Well, I was going to introduce you to a very exciting middle-grade novel set in the state I'm living in, but I found out today that it isn't technically "out" until the end of next month. So...I'll do a review of it later next month.
However, I do have another middle-grade novel that promises to be just as exciting, and it begins thusly:
"The house was a mansion, the lake was a pool, Kitty was a dog, and Juniper Berry was an eleven-year-old girl.
And like many eleven-year-old girls, she couldn't wait until her parents returned home from work. She sat at the top of the stairs, binoculars in hand and directed out the two-story front window, waiting to see the golden gates of her home slowly open. Tonight was Italian night and the three of them were supposed to make pizzas for dinner. This was part of their weekly schedule, only Juniper couldn't remember the last time they actually followed through with it. For a while now, everything, including her, had been neglected.
Still, she never gave up hope. One of these days her parents would come home from work and be thrilled to see her. The rest of the day and every day after would be spent in each other's company, not a minute wasted, not even a single second, just like it was years ago."
-- from Juniper Berry by M.P. Kozlowsky
There are some books that just have it, whatever "it" is, from the beginning. This is one of those books. It creates an atmosphere instantly, with the first sentence. It's mysterious, a bit creepy, and promises a very, very interesting time.
Reasons to keep reading:
1. The names! Kitty for a dog and Juniper Berry for a girl? Amazing!
2. Why is she (and everything else) being neglected?
3. What's wrong with her parents?
4. What happened to make this change?
5. ...What are the other theme nights on their schedule (yes, I am actually curious about this!)?
What do you think about Juniper Berry? Curious?
Showing posts with label First Line Friday. Show all posts
Showing posts with label First Line Friday. Show all posts
Friday, March 22, 2013
Friday, March 8, 2013
First Line Friday No. 28
Because I recently won the Beautiful Creatures series, I thought today we'd take a peek at the first page. It's most intriguing.
"There were only two kinds of people in our town. "The stupid and the stuck," my father had affectionately classified our neighbors. "The ones who are bound to stay or the ones too dumb to go. Everyone else finds a way out." There was no question which one he was, but I'd never had the courage to ask why. My father was a writer, and we lived in Gatlin, South Carolina, because the Wates always had, since my great-great-great-great grand-dad, Ellis Wate, fought and died on the other side of the Santee River during the Civil War.
Only the folks down here didn't call it the Civil War. Everyone under the age of sixty called it the War Between the States, while everyone over sixty called it the War of Northern Aggression, as if somehow the North had baited the South into war over a bad bale of cotton. Everyone, that is, except my family. We called it the Civil War."
--from Beautiful Creatures by Kami Marcia and Margaret Stohl
My reasons to keep reading:
1. What is the character's relationship with their father like?
2. What does their father write?
3. Was the greatx4 relative a Northern soldier (dying on the other side of the Santee)?
4. What is the family's feeling on the Civil War?
5. Why are they the only family to call it that?
Another interesting thing about this story is that the two writers wrote these books on a dare. They wanted to prove to their kids that books could be interesting without vampires or werewolves.
And now the first book is a feature film!
I can't wait to start reading these.
Happy weekend!
"There were only two kinds of people in our town. "The stupid and the stuck," my father had affectionately classified our neighbors. "The ones who are bound to stay or the ones too dumb to go. Everyone else finds a way out." There was no question which one he was, but I'd never had the courage to ask why. My father was a writer, and we lived in Gatlin, South Carolina, because the Wates always had, since my great-great-great-great grand-dad, Ellis Wate, fought and died on the other side of the Santee River during the Civil War.
Only the folks down here didn't call it the Civil War. Everyone under the age of sixty called it the War Between the States, while everyone over sixty called it the War of Northern Aggression, as if somehow the North had baited the South into war over a bad bale of cotton. Everyone, that is, except my family. We called it the Civil War."
--from Beautiful Creatures by Kami Marcia and Margaret Stohl
My reasons to keep reading:
1. What is the character's relationship with their father like?
2. What does their father write?
3. Was the greatx4 relative a Northern soldier (dying on the other side of the Santee)?
4. What is the family's feeling on the Civil War?
5. Why are they the only family to call it that?
Another interesting thing about this story is that the two writers wrote these books on a dare. They wanted to prove to their kids that books could be interesting without vampires or werewolves.
And now the first book is a feature film!
I can't wait to start reading these.
Happy weekend!
Friday, March 1, 2013
First Line Friday No. 27
"In the beginning, there's a boy standing in the trees. He's around my age, in that space between child and man, maybe all of seventeen years old. I'm not sure how I know this. I can only see the back of his head, his dark hair curling damply against his neck. I feel the dry heat of the sun, so intense, drawing the life from everything. There's a strange orange light filing the eastern sky. There's the heavy smell of smoke. For a moment I'm filled with such a smothering grief that it's hard to breathe. I don't know why. I take a step toward the boy, open my mouth to call his name, only I don't know it. The ground crunches under my feet. He hears me. He starts to turn. one more second and I will see his face.
That's when the vision leaves me. I blink, and it's gone."
-- Unearthly, by Cynthia Hand
Reasons I kept reading:
1. Who is the boy?
2. Who is our narrator?
3. What will happen after the fire? (Will they escape?)
4. How is she having visions?
5. Can she stop the fire and save the boy?
I won this book during a giveaway hop and it piqued my interest because I haven't read a lot of stories about this particular type of paranormal/supernatural event or being(s). (I'll spare you the spoilers) While I don't typically read romance, I figured if it was YA and there were other things going on (family drama, identity crisis, visions, etc.,), I wouldn't be too icked out by the romance. I'm still a kid when it comes to mushy-gushy stuff. Yuck.
Anyway -- so far, no romance. Just mystery, identity, and paranormalcy (I'm 40 pages in). It's quite intriguing so far. I love delving into someone else's mythology and finding out about the rules of their universe. Ms. Hand does a great job at making her world seem very real.
Leave me a comment if this intrigues you, or if you've read Unearthly (and/or its sequel, Hallowed) and what you thought about it.
I'll be posting a review of The Fellowship for Alien Detection in a few days. Stay tuned!
That's when the vision leaves me. I blink, and it's gone."
-- Unearthly, by Cynthia Hand
Reasons I kept reading:
1. Who is the boy?
2. Who is our narrator?
3. What will happen after the fire? (Will they escape?)
4. How is she having visions?
5. Can she stop the fire and save the boy?
I won this book during a giveaway hop and it piqued my interest because I haven't read a lot of stories about this particular type of paranormal/supernatural event or being(s). (I'll spare you the spoilers) While I don't typically read romance, I figured if it was YA and there were other things going on (family drama, identity crisis, visions, etc.,), I wouldn't be too icked out by the romance. I'm still a kid when it comes to mushy-gushy stuff. Yuck.
Anyway -- so far, no romance. Just mystery, identity, and paranormalcy (I'm 40 pages in). It's quite intriguing so far. I love delving into someone else's mythology and finding out about the rules of their universe. Ms. Hand does a great job at making her world seem very real.
Leave me a comment if this intrigues you, or if you've read Unearthly (and/or its sequel, Hallowed) and what you thought about it.
I'll be posting a review of The Fellowship for Alien Detection in a few days. Stay tuned!
Friday, February 22, 2013
First Line Friday No. 26
When I get the urge to kick myself and "be more productive" (a useless cycle which involves guilt, petulantly tapping keys and not so much progress as drivel) in my writing, it helps me to know that not every author is an overnight sensation (no one ever is -- all the work that goes into an 'overnight sensation' is done months, even years ahead of time).
Sometimes I study my favorite authors and glean a little patience or peace from their process, and sometimes I just take heart that some of them are, like me, late bloomers or slow movers.
Franny Billingsley has written four books since she began in the 1980's. She worked at a bookstore for years while she wrote, and her first book took her seven years. It isn't a long book.
The thing about Franny, however, is that she is dedicated. Determined. And an excellent writer. She has won at least one award for each of her three novels and a fellowship to continue writing. (Her author page said she started writing seriously in 1983 but was learning how to write so didn't submit a lot of manuscripts until the 1990's. Since then, she's published in 1997, 1999, 2008 & 2011)
Her pacing, tight writing and fluid style are superb. Her characters are interesting, unique and somehow still heartbreakingly real. She is one of the best writers I've come across, and each of her books is a gem.
So today I'd like to share a bit of my favorite book of hers.
Enjoy.
February 2 -- Candlemas
It is a day of yellow fog, and the Folk are hungry. They ate the lamb I brought them, picking the bones clean and leaving them outside the Folk Door.
