99 - Healthy Happy Heart, and Other Summer News

My sister and I are starting a health blog. My other sisters are also invited, and will probably include their input.

You should read it. :)

Click here. Or here. If you REALLY want to read it, CLICK HERE.

In other news, I've been doing a lot of reading this summer. Don't worry, I'm still keeping track of my Reading Riot stuff. I just haven't posted about it in a while. I'll do a catch up with that pretty soon, though.

I've been reading Outliers, by Malcolm Gladwell. Basically, this journalist discusses successful people and their stories. He also talks about the misconceptions our culture has about said successful people.

Some interesting ideas so far:

• Being an expert at something requires hard work as well as abundant opportunity. 
• Being an expert at something also requires an inordinate amount of practice. 10,000 hours, if I want to be accurate. 
• Being renowned has a lot to do with being in the right place at the right time. 
• Your home environment does more to cultivate your intelligence than almost any other environment. 
• There's no such thing as being super smart. Intelligence, like all things, has a threshold. 

That last one I especially find interesting. I mean, obviously, there are innate abilities involving intelligence. However, recent findings have shown that there isn't a perfect correlation between the highest of intelligence and world-renowned success. A person with a high IQ (generally, above 130) is just as likely to succeed as a person with a higher IQ.

This book has been so interesting for me because I have always been placed in gifted programs in school. I had a rant about work and intelligence a few posts ago, so you guys know that this kinda stuff really hits home for me. I'm not, like, super-genius-smart. I do, however, have a large vocabulary. Any guesses as to why? Reading is all I ever did as a kid. I always (and still do, in fact) had a book with me. My step-sister is freakishly good at math and puzzles. Do you know what she always had with her as a child? A Sudoku book. Gifted people don't just stumble upon a talent and become experts. They can stumble upon passion, they can stumble upon opportunity, but one does not stumble upon expertise. Expertise requires work.

Anyway. I'll probably post more about Outliers later. Or maybe not. I don't know.

Good writing, interesting concepts, and personal meaning all wrapped up in one 300 page book. That's my kind of reading material.

-ka

98 - Dreams Come True

So, I've been in Disney World this week. I'm going to post more about that later, but I feel like I needed to start this post with that fact.

Do you know what the motto of Disney World is? Disney World: Where Dreams Come True. For those of you who know me, I'm not a huge Disneyland/Disney fan. I don't have as much fun as some people at theme parks, and I know that most people just don't understand that. The characters in Disneyland and Disney World were a main part of most people's childhood. I watched the cartoons and enjoyed the music, but I can't say that I have one Disney character that inspired me as a child.

Don't fret, however, because my childhood was not lost. Instead of being lost in fantasies of pretty dresses and fairy godmothers, I was lost in a world full of phoenixes and wizards. I imagined casting spells and defeating dark magic with my friends.

It's interesting being in a place full of other people's dreams because it makes me realize everyone has their own fantasy. Everyone has something they get irrationally excited about, even if they don't think they do. All I know is, when I walked with my family into Universal Studios Orlando and saw the brick spires of an all-too-familiar castle, my heart jumped more than a little bit. My dream was not realized in the place where dreams come true, but that doesn't mean it didn't come true.

Like I talked about in my last post, everyone needs a place in which they can escape. For a very long time, my imaginary place was in a book. I made friends with the characters, and I flew away to a place where no ordinary thing could catch me. During my travels, I (nearly) perfected my British accent so as to truly be a part of the story. I acted out my own endings and imagined my own role in saving magic from He Who Must Not Be Named. There is something truly magical about escaping your life within the confines of your own house.

I realize that I'm not unique in my feelings toward the Harry Potter series. In fact, I'd wager that more than half of my age group feels the exact same way. But, it doesn't matter. They still don't know what Harry Potter did for me. It's special because I'm special, and that makes all the difference.

You probably don't really understand this post. In truth, it's more for me than for any of you. I'm just feeling the satisfaction of having a childhood fantasy come to life, and I thought I'd share.

So, for all the childish dreams inside of you waiting to come out, just hold onto them. They do come true eventually--even if only in your imagination.

-ka

93 - Choices

I'm tutoring my little brother this summer because he is taking AP Human Geography next year. I'm also helping him with reading and writing, so I'm basically being his English teacher this summer. (Which is convenient, since that's the career in which I want to be.)

