Hello {august}, Goodbye {july}

Hello Goodbye is a monthly feature here at Such A Novel Idea.  The idea for this feature came from the lovely Emma Snow who did a lovely recap of June!  Go visit her blog, it’s fantastic.  Hello Goodbye is a monthly feature highlighting a few of my favorite things from the past month. Enjoy!

Ahh, July.  This was the first July in YEARS where we haven’t all wanted to die from extreme heat.  Don’t get me wrong, there have been more hot days than not, but we got some weather (aka rain, rain, rain) that helped keep us in the 90’s.  So July was full of fireworks, reality tv (HELLO Big Brother), and of course BOOKS!

Favorite Books

July was a great month for reading.  I read SO many great books, but I’m going to highlight three!

Losing Hope by Colleen Hoover

I got to read this book early (THANK YOU Atria Books & Netgalley), and it was even more amazing than I thought it was going to be.  Read my review!

Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock

Another great one from Netgalley.  I had my eye on this book and NG sent it out to me for being a Wellness Challenge member.  I read the book in a matter of hours and could not believe how much it affected me.  I will have a review out for it soon, but just know it is a modern day Catcher in the Rye.

These Broken Stars

I seriously got so, so lucky this month on Netgalley.  I have had major angst over wanting to read this book, so when Disney-Hyperion said YES, I did a little happy dance and got a lot of stares.  Did I mention I was in public? No? How awkward, but I didn’t care!  And this book is now my favorite of 2013.  I recommend it to every person who likes YA and can’t wait to review it (and own my very own copy of it in December!)

Favorite Music

I also was lucky in this area… SO many great new songs to listen to.  Here are a few!

Daughter

The first time I came across this amazing band was on the season finale of Suburgatory.  And then Amazon recommended a song from their new cd, If You Leave, called Youth.  And I was hooked.  I bought the entire cd, which is gorgeous. Such a lucky find!

Youth by Daughter

Shadows settle on the place, that you left.
Our minds are troubled by the emptiness.
Destroy the middle, it’s a waste of time.
From the perfect start to the finish line.

And if you’re still breathing, you’re the lucky ones.
‘Cause most of us are heaving through corrupted lungs.
Setting fire to our insides for fun
Collecting names of the lovers that went wrong
The lovers that went wrong.

We are the reckless, 
We are the wild youth
Chasing visions of our futures
One day we’ll reveal the truth
That one will die before he gets there.

And if you’re still bleeding, you’re the lucky ones.
‘Cause most of our feelings, they are dead and they are gone.
We’re setting fire to our insides for fun.
Collecting pictures from the flood that wrecked our home, 
It was a flood that wrecked this… 

… and you caused it… 

Well I’ve lost it all, I’m just a silhouette, 
A lifeless face that you’ll soon forget, 
My eyes are damp from the words you left, 
Ringing in my head, when you broke my chest.
Ringing in my head, when you broke my chest.

And if you’re in love, then you are the lucky one, 
‘Cause most of us are bitter over someone.
Setting fire to our insides for fun, 
To distract our hearts from ever missing them.
But I’m forever missing him.

Amsterdam by Daughter

I’m a flying kite in the breeze just
Restlessly seeking images a child needs to help them sleep
I was thinking that I should see someone
Just to find out if I’m alright

Ellie Goulding – Dead in the Water

Another gem from television! This was used in one of the routines on SYTYCD. Lovely and haunting. ❤

If I was not myself
And you were someone else
I’d say so much to you
And I would tell the truth
‘Cause I can hardly breathe

When your hands let go of me
The ice is thinning out
And my feet brace themselves

I’m there in the water
Still looking for ya
I’m there in the water
Can’t you see, can’t you see?

You’ve seen this all before
Life left on the shore
We’re smiling all the same
You sail away again

MGMT – Kids

This is a throwback, but I came across it again this month.  Ironically, it makes me want to jump on the bed like a kid again.

Control yourself
Take only what you need from it
A family of trees wanting to be haunted

The water is warm
But it’s sending me shivers
A baby is born
Crying out for attention
Memories fade
Like looking through a fogged mirror
Decisions too
Decisions are made
Decisions are made and not bought
But I thought this wouldn’t hurt a lot
I guess not

Favorite Movies

This is 40

I can’t believe I waited so long to see this movie!  My husband and I (well, mostly me, but he tolerates my obsession) will watch anything with Paul Rudd and Jason Segel.  The family dynamics in this movie were GREAT.  It definitely was a step up from Knocked Up.  Although it doesn’t beat my favorite PR/JS movie (I Love You, Man — duh!), I thoroughly enjoyed it.  And Leslie Mann is freakin hilarious!

