Updates and YA mini-reviews

You may have noticed that I have been absent from the internet recently. You may have not. If so, I’m not offended. So where have I been? University! Wooo!

I have been having a fantastic time. Such a fantastic time, that I now have no time. Between the 22 hours of contact time, the lab reports and coursework (this is what you get for choosing science), friends and extra-curriculars, I’m finding it to keep up, and I’ve just been lazy when it’s come to updating this blog and my Youtube channel. But with New Year’s around the corner, I am now determined to a better job of keeping up this blog and (hopefully) my Youtube channel. I say hopefully for Youtube because the walls in my halls of residence are so thin! So if anyone has some advice for me please let me know below.

I have also been a lazy reader. In the 3 months I was at university, I read three books one of which was on the train to and from London. To say I’ve been in a reading slump is to put it mildly. Luckily, the Christmas holidays have snapped me out of it, and I am on a roll.

So here’s the first part of my mini-reviews of what I’ve read.

Geek Girl and Geek Girl (Model Misfit) by Holly Smale

Geek Girl has been floating around the blogging circuit for a while and I now know why, it’s amazing! It’s funny and quirky (and not in a look-at-me-I’m-so-hipster kind of way). Harriet Manners is a geek (as you may guess from the title) and somehow ends up as a model, which of course is followed by several mishaps. I loved Harriet, especially once you peel off all the layers of facts and knowledge she was a normal, teenage girl. Geek Girl doesn’t take itself too seriously, but has a lot of heart.

I received Model Misfit from NetGalley 

Rating: 9/10

Heist Society by Ally Carter 

Heist Society had an interesting concept, as we follow Kat, a retired teenage thief whose father has been framed for a crime he didn’t commit. As much as I found the plot interesting, I felt like there wasn’t much to the characters. Kat was emotionless and lacked much of a personality, and I found it hard to connect to her. Even the plot, though fast paced and clever in places, required too much suspension of belief for me to take it seriously. It was fun to read, but ultimately left me feeling let down.

 Rating: 6/10

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare 

You may have noticed that I may be a tiney-winey (ok, massive) fan of The Mortal Instruments. So shockingly, I had not read the spin-offs. The reason for wanting to avoid them is that I’m not the biggest fan of historical fiction. Eventually I gave in and picked them up. I wanted to love it. Really, I did. And I did. Sort of. I really enjoyed the steampunk Victorian setting and the fast paced plot complete with a slippery villain. I loved all the characters, from book-loving Tess, to calm Jem, to strong Charlotte. The only problem I have is that I’m getting sick of love triangles. But I have high hopes for the rest of the series!

 Rating: 9/10

I have a lot of things coming up for this blog and I will get back into the swing of things, so stick around!

Borrowed Time (2013)

Director: Jules Bishop

Writer: Jules Bishop

Starring: Philip Davis, Theo Barklem-Biggs, Juliet Oldfield 

Rating: 15

It’s times like this that I am grateful for Kickstarter. Just wow. Borrowed Time is a British independent film that features the writing and directing debut of Jules Bishop and tackles some of the social issues faced in Britain in a funny, upbeat, and gritty way. If you a British teenager, please go see this, you won’t regret it. It’s the film equivalent of a UKYA book. 

The story takes place in East London, and follows Kevin (Theo Barklem-Biggs), a guy who just wants to get his mother’s clock back for his sister after he pawned it away. Unfortunately, to get hold of the money to buy back the clock, he gets involved with “Ninja” Nigel (Warren Brown), and ends up owing him money. This leads him to cross paths with pensioner Phillip (Phil Davies) and an unlikely bond is formed. 

This is British film as it should be. Never afraid to tackle issues and it does it in an intelligent and witty way. And in a time where both youth and elderly are demonized by the rest of society, there couldn’t be a better time for it. This was writer and director Jules Bishop’s debut, and his vision was seen throughout. I attended a Q+A for the film, and he came from a similar background to the film, which could be seen through the honesty and social realism that he painted. It’s also very hard to describe how funny the film was, because it was funny in the way real life can be funny. It’s like those little moments you share with your mates, except it’s on the big screen.

There were some very strong characters seen through the film, whether it be nutty Ninja Nigel, or bitter Phillip, to shy, understated Kevin, and every part was well acted. The speech was very natural and clever, which I found impressive as I feel that usually young people’s speech can go awry in films. Phil Davies and Theo Barklem-Biggs was a strange pair, but they made it work. Most importantly, they channelled these very real issues affecting their characters and the prejudices each have towards each other.

On a small note, I also really loved the little motifs that cropped up. Time in the title, and time in the nature. The clock references were a constant reminder of the coming of age for Kevin, and the passing of time for Phillip. The film was also shot on 16mm film and not on digital, which basically meant that it had the grainy, traditional quality to a film. This added to the “rough-around-the-edges” feel it had.

In a time where “urban” films are dark and violent, it was refreshing to find one upbeat but never drawing away from the seriousness of the issues it tackled. For me, Borrowed Time addressed the real truth of London life, it’s dark and dangerous, but it’s still life, so it’s also sweet and fun. And it’s that range of emotions which ultimately captured my love. I can’t wait to see what Jules Bishop does next.

Overall: A clever, witty take on urban youth in London, and I thought it was simply fantastic.

