On Writing by Stephen King // review with quotes

Look at me reading non-fiction. Wow. I must be growing up.

Does this mean I've read any of Stephen King's fiction? Ha, no. For starters, I'm a wimp, and I know it. So I've never picked up a horror book. For enders, most of Stephen King's books are massive monsters that will be probably eat a reader alive very large. Large books scare me [again, wimp here]. I've heard many good things about King's writing/writing style, so when I grow up, I want to read one of his books. But for now, I've at least read this one.

On Writing begins like a memoir. King discusses his growing-up years, what led him to become a writer, some of his pitfalls, and so forth. He also refers to a lot of his books, so sometimes I just had to wing it and pretend like I knew what he's talking about. It wasn't a bit deal, but in retrospect, I probably should've realized that was going to happen. 

But you know. You live. You learn.

I love his approach to writing and being a writer.

"why shouldn't writers be able to go bonkers and still stay sane?"

You can write weird things, crazy things, soul-dark things and still be an everyday human. Writers, fantasy writers, horror writers, contemporary writers, are not psychos; they don't have to have any kind of disorder.

Writers aren't special cases.

[Not that we mind people thinking we are sometimes.]

"The idea that creative endeavor and mind-altering substances are entwined is one of the great pop-intellectual myths of our time."

King is open and vulnerable about his addictions throughout his life. He's very honest about the lies he originally believed about them and his later realization that these addictions weren't helping him be a better writer. They were just helping him be an awful person. He kicks those myths aside and tells us that writing is not the product of substance abuse. Writing is the product of your sitting in the chair and actually writing. I appreciate Stephen King's honesty on this topic. I respect him for writing it despite how difficult it might have been for him.  It really is a lie that many people believe, writers and non-writers alike, and needs debunking.

"stopping a piece of work just because it's hard, either emotionally or imaginatively, is a bad idea. Sometimes you have to go on when you don't feel like it, and sometimes you're doing good work when it feels like all you're managing is to shovel shit from a sitting position."

Writing isn't all rainbow bridges to creative worlds and epiphany unicorns and world-changing glitter. 

Writing is work. Sometimes it feels boring and tedious, but that doesn't mean you stop. You don't stop because you want to. You don't stop because the feels aren't coming. And just because it feels bad doesn't mean it is actual bad. Like in any job, you hit ruts. But hit ruts like a bulldozer: just keep going.

"put your desk in the corner, and every time you sit down there to write, remind yourself why it isn't in the middle of the room. Life isn't a support-system for art. It's the other way around."

This put things in perspective for me. If you're writing but not living, then you're doing a bad job at both. Living isn't about writing. Writing is about living, so you've got to put life, your health, your family and friends, your beliefs, etc., first.

"Language does not always have to wear a tie and lace-up shoes. The object of fiction isn't grammatical correctness but to make the reader welcome and then tell a story"

Stephen King has a practical approach to the mechanics of writing that I appreciate so much. The latter half of the book focuses on writing advice. I agree with a lot of his points especially those about grammar, dialogue, and plot.

"I distrust plot for two reasons . . . our lives are largely plotless . . . plotting and the spontaneity of real creation aren't compatible."

"Good writing is often about letting go of fear and affectation."

"All the arts depend upon telepathy to some degree, but I believe that writing offers the purest distillation."

I love the way King describes writing as an art. Yes, writers are normal people, but we still like to think we have superpowers or magic, pretend that we're wizards or dragons. [Don't normal people do that too?]

If you're a writer, I would definitely recommend this book. It's informative, funny, and down-to-earth. It's still enjoyable and helpful even if you've not read any or much of Stephen King's other works.

What are some nonfiction works you've read recently or would recommend?

"Words have weight. Ask anyone who works in the shipping department of a book company warehouse, or in the storage room of a large bookstore."

Every Breath by Ellie Marney // book review video

I finally recorded a book video. Yay. [Such quality.] I actually shot this at the beginning of the summer, but video editing is a pain since I know the quality won't be as good as I want it to be because I lack 

1) a good camera

2) a good place to shoot

3) good video editing software

4) good video editing skills


 

So yeah, all I know how to do is turn on my phone and talk to it. And even that is questionable since talking is hard. Really though, I wasn't feeling well while videoing this, so there's times when I gather my words for too long and have a coughing break. So please excuse that and the sunlight's game of hide-and-seek. 

*changes blog title to The Ghostly White Hatter*


Have you read this book? Thoughts? Any other Sherlock retellings you love/hate?

Popcorn Reviews // last summer's books

I promise I've been wanting to blog more. So I dove into my drafted posts and found a list of books I was supposed to review. . . last summer.

Oops.

Apparently, I don't do light fluffy, contemporary summer reads. It's against my religion or something [to be more accurate, the thought makes me gag internally]. So here's an odd summer list for you and an unrelated popcorn pic.

