BOOK REVIEW : LOOKING FOR ALASKA BY JOHN GREEN!

Hi Readers! I'd like to apologize for the past weeks/month in which I was not able to post anything but I'm active on my new Book Instagram and Facebook Page! Go check em out! (Click Instagram and Facebook)

So I was able to read a single book for the month of February (I feel so ashamed) school is so demanding! We're also preparing for the final quarterly test and putting extra effort to be able to pass Grade 7. But anyway, let's start!

Details:

Title: Looking for Alaska

Author: John Green

Number of Pages: 256

Genre: Young Adult, Realistic Fiction, Romance, Contemporary

Publisher: Speak

Published on: December 28, 2014 (First Published on 2005)

Format: Hardbound

Price: Varies from $16.27 and above

Purchase the book at:

Barnes & Noble

Sypnosis:

"Before. Miles "Pudge" Halter's whole existence has been one big nonevent, and his obsession with famous last words has only made him crave the "Great Perhaps" (François Rabelais, poet) even more. He heads off to the sometimes crazy, possibly unstable, and anything-but-boring world of Culver Creek Boarding School, and his life becomes the opposite of safe. Because down the hall is Alaska Young. The gorgeous, clever, funny, sexy, self-destructive, screwed-up, and utterly fascinating Alaska Young, who is an event unto herself. She pulls Pudge into her world, launches him into the Great Perhaps, and steals his heart.
After. Nothing is ever the same."

About the Author:

 John Green's first novel, Looking for Alaska, won the 2006 Michael L. Printz Award presented by the American Library Association. His second novel, An Abundance of Katherines, was a 2007 Michael L. Printz Award Honor Book and a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. His next novel, Paper Towns, is a New York Times bestseller and won the Edgar Allen Poe Award for Best YA Mystery. In January 2012, his most recent novel, The Fault in Our Stars, was met with wide critical acclaim, unprecedented in Green's career. The praise included rave reviews in Time Magazine and The New York Times, on NPR, and from award-winning author Markus Zusak. The book also topped the New York Times Children's Paperback Bestseller list for several weeks. Green has also coauthored a book with David Levithan called Will Grayson, Will Grayson, published in 2010. The film rights for all his books, with the exception of Will Grayson Will Grayson, have been optioned to major Hollywood Studios.

In 2007, John and his brother Hank were the hosts of a popular internet blog, "Brotherhood 2.0," where they discussed their lives, books and current events every day for a year except for weekends and holidays. They still keep a video blog, now called "The Vlog Brothers," which can be found on the Nerdfighters website, or a direct link here. 

Reach the Author at:

Website * Twitter * Instagram * Goodreads * Youtube

Review/Rating:

• John Green was able to write the book intelligently. The books is just very very pure. I mean it's full of things you probably won't or didn't notice about life. I also love the different perspectives shown in the book even though it was only Miles' point of view.
• The book is very interesting. I mean yes, the characters and writing style is interesting but we'll talk about that in the further sections below. I mean the book is very very interesting, it's message is interesting. I also love the essence of the book. You'll understand what I'm saying if you have read the book. If you haven't, then you should. 
• Awesome characters and characteristics. The characters are all interesting. Starting from the main character Miles Halter who is a boy who transfer to a school named Culver Creek and then his life suddenly changes when he meets the Colonel and Alaska who are very interesting and quite different people. And then a lot of characters enter in his life. ALL OF THE CHARACTERS ARE DIFFERENTLY AMAZING AND INTERESTING.
• Great character development. What comes after awesome characters? XD Great character development. I loved the character development of Miles from a typical and shy teenager to a much mature person you probably have noticed. I also loved the quite recovery stage of the characters because of something-I-wouldn't-tell-you-because-it-might-be-a-spoiler.
• I love the way the book is written in a before and after basis. This book is one of a kind. I loved how the author made it flow perfectly. I love it. I just do. Especially the major plot twist unfolding the before to after writing style.
• The book is for everyone. This book doesn't choice any gender. It doesn't require a specific age. It doesn't require a certain religion (Trust me). The book is for everyone. It's just amazing.
• The book will make you realize a lot of things. The book is very informative. It's very true. It will make you realize a lot of awesome and quite miserable facts about life. It will make you rethink of many things just because the book made you realize it. Trust me.
• The ending was just very very indescribably amazing. (SPOILER ALERT) I loved how the book ended in an essay or probably conclusion of Miles. I also loved and quite felt anger towards Takumi when he admitted that he had an idea all along but I really understand his side. I also love the whole year concept of the book in which the story ended in the summer vacation/break.

