The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

I read this book several years ago, and it is definitely one of my all-time favorites. The novel is being made into a movie to be released in December of 2009 and I couldn't be more excited! Since it has been quite sometime since I read it, I will post the Publisher's Weekly review below, but please know that this book is a must-read, but definitely too mature for teens to handle!

Synopsis:

When we first meet 14-year-old Susie Salmon, she is already in heaven. This was before milk carton photos and public service announcements, she tells us; back in 1973, when Susie mysteriously disappeared, people still believed these things didn't happen.In the sweet, untroubled voice of a precocious teenage girl, Susie relates the awful events of her death and her own adjustment to the strange new place she finds herself. It looks a lot like her school playground, with the good kind of swing sets.With love, longing, and a growing understanding, Susie watches her family as they cope with their grief, her father embarks on a search for the killer, her sister undertakes a feat of amazing daring, her little brother builds a fort in her honor and begin the difficult process of healing.In the hands of a brilliant novelist, the author narrates the THE LOVELY BONES through the eyes of her winning young heroine. This story of seemingly unbearable tragedy is transformed into a suspenseful and touching story about family, memory, love, heaven, and living.

Easy Dinner Recipe!

I stole this off of a Barilla Pasta box, and it is easy, yummy, and healthy, too!

• 2 cups of cooked Barilla PLUS Omega 3 Macaroni Elbows

• 1 can of diced tomatoes

• 2 cups of cooked chicken breast pieces
• 1 tbs of Olive Oil
• 1 clove of minced garlic

• 1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese

In a skillet, saute garlic and olive oil, add cooked chicken pieces. Cook for two minutes on medium heat, stirring constantly. Add 1 can of diced tomatoes. Do not drain! Cover and simmer chicken and tomatoes for five minutes. Add cooked noodles and toss together. Top with mozzarella and serve! Delicioso!

Third, Fourth Movies for Twilight Saga!

YES! There will definitely be a third (Eclipse) and a fourth (Breaking Dawn) movie for the Twilight Saga! Can you imagine how they will film the pivotal scenes in Breaking Dawn? The blood that will be needed for Bella alone will be grotesque and insane!

From www.thewrap.com:

By Dominic Patten
The fourth and final film in the "Twilight" teen vampire series is in the works, TheWrap has learned.With the sequel to the blockbuster hit "New Moon" now filming in Vancouver and its sequel, "Eclipse," already deep in the planning stages, an individual close to the production has told TheWrap that work on the fourth and final in the series, "Breaking Dawn," will start in late spring 2010.Summit Entertainment spokesman Paul Pflug declined to confirm or deny the report, saying only, "Summit has no comment on that rumor at this time."The planning for "Twilight" IV means that the blockbuster series based on Stephenie Meyer's popular vampire drama has come to dominate the production schedule of Summit Entertainment. It also means that the obsessive fan base of the movies can expect to revel in no fewer than three full-length "Twilight Saga" films -- going from November of this year through the end of 2010.But a Summit executive who declined to be identified said that there was no production schedule for "Breaking Dawn," and no current plans to shoot in Vancouver. "New Moon" is scheduled for release on Nov. 20, while "Eclipse" has a tentative release date of June 2010. A fourth in the series would logically be scheduled for release before the end of next year. That means even more pressure on a full-throttle production schedule past the end of this year. Fans of the book will remember that the action through the novels takes place in a relatively short period of time, unlike, say, "Harry Potter.""New Moon," directed by Chris Weitz and with a reported $50 million budget, is slated to wrap in late May and go into an accelerated post-production for that late fall 2009 release date. Stars Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart and the other leads will get a couple of months off, then return to Vancouver in late summer 2009 to begin work on "Eclipse," whose director has not yet been chosen. Summit has denied reports in the blogosphere that Juan Antonio Bayona, who helmed 2007's "The Orphanage," had won that gig. Shooting on "Eclipse" will come to an end just as Pattinson and Stewart get ready to hit the promotion circuit for "New Moon." Once their duties around the world on the red carpet for the first sequel are complete, they will have only Christmas holidays and a few months off before heading back to Vancouver for "Breaking Dawn."

Bella's House Set Up in Vancouver...

It's starting to look like it should!

The New Moon Cast...so far

Click on the image from www.newmoonmovie.org to check out the updated cast list!

