Blah.

My dad was served divorce papers yesterday. So now life is sort of crazy. Lots of emotions and everything. I think a divorce will make a lot of things better, but that doesn't make it any easier. Best Buy has my computer for the next few weeks too, so that is a big pain. I have no idea how I got a virus, but I did. The temperature outside is dropping like crazy and it is snowing. That seems really fitting for everything going on right now.

So I am officially about half done with The Amber Spyglass...finally. I think certain parts of this last book are kind of slow. But hopefully I am past them now. I don't want to give anything away, so I can't say too much :) What I really need right now is some good Stephen King or Michael Crichton or something. Basically anything intense and fast paced. Hopefully I can get a lot of reading time in today.

I have work for five hours today, but I am sort of dreading it. I just want to be home. I feel drained. Five hours isn't a lot, but if it's really dead time will go so slow.

Meh

I have kind of dropped the ball on blogging and reading lately. I am still not even half way done with The Amber Spyglass. I just cannot concentrate. Not to mention that I am working more than usual and have a lot going on with the holidays and stuff. So it's annoying.

Happy Thanksgiving

Today is Thanksgiving. Usually this day is super fun and full of family. This year it is kind of different though for my family. My parents are separated and I will only be seeing my mom. My boyfriend, his sister and I are all going over to my mom's house to play games, eat and watch Friends. It should be a really great time, but it's also kind of bittersweet. I have never had a holiday without my dad.
I have an unbelievable amount of things to be thankful for. The main thing being my life. Just a few months ago I was in the hospital with severe kidney failure. Only a couple years ago I had a cancer scare. Right now I am feeling healthy and well. I don't think I will ever take that feeling for granted again. Another very important thing I am thankful for is my family. Even though right now my parents are going through their thing, I still feel very stable, surrounded by love. My mom is my best friend. My boyfriend is amazing and patient and keeps me sane. My dad is a buddy and has helped me out of a lot of tough spots. And then my pets. Sonic, Nova, Chewie and Scout. I have always said I like animals better than most people. They are always there. They care about you no matter what. They are funny. They take naps with me. They are like my children. I try really hard to not take my family for granted. Sometimes I do though. When they are consistently there for me, it's hard not to. I love my family so much. I can't even begin to explain it.
I'm also thankful for a billion other things, but I don't feel like listing them all here :)

Now on to the reading thing! I am about a third done with The Amber Spyglass. It is taking me an insane amount of time to finish it for some reason. I suppose I'm just busy and tired. It's really good and whenever I get the chance to read I am enjoying it. The Nooks just got a new update and it is pretty awesome. The pages turn way faster and I can make lists of books, instead of just one huge list. If you don't have an ereader those probably sound like really stupid things, but they make a lot of difference!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Ice!

My Doxie Nova testing her boundaries.

Overnight the area of Minnesota I live in had really bad ice rain. Now there is a layer of glare ice on everything. I tried walking down our outside steps with the three dogs...not an easy task. Once we made it down, it was hilarious watching them try to walk. And I'm sure it was fun for the neighbors if they got to see me trying to walk. You literally can't! I had to walk on our front bushes to get back up to the driveway. I guess there were some 300 car accidents last night. Yikes!

I haven't been reading a ton in the past couple days. I have had a constant headache for the past week. Today I was lucky and woke up with only a dull ache.


I wanted to share this link. It's pretty awesome.

The Subtle Knife: Wrap Up!

The Subtle Knife by Phillip Pullman is the second in the His Dark Materials trilogy. I think it is definitely better than The Golden Compass. The story clips along a lot faster and the story is set up perfectly. I cannot wait to read The Amber Spyglass. I think Pullman did a great job ending The Subtle Knife. I need to know what happens next :)
Rating: 10/10

This is an awesome article! If you want something creepy.

