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The Bandersnatch (199 KP) rated The Wonderful Wizard of Oz in Books
Nov 7, 2019
The Book was Published by George M. Hill Company with an advanced publication date of September 1900. The public heard of it at a book fair in Chicago around July 5th to 20th with its copyright registered by August 1st. The books sold out quickly and the second editions went just as quickly as the first. When Hills company became bankrupt in 1901, Bobbs-Merrill Company resumed publishing the book. By 1933 there were more than a million copies printed and by 1956 the sales had grown to three million printed. Because The Wizard of Oz was so popular it became the first in a thirteen book series.
I had known about the wizard of oz ever since I was a child but this was due to the 1939 Movie by MGM of the same name starring Judy Garland. As such I didn't read the book until I was nearly an adult. The book is highly different to the movie with Dorothy having to do more to get home and for both the Wizard and Oz as a whole. The major differences between book and movie is the fact that the Ruby slippers from the movie are silver in the book and the flying monkeys are controlled by a magical cap and Dorothy having protection from Glinda the good witch of the north. I have to admit I am a stickler for details and I prefer the book rather than the movie, despite the movie being good. I recommend this book to everyone and give the book a 9/10
Lyman Frank Baum was born May 15th 1856 in Chittenango, New York to a devout Methodist family the seventh of nine children of Cynthia and Benjamin Baum. Only Baum and five of his siblings survived to adulthood. Lyman hated his first name despite being named for an uncle and liked his middle name better, he was known as Frank for most of his life. Baum married his wife Maud Gage on November 9th 1882 and by 1888 had moved to Aberdeen, Dakota Territory where he operated his own store for a while before turning to writing full time which he loved to do since he was a child. By the time of his death on May 6th 1919 Baum had written the thirteen book Oz series, a plethora of other books and several musicals and radio plays. Baum had died of a stroke and passed away in his sleep, he's buried in Glendale's Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery. L. Frank Baum certainly has my respect for both his writing of the Oz series and the craziness that his life had been.
I had known about the wizard of oz ever since I was a child but this was due to the 1939 Movie by MGM of the same name starring Judy Garland. As such I didn't read the book until I was nearly an adult. The book is highly different to the movie with Dorothy having to do more to get home and for both the Wizard and Oz as a whole. The major differences between book and movie is the fact that the Ruby slippers from the movie are silver in the book and the flying monkeys are controlled by a magical cap and Dorothy having protection from Glinda the good witch of the north. I have to admit I am a stickler for details and I prefer the book rather than the movie, despite the movie being good. I recommend this book to everyone and give the book a 9/10
Lyman Frank Baum was born May 15th 1856 in Chittenango, New York to a devout Methodist family the seventh of nine children of Cynthia and Benjamin Baum. Only Baum and five of his siblings survived to adulthood. Lyman hated his first name despite being named for an uncle and liked his middle name better, he was known as Frank for most of his life. Baum married his wife Maud Gage on November 9th 1882 and by 1888 had moved to Aberdeen, Dakota Territory where he operated his own store for a while before turning to writing full time which he loved to do since he was a child. By the time of his death on May 6th 1919 Baum had written the thirteen book Oz series, a plethora of other books and several musicals and radio plays. Baum had died of a stroke and passed away in his sleep, he's buried in Glendale's Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery. L. Frank Baum certainly has my respect for both his writing of the Oz series and the craziness that his life had been.
Kirk Bage (1775 KP) rated Glass (2019) in Movies
Mar 3, 2020
This doesn’t need to be a long review; the film itself doesn’t merit a lot of reflection. But, I have set myself the task of recording every piece of cultural media I consume, and there is already a backlog. So, here come a few quickfire bits on things that I found less than impressive. There is some value in identifying why something failed. Especially, as in the case of Glass, when there was an expectation it might be quite exciting.
I am not the biggest M. Night Shyamalan fan, to be honest. I will give you The Sixth Sense and Signs (to an extent), but even those contain some dodgy direction, plotting and unforgivable dialogue that hasn’t weathered the test of time well. 75% of his output is so bad it becomes funny; I mean, The Happening and Lady in the Water – WTF!? And the less said about The Last Airbender the better. My favourite of his works would have to be Unbreakable, from 2000. At least there is a satisfying story arc and the “twist” makes sense. Often with him it is so preposterous or an non-event, it makes you wonder why he bothered.
Sixteen years later, and Split sprung a surprise by being not bad at all, largely thanks to James McAvoy’s performance as a man with multiple personality disorder – a striking, terrifying, turn that showcased his abilities as an actor superbly. So there was some anticipation that bringing those two film worlds together would yield something very interesting and at least fun. So, it is sad to say that, once again, he pretty much botched it.
Don’t get me wrong, it is watchable and entertaining, up to a point – that point being when the story tries to gel all its strands together in a cohesive new twist, and fails utterly to do so. McAvoy is yet again the standout. Here he pushes the split personalities at his command to a brain spinning degree, switching from one to the other effortlessly – I would much rather just have watched him talking and twitching for two hours, to be fair. Bruce Willis has little to do but brood, and Samuel L. Jackson becomes totally laughable as he strains with the script to find any grounding in real character, and descends into cartoon / pantomime villain very quickly, losing all validity carried over from Unbreakable.
It’s a shame, because there is an idea in there somewhere; this just wasn’t it. No doubt, he has left it open for further exploration with these characters, and will in time return to them. I just hope he takes his time to consider the script properly before diving headlong into another disappointment of cliche and bad plotting. I just feel sorry for McAvoy, who deserved much better.
