Book Review: 101 Foods That Could Save Your Life By David Grotto

rate } ♠♠♠♠
genre } Food & Drink | Health | Nutrition
release day } 26th December 2007
acquired } 11th February 2009
publisher } Bantam
format } paperback
isbn } 9780553384321
pages } 464 pages
source } bought
age group } G
interest } G
awards } -
Buy @ Amazon.com | Nolly Book | D BookHaus

 

101 Foods That Could Save Your Life
By David Grotto

Via Goodreads
When it comes to food, nature provides a wealth of delicious choices. But each one also supplies unique health benefits. Leading nutritionist David Grotto reveals a wealth of power foods, from apples to yogurt, and explains why

• A handful of cherries before bed can help you sleep better
• Hot peppers may fight skin cancer
• Potatoes may reduce the risk of stroke
• Grape juice may be as heart-healthy as red wine
• Honey can help wounds heal faster

Each entry features a history of a food’s origin, a list of therapeutic benefits, information on scientific research, tips for use and preparation, and an appetizing recipe from a leading chef or nutritionist. Prepare to awaken your taste buds, lose weight, and let the healing begin!

My 2 Cents
I can’t say I have read this in one sitting. I pretty much find this more of a repetitive reference book. It provides you with the origins, where, why home remedies and tells you what it helps improving in your health. Much so, it also provides us with a recipe for easy serving tips.

If you’re expecting pictures, forget about it. It is a full bound text. Yup.. You have to refer to the internet if you want to recognize the food with it’s name. Otherwise it’s a good book.

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Book Review: The Imam’s Daughter by Hannah Shah

rate } ♠♠♠♠
genre } non-fiction | biography | young adult | abuse
release day } 11th May 2010
acquired } 1st February 2012
publisher } Zondervan
format } hardcover
isbn } 9780310325758
pages } 281 pages
source } bought
age group } pg 18+
interest } G | pg 18+
awards } -
Buy @ Amazon.com | Nolly Book | D BookHaus

The Imam’s Daughter
by Hannah Shah

Via Goodreads
Hannah Shah is an Imam's daughter. She lived the life of a devout Muslim in a family of Pakistani Muslims in England, but behind the front door, she was a caged butterfly. For many years, her father abused her in the cellar of their home.

At sixteen, she discovered a plan to send her to Pakistan for an arranged marriage, and she gathered the courage to run away. Relentlessly hunted by her angry father and brothers, who were intent on executing an 'honor' killing, she moved from house to house in perpetual fear to escape them.

Over time, she converted to Christianity and was able to live and marry as she wished.
Hannah found the courage to live her life free from shame, free from religious intolerance, and free from the abuse that haunted her childhood.
This is a remarkable true story of how a young girl escaped a life of torture ... a story you won't forget.

My 2 Cents
Covers. There are a few different covers for this title and all of them intrigues me. This is however the most what I could say “nice”. She looked happy in this cover. This book has two other covers.

This other cover has a child on it, looking all lonely and intimidated. Enough by itself in making you want to pick it up and read what is wrong.

The other cover looked  more grown up and has that look in her eyes, the hidden determination but lost.

Both has the power to entice the reader to pick it up and read.

Now let’s talk about this book. I admit, I have befallen by the title itself. Imam. The head of a small Islamic community. What can go wrong with that right? Wrong! I read the back summary and that was just so heart wrenching.

It’s actually hard to read. Not because it’s a bad book, the people in it are bad. I feel sorry for Hannan (Hannah’s Muslim name) for growing up in such a household and community.

I hope nobody would read this book and say that’s how Muslims are in real life.

Her father tarnished the good name of the Islamic religion. He’s a hypocrite. An arrogant fool! A rapist! An abuser! An ignorant! He doesn’t represent the Islamic world. It saddens me how so brainwashed everybody is in Hannah’s life, that nobody in her own community is willing to help her (except for her best friends) Her brothers refused to helped her when their father raped her nor beat their mother. it appalled me to read her mother seemed to be relieved Hannah got beaten and rape by her husband, so he won’t attack her.

