Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Best Bookish Memories

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created over at The Broke and the Bookish.  This feature was created because they're particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish (and who isn't?). They're all about creating new lists including a little bit of everything and I've been meaning to participate for so long but always seemed to get behind.  So here we are and hopefully you'll head over to their page and check out what everyone else put up for this week's Top Ten.

I had fun creating this week's list because it reminded me of a whole lot of good times and great memories that I'll cherish always!

Top Ten Best Bookish Memory #1:  My First Author Signing

My friend Lyric and I traveled all the way up to PA to visit a Borders store there where Maria V. Snyder was signing her books.  I had a copy of each that she'd written knowing she probably wouldn't be able to sign more than one.  But we were able to get there early and so was she and my wish came true.  I'm such a huge fan and getting to meet her was thrilling enough, but walking away with those souvenirs and being able to chat with her a while was the icing on the cake!

Top Ten Best Bookish Memory #2:  Meeting Elizabeth Eulberg

I traveled to a book festival near Washington, D.C. and was lucky enough to meet a few fantastic authors and pick up some wonderful new reads while I was at it.  But hearing Elizabeth speak and then meeting her afterwards definitely tops my list of all time great moments!

Top Ten Best Bookish Memory #3:  Lunching with Jennifer and Cyn

Jennifer Murgia is one of the sweetest and most down to Earth authors I've met.  She's downright awesome!  We had corresponded a bit after meeting at a book festival and she was going to be signing at an event I was going to and we decided to get some other bloggers and her friend and fellow author Cyn Balog (!) together for lunch before it started.  Getting to meet Cyn and all of those fabulous bloggers and hanging out was just so cool.  I know it's corny but everyone was just wonderful and it made for such a great day.

Top Ten Best Bookish Memory #4:  A Surprise

Earlier this year I got an email from a publicist letting me know to keep my eye out for something in the mail.  I wasn't sure what to expect, but what I got had me jumping up and down with joy.  Author Kristen Miller sent me an ARC of How To Lead A Life of Crime along with some other goodies and I was touched.  Surprises are always nice and her thoughtfulness made my week!

Top Ten Best Bookish Memory #5:  Challenge Me

A few months ago I was asked to be a part of The Silk & Paper Campaign leading up to Ally Condie's release of Reached (Matched, #3).  It was a ton of fun and super exciting to be a part of.  With read alongs, twitter talks, blogger meet and greets online, write ups, reviews, the whole deal!

Top Ten Best Bookish Memory #6:  Suzanne Collins' Stamp

I am of course one of many who are huge fans of The Hunger Games series.  Collins from what I've heard does not do many signings, but there was going to be one for Mockingjay's release and it was within driving distance for me.  Unfortunately for me I was going to be out of town for work but thanks to my wonderful friend Shelbi I was able to have her take my copy to be stamped (she wasn't physically signing books that day) and it's sitting on display on my shelf as we speak.

Top Ten Best Bookish Memory #7:  Converts

It may sound silly but not many of my good friends are big readers like myself.  I'm OK with it, mainly because I've met so many wonderful bloggers since becoming one myself.  But last year for whatever reason my friend Lyric and my sister Brooke both asked me for book recommendations and I must have picked well because they're still coming back for more and I get excited each and every time!

Top Ten Best Bookish Memory #8:  Decorating with Books

Last March I moved into a new apartment and was back to square one in the decorating department.  I was excited to start over and knew I could go a bunch of different ways, but that books would play a huge part of my new digs.  I wanted them everywhere, and I have plenty to help make that work.  I set up my bookcases in my living room for all to see, put up invisible book shelves (thanks to my sister) in my bedroom, and you will basically find every available space plastered with coffee table books everywhere else in the apartment.  I love it!  Coming home each and every day puts a smile on my face because I'm surrounded by titles I love, old friends I'm reminded of in the books that quickly became my favorites, and just looking at the shelves lined with good reads puts me in a good mood. (Now this picture might not be of my apartment but you get an good idea)

Top Ten Best Bookish Memory #9:  Last Christmas

Despite always being a big reader for just about as long as I can remember I never really got books for Christmas.  Hard to believe I know.  But it was always hard because my parents and family never knew which books to get, what I would like, what I'd already read, etc...  But last year they stepped out of the box and gave it a shot and they did a fantastic job!   Definitely some real winners to add to my library.

Top Ten Best Bookish Memory #10:  The Bookshelf Sophisticate Is Born

By far one of the best decisions I ever made!  My best friend and roommate at the time Megan, told me one day out of the blue that I should give it a shot.  I joke that she probably made the suggestion because she wanted me to have an outlet to share my thoughts and discuss the books I'd been reading so that she wouldn't have to hear about them so much anymore.  She was actually the one who picked out the blog name for me and encouraged me one hundred percent and I love her dearly for that!  I've met so many amazing people in the process, found fabulous blogs I now follow religiously, gone to wonderful book related events and had a blast throughout the whole process.  It's a lot of work and take a lot of dedication but is so rewarding and worthwhile that I don't think I'll ever want to stop.  Best decision and bookish memory ever!

Review: The Hungers Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins

I know I'm not alone when I say this was and is by far my favorite series ever. Suzanne Collins will forever be among my favorite authors because of this. I've read other books that I couldn't get enough of, but none of those compare to The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay. It was a genious idea and executed to perfection. Despite how high I hold these three I've never reviewed them for fear I wouldn't do the titles justice. I still don't think I can but I still decided to give it a shot and share my favorite moments in each. Now if you haven't read this series, (yes I think you're crazy) but I'm also seriously impressed with your will power! But I also think you might want to stop reading at this point because I don't want to be a spoiler. It's your decision, but you've been warned.

So favorite moment #1 - The Hunger Games: Peeta and Katniss in the cave. I know, I know it's so predictable but I don't care! When Katniss is nursing Peeta back to as close to healthy as possible I melted. But when he talks to her about her singing and how he's loved her for years I just didn't think you could get more romantic than that. He's not corny but shows Katniss how much he loves everything about her! Not who she lets others perceive her to be but the real her. Her flaws and all. He doesn't care and it's unconditional. Katniss pulls through for me her or very soon after when she kisses him and for the first time really means it. It's not for show, she's risked her life and understands Peeta means something to her too, she's just not quite sure what exactly yet. I was swooning big time!

Favorite moment #2 - Catching Fire: After Katniss and Peeta realize and accept that they're going back into the arena they are truly there for each other. So it's not really a moment but a span of time from when they're whisked away on the train bound for the capital to entering the actual arena. Peeta once again cares for Katniss and shows this when he stays with her night after night to protect her during her nightmares and comfort her when she wakes up. Katniss really got my vote when she finally decided that it was Peeta that needed to survive and win the games. It was selfless on her part and very brave. Her stock definitely went up in my opinion in book two.

Favorite moment #3 - Mockingjay: Now Mockingjay made me wait and drove me crazy until finally the end. The last chapter of Mockingjay satisfied me, thrilled me and left me completely content and okay with how things worked out. All the characters were forced to deal with so many tragedies and grief throughout all three books that I wasn't sure there was a way to make this happen but of course Collins proved me wrong. Lives were definitely lost that I wish didn't take place but at the same time I understood and believe they made the story stronger and more powerful.

The Hunger Games trilogy will be around and massively popular for years to come. While I'm not sure Collins can top this trilogy (or anyone else) but I am looking forward to the movie adaptation and I hope her future books are equally addicting and brilliant!

I gave The Hunger Games trilogy 5 shamrocks!!!!!

In My Mailbox (21)

This is a meme that I first heard about from Kristi over at The Story Siren and immediately wanted to jump on board.

This past week I couldn't help myself at PAYA and my wallet suffered the consequences, lol!

ARC Tours

The Phantom Diaries by Kailin Gow (Traveling ARC Tours)

What happens to the Phantom after the tragedy at the Paris Opera House is the basis for this fantastic tale of The Phantom Diaries, loosely based on Gaston Leroux's classic, The Phantom of the Opera, but with a new tale and a modern twist. This new series for older teens and young adults is told through the eyes of 18 year-old Annette Binoche, who lands a job at the New York Metropolitan Opera House as a seamstress' assistant only to become the lead singer of the Opera House, with the help of the mysterious, yet highly-seductive Phantom.

Jump by Ginger Rue (Around the World Tours)

High school junior Brinkley Harper is beautiful, wealthy, admired, and powerful—until the day she wakes up in the body of a classmate she wouldn’t be caught dead hanging out with.

Goth girl Miranda is everything Brinkley isn’t: she won't leave the house in anything but black, her family life is in tatters, she’s practically invisible at school, and she’s hiding a dark secret. As Brinkley experiences Miranda’s life from the inside out, she’s forced to consider the world from a very different point-of-view. But this won’t be Brinkley's last “jump,” and each time she lives a day in another classmate’s body, Brinkley not only begins to feel empathy for others, she also begins to glimpse the fears, vulnerabilities, and disappointments behind her own perfect façade. By experiencing the world as somebody else, Brinkley may finally learn to understand herself.

Glimpse by Carol Lynch Williams (Around the World Tours)

Twelve year old girl Hope's life is turned upside down when her older sister Lizzie becomes an elective mute and is institutionalized after trying to kill herself. Ever since their dad died Hope and Lizzie have relied on each other from a young age. Their mother is a reluctant and unreliable parent at best, who turns tricks to support the family. Throughout the course of this lyrical and heartbreaking narrative readers and Hope discover shocking truths and it's up to Hope to bring the truth to light to save her sister.

The Ivy by Lauren Kunze with Rina Onur (We Love YA Tours)

Freshman year at Harvard--glamorous parties, blossoming friendships, steamy romances, and scandalous secrets. Skip the campus tour and get right to the good stuff: classes are for scoping guys (and their Facebook profiles), not taking notes. The library is for study dates (the medieval history stacks get a lot of action), not studying. And success is a 4.0 GPA... plus getting into the most exclusive parties. How will Callie--a California girl with brains, beauty, and big dreams--and her three roommates survive?

Bought

Mockingjay (Hunger Games #3) by Suzanne Collins

Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has survived the Hunger Games twice. But now that she’s made it out of the bloody arena alive, she’s still not safe. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge. Who do they think should pay for the unrest? Katniss. And what’s worse, President Snow has made it clear that no one else is safe either. Not Katniss’s family, not her friends, not the people of District 12.

Infinite Days (Vampire Queen, #1) by Rebecca Maizel

Lenah Beaudonte is, in many ways, your average teen: the new girl at Wickham Boarding School, she struggles to fit in enough to survive and stand out enough to catch the eye of the golden-boy lacrosse captain. But Lenah also just happens to be a recovering five-hundred-year-old vampire queen. After centuries of terrorizing Europe, Lenah is able to realize the dream all vampires have -- to be human again. After performing a dangerous ritual to restore her humanity, Lenah entered a century-long hibernation, leaving behind the wicked coven she ruled over and the eternal love who has helped grant her deep-seated wish. 

Until, that is, Lenah draws her first natural breath in centuries at Wickham and rediscovers a human life that bears little resemblance to the one she had known. As if suddenly becoming a teenager weren’t stressful enough, each passing hour brings Lenah closer to the moment when her abandoned coven will open the crypt where she should be sleeping and find her gone. As her borrowed days slip by, Lenah resolves to live her newfound life as fully as she can. But, to do so, she must answer ominous questions: Can an ex-vampire survive in an alien time and place? What can Lenah do to protect her new friends from the bloodthirsty menace about to descend upon them? And how is she ever going to pass her biology midterm?

Fairy Tale by Cyn Balog

Morgan Sparks has always known that she and her boyfriend, Cam, are made for each other. But when Cam’s cousin Pip comes to stay with the family, Cam seems depressed. Finally Cam confesses to Morgan what’s going on: Cam is a fairy. The night he was born, fairies came down and switched him with a healthy human boy. Nobody expected Cam to live, and nobody expected his biological brother, heir to the fairy throne, to die. But both things happened, and now the fairies want Cam back to take his rightful place as Fairy King. 

Even as Cam physically changes, becoming more miserable each day, he and Morgan pledge to fool the fairies and stay together forever. But by the time Cam has to decide once and for all what to do, Morgan’s no longer sure what’s best for everyone, or whether her and Cam’s love can weather an uncertain future.

Sleepless by Cyn Balog

Eron DeMarchelle isn't supposed to feel this connection. He is a Sandman, a supernatural being whose purpose is to seduce his human charges to sleep. Though he can communicate with his charges in their dreams, he isn't encouraged to do so. After all, becoming too involved in one human's life could prevent him from helping others get their needed rest. 

But he can't deny that he feels something for Julia, a lonely girl with fiery red hair and sad dreams. Just weeks ago, her boyfriend died in a car accident, and Eron can tell that she feels more alone than ever. Eron was human once too, many years ago, and he remembers how it felt to lose the one he loved. In the past, Eron has broken rules to protect Julia, but now, when she seems to need him more than ever, he can't reach her. Eron's time as a Sandman is coming to a close, and his replacement doesn't seem to care about his charges. Worse, Julia is facing dangers she doesn't recognize, and Eron, as he transitions back to being human, may be the only one who can save her....

Even once they've become human again, Sandmen are forbidden to communicate with their charges. But Eron knows he won't be able to forget Julia. Will he risk everything for a chance to be with the girl he loves?

Forget-Her-Nots by Amy Brecount White

When someone leaves three mystery flowers outside her dorm door, Laurel thinks that maybe the Avondale School isn't so awful after all — until her own body starts to freak out. In the middle of her English presentation on the Victorian Language of Flowers, strange words pop into her head, and her body seems to tingle and hum. Impulsively, Laurel gives the love bouquet she made to demonstrate the language to her spinster English teacher. When that teacher unexpectedly and immediately finds romance, Laurel suspects that something — something magical — is up. With her new friend, Kate, she sets out to discover the origins and breadth of her powers by experimenting on herself and others. But she can’t seem to find any living experts in the field of flower powers to guide her. And her bouquets don't always do her bidding, especially when it comes to her own crush, Justin. Rumors about Laurel and her flowers fly across campus, and she's soon besieged by requests from girls — both friends and enemies — who want their lives magically transformed — just in time for prom.