I consider myself lucky for having read Miss Fortune Cookie by Lauren Bjorkman. This book was a pleasant surprise, a gem that YA fans should read.

[caption id="attachment_1036" align="aligncenter" width="558"] Sorry for the grainy photo :([/caption]

There's just so much to love about this book. First off, the main character, Erin, is smart, funny, and kind. She goes to a school for academically gifted students, she resides in a Chinese neighborhood in San Francisco, and she runs a wonderful anonymous advice blog called Miss Fortune Cookie. She is Miss Fortune Cookie, although only one person knows that. People email her for advice and she replies to them with Fortune Cookie "fortunes" that are funny, witty, and well-thought-of. I love Erin and I loved how Bjorkman used her as a representation of most young girls who are coming of age.

Miss Fortune Cookie is mostly about friendship and family and the nuances and boundaries of these relationships. When is it okay to lie? When is it disastrous? Should you choose love over family? Friendship over opportunity? These are just some of the issues that this book expertly tackles. Although Erin and her best friends, Mei and Linny, have romantic interests, romance is not at the core of Miss Fortune Cookie. Normally this would leave me wanting, but in this case it satisfied me. Wes, Erin's love interest, is a good guy but if you can't tolerate insta-love, he might annoy you. BUT don't let that stop you from reading this book. Although Erin liked Wes, she didn't let her attraction to him stop her from what she has to do. I loved that about her. She didn't lose her mind over a boy... so you can easily dismiss the insta-love. :)

Besides Erin, I also love Lincoln, this pesky, hyper kid whose wisdom belongs to a 100 year-old guy. That said, I love this quote from him (which probably won't make sense to you unless you've read the book):

You don't make anyone. You give them new eyeballs, like when I put on Karina's reading glasses. Everything looks huge and fuzzy through them. It's so cool.

I just love how realistic Miss Fortune Cookie is. It's so easy to relate to Erin. I also love how it somehow educates readers about the Chinese culture and promotes diversity and individualism and yes, girl power. I think we need more books like this.

Lastly, this book is literally beautiful.

[caption id="attachment_1039" align="aligncenter" width="383"] Funny, witty fortunes...[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1038" align="aligncenter" width="374"] Sometimes, just sensible reminders...[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1041" align="aligncenter" width="404"] Or mathematical formulas that prove just how smart Erin is...[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1040" align="aligncenter" width="411"] And a really handy pronunciation and translation guide! Ain't that cool?[/caption]

Give Miss Fortune Cookie a chance. It will definitely make you smile, make you remember what growing up was like (if you're old), and absolutely entertain you.

 Thank you, Laila, for this Christmas present. <3

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As a reader and reviewer, I aim to write fair and honest reviews, both on this site and on Goodreads. Please read my Review Policy here.

4 Stars book review Chinese Contemporary Friendship Lauren Bjorkman Miss Fortune Cookie Reviews romance Young Adult

8:00 AM

Some part of me died over the holidays. That is my only explanation for going MIA for three weeks. I've tried reading a lot of books but never finished one. I had no enthusiasm for blog rounds (I miss all of you, blogging peeps), and I didn't know if I even wanted to continue blogging. Yes, the past few weeks have been so tough and nothing made sense.

But I will spare you the details because despite the nature of my situation, I know that other people have it so much worse. As Mr. Robinson would say (from Meet The Robinsons), keep moving forward. And that's what I'm doing now. Moving forward with life. I am proud to say that I've got back on my feet and doing okay. I'll just start where I left off, I guess. 2015 is gonna be so much better than 2014, I swear.

I just finished reading Have a Little Faith by Mitch Albom for a book club I joined. This is my first offline book club so I'm excited. This book finally ended my book slump. It was an easy read despite its underlying themes and it was simply beautiful. Will post a review soon. :)



I am also back to doing blog rounds and I know I have a lot to catch up on. You can help me, you know. Tell me how you've been, what the highlight of your past month is, just how much I missed. Looking forward to reading your comments, guys! :)

Features Have A Little Faith holiday Mitch Albom Musings Updates

10:00 AM

Happy New Year!!!



How awesome is this? Another year has passed and we're now facing a new year that's bound to be exciting, fun, and yes, FULL OF BOOKS! I'm so giddy with excitement!

Beginnings are always exciting, although a bit terrifying because you don't know what's gonna happen. But that makes it more exciting, doesn't it? And with every New Year comes the ever-present tradition of coming up with New Year's resolutions.

I haven't had New Year's resolutions for a long time, only because I'm lazy to write one. Maybe that should be my resolution -- stop being lazy. Oh well. But as a reader and book blogger, I have some goals for 2015. My new reading goal in Goodreads is 50, a bit higher than last year but still attainable, considering my work schedule. I made my goals realistic so I won't be complaining afterwards:


1. Read more print books.
I don't just want to do this... I NEED to do this if I want to continue reading until I'm old. I have poor eyesight and reading ebooks, although very convenient, is not helping the case. So yeah, more print books this year. I know I'll be facing storage problems later on but that's a slightly better problem, right?

2. Read books from genres I don't usually tackle, especially classics.
I don't discriminate on genres. I can ready anything... but classics intimidate me. I used to read them so I don't know why I suddenly stopped. Well now, I will try to read at least 3 classic pieces this year. Besides classics I also have fear of horror books so maybe this year I'll give it a try. And I haven't tried reading James Grisham-type of books, so maybe I'll do that.

3. Do slam book interviews with authors I love.
This is more of a dream than a goal but maybe it's time to be more gutsy, huh?

4.. Go to at least 1 book signing/bookish event this year.
As mentioned earlier, I'm lazy. I've never been to a signing, and last year I didn't even go to the Manila International Book Fair. Time to change that.

5. Make new bookish friends.
Who doesn't want new friends? I certainly need more, but preferably bookish ones, just so I have people I can fangirl with. Maybe you're interested? :D

Besides these 5 goals, I'm also doing this challenge from PopSugar, which my friend Yumi shared to me:


I am under no delusion of checking off all items in this list but still, it's a good list, right?

Now I want to hear from you. What are your reading/blogging goals? New Year's resolutions? Let me know in the Comments. :)

2015 goals Awesome Lists Features Musings New Year's resolutions Reading Challenge

2:30 AM