So, as I was browsing the interwebs for some potential other posting ideas that I can throw in when I am just having a slow thinking week I came across some different blogs that talk about having a social media extension to their blog. And from what I can tell I have roughly 8 or so regular-ish viewers to this site (if I am reading right there are maybe 7 of you from the US and 1 or 2 from Poland?). Anyways, that was just a little demographic for you guys :) I know, information you all wanted to know.
So the idea intrigued me. Especially because out of ALL of the different social media websites that are out there I only have my personal Facebook account. No Twitter, Pintrest, Tumblr, etc. I have maybe gone on to Pintrest once or twice in my life and the same goes with Tumblr. I have used Twitter once for an extra credit question in college that never got graded and it took me WAY longer than I care to mention to actually figure out how to tweet to the right place.
So the question I pose for you, and any other people who randomly come across this page is whether or not you want me to add an extension to this page. I would be very open to maybe making a Pintrest or Tumblr account for this page, if enough of you wanted me to I would do a Facebook page, and it would essentially take a lot of people to convince me to do a Twitter account. If there are other social media sites that you think would be kind of cool for me to get into to add variety to this then I could give them a look-see. I want to know what it is that would add a little bit more interest or make it more fun or easier for you to follow this page.
So let me know in the comments below your top two social media sites that you use, and I will figure it out from there. And a disclaimer for my wonderful readers: The only things I see myself posting on any of those places are book related things. The only non-book related item that might pop up is food. Because I am passionate about baking. And if I am going to invest time into any of those places...well...I will make my time worth it!
(The main blog that brought this to my attention was Book.Blog.Bake )
Sunday, August 31, 2014
Thursday, August 28, 2014
Why Does a Book Stick With You?
Very rarely would I say that I find inspiration from Facebook. But I guess tonight was the night. There was a posting idea going through my newsfeed asking you to list 10 books that stick with you; for one reason or another. And for someone like me, if a book sticks with me then I am going to want to physically keep it with me (hence the hundreds of books that I own). Which got me thinking about what my top 10 books were and why they stuck with me more so than the others. For starters, I broke the rules (or at least the rules as I saw them to be) which was a list of 10 and to me it sounded like they wanted singular books. My list was 11 and most of them were series and not singular.
1) The Malazan Book of the Fallen - Steven Erikson
This series is not on here just because I am currently reading it either. The first time that I read this series I could not put the books down. I was astonished at his talent for creating such a vast world and making it seem large and small at the same time. Showing how far the story goes and how close the connections are. This series for me is truly an epic, and before I read this series I was obsessed about the Song of Fire and Ice series. Erikson for me as surpassed Martin in the creation of a story that strikes me. There are times where I have goosebumps for a whole chapter! And that is one sign when I find a book that has struck a chord, when I am all cuddled up in a warm blanket and yet something I read has given me goosebumps.
2) The Once and Future King - T.H. White
One thing that should be mentioned is that I am obsessed with the story of King Arthur. I still have not quite figured it out, but there is something about the tale that really deeply strikes a chord with me. this was not the first iteration of the story of King Arthur that I have read, and even though it was definitely a long read (think Lord of the Rings long read, for some reason it takes me longer than usual to read), it has definitely made it up there in the ones that I own. For the record I have about 4 or 5 different versions of the tale. I find it amazing the different takes on it, and for some reason this one holds a special place in my heart in the sense that it was written before all the other ones that I own so in my mind it is the original story.
3) Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
This was a book that I was made to read in my AP English class in high school, and it has been so far the only book that I absolutely loved to read. I am one of those people that I will read many things on my own, but I hate being forced to read something that does not trip my trigger. This book was a combination of a dark but wonderful imagery combined with looking at the darker side of the human nature in a way that just fascinated me. This was one of the few books in high school that I hated having to read at a certain pace because all I wanted to do was devour it.
4) The Tortall Series - Tamora Pierce
In a previous post I pretty much did a mini review on the series. Her books were one of the first books that I read that featured a strong but fallible female character that I felt that I could admire and if they were real I would without a doubt look up to them. It is one of those series where I read them so many times because the world is so alive, and becomes so much more alive with every read through. I do not often fangirl over much, but this book definitely featured guy characters that I fan girled about (*cough* Numair and George Cooper *cough*).
5) The Mists of Avalon - Marion Zimmer Bradley
This was the book that started my obsession with King Arthur and Merlin. I had known about the general story before reading this, but I thought this book was like a breath of fresh air for the story because it featured Morganna Le Fey as more human and less villain as she is seen in many of the books written about King Arthur. In some ways I prefer this portrayal of the story because of its focus on her, and the story from her point of view. And it does a very interesting job of making everyone seem more human than legendary. But when it comes down to it, the reason this book has stuck with me is because of the way it has started my King Arthur collection of books that I own.
6) The Pillars of the Earth/World Without End - Ken Follet
These books return to a theme that is mentioned a lot in books that I love, the characters feel so real; their problems, their wishes, and the connections that everyone eventually has with each other. These two books that go together do a magically good job of making me feel invested in the characters, and feel the exact same way the characters do. I become outraged with them, and I feel as helpless as they do. It is also nice in a way how the books take you through what feels like might become a tragedy, but because those character pushed through and made sacrifices they managed to scrape together a happy ending of sorts. And one that makes the reader feel like they truly deserved it because of what they endured. He does as good of a job as Erikson does with drawing connections between characters but on a smaller more contained scale (as it would have to be with two books).
