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Palagrin

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Everything posted by Palagrin

  1. Palagrin

    iOS7

    To be honest, it'd probably better that way. I haven't updated my 2nd gen iPod touch because the new software would just kill it - the old tech just does't have the power to cope with the new.
  2. Palagrin

    iOS7

    Traditionally there's always been a dark "skin" - I'm not sure if that's available with this release but it might be worth checking your settings.
  3. Palagrin

    iOS7

    Having seen iOS7 in the flesh now, it's a definite improvement. And I really have grown fond of the homescreen.
  4. Sure- tha'ts why I recommended so many historical fiction stuff! (It also turns out that YA is really, really good for engaging, clever and powerful historical fiction). The fantasy/sci-fi books I have included aren't too heavy on those elements - which is what I think puts a lot of people off - and I would suggest you try them even if you aren't immediately hooked by the premise as at their core are powerful emotional story arcs.
  5. I've read and reviewed it, wasn't so keen though. Not the best - didn't find it that original- I've had more fun with Spud, which is basically the South African version of Adrian Mole set in a boarding school (and VERY funny).
  6. I've linked all of these to my reviews - if you want to find out more. Between Shades of Gray ~ Harrowing tale of Stalin's deportations Out of the Easy (both by Ruta Sepetys) ~ Fantastic story set in New Orleans during the 50s Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein - superbly clever WW2 story about a female ATA pilot and her spy friend. The Pure Trilogy by Julianna Baggott ~ Seriously amazing & beautifully written post-apocalyptic trilogy. Blood Red Road by Moira Young ~ cross between a Western, dystopian & post-apocalyptic. First 50 pages slow but after that really good. Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve ~ My favourite series of all time, light steampunk/sci-fi (not really though) about Cities eating Cities - the opening line: “It was a dark, blustery afternoon in spring, and the city of London was chasing a small mining town across the dried-out bed of the old North Sea.” And if that doesn't catch your imagination, nothing will Chronicles of the Icemark by Stuart Hill ~ excellent high fantasy with very large, well written battles and lots of original ideas (no dragons/elves/dwarves etc etc) also wonderful female protag Boys Don't Cry by Malorie Blackman ~ excellent little contemporary about a boy who knocks up his (ex)gf and has to deal with the consequences Airman by Eoin Colfer ~ author of Artemis Fowl, Airman is in my opinion his best book. Historical, about flying machines. v. exciting Here Lies Arthur ~ highy original take on Arthurian legend, by Mortal Engines author. I Am Not a Serial Killer by Dan Wells ~ horror with some supernatural elements about a sociopath. Bit like Dexter. That should last you a while - if none of those suit you, you can look through the recommended pages on my blog.
  7. And even Harry Potter isn't great writing no, there's plenty of fantastically written YA, and I'll be happy to recommend some, but much like 'adult' novels, the YA sector has commercial novels and then more literary novels - which, in fairness, can also be commercial.
  8. I saw it the other day having read the book over the Summer. As an adaptation of the book I was quite impressed; it was really very true to the book. However, as a film in itself, I was a little disappointed. I felt the party scenes weren't bombastic enough - the fantastic soundtrack took to the background, which I thought was a shame as it's a great soundtrack and should have really overpowered those scenes, almost to the level that you're actually at Gatsby's parties. I also felt that some of the narration was superfluous, or should have been done differently. In general, too, the film was too long and dragged it's heels towards the end - and I wasn't always convinced by the actor's portrayals of the characters (though this is more down to the script, I think). And all those damn crossfades. Far too much crossfade.
  9. It may be better than Twilight but I'm not sure it's amazing...I find Collin's prose to be one of the weakest parts of the novels.
  10. I have to say, Catching Fire was my least favourite. It just didn't move the story on that much and was to derivative of the first one.
  11. Gone was good but it wasn't as stand out as BZRK. As I said, BZRK is definitely his magnum opus.
  12. Yeah - most of them are YA which is why you probably wouldn't be familiar with them. I enjoyed The Picture of Dorian Gray, particularly the first half. The second is a little drawn out and isn't as fun as the first, which is both good and bad but meant that I didn't enjoy it as much. As for Cloud Atlas - I loved it. Invariably, one of the 6 narratives will be more enjoyable (for me it was that of Sixsmith in The Letters from Zedeghelm) and catch your individual imagination more, but even as a whole I really enjoyed it. It's worth a read and I haven't met anyone who hasn't enjoyed it! I recently saw the film, too, which I was hoping would be good, and it's certainly well produced but it just doesn't capture the depth of each story. Sort of inevitable, as it's like trying to fit 6 films into one.
