My friend, Harry Potter

During my sophomore year of high school I decided to read the Harry Potter books for a second time.  I read the first three and then read the final four in July 2009 after seeing the sixth movie in theaters.  Then in September 2010 I read them a third time and in July 2011, when the final film was released, a fourth time.  The more I read them, the more Harry Potter went from books on a shelf to characters and worlds that were mine.  As strange as it sounds, the Harry Potter series has become a friend to me.  When I pick up the first book tears sting my eyes because it's as if I haven't seen this friend in so long.  When I read the last page I feel a sense of loss.  What now?  It is like I have lost a friend.  But that is the wonderful thing about books - they are always there to welcome you home.
Now it is almost July and suddenly I have the familiar urge to read Harry Potter once again.  It could be that July will be the first anniversary of the final film.  It could be that I watched the final film last night for a film class.  It could be that my friend is reading the first book for the first time and I'm super jealous!  Or it could be that my family is planning on visiting Oswego, NY for a weekend where I seem to read Harry Potter a lot! (Re-read the 3rd book there in 2007, finished the last book there in the summer of 2007, re-read the 4th book summer 2009, and re-read the 5th book there during fall break in my sophomore year of college!)  Wow, that's a lot of "it could's".  Oh, and one more.  It could be that I just bought an awesome Harry Potter shirt!

Needless to say, Harry Potter is a HUGE part of my life.  I've grown up with the books and went from seeing them as just a fantasy series to a series that teaches me to love, accept, and to realize.  That's pretty powerful stuff.  Most people seem to overlook the series for a number of reasons.  1. It's just for kids.  FALSE.  This series is for all ages!  As the story progresses it becomes so dark that it shys away from the kid label.  I hate labels.  People use them to define and stereotype.  2. They aren't scholarly.  FALSE!  Many themes I study as an English major are present in these books.  In a recent article, Suzanne Keen states that Harry Potter themes resemble those of Dickens and students who have read Potter are responding much more to Dickens than students who haven't read the series.  Another thing...at my school, we are constantly forced as English majors to become more aware of non-western literature.  Several of my professors are appalled at our lack of non-western knowledge.  Now this isn't a bad thing however, recently my African Folklore professor said he didn't bother reading the Harry Potter books.  His tone almost suggested that they were a waste of his time.  The street goes both ways here people!  And 3. I'll just watch the movies.  Face plant!  Seriously?  The films are good but they don't hold the magic and literary element of the books.  The films have become such an icon that scholars have come to overlook the series and not take it seriously!  People see Harry Potter as a money spinner, especially after the last film was split into two parts.  And the final film, Deathly Hallows Pt.2 which stands apart from all the others, didn't receive one award from the academy!  Not one!  That says a lot about today's culture.

While Harry Potter has the respect of many there are also those who say it's just a book and it's just something nerds and fan girls read.  I went from an obsessive teenager to a woman who now understands and Harry Potter played a huge part in this.  I am currently collecting all of the U.K. publishing's of the books (three different ones).  I also just submitted an application to record a podcast with Mugglenet Academia to discuss, hopefully, Christianity in the books and I plan to take avid notes when I re-read the books.  I can't wait!  Of course the seven books will go toward my 50 books of 2012 and I hope to read them sometime this summer before the fall semester begins.  I guess this is the English major coming out of me.  :)

Reading: The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

“But it is the nature of stars to cross, and never was Shakespeare more wrong than when he has Cassius note, ‘The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars / But in ourselves.”
― John Green, The Fault in Our Stars

NOTE - I'm not quite sure why I say certain things in this review, mainly referring to my apparent love for Augusts Waters. Did I seriously like that whole cigarette thing when I first read the book? I don't remember feeling that way but I want to make it clear that I think it is the most overrated and ridiculous attempt of John Green to make a deep character that, like most of his characters, is stupid. Sorry awesome John Green who I really respect and adore but don't enjoy your books. Sorry. My opinions have vastly changed and I still don't like this book. I want to make a note that John Green's intentions for this book are really great in that people who have cancer in novels and movies always seem to be some kind of martyr and he didn't want to make cancer seem heroic. Cancer sucks. That concept is really deep and cool! But this book is just not that. It is not! I also want to make a few more things clear since I am writing this. The dialogue in this book, which I failed to comment on in both my reviews of this book apparently, is terrible! No teenager is this sophisticated! These kids are practically perfect. In some ways they can be compared to Bella Swan because their perfection is borderline no personality. Yep, I just made a connection to Twilight. No regrets. I felt a need to write this above this review because I want to make the record clear. Thank you. - 09/16/14