I feel sorry Hannan felt she no choice but leave her own religion just because she’s escaping from her own life, terrified by her own family and her own community just to save herself. It left me angry, that even her social worker (the Muslim guy) didn’t help her at all. He’s probably the defining period for her.  

This book left me with that awful after taste at the back of my tongue.

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Book Review: Goddess Interrupted (Goddess Test 2); By Aimee Carter

rate } ♠♠♠♠♠ ♥
genre } fiction | mythology | young adult | romance
release day } 27th March 2012
acquired } 22th January 2012
publisher } HarlequinTeen
format } paperback
isbn } 9780373210459
pages } 307 pages
source } ARC
age group } 18+
interest } 18+
awards } -
Buy @ Amazon.com | Nolly Book | D BookHaus

 

Goddess Interrupted (Goddess Test 2)
By Aimee Carter

Via Goodreads
Kate Winters has won immortality.

But if she wants a life in the Underworld with Henry, she’ll have to fight for it.

Becoming immortal wasn’t supposed to be the easy part. Though Kate is about to be crowned Queen of the Underworld, she’s as isolated as ever. And despite her growing love for Henry, ruler of the Underworld, he’s becoming ever more distant and secretive. Then, in the midst of Kate’s coronation, Henry is abducted by the only being powerful enough to kill him: the King of the Titans.

As the other gods prepare for a war that could end them all, it is up to Kate to save Henry from the depths of Tartarus. But in order to navigate the endless caverns of the Underworld, Kate must enlist the help of the one person who is the greatest threat to her future.

Henry’s first wife, Persephone.

My 2 Cents
I actually finished reading this last week, but I have yet find the time to write a review. Why? I need time to sink in. Cliffhanger hurts so bad. *limp ears*

Most of my friends I have been waiting with anticipation to read this book since I’ve finished reading The Goddess Test last year. It was a wonderful book back then and I wanted to read the sequel. Aimee Carter didn’t disappoint me, but still cliffhanger hurts so bad…

Cover. It is beautiful! enticing and scream want to know my secret? Love it!

Extremely a page turner. Brooding Henry. Hot James. Lovable Kate. Adorable Ava. Intimidating Calliope. Lovable characters. The plot just won’t slow down. When I put it down for chore or work I can’t wait to pick it up as soon as I could. Some scenes are tearjerkers. The ones who have read it would know which and why. I feel sorry for both Kate and Henry…

Overall… wow.. It was just as I have expected and more (the cliffhanger though.. No I won’t let that one go Aimee.. you have hooked me for the next one!)

P/S ADONIS IS HOT!

I can’t wait for the next book! (yeah I know Harlequin and I don’t mix, but this series is just awesome!

Library? Since I’m a high school librarians, as much as I wanted to put this on the shelves, I can’t. :( There are just some scenes (yup those scenes) are the reason why. But yeah, it is a Harlequin.. so I’m not really that surprise either.

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Children Book Review: Garbage! Monster! Burp! By Tom Watson

rate } ♠♠♠♠♠
genre } fiction | picture book | children
release day } 9th March 2011
acquired } 15th January 2012
publisher } Tom Watson
format } e-book
isbn } B004RCNVWG
pages } e-book
source } bought
age group } children
interest } all ages
awards } -
Buy @ Amazon.com | Nolly Book | D BookHaus

Garbage! Monster! Burp!
By Tom Watson

Via Goodreads
A monster at the bottom of a hill eats all of the garbage generated by the town on top of the hill. This provides two important benefits: The monster is happy with plenty to eat and the town stays nice and clean. Unfortunately, as the town grows, so does the amount of garbage the monster must consume. He gets bigger - and he starts burping. This is, as you can probably guess, a bit unsightly and stinky. In the end, the kids figure out how to solve the problem - despite the nasty mayor's doubts and objections.

My 2 Cents
I was surfing through the Kindle collections via Amazon.com when I found this odd (free too) ever so curious little title.

Cover. it does makes me curious when there’s not a peek of said monster on it. So I thought sure.. give it a try. Love the “blue” cover.

Overall verdict, if you like Dr Seuss, you would like this. I do feel sorry for the monster. Such an evil mayor. :( But I do like the way this story goes where it showed kids can make a different.

