Elena Gilbert, a sophomore in high school, is beautiful and popular. Every girl wants to be her and every guy wants to be with her. She has blonde hair and wears the most fashionable clothes. She’s the Barbie doll with power in Robert E. Lee High School.

But underneath all that perfection and glory, Elena feels empty inside. Her parents had been killed in a road accident and she’s living with her aunt and aunt’s boyfriend. When the mysterious Stefan Salvatore arrives on the first day of school, Elena becomes captivated by him. Just like every other girl in school who has fallen for the handsome, brooding guy.

The shocking thing for Elena was that Stefan completely ignores her. Which guy in their right mind would not look at the beautiful Elena? Or even die for the chance to talk to her? She tries to strike up conversations with Stefan but is only left hurt and disappointed. The question burning in her mind is why doesn’t he like her???

The Awakening is the first book in the Vampire Diaries series. As I read it, it was similar to that of the Twilight books. Elena writes things in her diary. It’s a story of romance between a human girl and a vampire guy. There’s a love triangle involved. I expected it to be as intriguing as Twilight where the story will hold my attention to the end. However, I found it slightly boring although it was a quick and easy read. This book was also published in 1991 so we cannot assume it copied Twilight.

Elena is not a likeable character. She thinks only of herself and will do whatever it takes to get what she wants. On a positive note, she’s a determined sort of girl. She’s strong, defiant and won’t take no for an answer.

On the other hand, the Stefan character is quite dull. He doesn’t do much except try to avoid Elena. She describes his eyes as containing the deepest kind of sadness, the most painful kind of sadness a person can ever have. Stefan’s older brother, Damon is more exciting. Damon’s described as “sexy, dangerous, and driven by an urge for revenge against Stefan, the brother who betrayed him.” When Elena meets Damon, she is surprised to find herself drawn to him. Well, who wouldn’t if he’s such a hot guy?

Do you watch the The Vampire Diaries TV series which is based on these books? I’ve watched a few episodes and noticed differences between book and TV. For instance, Elena on TV is a brunette and she’s not queen bee like the Elena in the book. TV Elena seems much nicer too. Stefan’s the same and Damon would be someone to look out for.

I’ll be looking forward to reading the next book in the series, The Struggle.

The story is narrated through journal writing by 17-year-old Cassandra Mortmain. She intends to capture everything and everyone around her by writing about them in her journal. Her family is poor and they live in an old, rented but fascinating castle called Godsend in the county of Suffolk. Cassandra hopes to improve her writing by jotting down her thoughts and observations religiously in her journal.

Her family is an interesting mix of characters. Cassandra’s father, James Mortmain had a one hit wonder of a book but has ceased writing ever since. Now his family can only wonder if he’s trying to write anything else. Topaz, their stepmother, is described as a stunning woman who loves to play the lute and indulges in nudism to commune with nature. Cassandra has a beautiful older sister, Rose and a younger brother, Thomas. Stephen, the handsome, sensible servant-boy also lives with them and is utterly devoted to Cassandra. He takes extra care of her and showers her with small gifts every now and then.

Cassandra also compares her family’s situation with the Bennet family from Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. She wonders if their luck would be as fortunate as the Bennet sisters whose marriage to men from rich families had helped them rise to a better social status.

When two American brothers arrived unexpectedly at the castle one night, the Mortmain family had hopes that it could bring a good change for them. The Americans who are the Cottons also owned Godsend Castle and thus are the Mortmains’ landlords. Desperate to capture the hearts of the wealthy brothers, Rose behaves in a silly way during their first few encounters. But after a turn of events, they learnt more of one another and became friends.

It was the ultimate good news when Simon Cotton made a marriage proposal to Rose. She accepted it readily as she thought she was in love with him. Cassandra and almost everyone were happy for the newly-engaged couple. But she was puzzled when the other brother, Neil Cotton did not share their joyful sentiments. He pointed out that Rose was only marrying Simon for the money.

