Gyles Brandreth - Oscar Wilde and the Candlelight Murders

Oscar Wilde and the Candlelight Murders - (10x10x10x10/10)

 EEEEEEEEEEEEEK!!! Okay, this is the one that I've been dying to write about for weeks, because it's just insane!!

This book has to be, without doubt, every English student's dream...

In a nutshell: Oscar Wilde (genius), Arthur Conan Doyle (inventor of Sherlock Holmes - need I say more?!?), Wordsworth's grandson, murder, mystery, and oh so many euphemisms!!!!!

...Possibly the most bizarre combination of anything that I've ever read, but utterly brilliant. Brandreth writes fiction as fact, inspired by history, so it's difficult to figure out what's historical and what isn't, and this is made all the more intense through the sheer reality of Brandreth's 'Wilde'!! As a reader with prior knowledge of Wilde's style and his work (particularly The Picture of Dorian Gray) I couldn't help but fall in love with just how vibrantly Oscar's character shines through the pages; Wilde could have been sitting in the room with me. At times I had to remind myself that this  book isn't actually a 'Wilde' piece! It's very much a contemporary novel, and I take my hat off to Brandreth, in admiration of the obvious amount of research that has gone into creating these characters and their relationships! Every detail has been intricately sculpted , with an infinite care and attention that must be blatantly obvious to even those readers with no knowledge of context...

I have to admit though that I wasn't always such a fan of Wilde. It took two years of stubborn hard work (and an astoundingly persistent English teacher!!) to make me see the beauty behind Wilde's language. In turn that means that, reading this novel, I found myself identifying the famous Wilde epigrams, and quotes that have been taken word for word from Wilde's work - including an abundance of sayings from The Picture of Dorian Gray, which I have subsequently come to adore as a novel, despite the pain it caused me!! These countless epigrams are what make the book for me (mainly because I could associate each and every one with something that I've written myself, or all the time I spent learning them - some of which was actually fun!), so I have to say that it's probably a novel that would be most appreciated by readers with such contextual knowledge. Having said that though, the story itself is still a very entertaining one - though maybe not as gripping as one might expect a murder-mystery novel to be...

Nevertheless Brandreth fills his book with twists, and just the right amount of mystery to keep us reading! Nothing is revealed until the very last minute, but I'm still incredibly proud to boast that I figured it all out before the end!!!

A truly Wilde experience! It's a series too...I can't wait to find the next one!!!!!

Rox
xx

Amazon it...NOW!

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Oscar-Wilde-Candlelight-Murders-Mystery/dp/0719569303/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1410615861&sr=1-1&keywords=oscar+wilde+and+the+candlelight+murders

Cecelia Ahern - How to Fall in Love

How to Fall in Love - (10/10)

Technically speaking I have two other reads to write about before this one. But, since I finished it at 3 o'clock this morning after 3 sleepless nights of frantic reading, I decided it deserves to jump the queue (is that how you spell that word?!?!)!!! Because I am in love. Absolutely and unequivocally so...

 

I have already written a (pretty long) post on the absolute genius of Cecelia Ahern, so I won't rehash that particular sermon to you. What I will do though is exclaim wildly that this woman has written TEN incredible, mind-bogglingly wonderful and addictive novels in TEN years, whilst raising a family simultaneously. I can't even comprehend how women manage to hold families together and work successfully at the same time, let alone do something as all-consuming as write a novel! It seems impossible. But I'm far too career focused, so that's probably why...

 It will never cease to amaze me though how brilliant writers manage to write so many stories... I believe that everyone has a novel in them, but not everyone writes their story. However, writers manage to, year after year after year, produce tireless streams of enchanting material! I'd love to know HOW!! Where does it all come from?? 

Ahern's work in particular is always so fresh and new and magical and exciting, and I believe I could sit here and say that all day! How to Fall in Love is her latest novel and it goes without saying that it is, as ever, absolutely fabulous. I was really in the mood for a soppy, 'chick-flicky' love story when I picked it up...which is probably why I didn't put it down!! But the story-line is actually quite dark and she does exceptionally well to keep the dialogue light - and quite frankly hilarious - throughout despite the heartbreaking issues that the book raises!

I will always love this woman's work, but I really want someone else to love her too!!! 

 Rox

xx

Amazon it....NOW!!

http://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Fall-Love-Cecelia-Ahern/dp/0007350511/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1410532573&sr=1-1&keywords=how+to+fall+in+love

Daphne Du Maurier - Jamaica Inn

Jamaica Inn - (6/10)

Let me start by saying that my favourite story of all time is without a doubt Charlotte Bronte's  Jane Eyre - a story that I believe everyone should read at some point in their life! I can't say with certainty specifically why I love it so much, but I have been totally entranced by the novel since I was first introduced to it at 14. Even the film adaptations get me - and I don't let myself say that often!!! I've always said though that I believe the suspense of the book was lost on me because (to save her sanity I suppose) our English teacher of the time told us the entire plot in advance. To be fair to her, trying to get some of the 14 year olds from my secondary school to read a classic like Jane Eyre is like attempting to give a cat a bath...blindfolded...whilst riding a unicycle. I expect it would be quite amusing to watch, but I wouldn't like to try it myself...