The lamb was meant for Matron's Sunday supper. She'll know I took it, but she will not dare say anything. She can keep her tapestries and silks and Sunday dinners. Here in the Cellar, I control the Folk. Here, I'm queen of the world.
-- From The Folk Keeper by Franny Billingsley
Isn't that curious? In just one tiny journal entry we peek into another, perhaps more dangerous and frightening world...
Some reasons to keep reading:
1. Who (or what) are the Folk?
2. What is the Folk Door? Are they kept in...or out?
3. Who is Matron? What is she Matron of?
4. Who is our narrator?
5. How does she control the Folk?
What I love so much about this book is that Franny has woven old myths and half-forgotten legends into a historical fiction narrative concerning the Folk Keeper, a tiny human being with more power than seen at first glance. It's also a bit of a thriller, a romance, and a new, quite original fairy tale.
Let me know if you read (or have read) it, I'd love to hear your thoughts!
Also, an interesting tidbit -- I have an advance reading copy of a middle grade novel that I will be reviewing after it comes out (on the 26th). So the review will be a bit late but on a brand new book! How thrilling!
Sometimes I study my favorite authors and glean a little patience or peace from their process, and sometimes I just take heart that some of them are, like me, late bloomers or slow movers.
Franny Billingsley has written four books since she began in the 1980's. She worked at a bookstore for years while she wrote, and her first book took her seven years. It isn't a long book.
The thing about Franny, however, is that she is dedicated. Determined. And an excellent writer. She has won at least one award for each of her three novels and a fellowship to continue writing. (Her author page said she started writing seriously in 1983 but was learning how to write so didn't submit a lot of manuscripts until the 1990's. Since then, she's published in 1997, 1999, 2008 & 2011)
Her pacing, tight writing and fluid style are superb. Her characters are interesting, unique and somehow still heartbreakingly real. She is one of the best writers I've come across, and each of her books is a gem.
So today I'd like to share a bit of my favorite book of hers.
Enjoy.
February 2 -- Candlemas
It is a day of yellow fog, and the Folk are hungry. They ate the lamb I brought them, picking the bones clean and leaving them outside the Folk Door.
The lamb was meant for Matron's Sunday supper. She'll know I took it, but she will not dare say anything. She can keep her tapestries and silks and Sunday dinners. Here in the Cellar, I control the Folk. Here, I'm queen of the world.
-- From The Folk Keeper by Franny Billingsley
Isn't that curious? In just one tiny journal entry we peek into another, perhaps more dangerous and frightening world...
Some reasons to keep reading:
1. Who (or what) are the Folk?
2. What is the Folk Door? Are they kept in...or out?
3. Who is Matron? What is she Matron of?
4. Who is our narrator?
5. How does she control the Folk?
What I love so much about this book is that Franny has woven old myths and half-forgotten legends into a historical fiction narrative concerning the Folk Keeper, a tiny human being with more power than seen at first glance. It's also a bit of a thriller, a romance, and a new, quite original fairy tale.
Let me know if you read (or have read) it, I'd love to hear your thoughts!
Also, an interesting tidbit -- I have an advance reading copy of a middle grade novel that I will be reviewing after it comes out (on the 26th). So the review will be a bit late but on a brand new book! How thrilling!
Friday, February 8, 2013
First Line Friday No. 25
Happy Friday, everyone!
You know how I keep fangirling over Patrick Ness and his amazing Chaos Walking Trilogy? Well, I found out that my library has another book by him available on Kindle -- the book started out as an idea by another author but when she died, Patrick was asked to write the story. He talks a little bit about it in the introduction -- he simply tried to write a story that she would like. I'm a quarter of the way through and although it's very different from Chaos Walking, the same things I liked about CW are present in A Monster Calls: intimacy between story and reader, emotional intensity/internal action mixed with external action, and thought-provoking subject matter.
Enjoy.
"The monster showed up just after midnight. As they do.
Conor was awake when it came.
He'd had a nightmare. Well, not a nightmare. The nightmare. The one he'd been having a lot lately. The one with the darkness and the wind and the screaming. The one with the hands slipping from his grasp, no matter how hard he tried to hold on. The one that always ended with- "Go away," Conor whispered into the darkness of his bedroom, trying to push the nightmare back, not let it follow him into the world of waking. "Go away now."
He glanced over at the clock his mum had put on his bedside table. 12:07. Seven minutes past midnight. Which was late for a school night, late for a Sunday, certainly.
He'd told no one about the nightmare. Not his mum, obviously, but no one else either, not his dad in their fortnightly (or so) phone call, definitely not his grandma, and no one at school. Absolutely not.
What happened in the nightmare was something no one else ever needed to know."
-from A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness (idea by Siobhan Dowd)
Reasons to Keep Reading:
1. "As they do"...thrilling!
2. What is "the" nightmare he's been having?
3. Why won't he tell anyone about it?
4. Where is the monster??
5. Why is the monster there?
Sound like something you want to read? It's only $4.99 on Kindle! How exciting! You could also borrow it from a library, if you are so inclined (or poor, like me).
Hope you have an absolutely brilliant weekend -- I'll be finishing up this book so I can review it on Monday!
You know how I keep fangirling over Patrick Ness and his amazing Chaos Walking Trilogy? Well, I found out that my library has another book by him available on Kindle -- the book started out as an idea by another author but when she died, Patrick was asked to write the story. He talks a little bit about it in the introduction -- he simply tried to write a story that she would like. I'm a quarter of the way through and although it's very different from Chaos Walking, the same things I liked about CW are present in A Monster Calls: intimacy between story and reader, emotional intensity/internal action mixed with external action, and thought-provoking subject matter.
Enjoy.
"The monster showed up just after midnight. As they do.
Conor was awake when it came.
He'd had a nightmare. Well, not a nightmare. The nightmare. The one he'd been having a lot lately. The one with the darkness and the wind and the screaming. The one with the hands slipping from his grasp, no matter how hard he tried to hold on. The one that always ended with- "Go away," Conor whispered into the darkness of his bedroom, trying to push the nightmare back, not let it follow him into the world of waking. "Go away now."
He glanced over at the clock his mum had put on his bedside table. 12:07. Seven minutes past midnight. Which was late for a school night, late for a Sunday, certainly.
He'd told no one about the nightmare. Not his mum, obviously, but no one else either, not his dad in their fortnightly (or so) phone call, definitely not his grandma, and no one at school. Absolutely not.
What happened in the nightmare was something no one else ever needed to know."
-from A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness (idea by Siobhan Dowd)
Reasons to Keep Reading:
1. "As they do"...thrilling!
2. What is "the" nightmare he's been having?
3. Why won't he tell anyone about it?
4. Where is the monster??
5. Why is the monster there?
Sound like something you want to read? It's only $4.99 on Kindle! How exciting! You could also borrow it from a library, if you are so inclined (or poor, like me).
Hope you have an absolutely brilliant weekend -- I'll be finishing up this book so I can review it on Monday!
Friday, February 1, 2013
First Line Friday No. 24
Today's First Lines will be spent looking at the opening page of Oscar Wilde's most famous play, The Importance of Being Earnest. I've been reading through it in preparation for my directorial debut at my alma mater. Although An Ideal Husband is my favorite of Wilde's plays, The Importance of Being Earnest is perhaps the most memorable because most of the lines are famous zingers and brilliant satire.
Enjoy:
Scene
Morning-room in Algernon’s flat in Half-Moon Street. The room is luxuriously and artistically furnished. The sound of a piano is heard in the adjoining room.
[Lane is arranging afternoon tea on the table, and after the music has ceased, Algernon enters.]
Algernon. Did you hear what I was playing, Lane?
Lane. I didn’t think it polite to listen, sir.
Algernon. I’m sorry for that, for your sake. I don’t play accurately—any one can play accurately—but I play with wonderful expression. As far as the piano is concerned, sentiment is my forte. I keep science for Life.
Lane. Yes, sir.
Algernon. And, speaking of the science of Life, have you got the cucumber sandwiches cut for Lady Bracknell?
Lane. Yes, sir. [Hands them on a salver.]
Algernon. [Inspects them, takes two, and sits down on the sofa.] Oh!… by the way, Lane, I see from your book that on Thursday night, when Lord Shoreman and Mr. Worthing were dining with me, eight bottles of champagne are entered as having been consumed.
Lane. Yes, sir; eight bottles and a pint.
Algernon. Why is it that at a bachelor’s establishment the servants invariably drink the champagne? I ask merely for information.
Lane. I attribute it to the superior quality of the wine, sir. I have often observed that in married households the champagne is rarely of a first-rate brand.
