Mismatched Mishmash

When you enter my room, I want your eyes to be drawn to my bookshelves.

I have three of them. One usually hides its contents from view, a tall, yellow-white-and-green bookcase with five shelves. Two of them flank my window.

And they're full. More than full, actually, as their inhabitants spill out onto the floor, are doubled up in places. My books lie haphazardly on top of each other. They're stacked here and there in sets of four or five, so that they don't fall over.

My books are a hodge-podge mix of blues and reds and blacks, orange and green sometimes peeking out from between their multicolored friends, and even pink making an appearance. They're a mismatched mixture of mass-market paperbacks and hardcovers, a collection of used and new books picked up at the local library book sale and at book shops all across the world.

If you notice nothing else in my room, not the photos on my walls, not the knick-knacks picked up from my time spent travelling and creations I've made myself, not the dried-up starfish and iridescent shells from a family friend, I want you to notice my books.

They occupy my bookshelves, impossibly disorganized, with no two books the same size next to each other. New books and old share the same shelf, from classics to children's books. Young adult and adult books sit squashed next to each other on a shelf that's a little bit too full, their pages being compressed by books on either side of them. Finding places for my books is no easy task, yet it's one I quite enjoy.

This mishmash of mismatched books is what I want you to notice when you walk into my room.

The Dandy Lioness

Four Hours

Today was one of those days where I came home from school, claimed a patch of sunlight, grabbed a book, and set myself down on the floor to read.

Four hours later, after having chased my patch of sunlight from one room into another, I had read 302 pages, and finished my book.

These are my favorite kinds of days.

The Dandy Lioness

An Open Letter to Tamora Pierce

Dear Ms. Pierce,

Your books mean the world to me. I've read all of The Immortals series more times than I can count. Alanna, Daine, Keladry... they're all some of my role models. I mean, really, those ladies are some of the best literary characters I've ever met.

I was first introduced to your books in the summer between fifth and sixth grade. I went on a two week sailing trip with my family and another family we were friends with, but I was the only kid my age on that trip. My friend who was supposed to come broke both her wrists just three days before we were set to leave. So I read. And I read. And I read. I think I read Wild Magic twice on that trip. If I didn't read it twice, then I certainly spent many hours above deck, watching the water go by and pretending I had animal magic like Daine, and that I could talk to the animals surrounding us.

And then I met Alanna. And Kel. And Beka. And Aly. And I fell in love with them all. Your books were what I turned to when I was sad-- the stories of these five ladies were always able to cheer me up. At this point, I've probably read Wild Magic and In the Hand of the Goddess more times than I can count.

I got the chance to meet you last year, on your Mastiff tour. We only got the chance to talk for a minute or two, but you remarked on my old, beat up Random House Fantasy trade paperback copies-- copies of the books you hadn't seen in a long time, you said. You were afraid you were going to break them. You wished me luck on my second NaNoWriMo adventure, which I was starting in just a few days. I was over the moon about that. Hearing that from one of my favorite authors, one of the people who had written some of my favorite heroines was amazing.

So I just wanted to say thank you. I'm sure I said it on the tour, where we stood in the bookshop I'd been going to since I was just a little kid, and the owner said, "We've known her since she was little. She's a writer too!", and where I awkwardly handed you my dogeared read-a-thousand-times copies of your books. But I wanted to say it again. I'll always be grateful to you, and to your books. They truly helped shape my childhood, and I can't imagine my life without them. Alanna, Daine, Keladry, Aly, and Beka will always be some of my best friends, and I'm always happy to revisit their stories, stories that I've read a hundred times already.

So really... thank you.

Sincerely,
Sofia

{My Random House Fantasy trade paperback editions}

The Dandy Lioness

Reading and Teachers

Last year, I was reading constantly.

I always had a book in hand, many of which were marked with post-its or had reading logs stuck in the pages.

Last year, I loved reading, yet I was forced to do it. So I did it constantly. When reading at least twenty pages a day is your homework, you do it. You have to. You have to force yourself to sit down and read those twenty pages. And if you're me, then you can sit down and read forty or fifty or a hundred or three hundred instead of the required twenty.

After talking to a friend of mine, who had the same language arts teacher that I did, last year, I discovered something interesting. She, like me, loves reading. Both of us used to read constantly, especially last year when we were forced to do so. But both of us, starting directly after last school year finished-- when we were no longer forced to read twenty pages a day-- stopped reading as much.

Last summer I read perhaps five books. Last spring break, only two months previously, I read seven. Last year, I was in a constant state of reading.

This year, I've been reading, but definitely not as much.

