Monday 26 May 2014

Tea Party Tag (the Notebook Sisters are turning three!)

Hi everyone, happy Monday (if there is such a thing). So, today we are celebrating the special occasion of The Notebook Sisters' third blogoversary! If you've not come across them, they are two pretty awesome sisters (who'd have guessed?) in Australia who blog a lot about books (and fandoms. And world domination. But mostly books). You should check them out! For their blogoversary they are having a week of birthday celebrations and today I'm completing this bookish tag.

(The blog party, by the way, is Alice in Wonderland themed.)
1. Just Alice: What book cover(s) has made you super curious?
I think it's fairly needless to say that the second I saw this book, I was very curious. It was graphic novel, and (again needless to say) it was weird. And strangely upsetting. A review shall be coming soon! (That is, in a few weeks' time). 
2. Mad Hatter: List the craziest character(s) you've ever read.
Wow, OK:
~ Luna Lovegood. She is insane. But that's why we love her, of course.
~ Skulduggery Pleasant is a Sherlock-ish detective (also a skeleton, incidentally) and he has serious issues. But again ... that's why we love him!
~ Ford Prefect from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series is pretty insane it has to be said.
~ apart from that, I'm running a serious mental blank here! I can hardly think of ANY crazy characters (hence my rubbish list)! I'll probably remember heaps later on .... but such is the way.


3. Red Queen, Off With Your Head! What book have you felt like beheading?
There have been many books like this over time, but I think the prize will have to go to:

It's not that often that I completely write off a book  ... but this one was just terrible. The plot, the characters, the writing, the cringey pseudo-fantasy, the cliched love triangle .... the diabolical ending. I reviewed it, actually, elaborating on what I've just said, so if your day needs a bit of ranting and some cap locks, click here
4. White Rabbit: What books or series have been insanely popular but you've been "late" to pick them up?
The Lord of the Rings is a book that, as a fantasy fan, I am ashamed to say I only just read. It was fantastic. Just saying. Apart from that .... I don't know! I didn't read TFIOS for a while after it was famous .... and I've still not read Rose Under Fire (dammit library!) or the next two books in The Raven Boys series. So many books, not enough time!


5. Caterpillar: What's the most confusing book you've read?
I would say probably:

I read this when I was probably about 10. It took me a month, which these days is not that uncommon but in that time of three or four books a week was very insane. Can I just say, I am NOT sure that this should have been in the primary school library, and one would imagine that it got there by mistake. It was, to quote the inside jacket of the copy I read "a novel pretending to be a history of philosopher, or a history of philosophy pretending to be a novel", and it was weird. Maybe if I read it now I would really appreciate it ... but aged ten I was wading through Aristotle and Pliny, Hume, Kant and Darwin with no IDEA what was going on. And the plot took some VERY strange turns towards the end, hence why it is one of the most confusing books I've ever read. 
6. Dormouse: What was the last book that sent you to sleep?
I just finished reading Adam Bede by George Eliot. It was utterly fantastic, brilliant etc and the plot was actually riveting .... after the first few chapters. At the very very beginning ..... I wanted to die. Seriously. But if you ever start it and it does send you to sleep, I can PROMISE that it does get so much better!!!


7. Cheshire Cat: Book that made you laugh and smile?
Many, many, many books fit this category. Here are a few of my favourite funny books:

Brilliant.
Genius.
Utter genius.
Book cover for Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
The woman is a marvel. If you're sitting there thinking "pffft stuffy old classics, can't possibly be funny" then I suggest you reassess your life. And read some Austen.
And now, the books that ALWAYS make me smile ....

I'm sorry, but no post about books would really be complete without a bit of HP. And they are very funny. A quote from Harry "the sassmaster" Potter:
Uncle Vernon: "Listening to the news? Again?!"
Harry: "Well it changes every day, you see."
And another quote because no one can stop me:
Harry: Yes.
Snape: Yes, 
sir.
Harry: There's no need to call me "sir", Professor.
..... OH SNAP!
8. Knave of Hearts: Most recent character who stole your heart?
Hmm, probably Miss Willie from The Miracle of Miss Willie by Alma J Yates. It's a super sweet book that is definitely a hidden treasure - you should read it!

9. Jabberwocky: Best villain you've read this year?
Probably Wormtongue (from Lord of the Rings) ... he's just so creepy! The way he watches Eowyn ... ugh. But also the villain from The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon, who I can't tell you anything about because of spoilers .... so basically you'll have no idea what I'm talking about unless you read the book. Which you should!

10. Down the Rabbit Hole: What's the latest book/series/author that's completely swallowed your interest?
I guess the answer to that would be Tolkien and The Lord of the Rings, which as I said I have only read for the first time this year. It is a very all-immersing book.

Thanks so much to Cait and Mime for this fun tag! Not to mention the awesome giveaway over at their blog. Happy blogoversary to you guys! :D

Everyone else, I hope you enjoyed this, and have a good week until I next pop by :)

Emily x

16 comments:

  1. I watched the movie version of Red Riding Hood and that was awful enough. >_< I don't think I'll be trying the book in a rush! I've only read the first LOTR book, so I'm very late to that party. But the movies always make me laugh! Can't wait for the next Hobbit movie, actually. ;)
    Thanks so much for linking up with us!! *passes party cake*

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ugh that is one film I will not be seeing!

      ooooohh you should read them all, THEY GET BETTER! Seriously, The Return of the King is just so intense ...
      I've not seen the films, but I would like to.

