tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38277816038382036212024-02-20T02:09:24.890-08:00Ulat Buku in the CityAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.comBlogger246125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-45815549880867519262015-12-29T07:27:00.000-08:002015-12-29T07:27:04.400-08:002015 Reading Summary<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
I'm glad to say that I have completed all my reading challenges for 2015 successfully. I just wished I had more time to posts my review for all the books I've read this year and participate in the challenge discussions held by the hosts for each challenge. <br />
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Anyway, even though I've met my challenges, I felt that I kinda cheated cause most of the books are really books I read/listened together with the kids. <br />
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However, I did read a lot of series. I FINALLY finished reading the full installment of Sookie Stackhouse. I stopped reading Sookie Stackhouse when the TV series came out. I figured I had the complete books, so I should just get it over and done with. Slightly disappointed with the final outcome of the series but glad that I finished it nonetheless. <br />
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My favorite series for the year is The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place. I love all the characters and absolutely love the storyline. The narration on audiobook is really excellent. I honestly can't wait for book six to be out sometime in 2016.<br />
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We Were Liars is my most memorable read for 2015. Hands down. <br />
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To sum up, I participated in three challenges this year and read/listened to a total of 39 books. Woohoo...<br />
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Here are my list of books for 2015: <br />
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1. Chasing Brooklyn by Lisa Schroeder<o:p></o:p></div>
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Format: E-book<o:p></o:p></div>
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Challenge: <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/01/2015-ebook-reading-challenge.html">2015 Ebook Reading Challenge</a> | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<o:p></o:p></div>
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2. Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell<o:p></o:p></div>
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Format: E-book<o:p></o:p></div>
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Challenge: <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/01/2015-ebook-reading-challenge.html">2015 Ebook Reading Challenge</a> | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<o:p></o:p></div>
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3. Dead Reckoning by Charlaine Harris<o:p></o:p></div>
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Format: E-book<o:p></o:p></div>
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Challenge: <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/01/2015-ebook-reading-challenge.html">2015 E-book Reading Challenge</a> | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<o:p></o:p></div>
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4. Deadlocked by Charlaine Harris<o:p></o:p></div>
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Format: E-book<o:p></o:p></div>
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Challenge: <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/01/2015-ebook-reading-challenge.html">2015 Ebook Reading Challenge</a> | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<o:p></o:p></div>
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5. Dead Ever After by Charlaine Harris<o:p></o:p></div>
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Format: E-book<o:p></o:p></div>
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Challenge: <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/01/2015-ebook-reading-challenge.html">2015 E-book Reading Challenge</a> | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<o:p></o:p></div>
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6. Hammered (The Iron Druid Chronicles) by Kevin Hearne<o:p></o:p></div>
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Format: Audiobook<o:p></o:p></div>
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Challenge: <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/01/2015-audiobook-challenge.html">2015 Audiobook Challenge</a> | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<o:p></o:p></div>
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7. <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/01/audiobook-review-little-engine-that.html">The Little Engine that Could by Watty Piper</a> <o:p></o:p></div>
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Format: Audiobook<o:p></o:p></div>
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Challenge: <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/01/2015-audiobook-challenge.html">2015 Audiobook Challenge</a> | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<o:p></o:p></div>
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8. <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/02/audiobook-jack-and-beanstalk.html">Jack & the Beanstalk</a> by Richard Walker and Niamh Sharkey<o:p></o:p></div>
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Format: Audiobook<o:p></o:p></div>
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Challenge: <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/01/2015-audiobook-challenge.html">2015 Audiobook Challenge</a> | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<o:p></o:p></div>
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9. <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/02/read-twelve-by-justin-cronin.html">The Twelve </a>by Justin Cronin<o:p></o:p></div>
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Format: E-book<o:p></o:p></div>
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Challenge: <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/01/2015-ebook-reading-challenge.html">2015 E-book reading challenge</a> | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<o:p></o:p></div>
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10. <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/02/the-incorrigible-children-of-ashton.html">The Interrupted Tale (The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place, #4)</a> by Maryrose Wood<o:p></o:p></div>
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Format: Audiobook<o:p></o:p></div>
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Challenge: <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/01/2015-audiobook-challenge.html">2015 Audiobook Challenge</a> | Goodreads 30 books in 2015 <o:p></o:p></div>
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11. <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/02/usborne-very-first-reading-book-1.html">Usborne Very First Reading: Book 1 - Pirate Pat</a> by Mairi Mackinnon<o:p></o:p></div>
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Format: Hardcover<o:p></o:p></div>
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Challenge: Goodreads 30 books in 2015<o:p></o:p></div>
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12. <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/02/lego-star-wars-book-collection-new-hope.html">LegoStar Wars: A New Hope</a> by Emma Grange<o:p></o:p></div>
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Format: Paperback<o:p></o:p></div>
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Challenge: Goodreads 30 books in 2015 <o:p></o:p></div>
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13. <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/02/lego-star-wars-book-collection-new-hope.html">LegoStar Wars: The Empire Strikes Back</a> by Emma Grange<o:p></o:p></div>
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Format: Paperback<o:p></o:p></div>
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Challenge: Goodreads 30 books in 2015</div>
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14. <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/02/usborne-very-first-reading-book-2.html" target="_blank">Usborne Very First Reading: Book 2 - The Dressing-Up Box</a> by Mairi Mackinnon<o:p></o:p></div>
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Format: Hardcover</div>
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Challenge: Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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15. <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/02/we-were-liars.html">We Were Liars</a> by E.Lockhart<br />
Format: E-Book<br />
Challenge: 2015 Ebook Reading Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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16. <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/02/going-gray-gray-series-book-1.html">Going Gray</a> by Briand Spangler<br />
Format: E-Book<br />
Challenge: 2015 Ebook Reading Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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17. The Gruffalo by Julia Donaldson<br />
Format: Audiobook<br />
Challenge: 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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18. The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins<br />
Format: Audiobook<br />
Challenge: 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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19. The Walk by Richard Paul Evans<br />
Format: Audiobook<br />
Challenge: 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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20. Peter and the Wolf by Sergei Prokofiev<br />
Format: Audiobook<br />
Challenge: 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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21. The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Anderson<br />
Format: Audiobook<br />
Challenge: 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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22. The Dinosaur that Pooped a Planet by Tom Fletcher & Dougie Poynter<br />
Format: Audiobook<br />
Challenge: 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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23. Off to Be the Wizard by Scott Meyer<br />
Format: Audiobook<br />
Challenge: 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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24. The Very Busy Spider<br />
Format: Audiobook<br />
Challenge: 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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25. The Gruffalo's Child by Julia Donaldson<br />
Format: Audiobook<br />
Challenge: 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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26. Reasonable Doubt by Whitney G<br />
Format: Audiobook<br />
Challenge: 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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27. Rot and Ruin by Jonathan Maberry<br />
Format: Audiobook<br />
Challenge: 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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28. Dust and Decay by Jonathan Maberry<br />
Format: Audiobook<br />
Challenge: 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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29. Flesh and Bone by Jonathan Maberry<br />
Format: Audiobook<br />
Challenge: 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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30. The Unmapped Sea (The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place #5)<br />
Format: Audiobook<br />
Challenge: 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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31. Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson<br />
Format: Audiobook<br />
Challenge : 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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32. The Fold by Peter Clines<br />
Format: Audiobook<br />
Challenge: 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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33. <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/08/audiobook-review-odd-thomas-by-dean.html" target="_blank">Odd Thomas</a> by Dean Koontz<br />
Format: Audiobook<br />
Challenge: 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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34. A Squash and a Squeeze by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler<br />
Format: Paperback<br />
Challenge: Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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35. The Little Shop of Monsters by R.L. Stine<br />
Format: Audiobook<br />
Challenge: 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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36. Fire and Ash: A Rot and Ruin Series by Jonathan Mulberry<br />
Format: Audiobook<br />
Challenge: 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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37. The Remaining by D.J. Molles<br />
Format: Audiobook <br />
Challenge: 2015 Audiobook Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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The Gray Series: Omnibus Edition by Brian Spangler<br />
38. Book #2: Gray Skies<br />
39. Book #3: Blinded by Sight<br />
40. Book #4: Union<br />
Format: E-Book<br />
Challenge: 2015 E-Book Reading Challenge | Goodreads 30 books in 2015<br />
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Here are the total books read per challenge:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLv-V41HwKIUZJeeF0OzxT6fTw9ZwW5wHGbHy3Xad0FSl28ZyJcYU7-d8xYpnyvmvybSg1VNa_5qGauIJ3kD19hAz6_FOOySCkonJeFVOm3ig6nQo5bOyfqoIhgGCNe-bCILU-y0XA-H4/s1600/2015-Audiobook-Chalenge-Button..jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLv-V41HwKIUZJeeF0OzxT6fTw9ZwW5wHGbHy3Xad0FSl28ZyJcYU7-d8xYpnyvmvybSg1VNa_5qGauIJ3kD19hAz6_FOOySCkonJeFVOm3ig6nQo5bOyfqoIhgGCNe-bCILU-y0XA-H4/s320/2015-Audiobook-Chalenge-Button..jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Listened: 24/15</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixIksXjGafcfRU-xwd1V-qZRenLfkl4aFeoAE8CaVrsOtcW-Y3jT_cPUCpXP0DWIUNL19wM2gRDWS2bi04a3EZH4lCbcJz2-USS1J4m_KqsWzTf6iiRU0G7zWiR5bgXLXYm2wZxqc6sOw/s1600/ebookreadingchallenge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixIksXjGafcfRU-xwd1V-qZRenLfkl4aFeoAE8CaVrsOtcW-Y3jT_cPUCpXP0DWIUNL19wM2gRDWS2bi04a3EZH4lCbcJz2-USS1J4m_KqsWzTf6iiRU0G7zWiR5bgXLXYm2wZxqc6sOw/s320/ebookreadingchallenge.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Read: 11/10</div>
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<img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE3i0t96zdk3td1u0fVfXrDAcCI7kDZ_FFoW7dDc8OI0ek-nn5oYyKvFt9qMytCPeveynkJiqmUN3OpT9GWQi2jlSSHF6sqLAcBeCRrFZoINOTJMAQhhnUNxNWYQcUnEVUMJkikqbAUOg/s1600/goodreads.jpg" /></div>
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Read: 39/30</div>
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So that's my reading list for 2015. I'm googling challenges for 2016 to see what I can participate in next year. I'll definitely repeat all three challenges again next year but will commit to more books. </div>
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If you know of any great book reading challenges that is going around right now, do drop me a note. </div>
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Hugs.</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-80245064348299660102015-09-13T20:54:00.000-07:002015-09-13T20:55:25.422-07:00Book Review: The Never List by Koethi Zan<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWRnUU53ayAw7Do3bDsZ84B9h1-nkuJHX3w-J1IdRdi0nSxvH0QvLdhUEXafyW10u9h57BTDR7qkKkNK-NBSxjrIUIJqiF_VsTKhYu8AEABB6XrriQNQ_n_uWSZlc8r42uEiwFM4V6QWc/s1600/the+never+list.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWRnUU53ayAw7Do3bDsZ84B9h1-nkuJHX3w-J1IdRdi0nSxvH0QvLdhUEXafyW10u9h57BTDR7qkKkNK-NBSxjrIUIJqiF_VsTKhYu8AEABB6XrriQNQ_n_uWSZlc8r42uEiwFM4V6QWc/s1600/the+never+list.jpg" /></a></div>
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Written by: <a href="http://koethizan.com/" target="_blank">Koethi Zan</a><o:p></o:p></div>
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Format: Paperback</div>
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Publisher: Penguin Books</div>
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Publishers Summary: </div>
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For years, best friends Sarah and Jennifer kept what they
called the “Never List”: a list of
actions to be avoided, for safety’s sake, at all costs. But one night, against their best instincts,
they accept a cab ride with grave, everlasting consequences. For the next three
years, they are held captive with two other girls in a dungeon-like cellar by a
connoisseur of sadism.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Ten years later, at thirty-one, Sarah is still struggling to
resume a normal life, living as a virtual recluse under a new name, unable to
come to grips with the fact that Jennifer didn’t make it out of that cellar.
