My Recommended Reads!

I’ve got an hour until my lecture and some time to kill (technically I should be doing uni work and tidying but… nah!) so I’ve decided to go through some of the books on my bookshelf (both real and virtual) and give you my list of recommended reads.

 

 

“If I Stay” by Gayle Forman

I’ve finally learned what the genre is called and technically it’s “sick-lit”, there’s been a bit of controversy over books in this genre being marketed to vulnerable 13-year-olds, but honestly I think it’s all down to the maturity of the reader. This book isn’t an easy read – it’s not very long, I finished it in a couple of hours (although I am a fast reader), but some of the content is quite graphic (I’ll post a warning now – brain chunks are mentioned) and I do think that this should be aimed at more 16+ than 13+ purely because it is a bit… gross at times. Still, it’s a great book.

 

“To Kill A Mockingbird” by Harper Lee

Honestly, this is one of my favourite books. I love the story, I love the language used in it, I love the characters and I love the imagery it evokes; Lee is an incredible writer. I studied it for GCSE and it didn’t ruin it at all for me, unlike many stories where studying it has put me off ever wanting to read it for pleasure (step forwards, Wuthering Heights!), this one I could easily read again and again, because of the nostalgia it evokes – my childhood was so different to Scout and Jem’s, and yet reading this evokes memories of hot childhood summers.

 

“The Hunger Games” Trilogy by Suzanne Collins

Obviously these books are fairly well known because of the films (which are quite possibly my favourite film-adaptation-of-a-book because there wasn’t that much they left out and the actors were all great and it was everything I hoped it’d be), but the books in themselves are great. I know there’s been a lot of comparisons with Battle Royale; personally I can’t comment because I haven’t read it, but I think these books are fantastic and I’d highly recommend them.

 

“Tales From The Terra Firma Fleet” series by Christopher Maine

I know, I go on about this guy a lot, but I really enjoy his writing! He’s an indy writer and I think he deserves to do well because he’s got a great series going on. Check it out on http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dragon-Flight-Renegade-Tales-ebook/dp/B007B3CZF2 . Great characters, great plots, some fantastic relationships building up… it’s like sci-fi-action-romance-drama all in one.

 

“Harry Potter” series by JK Rowling

Do I really need to explain this one? If you haven’t read the books, just read them! Do it! Now!

 

“Marley and Me” by John Grogan

I watched the film and it made me cry. I read the book and it made me cry even more. This book is hilarious, heartbreaking and so touching all in one, and it really is wonderful. I read it all in one sitting and I wouldn’t recommend it because the emotions are overwhelming; read it bit by bit but just make sure that you do read it!

 

REVIEW – “If I Stay”, by Gayle Forman

I bought this book yesterday from Waterstones for £6.99 (the joys of having a Waterstones near where I live, within WALKING DISTANCE!!!). I’m quite hard to please when it comes to books – I don’t like chick-lit very much, I’m not really into huge crime thrillers – Jodi Picoult is about as think-y as I get – and I’m starting to get beyond the stage of Artemis Fowl and Skulduggery Pleasant. I read “Before I Die” by Jenny Downham a while ago, and the little sticker under the book said “If you liked “Before I Die”, you’ll love this!”. I really did enjoy that book, and it’s a genre I like reading about, although I’m not really sure what you’d call it – YA tragic-romantic fiction, maybe? I like books that discuss the afterlife, and what happens when we die – or rather, in the case of this book, what happens when we’re lingering somewhere between life and death.

I’ll try not to spoil the book for anyone so I’ll just give a brief outline. Mia is a seventeen year old cellist who is very talented – she’s applied to Julliard – and she lives with her mother, father and little brother. When school is cancelled because of the snow, her family decide to take a drive, but the snow causes a crash with devastating consequences. Mia watches the following hours unfold from outside of her body, seeing the effect it has both on herself and on her family, friends and boyfriend Adam. The main body of the narrative, which takes place in the present, is peppered with “flashbacks” from the past – as Mia realizes that rather than her fate being decided for her, she is the one who chooses whether she lives or dies. The book follows her as she tries to make that decision, weighing up the impact that all she’s lost will have on her, with the impact that losing her will have on everyone else.

I’d never heard of this book before I picked it up in  Waterstones yesterday. When I saw the cover and the title I rolled my eyes and was half expecting another supernatural “I fell in love with a vampire/werewolf/ghost” kind of story, but I read the blurb and it actually sounded pretty good. After a lot of deliberation and a sneaky peek inside to make sure it wasn’t badly written, I bit the bullet and bought it. That was at about half past four in the afternoon. By around half past seven I’d finished it, and it’s not a short book. I couldn’t stop reading; it had me hooked and I desperately wanted to find out what would happen next. When it ended – and it does end on quite a cliffhanger, I warn you – I was desperate to know more. Today I bought the sequel, “Where She Went”, and I’m a little dubious about it – from the description it sounds ok, but I’m not sure if t’ll live up to the amazing first book or not. Still, if you’re a fan of drawing your own conclusions, the book works well as a standalone title.