Ruby Sparks

This movie was on HBO, so I recorded it based on the title alone.  Sounded cute.  And THANK GOD I did, because it is now one of my top five favorite movies (along with Pride & Predjudice {2005}, I Love You Man, Amelie, and Love Actually).  It’s smart, funny, clever, haunting, and a mind-trip.  The best part is Zoe Katan (Miss Ruby Sparks herself) wrote the script.  Girl power!

For those of you who haven’t heard of it, Calvin is a young novelist that everyone calls a ‘genius’.  He is smart, obviously, but suffers from severe anxiety and spends a lot of time alone.  He ends up writing about a girl he dreamed about who mysteriously comes to life.  Then there is the whole ethics part in how much of her is her and how much of her was created by what he wanted her to be.  Totally a great movie for people who like movies that make you think!

Favorite TV Shows

Big Brother Canada

A friend I met during a read-a-thon mentioned that I may like BB Can and that there was a crazy ending to the finale.  Well, of course I went and got myself obsessed.  Now I am hoping we can have some kind of brokered deal with Canada so I can watch along with BB Can 2.

Dexter

How’s it gonna end?  I have to admit, I will be sad to see another great series end, but I can’t wait to see what they come up with to say goodbye.

Favorite Things I Did

Became a Beta Reader

I got an awesome opportunity to beta read Ghost Hold by Ripley Patton.  It was SO fun and challenging! I can’t wait to see the book come out in September.

Met Colleen Hoover

This is probably the coolest thing I’ve gotten to do in a while!  Plus, meeting one of my favorite authors is on my list of “Things to Do Before I Turn 30”, so I can cross that off!  Colleen had a signing in a little town 45 minutes from me, and I knew I had to jump at the chance to see her.  The event was very relaxed, in a cute little coffee shop and I didn’t have to wait more than 10 minutes to see her.  She signed all my books and when she found out about my blog, she gave me signed copies of three of her books to giveaway to you guys.  SO SO COOL!  I hope every author I meet in the future is as fun and nice as Colleen was.  Be sure to read my reviews for Slammed, Point of Retreat, This Girl, and Losing Hope.  And visit Colleen’s website for more information!

Things I’m Excited about in August

School Starts

Yeah, yeah, I may sound a little crazy on this one.  For one, my son is going stir-crazy and I know the school routine will help make things a little easier for him.  And I am ready to get back into some classes myself.  Even though it is stressful, I love learning.  Plus, SCHOOL SUPPLIES!  I am a school supply nerd.

The Mortal Instruments Movie

I’m ready to see another movie in the theater that isn’t a cartoon.  And I gotta admit, the trailers are making this one look like it could be a great adaptation!

Book Releases

InfinityGlass, CROWN OF MIDNIGHT, and The Bitter Kingdom

 

Three of my most anticipated books are coming out this month.  AND two of those are series enders!

Well, that’s it!  I hope July treated you well.

Top Ten Tuesday (1)

It’s Top 10 Tuesday (hosted at The Broke and the Bookish) and the topic is:

TOP TEN BOOKS FEATURING TRAVEL

1. 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson

Inside little blue envelope 1 are $1,000 and instructions to buy a plane ticket.

In envelope 2 are directions to a specific London flat.

The note in envelope 3 tells Ginny: Find a starving artist.

Because of envelope 4, Ginny and a playwright/thief/ bloke-about-town called Keith go to Scotland together, with somewhat disastrous-though utterly romantic-results. But will she ever see him again?

Everything about Ginny will change this summer, and it’s all because of the 13 little blue envelopes.

A trip around Europe — that’s about as travel as you can get!  There are planes, trains, cabs, bikes, and lots of walking involved… And a little romance!

2. Die for Me by Amy Plum

In the City of Lights, two star-crossed lovers battle a fate that is destined to tear them apart again and again for eternity.

When Kate Mercier’s parents die in a tragic car accident, she leaves her life–and memories–behind to live with her grandparents in Paris. For Kate, the only way to survive her pain is escaping into the world of books and Parisian art. Until she meets Vincent.

Mysterious, charming, and devastatingly handsome, Vincent threatens to melt the ice around Kate’s guarded heart with just his smile. As she begins to fall in love with Vincent, Kate discovers that he’s a revenant–an undead being whose fate forces him to sacrifice himself over and over again to save the lives of others. Vincent and those like him are bound in a centuries-old war against a group of evil revenants who exist only to murder and betray. Kate soon realizes that if she follows her heart, she may never be safe again.

The travel isn’t exactly ‘fun’ since the MC is moving to Paris after her parents die, but the setting is quite beautiful — who wouldn’t want to meet dreamy boys in Paris?

3. Across the Universe by Beth Revis

Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules.

Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone-one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship-tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn’t do something soon, her parents will be next.

Now Amy must race to unlock Godspeed’s hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there’s only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming.

Okay, this one is a bit of a stretch, but SPACE travel is travel. Right?

4. Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Anna is looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris–until she meets Étienne St. Clair. Smart, charming,beautiful, Étienne has it all…including a serious girlfriend.

But in the City of Light, wishes have a way of coming true. Will a year of romantic near-misses end with their long-awaited French kiss?

Ahh, another lovely trip to Paris.  These book characters are so lucky!

5. Parallel by Claudia Lefeve

Destiny has a way of catching up.

Saddled with powers she doesn’t understand, Etta Fleming’s world is turned upside-down the day she meets Cooper Everett, the man who transports her to an alternate reality. A reality she was meant to be a part of.

One minute, she’s an orphan living at Dominion House for Girls, an institution for delinquent foster kids, then finds herself attending the exclusive Dominion Hall Academy.

Plucked from the only world she’s ever known, Etta now has to deal with an aunt she never knew, a boyfriend she doesn’t know, and a best friend who can’t know.

PARALLEL is the first book in the Travelers Series.

The travel in this case is to a parallel universe.  It’s still pretty cool.

6. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Diagnosed with Stage IV thyroid cancer at 13, Hazel was prepared to die until, at 14, a medical miracle shrunk the tumours in her lungs… for now.

Two years post-miracle, sixteen-year-old Hazel is post-everything else, too; post-high school, post-friends and post-normalcy. And even though she could live for a long time (whatever that means), Hazel lives tethered to an oxygen tank, the tumors tenuously kept at bay with a constant chemical assault.

Enter Augustus Waters. A match made at cancer kid support group, Augustus is gorgeous, in remission, and shockingly to her, interested in Hazel. Being with Augustus is both an unexpected destination and a long-needed journey, pushing Hazel to re-examine how sickness and health, life and death, will define her and the legacy that everyone leaves behind.

A piece of this amazing book centers around Hazel & Augustus visiting Amsterdam.  And it was spectacular.

7. Last Little Blue Envelope by Maureen Johnson

Ginny Blackstone thought that the biggest adventure of her life was behind her. She spent last summer traveling around Europe, following the tasks her aunt Peg laid out in a series of letters before she died. When someone stole Ginny’s backpack–and the last little blue envelope inside–she resigned herself to never knowing how it was supposed to end.

Months later, a mysterious boy contacts Ginny from London, saying he’s found her bag. Finally, Ginny can finish what she started. But instead of ending her journey, the last letter starts a new adventure–one filled with old friends, new loves, and once-in-a-lifetime experiences. Ginny finds she must hold on to her wits . . . and her heart. This time, there are no instructions.

Another trip around Europe? Yes, please!

8. Into the Wild by Jon Krakaurer

In April 1992 a young man from a well-to-do family hitchhiked to Alaska and walked alone into the wilderness north of Mt. McKinley. His name was Christopher Johnson McCandless. He had given $25,000 in savings to charity, abandoned his car and most of his possessions, burned all the cash in his wallet, and invented a new life for himself. Four months later, his decomposed body was found by a moose hunter. How McCandless came to die is the unforgettable story of Into the Wild.

Immediately after graduating from college in 1991, McCandless had roamed through the West and Southwest on a vision quest like those made by his heroes Jack London and John Muir. In the Mojave Desert he abandoned his car, stripped it of its license plates, and burned all of his cash. He would give himself a new name, Alexander Supertramp, and , unencumbered by money and belongings, he would be free to wallow in the raw, unfiltered experiences that nature presented. Craving a blank spot on the map, McCandless simply threw the maps away. Leaving behind his desperate parents and sister, he vanished into the wild.

Tragic, but beautiful nonetheless.

9. On the Road by Jack Kerouac

Essential Edition handsomely packaged with french flaps, rough fronts, high-quality paper, and a distinctive cover look

On the Road chronicles Jack Kerouac’s years traveling the North American continent with his friend Neal Cassady, “a sideburned hero of the snowy West.” As “Sal Paradise” and “Dean Moriarty,” the two roam the country in a quest for self-knowledge and experience. Kerouac’s love of America, his compassion for humanity, and his sense of language as jazz combine to make On the Road an inspirational work of lasting importance.

Kerouac’s classic novel of freedom and longing defined what it meant to be “Beat” and has inspired every generation since its initial publication more than forty years ago.

A classic — even has traveling in the title.

10. Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer

With only a yellowing photograph in hand, a young man – also named Jonathan Safran Foer – sets out to find the woman who may or may not have saved his grandfather from the Nazis. Accompanied by an old man haunted by memories of the war; an amorous dog named Sammy Davis, Junior, Junior; and the unforgettable Alex, a young Ukrainian translator who speaks in a sublimely butchered English, Jonathan is led on a quixotic journey over a devastated landscape and into an unexpected past.

An amazing journey of body and spirit. God, I love this book.