Tales of a Bookworm

words are magical

[readingoncloud-nine]

Tales of a Bookworm; Entry #46

milk and honey

By Rupi Kaur

             A good friend of mine recently got me interested in poetry, both spoken word and written. I had also heard good things about Kaur’s book. I’m not going to lie, Kaur’s aesthetic hooked me. She made an explicit choice to not use capital letters, but kept the importance of punctuation. Not to mention, Kaur’s unique and beautiful artwork inspires me.

           As a student in Canada, each year of high school in English class, we had a unit on poetry. However, it wasn’t until I took Creative Writing in Gr. 12 that we analyzed and dissected modern poetry and free verse, as well as slam poetry. I believe to write poetry is a talent, and Kaur has the skill because she makes it look so effortless - something I envy about her.

           milk and honey is unique because you can read it as a complete story from start to finish. Kaur’s story is one in four parts: the hurting, the loving, the breaking, and the healing. But perhaps the best part about poetry is that you don’t have to read it in any particular order to appreciate it. I used to believe that song lyrics were the only written art that could resonate with me, but now, I’ve discovered poetry. The author will have their own reason for writing and creating the piece, and it will resonate with me in one way, and someone else (with a different life experience from me) in a different way, but everyone involved will appreciate it for their own reasons.

           Poetry is great because, like music, I can experience it objectively and subjectively. I can understand a poem for its message and appreciate the work of the author. Then, there are those poems that I relate to, and find my own meaning for, and those poems I will hold close to help me better understand the human experience.

           Kaur writes her story without holding back, it is raw and fresh, and maybe that is why I enjoy it so much. The final part of her book, the healing, will leave any aspiring artist, male or female, with the itch to create something - poetry or otherwise. I know I couldn’t have picked a more perfect book than milk and honey to introduce me to the world of modern poetry.

 *disclaimer: perhaps I am so in awe of Kaur’s work because I don’t fully understand it. I’m not a poet, and I hope to fix that one day. But one day is not today, rather it is someday far, far away. For now milk and honey will remain as a work of art in my mind*

[readingoncloud-nine]

Tales of a Bookworm; Entry #45 (Bookworm Rereads Series)

Eleanor & Park

By Rainbow Rowell

People reread novels all the time, a fact I witnessed to be true in my Topics in Popular Culture class last term. I am not one of those people. I read Eleanor & Park when it first came out, in 2013. I finished the novel in three days, while I should have been reading other books for class. This summer I decided to embark on an experiment: I wanted to reread a book, and why shouldn’t it be my favourite?

This time around, I finished the novel in just under a week. I paced myself, mostly because I didn’t want the story to end. I remembered most of the beginning, and major plot points throughout. However, the final third part of the book was a bit of a blur, and it was almost like reading the novel for the first time. I think this was because I read the book so quickly the last time, and I do remember racing through to the end. This prevented me from absorbing some of the most beautiful and poetic moments of the novel. If you remember the story, it is basically two high school misfits falling in love, but I stand by my original statement: it is so much more than a love story. Eleanor and Park learn so much about themselves through their relationship with each other, as well as what it means to love. They also grow as individuals, as Rowell tackles topics such as poverty, abuse, racism, diversity (or lack thereof), body-image (for males and females), and self-confidence in 1986.

I have no problem telling people Rowell is my favourite author. She has successfully written for adult and young adult audiences and each new novel she releases, I inhale the same way I do when I go out for all-you-can-eat sushi. The first lesson I learned in my high school creative writing class is that you want to “show not tell” for your readers. If you need an example of this: read Rowell. Never have I read an author who can have me so hooked on what is coming next. She has a way of revealing tidbits that seem irrelevant, but later change the plot of the story. Not to mention, her characters are complex and well-developed.

Overall, I am so happy I chose to reread this book, it will remain my favourite. Rereading Eleanor & Park was kind of like re-watching a movie, each time you notice something new you didn’t see before.

[duod]

I’ll never grow tired of dragon!Simon Snow

[rainbowrowell]

So lovely!!

[allegiants]

first + last lines (insp)

[sweptawaybbooks-deactivated2023]

A wall full of @penguinclassics makes Alyssa a very very happy girl 😍🙌🏻😍 . . Spending my day finish up some Christmas shopping and then I’m off to work, but first I’m reminiscing about my Saturday morning browsing used book store shelves 📚 . .

[booklover]

I love that feeling you get when you don’t remember that you’re reading. When you’re so captured by a book that you forget you’re reading the words. All you see is the descriptions and conversations that being to play out like a movie in your head. You don’t even think about it. Then before you know it, you’ve read 100 pages without realizing it. That’s probably the best feeling in the world. 

[tolkien-in-beleriand]

Every time I read that post about doing things out of spite I remember that C. S. Lewis put that fucking street lamp in Narnia because Tolkien once said that no good fantasy story would have a lamp in it.

