Review: Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell

Cloud Atlas // David Mitchell
2004 // Hodder
Paperback
5/5 stars!

A reluctant voyager crossing the Pacific in 1850; a disinherited composer blagging a precarious livelihood in between-the-wars Belgium; a high-minded journalist in Governor Reagan’s California; a vanity publisher fleeing his gangland creditors; a genetically modified “dinery server” on death-row; and Zachry, a young Pacific Islander witnessing the nightfall of science and civilisation—the narrators of Cloud Atlas hear each other’s echoes down the corridor of history, and their destinies are changed in ways great and small.

In English Class, we got the assingment to read a book. You were allowed to choose what book you wanted to read yourself, as long as it was literature.
It was a difficult choice for me, because there are so many books I want to read, but in the end I chose Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell, because I knew deep inside that I'd not simply pick it up. You all should know that this is a very thick book, with 529 pages.
The thing that attracted me most about Cloud Atlas was that there were 6 stories, and all of them were intertwined and told in the book. First time you meet them, and the second time, further in the book, you are reunited with the stories, that were simply ended earlier, sometimes mid-sentence.
Also, I heard that it was made into a movie. The movie trailer looked amazing, and I always want to read the book prior to watching the movie, so that's exactly what I did. And I loved it!
In the beginning, I was scared by it, to be honest. The first part was written 1850s style, and to me that was incredibly hard. I am not a native, and English is not my mother tongue, so I have some minor problems with some parts of the English language, one of them being that it takes me long to understand some terms that I am not familiar with.
So the first thirty-something pages scared me off, yet I kept on reading, fascinating by the story. Then quickly I was thrown into the next part, letters this time, and 100 years later, so much easier for me to understand. and it just went on and on and I fell in love with the novel more and more!
Historic, Contemporary and Futuristic stories, all included in one thick and magnificently written novel. All genres mixed and matched. Never thought I'd like a mystery novel, combined with political drama, as much as I did. David Mitchell; you are one of the finest writers around!

A half-read book is a half-finished love affair

Lots of books,
Mar

Movie: The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Dear friends,

So today the Perks of Being a Wallflower finally premiered in the Netherlands, and of course I went to see in in the cinema. And oh my gosh, my feels! Seriously, if you were sitting next to me and didn't know me (and even if you did know me, but not that well) You would be looking at me like I was completely retarded or something. My emotions took me over! I was laughing, crying, feeling sad, feeling great, feeling all possible feelings, laughing some more, bawling, trying to keep my tears inside, singing along to the PERFECT movie music, and all of that at the same time. It felt INFINITE.
There are a couple of things that were extraordinarily good and made the movie this special to me:

Emma Watson as Sam

1. The screenplay was written by the author of the book (ow yeah) and the movie was directed by him as well, and that was perfectly visible throughout the movie, in a positive way.
2. The casting was done so well. Emma Watson did a splendid job playing Sam, because Same was just so much like I expect Emma Watson to be like in real life. Also, Logan Lerman was the perfect Charlie. Before seeing the movie I wasn't convinced of that, but the movie showed me that he was the best Charlie possible. He was just so much like Charlie, with the whole appearance, voice, way the acted and all of it. He made me like Charlie even more. And then there was Ezra Miller as Patrick. And oh my god, I would watch this movie only to see him play Patrick, because he is is freakin' hilarious! Seriously, every time I saw his face it put a smile upon my face. And he's smokin' as well! Simply a-ma-zing cast!
3. The music. All of the songs I heard I liked a lot. They were all from the correct time, and all sounded so perfect and fit the movie very precise. Some of the songs were even my personal favorites, like "Asleep" by the Smiths and "Come on Eileen" by Dexy's Midnight Runners. I just couldn't stop myself and had to murmur along xD Luckily the cinema was almost empty, and the only person sitting nearby was a friend who liked the movie as much as I did.



Ezra Miller As Patrick

4. The Screenplay left out exactely the pieces of the book I didn't like. There were some things in the book that I believe would have been better if they were left out, and they were left out in the screenplay. These few tiny things didn't change the plot at all, luckily, as that would have been an enormous disaster.

