Winter Movie Preview

So, as you know I really like movies, probably just as much as books! So I thought it would be fun to talk about a handful of new releases or upcoming releases I'm excited about from the winter season! 

Let Them Chirp Awhile (Dec 5th) TRAILER:

Let Them Chirp Awhile follows three twentysomething artists as they juggle their careers, relationships and emotions in New York City. Bobby (Justin Rice) is a struggling screenwriter who tries to get romantically involved with a woman by agreeing to take care of her dog. His friend Scott (Brendan Sexton III) is a depressed, womanizing musician with a sweet and innocent girlfriend while Hart, (Zach Galligan) Bobby’s nemesis, is a successful playwright whose campy play about 9/11 has won awards and a run at an off-Broadway theater. What begins as a quirky comedy about relationships and writer’s block becomes a coming-of-age tale about competition and self-reliance among the “me-generation.”

I've seen a few other movies from this gang and this one seems like it could be the best yet, definitely the best production wise!

The Spirit (Dec 25th) TRAILIER:

Adapted from the legendary comic strip, THE SPIRIT is a classic action-adventure-romance told by genre-twister FRANK MILLER (creator of 300 and SIN CITY). It is the story of a former rookie cop who returns mysteriously from the dead as the SPIRIT (Gabriel Macht) to fight crime from the shadows of Central City. His arch-enemy, the OCTOPUS (Samuel L. Jackson) has a different mission: he’s going to wipe out Spirit’s beloved city as he pursues his own version of immortality. The Spirit tracks this cold-hearted killer from Central City’s rundown warehouses, to the damp catacombs, to the windswept waterfront … all the while facing a bevy of beautiful women who either want to seduce, love or kill our masked crusader. Surrounding him at every turn are ELLEN DOLAN (Sarah Paulson), the whip-smart girl-next-door; SILKEN FLOSS (Scarlett Johansson), a punk secretary and frigid vixen; PLASTER OF PARIS (Paz Vega), a murderous French nightclub dancer; LORELEI (Jaime King), a phantom siren; and MORGENSTERN (Stana Katic), a sexy young cop. Then of course, there’s SAND SAREF (Eva Mendes), the jewel thief with dangerous curves. She’s the love of his life turned bad. Will he save her or will she kill him? In the vein of BATMAN BEGINS and SIN CITY, THE SPIRIT takes us on a sinister, gut-wrenching ride with a hero who is born, murdered and born again.

I LOVED Sin City (can't wait for #2) so you bet I will be seeing this one! I love movies with like 1,000 famous actors/actresses in it too. It's just fun to see them all work together!

Revolutionary Road (Dec 26th) TRAILER:

Frank and April have always seen themselves as special, different, ready and willing to live their lives based on higher ideals. So, as soon as they move into their new house on Revolutionary Road, they proudly declare their independence from the suburban inertia that surrounds them and determine never to be trapped by the social confines of their era. Yet for all their charm, beauty and irreverence, the Wheelers find themselves becoming exactly what they didn’t expect: a good man with a meaningless job whose nerve has gone missing; a less-than-happy homemaker starving for fulfillment and passion; an American family with lost dreams, like any other. Driven to change their fates, April hatches an audacious plan to start all over again, to leave the comforts of Connecticut behind for the great unknown of Paris. But when the plan is put in motion, each spouse is pushed to extremes – one to escape whatever the cost, the other to save all that they have, no matter the compromises.

This one looks so powerful, the trailer is just WOW! It will definitely be cute to see these two back together after so many years! I wonder if it will win an Oscar?

Bride Wars (Jan 9th) TRAILER:

Liv (Kate Hudson) and Emma (Anne Hathaway), best friends since childhood, are always there for each other, through good times and bad. Even their respective bridal engagements happen within hours. Together they plan their weddings, each to take place at New York’s ultimate bridal destination, the Plaza Hotel. But a clerical error and subsequent clash in wedding dates pits the two brides against each other in a competition that quickly escalates into all-out war.

This one just looks hilarious, Anne Hathaway is always great! The poster is so so sweet compared to what actually goes on in the trailer, it would have been funny if they were posing like that but looked like they had just been in a fight!

