Thursday, December 31, 2015

December Monthly Wrap Up!


Hey everyone! Unfortunately for this month, I had been slowing down on my posting and I haven't gotten a lot of reading done like I hoped I would.  Well, I hope I get some more reading done in 2016! Well, here's a brief rundown of all the challenges, books read and other activities I've done for this month!


Books Read This Month: 



November Challenges Wrap Up: 
1. 2015 TBR Pile Reading Challenge - 6 / 10 
2. 2015 Full House Reading Challenge - 9 / 25
3. 2015 Alphabet Soup Challenge - 5 / 26
4. I Love Picture Books 2015 - 20 / 20 : COMPLETED!!!
5. 2015 Mad Reviewer Reading Challenge - 8 / 52
6. 2015 Banned Books Challenge - 0 / 5
7. Comic Book Bingo 2015 -7/ 25
8. Bookish Bingo: Holiday 2015 - 1 / 25 
 
 
Other Reviews and Activities Completed this Month:
1.  [Miscellaneous] Bookish Bingo: Fall 2015 Wrap Up
3.  [Miscellaneous] Comic Book Bingo Challenge 2016 
5.  [Miscellaneous] My Goals for 2016! 
8.  [Fairy Tale and Folktale Fridays] Fairy Tale and Folktale Fridays #11: Peachboy
11.  [Sunday Post] The Sunday Post (37) 

 
 
 
 
January TBR:  
 
 

[BOOK REVIEW] Buffy the Vampire Slayer Omnibus Volume 1 by Joss Whedon






Title:  Buffy the Vampire Slayer Omnibus Volume 1

Authors:  Joss Whedon, Christopher Golden, Dan Brereton, Scott Lobdell, Fabian Nicieza and Paul Lee

Artists: Eric Powell, Joe Bennett, Cliff Richards and Paul Lee

Genre:  Horror / Comedy / School  / Action / Romance

Year Published:  2007

Year Read: 12/31/2015

Series: Buffy the Vampire Slayer Omnibus #1

Publisher: Dark Horse Books

Source:  Library

Content Rating:  Ages 16+  (Some Language and Gory Violence)

Buy or Add on:  Amazon  //  Goodreads





Introduction:

Now, I have to tell everyone who reads this review something…I am a HUGE FAN OF “BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER!!!”  I have always loved that show and when I heard that they were making comic books out of this series, of course I had to check them out!  So, when I picked up the “Buffy the Vampire Slayer Omnibus Volume One,” I was wondering what this volume was going to be all about and to my excitement and delight, this volume detailed the early years of Buffy Summers when she first moved to Sunnydale and how she became a vampire slayer and I was quite impressed with the whole experience!

What is this story about?

This volume contains five stories that details Buffy’s first year as a vampire slayer and also features other characters during their early years such as Angel, Spike and Drusilla.  These are the five stories featured in this omnibus:

All’s Fair:

Written by: Christopher Golden
Artwork by: Eric Powell

In this story, Spike and Drusilla (Dru) go off to the World’s Fair in 1933, causing mayhem as they suck out the blood from various unfortunate human beings while discovering a demon who wants to be freed from its prison at the same time!

Buffy: The Origin

Written by: Dan Brereton and Christopher Golden
Artwork by: Joe Bennett

Based off of Joss Whedon’s original script for the origin story of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” this story details how Buffy Summers first became the vampire slayer we all know and love and the character development that she goes through to realize her true destiny.

Viva Las Buffy!

Written by: Scott Lobdell and Fabian Nicieza
Artwork by: Cliff Richards

After Buffy gets expelled for burning down her old school, she and Pike run away from home and ended up in Las Vegas to start a new life.  But, Buffy will soon learn that she cannot run away from her problems when she encounters a sinister ring going on inside the casino.

Dawn and Hoopy the Bear

Written and artwork by: Paul Lee

Dawn Summers, Buffy’s younger sister, ends up getting a cute little teddy bear named Hoopy the Bear from a total stranger and while she loves her teddy bear unconditionally, she will soon realize that Hoopy the Bear is not what he seems at all... 

Slayer, Interrupted

Written by: Scott Lobdell and Fabian Nicieza
Artwork by: Cliff Richards

Inspired by the “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” TV episode “Normal Again,” Buffy’s parents ended up admitting Buffy to a rehab center since they believed that Buffy has gone insane when she started talking about her vampire slaying business.  Has Buffy really gone insane and her vampire slaying business is really all in her head or is Buffy’s destiny truly real?