Overall I'd give the book a:

4/5 books!

Favorite Quotes:

"'We are all going.' McKinley said to his wife and we sure are. There's your labyrinth of suffering. We are all going. Find you way out of the maze" 

"Everything that comes together falls apart" the Old Man said. "Everything. The chair I'm sitting on. It was built, and so it will fall apart. I'm gonna fall apart, probably before this chair. And you're gonna fall apart. The cells and the organs and systems that make you you -- they came together, and so must fall apart."

When adults say,"Teenagers think they are invincible" with that sly, stupid smile on their faces, they don't know how right they are. 

My Friends' Short Review/Rating:

Forgive me if I was able to ask two persons only because they're quiet busy and I understand them for not responding to my messages. But if you're reading this, and you have or haven't read the book, please do comment a show review or future expectations for the book!

"My favorite book written by John Green. I personally think this is more better and realistic than TFIOS." - Angelica Manansala, gave the book a 3.5 stars and read the book last April 2014.

"Looking for Alaska is a heartbreaking novel. I think Looking for Alaska is one of the best debut novel ever. John Green wouldn't have TFIOS or Paper Towns or AAOK without this book. I can't wait for the movie adaptation!" - Kim Bejerano, gave the book a 4.5 stars.

Features:

This exclusive collector's edition has:

• Excusive interview and Q & A with the author.
• A message from the author
• Discussion questions!

Yep, that's it! Thank you for reading and apologies for the not active blog. I'll be more active after March 20 since that's our last school day. And I'm going to the #ELockhartinPH hosted by National Bookstore! Hopefully It will be successful. Bye!

BOOK UPDATES : TOP 10 BOOK BLOGGERS!

Hi Readers! Lately, I find entertainment in reading other book blogs because I don't know, I like books?

So today, I wanna talk about my top 10 book bloggers because I just want to. Hahahaha!

Let's begin? Alright!

But first, I just want to clarify things. The first to fifth blogs that I will mention are all in order, and the next sixth to tenth are the blogs which I'm finding it hard to order on what blog I like better but I did my best to sort of organize them. (What? XD)  Also, these rankings are based on My Opinions only. No one paid me to do this and put their blog's on the first spot. This is just purely my opinion and thoughts about their blog. Also, some of these blogs are not purely book blogs, because a lot of blogs, like mine, upgrade into a wider range of topics for their blogs, such as adding arts, movies, etc.

Let's begin!

At number one is.... (Click on their web images to redirect you to their blogs!)

MOVIE REVIEW : DIVERGENT!

Hi Guys! So this will be my first actual "Movie Review." I'm not that great in rating movies but I do hope you'll find my review awesome and true. Also, I'd probably rate movies that are based on books and movies that are movies. (Makes sense?) Lastly, I will now and probably until the future, be rating movies on THEIR OWN. Meaning I will rate the movies without considering the book. I will rate the character-choice, sounds, effects, edits, scenes, settings, and etc. because I want my blog to also be open to non-book guys, cause there are people that prefer movies than books. Also, if I'll consider the movie with the book. Trust me, 1 out of 1 million books can get a 5 or 4 rate from my blog. Everything okay now? Great! Let's begin!

credits to the maker/s

Details:

Title: Divergent

Director: Neil Burger

Running Time: 139 minutes

Genre: Science fiction, Action

Release Dates: March 18, 2014 (LA), March 21, 2014 (US)

Cast:

Shailene Woodley as Beatrice "Tris" Prior
Theo James as Tobias "Four" Eaton
Ashley Judd as Natalie Prior
Jai Courtney as Eric Coulter
Ray Stevenson as Marcus Eaton
Zoë Kravitz as Christina
Miles Teller as Peter Hayes
Tony Goldwyn as Andrew Prior
Ansel Elgort as Caleb Prior
Maggie Q as Tori Wu
Mekhi Phifer as Max
Kate Winslet as Jeanine Matthews
Ben Lloyd-Hughes as Will
Christian Madsen as Al
Amy Newbold as Molly Atwood

Distributed by: Summit Entertainment, Lionsgate

Synopsis:

DIVERGENT is a thrilling action-adventure film set in a world where people are divided into distinct factions based on human virtues. Tris Prior (Shailene Woodley) is warned she is Divergent and will never fit into any one group. When she discovers a conspiracy by a faction leader(Kate Winslet)to destroy all Divergents, Tris must learn to trustin the mysterious Four (Theo James) and together they must find out what makes being Divergent so dangerous before it's too late. Based on the best-selling book series by Veronica Roth.