In the world of tumblr and youtube and teen angst there is a writer named John Green who is looked at as the god of YA fiction writing.  Over the course of a few years, I have become more and more familiar with John Green and his latest novel was one that I couldn't wait to pick up.  I'd never read John Green before but had only seen him and his brother Hank on youtube (they are the famous Vlog Brothers), and various (I may add – awesome) quotes of his show up all over the internet – some of which you can see on my tumblr page.  Most recently I have also discovered John and his brother created a youtube channel called Crash Course which is quite similar to youtube sensation's Charlieissocoollike's Fun Science except it has a much more in class feel and looks a bit more professional.  Needless to say, it seems like John Green is the man.  But personally, after reading The Fault in Our Stars, I feel it's safe to say that the title of man still goes and will remain with John Williams.  That's a joke by the way…just watch this video and you'll understand. 

            Okay so to the review.  The Fault In Our Stars is a teen love story – girl meets boy and something connects them and they go on this amazing journey together and one dies.  Forgive me for saying this but, this broad storyline was a turnoff for me.  It seems like all we hear today are cheesy love stories.  They are not just in books but in movies and music and TV shows.  Why can't there be a story about girl meets boy and they are just friends?!  I mean, this was a nice love story and all but it wasn't as great as everyone is making it out to be.  It's no Twilight…oh wait.  Scratch that, it's no Pride and Prejudice.  Now I know John Green probably wasn't going for the whole epic love story, or at least that’s what it seems like.  I guess I just assumed this vlog brother awesome nerd fighter would write a book about something other than a teenage love story.  Another thing that turned me off to the novel was the title.  The story seemed to imply that it isn't human's that should be held responsible for what happens on the earth…hence it is the fault in our stars and not ourselves.  Now, that is partly true.  We as humans can't control the weather or where we are born or each other, but we can control ourselves.  You can't blame the stars for the night you got drunk and killed someone while driving.  My opinion is that we all were born with faults and hardships, some more than others, but we are responsible for ourselves and you can't blame the stars for your actions.  Of course you could blame the stars for the life you have been given but there is always someone that has it worse and life shouldn't be a pity party.  It all depends on how you look at situations and how you pick yourself up. 

            So let's go to the positives of this novel because there were many things I did like.  First off, I really liked Augustus.  He was definitely my favorite character of the novel.  I loved that he smoked cigarettes without lighting them to show the cigarette companies didn't have power over him and I loved that he was outgoing and read the book Hazel loved and quoted it and analyzed it.  I also loved when the novel took place in Amsterdam.  The experience Augustus and Hazel shared was one that I think we all have had, even if it wasn't with a significant other.  I also liked that when the character Issac was about to loose his eye sight, Augustus played video games with him.  It was like a ceremony for the last time he'd see a TV screen and be able to play like this…like he was making the most of his last minutes he had left with his eyes.  That was another thing I loved about Augustus.  He understood how to make people feel better and he seemed to always put their needs before his own.  He was selfless.  And one last thing I loved was what Peter Van Houten says: “What a slut time is. She screws everybody.”

            Overall, this book was a good read but I feel it was overrated.  John Green is a great writer but I don't like that he writes mostly teenage love stories.  I still plan to read his other novels so we will see how those ones go for me.  I give this 2 out of 5 stars.

            Anyway, I would love to hear what you guys thought of the novel if you read it.  Do you like John Green?  Do you think my review was accurate or do you disagree with some of my points? Let me know in my tumblr askbox and I will surely answer you with a private message.  I would love to discuss the book with someone!

Reading: Inheritance by Christopher Paolini

            Inheritance is the fourth and final book in the series with the same name.  Before I can begin my review of this book, let me give you a bit of history of this book series.  Christopher Paolini was 15 when he first began writing the first novel of the Inheritance series, Eragon.  The book was first self-published by his parents publishing company and then by a larger publishing company, Alfred A. Knopf, a year later.  It then went to the New York Times best sellers list and remained there 121 for weeks. (x – yes my source is wikipedia) 

            My brother was the one who mentioned the book to me in the beginning.  Both of us were very interested in finding out more about the book.  He ended up buying me the book as a Christmas gift.  I read it during the summer when I was 16.  Since then I have read the following two novels and was intrigued to read the finale.  The first book impressed me, the second wowed me, the third bored me.  I had no idea what to expect for this final novel.       

            The Inheritance series revolves around a young man named Eragon.  Eragon was once a poor farm boy when he found a blue pebble in a place called The Spine by his home.  The pebble, though, was not a mere pebble but a dragon egg.  There in his barn hatched a blue dragon who went by the name of Saphira.  Eragon was then given the mark of a dragon rider and joined the Varden, a rebel group fighting the empire to defeat the horrid King Galbatorix. 

