Quote of the Day

"Sometimes I feel like if you just watch things, just sit still and let the world exist in front of you--sometimes I swear that just for a second, time freezes and the world pauses in its tilt. Just for a second. And if you somehow found a way to live in that second, then you would live forever."

Delirium

Abandon

Written by Meg Cabot

Goodreads Synopsis: Though she tries returning to the life she knew before the accident, Pierce can't help but feel at once a part of this world, and apart from it. Yet, she's never alone...because someone is always watching her. Escape from the realm of the dead is impossible when someone there wants you back.
But now she's moved to a new town. Maybe at her new school, she can start fresh. Maybe she can stop feeling so afraid. 
Only she can't. Because even here, he finds her. That's how desperately he wants her back. She knows he's no guardian angel, and his dark world isn't exactly heaven, yet she can't stay away...especially since he always appears when she least expects it, but exactly when she needs him most.
But if she let. s herself fall any further, she may just find herself back in the one place she most fears: the Underworld.


My Confession: Once again, if Meg Cabot writes it, I'll pick it up. Especially her YA novels (which I really think are where she shines). I love the concept of this trilogy--modernizing the Greek tale of Persephone and Hades, lord of the Underworld. As the myth goes, Hades fell in love with Persephone, and after tricking her into eating six pomegranate seeds, forced her to live with him in his Underworld kingdom six months out of the year. (This was how the Greeks explained the change in seasons.) I find Greek mythology utterly fascinating, so any take on a tale like this is worth investigating. In Cabot's version, seventeen-year-old Pierce has a NDE (near-death experience) after falling into her backyard pool. While the medics desperately try to restart her heart, she's taken to the underground kingdom of the mysterious John Hayden, who tries to keep her there. However, she escapes, the medics having successfully revived her. Pierce spends the rest of the book both simultaneously avoiding and goading John, not really deciding whether she loves or hates her once-captor.

Pierce's Pomegranate: The thing is, Pierce isn't as strong a character as I would have wanted. She seems utterly wishy-washy when it comes to her relationship with John, and I kept getting the feeling that there was something more there that we weren't being told as readers. By all means, she should fear and loathe the guy; he seems to stalk her, and he once held her captive. But instead, she's drawn to him, and we're not really sure why. At school, she doesn't seem interested in making friends, but quickly falls in step with a group of popular kids who are so transparent and superficial, it's hard to like Pierce for keeping their company. A lot of questions are raised about Pierce's past, which we know is shady, but the answers are drawn out for far too long, and they're not quite as satisfying as you would expect. As a writer, I totally understand the art of keeping the reader hanging on a certain plot point, but there were too many balls in the air at one time, and I just got a little lost. A new villain is introduced at the end, and it seems to come out of left field--how long was this person a villain? There was just a lot going on here, and even though the pace was good and kept me turning each page, occasionally the information withheld ended up dragging the story down.

Recommendation: I'm happy that this is just the first book in a trilogy. Because I think the next book has the potential to be much better. Judging from how this one left off, there will be more action and more peril in the sequel. Not unlike some of Cabot's past series, this first book gets weighed down under a lot of plot and backstory set-up. I didn't feel like a lot actually happened. It feels like a really long prologue to a story that just began during the last chapter. Yes, John's kind of sexy and mysterious. Yes, he and Pierce are probably "made for each other." But I want to see more than some kind of star-crossed romance. I want action, I want danger, I want to see some obstacles. I want Cabot to get right to the meat of this story in her next book.

Rating: 3/5

304 pages, published by Point (April 26, 2011)

Quote of the Day

"And it's time you learned there's a big difference between your writing and your life. To do it right, your writing takes an incredible amount of work. Your life takes more."

Love Story

One Day Movie Review

When I reviewed One Day this past June, I was on the edge of my seat with anticipation over the film adaptation. I fell in love with the story, fell in love with Emma and Dex. It's a spell-binding, magical tale of love and friendship that slaps you in the head with its blinding ending. The pace is magnificent, and the attention to detail really makes you feel like you're experiencing all these things with Emma and Dex.

