BBAW Day 3

Book Blogging Awareness Week Day 3: What book blogging means to me

This is a little difficult for me to explain because it's really a new experience for me. In the past, I've always talked about books with family and friends or would jot down thoughts in my personal journal. When I first got an lj I would often do quick reviews on there, but I've never had a blog or journal devoted soley to books and the act of reading until recently. It's quite a refreshing experience. I feel like I don't have to necessarily hold my tongue and can be honest about my own personal reaction to the novel/book. I've been doing this now for less than a year and honestly I love it. It's introduced me to a whole new world. The mere act of writing down my thoughts to share with other book lovers is cathartic. I've also begun to meet other bloggers or discovered that some of my friends have blogs or want to start one. It's been fun and I am hoping to keep at it.

Interview Swap

I interviewed Gina from http://mybookdragon.blogspot.com


How long have you been blogging?

Four years. Wait. What? OMG! My fifth anniversary is coming up in January! 

What is it about YA that appeals to you most?

Most of the YA I read is thick and clean with well developed worlds and characters. They're also fun and quick.

You have a really interesting url, where is it from?

A book. ;-)  A Book Dragon by Donn Dushner. A dragon shrinks when he stops eating and survives to modern time in a box with a Book of Prayers, protecting it from bugs and ends up in a modern bookstore that he protects. Fun, quick read, fighting for what is right against bullies of all kinds.

What benefits have you received from being a book blogger?

Friends! Free books! My reading tastes have been expanded because of all the challenges and reviews out there. I've picked up, and enjoyed, books I wouldn't have looked at before blogging.

What genres would you like to tackle that you haven't before?

Classics. Truly, I have several classics on my shelf but I never seem to pick them up. 

What do you like to do when you're not blogging?

Read. I'm a SAHM (Stay At Home Mom) of adult children who enjoys reading and crochet. I also play volleyball, am active in my church and am trying to love the gym. I am a runner, not very fast or far yet but I move faster than a walk and both feet leave the ground at the same time.

What advice would you give to new bloggers?

Do it for you. Don't give up but take breaks when you need to. Add personality to your posts. Ask for help when you need it. 

The Next Best Thing

Next Best Thing
by Jennifer Weiner

Summary: At twenty-three, Ruth Saunders headed west with her seventy-year-old grandma in tow, hoping to be hired as a television writer. Four years later, she’s hit the jackpot when she gets The Call: the sitcom she wrote, The Next Best Thing, has gotten the green light, and Ruthie’s going to be the show-runner. But her dreams of Hollywood happiness are threatened by demanding actors, number-crunching executives, an unrequited crush on a boss, and her grandmother’s impending nuptials. 

Set against the fascinating backdrop of Los Angeles show business culture, with an insider’s ear and eye for writer’s rooms, bad behavior backstage and set politics, Jennifer Weiner’s new novel is a rollicking ride on the Hollywood rollercoaster and a heartfelt story about what it’s like for a young woman to love, and lose, in the land where dreams come true

The Next Best Thing was one of those novels that you just don't want to end. I loved every word of it. Weiner has a way of drawing her readers in and making them feel like they are a part of the story. Her characters are very real and you feel the highs and lows that each one of them goes through. Instead of being totally woeful, Ruth Saunders stands out as an incredibly likable and real heroine. She is not perfect, she has flaws and insecurities, but  she doesn't use them as an excuse to lash out at people. This novel is incredibly witty and heartfelt. I enjoyed her scathing depiction of Hollywood and it's obsession with beauty. Weiner seems to hate Josh Schwartz and as someone has watched one of his show her scathing attack on Gossip Girl, Chuck and the OC is hilarious. But, she is not just singling him out, but rather using those shows an example of what is wrong with Hollywood. You real feel for Ruth and her naive desire to deliver a product that has heart. You feel for her when she has to make compromises that she does not agree with and you want to jump at joy when she finally finds love. This is by no means high art, but it's a satisfying read and you feel  like you are hearing a friend tell you the trials and tribulations of their life. The secondary characters are just as well constructed as Ruth is. Her grandmother is nothing short of a joy. She's a complex woman who sacrificed for those she loved and only wants the best for her grand-daughter. The two Dave's have such a ying-yang approach to working together you can't help, but wish they were real. This book is missing that feeling that you are in a world that's been constructed. Instead it's like you're prying into the life of someone who could have been your classmate, your roommate, your neighbor or friend.

It's a definite must-read.

