Finished my book!

I've been reading since 3.30pm and finished 'The Undomestic Goddess' around 8pm! No, I did not finish one whole book during those few hours. I actually started reading Sophie Kinsella's book on March 26 and only managed to read half of the book today.

Yes, I was quite tired but I took a short break, had my dinner, and sat down to write the book review. You can read it here!

I decided to do a search for the book in Wikipedia. Unfortunately, there wasn't a special page for Undomestic Goddess. So, I just went ahead to Madeleine Wickham's page.

Then, I visited Sophie Kinsella's official website and found a quiz entitled 'Are You A Samantha Sweeting?'

Interesting, huh?

So, I tried the quiz and my score was 17!

If I'm a 17, then I fall under the following category:
15-29 Your Samantha potential is high. You have the right skills—or at least how to fake them.
Haha! I was just having a little bit of fun. Go on. Try the quiz yourself.

Cracking My Head Over The WP Plugins

Good morning everybody! How’s your Saturday coming along? So far, my Saturday is fine, just waiting for breakfast to come home. Haha!

I’m not really sure what I plan to do today. I do know I intend on writing more paid posts and catching up on my reading. I’m currently reading my ‘Undomestic Goddess’ book by Sophie Kinsella. Yes, I’m totally enjoying the book because it’s so funny! I wonder why I’ve never tried reading any of Kinsella’s books before. She writes under two names too. Sophie Kinsella and Madeline Wickham.

Another thing I know I’ll enjoy doing is doing some touch-ups on my new blog. I still have lots of WordPress plugins to experiment. I’m wondering if Blogger has such websites too, offering useful stuff for Blogger? Anyone?

Well, I plan to try and figure out how to use the Multi Column Category List and Book Reading plugins. The instructions may sound like a piece of cake but no, I think there are more codes to crack.

Good luck to me!

So Many Plugins for WordPress!!!

Wah lau weh… WordPress has so many plugins! There is one extremely long list at Weblog Tools Collection and it was quite difficult to choose which ones I like. So, I thought I would just download the ones that stand out from the others and see if I really them enough to keep them.

I’ve been receiving spam comments lately. It’s irritating when I open up my e-mails to find that I have spam comments in my new blog. I thought they were new comments and honestly, I was pretty excited. Just imagine my disappointment when I found out that those comments were actually advertising things like mobile phones, porn sites, etc.

Well, I was browsing through the Weblog Tools page and I came across 3 different kinds of plugins that can block out spam comments. I just installed one and am hoping for the best. I have enough spam mails in my Yahoo and I certainly don’t need anymore in my new blog.

Truly, there are endless of plugins available for WordPress blogs that it is quite impossible to use them all. Yeah, I am kind of excited now because I have just discovered the page with the list of nifty plugins. Haha! I’m beginning to think WordPress is a whole lot better than my old faithful Blogger. Have no fear, Blogger, I’m not leaving you.

Okay! I’m off to write another post! =D

Choosing A Book

When you choose a book to read, how do you go about it? Do you pick the book because you like the author? Or you’ve read countless of reviews raving about the book? Or maybe you just like the look of the book’s cover? Maybe you are a ‘judge a book by its cover’ kind of person?

Whatever it is, the whole truth will be revealed once you start reading the book. The cover of the book may look nice or the book is hugely popular but after reading page 1, you just go, ‘Ugh! What a horrible book!’ Well, there you go.

I’ve read somewhere before that if you want your book published, your book has to pass the Page One Test. Meaning that the publisher will read only page 1s of all the drafts he receives and then he will decide which are good ones and which are merely wasting his time. So, aspiring authors would have to make an extra good impression right on page 1.

I guess that’s the way we buy our books too. When we see a book that strikes our fancy, we read page 1 first to see if we can go on to page 2. If you go beyond page 5, then it’s time to buy the book. Remember to hold the book properly, though if you’re not planning to buy it. Don’t vandalize the book. I’ve seen too many poorly handled brand new books in bookstores. Be considerate and think of the next person who might buy the book. We all like brand new books, don’t we? They should also LOOK like new, right?

Nevertheless, here is a list of recommended authors whose books that you might like. I don’t quite remember from where I got the list. Probably from The Star’s Tots To Teens!

