Review: Dear Bully

Dear Bully edited by Megan Kelley Hall and Carrie Jones

Pages: 352

Pub. Date: September 1st, 2011
Rating:

You are not alone.                                           Discover how Lauren Kate transformed the feeling of that one mean girl getting under her skin into her first novel, how Lauren Oliver learned to celebrate ambiguity in her classmates and in herself, and how R.L. Stine turned being the “funny guy” into the best defense against the bullies in his class.

Today’s top authors for teens come together to share their stories about bullying—as silent observers on the sidelines of high school, as victims, and as perpetrators—in a collection at turns moving and self-effacing, but always deeply personal.

First sentence: "I know bullying."

This book was heartbreaking and inspiring. I was bullied in middle school for a short time, but my High School really doesn't have much bullying. Sure there are rumors and stuff, but no one gets taunted and shoved into lockers. I guess I'm lucky that my high school experience wasn't lived in fear. 
Short accounts, little poems, and drawings by 70 authors we know and love made me cry and gasp because I would have never thought they were treated so terribly in their youth. This book is something you should read if you were bullied, were the bully, or even if you've never had this kind of experience.

review:

Each story had their own unique voice and it was like a cold bucket of water was dumped on my head. I've heard stories about bullying, but none of them ever really connected with me. I've probably read more than half of the authors' books and I was affected almost personally reading these stories. Just like in their novels, I felt thrown into the book, like I was living it myself. Each author retold an account of an experience they had with bullying. Some were attacked viscously and used their torture as fuel in life. Others tell of how they didn't stop a bullying they witnessed and live with the guilt of not having done anything. And they confront their bullies and realize they are no longer victims. This book was very moving and made me realize I need to do more to stop bullying.

what this book taught me.....

• 19,000 kids try to commit suicide every year as a result of being bullied
• Never let anyone tell you you are worthless.

Mini Challenge by Ashley Suzanne

There are some awesome mini challenges in Princess Bookie's Contest Craze. This one hosted by Ashley Suzanne is a cover remake challenge. I made a second cover before for Daughter of Smoke and Bones so here it is.

Before: 

After: 

    

Recreate a Cover Contest

I was checking out random blogs yesterday and I came across Princess Bookie. She's holding a wicked contest where you recreate a cover of a 2011 or 2012  YA book. I loved Daughter of Smoke and Bone, but I only thought the cover was ok, so I recreated the cover.

The Original:

Here's mine:

Let me know what you think and I would love it if you voted for me, but only if you think mines the best!

Review: Daughter of Smoke and Bone

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

ARC Pages: 432

Pub. Date: September 27, 2011
Rating:

Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.                                                                                             In a dark and dusty shop, a devil's supply of human teeth  grown dangerously low.                                                                                                       And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherworldly war.                                                                                                                                                         Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real; she's prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands"; she speaks many languages—not all of them human; and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she's about to find out.                                                                                                                                                                                               When one of the strangers—beautiful, haunted Akiva—fixes his fire-colored eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?

First sentence: "Walking to school over the snow-muffled cobbles, Karou had no sinister premonitions about the day."

First of all, how awesome is the title? I mean really : Daughter of Smoke and Bone. The second I saw that, I wanted to read this book partly so I could say when someone asked, "oh yea, I just finished reading Daughter of Smoke and Bone. What about you?" And the other person would say "you know.... just some book." while secretly shoving her copy of Twilight under her bed. Then I read what it was about and I was practically drooling. For some reason the Book Gods took pity on me and allowed me to win an ARC of this book. Thus here is my rant on why you should get up on September 27 at 12:00 am and get a copy of this book.
Laini Taylor has a way with words. The scenery painted on page one completely surrounded me and I could practically feel the cold wind blowing in my face. I was completely sucked me in. I loved it. So inventive and mystical. Daughter of Smoke and Bone had a perfect pace and hit me with witty banter, shocking answers, and tear-jerking moments. There were so many funny moments in the book and I loved all the places (Poison Kitchen), but also had emotional chapters that made me love the characters even more.
And awesome names. Seriously awesome names.

