Like, OMG, he sparkles!!

A Libraryland friend asked on Facebook for a link to a particular Twilight comic synopsis. Not knowing about this treasure, I asked for the link as well. Here it is. Be prepared to LOL.

Like, you know, Stephanie Meyer? Get it?


Thanks for sharing, Karen!

A few other things...

While I was visiting for Thanksgiving, my mom and I went to see Twilight and The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. Both movies are based on books, as is the movie we saw just after Christmas - The Tale of Despereaux. Since all three movies are based on books, I thought I'd write about them.

Twilight=boring. Seriously thought it was a snoozefest. My mom - who loves the books (Why, Mom? Why?) - agreed. The scads of tweens seemed to enjoy the movie, but I just couldn't get into it. Heck...I could at least listen to the audiobook without falling asleep. The movie was a struggle.

For the most part, I think the actors just didn't fit the descriptions from the book. For instance, Rosalie - whom I imagined as a beautiful natural blonde, looked like an ordinary chick with a bad dye job. *shrug*

The second movie that Mom and I saw, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, was a much better film. I'll never watch it again, and, once I returned to work, I took my hold off of the book. The film was excellent. As I haven't read the book, I can't say how closely it followed. The end was shocking, even though I knew what was going to happen, I had a bit of hope. Mom and I were both too shocked to cry. This is not a movie for young children.

We are going to show the movie at one of our branches for Holocaust Remembrance Day.

I was excited to see The Tale of Despereaux. I even bought the book for my mom for Christmas! She started reading it, and was at least halfway through the book when we went to see the movie.

I was disappointed. While the characters were the same as the book, the story was changed quite a bit. Why? There was no reason to change the story! My mom was really into the book, and was equally disappointed in the movie. *sigh* I'd skip the flick and read and/or listen to the book instead!

In other fun, I don't think I've shared this yet.

Snarky Twilight Recaps This site will have you LOLing for sure. I suggest you don't read it at work...you might get in trouble for laughing too loud.

Bitten

Spoiler Alert!
A warning – Don’t read this review if you are currently reading or plan to read Breaking Dawn.

Wow. I haven’t been a huge fan of this series. After finishing Breaking Dawn, I think I am even less so. As with the previous books, I listened to the book on CD.

It was predictable – Jacob showing up at the wedding reception. Bella getting pregnant. Jacob imprinting on Bella and Edward’s daughter…the list goes on.

It was annoying – because it was predicable. Because teenage vampires (and vampires to be) are even worse at naming children than most celebrities. I won’t even use the child’s name, it is so horrible. No wonder Jacob nicknames her Nessy. And I was still annoyed by the overuse of certain adjectives. Cold. Icy. Marble. Freezing. Yeah…got the picture 3 books ago. The vampires are not warm blooded people. Also annoying? The lack of action. Sex is glossed over, which is annoying with the buildup in the previous books. There isn’t any fighting, even though the vampire “law” enforcers pay the Cullens a visit. The bloodlust buildup fizzled out with no release. Boring.

One last annoying bite. Bella is too perfect. With all the talk about how newborn vampires act (wasn’t that a big part of Eclipse?), you would think that we would be treated to Bella’s struggle. Nope. Instead, she is reborn without all those nasty little newborn traits.

So, while there were a couple parts of the book that I liked, overall I thought it rather sucked. (Or should I say it bites? Ha.)

Continuing on the vampire theme…I was reading Suck it Up, which was a book group pick for this month. *yawn* not going to finish it. I was bored by it as well. So, I’m going to my group this month having not read the “assigned” reading. Ah, well. Won’t be the last time, I’m sure!

vampires, villagers, and high society...Oh, my!

That would pretty much sum up my reading lately, as I've several books to write about today.

Firstly, I listened to Good masters! Sweet Ladies! : voices from a medieval village by Laura Amy Schlitz. This book was the 2008 Newbery Award winner. The audio version is excellent. Each of the monologues and dialogues are read by different voices. The listener can visualize the life portrayed by the author. I highly recommend this title for not only the tweens it is written for, but for adults and teens as well.

I’ve finished two books over the last week or so. The Virgin’s Lover by Philippa Gregory – which is another book in her Boleyn series – and The Luxe by Anna Godbersen.

The Virgin’s Lover. This book begins before the previous story ends (The Queen’s Fool). It is the story of Queen Elizabeth I, her lover Robert Dudley and his wife Amy.

*sigh* I wish I could have been sucked into the story like I was with The Other Boleyn Girl. I’m debating whether I want to bother with anther book by this author. It isn’t that it was poorly written. It just didn’t keep my attention…which is why it took me several weeks to finish reading it.

