Tag reading

FREE Barnes And Noble 15% off! Now Through 3/8/15

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Here ya go! 

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I believe it’s for one purchase only so congratulations to the first person to use it!

I have one more in stock but I’m debating whether to post it or keep it for myself but I have until Sunday Night to decide sooo…… Follow to keep a look out on it!

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott | First Impression

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Little Women! The title wasn’t exactly what interested me in this book but I can see why it might to some people. I am about 15% through the book and to keep it short and sweet: I LOVE IT. 

Quick Description: 4 sisters living together with their mother. The father is serving in the military (or navy? I forgot, sorry!) but he is expected to return. The sisters each live different lives yet still have so many similarities.

MY THOUGHTS: 

All the characters have such a defined personality, even the old neighbor, and he’s only been around for two chapters so far!

This is not what I expected at all! It’s easy to read, easy to relate to, easy to empathize with the characters. 

Not sure what exactly the plot is so far but it seems to be creating a sort of story for each sister, probably so that readers have a better understand of who the characters are.

MY QUESTIONS:

Will any of them fall in love with Laurie?

Is the old man going to die?

Why is Beth so sweet?!

Is the father going to come back?

MY CONCERNS:

I think the novel is setting me up for a huge plot twist and going to make me cry.

Thanks for reading! I’ll keep you guys updated on how I’m liking the novel so far! 

I Don’t Read Black Authors

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Hey Everyone! So today I’m talking about my habit of not reading books by black authors or even of any ethnicity besides white.

Okay, I’m sorry. I made the title make me seem racist just for clicks but I really have noticed that my little library I have in front of me is made up mostly of white, male authors. It’s not something I do on purpose or consciously but I really want to change that. I really want to start reading more novels written by nonwhite and nonmale authors. PLEASE comment down below or email me vanesawordpress@gmail.com to recommend me some novels to diverse my library. 

DIVERSE. That’s an important word when it comes to almost anything in life. Employers want diversity in their offices, colleges and universities want diversity in their student population but what does this word mean for novels and publishing?

It means that authors who do not fall into to majority are being recognized just as much as the majority, that they are respected and given the same opportunities that the majority receives. This topic really resonated with me when it first came to my attention right before I attended Bookcon 2014. When I first bought my tickets I mostly bought it because many of my favorite authors were attending but what did they all have in common? White Males. Honestly, I didn’t really notice at first but social media blew up on this and eventually there was a group called We Need Diverse Books at the convention. They brought the issue to the light and because of them, more female and ethnic authors were added to the list. (I stopped by the booth and even got a bookmark. I have it taped to my wall!) 

Throughout this year, I’ve been more aware of the books I read. I do more research on authors but I still havent committed to reading more diverse books. This is where I need YOU. From now on, I will be reading one diverse book a month (I know it’s not a lot but I have a busy schedule and only manage to read 3-5 books a month.) I may read more if I have an easy month. Again, this is where I need YOU. I need YOU to comment and tell me what you think about it. Tell me about books you would recommend to me. Also, tell me what other ISSUES you’ve noticed in the reading, book blogs, booktube, publishing community.

I already have a post about Why YA Novels Suck that you should check out. 

Please follow this blog! Share this post and follow my twitter @rigorousreads. 

I can be contacted at vanesawordpress@gmail.com

*****DISCLAIMER****** I am not racist, I am not sexist. 

Thank you for reading! Have a Great Day!

Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline | First Impression

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“I believe in ghosts. They’re the ones who haunt us, the ones who have left us behind.” 

This quote opens the novel’s short prologue that introduces one of the characters in which the novel seems to focus on. Alternating between Vivian, an elderly orphaned woman, and Molly, an angsty teenage girl, the story is told about their lives and commonalities. Although I have only read about 30 pages of the novel so far, I’ve developed some thoughts about the characters. I might mention plot points that I’ve reached thus far but, again, I’m only 30 pages in, the spoilers aren’t really spoilers. These are some of my main thought about the novel:

  1. Molly, the angsty teenage girl, seems to be very stereotypical. She’s a rebellious goth girl who is in foster care. She also loves to read and attempted to steal a book from a library. No offense to the writer but from what I know about Molly so far, she just seems really pretentious and it does feel like Molly was written with a condescending view, like the narrator is picking at her flaws. Maybe this will change throughtout the novel, however pretentious teenagers is still a bit of a cliche in my opinion. 
  2. Vivian seems to be the best defined character so far and she’s only been present twice in the first 30 pages. This character seems to speak appropriately in regards to her wealthy lifestyle and age. Although at some points in the dialogue, she gives me a sense of sassiness which I don’t usually associate with the elderly but maybe that’s just a personal opinion.
  3. Overall the novel feels like a more mature Young Adult novel. The reason I say this is because the first couple of chapters narrates the teenage girl’s life but my opinion may change since the next chapter is in the point of view of Vivian. This actually bothers me a bit; the chapters about Molly are in third person but Vivian’s chapters seem to be in first. It must be intentional but it just seems rather odd to me.

