Book Review #729 - Happily Ever After (The Selection #0.4, #0.5, #2.5, #3.1 and #3.5)

 

My Rating: 3/5

 

 

This book is a compilation of the novellas from The Selection series that were previous only published digitally.

 

The stories followed some secondary characters throughout the series and I loved seeing the world through them rather than America as American was far from my favourite character.

 

The first story was called The Queen and it follows Maxon's mother Queen Amberley as she competes in her own selection to win the heart of Maxon's father Clarkson.

 

It was interesting to see Clarkson before he became the abusive person we know him as from the Selection series.  Although I didn't like how he seemed to manipulate Amberley, and she allowed him to do it like asking her to cut her hair.

 

He obviously didn't want a marriage like his parents where they fought all the time but choosing a bride because they obey came across as sexist.

 

The second story was called The Prince and it followed Maxon leading up to and during the selection where he meets America for the first time.

 

It was interesting to see that side of the selection process and the pressures associated with that side of things.

 

This was virtually just a shortened version of the first book told from Maxon's POV.

 

The third story was called The Guard which followed Aspen.

 

This story helped me understand him a lot more as it contained a lot more character development.

 

I loved how we followed Aspen when the rebels attacked as we followed him to the front line of action rather than hide in a protected area with America and Maxon.

 

It was also interesting to see Maxon through Aspen's eyes when America ran off after the rebels.

 

The fourth story was called The Favourite and followed Marlee and her relationship with Carter.

 

Their relationship was briefly hinted at in the novels and was only really there to show the consequences so it was good in this story to see 100% what Maxon's role in it all was.

 

The fifth story was called Scenes from Celeste and follows Celeste leading up to and during the selection. This story was by far the shortest in the book but it was fun hearing from Celeste as she was always a sassy character.

 

The sixth story was called The Maid and follows Lucy and her relationship with Aspen. This story chronicles Aspen's issues at getting over America and starting a new relationship.

 

The seventh story was called After the One and follows Maxon and America two years after their marriage.

 

This story was very cheesy and romantic and the only thing of any note that occurred was that America told Maxon that she was pregnant.

 

At the very end of the book there was a section called 'Where are they Now' that just told you where Kriss, Natalie and Elise ended up after not being chosen by Maxon in the selection.

 

Overall, I probably would have liked this book more had I read it when I was reading The Selection series rather than randomly on its own, but I did like the added depth that it added to that original story.

Book Review #728 - Ed Sheeran: A Visual Journey by Ed Sheeran and Phillip Butah

Ed Sheeran is the soulful singer-songwriter from England who has captivated American audiences. "Ed Sheeran: A Visual Journey" will reveal his early childhood experiences and the various musical influences that have helped him become the musician he is today. It's an intimate book that will give fans a look at the musings, dreams, and hopes of this very private artist.

With close to 100 photos and illustrations by well-known illustrator Phillip Butah, who has worked with Ed Sheeran to create the artwork for his huge hit album "+," this is a book that all Ed Sheeran fans would love to own and cherish!

 

 

My Rating: 5/10

 

 

I got this book from my local library and decided to read it the day I went and saw Ed Sheeran in concert for the third time.

 

This book only touches on the musical journey of Ed and is in nowhere near a memoir which makes it a very light and fast read.

 

The writing was very genuine and definitely felt like Ed plus the artwork by his lifelong friend complimented the writing very well.

 

I really enjoyed the insight into the struggles Ed went through to get to the level he is at now and even though it doesn't divulge anything new, it was refreshing to hear it in Ed's own words.

 

Book Review #727 - Love, Rosie by Cecelia Ahern

Rosie and Alex are destined for one another, and everyone seems to know it but them. Best friends since childhood, their relationship gets closer by the day, until Alex gets the news that his family is leaving Dublin and moving to Boston. At 17, Rosie and Alex have just started to see each other in a more romantic light. Devastated, the two make plans for Rosie to apply to colleges in the U.S.

She gets into Boston University, Alex gets into Harvard, and everything is falling into place, when on the eve of her departure, Rosie gets news that will change their lives forever: She's pregnant by a boy she'd gone out with while on the rebound from Alex.

Her dreams for college, Alex, and a glamorous career dashed, Rosie stays in Dublin to become a single mother, while Alex pursues a medical career and a new love in Boston. But destiny is a funny thing, and in this novel, structured as a series of clever e-mails, letters, notes, and a trail of missed opportunities, Alex and Rosie find out that fate isn't done with them yet.

