Book Review: Emma

Title: Emma
Author: Jane Austen
Published: Sometime in 1815
Series or Standalone: Standalone
Hardback or Paperback: Paperback
Acquired: Bought used from a thrift store
Pages: 474
Rating: 5 stars




Summary:
I never have been in love; it is not my way, or my nature; and I do not think I ever shall.'
Beautiful, clever, rich - and single - Emma Woodhouse is perfectly content with her life and sees no need for either love or marriage. Nothing, however, delights her more than interfering in the romantic lives of others. But when she ignores the warnings of her good friend Mr. Knightley and attempts to arrange a suitable match for her protegee Harriet Smith, her carefully laid plans soon unravel and have consequences that she never expected. With its imperfect but charming heroine and its witty and subtle exploration of relationships, Emma is often seen as Jane Austen's most flawless work.

Review:
I will be very upfront and honest when I say that the writing style took a while to get used to. When I read the first 50 pages it felt like I was just drowning in a sea of words, however it became easier as I progressed. I feel that writers like Dickens, Shakespeare, Austen, Bronte, etc. are people that you either adore and cannot stand. There is not a lot of middle ground with these writers. Are they wordy? yes! Does their signature style take a minute to adjust to? yes! That is because you do not talk like that in modern day language. No one would stick around to hear someone lament for a long period of time over how pretty the sunset is or take a full paragraph to say what could be condensed into one sentence. That is the beauty of these types of writers though is that they do say things in a way that deviates from the norm of everyday speech. I am not saying that you have to pretend this style of writing if you really do not care for it but I still feel like classics are worth reading because they are considered a classic for a reason. I for one want to find out what I can learn from them.

I went into this book knowing that Emma was meant to be a satire. A young women who defies social norms by making it known that she never intends to marry but has no problem meddling in the love affairs of others, particularly her good friend Harriet Smith. Emma is rich, slightly spoiled, highly judgmental, and also particularly good hearted. It is this good nature that truly just wants to see her friend happy and that cares for others who are not on her level of social status. As for some of her views on the world one must remember that this book was written and published in the 1800's when social status and wealth were of the upmost importance. If one was in good social standing by birth the options were limitless but if they were not in good status by birth then you had better make some friends in high places. That is the social undertone in the book that I feel can often be missed if you get bogged down in the shallow nature of our main character. However, back then that is what was expected of women. They should get married, have children, and take care of the estate. One must remember to judge the book based on the social context of when it was written. I am pretty sure that Jane Austen would have burned at the stake if she had taken too much liberty with her characters.

Personally I absolutely loved the book! The character growth that is achieved by Emma is slightly astounding. In the beginning she is blind to her own feelings about certain people but through the course of the book she begins to change her perception of herself and of the people who surround her. I think that the fact that the character has some flaws and that she is made acutely aware of them is a breath of fresh air. Often in novels a character has a flaw but everyone around them as well as themselves are either blind to them or just simply overlook them. The fact that Mr. Knightley continually calls her out when her flaws show and eventually makes her see that her actions do in fact have consequences just made my heart smile.

Though the writing style was tough I definitely see the merit of this book and hope to pick up more by Austen and others with the same style of writing. Let me know if you are fan of wordy novels or if you cannot stand them.

Happy Reading!

My Version of a June TBR

I have never been one for making a list of books that I want to read during the month, mainly because my tastes change and sometimes I am just not in the mood to read the books that I picked out.

I saw a couple of booktubers who have the same sentiments and will just pick a few bookish things that they want to accomplish during their month. So, I figured that was a good thing to do because it still leaves me room to choose based on my mood.

Here are the 4 things that I want to do during the month of June:

1) Read a book by an author that I have never read before

2) Finish a series

3) Read a book that has been on my shelf for at least a year (this may be a monthly challenge)

4) Read a book that scares me (whether that be because of content, size, etc.)

There ya go! Those are the 4 things that I want to accomplish! Wish me luck.  

Happy Reading!

Top Ten Books That I Want to be Seen Made Into Movies/TV Shows

I am doing this as my weekly link-up with the lovely ladies over at The Broke and the Bookish who host this little get together.

This week the topic is what books do we want to be seen made into TV shows or movies. Personally I do not think that books really make great movies/TV shows and here is why. I feel that a movie does not always have the ability to capture all of the awesomeness that is in the book and a TV show will often embellish just a little bit too much. So my list is going to be books that I believe should be movies because I would rather lose a few things than have so much added that it completely changes the storyline (I am looking at you Vampire Diaries!).

