Book Blog #13, The Doldrums

The Doldrums                                                                                                           by Nicholas Gannon

Don't let the weight of the book cloud your judgment, as it is a fast, interesting book despite the fact that it weighs five pounds.

Rachel and Ralph Helmsley are the greatest explorers of their age. Archer Helmsley, however, has always wanted to live up to his grandparents title of being a Helmsley. His entire life he has craved adventure and discoveries. He starts to assemble a plan, but many things get in the way. Take for instance, Ms. Murkley, a blood-thirsty teacher who will stop at nothing until Archer and his class are perfect. He assembles a ragtag group of friends to try to rescue his grandparents, (they got frozen to an iceberg). They have to tackle many obstacles to achieve their goals, and have fun doing it. Will they make it to the iceberg?

I did enjoy this book, although it was a little slow at parts. The storyline did remain quite interesting throughout the book, and it was very rarely predictable. Overall, the only thing I was not happy about was that it had an unsatisfactory ending. I would recommend this book to pretty much anyone who wants a fast read that will pull you into a unique storyline.


My opinion is still that it would be interesting to have a science-fiction book group or a dystopian book group. I think that these would be two interesting genres because they are not normally discussed and it would be interesting to hear other's insight on them. I think that it would be fun to do a more rare genre of book for a book group, or a genre that is not commonly discussed.

TBR list
Dark Eden   by Chris Beckett
Stone Mattress   Margaret Atwood
The Vorrh    by Brian Catling
Tenth of December  by George Saunders
The Dog stars   by Peter Heller
Cat's Cradle   by Kurt Vonnegut

Connection poem

Connection in a dark place
by Miles Bourgeois

A look through the fence,
a smile,
happiness in a dark place.

The neighborhood may not seem trustworthy,
she wasn't aware,
enjoyment in a dark place.

Among the others she was with,
she was energetic,
energy in a dark place.

Maybe, just maybe,
if there is so much happiness,
maybe, it is not so dark.

Book Blog #12, Hamlet, week #2

Hamlet                                                                                                                by William Shakespeare

Hamlet's father tragically died and the throne was taken by his uncle, King Claudius. Hamlet, (the prince of Denmark), was visited by the ghost of his father. His father craved revenge for his murder. Hamlet soon discovers that the throne is surrounded by murder and lies, and he has to untangle them. Though romance and MANY characters, Shakespeare weaves an epic tragedy of life on the throne.

Overall, the book is very dense and I got to a point where I lost interest. I did enjoy sections although in parts of it I would get very lost in the writing. The book is challenging in many aspects, the first is that it is written in old English. The second is that the language and phrases used are not commonly known. What made this book most challenging was the fact that to fully understand it you need to read the meanings of words and switch between the meanings and the storyline.

I would be interested in doing dystopian book groups and a Sci-Fi book group. I would be interested in doing a book group with either of these genres because I feel like they are not commonly discussed and they would be interesting to see other people's opinions on them.

TBR List
The List   by Siobhan Vivian
Speak   by Laurie Halse Anderson
The Host   by Stephenie Meyer
The Future of us   by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler
The Archaeology of Weapons   by R. Ewart Oakeshott
The Giver Quartet   by Lois Lowry
Love Letters to the Dead   by Ava Dellaira
The House of Ivy and Sorrow   by Natalie Whipple
To Kill a Mockingbird   by Harper Lee
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Book Blog #11, Hamlet, week 1

Hamlet, week 1                                           by William Shakespeare
Hamlet's father tragically died, and the throne was then ruled by King Cornelius, Hamlet's uncle. King Cornelius had married Queen Gertrude, who less than a month previously had been married to the late king. The Ghost of Hamlet's father shows up in the dead of night, and leaves at the cock's crow. Hamlet talks to the ghost, and learns that the ghost craves revenge for his death. An epic tragedy has been woven by the end. Murder, deceit, and death can be found anywhere, but are especially common on the throne.
Overall, this book has been good and I have liked it. It has been challenging to decipher the old English used fluently throughout. It is a gripping storyline, but it is long and the monologues drag on quite often. I would recommend this book if you enjoy more serious books that will provide quite a literary challenge. I would recommend getting an addition that has translations for some of the words and phrases, as it I easier to understand if you don't have to guess what things mean.
There is minor profanity so far, although you should be prepared for the Shakespearean language. There is also gore when describing death and the violence in the book.


I enjoy most genres of books, but lately I have enjoyed fiction books that are mostly serious, but are still fun to read or have some magic in them. Several examples are The Night Circus, Fire and Flood, and Splintered. I have also started enjoying more far fetched realistic fiction like The Martian, 1984, Thirteen Reasons Why, and Flowers for Algernon.


TBR List
Speak
The Host
The Future of us
The Archaeology of Weapons
Son, and the rest of the Giver Quartet
Love Letters to the Dead
The House of Ivy and Sorrow

Book Blog #10, The Night Circus

The Night Circus                                                                                                      by Erin Morgenstern

It arrives without warning. No one can track it, and no one can expect it. On the inside of the black and white striped tents, there is a unique and sensational experience that puts most bystanders in awe. It has the most exquisite acrobats and performers like none you will ever see anywhere else. Every aspect of the performance has been perfected, from the central clock to the lace on the costumes. It is called Le Cirque des Reves, and it is open only at night.
Celia and Marco have been trained since childhood by the best magicians in the world in preparation for the in-avoidable duel. The two fall in love. The epic romance of two loving magicians and an astounding circus combine, to create a gripping story with many twists and turns.
This book was amazing! I really enjoyed it because there were surprises around every turn, and the writing style makes you not want to stop reading. The storyline of the book was also interesting and unique compared to books I have read previously. The characters were very well developed along with the descriptions of most of the settings. At most points of the book, you could actually envision yourself in the circus watching the performances.
There is quite a bit of romance in this book, although it does not take away from the book as a whole. There is also minor language, but yet again it did not make you loose interest or want to stop reading.


TBR List (full quarterly list)
Water for Elephants                                                                                                           The Doldrums
Chains                                                                    The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time
Fahrenheit 451                                                                                                      Endgame: The Calling
Love Letters to the Dead                                                                The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy
The 5th Wave                                                                                                                Leviathan Wakes
This one Summer                                                                                                         Slaughter House 5
The House of Ivy and Sorrow                                                                                                       Legend
Outliers                                                                                                                                    Eight Keys
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon                                                                                          Wonder
Road Rash                                                                                                                                           Salt

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Book Blog #9, Paper Things

Paper Things                                                                                              by Jennifer Richard Jacobson
Ari Hazzard left her adopted home with her brother, and has been dealing with poverty ever since. Gage, her brother, has taken care of her cares for her quite a lot, but he cannot provide a stable home. She jumps from shelter to shelter, always trying to stay on top of school, while having to deal with rough friendships. Her paper things are the only things that give her comfort as she is dealing with all of her emotions. She struggles with making friends and how she will tell them about her homelessness.

I would recommend this book to Maia, because even though it is not fantasy, there is still a lot of meaning behind it, and there are a lot of emotions in the book. I think she would enjoy thinking about the decisions in the book that Ari makes. Other than that, I think that most of the people in our class would enjoy this if they want a fast and easy read that will make them think. I would also recommend this to anyone who wants to think about homelessness in a different way.

TBR list
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
The Doldrums by Nichlolas Gannon
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson

Book Blog #8, The Martian

The Martian                                                               by Andy Weir

Mark Watney's crew abandoned him on mars, after they thought he was dead. He starts to figure out solutions for food, and rescue. Every time that something could go wrong, it does. The tides are turned against Mark, but he wont give up. He starts to figure out how to live, and get things done. Against all odds, will he be able to survive until rescue?


In this book, there is some symbolism even though it is not super obvious. I think one of the first symbolistic parts is when the China National Space Administration give up the Taiyang Shen just to help mark. It is symbolistic because it shows the good side of people, the side that helps others. I think that there are a lot of parts in the book that have a similar meaning, because there are always people on earth that are trying to help him. For instance, the media is rallying for him and his cause, and most of the people in the world care about him.

There is quite a bit of profanity used in this book, but I liked it nonetheless.
TBR list

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

The Doldrums by Nicholas Gannon

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury