What’s going on? | Foster Greyhound + Holidays

Well I have been a tad absent since my last post. Since then I have finished exams, been on holidays for over a month, been fostering a greyhound and that is about all!

So exams went okay. Throughout the year I have been losing motivation so by exams I was not in the best state of mind. I basically just wanted it all to be over and didn’t really care about my results. In the end, I received a Distinction, Credit and Pass.

In December, I got another foster greyhound! Her name is Angel and I will likely write a separate posts about what has happened with her so far and her progress (and photos!)

Lastly, it was the Holiday season which is my favourite. I love spending the time with my family and every just seems to be in a better mood than usual. My sister and her family came and stayed with us for a little over a week along with my favourite and only niece, Maiya. It was lovely to see her again. We went to our farm to take some photos of her (some which I will post) which turned out great!

Another thing, I have been considering making a youtube channel. Nothing too serious, just thinking of film on my phone. Just casual sharing my opinions of books and hauls.

That’s all for now!

See y’all in my next post!

What’s going on? | Exam time!%$*^%$&%$^%

Yay, it’s my favourite time of the year – exam time! In the next 3 weeks I will be studying hard (maybe) and finishing an assignment, then freedom!!! But in the mean time I’m going to be going stir crazy I just thought I’d let y’all know because I don’t know if I’m going to be posting very much. .

As you’ve probably noticed, I’ve mainly been doing book reviews. I literally have nothing going on in my life except for uni and reading. So, you know! I’m thinking I’ll write a review on Mistborn: The Final Empire (Brandon Sanderson) and that’ll be it maybe! But I do have other reviews planned. It’ just a question on whether on not I’ll get around to them!

I’ve been applying for job for the summer holiday so I can earn some money (obviously) to afford a car and my accommodation next year. I’m about $1,000 off my accommodation this year so that will need to come out of my savings, unfortunately. The sooner I get a job the sooner I can foster another greyhound! The kind of jobs I’m looking for are in retail or a dairy farm.

So that’s what’s been going on in my life!

 

Book Tag | Seven Deadly Sins of Reading

I have seen this tag a few times on Youtube and decided to do it! Everyone loves a good tag! I believe BookishMalayza created this.

SO here we go!

(I’ve accumulated more books since then!^^^)

Greed – What is your most expensive book, and what is your most inexpensive book?

My most expensive book is probably one of the books from the Harry Potter series – probably Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Those books are not cheap! I think it cost around $30-$40.

I do not have a cue what my least expensive book would be. The cheapest books I find (that I want) are normally around $8-$10.

Wrath – Which author do you have a love hate relationship with?

Oh god. Cassandra Clare. I have somewhat recently finished the infernal devices trilogy and I tell you what, I HATE her writing. Yet, I, for some reason, so compelled to finish the entire series. Why? Not sure. It may have been something I liked about the book OR maybe I have this thing where I have to find out what happens no matter what. I think it was that damn love triangle. I had to know.

Gluttony – What book have you deliciously devoured over and over again, with no remorse whatsoever?

I think my most read book is Memoirs of a Giesha. I absolutely adore this book and I will continue to read it over and over! My second most read book is Magician by Raymond E Fiest. I have only read this one twice but I imagine it to be a book I will revisit many times in the future.

Sloth – What book have you neglected reading due to laziness?

There are so many books on this list. My goodness. Hitchhiker’s guide to the galaxy series, Emma by Jane Austen (2nd time reading it but it was abandoned), Lord of the Rings: The fellowship of the ring – the list goes on!

Pride – What book do you most talk about in order to sound like a very intellectual reader?

Probably Emma. I read this in year 12 for English Studies. And probably other books I’ve studied like Atonement, The Crucible, A Doll’s House and To Kill a Mockingbird.

Lust – What attributes do you find most attractive in male or female characters?

Bad assery for both male and female characters. I like characters to be strong and gritty and passionate and witty and confident! Characters that I have liked are Will Herondale (Infernal devices), Sayuri (Memiors of a Geisha), Sansa Stark (ASOIAF), Jon Snow (ASOIAF), Cath (Fangirl), Vin (Mistborn), Elend (Mistborn) and the list goes on! I think I prefer characters that reflect a little bit of something in me or what I wish I could be… or they could just sound really fucking attractive (damn, Elend!).

Envy – What books would you most like to receive as a gift?

I would love to receive the next two volumes of Saga, Not that Kind of Girl by Lena Dunham, oh, and just about every series I’ve started but haven’t picked up the next copy of please!

Book Review | We were liars by e. lockhart

Rating 3/5

I originally rated this book 4/5 by now that some time has passed I now realise it was a 3. This book is about the ever perfect and rich Sinclair families who, every summer, visit their private island for a holiday. There are a number of four teenagers in this family who are referred to as the ‘liars’, hence the title. There is a tragic accident but the main character Cadence can’t remember what happened. The story follows Cadence discovering what happened that summer by putting all the clues and returning memories together.

What I liked.

This story was a quick read that really drew me in. I have never read a book that is like this, so for me it was quite unique and refreshing.

I’m not an expert in rich people behaviour but I imagine that families like depicted in this book exist.

I really liked the role of one of the Liars – Gat. He is Indian – at least in appearance (I think he was born in America) – and he had brilliant and passionate thoughts that he shared with the other Liars who were seemingly all the same.

Another part that I enjoyed was when Cadence would rewrite fairy tales to fit her family. I think the author was using it as a tool to explain the relationships between the mothers and grandfather which would otherwise be absent. It also really told you things about the grandfather’s character.

What I didn’t like.

I think I initially gave this book a higher rating because drew me in, but I realise now there were a few things I didn’t like.

Sometimes I got a little confused about where the novel was taking place. Whether it was a memory or occurring at that moment and that is always frustrating.

Despite liking Gat, I feel like the characters didn’t have much depth. It’s like all there was to them were there rich people money problems – particularly the adults. Even Gat lacked depth (though he had more than others)

I was not a fan of the writing style. It was choppy and pretentious (although the characters were also quite pretentious). Things were described in short sentences and the narrator was just SO so so so dramatic. For example, the first few lines:

“Welcome to the beautiful Sinclair family.

No one is a criminal.

No one is an addict.

No one is a failure.”

Dramatic much. It really does come across a rich people problems and lessens other things that happen in the book.  And this is by no means the only time this kind of writing occurs, it happens throughout the entire book. It reslly is just my kind of thing.

Also, I think the authors foreshadowing was waaaaaaaay too obvious and as a result I was able to guess the ending. Which probably lessened  my experience.

Recommendation.

Read this if you’re looking for a quick and easy read that has a fairly decent plot (as long as you don’t guess the outcome!).

Book Review | Saga Volume One By Brian K. Vaughan & Fiona Staples

Rating: 5/5

Saga is a comic series about couple Marko and Alana who, in the first chapter welcome to the world their daughter, Hazel. Alana is from a planet called Landfall and Marko is from Landfall’s satellite moon, Wreath. The problem is, Landfall and Wreath are at war. This leaves Marko and Alana on the run from officials and bounty hunters to save themselves and their daughter.

What I liked.

Simply, I adored this comic. They plot was gripping, the art – beautiful, the characters were crude – I don’t think I could have chosen a better first comic to read.

One of the things I really enjoyed was the interactions between the characters and the crudeness of them as well! For example, the conversations of Marko and Alana bickering were fun to read. And there’s swearing. And nudity. And a giant fucking spider lady with no top on and has no arms. There’s a teenage girl ghost who only has from her waist up. A bounty hunter with a giant green sphynx cat. The creatures in this story are awesome.

Also, I should mention that Alana’s race or species are have wings and Marko’s race are horned. Dear little Hazel is has wings and horns. Dun dun dun! I really want to know what this means for Hazel!

The art is perfect for this story. I love the style. I don’t know what else to say about it… I don’t know how to describe it!

Another part that I liked is how it is narrated by Hazel. It really adds another dimension to the story, and draws you in to it. I made me want to find out what more there is and how she ended up.

I’m finding it difficult to write about this! It’s probably why I have put this review off for so long. I just kind find the words to truly express how great it really is! I hope this is adequate!

What I didn’t like.

There isn’t actually anything I didn’t like!

Recommendation.

I would recommend this to anyone who wants to read something that’s crude, with action, some romancey stuff, amazing characters and a little bit of politics. I will warn you this has adult content, in other terms. nudity and sex scenes and a casual orgy scene (as a background). So I don’t recommend it to anyone who finds nudity offensive or just isn’t into that kind of stuff. I also recommend it to people who want to start reading comics but isn’t drawn by the superhero titles (like me).

Writing this review has seriously made want to reread. I think it’s one of those rare stories you can read over and over.

Book Review | Animal Farm by George Orwell

Rating: 5/5

Animal Farm is a spectacular book that criticizes political systems and certain (Russian) politicians through the happenings which occur on a farm. The animals on the farm rebel and overthrow the farmer so that they can have a better life, where all animals are equal.

What I liked.

This novel was wonderfully written by George Orwell and I believe perfectly portrayed what he wanted. I really enjoyed his writing style; it is written in third person and each sentence is simple and to the point. No word is wasted. I really enjoyed how introduced and explained each animal/species, and to me it is obvious he did his research. For example, the pigs were the smartest animals on the farm and this is true! Pigs are estimated to have the intelligence of a three year old child. He also depicted the differences between the species really well and their role in running the farm. I was told by a friend of mine that each of the working animals represents a class of society and as the novel continues it is depicted how certain groups react to the changes. A small detail but a really clever one I loved was when the cat joined the committee to try and convert the wild animals to ‘animalism’. Later on, the cat was observed on a roof trying to coax some birds closer to him so he could teach them how to speak English. Of course though, the cat was just trying to take advantage of the politics to get a meal!

What I didn’t like.

This novel certainly isn’t a book you want to read if you want to feel happy. Orwell’s use of anthropomorphism makes it a rather depressing read!

Recommendation.

I feel like this book is a staple to read. Even if you’re not interested in the politics behind it, it is very interesting!

Happy Reading!

Greyhound Love | Where is Barney now?

Last week I was showing steers at the show. Whilst I was there I decided to visit the GAP tent to catch up with the people there. One person there was the lady who fostered Barney after me, and she told me what had happened to him once he was adopted.

It turns out that the family who adopted him did not understand him, or greyhounds, at all! This family had two young boys and the mother rang up complaining that Barney didn’t want to play with them. Greyhounds sleep up to 20 hours a day! The only time they are active is first thing in the morning and in the afternoon, every other time is allocated to sleep time. Another time, they rang up saying that Barney had gotten upset after one of the children lay on him. The foster carer assumed that they boy had just lay their head on him, so she was a bit confused why Barney would do that. They then rang up the coordinator and told her about it. It turns out that the boy had laid on top of him length ways! No wonder he got upset at them! When I was fostering Barney, I would poke and prod him whilst he was sleeping, pat him all over and play with his feet, ears and face. Not once did he get angry with me. Because of this, I said that he would be suitable to be adopted by a family with children.

It is quite upsetting that Barney did not end up in his forever home on the first go. Whilst this family did not treat him horribly, they did not understand his nature, and seemed to have the attitude that he was entertainment for children. The children were not taught to respect Barney at all. In the end, they returned Barney. But I’m so happy to say that he’s in a good home now, with people who love him and understand him!

Book Review | Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Rating 5/5

If you haven’t heard about this book… WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH YOUr LIFE!!?? Only kidding. But really this book is amazing. This book follows Cath, a girl who has moved to college with her twin. College begins, for Cath, with her sister not wanting to share a room with her, thus, Cath is thrown into the deep end of college with seemingly little support. The book follows Cath through the year and how she becomes a person apart from her twin through dealing with college, friends, family, boys and her writing (she writes fan fiction).

What I liked.

The characters that Rowell depicted were so realistic, and dare I say perfect? For me, Cath was an incredibly relatable character. She’s quite introverted and the way Rowell depicted her little quirks was so realistic and true to college life. Actually, all the characters quirks were perfect. I cannot find a flaw in them. I found Rowell’s writing style easy to read, and the story included mildly sad moments along with some happy, super cute moments. Oh, and there was some awesome badassery going on with Cath in a certain part 😉

What I didn’t like.

The part I didn’t like most was the inserts of Simon Snow stories which were between chapters and when Cath was reading it to a certain somebody. For me, I just didn’t really care for it, but I know that the fanfiction is an important part of Cath’s life.

Recommendation.

I recommend everyone read this! Especially, if you’re going to college and are feeling a little nervous – this is a good book.

Happy Reading!

Little Read-A-Thon | Day 3 & 4

Day three I did much better! I was reading whenever I got the chance (which was still pretty sparse). I think I read about 100 pages of Clockwork Princess which I am pretty happy with. Now that I’ve gotten into the flow of the book, I’m finding it easier to read. I realised I hate the part where there are lots of description, but I don’t mind parts that are mainly dialogue.

Day four I spend most of the day travelling so the only time I read during the day was a little bit in the morning and before I went to bed.

I’d like to say, I’d be able to finish the book by the end of the week, but mid next week might be more accurate.

So overall I didn’t do very well considering my aims but I was busy during those days, so considering that, I feel I did pretty well!

Happy Reading!

Little Read-a-thon | Day 2

Today was not an overly successful day either! I think I read only 30 more pages of Clockwork Princess. I should have known I would not have time for extensive reading!

Ah well!

Happy reading!