1) Catherine by April Lindner
Catherine is tired of struggling musicians befriending her just so they can get a gig at her Dad’s famous Manhattan club, The Underground. Then she meets mysterious Hence, an unbelievably passionate and talented musician on the brink of success. As their relationship grows, both are swept away in a fiery romance. But when their love is tested by a cruel whim of fate, will pride keep them apart?

Chelsea has always believed that her mom died of a sudden illness, until she finds a letter her dad has kept from her for years—a letter from her mom, Catherine, who didn’t die: She disappeared. Driven by unanswered questions, Chelsea sets out to look for her—starting with the return address on the letter: The Underground.

Told in two voices, twenty years apart, Catherine interweaves a timeless forbidden romance with a compelling modern mystery.

2) The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called "Le Cirque des Reves," and it is only open at night.

But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands.

True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus performers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead.

3) Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee.

Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.

Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha . . . and the secrets of her heart.

Shadow and Bone is the first installment in Leigh Bardugo's Grisha Trilogy.

4) The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken
When Ruby woke up on her tenth birthday, something about her had changed. Something alarming enough to make her parents lock her in the garage and call the police. Something that gets her sent to Thurmond, a brutal government “rehabilitation camp.” She might have survived the mysterious disease that’s killed most of America’s children, but she and the others have emerged with something far worse: frightening abilities they cannot control.

Now sixteen, Ruby is one of the dangerous ones.

When the truth comes out, Ruby barely escapes Thurmond with her life. Now she’s on the run, desperate to find the one safe haven left for kids like her—East River. She joins a group of kids who escaped their own camp. Liam, their brave leader, is falling hard for Ruby. But no matter how much she aches for him, Ruby can’t risk getting close. Not after what happened to her parents.

When they arrive at East River, nothing is as it seems, least of all its mysterious leader. But there are other forces at work, people who will stop at nothing to use Ruby in their fight against the government. Ruby will be faced with a terrible choice, one that may mean giving up her only chance at a life worth living.

5) Saint Maybe by Anne Tyler
In 1965, the happy Bedloe family is living an ideal, apple-pie existence in Baltimore.  Then, in the blink of an eye, a single tragic event occurs that will transform their lives forever--particularly that of seventeen-year-old Ian Bedloe, the youngest son, who blames himself for the sudden "accidental" death of his older brother.

Depressed and depleted, Ian is almost crushed under the weight of an unbearable, secret guilt.  Then one crisp January evening, he catches sight of a window with glowing yellow neon, the CHURCH OF THE SECOND CHANCE.  He enters and soon discovers that forgiveness must be earned, through a bit of sacrifice and a lot of love...


6) Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant by Anne Tyler
Pearl Tull is nearing the end of her life but not of her memory. It was a Sunday night in 1944 when her husband left the little row house on Baltimore’s Calvert Street, abandoning Pearl to raise their three children alone: Jenny, high-spirited and determined, nurturing to strangers but distant to those she loves; the older son, Cody, a wild and incorrigible youth possessed by the lure of power and money; and sweet, clumsy Ezra, Pearl’s favorite, who never stops yearning for the perfect family that could never be his own.

Now Pearl and her three grown children have gathered together again–with anger, hope, and a beautiful, harsh, and dazzling story to tell.


7) The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
Four mothers, four daughters, four families whose histories shift with the four winds depending on who's "saying" the stories. In 1949 four Chinese women, recent immigrants to San Francisco, begin meeting to eat dim sum, play mahjong, and talk. United in shared unspeakable loss and hope, they call themselves the Joy Luck Club. Rather than sink into tragedy, they choose to gather to raise their spirits and money. "To despair was to wish back for something already lost. Or to prolong what was already unbearable." Forty years later the stories and history continue.With wit and sensitivity, Amy Tan examines the sometimes painful, often tender, and always deep connection between mothers and daughters. As each woman reveals her secrets, trying to unravel the truth about her life, the strings become more tangled, more entwined. Mothers boast or despair over daughters, and daughters roll their eyes even as they feel the inextricable tightening of their matriarchal ties. Tan is an astute storyteller, enticing readers to immerse themselves into these lives of complexity and mystery.

8) 1984 by George Orwell
While 1984 has come and gone, Orwell's narrative is more timely than ever. 1984 presents a "negative utopia", that is at once a startling and haunting vision of the world — so powerful that it's completely convincing from start to finish. No one can deny the power of this novel, its hold on the imaginations of entire generations of readers, or the resiliency of its admonitions — a legacy that seems to grow, not lessen, with the passage of time.






9) Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
Cath is a Simon Snow fan.

Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan...

But for Cath, being a fan is her life—and she’s really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it’s what got them through their mother leaving.

Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere.

Cath’s sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can’t let go. She doesn’t want to.

Now that they’re going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn’t want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She’s got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words... And she can’t stop worrying about her dad, who’s loving and fragile and has never really been alone.

