Top 15 of 2015!

The year is coming to an end and I desperately need to choose my favorite books of 2015. 

I have read a grand total of 72 books in 2015!

Now, for the top 15 of 2015!

15. Very Good Lives by J.K. Rowling

This was required reading for my AP English class. I was thrilled about this since its another J.K. Rowling "book" and she has so much advice to give the world. 

14. Since You've Been Gone by Morgan Matson

The premise of this book was just perfect. I read it this past summer which was the perfect novel. After I read it I went and started making lists of stuff to do during the summer!

13. The Foreshadowing by Marcus Sedgwick

I randomly picked this book up and was intrigued by the summary immediately. It was just what I needed during the time I read it.

12. Cress by Marissa Meyer

I have finished both Scarlet and Cress this year. Only two more books to go in the Lunar Chronicles! Cress was an incredibly sweet character and the Cress/Thorne ship needs to happen! Oh, and don't get me started on adorable "little Cress!"

11. As You Wish by Cary Elwes

I got the audio version of this book and that is the way to read it! A lot of the actors from the Princess Bride movie appear in the audio book which really makes the experience great. 

10. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

We had to read this book for AP English this year as well. My teacher is obsessed with Mark Twain which made the reading experience even better.

9. Finding Audrey by Sophie Kinsella

I've never read a Sophie Kinsella adult novel, but when I heard that she wrote a young adult novel I was excited. This book was surprisingly funny and wonderful!

8. Hollow City by Ransom Riggs

I really did not like Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, but this second book was amazing! It was fast paced and exciting throughout.

7. Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

This book was incredible! I was just in shock the entire time. Even though this book was massive, I finished it relatively quickly.

6. Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan

I read books 1-4 of the Percy Jackson and I think this one was my favorite. I am loving this series and I can't wait to continue.

5. 172 Hours on the Moon by Johan Harstad

I have never been more terrified by a book before. I really want to read it now that I know everything that happens!

4. The Martian by Andy Weir

I listened to this one which was just a lot of fun. This book was surprisingly amazing and so is the movie!

3. Nimona by Noelle Stevenson

This was the best graphic novel I've ever read! It brought up so many complex issues which was so unusual for a graphic novel.

2. Divergent by Veronica Roth

I finally read it! I wasn't going to, but then my mom and my friends loved it and convinced me to give it a try. I read it really quickly and thoroughly enjoyed the constant action.

1. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitgerald

Yes, this is my favorite book of the year. It was a school book, but an amazing school book. Fitgerald is amazing and so is this book.

Mid Event Survey-- and My 100th Post

We have finally reached hour 12 in Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon! That means it is time for the mid-event survey.

1. What are you reading right now?

I am reading A Thousand Nights by E. K. Johnston. It is a new YA fantasy release that is a retelling of A Thousand and One Nights. I'm also listening to Mockingjay at random times so that I'm completely prepared for Mockingjay Part 2! I am also reading Twisted Fairy Tales still.

2. How many books have you read so far?

Well, I finished the last hour of an audio book version of The Martian, and I read all of Nimona. I guess that would be slightly over one book unless you would like to count it as two books....

3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Readathon?

I have taken a break from A Thousand Nights for the past couple of hours. I'm really excited to get back into it.

4. Have you had many interruptions? How have you dealt with those?

Well, this morning I had to clean the kitchen. I remedied that by listening to audio books. Then I had to go to band practice this afternoon and went shopping for a little while after that. I couldn't get any reading time in during that so I just got on my phone and cheered on other readers. The only other real distractions are food. I have even tried to fix that problem because cinnamon rolls, cookies, and guacamole are worth it.

5. What surprises you most about the Readathon so far?

I haven't had the endurance to make it through an entire full length novel yet. I've only finished an audio book and a graphic novel. I'm really hoping I can push through all of A Thousand Nights soon. I still have 260 pages left!

I hope everyone else is having a great time reading.

We can make it through these last hours!

Hannah Claire

Finishing up Hour 5!

I started off the morning with cleaning the kitchen and finishing up an audio book of The Martian. I really enjoyed the book over all and gave it 4 stars!

I moved on to trying to finish up The Marvels by Brian Selznick. I'm really not in the mood for this book right now. It really isn't as good as Selznick's other books. I've only read 50 pages of it so far today.

Because I really wasn't in the mood for The Marvels I switched over to A Thousand Nights by E. K. Johnston which is a new YA fantasy release. So far, it's not bad. I'm really excited to see where the story goes. Obviously, not a ton has happened since I'm only 25 pages in.

Throughout the morning I've read a couple of short stories in Twisted Fairy Tales. I'm just using this to break up long chunks of reading.

Hopefully I will update again soon!

Hannah Claire.

Dewey's 24 Hour Read-a-Thon is Back!

