Another Daily Challenge...I Know, I Know

I wanted to look for some book/reading-related daily Instagram challenges. I didn't really find any but I did find some tumblr ones. So I thought that sounded like fun. I might post pictures on my Instagram as well. I don't we'll see.
Here's the prompts, I'll probably start tomorrow (well, later today, as it's 2:14 am).

By the way my Instagram is @jesuisfarouche if you wanna follow along there. Or you can click the Instagram button at the top of my page.

-Alyssa

Fanmix Challenge

I've decided to do a 15-day fanmix challenge. Mostly because I'm a crazy person. I don't know why I always do daily challenges when I know I'm horrible at them.
But anyway, here it is:

1. For your OTP
2. For a female character
3. Songs you've recently fallen in love with
4. Expressing a certain emotion
5. For a TV show
6. For a certain type of relationship
7. For a male character
8. Songs you were obsessed with growing up
9. For a movie
10. For something supernatural or mythological
11. For a fictional friendship
12. Songs that cheer you up
13. For a book
14. Dedicated to a friend
15. Whatever you want

I already started so I'm getting ready to post the first day's challenge. In the way of blogs, you'll probably have seen that post before this one.

A Snippet From a Story With No Title

Here's a very short little bit from an Enjolras/Grantaire fic I'm working on.

“Is that what you most desire? Ah! I don’t believe it so but alas! I shall go anyway. Until next time,” he said, bending in a bow with a surprisingly graceful flourish, the whole time holding his bottle and spilling not a drop. Then, turning away from Enjolras and to the room at large, “Oh! Pity me fellow mortals! Our fearless leader has kicked me to the street, in the cold—” “Get out of here, Grantaire.” Enjolras gritted his teeth but a few of the others were smiling. Grantaire walked out of the back room of the Musain (though “strutted” would be a more accurate term—the alcohol in his system showing no trace in his balance), planting a sloppy kiss on Louison’s cheek before he disappeared. Louison, who was used to his behavior, went on about her business, smiling good-naturedly. Grantaire, for his part, could hear Enjolras immediately delve back into whatever he had been saying, as if the whole incident had not happened. Though he would never admit it, it hurt a little that Enjolras could just skip over his existence so easily. But then, he supposed that was how gods were. For he felt certain that Enjolras must be some ancient god who deigned to walk among mere mortals. A god of truth and light and all that was righteous and good. Of course this only made Grantaire want to challenge him. Logically, it made no sense, he knew, but he was not a logical man and he simply could not help himself. He didn’t know why. He simply wanted to ruin that perfection. To be fair to Grantaire, as to Enjolras earlier, he did not feel romantically for Enjolras, not in any way that he understood. He wanted to kiss bruises into that marble neck, drag his nails across achingly perfect collarbones and hipbones. he wanted to tug on golden hair and whisper prayers against those damnably pink lips. Each man worships differently. But as it is that gods do not acknowledge those who worship them so it was with Grantaire and his Apollo. Perhaps, he thought wryly, that was why he argued with him so; angry words were better than none at all to the man whose thoughts are much too loud in the silence. And it was much too quiet tonight in the streets of Paris.

Books and More Books

Sorry I haven't posted lately I've been doing a lot of reading so I haven't been able to do much else. I'm still reading Les Misérables and I also got a book from the library, a sequel to Les Mis, called Cosette by Laura Kalpakian. That is very long so that'll take me a little while. I also have three other books from the library (Eleanor & Park, The Love Song of Jonny Valentine and Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore) and I've started reading Game of Thrones.
So I just wanted to apologize for not being here and say that the absence will probably continue for a while. But, if you just can't get enough of me (yeah I know), I'm still posting book reviews on my tumblr.
But I'll try to at least post some little things here every once in a while. I'm working on some fanmixes, as well, so maybe I'll post those.

yours,
Alyssa

Spinning

I was just standing in my kitchen spinning on the spot and reading. I was making tea and reading while I waited for it to brew. I couldn't get comfortable standing up because my weight was constantly on one leg or the other. I'm not good at standing up straight. So I started shifting which changed to a spin that slow like dancing. Then I was turning on the tiled floor in my socked feet. And everything past my book blurred and it was a very singular sort of thing. I felt alone and sort of liberated which sounds weird, I know. But I was reading about these characters I cared about while I spun around and my own world seemed much less substantial than the one about which I was reading. And I realized maybe I should start reading like this more often because it does seem to add something to the experience.
And then the ding went off to tell me that my tea was done and the feeling passed.

