Beingbelle's book challenge

2012/ 52 books/ 1 girl

Ask Box

The Book List

Book 18. White Oleander. Read 12-18th May. This was a book I’ve been recommended by so many people, mainly Tumblr followers. I really had no idea what to expect, and I always find picking up an unknown author a tense thing- there’s the excitement, the unknown and even a nervousness! White Oleander was beautiful, poetic, dark and deep. I didn’t want to devour it in a matter of days, which I very easily could have, and I found that I needed to be in the right headspace to read it. Unlike my other favourite books it was full of long descriptions, but instead of skimming over them (like I usually would) I found myself wanting to fully submerge myself into the world Fitch is creating. Overall, I loved it. A very poetic and beautiful 9/10

Book 18. White Oleander.
Read 12-18th May.

This was a book I’ve been recommended by so many people, mainly Tumblr followers. I really had no idea what to expect, and I always find picking up an unknown author a tense thing- there’s the excitement, the unknown and even a nervousness!

White Oleander was beautiful, poetic, dark and deep. I didn’t want to devour it in a matter of days, which I very easily could have, and I found that I needed to be in the right headspace to read it. Unlike my other favourite books it was full of long descriptions, but instead of skimming over them (like I usually would) I found myself wanting to fully submerge myself into the world Fitch is creating.

Overall, I loved it. A very poetic and beautiful 9/10

1 week ago

The books I will be reading this year.

  1. City of Bones- Cassandra Clare
  2. City of Ashes- Cassandra Clare
  3. City of Glass- Cassandra Clare
  4. Something from Tiffany’s- Melissa Hill
  5. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo- Stieg Larsson
  6. The Girl Who Played with Fire- Stieg Larsson
  7. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest- Stieg Larsson
  8. The Bell Jar- Sylvia Plath
  9. Sing Me Home- Jodi Picoult
  10. One Day- David Nicholls
  11. The Hunger Games- Suzanne Collins (RE-READ)
  12. Delirium- Lauren Oliver
  13. Pandemonium- Lauren Oliver
  14. The Five People You Meet in Heaven- Mitch Albom
  15. Starter For Ten- David Nicholls
  16. Before I Go To Sleep- SJ Watson
  17. Change of Heart- Jodi Picoult
  18. White Oleander- Janet Fitch
  19. Songs of the Humpback Whale- Jodi Picoult
  20. Mercy- Jodi Picoult
  21. Second Glance- Jodi Picoult
  22. Picture Perfect- Jodi Picoult
  23. The Gift-Cecelia Ahern
  24. The Kite Runner- Khaled Hosseini
  25. A Thousand Splendid Suns- Khaled Hosseini
  26. The Diary of a Young Girl- Anne Frank
  27. Harvesting the Heart- Jodi Picoult
  28. Vanishing Acts- Jodi Picoult
  29. If You Could See Me Now- Cecelia Ahern
  30. A Place Called Here- Cecelia Ahern
  31. K-Pax- Gene Brewer
  32. The Secret History- Donna Tartt
  33. My Booky Wook- Russell Brand
  34. The Defrosting of Charlotte Small- Annabel Giles
  35. Birthday Girls- Annabel Giles
  36. Crossing the Paradise Line- Annabel Giles
  37. The Pursuit of Happiness- Douglas Kennedy
  38. Requiem for a Dream- Hubert Selby Jr.
  39. Don’t Look Behind You- Ann Rule
  40. Under the Dome- Stephen King
  41. The Stand- Stephen King
  42. Full Dark, No Stars- Stephen King
  43. The Order of the Pheonix- J.K Rowling
  44. The Half Blood Prince- J.K Rowling
  45. The Deathly Hallows- J.K Rowling
  46. In Cold Blood- Truman Capote
  47. Great Gatsby- F. Scott Fitzgerald
  48. Pride and Prejudice- Jane Austin
  49. The Midwife’s confessions- Diane Chamberlain
  50. Before the Storm- Diane Chamberlain
  51. Secrets She Left Behind- Diane Chamberlain
  52. Becoming Jane Eyre- Sheila Kohler
  53. The Knife of Never Letting Go- Patrick Ness
  54. Wither (The Chemical Garden 1)- Lauren DeStefano
  55. Positivity- Barbara Fredrickson
  56. Grimm’s Fairy Stories- Grimm Brothers
  57. Tom’s Midnight Garden- Philippa Pearce
  58. Confessions of a GP- Benjamin Daniels
  59. To Kill a Mockingbird- Harper Lee

So that’s the beginning of the list- those are all books I own and haven’t read (or not read for a long time). If anyone has any suggestions of books I should read then send me a message!

2 weeks ago - 7
Book 17: Change of Heart by Jodi Picoult. As mentioned in a previous post, it took me three whole weeks to read this book! But… I have to say, I really don’t know how to feel about this book. I am an avid Picoult fan, I have an entire bookshelf dedicated to her, and I consider her to be my favourite author. Alas, change of heart… Did it disappoint? Yes. Did I like it? I think so. Am I confused? Uh huh! The plot was unlike Picoult’s previous work, focusing on religion rather than law, miracles rather than morals. It took me a long time to get into it, there were such strong references to Green Mile that it was just unoriginal. I finished the book (and I’m glad I did, the second half was much better than the first) but I am still just a bit confused. A rather confounded 5/10

Book 17: Change of Heart by Jodi Picoult.

