Book Reviews #5: The Dark Tower 1: The Gunslinger, By Stephen King

"The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed"
-Stephen King, The Gunslinger

That has to be, one of the most intriguing opening lines I've ever come across in a book. Right from the get go, King has already pulled me in, and he never lets go.
The first act of this book, to be frank, is amazing. In some ways it almost feels like a short story, it feels self contained. Stephen King introduces you to this world in a way where you know that this it's fantastical, and could possibly be set in the future, or a even different dimension, but he does it vaguely enough to intrigue the reader to keep on reading, if only to learn more about the world of "The Dark Tower", and the story behind the gunslinger.
One of the many things that I loved about this opening is how the gunslinger is introduced, he comes into the story very stoic, not revealing any secrets of who he is or his personality to the reader. At the beginning, I felt distanced from the character. I was interested in learning more about him, and I wanted to peel back his layers, but at first, I felt that I couldn't relate to the man. But seeing how fleshed out his character felt at the end of the book, compared to how little we know of him at the beginning, is a testament to how brilliant the character development is in "The Gunslinger". You really get the sense that you're traveling with these people, feeling the emotions they're feeling; When The Gunslinger is reminiscing about his past, while you know that he didn't have the greatest childhood, you still understand why Roland would miss such days, and constantly dream about them and relive them. But alas, the world has moved on.
The next three acts of the book, to be honest, aren't as gripping and exciting as the first act, which is mainly due to the fact that most of it is The Gunslinger traveling with Jake, Tolkien style.
In a way, I don't necessarily think that the middle of the book is worse than the beginning, it's just less action packed. Even with the lack of action, Stephen King manages to hold my interest. This is mostly done through the amazing writing found in this novel. King describes everything: the surroundings, their emotions, the magical aspects of the story, beautifully, almost poetically. This writing style really helped me picture every thing without a problem, it helped me grasp the more fantastical elements clearly, with out fully telling me the ins and outs of every single the thing that happens.
Another aspect of the story that keeps the book interesting is the flashbacks about The Gunslinger, they give you a wonderful insight on his character, and what made him the man he is today. And the showdown between him and his teacher was one of the most memorable scenes in the book, seeing him so young but already so skillful was exciting, and the creativity King used in crafting the fight was also great.
But my favorite part of "The Gunslinger", hands down, is the finale, if I can even call it that. You see, "The Gunslinger" doesn't end with a loud epic confrontation, but instead, a thought provoking conversation about whether or not we as human beings hold any significance in this universe, and the fact that we can never fully grasp just how big the big picture really is. This ending was a pleasant change of pace.
The final page of the book, left me ready, no, hungry for more. And I can proudly say that I am happy to keep holding on the steady hand of King, and let him guide me all the way, to the Dark Tower.

Book Reviews #4: Divergent, By Veronica Roth

"We believe in ordinary acts of bravery, in the courage that drives one person to stand up for another.” 
-Veronica Roth, Divergent

