Book Review: Loop by Karen Akins

Quick Facts

My Rating: 4 stars

Series: Loop #1

Date Read: October 29, 2014

Source: Free review copy from Netgalley

Publication Date: October 21, 2014

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Genres: Young adult, science fiction, romance

Summary (taken from Goodreads): At a school where Quantum Paradox 101 is a required course and history field trips are literal, sixteen year-old time traveler Bree Bennis excels…at screwing up.

After Bree botches a solo midterm to the 21st century by accidentally taking a boy hostage (a teensy snafu), she stands to lose her scholarship. But when Bree sneaks back to talk the kid into keeping his yap shut, she doesn’t go back far enough. The boy, Finn, now three years older and hot as a solar flare, is convinced he’s in love with Bree, or rather, a future version of her that doesn’t think he’s a complete pain in the arse. To make matters worse, she inadvertently transports him back to the 23rd century with her. 

Once home, Bree discovers that a recent rash of accidents at her school are anything but accidental. Someone is attacking time travelers. As Bree and her temporal tagalong uncover seemingly unconnected clues—a broken bracelet, a missing data file, the art heist of the millennium—that lead to the person responsible, she alone has the knowledge to piece the puzzle together. Knowledge only one other person has. Her future self.

But when those closest to her become the next victims, Bree realizes the attacker is willing to do anything to stop her. In the past, present, or future. 

Review

This was a great read, but it wasn't perfect. At the same time, I couldn't tell you why something felt off to me - just that it did. It did take some time for the main character, Bree, to grow on me, and that might have been part of the problem.

What I do know is that this book was full of twists and turns. I anticipated some of them, but some were absolutely unpredictable and I loved that feeling of not knowing what would happen next. Finn was an amazing character and so understanding - he was one of the highlights of this one.

Time travel doesn't usually work for me in books - I am usually interested in the plots in theory, but don't actually enjoy them while written. This might have been another aspect that made the book a bit awkward for me going in - but I'm definitely glad that I picked it up despite my usual feelings. Time travel was handled so, so well here. Things were described well and they made sense, and combined with the mystery aspect that made for a wonderful story.

I can definitely say that I recommend this one, especially to those looking for a fun read. Despite the serious things happening in this book - Bree's struggles with her mother, especially - it really did read as light-hearted and fun to me, with the fast pacing and plot twists. Overall, I really enjoyed it.

Waiting on Wednesday

In effort to get back into blogging, I'm introducing some weekly memes to the blog again. I might not do them every week, but will try to vary things.

Waiting on Wednesday is for sharing upcoming books that you're looking forward to. My first book for this is one that sticks out every time I think about upcoming releases.

I Was Here by Gayle Forman

Goodreads Summary: Cody and Meg were inseparable.
Two peas in a pod.
Until . . . they weren’t anymore.

When her best friend Meg drinks a bottle of industrial-strength cleaner alone in a motel room, Cody is understandably shocked and devastated. She and Meg shared everything—so how was there no warning? But when Cody travels to Meg’s college town to pack up the belongings left behind, she discovers that there’s a lot that Meg never told her. About her old roommates, the sort of people Cody never would have met in her dead-end small town in Washington. About Ben McAllister, the boy with a guitar and a sneer, who broke Meg’s heart. And about an encrypted computer file that Cody can’t open—until she does, and suddenly everything Cody thought she knew about her best friend’s death gets thrown into question.

I Was Here is Gayle Forman at her finest, a taut, emotional, and ultimately redemptive story about redefining the meaning of family and finding a way to move forward even in the face of unspeakable loss.

Top Ten Tuesday

Here is the link to the Top Ten Tuesday information from The Broke and the Bookish.

This week's topic is Top Ten Books/Movies To Read Or Watch To Get In The Halloween Spirit. Since I'm mainly a realistic fiction reader who doesn't read horror and rarely reads anything paranormal, I'm going to switch things up a little. I'm going to list books I would like to read around Halloween, even though it's coming up way too soon and I probably won't get around to many of them. Think of it more as an "If I Had Time TBR."

1-3: The Mara Dyer Series by Michelle Hodkin

These are a few books I really will be reading, for sure, around Halloween. Right now I'm in the middle of the first book, which I set down for awhile to put review books first. But soon I'll jump back into it and then immediately to its sequels.