Now, her abductor is up for parole and Sarah can no longer ignore the twisted
letters he sends from jail.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Finally, Sarah decides to confront her phobias and the other
survivors—who hold their own deep grudges against her. When she goes on a
cross-country chase that takes her into the perverse world of BDSM, secret
cults, and the arcane study of torture, she begins unraveling a mystery more
horrifying than even she could have imagined.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Review:<o:p></o:p></div>
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It’s been a while since I read anything from the mystery,
thriller genre and I think this selection was quite a good break from all the
young adult books that I have been reading of late. 10 years after escaping
from her sadistic abductor, Sarah is forced to leave the comforts of her secure
home to find out what really happened to her friend Jennifer. Her quest
unravels something darker and sinister surrounding the events of her abduction.<o:p></o:p></div>
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To my surprise The Never List was actually a quick read. I
actually read it in two seatings. It was engaging and gripping from the first
page till the last and I could not put it down. The storyline provided a fairly
good mystery and I felt the suspense was quite consistent throughout.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Though it does not tell you the details of the torture Sarah
went through, I still found it dark and twisted. To be honest, I’m quite glad
that the author didn’t go through the gory details because I don’t think I
would have finished the book if she did.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Overall, I would think that this is something one can pick
up if one wants a light thriller that’s quite easy to read.</div>
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I gave this book a 5 over 5 on <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3468419-natasha-musa" target="_blank">goodreads</a> because it was
dark, suspenseful and had a great plot.<o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-85056493778591682042015-09-03T01:56:00.002-07:002015-09-03T01:56:28.521-07:00Audiobook Review: Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqrGLXv5K3H1Z64lham8M5OYf9VwntA-3jfMq7oNX37GTwzt1gXcKGcbyAIlMMirOqIwgY8li0aEjYd5wR-JcKUD44y32qaVhxbwpV8Uc5RHAhbxaQHewTP8CNRES47NSnCkRphZsE8Ds/s1600/Lets+explore.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqrGLXv5K3H1Z64lham8M5OYf9VwntA-3jfMq7oNX37GTwzt1gXcKGcbyAIlMMirOqIwgY8li0aEjYd5wR-JcKUD44y32qaVhxbwpV8Uc5RHAhbxaQHewTP8CNRES47NSnCkRphZsE8Ds/s1600/Lets+explore.jpg" /></a></div>
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Written by: <a href="http://www.davidsedarisbooks.com/" target="_blank">David Sedaris</a></div>
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Narrated by: David Sedaris</div>
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Length: 6 hours 25 minutes</div>
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Format: Audiobook</div>
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Publisher: <a href="http://www.audible.com/search/ref=a_pd_Bios-M_c2_publnk?searchProvider=Hachette%2BAudio" target="_blank">Hachette Audio</a></div>
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Publisher's Summary:</div>
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From the unique perspective of David Sedaris comes a new
collection of essays taking his listeners on a bizarre and stimulating world
tour. From the perils of French dentistry to the eating habits of the
Australian kookaburra, from the squat-style toilets of Beijing to the
particular wilderness of a North Carolina Costco, we learn about the absurdity
and delight of a curious traveler's experiences. Whether railing against the
habits of litterers in the English countryside or marveling over a disembodied
human arm in a taxidermist's shop, Sedaris takes us on side-splitting
adventures that are not to be forgotten.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Review:<o:p></o:p></div>
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This is my first exposure to David Sedaris’s work. I heard
it on Audible. The essays were short and mostly revolving around his life
experience covering some stories of his family, his life in France etc.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The first essay, Dentists without Borders got me laughing so
hard I was afraid I’d get into an accident while driving. Most of his work is
hilarious, especially the essays that are related to his own personal
experience. He definitely has a very quirky view of life.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Not all the essays were ‘laugh out loud’ material but I
generally enjoyed listening to this book. I think this book is better on audio
format as Sedaris’s reading style does bring his essays to life and makes it
feel a bit more personalized; for me it felt like I was having a conversation
with a friend on his experience with his father, losing his passport and
mourning the loss of his computer.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Sedaris’s piece on China is the one that I will remember the
most. Thanks to you Mr Sedaris, I have decided never to visit China cause now
all I think about when I hear China, is phlegm. Yuck…<o:p></o:p></div>
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I gave this book a 4 over 5 on <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/3468419-natasha-musa?shelf=currently-reading" target="_blank">Goodreads</a>.</div>
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<o:p></o:p>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-40741353415628805992015-08-31T06:45:00.000-07:002015-08-31T06:45:15.979-07:00Colouring Books for Adults<div class="MsoNormal">
I’m loving this new craze of colouring books for adults. I'm sure these books have been around for a while but I've just made the discovery about a month ago. </div>
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I’m
not an artistic person but I’ve always had a set of colour pencils with me. I
know it sounds weird but I use it to colour my Moleskine notebook which I use as my daily
planner. When I’m planning my day I use colours to identify meetings, to-do
list, urgent or non- urgent matters etc. I’ve always found colouring an
enjoyable activity, sort of a de-stresser when I list out my often long and
always URGENT to do list. <o:p></o:p></div>
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So, when they started selling the colouring books at MPH I
got myself two copies. These are not the books that I wanted but since it’s my
first time trying this out I got the ones that interested me the most amongst the
pile available at the book store. These are the two copies I got for myself. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-ySqYIdGGtjhXS4HRzoAG6vzdLmXQbwvnaP8oI03X02OlknRGG2z3x-GHp7h-mMBnM3pOT38nAxE11n0bgDeng_nybibANOaanfcxtzr9qIwQ0HythU7YD0ao0_73WdiEzmVAEgE9GJ8/s1600/IMG_9524.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-ySqYIdGGtjhXS4HRzoAG6vzdLmXQbwvnaP8oI03X02OlknRGG2z3x-GHp7h-mMBnM3pOT38nAxE11n0bgDeng_nybibANOaanfcxtzr9qIwQ0HythU7YD0ao0_73WdiEzmVAEgE9GJ8/s320/IMG_9524.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I haven’t done much colouring as I’ve been pretty busy lately
but this activity is quite enjoyable to do with the kids. The kids have their
own set of colouring books and colour pencils and we coloured our books together. Though
I have to say the kids need a little bit more practice when it comes to
colouring their books… <o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc5H_9uOqrzDhXHw7gcF1puEhyphenhyphenJXoQz1rdsNfpy_281c1bbPfe3P0raCYJPS98CVYc14rqtzgUibLhErqMmkJV2KXtLeZTdPr5kk9tU7vPKFN6dKt2h9yJrA6pooZUCJJgXl-fo0DcEQ8/s1600/IMG_9531.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc5H_9uOqrzDhXHw7gcF1puEhyphenhyphenJXoQz1rdsNfpy_281c1bbPfe3P0raCYJPS98CVYc14rqtzgUibLhErqMmkJV2KXtLeZTdPr5kk9tU7vPKFN6dKt2h9yJrA6pooZUCJJgXl-fo0DcEQ8/s320/IMG_9531.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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I hope I’ll be able to have more time to spend on my
colouring books soon but I’m doing it bit by bit every night. This is my first
attempt which is still a work in progress:</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHx-pbxO7AzKC9WiDLFexEUCVqE-d03NYa-h14hyphenhyphen8yeXwmpTT7t4KMbo8NTzPcL5zrGE0JoAL3DnNjdkWO41Cc9dK3Sw5Ndm4beTNqbrT8uZTEUlPbsdL_5kOX4xl15lR53PCrTgEzeBM/s1600/IMG_9530.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHx-pbxO7AzKC9WiDLFexEUCVqE-d03NYa-h14hyphenhyphen8yeXwmpTT7t4KMbo8NTzPcL5zrGE0JoAL3DnNjdkWO41Cc9dK3Sw5Ndm4beTNqbrT8uZTEUlPbsdL_5kOX4xl15lR53PCrTgEzeBM/s320/IMG_9530.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Are you into colouring? Share with me your work in progress, I’d love
to know what you are coloring right now. </div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-70946894777348489562015-08-30T07:36:00.000-07:002015-08-30T07:42:11.369-07:00Book Review: Make Good Art by Neil Gaiman<div class="MsoNormal">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkv-PFK9vDHgFfRoPlJLYZZAqnIBA0vQw0jmZayZmMQRK9STR5wyZEcTYnTTPBSDYdgJlroI0uC_Uy_5Un4m0KtzRZh4k1d2Jp9u8Zse58DCWTQ6TV-pIPgUcl2x1R4rd8-fJloD6NxoA/s1600/Make+Good+Art.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkv-PFK9vDHgFfRoPlJLYZZAqnIBA0vQw0jmZayZmMQRK9STR5wyZEcTYnTTPBSDYdgJlroI0uC_Uy_5Un4m0KtzRZh4k1d2Jp9u8Zse58DCWTQ6TV-pIPgUcl2x1R4rd8-fJloD6NxoA/s320/Make+Good+Art.jpg" width="224" /></a></div>
<br />
Written by: <a href="http://www.neilgaiman.com/" target="_blank">Neil Gaiman</a><br />
Designed by: <a href="http://chipkidd.com/home/" target="_blank">Chip Kidd</a><br />
Format: Paperback<br />
Publisher: William Morrow<br />
<br />
Publishers Summary:<br />
<br />
This book is a reprint of Neil Gaiman’s speech to the
graduates of Philadelphia’s University of the Arts in May 2012. In his speech,
he shares a bit of his experience and how he succeeded as a writer. The
nineteen minutes speech also covered his thoughts on creativity, bravery and
strength. Neil Gaiman’s ‘Make Good Art’ Speech is not a normal book, the speech
is printed in stylish graphic design by renowned graphic artist Chip Kidd.<br />
<br />
<o:p></o:p></div>
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Review:<o:p></o:p><br />
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I absolutely love this book. One because it was so bright,
colourful and beautifully crafted by Chip Kidd that it was really pleasing to
read. Two, though Gaiman’s speech was specifically targeted to art graduates I
felt that there were a few pointers that anyone regardless of age can take as
good advise in order for them to succeed in what they do.<o:p></o:p><br />
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There are two quotes that I love from this book. The first:<o:p></o:p><br />
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“I tended to do anything as long as it felt like an
adventure and to stop when it felt like work, which meant that life did not
feel like work”<o:p></o:p><br />
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I totally agree with this. I hold the same principle and believe that one should have
passion in what they do then only will they enjoy the work.<o:p></o:p><br />
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The second quote I like from Gaiman’s speech was on why
people will still get work, they don’t have to be perfect but at least good in
one of these three things and people would re-hire them regardless.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
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“1. Their work is good,<o:p></o:p></div>
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2. and because they are easy to get along with,<o:p></o:p></div>
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3. and because they deliver the work on time.<o:p></o:p></div>
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And you don’t even need all three.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Two out of three is fine.”<o:p></o:p><br />
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I have much respect for Gaiman and have always thought of
him as a very talented writer. I have enjoyed all of the books I've read from Gaiman so far. This book opened up my eyes to the fact that even though he is a great writer, he too faced challenges, made mistakes and faced failures in his journey
to success.<o:p></o:p></div>
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This book will take less than one hour to read. It’s
definitely a keeper on my book shelf for the insightful content as well as the
colourful style it was presented in. I gave it a 5 over 5 in <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3468419-natasha-musa" target="_blank">Goodreads</a>.<o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-65053365574050033432015-08-28T08:05:00.000-07:002015-08-28T08:05:41.523-07:00Book review: A Squash and a Squeeze by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM871FT6Q6TCjYlj805Krbwu0wFyTvieW-cfvUjmbIL5wdovtW9pAGUnDQM93nv2IvHgno3UMOh10qhbNdaLBlOy3Yl78CZ2iAvaWEkMOa0gq50PZsok_VyHhiY24-ov6pmbKijylR0Gg/s1600/A+squash+and+a+squeeze.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM871FT6Q6TCjYlj805Krbwu0wFyTvieW-cfvUjmbIL5wdovtW9pAGUnDQM93nv2IvHgno3UMOh10qhbNdaLBlOy3Yl78CZ2iAvaWEkMOa0gq50PZsok_VyHhiY24-ov6pmbKijylR0Gg/s1600/A+squash+and+a+squeeze.jpg" /></a></div>
Written by:
<a href="http://www.juliadonaldson.co.uk/" target="_blank">Julia Donaldson</a></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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Illustrated
by: Axel Scheffler<o:p></o:p></div>
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Format:
Paperback<o:p></o:p></div>
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Publisher:
Pan Macmillan<o:p></o:p></div>
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Authors
Summary:<o:p></o:p></div>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“Wise old
man, won’t you help me, please?<br />My house is
a squash and a squeeze.”</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
This was my
first book, published in 1993, but it started its life earlier still, as a song
which I wrote for children’s television. There is also a Big Book, a board
book, a Braille edition, a Let’s Read edition, a 20th anniversary edition with
early drawings from Axel’s sketchbook and audio version with Imelda Staunton,
Steven Pacey and Julia which includes both story and song (I sing the part of
the little old lady!)</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
A Squash and
a Squeeze features in a Scamp play called Tiddler and other Terrific Tales
which frequently tours the UK. For performing details visit <a href="http://www.scamptheatre.com/">www.scamptheatre.com</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>"a bit
of a classic… a goat on the bed and a cow on the table tapping out a jig? My
readers collapsed in heaps, and then had to have it read again. And
again." Vivian French in The
Guardian. </i></blockquote>
<i><o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i><o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i><o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i><o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i><o:p></o:p></i></div>
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Review:</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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The kids and
I are exploring a lot of Julia Donaldson’s books this year. So far the boys’
favourite is The Gruffalo and Room on the Broom. We have these in both
paperback and audiobooks formats. Whenever we travel in the car, the kids will
definitely want to hear either one of these books. I think my eldest has even
memorized the whole Gruffalo book by now. <o:p></o:p></div>
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A squash and
a squeeze is a simple story of a woman who thought her house was too small and
had asked the advice of a wise old man. The old man then had asked the woman to
bring one animal after another into her house and then take the animals out
again one by one. It was not until all the animals were out of her house did the
old woman realized that her house was not small after all. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I really
liked this book. The story has a nice rhyme to it and I quite enjoyed reading
it to the boys. The illustrations were colourful and bright and the kids loved
asking about the animals. However, the kids didn’t seem to be as engaged with the story as much as they were with The Gruffalo or Room on the Broom. I’ve
tried reading this book to them a couple of times already but they were just
not interested in the story but were more inquisitive on the animals. Maybe
stories of little old ladies don’t appeal to them? Oh dear...<o:p></o:p></div>
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Regardless of how the kids reacted to the book,
I personally think this was an enjoyable book to read.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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In the
author’s website, Donaldson mentioned that this book started off as a song for
a children’s television show. So I googled and got a video of it on YouTube of the song which is sung by none other than the author herself. I’m
going to try sharing the video with the kids instead and see if the kids will like
the video better. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/-tI0bQ-A-H0/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-tI0bQ-A-H0?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
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We have a
couple more books from Julia Donaldson which I haven’t started reading to the
kids yet but I really like her work so far. I gave this book a 3 over 5 in
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3468419-natasha-musa" target="_blank">Goodreads</a>.<o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-17159891844805420322015-08-27T02:47:00.000-07:002015-08-27T02:53:26.439-07:00I've outgrown my blog<div class="MsoNormal">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC6e-BqB03gD6dciEZneUXU8LyLeXykgQJ2CNbjc6S_6iDlv7TYrqJ6qEaP6L5oq7Vkf3FEu00ziiSz493oCJAzOtUcDZBasjKY3d2CIDfr0rY8FEC7b4yA0YldIdXmacOdjuTsBtsUao/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC6e-BqB03gD6dciEZneUXU8LyLeXykgQJ2CNbjc6S_6iDlv7TYrqJ6qEaP6L5oq7Vkf3FEu00ziiSz493oCJAzOtUcDZBasjKY3d2CIDfr0rY8FEC7b4yA0YldIdXmacOdjuTsBtsUao/s400/2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
When I started my blog in 2008, the purpose was to review and write about the books I’ve read and engage with other book bloggers. It took me a while to find a name for the blog but after some brainstorming and checking with friends on their opinions, I decided on <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Ulat Buku in the City</a>.<br />
<br />
It’s
pretty obvious my current blog name was inspired by my favourite show at that point of time, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0159206/" target="_blank">Sex and the City</a>. I was single and living in
a high rise apartment right smack in KL city. Ulat Buku means book worm in my native
language Bahasa Malaysia. Book worm + living in the city = Ulat Buku in the City. It's not the most creative blog name but hey I loved it and it reflected well on who I was back then. I also created a twitter account to support the blog <a href="https://twitter.com/msulatbuku" target="_blank">@msulatbuku</a>.<br />
<br />
In sum, the blog name, look, feel and content quite suited me
at that point in my life.<br />
<br />
However as individuals, we change and evolve as we grow (older? wiser?
