Get Lost in Literature

 Changes are coming to my blog. The biggest change: I'm using it. I haven't been by in awhile, but I'd like to be by more often. I'm still reading and I'm still reviewing, and I find sometimes after work my mind needs a distraction, which has brought me back here. My blog is getting a newer sleeker look, so I'm reorganizing some of my content to fit. Instead of keeping track of my ratings on separate pages, those are now getting added to my labels. I'm working off of a computer with less storage capacity so there will be no homemade graphics...I think this template works fine, anyways. I hope everyone out there is safe and healthy in our strange new world. We've survived the Trump Administration, Covid-19 Pandemic, and things are looking dicey for the Biden Administration as the threat of WW3 looms on the horizon. We've seen royals abdicate for true love, riots against hate, war's end and war's beginning. It's like a post-apocalyptic worl...

“Four hundred billion suns spiraling through space together. Our solar system just one grain on that galactic carousel. The carousel itself a speck in the cosmos. And here I am in this small clearing, on the surface of the earth, as transient and unnoticed to the universe as the dry blades of grass that are poking into my shirt.”  This is the story of Sol. Who lives in a world where modern civilization has been divided into Night-dwellers (Smudges) and Day-dwellers (Rays). When I started this book, I admit I had something like Twilight in mind. I had a stressful week, and I wanted some light hearted, young adult nonsense, that oozed happiness from beginning to end. This did not ooze happiness, it oozed desperation. And I couldn't make myself stop reading it, because I was equally desperate to know what happened next.  Sol, a Smudge, is about to be left alone in the world. Her brother Ciel was reassigned to Day, she has no parents, and the grandfather who raised her is d...

I've been gone but I've not been slacking. Long at last, I finally found a job that was willing to overlook my lack of experience, in favor of training me up. The good news is I thoroughly enjoy the job even if it's possibly the weirdest job I could have found. It allows me to do two things I love: work with my hands and work with my mind. Unfortunately, its been an adjustment; getting up early made me come home an exhausted dragon lady with no time to read (even though the books keep piling up!) In 2015 I participated in the AZ Challenge. I haven't decided yet if I will repeat the feat this year. I also set out to read 30 books. I read 14 instead. I started Short Story Sunday, which like this blog has remained obviously inactive (but I remain confident in its purpose). I've finally got a handle on my working hours, which is good because its the First Day of the New Year and I'm excited to be accessing abilities and setting goals for 2016. This year I...

"To Harry Potter -- the boy who lived!" Strange things are happening in the suburbs of England, all over town, all over the countryside, when Harry Potter is left on the doorstep of his Uncle's house. Harry Potter is lone survivor of a murder plot, left in the care of relatives, to live out his childhood in relative normalcy. On his eleventh birthday, letters start arriving, inviting him to enroll in an unusual school... Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I have long regarded this story one of the best pieces of children's literature to come out of the 90's, I think my grandkids will be reading it, and I think someday it will be taught in schools.  It has the themes we've been brought up to expect in children's lit: made up words to add an air of silliness, a few funny rhymes, a child from a broken home who wants to do what is right. (See my late night ramblings on OrphanLit  Here ) Additionally, the story adheres to the rules set down for f...

I've been having trouble focusing, having trouble reading. I took a step back, and decided to relax with some old friends. Which led me to pick up a Harry Potter book and subsequently to a decision and a breakthrough. The decision of course, was if I was reading the series again for the umpteenth time, I really ought to come up with some kick ass reasons as to why the story is so good. The breakthrough, came when thinking about things that make HP standout. One of the things, isn't how it's different, it's how it's alike. I want to examine (or ramble about) patterns. The most common theme in young adult media is a protagonist from a broken home. It occurs in Harry Potter, but if you're a movie fan, maybe you notice that Disney built its entire franchise upon this idea. Neglected, belittled, abandoned, or orphaned, children from broken homes tend to do really well in mainstream media. Even if an individual observer comes from a loving family, these stories of t...

Ever heard of Jeff Kinney?  Well, Jeff Kinney bought an abandoned building last year, that was destined to be bulldozed flat, with the dream of turning it into a bookstore and Café. He made that dream a reality and just had the grand opening of  An Unlikely Story , which went from the ugliest building to the prettiest building on the street.  The only thing beautiful enough to compete with the blue and gold façade that looks similar to old encyclopedia bindings lined up, was the irresistible smell inside: new book smell and fresh coffee. Jeff Kinney is a brilliant mind, not because I read the books (I haven't), but because he's filling in a massive gap.   There was a time, when I could drive 10 minutes any direction and wind up at a Borders Bookstore... Borders who basically committed suicide, when they promoted reading tablets and e-books but failed to up the price of books, and miscalculated how much inventory they could move when digital down...

"His first instinct was to leave without being seen, and this puzzled him. He was a federal agent with the full authority of the United States government. This meant people had to do what he said. Even nurses and doctors. They didn’t want him to leave? Tough shit." Special Agent Ethan Burke of the US Secret Service, wakes up in the woods outside of a quiet little town called Wayward Pines. He's been in an accident and he's having trouble with his memory. He knows he needs a hospital and somewhere to stay, but he can't find his wallet... or a working telephone. The longer Ethan stays in Wayward Pines, the more he realizes the town's got a secret, and the residents will kill to protect it. I know this book was big when it came out. I downloaded a sample from Amazon and passed judgement the same day; the writing was simple, and quick to the point. This was light reading dressed up as horror. There's nothing wrong with that, but at the time I'd want...