The Emoji Tag

Today, I wanted to do a tag for you all and decided to do the Emoji tag purely because it looked like so much fun. I know it’s kind of old, but none of the more recent tags are taking my fancy… so here we go!

My most used Emoji at the moment is the simple smiling face, and so I decided to show you one of those books that just makes we feel all warm and fuzzy… for that, I look to you Macbeth. I know this isn’t a happy book, but for some reason reading it just makes me so happy. I love the depth of this book and Shakespeares beautiful language. This is by far my favourite Shakespeare play… if you haven’t read it, please do, it’s awesome!

My second Emoji is this sort of crazy/stupid face, which for me has to be the Skulduggery Pleasant series. This is a book aimed at young teens but I just finished it and am still head over heels in love. The dialogue in these books are hilarious and the characters really tug at your heartstrings… particularly when Derek Landy decides to kill off some of them, just because!

This little single tear face can only be associated with one thing… and that shockingly isn’t TFIOS. I didn’t actually cry at this book, but the feels were crazy! If I Stay was by far one of my favourite reads in the past few months. I actually listened to an audiobook and was blown away by how well read it was, the writing itself was perfect for the character it tried to create and I really really go into this, I actually finished it in a couple of days… which was over eight hours of solid listening, that shows dedication!

This wee one can only be described as a bemused face, and for this I can only look at you Allegiant. This book I thought was a let down, it wasn’t exactly bad… but it just wasn’t as good as the first two. Plus I HATED the extended world she created, I love Chicago but hated why they were there.

Then, there’s the little heart… this one I’m sure you’ve seen covering my Instagram! My favourite book of all times is Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte… or possibly Animal Farm… or The Importance of Being Ernest. You know what, I’ll do a separate post on this for you later on in the month, how about that!

So, that’s my top 5 most used emojis. I’d be super dee duper dee pleased if you’d leave me a comment below showing me one of your favourite emoticons, and the book it relates to.

See you again soon!

xx

Mockingjay | Movie review

So guys, it happened. This past week Mockingjay hit the big screen and it’s safe to say I was one of the first in line to see it. I know it’s been a few days, but I needed to collect my thoughts before I wrote this. With that said, I feel like I’m finally in a place where I can cohesively tell you what I thought, so lets get started. Oh, and this is going to be spoiler free… if that changes I’ll let you know further down!

First of all, the acting. Wow. I was so, incredibly impressed with Mr Hutcherson in this film, he 100% convinced me he was Peeta, and I hated watching him disintegrate, but loved the way they did it. On a similar note, hats off to the make up team for his look in the final scenes, it was the perfect combination of creepy and cuddle-worthy. (I could rattle on for another paragraph about the awesomeness that is Jennifer Lawrence, but you already know that, so I’m going to take it for granted and spring past it.)

In terms of the actual script, I’m so glad they brought Effie back. It wouldn’t have been the same without her and she brought some much needed comedy to a pretty dark film. I also want to look at Coin for a second, I hated her in the book from the very beginning, but somehow they managed to transform her into a more sympathetic character, which I liked… Snow is enough of a villain at this point, we don’t need Coin too.

The set, costume and soundtrack were all good… nothing to write home about, but overall solid and didn’t detract from the film or the story. I would however like to say that I’ve had the Hanging Tree stuck in my head for days and I really need to get it out… any suggestions are more than welcome!

That’s really all I have to say about the film itself, but can I just take a second to review the reviews? I understand that some people thought nothing happened in this film and that it was ‘boring’. To them I ask this question, so what?

This film is the third in a series, therefore you shouldn’t be watching it as a stand alone film. Both the original and Catching Fire were action packed and fast paced and this one wasn’t… that doesn’t make it a bad film!