Something about being forced to do it last year, made me read more than ever before. But now that I'm no longer forced to read, that I don't have to sit and think, "Oh, well I'd better get my reading done so my teacher doesn't get mad at me.", I don't read nearly as much.

It'll take me two weeks to get through a 200 page book nowadays, whereas I would have read a 200 page book in a night before.

This makes me sad.

This teacher that I had, who was trying to inspire us to read, trying to get us to enjoy it, who forced us to read, got me to the point where reading was homework. Where when I didn't have to do it, I was happy. I was happy I didn't have this constant assignment hanging over my head. Where I'm turning in more books to the library half-read or unread than actually finished.

It makes me kind of angry, actually. I know that this teacher was just trying to get us to love books. To love to read, to get us to a point where reading wasn't a chore, it was for fun. For me, reading was already fun. I adore it, actually, it's one of my favorite activities. But after last year, I consider it a chore. When you're forced to do something you love, rather than choosing to do it yourself, it makes it so much less fun.

Yet... she did the opposite. I haven't read even close to half as many books this year, as I did last year. This year, when sitting around doing nothing, I'm less likely to think, "Oh, I should grab a book and read," because it isn't this ever-present assignment.

Another thing about teachers and reading, is something that my current language arts teacher said to me, recently. He overheard me and a friend talking about a book that I gave her that she had recently read, and how much we loved it, and one of the characters in it. And he came up to us, and said, "You know, I really think it's time that you start branching out from teen literature. Try some classics! They're so much better!"

And I just didn't appreciate that at all. I love the YA genre-- there are so many good books in it, so many left undiscovered, so many to read and experience and fall in love with. And I've read several classics over the years-- granted, many of them were in class, but had I been reading them on my own, I know I wouldn't have either enjoyed them or finished them. For me, the YA genre is where I'm comfortable and happy. I do also read books classified as "adult" books, although I've definitely found that I love the YA genre best. Out of everything I've read, YA is where my heart lives.

And so telling me that classics are better than YA, makes me angry. I want to write YA literature-- whether or not I become an actual author isn't all that important in this scenario. I just want to write it. And one of the best things for me to do, is to read YA literature.

So really... sometimes I think that language arts teachers need to step back a bit, and let their students read as they please. Read what they please and when. Let them discover genres for themselves, let their students discover their love of reading, rather than have their teachers diminish it. I know that it's language arts teachers jobs to inspire reading and writing and creativity, but, to be quite honest, I've never had a language arts teacher who has truly inspired me.

My own creativity, my own love of reading comes from within, and I hate that over the years my teachers have tried to change it and mold it to what they think it should be. They think I should read classic books. They think I should read more, or read other things. They think that the best way of reading is this or that, when really it's something completely different for me.

Books, reading, writing, creativity... they're extremely personal things. And for me, teachers trying to shape my thoughts on these things that are so personal to me, doesn't work. It changes my original thoughts, and not in a good way. Teachers shouldn't care what you read, or how you read, I think. They should just care that you read. Of course, they're allowed to dictate what you read if it's a book for their class, but if it's just a book that you're reading on your own? I don't think that teachers should judge on what you're reading, be it comic books or YA literature or a classic. Does it really matter what it is that you're reading, as long as you are?

{This is a photo you've seen before, but it was the only one I had on my computer that seemed to fit with this post. Sorry.}

{Also I'm sorry that this post is so long, I had a lot to say. }

The Dandy Lioness

On Libraries, and Why I Love Them

I love libraries.

I love my local library (well, technically it isn’t my local library, but it’s my favorite library.  I don’t like the one that’s closest to my house as much as I do this one).  I love its book sales, and wandering down the shelves.  I love sitting cross-legged in the teen’s section, pouring over book after book, looking for ‘the one’ that captures my attention on that day.

I love that when I go to library book sales, I can get copies of my favorite books in great condition, for only a dollar or two.  (Looking for Alaska, Dealing With Dragons, and Airborn, to name a few.)  I love the hidden gold mines you find whilst browsing.

I love that I’m able to read anything for free, even if it does include a bit of a wait.  Just the other day, I picked up the Perks of Being a Wallflower, a book I’ve been meaning to read for ages.  I love that if I don’t finish a book, I can return it, free of charge.  (As long as I don’t let it get overdue, that is!) 

Libraries make me happy.  The scent of well-loved pages makes me happy.  The feel of a well-worn book makes me happy.  Even those old, mangled, dog-eared, cracked-spine books make me happy.

Libraries let us read anything and everything.  We can live vicariously through the lives of characters, or teach ourselves new skills, or research famous people or places.