I’m not sure which to use to be honest LOL) and looking at the blog
now I somehow feel that it does not reflect the person I am today.<br />
<br />
I’m not a
consistent blogger obviously but I love my blog site. I love writing and at
this juncture in my life when I do find the time to write, I would really like to write about more than just the
books I read. I want to expand my content to also include my experiences at
home, my family and some thoughts on my profession as a marketing
communications consultant.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
On Twitter, I have stopped using the <a href="https://twitter.com/msulatbuku" target="_blank">@msulatbuku</a> handle for quite a while now and started tweeting <a href="https://twitter.com/tashmusa" target="_blank">@tashmusa</a> instead. I don’t know
why but I just felt that the <a href="https://twitter.com/tashmusa" target="_blank">@msulatbuku</a> handle seems a bit childish now and like
my blog, not reflective of the person I am today. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I know for a fact that I want to keep this blog site. I’m
too lazy to start all over again with a new blog site. In fact, a couple of
years ago <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/01/why-i-prefer-blogging-on-blogger.html" target="_blank">I experimented with a new blog site at Wordpress</a> and that did not
turn out well for me.<br />
<br />
The question that I am asking myself is do I re-invent
and rebrand this site? Should I? To be honest, I have not decided. I am still
mulling over this but I’m leaning towards re-naming the site simply as Natasha
Musa’s Blog, that way however I evolve in the future, the writing and content
is from me and reflective of who I am. BUT... I'm finding it hard to let go of Ulat Buku in the City due to sentimental reasons. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
If you are a blogger and you are reading this, have you ever
gone through such transition? What did you do? I hope you can share your
thoughts and advice on what happened when you outgrew you blog. Drop me a note,
I’d love to hear your opinion. <o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-64529311182753999222015-08-25T08:16:00.001-07:002015-08-25T08:20:39.852-07:00Life begins at 40<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
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</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHauF5-a2jAJzRRhB-oTiGNhRAnM6PfQhIVIvsennVcRv9RpBXoZJ8pv6Sbpjrxt6ThTI-E4afsNshIwSkalQ-t91FbP5ZzNu-zUC4ILl7DBSZNHczSwt9UgDEUBRb-VZO6I-czxtSDVw/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHauF5-a2jAJzRRhB-oTiGNhRAnM6PfQhIVIvsennVcRv9RpBXoZJ8pv6Sbpjrxt6ThTI-E4afsNshIwSkalQ-t91FbP5ZzNu-zUC4ILl7DBSZNHczSwt9UgDEUBRb-VZO6I-czxtSDVw/s400/2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<b><br /></b>
<b>Life begins at 40. <o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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At least that’s what they say. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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I celebrated my 40<sup>th</sup> birthday in January this
year. To be honest, I was quite hyped when my birthday came about. I have some
friends who would mope and say that they get depressed leaving their 30’s
behind. Me, I was actually looking forward to it and am pretty proud that I
have reached 40 quite gracefully (or at least… I think I have). <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Whilst I am very happy with my life, I have to be realistic and honest about my physical state. I am very
unhealthy and am often stressed out juggling the responsibilities of building a
career and managing and caring for my family. Like most working mums, I think I
got overwhelmed with my responsibilities at work and at home that I often forget
to put some time aside for myself. Anyway, overall I felt shitty physically. I
am tired all day, I have low energy, I suffer from migraines quite often and
also from back pains consistently. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A couple of months ago, I went for a medical check-up
for insurance purposes and the doctor told me I had early signs of diabetes. My
father’s family have all suffered from diabetes. I’ve known that I had a high
chance of getting diabetes seeing that it is a hereditary disease but I guess I
was hoping that it might skip me completely. This news really got me to stop
and think: If I’m unhealthy now how will I be when I am 50, 60 or 70- if God
willing I live that long?<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Reflecting back on how I’ve lived my life so far; I never
did care much for my health. I never exercised. Rarely took vitamin supplements.
Never monitored the food I ate. I work too much. I slept too little. I smoke
too much.<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>Time for change<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><br /></b></div>
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At the time I was reflecting my unhealthy physical state,
I came across this article on my Facebook timeline <a href="http://gertlouw.com/2015/06/26/how-to-get-a-muscular-body-after-40/" target="_blank">“How to get a muscular body after 40?”</a> - an article written by Gert Louw.
Gerts article showed how he was at the age of 40 and how he is now at 51. He decided to make a change because he was suffering from so many health problems at the age of 40. I was honestly impressed with his transformation. Yes, I am fully aware that his
website was written for men but I was inspired by his story nevertheless. </div>
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<br /></div>
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Anyway,
reading Gert's story sort of motivated me to start exercising and eating better.
My objective is not to gain a muscular body at the age of 50 like Gert
obviously but I would really love to be fit and not feel like dying when I go
up ten steps of stairs. I want to stop feeling tired and lethargic all the
time. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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What I got from reading his article was if he can do it at
40, then damn it I can do it too. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>The new regime<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So for the past two months, I have been taking baby steps to
change my lifestyle. I wanted to take things slow cause I’m one that can get
excited with something new easily and also feel demotivated and drop a project
instantly when I get bored <b><i>especially</i></b> when it comes to
exercising. This was what I have done since June: <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Step 1: Medical check
up<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
By luck, I found a doctor who practised holistic healing and
went to consult him. I briefed him on my health history, concerns and what I
wanted to achieve. We also discussed about my current meal
intake. The two hour plus consultation also included a blood test which helped
him to diagnose what was lacking in my body. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
From my visit with the doctor, he had recommended a very
detailed meal plan for me and also recommended some vitamin supplements I
should take to improve my health. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Step 2: Healthier meal
plan<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The first two weeks of going through the new meal plan was tough
and expensive! Who knew eating organic food like brown rice, fruits and juicing
could cost so much. I suffered from more migraines than usual and my eczema really got worst but the doctor did say that it will be a normal side effect from changing my diet plan and the new supplement intake. His exact
word were “Be prepared to feel worst, before you feel better”. To be honest,
after a month – my husband did say I
looked much better, my skin felt softer and I did feel a slight improvement in
my energy levels. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I am unfortunately not following through the diet plan fully
at this point of time but I do take the vitamin supplements religiously. Like I
said, baby steps. I will change my diet plan slowly but surely. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I am also planning to do a more detailed health check but
after looking through the packages offered on hospital websites I found it to
be very expensive. So I’m saving up for that and hopefully will do a full
medical by year end. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Step 3: Exercise<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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Ok. I hate exercising. I really do. But when you want to
lead a healthier lifestyle I guess one must just persevere. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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In the past, when I have had a sudden inspiration to get
healthy, I’d join a gym or yoga classes. Historically, these things never did
turn out well for me. I’d drop the classes and continued paying without
attending any of them. So this time around, I decided to exercise from home and
not spend a single cent on instructors or classes. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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I decided to do two things: Yoga and indoor cycling. The
plan was to wake up earlier in the morning and spend just 10 minutes a day to do my exercises. I would alternate
the exercise: yoga one day and indoor cycling the next. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt;">
<i>Yoga at home<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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The beauty about this day and age
is that there are so many YouTube video that can guide you for your exercises.
All you need to do is research and choose one to do as part of your exercise
regime. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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The first week, I did yoga
following this <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrEKTy6i0tE" target="_blank">video</a>
as a guide. Its 10 minutes of yoga stretches without getting out of bed! That’s
how lazy I am! Lol. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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I think I did this for about two
weeks. Now, I am following this video for my 15 minute yoga in the mornings
instead. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/lJi17P7iKNM/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lJi17P7iKNM?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt;">
<i>Indoor cycling<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt;">
My husband bought an indoor
cycling machine some years back. We use it mostly to hang stuff. Really…. The handles are handy that way. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt;">
Anyway, I thought that I should
make use of the machine in the mornings instead of using it to hang my handbags in the recreation room. On days that I don’t do yoga, I switch on my audiobook
and cycle for ten minutes. </div>
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<br /></div>
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This is my second month of exercise and I have
increased my cycling time to 15 minutes. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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There are days when I say “Screw it, I’m going back to bed”
but most mornings in the past one month plus I do wake up looking forward to do
the exercises. I’ve been chronicling my exercises on twitter. I don’t know why
but I think announcing to the world that I am exercising and making a slow
change in my life helped to motivate me somewhat. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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As I mentioned earlier, I am currently in my second month of
exercising. I definitely feel the difference. I still feel lethargic sometimes but its not as bad as before. To be honest, I think I love this new
lifestyle of mine. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Last week I added this video – <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6t0quh8Ick&index=3&list=PLsmKVqaiIyv7NHv1TjRXSV9lWGLXuoJ1n" target="_blank">10 minute No Equipment Home Workout, Full Body</a> – as part of my exercise regime on days I don’t do yoga or
indoor cycling. This one is tough but so far I quite enjoy trying to do the
exercises. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/I6t0quh8Ick/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/I6t0quh8Ick?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
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<br /></div>
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So, this is me at 40. I’m trying to change for the
betterment of my health. I remember reading somewhere that it takes 30 days to
change a habit. If this is true then I hope this new habit of living life
healthier remains consistent in my life. I’d like to live healthy and grow old
enough to meet my grandchildren one day. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’ve decided to use this blog to chronicle my success or
failure in following through this journey of living life healthier. If you
happen to read this, wish me luck and a word of encouragement would definitely help. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-26655185576598574632015-08-22T21:46:00.002-07:002015-08-22T22:37:59.929-07:00Audiobook Review: Odd Thomas by Dean Koontz<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgvtl8tmTwrJCTnwONie59h5rRSx7MVQmiE5kqfclC4LTgxxQT9omvB1jqI26oZQ-nBC2cPRd7CIdO2Ic4wTOki0hAbbfImZDWCDOBYcZGPF7OpUeaMBvYZWQXifxESatsZeqRwDzy-80/s1600/Odd+Thomas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgvtl8tmTwrJCTnwONie59h5rRSx7MVQmiE5kqfclC4LTgxxQT9omvB1jqI26oZQ-nBC2cPRd7CIdO2Ic4wTOki0hAbbfImZDWCDOBYcZGPF7OpUeaMBvYZWQXifxESatsZeqRwDzy-80/s1600/Odd+Thomas.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Written by: <a href="http://www.deankoontz.com/" target="_blank">Dean Koontz</a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Narrated by: <a href="http://www.audible.com/search/ref=a_pd_Fictio_c2_1_narr?searchNarrator=David+Aaron+Baker" target="_blank">David Aaron Baker</a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Length: 10 hours and 33 minutes</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Series: Odd Thomas, Book 1</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Format: Audiobook</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Publisher: <a href="http://www.audible.com/search/ref=a_pd_Fictio_c2_publnk?searchProvider=Random%2BHouse%2BAudio" target="_blank">Random House Audio</a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Publisher's Summary:</div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"The dead don't talk. I don't know why." But they
do try to communicate, with a short-order cook in a small desert town serving
as their reluctant confidant. Odd Thomas thinks of himself as an ordinary guy,
if possessed of a certain measure of talent at the Pico Mundo Grill and
rapturously in love with the most beautiful girl in the world, Stormy
Llewellyn.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Maybe he has a gift, maybe it's a curse, Odd has never been
sure, but he tries to do his best by the silent souls who seek him out.
