This is THE book. I have read a handful of motivational books in my years and I have NEVER found a book like "The Traveler's Gift", by Andy Andrews. One of the finance guys at my work lent this to me and I ate it up. Now I am going to buy my own copy so that I can lend it out to everyone I know. This book takes motivation and inspiration to the next level and makes it personal. This is a story about a man named David Ponder. He thinks life can't get any worse. He got laid off at work, and the only job he can find is minimum wage, he is falling behind on his bills, and he finds out his only child needs her tonsils removed which is something he simply cannot afford. Right after he gets this devastating blow his boss fires him. Now he's unemployed, broke, and the only way he can see to save his family is by taking himself out of the equation and leaving them with his life-insurance.
This decision turns out very differently than he could have ever imagined. One second he is spinning on black ice, the next he is opening his eyes in President Truman's office. Truman is expecting him and has some very wise advice for David. He tells him he is only the first of seven people that David will be visiting, and all will have something from their lives to share with him. This includes Christopher Columbus, Anne Frank, King Solomon, and the angel Gabriel. Each person gives David a glimpse into their lives, and leaves him with a decision that will help him have personal success. He returns to his life with these seven decisions written down and is able to turn his life around by following them.
This book is incredible. I don't care who you are or where you are at in life, you can benefit from this book. It's not just some guy saying "I did it! You can too! You have potential!" Those kind of motivational books kill me. This book has seven decisions that are very personal, very real, and apply to everyone. Even if you think you already have the perfect life, you should still read this book. Read it and then share it. The world would be a better place if we all made these decisions. I give this book a very bright and shiny five stars. Read it and let me know what you think!
This book was an unexpected delight. I mean, I knew it would be good, she also wrote the book "Edenbrooke" and I LOVED that one, so I had high expectations for this one. I just didn't know that "Blackmoore", by Julianne Donaldson, would be as good as it actually was. It's my favorite kind of romance because A-it's written in the Regency period and B- the main character, Kate, is an independent woman who doesn't care about societies stupid rules. Kate has made it well known that she never plans to marry. She doesn't care what people say or think about it, she is not going to marry. Instead, she is going to travel to India and escape the life that she has always found intolerable.
The only hitch is that in order to go to India she had to make a deal with her mother, a most uncaring and repulsive woman. Kate has to receive - and reject - three marriage proposals while visiting the seaside home of her most beloved friend Henry. Kate thinks that life couldn't be better. A visit to her friend where she can escape her family, secure three proposals, and then set off straight to India never to return. Once she arrives at Blackmore, however, she realizes that this is going to be a lot harder than she thought. Henry's soon-to-be fiancé shows up and throws a wrench in things, making it very awkward. Then she finds out just how hard it will be to actually get three men to propose to her. In a desperate moment she reaches out to Henry and asks him to help her, but neither of them realized how close it would bring them together and the truth about Kate's decision never to marry finally comes out.
This book was full of delightful little surprises. The author threw in little pieces and details here and there that made the story so fun to read. You fall in love with the characters from the first few pages and you become invested in them. I couldn't put the book down because I HAD to know what was going to happen to my "best friend" Kate. It is a clean fun romance with a main character that could become a fictional role-model to younger girls. It's fairly short and is easy to understand. I give this book five stars and highly recommend it.
My adorable 9-year old little sister, Emma, asked me to read these books and put them on here. She, like myself, is a very avid reader and we try to share books back and forth whenever we find something that will span the age gap between us. She lent me her "Ever After High" books, by Shannon Hale, and they are actually surprisingly good. It is a series consisting of three books that are written about the offspring of all our beloved fairy tale characters. Snow White's daughter, The Huntsman's son, the Evil Queen's daughter, Prince Charming's son...all of these characters that we grew up with have kids of their own who will one day take over for them and live their story. Meaning Snow White's daughter, Apple, will do exactly as she did and get locked up, then live with dwarves, then eat a poisoned apple and be brought back by her prince. Each child carries on the story by doing exactly as their parents did.
The first book, "The Storybook of Legends", gives an intro to all of the characters and then focuses on the relationship between Apple White and Raven Queen, the Evil Queen's daughter. Apple is so excited to live her mom's story and get her happily ever after, but Raven doesn't want to become evil like her mom. Raven rebels and decides to write her own destiny. The danger is that no one knows what will happen to Raven and the rest of the characters from her story, what kind of life will they have if it isn't already written out for them?
