So far I've read a total of 19 books for June~
Book #1: The Wizard of Oz: The First Five Novels by L. Frank Baum
Oz,
the Great Wizard! The very name of L. Frank Baum's magical character
conjures a world where diminutive munchkins live and work, wicked
witches run riot, and the mighty Oz himself rules over an Emerald
City reached by a yellow brick road. The Wizard of Oz: The First Five
Novels is your passport to this marvelous realm and wonders that have
enchanted readers young and old for more than a century. Lavishly
illustrated by W. W. Denslow and John R. Neill, this volume includes:
The
Wonderful Wizard of Oz
The
Marvelous Land of Oz
Ozma
of Oz
Dorothy
and the Wizard in Oz
The
Road to Oz
The
Wizard of Oz: The First Five Novels is one of Barnes & Noble's
Collectible Editions classics. Each volume features authoritative
texts by the world's greatest authors in an exquisitely designed
bonded-leather binding, with distinctive gilt edging and a
silk-ribbon bookmark. Decorative, durable, and collectible, these
books offer hours of pleasure to readers young and old and are an
indispensable cornerstone for every home library.
I loved it. I absolutely loved it. I gave it 4/5 stars for some of the things Dorothy said (holy cow is she a snotty little bitch sometimes!). I've wanted to read the series for a long time and had promised myself that if I finished and won Camp NaNoWriMo April this year, I'd buy myself the three omnibuses....I did.
Books #2-9: Bleach Vol 1-8 by Tite Kubo
Books #2-9: Bleach Vol 1-8 by Tite Kubo
Hot-tempered
15-year-old Ichigo Kurosaki, the hero of the popular
fantasy-adventure Bleach, has the unsettling ability
to see spirits who are unable to rest in peace. His sixth sense leads
him to Rukia, a Soul Reaper who destroys Hollows (soul-devouring
monsters) and ensures the deceased find repose with the Soul Society.
When she's injured in battle, Rukia transfers her sword and much of
her power to Ichigo, whose spiritual energy makes him a formidable
substitute Soul Reaper. But the orange-haired teenager isn't sure he
wants the job: too many risks and moral dilemmas.
I marked these all under the same set because they're manga and it's actually kind of difficult to do it much of any other way. I have had the first eight volumes of this series for a very long time and I have read them so many times that they are already turning a dark yellow-brown kind of color. I rated it 5/5 stars. I love how absolutely clueless Ichigo actually is to a lot of things. When you read it, you wonder, how did he not see them before. How has he never seen a Hollow before when he can see spiritual beings? How has he never seen a Soul Reaper before?
Books #10-14: Yu-Gi-Oh! Vol 1-5 by Kazuki Takahashi
10th
grader Yugi spent most of his time alone playing games... until he
solved the Millennium Puzzle, a mysterious Egyptian artifact!
Possessed by the puzzle, Yugi becomes Yu-Gi-Oh, the King of Games,
and challenges evildoers to the Shadow Games... weird games with high
stakes and high risks! These graphic novels contain new stories not
seen in the anime, including the origin of Yugi and his friends!
I did the same thing for this series as I did for Bleach above it (and will also do for Fruits Basket when I get to it). It's just much easier to put a manga series as a single entry than as however many volumes. Each one takes all of an hour, usually less, to read. Anybody who plays Duel Monsters, or Yu-Gi-Oh to some, would have heard of this series. I adore both the books and the card game itself, and enjoy both despite the extremely different rule system between the two versions. Yugi appears to be a little person with a very huge heart and even managed to in one move win over both of the boys that were bullying him. He takes the trust and support of his friends above everything else and seeks to 'punish' those who break that trust. It's a very good series of manga for those who want to watch a small high school boy finally gain the friends he's always wanted.
Book #15: The Capture by Katheryn Lasky
Pushed
from his family's nest by his older brother, barn owl Soren is
rescued from certain death on the forest floor by agents from a
mysterious school for orphaned owls, St. Aggie's. With new friend,
clever and scrappy Gylfie, he uncovers is a training camp for the
leader's own nefarious goal.
I have yet to actually figure out where/when this series is set. It appears to be long after man, or the Others, has wiped itself from the face of the earth. Either way, the main creatures in the novel are owls. I have seen the movie that was based on these novels, and my friend had decided to give away her own copies (vol. 4-15) I had to have them. Recently I picked up the first three volumes and read them. In this one, Soren is pitched from his nest. I feel bad for the little owlet because of his lack of flight feathers. He is trapped on the ground and is stolen by a very terrible band of owls that call themselves St. Aegolius's School for Orphaned Owls. I have yet to figure out if they are intentionally doing ill to the young owlets or if they believe that they are doing some good for the owls that have fallen out of their nests or lost their parents.
Book #16: The Journey by Katheryn Lasky
It
began as a dream. A quest for the Great Ga'Hoole Tree, a mythical
place where each night an order of owls rises to perform noble deeds.
There Soren, Gylfie, Twilight, and Digger hope to find inspiration to
fight the evil that dwells in the owl kingdom. The journey is long
and harrowing. When Soren and his friends finally arrive at the Great
Ga'Hoole Tree, they will be tested in ways they never dreamed and
face challenges they never imagined. If they can learn from their
leaders and from one another, they will soon become true Ga'hoolian
owls-honest and brave, wise and true.
Soren and Gylfie have escaped, and I felt for them (and for Grimble). I am glad that Soren's dreams had come true and he's actually at the Great Ga'Hoole Tree. I knew when I read the part about the St. Aggie's owls being not even remotely the evil that they should fear, that something terrible was going to happen that involved a character from the movie that had yet to be introduced. I absolutely loved the book and I can't wait to get through vols 3-15!
Book #17: The Rescue by Katheryn Lasky
Ever
since Soren was kidnapped and taken to the St. Aegolius School for
Orphaned Owls, he has longed to see his sister, Eglantine, again. Now
Eglantine is back in Soren's life, but she's been through an ordeal
too terrible for words. And Ezylryb, Soren's mentor, has disappeared.
Deep within Soren's gizzard, something more powerful than knowledge
tells him there's a connection between these mysterious events. In
order to rescue Ezylryb, Soren must embark upon a perilous quest. It
will bring him face-to-face with a force more dangerous than anything
the rulers of St. Aggie's could have devised-and a truth that
threatens to destroy the owl kingdom.
I was not expecting most of what actually happened in the book. I had convinced myself that what happened in the movie was at least a little related to what happened in the book. Boy was I ever wrong! Nothing is what I thought it was going to be at all. I was definitely surprised by the reveal of Metal Beak's identity. I was not expecting it to be who it was. Holy crap. I am so excited now to read the rest of the books and find out just how Soren and Eglantine deal with it all.
Book #18: VECTOR by Vaun Murphrey
Book #18: VECTOR by Vaun Murphrey
Homecomings
usually involve burgers, fries and apple pies but that's not on the
menu for Cassandra and Silver. They're launched into assassination
attempts, bar brawls, and relationship drama just in the first 24
hours. Can they protect everyone they love from all comers before it
explodes in their face? Find out in VECTOR, Book Three of the Weaver
Series.
I got this from NetGalley in return for an honest review, so you'll be seeing more over there. I love this series. I just started PHOENIX and I saw she's working on a new one that I have managed to forget the name of. I loved this one as much as the rest of them. Cass and Silver end up having to help some of the people they hate the most. I don't know what's going to happen to them now....since they are in a new place, but I hope it all works out for them. VECTOR is definitely a very good book. I currently recommend it to anybody who wants to read it. The entire series is fantastic.
Book #19: The Love Spell by Phyllis Curott
Book #19: The Love Spell by Phyllis Curott
This
is the story of a love spell that worked. Ivy League lawyer and
Wiccan priestess Phyllis Curott has a supercharged career in law and
filmmaking, but one thing is missing: love. She casts a sexy spell,
and her dream lover soon arrives. But he’s not who he appears to be
and there are unforeseen consequences. In this hip, compelling tale
of spiritual and sexual awakening, she must seek the aid of an
otherworldly suitor, a daemon, to discover how modern
relationships and their problems are paths to the greatest magic of
all—true love. This wise and erotic memoir is rich with spells,
potions, and rituals for love. The author shares accessible
techniques of sexual magic for the accomplishment of personal goals
and growth, revealing how sexual ecstasy can lead to the discovery of
our innate divinity and an empowered life.
This is a memoir. I don't read memoirs ever. I'm pretty sure this is the first one I read, and if I had known what they were actually like, I might have picked them up sooner. For some silly reason, I had it in my head that a memoir was going to read like a history book and I was very not interested in that. If I had not seen the little word "memoir" on the cover, I'd have thought this was just another fiction novel. I enjoyed the story and it didn't take me nearly as long to read as I thought it would. Overall a 4/5 stars. There were parts of it that I did not like, but I think it's more to do with not having grown up then. I'm sure if I were from the same era as this novel's setting, I would understand more.
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