Thursday, August 28, 2014

Review: Anya's Ghost

So I haven't reviewed anything lately and I decided I would try and start back up again with this graphic novel I read earlier on this month. Might fool around my reviewing format as well...
by Vera Brosgol
★★★★★

Synopsis:

Anya could really use a friend. But her new BFF isn’t kidding about the “Forever” part . . . Of all the things Anya expected to find at the bottom of an old well, a new friend was not one of them. Especially not a new friend who’s been dead for a century. Falling down a well is bad enough, but Anya’s normal life might actually be worse. She’s embarrassed by her family, self-conscious about her body, and she’s pretty much given up on fitting in at school. A new friend—even a ghost—is just what she needs. Or so she thinks. Spooky, sardonic, and secretly sincere, Anya’s Ghost is a wonderfully entertaining debut from author/artist Vera Brosgol (description taken from Shelfari).



My Review:

So it is no surprise that I loved this book if my rating is any hint to that. I actually had seen if before around our library several times and had not ever really considered checking it out before now. But I have read quite a few graphic novels this summer and I guess that made it seem more intriguing than it ever had before. It really was not what I was expecting, though, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. I didn't really know anything about it before picking it up and I must say I'm glad of it because it just made it so much more interesting and engaging. I wasn't sure where it was going at first, but then there were subtle hints scattered throughout that did begin to suggest an approaching plot twist.

My own thoughts before reading it were that the main character, Anya, was the ghost. This, of course, is not true, but the lead in also made me think otherwise. Of course, if you were to actually read the description, you would know otherwise. Anya is a self conscious teenager of Russian heritage just trying to fit in at her school. She only has one real friend (who I was under the impression for a better part of the book was a guy), and they sneak off in the middle of lectures and to avoid gym class just to catch a quick smoke. 

After Anya's unfortunate fall down a well, she meets a young girl's ghost. The story follows along as the ghost at first seems to want to help Anya: both in her schoolwork and social life. The ghost's real intentions soon become quite clear and it does take a rather unexpected darker turn. I actually really liked this sinister spin as well, since it seemed more like a gloomy but not terribly thrilling story to begin with. I would say that over all it is a rather nice mix of humor, mystery, social identity, and a bit of high school drama…but not too much. :P


Recommendations (slight spoilers):

This is definitely a book I would recommend. It feels like such a nice, October read. I will probably be rereading it soon. :)

My suggestion would be 16+. One of my libraries considers it YA level while the other, AF. There are a few mature themes involved and it might seem a bit creepy at parts for very young readers, but over all this book is very light and lacking in language (I really don't recall much, if any), suggestive content (high school partying), and violence (there is brief mentioning of a vengeful murder).


Saturday, August 23, 2014

Flashback Friday XXXI: Saturday Edition

Oops, forgot to do this yesterday. So like I summarized on my movie blog, had a rather busy, fun filled last week of summer vacation. Also haven't really been able to keep up with most prompts but I hope to keep some kind of schedule during the school year. I seem to have better luck with that, actually, since I use my free time more wisely I think. :P So I was able to go to the beach earlier on this week, had a nice get together with one friend, got some reading done, no work, and tried not to think about school and money and bleh... I hope to get out some reviews next week, and next month, but I just have to, well, write them...

I won't be doing a Sunday post tomorrow, since I haven't been to the library...

So here's this week's read... :)


Manga/GN:

★★★★
★★★★
★★★★☆
★★★★
★★★★☆

Sunday, August 17, 2014

Showcase Sunday / The Sunday Post / Stacking the Shelves XXVII

This week's haul... Wow, I feel like I'm forgetting something. Hope to get some serious reading done tomorrow at the beach. ;P ...and this week since I took off before classes start back up again... *sighs* (sorry no pictures this week, too busy)

Bought:

Hardy Boys 1, 7, & 37


Borrowed:



Friday, August 15, 2014

Flashback Friday XXX

So didn't get to my Tuesday/Wednesday posts for this week, unfortunately. I was going to go on a beach trip, but we got rained out which was a bummer. And it looks like on our backup date we'll get rained out as well. *sighs* Anyway...this week's read...



