Charity Reading Challenge 2016

A little while ago I signed up to the Charity Reading Challenge over on Becky's Book Reviews. So I figured I'd write a little post explaining my plans, and my reasons for doing the challenge.

Host: Becky's Book Reviews
Duration: January 2016-December 2016

The Challenge: 'Read for a good cause! Buy books at a charity shop, or, even a friends of the library book sale, or, donate a certain percentage of money for each book you read for the challenge. You can choose your own goal of how many books to read, what charity you'll be donating money towards, how much money, etc.'

The full rules can be found on Becky's Book Reviews here.

I'm aiming to read at least 20 books for this challenge - seems doable!

The books I read will be from various charity shops, and I'm planning on giving challenge updates which include the name of the charity, the amount I spent on the book, and a bit of info on the charity (because charities can do with all the publicity they can get!)

I love helping charities - it's kind of my thing. And I figured, as I buy a lot of books from charity shops anyway, I could also help to raise some awareness of the fantastic work done by charities while I'm at it. (And it seemed fun!)

Comics Wrap Up - Some Legends Are Told

Legends of Tomorrow Trailer

This new and upcoming TV series from the DC pantheon, featuring characters from both The Flash (US link) and Arrow (US link,) could be pretty damn awesome. Or, seeing as how the entire thing is based around time travel, it could get uber-complicated, uber-quickly, and then go to hell in a hand-basket.

I'm personally hoping it'll live up to its promise - not least because Hawkman and Hawkgirl costumes that don't look really stupid are hard to come by.

Single Issues

Cla$$war #4 is from the indie publisher Com.x, the series ran in the early 00's, and is pretty damned awesome. True, in no way is this for kids, or the faint of heart - and it really goes for the gullet in terms of social problems and the negative effects of commercialisation.

I actually really love this series, and have a habit of checking for the issues I don't have whenever I come across a second-hand comics stall.

She-Hulk #1 (US link) (of Charles Soule's 2014+ run,) is She-Hulk as it should be done. Jennifer Walters is amazing - and should be allowed to be. This then, is She-Hulk as the feminist icon (yes, goddamnit I said it!) that she really is - a kick-ass lawyer, and a lovely lady, who can also beat up robots every now and again when the need arises.

She takes on stuffy male lawyers, and Tony Stark himself, in this incredible and beautifully illustrated issue. It's also nice to see Jen standing on her own merits, instead of being hyper-sexualised for no reason; the lady is strong, she doesn't need to be a stereotype.

Review Time! (Woo!) - Vampire Mountain by Darren Shan

Title: Vampire Mountain. (US Link.)

Author: Darren Shan.

Genre: Kids, Paranormal, Vampire.

Series: The Saga of Darren Shan (aka Cirque Du Freak) (#4) - The Vampire Rites Trilogy (#1) (USA.)

A few starting notes:

This is #4 in The Saga of Darren Shan (US link) series - so my golden rule of sequel-reviewing applies: spoilers for previous books will be confined to the level of information found in this book's blurb.

The series is split into a number of trilogies. This is book #1 of the second trilogy (The Vampire Rites Trilogy (USA.))

This book can be read as standalone, should you wish, though it clearly leaves room for the book after it, and does make reference to the events of previous books.

This is a kids book - probably suitable for age 11+ - but obviously, age shouldn't be a barrier if the kid is mature and/or capable of reading to this level.

And, of course, this book is suitable for adults who refuse to be bound by the restrictions of age (like me!)

Premise:

Darren Shan (the author's pen-name doubles as the name of our young protagonist,) a half-vampire child, must make the dangerous journey to Vampire Mountain (hence the name,) to be presented to the Vampire Princes by his mentor, Mr Crepsley.

Best bits:

The whole vampire society is clearly understood by the author - and that makes this world both believable and absorbing. Not least because of the names and histories of the vampires in this world (the names are great: Larten Crepsley, Gavner Purl... the kind of names that make a book otherworldly and rich in detail.)

The story is interesting - which is always a plus. This alone may be enough to tempt even a reluctant reader through the chapters (which are fairly quick and pacey.)

The dynamic between Darren and the world he now inhabits is well portrayed - with particular room for expansion in the relationship between Darren and Mr Crepsley.

I also like the female vampire Arra Sails, because she's pretty damned cool. And I love the challenges Darren faces as a slow-aging kid-vampire - it adds an extra dimension of feeling older than the world perceives you to be.

Not so great bits:

Some of this verges on the gory, and there is some violence, mentions of killing, etc. - which might upset younger and/or more sensitive readers.

What I object to, though, is the treatment of the old, the infirm, and the 'mad,' vampires - politically correct this is not; euthanasia is not a topic which should be treated in a manner that's quite this blasé, and almost cold. This isn't integral to the book as a whole - it's more of a side-detail - but it p**sed me off.

Verdict:

A pacey and enjoyable kids' book which is equally entertaining for the adult. A vivid world with a gothic edge, this might be useful to tempt the reluctant reader, or boys.

Buy Now UK - Buy Now USA – Goodreads – Author's Facebook

Goodreads Challenge 2015 - One Month Left

There's a month left of Goodreads' 2015 challenge. I have 20 books left to read. I can do this!

