Meg Cabot is the queen of cute. The Princess Diaries have been a huge success across the nation. She has penned some adult titles that seem to do well, also. She left the cute genre to do some darker stuff like The Mediator series. Airhead seems to fall somewhere between The Princess group and The Mediator series.
Our main character, Emerson, likes video games. She isn't popular. She isn't into fashion and beauty. She has a best friend that she is secretly in love with.
When a jumbo tron TV falls on her, through a quirky series of events, Em ends up dying. However, a brain transplant moves her brain into Super-Model Nikki Howard's body. Odd circumstances for sure. So now this down-to-earth, scholarly lady is transported into the world of high fashion, love triangles, and being an emancipated minor.
This is part one of a series. The ending is a little abrupt. Even though it was pretty much fluff fiction, I will be interested to see where this series goes. Part II is due out May 5th, 2009.
Watch the Airhead trailer here!!
Sunday, December 14, 2008
I devoured The Devouring by Simon Holt
I started this book on Saturday morning. It came from Amazon late Friday night and I didn't have time to start it then. So Saturday morning when I came downstairs, it was waiting for me all shiny and new.
From the very first chapter, I was hooked.
I couldn't do laundry, cook, or clean (tongue in cheek), I could only DEVOUR Simon Holt's latest offering: The Devouring. If you have ever heard someone say: I don't like to read...then put this book in their hand.
It is horror, but it is somewhat more plausible than the vampire genre. Based on what we know of human nature, The Vours make a very good explanation for why evil exists in the world. You see, Vours take over your mind. They send you to whatever your own personal hell is (oddly enough, the main character and I share a firm dislike for spiders...making this a challenge to get through for me)...and you live in that personal hell forever while the Vour masquerades as you.
Creepy context.
The plot is compelling like crazy. You won't be able to resist this odd world that Holt has created. It is an excellent lesson in hope, however, hidden amongst the horrific events that unfold.
From the very first chapter, I was hooked.
I couldn't do laundry, cook, or clean (tongue in cheek), I could only DEVOUR Simon Holt's latest offering: The Devouring. If you have ever heard someone say: I don't like to read...then put this book in their hand.
It is horror, but it is somewhat more plausible than the vampire genre. Based on what we know of human nature, The Vours make a very good explanation for why evil exists in the world. You see, Vours take over your mind. They send you to whatever your own personal hell is (oddly enough, the main character and I share a firm dislike for spiders...making this a challenge to get through for me)...and you live in that personal hell forever while the Vour masquerades as you.
Creepy context.
The plot is compelling like crazy. You won't be able to resist this odd world that Holt has created. It is an excellent lesson in hope, however, hidden amongst the horrific events that unfold.
Monday, December 8, 2008
Burn by Suzanne Phillips
There are tons of book out there on bullying and the effects of such actions. Jodi Piccoult's Nineteen Minutes does an amazing job of explaining the psyche and what happens. Raider's Night by Lipstyle talks about mob mentality.
Suzanne Phillips did an equally good job of writing the book Burn. In this novel our main character, Cameron, is 14. He comes from a home that had a domestic abuse problem. His mother has since left that situation, but it's still a part of who Cameron is. He can't seem to find happiness, he has become more and more isolated as his freshman year has worn on. Anyone he becomes friends with is accused of being gay, events all of which keep piling one on top of the other.
His new friend, SciFi, is beaten up so badly for befriending Cameron, that he ends up in the hospital. And Cameron, who was absent for the beating that was doled out to SciFi, meets terror in the boys locker room.
He is held down, pantsed, and the "Red Coats" take pictures of his personal parts. These photos are then uploaded to the Internet.
Later these boys are arrested, but the damage has been done.
And Cameron, much like a person with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, just wanders through the next few days. He ends up burning himself when he starts a forest fire on purpose - just so he can feel in control of an event. He also ends up killing a classmate...which is the path that Phillips leads us down, forcing us to examine our own role in bullying.
If you watch, you are a part of it.
If you participate, you are a part of it.
If you stand up against it - maybe you save a life. Maybe that life is your own?
Interesting food for thought!
Phillips wrote a very compelling story about a dark time in life.
She did an excellent job with character development, with selecting a cover that will sell, and with telling a story that we could all stand to hear/read.
Suzanne Phillips did an equally good job of writing the book Burn. In this novel our main character, Cameron, is 14. He comes from a home that had a domestic abuse problem. His mother has since left that situation, but it's still a part of who Cameron is. He can't seem to find happiness, he has become more and more isolated as his freshman year has worn on. Anyone he becomes friends with is accused of being gay, events all of which keep piling one on top of the other.
His new friend, SciFi, is beaten up so badly for befriending Cameron, that he ends up in the hospital. And Cameron, who was absent for the beating that was doled out to SciFi, meets terror in the boys locker room.
He is held down, pantsed, and the "Red Coats" take pictures of his personal parts. These photos are then uploaded to the Internet.
Later these boys are arrested, but the damage has been done.
And Cameron, much like a person with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, just wanders through the next few days. He ends up burning himself when he starts a forest fire on purpose - just so he can feel in control of an event. He also ends up killing a classmate...which is the path that Phillips leads us down, forcing us to examine our own role in bullying.
If you watch, you are a part of it.
If you participate, you are a part of it.
If you stand up against it - maybe you save a life. Maybe that life is your own?
Interesting food for thought!
Phillips wrote a very compelling story about a dark time in life.
She did an excellent job with character development, with selecting a cover that will sell, and with telling a story that we could all stand to hear/read.
Monday, December 1, 2008
Once Again to Zelda
So I have a bit of a compulsive reading habit that is sometimes paired with a compulsive shopping habit...which is how I ended up with "Once Again to Zelda: The Stories Behind Literature's Most Intriguing Dedications" by Marlene Wagman-Geller.
It was recommended by Real Simple Magazine, I believe, and I thought it might be kind of interesting.
Turns out I was right!!
If you need a Christmas gift for anyone who likes books, has ever read books, etc...this is an intriguing little volume.
Each title, author, and dedication is given. That introduction is followed by a + or - 4 page explanation of the dedication and the circumstances that surround it. Absolutely fascinating!! I highly recommend stuffing someone's stocking with this little ditty!
It was recommended by Real Simple Magazine, I believe, and I thought it might be kind of interesting.
Turns out I was right!!
If you need a Christmas gift for anyone who likes books, has ever read books, etc...this is an intriguing little volume.
Each title, author, and dedication is given. That introduction is followed by a + or - 4 page explanation of the dedication and the circumstances that surround it. Absolutely fascinating!! I highly recommend stuffing someone's stocking with this little ditty!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
