UEL English PEN Society Book Reviews

I hate reading things that are overly popular, so I avoided this book like a plague, until I decided to read it as part of my dissertation reading list. What is a wallflower? 

Wallflower (noun)
a shy or retiring person who remains unnoticed at social events, especially a woman without a dance partner 

I have to admit, I was a wallflower throughout my teenage life. However, I didn't handle it as well as Charlie did.  I have mixed feelings about this book because it discussed serious issues such as abuse, rape in a very brief manner - they all seemed to have happened and then just moved on, although I do know this occurred because we are seeing the story through Charlie's perspective.

Charlie is a freshman. A wallflower. One who is unnoticed, but notices everything. We can tell that through the storytelling - some of the observations definitely made me smile. 

This book will definitely make you go 'awww' and remind you of your teenagehood and all the adventures you have or wanted to experience. At the same time, teenagers will be able to relate to the book as well. Even though the book was written in 90s, the setting is pretty much the same today.
The writing style is very simple and appropriate for various of ages. I do love the music that was mentioned in the book and have googled most of the songs that appeared on various mixtapes. 
I know that there is a movie about the book, which I have yet to watch, but at some point I will. 

xoxo Mandy

I've just stumbled upon this gem of book a few days ago after being a huge fan of Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants in my teenage years - I read it in a few hours after receiving it. This book makes me love and at the same time hate Ann Brashers so much.
The writing style  has matured an awful lot and fits into the story as the four friends that we know as Bridget, Lena, Carmen and Tibby are also now mature 30 year olds, who have drifted apart from each other. When they were teenagers, they shared 'magic' pants (mysteriously the pants fit all of them despite their different size) which they sent among them during their summer adventures. They believed the pants kept on bringing them back together, but once they were lost, the sisterhood drifted apart.

I like the way Brashers stayed true to the characters and presented their personalities in a way even an adult could relate to them - personality wise she hasn't changed them and you could predict how a character would react if you've read previous books.

I'm not gonna lie though - this is one of the few books that made me bawl my eyes out in the first half - I'd never expected in a million years for Ann Brashers to take on such a challenge and delivering such a plot twist - as I was reading the book I had to google some facts to make sure this was actually happening. The first half of the book is quite dark and expresses some raw emotions which will surely make you cry or at least leave you feeling a bit shocked. As the story progresses, it delivers more explanation and therefore somewhat lifts the mood of the book.

I will probably reread the entire series now, to see if there were any hints given about this in previous books, but Sisterhood Everlasting has truly left me speechless. If you're a fan of Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, you won't regret it!

xoxo Mandy

So, after reading The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, which I utterly fell in love with, I was excited to find, amongst the towering piles of books under the bridge on the London Southbank book market, this little gem.

It is a collection of poems and observations by Haddon, and is compelling from the start – some are dry, some downright silly but funny nonetheless, and others are uplifting. There is a disclaimer section about the suitable age limit for poetry readers, entitled ‘This Poem is Certificate 18’ which is nothing less than a laugh-out-loud, tongue-in-cheek, don’t-read-in-public-unless-you-want-to-be-stared at, work of genius.

“…there may be sex, too. A man may be sucked off in a MacDonalds en route to the airport, a babysitter may masturbate on the kiln-fired tiles of her employers’ bathroom, and an arsehole may be described in more detail than is necessary … Some 18-certificate poems purport to be translations of work by Finnish and Romanian poets who do not, in fact, exist. In others, lightbulbs may be granted sentience.”

He uses turns of phrases and colourful descriptions which really place the reader at the centre of the action, transporting us to another world entirely. Some are hopelessly romantic, and you can feel your heart twinging as you scour the pages for more descriptive words and scenes, and some are desperately sad but not obviously so until you read between the lines. He explores all landscapes, countries, states-of-minds, classes, and persuasions, in an observational and fiery way that keeps you turning the pages, and watching the arrangement of words with fascination.

I particularly love how he manages to delve deep into what makes us human, using only words and appealing to our imaginations and innate humanity.

I’ll be reading it again, and again, and again – every time I need a lift.

Peace and love, and thanks to all for your pledges – we reached our target successfully so will be launching on the 30th September in style. See you there.

