TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:

• Grab your current read.
• Let the book fall open to a random page.
• Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page.
• You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!
• Please avoid spoilers!

During the war when her father had been in Europe, her mother was still alive; and then in the dark days after her mother's death Gram had come to live with them; and afterward, whenever her father had to go away for a few days without her, at least Gram had been there. Now she would be completely on her own.

(Pg 14, And Both Were Young by Madeleine L'Engle)

I felt like a slacker when it comes to finishing the reading challenges I had signed up for the year. Anyway, I am happy to say I have completed the 2010 Young Adult Reading Challenge, hosted by Home Girl's Book Blog (previously known as J. Kaye's Bookblog).

I committed to read 12 books and here's a list of what I read:

1. Leaving Paradise by Simone Elkeles


2. Nothing Like You by Lauren Strasnick


3. Rules of Attraction by Simone Elkeles


4. Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles


5. Half World by Hiromi Goto


6. Hate List by Jennifer Brown


7. Heartbreak River by Tricia Mills


8. Going Too Far by Jennifer Echols


9. The Worst of Me by Kate Le Vann


10. All Unquiet Things by Anna Jarzab


11. The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson


12. Mia the Magnificent by Eileen Boggess

And here's the part where I failed when it comes to Sookie Stackhouse Reading Challenge which is hosted by the lovely Candace of Beth Fish Reads.

I'm ashamed to say I have only read two books of this series:

1. Living Dead in Dallas


2. Dead Until Dark

I think my main reason for not completing this challenge is due to my reading mood. I'm not a fast reader in general and plus, I tend not to read books of the same series in a row, no matter how interesting they are. Perhaps I have left the reading gap for too long with this series, thus that explains why my anticipation wasn't there. Still, I'd want to read the rest of the books since I have them all in my pile.

Library Loot is a weekly event co-hosted by Eva and Marg that encourages bloggers to share the books they’ve checked out from the library. If you’d like to participate, just write up your post-feel free to steal the button-and link it using the Mr. Linky any time during the week. And of course check out what other participants are getting from their libraries!

Here's what I borrowed last Friday:

1) The Lonely Hearts Club by Elizabeth Eulberg

2) Wings of Wrath by C.S. Friedman (Magister Series #2)

I read the first instalment, Feast of Souls and enjoyed it! (Here's my review.)

I regret to say I have to return Infinity (by Sherrilyn Kenyon) and The Toss of a Lemon (by Padma Viswanathan) after reading a few pages. At that point of borrowing Infinity I didn't realise it's a story about Dark Hunters and zombies. Though I enjoy reading about vampires, I've no idea why I just can't get sucked into any zombie story like the way vampires stories do to me. I think I've to blame it on some of those freaky zombies movies I watched. As for The Toss of a Lemon, the due date is up and plus it's a chunkster and I want to devour this story at my own pace, thus I will probably purchase this book next time.

We went to watch Toy Story 3 on Wednesday and I have to say all of us had a wonderful time, despite that we got the third row seats due to the June school holidays.

Having watched the first two instalments and enjoyed them, I stepped into the cinema with high expectations and am glad to say this movie did not disappoint, at least it is to me.

In this third instalment, we see Andy has grown up and is packing for college. His mother wants him to clear his room before leaving, and feeling sentimental towards his old toys, he decided to pack them all into a box to be stored into the attic and brought only Woody with him.

However, due to a slip-up, the other toys ended up at Sunnyside Daycare Centre. Woody plans to rescue them so they would stay in Andy's attic, but they think otherwise and are actually quite excited with the notion that they would be played by the preschoolers. Unfortunately, the preschoolers they encountered are boisterous and they handled them badly. Added to their grief is an evil strawberry scented bear, Lotso, who seems to be the leader of the toys pack and he made sure Woody and his friends couldn't escape from the daycare centre.

Aside from the usual characters of Jessie, Buzz Lightyear, Mr. & Mrs. Potato Head (just to name a few), we also get to see several new characters such as Barbie and Ken (who I think is hilarious), Totoro (a character from a Japanese animation My Neighbour Totoro) and many others.

