January 16, 2012 by sassenach
Meh. I gave this 3 stars on Goodreads, but it really gets 2.5 stars from me.
I have mixed feelings. On one hand, the book has a very solid message–about how some of us feel like ‘aliens’ in the world–in other words, outcasts who don’t belong. I dig that message. On the other hand, the prose was very flat for me. This was a quick read not because the writing was so great, but because it’s really more of a novella (a slim 150 pages) and because the chapters are SO short. Seriously, some chapters are one sentence long. Like this:
Sometimes, this is a whole chapter.
Or this:
Here’s a deep, profound statement that is SO deep and SO profound that no other words are necessary in this particular chapter.
(That last sentence was longer than many of the chapters in this book.)
I kept reading because I wanted to see if the author would turn the story into a true science fiction tale (which she really doesn’t). I will say that the ending was probably my favorite part of the book. I can’t say that I enjoyed the characters much, if at all. Mal is kind of relatable most of the time but other times he just annoyed me because he is so stinking emo. I was sad that his dad deserted the family and his mom was an alcoholic, but…I don’t know. I didn’t care about his character as much as I should have.
To sum it up, I think the book had the potential to be better than it is and I was left disappointed.
Category: Reading, Reads of 2012 | Tags: teenagewoecake, youngadult | No Comments
January 9, 2012 by sassenach
A very bleak but interesting look at what life would be like in the wake of tremendous natural disasters.
I was kind of perplexed by the basis of the plot–how could scientists not even suspect the potential consequences of a meteor hitting the moon? I get it, that type of oversight is what makes the whole plot possible, but it just seemed too easy to say, ‘oh, the scientists underestimated the impact.’ Anyway, I just decided to go with it and consider the possibility. The result is a real horror story, actually–tsunamis, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, mass casualties. This story speaks to most people’s primal fears about the truly uncontrollable aspects of our lives.
As a narrator, Miranda kind of irritated me at first, but I think that might have been intentional. At the book’s start, she is a typical teenager–whiny and fairly self-centered the majority of the time–but as the story progresses, she turns into quite a mature, responsible survivor. Eventually, I appreciated her character and wanted things to turn out okay for her and her family in the end.
Speaking of which, the ending fell a *little* flat for me. It wasn’t corny, but it felt a little too tidy. Put simply, I feel that more of the main characters should have died; realistically, that’s probably what would have happened. But overall, I enjoyed the book and have already bought the other two books in the trilogy (which, to my surprise, turned out to be companion books rather than true sequels; however, I’ll still be reading them both).
Category: Reading, Reads of 2012 | Tags: postapocalyptic, youngadult | 2 Comments
January 9, 2012 by sassenach
I finished reading this in 2011 but forgot to post a review of it!
I’ve read and liked Jay Asher’s Thirteen Reasons Why, so I was intrigued when I heard about The Future of Us. The premise is really clever–what if you signed on to AOL in 1996, only to find yourself looking at your Facebook profile 15 years in the future?
If Goodreads allowed us to give half stars, I would have given this 3.5 out of 5. This is such a cute book! I loved all the 90s references–AOL, Windows 95, scrunchies, VCRs…the list goes on. As with many novels that have some time travel element, the details get kind of dicey here and there. But overall, I found The Future of Us really fun and sweet. The ending is pretty ambiguous but I think it fits the story.
Lastly, I’m kind of surprised at the scathing reviews for this on Goodreads. Seriously, the book is not that awful! It’s not my favorite, but it’s hardly a waste of time either. In fact, if you want a nice, lighthearted YA read, I recommend this.
Category: Reading, Reads of 2011 | Tags: timetravel, youngadult | No Comments
January 8, 2012 by sassenach
I’m kind of glad I’ve seen the movie version of The Shining because I already know how the story ends. I’m still reading the book and it’s interesting, but for some reason I keep falling asleep whenever I try to read it! It’s really annoying. It doesn’t matter if I read at night or during the day, either. So weird. I’m going to finish reading the book, but at this rate, it’s going to take me a while.
