First Date - Krista McGee

Excerpt:

Addy Davidson is the last girl in the country who wants to be on the new reality TV show to win a date to prom with the President's son. She's focused on her schoolwork so she can get a scholarship to an Ivy League college, uncomfortable in the spotlight, never been on a date, and didn't even audition for it.

But she got selected anyway.

So she does her best to get eliminated on the very first show... right before she realizes that the President's son is possibly the most attractive guy she has ever seen in person, surprisingly nice, and seemingly unimpressed by the 99 other girls who are throwing themselves at him.

Addy's totally out of her comfort zone-but that may be right where God can show her the most about who she is . . . and who she was meant to be.

Review:


I loved the concept of the book. It sounded fun and relevant, exactly what a YA novel should sound like...But...well, let's see: 

The good: 
The character development was nice. Kara specially was really well written (perhaps too well?). I also liked the back story of Addy's parents. It brought tears to my eyes, it felt that real and the pain was tangible. 

I did however had some issues with the story 
a) I think the story just progressed unnaturally. Why'd Addy get chosen? I never understood that and the supposed answers didn't satisfy me. 

b) The constant complaining (or at least the statement by the author) that Addy didn't want to be there. Yes, we got that but you made a commitment...let's move on 

c) Jonathan. I just don't understand him running into Addy whenever. These reality shows really control these sort of interactions so that just rang false with me. Yes, I know... it's fiction but still. 

d)The religious element just got in the way of the story for me. I might've said I'm not meant to read christian stories but that'd be false because I not only managed to read The Next Door Boys by Jolene Perry without a problem, I actually enjoyed it. 


Still it was  a cute book with some very nice elements and with a healthy dose of how people are manipulated on these reality shows to be portrayed as really mean and angry (and selfish)

OMG Pancakes!: 75 Cool Creations Your Kids Will Love to Eat by Jim Belosic

Excerpt

Over 75 recipes for crazy pancake concoctions... Good-bye cupcake...Helloooo, PANCAKES!

When Jim Belosic started making pancakes in unusual designs, he was just trying to earn some cool cred with his daughter, Allie. Little did he know how happy he'd make her-and the millions of fans who eagerly await his latest creations on the Internet.

Review:

I was super impressed with Jim's daily escapades in order to entertain his daughter and I have to admit I requested this book to learn a trick or two from him. Boy, did I ever... 

I learnt: 

-You really need to think a little bit outside the box to make the most mundane thing fun 

-Simplicity really is everything. All those designs I thought were complicated? Weren't. Great tutorials and schemes 

-Epic fun is epic fun! The book illustrates some of his popular designs but they also provide inspiration for you to experiment. 

A great activity to with kids ( or even adults) which gives me an idea...

Brain Trust - Garth Sundem

 

Clearly one of the best books I've read this year (and the year's just started, yay!) - What I loved about this book is it's ability to suck you in right away in it's folds. I am a scientist and obviously this book made a lot of sense to me since I'm one of those people who question their lot in life (If you wanna see my queries, here you go ). But, I can also see people from all walks of life benefiting from this book. There's scientific info about health, wealth, love and life which would appeal to any thinking person combined with examples which are easy to understand and interesting. An obvious comparison for this scientific study is of course the book 'Freakonomics', except this book is MUCH more data-sturdy. It doesn't just say one thing, it proves it. I can't wait to discuss the related material with my folks. They'll eat this sort of info up and debate it with respect to their own experiences. 

The Beef: I'm sorry, I'm not from a country where gambling's popular (or baseball or car racing) - so the sports portion of it was pretty much wasted (as well as speed-dating...Oh, well!) - Info on Cricket was good, though.