New Year's Reading Resolutions!

Man, I am just a sucker for New Year Resolutions.  I love the idea of a fresh start (especially after a crazy holiday season) where I can get my life organized and back on track.  Although I did make "Eat more sushi" a New Year's Resolution this year...not sure what that says about me.

I also love making reading New Year's Resolutions, because as a librarian, it's super important to me to stay up on my reading.  So here are the resolutions that I've made for 2015:

• Read 75 books this year.  This is a little more than 6 books a month and is do-able.  I know people who make goals of 150 books + a year, and with two kiddos at home, that just isn't practical for me.  So let's go for 75!
• Read at least 1 nonfiction book a month.  I focus so much on fiction that I miss a lot of really good nonfiction.  I'm reading Slaying the Debt Dragon by my buddy Cherie Lowe right now, so I'm moving in the right direction!
• Read 1 book a month that has been published in the last 6 months.  I read a lot, but I don't always read what's new.  And it drives me crazy to see so many people reading the newest books while I'm still reading books published a few years ago.  I need to do better at staying current.
• Listen to 10 audiobooks this year.  I love audiobooks, but my short-term driving doesn't allow me to get much listening time.  So this needs to be a priority.
• Read through the entire Bible.  My church has challenged us to do this, so hopefully it won't be too hard to read through the whole Bible in one year.  I read a lot of books...I need to make sure I'm keeping myself in THE Book!

Five reading goals is good for me--do you have any reading goals?

Slaying the Debt Dragon--In Stores Today!

First of all, Happy New Year!!!  I hope you had a fun-filled evening ringing in the new year--we have 3 coughing males in our house so we kept it low-key with Netflix and reading.  Although I did make the Mr. and I a fancy champagne cocktail...

A splash of cranberry juice, some bubbly, and a few blackberries!

I have a few resolutions for the year (I'm a sucker for New Year resolutions!)--I'm jumping on board with my church to read the Bible in a year, I'd like to run a 5K, and I want to eat more sushi (yes, I made that a resolution).  So cheers!  Here's to all our resolutions and an adventurous, grace-filled 2015!  

Although I hate to point out that 2015 is already a little disappointing...I mean, Back to the Future DID make me think I'd be flying in cars at this time in my life...

But onto the post!  So obviously I review books on this little blog...rarely do I talk about a book BEFORE I've read it.  But this is no ordinary book.

I'm so excited to announce that my friend Cherie's book Slaying the Debt Dragon is available in stores today!  Guys, go out and buy this book RIGHT NOW!  

(Image via Goodreads)

Cherie and I have been friends for quite a few years now.  It was just a few summers ago that we sat and talked about our dreams for the future...and her dream was to write a book.  A book about her story of fighting and conquering her dragon of debt (which was more than $127,000!).

But this book is so much more than that.  It's about knowing that your mistakes (whether financial or not) do not make you alone.  It's about being a team with your spouse to make solid family decisions.  It's about having hope in the midst of darkness.  And I'm so dang proud of her for telling you this story!

Remember how I told you that I read during NYE?  Well Luke and I read the Introduction and Chapter 1 of Slaying the Debt Dragon...now that's a way to ring in the New Year!  We had really good conversation about our own financial story and what changes we want to make in our lives.

A few nights ago I attended the launch party for Cherie and her book.  It was such a fun, joyful event at a local coffee shop.  We drank coffee, listened to great music, bought our books for Cherie to sign, and posed for photo booth shots.  I was just so excited to be a part of Cherie's celebration!

The hubs and me with Cherie!

Go to #SlayDebt to see what others are saying about the book and their debt story!

Guys, I'm only a chapter in and I'm so into this book.  Buy it, talk about it, and get yourself out of the debt that is consuming our world.

Proud of you, Queen Cherie!

I'm Drenched.

Hi, friends.

They say when it rains, it pours--well if so, I'm drenched.  Soaked.  And I need a little sunshine. 

We've had a major leak issue in our new house that left us in an undesirable situation.  Luke has a kidney stone that landed us in the ER one night (where our van was hit in the parking lot).  I. am. soaked.

So I'm taking a break for the rest of December so I can just re-group.  I'll be back in January with my normal posts--I have a line-up of book reviews ready to go!

Thanks for understanding...I just need some time over the holidays to relax and enjoy the moments.

REVIEW--To Be Perfectly Honest

Wow, what a few weeks!  

You know what happens when you let your three-year-old watch train videos on your phone?!  You run out of data!  So blogging from home has been VERY challenging lately, which leads me to my two-week hiatus.  Plus we had Thanksgiving--ours was fantastic and relaxing and I hope yours was, too! 

Our sweet little family on Thanksgiving--all 3 of my guys are in plaid!

My first pecan pie--it was DELICIOUS!

Today's post is a review for To Be Perfectly Honest by Sonya Sones.  This is a novel in verse (I feel like such a speed reader when I read these!) about a big fat liar.  Well, maybe she's not big and fat--just a liar.  Let's jump right in!