Sam

THIS IS THE LAST ONE THAT'S OUT SO FAR. PLEASE WRITE MORE BOOKS ROSS CAMPBELL.
This is Trilby, she's definitely one of my favourites.

If I didn't already love these books enough, Ross Campbell helpfully put a map of Wet Moon (the town) in the front of this book. I love being able to orientate myself within a novel.
This book starts off with Fern's birthday sleepover, she's turning 21 and never had a beer before. Penny decides she's going to keep the baby, and nobody knows where Trilby is.
When she's eventually found by a passerby, the doctors have to perform immediate surgery, and then she slips into a coma. OH GOD I HATE MYRTLE SO MUCH URGH.
Audrey decides to tell her parents that she's gay after Slicer threatens to out her to them. They react exactly as she thought they would.
The doctors decide to bring Trilby out of her coma, she's okay but weak.
ROSS CAMPBELL, WRITE MORE PLEASE.

Trigger warnings; coma, homophobia, violence

Until next time,
Emerald Elizabeth.

This is Natalie, still totally a babe even with a huge scar.

Natalie's not exactly in a great position, but she is lucky that Unknown showed up before Myrtle could actually kill her (I'm assuming this was her intention, she's pretty violent). The others are all watching the softball game so have no idea what's going on.
Fern is planning a sleepover for her birthday as she's never had one before, and everyone keeps seeing weird things in the swamp (Malady sees a giant alligator, Glen a giant boar).
Turns out Beth isn't as nice to Audrey as she seems, they argue and she pushes her to the floor. Fortunately Audrey tells her to leave straight after and she does, leaving Audrey confused as to whether she still like her, or whether she should pursue Kinzoku. Natalie works with Mara for her project, photographing her. The two talk as they work on the shoot, making small talk, which is actually kind of nice.
AND THEN, OH GOD I HATED READING THIS BIT URGHHHHH, Trilby gets attacked. Like. Really serious. Myrtle is now on my black-list.

Trigger warnings; violence, domestic abuse

Until next time,
Emerald Elizabeth.

This is Audrey! Bit of background; she lives with a guy called Splicer (who steals her food) and babysits for extra money. She's also adorable.

Some of the girls play baseball (I think it's baseball, I'm pretty atrocious at any sport related knowledge), and the book opens with some of them practising (Audrey and Beth are a little bit cute). Trilby and Cleo are preparing to go to comic-con (mass nerd gathering, it's rad), Glen made their outfits. Not sure if I've mentioned Glen, he's kinda on the outskirts of the group. And his boyfriend's adorable.
Natalie and Mara are hanging out more; Mara learns about Natalie's sisters, who are conjoined twins (joined at the heads). Mara also agrees to go to comic-con with Trilby and Cleo, Myrtle can't go because she's working. Audrey loses one of the girls she's meant to be baby-sitting, but finds her...in bed with her house-mate, eiwww. Mara and Cleo kiss, which is kinda super-awkward but they both sort of like it.
And Cleo gets a job! Yaaaaaay! Her first day is kind of shitty, but hey, whose isn't? She and her colleague (Zia) almost get mugged on the way home, but a masked vigilante who refers to themself as "Unknown" shows up out of nowhere and knocks the guy out. Cleo then goes to surprise her sister, only to arrive just as Vincent (ex-vomit-inducing-boyfriend) leaves. Penny had no idea she dated him due to Cleo trying to keep it a major secret.
It's not baseball, it's softball. My bad.
The book ends on a bit of a cliffhanger orgy; Natalie gets her face slashed open by Myrtle (she doesn't know it's her), everyone's warming up for a softball game, and Martin's getting ready to meet Trilby's parents.

Trigger warnings; violence, drug-use, underage sex.

Until next time,
Emerald Elizabeth.

Kinzoku is rad, okay?

Cleo and Trilby head to the tattoo parlour together (Cleo gets a design that Myrtle drew, whilst Trilby gets something subtly Star Trek) and Trilby tries to persuade Cleo to hook up with Myrtle.
Proof that Martin and Trilby are adorable; he totally knows what her tattoo is, but promises not to tell anyone. He also lets her put eyeliner on him when they go out to a club (squeeee), unfortunately the night is somewhat clouded by Cleo pretty much knocking a guy out for bumping into her whilst moshing.
Poor Audrey doesn't seem to know what to do, when Kinzoku sees her with Beth, she punches Beth straight in the face (while she's eating a sandwich and everything, I mean, come on, there are limits). Audrey tries to break it up, and ends up going home with Beth and sleeping over at hers.
Cleo and Myrtle later get officially "together" and Myrtle meets Cleo's family.
Cleo's sister Penny is pregnant and not so sure on who the father is, but it transpires she's (unknowingly) sleeping with Cleo's ex-boyfriend.

