Coveted Cover: The Emerald Atlas

The Emerald Atlas by John Stephens

I think that the cover for The Emerald Atlas really captures what the book is about. Fantasy, adventure, darkness, three children and magic. I haven't read it yet so I'm hoping that the story is as good as the cover, I've heard good things about it so I'm eager to get to it soon. John Stephens worked in television for ten years and was the executive producer of Gossip Girls and a writer for The Gilmore Girls (one of my favourite TV shows) and The O.C. so with those things under his belt I'm hoping that The Emerald Atlas will be great. He also has a dog called Bug which I love.

From Goodreads:

Kate, Michael, and Emma have been in one orphanage after another for the last ten years, passed along like lost baggage. 

Yet these unwanted children are more remarkable than they could possibly imagine. Ripped from their parents as babies, they are being protected from a horrible evil of devastating power, an evil they know nothing about. 

Until now. 

Before long, Kate, Michael, and Emma are on a journey to dangerous and secret corners of the world...a journey of allies and enemies, of magic and mayhem. And—if an ancient prophesy is correct—what they do can change history, and it is up to them to set things right.

Review: The Haunting of Charity Delafield by Ian Beck

Read my full review of The Haunting of Charity Delafield at Mostly Reading YA.

My rating: 3/5

 Ian Beck is a man who knows not just how to write, but how to write well and The Haunting of Charity Delafield is definitely a wonderful novel for children. From start to finish I liked every character I encountered, even Charity’s controlling father because despite his apparent harshness you could see that he loved her. However I can’t say that I loved any of the characters...

Page Turners: Goodbye Tsugumi

Sadly I am still struggling my way through The Goddess Test. It isn't bad. The writing is good, I even quite like the characters but there is just so little happening that I am having to make myself sit and read it, rather than with most books where I actually want to read it.

So instead I will share with you a book I read many years ago but still find myself thinking fondly off.

Goodybye Tsugumi by Banana Yoshimoto

Would you believe that I found this book in a bargain bin for just 50p? I was about 15 at the time and I loved the look of the cover so I picked it up and bought it without even bothering to see what it was about. It was this book that caused me to fall in love with Japanese novels and later led to my interest in anime and manga. This book is also tiny at only 186 pages so you can read it easily in a few hours, perfect for train journeys. I need to find more of Banana Yoshimoto's books to read.

From Goodreads:

Banana Yoshimoto's novels of young life in Japan have made her an international sensation. Goodbye Tsugumi is an offbeat story of a deep and complicated friendship between two female cousins that ranks among her best work. Maria is the only daughter of an unmarried woman. She has grown up at the seaside alongside her cousin Tsugumi, a lifelong invalid, charismatic, spoiled, and occasionally cruel. Now Maria's father is finally able to bring Maria and her mother to Tokyo, ushering Maria into a world of university, impending adulthood, and a "normal" family. When Tsugumi invites Maria to spend a last summer by the sea, a restful idyll becomes a time of dramatic growth as Tsugumi finds love and Maria learns the true meaning of home and family. She also has to confront both Tsugumi's inner strength and the real possibility of losing her. Goodbye Tsugumi is a beguiling, resonant novel from one of the world's finest young writers.

Listen To This: Jasmine Ash

Jasmine Ash - Starlight

This song was used in a Ferrero Rocher advert and since I first saw the advert I loved the song so tracked it down on good old Youtube.

Also, for anyone out there you happens to live under a rock...

The Hobbit trailer HD

Review: Arcadia Awakens by Kai Meyer

Read the my full review of Arcadia Awakens at Mostly Reading YA.

My Rating: 4/5

"When I first read the synopsis of Arcadia Awakens I knew I had to read it. Then I saw the cover and I was totally convinced. I couldn't wait for my copy to drop through the letterbox and when it did arrive, I wasn't let down..." 

Words Of Advice

Words Of Advice For 2012

A Cautionary Comic For Writers by Debbie Ohi

Debbie Ohi is super cool, knowledgeable and funny so I suggest you check out her blog Inkygirl if you haven't already.

I think that her comic makes a much better point than I can. We all say we will do more writing, that we'll make more time for it etc etc etc. But often we end up distracted. I kind of have to be online because of my job (writing copy for websites), because of this blog and because I write and review books so I like to keep informed about what's going on. But that's no excuse for the stupid amount of time I spend just refreshing Facebook and Twitter. I think that every single one of us could do with cutting back a little bit, even if you visit Facebook just one less time than usual that's a good few minutes extra that you could be writing!

Check your email and reply to any emails that are urgent but then try to stay offline until your work is done! Then once that's over you have lots of free time to Facebook, tweet, chat, email, read blogs and generally fritter away the hours on the internet to your hearts content.

My life pretty much revolves around the internet, and that's totally cool because everyone lives different. But we all need to strike a balance.

Also, go outside once in a while. Even if it's just to walk to a bookshop or the library and back.

So here are my words of advice for 2012: Write. Write more. Write lots. Write until you can't stand not writing. Write until it becomes a need, something you have to do. Write because you want to, because you love to, because you can't imagine a life where you're not writing. 

To do list

Johnny Cash's to do list

To do list, 2012 edition!

 Send out my manuscript to agents

 Start a comic

 Continue writing my blog every day

 Write book 3

 Watch more anime

 Read more comics

 Do some form of regular exercise

 Get a puppy and kitten