Sunday, June 24, 2012

Save Earth Sunday

The Lost Generation Video



Happy Sunday everyone. I hope you are all enjoying this beautiful evening like I am (soaking in the sun as we speak). I haven't been posting my weekly eco tips lately so I am happy to be posting this one. If you don't know, Save Earth Sunday, is an event that I created to raise awareness of the impact that we can have on the environment. Every Sunday I will try to post an eco tip(s) that everyone can use. Together we can make a difference and change the world! Feel free to post your own eco(s) tip in the comments.
If you have stale potato chips or ice cream cones, try microwaving it for about 20 seconds and let them cool. This is a fast way to save food and money.

 For more tips go to earthsaversclubforkids.

Friday, June 15, 2012

Follow Friday :]


Huzzah! It is Friday once again. Hooray. This weeks question is in honors of fathers day. 


Question: Who is your favorite dad in any book and why?


Answer: hmmm this is a toughy since I can't remember a lot of dads from the books that I've read. Since I have to choose someone I supposed I'll choose Rose's dad from Vampire Academy. He was a kick butt mobster dad. Well I'm not sure if I should call him a dad since he was never there for Rose while she was growing up but he was there in the end.


What as your answer? Leave me a comment below :]



Wednesday, June 13, 2012


Hello everyone, "Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Golly gosh! I have so many books to try to get through this summer so I am trying not to look for any new ones coming out. With that said I will let you guys know what book I am going to be reading next. (It just came out yesterday!!) :]]

Book: The Golden Lily
Author: Richelle Mead
Released: June 12, 2012

Synopsis by Goodreads.:
Tough, brainy alchemist Sydney Sage and doe-eyed Moroi princess Jill Dragomir are in hiding at a human boarding school in the sunny, glamorous world of Palm Springs, California. The students--children of the wealthy and powerful--carry on with their lives in blissful ignorance, while Sydney, Jill, Eddie, and Adrian must do everything in their power to keep their secret safe. But with forbidden romances, unexpected spirit bonds, and the threat of Strigoi moving ever closer, hiding the truth is harder than anyone thought.

Populated with new faces as well as familiar ones, Richelle Mead's breathtaking Bloodlines series explores all the friendship, romance, battles, and betrayals that made the #1 New York Times bestselling Vampire Academy series so addictive. In this second book, the drama is hotter, the romances are steamier, and the stakes are even higher




Has anyone read this yet? Was it what you expected? What are you waiting on? Leave some comments below. :]

Saturday, June 9, 2012

Book Review: Entangled by Cat Clarke

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars


My thoughts: 
I can't help but pick up books that have awesome covers! It took me a few chapters to get into this book, but the further I got into it, the more I had to know the ending. The story is set somewhere in England or France...though I am not sure. Anyways the main character's name is Grace and she is slightly annoying and has a habit of cutting herself. Cringe. I couldn't help but feel bad for her. The ending was great and I loved how the author was so clever about the whole situation about the white room and Ethan. 


Synopsis by Goodreads:


What does he want from me?
How could I have let this happen?
Am I going to die?


17-year-old Grace wakes up in a white room, with table, pens and paper—and no clue how she got there.

As Grace pours her tangled life onto the page, she is forced to remember everything she’s tried to forget. There’s falling hopelessly in love with the gorgeous Nat, and the unravelling of her relationship with her best friend Sal. But there’s something missing. As hard as she’s trying to remember, is there something she just can’t see?

Then, in a story full of dangerous revelations, Grace must face the most important question of all: why is she here?

Friday, June 8, 2012

Book Review: The City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

My rating: 3 out of 5 stars.
                                  My Thoughts: 
I'm glad that I can finally take this book off my too read list. Hooray! Anyways I thought this book was okay. I don't exactly hate this book since I gave it three stars, but at the same time I did not love it. I thought the plot was interesting and the twist at the end make me want to read the second book. I could not believe the ending; say it ain't so! Overall, I thought the main character was annoying and a bit needy? I'm not sure if that's the right word I want to use, but anyways she kept getting herself into dangerous situations in which everyone else had to risk themselves to save her.

Synopsis from Goodreads: When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder -- much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It's hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing -- not even a smear of blood -- to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?

This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It's also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace's world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know. . . .

Exotic and gritty, exhilarating and utterly gripping, Cassandra Clare's ferociously entertaining fantasy takes readers on a wild ride that they will never want to end.

Book Review: How to Save a Life by Sara Zarr



My thoughts:
I love this book! I just finished it a few minutes ago and I just HAD to write a review. I randomly picked this book up at the library because the cover was pretty and the story line seemed intriguing.
The story jumps back and forth from the point of view of two girls, Jill and Mandy. As their stories unfolded I couldn't help but feel sorry for both of the girls and I soon found myself rooting for them as their stories started to intervene. I loved the ending; it left a smile on my face.

I recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a heart warming story. :] 

     Rating: :] :] :] :] :] 5 out of 5 

                        Synopsis from Goodreads:
 Jill MacSweeney just wishes everything could go back to normal. But ever since her dad died, she’s been isolating herself from her boyfriend, her best friends—everyone who wants to support her. And when her mom decides to adopt a baby, it feels like she’s somehow trying to replace a lost family member with a new one.

Mandy Kalinowski understands what it’s like to grow up unwanted—to be raised by a mother who never intended to have a child. So when Mandy becomes pregnant, one thing she’s sure of is that she wants a better life for her baby. It’s harder to be sure of herself. Will she ever find someone to care for her, too?

As their worlds change around them, Jill and Mandy must learn to both let go and hold on, and that nothing is as easy—or as difficult—as it seems

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Forever 21 revealed...by Annie Role


When you’re on a budget, it’s only natural to be drawn to stores that boast cheap, fast fashion, and Forever 21 has long fulfilled this need for many a penny-pinching college student.  While the seemingly endless piles of disorganized clothes and blaring music may initially deter the neat freaks or the faint of heart, this retail giant has given millions of shoppers the unique opportunity to procure armfuls of outfits and accessories while staying well within their spending limits.  But whatimplications does this era of “fast food” fashion have for our society?
A recent article in Businessweek by Susan Berfield delved extensively into Forever 21′s history and business practices, and the results are none too surprising for anyone familiar with the rampant violation of labor laws and flagrant disregard for intellectual property that permeates the fashion industry.  About 10 years ago, the Asian Pacific American Legal Center and the Garment Worker Center sued Forever 21 on behalf of 19 workers who claimed the company had failed to maintain fair business practices or standard minimum wages.  Like many other retail powerhouses, Forever 21 pleaded ignorance to the terrible factory conditions. But Julie Su, the lawyer who had won a $4 million settlement on behalf of 70 Thai garment workers in a separatecase against Forever 21 only a few years earlier, has a different perspective.
“‘It’s impossible to claim ignorance when the problem is so rampant,’ says Su.  ’Forever 21 is not a victim of the industry. They create and demand these conditions.  They squeeze their suppliers and make it necessary for them to get things done as quickly and cheaply as possible, no matter what the cost to the workers.” – Businessweek
Sadly, these labor violations are even more widespread outside of U.S. factories. And with the 2005 expiration of a trade agreement that had previously limited the amount of garments companies could import from developing nations, the outsourcing of factory jobs has hardly done much for the issue of human rights.  Forever 21 has shifted much of its production to Asia, and while Berfield was not able to explore the factories in China and Vietnam, it is safe to assume that the conditions are not much better from what she could see in one of their American factories, which she describes at the end of the article:
“In one, on the top floor, with no company name on the door, about 30 people are sewing gray cotton vests for Forever 21 in a small, hot room. Many of them have stuffed scraps of fabric into their noses to block the particles of material floating in the air.  They’re just finishing up a one-week, 10,000-piece order for which the seamstresses earn about 12 cents apiece… If they sew 66 vests an hour, they’ll earn minimum wage.  The price tags other workers are attaching read $13.80.” – Businessweek
Maxi dress designed by Foley + Corinna, shown here next to its Forever 21 "version" (photocredit to jezebel.com)
Aside from labor violations, Forever 21 has been sued by about 50 companies, including Diane von Furstenberg and Anthropologie, in the last six years for copying their designs.  But while big name brands are often able to settle their cases, smaller independent designers are not so lucky.  When Virginia Johnson’s lawyer contacted Forever 21 in 2005 about a skirt they were selling whose print was suspiciously similar  to the one Johnson had designed and sold at Barney’s during the previous season, Johnson was merely offered 10% of the profits from the skirt.
But here is where my problem lies.  Anthropologie and Diane von Furstenberg are way over my budget, as they are for many college students.  And even if I had endless money, I wouldn’t necessarily abandon cheap knockoffs for high-end designers, as many of the companies suing Forever 21 have themselves violated numerous labor standards and intellectual property rights.  Furthermore, while buying from green and fair trade companies is certainly the ideal, it’s often not the most convenient option, price or location-wise (many times these companies are solely online, adding in shipping costs, sizing uncertainties, etc.).  And although I am a diehard vintage fan myself, I understand that thrift stores are hit-or-miss for many people (only one item of everything means it either fits or it doesn’t).
The only solution I can offer is that we should perhaps start thinking about fashion consumption in a different way.  We’ve become so accustomed to “cheap and fast” that it’s hard to fight the tide in order to shop slowly, purposely, and ethically, all while staying within our budget.  In Berfield’s article, Larry Meyer, the executive vice-president of Forever 21, summed up the attitude of the fashion industry pretty accurately: “‘Every day in retail is another day,’ says Meyer. ‘You never win. You live to sell the next product.’” (Businessweek).
But we can’t live to buy the next product.  If we want to be able to go through our day comforted by the knowledge that the cardigan we’re wearing wasn’t produced at the expense of someone’s health, livelihood or uncredited creativity, we need to become aware of the uglier side of the fashion industry.  We need to take the time and energy to search out alternative, ethical clothing options that work for our incomes and lifestyles, be it a thrift store, a fair trade website or an independent designer.
We owe it to ourselves and to the workers that make our wardrobes possible.