7) Harry Potter - J.K. Rowling
This book is the definition of magical and the reason I fell in love with the fantasy genre. I will not lie, when I was little (I was in like 3rd grade when I was reading these I believe) I always hoped that I would someday get a letter to Hogwarts. That was also one of the most disappointing wishes I had as a little kid that never came true. This was probably the first big series I got invested into when I was little, and it was also probably the reason I stuck to reading series for the most part. The whole idea of really getting to know a character through the span of numerous books was amazing to me. It also had one of the biggest impacts on me being as big of a reader as I came to be because of the wonder that it instilled in me.
8) The Lord of the Rings - J.R.R. Tolkien
I will not lie...I saw the movies before I read the books. However, it was because of the movies that I went and read the books. And I loved them just as much as the movies. A very good portrayal of the battles between good vs. evil, light vs. dark, old vs. new. And I think that I also became very enthralled with the books because around that time I ended up doing a report about J.R.R. Tolkien for a class, and it just made the books even more special to me. There was something so amazing about the darkness the filled the stories to end with a bittersweet ending with the elves leaving Middle Earth. It was a book that was just SO full of information and stories that it was definitely one of the first books that I read that had challenged my normal pace of reading because there was just so much to take it (similar to one's first day in a huge city you have never been to before).
9) The DragonCrown War Cycle - Michael A. Stackpole
This series consists of a trilogy and a prequel. And I had never felt so upset over how a prequel introduced you to the series as I was when I read this. It was me being so upset that caused me to get the rest and race through it hoping for some light at the end of the tunnel. For me this is similar to the Lord of the Rings where it is a dark series with a bittersweet ending. This one is different however, because it is another one of those that it struck a chord with me but I do not know why. There was something in this series that really connected with me. And pretty much will be added to my To-Read list right now despite me claiming I won't make any more changes. But that is life, it is an old gem that I have not revisited in a long time but it still speaks to me after all this time. Who knows, maybe when I read it again I will realize what it is that makes this series stand out to me among my many.
10)Study Series/Glass Series/Healer Series - Maria V. Snyder
There is another book duo she wrote, that was very good and intriguing which I couldn't add in the long title because I just don't know what the series name is actually called (Inside Out, Outside In). She is similar to Tamora Pierce in the sense that she has female main characters that are not annoying, whining women who constantly need a man to save them. There are indeed male characters that are attached to the main character over time, but they just add to the strength that the female has and not overshadow it. They are very magical worlds, and the good guy characters are indeed all loveable and I can never get enough of them.
11) The Dragonriders of Pern - Anne McCaffrey/Todd McCaffrey
This series is probably the most confusing to read 'in order' because there are different orders you can read them in. Either chronologically or in the order they were published. I prefer the chronological order, which means it can sometimes be difficult when they go back in time to write another book and finding the proper place in the series. This series, and a couple other series by Anne McCaffrey were the first Sci-Fi books that I ever read, and they are by far still my favorite. That was what was great about this series, it brought me into a whole new genre of books to look into that amazed me.
So this is my list, I would love to see some other lists you guys have. And I think picking out books like this according to some sort of theme (stick with you in this case) is a nice way to reacquaint yourself with the books that you have read over the years and remembering what it was about those books that held you spellbound.
1) The Malazan Book of the Fallen - Steven Erikson
This series is not on here just because I am currently reading it either. The first time that I read this series I could not put the books down. I was astonished at his talent for creating such a vast world and making it seem large and small at the same time. Showing how far the story goes and how close the connections are. This series for me is truly an epic, and before I read this series I was obsessed about the Song of Fire and Ice series. Erikson for me as surpassed Martin in the creation of a story that strikes me. There are times where I have goosebumps for a whole chapter! And that is one sign when I find a book that has struck a chord, when I am all cuddled up in a warm blanket and yet something I read has given me goosebumps.
2) The Once and Future King - T.H. White
One thing that should be mentioned is that I am obsessed with the story of King Arthur. I still have not quite figured it out, but there is something about the tale that really deeply strikes a chord with me. this was not the first iteration of the story of King Arthur that I have read, and even though it was definitely a long read (think Lord of the Rings long read, for some reason it takes me longer than usual to read), it has definitely made it up there in the ones that I own. For the record I have about 4 or 5 different versions of the tale. I find it amazing the different takes on it, and for some reason this one holds a special place in my heart in the sense that it was written before all the other ones that I own so in my mind it is the original story.
3) Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
This was a book that I was made to read in my AP English class in high school, and it has been so far the only book that I absolutely loved to read. I am one of those people that I will read many things on my own, but I hate being forced to read something that does not trip my trigger. This book was a combination of a dark but wonderful imagery combined with looking at the darker side of the human nature in a way that just fascinated me. This was one of the few books in high school that I hated having to read at a certain pace because all I wanted to do was devour it.
4) The Tortall Series - Tamora Pierce
In a previous post I pretty much did a mini review on the series. Her books were one of the first books that I read that featured a strong but fallible female character that I felt that I could admire and if they were real I would without a doubt look up to them. It is one of those series where I read them so many times because the world is so alive, and becomes so much more alive with every read through. I do not often fangirl over much, but this book definitely featured guy characters that I fan girled about (*cough* Numair and George Cooper *cough*).