Sometimes they want justice, and Odd's otherworldly tips to Pico Mundo's
sympathetic police chief, Wyatt Porter, can solve a crime. Occasionally they
can prevent one. But this time it's different.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
A mysterious man comes to town with a voracious appetite, a
filing cabinet stuffed with information on the world's worst killers, and a
pack of hyena-like shades following him wherever he goes. Who the man is and
what he wants, not even Odd's deceased informants can tell him. His most
ominous clue is a page ripped from a day-by-day calendar for August 15. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Today is August 14.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
In less than twenty-four hours, Pico Mundo will awaken to a
day of catastrophe. As evil coils under the searing desert sun, Odd travels
through the shifting prisms of his world, struggling to avert a looming
cataclysm with the aid of his soul mate and an unlikely community of allies
that includes the King of Rock 'n' Roll. His account of two shattering days
when past and present, fate and destiny converge is the stuff of our worst
nightmares, and a testament by which to live: sanely if not safely, with
courage, humor, and a full heart that even in the darkness must persevere.</blockquote>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Review:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A couple of years ago, I saw a movie called Odd Thomas. It
was a good movie with a very sad ending that made me cry buckets. After
watching the movie a couple of times, I suddenly wondered if it was an
adaptation from a book. So I googled and found out that it was an adaptation
from a book of the same title authored by Dean Koontz. To be honest, I was
pretty shocked that I knew nothing about this book. Why? Because in my late
teens and early adulthood I thought I had read everything from this author.
Dean Koontz was my favorite author during that time and I assumed that I had
read everything and <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a>I really mean EVERYTHING from him. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Anyway, back to my thoughts on this book. I loved it. I
think the movie adaptation also did justice to the book. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I really do admire Odd’s character. At times I feel sorry
for him especially when the book reveals a little bit about his parents and his
upbringing but I love him for how he decided to live his life independently and
in pure simplicity despite all that he had gone through in his young life. I
love the relationship he has with the people around him especially with his
soulmate Stormy. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’m a big Dean Koontz fan and honestly I am biased. This
book could do no wrong for me. The storyline was excellent and the pacing was
good. The audiobook production was also excellent. The narrator’s voice and
depiction of Odd’s character is perfect. Truth: I cried at the end despite
knowing fully well how it ended as it was similar to the movie. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I definitely will read the rest of the series and see how
life turns out for Odd and his little troupe in the little town of Pico Mundo. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I gave this a 4 over 5 rating on <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26074487-odd-thomas" target="_blank">Goodreads</a>.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-59744529744020917772015-08-22T09:23:00.001-07:002015-08-22T09:29:55.570-07:00Audiobook Review: Chasing Fireflies by Charles Martin<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUuMye02OnIb7PVspA0fjlxUaC2hNONFxICfgwrc7o1imWJZ2MM55QHtUrF-x7zMmmqVHfoxXBFcFPl3djI5pJdD1YzofXZZTsjFEqVqVsuJDktlOHXoZegmq4Y21L-nItfe3Whhmyq-w/s1600/Chasing+Fireflies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUuMye02OnIb7PVspA0fjlxUaC2hNONFxICfgwrc7o1imWJZ2MM55QHtUrF-x7zMmmqVHfoxXBFcFPl3djI5pJdD1YzofXZZTsjFEqVqVsuJDktlOHXoZegmq4Y21L-nItfe3Whhmyq-w/s1600/Chasing+Fireflies.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Written by: <a href="http://charlesmartinbooks.com/" target="_blank">Charles Martin</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Narrated by: <a href="http://www.audible.com/search/ref=a_pd_Fictio_c2_1_narr?searchNarrator=Andrew+Peterson" target="_blank">Andrew Peterson</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Length: 9 hours and 15 minutes<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Format: Audiobook<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Publisher: Oasis Audio</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When paramedics find a malnourished 6-year-old boy near a
burning car that holds a dead woman, they wonder who he is – and why he won’t
talk. Chase, a small-town journalist who was raised by foster parents, is
assigned to cover the story and investigate the boy’s identity. But will his
search unearth long-buried emotions – and answers to his own history?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Review:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The first few pages starts with intense drama. A 6 year old boy is being abused by whom we can only assume is
his mother in a car, parked in the middle of the railway track with an oncoming
train headed their way. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The story follows through in the aftermath of a tragedy, when the boy is found wondering, not willing to utter a word to anyone
and Chase Walker, a local reporter is put to task to investigate on the boy’s
background. The journey leads to a story of self-discovery, the test of family
bonds and a secret that is finally revealed after being hidden for so long.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This book is definitely the best book I’ve listened to in
2013. Hands down.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This novel has strong and memorable characters. The
development of each character from the first page until the last is absolutely
amazing. Unc, who is Chase’s foster father, is my absolute favourite character
in this book, followed by Chase and Tommye. Unc’s relationship with Chase as a
foster father is admirable. Though Unc is known to sometimes utter things that
only he can understand; spoke many words of wisdom in the book. Listening to
audiobooks while driving means that I am not able to jot down notes of quotes
from Unc which is really sad but trust me some of Unc’s words are profound.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.audible.com/pd/Fiction/Chasing-Fireflies-Audiobook/B002UZND5M/ref=a_search_c4_1_1_srTtl?qid=1440260099&sr=1-1" target="_blank">Chasing Fireflies</a> is paced well. Characters and storyline is
revealed at just the right time and the storyline is engaging which actually made me want to take longer drives. Shamelessly, I’ll admit tearing a number of
times while listening to this book on my drive to work.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This book is about the importance of family relationships
and the quest in search for the truth. It is a beautiful novel that is filled
with emotions, strong family bonds and a revelation that is quite unexpected at
the end.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My hats off to Andrew Peterson, the narrator of the
audiobook. Not only did he read the story well, he manages to read each
character differently and bring each and every character to life and made the
listening experience even more worthwhile.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I absolutely LOVE this book. I loved it so much that I gave
it a 5 over 5 on Goodreads.<o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-70820032750717931682015-08-04T02:44:00.001-07:002015-08-04T02:46:33.851-07:00Audiobook Review: Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCbfV6GQ_vaWu7x4kVuIuQ4cDxYk06jN1NFUStYX7b0NvnEP2j2ax0IXW4WALrjYijiB548IfCErSIcWmKuLoGfQmZb2r_cjxv-28Us7sa1xrq8toKWUmUpWC9BCNQeKUjBGbFXxEnljQ/s1600/Wicked+Lovely.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCbfV6GQ_vaWu7x4kVuIuQ4cDxYk06jN1NFUStYX7b0NvnEP2j2ax0IXW4WALrjYijiB548IfCErSIcWmKuLoGfQmZb2r_cjxv-28Us7sa1xrq8toKWUmUpWC9BCNQeKUjBGbFXxEnljQ/s1600/Wicked+Lovely.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Written by: <a href="http://www.melissamarrbooks.com/" target="_blank">Melissa Marr</a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Narrated by: <a href="http://www.audible.com/search/ref=a_pd_Teens__c2_1_narr?searchNarrator=Alyssa+Bresnahan" target="_blank">Alyssa Bresnahan</a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Length:10 hours and 9 minutes</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Format: Audiobook</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Publisher: <a href="http://www.audible.com/search/ref=a_pd_Teens__c2_publnk?searchProvider=HarperAudio" target="_blank">HarperAudio</a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Aislinn has the third eye and is able to see faeries.
Unfortunately, Aislinn’s mother was killed by faeries when she was young.
Because of this she has been trained by her grandmother to hide her gift in
order to protect her from the evil faeries.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
She lives her life by a set of strict rules outlined by her
grandmother. And these rules have kept her safe, until now. Suddenly, none of
the rules apply anymore as she is stalked by Keenan, the faery Summer King.
Keenan is after Aislinn as he believes that she could be ‘THE' Summer Queen and
help release him from his mother’s evil powers.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The review:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Ok. This was not an exceptionally great book but I quite
enjoyed it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It offered a different take on how I normally see faeries. I
always thought that faeries were like Tinkerbell from Peter Pan… Eh. Wait a
minute. Is Tinkerbell a faerie even? Ok whatever…. Anyway you catch my drift,
faeries: small creatures, a bit mischievous but overall good supernatural
beings with wings attached to them.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My absolute favourite character in this book is…. drum roll
please… SETH! (I’m so predictable right?) He’s the perfect guy (well, maybe a
bit too perfect thus the reason why he only exists as a fictional character). I
love him because he was:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<ul>
<li>Patiently waiting for Aislinn (I mean the guy did wait for 7
whole damn months before he told her he was in love with her)</li>
<li>Supportive (Did not call Aislinn crazy when she told him
about her gift plus he even went all out and did research to find out more
about the fairies)</li>
<li>Cool, outgoing, good in bed and apparently the man can cook
(two thumbs up from me on this point more than the previous points).</li>
</ul>
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Keenan on the other hand I find a tad annoying. I won’t
comment on the female characters cause … well, none of the characters had a
huge impact on me.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Overall the storyline was ok. I quite enjoyed it mostly
though I thought some parts was like… huh? For example: when grandma met
Keenan.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Storyline revolves mainly around Aislinn (duhhh… she is the
main character Tasha!). But seriously, its Aislinn wondering what’s happening,
Aislinn pissed off at Keenan, Aislinn wondering what to do with Seth and
Aislinn having to decide whether she would take up the challenge handed to her
by the faeries. That about sums up the story. Sorry for the spoiler.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I heard this on audiobook and thought the narration was
great though the narrator’s voice seemed a bit too mature for Aislinn.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Good book but not great. Enjoyable nonetheless because of
the different take on faeries plus I do love Seth tremendously in this book. I
gave it a 3 over 5 on Goodreads.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
*Side note:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
After writing this post, I did a quick Google search on
fairies vs faeries. I’ve always spelt it as fairies and wanted to know what the
difference was. Turns out there IS a difference between fairies & faeries. My perception on fairies (like Tinkerbell) is right and Marr’s
depiction of faeries is not new or different after all. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Hah! I learn something new everyday. Lets see if I can make any use of this information in real life. <o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-7767871725397637602015-05-13T07:33:00.001-07:002015-05-13T07:52:27.086-07:00Talk Like Ted <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqcOIXXl2IjC2lXiNMDydkx5UyXsCfSycPhuEfAmqUUcsrVL01km2aV5MHD7DUw-J5koeoUblq4kT-Url05peOmsOdscXx-BAEJ3BEfJqMFIT-_yDjn9iN4GUgV4IpMH6ep9RlQs_cu8g/s1600/Ted+talks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqcOIXXl2IjC2lXiNMDydkx5UyXsCfSycPhuEfAmqUUcsrVL01km2aV5MHD7DUw-J5koeoUblq4kT-Url05peOmsOdscXx-BAEJ3BEfJqMFIT-_yDjn9iN4GUgV4IpMH6ep9RlQs_cu8g/s320/Ted+talks.jpg" width="210" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Written by: <a href="http://www.carminegallo.com/" target="_blank">Carmine Gallo</a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Narrated by: Carmine Gallo<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Length: 7 hrs and 42 mins<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Format: <a href="http://www.audible.com/pd/Business/Talk-Like-TED-Audiobook/B00H4E0YUQ/ref=a_search_c4_1_1_srTtl?qid=1431527201&sr=1-1" target="_blank">Unabridged</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
TED talks have redefined the elements of a successful
presentation and become the gold standard for public speaking around the world.
TED and associated Tedx conferences are held in more than 130 countries and are
being viewed at a rate of 1.5 million times a day.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
These are presentations that set the world on fire, and the
techniques that top TED speakers use are the same ones that will make any
presentation more dynamic, fire up any team, and give anyone the confidence to
overcome their fear of public speaking.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Public speaking coach and best-selling author of The
Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs, Carmine Gallo has broken down the top TED
talks and interviewed the most popular TED presenters as well as the top
researchers in the fields of psychology and communications to get their
cutting-edge insights and to reveal the nine secrets of all successful TED
presentations.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
From “Unleashing the Master Within” and “Delivering Jaw
Dropping Moments” to “Sticking to the 18-minute Rule”, Gallo provides a
step-by-step method that makes it possible for anyone to create, design, and
deliver a TED-style presentation that is engaging, persuasive, and memorable.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Ideas are the true currency of the 21st century, and Gallo
gives listeners a way to create presentations around the ideas that matter most
to them, presentations that will energize their audiences to spread those
ideas, launch new initiatives, and reach their highest goals.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My thoughts:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In my line of work, we do a lot of presentations. A lot.