Trigger warnings; self-harm, violence, cats going missing.

Until next time,
Emerald Elizabeth.

I'ma just give you some art with each review. YOU'RE WELCOME, YOU UNCULTURED SWINE. This is Malady, one of Cleo's flat-mates.

The book begins with a flashback to highschool, showing us how eager Mara was to please, and how abrasive Cleo was. Rather a role-reversal given that now Mara is violent and unrelenting, whereas Cleo is far more meek.
Audrey has a new neighbour, Kinzoku, would she instantly hits it off with, despite the fact she's been pining after Beth, a girl who took weeks to call her back. Cleo has a black eye from running into another girl (Myrtle) outside of class, and decides to bleach her hair blonde, a decision she toys with regretting for the rest of the novel. Trilby's getting closer and closer to Martin (one of Audrey's friends she insisted she wouldn't like), and Mara narrowly escapes beating the shit out of her ex-love's new lady by being distracted by a "Cleo eats it" sign. Keeping up?
Cleo and Myrtle get progressively closer as the novel goes on, so much so that Cleo tells Myrtle the tragic tale of how her and mystery vomit-causing boy parted ways (man, it was brutal).
Cleo and Trilby go round to the house (more like a mansion, damn) of Fern, Penny's employer, by her invitation, in order to sniff out anything dodgy. They find nothing, but actually get on pretty well with Fern.

AND RIGHT AT THE END, MYRTLE KISSES CLEO. DAAAAAAMN. Cleo isn't 100% sure who/what she likes.

Trigger warnings; self-harm, being dumped

Until next time,
Emerald Elizabeth.

Before I start, let me just say how highly I recommend you go and check out Ross Campbell's artwork right now. No? I'll post a little sample here then so you're not missing out. This is the main character.

Wet Moon follows Cleo Lovedrop, an American teenager who's not really sure of anything except that she really wishes she wouldn't vomit whenever she sees a certain young man. Feeble Wanderings starts off with Cleo moving into a new house in order to start at a college (she studies English and Literature). She moves in with the mysterious Natalie and the semi-friendly Malady, both of whom have already been living at the house for some time.
We meet Cleo's close friends; Trilby (secret Star Trek fan, shh, don't tell anyone), Audrey (adorable and either vegan or vegetarian) and Mara (kinda super abrasive and angry a lot after discovering the boy she was dating is now with a girl she has pretty low opinions of). Cleo keeps a diary, and this is shown in the book in handwriting passages, a clever way of tying it in. The gang also keep discovering little signs around the town reading "Cleo eats it", which nobody seems to be able to explain. Cleo and her half-sister Penny get on about as well as you'd expect, but Penny's employer Fern has taken an almost unhealthy interest in Cleo, which worries Penny a little.

Trigger warnings; feelings of isolation, medication, self-harm

Until next time,
Emerald Elizabeth.

By the third part of the famous Hunger Games trilogy, the story really starts dragging on. With this book, I had extremely hard time imagining all that was happening and the places the characters were in. The main character, Katniss Everdeen, seemed like she wasn't really present in the story, even though it was written in first person.

I have to say I do feel like Collins wrote this book extremely quickly and could have definitely made it longer. This book made me so angry and I'll try not to include spoilers. I didn't like how the whole love triangle ended. I didn't like the lack of emotion in Katniss, although again, that's what probably happens to Hunger Games victors. I didn't like how Katniss didn't show any of the traits she was originally presented with in the books - she was quite monotone and emotionless. Before, she was presented as strong and witty, but by the third book she definitely didn't seem like a strong heroine. She is quite reckless throughout the book and I was expecting a lot more.

What I did like were the new characters that were introduced. Including more appearances of the grumpy cat, who managed to entertain everyone when they were kept in a safe place during the bombings.