He's reading the Harry Potter series this summer, and so I'm discussing it with him and helping him critically analyze the thematic elements. It's pretty interesting because I'm doing what I love to do, but I can't be the student. As the teacher, I have to be the one to guide rather than explore. It's my brother's turn to discover what he thinks about the books and the connections he makes, even if I want to tell him that what I think is right.

Anyway. We were discussing choices today. He's midway through the first book, and so we looked at all of the different choices that the characters have made and how those choices have affected their lives. More specifically, Jonathon pointed out that because Harry's choices were mostly taken away from him in the beginning of his life (pre-wizard status), he was better equipped to make the choices he needed to later in the story. Because he knew what he didn't want, he chose what he did want. The Sorting Hat told Harry that he could be a great wizard if he followed the path that Voldemort did, but Harry chose to follow a different one. If you've ever read the whole series, you know that his one decision to not be like Voldemort shaped his adult character.

One choice. One choice made all the difference in his life. His choice forged the path for good, for light, for triumph. I mean, yeah, he made other choices in the future that seemed more important. But, to me, that one conscious decision to not choose individual greatness was his ultimate decision. From then on, he followed through with that choice. He became a literary hero. (At least, for my generation.)

It made me think about the choices that defined my life. Oftentimes growing, choices were taken from me. My mom always said that going to church wasn't an option, going to mutual wasn't an option, going to family parties wasn't an option, going to piano lessons wasn't an option, doing my homework wasn't an option... and so on, and so forth. When you're young, it seems like all of these life decisions are taken from you. However, upon closer inspection, I realize that I was given something even greater in return.

Like Harry, I was better equipped to tackle the bigger problems in my life because not doing so many things "wasn't an option." I was raised with core values that make me happy. They make me honestly and truly happy. Not only have they brought me joy, but I have seen other people find it as well. I didn't have a choice about doing homework, but I did choose to make education a lifelong process. I didn't have a choice about going to church when I was younger, but I did choose to have faith in God. My family has one of the strongest bonds I have ever seen, and I can't imagine my life without those endless family get-togethers. I have creative outlets and a passionate mind - a free mind. I have a mind that chooses good, light, and triumph.

Q: How do I know?
A: I want to share what I know. I want to share my good and light and triumph.

My free mind can choose whatever it wants.

It chooses a fulness of life.

-ka

90 - The Great Gatsby

One of my favorite books is being made into a movie by one of my favorite directors.



Mr. Gatsby, meet Mr. Luhrmann.

Christmas is gonna be great this year.

-ka

86 - Where the Wild Things Are

Today is a sad day.

Maurice Sendak, the author of Where the Wild Things Are, passed away at the very respectable age of 83.

I'll be honest, I don't really know much about him. But I did grow up with Where the Wild Things Are, and so did, I think, almost every child in my generation. (Probably generations before me, as well.)

I always marvel at the genius it takes to create successful children's books. I mean, look at Dr. Seuss. You have to have quite the imagination and insight to delve into a child's mind after you've passed childhood. Sendak's books, so I've read, often relayed observations about the human psyche. If you've ever seen the movie of Where the Wild Things Are, you'd know that's true. My mom said that movie would be an awesome psychology movie -- not so much for little kids. But it was the illustrations in Sendak's book that made it such a great little kid book.

My sister is a kindergarten teacher, so she's starting to gain a collection of good children's books. It's interesting to look at the new ones to see what the new trends are. It's also interesting to look at the books that were read to me in elementary school. Comparatively, my elementary school days were not that long ago. (The librarian was my best friend and she would let me read books that hadn't even been processed yet. But I digress.)

I'd like to think that I have an active imagination. At least, more active than some. I'm passionate about artistic things and I frequently am locked away in the recesses of my mind - sometimes for hours. But, I'm definitely not a creative genius. Writers always like to think that their work is appreciated, though. I'm pretty sure they all fantasize about being world-renowned. I know I probably would never be like that - I don't even know if I could write fiction. But my sister said something a few months ago that stuck with me.

I've written regularly in my journal since I was 12. I just finished my fourth one since then, and sometimes I feel like I write because I have to. Future posterity and all that. But my sister said that sometimes it's good to write for the sake of writing. Not for anyone else except for you. I lose sight of that sometimes. Like in this blog, for example. I oftentimes find myself writing for other people - I write to receive comments. I try to emulate the professional bloggers out there, in hopes of one day gaining attention. Cole commented it on it, actually. He said that sometimes when he reads my blog, it doesn't sound like me. He said that sometimes I write in the style of other people as opposed to in the style of myself. That stuck with me also.