1. Susan Cooper
2. Diana Wynne Jones
3. Garth Nix
4. Ursula Le Guin
5. Terry Pratchett
6. Brian Jacques
7. Alan Garner
8. Madeline L’Engle
9. Susan Coolidge
10. E. L. Konigsburg
11. Beverly Cleary
12. Elizabeth Enright
13. Sarah Dessen
14. Judy Blume
15. Patricia McLachlan

Where do you buy your books?

I received some rather bad news the other day from MPH. They e-mailed me telling me that the book I want, ‘I Capture the Castle’ by Dodie Smith is NOT in print anymore. I mean, how bad is that?

Answer: Very bad.

I’m willing to give my eye-teeth just to have that book. I’ve wanted the book for a very long time. Okay, I have no idea if the book is interesting or not but it should be a good read judging from the synopsis and all its reviews that I’ve come across.

The book I want is RM32.90 and I saw it in Borders. Twice! When I finally had enough money to buy it, it’s gone. Just like that. I searched high and low for it but it’s nowhere to be seen. The only one left cost RM50++. I’m not going to pay so much for the book. Well, for now anyway.

I think I’ve searched most online bookstores to see if they had the book or not. Acmamall has the RM50 one too.

All the same, here is a list of online and offline bookstores:

1. Borders
2. Popular
3. MPH Online
4. Reader’s Shack
5. Acmamall
6. Silverfish books
7. eBay (though mostly second-hand books there)
8. Amazon (anyone from Malaysia shopped here before?)
9. Kinokuniya (I don’t go there often mainly because I don’t live in KL! What a waste.)

I can’t think of anymore stores. Do you know of any bookstores not listed above? Some online ones that I’ve never heard before? Don't hesitate to let me know, okay? =D

10 Books That I’ve Read and Can Definitely Live Without!

Previously, I listed out 10 books that I can't live without. See here. Well, now, I thought I'd list out 10 kinds of books that did not make a big impact on me. Books that I would not bother to save from any disaster.

1. Gossip Girl

One of the lousiest and un-educational books ever! It teaches bad values and bad examples to teenagers. It would not do anybody good if the reader takes the book to heart and follows the terrible lifestyles of the characters.

2. Harry Potter series

Sorry Harry Potter fans! He may be your hero but he’s not mine anymore. I used to be utterly protective of my Harry Potter books and thought I’d never be able to survive without them. Well, I grew out of it. They are just entertaining reads now. The movies were lousy too.

3. Sweet Valley series

That was also another phase I went through when I was a younger teenager. Anyway, at least the characters in Sweet Valley are less wild than the ones in Gossip Girl. I’d rather recommend Sweet Valley to teen readers. They are kid/teen-friendly that’s why.

4. Forever by Judy Blume

I’ve always wanted to read this book because of all the hype about the s-e-x in it. It’s supposed to be quite educational, too. The story was fine but I did not particularly like the ending. Katherine was too fickle-minded and disloyal to her boyfriend. Well, if she were to fall so easily for another guy, then she should not have promised ‘forever’ to her boyfriend. Nothing is forever, anyway.

5. Dawson’s Creek series

Oh! I’ve read 3 books in this series and they were so boring. Even my sis said they were boring. But, I expected that from her since she’s too old for the books. Haha! Not that old, though!

6. Hexwood by Diana Wynne Jones

It took me weeks just to finish this book. Well, I was quite busy so I only read, like, one chapter a day. The whole story was just so complicated and too many details to remember. Luckily, I understand the story now after reading the synopsis and readers’ comments at Amazon.

7. Boys Beware by Jean Ure

This book would only be appealing to younger teen readers, I should think. It’s just too ‘crazy-for-boys’ kind of book. The main characters make as though they live for boys. Ugh, I prefer Ure’s other books.

8. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares

The story was okay but I did not really like it. I don’t know why but I just don’t think it is that interesting.

9. Diary of a Girl in Changi by Sheila Allan

This book was downright boring from the start. I got it from my sis for Christmas about 3 years ago, I think. I never finished it though. It was too boring for me to finish it. Haha! My sis admitted it was boring too. It’s a true story and it’s really the diary of Sheila Allen when she was younger. But all there ever was in the book were stories about parties and concerts.

