Tag Archives: Easy Reading

The Threefold World by Ellen Kushner

Book Review, , , ,

Overview

Under My HatTitle: The Threefold World
Author: Ellen Kushner
Series: The World of Riverside #0.1
In: Under My Hat (Jack Dann & Jonathan Strahan)
Rating Out of 5: 3.5 (Liked this)
My Bookshelves: Easy reading, Witches
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Hot Key Books
Year: 2012
5th sentence, 74th page: Could his friends recite from memory the Latin poems of Virgil?

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Synopsis

Elias Lönnrot is a young scholar with an unquenchable thirst for knowledge. He loves reading the Latin poetry of Virgil or the Greek classics like The Iliad and The Odyssey. However, he doesn’t give much thought to his own Finnish culture. In fact, he rather scorns it. His school friends try to sway his opinion by telling him about stories of their ancestors who sang spells that could change the world. Elias thinks this is nonsense until he meets an old peddler on the road one day who changes his mind in a dramatic way.

Thoughts

Pride cometh before the fall.

Or something like that. This great short story focuses on the ways in which our pride and ignorance can lead to some dire consequences. Yet, there is a nice, happy ending to this story. Although the main character’s pride almost leads to his death, it is his ability to let go of his pride and embrace his peoples’ history that ultimately saves him and creates a healthy life.

Although this is a story about a witch, it is also a tale about embracing your culture and history. I found it especially relevant in today’s society of globalisation. It is so easy to jump on the bandwagon of “progress” than it is to hold onto your cultural morals and norms.

 <- The Education of a Witch Review The Witch in the Wood Review ->
Image source: Frances Hardinge

The Gypsy Crown by Kate Forsyth

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
The Gypsy Crown

Title: The Gypsy Crown
Author: Kate Forsyth
Series: The Chain of Charms #1
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Australian authors, Easy reading, History
Pace: Fast
Format: Novel
Publisher: Macmillan
Year: 2007
5th sentence, 74th page: Alida, swift as she was, could not run all day.

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Synopsis

Emilia Finch and her cousin Luka are gypsies. For them, that means they live a strongly traditional life, rich with story, music, dance, and magic, governed by the laws of the clan and the ways of the road. To the repressive Puritanical government of 17th century England, however, the gypsies are thieving, fortune-telling vagrants who are most likely allies of the devil.

While the Finches have managed to steer clear of trouble, it finds them when they decide to raise dowry money for one of their daughters, by performing in Kingston square one ill-fated market day. A series of terrible events lands the family in jail, charged with murder. Only Emilia and Luka manage to escape, promising to bring back help and free them.

The only problem is — how? Emilia believes in the legend of the charms: it is said that the luck of the Rom has turned sour ever since a long-ago gypsy matriarch broke her chain of charms, giving one charm to each of her five children. Since then, the gypsies have been persecuted and the families have dispersed. If they can gather the charms from the families, Emilia thinks, the strong magic of the Rom will somehow bring her family freedom. Luka, on the other hand, is more practical he wants to enlist the help of the other clans to help the Finches escape.

Emilia and Luka must race through the countryside, navigating a hornets’ nest of Rom-hating Puritans, Royalist spies, and traitors, if they are to complete their quest before the magistrate delivers a death sentence.

Thoughts

There’s something fun and special about a well-written story that is based in history. I’ve never been one to actually study history (mainly because I found it boring in high school), so reading a book that is so beautifully crafted around a historical moment is thoroughly enjoyable. Plus, it’s a great way to learn about English history, alongside the tolerance of others. Forsyth drives home the importance of accepting those who are different to us, even if we don’t quite understand them.

I love the focus on the Rom (gypsies) – it’s a culture that is quite fascinating in all of the movies and books that I’ve read (a bit romanticised, but still…). And it is the epitome of those who are ostracised by the greater public. The law and the church begin this epic journey by imprisoning Emilia and Luka’s family for effectively being Rom and sending the two teenagers on a whirlwind adventure to save their family. Although, there is also the feeling of ‘coming-of-age’ to the tale. Say goodbye to childhood and hello to responsibility.

This is a great, fun, easy reading about two young children starting the adventure that will (hopefully) save their family and teach them to be adults in their changing world. It is placed at the turning point in English history and I love the factual threads which run through this story. Plus, the animal companions that accompany Emilia and Luka on their journey is just adorable (albeit a little hard for them to disguise).

