Top Ten Tuesday: Ten ALL TIME Favorite Authors

Top Ten Tuesday is a Meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

This weeks topic is Top Ten ALL TIME Favorite Authors

1.  J.K. Rowlings  author of my beloved Harry Potter series.  You reawakened my love of all things MG fantasy.

2 & 3 .   Shelby Bach and Jacqueline West  I've read and loved all the books in their series and they've both been two of the nicest authors that I've connected with on social media.  So wonderful to their fans and always take the time to respond to comments on their blog.  I will purchase any books that they write.  

4.  Tara Dairman author of the All Four Stars series.  She writes wonderful stories that include mouthwatering details about foods from around the world, her path to publication is fascinating and  she's from my home state of Colorado.  

5.  Jonathan Stroud author of The Bartimaeus and Lockwood and Company series.  I love his characters, witty bantering, creepy ghost stories and mysteries.  

6.  Neil Gaiman  I loved Coraline and  The Graveyard Book.  He wrote one of my favorite opening lines "There was a hand in the darkness, and it held a knife." 

7.  L.R.W. Lee  independently publishes the Andy Smithson series.  She weaves in many "life principles" into her fantasy series and I've really enjoyed the progression of her writing across the whole series.  She writes an entertaining story and I'm vested in seeing how things turn out.  She is always so encouraging to other independent authors.    

8.  Shannon Messenger  author of the Keeper of the Lost Cities series.  She exudes California, sparkly pink unicorns and I love her artwork and Keeper series.  She also hosts the Marvelous Middle Grade Monday.  

9.  Beverly Cleary I have read and loved all her books.  Even now I think back on them fondly.  Heck, I could include Laura Ingalls Wilder, and Judy Blume in this category too.  

10.  Jennifer Nielsen I've read and loved all her books and she's on my list of books to purchase every time a new one comes out.  

So, what are some of your favorite authors? Did I list any that you liked, or maybe you have one that you'd like to share. Feel free to post your TTT link in the comments.  

TTT: Top Ten Inspiring Quotes from Books/Movies

Top Ten Tuesday is a Meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

This weeks topic is Top Ten Inspiring Quotes from Books

These are a few of my favorite lines or quotes (in no particular order) from some of the books/movies that I've loved. Each one has some special meaning, whether it made me cry, laugh, smile or I drew some inspiration from the words.  

1.

Quotes from the Prisoner of Azkaban 

- Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light.

- You think the dead we loved ever truly leave us?  You think that we don't recall them more clearly than ever in times of great trouble?  Your father is alive in you, Harry, and shows himself plainly when you have need of him.  

2.

“It's been my experience that those people who seem the most 'normal' are in fact the most dangerous.” ― Jacqueline West, The Second Spy

3.

“It's amazing what you can see when you just sit quietly and look.” 
― Jacqueline Kelly, The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate

4.

“The universe is full of magical things patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper.” 
― Eden Phillpotts

5.

“Sadness can find you anywhere, anytime, so you better have fun when you can.” 
― Rebecca Wells, The Crowning Glory of Calla Lily Ponder

6.

“If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day so I never have to live without you.” 
― A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh

7.

“When life gives you squirrels, your bound to be a little nuts!” 
― Brenda Lochinger

8.

“It's so weird how life is so full of moving around--people coming and going, people passing by each other all day long. You never know which person's going to steal your heart. You never know which is going to settle your soul. All you can do is look. And hope. And believe.” ― Natalie Lloyd, A Snicker of Magic

9.   “There is more treasure in books than in all the pirates' loot on Treasure Island and best of all, you can enjoy these riches every day of your life.”  - Walt Disney

10.  "Life moves pretty fast.  You don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."  -Ferris Bueller's Day Off

My Favorite Line is "If the people we love are stolen from us, the way to have them live on is to never stop loving them.  Buildings burn, people die, but real love is forever."  The Crow

So, what are some of your favorite book quotes? Did I list any that you liked, or maybe you have one that you'd like to share. Feel free to post your TTT link in the comments.  

