Booking Through Thursday – Live in

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On BTT this week:

If you had to choose to live within a novel, which would it be?

This is a difficult question since I do read books which are realistic and fantastical.

When I was a child, I wanted to be Wendy in Peter Pan and Lucy in Lion, the Witch in the Wardrobe. I also really liked the idea of having a daemon in the His Dark Materials trilogy. Though the problem with fantasy-adventure books is how dangerous they are for the characters.

Also, I read a lot of historical fiction, but if anyone ever asks me if I would go back in time, I still wouldn’t know what era to choose. All things in the past had their good (clothing, chivalry, food) and bad (lack of women’s rights, lack of toilet paper). For example, I really like Pride and Prejudice and most people seem lovely in it, but I can’t imagine wanting to live as a Regency woman.

Alright, I think it’s best to stick with the children’s books so Harry Potter post-Voldemort and the world of the Winnie the Pooh.

What about you?

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The Maladjusted by Derek Hayes

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Maladjusted by Derek Hayes

The Maladjusted is an anthology of short stories by new writer Derek Hayes. I don’t read a lot of short stories, but I average at least a couple of these kind of books a year. I like the format, but I prefer novels since I like to get invested in the characters and follow them along. A good short story usually hooks you in quickly to be attached. There isn’t much time to drag out your indifference. I found most of the stories in this book fairly interesting. The settings usually had a good amount of detail.

The author is based in Toronto and many of the stories are set in the city. While I have not lived in Toronto, I’ve been there and know many people from there. The stories do capture the sense of the city, its people, and a certain Canadian urbanity.

The stories I liked were the eponymous “The Maladjusted”, “A Wonderful Holiday” set in Vietnam
“A Feel for America” set in Taipei, and “Shallowness”. I like travel stories so I liked the details in those set abroad. Hayes has an attention for smell which is interesting as well.

All in all, I’ll be interested if the author writes a full length novel since I think the writing shows promise. I recommend this for Torontonians and other urban Canadians especially.

Disclaimer: This book was sent to me by the author. I was not paid for this post and all views expressed are mine alone and not influenced by the author or publisher. For more on my review policy, please see and contact me here.

Read May 13th, 2012.

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Sunday Salon: Social Networks

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Sunday Salon

Another busy week, and only today to read. I’m reading Derek Hayes’s The Malaadjusted today.

Since I am learning a lot about social media these days. I have been thinking about the social networks for book bloggers as well.

First of all, I’ve been thinking about switching my commenting system. I use the WP one now and I like it, but sometimes I think maybe it would be better to switch over to Disqus (which I have an account for and like fine) or Livefyre which is new to me, but attuned to other people’s social networks. What do you think? Have you used these on your blog and do you like the format of them? Do you think they allow easier engagement on blogs?

Secondly, there are the book social network sites. Since I am online so much, I have had accounts on sites such as AllConsuming.net, Shelfari, LibraryThing, BookCrossing and GoodReads. I joined most of these in their earlier years, but I have not kept up with most of them. Do you still use any of these sites? Which do you like the most?

I have found that GoodReads now leads the pack as a book sharing site and have decided to revive my Good Reads account. I even imported a list from AllConsuming, but it created over 100 duplicates. Deleting the duplicates on GoodReads is a pain. I have left it as it is easy for now and with many of my books unread. I doubt I will add reviews either since I do most my book reviewing here. To be honest, I’m a bit too lazy to keep up with these kind of sites but do like to lurk on them once in awhile.

If you are curious, this is my GoodReads account:

Have a good week, everyone!

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Booking Through Thursday In or Out

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On BTT this week, Heidi asks:

Do you consider yourself an extrovert or an introvert?

I am an introvert, big time. Not to say I am antisocial or that I don’t like hanging with people, but I am used to being on my own at times. Sometimes, I need to be on my own to read, watch a movie or just destress. Sometimes I find it a bit tiring to be in big groups. Reading and introverts go well together I’ve found.