Tuesday Video Challenge No. 14 - It Happens Slowly

If you haven't read The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, well why not? Go read it and then come back because this is spoilery and it's such a beautiful book.
And sorry this isn't much of an actual video but it's worth it.

I Wanted To Post

Hi there. I wanted to post something so here I am. I'm thinking this blog will mostly focus on words. The things I write or the things that I read and admire or detest.
I've been thinking a lot about fanfiction. I'd like to write an Office fanfiction story but I'm not sure what to write about. I think that's my big problem with writing. I want to do it and so I try to come up with an idea rather than wait for inspiration to strike. And that is just such a frustrating thing for me. Wanting to write and not being able to. So if you happen to be holding to any little plot bunnies that you're not gonna use...perhaps you could donate them to me?
But as far as the writing of others goes. I've just finished the second book of The Apprentice of Victor Frankenstein by Kenneth Oppel. The second book is called Such Wicked Intent and it's probably one of my favorite books of the year. It was just so great. I really like the books anyway because of their gothic Victorian setting and prequel-to-a-classic plot. But I really love the characters as well and Kenneth Oppel is a master of last pages. With the last 30 or so pages of Such Wicked Intent my heart was racing and I was pounding with adrenaline. And when I finally finished I felt worn out. It reminds me of a quote that, I'm sorry, I do not know by heart but the main gist is that one should feel tired after finishing a book because you live several lives over the course of it. And I always liked that. When I get that feeling when finishing a book, I really remember what keeps me reading. Searching for that satisfied and totally happy worn out but excited feeling. I was just so happy to fins that again. It's also prompted me to start looking for Kenneth Oppel's other books from the library. So that's exciting.
Anyway there's some other books I've started and I'll try to talk about those in a later post.
You can also find my book reviews at readingbymoonlight.tumblr.com but I warn  you I'm not great at reviewing. I'm practicing.
Yours,
Alyssa

Boys, Books and Best Days Ever

I haven't posted in a while and, while there isn't much going on, I thought it time for a little update.
What I'm thinking about most often right now is a guy. I'm not usually a lovesick girl but there's this guy that I really like. I don't, however, feel comfortable telling you his name so we'll call him Peter Pan. Peter is a friend of a friend of mine that's staying the summer with us. And I just realized that if he were to read this, he'd know I was talking about him, codename or not. But oh well. It makes me feel better. Anyway, the three of us have all hung out together several times, maybe six or seven. And the two of us have been texting each other a lot the past few days. The other night we were talking for like 5 hours. He's just funny and cute and kind of immature and he likes to read and have philosophical discussions. I think he likes me but I don't really know what to do about it. But hey...I'm inept when it comes to boys. What else is new?
I started reading Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter yesterday and I'm about 130 pages in or so (I don't have it here beside me at the moment to check) and it is so good. I really like books that talk about supernatural things that could have happened and fit in with the facts that we already know for sure. And make up reasons for things that we're not sure of. Vampire Hunter is like that and I love it so far. I recommend it.
My friend Sarah is staying the summer with us and it's been so much fun. She's really brought me out of my shell a bit, making me want to meet new people and go out and do things I wouldn't normally want to. So I'm really having a great summer so far. And I hope everyone else is too.
That's really all I wanted to talk about so I'm going to go now and get a bit of reading done.
Yours,
Alyssa

My Review of Tweet Heart by Elizabeth Rudnick

Title: Tweet Heart {a novel in e-mails, blogs and tweets}
Author: Elizabeth Rudnick
Published: June 29, 2010
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Pages: 264 (Paperback)
Website: http://elizabethrudnick.com

This YA romance novel, told mostly in tweets with a few e-mails and blog posts thrown in, is about Claire (@claireRbear) and her three friends Lottie (@Lots0Love), Bennett (@KingofSlack) and Will (@WiseOneWP). Claire is freaking out a bit because she has just been made the school's new advice columnist. The only problem is that she has no clue about life or love, in fact, that would be her best friend, Lottie. Boy-crazy and sporty lacrosse captain, Lottie. But Claire decides to give the column a try. And when her longtime crush, JD Whitcomb, starts following her on Twitter, everything seems great. Until everything gets all tangled up like these tend to do. Why won't JD talk to her at school? Why's he acting like he doesn't know who he is or like he forgets the things they tweeted about? Is JD as perfect as she thought he was?
The biggest con to this story is its predictability. So, it doesn't have a mind-blowing plot. We all need a light, fluffy, cute book to read now and then. And this was a great one. I loved the characters. I loved reading Bennett's blog and Claire's advice answers (they were very funny). Lottie was a great foil to Claire and Bennett and Will reflected their relationship. I may just be a sucker for this type of hopeless romance book (as I could identify a little too well with Claire's character) but I enjoyed reading this immensely. It was very short (264 pages) and, with the majority being written in tweets, goes very quickly. I got it around noon on the 28th and finished it that night. And that wasn't me sitting down to read it, that was just reading whenever I got a chance while we ran errands and looked for bedding for my parents' new bed.
If you're looking for a realistic fiction, YA romance novel that'll have you going "aww", this is one of the best I've read in a long time. The fact that I liked this novel so much is even more surprising because I usually hate realistic fiction. So...take that how you will.

Yours in language and literature,
MoonChild

I Told A Little Boy Where To Buy a Magic Wand

But that's not where today's tale starts.

I went into my mum's room this morning around noon, I guess as she was asking me about which iPhone case she should get if she were to get an iPhone. I told her I had no clue and promptly fell asleep. I haven't been sleeping very well lately, due to nightmares. Very stupid nightmares might I add, but that's a story for another post, isn't it?

My parents woke me up around 6:00, I think, to go out to eat. We went to a buffet called Fire Mountain. I don't know how widespread they are or if you've heard of them. They're all right as far as buffets go, I guess. They have taco meat and chips which is what I usually eat (just meat and chips - no cheese, lettuce or tomato - loosely called a taco salad). But I haven't been very hungry lately as I just started taking birth control and it makes me rather nauseous. So I tried to pick at some food and ate some rolls with honey butter (so good). But moving on...

Whenever we go out to eat my dad has a habit of stuffing himself, then he likes to go shopping somewhere so we can walk around which apparently makes him feel better (it only makes me feel worse). So we went to Pier 1 Imports and then walked down the little plaza to Barnes & Noble. I got some cool stuff at Pier 1 such as...

This cute little owl lipgloss (it's citrus flavored)

And this owl hand cream (lavendar scented)

This cute necklace that has an "a" in it; it's kind of hard to see

And this blanket that I couldn't take a good picture of so I had to steal one

At which point we proceeded to head over to Barnes & Noble. Because the Harry Potter books have finally been released as ebooks (you can only get them here on the Pottermore store) they had a little Harry Potter table set up and they had some wands from the Noble Collection. So I was looking at them and this little boy walked up to me. He was probably about 8 or so. He says, "What's that?" So I said, "They're Harry Potter wands." And he gets real excited and says, "Are they real?" And I put on this exaggerated sad face and said, "No. You have to go all the way to Ollivander's to get a real one." His eyes, like, lit up! And he says, "So, you mean, they're real?!" And I just said, "Yeah! Of course!" He kind of ran off then telling someone else that he had to buy a magic wand. He was so cute. I swear, that was probably the highlight of my night.
I bought a few books and a notebook (I swear, I have a problem, nearly every time we go somewhere I get a new notebook) and then we headed home. Here's the stuff I got in case you're curious (aside from a book that is over in my mom's room and I don't feel like getting to take a picture of it; it's Nothing by Janne Teller):

Ender's Game, which I've wanted to read for a while now

And this journal. Funny thing, though about this journal:

I bought the same one in August to do my 365 Pictures project.
The one on the left is the one with the pictures and the one on the right is the new one.

It's kind of hard to believe they're even the same journal...