10. Fortunately, I can’t think of a 10th book. Perhaps you can fill it in for me?

20% discount for books at Borders

I went to my beloved Borders today and bought a new book, Rebel Angels by Libba Bray! I finished A Great and Terrible Beauty by the same author already and the review is right over here.

Finally, there is another promotion at Borders where you only need to purchase any magazine at full price and then you get a 20% discount on any book you want. Of course, you need to present the coupon from yesterday's Reads Monthly in StarMag when making your payment.

I really wanted to buy 'I Capture The Castle' by Dodie Smith for a very long time. I saw the book in Borders twice and never bought it! And now that I want to buy it, it's not available anymore. It is most heart-breaking and unfortunate. Now, it's not available anywhere! I tried searching the MPH website for it but it's unavailable too. So, I just, like, made a special order for it. Hope it will be available for me!!!

10 Books That I Cannot Live Without!

Okay, Kailana from The Written World started this little book meme and I decided to give it a go!

Here is my list of 10 books that I absolutely cannot live or breathe without!

1. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

It’s a beautiful story and I really admire Miss Eyre. She may be plain, unfashionable and not rich, she managed to change other people’s lives, more specifically her employer, Mr. Rochester’s. I just like the story and her determination.

2. The True Story of Lilli Stubeck by James Aldridge

I’ve reviewed this book before. See here. Lilli is not like other girls. She’s daring and does not give a thought to what other people say about her. She is another wonderful female book character.

3. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon

I’ve reviewed this book here. It’s just a very funny book and Christopher is one weird boy. He’s smart but he is a little bit paranoid.

4. My Enid Blyton books.

I grew up reading books by Enid Blyton. Would my investigating skills be enhanced without the Five Find-Outers and Dog? How would I know how to enjoy a midnight feast if it weren’t for the girls at St. Clare’s and Malory Towers? Would I ‘believe’ in fairies, elves, pixies, etc if I did not read the books? She’s one amazing author and always will be.

5. Looking for Alibrandi by Melina Marchetta

Hmm, I just like this book. I was also very sad when one of Josephine’s friends committed suicide. It’s a good read.

6. Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

What can I say? It’s one of the greatest classic stories. And it’s Dickens too. I like the ending when Pip and Estella meet each other and become friends. Well, I guess they were friends earlier but Estella was too stuck-up to be considered one.

7. The Dictionary.

It is a book, right? When I read, I’ll surely encounter some new, unfamiliar words and I have to look them up the dictionary to know what they mean. That’s the dictionary’s job. Help me learn as many new words as possible.

8. Daddy-Long-Legs by Jean Webster.
It’s a book full of letters by Judy to her benefactor who sponsored her schooling. In the end, she fell in love with him. And vice versa.

9. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodges Burnett

I like the movie and I like the story. It’s the story of friendship between 3 children who care for an abandoned garden. Nice one.

10. Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe

It's a story of the slavery of African-American people in America a long time ago. It's a sad book with lots of moral values. It teaches us to be kinder to other fellow human beings and that nobody is more superior than others. Well, I feel that the world should not be without this book. It's a good read.

100 Can't-Live-Without Books!

I was trying to locate the page where the list of 100 books people can't live without was and finally, Kailana had it on her very own blog! Saves me the trouble of searching for it. =)

Well, let's go through the books one by one, shall we?

1 Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (Nice movie. Interesting story but the book was too dragging for me. Lots of long-winded parts.)

2 The Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien (I’ve watched all the 3 movies too. But, I haven’t read the books yet. Will read it one day.)

3 Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (My FAVOURITE book! Beautiful story. Touching! Heartwarming! Definitely a must-read!)

4 Harry Potter series by JK Rowling (I used to be crazy over the books. Now, not anymore. I haven’t even read the Half-Blood Prince yet. And the movies were incredibly lousy.)

5 To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee (Got this book for my birthday. It was OK.)

6 The Bible (Haven’t read it for a while. =/)

7 Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte (Haven’t read it yet. Will get to it some day.)

8 Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell (This book sounds interesting. I have to read this.)

