33rd Manila International Book Fair

     Another exciting event for bookworms like me:  the 33rd Manila International Book Fair!    Check out the flyer for more details.

photo from facebook.com- manila book fair acct.

    

  The only reason I'm going is because Fully Booked and National Bookstore are part of it after some years of absence. Also,  I hope I can find THE Baking book I am looking for.   See you there!

My Book Loot from National Bookstore's Sale

    These are the books that I got during the recent National Bookstore sale.  I think I would've gotten more but A got sick during the last few days of the sale so I couldn't go out.

    The Best Advice I Ever Got : Lessons from Extraordinary Lives by Katie Couric is a collection of   insights from famous celebrities like Hugh Jackman, Mario Batali, Ryan Seacrest, Beyonce and many more.  My sister bought this from the sale and when I browsed through her copy, I just loved it!  I opened the book to Ellen DeGeneres' page where she wrote about coming out and how she learned to  just be true to herself.  Truly inspiring! I can't wait to read what life lessons Steven Spielberg and Martha Stewart have to share.

     I want to improve on my writing so I got  Robert's Rules of Writing: 101 Unconventional Lessons Every Writer  Needs To Know by Robert Masello.  I was thinking of getting a book on grammar but I didn't want to lose myself in all the technicalities of writing.  I want to learn how to express myself better and to simply enjoy writing and not be obsessed with writing conventions.

     The One Hundred: A Guide to the Pieces Every Stylish Woman Must Own by Nina Garcia is an impulse buy.  Although I enjoy reading fashion magazines, I don't usually browse the fashion and beauty book aisle.  I'm not really into fashion; I spend more money on books than clothes.  I think I bought this book just because of Ruben Toledo's illustrations.  I'm feeling some buyer's remorse over this purchase.  8(

The Best Advice I Ever Got : Lessons from Extraordinary Lives -  P 439.20         (P 549)

Robert's Rules of Writing: 101 Unconventional Lessons Every Writer  Needs To Know -   P 236  (P295)

The One Hundred: A Guide to the Pieces Every Stylish Woman Must Own -        P 317.50   (P 635)

     I was able to save P 486.30! Can't wait for the next sale!  

Singapore Bookstores

     Because I was our itinerary planner for our Singapore trip, A and M had no choice but to let me indulge in my bookworm whims.  Hehe!  

     Sunny Bookshop is a small bookstore located in Plaza Singapura on Orchard Road.  They sell mostly second hand books.  There's no need to make 'halungkat' as I do in Booksale, Philippines, because books are arranged neatly according to author.  The books are in very good condition.

     San Bookshop is also located in Plaza Singapura.  They also sell second hand books.

     Bookaburra is a bookstore for kids.  It is located at The Forum, a mall dedicated for children's clothes and toys.   I love the children's bookstore niche.   I want to bring L here when he's bigger.

      Still on Orchard Road, Times Bookstore is in Paragon Mall.   Very small, but with a cute logo.  It was my lucky day!  Got a picture with L's favorite character, the Very Hungry Caterpillar!

     Harris Planerds is in 313@somerset.  It would be the best place to buy comics and comic trade paperbacks.  Good thing I've quit collecting comics! That's A,  mr. constant reader este mr. constant seller, hehe.

     On our last day,  we went to Books Kinokuniya(from the Japanese bookstore chain) in Ngee Ann City Takashimaya.  I am so sorry that I was not able to make enough time to browse through the   43,000 sq. ft. store.  Super Big! Huhu!  I was also too chicken to take pictures inside the store (remember, we're in Singapore!).

DK Eyewitness Travel Top 10 Singapore

     It has been almost 20 years since I last visited Singapore.  I had no memory about that place other than seeing the Merlion and posing in front of the maroon Ngee Ann City.  When we went there this May, although it was A and M's first time, it felt like my first time, too.  Somehow browsing through Facebook friends'/online braggarts' Singapore photos was not enough to plan our trip.  So,  I used DK Eyewitness Travel Top 10 Singapore to help me draft our itinerary.

     You can't go wrong with this book.  If you're not fond of reading, you'll be glad to know that the entries are short and there are lots of pictures.  My goal is to start a mini-collection of DK Eyewitness Travel Top 10 books for future trips!

Rating: 5 stars!

The Diary of a Young Girl : The Definitive Edition - Anne Frank

     Long before the Diary of a Wimpy Kid, there was the Diary of Anne Frank.   I wouldn't normally pick up this book because it seemed like required reading for high school English class (books that usually turn you off from reading).  But for some reason, I was drawn to it.   I remember that I used to have a diary where I poured my heart out about my crushes along with the silly mundane things that happened in my day.  I stopped writing in a diary because I lived in fear of having someone snoop and discover it.

photo from amazon.com

     I was surprised to find out that there are a lot of versions of Anne's diary.   From the book's foreword, I learned that her original unedited diary is referred to as diary A.  She rewrote her diary to make it more interesting; this is diary B.  Upon her death, her father created version C where he personally chose entries from diaries A and B, omitting those about Anne's curiosity about sex and bad references to people who lived with her in the secret annex.    This definitive edition that I read was compiled by Mirjam Pressler who supplemented version C with more entries from A and B so that readers can have a more detailed picture of Anne's life.
     Anne's family had gone into hiding for 2 years in what she called The Secret Annex, hidden behind a bookcase.  Anne wrote a lot about living in fear of discovery.  She wrote about not being able to look out the window, to make noise, even to flush the toilet at certain times of the day.  Living in close quarters also led to a lot of quarrels with the other members of The Secret Annex, the Van Daans (Van Pels, in real life).  To no one's surprise, she eventually fell in love with one of them, Peter Van Daan.  Near the end, Anne wrote, "I want to go on living even after my death."  Through her diary, she got her wish.

      I did find the story of Anne's life interesting to the point of googling it on Wikipedia and visiting the restored Secret Annex virtually.  However, I did not find it gripping enough to read her day by day entries, hence Anne's note "Paper has more patience than people."    I am guilty of skipping most entries after a quick scan.  But, if I stumble upon the diaries of my girlcrush or my facebook frenemies, I'd read them from cover to cover! Hehe!

Rating : 2 stars!

Tell No One - Harlan Coben

photo from lovereading.co.uk

Newly wed childhood sweethearts David and Elizabeth Beck were vacationing at their favorite cabin when the unthinkable happens.  They are attacked; David is left unconscious, having no memory of what has just transpired while Elizabeth is taken and believed to have been murdered by a serial killer.  8 years later, David is still not over his wife's death.    On the eve of their anniversary, David receives a strange email containing information only he and Elizabeth know.   The email sparks a lot of questions:  Is Elizabeth alive?  What really happened that night 8 years ago?  Things get complicated when new evidence prompt the police to label David as a possible suspect in Elizabeth's murder.

Harlan Coben did not disappoint.    This is the first book I read among his novels and I consider this one of his best ones.  This is my second time to read this book and I still found it as exciting and as fast paced as before.  I found myself rapidly turning each page eager to find out if Elizabeth is still alive, and if she is, where has she been all this time?

As much as I liked this one, I didn't enjoy Coben's previous books with Myron Bolitar as main protagonist.  If you are looking for a suspenseful book you can't put down, this would be it.

Rating: 4 stars!

National Bookstore's Cut-Price Sale August 2012

     It's that time of the year again.  National Bookstore will be on sale from August 3 to 19, 2012.  I'm targeting the cooking and arts and crafts section this sale season.  See you there!