4-6: Blood Promise, Spirit Bound, and Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead

These ones are actually pretty likely to happen! I think vampires are perfect for this time of year, so I may jump into this series after Mara Dyer or while I'm waiting for the last book to release (that is, if I end up finishing the series before then).

7. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

 This one seems kind of magical and for some reason it seems Halloween-like to me, although I might be way off. It just seems like a more fun book to read in October/November.

I'm going to leave it off there in the hopes that maybe, possibly, I can actually read these - at least by the end of November. I know I referred to it as almost a 'fake' TBR for if I have time, but I actually would like to get into these books before the end of next month. I'm just not sure if I'll have time to make it happen.

Book Review: A Letter to My Cat

Quick Facts

My Rating: 3 stars

Series: N/A

Date Read: September 22, 2014

Source: Free review copy from Netgalley

Publication Date: October 28, 2014

Publisher: Crown Publishing

Genres: Nonfiction

Summary (taken from Goodreads): Alluring, elusive, mysterious—the cats in our lives are not always easy to get to know. But as with all pets, they have unique personalities and stories to tell. Alongside beautiful four-color photos of their cats, A Letter to My Cat collects personal letters from celebrities offering love and gratitude for all that their cats bring to their lives.

Review

I couldn't avoid requesting this book. I listed the reasons: I have too many review copies, my TBR is a mile long, I've been busy and not reading as much lately . . . I still ended up with this book because, let's face it, what book could be more perfect for a blog named "Kittens and Books"?

Reading this has left me with very mixed feelings. Being a huge cat lover myself, many things these people had to write about their cats (or to their cats, really) are things I've thought about as well. Most of the humor was very relatable, as well as the sadness. And the humorous letters were most definitely my favorites.

The average letter here said something along the lines of, "I love you. Here's how we met. Thanks for being great." While that's cute at first, the letters didn't remain original enough to hold my interest, and for that reason I set the book down a number of times.

Overall, it was nice to read people appreciating their cats and there were some great rescue stories, but I can't say I would be missing much if I had decided to skip this one. The pictures were cute and a few of the letters were original, but for the most part they were too repetitive and it was easy to feel like I was reading the same things again and again.

Friday Reads

I have a ton of reading to get done this weekend. I'll probably be working on these books going into the beginning of next week, but here's a quick peak at what I'm reading:

I'm starting off the weekend with a book I am in the middle of - Loop by Karen Akins. This is a review book that just came out on October 21st. So far I'm enjoying it, but haven't put enough side to read it. If all goes well, my review will be up next Thursday.

Right after I finish Loop, I'm jumping straight into another review copy: Every Ugly Word by Aimee L. Salter. This one is also already out, having released on July 29th. (I'm really not that far behind on review copies, though, because this isn't an ARC - I recieved it only a few weeks ago.)

This review will be up soon as I finish the book - hopefully the Monday after Loop's review goes up, but no promises.

That's my little reading list for the weekend, and I would love to hear what you guys are reading. Is anyone else really behind on their TBR/review copies, or is it just me? 

Judging Books by Covers #2

While I'm not doing a ton of reading recently, I am doing a lot of cover-judging. My TBR keeps growing due to all the pretty books!

For this Judging Books by Covers post, I really wanted to share some of my unread books that I'm most looking forward to, purely based on the gorgeous covers.

Holly Hearts Hollywood by Kenley Conrad

I'll admit that I don't know anything about this book. I'd be willing to bet it's about a singer in Hollywood, but who knows? What I do know is that I love the colors, and the microphone cord was the deciding factor when adding it to my TBR - it not only forms a heart, but that pretty font in the title!

Vain by Fisher Amelie

This is another that I know next to nothing about. The purple color is so pretty and I just really fell in love with it for reasons I can't explain. Everything flows together so well and the title stands out perfectly.

Fates by Lanie Bross

I really love this one. I like the font, especially the 'E' and the glow around it. The colors, blue and green, are my favorites. I like the water and the lantern, and the more I look at the cover the more I wonder, because I haven't read the synopsis. This might be an interesting one to go into with no ideas what it's about.

Cover Reveal - You and Everything After by Ginger Scott

After reading two of Ginger Scott's books, one being the first in her Falling series of companion novels, I was excited to have a chance to share the cover reveal of the second book, You and Everything After.

I'm honored to say that this is my first cover reveal here on the blog, and I would love to hear your opinions - what do you think of the cover? What do you think of cover reveals in general? If this one goes well, I'll most definitely look into participating in some more.

