The Skycraper Book Project. #26

The twenty-sixth book is 

Across the Universe by Beth Revis.

 

Blurb:  

A love out of time. A spaceship built of secrets and murder. 

Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules.

Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone-one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship-tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn't do something soon, her parents will be next.

Now Amy must race to unlock Godspeed's hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there's only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming.

 

Date started: 5th may '13

 Date finished: 10th may '13

 Rating out of five?: 4 stars

Why not five?:The first part of the book starts off with (and this doesn't count as a spoiler) Amy and her parents being frozen. The detail is really vivid and realistic. Seriously, I was left gagging over the toilet because I could feel tubes being shoved down MY throat. The whole experience was not pleasant, but it would have been terrible without it. I'm confused about whether or not I like that chapter, but I'm going to say, yes, that it was good. Next, there's the whole concept of the season. When it was first mentioned, to be honest, I laughed. It was a little bit ridiculous. Never, ever could I have imagined the amount of detail the book would go into about it. The only explanation I can think of that would make this seem understandable in my head is that the DETAILED descriptions help set the scene on how the ship is being run. With unfair and discriminating laws. Also, Amy pines for her 'Daddy' a lot, thinking he is going ti be unfrozen early, as she was. never once does this girl think of her mother. The poor woman. The last reason I docked a star was the whole issue that is the cover. For ages I pondered over whether it was blobs of goo or some type of funky sunglasses. The only reason I discovered it was two people kissing spiderman style was that if you look closely enough you can see some of the girl's hair and her front tooth. 

Who would enjoy the book?: the whole YA/fantasy/dystopian gang. 

Was it up to the author's general standards?: Not sure, really. I'd really like to read the sequel; A million Suns, if I can get it.

Was it a quick read?: no, despite a fast paced rhythm and twisting plot, the whole thing was just like an overrated 'who-done-it' type thing. I just had to put it down every time it went on and on and on about things that it didn't need to go on about.

The Skycraper Book Project. #25

The 25th book of the The Skyscraper Book Project is The Invention of Hugo Cabret, by Brian Selznick.

Blurb: With 284 pictures between the book's 533 pages, the book depends equally on its pictures as it does on the actual words. Selznick himself has described the book as "not exactly a novel, not quite a picture book, not really a graphic novel, or a flip book or a movie, but a combination of all these things." The Caldecott Medal is for picture books, in 2008 this was first novel to receive.

The primary inspiration is the true story of turn-of-the-century French pioneer filmmaker Georges Méliès, his surviving films, and his collection of mechanical, wind-up figures called automata. Selznick decided to add automata to the storyline after reading Edison's Eve by Gaby Wood, which tells the story of Edison's attempt to create a talking wind-up doll.

Méliès actually had a set of automata, which were either sold or lost. At the end of his life Méliès was broke, even as his films were screening widely in the United States. He did work in a toy booth in a Paris railway station, hence the setting. Selznick drew Méliès's real door in the book.

Date started: 2nd May '13

Date finished: 3rd May '13

Rating out of five?: One of the easiest five out of fives I have ever given!

Why five?: Aswell as having moving and inspiring text, the book capturesones imagination   with detailed drawings. As said in the blurb, the book isequally  dependant on each of the two features. Both,  I think, live up to the expected standards. I went into the book not knowing much about it, and was really quite surprised at how well written it was, a fictional story interwoven with true fact.

Despite some of the things I didn't really like about this book, like how the plot was a bit dragged out, or how the characters seemed sort of pretentious and unrealistic, their development as people was interesting to watch, especially in Georges himself-I still had to give it five stars. 

Who would enjoy this book?: the book was written for children but it was just such a good book that a much wider audience than is targeted would appreciate it. 

Was it up to the author's general standards?: I haven't read any of this author's other books-I don't even know if there are any. Although, I don't think that if there are I would read them. 

 Was it a quick read?: yes, probably would have been more enjoyable in one sitting though, as with most books. Still, very quick and easy to read.

Another book finished! And one more to review! At the monent I'm reading 'Life of Pi' and it's taking forever!!!!!! There's just these really long periods of nothing in the book, filled with coma-indusing boring detail. Hope to finish it soon so I can move ob to something a little more upbeat.

The Skycraper Book Project. #13

#13 of The Skyscraper Book Project is
13 Little Blue Envelopes
By Maureen Johnson.

Blurb: Inside little blue envelope 1 are $1,000 and instructions to buy a plane ticket.

In envelope 2 are directions to a specific London flat.

The note in envelope 3 tells Ginny: Find a starving artist.

Because of envelope 4, Ginny and a playwright/thief/ bloke-about-town called Keith go to Scotland together, with somewhat disastrous-though utterly romantic-results. But will she ever see him again?

Everything about Ginny will change this summer, and it's all because of the 13 little blue envelopes.

