Top Ten Tuesday: Jen's Favorite Words

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created here at The Broke and the Bookish. This meme was created because we are particularly fond of lists here at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

Each week we will post a new Top Ten list complete with one of our bloggers answers. Everyone is welcome to join. All we ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND sign Mister Linky at the bottom to share with us and all those who are participating. If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Don't worry if you can't come up with ten every time...just post what you can!

This week's topic is strays a little bit from the norm of our usual topics about bookish things. But any reader should I have a good appreciation for words!

'Top Ten Words I Love'

1. Atrocious: "Utterly revolting, or of very poor quality". This is one of my favorite words to use when describing something I don't like.

2. Facetiously: "Joking or jesting often inappropriately". I love this word because all five vowels are in alphabetical order. I know there are other words like this, but this is the first one I remember learning.

3. Lackadaisical: "Lacking life, spirit, or zest". This is such a fun word to say, which seems kind of ironic considering the definition.

4. Dessert: "A usually sweet course or dish (as of pastry or ice cream) usually served at the end of a meal". I love dessert. Cake, pie, cookies, pudding, brownies, ice cream, you name it I will devour it (especially if it has chocolate in it).

5. Wanderlust: "Strong longing for or impulse toward wandering". Ahh..the travel bug. I love traveling to new places and exploring.

6. Onomatopoeia: "The use of words whose sound suggests the sense". Another fun word to say and I love words that are onomatopoeia's: buzz, hiss, beep, knock, sizzle, zap, squish.

7. Oxymoron: "A combination of contradictory or incongruous words (such as cruel kindness)". Ever since I was first taught this word in elementary school I've pictured an 'ox' and a 'moron' in my head.

8. Surreptitious: "Done, made, or acquired by stealth". It's like clandestine...but way cooler.

9. Pterodactyl: "Any of various pterosaurs (suborder Pterodactyloidea) of the Late Jurassic and Cretaceous having a rudimentary tail and a beak with reduced dentition". My favorite dinosaur! Who doesn't love dinosaurs?



10. Beach: "A shore of a body of water covered by sand, gravel, or larger rock fragments; a seashore area". I've always lived within 15 minutes of the ocean. I love it, it's one of my favorite places to be.
*All definitions are from Merriam-Webster Online.

What are your favorite words? Please join in, even if you can't think of ten words!

Next week's Top Ten Tuesday is: Top Ten Books I'm Dying To Read

"Incarceron" by Catherine Fisher

Title: Incarceron
Author: Catherine Fisher
Publisher: Dial, 2010
Where I got it: I borrowed it from the library.
Why I read it: I like reading the new dystopian stuff, and this was new and dystopian. Plus I had the time to read it.


Rating: ★★½ 


Here, there are two worlds. There is the Outside, where the people are slaves to Protocol—sticking to the technology and practices of an Era of old, of what seem to be Medieval times. And the other is Inside—within the living walls of Incarceron. Incarceron is a prison that lives and thinks, watching the thousands upon thousands of prisoners it traps inside.

One of these prisoners is Finn, a young man who believes he is different—from the Outside. And when he comes across a mysterious Key with the same insignia that's tattooed on his wrist, he is more sure than ever.

Claudia is the daughter of the Warden of Incarceron, due to be married off to the Prince of the realm. But she will do whatever it takes to escape this fate.

When these two characters come together through a variety of unexpected (on their part) occurrences, they try to hatch a plan to help each other get what they want.

I thought this book was okay. It wasn't outstanding, but it wasn't bad. I liked the ideas, the dystopia of Incarceron and Protocol, but I felt there could have been more development on all counts. None of the characters were very relatable/likable, though some were not as bad as others. A lot of them seemed just a little too flat and/or wooden, while Claudia is usually just plain irritating. She's a somewhat strong heroine, but I didn't particularly like her. The really cool thing about this was that Incarceron is a character in itself; the constantly changing, moving, living organism that contains all its prisoners, some of which are created from its own walls.


I did like the (sparse) plot development of Sapphique, a legendary character who was said to have escaped Incarceron, but not much is revealed in this first book. I would have liked to learn more about him.

