In My Mailbox {18}: I Love Meredith Edition

Welcome to the first In My Mailbox in... well... A while. I met up with Meredith of Mint Tea and a Good Book and she handed over some books after I attacked her bookshelf. I'm surprised I didn't leave with more.

Books Listed:

Austenland by Shannon Hale

Shut Out by Kody Keplinger

A Need So Beautiful bu Suzanne Young

Die for Me by Amy Plum

Between by Jessica Warman

What was in YOUR mailbox this week?

TGIF: Buy or Borrow {23}

Buy or Borrow: Where do your books that you read come from? The bookstore? The library? Do you prefer to own a book, or have it on loan?

Since about November/October time, the majority of books I've read have been from either my personal library (I've read a lot of books that I've had and have been meaning to read),  or ARCs that I've gotten from friends or other sources.


My More Detailed List of Addiction Suppliers (I mean books, of course!):


1. The BookPeople Teen Reviewing Program! This is a fantastic program my local indie does where they have a bunch of teens read ARCs for them, and when the books come out they are featured in the bookshelf with a little notecard with a review and the reviewer's name. It's a great way for people who don't know YA books to figure out what's recent and well-liked by teens!

2. Publishers! Lately I've been receiving some books in the mail from publishers, especially Macmillan imprints - St. Martins Press, for example. 

3. My amazing blogger friends have been a huge help to me with getting books, going to go see authors, etc. A few to mention are: Katie from Katie's Book Blog, also known as my big sister (and we really aren't related. I promise.), Meredith from Mint Tea and A Good Book, her associate, Erin, also from Mint Tea and A Good Book, and Jessie from Jessie's Remarkable Reads, the twin I always wish I had. These girls give me books, convince me to read books, and most importantly, answer questions and do things beyond their job description. 

4. My parents have always supported (and funded) my bookish addiction, until it got to the point of me constantly wanting books... When it came time to write my wish-list this past holiday, I realized all the books I wanted hadn't been published. It was a bit of an issue. But my parents continue to buy me books and help me read out of my comfort zone!

Do you like loans or owning books?

   I love the feeling of owning books. I flat out love it. I love the problem of having a cram packed bookshelf and not knowing where to put everything. I love being able to lend out books and sharing their amazing content with all my friends, and whenever I need inspiration to head to my shelves and find something that will help me. I still borrow books from people (or the library) but lately I've been owning a lot of books, and I love it. I don't seem to give the librarians enough quality time with my addiction... Maybe I need to visit them sometime. 

Happy friday!

What did you think about our TGIF? It's from the amazing G-Reads done by Ginger! Check it out!

Giving Thanks This Thanksgiving.

Happy Thanksgiving all!

On the blog, I wanted to honor the people that have helped me in ways you could never imagine. These people have helped me through hard times in my life, help me find the real me, or are always there for me.

First off, being part of such an amazing community as the book blogging one is an honor. These people are some of the most sweet, nurturing, caring, and fun people I know! If I ever need anything they are there, twitter feeds in hand, ready to answer my questions. They answer my questions, laugh with me, send me books, and encourage me every day. For this, I am forever thankful. Without them and this amazing community I would be a different person.

   I have to thank my family first. When I was little I remember always reading, laughing, and smiling with them, happy to be around them all the time. We've been through so much together, and I love you all. Thank you for supporting me and always feeding my passions with your love.

   My friends. You are the most incredible people I know. You give me hand-drawn birthday cards, text me that I'm the next J.K. Rowling, straighten my hair while eating Oreos at two in the morning, help me with Algebra at all hours of the night, and always have my back. You are the reason I am who I am. You all inspire me every day, and I promise you that you will be in my Acknowledgements section when I'm published. I promise. You deserve it more than anyone.

   Authors. If you are reading this, I love you. If you aren't, I love you. You are all my idols, and I look up to you like no one else. You do an amazing thing and inspire teens and children all around the world. Keep on rocking the world with your words and plot lines. We'll always listen.