Libraries are wonderful places, for they are thousand and one places at once. They are far-off planets, and our hometowns, Atlantis and ancient England, fantasy worlds, or our world with fantastic creatures.

I don’t understand people who don’t have a library card.  With just one piece of flimsy plastic, you can go anywhere, be anything.

Why would you pass that chance up?

The Dandy Lioness

Bookish Memories

You probably have noted the title of this post, by now.  I was sitting here, trying to figure out what to call it, when I remembered my post Bookish Nostalgia.  This post being sort of similar, I decided to title this one Bookish Memories, and make it into a sort-of-kind-of-maybe series.


Something interesting about books, is the stories that they tell.  I know what you’re thinking.  “Duh, they’re books.  Of course they tell stories.”

But the stories I’m talking about aren’t those stories.  No.  The stories I’m talking about are the ones that come across your mind when you pick the book up, and look at it.  The stories that you have added to the book.  Take my copy of The Fault in Our Stars, for example.  I remember the day I drove half an hour to go get that book.  We were having dinner at our friend’s house that night, and I remember reading it in the car while my mom went and got tapenade from the store, or something.  And I remember getting sushi on the way home, and eating it in the car and reading the book.  With the book Will Grayson, Will Grayson, I know that I’ll probably associate it with ferry rides, because I was reading it for the first time the other day, when we had to wait in line for a ferry for an hour.

I associate my copy of Airborn by Kenneth Oppel with sitting outside in the sun on a lazy spring evening, picking up the book I had started, and was only four chapters into, and then suddenly realizing just how good it was, and tearing through it in one evening.  The book Looking for Alaska reminds me of plane rides, and the excited feeling you get when you’re going somewhere.   My copy of Goliath by Scott Westerfeld reminds me of sadder things, however.  It makes me think of why I got it.  Yes, I got it at a signing by Scott Westerfeld, when he came to my city, which was amazing and hilarious, but it also makes me sad, because it reminds me of my grandfather’s death.  The reason my mom got it for me was because the day that my grandfather died, I was her buddy, and we ended up going to sign paperwork and stuff.  A week later, she got me Goliath at the signing, as a sort of thank-you.

Something that John Green often says is “Books belong to their readers.”  I didn’t really know what he meant by that, until recently.  I was looking at my bookshelf, and having all these memories come back to me. 

A more unique memory that comes to me, while scanning my bookshelf, is from the book, The King in the Window, by Adam Gopnik.  I read this book (well, my mother read it to me,) shortly before I went to Paris, because it’s set in Paris.  And so, when we went to Paris, we were at the Louvre, and there’s this one scene in The King in the Window, where the main character goes to this one room in the Louvre, which is filled with swords.  And I still have no idea if this room actually exists, but when we were in the Louvre, we went on a sort of quest, looking for this room.  We didn’t find it, but it was fun—though my sister didn’t like it, as it meant she didn’t get to stand and read every single thing about each piece of art.  Though had she done that, she would have been in the Louvre for days and days.  But still.  We ran around the museum, looking for this one room.  I think my mom was just happy that I wasn't complaining bitterly about being in a museum.  (Yes, I realize it was the Louvre, but in my defense, it was in fourth grade, and I had absolutely no interest in museums.  I'm still not a big fan of them, either...)


I remember reading Magyk by Angie Sage on a balcony overlooking the sea while in Italy, and The Penderwicks on Gardam Street by Jeanne Birdsall in my bedroom, in a nest made out of stuffed animals and bedding.  I remember sprawling in my backyard reading Only the Good Spy Young, by Ally Carter, and reading Wild Magic, by Tamora Pierce for the first time while I was sailing.  

So yes.  After a long time of not really understanding what John Green meant, I finally do.  Books do belong to their readers.  Readers interpret the stories the way that they see fit, and attach their own memories to books.  At first, it’s just a book.  But then you read it, and become involved in the story.  You take it places, meet people with it in your hand, get it signed by authors you love.  No one will have the exact same story attached to a specific book as you do.  Your story is unique.  And whenever you see the title of that book, you'll remember where you first read it, or your favorite place that you've taken it, or just some memory of reading it.  Books are special.

The Dandy Lioness

{P.S.  Is the spacing weird, or is that just my computer?  It's been acting up recently, so I have no idea.}

This and That, Just Some Stuff

Hello, lovelies!  Long time no see!

{Via}

First off, just some randomness.  This post is entirely random and just kind of me rambling and updating you guys on my life.