            Inheritance, I found, was everything I would want for the ending of this series.  The details were rich and profound, the characters all showed impressive growth, and the plot was fantastic!  I found myself wondering for a while (even when reading the earlier books), how is Eragon and the Varden going to stop Galbatorix? It seemed impossible!  I know this seems like a spoiler but lets be serious here, it's a young adult book series.  I don't mean to "diss" young adult fiction because I tend to enjoy YA better than adult fiction.  It's expected to have a happy ending.  That being said, Inheritance did have a happy ending but it also was able to encompass that feeling of, what now which made the story seem much more realistic and adult. 

            If I had any complaints about this book series, it would be to ask why it doesn't get more recognition.  Paolini's writing is fantastic for such a young author and his stories and characters are beyond the page!  They stay with you long after you put the book down.  For example, the book series has so many strong and inspiring female characters – to name the most prominent, Nasuada, Arya, and Angela.  I once read an article featured on MuggleNet about the strongest female characters in literature today and one of them was Hermione Granger from J.K. Rowling's, Harry Potter.  Now, don't get me wrong, I LOVE Harry Potter and I think Hermione completely deserves to be on that list.  However, the list is very biased to the so called "popular" novel and while Eragon was a New York Times Bestseller, the series itself doesn't seem to be as loved by the media and therefore doesn't receive the recognition it deserves.  All three of the women I listed above deserved to be on that list. 

            That being said, I also understand why the series is often overlooked.  After watching and reading the horrible film reviews for Eragon (the film was terrible so it deserved bad reviews) and reading audience feedback on the books themselves, I found that the series, in a small way, lacks "originality".  Paolini's world and character's and events are all very original, that is for sure, but the plot line itself is very much like Star Wars and Lord of the Rings.  Being someone who has yet to read Lord of the Rings and see the Star Wars films in full, I did not see this connection until it was pointed out in reviews.  Because of this apparent familiarity, people consider the Inheritance series to be a bunch of books that are just like the next fantasy book series and everything that happens is expected.

            In the end, I enjoyed the series and very much enjoyed the last book.  What I loved most about this book and those previous were the descriptions!  I loved every detail Paolini gave.  While some details were overused, most of the time they were beautiful and jaw dropping.  The last book held so many surprises for me as a reader and while the ending was sad it was also really satisfying.  While critics say it gets too much material from Star Wars, I say none of our stories are completely original.  We all draw our ideas from other ideas before ours.  The Inheritance series shouldn't loose points for a minor detail like that.  I also found that the characters truly were at their best in this last book and I was proud of them!  Paolini wrote an incredible series and for that I give his final book a 5 out of 5 stars.

Reading: The Giver by Lois Lowry

Books are forced upon us as kids – that is a fact.  We are given books to read from the age of 7 to 18 and expected to read them, understand them, analysis them, and possibly write papers on them.  The Giver is one of those books that fits into the school curriculum for young readers.  If you've been reading my blog, you know I have read another book by the author, Lois Lowry, in school (Number the Stars) but I was never handed the Giver in class.  I heard my peers who went to different elementary schools speak (and rave) of the book and I saw it a lot on posters and shelves in the library but I never really had the urge to read it as a kid.  Then, about two months ago, I spotted the book on a shelf in a thrift store.  I figured "what the heck" and I bought it for a quarter. 

            The Giver is a story about a boy named Jonas (is it sad that the first thing that came to my mind was the Jonas Brothers??) who lives in a black and white society.  Oh, and another thing, the society has no idea they are black and white!  The Giver takes place in the future where law makers have long since decided to make a safe world for humans to reside in – one where everyone is the same.  Each family has two children, a boy and a girl; each family has food delivered to their doors at a certain time; each child receives a bike at age 9, and each child is given a career based on the law makers observation at the age of 12.  Jonas is turning 12 this year and for his career he is assigned a very rare and important job – the receiver.  The receiver is a very secret job where Jonas goes to be with the Giver who transfers memories and feeling into Jonas's black and white world.

            I found the Giver to be somewhat of a horrifying novel while also redeeming.  It started off very slow and by chapter six or seven I was beginning to wonder what the events had to do with the title.  Once the title became apparent, I became much more entranced by the novel.  Jonas's learning about being brainwashed was heartbreaking and real.  I became so involved with this book that when I put it down I had to remind myself that it was just a book!  The memories the Giver showed Jonas were memories all readers can relate to in some way.  The novel itself raises many questions and definitely points at the fact that differences are what makes a society. 