9 His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman (Haven’t read it either.)

10 Great Expectations by Charles Dickens (Um, I only read the simplified version.)

11 Little Women by Louisa M Alcott (Again, I read the simplified version.)

12 Tess of the d'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy (Never heard of it before.)

13 Catch-22 Joseph Heller (Nope.)

14 Complete Works of Shakespeare William Shakespeare (Shakespeare’s works are interesting. Cool plots and memorable characters. My favourite would be Twelfth Night)

15 Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier (Will read in one day.)

16 The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien (Will read it one day.)

17 Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks (Never heard of it until now.)

18 Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger (I’ve been hearing of this book everywhere. Got to read it soon, whatever it’s about.)

19 The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger (Got to buy this one.)

20 Middlemarch by George Eliot (Got to borrow this one.)

21 Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell (Nice and romantic movie. Haven’t read the book yet.)

22 The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald (I only read the simplified version. Again!)

23 Bleak House by Charles Dickens (Just heard of it. =))

24 War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy (WHOA! It’s over 1000 pages! I think it’ll take me 10 years to finish this! When I’m old and have nothing to do, then I’ll read it. =D)

25 The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams (The book is just right in front of me. Will read it soon.)

26 Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh (Just heard of it.)

27 Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky (Just heard of it. And I’m only at number 27!!!)

28 Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck (I read the simplified version. My school had lots of simplified versions, that’s why.)

29 Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (I read the kid’s version.)

30 The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame (Erm, never read it before.)

31 Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy (My sis has it. Got to borrow it from her. I watched the movie though.)

32 David Copperfield by Charles Dickens (Should be interesting. Magicians fascinate me.)

33 Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis (Yeah, I read all 7 books. My favourite would be The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.)

34 Emma by Jane Austen (Nice story. Nice movie with Gwyneth Paltrow as Emma.)

35 Persuasion by Jane Austen (Nope.)

36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by CS Lewis (Hey! I thought this should be under the Chronicles of Narnia.)

37 The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini (Never heard of it before.)

38 Captain Corelli's Mandolin by Louis de Bernières (Nope.)

39 Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden (The book was okay. The movie too.)

40 Winnie the Pooh by AA Milne (Interesting book on this list! Haha! I read these before but not a fan of it though.)

41 Animal Farm by George Orwell (Nope. And I’m only at no. 41.)

42 The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown (Interesting book. Boring movie though.)

43 One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez (Nope.)

44 A Prayer for Owen Meaney by John Irving (Nope and I'm getting hungry.)

45 The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins (Getting boring…….)

46 Anne of Green Gables by LM Montgomery (Oh, my sis is a huge fan of Anne of Green Gables. I watched the series when I was a kid.)

47 Far From The Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy (Nope.)

48 The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood (No.)

49 Lord of the Flies by William Golding (My sis recommends this book.)

50 Atonement by Ian McEwan (No…..)

51 Life of Pi by Yann Martel (Sounds boring. Looks boring.)

52 Dune by Frank Herbert (no)

53 Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons (sorry)

54 Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen (not yet)

55 A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth (no)

56 The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (no)

57 A Tale Of Two Cities by Charles Dickens (simplified version again)

58 Brave New World by Aldous Huxley (no)

59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time Mark Haddon (Ah! Finally, a book that I like! Very, very, very funny! I would love to read it over and over again.)

60 Love In The Time Of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez (no)

61 Of Mice and Men John Steinbeck (no)

62 Lolita Vladimir Nabokov (no)

63 The Secret History Donna Tartt (no)

64 The Lovely Bones Alice Sebold (no)

65 Count of Monte Cristo Alexandre Dumas (not yet)

66 On The Road Jack Kerouac (no)

67 Jude the Obscure Thomas Hardy (no)

68 Bridget Jones's Diary Helen Fielding (Would love to read it one day. Liked the movie.)

69 Midnight's Children Salman Rushdie (not yet)

70 Moby Dick Herman Melville (no)

71 Oliver Twist Charles Dickens (Liked the movie. Haven’t read it yet)

72 Dracula Bram Stoker (This should be chilly.)

73 The Secret Garden Frances Hodgson Burnett (Nice story.)

74 Notes From A Small Island Bill Bryson (no)

75 Ulysses James Joyce (no)

76 The Bell Jar Sylvia Plath (no)

77 Swallows and Amazons Arthur Ransome (no)

78 Germinal Emile Zola (no)

79 Vanity Fair William Makepeace Thackeray (Watched the movie only.)

80 Possession AS Byatt (no)

81 A Christmas Carol Charles Dickens (Will read it soon.)

82 Cloud Atlas David Mitchell (no)

83 The Color Purple Alice Walker (no)

84 The Remains of the Day Kazuo Ishiguro (no)

85 Madame Bovary Gustave Flaubert (no)

86 A Fine Balance Rohinton Mistry (no)

87 Charlotte's Web EB White (no)

88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven Mitch Albom (Will read it soon. And I know you’re getting bored with my ‘no’s. Haha!)

