Tuesday, August 30, 2011

The Book Quiz

A blog I follow, Writer at Large posted her results to book quiz (click here) its a really simple 4 question quiz. So I was intrigued to tell me what it would say about me...

MY RESULTS...

You tend to have your head in the clouds. You love to be drawn in to a whole other world.

Me: Yes that's true... but shouldn't all writers.

You are a sensitive person. You find it easy to be emotionally effected by books.
Me: Yes... I was crying at the end of The Wild Rose but I cry a lot.

You are a person with a few deep interests. If you're drawn to something, you learn everything about it.

Me: Some what true.

You are a person who loves to acquire possessions. You can't resist a sale, and you own a lot of things.

Me: Some what true for certain things books, movies, and bags.

Monday, August 29, 2011

The Wild Rose

I am happy and sad to say that I have finished the Jennifer Donnelly trilogy of The Finnegan family, the Tea Rose, the Winter Rose and the The Wild Rose. I am happy because I love the writing so much I was waiting for so long for this book to come out but sad because its over and I want to read more about The Finnegan family.I feel the story could go on. Each of the Finnegan children have big families we could see what happens to them. I want to know what happens to Katie, Fiona's daughter.

I don't know how to review these books with out giving away any spoilers.

They are each about 600 pages but they are the fastest 600 pages you will ever read. With all three of them I could not put them down even if some nights that meant staying up till 2 AM to read it.

The first book... The Tea Rose follows the story of Fiona. Goodreads.com says...
"The Tea Rose is a towering old-fashioned story, imbued with a modern sensibility that is fresh, compelling, and perfectly pitched for these times. This sweeping epic follows young Fiona Finnegan's climb from the teeming streets of East London."... there is more but it spoils some of the twist of the story and my favorite thing about these stories and Jennifer Donnelly's writing in general is her twist.








The second book... The Winter Rose though it starts off being about a girl India Sewlyn Jones she gets involved with the Finnegan's clan through some twist. Goodreads.com give a little description of the book with out any spoilers.



I did find a good blog The Sleepless Reader that writes a review of this book. I don't feel I would do these two books justice if I wrote about them as I have not read them in two years and some of the details are hazy and I would hate to give spoilers away, especially since my sister is reading this book right now. But now I want to re-read the first two books so I can remember all the plot twist that got the readers to The Wild Rose.
This book is set in pre-WWI and during WWI. In the book we follow Fiona's youngest brother Seamie's story and the woman that changes his life, Willa Alden. I don't know much about WWI so it was a great story that covers details of the suffragist movement in England to control over the Middle East. An interesting character Lawrence of Arabia even plays a big part in Willa's story. Which I will admit I loved because Peter O'Toole played him in the movie... and I love Peter O'Toole. I will also say at one point in the book I was so worried for Seamie and Willa's love story I had to read the last few pages just to make sure it ends happy... I got so caught up in these character's lives I wanted to prepare myself if was going to end happy or sad.


Okay that's not much about those 3 books but I loved them... that much is true and if you love twist and turns that will keep you up till 2 AM and love late Victorian Era to WWI, and a love stories of passion I recommend these books. These stories have adventure, love, hope and inspiration all in one. Also I can tell Jennifer Donnelly, has a deep love of history and she loves to make sure everything is dead on accurate and the great research she does makes you feel you are in the scene with the characters.


Saturday, August 27, 2011

Since I am going to be busy this weekend packing I wanted to leave you readers with my favorite Cassatt. I try to make up stories about this.

Friday, August 26, 2011

A day of B

I have discovered a new blog A Day of K she has a few post about being an English major and not being able to define what she wants to do with her life at least not in words.

The closest I will ever get to fame
She writes about how she didn't have a name for the career she wanted. And how people would ask her "if she wanted to teach" or "did she want to read professionally" to which she answered no to. She actually wrote to Jodi Picoult and got some inspiring words.

This post got me thinking of two things in my life. When I got started working on my history degree lots of people asked me if I wanted to teach... I said I had no patience to teach. I just loved history. My mom had always told me college was not job training it was life preparation so it didn't matter really what I majored in. My dad had different thoughts on college always wanting me to take business classes, I didn't. I majored in American History with a minor in Women's studies. Where has that gotten me? A continued interest in history, but from the social side not political, also into grad school where I am continuing in history and library science. I also want to write historical fiction... for that I'm going to have to do research which I am fine with... I love research. I am a geek what can I say.

The next thing this post reminded me of when I wrote to my favorite author Jennifer Donnelly (more info on her at bottom of page), gushing over how much I loved the Winter Rose (the 2nd book in her trilogy) the fact that she wrote me back at all was amazing. I told her about my blog and she said she loved it and wished me luck on my writing endeavors. And the quote I have at the top of my page keeps me going some times on my writing.

Ain't no thang - freelancing
First grabbed my attention because of Alexis Bedel... hello, I love Gilmore Girls.

So I started reading this post. She reflects on how she had lunch with her high school English teacher and the teacher telling her how the teacher wanted to write but couldn't make it work.

My mom has always said I was a good writer and when I started this blog and started reviewing movies my Grandpa said I should work for a newspaper writing. I do want to be published one day but for now I just like writing... to make it a career I think would take the joy out of writing for me, at least in the fast pace of print journalism. I like my little blog, my little story, and just enjoying the escapism of writing. I actually want to be an archivist for the pay check but a writer on the side. I am just happy that I have come out of the closet about my writing... and have gotten to share my life with you my lovely readers. I have been happy with all the kind words I have gotten. I love when people tell me they love my blog or that they even read my blog. I love when my mom and a friend told me that my blog inspired them to start their own blog. I have written more about it in my post "I'm a blogger" so I won't bore you again with my gushy details. Even if I never get published I am happy to have this littl nook for my writing.

basically these post told me if you had something to write about write it.

The quote in the picture "Writing is the only thing that when I do it I don't feel I should be doing anything else"- Gloria Steinem.