Du Maurier's Rebecca, for me, startlingly reflects Bronte's story (and is also another fabulous book recommendation!!!) and so naturally I fell instantly in love with her. However, one reason I loved this book so much was that it was like re-reading Jane Eyre without the spoilers. It was incredible. I read the entire thing in 12 hours, and then sat grinning to myself about it for another 12 - have I mentioned that I might have a slight touch of lunacy?

Having loved Rebecca then, I was quite looking forward to getting stuck into Jamaica Inn this summer, especially since I had to cancel on my St Ives holiday; I figured this was about as close to Cornwall as I was ever going to get this summer!

I've been noticing recently (mainly since I read the appalling demise of Clarice Starling in Thomas Harris' trilogy!) how women - even in this day and age - can never seem to survive on their own in film or literature, even when their creators are women!! (And presumably women who would like to see themselves as independent! Grrr!) It seems impossible for a heroin to not end up running off into the sunset with her fella! Though it's not exactly 'contemporary', with Jamaica Inn in particular, I was amazed at how misogynistic it is. Du Maurier creates a brilliantly strong character in Mary Yellan, who loses her mother, sells of her entire life, and travels alone to live with an aunt she hasn't heard from in over a decade and her abusive husband...before mercilessly tearing her apart and marrying her off to a horse thief! At least Bronte had the sense to leave Rochester totally reliant on Jane before she gets to marry him.

The misogyny of Jamaica Inn did (if you can't tell already) overshadow the 'gothic' element for me whilst I was reading it. But nevertheless the story itself is quite gripping in parts. It's definitely not as gripping as Rebecca, nor is it as absorbing in my opinion, but I do at least have respect for the way in which Du Maurier tells a story - like a dripping tap. Drip drip drip. She leaks information and drops clues that you don't know are clues until it's too late.

She's painfully slow to reveal each twist, but each twist hits you like a slap in the face.

Rox
xx

Amazon it!

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Jamaica-Inn-VMC-Daphne-Maurier/dp/1844080390/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1409590005&sr=8-1&keywords=jamaica+inn

THE TOP 100 - part one (with credit to several people!!!)

Me and my cousin play this game called 'Top 10...' where we name a category for each other and then have to list our top 10 things under that category. Simple but I thought I'd explain. Much to her 'annoyance' though this has leaked into some crazy Facebook thing (hehe...she's jealous!) which means that I've spent the last 2 days wandering round randomly shouting book titles at poor, unsuspecting strangers who I'm sure think I've escaped from the Loony-House...to be fair I do look as though I could have!!!

Deciding on a list of top 10 books though is impossible!!!!! 

Sooooo, because I'm a MASSIVE geek I've taken my own top 10 (or 20...) and combined it with the suggestions of others to try and create a Top 100!  (in 2 parts though because I'm lazy...)

AND I CHALLENGE EVERY READER TO FIND AT LEAST ONE FROM THIS LIST THAT THEY LIKE!!!!! (or don't like...)

I have read most of these, but not all! So I won't take responsibility for some of the less fabulous choices (mainly Frankenstein - not my choice! Don't blame me!)

In no particular order...
1. The Adventures of Pip - Enid Blyton (for my mummy!)
2. Stravaganza: City of Masks - Mary Hoffman
3. The Book of Tomorrow - Cecelia Ahern
4. Where Rainbows End - Cecelia Ahern
5. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
6. Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
7. The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
8. 1984 - George Orwell
9. The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde
10. The Silence of the Lambs - Thomas Harris
11. Oscar Wilde and the Candlelight Murders - Gyles Brandreth
12. Forget Me Not - Anne Cassidy
13. Looking for JJ - Anne Cassidy
14. How to be a Woman - Caitlin Moran
15. Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks
16. Regeneration - Pat Barker
17. Union Street - Pat Barker
18. Looking for Alaska - John Green
19. The Book of Human Skin - Michelle Lovric
20. Lord of the Flies - William Golding
21. The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
22. The Edible Woman - Margaret Atwood
23. Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
24. Dracula - Bram Stoker
25. The Women's Room - Marilyn French
26. 500 Mile Walkies - Mark Wallington
27. Nights at the Circus - Angela Carter
28. Everything Changes - Johnathan Trooper
29. The Hand That First Held Mine - Maggie O'Farrell
30. After You'd Gone - Maggie O'Farrell
31. Kafka on the Shore - Haruki Murahami
32. Pet Sematry - Stephen King
33. Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
34. The Rainbow - D.H.Lawrence
35. Room - Emma Donoghue
36. Blue Eyed Boy - Joanne Harris
37. Slaughterhouse Five - Kurt Vonnegut
38. Enduring Love - Ian McEwan
39. Atonement - Ian McEwan
40. The Colour Purple - Alice Walker
41. Animal Farm - George Orwell
42. Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
43. Beloved - Toni Morrison
44. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
45. The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins
46. The Diary of a Young Girl - Anne Frank
47. Noughts & Crosses - Malorie Blackman
48. Mudwoman - Joyce Carol Oats
49. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - Stieg Larsson
50. Noughties - Ben Masters

If you made it to the end then you're a very wonderful person! Well done to you!
Here's a positive picture so you don't go and throw yourself down the stairs for wasting precious minutes of your life:

Rox
xx

Melissa Hill - Before I Forget

Before I Forget (7/10)

I'm entranced by the idea of 'bucket lists'. Everyone has those few things that they would just love to do; things that they could simply never forget. Personally, my bucket list only serves to remind me how pathetically boring my life is, but I know that if I ever manage it I'll have the most amazing time of my life doing everything from volunteer work, to travel - including visiting New York at Christmas, which I absolutely WILL do! Even if it's not this year...