I want to wish the lovely Mirriam a happy early birthday, as I know it's in the next few days.  So happy birthday Mirriam!  I hope it's wonderful.

Now, I don't have much I actually want to talk about.  I just realized it had been almost a week, and I figured I should post.  No, this has nothing to do with the fact that I don't want to study for my social studies test tomorrow.  Nothing at all.  *whistles*

I'm off spring break now, sadly.  Though this week has been a tad wonky, as we went on a field trip yesterday, and had a two hour early release today.  The next two weeks are standardized testing weeks, meaning my entire school schedule will be wonky for two weeks, and then I'm going on a trip for a week, meaning that my school schedule won't be back to normal for three and a half weeks.  Yikes.  That's close to half the amount of school I have left.  (I have eight weeks, if you're wondering.  We get out on the 22nd of June.  Yes, I realize it's late.  But we also don't start until about a week into September, so we get out way later than most schools.)

I haven't been writing much lately, though my wish to write a spy novel was renewed last night, when I read Out of Sight, Out of Time by Ally Carter last night-- it's the fifth Gallagher Girls book, and was very good.  I don't know what it is, but the idea of spies, and boarding schools are two of my favorite things, and teenage girl spies who go to boarding school are just amazing.  Of course, I already have a project I've started, but I think I might have room for a boarding school/spy novel.  Seriously, I don't know what it is about boarding schools, but I just seriously think they're awesome.  Especially when they're in old mansions, and filled with teenage spies.

I actually got the chance to meet Ally Carter, when she went on tour this year, which was very exciting.  That makes my total number of authors seen this school year go up to five.  Which is a number I'm very proud of.  Sadly, I didn't get a signature, as I (shockingly) realized I didn't own any books by her.

I've been reading quite a lot lately-- my final total of books read over spring break was six, which was a number I was very proud of, and for the first six days or so, I managed to read a book a day.  But then I ran out of reading material, and was thrown off my schedule, and started reading Harry Potter again, until I was able to get a new book.

Oh!  I had my birthday party on Saturday, which was very fun.  We made pizza and played capture the flag, and had ice cream sundaes, and watched a movie.  I got a sonic screwdriver from one of my friends, as well, which was very awesome.  It's Eleven's, so it's got the green light, rather than the blue one.  One of my friends was baffled as to why it was called a screwdriver, if it wasn't a screwdriver, and just lit up at the end, and I told her that she had to watch the show, which she just generally thinks is crazy. Which it is, a bit.  But also very good.  The TV show I'm talking about (if you don't already know) is Doctor Who, which is one of my current TV obsessions, and I love very much.  You'll hear me talking about it quite a bit here.

I've gotten quite off track here.  Not that I had a track originally.  It was really just a me-sitting-down-and-writing-something-down kind of post.  Anyways, I'll talk to you soon, lovelies.

The Dandy Lioness

Bookish Nostalgia

{Via}

My childhood was filled with books.  I spent huge swaths of time reading, poring over favorite books, creating my own characters, and my own stories.  I read, and I read, and I read.  I have an entire bookshelf in my room that is devoted to books that I don't really read anymore, but have so many memories attached to them, that I couldn't possibly give them away.

The Penderwicks.
Warriors.
Hannah West.
The Tortall books, by Tamora pierce.
Harry Potter.

These books shaped my childhood.  In fact, they still shape my life, and I do still read some of the books in that list.  I spent four years reading and rereading the Warriors series (Erin Hunter), and creating my own clans, my own characters, and making up stories.  From about second grade up, I've constantly had a book in my possession, being carted around from here to there.

I spent years running through my friend's backyard, pretending to be Ginny Weasley, while she was first Hermione Granger, and then Tonks, from Harry Potter.  A few years later, and our obsession had shifted to the Warriors series, where we came up with a set of four clans, and all the cats (who we bothered to integrate into our story) in them.  We had our main characters we played, and we came up with a prophecy.

I pretended I was the fifth Penderwick sister, or occasionally Batty, or Skye.  I played this game with myself, as none of my friends had read these books, until this year, when I made one of them read The Penderwicks.    I pretended I was Hannah West, a teenage sleuth solving crimes in Seattle, another game I played alone.   Another series I adored was the Percy Jackson series, by Rick Riordan.  I spent hours pretending I went to Camp Half-Blood, that I was Annabeth, or Thalia.  I distinctly remember running around my backyard, using a short wooden dagger my sister made at pirate camp to fend off imagined enemies.

Later on, my obsessions shifted once again, this time to Tamora Pierce's Totall series.  I would pretend I was Alanna, or Daine.  It took me a while to like Kel as much as I liked the other two, but I do like her now, though I rarely pretended I was her.  This is one of my more recent obsessions.