High Waist Jeans...What the *%@&?

I have yet to see a single celebrity that these look good on...didn't we learn a lesson from the other Jessica? Just say "no" to high-waist jeans! Oy!

Another Awesome Read...

Heaven. The After Life. The Great Beyond...there are many terms for the place we go when death becomes us. Gabrielle Zevin has a humorous and touching outlook on the subject in her book, Elsewhere. Fifteen year old Elizabeth Hall is the victim of a fatal hit and run, and wakes up on a cruise ship bound for Elsewhere. Liz doesn't want to accept the fact that she is dead, let alone believe that this luxury cruise liner is destined for heaven. When her grandmother, Betty (who passed away from breast cancer before Lizzie was born) is waiting at the pier to pick her up, Lizzie must come to terms that she is A.) DEAD B.) This isn't the heaven she envisioned and C.) she is never going back to Earth. Zevin does a remarkable job translating Liz's grief, anger, and bitterness through heartbreaking glimpses of the life on Earth that Liz unwillingly left behind. Elsewhere is a touching, unique, and witty look at the place where we go after leaving this world.

CREEPY!

How about this guy to play Aro? I had my characters screwed up earlier when I said Caisus was the leader. This guy will be playing the leader. Creepy, huh? I can't wait to see the make-up for the Volturi vampires!

Bella and Edward Pics

Click on the montage for a bigger picture view.

They look so good!

Go, Go Power Rangers....to Prison!

Us Weekly reports that former Mighty Morphin Power Rangers star Skylar Deleon was sentenced to death today in California, the AP reports.
Deleon, 29, is charged with murdering an Arizona couple in 2004 by tying them to an anchor and throwing them overboard their yacht into the Pacific Ocean off Southern California.
Prosecutors say he and his then-wife Jennifer Henderson gained access to the boat by feigning interest in buying it.
After the grisly murders, they scrubbed the boat clean with bleach wipes. The bodies of Tom and Jackie Hawks of Prescott were never found.
Henderson was sentenced in 2006 to two terms of life in prison without parole for her role in the murders.
Deleon was also convicted of killing a man he met on a work furlough program in 2003. His attorneys admitted he'd committed the crime, but argued Deleon was predisposed to violence because he was raised by his drug-dealer father after his mother abandoned him.

Okay - too skinny

I said previously that I was interested in finding out what Tori was doing to get so thin so soon after having her daughter. Well, I'm pretty sure she's just not eating. Anything. Nothing at all. I'm not interested in that method of weight-loss. When you can count the bones in your chest and can see the implant bag, it might be time for a cheeseburger, or two.

Shots From Forks High

Oh my! These were taken of the cast shooting a scene for New Moon on the set of the Forks High School parking lot. Everyone looks so much better in this movie, I think! Edward's hair isn't quite the bouffant it was in the first film, which is definitely a good thing! The "look" of the film just seems so much more appealing than Twilight...at least that's what I'm hoping for and expect to be delivered come November!

Baseball Scenery

I love a good baseball game, but only if I'm actually AT THE GAME. Watching them on TV is like filling up the bathtub and watching it drain...BORING. However, I will watch games with Gabe Kapler on the field. I've been a fan of his good looks since 2002, when I saw him in the flesh at a Ranger game. He's still a cutie as a Tampa Bay Devil Ray, so when my husband needed to watch two hours of baseball tonight, I didn't mind.

What a cute family, too. Somehow it makes them cuter when you find out they are (supposedly) good husbands and fathers. I act like I personally know them, but this what I've read, anyway!

I Love it When Celebrities Fight!

This was totally hiliarious! If you are a fan of Chelsea Handler, you know that she has made a living making fun of Tori Spelling. Tori had a few things to say to Chelsea during her acceptance speech at the Bravo awards last night:

E! Online reporter Marc Malkin reports:

