Friday, 28 January 2011

Book 5: Sugar and Spice by Lauren Conrad

This concludes the L.A Candy Trilogy. I must say, it wasnt as bad as I thought it would be when I began reading the first one.  It turns out, there were a lot of things to learn from it. When most people watch reality television or talk about it, their impressions are that... it is fake. And well, parts of it may be.  But it is pretty clear that Lauren wrote this book to express her opinion to people who think that the whole show is scripted or that everything depicted in the show is real Truth is, it is neither real or fake.  Turns out, reality television producers manipulate real life situations to create plot lines for higher ratings.  Suprising, right?
I would reccomend this series to people only for one reason.  Not because it had a good plot line or that it was written in a well manner, but that it opens your eyes to the sick industry of reality television.  It is actually quite intriguing to read about what it does to people's lives. Though I must warn you; to anyone who really gets into the novel and can deeply feel the character's emotions... it might work your nerves. It worked mine. Haha.

Friday, 21 January 2011

Book 4: Sweet Little Lies by Lauren Conrad

This was the second book in the L.A. Candy series.
I must say, I enjoyed this book much more than the previous. Partially because I became used to her writing style (which annoyed me incredibly before) and the plot was more intriguing.
While reading this book, I become more and more curious as to which parts of the novel relate to her actual life. I can guarantee she wrote this book so that people have an insight on her life. And knowing some of LC's background, it sounds as if she has depicted much of herself in the character Jane. Except the whole, 'pick my boyfriend over my friends' thing, which relates to Heidi more. So now I wonder, who are the other characters, in reference to real life? Well, LC's life, anyway.  My only guesses at this point are:
Jesse- Jason Wahler (Lauren's ex-boyfriend)
Hannah- Whitney Port (Lauren's ex-co-worker at Teen Vogue)
Braden- Brody Jenner (Lauren's ex-boyfriend and very good friend)
Its all very confusing. I mean there are multiple scenarios. All hypothetical of course)
1. Jane could portray Heidi Montag in the whole 'leave best friend for boyfriend' thing. Which would make Jesse, Spencer Pratt. And Braden, Brody Jenner. But that would mean he would have to had dated Scarlet. So maybe no.
2. Jane is Lauren Conrad. Jesse is Jason Wahler becuase he had a huge history of drinking, drugs and abuse. Then Madison is probably Heidi. And Scarlet would be Lo.
I should just stop analyzing this. Maybe it isn't supposed to relate to her life and Im just trying to find meaning in nothing. Haha. I just cant help but wonder. I wish I could ask her.
Anyway, there is not much more to say at this point. I am still yet to read the last book in the trilogy. I hope I can get the book of my cousin tomorrow, so I have something to read, for I do not like to skip around different books or read more than one simultaneously. 

Tuesday, 18 January 2011

Book 3: L.A. Candy by Lauren Conrad

I'm assuming most of your thoughts consist of , 'this does not count as a real book,' or 'Lauren Conrad? What a chick-book,' or even, 'this is not of literary merit.' I understand this book is not a difficult read nor regarded as one of high literary merit. I read this book because I absolutely love Lauren Conrad. Not because she has millions of girls (and even some boys) obsessed with her reality shows, 'Laguna Beach' and 'The Hills,' but because she represents herself as a very beautiful, well-talented, all-rounded lady.  From her personality (well, what she shows anyways) to her fashion, I feel like I, along with others, can relate to her. Anyways, back to the book.
The plot of the book may not exactly depict the characters and situations in Lauren's actual life but I feel like she wrote it so she could show people how her life really is.  I think the character Jane Roberts is a very obvious representation of Lauren Conrad herself. The plot was good, not spectacular, but good enough to hold one's attention (like many other teen-gossipish novels).
The thing I really disliked about this book was that it was written in 3rd person.  From what I know, (which isnt much) writing in third person leaves the narrator unaware of the characters actual thoughts and only sees the situation for how it appears and what the characters reveal.  Seeing as this is a very 'he-said, she-said' novel, Lauren should have written it in first person. She writes the book as if she is talking (one thing my teachers always told me NOT to do). For her purpose though, it was appropriate. But in order to write like a person talks, it should be portrayed through a character, not the neutral narrator. I know, this sounds very judgmental and over-analyzed, but it was just something that really bothered me. I am sure those who have read this, (if they have any knowledge of writing) would agree. This was the only aspect of the book that made me think that maybe LC should stick to her original talents, which is definitely NOT writing. Sorry!
But just so I don't have to repeat what I said earlier in my next couple blogs, I will be reading the rest of the Trilogy.

Thursday, 13 January 2011

Book 2: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

Great book! I highly reccomend this book to... everyone! It's a short read, less that 200 pages, but it is filled with a lot of wisdom.
It is a very straightfoward novel, with a simple plot. It is about a boy who travels through the desert to complete his Personal Legend and find treaure. It is kin of like those old stories your grandparets tell you, and they tend to have a great moral. Anyways, I don't want to give too much away, but I think anyone and everyone should read this book, I promise you won't be dissapointed.
Here are some of my favorite quotes from the book.
- [The worlds greatest lie] "It's this: that at a certain point in our lives, we lose control of what's happening to us, and our lives become controlled by fate. That's the world's greatest lie."
- "People say strange things, the boy thought. Sometimes it's better to be with the sheep, who don't say anything."
- "And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you achieve it."
- “We are afraid of losing what we have, whether it’s our life or our possessions or our property. But this fear evaporates when we understand that our life stories and the history of the world were written by the same hand.” 
- "Because, wherever your heart is, that is where you'll find your treasure."

There are sooo many more, but you will have to read it!

Saturday, 8 January 2011

Book 1. Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer

Re-read
My first book this year. I was watching The Eclipse movie with my cousin and felt the sudden urge to read it again. It is my favorite out of the series. I promise though, I am not a 'Twilight Freak.' Haha.
My thoughts...
- I really appriciate how things balanced out with the love triangle. I may be 'team Edward' but I felt so bad for Jacob towards the third book. It was breaking my heart to read about his heart breaking.
- The whole ending was a little pointless. All of the covens prepared for battle. The actual confrontation will the Volturi was only a couple chapters long. And it was all kind of rushed.
- Meyer made such emphasis on Jacob's pack and Leah and Seth, but I feel like she forot to address it later or just kind of washed it away. I would like to have heard more of how they responded and what their outcome was.

My questions...
- What would happen if a vampire injected their venom into a werewolf?
- I didn't really understand the whole relationship between J. Jenks and Jasper. What was that all about?
- Im not too clear on this one. Renesmee will be fully grown in 7 years. Will she be an adult?Or still a child in appearance? If I remember correctly, Nahuel was still a child?
- What was the conflict between Billy ad Charlie? It was mentioned very lightly.
- All the clues Alice left Bella were presented as if they carried soo much importance. Why did Meyer make such an emphasis on it? It was a small thing, made into a huge deal.
- Alice's visions don't work on werewolfs. Does that mean try are immune to other powers too?

Okay, I think Im done.

My Mission.

I know the year has already begun, but I have finally thought of something for me to accomplish this year.
My mission is to read atleast 101 books this year. The books may be some that I have already read, but decided to re-read, though many will be new ones. I won't be reading books like 'The Rainbow Fish' and 'Captain Underpants,' even though those are a fun read. I will be reading challenging books, novels that are classified to be of literary merit. After reading it I will blog about it, pointing out things I found interesting or particular questions I had.
If anyone has any books they would like to reccomend, I will be more than happy to read it!
Okay, so let's see how this goes!