In order to be a writer, you have to put a little bit of yourself on paper. It's very similar to acting in that every person has a different style -- a different voice. Sometimes I put on an act, to impress people or to make myself feel better. Sometimes I hide from what I'm really feeling. If I write something down, it makes it more concrete. So if I don't want something to be true, I have a hard time writing it down. Just like Max in Sendak's book, I hide from the things that scare me. Love. Fear. Anger. Worry. Frustration. Pettiness.

Maurice Sendak wrote a book that not only spoke to children, it spoke to everyone. It speaks to everyone. I don't want to get all romantic about literature (like I tend to do), but there's something about putting serious insights like that in a children's book that makes them more poignant, somehow. Everyone feels those things, at least at one point in their life. Children aren't alone in feeling scared or angry. If anything, being older is more scary because you know that magic isn't real. I know that someday I'll be married and raising my own kids. I know that I can't be in school forever. I know that I'll have to be financially independent. I know that I'll have to make tough choices -- me, by myself. No one else.

There is a lot of responsibility that comes with having your own life.

I think we all need to go where the wild things are sometimes, so we can know that they aren't all bad. Scary -- yes. But not always bad.

Thank you, Maurice Sendak. You were an inspiration to us all.

You taught us that to face our fears, we simply need to put on our wolf suits and ride on a boat to greet our wild things with courage, determination, and an open mind.

So, everyone. Let the wild rumpus start.

-ka

83 - kindle

I know I've mentioned it a few times, but I feel like I need to officially address something.

I love books. I love physical books. I love reading them, turning the pages, even smelling them (on occasion). There was a time in my life when I always had a book with me, and there was nothing and no one that could stop me from reading it when I wanted.

That being said, I have always been against kindles. (Like I said, I know I've mentioned this before. But I've read so much anti-kindle stuff recently, so I felt like I should explain myself.) I naturally shy away from anything that promotes the idea that paper is obsolete, especially books. My dad bought the first generation kindle when it came out several years ago, and I was mostly disinterested. Then I was mostly offended. (Don't ask, I'm not sure why. Haha.)

My parents have asked and asked if I wanted one for years, and the answer was always no. And I thought it would always be no. Then I met someone at Utah State who carried one around, and I messed around with hers for a while. Then, I decided that I had perhaps judged them too quickly...

So I now have a kindle touch.

I still buy books (in fact, I just bought three online yesterday), and I still read books. I have discovered that I can buy the super cheap cheesy romance novels on my kindle (Most of the time I don't have much of an interest in paying $10 for them in book stores because I don't know if I'd ever read them again) and then save my money for the books I really want to buy. I still browse Barnes and Noble (one of my favorite activities EVER) and buy on a whim. I still read my books over and over again. I'm still building my library. But now I don't have to spend money on a book I know is going to get ruined in Mexico. (Thanks, Mom.) Plus, many of the cheap cheesy romance novels are actually free! And all of the books published before 1900 are free. (I mostly want to own those, though, so that's not a great incentive.)

Also, I can connect it with my library account. It doesn't have nearly the selection that an actual library would have, but since I don't live in the city where my library is anymore, it's great! Come summertime, I'll go back to checking out books. But for now, getting them instantly without having to be in Salt Lake is fantastic.

I just felt like I had to defend the usefulness of the kindle. It doesn't take away from my inherent bookishness. It definitely hasn't replaced my obsession with spending all of my money on books. Print books are still much better than my kindle, but I'm not ashamed to say that I like my kindle as well. :)

81 - Busy Bee (Also, Reading Riot nos. 9 & 10)

So... the last couple weeks have been extremely busy for me. In fact, I probably don't have time to write this blog post. But I'm giving myself some free time because I am in desperate need.

My books for last week and this week were the rest of the Hunger Games series. I read both of them last week, but I'm still counting it... Haha. I just haven't had much time for reading this week. I had a paper due on Monday for Literary History of the Early Americas (I wrote in on captivity narratives in the early 18th century), and I had a paper due today on Wilfred Owen's "Dulce et Decorum Est" in Literary Analysis. Now, these essays were for Lit classes, so my typical high school write-it-in-two-hours-before-I-go-to-bed-and-get-an-A routine would not hold so well. If I was smart and organized, I would have drawn out the writing of these papers over several days. Did I do that? *shakes head, sadly* Sunday night and Monday morning were spent writing and re-writing my 800-1000 word essay on captivity narratives. And from 5 PM to 11 PM yesterday, I was living and breathing prosody for the four-page Owen paper. I also have to give a speech tomorrow, so Tuesday was spent writing that. Of course, I had reading assignments in ALL of my classes, so I had to fit those in during meals and going to the gym.