This would be a good quick read. To bad it’s not available in print, or I would have get it for my school library, cause I know they would actually enjoy reading it

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2012 Fairy Tales Challenge

 
January 1, 2012 – December 31, 2012
Hosted by Tif Talks Books
I am so excited to announce that the Fairy Tale Challenge is returning for 2012!  For all those who love fairy tales, both in writing and on the screen, this is your opportunity to share your love with other fans.  Just as last year, we will have four different levels:

• Fairy (Level 1):  Read 1 original tale.  Read 1 modern tale.  Watch 1 film.  (Total of 3 selections.)
• Dwarf (Level 2):  Read/watch any combination of original tales, modern tales, or films, resulting in a total of 6 selections.
• Royal Prince or Princess (Level 3):  Read/watch any combination of original tales, modern tales, or films, resulting in 9 total selections.
• Happily Ever After (Level 4):  Read/watch any combination of original tales, modern tales, or films, resulting in 12 total selections.

Here are a few other notes of importance:

• The challenge will run from January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2012.
• Selections can include any age level or genre, from picture books and classics to young adult and even graphic novels.  Creativity is completely acceptable here!
• You do not need to determine your list of fairy tales.  Go with what moves you at the time!
• A blog is not required, but it is encouraged.  You are also welcome to keep track of your selections via GoodReads, LibraryThing, Shelfari, or simply the comment section.
• Reviews are not required, but are encouraged.  Other participants enjoy receiving recommendations!
• A Mr. Linky is below for sign-ups.  Another post will be made for adding your reviews.  Both direct links can be found on the left sidebar.
• You can overlap your choices with other challenges.

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2012 Dewey Decimal Challenge

 
January 1, 2012 – December 31, 2012
Hosted by The Introverted Reader

The Challenge:  Read any non-fiction book(s), adult or young adult. That's it. You can choose anything. Poetry? Yes. Memoirs? Yes. History? Yes. Travel? Yes. You get the idea? Absolutely anything that is classified as non-fiction counts for this challenge.

I always like levels in my challenges, so here are mine:

Dilettante--Read 1-5 non-fiction books
Explorer--Read 6-10
Seeker--Read 11-15
Master--Read 16-20

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2012 The Doctor Reading Challenge

Rules
*challenge runs 1 January to 31 December 2012 - any books must be read in the 2012 calendar year to count
*any format is allowed
*cross-overs between challenges allowed
*link your post/reviews from your blog, goodreads, shelfari, librarything or the comments section (no blog necessary!)
*no list is needed beforehand - you can choose as you go (or change your choices!)

First Doctor - read 2 Doctor Who books
Second Doctor - read 5 Doctor Who books
Third Doctor - read 10 Doctor Who books
Fourth Doctor - read 15 Doctor Who books
Fifth Doctor - read 20 Doctor Who books
Sixth Doctor - read 25 Doctor Who books
Seventh Doctor - read 30 Doctor Who books
Eighth Doctor - read 40 Doctor Who books
Ninth Doctor - read 50 Doctor Who books
Tenth Doctor - read 75 Doctor Who books
Eleventh Doctor - read 100+ Doctor Who books

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2012 Read Dystopia Challenge

January 1, 2012 – December 31, 2012
Hosted by Book Journey

List of books.

1-3 Dytstopia Books read in 2012:  beginner
4-6 Dystopia Books read in 2012:  Intermediate Post World Trainee
7-10 Dystopia Books read in 2012:  Leader of Your District
11+ Dystopia Books read in 2012:  SURVIVOR!

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2012 Ebook Challenge

The 2011 E-book Challenge was hosted by The Ladybug Reads. She has decided not to host it for 2012, and I was the lucky lottery winner who gets to host it. That's right, there was so much interest from people wanting to host it that she had to hold a lottery.
Challenge Guidelines:

1. This challenge will run from Jan 1, 2012 - Dec 31, 2012.
2. Anyone can join, you don't need to be a blogger. If you don't have a blog, feel free to sign-up in the comments. You can post reviews to any book site (i.e. Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, Goodreads, etc).
3. Any genre or length of book counts, as long as it is in ebook format.
4. You can list your books in advance or just put them in a wrap-up post. If you list them, feel free to change them as the mood takes you.
5. When you sign up in the linky, put the direct link to your post about joining the E-Book Reading Challenge.
6. You can move up levels, but no moving down.
7. Sign-ups will be open until Dec 15, 2012, so feel free to join at any time throughout the year.

