A is for Animal Farm

So, I've entered both of my blogs in the Blogging From A to Z April Challenge. I'm a little behind, but I'll be catching up. For each entry, I'm going to review a book with the letter for the day. So, to start of, I'm going to review Animal Farm by George Orwell for A.
(The picture is the cover of the version I read.)
Review: Now, this book is more symbolic than anything else. It has a point, a reason for being written. It's literally about an animal farm. The thing is, the animals symbolize humans. In a way, the book is comparing animals to humans. The pigs would symbolize some form of government; the horses (mainly Boxer), would symbolize a sort of working class; the sheep could symbolize how naive some people are; the dogs would symbolize law enforcement, they keep the animals in check and make sure they don't question the pigs; etc. That's how this book works. You have to dig under what the story is literally saying and see what the point of it is. I, personally, thought it was pretty darn good. I loved it and the way he used this symbolism. (3)
Characters: In my review, I mentioned what some of the animals symbolized. I'd like to make a few comments on the pigs and two others, Clover (a horse) and Benjamin (a donkey). The pigs are the ones who hold all the power. After the animals chased the humans off of the farm, they assumed power. The thing I find interesting is how, after the defeat of the humans, the pigs ended up turning into humans. That reminds me of this one quote: "He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." (It's Friedrich Nietzsche. I actually got this quote from a music video. It's a long story, so I'll write about it later.) Well, the pigs were like that. They "fought the monsters" and ended up becoming "monsters". The abyss part, well, I don't know how that would play in the story. But if you've read it, I'd want to know what you think. So, onto Clover and Benjamin. Clover, throughout the story, is remembering things that "didn't happen". In the beginning, there were Seven Commandments of Animalism. As the pigs slowly "become monsters", she realizes that the Commandments are changing. Of course, she has no proof and the pigs merely dismiss the idea. Benjamin is quite. He probably knew, the whole time, what was happening to the pigs. He most likely knew everything that was going on. He didn't tell anybody, though. He kept to himself. (1)
Story: Now, I've said many times before, that this story is all about symbolism. But what exactly does it symbolize? In my mind, it symbolizes the human nature. The pigs especially show this. They get the power, and special privileges. By the end of the story, the Seven Commandments are only one phrase: "All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others." (1)





Content: it's an animal farm!
Stars: 5
Quotes: (The last sentence in the book)
"The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which."


Now, if you don't understand it, this sentence is saying how the pigs turned so much into humans that is was impossible to tell them apart.


More Books By This Author:
1984


I know he has more books, but I'm sorry to say I have no idea what they are. The most famous ones are 1984 and Animal Farm.

Burned

I finished Burned by Ellen Hopkins yesterday, around 9:00 PM. Not only did I finish this book, but I also finished Turnabout by Margaret Peterson Haddix and Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days by Jeff Kinney.

Review: Whoa, whoa, whoa, wow. I did not expect the last few pages. As I've said a few times, I hate happy endings. This is the one time where I wished it ended happily. But, that's what I like about sad or messed-up endings. I like wishing they were happy. Wishing a happy ending was sad makes me feel evil. Therefore, I like sad or messed-up endings. This was both. It was so heartbreaking, and so GOOD. The book was amazing. I though Impulse was good, I'm wondering if Burned was better. I don't know. They were both really good. WOW! I don't know what to say, it was that good. WOW! I think it made the top ten for my stand-alone list. I have a stand-alone and series list. So, I think this made the top ten for stand-alone. Wow. (3)
Characters: Pattyn was an amazing character. I don't really know how to describe her, though. I also don't know how to describe Ethan., other than to say that he did not deserve what happened to him. Neither of them deserved what happened. The only wrong thing they ever did was fall in love. Aunt J was a cool character too, filled with her own wisdom and knowledge. She deserved love. The character I did not like was Stephen. I hated him. He was Aunt J's brother and Pattyn's father. He had no right to do what he did to either of them. *SPOILER ALERT* He had no right to hit his daughters, his wife; no right to threaten Kevin (Aunt J's love) or kill Ethan. He may not have been the direct cause of his death, but he sure as heck had a big part in it. In Impulse, *SPOILER ALERT* I blamed Conner's death on his mother, because if she had loved him just a little bit, he probably would never have jumped of that cliff. If Pattyn's dad had cared more about his daughters than his "church", Ethan would probably not have died. (1)

Story: The story was enthralling. I could not put the book down. It had to do with love, abuse, God. Things like that. And it was absolutely WOW! I think Ellen Hopkins wrote it wonderfully perfect. It was sad and heartbreaking, but it had many good points. It made you think about your own beliefs. It made you think about love. It made you think about how luckky you are not to be in the situations Pattyn went through. But it made you wish it had a happy ending. If anything, after all the crud she's been through, Pattyn deserved everything she didn't get. She shouldn't have had to make the desicion she did.

But, it shows you

that life isn't

fair.

And to hold on to

what you have while

you have it.

Because, it's

kind of funny. How

it could take

forever to

build something, but

only an instant, a

quick second, an

undeniable moment, to

tear it all

down.

(1)

Content: kissing, sex, drinking. The books recommends 14 and up. So do I.

Stars: 5

Quotes:

Well, the book was written in verse. It makes it hard to quote, but I loved this part:

Heart breaking,

I think that if Dad, staring down the sight of a 10mm,

would only tell me he loves me,

I could easily change my mind...

... but he won't.

It was just so sad. :'(

More books by the author:

Impulse (read)

Identical

Tricks

Crank

Glass

Fallout

The Hunger Games

I'm venturing into the sci-fi for today. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. I've only actually read this book once, but considering I bought the second one (Catching Fire), I'm going to have to buy it eventually. I probably just made it sound like a burden, or something, huh? Well, I love the book. It's actually one of my favorites. I'm not just talking one of my favorites, I mean like top ten. I haven't actually decided what my top ten are, or in what order, but I'm pretty sure it's up there. Anyways, back to the review.

Review: Well, this book was amazing. I loved it. It was all sci-fi and futuristic. But I have to say, that it was the name more than anything else that caught my attention. "The Hunger Games". What were they? Why are they called "The Hunger Games"? Why are they "Games"? You know, things like that. That and the cover. I thought the cover was cool. I still do. So, when I finally was able to read the book, I pretty much zoomed through it. I probably read it in less than two days, which is the average amount of time for me to read a book. And by the time I finished, I was like !!!!!!. (I didn't know what word to use, so I figured a bunch of ! would sum up how I felt when I finished the book.) I was good. Really REALLY good. AMAZING! The ending was sad; a bit of a cliff-hanger, but not as big as the Catching Fire cliff-hanger. That's how I like books though. Because now, ANYTHING can happen. WOW! (3)

Characters: Katniss Everdeen is definitely a strong character. She's cautious, but she would anything for the people she loves. She's a survivor and a very interesting character. She's only annoyed me two or three times in the first two books. Now, most books I've read have had two (or more... ZOEY ;) ) guys. In The Hunger Games, it is between Gale and Peeta. Gale, a long-time best friend. Peeta, a boy who's had a crush on her for years. I really can't say who I like more. Other books are easy for me: *SPOILER ALERT* Rose and Adrain, Dimitri's gone; Zoey and Stark, Heath is dead and Erik's a jerk and Kalona is evil; Schuyler and Jack, Oliver's human and he can't do much; etc. etc. So The Hunger Games really got me there. I liked Peeta at the end of The Hunger Games, but by the end of Catching Fire, I really didn't know. (1)

Story: Now, the storyline (or plot or whatever) was both simple and complex. Simplified: A girl gets chosen to be in The Hunger Games. She has to fight to the death with 23 other contestants. Not much there. But really, it's so much more difficult than that. First of all, she doesn't get chosen. She volunteers in order to replace her younger sister, Primrose. Okay, not complex. Peeta does get chosen. Still not there yet. They do the publicity stuff required of them, blah blah blah, then the interviews. *dun dun dun* This is where it starts. After that, the Hunger Games take a whole new meaning. And it gets REALLY good. It pretty much started really good and ended even better. (1)

Content: kissing, a little bit of drinking because of Haymitch

Stars: 5

Quotes: (I don't know who says them, because as I said, I don't own the book)

"Remember, we're madly in love, so it's all right to kiss me anytime you feel like it." - I think this is Peeta

"I don't want to lose the boy with the bread." - Katniss

"Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be ever in your favor." - I think this is Effie Trinket

"So it's you and a syringe against the Capitol? See, this is why no one lets you make the plans." - I really don't know
"I take his hand, holding on tightly, preparing for the cameras, and dreading the moment when I will finally have to let go." - Katniss

Series: (Trilogy)

The Hunger Games

Catching Fire

Mockingjay

Weekly Update

Okay, so yesterday I went to the library.