READING WITH LUIGI 2.0 ; IMPROVED BLOG!

Hi Readers! 

My regular Readers know that Reading with Luigi originally created daily tags for each day in a week. This contains Mondays with Movies from Books, Tuesdays with Tips to Readers, Wednesdays with What I Like, Thursdays with Book Tags on Social Media, Fridays with First Times and Most Favorites, and Weekends with Bookstores, which I have posted a lot of topics. 

Yesterday, as I was watching the Divergent movie (which was SO GOOD!) I realized I want to review the movie on it's own and with the book along with it. Then I thought, I'd make a draft and post it on Monday. But my tags focuses on Books to Movies, not Movies alone. I, also thought that I need to be more active regarding the different tags that I created.

So, I decided to group, change, and improve them.

Mondays with Movies from Books will plainly just be Movie Reviews. This time, we'll talk about the Movie itself (sounds, edits, effects, character-choice) and, separately, the Movie as a whole from books. This way I can express my opinions to the Director and how he/they changed it from the book. Cause, I know a lot of us only hate the Movie because it's not like the book, right? I had this experience in the Percy Jackson Movies. I loved the Movie! but my opinion has to faces because it was very very different from the book.

Tuesdays with Tips to Readers will plainly be Tips to Readers. Nothing actually changed. xD I just allowed mysle to post any day I want.

Wednesdays with What I Like, Thursdays with Book Tags on Social Media, and Friday with First Times and Most Favorites will now be part of Book Updates. Book Updates also include Book tags. This is basically just updates from me, or something I want to post. This may also include hauls.

Weekends with Bookstores will be Featured Bookstore. Nothing has changed at this one, well except the title. xD

The "Special Topics" that I've posted will be included in the Book News. Which is basically just telling/sharing to you recent events and happenings in the book community and related to it.

All the book events (if there will be any, hopefully) will be under the Event Recap. 

I will also update my "Rating/Review Policy." because I will be adding Movie Rating Policy. And will also put up new pages dedicated to the "About Me" section and the "Extras" that Includes all the tags.

As everyone might notice, I've also changed my blog header and my farewell greeting (is that it? xD).

Happy Weekend!

Shoutout to Kim Stephen Bejerano, who helped me out to finalize some details about the new and improved Reading with Luigi. And so to Ate Erika Eneco, who always helps me out. (Click on their names to redirect you on their accounts)

P.S. In order to preserve my trial and error development/improvement. I will not change the farewell note of the past posts I've posted. Tho, Book reviews are exempted because I'm developing ALL the book review posts that I've posted for better reading and convenience of my so-wonderful-readers.

BOOK REVIEW : DIVERGENT BY VERONICA ROTH!

Hi Readers! Book Review it is!

Details:

Title: Divergent ( Divergent #1 )

Author: Veronica Roth

Number of Pages: 487 (Story)

Genre: Young Adult, Science Fiction, Dystopia

Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books

Published on: February 28, 2012

Format: Hardbound

Price: Php 699.00 (NBS) Php 720.00 (Fully Booked) $ 23.53 (TBD)

Purchase the book at:

NBS * The Book Depository * Fully Booked

Synopsis: 

"In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue--Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is--she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.  During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are--and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, Tris also learns that her secret might help her save the ones she loves . . . or it might destroy her."

 About the Author:

Veronica Roth is from a Chicago suburb. She studied creative writing at Northwestern University, and wrote DIVERGENT (Katherine Tegen Books, May 2011) and INSURGENT (May 2012). The third and final book in The Divergent Trilogy, ALLEGIANT, will come out on October 22, 2013. In the meantime she will spend endless hours browsing Wikipedia in her pajamas as she eats corn flakes. (Or some other kind of bland breakfast cereal.) 