I am not the biggest M. Night Shyamalan fan, to be honest. I will give you The Sixth Sense and Signs (to an extent), but even those contain some dodgy direction, plotting and unforgivable dialogue that hasn’t weathered the test of time well. 75% of his output is so bad it becomes funny; I mean, The Happening and Lady in the Water – WTF!? And the less said about The Last Airbender the better. My favourite of his works would have to be Unbreakable, from 2000. At least there is a satisfying story arc and the “twist” makes sense. Often with him it is so preposterous or an non-event, it makes you wonder why he bothered.
Sixteen years later, and Split sprung a surprise by being not bad at all, largely thanks to James McAvoy’s performance as a man with multiple personality disorder – a striking, terrifying, turn that showcased his abilities as an actor superbly. So there was some anticipation that bringing those two film worlds together would yield something very interesting and at least fun. So, it is sad to say that, once again, he pretty much botched it.
Don’t get me wrong, it is watchable and entertaining, up to a point – that point being when the story tries to gel all its strands together in a cohesive new twist, and fails utterly to do so. McAvoy is yet again the standout. Here he pushes the split personalities at his command to a brain spinning degree, switching from one to the other effortlessly – I would much rather just have watched him talking and twitching for two hours, to be fair. Bruce Willis has little to do but brood, and Samuel L. Jackson becomes totally laughable as he strains with the script to find any grounding in real character, and descends into cartoon / pantomime villain very quickly, losing all validity carried over from Unbreakable.
It’s a shame, because there is an idea in there somewhere; this just wasn’t it. No doubt, he has left it open for further exploration with these characters, and will in time return to them. I just hope he takes his time to consider the script properly before diving headlong into another disappointment of cliche and bad plotting. I just feel sorry for McAvoy, who deserved much better.
Phillip McSween (751 KP) rated The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014) in Movies
Apr 3, 2020
Highly Entertaining
The Grand Budapest Hotel recounts the story of M. Gustave (Ralph Fiennes) and his adventures during a battle for an enormous family fortune. I have been avoiding this movie like the plague because the trailers didn’t really grab me. As it turns out, not only is the movie phenomenal, but it quickly became one of my favorites.
Acting: 10
Ralph Fiennes really makes this movie pop as Gustave. His wit is a huge part of his charm and impacts the way he acts out each scene. Characters like his are refreshing and hook you into the movie. I enjoyed Tony Revolori’s role as well playing bellhop Zero Moustafa. The two work so well together and enhance the movie as a result.
Beginning: 10
The beginning isn’t perfect, but I gave it a perfect score because it’s extremely intriguing. By the closing of the first ten minutes, I had a strong feeling I was in for a treat the rest of the way through. I was right.
Characters: 10
Cinematography/Visuals: 10
Director Wes Anderson is known for a specific style that’s so different from anything else out there and The Grand Budapest Hotel is no exception. Colors pop and images jump out at you in exactly the way he is trying to convey. His style, hard to explain at times, is hard not to appreciate and enjoy. When you watch a movie like this, you truly feel like you are getting a full-on cinematic experience.
Conflict: 10
There is a scene towards the back half of the movie that I call “The Escape”. It is action-packed yet has some subtle nuances at the same time. Definitely one of my favorite scenes in the movie, but not the only one hinging on conflict. Despite a comedic overtone, the film relies on a number of different points of tension to drive the plot.
Entertainment Value: 9
Memorability: 10
Gustave and Zero are easily one of my favorite duos since Jack and Rose in Titanic. They have a strange relationship, one that contributes to making the movie unforgettable. There are so many moments that stand out (the reading of the will comes to mind) making this a movie hard not to think about. It’s a movie you can watch a number of times and see something new each time.
Pace: 10
Plot: 10
Flawless storytelling. Magical and original. Enough said.
Resolution: 4
Overall: 93
2014 is one of my all-time favorite years for movies and it’s because of movies like The Grand Budapest Hotel. It takes storytelling to new heights with a crisp, original way of looking at filmmaking. This movie definitely made me a believer and a fan of Wes Anderson.
Acting: 10
Ralph Fiennes really makes this movie pop as Gustave. His wit is a huge part of his charm and impacts the way he acts out each scene. Characters like his are refreshing and hook you into the movie. I enjoyed Tony Revolori’s role as well playing bellhop Zero Moustafa. The two work so well together and enhance the movie as a result.
Beginning: 10
The beginning isn’t perfect, but I gave it a perfect score because it’s extremely intriguing. By the closing of the first ten minutes, I had a strong feeling I was in for a treat the rest of the way through. I was right.
Characters: 10
Cinematography/Visuals: 10
Director Wes Anderson is known for a specific style that’s so different from anything else out there and The Grand Budapest Hotel is no exception. Colors pop and images jump out at you in exactly the way he is trying to convey. His style, hard to explain at times, is hard not to appreciate and enjoy. When you watch a movie like this, you truly feel like you are getting a full-on cinematic experience.
Conflict: 10
There is a scene towards the back half of the movie that I call “The Escape”. It is action-packed yet has some subtle nuances at the same time. Definitely one of my favorite scenes in the movie, but not the only one hinging on conflict. Despite a comedic overtone, the film relies on a number of different points of tension to drive the plot.
Entertainment Value: 9
Memorability: 10
Gustave and Zero are easily one of my favorite duos since Jack and Rose in Titanic. They have a strange relationship, one that contributes to making the movie unforgettable. There are so many moments that stand out (the reading of the will comes to mind) making this a movie hard not to think about. It’s a movie you can watch a number of times and see something new each time.
Pace: 10
Plot: 10
Flawless storytelling. Magical and original. Enough said.