As mentioned in a previous post, it took me three whole weeks to read this book!

But… I have to say, I really don’t know how to feel about this book. I am an avid Picoult fan, I have an entire bookshelf dedicated to her, and I consider her to be my favourite author. Alas, change of heart… Did it disappoint? Yes. Did I like it? I think so. Am I confused? Uh huh!

The plot was unlike Picoult’s previous work, focusing on religion rather than law, miracles rather than morals. It took me a long time to get into it, there were such strong references to Green Mile that it was just unoriginal.

I finished the book (and I’m glad I did, the second half was much better than the first) but I am still just a bit confused.

A rather confounded 5/10

2 weeks ago - 6

Life > reading

So, shortly after finishing my last book (THREE WEEKS AGO… Oops) I found out that I got the job of my dreams and I will be moving to Florida for 12 months to work at Disney world!

Now, this was not good for my reading challenge- I was far too excited and scatter brained to sit down and read! Plus I am currently finishing my degree, so any time I have spare is spent cramming lines/doing work/rehearsing.

However, I am determined to keep reading while in Florida (hello poolside reading) but I am going to be predominantly focusing on living my life to the full, not necessarily sitting down with a book. Understandable I feel!

Anyways, I am going to read as much as possible while in England, and we’ll see in regards to Florida!

2 weeks ago - 2
Book 16- Before I Go To Sleep by SJ Watson. Read 20-22nd April. Oh my god. OHMYGOD. OHMYGODDDDDDDD. So, I devoured this book in 2 days. I loved it, every single page. It was so incredibly clever, shocking, twisty (lots of twists… all of which were unexpected), touching.. It was AMAZING and I highly recommend it to everyone. 10/10, easily.

Book 16- Before I Go To Sleep by SJ Watson.

Read 20-22nd April.

Oh my god.

OHMYGOD.

OHMYGODDDDDDDD.

So, I devoured this book in 2 days. I loved it, every single page. It was so incredibly clever, shocking, twisty (lots of twists… all of which were unexpected), touching..

It was AMAZING and I highly recommend it to everyone.

10/10, easily.

1 month ago - 31

Hmmm, what to read next?

The more I read, the more I realise just how much I hate the ‘inbetween’ period.

You know, when you’ve finished an amazing book and then you have to choose the next? Without being really dramatic (well, I am a drama student) I always feel a bit empty… like I just don’t know which world to throw myself into.

1 month ago - 2
Book 15: Starter For Ten 15th April- 19th April. David Nicholls has quickly become one of my favourite authors. After reading ‘One Day’ I was excited to get more of his humour in my life.His books are so unbelievably real, I relate to them (even though they are set before my birth and I am not an acne-ridden teenage boy at university). Nicholls has a way of writing descriptions which are entirely odd but relatable, he views the world in a fresh way and delivers characters which are witty and human- even the beautiful and perfect girls have flaws.While I prefer ‘One Day’ in terms of genre, I loved ‘Starter For Ten’ just as much in every other category. A  wonderful 9/10

Book 15: Starter For Ten

15th April- 19th April.

David Nicholls has quickly become one of my favourite authors. After reading ‘One Day’ I was excited to get more of his humour in my life.
His books are so unbelievably real, I relate to them (even though they are set before my birth and I am not an acne-ridden teenage boy at university). Nicholls has a way of writing descriptions which are entirely odd but relatable, he views the world in a fresh way and delivers characters which are witty and human- even the beautiful and perfect girls have flaws.
While I prefer ‘One Day’ in terms of genre, I loved ‘Starter For Ten’ just as much in every other category.

A  wonderful 9/10

1 month ago - 2

Book 14: The Five People You Meet in Heaven: Finished.

Well I read this book in less than 24 hours

I loved it, I think it will be one of those books which will need a bit of reflection before you can fully appreciate it.

I felt satisfied at the end, I wasn’t really impacted by the emotions of it (Julie told me that she cried at a few occasions- I can’t say I felt that attached)

However, it was a nice little read.

7.5/10

1 month ago - 2

Book 14: The Five People You Meet in Heaven

I bought this book for one of my friends for Christmas, she read it and loved it (although said it was emotional!)

I’m now borrowing it for the week!

I’ve been recommended this book by a lot of people, mainly tumblr folks… It’s a pretty short read (220 pages) and I’m really interested to get stuck in.

I shall let you know what I think!

1 month ago - 3

Book 13: Pandemonium. Finished.

The sequel to Delirium. Delirium was good but slow, Pandemonium was good but fast. I read it in 2 days (a lot faster than the 2 weeks Delirium took me) and it was okay. I missed the romance of Alex and Lena from the first book, and I totally saw the ending a mile off…

There were some nice twists and turns in it, but it just wasn’t what I was hoping for. It seemed to take a completely different direction from the first book, and I’m not sure it was the direction I wanted it to go in.

The books are younger than my ideal reading age, and I will be reading the third book when it’s released, but until then I’m not too fussed.

I found myself increasingly angry at Lena… her stupidity annoyed me at times… USE THE UMBRELLA THEY INSISTED YOU HAVE… come on girl! but I guess her character went through a lot- after all it is her vs the world.

An ‘alright’ 6.5/10

1 month ago

← Older 1 ⁄ 4

- Inkhorn theme powered by Tumblr -