Half Through

I am half done with The Subtle Knife, the second book in the His Dark Materials trilogy by Phillip Pullman. So far I like it a lot, definitely more than The Golden Compass. This one gets into the action a lot quicker and the characters are a lot more fun. I am excited to see where it is going to go :) I am puzzled that these books are considered 'young adult'. They aren't. At least, I probably wouldn't want my young child reading these unless they were very mature. I think just because a novel has kids as main characters and animals as characters, people are quick to label it 'young adult'. That's a mistake.

I might read The Beach by Alex Garland next. Don't hold me to it. I'm pretty sure that is going to be a very dark book, and the way things are right now with my parents separation, I'm not sure if I want to deal with dark topics. I always have a hard time picking what to read next. I think it's because I have way too many books to choose from. At the moment I have about 200 books on my Nook. I also have about double that in paper and a bunch of eBooks that aren't on my Nook. Too many choices!!!

Here are funny exam answers
&
People who faked their deaths


The pictures in this entry are some of the covers I thought were odd for The Subtle Knife.

SNOW!!!

It is snowing very hard outside! The weather people are saying we might get 10 inches. Exciting stuff! It looks like Christmas :)

 Here, this is fun!!!

The Golden Compass: Wrap Up! & Stuff

This entry marks my 50th novel read this year and 1,000 views to my blog :) Two very good things. 

Today I finished The Golden Compass. It was awesome! I'm not sure why I hated it so much the first time I tried to read it. The characters are a lot of fun and it is really different as far as young adult novels go. I would say it blurs the line between adult fiction and young adult. I'm going to finish the trilogy, The Subtle Knife being next.
Rating: 8/10

I wanted this entry to be really awesome, but I don't feel like saying much. My back hurts and I feel very complain-y. Things are extremely odd right now in life.

This is an awesome website! Seriously. It is something that will make you think and hopefully consider what is and is not important. It reminds me a lot of the Post Secret books... which I love.

Hopefully everyone has a really nice rest of the week. Take time to take care of yourselves. Or if you are self-centered, take time to take care of loved ones :)

Here are some hilarious lol cats:

Good Quote

"When you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on." - Franklin D. Roosevelt

Interesting

Here is an article called 6 Books Everyone (Including Your English Teacher) Got Wrong


I love it, because I am always bothered by people who try to explain 'what the author was trying to say'. Especially when the author they are talking about is dead. No one truly knows what novels are a metaphor for or what they are trying to say, unless the author addresses this. And sometimes books are not a metaphor for anything. Things sometimes are just what they are. I think this is the problem I often ran into in school. Both k-12 and college. In English classes you always had to discuss what was really going on. I hate that. I hate picking apart books and making them more or less than what they actually are. It is one of my pet peeves. I haven't read any books on the list I posted, but it is still really interesting because of all the books I have read, where people try to explain what they are really about. Ugh!!!


I am about a third of the way through The Golden Compass and I am definitely liking it more the second time around. I don't remember much of it, either. So it seems new and fresh. I'm so happy it's good, because life sure is insane right now. My parents separation is in full swing and I am having issues. I feel so bad for all my friends who had to deal with this in high school and earlier. I am 22 and having huge troubles with it. No wonder my generation is so messed up. There is no way a teenager could deal with this and just get over it.

Here are some interesting facts.

Good Omens: Wrap Up! & The Golden Compass

I finished up Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman yesterday. I didn't like it very much. I thought it was kind of slow with weird humor to begin with and then the end just dragged. I read a few reviews other people wrote and while the majority seemed to love this book, the ones who didn't like it had the same complaints as me. Something just felt really off about it. I even resorted to skimming some parts, just to see if maybe something was going to happen. I love Neil Gaiman, so I'm definitely disappointed.

Rating: 2/10

Next up is The Golden Compass by Phillip Pullman. This is a part of the His Dark Materials trilogy. It is one of my boyfriends favorite series of novels and I promised him about three years ago I would read them. I tried to read The Golden Compass then, but stopped near the end because I couldn't get into it. Hopefully now I can. Sometimes that happens with me. When people tell me to read something I can't, but a little later when I decide to, I can. I watched part of the movie, starring Daniel Craig and Nicole Kidman, and I was put off by how different it seemed than  the novel. And by the voice of Lyra's daemon.My boyfriend has said a couple times that because I am an atheist, I might be able to appreciate it quite a bit. That is intriguing to me.