However, Simon kisses Cassandra when he visited for a Midsummer Eve family ritual. With it being her first kiss and because she enjoyed being in Simon’s company, she believes to be in love with him. Knowing that the man she loves would be married to her sister, Cassandra carries around with her the heavy weight of her love struck and shattered heart.

The first person point of view is used to narrate the story and by that, the reader sees everything that’s happening from Cassandra’s eyes and can only understand from what she can mentally absorb. She ought to get credit because she has an eye for detail and manages to describe almost everything in the most creative manner. She tends to ramble at times but that’s part of the point of having a journal.

I admit that the book was a slow start for me. It was alright in Chapter One but the pace went slightly downhill after that. It got better with the appearance of the Cotton brothers. They were “fresh” characters who brought life to the story. Meanwhile, Stephen is just so sweet that you couldn’t help but want to knock some sense into Cassandra and tell her that he’s the one for her.

Cassandra’s father is a mystery in the beginning. You would think that it’s sheer laziness as he hasn’t made the effort to do anything to improve the living conditions of his family who are already stuck in poverty. I thought it was ironic that the servant (Stephen) had to take up a second job elsewhere to bring money in. But then he’s already considered as part of the family so that can be overlooked.

All in all, this coming of age novel is beautifully-written and you’ll just bask in the vividness of the descriptions. Follow Cassandra’s journey as she learns about love, life, the people around her and herself. There is also a 2003 movie of the same name, which is based on the book and stars Romola Garai, Rose Byrne and Henry Cavill.

Pssst…..did you know that Dodie Smith also wrote The Hundred and One Dalmatians? I loved that cartoon!

Other reviews: Bending Bookshelf, Things Mean a Lot, ImpishIdea, The Roof is on Phire, The Literary Pursuit

Holden is not your normal teenager. In fact, I do not really know how normal a teenager is. But he certainly is different from the rest as he has already been expelled from a few boarding schools since he has not done well in his studies. He decides to leave school a little earlier and so spends a few days hanging out in New York before going home to face his parents who will be upset to know that he has been kicked out of school again.

The novel is basically Holden’s narration of his time spent in New York during the course of a few days along with his thoughts and opinions of the rest of the world. The hilarious part of the story, for me, was how he considered almost everyone and everything as being phony. His school was a phony, his headmaster was a phony, his parents were phonies, his older brother, D.B.’s a phony. Almost everyone is a phony to him except his younger sister Phoebe, his younger brother Allie who died of leukemia, his friend Jane and these two nuns who he met in New York.

Holden believed that once somebody grows up, he or she automatically loses his or her innocence and consequently becomes a phony in pursuit of materialism. Therefore he wants to be some sort of a catcher who prevents children from falling into the world of all things phony. He wants to help the children preserve their innocence.

As I read the novel, I know why it has been banned so many times since it was published. Profanity is abundant throughout the story as Holden likes to use them a lot. It seems that he uses them frequently to sound mature and to show that he knows what he’s talking about. Unfortunately it only shows his immaturity and unreliability. He tends to digress a lot too as he does not like to stick to one topic.

I really like this novel. It’s written in a conversational manner so you feel as if Holden is speaking to you. He is indeed speaking to somebody – his shrink actually. If you thought that some parts or most of the novel was repetitive, it’s because of Holden who’s suffering from a mental breakdown. Perhaps that’s one reason why he tends to ramble a lot.

After finishing the book, I wondered if it has been adapted into a movie. Guess what, J.D. Salinger has not sold the movie rights to any filmmaker ever since the book’s publication in 1951 so there’s no movie on it. Yet, I think. So far there are some amateur adaptations on YouTube. Do check out this one though. It’s good. This too.

Anyway, it would be a contradiction towards the book if a movie is made based on it. Holden hates the movies as he thinks they are phony too.

Other reviews: The Book Chick, 1001 Books

I found this quote here. Sounds interesting, huh? I don’t know what Mitchell meant by poetry ignoring people. Can somebody step up and share your thoughts on it?