5) The Mists of Avalon - Marion Zimmer Bradley
This was the book that started my obsession with King Arthur and Merlin. I had known about the general story before reading this, but I thought this book was like a breath of fresh air for the story because it featured Morganna Le Fey as more human and less villain as she is seen in many of the books written about King Arthur. In some ways I prefer this portrayal of the story because of its focus on her, and the story from her point of view. And it does a very interesting job of making everyone seem more human than legendary. But when it comes down to it, the reason this book has stuck with me is because of the way it has started my King Arthur collection of books that I own.
6) The Pillars of the Earth/World Without End - Ken Follet
These books return to a theme that is mentioned a lot in books that I love, the characters feel so real; their problems, their wishes, and the connections that everyone eventually has with each other. These two books that go together do a magically good job of making me feel invested in the characters, and feel the exact same way the characters do. I become outraged with them, and I feel as helpless as they do. It is also nice in a way how the books take you through what feels like might become a tragedy, but because those character pushed through and made sacrifices they managed to scrape together a happy ending of sorts. And one that makes the reader feel like they truly deserved it because of what they endured. He does as good of a job as Erikson does with drawing connections between characters but on a smaller more contained scale (as it would have to be with two books).
7) Harry Potter - J.K. Rowling
This book is the definition of magical and the reason I fell in love with the fantasy genre. I will not lie, when I was little (I was in like 3rd grade when I was reading these I believe) I always hoped that I would someday get a letter to Hogwarts. That was also one of the most disappointing wishes I had as a little kid that never came true. This was probably the first big series I got invested into when I was little, and it was also probably the reason I stuck to reading series for the most part. The whole idea of really getting to know a character through the span of numerous books was amazing to me. It also had one of the biggest impacts on me being as big of a reader as I came to be because of the wonder that it instilled in me.
8) The Lord of the Rings - J.R.R. Tolkien
I will not lie...I saw the movies before I read the books. However, it was because of the movies that I went and read the books. And I loved them just as much as the movies. A very good portrayal of the battles between good vs. evil, light vs. dark, old vs. new. And I think that I also became very enthralled with the books because around that time I ended up doing a report about J.R.R. Tolkien for a class, and it just made the books even more special to me. There was something so amazing about the darkness the filled the stories to end with a bittersweet ending with the elves leaving Middle Earth. It was a book that was just SO full of information and stories that it was definitely one of the first books that I read that had challenged my normal pace of reading because there was just so much to take it (similar to one's first day in a huge city you have never been to before).
9) The DragonCrown War Cycle - Michael A. Stackpole
This series consists of a trilogy and a prequel. And I had never felt so upset over how a prequel introduced you to the series as I was when I read this. It was me being so upset that caused me to get the rest and race through it hoping for some light at the end of the tunnel. For me this is similar to the Lord of the Rings where it is a dark series with a bittersweet ending. This one is different however, because it is another one of those that it struck a chord with me but I do not know why. There was something in this series that really connected with me. And pretty much will be added to my To-Read list right now despite me claiming I won't make any more changes. But that is life, it is an old gem that I have not revisited in a long time but it still speaks to me after all this time. Who knows, maybe when I read it again I will realize what it is that makes this series stand out to me among my many.
10)Study Series/Glass Series/Healer Series - Maria V. Snyder
There is another book duo she wrote, that was very good and intriguing which I couldn't add in the long title because I just don't know what the series name is actually called (Inside Out, Outside In). She is similar to Tamora Pierce in the sense that she has female main characters that are not annoying, whining women who constantly need a man to save them. There are indeed male characters that are attached to the main character over time, but they just add to the strength that the female has and not overshadow it. They are very magical worlds, and the good guy characters are indeed all loveable and I can never get enough of them.
11) The Dragonriders of Pern - Anne McCaffrey/Todd McCaffrey
This series is probably the most confusing to read 'in order' because there are different orders you can read them in. Either chronologically or in the order they were published. I prefer the chronological order, which means it can sometimes be difficult when they go back in time to write another book and finding the proper place in the series. This series, and a couple other series by Anne McCaffrey were the first Sci-Fi books that I ever read, and they are by far still my favorite. That was what was great about this series, it brought me into a whole new genre of books to look into that amazed me.
So this is my list, I would love to see some other lists you guys have. And I think picking out books like this according to some sort of theme (stick with you in this case) is a nice way to reacquaint yourself with the books that you have read over the years and remembering what it was about those books that held you spellbound.
Sunday, August 24, 2014
To Re-Read, or Not to Re-Read...now that IS the question...
For those of you who have no idea, and that is probably going to be all of you...I own a ton of books. Maybe not a literal ton, but enough to have breached the 300 mark. And whenever I talk to my friends about books in general and the number of books that I own comes up there are a bunch of different questions that they ask me.
"Why not just go to a library?"
"Do you really read those books again?"
"Why would you spend so much money on books?"
