review: the shadow of the wind

book info:
ages: 14 and up (younger audiences are OK, but I think mature readers will really appreciate it more)
grades: 9 and up (years: 10 and up)
on sale: now
copy from: library
pages: 512

title: The Shadow of the Wind (El cementerio de los libros olvidados #1)
author: Carlos Ruiz Zafón (translator: Lucia Graves)

photo: goodreads

Barcelona, 1945—Just after the war, a great world city lies in shadow, nursing its wounds, and a boy named Daniel awakes one day to find that he can no longer remember his mother’s face. To console his only child, Daniel’s widowed father, an antiquarian book dealer, initiates him into the secret of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books, a library tended by Barcelona’s guild of rare-book dealers as a repository for books forgotten by the world, waiting for someone who will care about them again. Daniel’s father coaxes him to choose a book from the spiraling labyrinth of shelves, one that, it is said, will have a special meaning for him. And Daniel so loves the book he selects, a novel called The Shadow of the Wind by one Julián Carax, that he sets out to find the rest of Carax’s work. To his shock, he discovers that someone has been systematically destroying every copy of every book this author has written. In fact, he may have the last of Carax’s books in existence. Before Daniel knows it, his seemingly innocent quest has opened a door into one of Barcelona’s darkest secrets, an epic story of murder, magic, madness, and doomed love, and before long he realizes that if he doesn’t find out the truth about Julián Carax, he and those closest to him will suffer horribly

First thoughts: brilliant. I sometimes (often) skip pages or jump paragraphs when reading books, because a lot that I've been reading has just been mediocre, but by the first few pages, I knew I couldn't do that. I couldn't miss a single amazing word that's written. When I got further in the book, I skipped around a bit, but not too much.

The life of the main character, Daniel, is very believable, and also magical at the same time (magical meaning the way he's portrayed). I think because he lives in the beautiful city of Barcelona, that has a lot of character and charm, and because this is set in a completely different time period where young people behaved much more differently than nowadays: I like it.

The pace of the steady, and follows Daniel over many years. And I like the way it's done like this, because basically, this is a mystery novel and I've seen shows where it happens in a week, but the story works best under the many years tactic.

The story itself is beautiful in the sense that it has this lovely, romantic air and the language...well, Ms Graves has done a lovely job. One can tell that this book was written in Spanish just by the way it reads in English.

The only thing I didn't like was how it seemed to drag out a bit near the middle-to-end, where I got a bit annoyed and flipped around a bit, skimming. But I wasn't disappointed, and the ending was shocking and brilliant! I absolutely loved it! Now I don't usually like mysteries: in fact, I hate them. Yet this doesn't read like a typical mystery (the ones that I've read) so I didn't even realise it was a mystery until the middle (the summary sounds like an adventure more than mystery) and it is. I enjoyed so much, the parallelism between Daniel and Mr Carax, and watching all the characters grow.

I'll give this novel 4.5 trees, marking down because of dragging near the end. I recommend this to more mature readers, as I think they'll appreciate it more. I know when I was younger, I would've just tossed this book aside. But it's lovely, and if you like how it sounds, read this!

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slowing things down

Hello readers!
  I am going to slow things down. Like, two posts a week instead of sporadically. I am going to be a sophomore in high school, and I am taking 7 classes (8 including lunch). It's one more class than many people, because I have 0 period AP European History.

 I will keep reviewing and keep doing the things I do, but just twice a week, yeah? Also, I've got a huge treat for you on the fourteenth of this month. I've been working on it for ages and it's sucked up a lot of time and effort, so I hope it'll make up for my "slowing" of things.

 What do you think? Do you have like, set days where you post, or do you just post whenever?

-Kirthi

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topic: is YA becoming darker?

I've been reading articles and posts on this topic (most recently Kimberly Derting's blog) and I thought I'd guess a few answers.

Is YA becoming darker?

I think the impact of the growing trend was magnified by Twilight, which started a chain of paranormal films targeting teenagers. Authors then got into it, and started writing paranormal fiction, which caused teenagers to have more paranormal books to read, which publishers thought "More! More!" and that all sums up to an overall realisation that YA, conglomerated with other books, like YA for historical fiction and such, is overall becoming darker.

That's not fair, is it? So no:

I don't think that the genre of YA is becoming darker, I think that paranormal books, which are in nature really dark, are becoming and ARE popular. More paranormal books published outshine all the other YA books.

Why?

From a writer's perspective, using paranormal elements is an easy way to make a story interesting. One can make up many things, have an already established base of creatures and background information to research from. The personality of these creatures provides for a great way to explore the darker side of things, because most fictional creatures are "evil". Writing paranormal is easier in that general sense.

Writing historical novels, all the history and the research going into that is tiresome and hard, no? Historians will say no, like me, and would say "I love history! It's fascinating and is no trouble to me" But there's still the issue of getting information wrong, of having to piece together a story from many sources and accounts. 

Writing contemporary is difficult as well. What topics can you write that's contemporary? Teenagers, getting drunk, death (car crashes), coming-of-age and romance. There's not much that a writer can use, looking at all the contemporary novels published. And because of that, the writing has to be extraordinarily well done. The exploration of human nature has to be portrayed effectively, and everything, every skill, must be put on maximum functioning. 

photo credit

Paranormal is the short-cut, the easy way to make something "original". I personally think that it's an excuse to reduce the quality of writing. Of course, all this doesn't apply to EVERY paranormal YA book. I love Holly Black and Melissa Marr, but I think not very developed writers are finding this genre an easy market, and an easy way to get published because of growing demand.

This genre in itself is just a dark genre. With it's rising popularity, more of it is being published. So what?

Is it just paranormal?

I think with our generation, the teenage generation, people are aware of our "maturity" to certain topics, like death, bullying etc... and therefore, explore more into what would have been considered a social flop back then. Contemporary has been showing a lot of books on anorexia, bulimia, suicide, drug addiction, drinking, sex and so on, because those are problems that teens need to be aware of, and need to know can be helped. Besides, it's more interesting to read about this, than about a character having a fun and amazing life right? (note my sarcasm)

Will YA recover?

I think that the genre was invented quite recently, actually. I remember, I think, that there was children's, middle grade, and Adult. Like, the middle-grade were all coming-of-age stories meant for "teens", like Romona and Beezus. And because the genre is relatively new, and booming because so many teens love reading, we're still in the baby steps. Paranormal is just a phase that will eventually pass, and hopefully more intellectual genres will become popular (My dream is for historical fiction to be as common as dirt) 

I don't mean for the "YA becoming darker" thing to seem like a disease or pandemic, just know that I'm biased against paranormal, That I personally don't like reading it. But it's such big part of the YA world that it's hard to ignore.

Later in August, I'll be featuring and giving away many paranormal books, for you readers who enjoy it, so I'll make up for this bashing then!

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writing competition!

Hello readers! (and writers!)
   I'd just like to tell you all about this super awesome competition that's going on over at my writing blog, Voyage. Here's what it's about, and the awesome prizes!


 The Rules 

• Anyone is allowed to enter (must be a follower of voyage and Inky Compositions)
• Entries must be the entrant's actual work (no stealing etc...) I doubt any of you would do that
• Word limit: 2000. You may go a little over or under, I don't mind
• Stories must be one of the chosen titles (no swearing, obscene writing, or other suggestive content)
• Must be sent to my e-mail: raokiki6(at)gmail(dot)com or Ashley's e-mail: asgwilli(at)gmail(dot)com  We'll e-mail you back confirming that we've received your entry 

Titles To Choose:

• "Beautiful"
• "The Forest of Bones"
• "The Storyteller"
• "The Bakery"
• "A Million Smiles"
• "By Starlight"

Prizes

Ashley helped with the amazing! gift cards, and Ryan and I have helped with the awesome blog design stuff. If one of the winners does NOT have a blog and would not like the blog design prizes, then a fourth place winner will be chosen to receive them. The winner will receive the gift card, and the new winner will get the design prizes.

1st place:

• $10 Amazon Gift Card (if we get 20 or more entries it will be bumped up to $15)
•  a full Basic Package blog design by Ryan Gracie Designs
• a fashionable button with "1st place: amazing writer" on it for you to post wherever you'd like

2nd place:

• $5 Amazon Gift Card 
• Custom header, blog button, social media buttons and favicon from Ryan Gracie Designs
• a fashionable button with "2nd place: fabulous writer" on it for you to post wherever you'd like

3rd place:

• $5 Amazon Gift Card
• Custom blog button and favicon from Ryan Gracie Designs
• a fashionable button with "3rd place: awesome writer" on it for you to post wherever you'd like

She makes lovely blog designs, that are fashionable and sweet. Check out her website and see what you can win, hehe :)

How To Enter:

my e-mail: raokiki6(at)gmail(dot)com 

Ashley's e-mail: asgwilli(at)gmail(dot)com

Send either Ashley or I an e-mail with the following:

• Your name
• Blog URL (optional)
• Your story title as the subject
• Your story in the body of the e-mail. You can also attach it, but it MUST be in the body
• the name that you follow by (as you must be a follower of Voyage and Inky Compositions)

What do you all think? I think, if you're a writer, you should definitely go on and enter :D I'm thrilled and I can't wait to start reading entries! It ends a month from a now, so get writing!

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review: the second empress

book info:

ages: 13 and up

grades: 8 and up. years: 9 and up

on sale: August 14th

copy from: publisher (Crown) thanks!

pages: 448

title: The Second Empress

author: Michelle Moran

After the bloody French Revolution, Emperor Napoleon’s power is absolute. When Marie-Louise, the eighteen year old daughter of the King of Austria, is told that the Emperor has demanded her hand in marriage, her father presents her with a terrible choice: marry the cruel, capricious Napoleon, leaving the man she loves and her home forever, or say no, and plunge her country into war.

Marie-Louise knows what she must do, and she travels to France, determined to be a good wife despite Napoleon’s reputation. But lavish parties greet her in Paris, and at the extravagant French court, she finds many rivals for her husband’s affection, including Napoleon’s first wife, Joséphine, and his sister Pauline, the only woman as ambitious as the emperor himself. Beloved by some and infamous to many, Pauline is fiercely loyal to her brother. She is also convinced that Napoleon is destined to become the modern Pharaoh of Egypt. Indeed, her greatest hope is to rule alongside him as his queen—a brother-sister marriage just as the ancient Egyptian royals practiced. Determined to see this dream come to pass, Pauline embarks on a campaign to undermine the new empress and convince Napoleon to divorce Marie-Louise.

As Pauline's insightful Haitian servant, Paul, watches these two women clash, he is torn between his love for Pauline and his sympathy for Marie-Louise. But there are greater concerns than Pauline's jealousy plaguing the court of France. While Napoleon becomes increasingly desperate for an heir, the empire's peace looks increasingly unstable. When war once again sweeps the continent and bloodshed threatens Marie-Louise’s family in Austria, the second Empress is forced to make choices that will determine her place in history—and change the course of her life. (goodreads)

note: I got the ARC edition, which is plain and blue, so you all get to read with the full, beautiful experience, haha :D I think the cover might have made a difference, as both the women fit the characters I imagined.

I love Michelle Moran's books on Egypt, and was a bit thrown off with her novel on Madame Tussaud, and I think disappointed by The Second Empress. I think her brilliant work on Nefertiti and  The Heretic Queen set high standards, and this novel didn't really meet them.

In all her works, history plays a bigger role than characters. Perhaps it's that the length of this book is shorter than I expected, with just about three hundred pages (in my ARC, there's more in the finished copy), or that the story was told was three alternative POVs that left little room for character development. I know that history always plays a huge part in her books, but she'd always explore characters as well, and that's what I didn't see in this book.

At first, I had to flip through and check which Maria was speaking, and then I was thrown into the book. I had no idea what was going on in this time period, but slowly learned. The writing is well done, the description, the language, and the emotion. And I think that's what kept me going the entire way.

The most interesting character is Pauline Bonaparte and her slight craziness, and her chamberlain, Paul. Their relationship is really complex, and I would've loved to have read the history behind it (their history) Pauline's relationship with her brother is strange. Napoleon is torn between wanting her and not,  but nevertheless is attracted to her for several reasons, and Pauline wants nothing but to marry him. It might be because they're so alike, and so close. The incestuous feelings they have for each other is....fine, I guess. It's just...there.

Maria Lucia, the third POV (or rather the first one, in order of occurrence) was the one I cared about most, because she reminds me of female heroines, sacrificing herself to make an "alliance" and please the all-powerful Emperor and appeasing any harm that may have been inflicted upon her country. She travels to a foreign land, unwillingly, and gets through.

This book isn't my most favourite, but it's definitely a book for historian buffs. Because I myself didn't enjoy it much, I'll give it a two and half tree rating.

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feature and follow #7

Hello readers new and old!
  Thanks so much for stopping by, I really appreciate it! A little brush up on my tweaked rules:

• If I followed you, you are NOT required to follow me back: only if you want to :)
• If you follow me, I'll seriously consider following you back, but it's not guaranteed
  

I don't like how people are required to follow other blogs in this hop. I think people should follow a blog because he or she likes it, not because they feel obliged because the blog owner/writer followed him or her. You know?

Now: on to the question!

Q: Do your reading habits change based on your mood? Do you read a certain genre if you are feeling depressed or happy?

My reading habits, changing on my mood...I'll eat chocolate if I'm feeling cozy. But I almost always read either Harry Potter, or Eragon when I eat chocolate. The only substantial habit I have while reading is to read without stopping, for hours and hours until I finish it (and if I'm interrupted, I'm in this sort of post-reading haze until I finish, haha) So I can't say that my habits change.

If I'm feeling nostalgic, I'll pull out an old book and read. But otherwise, no I don't read a certain genre really. My moods don't dictate what I read. I just read whatever sounds interesting, hehe. Of course, if I change genres abruptly, it's more of a profound change, like what's happened recently with my epiphany that historical fiction is what I truly enjoy.

I just realised. Habits occur over a long period of time, and moods are swift and fleeting and intermittent. The question doesn't make sense.

Anyway, enough of my ranting! What about you? :)

P.S. ALSO for you writers out there, stop by my writing blog "voyage" this upcoming Monday for a spectacular writing competition hosted by me along with Ashley at #booknerd.(and her writing blog, Inky Compositions, where it'll be posted too) There are 1st, 2nd and 3rd places with Amazon gift cards and  blog designs up for the winning!

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my summer reading: The Book Thief

I finished this a week ago and have been meaning to post about it! My summer reading required me to complete a dialogue journal of The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, and I think I did loads better than last summer's. Blood, sweat and tears, my friends :)

Since notebook was a plain, plastic green covered composition one, I decided to make it fit the....aura of the book, by making a cover out of newspaper. I cut out letters to make the titlte, and used postage envelops for the yellow strips (thanks to Scholastic, for the envelope, hehe) The golden ribbon is to keep the notebook shut and not bend any pages. Plus it's flashy :D

The watercolour cover I made as my version. The one I had was with dominoes and I didn't really like it.

The Book Thief, or my copy of it, did not have a table of contents, and my journal required I label the chapter, so I had to make my own table of contents. I wrote them on bookmarks, then hand-wrote them all together for a final time. 

That's an example of the entries I wrote, which were very long and thought out. I think I deserve an A on this:

The pictures look really small, you may want to click on them to make them larger or something :)


I totally feel like all I've done is complain and argue on getting a good grade, but this was truly a fun assignment and I had great fun with it! What do you think? What were your summer assignments?

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