Dimsum Terakhir by Clara Ng

Have read various review about this book, and made me curious. Some said it was breathtaking, amazing, some said it was ordinary, too dramatic, way too much. Well, I should read by myself, I think. Thanks to Vixxio, which always provide me with high quality and cheap used books, I got this one with very affordable prize.


So, the story is about Chinese quadruplets, Siska, Indah, Rosi, and Novera. They live separately, busy with their own life, try to deal with their own secret, when suddenly they hear bad news from their father, who lives alone, just companied by two fat cats. Nung, their father suffer by stroke, which requiring them to reunited. When they are forced to live together while taking care of their father, they figure out each other's secret, and try to understand one another.


I loved how Clara could share how beautiful Nung's family is. They share warmth and love among difficulty between Chinese at that time, fight between sisters, health issues, personality, and religion. I feel much love, even when the sisters shouted each other at anger. Love is all I feel from this book. And family bond.


Even, when some problems are way too much, I say we're still able to enjoy this book. Learn how different these quadruplets personality, from the older to younger, Siska with her autonomy, perfectionist Indah, Rosi who likes to talk and fussy, and calm Novera. Their colorful life, Siska, successful business woman, which often travel abroad, Indah, booming writer who has no idea what to write in her second book, Rosi, as her name, a rose farmer, and Novera, teacher who wants to be a nun. Each of them keep secrets, which try to be revealed by Nung, who wants hear truths from his daughter before he dies.


I should admit that I got tearful when I read final chapters. How deep is a father's love, so he can receive his daughters the way they are. How brave Nung face his death after revealing his daughters secrets one by one. Well, I am impressed with this book. Two thumbs up, Clara!


Oh, and thank you so much for Vixxio. Visit their website, facebook, and twitter for getting some interesting offers! :)

Avalon High by Meg Cabot

Summary

Avalon High seems like an ordinary high school, which has ordinary students. There are Lance, the athlete, Jennifer, the cheerleader, and Will, senior class president, quarterback, and role model.

But..

Not everyone seems like their real.. even for Elle. As new student, who just moves recently, Elle will find her identity. What role will she play at Avalon High ongoing drama? What if series of weird events and coincidences that happen to her, means tragedy? And what if she isn't able to prevent this tragedy?

It's been a while since I read Meg Cabot's book. I still be a loyal reader of Mediator, tough. Meg Cabot's books are always labeled with "Teenlit", and it makes me a bit lazy to pick them up from book stores. Well, an exception happened one day, when I just feel like reading a light novel. So, here Avalon High, first book.

Well, I am not regretting it, in fact I find this book is interesting. Meg Cabot has a wide wild imagination, and in this book she includes her wide learning of King Arthur's life. She mixes it with high school life, which makes it more interesting, because who doesn't want read about high school drama story, right? :D

I've tempted to google about King Arthur, his life, his loyal knights, Guinevere, Merlin, and Camelot, since reading this book. It's fun, I should admit it. But if you don't want take it seriously, grab this book for your side snack, distracts you from your heavy reading material. It works. Not too deep, but not too shallow.

I've watched its movie, and found it was interesting, although I saw many differences from its book. But they are both good in their own way. So, happy reading everyone! :)

Untuk Indonesia Yang Kuat by Ligwina Hananto

I was stunned after reading this book. Well, it turned that I still have many financial homeworks that should be done. It changed my mind that savings solve everything. It wiped away my previous mindset about money. And I thought that I have to do something to begin my financial revolution! And first step is spread the information of THE BOOK to you all. Let's make ourselves better, people! :)


What makes me interesting, this book is written for middle class. Middle class is like most people in Indonesia, live proper, able to shop, able to hang out in coffee shop, able to go to the cinema, able to take vacation once a year. This book is about strengthening the middle class, how we feel enough about our financial life, but it turns out that we don't have any plan to spend our old life by doing nothing and living with proper pension life. What I mean by doing nothing is we don't have to work our ass off in those ages in order to    live. It turns out that we don't have any educational fund plan to our future kids.


Exhausted yet? Don't.
It's not as scary as you think. Well, you should be scary, but this book helps you a lot. For beginner, like fresh graduate, for who have been married, it's not too late to get any help. This book explains financial lightly, simplified language, even interesting layout. You won't get bored like reading other financial books (eeew, I know your feeling, novel readers!), you'll get excited page by page.


If you want to know more, please visit the website. Never too late to start. Be rich! Decide what's your purpose. :)

Test Pack by Ninit Yunita

Ninit is one of female writer who can make me laugh out loud reading her books. Her writings is funny, but always have simplified meanings. Test Pack is one of her old story, I read it once when I was in high school, and I found myself happy when she announced that they'll republish it.

It is love story about married couple, Tata and Rahmat, who has lived this marriage for seven years. As other ordinary couple, they wish to have baby soon. Tata desperately tries every way, even when she realizes that when you've already married, child is an unmentioned successful symbol for women, symbol of perfection. Rahmat, who also wants a baby so bad, but still looks calm, just to settle down his wife. What will they do if their patience has reached its limit, and everything turn to rage?