 

 

My Rating: 3/5

 

 

I went into this book not knowing anything at all about it which was just as well as had I known it was a long, drawn out romance, I never would have picked it up.

 

The book is told entirely from letters to and from the characters Alex and Rosie. This took me a while to get used to it as it made me feel distanced from them.

 

Also because of this method, I felt like I was being told what was happening throughout rather than shown.

 

I loved that we got to see Alex and Rosie grow up over the course of decades and see all the mistakes they make throughout the years but I felt like the book dragged on way too long.

 

I would have been much happier had the book wrapped up when they were in their 30's rather than whatever age they were when it did finally end.

 

I cannot express just how frustrated I was at how unnecessarily long this book felt. It felt like it took me an eternity to read, even though it was likely only a few days.

Book Review #726 - Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

Jane Austen's first novel—published posthumously in 1818—tells the story of Catherine Morland and her dangerously sweet nature, innocence, and sometime self-delusion. Though Austen's fallible heroine is repeatedly drawn into scrapes while vacationing at Bath and during her subsequent visit to Northanger Abbey, Catherine eventually triumphs, blossoming into a discerning woman who learns truths about love, life, and the heady power of literature. The satirical novel pokes fun at the gothic novel while earnestly emphasizing caution to the female sex.

My Rating: 6.5/10

This was my first Jane Austen book that I have read and I went into it being really intimidated for obvious reasons. 

I found this book extremely slow paced. The book is called Northanger Abbey and yet we do not see the place in question until under 100 pages from the end. 

The first 3/4 of the book was so dialogue heavy and I found this rather boring. 

When Catherine finally made it to the Abbey, I found everything anti-climactic. It kept building up the suspense only for nothing to happen. I lost count of how many times this happened. 

Book Review #725 - Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick

Ben and Rose secretly wish for better lives. Ben longs for the father he has never known. Rose dreams of a mysterious actress whose life she chronicles in a scrapbook. When Ben discovers a puzzling clue in his mother's room and Rose reads an enticing headline in the newspaper, both children set out alone on desperate quests to find what they are missing.

Set fifty years apart, these two independent stories - Ben's told in words, Rose's in pictures - weave back and worth in symmetry.

 

 

My Rating: 8/10

 

 

I absolutely loved The Invention of Hugo Cabret and The Marvels and was pleased to discover that Wonderstruck was of the same quality.

 

I loved that both the drawings and the written words both equally portray the story. Neither of the elements is more dominant than the other.

 

The way the two stories seamlessly weaved together was really well done and is something that I admired about the previous two books as well.

 

The fact that a number of the main characters were deaf really added a whole other layer to the story especially how it was told not through any words, but drawings.

 

This book perfectly gives a silent nod to both art museums and New York which added so much character to the story and the drawings helped immensely bring this element alive.

 

Overall, this was a very beautifully woven adventure that had so much magic on every single one of its 600 plus pages.

Book Review #724 - Looking for Alibrandi by Melina Marchetta

For as long as Josephine Alibrandi can remember, it’s just been her, her mom, and her grandmother. Now it’s her final year at a wealthy Catholic high school. The nuns couldn’t be any stricter—but that doesn’t seem to stop all kinds of men from coming into her life.

Caught between the old-world values of her Italian grandmother, the nononsense wisdom of her mom, and the boys who continue to mystify her, Josephine is on the ride of her life. This will be the year she falls in love, the year she discovers the secrets of her family’s past—and the year she sets herself free.

Told with unmatched depth and humor, this novel—which swept the pool of Australian literary awards and became a major motion picture—is one to laugh through and cry with, to cherish and remember.

 

 

My Rating: 9/10

 

 

I was supposed to have read this in high school but I was sick that week and so the teacher told me to just watch the movie. My brother however got to read this at school and the reluctant reader that he is, gave me his copy afterwards.

 

First of all, I am something like 5th generation Australian so whilst I couldn't personally understand the cultural elements in this story, I did go to a catholic school with so many students of Italian heritage just like the protagonist Josie. 

 

 

I absolutely loved this book. I think it is my favourite Australian contemporary novel and the best Melina Marchetta book I have read so far. 

 

I loved the whole family dynamics - the relationships between mother and daughter of multiple generations and then the relationship between grandmother and granddaughter. It was like Gilmore Girls with a more cultural focus. 

 

This on its own would have made a fascinating story but then the whole cultural difficulties get thrown in and it becomes amazing. 

 

Josie's mother got pregnant as an unmarried teenager and her deeply catholic Italian immigrant mother has never really respected her since.

