Reading Icons: Jennifer Lawrence

I could only find one photo of Jennifer Lawrence reading, but I love it so much I had to post it anyway.

"I have a huge responsibility to the fans of this incredible book and I don't take it lightly. I will give everything I have to these movies and to this role to make it worthy of Suzanne Collins' masterpiece." - Jennifer Lawrence, on playing Katniss.

Review: Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard

I've been putting off writing this review for so long because, goddamn, I hated this book. I don't have many nice things to say about it. And you know what they say...

I was really surprised at just how intensely I disliked Pretty Little Liars. I'm completely obsessed with the TV show, and I was expecting the book to have a similar appeal: four pretty friends are tormented by the mysterious 'A', who somehow knows all their secrets and manipulates events to create juicy twists at every turn. But while the basic plot is the same, the book just fell totally flat for me.

Perhaps I would've liked it better if I hadn't seen the TV show first and had nothing to compare it to. But somehow I don't think so. There were so many problems. The pacing felt unbearably slow, and while a lot of stuff happened, it actually felt like not much did. The threats from 'A' were few and way too far between, and the four main characters barely spoke to each other for the majority of the book, creating a sense of disconnection that extended to me as a reader.

This was reinforced by the fact that the girls are all so freaking unlikable. In the show, they're nice girls who sometimes do questionable things, but you root for them because, hey, they're pretty cool. But in the book I just wanted to punch them all in the face. And I'm not generally a violent person.

The access to each of their inner selves through the third person narration does them zero favours. They all come across as superficial, selfish and downright mean. Hanna and Aria were particularly infuriating. If you played a drinking game and took a sip for every time they admired their own looks, you'd get drunk pretty damn fast. This was not only annoying, it was also extremely unrealistic - especially in Hanna's case, since she's supposedly recovering from an eating disorder.

I also didn't like any of the girls' parents. They were shallow, nasty and/or bigotted. There pretty much wasn't a likable character in the whole book. This might have been OK had the plot been more interesting. It's only a short book, but it took me forever to get through because I just wasn't interested.

I'll give the next book a go, as I've been told it gets better. And I still really, really want to know who A is. But I don't know that I can sit through 10 more books of this.

Rating: 2/5

Bookish Buys: Gone Reading

Gone Reading is an online store that sells cool bookish merchandise, which is enough for me to feature them here. But there's a bonus - all their profits go to literacy-related charities! I love it. Here are some of my fave products:

Jane Austen scented candles (do you think it would smell like Darcy?! teehee)

Eat. Sleep. Read. Bookmark

Macaroon bookmark

Books to Check Out journal

Little Book Holder

My Book Boyfriend: Jonah Griggs

Jonah Mother Effing Griggs. What can I say? He's arguably Melina Marchetta's most popular hero. A teenage army cadet and leader of one "gang" in On the Jellicoe Road, he's tough and at times brutal, but he's also incredibly brave, caring and passionate. I pictured him as Liam Hemsworth.

Swoon-worthy Quotes

“How does Jonah Griggs get to be a ten? He sits on a train with me when we’re fourteen and he weeps, tearing at his hair, bashing his head with the palm of his hand, self-hatred pouring from him like blood from a gut wound in a war movie, and for the first time in my whole life I have a purpose.I am the holder of the grief and pain and guilt and passion of Jonah Griggs and as we sit huddled on the floor of the carriage, he allows me to hold him, to say ‘Shh, Jonah, it wasn’t your fault.’ While his body still shakes from the convulsions, he takes hold of my hand and links my fingers with his and I feel someone else’s pain for the first time I can remember.”

“When I turn around, he cups my face in his hands and he kisses me so deeply that I don’t know who is breathing for who, but his mouth and tongue taste like warm honey. I don’t know how long it lasts, but when I let go of him, I miss it already."

“'If you weren’t driving, I’d kiss you senseless.' I tell him
He swerves to the side of the road and stops the car abruptly.
'Not driving anymore.'”

“I don't want to let go, because tonight I'm not looking for anything more than being part of him. Because being part of him isn't just anything. It's kind of everything.”

My Book Boyfriend is hosted by Missie at The Unread Reader.

Pash, Pick or Pass: Marchetta's Men

That's right, Pash, Pick or Pass is back! And it's a doozy...


The contenders

-Jonah Griggs from On the Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta, a fiercesome army cadet with a damaged past and a tender heart (le sigh). Played in my head by Liam Hemsworth.

-Tom Mackee from Saving Francesca and The Piper's Son by Melina Marchetta. He's a blokey boy who can proudly burp the alphabet, but he also has a sensitive side (hello, muso). Played in my head by Benedict Samuel.

-Jacob Coote from Looking For Alibrandi by Melina Marchetta. Another rough-around-the-edges-but-deep-down-really-sweet guy (they seem to be a MM speciality!), he's a walking contradiction. A totally swoon-worthy one. Played by Kick Gurry in the movie.