Algernon. Good heavens! Is marriage so demoralising as that?
Lane. I believe it IS a very pleasant state, sir. I have had very little experience of it myself up to the present. I have only been married once. That was in consequence of a misunderstanding between myself and a young person.
Algernon. [Languidly.] I don’t know that I am much interested in your family life, Lane.
Lane. No, sir; it is not a very interesting subject. I never think of it myself.
Algernon. Very natural, I am sure. That will do, Lane, thank you.
Lane. Thank you, sir. [Lane goes out.]
Isn't that magnificent?
Reasons to keep reading:
1. Algernon. He is my favorite character.
2. Even the butler has hilarious lines! "I didn't think it polite to listen, sir..."
3. Who is Lady Bracknell?
4. Is this play going to be about matrimony?
5. What will happen next (with brilliant dialogue)??
Have you ever read a play? Did you like the format, or was it harder to read? Do you have a favorite play? Have you ever read Oscar Wilde's novel (The Picture of Dorian Grey) or his stories for children?
Friday, January 25, 2013
First Line Friday No. 23
A Morning in Vermillion
2.4.16.55.021: Males are to wear dress-code #6 during intercollective travel. Hats are encouraged, but not mandatory.
It began with my father not wanting to see the Last Rabbit, and ended up with me being eaten by a carnivorous plant. It wasn't really what I'd planned for myself. I'd hoped to marry into the Oxbloods and join their dynastic string empire. But that was four days ago, before I met Jane, retrieved the Carvaggio or explored High Saffron. So instead of enjoying aspirations of Chromatic advancement, I was wholly immersed within the digestive soup of a yateveo tree. It was all frightfully inconvenient.
But it wasn't all bad, and for the following reasons: First, I was lucky to have landed upside down. I would drown in under a minute, which is far, far preferable to being dissolved alive over the space of a few weeks. Second and more important, I wasn't going to die ignorant. I had discovered something that no amount of merits can buy you: the truth. Not the whole truth, but a pretty big part of it. And that's why this was all frightfully inconvenient. I wouldn't get to do anything with it. And this truth was too big and too terrible to ignore. Still, at least I'd held it in my hands for a full hour, and understood what it meant.
-- from Shades of Grey: A Novel by Jasper Fforde
I've never read Jasper Fforde's books, but I'm quickly becoming convinced I'd love them. If you remember, we did a First Lines a few weeks ago about Fforde's newest book, The Last Dragonslayer. From reading the first lines of these two books, I feel as if Fforde is what would happen if Douglas Adams (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) wrote fantasy. With a little more order thrown in, perhaps. It also recalls to mind P.G. Wodehouse (Jeeves & Wooster) and just a tad of Oscar Wilde. A winning mix if I ever saw one.
Here's why I'd keep reading this book:
1. What/who is the Last Rabbit?
2. Are we reading this story after the main character's death, or does he escape?
3. Who is Jane?
4. How did he 'retrieve' a Carvaggio, and from whom? Why?
5. What is the truth that he discovered?
I found out this book was available as a Kindle book through my library, so when I go away next weekend (visiting some friends for Superbowl weekend!), I'm hoping to take a copy with me. (Although I'll have to read it away from everyone else because if I laugh too loudly during the game I might get booted out!)
What do you think of Jasper Fforde's writing? Have you read anything by him? Would you?
2.4.16.55.021: Males are to wear dress-code #6 during intercollective travel. Hats are encouraged, but not mandatory.
It began with my father not wanting to see the Last Rabbit, and ended up with me being eaten by a carnivorous plant. It wasn't really what I'd planned for myself. I'd hoped to marry into the Oxbloods and join their dynastic string empire. But that was four days ago, before I met Jane, retrieved the Carvaggio or explored High Saffron. So instead of enjoying aspirations of Chromatic advancement, I was wholly immersed within the digestive soup of a yateveo tree. It was all frightfully inconvenient.
But it wasn't all bad, and for the following reasons: First, I was lucky to have landed upside down. I would drown in under a minute, which is far, far preferable to being dissolved alive over the space of a few weeks. Second and more important, I wasn't going to die ignorant. I had discovered something that no amount of merits can buy you: the truth. Not the whole truth, but a pretty big part of it. And that's why this was all frightfully inconvenient. I wouldn't get to do anything with it. And this truth was too big and too terrible to ignore. Still, at least I'd held it in my hands for a full hour, and understood what it meant.
-- from Shades of Grey: A Novel by Jasper Fforde
I've never read Jasper Fforde's books, but I'm quickly becoming convinced I'd love them. If you remember, we did a First Lines a few weeks ago about Fforde's newest book, The Last Dragonslayer. From reading the first lines of these two books, I feel as if Fforde is what would happen if Douglas Adams (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) wrote fantasy. With a little more order thrown in, perhaps. It also recalls to mind P.G. Wodehouse (Jeeves & Wooster) and just a tad of Oscar Wilde. A winning mix if I ever saw one.
Here's why I'd keep reading this book:
1. What/who is the Last Rabbit?
2. Are we reading this story after the main character's death, or does he escape?
3. Who is Jane?
4. How did he 'retrieve' a Carvaggio, and from whom? Why?
5. What is the truth that he discovered?
I found out this book was available as a Kindle book through my library, so when I go away next weekend (visiting some friends for Superbowl weekend!), I'm hoping to take a copy with me. (Although I'll have to read it away from everyone else because if I laugh too loudly during the game I might get booted out!)
What do you think of Jasper Fforde's writing? Have you read anything by him? Would you?
Friday, January 18, 2013
First Line Friday No. 22
Welcome to First Lines!
There aren't many authors that I'm willing to read anything from. There are several who have written fantastic books and then written some that either I just can't get through or that don't appeal to me, or whatever the reason may be, I don't read them.
Anne Rice has written several books that don't appeal to me, but the books that I have read...I've never read anything like them. Her writing style is very distinct, and the depths she plumbs to create these tales astonishes me.
So today I'm giving you a peek into one of the books she's written that I love. I hope you enjoy it.
"There were omens from the beginning.
First off, I didn't want to do a job at the Mission Inn. Anywhere in the country, I would have been willing, but not the Mission Inn. And in the bridal suite, that very room, my room. Bad luck and beyond, I thought to myself.
Of course my boss, The Right Man, had no way of knowing when he gave me this assignment that the Mission Inn was where I went when I didn't want to be Lucky the Fox, when I didn't want to be his assassin."
--from Angel Time by Anne Rice
Isn't that intriguing?
1. What were the omens?
2. What is the job he has to do at the Mission Inn?
3. Why does he always stay in a particular room?
4. Who is The Right Man?
5. How did this guy become an assassin? (And why the moniker Lucky the Fox?)
The story unfolds into a beautiful tale of grace, redemption, and healing. It's mind-bending, thought-provoking and sympathetic. I won't say any more. I hope this piques your interest enough for you to read it, and I'd love to hear your thoughts afterwards!
See you Monday -- I'll be reviewing The Chaos Walking Trilogy by Patrick Ness (!!!).
There aren't many authors that I'm willing to read anything from. There are several who have written fantastic books and then written some that either I just can't get through or that don't appeal to me, or whatever the reason may be, I don't read them.
Anne Rice has written several books that don't appeal to me, but the books that I have read...I've never read anything like them. Her writing style is very distinct, and the depths she plumbs to create these tales astonishes me.
So today I'm giving you a peek into one of the books she's written that I love. I hope you enjoy it.
"There were omens from the beginning.
First off, I didn't want to do a job at the Mission Inn. Anywhere in the country, I would have been willing, but not the Mission Inn. And in the bridal suite, that very room, my room. Bad luck and beyond, I thought to myself.
Of course my boss, The Right Man, had no way of knowing when he gave me this assignment that the Mission Inn was where I went when I didn't want to be Lucky the Fox, when I didn't want to be his assassin."
--from Angel Time by Anne Rice
Isn't that intriguing?
1. What were the omens?
2. What is the job he has to do at the Mission Inn?
3. Why does he always stay in a particular room?
4. Who is The Right Man?
5. How did this guy become an assassin? (And why the moniker Lucky the Fox?)
The story unfolds into a beautiful tale of grace, redemption, and healing. It's mind-bending, thought-provoking and sympathetic. I won't say any more. I hope this piques your interest enough for you to read it, and I'd love to hear your thoughts afterwards!
See you Monday -- I'll be reviewing The Chaos Walking Trilogy by Patrick Ness (!!!).
Friday, January 11, 2013
First Line Friday No. 21
Welcome back to First Line Friday!