Resolution: 4
Overall: 93
2014 is one of my all-time favorite years for movies and it’s because of movies like The Grand Budapest Hotel. It takes storytelling to new heights with a crisp, original way of looking at filmmaking. This movie definitely made me a believer and a fan of Wes Anderson.
Jessica - Where the Book Ends (15 KP) rated Loving Mr. Daniels in Books
Jan 30, 2019
This book was mentioned several times in the blogging community, and I finally decided to check it out and see what all the fuss was about. I���d never read anything by Brittainy Cherry before, and the book sounded promising. Then I went on Goodreads and saw the slew of 5 star reviews (many were from my friends). As soon as payday rolled around I sat on my couch with my list of books to one click, and Loving Mr. Daniels was on the top of my list. I was determined to have this book. So, I bought it, and I couldn���t wait to start it. That day on my first break at work I started in on page 1 ���Absorbed in a stream of murky thoughts������ ooo this sounds promising already. Fifteen minutes later I had devoured the prologue and most of chapter 1, and I was trying to keep myself from crying. Sigh. From that point on sitting at my desk and trying to focus on my work was impossible. I kept looking at my kindle and I could hear it calling to me. ���Jessica���Jessica, you know you want to read me.��� I fought the good fight, but lunch hit and I was out of my seat scurrying to the break room hoping to get 45 minutes alone. I wanted to be alone with these amazing characters and pages.
The story of Ashlyn and Daniel was so fresh, which is exactly what I needed. Lately it seems like all the contemporary romance, new adult romance, and even the erotica books are all the same, and I was demanding something fresh. This was that story! Yes, it is a boy meets girl, woos her with Shakespeare inspired music, falls for her, and finds out she���s his student���WHAT?!?! Immediately, I thought of Pretty Little Liars, which I LOVE! Aria and Ezra���s story started like this���minus the Shakespeare band. This story has a twist to it, and I loved it. I loved that the author didn���t leave us hanging.
The characters in this book were phenomenally written. I felt like I knew them. I felt like the loss of a sister and a dear friend was changing me the same way it did Ashlyn. I laughed with her, I cried with her, and I regained faith in mankind with her. I loved that she had that one person for her that completely changed her world. Loving Mr. Daniels turned her world on its axis and changed her views on everything she held true.
<p><b>���I was convinced that everyone in the world had a form of weirdness to them. And the cool thing, at least I hoped so, was the idea that there was someone out there just as quirky as you were. The idea of finding your other weirdo was so attractive to me.���</b></p>
Ashlyn and Daniel are written in such a way that you feel like they are two people cut from the same mold. Ashlyn is young and hurting, torn apart by the death of her twin sister. She���s trying to move on, but is suddenly ripped out of her world and forced to live with her absentee father and his new family. Daniel is an English teacher and he is reeling from the recent death of both of his parents. Neither one knows how to move on and move past it, but together they forge ahead in this strange new world.
Hailey, Ryan, and Gabby are amazing supporting characters. Hailey and Ryan are brother and sister and they are the children of Ashlyn���s father���s new family. When they all first meet Ashlyn doesn���t like this dynamic duo. She doesn���t hate them but doesn���t really know what to think. As the book goes on there is a wonderful bond that forms between these three characters pulling them closer together, and has them sharing secrets with each other they never thought possible. Gabby is Ashlyn���s twin sister who loses her battle to leukemia at the opening of the book. She isn���t present in the physical sense, but she very much has a presence in this book. Each of the characters gets a chance to know Gabby in their own way.
<p><b>���You���re the reason people believe in tomorrow. You���re the voice that scares the shadows away. You���re the love that makes me breathe. So for the next few seconds, I���m going to be selfish. I���m going to say things that I don���t want you to listen to���Don���t go. Stay with me forever. Please, Ashlyn. Let me be your everything. Make me your golden. Don���t go.���</b></p>
If you���re a romance junkie like me, love Pretty Little Liars, or even a fan of P.S. I love you, than I implore you to go out and buy this book. If there is one book you read this summer, make it this one. Let yourself get swept up in this brilliantly beautiful love story. Spend time with these astoundingly well written characters and remember what first love feels like.
I give this book not just 5 stars, but all of the stars in the sky. Brittainy Cherry deserves every one of them. It���s been a long time since a book has stayed with me the way this one has. Loving Mr. Daniels will be my absolute favorite book of 2014 and possibly ever, I guarantee it. I���ve got a book hangover that's going to take me months to recover from.
The story of Ashlyn and Daniel was so fresh, which is exactly what I needed. Lately it seems like all the contemporary romance, new adult romance, and even the erotica books are all the same, and I was demanding something fresh. This was that story! Yes, it is a boy meets girl, woos her with Shakespeare inspired music, falls for her, and finds out she���s his student���WHAT?!?! Immediately, I thought of Pretty Little Liars, which I LOVE! Aria and Ezra���s story started like this���minus the Shakespeare band. This story has a twist to it, and I loved it. I loved that the author didn���t leave us hanging.
The characters in this book were phenomenally written. I felt like I knew them. I felt like the loss of a sister and a dear friend was changing me the same way it did Ashlyn. I laughed with her, I cried with her, and I regained faith in mankind with her. I loved that she had that one person for her that completely changed her world. Loving Mr. Daniels turned her world on its axis and changed her views on everything she held true.
<p><b>���I was convinced that everyone in the world had a form of weirdness to them. And the cool thing, at least I hoped so, was the idea that there was someone out there just as quirky as you were. The idea of finding your other weirdo was so attractive to me.���</b></p>
Ashlyn and Daniel are written in such a way that you feel like they are two people cut from the same mold. Ashlyn is young and hurting, torn apart by the death of her twin sister. She���s trying to move on, but is suddenly ripped out of her world and forced to live with her absentee father and his new family. Daniel is an English teacher and he is reeling from the recent death of both of his parents. Neither one knows how to move on and move past it, but together they forge ahead in this strange new world.
