Cheryl Renee Herbsman. BREATHING

It seems fitting that I finished this book during my visit to Tennessee & Georgia. The southern dialect in the book matched the dialect of the people I encountered. I felt that I was literally in the setting of the book. Lovely.
Savannah usually spends her summer working at the library and studying SAT prep materials. She’s determined to get out of her small coastal Carolina town and go away to college. But this summer, she gets an unexpected distraction. She meets her soul mate and his name is Jackson. He’s staying with his cousins for a while. He’s cute, perfect and she falls hard for him. Savannah also has asthma, but since having Jackson around, she seems to be able to breathe easier. But after a few weeks together, Jackson has to go back home. The drama of losing him causes Savannah to have major breathing problems, literally and figuratively.
If you aren’t familiar with the dialect, it may be quite unusual at first or hard to get used to. It wasn’t for me, because I know people who speak in this southern dialect. So, it may or may not be your cup of tea. But it totally fit the characters and setting. It felt true. And the cover! Wow! It really captures the tone of the book. It’s wonderful.
I cherished every bit of this book. I loved the characters, the setting, the voice, everything! If you enjoy a love story, you'll love it.

I think this is the author's first book. I'm looking forward to more from her. Here's her website.

Heather Brewer. NINTH GRADE SLAYS

Vlad made it through 8th grade (if you missed the review see here). He learned a lot from Otis and almost lost his life. But some things never change. He's in high school and the two bullies who pushed him around in middle school continue to give him trouble. Also, Vlad's no closer to officially calling Meredith his girlfriend. But he does receive a bit of good news from Otis. He's going to get to spend winter break with him in Siberia training with a special vampire family friend. When he finds out a vampire slayer is in town, he's glad to take part in any training that may help save his life.
I'm liking this one even more. We're learning more about the vampire secret world, as well as Vlad's part in it. The fact that he's half-human, half-vampire comes into play more in this book. Since he was actually born (not made into a vampire), this seems to make a huge difference. Whether that is a good thing or a bad thing-you must read for yourself! Plus, there are several other surprises in store in this one.
I'm now anxiously awaiting TENTH GRADE BLEEDS, which is due out end of June.
By the way, even with Vlad entering high school, this is still middle school appropriate.

Check out the author's website.

And of course, the trailer is very cool, again produced by DeviantArt

Trailer - Ninth Grade Slays by *mree on deviantART

Free Website Creators

Remember the day when you had to learn complicated software to create a website?
Well those days are over. People often ask me about creating websites, so I thought it might be helpful to show you a few places where you can create a FREE and EASY website.

The first one is Microsoft Office Live. Microsoft Office Live has several things going on. Live Workspace is their cloud computing section (like GoogleDocs & Adobe Buzzword). They also have Live Spaces, which is their blog software. But what you're looking for is the Office Live Small Business, which is the website creator. You don't have to be a "business" either to create a website. I have a website through them, and I enjoy working with the program. Here's what I like:
*It's very easy to build a site.
*Lots of templates - not a huge amount, but enough for my purposes
*You can choose your own domain name for free
*You can create several email accounts associated with the domain name
*You can upload docs, pics, videos etc (For videos, you will prefer to have an embed code. If you want to upload videos that aren't hosted elsewhere-you will need to do a little more legwork - it's possible, but not super, super easy)
*There are a few reporting functions to see who is visiting your site
The only drawback I've seen so far is the fact that it doesn't mesh with WordPress. Microsoft has its own blog (Windows Live Spaces) within the software, but I didn't really like that. It does allow Blogger blogs to be imported.
I originally thought you couldn't import your own banner on a website, but I've seen sites where this has been done, so appears to be possible.
I've seen some really beautiful websites created through Microsoft Office Live.

The next FREE website creator is Webs.com. I created a site through webs.com back when it was called Freewebs.com. It served my purposes back then, but if they hadn't upgraded, I would've easily outgrown this program. They now have many more templates, more flexibility and frankly the sites look great!

They have a neat community feature too. You can allow your friends to upload videos to your photo or video album. You can add a forum/message board to your site. You can easily add widgets, polls, RSS feeds, even your own store that accepts payments. Overall, these upgrades look fantastic! The all new Webs.com appears to have everything you would need in building a site.

Next is Wix.com. Wix seems to have all of the features of Webs.com, but uses Flash.
Here's what they're saying about it on their site "High quality fully customizable designs
Go beyond Flash templates. Find all the graphics you need on Wix.com.
Loaded with tons of designs, media items, effects, and animations."
Sounds awesome - especially since it's free!
There are many, many more free websites out there. Here are few more to check out:
Weebly
Yola
Homestead

Elizabeth Scott. SOMETHING, MAYBE

And you think you’re parents were embarrassing when you were a teen? Um, probably not so much after reading this book. Hannah would probably hide what her mom does for a living, if she could, but since she does it online, that’s not really a option. Her mom dated an aging rock star years ago and became famous for it, among other things. Anyway, when Hannah and her mom first moved to Slaterville several years back, they gave her a lot of grief for her infamous parents. She learned to stay under the radar, so people eventually left her alone. Now in high school, she feels like she’s met her soul mate in Josh. Surely, he would realize it too, once he got to know her better. But this other guy, Finn, keeps getting in the way. She works with both of them. Josh is her dream guy and Finn is an annoying jerk. When Josh finally asks her out, she’s in heaven. Is he really the dream guy she imagined or is he someone else?
I really enjoyed this love story. It’s funny and real. There is an authenticity to the writing. In fact, it brought me back to some distinct moments in my life as a teen. Hannah’s teen emotions feel fresh, not cynical. There are things going on that I can’t say without spoiling it, but you feel her naiveté and remember when you felt that way. (or if you’re still a teen-hopefully you still feel that way)
This was a real joy to read! Can’t wait to read more from Elizabeth Scott.

