Feature & Follow (June 22) – Book I’d “Unread”

Welcome to the Feature & Follow Hop, hosted by Parajunkee’s View and Alison Can Read!

If you’re new to my blog, welcome! I’d love it if you could follow via one of the options in my sidebar (LinkyFollowers, Networked Blogs, email or RSS). Be sure to let me know your follow method in the comments so I can return the favor!

I’ve also got a snazzy button you can grab. If you wanted to put it on your blog, that’d be groovy.

Today’s question is:

If you could “unread” a book, which one would it be? Is it because you want to start over and experience it again for the first time? Or because it was THAT bad?

Okay, this question was oddly hard for me. I started to approach it from the “book that was so bad I’d want to unread it” angle, but honestly, I’m pretty picky in what I read. I don’t read a lot of bad books. And those I do read are not so bad that I completely regret the time I spent reading them. Normally, even when I don’t like a book, I’m still glad that I read it to know I didn’t like it.

So I’m going to come at it from the angle of awesome. What book was just so amazing that I wish I could re-read it again, for the first time? (BTW: The obvious answer here is Harry Potter, but I’m going to try to think outside the box).

I tried to think of a book that I not only thoroughly enjoyed the first time through, but that contained an element that simply could not be experienced the same way in a re-read. A book that managed to knock my socks off and make me yell or jump or stay up way past my bedtime because I needed to finish.

And this is a pretty recent release, but it meets all of the above qualifications. In spades.

The False Prince by Jennifer Nielsen is the first book of the Ascendance Trilogy. It’s a mid-grade fantasy about a group of boys reluctantly training to impersonate a prince. And it’s phenomenal.

I was happily enjoying this book the first time I read it, and then all of a sudden it blew my mind. And while I wanted to re-read it again immediately after finishing, the experience wouldn’t have been the same as that first time.

[VAGUE SPOILERS FROM RANDOM OLD MOVIES TO FOLLOW]

 

 

 

It’s like knowing that Malcolm was dead the whole time.

It’s like knowing why Andy wanted the rock hammer and the poster.

It’s like knowing who Keyser Söze is.

It’s like knowing what’s in the box???

It’s like knowing he never left the bank.

It’s like knowing that he is Tyler Durden.

 

 

 

[END VAGUE SPOILERS]

It’s just not the same the second time.

For my full (glowing) review of The False Prince, go here.

Thanks for stopping by, and I’m excited to see what you picked as your “unread” book (either so I can have the awesome first-time reading experience, or so I can avoid it like the plague, depending on how you approached the question).

(Bonus points if you can name all those movies)

Feature & Follow Giveaway Hop!

Giveaway Hop

Welcome to the Feature and Follow Hop, hosted by Parajunkee’s View and Alison Can Read!

This week is a little different than usual, because this is the 100th week of Feature & Follow! Huzzah! So to celebrate, the rules have been changed up a bit. First, all the participants will be doing our own features, picking a blog that we want to highlight.

I’m featuring Sarah at Breaking the Binding, because she is awesome and we’re pretty sure we would be best friends if we ever actually met.

Sarah is new to the Feature & Follow, so she wasn’t entirely sure what she was getting into when she agreed to be featured. I decided to ask her the typical F&F questions, so that you can all get to know her a bit!

1. When did you start blogging?

I started blogging in late 2010 (but I think I lost the posts prior to starting my WordPress blog in January 2011). I was finishing up my Children’s and Young Adult lit class for my Masters degree and I had been driving my boyfriend and roommates crazy rambling on about all of the books I was reading. So, after a while of rambling to my boyfriends rather deaf ears, I decided to start a blog as a way to share my thoughts with people who may actually care! I think that boyfriend was rather relieved, as he was not a fan of fiction and didn’t really care to listen to me go on and on about the characters and the authors I adored.