Rating: 10/10

All Our Yesterdays by Cristin Terrill

I say unpredictable a lot...

Buy on Book Depository!

Whistling Past the Graveyard by Susan Crandall

Age Group: Adult (but it could be a YA read too)

Genre: Historical

Pub Date: July 2013

Publisher: Gallery Books

                                                                          

I’ve previously said how I’m not too keen on historical fiction. And every time I say that, I find a book that makes me change my mind. Whistling Past the Graveyard is a thought-provoking, emotional, witty novel set in the American Deep South in 1963.

Yes this book is about racism in 1960’s America. But it is also a coming-of-age story, about family and friendship. It also contains one of the most interesting POV’s in the genre, Starla, a nine-year-old, white girl. Being written from a child’s point of view, you may think that the writing would be too simplistic to enjoy, but Starla was full of personality. Her innocent view on the world was fascinating to see, and the comparisons to how she lived and the way the African-American’s did really highlighted the truth of the situation.  

The story follows Starla, who lives in Mississippi with her grandmother. Starla is fed up with her grandmother and wants to run away to Nashville to live with her mother. So she does exactly that. On her way she has a run in with Eula, a black lady who stole a white baby. And so they continue on their road trip together.

The characters were wonderful. Each had very strong, evocative voices. Starla was fiery and sassy, always questioning and never afraid. Eula perfectly contrasted with Starla, calm and stable, and was able to care for her in a way Starla never had before. Also, her background story was heart-breaking. But most important was the relationship that developed between them. Eula and Starla needed each other. Each had their lessons to teach to the other, and the transformation that happened was due to each other. At the heart of it, Whistling Past the Graveyard was about how friendship transcends the colour of skin and age.

Whistling Past the Graveyard had me on the edge of my seat. At some points it was so intense that I had to put the book down and think about what I had just read. There were so many strong messages in the book, but it was never in a preachy way. But I wouldn’t call it a dark novel. At some points it was funny, witty, and plain entertaining. It was the balance between grittiness and fun which made it so hard-hitting and memorable.

Overall: Even if you don’t like historical novels, I would recommend this to you. Whistling Past the Graveyard will make you think about life and race, and more incredibly it’ll come from the believable perspective of a nine-year old.

I received this book from Gallery Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 10/10                                                    

Buy on Book Depository!

About Time (2013)

Director: Richard Curtis
Producer: Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Nicky Kentish Barnes
Writer: Richard Curtis
Starring: Domhnall Gleeson, Rachel McAdams, Bill Nighy
Rating: 12A/ R
                                                                                       
So Richard Curtis has done it again and produced another great, feel-good fantasy-rom-comedy, but this time without Hugh Grant in sight.

Meet Tim, who discovers that all the men in his family can travel back in time to points in their own timeline. Tim then decides he will use his power for one goal: getting a girlfriend. The rest of the story is slightly predictable when it comes to Curtis, just like Notting Hill and Four Weddings and a Funeral, Tim falls for the all-American girl (and this one has a bizarre dress sense).

Did I enjoy this film? Yes. Did I have to suspend belief to enjoy it? Yes. About Time was genuinely very funny. The witty one-liners, the dry humour, and the occasional dash of slapstick captured British humour at its best. So comedy check. How about the romantic? Definitely check. MacAdams and Gleeson had great chemistry, which sizzled through the soppy through to the downright awkward parts of Tim and Mary’s relationship. So we’ve got a good rom-com. The fantasy? Nothing about the time-travel was explained, no real inventiveness was used with it, but once you accepted it, the plot moved along nicely.

Surprisingly the film was genuinely profound and moving. The characters were all endearing and likable, right down to pessimistic, grouchy, playwright Harry. Interesting points about life was raised, and it wasn’t just Tim and Mary’s relationship that was showcased. Bill Nighly as Tim’s father provided another dimension to the film, as we take a glimpse into a loving, albeit comical, father-son relationship.

Is it possible to be type-casted as a time-traveller’s wife? Because in the past five years Rachel MacAdams has managed to play the role twice, the first being in The Time Traveller’s Wife. Comparison is unavoidable. About Time is more quirky, profounder, and funnier, on top of having a more rounded plot, which takes a look further than the scope of one relationship. However, and this is a real sticking point with About Time, the relationship is far less realistic. Tim never tells Mary that he’s a time-traveller, and I was half-expecting a moment at the end where he tells her all the times he redone the events and they have a good giggle about it, and that never came. Truthfully, it’s a little creepy that he’s redone so much of their life together and she has no idea, no matter of his revelation at the end.

Ultimately, this was one of my favourite Curtis movies, and it has nothing to do with the lack of Hugh Grant. About Time is simply timeless (no pun intended) in themes, relationships, and humour, and as long as you take it with a pinch of salt (or sugar may be more apt here), it really is a great British film.

Overall: The only type of people who shouldn’t watch this are people who despise Richard Curtis films (unless they only hate them because they have Hugh Grant in them).

Rating: 8/10

My Life Through Book Crazes

So The Mortal Instruments has just been released, and Divergent, The Fault in Our Stars, The Book Thief, and Vampire Academy are in the pipeline. It’s clear that now’s the time for Young Adult book adaptations. So as we reread and wait, I thought I’ll take a trip down memory lane and look at the explosion of adaptations that have become a phenomena in my life so far.

