Happy 2011!!! Eye candy blogfest and a NeToReMo update!!

Happiest New Year to EVERYONE!!!  So, it's 1-1-11 and here's what I'm hearing when I say that out loud, "Won, won, won, won."  You know what this means, of course, don't you?  GREAT things are gonna happen for us all this year!  They are, I tell you.  Just watch!!  :)

Ok - so now down to the bloggy stuff:

Vicki Rocho is hosting a New Year's Day Eye Candy blogfest today!!  Super easy - post a pic that makes you smile.  I, of course, immediately thought of cute boys when I read "eye candy", so here's mine:

Sammy's take on Holiday Fashion

He's SOOOO adorable!!!!  Totally eye-candy worthy ~ :)

So, anyone here for the blogfest - thanks much for stopping by and I hope my pic gives you a smile, too!

My next order of blogness today is my NeToReMo report.  I'm probably one of only two people (my little sis joined in, love her!) that participated in this.  Likely because I made it up... :)  But, if you're interested to see what the idea was, you can find the original post here.

Alas, I didn't get to every book on my list.  This is either due to my propensity toward procrastination.  Or I can blame it on the holidays.  Hmmmm...I'll get back to you on this.

Instead, I made it through 5 books.  And here's the scoop:

1. Into the Wild Nerd Yonder by Julie Halpern.  245 pages.  First line, "I so used to love the first day of school."  My (quick) thoughts - this was a fun, relatable, tale about the trials of finding true friendships in high school.  The point?  Nice people rock!  No matter who they are or where they rung in on the social ladder.

2. Going Bovine by Libba Bray.  480 pages.  First line, "The best day of my life happened when I was five and almost died at Disney World."  Thoughts - I kept thinking that this book is to readers today, what Pink Floyd's "The Wall" was to the druggies of the past.  :)  That's not a dig, I promise!  This book's a total trip!  But in a good way.  I've heard it called a new "cult classic" and I could totally agree with that.  To see what I mean, you must read.  (although, maybe not for readers who cringe at frequent use of the "f" word...)

3. Graceling by Kristin Cashore.  471 pages.  First line, "In these dungeons the darkness was complete, but Katsa had a map in her mind."  Thoughts - Ah, Katsa.  Ah, Po.... this one I REALLY enjoyed!  Wouldn't it be awesome to be better than anyone else in the world at one thing in particular?  Well, only if it's useful, of course.  Being the world's best line dancer or tic-tac-toe player wouldn't quite do it for me.  And I'd hope that my two different colored eyes were nice colors...of course, knowing my luck - I'd get stuck with pea green, and pee yellow.  Nice...

4. Fire by Kristin Cashore.  461 pages.  First line, (from chapter 1, not the prologue)  "It did not surprise Fire that the man in the forest shot her."  Thoughts - the idea of a "human monster" can be seen in more ways than one, here.  And I got a little "don't judge a book by its cover" here.  A good read.

5. If I Stay by Gayle Forman.  208 pages.  First line, "Every one thinks it was because of the snow."  Thoughts?  More like moods.  This book evokes so many - the good, the bad, the inbetween.  It's a beautiful book about something simple - a choice.  And it holds things in its pages that I think almost anyone could relate to.

So there you have it - 1,865 pages in one month.  Not too shabby, really!  That's 60 pages a day.  I think 100 pages a day minimum sounds a little better and that's what I'll shoot for next December (feel free to join me).  Did it help?  Did I soak it all in?  Will it make my writing that much better?  Time will tell (and maybe a few beta readers).  I hope so.

Who's my winner for best first line?  I'm gonna have to give that one to Libba Bray and Going Bovine!!!  Woo Hoo Libba!!!  But, was that my favorite book?  Not necessarily.  For favorite read of these 5 - I'm going to have to go with Graceling.  What can I say, I'm a fantasy girl.  But - these were all good reads.

And have you seen this?  The 2011 Reading Challenge.

HAPPY WRITING/READING/LIVING IN 2011!!