Paul Blart: Mall Cop (Jan 16th) TRAILER:

In Columbia Pictures’ comedy Paul Blart: Mall Cop, Kevin James stars as the title character, a single, suburban dad, trying to make ends meet as a security officer at a New Jersey mall. It’s a job he takes very seriously, though no one else does. When Santa’s helpers at the mall stage a coup, shutting down the megaplex and taking hostages (Paul’s daughter and sweetheart among them), Jersey’s most formidable mall cop will have to become a real cop to save the day.

When I saw the trailer for this movie I just couldn't stop laughing! It's definitely on the stupid side, but sometimes it can be done just right!

New In Town (Jan 30th) TRAILER:

Lucy Hill (Renée Zellweger) is an ambitious, up and coming executive living in Miami. She loves her shoes, she loves her cars and she loves climbing the corporate ladder. When she is offered a temporary assignment - in the middle of nowhere - to restructure a manufacturing plant, she jumps at the opportunity, knowing that a big promotion is close at hand. What begins as a straight forward job assignment becomes a life changing experience as Lucy discovers greater meaning in her life and most unexpectedly, the man of her dreams (Harry Connick, Jr.).

I know I'm going to get a kick out of this one!

Confessions of a Shopaholic (Feb 13th) TRAILER:

In the glamorous world of New York City, Rebecca Bloomwood (Isla Fisher) is a fun-loving girl who is really good at shopping-a little too good, perhaps. She dreams of working for her favorite fashion magazine, but can't quite get her foot in the door-until ironically, she snags a job as an advice columnist for a financial magazine published by the same company. As her dreams are finally coming true, she goes to ever more hilarious and extreme efforts to keep her past from ruining her future. Isla Fisher ("Wedding Crashers") stars in the film from producer Jerry Bruckheimer and director P.J. Hogan ("My Best Friend's Wedding"). The screenplay by Tracey Jackson, Tim Firth and Kayla Alpert is based on the books "Confessions of a Shopaholic" and "Shopaholic Takes Manhattan" by Sophie Kinsella.

Isla Fisher is a comic genius! Plus I really want to read these books!

Synopsises from Apple.com except for Confessions of a Shopaholic which is from the official movie website.

What movies are you looking forward to this winter? 

Testimony by Anita Shreve

From the Publisher's Website:

At a New England boarding school, a sex scandal is about to break. Even more shocking than the sexual acts themselves is the fact that they were caught on videotape. A Pandora's box of revelations, the tape triggers a chorus of voices--those of the men, women, teenagers, and parents involved in the scandal--that details the ways in which lives can be derailed or destroyed in one foolish moment.

Writing with a pace and intensity surpassing even her own greatest work, Anita Shreve delivers in TESTIMONY a gripping emotional drama with the impact of a thriller. No one more compellingly explores the dark impulses that sway the lives of seeming innocents, the needs and fears that drive ordinary men and women into intolerable dilemmas, and the ways in which our best intentions can lead to our worst transgressions.

WOW, just wow. This book was a masterpiece. You know, I was very excited to read it. I started it, and for some reason the first 30 pages didn't really grab me so I set it down for a few days. I picked it back up and never let go! The book definitely keep me in its grips from that point forward.

There are many powerful things going on here. For one- the variety of perspectives and voices makes this about the easiest book to read, there is no chance of getting bored when the voice rotates from person to person (the kids involved, the headmaster, parents of the kids, and people living in town). Though, at first I have to re-remember who each person was, but once I really got going I knew exactly who was who.

Also, the way the story was revealed, going from the aftermath to the event its self to what led up to it. It was a puzzle that put itself together piece by piece. I also really liked how the different characters lives intertwined and how each character affected the others.

The topic of 18-19 year old boys having sex with a 14 year old girl definitely creates strong emotions and sides. Who was to blame? Were the boys only to blame, should the girl share in the blame? My opinion is that no one is completely innocent and no one is completely to blame. I think it was a collective bad move on all of their parts and no one had the sense to step back for a moment and consider what was going on, until after the fact. Very unfortunate. Each person has a different reason for being there and for the most part in the book you find out what lead them to this place.

All of the characters had something to offer but I think my favorite character was Noelle- the girlfriend of one of the boys. I also really liked Laura's perspective, she was the roommate of the girl involved in the incident.

Hands down- this was a very engrossing read and I definitely know it will be talked about for years to come!