I wrote a review a while ago about a book most people have pooh-poohed that I thought was wonderful. It's a re-imagining of a beloved classic and while I had my doubts, at first, I quickly realized the genius of revisiting and combining the old story with new hilarity.
I'm talking about Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith. My concern was that it would just be P&P with zombies pasted in. Boy, was I wrong.
Here, for your entertainment, is the first page of Austen's beautiful work, with added ridiculousness by S.G-S.:
"It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains. Never was this truth more plain than during the recent attacks at Netherfield Park, in which a household of eighteen was slaughtered and consumed by a horde of the living dead.
"My dear Mr. Bennet," said his lady to him one day, "have you heard that Netherfield Park is occupied again?" Mr. Bennet replied that he had not and went about his morning business of dagger sharpening and musket polishing--for attacks by the unmentionables had grown alarmingly frequent in recent weeks.
"But it is," returned she.
Mr. Bennet made no answer.
"Do you not want to know who has taken it?" cried the wife impatiently.
"Woman, I am attending to my musket. Prattle on if you must, but leave me to the defense of my estate!"
This was invitation enough.
"Why, My dear, Mrs. Long says that Netherfield is taken by a young man of large fortune; that he escaped London in a chaise-and-four just as the strange plague broke through the Manchester line."
"What is his name?"
"Bingley. A single man of four or five thousand a year. What a fine thing for our girls!"
"How so? Can he train them in the ways of swordsmanship and musketry?"
"How can you be so tiresome? You must know that I am thinking of his marrying one of them.""
--From Pride & Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith
The genius behind this story is that it is funniest when you've read Pride and Prejudice AND have a love of zombies. So the reader who will enjoy this re-imaging has read the classics, like Austen, but is also a bit more geeky in their love of fantasy/sci-fi. I can't imagine a better combination.
The brilliant additions by Seth Grahame-Smith aren't copy/paste zombie gore, either. There are actual story lines altered through the introduction of the "unmentionables."
I am delighted to be reading Sense & Sensibility And Sea Monsters, which is proving just as funny, and if you haven't given these books a chance...at least read the first chapter. See if you can stop yourself from laughing.
See you on Monday for a review!
I wrote a review a while ago about a book most people have pooh-poohed that I thought was wonderful. It's a re-imagining of a beloved classic and while I had my doubts, at first, I quickly realized the genius of revisiting and combining the old story with new hilarity.
I'm talking about Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith. My concern was that it would just be P&P with zombies pasted in. Boy, was I wrong.
Here, for your entertainment, is the first page of Austen's beautiful work, with added ridiculousness by S.G-S.:
"It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains. Never was this truth more plain than during the recent attacks at Netherfield Park, in which a household of eighteen was slaughtered and consumed by a horde of the living dead.
"My dear Mr. Bennet," said his lady to him one day, "have you heard that Netherfield Park is occupied again?" Mr. Bennet replied that he had not and went about his morning business of dagger sharpening and musket polishing--for attacks by the unmentionables had grown alarmingly frequent in recent weeks.
"But it is," returned she.
Mr. Bennet made no answer.
"Do you not want to know who has taken it?" cried the wife impatiently.
"Woman, I am attending to my musket. Prattle on if you must, but leave me to the defense of my estate!"
This was invitation enough.
"Why, My dear, Mrs. Long says that Netherfield is taken by a young man of large fortune; that he escaped London in a chaise-and-four just as the strange plague broke through the Manchester line."
"What is his name?"
"Bingley. A single man of four or five thousand a year. What a fine thing for our girls!"
"How so? Can he train them in the ways of swordsmanship and musketry?"
"How can you be so tiresome? You must know that I am thinking of his marrying one of them.""
--From Pride & Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith
The genius behind this story is that it is funniest when you've read Pride and Prejudice AND have a love of zombies. So the reader who will enjoy this re-imaging has read the classics, like Austen, but is also a bit more geeky in their love of fantasy/sci-fi. I can't imagine a better combination.
The brilliant additions by Seth Grahame-Smith aren't copy/paste zombie gore, either. There are actual story lines altered through the introduction of the "unmentionables."
I am delighted to be reading Sense & Sensibility And Sea Monsters, which is proving just as funny, and if you haven't given these books a chance...at least read the first chapter. See if you can stop yourself from laughing.
See you on Monday for a review!
Friday, January 4, 2013
First Line Friday No. 20
I have returned! I know you all were just dying to read more of my garbledygook.
Hence, I have brought some awesomesauce words (from someone else) and present them here for you as a belated holiday present.
Enjoy.
"I didn't know how long I had been in the king's prison. The days were all the same, except that as each one passed, I was dirtier than before. Every morning the light in the cell changed from the wavering orange of the lamp in the sconce outside my door to the dim but even glow of the sun falling into the prison's central courtyard. In the evening, as the sunlight faded, I reassured myself that I was one day closer to getting out. To pass time, I concentrated on pleasant memories, laying them out in order and examining them carefully. I reviewed over and over the plans that had seemed so straightforward before I arrived in jail, and I swore to myself and to every god I knew that if I got out alive, I would never never never take any risks that were so abysmally stupid again."
-- From The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner
The Thief is one of my all time favorite books. I didn't care as much about the rest of the series (it was a superb standalone novel) but this book turned me on my head and taught me a thing or two about how to tell a good yarn.
Reasons to keep reading:
1. Who is our mysterious narrator?
2. Why is the narrator even semi-sure about the chance of getting out of prison?
3. What did the narrator do?
4. What are the narrator's pleasant memories?
5. Who are these gods the narrator is talking about?
This book got its inspiration from the sunny lands of Italy and Greece, the rolling hills full of olive trees, the dusty roads full of travelers, the simple food, the old pantheons, and the stories we tell ourselves and others that might be true or might be...embellished (or bereft of helpful information).
The story of Gen is one I return to time and again, even though I've read it dozens of times. The surprises are shocking (I mean, you have no idea and then BOOM! Something you NEVER EVEN CONSIDERED happens!), the action jarring, the mystery astonishing, the characters (some of them) endearing. You feel as if you're a comrade by the end of it, sharing in this tale of adventure.
There's something legendary about this book...it belongs with the old tales, when faith and magic and mystery were all shrouded together.
You should read it.
See you on Monday for a review!
Hence, I have brought some awesomesauce words (from someone else) and present them here for you as a belated holiday present.
Enjoy.
"I didn't know how long I had been in the king's prison. The days were all the same, except that as each one passed, I was dirtier than before. Every morning the light in the cell changed from the wavering orange of the lamp in the sconce outside my door to the dim but even glow of the sun falling into the prison's central courtyard. In the evening, as the sunlight faded, I reassured myself that I was one day closer to getting out. To pass time, I concentrated on pleasant memories, laying them out in order and examining them carefully. I reviewed over and over the plans that had seemed so straightforward before I arrived in jail, and I swore to myself and to every god I knew that if I got out alive, I would never never never take any risks that were so abysmally stupid again."
-- From The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner
The Thief is one of my all time favorite books. I didn't care as much about the rest of the series (it was a superb standalone novel) but this book turned me on my head and taught me a thing or two about how to tell a good yarn.
Reasons to keep reading:
1. Who is our mysterious narrator?
2. Why is the narrator even semi-sure about the chance of getting out of prison?
3. What did the narrator do?
4. What are the narrator's pleasant memories?
5. Who are these gods the narrator is talking about?
This book got its inspiration from the sunny lands of Italy and Greece, the rolling hills full of olive trees, the dusty roads full of travelers, the simple food, the old pantheons, and the stories we tell ourselves and others that might be true or might be...embellished (or bereft of helpful information).
The story of Gen is one I return to time and again, even though I've read it dozens of times. The surprises are shocking (I mean, you have no idea and then BOOM! Something you NEVER EVEN CONSIDERED happens!), the action jarring, the mystery astonishing, the characters (some of them) endearing. You feel as if you're a comrade by the end of it, sharing in this tale of adventure.
There's something legendary about this book...it belongs with the old tales, when faith and magic and mystery were all shrouded together.
You should read it.
See you on Monday for a review!
Friday, December 14, 2012
First Line Friday No. 18
In honor of the The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey arriving at midnight in theaters everywhere this morning at precisely 12:01 (yours truly was seated near the front, dressed as Stryder), let's take a peek at the famous children's fantasy that spawned a new era in literature (along with Chronicles of Narnia and The Chronicles of Prydain, of course).
