Books and Sensibility

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Jess

Book Review : Uglies

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  “What you do, the way you think, makes you beautiful.”

– Scott Westerfeld Uglies

Synopsis:  Tally is about to turn sixteen, and she can’t wait. Not for her license — for turning pretty. In Tally’s world, your sixteenth birthday brings an operation that turns you from a repellent ugly into a stunningly attractive pretty and catapults you into a high-tech paradise where your only job is to have a really great time. In just a few weeks Tally will be there. . . But Tally’s new friend Shay isn’t sure she wants to be pretty. . . When Shay runs away, Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world — and it isn’t very pretty. 

Scott Westerfeld’s  Uglies is the first in a series of novels that asks the question; What is the cost of beauty? This dystopian novel takes place in a world were everyone is made to believe they are “ugly” until their sixteenth birthday, when the are tuned pretty via extensive plastic surgery.

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Book Review : Water For Elephants

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“Keeping up the appearance of having all your marbles is hard work, but important”

Sara Gruen, Water for Elephants

 

Synopsis : As a young man, Jacob Jankowski was tossed by fate onto a rickety train that was home to the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. It was the early part of the Great Depression, and for Jacob, now ninety, the circus world he remembers was both his salvation and a living hell. A veterinary student just shy of a degree, he was put in charge of caring for the circus menagerie.

When the film for Water for Elephants came out I heard the buzz, but didn’t pay much attention to it. Like any bookworm living on the Internet I was pretty shocked to hear the novel started as a NaNoWriMo.

When the Borders started going out of business I took advantage of the discounted prices and grabbed the novel for 30% off.

The main character is Polish-American Jacob Jankowsi.Water for Elephants switches between Jankowski at age 23 and much later in life at the age of 93. The two perspectives create an interesting dynamic in the novel. There are times you forget the two narratives are connected until a quick allusion the past is made.

There is nothing sexy or glamorous about this circus life. We find out what goes on behind the big top and it isn’t always pretty. Gruen picked a perfect time period for this novel.

There is a lot going on in this novel.It touches on prohibition,The Great Depression, animal cruelty, poverty, greed and the prejudices of class, ethnicity and mental illness.

There were no real stand outs as far as the characters. Jankowski isn’t a fully developed character to me. He just always seems to be conflicted and tortured as a person. The elephant, Rosie doesn’t show up until well in the book, but she is important to the development of Jankowski.

I really enjoyed this books. I read it in 4 days and was swept away in the storyline. Gruen is my favorite type of writer. At the end of the book she discusses all of the research and obsession that went into the novel. She writes without a script, throws herself into material and that kind of authenticity is amazing to me.

Water for Elephants is an interesting book that will keep you captivated until the very ending. 

 

Rating: 4 out of 5.

In My Mailbox Vol. 1

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BAS is taking part in the In My Mailbox meme started by The Story Siren. Each week bloggers post books that have arrived in their mailbox, picked up from the bookstore or purchased. Here are some books I’m getting ready to read

Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl – I just got this one in the mail from Albiris

Extras by Scott Westerfeld – Grabbed this one from the used book store, can’t wait to finish the trilogy. I’m currently reading Specials.

Read it 1st; Four Movies Better Than The Book !

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 Readit1st is a new campaign that encourages people to read books before seeing the movie versions. I have taken the pledge, but that got me thinking–while anyone can make a list of books better than movie adaptations, I  decided to make a list of movies as good as (if not better) than the original book.

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Tied Up with Tie-Ins;The Good, Bad & Ugly of Movie Tie-In Book Covers

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Ah, film tie-ins. Those wonderful (read: sarcasm ) things movie companies come up with to make even more money than they already have. Film tie-ins often come in the form of video games and collectible toys, but now we are seeing more movie tie-in book covers. You bought Breaking Dawn two years ago , right ? Well, You don’t own the one with Rpatz face on it !That’ll be $10.

I kind of have a love/hate relationship with tie-in covers. Mostly though, I hate them. They don’t serve much of a purpose except to make you buy the book again. Let’s take a look at the good, bad and ugly of tie in covers.

Better than the original



I like this cover. In fact, when I bought the book, I chose it over the original. The design of the tie-in seems to have become somewhat of an icon for Lauren Weisberger. All of her book covers  are now released with a similar heel design, she even uses the heel motif  on her website.

Original American Cover
Movie Tie-in Cover

The Good

Some tie-ins know how to blend the best of both worlds. They will just take elements of the original and work it together with the film tie-in. Both of these tie-ins used similar coloring and positioning as the original. 

 

Original Cover
 Movie Tie-in cover

 

 
Original Cover

 

 

Don’t Look Now

This may just be a coincidence,but I was in the bookstore and I noticed when it comes to romantic themed novel tie-ins,they pretty much follow the same position;look deep into each others eyes and don’t look into the 4th wall. Usually this is done when it is a ‘celebrity romance’ they are trying to push. I think the reason they use this position is to draw our attention to the couple but, it was funny to me all the tie-ins  follow this. Also, notice none of the original covers even have faces on them.

Movie Tie-in Cover
Original Cover
Original Cover
Movie Tie-in cover
Original Cover
Movie Tie-in Cover    

 

 

Look Who is in This Book  . . . Not, Really.

  Some tie-ins just shamelessly put the actor front and center. A little shelf candy for your home library. I don’t know what Charlie St. Cloud is about but, ooh Zefron !

Original Cover
Movie Tie-in
Movie Tie-in
Original Cover

 

 

 

 

This is not my childhood

I find it really bizarre when suddenly the books of your childhood get the film tie-in cover. The Narnia covers of my childhood were the 1994 HarperCollins by Leo and Diane Dillon. You know, the purple and white ones. I mean okay, I admit . . . I do own the Prince Caspian with Ben Barnes on the cover.

Original Book Cover
Movie Tie-in
1994 HarperCollins Cover
Movie Tie-in

 Harry Potter

And then there are series like Harry Potter and it’s film tie- in covers. Oh wait . . .  Harry Potter don’t play that. There are no film tie-in covers for Harry Potter because they don’t need them. I mean, okay I will admit as far as merchandising tie-ins Harry Potter does seem have everything else. Still, I’d rather eat a bag of Beritie Botts Every Flavor Jellybean than buy a book I already have because Daniel Radcliffe is on the cover.

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Written By Kat

Wall Street Journal, Stop Searching for the Magic Formula

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Wall Street Journal has created a list of 9 upcoming books that might be (but probably won’t be) the next Harry Potter. A few of these books look like they might have merit and may end up on my book list. Here are our thoughts

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