The Mystery of Edwin Drood by Charles Dickens

Once upon the many times I wandered through a library, I spied a spine of maroon color that read "Mystery" combined with the very interesting name of "Edwin Drood." Obviously, I picked it up and after realized it was written by Charles Dickens. I've never actually read any of his books, mostly because, to me, his name is synonymous with tomes the size of frost giants and writing that inspires yawns. The only thing I actually know about him though is 

1) he's English

2) he wrote a Tale of Two Cities

3) he wrote Oliver Twist, and 

4) he's known for something or another about characters, but this didn't come to me at the time. 

Really, I was just surprised to find such a short, bite-sizable book by him. I'd been wanting to try more classics, so this seemed a good easing introduction to Dickens. Also, I'm notorious for picking up library books just because of the title.

I loved it.

Loved, loved it.

But it is certainly not for everyone.

You have to be in the right frame of mood to read Dickens and enjoy him. In this book at least, he wanders around, bumps against a character, gives a wonderfully picturesque sketch of said character, then, on a whim, has tea with them.









Really, that's what happens. I often wondered, "Ok, Dickens, this is beautiful and all, and I love these people. They are real people. And the scenery is amazing; I want to live here. But where is the plot? What are we doing here having tea and nice chat? Where are you taking me?" 

Dickens seemed to be more interested in the journey than the destination.

Despite the shorter length, it is a book that takes longer to read. It meanders at its own pace without care for plot. But the writing style, while slow, is beautiful. I love the classical style sometimes but also hate it? The reader can envision everything. It's amazing how he uses words. But it's also cumbersome and slow. Just before reading this book, I had finished a couple of fast-paced books, so reading at a leisurely stroll was refreshing at the time. I'm not sure if all Dickens' books are like this [I have a hunch they are], as I've only read one, and I later found out that this is one he actually didn't finish, which might explain why it's so short.

[I seriously want to know the ending though!]

If you want a book that's the equivalent to a walk in the park [they do a lot of that. . . walking in the park], this is a good one to pick up.

Bedford Square by Anne Perry

Years ago, I would occasionally pick up one of Anne Perry's Thomas Pitt mysteries. These books lean on the larger side, buuuut I'd been wanting a mystery set in Victorian/Industrial England. I also missed the characters. So I nabbed a shorter one from the library. 

Returning to the series for a book was . . . disappointing? I did like the book. The ending was interesting. But it wasn't how I remembered. I didn't like the writing style. I nearly didn't finish it except that I just like the characters and the flavor of the historical background too much. That is one thing that Perry masters well in her Thomas Pitt series. The historical background, what was going on socially, the style of clothing, people's mindsets, everything is so spot on. That time period had so many changes going on, perfect for a murder mystery.

I think my big pet peeve is just that she stops to talk about clothes too much. XD Like I don't care what exact print or style they're wearing. I don't know different clothing types anyhow, so none of that matters to me. I realized though that a lot of people who read this books are probaby women, and most women, with the exception of me, tend to be fashion suave.

One of the things I do like is that Thomas and his wife's relationship [her poor name escapes me, apologies]. I love how she sleuths and how Perry writes it. Thomas is a detective; he's not an amateur. His wife likes to help, not in a nagging overbearing sort of way. Mostly, she's just concerned, and she more often gets involved when someone she cares about becomes involved. She always helps out via her social status and will find out details through her social connections, details that Thomas would have more difficulty learning with a badge. Basically, she sleuths in a way that's acceptable for a woman of her time. She uses a lot of intuition. And I love that. She's smart and still feminine. Also, what she does learn is always detrimental to the investigation. And her husband is not patronizing nor does he downplay her role. Basically, Thomas needs her, and she supports him as a wife and partner but is also wise enough to try her best not to get herself or Thomas in a tight spot [not always successfully because, well, it is a mystery book]. I love their relationship. She's not an idiot, and she'd never think to be ashamed of her femininity, which is refreshing and rare [even in historical fiction where it's realistic for the time period]. I really like Thomas and her dynamic. They make a great team as well as a great couple.

Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

Who hasn't heard of this book? I honestly wouldn't have given a thought to this book if a friend of mine [*waves* allo, friend!] hadn't influenced me. We tend to like some of the same things, and she bragged heavily on it. So. I gave it a try.

This actually counts as a light summer read. It's so hilarious! It plays with fairytale tropes, and the characters are just amazing and memorable and funny. [I've not seen the movie though.]

I would definitely reread this. I'm honestly not sure what to say about it though. Just thinking about this book makes me happy. I laughed so much! I probably read it within two or three days, which is unusually fast for me. The world of the story is great and so imaginative and creative. Even without the amazing characters, I would've still loved it for the world-building.

If I were to describe the feeling that it gives me in one word I would say

Colorful.

Not that there are colors in the book.

The character of the book is colorful.

Ivanhoe by Walter Scott

This book shyly peered up at me from the shelf of a secondhand bookshop during my need-to-read-classics phase. It needed a good home. So I adopted it.

