Books that Everyone Should Read

The Diary of a Young Girl

This is required reading for all of humanity. It tackles such a subject as World War II, and tells a light-hearted, sometimes comical, and sometimes heartbreaking story, as only a young girl could tell it. I laughed, I cried, and made me fall in love with a girl I wish I knew, who was lost in the most horrific human experience one could imagine. She is witty, philosophical, and wiser than most adults, and I imagine that the world would be very different if she would have been able to live on and share her eternal wisdom to the world, instead of just jotting them down in a diary, unbeknownst to the rest of humanity.

The Catcher in The Rye

You either love it or you hate it, but you certainly can't live your life without reading it. I personally loved it, as did most others, and is tied with another entry on this list as my favorite book ever. I love a good philosophical book, and this is definitely one of them. You aren't meant to like Holden Caulfield, but I did anyways. His wit and thoughts are beyond me, made me rethink my whole life, and also showed me that there's good and bad in everyone, myself and yourself included. This book is jammed pack with wisdom, roaming around New York City, and also controversial subject matter--ooh what fun!

11/22/63

Tied with The Catcher in The Rye as my favorite book ever, if you're going to read one Stephen King book, read this. It may be 800+ pages, but it is fast-paced, action-packed, and also has a bit of romance. It has something for everyone. I literally could not find one thing wrong about this book, although, a few people on Amazon seemed to find the entire thing to be garbage. I enjoyed every page, and every page is worth it. 

Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone

If you have lived on this Earth and have not read this, what are you doing?! I personally thought that this series was *okay,* but this is the most popular book series ever, and is basically essential reading for life on Earth. I don't know who would even be reading this section because basically everyone has either watched a Harry Potter movie or has read one of the books or both, but, even though I didn't see the intrigue, billions of others have.

Animal Farm

Short, sweet, and to the point. This allegory of the Russian revolution and Stalinism entertains, terrifies, and mystifies as it weaves together an unforgettable stories with--spoilers--animals. It's creative, unique, and very different from the generic dystopian literature that you see today. It's not very long, so you can't say that it it. It's fast-paced and entertaining, so you can't say that it's boring. It's very interesting, so you can't say that you aren't intrigued. Basically, you don't have a single reason not to read it. I implore you, if you have not read Animal Farm, to read it. Especially if you like Russia or history.

My Thoughts on Book Collecting

A portion of my book collection
circa March 2016 from Instagram

I was recently asked elsewhere about why I collect so many books. I thought it would be something interesting to write about, so here I am.

I not only adore reading literature, but I also love book collecting a little more. Perhaps several bibliophiles will be angered by my obscene statement, but that's just my interest. I don't really like reading on my Kindle (no offense to people who do), and I also don't like borrowing books. I like to keep books, to collect them, to surround myself in their love and warmth. That may seem greedy, but it seems like everyone collects at least something, whether it be shoes or dust. I just so happen to collect books. I read a lot, too, don't forget. I fantasize day in and day out about getting more books to read and display, like trophies. I don't hate people who read and pass on a book, in fact, if you're one of those people, good on you. I admire your will power to let go a book that you enjoyed, and to pass it on to other people to enjoy as well. 😊

But, why do I collect books? Multiple reasons. Most of the times, it's so that I will be able to reread it when I want to. Sometimes, it's because I have a sentimental connection with it, and I'd be letting go of childhood memories if I got rid of them. And, in very rare occasions, it's just for filler on my shelves; books that I have no intention of reading, yet, no intention of getting rid of them. I also just love feeling books, just taking them off of my shelves, flipping the pages, basically groping the paper, looking under the dust-jacket, and reading some of my favorite parts if I'm not feeling up to rereading the entire thing. I also just like to admire my collection, staring at it all in it's entirety, surrounded by them. It's the overall atmosphere of books in general, from reading them, to groping them, to looking at them, to smelling them, they just make me happy. I love books. One day, I would like to make something like a "Little Free Library," only it would be as big as a Walmart. Impossible, I know, but it's a fantasy. 😃

The Chronicles of Narnia Book Series Review

I really don't remember much from the books, so bear with me.

My mother read these as "read-out-louds" with I and my younger siblings earlier in the year. My mom likes to read books aloud to the younger ones, and I decided to join in because it would add to the number of books that I read a year. Most of the books that the children select are some of the worst books I have ever read, with the best being The Witches by Roald Dahl. We've also read the entire Little House on The Prairie series, The BFG, Where The Red Fern Grows, and Around The World in Eighty Days (A version of which was being retold for children). My mom's not really a good speaker, and I've read aloud sometimes when she doesn't want to.

THE MAGICIAN'S NEPHEW

This was written as a prologue of what's to come. The Amazon synopsis reads as follows:

On a daring quest to save a life, two friends are hurled into another world, where an evil sorceress seeks to enslave them. But then the lion Aslan's song weaves itself into the fabric of a new land, a land that will be known as Narnia. And in Narnia, all things are possible.

Interesting. What I remember of this book was pretty tame, sometimes got a little entertaining, but, all in all, it was pretty *okay.*

 THE LION, THE WITCH, AND THE WARDROBE
I remember this one a little clearer, as it was the best in the series. The Amazon synopsis reads as follows:

Four adventurous siblings—Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie—step through a wardrobe door and into the land of Narnia, a land frozen in eternal winter and enslaved by the power of the White Witch. But when almost all hope is lost, the return of the Great Lion, Aslan, signals a great change . . . and a great sacrifice.

