I am currently reading The Once and Future King and it's taking me a while. I have not abandoned this; I just chose a book that took me several days to get 1/3 of teh way through. It's good though. I should be done with it by Sunday. We'll see.
Happy New Years!!
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Song of the Sparrow by Lisa Ann Sandell
This is a book I borrowed from LU. I read it before JH's books because I want to get it back to her before I go back to school. Moving on.
I started out thinking I was going to hate this book, which is always a good attittude. It is written in free verse poetry format and I was annoyed with the description on the back cover. The fact is, if a book summary asks a question, I am going to be annoyed; "Will the main character be able to overcome the problems given them by the antagonist?" Hmmm, I wonder. Anyway, the only problem I actually had with this book was that instead of " she used italics for what people were saying out loud. It was slightly confusing and reading italics that often gives me a headache. Also, I hated the cover picture. I don't have the slightest idea who the girl on the cover is supposed to be; there were only three female characters in the book.
So, this book was an Arthurian legend book. This is the first version of Tristan/Tristram I have run across that I didn't hate (I tried twice to watch the movie Tristan and Isolde. Couldn't get through it.) Lancelot I still found an idiot but Gwynivere grew on me. I have no idea who the protagonist, Elaine, is in actual Arthurian legend, having only come across her in The Squire's Tales, so I don't know how well her character fit with the stories but she seemed like a realistic 16 year old girl.
Sandell's depiction of love was one I can approve of, mostly; none of the love at first sight or every other person cheating and whatnot. And, while some things may have been to convenient, I didn't really mind, which is all that really matters when reading fiction. I probably should read it again, though; I skimmed most of the beginning because I didn't like the form Sandell was writing in. Also, I probably would have gotten more out of this book if I knew more about the original stories. You will see how dumb I was in this regard in my next post.
Rating: Good to great
Read again: definitely.
You read: Girls will definitely like this story more then a guy would. If you are a girl, then yes; read it. Guys probably want to skip this one, but, then again, what do I know? Do what you want.
Age: Teens +
I started out thinking I was going to hate this book, which is always a good attittude. It is written in free verse poetry format and I was annoyed with the description on the back cover. The fact is, if a book summary asks a question, I am going to be annoyed; "Will the main character be able to overcome the problems given them by the antagonist?" Hmmm, I wonder. Anyway, the only problem I actually had with this book was that instead of " she used italics for what people were saying out loud. It was slightly confusing and reading italics that often gives me a headache. Also, I hated the cover picture. I don't have the slightest idea who the girl on the cover is supposed to be; there were only three female characters in the book.
So, this book was an Arthurian legend book. This is the first version of Tristan/Tristram I have run across that I didn't hate (I tried twice to watch the movie Tristan and Isolde. Couldn't get through it.) Lancelot I still found an idiot but Gwynivere grew on me. I have no idea who the protagonist, Elaine, is in actual Arthurian legend, having only come across her in The Squire's Tales, so I don't know how well her character fit with the stories but she seemed like a realistic 16 year old girl.
Sandell's depiction of love was one I can approve of, mostly; none of the love at first sight or every other person cheating and whatnot. And, while some things may have been to convenient, I didn't really mind, which is all that really matters when reading fiction. I probably should read it again, though; I skimmed most of the beginning because I didn't like the form Sandell was writing in. Also, I probably would have gotten more out of this book if I knew more about the original stories. You will see how dumb I was in this regard in my next post.
Rating: Good to great
Read again: definitely.
You read: Girls will definitely like this story more then a guy would. If you are a girl, then yes; read it. Guys probably want to skip this one, but, then again, what do I know? Do what you want.
Age: Teens +
Thursday, December 23, 2010
A book
I read a book to... yesterday. Um, and it was ok. Just ok. So just ok I don't even feel like putting it in here but then this is worthless to me so here it is; The Crown of Earth by Hilari Bell. I need to stop taking random books from the new rack. It's not successful. I mean, it wasn't bad and it was more original but her books always end so... Not anticlimatic, but not exactly tying off every question the reader wants answered. I need sleep now. Night.