5/5 Stars
Review copy provided by publisher

I HEART your blog!! Take 3

Thank you to Sarah of Sarah's Random Musings for nominating me for this award! She have a fun blog and great taste in books!

I am so thankful for the book blogging community, you guys make my day, everyday! :D

This Week In Books Or OMG YAY FOR YA!

Monday: 

TTYL by Lauren Myracle

The Teashop Girls by Laura Schaefer

TTYL came from bookmooch and The Teashop Girls for review (Waiting on Wednesday post here)! Recently I've heard that people literally hate TTYL  and don't think teens, maybe it was junior high kids should read it so I finally caved and requested it, just have to know what the fuss is all about!

Tuesday:

I Heart You, You Haunt Me by Lisa Schroeder

I Heart You, You Haunt Me came from bookmooch!

Wednesday: nothing

Thursday:

Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs by Chuck Klosterman

Reality Chick by Lauren Barnholdt

Marly's Ghost by David Levithan and illustrated  by Brian Selznick

How NOT to Spend Your Senior Year by Cameron Dokey

Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puff came from bookmooch while the other three books came from my weekly Friends of the Library store stop. This week everything was 50 percent off! I paid 38 cents for each of these books, I'm not joking! I had never heard of Marly's Ghost before it sounds really cool though!

Friday:

Wedding in December by Anita Shreve

I went to Borders to buy a gift and happened to remember I had $5 Borders bucks so I used it to buy this book for myself which was on clearance for $5 making it free!

Saturday:

Switch by Carol Snow

Cracked Up To Be by Courtney Summers

Switch came from bookmooch from Sharon! And Cracked Up to Be via LibraryThing's Early Reviewer's Program!

What books did you get this week?

Lookalikes 24

Long May She Reign by Ellen Emerson White

Mona Lisa (1500s) by Leonardo da Vinci

Amazon.com Product Description:

Meg Powers is the daughter of the President of the United States. She’s about to enter her first year of college. She’s living through the worst year of her life. Last June Meg was kidnapped by terrorists – brutalized, starved, and left for dead. She was shackled in a deserted mine shaft and had to smash the bones in her own hand to escape.

Meg Powers survived the unthinkable, the stuff of nightmares. Her terrorist captor is still at large. But still she must live each day. Ahead of her is the grueling physical therapy to heal her broken body; the challenge of leaving the safety of the White House for her freshman year at college. But harder still than the physical and social challenges ahead are her shattered sense of herself and her family. Will she ever forgive her mother, the President, for her “can not, have not and will not negotiate with terrorists” stance – even when it came to her own daughter? And more difficult still, can Meg forgive herself for having the strength, the intelligence and the wit to survive?

In a brilliant novel, Ellen Emerson White tells her most ambitious and intense story about a most unlikely but deeply affecting heroine.

I believe this book in the series was written in 2007 not the 1980s like the rest of the books!

What do you think of this intentional lookalike?

This is the final of four lookalikes in this series.

Booking Through Thursday: 5 For Favorites

1. Do you have a favorite author?

No- I like lots of authors! I really don't have one favorite, if I list one I have to list another and if I list another, then another and another and another etc!

2. Have you read everything he or she has written?

Since I don't have a favorite author I'm going to answer this question with an author I've read a lot of. One author I've read almost all of their work is the comic artist/illustrator Adrian Tomine. I think I need to still read his first book 32 stories, I also haven't read the few books he's edited.

3. Did you LIKE everything?

I like all of Adrian Tomine's books and comics I've read.

4. How about a least favorite author?

Not really. One book I rather hated was the Lovely Bones so I probably will never read another book by Alice Sebold.

5. An author you wanted to like, but didn’t?

Sarah Vowell- I haven't given up yet though! I've read part of The Wordy Shipmates and will try it again at a later date and I also have Assassination Vacation to give a try!

"Waiting On" Wednesday! 7

Unlovable by Esther Pearl Watson

Description from Amazon.com:

A soon-to-be teen classic: Esther Pearl Watson loosely based this graphic novel on a teenager's diary from the 1980s found in a gas-station bathroom. Unlovable is a first-person account of Tammy Pierce's sophomore year in 1985. The comic has a devoted following because it is serialized Bust magazine: this is the first-ever collection and Watson has created over 100 new pages for the book, which details Tammy's the sometimes ordinary, sometimes humiliating, often poignant and frequently hilarious exploits. Her hopes, dreams, agonies and defeats are brought to vivid, comedic life by Watson's lovingly grotesque drawings, filled with all the eighties essentials - too much mascara, leg warmers with heels and huge hair - as well as timeless teen concerns like acne, dandruff, and the opposite sex (or same sex, in some cases) It will have special resonance for women and young adults. Unlovable will be handsomely packaged in a unique hardcover format with sparkly blue glitter.

Released on December 15th 2008.

Ok I am seriously freaking out right now! I read a snippet about this collection coming out about a year ago but you know these sort of things always end up getting delayed for some reason or another. A lot of the comics were published originally in zine format but were mostly out of print. 

And just by chance I looked up the author on amazon and what did I find! The book was coming out like RIGHT NOW! I'm going to pre-order this sucker this very minute! I've read her comics in Bust (actually the reason I subscribed) and got to listen to the author and her husband, who are both hilarious give a presentation a few years ago! GAH! So excited! They also wrote a great book about zines which I adore! Check that one out here!

What are you waiting on to be released? 

"Waiting On" Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine!

Tuesday Thingers!

What's the most popular book in your library? Have you read it? What did you think? How many users have it?

Well like a lot of you, my most popular book is the 1st Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone! The cover pictured is the 10th Anniversary edition. Yes I did read it and liked it. Though, I like several of the later books in the series more. And I actually started reading them after I saw the first movie! It gave me the final push I needed to read them (I owned them but hadn't read them) 37,402 users have this book on Librarything.com! That's a lot of books!

What's your most popular book according to Librarything? 

P.S. Is it just me or is everywhere you look someone reading one of the books from the Twilight series. In the past week I've probably seen 4 different people reading them on the bus!

Hardcover vs. Paperback 5

Lock and Key by Sarah Dessen

Hardcover

Paperback

Sorry this is the largest image I could come by!

Amazon.com Product Description: 

“Ruby, where is your mother?”

Ruby knows that the game is up. For the past few months, she’s been on her own in the yellow house, managing somehow, knowing that her mother will probably never return.

That’s how she comes to live with Cora, the sister she hasn’t seen in ten years, and Cora’s husband Jamie, whose down-to-earth demeanor makes it hard for Ruby to believe he founded the most popular networking Web site around. A luxurious house, fancy private school, a new wardrobe, the promise of college and a future—it’s a dream come true. So why is Ruby such a reluctant Cinderella, wary and defensive? And why is Nate, the genial boy next door with some secrets of his own, unable to accept the help that Ruby is just learning to give?

Best-selling author Sarah Dessen explores the heart of a gutsy, complex girl dealing with unforeseen circumstances and learning to trust again.

I was never exactly fond of the hardcover so I was rather excited to see this paperback cover, via amazon! It's in the same style as the inside of the hardcover but it's more exciting! It resembles her other covers better I think. 

Hardcover or Paperback? 

Fake Boyfriend by Kate Brian

Amazon.com Product Description:

Lane and Vivi have had it with Isabelle Hunter's boyfriend, Shawn Littig (a.k.a. Sluttig). He is the only person who can turn their smart, confident best friend into a complete mess. When Shawn Sluttig cheats on and dumps Izzy just months before the prom she's been planning since the ninth grade, Lane and Vivi decide to take action.

With a few quick keystrokes, they create a MySpace page for "Brandon," the perfect guy to get Izzy out of her revolving-door relationship with Shawn. Too bad he's totally fake. Vivi's younger brother, Marshall, who they hire to be the "man" behind the profile, is way too into being Izzy's fake boyfriend. So they turn to cute, prep-school Jonathan to be the face of Brandon. But when Vivi falls for Jonathan, and Sluttig tries to wedge his way back into Izzy's prom picture, the whole plan starts to go south faster than you can say "fake boyfriend."

I was really attracted to the premise of this book, two friends make online fake romantic interest for third friend to get her away from her sleazy ex-boyfriend. It could have played out in a number of ways and I wanted to find out how it would.

For the most part this was a fun book! I really liked the character of Lane, who was in love with her best guy friend but couldn't tell him! I also liked the conflict that Vivi goes through in the book. I didn't really care for the character of Isabelle though, we are told she's basically perfect except when it comes to her boyfriend (when it comes to him she gets rather annoying). Maybe it was because the story was never told through her voice so as a reader all you knew was what you learned from her friends.