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The Walking People by Mary Beth Keane

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Walking People

When I read the back book summary of this book, I expected something a little different than what I got. Sure, I knew it would on the literary side. That there would be discussion of families, immigration, destiny by geography and some family secret. The back cover made it seem like there would be some aftermath to when the secret was revealed. Book cover summaries are usually not the best, but I had not heard about this book at all. It was slow to get into, and I don’t think I really got into it until halfway through the book. I didn’t find anything shocking, but I went back on forth on how I felt about Greta. Ultimately, I found most of the characters realistic. I really liked Michael and wanted to hear more about him and his point of view. Overall, I found some nice moments in this book. It was not the most exciting book, but now that I am reviewing it, I do think it was well written. I think it would interest people of Irish American background, but also those like me to have experienced immigration in their families.

Read May 6-7th, 2012.

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Monthly Movies April 2012

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The Hunger Games (03 04 2012) – In theatres, see post here.

MuppetsThe Muppets (09 04 2012) – I use to watch “The Muppet Show” as a kid and have seen a couple of the Muppet movies (love a Muppets Christmas Carol) so it was a given to watch this. Additionally, I like Jason Segal’s work in both HIMYM and Forgetting Sarah Marshall. This movie had its moments; I usually like Kermit et al., but of the human cast, one highlight was Chris Cooper. I like him in almost everything. It was light and good to see the muppets again.

CCThe Castle of Cagliostro (13, 15 04 2012) – The original Japanese version with English subtitles. I saw this partially on a road trip. I got it from the library because it was directed by Hayao Miyazaki. Actually, this was his feature film directorial debut. Made in 1979, this film does not boast the best animation, but it’s light hearted, fun and has Miyazaki’s touch of story telling tinged with nostalgia, romance and history.

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Sunday Salon: Balancing Act

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Sunday Salon

Today is the first free day I have for reading since last Sunday. I have been taking a Social Media Certificate course at the local college so I am going to school again. It’s taken my time to homework, go to class, and transition from my previous sloth existence.

I have a lot of books from the library to read including a big stack of Georgette Heyer. Not for today though since Walking People by Mary Beth Keane is priority and due Tuesday.

My goal this year was to blog and read more again. I think I’ve done well, but in the last few weeks, I’ve watched less shows, movies, and knit much less than I would have before. That’s the problem with hobbies. I always find there isn’t enough time of day to do all the things that I want.

Do you balance reading with other hobbies and interests? Does reading usually win out?

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Tides of War by Stella Tillyard

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Tides of War

I picked up this novel because I had enjoyed Stella Tillyard’s nonfiction, historical book Aristocrats. She wrote that history book as if it were a novel and I was engaged. As a trained historian, Tillyard’s research would not be in doubt for a book about the Napoleonic wars. Also coming off the Heyer’s A Civil Contract, these two books are set in the exact same time period and even share a few similarities in references to the setting.

While I was satisfied for the ending, I struggled to really enjoy a lot of this book. Do you ever get the sense that some books would be better read at another time in your life or another mood? There was something about this book that I wasn’t in the mood for at the beginning. Maybe i should have put it off longer. The more I read it, the more I realized that this is was not one of the better reads of recent times. Or maybe it was just a bad idea to read a historical novel about war. War and Peace showed me that I tend to glaze over the war parts of the novels. This one had its ugly, dark war moments too. That wouldn’t have been so bad if I had felt more for some of these characters.

There are a lot of characters, both real and fictional. I found it hard to feel or care for most of them until the very end. I couldn’t get a ‘hold’ on them. There were too many and there was
not enough time spent on them to really get a grips on their characterization, motivations and personalities until the very last pages. Some of them I didn’t even give a hoot about. I even became really annoyed with a couple of the characters, as it happens sometimes when indifference languishes on for most of a book. For example, the cast is mostly male and a lot of them are unfaithful jerks (historically accurate I guess?), and those that weren’t didn’t get enough focus in my opinion. I found myself glazing over certain narratives because of my lack of engagement with the characters.

With books and tv/movies, I don’t have to like the characters, but I have to find them interesting and engaging. I want to know more about them. It just seemed with this book, less would have been more in the number of characters. It would have been more pathos and events would have carried more impact if there were fewer of them.

All that said, I learned a couple of things from the history aspects of the novel so that is always good as I love the subject. Secondly, I did care about the endings to the females in the book so it was satisfying even though it was a bit depressing at times that I wondered how the book would end on a hopeful note. Thankfully, it did.

Read April 29th 2012.

