Read with Me - Tales of a Wannabe Author, Cosplayer, and Blogger

Hello, everyone! I'm back, and I've got another review of one of my Children's Lit novels. I know that no one really thinks that I read these books for class, but it's true! It's one of the great things about class selection in college. I finished this one awhile ago, but I've gotten my notes out, dusted them off, and I'm ready to review! So let's get started! This novel is about a young boy named Ged (or Sparrowhawk) who discovers that he's a wizard! He then goes through his life dealing with arch foes, mythical creatures such as dragons, and an evil dark foe as he grows into adulthood. Does this sound like anything we know? I'll give you a hint. It starts with "H" and ends with "Arry Potter." Which is funny to think about considering this book was published nearly forty years before The Harry Potter series was first published. From what I learned in class, this book was a major step and inspiration for fantasy books ever

Hello, everyone! In case you've been hiding under a rock for the past few weeks, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire movie came out November 22, and I'm here to review it! So, it's been a few weeks since Catching Fire has been out. Of course, I went to the movie the night it premiered because I'm such a fan girl. I have seen it again since then. I wanted it to sink in before I did this review so I wouldn't be "Oh my goodness! It's perfect! I wouldn't change a thing!" Now that everything has settled a little bit, I think I can do this review fairly. If you've read the books, then you know what this movie is about. But in case you haven't this movie picks up where the last movie leaves off. Katniss and Peeta have just won the Hunger Games. Because of this, they are forced to go on a victory tour to the other districts. They find out that the districts are rebelling and they are looking to Katniss as a symbol of the rebellion. President Snow d

Hello, everyone! I'm back and I'm reviewing Annie on My Mind  by Nancy Garden that I read for my Children's Lit class. Now, I know what you're thinking. It's mid December. There's no way I should be in school. You are correct. I'm on my winter break, but I was not able to continuously post book reviews that dealt with school. So, I've still got my books from school, and I thought I would pepper them in with all of the "fun" reviews. Those are coming up very soon. But, please read and enjoy this review of one of the books I read this past semester. Annie on My Mind  has been known to be a bit controversial, especially considering that it's a children's novel. That is because of the sexual exploration that the lead character Liza takes, ultimately realizing that she is gay. She meets Annie at a museum and the novel just sort of takes off from there. From that point, Liza deals with her sexuality silently until she is literally caught

I'm back with another review. This time, it's finally not a school book. To be fair, my school books take up the majority of my time, so I had to read this in pieces when I can normally just go through it. Because of that, I might forget a couple of things that I actually want to talk about. Never mind all of that. I'll just get straight to the book. Don't worry. Once again, this will be a spoiler free review. I am so biased because I love Cassandra Clare's writing style and the way that she is able to twist everything, but I will say it anyway. I really love this book. I think I'm finally getting over the fact that this is historical fiction, maybe even coming to enjoy the genre. Now, my fiction writing professor always talks about having a set of rules for your world your story is in and then break them. Cassandra Clare does that. She has her rules of Shadowhunters and Demons and then flips them on their heads, like Will and his demon - problems. I thought

Be forewarned, I have seen the movie before reading this book, and I'm ashamed of that. I hate doing things in that order, but when I was little, my mother and I had an obsession with Hayley Mills. We watched all of her movies, but Pollyanna and That Darn Cat were probably our favorites. But that is neither here nor there. Also, when I read this, I was feeling overly sentimental over everything. So this children's book became a real tear-jerk-er for me. Now, Let's get to the actual review! This book was published in 1913, and during this time novels had certain archetypes for children. In the case of Pollyanna , the character Pollyanna would definitely be considered the angelic child. It's exactly what it sounds like. She is a good girl who only sees the good in people, and even when she does something bad, it ends up being a positive situation for all of those involved. Now, that may seem like a one-note book, but I actually really enjoyed reading it. This book w

So things have been a little crazy, and by a little I mean I lost a whole month to craziness, which is why I haven't been able to talk to y'all. First off, there was the week before midterms where I set aside time away from my blog to focus on midterm stuff: papers, tests, complete and utter nonsense, whatever the case may be. Then there was midterm week in which I literally did not sleep a wink. I was up more than I was down. For most of the time, I had no idea if I was coming or going. So then the next week I was trying to recuperate and had to deal with roommate shenanigans. Stealing stuff, coming in through the window at two in the morning, and shouting in the middle of the night. That kind of stuff. The week after that I got a ridiculous stomach virus that I lovingly call "the death bug." I even tried to go to school that day, and my professor was like, "No. Just no." Once I recuperated, I got volunteered for helping with my church's fall festival.