Such a sweet face--but she's a liar.  Don't trust her!

• Standalone novel
• Realistic fiction, novel in verse

The Gist:
Colette is a liar, and she'll tell you that she is (that's pretty much the one thing you can trust her on).  Her lying probably comes from the fact that her mother is a HUGE celebrity, which often puts Colette and her younger brother on the sidelines.  Lying gives Colette something to do and allows her to escape her feelings of being left out.
When Colette's mother takes the family to the middle of nowhere so she can film her next movie, Colette is completely annoyed.  Until she meets Connor--a sexy motorcycle rider who also shares feelings for her.  Colette hides her mother's identity so Connor won't ditch her for an autograph...but then starts to wonder if Connor will still like her once he knows about her lies.

What I Loved:

• The title.  So clever and cute.
• Colette's younger brother has the CUTEST lisp...it's so fun to read all the "thweet" things he says.
• I loved that Colette was such an unreliable narrator.  Maybe it's the English major in me, but I loved having something so literary like that to discuss with my students.
• As a novel in verse, the book is a quick read, but it's also pretty light; despite some heavy issues that pop up, I didn't feel overwhelmed and felt it was overall a little "fluffier."

What I Didn't Love:

• I knew every time that Colette was lying.  She didn't fool me once.  She'd tell a story and then say something like "Aren't you shocked that everything I just told you wasn't true?!"  Um, nope.  I knew it all along.
• A trick that Colette and her family play on someone near the end of the book was over-the-top and completely unrealistic.  I think I even rolled my eyes as I was reading.
• There's a little twist at the end with Connor that I saw coming from the start.  Just sayin'--if you're a liar, you better be prepared for liars.
• The cover--she's a pretty girl, but the cover just doesn't get much across.

My favorite quote:  
"Only idiots believe everything they read in the National Enquirer.  Unfortunately, most people are idiots." 

An ok read for me, but a bit forgettable.  I wish I'd had the audio version, though, just to hear the little brother's lisp!

Some outfits coming up soon!

We Are the Goldens-Inspired Outfit

Happy Monday, everyone!  Are you geared up for Thanksgiving?  I am ready for the break--even though I have been out of school lately with various trips and conferences, it will be nice to have a chance to just collect myself again.  Moving to a new house has taken a toll, so it's going to be good to just re-group.

Today's post is an outfit inspired by We Are the Goldens by Dana Reinhardt.  In the book, Nell and her sister Layla are soccer players.  So I wanted to design an outfit for Nell on game day.  Since I work in a school, I see the student athletes when it's game day--they dress nicer than the typical school outfit.  So that's the inspiration for the look.

And when I think soccer, I think stripes.  So I designed a classy outfit for Nell with sleek stripes.  Here it is:

Simple enough to wear to school and comfortable...but still stylish!

• Like I said, soccer makes me think of stripes, so I went for a simple yet chic black and white striped sweater.
• The black skinny jeans pair nicely with the sweater.  Keeps it casual.
• I always see my athletes wear flats when they dress up.  They're more comfortable in their dress, so flats just make sense (stereotypically, the star of the girls' basketball team doesn't do well with heels!).  But adding the bows to the top of the flats gives it a feminine touch.
• A simple but beautiful watch keeps the outfit trendy and accessorized.

What do you think?  Could you see a student wearing this before a game?

More reviews coming up!

Sweater--Uniqlo 
Jeans--House of Fraser 
Flats--Saint Laurent 
Watch--Nixon Kenzi 

*I'm not associated with any brands/companies mentioned.

I Went to Y'ALL Fest, Y'ALL!

Hey, readers and fashionistas!  Over a week ago, my friend Emily and I road tripped from Indianapolis to Charleston, SC for Y'ALL Fest, the largest book festival in the country (and it's only been going on for four years!).  It was a BLAST!  We're talking 60+ YA authors just walking around Charleston, meeting their readers and giving panels on various topics.  Totally up my nerd alley!  Here is a list of my favorite things about Y'ALL Fest and my highlights:

• Blue Bicycle Books--This bookstore hosts the festival and is book proud.  The employees were helpful and excited and showed off why I love local indie bookstores so much.  The bookstore itself has cute decorations and just makes me want to sit down with a book and a cup of tea.

 Yes, they had a bicycle outside their store with books on it.

What a neat idea--painting the covers of books to spell a word!

• Charleston--What a beautiful city!  It was so easy to access everything at the festival, and I loved how local businesses got involved (I got to meet Gayle Forman in a donut shop and James Dashner in a toy store!).  I have a soft spot for South Carolina (my family used to vacation there every summer) and I love the warm air and palm trees.  I was ready to move down to Charleston!

 We ate at Hyman's Friday night for the BEST hush puppies in the world!  This is my friend Emily, who is slightly obsessed.

