One Butt Cheek At A Time by Amber Kizer

Publisher: Random House Children's Books
Pub. Date: October 2007
Age Range: Young Adult
Pages: 304
Format: paperback
Source of copy: Amber Kizer

GERT GARIBALDI ISN'T ONE OF those people who believe high school is the best part of life. She has a whole notebook full of rants about high school, and she's fully aware of how ridiculous the experience is, thank you very much. Gert just wants to survive the next three years, one butt cheek at a time, with her best friend, Adam, by her side - and maybe Luscious Luke attached to her lips. With a stapler. Or something. But muddling through isn't even as easy as it seems - there are geriatric parents to deal with, Homecoming festivities (admit itÑthose words just sent a little chill down your spine), crushes, ed (both sex and driving), and potential new boyfriends - for both Gert and Adam.



Extremely hilarious. That's how One Butt Cheek At The Time appeared to me. It's the kind of book that will bring you ultimate fun. The title itself is crazy enough, not to mention the cute, realistic cover. And the story you may wonder? Just as nice.

Gertrude's life was similar to any of the modern teenagers. She had a lot of doubts and she faced a lot of minor to major troubles. So what made her different from others? The fact that her parents had her at such an old age and Gertrude only had one best friend who turned out to be gay - Adam. Also, her name played a real good role on drawing unwanted attention to her. I love the voice of the narrator real much, it made everything ordinary become interesting and laugh-worthy. In between telling the story of how Gert handled life, there were excerpts from her journal - aka Gert's notebooks of raves and rants. I found those the most amusing. I read them and couldn't stop giggling. And it felt great.

Gert was an adorable girl. Though it seemed comic seeing her struggle with lots of things on her own (her parents were too old to understand a teenage life now and her brother couldn't care less), I still felt really bad, especially when she had her first hearbreak and her bestfriend's boyfriend was to invade their time. But Gert was still hopeful and she took life in a positive way, which I truly liked. There was a part about sex education that I found really bizarre of Gertrude but that only made her character more fun.

The ending was a little bit unimpressive. I was hoping for something really unique just like the rest of the book but it seemed typical. However, I was happy for Gertrude since she finally found the right way in her life, everything was okay now.

Overall this is a super cute and funny read you shouldn't miss. Trust me, you'll love Amber Kizer's writing.

Rating: 3/5

Waiting On Wednesday (25)

Idea taken from Breaking The Spine

Swoon At Your Own Rish by Sydney Salter.

It’s the summer before senior year and Polly Martin has sworn off boys. Who needs the hurt and confusion? Five recent breakups have left her with an unnatural knowledge of NASCAR, the ultimate hiker’s outfit, a student council position, the sixth highest score on the Donkey Kong machine at the mall, and a summer job at Wild Waves with ex #2 Sawyer Holmes.

Success seems a sure thing when Polly’s grandmother, the syndicated advice columnist, Miss Swoon, moves in for the summer. Polly almost doesn’t mind sharing a room with her little sister, Grace. Think of all the great advice she’ll get!

Everything is going according to plan except…Miss Swoon turns out to be a man-crazy septuagenarian! And then there’s Xander Cooper. If only he wouldn’t keep showing up at Wild Waves with his adorable cousins every afternoon—and what is he writing in that little notebook?

No advice column in the world can prepare Polly for the lessons she learns when she goes on a group camping trip (with three too many ex-boyfriends). Polly is forced to see people for who they are—a blend of good and bad qualities that can’t be reduced to a list or a snappy answer in a Miss Swoon column.

Reasons why I already swoon over this book:

1. It's by Sydney Salter. And you know how much I loved her already. Her writing is honest but light and very hilarious. Just read Big Nose and you'll see.
2. Teen girl getting advice from grandma, sounds fun doesn't it? It's even greater when Ms Swoon is a man crazy one. HAHA
3. Camping trip with not only one but three exes. Hello, what more could you ask for?


Swoon at your own risk over this book on April 5th, 2010. Shall we swoon together then? ^^

In My Mailbox (27)

Idea taken from The Story Siren

Say hello to my new books coming from Hachette Australia, everyone~!



The Summoning by Kelley Amstrong.

