The Thirteenth Tale

So I am somewhat settled into the new house. Finally got internet about 2 days ago. We had flooding in the basement and it turned out the pipes that was attached to the house to the sewers collapsed so my family and I were without water for the night. No showers, flushing, or washing dishes. Sucked when I had to pee, haha. Tomorrow my bed frame is coming and on Thursday my order of Monsters, Inc. and Fringe will be arriving. I am excited.

Okay, enough about me. Here's a book review:

The Thirteenth Tale by Dianne Setterfield
From Amazon: "Sometimes, when you open the door to the past, what you confront is your destiny.

Reclusive author Vida Winter, famous for her collection of twelve enchanting stories, has spent the past six decades penning a series of alternate lives for herself. Now old and ailing, she is ready to reveal the truth about her extraordinary existence and the violent and tragic past she has kept secret for so long. Calling on Margaret Lea, a young biographer troubled by her own painful history, Vida disinters the life she meant to bury for good. Margaret is mesmerized by the author's tale of gothic strangeness -- featuring the beautiful and willful Isabelle, the feral twins Adeline and Emmeline, a ghost, a governess, a topiary garden and a devastating fire. Together, Margaret and Vida confront the ghosts that have haunted them while becoming, finally, transformed by the truth themselves. --This text refers to the Paperback edition."'



It's an intriguing and captivating novel that will keep you reading just to know what their secrets are. The novel often goes back and forth from the past and the present. If you want a good read, get The Thirteenth Tale.

The Hangover Part II, Water for Elephants

It's been a very busy May for me, which is why I haven't been posting much.  I went to Florida this past week for my brother's engagement party and I'm moving at the end of this month. I really don't want to move, but I don't have a choice. ):

So in the past two weeks, I saw two movies: Water for Elephants and The Hangover Part II. Still have yet to see Thor!! :< Anyway,  let's start with the most recent film I saw.

Kindle or Nook?

I've been going over the list of books I want to read and it's a little overwhelming. Where do I start? Which one should I get? And it made me think of how easier it would be if I had a Kindle, or a Nook, or an iPad (since it uses both Amazon and B&N book stores) and I could just buy it right then and there. I like building my own library (yeah I'm a nerd :P) So that's probably one of the down sides of an e-book reader. Also I like the tangibleness of books.

The Amazon Kindle and the Barnes & Noble Nook have this lending books feature but it's only for people who have the same product, so Kindle and Nook users can't share. They both offer wi-fi and a huge collection of books as well as free samples. They both last about 10 days.  Sheesh, this is tough.

I don't even want to think about getting an iPad because I don't really have the money.

So what do YOU think I should do?

The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova

School will be the death of me! The semester is coming to a close and I have 3 more papers to do and then it's finals. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.
Anyway, here is a recommendation of one of my favorite books.

If you like vampires that don't sparkle, then perhaps this is the book for you. Elizabeth Kostova's The Historian tells the story of professors going missing and a strange book that's connecting them all. Could Dracula be real? Only way to find out.. is to find his tomb.

It's a page turning adventure filled with thriller, suspense, and mystery. Check it out if you have the time. (:

my school bag weighs thirty pounds

As I'm preparing for my World Lit. II exam tomorrow, it made me think of the books/plays I read in high school/college and whether or not I liked them. So I'll make a list. :D

Excuse my messy desk!

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

I recently finished reading Stieg Larsson's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo which a friend of mine recommended to me. At first, I didn't get the appeal. Everyone was talking about it and I guess you could say I was quite oblivious. It wasn't until my friend showed me the novel and read the back of the book that it sparked my interests.

The first in a trilogy, the aging Henrik Vanger has been trying to solve the case of his missing niece, Harriet Vanger, for forty years but the case still remains unsolved. He approaches journalist Mikael Blomkvist in hopes that he will solve this age old mystery with a new set of eyes. Blomkvist, convicted of libel for his exposé on the Swedish industrialist and rival, Hans-Erik Wennerström, accepts the offer. With the help of the very eccentric and rambunctious Lisbeth Salander, they find that the Vanger family has a very interesting past. (Trying not to go into too much detail!)

It's a great and compelling novel. Once you start.. you really can't stop. You just have to read till the end to find out what really happened. Larsson has a lot of characters in the novel, so it's best to read it continuously or else you're going to be lost and confused--"Who's Cecilia again?"  I can't believe Larsson wrote three (and a half) novels without it ever being published. Unfortunately he died in 2004 of a heart attack and was never able to see the success of his series. I can't wait to read the next book. I hope this gets you to read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. (:

Also, there will be a US film version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo coming to theaters near you in December 2011.

The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford

The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is one my favorite novels. It follows the story of Henry Lee, a Chinese American, and his life as a kid in WWII. At twelve years old, Henry was the only Asian in an all-white school which often left him harassed and made fun of until Keiko, a Japanese-American enrolled at his school. Henry and Keiko fell in love or I guess you could say they had puppy love as it was purely innocent young love. Their story resembles the tragic tale of Romeo & Juliet, for Henry's father despises the Japanese and Keiko and her family are taken into the internment camp which drew the very young couple apart. Written letters are corresponded between the two but it doesn't last forever. The novel takes place between 1986 (Present Henry) and the 1940's when Henry was twelve. It wasn't until Henry finds out that the belongings of interned Japanese families are in the basement of the Panama hotel does he start to wonder about Keiko.

What I like about this novel is that it's historical fiction with a little romance thrown into it. It's a love story but not like The Notebook kind of love story although they share some similarities in technique. I feel like I could relate to Henry and his family because my parents also immigrated to America.

I hope this has gotten you to go out and get it! Click here to order your own copy of Jamie Ford's The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet from Amazon.com. Also if there are any books/movies you want to recommend, let me know. (:

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 now out on DVD & Blu-Ray!

Please be aware that there may be some spoilers, so if you haven't read the book or seen the film, avert your eyes. ;D

If you haven't seen HP7 Part 1, now is the time! Part 2 and the last and final film of the Harry Potter series will be in theaters July 17th, 2011. That's TWO months away! Are you excited? Because I know I am. (:

One of my favorite scenes from the film, was the 7 Potters scene, and pretty much any scene with polyjuice potion involved. I haven't seen the film since it was in theaters, so my memory is a little fuzzy. Just goes to show that I need to watch it asap!

Here may be some spoilers... so beware!
If you read the the book, you'll know there are some clear differences. For one, they never explained the significance of the shattered mirror piece (which I'm sure they will in Part 2). In the books, it was given to Harry from Sirius as way of communication. In the film, however, it just suddenly appeared. In the film when Harry and Ron was held captive in Malfoy Manor, and Hermione was being tortured by Bellatrix Lestrange, I was expecting Ron to be screaming Hermione's name like in the book. But there was no screaming! In the book, the invisibility cloak was used often throughout the first half of the book but was hardly used in the film. And last point I'll make, Peter Pettigrew lives in the film (or at least in the Part 1). In the book, Pettigrew dies for feeling remorse when Harry lets him live and because of that his silver hand, which was created by Voldermort, kills him.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is probably my favorite book out of the series; Prisoner of Azkaban being close second. It made me laugh. It made me cry. It made me feel OMGGGGG. It saddens me that the series is over and almost over with the films. Rowling put a lot of work and thought into her series and she is one of the best authors ever.


So here's a recommendation: Read the books!