State of Mind

With a new semester at a new school and living in a new apartment, I'm beat. When I'm not in class I don't feel like doing anything besides sleeping. That means I have no energy left to read for pleasure or to write about what I'm reading, and that makes me feel sluggish and not my normal self (kinda like going through a day without your morning beverage of choice.)

Which is one of the weird things about college, it's marketed as the time in your life where you discover what you're good at and what you enjoy, but it also makes it impossible to do those things. And I know the next year is going to be even busier with school, and then after that I have at least two years of grad school.

Thinking about all of this time that I won't have the energy or free time to do something that I truly enjoy has left me a little depressed with a "why even bother to read, I only have twenty free minutes" attitude, But I think the best cure for this problem is to... read!

To get myself out of this slumpy mindset, I plan on rereading some of my favorite books, After finishing the book I'm reading now, (Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas which is amazing but almost six hundred pages long!) I plan to pick up the rest of the books on my rereads of 2014 list (You can see my mid-year update here.) So that means I will be reading one of my all time favorite books The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath. Not only is this one of my favorite books, but it fits my situation all too perfectly right now, Esther I feel ya girl! My second reread I have planned is The Rules of Civility by Amor Towles. 

Knowing that I plan to reread some of my favorite books helps motivate me to read with those extra twenty minutes that I would previously use to just lay in bed.

What do you do to get out of a reading slump or even a life slump?
Leave me your tips!

Top Ten Tuesday: Five Underrated Books in Two Genres

This week's theme is the top underrated books in a genre of your choice. I thought I would split this up between my two favorite genres that I read, Young Adult and Classics. Now I'm not using a real professional or specific definition of the word underrated. If I haven't seen the book around in the bookosphere, then I'm counting it as underrated. I've also included the number Goodreads ratings so you can see how many times the book has been rated there.

Hosted by: The Broke and The Bookish 

YOUNG ADULT and MIDDLE GRADE 

 

1. Death Cloud, Andrew Lane 3,448 ratings on Goodreads
This is the first book in the Young Sherlock Holmes series. These books are about a teenage Sherlock and how he first got into sleuthing. These books are really fun because they line up so well with the original Sherlock stories, and Lane provides possible origins for Holmes' interests and methods. There are four books out in this series so far. I talk a little more about this book in my Sherlock filled post.  

2. The Boyfriend List, e. Lockhart  16,263 ratings on Goodreads 

I have been hearing lots of buzz about e. Lockhart's newest novel We Were Liars but I haven't heard a lot of about this book, which is one of her older works. This is the first book in a four book series about Ruby Oliver. I read this book a long time ago, I'm pretty sure I was in middle school actually, but I remember thinking it was really funny. I have only read the first one, but have been considering reading the rest in the series sometime soon. 

3. The Shadow Club, Neal Shusterman 1,073 ratings on Goodreads

Shusterman is well known for his Unwind series, but I haven't heard much about this book which is part of a dualology. One of my teachers read us the two books in sixth grade, though I would consider it young adult and not middle grade, and I loved both of them. The second book is The Shadow Club Rising.

 

4. Peter and the Star Catchers, Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson  61,000 ratings on Goodreads

I know a lot of people enjoy middle grade series, and I highly recommend this one. This is a spin off of Peter Pan written by the grandson of Peter Pan's original author J.M. Barrie. How cool is that?! There are five books out in the series, and although I have not finished the series yet, I'm very eager too. The first book presents the origin story of Peter Pan, Neverland, Captain Hook, Tinker Belle, and the Lost Boys.   

5. Time Stops for no Mouse , Micheal Hoeye 2,022 ratings on Goodreads

I would consider this book to be middle grade as well. I read this while I was in middle school and it was one of the first times I remember being impressed by a book. It is a bit of a mystery story with a mouse for the main character, and he is a very clever mouse indeed. This is the first in a four book series. I have read the first two, and were unaware that there was more in the series. I may have to revisit these books.The last book in this series only has 312 ratings on Goodreads! 

CLASSICS 

 

6. Passing, Nella Larson 350 ratings on Goodreads

Will I ever stop mentioning this book? Probably not! I love this book, and I want everyone to read it. Written during the Harlem Renaissance this is the story of two black women who are friends, one is living in the black community, the other is passing as a white women with a white husband unaware of her heritage. The ending of this book is so great!  Passing review

7. In Our Time, Ernest Hemingway 11,856 ratings on Goodreads 

While I don't necessarily approve of Hemingway's treatment of women, both in and out of fiction, the man can write a great short story. This is a collection of short pieces of fiction that all connect to each other through vignettes that appear at the start of each story. More on this work here. 

8. Tender is the Night, F. Scott Fitzgerald 56,006 rating on Goodreads

Now I know there is nothing underrated about Fitzgerald, but a lot of people read Gatsby and then quit. While Gatsby is his masterpiece, this book is excellent as well. I read this after reading Gatsby and this book is what cemented Fitzgerald as one of my favorite authors. The man can write messed up and miserable characters like no one's business. 