 

On top of all this, Josie's father comes to Sydney where Josie lives. The grandmother not knowing he's the guy who corrupted her daughter all those years ago is all friendly with him, meanwhile he has no idea he even has a daughter.

 

Then there is the whole exploration of the relationship between father and daughter which is really the essence of the novel.

Book Review #723 - The John Lennon Letters by John Lennon and Edited by Hunter Davies

A lifetime of letters, collected for the first time, from the legendary musician and songwriter.

John Lennon was one of the greatest songwriters the world has ever known, creator of "Help!", "Come Together", "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds", "Strawberry Fields Forever", "Imagine", and dozens more. But it was in his correspondences that he let his personality and poetry flow unguarded. Now, gathered for the first time in book form, are his letters to family, friends, strangers, and lovers from every point in his life. Funny, informative, wise, poetic, and sometimes heartbreaking, his letters illuminate a never-before-seen intimate side of the private genius.

This groundbreaking collection of almost 300 letters and postcards has been edited and annotated by Hunter Davies, whose authorized biography The Beatles (1968) was published to great acclaim. With unparalleled knowledge of Lennon and his contemporaries, Davies reads between the lines of the artist's words, contextualizing them in Lennon's life and using them to reveal the man himself.

 

 

My Rating: 8.5/10

 

 

John Lennon died more than a decade before I was even born however my dad being the massive Beatles fan that he is ensured that I knew all about him and the amazing music that he created.

 

This book however adds so much depth to the person John Lennon was. Each postcard, most of which were supplied by fans who had bought them at auctions, shows massive insight on John's life over the years before Beatlemania up until his tragic death.

 

I loved that each of these postcards were included with context added with the editor's narration of John's life. The postcards weren't just randomly put together.

 

I also loved that this book seemed to contradict some rumours I have heard about John such as him not having any contact with his eldest son Julian as this book has numerous letters showing otherwise. Plus he sends Julian a letter with lyrics from 'Beautiful Boy' long before the song was even released as people assume the song is about Sean as his name appears in the song.

 

I also loved the quirky illustrations that John always added to his letters. Sometimes they were quite elaborate while others were simply lazy doodles.

 

Overall, I loved that this book was told somewhat directly through John as I thought that this was likely the best way for me to begin my Beatles book reading journey.

 

If anyone knows any other Beatles related books worth reading please leave a comment below.

Book Review #722 - Geek Girl (Geek Girl #1) by Holly Smale

Harriet Manners knows a lot of things.

She knows that a cat has 32 muscles in each ear, a "jiffy" lasts 1/100th of a second, and the average person laughs 15 times per day. What she isn't quite so sure about is why nobody at school seems to like her very much. So when she's spotted by a top model agent, Harriet grabs the chance to reinvent herself. Even if it means stealing her Best Friend's dream, incurring the wrath of her arch enemy Alexa, and repeatedly humiliating herself in front of the impossibly handsome supermodel Nick. Even if it means lying to the people she loves.

As Harriet veers from one couture disaster to the next with the help of her overly enthusiastic father and her uber-geeky stalker, Toby, she begins to realise that the world of fashion doesn't seem to like her any more than the real world did.

And as her old life starts to fall apart, the question is: will Harriet be able to transform herself before she ruins everything?

 

 

My Rating: 7/10

 

 

I had seen these books around bookshops for a while but the covers made it feel too juvenile for me to buy but when I came across the first two books in the bargain section in Big W I couldn't pass them up.

 

When I first started reading this book I was pulled in by Harriet's witty and quirky style of describing the things around her. I loved that she was portrayed as a typical 15 year old girl and not some unrealistically mature one that is common in YA novels.

 

 

The plot of a geek girl being made over into a model seems rather farfetched but when reading the book, it was told in such a way with such a variety of very genuine characters that the plot seemed rather realistic. This was aided by the fact that from what I have heard, the plot stems from real experiences of the author.

 

 

All the side characters had so much personality and depth to them and they were all so fantastically written. Especially Harriet's flamboyant agent and the fashion designer whose name I kept misreading throughout as Yoko Ono.  

 

 

I loved that so many characters in this book broke stereotypes in YA novels such as Harriet's parents. Her father was an immature, lovable moron whilst her step-mother was an overbearing yet responsible and genuine mother to Harriet.

 

 

Harriet also has a stalker which isn't as dark as it seems especially as this book takes the humerous side to this.

 

 

Overall, this was a very surprisingly decent read however I think the cover design lets it down a little.