This was, of course, another slow read like Dickens. What I loved about this book is that it gives off high fantasy vibes since it's set in the Medieval Age. I loved the setting. Although Scott wanders even more than Dickens [a difficult feat], it's such an adventure story.

[Pst, Robin Hood is important to the plot. I totally read it for Robin Hood.]

The plot is dramatic and rather classical.

Again, it's a laborious read, but I don't regret it. It was good fun all the same. 

Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria Rilke

So another friend loves a quote from this book. After she shared it with me, I had to read the whole book. I really enjoyed it. It's a nonfiction collection of letters that Rainer Maria Rilke wrote to someone who also wanted to be a poet. It's a book about writing (poetry in particular, but I think it can apply to any writing or even any art form). It's about creativity and becoming an artist. I mostly enjoyed the first half, but I'll admit some of the latter half lost me a bit. It's a thought-provoking short read with very quotable sections. 

A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. LeGuin

I found this book in the secondhand bookshop tucked away with a bunch of fantasy classics. I'd never heard of this book, but the cover was amazing. I've been wanting to read some fantasy classics (outside of Tolkien), so this looked like a good start. It's just over 200 pages which suits me fine. 

I fell in love with this book. The world of the book is fantastic. I love the concept behind the dragons and the magic system. Earthsea is one book world that I would feel right at home in if I could go there. I've finished the trilogy actually (still can't say which is my favorite book). The overarching theme of the whole trilogy is balance and equilibrium. I've always found that fascinating. 

There's a lot of good bits that you could get out this tiny book. The characters are fun as well. It's a quick read although it can go deep. If you read only one book from this list, read this one.

I also read this book the last time I was in Texas, the last time I could go home before my parents moved. So it has an even stronger home feeling for me. 

What have you been reading this summer [*cough* or last summer]?

Popcorn Reviews // Five Enchanted Roses

I've had this book around the top of my TBR for a while and finally decided to read it. Unfortunately, it took me longer than I had hoped since, well, it was a bit of  letdown.

Five Enchanted Roses is a collection of Beauty and the Beast short story retellings.

I went into this book pretty excited. Beauty and the Beast is one of my favorite fairytales, but what I wasn't expecting was the meh writing. Not all the authors wrote the same. But most of them wrote in that style that always makes me suspect the writer believes he or she must write in this manner to be considered a writer. It's that style that's akin to stuffy, old literature that moves slowly and contemplatively, tells after it shows, or just tells and forgets about showing.

Don't get me wrong. I like some classics, but when I pick one up, I expect the style to be a bit long-winded. Occasionally, I find a modern author who does know how to pull off the classical style properly, but not often. [In fact, I beta-read for a friend whose style is YA and classical mixed, and it's done well]. The writing is good, just not my taste.

Also, and this was on me, each story was doused with romance tropes [so annoying]. But since this was a fairytale retelling, I should've expected to see a lot of modern romance tropes. I don't know why I didn't realize this.


 


So if you like romance/romance tropes, you'll probably love this book.

Although some of the stories renamed the "Beast" or "Belle/Beauty," for the sake of avoiding confusion, I'll call them after whom they represent.

Esprit De La Rose

The first story placed our beloved B&B on a pirate ship? And in an alternate universe of where the Fee punish and banish sailors. The character development didn't seem very realistic for the Beast. But I think that's because his change of heart was a little rushed. The characters were ok. The ships and pirates idea was interesting, but for me that was its redeeming factor.

Wither

This story was by far my favorite of all five! Again, the style was not exactly my taste, but the story was good. And I enjoyed the characters. I loved the idea of it, and I definitely want to know more about the world of the story. The Spooks seemed to be people who would protect the townspeople from the evil spirits that lurked in the forest. Also the Beast was different and why he was a beast. The CASTLE was alive! And all the Lonely were like the invisible spirits, I guess, that served in the castle. Even the ending was different and interesting. The world-building made this story stick out.

Stone Curse

This story was also interesting. It varied more in plot, and Belle's origin was different than the traditional Belle/Beauty. The Beast was written well too. It did get rather sappy though, mostly at the end. This could be in part because the ending was rushed. I wish the author would've taken more time with the romance twist at the end because it would've been more believable. I kinda left this one with some dissatisfaction because the ending was wrapped up just so. But that's ok, right? It's a fairytale.

Rosara and the Jungle King

This was probably my least favorite even though it was the most different. The plot was loosely based on B&B. I did like how it took place in the jungle, how the curse came about, and that the Beast was actually a jaguar. Buuuut the whole plot seemed to hang on the second plot event which just so happened to be an attempted rape which the Beast saves Belle from [enter romance trope]. 

The romance made me wince, but considering that it is romance genre, it's probably done well then? [Don't look at me; I haven't the faintest.] Despite the different setting, the plot and events were a little predictable.

