The Old Favorites

For all of you who are book lovers like me, you have that certain series (or couple series) that you go back to when there is a little gap in your to-read list.  I am at that point right now with my reading-- I finished the Divergent series by Veronica Roth (tears), I am still waiting for the last book in the Prodigy series by Marie Lu to come into my school's library, I finished Delirium, Requiem, and Pandemonium (fabulous), and I am still waiting for the last book in the Selection series by Kiera Cass.

So....I am re-reading the Mysterious Benedict Society series!  I think I did a review on it in one of my earlier posts.  It is probably one of the best series ever, in my opinion.  I will attach the link to that post right here: go check it out! :)

http://thenotquitenovelist.blogspot.com/2013/07/are-you-gifted-child-or-teen-looking.html

Catching Fire!

I know it might be a little late, but make sure to go and see "Catching Fire" as soon as you can!

I saw a collector's edition People magazine at Michael's, but didn't snatch it up in time.  I then made my mom drop me off at Kroger while she was getting gas so that I could purchase this:

Isn't it beautiful?!?  (Yes, I know that it's an Us. They didn't have any People's left.)  It better be beautiful.  I paid $12.95 for that thing.  I've been really careful with it because I'm afraid that I'm going to rip a page or something...

The Alchemyst Series

Sorry I haven't posted in a while...school has been keeping me busy!  We have been reading The Scarlet Letter in English and have to do entries for every two pages.  Ughhhhh.

Anyways, I have been reading the Alchemyst Series for the past few weeks, and I am pretty intrigued.  It has a lot of the elements that I enjoy, even though it is not dystopian fiction. :-)

The reason that I am not doing the three books that I have read so far in separate reviews is because each book is just a continuation of the last one.  It happens over a span of less than a week (which is really hard for me to remember when I am reading), so the author could really just put them all in a big, 1000 page book if he wanted to.  But, the good thing is that he tried his best to make a distinction between each of the books.  Each one focuses on a certain character and takes place in a certain location.  For example, the one that I just finished reading is called The Sorceress.  In the book, this is referring to Perenelle Flamel, Nicholas' wife.  The book primarily focuses on her and the things she is facing over this 6-day period.  Also, in this book, they are running around London, trying to escape the Dark Elders and their many followers.

Here is my official review of the Alchemyst Series 1-3:

The Alchemyst, The Magician, and The Sorceress by Michael Scott

The last few hours are a blur to Josh and Sophie Newman.  First, they were working their jobs across the street from one another, and now they are on the run with Nicholas and Perenelle Flamel, who claim to be over 400 years old. They witnessed this pair using what looked like magic to battle another one of their kind, and when Josh jumped in to help Nicholas, he changed both his and his twins sister's life forever.  The Flamels believe Josh and Sophie to be the twins of legend, and so they go on a journey to awaken their powers and learn the four elemental magics.  Will the twins be the ones to save the world, or the ones to release those who long to destroy it?

Age Group: 10+
Concerns: none
Rating: 8

Saxophone Day!

Today is Saxophone Day, which I know is everyone's favorite holiday.

I mean, duh.

Here is a pretty awesome saxophone:

Yeah.

It's Out! Sound the Trumpets!

Ender's Game premieres today!  Go and see it!  I am seeing it tonight at 7:00, and I am quite excited.

Enjoy! :)

Asa Butterfield as Andrew "Ender" Wiggin

Asa Bopp Farr Butterfield was born on April 1, 1997, in Islington, London.  He has starred in many movies as a young boy, starting with The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas when he was only 10 years old.  During this time, he also appeared in an episode of Merlin, as the main character's younger self.  But, Butterfield became widely known for his performance in Hugo as the title character, Hugo Cabret.  In 2011, he won the award Best Youth in Film at the Las Vegas Film Critics Society.  Now he is starring in Ender's Game as the main character, Ender Wiggin, which is bound to be a stunning performance.

Of course, I had to do Asa, because it is all about him today!  I have been following a lot of fan sites on Facebook and watching every video and interview that pops up, and I have to say, I haven't been this excited for a movie before.  This morning, my mom informed me of a not-so-positive review that said that it was the standard sci-fi film, just like all the rest.  But, what gave me hope was that he said that all of the fans of the book will enjoy it, because they won't really care about the comparisons to other films.  Whew! Got me a little scared there!  Honestly, I am going to have to be ready for some disappointment.  There is no way that they stayed strictly to the book.  There's just no way.  I just hope that they included some of the more deep elements regarding Ender, Valentine, Peter, and their personalities and relationships with each other.  That's what's really going to make this one stand out from the rest of the sci-fi genre.

IT'S OUT!  GO SEE IT!

Harrison Ford as Colonel Hyrum Graff

Harrison Ford was born on July 13, 1942 in Chicago, Illinois.  Ford first took an interest in acting in only his senior year of high school, and calls himself a "late bloomer".  Although Ford has been in many other films, he will always be known for his performances in both Star Wars and the Indiana Jones film series.  Ford received the top spot in Empire magazine's "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" in 1997, and it looks like he is not going anywhere.

Harrison Ford's character in Ender's Game is Colonel Hyrum Graff, who is basically the the recruiter for the Battle School.  In this story, Ender and Colonel Graff have their ups and downs, and they never become "close".  However, at one point, Colonel Graff is the only friend Ender has within the confines of the Battle School and they must work together to reach their main goal: train Ender to save humankind.  When I read the book, I imagined Colonel Graff as a younger man that was a little less hardened and a little more unpredictable.  But, as always, I am interested to see how he takes this one on.  Ford does have that sci-fi, deep, announcer-like voice.  Go out and see him tomorrow!!

1 More Day!