M.L. Sparrow's Blog, page 12
January 15, 2018
Simon Vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda
Simon Vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda, by Becky Albertalli 
Blurb:Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now Simon is actually being blackmailed: if he doesn’t play wingman for class clown Martin, his sexual identity will become everyone’s business. Worse, the privacy of Blue, the pen name of the boy he’s been emailing, will be compromised. With some messy dynamics emerging in his once tight-knit group of friends, and his email correspondence with Blue growing more flirtatious every day, Simon’s junior year has suddenly gotten all kinds of complicated. Now, change-averse Simon has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he’s pushed out—without alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with the most confusing, adorable guy he’s never met.I've read quite a few LGBT books but nothing in the YA age range and I loved how cute it was. I'll admit it took me a while to get into this book and at first I couldn't really see what the big fuss was about - I didn't think the writing was anything special, in fact I found it a little annoying at time, but I liked the story line so I kept going and ended up loving it. I'll admit, I loved it a lot more when Simon and Blue (no, I'm not giving away the surprise, because I was honestly surprised!) finally got together; they just made such a cute couple it was impossible not to love them.Honestly, though, this is just a teen romance. The only thing that makes it that much different is that it's about a m/m couple, which unfortunately isn't exactly mainstream yet, which will hopefully change soon. My point is that, I'm not sure people would be going mad for this book if m/m YA stories were more mainstream. Still, it's a good book if you want a light, fun read about love, friendship, coming out and knowing who you are. 
My favourite quotes from 'Simon Vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda':'I didn't really think of myself as interesting until I was interesting to Blue.' '... sometimes it seems like everyone knows who I am except me.' 'Being secure in your masculinity isn't the same as being straight.'
Blurb:Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now Simon is actually being blackmailed: if he doesn’t play wingman for class clown Martin, his sexual identity will become everyone’s business. Worse, the privacy of Blue, the pen name of the boy he’s been emailing, will be compromised. With some messy dynamics emerging in his once tight-knit group of friends, and his email correspondence with Blue growing more flirtatious every day, Simon’s junior year has suddenly gotten all kinds of complicated. Now, change-averse Simon has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he’s pushed out—without alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with the most confusing, adorable guy he’s never met.I've read quite a few LGBT books but nothing in the YA age range and I loved how cute it was. I'll admit it took me a while to get into this book and at first I couldn't really see what the big fuss was about - I didn't think the writing was anything special, in fact I found it a little annoying at time, but I liked the story line so I kept going and ended up loving it. I'll admit, I loved it a lot more when Simon and Blue (no, I'm not giving away the surprise, because I was honestly surprised!) finally got together; they just made such a cute couple it was impossible not to love them.Honestly, though, this is just a teen romance. The only thing that makes it that much different is that it's about a m/m couple, which unfortunately isn't exactly mainstream yet, which will hopefully change soon. My point is that, I'm not sure people would be going mad for this book if m/m YA stories were more mainstream. Still, it's a good book if you want a light, fun read about love, friendship, coming out and knowing who you are. My favourite quotes from 'Simon Vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda':'I didn't really think of myself as interesting until I was interesting to Blue.' '... sometimes it seems like everyone knows who I am except me.' 'Being secure in your masculinity isn't the same as being straight.'
January 7, 2018
Review of 2017
So this post is a little late since I've been away over the winter holidays and haven't had much time to spare. It was a working holiday unfortunately, however, I did get in a little skiing, which is a first for me and is an activity I've absolutely fallen in love with! Anyway, on with the post, which is a review of my year. 2017 has been a crappy year for many people, for lots of different reasons. Clearly, there is a lot going on in the world and at the moment little of it is good, however, from a purely personal level, 2017 has been a fairly good one for me... I haven't been as productive as I would have liked this year. For example, I was supposed to finish the second book in my What Happens on Campus Series, Flirt, and would have liked to have finished Raw, the psychological thriller I've been working on, but unfortunately they are both still unfinished. I've also been unsuccessful in finding a home for the erotic short story I wrote early in the year, The Making of Lilith. However, there is a reason for this unproductively. In May I randomly applied for a job that I never thought I'd get, by September I had moved from the UK to Tokyo. Now, it isn't a dream job, it has nothing to do with writing, however, I get to live in Tokyo, which is exciting and fun and, although I desperately miss my family, it's not a move I regret making.Successes!
Despite not completing anything in 2017, besides short stories, I've had several publications. Several of my short stories were published by JEA Publishing in various anthologies and A Tangled Web and Red Days were both released to the world and have received great reviews. Red Days even won the Book Excellence Awards in the Current Events Category, which is a huge success since the Taiji Dolphin Slaughter, which this book is about, is something I feel strongly about and wish more people knew of...
