#2016read

The Great 2016 Read-A-Thon - 6. Enemies and Allies by Kevin J. Anderson

Enemies and Allies is a young adult book set in the late 1950’s  where Batman and Superman team up.

The settings are well described and I could picture them fairly well. I t felt like a Alex Ross painting came to life. Characterizations across the board are done well (even if Batman has a few two many flashbacks to his parents death). 

I was so impressed with Lois Lane whom we get a lot of in this book. She does so much and figures out nearly everything. Never is she simply a damsel, and is the most badass character in the book especially given the sexism of the era. Lex Luthor is quite ridiculous in his baby seal fur lined coat and making deal with his Soviet “comrades” but very entertaining.  

Bruce Wayne is throwing parties to raise money from polio which not only does Eleanor Roosevelt attend but so do Sugar Ray Robinson and Marilyn Monroe while Batman is busy trying to out Bond James Bond with gadgets. Clark is perfectly sweet just trying to get his work done while Superman is just trying to help people never meaning to get caught up in schemes put out before him.

 If there is a downside to this book it was that Superman and Batman don’t spend that much time interacting together, until the end. I really wanted more which I can’t call a criticism, if I’m just being greedy. Overall it’s a light, fun, and quick read. I’d read more books set in this era if there were more.

THIS BOOK IS AMAZING! 

I am hesitant to review this book–not because I don’t have an exact opinion about it, but because I love it so much that, no doubt if I don’t check myself, I’d have written a 10-page review filled with nothing but exclamation points and declarations of love. I discovered this novel because I have fallin in love with its cartoon adaptation - here in the Philippines it is called as “Cedie, Ang Munting Prinsipe”, also it has a film adaptation with the same title. So this year I grab the opportunity to read the novel of Frances Hodgson Burnett, the Little Lord Fauntleroy, a children’s literature.

Mrs. Errol, Dick, Mr. Hobbs, Mr. Havisham, Earl of Dorincourt, and Little Lord Fauntleroy. Words cannot fully express how much I loved these characters. One might argue that they're horribly unbelievable, most especially in the case of the character whose name the title bears; but, in any case, I think Burnett did a really good job in showing the evolution of the Earl of Dorincourt. There’s even something near the finish that shows that the Earl of Dorincourt, while certainly being more agreeable, wasn't wholly good in the end and that just struck me as a well-done move by the author.

In the end, this is a children’s story and it should impart a good moral, otherwise it wouldn’t be a children’s story. It’s very clear in it’s point: be good to everyone, stay humble and you’ll have good fortune brought to you. It’s very simplistic–the ‘be good to everyone’ message is done to death–but it’s good all the same. Sentimentality, evidently it is a story that can interest a child, but still moralising throughout – it’s not as overt as some books for children, but it’s there. “Literature should improve your mind” kinda thinking. 

The novel is just so beautiful and flows so well and it just compulsively makes you read on and on and on. It’s so simple, but it’s very elegant in its simplicity. If not for the style of prose that the author employs in here, no doubt I’d have found the characters unbelievable and ended it before I ever even started in the first place.

“But only be good, dear, only be brave, only be kind and true always, and then you will never hurt any one, so long as you live, and you may help many, and the big world may be better because my little child was born. And that is best of all, Ceddie, — it is better than everything else, that the world should be a little better because a man has lived — even ever so little better, dearest.”

My first thoughts after finishing Geek Girl…I had none. I had no idea what to expect going into this book and with not having read anything by Holly Smale I had no expectation on what it should be like and couldn’t build it up, no clear thoughts about it, all I knew was that I loved it, that I had read it sooner, and that it ended too soon for my liking.

Geek Girl was a quick read, not because it only had a few pages, 378 pages to be exact, but because I devoured it. I have never read a book so fast before, and not just because I wanted to get to my next book, but because I was so hooked. I could not put it down. It’s the story of 15-year-old Harriet Manners who goes from milquetoast to model in 60 seconds. You see, Harriet is a certified geek. She knows this because she looked it up in the Oxford English Dictionary sitting on her bedside table. Harriet has one friend, the one who has a dream to be a fashion model since she was a child, Nat and a boy who’s Harriet certified stalker aka geekier than her, Toby, and everybody hates her, yes! You read it right… everybody… But I couldn’t possibly understand why Harriet’s sparkling personality shines through from the very first page – and I was hooked.

She is the perfect example of a Geek Girl, but being so perfect means she gets taunted a lot, and I did feel sorry for what she deals with. I liked her best friend Nat, and while I don’t agree with what transpires when she finds out about Harriet’s modelling, I did cheer for how she stands up for Harriet against a bully.

This novel shows the reader that people with intelligence, someone who is very knowledgeable and enthusiastic or obsessive about a specific subject especially when they are teenagers, can sometimes fall subject to bullying, as Harriet discovers when archnemesis Alexa Roberts cruelly humiliates her in class. That is why she have decided to go to Russia to pursue a career in modelling the answer to all of popularity-challenged Harriet’s problems.

