Book Thoughts: Sourcery

Title: Sourcery
Author: Terry Pratchett
Series: Discworld #5

Sourcery -- access to raw, creative, untethered magic -- disappeared from the Disc long ago, after some very nasty Mage Wars. But it has returned, in the form of a young boy named Coin.

Something has to be done before the overpowered wizards destroy the Disc -- but it looks like the job is going to be left to a failed wizard, a boy who's been a barbarian hero for three days but hasn't finished the instruction manual, a hairdresser wannabe with killer instincts, and an alcoholic poet. As you might expect, hilarious shenanigans (and a lot of surprising depth) ensue.

Rincewind! Rincewind is back! (We haven't seen him since The Light Fantastic, and he's one of my favorites.) And the other characters are all wonderful too. Some of the plot got a little bit weird in this one, but I think I would put it pretty close to the top of my Discworld experience so far. A quick and hilarious read, classic Terry Pratchett. Definitely read.

Book Thoughts: Mort

Title: Mort
Author: Terry Pratchett
Series: Discworld #4

Mort is a clumsy, rather oblivious young man, so he isn't surprised when no one chooses him as an apprentice. Until, of course, one last position opens up, and Mort is chosen as the apprentice of Death.

Once again Pratchett manages to make a very serious issue lighthearted and approachable as Mort and his ragtag collection of friends attempt to thwart fate and escape the inevitable while Death, the only one truly of his trade, decides to take a break and retire to a nice cafe full of cats. That is, if the world can handle it.

Thoughtful and adventurous and laugh-out-loud funny, Mort is no exception to what is quickly becoming a blanket policy of "recommend all Discworld books." Death's characterization by the end seemed a little incongruous, but Mort, Ysabell, Keli, Cutwell, and Albert more than made up for it. Absolutely worth a read.

Book Thoughts: The Princess Bride

Title: The Princess Bride
Author: William Goldman

Princess Bride is one of the rare cases where I watched the movie before I read the book. I didn't even know the movie was based on a book until I'd been watching and loving the movie for years. It is still one of my favorite movies. So when I found out it was a book, of course I had to read it.

And I was not disappointed.

The witty and sarcastic narration, the hilarious shenanigans, the larger-than-life characters -- it's all here. TPB is one of the most faithful book-to-film adaptations I've ever seen: it truly captures the heart and soul of the book and even manages to keep a lot of the dialogue identical while still translating well to film.

But they're different, too. There were scenes from the book (as there will be with any book-to-film transition) that didn't make it into the film. It was like getting extra adventures with Inigo and Fezzik!

If you've seen and enjoyed the movie, read the book. So, so, so worth it. And if you haven't seen the movie -- read the book anyway! And then watch the movie after.

I love this story so much, you guys.

Book Thoughts: Yes Man

Title: Yes Man
Author: Danny Wallace

I borrowed this book from my boyfriend a bit skeptically. I usually stick to YA and fiction. This is an adult book and a memoir.

I am glad that I decided to read it anyway.

Essentially, Danny decides to defeat his lethargy and depression by going a whole year saying only yes to every invitation, request, and opportunity. So, of course, he gets up to all sorts of wild and crazy shenanigans.

Yes Man is snarky and British and hilarious (seriously, the number of times I was in hysterics reading it is too high to count) and I absolutely recommend it to anyone looking for a fun read. And not only is it fantastic, it's also true!

Read read read. What are you waiting for? (But don't see the movie. Every single person I've talked to said it was awful. The book is where it's at.)

Book Thoughts: Paranormalcy

Title: Paranormalcy
Author: Kiersten White
Series: Paranormalcy #1

So much for normal, indeed. Paranormalcy is about as far from your normal paranormal romance as it gets while still being a YA paranormal romance, and I mean that in a good way.

The idea of IPCA, the International Paranormal Containment Agency, is brilliant. Because really...if paranormal creatures existed in large numbers, wouldn't the government know about it and have a department for it? It's such a creative spin on the whole thing. I love it. And the story built around it...wow. It will keep absolutely keep you turning pages wanting to know what happens next.

And the characters! Evie is a wonderful character. Her narration is funny and genuine (although I will admit that her obsessions with pink clothes and boys reeeally got on my nerves at times; that was really my only problem with the book - too much pink!). She is so much fun to read about and her voice is incredibly real. The other characters are great too, although I wish we got to see more of them. I wanted more Lish! I could feel Evie's reactions to Reth, and Lend...well, he's just awesome.

Also, I loved that the romance developed normally. Evie and Lend become friends, based first upon their personalities, and that friendship develops into a romance at a normal (if expected) pace. And there was no sex and no swearing, and Evie sticks to one boyfriend. Hooray for an awesomely written story that actually has some semblance of morals! Not that I have a problem with most paranormal romances (I love the genre), but this one was just such a nice change.

In short, Paranormalcy is a delightfully entertaining, refreshing, and all-around fun read that will leave you wanting the sequel. (*tries very hard to wait calmly for Supernaturally*) Absolutely worth your time.

Book Thoughts: Suite Scarlett

Title: Suite Scarlett
Author: Maureen Johnson
Series: Scarlett #1

So. I encountered a boy, about a week ago I think, and since then I've gotten to know him pretty well. He's really fantastic. I like him a lot.

His name is Spencer Martin. He's older than me - he's 19. He's got an amazing sense of humor and rarely fails to make me laugh out loud. He can cook, and he's an actor - physical comedy. Basically he does all sorts of awesome stunts that are really funny and take a lot of talent, and he's not afraid to speak his mind in front of people or be onstage. This is a very admirable quality. Also, Spencer is sweet, and he's nice to his siblings (definitely a good thing) and he's very protective of his younger sisters (he has 3) and he's polite and respectful but not afraid to try things and he definitely has a sense of adventure. Summary: he's amazing.

Unfortunately, he's also completely fictional. He's from Maureen Johnson's made-of-absolute-awesome novel SUITE SCARLETT. The crazy part? Spencer isn't even the love interest. He's Scarlett's older brother.

SUITE SCARLETT is about a girl named Scarlett Martin. Her family owns a hotel in New York City, but business has been bad and the family is running low on money ever since her younger sister Marlene's cancer treatment. Her older brother Spencer (who you've heard quite a bit about already >_>) is an actor who has a scholarship to a culinary school but would much rather act because that's what he's really great at and it's his passion. Meanwhile, Scarlett's older sister Lola is working hard to help the family and dating a rich guy that none of the siblings except Marlene really likes.

On each Martin's fifteenth birthday, she (or he, in Spencer's case) becomes responsible for one of the hotel's suites. Scarlett gets the fabulous Empire Suite - and also gets a long-term guest, the eccentric and baffling Mrs. Amberson. Around the same time, Spencer gets a part in a play. He also gets a cast-mate, Eric, who Scarlett may or may not be very interested in... so, naturally, Scarlett is about to have one of the craziest summers she can imagine.

I absolutely adored this book. I really did. SUITE SCARLETT made me laugh out loud. No, seriously - my friends were giving me strange looks as I sat in one of the cushy chairs in the library, giggling manically over this book. But despite the hilarity, it also had its "aww!!!" moments. And the characters are so real and believable and amazing and you cannot help but love them. It was a really really really fantastic novel and I absolutely recommend it.

Series Thoughts: Georgia Nicolson

Title: Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging (book 1)
Author: Louise Rennison
Series: Georgia Nicolson
*Filed in archives under title of first book.*

[[Another very early one. Wasn't 15-year-old me cute?]]

Many thanks to my friend Sara, who lent me the first three books in this fabbity-fab-fab series. And for the record, I have (so far) read three and a quarter of the books. I think there are nine out thus far.

For those of you who are wondering, it's the Confessions of Georgia Nicolson series. Book One is called Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging (the second one is On the Bright Side, I'm Now the Girlfriend of a Sex God and the third is Knocked Out by My Nunga-Nungas). It's the diary of a British girl who gets into an awful lot of amusing trouble and is juggling her boyfriend (the "Sex God" Robbie) and the boy she might like ("Dave the Laugh"), plus her best friend Jas, who can be quite annoying and also happens to be dating Robbie's brother Tom.

I laughed out loud a LOT reading them. I plan to continue doing so. I have to finish #4 (Dancing in My Nuddy-Pants) and then the fifth one (Away Laughing on a Fast Camel, which I suspect may involve Dave because that's what he says instead of goodbye, but I'm not sure, as I haven't even finished the fourth book yet let alone the fifth). Anyway, they're completely amazing. Fabbity-fab-fab and double marvey with knobs. :)

The books are absolutely hilarious, chock full of British slang, and all around very entertaining. (Although my father has decided that they are probably morally questionable, based on the titles. The worst thing that's happened so far is a bit of snogging, which I shouldn't need to translate. I hope.)

Cheers from hamburger-a-gogo land -

Becky