A Tangled Web also did very well in the awards circuits. Although it didn't win any, it was nominated as a finalist in the Readers Favorite Book Awards, the Next Generation Indie Book Awards, The IAN Book of the Year Awards and was an Official Selection in the New Apple Book Awards.I've also been more productive in marketing my books this year and have had many great reviews and done lots of interviews, my favourite of which was talking about my favourite reads with Ryan Lieske on his blog -- which you can read HERE!So, what are my plans for 2018?In 2018 I plan to continue the momentum with marketing and to finish Flirt and Raw early in the year, so that I can hopefully publish them by the summer, in time for the next round of awards.In 2017 I wrote a lot of short stories, however, I'm putting that on the back burner for 2018. I don't actually like writing (or reading) sort stories and basically wrote them for the exposure it would give me as an author to appear in so many anthologies, however, unlike my full length novels, my short stories usually have a dark twist and tend toward horror, which isn't actually the audience my books cater to, though I do have some ideas for horror novels in the future! Therefore, I feel it's in my best interest to just stick to my full-length projects this year. Now, the one you've all been waiting for... What did I read in 2017?Since this is primarily a book blog, that is a good question! If you've been following my blog you'll know that this year I started choosing a book of the month and a cover of the month, so here's a recap... *These aren't necessarily books published in 2017, they're just books I read in 2017*Book of the MonthCover of the Month
But out of these, which was my favourite, I hear you asking... Well, that is impossible for me to say. I chose my covers of the months for lots of different reasons, maybe it was the colour, the style, that it was simple, or complex... and that's also how I chose my favourite books of the month, they are books that spoke to me at that time and which I really enjoyed for various reasons, for example, you can't compare A Dog's Purpose, or Fangirl, to The Iliad and yet, they are all books I chose for my favourite books of the month... However, I'll try... My 2017 Book Awards! *Not all these books were Books of the Month**Also, no book has been allowed to appear twice*
Best Non-Fiction - A World Without Bees Allison Benjamin and Brian McCallumBest Romance - Wicked Abyss Kresley Cole Best YA - Cress Marissa Meyer Best Series - Captive Prince Series C.S. Pacat Best Self-published Book - Fifteen Seconds of Normal Alex Marestaing Best Re-read - The Iliad Homer 
Best Classic - Jane Eyre Charlotte Bronte Most Unique - The Bees Laline Paull Most Heart Warming - A Dog's Purpose W. Bruce Cameron Most Unexpected - Animal Farm George Orwell Happy New Year!Lets make 2018 a great one!
JK Rowling Is A Wizard
JK Rowling Is A Wizard, by Alex C. McDonald 
Blurb:Harry Potter took the world by storm 20 years ago and like many avid young readers Sean Morris was drawn into the world of magic and wizards. Hogwarts became his universe, until years of bullying for being a Potterhead finally ended in a gang violently beating it out of him. Years later working a dead end job in the world of mediocrity, he loses everything. In an attempt to revisit the heroes of his childhood he reluctantly goes to a book signing of his idol, J K Rowling. There he witnesses something that changes his life forever. Could this encounter finally lead him into the magical reality he has been waiting his whole life for? Or is the world of his dreams too good to be true? Enter a world where fiction meets reality and start the path of becoming a Wizard. Or Witch. Or Warlock. Or whatever you want to call yourself.So I loved the idea of this book and it would be a great read for people who like comedy and spoofs, for me I thought the humour went too far in to ridiculous occasionally but that's just me because I'm fussy when it comes to comedy! However, this wasn't what put me off this book. Although I did enjoy the story and I thought it was very clever and inventive, I just thought it needed a really good edit. There were lots of mistakes, which I usually don't comment on because I know how hard it is to edit when your a self-published author (real editors cost a bomb) but that coupled with sentences that I just wanted to cut in half and simplify to make the story move faster did start to bug me. Don't get me wrong, like I said this is a good book, but occasionally the writing is too long winded and clumsy. It just needs a few really good rounds of editing in my opinion, preferably done by someone who is British. I'm not sure if this author is English, but I am and although the characters did sound English it was often too much and I found myself raising my eyebrows since I have never heard anyone in England sound like that unless they were acting... As always, this is just my opinion, don't let me discourage you from reading it yourself and forming your own opinion.
Blurb:Harry Potter took the world by storm 20 years ago and like many avid young readers Sean Morris was drawn into the world of magic and wizards. Hogwarts became his universe, until years of bullying for being a Potterhead finally ended in a gang violently beating it out of him. Years later working a dead end job in the world of mediocrity, he loses everything. In an attempt to revisit the heroes of his childhood he reluctantly goes to a book signing of his idol, J K Rowling. There he witnesses something that changes his life forever. Could this encounter finally lead him into the magical reality he has been waiting his whole life for? Or is the world of his dreams too good to be true? Enter a world where fiction meets reality and start the path of becoming a Wizard. Or Witch. Or Warlock. Or whatever you want to call yourself.So I loved the idea of this book and it would be a great read for people who like comedy and spoofs, for me I thought the humour went too far in to ridiculous occasionally but that's just me because I'm fussy when it comes to comedy! However, this wasn't what put me off this book. Although I did enjoy the story and I thought it was very clever and inventive, I just thought it needed a really good edit. There were lots of mistakes, which I usually don't comment on because I know how hard it is to edit when your a self-published author (real editors cost a bomb) but that coupled with sentences that I just wanted to cut in half and simplify to make the story move faster did start to bug me. Don't get me wrong, like I said this is a good book, but occasionally the writing is too long winded and clumsy. It just needs a few really good rounds of editing in my opinion, preferably done by someone who is British. I'm not sure if this author is English, but I am and although the characters did sound English it was often too much and I found myself raising my eyebrows since I have never heard anyone in England sound like that unless they were acting... As always, this is just my opinion, don't let me discourage you from reading it yourself and forming your own opinion.