I would have liked to be in on a lot more of the instant message conversations between Isabelle and the fake love interest, typed by Vivi's brother Marshall. We only got a taste, but I was ready for some full conversations! I think that also would have helped develop Marshall's character a bit more and Isabelle's as well. I also wanted to see the character of Isabelle's ex-boyfriend Shawn a bit more, I believed he was bad news but I wanted to see him show it at least a few more times throughout the book!

These girls get themselves into some pretty funny situations and it's fun to see how they wiggle their way out of them! I definitely knew where the book was going but had a great time getting there. Just wish the characters were developed a bit more!

Fake Boyfriend is now available in hardcover and will be released in paperback February 24th 2009.

How do you feel about books that center around recent technologies?

3.5/5 Stars
Review copy provided by publisher

Knit Two CBS.com Novel Adventure Giveaway!

Day 9 of CBS.com's Novel Adventures Giveaway! (Last Giveaway!)

To see the rest of the giveaways click here!

Today's Question: If you knit, what is one favorite memory of knitting? If you don't knit, like me, do you wish you did? (I wish I knew how!)

From Amazon.com:

The sequel to the number-one New York Times bestseller The Friday Night Knitting Club, KNIT TWO returns to Walker and Daughter, the Manhattan knitting store founded by Georgia Walker and her young daughter, Dakota. Dakota is now an eighteen-year-old freshman at NYU, running the little yarn shop part-time with help from the members of the Friday Night Knitting Club.

Drawn together by the sense of family the club has created, the knitters rely on one another as they struggle with new challenges: for Catherine, finding love after divorce; for Darwin, the hope for a family; for Lucie, being both a single mom and a caregiver for her elderly mother; and for seventysomething Anita, a proposal of marriage from her sweetheart, Marty, that provokes the objections of her grown children.

As the club’s projects—an afghan, baby booties, a wedding coat—are pieced together, so is their understanding of the patterns underlying the stresses and joys of being mother, wife, daughter, and friend. Because it isn’t the difficulty of the garment that makes you a great knitter: it’s the care and attention you bring to the craft—as well as how you adapt to surprises.

Here is how to enter:

Leave a comment on each giveaway you want to enter by answering the question I ask on that specific post.

Please leave your email address each time you enter (or have an active blogger account/blog that I can contact you via) in your comment so I will be able to contact you if you are a winner. :)

You can only win one of the 9 giveaways.

This giveaway is open to U.S. Residents only.

Knit Two's giveaway ends Monday December 8th at 11:59 pm.

Novel Adventures Episode 7: The Prince and the Perfect Taco

This Year In Movies: November

This month I watched 16 movies and 2 tv show seasons. The few days of holiday sure helped me sneak some in!

Mama's Boy- Sort of cute, not particularly special. 

Then She Found Me- Ok, again not particularly special, I like that Helen Hunt directed it though.

Matthew Barney: No Restraint- Documentary, gave a bit of insight into the way Barney works.

Son of Rambow- Really really good! I'd suggest this to anyone to watch! I think I need to buy the soundtrack. And Chuck from Gossip Girl alert- talking in his actual accent! Strangely, you can only buy the dvd from Best Buy. 

Some Kind of Wonderful- Watched via Melissa Walker's suggestion, I can't believe I hadn't seen it before! Really liked it! One of the stars played Keith on One Tree Hill!

Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day- Better than I thought it would be, good fun!

Chaos Theory- Ok, not particularly special.

What Happens In Vegas- This was hilarious! Liked it a lot more than I thought I would, ended up buying it!

Twilight- Check out my mini review here!

Dexter Season 2- Seriously great show, I loved the case of the Bay Harbor Butcher!

The Clique- Ok, thought it would be kind of crappy since it's straight to dvd, wasn't really. Made me a bit more interested in reading the books. 

The Sure Thing- This was a re-watch. Saw it a long long time ago, great movie! Has the lady from Novel Adventures and One Tree Hill! And Edie from Desperate Housewives!

Cashmere Mafia Complete Series- I think I like this a bit better than Lipstick Jungle which ended up lasting a bit longer than this show. 

