Thursday 19 June 2014

Review: The Prank List by Anna Staniszewski (@annastanisz)

I read a lot of middle grade novels, and in the past year, I read like 4 novels from this author.  She is good - I have to give her that.


Original Title: The Prank List
Series: The Dirt Diary #2
Author: Anna Staniszewski
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Release Date: July 1st 2014
Source: Review copy from the publisher
Genre: Middle Grade

Rachel never thought she'd fight for the right to clean toilets, but she has to save her mom's business. Nothing can distract her from her mission - except maybe Whit, the cute new guy in cooking class. Then she discovers something about Whit that could change everything. After destroying her Dirt Diary, Rachel thought she was done with secrets, but to save her family's business, Rachel's going to have to get her hands dirty. Again

REVIEW

After what Rachel has faced in the last book and how it ended, you would think she will be happy with her 'altered' life.  But, no, she still has no boyfriend, although Evan seems to like her.  And her pastry class seems like a total failure, considering how much she wants to take this class to prove herself.  Her pastry chef thinks she is totally dumb.  And her mom is going to lose her cleaning business, because of the new competitor and a rumour spreading in town..about Rachel.  If they are losing their clients so rapidly, then they are going to sell their house and move elsewhere, where there will be no Evan or her only true friend, Marisol.  She is not ready to give up her only two happy elements in life..no, not yet.  The worst thing is she has not given up on her irresponsible dad.  Her life is a disaster..again..now, even more nastier!

If you remember Rachel from "The Dirt Diary", she seems to have grown up a little in this book.  But, I have to admit she is still childish and still have a lot of growing up to do.  And I also understand it takes time to give up some things and take certain decisions in her age.  But, it's fun to watch her make mistakes and learn from them.  It's sad to watch her trying to do anything to make things and her mom's mood improve.

And then there are these other characters.  Marisol, the 'good' girl of the novel, wants to play bad once in a while and she enjoys it..I liked her. :)  Evan - I want to kick this guy; okay, there is a lot of mistakes from Rachel's end, but can't they just talk?  Anyway, in spite of his irritating shyness, he is a good guy for Rachel.  Other minor characters like Brianna, Rachel's mom and others - they did their parts very well too.

I am not going to ruin the little mystery part for you, although it's not a mystery, once you rule out the one character, we all voted as bad for most of the novel.  And the plot is pretty simple and it's good enough for a middle grade novel.  I enjoyed it and I will definitely be going back to the third installment to see where Rachel ends up again in another light read.

Recommended for middle graders, who want some fun and parents, who want some decent novel for their kids.


SERIES ORDER

2.  The Prank List

Tuesday 17 June 2014

Top 10 Books On My Summer TBR List

As always, Top 10 Tuesday is hosted by  the girls at "The Broke and the Bookish".


Here is the list of 10 books that made to summer TBR!  This list is in no particular order.

1.  Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
2.  Landline by Rainbow Rowell
3.  The Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen
4.  Take Me On by Katie McGarry
5.  The School for Good and Evil #2: A World without Princes



6.  Foretold by Rinda Elliott
7.  Going Down in Flames by Chris Cannon
8.  The Stolen: An American Faerie Tale by Bishop O'Connell
9.  Lulu in Honolulu by Elisabeth Wolf
10.  A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Gray




Does any of the above interest you?  Or do you have different list?  Please share with me..I always look forward to hearing about new books..  What books made to your summer TBR shelf this year?

Tuesday 10 June 2014

Top Ten Favorite Reads So Far This Year!!!

As always, Top 10 Tuesday is hosted by  the girls at "The Broke and the Bookish".


Here is the list of 10 books that made to favorite shelf so far in 2014!  Some books are new releases and some are old ones, catching up!  This list is in no particular order.

1.  The Midnight Spell by Rhiannon Frater and Kody Boye
2.  The King (Black Dagger Brotherhood, #12) by J.R. Ward
3.  Once in a Lifetime (Lucky Harbor #9) by Jill Shalvis
4.  Cress (The Lunar Chronicles, #3) by Marissa Meyer
5.  Ava and Pip by Carol Weston



9.  Seraphina (Seraphina, #1) by Rachel Hartman




Does any of the above interest you?  Or do you have different list?  Please share with me..I always look forward to hearing about new books..  What books made to your favorite shelf  this year so far?

Thursday 5 June 2014

Life Of A Blogger: Embarrassing Things


Embarrassing Things???  Huh, actually, I am easily embarrassed, but that often comes out as anger.  These are some of the things that embarrass me..

Public Speaking:
When I was in school/college, I hate this public speaking class.  I still hate it at work, but this is something I have confidence that I can pull it off now.  At that time, I wish the ground would swallow me whole whenever I address the whole class.

Dresses:
Sometimes, a dress that I like doesn't always..well, let's say, can't be wore in public, especially to your workplace.  And of course, when I wear it, I wouldn't have noticed it.  Then, I sit in a bus and think I am good to go, I will just notice that this dress seems inappropriate for the work.  I can't go back to home, I am already late to office.  So, I just have to wear a coat or a shawl and cover it up to get through the day.

Babies:
This happens especially, when I am asking for holding the baby from it's mother, and it immediately cries when it sees me or when it comes to me.  This is not the actual embarrassment.  If my husband or my brother calls for holding, it just goes to them.  I hate you, baby! (only those babies who doesn't want to be held by me)

So, these are some of them.  What are yours?

Tuesday 3 June 2014

Top 10 Books That Will Be In My Beach Bag This Year!

As always, Top 10 Tuesday is hosted by  the girls at "The Broke and the Bookish".


Here is the list of 10 books that will be in my beach bag this year!  The last four are ARCs that I can't wait to read; others are the ones I am having at my shelf for a long time, thinking that I will read them one day.

1.  Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
2.  Reboot by Amy Tintera
3.  The Shiva trilogy by Amish Tripathi
4.  Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Re-reading)
5.  Take Me On by Katie McGarry



6. The School for Good and Evil #2: A World without Princes by Soman Chainani
7.  The Nerdy Dozen #1 by Jeff Miller
8.  The Stepsister's Tale by Tracy Berrett
9.  Awkwardly Ever After by Marni Bates
10.  The Truth About Alice by Jennifer Mathieu



Does any of the above interest you?  Or do you have different list?  Please share with me..I always look forward to hearing about new books..

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