Monday, December 20, 2010
Heir Apparent by Vivian Vande Velde
In all honesty, I read this before I read Flowers For Algernon but it's an old one so I decided to wait before adding this. You may notice that I've written three posts today... Yeah, I haven't had much to do.
Vivian Vande Velde is one of my favorite authors whom I have previously forgotten to mention for reasons unknown. She writes fantasy (my favorite of which is 'Mordred';it's also the longest), basic fiction set in the present, and futuristic sci-fi. Heir Apparent I would accept being classified as both sci-fi and fantasy; here's why! The main character, Giannine, goes into a videogame where she has to survive to become the next king. So inside the videogame is fantasy, the outside world is sci-fi. If you want to know what happens read the book.
I like VVV because her books are usually hilarious. And they have suspense and originality, etc. (Hey, I didn't use whatnot!) This is one of the two of her books that I actually own and therefore I have read it a million times. Literally. Not really.
Rating: Good to Great.
Read again? Already have.
You read? You'll probably like it more if you're a girl, but sure.
Age level: Teen.
Vivian Vande Velde is one of my favorite authors whom I have previously forgotten to mention for reasons unknown. She writes fantasy (my favorite of which is 'Mordred';it's also the longest), basic fiction set in the present, and futuristic sci-fi. Heir Apparent I would accept being classified as both sci-fi and fantasy; here's why! The main character, Giannine, goes into a videogame where she has to survive to become the next king. So inside the videogame is fantasy, the outside world is sci-fi. If you want to know what happens read the book.
I like VVV because her books are usually hilarious. And they have suspense and originality, etc. (Hey, I didn't use whatnot!) This is one of the two of her books that I actually own and therefore I have read it a million times. Literally. Not really.
Rating: Good to Great.
Read again? Already have.
You read? You'll probably like it more if you're a girl, but sure.
Age level: Teen.
Blue Fire by Janice Hardy
This is a new book I randomly grabbed when we are at the the library Saturday... It's a sequel to a book I randomly read awhile ago called Shifter. I don't feel like writing about it but it's a good one for teens to read if they're looking for fantasyish stuff that isn't overwhelmed with elves and dwarfs and magic and whatnot. (I need to come up with a synonym for whatnot, don't I?) Hardy is one of the more original writers I've come across and that's why I'm mentioning her.
Rating: Good.
Read again: Maybe. I am going to read the sequel if I notice when it comes out.
You read: If you like this type of thing, I guess. Read Shifter first.
Rating: Good.
Read again: Maybe. I am going to read the sequel if I notice when it comes out.
You read: If you like this type of thing, I guess. Read Shifter first.
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Ages
I'm going to give myself some clear guidelines so what I say actually means something.
Children's Book; 1-7 (This is a picture book. There will not be many of these, but you never know.)
Pre-teen; Ages 8-11 (These are also basically Children's books, but novels instead of pictures.)
Teen;12-16 (More mature and more difficult without a complicated plot necessary for keeping the attention of an older reader. Most chick flicky books, like Twilight, will be in this area.)
Young Adult; 17-25 (Mature content but not graphic. Longer or more complicated subject matter.)
Adult; 26-100 (Probably not going to be a good book.)
Anyone in a higher age group is perfectly welcome to read books assigned to previous age groups. There is nothing wrong with reading a book that is too easy as long as its interesting and not all you're reading. Also, my age groups are iffy. People have different intelligence levels and reading speeds, as well as time available for reading. This is a general guideline to give people somewhere to start with. I'm sure you can figure out where the books you usually read are classified and go from there.
Please remember one thing; I am not a teacher yet and this is my own personal opinion. And no that doesn't mean I'm just throwing out random numbers. It means I'm guessing and that is a totally different thing. Yes, I'm kidding. Again.