I’ve read a lot of books in my time, but I’ve got a feeling this one’s going to be one of my favourites for a long time to come. It’s graphic at times, sometimes upsetting, sometimes uplifting but always very honest and realistic, and the character is instantly likeable and believable, which is something I value in a book – I want to support the character every step of the way, unless the whole point of the book is that I’m not supposed to support a character. That’s where Twilight goes wrong – you’re meant to support and like Bella, but she’s such a whiney, annoying Mary-Sue that it’s just impossible – even when watching the film, you wish Cedric Diggory Edward had just let her die and then we could’ve had three more books of just the Cullens, who were a lot cooler when you get rid of Bella. Apart from the sparkly thing. This isn’t the time for a rant about Twilight though; this is about “If I Stay”, which creates believable characters for whom you want good things to happen. It’s a really engaging story and you feel like you’re part of it, experiencing it all alongisde Mia. It also raises questions – if you were in the same boat, what would you do? What would you pick? Would you choose to live, even though it’ll be painful and you’ve got to deal with life without some very important people – or would you choose death, leaving your loved ones behind?

There are some grisly moments in the book and a couple more elements that mean I’d recommend this book for people who are 13/14+, depending on their maturity. The descriptions of the car crash do leave some pretty vivid mental images – you’ll understand the phrases I’m referring to when you read it – so if you’re of a nervous disposition or get affected by that easily, I’d make sure you’re prepared for it before you read the book. Still, it is a brilliant book and I’d definitely recommend it. I’ll let you all know how the sequel is when I’ve finished it!

My Titanic Connection.

It hit me today that I haven’t fully explained my connection to the Titanic, even though I’ve told you all I’ve been on television and radio about it (more on that later). So, with the centenary of the ship setting sail today, and the centenary of the sinking on Sunday, I think it’s time I explained my personal connection to the Titanic.

For most people, their connection begins a hundred years ago, when their ancestors set sail on the Titanic on its fated maiden voyage. For me, it’s slightly different. I don’t have a familial connection to the ship – my story starts over ten years ago at my Nan’s house. She had the James Cameron film “Titanic” on video, and whenever we went to stay at her house, I’d sit and watch it, sometimes twice, at night. The story itself was rather lost on me – I was only six years old and didn’t really understand the romance between Jack and Rose, but the historical side interested me. I’d already decided, by this point, that I wanted to be a historian (of course, that isn’t my aspiration anymore, but I was fairly set on it at the time), so I devoured any information about the Titanic that I could find. I remember badgering my Mom for a book at a school book fair one year, called “My Story: Voyage on the Great Titanic”. She was convinced that I only wanted it for the little blue necklace that came with it, but in all honesty, I wanted to read the book. I absolutely loved it, and I think I only took it off my bookshelf last year, having read it many times.

I noticed, even that first time when I watched the film, that there was a character who did something very brave, and he had a Welsh accent, although I didn’t think much of it at the time. As time progressed, I kept watching it at my Nan’s house, and eventually my curiosity got the better of me, and I went on the internet and looked up the Welshman whom I’d seen rescuing another character in the film. I had no idea of his connection to my local area of Wales, but I was interested nonetheless. Still,  I found that he was Fifth Officer Harold Godfrey Lowe, and although he had been born in Eglwys Rhos, he spent some of his childhood in Barmouth, the nearest town to my village, just down the coast. I was only eleven, and although I was very interested, I still didn’t think much of it.

Two years ago, I was in a local cafe when I heard a man talking about the Titanic, and a man from Barmouth who had been on it, with my dad. I joined in the conversation, and we got talking about how it was surprising that there was nothing in Barmouth to commemorate Harold Lowe – so, when I went home, I wrote a letter to a local newspaper and started a facebook campaign, and it all started from there. Two years later, a plaque to him has been unveiled today in Deganwy, the town to which he eventually retired and where his grandson now lives, and a plaque will be unveiled this Sunday, the product of two years of this campaign, at the harbour in Barmouth. I feel immensely proud to have been a part of the campaign, but more than that, I am pleased that he’ll finally be commemorated in Barmouth and people will learn about him for years to come.

So, that’s basically what this campaign has all been about. The newspaper articles, the radio, the television – it’s all been leading up to this Sunday, but it doesn’t end on Sunday – the plaque will mean that, for decades to come, there will be a lasting memorial to the local hero many people didn’t know about until recently. You can find the television programme I filmed for last year, “Titanic With Len Goodman”, on BBC iPlayer, and I am on Episode Two.