The Wulver's Rose

The Scottish setting was enjoyable as well as the obvious Scottish accent in the dialogue. There were a few other tiny differences. This particular retelling made me realized that in B&B story, the Beast is technically very old, like hundreds of years older than Belle. Sure, he is kept from physically aging and in most stories part of the curse keeps him from mental intelligence. But still, he's had the experience of hundreds of years. And, honestly, that's a little disturbing. I know there's going to be a huge age gap, but a hundred years is a bit much, don't you think?

So yeah, this book was not exactly my cup of tea [except Wither, Wither was great!]. But maybe you might like it? And if you're a Beauty and the Beast fan [as I am], it's at least worth a try!


 

What's your favorite fairytale retelling, B&B or otherwise? What's your least favorite and why? I'd love some recs!

Popcorn Reviews // The Stardrift Trilogy

So this author contacted me about reviewing her book on my blog. [To think! Me?! An author contacting! This blog doesn't get traffic to warrant that.]

And I was like *shrugs* Sure, man. [Guys, an author contacted me, what was I to say?]

This was about a year and half ago. *hides face* Because life / I'm forgetful / other reasonings that shall be revealed.

The Stardrift Trilogy is a space adventure book with planets that have crazy climates and weird creatures. The cast of characters are on a quest to save various planets from destruction at the hands of some mad villain.

So I didn't like this book. Which is the big reason why it took me forever to finish the whole trilogy before reviewing it. Plus, I have never reviewed a book that I don't like. But I made a promise.

Let's talk about the good stuff first. Because other people might like this trilogy. I haven't actually read many space books [a thing I intend to remedy]. So maybe it's just me? Maybe the genre comes with a certain atmosphere or feel that I'm unused to?

The good stuff.

1) The science is very specific and accurate. The MC, Dahskay, is an astronomer, so there's a lot of astronomical terms. Astronomy is usually one of the few sciences that I have little interest in, but the book made me a little curious.

2) The world-building is very intricate and in-depth. I could tell the author put a lot of work into the world-building. Every planet is different. The creatures on each planet are interesting.

3) Spaceships! So one of the things that I always love about space books and movies is the spaceships. They're just cool, ok. 

 

The Stardrift Trilogy has Lei's ship. Which is pretty awesome because she designed it herself, and other people have tried to mimic what she did but can't.

4) There's a glossary, thank God! I cannot pronounce any names.

5) The prologue is awesome.

The other stuff

1) The plot? It got lost somewhere? I still have trouble pinpointing what it was actually about. Sometimes it seemed really vague even though I do know that the main characters are trying to stop the villain from destroying a whole solar system. I think. The plot doesn't really kick into gear until the third book.

In the first book, Dahskay sees some discrepancies in a star's alignment. So she decides to check it out. Her dad freaks out then let's her go [her parents are bipolar like that], but only if she takes Trotha [he's awful in case you want to know] along so that he can lookout for her.

Then there's this mysterious, dangerous girl [Lei] with a dark past. If Leirrenist were in a George Lucas film, she'd have her own epic theme music. Anyhow, she decides to guide them. And they find trouble. Also, people are hunting them because everyone suspects that Dahskay and Co. are spies [which is absurd].

Second book? Dahskay and Trotha find a transmitted message that they can't translate. Everyone thinks it's nothing, but these two have a weird feeling. So they take the message to a planet that can decipher it. They run into Lei again and team up with her. The message is detrimental to the war in Lei's solar system.

In the third book, the two help Lei with the rebellion and with destroying stuff. And yeah, I probably shouldn't tell you the end.

2) The characters are flat and bipolar. Lei's bad-tempered, violent, and unpredictable. Trotha's pessimistic, annoying, and useless. Dahskay never knows what's going. And her dad rejects the idea of his baby daughter going out into a war zone and in the same breath changes his mind because HOW DANGEROUS CAN SPACE BE, right?

3) Until the third book, Dahskay's "in charge" of the mission. Even though the only thing she does is keep Trotha and Lei from killing each other [literally]. She never knows what's happening; she just goes along for the ride, but everyone insists that she's the leader.

4) I still have no idea why Trotha's part of the team. He causes most of the problems they got into.

5) I could never understand the power status between the characters. One minute the villain is intimidating his advisor. Then within the same scene, he's whining like a little kid to his advisor and accepting the advise given him.

The villain also places all his trust in this kid general who's supposed to be an awesome warrior but now is sick and hallucinates. Everyone thinks the general's going to die while the villain believes the general can single-handedly execute three prisoners.

The general dude, Zarrveck, is sometimes super weak, and other times he's stronger and faster than Dahskay [who is unfit, yeah, but at least she's not on the verge of dying].

6) Zarrveck is always described as "beautiful" and "corpse-like." Corpses are beautiful, guys!

I'm so confused.

7) BUT Zarrveck was the only character who's inconsistencies actually seemed like character development instead of just. . . I don't even know. Except for his fits of physical strength and weakness.

8) The writing takes the long way to explain everything.

9) The world-building is well developed but it's given in these long chunks of info-dumping. And despite the fact that everything was described in complete detail, I still had trouble visualizing it.