Harry Potter

I guess my story, as many others my age, starts with the unforgettable series that is Harry Potter. I read The Chamber of Secrets in 1999, after seeing the press surrounding The Prisoner of Azkaban. And before you say anything, yes I read the second one before the first because my mother brought me back the wrong book. At age 6, it gave me nightmares, and I didn’t touch another Potter book for two years, until the movie release of The Philosopher’s Stone. Harry Potter was a big part of many people’s childhood, and in my case I literally grew up with it, with the last film being released when I was 17. I think the key reason why people loved it so much was because even though it was about a fantastical world, it was so relatable. And the world was astonishing! The amount of detail that was in it made you really connect with the world, and dare I say it, believe it could exist.

Twilight

The year was 2006, and I was in a bookshop when I saw a mysterious black book with white hands and an apple. I was 13 and new to YA, and this book grabbed my attention with how adult it looked. I picked it up and saw the words “vampire” and put it straight back down. For me, vampires were something out of a horror story, completely terrifying (flash-forward seven years and I still can’t watch horror films). Nevertheless, I was intrigued by the story and bought it. And I was obsessed. Back then, only Twilight and New Moon was out, so I was counting down the days to Eclipse. Honestly, I cannot remember for the life of me why I loved it so much. Maybe it was the forbidden love idea. Maybe it was because I had never read paranormal romance before. In fact, two years later, I was completely off it, so much so that I didn’t go see the movie. Not that one person’s changed attitude to it mattered, because the rest of my all-girls school had gone nuts. On the opening day, I swear my whole class flocked to the cinema. If you want to know about my current opinion of Twilight, look at my Goodreads rating for it.

The Hunger Games

Okay, I was late to the Hunger Games party; I heard about it a few months before the film was released. I have to say, I wasn’t quite as into it as other people were, I don’t know if it’s because I hadn’t read the books that long before I saw the film. But I was blown away with how different it was to all the other YA I had read before. I think the reason The Hunger Games took off like it did was because it came at the right time. Twilight-mania had died down, and after years of Bella Swan being thrust in our face, Katniss Everdeen was a breath of fresh air. There was a female heroine girls could aspire to, and an incredible action packed story for everyone to get behind. It was dark and moving, and I’m not surprised it did so well.

The Common Denominator

Nothing. Well, there is something. People buy into a good story. Oh, we’ve had flops. Beautiful Creatures and The Host being this year’s ones. I think something to note is that all of these “crazes” have happened with good time between them. Yeah, there’s been some overlap, but none of them have happened too close together.  Also all three are remarkably different from each other, which is why movie people (though I doubt any of them are reading this), should be less focused with looking for “the next…” and get something original out. I know the reason I didn’t see/ read Beautiful Creatures was because I saw the trailer and thought, “it looks like they’re trying to sell this as the next Twilight”. One other link is that people know about the book before the film. I think that’s quite easy to forget in the book community because we are always talking to people who have read the books, but an example is, despite nearly everyone I know online having read Divergent and for sure, TFioS, I know a few of my friends haven’t even heard of the books, but would definitely enjoy them.

What I’m saying is… Well, I don’t really have a point here. Since I’ve grown up with the boom in book adaptations and mania, and have been part of it, I’ve always been interested in it. It’ll be great to know what everyone else thinks on the whole matter, so leave some comments below!

Wonder by R.J. Palacio

Age Group: Middle-Grade

Genre: Contemporary

Pub Date: Jan 2013

Publisher: Corgi Children's

                                                                            

August (or Auggie) Pullman is about to start his first year at middle-grade. However, unlike the rest of the kids starting middle-grade, this is going to be his first year at any school. The reason why? Auggie has a facial deformity, and enough medical conditions to fill an episode of House.

Auggie is a brilliant character; he is like any other 10 year old kid. He loves Star Wars, playing on his Xbox, and hanging out with his friends. It is his ordinariness in contrast with his illness which made the book so harrowing. Auggie knows exactly how people react to him, every gesture, every smile. He knows more medical words than me. So he created a bubble where he knows every person in his block to protect him from the world.

And school shattered that apart. Most of us have been to school. We know the story. The pain of fitting in, of finding your place. And we didn’t have Auggie’s face. But despite the stares and whispers, the cruel parents and school events, Auggie makes some friends. Wonder deals with the ordinary becoming extraordinary. Everyday events that you take for granted turns into torture for August, such as having school photos done or going to your sister’s play.

This book really highlighted that there are many types of people in the world. There are the good hearted ones, and then there are the ones who hate people for being different. But the world isn’t limited to that. There are people who are neutral, unsure, change sides and some who come out and surprise you. In a children’s book, you would expect a lot of black and white, but Palacio really highlighted the shades of grey.

Wonder is written from several points of view, which was important because it hits home the fact that Auggie isn’t the only person affected by his deformity. Via’s, Auggie’s sister, chapter highlighted this, as she struggled with her identity, and having to take care of herself, while defending and caring for Auggie. I thought all the characters were brilliant, and had their own unique view on life, which really contrasted against Auggie’s.