Banned Books

This is a list of 50 banned books that should be read. 

I think it must be a rule that at some point, all amazing books be banned. Just a quick glance at that list will show you tons of familiar titles. That is because the majority of these novels are considered classics. It absolutely blows my mind that people go all crazy trying to get books censored and banned. I thought I would share the books that appear on that list that I have read. I will let you all know how old I was when I read them and what my thoughts are.

• Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger- This is one of my all time favorites. I was 16 when I read it for the first time. I related with it on some level then, but I didn't appreciate it until I reread it when I was 18 and out of school. I don't understand why it would be banned. If anything it was nice knowing that everyone feels angst.
• Lord of the Flies by William Golding- I was 19 when I read this and honestly, it did bother me. I thought it was just so real. I think it is probably one of the most disturbing things I have ever read, and I have read some messed up stuff. I wouldn't ban this however. Not everyone feels the same way I do. Most highschoolers would probably be bored to death reading this.
• The Harry Potter series by JK Rowling- I read this when I was 20. If you are against fun, adventure and whimsy then you would probably want to ban the Harry Potter series. It is insane that this would be banned.
• The Giver by Lois Lowery- I must have been 11 when I read this. It was the first time I ever remember connecting to a novel. It really makes you think about life and the world we live in. I think this more so would bother adults than kids, so banning it is pretty stupid.
• The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck- I was 21 when I read this and see no reason for it to be banned. It is an honest portrayal of the great depression and it incredibly relevant to today. I think everyone needs to read this. Even if you think Steinbeck is super boring.
• The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown- Ultra-religious people need to calm down. They are the ones who ban this, right? It is a fun, fictional adventure. I read this when I was 16 and thought it was exciting and interesting.
• 1984 by George Orwell-This is a depressing one. I read this just this year. So I was 22. I liked it a lot and don't really get why it would be banned. Like Grapes of Wrath, everyone should read it. It's probably where are world is headed.
• Animal Farm by George Orwell- I was 21 when I read this. It's great and shouldn't be banned. Calm down, banners.
• The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald-Okay, I honestly have no freaking idea why this book should be banned. It is an all time favorite of mine. I read it once when I was 16 and again when I was 18. I don't remember anything ban-worthy.
• Brave New World by Aldous Huxley- I was 21 when I read this and I was luke warm on it. It is kind of like 1984, where it's a look at a terrible world future.
• The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini-Another all time favorite, I was 18 when I read The Kite Runner. With how touchy Afghanistan seems to be, I'm not surprised this was banned. It's really good and everyone needs to read it. It's a look into a culture many don't know about.
• Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes- I love this novel. One of my favorites. I first read the censored version when I was 12 and then the real version when I was 16 and then again when I was 18. I think it is the only novel I have read three times. I'm not too sure about why this would be banned. There is an odd bedroom scene, but that is basically it.
• Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck-I read this when I was 14. Great book. I'm not sure why this is a controversial book.
• Native Son by Richard Wright-I read this when I was 21. For a while I considered it a very favorite, but it didn't stick like how I think favorites should stick. I can definitely see why people would want this banned. In this country people are down right freaked out about talking slavery and what black people had to deal with in this country until very recently. This is such an honest and amazing book. People should be literally forced to read it. It's one of those books where you have to read it to understand what I mean. It is a very important work.
• Beloved by Toni Morrison-I was 20 when I read this. It's good. It has some really graphic stuff. Nothing ban-worthy, but I can see what people were thinking when they thought it should be off shelves.
• In Cold Blood by Truman Capote-This must have been banned just for being graphic. I was 21 when I read it and I thought it was great! You would see and hear much more graphic things just watching T.V.
• Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut-Love it! I was 20 when I read this and don't get why it would be banned.