Reading Before I Forget though puts into perspective the importance of embracing a moment, or an emotion, or a dream whilst you can, and should have every reader clinging to their loved ones before they close the cover, and planning not for the future, but for right now.

 

Similar in theory to Oliver's Before I Fall, and Before I Go To Sleep by S.J. Watson (and many others no doubt!!!), Before I Forget embodies all the literary cliches about 'self discovery' and 'embracing the moment'... But Hill also cleverly knows how to grab our attention, subtly twisting her story at the most unexpected moments to really drive her moral home - live for the moment you have (and don't cringe too much!!!)

Sometimes circumstance makes life difficult, but we have to learn from that and make the best of what we have. If we can't do that, learn from Abby...

Rox
xx

Short and sweet that one. This is a lovely summer/holiday read...even with the sun disappearing!!! Amazon it...Now!!

Stieg Larsson - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Millennium Trilogy)

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (8.5/10)
If you're one of those (shameful) people who likes to judge a book by its film adaptation then I might forgive you for it in this case. There's a pretty recent version starring Daniel Craig, but it was the original Swedish adaptation from 2009 that I watched...and watched...and watched...it was just sooo good, despite it all being in Swedish!!! I've said before that I'm a bit of a nut for crime/mystery/thriller stories in all forms, and this one was no exception!

Michael Nyqvist and Noomi Rapace (2009)

When it came to reading the book it came highly recommended by my fellow bookaholic and cousin, but I was put off when she told me that the first half would bore me to tears...that's really not the way to sell a book recommendation! Especially when the book in question is comparable in size to the average house brick!

In actual fact, when I finally then brought myself to read this monster of a novel I didn't find the first few chapters as tedious as they were made out to be. The characters and their own little stories are really thoroughly introduced, and both Lisbeth and Mikael appear so so real that you can't help but be sucked into their lives anyway. In fairness to Larsson (and Liz!) these first 10 chapters or so are setting us up for a trilogy - not just the 600 pages of this particular book - and so you have to cut him a little bit of slack there I suppose!! To be honest, I was well and truly hooked by the end of chapter 6.

The original title for the book translates as men who hate women, but I couldn't help but fall in love with Lisbeth. She's so not your stereotypical smart-but-sexy 'save the day' heroin. She's an outcast, yet every bit as tough and ruthless as you would imagine the translated title demands her to be, and I find that such a daunting yet awe-inspiring trait. Nevertheless though you'd be heartless if you didn't feel a little sorry for her in the end... I have no doubt that Mikael will get what he deserves though; Lisbeth Salander does not take her revenge lightly...

There is nothing much to say on this, other than that it is one hell of a story. Even if you're not much of a murder-mystery buff, I can guarantee that you will devour this from cover to cover and never once come close to guessing its ending!!!

Rox 
xx

Buy it on Amazon!

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Girl-Dragon-Tattoo-Millennium-Trilogy/dp/1847245455/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1408135466&sr=1-1&keywords=the+girl+with+the+dragon+tattoo

Amanda Holden - No Holding Back

'Yes, I've grieved and cried and shouted in private but my mask goes on when I need it to...I will never be beaten by circumstance. I am determined not to be defined by the bad things that happen to me, but rather channel them to mould me into a better person.'  (page 233)

People who know me will know that I detest cliches. With a passion. They make me cringe. In no way can they ever make whatever it is that you're trying to say more powerful. They're cheesy and overused and only serve to demonstrate a person's lack of imagination. People who know me will also know that I worship my bookcase - in the most non-creepy, normal way possible... I get so pissed if a book gets bent, or creased, or marked; I have to keep them all looking as new and perfect as possible - some people clean, some people collect pepper pots, I do this... whatever this is. When reading No Holding Back though I was blubbering my way through Amanda Holden's cliche-ridden chapters in devastated astonishment. The whole thing hit me so deep that, having reached page 233, I dragged out my trusty pink highlighter and furiously illuminated what I believe to be the definition of a strong woman. Everybody has a mask that they put on; there is always a time and a place to cry. My mask in particular has evolved into three in recent years. I have a face for home life, a face for social life, and a face for work life, and I'd say there's only myself and one other who ever see me without any of them. Some people hide behind their mask, using it as a form of denial, but it is in embracing the weaknesses behind the mask and using them to build a better character that I see true strength.

Buy it now on AMAZON

It's true that assumption is the work of the devil, and I'm a devil for it. Whenever I read a celebrity "My Story" book it's for two reasons: 1) To have a nosy into the life of someone well-known, and therefore make me feel better about my own sorry predicament; and 2) To numb my brain after a semester of considerably heavier reading. Primarily I picked up No Holding Back - well actually, I pre-ordered No Holding Back many months in advance, but that's beside the point - because I have an insane crush on its author, but I also knew it would be an easy, trashy read. I had absolutely no idea I would find as much comfort in Holden's words as I did.