89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (no)

90 The Faraway Tree Collection Enid Blyton (Haven’t read this yet. I’ve read lots of other Enid Blytons though)

91 Heart of Darkness Joseph Conrad (no.)

92 The Little Prince Antoine de Saint-Exupery (no)

93 The Wasp Factory Iain Banks (no)

94 Watership Down Richard Adams (no)

95 A Confederacy of Dunces John Kennedy Toole (no)

96 A Town Like Alice Nevil Shute (no)

97 The Three Musketeers Alexandre Dumas (one day)

98 Hamlet William Shakespeare (depressing. Boring movie)

99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Roald Dahl (Hmm, just an okay book.)

100 Les Misérables by Victor Hugo (I loved the movie! Can’t wait to read the book!)

I’m tired and hungry now. What a list! I think I’ve only read 5% of it. That’s just sad. Haha! Well, never mind. At least I read some of them.

Undomestic Goddess Received!

Yes! I've finally received the much-awaited book by Sophie Kinsella from Reader's Shack. It took more than a week to arrive in my post box but the long wait was worth it. The book was definitely cheap! I can't wait to buy another book from them again.

Well, I'm not going to read it yet because I'm currently reading 'A Great and Terrible Beauty' by Libba Bray. 


I have also finished reading 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' by Harriet Beecher Stowe just this morning. Very touching story. You can read my review about it in my new blog.

Okay, I'm off to think about my university application now. I do hope that I get to go to the university of my choice. At least let me stay near a good bookstore!

RSS explained the easy way!

I was always so blur about what RSS is and how it works. I just know that it's supposed to help popularize blogs, that's all. How it works its magic, I do not know, unfortunately. I found out that RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication and that's it.

After all my searches throughout the web, I finally came across this blog, 'Back in skinny jeans' and the author explained how RSS works in a simple and thoroughly understandable way. Not like how the other techie people tried to explain with all the big, unfamiliar words.

I'm so glad I found this blog! At least, I know something extra now.

So, for those who are still in the dark about this RSS thing, you may very well go here. =) Happy RSSing!

Yes! Our leaders read too!

I read in awe the interview StarMag did with our Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak on his reading habit. It was a good one, too because we humble citizens of Malaysia can get to know what he reads, when he reads, and also where he buys his books. Many thanks to StarMag for doing this brilliant interview and I hope they will have more interviews with the leaders of our country. About the books they read, of course.

Our Deputy Prime Minister has over 3000 titles! Wow, so many, right? Haha! Well, you don’t need to be a Deputy Prime Minister to own over 3000 books. You can start your very own collection slowly and steadily. Buy a book every two weeks or every month. If you like, buy a new one each week, if you can afford it. You don’t have to buy only new books. You can always scour the second-hand bookshops for cheaper and yet quality books.

Datuk Seri Najib mentioned two bookshops in London, which are Hatchards and Foyles. Hatchards is the oldest bookshop in the United Kingdom while Foyle’s is the BIGGEST bookshop. I would really like to go to both places one fine day. He said that you can get lost in Foyles and I would really want to do that! I love getting lost in big bookshops such as Borders and MPH. I would dearly like to list Kinokuniya, too but I don’t go there often. I think I have only been there twice. I don’t live in Kuala Lumpur, you see.

Anyway, you can get a 25% discount for 4 books at Kinokuniya Bookstore, Suria KLCC until the 1st of April 2007. Well, Datuk Seri Najib owns these 4 titles, so you can get them too if you want. You need to present the article from StarMag when purchasing the books.