Yes, I know that the last time I posted it was the April read-a-thon. But I'm back for the read-a-thon!

This year I am also a cheerleader for the event which I'm really excited about.

Time to get things started with the introductory meme!

1. What fine part of the world are you reading from today?

I am reading from Ohio!

2. Which book in your stack are you most looking forward to?

I'm really looking forward to Six of Crows and A Thousand Nights.

3. Which snack are you most looking forward to?

Hot chocolate!

4. Tell us a little something about yourself!

I pretty much spend all my spare time reading.

5. If you participated in the last read-a-thon, what's one thing you'll do different today?

I won't eat as many snacks, and I won't waste as much time doing random stuff.

I have to clean the kitchen before I can start reading so I have an audio book going. See you soon!

Hannah Claire

The Start of Dewey's 24 Hour Read-a-Thon

Here I am at the beginning of the next Dewey's 24 Hour Read-a-Thon! I wanted to quickly post to let you know that I am going to try to post here for the duration of the read-a-thon. I also wanted to let you know about the books I might read.

1. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

2. Clockwork Versailles by Lune Lenore Violette

3. The Lightning Thief (graphic novel version) by Rick Riordan

4. The Empire Striketh Back by Ian Doescher

5. Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

6. Animal Farm by George Orwell

I gathered enough so that I could have a wide variety. I thought about reading Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard, but that book hasn't really fascinated me much so far. Anyway, I better get started with my reading!

Top 14 Books I Read in 2014

Hi everyone! I decided that because this is the first day of the new year, I should tell you my top 14 books I read this year! I'm going to start at number fourteen and go up from there.

14. If I Stay by Gayle Forman

This book was beautiful and sentimental. I loved how it focused on more than just Mia and Adam's relationship.

13. We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

This book is YA contemporary done right!

12. Things I Must Remember by Lune Lenore Violette

This book was written by one of my friends, Lune Lenore Violette. It was amazing!

11. Heist Society by Ally Carter

This is the first book in the Heist Society trilogy and it is also the best one. This is also the first Ally Carter book I read.

10. The Maze Runner by James Dashner

I've only read the first two books in this series and this is definitely the best one. This book was gripping from the first chapter. I loved it so much!

9. Smart Girls Get What They Want by Sarah Strohmeyer

This book is me in a book. It summarizes my life. 

8. Don't Call Me Baby by Gwendolyn Heasley

This was the biggest surprise of the year. I was so shocked that this book was so good!

7. The Crucible by Arthur Miller

This was the first book I had to read for my English class and it was so good!

6. Gallagher Girls series by Ally Carter

I've only read the first five books, but they were all so good. Every time I read them I am reminded of Harry Potter. Seriously, this series is like a female Harry Potter with spies instead of wizards.

5. Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

If you read the description of this book it doesn't sound like something I would read. I don't even know why I read it! However, this book surprised me and I loved it.

4. Popular: Vintage Wisdom for a Modern Geek by Maya Van Wagenen

This is another book that describes my life in a book. My life is seriously a combination of Popular and Smart Girls Get What They Want.

3. This Star Won't Go Out by Esther Earl and family

Wow. I just love this book so much.

2. Animal Farm by George Orwell

I don't know how to express how much I loved this book.

1. The Help by Kathryn Stockett

This is my second favorite book of all time!

I do have a couple of honorable mentions and they are....

Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

Smile and Sisters by Raina Telgemeier 

Unbroken Laura Hillenbrand 

I hope you enjoyed this post! I will be posting again soon talking about my 2015 reading goals.

So long!

Hannah Claire

End of Event Meme

1. Which hour was most daunting for you?
I think it was hour 7 that was the most daunting. I took a break around lunch for lunch and to do some homework. I was ready to get back to reading after that and I just wasn't quite in the reading mood at that time. Especially since I had just finished reading a new Gallagher Girls book and I had to transition to the depressing A Monster Calls.

2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year?
The Gallagher Girls series by Ally Carter is very engaging and definitely kept me reading through the first fourth of the read-a-thon.

3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?
Reading sprints would be great! If there were some, I didn't see them and I'm sorry, but they would be fun!

4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon?
I signed up late last year and didn't have cheerleaders, but this year I signed up early and did. I thought it was so cool having people commenting on my blog and tweeting me!

5. How many books did you read?
I read 1 ⅔ books

6. What were the names of the books you read?
I read Out of Sight, Out of Time (Gallagher Girls book 5) and most of A Monster Calls

7. Which book did you enjoy most?
Out of Sight, Out of Time definitely!

8. Which did you enjoy least?
A Monster Calls is really depressing and, while it isn't bad, it probably wasn't the best book to read after an upbeat, action-packed contemporary book

9. How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time?
I will definitely be participating next time and probably just as a reader. I would love to be a cheerleader, but I also really want to read and I don't know how well I can balance that.