There weren't many plot twists that I didn't see coming. It was actually pretty predictable to a point, though there were a few exceptions. Some things were definitely left murky, leaving it open for the sequel, Sapphique. Unfortunately, it's not a particularly memorable novel, so if you read it now and wait for the sequel, you might forget certain plot elements, like I probably will. If you like dystopian YA, I'm not going to say it's a must-read, but it's not a complete waste of time either. If you're interested, it's worth picking up so you can come to your own conclusion.

Jamie Takes on Sleepless by Cyn Balog

Title/Author: Sleepless by Cyn Balog
Publisher/Year: Delacorte 2010
How I Got It: I bought it at PAYA and got it signed!
Why I read it: I heard good things about it!
Rating: A solid 3 stars

I will come right out and confess that I am not well-read when it comes to the paranormal romance genre. Reading YA is a new thing for me this year and I've been turning my nose up to most paranormal books because I thought they would all be overdone with vampires and werewolves. Don't get me wrong. I like those things in moderation but I get a little bored when everything seems like I'm rereading Twilight over and over again. Call me a book snob if you wish.

Upon reading the description of this book and hearing excellent things about it, I decided to shell out the money and dabble in a little bit of paranormal romance. The premise of this book is certainly unique and made me excited to get started as soon as I got home from PAYA. Instead of vampires and werewolves, Cyn Balog creates a world around those who bring sleep to humans--also known as the Sandman! *waits for you to get the "Mr. Sandman" song out of your head* Our beloved Sandman is Eron  and one of the humans he is assigned to seduce to sleep is Julia--a girl who is considered an outcast by her schoolmates and suppresses her emotions by jokes and sarcasm. Eron has a strong connection with Julia--more than a Sandman should ever have with one of his humans. Eron, who was once a human, faces making the transition back to becoming a human after completing his 100 years as a Sandman. He is troubled by his new replacement as well as dangers that he wants to protect Julia from but can't due to rules that forbid it.

This book was such a compelling read. I read it in the course of one day and I just loved the idea of this world of the Sandman. Props to Cyn Balog for originality! I really liked the characters of Eron and Julia. Eron was such a charming character and I felt like Balog really created a vivid picture of him in my head. Sometimes he seemed a little too perfect but I got over that pretty quickly. Julia was a very complex character that was written very well. Her facade quickly crumbles and we learn who she really is after the death of her boyfriend Griffon (not a spoiler!). The story unfolded through alternating chapters and I was more than pleased with how Balog was able to smoothly go from Julia to Eron,  as there is nothing I hate more than a jarring transition between point of views.

I was quickly on my way to slapping a whopping 5/5 stars on this and serving it to you all on a shiny, silver platter that would cause you all to be flocking to your local bookstores to make this your next read. But then--much to my dismay-- a few issues prevented this from happening.

1. The ending! I was starting to get panicky towards the end as I was realizing how few pages were left. I could not comprehend how this could be resolved with what was left. I started checking to make sure I wasn't missing pages or that this was part of a planned series. I could feel the anxiety level rising and sadly this was the end indeed. I felt the ending was rushed and some of the character's actions were too contrived, just for the sake of ending it neatly. (I'm talking about the ending with Griffon and how he went from one emotion to the next and finally gave in without a fight)
2. I felt like for the most part Balog did a really great job with Eron's transition into being a human. A few minuscule parts, however, did not feel believable. I find it hard to believe that after observing humans for a hundred years that he was so bewildered by a BUS! I mean, he had clearly seen cars before. This shouldn't have been a big deal but he sat there acting like it was a giant cheeseburger flying through the air. I understand that he didn't get some of the intricacies of how human speech had evolved or the trends but that part just didn't seem believable to me.

I really did enjoy this book and think that the concept of the book was one of the most unique out there! Had it not been for the things I mentioned above, I would have happily given it 5 stars as it really would have deserved it. Balog has a knack for writing a compelling storyline and sucking you far into it. If you are a paranormal romance fan, this is a MUST read! If you are not really a paranormal fan, I'd read a few other things and THEN read this so that you will appreciate a truly unique story in what has become a very saturated "market".

You can win a SIGNED copy of this book as part of our 200 followers in 2 months giveaway! 

