Book Review: A Greyhound of a Girl

Book: A Greyhound of a Girl
Author: Roddy Doyle
Genre: Paranormal (Middle-Grade)
Rating: 3/5
Page Count: 208 (Hardcover)
Favorite Character: Tansey, I think. Hard to say, but I'm going to go with her!

Plot: (From Goodreads)

Mary O'Hara is a sharp and cheeky 12-year-old Dublin schoolgirl who is bravely facing the fact that her beloved Granny is dying. But Granny can't let go of life, and when a mysterious young woman turns up in Mary's street with a message for her Granny, Mary gets pulled into an unlikely adventure. The woman is the ghost of Granny's own mother, who has come to help her daughter say good-bye to her loved ones and guide her safely out of this world. She needs the help of Mary and her mother, Scarlett, who embark on a road trip to the past. Four generations of women travel on a midnight car journey. One of them is dead, one of them is dying, one of them is driving, and one of them is just starting out.

Review:

The reason that the rating isn't higher is because I did have some problems with it. Overall, however, it was a cute, short read about 4 women in a generation who, eventually, go on an adventure. It was interesting to read about the four generations, because, as with relatives, you could see the similarities in them. It also took place in Ireland, which is what drew me to it in the first place.

However, I didn't really like some of the dialogue and how sometimes the girl seemed much younger then she was. Mostly, though, it was the dialogue. Some of the dialogue just didn't sound realistic, it didn't flow right, and it said, a few times, "!!" instead of someone saying "exclamation point." (I got a galley, so this might be changed in the finished book, but I haven't gotten my hands on a copy yet to see). Of course it's a middle grade, but I'd never seen it written like that, it was really odd.

The four women are Tansey, short for Anastasia, Emer- reffered to mostly as Granny-, Scarlet, and Mary. Mary was the youngest, at 12. It's hard to keep straight, sometimes, but it was interesting all the same. However, sometimes it felt like they were all too alike, but some of the back and forth was cute.

Overall, to wrap it up, it was okay. Not great, but not bad. Some of the dialogue didn't flow right, the women seemed too alike at points, the girl seemed younger then she was, and, I didn't say this before, but some of the characters outside the four seemed very 1 dimensional. But it wasn't really about them, at all, so it was okay that they fell into the foreground. If you're just looking for a cute short book then maybe give this one a try, because the story was nice to read about.

WWW Wednesday(2)

WWW Wednesdays is hosted by MizB over at Should Be Reading. If you do a WWW Wednesday then please post your link in the comments and if you don't have a blog, you can just post the answers. And she asks that one answers these three questions:

• What are you currently reading?
• What did you recently finish reading?
• What do you think you'll read next?

Currently Reading:

Fool Moon by Jim Butcher
Book 2 in the Dresden Files and I'm about 1/2 way through it and it is just as good as the first!

The Magicians by Lev Grossman
This book is really... weird. I don't quite know what to make of it yet. I'm really not that far into it, so we'll see what the rest brings.

This book has been described as an adult Harry Potter, or what would really be happening in Hogwarts, as it were.  And while I really don't like that kind of tag line, I do enjoy books with magic. And I'm reading it for Sword and Laser, so I have to get a move on with it.

Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers
Still reading this one, I was going to finish it yesterday, but I was too tired to stay awake any longer. I'm
65% through it so far and loving it. I love Ismae and how she wants to know if she can kill everyone, I've become of the same mind, why can't she just kill some of those people?







Recently Finished Reading:

American Gods by Neil Gaiman (5/5)
I really enjoyed this book and it was one of the few that I couldn't even think of reading anything else while I read this one. It was amazing and my full review can be found here.

The Colorado Kid by Stephen King (5/5)
This is the book that the SyFy show Haven is based on and I've been really wanting to read it but it took me forever to find a good copy of it. Anyway, though, I really loved it and this is the first book I finished during the Read-A-Thon.

Storm Front by Jim Butcher (5/5)
This is the first book in the Dresden Files series and I read it years ago, but couldn't remember anything that had happened. I loved it, this is one of those series that I can't wait to get through but also I don't want to finish them!

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (5/5)
It took me a while to finish this one just because I love the first paragraph of this book so very much. I read The Sign of Four and A Study in Scarlet earlier in the year and have been wanting to read this one for a while, now when can I read the next one...?

(It seems I read books I knew I'd like since all of them I gave 5/5 stars, but I did really enjoy them all).





Want to Read Next:

The Selection by Kiera Cass
I've heard amazing things about this one, as well. And I read Kiera's self-published book when it first came out. (It's called The Siren, and it had me sobbing, and I loved it to pieces). Anyway, I'm really excited to read this one. Also, I'm going to see her on Saturday for a book signing and I'd like to have it read for then.

The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa
I've been hearing amazng things about this one and I got it in the mail on Saturday and I've just been staring at it, wanting to read it. And, while I've only read one of Julie's other books, I really liked it. (Also, if you have the hardback, have you taken off the dust jacket? It's gorgeous, isn't it?)

Book Review: American Gods

Title: American Gods
Author: Neil Gaiman
Genre: SciFi, Fantasy
Rating: 5/5
Page Count: 592 (Mass Market Paperback)
Favorite Character: Um, gods is that hard. (Gods, get it?) But I think it would have to be one of the gods, I mean I liked Shadow, but he didn't have that zing, you know? I really enjoyed Easter, she might of been one of my favorites.

