Scarlette

I don't think it's been mentioned, yet, but One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey offers an interesting glimpse into mental hospital goings on.

"So.. you made it after all..."

Gossip Girl. I don't know why, I hardly agree with or relate to anything on that show, but for some reason I am so very addicted to it. It's pure escapism, I guess.

I have a weird character crush... Sheldon, from the Big Bang Theory... It's so unhealthy.. and he's so arrogant and utterly annoying, but still...

I went to see Percy Jackson the other day out of sheer boredom. It was... okay. I enjoyed some of it, but most things just put me off. I know it's probably supposed to be some sort of new take on Greek myth, but the interpretations of the gods were just bizarre... And it certainly isn't nearly as entertaining as that fancy movie poster would have you believe...

I actually didn't very much enjoy The Colour of Magic - which is the first Discworld novel if I'm not mistaken. Luckily that wasn't my introduction to the series, otherwise I probably wouldn't have given it a fair chance. I haven't updated this thread in an eternity. But I have been reading - if only for college purposes. Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad synopsis courtesy of Loot.co.za When I first started reading this, I was rather apprehensive (because it's a classic) and almost switched novels within reading the first few pages. But I persevered and am endlessly glad for that. This is a very good novella. From the above synopsis, you can probably tell that it touches on rather sensitive issues, and throughout reading it I was certainly affected. It's one of those stories that's horrifically brilliant. It's never as graphic as it might have been had it been written today, but it's still disturbing. I made use of an edition which includes a study guide, and knowing that certain characters have a symbolic function, as well as learning more about the story's backdrop, made it even more fascinating. I will most certainly have a look at more of Conrad's work and reread this at some point. Very well done.

Interview is probably the only novel from the Vampire Chronicles series which can be described as 'horror'. It's a perfectly fine stand alone novel, but I do hope you'll continue with the rest of the series, even though it isn't always as horrific as one might expect.

Something from the Grease soundtrack...

I am reading the most dreadful novel (it's not in English, so I won't bother with a title) - and I need to write an essay on it, too, so there's no getting out of it. I'd much rather be continuing with Dorian Gray...

Ignoring the religious, etc, connotations of the word, I like the idea of a book having a soul. But I think whether one grasps and keeps a little bit of its soul depends on how it affects the reader - some books are difficult to get into and only reveal themselves to a select few, while other books have no substance whatsoever and gladly opens their pages to anyone.

I collect cameo brooches and necklaces. I only have a few pieces of costume jewellery at the moment, though, but they're all very well made (I'm particular) and I often have people ask me "is that an antique?" when I wear them. I also very much love old-fashioned style lockets, but affordable ones are hard to come by, so it might be a while until I'm able to start a collection of those.

I'm hoping to watch Midsomer Murders later tonight.

There's really no comparison between the two... I saw this film today and was so very disappointed. The computer animation (both characters and the environment) far outshone the performances of the actors. The plot seemed to have been inspired by Frank Beddor's writings and pretty much falls flat from the start. As for the actors... Johnny Depp's interpretation of the Hatter is a very up-and-down performance - sometimes he gets it right, mostly he gets it wrong and reverts to a Willy Wonka/Jack Sparrow inspired performance. I couldn't take Helena Bonham-Carter's huge headed Red Queen seriously... and Anne Hathaway's character was simply disappointing. The actress playing Alice gave a more or less consistent performance and was okay, although unconvincing. My favourite characters were all computer animated and - I thought - the only thing about the film that really reminded me of Carroll's tale. They are the March Hare, the Catepillar and the Cheshire Cat (which is really a brilliantly done character!). There was a bit of humour here and there, but those moments were few and far in between. I'm sad about this film. It has an amazing cast, it's directed by Tim Burton, and he had a rather interesting story idea. Unfortunately it just isn't very well executed. *shrugs*

I have (finally!) finished Anne Rice's Angel Time. First, the synopsis, courtesy of Loot.co.za: I anxiously awaited the release of this novel, part of Rice's new Songs of the Seraphim series, for ages after first hearing about it. Unfortunately, after reading it, I am just a little bit disappointed. Don't get me wrong, it's a good piece of work, Rice certainly still has her flair for descriptive language and at it's core is a good enough story, but... I found it rather difficult to get into this book and the story didn't quite pick up until mid-way through chapter 4, after which it continued quite strongly until slacking off somewhat, then recapturing my attention near the end. This isn't Rice's first venture into the divine, but since I haven't read her Christ the Lord series, yet, I only had the Vampire Chronicles to compare this novel to. And considering how brilliantly she wrote both about Lestat (Memnoch the Devil) and Vittorio's (Vittorio the Vampire) encounters with the heavenly, I thought Angel Time would be equally imaginative and intriguing. There are specific things I would have liked to be done differently in this novel: This is alright as an introductory novel and I think it has a lot of potential. I would like to read the rest of the series, before deciding whether I like this new direction Rice has taken with her writing, but thus far I still prefer her vampiric tales, which has plenty of spiritual references and struggles of their own.

I agree very much with this, Raven. I've asked a lot of non-readers why they dislike reading and the response is always either "I don't have time" or "Books are boring". I suppose it depends on the book in question, too - Harry Potter and Twilight are good examples, and have been mentioned already as getting people, who wouldn't usually, to read. Also, we have to keep in mind that many readers don't necessarily read books, but rather magazines and such - which can be entertaining in their own way.

I really enjoyed Unbreakable. I thought it had an interesting and unnerving storyline. The Sixth Sense is another favourite - I still get the shivers whenever I watch it, even though I've seen it many times. Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy any of his other films...

I only have about 60 pages of Angel Time by Anne Rice left to read. Also started The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, which I'm very much enjoying, even though I've struggled with classics in the past.

I sometimes take a peek at whatever magazines my mother has lying about the house, but I hardly ever actually buy one myself - I only page through them once or twice and then throw them away, so what's the use? However, I have been on the hunt for good art orientated magazines lately, as I need to keep in touch with what's new in the art world due to my studies and buying an art book every month would ruin me financially.