So, there you go, that's the story of my night. I would love it if someone said hello. I'm starting to feel like I'm talking to no one. I'm not begging, though...ahaha.
Love you guys,
MoonChild

(Late) Tuesday Video Challenge No. 5: The Hanging Tree by Sam Cushion & Rachel Macwhirter

And May The Odds Be Ever In Your Favor

I've seen The Hunger Games twice, now, and I thought I'd tell you all about it. If you haven't read the book (or want to be completely unspoiled for the movie) you probably don't want to read ahead.
So, hey, you still here? Alright let's go...
To start off, I loved it! And I was so worried. Ever since I heard of the existence of this movie I had very low expectations. The book was so good but so bloody and I didn't know how they would portray that and keep it PG-13. And I felt that a lot of the story was told in Katniss's head (for lack of a better term), not spoken. I was concerned about how that would translate to a movie. But they truly did do a very good job. There was really only two noticeable things that they (understandably) cut. And that was Madge's character and the backstory with the Avox girl. The Avox girl didn't add much to the story, really. I think it was just to show what could happen to Katniss if she were to rebel. As for Madge, I very much liked her character in the book but she was really only there to bring the pin into the story. In the movie, Katniss sees the pin while trading in the Hob and buys it for Prim, telling her it'll keep her safe. When Prim and her mom come to say goodbye to Katniss, Prim gives her the pin back and says, "To keep you safe." It was quite touching and, in a way, I think I almost liked the way they did it in the movie better.
As for casting (which is an aspect that always worries me before seeing a movie I'm excited for), I think they did a great job with that, as well. When I first saw Jennifer Lawrence, when they first announced her being cast, I wasn't really too happy with it. I didn't know her from anything else (most people that recognize her, it'll be from Winter's Bone). I thought she was too pretty and too...soft looking. But seeing her hair dyed and dressed as Katniss, dirty and roughed up. She looked the part. But her acting was awesome. It was plainly clear that she understood Katniss as a character. She is a great actress and I think (and hope) that she'll stick around for quite a while.
Liam Hemsworth made a good Gale. I'm not a big fan of Liam himself, and we only see Gale for a maximum of 5 minutes combined, but he does pretty well from what I can see.
As for Josh Hutcherson as Peeta. I think this was one of the best casting choices they made. Josh is Peeta. I'll admit, I was (shallowly) worried that Josh would look weird with blond hair but somehow it works. But the way they describe Peeta in the books: charismatic, persuasive, charming; he is all of those things. I'm so glad he got the part because he really is a great actor and I'm excited for him to reach a wider audience.
On to random things I liked: I liked their outfits for the chariot ride in the Capitol. The ones where they're wearing capes of fire. It looked prety good for being something so unnatural. I liked the part where Peeta admits his crush on Katniss during Caesar's talk show. That was always one of my favorite parts in the book and I was quite happy with it in the movie. I liked Katniss and Peeta in the cave. They were so effing cute. I loved every scene with Rue in it. I wish she could've been more prevalent. I love the girl they cast. She's adorable, she can act surprisingly well (or rather, I think she just felt connected to Rue in a way that younger kids can), and she makes you feel for her. Seeing her killed and Katniss decorating her with wildflowers. It was one of the most heartwrenching scenes I've ever seen. I don't think I've ever wanted to cry at movie more than I did then. And the music, music in movies has always made me so emotional, it just made the whole so much more difficult to watch without breaking down. And then we see those in District 11 give the three-fingered salute. A man we assume to be Rue's father (or, at least, I assumed this, I haven't asked anyone else) breaks away from the crowd and attacks the Peacekeepers and a riot breaks out. I loved seeing this, witnessing the first sparks of rebellion. Seeing the people finally get sick of the unfairness and injustice. It was great, in a sad way, of course.
There's one other thing that sticks out in my mind that I quite liked. In the books, Katniss explains to us what Tracker Jackers are, works out what the booby trap around the pyramid of food is, she does these in her head rather than spoken aloud. So to explain those things, they would show an ongoing commentary of the games done by Caesar Flickerman and Claudius Templesmith. They explain Tracker Jackers as if to an audience and wonder aloud whether Katniss will figure out that the Careers dug up and re-buried the mines. So I thought that was something of an innovative way to explain things.
There were really only a few things I had complaints with and both were, for the most part, fairly minor. The first was a few things that weren't explained and, to someone who didn't read the books, wouldn't be fully comprehended. The one that sticks out in my head is, what I call, the three-fingered salute. The thing that everyone does when Katniss goes up on stage at the Reaping after volunteering for Prim. When it happens in the movie, you get the sense that it's an act of solidarity. You get the gist but you don't really know where it's from or why...if you haven't read the book, of course.
The other was the cinematography. It was super, duper shaky. The first time I saw it, I legitimately thought I was going to be sick. As the movie went on I got used to it. My mum didn't, though, so I guess it all depends on the person. The second time I saw it, I wasn't really bothered at all.
So there you go, my very long-winded review of The Hunger Games movie. I have to say, I think it may have been the best book to movie adaptation I've ever seen. Better, even, than Harry Potter, simply because HP just had so much more plot and subplot to squeeze into the same amount of time.
I loved it, though. I really did.
And I hope everyone else enjoys it, as well.