"In a hole in the ground, there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat; it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort...(skipping a few paragraphs of description)...this hobbit was a very well-to-do hobbit, and his name was Baggins. The Bagginses had lived in the neighborhood of The Hill for time out of mind, and people considered them very respectable, not only because most of them were rich, but also because they never had any adventures or did anything unexpected; you could tell what a Baggins would say on any question without the bother of asking him. This is a story of how a Baggins had an adventure, and found himself doing and saying things altogether unexpected. He may have lost the neighbors' respect, but he gained -- well, you will see whether he gained anything at the end."
--from The Hobbit (or There and Back Again) by J.R.R. Tolkien
I will admit to having a difficult time reading Tolkien -- his descriptions are seemingly endless and I find myself unable to go on any further after spending twenty pages with the same tree. BUT, I love his stories. They're incredible -- he created languages, maps, charts, dozens of characters, each worthy of our attention. I don't know many authors who are capable of creating a very real, other world.
So, I'm going to give The Hobbit another go. Here's why:
1. The first sentence is perfect -- you have the setting and the main character in very few words!
2. You know exactly HOW a hobbit is before you know WHAT it is -- a hobbit's main concern is comfort.
3. Baggins. Great name (one of the many great names Tolkien imagined while writing this epic).
4. The story of an atypical, unique hobbit who gives up his comforts (literally) to go on an adventure...this has got to be the beginning to a great story!
5. ...well, now I must see if and what he gained in the end. Clever, Tolkien.
Did you see the movie last night? Will you see it this weekend/next week? Thoughts?
See you on Monday with a review -- I'm reading a proper fairytale (I'll explain what I mean on Monday) and I'm quite thrilled about it.
"In a hole in the ground, there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat; it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort...(skipping a few paragraphs of description)...this hobbit was a very well-to-do hobbit, and his name was Baggins. The Bagginses had lived in the neighborhood of The Hill for time out of mind, and people considered them very respectable, not only because most of them were rich, but also because they never had any adventures or did anything unexpected; you could tell what a Baggins would say on any question without the bother of asking him. This is a story of how a Baggins had an adventure, and found himself doing and saying things altogether unexpected. He may have lost the neighbors' respect, but he gained -- well, you will see whether he gained anything at the end."
--from The Hobbit (or There and Back Again) by J.R.R. Tolkien
I will admit to having a difficult time reading Tolkien -- his descriptions are seemingly endless and I find myself unable to go on any further after spending twenty pages with the same tree. BUT, I love his stories. They're incredible -- he created languages, maps, charts, dozens of characters, each worthy of our attention. I don't know many authors who are capable of creating a very real, other world.
So, I'm going to give The Hobbit another go. Here's why:
1. The first sentence is perfect -- you have the setting and the main character in very few words!
2. You know exactly HOW a hobbit is before you know WHAT it is -- a hobbit's main concern is comfort.
3. Baggins. Great name (one of the many great names Tolkien imagined while writing this epic).
4. The story of an atypical, unique hobbit who gives up his comforts (literally) to go on an adventure...this has got to be the beginning to a great story!
5. ...well, now I must see if and what he gained in the end. Clever, Tolkien.
Did you see the movie last night? Will you see it this weekend/next week? Thoughts?
See you on Monday with a review -- I'm reading a proper fairytale (I'll explain what I mean on Monday) and I'm quite thrilled about it.
Friday, December 7, 2012
First Line Friday No. 17
Today I'll be doing things a little differently...we're going to be talking about CHRISTMAS books!
One of my favorite holiday memories is getting a huge stack of books from the library and carefully selecting one each night for my mom to read. We'd all snuggle onto the couch (or the floor by the tree), beg my dad for a fire and listen to Mom read before she got too sleepy and started yawning.
My favorite Christmas books had to be special. They had to be beautiful in both word AND illustration and they had to mean something BIG.
Here, then, are some of my favorite Christmas stories, and their first lines. Enjoy.
1. The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg (words & pictures)
"On Christmas Eve, many years ago, I lay quietly in my bed. I did not rustle the sheets. I breathed slowly and silently. I was listening for a sound -- a sound a friend had told me I'd never hear -- the ringing bells of Santa's sleigh."
Can you hear the magic in those words, especially the last line? It takes my breath away.
2. The Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree: An Appalachian Story by Gloria Houston (words) and Barbara Cooney (pictures)
"It was getting toward Christmas in the valley of Pine Grove. The wise folk said the old woman in the sky was picking her geese, for the Appalachian mountains were blanketed with snow. The road wound like white ribbons around the misty blue ridges, tracked by the runners of wagons, sleds, and sleighs. Occasionally an auty-mobile chugged its way through the silence. Across the ocean the Great War raged, but in the valley all was peace.
It was getting on toward the Christmas that Ruthie would never forget. The Christmas when the village almost did not have a Christmas tree. It happened this way. Ruthie told me so."
I love the tone of this story -- it's so rustic and simple and sweet.
3. Apple Tree Christmas by Trinka Hakes Noble (words & pictures)
This one was apparently out-of-print so I can't find the first few lines. :(
4. How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss
"Every Who down in Who-ville liked Christmas a lot, but the Grinch, who lived just north of Who-ville, did NOT!"
I love the Grinch. :3
What are your favorite Christmas stories? Tell me in the comments!
One of my favorite holiday memories is getting a huge stack of books from the library and carefully selecting one each night for my mom to read. We'd all snuggle onto the couch (or the floor by the tree), beg my dad for a fire and listen to Mom read before she got too sleepy and started yawning.
My favorite Christmas books had to be special. They had to be beautiful in both word AND illustration and they had to mean something BIG.
Here, then, are some of my favorite Christmas stories, and their first lines. Enjoy.
1. The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg (words & pictures)
"On Christmas Eve, many years ago, I lay quietly in my bed. I did not rustle the sheets. I breathed slowly and silently. I was listening for a sound -- a sound a friend had told me I'd never hear -- the ringing bells of Santa's sleigh."
Can you hear the magic in those words, especially the last line? It takes my breath away.
2. The Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree: An Appalachian Story by Gloria Houston (words) and Barbara Cooney (pictures)
"It was getting toward Christmas in the valley of Pine Grove. The wise folk said the old woman in the sky was picking her geese, for the Appalachian mountains were blanketed with snow. The road wound like white ribbons around the misty blue ridges, tracked by the runners of wagons, sleds, and sleighs. Occasionally an auty-mobile chugged its way through the silence. Across the ocean the Great War raged, but in the valley all was peace.
It was getting on toward the Christmas that Ruthie would never forget. The Christmas when the village almost did not have a Christmas tree. It happened this way. Ruthie told me so."
I love the tone of this story -- it's so rustic and simple and sweet.
3. Apple Tree Christmas by Trinka Hakes Noble (words & pictures)
This one was apparently out-of-print so I can't find the first few lines. :(
4. How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss
"Every Who down in Who-ville liked Christmas a lot, but the Grinch, who lived just north of Who-ville, did NOT!"
I love the Grinch. :3
What are your favorite Christmas stories? Tell me in the comments!
Friday, November 30, 2012
First Line Friday No. 16
Welcome back to First Lines!
Shannon Hale blew me away with her debut novel, The Princess Academy, and though I haven't had as much time to read until this year, I've kept track of her and what she's been penning. I will say, the title of the book we're talking about today didn't draw me in and I think the reason why is that it doesn't sound like the story it is enclosing.
Book of a Thousand Days is a re-imagining (broadly) of an ancient Eastern tale -- Mongolia, a princess and a serving maid, an evil warlord (who just might not be entirely human) and the problem of status in a land where pretending to be someone you're not might end in death.
The cover and title made me think it was something along the lines of American history and, frankly, I don't read much of that any more (having consumed a shockingly high number of American historical novels growing up). So...I guess the lesson here is, "Don't judge a book by its cover and/or title"? (Although if I'd seen the other covers, I might have picked it up sooner!)
And now, without further ado, let us peek into the life of one Dashti, serving maid to a lady of high standing:
"My lady and I are being shut up in a tower for seven years.
Lady Saren is sitting on the floor, staring at the wall, and hasn't moved even to scratch for an hour or more. Poor thing. It's a shame I don't have fresh yak dung or anything strong-smelling to scare the misery out of her.
The men are bricking up the door, and I hear them muttering and scraping cement. Only a small square of unbricked sky and light still gape at me. I smile back at its mean grin to show I'm not scared. Isn't it something, all this trouble they're going to for us? I feel like a jewel in a treasure box, though my lady is the --
My lady suddenly awoke from her stupor and sprang at the door, clawing at the bricks, trying to shove her way out. How she screamed! Like an angry piglet."
-- from Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale
Reasons to Read:
1. Um...shut in a tower for seven years? I must see how this turns out.
2. Who is Lady Saren? Why is she being shut up in a tower?
3. Fresh yak dung? To "scare away" misery? What other crazy beliefs does this serving-maid have??
4. I like this serving-maid -- she grins back at something scary. She's strong.
5. I can just picture the Lady screaming like a piglet. I'm...giggling, although I know they're in danger!
This book sucked me right in and I read the entire story in one sitting (I even took it to a friend's house to finish it...yeah, I'm that friend).
Does the unnamed narrator's story tug at your curiosity?
Have a great weekend, and I'll see you on Monday -- with a review!
Shannon Hale blew me away with her debut novel, The Princess Academy, and though I haven't had as much time to read until this year, I've kept track of her and what she's been penning. I will say, the title of the book we're talking about today didn't draw me in and I think the reason why is that it doesn't sound like the story it is enclosing.
Book of a Thousand Days is a re-imagining (broadly) of an ancient Eastern tale -- Mongolia, a princess and a serving maid, an evil warlord (who just might not be entirely human) and the problem of status in a land where pretending to be someone you're not might end in death.
The cover and title made me think it was something along the lines of American history and, frankly, I don't read much of that any more (having consumed a shockingly high number of American historical novels growing up). So...I guess the lesson here is, "Don't judge a book by its cover and/or title"? (Although if I'd seen the other covers, I might have picked it up sooner!)
And now, without further ado, let us peek into the life of one Dashti, serving maid to a lady of high standing:
"My lady and I are being shut up in a tower for seven years.
Lady Saren is sitting on the floor, staring at the wall, and hasn't moved even to scratch for an hour or more. Poor thing. It's a shame I don't have fresh yak dung or anything strong-smelling to scare the misery out of her.
The men are bricking up the door, and I hear them muttering and scraping cement. Only a small square of unbricked sky and light still gape at me. I smile back at its mean grin to show I'm not scared. Isn't it something, all this trouble they're going to for us? I feel like a jewel in a treasure box, though my lady is the --
My lady suddenly awoke from her stupor and sprang at the door, clawing at the bricks, trying to shove her way out. How she screamed! Like an angry piglet."
-- from Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale
Reasons to Read:
1. Um...shut in a tower for seven years? I must see how this turns out.
2. Who is Lady Saren? Why is she being shut up in a tower?
3. Fresh yak dung? To "scare away" misery? What other crazy beliefs does this serving-maid have??
4. I like this serving-maid -- she grins back at something scary. She's strong.
5. I can just picture the Lady screaming like a piglet. I'm...giggling, although I know they're in danger!
This book sucked me right in and I read the entire story in one sitting (I even took it to a friend's house to finish it...yeah, I'm that friend).
Does the unnamed narrator's story tug at your curiosity?
Have a great weekend, and I'll see you on Monday -- with a review!
Friday, November 16, 2012
First Line Friday No. 15
This is a book that I have read several times, but every time I try to find it I invariably forget the name and can only picture the front cover. Time and again I've described it to librarians and finally, last time, there was an invention that let you search the subject/main character's name/objects in the book instead of the title. It might have been invented for those librarians who had to deal with me.
The front cover is gorgeous, inviting, mysterious and I'd just love to have a print of it. It's a perfect cover for such an enchanting story.
Here's a glimpse of the first page:
"Phew! Made it." Copper collapsed into her train seat. The train was due to leave in three minutes. "Made it, made it," she repeated breathlessly. "Now please, train, go!"
The train carriage alongside hers shifted slowly past, and for a second Copper's heart raced expectantly, thinking she was moving, but then the platform across the rails came into view and she realized what had happened.
Hurry, hurry, she urged. We must go. We must get away. She stared nervously through the train window at the grey mass of people and suddenly she saw them: even though she'd never seen them before, even though she didn't know what they looked like, she knew it was them.
--from Copper by Rebecca Lisle
Isn't it thrilling? 5 Reasons to keep reading:
1. The urgency. Why is Copper trying to get away? And from whom?
2. Copper. I love it. I love the color, the sound of the word, I love it as a name.
3. You're dropped right in the middle of the action -- no backstory to wander through -- will Copper get away, or won't she?
4. I like that Copper apparently talks to herself. Or is she talking to someone? I want to read further and discover which it is.
5. Who are "them"??
What do you think? Have you read this one?
Next week I'll have a review of James Patterson's last Maximum Ride book, Nevermore. If you've ever heard me gush about that series, prepare yourself. I have ALL THE FEELS from reading this one -- it is tearing me apart!
Since Thanksgiving is next week, I will not be doing Write Wednesday or First Line Friday. Keep eating your bountiful feasts and I'll see you the Monday after.
The front cover is gorgeous, inviting, mysterious and I'd just love to have a print of it. It's a perfect cover for such an enchanting story.
Here's a glimpse of the first page:
"Phew! Made it." Copper collapsed into her train seat. The train was due to leave in three minutes. "Made it, made it," she repeated breathlessly. "Now please, train, go!"
The train carriage alongside hers shifted slowly past, and for a second Copper's heart raced expectantly, thinking she was moving, but then the platform across the rails came into view and she realized what had happened.
Hurry, hurry, she urged. We must go. We must get away. She stared nervously through the train window at the grey mass of people and suddenly she saw them: even though she'd never seen them before, even though she didn't know what they looked like, she knew it was them.
--from Copper by Rebecca Lisle
Isn't it thrilling? 5 Reasons to keep reading:
1. The urgency. Why is Copper trying to get away? And from whom?
2. Copper. I love it. I love the color, the sound of the word, I love it as a name.
3. You're dropped right in the middle of the action -- no backstory to wander through -- will Copper get away, or won't she?
4. I like that Copper apparently talks to herself. Or is she talking to someone? I want to read further and discover which it is.
5. Who are "them"??
What do you think? Have you read this one?
Next week I'll have a review of James Patterson's last Maximum Ride book, Nevermore. If you've ever heard me gush about that series, prepare yourself. I have ALL THE FEELS from reading this one -- it is tearing me apart!
Since Thanksgiving is next week, I will not be doing Write Wednesday or First Line Friday. Keep eating your bountiful feasts and I'll see you the Monday after.
Friday, November 9, 2012
First Line Friday No. 14
Last week my husband and I celebrated our 4th anniversary (!!) -- by eating at our favorite "special dining" place, Outback Steakhouse (hey -- there's only so many restaurants in Columbia that we both love that's within our price range!) and then browsing through Barnes and Noble for an hour or two (books + good food + favorite boy = perfect). I went right to the childrens' book section, of course, and found some interesting new titles. Including a sequel to Princess Academy by Shannon Hale! Ahhh! Anyway. That's not what I'm talking about today. But it's newsworthy, just the same.
One of the books I found was simply titled "Wildwood" (the beginning of The Wildwood Chronicles) and featured a fabulously illustrated front cover -- somewhat in the style of The Mysterious Benedict Society (the first book of which is merely ok...I could never drag myself through the second one). Which makes sense as it is the same illustrator, Carson Ellis (she creates wonderfully old-fashioned, intriguing illustrations, I just love her!).
I wrote it down so I could add it to Goodreads later and promptly put it out of my mind until today when I was trying to think of something you all probably hadn't read yet.
Here's a little peek into what is surely a very mysterious and exciting story:
"How five crows managed to lift a twenty-pound baby boy into the air was beyond Prue, but that was certainly the least of her worries. In fact, if she were to list her worries right then and there as she sat spellbound on the park bench and watched her little brother, Mac, carried aloft in the talons of these five black crows, puzzling out just how this feat was being done would likely come in dead last. First on the list: her baby brother, her responsibility, was being abducted by birds. A close second: What did they plan on doing with him?"
--From Wildwood by Colin Meloy (who is the singer/songwriter for The Decembrists!)
Is that not fabulous?
1. Right away we are intrigued. Five crows? Carrying a BABY?
2. Where are they that this could happen?
3. Why is she still sitting there?
4. Is she going to try to rescue her brother?
5. What ARE the crows going to do with Mac??
I'm on the hunt to see if it's at our local library.
Also: On Monday I'll be posting a review of Lemony Snicket's Who Could That Be At This Hour?
AND since I didn't post anything on Wednesday, I'll be doing a post WITH PICTURES sometime next week.
...Keep reading!
One of the books I found was simply titled "Wildwood" (the beginning of The Wildwood Chronicles) and featured a fabulously illustrated front cover -- somewhat in the style of The Mysterious Benedict Society (the first book of which is merely ok...I could never drag myself through the second one). Which makes sense as it is the same illustrator, Carson Ellis (she creates wonderfully old-fashioned, intriguing illustrations, I just love her!).
I wrote it down so I could add it to Goodreads later and promptly put it out of my mind until today when I was trying to think of something you all probably hadn't read yet.
Here's a little peek into what is surely a very mysterious and exciting story:
"How five crows managed to lift a twenty-pound baby boy into the air was beyond Prue, but that was certainly the least of her worries. In fact, if she were to list her worries right then and there as she sat spellbound on the park bench and watched her little brother, Mac, carried aloft in the talons of these five black crows, puzzling out just how this feat was being done would likely come in dead last. First on the list: her baby brother, her responsibility, was being abducted by birds. A close second: What did they plan on doing with him?"
--From Wildwood by Colin Meloy (who is the singer/songwriter for The Decembrists!)
Is that not fabulous?
1. Right away we are intrigued. Five crows? Carrying a BABY?
2. Where are they that this could happen?
3. Why is she still sitting there?
4. Is she going to try to rescue her brother?
5. What ARE the crows going to do with Mac??
I'm on the hunt to see if it's at our local library.
Also: On Monday I'll be posting a review of Lemony Snicket's Who Could That Be At This Hour?
AND since I didn't post anything on Wednesday, I'll be doing a post WITH PICTURES sometime next week.
...Keep reading!
Friday, November 2, 2012
First Line Friday No. 13
I was browsing in a Barnes & Noble last night when I spotted a familiar name: Jasper Fforde (Which I thought for sure was a pen name -- it's too cool to be real!). I'd been hearing the name the last few weeks among NaNoers, so I picked up his newest book and read the inside jacket.
I immediately scribbled down the title to add to my Goodreads list.
Here's a peek at the first few lines:
"It looked set to become even hotter by the afternoon, just when the job was becoming more fiddly and needed extra concentration. But the fair weather brought at least one advantage: dry air makes magic work better and fly farther. Moisture has a moderating effect on the mystical arts. No sorcerer worth their sparkle ever did productive work in the rain -- which probably accounts for why getting showers to start was once considered easy, but getting them to stop was nearly impossible."
-- from The Last Dragonslayer by Jasper Fforde (which is actually his real name)
Reasons I'm intrigued:
1. A place with magic is ALWAYS exciting.
2. "No sorcerer worth their sparkle..." That phrase delights me for reasons unknown.
3. The explanation about rain - very practical and grounded in what feels like reality.
4. Was "once" considered easy? Is Magic leaving? Why?
5. The title -- doesn't The Last Dragonslayer sound incredibly epic???
What do you think -- does this make you want to rush to the bookstore (or as in my case, the library) and peek in this book to find out what exactly is going on? I can't wait to read more!
Happy NaNovember, by the way! I'm over 2,000 words in and am happier than I have ever been with a story. It is completely plotted (although some of it is a bit vague) and I've got a title. If I feel like procrastinating later, I may come up with a cover...!
See you on Monday for a review of Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi!
I immediately scribbled down the title to add to my Goodreads list.
Here's a peek at the first few lines:
"It looked set to become even hotter by the afternoon, just when the job was becoming more fiddly and needed extra concentration. But the fair weather brought at least one advantage: dry air makes magic work better and fly farther. Moisture has a moderating effect on the mystical arts. No sorcerer worth their sparkle ever did productive work in the rain -- which probably accounts for why getting showers to start was once considered easy, but getting them to stop was nearly impossible."
-- from The Last Dragonslayer by Jasper Fforde (which is actually his real name)
Reasons I'm intrigued:
1. A place with magic is ALWAYS exciting.
2. "No sorcerer worth their sparkle..." That phrase delights me for reasons unknown.
3. The explanation about rain - very practical and grounded in what feels like reality.
4. Was "once" considered easy? Is Magic leaving? Why?
5. The title -- doesn't The Last Dragonslayer sound incredibly epic???
What do you think -- does this make you want to rush to the bookstore (or as in my case, the library) and peek in this book to find out what exactly is going on? I can't wait to read more!
Happy NaNovember, by the way! I'm over 2,000 words in and am happier than I have ever been with a story. It is completely plotted (although some of it is a bit vague) and I've got a title. If I feel like procrastinating later, I may come up with a cover...!
See you on Monday for a review of Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi!
Friday, October 26, 2012
First Line Friday No. 12
It's always fun trying to figure out which book to share with you on Fridays. My practice has been to go to Amazon and look through the first pages of several books -- old favorites, new finds, recommended reads, etc. Today the word "pirates" popped into my head so I mentally flipped through all the pirate books I've stuck my nose in (quite a few) and came up with the best alternate history/pirate swaggery book known to literature.
--From Piratica, by Tanith Lee
Seriously. I just love this book. It's a fascinating alternate world/history, has strong female characters, and have I mentioned PIRATES??
Reasons to keep reading:
1. Tanith Lee has sprinkled in descriptors without being intrusive -- "carved in the shape of an eagle". Little details like that really give you a picture of the world without taking you out of the story. I'm learning about that this week in another writing book.
2. Art is just a cool name. So is Molly Faith.
3. "very stupid girls" -- I like Art already.
4. I instantly want to know what happened to Molly Faith.
5. PIRATE CAPTAIN??? Will Art follow in her footsteps??? That's it. I must read it all in one sitting, immediately.
Do you love pirates? Treasure maps? Chases on the High Seas? Secrets? You've got to read this book.
Don't forget, run the YAmazing Race for a chance to win a boatload of awesome bookstuffs -- and read something this weekend (then comment on here to let me know what I should read next)!
Next week:
Review of Rachel Dratch's new memoir, A Girl Walks Into a Bar
Write Wednesday review of Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maass
First Line Friday
Check back on Monday!
"One day when she was sixteen, Art remembered her mother. It happened because Art fell down a flight of steps and hit her head on a wooden bannister carved in the shape of an eagle.
She sat there, dizzy, staring back up the stairs at a group of very stupid girls, all giggling and pointing, with large books ridiculously balanced on the over-curled hair that crowned their heads. And Art thought, who are they? And then --
And then she thought of a slim, strong woman, not tall but looking taller because her legs were so long and outlined by the trousers and boots she wore. A woman with strawberry-blond hair tied back in a knot and eyes the impossible green of gooseberries. And this was Molly Faith. This was her mother. Though for six years Art hadn't thought of her, hadn't remembered her -- this unforgettable and wonderful parent, who had been a pirate captain on the High Seas."
--From Piratica, by Tanith Lee
Seriously. I just love this book. It's a fascinating alternate world/history, has strong female characters, and have I mentioned PIRATES??
Reasons to keep reading:
1. Tanith Lee has sprinkled in descriptors without being intrusive -- "carved in the shape of an eagle". Little details like that really give you a picture of the world without taking you out of the story. I'm learning about that this week in another writing book.
2. Art is just a cool name. So is Molly Faith.
3. "very stupid girls" -- I like Art already.
4. I instantly want to know what happened to Molly Faith.
5. PIRATE CAPTAIN??? Will Art follow in her footsteps??? That's it. I must read it all in one sitting, immediately.
Do you love pirates? Treasure maps? Chases on the High Seas? Secrets? You've got to read this book.
Don't forget, run the YAmazing Race for a chance to win a boatload of awesome bookstuffs -- and read something this weekend (then comment on here to let me know what I should read next)!
Next week:
Review of Rachel Dratch's new memoir, A Girl Walks Into a Bar
Write Wednesday review of Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maass
First Line Friday
Check back on Monday!
Friday, October 19, 2012
First Line Friday No. 11
"In the prison under the castle Allaze, in the dark, moldy cells where the greatest criminals in Mellinor spent the remainder of their lives counting rocks to stave off madness, Eli Monpress was trying to wake up a door.
It was a heavy oak door with an iron frame, created centuries ago by an overzealous carpenter to have, perhaps, more corners than it should. The edges were carefully fitted to lie flush against the stained, stone walls, and the heavy boards were nailed together so tightly that not even the flickering torch light could wedge between them. In all, the effect was so overdone, the construction so inhumanly strong, that the whole black affair had transcended simple confinement and become a monument to the absolute hopelessness of the prisoner's situation. Eli decided to focus on the wood; the iron would have taken forever.
--From The Legend of Eli Monpress (the Omnibus edition) by Rachel Aaron
I've been devouring every word Rachel's written on writing (from her blog, Pretentious Title, and her new book, 2k to 10k) for the past few weeks in prep for NaNoWriMo -- and other various writing projects.