10) The dialogue is awful. [That alone can be a deal breaker for me.]

11) Typos and misspellings are everywhere. It's not so bad in the third book though.

And that's all I have to say.

 

 Have you ever read a book with bipolar characters? Do you have an good space, sci-fi recs? What was your biggest book disappointment?

Popcorn Review: Rhyme? and Reason? by Lewis Carroll

 I noticed this book at the college library [mostly because Carroll's section is right above Conan Doyle's]. And I thought I'd give it a go since I've love Carroll's poems in his Alice series.

I will have to say my favorite is probably the first. Phantasmagoria is a lot of fun and hilarious. A ghost appears to the owner of the house the ghost has been assigned to haunt. The poem is the long conversation the two have. Most of it is the ghost telling the owner all about being a ghost and his life history. [So I *might* have written a short story inspired by this Phantasmagoria, and if you want to read it, email me.]

Some of the poems were done in parodies. Like Hiawatha's Photographing was done to the meter of The Song of Hiawatha. I'm sure that would've been amusing if I remembered what I read of the original in high school. But I don't. The poem itself was amusing though.

The Lang Coortin' is hilarious, most especially for it's dialect. It took me a bit to understand some of it, but after awhile I could hear it.

One of my other favorites would definitely be A Valentine! It's not what you think, and it's shorter than half of the other poems. Just go read it! It's hilarious and so true. 

This collection also contains The Hunting of the Snark, which I've read before. It's really good and hardly makes any sense [but what would you expect?]. I rather love it's preface. Especially the bit when Carroll complains that many people mispronounce the words to his Jabberwocky ["Such is Human Perversity."]. As a fantasy writer, I definitely relate. He also has a lovely paragraph in there about portmanteaus.

A Game of Fives is funny and makes me think of what must've been going through Mrs. Bennet's mind in Jane Austen's P&P. 

I also loved Poeta Fit, Non Nascitur. Someone tells a younger person how to write poems properly. Quite good advice in there.  

"Next, when you are describing 

A shape, or sound, or tint;

Don't state the matter plainly,

But put it in a hint;

And learn to look at all things

With a sort of mental squint."

Have you read any of Carroll's work outside of Alice in Wonderland?

Popcorn Reviews: The Editions Edition

Little Lord Fauntleroy

So this was an interesting read. It wasn't particularly engaging, although that was because the plot revolved around a "perfect" protagonist who changed imperfect people for the better. Little Lord Fauntleroy reads like a novel length fairytale, or I at least saw a lot of parallels to fairytale traditions.

His father was the youngest son of a misery, old lord who had three sons. The older two were corrupt and wasteful. The youngest was the old lord's pride and joy expect gosh it! Why'd he have to marry some lowly American woman? The youngest son was disinherited and the youngest went to be with his perfect wife and had a perfect little boy. Fauntleroy is intelligent and funny and he takes himself rather seriously. It's basically a rags-to-riches story. The grandfather finds Fauntleroy, who's real name is Cedric, and brings him to London with much skepticism. I'd tell you more, but I'm sure you can speculate or at least read the book for yourself. XD

Naturally, it's beautifully written, although it's idealistic at times.

What I loved, loved though was the book itself. I'm a bit weird like that. My love for books doesn't stop at just the story, but I like the book itself. I found Little Lord Fauntleroy while wandering the MG section of the library. It was a very old edition from around the 1950s or 60s. I loved its worn pages. And the illustrations! Some excellent sketches, maybe in pen? I don't know. I'm not very good at determining the medium of art.

Anyhow, Little Lord Fauntleroy was a good experience. Not a fast-paced, adventure read, but a sweet story told in the fairytale tradition.

A Farewell to Arms

So because I'm a nerd, I'm going to tell you why I picked this book up in the first place. 

1) I need to read more classics. Why *need*? I don't know. I can argue away every argument that comes to mind. Expect that I should at least have more variety in my book diet. 

2) Emily told me too. Okay, that may be an overstatement. I can't remember if Emily told me to or if she raved about it and then strongly suggested it. My mind palace is a cluttered place, so 'scuse me if the memory needs dusting. 

3) My favorite English professor from my former college loved Hemingway. So we studied 'Hills Like White Elephants.' He talked a lot about Hemingway and in his office, he had two whole bookshelves full of Hemingway books. This professor, uh, died a couple years ago. It was sad [obviously]. So I kinda picked this book up in a sort of to-remember-him kind of way, although I clearly had not forgotten him. So what kind of sense does this make? It doesn't make sense. It's sentiment.

Unfortunately, I didn't like A Farewell to Arms. I really, really wanted to like it. But it just wasn't for me. I thought it was going to be a war story with a side of romance. Ha! It was a romance story with a side of war. Eh, I don't really do romance stories, so it's amazing I actually finished the book. 