Alyssa,
Female Tribute of District 4

In "The Last Two" by Kaden Hurley

On the copyright page it says, "Please note that Destiny Image's publishing style capitalizes certain pronouns in Scripture that refer to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and may differ from some publishers' styles. Take note that the name satan and related names are not capitalized. We choose not to acknowledge him, even to the point of violating grammatical rules."
Umm...alright. That's kind of, sort of weird.

So I Was Watching Deathly Hallows Part 2

You know the part after Harry shows up in the Great Hall and McGonagall "fights" Snape (I put it in quotes because all he really does is throw a few shield spells and fly out the window)? And then Voldemort talks in everyone's head and demands that they give him Harry Potter. And Pansy says, "What are you waiting for? Someone grab him!" And then Filch comes in shouting about students out of bed and McGonagall says his arrival is opportune. She says, "Please escort Miss Parkinson and the other Slytherins out of the Great Hall...the dungeons'll do."

So anyway, I was thinking about this and it seems horribly unfair. I mean, throughout the books, J.K. Rowling talks about how not all Slytherins are evil or bad. But rather cunning and, if anything, usually out for themselves. But that doesn't make them evil. And I felt like, when McGonagall sent all the Slytherins to the dungeons because of one, well it was horribly unfair. Granted, on a realistic level, it probably made their battle easier as, I'm sure, a number of the Slytherins were, or would've done, sided with Voldemort. I just found it to be against the principles usually put forth in the series (books and movies).
But again, that's just what I think. And I wouldn't really worry about it if it seemed that there was a reason for doing so, such as the Slytherins needing to be in a certain place for something else to happen later on. The only thing I can think of is that Draco, Goyle and Zabini apparate from the dungeons to the Room of Requirement to intercept the trio. Also, I just realized this, I thought you couldn't apparate in Hogwarts. I suppose Snape or the Carrows could have removed this for some reason but that doesn't make much sense. Plus, the teachers had been placing protective enchantments for a while by this point and I think that would have been one of them (if not already in place).
Back to the original point, however, this moment here is the only time we see the Slytherins in relation to the dungeons. Then, this scene isn't even in the movie, really. It's in the deleted scenes.
So was there a reason for sending all the Slytherins to the dungeons? If you have any ideas, let me know. Or if you think I'm reading way too much into this, keep that to yourself. Just kidding, tell me that too.
Love you and, as always, thanks for reading!
-Alyssa

My Rant on E-Readers

E-readers are quite a controversial thing aren't they? I've always been for them. What started my thinking about the pros and cons, though, was a quote from Ray Bradbury:

Those aren’t books. You can’t hold a computer in your hand like you can a book. A computer does not smell. There are two perfumes to a book. If a book is new, it smells great. If a book is old, it smells even better. It smells like ancient Egypt. A book has got to smell. You have to hold it in your hands and pray to it. You put it in your pocket and you walk with it. And it stays forever. But the computer doesn’t do that for you. I’m sorry.