This film wasn’t riddled with killing, it was more subtle focussing on Katniss relationship with Gale, her family, life in 13, her conflicting feelings over Peeta, his dissension into madness etc. It was a more acquired taste. However, it did offer the perfect platform for people to fall in love with the characters. You didn’t get to see a lot of Plutarch in Catching Fire and Coin is a new addition entirely, in order for Part 2 to pack a punch, they needed this film, and this extra few hours, to really get you invested in the story and people, particularly if you haven’t read the book. Also, this film takes place in front of a totally different backdrop to the previous two, and so the new world and system needed to be established before the film could proceed successfully.

I’m not necessarily saying if I were translating this series to film I would have split Mockingjay, but I do understand why they did it. Plus, is one more year really going to kill us?

Overall, I'm going to give this film an 8/10... a pretty solid score coming from me! 

What did you guys think? Did you like Mockingjay, or did it leave you a little sad, let me know!

xx

Review: Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Upon close examination of this blog I realises there is little evidence as to how much of a geek I truly am. Sure, you know my favourite film is Aliens, but aside from that, you have little knowledge of how deeply rooted my nerdiness is.
I decided that I needed to remedy this and so today I'm posting a review of the Rise of the Planet of the Apes. Now, this review is designed mainly for the fans of the original film (not the piece of rubbish they released in 2001).
Personally, when this film was first releases I refused to watch it on principle. I wasn't going to risk ruining the original film for myself by watching a crappy remake.
This idea was reinforced after hearing how terrible the 2001 version was, and so I thought I'd made the right choice. The other part of this choice was based on my experience with The Italian Job. Original film with Michael Caine -amazing, one of my favourites... Remake, made me want to turn off the TV and never turn it on ever again.

Anywho, I digress, after sitting through a hundred trailers for Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, I decided I was going to bite the bullet and give it a shot, and thus I had to start with Rise of the Planet of the Apes.

First good point, the creation of Caesar and the other Apes is brilliant and incredibly life-like, not to mention Andy Serkis' Ape voice is really impressive. Automatically, this is a pro above the original film, however I was at first saddened not to see grown men running around in monkey costumes with sideburns.
In terms of the actually plot, I really liked it. I felt that the initial humanisation of the Apes helped to give the viewer a much greater compassion for and relationship with the Apes, and thus set up an effective plot where you were rooting for a species which could lead to the extinction of your own race - that's a lot deeper than I meant it to be, but I'm going to leave it!
Looking then at the acting, its hard to go wrong with James Franco, and all off the supporting actors also did a fantastic job of capturing the differing layers of humanity, some were compassionate, some were vulnerable and some were cruel... It lead to a mix that did leave you feeling quite conflicted at the films climax.
Generally, the cinematography was leaps and bounds ahead of the original, but I felt that it was the lack of impressive cinematography that has made the original film so timeless.

Overall, I think this film is definitely worth a watch, whether you're an fan of the original or not. It is action packed, but still pulls on your heart strings and is so vvastly different from the original that you can almost watch it independently, with limited association to its predecessor, leaving your opinion of the original unscathed.
I'm going to give this film 8 stars for general enjoyment and successful execution.

I hope to see the newest film (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes) soon, and so hopefully I'll have a review up for that soon.
xx

Top 10 Quick Reads | 200 pages or less

Hello everyone! I'm going to keep this intro short, since this is a post all about quick reads. I know that sometimes you can get stuck in a reading rut and it seems like there's no way out.  your reading rate slows down and you start to think that there's no way on earth you're ever going to finish another book before you're 60.

Have no fear!
This is a list of 10 books all of which are under 200 pages (okay, one of them if 213 pages) which will help you fall in love with reading again. I know some people feel that shorter books aren't as well developed, but these tales break the mould and there's no way you have any excuse for not falling in love!