I got:

Turnabout - Margaret Peterson Haddix

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies - Seth Grahame-Smith

It's Kind of a Funny Story - Ned Vizzini

Bloom - Elizabeth Scott

Double Helix - Nancy Werlin

Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life - Wendy Mass

On my list, I was supossed to get:

The Dead Girls' Dance - Rachel Caine (Woops)

Rebel Angels - Libba Bray (Woops)

The Prophet of Yonwood - Jeanne DuPrau (Woops)

Something by Elizabeth Scott (YAY!)

Something by Nancy Werlin (YAY!)

Something by Wendy Mass (YAY!)

Update:

Burned (Ellen Hopkins) - pg 138

Turnabout (Margaret Peterson Haddix) - pg 73

Also, since my birthday was yesterday, I got some monies. On Saturday I'm having a get-together with my other side of the family. They always give my money, so yeah. I've decided to put aside some of it. But the rest will be spent on books.

I would get:

The Forest of Hands and Teeth - Carrie Ryan $10

The Dead-Tossed Waves $17

The Adoration of Jenna Fox -Mary E. Pearson $10

Before I Fall - Lauren Oliver $18

Then either:

Shadow Kiss - Richelle Mead $10

North of Beautiful - Justina Chen Headly $10

---OR---

Because I am Furniture - Thalia Chaltas $10

Interview with PC Cast:

http://ra.okstate.edu/osu_tulsa/WritingOutLoud/PCCast2010/video.htm

Not much else to say. Have a good reading day!

The Truth About Forever

So, I've been talking a lot about fantasy books. I've finished talking about vampires for now. The only other vampire series I read was Chibi Vampires (manga). I've only read the first four and I forgot everything but the very basics. It's almost as if I never read it. That's scary. I never thought I'd forget a book like that. Quick fact: I forgot most of Wake, but not as bad as Chibi Vampries. I remember every other book perfectly, but Wake (Lisa McMann) and Chibi Vampires seemed to have fled my mind.

Anyways, back to realistic fiction! Yay! Okay, I'll admit it: I like realistic fiction (especially Sarah Dessen and Nicholas Sparks), but it is NOTHING compared to my love for fantasy. Oh well. Sorry realistic fiction. Well, this happens to be one of my favorite realistic fiction books: The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen.

Review: Well, I'm pretty sure I first read this is the summer of '09. I've read it all the way through twice, but every now and then I'll flip through it, read pages here and there. There are some pages I especially like. I have many quotes. I find Sarah Dessen's books to be REAL and inspirational. She writes YA and her characters are high school or college age. They learn something in the books. She has morals. It's not cheesy or anything, though. Her books are about self-discovery, almost. She writes really well. I also like how she hints at things from some of her other books. Like, in TTAF, Macy meets a character named Stella. When Macy meets her, Stella is reading a book called The Choice by Barbara Starr. Barbara Starr is the mother of Remy in This Lullaby. I think that's kind of cool, but that's just me. (3)
Characters: Macy Queen is the protagonist of The Truth About Forever. I find her to be strong and independent, even when she really doesn't need to be. She hasn't annoyed me too much. Wes is cool. Not werewolf cool. If Sarah Dessen was fantasy.... Well, Wes is cool. You know, as cool as humans ever get. He's honest, kind, HOT! *laughter* It's no surprise Macy falls for him, even if she doesn't realize it. I really like Kristy though. She's so mature for her age, but she's also young and fun. (1)

Story: In this story, you learn to live. It sounds weird, but after thinking about it, that's kind of the lesson here. Life could end, for you, at any moment. You don't want to have regrets or wish you had done something when it's too late. Everybody has a forever and you can choose to live it like you want to. So, I loved it. It's my favorite novel by Sarah Dessen. (1)

Content: kissing, language (not much)

Stars: 5

Quotes:

"It's all in the view, Macy. That's what I mean about forever, too. For any one of us our forever could end in an hour, or a hundred years from now. You can never know for sure, so you'd better make every second count." - Kristy

"It was just one of those things. You know, that just happen. You don't think or plan. You just do it." - Macy (and later Monica)

"It's never too later." - Monica

"That was the thing. You just never knew. Forever was so many different things. It was always changing, it was what everything was really all about. It was twenty minutes, or a hundred years, or just this instant, or any instant I wished would last and last. But there was only one truth about forever that really mattered, and that was this: it was happening. Right then, as I ran with Wes into that bright sun, and every moment afterwards. Look, there. Now. Now. Now."

More by the Author:

Just Listen

Someone Like You

That Summer

Lock and Key

This Lullaby

Dreamland

Along for the Ride

Keeping the Moon

All of her books are written in first-person. YAY! (I own a copy of TTAF!)