Young Adult Fantasy: A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

Published: February 24, 2015 by Tor Books

Genres: Young Adult Fantasy 
Pages: 400 pages
Format: Hardcover
Source: Public Library

From Goodreads: "Kell is one of the last Travelers—rare magicians who choose a parallel universe to visit. 


Grey London is dirty, boring, lacks magic, ruled by mad King George. Red London is where life and magic are revered, and the Maresh Dynasty presides over a flourishing empire. White London is ruled by whoever has murdered their way to the throne. People fight to control magic, and the magic fights back, draining the city to its very bones. Once there was Black London - but no one speaks of that now. 

Officially, Kell is the Red Traveler, personal ambassador and adopted Prince of Red London, carrying the monthly correspondences between royals of each London. Unofficially, Kell smuggles for those willing to pay for even a glimpse of a world they’ll never see. This dangerous hobby sets him up for accidental treason. Fleeing into Grey London, Kell runs afoul of Delilah Bard, a cut-purse with lofty aspirations. She robs him, saves him from a dangerous enemy, then forces him to another world for her 'proper adventure'.  But perilous magic is afoot, and treachery lurks at every turn. To save all of the worlds, Kell and Lila will first need to stay alive — trickier than they hoped."


I knew I wanted to read this after reading Kim's Review at The Midnight Garden.  Then I followed along the blog tour, and really wanted to read this.  I was happy to see if pop up on the library list of New Releases, but I only got it for a 14 day-loan.  I really shouldn't have worried about finishing it in time, I read this in a weekend, it's that good!  One of those books that you just can't put down.   

First off, I loved Schwab's alternate London's, each was unique and magical, you can tell she spent a great deal of time developing her worlds.  I also loved that right away Schwab introduces Kell, the traveler.  

 "Kell wore a very perculiar coat.  It had neither one side, which would be conventional, nor two, which would be unexpected, but several, which was, of course, impossible." 

The world and the characters of each London seemed to come to life as Kell stepped from one London to the next.  You experience them as he see's them and then later through Lila.  A Darker Shade of Magic also has a well thought out magic, with rules and consequences that makes for a very interesting plot.  No need to wade through pages and pages of text, it's all present in lovely detail from the start and just grabs at you making you want to read more about the Antari and how magic lives in their blood.  Not to mention there is a thief, Lila who is charming, funny, smart, an adventure seeker with some badass talents of her own.  She has a quick wit and the bantering that goes on between her and Kell makes for some very entertaining reading. 

 "You don't know anything about these worlds,"  he said, but the fight was bleeding out of his voice.  "Sure I do,"  countered Lila cheerfully.  "There's Dull London, Kell London, Creepy London, and Dead London,"  she recited, ticking them off with her finger.  "See?  I'm a fast learner."  

And then there is "Give me the stone, he said, "and I'll let you come."  Lila bit back a sharp laugh.  "I think I'll hold on to it until we're through.  "And if you don't survive?" challenged Kell.  "Then you can raid my corpse," she said drily.  "I doubt I'll care."    

Like the title alludes to, there is a darker side to the magic.  There are the Danes twins, who were down right creepy and the ways that they use the magic in their world give me shivers just thinking about it.  They were decisively cruel in their tactics.  A Darker Shade of Magic could be read as a standalone, there aren't many loose ends, but why would you?  Especially since Schwab is working on a sequel.  I for one don't think I got enough of Prince Rhy's flirtatious ways and it would be wonderful to revisit Kell and Lila again.   Perhaps even see some developing romance between the two, hmm have to wait and see alas.   

MG Fantasy Adventure: Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes by Jonathan Auxier

Published: December 11th, 2011 by Amulet Books

Genres: Middle Grade Fantasy Adventure

Pages: 404 pages

Format: Ebook

Source: Public Library

Last year I read The Night Gardener by Jonathan Auxier, I remembered enjoying his ability to tell a good creepy story.  With Spring break approaching, I perused for some ebooks and found this one.  A few clicks later and voila, reading material complete.   I loved the cover with Peter up on the rooftops carrying his burgle bag over his shoulder.  Even the details of the keyhole in his name.  

Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes begins with a basket bobbing next to a ship with a small baby inside.  This little baby with no name was left with nothing but a large raven on his head, which quite possibly was the one responsible for pecking out his eyes and rendering him blind.  Having some pity on him, the sailors took him to a neighboring town.  Things don't  go smoothly in town,  for they leave him all alone to fend for himself.

"Now, for those of you who know anything about blind children, you are aware that they make the very best thieves. As you can well imagine, blind children have incredible senses of smell, and they can tell what lies behind a locked door- be it fine cloth, gold, or peanut brittle- at fifty paces. Moreover, their fingers are so small and nimble that they can slip right through keyholes, and their ears so keen that they can hear the faint clicks and clacks of every moving part inside even the most complicated lock. Of course, the age of great thievery has long since passed;today there are few child-thieves left, blind or otherwise. At one time, however, the world was simply thick with them. This is the story of the greatest thief who ever lived. His name, as you've probably guessed, is Peter Nimble."

Okay, so right off that beginning grabs me.  I'm thinking Oliver Twist, young pickpocket.  Makes for a very interesting beginning.   The story jumps ahead to Peter at the age of ten stealing for Mr. Seamus, a man who at first appears to befriend him, but truthfully only takes advantage of Peter's abilities for his own gain.  One day when Peter is on his daily chore of stealing for Mr. Seamus, he stumbles upon a haberdasher with a mysterious carriage filled with intricate locks, Peter can't resist trying to find out what is inside.  He finds and steals a box with three pairs of magical eyes.   The first pair transports him to an island where he meets Professor Cake and Sir Tode, a knight who was transformed into part horse and cat. Professor Cake finds a mysterious riddle in a bottle that alludes to a Vanished Kingdom and its people, who are desperately in need of rescuing.  Peter and Sir Tode decide to embark on a quest to provide assistance.

The pace of the story moves along pretty quickly, especially when they set sail on the high seas.  Soon they make their way to the island of "Just Deserts," encounter thieves, ravens, a monstrous king that has enslaved the kingdom and a task to try and help the people.  It's a fast paced adventure filled with many battles, and quite a few deaths, best to be prepared for it (we are talking scenes like knives being thrown in your back, someone pecked to pieces, but nothing to graphic or sinister.)   Auxier does not hold back any of the action and I defiantly enjoyed the plot.  

I also liked Peter, he is a pretty trusting fellow,  which lands him in being deceived pretty easily.  Being blind, he often misses some of the subtleties of what people are saying as well as their motivations.  Sir Tode acts as Peter's eyes,  yet Peter takes him for granted and sometimes is overly confident.  Having only himself to think about for so many years, when danger arises, he goes into a self preservation mode.   Not to say that Peter isn't likable, just that his character grows throughout the quest as he comes to realize his mistakes.  I really liked Sir Tode, he is so eager to have Peter as his friend.  Their friendship becomes stronger as they come to trust and rely on each other.  I also loved how Sir Tode overcomes his own fears and defeats his monster to earn his title.  Sir Tode learns that "There are times when Justice demands from us more than we would give."  Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes was a wonderful story with a sort of a classic feel to it, with hints of Peter Pan and Oliver Twist.   Auxier even  states in the acknowledgments that he "snatched inspiration from countless other worlds, characters and books.."   Overall a very enjoyable read.   

Favorite line: 
"The safest flea is on the mutt's noggin."  

Coming in January 2016, it looks like there will be another adventure for Peter.
From Goodreads:  "It’s been two years since Peter Nimble and Sir Tode rescued the kingdom of HazelPort. In that time, they have traveled far and wide in search of adventure. Now Peter and Sir Tode have been summoned by Professor Cake for a new mission: find a 12-year-old girl named Sophie Quire. Sophie knows little beyond the four walls of her father’s bookshop, where she works as a bookmender and dreams of leaving the confines of her city walls. But when a strange boy and his talking cat/horse companion show up searching for a rare and mysterious book, she finds herself pulled into an adventure beyond anything she has ever read."