It was okay-er than The Magician's Nephew, with a few more entertaining parts than the first. Extremely predictable, as the entire series is a retelling of The Bible, and felt very forced when it came to emotions. A lot of people are all like "OMG I cried at the end lol" but it was actually very cringey at how much C.S. Lewis (who is a great writer in his other works, by the way) was pressing these emotions on you. All in all, you could just read this book in the series and you'd be okay. This book created a very cringey movie with poor acting, an okay music score, and effects that were good at the time, but absurdly fake now.

THE HORSE AND HIS BOY 
Possibly the worst in the series, I don't remember any of it except for the fact that there's a talking horse, although it's never mentioned in the Amazon synopsis:

On a desperate journey, two runaways meet and join forces. Though they are only looking to escape their harsh and narrow lives, they soon find themselves at the center of a terrible battle. It is a battle that will decide their fate and the fate of Narnia itself.

It's trying to make it sound as exciting as possible. It's very drawn-out with very little action or tension at all, and when it does occur, it seemed pretty mild. This was the turning point in the series where basically everything kept getting weirder and weirder and, even if the rest of the series had the "okay" vibe kind of going along in the series, I would've liked it better, but this book was one of the worst, and my family agreed.

PRINCE CASPIAN
A slight improvement from the last one, but don't take that as a sign to read it. I'm not going to include the Amazon synopsis, because the entire book is about the Pevensie kids going back to Narnia and meeting the title character. It was better than The Horse and His Boy, but far from okay.

THE VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER
This was another weird one. Again, I won't include the Amazon synopsis because literally, the only story is about the Pevensie kids trying to find a bunch of dead guys out at see, there's dragons and swords--typical fantasy stuff. It was worse than Prince Caspian, and it also spawned a terrible CGI filled movie.

THE SILVER CHAIR
Even worse than The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, but not quite as bad as The Horse and His Boy, the story is literally about the kids exploring some sort of caves under the ground. It's really weird, and I hardly remember anything other than the caves.

THE LAST BATTLE
As bad as The Horse and His Boy, this one gets really weird, really fast. There's a talking monkey, and, from what I remember, a donkey. The Amazon synopsis basically just keeps repeating "This is the end of Narnia! The last book in this incredible series!" And doesn't say much about the plot itself.  It's ridiculous, it's boring, and, thank God, it's the end of the series.

ALL IN ALL
It's a bad series. If you wanted to read it, I'd only recommend The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. But, there appears to be people who enjoy these kinds of books, so go right ahead and read it. I personally hated most of the series, but maybe you would. 1/10 would recommend.

"The Shining" Movie review (some spoilers)

The Shining is, by far, the scariest movie I have ever seen in my life. At first glace, I thought it was mighty creepy, but nothing special. Then, I saw a video on YouTube titled something like "The Shining Theory," and, thus, I was swept into a wave of conspiracy theories, hidden meanings, themes, and things, and the mind of Stanley Kubrick. I was instantly obsessed.

I read the book, written by my favorite author, Stephen King, in January, 2016, and it became the scariest book I had ever read--fitting for, arguably, the scariest movie ever made. The movie was very different from the book, but had the same basic plot and characters. There was Jack, Wendy, and Danny Torrance, who are the new caretakers of the Overlook Hotel over the winter. Jack's working on a writing project, and Danny has a supernatural gift: the shining. The ending of the book and the ending of the movie were exact opposites, but still had a great effect. The book and the movie each have their own atmosphere, and I love both of them. As an accurate book-to-move adaptation goes, this is very unfaithful, but as it's own thing, it is a cinematic masterpiece beyond words.

To look into the theories, just watch the documentary Room 237 which is basically the guide to digging into what The Shining was really about. There's tons of stuff on YouTube, too, like, if you look closely, there's a body falling out of the elevator, and there's a door open over there and you can see someone standing there watching Danny and stuff like that. It adds to the terror. But, I would rather you watch the movie first before watching theories and everything.

A lot of people say that the lady in the bathtub was the scariest part, or the twins, or the Here's Johnny scene, but I think that there are a lot of underrated scenes in it that gave me chills. Including the one on the right. If you look to the right of Danny, at the door closest to the camera, you can see that the door is open, and, if you brighten the image, you can see someone clearly watching him! This scene at first may seem dull, but when you see that door, this becomes one of the scariest scenes in the entire movie. I'm always creeped out by the feeling that I'm being watched, and this is the perfect example.

I literally cannot look at the image on the left. It is the scariest image in the entire movie. When it comes on the screen, I need to look away for some reason because I feel like it's a cursed image or something. It also doesn't help that the shot is after a really creepy, intense scene, and almost feels like a jumpscare. The shot of his frozen corpse is drawn-out and it has haunted my thoughts and dreams since I saw it.





So, in the end, this is one of the best-planned, best-made, most-studied films of all time. A lot of people just think that it's creepy, but that's because they aren't looking around the characters, at that open door, or at that corpse falling out of the elevator, or all of the foreshadowing. It is also one of my favorite movies, too.