My choices

Pash: Jonah. I love his passion. And his hotness. But he's one of those characters that is so obviously meant for another (Taylor) I just couldn't interfere. Much.


Pick: Tom. Maybe it was being in his head for half of The Piper's Son, but I feel more connected to him than the others. Once he gets his shit together I reckon he'd make a pretty decent pick.


Pass: Sorry, Jacob, you were my first MM love, and I'll always have a special place in my heart for you but... you've been eclipsed.

Come on MM fans, you know you want to play! Who would you pash, pick and pass?

Reading Icons: Lucille Ball

"In life, all good things come hard, but wisdom is the hardest to come by." - Lucille Ball

April TV Addict Reading Challenge

Leave your 2012 TV Addict Reading Challenge links for April here!

March in Review

March was another slow month on the blog for me. I feel like I've lost my mojo lately. I guess I've just been busy. And tired. And slightly freaking out that my wedding is in six weeks and I still have to order rings and cake and flowers and jewellery and ohmygod...

Anyhoo. About the blog.

I reviewed...

• The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern (fave of the month).
• Wonder by R.J. Palacio.
• The Double Shadow by Sally Gardner.
• The Hunger Games movie.

I also read Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard and The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum, but due to aforementioned lack of time and mojo, haven't gotten around to reviewing them yet. Hopefully that will be sorted this week.

Other fun stuff: I celebrated my first blogoversary; admired Johnny Depp and the cast of Pretty Little Liars reading; had fun with Bitches in Bookshops; wanted to buy The Hunger Games merch and Babylit; and discussed books I was forced to read for school.

Here's to a more productive April!

Talking Point: Books You Read For School

Alison Can Read and Rebecca Books both recently posted about the books they were forced to read for school, and I thought I'd join in on the fun! I've started with Year 7 because, frankly, that's about as far back as I can remember (also, do you even have assigned reading in primary school? I remember "quiet reading" time where we could read our own books but that's about it). This is definitely not a complete list, but I guess these are the texts that made a dent.

Year 7

Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare: This was the year after Baz Luhrmann's movie came out and I was still totally obsessed with it - and Leonardo Dicaprio - so I was thrilled to be studying it. I even brought in my own copy of the play (which I had because it was attached to the screenplay, which I had because I was THAT obsessed with the movie - and with Leo). I was subsequently yelled at by the English teacher for not reading the same copy everyone else in the class was reading. And that's about all I remember from those lessons.

A Fortunate Life by Albert Facey: I remember being mildly fascinated but mostly bored. I should probably reread it as an adult.

Year 8

Lockie Leonard, Scumbuster by Tim Winton: Now this was a book I could get behind. I loved the Lockie books back in the day - especially all the young romance, pashing and even the odd bit of petting. So scandalous!


Year 9 

Macbeth by William Shakespeare: I actually enjoyed this play. I didn't enjoy the craptastic audio version we had to listen to for weeks - the experience has put me off trying audio books to this day.

The Silver Sword by Ian Serraillier: I wouldn't say I enjoyed this book, but I certainly valued it. It opened my eyes to the Holocaust for the first time and provided a chilling but insightful account of life for a group of Jewish kids during World War II.


Year 10

Brother in the Land by Robert Swindells: This book gave me nightmares for a long, long time. I found it so disturbing - I still shudder to think about the plot. It didn't help that we were reading it around the same time that the September 11 terrorist attacks happened, and I was petrified terrorists were going to attack us with nucleur bombs. Fun times. 

Year 11

As You Like It by William Shakespeare: The only one of Shakespeare's comedies I've ever read. Judged purely on this, I prefer his tragedy.

Year 12

King Lear by William Shakespeare: This was probably my favourite Shakespeare in high school. It's such a twisted, awesome tale. It was also the one I studied in the most depth, seeing as it was a whole unit for the HSC.

Emma by Jane Austen: Studying Emma was my gateway into reading Austen. I absolutely adored it - and the fact that we also got to study Clueless because it was based on the book. Definitely my favourite English unit from school! I enjoyed it so much I immediately read Pride and Prejudice. I told my English teacher, thinking he'd be impressed, but he just scolded me for not reading widely enough. Note: this was the same teacher who yelled at me in Year 7 for bringing in my own edition of Romeo and Juliet. What a guy.

What were your favourite (or least favourite) "forced" reads from school?

Bookish Buys: Babylit

I saw these on Reading Teen and just had to post about them. Babylit is a range of books that are, well, baby versions of classic literature. They are board books for ages one and up. I think it's a wonderful idea and the books themselves are so freaking adorable. The only one I'm not sure about is Romeo & Juliet - I'm guessing the original ending is absent, but still, I don't know that it's a story I'd want to introduce kids to at a young age. I love the others though - especially Pride and Prejudice, of course!

Check out previews of the books - and/or purchase them - here.