I loved Holden because she's ballsy and cheeky and gorgeous, and because she  reminds me of someone that I care a hell of a lot for, but I have to confess that I never believed she had much of a "story" in her, and whilst I knew that whatever she wrote would entertain me, I wasn't expecting much else. Obviously I knew about her affair with Neil Morrissey, and the difficulties she had regarding pregnancy, but there's a difference between reading things in the paper or on Google, and then actually being given a first person account of the emotion and
trauma of the experience. It's truly heartbreaking to read such an honest account, and I still feel dreadful for having such low expectations. 

I have enormous admiration for mothers and motherhood, and I think that losing a child, whatever its age, must be the most devastating experience imaginable. Holden welcomes her readers into these delicate moments in such an intimate and trusting way, you can feel the plain honesty behind her words.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/No-Holding-Back-Amanda-Holden/dp/1471125742/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1407336286&sr=1-1&keywords=no+holding+back

I said I'd loved her because she's cheeky and ballsy, now I admire for never letting that mask slip...

Rox
xx

Thomas Harris - The Hannibal Lecter Trilogy

It's a good job I don't eat much meat...

Years ago I found an incredibly battered copy of The Silence of the Lambs (Hannibal Lecter book number 2) on my mum's bookcase - and I mean so well-read that the lettering on the spine is pretty much invisible, and there were quite a few blanks I had to fill in whilst reading because of the holes which have some how been worn into the pages! Obviously I'd heard the title before but had no idea what the book was about, so I read it, and it became without question one of my favourite books of all time! Only recently however did I learn that it's part of a series on the legendary sociopath that is Dr Hannibal Lecter, and so I was dying to read more...

I love the idea of Hannibal Lecter - this crazy-smart psychiatrist who worked to help the police whilst at the same time cooking up his patients to feed to them - and it's something that the recent TV series focuses on brilliantly. One thing that persistently irritates (well not 'irritates' but definitely frustrates) me about Harris' books though, is that Lecter is made out to be a terrible monster, yet the novels never show him as the legendary criminal that he's publicly portrayed as. In fact, he hardly appears in Red Dragon (Hannibal Lecter book number 1) at all, and by the end of Hannibal (Hannibal Lecter book number 3), though there are definitely some pretty sinister ideas portrayed, he's practically glorified as a saviour!

No. 4, I am curious...

Strictly speaking there are currently four Hannibal Lecter novels, however after the nuclear disaster that is the end of Hannibal - which we'll come to - I'm not sure I can bring myself to read Hannibal Rising, which I think is supposed to be some kind of prequel - Thomas Harris' version of The Hobbit, essentially. If I ever get round to it, maybe I'll write a post on whether or not Harris has redeemed himself. We can only hope...

I'm reluctant to rate the trilogy as a whole because, based on the final 10 pages alone, I would probably put anyone off ever wanting to read these books. Therefore I think I'll address them separately...

Red Dragon (8/10)

One utterly brilliant thing about Harris - which I think is a bit of a 'marmite' thing; you either love it or you hate it - is that he jumps straight into the middle of the plot. Harris doesn't feel the need, like many writers, to bore us with 200 pages on the tedious context of his characters and their relationships and experiences, even if it could be paramount to later developments in the plot! Instead he takes us immediately right to the centre of the story and allows for the novel's context to reveal itself. In this genre especially, this technique can be incredibly sinister and does to a certain extent demonise Lecter as he is always an invisible presence but we're not told anything about him directly...Mainly though it just makes us actually want to read the book instead of being bored to tears with facts!!!!

All that said, Red Dragon is a brilliant opener to the Hannibal Lecter trilogy, and indeed is an excellent crime novel in itself - Harris knows how to write a twist, and it seems he is a devil for never giving you the ending you expect...

The Silence of the Lambs (10/10)
I'm such a murder mystery/ detective/ serial killer buff, it's probably unhealthy, and I wouldn't at all be surprised if one day I crack and slaughter my entire family, but I remain hopeful that I do at least still have a little bit of sanity left...

I can't pretend that, having read and re-read this book, The Silence of the Lambs isn't still one of the best books I've read in years.Clarice Starling is such a brilliant character - such a brilliant woman. You have to applaud her balls in fighting against all the men who clearly think she's incompetent, but also the way she's fought her way up through, and out of, a system of institutions that would damn those with even the slightest complacency of character.

Even more so though, there's something about the plot of this novel that persistently grips me; it's just as brilliantly written as Red Dragon but with something a little bit extra. I don't know if it's the more direct interaction with Dr Lecter that is so enticing, but Harris creates something scarily haunting here.

If you're going to read one book from this trilogy - read this one.

Hannibal (3/10)
Thomas Harris was quite clearly high when he wrote the end of this novel. I felt so optimistic when I read the 'praise' on the back cover and saw that Stephen King thought Hannibal was even better than the preceding two novels...My only conclusion is that he hadn't yet finished the damn thing! If you're willing to read this novel but leave the last 10 pages and make your own conclusions as to how it should end, then please do - you will be much less disappointed and confused than I currently am. There are probably two reasonable conclusion that this novel could come to, both of which you could foresee and be happy with, and neither of which are the chosen denouement of Mr Harris.