December 21, 2017
When Breath Becomes Air
When Breath Becomes Air, by Paul Kalanithi Blurb:At the age of thirty-six, on the verge of completing a decade’s training as a neurosurgeon, Paul Kalanithi was diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer. One day he was a doctor treating the dying, the next he was a patient struggling to live. When Breath Becomes Air chronicles Kalanithi’s transformation from a medical student asking what makes a virtuous and meaningful life into a neurosurgeon working in the core of human identity – the brain – and finally into a patient and a new father. What makes life worth living in the face of death? What do you do when when life is catastrophically interrupted? What does it mean to have a child as your own life fades away? Paul Kalanithi died while working on this profoundly moving book, yet his words live on as a guide to us all. When Breath Becomes Air is a life-affirming reflection on facing our mortality and on the relationship between doctor and patient, from a gifted writer who became both.This was a very interesting book. When you read the blurb the first thing that probably comes to mind is that this is going to be a sad book and it is in part... There's nothing happy about a young man dying of cancer, however, Paul tells his story in a rather detached tone and although it was, of course, sad, it was his wife's part at the back which really made me tear up and was, I thought, the best part of the book, although none of it was bad and it was a solid 4 star read for me. I can understand why he sounds this way, it must be amazingly hard to write about your own death, but I just felt like there were parts of the story that needed to be told and weren't. Maybe they were too painful to write down, however, you do also have to take into consideration that Paul died before seeing his work published, in fact, he died without fully finishing it, therefore, even if he'd wanted to do the edits and re-writes that other authors do, he never got the change... Despite that, I really enjoyed this book - if enjoyed is the right word? It is so much more than the tale of a dying man, it is also a tale of finding out what's really important to you. Also, it's interesting to learn about Paul's journey to becoming a neurosurgeon when he originally wanted to become a writer, and about the life of a doctor in his field. The writing was simple and there are lines which are beautifully poetic.My favourite quotes from 'When Breath Becomes Air':'What makes life meaningful enough to go on living?' 'When there's no place for the scalpel, words are the surgeon's only tool.' '... in taking up another cross, one must sometimes get crushed by the weight.' 'How little do doctors understand the hell through which we put patients.' 'The secret is to know that the deck is stacked, that you will lose, that your hands or judgement will slip, and yet still struggle to win for your patients.' 'My carefully planned and hard-won future no longer existed.' 'If we're the best at this, that means it doesn't get any better than this.' '... even if I'm dying, until I actually die, I am still living.' 'What happened to Paul was tragic, but he was not a tragedy.''It never occurred to me that you could love someone the same way after he was gone...'
Blurb:At the age of thirty-six, on the verge of completing a decade’s training as a neurosurgeon, Paul Kalanithi was diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer. One day he was a doctor treating the dying, the next he was a patient struggling to live. When Breath Becomes Air chronicles Kalanithi’s transformation from a medical student asking what makes a virtuous and meaningful life into a neurosurgeon working in the core of human identity – the brain – and finally into a patient and a new father. What makes life worth living in the face of death? What do you do when when life is catastrophically interrupted? What does it mean to have a child as your own life fades away? Paul Kalanithi died while working on this profoundly moving book, yet his words live on as a guide to us all. When Breath Becomes Air is a life-affirming reflection on facing our mortality and on the relationship between doctor and patient, from a gifted writer who became both.This was a very interesting book. When you read the blurb the first thing that probably comes to mind is that this is going to be a sad book and it is in part... There's nothing happy about a young man dying of cancer, however, Paul tells his story in a rather detached tone and although it was, of course, sad, it was his wife's part at the back which really made me tear up and was, I thought, the best part of the book, although none of it was bad and it was a solid 4 star read for me. I can understand why he sounds this way, it must be amazingly hard to write about your own death, but I just felt like there were parts of the story that needed to be told and weren't. Maybe they were too painful to write down, however, you do also have to take into consideration that Paul died before seeing his work published, in fact, he died without fully finishing it, therefore, even if he'd wanted to do the edits and re-writes that other authors do, he never got the change... Despite that, I really enjoyed this book - if enjoyed is the right word? It is so much more than the tale of a dying man, it is also a tale of finding out what's really important to you. Also, it's interesting to learn about Paul's journey to becoming a neurosurgeon when he originally wanted to become a writer, and about the life of a doctor in his field. The writing was simple and there are lines which are beautifully poetic.My favourite quotes from 'When Breath Becomes Air':'What makes life meaningful enough to go on living?' 'When there's no place for the scalpel, words are the surgeon's only tool.' '... in taking up another cross, one must sometimes get crushed by the weight.' 'How little do doctors understand the hell through which we put patients.' 'The secret is to know that the deck is stacked, that you will lose, that your hands or judgement will slip, and yet still struggle to win for your patients.' 'My carefully planned and hard-won future no longer existed.' 'If we're the best at this, that means it doesn't get any better than this.' '... even if I'm dying, until I actually die, I am still living.' 'What happened to Paul was tragic, but he was not a tragedy.''It never occurred to me that you could love someone the same way after he was gone...'