After years of frequent moves following her mother’s death, Chloe Saunders’s life is finally settling down. She is attending art school, pursuing her dreams of becoming a director, making friends, meeting boys. Her biggest concern is that she’s not developing as fast as her friends are. But when puberty does hit, it brings more than hormone surges. Chloe starts seeing ghosts–everywhere, demanding her attention. After she suffers a breakdown, her devoted aunt Lauren gets her into a highly recommended group home. At first, Lyle House seems a pretty okay place, except for Chloe’s small problem of fearing she might be facing a lifetime of mental illness. But as she gradually gets to know the other kids at the home–charming Simon and his ominous, unsmiling brother Derek, obnoxious Tori, and Rae, who has a “thing” for fire–Chloe begins to realize that there is something that binds them all together, and it isn’t your usual “problem kid” behaviour. And together they discover that Lyle House is not your usual group home either…



The Awakening by Kelley Amstrong.

If you had met me a few weeks ago, you probably would have described me as an average teenage girl—someone normal. Now my life has changed forever and I'm as far away from normal as it gets. A living science experiment—not only can I see ghosts, but I was genetically altered by a sinister organization called the Edison Group. What does that mean? For starters, I'm a teenage necromancer whose powers are out of control; I raise the dead without even trying. Trust me, that is not a power you want to have. Ever.

Now I'm running for my life with three of my supernatural friends—a charming sorcerer, a cynical werewolf, and a disgruntled witch—and we have to find someone who can help us before the Edison Group finds us first. Or die trying.


This Lullaby by Sarah Dessen.

Remy doesn't believe in love. And why should she? Her romance novelist mother is working on her fifth marriage, and her father, a '70s hippie singer, left her with only a one-hit wonder song to remember him by. Every time Remy hears "This Lullaby," it feels like "a bruise that never quite healed right." "Wherever you may go / I will let you down / But this lullaby plays on..." Never without a boyfriend, Remy is a compulsive dater, but before a guy can go all "Ken" on her (as in "ultra boyfriend behavior") she cuts him off, without ever getting close or getting hurt. That's why she's stunned when klutzy, quirky, alterna-band boy Dexter inserts himself into her life and refuses to leave. Remy's been accepted to Stanford, and she plans on having her usual summer fling before tying up the loose ends of her pre-college life and heading for the coast. Except Dexter's not following Remy's tried-and-true rules of break-up protocol. And for the first time, Remy's questioning whether or not she wants him to.


Wait, Audrey by Robin Benway.

The wait is over for the paperback of this irresistible, fast-paced, hit-worthy debut!

When funny, charming, absolutely-normal Audrey Cuttler dumps her boyfriend Evan, he writes a song about her that becomes a number-one hit—and rockets Audrey to stardom!

Suddenly, tabloid paparazzi are on her tail and Audrey can barely hang with her friends at concerts or the movies without getting mobbed—let alone score a date with James, her adorable coworker at the Scooper Dooper. Her life will never be the same—at least, not until Audrey confronts Evan live on MTV and lets the world know exactly who she is!



It's so so so fantastic because I finally got to review these books, those I've been lusting for such a long time, especially This Lullaby and Wait, Audrey. I'm so HAPPY *grins till my jaw hurts*. I heard that the books are kick ass so I think I'm going to enjoy myself really much. Time for some music and fantasy~! By the way these ain't Australian covers, I'll put the actual ones up with my reviews so stay tuned.

Happy reading my lovelies ^^

Sunday Special (25) Covers That Tickles Your Appetite

...or those that remind you you have a sweet tooth : )

Donut Days by Lara Zielin.


The Cupcake Queen by Heather Helper.


My Big Fast Manifesto by Susan Vaught.

Artichoke's Heart by Suzanne Supple


L.A Candy by Lauren Conrad.


Bad Apple by Laura Ruby.


Shug by Jenny Han.

These covers make me want to eat the books, seriously, especially the chocolate. Any of the above drives your stomach crazy? Popsicle? Icecream? Candy? If you spot any other delicious covers please tell me. So far I've only found those with desserts, and I'm hoping to find real food there.


Have a great eye feast :)

Boy Toy by Barry Lyga

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Pub. Date: September 2007
Age Range: Young Adult
Pages: 416
Format: hardcover
Source of copy: from publisher - Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Josh Mendel has a secret. Unfortunately, everyone knows what it is.

