The most exciting thing I learned while reading this book was that it is in the makings to become a film! The movie is expected to be released November of this year, 2013.
So, this is the first sci-fi novel I have ever read and, again, it was a random novel I purchased having absolutely no idea what I was getting myself into. It turns out that it was a great idea!
I have no quotes from this novel; however, I thought it was such a good book! It was really fun to read and kept me wanting to continue and never put it down. I love it when books do that :)
A brief synopsis is as follows:
The human's world on Earth is preparing for war against the Buggers and in doing so are looking for a commander to lead them to a victory. They have been searching and hope to find faith in Ender who is then sent to school to be tested and taught how to defeat the Buggers. Ender goes through many challenges, physically and mentally, and the novel shows his story, from his point of view, telling about his life before he left, during school, and after. It shows his relationship with his family and how the problems of war have affected such. Ender's game shows that you have to think outside the box and never give up to succeed.
Sunday, February 24, 2013
Monday, February 4, 2013
I Knew You'd Be Lovely by: Alethea Black
This is a book that was assigned to me by my book club months ago and I finally was able to catch up on some reading and get around to it. It is a part of Oprah Winfrey's book club list and is described by amazon as a "...deeply moving and wholly original debut features a coterie of memorable characters who have reached emotional crossroads in their lives. Brimming with humor, irony, and insights about the unpredictable nature of life, the unbearable beauty of fate, and the power that one moment, or one decision, can have to transform us, I Knew You'd Be Lovely delivers that rare thing—stories with both an edge and a heart."
In my words, it is a collection of short stories about people's lives that are fragmented and leaves you sort of uncomfortable because you have not been given an ending, there is no closure! In each of these stories clearly the main characters are at a point in their lives where something has got to change... the end of each story is when they really take action with this; however, we never know how it turns out. Which sort of irritates me, personally, although I also kind of liked it. Each story left me with this hopeful feeling that the possibilities are endless and that their lives belonged to them and aren't just simply for me to read and know everything about.
Quotes:
"Love never repeats."
"Best of all, it made him feel as if the unspoken in him were connecting with the unspoken in her, and it crossed his mind that this was all chemistry ever was: two people's silent selves invisibly aligning while their noisy selves carried on, oblivious."
"Perfection isn't outside us. Perfection is a way of seeing."
"And I'm no good at being in love, either," she said abruptly, shifting away from him. She sometimes had a talent for dispelling awkward moments by making them even more awkward. "I don't lie the idea of giving yourself up, of surrendering. Why does it have to be like that? Who invented this system, anyway?"
"Sometimes you can miss something even when you know it's not for you anymore."
"We're all allowed a kind of grace period, she decided, when we can coast along, before we really need to choose a life and summon the determination to live it."
"She always liked the idea of savings, even if she wasn't particularly keen on its practice. She liked calling it savings, too, because it was like that: You think you're saving something, when actually, it saves you."
"When you are sorrowful look again in our heart, and you shall see that you are weeping for that which has been your delight."
"Wanting things too much is a form of sadness."
"Often it is not even advantageous to know what will be. -Cicero"
"Failure is not the enemy," he said. "Even the wrong choice can lead you in the right direction."
"When dreams come true, they often don't look like you though they would. Be prepared for that."
"What occurrence is the most standard deviations away from your normal range of experience? he said."
"My mother claims that people show you everything you need to know about them within the first hour of meeting them, it's just that most of us aren't paying attention."
In my words, it is a collection of short stories about people's lives that are fragmented and leaves you sort of uncomfortable because you have not been given an ending, there is no closure! In each of these stories clearly the main characters are at a point in their lives where something has got to change... the end of each story is when they really take action with this; however, we never know how it turns out. Which sort of irritates me, personally, although I also kind of liked it. Each story left me with this hopeful feeling that the possibilities are endless and that their lives belonged to them and aren't just simply for me to read and know everything about.