review:

The plot starts off with Karou being playfully "attached" by Kazimir-(her ex-boyfriend who she met at Mustache Bar *ponders self with a handle bar mustache*) and then seeing him naked in her life drawing class (I’ll admit, i giggled...and swooned, but only a bit). Karou is a mysterious girl with blue hair and tattoos of eyes on her palms. She’s an art student in Prague and one of her many sketch books contains a story of a woman-serpent hybrid named Issa, Twiga who has a giraffe's neck, Yasri with the parrot-beak and Brimstone who has ram-horns. Everyone should have paid more attention to her tattoos on each wrist saying “true” and “story”, because she wasn’t lying-they're real and Karou runs errands for Brimstone, a wise dude who sells wishes for teeth and also happened to have raised Karou. Pretty bizare, Chimera raising a human, but the craziest thing is not even that: angels have returned after a long time of being gone and started burning handprints onto the doors of Chimera......Ok I guess it’s all equally crazy. One of these angels (aka Seraphim) is Akiva, who is beautiful beyond words and has a sudden and confusing interest in Karou. Now you’re left with a million and one questions: What the hell is Karou? Why is cold, normally soulless Akiva so attached to Karou? And seriously, what the hell are the teeth for? We eventually learn the answer in this book and get some back story on Karou, which makes it almost feel like two stories in one. There was action and ass kicking, but also love scenes that melted my heart. This book had the perfect balance of everything. And Laini Taylor really knows how to keep you guessing and revealed answers at the perfect pace, but still left me wanting more. Especially since there’s a major cliff-hanger at the end which made me go “oh shit, what did he do? He didnt, no! why? but i love him. he didn’t. he didn’t. he did. NO.

…….Im changing the ending. but damn it, it's perfect how it is. *pouts*

I want to be Karou. She's smart, strong, doesn't let anyone push her around, and throws her hot, asshole ex into a window (by accident, but still). If that's not enough, she has: blue hair, sick tattoos to match and amazing drawing skills. Gimme. Akiva is like a lost little puppy that happens to be otherworldly sexy, but confused and lonely. Can I keep him? pretty please? 

what this book taught me.....

• I want to taze someone once because Zuzana says it’d be fun.
• Revenge can be as simple as an itch
• If I had a gavriel, I would soooo wish for the same thing Karou did.
• What you think is evil could be good and what you think is good could be evil. Kinda throws my world upside down. I think I just gave myself a headache.
• This ones kinda....inappropriate at the end,so I didn't want to make anyone uncomfotable, but if you can handle it...*highlight at your own risk* --> "Don't put anything unnecessary into yourself. No poisons or chemicals. No fumes or smoke or alcohol, no sharp objects, no inessential needles...and no inessential penises, either"(ARC p. 22) - advice from Brimstone and something I will use as a guide in life from now on

*Disclorure: This review is for an ARC of Daughter of Smoke and Bones that I won in a contest*

Really, Another Book Blog?!

Yup thats right. Another book blog has been born! Welcome to What Books Have Taught Me, I'm Lex and this is my Young Adult Book Blog. I love books and decided since my friends get annoyed when I gush over books and ramble, that I would find people who wouldn't mind hearing me talk on and on about books.

Why the mouthful name of What Books Have Taught Me? Well it should be self explanatory, but it's because after each review, I'm going to have a  list of things that book has taught me which I hope will make my blog more memorable and different from the other millions of book blogs out there.

The original name was going to be Things I've learned from Books, but I didn't want to create a blog with a theme that someone else already had, so when I came across a weekly meme with the same name by Donna at Bites, I asked her if it was ok to make a blog with the same name. She didn't say "Don't steal my idea bitch!" or any variety of it, but kindly suggested other names. So after a little brainstorming, What Books Have Taught Me was born and to give credit to the person who allowed this blog to come alive, check out Donna at Bites and her awesome meme Things I've Learned From Books.

Thanks for stopping by and I'm new to all of this so if you have suggestions, tips, advise, or just want to say hi, don't hesitate to email me :)