Kelly's Review of "The Trophy Bride's Tale" by Cyrilla Barr

Title: The Trophy Bride's Tale

Author: Cyrilla Barr

Published: Bascom Hill Publishing Group, August 2010

Where I Got It: The publishers sent me an ARC!

Why I Read It: Well...I had requested it, it'd be rude not to read it!

I seriously feel as if this book is a boyfriend of mine. The ups and downs I associate with The Trophy Bride's Tale went to a personal level. I attempted it at least seven different times, only reading 10 or so pages each time, before completely ignoring it for about a month. I finally decided to grow a pair and try to slog my way through it and ended up reading the remaining 300 pages in a few hours and LOVING it! I might need relationship counseling after this one.

Prudenza is a teenager in sixteenth-century Italy when she is betrothed and married off to a wealthy Florentine silk merchant. Their union is initially a tender, yet awkward, relationship. Over time, things slowly unravel. Shortly after the birth of their first child, Prudenza's husband, Matteo, evolves into a psycho, wife-beating prick. His only use for Prudenza is to show her off as his trophy bride. She finds solace in those around her, yet realizes that all her troubles would vanish if only her husband vanished too. She almost unwillingly 'disposes' of him, only to almost immediately be arrested and then later beheaded. Whew.

I usually would have considered the murder of her husband and subsequent arrest and execution as a spoiler, but the forward, or the first five pages, actually takes place at her execution. What are your guys' thoughts on forewords that ultimately give up the end of the story? I thought this one could slide a little bit, as this is based on a true story, but usually these foreshadows are unwelcome in my opinion.

This is a book that I'm truly glad I persevered through. The first 100 pages or so are extremely slow; it isn't until Prudenza and Matteo are actually married that the plot picks up and becomes exciting. I'm just going to add that the cover totally wigs me out. Prudenza is described as being extremely beautiful, nothing like the devil possessed woman in the painting.

It's a good story, but not perfect; 3.5 stars for being so difficult in the beginning.

Jen Reviews The Travel Book

Title: The Travel Book: A Journey Through Every Country In The World
Author: Roz Hopkins, Laetitia Clapton (Editor), Janet Austin (Editor)
Published: Lonely Planet, 2005
Where I Got It: Christmas present a few years ago
Why I Read It: I love travel books!
Rating: 5 stars

Review:

This is one of my favorite books to look through. Whenever the travel bug bites I either watch one of Samantha Brown's shows on the Travel Channel or I pick this book up and the travel bug (temporarily) goes away. As much as I love to travel and see new places my bank account does not always agree! Actually, it rarely agrees. But this book helps keep me sane!

This book is amazing. Seriously. Lonely Planet takes you on an adventure, an adventure that goes through 230 countries (in alphabetical order). Each country gets two pages in the book. One page is just pictures, and the other is facts about the country. This book is informative, but please don't read this if you want to learn every little thing about Peru or what hostels to stay in when you travel to France. The Travel Book just gives a general overview (with gorgeous pictures). This is a great resource to be able to get a sense of all of the countries in the world.

One each country's page it follows the same format: There is a small blurb about the country followed by: The best time to visit, Essential experiences (things you must do!), Getting under the skin (what to read, listen to, eat and drink to get a better feel of the country), In a word (a word of phrase that sums up the country/language), Trademarks, Surprises, and there is always a small map of the country at the end of the page. Plus the country's capital, population, and official language are also given.

This book may be a little outdated in some aspects, as it was published five years ago but it is still a fantastic read. You can travel the whole world just by lounging on the couch. I think it makes a great coffee table book.

Where to first? Your journey awaits...

Lori's Livres--Gonzo: The Life of Hunter S. Thompson by Corey Seymore, Jann S. Wenner

Book Title/Author: Gonzo: The Life of Hunter S. Thompson by Corey Seymour and Jann S. Wenner
Publisher/Year Published: By Back Bay Books in 2007.
How I got a hold of this book: I bought this book from Borders.
Why I read this book: Um…Hunter S. Thompson is absolutely fascinating!
Rating: 5 stars because it’s amazingly well done.

Upon finishing Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, my second Hunter S. Thompson novel (The Rum Diary was my first), I did a search on my nook for Hunter S. Thompson.  I downloaded free samples of many of the returns.  This biography was one of them.  After reading the sample, which cut off in the middle of Johnny Depp’s foreword, I knew I had to get this book.  And I quickly did.  Like most of the books I own, it sat on my shelf for most of the summer, until one day I just had to start it.  I’m so glad I did.