And the questions continue onward, those three being the main questions. And to be honest, they are not bad questions at all. Which brings me to the friends of mine who are also big readers, and they have told me that they generally do not re-read the books that they have unless that are extremely out of this world. And so to them it is strange that I have re-read some books a couple times and then when it comes to the Harry Potter series and my books by Tamora Pierce which I have read easily 5-10 times. It seems otherworldly that I would want to read a book again even though I already know what happens and I already know what the ending is.
It is funny because for me, re-reading a book is almost like re-watching a movie. Plenty of people watch certain movies all over again despite knowing how it will end and what the journey is like. And for some people, likening a book to a movie in that sense is enough for them to understand; not so much for others. So when that simple explanation does not work, I find myself in that odd place of trying to explain the passion I have for books. And it is a very strong passion indeed; the characters, the stories, the good things, the bad events, the cliff hangers, revisiting the cover of the books, and even the smell (which will come up again later).
For me the best part about re-reading a book, especially with the amount of books that I own; it is relatively easy for me to find a story that speaks to me and the situation that I currently find myself in in some deep way. The journey of a book is the most magical part of reading, because for me no matter how many times I revisit a book I fall in love with the characters and the world all over again. And every time I re-read a book there is some connection that I missed the previous time around that I find again; making the book still feel new in a sense.
And I feel like the comfort that I get from reading, and the magical feeling of living in another world and seeing it through another person's eyes is enough for me when it comes to answering the last two of the three questions that I mentioned. The first question is a logical one, especially for someone in my financially struggling situation (in between just graduating and trying to find a big kid job). And I will never say a bad thing about a library for the most part, and I feel like they are great things and a wonderful way to introduce yourself to different authors without making a financial investment. A big part of why I do not really go to a library is because when I read something, I will have the urge to go out and buy it. For me, a library would put me further in the hole then not going to one. I will find a book that I love, and I know I will read again, so I must buy it. It is simple as that, I want to be able to have that book at my expense at a moments notice instead of having to trek out to the library and hope it is there or wait forever on a request waiting list.
The other thing that I love about MY books compared to the library books is the smell. There is something amazing about an aged book, and one that you have taken care of in your own way smell a little different than the ones from a library. Those at the library have crossed so many different hands and have gone through so many different situations that they smell a little weird to me. Which is sometimes not a bad thing, but for me there is just something comforting about settling in to a book that has the smell you are used to and it just brings you to a happy place (despite the possibly unhappy contents of the book).
On a side note, one thing I have noticed about the library is that whenever I have gone I am always way more likely to pick out a book that I dislike. And when I make the financial investment at a bookstore I have yet to buy a book that I did not love in some way. That has always been something that interested me; and something I believe that is linked to the idea that I can risk my time on this book because I did not also waste money on it.
I also do not like time limits. I realize that I can recheck a book out, but I do not like feeling as if I need to finish this book in a certain amount of time. There is a big difference between rushing through a book because it is new and exciting and rushing through a book because it needs to be returned by a certain day and there is no way I was going to leave the library with just one book so I also not only have to finish the current book but the other three or four I foolishly checked out because I am a foolish person at times.
Do you guys re-read your books? Or do you have some sort of quirk when it comes to your books or getting books from a library? Why do you re-read books? I would love to hear from any of you who do read my pages :)
"Why not just go to a library?"
"Do you really read those books again?"
"Why would you spend so much money on books?"
And the questions continue onward, those three being the main questions. And to be honest, they are not bad questions at all. Which brings me to the friends of mine who are also big readers, and they have told me that they generally do not re-read the books that they have unless that are extremely out of this world. And so to them it is strange that I have re-read some books a couple times and then when it comes to the Harry Potter series and my books by Tamora Pierce which I have read easily 5-10 times. It seems otherworldly that I would want to read a book again even though I already know what happens and I already know what the ending is.
It is funny because for me, re-reading a book is almost like re-watching a movie. Plenty of people watch certain movies all over again despite knowing how it will end and what the journey is like. And for some people, likening a book to a movie in that sense is enough for them to understand; not so much for others. So when that simple explanation does not work, I find myself in that odd place of trying to explain the passion I have for books. And it is a very strong passion indeed; the characters, the stories, the good things, the bad events, the cliff hangers, revisiting the cover of the books, and even the smell (which will come up again later).
For me the best part about re-reading a book, especially with the amount of books that I own; it is relatively easy for me to find a story that speaks to me and the situation that I currently find myself in in some deep way. The journey of a book is the most magical part of reading, because for me no matter how many times I revisit a book I fall in love with the characters and the world all over again. And every time I re-read a book there is some connection that I missed the previous time around that I find again; making the book still feel new in a sense.
And I feel like the comfort that I get from reading, and the magical feeling of living in another world and seeing it through another person's eyes is enough for me when it comes to answering the last two of the three questions that I mentioned. The first question is a logical one, especially for someone in my financially struggling situation (in between just graduating and trying to find a big kid job). And I will never say a bad thing about a library for the most part, and I feel like they are great things and a wonderful way to introduce yourself to different authors without making a financial investment. A big part of why I do not really go to a library is because when I read something, I will have the urge to go out and buy it. For me, a library would put me further in the hole then not going to one. I will find a book that I love, and I know I will read again, so I must buy it. It is simple as that, I want to be able to have that book at my expense at a moments notice instead of having to trek out to the library and hope it is there or wait forever on a request waiting list.