  13. Read Dracula at hte beginning of the year. I loved Dr Seward's narrative, but some of the others were a little superfluous. It's poorly paced too - the entire climax happens on the last page and seems a little rushed after such a long (and sometimes dull) buildup. I still enjoyed it as a whole, I think, though as I said earlier, Seward, his patient and van Helsing interested me most.
  14. I finished it a couple of months ago. Really enjoyed it, particularly the first half and the character of Lord Henry. It sort of drifts off towards the end and Dorian's downfall, I found.
  15. I forgot to add: really enjoyed some of the soundtrack, and I quite enjoyed the Christ-like parallels they made with Superman.
  16. Anyone see it? I saw it last night. So. First off, some of the dialogue is really rather cheesy (particularly the prologue). Apart from that's it's good, but not great. I find the entire prologue/set up for Superman too long, and it could have been done more effectively with perhaps even just a voiceover from Russell Crowe as we see baby superman being wizzed off into space. The film also employs and interesting chronology, which I'm not convinced works, with several flashbacks in a non-chronological order. They're good, but I'm not always convinced of their placement. Action wise, Man of Steel is non-stop and we see Superman being hurled through various skyscrapers and stuff far too often- it gets boring once the novelty wears off. The final showdown is also far too long. I would have liked to have seen more of a moral arc of a story similar to Batman, but alas, that wasn't really that foregrounded either. In summary, it's sort of an Avengers inspired flick without most of the humour. I'd say it's a 6/10.
  17. Actually, as far as I know the 3rd film is going to be the battle of the 5 armies so Smaug will be in this one significantly. Tauriel - the producer's attempts to make it less sexist. I welcome it. I thought the same - but it is 6 months prior to release and they were working the FX shots until the last minute on the last one so I'm hoping they'll be polished up. They haven't.
  18. Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess Fuse by Julianna Baggott The Tragedy Paper by Elizabeth LaBan Dare You To by Kate McGarry Seraphina by Rachel Hartman One Seriously Messed Up Weekend by Tom Clempson Department 19: Battle Lines by Will Hill On the Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde Fragments by Dan Wells Heroic by Phil Earle Zenn Scarlett by Christian Schoon Anarchy by James Treadwell Severed Heads, Broken Hearts by Robyn Schneider I definitely haven't read as many as last year but then I've been really busy with various projects and my AS levels this year!
  19. I've only read Gone and BZRK. Gone was good, but BZRK is definitely his magnum opus and is fantastically original. I'm really looking forward to reading BZRK: Reloaded.
  20. Correct - ASes are the exams at the end of year 12 and A2s are the exams at the end of Year 13. Together they combine to form a full A level. That is, in fact, the entire rundown of what we had to study in Year 12. This year (13), we're studying Great Expectations, one of the Canterbury Tales and an American Poet for our exam and Turn of the Screw, The Woman in Black and Victorian Ghost stories for our coursework.
  21. Having just finished my AS exams ~ I had to study Brighton Rock and A Clockwork Orange for the exam and Shakespeare's Othello and A Merchant of Venice for the coursework as well as a selection of poetry.
  22. Well I completed my GCSEs last year so I have so up-to date experience. We had: Romeo & Juliet coursework ("controlled assessment" style) Wilfred Owen poetry coursework Of Mice and Men exam (prose from different cultures) Journey's End exam (play text) Animal Farm exam Seamus Heaney Poetry exam
  23. Palagrin

    iOS7

    So - if you're in with the news, you can't have escaped Johnathan Ive's new redesign of iOS on Apple devices (actually, the news has just broken so you might have escaped it!) Anyway, I thought some of you guys might want to discuss it. I've attached some images below. Personally, I really like everything he's done, apart from the homescreen, which I find a little childish and very, very colourful. (Too colourful? I'm not sure - but there are lots of bright, almost neon colours in it!) What do you guys think? EDIT: Oops, don't know why I posted it in this section! Mod, please move it where it needs to go!
  24. It is supremely good. Do you prefer the original or the new vocals version?
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