Plot: (From Goodreads)
After three years in prison, Shadow has done his time. But as the days, then the hours, then the minutes, then the seconds until his release tick away, he can feel a storm building. Two days before he gets out, his wife Laura dies in a mysterious car crash, in apparently adulterous circumstances. Dazed, Shadow travels home, only to encounter the bizarre Mr. Wednesday claiming to be a refugee from a distant war, a former god and the king of America. Together they embark on a very strange journey across the States, along the way solving the murders which have occurred every winter in one small American town. But they are being pursued by someone with whom Shadow must make his peace... Disturbing, gripping and profoundly strange, Neil Gaiman's epic new novel sees him on the road to finding the soul of America.

Review:
I read the 10th Anniversay Edition and it, apparently, had 12k more words in it then the normal edition, but I can't imagine what the other one doesn't have. While I was reading this book I couldn't even think of reading another book, which I don't think had ever happened to me before. Normally I read too many books at a time to count. I start one, put a bookmark in it, and sometimes forget about it for a while. (On Goodreads it says I'm currently-reading 12 books, which is on the lower side for me.)

Anyway, about the book. This book was something else. I don't even know if I could tell you exactly what I loved about it so much. I definitely loved the characters, the gods and the mortals. This book was weird and strange and just a bit odd, really odd in some places, but it was amazing. I loved it. The characters were lovable and, maybe not relatable, but you almost still could relate to them, anyway.

And, of course, the writing was just amazing. And some of the sentences had me giggling at the randomest times. Like, at the end, there's a sentence that goes like this:

"The house smelled musty and damp, and a little sweet, as if it were haunted by the ghosts of long-dead cookies."

I don't know why, but that sentence struck me as hilarious.

Moving on, though, besides the sometimes hilarious random sentences and the amazing characters and writing, there was the plot. The plot wasn't something that I was expecting, I mean, I knew this book was about gods, but I didn't quite know where it would go with that. And the plot, which I'm not going to tell you a thing about, was done really well, perfectly even.

I'm going to stop raving about this book and just tell you to go and read it. And I hope that you enjoyed it as much as I did, even though it's strange and odd and weird, it's also wonderful and brilliant. (Also, I kind of want to go visit these tourist traps that are mentioned just to see them. I should mention that this is not a Young Adult book by any standards, so be aware of that when you pick it up, but do pick it up).

Read-A-Thon: The End (4 - 8am)

Books read(finished and unfinished):
The Colorado Kid by Stephen King
Storm From by Jim Butcher
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Heartless by Gail Carriger
Fool Moon by Jim Butcher (I really wanted to finish this one, but I was just too tired. And My throat hurt)

Pages read since last update: 94

Hours spent reading since last update: 45 minutes

Overall pages read: 1,020

Overall hours spent reading: 10 hours, 25 minutes

Overall hours spent awake/awake reading: 21 (-about 2 hours for a nap in the middle)

Comments:
This was a lot of fun and I think I'll be participating in a lot more Read-A-Thons in the future! If you want to see my Goodreads page and be proud of be for catching up on my reading goal and reading 3 books, or be my friend, go here.

(If I can't sleep, which sometimes happens when I've been awake this long, then this may be updated with some more information).

Read-A-Thon 12:00 - 4:00AM

Book(s) read since last check-in:

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (Finished)

Comments on books:

Loved, loved, loved The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. It was just, I mean, I have nothing articulate to say it's way too late.

Blogs I've been visiting:

Not really any this time around.

Here are stats of books read, pages read, hours spent reading, and such:

Hours spent reading since last update: 2 hours, 20 minutes

Pages read since last update: 96

Cups of Tea Consumed: 0

Complete number of books completed: 3

Complete number of pages read: 926

Complete number of hours spent reading: 9 hours, 40 minutes

Comments:

Sherlock Holmes is hard as hell to read at 2 in the morning. My god, I didn't think it would be, but it is. Because I can't speed read through it, you just can't with these stories because there are so many details. (I even cracked a couple before everything was revealed. It made me more proud then I probably should of been, but that's okay). I don't know if I'll last through the next one, I'll try. If I do, I'll probably get even less reading done. It seems I read slower the more tired I am. 

Read-A-Thon: 8PM - 12AM

Book(s) read since last check-in:

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (In Progress)

Comments on books:
I'm loving this book, it's not a fast read, though. But I hope to finish it during the next chunk of time, if I can stay away. (I'm loving it, though, just as I fully expected).

Blogs I've been visiting:

Not really any this time around.

Here are stats of books read, pages read, hours spent reading, and such:

Hours spent reading since last update: 1 hour, 50 minutes

Pages read since last update: 98

Cups of Tea Consumed(Since last update): 1

Complete number of books completed: 2

Complete number of pages read: 830

Complete number of hours spent reading: 7 hours, 20 minutes

Comments:
My eyes have started drooping. I've got some caffeine, but right now I'm just hoping to pull through to the end of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and then maybe I'll take a nap and read some more after that. 

Read-A-Thon 4:00 - 8:00pm

Book(s) read since last check-in:

Fool Moon by Jim Butcher (In Progress)

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (In Progress)

Comments on books:

Fool Moon has werewolf's in it, I'm a sucker for werewolf's, and there are so much different mythology in this book, love it. And I've read the Study in Scarlet and The Sign of Four, I started The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes a while ago, but it's good to get back into it.

Blogs I've been visiting:

Not really any this time around.

Here are stats of books read, pages read, hours spent reading, and such:

Hours spent reading since last update: 1 hour, 10 minutes

Pages read since last update: 59

Cups of Tea Consumed: 0

Complete number of books completed: 2

Complete number of pages read: 732

Complete number of hours spent reading: 6 hours, 30 minutes

Comments:

I took a two hour nap in the middle of this round, I was starting to get a migraine was getting really tired. And as you can see, it shows in how much I read. That's fine, though, I'm thinking of it as a reward for finishing 2 books already, I've got all night to read more! Hopefully I don't crash too early, though I don't doubt that I'll crash.