You’d think that with the amount of presentations we do, we’d be as good as
Steve Jobs by now. Far from it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’m always looking for ways to improve my presentation
skills and thought Talk Like TED would be an interesting book to listen to. The
book was an unplanned purchase, I happened to see it featured on Audible and
decided it might be worth a listen.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Overall I gave Talk Like TED a rating of 3 over 5 in
Goodreads.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It was definitely an interesting book and the advice
provided by Carmine Gallo was really good but it was hardly anything new. The
nine points highlighted are pretty obvious and some of the advice I’ve heard
before through seminars that I’ve attended and some books that I’ve read in the
past.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Though the nine secrets may not be anything new, Gallo does
present the points in an interesting manner. What I liked about Carmine Gallo’s
book was that some of the points he provided was supported with scientific
studies, research and even case studies of actual presenters at TED
conferences. After every chapter, I’d take the time to watch the TED talk
presenter he mentioned in his book just to learn how well they presented. Most
are pretty impressive and very inspiring.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
One of the first public speaking books that I read and which
is my favourite till today is How to Develop Self-Confidence and Influence
People by Public Speaking by Dale Carnegie. Some of the advice Carmine Gallo
offers, echoes Dale Carnegie’s points as well but of course presented with
context and case studies which is more relevant to our time. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Worth a listen if you have not read any book on public
speaking.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Now… I have a major presentation this month and my challenge
is to develop an effective presentation using Gallo’s techniques. Wish me luck.<o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-26911553093837770042015-02-24T06:51:00.000-08:002015-02-24T06:51:22.402-08:00Usborne Very First Reading: Book 2 - The Dressing-Up Box<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT9-t41Mk9Wurv0g2Korty9zu6AVLKncPKMxiA_NE7da0O6d-pGfYgpfNraj7RPkU9k_TgcV3jB41JoAUOe4qd3n-PlsVoXPhts6qFflAsizfcJRKZCtEmOd-Uf3jV1JAo0tguuj6hvYw/s1600/very_first_reading_dressing_up_box.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT9-t41Mk9Wurv0g2Korty9zu6AVLKncPKMxiA_NE7da0O6d-pGfYgpfNraj7RPkU9k_TgcV3jB41JoAUOe4qd3n-PlsVoXPhts6qFflAsizfcJRKZCtEmOd-Uf3jV1JAo0tguuj6hvYw/s1600/very_first_reading_dressing_up_box.jpg" height="320" width="215" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Written by:
<a href="http://www.jacketflap.com/mairi-mackinnon/100454" target="_blank">Mairi MacKinnon</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Illustrated
by: Kate Sheppard<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Pages: 32
pages<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Format: Hard
cover<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Genre:
Children’s Book<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Reading
Level: 3 – 5 years old </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<ul>
<li><i>An exciting story to inspire very beginner readers.</i></li>
<li><i>Based on the principles of synthetic phonics, supports the
"Letters and Sounds" programme used in thousands of UK primary
schools.</i></li>
<li><i>Adult and child take turns to read, and the child’s text
uses only the letters s a t p i n m d.</i></li>
<li><i>Fun puzzles test understanding, and provide opportunities
for discussion and further reading practice.</i></li>
</ul>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
My thoughts:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This book is part of a series that introduces reading to
first time readers. I started reading Book 1: Pirate Pat from the series a
couple of weeks back to the kids. Per my <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/02/usborne-very-first-reading-book-1.html" target="_blank">previous post </a>on my experienced
reading the first book, my kids loved it because they love stories about
pirates but I had suspected that the kids won't enjoy the second book so much. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I was right, my kids were not as excited to read the Dressing-Up Box
unfortunately. Don’t get me wrong the book was fine but dressing-up is not
something my kids are into just yet so that’s why they were not interested when
I read it to them. It took a lot to get them to focus on listening to me read
the whole book. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So note to self: Read books with subjects that they are
interested in and it would be easier for them to stay focus on the book. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I had plans to slowly purchase and collect the whole Usborne
Very First Reading Series but was surprised that they had removed it from the
shelf of the bookstore I originally purchased it from and is no longer
available for sale in any of their outlets. The sales girl was explaining about
stocks being on their shelves for only six months and after that it is returned
back to the stockist. I called all other local bookstores and they don’t carry it
either. Buying it online would just cost more for delivery. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What that means really is that I won’t be reading any other
books from this series to the kids. That’s kinda sad cause I was looking
forward to reading the rest of the series with the children.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Anyway, I just made major purchases on <a href="http://www.audible.com/" target="_blank">Audible</a> for the
children like <a href="http://www.audible.com/pd/Kids/The-Gruffalos-Child-Audiobook/B00403S2OY/ref=a_search_c4_1_1_srTtl?qid=1424772082&sr=1-1" target="_blank">Gruffalo’s Child</a>, <a href="http://www.audible.com/pd/Kids/The-Dinosaur-that-Pooped-a-Planet-Audiobook/B00PUYB9LU/ref=a_search_c4_1_2_srTtl?qid=1424772120&sr=1-2" target="_blank">The Dinosaur that Pooped a Planet</a> and <a href="http://www.audible.com/pd/Kids/Curious-George-Visits-the-Zoo-Audiobook/B002V8KSZ6/ref=a_search_c4_1_1_srTtl?qid=1424772208&sr=1-1" target="_blank">Curious George Visits the Zoo</a>. Big boy and I listened to the Dinosaur that Pooped a Planet
last night and he quite enjoyed it because of all the farting sound effects…
sigh… boys…</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-90619445071601407972015-02-23T22:05:00.000-08:002015-02-23T22:05:48.184-08:00Travel: Sentosa Island, Singapore<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq6dEYpIBK3KxeJznqZ9Q1CqVYNWahED3r5593B8gLRTyNKkrQo9f4RjkSi_LngRThdx69EWLt5BsMERFqglwqJ2dKIAX6OPOZx8Ur-UilEWwp4SJRU42yiv02jOMilE9UkiWD88G7Kcw/s1600/Shang.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq6dEYpIBK3KxeJznqZ9Q1CqVYNWahED3r5593B8gLRTyNKkrQo9f4RjkSi_LngRThdx69EWLt5BsMERFqglwqJ2dKIAX6OPOZx8Ur-UilEWwp4SJRU42yiv02jOMilE9UkiWD88G7Kcw/s1600/Shang.JPG" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The pool at Shangri-La's Rasa Sentosa Resort & Spa</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This is way overdue but I really wanted to share our
experience when we stayed at Sentosa Island during a long weekend holiday in January. Hubs and I have not travelled with the family for almost three
years. We made a conscious decision to delay travelling temporarily when I got
pregnant with my second son. Reason? Well, we didn't think we were up to travelling with two toddlers.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My second son is two years old now and took his first
airplane flight for this trip. He was a star. He did look a bit scared when we
took off but other than that, he was enjoying himself on flight. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We wanted to bring the kids to <a href="http://www.rwsentosa.com/Homepage/Attractions/UniversalStudiosSingapore">Universal Studios Singapore</a> and we thought it would be best to stay within Sentosa Island itself.
We decided to stay at <a href="http://www.shangri-la.com/singapore/rasasentosaresort/">Shangri-La's Rasa Sentosa Resort and Spa</a> for the three days two nights trip.
While the hotel looks a bit old, the facilities were awesome and honestly the
service was beyond excellent. The staff were really friendly and they looked
like they really enjoyed the work that they do. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrK9eucJfm4R5Htlet0pM8sgmp5n4I4C6BQY4e5vwBRXRbAMMXHUNoa0L5P4YWzuktwznBUdT2KGEjHi463W7KluN8s9K356JnA_Cw287ipRYd3NQ2rzfpsghAvBj_i1XY3b3pacm75N4/s1600/Singapore+JPG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrK9eucJfm4R5Htlet0pM8sgmp5n4I4C6BQY4e5vwBRXRbAMMXHUNoa0L5P4YWzuktwznBUdT2KGEjHi463W7KluN8s9K356JnA_Cw287ipRYd3NQ2rzfpsghAvBj_i1XY3b3pacm75N4/s1600/Singapore+JPG.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
It was also the boys first time experiencing the beach. The
beach on Sentosa is not the best that we have been to but it was clean (it’s Singapore! Of
course its clean!) and the boys had fun building their first sand castle. We
spent more time at the pool then the beach honestly cause Shangri-La’s pool
area had a better environment for the kids.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Traveling around Sentosa was really easy as they had a free
feeder bus that took you around the island. The feeder bus schedules were
consistent and easily accessible. The only time that we took a taxi was from the
airport and back and when we wanted to visit <a href="http://www.marinabaysands.com/shopping.html">The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands</a>. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="http://www.rwsentosa.com/Homepage/Attractions/UniversalStudiosSingapore">Universal Studios</a> was good for the kids. They really enjoyed
themselves. The boys especially loved Jurassic Park in the Lost World section
and the Transformers section. Both my boys are into dinosaurs so you can imagine
how excited the kids were when we got to Jurassic Park. My eldest son took his
first theme park ride at Jurassic Park and he was super excited. As we were
only there for one day, we did not manage to visit every corner of the theme
park. We had to be selective and only went for the ones we thought the boys
would enjoy. I think we should have allocated two days to visit the whole theme
park at a more leisurely pace. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Mum and I quite enjoyed the 50’s diner called Mel’s
drive-in. There was a performance by these 4 guys called The Cruisers singing
50’s and 60’s tunes and I absolutely enjoyed myself singing along to the songs
(no I am not in my 60’s ok but mum played a lot of her favourite 50’s & 60’s
tunes when I was growing up so I kinda know the lyrics to most of the songs
from that genre). <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Sentosa Island is a great location for short family get-away.
We really enjoyed ourselves and would definitely want to visit Sentosa Island
again in the future. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Before I end this post I'd just like to add: though I’ve visited Singapore many
times, I have never visited <a href="http://www.marinabaysands.com/shopping.html">Marina Bay Sands</a>. We went to visit the mall this
time around and I am absolutely in love with this place. The brands are a bit
expensive for me but the detailing and finishing for the building was really impressive.
The place was spacious and more importantly had FREE WIFI! Lol…</div>
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<br /></div>
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Till next time!</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-39297268283880624082015-02-22T18:09:00.003-08:002015-02-22T18:12:57.282-08:00It's Monday What Are You Reading This Week?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnL4urvpVzaid0HZVsFcFgSzfvCT1pz_8pQCjkZ4-i5zDsTy71QAzCh_6s5klOvL1nLnBHy1yWf-xa-y2B1zFcL5mSJKR5XKAuiIuw4BdXGcfk737noemJzJI8T3KSxdFQKLMd_oyz0EQ/s1600/Its+Monday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnL4urvpVzaid0HZVsFcFgSzfvCT1pz_8pQCjkZ4-i5zDsTy71QAzCh_6s5klOvL1nLnBHy1yWf-xa-y2B1zFcL5mSJKR5XKAuiIuw4BdXGcfk737noemJzJI8T3KSxdFQKLMd_oyz0EQ/s1600/Its+Monday.jpg" /></a></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><a href="http://bookjourney.net/2015/02/22/its-monday-what-are-you-reading-275/">It’s Monday What Are You Reading This Week</a> is a weekly meme hosted by
Sheila from <a href="http://bookjourney.net/">Book Journey</a>. We use this meme to share what we have read in the
past week and what our plans are for the upcoming week.</i><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It was a four-day weekend last week for us in Malaysia to
celebrate Chinese New Year. Hubs and I took the opportunity to take the kids on a quick
beach holiday in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuantan">Kuantan</a>. You’d think I would have managed to sneak in a couple
of pages in between but seriously I was occupied trying to make sure the kids
were ok at the pool or trying to get their ass out of the pool which requires
150% of my time and energy especially when your kids are below 4 years old. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Ok enough about my holiday, last week I finished reading Going Gray by Brian
Spangler. You can read my thoughts on the book <a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/02/going-gray-gray-series-book-1.html">here</a>. I intended to listen to Curious George
Rides a Bike with the kids but I think maybe the audiobook is too long a
duration for them. They would listen to it for the first 2 minutes
and then suddenly they’ll lose interest and request for their favorite audiobook
<a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/2015/02/audiobook-jack-and-beanstalk.html">Jack and the Beanstalk</a> instead. We did listen to The Gruffalo on our drive back
home from the resort and the kids and I quite enjoyed it.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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This week, I’m reading The Rosie Project by <a href="http://graemesimsion.com/">Graeme Simsion</a>.
I’m just a couple of pages in and I’m liking it so far. I also started
listening to The Walk by <a href="http://www.richardpaulevans.com/books/the-walk/">Richard Paul Evans</a> this morning on my drive to work.