One thing for sure, I learned a lot from this book. This story is very real, we can also live their life. There are many "what if" in marriage, that could bring us to failure. One of them is the existence of kids. This book asks us to rethink our true reason to get married. Do we get married just for having kids? Or, do we get married to complete our life by spending the rest of our life with our soulmate? There is no right or wrong answers because we all have our own perception of marriage purpose. So do Tata and Rahmat.

So, I am not exaggerating when I say "Don't get married before reading this book!" (as Hagi Hagiromo says in its cover). For you who will get married soon, it's not too late to rush to the nearest book shop and get a copy! :D


Happy reading, couples!

George's Cosmic Treasure Hunt by Lucy & Stephen Hawking

I always admired physic! Since I was on junior high, I found myself excited when physic came. And then, luckily, when I was on high school, I had this one great teacher, Mr. Amen, who loves Stephen Hawking a lot. From him, I learned about Hawking, how great he is, with all his disability, he keep thinking, keep learning, and keep finding something new about this universe.

But, I have to admit, that Hawking's book is not easy to be understood. When I first read History of Brief Time (my 2nd grade in senior high school) I remember that I often found myself shook my head, open physic dictionary on and on, frowned, and confused. There were many, many difficult and confusing words. I asked a lot to my teacher, but it didn't help me much.

Yesterday, I went to Aksara and found this book. I was so exciting. Actually, this is a sequel from George's Secret Key to the Universe, who has been published by Gramedia several years ago. Basically this book tells about George, a kid who loves astronomy, and desires to be physicians one day. He has neighbors, called Eric and Annie. In first book, it tells that Eric has super mega computer, named Cosmos, which able to open portal to everywhere in the universe. It's super cool, huh? Remind you to Doraemon's magic door.

The 2nd book tells us that Annie finds a weird message from broken Cosmos. She hardly guess that it comes from intelligent extraterrestrial outside there. So, guess what? She invite George to come with her, travel to Mars!

It's only fiction, but Hawking insert some real theories and explanation among the fiction. So you can learn the real theories of planets, black hole, speed of light, galaxies and so on. Well, I bet you like it, this book is also completed by some great colored picture. You'll see The Blue Marble, the first Earth image, who was taken from space. Teenagers or adults, I think you both will enjoy this book.

Love, Stargirl by Jerry Spinelly

Stargirl Caraway. Feel familiar with this name? Maybe, about nine years ago, you had read about an eccentric and compassionate girl, who naming herself Stargirl. 
This book is the sequel to the bestselling book, Stargirl and centers on "the world's longest letter" in diary form. It picks up where the previous novel left off after Stargirl left Mica High and describes her bittersweet memories in the town of Mica, Arizona along with the involvements of new people in her life.

Don't  worry for you who haven't read the first book, because you can still enjoy an extraordinary life for Stargirl. After leaving her previous life, Stargirl start to meet new people with various characters. Some become her new friends, some become her enemies, and one of them maybe able to replace Leo in her heart. Will he?


But, obviously Stargirl still keep Leo in her mind. She always write to Leo. Tell about her new life, new friends, new habit, even a boy who steals her heart. Stargirl tells how her uniqueness turn out to be something in her new environment, that she can prove that to be different is okay, as long as you feel comfort with yourself. She tells Leo, that it doesn't matter to be freak, as long as you're not trying to be someone else.


Stargirl and Love, Stargirl is an example for teenagers to always proud to themselves, build confidence, even you're not same like people around you. To struggle your love, but know the time you should stop because you should appreciate yourself than sacrificing it for someone you love. That you should put respect to yourself, and never let anyone else to underestimate you.


Must read one, even you are not teenager anymore!

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Remember her first book who really caught me up? Finally after long waiting, Gramedia Pustaka Utama publishes its sequel, Catching Fire.

WARNING! SPOILER FOR THE FIRST BOOK!!!
Still present Katniss and Peeta as main role, this book take time setting after they both come home as the winner of Hunger Games, and of course still act as young teenagers who deeply falls in love one to another to avoid suspicion from Capital that they only made the love story up for win the Games together. But, it proves that their braveness against Capital's rules in Hunger Games brings out other districts courage. They slowly rise, plan rebellion to the Capital.

Katniss, who only wants to protect her family, is confused about what to do. One hand, she should keep pretending that she's in love with Peeta, for everyone's good, but her hunting mate, Gale, is always imagined in her mind. While wandering blindly, Katniss found that Capital is forcing back all previous winners of Hunger Games who still live, to compete again, in celebrating 75th Hunger Games. It means that she, once again, should compete with Peeta!

How it ends? I really wish I could give you little spoiler, but it will make me such bad reviewer. What I say is Suzanne Collins has successfully built suspense as she did in the first book. The Games turns more cruel, brutal, because it has more competitor. But, she also writes about Young Katniss heart, hesitation when she should choose the path of her future, and not being together with someone she loves. All packages in one book. Good job, Suzanne! I can't wait for last book! :)