3 AM Epiphany Challenge

I'm not reviewing the book, although in a sense the blog I'm mentioning here is a very extended review. The 3 A.M. Epiphany by Brian Kiteley is a book of writing exercises - I'm not familiar with such exercises and can't say with any authority whether those given here are particularly original or exciting compared to those in other books. What I can say is that they seem to be great fun so far, and a good way of getting to know your friends (or making new ones).

Earlier this year, Anistasya had the wonderful idea of posting the exercises as challenges on a blog, to be attempted by her friends and hapless passers-by. Most of you will have heard me/Anistasya mention the site and perhaps were not interested/too busy to join. We had a great start, but while we have a few members at present, there are not so many attempts at the challenges.

Why all the propaganda on our book review site? Because - although I'm not expecting much response - if, in a few months' time, you have some time to spare or are suffering from excessive boredom or require an epiphany at early hours of the morning, or make friends with someone who enjoys writing and would like people with whom to share, you may remember that time the iconoclast was going on and on about some writing thing - and here, conveniently, is the link: http://www.3amepiphanyproject.blogspot.com/. (Yes, I was trying to make that previous sentence long and complicated). Have a look and send us an email if you'd like to join us, and pass the message on :)

Also, I keep planning these book reviews in my head and never writing them. Sorry.

2 - Ginevra

Ginevra didn't make much of an impression at first, with her frizzy hair and too-big clothes with one shoulder always poking through the neck of her top kind of like I think girls dressed in the '80s, only I'm thinking of skinny high school girls, not fifty-year old Ginevra (and I won't say anything about her skinniness or lack thereof). Then I looked at her more closely, and changed my mind. Perhaps it was because she had a crooked nose and if I looked from her right side it looked a little like mine, or because she wore a pearl necklace like everyone else's mothers did. And, to be honest, my hair was just as horrendously frizzy as hers.

I used to think other kids were lucky, because they had mothers. But then, I must've got lucky because I got a mother too. More so, because I chose mine.

Red Seas under Red Skies - Gentlemen Bastards #2

Well, this is something almost unheard of - the sequel to a book a lot of us love and adore, and none of us have reviewed it yet!! In my defence, I was unaware it existed thus far - turns out my usual sources screwed up and were giving me publication notes on the 3rd title, not the second. On to the review!

Locke Lamora returns, and this time, hes a fricking PIRATE! Cue awesomeness for those of us not following the ninja way. *Spoiler Alert* This leads off near exactly from the end of Lies, so Jean and Locke are off travelling to Tel Verrar (the place Camorr fought against a few times) in order to screw over a casino, in effect. As we now expect, nothing goes right - and after very sundry and amusing side aventures, they end up in piracy and political espionage.

I'll be honest - I didn't find this as good as Lies. It's a good read and all, fun, with plenty of humour and more explanation of backstory that is sorely needed (like just wtf Locke does as a Priest of the Thirteenth) and some great character development. It sadly does not bring up or really explain the as-yet missing female Bastard, who is clearly the topic of the third book (or else Lynch doesn't know how to run a narrative), theres a frankly awful cliffhanger ending, and one of the biggest plots in the book has no resolution whatsoever. That aside, we learn about Locke's great skill in cardsharking, his surprisingly moral and ethical side, the importance of kittens on board a ship, and why you never piss off a female pirate.

Overall, this took me as many of the middle books in trilogies often do...good, but just maintaining and setting up the finale. I mean, it is good, do read (and if you can't find or borrow, let me know) but yes, be prepared for it to not wow you as The Lies of Locke Lamora did. (And in case anyone doesn't already suspect this, I have number 3 on preorder.)

Enjoy!

1 - Getting the ball rolling then...

She told everyone this day would come, at dinner parties, at the beach, she even had a long and boring conversation with my ballet teacher about how it would come to this, eventually. Funny how I don't remember any of their faces, the ones who smiled politely and nodded at her mad ramblings. I will never forget her face though; I will never forget Ginevra Agostini, the woman who pretended to be my mother.

Commendations

to people who have been posting reviews! Since it has been pointed out to me that some of us have posted several times and 'got nothing'.

In completely random order:
triadofs
Hotstuff
Anistasya
Essylt


Good on ya guys :)

Reading well below my age

So lately, I have been given quite a few Scholastic Children's books to review by KiwiReviews and I am discovering that some children's authors are certainly better than others. It is difficult to judge what a child would actually think of these books, but I suspect, judging by the success of books like Artemis Fowl and Harry Potter, that kids aren't as simple as some authors assume. Anyway, my brief review of the books is as follows:

Stick Dudes - Felice Arena
A very cute and thin book for Primary School boys who can read 'chapter books' and like having pictures to accompany the text. This installment of the series is entitled 'The Secret Four-ce' and follows the adventures of four friends trying to work out who is stealing all their stuff at school. I enjoyed this one with its simple story, small twist and good feeling - if you know any little guys (maybe 7 to 10) who like to read, this one will probably make them smile.

The Shearwater Bell - Margaret Beams
A bit bigger than Stick Dudes and definitely for upper primary to early intermediate age children, this book is set in the North Island of New Zealand and follows a young girl, Rona, who has been sent to stay with her grandmother while her father is in a coma in hospital. I really loved the detail, ease of reading and yet depth that this story managed to achieve. Margaret Beams proves herself, with this book at least, to be an excellent children's writer with the ability to make sophisticate, fun stories accessible both to children and to the adults reading to them. I read this book almost non-stop, wanting to know what the secret behind the bell really was, whether they would find the treasure, and just enjoying the opportunity for an early 1800's insight into Pakeha/Maori relations through the diary of Rona's five times great grandfather. An excellent NZ based book!

39 Clues - Varied Authors
Truely a brilliant series that I highly recommend to everyone - seriously ignore the 'children's book' exterior, this is a fun, engaging adventure circling the entire globe with fascinating puzzles, snippets of history and -would you believe- character development!! I am totally hooked and can't wait for the final three books in the series so that I can discover what all this fuss and clue hunting has been leading towards. What is the great answer beyond the 39 clues?

Conspiracy 365 - Gabrielle Lord
Not quite as fun as 39 Clues nor as gritty as Cherub, Conspiracy 365 is a series that spans a year in the life of young australian, Callum Ormond. Every day is a struggle for survival and all he has to do is get to the end of the year alive, but that is turning out to be a lot harder than he anticipated. This series is quite readable, but I feel like each book makes a lot less progress than the 39 Clues books. At the end of 'February' I didn't feel like I knew much more than I did in 'January'. Also, each book ends in a life threatening, 'He's definitely going to die' cliffhanger, only to be rescued inevitably at the beginning of the following book. We know this, because the author has been contracted to do all twelve books, so callum can't die in June, can he?

EJ12 - Susannah McFarlane
Finally, a light and fluffy 'girly' spy series which, although being incredibly forumlaic, may appeal to girls between say 7 and 10. There is not much more to say about this one. If you know a adventurous young girl who is into animals, she'll probably love it. In fact, most girls in middle primary will likely enjoy the simplicity and reliable feel-good 'girl power' of the plot. No scrapes or bruises here, just believe in yourself and you can do anything!

I'm not sure why I felt that you guys needed an update on the Children's Literary scene... Maybe the answer is as simple as I miss you :)
*hugs*
- Ani

Alright, you lot,

where are all the reviews, hmmm? (Thanks for that last one, Essyllt :) )

Unfortunately, the only things I'm in any position to review currently have names like 'On the Formation of Maars', and I'm sick of them.

Here's an idea for something a bit different, that we can do at the same time as reviews (assuming that people are still going to do reviews).

A few of us have been writing stories together - nothing epic, (and nothing that's finished yet *pointed looks at Essyllt and Anistasya*) but they're fun to do. Nothing is preplanned - someone starts off, and people keep writing (reasonably but not spectacularly long posts). Take the story in any direction you like, as long as you don't introduce too many twists in one section. We won't have a planned order, but if you find yourself writing every second post, remember to wait and give others a chance to reply.


If you're interested, please comment to say so - we'd want at least four of us to justify doing this on the blog.