I still have all these stories.  All these books I adored as a child, that swept me up in fangirling over them for years.  I remember distinct moments from playing each of them.  Do you have any distinct memories from books like these, that you adored as a child, and have read seemingly a hundred times each?  Did you ever pretend you were a certain character, be it one from the book, or one you made up?

The Dandy Lioness

Un Lun Dun— A Book Review

{This is the cover that I had, though I prefer this cover.  I personally find this cover to be rather ugly.}

Title:  Un Lun Dun

Author:  China Mieville

Genre:  Fantasy

Page Count:  471

Rating:  4.7 out of 5 stars

"What is Un Lun Dun?

It is London through the looking glass, an urban Wonderland of strange delights where all the lost and broken things of London end up . . . and some of its lost and broken people, too–including Brokkenbroll, boss of the broken umbrellas; Obaday Fing, a tailor whose head is an enormous pin-cushion, and an empty milk carton called Curdle. Un Lun Dun is a place where words are alive, a jungle lurks behind the door of an ordinary house, carnivorous giraffes stalk the streets, and a dark cloud dreams of burning the world. It is a city awaiting its hero, whose coming was prophesied long ago, set down for all time in the pages of a talking book.

When twelve-year-old Zanna and her friend Deeba find a secret entrance leading out of London and into this strange city, it seems that the ancient prophecy is coming true at last. But then things begin to go shockingly wrong."

This book is amazing.  With every twist and turn you meet new characters, and I was left guessing as to how it would end, until the very end.  Deeba's companions are lovable, silly, and courageous.  They're willing to do everything to save their city.  The villains of this book are just the right amount of scary, and well-bent on taking over not just Un Lun Dun, but regular London as well, and the rest of the world.  

Part of what I liked about this book, is that Deeba is the UnChosen one.  Her friend Zanna was the Chosen One.  But when things start to go wrong, it's down to Deeba to take over, and save the two worlds.  It's a refreshing change from the usual ways of one particular person being the Chosen One, and though they have companions, it's their destiny, and they're not happy about it.  But Deeba?  She's the UnChosen one.  And she didn't have to take up that position.  She could have just stood by.  But she wouldn't.  She chose to take over, and do everything she could to save Un Lun Dun.  Her companions include Conductor Jones, conductor of a flying bus, Rosa, the driver of the bus, Odabay Fing, a tailor, Curdle, a milk carton, a talking book, and many more.  These characters are certainly quirky, and some of the most original I've met in ages.  

Though this book was fantastic, Deeba's grammar sometimes bugged me.  She'd say things like, "They was..." , and a few similar sentences, which are trivial things, and obviously on purpose, but still bugged me.  However, I highly recommend this book, especially if you're looking for an original, exciting adventure story.

Personally, I give this book about 4.7 out of 5 stars-- there were a few things I didn't quite like about it, but all in all, it was a very, very good book.  Be warned however-- I was just looking at the Good Reads page for Un Lun Dun, and it appears that either you love this book or you hate it.  Quite obviously, I loved it.  Some people complained about the strong environmental theme-- the main villain is the "Smog", and wants to take over the world and burn it.  But for me?  I just enjoyed an all-around good read.

Have any of you guys read it?  Do you think it sounds interesting?  Would you read it?  If you have read it, did you like it?

The Dandy Lioness

Let the Games Begin— a Post about Dystopian Novels

Hello all!  Thanks for all the tips on avoiding boredom!

In the comments of my last post, I was talking to Scarlett about fanfiction, and the short piece I wrote for my group of teenage writers on NaNoWriMo.  We're all huge Hunger Games fans, and yesterday, we were talking about what it would be like if we were in the Hunger Games.  So, here's this short little fic I wrote (195 words) based on us (the Purple Elephants) in the Hunger Games.

“Let the Games begin!” shouted a voice, coming from seemingly nowhere.

Rosie stepped calmly off her plate, and looked around.  She began to walk calmly toward the Cornucopia.  This was their plan.  No fighting, no murder.  This was how they would do it.

All twenty-four tributes were walking slowly and purposefully towards the Cornucopia.  She could practically hear the Capitol’s outrage.

She reached the Cornucopia, and stood in the steadily-forming ring of tributes.

She nodded to the two tributes on either side of her—Brody and Eva.

“Ready?”

It was Lady.

They all nodded.  Carefully, they began rifling through the items in the Cornucopia.

“Anyone want a knife?” Lady asked.