Suffice to say, Toy Story 3 is a fun and entertaining animation that would entice both children and adults alike. There are a few sentimental and touching scenes that had me with a lump in my throat. Upon leaving the cinema, I reiterated the message to my daughter to put in extra care and love her toys the way Andy does (not that she don't, it's just that she can be a little disorganise sometimes).

Oh, I didn't mention that we watched this in 2D since my husband is not keen on the 3D version generally (said it makes him giddy). And do I hope for a next instalment? Definitely!

This section has got nothing to do with books or movies, but I am a huge fan of Lu Chen (刘谦)and I want to wish him a Happy Birthday since it is his birthday today!

He will be performing here on 31st July for his World Magical Tour 2010 and I was disappointed that I am not able to attend. Nevertheless I am satisfied enough to watch his appearance on a TV variety show every weekend, and hopefully next time I'd get the chance to watch his performance in person.

Caleb Becker and Maggie Armstrong used to be friends and neighbours but an accident has changed everything. Now Maggie walks with a limp and Caleb was sent to a juvenile jail for drunk driving. This incident has left Maggie both physically and emotionally scarred, and though she could tolerate the pitiful stares she received in school, she is definitely not prepared to face Caleb in person now that he has been released from jail early for his community service duties.

However, this is not the only emotional baggage Maggie is carrying for she is still sadden over her parents' separation. She often wonders if her father is happy with his new life, and whether or not if he still cares about her. To complicate matters, she does not know if she should feel happy for her mother now that her boss is paying much more attention to her. Though Mr. Reynolds is a good man and she knew her mother deserved someone better like him, she could not help missing her father. However, she likes Mr. Reynolds' mother and when she offered to pay her for helping out at her house, she agreed. She enjoys working for Mrs. Reynolds and thinks she is a great woman but her happiness is a short-lived one after learning that Caleb is also helping Mrs. Reynolds to build a gazebo in her garden.

At the beginning, they do not feel comfortable working under the same roof but something changed over an incident and plus, Maggie felt she has learnt a lot from Mrs. Reynolds' advice and understand that sometimes it is easier to forgive than to bear a grudge against someone for the whole of your life.

On the other end, Caleb felt the tension in his family. He felt he could no longer communicate with his twin sister, Leah; not that he could blame her considering her friendship with Maggie is ruined after the accident. And their mother seems to rely heavily on medications due to the stress and added to his frustrations is his schoolmates' mockery towards Maggie.

I have to say reading Leaving Paradise is like riding on an emotional roller-coaster. One moment I was feeling sad for Maggie's unfortunate situation, and then the next I could be laughing along with Mrs. Reynolds because she is such a funny and open-minded person. And of course there are scenes that made me cry but I'd rather not say anything as that would spoil your fun of reading this book, isn't it?

Below are just a few faunas we met at the nature park . . .
Nope, it's not a baby crocodile but a huge iguana!

Can you spot the green snake?
I nearly screamed after realising what it was because it looked very much like a vine to me at first glance.

ISBN-13: 9781416982647
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing
Published: October 2009
224 pgs
Source: Library




It seems like I have been reading a lot of YA books lately, but that's because they are library books and I want to return them on time.

Holly lost her mother to cancer, so in a way this has made her worried and very conscious of her health. She does not have many friends at school, and she loves hanging around with her childhood friend, Nils, and she was glad that they went to the same school together.

While Holly thinks Nils is a good friend, she finds another Paul, another schoolmate attractive and despite they do not know each other very well, she does not mind hooking up with him though she knew he already has a girlfriend named Saskia. However, the more Holly spend time with Paul, the more she wanted their relationship to be serious but Paul thinks the other way, he wants their trysts to remain a secret.

To make things complicated, she and Saskia are classmates and their friendship blossoms as the days go by. Holly began to feel bad and try to leave Paul but he threatens to tell everyone about their relationship should she leave him. At this point of time, Holly realised that her friendship with Nils has began to change, and she thinks Nils having a girlfriend may also be a contributing factor.

