What Makes a Book Good?

I worked in the digital marketing department of one of the big five publishers for over six years, so like the rest of these ladies, I’ve read a lot of books. Like, a LOT a lot.

I’m a tough critic, but I’m far from being an editor! I’ve only read a handful of books that I really could not finish. And most of those involved a plot where girl is engaged, girl meets another boy, girl has overly sexualized affair with said boy, finance finds out…you get the idea. 

I rate my books on a scale of 1-5, with a score of five being one of the best books I’ve enjoyed, and a score of one meaning that I couldn’t finish the book. A score of five will be reserved for the best-of-the-best. Most good books will receive a score of four.

By genre:

 Women’s Fiction, Mystery/Thriller -

I want to read a book that has me thumbing the corners so much that by the last page, the width of the book has doubled in size from bent pages. A book that is so well planned and executed that tears pour from my eyes, or have me shouting “WHERE DID THAT COME FROM??!” – in a good way! A book that might have some purple prose, but written with a purpose.

Favorites: Shantaram (Roberts), The Dogs of Babel (Parkhurst), Winter Garden (Hannah), The Lock Artist (Hamilton), Andorra (Cameron).

Business - 

I do, actually, enjoy reading business books, and I have a shelf devoted to them at home. It boils down to two things: 

•         Does this book work for me, right now, with where I am in my career? Or do I need to be a C-level executive to put what I’ve learned to good use?

•         Does this book use too many business terms that nearly put me to sleep? I recently tried to read a book that came highly recommended by a senior executive, and couldn’t make it past the first ten pages. Business ≠ robot. I want to be invested in the knowledge the book provides, not feel like I’m sitting in a college lecture.

Favorites: Managing Oneself (Drucker), What to Ask the Person in the Mirror (Steven), Reaching Your Potential (Kaplan). Almost anything by Drucker, Lencioni, Goleman.

Cooking, Health & Fitness - 

I love food. I love running. I have to run because I love food so darn much. I try (and regularly fail) to be health-conscious, so I am always up for a good cookbook or running book that I can put to good use.

Favorites: The Juice Generation, Eat and Run (Jurek), Born to Run (McDougall), The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook: The Original Classics (use the turkey recipe amended for your needs - it works flawlessly every single time).

Memoirs/Travel Memoirs - 

I love a good memoir. There isn’t much to say here aside from whether I deem the person worthy of writing a memoir (sorry, Lena Dunham!), but I love little nuggets and insight into the lives of people I admire.

Favorites include: After All (Moore), Eat, Pray, Love (Gilbert) 

 Google+

Welcome!

It's hard to believe that half of 2015 is over! So to celebrate, we are bringing you a new GJR contributor! Please welcome to our blog...Brittney!!!
 
The three of us have known her for some years and she has been a blog lurker. She's an avid reader as well and will bring a new and different perspective.

You can contact her via Email ...

or Twitter: @Bkratchtech

 Be on the look out for her first few posts in the next few days.  

We are thrilled to have you on board, Brittney!!



 Google+

ArmchairBEA: Favorites

Today's an open topic day and it's my day for reflection.  We don't do that very often around here; we mainly review, but I did this last year and I found it rather cathartic.  I like to look back over the years at some of my favorite reads.  As you can see, I do have favorite genres.  Obviously YA is featured pretty heavily, as are crime novels, food-lit, and magical realism.  But there are some things that really don't fit any of my usual genres... and I love looking back and seeing that.

JennJustReading's Favorites

Jennifer's favorite books »

Google+

Armchair BEA Introductions

Design by Amber of Shelf Notes

Girls Just Reading is a shared blog by four book lovers, Lisa (our founder), Julie, Alice, and me, Jenn.  Oddly enough we're all internet friends. We met on a fan site for one of our favorite TV shows of all times, ALIAS. We kept in touch when the show closed and ended up here.  