Now we get specific.

   Ms. Langley. You inspired me to write. You share my book love. My author stalking tendencies. Because of you, I loved English class. Thank you for being my teacher and my amazing idol. See you Monday!

   Mrs. Mauser. How ever you rock so much? It's so hard to replicate! Thank you for telling about Teen Press Corps. For encouraging me. For always smiling and hugging me in the halls. For answering my questions. Thank you for being so darn amazing.

Hello dear Vy. You make me laugh like a crazy person!!!! You live in the city I wish I did, and whenever we talk, we always have fun. I love having another teen blogger in my life. YOU ROCK GIRL. Expect a package this Christmas!

   JESS. Hello darling. We tweet. We smile. We make BEA plans. We promise books! (Where is mine girl? *checks mail*) I can't wait for the readathon, and I hope you know that your blog rocks. And so do you. You know, just so you know. LOVE <3

   Katie! HELLO BIG SISTER! When I first tweeted you and you replied, I did a happy dance. No joke! Happy danced right there in that chair in the corner of my room. When you asked me to be your little sister, I squealed with joy. When you sent me Everneath I did another happy dance. When I got five books from HaperCollins (all because of YOU), I about had a heart attack. I took a picture of the label and sent it to Meredith. You support me every day. You laugh with me. You tell me that my blog looks great. Katie, you are one of the people I look up to. I LOVE YOU!

   And now, the reason this blog exists. MEREDITH! *applause sounds* I gave you a tweet yesterday, and I'm going to copy and paste it because everything I said was true. 

Person 2 I'm thankful for: @mintmeredith. I forward her emails and ask her opinion, she edits everything I throw at her, she designs my blog. She smiles at me, lends me books, tells me I'm insane, helps me with algebra, but most of all, she's my best friend.<3

   Meredith, you are my best friend. You inspired me to be where I am today, writing on this blog, reviewing books, and following my dreams. You always read my writing and put little smiley faces when I have too much dialogue. You hoard Anna and Lola. We have 500 line long chats in Gmail. During the summer, we may not have seen each other that much, but we chatted. Holy god we chatted. I love how you meet me at BookPeople. How we both did ATBF Teen Press Corps. How we followed Stephanie Perkins together. We squealed after we met her. How we rushed down the stairs to catch Jenny Han. How shy you are with authors but how loud you talk with me. How you are always smiling and have your nose in a book and your head behind a screen designing my blog. How you may not answer your phone, but holy heck, you answer emails. I am promising you a dedication. You rock my world girl.

   At my birthday, you gave me a card. Inside, you said the following: "Always keep on rambling! I will always listen." And Meredith, you do. You are always there reading my posts. Replying to tweets. Telling me that my review rocked. You inspire me girl. Every day. Ever minute. You are my best friend, and no matter what the distance, this time in our lives can NEVER pull us apart. NEVER. I love you.

The people in my life are incredible. Without them, I wouldn't be the person I am, and for that I am forever thankful.

Happy Thanksgiving, and go give all those people you love a hug. They deserve it.

   

   

TGIF: Giving Thanks

Giving Thanks: Which books are you most thankful for receiving from other bloggers, friends, family members, or publishers?

   Recently I got Seize the Story: A Handbook for Teens Who Like to Write, a handbooks published by Prufrock Press, which I am super excited to put up a review for! First I have to finish it... I've been reading it section by section. So far, it's massively helpful!

   If you saw my latest In My Mailbox, you saw that I got a huge load from Katie from Katie's Book Blog. This weekend a new IMM will be going up with another book she sent me. She spoiled me rotten!

   Meredith of Mint Tea and a Good Book gives/lends me all sorts of books. Many books that one of us have we'll lend to the other one and vice versa. It's an ongoing trade. Many of my friends at school are like this, although it is usually me lending out the books. I have the largest collection.

   Lastly, BookPeople. I love you. So much. They have given me TONS of books to review, and since they are a bookseller, I pledge my buying to you! If you're in town, go check them out and buy something! You'd be surprised how many books they have.

