Booking Through Thursday/Saturday #29: Numbers Game (#11)

On Saturday

Some people read one book at a time. Some people have a number of them on the go at any given time, perhaps a reading in bed book, a breakfast table book, a bathroom book, and so on, which leads me to…

1. Are you currently reading more than one book?
If books for school count, than yes.
2. If so, how many books are you currently reading?
Two. Dos. Tvo.
3. Is this normal for you?
Eh. I prefer not to read more than one personal book at a time because I just confuse myself then. But we're never NOT reading a book in English, so I've got my personal read and then my school one. So pretty normal, but not really by my choice.
4. Where do you keep your current reads?
On my bedroom floor. No joke.

A Video (#10)

Song = The King of Carrot Flowers, Pt. 7 - Neutral Milk Hotel

Also. If I can get to 150 followers by the end of April, something special might happen. I'm not sure what yet, but it will definitely be special. So get all your friends to follow my blog. And I'll love you forever.

Scratchings (#9)

Click for bigger version. Enjoy. :)

Waiting on Wednesday #9 - The Vast Fields of Ordinary by Nick Burd (#8)

A little weekly/everyotherweek meme in which I get to pine for books that aren't out yet. *sighs* Started by Jill.
It’s Dade’s last summer at home. He has a crappy job at Food World, a “boyfriend” who won’t publicly acknowledge his existence (maybe because Pablo also has a girlfriend), and parents on the verge of a divorce. College is Dade’s shining beacon of possibility, a horizon to keep him from floating away. Then he meets the mysterious Alex Kincaid. Falling in real love finally lets Dade come out of the closet—and, ironically, ignites a ruthless passion in Pablo. But just when true happiness has set in, tragedy shatters the dreamy curtain of summer, and Dade will use every ounce of strength he’s gained to break from his past and start fresh with the future.
(Summary from Amazon)

A promising plot, an awesome cover, and an intriguing title? I think that that'll add up to a pretty great book.
Released May 14, 2009

Evolution, Me and Other Freaks of Nature by Robin Brande (#7)

Your best friend hates you. The guy you liked hates you. Your entire group of friends hates you. All because you did the right thing.
Welcome to life for Mena Reece, whose year is starting off in the worst way possible. She's been kicked out of her church group and no one will talk to her - not even her own parents. No one except for Casey, her supersmart lab partner in science class, who's pretty funny for the most brilliant guy on eart.
And when Ms. Shepherd begins the unit on evolution, school becomes more dramatic than Mena could ever imagine as she is caught up in a controversy involving science, religion, freedom - and a heart-racing, blush-inducing, can't-stop-thinking-about-him crush.
Now Mena's own life is about to evolve in some amazing and unexpected ways...
(Summary from jacket flap)

I'm going to try to keep this short because lately it seems like all my reviews have been amazingly and drearily long. So. Mini-review:

I have mixed feelings about this book.

Bad: Lots of Christian bashing. Yes, the main character is Christian but the author used basically any and all stereotypes out there and made Christians seem like the most cruelly single-minded group of people ever. Badbadbad. If a book is going to incorporate religion, it has to be extremely well thought out and respectful. No stereotypes allowed in my book.

Good: This book is quite readable. I finished it in just a few days which is saying something for me. I've turned into a very slow reader as of late and this actually moved quite quickly.

Bad: Predictable to the extreme. Except for the big drama part. I didn't see that one coming. And when it was finally revealed, I was like, seriously? another stereotype? But yeah, pretty predictable on all other fronts.

Good: Fluffy romance = happy me. Casey and Mena made me coo (funny word). They hade nice chemistry for a nerd book couple.

Bad: Most characters were pretty one-sided. Not a lot of dimension to them. No digging under the surface was done. It all felt sort of empty.

Good: Mena had a nice, solid voice. She was a great narrator and I liked how she grew throughout the book.

Good: I agreed with Ms. Shepherd's views on evolution/science/religion. So yay!

And that's it. I'm proud of myself for being concise. Overall? EMOFN (I'm obsessed with acronyms right now) was a fine book. Nothing astounding, but readable and light and fun.

Maybe save it for a possible summer beach read?