May 2013 New Reads

Hi everyone!  Long time no post!  I only wrote 3 posts in April and only 1 of them had anything to do with reading.  I guess I was just feeling the blog burnout and had to take some time to myself.  I think that's really important with blogging and youtubing because these ultimately are things I do for fun.  It's important to take breaks when things aren't so fun anymore.

Well, it's a new month and I feel refreshed, so let's talk about upcoming releases!

May 7

The Lucy Variations by Sara Zarr

Why I'm Excited: I've played piano since I was 5 years old. For me it's always been about emotions and has really been a form of creative therapy. I feel really lucky that my parents never put expectations on me to perform at a certain level. I'm really interested to see if Lucy can learn to just love music (I only hope it doesn't become some freaky sexual relationship type story. I'd be really annoyed).









The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey
#1 in The Fifth Wave series

Why I'm Excited:  The 5th Wave has been making a lot of buzz already, and I have to admit I am very intrigued.  I've had multiple book sellers freak out over this book and tell me how absolutely amazing it is.  I will be in the book store picking it up the day it comes out.











May 14

Golden by Jessi Kirby

Why I'm Excited:  Golden sounds like a really cool mystery.  I really like the main character and it sounds like there is a lot of potential for character development.














May 21

Transparent by Natalie Whipple

Why I'm Excited:  I was so lucky to get an ARC of Transparent.  It sounds absolutely amazing.  I love a good organized crime drama and the added twist of invisibility makes Transparent sound so awesome.













May 28
Impostor by Susanne Winnacker
#1 in the Variants

Why I'm Excited:  This sounds like a really cool science fiction novel.  I love the FBI aspect.  It sounds so cool!














Other Notable Releases

May 7 - The S-Word by Chelsea Pitcher
              The Savage Blue by Zoraida Cordova
              The Summer I Became a Nerd by Leah Rae Miller
              Invisibility by Andrea Cremer and David Levithan
              The Originals by Cat Patrick
              If I Should Die by Amy Plum
              Loki's Wolves by K.L. Armstrong and M.A. Marr

May 14 - School Spirits by Rachel Hawkins

May 28 - Of Triton by Anna Banks
                The Girl with the Iron Touch by Kady Cross
                Dare You To by Katie McGarry
                Goddess by Josephine Angelini

Zombies, Run! 5k app Week 8

This is it.  The FINAL WEEK!  8 weeks of training have come down to this.  I was equal parts excited and afraid for week 8, largely because it started off with the longest free form run yet.

Each day had a different program, so day 1 was as follows:

• 5 minute walk
• 5 minute free form run
• 2 minute stretch
• 20 minute free form run
• 5 minute stretch
• 5 minute free form run
• 3 minute stretch
• 5 minute free form run

That 20 minute free form run scared me like no other.  I have NEVER run for 20 minutes consecutively, not even close.  Well, I didn't quite make it the full 20 minutes, but I ran a total of 33 minutes out of the 35, so I think that's pretty admirable.  I did 3.45 miles in 50 minutes (40 minutes if you count out the stretching time) which I think is pretty damn good!

Day 2 turned out to be a much longer run than I anticipated, with training as below:

• 10 minute walk (even though the task lists say 5 minutes, it was 10)
• 10 minute free form run
• 3 minute stretch
• 2 sets of 10 minute free form run 5 minute walk
• 5 minute run

I ended up doubling past my apartment twice lol.  One thing that I was very proud of myself for was I ran every free form run without stopping.  I ended up running 4.3 miles in 58 minutes (or 55 minutes) which was pretty awesome.

And then came the final day.  I decided that I would try and run 3.1 miles (or a full 5k) as quickly as I could and then I would walk for the rest of the mission as a reward.  Well, not only did I run 3.1 miles, I did it without stopping.  O.O  I know!  I couldn't believe it.  AND get this...3.1 miles in 37 MINUTES.  37!!!!  That's only 7 minutes away from my ultimate goal and I still have 2.5 months until my race.