Sharing a blog helps keep things flowing around here. None of us has time to run a blog on her own, but together we maintain an active blog.  Each of us read different genres and we also split the responsibilities of blog maintenance.   I think it's a formula that works well as we've been on the blogging scene for seven years now. 

If you've participated in Armchair BEA before, you've probably visited our blog before, so I thought I'd select a few of the more unusual questions to answer this time around.

If you were stranded on a deserted island, what 3 books would you bring? Why? What 3 non-book items would you bring? Why? 

I would totally cheat and bring my Nook. To this day it floors me that I can carry over 600 books around with me in my purse. 

But if I had to pick three, it would be novels by Sarah Addison Allen, Heather Blake, Cassandra Clare, Meg Gardiner, and Ally Carter. They are all authors whose work I cannot do without. Ok, that's five authors and I can't even narrow it down to which of their books I pick, so can I please just bring my Nook?

As for non-literary items, it'd have to be my daughter, hubby...and coffee.  Girls gotta have her priorities. 

What book would you love to see as a movie?

I think Ally Carter's Heist Society would be fabulous on the big screen, as long as they could do it justice.  I love a good con, and Ally Carter writes amazing ones. Plus, it'd be refreshing change to the current dystopian trend in teen movies. 

~~~

We won't be able to post every day this week, but we love Armchair BEA and we're glad you stopped by and we hope you visit us again soon. 

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/GirlsJustReading

Twitter:

Alice

Jenn

Julie

Don't forget to visit the other blogs participating in Armchair BEA this week! 

Armchair BEA: Allow Us to Introduce Ourselves

What is Armchair BEA?  Well this week Book Expo America is going on in NYC... and there are many of us who wish we were there (We do, we do!!!).  Armchair BEA is a way to participate for those of us who can't 'make it there' ...because I've heard if you can make it there, you'll make it anywhere.


Girls Just Reading was the brain child of Lisa, our founder. She was initially going to do this solo but then asked Jenn and Julie to join her on this adventure. We've been up and blogging since August 2007 and have pretty much learned how to do this blogging thing on the fly. Two years ago, Alice came along for the ride and we've been fast reading buddies ever since, even though none of us live in the same city!

Alice's 5 Questions

Please tell us a little bit about yourself: Who are you? How long have you been blogging? Why did you get into blogging?

My name is Alice. I’m a 38 year old single female who lives in North Jersey and works in New York City. My love for reading started in grammar school with the Sweet Valley High series. In high school, I fell in love with romance novels and up until about 10 years ago I read them nonstop. I’m pretty sure the reason I have a skewed view of relationships comes from them. I commute about 2 hours a day on public transportation to work, I pass my time reading. I became friends with Lisa, Jenn, and Julie because of Alias (the fantastic TV show). Even though Alias is long gone, I maintained a friendship with the other Girls via email and of course by following their blog. Of all the Girls, the one I am closest with is Julie. We talk via email everyday about life, TV, my love of Angelina Jolie and her great dislike of her, and of course, books. About a year and a half ago, I was asked to be the fourth member of Girls Just Reading. I was scared silly because of all the Girls, I am the least articulate and eloquent. I do read and write from the heart and thankfully, that had served me well. 

What are you currently reading, or what is your favorite book you have read so far in 2012?

Last week I started reading Ros by Dee DeTarsio. One of the great things about reviewing is that authors, publishers and publicist reach out to us for book reviews. This is one of those books. I have admit, I probably would not have read it if Ms. DeTarsio hadn’t invited me to read it. I’m glad I did because this novel is laugh out loud funny, it’s also a step out of my reading comfort zone. I’m not much into Science Fiction, but I do love to laugh. And this book is right on the money with that. 


Tell us one non-book-related thing that everyone reading your blog may not know about you.

I have this crazy love for the Pocono Mountains in northeastern Pennsylvania. My parents have a trailer in a community called Eagle Lake. I love it there. Hand to heaven, it is probably my favorite place on earth. In the back yard, between two trees is a multicolored Brazilian hammock that I love to lay in. It’s a great place to nap or day dream. I feel like my most authentic self there. It’s wonderful. 