      It was fun! ~accepts it with relish~ thank you! :D

      Delete
  2. Oh my word, this post is seriously awesome! I love the quotes you picked from Harry Potter ;P
    Those are the European covers, right? They look so strange compared the the American ones I'm used to, however I've ALWAYS wanted a copy of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" rather than "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone"... I wonder if you can get them in the United States?? Haha.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Haha thank you! Me too, I just love him :') so much sass ...
      Are the American ones the ones with the movie font titles? They look so strange to me, I can't imagine any other versions that those classic block-colour covers ....
      The other day I saw some Americans saying the exact same thing about trying and trying to find a Philosopher's Stone copy. I can't believe they changed the title! It seems like such a strange decision to make!

      Delete
    2. Yup, they're the weird ones, haha. I know! I don't understand why it was necessary to change it, but whatever. Haha. I actually checked Amazon and you can buy a copy for like $30 (I know that number probably doesn't help you unless you're familiar with the value of American money, haha), but that's a lot more than I would spend on a book.

      Delete
    3. I said "haha" too many times in that comment, oops. Just disregard all of those :P

      Delete
  3. I've seen the cover for The Gigantic Beard That Was Evil and have to I am very much intrigued. Definitely agree with you on the books that make me smile :D I love Hitchiker's Guide (and Ford Prefect is delightfully nutty), but the Chapter with the randomly generated whale always tugs at my heart strings :P

    http://anastasiacatris.com/alice-in-wonderland-blog-party

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I know, I found it in the library and was unable to not take it out!

      Saaame, and yes me too! They are surprisingly sad .... I mean, the end of Mostly Harmless .... :'(

      Delete
  4. Wow, you were a very precocious reader at age 10 lol. I was obsessed with Ramona and Babysitters Club.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Haha not really, I should *not* have been reading Sophie's World and I really didn't understand it! :L

      Delete
  5. I reeeeally need to read LOTR as I was basically brought up on the films! I have read the Hobbit though and loved it! Sophie's World ugh I've tried to read that book like twelve times already but I just can't get my head around it! :/ All my yes to Pride and Prejudice and the Confessions of Georgia Nicholson series ^.^ That bit in Harry Potter kills me every time! OOTP is my favourite of the books :D Great post :) x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. yes you do, it is *slightly* slow to start but it just gets so amazing, the whole way through The Return of the King the intensity is just up HERE! ~jumps in the air~
      I might try to reread it now but seriously I found it so confusing and weird >.<
      Yes yes yes! And I know, me too! I don't know which my favourite is, the first time I read them it was GoF but the last time (my third) I think it maybe was OotP ... I mean it is the longest! XD
      Thanks :) x

      Delete
  6. I can't believe you made it through Sophie's World when you were ten! I think I was a young adult when I read it, and I still got bogged down in spots (though I did eventually finish it, and it was good).

    I've never actually read The Lord of the Rings, either. I tried once, but didn't get very far. It was just too rambling and long. I thought I'd like it, though, because I really enjoyed The Hobbit.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I can't believe I did either! I think I probably *ahem* skimmed some of the philosophy though .... Maybe I'll reread it though. Because even though I didn't enjoy it it did make an impression on me; even now I remember that line, "she had a woman's body but her face didn't match; it was like an unripe apple" (definitely a paraphrase, I can't remember the exact quotation), which I think shows that is was a powerful book.

      That happened to me actually, I read The Hobbit when I was about ten and loved it, but then when I started LOTR I didn't make it past the first chapter of The Fellowship of the Ring! But I reread The Hobbit and then it in March and you just have to persevere, it's actually amazing!

      Delete
  7. Oooh, I saw The Gigantic Beard etc in a bookshop and was like "THAT LOOKS SO INTERESTING" but I never picked it up bc I'm not very into graphic novels normally. I'd be interested to hear what you think of it and why you found it strangely upsetting...

    I didn't read Red Hiding Hood but I did watch the movie and it was truly atrocious. What a waste of time.

    ... I still haven't read LotR, eeeek.

    OMG HOW DID YOU FINISH SOPHIE's WORLD WHEN YOU WERE TEN. AMAZING.

    (*hides* I hated Pride and Prejudice so much. On the other hand I loved Jane Eyre? Maybe I'm just more into the ~dark and edgy~ stuff, haha.)

    Here's my tea party blog tag!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I was expecting it to be funny, which it was, but ..... man. As I said I'll be reviewing it soon! :)

      I didn't see the film (though the book doesn't actually tell you who the wolf is in an attempt to make you watch the film, so I still don't know that part of the story!). And I'm not planning to!

      YOU SHOULD.

      I have got no idea, seriously! :O

      what what what no no no, BUT IT'S SO GOOD! ~cries~
      Jane Eyre is definitely a lot darker .... maybe you should try Sense and Sensibility, it is a lot more scandalous than P&P!

      Delete

Thanks for commenting! :)