The Harry Potter books have been a phenom that has swept the publishing industry, reigniting a passion for reading in young people. The current book craze among young adults can in my opinion be credited to this series. Rowling has created an engaging world that isn't simply fantasy. It is heavily grounded in our everyday realities. Who hasn't felt a little out of place at the age of 10? It depicts the typical or in this case not so typical experience of going away to school. I particularly love the way she draws parallels between the wizard world and the "real" or muggle world. She has created characters that are truly engaging and rootable. I feel like she has drawn on the tradition of the British classics like Jane Eyre by having it center on a young orphan who is poorly treated by his relatives. While not nearly as dark, it makes Harry just as rootable. You want him to succeed, to live and to prosper. This first book is a lot of fun because it establishes the parameters for the story. You know who your good guys are and who your bad ones are. This story has a strong plot that really emphasizes the concept of less is more. It's not riddled with a bunch of crazy twists in turns, but rather how the ordinary becomes extraordinary. She also has an engaging style that draws in readers of all ages. It's not simply a children's book, it's a book for all ages.

Unlike the last two books I've reviewed, I highly recommend you read this series. I can't wait to finish myself.

50 Shades of Crap

I like to give every book the benefit of the doubt. All the hoopla about this book made me want to read it. 50 shades is a problematic book that makes any proud bookworm feel sort of dirty for reading it. It's basically the literary version of being caught with a copy of Hustler.This book made me blush and cringe on the inside. It's not just that it has sexual descriptions. Nearly 80% of this novel is about sex and not just your average run of the mill sex, but some seriously twisted situations. We've all heard of BDSM, but after reading this you get an insiders view of what that really entails. Christian's red room of pain is frankly gross. Reading this makes me wonder what kind of sick twisted human being wrote this novel.

The premise of the novel is understandable: how a young women can let sexual desire get the best of her. If only this novel was the only one. The ending is appropriate, but I fear with 2 other books they are trying to sell the story of Christian and Anastasia as romantic. The story borders on abusive with Christian's random bouts of jealous rage and threats to beat her. Instead of delving into what exactly happened to Christian to make him this messed up or why he refuses to see his relationship with Mrs. Robinson as what it was (child abuse), the author just bombards us with kinky sex. The only person in the novel who seems to have any common sense is Kate who hates him from the get-go. This book would be an interesting case study in how young women get sucked into abusive relationships if it had been left as one book.

Another problem with this novel is the dialogue. Anastasia speaks quite normally, but Christian seems like he's been plucked straight out of a Victorian romance novel. His instance on calling her Miss Steal, his manservant who is always lurking around  and of course the vocabulary he uses. I feel like the author just sat there with a tattered copy of a Victorian romance and the thesaurus.

It's really unfortunate that this literary drivel is going to be turned into movie. It's twilight all over again.

The Bronze Horseman

I try to pride myself on my ability to finish any book no matter how bad it is and for the second time in my life I have failed. Ironically both books were set in Russia. The first was Tolstoy's  War and Peace. I just couldn't get myself to finish a 1000 pages on Russian imperialism and what amounted to really bad characters. I will give tolstoy this, the writing has some literary merit, unfortunately the same cannot be said of the Bronze Horseman.

I started off reading the book and thinking wow this has potential. I actually couldn't put it down for the first 160 pages then I just started to get mad. Tania, who I felt for at first, started to severely grate on my nerves. The mysterious Alexander turned out to be nothing, but a douchebag. He wouldn't know chivalry if it smacked him in the face. There is so much abuse going on in this novel that I just couldn't bring myself to continue.

I didn't even finish the book. I got to page 275 and quit. I no longer care what happens to Alexandra, Tania, her sister Dasha and those poor excuse for parents. If this is romance than no one should ever fall in love. Tania takes self-sacrifice to another level. Alexander is emotionally manipulative. He doesn't have to string either Dasha or Tania along. He could be honest and merely takes Tania's rejection as an excuse to punish her by forcing her to endure the knowledge that he has sex with her sister. The very sister with whom she shares a bed.
The writing style does suck you in, but the characters are so awful that it takes away from whatever else the book has to offer which isn't very much.

The Alchemist

I have been meaning to read this book for awhile now, but only recently got around to it. It's not a very long read, but it's rich with language, symbolism and enough metaphors to make your literature profs foam at the mouth. The story follows a young shepard Santiago who has a dream about going to Egypt. He basically decides to follow the signs that are telling him to go there and comes across a number of different figures. The story is at best confusing, but it doesn't really matter. The language is fluid and almost magical in and of itself. The author takes you on a lyrical journey that harkens back to a different time. In this age of consumption for the masses, it's difficult to find such a beautifully written novel. It's not that long, so one does not get bored, but it does require more than one read to fully understand the story. It's basically a coming of age and focuses on following one's dreams no matter the cost. It's a bit optimistic considering our time and the setting is almost other-wordly. It's hard to picture a Shepard boy who willingly visits a fortune teller and then decides to put everything at risk based on a dream. I do like that Santiago always yearned for travel and the dreams serve more as a catalyst rather than the reason for his journey.

It's definitely a book I would recommend.