Hello, everyone! So you've got to love a class that requires you to read Alice's Adventure's in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass  by Lewis Carroll. One of the many reasons I enjoy Children's Lit. This post is going to be a two-fer since I'll be reviewing both of these lovely books by Lewis Carroll. By the way, yes, these reviews will probably be extremely biased for my love of Alice and all of her recreations. The first is Alice's Adventure's in Wonderland . This book is full of nonsense in the best possible way. You have to keep in mind that these books were made for children, but as an adult, we can see find pleasure from them. For me, there were a lot of jokes that I didn't entirely get as a child. Kind of like when you find a dirty joke from Aladdin the movie by Disney. This story is a group of adventures that Alice takes while she is in Wonderland. I can't get any more specific than that. Go and enjoy it! The next book is, of cours

Hello, everyone! Two in one day, I'm telling you. College is keeping me busy, but I've been reading a lot, just not what I call "fun books." That isn't to say somethings I'm required to read aren't fun. I just wouldn't pick them out on my own accord. Now, I'm going to be reviewing The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton. Let's get started! This is another book that I actually enjoyed reading. Wharton really makes you feel like a part of the story. This story follows Newland Archer and his struggle between high New York society and the love of his life. In a time where having your name in the paper could only cause shame to your family, Archer has to decided to follow his heart and divorce his wife or bury his feelings but keep his family honor. It's really a moving story and I would have to say that this is a good read, no SparkNotes required. I'll give it a four and a half gold roses out of five. That's it for this post.

Hello, everyone! I'm back again and today I'm reviewing The Awakening by Kate Chopin. I've read this for my American Lit. class. It's part of our "realist reading" that we have been doing lately. I was pretty compelled in this book. I actually enjoyed reading this book. It has a beautiful writing style, and the characters are fully fleshed out. You really want to know what happens to these characters. You have the "protagonist" Edna, who the reader follows as she comes to her "awakening." You have her husband that seems to be absent for a great deal of the book. Then there is the love interest Robert. While love does have something to do with furthering this novel, it's more about Edna finding out who she is and the consequences of her knowing that. Don't even think that I'm going to spoil the ending for y'all. Go check it out yourself. I would say that this book is totally reading and somewhat enjoyable. No SparkNotes

Hello, everyone! I'm back, and I'm here to review The Mortal Instruments City of Bones Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. So this is how it's going to work. I'm going to listen to a song, write my opinions, and move on to the next one. At the end, I'll give my overall opinion of the soundtrack. I have heard a couple of these songs, and I am partial to a few artists so this review might be a little biased. Let's get started! The first song is "Into the Lair" by Zedd. This song has no lyrics, so I'm pretty sure Zedd is a DJ. It has an electric techno vibe going on that feels like intense club music. I'm pretty sure this is the song they used in Pandemonium, but I can't be one hundred percent sure about it. I like the song if I were going to be working out or something like that, but I don't think I'll be playing it in my chilling out time. The second song is "Almost is Never Enough" by Ariana Grande and Nathan Sykes,

Hello, everyone! Two posts in one day, things are getting crazy. And in the middle of the week, too! Hopefully I can stay on this ball until midterms are over. I know that week of my life I will want to crawl into a cave and wither away, but I'm trying to keep up with the blog posts. College has been trying to take away all of my time, but I promise I'll make time for y'all. So without further ado, let's start the review. The Rise of David Levinsky by Abraham Cahan was actually written to be sort of a response to The Rise of Silas Lapham . It has the same concept of making it in America, but this time the main character is a Jewish immigrant from Russia. I really like the style of the writing compared to the other one. It flows better, and I don't find myself getting a headache from just one chapter of complete nonsense on paint. On the downside, I hate the main character. I've never wanted a main character to die alone, unhappy, and penniless before reading

Hello, everyone! I'm back (in the middle of the week) with a book review from my required reading for college. Today I'm reviewing The Rise of Silas Lapham  by William Dean Howells. Let's get to it. This book did not make a good first impression on me. The writing turns me off, and it doesn't help that the main character sits there are talks about this amazing paint that he's invented that is just a gift from good for a good three pages. It hurt me to get through that part. Thank god it picks up in the next chapter. Once I got into the major plot, it wasn't that bad. It had a little bit of everything: class distinction, forbidden romance, ridiculous business ventures, and a moral to the story. I will leave all of the spoiler-y stuff out, but I have to say that my favorite plot in the story had to be with the Lapham sisters and Mr. Corey. It was so obvious to the reader what was going on but not to the characters, it comes across as both funny and emotional.