Children's Book; 1-7 (This is a picture book. There will not be many of these, but you never know.)
Pre-teen; Ages 8-11 (These are also basically Children's books, but novels instead of pictures.)
Teen;12-16 (More mature and more difficult without a complicated plot necessary for keeping the attention of an older reader. Most chick flicky books, like Twilight, will be in this area.)
Young Adult; 17-25 (Mature content but not graphic. Longer or more complicated subject matter.)
Adult; 26-100 (Probably not going to be a good book.)
Anyone in a higher age group is perfectly welcome to read books assigned to previous age groups. There is nothing wrong with reading a book that is too easy as long as its interesting and not all you're reading. Also, my age groups are iffy. People have different intelligence levels and reading speeds, as well as time available for reading. This is a general guideline to give people somewhere to start with. I'm sure you can figure out where the books you usually read are classified and go from there.
Please remember one thing; I am not a teacher yet and this is my own personal opinion. And no that doesn't mean I'm just throwing out random numbers. It means I'm guessing and that is a totally different thing. Yes, I'm kidding. Again.
Friday, December 17, 2010
Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
Well, I finally sat down and finished Flowers for Algernon. Just three of J.H.'s books to go.
This book is about a man with mental retardation, Charlie, who is the subject of an experimental surgery that makes him an incredible genius. Algernon is a mouse who also had the surgery. While this book talks a lot about science and psychology and literature and whatnot, the main thing I got out of it was that none of that really matters when you think about it. By that I mean, as Charlie gets smarter he gradually loses most of his friends and becomes more and more lonely, less able to emphasize with others. Meanwhile, everyone he knows suddenly find themselves looked down upon intellectually by him maybe even more so than they had looked down on him in the first place. It is a very interesting book and gives the reader new ways of viewing several things.
Normally this would be a criticism section, but I don't have any that come to mind. Some of it was a bit graphic but nothing I found over the top, I suppose. Mainly, the problem I had with this book was that the way everyone treated him when he was retarded made me feel kind of sick but that was probably the point. Also, expect this book to make you cry. I didn't cry, but that's because my high school English teacher read me a condensed version so I knew the ending. Also, the copyright is 1959 so some parts of the book jar a little with the modern reader, like saying that a $10 therapy session was expensive and so on. Admittedly, I would have gotten a tiny bit more out of the book if I hadn't just looked at the date five seconds ago but now you know and that's all that matters.
Rating? Good to great. (Honestly, my ratings are basically worthless. They depend too much on my mood at the time, but they give a general picture for you people too lazy to do anything but skim so I'll keep them.)
Read again? Yes, but not until after a year or two probably. Yes, I usually read books again after a month or two. Sometimes after an hour or two. I could go on a rant about how you won't always get the same thing out of a book every time you read it but you skimmers are probably already getting upset with how long this normally six word section is so I won't.
You read? Yes.
Age :Young Adult. I already mentioned it but... you know what? See paragraph above this.
As always, if you have read this book and have more to say, let me know. My opinion is not the only one in the world, after all. Yes, that is an incredibly sad and depressing thought, but we all just have to live with it.
Yes, I'm kidding.
This book is about a man with mental retardation, Charlie, who is the subject of an experimental surgery that makes him an incredible genius. Algernon is a mouse who also had the surgery. While this book talks a lot about science and psychology and literature and whatnot, the main thing I got out of it was that none of that really matters when you think about it. By that I mean, as Charlie gets smarter he gradually loses most of his friends and becomes more and more lonely, less able to emphasize with others. Meanwhile, everyone he knows suddenly find themselves looked down upon intellectually by him maybe even more so than they had looked down on him in the first place. It is a very interesting book and gives the reader new ways of viewing several things.