1. The Ocean at The End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman (181 pages) - a great fantasy story with Neil Gaiman's traditional creepy spin. Great for around Halloween and just beautiful to read.
2. Animal Farm by George Orwell (152 pages) - this is a modern classic and is the father of the dystopian genre. It is fairly important to note that this is actually an analysis of communism, with many of the characters making specific reference to key communist leaders such as Stalin, but you almost forget this as you get engrossed in the story!
3. Surviving Hitler by Andrea Warren (146 pages) - This is a great war time story about a boy who's sent away to a Nazi death camp and his experience there. The innocence and simplicity of the writing makes this a truly riveting read and gives a much greater character depth than is usually possible for a book this short!
4. The Tulip Touch by Anne Fine (160 pages) - Warning! This book is scary, Tulip is a demented character but she's so incredibly intriguing and the plot sucks you in so completely that you barely notice how disturbing the story is until you've finished.
5. Four: A Divergent Story by Veronica Roth (208 pages - sorry, I know it's over, but you can handle an extra 8 pages!) - I'm not a hundred percent sure if you could realistically treat this as a stand alone, but even if you've just read Divergent itself without the rest of the books this is a good read. It gives a really interesting insight into Four's character and just makes me want to give him a great big cuddle!
6. All My Sons by Arthur Miller (84 pages) - This is a play and so the characters are really well established, not a lot happens within the play but the context and history of the characters makes this a thought provoking and harrowing read that I literally couldn't put down... I read it in like 2 hours.
7. The Giver by Lois Lowry (179 pages) - This book is interesting because it really doesn't have that much of a plot, and you don't really get to know the characters, yet you're still totally invested in the book. I'm not quite sure how to describe it, but I do know that you should definitely go check it out!
8. Lovers: Winners, Losers by Brian Friel (77 pages) - This is another play but it is sensational and just captures the various stories so well. I actually did a drama for a Speech and Drama exam from this and so always have had a special connection with Mags. I think I'm going to reread all of Friel's works to refresh my memory, it's been a while, and I'll do an Author's Note once I get that far.
9. The Perks of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chobsky (213 pages - again, I'm sorry.) - This book really did depress me when I read it, and so even though it's short it took me a little while. It is amazing and the characters are brilliantly sympathetic.
10. The Tell Tale Heart by Edgar Alan Po (31 pages) - This is by far the shortest story on this list but is sensational in every way, I love the creepiness of this story and the slow decension into madness of the character, even in a small number of pages. 

The British Tag

1. How many cups of tea do you have a day? + How many sugars?
Probably somewhere between 3 and 7 (depending on how close I am to exams), my sugar also changes. In the morning, I usually take 1 sugar to wake me up, but during the day I might take none... it depends on my mood I guess!
2. Favourite part of your roast
Gravy! Over everything... ooh and Yorkshire puddings, and potatoes (in any form)
... I've made myself hungry now...
3. Favourite dunking biscuit
Chocolate digestives (Rich teas just crumble and these don't leave anything in the bottom of your cup which is a bonus!)
4. Favourite quintessentially British pastime?
I'm not sure I'd call it a 'pastime', but I do pass a lot of time queuing for things... buses, dinner, in Tesco, handing in homeworks, getting prizes. And, so I've been told, this is an incredibly British thing to do! 
5. Favourite word?
Cahoots... it just isn't said enough!
6. Cockney rhyme slang?
I live in Northern Ireland... ain't a lot of rhyming slang over here... But as a bonus I do know the meanings of Norn Iron, banjaxed, oul-doll, banter, minger, clinker, naf, dander, lamped, pull (as in pull a guy) and windee... if that counts!
7. Favourite sweet
Jelly beans
8. What would your pub be called?
World's End - Purely because I love Simon Pegg!
9. No.1 British person
Liam Neeson
10. Favourite shop / restaurant
Primark and Nando's
11. What British song pops into your head?
Christmas Is All Around (from Love Actually)
12. Marmite.
Yuck... I can put up with a lot, but I really hate Marmite!

Realistically speaking, I don't seem that British but trust me, if you met me you'd know... my friends all say I'm the most stereotypical British person alive!
What about you guys, are you typically British?

Reading Books For School | How To

As a literature student, I'm constantly being asked how I manage to read books for school. I have a lot of friends who struggle to find interest in or motivation to read their school reading list, and so they feel they don't understand the text as well as those who've read it before.