Hailey, Ryan, and Gabby are amazing supporting characters. Hailey and Ryan are brother and sister and they are the children of Ashlyn���s father���s new family. When they all first meet Ashlyn doesn���t like this dynamic duo. She doesn���t hate them but doesn���t really know what to think. As the book goes on there is a wonderful bond that forms between these three characters pulling them closer together, and has them sharing secrets with each other they never thought possible. Gabby is Ashlyn���s twin sister who loses her battle to leukemia at the opening of the book. She isn���t present in the physical sense, but she very much has a presence in this book. Each of the characters gets a chance to know Gabby in their own way.
<p><b>���You���re the reason people believe in tomorrow. You���re the voice that scares the shadows away. You���re the love that makes me breathe. So for the next few seconds, I���m going to be selfish. I���m going to say things that I don���t want you to listen to���Don���t go. Stay with me forever. Please, Ashlyn. Let me be your everything. Make me your golden. Don���t go.���</b></p>
If you���re a romance junkie like me, love Pretty Little Liars, or even a fan of P.S. I love you, than I implore you to go out and buy this book. If there is one book you read this summer, make it this one. Let yourself get swept up in this brilliantly beautiful love story. Spend time with these astoundingly well written characters and remember what first love feels like.
I give this book not just 5 stars, but all of the stars in the sky. Brittainy Cherry deserves every one of them. It���s been a long time since a book has stayed with me the way this one has. Loving Mr. Daniels will be my absolute favorite book of 2014 and possibly ever, I guarantee it. I���ve got a book hangover that's going to take me months to recover from.
Movie Metropolis (309 KP) rated Focus (2015) in Movies
Jun 11, 2019
Reasonably Accomplished
Will Smith desperately needed a film to catapult him back onto the silver screen A-list after M. Night Shyamalan’s critical and commercial disaster After Earth.
The Hollywood favourite recently spoke about how the movie bruised his ego and made him reassess his position as a serious actor. His latest film Focus, is the first after a brief hiatus, but does it mark a return to form?
Focus follows the story of Nicky Spurgeon (Smith), a seasoned con-man who becomes romantically involved with a young woman, played by Margot Robbie. Naturally, life manages to get in the way and years later Nicky is in Buenos Aires trying to carry out his biggest scam yet – but it doesn’t all run smoothly.
The story is reasonably accomplished but struggles to discern just what genre it is trying to be. There’s a tinge of romantic comedy, a drop of
hard-hitting drama and the occasional slice of Taken-esque thrills which all mix together and leave a rather sour taste in the mouth.
Focusing on one particular theme would have been a better prospect for directors Glenn Ficarra and John Requa, but it wasn’t meant to be and what the audience is left with is a mish-mash of genres which doesn’t quite gel like it was clearly intended.
The film relies heavily on the stunning locations of Buenos Aires and New Orleans, as well as the charisma and chemistry from its two leads rather than delving into character developments and this works well. Smith is a commanding presence and dominates every scene demonstrating just why we fell in love with him all those years ago.
Moreover, Robbie is a force to be reckoned with and comes up against the attitude of Smith’s character very well. Her steely, yet vulnerable persona is one of the main highlights in the film.
Focus starts off slowly with nothing of any real significance happening in the opening hour and this is disappointing given the film’s well-worn genre. Many similar films, Oceans Eleven as a prime example, wear their themes with much more confidence.
Apart from a few cleverly choreographed shots showing the con-artists in action during the first 20 minutes, Focus comes across as rather half-baked, almost dull.
However, fast-forward to the final third and it finally kicks into gear. As we follow Smith try and pull off a hugely risky scam, the audience is thrown numerous red herrings with the story never settling until the end credits roll.
Overall, Focus was a test of Will Smith’s prowess as an actor following on from After Earth’s failings and thankfully he shows how versatile he is. Margot Robbie is also engaging to watch and their on-screen chemistry is positively sizzling, but when a film has such an identity crisis, it’s hard to focus on anything else.
https://moviemetropolis.net/2015/03/01/reasonably-accomplished-focus-review/
The Hollywood favourite recently spoke about how the movie bruised his ego and made him reassess his position as a serious actor. His latest film Focus, is the first after a brief hiatus, but does it mark a return to form?
Focus follows the story of Nicky Spurgeon (Smith), a seasoned con-man who becomes romantically involved with a young woman, played by Margot Robbie. Naturally, life manages to get in the way and years later Nicky is in Buenos Aires trying to carry out his biggest scam yet – but it doesn’t all run smoothly.
The story is reasonably accomplished but struggles to discern just what genre it is trying to be. There’s a tinge of romantic comedy, a drop of
hard-hitting drama and the occasional slice of Taken-esque thrills which all mix together and leave a rather sour taste in the mouth.
Focusing on one particular theme would have been a better prospect for directors Glenn Ficarra and John Requa, but it wasn’t meant to be and what the audience is left with is a mish-mash of genres which doesn’t quite gel like it was clearly intended.
The film relies heavily on the stunning locations of Buenos Aires and New Orleans, as well as the charisma and chemistry from its two leads rather than delving into character developments and this works well. Smith is a commanding presence and dominates every scene demonstrating just why we fell in love with him all those years ago.
Moreover, Robbie is a force to be reckoned with and comes up against the attitude of Smith’s character very well. Her steely, yet vulnerable persona is one of the main highlights in the film.
