Author: Rachel Hartman

Item: Seraphina
Rating: 5
Author: Amanda Marie

2015 in Review (& End of Year and Statistics Surveys)

Posted December 31, 2015 in Life, Reading / 10 Comments

Big Things That Happened in 2015

I mentioned the school talent show in which the teachers sang Yellow Submarine.
I worked at a Catholic summer camp for the summer and had a blast. I wrote about it and shared some pictures.
I survived over a week of blinding smoke due to forest fires. It was insane. I talked about that here.
I had my very first ever Blogversary which was exciting.

Analysis of Books I Read in 2015

This was the very first year that I ever kept track of the books that I read. My stats have amazed me.

I read 141 books.
Almost all of the books I read this year were 4 or 5 stars. I must be pretty good at choosing books I know I’ll enjoy.
Over two-thirds of the books I read this year were from the library or books I own.
Over half of the books I read this year were hard copied (Paperback or Hardcover) while over a quarter were ebooks. Audiobooks made up the rest.
About a quarter of the books I read this year were debuts.

I made some pretty nifty looking pie charts in Excel (you can just pretend they are totally awesome).

Tagged as Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge, Birthday Month Reading Challenge, Catholic Book, Color Coded Challenge, Fairytale Retelling Challenge, Finishing the Series Challenge, Mythology Reading Challenge, Pope Benedict XVI, Pope Francis, Read 2015, Rereading Challenge, What's In a Name Reading Challenge, You Read How Many Books Challenge

September 2015 in Review

Posted September 29, 2015 in Faith, Reading / 6 Comments

Things that Happened in September

It is so strange that September is already over! This month has been so overwhelming!!
The first weeks of the school year have dragged and yet they have also gone by so quickly.
I was dragged to the city to try on dresses for my sister’s wedding next summer. I think we found one that everyone liked. That itself is an accomplishment. 🙂
This month has seemed to go by so fast when I wasn’t at the school. Just crazy fast.

I have decided to start reading Cinder by Marissa Meyer in Polish in hopes that it will help my Polish vocabulary. So far, it is very slow going.

I watched the Pope in Philadelphia on EWTN. I love Pope Francis so much. He is so inspiring and so full of joy. What a great representative of God’s love for all people, especially families, at the World Meeting of Families.

Books I Read in September

The Selection Stories: The Prince & The Guard

Tagged as Catholic, Fairytale Retelling Challenge, Monthly Wrap-Up, Polish, Pope Francis, Read 2015, Religious Education, Rereading Challenge, School, Sister, Swap, You Read How Many Books Challenge

{Review} Seraphina – A Different Type of Dragon Book

Posted September 10, 2015 in Reading, Review / 4 Comments

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman
Series: Seraphina #1
Publisher: Random House (2012)
Hardcover (464 pages)
Via: Library
Rating:
Reading Challenges: Read 2015

Synopsis

Four decades of peace have done little to ease the mistrust between humans and dragons in the kingdom of Goredd. Folding themselves into human shape, dragons attend court as ambassadors, and lend their rational, mathematical minds to universities as scholars and teachers. As the treaty’s anniversary draws near, however, tensions are high.
Seraphina Dombegh has reason to fear both sides. An unusually gifted musician, she joins the court just as a member of the royal family is murdered—in suspiciously draconian fashion. Seraphina is drawn into the investigation, partnering with the captain of the Queen’s Guard, the dangerously perceptive Prince Lucian Kiggs. While they begin to uncover hints of a sinister plot to destroy the peace, Seraphina struggles to protect her own secret, the secret behind her musical gift, one so terrible that its discovery could mean her very life.
In her exquisitely written fantasy debut, Rachel Hartman creates a rich, complex, and utterly original world. Seraphina’s tortuous journey to self-acceptance is one readers will remember long after they’ve turned the final page.

Find the book: Goodreads, Amazon, Book Depository

Tagged as 5 star, All Time Favorites, Library, Read 2015, You Read How Many Books Challenge

August 2015 in Review

Posted August 30, 2015 in Life, Reading / 10 Comments

Things that Happened in August

I returned home from summer camp! It was a fun time but I am glad to be home.
I survived the days of smoke so thick I could not see more than a block ahead of me. When I went to drive into town, my vehicle put the auto-lights on because it thought it was night. It has never been this bad that I recall. Yay for the forest fires of Washington, Idaho, Montana, and Canada.
I started school again. Back in the classroom with fifth and sixth grade students.
Speaking of being back in the classroom, I’m going to leave you with one very short sentence: I hate lice! (Thankfully I do not have any.)