Quotes:
"Love never repeats."
"Best of all, it made him feel as if the unspoken in him were connecting with the unspoken in her, and it crossed his mind that this was all chemistry ever was: two people's silent selves invisibly aligning while their noisy selves carried on, oblivious."
"Perfection isn't outside us. Perfection is a way of seeing."
"And I'm no good at being in love, either," she said abruptly, shifting away from him. She sometimes had a talent for dispelling awkward moments by making them even more awkward. "I don't lie the idea of giving yourself up, of surrendering. Why does it have to be like that? Who invented this system, anyway?"
"Sometimes you can miss something even when you know it's not for you anymore."
"We're all allowed a kind of grace period, she decided, when we can coast along, before we really need to choose a life and summon the determination to live it."
"She always liked the idea of savings, even if she wasn't particularly keen on its practice. She liked calling it savings, too, because it was like that: You think you're saving something, when actually, it saves you."
"When you are sorrowful look again in our heart, and you shall see that you are weeping for that which has been your delight."
"Wanting things too much is a form of sadness."
"Often it is not even advantageous to know what will be. -Cicero"
"Failure is not the enemy," he said. "Even the wrong choice can lead you in the right direction."
"When dreams come true, they often don't look like you though they would. Be prepared for that."
"What occurrence is the most standard deviations away from your normal range of experience? he said."
"My mother claims that people show you everything you need to know about them within the first hour of meeting them, it's just that most of us aren't paying attention."
Sunday, January 27, 2013
The Sense of an Ending by: Julian Barnes
I just finished reading this novel today and I really can't decide how I feel about it. Yes, this novel was, too, among the group of novels that I randomly selected and had no idea what I was getting into. The novel is based in London and is about a boy and his friends. It reflects often on life and is told from the perspective of one of the friends and focuses mostly on his life. It is quite vague at parts and keeps you interested so you can figure out what the speaker is talking about or if their is ever a resolution. I think that was the point; however, because as the title suggests, sometimes its not the actual ending that brings closure but the sense of an ending.
Quotes:
"Sometimes I think the purpose of life is to reconcile us to its eventual loss by wearing us down, by proving, however long it takes, that life isn't all its cracked up to be."
"But time... how time first grounds us and then confounds us. We thought we were being mature when we were only being safe. We imagined we were being responsible but were only being cowardly. What we called realism turned out to be a way of avoiding things rather than facing them. Time... give us enough time and our best-supported decisions will seem wobbly, our certainties whimsical."
"And then there is the question, on which so much depends, of how we react to the damage: whether we admit it or repress it, and how this affects our dealings with others. Some admit the damage, and try to mitigate it; some spend their lives trying to help others who are damaged; and then there are those whose main concern is to avoid further damage to themselves, at whatever cost. And those are the ones who are ruthless, and the ones to be careful of."
"How often do we tell our own life story? How often do we adjust, embellish, make sly cuts? And the longer life goes on, the fewer are those around to challenge our account, to remind us that our life is not our life, merely the story we have told about our life. Told to others, but -mainly- to ourselves."
"You get towards the end of life -no, not life itself, but of something else; the end of any likelihood of change in that life. You are allowed a long moment of pause, time enough to ask the question: what else have I done wrong?"
"There is accumulation. There is responsibility. And beyond these, there is unrest. There is great unrest."
Quotes:
"Sometimes I think the purpose of life is to reconcile us to its eventual loss by wearing us down, by proving, however long it takes, that life isn't all its cracked up to be."
"But time... how time first grounds us and then confounds us. We thought we were being mature when we were only being safe. We imagined we were being responsible but were only being cowardly. What we called realism turned out to be a way of avoiding things rather than facing them. Time... give us enough time and our best-supported decisions will seem wobbly, our certainties whimsical."