Anyway, The Poem I Turn To With Audio CD: Actors and Directors Present Poetry That Inspires Them is a book of collected poems. Jason Shinder went out and asked various actors and directors to share their favourite poems and explain why they like them. These actors and directors would include Alan Arkin, Adam Arkin, Peter MacNicol, Carrie Fisher, Jane Fonda, Stanley Tucci and lots more! So, if you happen to be a fan of theirs, then you may get to know them a little bit better by knowing what poem inspires them.

Well, what kind of poems do celebrities like? Shakespeare? Poems by Robert Frost? Yeah, there are some sonnets from Shakespeare in it. It would be relatively surprising if nobody actually turned to Shakespeare’s words. Besides that, the simplest poem in it would be ‘Alone’ where there’s only one lone word in it, Alone. It is one of Stanley Tucci’s favourite poems.

Oh, do you like listening to poems being read aloud? I do! This book is accompanied by a CD where you can listen to some of the actors read their favourite poems. I didn’t really like Paul Guilfoyle’s (from CSI Las Vegas) poetry recitation. His voice was soft and he read the poems way too fast! Is that supposed to be a style? If I weren’t holding the book as well as reading and listening to the poem at the same time, I wouldn’t catch what he said. By the way, there are 30 poems being read aloud on the CD. And if you don’t like hearing other people read them, why don’t you read aloud yourself and record it?

All the same, this hardcover book has a lovely cover although it’s quite wordy. But I like it! Somehow I have a good feeling when I look at it. I’ve always liked poems. The poem I like most in this book would be The Guest House by Rumi. If only we had learnt more English poems in school. The only poems we were exposed to were:

Sonnet 18 by William Shakespeare
The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost
If by Rudyard Kipling
Monsoon History by Shirley Lim
There’s Been A Death In The Opposite House by Emily Dickinson
Si Tenggang’s Homecoming by Muhammad Salleh
Life’s Brief Candle by William Shakespeare
The Dead Crow by A. Samad Said
The Lake Isle of Innisfree by W.B. Yeats

Still, it’s a good start.

So…which poem do you turn to?

***A heartfelt thanks to Christiaan Simmons of Sourcebooks for sending me a copy of this wonderful book.

Other Bloggers’ Reviews: John Mutford, Kim

Landon Carter is already 57 years old and he’s telling his story of what happened to him when he was 17. His life changed when he started spending time with Jamie Sullivan, when they were 17. Landon was considered a bad boy and other parents assumed he’s plain trouble. His father was a congressman and was rarely home to be with his family.

On the other hand, Jamie Sullivan is the daughter of Beaufort’s Baptist minister. That’s where they all lived – Beaufort, North Carolina. She’s not fashionable and she always carries her Bible wherever she goes. So it’s certainly obvious that she and Landon have not much in common. That’s what Landon thought.

Incidentally, Landon did not have a date to Beaufort High’s homecoming dance. Most of the girls already had dates or he didn’t fancy going with the less attractive ones. In the end, it was either go to the dance alone and clean up puke in the toilet or go with Jamie Sullivan and risk being teased by his friends. She did smile at him in class, so maybe she might agree to go with him. Finally, he asked her and surprisingly, she accepted. On one condition, that is, he must not fall in love with her. He agreed. Anything is better than cleaning up puke.

Landon found her to be a very kind and understanding person who always looked on the bright side of things, no matter how horrible they are. However, after the dance, he did not feel like spending any more time with her. That time, he still had feelings for his ex-girlfriend, Angela.

But then later, Jamie asked him to join the Christmas play. Initially, he didn’t want to join but after some pitiful remarks from Jamie, he finally gave in. So, they rehearsed the play and then, it’s show time. Without warning, Landon fell in love with Jamie when she appeared looking amazingly beautiful.

All in all, it’s a nice story with a wonderful plot. Incredibly sad, though. Also, I found out what the title ‘A Walk to Remember’ refers to. It’s the kind of book where one may want to change to become a better person after reading it. And if you like books where the guy changes himself for the girl, then this is the book for you.

