Review of Prada and Prejudice

Author: Mandy Hubbard

Genre: Romance

Rating: PG

Callie is tired of being a clumsy geek-girl. So during a school trip to London she buys her ticket to popularity: a pair of real Prada pumps. But then she wobbles on the cobblestones, trips in her too-high heels, and conks her head. When she comes to, it's the year 1815!

Luckily she meets kindhearted Emily, who mistakes Callie for a long-lost friend. Sparks soon ignite – of the nice and not-so-nice variety – between Callie and Alex, the handsome but totally arrogant Duke of Harksbury. Too bad Alex seems to have something sinister up his ruffled sleeve...

Can Callie save Emily from a dire engagement, win a kiss from Alex, and prove to herself that she's more than just a loud-mouth klutz before her time in the past is up?*

“I didn't know these dances! And as soon as the next dance starts, I'm going to be standing here alone while Emily dashes off to dance with Trent. It's like my worst nightmare, come to life.

Turns out 1815 isn't so different from the twenty-first century, because this is exactly what would happen if I were back home.

Why did I think it would change? Flying thousands of miles to Europe didn't change my fate. Traveling two hundred years, it seems, didn't either.”

   I absolutely loved this novel! I have loved Pride and Prejudice for a long time and wanted to see if this was mocking it or tipping it's hat to the original. This book did not disappoint! Despite the main character's being almost exactly like me, the book would've held my attention anyway. The characters felt real and the setting even more vivid! I read this in a few hours and thought I had gone back in time as well. This book would be good for someone not really interested in the 1800's; who knows, they might end up loving old fashioned things better for this! I rated this PG just because it's a romance and Callie takes the Lord's name in vain several times. The whole attitude behind this is kind of sassy though, beware! 5 out of 5 stars.

* This summary taken from the back of the Prada and Prejudice book

Decisions

You know how sometimes you have that decision staring you in the face? It's a monster that could prove to be good or bad. Could be big, like going somewhere and compromising everything you say you are, or something “small”, like choosing what to say. It's a fork in the road, where the two, or maybe three or four, various roads might all lead you to the same place, or very different ones.

I am not going to tell you the “three steps to making a good decision”, but here is something most people don't think of.

Maybe it's only one way?

There's most of the time only one decision to make: Will I do what I know is right?

You know you should be kind. You know to obey your parents. You know they have way more experience and only want to help you. Why is it so hard to “decide”? It shouldn't even be a decision, it should be a way of life.

Of course, you can talk about what should be all the time and never get anything done. Not only should you do such-and-such, but you have to! Your conscience will demand it.

Now I know that sometimes you have to decide between two things that are both right, that's a lot more difficult, and there's no one easy answer. But if you start with the black and white, gray will fall into place on the color wheel.

This is something that I've been dealing with and thinking about a lot lately.
~bbj *wink*

Lately...

I've been doing a lot of school.

Much more school than a normal person of my age should be doing! But, I've never been normal have I? :)

I've been longing for Christmastime.

I've decided that Christmas time should last for three months. Well, I think the people who plan when decorations should be available for sale stole my idea. Don't you? Yeah, I'm wearing a Christmas sweater.

I've not been going to the library very often.

Which makes me sad. No extra reading for me until I get number 1 under control!

coughcoughNothappeningcough!

I've been thinking about doing NaNoWriMo.

I'll need a little more information, a few better ideas, and a double-shot of patience. I don't know why the patience, it just sounded appropriate!

I've been poundering how to make my blog better.

Obvious why!

I've been desiring to get some odd jobs because I'm broke.

Why? Because I'm still broke, and will probably still be broke formorrow. Which, in case you were wondering, (I know you were!) is "forever and tomorrow".

That's about it! No it's not. Hold on, one more!

I've been wanting to watch The Prestige, Warrior, and The Phantom of the Opera. Should I do reviews after I do? Let me know!

Forever and Tomorrow,

billyBobjoe: O she who needs to make a signature...



Questions Tag 3

Guess what? More interesting questions to answer!

Marval or DC?

I can't decide! Probably DC.

Rings or Necklaces?

Rings!

Christmas or your Birthday?

"Christmas, Christmas time is here/ Time for toys and time for cheer!"

Mustache or Goatee?

duh, mustaches! It really depends a lot of different things on whether I like them in person!

Owls or Eagles?

Owls!

Thanksgiving or Fourth of July?

Thanksgiving and Black Friday! Black Friday is a huge part of my Thanksgiving/Christmas celebrating!

Shopping: Fun or Annoying?

Fun, especially when you have money to spend!

Lightsabers or Blasters?

Lightsabers!

Smiley Faces or Hearts?

Smiley Faces!

Fedora or Flat-Bill?

Depending on who's wearing it, but mainly fedoras!

Nerd or Jock?

Obvious.

Spend or Save?

I naturally save as much money as I can. Wierd huh?

You get to do it again Qui! That's all folks! Signing off...