The other thing that I love about MY books compared to the library books is the smell. There is something amazing about an aged book, and one that you have taken care of in your own way smell a little different than the ones from a library. Those at the library have crossed so many different hands and have gone through so many different situations that they smell a little weird to me. Which is sometimes not a bad thing, but for me there is just something comforting about settling in to a book that has the smell you are used to and it just brings you to a happy place (despite the possibly unhappy contents of the book).
On a side note, one thing I have noticed about the library is that whenever I have gone I am always way more likely to pick out a book that I dislike. And when I make the financial investment at a bookstore I have yet to buy a book that I did not love in some way. That has always been something that interested me; and something I believe that is linked to the idea that I can risk my time on this book because I did not also waste money on it.
I also do not like time limits. I realize that I can recheck a book out, but I do not like feeling as if I need to finish this book in a certain amount of time. There is a big difference between rushing through a book because it is new and exciting and rushing through a book because it needs to be returned by a certain day and there is no way I was going to leave the library with just one book so I also not only have to finish the current book but the other three or four I foolishly checked out because I am a foolish person at times.
Do you guys re-read your books? Or do you have some sort of quirk when it comes to your books or getting books from a library? Why do you re-read books? I would love to hear from any of you who do read my pages :)
Friday, August 15, 2014
Adults Reading Young Adult Books - with a mini review of Tamora Pierce books
Before getting to the actual discussion and my views; I had read an article on bookriot.com and this was one of the subjects for their articles. Now we fast forward and I finally managed to get my butt into a book store for the first time this whole summer (it is amazing I hadn't withered away or made it this long without buying a book) and when I go to a bookstore I do the rounds for my supremely favorite authors and it occurred to me that one of the authors that I read is always filed away under Young Adult/Teen sections.
So I just wanted to know what everyone else thought, because there were some comments that were so-so or felt that it really shouldn't matter where you get your books as long as your reading. While others felt like they were allowed to make fun of us adults who dabble a little bit in the young adult section; mocking our reading abilities and such.
For me personally, Tamora Pierce and all of her books placed in Tortall are easily in my favorites. I got into her books when I was in 6th Grade/Middle School (about 8 years ago). I still to this day re-read those books because I love the characters, outside of Terry Practchet Discworld books, I had never fallen so in love with a character in a book before. But then again that could be explained by the books I had access to which weren't Harry Potter (loved it by the way). And I absolutely love the story that is being told. I have read them many times and know exactly what is going to happen and when, but for me the way she has written those books I do not even care. I will keep those books forever and still read them 10 years from now.
And so when I think about it, I really do not think that it should matter whether adults decide to peruse the young adult section. Do I think most of the books will interest them? Maybe not, but I think that if it has an intriguing story that pulls you in, then it should not matter where you get your reading in. The only thing I would question is whether you are an adult going into the kids sections for books to read; however I don't know your life and you probably have a good reason. I also feel that some people over look the potential the books in the young adult section have on developing people. Going back to Tamora Pierce, I think the part that really pulled me in was the fact that the protagonist was a strong woman, and a woman that is going to go against the grain in some way, and one that is fallible in a realistic sense and NOT a ditzy sense.
For example, the Lioness Quartet is focused on a woman who wants to become a knight in a country and world where lady knights have pretty much gone extinct. She disguises her self as a boy and takes her twin brother's place going to knight school. And she struggles with trying to come to terms with turning into a woman in secret. She still struggles with the idea of trying to be a strong woman but wanting to have moments of being soft and having a man in her life. She falls in and out of relationships, makes mistakes, but learns from them and definitely comes out in the end as a woman that would make a good role model.
The second series is the Immortals Series, which focuses on a woman who is born with Wild Magic, and immense amounts of it. She was born in an area of the world that is bandit ridden and quite backwards. So no one realizes what she has, and she sort of adopts the ideas and thoughts that are thrown at her that she is not right in the head. Her family is killed and she deals with the struggle of her Wild Magic and thinks she went mad when she hunted the bandits down with the local group of wolves. She comes to Tortall, and it is a complete 180 from what she knew, and she struggles with becoming more comfortable with herself, her powers and making a change to this new life of hers. The Lioness from the previous series makes a reappearance and so does her husband who push her in the right direction. The main male in this series starts off as her teacher, because he is the only major wizard who has any idea how Wild Magic works and actually believes it is a kind of magic. But once he helps her get on her own two feet, she is indeed a strong woman.
The third big series is the Protector of the Small. The woman in this book attempts to follow in the Lioness' footsteps and tries to become a knight. It shows an interesting world on the brink of change, she has to deal with similar struggles as the Lioness, but has the benefit of not needing to keep it all a secret. And to be honest, out of the three this small series is my favorite. She has a key different struggle however, she is a woman who cares more than the average noble about the common folk and those under her command and she has to struggle with being able to extend the protection that she wants to achieve but do so in a manner in which she is still accepted. And in this book, the Wild Magic woman makes a couple appearances and gives her a couple mini lessons, and you find out that the Lioness has also been helping her along in an indirect way.
I apologize from this major deviance, but I felt that it would do much better to tell my side of things by looking at the books from one of my favorite authors to show that there are still things to find in the young adult/teen section even when you are a grown adult.
So pretty please comment for me either how you feel about the topic in general, or a book series you are still in love with from the young adult section even though you have 'outgrown' it.