The Luxe. The story begins with a funeral. Beautiful, young Manhattan society princess Elizabeth Holland tumbled out of a carriage and into the chilly Hudson River. Her body was not found. One what was to be her wedding day, instead an empty casket is being placed in the ground.

What happened to Elizabeth Holland? Only one person was with her in the carriage…her friend Penelope. Elizabeth’s younger sister Diana is full of grief, wondering if she somehow caused this terrible event to happen, while Elizabeth’s fiancé Henry is numb with grief. Few know what secrets Elizabeth was hiding…

While it might not sound it, it is a great light read. I’ve already placed the next book on hold.

Current reads:

Suck it Up by Brian Meehl . This is a book group choice.

I’m listening to Breaking Dawn. I’ll finish it. I want to know how it ends. BUT…the name geek in me is screaming. Won’t say why yet. I’ll save that for the actual review.

Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer

I started listening to this on Thursday? Friday? Sometime late last week. Funny thing is, my sister G called to tell me she's finished the book. She wants me to hurry up and read it so we can talk about it. Sorry, G. That won't happen. I expect to finish it sometime after Christmas.

I'm on the 2nd disc. So far I'm remembering why I dislike Edward so much. Another annoying issue...Bella is 18. Granted, she acts much younger sometimes, but her father treats her as if she is much younger as well. I loved that she finally told him that she is a legal adult. Now, if she would just keep that up.

I think Jacob is coming back in the story now, so I'm hopeful that I will enjoy the story more.

Twilight, New Moon and Eclipse


Just came across this site and thought I should share.

For those who are fans of Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series, here is her website: http://www.stepheniemeyer.com

Twilight is listed as being in preproduction. Filming for the movie is suppose to start in February 2008.

New Moon by Stephenie Meyer

A few days ago, I finished listening to this book.

The first half of the book was great. I really enjoyed it.

Over all, the writing was better in this installment. I loved the friendship between Bella and Jacob...and the absence of Edward in the first part. The second part of the book, however, I wasn't as happy with. I really don't like Edward. I will admit, though, I like him better in this book than in Twilight.

I have the 3rd book (Eclipse) on hold. Hopefully the audiobook arrives soon, so I can listen to it before Christmas (I'm off work for several days, which means a lot less time in the car).

Twilight

Thanks to a trip to Columbus (it's a nearly 3 hour drive one way), I finished this book on Sunday. I admit...I've requested the sequels in audio. Now that my admission is out of the way, let me tell you what I thought of the book.

It did get better. Obviously, it must have if I requested the sequels. That being said, it didn't get so much better that I would list it as a favorite book. Not at all. As the action picked up, the story was less boring. I'm now interested in what happens next. I hope that the next two books are not as slow moving and repetitive as this one.

Speaking of repetition...for some reason, I got the idea that Edward is cold to the touch. Could it be how often the writer mentioned his cold hands...his icy lips...his cool chest. Also, at one point, the vampires are referred to as the Cold Ones or something along that line. Dude. You could have cut out at least 100 words from the book...maybe more. We get the picture.

So, that book is done and I am on to another. That, of course, is for another post.

Twilight

This book gets better, right? I'm about halfway through it now, and, honestly, I don't understand what the fuss is all about. Edward is bi-polar. Bella needs hit with a cluestick. It isn't love...it's obession - at least from what I've heard so far. And the story is boring to me. *yawn* Edward ignores Bella. Bella gets pissed at Edward. Edward acts nicer to Bella. Edward is crypic with his answers to Bella's questions. Bella gets pissed at Edward. Bella moans about the weather/town/life in general. Repeat in various orders. *yawn*

It isn't the vampire thing. I like vampire stories.

I suppose I should hold on to hope that as the book continues on, I will really start to enjoy it. I'm tempted to start another audiobook, though, and to send this one back to the shelves.

Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

I just started listening to this book today. OK. That's a lie. I started listening to it last winter or spring - long enough ago that I can't recall when. I didn't finish the first CD then, as I had many, many books that needed to be read/listened to at the time (in preparation for a presentation). So, it was placed on the back burner. Since then, I've heard so many people talk about the series. A high school student my husband worked with saw the CD in my car (when the hubster was driving it) and was very excited to think that he read the book. LOL That would be a no. It's definitely not his type of story.

So...I've started again. I've listened to about 1 and a half CDs so far. I'm not sure if it is the narrator or the story that I'm not liking. I guess we will see. I've heard people rave about the character Edward, but so far I want to smack him with What-the-Hell-is-your-problem stick. We'll see if my opinion changes as the story continues. I hope so! I do want to enjoy this book.