2. What is your favorite part of book blogging?

My favorite part is simply sharing my thoughts, reactions, and emotions from the books that I read. I mean, it’s so incredible to know that there are people out there who are interested to know why I think Neville Longbottom is the true hero of Harry Potter or why I’m confused by all of the Instalove in YA. Even more so to know that have their own opinions to share on the same topic and it starts a discussion or debate! It’s also so great to know I’m not the only adult who gets lost in a YA novel and wants to gush about how fantastic the characters are.

3. What is your favorite book(s)?

Oh there are so many that it’s so hard to choose! So here are the top few that come to mind when I think of children’s or YA books. The Hero and the Crown by Robin McKinley has long been one of my favorite fantasy novels, I’ve read it so many times that I’ve lost count. The Harry Potter series is definitely up there as well and I’ve long been a fan of the Little House on the Prairie series. If there’s on book that defines my childhood that’s it.

4. What has been the best thing that has happened to you because of book blogging?

Honestly, I think the best thing has come from Armchair BEA! For the first year and a half of my blogging life I’ve been kinda hovering on the fringes and haven’t really gotten too involved. But participating in this event this really pushed me to meet more bloggers and become more active with commenting on the blogs that I do read regularly. Hopefully these connections will continue on beyond this week and ‘ll have made some new blogging buddies to keep in touch with!

So everyone wave hi to Sarah! Be sure to go check out her blog and let her know you’re following.

And last but not least, what’s a birthday without presents?

So this week is a giveaway hop! All of the feature host blogs will also be hosting giveaways. And mine is two SIGNED bookmarks from Amy Plum, author of Die For Me and Until I Die. One winner will win BOTH bookmarks, which will come in handy if you find yourself reading more than one book at once, like I always end up doing.

Just fill out the Rafflecopter below! Since this is the Feature & Follow, you will be required to follow my blog and Breaking the Binding to enter this giveaway.

Both bookmarks are signed, although for some reason I only flipped one over to show you. I’m a bit of a flake.

Giveaway will run through June 13. U.S. only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Feature & Follow #99 – Fictional Character Blind Date

Welcome to the Feature & Follow Hop, hosted by Parajunkee’s View and Alison Can Read!

If you’re new to my blog, I’d love if you would follow via one of the subscription options in the sidebar (LinkyFollowers, Networked Blogs, RSS or Email). Be sure to let me know in the comments how you’re following so I can return the favor!

This week’s question (which was MY SUGGESTION, by the way) is:

You are a matchmaker — your goal, hook up two characters from two of your favorite books. Who would it be? How do you think it would go?

Okay, I know I suggested it, but this is actually hard. So many characters in books are already paired off! I don’t want to pull someone out of a “perfect” pairing, which leaves relatively slim pickings. BUT, I can do it. So.

I’m starting with the guy: Kent McFuller from Before I Fall. Poor Kent. He’s so sweet and kind and loyal, and he really gets the short straw in that book.

I mean…other than Sam, who has to die every night for a week. That’s probably a slightly worse hand than what Kent is dealt. But still. I love Kent, and he’s the one I walked away thinking about when the book was finished.

Anyway. Now to pick a lovely lady for him.

I pick Marlee from The Selection.

She’s sweet, she’s gentle, she’s kind, she’s beautiful, she appears to be universally loved, and she’s admitted she’s not that into Prince Maxon. And you know why? Because she should be with Kent. I imagine it would go something like this:

Feature & Follow #98 – Dream Cast of Under the Never Sky

Welcome to the Feature & Follow Hop, hosted by Parajunkee’s View and Alison Can Read!

If you’re a new follower, greetings! I hope you enjoy my blog, and I’d love for you to follow me via LinkyFollowers, Networked Blogs, email or RSS. All follow options are in the sidebar. Be sure to let me know how you’re following in the comments so I can return the favor!

This week’s topic is simultaneously fun and super-hard. And here it is:

Activity: Dream cast your current read

Okay. I love playing this game in my head while I’m reading. I love movies, I love film adaptations of books, and I like to play the “what if” game with myself.