Going into Divergent, I was slightly worried. At first glance it pretty much just looked like "The Hunger Games", which I wasn't the biggest fan of, or just another young adult dystopian novel, with a strong, independent, rebellious but bland and generic female lead. And after the first few chapters of this book, while yes, I was enjoying the read to some extent, it felt very familiar. I was nervous to keep on reading, wondering if my hunch was right, wondering if it was just going to be another generic over hyped dystopian novel; With the factions, and the shady government, I genuinely thought that I new where this book was going. That it would end with the independent female lead starting an uprising and the end of the book teasing a war that will happen because of the main protagonist, Beatrice. That she would be a boring, poorly developed character who I was given no incentive to actually care about. That the book would consist of boring, uninteresting, unoriginal side characters, who I don't care who lived or died. So in short, I was nervous about being in for another Hunger Games. Normally I gain satisfaction from being right, but sometimes, I can have the same amount of satisfaction, if not more, from being wrong. Sometimes it's nice to be taken by surprise, and like "I Am The Messenger", this book really did take me by surprise. 
First, let me just get the things that I didn't like about this book, they're not necessarily all big deals, but I feel that they did hinder my experience slightly. Firstly, the opening of was slow and tiresome at times, maybe Veronica Roth was trying to portray how Beatrice felt when she was living in abnegation, and how life was, but it was still not all that great to read. Oh and like I said earlier, if felt very familiar and I wish it had opened just a little bit more originally, but this is Roth's first book so I suppose I could give her a pass on that. Fortunately, the book does pick up rather quickly and actually does become surprisingly original so this isn't too much of a problem, but it is still an issue nonetheless. 
Another thing that really bugged me in the book (and I don't know whether this has anything to do with me being a boy or anything but) was Fours. At the beginning I really enjoyed his presence, I felt that he was a strong, and at some points bad ass, mentor kind of character in the book. You know, someone for Tris to look up to, someone who'll give her wise advice and help her in hard times, I pictured him almost like a big brother to her. But, then, their relationship starts and his character, changes. Veronica Roth humanizes him a lot and reveals a lot of his weaknesses, and while at some points I really enjoyed him (like the scene when they go into his fear landscape) I did feel that in the end he was a weak character. In my opinion, he was one of the few things in Divergent that felt generic, he felt like the typical male love interest in these kind of young adult fiction books. He was tall, and handsome, and muscly, and pretty much physically perfect in every way, but he had dark secrets, and was mysterious, and intrigued Bel- I mean Tris. Geez, I wonder where I've seen that before. I am, however, grateful that the actual scenes with romance played well. They were well executed, and while yes, they were abundant at the end, they weren't a chore to read. Which is more than I can say for other young adult fiction that attempt romance.
OK, after all that rambling, now onto what I enjoyed about Divergent. I love the characters, and the journeys that they all take through out the book. I actually thoroughly enjoyed most of the side characters, and felt that they had some solid development and arcs. The fact that they felt somewhat real, and not like, cardboard cut outs definitely played a hand in this. Tris' friends were like how actual friends are like, you don't always like them. Sometimes they annoy you, sometimes they comfort and re-assure you, and Roth nails all of these traits. In scenes where she wants to translates Tris' frustration with her friends, or when she wants to show how they help Tris, and genuinely make her feel better at certain points, she does it wonderfully, and clearly gets the points across to the reader. Making it feel natural while doing so. I some scenes, I understood perfectly why they were friends, and I feel like that's a hard thing for some writers to achieve.
Another thing, that I adore about this book, is the creativity in the almost dream sequences. Well, the simulations, which are used to test the initiates in the book. I loved the vivid imagery that Roth portrays, I love how they all had a different meaning that was revealed towards the end of the books. I especially admired how surreal some of them felt, especially some of the fear landscape sequences, which actually had moments where you felt Tris' fear, which she would eventually learn to overcome. And when she does overcome these fears, you actually feel happy for the character, like she really earned it, which leads me into the next thing I enjoyed about Divergent. Tris.
What I loved about Tris' character, is that she really does feel like a flawed human being. There are those moments where she makes bad decisions, or questionable ones, and while you recognize that what she did wasn't the right thing, and that she could have reacted to some situations better, or maybe she could have been less brash, you do to some extent understand where's she's coming from, and her frustration and anger at certain things. Her being flawed, making mistakes, and sometimes not being the most likable person, makes her feel more real, it lets me as a reader, connect to her more as a character. 
Oh and the ending, ooooh, the ending. I won't spoil anything but I will say, I was surprised by the ending twist, and the direction that Roth takes the series into. She does some bold things at the end, things that definitely took me by surprise and was a thrill to read.
To conclude, Divergent was definitely a page turner. It's one of those books that just grips you, and you find your self reading from chapter to chapter to chapter, almost seamlessly. With the, at times, intense action, or intimate romance, or fun banter between characters, I felt that there was always something to enjoy in Divergent. I would recommend it to anyone into young adult fiction, dystopian novels, or just a light, fun read. While yes, it wasn't perfect and had it's flaws, it was damn good for the first book Roth had published, and a great start to what I hope to be, a great series.