As a middle-grade book, the writing was fairly simple, yet there were enough variation to keep it interesting. The chapters are very short, and focuses on incidents, keeping you engaged. Then there were Mr Browne’s precepts, monthly ideas for his class to focus on, about kindness and truth, which really kept you focused on the theme of the story. As this book was for children, the book wasn’t as gritty as it could have been, but I don’t think that was the point. Wonder is about showing kindness, not shocking you with brutality.

This is a sad story, but it’s also happy, funny, thoughtful, and uplifting. And that rests in its sincerity. Nothing felt overdramatised, which would have been easy to do with a story which relies on children being cruel. I was taken on a journey of emotions with brilliant characters, and shown that the Wonder of people is not in how cruel they can be, but in how kind.

Overall: Just read it. Really, you won't regret it.

Rating: 10/10

One Step Too Far by Tina Seskis

Age Group: Adult
Genre: Contemporary/ Mystery
Pub Date: April 2013
Publisher: Kirk Parolles
                                                                                          
If you asked me what the theme of this book was, I would have no idea. All I could say is “drama”. And that is because One Step Too Far has every type of drama possible, with a whole array of different characters.

We begin our story with Emily, a woman who is running away from her life in Chester to London, not for fame or fortune, but as a means of escape, using her handy birth name Catherine. Why? Well we have no idea. Then we meet Emily’s parents, Francis and Andrew, and we hear their problems, and then Emily’s “evil twin”, Caroline (no seriously, they’re identical twins). On top of that we have Ben, Emily’s abandoned husband, and Angel, Cat’s (Catherine wasn’t snazzy enough for her), troubled new best friend. And I haven’t yet begun on the different problems: anorexia, depression, psychosis, and that’s just Caroline. You add in everyone else’s issues and you have enough problems to fill several episodes of Jerry Springer.

All in all, One Step Too Far reads like a soap opera. Jam packed with lots of different issues, addictive to read, but at the heart of it, completely hollow. There was so much down in this book that I started to resent nearly all the characters and their miserable lives. As much as I was interested in their lives, I lacked any sort of empathy or connection to any of them. In fact, the only emotion I felt towards most of them was pity. It seems that Seskis was so focused on getting shade and depth into her characters that she forgot about the light.

Emily was our first person viewpoint, and when it jumped to another time or character the novel was in third person. This made it fairly easy to tell apart the different time periods with her, but made it quite confusing with telling apart the different points in time with the other characters. I also disliked the ridiculously long paragraphs and endless detail that Emily often provided, it was verging on stream of consciousness, and went past “setting the scene” to “irrelevant”.

I found the writing of the third person characters to be the best parts. Seskis seamlessly made very detailed, interesting (despite depressing) characters, and you could quickly spot the differences in their thoughts and voices. I found Caroline to be the most interesting, if not unlikable, and I was impressed with how Seskis really went back with Caroline’s history and how all her problems started.

It was only near the end of the book that I started to really enjoy myself. That was the point when the plot really kicked in and all the reveal came out, including one amazing omg-I-did-not-see-that-coming twist. And it was that which made it all worth it.

Overall: If you like soap operas you’ll love this book. Packed to the brim with enough drama to give EastEnders a run for its money, One Step Too Far may be a step too far, but its clever characters and interesting reveals make up for it.

Rating: 7/10

*I received this copy from Kirk Parolles via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Age Group: YA

Genre: Fantasy Romance

Pub Date: August 2012

Publisher: Bloomsbury

                                                                          

I had mixed feelings coming into Throne of Glass, mostly because I had been hearing a lot of different opinions about it. My conclusion is: I totally get why people love or hate it, and I really can’t decide how I feel.

Celaena Sardothien is an assassin in slavery until the Crown Prince, Dorian, pulls her out to become his champion in a competition held by his father to find the new royal assassin. Along the way, she is trained by the handsome Captain of Guard, Chaol, whilst trying to fit into the royal court. Yes, it’s a little ridiculous, but sometimes you have to shove away logic and sit back and enjoy the ride.

Let’s talk about the elephant in the room: the love triangle. Shockingly, I am not opposed to love triangles, as over-used as they are, as long as they are done well and this wasn’t the worst one I’ve read. I liked both of the male characters, and it wasn’t blatantly obvious which one Celaena was going to pick, so my issue wasn’t with the triangle itself, but more with the number of clichés used. Up-close-and-personal-training, masquerade balls, childhood-friends-turned-love-rivals… Do I need to go on? I quickly stopped reading this as a fantasy book with a healthy dollop of romance, but as a romance with a fantasy background. Which is fine, as long as the writer knows what she’s writing.

I found both the plot and writing jumpy. It felt like Maas couldn’t decide if she wanted to write a riveting romance or an action novel, and the book wasn’t long enough to accommodate both. I found the stark contrast between cute and real romance, and grisly murders really bizarre. And the writing was painful to read. It was melodramatic, over-written, and sometimes made no sense. “Her blood grew warm and glittering” is an example of the problems I had.

Once I got past the writing and accepted the crazy premises, I actually enjoyed reading the book. I really loved the characters: Dorian was fun and Chaol serious, but most importantly both seemed like they had some depth to them. As for Celaena? I liked her character, but I didn’t feel like it fitted with her story. She was cool, witty, confident, and smart, but she didn’t strike me as an assassin. As much as I liked this version of Celaena, I wanted her to be darker and grittier, as the only way I kept on remembering that she was an assassin was because everyone kept on saying it.