Rachel takes a light-hearted, yet very practical approach to writing and it shows in her fantasy fiction. If you like thieves, magic, snark/wit, intrigue, thrills, and swordfights, PLEASE read her books! They're "adult" fiction (as in they feature adult characters) but something I love about them is that she doesn't rely on gore, sex or cursing to make them so.
You know you're in for a thrill reading this first page, right? It hooks you, especially that first and last line.
Reasons I love it:
1. Mellinor. Such a great name.
2. "Greatest criminals...spent the remainder of their lives counting rocks to stave off madness..." O.o Who are they? What did they steal?
3. WAKE UP A DOOR??? I must read further!
4. The door description is awesome -- "...the effect was so overdone...that the whole black affair transcended simple confinment and became a monument to the absolute hopelessness of the prisoner's situation." HOW is Eli going to get out of THIS?
5. A dusty, splintery voice. I can hear it. And why is Eli waking it and talking to it???
It's such a fun series -- I've read almost 3/5 and I'm going be asking for the last two for Christmas. :D
(The new covers are awesome)
I won the Omnibus in a contest Rachel held and I've been meaning to review it on here (I wanted to put up some pictures) so maybe in the next few weeks (pre-NaNo) I'll finally do it.
Happy Weekend, everybody!
Now go read something.
Friday, October 12, 2012
First Line Friday No. 10
Do you have a book (or books) that you tend to keep to yourself? One that's so special you keep it a secret, lest someone else read it and not understand its draw? I have these books. And though I've tried sharing a few of them with good friends, invariably, I'm disappointed by their reactions (or lack thereof).
Except for my friend E and the book The Golden Age by Kenneth Grahame. We've read certain chapters over and over, laughing and re-enacting our favorite lines. Apart from that, however, I hug these stories close so that they'll be appreciated.
Today I'm sharing one of those stories.
--From Seven Daughters and Seven Sons by Barbara Cohen & Bahija Lovejoy
Reasons I love it:
1. Buran's a middle child -- a child often overlooked in the family structure and therefore, able to "get away" with being the odd one out.
2. Her poor father -- burdened by his daughters' welfare. I can see him, smiling at his lovely daughters while secretly worrying how he is going to provide for him (somewhat reminiscent of other poor parents in stories who love their children but can't afford to take care of them, often prompting one of the children to be their savior)
3. What is "all that happened afterward"??
4. I instantly want to know how the blessing/curse through line will turn out.
5. "Marvelous" chain of events? Just how big will this story be??
The book is based on an Iraqi folktale and is one of my favorite re-imaginings. There's a gentleness, a mysterious Eastern quality and the comeuppance of the century (as well as a beautiful love story). It's a fantastic little gem that's rarely talked about.
Which books are you protective of?
Except for my friend E and the book The Golden Age by Kenneth Grahame. We've read certain chapters over and over, laughing and re-enacting our favorite lines. Apart from that, however, I hug these stories close so that they'll be appreciated.
Today I'm sharing one of those stories.
I am Buran, daughter of Malik, and the fourth of the seven female children born to him, and to his wife of holy memory, my mother Zubaydah. My father was called Abu al-Benat, the father of daughters, and the title was not considered an honorable one. Allah had not seen fit to bless him with sons, and all that happened afterward stemmed from that fact. O my children, the ways of Allah are beyond human understanding. What we imagine to be a blessing can actually be a curse, and what we suppose to be a curse may blossom into a blessing.
The marvelous chain of events about which I will tell you began one evening as I sat in the courtyard with my father, playing chess.
--From Seven Daughters and Seven Sons by Barbara Cohen & Bahija Lovejoy
Reasons I love it:
1. Buran's a middle child -- a child often overlooked in the family structure and therefore, able to "get away" with being the odd one out.
2. Her poor father -- burdened by his daughters' welfare. I can see him, smiling at his lovely daughters while secretly worrying how he is going to provide for him (somewhat reminiscent of other poor parents in stories who love their children but can't afford to take care of them, often prompting one of the children to be their savior)
3. What is "all that happened afterward"??
4. I instantly want to know how the blessing/curse through line will turn out.
5. "Marvelous" chain of events? Just how big will this story be??
The book is based on an Iraqi folktale and is one of my favorite re-imaginings. There's a gentleness, a mysterious Eastern quality and the comeuppance of the century (as well as a beautiful love story). It's a fantastic little gem that's rarely talked about.
Which books are you protective of?
Friday, October 5, 2012
First Line Friday No. 9
Welcome!
I think Fridays are my favorite days to blog -- I love discovering new books and great first lines have always thrilled me. I think my favorite one when I was younger was the opening to "The Lion, The Witch, & the Wardrobe" by C.S. Lewis:
"Once there were four children whose names were Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy. This story is about something that happened to them when they were sent away from London during the war because of the air-raids."
While it isn't a particularly attention-grabbing hook, the use of "Once" (reminiscent of "Once Upon a Time..." stories) and the historical aspect of it (World War II/Fantasy) always intrigued me.
There are other books whose first lines aren't a plunge into action right off, and while they're rather overlooked at the moment (new writing advice says to 'plunge right in' to the action and never let your reader take a breath), I enjoy the time an author takes to paint the scene. It allows the story to feel more real, sometimes.
So today we'll be looking at an opening that isn't as attention-grabbing as, for instance, the Maximum Ride series opener, but it slowly pulls you in until...it's too late. (shiver)
--From Shadow and Bone (The Grisha Trilogy, Book 1) by Leigh Bardugo
This story starts right before something big happens. It takes a short amount of time to develop a sense of the world and introduce you to the main character without you having to scramble and acquaint yourself mid-flight (or mid-run or whatever).
Reasons to keep reading:
1. Abandoned farms? "Shadow Fold"? Tell me more!
2. Our MC is in the military -- why are they moving, what are they fighting? Where does our MC fit in?
3. I love a character with sass/lip. It makes for great dialogue
4. This character appears to do the unexpected. I am interested.
5. Honestly, the title and cover alone made me want to read the book. So there's that.
This one was on my To-Read list that I wrote up a few weeks back and I was so excited when I saw our library had it! I'll be posting a review soon, so stay tuned...
I think Fridays are my favorite days to blog -- I love discovering new books and great first lines have always thrilled me. I think my favorite one when I was younger was the opening to "The Lion, The Witch, & the Wardrobe" by C.S. Lewis:
"Once there were four children whose names were Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy. This story is about something that happened to them when they were sent away from London during the war because of the air-raids."
While it isn't a particularly attention-grabbing hook, the use of "Once" (reminiscent of "Once Upon a Time..." stories) and the historical aspect of it (World War II/Fantasy) always intrigued me.
There are other books whose first lines aren't a plunge into action right off, and while they're rather overlooked at the moment (new writing advice says to 'plunge right in' to the action and never let your reader take a breath), I enjoy the time an author takes to paint the scene. It allows the story to feel more real, sometimes.
So today we'll be looking at an opening that isn't as attention-grabbing as, for instance, the Maximum Ride series opener, but it slowly pulls you in until...it's too late. (shiver)
Standing on the edge of a crowded road, I looked down onto the rolling fields and abandoned farms of the Tula Valley and got my first glimpse of the Shadow Fold. My regiment was two weeks' march from the military encampment at Poliznaya and the autumn sun was warm overhead, but I shivered in my coat as I eyed the haze that lay like a dirty smudge on the horizon.
A heavy shoulder slammed into me from behind. I stumbled and nearly pitched face-first into the muddy road. "Hey!" shouted the shoulder. "Watch yourself!" "Why don't you watch your fat feet?" I snapped, and took some satisfaction from the surprise that came over his broad face. People, particularly big men carrying big rifles, don't expect lip from a scrawny thing like me. They always look a bit dazed when they get it.
--From Shadow and Bone (The Grisha Trilogy, Book 1) by Leigh Bardugo
This story starts right before something big happens. It takes a short amount of time to develop a sense of the world and introduce you to the main character without you having to scramble and acquaint yourself mid-flight (or mid-run or whatever).
Reasons to keep reading:
1. Abandoned farms? "Shadow Fold"? Tell me more!
2. Our MC is in the military -- why are they moving, what are they fighting? Where does our MC fit in?
3. I love a character with sass/lip. It makes for great dialogue
4. This character appears to do the unexpected. I am interested.
5. Honestly, the title and cover alone made me want to read the book. So there's that.
This one was on my To-Read list that I wrote up a few weeks back and I was so excited when I saw our library had it! I'll be posting a review soon, so stay tuned...
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