It may seem like a lot of work, but I actually really enjoyed writing about "Dulce et Decorum Est". It's a poem that I've seen every year since I was a sophomore in high school, and it was really fun to really pick it apart and find hidden meanings. I know that English majors get made fun of because it seems like they make stuff up for their own benefit. How do I really know what Owen meant why he wrote his paper? Did he really deviate from iambic pentameter on purpose? Mostly their analyses seem pretentious. And, I have to say, I don't care. I have no idea what Owen really meant. I can't just go talk to him about a poem he wrote about World War 1. Mostly because he's dead. But I do it for me. I do it because, for all I know, I'm the only person who's thought about his poem in a certain way. It may seem like I just make fancy stuff up to fit into the context, but, to me, I'm weaving a story. I'm making the poem come alive. Not for anyone else, just for me. The same goes with prose. There is a reason the English is not a science -- there are no exactly correct answers. And that's what I love about it. There are new things to say about a poem or a novel every time you read it.

Ok, my little rant is over. Haha.

They were excellent. The third one started off a little slow, mostly because it was laying the foundation for the ending, but it was still so good. I read Catching Fire in an afternoon and Mockingjay the next day. Haha. I got that sad feeling that comes after a good series. I wish that there were more books. But Suzanne Collins really wrote the ending well, and I am very happy with them. They deserve all the hype they're getting. (Not that I'm so knowledgable... haha. I talk about books like I'm the end-all critic. I'm apologize if I ever sound arrogant or snobby...)

Anyway. Happy Spring Break! Mine starts on Monday! :)

80 - Noticing

Things I've noticed:

• You can have more than one home, because home isn't a specific place. It's an atmosphere in which  you feel loved. 
• It's ok to like things that you're not "supposed" to like. Don't buy into all that stereotypical crap. Like what you like, because you like it for a reason. 
• School is hard sometimes, but it's worth it. College isn't the place to slack off. There are much less expensive places to be lazy. 
• Kindles are really cool, and I was wrong to misjudge them. I can still love reading (and owning and buying) books and also like reading on my kindle. 
• Going to the gym is empowering. I've made it part of my (mostly) daily routine, and I love it. It makes me feel productive and healthy. 
• Setting goals actually works when you take them seriously. 
• Earplugs are a great investment when you're living in a college dorm. 
• Trusting is easier the more you do it. Pretending to trust someone is not the same thing as actually trusting them. It can be really hard, and it's not something that you can just jump into right away. Ease into it, and the bigger things will come naturally. 
• You're never too young or too old to spend hour after hour laughing with people with whom you love to laugh. 
• If you think you understand Utah weather just because you've lived here all of your life, you're wrong.  
• A good book is still the best setting in which to get lost. 
• Also, this:

Harry Potter jokes will always be funny. To me, at least.

-ka

79 - Reading Riot no. 7 & 8

So... I've been pretty busy the last couple weeks. As you can probably tell due to my lack of posts... haha. I started out last week reading a WWII memoir, Unbroken, but I've unfortunately had to put that on hold due to lack of time! But that one will be the subject of a post in the near future. So, for last week I did a reread, and for this week I did a must-read.

I know you'll probably judge me, but last week's book was...

Breaking Dawn, by Stephanie Meyer. I am like all the rest of the country in that I have read all of the Twilight Saga. However, I'm going to be hipster for a minute and say that I read Twilight when I was 13, and it wasn't because anyone suggested it to me. I just randomly picked it up at the library, and then I suggested it to everyone else, and let everyone borrow my copy. That being said, I was 13. Cut me a little slack. After reading Providence, and recognizing many similarities, I decided to reread Twilight and realized that everything I accused Providence of (lack of character and relationship development) was true of Twilight as well. I just hadn't read it in such a long time, so I remembered it with my younger mind. I tried to reread the whole series, but I couldn't get past New Moon and decided just to skip to the one I've only read twice. (I like to reread books a lot...)