December 15, 2017
Thirteen Reasons Why
Thirteen Reasons Why, by Jay Asher
Blurb: You can't stop the future. You can't rewind the past. The only way to learn the secret. . . is to press play. Clay Jensen doesn't want anything to do with the tapes Hannah Baker made. Hannah is dead. Her secrets should be buried with her. Then Hannah's voice tells Clay that his name is on her tapes-- and that he is, in some way, responsible for her death. All through the night, Clay keeps listening. He follows Hannah's recorded words throughout his small town. . . . . .and what he discovers changes his life forever. Okay, so I'll start with what I liked before going off on one about all the things I didn't like. Firstly, it was nicely written, it was easy to read and after a long day at work it wasn't a book I had to think too much about. Second, I liked the idea of Hannah's story being told through tapes, I thought it was a unique way of telling Hannah's side of things. Third, I liked that they changed the ending, instead of going with the original (which you could read at the back of the version I brought), since it felt more realistic to me. Fourth, it is a good book to teach people that even the little things they do can be hurtful, people (all people, not just teenagers), need to be more aware of their actions. Words hurt, being laughed at hurts, rumours hurt. It costs nothing to be nice to people, even if you're not friends with them. Finally, it addresses a topic which isn't addressed enough in teen fiction...Now, the problems I had... Like I said above, the fact that it addresses teen suicide is a good thing, young people need to know it's okay to talk about suicidal feelings and depression and to feel that they are represented in literature, but I just felt like Hannah's suicide was glorified in a way. She almost like an avenging angel going after the people who hurt and humiliated her through her tapes, but at the end of the day she is dead and they may be sorry for a time, but they will keep on living and get past it all, whether they deserve to or not... Which brings me to my next point, the 13 people on the tapes commit varying 'crimes' against Hannah, ranging from a friendship that fell apart, to rape. If I were one of the people who'd committed a lesser 'crime', like putting her name on a list or stealing her encouraging notes, I would have faced a little embarrassment to have the tapes exposed and the real criminals dealt with - and don't think I'm saying things like grabbing a girls arse, or creating nasty rumours are right, like it's explained in this book, it's all a snowball effect, but still, they're not as bad as rape, or allowing a rape to happen, in my opinion.Then there's Hannah. Throughout the book, I felt sorry for her and could sympathise with her, yet (and here's a bit of stereotyping which I'm very sorry about, but this is just my personal opinion) she never sounded to me like someone who would commit suicide. Sure, she sounded angry and hurt and depressed at times, but I just couldn't connect the girl who committed suicide to the girl who also wanted revenge on all the people who'd led to it. I almost expected Hannah to turn up in the end chapter and point at everyone, asking 'Do you feel like shit now?' And then there was the part where she sat in a cupboard and did nothing as someone who used to be her friend was raped. It's bad enough letting anyone get raped when you could stop it, but it's even worse when this is someone she had called a friend and earlier in the tapes had accused her of leading to her suicide because they'd drifted apart and had 'boy-troubles'. Fair enough, she's drunk and scared, that's at least a reason as to why she doesn't do anything then and there (thought to my mind still not a good reason), but even later she does nothing. She spend the whole book saying how people have done her wrong, and yes they have and it's awful to have to go through school like that, but then she show no sympathy for Jessica and very little guilt over doing nothing, then she blames her for her suicide. Personally, I would have through the guilt would have been a better reason for committing suicide than anything else... I suppose this books emphasises that it can be loads of little things which add up and lead to suicide and it's not always something big and life altering that leads to it and I know everyone feels things differently and is effected by different things but I just couldn't help but feel like Hannah's reasons for ending her life were lacklustre. School ends, you move on, move away, everyone grows up. I felt like there should have been more empasise on this, on the fact that, however bad it is, pain is temporary. Sure, I want teenagers who are being bullied to know that it's not right and it's not fair, but I also don't want them thinking suicide is a good way out. I felt like there was so much emphasis on why Hannah committed suicide (which is a good point and lesson for people), but there wasn't enough talk about her other options. My favourite quotes from 'Thirteen Reasons Why': 'When you try rescuing someone and discover they can't be reached, why would you ever throw that back in their face?' 'I stopped writing in my notebook when I stopped wanting to know myself anymore.' 'When you mess with one part of a persons life, you're messing with their entire life.'
Blurb: You can't stop the future. You can't rewind the past. The only way to learn the secret. . . is to press play. Clay Jensen doesn't want anything to do with the tapes Hannah Baker made. Hannah is dead. Her secrets should be buried with her. Then Hannah's voice tells Clay that his name is on her tapes-- and that he is, in some way, responsible for her death. All through the night, Clay keeps listening. He follows Hannah's recorded words throughout his small town. . . . . .and what he discovers changes his life forever. Okay, so I'll start with what I liked before going off on one about all the things I didn't like. Firstly, it was nicely written, it was easy to read and after a long day at work it wasn't a book I had to think too much about. Second, I liked the idea of Hannah's story being told through tapes, I thought it was a unique way of telling Hannah's side of things. Third, I liked that they changed the ending, instead of going with the original (which you could read at the back of the version I brought), since it felt more realistic to me. Fourth, it is a good book to teach people that even the little things they do can be hurtful, people (all people, not just teenagers), need to be more aware of their actions. Words hurt, being laughed at hurts, rumours hurt. It costs nothing to be nice to people, even if you're not friends with them. Finally, it addresses a topic which isn't addressed enough in teen fiction...Now, the problems I had... Like I said above, the fact that it addresses teen suicide is a good thing, young people need to know it's okay to talk about suicidal feelings and depression and to feel that they are represented in literature, but I just felt like Hannah's suicide was glorified in a way. She almost like an avenging angel going after the people who hurt and humiliated her through her tapes, but at the end of the day she is dead and they may be sorry for a time, but they will keep on living and get past it all, whether they deserve to or not... Which brings me to my next point, the 13 people on the tapes commit varying 'crimes' against Hannah, ranging from a friendship that fell apart, to rape. If I were one of the people who'd committed a lesser 'crime', like putting her name on a list or stealing her encouraging notes, I would have faced a little embarrassment to have the tapes exposed and the real criminals dealt with - and don't think I'm saying things like grabbing a girls arse, or creating nasty rumours are right, like it's explained in this book, it's all a snowball effect, but still, they're not as bad as rape, or allowing a rape to happen, in my opinion.Then there's Hannah. Throughout the book, I felt sorry for her and could sympathise with her, yet (and here's a bit