Warm Bodies and Martin Freeman's Face

       So recently, there's been a lot of buzz about this book (which is being turned into a movie very soon!)


    Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion. Not all of this buzz has been good, and I'm not saying it has to be, but a lot of these negative feelings towards Warm Bodies are misinformed. There are a lot of people assuming it's bad, just from watching the trailer, or that Isaac Marion is just trying to latch onto the growing paranormal romance market to earn some quick cash. I'm here to tell you that none of that is true.

     Yes, Warm Bodies is about a zombie that falls in love with a human. Yes, this zombie is remarkably attractive for a zombie. And yes, the movie was picked up by Summit (that same company that did all the Twilight movies.) But that doesn't mean that Warm Bodies is Twilight, or even remotely similar. Technically, it's a paranormal romance, but that is not what defines the book. It's a love story, yes, but mostly it's about what defines humanity, and what separates us from the animals. If you think about it, what is it that separates the living from the dead? (who are portrayed as the animals in this book) We feel, we love, we have compassion. That's what Marion was trying to explain.

    Also, props to Marion for giving new life to zombie fiction (ha-ha get it?) I mean, there's only so much you can do with the walking dead, but by making the book from the point of view of a zombie, he's bringing logic into the situation, which was something I, as a reader, had never even considered. And, he does this all in the most eloquent way possible. I can honestly say that Warm Bodies is one of the best written books I have ever read, and I have read A LOT.

      So, I'm not saying that everyone should love Warm Bodies, but I think you should at least give it a chance. Don't judge a book by it's cover.
      If you happen to read Warm Bodies and like it, the author is also really cool! Check out his blog here: Burning Building- Isaac Marion
      

      
Now, on the subject of hobbits.

   In my last post, I talked about how I had to read The Hobbit before I went to the midnight premier. Well, I did it, and I am happy to say that Bombur survived the entire book! (I knew you could do it buddy!) I also went to the premier, which was AMAZING. If you have never been to a midnight premier, I highly recommend it. There is nothing like sitting in a big theatre at 3 in the morning with a bunch of nerds, crying over Thorin and Bilbo's budding bromance. The music is epic, the effects are unbelievable, and most of all...

     Martin Freeman is adorable. That is all.

     



        
      

The Hobbit: How to Read a Really Boring Book in a Really Short Amount of Time

     My friend got tickets to go see The Hobbit at midnight, and one these tickets is for me. It was actually my idea to get these tickets, because midnight premiers are awesome and I love them, but...
     I have never read The Hobbit.
     And I can't go to the midnight premier without having read the book, becuase then I will get into a situation like this:
Nerd: I LOVE THE HOBBIT. I'VE READ IT TWICE A DAY EVERY DAY FOR THE LAST SIX YEARS. I SLEEP IN A BILBO BAGGINS COSTUME AND ALL OF MY STEAK KNIVES ARE NAMED "STING".
Me: I haven't read it.
Because that would get me a steak knife named Sting to the face, and I like my face the way it is thank you.
     So now I have to read the book. And I sincerely apologize to all of the Tolkien fans out there, but personally, I think Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit are really boring. I mean, I had to be bribed just to watch the movies. But I shall read this book nonetheless! And if you are in a situation similar to mine, I have written this guide on how to do it:
HOW TO READ THE HOBBIT IN A WEEK:
1. Have some sort of deadline you absolutely must have it done by! Like the midnight premier, so you may preserve your face.
2. Do not allow yourself to read any other books. Last night, I told myself I would read 2 pages of Percy Jackson, and then go back to The Hobbit. I accidentally read the whole thing.
3. Treat in like an English book. As in, force yourself to read at least a chapter every night, like your English teacher would do.
4. Try to nerd out over it. One of the ways I did this was by watching Hobbit week on Colbert. Watching Peter Jackson, Martin Freeman, Ian Mckellan, and Andy Serkis talk about the movie kind of made me get excited for it, and therefore, the book.
5. (Optional) Defend Bombur to your dying breath. There are a whole lot of fat jokes about Bombur in this book, and one of things that helps me to keep reading is the hope that everyone else will die of starvation, but Bombur will live becasue of all the fat he's built up over the years. But in the meantime, I satisfy myself with calling all the other characters jerks.

   
Currently, I have 60 pages left of The Hobbit. Then, I'm going to go to the premier and cheer everytime Bombur comes on screen, and no one will throw knives at my face. (Hopefully.)

Book Recommendation: The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

WARNING: This may contain spoilers. Maybe. It depends on what you define as spoilers. I define them as way less cryptic than what’s in here, but maybe some people don’t.

Here’s the first thing you need to know about The Scorpio Races: it’s not a book for readers, its book for writers.

                I promise that makes sense inside my head, but I shall explain it nonetheless. There are books you read where the story is just amazing. You know what I’m talking about, perfectly paced, great characters, plot twists, the books you accidentally read for six hours when you only meant to read one chapter. But then there are the books you read where the words are what’s truly amazing. The metaphors, the dialogue, the descriptions, every sentence is positively gorgeous. Those are the writer books. The books only writers could love as much as they do, because only they could appreciate all the beauty those words portray.

                Now I’m not saying that Maggie Steifvater didn’t have a great plot and fantastic characters (because trust me, she did) but when I read it, all I could do was marvel at the brilliance of her words. If you ever want to see what good descriptive writing looks like, you must read this book.

Plot wise: Still a really good book! Puck is a great character, really funny. Sean is… Sean. He is possibly one of the best characters I’ve ever read about. He’s sweet, yet distant, and complex enough to keep you interested. His character will really make you think. The setting is also great. The island, Thisby, is immersed in myth and tradition, yet it also carries the feel of a small town that gives you, the reader, a sort of intimate look at it.

                The story, while incredibly intriguing, requires a certain level of commitment. It can get really slow at parts, and a bit repetitive, but I encourage you to read through the end. I promise, it’s worth it, even if it makes you really mad (you’ll see what I mean if you read it.)

Also, fun fact: Maggie Stiefvater did the animation and wrote/ performed the music for the book trailer (which is really cool!) Watch it here:  The Scorpio Races book trailer