This audiobook was kinda an impulse purchase. It seemed to have great reviews
both on <a href="http://www.audible.com/pd/Fiction/The-Walk-Audiobook/B003D8WGQW/ref=a_search_c4_1_1_srTtl?qid=1424618098&sr=1-1">Audible</a> as well as <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7187395-the-walk">Goodreads</a> plus its only a 4 hour listen. So that’s my reading list this week.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-DPHDHX9dcEr2ZF4_BzNwesFZdTW3KTBfZrUzz8wr-_qcKXR0wS6nvo4Ci4W2U33qU8sLXkuo6vP-cyLLJu_7oZSL8OB3BbNkHIV8yXaT62YXu4iGCffEUYahb0JlNXhwM357SkVqaWU/s1600/20150222+Its+Monday-natasha.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-DPHDHX9dcEr2ZF4_BzNwesFZdTW3KTBfZrUzz8wr-_qcKXR0wS6nvo4Ci4W2U33qU8sLXkuo6vP-cyLLJu_7oZSL8OB3BbNkHIV8yXaT62YXu4iGCffEUYahb0JlNXhwM357SkVqaWU/s1600/20150222+Its+Monday-natasha.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Anyway, I’m back at work today after a four-day weekend and
as you can imagine I literally had to drag myself out of bed for work this
morning. I’ll be having a really busy time at work from now right up till June.
It’s like that every year. So I do hope that I’ll be able to keep up with my
reading and blogging despite my busy schedule. In the meantime, happy reading
everyone and do share whats on your reading list this week!</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-68278330849800376032015-02-17T22:36:00.000-08:002015-02-18T02:22:28.556-08:00Going Gray (Gray Series Book 1)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrh17SyhJC1Bzfw1RRFyFJXYqs9mFkU6AcIw_C0z4PAIY8TBGQV-WHnnXpnk5gCm6_0kUvSYjtyCTq-sIp9xuxVGZMZsp6bNv3Tk9s1ReyHCvnZd5aJNub2Wly7ZOoSzqk1h__mpWZjVo/s1600/Going+Gray.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrh17SyhJC1Bzfw1RRFyFJXYqs9mFkU6AcIw_C0z4PAIY8TBGQV-WHnnXpnk5gCm6_0kUvSYjtyCTq-sIp9xuxVGZMZsp6bNv3Tk9s1ReyHCvnZd5aJNub2Wly7ZOoSzqk1h__mpWZjVo/s1600/Going+Gray.jpg" height="320" width="213"></a></div>
<br>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Written
by: <a href="http://www.writtenbybrian.com/#writing">Brian Spangler</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Pages: 285
pages<o:p></o:p></div>
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Format:
EBook<o:p></o:p></div>
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Genre:
Apocalypse, Science Fiction<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<i>Going Gray is a 285 page novel, and is Book
1 of the Gray Series.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<i>CENTURIES BEFORE GRAY SKIES...<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br></div>
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<i>When Emily heard the first scream, she
became concerned.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>When she heard the second scream, she grew
scared.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>When she heard the third scream, she was
struck with terror.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>But it was what Emily could not hear that
frightened her the most.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br></div>
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<i>Emily wakes to find that her world has
plummeted into darkness--the clouds have spilled out of the sky and taken the
sun.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br></div>
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<i>And there is more to the mysterious fog--the
mist is poison, killing everything in its path. Emily's home is no match for
the caustic fog, and her family is suddenly on the run for safety.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br></div>
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<i>But when she learns that the machines built
to save the world could be the cause of the accident, Emily turns to her
father, the original architect, with the hope that they can stop the
environmental catastrophe.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br></div>
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My thoughts:
<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Going Gray
is a gripping story that kept me at the edge of my seat from pretty much the first page. The book starts off with a bang and was an intriguing read until
the last few pages. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
The ending
however felt abrupt and there was not much story on how Emily and the group
survived. I really did want to read more about what happened to Emily, Justin
and Peter and how they built their life to survive the apocalypse. It would
have been great if it was elaborated a bit more.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
But anyway,
the ending left me with a few unanswered questions: Why did the skies fall? What is the purpose of the machine? I suppose this book really
focusses on how the apocalypse begins and sets the pace for the next book in
the series, which I look forward to reading. So much so that I bought the <a href="http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Gray-Omnibus/book-sbKsDSuMCUaY9a2Pkf57FQ/page1.html?s=cwain300b0uE7kpi-V4gng&r=2">Gray Omnibus</a>
version that has all four books from the series on my Kobo yesterday. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Going Gray
is a quick read seeing that it is only 285 pages in total. Storyline was
captivating making it an easier read. I gave this book a 4 over 5 on <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3468419-natasha-musa">Goodreads</a>.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-90445644906740984742015-02-17T03:21:00.003-08:002015-02-17T03:32:12.713-08:00We Were Liars<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia_vQZZAJRjUCUEuqe6GUSj7yfgD2aiKaLvaESggGI3m6QW7U3ezZ48LHofnzwL39DqteVH6yPxqmHocdWaY_yo4JaHo_TCG9gylddp81GIOXruCXrCf8yIXFGsHlTtLP8JKIMWozo8AI/s1600/we-were-liars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia_vQZZAJRjUCUEuqe6GUSj7yfgD2aiKaLvaESggGI3m6QW7U3ezZ48LHofnzwL39DqteVH6yPxqmHocdWaY_yo4JaHo_TCG9gylddp81GIOXruCXrCf8yIXFGsHlTtLP8JKIMWozo8AI/s1600/we-were-liars.jpg" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Written
by: <a href="http://www.emilylockhart.com/">E. Lockhart</a></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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Pages: 240 pages<o:p></o:p></div>
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Format: E-Book<o:p></o:p></div>
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Genre: Young Adult, Mysteries and Thrillers<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>A beautiful
and distinguished family.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>A private
island.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>A brilliant,
damaged girl; a passionate, political boy.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>A group of
four friends—the Liars—whose friendship turns destructive.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>A
revolution. An accident. A secret.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>Lies upon
lies.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>True love.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>The truth.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<i>We Were
Liars is a modern, sophisticated suspense novel from New York Times bestselling
author, National Book Award finalist, and Printz Award honoree E. Lockhart. <o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>Read it.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<i>And if
anyone asks you how it ends, just LIE.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
My thoughts<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
We Were
Liars is a story of Cady who comes from a family that is rich with ‘old’ money.
Cady spends every summer on a private island with her cousins. The summer of
her fifteenth year, a terrible event occurs which left Cady suffering from a
severe memory loss and constant migraines. She returns to the island two years
later and slowly the memory of the tragic event returns in scattered memories.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Can I just
lie and say I didn’t like it? Ok. Truth: I didn’t like all of it but I liked
the ending. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
The writing style was not something that I’m used to and it was
sometimes annoying to read. There were parts where fairy tales were used to
narrate the story. Truth, I skipped those parts mostly. I’ve read reviews of people
actually appreciating Lockhart’s style of writing but unfortunately, I can’t
appreciate it. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Despite the
writing style, the storyline was still engaging. Cady is an unreliable narrator.
Her memories are scattered and revealed in bits and pieces but just at the
right time and the right doses to keep you wondering and wanting to know what
happened to her that summer fifteenth. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
What I did absolutely
love was the plot twist at the end of the book. I. Did. Not. See. That. Coming.
<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
I finished
reading We Were Liars a couple of days ago and honestly the thing I remember
the most is the twist and not much else from the book.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
I gave this
book a 5 over 5 in <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3468419-natasha-musa">Goodreads</a> for the memorable plot twist. </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-6234017407107820352015-02-13T05:23:00.000-08:002015-02-13T08:40:26.292-08:00Lego Star Wars Book Collection: A New Hope and the Empire Strikes Back<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwp1OXkUo4LdhEYNDGCSJFQmNk1-poEuzhW2i-0W4GwqH4gaMSoJUymq8mmrZ5Fo22atbYWoABE-GlnGzdU_SH9HLF14iNau-y7Iwp9naxR8XZkCZdL8IPRFMRjU4-nxsrER75wptjlh8/s1600/Lego+Star+Wars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwp1OXkUo4LdhEYNDGCSJFQmNk1-poEuzhW2i-0W4GwqH4gaMSoJUymq8mmrZ5Fo22atbYWoABE-GlnGzdU_SH9HLF14iNau-y7Iwp9naxR8XZkCZdL8IPRFMRjU4-nxsrER75wptjlh8/s1600/Lego+Star+Wars.jpg" height="240" width="320"></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Written by: Emma Grange</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Pages: 32<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Format:
Paperback<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Genre:
Children’s Book<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Reading
Level: 5-7 years<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<i><a href="http://www.dk.com/us/">DK Readers</a>
is a multi-level reading program guaranteed to capture children's interest
while developing their reading skills and general knowledge. With nine new
exciting titles to choose from this season, kid's ages 4-9 will find the
perfect book at their appropriate reading level to help with school projects or
independent reading.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<i><b>A New Hope:</b><o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<i>DK Readers:
<a href="http://www.dk.com/us/9781465420268-dk-readers-l1-lego-star-wars-a-new-hope/">LEGO® Star Wars®: A New Hope</a> is the exciting story of the iconic Star Wars:
Episode IV movie, retold for young readers with their favorite LEGO® Star Wars®
minifigures and sets. This Level 1 Reader follows our heroes as they attempt to
rescue rebel leader Princess Leia from the evil empire.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<i><b>The Empire
Strikes Back:</b><o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<i>Follow the
adventures of the rebels as they fight against the Galactic Empire-all in LEGO®
form, with DK Readers: <a href="http://www.dk.com/us/9781465420282-dk-readers-l2-lego-star-wars-empire-strikes-back/">LEGO® Star Wars®: The Empire Strikes Back</a>. Clear,
informative text helps beginner readers to read on their own in this all-new
Level 2 Star Wars Reader from DK.</i><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
My thoughts:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkrJT0OxUtFHNbVfK35vqaSOm9rB0bcRWp-DgGP38tIJX8t-gO3wAcCbe_qhqnl8zay70C1dCV52HUJAl_MiV6ECHVoDfKTYqgy1rUH-ZZ94sg02wL48aL8i_dZ0wF8RClaCB70Z4lgXA/s1600/SW.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkrJT0OxUtFHNbVfK35vqaSOm9rB0bcRWp-DgGP38tIJX8t-gO3wAcCbe_qhqnl8zay70C1dCV52HUJAl_MiV6ECHVoDfKTYqgy1rUH-ZZ94sg02wL48aL8i_dZ0wF8RClaCB70Z4lgXA/s1600/SW.jpg" height="240" width="320"></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
I’m a big
Star Wars fan and when I saw this box set on the shelf of my local bookstore, I
just couldn’t resist getting myself one. The box has a picture of a storm
trooper in front. Inside the box set, there are 4 books; one copy of A New Hope
and one copy of The Empire Strikes Back plus two activity/sticker books.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
My kids are
into the Star Wars Rebel cartoon so when they saw me come back with this box
set, they attacked it and tore it open. I think my kids enjoyed the sticker
books more than the actual story books. The sticker book was really a fun
activity to do with the kids and I also honestly think my husband had more fun with
the sticker book than the kids. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
As for the books,
well I’m quite surprised that the author managed to capture the essence of the
storyline in less than 30+ pages for each book. The Lego mini figurines were
used quite well and flowed with how the author wrote the story. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Obviously, I
had more fun reading the books than my kids did because they are below the intended
reading level. It really is a cute book and a fun 10 minute read. A definite must
have for the Star Wars buff parent who want to introduce their young kids to the Star Wars series.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
I gave both
these books a 5 over 5 on <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3468419-natasha-musa">Goodreads</a>. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-75999467148338580862015-02-12T02:03:00.000-08:002015-02-12T02:30:17.248-08:00February Blog Improvements: Part 2<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaOF5gaSyX26xqFoQE2jc8ahWe2BD33T9D5MdnCY09Prf3JTThrx33G8y-4ijbPIKJ2WFwcWLNzrECzLkAp8GioneDY7ihtn1AKbfzHdOfhr0PTBUPp7lTEZaNP7kOXYo9EX9fvfrUssQ/s1600/Blog+Improvements.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaOF5gaSyX26xqFoQE2jc8ahWe2BD33T9D5MdnCY09Prf3JTThrx33G8y-4ijbPIKJ2WFwcWLNzrECzLkAp8GioneDY7ihtn1AKbfzHdOfhr0PTBUPp7lTEZaNP7kOXYo9EX9fvfrUssQ/s1600/Blog+Improvements.jpg" height="110" width="320" /></a></div>
I learned a painful lesson last week: Always back-up your
blog so that if you are not happy with any amendments made you can restore your
previous blog settings.<br />
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I have had the intention to re-organize my blog labels for
quite a while now. I did some research and found a couple of sites that
provided step by step guides on how I can rename labels in bulk on Blogger. The guide
provided by the sites seemed pretty simple but yet I managed to screw it up somehow.