"And then there is the question, on which so much depends, of how we react to the damage: whether we admit it or repress it, and how this affects our dealings with others. Some admit the damage, and try to mitigate it; some spend their lives trying to help others who are damaged; and then there are those whose main concern is to avoid further damage to themselves, at whatever cost. And those are the ones who are ruthless, and the ones to be careful of."
"How often do we tell our own life story? How often do we adjust, embellish, make sly cuts? And the longer life goes on, the fewer are those around to challenge our account, to remind us that our life is not our life, merely the story we have told about our life. Told to others, but -mainly- to ourselves."
"You get towards the end of life -no, not life itself, but of something else; the end of any likelihood of change in that life. You are allowed a long moment of pause, time enough to ask the question: what else have I done wrong?"
"There is accumulation. There is responsibility. And beyond these, there is unrest. There is great unrest."
Highway To Vengeance by: Brian Springer
This novel, as the last few I have been reading, was an easy read. It was a mystery, action based novel and it was quite interesting! I think it would make for a good movie, actually. It was well written and I read the novel rather quickly. Basically, the novel is about an ex-military man and his route to avenge his wife's death.
Some quotes:
"... there is no success like failure, and that failure is no success at all."
"At this point, it's all mental. Your body can take it. your mind just needs to learn how to push past the barriers it thinks exist."
Nothing too profound about it, just a good read.
Saturday, January 26, 2013
One Day by: David Nicholls
Most people should be familiar with this novel. It became a movie released in August of 2011 with Anne Hathaway and Jim Sturgess. If you haven't seen the movie I will give you a brief synopsis.
This book is good but actually quite sad. Two friends, Emma and Dexter, had met and formed a bond. Life had taken them to different places and although more was meant between them, only a friendship remained. They were there for each other through career ups and downs, relationships, marriages, divorces, children, etc. It is a story about their journey in finding each other and realizing what is meant for them. It is quite a tragedy but life,sometimes, is just that. I never saw the movie, so I can't comment if they are similar or not but I do recommend the book.
Here are some quotes:
"Cherish your friends, stay true to your principles, live passionately and fully and well. Experience new things. Love and be loved, if you ever get the chance."
"'Live each day as if it's your last', that was the conventional advice, but really, who had the energy for that? What if it rained or you felt a bit gland? It just wasn't practical. Better by far to simply try and be good adn couraeous and bold and to make a difference. Not change the world exactly, but the bit around you."
"Sometimes you are aware when your great moments are happening, and sometimes they rise from the past. Perhaps it's the same with people."
This book is good but actually quite sad. Two friends, Emma and Dexter, had met and formed a bond. Life had taken them to different places and although more was meant between them, only a friendship remained. They were there for each other through career ups and downs, relationships, marriages, divorces, children, etc. It is a story about their journey in finding each other and realizing what is meant for them. It is quite a tragedy but life,sometimes, is just that. I never saw the movie, so I can't comment if they are similar or not but I do recommend the book.
Here are some quotes:
"Cherish your friends, stay true to your principles, live passionately and fully and well. Experience new things. Love and be loved, if you ever get the chance."
"'Live each day as if it's your last', that was the conventional advice, but really, who had the energy for that? What if it rained or you felt a bit gland? It just wasn't practical. Better by far to simply try and be good adn couraeous and bold and to make a difference. Not change the world exactly, but the bit around you."
"Sometimes you are aware when your great moments are happening, and sometimes they rise from the past. Perhaps it's the same with people."
Double Exposure by: Michael Lister
This book was actually pretty good! As I said in my previous post, I had no preface to it, so I had no idea what I was getting into. Although there was a romantic element in the book, this was more of an action based novel which kept me very involved and wondering what would happen next. The main character was stuck in the woods fighting for his life all the while finding himself and realizing the what is most important to him.
There were a few good highlights from this novel.
" How we spend our time defines who we are. What we do with our days determines our destinies."
"... life laughs at the plans we make, and the dreams and ambitions of youth quickly morph into the embarrassing memories of adulthood."