Normally this would be a criticism section, but I don't have any that come to mind. Some of it was a bit graphic but nothing I found over the top, I suppose. Mainly, the problem I had with this book was that the way everyone treated him when he was retarded made me feel kind of sick but that was probably the point. Also, expect this book to make you cry. I didn't cry, but that's because my high school English teacher read me a condensed version so I knew the ending. Also, the copyright is 1959 so some parts of the book jar a little with the modern reader, like saying that a $10 therapy session was expensive and so on. Admittedly, I would have gotten a tiny bit more out of the book if I hadn't just looked at the date five seconds ago but now you know and that's all that matters.
Rating? Good to great. (Honestly, my ratings are basically worthless. They depend too much on my mood at the time, but they give a general picture for you people too lazy to do anything but skim so I'll keep them.)
Read again? Yes, but not until after a year or two probably. Yes, I usually read books again after a month or two. Sometimes after an hour or two. I could go on a rant about how you won't always get the same thing out of a book every time you read it but you skimmers are probably already getting upset with how long this normally six word section is so I won't.
You read? Yes.
Age :Young Adult. I already mentioned it but... you know what? See paragraph above this.
As always, if you have read this book and have more to say, let me know. My opinion is not the only one in the world, after all. Yes, that is an incredibly sad and depressing thought, but we all just have to live with it.
Yes, I'm kidding.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
One More Exam
So I've got one more exam and I don't feel there is much need to study for it so... Here are some great book quotes! And by great I mean I googled book quotes, chose the funniest, and threw some serious ones in to make myself look better. (No, I'm not bored. What are you talking about?)
Fiction reveals truths that reality obscures. ~Jessamyn West
Always read something that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it. ~P.J. O'Rourke
Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read. ~Groucho Marx
Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read. ~Groucho Marx
My test of a good novel is dreading to begin the last chapter. ~Thomas Helm
He who lends a book is an idiot. He who returns the book is more of an idiot. ~Arabic Proverb
Monday, December 06, 2010
Favorite Books
As I am not going to be reading anything for a long time(for me)... :( I decided to get a list of favorite books from my friends for your and my own future reference.
CZ-Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows by JK Rowling or 'Mama, Do You Love Me' by Barbara M. Joosse and illustrated by Barbara Lavallee. I concur with both of those. MDYLM is a picture book and it's both sweet and well illustrated.
MW-Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. Persuasion is a close 2nd. Again, I like both of these.
BU-Host by Stephanie Meyer.Only one of hers I like anymore.
CR- A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engel. Excellent book.
SS- The Eye of the Needle by Ken Follett. But she has a ton more favorites. None of which I've read :'(.
CG- The Last Song by Nicholas Spark. I haven't read this.
AA- Dante's Inferno. Haven't read this either.
CP- John Dies at the End by David Wong. Nope.
LU-anything by Sara Dessen. Haven't read anything by her. Oh, dear.
KP-The Franchise Affair by Josephine Tey and The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins. Read both.
More coming soon... in theory... If you read this then message me your favorite book... And if you're wondering why J.H.'s book isn't up here it''s because I keep forgetting to ask him. Also, BU is the same as the aforementioned RU. I changed my mind, ok?
CZ-Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows by JK Rowling or 'Mama, Do You Love Me' by Barbara M. Joosse and illustrated by Barbara Lavallee. I concur with both of those. MDYLM is a picture book and it's both sweet and well illustrated.
MW-Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. Persuasion is a close 2nd. Again, I like both of these.
BU-Host by Stephanie Meyer.Only one of hers I like anymore.
CR- A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engel. Excellent book.
SS- The Eye of the Needle by Ken Follett. But she has a ton more favorites. None of which I've read :'(.
CG- The Last Song by Nicholas Spark. I haven't read this.
AA- Dante's Inferno. Haven't read this either.
CP- John Dies at the End by David Wong. Nope.
LU-anything by Sara Dessen. Haven't read anything by her. Oh, dear.
KP-The Franchise Affair by Josephine Tey and The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins. Read both.
More coming soon... in theory... If you read this then message me your favorite book... And if you're wondering why J.H.'s book isn't up here it''s because I keep forgetting to ask him. Also, BU is the same as the aforementioned RU. I changed my mind, ok?
Sunday, December 05, 2010
A List
- Just wanted to take a break and say that I changed the settings so anyone can comment anonymously now.
- I can't get stats or design to work on my laptop and it's annoying. If you have any idea why this is, lemme know. JH thinks I haven't updated firefox. Stats works fine on Explorer so that's probably it. Design is weird though. : P
- One of these days I should actually post a post to my facebook wall.
- I should be writing pages 10 and 11 of my Economics of Communism paper right now.
- I will eventaully finish Flowers for Algernon. I'm annoyed with myself about that but since I should really be reading a fairy tale book for Kiddie Lit, I really can't do anything about it.
- So... I think I'm going to start asking my friends for the names of their fav books and make a list. Just cuz I don't have time to do anything more elaborate. I seriously thought of that two seconds before I wrote the sentence.
- I write too much. And by that I mean; I talk too much.
Thursday, December 02, 2010
Fire by Kristin Cashore
Well, I read this book over break because I forgot Flowers for Algernon at school. It was interesting to see how this book was both similar and different to her first one and I think I liked this one.
Basically, Cashore made up her own new world that's not quite as terrifying as Funke's but still scary. There are random people in these world with deadly unnatural talents and these people are usually either evil or unusually good, in my opinion. The story is creative and it was an enjoyable read. I identified with the characters for the most part and was not half annoyed with Fire as I would be with a real person who tried to shut out the world because they realized that everybody is going to die someday. With her, it was more understandable, I suppose. It was a pretty good read. I kinda saw the twist coming but that was because of foreshadowing not predicatbility.
Criticism: To start out, the things I am complaining about are not necessarily a major part of the book. They are just things i picked up on because of one reason or anthoer. I did not really appreciate the fact that every character over 15 broke the 6th commandment or the attitude that surrounded this. I mean, really. Not necessary. Also, Fire and the main character of Graceling both went through the books being feared by everyone except the guy you knew they were going to fall in love with. My computer just deleted everything I typed after this so I can't remember what else I had. Uh... Oh, I went on a rant about recycling characters! Alright, so she killed off her evil king bad guy in the last book but then went back and reused him in this book. Honestly, if you, nonexistant reader, ever write a book please do not do this unless your book is going back and focusing on this evil character. If he is just randomly there messing with things in the background, it is just lazy. Thank you. I'm done now.
Rating: Pretty good.
You read? meh
Read again? Mehbe.
Age level? Young adult.
Basically, Cashore made up her own new world that's not quite as terrifying as Funke's but still scary. There are random people in these world with deadly unnatural talents and these people are usually either evil or unusually good, in my opinion. The story is creative and it was an enjoyable read. I identified with the characters for the most part and was not half annoyed with Fire as I would be with a real person who tried to shut out the world because they realized that everybody is going to die someday. With her, it was more understandable, I suppose. It was a pretty good read. I kinda saw the twist coming but that was because of foreshadowing not predicatbility.
Criticism: To start out, the things I am complaining about are not necessarily a major part of the book. They are just things i picked up on because of one reason or anthoer. I did not really appreciate the fact that every character over 15 broke the 6th commandment or the attitude that surrounded this. I mean, really. Not necessary. Also, Fire and the main character of Graceling both went through the books being feared by everyone except the guy you knew they were going to fall in love with. My computer just deleted everything I typed after this so I can't remember what else I had. Uh... Oh, I went on a rant about recycling characters! Alright, so she killed off her evil king bad guy in the last book but then went back and reused him in this book. Honestly, if you, nonexistant reader, ever write a book please do not do this unless your book is going back and focusing on this evil character. If he is just randomly there messing with things in the background, it is just lazy. Thank you. I'm done now.
Rating: Pretty good.
You read? meh
Read again? Mehbe.
Age level? Young adult.
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