What is your favorite feature on your blog (i.e. author interviews, memes, something specific to your blog)?

My favorite feature has to be our author interviews. I love getting a firsthand look at what happens behind the scenes: How does an author think? How are ideas developed? What does it takes to get those thoughts on paper? Everything about it intrigues me. 


Have your reading tastes changed since you started blogging? How?

Before I started reviewing novels, my reading tastes consisted mostly of Chick Lit and Women’s Fiction, some Young Adult and Memoirs. I was pretty much a single author girl and faithfully stuck to those authors. Also, before I joined the blog, I didn’t read any books written by men. I think I omitted male authors more in the name of Girl Power than anything else. Since I started contributing to Girls Just Reading, I am reading more male authors as well as Mysteries, Thrillers, and Science Fiction, which I avoided like the plague. To my surprise, I actually enjoy them. The reading challenges also help broaden my reading horizon. Jenn and Julie are constantly pushing me out of my reading comfort zone and truth be told, I enjoy that too.

Jenn's 5 Questions

Please tell us a little bit about yourself: Who are you? How long have you been blogging? Why did you get into blogging?

Hi, I’m Jenn and I am a book addict and TV junkie.  Oh, it’s not that kind of meeting? *sits down*  I am a wife to one superb husband and mother to one princess-doctor-swordfighter kidlet and a rescued dog.  I have been addicted to books since I learned to read… growing up in a neighborhood with few kids my age, I had my adventures through books instead.  One summer, having read my way through the entire children’s section of the library, I was given the opportunity by the librarian to take home the new books in the section before they hit the shelves as long as I brought them back and told the librarian what I thought, so I guess I’ve been reviewing books for a long time.  

Most of my local friends aren’t readers, so when Lisa asked me if I’d be interested in blogging, I jumped at the chance to share my book love with someone...well, I guess with everyone!  I love the way blogging brings the reading community together, opens discussions, and introduces me to new reads.  

What are you currently reading, or what is your favorite book you have read so far in 2012?

Definitely The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. It was fabulous and so different than anything I've read or could ever imagine; it was a little bit like Diana Wynne Jones' Fire and Hemlock (my favorite YA book from my childhood), only for adults. I also (finally) got into Cassandra Clare's Mortal Instruments series -couldn't put it down- and Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson series. Yes, I'm a little behind, but that's what happens when your TBR piles are towering over your desk.  I am also in love with C.C. Hunter's Shadow Falls series which is under-hyped, in my opinion.


If you could eat dinner with any author or character, who would it be and why?

After careful character consideration (Kathy Reichs' Temperance Brennan?  No, I don't mind forensics, but I can't discuss it at the dinner table.  Meg Gardiner's Evan Delaney?  No, too many people trying to kill her, and Jo Beckett too.) I think I would have to go with Heather Webber's Lucy Valentine. She's caring and sweet ...and can find lost items, which I could really use some help with!

As for an author, I think I would love dining with Meg Gardiner.  Her quick witted sarcasm would fit right in around the dinner table at our house.

Have your reading tastes changed since you started blogging? How?

While I think I've read some things I otherwise may not have read due to group reviews, challenges, and suggestions, I would say my tastes have not changed.  As a matter of fact, I think it's focused my likes more and helped me find new authors within that subset.   I've been putting more and more thought into why it is I read certain books and like certain genres ...perhaps I'll put a blog post together about it soon. 


What is your favorite feature on your blog (i.e. author interviews, memes, something specific to your blog)?

Group reviews, hands down. Reading is personal and specific to each individual and nowhere is that more apparent than when we read a book together and then put our opinions into reviews.  I think its fantastic when we have completely different reactions, but even when we all like the book, we still have different reasons. 

I love our Children's Corner too, because I'm always looking for suggestions for Kidlet.

Julie's 5 Questions


Please tell us a little bit about yourself: Who are you? How long have you been blogging? Why did you get into blogging?