So yeah, those were the 4 things that made me feel infinite while watching.

Love Always,
Mar

Tomorrow: The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Hey guys!

After the endlessly seeming waiting, gif-searching, fangirling, reading and fangirling some more it's finally happening! Tomorrow the Perks of Being a Wallflower finally releases in the Netherlands. *thank Rowling*

Seriously, I feel like everyone has seen it already, and everyone's tumbling about it, and all those wonderful pictures and just ... ... all of it. I want to see it so badly it hurts! Even thinking about it makes me insta-happy because I know I will see it tomorrow :)

So what started off my crazy obsession with this movie? I only need two words to explain it. Emma Watson. I love that girl! She is so beautiful and an extraordinary actress. I just wanted to see more and more of her. While I was reading the book I imagined her playing Sam and the role is perfect for her! The second thing that lured me in was the book. I read it in one sitting, and it was just so cute and relateable for me. Sometimes, I feel just like Charlie, only the less innocent version. Thank you tumblr :P Okay, thirdly, the other people casted also made me so happy. Ezra Miller will be the best and hottest Patrick, and Logan Lerman will also do a great job playing Charlie, I believe.

...asdfghjkl... I am just so exited! Seriously, I am so happy that I'm going with a friend of mine who is as exited for the movie as I am, otherwise she would just awkwardly look at me all the time during the movie, when I make these crazy fangirl sounds like 'awwh' and comment on all the things they say.
I can't wait to feel infinite!

have you seen the Perks of Being a Wallflower? What did you think about it?

Love, 
Mar

Tour stop: You can't Shatter Me by Thalia Newland - Review

Today I bring you the wonderful novel by Thalia Newland; You can't Shatter Me! Make sure to hang on.

title: You can't Shatter Me

written by: Thalia Newland

genre: Young Adult, Contemporary

page count: 160

publication date: June 22nd, 2012

publisher: Catapult Press

Sixteen year old Carly wants to write her own life and cast herself as a superhero, but the story gets out of control when she stands up to a bully and he turns on her. His increasing harassment forces her to battle flying hooks, giant thistles, doubt dragons and a suffocating closet. Dylan, a karate-trained nerd who supports her stand, turns out to be a secret admirer, and while he struggles to control his inner caveman, Carly searches for her own way to stop the bully. An old hippie shows her an inner magic that’s supposed to make her invincible, but will Carly learn to use it before her knight in shining armour risks all in a battle with a fire-breathing dragon?

You can't shatter me was a truly revolutionary book for me, because it was all so true. I recognised myself in Carly. I could easily imagine myself in this story, or her being my twin sister. The book was not like any other book I have ever read. Yes, it was about bullying, but not about how miserable it made people feel, but about how to stop the bullies, and how to understand them. And that's the best thing about the book.

Carly is just a plain normal girl, until she starts to date Dylan, the cute nerdy boy, and gets bullied by Justin. Justin is the stereotype bully, only worse than most. Carly tries to stop the bully, not with hate, but with love and compassion. Because hate can't be cured with hate, only with love.

Carly was a very strong kick-butt character, very likeable and full of love for every single soul. I could easily relate to her, because I was bullied, too. It was a long time ago, but reading this book reminded me a lot of that time. I wasn't bullied very much, but it really had an enormous impact on my life. I was not as strong as Carly was, and started to hide the real me. Only just a year ago I started to take off those covers, and show the world the real me. I really admire Carly for feeling compassion for the bully, because I still am not capable of feeling that way,and it was years ago. I really feel like this book has helped me take a step to really put it behind me.

The plot of this book was interesting, and full of knowledge that will be useful for the rest of my life. The romance was very cute and so realistic. Most contemporary books have this 'normal girl starts dating school hottie' scenario, which really is not so interesting after reading a gazillion books with exactely the same pattern of events. I love to see something new, and this book definitely was new and unique. The writing style was easy to read, I just was floating through the book.

I feel like this book could really help people with their lives, and that they won't even percieve that they're actually learning something because of the cute story that covers it up. I think it would solve a lot of problems on high- and middleschools if everyone read this. A book definitely worth 5 stars!

Hugs,

Mar

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