This book is not your normal biography.  Shortly after Thompson committed suicide in 2005, Rolling Stone, for which Thompson was a prolific contributor for many years, did a memorial issue that comprised of contacting many of his old friends and gathering their stories.  The project kept growing though.  Over a hundred people were interviewed to share anecdotes and thoughts on Hunter for this book.  Seymour and Wenner, both of whom knew Hunter quite well, arranged their stories into a fluid narrative told in many voices.  It is essentially the transcripts of an oral history mixed together to all fit in chronologically.  I really liked that it was exclusively people who actually knew him that were telling the truth about Hunter from their experiences with him.  That gave it a very different feel from normal biographies when the writer probably doesn’t know their subject so intimately, if at all.  As a person who’s getting their masters in public history, this book is particularly interesting because it’s a project that I could someday replicate in some capacity.

As a reader who loved the two novels she’s read by Thompson so far, I was really excited to read about his life from those who actually knew him.  I was going to get to hear the good, the bad and the ugly.  They interviewed a wide range of people from childhood friends to other journalists to neighbors to his family (even his ex wife, which is where the bad and the ugly came in).  Seriously--Jimmy Buffet, Jack Nicholson, Angelica Huston, President Jimmy Carter, Marilyn Manson and Johnny Depp were all interviewed for this book.  All along, I’ve made the comparison between Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises and Thompson’s The Rum Diary.  That was because Hunter wanted The Rum Diary to be The Sun Also Rises for the Caribbean.  Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald, two of my favorite authors, were major influences on Hunter.  I also read that Hunter had a major problem with meeting deadlines and tended to put off work until three or four days before deadline and then work around the clock until he finished…and let other people, who hadn't been sleeping the past few days either, do the polishing.  I relate to this because I was definitely struggling to meet this fast-approaching deadline to review this book.  Unfortunately, I didn't have anyone to turn my notes into a coherent review.

The reader quickly realizes that Hunter was quite a character, but he wasn’t crazy.  He only seems so because he facilitated the craziness that ensued wherever he went.  Normally when you read books by or about people on drugs, the narrative can become distorted at times.  Not so with this book.  But that's probably because the people who are telling the story were (probably) pretty, relatively sober when they were giving their interviews.  This book made me feel like I have been missing on some life.  But then I remember that I don’t really want to, can’t really afford that lifestyle.

I’d recommend this book for anyone and everyone who loves Hunter’s work and wants to learn more about him.  He was very interesting.  I came away feeling like I knew him.  And the book was amazingly well done.  Five stars, for sure.

Julia Reviews "Meet Me on the Paisley Roof"

Title/Author: Meet Me on the Paisley Roof by Murray Tillman
Publisher/Year Published: 2009 by Bascom Hill Books
How I got this book: This book was provided free for review by the publisher
Why I read this book: The summary on the back of the book seemed really interesting
Rating: 2.5 stars

I've come to realize about myself that when I read a book, I really like it to be plot driven. That wasn't the case with Meet Me on the Paisley Roof.

This book follows around Trussell Jones over a summer right after he turns 16. He lives with his step mom, whom he lovingly refers to as Shrimp Boat. Some of his main obstacles are trying to get her to let him drive and the girl he's been in love with forever but too afraid to make a move on, Ellen.

This book has really strong characters, even the secondary ones. They are so strong that I can picture them jumping off the page and meeting them in real life. But when I read a book, to get me hooked and wanted to keep pages turning, I need more than that.

Paisley Roof is like opening up a window into the life of a 16 year old boy from the south in the 50s. That's not to say that it is bad, it is what it is. A look into someone's life. It didn't keep me hooked wanting more. Trussell, however, was a wonderful protagonist, his monologue kept things quite interesting.

Along with the great characterization were some wonderful one liners that made me laugh. Or certain situations that I could compare to my own childhood, but overall I guess this book just didn't do it for me personally.

If you like a book about everyday life (with a few teenage shenanigans thrown in there for good measure) with a sense of humor, this is your book. It just wasn't mine.