Five years ago, Josh’s life changed. Drastically. And everyone in his school, his town—seems like the world—thinks they understand. But they don’t—they can’t. And now, about to graduate from high school, Josh is still trying to sort through the pieces. First there’s Rachel, the girl he thought he’d lost years ago. She’s back, and she’s determined to be part of his life, whether he wants her there or not.Then there are college decisions to make, and the toughest baseball game of his life coming up, and a coach who won’t stop pushing Josh all the way to the brink. And then there’s Eve. Her return brings with it all the memories of Josh’s past. It’s time for Josh to face the truth about what happened.

If only he knew what the truth was . . .


Enticing and intense, Boy Toy is the kind of book that you think scandalous as picking it up and claim fabulous after putting it down.

The story is off a few haunting ones that I've had an opportunity to encounter in the past few years. Fair to say, I found this even more breathless than either 13 Reasons Why or Wintergirls. The storyline was turbulent - seriously, you cannot find many books on teacher-student relationship (so far, slow as I am, I've seen three only) and it is rare to see the male with a role as a student too. I also love the fact that the narrator was a guy, one with a calm and collected voice, totally unpredictable but also very addicting. Generally, Boy Toy had the whole package to make a hit.

Boy Toy brought me a lot of thrill. Like, real thrill. I couldn't but have feel like something was stuck in my throat as I read this book. As if the circumstance itself wasn't peculiar enough, Barry Lyga had to choose to tell everything in such a fast and somewhat dangerous tone. Honestly, I was a bit scared by some parts of the story but that didn't necessarily drive me away. On the contrast, I bet you'd feel taken aback by how the author elaborated everything, including the prickly scenes without making them too much to tolerate. I really appreciated it, that way the younger readers would still have a chance to approach the story, safe and sound.

Josh was brilliantly illustrated. Even though I didn't see much development in other characters, only Josh himself was what it took to hold my full awareness. I couldn't put it into words how much I loved the way Barry Lyga analyzed Josh's inner life. His thoughts, his feelings, especially the creepy flickers and his controversial anger. It fitted Josh like stuff in a box. Even though I could hardly imagine anyone in his shoes, my heart and soul went out to him when I read this book. How bad it was to experience such cruelty at such a young age - Josh lost his innocence, his happiness and was hesitant to explore the world as well as his own self. What was even worse was that he was trapped in a shell - afraid that people would judge him, scared that he would harm them like he once did to his friend Rachel - to a point that he totally got the wrong idea about what had happened. Just wait and see the climax, trust me, you'd be very impressed. Gotta add that Rachel was my favorite character too. She was not just strong but absolutely tough and daring. Without her, I didn't think Josh could have made it.

Barry Lyga's courage was paid off with an amazingly candid story that would provoke each and every reader. I could now see you pick it up and love it so much you'd have to force your friends/family to read it.

Rating: 4.5/5

Coffeehouse Angel by Suzanne Selfors

Publisher: Walker & Company
Pub. Date: July 2009
Age Range: Young Adult
Pages: 288
Format: ARC
Source: from author

When Katrina spots a homeless guy sleeping in the alley behind her grandmother’s coffee shop, she decides to leave him a cup of coffee, a bag of chocolate-covered coffee beans, and some pastries to tide him over. Little does she know that this random act of kindness is about to turn her life upside down. Because this adorable vagrant, Malcolm, is really a guardian angel on a break between missions. And he won’t leave until he can reward Katrina’s selflessness by fulfilling her deepest desire. Now if only she could decide what that might be . .


One word to describe this book: sweet. If you're tired of stories on depression and pain of lives or just want a reminder of how you used to love fun, loving fairy tales as a child, I suggest you get this book as soon as possible.

What I like about Coffeehouse Angel was that reading the book was like waking up to a sunshineful day. Even if you knew there'd be lots of trouble awaiting, you could still becertain that everything would be fine at the end. I felt light-hearted and happy from the very beginning to the end, which would be super helpful if you were in a bad mood and needed something to cheer you up. The writing was neat and alluring, doing a great job of keeping the readers eyes constantly on the pages though everything seemed very predictable.

