35 Books n 2011

So I realized it's been awhile since I updated on the list of books I've read so far.  I'm falling behind :( I foresaw this happening during the schoolyear, and I know I'll make up for any lost time during the summer, so I'm not too concerned right now.  I'm going to start giving them a rating, the best being 5 stars, here we go!

1. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (******) J.K. Rowling
• I remember first reading this book, and loving it but being SO angry at Harry for SPOILER ALERT: Sirius dying.  The more I read it though, the more and more I fall in love with it.  It has one of my FAVORITE chapters of all time (the one after Sirius dies where Harry and Dumbledore have their chat. So. Awesome.) I LOVE this book.
2. Harry Potter and the Half- Blood Prince (******) J.K. Rowling
• This one was altogether lighter and darker than a lot of the other books (yes, that makes perfect sense) and I loove it!!  There were lots of great scenes between characters that  really loved and the memories added an interesting background into Voldemort which I feel was incredibly important.  SOO good!!
3. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (******)  J.K. Rowling
• What can I say, besides perfection.  It's heartwrenchingly beautiful.
4. The Perks of Being a Wallflower (****) Stephen Chobsky
• Very honest and simple look into the life of a wallflower named Charlie and his journey into finding friends and dealing with girlfriends, crushes, death and everything else that comes with life.  Was a little concerned by the Mtv Books label, but it's totally worth a read, instantly became a favorite!
5. The Tales of Beedle the Bard (*****) J.K. Rowling
• Quick, easy read but entertainng, stories none the less.  I really enjoyed it and the sores themes and moral are not just relevant to the young witch/warlock!  If you're a fan of Harry Potter it's a must read!
6. East of Eden (*****) John Steinbeck
• The story follows two twin brothers, focusing more on Adam and the lives they lead.  It is a loose parallel to the story of Cain and Abel, but not in the way that you're thinking.  I couldn't put this book down, it was soooooooooooo gooooooooood.   It looks big but it goes fast and the story and characters are so real and entralling you get lost in them. LOVE.

That's it so far!  I'm about 110 pages into For Whom the Bell tolls by Ernest Hemmingway and it's good, but my word some parts of it are SLOW.  It makes it a little more diffcult to really get into and WANT to read all the tme.  But when it's good, it's good.  I know these were all ranked pretty high, but I started out wth books I really really really wanted to read so I expected it to be that way.  There are bound to be some dud along the way...

Also, I do realize I gave HP 6 stars, but c'mon, it's Harry Potter.  It felt wrong giving HP and Perks the same ranking (sorry Perks! I loved you, I really did!)

Any reccomendations?

xoxo