Breaking Dawn was the best one, I think, but the series still doesn't have much substance... and if you look deeper into its meaning, the messages are really quite terrible. Bella is only truly happy with herself after she's changed with Edward. She claims sex is the epitome of human life. (Edward does make her wait until marriage, but still.) Her codependent relationship with Edward advocates unhealthy relationships, almost making them desirable. From an analytical point of view, you could say that Meyer is trying, in a backward way, to say those things aren't healthy in the real world by placing her characters in a fantasy world... but I'd say that's stretching it a bit. ANYWAY. If you want to read a really funny and really true critique of Breaking Dawn, click here. (Sara showed me this a few years back.)

Now onto my second read. For years, people have been telling me to read this book, and this week I finally gave in and read it.

The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins.

Ok, this book is a bit morbid. Well, more than a bit morbid. The whole premise is about an event in a dystopian world where children are in a game of Survivor. The winner is the last one alive. It gets pretty gory for a young adult read, but I actually really liked it. I kind of read it in one night... haha. It's very fast-paced, and the characters are very likable.

I was talking to my roommate, who read it just prior to me, and she was worried initially that it would be akin to Twilight in that it received a lot of hype for not a lot of substance. However, we both agreed that this book definitely deserves attention. The movie is coming out soon (a main reason for me reading it now) and my only hope is that the movie is a good reflection of the book.

I'm a sucker for love stories, but I loved this book because the main character, Katniss, is such a strong and confident person. Honestly, as long as I'm comparing the two, Katniss is everything Bella isn't. Bella is whiny with confidence issues while Katniss is strong, brave, and sure of herself. Katniss does her best to keep her humanity and her life in this cruel game that her government is forcing her to play.

I think this is a good segue read into more provocative books, such as Fahrenheit 451 or 1984 (both are books I love...) I would definitely recommend this book, for those of you who haven't read it yet. (I seem to be the only one I know who hadn't..) However, if you're not a fan of violence, I wouldn't let kids under 13 read it. My only complaint is the it ends very suddenly... good thing all of the books are already published and my roommate owns them! That's the nice thing about being the last person in the country to pick up a best-selling series...

73 - Reading Riot no. 5

This week, I read Beautiful Disaster, by Jamie McGuire. Same author as the Providence series.

This book is definitely more mature than the Providence series, but the quality of the writing is better. I finished this book the same day that I started it. It could still be classified as teen fiction... I'd probably put it in that in-between stage. Not quite adult fiction and not quite teen fiction.

It's about Abby Abernathy, a college freshman from Wichita, Kansas, who wants to put her life as far away as possible from her past. However, she meets and befriends Travis Maddox early on in the year and soon realizes that he is exactly what she's trying to run away from. Her feelings conflict between wanting to run away from her past and giving into her deep feelings for Travis. 

I don't really know how to explain why I loved this book so much... I guess I liked that Abby and Travis' relationship wasn't perfect. Both of them needed work but they still needed each other. Maybe their relationship was unrealistic and unhealthy at first, but the love was perfect love. 

The moral I got out of this story was that you don't always get to choose who you fall in love with. Sometimes it can be the person you least expect. But that doesn't mean it isn't beautiful. 

There are a couple quotations from the book that I found particularly poignant. 

[Abby talking to her roommate.]
"It's dangerous to need someone that much. You're trying to save him and he's hoping you can. You two are a disaster."
I smiled at the ceiling. "It doesn't matter what or why it is. When it's good, Kara... it's beautiful." 

"You know why I want you? I didn't know I was lost until you found me. I didn't know what alone was until the first night I spent without you in my bed. You're the one thing I've got right. You're what I've been waiting for." 

I love the concept of a beautiful disaster. It's what life is, right? Life is never perfect. You never remember everything you need to, you never say all the right words, you never  ace all of your tests, you never make everyone happy always. Everyone has baggage and everyone has problems. But love? It doesn't matter if it's crazy, mellow, frustrating, nonsensical, or disastrous. If it's truly love for both people, not just infatuation or lust, it's always beautiful.

71 - Reading Riot no. 4

I know it's already Wednesday, but my book for last week was the sequel to Providence.

Providence book no.2 -- Requiem

As I'd hoped, this book was more well-written than the first one in the series. The premise of this sequel centers around the book that Nina and Jared gave back to Shax, a demon from Hell. (Remember -- Jared is a guardian angel.) It involves a prophecy and ancient bloodlines and all sorts of supernatural/religious plot twists. The ending of the book was a bit anticlimactic, but I almost feel like McGuire used this book as a set-up for the third one, which is due to be published in the next year.