Overall I think the Zombies, Run! 5k app is really great.  I have never found a running app that had me motivated to run 3-5 times a week.  I am excited to finish the main app and to start new missions on April 16th!

Zombies, Run! 5k app Week 7

Only one week left!  I'm so proud of myself for completing this challenge so far.  I can't believe I'm almost done!  Week 7 was in some ways easier than week 6 and in some ways more difficult.  The training was as follows:

• 10 minute warm up walk
• 5 minute free form run
• 5 sets 1 minute walking 15 seconds skipping
• 5 minute free form run
• 2 sets 3 minute stretch 5 minute free form run

Let me just say that skipping is HARD.  This week was difficult because there wasn't any walking breaks during the interval training.  I will admit that I didn't skip every time.  However I did run during all of the free form runs.  Each day I ran right around 3 miles in around 45 minutes, but if you take out the time spent stretching that's around 37-40 minutes, so my 5k time is improving. 

Only one week left!  I think at the end of my training I'll try and run a 5k just straight and see what my final time is.  I'm shooting for around 35 minutes, I CAN DO IT!!!!

 

April 2013 New Reads

Here is a list of my top 5 most anticipated releases for April as well as some other notable releases for the month. Which books are you excited for?

April 2

Stung by Bethany Wiggins

Why I'm Excited:  First of all this cover is wonderful.  Stung also sounds like an interesting sci-fi mystery and I'm curious to see what happens.














Light my Michael Grant
#6 in the Gone series

Why i'm Excited:  Light is the final book in a highly praised series.  I really need to start this series soon and now that the final book is out I think I will.

This is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith

Why I'm Excited:  This is What Happy Looks Like sounds a bit like You've Got Mail for teens.  I think this will be a cute and quick read.















April 23

Quintana of Charyn by Melina Marchetta
#3 in the Lumatere Chronicles

Why I'm Excited:  Ok I'll admit it.  I've never read anything by Melina Marchetta.  I know, I know.  I'm ashamed and I hope to rectify this soon!













April 30

The Eternity Cure by Julie Kagawa
#2 in the Blood of Eden series

Why I'm Excited:  I absolutely loved the first book in the series, The Immortal Rules, and I'm super excited to continue this series.














Other Notable Releases

April 2 - The Rising by Kelly Armstrong
              Rise by Anna Carey
             The Collector by Victoria Scott
              Dark Triumph by R.L. LaFevers

April 4 - Fractured by Teri Terry

April 8 - Renegade by Amy Carol Reeves
              The Stone Demon by Karen Mahoney
              Moonset by Scott Tracey

April 9 - Apollyon by Jennifer L. Armentrout

April 16 - The Game by Barry Lyga
                True by Hilary Duff
                 Taken by Erin Bowman
                Dead Silence by Kimberly Derting

April 23 - The Elite by Kiera Cass
                 Unbreakable by Elizabeth Norris

April 30 - Sweet Peril by Wendy Higgins
                The Program by Suzanne Young

Zombies, Run! 5k app Week 6

Hi everyone!  Sorry I haven't posted all week, I've been fully engrossed in a little video game called Bioshock Infinite (maybe you've heard of it?) and have barely had free time to eat food, let alone blog.  But now that I've beaten the game (amazing btw) I can go back to normal life, like blogging.  Also showering.

Week 6 was one of my best weeks yet.  The weather started off cold, but I not only ran some of the longest distances of the program, but I also ran at a really good pace.  Week 6's training consists of:

• 5 minute walk warm up 
• 10 minute free form run 
• 10 squats 
• 2 sets 30 seconds stretching 10 squats 
• 5 minute fast walk 
• 7 minute free form run 
• 2 sets 2 minute stretch 7 minute free form run

My first day was really cold and windy but I managed to do 4.2 miles in 58 minutes.  By day 2 the weather had warmed up considerably and I ran 4.12 miles in 55 minutes, setting my best pace for the past month.  Day 3 I followed the exact same route and did 4.12 miles in 55 minutes.  

