A Reader's Paradise

Of the many descriptors that could be used to explain who I am, I limit myself to a select few. One of which is the title of a "reader." And it's quite a vague term. What do I read? What qualifies me to be a "reader"?

Well it's actually very simple. I. LOVE. TO. READ. For as long as I can remember I've loved to read. And I read just about everything. Romance, Thriller, Suspense, Mystery, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Drama, Classic, Informative, Non-fiction; the list could go on and on.

And in my readings, I've fallen in love with countless novels/novellas/articles. And from that statement, one can figure that I have some favorites. What I consider to be "good books." Again, very vague, but ambiguity is our friend sometimes.

And while there are FAR too many "good books" to discuss, I will keep my post restricted to a select few that have truly affected (and even effected) me.

So, shall we begin?

I will begin with a few of my favorite book series

The Hunger Games Trilogy

Suzanne Collins does an amazing job with her characters and their growth and the writing itself is exemplary for a modern day writer. And what's even better is that the books translate so well into film!

The Last Dragon Chronicles

Even though they say this is a series for kids, I find the vernacular to be much more suited to a young adult - even though the nature in which they are used seems to be catered to a much younger audience. Basically I just love the idea, and the story line is fantastic and has kept me interested throughout.

Pendragon

A great fantasy series. D.J. MacHale deserves all the awards for creating such an interesting combination of worlds and developing such an intricate system and plot. As with the dragons series, the writing feels quite childish, but we must remember he is writing from the perspective of a 14-18 year old boy.

**side note: I could easily include TMI and TID in this list, but you guys already know I love them and even why. I think it's just silly to overtly repeat myself. So be aware that those books are completely a part of this list, they are just not a part of this post**

And now for some individual novels

Ender's Game

Another great sci-fi/fantasy novel. It's so complex and intricate (ridiculously more so than Pendragon!) and although it is a part of a series, I never read the rest of them and therefore it is a part of my singular novels list. But seriously aargh it's so hard to explain, but I love it so much!

Speak

Laurie Halse Anderson writes such moving and thought-provoking works, it's freaking crazy. But Speak was one of her first novels I read and it just hit me on such a level that I'll never forget that book and how it just altered my world view.

~Another book that changed my world view (much more recently)~

The Fault in Our Stars

John Green guys. John motha-fuckin Green. AJAFSFHSIDIKSJ. TFiOS man!

Wuthering Heights

A wonderful classic novel to add to your collection. I will openly admit that it took me forever to actually finish this. I even had to restart it at one point. It starts out extremely slow and just seems to drag for so long, but once you get to a certain point, it's impossible to set this book down. The love story of Cathy and Heathcliff is one that will stand the test of time.

House of Many Shadows

This is not necessarily one of the best written novels of all time, but it is one of my personal favorites. I love the plot and character development. I love the sub-plots. I love the whole thing. It's up there in probably my top 5 favorite suspense/mystery novels. I'd try to explain it, but I don't want to give anything away. So you'll just have to take my word for it.

I know it seems like I cut this off very early, but if I hadn't ended it here, it would have gone on much, much longer. I'm not even content with the lists - I desperately want to add more - but at least this gives you an idea of what I love.

Feel free to ask questions in the comments or even talk about some of YOUR favorite novels! I'm always looking for a new book to read :)

Jane Austen Fan Club

I'm sure you've noticed I like to have somewhat ambiguous titles for my posts. To keep you guessing, so to speak. Sometimes they're easy for me to come up with, and sometimes I over think it and they end up being way off the beaten path and even I get confused.

Well today's post is right in the middle I think.

If you're a fan of Jane Austen and her work, you may already have an idea of what I am referring to. If not, well you're in for quite a treat.

Today I am talking about Pride & Prejudice and its adaptations; more specifically, the YouTube series "The Lizzie Bennet Diaries."

I am extremely excited to talk about "The Lizzie Bennet Diaries" (LBD), but first I'll cover some points about the classic novel.

Yes, Pride & Prejudice is a classic novel, and therefore the writing style is quite different from what most people are used to; and this scares many people away. However, once you've gotten used to where the breaks in sentences are, and the slight alterations in grammar (which isn't really that hard), it is truly a quick and enjoyable read. And the story is classic in and of itself. This romance has been alluded to for so long, and for good reason. The simplicity of it makes it seem complex, but also so easy to relate to.

Now, LBD, as I mentioned earlier is a YouTube series that adapts P&P to modern times and simplifies it some for the viewers to better understand the themes and difficult vernacular of the novel. It is so hard to explain the wonderful job that is done with LBD and not give anything away. But if I had to try, I would say that LBD takes P&P and brings it to an entirely new audience in a clever and intriguing way by providing humor and simplified, modern concepts to the classical version.

Oh boy that was tough.

As I hope you know, LBD isn't the only adaptation of Austen's Pride & Prejudice out there. There are revised editions of the novel, as well as a mini-series on BBC, and a few movies (one even adapting it to a Bollywood style). Perhaps the most common of the other adaptations are the mini-series with Colin Firth and the movie starring Keira Knightley. I have not seen the mini-series, but I have seen the 2005 movie and I quite enjoyed it. I had already seen LBD and was partially done with the book when I watched the film and I think that caused me to enjoy it even more.

Basically I am saying that I'm a huge fan of Pride & Prejudice and all of its adaptations I've been exposed to. You can't beat the classic novel and if you've never read it but are interested in doing so....if I may recommend something - watch LBD first. It will help you understand the complex language a bit more if you already have an idea of what situations the book has to offer.

So lastly, if I have convinced you to take a gander into the literary world of Jane Austen, I am humbled and grateful. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I have.

And if you want to watch LBD (for the first time or AGAIN) here is a link.

Love you guys, keep reading!!! <3

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KisuGP2lcPs&list=PL6690D980D8A65D08