 

9. Pygmalion, George Bernard Shaw 53,442 ratings on Goodreads

This is probably the most well-known book on my list, but I still feel that it is underrated, This is the play that the movie My Fair Lady was based off of. If you liked the movie read this. George Bernard Shaw would have been furious with the ending of My Fair Lady, This play is a great piece of feminist literature and Eliza Doolittle is a much stronger character in the play then she is in the movie. 

10. The Fox, D.H. Lawrence  1,032 ratings on Goodreads

This is the only work I have read by Lawrence, but I am eager to read more. Lawrence claimed to understand women more than women understood themselves, which makes me very eager to read his works and find out if I agree with him or not, which I'm pretty sure I already don't agree with his outrageous statement. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed this novella by him. It had really powerful symbols and really powerful writing. 

Recently Read: Midwinterblood

Author: Marcus Sedgwick
Genre: Young Adult
Year Published: 2013
Page Count: 262
Rating: 5/5

Midwinterblood by Marcus Sedgwick is the Micheal L. Printz award winner for 2013. I had never read a book by Sedgwick, so this was my first experience with his writing.

This book does not contain a synopsis anywhere on the cover or inside. I went into this book with no idea what the plot was, and I recommend that you do the same. The atmosphere of this book is so mysterious, and I think the publishers and authors worked extra hard to keep it that way, so who am I to ruin their hard work. I will tell you, that this book takes place in many different time periods that all come together in the end of the book, I don't want to go into too much detail about this book because I don't want to ruin the mysteriousness for you, so this review may seem brief, but know that I highly recommend this book. 

I LOVED this book. I was so impressed by the writing, the plot, and the way that the plot evolved and unfolded. This book is very unique and is not like any other young adult book that I have read before. As I was reading this, I thought that fans of John Corey Whaley's Where Things Come Back would enjoy this book, because of the unique way that the plot unfolds in both of those books. The atmosphere of this book was so mysterious and beautiful. As soon as I finished this book I had a thousand ideas of how to read this book in a classroom setting and a thousand things I wanted to discuss with others who had read the book.

One thing that I don't like about this book is the cover. The girl in a fancy dress will make male readers hesitant to pick it up, or they will just glance over it in the bookstore or library because they will assume it won't interest them. But this book will appeal to every reader, so don't judge this book by its cover.  

I'm always confident that I will enjoy the Printz award winners and nominee books that I pick up, and I plan to make my way through the list very soon. Marcus Sedgwick's Revolver was a past nominee for the award, and the next book of his that I plan to read. 

Let me know your favorite Printz award winner or nominee! I will be compiling a list of the Printz books I have read and reviewed very soon.  

Stacking the Shelves: New Semester Treat

I treated myself this week as a reward for surviving the first week of a new semester at a new school, and I'm really excited with the books I bought.
Hosted by: Tygna's Reveiws

 

The Kiss of Deception by Mary E Pearson has been on my radar since its release and was on my top ten books I want to read but don't own yet list. This book sounds action packed, with an element of mystery and romance. And might I add, has a gorgeous cover. This is the first in what I believe will be a longer series. 

Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas was one of my most anticipated releases of this year! This is another gorgeous book and is the third in the Throne of Glass series. I'm sure this book is just as packed with action and plot twist as the other books in this series have been, it's rather large so I think a lot is going to happen!

August Wrap-Up

August was a busy month for me. I moved, started school, and had a quarter life crisis (no really, I did.) I feel like reading took a little bit of a back seat this month, but I still managed to read some really great things in August. I'm hoping to read lots in September, but that depends on my school schedule.

Reviews:
On the Road, Jack Kerouac
Losing It, Cora Carmack
If I Stay, Gayle Forman
The Summer Trilogy, Jenny Han
Grasshopper Jungle, Andrew Smith
Boxers, Gene Luen Yang
Saints, Gene Luen Yang

Other Posts:
Stacking the Shelves: A Mishmash
TTT: Classics for non-classic readers
TTT: Books I'm on the fence about
The Power of the First Line
Recently Watched: The Grand Budapest Hotel
TTT:Books I've Been Recommended
Hot Authors
Stacking the Shelves: You guessed it, more used books
TTT: Books I want to read but don't own yet

In exciting news, my Hot Authors post was featured as the most clicked on link on The Steadfast Reader's Spread the Love Link up. You should go check out her blog and her link up, both are great!

Top Ten Tuesday: Who's Sitting at my Lunch Table- Author Edition

This week's TTT topic is the ten literary characters I would want sitting at my lunch table, but I'm going to change this to the top ten authors I would want to sit at my lunch table.  Happy back to school season! 