Focus starts off slowly with nothing of any real significance happening in the opening hour and this is disappointing given the film’s well-worn genre. Many similar films, Oceans Eleven as a prime example, wear their themes with much more confidence.
Apart from a few cleverly choreographed shots showing the con-artists in action during the first 20 minutes, Focus comes across as rather half-baked, almost dull.
However, fast-forward to the final third and it finally kicks into gear. As we follow Smith try and pull off a hugely risky scam, the audience is thrown numerous red herrings with the story never settling until the end credits roll.
Overall, Focus was a test of Will Smith’s prowess as an actor following on from After Earth’s failings and thankfully he shows how versatile he is. Margot Robbie is also engaging to watch and their on-screen chemistry is positively sizzling, but when a film has such an identity crisis, it’s hard to focus on anything else.
https://moviemetropolis.net/2015/03/01/reasonably-accomplished-focus-review/
Kyera (8 KP) rated You're Never Weird on the Internet (Almost) in Books
Feb 1, 2018
Maybe you picked this up because you watched Buffy that one time and wanted to know what that red-headed chick who wasn't Willow was all about
or more likely, you are a fan of one of her many endeavors (and why shouldnt you be?). She is a super-hardworking person who seems to be doing what she loves, and in my humble opinion, completely killing it. She shares her awkwardness and how even she fangirls when meeting famous people she loves.
How can I describe this book? Imagine talking to your best friend about everything in your life: your childhood, your hopes and fears, and most importantly all things geeky (comics, video games, and the internet). That is how I felt when I was reading this book. Yes, I was a fan of Felicias already but reading this book felt more like talking to your best friend than some impersonal narrative that you just picked up off the shelf at random. Felicia is witty, funny, and down to earth. (A bit neurotic, her words, but we still love her for it.) Her candor is endearing and makes the book incredibly relatable. Her love of video games, comics, crafting and just the simple art of creating definitely speaks to her readers (I know I definitely relate). Plus, the pictures peppered throughout are just adorable.
She took her life into her own hands and with an incredible amount of hard work, created Geek & Sundry. She filled the book with her life and quite a few really good pieces of advice (as well as motivational phrases). As I sit here in my exploding TARDIS skirt (thank you mom for helping me make it), embracing my quirkiness and inner geek, I hope Felicia would be proud. I hope that people are inspired by her book, like I am inspired and take a chance. Do what they love.
Check out all of her projects with Geek & Sundry, as well as past projects like my love Dr. Horribles Sing-Along Blog, the show that started it all the Guild and her appearances on Supernatural! And if anyone could get me a signed copy of her book, I would love you forever. I take my book collection very seriously and would love to have this sitting on my shelf (rather than residing digitally in the nethersphere of my kindle.) Random fun fact, one of my exes and I used to sing My Eyes. I, of course, sang Pennys part (and when I was alone I would also be Dr. Horrible, duh). It was my favourite song from the show and Im still obsessed with it. I also found it on Sing (karaoke app, I spend too much time on there) just so that I could record it as a duet (and then sing both parts because why not?). Enough about me, go buy her wonderful book immediately and read it.
How can I describe this book? Imagine talking to your best friend about everything in your life: your childhood, your hopes and fears, and most importantly all things geeky (comics, video games, and the internet). That is how I felt when I was reading this book. Yes, I was a fan of Felicias already but reading this book felt more like talking to your best friend than some impersonal narrative that you just picked up off the shelf at random. Felicia is witty, funny, and down to earth. (A bit neurotic, her words, but we still love her for it.) Her candor is endearing and makes the book incredibly relatable. Her love of video games, comics, crafting and just the simple art of creating definitely speaks to her readers (I know I definitely relate). Plus, the pictures peppered throughout are just adorable.
She took her life into her own hands and with an incredible amount of hard work, created Geek & Sundry. She filled the book with her life and quite a few really good pieces of advice (as well as motivational phrases). As I sit here in my exploding TARDIS skirt (thank you mom for helping me make it), embracing my quirkiness and inner geek, I hope Felicia would be proud. I hope that people are inspired by her book, like I am inspired and take a chance. Do what they love.
Check out all of her projects with Geek & Sundry, as well as past projects like my love Dr. Horribles Sing-Along Blog, the show that started it all the Guild and her appearances on Supernatural! And if anyone could get me a signed copy of her book, I would love you forever. I take my book collection very seriously and would love to have this sitting on my shelf (rather than residing digitally in the nethersphere of my kindle.) Random fun fact, one of my exes and I used to sing My Eyes. I, of course, sang Pennys part (and when I was alone I would also be Dr. Horrible, duh). It was my favourite song from the show and Im still obsessed with it. I also found it on Sing (karaoke app, I spend too much time on there) just so that I could record it as a duet (and then sing both parts because why not?). Enough about me, go buy her wonderful book immediately and read it.
Zuky the BookBum (15 KP) rated The Girl with All the Gifts in Books
Mar 15, 2018
I went to see the film adaptation of this on Saturday, and I have to say I was pretty impressed with it! Obviously the book is a whole lot better, but I think they did a pretty good job of transferring the book to screen. The characters felt a bit different to how they came across in the novel, <spoiler> Caldwell was nowhere near as evil and we didn't get to know Parks enough for his death to be that traumatising like it was in the novel</spoiler>, but I'd say it's one of the better book-to-film movies!
