Top Ten Tuesday #23

Top Ten Tuesday

Brokeandbookish provides a topic each week and bloggers list their top ten within that category.
April 9: Top Ten Favorite Books I Read Before I Was A Blogger 
(23)
1. I would reread all the Sarah Dessen books because I loved YA Contemporary, but I just didn't know how to find other books like hers.  This was before I was a member on goodreads.

2. Harry Potter as and still is my favorite series ever!  But I first read them way before I had a blog...or wireless internet for that matter.

3. I was a big fan of Twilight and reread this series a bunch of times as well.

4. My friend got me hooked on this series (same friend that got me hooked on Twilight).

5. My sister gave me this series and I devoured it and reread it like 100 times.  No one understood me in my awkward teen years like Jessica Darling!

Sunday Post/ Stacking the Shelves #31

Stacking the Shelves



 The Sunday Post is a meme hosted by  Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer.  Stacking The Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews.  Both are a chance to share News. A post to recap the past week, showcase books and things we have received and talk about what is coming up for the week on our blog. 

       
         
City of Glass
I got the 3rd book in the Mortal Instruments series!  I keep seeing all this Clockwork Princess excitement so I want to finish this series and start that one.

The Art of Wishing
Since last week was Easter I didn't do a STS, but I got this last week, read, and reviewed it already!


Don't forget to enter my blogaversary giveaway.  It's open for a few more days!

*Crash and Burn
*City of Glass

*TTT: Favorite Books I Read Before I Was A Blogger 
*WOW
*That Awkward Thursday:  That awkward moment you realize the guy you ship has no chance of getting the girl.
*Harley Bear Post

Review & Recipe #3: 13 Reasons Why & Spin Dip

Contemporary


I started a new meme here where I will be posting mini reviews  on the 1st of every month along with a recipe I've created or found that relates to the book.  To join me, add the image above to your post and link up below.


Sorry I'm a little late this month!


Mini Review:
My cousins let me borrow this one and said it was fantastic.  What they forgot to mention was that it is also really depressing and kind of frustrating.  It wasn't a two boxes of tissues-ugly crying- way, but it was more upsetting that this girl took her life and then blamed everyone else and no one saw the signs to help her.  

 The main character clay was so sweet and I loved that it was in his perspective listening to the tapes the girl left behind.  The way the story went back and forth between how he was reacting to the tapes and the story of the girl's life was so fast paced I couldn't find a place to stop.  Which means I basically read this book in a day.  It's pretty short so it wasn't hard.  

 I thought it was a pretty realistic story.  When I was in high school one of my classmates hung himself.  I didn't really know him well.  Never had classes with him or anything, but it still really bothered me.  After reading this, I wondered how his friends and other people in his life felt after he was gone.  Did he leave them any explanation?  This happens more than it should and I think it's great the author took the time to write something to get teens to start recognizing the signs of depression.  He might have saved someone's life.

Recipe:
Spinach Artichoke Dip / Stuffed Mushrooms

If you're going to read something as sad as Thirteen Reasons Why, you're going to need some comfort food.  This snack is pretty healthy, but tastes even better than Applebee's Spin dip!  You won't need to bust out the elastic sweatpants for these  

 When cooking for my sister's Bridal Shower I accidentally used up all the Spinach when making the spin dip.  I needed a gluten free option for one of the guests so I took the spin dip and stuffed some mushrooms with it and they ended up being a big hit.  So whether you're looking for a fun dip during game nights or a grain free option this recipe will not disappoint.

Ingredients:

 1 (13 oz) jar of artichoke hearts
1 bag frozen spinach
1 clove garlic
1/2 cup greek yogurt (plain)
1/2 cup light mayo
2/3 cup parm cheese
4 oz mozzarella cheese
1 bag pita or tortilla chips 
1 pkg. of mushrooms
salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven 375 degrees.
2. Microwave the spinach until it's soft. (1 min or 30 seconds)
3. Throw the spinach, artichoke, yogurt, and mayo in the food processor until it's finely ground.
4. Mince the garlic and throw it in too.
5. Add the mozzarella and parm cheese and salt/pepper to taste.
6. Once it's all blended you can either bake it in a pan for 20-25 mins or...

 7. Wash mushrooms and cut out center stem.
8. Fold in Feta cheese to the spin dip and stuff the dip into mushrooms.
9. Place on tray and bake for 10-15 minutes.

The Harley Bear Post #2

The Harley Bear Post
Don't forget to link up your review, discussion, giveaway, etc. below!

Savanah from Books With A Bite talks about a part of her life that is non book related, but definitely worth a share.  April is Autism Awareness month so I felt the need to share her story!  

1. Her son, Ben is on the Autism Spectrum and she discusses how the past few years have been as he was being diagnosed. 
2. A tear-triggering letter she wrote to her son

Dear Debby: Advice for YA Fictional Characters made me laugh out loud.  It was fun trying to figure out which character she's answering.

"Dear Debby,
The fate of the world is just within my grasp and only a simple boy has the potential to stop me.  My world needs cleansing and I’m just the person to do it considering how powerful I am..." 







Story Crush wrote a post on all the scenes in our favorite YA books that made them swoon.  If you're in need of a pick me up that'll make you melt check this out.
*Aria & Perry
*Mal & Alina
*Alex & Brittany

That Awkward Thursday #1

discussion
Hosted by Wholly Books

April 4: That awkward moment you realize your online friends "get you" better than your real friends

At first when I saw this topic I was like "Oh that doesn't apply to me" because my real friends are awesome and love me for me.  But when I really thought about it I realized I don't ever talk about reading with them (except for a select few who I have converted to love YA).  And I never talk about blogging with them at all, ever.  And basically reading and blogging make up about 75% of my life right now while I'm still on the mend health-wise (I've had no social life the past four months). 

I started going to my online friends when I wanted to talk about books I was reading and or want to read.  But slowly over time I've started to talk to these bloggers more and more to the point where we talk about anything and everything.  Gaby from Queen Ella Bee Reads and I talk about The Carrie Diaries show like they're real people and now she's got me hooked on Veronica Mars.  Book Rock Betty helped me feel less nervous about trying a holistic dr.  I even went to a virtual birthday party for Nikki from Fiction Freak on twitter #HappyBirthdayNikki.  

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