For Cath, the question is: Can she do this?

10) Cinder by Marissa Meyer
Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl.

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.


Do you guys agree about not really being down with movie/TV adaptations of books or am I alone on this train? Let me know down in the comments.

Happy Reading!

May Wrap-up

This is just a post where I share all of the books that I have read over the course of the month because some do not make it to the blog to be reviewed:

3 stars:
1) The Magicians by Lev Grossman

4 stars:
2) The Selection by Kierra Cass
3) The Elite by Kierra Cass
4) Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi

4.5 stars:
5) The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith
6) Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
7) Emma by Jane Austen

5 stars
8) A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness (read the full review here)
9) The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night time by Mark Haddon
10) Cress by Marissa Meyer
11) The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken
12) Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo
13) Things Fall Apart by Chinau Achebe (read the full review here)

I will be reviewing the books that are part of a series as a whole because I just feel that is the best way to do things. I feel that I will more to say on the subject matter of whether I liked the book if I can compare it to how the story progresses and whether or not the character development is up to my standards.

In June I will try to finish some series that I currently own but I do not like to make a TBR for the month because I just read what and when I feel like it.

Happy Reading!

Book Review: A Monster Calls

Title: A Monster Calls
Author: Patrick Ness
Published: March 12, 2013
Series or Standalone: Standalone
Hardback or Paperback: Paperback
Acquired: Bought used with my own money
Pages: 206
Rating: 5 stars





Summary:
An unflinching, darkly funny, and deeply moving story of a boy, his seriously ill mother, and an unexpected monstrous visitor.

At seven minutes past midnight, thirteen-year-old Conor wakes to find a monster outside his bedroom window. But it isn't the monster Conor's been expecting-- he's been expecting the one from his nightmare, the nightmare he's had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments. The monster in his backyard is different. It's ancient. And wild. And it wants something from Conor. Something terrible and dangerous. It wants the truth. From the final idea of award-winning author Siobhan Dowd-- whose premature death from cancer prevented her from writing it herself-- Patrick Ness has spun a haunting and darkly funny novel of mischief, loss, and monsters both real and imagined.

Review:
I absolutely adored the book! It is one of the few books that has actually reduced me to a puddle of tears while simultaneously ripping my heart out to tear it into a thousand pieces. Only put it back together at the very end of the story. I thought about this book for so long after I read it and it still can bring tears to my eyes when I think about certain parts. I am not usually a very emotional person so this kind of reaction was not exactly expected.

The story just grips you from the very beginning and never lets you go. It is one of the most beautiful and compelling storylines that I have ever encountered and I am just mad that I put off reading the book for so long. It has been sitting on my shelves just waiting for me to get to it for over a year now. I read the entire book in one sitting and had trouble putting it down to perform basic functions such as breathing and eating. I did have to stop at one part though and come back to it later (my roommates came home and I did not want to have to explain why I was sobbing like a baby over a book).

The characters were easy to relate to, which is something that I have found is extremely important to me when reading a book. I could definitely root for the home team so to speak and all I wanted was for both the mom and son to finally be healed by whichever method the author saw fit. I loved the character development that takes place with Conner, our main character. He starts off feeling angry and alone because his entire world has been turned upside down by his mom's illness. It is easy to feel sorry for him and to understand where his anger and frustration come from. Throughout the book we see him come to terms with the gravity of the situation and search for the ultimate healing source: acceptance and forgiveness.

This book does deal with some very difficult subjects like cancer, grief, bullying, and forgiveness. Cancer is a subject that always hits close to home for me and I am sure a lot of people can relate. We have all known someone who has been affected by cancer which is a disease that leaves devastation in its wake for both the patient and the family members. Grief is also a subject that many people can relate to because everyone has dealt with things in their life that have caused them immense pain and you know that those wounds do not heal easily. Perhaps the most difficult subject touched upon is the concept of forgiveness. I know that we all struggle with the ability to forgive people who have hurt us and situations that are out of our control. I know that there are things in my life which I have had to consciously say that I am no longer going to carry their weight around with me and I need to let this pain go. That is the main thing that Conner is struggling with because he has carried the weight of the pain that his parent's splitting up and his mother's illness have caused him for so long that he has forgotten what it feels like to be free.

I highly recommend this book because not only is the writing absolute perfection but the illustrations that accompany it are breathtaking. In short this is perhaps the best book that I have read this year!

Happy Reading!

WWW Wednesday May 27 2015

This is a link-up that is hosted by Taking on a World of Words where we talk about the books that we all love.

1) What am I currently reading?