That first question is a bit existential don't you think? LOL I am a mother of 2 very active kids and a wife of a very active husband. I am a life long reader who's love of reading was instilled by my mom reading to me every night, my dad reading novels whenever he had time and my aunt who read all the time.


I've been blogging since August 2007 and it scared the crap out of me at first. I had no clue what I was doing and it was definitely a trial by fire. I got into blogging to remember what the heck I had read and to share my love of books with others.


What is your favorite part about the book blogging community? Is there anything that you would like to see change in the coming years?


I love getting a lot of my book recommendations from other bloggers either via reading their blogs or the discussions on Twitter. There are a lot of books and authors I might not have read if not for other book bloggers. In fact because of the harassing I received on Twitter about not reading YA books, I'm going to do a personal challenge in 2013. People swear there are good YA books out there.


I don't know if there's anything to change because I think in general most book bloggers are open and genuine people. You need help and they'll give it. I'd like to see less plagiarism in the blogging world. It's an awful lot of work to see if your hard written review has been stolen by someone else as their own. It doesn't make you look good either as a blogger.


What is your favorite feature on your blog (i.e. author interviews, memes, something specific to your blog)?


I love the author interviews. Our readers seem to love the author interviews. To me an author is like a rock star so anytime I get to send one of them questions and they answer them I'm thrilled. Most authors are open to answering questions.


I also love our Children's Corner that is posted on Sundays. I almost always get some great ideas from Jenn's posts. (Jenn:  I love getting new book ideas from you too, Jules!)


What are you currently reading, or what is your favorite book you have read so far in 2012?


So far 2012 has been an excellent reading year for me. I've read so many great books this year and it's only June! Here's a little taste of some of the 5/5 books from 2012 so far: The Underside of Joy by Sere Prince Halverson, A Good American by Alex George, The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown, The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, These Girls by Sarah Pekkanen, and The Song Remains the Same by Allison Winn Scotch.


Have your reading tastes changed since you started blogging? How?


My reading taste has broadened a bit since blogging. I loved reading before but it was mainly the same authors or same genres. I've stepped out of that and read some fabulous books that I probably wouldn't have if not for blogging. There are still my "go to" authors that I've read for years but I now have new "go to" authors because of blogging.

2011 Armchair BEA Interview with Jenn

This interview was given by Jenn to Chey at The Chey Show for Armchair BEA 2011

You work with three other people on your blog. How did this start? Have you all known each other for very long? Do you ever disagree on reviews or posts?


What a perfect question ...and it's an unusual story.

Once upon a time there was a TV show called ALIAS. I was obsessed. So much so that I decided to seek out an online support group. There a small dedicated group of followers discussed the show, theories, our love of books, and our lives. We soon became a close knit group of friends who had never met. When the show and discussion board folded, a steadfast group of us remained friends via email.

Then in 2007 Lisa (NYC) mentioned that she wanted to start a book blog and asked if any of us were interested in participating. Julie (Chicago) and I (Buffalo) hopped on board at once and Alice (Jersey) joined us this past year.

I finally met Lisa a little over three and a half years ago, when she had a brief layover in Buffalo. She's incredibly busy right now and I miss her. I met Alice this year and had a great chat, like old friends, over coffee. However, to this day, Julie and I have never met face to face, though I consider her a close friend. We've talked on the phone, sent emails, texted... One of these days we will meet.

As for disagreements, we're all still friends because we're fairly congenial online communicators ...though every once in a while I forget to think before I type (usually due to a lack of coffee).


Do you and your partners ever make two reviews about the same book because more than one of you wants to read it? What do you do if more than one person wants to read the same book?