Throne of Glass was a guilty pleasure for me. It was good in a bad way, and I understand why so many people love it. Despite it all, I found it really addictive and fun to read. However, if you’re looking for a more meaningful read about a teenage assassin, I would look elsewhere.

Sum It Up: Romantic fantasy, which is at sometimes a bit contrived and far-fetched, but really fun to read.

Rating: 6/10

Divergent by Veronica Roth

Age Group: YA

Genre: Dystopian

Pub Date: February 2012

Publisher: Harper Collins

                                                                            

I totally get the hype! However, I feel like it didn’t quite live up to everything I’ve seen about it. Don’t get me wrong, Divergent was a fantastic book, dull of everything I could have wanted from a dystopian novel: action, drama, and romance, and I really enjoyed it. My Youtube video explains why I didn’t feel it meet my expectations.

Divergent is about Tris, who lives in a world where everyone is divided into “fractions” based on their personality. Instead of choosing the selfless faction she was born into, Abnegation, Tris choses Dauntless, the brave nation. I really liked Roth’s world, I thought it was really clever, and thought-out, and I haven’t seen one like it. I would have liked more explanation about how the system came into place, but maybe that will happen in the sequels. 

The plot, pacing, and writing were amazing. It became addictive: I wanted to read on and on. There was never a dull moment in this book, as something was always happening. As much as the world was unique, I feel that the story wasn’t, but while I was reading it, I frankly didn’t care because I was having so much fun and there was enough twists to keep it unpredictable. The other reason why I didn’t care too much about the plot was because I felt the whole thing was about Tris and her discovery of herself.

Tris was a great female character. I often find dystopian books lose their sense of humour with the doom and gloom, but Tris was pretty funny. And good, and kind, and most importantly, flawed. I felt all of her actions were really true to her character; she was brave, yet not excessively heroic. Most importantly, despite living eons into the future, she was really relatable. She’s just a teenager struggling to find out who she is and where she belongs.

As for the romance? Well Four, Four, Four… It was impossible not to like Four. He’s got that whole bad-boy-with-a-heart-of-gold thing down. He also had great character development and loads of twists in his background. However, as much as I liked Four and Tris, I feel like there could have been some more background or development in the other characters. I would have loved to find out more about Tris’ family, or Christine, or even Eric. Roth created amazing characters, but left me hanging.

I think it’s the lack of connection I had with the other characters which gave me the emotional disconnection with most of the plot that wasn’t directly to do with Tris and Four. And this was the major flaw for me. The only emotion I felt during the whole book was “I’M SO EXCITED WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT”, while other dystopians have provided me with so much more.

Sum It Up: A must-read for dystopian lovers. I really loved the book, thought it was different and action-packed, but didn’t quite live up to the hype for me.

Rating: 8/10

The World's End (2013)

Director: Edgar Wright
Producer: Nira Park, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner
Writers: Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg
Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Paddy Considine, Martin Freeman

The World’s End comes from the eclectic duo Simon Pegg and Nick Frost (Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead), and is the finale in their “Cornetto Trilogy” (using the world “trilogy” in the loosest sense). Gary King (Pegg), a man living in the past, is determined to reunite his old gang (Frost, Martin Freeman, Eddie Marsan, and Paddy Considine) to complete a pub crawl from their youth in their childhood town. However, all is not as it seems in their hometown, and suddenly everything turns, well, a bit apocalyptic.

It was fun, I’ll give it that. Pegg and Frost chemistry and friendship just sizzles across the screen, and there were enough jokes and character to keep it entertaining. I loved how all the characters took individual journeys and the writers were committed to having character development within all the chaos that was going on. But the main problem I had was the trailer had given away its biggest plot twist: the alien apocalypse. This meant I found the rest of the film fairly predictable, until it got to a shocking last fifteen minutes.

Plot aside; it was the characters which really made the film. There was something distinctly sorry and funny about King, who is clinging onto memories of old, and Pegg has never had a better formed character: obsessive, compulsive, and plain deluded, which makes a great comic character. Frost’s role as Andrew was the stark contrast to Gary (he hadn’t drunk in sixteen years), and he provided a clever humour, as well as a balance to everyone. The World’s End really highlighted good British comedy, within the high budget extravaganza. It was less slapstick and more witty, and you can see it shine through the American films in the same genre.

In the end, The World’s End didn’t live up to my expectations. Explosions, robots, and fight-sequences were tossed out every ten seconds and after a while the drinking and fighting got a bit repetitive. It was only the gems in between which saved it. I got that it was meant to be an alien invasion-comedy crossover, but it didn’t make enough sense to be a good alien invasion, and it was so caught up with trying to be one, that some of the comedy got left behind.

Sum It Up: Not as clever as their previous work, but still funny and with a heart. And lots of explosions.

Rating: 7/10

All Our Yesterdays Book Trailer

My lovely and talented friend, Casey from DarkReaders/ TheBitterProductions has made and amaaazing book trailer for All Our Yesterdays by Christin Terrill which is out on the 1st August. I've been hearing people rave about this book, and now this trailer makes me want to read it even more!

The Hundred Year-Old Man Who Climbed out of the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson

Age Group: Adult

Genre: Humour

Pub Date: July 2012

Publisher: Hesperus Press

                                                                              

I think the best way to describe this book is a Swedish, black-comedy version of Forest Gump. The title sums up the beginning of the book pretty well, when Allan Karlsson leaves his nursing home and gets entangled in an adventure involving a suitcase of money, murder, thieves, a hot-dog retailer, and an elephant. The story is interspersed with tales from Allan’s past, involving some of the biggest events in history.

This is a very cleverly thought up book. I found Allan’s present day adventures fun, and his past was bizarre and strangely educational. I think the main issue with the plot was some of the jokes skimmed over the top of my head as I didn’t know enough of the 20^th century history that was covered. I found the chapters I enjoyed the most were the ones that I had background knowledge too. However, there were lots of instances where anyone would find the situations hilarious, and as every good black comedy does, it made murder funny.

The main source of entertainment was Allan himself. He wasn’t a conventional comic character; it was his naivety and lack of interest (and fondness for vodka) that made him so funny. There was something unbelievable about him, the way he didn’t care for politics or religion or money, but it was that which made him a brilliant character. As for the supporting characters, well there was something a bit mad about all of them: whether it being a student in everything, or being a lack-wit that managed to take over a country. And it was the way that Jonasson made all these insane events seem realistic that made the book so engaging.

The only complaint I have is in the writing. I found myself loving the story, but at the same time I found the writing to lag or to have too much superfluous information. I ended up skipping over large paragraphs of text because I wasn’t that interested. If anything, this book did make me want to brush up on my history and politics, and I found it to be a good, unreliable source of events that I want to know about. The good thing about it being written by a Swedish author was that there was no British or American bias to the story, meaning that unlike Forest Gump, it was easier to get a fun and slightly more truthful story.

Sum It Up: A fun and witty story, perfect for those with an interest in history and politics, but for those who don’t, it can drag a bit.

Rating: 8/10

Monsters University (2013)

Director: Dan Scanlon

Producer: Kori Rae

Screenwriters: Daniel Gerson, Robert L. Baird, Dan Scanlon

Starring: Billy Crystal, John Goodman, Steve Buscemi

Rating: U/ G

I have a strong feeling that my nostalgia for Monsters Inc. is going to bias this review, but I’ll say it anyway, I loved this film! There, I said it.

Monsters University is the prequel to Monsters Inc. and follows Mike and Sully before they became the scare duo of the original film, back to their “collage” years. Mike and Sully are initially enemies, due to Sully’s lazy attitude, and Mike’s lack of scariness. After nearly getting expelled, they are forced to compete in the “Scare Games” together, where they bond and discover what a great team they are.

Mike and Sully are as great as they were in the original. They contrasted each other and reflected a little bit of everyone. Pixar really tapped into everyone’s love of the underdog, and the supporting cast of Oozma Kappa was hilarious. Helen Mirren’s first voice acting role deserves a mention, as she was definitely the scariest monster of them all.

It’s very predictable up till the end, and for once I don’t care. Because Monsters University has all the charm, character, and wit of the original. It reminded me off my childhood love of Pixar, and the universality of its stories. Or maybe it has a little to do with me going to university this year… Was it the best Pixar film ever made? No. But Pixar’s bar is pretty high. The entertainment for adults as well as children was showcased through the film, with plithy remarks that were sure to skim over children’s heads but into adult mind. Most importantly, it tugged at your heart-strings. I genuinely cared about all the characters, and although I could guess at the ending, it didn’t make the journey any less enjoyable.

What I liked the most about the story was the message it sent out. In a society where a university degree seems like everything, and the attitude of “ you can do whatever you want to”, Monsters University took a daring stance on it. Despite studying his hardest, Mike was not cut out to be a scarer like he dreamed off, but he found out that there was something he was better at instead. The ending also showed that you don’t need a university degree to achieve what you want, but hard work and effort.

As for the animation? Pixar is upping its game with each production. Fur was a breakthrough back in 2001, but now the backgrounds are starting to look more like film clips from the real world. For me, the real testament of Pixar’s true ability was in the six-minute short film The Blue Umbrella before the main film, which not only showcased Pixar’s astonishing skills (for the first minute I honestly thought there was real world shots), but its ability to make you feel things you never thought you could.

Pixar may not be quite back to its former glory, but this film is a step closer to it, and gives me faith for Finding Dory, its next sequel.

Sum It Up: Funny and sincere, Pixar’s film will appeal to children, older original watchers of Monsters Inc. and adults. So really, it’s just for everyone.

Rating: 9/10

Zoobiquity by Barbara Natterson-Horowitz and Kathryn Bowers

Age Group: Adult
Genre: Popular Science
Pub Date: June 2012
Publisher: Virgin Books


A time ago I wanted to be a vet. So when I came across this book it sparked a curiosity in me. There are very few medical popular science books around, and even fewer veterinary related ones. And I have to say it was a truly illuminating book, and one anyone interested in medicine (be it animal or human) or science should read.

Although written by two authors, Zoobiquity is written from the perspective of Dr Natterson, a doctor, and her journey discovering comparative medicine. The book is very easy to follow, and you don't need a insane amount of scientific knowledge to read it (which in my experience, a lot of "mainstream" popular science requires). I'm only 19, but I could have easily read this book at 16.

Zoobiquity takes us on a journey comparing important issues in the medical community (obesity, cancer, STD's, mental health) with how they play out in the animal kingdom. And the facts you learn from it! Did you know dinosaurs got cancer? 

The way the book is written in an accessible way. The work doesn't feel "dumbed down", yet it doesn't make you feel stupid reading it. It's written in a friendly tone, with a few popular culture references, but sounds intelligent enough to be taken seriously.

More importantly, it feels like you're reading a revolutionary book. Right at the beginning, the book states that doctors and vets barely talk to each other, and I have the sneaking suspicion that she's right. This book is written to draw attention to the overlap between animal and human medicine, to encourage more discussion, and to look for ideas and cures outside the realms of the human hospital and into the natural world.

It is by no means an easy read, it requires you to think. But isn't that what you want from a good science book?

Rating: 9/10

USA Book List!

Right guys, I’m off to the U.S of A in a couple of weeks, and I thought it may be fun if I do my favourite all-American books. Books which really capture my mental vision of America: freedom and sunshine and all that jazz, as well as my heart. So why don’t y’all come along with me with my book-trip across the states? I’ve also picked the bits from the books I would love to take with me.

The Great Gatsby

Do I need to say anything more? To me it showcased the good and bad of America, as well as taking me on an intense ride. This book showed the dark side of the American dream, yet there was something intoxicating about the lavish parties, and wealth and youth. There was something classy and gritty about it all, and I loved every second of it.

Take: Gatsby. Come on, who wouldn’t want him as a road trip companion?

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

I have a confession: I’ve always wanted to go to an American high-school. Having said that, I have a feeling I would be more like Charlie out of Perks, than Regina George (bonus points to everyone who gets that reference). After spending most of my teens reading and watching sugar-coated American high school dramas, it was refreshing to read a book that resonated true to what could be an actual high-school experience.

Take: That famous “infinite” moment in the car with Charlie, Sam, and Patrick

The Princess Diaries

I’m quite a nostalgic person, and The Princess Diaries was the first American YA I read. It’s the book that caused me to fall in love with New York (despite never have being there), plus it was just so fun! I related to Mia so much (except the whole princess thing), and again it was me secretly living my dream of American high-school through her (I had a small obsession when I was a teen).

Take: Fat Louis. He’s a cool cat. And maybe a tiara…

To Kill a Mockingbird

This was the first American classic I read, and introduced me to the harsh reality of the South in that era. I think as much as I want to think everything is all sunshine and flag-waving, there’s a dark side to everything, and I felt To Kill a Mockingbird’s significance as I was reading it and found it a real eye-opener into racism in the USA.

Take: Atticus Finch (he’s just awesome)

Tell me what are your all-American books in the comments below!

Why YA is not a Scam

So yesterday, in a little corner of the internet, a debate happened on Twitter between Patrick Ness (@Patrick_Ness) and Shoo Rayner (@shoorayner). Patrick Ness is the award winning author of Chaos Walking, a dystopian YA trilogy, and Shoo Rayner writes for younger children. Rayner wrote a blog post on why he thought Chaos Walking was not suitable for children, the glamorization of violence in YA, and if YA is a genre caught up by the “glamour of Hollywood”. You can read the article here. Ness responded, and what resulted was an interesting, civil discussion between them.

I am utterly on Ness’ side with this, as I think Rayner has not acknowledged three things about YA literature. The teen reader, the purpose of reading, and why YA is necessary.

Let’s start with the teen reader, the target audience that Rayner had continuously failed to recognise. I think the confusion cropped up between the differences between teens and children. Rayner kept throwing around the fact that Ness had won the Carnegie medal (an award for children literature) despite his book being not aimed at children.

Hold up.

Legally in most countries those under the age of 18 are classed as children. Awards seem to work the same way. There are adult awards, and children awards. So under these technicalities, teenagers are children. That is why Ness’ book was in that category, because it is aimed at teenagers. Just because teenagers don’t fit into your idea of what children are, doesn’t mean they don’t exist in that category.

However, teenagers are not children under the definition of the word. We have higher cognition, understanding, and are going through some freaky changes (amiright?). And we need books to address this. For me the point of literature is not just to entertain, but to make you think and feel. So we need books that don’t talk down to us. Books that challenge us and make us think about society so when we are old enough to make a change we will. YA literature helps people who go through difficult times have something to relate to, it can give people a cause, or, in the case of Chaos Walking, make people look differently at the world.

And that’s why YA is not a scam. It’s not something made up by Hollywood to give adults something more exciting to read, or to make children grow up too fast. Books aren’t making children grow up fast. That fault is due to the internet, widespread information, and society in general. I am proud to have been a teenager in this era. In an era where I’m actually taking interest in what’s going on. Where I use information as knowledge and technology as a valuable tool. I don’t feel like I’ve “grown up” fast, and I would hate a person who does not know me to make a blanket judgement and say that I have.

I am now going to address Rayner’s idea that children and teenagers are being “conditioned to kill each other”. I’ve made it irrefutably clear several times on my Youtube channel and blog that I am a science student. I have looked this up and so far there has not been any concrete evidence of direct correlation between violence on screens and aggression in young people. So far, there has been evidence for aggression, calmness, and nothing at all. So Raynor, you’re telling me that in a medium that is less visual, it is going to affect my likelihood to be aggressive? In fact, books which portray aggressive protagonists may be helpful to society to help understand the individuals they are based on in reality. 