Emma by Jane Austen. I am enjoying it but it is taking me a lot longer than normal to read this. Mainly because of the wordiness that is Austen. It is a breath of fresh air in the sense that the book has substance and depth but it is hard for me to read large chunks. So I am spreading it out with a sprinkling of books that I can fly through.

2) What did you recently finish reading?

Things Fall Apart by Chinau Achebe. This was a five star read for me. It is slightly disturbing but I really enjoyed learning about another culture and people's views. You can read my review here.

3) What do you thing you'll read next?

The Secret History by Donna Tartt. I am mainly going to read this one because I went into Barnes and Noble to kill some time and low and behold I bought a book. At full price, so I need to read this one sooner rather than later. Also I have heard good things and I want to know what the hype is about.

What are you guys reading? Let me know in the comments.

Happy Reading!

Book Review: Things Fall Apart

Title: Things Fall Apart
Author: Chinau Achebe
Published: Anchor Canada 4/21/2009
Series or Standalone: Series (first in the series)
Hardback or paperback: Paperback
Acquired: Bought used with my own money
Pages: 209
Rating: 5 stars





Summary Via Goodreads
Things Fall Apart tells two intertwining stories, both centering on Okonkwo, a “strong man” of an Ibo village in Nigeria. The first, a powerful fable of the immemorial conflict between the individual and society, traces Okonkwo's fall from grace with the tribal world. The second, as modern as the first is ancient, concerns the clash of cultures and the destruction of Okonkwo's world with the arrival of aggressive European missionaries. These perfectly harmonized twin dramas are informed by an awareness capable of encompassing at once the life of nature, human history, and the mysterious compulsions of the soul.

Review
I found out about this book when I was doing my thesis for a course that I needed to take in order to graduate with my bachelor's degree. The entire premise for my paper was that the concept of the existence of magic was in integral part of the lives of the people who live in New Guinea. These ancient beliefs, practices, customs, and traditions dictate how they live their daily lives and also how they interact with other natives and with foreign entities. I did research the tribes in Africa but the information was much to vast to be able to dwindle it down for just one single paper. I have always been obsessed with magic (I was a witch for practically every Halloween ever!) so any book that can integrate magic into is a winner in my book. I am not really particular about whether the magic is in fiction form or more of a non-fiction story. I will definitely be reading more about the subject after reading this book.  

As for the actual content of the book, please know that it is quite graphic at times and if this bothers you then you might want to turn away: The writing style was phenomenal and I felt that the plotline really drew me in and kept me engaged throughout the book. While some of the words were certainly new and required me to look up the correct pronunciation I had enough background knowledge on the rituals that took place to be able to get past this minor inconvenience. However, without the native language thrown into the story the entire book would have lost it's sustenance and meaning. For me I enjoyed seeing the multiple similarities in the rituals from what I knew about New Guinea and Africa and being able to compare and contrast the two.

As far as the characters themselves go I had a hard time finding someone to root for. I did not really care for the main character, Okonkwo, though I appreciated having his back story. From his past you can at least understand why he behaves the way that he does and what is influencing his decisions. I think deep down he really does care for his family but he starts out the story a very important man in the village and is therefore bound by certain expectations and rituals. I never condone human sacrifice, cutting off people's heads to then use the skull as a means to drink out of, beating your wife (or wives in this case- polygamy is a natural thing in some cultures) or children however I can at least understand how in his case not doing so would be a sign of weakness due to the culture that he has been raised in. This brings up a whole new slew of questions and ponderings that makes me want to write another paper on that tangent just for fun (I am weird, I know, no need to point it out to me).

The fall from grace of Okonkwo (though undeserved in my very humble opinion) was a necessary part of the book. It kept the main character from being put up on a pedestal by the author to the point that none of their actions have any consequences and they can do no wrong in the eyes of the supporting characters. This is a pet peeve of mine in novels. This also helped to lead into some of the rituals and celebrations that the tribe observes and added a layer of depth to the novel.

Overall, I felt that the author did a really great job with the novel. My only concern was that it was not long enough. I don't often say that but I could have read a couple hundred more pages on the subject matter. More background story, more information about the rituals (though I did like the mystery to them, as they are mysterious and very few know what actually happens at these ceremonies), in general I just want more.

Now for the business of whether or not I would recommend this book. That is a really tough question. I gave the book 5 stars and I think that it is one of the best books that I have ever read however it is a tough read. There is a lot of flipping to the back of the book to look up the meaning of words in the appendix and I can see where it would be a little bit of a culture shock. If you enjoy novels where you get a first hand look at a different culture and set of ideals then go for it, if not then this may not be the book for you. Also if you are squeamish I would just walk away now, trust me on this one.

Excuse me while I run out and go buy the other two books in the series. I think I just found my newest obsession.

Happy Reading!