Aside from having an ordinary fairy tale's quality, the book was also very funny. I think Suzanne Selfors was successful in creating the situations and unknotting them. How the coffee beans worked, how Katrina's life was messed up after that and finally how they found their way to live happily ever after. There was also one teenage problem that you might find engaging: self-understanding. It probably wouldn't tell you which path to choose for your future or help you figure out what your strength was but it'd encourage you to do so without much doubt.

It was so fun to have a real angel in the character crew. Malcolm was really sweet and definitely a very humorous but profound angel. Of course I love Katrina too, she was heartily nice but that didn't stop her from being crazy or silly. However, I have to admit that the romance between these two were a little bit weak. I didn't see much of a connection, just adoration like good friends. I found the confusion and the fight between Katrina and Vincent more compelling to be honest.

On the whole, Coffeehouse Angel was a lovely, charming book that you'd love to read. Specifically recommended to fans of fairy tales/who's still a child at heart.

Rating: 3/5

Waiting On Wednesday (24)

Idea taken from Breaking The Spine

The Six Rules Of Maybe by Deb Caletti.

No summary yet but at least we know what we'll get thanks to the book description at amazon.com "A funny, poignant, uplifting, and truly authentic novel by National Book Award finalist author Deb Caletti."


Reasons why I want to read the book:

1. Because it's by Deb Caletti's production. I'm reading one of her books right now and I really her writing.
2. The book seems different from all the things she's written. I'm not sure but I have a feeling that it might be really refreshing.
3. Lovely cover. I love the blue sky. And its layout is not the same as the 6 previous ones of Deb Caletti if you pay attention. I also have a thing for anything that has maybe in it title too.


Pick this book up on April 20th 2010 to make sure you don't break the 6 rules of maybe.

In My Mailbox (26)

Idea taken from The Story Siren.

Cool books from Penguin this week, all thanks to Sara<3


Peace, Love and Baby Ducks by Lauren Myracle.

Growing up in a world of wealth and pastel-tinted entitlement, fifteen-year-old Carly has always relied on the constancy - and authenticity - of her sister, Anna. But when fourteen-year-old Anna turns plastic-perfect-pretty over the course of a single summer, everything starts to change. And there are boys involved, complicating things as boys always do. With warmth, insight, and an unparalleled gift for finding humor even in stormy situations, beloved author Lauren Myracle dives into the tumultuous waters of sisterhood and shows that even very different sisters can learn to help each other stay afloat.


Prada And Prejudice by Mandy Hubbard.

To impress the popular girls on a high school trip to London, klutzy Callie buys real Prada heels. But trying them on, she trips...conks her head...and wakes up in the year 1815!

There Callie meets Emily, who takes her in, mistaking her for a long-lost friend. As she spends time with Emily's family, Callie warms to them—particularly to Emily's cousin Alex, a hottie and a duke, if a tad arrogant.

But can Callie save Emily from a dire engagement, and win Alex's heart, before her time in the past is up?

More Cabot than Ibbotson, Prada and Prejudice is a high-concept romantic comedy about finding friendship and love in the past in order to have happiness in the present.

Betrayal of Natalie Hargrove by Lauren Kate.

A steamy Southern beauty makes one fatal mistake.

Natalie Hargrove would kill to be her high school’s Palmetto Princess. But her boyfriend Mike King doesn’t share her dream and risks losing the honor of Palmetto Prince to Natalie’s nemesis, Justin Balmer. So she convinces Mike to help play a prank on Justin. . . one that goes terribly wrong. They tie him to the front of the church after a party—when they arrive the next morning, Justin is dead.

From blackmail to buried desire, dark secrets to darker deeds, Natalie unravels. She never should’ve messed with fate. Fate is the one thing more twisted than Natalie Hargrove.

I love these books so much :) see the diversity of those three. Now I have a warm read about sisterhood, something fun back to the 19th century and a dark serious story. I couldn't ask for more. I'm most excited about The Betrayed of Natalie Hargrove. I think I'm going to read it first.


Anyone loves any of these books? ^^

Sunday Special (24) More Vietnamese Covers

As promised, I brought you more Vietnamese version of English books today :)

Annie's Baby by Beatrice Sparks.

