Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Riding in Cars With Boys by Beverly Donofrio (#8)
It's going to be very difficult for me to not compare this book with it's movie that I am so terribly fond of. Actually, the book is not like the movie. At all! I was very surprised. I was hoping to have sort of an extension of the movie, because I cannot get enough of this movie. But I was disappointed.
The book was fairly enjoyable. It follows the struggle of a teenager who unexpectedly becomes a mother at 15. She's very negative throughout the entire book, which makes it hard to like the character. The book ended very abruptly, which was odd, and I didn't much care for it. I felt the story kind of dragged on, and I didn't fall in love with it as I had the movie.
The book was fairly enjoyable. It follows the struggle of a teenager who unexpectedly becomes a mother at 15. She's very negative throughout the entire book, which makes it hard to like the character. The book ended very abruptly, which was odd, and I didn't much care for it. I felt the story kind of dragged on, and I didn't fall in love with it as I had the movie.
A Child Called It: One Child's Courage to Survive by David Pelzer (#7)
The first book in a trilogy, although, I don't feel I could be strong enough to read the other two books. An incredibly heart-breaking, insides-twisting, tragically horrible true story of a young boy who, for whatever reason, is chosen by his mother as her worst enemy. While he has four other brothers, David alone is the target for unfathomable abuses by his always drunken mother. At first his father was his only savior, until the mother began to verbally berate the father into submission as well, until he finally cannot take it anymore and leaves his family. This book was very hard for me to read, and getting through it was nauseating. How could anyone treat a child that way? I asked myself repeatedly throughout the chapters. Luckily, David finds salvation, not all is lost. Not for the faint of heart!
Like Water for Chocolate: A Novel in Monthly Installments with Recipes, Romances, and Home Remedies by Laura Esquivel (#6)
Another movie I'm a big fan of, and now I can say I'm a fan of the book, as well. Esquivel's novel was very different from other novels, and I loved her approach. Each chapter is centered around a recipe that the main character, Tita, prepares during a point in time. A fantastic tale of two lovers who are forbidden to love, this story keeps you interested the whole way through. When Tita's sweetheart marries her sister (only in an effort to be closer to Tita!), the tension rises. Tita's mother forbids any sort of communication between Tita and Pedro(now her brother-in-law), because she wants Tita to take care of her forever. Tita instead focuses on putting her love and passions into her cooking, which brings out amorous feelings in whoever eats it. Whatever feelings Tita experiences while cooking, that is what the receiving party will feel. This book was incredibly charming, albeit tragic, with unforgettable events and characters.
Julie and Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen by Julie Powell (#5)
While I'm a huge fan of the movie, the book was quite different. That usually goes without saying, as most folks' interpretation of a book is mostly individual. I had a hard time starting the book, as I found the main character hard to enjoy. While I loved her in the movie, she translated very differently in the novel. The book was very vulgar, something I felt the movie didn't show much of. The movie character seemed very sweet, charming, with tendencies towards meltdowns; while in the book, she seemed more cynical, with a sailor's mouth. Her journey through Julia Child's book was great, and something I'm glad I will never have to do, as many of the recipes sounded revolting (hello, aspics!). It was nice to see, though, that her hard work with the blog paid off with gifts from fans, newspaper articles, and then a book deal. Not as captivating as the movie, for myself, or other books, but still an enjoyable read.
Water For Elephants by Sara Gruen (# 4)
My boss kindly lent me this book and once I started, I was unable to tear myself away from it's pages. The story of a young man who loses everything and runs off to join a circus is told by young man much later, from the elderly nursing home that he lives in. Reading about his experiences as a young man, then "jumping back" to his current life were very interesting. He spoke about how old he had gotten and how he didn't recognize his hands anymore, not to mention when he'd look into the mirror. His lamenting of the nursing home food, the way he was treated, and his longings while legitimate, were quite humorous. The story goes on to follow a train circus and a handful of the folks who perform and work in it during the Great Depression. A fantastically beautiful, yet tragic story, that I found hard to let go one the book ended.
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
The Hunger Games Trilogy (#'s1, 2, 3)
I'd like to write about these books as a whole, since I read them so rapidly, it's a little hard for me to discern which event happened in which book.
I found The Hunger Games very intriguing after just the first paragraph. I was glued to the pages after that; furiously clicking on the next page (Kindle edition, heyoo!), my hands covering my mouth at the disbelief of the occurring events. When I first met the main character, I found it funny that I hadn't realized that she was a girl. The mysteriousness of the character and the setting of the world was fascinating. The gears in my brain turned as I began figuring out what the books scenery was like. I loved how the country had different districts that ''specialized'' in different occupations and products (coal mining, harvesting, etc.). Learning what the actual "Hunger Games" was was horrifying to say the least, but incredibly exciting.
Of course, being the emotional girly that I am, found the love triangle most thrilling, albeit cliche. The romance between Katniss and Peeta was so squeal-worthy, I almost melted any time fondness was demonstrated between them. The fighting in the arena was very realistic, with just the right amount of emotion.
I practically fed off of the cliffhangers these books offered. Come the ending of the first book, my eyes widened and my jaw dropped as my brain exclaimed, "that's how the first book ends?!" and I could hardly wait to read the second.
I found myself becoming a bit bored with the third book. It lacked something the other books had, but I wasn't sure exactly what that was. But, I found that things picked up after about halfway through and I began to enjoy it again. Of course, tears sprung from my eyes upon finishing the trilogy. I had become so emotionally attached to these characters over the week and a half I got to know them and I found myself incredibly saddened during the day feeling like I was Katniss and I had these incredible decisions to make.
This trilogy had everything that makes reading feel like magic for me: a heroin I could somewhat relate to, a love triangle(what can I say, it's exciting!), action, and suspense. I give this trilogy 5/5 stars and can safely say I am not short of obsessed and cannot wait for the movie to come out! To which I will be wearing my special District 1 t-shirt.
I found The Hunger Games very intriguing after just the first paragraph. I was glued to the pages after that; furiously clicking on the next page (Kindle edition, heyoo!), my hands covering my mouth at the disbelief of the occurring events. When I first met the main character, I found it funny that I hadn't realized that she was a girl. The mysteriousness of the character and the setting of the world was fascinating. The gears in my brain turned as I began figuring out what the books scenery was like. I loved how the country had different districts that ''specialized'' in different occupations and products (coal mining, harvesting, etc.). Learning what the actual "Hunger Games" was was horrifying to say the least, but incredibly exciting.
Of course, being the emotional girly that I am, found the love triangle most thrilling, albeit cliche. The romance between Katniss and Peeta was so squeal-worthy, I almost melted any time fondness was demonstrated between them. The fighting in the arena was very realistic, with just the right amount of emotion.
I practically fed off of the cliffhangers these books offered. Come the ending of the first book, my eyes widened and my jaw dropped as my brain exclaimed, "that's how the first book ends?!" and I could hardly wait to read the second.
I found myself becoming a bit bored with the third book. It lacked something the other books had, but I wasn't sure exactly what that was. But, I found that things picked up after about halfway through and I began to enjoy it again. Of course, tears sprung from my eyes upon finishing the trilogy. I had become so emotionally attached to these characters over the week and a half I got to know them and I found myself incredibly saddened during the day feeling like I was Katniss and I had these incredible decisions to make.
This trilogy had everything that makes reading feel like magic for me: a heroin I could somewhat relate to, a love triangle(what can I say, it's exciting!), action, and suspense. I give this trilogy 5/5 stars and can safely say I am not short of obsessed and cannot wait for the movie to come out! To which I will be wearing my special District 1 t-shirt.
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