Title: You and Everything After (Falling #2)

Author: Ginger Scott

Age: NA

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Release date: December 5, 2014

Goodreads

I’m that teenaged girl who has MS. You haven’t met me, but you’ve seen me around. You probably know my sister. We’re twins, and she’s the pretty one. Maybe you’ve heard about my reputation, how much I like to hook up at parties—how easy it is to get me in bed, get what you want, and forget about me after.

Forget what you think you know. I’m leaving that girl behind.

College is all about new beginnings. So from now on—I’m just Cass. And the rest…it isn’t written yet. And no one else gets to write my story for me.

--------

“Tyson Preeter doesn’t do can’t.”

That’s exactly what I want people to think when they see me. I am strong, invincible, confident, intelligent—arrogant. I’m the man who always finds a way around, over and through—until there’s nothing left. Since losing my ability to walk six years ago, I’ve relearned life. I don’t need sympathy. I don’t want charity. And I don’t do love.

It’s better this way, saves my disappointments for me, and me alone, and it saves my strength for everything I want.

But Cass Owens is about to wreck everything. She’s about to steal all of my strength away from me, because she needs it more. She’s about to break all of my rules, and break down all of my walls. She’s about to own me…completely.

And I’m about to let her.

*This is book 2 in The Falling Series. This Is Falling is available for review.

Excerpt

“So honestly, when do I get to kiss you again?” She laughs at my harsh left turn in our conversation. I love the way she laughs. There’s this rasping sound that comes from deep inside her that shows it’s genuine, and her smile creases deep into her cheeks.

She flops to her back, and I instantly kick myself for causing her to move away. “You’re really trying to wear me down, aren’t you?” she says, her hand running along the side of her face until she covers her eyes, peering at me through her barely spread fingers.

“Wow, well…I’ve never really had to wear anyone down before…” I say, shielding my slightly dented ego.

“And that’s precisely why we need to be friends, and why I can’t kiss you…” she starts, and I interrupt.

“Again,” I say.

“Right, again,” she whispers and moves her hand back to cover her eyes. I take this opportunity to roll onto my side and really look at her, the way her lips barely part when she breathes, the small twitches they make when she fights against her body’s urge to smile, the tiny movement of her tongue as it wets her lips. I have to kiss her again.

“But…and hear me out,” I say, startling her with how close I am. She uncovers her eyes and turns to face me, scooting back a few more inches just to maintain this new self-imposed “safety” distance.  “Maybe the fact that I am willing to work so hard just to get you to say yes makes you different.”

She stares into my eyes for several long seconds, her lips slightly parted as she considers this. “Am I? Different?” she asks.

“Now see, there’s the catch,” I say, running my thumb softly over the wrinkles in the sheet between us. “I can’t know for certain unless I kiss you again.”

“Oh really,” she says, smirking.

“Cross my heart,” I say, motioning my hand across my chest. “It’s in the handbook.”

“There’s a handbook,” she says.

“Uh, duh. There’s always a handbook,” I challenge back.

“And your handbook says you can’t tell if I’m worth your time without jamming your tongue down my throat?” she fires back.

“Wow. Again with the word slap,” I say, secretly loving this back-and-forth we’ve got going now.

“Word slap?” she questions.

“Yeah, like, you just bitch-slapped me in the face with your words. Word slap,” I say with a shrug. She holds my gaze after this and bites at the corner of her lip, her eyes squinting as she decides her next move.

“Okay, how’s this,” she says, leaning in a little closer, closing the gap in the invisible barrier she seems to have instituted when I started talking about kissing. “You can kiss me again…” I move toward her on instinct, but she’s quick to put her hand against my chest to stop me. I grip it, tight, and meet the dare in her eyes. “But not until you mean it.”

There’s a fire in her eyes when she says this, one that I don’t disrespect, and don’t dare cross. It’s not threatening, but it’s serious, and I have this feeling churning in my stomach that Cass Owens is what Nate and I like to call a game changer. Her words have my heart racing, my mind worried that I can’t mean it enough, at least not yet. All of our playfulness from seconds before has ceased with this line she’s drawn, and I will obey it.

Holding her gaze, I lift the hand I’ve trapped against my body to my mouth and press my lips to her open palm. I don’t speak, and I don’t break our line of sight. But I don’t kiss her, either. 