Friday, August 8, 2014
Malazan Book of the Fallen - Characters Pt. 2 Masters of the Monologue
The idea for looking at a couple more characters came from a mini story that was told through Mappo Runt, Icarium's former travel companion, in which the idea that the more wise you are the less you end up talking. In the mini tale, it talks about a battle that was going to take place between the Trell and a group of expansionist humans. Typically the outcomes of most battles does not favor the Trells; mainly because they rely on battle lust and charging downhill at their opponents with the aim of potentially running them all over and smacking them into oblivion. The Trell that were going to lead their people into the battle had all essentially put themselves in a coma, leaving one elderly Trell who had never really been in battle and never spoke. Needless to say his battle strategy won the battle for the Trell, and continued to do so for years to come. He attempted to unite the different Trell tribes, and in the end lost to the idea that civilization promised the younger Trell resulting in less traditional Trells existing. This resulted in this Trell leader losing himself to alcohol and he could be seen talking nonstop, and nothing that he spoke was wise in any way.
That above blerb made me think about the idea of wisdom always being accompanied by silence. And there being two characters in this series who ONLY speak in very lengthy monologues, and yet they are both powerful and wise in their own way.
Kruppe
(Artwork from malazanempire.com)
Kruppe is without a doubt one of the most interesting characters, despite the tedious monologues he puts all the characters through to their discomfort. He finds himself an ally to K'Rul; and Elder God and the source of the power for the warrens (I believe they say it is his blood). They speak and plan through the use of Kruppe's dreams. And there are times where it is difficult to tell whether the knowledge Kruppe is speaking is gifted from K'Rul or something that Kruppe actually knows. Early on in the series you begin to figure out how intelligent he is, once it is revealed that he is the secret leader of an intelligence group. He also gives Ganoes Paran (Master of the Deck) the push in the right direction in where he needs to look and act next. He keeps everyone that he talks to on their toes as to whether he is being truly ignorant about certain things or if he is hiding information. Out of the two masters of monologue, he is definitely my favorite.
Iskaral Pust
(Artwork from DeviantArt by dassemultor)
This picture above is exactly how I imagined Iskaral Pust. The difference between his monologue and Kruppe's, is that Kruppe essentially uses way more words then he really needs to; essentially 50 words for when 10 would suffice. Iskaral on the other hand is...different. His monologue consists of doing the spoken train of thought. He says his thoughts and feelings and verbally speaks about no one knowing what he is thinking despite him just mentioning it. And when people speak about something that was meant as a thought on his part, he acts as if he has no idea what they are talking about. His intelligence comes I believe from either being truly mad, or being a very good actor to keep others on their toes so they underestimate him. Which in my opinion does not seem to be too far fetched. It is easy to gauge his strength because he is the Magi of Shadow, which is not a role to sneeze at. And the fact that he has a tussle with a very strong D'ivers, and comes out a little bit winded after killing a few of them. I was open mouthed when reading that part in the book because I thought Iskaral was toast. To add to his mystery is his donkey. I will say no more about his amazing donkey, hopefully to get you to read the books out of curiosity :)
Through thinking about these two characters, and the plot line in general, nothing in his books is really how it seems. He has exquisite plot twists, that completely change how you see the people you thought of as bad guys. A theme that reoccurs throughout the series is that when there is a war among the gods, the first blood that is spilled is by mortals. And it is interesting to see that has the series progresses that despite the amazing power that gods have, that messing with mortals is a risky business and it can have very dire consequences for said god.
That above blerb made me think about the idea of wisdom always being accompanied by silence. And there being two characters in this series who ONLY speak in very lengthy monologues, and yet they are both powerful and wise in their own way.
Kruppe
(Artwork from malazanempire.com)
Kruppe is without a doubt one of the most interesting characters, despite the tedious monologues he puts all the characters through to their discomfort. He finds himself an ally to K'Rul; and Elder God and the source of the power for the warrens (I believe they say it is his blood). They speak and plan through the use of Kruppe's dreams. And there are times where it is difficult to tell whether the knowledge Kruppe is speaking is gifted from K'Rul or something that Kruppe actually knows. Early on in the series you begin to figure out how intelligent he is, once it is revealed that he is the secret leader of an intelligence group. He also gives Ganoes Paran (Master of the Deck) the push in the right direction in where he needs to look and act next. He keeps everyone that he talks to on their toes as to whether he is being truly ignorant about certain things or if he is hiding information. Out of the two masters of monologue, he is definitely my favorite.
Iskaral Pust
(Artwork from DeviantArt by dassemultor)
This picture above is exactly how I imagined Iskaral Pust. The difference between his monologue and Kruppe's, is that Kruppe essentially uses way more words then he really needs to; essentially 50 words for when 10 would suffice. Iskaral on the other hand is...different. His monologue consists of doing the spoken train of thought. He says his thoughts and feelings and verbally speaks about no one knowing what he is thinking despite him just mentioning it. And when people speak about something that was meant as a thought on his part, he acts as if he has no idea what they are talking about. His intelligence comes I believe from either being truly mad, or being a very good actor to keep others on their toes so they underestimate him. Which in my opinion does not seem to be too far fetched. It is easy to gauge his strength because he is the Magi of Shadow, which is not a role to sneeze at. And the fact that he has a tussle with a very strong D'ivers, and comes out a little bit winded after killing a few of them. I was open mouthed when reading that part in the book because I thought Iskaral was toast. To add to his mystery is his donkey. I will say no more about his amazing donkey, hopefully to get you to read the books out of curiosity :)
Through thinking about these two characters, and the plot line in general, nothing in his books is really how it seems. He has exquisite plot twists, that completely change how you see the people you thought of as bad guys. A theme that reoccurs throughout the series is that when there is a war among the gods, the first blood that is spilled is by mortals. And it is interesting to see that has the series progresses that despite the amazing power that gods have, that messing with mortals is a risky business and it can have very dire consequences for said god.