But good grief, the books I’m reading now do not make this easy.

First off, the one I’m reading now, I’m just not far enough into it to cast. I’m only about 1/5 of the way through The Knife of Never Letting Go, and I do not know enough about any of the characters to cast them. So I decided to move to the one I just finished, Under the Never Sky. And it is hard.

You’re going to need to forgive me now, because I am just not up on my teen/child actors and actresses. I tried to pick mostly from people I’d seen act in at least something (the glaring exception being Aria), but that means sometimes they’re a bit of a stretch. There’s probably some awesome actors/actresses out there that I’ve never heard of that could do a great job on these roles. And the two child parts – Cinder and Talon – would probably do better with unknown actors. But saying “unknown” is no fun! So here we go.

Aria: Emma Roberts

Photo Credit: http://worldhairstyles.com

Aria is 17, dark-haired, beautiful, and was genetically engineered to be an angelic operatic singer. I haven’t actually seen Emma Roberts in anything, but I’ve heard she’s good, and she looks like I picture Aria. The singing would have to be dubbed though. While Emma Roberts is a passable pop singer, you need to have some serious pipes and be classically trained to pull off Tosca.

Perry: Matt Lauria

Photo Credit: http://www.poptower.com

Perry is 18, blond-haired, muscular, and kind of scary. Let’s just ignore for a minute the fact that Matt’s actually nearly 28 years old. I looked him up thinking he couldn’t possibly be much past his early 20s. So apparently the boy (er, man) ages well. I really enjoyed him on his one season of Friday Night Lights, and while the rugged and savage character of Perry is extremely different from the squeaky-clean Luke Cafferty, I think he could pull it off.

Roar: Zac Efron

Photo Credit: http://www.details.com

PLEASE DON’T HATE ME. No seriously. Roar is described as being dark haired, with movie-star good looks, and is highly charismatic and charming.  So, High School Musical aside, I actually think Zac Efron is a pretty good fit.

Cinder: Joel Courtney

Photo Credit: Rob Sentz photostream at http://www.flickr.com/

Yup, that’s the kid from Super 8. Cinder is supposed to be 12 years old, skeletally thin (so Joel – or any kid cast to play him – would have to lose some weight), and carries around a wariness and sadness with him. I don’t really know of a lot of younger teen actors, but I thought the kids were the best part of Super 8 (the alien sure as heck wasn’t), and I think Joel would make a pretty decent Cinder.

Vale: Hayden Christensen

Photo Credit: http://img.getglue.com

Vale is the leader of the Tides, and Perry’s older brother. I’m pretty sure Hayden Christensen could be made to look related to Matt Lauria. Plus, Star Wars prequel suckage aside, he showed he could play both sympathetic and sinister. We’ll overlook the fact that he overacted a tad (okay, a lot) in Star Wars, because it’s been 7 years since then and I’m assuming he’s matured a bit as an actor.

Rose: Kristin Kreuk

Photo Credit: http://images.starpulse.com

Rose is described as striking, dark and long-limbed, with high cheekbones and almond-shaped eyes. Now, “dark” could also mean African American, but the almond eyes say Asian to me. I’ve always thought Kristin Kreuk is beautiful and exotic, and I think she could do justice to Rose’s small part.

Marron: Paul Giamatti

Photo Credit: www1.hollywoodreporter.com

Marron is described as round-faced, blond-haired blue-eyed, short, and portly but graceful. Obviously I took some liberties with that, since I couldn’t for the life of me think of anyone who matched that description. Marron struck me as kind and gentle, but also quick-witted and intelligent. Paul Giamatti is an excellent actor, and I’m pretty sure he could handle everything the role requires.

Talon: Jared Gilmore

Photo Credit: http://www.aceshowbiz.com

Okay, I know, he’s 12 and not 7. But he’s small and has dark hair, like Talon. And honestly, I don’t know many (or any) 7-year-old child actors. I actually think he’s mostly not-annoying on Once Upon a Time, and I’m going to assume that a 7-year-old living in a tribe under the Aether would look older than most 7-year-olds in your average 2012 second grade classroom. So I think it works.

