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This made me laugh... Enjoy. 

This is not my image... Just another thing I found on Pinterest...

eReader vs. Paperback - Round 3

The paparazzi My family took my photo the other day while I was chilling with some Fifty Shades Freed down on the dock.  (I love summer.)

I have spent many hours down by the water reading my book, which got me to thinking, "Would I bring my Kindle down there?"  I'm one of those girls who tries to keep everything in the excellent condition that I purchased it in.  I don't want anything to happen to my Kindle. 

Today while sitting on the dock next to my mom, I accidentally knocked over a full glass of water on her.  Clumsy?  Unlucky?  Maybe.  Knowing me, I would probably drop my Kindle in the lake if I brought it down there.  (I have yet to drop a book in the lake, but at least if I did, it would dry a little awkwardly with the krinkled pages, making me feel terrible about what I'd done to it.  The worst case scenario in that situation would be that I finish reading a book from pages that are no longer perfect and flat or I'm out $20 or less for a book.  If I dropped my eReader in, it would cost me a bit more to replace...)

I wouldn't feel comfortable bringing it to the beach, either. 
Electronics + Sand = Bad combination. 

It's time to give my good ol' paperbacks a chance to catch up.  This point goes to the paperback because it can more easily withstand some of the elements of nature. 

eReader - 2.  Paperback  - 1.

Riding Lessons (Sara Gruen)

Enjoying this book at Kettle Lakes Provincial
Park!  (But it wasn't until I was relaxing
on beautiful Manitoulin Island that
it got finished!

I first bought this book because I was looking for a fourth book for a "Buy 3, get the 4th free" sale.  I had already read Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen (which I loved), so I decided to give her another try. 

In Riding Lessons, Annemarie Zimmer and her teenage daughter, Eva, move back to Annemarie's childhood home when things start to get difficult - she has lost her job, is going through a divorce, and her father is dying.  When she returns home, she's reminded of a past that she'd left behind - riding horses - since, as a teenager she was an Olympic contender until an accident crashed all hopes of her dreams coming true.  It all becomes a lot to handle and she struggles with all of her relationships (with her mother, daughter, and old love interests).  Throughout all this, enter a white striped horse that reminds her of the horse she used to ride - will this help her to regain some of the passion she had lost or just make everything more difficult?

I wasn't disappointed with Riding Lessons, but I found it didn't entirely live up to my expectations, probably because I remember how much I enjoyed Water for Elephants.  If you're comparing the two books, Water for Elephants would definitely come out on top.

If you look at this book for what it is, without comparing it to other works by Gruen, then I would say that I really enjoyed it.  I'm not a huge fan of horses - while I enjoy looking at them and think that they are beautiful animals, I think that they're giant and they kind of scare me a bit - and there was a lot about them in this book (obviously).  I've never been a rider, so some of the terminology was a little bit foreign to me, but the overall concepts in the book were heartwarming.  The book demonstrates the rollercoaster of Annemarie's life and really shows how deep a person's love for an animal can be.

I thought it was a great, quick summer read.  There is a sequel, Flying Changes, which maybe I will dive into someday...

eReader vs. Paperback - Round 2

As I've mentioned, I've been living at a friend's place for the past 2 and a half weeks while I take a summer course four hours away from home.  I brought with me a couple books, knowing that I probably wouldn't have all that much time to read while I was here (you know, because of the school work and visiting).

But... since I'm a keener and finished all of my homework within the first week, I had plenty of extra minutes here and there to read.  I made it through the second book in the Fifty Shades trilogy on Tuesday night.  Due to my lack of planning the limited space in my suitcase, I did not bring the third book.  It's patiently awaiting me on my desk at "real" home. This has now left me with a few days and evenings anxiously waiting to start the third book, while I sit here and read through another book that I am, I admit, still enjoying.

Round two in my eReader vs. Paperback debate goes again to the eReader.  Had I had my books all loaded on my Kindle, I would have been able to start reading book three right away without waiting until my paperback (in another location) is in my hand.  (Ok, so maybe this is a bit unfair because I totally could have planned a little bit better, but still... The logic is there behind this point.)

eReader - 2.  Paperback - 0. 

Fifty Shades Darker (E.L. James)

Despite the fact that I didn't think I would make it through this book until at least next week when my course was done, I was glued to the pages and motored through it... On nights when I should have been sleeping, I stayed away for an extra hour or two, knowing that I would be tired for my early class... I just needed to know what was going to happen next.

"Fifty Shades Darker" is the second book in the Fifty Shades trilogy by E.L. James and it most definitely did not disappoint.  The story continues right where book one left off.  Without giving anything away, I will just say that this book continues with so much more information about the two individuals involved, Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey.  You really start to understand why each of them is the way they are.  I enjoyed the second book more than the first one.

Based on the two books I have read so far, I am very much looking forward to the final book!  With the end of my summer course only one day away, I will enjoy spending the beginning of my "real" summer holiday on the deck, with a beautiful view, reading "Fifty Shades Freed."

eReader vs. Paperback

Despite the fact that a summer Additional Qualification is underway (that is, I'm in summer school for another week to get French-teacher qualified), I am just motoring through "Fifty Shades Darker" by E.L. James!  Even though I find myself a little tired with school (and this 35 degree Celsius heat), I open this book and just keep saying, "Just five more minutes..." until suddenly an hour has passed.

Since I'm in a new city for a few weeks with this course, I decided that it wasn't going to be all school for me - I might as well explore the area and be the tourist!

Yesterday, my friend and I visited Kettle Lakes Provincial Park to hike, swim, and relax our day away!  It was a beautiful day and a great adventure!

One of the lakes at Kettle Lakes Provincial Park.

Once we were done exploring the park, we found a beach and relaxed for a few hours.  This meant some "book time."  I did not bring Fifty Shades Darker with me, but instead decided to continue reading another book that I started while school was ending...

All this to say - my book fell apart in my lap.

The pages fell out of my book...
And apparently I can't properly flip photos on my computer.

eReader - 1.  Paperback - 0.

I'm anxiously awaiting the arrival (by snail mail) of an awesome purple case for my Kindle... I will try my Kindle soon and finally read a book on an eReader!

Fifty Shades of Grey (E.L. James)

I was so excited that summer was finally here, mainly because I knew that summer means no teaching for a couple of months and more time to do the things I love to do.  However, being in my mid-twenties and only a couple years into my career, I made a last minute decision and I'm doing what I have to do to make myself more employable - I moved away 4 hours north from my already-northern-Ontario community to take an additional qualification!  Having summer school (and homework!) will definitely cut into my summer reading for the next couple of weeks...

That being said, I did have time during this first week of summer school to finish up the first book in the "Fifty Shades of Grey" trilogy by E.L. James - I've been slacking for a few days, though, before I've finally gotten around to writing this.

 The book is about the roller coaster relationship between Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey.  The two meet by chance as Anastasia interviews Christian for a college newspaper article.  After this interview, their whole relationship starts to grow and develop.  Their relationship, however, is much different than what society views as the normal relationship. 

I liked the book.  It's definitely interesting and exciting and keeps you intrigued.  For the first half of the book, I was reading every spare minute I had - at home, of course, because I wouldn't bring my hard copy of the book into public! 

There is still so much that you are waiting to find out about the characters after this first book.  It ends very suddenly and makes you want to immediately start the second book in the trilogy. What happens next?  Why is he acting this way?  What is she thinking? 

Forgive me if the speed at which I bust out my reviews this month is slow... After working on my "homework," sometimes I just don't have the energy in me to read any more!