Fred Claus- Funny! Great for watching back to back with Elf!

Get Smart- This was a re-watch as well, probably didn't laugh as loudly this time but it was still very funny!

Valley Girl- Started off a little made for tv movie but ended up getting better. Nicolas Cage was totally cute 20 years ago!

The Royal Tenebaums- This was a re-watch. This is my favorite movie, enough said!

Girls Just Want To Have Fun- Pretty cute, was a mix between Hairspray the movie and the tv show, So You Think You Can Dance!

Some Kind of Wonderful Trailer: 

Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

From the Publisher's Website:

In this stunning new book, Malcolm Gladwell takes us on an intellectual journey through the world of "outliers"--the best and the brightest, the most famous and the most successful. He asks the question: what makes high-achievers different? His answer is that we pay too much attention to what successful people are like, and too little attention to where they are from: that is, their culture, their family, their generation, and the idiosyncratic experiences of their upbringing. Along the way he explains the secrets of software billionaires, what it takes to be a great soccer player, why Asians are good at math, and what made the Beatles the greatest rock band.

Brilliant and entertaining, OUTLIERS is a landmark work that will simultaneously delight and illuminate.

For me, Gladwell's books are very engaging. It's like he is solving an almost unsolvable puzzle in front of your eyes and is actually going to share the secret with you this time! It's very rewarding to read. Though Outliers is no Tipping Point (my favorite) it still works in just the same way.

Gladwell talks about people who just because of a different set of circumstances end up doing far better than their equal counterpart, a bit of the nature vs. nurture debate comes into play in my mind. Yes, some of his findings end up being pretty logical but they are not connections I would have made on my own without tons of thought. He uses a variety of examples to make his case.

I really liked the hockey tryout cut-off date example he uses. Because of the hockey tryout cut-off date of January 1st in Canada, people born in the few months following that always end up getting picked because they are the largest and most mature of all the people trying out. And then because they get picked and get the training that makes them the champions they become.

A frightening section is one where Gladwell talks about plane crashes. We get to read snippets of black box recordings and it's crazy how restrained some people in the cockpit were moments before a crash. Because, according to Gladwell, their culture has told them to behave in a certain way and to respect authority or higher-ups even if the higher up is in the wrong. I could go on and on listing all the examples because they all added something to his argument.

I thought it was smart how Gladwell uses his own family as an example because throughout the book he's basically making a case for how someone can't be a genius all on their own (which sometimes people claim) and there are many factors that play into their success. Using his family as an example helps show he really isn't trying to put anyone down with his arguments.

Outliers is an engrossing book full of logical but eye-opening arguments held up by great examples.

4.5/5 Stars
Review copy provided by publisher

Do you like Pop Psychology books, if so what's your favorite?

The Guernesey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society CBS.com Novel Adventures Giveaway!

Day 8 of CBS.com's Novel Adventures Giveaway!

To see the rest of the giveaways click here!

Today's Question: Do you particularly enjoy books from a certain time period? If so, what is your favorite time period to read about?

From Amazon.com:

“ I wonder how the book got to Guernsey? Perhaps there is some sort of secret homing instinct in books that brings them to their perfect readers.” January 1946: London is emerging from the shadow of the Second World War, and writer Juliet Ashton is looking for her next book subject. Who could imagine that she would find it in a letter from a man she’s never met, a native of the island of Guernsey, who has come across her name written inside a book by Charles Lamb….

As Juliet and her new correspondent exchange letters, Juliet is drawn into the world of this man and his friends—and what a wonderfully eccentric world it is. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society—born as a spur-of-the-moment alibi when its members were discovered breaking curfew by the Germans occupying their island—boasts a charming, funny, deeply human cast of characters, from pig farmers to phrenologists, literature lovers all.

Juliet begins a remarkable correspondence with the society’s members, learning about their island, their taste in books, and the impact the recent German occupation has had on their lives. Captivated by their stories, she sets sail for Guernsey, and what she finds will change her forever.

Written with warmth and humor as a series of letters, this novel is a celebration of the written word in all its guises, and of finding connection in the most surprising ways.

Here is how to enter:

Leave a comment on each giveaway you want to enter by answering the question I ask on that specific post.