Top Ten Tuesday: Ten Characters I'd Like To Check In With

 

Top Ten Tuesday is a Meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

This weeks topic is Ten Characters I'd like to check in with

1.     I've always wanted to visit Charlie or Willy Wonka of the Chocolate Factory.  Maybe sample some chocolate, peruse the new inventions.  See how things went with Charlie taking over the factory.  

 2.  I was enamored by mischievous Pippi as a child, I often wonder what happened to her later in life.  What were her teenage years like?  Is she traveling the seas?   

3.  I would have loved to visit with Kyra.  I've always felt like there was more to her story that I would have liked to have heard.  

  

4.  Okay, this one is an easier one.  I would have to visit with Hermione and Ron, check in on Rose and Hugo, chat about her work at the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.  Then move on and visit the rest of the gang.  

5 & 6   Alice and Wendy just to chat about their adventures, see what became of them.  

  

7 & 8  Bartimaeus and Artemis Fowl, they are two of my favorite characters, I want to know what happened to them after the ending to the series.  What are they up to now?  So many questions I want answered.  

9.  Olive, Horatio, Harvey, and Leopold. I'd love to chat with the cats, find out how things are going for Olive.  

10.  Pretty much any character in The Lost Hero or Percy Jackson series, just to visit their world.   

This was a very hard topic for some reason, but I did it...10 characters.  So who was on your list to check in with?  Feel free to share your links in the comments.   

Classic MG Read-a-long: The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

March's  pick for the Classic Middle Grade Read along with the Midnight Garden was The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett.   You can follow along or join in the discussion at http://www.themidnightgarden.net or #tmgreadalong on Twitter.  

Published:  December 21st 2010 by Harper Collins (first published January 1st 1911.)  

Genres: Middle Grade Historical Fiction

Pages: 358 pages

Format: Paperback

Source:  Purchased

From Goodreads: "When orphaned Mary Lennox comes to live at her uncle's great house on the Yorkshire Moors, she finds it full of secrets. The mansion has nearly one hundred rooms, and her uncle keeps himself locked up. And at night, she hears the sound of crying down one of the long corridors.

The gardens surrounding the large property are Mary's only escape. Then, Mary discovers a secret garden, surrounded by walls and locked with a missing key. One day, with the help of two unexpected companions, she discovers a way in. Is everything in the garden dead, or can Mary bring it back to life?"

This was my first time reading The Secret Garden, I know how did I miss this one too? Where was I during my childhood that most of the classics got skipped?    I'm not sure if  I would have enjoyed this as a child,  I think I would have.  I would defiantly have enjoyed reading about the Secret Garden.   I loved flowers and the outdoors as a kid.  Even now I would love to have a garden filled with roses,  sadly I live in a place where the wildlife loves gardens too.  Even an indoor one wont work because of the cat, sigh.  As an adult reader, I was enchanted by the whole story and certainly felt an emotional connection to the characters.

“She stopped and listened to him and somehow his cheerful, friendly little whistle gave her a pleased feeling--even a disagreeable little girl may be lonely, and the big closed house and big bare moor and big bare gardens had made this one feel as if there was no one left in the world but herself. If she had been an affectionate child, who had been used to being loved, she would have broken her heart, but even though she was "Mistress Mary Quite Contrary" she was desolate, and the bright-breasted little bird brought a look into her sour little face which was almost a smile. She listened to him until he flew away. He was not like an Indian bird and she liked him and wondered if she should ever see him again. Perhaps he lived in the mysterious garden and knew all about it.” 

