For History's Sake!

Good morning, Sunshine!

Recently, I read the awesome book Stupid Ancient History by Leland Gregory.  Let me just start off by saying this:

GO BUY THIS BOOK RIGHT NOW!

I am a history lover, especially when it comes to ancient history. My minor in college was in history.  It's kind of my secret passion that isn't actually a secret. My own writing is heavily influenced by ancient history, and I enjoy writing historical fantasy.

In this book, Gregory packs it full of random, fun facts about the past. Each page has something new on it, so it doesn't run too long on any subject.

The page numbers are written in Roman Numerals. So, naturally, I lost count after about page 10.  Using a conversion website, I found out that CCLLII (the last page in the book) is page number 252.  Needless to say, this book is an extremely fast read.

My favorite part was the translated graffiti from the city of Pompeii. That's right...translated graffiti! Very interesting. I don't want to spoil any of the fun, so go buy the book. It retails for $9.99 at Barnes & Noble. You may be able to find it for less online. No promises. Seriously though, it's definitely worth it. Ten bucks isn't too much to ask for the knowledge you will gain from this book.

If you don't like history, this book will make you like it. I dare you to read it without smiling, laughing, or showing any kind of awestruck emotion.

Until next time, I bid you farewell!  Thanks for reading!!

-The Sexy Librarian

Catching up on Old Times

Well hello there!

Apologies for the lack of posts over the past several weeks. I have been extraordinarily busy, which is an incredibly good thing in the entertainment business! I have managed to read a few more books that I will cover over the next few days.  I'll start with Divergent by Veronica Ross.

 

 

I was a bit intimidated by the sheer magnitude of this novel at first glance. However, I have to say that I managed to finish the whole book in under 8 hours over a period of just two days. I just could not put it down.

SPOILER ALERT!!!

The main character is Tris Prior. She was born into the Abnegation faction, which is all about selflessness. Upon taking a simulation test, she discovered that she was a Divergent, which basically meant that she could not be controlled by the simulation drug. To shorten the summary and get down to the nitty gritty, Tris chooses to join Dauntless, which is the most brutal of the five factions. This is where the majority of the story takes place.

Although I, personally, don't find Tris to be relatable, she is very likeable. I'm one of those people who doesn't believe that the only good character is a relatable one. If an author can make me root for a character that I cannot relate to, that says something about his/her writing skill. Tris is described as small and weak looking in the beginning of the story. It is mentioned that through a lot of hardcore training, she begins to tone up a bit. This is to be expected given all of the physical strain the characters are put through. Despite her size, she appears to be pretty darn tough in attitude, and she is not afraid of heights. 

One criticism I have read about this novel is that we (the readers) are not told much about the other factions (Amity, Candor, Abnegation, and Erudite). My response to that critique is that the story is told in first person. The narrator is Tris. She doesn't know much about the other factions, only summaries about them, and what she has heard from her parents.  It makes perfect sense that we (the readers) are left with little knowledge about them as well. Besides, at the end of Divergent, Tris is heading to Amity for aid. I have a feeling we will learn a lot more about the other factions in the next two books.

I found myself to be completely absorbed into many of the characters, even ones we aren't necessarily supposed to like.

Take Al for example. He is a lug of a character who looks a lot tougher than he actually is. When we first meet him, he is crying in his bunk in a room full of other Dauntless initiates. He has many reasons to cry, too many to list here, but really he would have been the last one I would have expected to be crying into his pillow.  I immediately felt sorry for him. He never really wanted to hurt anyone, so he purposely lost fights during the ranking process.  Even after his attack with Drew and Peter against Tris, I still felt sorry for him. I was stunned at the ending for his character (which I am choosing not to reveal on here...read the book).

Peter is a character I don't fully understand yet. It looks like he will have a large role in the second book, so I will hold off on passing judgment on him until then.

Will is another favorite of mine. I very much loved him as a surrogate big brother to Tris. I liked him even more than her best friend, Christina. Will and Christina end up dating, which I called early on in the story. Will's ending (which I will not post) really pissed me off though.  I was attempting to keep the curse words out of my blog, but really.  I was pissed.

Eric, our resident sadist, is quite the fascinating character as well. Again, I feel like there is so much more to him than what we actually see because we see everything through the eyes of Tris, who hates Eric (and Peter). Many times, Eric shows different sides to his personality.  I think he may be psychotic...I'm still waiting to see. This whole entire blog is filled with spoilers, but just in case....
SPOILER ALERT....................................Eric doesn't die at the end of Divergent. I am positive we will see more from him in the second book.