These books are fun, quick reads if you're interested in stories like that. I don't regret reading them, but I won't be buying the actual book. (The e-book at the Kindle store was only 2.99 I think.. maybe only 1.99. I don't remember. But it was super cheap! Probably reflects the quality of the writing....)

68 - Reading Riot no. 3

Last week's book: Water for Elephants, by Sara Gruen.

This book was really interesting, actually. It's akin to The Notebook in that the main character is in his nineties and remembering his life. His name is Jacob Jankowski. During the Depression, Jacob was at Cornell finishing up a degree in veterinary sciences when he's told that his parents were killed in a car accident. Too distraught from the tragedy, Jacob runs out of his final exams and happens upon the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth by jumping their train. One thing leads to another and he becomes the show's veterinarian. Most of the book is dedicated to his time with the Benzini Brothers travelling group.

The book was a bit dry for me at first, but after about a quarter of the way through it picked up. I'll be honest, I only wanted to read it because I haven't seen the movie. If I know that a movie is based on a novel, I try to read the novels first. Everyone who did see the movie told me that it was really good, so I was excited to read the book. It was a little bit predictable, romance-wise, but I liked it because the romance part wasn't the main storyline.

Basically, I liked this book. I didn't love it, but I very solidly liked it. I definitely want to see the movie.

I would say the book is rated PG-18. There was a lot of swearing (a lot of the F bomb) and one particular circus act was... inappropriate. So, Sara and Kim, I wouldn't recommend you read this book. Haha.

62 - Reading Riot no. 2

Week two: accomplished.
After Christmas, I went a little crazy with the more adolescent-type books. Dash and Lily and this book were both read on my new Kindle, and books can be pretty cheap at the Kindle store. Also, teen books fast reads and usually still entertaining since I am still technically a teenager... I figured that since I'm currently (STILL) in the middle of a Tale of Two Cities AND I haven't finished the last 200 pages of my summer re-read, Anna Karenina, it's probably a good idea to stick with simple reads if I start any new books.

Yes, I am aware of how often I used the word "still" in very few sentences.

This week's book: Providence, by Jamie McGuire.

This book is about a college freshman, Nina, whose father has very recently passed away. Immediately after his funeral, she shares a cab with a random stranger (Jared) who seems to show up everywhere after that. Being a teen fiction novel, it was pretty clear how it would play out. Boy and girl fall in love, they're in love, something gets in their way, they get back together in the end. But I don't want to spoil it for you... Also, in the summary of the book we discover that Jared is actually (dun Dun DUN!) Nina's Guardian Angel, and their love is quite frowned upon. Whilst trying to juggle her love for Jared, her deceased father's uncovered secrets, and a friend who wants to be more than friends, Nina also fights for her life! There is action, adventure, love, and divine intervention.

Ok, this book was pretty cheesy. And pretty predictable. Also, the story is STRONGLY reminiscent of Twilight... even down to the girl wanting to have sex really badly while the boy is against it for his own reasons. It was entertaining enough, but the beginning was rather slow for me. I found the dialogue kind of dry and not realistic. Nina and Jared seemed to fall in love without any sort of background whatsoever. After one date, Jared began calling her "sweetheart". I just don't think that's very real, and the author didn't account for enough space in the book for the romance to grow. Most of Nina's relationships in the book felt like that. Her friend who wants to be more than friends, Ryan, is strangely protective of her and claims a close, intimate friendship as opposed to Jared, whom she "barely knows". The funny thing is that Nina met Jared BEFORE she met Ryan. At least in Twilight, Bella and Jacob had a legitimate friendship and bond grown. Heck, Stephenie Meyer gave them an entire book. Mostly,  I just think the author rushed the connection between her characters and it weakened the credibility of the relationships between them. Up until the last quarter of the book, the plot seemed a bit forced and there wasn't very much intrigue. If there was a question, it was usually answered right away. It left really no room for guessing, which is one of my favorite parts.

The book was only 2.99 on the Kindle store, and I (perhaps rashly) bought the second book in the series for 1.99 before I had read Providence. It was better by the end, so I'm hoping Requiem will be a bit better as well.

As for my new blog series and New Year's Resolution of reading a book a week, Reading Riot is a success as of week two! What will be next week's book? You'll just have to wait and see :)

56 - Reading Riot no.1

Part of my New Year's Resolutions: to read one book a week. The series will be called Reading Riot, and this is week one.