Same cover, same font. So not much to say. I still don't love the cover, it looks too depressing and the girl's expression, as I said, is rather weird. The only interesting thing of this is that they said this book has the same author as What Happened to Nancy. I'm a little confused about that.

Flying Fingers by Adora Svitak.

I've not had a chance to pick up the book but I heard that it was cute. This little author has dropped in on Vietnam a few years ago and she seemed really adorable. I've not seen the original cover but I think it's nice enough to attract young readers here :)

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson.

Big scream for this book. I've always wanted to read Speak but the book is nowhere to be found. However, I refused to pick this up because it looks so :( you know what I mean right. I don't like what they did to the picture, especially the colour. It's simply dull. And the title is weird too "Story of Melinda at highschool". Wth?

Kiss Me Kill Me by Lauren Henderson.

The cover fails to draw the readers attention I have to admit. It took me like forever to figure out it was Kiss Me, Kill Me >.< The photo was okkay but I wish they had made it brighter or something.



So what do you think? Does any of these appeal to you at all?

Ballads Of Suburbia by Stephanie Kuehnert

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group
Pub. Date: July 2009
Age Range: Young Adult
Pages: 304

Kara hasn't been back to Oak Park since the end of junior year, when a heroin overdose nearly killed her and sirens heralded her exit. Four years later, she returns to face the music. Her life changed forever back in high school: her family disintegrated, she ran around with a whole new crowd of friends, she partied a little too hard, and she fell in love with gorgeous bad-boy Adrian, who left her to die that day in Scoville Park....

Amid the music, the booze, the drugs, and the drama, her friends filled a notebook with heartbreakingly honest confessions of the moments that defined and shattered their young lives. Now, finally, Kara is ready to write her own.

Ever wonder if there's any novel that's full of tears, blood, pain, break ups and death but still amazingly gorgeous? Ballads Of Suburbia is the one. Surpassing Stephanie Kuehnert's debut I Want To Be Your Joey Ramone, this book will surely capture the heart of every teenage reader this summer.

When I first looked at the title, the word ballads told me I'd get something softer and less dark this time. But no, it was actually stronger and more intense, because ballads here aren't slow catchy songs about love, they are stories of the different but still relatable downfalls of young adults who live in the suburb of Chicago. I love the idea of that so much. Each character in the book had their own theme song as well as their own heart-shattering pieces of life. This way you just don't get to know the main character, you'll get to know every single one in the book, specifically their secret and maybe even the most vulnerable part of them. How they crossed path with each other, how their relationship changed through out various kinds of situations, how they dealt with their own problems would give you a complete picture of the suburbia. Like the author stood in the darkest corner of the place and revealed to you all the things that unhappy teenagers had to suffer.

The mention of sex, drug and self-injury could be considered somewhat heavy but I fully appreciated how the author portrayed them. It was flawless and like there was no holding back at all - what you read in the book is what truly happens out there in real life. They were the ways that our characters chose to escape from their anguish. And with Kara, Cassandra, Liam and everyone else, the readers who might be in the same cases would learn that facing the hardship and dealing with it wisely doesn't need to involve one of those three deadly things.

The characters in the book were really brilliant. They were so well built that you could just close your eyes and imagine them next to you so easily. I've never encountered any of their kinds in my life but for some reason they still felt awfully close and real. Each of them was beautiful in their own way - I'm not too sure with Christian, he's still an interesting character nevertheless. I also want to know more of the connection of Kara and Adrian - they were what one another had been looking for all the time but both were still insecure and scared to reach a commitment. Their love was vague and it kept me wondering and wondering.

I think Stephanie Kuehnert changed a bit of my attitude towards reading. I used to love they-live-happily-ever-after ending but now I'm in favour of open ones. It will get us ponder about live and cherish happiness even more. Ad even though this book was dark and painful, the ending still promised a better and brighter funture, which, was very encouraging.

Ballads Of Suburbia is a book that you will probably add to your favorite shelf. It reaches out to its every reader. You don't have to be fans of this or fans of that to enjoy this fierce piece of fiction. Trust me, you don't even have to Stephanie Kuehnert's fan to find yourself in love with Kara and her friends.

Rating: 5/5