Sigh. Only I can screw up such a simple process. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
While I was trying to re-name my blog posts labels in bulk, I
accidentally deleted about 90% of my posts from 2011 and a couple of my posts
from January this year. Anyway, for fear of losing more posts, I decided to re-label
each posts ONE BY ONE! It’s a good thing that I am not a consistent blogger and
have less than 250 posts in total. Even then it took me a whole three hours to get
it done. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So re-organize labels – DONE! <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Other blog improvements: <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’ve added two other widgets on the widgets column:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<ol>
<li><span style="text-indent: -18pt;">Search widget</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -18pt;">Popular posts widget</span></li>
</ol>
Those were pretty simple to do since Blogger already has the
widgets ready so all you needed to do was click to install them.<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Ok am gonna lay off working on the blog for the rest of
February.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Next month, I’m gonna learn how to install a contact page on
the blog and also how to install a progress bar for my 2015 Reading Challenges
page. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-45574709291524981472015-02-10T17:54:00.001-08:002015-02-10T17:54:59.651-08:00Usborne Very First Reading: Book 1 - Pirate Pat<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDEf8OfjqC7Lh4pv05X5hJj2COGftiJwwoQGLmkOcnWG_o4CcrKuelLX5JIvhvBkflgrEyXvJGenMoLDUMahHJEAbDIlhY66oZKMAQkWs7g11qzmST___jDaNZlkMSqUgF30iE1JnTzbg/s1600/Pirate+Pat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDEf8OfjqC7Lh4pv05X5hJj2COGftiJwwoQGLmkOcnWG_o4CcrKuelLX5JIvhvBkflgrEyXvJGenMoLDUMahHJEAbDIlhY66oZKMAQkWs7g11qzmST___jDaNZlkMSqUgF30iE1JnTzbg/s1600/Pirate+Pat.jpg" height="320" width="214" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Written by:
<a href="http://www.jacketflap.com/mairi-mackinnon/100454">Mairi MacKinnon</a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Illustrated
by: Mike and Carl Gordon<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Pages: 32 pages<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Format: Hard
cover<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Genre: Children’s
Book<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Reading
Level: 3 – 5 years old </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
</div>
<ul>
<li><i>An exciting
story to inspire very beginner readers.</i></li>
<li><i>Based on the
principles of synthetic phonics, supports the "Letters and Sounds"
programme used in thousands of UK primary schools.</i></li>
<li><i>Adult and
child take turns to read, and the child’s text uses only the letters s a t p i
n m d.</i></li>
<li><i>Fun puzzles
test understanding, and provide opportunities for discussion and further
reading practice.</i></li>
</ul>
<div>
<br /></div>
My thoughts:<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I have a two
and a four year old boy who is more interested with the iPad and watching
cartoons on TV than reading. I wanted the kids to have more exposure to reading actual
books rather than the storybook apps that they go through on our gadgets. So I did
some research and found the Usborne Very First Reading Series and figured I’d
give it a try with my boys.<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
How this
book works is that the parent reads one part and the kids read another. The
process is repeated until the end of the story.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Both my boys
can’t read yet but what I do is I place my finger on each letter I am reading
so that hopefully they can recognize some of the words if we continue doing
this often enough. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
My boys are
quite into Pirates so they did like this book a lot. The simple rhyming used to
tell the story makes it interesting to read together with the boys. My two year
old especially loves it when I read this to him. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Overall we
quite enjoyed reading about Pirate Pat. I’ve only
purchased this book last Friday and we’ve read it about three times together
over the past few days. That’s a good sign. Overall I give this book a 5/5 on
Goodreads.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Oh before I forget, the book also has puzzles that you can use as activities with the kids. My kids are not so interested in them yet but I'm sure they will once they get a hang of how it works. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
This week I’m
aiming to read the second book in the series titled, The Dressing-Up Box. I
have a feeling my boys won’t like reading about dressing up so much as they do reading
about pirates but I’m gonna give this a go anyway. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-12186036014481646332015-02-10T17:49:00.000-08:002015-02-10T17:49:46.093-08:00Time Flies<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>* Note: This post actually appeared in early January 2015. Due to a technical error the original post was accidentally removed. I am reposting it again here.</i><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
I don’t know why but
yesterday I decided to re-visit this blog. My last post on this blog was in
<a href="http://ulatbukuinthecity.blogspot.com/search?updated-min=2011-01-01T00:00:00-08:00&updated-max=2012-01-01T00:00:00-08:00&max-results=1">2011</a>… Gosh! 2011… That’s like four years ago!<br />
<br />
Then I got to
thinking, what the hell did I do in the past four years, where have I been,
what have done, why didn’t I continue blogging.<br />
<br />
If you’re reading
this, please bear with me cause I’m really writing this for my own benefit.<br />
<br />
So let’s start with
2010 and 2011 – a combination of a really bad and really good year for me:</div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst">
<ul>
<li>I
lost my job.</li>
<li>I
got pregnant. Hurrah!</li>
<li>Managed
to get a great job in a cool agency while I was pregnant.</li>
<li>Then
I was diagnosed with molar pregnancy and
was in and out of so many hospitals seeing so many doctors that I literally
lost count of the number of specialist I met and hospitals I went to.</li>
<li>I
gave birth to my eldest baby boy. Blessing.</li>
<li>I
had post pregnancy problems and had to go for emergency surgery two weeks after
I gave birth. Post-surgery, my wound stitching opened up and I was going around
with an open wound for two months and had to go to the hospital EVERYDAY to get
the wound cleaned up by the doctor.</li>
<li>I
was also diagnosed with a GTD and had to take another two months off from work
to go through mild chemotherapy.</li>
<li>After
two months the doctors said they’ve cured me but just in case I shouldn’t plan
for a baby for at least a year to ensure that my body was stable.</li>
</ul>
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
Moving on to 2012 – generally
an okay year but I was struggling with work and motherhood quite badly.</div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst">
<ul>
<li>Because
I missed out a lot at work, I had a lot of catching up to do.</li>
<li>I
was also struggling as a new mom juggling with my full time job.</li>
<li>Accidents
happen but this was a good accident, I got pregnant with my second child. Since
I was still under observation for my GTD, I had to go in and out of the hospital
for check-ups quite often.</li>
<li>I
gave birth to my second son at the end of 2012 without any incidents and I was
also officially cleared from my GTD diagnosis.</li>
</ul>
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
2013 and 2014 –
Honestly I don’t know what happened in 2013 and 2014. I think I was just moving
like a robot: wake up, get kids ready, send them to babysitter, work, pick the
kids up, come back home, cook, clean, spend quality time with the family, sleep
and repeat the process again the next day for the next two years...LOL.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’ll openly admit
that I am not a super mummy and I think after almost four years of being a mom,
I’m just only getting the hand of handling multiple responsibilities. Believe
me it’s still a struggle but I’m coping with the challenges at work and at home
much better than when I first became a mom.<br />
<br />
My kids are a bit bigger now and a
bit more independent so I have a little bit of time to spare for myself. They
are truly a blessing despite the problems that I went through. <o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So, I may not have
achieved much or blogged much in the past four years but I am a proud mom of
two boys now. <o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Last year I was able
to pick up my reading habit more aggressively (thank you audible) and I also
dabbled with blogging on another site; Family, Work & Play. The reading bit
is coming along well but the blogging bit is neither here nor there. <o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I miss blogging at
Ulat Buku in the City. Though I no longer live in the heart of the city as I
did when I first started this blog, I feel that I can still relate to this blog
site better than my new one. Maybe I’ll start blogging actively again on this
blog, maybe. I don’t want to say I’ll do something and end up not doing it. My
life is very much focused on family, work and me-time whenever I can slot this
in. Blogging is not top priority but it’ll be nice to reconnect with the
friends I’ve made through this blog.<br />
<br />
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Anyway, if you’ve
read this post till the end, I’m sorry for the random rambling. <o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Point is- I miss
blogging. I miss connecting with other book readers around the world. I hope I
will find time to pick up blogging aggressively just like how I pick up the
habit of reading again. <o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
By the way, this is
me now, a happy mommy.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2lwflZ7S_Jb2YVUgs394f7o-vOPYyfGUnb_Ou2de8k4U7OHc52obNEu-ULUaWQHUFvGIHfO4VDm4yNXPQS16tY1mjg_vcMCruqYVvkURf_E4DLg_1a3v_scQWzfzmJ1WU9MHK_nRf0wI/s1600/IMG_2370.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2lwflZ7S_Jb2YVUgs394f7o-vOPYyfGUnb_Ou2de8k4U7OHc52obNEu-ULUaWQHUFvGIHfO4VDm4yNXPQS16tY1mjg_vcMCruqYVvkURf_E4DLg_1a3v_scQWzfzmJ1WU9MHK_nRf0wI/s1600/IMG_2370.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Till next time, <o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-91922046173294108702015-02-09T18:17:00.000-08:002015-02-09T18:25:33.107-08:00The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Interrupted Tale - Book 4<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixJFe_NkrS8MjOaoo53-rke_1Dytsvc6AH_1iwZK1BaLTCSgX77NtyXOhSbbs9RfxKINy6ChKUZ2veycV04EOpVcY-GikH7JxocwHnL_c1AA6TeC73fwWIwVNV5BX4aqG4Dlybeb3ixSQ/s1600/The+Interrupted+Tale.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixJFe_NkrS8MjOaoo53-rke_1Dytsvc6AH_1iwZK1BaLTCSgX77NtyXOhSbbs9RfxKINy6ChKUZ2veycV04EOpVcY-GikH7JxocwHnL_c1AA6TeC73fwWIwVNV5BX4aqG4Dlybeb3ixSQ/s1600/The+Interrupted+Tale.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
Written by:
<a href="http://maryrosewood.com/">Maryrose Wood</a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Narrated by:
<a href="http://www.audible.com/search/ref=a_pd_Kids_T_c2_1_narr?searchNarrator=Katherine+Kellgren">Katherine Kellgren</a><o:p></o:p></div>
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Length: 8
hrs and 19 mins <o:p></o:p></div>
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Format: Unabridged
Audiobook<o:p></o:p></div>
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Reading
Level : Ages 8-10<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Of especially naughty children it is
sometimes said, "They must have been raised by wolves."<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>The Incorrigible children actually were.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Turning 16 is a bittersweet occasion for
Miss Penelope Lumley: Her parents remain disappointingly absent, and her
perfectly nice young playwright friend, Simon Harley-Dickinson, has not been
heard from since he went to visit his ailing great-uncle Pudge in the old
sailors' home in Brighton.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Luckily, an invitation to speak at the
annual Celebrate Alumnae Knowledge Exposition (or CAKE) at the Swanburne
Academy for Poor Bright Females provides just the diversion Penelope needs.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Optoomuchstic as ever, Penelope hopes to
give her CAKE talk, see some old friends, and show off the Incorrigible
children to Miss Mortimer, but instead she finds her beloved school in an
uproar. And when Penelope is asked by the Swanburne Academy board of trustees
to demonstrate the academic progress of her three wolfish students so the board
can judge the true worth of a Swanburne education, the future of her alma mater
- and of her job as governess to the Incorrigibles - hangs in the balance.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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My thoughts:
<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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I started
listening to this series quite some time back. It really is a great book. There
is always excitement, drama and mystery. The main characters are really
lovable. If you are listening to the audiobook version, better. The narrator is
super excellent in bringing the characters come to life. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
As much as I
loved this series though, I was hoping that the mysterious plot would come to
an end in book 4. At this stage I just want the suspense to be over and the
plot revealed completely. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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I didn’t realize
until I visited the <a href="http://maryrosewood.com/">authors website</a> recently that this is a six part series. SIX!
Might be a little too much and make the storyline too drawn out. Nevertheless, I still love this
series and am looking forward to read the fifth book when it’s
out. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-MY; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Apparently book five, The Unmapped Sea will be released
sometime in April this year. I do hope that the author will be able to keep up
the excitement and suspense in the next book so that it doesn’t become a draggy
read leading to book six. </span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-53883830083690179152015-02-09T02:26:00.001-08:002015-02-09T20:07:58.065-08:00I am now a digital bookworm<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw-Lj-ZvAle1aCk9F47d16KPfRGT6_tzgWzakw5paoZkto6Grg0B6gakLsV2StHe8bjqh84bXPfRO_Ix7Kb85uBSxO-DOYu1YZHB12DBg5dIbU77Sf4HJkooX0aNOA2M53t-zL2yQdVpw/s1600/18153489_m.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw-Lj-ZvAle1aCk9F47d16KPfRGT6_tzgWzakw5paoZkto6Grg0B6gakLsV2StHe8bjqh84bXPfRO_Ix7Kb85uBSxO-DOYu1YZHB12DBg5dIbU77Sf4HJkooX0aNOA2M53t-zL2yQdVpw/s1600/18153489_m.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-MY"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When I first became a mom, it was really,
really tough for me to keep up with my reading habit. My first year as a new mother,
I only managed to read two books for the whole year. I tried reading often but
I was always too tired to finish a book. At that point of time I was already a
member of <a href="http://www.audible.com/">Audible,</a> Amazon’s audiobook store. I was purchasing books monthly on
audible but never really started listening to them because I wasn’t used to “listening”
to a book.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-MY"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-MY">About two year ago, I moved in to stay with
my mum and dad for a while and they live really far out from my workplace. It
took me about half an hour to get to work … on a good day. On a bad day it can
be between 40 minutes to an hour to commute to work in my car. I got sick of
listening to the local radio station (our morning shows really suck by the way).