It's nice to know that Tori Spelling can take a good joke or two…or three…or four.
Tori actually thanked Chelsea Handler in her acceptance speech last night at Bravo's A-List Awards for constantly being mean to her on Chelsea Lately.
"I want to thank you for finding ways to say I'm ugly and stupid, week after week," said Spelling, who picked up the award for Celebrity Autobiography. "It's funny I say that on the night that I know she is here. And now I'm worried to leave, because I don't know if she's going to hold me down and beat me up or try to feed me a sandwich."
In true comedic form, Handler had a quick Spelling-dissing rebuttal later in the evening when she accepted her A-List Funny Award…
"I'm a little full right now. I just ate Tori Spelling," she cracked. "I want to thank her for being able to take a joke. I'm going to try my hardest not to tell her she looks like a man anymore. It's not nice. Even if it's true, it's not nice."
Spelling insisted to us that she really is "cool" with Handler's zingers. "You know what? I think Chelsea's cool," Spelling said at the awards afterparty at the Edison in downtown L.A. "I think she's really funny. But at the end of the day, it's like if she's always trashing me, then there's got to be some reason that I'm newsworthy…As long as she's funny about it, that's cool."

The clip of this is pretty funny, and the show airs on the Bravo network April 15th if you want to see the show-down for yourself! Why is Tori so dang skinny lately? Will she please tell us how she's managing to not eat? I've tried, and I just suck at not eating. Send me your tips, Tori!

An ADORABLE Must-Read: Dairy Queen by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

No, this isn't about soft-serve ice cream, blizzards and steak finger baskets! However, if you understand small town livin', then D.J. Schwenk will be a character that you will immediately fall in love with! I really think Dairy Queen is the cutest book I've read in quite sometime, not because it is well-written, humorous, and sweet, but because the setting reminds me so much of home! Granted, I didn't grow up on a dairy farm, but I certainly understand what it is like to be in charge of cleaning up poop, (hello, I showed pigs for FFA!), and dealing with family members that aren't all there. (No offense mom, or my sisters...you're not the weird ones.)

Read this review from Publisher's Weekly if you are interested in another great read:

Publishers Weekly
If you ask 15-year-old tomboy D.J. Schwenk, summer is off to a lousy start. But, since she's not real big on talking and neither is anyone in her family no one's likely to hear or understand her complaints. D.J. is saddled with all the chores at the Schwenk dairy farm while her father recuperates from an injury, her mother takes on extra work at the local school and her older, football-legend brothers stay away from home due to a family rift. Then Brian Nelson, the conceited quarterback from D.J.'s rival high school, is assigned by his coach (and Schwenk family friend) to help out on the farm. Sparks of all kinds, and cow pies, fly as D.J. and Brian eventually bond over work and football, and D.J. tries out for her own school's varsity team. Moore does an excellent job of mastering a natural, Midwestern accent that whisks listeners right to Wisconsin. She's wholly believable as a teenager struggling with attitudes about first love, friendship, gender and sexuality, self-confidence and sports.

By the way, I do plan on reading books that aren't of the teen genre this summer, but I promise myself, that during the school year, I read what my students might like to read. You would be surprised how many books are now on my all-time favorites list because of this little promise I made. (Um, hello, Twilight!)

New from the New Moon set...

"Jessica" heading to the Vancouver set of Forks High School.




This is a grainy pic, but you can see "Mike" in the forefront, "Jessica" in the khaki shirt to his left, and behind her is "Eric". Is it just me, or is Mike looking better in this movie?

"Mike" heading to the cafeteria set in Vancouver.

New Rob Pics...

Apparently his many hours working out for New Moon are paying off! Check out these pics of Robert Pattinson for this month's Dossier magazine. Bow-chica-wow-wow!

Carrie's Embarassing Joke

I'm not sure what the big deal is, but apparently Carrie Underwood is making headlines for her "inappropriate" comment she made to Matthew McConaughey. http://www.omg.com/ reports :

Carrie Underwood says she is mortified after making a risque joke aimed at Matthew McConaughey at Sunday's ACMAs.Before presenting Underwood with Entertainer of the Year, McConaughey told the audience how George Strait's boots once got him "lucky."After collecting her trophy from him, Underwood was at a loss for words and blurted out: "I don't know what to say. I got nothin' ... I want to see those boots, Matthew."Camila Alves - the mother of McConaughey's 8-month-old son Levi - was sitting in the audience.Now, Underwood tells Fox News, "I'm so embarrassed, I totally embarrassed myself. I just blanked. You want to say something eloquent in a moment like that and I embarrassed myself."