   I didn't include any images, because practically all my books people have given me, bought me, etc. I don't buy that many books for myself. I'm a bit broke. Happy Friday!

What did you think about our TGIF? It's from the amazing G-Reads done by Ginger! Check it out!

Lola and the Boy Next Door: Book Review

Novel: Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

Release Date: September 29th, 2011

Publisher: Dutton

Format: Hardcover Novel

Source: Austin Teen Book Festival

Budding designer Lola Nolan doesn’t believe in fashion . . . she believes in costume. The more expressive the outfit -- more sparkly, more fun, more wild -- the better. But even though Lola’s style is outrageous, she’s a devoted daughter and friend with some big plans for the future. And everything is pretty perfect (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the dreaded Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket, return to the neighborhood.

When Cricket -- a gifted inventor -- steps out from his twin sister’s shadow and back into Lola’s life, she must finally reconcile a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door.

(Synopsis from Goodreads)

Willa's Rambles:

   I am so hesitant to post this review, simply because I feel like Lola will be ripped from my hands and shared with the world, but she already has been! (And she isn't mine to be protective over. Even thought I am protective of my shared copy.)

   Lola is amazing. She is this amazing girl with amazing talents and amazing friends, and an amazingly cool life. But, as always, something goes wrong. First, it's Cricket. Then it's Max. Then it's Norah (her birth mother). Lola has this fire inside of her that you can still access as a reader, which is hard to do, and incredibly fantastic! 

   Cricket.... Oh Cricket. Cricket is cool. Cricket is sweet. Cricket is as amazing as Lola! He is the perfect guy to come back into Lola's life and help her deal with the issues that will present themselves to her. He is always there for Lola, every day, every second. 

   Let me say this. I could go on and on, and on, and on, about Lola. But I won't, because somewhere in there I will give away the ending. (It made me cry.) The story of Lola will be like the story of Anna: you will stay up until you finish it, laughing with Lola, crying with Lola, yelling at Max (and Cricket!), until you flip that last page and absorb the fact that you are done. There will be lots of crying, screaming, and moping the next morning. (I'm just warning you!)

   I still can't get Lola out of my head, and I read (and finished) her the day I got her, which was October 1st. I want Lola and Anna to work at the movie theatre with me, Cricket and St. Clair to go to college with me, and spend every second with these characters, because they are like people to me. They are these amazing people who I love and can't let go of. 

   So go get your own Lola. You will love her as much as I do. 

Oh, and while you are at it, check out Meredith of Mint Tea and a Good Book and I's tumblr for the Stephanie Perkins books! (You'll get the low-down there.) http://perkyfindings.tumblr.com/.

Austin Teen Book Festival: Oh. My. God.

The Super Long Rundown of...

AUSTIN TEEN BOOK FESTIVAL!

   For those of you who couldn't make it to the festival today, never fear! I am here to save the day, along with the Teen Press Corp who took video, photos, and interviews for you to see! You can view the blog here, the Youtube channel here, the Flickr here for photos, and the Twitter feed here to learn everything you can.

Austin Teen Book Festival started off small - not many authors, not many attendees. But now? IT'S PACKED! Signing lines are long, you can't move around, but thankfully, everyone just wants to meet authors.
It's an entirely volunteer run event, and you could see tons of volunteers all over the festival.

I had the huge honor of being in the Press division and got a press pass! (see below) This gave me the opportunity to be in the VIP Author Hospitality area where I could talk, mingle, and take photos with authors. Meredith (Mint Tea and a Good Book) and I got to talk with Stephine Perkins, author of Anna and the French Kiss and recently out Lola and the Boy Next Door. 
All of the authors were so sweet and willing to take a photo with you in an elevator, ready to sign books at any moment, and to talk to you about anything!

<----- My Press Pass that I could flash and feel famous! I don't think I ever got over the "I'm so important" feeling.