Book one, This is Falling

GoodReads  |  Amazon  |  B&N  |  Kobo

About Ginger Scott

Ginger Scott is a writer and journalist from Peoria, Arizona. She is the author of four young and new adult romances, with her fifth title, This Is Falling, set to release in late August 2014.

Scott has been writing and editing for newspapers, magazines and blogs for more than 15 years. She has told the stories of Olympians, politicians, actors, scientists, cowboys, criminals and towns. For more on her and her work, visit her website at http://www.littlemisswrite.com.

When she's not writing, the odds are high that she's somewhere near a baseball diamond, either watching her son field pop flies like Bryce Harper or cheering on her favorite baseball team, the Arizona Diamondbacks. Scott is married to her college sweetheart whom she met at ASU (fork 'em, Devils).

Website  |  Twitter  |  Facebook  |  GoodReads

Top Ten Tuesday

Here is the link to the Top Ten Tuesday information from The Broke and the Bookish.

This week's topic is Top New Series I Want To Start. This is supposed to be series from the past couple years, but I'm going to go beyond that because I'm not much for series anyway, and I'm nearly always late in starting them.

1. Obsidian (The Lux Series) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

2. The Cuckoo's Calling (Cormoran Strike series) by Robert Galbraith

 

3. The Raven Boys (The Raven Cycle) by Maggie Stiefvater

4. The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken

5. The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians) by Rick Riordan

6. Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles) by Marissa Meyer

7. Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

8. The Glass Sentence (The Mapmaker's Trilogy) by S.E. Grove

9. Hourglass by Myra McEntire

10. Incarnate (Newsoul) by Jodi Meadows

Book Review: My True Love Gave to Me

Quick Facts

My Rating: 4.5 stars

Series: N/A

Date Read: October 15, 2014

Source: Free review copy from Netgalley

Publication Date: October 14, 2014

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Genres: Young adult, holiday, short story

Summary (taken from Goodreads): If you love holiday stories, holiday movies, made-for-TV-holiday specials, holiday episodes of your favorite sitcoms and, especially, if you love holiday anthologies, you’re going to fall in love with MY TRUE LOVE GAVE TO ME: TWELVE HOLIDAY STORIES by twelve bestselling young adult writers, edited by international bestselling author Stephanie Perkins.

Review

I didn't find a story I disliked in this collection. Of course I preferred some over others, but every one was well-written and sweet. The only thing better than reading this for the first time will be a few months from now, when I (hopefully) make time for a reread as the snow falls.

The stories themselves all felt unique and they didn't fall into any sort of routine - it was clear that they were written by different authors with different ideas, and they really stood out on their own because of that. It also gave the collection a great variety - I do think that anybody looking for a holiday read can find something in this book.

Overall, these were some amazing stories by great authors. I highly recommend it.

Stress-Free Blogging

I know I have been slow at posting and such lately, so I just wanted to give you guys a brief explanation for that and let you know what I'm going to be doing with this blog in the next couple months.

Basically, I started writing again recently - fiction writing, that is. And it's a great thing for me personally because as much as I enjoy blogging and reading, they're not my top priorities. I will always read, and I hope to keep this blog going as well. But writing is most important in my life.

Trying to focus on so many things at once has me burned out. It's a struggle to write daily, read review copies, and post here five times a week. I have been down on myself because I'm trying to not get behind on anything, yet I missed posts on both of my blogs. I might not finish the review copy I'm currently reading by its release date, which means I won't have the review up by the deadline I set.

Blogging is a hobby, as is reading. And when it's more stressful than fun, it's a problem. I'm not saying I want to quit, but I do have to slow down. It's difficult for me to realize, and especially admit here, that I can't do everything I would like to or "should."

For now, I'm setting up some "stress-free blogging" for myself. I will post when inspiration hits, and I will read when I have time. Hopefully I can still get 1-2 posts in a week, at least, but I'm not promising anything. I feel like if I'm less pressured, I can let things flow more naturally. In a sense, I'm giving myself time to miss blogging so that I can come back to it refreshed and ready to post - and also, hopefully, ready to set realistic expectations.

I'm sorry if this post is disappointing to any of you readers, but having this out there will make me feel a little better about my lack of updates. And just to make it clear, I'm not completely pushing review copies aside either - I'll have them done within the "30 days before or after release date" time frame that most publishers look for. I'm just not being so strict on myself.