 <- The Butterfly in Amber ReviewThe Silver Horse Review ->
Image source: Fishpond

To Catch a Pirate by Jade Parker

Book Review, , ,

Overview

To Catch a PirateTitle: To Catch a Pirate
Author: Jade Parker
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Easy reading, Pirates, Romance
Pace: Fast
Format: Novel
Publisher: Point
Year: 2007
5th sentence, 74th page: Perhaps because for one insane moment she wondered what it would be like to stroll through a moonlit garden with him, dart behind a rose-covered trellis, and rise up on her toes…

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Synopsis

When Annalisa Townsend’s ship is set upon by pirates in search of her father’s treasure, one of the crew, James Sterling, discovers her in the hold. When he moves to take her necklace, she begs him not to, as it is all she has left of her mother. He accepts a kiss in exchange for the necklace. “A fair trade, m’lady,” he tells her afterward, before disappearing.

A year later, with a forged letter of marque, Annalisa is intent on hunting down the wretched James Sterling and reclaiming her father’s treasure from him. But now she’s in danger of him stealing something far more vulnerable this time: her heart.

Thoughts

This is one of those books that both my sister and I completely love. To the point that the only reason I haven’t read it in the last three, four years is because she’s had it almost permanently on her bookshelf. Like I said, we both absolutely love it. Which is why it was so much fun finally getting it back from her to have a good read. And, with the joys of being a little more of a developed reader (and hopefully, writer) and just having a few more years of maturity to my years… it was interesting how different my reactions to a story that I have long loved are.

I do need to reiterate though that although I found a few more flaws in this story line than I have in the past, I still absolutely loved this book. There is something so simply and beautifully sweet about it. And although it’s a pretty typical love triangle, the picturesque nature of the life at sea that Parker so beautifully describes and the completely organic (yet totally destined) way that they fall in love is just… nice. Actually, if I had to choose just one word to describe this novel it would be SWEET. It just screams innocence in a way that a lot of the romances I read don’t. But it isn’t painfully naïve and irritatingly contrived. It’s just sweet.

Although I still loved this story, I did find some of the writing a little less fluid and poetic than other authors I’ve been reading lately. But, when you’ve recently read Pride and Prejudice, most romances just aren’t as prosaically smooth. Somehow though, even with writing that in places lacks that poetry the story is beautiful, vivid, and again, sweet. The lack of poetry in some of the moments almost help to enhance the innocence of this first love (both mine and Anna’s).

<- More easy reading reviews More romance reviews ->
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A Song for Summer by Eva Ibbotson

Book Review, , ,

OverviewA Song for SummerTitle: A Song for Summer
Author: Eva Ibbotson
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Easy reading, History, Romance
Pace: Fast
Format: Novel
Publisher: Picador
Year: 1997
5th sentence, 74th page: For a moment Marek let his mind dwell on Nausicaa, the golden girl at the heart of the Odyssey, who had left her maidens to bring help and succour to the weary Ulysses as he came from the sea.

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Synopsis

Ellen never expected the Hallendorf school to be quite so unusual. Her life back in England with her suffragette mother and liberated aunts certainly couldn’t be called normal, but buried deep in the beautiful Austrian countryside, Ellen discovers an eccentric world occupied by wild children and even wilder teachers, experimental dancers and a tortoise on wheels. And then there is the particularly intriguing, enigmatic, and very handsome Marek, part-time gardener and fencing teacher. Ellen is instantly attracted to the mysterious gardener, but Hitler’s Reich is already threatening their peaceful world, and only when she discovers Marek’s true identity and his dangerous mission does Ellen realize the depth of her feelings for him – and the danger their newfound love faces in the shadow of war.

Thoughts

A good romance always includes a guy (or girl) that makes one humungous fuck up, and potentially ruins everybody’s lives. After all, boy meets girl, they fall in love, nothing happens isn’t exactly the greatest of stories. And, this is one of the best ways in which a man completely ruins everything, and yet, you are left gunning for the fantastic characters. And that’s just one part of the plot.

One of the aspects of this story that I love is the history of Ellen’s family and their acceptance for one another. Her mother and two aunts are feminists who burnt their bra and organise rally after rally for the rights of women. They fight tooth and nail to not have to be a housewife, so the fact that Ellen chooses this avenue for her own life is completely shocking to them. partnered with the fact that she is incredibly smart and university educated just seems to drive that knife deeper for her matriarchal family. But, when Ellen makes her desires clear, they accept it and continue to love her. It is little wonder that Ellen herself is filled with so much love and kindness throughout this entire story. After all, this is what family and caring about one another is truly about.

