Perhaps it is my work or that I refuse to grow up but I just love reading children's books! To be exact, I love fantasy works for teenagers or young adults. Sometimes I also go for the illustrated books for younger ones.
This fascination with children's books has got me hooked on books by Diana Wynne Jones and recently, Cornelia Funke. Of course, we do not need to mention the bestselling Harry Potter, Narnia Chronicles and Lord of The Rings.
It was the Silver Chair by C.S.Lewis that first got me hooked to fantasy in my teenage years. Even though I read The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien and I liked it, it did not really spur me to pick up the Lord of The Rings. Perhaps it is the thick volume that deterred me but it was much, much later that I finally read the book. Actually, I read it just before the first movie was released.
Now, I am in the midst of Inkspell by Funke. I find her books very fun and adventurous. I first stumbled upon her works when I was browsing through a bookstore for board books for LR. The beautiful cover of Dragon Rider depicting a blue dragon caught my attention. It looked interesting enough and the storyline I gathered from the back cover convinced me into purchasing it. I absolutely loved the book and went back looking for more of her books.
That is how I found Inkheart and now the sequel Inkspell. These two books play on our imaginations of how it would be like if characters from our books actually step out of the book or that the readers actually get to step into the book! Though Inkspell is a big draggy at certain parts, I still like it...so far. I have been taking my time reading this book that I can't even remember when I started reading it!
Sigh, if only I could get a whole free day to myself with no distractions, I would probably finish that book and start another one (of another genre) waiting to be opened.
Showing posts with label reading. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reading. Show all posts
Wednesday
Tuesday
Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows
It is finally OUT! I have the much-awaited book in my tight grasp and despite my earlier impatience to get my hands on it, I find myself reading it slowly, somewhat reluctantly.
It is the last book after all and it finally sank in that this will be the last of Harry Potter (no, I don't mean last as in dead), the last of magical spellbinding journeys in Hogwarts.
From what I have read so far, Rowling focuses much on discrimination in this final book. Far from it being racial or religious, she cleverly uses discrimination against Mudbloods and muggle-born wizards.
It struck a familiar chord as racial and religious discrimination is very much real in the real world. People are still being discriminated against because of their skin colour and their religious beliefs despite what all the governments in the world advocates.
I do think that she intend her readers to read between the lines and learn the lessons there, that discrimination against a person just because he or she does not fit into one group or another is downright cruel.
But then, we all know life is never fair. Good does not always triumph over evil (again, not in reference to the book!). Politicians are never honest. Ministers are often crooks. Hogwarts and Harry Potter are just a clever author's creations.
I have only read a quarter of the book and though it is still good, the pace is fast but the draw is not there. The spell that kept me glued to it was not there. Sure, there is the suspense of uncovering answers to 'what happens to Harry' and 'will the prophecy be fulfilled?' and the great Snape debate but other than that...hmmm...let's just hope it gets better.
It is the last book after all and it finally sank in that this will be the last of Harry Potter (no, I don't mean last as in dead), the last of magical spellbinding journeys in Hogwarts.
From what I have read so far, Rowling focuses much on discrimination in this final book. Far from it being racial or religious, she cleverly uses discrimination against Mudbloods and muggle-born wizards.
It struck a familiar chord as racial and religious discrimination is very much real in the real world. People are still being discriminated against because of their skin colour and their religious beliefs despite what all the governments in the world advocates.
I do think that she intend her readers to read between the lines and learn the lessons there, that discrimination against a person just because he or she does not fit into one group or another is downright cruel.
But then, we all know life is never fair. Good does not always triumph over evil (again, not in reference to the book!). Politicians are never honest. Ministers are often crooks. Hogwarts and Harry Potter are just a clever author's creations.
I have only read a quarter of the book and though it is still good, the pace is fast but the draw is not there. The spell that kept me glued to it was not there. Sure, there is the suspense of uncovering answers to 'what happens to Harry' and 'will the prophecy be fulfilled?' and the great Snape debate but other than that...hmmm...let's just hope it gets better.
Thursday
Thursday 13
This is my first time participating in TT so here goes:
A list of 13 things I will not regret or try not to regret doing:
1) Slacking off at work to blog / write down my story ideas. Since trying to type even a sentence after work while at home with a toddler without the said two-footer trying to add in his own words is next to impossible, I reserved some of my office time to blogging and writing my own manuscripts. I just had to be careful to quickly click on my email page or other office works in progress whenever someone walks past my desk.
2) Missing out on sleep to work on my story ideas / manuscripts. Again, I have to put both baby and husband to sleep first before I get some free time of my own to write, write and write so that I can finish that manuscript! Dark circles under my eyes? Hah, even pandas would envy the lovely pair of beauties surrounding my eyes from lack of sleep.
3) Writing romance stories even if they never get published. I started jotting short romance stories when I was a teenager and though I have dabbled in a few other genres such as horror and fantasy, I still find I love writing romance stories with the happy ever after endings. I am now working towards completing my first full length novel and sending queries out to publishers.
4) Indulging in chocolates and ice cream. As a die-hard chocoholic, I would probably die without my daily dose of chocolate. I could survive solely on a diet of chocolate so throw me on a deserted island with endless supplies of chocolate and I will live!
5) Spending more time with my family. In my hectic working world, it is very difficult to balance my roles as a sister, daughter, mother, wife, journalist, blogger, closet romance writer, chocoholic, bookworm but I'll do whatever it takes to finagle some time out of my clogged schedule to spend more time with my darling husband, Steve and hyperactive son, Ray.
6) Reading all kinds of books including erotic romance books. I am a bookworm very much like my mother so I buy all sorts of books and when I have stolen free moments, I would let myself be transported into the different worlds created by authors from around the world.
7) Yo-yo dieting. I have never been blessed with the 'thin' genes so I always have to go on a diet to lose extra baggage around the hips and butt whenever I overindulge in no. 4. But I can never stick to a diet for too long because frankly, lettuce leaves vs chocolate...no prizes for guessing which one won the fight!
8) Starting this blog. When I initially started blogging, I was very apprehensive and unsure of what to write. Now, I am glad I started as it gave me an avenue to sharpen my writing skills and air my opinions and also rant and rave!
9) Not becoming a millionaire by not choosing a 'safer' or 'stable' career. Money and materialism have not always been the main goals in my life. A simple person at heart, I don't mind living in a small apartment, driving an old car which could break down at any time of the day for no simple reason and not being able to afford luxurious things like a diamond-studded toilet seat. As long as I can live comfortably with my family, I am happy with my not-so-profitable career choice.
10) Buying skimpy, smaller sized clothes which I may not be able to fit into in this lifetime. Hey, every girl is allowed to buy clothes they wished they could somehow squeeze into someday. It's the only motivation to lay off the chocolate for like two whole minutes!
11) Learning to cook and bake. When I was younger, I have been known to burn everything I tried to cook but after meeting my gourmet husband, I have improved my skills and now, can whip up a simple meal for 20 if need to.
12) Having my son, Ray. At times I may feel like pulling out my hair in frustration over his cheeky shenanigans but all in all, he is a good kid who never fails to cheer up my days. I don't even mind the stretch marks and extra bulges I ended up with for having him.
13) Not conforming to any particular group of people. Though I am a news journalist and is supposed to be all serious, all no-nonsense and very sociable, I am far from that. I have a skewed sense of humour and tend to burst out laughing (real deep loud HAHAHAs and not those ladylike polite 'heeheehee's) at anything remotely funny to me even when in the middle of a press conference which could be very awkward. That said, I also hate attending any social events and avoided it like the plague and the only way I could be induced to attend one 'voluntarily' is by orders from the boss at work for work-related functions.
There, it wasn't so hard after all.
A list of 13 things I will not regret or try not to regret doing:
1) Slacking off at work to blog / write down my story ideas. Since trying to type even a sentence after work while at home with a toddler without the said two-footer trying to add in his own words is next to impossible, I reserved some of my office time to blogging and writing my own manuscripts. I just had to be careful to quickly click on my email page or other office works in progress whenever someone walks past my desk.
2) Missing out on sleep to work on my story ideas / manuscripts. Again, I have to put both baby and husband to sleep first before I get some free time of my own to write, write and write so that I can finish that manuscript! Dark circles under my eyes? Hah, even pandas would envy the lovely pair of beauties surrounding my eyes from lack of sleep.
3) Writing romance stories even if they never get published. I started jotting short romance stories when I was a teenager and though I have dabbled in a few other genres such as horror and fantasy, I still find I love writing romance stories with the happy ever after endings. I am now working towards completing my first full length novel and sending queries out to publishers.
4) Indulging in chocolates and ice cream. As a die-hard chocoholic, I would probably die without my daily dose of chocolate. I could survive solely on a diet of chocolate so throw me on a deserted island with endless supplies of chocolate and I will live!
5) Spending more time with my family. In my hectic working world, it is very difficult to balance my roles as a sister, daughter, mother, wife, journalist, blogger, closet romance writer, chocoholic, bookworm but I'll do whatever it takes to finagle some time out of my clogged schedule to spend more time with my darling husband, Steve and hyperactive son, Ray.
6) Reading all kinds of books including erotic romance books. I am a bookworm very much like my mother so I buy all sorts of books and when I have stolen free moments, I would let myself be transported into the different worlds created by authors from around the world.
7) Yo-yo dieting. I have never been blessed with the 'thin' genes so I always have to go on a diet to lose extra baggage around the hips and butt whenever I overindulge in no. 4. But I can never stick to a diet for too long because frankly, lettuce leaves vs chocolate...no prizes for guessing which one won the fight!
8) Starting this blog. When I initially started blogging, I was very apprehensive and unsure of what to write. Now, I am glad I started as it gave me an avenue to sharpen my writing skills and air my opinions and also rant and rave!
9) Not becoming a millionaire by not choosing a 'safer' or 'stable' career. Money and materialism have not always been the main goals in my life. A simple person at heart, I don't mind living in a small apartment, driving an old car which could break down at any time of the day for no simple reason and not being able to afford luxurious things like a diamond-studded toilet seat. As long as I can live comfortably with my family, I am happy with my not-so-profitable career choice.
10) Buying skimpy, smaller sized clothes which I may not be able to fit into in this lifetime. Hey, every girl is allowed to buy clothes they wished they could somehow squeeze into someday. It's the only motivation to lay off the chocolate for like two whole minutes!
11) Learning to cook and bake. When I was younger, I have been known to burn everything I tried to cook but after meeting my gourmet husband, I have improved my skills and now, can whip up a simple meal for 20 if need to.
12) Having my son, Ray. At times I may feel like pulling out my hair in frustration over his cheeky shenanigans but all in all, he is a good kid who never fails to cheer up my days. I don't even mind the stretch marks and extra bulges I ended up with for having him.
13) Not conforming to any particular group of people. Though I am a news journalist and is supposed to be all serious, all no-nonsense and very sociable, I am far from that. I have a skewed sense of humour and tend to burst out laughing (real deep loud HAHAHAs and not those ladylike polite 'heeheehee's) at anything remotely funny to me even when in the middle of a press conference which could be very awkward. That said, I also hate attending any social events and avoided it like the plague and the only way I could be induced to attend one 'voluntarily' is by orders from the boss at work for work-related functions.
There, it wasn't so hard after all.
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