book review site

 

The voice that keeps calling is getting louder. The ideas are flooding like how the South West monsoon rains has caused Philippines to flood and to suffer. I have talked about the thought a while back and thinking about it doesn’t seem to stop now.

I wanted to start a new site solely for book reviews. I don’t know if it is a good idea, I am not sure if I am qualified enough do such. All I know is, often times I ended up with something to say after I read books.

Rev, who is a very good friend of mine shared a dream with me about putting up a library in our hometown someday. It was just a topic during our chats over miles across yet I seem to hold on to that particular conversation. We both have collections of books we acquired and we thought it would be nice to let others who can’t afford( I didn’t say that we are well off  enough to easily to buy those) to be able to enjoy the books that we have come to love. We learned so much through reading and we enjoyed this passion. We made the school library a place to hang-out in our free time, in between classes and laboratory sessions during college days. The deadly looks of the pouting, old-maid librarian gave us and our friends every time we enter the library still creates a clear picture on my mind. The worn-out, poorly painted table at the center of the periodicals section, where we love to sit may still have my name underneath  that I wrote defying the rules against vandalism. Yes, we love the library. Not because it has most of the reading materials that we love, not because we can find  the references that we need, which we can’t, as it is incomplete by all means, but because for the lamest reason that the library is air-conditioned. It is conducive for reading and it has wide tables that we can use when we did our Histopathology drawings of everything we get to see under the microscope.

The library is a plan that is impossible to materialized as of the moment. But the habit of reading never stopped. We are not college students anymore that we can hang-out at the library or stay up late at nights in the dormitory to discuss books and other interesting topics such as sex and boys(whatever!). The technology has improved so much that domains are created. Why not make use of these innovations? Blogging has been a good outlet for me to relieve stress, hence, why not make it another outlet to get the passion of reading and publishing gets going.

I want this and I hope to heavens I can do it!

 

opportunities

 

When it rains……

It floods.

Weather reports has been telling us that  another  low pressure forming in the Inter-tropical Convergence Zone or ITCZ within Philippines area of responsibility with a possibility of transforming into a typhoon and surely to be causing all the heavy rains and flooding in the most of Greater Manila Area and some provinces in Northern Luzon.Typhoon Gener hasn’t left yet so what is up with that?

In connection to the rain resulting to flood; Here is my story….

I was unemployed for many months. Years already to count it right. I got hired to do book reviews and web research a week ago by Creative Freelance and everything is doing so well. Two days ago, Performance Marketing Inc., offered me a Writer/Researcher post and the current project has something to do with children’s reference material. A generous hourly rate with flexible working hours is being emphasized which is difficult for me to turn it down.

This morning, my work dashboard inbox has its flashing red colored envelope with a superscript number 4 telling me that I have four messages which almost always tells me  good news, otherwise a declined job application or a withdrawn contract  will appear at the notification tab and not in the inbox.

Overwhelming as it is, I have additional four job invitations. A proofreading job offer on a 10,000 to 16,000 word e-book project with a fix rate. An hourly rate data entry job. A technical writing and research for a publishing company in an hourly rate for an estimated 3-month period and another fix-rate invitation to web content provider for a travel agency.

It is flooding.

Once in a while, I know I rant about how I declined overseas job interviews and offers for a Medical Technology work for about twenty of the hospitals in the middle-east together with their respective recruitment agencies. Bragging aside, I believe the medical technology profession or now known as Medical Laboratory Science Officer is still among the most sought after and in demand profession worldwide. I was scared for a while and quite depressed I should say, that I became one of the career-less women in the population. I was scared that when the time comes, that I am ready to go back to the world of working women, doors will be closed as they have long gone waited for me and had enough of my act of telling them the bitter words of “NO THANKS”.

I always find myself contemplating all the time of what the media has been telling us about unemployment rates getting higher every day and economies dropping like heavy rainfall.  Because of what we always hear on the news, I was afraid that opportunity got tired knocking and would slam the door in my face. I guess, I am wrong at the thought.

I realized, there will always be an opportunity as long as nobody will never stop trying.

I realized, the answer is always NO when nobody seems to be asking.

I realized, I will never get anywhere if I will not make a single move one at a time.

I realized, a hardworking man will never have a hard time finding work.

Finally, I realized that LAZINESS means unemployment.

