Controvery about The Help

I recently finished reading The Help and not long after I put it down I started to hear about the controversy surrounding it. In short there is a maid who says that Stockett has stolen her life story. Now this has happened many times in the literary world, as some might remember there was someone who said that JK Rowling stole the idea of the magical world that is Harry Potter. It is hard to know who to believe in these situations but it does always give the book more press coverage. Is any press good press?

Here is the link to the article I read, check it out and let me know what you think.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2033369/Her-family-hired-maid-12-years-stole-life-Disney-movie.html

Book insperation

I was just wandering through the university book store on a work related mission and I could not help but take a peak at the English aisles. I saw many familiar titles from my university days and many others that I have on my to read list and even a few that I had not ever seen before and I was filled with a sense of inspiration and longing for the days when I could spend all day reading. I love book stores of all kinds. I can wander through Chapters for hours without getting bored and used book stores are my absolute favourite, the prices are right and there is something about the cramped space and floor to ceiling books that just makes me happy.

As a child I loved the library since it offered me a chance to read all my favourite books (Baby Sitters Club, VC Andrews, and Sweet Valley to name a few) for free and I could try out new titles and authors without committing to buying them. I am sad to say that I do not frequent the library so much these days. I think it has to to do with the hours spent in the library during my university career so I now see them as a place of forced study instead of quiet inspiration.

As I continue to grow and I start to analyze what I want to do with my life I have come to the realization that I need to turn my love of books into a career. I am not sure where to start on this exploration so I thought I would turn to the blog world. Are there and book friendly career areas that you can think of??

The Lord of the Flies - William Golding

I was able to finish this book while waiting in the Toronto airport for our flight to Copenhagen. Even though it has been a month since I left these characters behind the story has stayed with me. Golding tells the story of a group of British boys under the age of 12 who have been stranded on a deserted island. In the beginning the boys try to recreate the world they left behind. They appoint a leader, gather food, build shelters, and try to come up with a plan to be rescued. As the days go by discord among the group begins and a second leader arises. This splits the boys into two distinct groups, blood is spilled, democracy crumbles, and chaos ensues. 

For a book with a seemingly simple story line Golding explores a lot of complex themes. The question of human nature and what happens when we are left to our own devices is prevalent as is the themes of leadership, fear, survival, and the questioning of society as we know it. I think I was most surprised by the level of the language in the novel. I had judged that since this book is read at the grade 10 level in most secondary schools that the language would be more simplistic but is truly a very well written book. I believe we all have a little of Jack and Ralph in is, the question is which part prevails and in what circumstances.

I'm back

I am so sorry for the long absence. We got back from our  honeymoon at the end of August and then I started back at work and it has been crazy busy. I have gotten a lot of reading done in the last few weeks so I hope to post a few reviews soon.

Our Baltic cruise honeymoon was amazing. We had a fantastic time and got to see many amazing cities. Our favouirites were St Petersburg, Stockholm, and Tallinn. I left Russia feeling very inspired, so much so that I think I might attempt to finish the second half of War and Peace. I also want to explore other Russian authors and read some non fiction about Russian history, from what we learned it is filled with lust, blood, and powerful individuals. Does anyone have any suggestions? I am open to historical fictions as well.

I was able to finish Lord of the Flies, The Corrections, and The Help in the last little while so stay tuned for reviews.

Fan fiction: Good or Bad?

This article on the role of fan fiction in the literary market intrigued me. I first learned about fan fiction last year when I was in teachers college. We discussed how you could use fan fiction in the English classroom to get students actively involved in their own writing using inspiration from characters and stories that they love. I checked out the site and perused stories from books and TV shows that I love such as Harry Potter and I was hooked. The quality of some of the writing surprised me the most as there are some amazing writers out there creating truly inspired stories. I also started noticing fan fiction in the literary world at large. I read a book titled The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen that took fan fiction from the interweb and put it on the page. A quick look around the book store showed me that this was not the only novel that took its inspiration from other books and I started wondering what role does fan fiction play in writing, inspiration, and creativity??

I'll leave you with some examples of fan fiction that I have found in the book world. If you can think of any others or if you have any thoughts to share on fan fiction please feel free to comment.

Books in books

I am always super curious when authors reference other books in their own. It always makes me stop and ponder why they chose those books and what they are trying to say by the reference. In a scene in Lord of the Flies Ralph, the designated leader of the boys, is day dreaming about his life before the island and he pictures his book shelf. He tells us about the kinds of books he sees there and references specifically The Boys Book of Ships, The Boys Book of Trains, and The Mammoth Book for Boys. To me these books symbolized a more civilized and simple time and made a stark contrast between the boy who read those books and the boy that has to make all the life and death decisions on the island. I think it was at this point in the book that I really realized that this is truly a story about little boys trying to survive and growing up too fast in the process.

Teaser Tuesdays

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

"I got the conch! Just you listen! The first thing we ought to have made was shelters down there by the beach. It wasn't half cold down there in the night. But the first time Ralph says "fire" you goes howling and screaming up this hear mountain. Like a pack of kids!"
Lord of the Flies - William Golding