of stereotyping which I'm very sorry about, but this is just my personal opinion) she never sounded to me like someone who would commit suicide. Sure, she sounded angry and hurt and depressed at times, but I just couldn't connect the girl who committed suicide to the girl who also wanted revenge on all the people who'd led to it. I almost expected Hannah to turn up in the end chapter and point at everyone, asking 'Do you feel like shit now?' And then there was the part where she sat in a cupboard and did nothing as someone who used to be her friend was raped. It's bad enough letting anyone get raped when you could stop it, but it's even worse when this is someone she had called a friend and earlier in the tapes had accused her of leading to her suicide because they'd drifted apart and had 'boy-troubles'. Fair enough, she's drunk and scared, that's at least a reason as to why she doesn't do anything then and there (thought to my mind still not a good reason), but even later she does nothing. She spend the whole book saying how people have done her wrong, and yes they have and it's awful to have to go through school like that, but then she show no sympathy for Jessica and very little guilt over doing nothing, then she blames her for her suicide. Personally, I would have through the guilt would have been a better reason for committing suicide than anything else... I suppose this books emphasises that it can be loads of little things which add up and lead to suicide and it's not always something big and life altering that leads to it and I know everyone feels things differently and is effected by different things but I just couldn't help but feel like Hannah's reasons for ending her life were lacklustre. School ends, you move on, move away, everyone grows up. I felt like there should have been more empasise on this, on the fact that, however bad it is, pain is temporary. Sure, I want teenagers who are being bullied to know that it's not right and it's not fair, but I also don't want them thinking suicide is a good way out. I felt like there was so much emphasis on why Hannah committed suicide (which is a good point and lesson for people), but there wasn't enough talk about her other options. My favourite quotes from 'Thirteen Reasons Why': 'When you try rescuing someone and discover they can't be reached, why would you ever throw that back in their face?' 'I stopped writing in my notebook when I stopped wanting to know myself anymore.' 'When you mess with one part of a persons life, you're messing with their entire life.'
December 13, 2017
Animal Farm
Animal Farm, by George Orwell Blurb: 'It is the history of a revolution that went wrong – and of the excellent excuses that were forthcoming at every step for the perversion of the original doctrine,' wrote Orwell for the first edition of Animal Farm in 1945. Orwell wrote the novel at the end of 1943, but it almost remained unpublished. Its savage attack on Stalin, at that time Britain's ally, led to the book being refused by publisher after publisher. Orwell's simple, tragic fable, telling what happens when the animals drive out Mr Jones and attempt to run the farm themselves, has since become a world famous classic.Why, why, why did it take me so long to get around to reading this brilliant book! I know a little about Russian history and the rule of Stalin, at least enough to see how this story correlates, but for those who have no knowledge of it, it's not necessary because it's still an interesting read about how easy it is to manipulate people into such regimes. It happens over time, small changes that spiral downwards, through repetition and using peoples own ignorance and uncertainty over them, even telling them what they remember is untrue.Basically these animal's rebellion against their careless farmer, which ends in him being overthrown, leads them from the frying into the fire when Napoleon (a pig) takes charge. Obviously, it's different to every read and what they believe and see in the text, but for me this is about so much more than a scathing story of Stalin's rule, it can be applied to so many dictatorship in the theory of how it happened, it is even has links to what is happening in the world right now. For me, I saw link to religion in the 7 commandments the animals have and how they are changed over time to suit various players agendas and how the animals blindly followed them. It mentions human greed and how we consume and use all of nature without though - which is leading to the destruction of our planet. Also, at face value, you could say it's about the treatment of animals and how they are often treated cruelly and overworked. I wish I'd studied this in school, I would have had a lot more to say about this book than I did about Of Mice and Men (which I didn't like at all, by the way). I'd definitely recommend giving it a read. Despite all the messages contained inside it, it's an easy read and is very short. It is also quite amusing at time, despite the seriousness of the subtext, such as when the pigs get drunk and then believe that Napoleon is dying when he is, in fact, hungover! 
My favourite quotes from 'Animal Farm':'Man is the only creature that consumes without producing.' '... he said, life would go on as it had always gone on - that is badly.''All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others.'
Blurb: 'It is the history of a revolution that went wrong – and of the excellent excuses that were forthcoming at every step for the perversion of the original doctrine,' wrote Orwell for the first edition of Animal Farm in 1945. Orwell wrote the novel at the end of 1943, but it almost remained unpublished. Its savage attack on Stalin, at that time Britain's ally, led to the book being refused by publisher after publisher. Orwell's simple, tragic fable, telling what happens when the animals drive out Mr Jones and attempt to run the farm themselves, has since become a world famous classic.Why, why, why did it take me so long to get around to reading this brilliant book! I know a little about Russian history and the rule of Stalin, at least enough to see how this story correlates, but for those who have no knowledge of it, it's not necessary because it's still an interesting read about how easy it is to manipulate people into such regimes. It happens over time, small changes that spiral downwards, through repetition and using peoples own ignorance and uncertainty over them, even telling them what they remember is untrue.Basically these animal's rebellion against their careless farmer, which ends in him being overthrown, leads them from the frying into the fire when Napoleon (a pig) takes charge. Obviously, it's different to every read and what they believe and see in the text, but for me this is about so much more than a scathing story of Stalin's rule, it can be applied to so many dictatorship in the theory of how it happened, it is even has links to what is happening in the world right now. For me, I saw link to religion in the 7 commandments the animals have and how they are changed over time to suit various players agendas and how the animals blindly followed them. It mentions human greed and how we consume and use all of nature without though - which is leading to the destruction of our planet. Also, at face value, you could say it's about the treatment of animals and how they are often treated cruelly and overworked. I wish I'd studied this in school, I would have had a lot more to say about this book than I did about Of Mice and Men (which I didn't like at all, by the way). I'd definitely recommend giving it a read. Despite all the messages contained inside it, it's an easy read and is very short. It is also quite amusing at time, despite the seriousness of the subtext, such as when the pigs get drunk and then believe that Napoleon is dying when he is, in fact, hungover! My favourite quotes from 'Animal Farm':'Man is the only creature that consumes without producing.' '... he said, life would go on as it had always gone on - that is badly.''All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others.'