However, when Holly realised what's most matter in her heart, things start to get more complex and she is caught in a lose-lose situation. She has chosen to leave Paul but then she would lose her friendship with Saskia and Nils too, since she has also broken a promise to him.

Nothing Like You is a bittersweet story of a young girl finding her self and love after the loss of her mother. Reading about her loss and her sadness have brought me memories of my late mother so I could relate to her in some ways.

I liked reading about Holly's exchange with Nils. Their friendship seems so sweet and real to me, and personally I think Nils is a perfect match for Holly but sometimes, things aren't supposed the way they are and moreover we have no control over things such as fate. Nothing Like You may seem like a typical teenage romance story, but I think there is much more depth to it as it allows the readers to think about things like loss (in general) and how we are going to deal with it, and also in what way it will affect us by the choice we made, etc.

Finally, I want to share an extract with you that I liked which made me think of self-acceptance and courage.

TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:

• Grab your current read.
• Let the book fall open to a random page.
• Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page.
• You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!
• Please avoid spoilers!

I suddenly had a secret. And it made me feel guilty, yeah, but I also felt really fantastic.

(Pg 57, Nothing Like You by Lauren Strasnick)

Library Loot is a weekly event co-hosted by Eva and Marg that encourages bloggers to share the books they’ve checked out from the library. If you’d like to participate, just write up your post-feel free to steal the button-and link it using the Mr. Linky any time during the week. And of course check out what other participants are getting from their libraries!

Here's what I borrowed last Friday:

1) Infinity by Sherrilyn Kenyon

2) The Stand by Stephen King (Initially I couldn't make up my mind whether or not to pick this up considering this is a chunkster and I'll probably couldn't finish reading it on time since I have another two more library books to read, but still I got it anyway as I've seen many SK fans highly recommend this. Plus, I've heard there are inevitable comparisons with Justin Cronin's The Passage so definitely my curiosity is piqued!)

Do you prefer reading current books? Or older ones? Or outright old ones? (As in, yes, there’s a difference between a book from 10 years ago and, say, Charles Dickens or Plato.)

What about you? Do you prefer current books or older ones?

I had enjoyed reading Simone Elkeles' Perfect Chemistry so much so that I have to read this sequel immediately after finishing that book.

Using the same writing style as in Perfect Chemistry (alternating narratives), Rules of Attraction tells the story of Alex's younger brother, Carlos Fuentes and his stay in Professor Westford's house after his involvement with a dangerous gang and Alex would rather have his former instructor to watch over Carlos than having him being expelled from high school.

Professor Westford's eldest daughter, Kiara, is the other narrator of this story and from the opening of the story, it is not a surprise to see there is a clash between Carlos and herself due to the difference of their personality. However, that does not mean that Kiara isn't one who will say no to challenges if she ever met one, and she has proved to many others that she could fix vehicles just as good as many guys do.

Despite their differences, Carlos and Kiara are drawn to each other the more they get to know each other but Carlos, thinks Kiara deserves someone better than him and also that he wouldn't want to get her and her family into trouble since a drug lord had sought him out and wanted him to run some illegal deals for him.

As in Perfect Chemistry, there are a lot of intense moments both in the plot and the romance department. As much as there is attraction between Carlos and Kiara, there are obviously some obstacles between them and the Westford family will go to any lengths to ensure that Carlos is out of danger. There are a few heartwarming moments as well and I was especially touched by the way Professor Westford had helped Carlos. His past history surprised me and it was interesting to see the other side of him when he went out of his way in helping Carlos.

I also enjoyed reading about Tuck, who is a good friend of Kiara and reading about their exchanges had me grinning most of the times because he is such a funny guy. I'd love to read a story about him, and it would be a GLBT lit since he is a gay. Overall, I find Rules of Attraction a compelling read and I think fans of Perfect Chemistry would be delighted to devour this sequel as Carlos and Kiara make an interesting couple. As there is a youngest brother in the Fuentes family - Luis Fuentes, I wonder if there would be a story of him in the near future. I would definitely hope so.

(Click here for other bookbloggers' reviews.)

TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:

• Grab your current read.
• Let the book fall open to a random page.
• Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page.
• You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!
• Please avoid spoilers!

As she began to slowly swing, I nuzzled closer. "Mrs. Odell, couldn't I live with you?"

"I wish you could," she said, pressing her cheek to mine. "But that's not the way it's written in your Life Book. This is the beginning of a big adventure, and you won't want to miss it. Your Life Book is about to reveal a brand new chapter, and so is mine."

(Pg 40-41, Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman)

Mailbox Monday is hosted by Marcia from The Printed Page where readers get to share the books that came into their house last week.

I was so thrilled to get The Passage by Justin Cronin (bought from The Book Depository) as I have read so many rave reviews about this one! I cannot wait to read it, but then I have to confess I am a little intimidated of this chunkster.

What books came into your house last week?

Library Loot is a weekly event co-hosted by Eva and Marg that encourages bloggers to share the books they’ve checked out from the library. If you’d like to participate, just write up your post-feel free to steal the button-and link it using the Mr. Linky any time during the week. And of course check out what other participants are getting from their libraries!

I found a few YA books which I look forward to reading them soon:

1) Nothing Like You by Lauren Strasnick

2) Leaving Paradise by Simone Elkeles

3) And Both Were Young by Madeleine L'Engle

Our first stop at Far Far Away is Donkey Live; it's a special interactive live show whereby the audience will interact and sing along with Donkey in an intimate theatre setting. I have no idea how this was done, but I have to say it was all pretty amazing! Again, I didn't take any picture of this as I was afraid of interrupting the show.)

We also rode on a family roller coaster named Enchanted Airways (which featured the Three Little Pigs, the Big Bad Wolf, Gingy, and Pinocchio etc) but we didn't take any picture of it. *sigh*

Far Far Away

Our next destination - WaterWorld at The Lost World, is a live water show where the performers performing some dangerous stunts along with the thrill of real explosions of fire and water. The audience is free to choose their seating (there is a wet or dry zone indicated alongside the benches so if you don't mind being splashed with water, the front seats are highly recommended.)

Jurrasic Park! This is another place I loved besides The Revenge of the Mummy (yes, I'm still thinking of that thrilling high speed ride!).



And speaking of high speed ride, Rapids Adventure is another thrilling ride one shouldn't miss! We bought disposable raincoats just for this ride because we had witnessed several people getting soaked when they got out from their ride. We sat on a circular raft (opposite us were two couples who didn't prepare anything so we must have looked very silly to them with our raincoats on!) where it moved along with the waves so there was a lot of bumping throughout the journey as we watched robotic dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures roaring at us as we bypassed them. And of course the most thrilling experience was where the raft was dropped at a certain height and needless to say, this is the part where we got drenched but thanks to the raincoats, we were totally spared from that experience!)

But that is not all in The Lost World, we also stopped by Canopy Flyer and Dino-Soarin' where we enjoyed a bird's eye view of Jurassic Park on the seats of a flying Pteranodon and a ride on the back of flying dinosaurs going up and down, and around respectively.

The above three pictures capture the feelings of strolling along the sidewalks in New York. Oh, I loved the setting! Tucked along a corner was a building where we witnessed a Category 5 major hurricane hitting New York City in a studio. Named Lights, Camera, Action, this is a place where we were introduced the incredible effects and the magic of filmmaking. It was indeed an eye-opening experience for all of us.

Well, have you ever watched a live rock musical performed by some infamous Universal Classic Monsters (such as Dracula, Frankenstein, the Mummy etc... just to name a few)? Monster Rock reminds me of a Broadway musical as I watched those monsters sing and dance (rock-n-roll style) using state-of-the-art digital projectors, sound systems and so forth. I was glad we had chosen some good seats for this performance, which was just nice being in the middle row so we had a great view of the overall setting.

I think I had covered most of the attractions but then again, there might be some things which I might have missed due to time constraint (and not to mention I didn't take some pictures for some places).

Finally, I want to share this picture with you all of what we saw at an MRT Station on our way home.