"Time. We talk about buying it or saving it, but we can do neither. We all spend it at a cost of sixty seconds a minute, sixty minutes an hour, and twenty-four hours per day. It's running out for all of us and there's nothing we can do about it. We can break every clock we encounter, and our lives will still continue to tick away, counting down to the bang or whimper or big silence that bookends the backside of our lives."
This book encourages us to not take days for granted, do what matters to you, find your passion and don't let anything get in the way of that because you never know when it is too late.
There were a few good highlights from this novel.
" How we spend our time defines who we are. What we do with our days determines our destinies."
"... life laughs at the plans we make, and the dreams and ambitions of youth quickly morph into the embarrassing memories of adulthood."
"Time. We talk about buying it or saving it, but we can do neither. We all spend it at a cost of sixty seconds a minute, sixty minutes an hour, and twenty-four hours per day. It's running out for all of us and there's nothing we can do about it. We can break every clock we encounter, and our lives will still continue to tick away, counting down to the bang or whimper or big silence that bookends the backside of our lives."
This book encourages us to not take days for granted, do what matters to you, find your passion and don't let anything get in the way of that because you never know when it is too late.
Rescue Me by: Sydney Allan
The next few books that I read were not from book clubs. Amazon was having a sale and a bunch of books were $0.99, so I decided to be spontaneous and pick 4-5 books to purchase randomly and read. This was a fun idea; however, because I didn't know much about these books I wasn't eager to read them and it has taken me a while to catch up.
Rescue Me was a fun, romantic novel. I like to call books like these "brain candy." It was a very easy read, kept me interested and had a corny ending. It was PERFECT and just what I needed after excruciating months of forcing The Women upon myself.
Nothing in particular stood out about this book. The main character is into animal rescuing (hence the title) and by the end she was no longer the one doing the rescuing, but rather being rescued! (Ahhhh, how romantic!) It was entertaining and an easy read.
Rescue Me was a fun, romantic novel. I like to call books like these "brain candy." It was a very easy read, kept me interested and had a corny ending. It was PERFECT and just what I needed after excruciating months of forcing The Women upon myself.
Nothing in particular stood out about this book. The main character is into animal rescuing (hence the title) and by the end she was no longer the one doing the rescuing, but rather being rescued! (Ahhhh, how romantic!) It was entertaining and an easy read.
The Women: A Novel by T.C. Boyle
This is one book that I can safely say I hated reading. The reason why it took me so long to update my blog is about 70% because of this book. It took me SO long to finish because it bored me. It started off slow... which happens, so I continued on with high hopes; however, it never got better. It is very dramatic and references a man named Frank Lloyd Wright. Frank Lloyd Wright is an American architect. This book is a true story reflective of his personal life as it was quite colorful. In particular, this book discusses the women in his life, basically his relationships. Let's just say he was a little ridiculous. It is also a little disgusting. People should not be allowed to behave as he had! Having many wife's that were results of cheating on his current wife, having many children with different wife's and not being a good father. Apparently, Wright was a very good architect and is well known for his work. Beyond that I can't say I care for the man.
I highlighted one quote from the book and it was a quote from Ellen Key: "Love is moral even without legal marriage, but marriage is immoral without love."
Little Bee by: Chris Cleave
This book was very intriguing because the description of the book on the back of the cover simply reads:
"WE DON'T WANT TO TELL YOU TOO MUCH ABOUT THIS BOOK.
"WE DON'T WANT TO TELL YOU TOO MUCH ABOUT THIS BOOK.
It is a truly special story and we don't want to spoil it.
Nevertheless, you need to know something, so we will just say this:
It is extremely funny, but the African beach scene is horrific.
The story starts there, but the book doesn't.
And it's what happens afterward that is most important.
Once you have read it, you'll want to tell everyone about it. When you do, please don't tell them what happens either. The magic is in how it unfolds."
Therefore I won't say much about it, but I do recommend it. :)
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