So, as it turns out, I don't understand banning at all. It is pretty crazy and hair brained. From the novels on this list that I have read, I just think the most honest books are banned. Ones that make you take a good look at each other and the world we live in. 

Winter

I am almost half done with Good Omens. It is not my favorite so far. I like it and it is starting to get interesting, but I think the humor is a little too dry and I feel like I am missing out on some of the comedy because I don't get the religious jokes. I have pretty much zero background in Christianity... or any religion for that matter. I love Neil Gaiman, so I feel like the problem I must be having with this novel is the Terry Pratchett part. That makes me reconsider reading the Discworld series.

This is the 49th novel I have read this year. When I started this site, it was to track my year long goal to read 50 novels... well, turns out I can easily read 50 novels in less than a year. I would say there was probably over a month of time that I didn't read this year too. So next year I will definitely need to change the goal if I want a challenge. I have super high hopes for 2011, so I want to make my goals something to be proud of. 2010 was probably one of the strangest, darkest and confusing years of my life. And it's not even over. I don't want to say it has been a bad year, because it hasn't. A lot of awesome and amazing things have happened. But this year a ton of horrible things have happened too. Life altering things. 2011 needs to kick ass!

It smells like winter outside this morning. I love winter. Hate driving in it, but love it in general. I want some snow! It's like 20 degrees out :)

Here is an article about hilarious plants! 

It's a Windy Day

It is really cold and windy out all of a sudden. I can also tell the pressure is changing based on the insane headache I am getting. I read a bit of Good Omens earlier and so far all I can say is: Very British. That isn't a bad thing, jut something to get used to. I am also reading the book of this. Not the eBook. Since getting my Nook in March I have only read a handful of paper books. It feels weird having to actually turn pages. Pretty silly.
Here are some fun cartoons by Dr. Seuss that he did during WWII. If you do a search for Dr. Seuss war propaganda a bunch of these show up. I think they are neat.

I also found some great articles today.
10 Well Known People and Their Phobias
5 Mind-Blowing Coincidences

I wish Neil Gaiman, Christopher Moore and all the other authors I love would be releasing new novels soon. I need something exciting to read. If anyone has suggestions, let me know.

Good Omens :)

I changed my mind about reading A Scanner Darkly. I read about 30 pages of it and was not a huge fan. I thought the content was kind of depressing and the writing was kind of funky for what I want right now. I am way more into fantasy than science fiction. anyways. Picking out what to read is proving harder than normal because of all the turmoil of what is happening with my parents marriage. It is a really painful and stressful thing to deal with. I need stuff tor read that is fun and somewhat easy. Nothing that will make me think too much or anything.

So, I decided on Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. I was going to read The Colour Of Magic (the first Discworld novel) but decided for some reason that I didn't want to yet. I love Neil Gaiman, so hopefully I will love this. It gets good ratings on amazon and B&N, which is usually a good sign, although sometimes very deceiving. Good Omens, as far as I know, is about Armageddon and stuff. But in a funny way :)

Here is a funny link about Vegas.

A List!

60 Ways To Make Your Life Simple Again

Great list.

A Scanner Darkly & Stuff

Last night was not the Halloween I expected. We had three trick or treaters and everyone was a little bummed. My parents separating earlier in the day was the main reason for being bummed out. My dad just moved out that afternoon. Happy Halloween! But not super happy.  My parents are two of my best friends, so this sucks.

I am reading A Scanner Darkly by Phillip K. Dick next. I have never read any of his stuff and I don't know anything about this novel. It's science fiction though and it was also made into a movie that I never saw. I remember in high school my philosophy teacher really liked this movie or novel- I don't remember which. I never really read full out science fiction, but in my attempt to be removed from real life while I read, I figured scifi might be good.


I found out about a website called You Are What You Read and I want to recommend it. Celebrities and normal people post their five top favorite books. I love that idea! It will get kids to read things other than manga and Twilight.
My top five are:

• Life Of Pi
• Stardust
• The Great Gatsby
• Watership Down
• What Dreams May Come

What are yours?