I was so pleased with the film, for a few reasons. First, David Nicholls (the author) also wrote the script, which pretty much guaranteed that the movie would honor the book, which it did. And the few places it wavered--I liked them even more. They made sense, cinematically. Not all scenes in a book translate well to the screen; sometimes the drama needs to be heightened, the senses assaulted in a different way. And this adaptation did a fantastic job staying true to the novel while taking liberties that made the film version even more engaging.

Jim Sturgess is amazing. I can't say enough good things about how wonderfully he portrayed Dexter. He was absolutely perfect in this role. Dex was the character who moved me the most in the book, perhaps because he's the character who goes through the most change. And, in the end, he's the character who has to live through numerous personal tragedies. I love Anne Hathaway, and in many ways, I think she embodied Emma very well. But her British accent is just awful. A few times, it even sounded like she slipped into an Irish or Scottish brogue. She had the face and personality for this character, but her voice was painfully distracting. But the two of them together? Pretty perfect. They played off each other so well, and the chemistry was definitely there. And since the whole story is about this deep-rooted and undeniable connection between two characters--despite how long it takes them to realize and then accept it--finding actors who could really become these two people was so important and necessary for the film's success.

In the end, the love is center-stage, as it should be. And, happily, the film producers didn't pull a My Sister's Keeper  and completely change the ending. It's a rough ending; I've said that a few times. But I love the way the film does it, and I especially loved the final scene. It sounds corny to say it was beautiful, but it was. I was moved. It was something extremely special to watch on screen, especially after reading the book. They did a wonderful, lovely, careful job with an ending that is, at the very least, extremely emotional. But it's poetic. And stunning. It's not a Disney tale of a prince or princess, but it has that true-love-never-dies quality to it. The message that real, genuine love is beyond the grasp of everything in the world. It's a story of hope. And, despite everything you watch over the course of the almost two-hour film, you'll leave the theater with a smile on your face and a slightly damp tissue in your pocket.

Photos courtesy of Google Images, and video courtesy of YouTube

Quote of the Day

"It has to be something about contrasts. Something about the perilous art of uniting extremes and forcing compromises, or perhaps about acknowledging that life is a delicate balance of great forces, and that good would lose its potency if there was no evil left to fight in the world."

Juliet

Juliet

Written by Anne Fortier

Goodreads Synopsis: When Julie Jacobs inherits a key to a safety-deposit box in Siena, Italy, she is told that it will lead her to an old family treasure. Soon she is launched on a winding and perilous journey into the history of her ancestor Giulietta, whose legendary love for a young man named Romeo rocked the foundation of medieval Siena. As Julie crosses paths with the descendants of the families immortalized in Shakespeare's unforgettable blood feud, she begins to realize that the notorious curse--"A plague on both your houses!"--is still at work, and she is the next target. It seems that the only one who can save Julie from her fate is Romeo--but Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?


My Confession: I'll admit right off the bat that I'm not Shakespeare's biggest fan. Forced to take a course in his writings my senior year in college, a common refrain that often exited my mouth went a little something like this:

Shakespeare is so overrated.

I mean, who knows if he actually wrote all the plays he's famous for? And Romeo and Juliet ? Don't even get me started. Once I had the image of Leo DiCaprio in my head as the tragic hero, I was done. I hate unhappy endings. Really, really hate them. But I'm a big fan of books that are puzzles, not unlike The DaVinci Code (which one of the critics on the back of this book actually likens Juliet  to). This story screamed mystery and intrigue, and I like when modern-day authors revisit classic stories. I was willing to give this a shot.