Judging Books by Covers #1

I love looking at beautiful book covers. Even though I read ebooks for space reasons, I completely understand people who buy a book purely to stare at the cover. And although we're taught from a young age not to do so, I've never really applied the phrase "don't judge a book by it's cover" to actual books.

I just think book covers are so important. They can often tell you how professional a book will be, and if done right they can also say so much about the story.

This post is dedicated to a couple of books I've read and loved with gorgeous covers, where I truly do believe the insides are just as great as the outer appearance.

 

I judged Sway by its cover originally - I saw it on Netgalley and immediately requested it. I knew that I had to have it and dreaded waiting for the release if I was declined. The colors are beautiful, and I love the little rays from the sun that run across the text. Add to that a wonderful narrator and fantastic story altogether.

My review for Sway is here, and you can find it on Goodreads here.

The text on this one is just gorgeous. All the patterns and decorative effects really make this cover, but I also like the field and truck below it - they're features that I clearly remember months after reading the book, and I think they tie the story and cover together so nicely.

The writing in this book was also excellent. I know it's talked about often and there's so much praise, but I just have to include this one and recommend it to anyone who hasn't gotten around to it yet.

Although I didn't review this one, it can be found on Goodreads here.

Top Ten Tuesday

Here is the link to the Top Ten Tuesday information from The Broke and the Bookish.

This week's topic Ten Books For Readers Who Like Character Driven Novels. Before I start, I have to admit that the concept of a novel being either character or plot driven has always confused me. I'm not sure why, but it's something I've had difficulty grasping the difference between. So if you disagree that these are character driven, I apologize and you're probably right!

1. The Good Sister by Jamie Kain

This is the novel I've read most recently. The characters really ran the story here, as it is about three sisters grieving and moving on after one of them dies. I really enjoyed their different perspectives and how unique the characters - even the side characters - were.

2. Since You've Been Gone by Morgan Matson

I love Morgan Matson's writing. I really need to get around to my last unread book by her (and the Katie Finn books!), because the ones I've read already were perfect. Since You've Been Gone also had a wonderful protagonist and while at first she was just letting things happen to her, she ended up taking off and really choosing the direction she was headed. It was great to see her grow.

3. Ghosting by Edith Pattou

This is one I'm very uncertain about. Is it character driven? I'm not sure, but the characters decisions did really make the novel. And I highly recommend this one anyway, to everyone. (Actually, maybe not everyone. You won't like it if you dislike stories written in verse.)

4. Just One Day by Gayle Forman

I adore this book (and every other Gayle Forman book, really). This was hugely about Allyson growing up and finding herself, and that was an aspect of the novel that I really enjoyed. I also think this is a great thing to jump into if you want something character-driven, because I feel like those looking for just a love story will be let down (or possible pleasantly surprised). Sometimes it's nice to know what you're getting into so there are no false hopes!

5. Love and Other Perishable Items by Laura Buzo

The cutesy cover of this book fooled me. I went into it looking for a light, fun love story, and I was extremely let down in the end. However, I have always wanted to reread it since then.

If you're looking for something that really explores character, I think this is a great one to read. Just don't expect one of those light, summer reads - remember that the cover lies. I remember this being really well-written, and I read it well before I started blogging - which explains the three stars I gave it on Goodreads. If I reread, I'm nearly positive this rating would go way up.

I'm going to stop there for this week, mostly because I'm awful and didn't pre-schedule this post. Things might slow down on the blog this next week or so, but I'll try to keep up the best I can. At the very least, you can expect that I'll be writing as many blog posts as possible when I have time this weekend.

Book Review: The Good Sister by Jamie Kain

Quick Facts

My Rating: 5 stars

Series: N/A

Date Read: October 4, 2014

Source: Free review copy from Netgalley

Publication Date: October 7, 2014

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Genres: Young adult, contemporary

Summary (taken from Goodreads): The Kinsey sisters live in an unconventional world. Their parents are former flower-children who still don’t believe in rules. Their small, Northern California town is filled with free spirits and damaged souls seeking refuge from the real world. Without the anchor of authority, the three girls are adrift and have only each other to rely on.

Rachel is wild. Asha is lost. Sarah, the good sister, is the glue that holds them together. But the forces of a mysterious fate have taken Sarah’s life in a sudden and puzzling accident, sending her already fractured family into a tailspin of grief and confusion. Asha has questions. Rachel has secrets. And Sarah, waking up in the afterlife, must piece together how she got there.

