My reading list has been pirated by none other than the cunning
Brittany (
@BLandgrebe). She so sneakily planted sleeper agents on my bookshelf that came out and attacked me during a lull in my reading. I can hear her evil laugh now. Perhaps we have similar tastes in fiction, but my pirated reading list has actually benefited me. I probably wouldn't have picked up either of these books on my own, but now will probably sing their praises to anyone who asks.
Lois Lowry's The Giver was cleverly disguised as a Christmas present. It took me six months to pick it up and now I can't believe I didn't read it sooner. It wasn't a grade school reading list item for me like it was for a lot of others I know. I don't think I would have understood it much when I was younger. I'm not sure if I really understand it now. It's the first utopia/dystopia I've read in a long time. It did start some trains of thought like: differences between people should be recognized and celebrated; the appropriateness of a governing body's interference into the lives of individuals; the benefit of unsheltered experience and pain. It was a really quick read and very well written. It's definitely going to remain on my shelf for a long time to come.
The next book, also cleverly disguised as a gift, came later in the spring: Rampant by
Diana Peterfreund. When I first received it my reaction was closer to, "Killer unicorns? Um, sure." Then after finally opening the book and immediately getting into it my reaction was more, "Dude! Killer unicorns!!!" It followed what I call "The Harry Potter Format" wherein a tween/teen discovers a hidden talent, gets sent to a special school to develop said talent, then uses the talent to save the world. In this case, a bunch of teenage virgin girls get sent to a convent in Rome to learn how to hunt unicorns. My favorite part was probably the incorporation of Roman mythology and history into the back story. It got a bit angsty with the pack of hormonal teenage girls at each others throats, but the story line was riveting. There were some threads that were left unresolved, but there are more books planned in the series, the next of which comes out in September.
The piracy is expected to continue with Shiver by Maggie Steivater, currently on my to-be-read shelf.
In other unrelated news, does anyone know how to ninja-proof a house?
My reading list has been pirated by none other than the cunning Brittany (@BLandgrebe). She so sneakily planted sleeper agents on my bookshelf that came out and attacked me during a lull in my reading. I can hear her evil laugh now. Perhaps we have similar tastes in fiction, but my pirated reading list has actually benefited me. I probably wouldn't have picked up either of these books on my own, but now will probably sing their praises to anyone who asks. 
3 comments:
AAARRRGGGHHH! *brandishes book-hook*
LOL Glad you liked them! Everyone gives me the "Killer Unicorns? Um, sure" look, but they're missing out! I loved your reaction to it afterward. I have a lot more people to trick into reading it, lol.
I hope you really like Shiver, I BAWLED at the end.
Ninja-proof a house? I don't know if that's possible... they are, after all, NINJAS. As a Pirate, you'll hear me coming MILES away. Ninja? I dunno. :P
^_^
Glad to hear you loved The Giver! I can't believe I didn't read it until a few years ago. It's one of those books that I really wish I'd read as a child, but also really appreciated as an adult.
Brittany - Thanks again for the books!
Amanda - I'm not sure I would have appreciated The Giver as much if I read it as a child. But it seems like it's the type of book where you understand more every time you read it.
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