Hosted by: The Broke and the Bookish

 1. Oscar Wilde

Duh! I would marry Oscar Wilde if I could. I have said this countless times but I love Oscar Wilde, both his works and his outrageous personality. He would be endless entertaining at a lunch table. 

2. Ralph Waldo Emerson

He is so wise, everything that comes out of his mouth sounds like a Chinese Proverb or a new philosophy to live your life by. I would love to have a conversation with him!  

3. William Shakespeare 

I want to discover the real Shakespeare. Was he really a women? Was he gay? Did he write his own plays or did someone else write some or all of them? How is he so good at iambic pentameter? Was he an alien? Clearly I have a lot of questions for the guy.

4. Sylvia Plath

I would love to get to know Plath. I want to hear how she forms her conversations and if they are as beautiful as her poetry and prose. I want to get to know the real Sylvia, and know her for more than just her pain. 

5. Edna St. Vincent Millay

Edna St. Vincent Millay is one cool chick. The feminist tones in her poetry are so clear and done so well. I would love to hear the stories that inspired her poems and hear her talk about the writing process, and just meet the women behind the powerful, sassy poetry.  

6. Maureen Johnson 

The books by Johnson that I have read crack me up, so I would love to have lunch with her. I bet she's so fun and would be full of funny and entertaining stories. Plus I want to know why the third book in her Shades of London series is taking so stinking long to be released!

7. John Green

I enjoy Green's personality and would love to discuss classic lit with him, as he is so well read. And hopefully he would bring Hank, who I have a little crush on :)  

8. Laurie Halse Anderson

I am always impressed by her work and would love to meet her and discuss her work with her. Wintergirls totally took me by surprise and I need to read more of her works. 

9. David Levithan 

I always enjoy and laugh at Levithan's works. I would love to talk to him about how much of a positive impact his books are capable of having on young readers, and I would love to discuss using his books in my future classroom.  

10. Sarah J. Maas

I love the Throne of Glass series, and want to talk to Maas about what's going to happen next! She has a great imagination and the series has a great origin story that I would love to hear more about. 

Recently Read: Vile Bodies

Author: Evelyn Waugh
Genre: Classic/Satire
Year Published: 1930
Page Count: 321
Rating: 3.5/5

Vile Bodies is my first Waugh novel and one of his most popular novels. It took me a lot longer to finish this book than it should have, but I blame that on the first week of the new semester.

This novel revolves around the "Bright Young Things" of London in the 1920's. At the heart of this satirical piece is the on-again-off-again engagement of Adam and Nina. This book is a permanent party where gossip runs wild.

This book is a satirical take on the pre WWII generation of London, with their carefree attitudes and blind optimism. This book really illustrates the generation gap that the two World Wars caused between the old and the young. After WWI the generation that was coming of age started moving towards living life for happiness and pleasure instead of just living life to survive. Practicality took a back seat to pleasure. The first World War had a very large impact on the whole world, but the young generation that witnessed the war first hand was particularly effected and shaken up by the violence they had scene and the lack of solid reasoning behind the violence. This book really highlights that gap, and the almost dooming and dreadful optimism that plagued the generation coming of age after the war. Page 183-184 in my copy of the book (near the middle of chapter eight) does this brilliantly. This is where this generation is referred to as Bright Young Things by an older gentlemen who is commenting on the youth and their difference in attitude from his generation. This discussion of the youth is my favorite scene from the book.

This book reminded me of the party scene in Breakfast at Tiffany's on repeat. The parties are constant and always a big ball of confusion, the atmosphere was great, and I immediately wanted a film version of this book. (Which there is, Bright Young Things which was directed by Stephen Fry and released in 2003, I need to check this one out.) I enjoyed the humor in this novel, as it was very reminiscent of Oscar Wilde's witty humor, and the cast of characters is crazy and quirky. Every character is outfitted with a ridiculous name and a ridiculous personality to match. The characters can be tricky to keep track of since the list is so long, but as long as you keep track of the main few, you will be just fine.

I think this is a great example of satirical fiction. Everything about this novel contributed to the satirical themes. The tone was chaotic and carefree and a little melancholy at times, much like the tone of prewar London and the plot was somewhat superficial and the characters had no real plans or chances for their future, just like the prewar generation. This book comments on the effect of both World Wars on the older and younger generations as well as the generation gap between the two generations. The demur ending parallels the ending of the young generation's carefree living with the arrival of WWII.

Although I really enjoyed this piece as satirical fiction, I felt pretty neutral about it overall. There were so many characters in this novel that I never really got attached to any of them and the plot wasn't overly exciting. I didn't love this novel as much as I thought I would, but I still enjoyed it.  

I am interested in checking out more of Waugh's works in the future, as I have heard lots of good things about his other novels as well. Next on my list for Waugh is Brideshead Revisited and Decline and Fall.