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Also read my review here: http://bookbum.weebly.com/book-reviews/the-girl-with-all-the-gifts-m-r-carey
<b>4.5 stars</b>
I don’t really want to say a lot about this book, for 2 reasons. Reason one is to keep potential readers in the dark about what this entire book is. I feel like it’s one of those reads where you want to go in blind, it definitely made it more enjoyable for me going into it that way. The second reason is more selfish… I felt a lot of different emotions going through this book, especially within the last 50 pages! I have no desire to relive the rollercoaster I went through! I feel like the emotions from this book are gonna stay with me for a long time, so don’t expect much from this review other than spoilers (which will be hidden) of me getting emotional.
If you’re looking for a book that gets straight into a story then this will definitely please you. There’s no dilly dallying whatsoever, we get into the meat of the book within the first 50 pages which is such a relief because I hate chunky books that seem to take forever to get into the story. I wouldn’t recommend reading this if you have quite serious trypophobia. I have it quite mildly but there were a lot of times where I was reading and getting very panicky and sick feeling because of the grotesque imagery.
Each character is developed so incredibly well, as there aren’t many throughout the book we’ve got loads of time to get to know them with each chapter flitting about between perspectives. <spoiler>MELANIE WAS CUTE AF AND SO MATURE AND LOVELY AND AWW. HELEN WAS BADASS AND SASSY AND AWESOME. PARKS WAS A GENTLE GIANT AND IM SO HAPPY HE GOT TO FUCK HELEN BEFORE HE DIED CAUSE HIS DEATH MADE ME SUPER DUPER SERIOUSLY SAD. CAROLINE WAS A BITCH FROM START TO FINISH, I FELT NO REMORSE FOR HER DEATH, SHE WAS EVIL.</spoiler>
I don’t know if I’d class this as purely a thriller, it’s is also a horror and a sci-fi, which is definitely a great mix. It was definitely a really enjoyable read and I’m looking forward to reading more of Carey’s work. <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26030697-fellside?ac=1&from_search=true">Fellside</a>; is next on my list to read!
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Also read my review here: http://bookbum.weebly.com/book-reviews/the-girl-with-all-the-gifts-m-r-carey
<b>4.5 stars</b>
I don’t really want to say a lot about this book, for 2 reasons. Reason one is to keep potential readers in the dark about what this entire book is. I feel like it’s one of those reads where you want to go in blind, it definitely made it more enjoyable for me going into it that way. The second reason is more selfish… I felt a lot of different emotions going through this book, especially within the last 50 pages! I have no desire to relive the rollercoaster I went through! I feel like the emotions from this book are gonna stay with me for a long time, so don’t expect much from this review other than spoilers (which will be hidden) of me getting emotional.
If you’re looking for a book that gets straight into a story then this will definitely please you. There’s no dilly dallying whatsoever, we get into the meat of the book within the first 50 pages which is such a relief because I hate chunky books that seem to take forever to get into the story. I wouldn’t recommend reading this if you have quite serious trypophobia. I have it quite mildly but there were a lot of times where I was reading and getting very panicky and sick feeling because of the grotesque imagery.
Each character is developed so incredibly well, as there aren’t many throughout the book we’ve got loads of time to get to know them with each chapter flitting about between perspectives. <spoiler>MELANIE WAS CUTE AF AND SO MATURE AND LOVELY AND AWW. HELEN WAS BADASS AND SASSY AND AWESOME. PARKS WAS A GENTLE GIANT AND IM SO HAPPY HE GOT TO FUCK HELEN BEFORE HE DIED CAUSE HIS DEATH MADE ME SUPER DUPER SERIOUSLY SAD. CAROLINE WAS A BITCH FROM START TO FINISH, I FELT NO REMORSE FOR HER DEATH, SHE WAS EVIL.</spoiler>
I don’t know if I’d class this as purely a thriller, it’s is also a horror and a sci-fi, which is definitely a great mix. It was definitely a really enjoyable read and I’m looking forward to reading more of Carey’s work. <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26030697-fellside?ac=1&from_search=true">Fellside</a>; is next on my list to read!
Zuky the BookBum (15 KP) rated The Dark Net in Books
Mar 15, 2018
I really think that the synopsis for this book is not up to scratch! Although, yes, the synopsis is what initially drew me to this book, after reading it I can say that the book is <i><b>WAY</b></i> better than the synopsis would make you believe!
This book tackles the subject of good and evil, with references to demons and black magic which I didnt get at all from the synopsis! I was expecting this to have a much deeper involvement with the dark net, whats on it and how its used. While yes, there is that to the book, its not necessarily its main focus.
To begin with, this lack of talk about the dark net actually made me hesitant about the book. I was expecting something so much different to what I was reading, I felt really disappointed. But, that feeling didnt last for long. This is so unlike anything Ive ever read before and that made everything about this book really exciting. Not to mention, this is a super clever book! It uses real life scenarios that we can all relate to, or at least know about, and explains it with a black magic twist.
For example, when talking about demon possession, it explains how small demons can take over and that causes a man to plow a lorry through a busy crowd, or a school shooting a one off awful occasion in history. But when a big, strong demon comes along, it can posses not only a person, but a nation. It uses examples of the Holocaust and the Rwandan Genocide, which I thought was really smart!
Characters in this book were excellent, but there were quite a lot of them that we needed to get to know. Juniper was by far my favourite of the bunch, Sarin coming in at a close second. I loved that there was a strong, bad-ass female character who wasnt irritating (Lela, Im looking at you!).
As for the story, I will say that it feels a bit all over the place at times. Its not difficult to wrap your head around but there are a lot of things pulled in to the story at different times and this sometimes got a bit manic. This is classed as a horror novel, and for me, there definitely were some creepy bits. The hounds especially made my skin crawl.