Reach the author at:

Website * Twitter * Instagram

*credits to goodreads for the sypnosis and about the author*

Review:

• Divergent is an awesome, thrilling, captivating, very exciting, and highly recommendable read. The book will blow your minds because it's just too awesome! It's a very very very very exciting read! (Apologies to my English teachers for using too much adjectives. The book was just too amazing! )
• The book is worth reading. (and worth your time, money, effort, and a space in your shelves.) The book won't let you down! It's very worth-it and just purely awesome. 
• Consistently brings up the urge to continue reading. There's no dull or boring moment in the book. 8+ hours of sleep is so hard to fulfill with this book around. It will have you thinking of what the next chapter brings or what will happen next to the characters. It will have your eyes sore every time you read the book. 
• The factions were described and were given justice by Veronica Roth. I know that this is not the first book in which people are sort-of divided into different teams, groups, kinds, etc. but Veronica Roth's writing will keep you thinking and wanting to live in their world for such reasons. Roth's writing will also make you hate certain factions which proves her great writing capability.
• Awesome characters. Dystopia books never fail to make me love the characters. The different types of characters suits the book perfectly. I love Tris' curiosity and her awareness that she is not that much selfless. I also love Caleb's character because of his obvious and secretive qualities. Four and Eric also gave emphasis on the different types of Dauntless then and now.   
• Great character development. (This always comes with "Awesome Characters." Haha! This part may contain minor spoilers, skip this part only.) I love Tris' character development from being Abnegation to choosing Dauntless which she finds quite the same. I also love her social development because the people in the faction where she is from, live very differently, than the faction she choose. Her curiosity also helped the development of her character. I loved Caleb's development from being a perfect Abnegation member to an Erudite member which are the two factions which consider each other mortal enemies. I also love Four's sort-of development towards his feelings for Tris and that he became open to her. 
• The romance part was made to perfectly suit the story. The romance part didn't ruin the dystopian effect of the story. Tris' perspective towards Four helped the readers to understand both sides. Their feelings also helped them overcome one of Tris' fears. The book will have you giggling, 2 AM in the morning. 
• The flow of the story from the beginning to the end was just perfect. The story wasn't too rushed and the sequence of events will make you want too finish the book already. It was so awesome and I just super love Veronica Roth.

Reading with Luigi gives Divergent by Veronica Roth a: 

5 books! (Perfect!)

Favorite Quotes:

"Fear doesn't shut you down; it wakes you up."

"I am no longer Tris, the selfless, or Tris, the brave. I suppose that now, I must become more than either"

"He told me once to be brave and though I have stood still while knives spun towards my face and jumped off a roof. I never thought I would need bravery in the small moments of my life. I do."

My Friends' Short Reviews/Rating:

Name: Kim Stephen Bejerano

Read Divergent: March 2014

Rating: 5/5

Review: "Divergent was written perfectly. You can see  Veronica didn't force the ending, the scenes were fantastically written and  the action scenes were table-flipping good. To be honest, Divergent is the first Dystopian book I've ever read in my reading history. For me, it's okay but totally not good, because my expectations for some other books became high, I should have been started with books like Hunger Games or The Maze Runner. I actually stopped reading the series in the middle of Insurgent cause the book focused more on romantic scenes than action scenes."

Name: Dianne Jhaye Giron

Read Divergent: 2013

Rating: 4/5

Review: "It's action-packed with badass characters (four and tris) and i like Tris' character development (from Abnegation to Dauntless). i like how it's about one's self discovery."

Name: Erika Eñeco (owner of The Nocturnal Fey)

Read Divergent: 2011-2012

Rating: 5/5

Review: "Divergent is actually my 2nd dystopian read after The Hunger Games so I'm still hyped about the genre. And I became an instant fan of Veronica Roth. What I liked about Divergent is that, it is full of action, and to balance the atmosphere, Roth has added a romance between the main protagonist, Tris, and the Dauntless trainer, Four. I liked how Roth worked on the balancing of action and romance. The romance part gave a very light and swooning feeling while the action kept me thrilled and excited. And after I read the book, I found myself wanting more. So I had to ask my brother to buy me Insurgent. So, that's how Roth had made me like the series. " 

Features:

This edition is the recently released Collector's Edition last year! You should grab this edition because:

• It contains a colored-poster!
• It contains Veronica Roth's writing process!
• It contains Movie Script excerpts!
• It contains exclusive different illustrations of quotes, etc!
• It contains discussion questions!
• And many many more exciting things! 

The end of another awesome book review from yours truly! I actually finished the book last January 4, but because of my regular Math review and training for the MTAP 2015 held yesterday, I only had the chance to post this today!