11 years...

For the life of me, I cannot understand why Harris decided to write this novel. Clearly he had some big issues with Clarice Starling, issues which I'm sure Freud would have something to say about... The Silence of the Lambs definitely leaves itself open for a sequel, a sequel that has the potential to be unspeakably good - and it has to be said that Hannibal is, in places, pretty good - but why one earth would Harris wait over a decade and then present us with this?!? The man has totally destroyed Starling, and the hunt for Lecter is no where near as gripping as it should be! It's worth a read, but please leave the ending to your own imagination - I wish I had!

Pull yourself together Harris!!! 

Despite his poor finale though, these are pretty good books and definitely definitely worth a read if you, like me, love a good thriller! 

Harris will keep you guessing until the very, very end.

Rox
xx

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_17?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=hannibal%20lecter%20trilogy&sprefix=hannibal+lecter+t%2Cstripbooks%2C310

Pat Barker - Union Street

Union Street - (9/10)

I was introduced to Pat Barker about 3 years ago when I read Regeneration, and could never get over the idea that that book was written by a woman - I have the same issue with Shelley's Frankenstein; it's definitely my inner-judgmentaloldwoman poking out her little head... To me, war stories are always very 'male', and I think that has something to do with the fact that war - particularly when we're talking about the World Wars - were a very male experience.

That's not to say that the Wars never affected the female population, because we know that to be absolutely not true and Barker's hideously unflattering, real portrayal of her women is one of the things that really grips me, but nevertheless 'war' in the sense that Regeneration presents it is, and has always been, predominantly and indefatigably male.

Regardless though, her writing is always so realistic and absorbing.

I remember first researching for an essay I wrote on Regeneration. There was an article from the New York Times - or something like that - that recounted how Barker hadn't had a lot of luck in the literary world until the likes of Union Street and Regeneration because she was trying to write to suit her fellow prim and proper authors who all wrote about ladies' days and tea parties...something she knew nothing about!!

Despite Regeneration being written by a woman then, what makes it so powerful, and 100% believable and realistic is that Barker has done what all writers start by doing: she's written what she knows.

As her first novel, you can see 'Barker' in the undeniable passion towards Union Street's Northern working-class women and their hardships. The novel isn't written patronisingly, as another writer might create it, but with fierce experience and empathy which seep through the lines of the page, through Barker's characters and their stories.

As a woman though, I think there is one other thing that Pat Barker is absolutely fabulous at: putting us off pregnancy for life!! Seriously! Forget about sex ed. Just give every 15 year old a Pat Barker novel to read - they'll sew their clothes to their flesh out of sheer terror!!

Not that that should put you off reading it, you should! If only out of curiosity... There is way more to this book than back-ally abortions, and I was surprised at just how much it did engross me - though I was sat at King's Cross, with my legs tightly crossed, cringing through quite a few chapters...

These women tell stories that shock and disgust, but nevertheless are utterly consuming and passionate...

Rox
xx

'Amazon' it!

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Street-Virago-Modern-Classics-Paperback/dp/0860682838/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1407528474&sr=1-1&keywords=union+street

Caitlin Moran - How To Be a Woman

How To Be a Woman - (10/10)

People think that "feminism" means renouncing men, adopting 6 cats, or throwing yourself in front of horses, but I much prefer Moran's no-nonsense take on the term...

Team V

A couple of years ago I was given a reading list as a guide for my A Level coursework. The list had 210 titles on it and came with a warning against trying to read them all over the one summer we had to find inspiration... 

So, naturally, I tried...

How To Be a Woman, though, was probably the best book I read that summer and I've bombarded everyone I meet with recommendations ever since. I think I wrote in my John Green blog about dreaming about books...This is another one that I could not get out of my head!

IT'S A GOOD TIME TO BE A WOMAN:

WE HAVE THE VOTE AND THE PILL, 

AND WE HAVEN'T BEEN BURNT AS WITCHES SINCE 1727... 

As a very sarcastic person myself, her witty-yet-never-quite-patronising tone just makes me howl! She somehow manages to combine passion and intellect on a pretty serious topic, with her addictive and hilariously sarcastic style, making every reader sit up and take note. Even as someone who loves feminist literature, reading criticism on the subject can bore me to tears. But Moran is so honest and forceful in her writing - yet always in the most conversational manner - that reading How To Be a Woman never feels serious...until you put it away, think about it, and have to get it out again just to make sure.

Although her chapters on body hair would make some people I know heave, I think every girl should read this book before she looks in the mirror, or lets anything other than her own mind define her...

This is the book I come back to summer after summer purely for its entertainment value and the powerful voice that it gives to women - go read and be empowered!