Book Reviews #3: I Am The Messenger, By Markus Zusak

Sometimes people are beautiful.
Not in looks.
Not in what they say.
Just in what they are.
-I am the messenger

One of the greatest feelings ever, is going into a book not knowing what to expect, at all, and coming out of it, feeling that it was one of the best books you've ever read. That's how I felt, about "I Am The Messenger". This book, in a word, is just, amazing. And at some points, this book is beautiful.
Upon finishing the first act of this book, I instantly fell in love with Markus Zusak's writing style. He describes things in ways that just twist my imagination into seeing what he wants me to see. In this book he has a way of describing things through metaphors, personification and just raw emotion. The way he uses the English language is just outstanding. He makes even the smallest things matter, and there wasn't a moment in this book where I was bored, or didn't feel the urge to read on, which is a triumph in my eyes.
Another thing "I Am The Messenger" accomplished, well for me at least, is that it made me think and really re-evaluate my life after I read the final words of the book. Not many books can do that, and it takes an amazing author to really make the reader think about life in general, rather than just finishing the book and dismissing it as just another book. This book really had a profound impact on me, that I wasn't expecting at all.
But this book wouldn't be able to accomplish any of this, if it weren't for the books wonderful characters. Honestly, these have to some of best characters I've seen in young adult fiction for a while, I just love almost all of the characters in this book. Heck, I even fell in love with the dog in this book, and that hasn't happened since Manchee. The only character I recall not liking quite as much as everyone else was the guy from 39 Bell Street theater. And the only reason I didn't like him quite as much as everyone else was because we didn't get to spend nearly enough time with this character, and as a result of that, he just wasn't fleshed out enough.
At the beginning, Ed (the protagonist) and his circle of friends either come off as unlikable, or just uninteresting. I believe this was done on purpose, so that the reader really sees these characters grow into real people, who some readers may find themselves relating to a lot, and by the end of this book, all of the main character's arcs came to satisfying conclusions, and was incredibly well done.
I also love how this book can be very self referential at points, but I won't get into that too much, you just have to read it and see for yourself.
The only con that I can really think of for this book, is that some may find the ending disappointing. I on the other hand thought it was intelligent and well put together. After I thought about it a bit, and understood what the ending meant, I was certainly impressed that Zusak was bold enough to end the book like that.

"I Am The Messenger" is a brilliant book, that I could recommend to pretty much anyone. Well, anyone who can appreciate good story telling and inventive writing. I actively adore this book and am imploring you to read it. For a book that Markus wrote so early in his career, he did a damn good job. I am currently reading his most widely acclaimed and popular book, "The Book Thief", and I can only hope it touches me on the same level "I Am The Messenger" did.

Book Reviews #2: The Fault In Our Stars, by John Green

SPOILER WARNING: Spoiler alert: Mayhem survives. No but in all seriousness this review will contain spoilers for The Fault In Our Stars (also spoilers for Looking For Alaska), so if you haven't read this and plan on doing so, I advice you read it before reading this review. I recommend it, it was a good book, worth a read. If you either: 1) Don't care about spoilers or 2) Have already read the book then feel free to read on.


For a long period of time, I was very confused about how I felt about the much beloved "The Fault In Our Stars", and to be honest, I was rather afraid of reviewing it. The main reason being that I just, wasn't exactly sure about how much I liked it, and whether or not I liked it as much as everyone else did. Every one around me was telling me that it was an amazing book, that it was one of their favorites, that it was one of the best books written in the last decade. So going into it, I was hyped as hell. In retrospect, I should have gone into it with less anticipation.

Their was a period of time while I was reading "The Fault In Our Stars" where I down right despised the book: I thought it came off as pretentious, I couldn't connect with the characters or relate to them, I didn't quite get why Hazel fell in love with Augustus so quickly, I thought Augustus was too perfect of a character (how he was ludicrously attractive while at the same time being so intelligent and philosophical, and I didn't like how Augustus was so heroic, the scene when he jumped on the grenade in the video game just felt heavy handed, which of course plays out later in the book, and I will explain how later in this review), I thought that their date and their sex scene was too perfect and too romantic, and didn't portray the sense of awkwardness that I think would occur when a 17 year old male with one leg has sexual intercourse with a 16 year old female with terrible lungs who couldn't even get around with out exhausting herself, and I felt that their dialogue between one another didn't feel natural.