The dialogue confused me at times. Hemingway often leaves off dialogue tags which is not necessarily a bad thing. But he also likes to put two speakers in the same paragraph together, or begin new paragraph even though the speaker had not changed. So sometimes it was difficult to understand who said what. It was tedious with talk about the weather and such too. But I think Hemingway was trying to bring a sense of realism into the conversation? Maybe? People do actually talk like that [but why do we?].

I can't say I disliked all of the dialogue. I did enjoy some of the conversations. Like the one about the brave and the cowardly and how the world breaks us all.

I do like the way Hemingway painted the war. I think that's why A Farewell to Arms is lauded. The realistic portrayal of the war. The characters made a big deal about how the main character was wounded and they made him into a hero. But he was like, "I wasn't even fighting. I was getting cheese for our lunch." He was wounded while setting up dinner. And everybody thought it was great that he was wounded for nothing. Rather sad, isn't it?

I loved the way Hemingway ended it. It doesn't feel like an ending. It's so open. But I love open endings! And with A Farewell to Arms, I realized why open endings work for me. Because the character lives on, when that one time in his life or that one story ends, another begins. It's a natural thing. 

You end one chapter, another takes its place immediately. When you go through one phase in life, you enter another. There's no hanging around in between, even that would be consider a phase of its own. So it makes sense that when the story ends, another opens. We see that next story open because the change is so immediate. One story leads to another, it's so seamless that the writer cannot separate the two. We then feel as if the story hasn't ended, not because in truth the story hasn't ended, but because we have a begun a new story and are forced to discontinue it.

Anyhow, despite not liking A Farewell to Arms, there were still good things about it. And may I just talk about the edition again? I found this book was on a shelf in the back of an un-air-conditioned shop filled with yellowed and faded books. The edition was from the 70s or 80s. It might have been previously owned by a bored college student or something. It had to have been required reading for someone. There was the occasionally line or unusual word underlined. But sometimes I would come across a whole page wherein all the "o"s were colored in with pen. Or all the "a"s. It was funny. And interesting to think about the previous owner.

The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes

So, of course, I loved this book! It's Holmes, what's not to love? Honestly, I've read so many Holmes books now, I can only accurately place a few details within this book. Most things I just know that I've read it in one of the Holmes stories, but which one? *shrugs* Does it matter?

So here's what I remember.

You know on BBC Sherlock, that time when SH sits with his knees hugged to his chest?

Yeah, book Sherlock actually does that.

So the thing about the Memoirs is that this is the book with Moriarty. 

Moriraty first "shows" up in the book The Valley of Fear. Both Watson and Lestrade thought Holmes might be going crazy because he kept alluding to this Moriarty. But Moriarty seems a respectable man and is so far removed from the plot in The Valley of Fear that he doesn't even make an appearance. Holmes merely talks about him. And the readers wonder if Moriarty had anything to do with the events of the plot.

 

But finally in the Memoirs we see probably the most famous Holmes story unfold, The Final Problem. And we see Moriarty. Again even in the story, he gets little page time. His notoriety is held in whispers and the evil results of his deeds.

So you know that part during BBC Sherlock, the pool scene, when

 Moriarty says, "All that I have to say has already crossed your mind." 

And Sherlock says, "Then possibly my answer has crossed yours."

Guys! They took those lines STRAIGHT FROM CANON! Do you know how ecstatic I was when I read those lines? Some Sherlock Holmes purists don't like BBC Sherlock because the production changed so many things. But accuracy is in the details, the timeless snippets that you just can't alter or delete because it's too perfect. Like those lines.

The Final Problem was probably my favorite of the all the stories, although I do remember the Greek Interpreter one as very interesting too.

The only thing I didn't like about this book was the edition. I bought it secondhand from a Half Price Books. It's riddled with typos. Sometimes a word is missing from a phrase, and there are a lot of misspellings. The worst and most frequent is a missing "l" from "Holmes," so it reads as "Homes." 

But the stories themselves were amazing! 

What have you been reading lately?

Popcorn Reviews: guitars, pajamas, and clockworks

Mini reviews! They're like 'fun-sized' candy. It's more fun when there are more than one.

I have no idea who this guy is, but he has popcorn.

Guitar Notes

 Tripp uses the guitar in the music practice room on odd days while Lila practices her cello in the same room on even days. When Tripp leaves his trash on the first day, Lyla writes him a note addressing the school's rules about throwing trash. And so commences a long exchange of notes and snarky comments from Mr. Odd and Ms. Even.

 I spied this at a Half Price Books and thought I'd give it a go. "It could either be cute or meh." It's a quick easy read, barely over 200 pages. It's kinda cute in an MG manner, despite being a little cheesy.

I always pick up books about musicians and guitarists hoping I'll find a good one. They always end up on the DNF list. I guess I'm just not looking at the right ones? But I was determined to finish Guitar Notes and I'm glad I did. Like I said, it was a cute read.