“I suppose I’ll take it,” said Brody, after a moment, and it was passed along from Lady to Brody.

“Bow and arrow?” Lady called out.

“I’ll take that,” Lauri said, holding out her hand for it.  She nodded in appreciation for its fine craftsmanship, and slung it across her back.  Food was passed out, and the little medicine in the Cornucopia was spread evenly among them.  Weapons were distributed, and, for the first time ever, there wasn’t a single death within ten minutes of starting.

So, what do you think?  We all decided (shortly before I wrote this little guy) that we wouldn't be able to kill each other, and would all be allies, which is where the point of the fic stems from.  If you're wondering why it's based around Rosie, that's because on the NaNoWriMo forums, I generally go by Rosie.  I had fun with it, but there has been very little editing, so it's not very polished.

Have any of you guys read the Hunger Games?  If so, thoughts?  If not, why not?  The fact that I like the Hunger Games is actually quite surprising.  I am really not a fan of dystopian novels, which, considering that recently the YA genre has been flooded with them is rather unfortunate.  I much prefer regular fantasy.

Dystopia.  What do you guys think of it?  Generally, I can’t really stand it.  The only two dystopian series/novels I've ever really liked, are The Hunger Games, and the Uglies series (though I've only read book one).  My friend and I were walking home from school one day a couple months ago, and came up for this formula for most dystopian novels.

Bad history of a society + government taking over + a random girl a hundred years after the government has taken over, who meets a guy + guy explaining about some form of rebellion + guy gets between girl and her long-time guy best friend + eventually girl joins rebellion + girl figuring out how to stop the government in some way= a dystopian novel

Do you guys have anything to add (or subtract) to my dystopian formula?

The Dandy Lioness

Why I Look Up to Ginny Weasley

Ever since I was three years old, and was tricked into listening to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, I've loved Harry Potter.

I've been to the midnight releases of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows-- the book-- (I made it to two different bookstores that night-- one, the small bookstore near my house, that my sister camped outside of for fourteen hours, and another, a large bookstore downtown that had a huge party), and both halves of the movie.  I went to the midnight release of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince-- the movie.  I was too young to go to the book, but after seeing how much fun my sister had, I was bound and determined to go to the next one.

I grew up with Harry, Ron and Hermione.  But funnily enough, none of them were my favorite character.

I liked Ginny.  My friends liked Hermione, and Tonks, and Luna, and while I like them too, I like Ginny best.  Recently I've been skimming a lot of Harry-Potter fandom related stuff, and I was shocked at all the hate that Ginny, and Bonnie Wright get.

I think Bonnie Wright made a good Ginny.  End of story.  Ginny always has, and always will be my favorite character.  I look up to her.  I know some people think she's a horrible character or that Bonnie Wright ruined her for them, but I admire her, and look up to her.  And here is why.

{Via}

She is strong.  She knew that diary was trouble, and tried her best to throw it away.  She fought her hardest to throw that diary away, because she knew she couldn't continue on this way.

{Via}

She can stand up for herself.  You don't grow up with six brothers not being able to stand up for yourself.

{Via}

She's not ashamed of her friends.  Neville, and Luna?  In books five, six and seven, Ginny stood by them, no matter their quirks, and loved them just as who they were.  She would have died to protect them.

{Via}

She doesn't get deterred easily.  She broke into Snape's office to get that sword.  She will get what she wants, even if she has to fight for it.

{Via}

She loves her friends.  She would die in a second for Hermione, Luna, Neville, Ron, or Harry.  In book seven, she stayed with Neville and Luna until she wasn't allowed to return to Hogwarts anymore.  And she was eager to return to them in the end, during the battle of Hogwarts.

{Via}

She's not afraid to fight.  Like I said above, she'd die for her friends.  She's not afraid to stand up for herself, and she's more than willing to put a "Bat-Bogey Hex" on you if you annoy her.

{Via}

And one last reason.

She makes Harry happy.  And he deserves to be happy.  And if she makes him happy, I don't see what the problem with her is.  I think she deserves him, and he deserves her, and if they make each other happy, no one should claim that she's a bad character, or Bonnie Wright is a bad actress.  I like her just the same.

{Via}

So, those are my reasons that I like Ginny Weasley.  Do you guys have any characters that you feel the need to defend, sometimes?  And yes.  I always have been, and always will be, a Harry and Ginny shipper.

The Dandy Lioness

Random Ramblings and a Dash of Tea

Hello!  I hope that everyone had a wonderful holiday.  Christmas for me was lovely this year, as I got nerdy t-shirts, Gilmore Girls, Doctor Who, and many books.  Speaking of books, I got Beauty Queens.  Oh my goodness.  I had forgotten how hilarious Libba Bray's books can be.