Saturday, August 2, 2014
Quick Book Review - The Paper Magician (The Paper Magician Series)
This short book, 200 or so pages, came to my attention this morning via Amazon Prime giving me the opportunity to choose one free kindle book to read. Generally I have not been too impressed with the choices I have been able to pick each month, there have only been two others that I have felt worthwhile to download let alone finish. And the amount that I despise reading on a screen of any kind (for some reason I have a miraculously short attention span reading on a screen vs. reading on paper) it is amazing I even finished those; which says a lot about those books in my mind. I downloaded and finished this book today. And I was pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoyed the book.
As a rule I tend to avoid books that are short because half of the time there is just not enough time for the author to really develop the character, or if they attempt to it comes off as being obviously rushed. And to top it off, the plot generally just does not seem all that thought out. I was honestly surprised to know that this was her debut book. I thought that her take on what magic could be was rather refreshing. Especially so for me because paper magic, which is the main magic the reader learns about, is essentially being able to do origami and make it live and I do origami in my free time; so I might be biased.
I thought that the main character was one that I enjoyed reading from the point of view from, she did not want to be a paper magician, however there was a logical way of her changing her mind that did not seem rushed at all. The main character is inquisitive and a hard worker, she rushed through school in a year and despite being put somewhere she did not want to be she knew that she couldn't let all the hard work go to waste. It also helped that her teacher Thane did a wonderful job showing her the different aspects of the magic. A woman who practices blood magic comes and takes his heart after a month of him apprenticing Ceony, and she is determined to save him. At first the driving force is that 1) he is someone she has started to grow fond of, and 2) because she knows that there is so much more for him to teach her.
The author made a very good decision on making the quest through Thane's heart the method of getting the reader to learn more about the back story of Thane, Lira his ex-wife and blood mage heart stealer, and a little bit more about Ceony. You are able to see the good, the bad, the hopes and dreams, and the doubts of Thane, while slowly watching as Ceony realizes her feelings towards him becoming much stronger.
I also wanted to put out there that for some reason I really loved Thane, the fact that he has very emotionally expressive eyes but is able to sort of hide emotions on his face for some reason really endeared him to me. And maybe it is just because I am good at imagining characters in books, or whatever it is, I felt that her descriptions of the main characters were really good. They weren't drawn out into long paragraphs at a time, they were a few sentences that were thrown throughout to sort of really drive home the most characteristic parts of each person. Thane with his eyes, Lira with the hard face, the pursed lips of magician Aviosky (for me I pictured a much younger version of Professor McGonagall).
For me this book was definitely a page turner, and one that I will definitely buy in paperback when it comes out September 1st of this year. I was also happy to notice on the Amazon page for this book that it looks as if this is going to be a series. I REALLY REALLY *insert many more reallys here* hope that there are quite a few more books following and that they are longer than this one. And for me, that is the only bad part of this book, for the space there was the plot and the characters was excellent and I would love to see what Holmberg could do in the space of a longer book. So I strongly urge those of you who do not have much time for reading these days, but want something worth the little time you have to spare to check this book out whenever you have a chance in September.
In order to make your lives easier, here is the link to the page on Amazon.
Friday, August 1, 2014
Malazan Book of the Fallen - Characters Pt. 1 *SPOILERS*
In case you did not notice in the title, there will indeed be spoilers. I am also going to apologize if the series review seemed at all generic. I wanted to get the feelings that the series causes without spoiling any plot lines or events for those who want to read it without knowing much of anything going in.
Now what I was thinking of doing was looking at a few characters that have shown up in the series as of book 6. And I think I will post something about a character or two as I am re-reading the series as the feeling comes along. Especially because there are so many characters that pop up throughout the books, and despite (at least for me) them all being really memorable I wanted to give some recognition for some of my favorite characters.
Karsa Orlong
This one really came as a surprise to me, the first time through the series I thought he was an extremely interesting character and there really is no one else in the book much like him. However, I will admit that when you first are introduced to him you will probably really dislike him. He is really headstrong, stubborn and extremely violent and of the mind that his race is the best ever and it is his job to wipe out the children (humans) plaguing the world and his kind. He was really set in his ways, and believed everything that was being fed to him by his grandfather and the elders of his tribe. The one thing that really struck me about him, is that as you go through the books he starts to grow on you.