There are some flashback parts in this book that will explain why some things happen now. In one flashback, there’s the story of Stanley’s great-great-grandfather, Elya Yelnats who broke his promise to a Madam Zeroni, a gypsy, as she gave him advice on what he could do so that he can win the beautiful Myra’s hand in marriage.

Then, there’s the famous outlaw, Kissin’ Kate Barlow who kisses the men she killed. Hey, her history in this book is really interesting! She couldn’t be with the guy she loved and somehow ended up being on the most wanted list.

Anyway, back to the present. Stanley was caught for stealing a pair of sneakers belonging to a famous baseball player, Clyde “Sweet Feet” Livingston. He claimed that the shoes fell from the sky but of course, no one believed him. He was then sent to Camp Green Lake where there’s no lake and nothing was green.

At the camp, all the boys there were supposed to dig a hole a day. If they found anything interesting, they were to show it to the counselors there. It seems that digging holes everyday will build up the boys’ characters who were sent there because they did something wrong in the first place.

Stanley meets his campmates and soon gains their respect. They call him ‘Caveman’. The other boys have weird nicknames too like Zigzag, Armpit, Magnet, X-Ray, Squid, and Zero. Zero is the quietest and also the fastest hole-digger. Later on, Stanley and Zero become friends and they strike a deal with each other.

It’s quite an interesting book and like most books I like, easy to read. The perfect book to read when you’re feeling sick or down. I read this a few days ago when I was down with the flu. It helped to pass the time well.

In short, Holes is a downright entertaining book with moral values, too, that is try not to break the promises that you made or you’ll suffer the consequences like Elya Yelnats! Furthermore, you will chuckle each time Mr. Sir says, ‘This isn’t a Girl Scout Camp.’ And oh yeah, there’s the 2003 Disney movie, Holes, which is based on this book. The movie is just as entertaining, too. Enjoy!

Other Bloggers’ Reviews: Valentina, Dewey

The Johnson family consists of George and Olivia Johnson, Harriet’s parents, and Alec, Toby, and Edward are her brothers. Her parents own a shop that sells off vegetables, fruits and other stuff which their uncle, William Johnson sent them. Usually, what he sent them could not be sold off easily as they were bad, rotting or just things that people don’t want. He grew them in his own garden and always eats the good ones so the Johnson family is stuck with selling bad stock.

Now, since Harriet is feeling weak and looking fragile, her doctor, Dr. Phillipson suggested that she take up skating to improve her health and strengthen her legs. Alec will then get a job delivering newspapers so that there’ll be money to rent her skates and boots. Her brothers are really thoughtful.

At the skating rink, Harriet befriends another young girl, Lalla Moore who’s training to be the greatest skater in the world. Lalla’s parents died in a skating accident when she was very young. Her eccentric Aunt Claudia wished for her to be a star skater and made her practise as often as possible. The aunt is also always reminding everyone that Lalla is a special child and that she needs to concentrate fully on her skating and nothing else. Therefore, poor Lalla’s life is quite sad for a young child who shouldn’t have such a heavy burden on her shoulders.

The story is more focused on Lalla’s skating and not much on Harriet’s. When she first entered the skating rink, she could barely skate. But, we will know that she’s improving fast not only in her skating but in her health too. She’s become so good that Lalla’s personal skating trainer, Max, told her to take up some skating tests, which Lalla had taken earlier.

Lalla is quite a selfish little girl with too many grand ideas in her head. When she sees a photograph of Harriet in a newspaper and the article claiming her to have a great future in skating before her, she got upset and threatened poor Harriet. Of course, Lalla thinks that she should be the only good skater and Harriet will always be not as good as her.

White Boots is a nice story for children and adults alike. I thought the cover somewhat dull. Only a pair of legs in white boots doing a ‘left forward outside edge, most likely a crossover’, according to Noel Streatfeild’s nephew, William Streatfeild, who wrote a postscript at the end of the book. If it’s a book meant to attract children, they should make a cover that is more eye-catching.

Buy White Boots (Large Print)