The second book, "The Unfairest of Them All", is about the rivalry between the royals - those who wish to follow their destinites, led by Apple White- and the rebels - those who wish to write their own stories, led by Raven Queen. The whole school is divided and friendships are tested as the students are forced to pick a side. The chaos reaches it's climax and the silly and loveable Madeline Hatter, the Mad Hatters daughter, is the one to face the consequences for the way everyone has been acting. With Headmaster Grimm threating to banish Madeline, the royals and rebels must learn to work together to save her.
In the process of saving Maddie, a beast from Wonderland is accidently let free into Ever After High which leads us to the third and final book, "A Wonderlandiful World". With a Jabberwock on the loose spreading it's Wonderland magic everywhere, everything is going topsy-turvy. Chairs are amassing together for payback on the humans and windows are just up and leaving their walls, all will be lost in this madness unless the Wonderlandians (the characters from Wonderland) can brave their way through the ever changing school and kill the dangerous Jabberwock.
These books, though written for kids, are really good. The author has a beautiful way of writing that makes the characters come to life and practically fly off the pages. Each character is so detailed and so unique, you feel like you are right there at Ever After High with them. And they are not childish books, I'm 22 years old and I could hardly put them down. The way they are written is simple enough for someone in elementary school to read and understand, yet complex enough to catch and hold the attention of adults. Plus, I must say that it was fun to be swept away to a world where all of my favorite childhood stories existed together. No matter if you are 10 or 40, I recommend this series to you. Especially if you are looking for a book that you and your child can read together. Let me know how it goes!
I had no idea that this book even existed until one of my girl friends at work lent me her copy. She said it's one of her favorite books and I had to read it. I am indebted to her for telling me about "The Wedding", by Nicholas Sparks, and now you will be indebted to me for telling you about it. This book is the follow-up to "The Notebook", which in itself is an incredible love story. The main characters in "The Wedding" are Wilson and his wife Jane, who is Allie and Noah's daughter. You'd think with in-laws like Allie and Noah that Wilson would have learnt a thing or two about being romantic. Well he didn't, and after thirty years of a marriage completely lacking in the romantics department Jane is no longer in love with her husband and is considering leaving him. Wilson, on the other hand, is more in love with Jane now than ever before, he just doesn't know how to tell her.
The fear of losing something brings out a different side in all of us, especially Wilson. With his wife slipping away and his daughter's upcoming wedding, he decides that now is the time to take action. He becomes uncharacteristically thoughtful and starts to slowly tell his wife how much she means to him. He realizes that his change might be a little too sudden when Jane asks him if he is cheating on her. By the end of the week, however, he seems to have achieved the desired affect when they spend an incredibly romantic and intimate night together. The wedding is everything that Jane had ever dreamed of, and she realizes that maybe Wilson deserves a second chance.
This book really touched my heart because I believe that most marriages probably go through some of the same trials that Jane and Wilson go through. It's hard to keep your spouse in the spotlight when you have work, life, and kids that are all vying for your attention. Then when the kids move out where does that leave you as a couple? This storyline is so real and relatable. It almost turns the characters into close friends, and you don't want to put the book down because you are so concerned about what is going to happen to them. This is love in the deepest truest sense and I can't think of one reason why you shouldn't be reading this book right now. I recommend it for readers of all ages. It's not a very long one, so it shouldn't take more than a few days to get through. As always, check it out and let me know what you think! And you're welcome ;)
This is probably one of the most famous modern love stories out there. I don't think that I have personally met a girl that has not at least heard of "The Notebook" by Nicholas Sparks. It came out in film in 2004, and the movie is outrageously good...but, as is the case in most book-turned-movie situations, the book is different than the movie. If you haven't heard of it then here is a brief recap: Allie and Noah spend a wonderful summer together as teenagers and experience a love that few ever do. At the end of the summer Allie leaves and they never make contact again. Fourteen years later Allie is engaged and right before the wedding decides that she has to see Noah. So she tracks him down in the town where they first met and it only takes a few moments of being with him before she realizes that the love she had for him never really went away, and it comes back full-force.
The book focuses more on their relationship as adults, rather than the movie which is more about the summer that they spent falling in love. It draws on that time they spent together, but it is only memories. Instead, the book concentrates on Allie and Noah reconnecting after Allie decides to track him down before her wedding. The book is almost all about the few days that they get to spend together before Lon, Allie's fiancé, comes chasing after her.