The thing about John Green books that has always kinda bugged me is just how smart he is, and it really comes through in his writing. The man is a genius, I adore his writing style and how quotable he actually is. I love his ability to bend the English language in such a way that he can describe things in ways that didn't even occur to me before reading this book. And while all of this can make for a riveting, interesting and thought provoking read, I think it's some what unnatural when the genius of a grown man in his thirties is coming out of characters who are barely 17. I wouldn't mind this so much, if it wasn't a recurring theme in all of his books. His books always seem to feature these child prodigies, who think like adults and sometimes even more than that. And while it's great to explore how teenagers can question the world, heck, the universe, I also wish that Green would maybe try to explore different kind of characters, and different genres. I'm not saying that Green is a bad writer, I'm just saying that I wish he could make his books a little bit more diverse in the future. And doing so I think he could really reach his full potential, and show his range as an author.

Now onto the ending of this book, and by ending I'm talking about the final act, which in my mind is the events that take place after their little trip to Amsterdam...I love the final act of this book. I think it captured the sense of loss wonderfully, like "Looking For Alaska". But the difference between this ending and the ending in "Looking For Alaska", is that the ending of "The Fault In Our Stars" felt noticeably more optimistic. I loved how much of a contrast this ending was to the ending of "Looking For Alaska". In "Looking For Alaska", Pudge and The Colonel were searching for answers about Alaska's death, but found very few. And by the end of the book, we are left with many uncertainties about Alaska. On the other hand, in "The Fault In Our Stars" Hazel actually finds the letter that Augustus sent to Peter Van Houten. Giving her a sense of closure that Pudge and The Colonel didn't have the luxury of receiving.

I also love the scene towards the end where Hazel's mum reveals that she is working towards the same kind of profession that support group leader Patrick had. I loved the tension earlier on in the chapter with Hazel's mother is trying to get Hazel to eat, and how it led up to this wonderful, heartfelt scene with them just being a family together. It was great to see Hazel so joyful and optimistic, despite the fact that Augustus was no longer with them.

Now, onto Peter Van Houten (who is like the opposite of John Green in my eyes). I didn't really expect him to have such a great character arc in this book, and I also didn't expect that he would become such an important and well developed character in this book.When we were first properly introduced to him, I hated him, and I hated every second we spent with the character, but I think that was the effect than John Green intended the character to have. I love the fact that by the end of the book, we know why he was such a jerk and why he was so negative towards Gus and Hazel, and why his feelings towards "cancer kids" was so pessimistic. I genuinely felt bad for his character at the end of the book, which really took me by suprise.

Oh, and going back to when I had a problem with Augustus Waters being so perfect. By the end of the book I understood why John Green made the decision to make Gus so physically attractive, and intelligent. It was to juxtapose how thin and sickly he looked by the end of the book, which really gave us a sense of just how sick Augustus was, and made the whole thing even more tragic. And I loved Augustus' fear of not leaving a mark on the world, of not making a real impact. I think it was very interesting to explore how much Gus wanted to universe to notice him, while Hazel was perfectly fine with not making that much of an impact, in fact, earlier in the book she was afraid of how much of an impact she would actually make on the people around her, she felt as though she was the grenade that Augustus' was going to end up jumping on, when in fact, it was the other way round.

I was rather surprised that by the end of "The Fault In Our Stars" I came to the conclusion that I genuinely enjoyed the book and the ideas that it brought up. While yes, I felt that some sections of the book dragged out longer than necessary and may have gotten boring, and felt a little bit too much like a typical John Green book, overall I liked it. I thought it was extremely intelligent at points and really makes the reader think, I definitely recommend it to anyone who's into young adult romances, or just young adult fiction in general.
John Green is a wonderful author, I just wish he would try something a little different next time and maybe venture into books that aren't centered around absurdly intelligent, and awkward teenagers. Or nerds, if you will.