Set in Austria as WWII is breaking out, there is a sense of beauty, innocence and the looming tragedy of war. But, really, what I love the most is Ellen’s capacity to love. She loves the silly teachers at the school she moves to; the unruly children; and the unorthodox family from which she comes. But, it is the fact that she continues to love and accept after tragedy takes her future away. She continues to find a way to take care of her people and those who matter to her, even as her heart continues to shatter into a thousand pieces. And, through it all, she finds a way to have a life that, while it may for a while be devoid of exactly what she wanted, she creates something that matters. Although that sounds a little bereft, there is a happy ending that literally bought a tear to my eyes.

 <- The Secret Countess Review A Company of Swans Review ->
Image source: Amazon

Princess in Love by Meg Cabot

Book Review, , , ,

Overview

Princess in LoveTitle: Princess in Love
Author: Meg Cabot
Series: The Princess Diaries #3
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Chic lit, Easy reading
Pace: Fast
Format: Novel
Publisher: Harper Teen
Year: 2001
5th sentence, 74th page: Use transitive verbs to create brief, vigorous sentences.

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Synopsis

Princess Mia may seem like the luckiest girl ever.

But the truth is, Mia spends all her time doing one of three things: preparing for her nerve-racking entree into Genovian society, slogging through the congestion unique to Manhattan in December, and avoiding further smooches from her hapless boyfriend, Kenny.

For Mia, being a princess in love is not the fairy tale it’s supposed to be… or is it?

Thoughts

Yet again, Cabot manages to make this a fun, smiley, cute story. It’s a great, easy read that had me giggling and smiling throughout. Something that helps to bring a little light into the days when I feel slightly down and just need an easy, happy pick me up.

In Princess in Love, it feels like Mia finally begins to recognise who she is as a person (or at least, she does towards the end). Yes, she’s still heavily influenced by basically everything around her (like every other teenager), but she’s starting to recognise her own strengths and abilities. After all, she’s only supposed to be fourteen, so I completely understand why she’s a little scattered… I know what I was like at fourteen after all. And I didn’t have to deal with any politics!

I completely understand Mia’s confusion about what to do with Kenny. I remember (ironically when I was about fourteen) a friend asking me out in front of everyone. I said yes out of embarrassment, and then couldn’t figure out how to get out of the predicament I had found myself in. It took me twenty-four hours, for Mia, it was a lot longer, but I completely recognised the internal monologue. Which, I think is why this is such a popular series – after all, even ten years after my own confused adolescence, I could completely relate to what was happening.

Mia’s passion for conservation and saving animals is still slightly twisted towards that teenage naivety (again, see fourteen-year-old me, and my sister…). But, there’s so much potential for her to develop this passion. I love that it brings to light some of the animal rights needs and arguments that were around then and now.

 <- Princess in the Spotlight Review Princess in Waiting Review ->
Image source: Amazon

Princess in the Spotlight by Meg Cabot

Book Review, , , ,

Overview

Princess in the SpotlightTitle: Princess in the Spotlight
Author: Meg Cabot
Series: The Princess Diaries #2
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Chic lit, Easy reading
Pace: Fast
Format: Novel
Publisher: Harper Teen
Year: 2001
5th sentence, 74th page: I honestly don’t.

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Synopsis

No one ever said being a Princess was easy.

Just when Mia thought she had the whole princess thing under control, things get out of hand, fast. First there’s an unexpected announcement from her mother. Then Grandmere arranges a national primetime interview for the brand-new crown princess of Genovia. On top of that, intriguing, exasperating letter from a secret admirer begin to arrive.

Before she even has the chance to wonder who those letters are from, Mia is swept up in a whirlwind of royal intrigue the likes of which hasn’t been seen since volume I of The Princess Diaries.

Thoughts

I love Mia. Like me, she is incredibly adept at putting her foot in it. She also overthinks everything and just seems entirely incapable of doing anything in a sane, collected manner. Yet, no matter how much trouble she seems to find herself in (and since this is a teenage girls’ voice, it was amplified), Mia seems to find a way out of it at the end. And there is, again, a beautifully profound moment of self-realisation at the end.

I’ve definitely been a huge fan of the Michael-Mia relationship (that hasn’t actually happened) since the movie. But there is something better about reading about Mia’s completely clueless perusal of her best friend’s brother. It’s completely clear that he likes her, and Mia spends most of Princess in the Spotlight obsessing over him, but she is still oblivious. Even Lilly is aware of the crush. Although she is kind of psychotically and pushily intense, so it’s hard to know how much she understands. Again though, it’s the view lens of a teenager – I wonder what the words about my best friend (if I chose to write them) would say. Especially when I was a more self-absorbed teenager.