Rox 

xx
 

'Amazon' it!

http://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Be-Woman-Caitlin-Moran/dp/0091940745/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1407528561&sr=1-1&keywords=how+to+be+a+woman

The Book Thief - Markus Zusak

The Book Thief - (7/10)

Right now I'm waiting to find a book that I can pick up and be totally possessed by. After all the - albeit subdued - hype around this one (following the film release...again...surprise...), I really thought Zusak might do that for me, but I can't say he did... I'm not saying that The Book Thief is a bad story! Quite the opposite - it's an incredibly touching tale, showing some strong perspective (I was particularly entranced by the idea of having Death as the narrator! It definitely brings an inevitable sense of catastrophe and doom to the plot...) but I was just looking for something a little bit more gripping!

I'm being picky...so very picky!!!

Looking past my own preconceptions though, Zusak creates some really lovely things in The Book Thief. Like I said with the narration by Death, we see some moments and meet some characters which really strike us and challenge our sympathies. Usually, with novels based around the First World War, or the Second World War, we (or certainly I - as a Brit!) assume that the Germans are the bad guys, whilst the English are the heros, and the Jews the victims - that's the stereotype, right? So it's easy to forget and be startled by the realisation that this novel - this beautifully written, sympathetic novel - is set in Munich, at the heart of the Hitler's reign, and that, in fact, the novel's victims are also Germans, and Nazi's... Or that was the aspect of this book that struck me the most anyway - the way we can forget and then suddenly remember who these people really are, and then feel guilty for having damned them so ignorantly!!

There are many such sweet themes and moments throughout The Book Thief which make it impossible to disregard it as anything other than a brilliant story. The faith which Zusak's savvy little hero puts in mere words and their power is something that I - as a book hoarder myself - found strangely relate-able and comforting, especially in our modern world of computer games and technology. One of the novel's most touching moments though comes towards the end, and truly this is what separates it from other typically 'sad' novels. When the bombs hit and the narrator goes about his work, Zusak's attention to every individual character at that moment is undeniably beautiful, and shows a journey that I have never seen in other novels...

Personally, I would have ended the tale there and left my readers sobbing in a corner...but evidently Zusak isn't so cold-hearted...

It's definitely not the gripping novel I'm searching for, but it's 500 pages that are definitely worth a read!!

Rox
xx

'Amazon' it!

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Book-Thief-Markus-Zusak/dp/0552773891/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1407528631&sr=1-1&keywords=the+book+thief

Jay Asher - Thirteen Reasons Why

Thirteen Reasons Why (7/10)
If you're a fan of John Green, then you'll love this.

Thirteen Reasons Why isn't a difficult, complicated novel - I read the whole thing in less than 8 hours - but it's not wholly predictable either! I can't say it raises any great questions about life or mortality that haven't been posed before, but Asher never reveals too much too soon, so we have to keep reading to find out exactly what her secret is...


However, I found this on Amazon and was struck because it didn't sound like the regular troubled-teen suicide story... Asher presents 7 cassette tapes which are sent to 13 seemingly unconnected people, slowly revealing 13 reasons as to why her teenage protagonist, Hannah, killed herself. Like I said, not complicated. But I'm sure you'll agree it has to the potential to be incredibly gripping - or so I thought when I first come across the book...

This book works ultimately with empathy, that verges at times on cruelty, as Hannah tells her story in her own words, forcing the people who tried to write it for her to walk her path for themselves.

Hannah pretty much says the biggest ever "Fuck You" to adolescence. I don't know where Asher got it from, but this is for teenagers everywhere...

Rox
xx

Think...

'Amazon' it!

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Thirteen-Reasons-Why-Jay-Asher/dp/0141328290/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1407528684&sr=1-1&keywords=thirteen+reasons+why

Aldous Huxley - Brave New World

Brave New World (6/10)
If asked to, I'd list books such as 1984, The Hunger Games, and The Handmaid's Tale among some of my favorites but, having read and loved these stories, I didn't tackle Brave New World with much enthusiasm. Having known of the book for quite a while (years in fact) I never made any effort to want to read it, until a friend at work told me how she's discovered it whilst preparing for her dissertation, and about how much she loved it. So I bought it (99p off eBay!!!). But that didn't mean that I was brimming with excitement to start reading it. In fact, it sat on my shelf for a good 6 months before I even considered it (though those of you who are familiar with my book collection will understand that that's actually not a long time!!!)

But why??? Since I love Orwell and the like so much?? Well, the way I see it is that once you've read one novel from this genre, reading another one doesn't really bring anything new to the table...Orwell was my first and so I devoured him; The Hunger Games were done in 36 hours because they were gripping and young and exciting; Atwood felt like a breath of fresh air after a year of slaving over the likes of Shakespeare and Austen; but when it came to Huxley, I couldn't help having the overwhelming feeling that I was going to be reliving something that I already knew...

To a certain extent, I can't say that I was wrong, the perfectly controlled world that Huxley creates is the double of those such as I have listed. However, there was something different about this one - not in the story, not really - but in the way I responded to Huxley's world. This might be more a reflection of changes in myself as a reader, rather than any difference the actual writing of Huxley when compared to, say, Orwell, but when reading this novel I felt for the first time that the futuristic, controlled world that Huxley imagines might actually be more ideal than the reality that we live in - and that the novel has all but destroyed.

I opened this novel expecting to find a story about rebellion again conformity and power, and that is present, but it is overpowered by an overwhelming sense of community that is so notably absent in our contemporary society. Huxley really makes you think...