If you have seen the movie,then you know that the 'notebook' is a book that contains Allie and Noah's love story that is read by an old man to an old woman in a retirement home. So the book bounces between this old couple, and Allie and Noah. It has A LOT more information about this older couple than the movie shows, and it makes the story so much richer. You really, truly fall in love with these older characters and they have so much life to them.
This book is absolutely one of the most romantic books that I have ever read. It's a love story that knows no boundaries and it seems that there is nothing in this world that can keep these two apart. It's the type of love that all romantics hope to find in real life. The book is written very well, and it should only take a few days to get through. There is some sexuality in it, about two pages worth, so it's brief. Maybe keep this one for older readers though just to be one the safe side. If you want to find yourself lost in a book, then this is the perfect one to sweep you away and take your mind off of the real world. If you enjoy this one then you definitely need to read "The Wedding", also by Nicholas Sparks. It is kind of like the sequel to "The Notebook" and it will be on here next. :)
I read these books for the first (and only) time a couple of years ago when a friend of mine suggested them to me. I hadn't met anyone else who had heard about it, but it seems like recently I have seen these books being carried around everywhere. Which is what made me decide to put them on here. For those of you who haven't read them yet, this is the Matched Trilogy, by Ally Condie. This is a story similar to "The Hunger Games" and "The Divergent Series". Cassia, the leading lady, is happy with the life she has. The Officials make all the rules and choices and she is about to be assigned her mate. When Xander's face appears, her best friend, she knows that her life couldn't be more perfect. Right before the screen turns off though, the face changes to Ky, a boy that she has grown up with but doesn't know very well.
Now she wonders which one is her true match. The Officials want her to be with Xander, which would make her very happy. Yet there is something about Ky that she can't shake, and she feels like maybe The Officials made a mistake. When she finds out why she wasn't matched to Ky it only adds to her confusion and she can't help wondering if The Officials really know what's best. As Cassia finds more and more unsettling information about her Society, she is put in a position between choosing the predictable and safe, or choosing the dangerous and unknown.
The series follows Cassia in her journey to rebel against The Officials as she searches for Ky. She leaves her community to venture to the outskirts of society in an attempt to save Ky's life. She goes on a life altering journey and eventually reunites with Ky, only to be separated again once they decide to join the Rising. Cassia is assigned to work inside the Society, where she realizes that Xander still has claim on a large portion of her heart. Meanwhile, Ky is stuck on the outside of the borders, unable to make any contact with her. In the end all three of them are brought back together and Cassia has to make her final decision.
This trilogy is written very well, with characters that come to life. The first book was a page-turner and the romance was exciting and gripping. The next two books seemed to drag on. Yes, they continued the story. Yes, they had some suspense, action, and romance. I just couldn't really get in to them. Out of all the dystopian books that I've read, these ones are on the lower end of my favorites list. I wouldn't go so far as to not recommend it, because they are good books. They just aren't they type of books that I will read again and again. They are appropriate for readers of all ages and are written in a way that makes them easy to get through. If you have any other dystopian novels that you have enjoyed, I'd love to hear about them!
I have been on a Nicholas Sparks kick lately, there will be more of his work to come, but today I want to talk about his book "The Longest Ride". This is a really unique book because he takes two separate stories and alternates between the two with each chapter. Actually it's almost like 3 stories, because he switches the point-of-view between the two main characters of one of the stories. They are both incredible stories on their own, and Sparks intertwines them in a beautiful way. The book starts with the story of Ira, an elderly widower who gets in a car crash in the snow and can't get out. As he is stuck in the car he comes in and out of consciousness and dreams about his life with his wife Ruth. It's a very deep romance and covers their entire life together.
The second story is about a young college girl, Sophia, and her budding relationship with a handsome bull-rider named Luke. They meet at a rodeo, where Luke saves Sophia from her drunk ex-boyfriend. They don't seem to have anything in common, but there is an unexplainable spark between them. While Ira and Ruth have a more experienced love, Sophia and Luke's relationship is all about the first stages of love. The initial romance where everything is so new and exciting. The stories are on different spectrums of the love scale, but in the last few chapters they are brought together for an amazing finale. The ending of Ira and Ruth's love story, and the beginning of Luke and Sophia's.
This book has just about everything a hopeless romantic could wish for. A timeless romance that endures through separation, war, loss, infertility, and so much more. Plus the excitement of a young couple discovering each other and falling in love. There is a little bit of sexuality in here, but it is not very descriptive, just a heads up. Other than that I can't think of a reason you shouldn't read this book. It will probably take a few days to a week to get through, and is definitely written for high school age and up. Check it out and let me know what you think!