Thanks for Reading! Comment below what you think and if you’d like a full review once I finish the novel! Don’t forget to like and follow too! 


Why YA Books Suck

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Hey everybody! So I’d like to talk about why YA books haven’t been involved in my reading as much more mature novels and classics have. I’ve constructed a short list, feel free to prove me wrong in the comments. Also, I haven’t read a YA book in about a year or two but even at the time I was already feeling negativity towards these novels.

  1. Same Plot. Different Characters. I’ve always noticed that the plots amongst YA books has been reciprocated into other novels. The Hunger Games (published 2008), Divergent (published 2011), and The Maze Runner (published 2009) all have a similar plot regarding the first of each series. All three consist of teenagers being manipulated by a form of authority, mostly the government, and eventually rebelling or escaping. There are dozens of similar novels!
  2. Authors Are Living Their Teenage Fantasies. This came to my attention when John Green (or was it someone else?) said that he was told that his books are his way of fulfilling his teenage fantasies. I realized this was true. Although Looking for Alaska is probably one of the best Young Adult novels I’ve read, Green did base it off his experiences at an extremely similar school. I’ve read this book about 4 years ago and at first I didn’t realize that the novel could just be Green reliving his fantasies once he gotten older. 
  3. There’s A LOT of Twilight Knock offs. Ever since Twilight was published (2005) there has been an increase in supernatural romances. Vampires were already getting a lot of attention at the time because of shows like True Blood but Twilight definitely sparked the niche in YA novels. There are countless novels with no originality because they focus on romance between humans and some sort of supernatural vampire, angel, or wolf. I won’t even mention the cover knock offs.
  4. Lack of Diversity. Being a hispanic reader I’ve noticed that as I read YA, most of the protagonists have been upper-middle class white females. Although most novels really don’t mention the character’s race, the only people who can really relate to the characters are other teenage, white, suburban, wealthy, girls. 
  5. Lack of Diversity. This time I mean lack of diversity in AUTHORS. Looking through my collection of YA novels that I’ve acquired throughout the years, I’ve noticed that a lot of authors are white. I give publishers props, there has been an increase in female writers but where are the black writers? Hispanics? Asians? Walking throughout the Barnes and Noble YA corner, I only notice a handful obviously ethnic names. I don’t really want to make this a race thing so I’ll finish this point. 
  6. Not Challenging Enough. So many YA books have basic vocabulary with a simple plot. I get that writers are writing for a younger audience but teenagers need to be pushed to their full potential. Write about stories during historical events like The French Revolution, the Renaissance, Columbus’ trip to Central America! Use bigger words because reading is the only way I exercise my vocabulary! Schools don’t put enough effort in expanding our vocabularies so we need to be educated through books! Teach us! Make us think! Make us want to find the definition to that word!


That’s why I think YA novels aren’t worth the hype that they recieve on social media, especially on Booktube. So many booktubers are so YA centric that the only types of videos they post are about YA novels. Why don’t you use your social media power to help your viewers integrate other genres? Not saying ALL booktubers, only SOME.

Thanks for reading! Don’t forget to comment, like, and share. Follow my blog for more posts like this or maybe to see me get my ass kicked by fangirls. Follow me on Instagram and Twitter @rigorousreads!

If you know any YA books that will change my mind, comment it below!

Reading Goals | Books I Want to Read

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Hey Everyone! So I’ve constructed a list of books I would like to read (or finish.) A lot of these books I already own but haven’t gotten around to reading but 2015 is a goal achieving year for me! Maybe I’ll knock a good amount (at least 20?) by the end of the year. I believe my goodreads challenge of the year is 30 books. I haven’t updated it yet but I probably already read about 5 or 6 books which is really lacking. Recommend me some books! Give me tips! What kinds of posts would you like to see next? Tell me in the comments or on Twitter or Instagram @rigorousreads. Hope you enjoy!

  1. Lolita
  2. Invisible Man
  3. State of Fear
  4. Under the Dome: A Novel
  5. The War of the Worlds
  6. What the Night Knows (with bonus novella Darkness Under the Sun): A Novel
  7. The Divine Comedy (The Inferno, The Purgatorio, and The Paradiso)
  8. Bluebeard: A Novel (Delta Fiction)
  9. Galapagos
  10. 1984
  11. Pride and Prejudice
  12. Wuthering Heights
  13. Dracula
  14. The Stand
  15. In The Woods
  16. Game of Thrones (maybe the entire series?)
  17. The Odyssey

I will be adding to this list as I think of more! Maybe I’ll do monthly updates or something like that? Follow my blog, Twitter, and Instagram to get updated! @rigorousreads !

Thanks for Reading! Don’t forget to leave a comment!

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Paper Towns by John Green | Movie Expectations

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Hey Everybody!

Share this post and comment your expectations for Paper Towns!

You can buy this wonder book here for less than $6!  Paper Towns

I’d like to talk about my expectations for the new Paper Towns movie set to come out in early June of this year. Regardless of what my attitude seems about The Fault in Our Stars, I am extremely excited to go see the movie! 