            While I liked the story as a whole, I do have a few complaints.  For starters, the book did start off really slow but I can't really count that against the book since the explanation seems to be needed.  I also found the ending to be a bit too quick.  It ended with promise but at the same time I wasn't sure if that promise was made up in my head or not.  I definitely wanted to see more but instead of all this fun action, it felt like Lowry just became bored and decided to choose an easy ending.  However, I did like that (SPOILER) Jonas saved Gabe.  The idea of him being released was very scary and Jonas was very selfless.

            In the end, I really enjoyed this book.  It wasn't a favorite but it definitely raised many questions and I like when books can be so powerful.  I will give it a 4 out of 5 stars.

Reading: Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson

WARNING – CONTAINS SPOILERS

            In 5th grade reading class, my teacher had us read Bridge to Terabithia.  As an 11 year old who was still well unaware of good literature, I thought the book seemed boring and stupid.  When I got to the ending I couldn't understand why Leslie had to die.  It was so unexpected and sad.  Still, I didn't appreciate the book until I was probably in high school when I realized how much books meant to me. 

            Just like with Number the Stars, I decided to read it as a quick read so I will be able to reach my goal of 50 books by the end of the year.  And just like with Number the Stars, I relished in excitement as I read this incredibly powerful novel about two friends and the power of their imaginations.  For a quick summary for the novel: Jess Aarons is beat in a race at recess by the new kid, a girl named Leslie.  The two become friends and create Terabithia – a magical Kingdom just for them where Jess is the king and Leslie is the queen.  Leslie's imagination is a rarity to Jess and he finds himself encouraged by it.  She encourages him to draw when his dad views it as silly and she encourages him to be better in everything he does. 

            I LOVE this book!  I don't think words can describe how much I love it.  Jess and Leslie are such inspirational characters for the young and the old.  Not only are they inspirational but relatable.  I felt I could relate to both of these characters on so many levels – especially Jess.  I loved his family and his entire world of art and learning about how powerful the imagination is.  It isn't just the characters though that make this book great.  Terabithia itself is, of course, a huge aspect of this book.  I don't know about other readers, but I have always wanted a world I could call my own – a world where I could escape and write and let my imagination run wild where I could read books all day and get away from the TV and the rush and demand of real life.  Everyone wants their own Terabithia and that’s why I believe this book has struck a chord for so many readers.  Then there are other poignant points in the book – Jess and May Belle's relationship, Janice, Ms. Edmund's music classes, P.T., Leslie's talk about church and dying, and Jess's artwork. 

            It's no surprise that I am giving this book a 5 out of 5 stars! 

P.S. – I watched the 2007 Disney movie after I read the book and was highly disappointed – it was poorly acted (particularly AnnaSophia Robb) and the story line was changed to be more modern which overall, I believe, hurt the plot.  The only good things I have to say about it are Josh Hutcherson was okay as Jess, Bailee Madison was fantastic as May Belle, and I loved at the ending when Jess said to Ms. Edmunds, "next time, invite Leslie (to the art museum)" – that was a very moving addition to the story.  Also, Zooey Deschanel was a good choice for Ms. Edmunds.

Reading: Number the Stars by Lois Lowry

            As the end of April neared, I slowly began to realize that I had only read one book this month!  With only a few days left until May, I decided I would need to read some small books and went to my closet where all my children's chapter books were.  The first book I pulled out was Number the Stars by Lois Lowry.  I was required to read this book in 6th grade, I was 12, and haven't read it since then. 

            After reading it again as an adult, I found that I enjoyed the book even more than I did as a kid.  For those of you who haven't read Number the Stars, here is a brief summary: 10 year old Annemarie and her family are living in the Nazi invaded Denmark.  She and her family live in an apartment complex along with her best friend, Ellen, who is Jewish.  Annemarie is haunted by the memory of her older sister who died just before she was to be married and by the soldiers who stalk the sidewalks of her hometown, Copenhagen.  She often questions the role of bravery inside of herself and isn't sure if she can be brave when bravery is trust upon her.  One day, Annemarie finds out Ellen is spending the night and that Ellen's family is in danger.  There is no time to wonder if she is brave.  Annemarie must be brave even when she doesn't know she is being brave. 

            Reading this book for a second time was refreshing.  A lot of the details in this book had been lost to me for years.  All I basically knew about the novel was that it took place in Europe during WWII and that Annemarie's friend was Jewish and they had to save her life.  In the end, it's a kids novel and I can't really say many bad things about it.  I found the book to be poignant and I found the main character, Annemarie, to be everything I would hope a child character to be.  I could really relate to the little things she talked about like running with her friend and playing dolls.  I could also relate to the idea of bravery.  Don't we all wonder if there came a time to be brave, would we be?  It is a very powerful topic to touch on.  I give the book 5 out of 5 stars.

Hipster Belle