I read this book:

Yes, it is a teen fiction/kind-of teen romance novel. I have guilty pleasures, and that genre happens to fall right in that category. However, I have no shame in sharing this book because I thought it was great.

The premise of the book is a red Moleskine notebook that a teenage girl leaves in a bookstore for an unknown teenage boy to (hopefully) find and complete the challenge written inside. The girl is Lily, and the boy is Dash. Two 16-year-olds looking for an adventure during a particularly boring Christmas holiday in New York City. Over half of the book is dedicated to Dash and Lily finding new, unique ways to pass the notebook back and forth.

The really cool thing about books written by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan is the two parts are written by separate people. Not only that, they don't even know how the story is really gonna turn out because they just email the chapters to each other as they write them sequentially. It makes the story and characters more real, in my opinion.

The likelihood of most of the events in the book actually happening is slim. However, the characters felt very real to me. Dash and Lily are two VERY different people, but sometimes it happens that way. Different personalities are attracted to each other all the time. Dash has a very large vocabulary and knows about most things. Lily is a naive idealist who is the youngest in a very large extended family. Personally, I found both characters very likable. To some, Dash may have come across as a tad condescending and unrealistic with his use of large words, but I disagree. He's not the kind of person trying to be condescending, he just loves words. And he means well throughout the book, not trying to make anyone feel inferior. As for his use of the words all the time, he has a nightly ritual of finding a new word to love in his dictionary... I think with a habit like that, it's very realistic for him to have a vocabulary like that. Haha.

Basically, I was sucked into this book. It's only about 250 pages, but I read it in less than a day. It was a very easy book to read, and I found myself wishing there was more. I thought the ending was perfect. Plus, VERY limited swearing and no sex! Like I said, teen fiction is a bit of a guilty pleasure of mine. So if you're not into teen fiction, you wouldn't like this book. But it was very well written (in my opinion). David and Rachel did a fine job, yet again. (See also Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist. That one's a bit more PG-13, though.)

49 - English Major

Reasons why I'm an English major:

• I enjoy editing papers. 
• Using incorrect grammar is a good way to torture me. Or just drive me crazy and force me to correct you. 
• I say things like "Charles Dickens is the Chuck Norris of the English language."
• I would rather write essays and papers than any other kind of school work. 
• I have several journals full of long-winded passages that probably could be shortened to a sentence. 
• Reading Shakespeare literally takes my breath away. 
• In sixth grade, I was supposed to write a two page paper on Lois Lowry. I wrote six instead... 
• I want a bracelet with mini Harry Potter books on it. 
• My sister used to get mad at me for my vocabulary. (You know who you are. Hehe.)
• Dog-earing books is a hanging offense in my opinion. 
• In elementary school, I mainly read at recess. 
• Once, during the summer, I read over 2500 pages in a week and a half. I was also dead to the world...
• My sister tells me that I used to fall asleep reading, but my eyes were still open. 
• When I doodle, I doodle in words. Not pictures. 
• I often write in cursive with my finger on things I'm holding, or in the air. 
• I like writing in this blog. Sometimes I get away with myself and write too much, so people probably stop reading. I've tried to control that a bit...
• My ceiling and wall used to be plastered with quotes. 
• I've been building a personal library of my own since I was 7. 
• I was better friends with the librarian in elementary school than I was with my peers. 
• My idea of a fun date is walking through Barnes and Noble with hot chocolate and good conversation. 
• If I could, I would spend all my money on books. 
• I've been pretty apprehensive about the Kindle because I don't want my future to be a paperless one. 
• I hate to say it, but I'm kind of arrogant when it comes to English. I'm working on it...
• I think I know more than I actually do. I'm sure experience will humble me in that aspect. 

And the number one reason why I'm an English major: 

• I love words, and I think the English language can be more powerful than any weapon in the world. I hope I can spread that love and knowledge, and inspire people the way I've been inspired. Hence the reason I'm studying to be an English teacher. See this post and this post to read more about how much I love words. 

I don't know how to express how captivated I am by literature. But you all know how much I love theatre, and Charles Dickens connects the two nicely. 

"Poetry makes life what lights and music do the stage." 

47 - Wall of Books

As all of you should know, books are pretty much my favorite thing.
If I could spend all of my money on books, I probably would. And not even feel bad. Haha.

A lot of different blogs are read discuss decor, and many of them use books in their decorating. I thought about what I would like to have in my dream home, and books are definitely in the picture. A huge library would be the ultimate dream. But! I did a search on Flickr and found so many cool pictures with books and bookshelves as a creative decoration.