Cara Delevigne and Nat Wolff will be staring in this movie and I think the cast in general isn’t as much as a disappointment as when the cast of TFiOS was announced. I have high expectations for Nat Wolff, especially because he is a good actor. Cara, however, is a bit strange for me. I love her as a model and I even follow her on instagram but I don’t know what to expect considering I’ve never seen her act. Nat Wolff is the only cast member that I can associate with other movies or shows. Personally, if I were to cast Margo myself, I would’ve went with Dianna Agron (Quinn from Glee.) She just seemed like the ideal Margo to me, apperance wise. 

The director seems to not have too many credentials so, again, I don’t have much to base my hopes on. I’m just glad it isn’t Josh Boone. 

I really enjoyed Paper Towns as a novel but I don’t know how well some of the jokes (i.e. black santas) will transfer onto the big screen.

This is kind of a short post but my expectations for TFiOS were not met so I don’t want to get too overly excited this time. I’m on the lookout for some fan screenings (last year it was in May at the SVA theater) in New York City. If you know of any, let me know!

Thanks for reading!

Comment and Share this post so other bloggers will be inspired to share their expectations as well!

Actual Books vs. E-books vs. Audio Books

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Hello! Welcome to my second blog post!

Well lately I’ve been contemplating what type of books are best, especially for me. If you don’t know what the different types of books available are, here they are:

  1. Actual Books: I’d be surprised if you didn’t know what this is but I just mean books made of paper. Paperback or Hardcover. Old Fashion books.
  2. E-books: These have been around for a while. I’ve probably read about a dozen or more e-books which are basically electronic books. You can read these online but are mostly found on tablets such as Nooks, Kindles, and iPads. 
  3. Audio Books: I’m not sure how long these been around but you’ve probably seen those advertisements everywhere for Audible.com which is the only type of audiobooks I have experience with. These books are not books you read but instead you listen to them. 

Pros and Cons of Actual Books

So I have the most experience with actual books compared to the other options. Pros would be the feeling of turning a page, conversation starters, and it won’t be erased if your device crashes or breaks. Physical copies of books are actually easier for high school students, like me, who are not allowed to bring electronics into school. Also, a pro would be the fact that you can’t get distracted by other apps when you’re supposed to be reading. You can also lend physical copies to other people easier than e-books and audio books. Having a filled bookshelf of actual books also has a greater aesthetic value in comparison to a shelf on your electronic.

Cons would be the fact that physical copies of books are not as portable as the others. Of course, taking a book with you on a train or in a waiting room without any burden, but if you’re moving or having to transport things, having a large collection of heavy books will not be too much fun. Another con would be that physical copies of books are usually more expensive than the other options. The difference may only be a couple of dollars but when you’re on a budget, those dollars add up.

Pros and Cons of E-books

E-books are gaining popularity these last few years with the availability of technology. E-books also seem to be a great option considering they are easy accessible, you can download it without having to worry about it being out of stock. You can also store thousand of books on one device instead of sacrificing space in a tiny apartment. Also, most devices have clouds now, so you can access your novels across all your devices that you already have. One perk that I adore about reading e-books is that I can highlight and add notes in my books without destroying beautiful books. E-books are also eco-friendly. 

As far as today, there isn’t many cons I can think of in regards to e-books. The books aren’t as pleasing to the eyes if you don’t have the copy on your shelf, you can’t physically lose an e-books, you can lend the books to people but it depends on the apps you have, and if your battery dies you are left without a novel to read. Also, if you read on a tablet that lets you download other apps and games, it’s easy to forget you can read a book. 

Pros and Cons of Audio Books

I’m not too familiar with audio books but I have listened to a couple. A pro would definitely be that you can multitask; you can listen to a book while washing dishes or driving your car or playing a game. Also, many people do not like to read and would much rather listen to the story being told to them. Honestly, I find more cons in audio books than pros.

Cons would include that you can’t exactly search through the novel efficiently when looking for a certain point in the plot, you can’t see how words are spelled to search them up, you might zone out if the speaker’s voice is monotone. If you have an audible account, you can only really buy one audiobook a month with the cheapest option, then after that one books is done, you have to wait for another month or pay money to get another book. If your battery dies, you are left with nothing to do. And personally I can’t recall the plot as great as when I actually read the words. 

My preference would be e-books. I do own about 200 real books but as I’m getting older, traveling more, starting college soon, I’ve found it easier to read e-books. It’s also easier for me to browse books, look at reviews, and find a specific novel faster than in a book store. But don’t get me wrong, I LOVE going to a big Barnes and Noble, getting a drink from the in-store Starbucks, and walking down aisles and aisles of literature. The closest book store to me actually closed down a couple of months ago, so that can possible by a contributing factor to my growing appreciation of e-books, they will never close down on me. 

Thanks for reading! Follow my blog! I’ve been getting A LOT more notifications concerning this blog than I expected. My previous experiences with blogs left me bored because of the lack of views but this attempt has surprised me so far. I haven’t arranged a schedule yet but I want to see my progress and stats before I get too professional. 

Talk to you later!