If we aren't reading them at the same time, we will do two separate reviews. If I'm the second reader I try not to read our other review before I write mine so as not to be influenced, but I'll read it before I post and add references. Plus, there will always be a link to the other blogger's review.

If we are close to reading them at the same time we do a group review, which are actually some of my favorite reviews to do. I think some of our best reviews are when we completely disagree about a book (like Alice & I regarding Hunger Games).

Do you hold a firm stance when it comes to blogging every day no matter what, or do you only post when you have something really worth sharing?


It's lucky there are four of us, because otherwise we'd have folded long ago. We post as often as we're able. There are some weeks or months when one of us won't have time to read and blog, but there are always three other bloggers to pick up the slack.

Lately, we've been really productive in the reading and blogging department. Our best problem is having to work out a posting schedule because we have too much content.

I see that you give away several books and hold a lot of author interviews. How often would you say you contact authors for interviews, giveaways, or other things of that nature? Do they contact you? Have you ever formed a close relationship with any of them?


Though some of our interviews are arranged though publicists or publishers, a growing number are those we've arranged ourselves. If an author we're reading is accessible, we contact them. Most authors love an opportunity to publicize their books. Occasionally an author will contact us to send us books too. I received one of my new favorite YA series that way.

I would love to say that I have a bunch of authors as my 'best-ies', but as often as I communicate with some of them, I still get giddy when they respond.

What is the book that made you fall in love with books? If you don't have one, how did your passion for books begin?


Growing up, there weren't a lot of kids my age in my neighborhood. I remember starting to learn to read and how enthralled I was with the fact that I could disappear into stories all by myself. When I'd gone through all the books in the children's section of my local library, the librarian started to save the new arrivals for me and ask me my opinion of them when I returned them. Apparently, I've been reviewing books for a long time.

When I was young my mother would read Trixie Belden mysteries to me. I think we read almost the entire series together. From there I moved on to the Nancy Drew Case Files on my own. But the first book I ever really connected with on a personal level was Diana Wynne Jones' Fire and Hemlock. I truly understood Polly and her plight. I will re-read it usually once a year. I also fell in love with the magical realism in DWJ's writing and I have adored her books, and magical realism, ever since.

Do you finish every book you read, or do you put it down if you don't like it?


A few years ago, I would have been able to say yes. Even if I had to put it down and come back to it, I'd always finish it. But that's when I was selecting my own books. In the past few years, however, I've had publishers and authors send me things and a few of them, I just couldn't get through. It's rare, but every once in a while, I have to say, "I'm sorry, this book's not for me."

You all write very well and make great reviews. Have you ever considered becoming an actual author and writing your own books?


Thanks, we're glad you think so!

I've fantasized about it on occasion. I think I even wrote a 'book' in middle school. But a story must have a beginning, a middle, and an end, and mine usually only have two out of three. Though Shannon Delany says that everyone has a story to tell, I'm not sure mine is worth hearing. In the end, I think I make a better editor than a writer.

(Being an editor is actually one of my dream jobs.)

Who are your favorite authors?


In no particular order, Sarah Addison Allen, Meg Gardiner, Kathy Reichs, Diana Wynne Jones, JK Rowling, Amanda Hawking, Heather Webber, Wendy Raven McNair, Shannon Delany, James Patterson, Tess Gerritsen... I'm probably leaving out a bunch. (I read a lot of female authors don't I?)

What are 3 books you can honestly say are the best you've ever read?


To quote one of my favorite movies, "I could no sooner choose a favorite star in the heavens."

How about my three favorite books so far in 2011?

-The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen
-The Trylle Trilogy by Amanda Hawking
- The Lucy Valentine series by Heather Webber

...see even there, I managed to sneak more than 3 in and I still want to mention the Stieg Larsson trilogy, and Born at Midnight by C.C. Hunter, and Bargains & Betrayals, and...

When you are not reading or blogging, what's your favorite pastime?