Please leave your email address each time you enter (or have an active blogger account/blog that I can contact you via) in your comment so I will be able to contact you if you are a winner. :)

You can only win one of the 9 giveaways.

This giveaway is open to U.S. Residents only.

The Guernesey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society's giveaway ends Sunday December 7th at 11:59 pm.

This Week In Books Or Its Finally Happened So This Is The DVD Edition!

Monday: Girl Stories by Lauren Weinstein

Thanks to Dewey for this book! I won it in a contest on her site!

Tuesday: Kiss & Blog by Alyson Noel

Thanks to an extra special bookmoocher for this book! It was nice chatting with you!

Wednesday: nothing

Thursday: nothing 

Friday: nothing

Saturday: nothing

Raise of hands, who thought this week would never come or who hoped it would! But not so fast, because this happens to be the week of Black Friday I have something else to share with you! This week in dvds!

Wednesday: Mad Men Season One

$20 at Borders, Borders Reward members were invited to shop on Wednesday instead of Friday!

Friday: 

30 Rock Season One

Sex and the City Season Six Part One

Sex and the City Season Six Part Two

P.S. I Love You

Ocean's Thirteen

30 Rock was around $14 and Sex and the City $9, I saw people buying all the seasons at once! P.S. I Love You and Ocean's Thirteen were $6.

What Happens In Vegas

The Fall

Iron Man

Pizza

I Could Never Be Your Woman

Figured Blockbuster would have a semi special deal for the holidays and they did! The first three were 3 for $20 when they are usually 2 for $20 and the other two were $3.99

Pss... several of these are at the sale price on Amazon where I'm linking to, if you are interested!

So what did you get this week? Maybe books, maybe some Black Friday Deals? 

Life So Far CBS.com Novel Adventures Giveaway!

Day 7 of CBS.com's Novel Adventures Giveaway!

To see the rest of the giveaways click here!

Today's Question: What is your favorite memoir?

From Novel Adventures Website:

It was Betty Freidan herself, in Life So Far, who spoke about her life and career and told us what it was all like from the inside. With the unsparing frankness that made The Feminine Mystique one of the most influential books of the century, Friedan looked back and told us what it took, and what it cost, to change the world. She took us on an intimate journey through her life, from her lonely childhood to the founding of NOW and her brilliant, contentious, and brave leadership of the Movement.Life So Far chronicles the secret underground of women in Washington in the early sixties who drafted Friedan to spearhead an "NAACP" for women, and the daring of many who spoke out against discrimination. Friedan recounts the political infighting and dirty tricks that occurred within the Movement as well as the forces that tried to destroy it and how hard she fought to keep the Movement practical and free of extremism, including "man-hating." Friedan is equally frank about her twenty-two-year marriage to an advertising entrepreneur, which deteriorated into physical abuse. They later reconciled as friends.Life So Far is forthright, full of stories and larger-than-life characters, and it is the scope of Friedan's vision and achievements that makes her memoir so important and compelling.

Here is how to enter:

Leave a comment on each giveaway you want to enter by answering the question I ask on that specific post.

Please leave your email address each time you enter (or have an active blogger account/blog that I can contact you via) in your comment so I will be able to contact you if you are a winner. :)

You can only win one of the 9 giveaways.

This giveaway is open to U.S. Residents only.

Life So Far's giveaway ends Saturday December 6th at 11:59 pm.

Novel Adventures Episode 6: Bare Essentials

Lookalikes 23

Long Live The Queen by Ellen Emerson White

Arrangement in Grey and Black: The Artist's Mother (Whistler's Mother) (1871) by James McNeil Whistler

I know you guys were enjoying seeing the original covers of these books but I'm not sure if I found it this time! These are two tiny covers I found, from what I can see they don't really resemble the other two original covers from the series, maybe these are later editions?

Amazon.com Product Description:

Being the President’s daughter isn’t easy, but Meg’s getting used to it. She’s even starting to have a life again—okay, not a normal life, but things are beginning to fall into a routine.
Then it happens—machine guns blast, a van screeches to a halt, and masked men grab Meg and take her away.
Meg doesn’t understand what the terrorists want. She doesn’t understand how her security was breached. But she does understand one thing—they have no intention of letting her live—and she has no in

tention of dying.

What do you think of this intentional lookalike?

Check back next week to see t

he final lookalike in these series.