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Waiting On Wednesday :D

Hi everyone, "Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

The book I am waiting to read just came out yesterday and I am so pumped to read it! :D

Synopsis of Spell Bound (Hex Hall #3) from Goodreads :


Just as Sophie Mercer has come to accept her extraordinary magical powers as a demon, the Prodigium Council strips them away. Now Sophie is defenseless, alone, and at the mercy of her sworn enemies—the Brannicks, a family of warrior women who hunt down the Prodigium. Or at least that’s what Sophie thinks, until she makes a surprising discovery. The Brannicks know an epic war is coming, and they believe Sophie is the only one powerful enough to stop the world from ending. But without her magic, Sophie isn’t as confident. 

Sophie’s bound for one hell of a ride—can she get her powers back before it’s too late?

My Thoughts:
YAY! YAY! YAY! I am so excited to read this book!! :] :] :] I went to Barns and Noble yesterday and searched the aisles up and down but could not find is book anywhere! I had to settle for the ebook version instead. So happy to finally begin reading this book. I'll post a review once I'm done. :DD

Everyone have a kick butt day! Aza aza fight-ing!!

Out of Sight, Out of Time (Gallagher Girls #5) Review



Synopsis from Goodreads :


The last thing Cammie Morgan remembers is leaving the Gallagher Academy to protect her friends and family from the Circle of Cavan--an ancient terrorist organization that has been hunting her for over a year. But when Cammie wakes up in an alpine convent and discovers months have passed, she must face the fact that her memory is now a black hole. The only traces left of Cammie’s summer vacation are the bruises on her body and the dirt under her nails, and all she wants is to go home. 

Once she returns to school, however, Cammie realizes that even the Gallagher Academy now holds more questions than answers. Cammie, her friends, and mysterious spy-guy Zach must face their most difficult challenge yet as they travel to the other side of the world, hoping to piece together the clues that Cammie left behind. It’s a race against time. The Circle is hot on their trail and willing stop at nothing to prevent Cammie from remembering what she did last summer .

My Rating: *****5 Stars!


My Review: 
A riveting read! Gosh, every time that I finish one of Ally Carter's books, I say that it is the best one yet. I am glad there is another book following this one(well I hope there will be one). It has been a while since I read the 4th book in the Gallagher Girls series, so I was a bit worried that I wouldn't be able to keep up with the plot in this latest book. No worrying needed though because I was still able to understand and keep up with the characters. 
This book was full of action action and did I say action? The only downside was that Cammie was a little annoying in this book (she kept running away from her friends) though you can't help but feel bad for her at some parts. Other than that though the book was a blast to read! 


Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Friday, January 13, 2012

Ruthless (Pretty Little Liars #10) Book Review

BookRuthless (Pretty Little Liars #10)
Author: Sara Shepard
Release Date: Dec. 6, 2011
Pages(hardcover): 336 pgs.




Synopsis from Goodreads:
For years scandal has rocked Rosewood, Pennsylvania—and high school seniors Aria, Emily, Hanna, and Spencer have always been at the center of the drama. They’ve lost friends, been targeted by a ruthless stalker named A, and narrowly escaped death. And it’s not over yet.

Aria’s love life is on the fritz. Emily’s exploring her wild side. Hanna’s kissing the enemy. And someone from Spencer’s past—someone she never thought she’d see again—is back to haunt her.
But none of that compares to what happened last spring break. It’s their darkest secret yet and guess who found out? Now A is determined to make them pay for their crime, and the only thing scarier than A is the fear that maybe, just maybe, they deserve what’s coming to them.
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
My Thoughts: I really enjoyed this book. I thought it was a fun and interesting read, despite the fact that I thought this series was supposed to end after the 8th book. It never ceases to amaze me how dumb the characters can be at times... like really Spencer!? sighhh, those girls  make me cringe when  they do something that no one else in their right minds would do when put into their position. Though I must admit that because of their stupidity and lack of better judgement, the suspense and drama of this series is increased tenfold. Plus the cliff hanger at the end of this book left me with a daunting feeling. It didn't help matters that I finished this book at around 2 in the morning. I can't wait until the next book comes out! If you are a fan of the Pretty Little Liars book series than you would most likely like this book.