I don’t want to say too much about the plot as you need to experience it yourself. There are lots of characters that stand out for me, Wilbur, Nick, the Dad and Annabel and of course Harriet. They make the story unique in its own way and I looked forward to reading what they would do or say next.  Holly Smale has done a great job at drawing the reader in and not letting them go and I for one will be keeping my eye open for future books by Holly Smale. Geek Girl is extremely exaggerated, dramatic, and extreme -although not entirely unrealistic as it is partly based on the author’s own childhood, but I wouldn’t have had it any other way. It’s home to a host of articulate, well-constructed characters and is sure to delight geeks and nerd- fighters alike.

You would never have guessed that Geek Girl is Holly Smale’s debut novel, honestly. Smale’s writing is so smooth and compelling. The story and characters were fresh, and exciting and I really can’t wait for you guys to read it and love it like I did.

“You need to stop caring what people who don’t matter think of you. Be who you are and let everybody else be who they are. Differences are a good thing.”

Nakilala ko lang ang librong ito nang magkaroon ito ng movie, akala ko pa nga kung ano yung nasa movie. Ganun din ang nilalaman ng book or ito ay naglalaman ng mga taktika o mga dahilan kung Bakit Hindi ka Crush ng Crush Mo at kung papaano ba magkakagusto din sayo yung crush mo. Pero mali ako ng akala ko, etong libro pala ni Ramon Bautista ay naglalaman ng mga sari-saring katanungan na nagmula sa kanyang personal account sa formsping, mga tanong mula sa mga taong nangangailangan ng advice sa iba’t ibang isyu sa buhay… isyu sa Love, pag-aaral, pre-marital sex and How to live an Awesome life. Ramon Bautista is a very witty man. Ang mga sagot niya sa bawat tanong ay may sense, marahil sa iba hindi agad agad maiintindihan na para bang katawa tawa lamang o palokoloko lang yung mga sagot niya but for me, it has a sense, may sampal sa bawat taong binibigyan niya ng kasagutan sa bawat problema nito, lahat may punto. Aminin ko man o hindi, kayang kayang basahin ito ng isang upuan lang. At kung sa public ka magbabasa, wag mong papahalatang natatawa ka. Malamang pagtitinginan ka ng mga nasa paligid mo.

Sorry ha. Pero ililista ko lang yung mga Q&A at mga linya na tumatak sa aken.

- “Remember girls, don’t order extra rice on the first date”.

- “Hindi ako naniniwala sa fate, destiny at soul mate. Ang mundo ay binubuo ng pangyayaring random na kaganapan. Bahala ka sa buhay mo”.

- “If you can’t move on, move on some more”

- “Wag kang mag alala, magiging okay lang ang lahat” (Jun Sabayton)

- “Wala akong pick-up line, mayroon lang ako, honesty”

- “There is more to life than love”

- “Pag bata ka masyado kang madrama. Pagtanda mo, saka mo marirealize na ang corny mo”.

- Q. Sir, ano mapapayo mo sa mga hindi makakagraduate? A. Maging extra mabait sa parents nyo napapagastos sila. Study hard.

- Q. … Sa tingin niyo wala ho ba talaga sa school ang pagiging successful? A. Wala, kakilala power, face value, husay sa pambobola saka lakas chumamba. Pwede rin sipag at tiyaga.

- Q. … ano po ba ang maaaring gawin if people around you think na malandi ka? A. Panindigan mo nalang, iparamdam mo sa kanila na bitter lang sila kasi walang pumapatol sa kanila. Tandaan, daig ng malandi ang maganda.

- “Ano ba ang kaso sa pagiging NBSB? girls, wag lang tayo mag-BF for the sake of having one. Magaganda kayo at may magmamahal din sa inyo ng wagas at mamahalin nyo din, yung karapat-dapat alisin kayo sa pagiging NBSB”.

- “Friendzone is the new Basted”.

- Q. Idol, for you..what is the key to happiness? A. Lowering your standards

- Premarital Sex: Think before you get some.

- Q. Why is life so unfair? A. Alam mo yung balance sheet? Gawa ka nun. Sa kaliwa, isulat mo yung mga positive things at sa kanan yung negative. Mapapansin mo na mas maraming entries sa kaliwa. ‘Pag mas marami sa kanan, you’re taking the good stuff for granted.’

- Q. Ano ang best way to get over a break-up? Nanghihinayang ako, 3 yrs din yun. A. 3 years versus the rest of your life. Ano mas sayang kung di ka magmu-move on?

- Q. I was a fan until I read your responses to your followers. I just want you to know that you “indirectly” promote discrimination and “cyber bullying” with your responses. Please answer constructively. It won’t make you less of a person. A. Edi i-unfan mo sarili mo. You can’t stop cyber bullying. What I promote is strength of character. If they bully you, I encourage you to stand up and say “so what?! I’m enjoying my life, walang basagan ng trip.” It’s a mean world out there. The internet’s a similar world where they weed out the emotional and mental weakling like you. If you can’t handle it, stay out of my internet love triangle and just follow Paolo Coelho and other positivity-charged teen soul chicken soup websites. Or better yet, go offline and find sanctuary in the comfort and safety of your parents.