Overall, I ended up really loving this novel. It was short and sweet (although it almost took me a whole 7 days to read), and it was exciting, creepy and fast-paced! A great novel for anyone who likes a darker thriller. Lots of gruesome deaths and bad-ass characters.
<i>Thanks to BookBridgr and Hodder & Stoughton for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.</i>
This book tackles the subject of good and evil, with references to demons and black magic which I didnt get at all from the synopsis! I was expecting this to have a much deeper involvement with the dark net, whats on it and how its used. While yes, there is that to the book, its not necessarily its main focus.
To begin with, this lack of talk about the dark net actually made me hesitant about the book. I was expecting something so much different to what I was reading, I felt really disappointed. But, that feeling didnt last for long. This is so unlike anything Ive ever read before and that made everything about this book really exciting. Not to mention, this is a super clever book! It uses real life scenarios that we can all relate to, or at least know about, and explains it with a black magic twist.
For example, when talking about demon possession, it explains how small demons can take over and that causes a man to plow a lorry through a busy crowd, or a school shooting a one off awful occasion in history. But when a big, strong demon comes along, it can posses not only a person, but a nation. It uses examples of the Holocaust and the Rwandan Genocide, which I thought was really smart!
Characters in this book were excellent, but there were quite a lot of them that we needed to get to know. Juniper was by far my favourite of the bunch, Sarin coming in at a close second. I loved that there was a strong, bad-ass female character who wasnt irritating (Lela, Im looking at you!).
As for the story, I will say that it feels a bit all over the place at times. Its not difficult to wrap your head around but there are a lot of things pulled in to the story at different times and this sometimes got a bit manic. This is classed as a horror novel, and for me, there definitely were some creepy bits. The hounds especially made my skin crawl.
Overall, I ended up really loving this novel. It was short and sweet (although it almost took me a whole 7 days to read), and it was exciting, creepy and fast-paced! A great novel for anyone who likes a darker thriller. Lots of gruesome deaths and bad-ass characters.
<i>Thanks to BookBridgr and Hodder & Stoughton for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.</i>
Zuky the BookBum (15 KP) rated The Merciless in Books
Mar 15, 2018
Also read my review here: http://bookbum.weebly.com/book-reviews/the-merciless-by-danielle-vega
<b><i>Forgive us, Father, for we have sinned.</b></i>
Well, well, well, what can I say? This thoroughly disappointed me, after giving it some more thought, Ive taken this down to 2 stars.
So we have 3 beautiful and popular God-fearing girls who adopt the new girl into their secretive little gang and warn her against demon-possessed Brooklyn. To cure Brooklyn of her devilish ways they decide to kidnap her, stick her in a basement and torture her, or exorcise her Sound like Im giving too much away? Well yes, I probably am, but the blurb tells you the exact same thing, making the whole suspense element of this book completely useless and a waste of the author's time. <b>Dont try to keep us on our toes when youve already told us whats going to happen.</b>
Due to this being a novel aimed at Young Adult readers, the language, for me, felt simple and lack lustre. I can only read so much before it becomes laughable for me, and laughable it became. All the characters speech was so unrealistic and straightforward it was almost impossible to believe anyone would actually talk like that. This unrealistic speech really made it difficult to connect to any of the characters on a deeper level so I had no empathy for any of them.
The plot, overall, is just a little bit completely ridiculous and nonsensical. The blandness of the characters, scenes and speech make the whole thing feel like a pretty demented, but dumb dream. <spoiler>If Brooklyn had just been evil in a normal teenage girl way and didnt rip out Rileys fucking heart, maybe it would have been a better book</spoiler> I didnt find myself shocked, scared or creeped out at any point in the entire book because it was all so juvenile and cheesy. The reasons the girls did what they did was childish and cringy and it just wouldnt happen in the way Vega wrote it down. And lets not get me started on all the loose ends...
Anyone up for reading one of the most predictable endings ever? My God, what an unexciting end to a pretty unexciting novel - at least it was consistent.
I did read this over the period of just one day, so it had me wanting to finish it, but not for any of the right reasons. I wasnt reading it quickly because I wanted to know what was going to happen next, I was reading it quickly because it was getting stupider and stupider and I wanted to get it over and done with. Do I want to put myself through reading the second book in the series? I dont know Ill give it some time first.
<b><i>Forgive us, Father, for we have sinned.</b></i>
Well, well, well, what can I say? This thoroughly disappointed me, after giving it some more thought, Ive taken this down to 2 stars.
So we have 3 beautiful and popular God-fearing girls who adopt the new girl into their secretive little gang and warn her against demon-possessed Brooklyn. To cure Brooklyn of her devilish ways they decide to kidnap her, stick her in a basement and torture her, or exorcise her Sound like Im giving too much away? Well yes, I probably am, but the blurb tells you the exact same thing, making the whole suspense element of this book completely useless and a waste of the author's time. <b>Dont try to keep us on our toes when youve already told us whats going to happen.</b>
Due to this being a novel aimed at Young Adult readers, the language, for me, felt simple and lack lustre. I can only read so much before it becomes laughable for me, and laughable it became. All the characters speech was so unrealistic and straightforward it was almost impossible to believe anyone would actually talk like that. This unrealistic speech really made it difficult to connect to any of the characters on a deeper level so I had no empathy for any of them.
The plot, overall, is just a little bit completely ridiculous and nonsensical. The blandness of the characters, scenes and speech make the whole thing feel like a pretty demented, but dumb dream. <spoiler>If Brooklyn had just been evil in a normal teenage girl way and didnt rip out Rileys fucking heart, maybe it would have been a better book</spoiler> I didnt find myself shocked, scared or creeped out at any point in the entire book because it was all so juvenile and cheesy. The reasons the girls did what they did was childish and cringy and it just wouldnt happen in the way Vega wrote it down. And lets not get me started on all the loose ends...