Levels:

1. Floppy disk - 5 ebooks
2. CD - 10 ebooks
3. DVD - 25 ebooks
4. Memory stick - 50 ebooks
5. Hard drive - 75 ebooks
6. Server - 100 ebooks
7. Human brain - 150 ebooks

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Back to the Classics Challenge 2012

January 2012 – December 2012

• Any 19th Century Classic
• Any 20th Century Classic
• Reread a classic of your choice
• A Classic Play
• Classic Mystery/Horror/Crime Fiction
• Classic Romance
• Read a Classic that has been translated from its original language to your languange  - To clarify, if your native language is NOT English, you may read any classic originally written in English that has been translated into your native language.  
• Classic Award Winner - To clarify, the book should be a classic which has won any established literary award.  
• Read a Classic set in a Country that you (realistically speaking) will not visit during your lifetime - To Clarify, this does not have to be a country that you hope to visit either.  Countries that no longer exist or have never existed count.

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Mount TBR Reading Challenge

Mount TBR Reading Challenge
Hosted by My Reader’s Block
January 1 to December 31, 2012

Challenge Levels
Pike's Peak: Read 12 books from your TBR pile/s (gonna upgrade from here)
Mt. Vancouver: Read 25 books from your TBR pile/s
Mt. Ararat: Read 40 books from your TBR piles/s
Mt. Kilimanjaro: Read 50 books from your TBR pile/s
El Toro: Read 75 books from your TBR pile/s
Mt. Everest: Read 100+ books from your TBR pile/s


And the rules:
*Once you choose your challenge level, you are locked in for at least that many books. If you find that you're on a mountain-climbing roll and want to tackle a taller mountain, then you are certainly welcome to upgrade.

*You may sign up anytime from now until November 30th, 2012.

*Books must be owned by you prior to January 1, 2012. No ARCs (none), no library books. No rereads. [To clarify--based on a question raised--the intention is to reduce the stack of books that you have bought for yourself or received as presents {birthday, Christmas, "just because," etc.}. Audiobooks may count if they are yours and they are one of your primary sources of backlogged books.]

*Books may be used to count for other challenges as well.

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2012 Paranormal Reading Challenge

The challenge is for ANY paranormal with the exception of vampires.  They have their own challenge.

Rules:

• Starts January 1, 2012 and ends December 31, 2012
• Anyone can join
• You don’t have to have a blog to participate.
• Non-Bloggers feel free to share your list of books in the comment section of the monthly link up post.
• Reviews though not required are always nice.
• Audio, E-books, Bound and re-reads all count
• There is no need to come up with your list of books in advance.
• Challenge crossovers ok
• Create a sign up post and link up in the linky below.

Levels:

Level 1 – Read 1-5 Paranormal Novels
Level 2 – Read 6-10 Paranormal Novels
Level 3 – Read 11-20 Paranormal Novels
Level 4 – Read 21+ Paranormal Novels

 

My Choice:
Let’s Try with Level 1 first

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2012 100+ Books Reading Challenge

January 1, 2012 – December 31, 2012
Rules:
Starts January 1, 2012 and ends December 31, 2012

• Anyone can join
• You don’t have to have a blog to participate.
• Non-Bloggers feel free to share your list of books in the comment section of the monthly link up post.
• Reviews though not required are always nice.
• Audio, E-books, Bound and re-reads all count
• There is no need to come up with your list of books in advance.
• Challenge crossovers ok
• Create a sign up post and link up using the linky.
• The goal of this challenge is to read 100+ books during 2012.