December 11, 2017
Where She Went
Where She Went, (If I Stay, Book 2), by Gayle Forman 
Blurb:If you had a second chance at first love ...would you take it? It's been three years since Adam's love saved Mia after the accident that annihilated life as she knew it ...and three years since Mia walked out of Adam's life forever. Now living on opposite coasts, Mia is Julliard's rising star and Adam is LA tabloid fodder, thanks to his new rock star status and celebrity girlfriend. When Adam gets stuck in New York by himself, chance brings the couple together again, for one last night. As they explore the city that has become Mia's home, Adam and Mia revisit the past and open their hearts to the future - and each other. Told from Adam's point of view in the spare, powerful prose that defined If I Stay, Where She Went explores the devastation of grief, the promise of new hope, and the flame of rekindled romance.Okay... This is a hard book to rate. On the one hand, it wasn't badly written and was a nice, easy read. On the other, it seemed kind of pointless. I personally liked how If I Stay ended with a little uncertainty and although I liked that we got to see Adam's point of view in this book and the effect of Mia's families death on him. However, the characters didn't seem anything like the characters in If I Stay. Yes, a lot has happened to them and years have passed, but still, I thought they'd changed too drastically. Also, although I'm a romantic and I love a HEA, this one felt too convenient and just unrealistic.All in all, if you've read If I Stay and fancy giving this a try, I'd say give it a go, but if not I wouldn't bother... 
My favourite quotes from 'Where She Went': 'It wasn't what I wanted. But I couldn't have what I wanted.' 'I could practically see the resolve stiffening up her spine, vertebra by vertebra, the lines of loyalty being drawn.' 'And it's like the years between us are gone, and Mia had forgotten that she no longer has the right to get on my case.''It's a normal enough question.Yeah,but it's so normal that it's weird that I have to ask.' ' "You were so busy trying to be my saviour that you left me all alone," ' ' "... I needed someone to hate, and you're the one I love the most, so it fell on you." '
Blurb:If you had a second chance at first love ...would you take it? It's been three years since Adam's love saved Mia after the accident that annihilated life as she knew it ...and three years since Mia walked out of Adam's life forever. Now living on opposite coasts, Mia is Julliard's rising star and Adam is LA tabloid fodder, thanks to his new rock star status and celebrity girlfriend. When Adam gets stuck in New York by himself, chance brings the couple together again, for one last night. As they explore the city that has become Mia's home, Adam and Mia revisit the past and open their hearts to the future - and each other. Told from Adam's point of view in the spare, powerful prose that defined If I Stay, Where She Went explores the devastation of grief, the promise of new hope, and the flame of rekindled romance.Okay... This is a hard book to rate. On the one hand, it wasn't badly written and was a nice, easy read. On the other, it seemed kind of pointless. I personally liked how If I Stay ended with a little uncertainty and although I liked that we got to see Adam's point of view in this book and the effect of Mia's families death on him. However, the characters didn't seem anything like the characters in If I Stay. Yes, a lot has happened to them and years have passed, but still, I thought they'd changed too drastically. Also, although I'm a romantic and I love a HEA, this one felt too convenient and just unrealistic.All in all, if you've read If I Stay and fancy giving this a try, I'd say give it a go, but if not I wouldn't bother... My favourite quotes from 'Where She Went': 'It wasn't what I wanted. But I couldn't have what I wanted.' 'I could practically see the resolve stiffening up her spine, vertebra by vertebra, the lines of loyalty being drawn.' 'And it's like the years between us are gone, and Mia had forgotten that she no longer has the right to get on my case.''It's a normal enough question.Yeah,but it's so normal that it's weird that I have to ask.' ' "You were so busy trying to be my saviour that you left me all alone," ' ' "... I needed someone to hate, and you're the one I love the most, so it fell on you." '
December 6, 2017
Beautiful You
Beautiful You, by Chuck Palahniuk
Blurb:Penny Harrigan is a low-level associate in a big Manhattan law firm with an apartment in Queens and no love life at all. So it comes as a great shock when she finds herself invited to dinner by one C. Linus Maxwell, a software mega-billionaire and lover of the most gorgeous and accomplished women on earth. After dining at Manhattan's most exclusive restaurant, he whisks Penny off to a hotel suite in Paris, where he proceeds, notebook in hand, to bring her to previously undreamed-of heights of gratification for days on end. What's not to like? This: Penny discovers that she is a test subject for the final development of a line of feminine products to be marketed in a nationwide chain of boutiques called Beautiful You. So potent and effective are these devices that women by the millions line up outside the stores on opening day and then lock themselves in their room with them and stop coming out. Except for batteries. Maxwell's plan for battery-powered world domination must be stopped. But how?Umm... okay... So there were things I liked about this book, but those things didn't actually make me like it... Firstly, what I liked. This book was totally unashamed, it was brutal and horrible to read sometimes, but totally raw and honest, showing the darker side of humanity. The plot was interesting, if ridiculous, and I liked that there was a twist at the end. I could also appreciate that it was a metaphor for consumerism. Still, those points didn't actually make me enjoy the book. At first it was interesting but as the story progressed, I just fund it ridiculous. I think it was supposed to make a mockery of books like 50 Shades and Twilight, a parody of shorts, though not directly mocking them, but I just thought it took every point too far and made me think it was stupid.