(also, I can't resist a good Shakespeare reference!)

Rox
xx

'Amazon' it!

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Brave-New-World-Aldous-Huxley/dp/3425048570/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1407528752&sr=1-2&keywords=brave+new+world

John Green - The Fault in Our Stars

The Fault in Our Stars (8.5/10)
As I sort of implied in my post on the fabulousness of Cecelia Ahern, I'm not a huge fan of reading books because they suddenly become amazingly famous because someone's making a film about them....Having said that though, this is exactly what I did with novels such as the Twilight saga and The Hunger Games trilogy and (and I can't stress this enough) the books are ALWAYS waaaaay better than the films! Nevertheless though, I had mixed feelings approaching this novel...

I read John Green's Looking for Alaska a couple of years ago, and it was the first book that I can really say truly haunted me. An English teacher I once had said that she'd only ever call a book 'haunting' if she dreamed about it; if her subconscious was so engrossed that it just wouldn't let go. I never quite knew what she meant until I read Alaska; the story stayed with me loooong after I closed the cover, and still today I often find my mind wandering off towards it - but I'm not going to ruin that one for you! Because of Alaska then, I wanted to read more of Green, and with all the hype about The Fault in Our Stars I caved...


However I still had my reservations. For one, I try to avoid cancer stories or sad endings, not because they're sad, but more because I have a reputation as an emotionless robot to uphold and if I'm found blubbing over page 30 of a book (of all things, shock horror!) then I'd be ruined. Seriously, I didn't even cry when Hayley died on Corrie - call me heartless, you wouldn't be the first!!!! But still, I was found, in the garden, sniveling over this particular paperback because it tells such a beautiful story! The way Green embraces the subject of death, transforming it from something fearful to something that we should all embrace - cancer or no cancer - is just so powerful.

This book is not a book about death; it is a book about life, with a message that we can all embrace. Okay? Okay.

Rox
xx

'Amazon' it!

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Fault-Our-Stars-John-Green/dp/0141345659/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1407528842&sr=1-1&keywords=the+fault+in+our+stars

Cecelia Ahern/P.S. I Love You!! (11/10)

I will (begrudgingly) forgive you if you're reading this wondering who the hell Cecelia Ahern is, but that won't stop me tutting at you... *tut tut tut*

Ahern is, hand down, the best author I've ever read! (And that's a big thing...I have a lot to choose from!!) Her writing isn't complicated or unrealistic, instead she's created this blend of reality and magic which comes across as completely natural - as though every day you might find a diary that tells the future, or inherit someone else's memories after a blood transfusion! It sounds totally absurd to write it like that, but her novels are so magical and yet so totally and utterly real at the same time! Don't make the mistake of assume she writes for children though!  Her books are 100% targeted at older readers, and yet still bring that child-like, innocent, fantasy element; she sort of creates an ideal 'grown up' world, where the fantastical elements of childhood can remain, amongst the dull office backgrounds of real life...If I ever meet a person who's not massively into reading, or has never managed to really enjoy a book, the first person I direct them to is Ahern - her plots are unconditionally gripping, yet with that aforementioned innocence and magic; which is who you should also go looking for RIGHT NOW! (Well not right now...read the blog first, if you would! Ta!)

What did I do with...

I'm not going to talk to you here about just one Ahern book, because they're all so wonderful that it would take me an age to choose just one, and then I'd end up writing about the others anyway! However I will say that Ahern is probably not quite as unfamiliar to you as you assume! Ever watch P.S. I Love You??? Seriously! Who hasn't? (Unless you've been living in a cave or on a desert island...) P.S. I Love You is the story that made Ahern famous (though I have to admit that it's one of the few books of her's that I haven't actually read!) but please don't just go and watch the film!!!!!!!! Her writing is so much more magical than that; pick any book with her name on the cover, and I promise you you won't be able to put it down!

One hell of a letter!

At Rainbow's End is written entirely in the form of letters, emails, text messages, and party invitations, telling the unrequited love story of two friends, right from the age of 5 until they're in their 80's. It's crazy how well Ahern can tell a story in such a restricted format - you can't get that from a film!!!

Have you ever inexplicably lost something?? Like a sock that you swear was part of a pair when you put the washing in? Ahern has, apparently spend a great deal more time exploring this universally frustrating issue, and she creates a comically unbelievable, yet powerful, response in A Place Called Here - with 'here' being the land that all the lost things go to (including missing children! It really is a very well thought-out story!!)

I could go on and on and on about Ahern, but I'd never do her justice so I'd rather let her speak for herself. She's a fabulous writer, and it's a shame that I know some people will only go as far as to read the book that made her famous, when she has sooo much  She's a truely gripping, unique and more to offer!!If I could recommend ONE though - to start you off at least - don't go for P.S. I Love You!!! My favorite by far is The Book of Tomorrow, and I promise you, you won't stop reading!!

Rox 

xx

If I were you, I'd just look for myself...

