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Brida

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    Brida's 2010/2011

    in Past Book Logs

    Posted

    Review time again.

     

    *The Truth about Melody Browne by Lisa Jewell*

     

    Synopsis:

    When she was nine years old, Melody Browne's house burned down, taking every toy, every photograph, every item of clothing and old Christmas card with it. But not only did the fire destroy all her possessions, it took with it all her memories - Melody Browne can remember nothing before her ninth birthday. Now in her early thirties, Melody lives in a council flat in the middle of London with her seventeen-year-old son. She hasn't seen her parents since she left home at fifteen, but Melody doesn't mind, she's better off on her own. She's made a good life for herself and her son and she likes it that way. Until one night something extraordinary happens. Whilst attending a hypnotist show with her first date in years she faints - and when she comes round she starts to remember. At first her memories mean nothing to her but then slowly, day by day, she begins to piece together the real story of her childhood. Her journey takes her to the seaside town of Broadstairs, to oddly familiar houses in London backstreets and to meetings with strangers who love her like their own. But with every mystery she solves another one materialises, with every question she answers another appears. And Melody begins to wonder if she'll ever know the truth about her past.

     

    In the info about the author on the back of the book, Lisa Jewell is said to be a popular chick-lit author. Not being a fan of the genre myself, I didn't have high expectations; I had visions of shoes, bags, cheesy date scenes, make up, unpaid credit card bills...well, you get the picture.

    But I was wrong :D

    I was very wrong, because not only is the book not about that, it's actually pretty enjoyable and gripping.

    It has a lot of twists to keep the reader interested and is filled with sadness (and hurt) at times but also with happiness and gratitude.

    I liked how the grown up Melody and Melody as a child are different, and I think they're both pretty realistic. What I also liked was how she progresses as a character, both growing up from 3 to 9 years old, and the 33-year old Melody changing from who she think she is, to who she really is.

    For me, an unexpectedly fun and interesting book, good choice for a summer read.

    Favorite Poet?

    in Poetry, Plays & Short Stories

    Posted

    This is a tricky subject since poetry is very specific translation-wise, so some of these poets I know only through translations :D However I do try to read originals as much as possible.

     

    I quite like Baudelaire, romanticism and romantic poetry (The Fly by Wiliam Blake has been one of my favourites since the 1st time I read it, I don't know why I loved it as much), some I.G. Kovačič, A. G. Matoš, T. Ujević, Shakespeare, some E. Dickinson (Because I Could not Stop for Death is also a fav)...

    The Last Film You Saw

    in Music / TV / Films

    Posted

    I watched Gone with the wind, the whole thing in one sitting for the first time. And boy, is it LONG.

    But very amusing, I must say. For such a long movie, not at all boring (imo).

     

    Wanted to watch Bridges of Madison County on tv last night, but was interrupted, so I haven't finished watching it...Yet again XD

    Unknown words

    in General Book Discussions

    Posted

    Usually I look it up, especially if it gets repeated a lot, or if it's just a great word.

    I do try and make up what it means before looking it up in the dictionary, but if I can do that thenI don't consider it to be unknown.

     

    Of course, sometimes I just don't want to stop reading and then I just let it go.

     

    But if I'm reading in a language I'm not very familiar with (I haven't been studying for long and my vocab is bad :D ) then I'll probably mostly read for the sake of learning new words. But those readings take time :)

    Brida's 2010/2011

    in Past Book Logs

    Posted · Edited by Brida

    YAY!

    Review time :) Bare with me, this is the first review I've ever written :)

     

    * The five people you meet in heaven by Mitch Albom*

     

    Synopsis:

    Eddie is a grizzled war veteran who feels trapped in the toil of his father before him, fixing rides at a seaside amusement park. Then he dies in a tragic accident, trying to save a little girl from a falling cart. He awakens in the afterlife, where he learns that heaven is not a lush Garden of Eden, but a place where your earthly life is explained to you by five people who were in it. These people may have been loved ones or distant strangers. Yet each of them changed your path forever. As the story builds to its stunning conclusion, Eddie desperately seeks redemption in the still-unknown last act of his life. Was it a heroic success or a devastating failure? The answer is as magical and inspirational as a glimpse of heaven itself.

     

    This book was an ok read. Nothing more, nothing less. On the other hand, this book is one of those that leave you thinking. It's true that sometimes only a change of perspective (and also, a few pieces of information given to us because we were not aware of them) can explain some events, and give them meaning. Or at least show us that things don't happen for nothing - everything happens for a reason (that's what I always say to myself, and was glad to see it mentioned in the book :().

    It is sad at times, and painful, but all in all I think it's pretty optimistic, don't you?

    The story itself is interesting, simple, imaginative, and probably suggestible in a way in describing the afterlife (I know it's just the author's ''vision'' of it) to those who are looking for, I dunno a positive description of heaven I guess :(

     

    As I said, as a read it was ok, but boy does it leave you with tons of questions/ideas after finishing it :(

    Brida's 2010/2011

    in Past Book Logs

    Posted

    Then it's not just me :lol:

     

    It is a good read, by all means, but still, I think I might have had too big expectations.

     

    Anyway, I am hoping to finally finish The 5 people you meet in heaven, I've got about 30 pages left and I can't seem to finish the darn book :roll: Not that it's bad, I just hate it when I've got a few pages left of a book and it takes me a week (or more) to finish.

    For How Long Do You Read?

    in General Book Discussions

    Posted

    It depends on how much time I've got, how tired I am, and of course on what I'm reading.

     

    Usually when I'm on holiday I read the most, 2,3 hours a day, or even more. Again, it depends on what I have to do that day. In the other part of the year, I read during study breaks to let my brain relax :blush: from 10 mins, to 1 hour.

     

    On average I'd say I read (non uni stuff) about an hour a day, but of course there are days when I don't read at all, or spend even more time reading.

    Your Book Activity Today - Thread 11

    in General Book Discussions

    Posted

    ^^That usually happens to me when I go to the library during the summer, because you're allowed to borrow more books than usual, and for a longer period of time. So all of the good ones are out, and the ones left are either crappy, or good but have already been read :blush:

     

    Have read 50ish pages of The book thief, and have got about as much till the end of The 5 people you meet in heaven :roll:

    Brida's 2010/2011

    in Past Book Logs

    Posted

    Thank you, I hope so too.

    Catch 22 is usually considered a classic, sort of. Not maybe in the Shakespeare/Austen/Dickens/Balzac/Tolstoy kind of way but a must read lets say. So I decided to read it for the sake of my serious-reader-ness. If such a thing exists :blush:

     

    So far The book thief seems to be a fast read, pretty straight forward, although I have a feeling it still hasn't started to be as...I dunno, extraordinary as everyone's described it. I mean, for a book over 500 pages long, maybe I should expect it to be a bit slow for the first 50 pages, it certainly does have enough space/time to evolve :eek2: Of course, it's also possible that I've created a certain expectation of it being unbelievably fantastic by the comments of everyone else, that nothing can live up to it :roll: I dunno, I just dunno...On with the reading, and we'll see what happens.

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