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January 1, 2012 - December 31, 2012
Hosted by: My Overstuffed Bookshelf
Details/Rules:
1. The goal is to read 150 or more books. Anyone can join. You don't need a blog to participate. Posting on GoodReads or wherever you post your reviews is good enough.
2. Allowed are: Audio, Re-reads, eBooks, YA, Manga, Graphic Novels, Library books, Novellas, Young Reader, Nonfiction – as long as the book has an ISBN or equivalent or can be purchased as such, the book counts.
What doesn't count: Individual short stories or individual books in the Bible.
3. No need to list your books in advance. You may select books as you go. Even if you list them now, you can change the list if needed.
4. Crossovers from other reading challenges count.
5. Challenge begins January 1st, 2012 thru December 31, 2012. Books started before the 1st do not count. You can join at anytime.
6. When you sign up under Linky, put the direct link to your post where your books will be listed. Include the URL to this post so that other viewers can find this fun challenge. If you’d prefer to put your list in the sidebar of your blog, please leave your viewers the link to the sign up page. Again, so viewers can join the challenge too.

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1. Amalan 24 Jam dalam kehidupan Rasulullah; Zulkarnain Dollah
2. Kuasa Iqra: Menguasai Dunia, Menikmati Akhirat; Zulkifli Mohamad Al-Bakri
3. Substituting Ingredients
4. How to Roast a Lamb
5. How to Cook Everything; Mark Bittman
6. Food Rules: Michael Pollan
7. Fifty Shades of Grey; E.L James
8. Snow White, Blood Red; Cameron Jace
9. Princess of the Midnight ball; Jessica Day George
10. Emily the Strange
11. Once Upon a Crime; Michael Buckley
12. The problem Child; Michael Buckley
13. The Unusual Suspects; Michael Buckley
14. The Wall; Eve Bunting
15. Burger Boy; Alan Durant
16. The Boy Who Wouldn’t Swim; Deb Lucke
17. Night Tree; Eve Bunting
18. Dragon’s Breath; E. D. Baker
19. The Merry Shipwreck; George Duplaix
20. The witch in the Cherry Tree; Margaret Mahy
21. Lentil; Robert McCloskey
22. Tiny Little Fly; Michael Rosen
23. Franklin Rides a Bike; Paulette Bourgeois
24. Cut; Cathy Glass
25. Happy Birthday, Moon; Frank Ash
26. Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life; James Patterson
27. Pilot & Huxley; Dan McGuiness
28. The Bad Widow; Barbara Elsborg
29. Medusa The Mean; Joan Holub
30. The Beast Beneath the Stairs; Michael Dahl
31. The Book That Dripped Blood; Michael Dahl
32. The Creeping Bookends; Michael Dahl
33. The Eye in the Graveyard; Michael Dahl
34. The Smashing Scroll; Michael Dahl
35. Escape from Pop-Up Prison; Michael Dahl
36. Poison Pages; Michael Dahl
37. The Twister Trap; Michael Dahl
38. The Word Eater; Michael Dahl
39. The Frog Princess; E. D. Baker
40. The Monster at the end of this book; Jon Stone
41. Dear Bully; Megan Kelley Hall
42. The Fairy-Tale Detectives; Michael Buckley
43. The Serpent’s Shadow; Rick Riordan
44. WWE Triple H
45. Heck; Dale E. Basye
46. What Did We Use Before Toilet Paper?; Andrew Thompson
47. The 100 Most Influential Women of All Time; Kathleen Kuiper
48. John Cena
49. Great Migrations; Laura Marsh
50. How to Help the Earth – The Lorax; Tish rabe
51. The Addicted Brain; Michael Kuhar
52. What Einstein Told His Barber; Robert L. Wolke
53. The librarian from the black lagoon; Mike Thaler
54. Julia’s Kitchen Wisdom; Julia Child
55. How to be a Gentleman; John Bridges
56. Thomas and Friends; The Close Shave; Wilbert Awdry
57. Best in the world; Chris Powling
58. The Girl in the Mirror; Cathy Glass
59. The Girl Nobody Wants; Lily O’Brien
60. 1001 Sexcapades to do if you dare; Bobbi Dempsey
61. 101 Foods that Could save your life; David Grotto
62. The babysitter’s seduction; Kelli Wolfe
63. The Gym teacher from the Black Lagoon; Mike Thaler
64. The Imam’s Daughter; Hannah Shah
65. Birthday Suit; Olive Senior
66. Up Dog; H.J Hutchins
67. Up Cat:; H.J. Hutchins
68. Bound for the Holidays; Mackenzie McKade
69. Goddess Interrupted; Aimee Carter
70. 100 Must-read life-changing books; Nicholas Rennison
71. Twisting up a storm; Cheryl Duksta
72. The princess and the Moon; Daisaku Ikeda
73. The Lipstick Laws; Amy Holder