[readingoncloud-nine]

Tales of a Bookworm; Entry #44

Carry On

Rainbow Rowell

             I’ve made the mistake of not bringing Fangirl with me to properly write this review. For those of you who have read Fangirl will remember the characters Cath was writing about, Simon and Baz, along with everyone else at Watford. While initially I was excited to read this novel, then I was frustrated. As it was something that so closely paralleled Harry Potter, a series I am yet to finish (pls don’t hurt mes), why would Rowell choose to write Carry On? Of course I know nothing is could ever live up to Harry Potter, so I decided that I couldn’t like what Rowell created, but because she is my favourite author, I just had to read this. I’ve never been so conflicted while reading a book.

           Carry On documents Simon Snow’s final year at the Watford School of Magicks. Simon is The Chosen One, the most powerful mage to walk the earth. Nagivating life without his parents he looks to his headmaster, The Mage, for guidance. Simon is quested with defeating the greatest threat to magic, the Humdrum. Does any of this sound familiar? Yeah, I know. Rowell has basically pulled a 50 Shades of Grey of Twilight with far less erotica - in fact none at all. As Rowell has described it, Carry On is “a book that was inspired by fictional fanfiction of a fictional series … I think what I’m writing now is canon.” It’s an American author trying to be British and I can understand how this could frustrate a lot of hardcore HP fans, but hear me out.

           Yes, I did cringe at some of these parallels that I could so obviously see from the beloved series. However, I have determined why I love Rowell’s work so much. She could write the worst plot in history, which she hasn’t, all of her works are clever and brilliant, but I would still read her work. Rowell creates characters that you care about. I care about what decisions Simon, Baz, Penny, and Agatha make and I want them to come out okay in the end. Again, Rowell does that awesome thing where she plays with point of view and it makes this novel so much more intense and enjoyable, it really adds to the story here.

           If you are a diehard HP fan, maybe this book isn’t for you. If you’re a fan of Fangirl, this book is definitely for you. Or if you’re someone who loves cheesy romance as a secondary theme to the main one, then read Carry On now! I haven’t stopped rereading my favourite scenes, when I finished the novel I was out of breathe, panting, sweating. I’ve converted to full fangirl mode. I’ve never been so moved and attached to a blossoming romance since Eleanor and Park back in 2013. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going back to read Carry On, again. And again. And again.

 ***edit: It wasn’t until after I wrote this that I looked at the tags on tumblr for Carry On, I didn’t realize the large number of ‘snowbaz’ fangirls there are out there. As I am currently suffering a book hangover, please let me join you. Also, please don’t hurt me, I am one of you. That is all.***

[1ets-get-peas]

[readingoncloud-nine]

Me. Right Now. Carry On messed me up. Please send help.

[readingoncloud-nine]

Tales of a Bookworm; Entry #43

We Were Liars

By E. Lockhart

             Forgive me for my absence, university is an all-consuming monster that eats all of my time. It was recently the winter holiday where I had two weeks to read, and read I did. I didn’t watch a single episode of a TV show, fell behind on my YouTube watching, and stopped The Social Network 20 minutes early to read. However, my writing skills have grown rusty after being away for so long, so please forgive me.

           I stumbled along Liars when I was Christmas shopping. As someone who hates shopping without a list, I still manage to get lost in bookstores without a doubt. Chapters is a safe place for me, and I find gems like Lockhart’s.

           My friend Shonalie told me that she didn’t like the book, I would say otherwise. Lockhart’s novel isn’t cracking any top ten lists of mine anytime soon, but the hopeless romantic in me was well satisfied after reading Cadence’s story. Candence and the Liars, Johnny, Mirren, and Gat, along with the rest of the Sinclair family occupy a private island for their summers. Candence’s fifteenth summer is met with tragedy and adventure, but after her accident she has trouble remembering it all. Two summers later, the Liars help Candence remember everything that took place. If I say much more, I might give away the twist ending that took me by surprise. It is one of those stories that after you know everything before suddenly makes much more sense. It is unlike any ‘romance’ I’ve read, and leaves you haunted afterwards. Liars was exciting and captivating.

           Lockhart adds in fairy tales into her story when Candence rewrites popular tales in a way that relates the stories to her family. Making We Were Liars have a fantastical element. Additionally, Lockhart’s writing style is poetic, she often repeats phrases or has unconventional paragraph breaks and makes her story very beautiful in its form.

           I read this book at the wrong time, I have a bad habit of doing that. I read Landline, a Christmas story, at the beginning of summer, and I read Liars, a story about life on a summer island, during my Christmas break. So while I enjoyed the story, I feel I would have enjoyed it more, and it would have its full effect, if I read it under the summer sun instead of during a winter storm. I would recommend this novel to anyone who loves a romance with a bit of mystery, as Lockhart was inspired by Gillian Flynn, the author of Gone Girl, but I would definitely wait until the summer to start reading, you’ll enjoy it more!