Here are the titles:

· A Long Walk to Freedom by Nelson Mandela
· Attila the Hun John Man
· Blue Ocean Strategy by W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne
· Churchill: A Biography by Roy Jenkins

Vote for cool blogs at spicypage.com

I chanced upon this website while visiting another blog. I saw the red hot widget proudly displayed at that person's blog and just checked out what it's all about.

It's like a voting kind of site where you submit your blog or blogs that you like and people vote for it if they like it. I have only 5 votes so far and I hope to be getting more votes later on! No, I'm not going on some kind of campaign, going around screaming, 'VOTE FOR ME'! If you feel like you like my blog, make my day and throw in a vote for my blog. Hehe...=)

There are tons of other interesting blogs and websites voted there. I was quite fascinated by some of the blogs there and tried to find other book blogs too. It was a fruitless search though. Not many book blogs there.

I like book blogs. In fact, I like book review blogs and anything with book reviews. I check The Star for section on books everyday hoping to come across any reading section. Friday and Sunday are my favourite days because there will be many books reviewed.

If you like reading, why not start a book blog to tell everyone what you're reading and what you think of the books? There are not many Malaysian book blogs or maybe I just haven't visited them yet.

Come on, just start one and make me happy. Haha!

Anyway, I sent a text message to Reader's Shack yesterday and got a reply. Finally! My book will arrive next Tuesday. It'll take one whole week to reach me! It's kind of long, you know, but what do you expect if the postal fee is only RM1? Well, better late than never!

Respond now!

I hate it when people don't reply to my e-mails especially when I'm buying something from them.

I know I've been promoting Reader's Shack, but I've yet to hear anything from them since I deposited RM21 into their bank account for a book I bought. I ordered 'The Undomestic Goddess' by Sophie Kinsella and it was offered at only RM20! Plus, the book is brand new too! Much better than the prices offered in local bookstores.

Well, I guess they are busy or something but I'll still continue to bug them for a reply. ;)

Anyway, the STPM results were out yesterday. Finally, the day we ex-Form Sixers were waiting for had arrived. With unwelcoming open arms, I'm afraid. But, still a little bit welcoming.

I managed not to fail any subject. I'm glad of that but I do wish I had studied harder and gotten better results! But, it's no use crying over spilt milk now. Now, I have to think which course I really want to study.

Sis said, 'Study science.'

Me said, 'Mass comm!'

Sis: No, science better.

Me: Really? Don't really like Chem.

Sis: Then, study Bio!

Me: Don't know.

Sis: Think about it. Science is better.

Me: Okay.

Haha! I'm still pondering on it. Later, I'll check out the whole list of courses offered by the universities at the Higher Education website. Last night, my friend tried to log in but it was sooooo slow. There must be hundreds of others trying to log into the site as well.

By the way, good morning!

5 Reasons Why I Blog! Read here!

I've been tagged by Erlynda from __advent chi|d__v.6 and I am supposed to give 5 good reasons why I'm blogging.

1. To practise my writing skills.

I feel that the more I write, the better my writing will be and the more words I will learn. Thus, I’ll be expanding my vocabulary of words.

2. To tell people about the books I’ve read.

I like to read and I noticed that not many people are into reading. Who knows? Maybe I might turn a book-loather into a book-lover!

3. To pass the time.

I have a lot of free time in my hands now, so why not blog? At least I’m spending my time in a useful way and not spending money elsewhere.

4. To earn some cash.

This is like easy money to me and it’s like hitting two birds with one stone. I get to improve on my writing skills plus get some money just for writing! Fascinating, huh?

5. To join the blogging community and make new friends.

Enough said.

Now, I'm going to tag:
KittyCat, Freelance, yanjiaren, Edward, and Bengbeng.

Reader's Shack is back!

Yup, it's so totally back! And they have more books, more features, and more discounts! They are not only renting books but selling them as well. Brand new and used books are on sale. It's not that bad, really because the books are sold 10% cheaper than the ones sold in bookstores.

Anyway, I've also noticed that they have a lot of categories specially for romance books. What? Romance books again? Aren't there enough of them in eBay? I guess romance books are kind of popular.

So, if you feel like buying a book, why not check out Reader's Shack? No, I'm not getting any commissions for promoting them, though I really wish I were paid! =) I'm just spreading the good news to you bookworm folks out there.

Good night!