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2012 Read Your Own Books Reading Challenge

• Starts January 1, 2012 and ends December 31, 2012
• Anyone can join
• You don’t have to have a blog to participate.
• Non-Bloggers feel free to share your list of books in the comment section of the monthly link up post.
• Reviews though not required are always nice.
• Audio, E-books, Bound all count
• Re-reads DO NOT count
• There is no need to come up with your list of books in advance.
• Challenge crossovers ok

My Choice: Level 1 – Read 1-5 Your Own Books

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2012 Paranormal Romance Reading Challenge

January 1, 2012 – December 31, 2012
Hosted by: Tales from the Crypt

Rules:

• Starts January 1, 2012 and ends December 31, 2012
• Anyone can join
• You don’t have to have a blog to participate.
• Non-Bloggers feel free to share your list of books in the comment section of the monthly link up post.
• Reviews though not required are always nice.
• Audio, E-books, Bound and re-reads all count
• There is no need to come up with your list of books in advance.
• Challenge crossovers ok
• Create a sign up post and link up in the linky below.

Levels:

Level 1 – Read 1-5 Paranormal Romances
Level 2 – Read 6-10 Paranormal Romances
Level 3 – Read 11-20 Paranormal Romances
Level 4 – Read 21+ Paranormal Romances

My Choice: Level 1 (1- 5 books)

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2012 Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge

January 1, 2012 – December 31, 2012

What’s your reading goal for 2012? If it’s to read more books, then this is the reading challenge for you There were 227 readers who wanted to outdo themselves in 2011. Are you up for the challenge?

Details:

• Runs January 1, 2012 – December 31, 2012 (books read prior to 1/1/12 do not count towards the challenge). You can join at anytime. Sign up on The Book Vixen’s blog.
• The goal is to outdo yourself by reading more books in 2012 than you did in 2011. See the different levels below and pick the one that works best for you. Nothing is set in stone; you can change levels at any time during the challenge.
• Books can be any format (bound, eBook, audio).
• Re-reads and crossovers from other reading challenges are allowed.
• Grab the reading challenge button and post this reading challenge on your blog to track your progress. Please include a link back to this sign-up post so others can join the reading challenge too. You do not have to be a book blogger to participate; you could track your progress on Goodreads or LibraryThing.

Levels:

Getting my heart rate up – Read 1–5 more books
Out of breath – Read 6–10 more books
Breaking a sweat – Read 11–15 more books
I’m on fire! – Read 16+ more books


My Choice
Let’s try Getting my heart rate up (1-5 books)

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New Author Challenge 2012

January 1 – December 31, 2012
Hosted by: Literary Escapism

It’s the fourth year for the New Author Challenge and I’m hoping everyone is still enjoying this reading challenge.  Last year I attempted to do more mini-challenges and wasn’t that successful. So this year I’m not going to promise that I’ll be more consistent with them, but I will say that I am going to attempt to do a few during 2012. So we’ll see if I can’t do better this year.

For those new to the New Author Challenge, the whole idea started when I first started book blogging. I didn’t know that many authors in my favored genre, so I went looking.  I gave myself a goal of finding 50 new authors and ended up reading 56 the first year I did this.  I loved finding these new worlds and cultures, so I want to help others find new ones as well.  Since 2007, I’ve tried over 100 different authors I may not have tried otherwise and I have found some great authors.

The idea behind this is to find new authors that you’ve never tried before, not necessarily ones that are debuting.  They can be in your genre of choice or be brave and try something new.  You never know what you’re going to like until you try it.  If you’re looking for some suggestions, you can check out the Author page here at Literary Escapism or the 2009,2010 and 2011 Challenge pages.  With over 1000 reviews posted, I’m sure there will be something there for everyone.