Although there are so many very, very good things about this story. Including the wit, humour and sass, I think that one of my favourite things is that it is incredibly easy to read. It is a nice, fun, enjoyable story that makes you believe in family and friends. I can see that it’s a story that I will be able to read again and again, and have it leave a smile on my face.

 <- The Princess Diaries Review Princess in Love Review ->
Image source: Epic Reads

The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot

Book Review, , , ,

Overview

The Princess DiariesTitle: The Princess Diaries
Author: Meg Cabot
Series: The Princess Diaries #1
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Chic lit, Easy reading
Pace: Fast
Format: Novel
Publisher: Harper Teen
Year: 2000
5th sentence, 74th page: I mean, even though everybody at Albert Einstein High School thinks I’m a freak, I’m sort of getting used to it.

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Synopsis

What? A Princess? Me??? Yeah, right.

Mia Thermopolis is pretty sure there’s nothing worse than being a five-foot-nine, flat-chested freshman, who also happens to be flunking Algebra.

Is she ever in for a surprise.

First Mom announces that she’s dating Mia’s Algebra teacher. Then Dad has to go and reveal that he is the crown prince of Genovia. And guess who still doesn’t have a date for the Cultural Diversity Dance?

Thoughts

I got this book yesterday, and bought it because, well, I love the movies. Which is why I wasn’t really expecting to love the books. Generally, I love the movies, or I love the books, but almost never both. Actually, I think that this is the first time I’ve fallen head over heels for both. They’re just different enough that I wasn’t 100% sure of what was going to happen, but so similar that it was that same story that I grew up watching and made me fall in love with Anne Hathaway.

So about the actual book… I loved the diary style of the writing. I haven’t actually read a book like this that I’ve enjoyed, normally there is this feeling of too contrived or teenage angst that I find frustrating. But, although there was a dose of teenage drama and angst (after all, it’s a fourteen-year-old girl we’re talking about), it wasn’t done in a painful manner. Actually, it was incredibly cute and made me feel like I was talking to a good friend. Which of course drew me further into the tale and Mia’s troubles. Sometimes it felt like talking to a slightly dramatic, overwhelmed teenage me. Which is really what you want when reading a story about a fourteen-year-old.

Yet, although Mia is a teenager and angsty, and has her moments of, dare I say it, princess behaviour, she is also incredibly real and solid. She believes in saving the whales, is a vegetarian, and although she constantly states her issues with confrontation, very sure of who she is. She’s just not overly great at arguing with people. To begin with, she seems to find her own way to stick up for herself and her beliefs as the story develops, which of course, makes me love her even more!

For a really good, easy, uplifting read, I definitely recommend this book. It was easy to digest, but fun, witty and had this great sense of ‘be yourself’ throughout it. Now I just have to wait for the next one to arrive…

 <- Perfect Princess Review Princess in the Spotlight Review ->
Image source: Open Book Society

Payment Due by Frances Hardinge

Book Review, , , , ,

Overview

Under My HatTitle: Payment Due
Author: Frances Hardinge
In: Under My Hat (Jonathan Strahan)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Easy reading, Fantasy, Witches
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Hot Key Books
Year: 2012
5th sentence, 74th page: I was inside.

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Synopsis

Fifteen-year-old Caroline comes home from school one day to find that her naïve grandmother has allowed a bailiff into their home. The man has marked most of their worldly possessions as impounded and given them five days to pay their debt. When the ladies are unable to come up with the money, the bailiff returns to haul the items away. Both Caroline and her grandmother are distraught by this turn of events, especially since one of the items the man took was a picture of Caroline’s dead mother. With the help of her animal friends and a little magic, Caroline sets about taking back what’s rightfully theirs.

Thoughts

So many people take advantage of the elderly. I mean, I’ve seen the little dollar signs light up in people’s eyes when they see him coming. It’s horrible, but it happens. However, I have never taken it as far as this granddaughter when seeking to get revenge on how people have wronged him. It’s left me seriously admiring not only her gumption but her care for the lovely elderly lady.

As you can probably already tell, the beginning of this story was a little sad. A little old lady is taken advantage of, and all of her belongings are stolen. She tries to keep a brave face about it all, but it has obviously really upset her. But, that’s where the sadness ends. Quickly, her granddaughter hunts down the bailiff in an attempt to buy back the things that were taken. That doesn’t work, and then matters are taken into her own hands…..

