Achievement Unlocked: Read the Harry Potter series

I'm so excited to announce that I have now officially finished reading Harry Potter. I read all 7 books. And now I can die happy. :)

Reading Harry Potter has brought me so much joy and renewed my love for books. I can't even quite remember a time before reading Harry Potter, because it probably it took me a few good months to get through them. They sparked a new life in me. I truly felt as if these books carry a magic all their own. It was truly a trance like experience reading them. It helped that I also saw all the movies so the visual imagery was totally alive. I think it's time I start binge watching those movies again....

All 7 books were phenomenal and delivered everything and more than I could have ever imagined. I got started on this journey after I cam back from "Harry Potter World" at Universal Orlando, Florida. I got so insanely inspired from that park that I knew I had to read the books. I wanted to know all the secrets. I wanted to immerse myself in Harry Potter land and never leave. I luckily had 3 of the 7 books and then just ordered the rest on Amazon. I sometimes literally could not put the books down. They were amazing from start to finish. Each and everyone. 

Some times that surprised me about the books started with the very first one. I know these books came out many years ago and at the time I was slightly too young to truly appreciate them. So I feel that now was the perfect time for me to get the full experience. But the first book less intense then I was expecting. It felt very much like being a kid and your parents withholding all the "grown-up" stuff that you don't need to know yet. And all the books progressed, much like we all age and come to learn about all those things that our parents omitted telling us. It was the underlying theme that played throughout. Each book got more intense and starting revealing more and more. 

I know years ago, I remember some people had told me that the movies did not follow the books too well. So when reading it I was hoping to find out some more information that the movies skipped over. To be honest, since having seen the movies first, I didn't see that much difference. of course there were plot lines that were omitted for good reasons I think. Except for the last book. I felt that towards the end there were some interesting things left out. Such as when Harry dies and goes to "Kings Cross," his conversation with Dumbledore was much more informative then I remember the movie being. I especially remember this because I was a little frustrated with the lack of information he gave Harry in the movie. But we all know movies are far more complex.

Harry Potter is a MUST READ. It's magical and amazing. After finishing the last book, I felt as if my whole life was changed from that moment and that it would never be the same. I remember just sitting there with the book closed in my lap and thinking,"What am I going to do now?" 

It's the true feeling of a "book-hole." Where you don't know what to do with yourself after investing so much time and enjoyment into something. This book will live in infamy and I will be sure that my kids read these books and enter the magical world one book at a time. 

REVIEW: "If I Stay" - BY: Gayle Forman

Long overdue, but here none the less...

"If I Stay" is not a new book to me. Almost 3 years ago, I was browsing the book store with a friend of mine. When she spotted the book, she told me that this was definitely one I had to read. I could tell by her reaction that I knew I needed to find out what made this book so great. 

Fast forward to present time, "If I Stay" is just days away from its movie premiere and like any book lover, you need to read the book before you watch the movie. So in book lover fashion, I dug out this book and decided to re-enter a book with no hesitation. 

First off, I love the plot of this book. The concept is right on track with the kind of premise for books that I enjoy. I would like to disclaim that I'm not necessarily in love with the pure tragedy of the book. However, I am into reading about things that I either have not experienced or things beyond human explanation. Basically, far out things that only our imaginations can explore properly. 

This all relates back to the core of this book, which is the tragic story of a family who went out for a drive on a snowy day and got plowed by a truck. There's no easy way to explain it. Mia without realizing it wakes up after the accident and sees her dead family laying on the side of the road. The only person she can't find is her little brother Teddy. When she thinks she found him, she actually finds her own body and starts to realize what has happened. Mia is having an out of body experience. She is somewhere between life and death but she doesn't really know. She follows her body as it is rushed to the hospital. It is there where she will make her life changing decision, whether she stays and lives or goes and dies.... You can see there is so much intrigue with this kind of story. No one really knows what that is like because this kind of experience doesn't happen everyday.

Mia doesn't have much to live for. She lost her whole family in one swipe. The only thing she has left is her boyfriend Adam, who wants nothing more then for her to stay. Adam and Mia have a charming high school love story, where to seemingly to opposite types of people find love over music. Music is another theme of this book, which I think is the gap that makes the book actually have something to work with. But, I digress... Mia has to make an almost impossible decision until she Adam finally gets to touch her and it all makes sense. 

Of course, I'm giving you the short version. There is so much back story intertwined in this book that reading it the second time it seems almost unnecessary. However, I started to think a little deeper about the need for the back story and I thought: Mia is between life and death, it's possible that in this state you reflect on some really significant or memorable times in your life. This makes the most sense to me. The back story gave me a great perspective on this family and you can't help but fall in love with the whole clan. 

"If I Stay," is one of those books that I will always recommend. Reading it a second time did open my eyes to a few things that warped my initial feelings toward the book. The font type makes the book a quick and easy read and you don't find out until the very last page the decision that Mia makes. Some things that I'm not so happy about is that you don't even get a hint or an idea of what happens after she makes her decision. It just ends abruptly. Also, you never truly find out what happened to Teddy. She just made a probably accurate, but non the less an assumption. No one even talks about the loss of her family. They are just keeping vigil waiting for her to wake up. I think there was a miss in this area. Overall,  this book makes the list and doesn't disappoint to charm all those who let it.