I am a reader, I know I am always be. I didn’t dream of becoming a writer. I never consider myself one but I can’t say no to something I know I can do and if I will put my heart to it, I might  become better at it. I wasn’t a techno geek and I didn’t own a computer or laptop not until four years ago or should I say not until WCW gave it to me as a Christmas present. I know how to use one and I am pretty literate and knowledgeable enough to make it work. Just enough to make it work also doesn’t mean I can learn something to keep it going. I went online to hang around Facebook and play Farmville. I told myself, I can’t just waste my time and money paying power bills and monthly internet connection fee playing Farmville and earns nothing. The laptop should be a working tool and not a dead investment.

Staying-at-home and becoming a full time mother is a choice but unemployment that comes with it is never an option. I salute the SAHM and women of the blogging world who in one way or another inspired me to do the best of my abilities in any situation. There is always something to do for a living without having to feel the pressure of working so hard. All  we need to do is look around and bring out the best of ourselves.

Because…

Opportunity sometimes knocks softly but it will never stop knocking.

EROTICA REVIEWS- all of it

I recently accepted a job offer as a book reviewer for a writer and publisher. You guess it right! I am once again employed. I actually don’t see it as a job. Reading is my passion and like they always said, once you love what you are doing , you never feel you are working at all aside from being paid for having fun.

This isn’t the first time I was offered to do a book review. Not always but mostly, I don’t get paid but I will get the book for free which is fair enough for me. I do honest, unbiased  reviews that will benefit the readers.

I am fond of:

• Contemporary Romance – because it is always an easy read and I find it relaxing
• Suspense / Thriller – very selective but I will never pass the opportunity when I get my hands to it
• YA – because it is always nice to feel young at heart
• Paranormal – selective ones
• Children’s Books – only the ones I can read with my children
• Sci fi/Fantasy – Romance related only
• Series –specially the middle-grade books and few of the dystopian literature
• memoirs- reading only those that were recommended by friends

 

EROTICA- not the first time to read literature of this specific genre. Not really a favorite kind of genre but since I was asked for a review, I guess I have to indulge on flipping pages with it. I was actually surprise that there are talented authors who can write a very good plot with full details of romance and erotica for that matter. I ignored this kind of novels before as I always see it a “wham-bam-thank-you-mam” kind of story , fortunately not all. With that, I decide to include erotica on my list this time around. Not to mention that there are lots of erotica writers who seeks for book lovers as reviewers. Hey!- I am available!

I was thinking of creating another blog site solely for book reviews. I can set review policy and maybe I can invite some of my favorite fellow book lovers who might want to contribute with the reviews. Sound like a plan but not so definite yet.

HUNGER GAMES- the trilogy bookset

I always believed the line “When it rains, it pours!” Two days ago, I posted(in this blog) about my long-awaited package was delivered. I now have five books lining up for me to read. I had a hard time making up my mind which one to start with. I chose The Tiger’s Wife by Tèa Obreht. I am almost halfway with it when another delivery came. This time, it is the bookset which I ordered prior to the one I received two days ago.

The HUNGER GAMES TRILOGY by Suzanne Collins. A friend told me about this book series couple of months ago. From the sound of the title, I thought I wouldn’t get interested. I always check for book reviews and book club feedbacks at Goodreads and I couldn’t help but notice how the readers in my circle keep talking about this particular trilogy. The search and the urge to get a copy has gone viral over the readers I knew and became friends with. I was curious but still not as interested as they are. I didn’t even bother to read excerpts and reviews. Everyday I get recommendations and suggestion to check out The Hunger Games. So I placed an order for this traded paperback bookset and it just arrived today.

Today is Wednesday, third day of the week and for me it is like Christmas morning already. I have the books on my wish list added to my bookshelf and I felt like a little girl opening Christmas presents. It was raining heavily when I ran out and meet the 2GO delivery guy up front and signed the delivery acknowledgement receipt while trying to hold the umbrella still. It did pour when it rains or should I say when it rains it pours. Either way, I am accepting deliveries on a rainy day and I have a total of eight books lined up for reading which is a total contrary to previous weeks where all I have are books that I keep reading over and over.

I do hope I will like this sequel. I don’t want to be disappointed. I haven’t read any reviews yet and I am not planning to.

Happy Reading!