And yes, right now I’m discriminating and cyber bullying you. Now give me that “so what?! I’m enjoying my life, walang basagan ng trip” Attitude. It won’t make you less of a person

- Q. How will you show the world that its fun in the Philippines? A. Good evening. Thank you for that wonderful question. The Philippines has many natural calamities, the streets are very dirty and corruption is everywhere. People are poor and not very healthy. Education is bad too. But then, when in the Philippines, one’s perspective changes. These negative attribute becomes reminders of how much we should cherish life. How we should make every minute fun while we’re at it. Thank you very much and Mabuhay!

- “Walang gamot sa katangahan, prevention lang…wag umibig

The Great 2016 Read-A-Thon - 4. Junky by William S. Burroughs

Tabitha Suzuma’s Forbidden is probably the most intensely powerful novel that I’ve read in a seriously long time and I really don’t know where to start with this review. The truth is I really can't get over with this one.. with Lochan and Maya. I did not expect that this book will have this effect on me. I have read the reviews on goodreads that is why curiosity hit me, I really wanted to enter the lives of  Lochan and Maya. And this is my first time to read this kind of young adult novel, what do I mean about this. Well, this book is about a brother and a sister in love with each other. But,  that’s just a concept, an idea. What can get really uncomfortable is the details that the author put in the intimate scenes. I know...I know, you're probably thinking that Incest is disgusting and disturbing. Consensual incest is one of the most controversial subjects out there, and to be honest, I was extremely curious as to how the author would handle it. But, quite frankly, it blew me away. Lochan and Maya’s story is delivered beautifully, but in an artful, unflinching way that really captured my attention. All at once I was cheering Maya and Lochan on and feeling a little uncomfortable. The conflict between my heart and mind kept me on the edge of my seat for the entire novel. All of the questions that would be asked about Lochan and Maya’s relationship, they asked themselves. And couldn’t answer them any more than an outsider could. But their situation is so different and something unusual was bound to stem from it. A closeness in age, running their household, being parents to their three younger siblings and having to work together made them much closer than a normal brother and sister would be. From this partnership stemmed a passionate, but tender, love that’s both so wrong and so right. I don't know but at times, conventional wisdom tells me that this relationship is wrong. But the love between Lochan and Maya is so undeniable, I really want them to find a way to make things work out. It is incredibly moving and I found myself dreading the inevitable. This is a heartbreaking, raw story that will take you on an emotional rollercoaster. Maya and Lochie's anguish and pain jump out of the page and you feel their emotions every step of the way. By the end of the book, I was shocked and so shaken, not only by the outcome of the story but by all the strong emotions that each of the characters inspired in me. Forbidden is a book that will stay with me for a long time. Tabitha Suzuma is a genius writer, as an avid reader I come across dozens and dozens of books hoping the next one I pick up will either move me to uncontrollable tears, challenge my belief system, take me on an emotional rollercoaster, show me love, make me feel hate, sigh with happiness, leave me with a sense of longing, or simply just close the book when I'm done and say to yourseslf "wow, that was absolute perfection." This book didn't just do one of those, it did all of the above and then some. Thanks to you Tabitha Suzuma. Forbidden is absolutely consuming, heart breaking, and an absolute must read, it is an enthralling read for those who like their contemporary YA deliberate, and can cherish the unconventional romance. It was an incredible read for me, and I hope it is so for you too.

“How can something so wrong feel so right?”

I have to write this immediately. I mean, my review for this book, while I still have the Violet-Erica hangover. Because of Goodreads I met this novel. I read the synopsis in advance because the title caught my attention. I want to know what the novel is all about. Violet was raised by a criminal to be a con artist. Her mission? To con a wealthy woman whose daughter, Erica, had been kidnapped when she was four years old. Violet was adopted by her “father” when she was young and her whole life has been a prelude to the scam. The entire story intrigues me, simply because it’s creepy and twisted and I just can’t believe that Violet is a fabulous con artist: very smart… she knows very well what she’s doing and the consequences of getting caught. Things start turning complicated as Violet starts forming attachments with people in Erica’s life.  Michelle Painchaud is a brilliant writer, Pretending to be Erica is her debut novel and when I find out about this in Goodreads, my reaction was “are-you-kidding-me?"Really, I am truly impressed, her writing style hooked me in from the very first page, I found it difficult to break away from her novel, to the point that I don’t want to put my e-reader down, I really wanted to finish it all in one sitting (but,that’s not possible… I have workloads to do and I am a wife). I was amazed with the story that Michelle Painchaud crafts along with the characters that she creates. She includes peripheral characters who add to the tense, climactic ending. Twist and turns aplenty keep the reader turning page after page until the very satisfying ending. Pretending to be Erica is a young adult thriller. The protagonist is a character with questionable motives and an even more indeterminate past. Touching and with a beautiful turn-around at the end, this book will keep the readers thinking long after they have closed the book.

” The boy doesn’t know who I am. He thinks he does. He’s good to talk to—challenges my brain. Seems like he’s always trying to look inside of me. It’s nice. To have someone try to figure you out. He never will, but the effort is nice. “