Check out the Book Blogger Hop hosted by Crazy For Books.
I'm Alison. I've been blogging for six months!!!!! Officially six months on Saturday! I review mainly YA with a few MG books and a weekly manga feature.
Books Reviewed This Week and Last Week:
I didn't do the hops last week, so I have two weeks of material to cover.
Harry Potter And The Half Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling
Keeper by Kathi Appelt
Spells by Aprilynne Pike
Check out the latest installation of my feature What Books? This week I featured:
What Books? Movie is better than the book?
Questions of the Week:
Blog Hop: What very popular and hyped book in the blogosphere did you NOT enjoy and how did you feel about posting your review?
I don't think there are any super-hyped book that I hated, but there are a few well-loved ones that I didn't love: Fallen; Hush, Hush; and The Dark Divine come to mind. I also didn't love Mockingjay, but a lot of people agree with me on that one. I felt my reviews were balanced so I didn't mind posting them (although I read Fallen before I started writing reviews, so no post). I was pleased to see how many people agreed with my reviews. It's nice to know you're not the only one who doesn't love a book. I also like people who respectfully disagreed - nothing wrong with different opinions.
Follow Friday: What do you do besides reading / reviewing as a hobby??
I love spending time with my husband and my wonderful dog Snowbird. Check out my About Me page for a great picture of my doggy. I also love running. Unfortunately, it's winter in Minnesota now and the snow probably won't melt until April (really!), so now I'm confined to the gym. One good thing about moving to California next year. I also love to cook. I'm mostly vegetarian and a big health nut, so I love finding new, healthy recipes...plus less healthy treats to bake. I also enjoy making jewelry and knitting. I used to watch a lot of TV, but now I find that I can't focus on the TV anymore. I get bored after a few minutes.
And also check out Parajunkee's Follow My Book Blog Friday.
Old follower, but I just recently started a blog. So, yay!
ReplyDeleteI'm the same way, I used to love watching TV, and now only certain shows hold my attention. Ah, knitting. I love to knit, but I don't really have the patience for it. Takes forever to finish a project!
New follower here!
ReplyDeleteI draw stuff but just for fun.
Feel free to check out my blog:
http://buoyreading.blogspot.com/
have a great weekend, alison!
ReplyDeleteHi There! Congrats on 6 moths! Found you through the follow! I'm your newest follower. Drop by and say hi if you get a chance at http://www.sugarbeatsbooks.com
ReplyDeleteFollowing your blog for Follow Friday :)
ReplyDeleteHappy Friday Alison! Well almost Friday I guess. I don't think I've looked at your about me page before, but look at how cute your dog is! I would cave to that face every time:) Hope you have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteLove to cook and knit too! I'm the same thing with TV by the way. Get's boring pretty fast for me these days. New Follower.
ReplyDeleteNew Follower and Early Congrats to you :D and I love running also, sucks that it's winter :/ check me out :) Sil vous plait (please in french)
ReplyDeleteCali + no snow = Bliss ^.^
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by!
Sniffly Kitty
Sniffly Kitty's Mostly Books
I agree that Fallen did not live up to the hype!
ReplyDeleteStopping in via the Hop! I've read mixed reviews on Fallen, I purchased it a while ago (mostly because of its beautiful cover, I'm shallow like that!) and I haven't gotten to it yet.
ReplyDeleteHope you have a great weekend! :)
I can't bring myself to read Mockingjay because I read such mixed reviews. I want to LOVE it and fear that I won't has kept me from starting it.
ReplyDeleteJust stopping by for the hop!! Thanks for visiting me!! I hope you that you having a fun filled weekend!!
ReplyDeleteHappy six months of blogging! I definitely didn't love Mockingjay either, but I was so paranoid about the hunger game hype I waited quite awhile to finally pick it up. My long library waiting list didn't help either to be fair.
ReplyDeleteOld follower hopping by :)
ReplyDeleteYour puppy is so cute! I also love the name.
I agree with what you said about it being nice to see other bloggers agree with your negative review. It's nice to know you're not alone.
Here's my HOP. I'm also hosting an event at my blog that you and any other blogger who would like to attend are more than welcome to. Hope to see you there!
Hi Alison! I hope I make six months... Don't think it will be a problem though because I'm totally addicted! Enjoy your Friday and your weekend!
ReplyDeleteMy tastes are so eclectic I'm not usually reading popular fiction while it's still popular. You can my full answer here. Happy Blog Hop.
ReplyDeleteI havent read mockingjay yet but I was thrilled with the hunger games book so that one is kinda on the back burner.
ReplyDeleteAnyways just stopping by
Saying hi...
ReplyDeleteI've read that Fallen isn't a favorite more than once tonight. I totally agree! Hush Hush was ok...I hear Crescendo is better. I'll give it a try. Hope you come by and see my answer!
Old follower here! Just dropping by to say hi. I was a bit disappointed by Hush Hush...I thought it would be so much better than it actually was.
ReplyDeleteHave a great weekend :)
Caroline @ Bon Bons and Reveries
Thanks for stopping by my blog! I haven't read any of those books yet, although I have Fallen and Hush Hush on my TBR.