I relate to Lyla's problem of letting people walk on her. She had difficulty telling people what she wanted and speaking her mind. I had difficulty with that for a while and occasionally still do. (Irl life people don't like it when I start speaking my mind XD) I also love Tripp. His personality was sarcastic, funny, and nervous. Although he does get angsty. . . Seriously though, his mom took his guitar away. Who wouldn't get angsty? She wanted him to make more friends, but why doesn't she try to find some other guitarists his age to befriend?

Overall, though if you can overlook stiff narration and a touch of cheesy (but funny) dialogue and you want something quick, this is a good choice. I really liked the concept best, note exchanging between two musicians from different musical spheres.

The Boy in Striped Pajamas

Bruno has to move because his father has gotten a big important job. He doesn't want to leave his friends and his grandparents and their perfect house behind. Besides their new house is so small and there are no people nearby. Well, except for the people on the other side of the fence. Who are they? He might just go adventuring to answer his questions.

Wow. This book. I looked it up at the library a long, long time ago, and they didn't have it. But recently I was wandering the shelves, as I'm apt to do, and stumbled upon it. Of course I snatched it up. It's about a boy in Germany and his father is in charge of a prison camp for Jews. Bruno eventually befriends one of the boys from the camp.

"If you ask me, we're all in the same boat. And it's leaking." -- Bruno

But this book is told completely from the story of a nine year old boy. He has no idea what is truly going on around him. He can't even pronounce half the places and names properly. He is innocence in the cruel world of society and boxes.

Again, this is another quick read. You could probably read it in one sitting, which I would suggest if possible. I highly recommend this one. Just wow. Go read it! Goodreads

The Invention of Hugo Cabret

Hugo runs the train station clocks alone. Ever since his father died, his uncle took him in. But now his uncle's disappeared too, and unless Hugo wants to be taken away to an orphanage, he must keep the clocks running as if his uncle was still here. He finds the machine he and his father had committed to fixing and perhaps if he studies his father's notebook he can fix on his own. When the toymaker Hugo's been stealing parts from takes his father's notebook, Hugo is sure he'll never be able to fix the machine. But what is wrong with the toymaker? And the girl who stops by the toy shop with her books?

This book was a delightful surprise. I loved the movie. When I found out it was based on a book, I've always wanted to read it. Again, this was another serendipity find. It is so thick though! I had borrowed it from the library with a huge stack of other books and procrastinated reading Hugo. Eventually, I made myself look through it to see if it was worth renewing. I didn't even realize it was illustrated. It was thick for a reason. The book weaves a story with a blend of both words and illustrations. And I loved the illustrations. It was like a silent film. The format of the text is a little odd. Sometimes there'll be a short paragraph on one page, or a single sentence with a lot of white space. Other times a few pages will be filled at a time without an illustration to break it apart.

The story is that of a filmmaker and magician. It's about a boy who fixes things with nimble fingers. It's about a girl who runs fast and loves books. It's about secrets and mysteries. It's about words and images. It's about a train station in Paris, France and the ghost who kept the clocks running.

I would definitely recommend this book. It's not a heavy read like The Boy in the Pajamas, but it is very sweet and the ingenuity of it is fun and intriguing. Goodreads

Have you read any of these? What have you been reading lately? And do you have any good recs with musicians?

Popcorn Reviews: Winter // The Lunar Chronicles

Do you  know how difficult it is to find popcorn gifs on pinterest? This one is hilarious. I mean, it's a cat. What's not funny about felines? I have half a mind to use it all the time.

I gave an official review on Goodreads so here I'll sum up what I think is most important. Oh, and I'll probably throw quotes at you.

Mostly, throw quotes at you.

"You are the capital U of Unhelpful."

Winter, as the final book in the Lunar Chronicles, was a really good way to end the series.  The Lunar Chronicles is a retelling of intertwining fairytales with a sci-fi, dystopian spin. The main story is Cinderella, but it also involves Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel, and Snow White. Also, I've always felt some Beauty and the Beast undertones from a certain OTP. *cough* 

Anyhow, Winter is the last book in the series therefore we have THE EPIC BATTLE. Because that's how book series work. That's all I'm going to say about the single book, because if you've not read the rest of the series I don't want to spoil anything.

So, you really ought to read The Lunar Chronicles (*hint* the first book is Cinder). It's fantastic and hilarious! 

 You will now head to library and borrow Cinder.

If, on the other hand, you have read the series but have doubts because this is the last book. I had my doubts too, but have no fear. You will love it.

"I can't believe nothing went wrong."

"I would wait until you're sitting on a throne before making statements like that."

The Lunar Chronicles has so many characters. Meyer juggles various POV characters and yet it's never confusing. What's even better is that they're each complex individuals. They have their own character arcs and personalities. I don't know how she does it. They all are so real.

Can I mention funny? They are hilarious! The sarcasm. The downright funny. The comebacks. These characters just have such a dynamic. The friendships are strong with this one.

"Your mouth uses up a lot of energy."

