Countdown to the final book of the Hunger Games!

Thursday, April 29, 2010

so so so hungry

Well, folks. I finished the Hunger Games today. About half an hour ago in fact. And I can't even believe how amazing it was. At first, I had a hard time reading it because it is a YA novel and I had just finished another amazing novel called The Name of the Wind, and the writing in HG is way less complex, and I've never been a fan of first person (although that's the way Ella Enchanted is written), or present tense. But, it still hooked me.
From the very beginning it had a very Ender's Game and Lord of the Flies feel to it, except in this case, it was from the point of view of a girl, which seems to be an uncommon occurrence in SciFi books. Yet, it's just so unexpected how it works out. I'm dying to get my hands on Catching Fire now.
I was sitting alone in my living room just now, eating it all up, and shouting for joy at the good parts and cringing at the bad parts. And nervous, still nervous to see what happens in the next book. I can't say too much about it without revealing the plot--which at one point I decided was completely predictable, and then it totally threw me for a loop.

I just want to recommend this book to anyone who wants to read an awesome book. But really. It's fantastic-o!

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Ella

It seems fitting that I would start with Ella Enchanted. This was the book that started the reading fire in my life. It's complete with everything you'd ever want in a book: adventure, romance, humor, and a headstrong main character. I was in fifth grade when I read it for the first time. I think it was a Christmas present from my Mom (I love it when she gives me books for Christmas). I distinctly remember sitting in that classroom that reeked of ferret stench, during quiet reading time, and laughing out loud, and then looking around to see if anyone had heard me. It was kind of embarrassing, but not as bad as that time during quiet reading time when I overheard some girls talking about how ugly my shoes were. It was a rough time.


Anyway, back to Ella. I know I said I don't want to summarize too much, but I think it's obvious just from the title that this is a Cinderella story. That being said, I've read it several times since, and it always strikes me just how lovable Ella is and how despicable her wicked stepfamily is. So you're just rooting for Ella to overcome it all in the end. And let's not forget Char. I hate it when people suggest that I just haven't met my "Prince Charming" yet, because then I just get this image of an Edward-like man who's every bit as dull as Edward Cullen and whose only redeeming quality is his clean-cut good looks. Yuck. But I'll talk about Twilight another time. The point I'm trying to make is that if Prince Charming was more like Char from Ella Enchanted, then he'd actually be a guy I'd like to meet. He sees in Ella what the readers see, her determination, her wittiness, and even her silliness, and he loves her for it. Oh man, I love it. I recommend this book...mostly just to females though.


I also met Gail Carson Levine, the author, one time. When I was at Snow College, some friends and I just happened to in Provo at the time of the Life, the Universe, and Everything Conference, and I went up to BYU, hoping to see her when she gave her keynote address. But I had to run to the bathroom right before I sat down. There was this short little lady with gray hair washing her hands when I came in, and then two ladies walked past me and whispered, "That's her! That's Gail Carson Levine!" So, I pretended I had to wash my hands too and glanced at her name tag. Sure enough, it was her. I said, "You're Gail Carson Levine?" and she said, "Yes I am," and I said "Oh, I love Ella Enchanted! It's my favorite book!" and she said "Thank you," and left.


Now I realize she probably felt awkward about running into a fan in the bathroom...but I can still say now that I met her!

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Dear Future Readers

I've been wanting to start my own blog for a while now, but I couldn't think of anything I wanted to say. Until today. I finally, finally, bought my own copy of The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins--don't worry, I'm on chapter 3. Then I started thinking about all the fantastic books I've read in my life, and I decided that I wanted to recommend my all-time favorite books. So, my plan is that I'll feature one book a week, and I'll talk about what I liked about the book, without summarizing too much or posting any spoilers.

What can I say? I love reading.