Review

I didn't expect this book to be so sweet, so dark, so sad, or so unpredictable. We begin reading in Sarah's point of view. She is the sister everyone expected to be taken by cancer, but she wasn't. She is dead, however. Between the three points of view of Sarah and her sisters, we learn of her death and how everyone attempts to move on after.

This was emotional from the start. It was so easy to care about the characters, because they were unique and incredibly real. The feelings, the guilt, the hindsight - it was all there and written perfectly.

Although Sarah was "the good sister," she wasn't my favorite. I'm not sure if this is a personal thing - probably, it will vary depending on the reader of the book - but I felt so much more connected to Asha's character than the others. She was the clueless one, fitting in with the readers since neither of her sisters went into detail about what happened until late in the book. She was confused and wanted answers, until the answers became too much to bear. (Sin helped her, too. I adored him and he only came up in her point of view, so there was that.)

Something that really struck me was that, as their family fell apart, each of the sisters blamed themselves. That's how things usually are, really. When it comes down to it, we are more likley to look back on the things we could've done differently. We get more critical of ourselves than we do others. I feel like this was shown wonderfully and I really enjoyed seeing so much of the cause and effect throughout the story. In the end, it's not just one action that could have changed a situation, but the combined actions of many.

Overall, I just really loved this. If every book were so real, so heartfelt and emotional, I don't think I could ever complain.

Do You Like Cliches?

I have been told that, as a child, I put the adults in my life through years worth of repeated Winnie-the-Pooh. It was my show; I loved it to death. Even today, I find myself reading the books with a huge smile. I know I have heard those stories time and time again. I remember them.

That is a thing that kids do. I'm also not saying it's uncommon that we sometimes return to the stories we loved as children. What I am saying is that I'm not sure I outgrew that love for stories on repeat. I don't know that any of us do.

Of course, there are only so many tropes that can be used in stories. They can be mixed together differently, and they can be written in a unique way, but that's not exactly what I'm thinking about now. I am wondering about cliches that serve as the base of the story - the bad boy falls for the nerd; the girl falls for her best friend's brother; the characters struggle through forbidden love. They're things we've all read before, and some of us will continue reading them time and time again.

Personally, I love cliches. I try to mention them in my reviews, and I will admit they usually make the story less memorable - but I love them. Of course it's nice to see a twist on the story, or a completely different plot altogether. Of course it takes the right author to make them fun and sometimes, to draw so much other stuff (for lack of a better word) into the mix that the cliche hardly even matters.

I would love to know how you guys feel about cliches. Do you love or hate them? What is the one storyline you just can't get enough of?

Reading Children's Books

I have always found it interesting (and usually kind of silly) that we separate genres into age groups. I understand the purpose behind this - we have different experiences at different times of our lives. The average five-year-old would struggle to identify with a book about a thirty-year-old's life. They're just not there yet. It doesn't matter to them as much as books about games and bedtime and other things they actually worry about. Another obvious reason is reading levels, because we need beginner books unless we'd like to overwhelm kids and make them frustrated with reading from the very beginning - they wouldn't see the fun and likely wouldn't like books at all in the end.

But I think the silly part is that people are so strict about these genres and the ages at which others read them. I'm sure every YA reader has seen at least one of the many discussions out there about older readers and why they should/shouldn't be reading about teenagers. And I also think that many people put children's books, no matter how well-written, below their standards for what they would ever read.

Personally, I don't stray much into children's fiction. Too much of it doesn't interest me and so, although I'll read a few books now and then, it's not a normal thing for me. I also don't go any lower than middle grade reading - while I know there are great authors for small children out there, it's just not usually my style. I like words and going so far as picture books doesn't suit me. Even graphic novels aren't usually my thing, so while this does have a lot to do with reading level and my wanting more than ten words a page, it's also a preference of mine that goes further than that.

I have (fairly recently) noticed that I enjoy older children's books, as well. Most classics I enjoy are about children and intended for them to read, and I think they tend to be more suited for older readers as well as younger. I'd guess it's the reason they stuck around long enough to be classics, really.

But my main reason for this post is that I'm super interested in how others read when it comes to children's books. How low do you read in terms of age groups? What's the last book you've read that's lower than YA, if any?