I've heard that PERFECT YOU is awesome too:
For more on the author & her books click here for her website.

TeachersRecess

At first glance, you might assume that TeachersRecess is just another webiste with gobs of teacher stuff on it. It's not. I mean, it does have gobs of teacher stuff on it, but it's so much more. It really is a social network site for teachers. Here are the details:

• It's free to join.
• You can create a profile - like on all the other social network sites.
• There is a file cabinet full of uploaded lessons in every subject area.
• There is an exchange where you can buy & sell teacher-y stuff.
• It has a bulletin board to post questions, comments and events.
• You can chat in real time with other teachers in the teacher's lounge.

It looks like fun and it does have a lot of great lessons. You can browse the lessons without signing up, if you want. I think you'll be surprised at all TeachersRecess has to offer. I'm not thrilled with the name, though. It doesn't roll of the tongue easily.
For a quick tour click on the owl to the left.

If you need Big 6 resources, look no further than Janet Murray. I ran across her site when doing planning for a research project. If you go here, you'll see a matrix (pictured below) of all the 6 skills, along with standards and basic & advanced activities. In addition to the activities listed, she has many links to other helpful sites. It amounts to tons of great info, if you are looking for help besides the depth of information on the main Big 6 website.

Big6 Matrix: Use the Internet with Big6 Skills to Achieve Standards via kwout

Meg Cabot. BEING NIKKI

Yay! I’ve been waiting on this sequel to AIRHEAD. In the beginning we find Em (Nikki) adjusting to her new life, somewhat. She really has no choice but to follow all of her orders as spokesmodel and official face of Stark Industries. Her typical job is modeling Stark Superstores clothing while doing commercials for Stark brand laptops. And if you remember from book 1, she is basically a corporate slave to Stark or else they will throw her family in jail. So even though flying around the world to model in tropical locations may sound glamorous to you, there is a down side. Em’s every single move is monitored. Her apartment is bugged. Her laptop and cell phone are bugged. Her family’s homes and cell phones are bugged. You name it – bugged. So she can't really spend much time with her family or her old life, otherwise Stark will get suspicious.

Anyway, Em is doing the best she can to remain normal. She's going to school and trying to begin a relationship with her old best friend. She’s been doing a decent job of fooling everyone. Until now. Nikki’s brother shows up out of the blue and he might be the one person she isn’t able to fool. To complicate things, he brings up some serious questions about the way Nikki died. Perhaps Stark isn’t being as honest as everyone would like…

I loved this sequel! It surprised me with some mysteries and discoveries. I'm really getting attached to some of the characters. Plus, it's mighty hysterical in parts. It leaves you eagerly awaiting the sequel, which will be called RUNAWAY according to the teaser in the back of the book.
Highly Recommended for a ton of fun!

Remember, you MUST read the first one to understand & enjoy this one.

To enjoy more of Meg Cabot & her books click here for her website.

Heather Brewer. EIGHTH GRADE BITES.

So, I’m a little late getting on the bus with this one. It’s been out a few years, and yes, I had heard of it. It was on my list all this time. (I mean, the title alone made it mandatory reading!) Anyway, here goes:
Eighth grade is bad enough for Vladimir Tod. Bullies bother him, the principal has a grudge against him and the girls he likes seems to be after his best friend. But as if the “normal” junior high angst isn’t enough, he has a big secret to worry about. He’s half human, half vampire. His parents were killed a few years back, so he lives with his guardian, Nelly. Fortunately Nelly is a nurse and has access to blood to nourish Vlad. The only other person that knows his secret is his best friend, Henry. So basically Vlad is on his own dealing with the cravings, the fighting to keep his fangs from showing, the unusual abilities he has and his unknown future. Until one day when a substitute teacher leaves him a note saying he knows his secret. Who is this strange teacher, and is he after Vlad? Did he kill his parents?
This book fools you. In the beginning, you feel like it might be light fun. But as you go along, it gets more intense and more suspenseful. Plus, as the first book in the series, it feels like a big teaser for even more. I was left wanting to immediately read book two.* And now I see that there is a book three! YAY.

Random comment: I don't normally post a picture of the back of a book. But really, this is the first time I've seen such a cool setup. The front has a picture~and not the exact title, more the title of the series, and the author isn't even mentioned until the back. Really cool & different. Let's give props to the author for letting them put her name on the back!

*Book two will have to wait. I have another super secret advance copy sequel from another author that I must read right now!!

Ms. Heather Brewer has a really cool website, check it out here.

Also, take a look at the stellar anime book trailer below.


Flash Movie: Vladimir Tod by *mree on deviantART