The Leaf Reader by Emily Arsenault: review

As a tea drinker, I was fascinated with the idea of tea leaf reading and that was the main idea that attracted me to this novel. I wish this topic and the psychic abilities of some of the characters had been developed much further by the author.

I liked the rest of the book but I felt that I was just looking at a slightly different version of something I had already read before: a missing teenager and just lies, lies and more lies told by unreliable friends.



In spite of the previous comment, it was an entertaining summer read.

Little Monsters by Kara Thomas : opinion.

I had wanted to read this book for a long time and my high expectations were almost fulfilled. The characters were intriguing and the plot piqued my interest.

However, and this may be a spoiler... I just couldn't believe the way it ended. It took me aback but not in a positive way, because I love being surprised while reading. Perhaps some character should have been developed further to make the ending more plausible, IMHO.

Despite my opinion about the way it finished, I recommend this novel to fans of YA literature.

Golden by Jessy Kirby : review

I strongly recommend this book to teenagers because it encourages readers to take chances in life even if it means disappointing others to follow your dreams or simply to find out what your dreams are.

Jessy Kirby has also written about living with the decisions you made and sticking to them or on the contrary, changing your mind and making new choices to improve your life.

It is a beautiful and a bit hard coming of age novel full of poetry that may also show parents that once their children are old enough, they should be not only allowed, but also inspired to pursue their own happiness.

Golden has a lot of food for thought, however, in my opinion, some issues were not completely dealt with such as the fact that a specific character ignored other people´s grief. I wish the author had devoted some lines to this to give some closure to this situation.

All in all, it was really worth reading and worth remembering.

Coolest Mouse Ever!

Li River Cruise in Guilin : wonderful views, recommendations and a warning.

The main reasons for a visitor to go to the town of Guilin is without a shadow of a doubt to go on a cruise along the river. The scenery is incredibly beautiful, lush mountain and water buffalos. However, take into account that there will be lots of tourists and ships on the river.

 In my opinion, it is better to go on the upper deck of one of the big cruisers to enjoy the views.Since the voyage takes around five hours lunch is usually served on those ships, however, I strongly recommend skipping it because they wash the dishes with river water, which may be fine for the locals but will probably upset the stomachs of tourists who are not used to it.

After the cruise, we went to a very old village full of shops and food for tourists.