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_6?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=cecelia%20ahern&sprefix=cecili%2Cstripbooks%2C353

Margaret Atwood - The Handmaid's Tale and Cat's Eye

I only stumbled across Atwood recently whilst prowling Keele's library for something on trauma and oppression in Plath, or Woolf, or Shelley, or someone who obviously made much less of an impact on my life at that particular moment (not that Plath is not an absolute GENIUS but that's for another post...). They say you should never judge a book by it's cover (another cliche! I'm so sorry!) but I should confess now that that is something I do A LOT! Not because I'm picky about what I read...the exact opposite in fact; I will read absolutely anything within reach, and so I've fallen into the habit of picking out the most attractive cover I can see (in shops and libraries!) and then having that book as the one I shall read! On this day then, I can't tell you exactly why I picked up The Handmaid's Tale and Cat's Eye, it was probably by chance that they had particularly striking spines amidst the hundreds of battered, over-read, dust collectors that inhabit Keele's library... But so it happened that I was cast under the utterly enchanting and enthralling spell that is Margaret Atwood!

Both of the novels are (to me, anyway) totally different and so I feel like I should address them separately, but I will say this: what I find so brilliant about Atwood is that, though both novels are completely different in the stories they tell, both captivated my attention and my imagination, and from cover to cover and I kept clinging on!! (Cat's Eye has been on more bus rides and train journey's with me than I care to admit! Even before I started it, I was reluctant to leave it anywhere...just in case I might get a change to quickly peak inside!)

The Handmaid's Tale (9/10)

Having just come out of a year where my entire life seemed to revolve around Chaucer and The Canterbury Tales, I was feeling particularly cynical towards anything that boasted any kind of "Tale" *shudder*, however just a scan of the blurb of this book told me that Atwood would be the exception to my new, irrational, fear. With echoes of the apocalyptic foresight that we see in Orwell's 1984, and the  merciless barbarity of the more recent Hunger Games trilogy, Atwood's novel imagines a female experience that will haunt any woman, and leave them reeling in gratitude of their freedom and their sexuality. For anyone wanting to read this book - and I seriously recommend that you DO ALL NOW GO AND FIND A COPY AND READ IT IMMEDIATELY, I won't spoil the ending, other than to say that it will stay with you and keep to thinking (hoping!) for a long time after you've closed the cover...

Personally, I've always loved a plot twist...and a happy ending!!!

 Cat's Eye (7/10)

So, it definitely took me slightly longer to get into this one than it did The Handmaid's Tale, but I think that's because I was expecting another futuristic, outside-the-box, parallel universe kind of story, and that's just not what this is... This novel exposes the very real, and often very cruel interactions of women and girls, and gives an almost too real insight into the mind of a troubled artist, who tells us her story as she experienced it. Whilst reading this novel I felt so connected with Atwood's narrator and her experiences that it's difficult to explain just what's so great about these books; again, Atwood has created something that draws the reader in and has them hooked - last time it was because of the sheer unbelievable barbarity of her world, but here the raw 'realness' of her plot and her characters is what demands our shocked attention.

To anyone who's ever been bullied, or felt isolated, or different...this is book you won't regret reading!

Rox
xx

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Handmaids-Tale-Contemporary-Classics/dp/0099740915/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1407528958&sr=1-1&keywords=the+handmaids+tale 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Cats-Eye-Margaret-Atwood/dp/1853811262/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1407528989&sr=1-1&keywords=cat%27s+eye

The horribly cliche post that must begin every new blog...try not to cringe too much!!

I've never been very good at diaries and 'thought journals' and DEFINITELY not dream diaries (much to the great disappointment of one art teacher!!), so blogging's always been something I've avoided...like the plague if I'm being quite honest! Though I do have enormous respect for the people I know who do it, and manage to keep it up and write about something new that's at least mildly interesting on a pretty regular basis. However, since I'm 110% sure that my family are going nuts at me leaping into their rooms at odd hours to share the wonderful (yet greatly under-appreciated) literary journey that I've just been on that day with them, I'm gonna give it a shot! Not that I expect anyone's going to read this spiel!!

But first, who am I? (Yes, cringe though you may, this is happening!)
A Printer and a Librarian get together - what do you get?? ME!!

Honestly, with parents like mine it's no wonder I turned out the way I did... I swear to you, I popped out reciting Shakespeare...

So....

Keele - it's honestly the MOST beautiful place!

I study English and American Literature at Keele University (to those who don't know where that is, don't think you're alone. The place is like Hogwarts; unless you've been - or know someone who has - you'll never be able to find it!) On the side I'm a tutor in English (and maths, despite my endless protests) to students of all ages and levels, and though I do complain about heavy work loads, late nights, and the bus fares which slowly eat away at my student loan like caterpillars at leaves (!!), I do seriously love my job and the amazing people I meet through it!


As a (pretty self-explanatory) part of my degree I do a hell of a lot of reading, but I'm not about to sit here and review the finer points of the great English classics...I wouldn't put anyone through that who wasn't being paid (or bribed)! No, I'm here because I want to write about the books that I read for me for a change... and believe me, there are a few!! And so this is for anyone who's ever asked me for a book to read on holiday, or on the train; and it's especially for those who tell me they'd like to read but have never found that one book that really got them hooked!!

Firstly and lastly though, well done for getting this far! Since you're here you might as well continue...what's up first??

Rox
xx