Date Started: 24th March

Date finished: 28th March

Rating out of 5: three

Why not five?: The book started out interesting and with quality enthusiasm, but as it progressed it slumped. Reading it became a chore and minor spelling mistakes (eg. At the end of a letter Ginny writes, she signs it: "hove Ginny"?) also characters were introduced steeply: I had to figure out who 'Miriam' was myself. At first I thought it was her dairy-as she describes writing in her 'journal' and starting with 'Dear Miriam', but later she e-mails this 'Miriam'. The ending, however was a nice twist.

Who would enjoy this?: readers who enjoy travel stories and European culture.

Was it up to the authors's general standards?: I'm not sure, having never read any of Johnson's other books. To be completely honest, this is a writer I'm not purposely going to look for in a shop or online. Her work left me bored of sorts and not awe-struck, as I like books to leave me. It left no burning desire to read more of her books, is basically what I'm saying.

Was it a quick read?: not really, despite the fast paced, constant moving of setting and introduction of characters, it just took a long time to absorb. I found myself repeatedly re-reading paragraphs, trying to process it, without success.

The Skyscraper Book Project. #11

All of my book reviews will be short and quick to read. Why? Because, imagine yourself browsing the internet, looking for a book to read.
Now, you find this really long review and you read the whole thing, taking up about ten precious minutes of your life.
And you don't even like the sound of the book, bummer!
But now, going into absolutely minor and only-if-neccessary-details, you'll waste no time finding a book, instantly being able to tell if you want to read it.
Honestly, the back-breaking labour I endure to make book searching easier.
So here is The Skyscraper Book Project:



#11 is Clockwork Prince
By Cassandra Clare

Blurb: In the magical underworld of Victorian London, Tessa Gray finds her heart drawn more and more to Jem, while her longing for Will, despite his dark moods, continues to unsettle her. But something is changing in Will - the wall he has built around himself is crumbling. Could finding the Magister free Will from his secrets and give Tessa the answers to who she is and what she was born to do? As the search for truth leads the three friends into peril, Tessa's heart is increasingly torn, especially when one of their own betrays them...

Date started: lol, I forget

Date finished: 18th march '13

Rating out of five: four

Why not five?: although it was really good, it wasn't as captivating and mind-blowing as any of the Mortal Instruments books were. Some parts of the story had a dream-like kind of quality, like I was like, yeah this is good, but I feel like going outside to exercise-I don't exercise. But that's what happened.

Who would enjoy this?: anyone who loved the Mortal Instruments; people who like that kind of dark magic, demon, in-the-time-of-Queen-Victoria-thing.

Was it up to the Author's general standard?: Yup!

Was it a quick read?: yes, as long as you have maybe four consecutive hours, you could finish it in a day.

The Skyscraper Book Project-The beginning.

Being the weird human being I am, I felt as though my life was just something you might read on the back of a shampoo bottle: get up, go to school, come home, do homework, eat dinner, go to bed, repeat.

Having hobbies didn't help. It was only making the events above seem more emphised? If that makes sense.

You spend ten minutes on the piano, but that's just while you're waiting for it to be late enough to go to bed. You get out on your bike, but you're really waiting for dinner to be ready.

I thought about it, a lot. Seriously, a lot. I thought I might be depressed or something. I considered this a last resort kind of thing, if I couldn't find a way to make my life more interesting, I would go to someone about the depression. So I figured, if I start doing something I really like and then prioritise it and get other people involved, it might help.

In my head it has worked! Its really exciting, and you probably know what it is by the title, but yes I am starting 'The Skyscraper Book Project.'

The Skyscraper Book Project is a project which anyone under the age of twenty one can get involved with. Basically the idea is to read one thousand books before you are twenty one, before you are officially an adult.

It does seem a bit ageist now that I'm typing this. Over twenty one year olds can still be involved, read the books and all but not before they're twenty one. Duh! Set your own age goal, peeps.

The posts concerning this will be updated every time I finish a book. People are welcome to come and take the book recommendations, give book recommendations, whatever.

Where do I want this to go? When I think about how I would like this to span out, I see a small, maybe not so big group of people (I realise not so many people my age want to get so into reading), all together in a bookclub of sorts.

If this brings people like me who love books together, I'd be happy. It just sounds like a really nice thing, coming online to Blogger to see the latest things people have read, blah, blah, blah.

Even if nobody else does this, at least I'll have my 1000 books. It's a high goal, i know, but I'm determined to do it!

Also, I am aware that I wont be twenty one for a good few years, but that just makes the journey look like a better one. Work will have to be put into this.

The only rule: You cant read the same book twice and count it as two!

The amount of books is so big (thats why i called it the SKYSCRAPER book project), that it will certainly be impossible to stay within your comfort zone genre. You read quicker with a book you don't find particularly predictable, which reading in the one genre causes (being able to predict outcomes in books, I mean).

As I've already read ten books so far this year (and I'm NOT proud of that!) I'll post them up later today.

I think I've said everything now.

Plus, I googled this earlier and there is absolutely nothing like this out there, just lists of books you should read before you die/ before the end of the year/ immediatley.

Am i reading by myself, or is anyone going to conment and read too?


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This screen image(s) has been printed and saved and i have sent it to myself. Basically as proof I started it, etc. so that nobody can copy the idea, name or ANYTHING!