Hand-Picked Words June 2013 Review & Giveaway!

One of my lovely readers, Danica Stone, wrote to me asking if I'd review her awesome new Digital Book Box Subscription called Hand-Picked Words! Of course I said yes! Not only because I love to review things, but because I love to read also. I have a Nook Color, and I read on it all the time. I was stoked when she asked me because to be honest, I didn't know something like this existed! And boy am I glad she made this...it's great! The box costs $15 a month for a subscription that includes 2 books and 4 shorter pieces (poems, short stories, ect.). You'll be sent ePub's that can be side loaded onto your preferred device, or read on your computer! What's cool is you're getting 2 real books for $15! That's CHEAP considering some books are $10 alone! (While looking on my Nook's Book Store, sometimes I get tricked because it says Free, so I download it, and it's 3 pages long, then you have to buy the book for $10...that stinks.) This is an AWESOME way to get some great reads and learn about some new upcoming authors! There are millions out there, and it's sad to know some will never make it big, I'm one to really love independent and underground authors, most of the time, their writings are better than mainstream authors. Another great thing is that they're launching 3 new book lover boxes, so if you're not into the whole "random theme" of the Digital Book Box, you can subscribe to Sci-Fi, Romance or Foodie! Now say you're more of a writer than a reader, you can even submit your books or poems to the website and receive money for your work! You make a percentage ($1 for poems, $2 for books) per box sold. It's an awesome program for both readers AND authors! So without further ado, I'll let you know what books I received in my June Hand-Picked Words! The theme this month was Mystery and Intrigue! I'll admit, I've never been one to go for mystery books, but I was excited to see that it was this months' theme! That's the best part of this box, you will come across books or genres that you'd never go for if you were picking books out yourself! The email made sure to include that the pieces sent this month aren't all mysteries, but they all have an air of it in each one. The first piece in the box is a poem called Drinking Alone Beneath the Moon by Li Po with translation by David Rounds. Having looked this up, I can tell you that the only place I've found this was in the book The Selected Poems of Li Po. Li Po was a Chinese poet and was also part of a group of Chinese Scholars called "Eight Immortals of the Wine Cup". Li Po is often regarded as one of the two greatest poets in China's literary history. Li Po was very fond of alcohol, writing various poems of him being in a drunken state, including this one. This is basically what you think it is, about him drinking underneath the moon by himself, just thinking about life. From the Email:

"'Drinking Alone Beneath the Moon' is a 1,300-year-old Chinese poem about exactly what it sounds like it's about. David Rounds' new translation of it gives it new clarity, like polishing a gemstone. How did somebody living halfway around the world over a millennium ago, experience exactly what any college student has today? Is that the mystery, or are the moon and shadows the mysterious part of this piece?"

I really, really enjoyed this poem. It was translated SO nicely. The setting of the poem was just quiet and serene, and of course there's been times where I've felt just like Li Po (minus actually drinking, I try to shy away from that), and yes, it is crazy considering this was written 1,300 years ago, and sounds as if it was written about today's problems. It just goes to show you that some things really never change, people who lived that long ago had the same feelings as we do today. I never really thought about that, but it's very neat. I really loved this poem, and thought it was perfect for this box! :)

The next piece in the box is a short story called Of Pompadours, Chamois Skin, and Jockey Club: Trying to Be Betsy Ray by Stephanie Lucianovic. This is a story about her lust for being Betsy Ray. I'm not going to lie, I had no idea who Betsy Ray actually was until I looked her up. She's a character in a series of books created by Maud Hart Lovelace in the 1940's through 1955. The stories follow her from when she's 5 all the way up until she is in her twenties and take place in the 19th and 20th centuries. From the email:

"Of Pompadours, Chamois Skin, and Jockey Club: Trying to Be Betsy Ray is Stephanie Lucianovic's fun look back at the books she loved as a child. Anyone who loved Betsy, Tacy and Tib books will recognize her attempts to duplicate the mysterious allure of the Gibson Girl. But I think all of us, no matter what books we love, will recognize the joyful obsession of trying to live inside of them somehow."