I can see the movie being a lot better than the book in this case, as there were so many things happening I wasn't quite sure what's taking place.

That is all for now and may the odds be ever in your favor,
Mandy xoxo

This was a book that I discovered in my creative writing module handbook (we had to analyze a small part of the book) and I found it very intriguing, especially since I work at a place that has to deal with scents (but I am in no way a murderer :)) Its dark imagery is absolutely fascinating and even though the plot is far from ordinary, the reader is able to imagine the places and people quite clearly.

The book is based in France in 18th Century and it starts by introducing the main character, Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, who is born with a strong ability to smell everything and everyone around him. He becomes an apprentice for a perfumist(?) who taught him how to create perfumes. As he created different scents, he was determined to find the ultimate perfume - which he later on discovered was coming from a woman. He is determined to capture that scent, no matter what it takes.

Even though I wouldn't classify this novel as a horror story, there were times when it was quite graphic, but there were other times where the story seemed to drag on. Nevertheless, it is still an amazing, different story, especially if you're into historic books.

Happy reading!

xoxo Mandy

In order to avoid being monotonous, I figured I should be reading something other than graphic/novels written/drawn by British and American authors/illustrators.

So, allow me to introduce you to Hans Koppel, Scandinavian and not afraid to be brutal.
I'm not sure what it is about them, but they can really write atrociously close-to-home sexual assault scenes (see also "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo").

"She's Never Coming Back" centres around a woman who peaked in high school and treats her husbands pretty shittily. She goes missing (much to his anguish), apparently having abandoned him and their seven year old daughter. Little do they know, Ylva is being kept closer to home than they think, and in more a bizarre situation that they could have imagined.

A novel that proves what you do in high school can very much come back and bite you in the arse, "She's Never Coming Back" is gritty and has twists that make you put the book down and do a little scream to yourself.

TRIGGER WARNINGS; violence, degrading language, rape, adultery.

I'd definitely recommend this one, read it in a day because I didn't want to put it down at all!

Until next time (probably soon, getting back into my reading groove),
Emerald Elizabeth.

Hardened ex-policeman, jaded and recovering smoker, seeks ticket to America to avoid personal issues and escape memories of his past.
If main character Jack Taylor had written a lonely hearts ad, it would probably read something like this.
Except, it wouldn't. Because of the wonderfully blunt narrative voice used in this novel, you're bullshit-free, pretty refreshing given the normal emotional spiel that comes along with crime/horror.

The devil is toying with him, and Jack knows it. SO, he comes up with an excellent plan of smoking lots, drinking more and trying to figure out how to escape Satan.

A clever mix of English and Irish language, this novel is pretty funny in places.

Trigger warnings; violence, death, mutilation.

Would recommend.

Until next time,
Emerald Elizabeth.

ASDFGHJKL, I LOVE THIS BOOK.

I've read this book before, but it's on my reading-list for one of my modules for next semester, so I got to read it again!
An interesting mix of Sci-Fi and Horror, it's a far cry from the usual helpless babes in bikinis or mad scientists playing with genealogy.

Situated in a dystopian future where the human race has essentially been wiped out, this novel follows Robert Neville, "the last living man on Earth" as he battles the vampiric beings the rest of mankind has become.
Definitely heart-stopping in places as well as accurately portraying the isolation and loneliness that would come with being the last one of your race, do not read this novel if you're looking for a quiet night in with a chilled-out book. I (stupidly) started re-reading it at approx. one a.m. in the house ON MY OWN. Queue texts to boyfriend (at his home and already asleep) with increasing levels of panic. Had to use the loo in the middle of a particularly scary bit, and took a lightsaber with me.

As previously stated, a super-clever mix of just enough science to make sense and horror that will keep you needing the light on (if your imagination is as active as mine!).

Trigger warnings; loneliness, sexual-deprivation, violence

Would SO SO SO definitely recommend.

Until next time,
Emerald Elizabeth.

Additional; don't watch the film. Not nearly as good, and only barely linked to the story.

Holy shit, this book was awful.
It's not often that I want to actually stop reading something before I've finished, but good lord, this was bad. Literally the only reason I read until the end was because of the readathon.
The front cover bills it as "groundbreaking erotica". I'm not even joking, not even one little bit of this book was erotic. The only 'groundbreaking' bit was a scene where the protagonist has a snake inserted into her (AND LIKES IT), and even that was different for all the wrong reasons.
There are several things that should never be included in a romantic-fantasy novel (using the word 'novel' here in the loosest possible sense), and one of them is CHILDREN. There is a scene in this book where a child's paintbrush is used in a distinctly un-artistic way.
I mean, is nothing sacred?!
The final straw for me was a chapter involve a live snake. Jesus H. I hurried through the rest of the book, and now doubt I'll ever be aroused again.

Trigger warnings; piss-play, forced sexual actions, BDSM, animal cruelty

Until next time,
Emerald Elizabeth.

ADDITIONAL; if anyone wants the book (and the sequel, they were on offer) LET ME KNOW. YOU CAN HAVE IT. FOR FREE. IT'S AWFUL.

Catching Fire is the second book of The Hunger Games trilogy, starring Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark. From reading this book I had a feeling Collins wanted to focus on a wider audience range and this book presented some pretty relevant issues revolving censorship (apart from the whole love triangle thing which I've hated with passion).
In my opinion, Catching Fire was a repetition of the first book, except for Katniss' weird emotionless behaviour (although that's what probably happens to every winner of The Hunger Games). Katniss is seen as a threat to The Capitol as she was the most rebellious person The Hunger Games has ever encountered, from volunteering to take place in the games instead of her sister, to her and Peeta almost taking poisonous berries, which would result in The Hunger Games having no victor at all. The Capitol is afraid that people from other districts will see her as a rebel and join her.
This book is all about Capitol's struggles to control the rebellion, which is why they force victors from ALL the Hunger Games into the arena, to fight until once again only one victor is crowned.There are some twists in the plot of course, which I won't discuss as I wouldn't want to spoil it, but this book was pretty much a repetition of the first one.

Saying that, I do want to see how they'll turn this book into a movie, as the new Hunger Games arena was pretty cleverly designed and is definitely going to be a challenge to recreate.

Until next time and may the odds be ever in your favor,

xoxo Mandy

This inspirational, easy-to-read masterpiece is a collection of traditional Chinese sayings, lessons and stories, all with a moral meaning and all from the rich cultural history of Chinese existence.

It explores such subjects as kindness, wisdom, logic, intelligence, humility, principles and growth – and due to its immersive graphic style, which throughout the text is all at once simple but hilariously funny, it shows us how the most important lessons in life are the simplest using metaphors and employing the use of a wise-man narrator at the end of each panel to summarise the moral of the story.

Each story – all one to two pages long only – has a title; more often than not an amusing one such as; ‘Selling One’s Mother Humanely,’ ‘Blind Men Trying to Size Up an Elephant,’ ‘The Proverbial Donkey,’ or ‘’Plug Ones Ears while Stealing a Bell.’ All at once they manage to teach the reader important values whilst simultaneously exposing the idiocy of the world around us, encouraging us by default to change what is within, in order to change what is without. It achieves this by careful selection of the most historically impactive and meaningful tales, coupled with Hengyu’s hilariously and vibrantly detailed illustrations.

It is split up into nine main chapters, with a part for reflection and exercises at the end of each one. These encourage the reader to fill out lists of aims, objectives, and beliefs about the self – based on the section they’ve just read – and then pursue these things.

“Look at yourself before attempting to emulate others.”
“Those who learn from mistakes can be trusted.”
“Greed blinds logic.”
“When misunderstood by others, be aware that you could be the reason.”

A must-read for anyone seeking a refreshing and inspiring change from the standard novel, and a clarity on life that is at once informative and humorous.

Peace and love (and keep those pledges coming in – only six more days left on our Crowdfunder page!)

Sam

In an attempt to understand more fully why we live in a world where it is possible for a person to be imprisoned, tortured or put under house arrest solely for what they write about the system they live under, I thought it would be interesting to read an interview between one of Americas leading experts on the subject of human rights, Noam Chomsky, and David Barsamian - a writer, broadcaster and lecturer on US foreign policy. This most recently published text is the latest in a line of conversations between the two, and no less electrifying than the rest.