Someday, when I have lots of money and can do whatever I want with it, this is what I'll do!

45 - A Night of Tragedy

Let me tell you a little story. 

Once upon a very recent time, in a very near place, some college freshmen were counting down the hours until they could register for classes. Being at the bottom of the totem pole, they had to wait days and days until it was their turn. 

Everyone knew the trick -- sign in at exactly midnight, and you'll most likely get the classes you want. The trouble is, everyone knew the trick. Everyone said that they were going to sign in at midnight. So when they did... the server crashed.

Chaos erupted. Students waited for minutes, and then hours, for the server to work again. But alas, to no avail. Most went to sleep, and then awoke early in the morning to discover that most, if not all, of their much needed classes were full. Poor, sad freshmen. You'll just have to wait your turn to be at the top again. 

What was I doing during this night of tragedy? 

I was sitting in bed, reading a book. And laughing to myself. 

I'm in the honors program, and I got to register a week ago. 

:) 

P.S. This is the book that I'm reading: 

31 - My Childhood on a Bracelet

Look what I found.

and the British one...

You would think that growing up would make the insane fetish with anything Harry Potter subside. But it hasn't. Seriously, I would probably take them and make it into a necklace (since I wear those more) and wear it ALL the time. As soon as I saw a picture of these I got SO excited. Ridiculously excited.

One of my top Things That I Want is the complete British set of the Harry Potter books. Really, I just grew up with them. I started reading them when I was nine and the seventh one came out when I was 14. They will always be a major part of my childhood and I will always love them. :) Thank you, JK Rowling!

15 - Reading List

I love books. 

A lot.

I have over 300 in my possession and if my house was on fire, they are what I'd go for first. So, yeah. I love books.

However, I will not have room in my tiny college dorm to fit all of my beloved books. I love reading (duh) so I have to choose wisely which books I will be in the mood to read.

And after careful consideration, I've compiled a list. Both old and new, read and unread. Reminders of my childhood and leaps into adulthood. Books have a lot of meaning to me, so this was hard. But let's begin:

I've always wanted to read this book. Reading it will be a goal achieved. 

These two books are by my favorite author of my junior high years. She's still one of my favorite reads. It reminds me of good times gone by. I just have to get the second one back from Adri...

This one is just for fun, because I love Jodi Picoult and I haven' t read this one yet. She's a really fast read and writes very well. Even if her books are pretty much all the same. 

I refuse to see the movie before I read the book. I hate it when I do that,  and this  will not be one of those times. 

This is like... a gigantic epilogue for the Traveling Pants series. Of course I'm reading it. 

I don't feel guilty reading this book because I'm actually learning something. So on those days when I feel like I can't spend my time reading about fantasy lives, I will read this and not feel so guilty about procrastinating (inevitable).

Oh, come on. It's Jane Austen. I can't go anywhere without her. 

So that's it. My first reading list for college. Maybe I'll make this like a series-type thing. Give a list of the books I will be taking each time I trade... hmm. Has potential.

13 - One Line Memoirs

I'm fascinated with books. Anything to do with paper, really. Journals, sketch books, manuscripts... I made a calligraphy pen once, when I was 11. It didn't really work, but I wish I still had it for future posterity.

Anyway, on Friday I went shopping with my step-grandmother for Christmas/birthday presents (she likes to pick them all out in one go, at the same time.) We went to Target, Old Navy, and Barnes and Noble. My FAVORITE store. I could wander around a book store for hours and not even notice. And in Barnes and Noble, I always meander my way to the journal section. I found a journal there entitled "One Line", a memoir of five years. The point of the book was to write one line from each day of your life for five years, and then you'd have an autobiography. I was intrigued by that idea, but didn't want to pay the $15 for it.

Then, I saw this.

It's a little notebook with a drawing of Jane Austen on it.

I love Jane Austen.

And this book was only $10. So, I chose that one. And I have thus decided to dedicate it to being my One Line Memoir. Don't get me wrong, I'm an avid journal writer. But as of late I've needed a more... creative outlet. I'll continue writing in my journal, but I'm excited for this too.  I have only to choose the right day to start, because once I start, I will not be able to stop. You see, I have a nasty habit of starting projects I think would be interesting and then stopping midway. But I am determined.

I will do it.

With Jane as my witness, I will finish this.