Book reviews #1: Monsters Of Men, By Patrick Ness

So uh, I thought it would be a good idea to start doing book reviews, on this blog that I apparently still have. 
OK, so the first book in the series of book reviews that is to come, is Monsters Of Men, by the wonderful Patrick Ness.
Okay so Monsters Of Men is the third book in the Chaos Walking series, the first two being: The Knife Of Never Letting Go and The Ask And The Answer. (Note: I will be sure to review those two once I come round to re-reading them). 
For those who haven't had the pleasure of reading the first two, I recommend you do so right away...Like, NOW. And if you haven't then I also recommend that you don't read the rest of this review, seeing as I can't even give a plot summary without completely spoiling the other books. And for those of you who are still here, lets get started with this review...

Monsters of Men does not mess around, it picks up literally right where the second book left off, with an army of spackle marching down the zig zag road, and the mayor saying: "War, at last". He says it with that wonderful glint in his eye, as if excited by the prospect of war. To the Mayor, war is what makes men MEN, but war makes monsters of men, right?
One of the many things I love about this book is the Mayor, the freaking Mayor. He is, in my eyes, one of the greatest villains in literature in the past decade. Can I even call him a villain? You see, the Mayor does something that so many villains fail to do, he walks that thin grey line between good and evil. Reading the book I often found myself questioning whether he was even that bad, and at some points, I found myself genuinely liking the Mayor, for his wit, determination and relationship with Todd. 
Speaking of Todd, he's come so damn far since his days running away from the army with Viola. Running towards Haven, which was a symbol of hope in the first book, it reminded them that hope is always there, they just need to believe it. Then the second book happened, oh the irony...
But back to the relationship between the Mayor and Todd, these two characters have developed so much together, and seeing the relationship between them through out the books is just, amazing. And this comes to what I feel is the core of this series: character development...(Kishimoto, take notes)
What Patrick Ness does in these books, is let characters grow. And it doesn't feel forced either, it feels natural, like you're growing with them. It lets the reader build a sort of, relationship with the characters, as weird as that sounds. It makes the reader genuinely care about the fate of these characters Patrick Ness has crafted with so much expertise. Making it so that at the end of each chapter, I just had to turn the page. I felt as if I was never bored, I was always on the edge of my seat flipping the pages to find out what happens next. 
Oh yeah, and Viola is amazing in this book, I loved her character as much as I loved Todd's, and it was great to see how she reacted to the whole situation, and how she reacted to the changes that Todd went through throughout this book.
And a third perspective is added into this book, which definitely caught me by surprise. It took me a while to fully get used to how this character narrates, but after I did I found it added so much to the book. And there are sections in this characters perspective that sounded almost poetic.
Oh and the ending! Honestly, it was beautiful, and I found my self some what sad once I flipped the the last page only to see a blank one staring back at me. There was a sense of lost, as if I wanted more if only to see more of the wonderful characters, but at the same time I was satisfied with the ending I got, a similar sensation to what one gets after watching the last Harry Potter film.
Patrick Ness is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors, and this series of books are simply a triumph of young adult fiction.

My thoughts on Naruto chapter 637

Well, the latest Naruto chapter! How do I feel about it you ask? Well, to be frank, it was OK. It wasn't bad but it wasn't great either. Heck, one could make the argument that the only reason it appears to be OK is because put next to the mess that the past few weeks of chapters have been, it looks better in comparison. It's like watching Iron Man 2 right after Iron Man 1, it won't appear to be as good of a movie as it would if you watched it right after Batman and Robin. Next to Batman and Robin it's a freaking masterpiece, but back to Naruto.
I feel that Naruto has been terribly underwhelming of late. Yes, it is kind of cool that Obito is the new jinchuurici for the ten tails, but still, most of us saw that coming didn't we?
Okay, to this chapters credit, the panel in which minato stabs Obito was pretty damn bad ass, but not enough to make me come out of this chapter thinking: "Wow, I didn't just waste 18 pages of my life".
Well, at least we didn't get anymore freaking bijuu bombs, Christ...
And for crying out loud, enough with the flashbacks! First, we get an arbitrary Rin flashback, then Kishimoto does it, he actually does it. Minato has a flashback, of Kushina's flashback, seriously Kishimoto focus on your story...