My favourite quotes from 'Beautiful You':'Monique was a work friend, and that wasn't the same as a real friend.''The future had a way of breaking your heart if you expected too much.' 'She kept hoping that something would happen to rescue her from her own small-scale, predictable dreams.'
Blurb:Penny Harrigan is a low-level associate in a big Manhattan law firm with an apartment in Queens and no love life at all. So it comes as a great shock when she finds herself invited to dinner by one C. Linus Maxwell, a software mega-billionaire and lover of the most gorgeous and accomplished women on earth. After dining at Manhattan's most exclusive restaurant, he whisks Penny off to a hotel suite in Paris, where he proceeds, notebook in hand, to bring her to previously undreamed-of heights of gratification for days on end. What's not to like? This: Penny discovers that she is a test subject for the final development of a line of feminine products to be marketed in a nationwide chain of boutiques called Beautiful You. So potent and effective are these devices that women by the millions line up outside the stores on opening day and then lock themselves in their room with them and stop coming out. Except for batteries. Maxwell's plan for battery-powered world domination must be stopped. But how?Umm... okay... So there were things I liked about this book, but those things didn't actually make me like it... Firstly, what I liked. This book was totally unashamed, it was brutal and horrible to read sometimes, but totally raw and honest, showing the darker side of humanity. The plot was interesting, if ridiculous, and I liked that there was a twist at the end. I could also appreciate that it was a metaphor for consumerism. Still, those points didn't actually make me enjoy the book. At first it was interesting but as the story progressed, I just fund it ridiculous. I think it was supposed to make a mockery of books like 50 Shades and Twilight, a parody of shorts, though not directly mocking them, but I just thought it took every point too far and made me think it was stupid.My favourite quotes from 'Beautiful You':'Monique was a work friend, and that wasn't the same as a real friend.''The future had a way of breaking your heart if you expected too much.' 'She kept hoping that something would happen to rescue her from her own small-scale, predictable dreams.'
November 28, 2017
At Long Last
At Long Last: A Laurel Creek Romance, by W.S. Carmichael 
Blurb:Jenni Lynn Scott is a successful, single mother. She’s funny and independent, has a good relationship with her ex-husband and the greatest best friend a girl could ask for. So what if she’s a little lonely now and then? She loves her life – mostly. Dylan Montgomery enjoys his carefree life, drifting from town to town. He has a thriving business flipping houses, and can’t imagine being tied down to one place. Jenni Lynn hasn’t seen or heard from Dylan in fifteen years. They were best friends until the devastating destruction of his family forced him to leave town. He cut off all contact without explanation or apology. Naturally, she’s shocked (and maybe just a little angry) when he returns to Laurel Creek to help care for his grandmother. She’s even more shocked to discover the tall, lanky boy she remembers has transformed into one of the sexiest men she’s ever seen. Reconnecting with Jenni Lynn has been both a blessing and a curse. A blessing, because Dylan is finally able to bring closure to his greatest regret - abandoning Jenni Lynn. A curse, because while they’ve been rekindling their friendship, she’s ignited a fiery passion inside of Dylan that is quickly burning out of control. I'm so torn as I write this review. On the one hand, this is a light, fun, cute romance with the added bonus of some really well written sex scenes. On the other, I just don't like storylines where the plot hinges on a misunderstanding blown out of proportion as the main drama... I was loving this book and totally hooked - the writing is engaging and the characters where relatable - until the big misunderstanding. From then on I sort of lost interest for a while before I was able to get back into it. However, it was still a good story and I did enjoy reading it - I'm also eager to read Emma's story, because she really interested me.My favourite quotes from 'At Long Last':'... rather grieve a love lost than to never have had him.' 'I had Jase and my priorities changed. Making a name for myself wasn't as important as making a good life for him.''As her best friend, it's my job to walk the fine line of giving her my honest opinion while being supportive, even if I one hundred percent, wholeheartedly disagree with her decisions.'
Blurb:Jenni Lynn Scott is a successful, single mother. She’s funny and independent, has a good relationship with her ex-husband and the greatest best friend a girl could ask for. So what if she’s a little lonely now and then? She loves her life – mostly. Dylan Montgomery enjoys his carefree life, drifting from town to town. He has a thriving business flipping houses, and can’t imagine being tied down to one place. Jenni Lynn hasn’t seen or heard from Dylan in fifteen years. They were best friends until the devastating destruction of his family forced him to leave town. He cut off all contact without explanation or apology. Naturally, she’s shocked (and maybe just a little angry) when he returns to Laurel Creek to help care for his grandmother. She’s even more shocked to discover the tall, lanky boy she remembers has transformed into one of the sexiest men she’s ever seen. Reconnecting with Jenni Lynn has been both a blessing and a curse. A blessing, because Dylan is finally able to bring closure to his greatest regret - abandoning Jenni Lynn. A curse, because while they’ve been rekindling their friendship, she’s ignited a fiery passion inside of Dylan that is quickly burning out of control. I'm so torn as I write this review. On the one hand, this is a light, fun, cute romance with the added bonus of some really well written sex scenes. On the other, I just don't like storylines where the plot hinges on a misunderstanding blown out of proportion as the main drama... I was loving this book and totally hooked - the writing is engaging and the characters where relatable - until the big misunderstanding. From then on I sort of lost interest for a while before I was able to get back into it. However, it was still a good story and I did enjoy reading it - I'm also eager to read Emma's story, because she really interested me.My favourite quotes from 'At Long Last':'... rather grieve a love lost than to never have had him.' 'I had Jase and my priorities changed. Making a name for myself wasn't as important as making a good life for him.''As her best friend, it's my job to walk the fine line of giving her my honest opinion while being supportive, even if I one hundred percent, wholeheartedly disagree with her decisions.'