Sunday, January 8, 2012

save earth sunday :]

SAVE EARTH SUNDAY, IS AN EVENT that I MADE TO help make others aware of ways we can save the planet. EVERY WEEK ON SUNDAY I WILL POST an ECO TIP(S) WE CAN ALL USE DAILY TO HELP this cause. TOGETHER WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE AND CHANGE THE WORLD! FEEL FREE TO POST YOUR OWN ECO TIP(S) AS WELL AND DON'T FORGET TO LEAVE ME A LINK TO YOUR POST SO I CAN DO IT TOO. SO I ENCOURAGE ALL OF YOU OUT THERE TO DO SOMETHING. :) 


“I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something; and because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do something that I can do.” - Helen Keller 
Image from www.ieee-earth.org


Today I want to let you know about a company called, ACE (Alliance for Climate Education).  They go around to many different high schools to teach kids about ways they can help the environment. They came to my school a couple of years ago and I thought it was the best presentation that I've ever seen. The information  was actually presented in a way that made everyone want to make a difference.

Here an an example of the presentation below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wureaQdI8nU&feature=endscreen&NR=1

I hope this helps to inspire some of you to go out there and make a difference. If you want to start a project but you don't know how to get started check out the ACE website. http://www.acespace.org/

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Waiting On Wednesday or W.O.W


 Hi everyone, "Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week I am waiting on a book by  the one and only, Ally Carter. It's the fifth installment of the Gallagher Girls series! Hooray. I am very excited for this book to come out. 
 
Title: Out of Sight, Out of Time
Author: Ally Carter
Release Date: March 13, 2012
Synopsis from Goodreads.

The last thing Cammie Morgan remembers is leaving the Gallagher Academy to protect her friends and family from the Circle of Cavan--an ancient terrorist organization that has been hunting her for over a year. But when Cammie wakes up in an alpine convent and discovers months have passed, she must face the fact that her memory is now a black hole. The only traces left of Cammie’s summer vacation are the bruises on her body and the dirt under her nails, and all she wants is to go home. 

Once she returns to school, however, Cammie realizes that even the Gallagher Academy now holds more questions than answers. Cammie, her friends, and mysterious spy-guy Zach must face their most difficult challenge yet as they travel to the other side of the world, hoping to piece together the clues that Cammie left behind. It’s a race against time. The Circle is hot on their trail and willing stop at nothing to prevent Cammie from remembering what she did last summer.

My thoughts: 
I don't know if I can bear waiting for this book another 3 months! I find all of Ally Carter's titles very witty and fun. I find that they fit nicely with all the cute covers. What can I say, I'm a sucker for awesome covers. 

Rules of Attraction (Perfect Chemistry #2) by Simone Elkeles (2 out of 5 stars)


Book: Rules of Attraction
Author: Simone Elkeles
Rating by me: 2 out of 5 stars
                                                             Synopsis from goodreads.:
When Carlos Fuentes returns to America after living in Mexico for a year, he doesn’t want any part of the life his older brother, Alex, has laid out for him at a high school in Colorado . Carlos likes living his life on the edge and wants to carve his own path—just like Alex did. Then he meets Kiara Westford. She doesn’t talk much and is completely intimidated by Carlos’ wild ways. As they get to know one another, Carlos assumes Kiara thinks she’s too good for him, and refuses to admit that she might be getting to him. But he soon realizes that being himself is exactly what Kiara needs right now.

My thoughts: 
     After reading all the epic reviews on goodreads and barnsnoble I was ecstatic to get my hands on this novel. Perfect Chemistry is one of my favorite books and I practically jumped for joy when I found out there was going to be a sequel. Who can deny that the cover is awesome!? I would probably buy this book just because the cover is so kick butt. Sadly everything in between the cover left little to be desired. The two main characters, Carlos and Kiara are so annoying and whiny. Plus what is up with Kiara's parents!? If some kid tried to hook up with my daughter under my roof I'd go ballistic, instead all they say is, "Did you use protection?" I was like WTF!? I thought the ending was pretty rushed as well. It went from climax to end in like 2 chapters. I think that's enough venting about this book for now. 

Anyways thanks for reading and have an awesome day! :)