Now we get to the good part.  My favorite character: Four. Dear God, have mercy. Four. Let's just say he's a panty-dropper, ladies. I have to point out one criticism I read online about him, "He's mean to Tris and claims it's for her own good. Surprise, surprise." I don't think he's mean to her in any way. He is as kind to her as he can be. He even says later on in the story that kindness is what he is working the hardest on. Remember that he can't be mushy-gushy to her in front of everyone. He is her trainer. It would be like a professor hugging and kissing on a student in front of the other classmates. Awkward. Also, a great way to make a bunch of enemies. Four tries to help Tris as much as he can without putting her or himself in danger. Besides, every couple has arguments. We can't expect him to be an angel all the time, despite his appearance. *wink*

In response to the eye rolls that the romance factor gets, this story isn't about romance at all. The love story is an added bonus. This novel is about choice, free will, loyalty, family, friendship, bravery, and kindness. The romance really does come second. It would be completely unbelievable to write a YA story with absolutely no romance. We were all teenagers at some point. We know how it goes. So please, stop the virtual eye rolls.

I definitely feel like I am leaving out a lot of stuff.  The book is 487 pages, so I'm sure I did.  Perhaps I will write a second post if I can think of what else I have to say about it. I am very much in love with this book. I made an emergency Barnes & Noble run, right after I finished, just to buy the second book. I will continue blogging tomorrow with another recent read. Until then....

I hope you enjoyed this post. I would love to read your opinion on any of the books I cover. Also, if you have any book suggestions, feel free to post them in the comment section. Thanks bunches for reading!

-The Sexy Librarian

Greetings, Guys and Dolls!  I was feeling rather sentimental after reading J.K. Rowling's Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them.  So, I thought I might as well keep up the good vibes.  I finished Rowling's The Tales of Beedle the Bard in about an hour.  It is approximately 109 pages of folklore fit for the wizarding world.

The featured stories are supposed bedtime fables.  The fashion in which they are written is similar to that of the Grimm Brothers.  After each fable, there is commentary by Albus Dumbledore.  It is a fun and simple read.  Any Harry Potter fan will love it.

I don't want to regurgitate the same post as yesterday.  This book was more entertaining than Fantastic Beasts, and a much smoother read.  It would make f great bedtime stories.  Just break it up into a different fable each night.

You are probably already tired of me reading Rowling.  Let me assure you that my taste in literature is vast.  I can never decided which I'm going to read ahead of time.  It is always spontaneous.  Although, I will attempt to read books I haven't already read, I might not stick to that statement.  Sometimes, I may feel like rereading a book, and that is just fine.  It's a sign of a damn good book if you ask me!

Hey there, Guys and Dolls!  Let's start off with a little introduction.  My name is Darby, and this is my very first blog.  I know what you must be thinking, "Is she 12?"  Actually, I just turned 24 today.  Now, your next question is probably, "How is this her first blog? Does she live under a rock?"  The answer is that I honestly never felt like I needed to blog about anything.  This has all changed for me now.  

I graduated in May from the University of Central Arkansas with a degree in Creative Writing.  I love to write.  It is a hardcore passion of mine.  In my last semester, I completed a 55,000 word novel for a Novel Writing course with Dr. John Vanderslice.  I am quite proud of my fantasy/adventure and am in the process of editing it now.  I also write screenplays and short stories.  My minor was in history. 

I recently moved to Los Angeles, CA to pursue my other passion, acting.  In the meantime, I love to read.  I prefer it to watching television or playing games.  When I'm on a set, sometimes I'll wait for hours before I am needed.  Writing in this condition is not ideal.  So, I read.  I decided last week that I wanted to see how many books I could read in a year starting on my birthday (October 2).  So, here we are.  I finally have something I feel is worth blogging about.

I will try not to spoil any of the books I write about, but cannot promise anything.  Read with caution! 

The first book I decided to read is a pretty easy one.  J.K. Rowling's Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them.  I grew up on Harry Potter.  I was in the 4th grade (about 10 years old) when I started the first book.  Needless to say, I jumped at the chance to order Rowling's other creations.  This book is incredibly entertaining and has a foreword  written by Albus Dumbledore.  It is written like an encyclopedia.  In alphabetical order, Rowling explains each and every magical creature she has created.  There is a Ministry of Magic (M.O.M.) Classification system ranking the creatures from boring to wizard killer.  Not only do we learn more about creatures we grew to love, like the Phoenix and the Hippogriff, but we also learn of lesser known beasts like the Kneazle and the Lethifold.  

Since it is written to be like a textbook straight from the wizarding world, it is penned under the author name Newt Scamander.  The addition of "handwritten" notes and doodles makes the book appear to be from the actual students.  It is all quite entertaining and very well thought out.  I can imagine Rowling having a blast while she was writing this.  In return, it is a light and fun read.  One can easily get through it in an hour or so.  It is 88 pages, including the foreword by Dumbledore and the About the Author section in the back.  

I highly recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of Harry Potter.