 <- Stray Magic Review A Handful of Ashes Review ->
Image source: Frances Hardinge

Sisterhood Everlasting by Ann Brashares

Book Review, , , , ,
Overview
Sisterhood Everlasting

Title: Sisterhood Everlasting
Author: Ann Brashares
Series: Sisterhood #5
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Chic lit, Easy reading, Strong women
Pace: Fast
Format: Novel
Publisher: Random House
Year: 2011
5th sentence, 74th page: She could hear the same kind of wetness at the bottom of Bridget’s breathing.

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Synopsis

On the cusp of turning thirty, Tibby, Lena, Carmen, and Bridget are now living separate lives, out on their own. Yet despite having jobs and men they love, each knows that something is missing: the closeness that once sustained them. Carmen is a successful actress in New York, engaged to be married, but misses her friends. Lena finds solace in her art, teaching in Rhode Island, but still thinks of Kostos and the road she didn’t take. Bridget lives with her longtime boyfriend, Eric, in San Francisco, and though a part of her wants to settle down, a bigger part can’t seem to shed her old restlessness. Then Tibby reaches out to bridge the distance, sending the others plane tickets for a reunion they all breathlessly await. And indeed, it will change their lives forever – but in ways that none of them could ever have expected.

Thoughts

I cried like a little bitch. And it tends to take quite a lot for me to cry. I have lots of internal tears over books, and I tend to sit up long after I’ve finished reading a really good book to reminisce and think about it. But actual tears, leaking onto the page? Yeah, that doesn’t happen often. Which is a testament to not only how brilliantly this is written, but to the potency of the emotions and the storyline.

Forever in Blue left the girls at the beginning of adulthood. Together, yet apart. It was an ending in a way, the ending of childhood, the pants and that innocence that we have the privilege of when we’re young. It was a really fitting ending to a great series about coming of age. But, that doesn’t mean that revisiting the four girls after ten years wasn’t the most exciting thing I’ve done all weekend (to be fair, I’ve been sick, so I’ve been very bored).

Explaining exactly why I cried so much throughout this book would give away too much of the storyline. But, suffice to say, Sisterhood Everlasting deals with issues of adulthood and mental health that the rest of the stories only briefly touch upon. It’s a lot more serious and heart wrenching than the other books in this series. Having said that, I finished this book last night and lay in bed, curled up next to my partner for almost two hours just smiling. Those moments when a storyline is able to swell your heart in your chest, remind you of all that there is to be grateful for in life – Sisterhood Everlasting gave me this. Now I’m feeling a little bereft and lost, trying to find the next book / series to read.

 <- Forever in Blue ReviewThe Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants Review ->
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Forever in Blue by Ann Brashares

Book Review, , , ,

Overview

Forever in BlueTitle: Forever in Blue: The Fourth Summer of the Sisterhood
Author: Ann Brashares
Series: Sisterhood #4
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Chic lit, Easy reading, Strong women
Pace: Fast
Format: Novel
Publisher: Ember
Year: 2007
5th sentence, 74th page: She wasn’t completely alone.

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Synopsis

Some friends just fit together.

With unraveled embroidery and fraying hems, the Traveling Pants are back for one last, glorious summer. It’s a summer that will forever change the lives of Lena, Bridget, Tibby, and Carmen, here and now, past and future, together and apart.

Thoughts

This was kind of the end of the series (but not quite, since there is actually a fifth book). It felt like the end though, because Tibby, Carmen, Bee and Lena all finally join the real world of adulthood. They’ve just finished their first year at college (I still refer to it as university though), and they’re trying to find themselves as women. But, and this is the biggest difficulty, finding themselves as adults, while still staying true to each other.

It was kind of strange the stark contrast between the four girls in Girls in Pants to the four girls in Forever in Blue. It actually made me wonder if I changed that much in my first year of University. They turned into completely new characters, but still had the threads of themselves working through their new identities. For me, Carmen was the one who underwent this change most drastically. Although, that could be because so far in the series, I recognised myself in her most of all.

This entire series so far has been about coming of age and finding out who you are. Both with your friends, and apart. So, it almost comes full circle when they reconnect and finish their metamorphosis into adults. The lessons that the pants imparted on each of them have truly been learnt, and there is an acceptance of change in each other that you rarely find in friends, just the true ones.

 <- Girls in Pants Review Sisterhood Everlasting Review ->
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