Gone With the Wind: CBS.com Novel Adventures Giveaway!

Day 6 of CBS.com's Novel Adventures Giveaway!

To see the rest of the giveaways click here!

Today's Question: What is one classic book you have always wanted to read but for some reason still haven't?

From Amazon.com:

Margaret Mitchell's epic novel of love and war won the Pulitzer Prize and went on to give rise to two authorized sequels and one of the most popular and celebrated movies of all time.

Many novels have been written about the Civil War and its aftermath. None take us into the burning fields and cities of the American South as Gone With the Wind does, creating haunting scenes and thrilling portraits of characters so vivid that we remember their words and feel their fear and hunger for the rest of our lives.

In the two main characters, the white-shouldered, irresistible Scarlett and the flashy, contemptuous Rhett, Margaret Mitchell not only conveyed a timeless story of survival under the harshest of circumstances, she also created two of the most famous lovers in the English-speaking world since Romeo and Juliet.

Here is how to enter:

Leave a comment on each giveaway you want to enter by answering the question I ask on that specific post.

Please leave your email address each time you enter (or have an active blogger account/blog that I can contact you via) in your comment so I will be able to contact you if you are a winner. :)

You can only win one of the 9 giveaways.

This giveaway is open to U.S. Residents only.

Gone With the Wind's giveaway ends Friday December 5th at 11:59 pm.

Booking Through Thursday: Thankful

Today is Thanksgiving here in the U.S.

Now, you may have noticed that the global economy isn’t exactly doing well. There’s war. Starvation. All sorts of bad, scary things going on.

So–just for today–how about sharing 7 things that you’re thankful for?

This can be about books, sure–authors you appreciate, books you love, an ode to your public library–but also, how about other things, too? Because in times like these, with bills piling up and disaster seemingly lurking around every corner, it’s more important than ever to stop and take stock of the things we’re grateful for. Family. Friends. Good health (I hope). Coffee and tea. Turkey. Sunshine. Wagging tails. Curling up with a good book.

So, how about it? Spread a little positive thinking and tell the world what there is to be thankful for.

1. Having a job I enjoy, often times I cannot believe the end of the day is almost here.

2. Family and friends that put up with me. 

3. Everyone here for talking books with me.

4. The ability to wake up earlier than I have in 7 years and not hate it everyday.

5. A cold glass of water.

6. A great book or movie.

7. Tapirs, they are just so darn cute!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! What are you thankful for?

The Sharper Your Knife, The Less You Cry CBS.com Novel Adventures Giveaway

Day 5 of CBS.com's Novel Adventures Giveaway!

To see the rest of the giveaways click here!

Today's Question: What is your favorite thing to cook and why?

From the Novel Adventures website:

A delightful true story of food, Paris, and the fulfillment of a lifelong dream In 2003, Kathleen Flinn, a thirty-six-year-old American living and working in London, returned from vacation to find that her corporate job had been eliminated. Ignoring her mother's advice that she get another job immediately or never get hired anywhere ever again, Flinn instead cleared out her savings and moved to Paris to pursue a dream a diploma from the famed Le Cordon Bleu cooking school. The Sharper Your Knife, the Less You Cry is the touching and remarkably funny account of Flinnâ's transformation as she moves through the school's intense program and falls deeply in love along the way. Flinn interweaves more than two dozen recipes with a unique look inside Le Cordon Bleu amid battles with demanding chefs, competitive classmates, and her wretchedly inadequate French. Flinn offers a vibrant portrait of Paris, one in which the sights and sounds of the cities street markets and purveyors come alive in rich detail. The ultimate wish fulfillment book, her story is a true testament to pursuing a dream. Fans of Julie & Julia, Almost French, and Eat, Pray, Love will be amused, inspired, and richly rewarded by this seductive tale of romance, Paris, and French food.

Here is how to enter:

Leave a comment on each giveaway you want to enter by answering the question I ask on that specific post.

Please leave your email address each time you enter (or have an active blogger account/blog that I can contact you via) in your comment so I will be able to contact you if you are a winner. :)

You can only win one of the 9 giveaways.

This giveaway is open to U.S. Residents only.

The Sharper Your Knife, The Less You Cry giveaway ends Thursday December 4th at 11:59 pm.


Novel Adventure's Episode 5: If You Can't Take the Heat