No idea how to categorize my books!

Oh, how do I categorize the books I've read? Well, now I'm going to make things simpler by dividing the books according to genres, and not reading levels. I've canceled out the Teens and Young Adult categories. The ages of the readers don't matter anymore. Anyone can read anything. Even a 6-year-old can read War and Peace.


So, now I've got a few categories listed out in my new blog. And I have no idea what category 'The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time' by Mark Haddon should be in. I thought I'd list it under Humour but I checked on Amazon and there was no such category. Perhaps I should create my own category? For the moment, it's under Fiction. And it is the only one miserable book listed under Fiction although almost all the other books are obviously works of fiction too!


Ah, I'm confused. I'll have to think and create more lists.

Top 10 books you can't live without!

This came out in today's StarMag's Reads section. It was quite interesting that classics are among the books people can't live without. Well, people in Britain, actually. Here is the list (you can read the article in The Star too):

1) Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen 20%
2) Lord of the Rings – J.R.R. Tolkien 17%
3) Jane Eyre – Charlotte Bronte 14%
4) Harry Potter books – J.K. Rowling 12%
5) To Kill A Mockingbird – Harper Lee 9.5%
6) The Bible 9%
7) Wuthering Heights – Emily Bronte 8.5%
8) 1984 – George Orwell 6%
9) His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman 6%
10) Great Expectations – Charles Dickens .55%

I wonder what 1984 is about and what happened in that year. I look forward to reading the book. If I can find it in the first place. I'm also glad that many people like Jane Eyre too. It's one of my favourite books even though I've only read it once but I've watched the movie, too and liked it a lot.

Oh, and check out the World Book Day website too. It's nice! I like the graphics. Happy Reading and enjoy your Sunday.

Slow way to earn money online

I have been a member in myLot for over a month and boy, is it one of the slowest money-making program ever! I would rather do paid posts in my blog than spend hours in myLot and only earn like $1.00 a day. Yeah, it's that slow.

But, the good side of it is, I get to participate in interesting and wacky discussions. I get to give my opinions on anything there provided that I know what I'm writing about. You can't simply write rubbish there. The other users might scold you and you'll then get a bad name. No, not cool.

I earned only $6.89 now from myLot. They will only pay when I've reached $10.00. That'll be like weeks from now. Haha! Okay, I hope I'll get it next week then.

Oh yeah, Erlynda tagged me a few days ago and I haven't done it yet. I'll do it soon, don't worry!

And, the STPM results will be out next Thursday, 15th of March 2007. I am wondering what my results would be. I'll keep my fingers crossed though.

booksloveme.com is ready

Yup, it's ready. It's finally ready. From now on, all book reviews will be posted there and I've also transferred all my old book reviews to my new blog.

I thought it would be so much fun setting up my new blog. Unfortunately, I don't really like WordPress. I've had the luxury of blogging with Blogger Beta that I was slogging away with WordPress. Everything is new and there are so many features to explore, plus the loading of the pages are slow too.

Well, I'm keeping this blog still. My mind is in a blur now. I need to categorize my new blog and I have no idea where to start. It's all just confusing right now but I'm glad that the new blog will only focus on book reviews and anything related to books. Nothing else.

Now, you may visit my new book blog. Specially for books and for book lovers!

Books Love Me

Changing the theme for my new blog

Wow! I thought everything would be so easy when I had a new blog. How was I to know that WordPress would just be a little, teeny tiny bit more difficult and complicated than Blogger? Augh, I was having lots of trouble just trying to change the theme or template of my new blog.

I will launch my new blog when it's ready, okay? I'm still keeping this blog too, don't worry. I just wanted my own dot com blog.

Well, it is quite easy when you know how to upload the new theme and everything to your web host's control panel. I had to ask many people but I still could not figure how to to upload the theme that I want.

And finally, I did a search in Google and found the following website: SiteGround: WordPress Tutorial: Change your WordPress Theme

Thanks to this wonderful tutorial that I've managed to upload the stupid theme and display it on my website. I've been trying to figure how for days! Haha! And finally I did it and I'm very, very, very happy and relieved. *Sigh............*

For those with their own domain and web host and having problems uploading WordPress themes, just visit the aforementioned website. They have clear and easy to understand directions.