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Red Lipsticks part 4: Sephora Rouge Cream Lipstick in The Red

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Sephora The Red

My red lipstick mission is not over even though I did my best to stop. There is a part 5 coming up too because I review two classic Revlon reds. I went mad and bought five lipsticks in one weekend, three of them reds. First, I tackle this Sephora lipstick.

I had read decent reviews for the Sephora Rouge Cream lipsticks. I tried on this lipstick twice in the store before I finally bought it. In the USA, this retails for $12, but in Canada, it is $16 which makes it almost as expensive as a MAC lipstick.

Sephora The Red

Sephora The Red 04 with Neutrogena lip balm and Annabelle Blush lipliner

Still, I couldn’t deny how much I adored this red lipstick, aptly titled The Red 04. It is a true red! I really like wearing it at night. I feel very glamorous in this red; it perks up my face I think. It does not lean too pink, orange, or brown. It looks like a bright Crayola red.

The formula is not the best, but it’s good. It is creamy, good longevity, and great pigmentation. I just wish it were more matte. It smudges a bit, but not very much.

I am not a fan of the packaging. The lid is unnecessarily heavy and clunky. I weighed the base with the lipstick is 13g while the lid is 11g. That’s a bit ridiculous for a lipstick lid since it seems I am buying for plastic more than the actual product. As a comparison, Revlon Super Lustrous lid is 2g and the base and product is 18g; for Lancome, it was 7g lid and 16g product.

Pros:

  • Pigmentation
  • Creamy
  • Decently long lasting
  • Makes teeth less yellow I think because it leans cooler than warm

Cons:

  • Price
  • Packaging
  • Only available at Sephora

Conclusion: This is definitely one of my favourite red lipsticks so far. I just wish the formula was matte and/or the price was different. Still, I think this is a red I’d like to repurchase.

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A Civil Contract by Georgette Heyer

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A Civil Contract

On the heels of Devil’s Club, this book is different in tone, characterization, and pacing. It is Jane Austen like and actually three of Austen novels are referred in the book. The set up is also akin to an Austen novel where there is a poor family and marriage as a way out of that. There are some really amusing supporting characters as well which is reminiscent of Austen. Unlike Austen, the protagonist is a Viscount in need of a rich wife.

This book is about a subtle romance or rather should I say, it’s about two people getting to know each other in a marriage of convenience. It was fascinating to watch two generally good young people enter in a marriage of convenience and grow accustomed to one another. I just can’t think of many stories where that happens and of course, it’s no as prevalent as today so modern stories don’t really feature this kind of theme. Though this kind of contrivance and the novel’s love triangle remind me a lot of Korean dramas.

The narration kept referring to how plain, homelely and down right unpretty Jenny the female lead was. She could not have been that bad and honestly, one can overlook that sort of thing readily, but I guess it is a accurate to that society that they cared so much for her looks and mien. Still, she couldn’t have been that ugly, I’m surprised Heyer didn’t give her some redeeming physical feature other than her smile.

In any case, I don’t think people expecting passionate romance like that of Devil’s Club will be pleased with this novel. It’s more serious, historically rooted (set at the time of Waterloo) and real. The dialogue and the conflict felt very real between the characters at times. A Civil Contract was published in 1961 some thirty years after Devil’s Club so the author herself had matured.

I liked this novel. It was more slow paced, but it was still interesting. I grew fond of the characters; they were all realistically flawed, but good people. I also like unconventional romances so this was right up my alley. I was impressed with the range Heyer showed in both these novels and it has made me a fan. I am now going to go through the rest of her novels.

Read April 24th-25th 2012.

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Booking Through Thursday – Changes

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This week on BTT:

Has a book ever inspired you to change anything in your life, fiction or non-fiction alike?

There have been books I loved, books that I fell in love with, and books that changed my life, and they’re not always the same nor mutually exclusive.

I have read some inspiring books both fiction and non fiction. I don’t know if they have necessarily changed my life in a big way though. I think a lot of good books offer you reflection and introspection on your own life which can be a catalyst for change. That’s one of the best things about reading. I can’t really think of many books that changed my life in a big way, but the act of reading does make one think of things afterwards and that in itself can lead to change big or small. Certainly, my tastes change over time as well.

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