Anyone up for reading one of the most predictable endings ever? My God, what an unexciting end to a pretty unexciting novel - at least it was consistent.
I did read this over the period of just one day, so it had me wanting to finish it, but not for any of the right reasons. I wasnt reading it quickly because I wanted to know what was going to happen next, I was reading it quickly because it was getting stupider and stupider and I wanted to get it over and done with. Do I want to put myself through reading the second book in the series? I dont know Ill give it some time first.
Cyn Armistead (14 KP) rated More Holmes for the Holidays in Books
Mar 1, 2018
[a:Martin H. Greenberg|6436872|Martin H. Greenberg|http://www.goodreads.com/assets/nophoto/nophoto-M-50x66.jpg] and company have provided a fine collection of Sherlockian holiday stories that fit in quite well with the traditional set.
"The Christmas Gift" by Anne Perry is a nice little piece about a stolen Stradivarius and a couple who want to marry against the wishes of the young lady's father. There is an excellent red herring, one of the few in this anthology.
In "The Four Wise Men" by Peter Lovesey, Watson must answer a call to duty from his former commanding officer in the Army, in order to help guard a medieval treasure in a Christmas pageant. The game is soon afoot, and Sherlock's powers of observation are as keen as ever.
Barbara Paul's "Eleemosynary, My Dear Watson" gives Holmes a jewel theft and a kidnapping to solve, which he does in his inimitable way. One clue seemed slightly too obvious to me, but it may not to other readers.
In "The Adventure of the Greatest Gift" by Loren D. Estleman, Holmes receives a wax cylinder containing a recording of a song popular in America. He takes it as a warning of a crime which could lead to war between Britain and France, and of course he leaps into action. This is Mycroft Holmes' only appearance in the volume.
There's plenty of misdirection in "The Case of the Rajah's Emerald" by Carolyn Wheat. Somehow, though, I suspected one of the great revelations in this one from the beginning, but I couldn't tell you exactly why. It didn't ruin the story for me, and there was still a surprise at the end.
On the other hand, Edward D. Hoch's "The Christmas Conspiracy" managed to take me completely unawares. I couldn't fathom why the crime would be committed or by whom, despite having a major clue dropped by one character. Very well done!
"The Music of Christmas" by L.B. Greenwood telegraphed the identity of the criminal from the start, but was well worth reading. One of the characters also tugged at the heartstrings.
Bill Crider's "The Adventure of the Christmas Bear" is largely memorable because of the appearance of Oscar Wilde as a character.
"The Adventure of the Naturalist's Stock Pin" by Jon L. Breen gives us Charles Darwin as Holmes' client. The mystery is less Sherlockian than some of the others, but I didn't mind reading it.
Daniel Stashower's "The Adventure of the Second Violet" was an interesting twist on a well-known Christmas story. I cannot say more without spoiling it, but he has a nice touch.
"The Human Mystery" by Tanith Lee is as dark as I expect from her, and was a depressing ending to the collection. It was, however, very well-written.
The anthology left me hungry for more Holmes, and wishing that I weren't between seasons of BBC's Sherlock or that I had another collection of stories on hand. That's the sign of a success, I think.
"The Christmas Gift" by Anne Perry is a nice little piece about a stolen Stradivarius and a couple who want to marry against the wishes of the young lady's father. There is an excellent red herring, one of the few in this anthology.
In "The Four Wise Men" by Peter Lovesey, Watson must answer a call to duty from his former commanding officer in the Army, in order to help guard a medieval treasure in a Christmas pageant. The game is soon afoot, and Sherlock's powers of observation are as keen as ever.
Barbara Paul's "Eleemosynary, My Dear Watson" gives Holmes a jewel theft and a kidnapping to solve, which he does in his inimitable way. One clue seemed slightly too obvious to me, but it may not to other readers.
In "The Adventure of the Greatest Gift" by Loren D. Estleman, Holmes receives a wax cylinder containing a recording of a song popular in America. He takes it as a warning of a crime which could lead to war between Britain and France, and of course he leaps into action. This is Mycroft Holmes' only appearance in the volume.
There's plenty of misdirection in "The Case of the Rajah's Emerald" by Carolyn Wheat. Somehow, though, I suspected one of the great revelations in this one from the beginning, but I couldn't tell you exactly why. It didn't ruin the story for me, and there was still a surprise at the end.
On the other hand, Edward D. Hoch's "The Christmas Conspiracy" managed to take me completely unawares. I couldn't fathom why the crime would be committed or by whom, despite having a major clue dropped by one character. Very well done!
"The Music of Christmas" by L.B. Greenwood telegraphed the identity of the criminal from the start, but was well worth reading. One of the characters also tugged at the heartstrings.
Bill Crider's "The Adventure of the Christmas Bear" is largely memorable because of the appearance of Oscar Wilde as a character.
"The Adventure of the Naturalist's Stock Pin" by Jon L. Breen gives us Charles Darwin as Holmes' client. The mystery is less Sherlockian than some of the others, but I didn't mind reading it.
Daniel Stashower's "The Adventure of the Second Violet" was an interesting twist on a well-known Christmas story. I cannot say more without spoiling it, but he has a nice touch.
"The Human Mystery" by Tanith Lee is as dark as I expect from her, and was a depressing ending to the collection. It was, however, very well-written.
The anthology left me hungry for more Holmes, and wishing that I weren't between seasons of BBC's Sherlock or that I had another collection of stories on hand. That's the sign of a success, I think.