[foreverlostinliterature]

[pollyflorence]

Sock Sunday ♥️ //

Mug by Bookworm Boutique

[aseaofquotes]

[aseaofquotes]

Jay Asher, Thirteen Reasons Why

[readingoncloud-nine]

Tales of a Bookworm; Entry #42 - (Return To) Summer Series #5

Will Grayson, Will Grayson

By John Green and David Levithan 

Successful authors John Green and David Levithan team up to write the story of what happens when two Will Graysons find each other by chance on a Friday night in Chicago.

           On my quest to read every John Green novel ever, Will Grayson, Will Grayson is the final one to date. As well, I’ve read one other Levithan novel, which was also a collaboration with another author, Rachel Cohn: Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares. I love the idea of sharing ideas with another person to create two stories that can tie into one. I also think the idea of perspective is important when it comes to these kinds of novels, and it is interesting to see how events can be interpreted different ways.

           Green’s Will Grayson is learning to overcome his “shut up” rule in order to make the most of life, while Levithan’s Will Grayson is learning to change from being passive to being active, while coping with his depression. And both Will Graysons are learning to care more about the people around them. Tiny Cooper, best friend of Green’s Will and love interest for Levithan’s Will, is a very large, very loud gay character who wants to change the world through theatre. By the end he is finally able to put on his production Tiny Dancer: The Tiny Cooper Story or later, Hold Me Closer.

           Will Grayson, Will Grayson is a didactic story more so than any other Green novel I’ve read, probably without meaning to be. The characters learn what it means to be a friend, they also learn how to show appreciation for their loved ones. From parents, to girlfriends, to best friends, Will and Will learn speak up and how to give and receive support within their relationships. I think most importantly, you’re able to see that love - romantic, platonic or paternal - is a two way street.

           I’d highly recommend you give this one a read, and whatever you take away from Will Grayson, Will Grayson, I guarantee it will be beneficial.

 P.S. If you want to see more of Tiny Cooper, David Levithan wrote a spin-off: Hold Me Closer: The Tiny Cooper Story! that was released earlier this year. It is described as “[a] novel in musical form – or a musical in novel form.

[fer1972]

Tiny Legs Bookmarks by Olena Mysynk (look bookporn, bookpillows,  books0977, macrolit!)

[writerswritecompany]

[readingoncloud-nine]

Tales of a Bookworm; Entry #41

Hollow City

By Ransom Riggs

           Hollow City is the sequel to Ransom Riggs’s New York Time’s best seller Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, which is the last novel that I read before starting this blog. I had the idea to start the blog before I read Riggs’s novel, but at the time couldn’t translate my thoughts into words. But here we are almost three years later, and boy, do I have things to say about Hollow City.

           When I first read Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, I was specifically looking for a stand-alone novel as a summer read. However, Peculiar Children is so perfectly set up to begin a series, and Hollow City achieves the same thing. Hopefully, the third installment will follow suit.

           Peculiar Children starts slow, and I believe Riggs is tries to set a mysterious tone, which, if you sit through the novel, is worth the wait. Jacob, rattled at the death of his grandfather, is in therapy in attempts to recover. It is his not-quite-right therapist that starts his journey to uncover the mystery. So Jacob and his father travel to an island off the coast of Wales where his grandfather grew up. What he discovers is a new world whose inhabitants each have their own peculiar abilities. Once immersed in this world, Jacob discovers his own talent that he inherited from his grandfather. He also learns that Miss Peregrine is able to manipulate time and can create loops to keep the children - and their abilities - alive.

           Hollow City, action packed from the start, begins with Jacob and the children leaving their island and time loop behind in order to save Miss Peregrine, who at the end of the last novel was converted into her bird-form by an army of wights. The story documents their adventure traveling towards war-ridden London and different time loops along the way. They encounter many new things from gypsies to peculiar animals to a freak show and a house covered in ice. The children learn many new things about peculiardom and its history through these encounters.

           I know all of these terms seem so far-fetched, but it is proof that Riggs is able to transport you to another world, almost effortlessly. Many dystopian novels nowadays are post-apocalyptic (I’m looking at you Hunger Games) and don’t get me wrong they’re great (seriously, I do love The Hunger Games) but Riggs has his story set in the past. He creates a new world within an existing world, and perfectly blends history into fiction. I think that is what sets this series apart from other YA dystopias. Originally unaware of the time traveling that would take place, Peculiar Children allows you to suspend your disbelief.

           Another unique feature that Riggs incorporates into his story is the use of photos taken and collected by other people. My dear friend, Andrea, informed me that Riggs owns the largest collection of photographs taken by other people. This concept was what originally drew me into the novel, however I worried that with Hollow City the story would seemed forced in order to make the photos fit. Alas, I don’t feel this happens, and in fact the photos compliment the story rather well - they add another layer of quirkiness to the already peculiar story.