We explore the global democratic uprisings and resulting challenges to the US empire, and though written from an American perspective, the book charts the progress of the democratic movement globally. It is frighteningly accurate and very well indexed – every claim made can be backed up with facts and figures, so if the reader should so wish to explore the truthfulness of it themselves, they can. I must admit, some of the content stunned me (and I am not easily perturbed) – so I did just that.

They talk about, in a very relaxed but intelligently explored interview style, all manner of uprisings and system challenges across the globe. These include apartheid, the Holocaust, Vietnam, Libya, the gay rights movement, the black rights movement, womens rights, workers unions, poverty, the war in Iraq, trade relationships with the Middle East, China, and United Arab Emirates, the Occupy movement, and the global banking system and economy – to name probably only about 10% of the subjects covered. They discuss how these aspects of human existence and governmental control affect our class system, perceptions of equality and responsibility, and every smaller aspect of our lives down to what we buy, where we live, our jobs, who we mix with, how we raise our children, and our education and healthcare systems.

It also explores the war that governments wage on our ability to be aware of these things – using distracting lobbying and advertising techniques, insidious changes to law, and their treatment of whistle-blowers; enabling them to keep control of what otherwise would evolve into a mass uprising of the human race.

All in all, I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in, and perhaps sometimes disturbed by, the world we live in today.

“The profession of dedication to rights is always tinged with a fundamental hypocrisy: rights if we want them, not if we don’t. The clearest example of this is support for democracy. It’s pretty well established over many decades that the US supports democracy only if it accords with strategic and economic objectives. Otherwise it opposes it. The US is by no means alone on that, of course. The same is true of terror, aggression, torture, human rights, freedom of speech, whatever it might be.”

I’m surprised it hasn't been banned yet.

Peace and love (and keep those pledges coming in – only six more days left on our Crowdfunder page!)

Sam

"May the odds be ever in your favor."

I've finally jumped on the bandwagon and read all three Hunger Games books, so join me on this review saga.
In my humble opinion, the first book of the trilogy was the best one. It had the best dialogue,  best quirky lines and wasn't revolved so much around the silly love triangle that every  teenage book seems to have.
What I love about The Hunger Games is that it presents tough political views in a way that teenagers could understand it.
It's set up in the USA future, in a nation called Panem. Panem is split into 12 districts, district 1 being the richest and district 12 being the poorest. Each district holds a special 'talent', such as mining, fishing, hunting etc. and they are the providers for the ultimate evil, the Capitol, which is presented as a more diverse version of New York.
The Capitol controls the districts, and makes sure no one rebels, by running annual Hunger Games, where two kids (one male and one female) from each district fight against other districts and each other and only one can be crowned a winner.

Katinss Everdeen volunteers to take place in the Hunger Games for her sister Prim, and therefore saves her life. Through her eyes, we truly see the evil that happens in Hunger Games  - most of the contestants show no mercy and don't mind slitting throats of 10 year olds. Allies are formed in order for the contestants to be stronger and lovers are created in order to appeal to the public (the entire games are filmed and shown in every district). Appealing to the public means that  you get potential help from sponsors, who might or might not save your life and help you win the games.

There is a lot more to the story, but as it is full of details it is best if you just trust me on this one and read the book.
There is lots of crying and holding your breath in the first book, so if you are looking for a thrill that is read by adults and teenagers (and is not 50 Shades of Grey), go read Hunger Games!
Stay tuned for part 2 and part 3 review!

xoxo Mandy

By S. Adler with L.J. Spagnola

I'm a pretty big fan of rock and roll. So, when I saw Steven Adler's (drummer of Guns N' Roses) autobiography in my local library, I was pretty stoked.

After reading it, I now feel kind of emotionally-drained. It's crazily honest, even about the stupid shit that he used to get up to. If you read this book, likelihood is you'll end up throwing it across the room at times shouting "WHY STEVEN WHY?!". Then you'll go pick it back up and want to cuddle him and stop him doing heroin.
Honestly, I actually laughed and cried with this book. Say what you will about Adler, but he's talented, charming, and downright sweet. He doesn't try to slag off the other founding members of Guns N' Roses, he states brutally what their faults are, but none are as mentioned so much as his own.
This is a man who knows his vices, who understands his demons and who is currently facing them head on.

Keep rocking Adler, don't you stop.

Trigger warnings; drugs, sex, addiction, depression

Until next time,
Emerald Elizabeth.