Lumina: Julia Roberts

Photo Credit: http://cdn.blogs.sheknows.com

She’s Emma Roberts’ aunt! And they look so much alike! I think that would be a fun cameo.

Consul Hess: Clancy Brown

Photo Credit: http://images.wikia.com/

He’s supposed to be centuries old, but the only place you can tell is his eyes…which means the makeup department would have their work cut out for them. But what you can’t accomplish with makeup is the sinister darkness that needs to be part of the villain of the story. And Clancy Brown can do sinister darkness.

Phew. So those are all the major roles in Under the Never Sky. And that was ridiculously hard. I’m glad I’m not a casting director.

Feature & Follow #96: Books with Strong Mother-Child Relationships

Welcome to Feature & Follow Friday, hosted by Parajunkee’s View and Alison Can Read!

I LOVED all the followers I gained last week as the feature. Thanks so much to all of you who participated and followed.

If you’re here for the hop, please follow via RSS, email, LinkyFollowers or Networked Blogs. All the options are in my sidebar. If you leave a comment letting me know you’re following, I’ll make sure to follow you in return. And if you decide to be SUPER-awesome and put my button in your sidebar, let me know and I’ll return the favor.

If you’re a pre-existing follower, hi! [waves]

And now for this week’s question:

This Sunday in the U.S. is Mother’s Day. In celebration, what are some of your favorite books with strong mother/child relationships?

This question was harder than it sounds. I’ve been thinking recently that most of the books I read lack strong parental relationships. It makes me kind of sad, especially since I’m a mom and would love for my kids to have some great books to read when they get older that exemplify a strong mother-child (and specifically mother-daughter) relationship.

That said, here’s a few I thought of:

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. The relationship between Marmee and her daughters is beautiful. The strong love between them is nearly palpable. She is their rock, their example, their leader, and their friend. This is one of the few examples I can think of where the children are never embarrassed or frustrated with their mother. They admire her and strive to emulate her as they grow up. I’d have a hard time coming up with a better example of what a mother-child relationship should be.

 

Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling. There are at least two excellent examples of mothers in this series. The first is the obvious example of Molly Weasley. She dotes on her children and their friends, loves them unconditionally, and protects them fiercely. The second is Lily Potter, who Harry doesn’t even remember, but who possessed a love for him that was so strong, it defeated the most powerful dark wizard who ever lived.

 

Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Gabaldon. In this book, we learn that Claire willingly gave up her life with Jamie, the love of her life, to protect her daughter, Brianna. She left behind her husband and soulmate to face certain death, then raised their daughter for the next 20 years never knowing her father. It takes Brianna a long time to understand the extent of what her mother did for her, but we, the readers, understand the depth of Claire’s love for Brianna that led her to such a significant sacrifice.

 

Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery. This isn’t a “real” mother-daughter relationship, as Marilla initially requests Anne from the orphanage as a hired hand, and not as an adopted child. However, as Anne gradually wins her over, the bond between them slowly grows and deepens. Ultimately, the loving relationship between Anne and Marilla becomes strong enough to rival that of any biological mother-daughter pair.

 

Divergent by Veronica Roth. Kind of like with Dragonfly in Amber, Tris spends the majority of this book having no idea what her mother has done, and is willing to do, for her. Their relationship isn’t bad, but it’s not great. However, by the end, Tris is astounded by the inner strength that her mother possesses, and what she has sacrificed in her own life in order to be the kind of mother she wanted Tris to have.

 

I realized after putting this list together that the main themes in all these mother-child relationships are selflessness and sacrifice, accompanied by unconditional love.  I’d say that’s a pretty good summary of what it takes to be a mother.

Happy almost-Mother’s Day to all the moms out there!