February 16, 2009
Twilight is the first book in a series of four by Stephanie Meyer. It has been boosted in popularity largely because of the film that has developed a cult following.  The book is quite different from the movie and out of all the Twilight Saga, I enjoyed this book the most. It tells the story of Bella Swann, a young girl who relocates from sunny Phoenix Arizona to a small, dreary town called Forks. What seems like a relatively straightforward move is complicated by the fact that Bella falls for Edward Cullen, the vampire in residence. In this Romeo and Julietesque tale there is an unlimited amount of teenage angst and undying love that keeps you reading on.  Yes, there are bits when you wonder who is more in love with the male hero: Bella or Stephanie? Yes, no man/boy is as perfect as Edward Cullen. But we must remember that this is fantasy fiction. It is not intended to by taken literally. This book is definitely worth a read, if not all the hype that goes with it. The content is not too threatening, the plot is easy to follow and in a funny way it is addictive. Once I read the first one, I had to see it through to the end of the series. If you take the book at face value and don’t expect too much, I think that you, like me will be hunting for the next in the series. Mrs Musson

Twilight is the first book in a series of four by Stephanie Meyer. It has been boosted in popularity largely because of the film that has developed a cult following.  The book is quite different from the movie and out of all the Twilight Saga, I enjoyed this book the most.

It tells the story of Bella Swann, a young girl who relocates from sunny Phoenix Arizona to a small, dreary town called Forks. What seems like a relatively straightforward move is complicated by the fact that Bella falls for Edward Cullen, the vampire in residence. In this Romeo and Julietesque tale there is an unlimited amount of teenage angst and undying love that keeps you reading on.  Yes, there are bits when you wonder who is more in love with the male hero: Bella or Stephanie? Yes, no man/boy is as perfect as Edward Cullen. But we must remember that this is fantasy fiction. It is not intended to by taken literally.

This book is definitely worth a read, if not all the hype that goes with it. The content is not too threatening, the plot is easy to follow and in a funny way it is addictive. Once I read the first one, I had to see it through to the end of the series. If you take the book at face value and don’t expect too much, I think that you, like me will be hunting for the next in the series.

Mrs Musson

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“ You don’t have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them.
Ray Bradbury •
February 9, 2009

Reading - not just for intellectuals

funny pictures of cats with captions

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February 7, 2009
“ A truly great book should be read in youth, again in maturity and once more in old age, as a fine building should be seen by morning light, at noon and by moonlight.
Robertson Davies •
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas depicts a fictional friendship set during World War II. Bruno, the eight-year-old son of a newly-promoted Nazi officer, moves with his family from a comfortable life in Berlin to a lonely existence in the countryside. An adventurous boy with nothing to do, Bruno ignores his mother’s instructions not to explore the back garden and takes off for a “farm” he has seen from his bedroom window. As he approaches a barbed wire fence, Bruno sees Shmuel, the boy in the striped pyjamas, on the other side, and an unlikely and life-changing friendship develops. This novel written by John Boyne explores important real-life themes, such as experiences that gradually end an innocent perspective, the essence of friendship, acts of humanity even under horrific circumstances, the uses and abuses of obedience and conformity, and the development of prejudice and its destructive consequences.

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas depicts a fictional friendship set during World War II. Bruno, the eight-year-old son of a newly-promoted Nazi officer, moves with his family from a comfortable life in Berlin to a lonely existence in the countryside. An adventurous boy with nothing to do, Bruno ignores his mother’s instructions not to explore the back garden and takes off for a “farm” he has seen from his bedroom window. As he approaches a barbed wire fence, Bruno sees Shmuel, the boy in the striped pyjamas, on the other side, and an unlikely and life-changing friendship develops.

This novel written by John Boyne explores important real-life themes, such as experiences that gradually end an innocent perspective, the essence of friendship, acts of humanity even under horrific circumstances, the uses and abuses of obedience and conformity, and the development of prejudice and its destructive consequences.

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January 31, 2009
“ Books to the ceiling,
Books to the sky,
My pile of books is a mile high.
How I love them! How I need them!
I’ll have a long beard by the time I read them.
Arnold Lobel •

I reviewed ‘Q and A’ below and in this post I have added the trailer for the film version of the book. The film is called ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ and it has been a huge hit around the world.

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Q and A

Q and A is the first novel by Vikas Swarup. It was published in 2005, and it was an immediate hit. The book is set in India and it tells the story of Ram Mohammad Thomas, a poor young waiter who becomes the biggest quiz-show winner in history, only to be sent to jail on accusations that he cheated. The novel was the basis of the acclaimed feature film Slumdog Millionaire which has just opened in New Zealand.

I read the novel a couple of years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it. The protagonist is an orphaned 18-year-old boy who is currently a waiter at a bar in Mumbai, and has just won a billion rupees in a game show. The people behind the show think he has cheated, and Ram Mohammad Thomas finds himself in the jail. The whole book is about him proving his innocence. He recounts episodes from his life in Mumbai, Delhi and Agra, and how each incident helped him find the correct answer to the question being posed to him.

It is not a subtle novel but the connections between Ram’s tales and the quiz-show questions are clever. I actually think that it will be one of those rare events when the movie is better than the book. However, if you can find it give it a go as what it lacks in subtlety it makes up for in charm and melodrama.

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