I do have a new problem with the app.  When the audio logs for the story play the don't pause the music, just kind of turn it down into background noise.  Usually that isn't a problem but if the character is whispering or supposed to be further away their recording is muffled and with the music it's practically impossible to hear.  That is really frustrating for me because I have no way of controlling the volume or pausing the music myself. 

Other than audio issues I really think this was one of the best weeks ever for my training.  I'm very proud of myself and I really think I'm improving :)

Zombies, Run! 5k app Week 5

 



Sorry this post is kind of late, I've been super busy and haven't had the opportunity to summarize last week's progress until now.

 

I'm officially past the half way mark!  Week 5 started off very poorly but then got a lot better by the end.  For the training I did the following:

 

5 minute walking warm up

5 minute free form run

8 reps of 30 seconds walking, 1 minute running, 8 heel lifts

10 minute free form run

5 minute stretch

10 minute free form run

The time spent running is really increasing!  I did the first day on Tuesday but pretty much walked the whole thing because I hurt my foot somehow and was in too much pain to run.  I basically just hobbled home.  After that incident I took a couple days off and didn't run until Friday.  I had some soreness, but nothing like Tuesday and managed to do 3.5 miles in 52 minutes.  I went out on Saturday to wrap up the week and did 3.6 miles in 52 minutes, so I got a little faster!  That's exciting.

I also really enjoyed Week 5 Day 3's story.  I really like runner 4 and thought that whole mission was really funny and really cool.  What's really neat about the 5k program is you meet characters and experience events that are mentioned in the main app.  There's a lot of story tie in between the two and you get to see the set up for some of the missions in the main app.

Week 6 looks to be quite a challenge (and the terrible weather is not helping!) but I'm excited to see how much further I can go!

Dr. Bird's Advice for Sad Poets by Evan Roskos

Published March 5, 2013 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
5 Stars

Goodreads Review
“I hate myself but I love Walt Whitman, the kook. Always positive. I need to be more positive, so I wake myself up every morning with a song of myself.”

Sixteen-year-old James Whitman has been yawping (à la Whitman) at his abusive father ever since he kicked his beloved older sister, Jorie, out of the house. James’s painful struggle with anxiety and depression—along with his ongoing quest to understand what led to his self-destructive sister’s exile—make for a heart-rending read, but his wild, exuberant Whitmanization of the world and keen sense of humor keep this emotionally charged debut novel buoyant.



Review:  Do you ever just randomly pick up a book without knowing much about it and it's just the perfect thing for your life? Well that's what happened for me. I wandered into the bookstore with the goal of just getting a coffee but then Dr Bird's caught my eye. I had no idea what it was about, but I saw the blurbs from Matthew Quick and Jesse Andrews and thought "I need to read this". 

Turns out Dr. Bird's is about a boy with depression and anxiety.   The synchronicity is rather freaky because I've suspected that I have depression for years but I've never really taken action to get some help, I've always tried to deal with it on my own. Dr. Bird's helped me realize that I cannot do it alone and I've started taking steps to find a therapist. I really appreciate this novel and the perfect timing in which it came into my life.

Do you ever just randomly pick up a book without knowing much about it and it's just the perfect thing for your life? Well that's what happened for me. I wandered into the bookstore with the goal of just getting a coffee but then Dr Bird's caught my eye. I had no idea what it was about, but I saw the blurbs from Matthew Quick and Jesse Andrews and thought "I need to read this". Turns out Dr. Bird's is about a boy with depression and anxiety. The synchronicity is rather freaky because I've suspec.

Also I need to read more Walt Whitman.

Sidenote:  I posted this review up on goodreads a few weeks ago and the author, Evan Roskos, took time to leave a very lovely comment on my review.  I wanted to thank him for the words of encouragement and for writing such a wonderful novel.