Christmas Eve was just as fun as usual, and was filled with Playmobil trains, pinball, and playing with my young cousins.  Christmas day was spent at my aunt and uncle's house, with their four children, and many members of my extended family.

This is just a short little catching-up post, and I'll give you a real, actually exciting post sometime soon.  As it is, I hope your holidays were lovely, and I wish you a happy new year.  My family is hosting a New Year's party this year, which should be... interesting.  Especially since I'm not a huge fan of throwing parties.  :P

Also, chai tea is delicious.  That's probably shown in my blog title but just... yum.  :)

Hunger Games Song, and The King's Speech

Fourth attempt at this post.  Have any of you seen this video?

I really like it.  I've listened to it several times already today, and it fits the books perfectly, I think.  I know that it's gotten a lot of people saying they don't like it, but I really do.  Now, because I've just about given up on writing a post today, I'm just going to post this video.

Oh, also, I watched The King's Speech the other day.  It was really good, though he did swear a lot.  Not that I'm not used to it, considering my school.  :P

The Dandy Lioness

Catching Up, 20k, and The Master

Hello, lovelies.  Sorry for being so spotty these last couple days.  Between NaNoWriMo and school, I haven't had much time to do, well, anything.  In NaNoWriMo news, I reached 20k yesterday, which was very exciting, even if it is just today's word count.  I like getting ahead (no matter how little ahead it actually is) and being home alone for three-four hours last night allowed me to do that.  Of course, I neglected my homework, but you know, I'll find time.

I was writing this post, and just got sidetracked by Doctor Who gifs.  So I'll give you this one of the Master, even though many of you probably don't watch it.

Umm...... yeah.  Gotta love the Master.  (And Mirriam, this is totally for you.  =D ) 

Now, this was a completely random post, that was mostly just trying to make up for the lack of posts I have had recently.  Hehe... yeah.  

I'm going to a coffee shop today with one of my friends, so that we can write, and that should be fun.  Also, I have to go to the library, because The Name of the Star finally came in.  I also have to write my review/journal entry thing for school about Lola and the Boy Next Door, a companion to Anna and the French Kiss (which I loved, by the way.  My friends refused to read it because of it's title, but I read it, and loved it.  I really recommend it.)  Also, I have to do my math homework.  So now I look like the Master, because I don't want to do homework.  *sigh*  Why didn't I do it yesterday?  Oh, yeah, because a) I had friends over to film our movie, and b) I watched Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and c) got to 20k.  Hehe.  Last night was fun...  

The Dandy Lioness

The Night Circus: A Book Review

Book Title: The Night Circus

Author: Erin Morgenstern

Cover rating: 4.5/5  I think this cover fits the book really well, as well as being interesting and beautiful.  The black and white circus with the red mixed in definitely works well, and I like how the circus is in the hand.

Book rating: 4.5/5  

I originally bought this book as a gift for a friend.  However, it was found in the adult section, and my mom wanted to read it before I gave it to her.  She read it, and decided that I would like it, but wasn't quite sure my friend would like it-- so we ended up getting a gift certificate for my friend.  

I loved this book.  I found it interesting, and just fascinating, and it helped give inspiration to my NaNoWriMo novel.  I loved the characters, and the descriptions.  It was rather dark in places, but it was very difficult to put down.  It took me a week to read, but between school, and NaNoWriMo, I didn't have a ton of time to read.  I ended up reading the last two hundred pages between Friday night and Saturday morning.  

I particularly liked Celia's and Marco's relationship, and how the game progressed throughout the book.  The adding of tents, etc.  I liked Isobel as well, and Thiessen.  I love Poppet and Widget as well.  The characters in this book are just lovely, and full of life.

I most certainly recommend this book.  However, there is at least one sexual part, so be cautioned.  I found this book enchanting and beautiful, and found it definitely worth the read.  4.5/5 stars.

This is the UK cover for the book-- which do you like better?  I really can't decide-- they're both quite lovely.

On another note, I'm 1,000 words ahead for NaNoWriMo.  So... yay for that!

The Dandy Lioness

Tamora Pierce, Movies, and NaNoWriMo Lost It's Pants?

Hello all!

Thank you to all the lovely commenters and followers on my Casting Call Bloghop post (follow the link, or it's below, if you're looking for it!).  I appreciate all of you.