Meyer also has a handful of couples and none of the couples are similar. How can you have such a huge cast and not have one character skeleton? JUST SOMEBODY TELL ME HER SECRET, OKAY?! I admire how real and yet individually diverse her characters are.

The retelling parts are just superb, okay? It's this dystopian, sci-fi, loads of action kind of twist that just works.

She was no expert, but it seemed problematic to carry on a relationship on two different planets--

Er, a planet and a moon.

Or whatever.

I'm  not that big into romance. Most of the time I'm thinking, "They're shooting at you! Why the kissing now? Just because the enemy has stinky aim doesn't mean you ought to forget your brain."  There is a nice dose of romance in Meyer's books. They are fairytale retellings and those tend to involve one's true love, tra, la lala. . . you know the stories.

"It's not proper for seventeen-year-old princesses to be alone with young men who have questionable intentions."

"And what about young men who she's been best friends with since before she could walk?"

"Those are the worst."

Maybe it's how well the characters are written. Maybe it's because it's a fairytale retelling. Or maybe it's-- I don't know! This series is the only time I can get my girly girl on and full out cheer for every single romance scene. When it comes to love, not all of the characters are fluffy strawberry sponge cakes (with extra whipped topping). Having said that, some of them are (muchly so). They balance each other out. 

"Hello friend."

"Hello crazy."

(Scar and Winter's friendship in four words.)

This series is also about friendships. Especially the unlikely ones. Like Scarlet and Winter. Cinder and Thorne. Wolf and Cress. Big brother Kai, little sister Cress. Jacin and, uh. . . well, he and Scarlet have mutual respect because of Winter. 

Cinder and IKO! Iko is hilarious.

 Should I maybe give a short descript of the characters?

Cinder:

 our fearful, sarcastic leader, who also happens to be a mechanic and a cyborg, prefers socializing with androids than people, and gosh, she so selfless and empathizes with people

Kai:

 our sarcastic emperor who tries to be sensible but generally fails at logic, he has such a heart for his people, and I rather think he's brave because he's one of the few of characters who is continually face to face with Levana, his good intentions and adorableness hopefully make up for his real stupid decisions 

"You mean she doesn't intend to blow me up before the ceremony? How disappointing."

Levana:

our evil, psychotic queen, the villain you love to hate (I do at least), manipulative to the core, perhaps her own views and priorities are skewed, perhaps she's been taught that way, perhaps she paranoid to the point of insanity

Iko:
our droid with a very humane malfunction called emotions, the fangirl of fangirls (yes, the droid is the gooey shipper in this story), Cinder teaches her sarcasm, and she's not too bad at hand to hand fighting

Thorne:
our player, thief, mischief maker, the Han Solo of this fleet (he's even got his own ship, that he might have stolen on his way out of the military. . .), he's got a witty comeback for everything and charm that'll outlast the stars with an ego to match

"They're the first crew I've ever had, and most of them even call me Captain."

Scarlet:
our fierce loyal friend, I really can't think of what other role Scarlet plays than friend, she's Cinder's supportive friend, she's Winter's guardian friend, she's the most distrusting and loyal person in all the galaxy and she'll gun down the French countryside to find her grandmere, she's a bit intense, a bit impulsive with determination and sass to go with

"It's just like the one Scarlet had." He flipped the gun in his palms, running his thumbs along the barrel. "She shot me in the arm once."

This confession was said with as much tenderness as if Scarlet had given him a bouquet of wildflowers rather than a bullet wound.

Wolf:

our conflicted guard dog (have you seen Elliot from Leverage?), a trained weapon, all teeth and short temper unless he decides he likes you, then he's surprisingly gentle and fast loyal, he's energy, nervous energy, excited energy, energy for the sake of energy, and he's been manipulated too many times

Jacin:

our other guard whose got major league trust issues, for good reasons, when he's not masked in a blank stare it's hard candor and sarcasm, regularly he's controlled, but around his best and only friend, he's more like a mischievous school boy

Cress:

our princess hacker, she knows the ins and outs of all things technology, low self confidence, but a sharp and active imagination, she's got fierce timidity and big dreams, and maybe a fangirl crush

Winter:

our true fairytale princess, a little crazy, completely harmless, her intentions are only good and sweet, she's butterfly wings, rainbow chases, and cotton candy fluff, and nearly EVERYBODY is her friend,

 

I do adore Cress' fierce timidity.

And Kai (harmless Kai) gets a knife and nearly stabs. . . I love that part. Mwahaha!

Scarlet is completely my new hero.

I applaud Meyer so much. She's my favorite author (if you've not figured that out).

Oh, and not to be depressing but:

Finally, finally, the small globe in the corner stopped turning and the netscreen brightened, revealing Levana in her sheer white veil.

The future has bad internet connections too.

(PS- I've been sourcing my gifs differently, so if you like any of them, just click on it and it *should* open a new tab into pinterest for you.)

Have you read Winter or any of the Lunar Chronicles? Who's your favorite character/OTP? AND if you've not read it yet, do you have any other favorite fairytale retellings?