So one day I decided to download the <a href="https://www.audible.com/mt/Apps">audible app</a> on my iPhone together with all
my audiobooks and just started listening to my first audiobook on one of my
long drives to work. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-MY"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-MY">The first book I really listened to from
Audible was <a href="http://www.audible.com/pd/Fiction/The-Help-Audiobook/B002UZKYDQ/ref=a_search_c4_1_1_srTtl?qid=1423461536&sr=1-1">The Help by Kathryn Stockett</a>. Really good choice for a first
audiobook, the listening experience was great and I have been hooked on
audiobooks since then. Thanks to audiobooks, I’ve managed to continue ‘reading’
despite my hectic schedule at home and at work. In fact on days that I am
really lazy to read to the kids, we listen to audiobooks together instead… LOL. That’s me making good use of technology.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-MY"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-MY">I’ve since moved out of my mum and dad’s
home, my commute to work is very much shorter now but I still listen to
audiobooks whenever I’m in the car. I absolutely love the experience. I plug my
earphones to listen to my audiobook whenever I can; when I go grocery shopping,
manicure sessions or anything that I do that doesn’t require serious focus or
communicating with others. Last year I went through about 15 audiobooks in
total and I am hoping to listen to more this year. I absolutely love listening
to audiobooks and the technology has helped me ‘read’ whenever and wherever I
can. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-MY"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhODhbRHbC-r8C2mNPjc0Z3p7OmLw42gGrkIb7GlVP_7M5kW25WCtKcBl_tmMoEpnPUQwFRl-P3hlqYpwSvLTyKifeKzzhczB-jDbaiMkrJTPTG3VaGh6QR2OJmscXzCt8KI-cpPchTAXQ/s1600/IMG_2782.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhODhbRHbC-r8C2mNPjc0Z3p7OmLw42gGrkIb7GlVP_7M5kW25WCtKcBl_tmMoEpnPUQwFRl-P3hlqYpwSvLTyKifeKzzhczB-jDbaiMkrJTPTG3VaGh6QR2OJmscXzCt8KI-cpPchTAXQ/s1600/IMG_2782.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-MY">I also invested in my first e-reader about a year back. <a href="http://www.kobo.com/devices#ereaders">Kobo</a> e-readers are not available here in Malaysia or at least I
couldn’t find a reliable source to purchase from. Fortunately for me, I managed to trouble a friend to buy it for me in Australia. I’ll
explain my choice of a Kobo over a Kindle at another time; this topic deserves
its own post. Again, it took a while for me to get used to reading on an e-reader. Transitioning from
a traditional book to an e-reader took me about 6 months. The first time I held
my Kobo and tried reading from it, I actually missed the weight, feel and smell
of an actual book. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-MY"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-MY">Late last year, during a long holiday I
decided to start reading off my Kobo. I’ve since read five books and am now on
my sixth book purchased from Kobo. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-MY"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-MY">I am now so in love with my Kobo that I
don’t leave home without it. It’s light and small enough to carry around in my
handbag. At night if I want to continue reading, I don’t have to leave the
lights on and disrupt my husband; who really can sleep through anything to be
honest, lights on, off, loud sounds, an earthquake even probably… so the
function isn’t that important to me but it’s quite nice to have. I can read
anywhere I want and whenever I want; in between meetings, lunchtime, when I’m
waiting for people. I just whip out my Kobo and start reading. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-MY"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-MY">But… the coolest thing about going digital
is that I have over 500 books with me ALL THE TIME; a combo of my list of
audiobook and e-books in my Kobo and Audible library. That’s seriously cool,
no? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-MY"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-MY">I still buy books of course, but not as
often as I use to. The only thing that I need to research on a bit is whether I
can still get tax refund from audible and kobo bookstore purchases in Malaysia.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-MY">Anyway, I’m proud to say that I’ve finally
gone digital and I’m loving it!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-33541194331018465842015-02-08T18:37:00.000-08:002015-02-08T18:37:56.883-08:00It's Monday What Are You Reading This Week?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtnGc3Fs8qwAODmHno72qrf1KNvQaRkNloRP1rBJ1XpBFAHrnJeXPotb8k2ERwt8UOYvNBoH5CFOOFKcM2lBhYb4OE29ElYjC2XnbVulKH8e-cAYxQtndw7aPtuzcE0HoJ4Zt-9KCJBbc/s1600/Its+Monday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtnGc3Fs8qwAODmHno72qrf1KNvQaRkNloRP1rBJ1XpBFAHrnJeXPotb8k2ERwt8UOYvNBoH5CFOOFKcM2lBhYb4OE29ElYjC2XnbVulKH8e-cAYxQtndw7aPtuzcE0HoJ4Zt-9KCJBbc/s1600/Its+Monday.jpg" /></a></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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<i><a href="http://bookjourney.net/2015/02/08/its-monday-what-are-you-reading-273/">It's Monday What Are You Reading</a> is a weekly meme hosted by
Sheila from <a href="http://bookjourney.net/">Book Journey</a>. We use this meme to share what we have read in the
past week and what our plans are for the upcoming week.</i><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Last week’s reads: <o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjphS2srFy68yFfr7NApd4aryvZt9kXFCWgEjfEBC0O9yqkGBTo40hgf-XEWI_o0iH9eykfK6ig-wuWVlmGCdJlH5EURMRUJssuC9OhPHL6cGnQwHEsOopGdum0Bbn-voG7IyKyhfqXKtY/s1600/Last+Weeks+Read.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjphS2srFy68yFfr7NApd4aryvZt9kXFCWgEjfEBC0O9yqkGBTo40hgf-XEWI_o0iH9eykfK6ig-wuWVlmGCdJlH5EURMRUJssuC9OhPHL6cGnQwHEsOopGdum0Bbn-voG7IyKyhfqXKtY/s1600/Last+Weeks+Read.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
I’ve been pretty busy at work the last week but still managed
to catch up on my reading and some reading with the kids. I finished the 4<sup>th</sup>
book of the <a href="http://www.audible.com/pd/Kids/The-Interrupted-Tale-Audiobook/B00GFSBZDW/ref=a_search_c4_1_3_srTtl?qid=1423448504&sr=1-3">Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place Series: The Interrupted Tale</a> on audiobook.
As for reading with the kids, this week we read <a href="http://www.usborne.com/catalogue/catalogue.aspx?area=vfr&subcat=vfr&id=4197">Pirate Pat</a>, an Usborne
publication as well as a Lego Star Wars book that basically has a shorter,
children’s version of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/DK-Readers-L1-LEGO-Star/dp/1465420274/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1423448671&sr=8-1&keywords=lego+star+wars+a+new+hope+paperback">A New Hope</a> and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/DK-Readers-L2-Empire-Strikes/dp/1465420290/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1423448778&sr=8-2&keywords=lego+star+wars+a+new+hope+paperback">The Empire Strikes Back</a> that can be read
under five minutes. I think I enjoyed reading the Lego Star Wars book more than
the kids did to be honest.</div>
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</div>
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<br /></div>
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This week’s reads:</div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSW7sJJqVMXHRq9IQRGOiMx8Vb3moVLMQmbMReis2dEZB09RNO_jopQsPaYkRJL5Uvu2KqAiBlwTMfFQwZ11R9hKGlSC7LhGCDIpgX0OOc8Ukhu1_AbTCE6NMYrwHxwm6dsroUb7De7Ic/s1600/Presentation1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSW7sJJqVMXHRq9IQRGOiMx8Vb3moVLMQmbMReis2dEZB09RNO_jopQsPaYkRJL5Uvu2KqAiBlwTMfFQwZ11R9hKGlSC7LhGCDIpgX0OOc8Ukhu1_AbTCE6NMYrwHxwm6dsroUb7De7Ic/s1600/Presentation1.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<br /></div>
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I started reading <a href="http://www.amazon.com/We-Were-Liars-E-Lockhart/dp/038574126X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1423448855&sr=8-1&keywords=we+were+liars">We Were Liars</a> last week and was hoping I would be able to finish it over the weekend but it was quite impossible to since we had a couple of social events that we had to attend. Hopefully, I’ll
be able to finish it off before this weekend. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Yesterday, I also started listening to
<a href="http://www.audible.com/pd/Mysteries-Thrillers/The-Girl-on-the-Train-Audiobook/B00QXW5GYY/ref=a_search_c4_1_1_srTtl?qid=1423448816&sr=1-1">The Girl on the Train</a> by Paula Hawkins. Am only a few pages in so it’s still too
early to tell if I’ll like it or not. As for reading with the kids well, I am
planning to read another Usborne Publication to the kids this week titled <a href="http://www.usborne.com/catalogue/catalogue.aspx?id=4198">The Dressing-Up Box</a> and would like to start listening to <a href="http://www.audible.com/pd/Kids/Curious-George-Rides-a-Bike-Audiobook/B002V5IZKY/ref=a_search_c4_1_1_srTtl?qid=1423448942&sr=1-1">Curious George Rides a Bike</a>
which I've just purchased on Audible for them.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Have a great week ahead and happy reading everyone!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07549274093129621529noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3827781603838203621.post-43421417834188917132015-02-06T03:33:00.001-08:002015-02-08T00:54:55.813-08:00Jack and the Beanstalk<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXmeGQmyIY4Dphx8ZFjgAxwwycEKWNnjAVu_yXFidF0auczKyqihjNoShVJjY-IhBrKJVNAEfS9erAaND_Rpjo7j6QvUqx8ELLORLnwvyWAKuZOMP5SaOX4RSgV6gwCLs7IPkUjLe5JpU/s1600/Jack+and+the+beanstalk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXmeGQmyIY4Dphx8ZFjgAxwwycEKWNnjAVu_yXFidF0auczKyqihjNoShVJjY-IhBrKJVNAEfS9erAaND_Rpjo7j6QvUqx8ELLORLnwvyWAKuZOMP5SaOX4RSgV6gwCLs7IPkUjLe5JpU/s1600/Jack+and+the+beanstalk.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Written by:
<a href="http://www.audible.com/search/ref=a_pd_Kids_J_c2_1_auth?searchAuthor=Richard+Walker">Richard Walker</a>, <a href="http://www.audible.com/search/ref=a_pd_Kids_J_c2_2_auth?searchAuthor=Niamh+Sharkey">Niamh Sharkey</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Narrated by:
<a href="http://www.audible.com/search/ref=a_search_c4_1_1_1_srNarr?searchNarrator=Richard+Hope&qid=1423208162&sr=1-1">Richard Hope</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Length: 12
mins<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Format:
Unabridged Audiobook<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<i>One day,
when they have no food left, Jack's mom sends him to market to sell the cow. On
the way, Jack bumps into a funny little man wearing a big, baggy jacket with
big, baggy pockets. In the pockets lie six bewitched beans, but the funny
little man has lost the instructions for them. Jack's adventure begins when he
swaps Daisy the cow for six magic beans that grow to the land of the clouds.</i><o:p></o:p></div>
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My thoughts:
<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="http://www.audible.com/pd/Kids/Jack-and-the-Beanstalk-Audiobook/B002V8HLK6/ref=a_search_c4_1_1_srTtl?qid=1423208204&sr=1-1">Jack and the Beanstalk</a> is a
classic which most of us have read when we were children and I really wanted
to share this story with my two boys. <o:p></o:p></div>
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To be honest,
I found the music at the beginning and the end a bit annoying. But I suppose I
am not the target audience. My boys love it and danced to the tune whenever we’re
listening to this audiobook. (Not a good thing if you’re listening close to
bedtime!) After a week of listening to it, I kinda got use to the music.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Apart from
the music, the narration for this audiobook is actually really good. It’s quite
animated and my kids paid attention to the audiobook from beginning to end. My 4 year old especially loves the
part where the giant says ‘Fee-fi-fo-fum, I smell the blood of a stinky man’
and now keeps calling everyone a stinky man. Sigh. <o:p></o:p><br />
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This version is slightly different from the ones I used to read as a child but the main storyline is still the same.</div>
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Anyway, I
dare say that this is one of my son’s favourite audiobooks. I just had to post
this video up. Yesterday, my four-year old was trying to tell me and my husband the Jack and the Beanstalk story at bedtime. Well, his version
of the story anyway…<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dy2GMGmcfKRn2fcwcGIK1AeD1LZa9uZSjjEEeFsbbrcaAE7ELOwCMKYS1Xe-4J_q8E4oTbKib5Nt7PlMjkWjA' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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This video only
proves how much he loves listening to Jack and the Beanstalk. </div>
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Definitely
recommended listening for the kiddo’s. I gave this a 5/5 on <a href="http://www.audible.com/pd/Kids/Jack-and-the-Beanstalk-Audiobook/B002V8HLK6/ref=a_search_c4_1_1_srTtl?qid=1423222378&sr=1-1">audible</a>. <o:p></o:p></div>
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