November 26, 2017
Flowers for Algernon
Flowers for Algernon, by Daniel Keyes 
Blurb:The story of a mentally disabled man whose experimental quest for intelligence mirrors that of Algernon, an extraordinary lab mouse. In diary entries, Charlie tells how a brain operation increases his IQ and changes his life. As the experimental procedure takes effect, Charlie's intelligence expands until it surpasses that of the doctors who engineered his metamorphosis. The experiment seems to be a scientific breakthrough of paramount importance--until Algernon begins his sudden, unexpected deterioration. Will the same happen to Charlie?First of all, I want to say that I heard about this book from reading Everything, Everything. So when I picked it up I was expecting something light, written for YA, basically a light read, but this book turned out to be anything but. After the first few pages I was hooked. It was deep and emotionally and I loved the psychology of it - I've actually ordered a copy for a friend of mine who's studying to be a psychologist because although it's fiction the feelings in it are very much real. I loved Charlie, felt sorry for him and understood him, even when he was being an arse; all his emotions were just so real and understandable in his situation. I wanted to slap his parents, sister and most of the bakery workers - the worst thing is there are people in the world who act like this and I just can't understand what makes people think they have the right to be so cruel to other. At first the writing put me off, but I quickly got used to it as I was drawn into the story and ended up really enjoying that it was written in the form of 'Progress Reports' and that it had wrong spellings and such showing Charlie's learning progress and growing/decreasing intelligence. I don't want to say too much about the story line, for a brief idea you can just read the blurb, but I thought it was all very clever and I liked that it was just believable enough that it didn't feel like a sci-fi, despite the vaguely sci-fi nature of the plot. This is a tale of hope, love, truth and acceptance. There is so much more to it than the main story line and I would strongly recommend it to anyone who asks.My favourite quotes from 'Flowers for Algernon':'Now I understand one of the important reasons for going to college and getting an education is to learn that the things you've believed all your life aren't true, and that nothing is what it appears to be.' '... he's just an ordinary man trying to do a great man's work, while the great men are all busy making bombs.' ' "I've heard that one from me.""But never from me." ''She's become too possessive and resentful of my work. I think she could tolerate another woman, but not this complete absorption in something she can't follow.' 'Is it because they are afraid of me? Or is it that deep down they don't care and I feel the same about them?' 'She was back twenty-five years earlier when I was her little Charlie and she was willing to fight for my place in the world.'
Blurb:The story of a mentally disabled man whose experimental quest for intelligence mirrors that of Algernon, an extraordinary lab mouse. In diary entries, Charlie tells how a brain operation increases his IQ and changes his life. As the experimental procedure takes effect, Charlie's intelligence expands until it surpasses that of the doctors who engineered his metamorphosis. The experiment seems to be a scientific breakthrough of paramount importance--until Algernon begins his sudden, unexpected deterioration. Will the same happen to Charlie?First of all, I want to say that I heard about this book from reading Everything, Everything. So when I picked it up I was expecting something light, written for YA, basically a light read, but this book turned out to be anything but. After the first few pages I was hooked. It was deep and emotionally and I loved the psychology of it - I've actually ordered a copy for a friend of mine who's studying to be a psychologist because although it's fiction the feelings in it are very much real. I loved Charlie, felt sorry for him and understood him, even when he was being an arse; all his emotions were just so real and understandable in his situation. I wanted to slap his parents, sister and most of the bakery workers - the worst thing is there are people in the world who act like this and I just can't understand what makes people think they have the right to be so cruel to other. At first the writing put me off, but I quickly got used to it as I was drawn into the story and ended up really enjoying that it was written in the form of 'Progress Reports' and that it had wrong spellings and such showing Charlie's learning progress and growing/decreasing intelligence. I don't want to say too much about the story line, for a brief idea you can just read the blurb, but I thought it was all very clever and I liked that it was just believable enough that it didn't feel like a sci-fi, despite the vaguely sci-fi nature of the plot. This is a tale of hope, love, truth and acceptance. There is so much more to it than the main story line and I would strongly recommend it to anyone who asks.My favourite quotes from 'Flowers for Algernon':'Now I understand one of the important reasons for going to college and getting an education is to learn that the things you've believed all your life aren't true, and that nothing is what it appears to be.' '... he's just an ordinary man trying to do a great man's work, while the great men are all busy making bombs.' ' "I've heard that one from me.""But never from me." ''She's become too possessive and resentful of my work. I think she could tolerate another woman, but not this complete absorption in something she can't follow.' 'Is it because they are afraid of me? Or is it that deep down they don't care and I feel the same about them?' 'She was back twenty-five years earlier when I was her little Charlie and she was willing to fight for my place in the world.'