ReplyDeleteAnd you absolutely have to get Harry Potter Clue if you love board games! Its the best way to play clue. "It was Umbridge with the Sleeping Draught in the Owlery!" and watch out for the Dark Mark cards that can make you lose house points! lol. It really is a lot of fun.
I love Notting Hill and You've got Mail!! More recently I've acquired The Ugly Truth and 27 Dresses who have become part of my all time favourite list!
ReplyDeleteDropping by to say hi!
ReplyDeleteMy knowledge of cooking is limited only to rice cooking and egg boiling! :L
I'm starting to think knitting is the new black from hopping around the blogs today. I haven't knitted since I was 12, maybe I should take it up again.
ReplyDeleteHappy blog hop!
Chazz
Just hopping by to say have a great weekend!!!
ReplyDeleteHappy almost 6 month bloggoversity! I'm an old follower just stopping by for FF. Have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteCarmel @ Rabid Reads (Twitter)
I can see how running in Minnesota may be getting cold. LOL! Ohio is pretty cold and snowy today too. But I am so envious of your move to Cali! Wish it was me and my family. Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteThanks for following my blog! I'm following yours as well :o) My favorite Christmas cookies to bake are pumpkin chocolate chip and chewy molasses! Have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteHop..hop..hop..
ReplyDeleteHi Alison! I'm an old follower and thought you'd like an old friend to drop by! Hope you have a great weekend!
Hannah
Every Little Thing(YA and a little bit of everything else book blog)
http://abouteverything-hannah.blogspot.com
Congrats on your six-month blogiversary!
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by my blog! Hope you have a great weekend!
Old follower here, just stopping by to say happy weekend! Your dog is adorable, by the way. <3 I think you and my mom would be best friends. She's a knitter too! Her current project is making socks for everyone in the family. Congrats on your 6 months blogoversary! :D
ReplyDeleteI'm an old follower. I like it when people agree with me too, or point out the things they liked that I didn't.
ReplyDeleteMy Hop is at Coffee Table Press
Hi Alison - thanks so much for stopping by! I see that we are of like minds on hush, hush - that was my pick, too. I still will probably see what Crescendo is like though!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on six months! Old follow!
-Linds, bibliophile brouhaha
Hi Alison, Im a new follower! Also, I LOVED the babysitters club books too. Those and Sweet Valley High!Thanks for stopping by my blog too!
ReplyDeleteShannon
Thanks for hopping by my blog The Crazy Bookworm! I love running and walking too, it is winter here in Canada too, So now I'm trecking to the gym as well but it's not so bad because it's only a 10 minute walk to the gym.
ReplyDeleteLove your Twilight profil pic, looking forward to the dvd release of Eclipse? I'll be in line tonight at midnight to claim mine :P
Thanks for dropping by Clandestine Sanctuary
ReplyDeleteHave a great weekend! :)
New follower :).
ReplyDeleteI dropped by via Follow Friday and really like the look of your blog.
I also love cooking, although I am neither a Vegetarian nor a health nut. I do enjoy new recipes and changing ingredients to see what works best.
I have only tried knitting once - it did not go well. It's something I would like to learn to do though.
Feel free to check out my blog at http://misssighanide.blogspot.com. It's relatively new and I'm just finding my way around.
I really didn't enjoy The Lonely Hearts Club or Twilight...at all. I totally missed the boat on those ones haha
ReplyDeleteOutside of blogging, I pretty much live in the water ;)
I'm a new follower and I agree with Hush, Hush. I liked it but I wasn't in love with it.
ReplyDeletewww.gardenofbooks.blogspot.com
Hey, old follower hopping through.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with you when you say you didn't enjoy Fallen much, but I absolutely loved Hush, Hush, though I can sort of see why you didn't... And I didn't really like the ending of Mockingjay, because she ended up with the wrong man in my opinion... :L
Would love if you could visit my blog if you have the time. =]
Bella
www.cheezyfeetbooks.blogspot.com
Already a follower just saying Hi!
ReplyDeleteAgree with you about Hush Hush. Didn't care for it either. Heard mixed reviews on Fallen so I'm curious. :)
I also LOVE your puppy! My puppy is having a celebration giveaway soon (Dec. 10). Hope you can enter! :) PUPPIES!
Hello!
ReplyDeleteYou stopped by my blog earlier, so now I'm returning the favor. You have a wonderful blog and I can't wait to read more in the future! (I'm also a new follower).
Happy Friday!
Jude
I haven't read any of those novels yet, but I have heard both good and bad things about them. Agreeing with the last line of Book Hop :).
ReplyDeleteHappy Reading,
Zakiya @ Butterfly Feet Walking on Books
a new follower
ReplyDeleteWhat's your favorite manga, anyway?
I love it! A question pertaining something other than books! Here's the
ReplyDeleteshort list of what I'm doing when I'm not reading:
Cooking, gaming, gambling, drinking, smoking, golfing and sometimes even
watching TV.