I had to work on Saturday but it was a pleasant, short shift. So I’m off tomorrow, which is really nice. Even though I don’t love working Saturdays, I do like having the following Monday off (good way to avoid a Case of the Mondays, you understand).
M and I had a case of spring cleaning (or winter cleaning, I suppose) earlier today. We cleaned out the kitchen cabinets and counters–it looks so much nicer in there now! And I feel even better about having done that because right now I’m watching Hoarding: Buried Alive on TLC and it’s freaking me out. I don’t know why I’m so addicted to these trainwreck shows. I have no reasons. I always feel terrible for the hoarders and their families, especially when they acknowledge that they have a disorder but they don’t know how to overcome it…it’s so sad.
Anyway, I plan on being very lazy on my day off tomorrow because that is what I do. 
I’ll probably spend a good part of the day doing some secret knitting and watching a lot of Netflix + Amazon Instant Video. Such is the life of a semi-hermit!
Category: My So-Called Life, Reading, TV | Tags: stephenking, trainwrecks | 1 Comment
January 5, 2012 by sassenach
If you could sit down and interview anyone, who would it be? And, what would you ask them?
My first thought was to say Diana Gabaldon, but then I would feel guilty because I still haven’t read her latest Outlander novel. (I’m not a good fan lately!) Also, I met her back in 2007 and, in my starstruck state, couldn’t manage more than “I LOVE YOUR BOOKS I’M SO EXCITED TO MEET YOUUUU!!!” So yeah. Not sure I would do well in an interview with her.
Actually, I think I’d like to interview Anita Shreve because I adore her books and I find her writing style very inspiring. There’s a distinctly dark quality to her novels and I get the sense that she’s gone through a lot of pain in her life. I don’t expect that she would talk about that with a complete stranger, but I would like to hear about her writing process.
Category: Q & A, Reading | Tags: anitashreve, authors, bookingthroughthursday, dianagabaldon | No Comments
January 4, 2012 by sassenach
I’m one of those knitters who HATES swatching. I’ve been known to make sweaters without making proper swatches first (because I am too lazy/impatient to take that small, yet very important extra step). Happily, this swatch in particular serves a very special purpose, so I don’t mind making it: it’s for the beginner knitting class that I’m teaching at the library later this month!
I’m pretty excited because sign-ups are almost full. 
I’m a wee bit nervous about teaching the class, but I feel confident in my skills, so I’m not too worried. I’m just glad that I’m able to incorporate knitting into my job–I feel very lucky!
It’s also interesting how having a job that forces you to deal with the public can actually change your personality a bit. I’ve always been very shy, but over the years that I’ve been dealing with people at work, I’ve had no choice but to come out of my shell over time. I’m still not an extrovert, but it’s definitely easier for me to talk to strangers now. Several years ago, I NEVER would have thought I’d have the opportunity or confidence to teach (not one, but three classes!) at my job. Now, it’s really not a big deal at all! What a relief.
Category: Knitting, Working Girl | Tags: swatching, teaching | 4 Comments
January 3, 2012 by sassenach
If I had to estimate, I’d say I have around 50-60 different colors of nail polish. Probably closer to 50, since it’s been a while since I actually counted but I did get rid of several shades (and promptly replaced them with new shades, ahem). But I was surprised when I realized that I had NO gold polish! At all! I had tan, brown, bronze…but nada gold. Until now, obviously.
From l-r: Essie Luxeffects As Gold As It Gets topcoat; Milani Good Morning Sunshine; L’oreal Amazon’s Flash; Wet ‘n Wild Fast Dry The Gold and the Beautiful.
The Essie and Milani shades definitely lean more yellow, while the other two have deeper gold tones, I think. I’m going to try the Essie over the L’oreal first to see how that looks, but I’ve seen pics of people using the Essie over other colors–black, green, even on bare nails and it looks really pretty either way.
Category: Nail Polish | Tags: essie, l'oreal, milani, wet 'n wild | No Comments