This quote makes me very sad for Mary.  She's this little girl who not once was acknowledged growing up, left in the constant care of servants who's role was to keep her out of sight and quiet.  Then to have everyone die of cholera around her and to be cast once again into a situation where she was left alone. It's all so heartbreaking.  You can't hardly blame Mary for the ways in which she thinks of the world and herself, being selfish isn't entirely her fault.  Despite or because of all this,  Mary has this wonderful imagination, a creative streak and lovely curiosity.   I loved how Martha sets things in motion for Mary by talking about her brother and the garden.  Once, Mary meets Dickon Sowerby and Ben Weatherstaff everything really changes for her.  Then when Mary happens upon the key to the Secret Garden, there is the excitement of finally getting inside, almost like she does walk into this fairy place where magic can happen.  

"It was the sweetest, most mysterious-looking place any one could imagine.  The high walls which shut it in were covered with the leafless stems of climbing roses which were so thick that they were matted together."

Yet, once again Mary is in a quiet desolate place, one that has been abandoned for ten years.  Yet, somehow though, she see's the beauty of what this place once was and the potential for what it could be.   Maybe the garden is a means for Mary to have something to care about and to do on her days alone, but ultimately it changes her demeanor and outlook.  It's most obvious when she meets Colin, her Uncle's son.  A boy whose life resembles Mary's, except Colin has been bedridden for many years.  When Mary stands up to Collin as he is having one of his "hysterics" she realizes how she was acting just like him. Mary in turn helps Colin see that he shouldn't be wallowing on his illness.  There is a whole theme of having positive thoughts that ultimately helps Colin to improve.   The way in which Burnett describes Mary and Colin as improving through them "being plump," and having rosy cheek's, fatter legs etc.,  reminds me of my grandmother.  She was a strong believer in the curative properties of fresh air, often sleeping with the windows open.  She even felt that you should never be skinny and that "plumpness" meant that you were healthy, if you were ever to become sick, you could overcome it because those few extra pounds were a cushion in case you lose weight.  Of course this was influenced by her having grown up during a war when food was scarce, but it made me smile to think of her while reading The Secret Garden.  

The Secret Garden is a beautiful story, I loved reading about the way the garden was transformed and all the changes that the many characters went through.  There were so many passages that I can't list nearly all of them, but I certainly understand why this has become a classic.  Lovely symbolism, themes and a wonderful group of characters.  

**Reposting for the Read-a-long***

Top Ten Books: Recently Added To My To-Be-Read List

Top Ten Tuesday is a Meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

This weeks topic is Ten Books Recently Added to My To-Be-Read List

1.  Rook by Daniel O'Malley  This is the blurb from Goodreads that had me wanting to read this:  "The body you are wearing used to be mine." So begins the letter Myfanwy Thomas is holding when she awakes in a London park surrounded by bodies all wearing latex gloves. With no recollection of who she is, Myfanwy must follow the instructions her former self left behind to discover her identity and track down the agents who want to destroy her." 

2.  The Forbidden Library by Diango Wexler  Mysterious library, books, talking cat, yep sounds good.  

3. The Castaways of the Flying Dutchman was recommended by fellow middle grade book blogger Erik Weibel at http://thiskidreviewsbooks.com/ after hearing that I enjoyed Brian Jacques Redwall series.

 

4.  I added Ice Like Fire, because it is the sequel to Snow Like Ashes, which I've just started reading. 

5.  Emmy & Oliver by Robin Benway  Two best friends since childhood are reunited after one of them was kidnapped by their father. Sounded interesting

6.  Silver in the Blood by Jessica Day George is a historical fiction set in Romania, it includes shape-shifters, romance, plus she wrote Tuesdays at the Castle a MG I enjoyed reading.

7.  The Island of Dr. Libris by Chris Grabenstein, he wrote Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library which I enjoyed.   

8.  The Wrinkled Crown by Anne Nesbet I read a post she did for Project Middle Grade Mayhem about research she does for her books and reading a nineteenth century book on instrument making for The Wrinkled Crown. 

9 &10  I love the covers and both of them make we want to read the books right now.