If, like me, you need to get your ever-loving butt in gear and sprint to the finish line, here's my plan for kicking this challenge's arse. Hopefully, it'll help you out with your challenge-arse-kicking-plan too.

Book polygamy

This is the part of the plan that I have the least trouble with (he he!) - I am always reading more than one book at a time - and I'm pretty sure this is the way to continue!

Short books are your friends

There is no shame in short books. In fact, some of the best books you can read are also some of the quickest. You can get through multiple books at a faster pace - handy for if you need to make up the numbers.

You might want to try the aptly named Quick Reads, and a good dash of comics (or at least, the ones listed on Goodreads,) and graphic novels.

Become surgically attached to your book

...figuratively, of course. Please do not actually surgically attach yourself to a book.

If you have a book with you at all times then you reclaim the lost minutes - in a queue, over a cup of coffee, while trying to avoid a neighbour you don't like (I don't do that! It's just an example!) etc. etc.

Read, read, read, and then read some more!

This is the bite-the-bullet part of the plan I'm afraid. In order to have read your target number of books, you just have to keep reading!

And one more thing...

There's an edit button on your challenge page. Don't be afraid to use it. Seriously, if you're less than 50% through your challenge (for example,) then you may want to consider revising the number down. There's no shame in it, it's just being realistic.

The Writer Diaries (Or What I Learned From NaBloPoMo November 2015)

Ahhh... NaBloPoMo November 2015, what have you taught me? A few things, to be sure.

I Can Rise To Whatever Challenge I Set Myself

Honestly, I wasn't sure, when I decided to do this, if I could do this. But I did. 30 posts in 30 days. What does this prove? I can do whatever I want (goddammit!)

That doesn't mean that I can go over-doing it. Nope, no overwhelming pressure here! It just means that I'm capable: capable of doing a lot more than perhaps I give myself credit for.

Blogging Is Awesome Sauce, and Challenges Should Be Fun

This challenge has truly been fun. And I have really enjoyed blogging as a result. Which is good news if you like to read my bookish ramblings, because it means that I'm going to keep blogging for a good while yet.

Scheduling Posts is Helpful

Turns out, organisation can be useful when blogging like a maniac - I know, who knew, right? Scheduling has been pretty invaluable when it comes to keeping the posts rolling out.

I hope, that with my new blogging organisation skills, I can keep posting at a fairly substantial pace even beyond this month. (Although I hope you don't blame me for not posting 7 days a week every week - a girl's gotta have a break every now and then.) So, there's more to come from your humble Reading Addict.

I Have Things Worth Saying

I have some stuff to say - stuff that I hope you'll agree is worth hearing. Above all, I have a passion for books, for reading, for spreading the word of the joys of all that sort of stuff. I hope that my enthusiasm shines through my posting (I know my coffee drinking definitely does.)

Nerd Church - Where Do We Go From Here?

Are we too old, too bitter, too disenchanted, for happily ever after? Do we believe that the princess lived a happy life, after she and the prince rode into the sunset together? Are we able to believe that everything, from the moment the book ends, is sunshine and rainbows?

 

 

True, a lot of books do not end happily - and/or don't end with the characters actually living - but is this our fault? Do we, as fans and readers, not want the ra-ra happy ending, but instead the dark, the ambiguous, the uncertain?

 

Obviously, it's difficult to talk about endings without wandering into spoilerific territory - and that is not something I really want to do - but if you think of a lot of popular books and series, do they end in happiness?

 

Those that do go for the fairy-tale style ending are often ridiculed and lambasted for being too unbelievable. That, in a way, is kind of sad; happiness and good fortune is no longer something that we believe we can have - so we don't want the characters in the books we read to have it either.

 

But then, despite the happy endings (though not for the villains,) fairy tales were originally quite violent. There was torture. There was death. There were beheadings and all sorts of random magical crap. (If you're interested in some good quality retellings of original fairy tales then I'd go for Philip Pullman's Grimm Tales: For Young and Old - I utterly love that book.)

 

My dear lovely nerds, I honestly wish you to find some hope in your lives - it's ok to be realistic, and often it's quite frankly beautiful to err on the gothic side of life (I certainly do!) - but sometimes you have to look to the brighter things. Even if that means a splash of the unreal.

 



The Writer Diaries (Or NaBloPoMo, Week 4, Re-Cap)

Almost there now - woo! Just two days and the dying embers of November NaBloPoMo 2015 will be all but extinguished (check me out, being all poetical and sh**!) I'm happy to say, with the finish line in site, that I rose to the challenge.

But we have some unfinished business to attend to, so here it is, my re-cap of Week 4:

(A reminder that I use the British/European date format of dd/mm/yy.)

Sunday, 22/11/15
Nerd Church - Four Tales of Incredible Courage


Monday, 23/11/15
Reviewing the Evidence Time! (Graphic Novel Edition!) - The Hockey Saint by Shapiro, Inoue, and Mossa


Tuesday, 24/11/15
Survival Kit For A Winter's Day


Wednesday, 25/11/15
Why Do Books Make Great Gifts?


Thursday, 26/11/15
Comics Wrap Up + MCU Fangirling - Hockey and Family Problems PLUS CIVIL WAR TRAILER!!!!


Friday, 27/11/15
Friday Fics Fix! - In Which Olicity is Fluffy