I found this so infuriating that I was speechless and spluttering for a time afterward. Sure, everyone's entitled to their own opinion but that doesn't mean that everyone's opinions make sense or are right (and I don't mean this in the sense of correct but right in the sense of good or moral or whatever). Anyway, am I the only one who finds this stupid (okay, no I know I'm not). This doesn't make any sense. Sure, you may love books (as do I) and I understand everything you're saying, really. But this doesn't say anything about reading. I hate to tell you Mr. Bradbury but there's a difference. With every choice there is sacrifice. In Economics it's called Opportunity Cost. You have to give up something in order to get something. Me personally, I value the story and entertainment that I get from a book. That is why I read. To escape, to laugh, to cry, to live as someone else. To play dress up for a while. So yes, sometimes I don't get to smell ancient Egypt on my Kindle but I still get the best part - the story, and it's completely the same one that I get on the paper pages.
It simply doesn't make sense for someone that isn't a millionaire writer to buy all their books at $17 or $25 for a hardback. Not to mention that I'm usually reading a ton of books at once. Do you know how hard it is to carry four books at once? Especially when they're nearly all 400-500 pages long? I'll tell you, it's very difficult. Guess how much a Kindle weighs? About a pound. Guess how many books I can carry on it? THOUSANDS!
And you want to know what the best part is? I'll never stop buying books. I love holding and smelling books just as much as you do. I'm just not a brat about it, stomping my feet and demanding all the big bad machines go away! I will always buy books and I will always have an eReader, as well. And I don't think eReaders will ever replace books and bookstores and libraries. I know that seems like a bold thing to say, considering. But that's what I think.
Granted, that's only what I think. Again, opinions are up for debate. But they only make sense when backed with facts or reasons. I don't mean to call anyone else's opinions wrong or stupid. I suppose we are all entitled to them. If I have offended anyone, I promise I didn't mean to.
I'd love to talk to anyone about this that wants to talk. To agree or disagree. I'd love to politely and civilly debate the topic.
But that's the end of my rant. That's how I feel and I'm a bit knackered now.

P.S. I found this line that I quite like on this blog (which is also where I went to find the Bradbury quote as I couldn't find the original article): I'd rather read books, than whine like a child with a skinned knee, about formats, and what constitutes a "real" book.

P.P.S. Thinking about trying out a new signature-type thingy. Trying to think of one. Any ideas anyone?

P.P.P.S (And I promise this is it) I literally just typed this and didn't proofread at all. Sorry for any mistakes.

Do judge a book by its cover?

I know we're always told that we shouldn't judge a book by its cover (literally and metaphorically) but, as for the literal sense, why do books have covers?
A cover is meant to display what the book is about in some way. It's meant to catch your attention and shout, "Hey you! Buy me! Read me!"
So if we're meant to ignore a cover why have one?
Do you think it's possible to completely ignore a book cover? Or not judge anything? Or do you think it's human nature to make pre-judgements?
Just wondering what you thought. Let me know.

Wish me luck

I'm going to try to read all of Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close before the movie comes out. Well before I see the movie which won't be on opening day but will, most likely, be somewhere around there.
So here I go...

I'm friends with Ginny Weasley

And I convinced her to start a Tumblr! If you want to talk to her, you can find her tumblr here.

Oh and I'll be talking about NaNoWriMo tomorrow. I'm pretty excited about it.

love you,
Alyssa

I'm sorry!

I know I've been absent for the past couple days. And I haven't been doing my letters to Hogwarts.
I just wanted to let you know that I'll be starting NaNoWriMo and I may not be very present here for the month of November. If you've ever done NaNo then I hope you'll understand.
I just didn't want anyone to think I had died or anything. I'll still try to be here as often as I can but it won't be my first priority.

Always,
Alyssa

Choosing a plot is going to be harder than I thought

So I have about ten pages of plots that I printed out for NaNoWriMo that starts in, oh a week! And I haven't decided. They all sound interesting and sometimes I think I'll just try one and if I get stuck I'll scrap and try a different one. But I think if I want to succeed at this, I need to commit to one idea. I don't know, I guess I'm just nervous. I really want to do well.
But hey, if I don't do it in November I can always do it another month right? I don't have to wait until November again.
Okay, I can do this. One week.
And then 30 days of literary abandon...