57. Bleach 61
★★★★☆

58. The Return of Zita the Spacegirl
★★★


Sunday, August 10, 2014

Showcase Sunday / The Sunday Post / Stacking the Shelves XXVI

This week's haul... Stopped by one of my favorite used bookstores and found a few treasures. Hope to go back soon...


Bought:


 

Nancy Drew 39 & 54



Borrowed:

Friday, August 8, 2014

Flashback Friday XXIX

This week's read... I think taking such a long break from this series (and Bleach) boosted up my ratings...otherwise, I probably would've been tired of them by now. I wonder which will end first. I'm assuming it will be Naruto.....


Manga/GN/Comic:

★★★★☆


Wednesday, August 6, 2014

Top 5 Wednesday VIII

Haven't done one of these since April, either...




August 6: Top 5 Blue Covers (of books you own)


5.

The Thief Lord
I've always just loved this cover...

4.
Technically, this isn't the cover I own but it is the cover that originally caught my attention and I wanted when I bought the book (but didn't get). *sighs*

3.
I was having the hardest time coming up with five blue book covers, and had several others I was debating including...and then I thought: What the hey!? Harry Potter! I mean, this cover is freaking awesome..... 

2.

Storm
Mmm...Merrick brothers...

1.
Mmmmmm...Anthony De La Cruz.... ;P


Tuesday, August 5, 2014

Top Ten Tuesday X

Wow...so the last time I did one of these was waaaay back in April. Thought I should try and get back into it before I get crazy busy again in the fall...




August 5Top Ten Books I'd Give To Readers Who Have Never Read X 
(examples: New Adult novels, historical fiction, a certain author, books about a certain topic, etc)

Well, normally I would go with fantasy/ya for a prompt like this, but I thought for this week I'd recommend some manga for once. :)

10.


9.


8.


7.


6.


5.


4.


3.


2.


1.



There's a lot more I could definitely recommend but this consists mostly of my favorites or the very first manga series that I picked up. :) This is also a very varied list, consisting mostly of battle manga/fantasy, with a few being less violent than others, and a few gentler plots. If you would like a specific recommendation, feel free to ask. And yes I included Bleach, even though it is super long. Could've included Naruto as well I guess since I've been trying to catch up in both but I went with that instead....

Sunday, August 3, 2014

Showcase Sunday / The Sunday Post / Stacking the Shelves XXV




This week's haul...


Bought/Free:



Well, this was a freebie from my library's break-room so I decided to snatch it up since it looks pretty interesting...



Went to the mall this past week and stopped by this neat little bookstore that I've only ever been in once. Didn't even realize there was more to this series (which I read several years ago) and I decided to splurge...


Bought this on a whim because I've been meaning to complete my collection...and this was the cheapest volume at the moment...and I needed free shipping. :P


Borrowed:



I think my brother might have read the first volume of this series a few years ago but it didn't really catch my attention as well back then. Gonna try and give it another whirl...



Already read. Review coming soon! :D



Decided I should try and go back to finish this series...even though there might be 40 some volumes, not sure... But it's fun and interesting.




Seems I've been giving graphic novels a bit more of a chance this summer. This was also on the summer reading list and the cover's stood out to me before on several occasions...


Saturday, August 2, 2014

Currently Reading: Manga Edition V

And here's the manga... :P


Reading:

TBR:

Amulet 1, 2, 3, 4
Case Closed 7 & 8
Blue Exorcist 10 & 11
Azumanga Daioh 2, 3, & 4
Afterschool Charisma 9
Jiu Jiu 5
Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days 1
Return of Zita the Spacegirl

I have a huge pile, actually, but this is the main stuff I want to get to first...

Currently Reading V

Haven't done one of these in awhile, but I figured I should start doing it again. So here's all that I'm currently working on and what I would like to get to before the month is through... I had a much longer mental list for what I wanted to accomplish this summer but since August is here already, I thought I'd be a bit more practical. Hopefully, I'll finish all these at the very least... *crosses fingers*


Reading:


TBR:


TBContinued/Restarted:

Friday, August 1, 2014

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