• The experiences I had meeting authors--Obviously this is one of the best parts of the festival.  Authors walk around, take photos, meet readers, and have signings.  I literally bumped into Stephanie Perkins and talked to Rainbow Rowell for a second like we were old friends.  Every author was so gracious and excited to talk with their readers--Varian Johnson was so appreciative, Laini Taylor was just plain fun, Maya Van Wagenen was so genuine, and I could go on and on.

 Stephanie Perkins...how adorable is she?!

Epic Reads--they are so fun!  I look like a crazy person here with three chins...that awkward selfie strain.

• Aaron Hartzler--This guy gets his own category.  I literally drove to Charleston because I wanted to meet him.  I loved his book Rapture Practice and could tell from Twitter that he would be a fun guy.  He was fan-tastic!  Just what I wanted in my experience to meet him.  Out of the thousands of people at the festival, only about 10 of us were in line for Aaron, which just made the experience even better.  It was AWESOME to talk with him, take photos together, and just act like it was totally normal for me to be hanging out with him.  Aaron later hosted a "Hollywood Squares" author game at the Smackdown event, and he was the highlight of the event.  He is hilarious!

 Yep, Aaron Hartzler has his arm around me!  I loved meeting the others in line, too.  This was the highlight of the trip for me!

 I was the first in line to meet Aaron, so I got to hold the author paddle!

•  The lines--Why would I love the lines at Y'ALL Fest?!  Because that's where you meet other readers.  That's where you connect with people all over the country who love the same authors as you.  You meet parents who take their kids out of school so they can meet Veronica Roth, dads who willingly stand in line for two hours so they can get a romance author's autograph for their daughters, librarians who are passionate about students and reading.  I have to give a shout out to Megan and Brian, an engaged couple who I met in the James Dashner line and who I kept running into throughout the festival.  

 Most of the lines at Y'ALL Fest are looooong.  These were the lines for Libba Bray and
Kami Garcia/Margaret Stohl.

 The line of people behind me for James Dashner.  How ADORABLE is that girl behind me?!

•  The road trip--Traveling with my friend Emily was perfect because we're both librarians.  And what do you do when you are in a car for 11 hours?!  You listen to an audiobook!  We listened to The Here and Now by Ann Brashares on the way down and Panic by Lauren Oliver on the way home.

The author autographs I got:

Lauren Myracle (She told me librarians are her heroes!)

Varian Johnson

Sara Zarr

Carrie Ryan

Kami Garcia

Margaret Stohl

Jennifer E. Smith

Leigh Bardugo

Maya Van Wagenen

Melissa de la Cruz

Aaron Hartzler

E Lockhart

Sarah Dessen

James Dashner

Lauren Oliver

Laini Taylor

Ann Brashares

Alexander London

Libba Bray

Becca Fitzpatrick

Kiera Cass

Marie Lu

Gayle Forman

And there were so many others!  I missed out on Ally Condie and Sarah Maas...maybe next year?!

REVIEW--We Are the Goldens

Hey, readers and fashionistas!  I'm excited about today's book review--I loved this book because it was such a surprise for me.  I expected controversy and edginess, and I got a deep-thinking and realistic portrayal of a sister's internal struggle.  So good!

Today's review is on Dana Reinhardt's newest book, We Are the Goldens.  I had read her book The Things a Brother Knows and really enjoyed it, so this was an easy grab for me.  But I LOVED it.  Let me explain why:

•  Standalone novel
• Realistic fiction

The Gist:

Layla and Nell are the Goldens.  And Nell absolutely adores her sister.  Loves living a few years behind her and looking up to her.  But Nell notices that Layla is more distant than normal, uninterested in normal high school things, and unconcerned with school gossip.  And then she learns of Layla's big secret.  A secret that could change their family's life forever.  A secret that haunts Nell's every moment.

What I Loved:

• The point of view of the book--it's second person, which is so rarely seen in fiction.  Nell is speaking to Layla throughout the book, giving her behind-the-scenes info on the decisions she's made.  So effective since this book is all about looking at a situation through Nell's eyes.
• Even though I wanted major action to happen in the end, I'm glad it didn't.  It just didn't need it.  This book is about Nell even more than it is about Layla.
• This book is so gosh darn realistic...and that's all I can say about that since I work in education.
• I didn't think the adults were weak in this book.  The parents cared about their girls and appeared to be very realistic as divorced parents.

What I Didn't Love:

• The cover. Just doesn't work for me.
• Even though I loved the ending, my students won't like it.  I'll have to convince them why it's the best choice. 

Favorite quote: "They had three times the pool to choose from when putting together their team, so of course they were better than us.  Plus it was a Jesuit school, so they probably had God on their side to boot."

Such a great book--I highly recommend it!

Yep, 5 heels for me!

I'll be designing a Nell-inspired outfit soon!  I'm headed to YA'LL Fest tomorrow...can't wait to tell you all about it!