What I loved about this story:

The writing: Oh my goodness!  Who would have thought that several separate stories about Buffy’s early years as a vampire slayer would be mind-blowing good?  I have to tell you that I enjoyed each story in this volume (although the only story that I thought was half-way decent was “Dawn and Hoopy the Bear”) and I think that each writer had done this series a true justice!  I was always curious about the origin story of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” since I was only familiar with the TV series created by Joss Whedon and I have never seen the original 1992 movie that detailed the origin story of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” although I did see bits and pieces of the movie when I was younger.  When I first found out that the original 1992 movie was not what Joss Whedon originally intended when he scripted out the origin story for “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” I was a bit surprised (and yet not really, since this is Hollywood we are talking about) and I was glad that we got a closer interpretation of Joss Whedon’s vision of the origin story of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” in this omnibus since I wanted to see how Joss Whedon really wanted Buffy’s origin story to go.  I also enjoyed the fact that we get to see not only Buffy’s early years, but other characters too like Spike, Drusilla and Angel.  I really loved Spike and Drusilla’s story since they are truly funny together and I always wanted to know what Spike was like before he met Buffy.  I was also really excited to see Angel in this omnibus since I love Angel as a character, even though I wished that Angel had his own story in this volume so we get to learn more about his character during his early years.

The artwork:  The artwork in each story is truly beautiful and effective to look at, especially with how each artist manage to capture the actor and actresses’ true facial expressions.  I think the artists that really captured Sarah Michelle Gellar’s facial expressions the best were Joe Bennet and Cliff Richards as they truly draw the characters realistically and it felt like I was really watching a TV episode of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” since each character look like their live action counterparts from the TV series!

What made me feel uncomfortable about this story:

For anyone who does not like language and gory violence in a graphic novel, this omnibus does have some language and gory violence (mostly revolving around Buffy staking vampires in gory ways).  Also, I have mentioned that the short story “Dawn and Hoopy the Bear” was a story line that I could have done without since I felt that this story did not really bring anything to the main stories and was just there to tell a story about Dawn.

Final Thoughts:

Overall, “Buffy the Vampire Slayer Omnibus Volume 1” is a truly fantastic volume for anyone who is a huge fan of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” in general and who wants to learn more about the origin stories of our favorite vampire slayer!




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Friday, December 25, 2015

My Goals for 2016!



Hello everyone!  This is the first time that I had written a post about what kind of goals I'm planning to set for myself for both my book blog and my personal goals.  So, here are some goals that I am planning to complete in 2016:

BOOKISH GOALS:

  • Read at least 100 books: I haven't exactly met this goal in 2015 like I originally planned since my new job got in the way of me reading books than usual, so hopefully things will turn out better for me in 2016 and hopefully I can read at least 100 books by the end of 2016!
  • Comment on other book blogs: Even though I have been visiting other book blogs, I rarely got the chance to comment on everyone's pages, so in 2016, I will change that by trying to comment on everyone's pages for now on.
  • Participate in more challenges: Even though I have been participating in a lot of challenges this year, I would love to spread out some more in 2016 and I am definitely planning on participating in different challenges next year!
  • Start making posts daily:  I noticed that I haven't been posting every day as I should have, so in 2016, I will try to post something every day, whether it's a review, a book meme or discussion posts. 

PERSONAL GOALS:

  • Lose up to 70 lbs: I have been on this long term goal to lose weight and get up to at least 130 lbs. something that I have been struggling with for years.  In 2016, I will try to exercise every day and eat healthy to get to the weight I desire!
  •  Clean up my room: My room is a disaster area and I need to find the time to clean out my room and make it more organized.
  • Find a better job: Working at Dollar General is alright, but it's not enough to help me pay through my student loans and such, so I'm going to try to find another job that pays more and has better benefits, while staying at Dollar General awhile longer until I get something better. 
  • Focus on getting rid of stress: My job is pretty stressful, so I'm trying to find ways to become less stressful and start having fun with my life! 
So, what are some goals you are planning on completing in 2016? Please feel free to comment below!

Feature and Follow Friday #25: Merry Christmas Everyone!




The Feature and Follow Friday Meme isHOSTED by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read and basically what this meme is all about is that you get to new followers and make new friends with the Book Blogging Community by following eachBLOGGER!  All you have to do is leave your name and your blog name on the post on the main Feature and Follow Friday Meme page and then create your own post on Feature and Follow Friday and link back to the main page and then you visit as many blogs as you want and you tell the other bloggers "hi!" in their comments (on the post that has the Feature and Follow Friday Image). You follow that blogger and they follow you back!  Just make sure to follow back if that blogger follows you back!

Hey everyone! MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY HOLIDAYS to everyone!  So, Christmas was today and I have to tell you that I had a wonderful time today!  I got so many great presents from my family including the Avengers: Age of Ultron DVD, Inside Out DVD and the  Ant Man DVD! I'm definitely planning on watching all of those DVDs as soon as possible, while enjoying some time off from work!  So, how was everyone else's holidays? Did you get great gifts?  Please comment below!


Question of the Week: What was the best Christmas (or other holiday) gift you ever received? - Suggested by Alison Can Read

Ooh boy, I had a lot of great gifts over the years, but probably some of the best gifts I've ever received were a Barnes and Nobles gift card, the Ant Man movie on DVD and Avengers: Age of Ultron on DVD!






MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE!!!



Merry Christmas everyone and may you have a great holiday!!!

Wednesday, December 23, 2015

WWW Wednesdays #5: December 23, 2015




Welcome to WWW Wednesday! This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at Should be Reading and revived here on Taking on a World of Words. Just answer the three questions below and leave a link to your post in the comments for others to look at. No blog? No problem! Just leave a comment with your responses. Please, take some time to visit the other participants and see what others are reading. So, let’s get to it!




















This is the first time I've been reading two books at the same time and they are "The Martian" by Andy Weir and "Scarlet" by A.C. Gaughen!  I've been loving the humor so far in "The Martian" and I loved the spin on the classic "Robin Hood" tale in "Scarlet" as we have a strong female protagonist!





I've just finished reading Lisa Kleypas' "Brown - Eyed Girl" and even though I thought it wasn't as memorable as the previous "Travis Family" books, I still enjoyed it!








I'm going to try to read "Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda" by Becky Albetalli since I've heard so many good things about this book and it would be great to have another book about diversity added to my pile!



Thursday, December 17, 2015

[BOOK REVIEW] The Hardy Boys: To Die or Not to Die? Volume 9 by Scott Lobdell










Title:  The Hardy Boys:  To Die or Not to Die? Volume 9

Author:   Scott Lobdell 

Artist:  Paulo Henrique


Genre:  Mystery / Romance / Thriller / Crime


Year Published:  2007

Year Read: 12/10/2015 

Series:  The Hardy Boys #9


Publisher:  Papercutz

Source:  Library

Content Rating:  Ages 7+  (Some Fighting Scenes)

Buy or Add on:  Amazon  //  Goodreads




Introduction:



After reading the first book in “The Hardy Boys” graphic novel series written by Scott Lobdell, I was a bit turned off by how slow paced the very first book was in the series.  But then, when I picked up this volume of “The Hardy Boys” called “To Die or Not to Die?” (Although I have not read the previous volumes before this one yet), I have discovered that this series is getting a bit better (at least a part from the first volume).



What is this story about?


In this volume, Frank and Joe Hardy get a new mission where they have to protect the lovely contestant Joelle Rinker from being killed in the All-State Drama Competition.  However, it seems that Frank Hardy has fallen in love with Joelle and while a new romance is brewing, a series of mysterious and dangerous accidents are happening during the competition to prevent the other contestants from winning the contest!

Can the Hardy Boys solve this dangerous case or will the contestants be at risk of being killed in this competition?

Read this book to find out!


What I loved about this story:

Scott Lobdell’s writing: After reading the very first volume of the “Hardy Boys” series, I was wondering to myself about whether or not this series would get better as I continue to read each volume.  Even though I skipped over a few volumes before getting to this one, I must admit that this volume was a huge improvement over the very first volume of this series!  Scott Lobdell’s writing is much sharper and more interesting in this volume than in the first volume since the characters seem a bit more fleshed out and I really loved the way that Scott Lobdell wrote each character, especially Frank and Joe Hardy!  I liked the fact that Frank had more focus in this volume as it shows how his careful nature could change once he fell in love and it was great seeing him struggle with his conflicting emotions regarding Joelle.  I also loved the fact that Frank Hardy is the wiser and more charming of the two brothers and I enjoyed seeing him take interest in things like acting and taking his cases seriously since it shows how mature and intellectual he is.  I also loved the fact that even though Frank is into his studies, we get to see him in action as he jumps at the opportunity to rescue anyone in trouble (which I must admit that I found myself swooning over the scenes where Frank uses martial arts skills to save lives)! Even though we did not get much focus on Joe in this volume, it was great seeing him bring some comedy into this story as we usually see him making comments about Frank’s love life.  I also loved the way that Scott Lobdell wove the mystery element into this story as you try to figure out who is trying to kill the competitors in the competition, while throwing in hints that would help you solve the case!

Paulo Henrique’s artwork:  Paulo Henrique’s artwork in this volume is actually a huge improvement for this series as the characters are extremely well drawn and it fits quite well with the intense and comedic nature of this series!  I also loved the fact that the Hardy Boys themselves look much more muscular in this volume than in the previous volumes, which made me swoon over the boys even more!

What made me feel uncomfortable about this story:

The reason why I gave this volume a four star rating was because I felt that the story was a bit too fast paced and it felt like the characters were not progressed enough for me to really get into their journey through the story.  However, I did find the main love story with Frank and Joelle to be pretty interesting, even though I wish that their relationship was developed more.  Also, I felt that the ending was a bit too anticlimactic since I wanted to see more happen at the end once the case was resolved.

Final Thoughts:

Overall, “The Hardy Boys: To Die or Not to Die?” is a great volume for the “Hardy Boys” series and I would definitely recommend this volume to fans of the “Hardy Boys!”