While we were in the Author Hospitality room mingling, we were surprised by the Hill Country Player's performance of the Thriller dance! All of the authors wiped out their cells were and tweeting and photo taking machines!
Maureen Johnson saw the zombies before they entered the hospitality room (by accident) and was awestruck. "Where's my camera?!" She whispered to Meredith and I while we politely escorted her away from the zombies. Her face was hilarious.

The keynote speaker was Scott Westerfeld, author of the Uglies series, Levithan series, Peeps, and Mignighters, all YA. The keynote talked about illustrated novels, and how the modern book world doesn't have illustrations like they used to.
We do have fan art though, and Westerfeld showed the crowd a few of his favorites.
"Maybe illustrated novels aren't gone - they're just from you," he ended with, referring to the fact that the novels are illustrated by readers instead of illustrators and authors.

One of the panels, Pen Fatale, made up of Alyson Noël, Mary Pearson, Jessica Brody, and Gabrielle Zevin (right to left in the photo) was hilarious and charasmatic.
Jessica Brody, author of My Life Undecided and The Karma Club is an outgoing and fantastic person - one of my favorite to meet and talk with at the festival.
Mary Pearson, author of The Jenna Fox Chronicles, and most recently The Fox Inheritance, was eager to talk about anything with you, including her ideas for the future!
Alyson Noël, author of The Immortals Series and the Riley Bloom Series, most recently Dreamland, was so sweet! She was happy to laugh and giggle with you about your book crushes.
Gabrielle Zevin, author of All These Things I've Done, Memoir of a Teenage Amnesiac, and Elsewhere noticed my nail polish and we had a conversation about that! She was a great person to talk to and eager to listen to everything you had to say.

Stephanie Perkins, author of Anna and the French Kiss and Lola and the Boy Next Door, unfortunately lost her phone at the event! (If you were on twitter you probably heard this.) But, on the bright side, Meredith and I got to help her look for it! Stephanie is such a sweet person with a fantastic sense of style (her boots her incredible!) and loves talking with you about anything. She was happy to answer our questions about St. Clair, the companion novel, Lola and the Boy Next Door and everyhting in between. Keep an eye out for her next, Isla and the Happily Ever After!

The signing lines.... Oh boy. These lines were to the farthest walls, curved, and sitting. An hour before authors were supposed to sign, avid fans were camped out with their books, flipping pages and enjoying their recently bought novels. Scott Westerfeld and Maureen Johnson's especially. It was amazing how much these authored were loved by their fans!
People were so willing to wait forever to get their books signed and have that split second with an author while he/she is signing your book. It's your second to connect, and many authors live for it.

The day ended though... Much to my dismay, but I left with four books, all signed by the authors! Meredith and I got the last copy of Lola and the Boy Next Door, so we had to share. (But we don't mind! I get it first though! YEAH!)

My signed copy of Will Grayson, Will Grayson. Can't wait!

 Meredith and I's signed copy of Lola and the Boy Next Door!
CAN'T WAIT TO READ THIS ONE!

 Signed copy of Vanish by Sophie Jordan!
I read Firelight, and want more of Will! Hopefully he's in this one.

Signed copy of The Name of the Star! (I did some minor stalking for this one!)



I'm so happy and honored to participate in the festival. To ATBF volunteers, attendees, and authors: THANK YOU! You made today so special!









Don't forget! Tonight the giveaway end! Finish up with your submitting!

New Blog Design!!!

Yola! Hey readers!
Meredith and I have been hard at work (not really, it was fun!) at my new and improved blog! Take a look atour new header and background. It's a little more upbeat and fun, which is more Willa. Wait. I just wrote my own name. 3rd person. Not cool Willa! Did it again. Gosh, ME.
To a new topic! I have a bit more of Bending Backward (that is the new name for Twisted A) and I will post it in the next post. Too much stuff on this one.
Love you guys a bunch, and give a round of applause to our lovely Meredith! She is amazing!
Willa