I actually thoroughly enjoyed this read! I don't necessarily care for older things (like from 19th century, ect.) but this was very good! I loved that it was split up in different sections such as "Manicures and Makeup, Hair, Perfume and Clothes". It really interested me when it was put like that. I enjoyed reading about the different things she wanted to do to be like Betsy Ray. For books, I'm not sure if I have had the obsession with a book where I've wanted to be in it (I do have an obsession with Ellen Hopkins, but her stories are not ones I'd like to be in due to the nature of them) but I have had TV shows that I have felt that way. When I was younger I was obsessed with the show ChalkZone on Nickelodeon, and actually had many dreams I was Rudy in the show...then there is Degrassi, but let's not get into that one... :) While I don't think was really a "mystery" book (as she said not all were) I really did enjoy it! At the end, there was also a recipe for Mr. Ray's Sunday Night Onion Sandwich. I thought that was a neat touch! :)



The next short piece is So Light a Thing by NotWho. To be honest, I'm not really sure what this book is about, though I know it follows a character Evie through her journey. I'm on the 6th page (out of 17) and I'm still lost. I tried looking this up online, but awesomely it's a Hand-Picked Words special (I'm assuming, because I couldn't find anything), so unfortunately I have no other information on it than the Email. I will reread it, and if I think to update this, I will :) The email said:

"So Light a Thing is a short Science-Fiction story in which light and dark, here and there, walls and space, and reality and fiction are constantly shifting under your feet."

It does sound pretty good, but I just got lost. Maybe reading it in the day, with a clear mind could help me focus on it more :P

The next "Short" story was The Terrifying Mystery of the Fear Plague by Scott Slemmons. This seems like an AWESOME story. It's about a girl named Heather Ness who is a superhero. Uhm, hello?! Right up my ally! I'm in love with super heroes (currently wearing a batman, superman, green lantern and flash shirt as I type this). And I love when my fellow women are the heroes in the book! Now unfortunately I haven't got around to reading it, but I know I'm going to love it. From the email:

"The Terrifying Mystery of the Fear Plague is a not-so-short story from Scott Slemmons' work-in-progress, the Metro City Chronicles. It's a superhero story, police procedural, and sci-fi escapade all rolled into one. And it's not afraid to poke fun at those genres, or to have a lot of fun on it's own. Check it out!"

Oh I totally will...this is the next story I'm starting after the one I'm reading now which is:

The Mystery of the Yellow Room by Gaston LeRoux. Gaston just so happens to be the author of the Phantom of the Opera! This is one of the books of the box. It's about a lady who locks herself in her room and dies mysteriously. This is something I wouldn't necessarily pick up myself, but having it in the box is awesome. It introduced me to a new love! Mystery books are awesome, or at least, this one is. I find myself trying to figure out how she could have died. It's a brain workout and eye candy in one. From the email:

"A new translation of a forgotten classic! The Mystery of the Yellow Room is very special to me. It's the book that inspired Agatha Christie to write mysteries. You can see it, too, in the very Poirot-ish egotistical genius of Joseph Rouletabille (Even if he is French, not Belgian!)

Gaston LeRoux wrote a whole series of these, most of which have never been translated into English. They inspired others as well, including the Tintin adventures. And he also wrote a little book you might have heard of called The Phantom of the Opera!

This one is often called the ultimate locked-room mystery. A woman goes into her bedroom with a revolver, locks it from the inside, leaves the key in the lock so nobody can unlock it from the outside -- and is discovered half-strangled and clubbed on the head. How did the murderer get in? How did they get out? And who was it? The answer may surprise you - it sure surprised me!"

Like I said, I'm currently reading this, and I'm very intrigued by it, although the translation is kind of hard to understand sometimes. It still is too good not to read!

Lastly is Gayla Popoff! and the Dead Souls by Julia George. This is a comedy-mystery about a lady Gayla, who is walking her Poodle, and a man's body falls from above! I haven't started reading this, but can't wait! I love comedy books, and for this to have both comedy AND mystery, it's amazing!  From the email:

"This one's a special sneak peek into a book we're re-releasing as a totally new edition. You get to see it before it even has it's new cover!  Gayla Popoff and the Dead Souls is a rollicking mystery of the 'cozy' variety. Somehow, I never expect murder mysteries to be so much fun!"

I love comedy ANYTHING. I can't wait to read this awesome book. It got 5 star rating on Good Reads.

Overall, I think this subscription box is awesome, and I know for a fact I'm going to be purchasing this for a Christmas gift. I would love to see some Childrens Books (Diary of a Wimpy Kid aged books, not little little kids) because my nieces each have a nook, and I know they'd love this! I love the idea of getting 2 books, and more shorts. I think the 2 books pays for the service alone, the rest is extras! I can't wait to get some more of this subscription box! It makes it easier than searching the Nook store for hours on end to find broken/2 page "books" that you don't even want to read anyways!

Now here's something awesome, Dani made a unique code that gives you $15 off (a free month!) so you can try this awesome box out! At checkout, use the code POLISHMANIACS!

Thank you so much Dani for letting me try Hand Picked Words out! I honestly really loved (love, as I'm still reading the books) it! :)

http://handpickedwords.com/

UPDATED 7/19/2013:

Dani would like to host a giveaway for a 3 MONTH SUBSCRIPTION Free! Just enter below via GiveawayTools!

Giveaway ends 7/26/2013

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