Standing Corrected: And, I must admit, I'm so glad I did. This book was so good. I don't know how else to describe it. The twists and turns, the depth of the plot and the characters--this has to be one of the most well-thought-out books I've read in a long time. Not only does Fortier imagine a present-day reincarnation of Romeo and Juliet, but she totally restructures their original romance as well. While paying Shakespeare some heed, she goes her own way with the two lovers' history, telling it from a new perspective and setting everything in the very first place Romeo and Juliet was ever written to have occurred--Siena, not Verona. Her new adaptation is positively mesmerizing, and not just because she hints at it; half the story takes place in the year 1340, telling this new story of Romeo and Juliet (called Giulietta) as if we're right there, in the moment. Then--poof!--back to present-day and a struggling Julie who tries to uncover a dark family secret that seems to still be plaguing the houses of three (not two!) feuding families.

Recommendation: I'm not going to go as far as saying that this story completely changed my mind about Shakespeare. I still don't love the man, but I have a new found appreciation for the longevity of his stories. These characters are absolutely timeless--they've transcended generations and centuries of other romances, and yet, Romeo and Juliet are still iconic. Theirs is still the most famous love story of all time. And it doesn't even end well. I got wrapped up in the magic of this tale once again, thanks to Fortier and her impressive imagination. And, just in case you're wondering whether present-day Julie meets the same fate as her ancestor Giulietta--I'm not going to tell you. Read it and find out. I promise you'll find a perfectly dreamy, thirty-something Romeo who proves a bit wiser than his ancestor.

Oh, and the seven-hundred-plus years of violence, mystery, murder, and secrecy adds a little something extra, too.

Rating: 4.8/5

480 pages, published by Ballantine Books (Aug. 24, 2010)

Quote of the Day

"Your lot in life? A lot is something you draw, like straws. It's chance. You didn't get this life by chance. You chose it on purpose. If you're dissatisfied with it, you can change it."

Going Too Far

The Hunger Games

Written by Suzanne Collins

Goodreads Synopsis: In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.
Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before--and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that will weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

My Confession: It took me a really long time to jump on the Hunger Games bandwagon. If I had a nickel for every time someone asked me, "Have you read The Hunger Games yet?" -- well, let's just say I'd be a very rich woman. Each time, my response was no. No, I hadn't read them. No, I didn't know what they were about. Some bookaholic. Slowly but surely, I started noticing that the series was becoming a phenomenon, with movie hype garnering extraordinary momentum every time I turned around. Everybody--and I mean everybody--has been talking about this series. I guess I was just flat-out curious. And mildly ashamed that, with my self-proclaimed bookworm status, I hadn't picked this book up before.

And....it blew me away. It absolutely blew. my. mind.

Character Power: I've never read anything quite like this. It twisted me inside out and wrung me out to dry. My immediate and intense attachment to the characters, especially Katniss, Gale, and Peeta, goes to show how powerful the story is. While the novel's overarching situation--life in a post-apocalyptic world controlled by a Big Brother-esque government that takes pleasure in killing twenty-three children a year in a nationally-televised bloodbath--it's how the main characters react  to these absurd circumstances that makes the novel so compelling. The scenes in the "arena" are so blood-curling, so unfathomable, and so incredibly written. I had a serious problem putting this book down for more than two seconds at a time. I felt like I was there, experiencing everything with Katniss--every fear-filled, survival-driven decision. She's an amazing narrator, full of strength and will. She's a rockstar in a world that's taken away every chance to feel joy.

Recommendation: READ IT. DO IT. NOW. And I mean, finish this blog and go to the bookstore. I had no idea what I was missing, but let me tell you--I was missing out. It's impressive how much this book makes you feel. There were so many times where I couldn't believe what I was reading; the story, at times, gets so painful, so absurd, so unbelievable, but it never stops feeling real. You will get sucked in. And if you're a reader, you know what a brilliant sensation that is.

Rating: 5/5

374 pages, published by Scholastic Inc (Dec. 14, 2009)

Quote of the Day

"Each of us must confront our own fears, must come face to face with them. How we handle our fears will determine where we go with the rest of our lives. To experience adventure or to be limited by the fear of it."

Tiger Eyes