I love to sing and I love to paint but I haven't had much time for either of those things in the past few years. When I'm not playing with three year old daughter, or playing chauffeur for her, I like to experiment with recipes and bake bread.

I'm also a television junkie. Anyone who follows me on Twitter knows I'm a huge fan of Chuck, Castle, Bones, Burn Notice, White Collar, Leverage... Ok, you get the picture. I love a good story. Be it in a book or on the screen, I just can't get enough.

Armchair BEA: Blogging About Blogging

Negative Reviews: What do you do when you don't like a book?

For today's Blogging about Blogging I wanted to discuss a topic that is sensitive for bloggers and authors alike, Negative Reviews.  Actually, I dislike the term negative reviews.  It connotes that the reviewer is being negative, attacking the author and his/her work, which is exactly the type of review that hurts everyone.

I remember in my AP English class senior year of high school we were to read a book and instead of doing a report, we were allowed to write an opinion essay.  We could tell our teacher we didn't like the book but we had to back up our position with solid why.  I was positively giddy at the thought of disagreeing with the establishment and turned in a negative review of Brave New World by Aldous Huxley.  (Yes, the irony of the situation is not lost on me.)  I think that I was prouder of that A than any I ever earned.  Not only did it teach me a valuable lesson in constructive criticism, I felt like it validated my right to have an opinion about literature.  

N.B. Armchair BEA is a blog event for
book bloggers who can't attend Book
Expo America in NYC this week

But the question stands, what do you do when you don't like a book?  Many bloggers just don't review them, saying that there are so many good things out there, they don't want to spend time on things they don't enjoy.  While I respect that, I don't know that I necessarily agree with it.  I became a book blogger to share my feelings about what I am reading, because a lot of my friends aren't readers or are readers who don't take time to read anymore.  If I only share with you my warm fuzzy reads, I think we'll have a rather shallow relationship (blogger/blog reader).  Some books make you think, some make you angry, some make you sad, ~that's why we read.  If I'm omitting the books I don't like, I feel like I'm not being honest with the readers of the blog.

Not every book is for everyone.  I can't count the number of times I've picked up a book because the very thing someone else disliked about it is what draws me in ~and vice versa.  Differing opinions about books opens a dialogue, and I love that about books.   Some of my favorite reviews are our group reviews where we are of opposite opinions on a book.  (Our review of Hunger Games or our review of Before You Know Kindness are a prime examples.)

Of course reviewing a book you don't like has to be done constructively and as objectively as possible.  Here at Girls Just Reading, we strive for honesty.  We can only tell you how the book makes us feel and where we felt there were issues, if any.  If the book I'm reading is out of my normal scope, I'll tell you that so you have a frame of reference for what my thoughts are.  (My integrity with blog readers is important to me.)

Reading is personal and so are our reviews.  As long as everyone remembers that this is just one person's opinion, all is well.

Armchair BEA: Who are you, and how do you Armchair?

Today's topic for Armchair BEA is Who are you, and how do you Armchair?  Although this book blog is run by four of us, today you get to here from me, Jenn.

N.B. Armchair BEA is a blog event for
book bloggers who can't attend Book
Expo America in NYC this week

I would love to be in NYC this week, not just for BEA (though that in and of itself would be heavenly) but for all the wonderful things that New York City brings.  I think the last time I was there was when my college choir performed at Carnegie Hall, so it's been a while.  I love all of the arts, so NYC is sort of a Mecca for me.  Unfortunately, financially, it's just not possible for me to be there this week.

Many of you would be surprised to learn that I'm a trained musician.  Yep.  I can sing opera.  Do I like to sing opera?  Not really, I must admit.  I love musical theatre and I'm a closet jazz musician, but that's a story for another day... I taught music in the schools for a while, but while I loved the kids, I didn't love the job.  Now I'm a happy, though scattered, stay at home mother of one kidlet and one dog.  

I started reading at an early age and couldn't stop.  Literally.  I would follow my mother around, while she was shopping, with my nose in a book.  To my great exasperation, people were always interrupting me to ask me how I could do such a thing.  My response, without looking up was always, "I can see my mother's shoe's over the top of my book."  Now I'm watching that same love of reading blossom in my daughter.  

