure is set. This just screams adventure, a genre I very much enjoy, and the Vikings factor, perfect. Though I don't know very much about them, I am still highly fascinated by them. I think I will enjoy this book, or, at least I rather hope that I will.

That is it for the remainder of this month and probably a couple weeks into next month as well. After these I want to get some books by Christy Brown. I have become very fascinated by him in these past couple of weeks, and I am very much looking forward to reading his work and life story.

Babble, Moving onto Elephants.

Well, after I finished Under the Skin, I decided to move right onto Maskerade: a novel of Discworld. Ugh. I got fifty pages in before I couldn't stand all the downright babble that was going on in that book. Eew. It just felt like page after page of the author's half-hearted attempt at a story. I tried looking at it as the simple comedy it was, but I just couldn't because I didn't even find it all that funny. I didn't hate it because it was a phantom parody, I'm all game to make light of something I completely adore with an open mind - it was just boring to me and I couldn't bear to even try to finish it during my 50 Book Challenge. It would only be a waste of time.

So I moved on to the next library book I had waiting to be read: Elephant Winter. I'm only around ten or so pages into it and I already am really enjoying it. The writing is very beautiful feeling and I love the idea of a story with Elephants in it. I've never read one that circulates around them before so I am looking forward to getting further into this book. :) Kim Echlin is a new author to me, and so far it has been a very good choice to take another chance on another new-to-me writer.

On another pleasant note, Phoenix of the Opera arrived yesterday. I cannot wait to read it next. :) Not to sound too shallow, but I am very in love with the cover art. :p

library stuff.

I recently saw the movie "The Good Earth," based on the novel (by Pearl S. Buck) with the same title, I really liked it so I decided to check out the book from the library. I haven't actually began reading it yet though but I plan to start it tonight. I hope to be finished reading it or at least have read over half way through it, by the time my other books get in at the library.

I'm just waiting for Elephant Winter (by Kim Echlin), Maskerade: a novel of Discworld (by Terry Pratchett), and Under the Skin (by Michel Faber).

Elephant Winter; I found in the library catalog: it is about a daughter and her dying mother. The daughter ends up falling for the keeper of the Ontario Safari and his five elephants. There's more to it than that, but I don't want to get too engulfed in the description or the reviews on amazon.com because I don't want to ruin this book for myself before I even get it.
Maskerade: a novel of Discworld; I found while browsing amazon.com for Phantom of the Opera related books. It looks like a parody of Phantom, but I don't mind that. I read a few of the reviews and it seems kind of so-so, but I want to check it out anyway; because I simply adore the Phantom of the Opera and I love reading anything about it - as long as it's done decently enough. In which I hope that this book will be.
Under the Skin; I found as a recommendation from someone else's diary on another site I visit. It sounded interesting from their review and the description on amazon.com, so I decided to get it. it seems like a horror book though. I hate those creepy books. I never, ever read horror. The only "horror" novel I've ever read is The Prestige. It wasn't that bad, and in fact, it was creepy-thrilling. I liked it for it's own way. This one, sounds a little more strange though, in the way that it will probably give me that gross horrific feeling I oh-so definitely hate. I am looking forward to reading it though because it will be different from what I normally read, and I feel like a change right now. I just hope I won't regret reading it for a few months.

I'm also waiting for another book - Phantom of the Opera related. I ordered The Phoenix of the Opera, by Sadie Montgomery. It is book one of her phantom series. I've never come across a series before for the phantom, so I was immediately intrigued, but a little put off by the description. But more-so, a little excited about it. Because it pairs him with Meg. I love Meg Giry, and I've always wanted to see her and Erik paired off together, so I am somewhat anxiously awaiting this book. Even if I don't like this one, I am still going to get the others of the series, because those do sound more interesting than this first one. But I wanted to go one at time with them. Also I don't see much sense in starting this series off on the second book, I just can't read like that. :p I have to know everything, because Erik is one of my favorite characters.