Today I wanted to give you my tips and tricks for getting through, and more importantly understanding, your school reading list.

1. Set yourself a time schedule. How long do you have until you need the book read? Say you have one school week (5 days), you need to divide the book into portions to read each day.

There are a number of ways to do this.

1. Chapters. If the book has 15 chapters, read 3 per night etc.

2. Pages. If the book has 200 pages read 40 per night etc.

3. Percentage. This is only really possible on a kindle or ereader, as they allow you to see what percentage you are through a book. In a 5 day period, you would need to read 20% per night etc. (Note – I do understand you can work out the percentage in a physical copy of a book… but who has the time!)

Personally, I find that working by percentage gives me the most motivation, but find what works for you.

2. Don't read it alone. Have another book that you're reading for yourself, make it something light that you enjoy reading and then discipline yourself enough that you can only read it, after meeting your goal for the day in terms of school reading.

3. Download a study guide and chapter summaries. You can find these for free on websites like Sparknotes. These are great to ensure you actually understand what has happened in the book, particularly for books with interesting language, such as Shakespeare. After reading a chapter, read the corresponding summary to ensure you got the point. Also, after you've finished the book look more closely at motifs, symbols and character analysis, so you have something to contribute in class.

4. Reward yourself. Personally, my reward is being allowed to add it to my Read shelf on Goodreads, and being given the freedom to read whatever I want for a few days or weeks. If that doesn't work for you, try food or activities like going to the cinema to motivate you to read.

That's really all I got to say, this is the best way I've found to get through school books at a reasonable rate, and with as much understanding and enjoyment as possible.

What are some of the books you've been forced to read by teachers?

xx

Dystopian Novels | Top 5

Dystopian novels have recently taken over the lives of the teenage population. However, not all of these novels are works of genius. I've read my fair share of these books, and I've been both excited and disappointed by the options.

I don't want any of you to have to endure a substandard book, so today I'm going to tell you my Top 5 dystopian novels. (Note - these are specific novels, some of which fall within a series and so the whole series may have to be read in order to appreciate them.)

1. Catching Fire (The Hunger Games series).

This is the second book on the Hunger Games trilogy and is by far the best of the books. This has both an amazing arena, complex characters and a fast moving plot line. It's everything you want in a novel of this type and it has the added benefit of already being transformed into a movie (for those who aren't such fans of the old paper approach!)

2. Divergent (the Divergent series)

Divergent is incredibly popular at the moment and so it's no surprise it's high up on this list. The first book is hard to beat in this trilogy, but the sequels do hold their own and are still great reads. (Although the ending is sad, and the second and third books both take a little while to get moving!)

3. The Giver (The Giver series)

I'm going to level with you, I haven't gotten around to reading the rest of the quartet, but this book is great as a stand alone. This is one of the few books where I love the writing as well as the story, The Hunger Games is another case of this. This book also has the bonus of qualifying as a ‘classic’ due to its criticism of society, in fact some of you may have even read it in school. If you want to dip a toe into the Dystopian world without committing completely, this book is nice and short so even the slowest reader in the world could have it read in a week!

4. The Kill Order (The Maze Runner series)

Now, if you've read my full review of this series, you'll know that I have mixed feelings. However, the prequel is my absolute favourite of the stories (mainly because I like the characters a whole ton better, but also because it doesn’t do a lot of the things I point out in that review) Overall, it's The Flare which I love in this series, and this is the central idea for the prequel making it an obvious choice. This one is really more apocalyptic than dystopian and is quite outbreak-esque in its content!

5. The Program (The Program series)

Now, this one is the flipside of Maze Runner. In this series, I love the writing and characters. However, the actual plot line I find a little far fetched. But once you get past that its a really good read and I can't wait to continue this series! (I have a full review if you want to know more)

So there you go, there's my top 5 dystopian novels. What about you guys, do you have any suggestions for me?

xx