Hello, everyone! So today I'm reviewing Jace's Necklace from the Mortal Instruments City of Bones the movie that you can find at your local Hot Topic (maybe). At first glace, I really liked this necklace. It's spot on from the movie, and you can tell from the picture on the back of the card that comes with it. I liked the pendent with the angelic rune and how they also added a little design to the back. I also like how they made the strength rune a part of the chain rather than another pendant. Now comes the bad part. Before I even had a chance to wear the necklace, it broke where the strength rune meets the rest of the chain. The link that held it together literally broke into five little pieces. I'll show pictures down below. For a necklace that's originally $14.50, the last thing you want is for it to break. I was determined not to throw it away. I was able to find some materials at Wal Mart to help repair it. That cost me another seven dollars. Luckily, I was

Hello, everyone! I know everyone must think that I've checked out completely, but I'm back! I promise that I'm really trying to get posts out on a regular basis, but I just got back to college. So, things will be a little crazy for a little while. College is trying to kick my butt, and today I've had the worst headache. But it was y'all who helped me through it. All I've wanted to do was to get on here and talk to y'all about fun stuff and books and cosplay. So, thank you for making me feel better. Now, let's start with the much awaited book review for Clockwork Angel  by Cassandra Clare! So, I've said before that historical literature isn't my favorite thing. I pretty much detest the entire genre... or at least I thought I did. If anyone could change my mind, it would be Cassandra Clare, and she has done so. Don't get me wrong. There is still a few things that I don't appreciate, but I realize that they have to be in the book or it w

Hello, everyone! Long time, no see! So, this past Wednesday, I went to see the Mortal Instruments City of Bones movie at my local theater, and OMG the emotions that I went through! I'm going to cover everything. From my feelings about how the theaters handled the rush of Shadowhunters to their doors to what I wore to what I felt about the movie. With all that explained, let's get started. My mania started about the Sunday before the movie came out. I proceeded to call every theater within a seventy mile radius to see if they were doing a midnight premiere. What really ticked me off about  the situation wasn't that the theaters weren't doing a midnight release (well, that part did tick me off, but not as much as this), it was the fact that they had no idea if they were doing a midnight release two days before the movie came out. The theaters that I called took forever to get a hold of, and when I did get hold of them, they had no clue as to what I was talking about. It

Hello, everyone! So today I'm reviewing the Hunger Games Mockingjay Pin. I've had this pin for a while, but I thought I would review it because of the Catching Fire movie that's coming to theaters soon. I'll be reviewing this pin for its overall quality and its resemblance to the pin used in both the Hunger Games and the Hunger Games: Catching Fire. So let's get started! The replica pin has the same style as the one in the movie. Both pins depict a simple bird with slightly spread wings catching an arrow as it slices through the air with it's overly large beak. They both have the same gold-ish hue, and from what I can tell, they are about the same size. Now let's talk about the differences! The first difference is that the movie pin is more three dimensional than the replica version. The replica pin is all the same height, while the movie pin is raised in some areas. You can tell from the pictures that the head of the bird is more rounded, the wings co

Hello, everyone! Sorry I've been so MIA lately. It's been a very busy few days, and I haven't had any time to post. I'm very sorry about that. I'm going to visit my sister in the morning, so I've been trying to pack and getting my affairs together before I go. Because of that, the blog as suffered for it. I'm getting everything together to post while I'm there though. So, I won't be missing for an entire week. If you follow me on twitter (click here to go to my twitter page), you can get up to date information about how regularly I'll blog while on this trip. I'll got a whole suitcase full of just cosplay stuff that I'm planning on showing you all and will be reviewing. I'll also get back to reading. The next series I'm going to start is the Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare. So original, right? I promise to get off this Shadowhunter kick soon, but the movie is coming out in ten days. I'm going to be cosplaying and going to

Hello, everyone! So, today I've been working on one of my Clary cosplay pieces. In the City of Bones movie, Clary wears the Club Monaco Elsa Tee which I have pictured above with a screencap from the movie and the stock photo from the Club Monaco website. Sadly, I couldn't get the tee before they were all sold out, but I found a similar shirt at Old Navy. The big differences are that the Old Navy shirt has tighter stripes and longer sleeves. I couldn't do anything about the stripes, but I decided to cut off the sleeves and hem it to make shorter sleeves. This is how I did it and how the shirt turned out. Enjoy! This is how the shirt looks before. It had 3/4 sleeves before I cut them off. This is how tight the stripes are. Note that they are a little skinnier than the Club Monaco shirt, but I think they will work fine with my cosplay. This is me pulling on the sleeve to show the difference between the stripes on the sleeves and the stripes on the body