~bbj

Questions Tag 2

Second group of questions:

Black or White?

probably black

Roses or Tulips?

Roses

Batman or Superman?

Definitely Batman!

Skirts or Pants?

Pants meaning jeans, yes!

Cell Phone or iPod?

as I don't have an "iPod", I guess that would have to be Cell!

Read or Write?

Read, but I want to start writing more.

Long or Short Hair?

I have long hair! Very.

Freckles or not?

I don't have many, but they're so cute!

Sunshine or Rain?

Rain, mostly!

Ponytail or Bun?

I'm always in a ponytail!

Pink or Red?

Red!

Pearls or Diamonds?

Um, diamonds are a girl's best friend, but Pearl is my birthstone... idk!

I tag Qui again! And once again, post your answers in the comments!

~bbj

Question Tag 1

This is a random tag of questions! I hope you likey!

Cheetos or Chips?

Cheetos!!!

Music: Rock or Celtic?

Neither, actually.

Creation or Evolution?
Creation

Sneakers or Heels?
Probably sneakers!

Vanilla or Chocolate?
mostly Vanilla, but I love chocolate!

Beach or Mountains?
Beach! Sandy toes!

Sing or Dance?
Dance!

Cookies or Brownies?
Chocolate-chip cookies!

Movies or Plays?
Rather watch movies, but rather be on stage!

Socks or Barefoot?
Barefooted all the time!
Basketball or Skateboard?
I wish I could skateboard... oh well, I Ripstik!

I tag Qui because she's how I got on the Blogosphere! Have fun! You can leave comments with your answers!

~bbj

Thoughts on Thoughts

This was a once in a lifetime chance. I stared at the glowing, gray orb that must have been bigger on the inside than the outside. This was a hands-on experience with my soul, heart, mind, or whatever makes me Me. I pushed into it and found myself in a sphere that was about eight feet across with a flame in the middle. On all the walls, or wall, there were hundreds of drawers, shelves, and cabinets.

Inside of these were my Thoughts. Each Thought was a glowing orb of a different color. The larger the ball, the more times I had thought of that Thought. I found thoughts that shouldn't have been there, ones that were much to big, and several that should have been much larger. I soon found that the whole sphere was not my mind, but that the fire burning in the middle was. The ashes were my Thoughts, which immediately jumped to their proper place.

Directing my attention away from that, I saw a shelf with small boxes on it. One was my Knowledge. Every fact I knew was in this box, even ones I didn't remember learning. As I turned toward the next box, a Thought hit me on the head as it tried to get in the box I was about to open. When I did, right on top there was the Thought I must have just thought. Picking it up, I found it was the Thought about not remembering one of the facts I knew I'd learned. The next was of me thinking about a Thought I’d just thought of. I quickly slammed that box shut, knowing that that could go on forever and drive me insane.

Moving on to another shelf, I saw orbs that were different from the others. Within each was an embryo like that of a human. Some were formless while others had distinct features. I chuckled at the creativity of my own mind. Those were my ideas in different stages of development! The next shelf had only gold balls that could have been nothing other that goals. In a cabinet were piles of songs I have listened to and books I have read. The Phantom of the Opera and “Once in a Red Moon” crowned the piles as the most recent. On a different shelf, a tiny easel held all of my doodles and drawings. One large drawer had a divider between orbs floating on tears and orbs floating on laughs. Those must have been memories. I didn't consider myself a very special person, until I saw a laugh. I almost think it's not fair that not everyone has seen a laugh.


There was so much more in there, but there was no way I could have seen it all. After all, that is a collection I’ve been working on for over 14 years. As I thought about it - look, there goes another Thought! - I discovered that the glowing ball I was in, is my heart. The flame is my mind and the way I file my thoughts is my personality. Example: What some people might put in “Sorrows”, I might consider a “Joy”. As interesting as my own little world of Me was, I knew the odd practice of searching through my own Thoughts could prove addictive, if not eternal. I pushed my way out the same way I had come in. I was infinitely encouraged to have proof that this body isn't all I’ve got. When I die, I now know that something, the part of me that makes me Me, will live on forever.



I wrote this back in January when I was in bed sick! It's amazing what a fever will do to you! *wink*

~bbj

Boots of all types

So we all love boots, right? I like to wear them personally, but not as much as I like to look at them! It's almost funny how many different types there are. There are girly boots with pompoms, pirate boots, cowboy boots, and many others. Here are my favorites that I can think of or find pictures of! I know you're going to take them even if I say not to so... Feel free to steal these pictures! :)

Here are Batman's versatile boots (and entire suit!):


Here are the Han Solo boots of cocky-ness:


Flynn Rider's cool boots, unfortunately in a very un-manly pose:


This next one is my desktop background right now! (I think I stole this one):


IRL cool boots! Hope to wear some similar ones in my career!:


Jedi boots!:


Narnian boots!:


Pirate boots: