Books of 2014 (Pt. 2)

Meada
Author: Euripides
Published: 431 BC
Genre: Tragedy
My Thoughts: Well, if Greek tragedy is your thing, go for it. I personally think that most plays should be seen, not read. 

Lord of the Flies
Author: William Golding
Published: September 17, 1954
Genre: Dystopia, Speculative Fiction, Allegory
My Thoughts: As a plane-full of boys find a way to survive on a deserted island, Golding explores the human condition, and the animalistic nature that people can revert to in a time of crisis. It was pretty interesting, and if you're into stories like Fahrenheit 451 or Animal Farm, you would probably enjoy this as well.

Cornelia and the Audacious Escapades of the Somerset Sisters
Author: Lesley M. M. Blume
Published: January 8, 2008
Genre: Adventure, Historical Fiction, Youth
My Thoughts: Ok, so this is a children's book (like, middle grades reading) but it has been my favorite book since I was 10 and it was the 4th time I've read it and omg memories. Eleven year old Cornelia becomes friends with her neighbor who spent her 20's traveling the world with her sisters. The various escapades they go on are hilarious and all the characters are surprisingly developed for a children's story.

Steampunk Fashion
Author: Spurgeon Vaughn Ratcliffe
Published: November 1, 2012
Genre: n/a
My Thoughts: I enjoyed this book, but I don't recommend it to anyone who's not familiar to Steampunk. It is mostly pictures of various steampunkers + a biography/write up on how they make their outfits. It's more of an inspirational showcase for those of us who make our own steampunk gear. 

Huckleberry Fin
Author: Mark Twain
Published: December 1884
Genre: Adventure, Satire, Humor
My Thoughts: Well, it was assigned for school, so as far as summer reading goes, it was pretty good. I enjoyed the majority of the book, and thought it was a fun follow up to Tom Sawyer. To be perfectly honest, the last two chapters were unnecessary. Twain obviously included them simply because he wanted to draw a connection to the previous novel, and it did nothing to further the plot- it left the book with a weak ending.

The Books of 2014 (Pt. 1)

So, alternating with my 10 Prompts, I will be posting the books I read in 2014~

[fun fact: usually there would be a picture of

all of those books right here

but i'm sick so theres not]

The Fault in our Stars
Author: John Green
Published: January 10, 2012
Genre: YA, Romance, Realistic Fiction
My Thoughts: Before I say anything about the actual story itself, I want it to be clear that John Green is a wonderful writer. Actually, the only reason I managed to finish the book was because of his diction. The story itself was not as compelling as many people made it out to be, and the plot seemed to really meander and lose focus in the middle (though I see his reasons for doing so). I don't really recommend it. That's all I have to say about this one.

Cry, the Beloved Country
Author: Alan Paton
Published: 1948
Genre: Historical Fiction, Social Criticism
My Thoughts: I really liked this book. It was a stirring story of a fathers search for his son in the racial tension/ institutionalized racism of South Africa. Unfortunately, it was extremely hard to follow. Why? Because Alan Paton thought he was above using decent punctuation, such as quotation marks, commas, paragraph brakes, not using paragraph breaks, periods, and grammar. As you can imagine, it was kind of a nightmare to read, due to it's formatting. I recommend it to anyone who has patience and wants to read a historical novel with major social commentary, but be sure to be wide awake while reading!

The Lost World
Author: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Published: 1912
Genre: Adventure, Fantasy, Science Fiction (fun fact: in the time it was written it was called a Scientific Romance- the old term for Science Fiction)
My Thoughts: I really loved this story. It is absolutely one of my favorites! The characters are pretty well defined, the narrater is likable, and the plot is quite fantastic. I actually prefer it over the Sherlock Holmes stories... I totally recommend this to anyone who likes dinosaurs/victorian era/adventure stuff :) And the ending was surprisingly satisfying. 

Macbeth
Author: William Shakespeare
Published: First performance- 1611
Genre: Tragedy
My Thoughts: A power hungry man kills all in the way of "his" throne... only to go insane and tragically loose everything. As far as Shakespeare tragedies go, this one just didn't really live up to my expectations. That may be because Hamlet is my favorite, but some parts of Macbeth just fell flat to me. If you enjoy Shakespeare and tragedy (a perfect mixture for insane characters), then yes, I do recommend this book/play (the play is always better)

Fangirl
Author: Rainbow Rowell
Published: September 10, 2013
Genre: Romance, YA
My Thoughts: The title says it all- a popular fanfic author finds her life turned upside down as she goes to college, finds a guy, and learns to not depend on her twin sister. The characterization is great, and all of the characters feel very real. It's a cute story, but I wouldn't really recommend it. Let's be real- I would rather read the sci-fi/fantasy story than the story about a girl who writes about the story any day ;)