Shiver

This book was absolutely AMAZING! I finished it yesterday. I started it on Friday, but didn't get to read on Saturday because I was out all day. So, I read it on Friday and Sunday. It's a little over 300 pages. AMAZING! It was- WOW! Wow.

Review: So, if I haven't said is enough times for you: WOW! AMAZING! There you go. I loved it SO much. Maybe because I love werewolves? I don't know. But Shiver was fantastic. I loved the first-person perspective. It switched off every now and then between the two main characters: Grace and Sam. Like I said, I love werewolves. I don't mean love, I mean LOVE, as in very creepy. They don't exist, but I kind of wish they did. That's just how much I love them. So Maggie Stiefvater hit a 3 just by writing a book about werewolves. AND this time there were no vampires. Now, I love vampires, but in this story, it would have killed it. It's all about werewolves. YAY!
Characters: The characters are one more star. Grace isn't bad. She kind of reminds me of Rose from VA. Not that they're anything alike. *VA SPOILER ALERT* It's just that Rose would do anything to have Dimitri back. In that way, she's like Grace. Grace did what she could to keep Sam a werewolf. Sam, being a werewolf, caught my heart right away. It sounds weird (and believe me, it is) and I don't really know why werewolves get that reaction from me. Well: werewolf + awesomeness= good character x 1,000,000. So, he'd still be cool if he wasn't a werewolf, but I wouldn't love him the way I do now.
Story:Shiver has the right amount of love, suspense, action. Because Sam's a werewolf (in Shiver, this means he's wolf during the winter and is human during the summer), they only have a certain amount of time before he's a wolf for the winter (and probably the rest of his life). Ohhhh, drama. Love: Sam and Grace relationship. It's funny because Grave actually fell in love with Sam while he was a wolf. Action: There are tons of action parts. I mean, the book's about werewolves. What did you expect? Suspense: If you get to the ending, you'll know. WOW!

Content: kissing, make-out scenes, sex scene (One, but it's not especially inappropriate. If you've read the Twilight series, you're good.)

Stars: 5

Quotes:

"'What do you eat?'

'Baby bunnies.' She narrowed her eyes, so I grinned and said, 'Adult bunnies, too. I'm an equal-opportunity bunny-eater.'" - Grace, Sam

"'Sensitive,' I tried.

Sam translated: 'Squishy.'

'Creative.'

'Dangerously emo.'

'Thoughtful.'

'Feng shui.'" - Grace, Sam

"'You're the girl, aren't you? The girl who was in my house?'

'Yes.'

'Do you have a name?'

'Do you?'

'I think I like you. I'm Beck.'" - Beck, Grace

Series (Trilogy):
Shiver
Linger 7-20-10
Forever 7-??-11

Glass Houses

I figured to just keep on going with my vampire book reviews. This should be it for a while, considering I've only read so many vampire books. I just finished Glass Houses by Rachel Caine a few days ago. This is the first book in the Morganville Vampires series.

Review: I thought it was pretty good. In the beginning, it was kind of hard to read, but that might have been because I wanted to read other books. Anyways, by the end I was really glad that I read it. I don't quite understand what happened at the end though. If you've read it, can you please shed some light? I thought the book was funny in some parts. It was serious when it needed to be. I like the characters (meaning that none of them had annoyed me ;-) ). I would have preferred it to be in first person, but things are the way they are.
Characters: Like I said before, none of them have annoyed me. Yet. I had to put that in. I'm just that pessimistic. I like how Claire is stubborn and won't take no for an answer. Because I can't, personally, be like that, I either admire it or hate it when others are. In this case, I admire Claire for that. She's still stupid though. Stubbornness is not that great of a quality. Shane and Michael are both pretty cool. It makes me wish guys like them existed in the world. They probably do, but not in my part of the world. Eve is also cool. It's kind of ironic that she's Goth but her name's Eve. Maybe not ironic (still trying to figure out how to use that word correctly), but it's funny. Both in the ha-ha and weird way.
Story: The storyline was pretty good. It had drama, action, the first whispers of romance. It was a little bit of a mystery, but sometimes the characters just have to be clueless (of course, clueless works better in a first-person perspective, just saying). I'll definitely be reading the rest of the series.

Content: kissing, major make-out scene

Stars: 4

Series:
Glass Houses
The Dead Girls' Dance
Midnight Alley
Feast of Fools
Lord of Misrule
Carpe Corpus
Fade Out
Kiss of Death
Ghost Town