Booktube-A-Thon

I made my video a couple of days ago but have been procrastinating this blog post… but I shall dive in now. 

There were seven challenges: 

1) read an average of 300 pages a day

2) read a book with over 500 pages

3) re-read one book

4) finish a series/trilogy

5) read a book that’s been on your shelf forever

6) listen to an audiobook

7) read a classic 

I choose to attempt them all and managed to complete all of them except ONE! 

The first book I completed was Hacking Harvard by Robbin Wasserman. It was a very good book, although (if you read my review) it had a very sucky ending… very sucky. This completed the Read The Book That Has Been On Your Shelf The Longest Challenge. 

The second book I completed was Thou Shalt Not Road Trip by Antony John. Overall an excellent book except (again) the ending. I felt it could have ended differently (and needed to!) I finished this book and that completed the Read 300 Pages A Day Challenge

The Third Book I completed for for the Re-Read Challenge and that was Anna & the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins. It was a very good book and possibly better the second time around! 

The Fourth Book I completed was The Adventures Of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain. I did not review this one (because reviewing classics intimidate me!) but it was very good and completed THREE challenges!!!!! The first of which was to Read A Book With 500+ Pages, the second being to Listen To An Audio Book, and the third Challenge was Read A Classic.

The audio book was 700+ Pages long so I had some room to be lazy but ended up completing The Juliet Club (which I highly recommend) by Suzanne Harper to polish off the end off the Booktube-A-Thon. It did not complete any challenges… well I guess it did. It completed the Read 300+ Pages A Day Challenge! 

After adding up all the challenges, the only challenge I did not complete was to Finish A Series or Trilogy which is sad because I only had one book to go to finish one of my favorite trilogies but I just didn’t get around to it.

The total amount of pages I read added up to 2123 Pages! Not bad, huh? 

I always feel awkward when I end posts -Jordan

Thou Shalt Not Road Trip

Rating: 3.5 Out Of 5

Synospis: When sixteen-year-old Luke’s book, Hallelujah, becomes a national bestseller, his publishing house sends him on a cross-country book tour with his older brother, Matt, as chauffeur. But when irresponsible Matt offers to drive Luke’s ex–soul mate, Fran, across the country too, things get a little crazy. On the trip, Luke must loosen up, discover what it truly means to have faith, and do what it takes to get the girl he loves.

Told with Antony John’s signature wit and authenticity, and featuring smart, singular characters who jump off the page and into your heart, this story is a spiritual awakening and rockin’ road trip in one. 

Details: 

Hardcover, 336 Pages 

Published: April 12, 2012 by Dial 

ISBN: 0803734344 (ISBN13: 9780803734340) 

Edition Language: English 

Book Review: 

This book was amazing, there were some disappointments though. I know I was not on the Young Adult Christian Aisle at my local B&N, but I was positive there was going to be some serious Coming to Jesus with this book. 

The characters were witty,  but dull at times. I had to walk away from the book for an hour just to get to the next chapter. The basis of the book was amazing, but the ending fell flat. It’s. A. Romance. I know a grown man wrote this, but I do not understand why the book ended the way it did. There was so much hype leading up to the two main characters collision yet nothing went as planned. (In my head anyway.) There was something about how the words fell onto the page that made me know (just know!) that it was going to end with butterflies and rainbows. 

I felt the book was good (really good!) until the ending. Where everything spiraled out of control and ended with a thud of the back cover and me wearing a frown. 

Until next time -Jordan

Hacking Harvard

Synopsis:

The hack:
To get one deadbeat, fully unqualified slacker into the most prestigious school in the country.

The crew:
Eric Roth — the good guy, the voice of reason.
Max Kim — the player who made the bet in the first place.
Schwartz — the kid genius already on the inside…of Harvard, that is.
Lexi — the beauty-queen valedictorian who insists on getting in the game.

The plan:
Use only the most undetectable schemes and techno-brilliant skills. Don’t break the Hacker’s Code. Don’t get distracted. Don’t get caught. Take down someone who deserves it.

The stakes:
A lot higher than they think.

They’ve got the players, the plot, and soon — the prize.

It’s go time.

Details:

Paperback, 336 pages

Published: September 11th 2007 by Simon Pulse      

more details…

Original Title: Hacking Harvard

ISBN: 1416936335 (ISBN13: 9781416936336)                

Edition Language: English

Characters: Eric Roth, Max Kim, Schwartz, Lexi                

Book Review:

The book caught me by surprise. I thought I would love it, and I did… until the end. I loved the aspect of hacking into such a “flawless” system and fight against “the man.”

It was hard to understand at first, switching between third and first person perspectives, but I eventually got the clue. It is told from a young girls perspective but is about three guys who initially started hacking when they were younger.

I’m not going to go on about the book as the synopsis gives you a pretty good idea about the plot. I’m just going to dive in to a few key points that I feel really made the book stand out from others of it’s genre.

1. The humor was exquisite. Some authors push the boundaries and the humor is flat and boring, but Robin Wasserman really made it fun. All of the characters had a different personality that stood out on the page that made the book more interesting and kept making me turn the page to read more.

2. The submission process for totally relatable. All the hair pulling, and gnawing at your nails. It made the book three dimensional and real. It wasn’t made up, it was the truth… the SATs, staying up late while preparing your essay. The only thing I didn’t like about the whole process was the characters blowing up at each other when something went wrong. They argued like cats and dogs and at time took each other for granted… but that just brings me back to how realistic this story was. It really made it for me.

3. The ending (the epilogue) was horrid. If I could go back in time and not read the epilogue I would like this story a whole lot more. This is where it went down hill for me. The story was perfect, why go and ruin it with telling the readers who their lives ended up?

Rating: *** (Three Out Of five Stars.) I loved the entire book but the ending was just off for me. I’m sure there were a lot more things that bugged me about this book, I just cant seem to get the ending out of my head.

I hope you enjoyed reading and I’ll be back with another review soon! -Jordan