Novels and stories are exaggerations of real emotions and stories. That’s why they are exciting. Teenage assassin spies are brutal, but in an era of child soldiers and trafficking, are these books just not drawing parallels through issues going on in the real world to real children in far more awful consequences? We no longer live in the time of Enid Blyton, where everything will be solved by teatime and we’ll all sit down with some ginger beer. If anything the Famous Five is far more unrealistic than some modern day YA I’ve read. YA is there to address current issues, not to dwell in the irrelevant past.

As for Chaos Walking? I read The Knife of Never Letting Go when I was 14 in 2008, and continued to read on as the books were published. And I thought they were fantastic. I agree with Rayner in the respect that no, they’re not books about sunshine and unicorns, and yes they are very tragic and brutal, but unfortunately so is life for some people and children. The point of literature is to make you think and feel, as well as entertain. And boy, did those books do that.

There is a point which I do agree on in Rayner’s article. Is YA dominating children’s literature too much? I feel that for a while it has. YA is a relatively new category in the history of literature, and maybe that’s why there has been such a boom in it. When I look back to my childhood reading, I can only think of the classic books I read (okay I admit, I read a lot of Enid Blyton). Having said that, the most successful book of this generation is a middle-grade book, Harry Potter. I think middle-grade and younger children’s books are going to see a rise now that the hype of YA has died down a little. Books like Percy Jackson and the Fairyland series are excellent books enjoyed by all ages, and I think plenty is still to come.

Ness and Rayner brought up an excellent debate on Twitter, and you should check the whole thing out. However the whole issue boils down to the categorisation of teenagers by adults. We are not children, and we are not adults, but we do have a voice, and we do deserve to be heard. And that is fundamentally why YA is so important.

Sorry for the rant guys, my blood was boiling over this. Please leave some comments and join in the discussion!

Note: Rayner has written a follow up article here. I would love to rant about how he thinks scientific evidence is invalid due to who paid for it, but I won’t. 

The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani

Age Group: Middle-Grade

Genre: Fantasy

Pub Date: May 2013

Publisher: HarperCollins

I really wanted to love this book. Really. I saw in in a bookshop and immediately fell in love with the cover and concept, and I was over the moon when I saw it was available on NetGalley (thank you Netgalley and HarperCollins for this copy). But I didn’t love this book. It was one of those cases of “concept much better than execution”, and left me unimpressed in the way it carried out its so-called messages.

The School for Good and Evil follows Sophie and Agatha, and their entrance into the title’s School for Good and Evil. The school is to train villains and heroes to star in their own fairy-tales. Sophie is beautiful and seems like a perfect princess, and Agatha is ugly and should be a witch. Shock horror, Sophie lands in Evil, and Agatha lands in Good. The rest of the book follows them taking part in classes, and trying to get to where they belong.

Let’s start with the good points: the plot and writing. Despite the issues I had with the rest of the book, I found it an engaging read, and well written. Chainani created a brilliant world, and despite the parts I found confusing, I kept on wanting to keep reading on. He is also a great writer, with enough description to make me see the world, witty one liners, and lots of colourful and fun ideas.

Sadly, that is not enough to carry the book.

I found this book preachy and confusing. Whatever message it was trying to give was erased a few chapters on by a contradicting idea. The problem was that Chainani was dealing in extremes: pure good and pure evil, making it very hard to see what was a statement and what was exaggeration. For one, the Evers (“Good”) vanity was constantly criticised, which I find pretty preachy, yes being overly vain is a bad thing, but wanting to indulge in grooming and make up surely isn’t. Yet, there was no middle ground covered, except when Agatha got a makeover to find out nothing had happened except she was beautiful all along. This seemed to contradict his message that beauty is a not essential to be good, and I would have preferred to have seen Agatha come to terms with her looks that didn’t involve a fairy godmother. But was this all exaggeration?  Also it did not offer any clear reasons for why people were good and evil. Were they just born like that? I kept waiting for a reason for Sophie’s actions, but never got one.

That was another issue, the inconsistency in Sophie. Agatha I liked, she was a well-rounded character, funny and flawed, and more importantly I understood her. She wasn’t pure good, but just good enough. Sophie was a mess. As I said before, I could not understand anything she did. Everything seemed to boil down to an obsessive need for Happy Ever After and vanity. Yet the only explanation was that she read a lot of fairy tales and wanted to get out her hometown. One moment Sophie was desperate to prove how good she was, the next she was the Ultimate Evil. This made her a good plot device, but an awful character.

Was this a good middle-grade book? I probably wouldn’t give it to an 11 year old. If you want to offer a good fairy-tale twist, there are better things out there (check out Cathrynne Valance). I found it confusing and I was way above the age-range. Nevertheless, it was exciting, fun, and sometimes very clever, so I guess my summary of this is just as inconsistent as the book itself.

Sum It Up: An erratic story with a fairy-tale twist. It makes an interesting read, but don’t expect anything too deep.

Rating: 5/10

*I received this copy from HarperCollins via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*