He turns out to be brutally honest, and once his eyes were opened to the fact that the various fellow tribes gods were really T'lan Imass (another race, and very unique in a sense) who were seeking to use his people. Karsa really showed his capability for being an intelligent individual. The 6th book for me is really when I started to realize how much I liked his character, and how he has changed after having his whole world shattered to realize that not all is what he seems. Especially because he refuses to be used by any of the gods (after realizing the deceit by the T'lan Imass individuals), especially the Crippled God who tried to make him part of his entourage of people spreading his desires on the world. He still remains headstrong, but in a manner that now instead of wishing to punch him in the face despite knowing he could punch me into oblivion it almost becomes a good quality in him.
Anomander Rake
This guy, or Tiste Andii to be exact, right from the beginning became a character I was drawn to, and could never get enough of reading any points of view that included him. At first glimpse, because the book starts in the point of view of the Malazans, he is seen as a bad guy. However, his story to me is the most interesting of all the ones that are revealed. He has become the leader of most of the remaining Tiste Andii, and strives to give them a purpose after Mother Dark (their origin goddess) turning away from them. You first meet him when he has decided to ally himself with the Darujhistan, the remaining free city in an attempt to prevent it being conquered.
He carries with him a giant sword called Dragnipur, which brings about an end worse than death. When you are killed with the sword, your soul gets bound inside and chained to a giant wagon that is constantly striving to be dragged away from a giant vent of chaos. This sword grants a final end, because as we all know in some stories that death is not as final as it seems; with this story being no exception. Dragnipur must be constantly fed souls or else the chaos vent catches the giant wagon and all the souls are allowed to be freed into the world. Anomander, in order to wield the sword had to kill the previous owner and maker of the sword. And with it, he delivers cold justice. I never realized this the first time through, but his character reminds me a lot like Batman. In the sense that he is trying to save everyone, but he is misunderstood in a manner that causes those he is trying to save to hate or dislike him. He does the hard deeds that others waver from in order to save others from the burden of making the choice.
------------
Both of these characters are extremely complex, and I know that my brief overview of them does not give them justice at all. I can only hope that you guys will read the books in order to get to know them better.
(concept pictures for these characters thanks to http://fuckyeahmalazan.tumblr.com/post/38535927644 and Gia Coppola at Deviant Art http://nimunhan.deviantart.com/art/Karsa-Orlong-264478655)
Now what I was thinking of doing was looking at a few characters that have shown up in the series as of book 6. And I think I will post something about a character or two as I am re-reading the series as the feeling comes along. Especially because there are so many characters that pop up throughout the books, and despite (at least for me) them all being really memorable I wanted to give some recognition for some of my favorite characters.
Karsa Orlong
This one really came as a surprise to me, the first time through the series I thought he was an extremely interesting character and there really is no one else in the book much like him. However, I will admit that when you first are introduced to him you will probably really dislike him. He is really headstrong, stubborn and extremely violent and of the mind that his race is the best ever and it is his job to wipe out the children (humans) plaguing the world and his kind. He was really set in his ways, and believed everything that was being fed to him by his grandfather and the elders of his tribe. The one thing that really struck me about him, is that as you go through the books he starts to grow on you.
He turns out to be brutally honest, and once his eyes were opened to the fact that the various fellow tribes gods were really T'lan Imass (another race, and very unique in a sense) who were seeking to use his people. Karsa really showed his capability for being an intelligent individual. The 6th book for me is really when I started to realize how much I liked his character, and how he has changed after having his whole world shattered to realize that not all is what he seems. Especially because he refuses to be used by any of the gods (after realizing the deceit by the T'lan Imass individuals), especially the Crippled God who tried to make him part of his entourage of people spreading his desires on the world. He still remains headstrong, but in a manner that now instead of wishing to punch him in the face despite knowing he could punch me into oblivion it almost becomes a good quality in him.
Anomander Rake
This guy, or Tiste Andii to be exact, right from the beginning became a character I was drawn to, and could never get enough of reading any points of view that included him. At first glimpse, because the book starts in the point of view of the Malazans, he is seen as a bad guy. However, his story to me is the most interesting of all the ones that are revealed. He has become the leader of most of the remaining Tiste Andii, and strives to give them a purpose after Mother Dark (their origin goddess) turning away from them. You first meet him when he has decided to ally himself with the Darujhistan, the remaining free city in an attempt to prevent it being conquered.
He carries with him a giant sword called Dragnipur, which brings about an end worse than death. When you are killed with the sword, your soul gets bound inside and chained to a giant wagon that is constantly striving to be dragged away from a giant vent of chaos. This sword grants a final end, because as we all know in some stories that death is not as final as it seems; with this story being no exception. Dragnipur must be constantly fed souls or else the chaos vent catches the giant wagon and all the souls are allowed to be freed into the world. Anomander, in order to wield the sword had to kill the previous owner and maker of the sword. And with it, he delivers cold justice. I never realized this the first time through, but his character reminds me a lot like Batman. In the sense that he is trying to save everyone, but he is misunderstood in a manner that causes those he is trying to save to hate or dislike him. He does the hard deeds that others waver from in order to save others from the burden of making the choice.
------------
Both of these characters are extremely complex, and I know that my brief overview of them does not give them justice at all. I can only hope that you guys will read the books in order to get to know them better.
(concept pictures for these characters thanks to http://fuckyeahmalazan.tumblr.com/post/38535927644 and Gia Coppola at Deviant Art http://nimunhan.deviantart.com/art/Karsa-Orlong-264478655)
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