Here are the guidelines:

1. The challenge will run from January 1, 2012 through December 31, 2012.
2. Since this is an author challenge, there is no restriction on choosing your novels. They can definitely be from other challenges. However, the authors must be new to you and, preferably from novels.  Anthologies are a great way to try someone new, but only a third of your new authors can be from anthologies.
3. I want this to be an easy challenge, so you can pick to do either 15, 25 or 50 new authors.  It all depends on how fast you read and how adventurous you want to be.  For me, I want to say I’m going to do another 50 new authors, but with two kids, I didn’t made my goal in 2011, so I’m going to be smarter and say 25.  If you reach your goal halfway through the year, don’t stop.  Any new author you try can be added to Mr. Linky.  We all want to know about your new experience.
4. After reading your new author, write your review and then come back here and add your link to Mr. Linky.  Make sure you include your name and the author, but adding the title is completely up to you.
5. Bloggers or Non-Bloggers alike are welcome. You don’t have to have a site to participate. You can link up via Facebook, GoodReads or even Amazon if you’d like.

Once you reach your goal, you don’t have to stop.  Any new author you try, go ahead and head back here and add it to the list.  Introduce us all to whoever you find.  Afterall, there’s no reason to stop trying new authors, right?



My Choice
Let’s try with 15 first

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2012 Young Adult Reading Challenge

January 1, 2012 - December 31, 2012

The Rules:

• Anyone can join.
• You don't need a blog to participate.
• Non-Bloggers: Post your list of books in the comment section of the wrap-up post on Jamie's blog.
• Audio, eBooks, paper, re-reads all count.
• No need to list your books in advance. You may select books as you go. Even if you list them now, you can change the list if needed.

There are four levels:

1. The Mini YA Reading Challenge – Read 12 Young Adult novels.
2. The "Fun Size" YA Reading Challenge – Read 20 Young Adult novels.
3. The Jumbo Size YA Reading Challenge – Read 40 Young Adult novels.
4. The Mega size YA Reading Challenge – Read 50+ Young Adult novels.

My Choice
I’m going to start low at “The Mini YA Reading Challenge at 12 YA books” and the I’ll upgrade from there.

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2012 "Bucket List" Book Reading Challenge

Rules:
1. Challenge starts on January 1, 2012 and goes until December 31, 2012.
2. You don't need a blog to participate.
3. Create a "sign up" post and link to the linky.
4. There are 4 levels to this challenge....
      a. The Mini Cooper level - 4 "bucket" list books
      b. The Mid-sized Sedan level - 8 "bucket" list books
      c. The Pick Up level - 12 "bucket" list books
      d. The Semi level - 13 or more "bucket" list books
NOTE:  I am adding a stipulation to this challenge.  If you originally decided to start small with the Mini Cooper level and decide to upgrade that is fine.  But once you decide to go big you can NOT downgrade.
5. Each month a review link will be posted.  Please feel free to link up your reviews where ever you happen to post them...your blog, goodreads, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, etc.

Sample "Bucket" Lists:
YAReads
"Bucket List" Books

My Choice
The Mini Cooper level!: 4 books

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2012 Banned/Challenged Book Reading Challenge

We all know that there is a whole week devoted to Banned and Challenged books.  But why stop at a week?!  Why not a whole YEAR?!
Rules:

• Anyone can join
• You don't need a blog to participate.  For non-bloggers, please leave a comment with a link (if you review somewhere else) to the review or leave a list of the books you read on the monthly link up post.

• Audio, ebooks, and bound books are ok.

• No re-reads

• Create a sign up post and post the link in the linky.

• Challenge goes from January 1, 2012 - December 31, 2012

• Challenge Crossovers are ok.

Levels:
Level 1 - Read 12 Banned/Challenged books
Level 2 - Read 24 Banned/Challenged books
Level 3 - Read 36 Banned/Challenged books
Level 4 - Read 37+ Banned/Challenged books

Goodreads Lists to refer to:
The Most Frequently Challenged Books
Banned Books
Popular Challenged Books

American Library Association Links:
Banned & Challenged Classics
100 Most Frequently Challenged Books: 1990 –1999
Top 100 Banned/Challenged Books: 2000 – 2009


My Choice:
Let’s do with Level 1 first

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