Girls Just Reading is happy to be keeping up with what's going on at BEA through Twitter and the Armchair BEA website as none of us could make it this year.  Want to know more about my fellow bloggers?  Check out Alice's introductory post here, Julie's here, and Lisa's here.

What Makes a Book Good?

Thank you so much for the warm welcome. I am honored and extremely excited to join you three at Girls Just Reading.

Let me get started by telling you a bit about myself. I am in my late thirties and live in Jersey. I work in beautiful New York City and read on my commute into the office. My love of reading began in high school with my senior year English class. We read Catcher in the Rye and it was the first time a book spoke to me. The very first time that I got something from what I was reading. After that, I started reading all the time.

I read with my heart. A book has to touch me. It doesn’t have to be a situation I can relate to, but the characters have to be relatable. I need to feel something when I read whether it be empathy, happiness or even anger. I’m not a happy ending kind of girl, I don’t always need one. I would rather read a story that is real than have a textbook happy ending written in. I prefer truth in fiction. (Oxymoron much?) I love stories about sisters, friends, everyday life in extraordinary circumstance. That is what makes a book good to me. I want to know the characters, I want feel what they feel. When the story ends, I want to know more. Not because the author left me hanging, but because these characters became friends of sorts and I want to know how the rest of their lives turn out.

Some of my favorite authors are Alice Hoffman, Jen Lancaster, Elizabeth Berg and Laurie Nataro. I read all kinds of books but my favorites are Chick Lit, Memoirs, and Romance (historical or contemporary) occasionally thrown in. For some reason I really don’t have an answer to, I usually only read books written by women. My absolute favorite book is Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. I am a re-reader. I’ll read something again if I absolutely love it.

My ratings are pretty basic. I try to keep them to strictly 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5.

1 – In plain English, this book was terrible. So bad, in fact, that I am mad at myself for reading it. I’m even madder at myself for buying it. I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone.

2 – I didn’t like it or hate it. I’m pretty neutral about this book. I probably wouldn’t recommend it to anyone unless I knew that was a writing style I knew someone liked. This is the kind of book I hope came from the library.

3 – I liked this book. This book had something redeeming to it. I would recommend it to others, passing it on and not expecting it back.

4 – I really, really liked this book. There is something about the story that spoke to me. It is well written, the characters charming and believable to me. I would definitely recommend it, in fact, I’d probably let you borrow my copy, but I would want it back.

5 – The best book I’ve read this year. Fives for me are rare. Water for Elephants: A Novel is a five. The Time Traveler's Wife is a five. A five has everything I want in a story. A five is the kind of book I will read again and again, probably once a year. I won’t let you borrow this one, you’ll just have to go out and get one yourself because it’s worth it.

I have about 30 books in my TBR pile. I read about two or three books a month. Here is what you can expect from me in the next few months:

My Name Is Memory by Ann Brashares
Sold by Patricia McCormick
A Little Bit Ruined by Patty Friedman
The Last Bridge by Teri Coyne
A Wish In Time by Laurel A. Bradley
Consequences by Penelope Lively
A Hopeless Romantic by Harriet Evans
Veil of Roses by Laura Fitzgerald.

I am looking forward to sharing my insights with all of you. I’ll have my first review for the novel The Transformation of Bartholomew Fortuno: A Novel by Ellen Bryson posted on Wednesday.

Welcome!

It's hard to believe, but not only is August here, but it marks our three year blog-iversary. So to celebrate, we sprucing things up around here and bringing you a new friend!

Girls Just Reading is happy to announce that we have a new contributor. Please welcome to our blog...Alice!!! The three of us have known her for some years and on occasion she will comment on the blog. She's an avid reader as well and will be a new and different perspective.

You can contact her via Email
...or Twitter: ForSix

Be on the look out for her first few posts in the next few days.

We are thrilled to have you on board, Alice!!