My friend E and I filmed our TV Production movie today.  The basis for this project is "sad story... if you bring a tear to my eye, you get an A".  Four of my friends came over after school today, as it was an early dismissal, and E and I used them in our movie.  We had a blast filming it, and Luna Lovegood, I wish you could have come-- you mom called me back when we were in the grocery store on the way home.

Now, I have to leave for gymnastics in half an hour, and I'm squeezing a blog post into this limited time.

Did anyone else freak our when NaNoWriMo lost its pants (style sheet for all you techies) last night?  I freaked out, and thought my internet had gone haywire.  But then I hopped back onto the forums and found the post in the bugs forum and posted my complaints there.  And as for more complaints-- Blogger, why are you killing the internet today/last night????  I've used ctrl. alt. delete more times in the last 24 hours than I have in the last month.  Grrrr.

In book news, is anyone else totally psyched that Masiff by Tamora Pierce came out yesterday?  And seriously-- look at what a beautiful cover it has.  I cannot wait to get my copy from the library.  And yes, I am a shameless Tamora Pierce fan.  They are some of my favorite books-- ever.

Sorry for the rambling post-- I don't have anything specific to post about today.  Eagle, I applaud you for participating in NaBloWriMo-- I don't think I could win.  Now, I'm off to get ready for gymnastics and read my book.

The Dandy Lioness


P.S.  Does anyone else ever accidentally post their post without giving it a title?  Because I do that like, 50% of the time.  /Fail.

Apple Store Lines

What did I do this morning?

I woke up at 7:10.

I left the house at 7:20.

We reached the mall at 7:45.

We stood in line until 8:45.

We entered the Apple store at 8:45 to get iPhone 4S for my mother and sister.

We left the Apple store at 11:10.  Because the AT&T servers crashed minutes before we finished the transaction.

We went to our favorite sandwich shop (Caribbean sandwiches... YUM.) then to a cookbook shop down the street.  My mom ordered me a peacoat from Delia's that she promised me two weeks ago.

And now, I am sitting on the couch, after having finished Goliath by Scott Westerfeld.

But despite the fact that we hung out in the Apple store for 2 1/2 hours, I had a good day.  And tonight we're going to see Moneyball, which should be fun.

(And if you're wondering, I did go to my friend E's house last night, and it was crazy and we baked cookies and played Sardines, and it was all very fun.  And apparently I make wimpy sized cookies :P )

The Simple Joys of Life

{Via}

I'm reading my SIGNED copy of Goliath at the moment.  Don't know what Goliath is?  It's the third and final book in the Leviathan trilogy by Scott Westerfeld.  I got to go to an author reading by him.  If he's in your area, and you've read his books (which you should either go buy or order from the library) you should most definitely go and see him.  He's hilarious, and awesome.  He also apologized to me for killing me on page one of Leviathan,  (Alek's mother is named Sophie,) which was cool.  But he's a great public speaker, and I definitely encourage you to go see him if he's in your area.

I spent much of today either in the car, or at my grandmother's house.  We're getting ready for the memorial service tomorrow, and though I didn't actually do anything, I played with my baby cousins (ages 6, 4 and 8 months) and acted as baby sitter for my aunt-- who actually had productive stuff to do.

{Via}

And now, I'm sitting here on my couch, staring out my darkened window, waiting for my mother to tell me it's time to go.  Go where?  To pick up my sister for her fall break.  Which, sadly, will start off with my grandfather's memorial service.  In fact, her flight is supposed to come in in exactly one hour.

The trees here are changing, for real now.  Their beautiful red and orange leaves haven't yet begun to wither and die, and fall from the trees, and I'm grateful.  I'm grateful that the frost hasn't yet begun to collect in the mornings, and that I don't have to wear my North Face to school.  I'm grateful that Halloween decorations have begun to grace the doors of homes, and that talk of Halloween costumes fills my lunch table every day.  I'm grateful we still have beautifully sunny days inserted between the gray and the rain.  I'm grateful for the chance to meet several of my favorite authors, as their fall tours begin.

{Via}

So I'm marveling in the simple beauty of early autumn.  I'm rejoicing in the fact that I can wear boots and jeans, and long sleeved shirts, without needing my warm jacket.  I'm smiling at the fact fact that authors are visiting my city.  And I have to notice, I have to be grateful, I have to take these things in, because I'm sad.  I'm sad my grandfather died, and his memorial service is tomorrow.  So I'm rejoicing in the beauty of life, and taking it all in.  Because life is short, and the teenage years are even shorter, and now the sky has darkened to remind me that the days are getting shorter.  So take life one step at a time, and as you go, take notice in the little things.  

The Dandy Lioness