Whoopty-doo! I bet Camila is totally used to women saying they want to bed her boyfriend. I bet she didn't even bat an eye at the remark, and Matthew was probably backstage hoping Carrie was serious! Lighten up, people!

The Hunger Games Movie in the Works!

I am sooooo excited that another of my favorite teen books is now going to be made into a movie! Check out this post from http://www.comingsoon.net/!

Lionsgate announced today that it has acquired worldwide distribution rights to the film version of Suzanne Collins' best-selling futuristic young adult novel The Hunger Games. Collins will adapt the screenplay from her novel, the first in a trilogy. Nina Jacobson is producing through her Color Force shingle. The announcement was made by Joe Drake, Lionsgate President, Motion Picture Group, and Co-Chief Operating Officer."The Hunger Games" was published by Scholastic last year, and has been singled out for raves by "Twilight" author Stephenie Meyer. The trilogy's eagerly anticipated second installment, "Catching Fire," is due out September 1, 2009.Lionsgate President of Motion Picture Production, Alli Shearmur, will oversee the production for the studio, along with Lionsgate Senior Vice President of Motion Picture Production, Jim Miller.Said Shearmur, "'The Hunger Games' is an incredible property and it is a thrill to bring it home to Lionsgate. This is exactly the kind of movie I came to Lionsgate to make: youthful, exciting, smart and edgy. We are looking forward to working with Nina and Suzanne to create a movie that satisfies audiences' hunger for high-quality entertainment."Said Jacobson, "I am thrilled to have Lionsgate as a partner in 'The Hunger Games.' The suspense of 'The Hunger Games' is heightened by its spirit of moral inquiry, and Suzanne has entrusted Lionsgate and me to bring that moral perspective to the adaptation - a charge we fully intend to honor."In the story, a dystopic Capitol requires its twelve subjugated districts to pay tribute in the form of a teenage boy and girl who are forced to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. When Katniss Everdeen's little sister is chosen in the lottery, Katniss volunteers to take her place. Although persevering through hardship is commonplace for Katniss, she must start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love in order to win the games and return home.

Now, who should be cast as Katniss, Peeta, Gale, Rue or Prim???

Stephenie Meyer Tours Italy for New Moon Shots

Click on the link to check out video of Stephenie Meyer touring the allies of Italy. Think back to Chapter 20 of New Moon:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QfdDrJEEDdQ&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Enewmoonmovie%2Eorg%2F&feature=player_embedded

I've always liked Ryan and Trista...

Not because they are the only couple in Bachelor history to actually work out, (well, at least marry and seem to genuinely love each other), but I honestly believe that they are sweet people. You know how you can just tell that a person is genuinely sweet, and it isn't an act? That's how I feel about my buds, Trista and Ryan. He writes poetry. How could he not be sweet?
Anywhoo, Trista gave birth to the couple's second child, a probably sweet little girl, Blakesley Grace Sutter. The name is a mouthful, but it's growing on me. I think "Blakely" would be easier for the poor girl to pronounce and spell someday, but nobody asked me!
Unlike the birth of their first child, Max, in 2007, apparently Blakesley's birth was not riddled with complications. Life and Style magazine reports that, "She is healthy. Everything is really good." Little Blakesley weighed in at 6 lbs, 2 oz, and was 19 inches long! Congratulations Ryan and Trista!

Emmette Migh Be My New FAVE...

I don't think I need to explain why, but Kellen Lutz (a.k.a. Emmette) may be taking Robert Pattinson's place in my heart! Especially if he keeps doing photo shoots like this:

(http://www.newmoonmovie.net)

Told You So!

Bridgete Moynahan has not officially commented on Gisele's Vanity Fair interview, but Bridge's friends are spouting off for her! They shared with the New York Post that Bridgette is NOT happy with Gizzy's comments about her son, John. (See the post below about Giselle's Vanity Fair interview for more detailed comments.) One of Bridge's friends made an excellent point, that I sort of mirrored in my previous post, stating, "If Gisele loved Bridget's child like he was '100 percent her own,' then she would not talk about him in the press. Discretion and respect are not either of Gisele or Tom's virtues, as was evidenced even when the child was still unborn and they publicly flaunted their relationship without any discretion whatsoever." You know that Bridgette totally told her friend to say that for her, but I whole-heartedly agree! I've got your back, Bridgette.