I expound on all of the above at my blog. Follow me here -
http://www.howardsherman.net
Howard Sherman
http://www.howardsherman.net
Yay for 6 months! Wow and you have 458 followers! Way to go! I'll hit 1 year in a few months. Pretty crazy how fast time flies! Thanks for hopping by today! :)
ReplyDeletethanks for hopping by my blog-your blog looks great-I now follow you on twitter
ReplyDeleteI haven't read any of those books, but I have heard alot about them. I agree - differing opinions are fine. It makes it all interesting :)
ReplyDeleteI'm a new follower!
I'm new at blogging, yay!!
ReplyDeleteI didn't enjoy Interview with the Vampire and most of my friends did.
I love to host/help plan parties and spend time with my family and friends watching movies or going out for drinks :)
HI Alison,
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by earlier, as you saw I didn't like Fallen either. I really liked Hush Hush though.
How boring would it be if we all liked the same things? :)
Thanks for stopping by and commenting. And congratulations on the 6 month anniversary!
ReplyDeleteI’m still pretty new to the book blogosphere, so I haven’t come across this problem yet… Almost every novel has some redeeming quality so I suppose I would focus on that - especially if it was a new author. Have a great weekend!
Hi Allison! I never really used any patterns when I made my hemp jewelry. You can look at the sold items in my old etsy shop http://www.Michiganhemp.etsy.com if you want and I'll be happy to try to explain how I did them :) Most of them were created from new ideas and made up as I went. Thanks for stopping by my blog!
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by! For some reason I thought I had already been following you, but I wasn't. I am now though :) Have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteI think you're the 5th or so blogger that I've read that has mentioned Fallen as being a let down. I haven't read it yet. It's on my TBR list but it's definitely not one of my priority reads after reading that it was a let down for so many people.
ReplyDeleteThanks for hopping by my place. Returning the follow :)
ReplyDeleteI enjoy cooking too. Wow, I can't believe your snow won't melt until April- the whole idea of snow is pretty foreign to us Aussies!
ReplyDeleteOh, yeah! It's always nice to know you're not alone when you don't like a much-liked book, sometimes you can feel a bit left out.
ReplyDeleteThanks for hopping by my blog and hope you have a fun weekend!
I really enjoyed looking through your blog and commenting on reviews, I am a new follower.
ReplyDeleteReturning your visit from the Hop.
ReplyDeleteHopping by. thanks for visting me too.
ReplyDeleteenjoy ur weekend
carol
Yikes, I have both Hush Hush (sort of, it's on my bday/xmas list) and The Dark Divine in my TBR pile. I heard so many good things about Hush Hush I wanted to give it a try and I won The Dark Divine. But still, I might try them out.
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting my blog! Hope you enjoy your weekend!
Just stopping by to say hi and thanks for hopping by my blog.
ReplyDeleteI have the TV on in the background usually because my boyfriend is watching hockey or some sport, but I rarely sit down to watch TV or movies anymore. I am really behind on some favourites too... I just don't feel like watching TV much when there are so many good books to read. :)
I'm not a big fan of Fallen/Torment either which was my pick for the question and Mockingjay was a huge disappointment to me.
ReplyDeleteYou asked what concerts I went to on my blog hop - Silversun Pickups/Mumford & Sons (my favorite!)/The National/Vampire Weekend/Metric/ I'm seeing The Black Keys tonight. I hadn't been to a concert in over 20 yrs before this so I'll go to almost anything.
Oh yea - I love your doggie!! SO cute
ReplyDeleteHi :) It's interesting how books touch readers in different ways. I had a hard time with the Bree Tanner novella and while others sung it's praises, I was left wondering why I'd read it. I like you read it for insight and n ot so much for plot. Thanks for coming by :)
ReplyDeleteBook Blogger Hoppin' back & following you now, too!
ReplyDeleteSnowbird & friend are adorable!
New follower here to return the favour. Thanks for stopping by!
ReplyDeleteI love to cook too! But not as much as eating :D
Have a good weekend!
Thanks for stopping by my blog. I love that people have different opinions about books. I personally loved The Dark Divine and Mockingjay. But, I know there are books people love that I don't. It's what makes the world go round. And, it makes the world less boring. ;)
ReplyDeleteYour dog is so cute! I love dogs. I have three cats and I love them to death.I understand about the snow not melting until April. The snow will usually melt in February in Utah, but we will have snowstorms here and there sometimes until June (like we did last year).
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHi Alison!
ReplyDeleteI didn't much care for Mockingjay either, I'm going to check out your review on that one.
Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend!
Hi, thank you for stopping by my blog.
ReplyDeleteI'm a new follower. :)
First of all, congrats on six months of blogging! I have heard mixed reviews about Hush, Hush and it's on my bookshelf so I'm wondering how I'll feel about it...
ReplyDeleteI'm reading Fallen right now, and kind of struggling. It's an interesting plot, with a bit of mystery, but the writing just isn't quite as well crafted as I'd like.
ReplyDeleteHypes are so interesting!some love to hate thema nd others love to love them... its all so odd!!!
ReplyDeleteJust hopped in!