The Book List: I thought I'd hate you but I love you!

The Book List is just a short and fun meme hosted by lovely Rebecca from Lost in Books that allows you to share books and make a list of books! Who doesn't love lists?!?

Today's topic is:

3 Books You Thought You'd Hate But Ended Up Loving



1. Reading Lolita in Tehran by Nazar Afisi

I at first didn't know what to expect of this book, then a few pages into it, I was afraid I would really dislike it because it was very slow. But in the end, it was one of the best memoirs I read last year. Here's a little bit of my review:

Reading Lolita In Tehran is not an easy read. Nor should it be such. You cannot write down in any easy terms memories and experiences that defined these women and became their everyday terrors. However, it is a beautiful book and well worth the time you’ll spend reading it. It is written in a way that’ll become personal to every person that reads it. For me, Azar Nafisi gave me the greatest gift a writer can give to a reader: a new appreciation for literature, which sadly and quite unconsciously I have started to take for granted.


2. Passion Unleashed by Larissa Ione
Hey, what can I say! Never in my life had I thought I would be as enthralled in a paranormal romance story as I was reading this book :) I literally blew through it in one day and I know my cheeks were burning red while I was reading.
This is what I thought about Larissa and her book:

Most importantly, Larissa is one heck of a paranormal romance writer. She has a skill for creating the most twisted demonic characters and for writing a book that is actually very touching because amidst all heaven breaking loose, the whole evil world going at it, there is still enough space for a very human feeling called love. I know that it sounds a little tacky, but I can’t help it. I have to give credit where credit’s due and Passion Unleashed is a perfect book to get completely lost in and forget about the world outside, if only for a few hours.



3. The Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling

For years I refused to cave in to the 'Harry Potter hysteria'. I think I was one of the biggest, most adamant opponents of this awesome story. And then, one day, I started listening to it on audio and my life hasn't been the same since. BTW, Jim Dale is a master performer and if you are a fan of Harry Potter, you should give the audio version a try.

The Book List: The Longest Wait

The Book List is just a short and fun meme hosted by lovely Rebecca from Lost in Books that allows you to share books and make a list of books! Who doesn't love lists?!?

Today's topic is:

THE 3 BOOKS THAT HAVE BEEN ON YOUR TBR LIST THE LONGEST.

This is probably the toughest for me to  do since I have so many books that I actually cannot say 100% which ones have been there the longest. I decided to go with non-fiction books because I don't own as many of them as fiction ones and it's easier to come up with the ones I might want to read for the longest time.

1. Einstein by Walter Isaacson

I bought this book when it first came out in hardcover years ago. I was very excited when I got home and then I put it away and it has been staring at me from the bookshelves ever since.

2. Color Me Butterfly by Y.A. Marlow 

Back in my days as an employee of Borders, I noticed this book on Women's Studies shelf and wondered what a memoir is doing in there. And then I read the synopsis and decided that I should get it for myself as I was in a sad place in my life and needed someone else's story to lift me up. I am sad to report that I didn't even read page one from the time I brought it home. It is however on my priority list for this year.

3. 1776 by David McCullough

I think most people are familiar with this book or at least have heard of it, if not read it. I loved his John Adams and I really have no explanation why I haven't read 1776 yet.

What's on your TBR list?

The Book List: Intimidation

The Book List is just a short and fun meme hosted by lovely Rebecca from Lost in Books that allows you to share books and make a list of books! Who doesn't love lists?!?

This week's list is:

Three books that intimidate you.

1. Beowulf

 

I had to read it in my first year of college as part of English Lit course. Now, it all wouldn't be all that scary if it was here in the US but it was in Poland, my English was good but not great and I thought I went to study English philology to master this language before I tackled Old English. As it turned out, I was wrong. Not only did I have to read Beowulf in its entirety, in its original language (not the modernized version) but I also had to write an essay on it!!!! I don't think I will ever read Beowulf again.

2. Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

I own this book, I have owned it for years now and it's not the size that's intimidating. I started reading it once, read about 100 pages and realized I had no idea what I just read about. I am hoping to one day try reading it again and maybe then I'll be more comfortable with this book.

3. A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking

Need I say more?! My husband actually read it and understood the scientific babble in there but I refuse to even try. I know, I'm stupidly stubborn this way but I am awfully intimidated by science altogether.

The Book List: Childhood Favorites

Rebecca from Lost in Books is hosting this fun meme that allows us to share books and make a list of books! This week we are asked to list three books that we loved as children (I hope I got it right this time).

1. Anne of Green Gables (and the rest of the series) by Lucy M. Montgomery.

Who doesn't love Anne?! I loved this wise cracker, spunky and funny girl and always wanted to be like her even though or maybe because I was a complete opposite. It's twenty years later and I still can't get her out of my head :-).





2. House at Pooh Corner by A.A. Milne

Long before Disney came up with their version of Winnie, Piglet and the gang, there had been this awesome book that really is a million times better than the Disney characters. I remember borrowing it from the library and reading it in one night and then after it was returned harping on my friends to read it faster so I could borrow it again (there was only one copy in the school library).




3. Comet in Moominland by Tove Jansson

I am so, so happy that Macmillan decided to introduce these cute Moomintrolls to the American market. As a child I could just never get quite enough of them and it makes my day that it's yet another favorite from my childhood that I can now share with my own kids

The Book List: What Made You Laugh?

Rebecca at Lost In Books came up with a meme that concerns lists. And I know that if you are a blogger and a book lover, you more likely than not love lists. I do! That's why I am so happy to announce the launch of this new meme that will have a new theme each week. Thank you Rebecca!

This week we are to list 3 Book Titles That Made Me Laugh Out Loud When I First Read Them. 

Considering that I actually do not laugh out loud all that much, especially when it comes to reading books, it was surprisingly easy for me to come up with three titles right away.

1. Behold, Here's Poison by Georgette Heyer. It was my very first Heyer's mystery and I just couldn't stop laughing or grunting in an effort to not annoy anyone with my laughter.

2. A Dirty Job by Christopher Moore. I picked it up at my library one day when my daughter was participating in some library activity and I didn't bring my then current read with me. I started spitting my coffee right from the first page and finally had to stop reading because my efforts to contain the laughter where disturbing the library usual quietude.

3. Practical Demonkeeping by Christopher Moore. It's number three but it's actually funnier than A Dirty Job. Before I read it, I'd had no idea that such a thing was even possible. Alas! With this book I didn't even try to not laugh out loud, no matter who got annoyed.