December Thoughts and Feelings

When it comes down to it December has to be my favorite month of the entire year; it's my birthday on the 12th and of course Christmas, the most wonderful, heartwarming, if a little commercialized, celebration. I love getting all the family together and it's just so cosy, happy and beautiful. You also get the sense of everyone thinking kinder thoughts of everyone, making exceptions because of that Christmas spirit. I have a few random things on my mind but none of them are "big" enough to spend an entire post on so I'm going to sprinkle this one with them, like Marcus Wareing would sprinkle vegetables. Readers, that was your queue to laugh...whatever.

My good friend, Matt has finally finished reading The Hunger Games recently which has provided me another person to have in depth talks with about this series that I am obsessed with! I'm now pushing him to read Catching Fire (the sequel) although the copies in our library have been decimated which is odd because only a few weeks ago there were at least two on the shelves.The librarian informed us they were currently the most requested books in the library, which is a good thing and a bad thing. I've mentioned in one of my youtube videos that I want everyone to read the Hunger Games series as it portrays such an important message about our world and society, in fact it is incredible for that aspect. But, on the other hand, it's nice to have something which not everyone knows about, it makes it slightly more special to just be able to share it with your friends. Anyhow, it has been interesting hearing Matt's predictions as it brings back my own theories that I had came up with upon finishing Hunger Games and subsequently Catching Fire. In fact, I wrote a blog post containing some, as well as a whole um...five A4 pages in my notepad. I'm cool. One thing that did amaze me though was how effectively Suzanne Collins portrayed the character of Gale, despite the fact that you don't spend as much time with him, as a reader, in the first two books (moreso The Hunger Games) but anyhow, his attitude and the decisions he made and the actions that followed when it "came down to it" in Mockingjay were just as I had predicted from the sense I had got of his character from the first two books. The phrase I like to associate with Gale and that I have many times before is; he is extremely passionate but this makes him slightly blinded. Obviously, there are quotes in Mockingjay, narrated by Katniss, which are a lot more interesting and metaphorical, however this phrase is a rather simplified version, I think which doesn't give away too much for people who have not read Mockingjay. 

Another thing which is on my mind is the approaching 2011. It feels as if it was just a few days ago that I was sitting on my sofa waiting for the new year, at midnight. Sometimes it's hard to get excited about the new year but I really am looking forward to what the future holds because it can hold whatever I want it to. I'm a firm believer that you make your own fate and that you only get opportunities if you find opportunities and take them... that wasn't very eloquent. You understand what I mean, right? I'm looking forward to leaving school, my school production (nice order, Freya), doing more blogs and youtube videos, writing a lot more and I'm excited about the experience of getting involved in a collaboration channel called WritersOnTheWall which unites "WriMos" (National Novel Writing Month participants). Anyway, even though I'm embracing the new year, when it comes I will feel as if I've achieved a lot this year and I also feel like I've developed a lot as a person too. I've discovered this year that if you are determined you can do pretty much anything you put your mind to and that it is always better to do something than to sit around, twiddling your thumbs, and coming up with hundreds of superficial reasons why you shouldn't go ahead with the thing. I have also discovered some super music, astoundingly good books, lovely people and that you should never try to conceal your personality or act like someone your not, because at the end of the day where will it get you? I' very proud of some things I have achieved this year too, winning NaNoWriMo is definitely one as well as doing well in most of my subjects at school and taking part in extra things like the school production, youtube projects and guess what else? a social life. 

OK, I would love to ramble on but I seriously wouldn't want to bore my blog readers. Too late you say? Ah well, I'm off to prepare for my fancy dress party in which I shall be dressing up as the epic LUNA LOVEGOOD; one of my favourite characters of all time. Oh, and I'm excited because my mum's baking and decorating a cake for my birthday which I have my suspicions is a Harry Potter cake... Oh, Harry Potter, how you have shaped my life in to a magical kingdom. Crap, did I just say that. Oh, that reminds me I cried myself to sleep last night after mistakenly listening to "Leaving Hogwarts" from the Philosopher's Stone soundtrack. The score speaks belonging, freindship and warmth as well as sadness and it's beautiful. 

Bye Everyone, have wonderful Decembers

The end of NaNoWriMo

I am absolutely loving that I can finally write a blog, after a month of neglecting my website of sorts. Sure, I have two tests tomorrow that I could be revising for but that doesn't matter, I'm not thinking about that...because I WON NANOWRIMO aka National Novel Writing Month. (If you don't already know this is a month long writing project in which both amateur and professional writers attempt to write 50,000 or more words in 4o days and 40 nights.)

My novel was entitled "Whichever Way the wind Blows", it's not perfect and definitely needs checking through and altering about a thousand times, but I think it has potential. I'm going to take a small break from it now though for some Christmas spirit and new projects which I haven't been able to devote any time to this November. This is only a short blog post because I really do have revision to be doing but hey...check this out >

If you want one (as well as hard work and perhaps just the motivation and discipline you need to get that novel plan in action) then click here to find out all about how to apply for NaNo. No, I'm not going to be useful and informative, I'm just going to link you.

Have fun and Have lovely end-of-Novembers

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 (spoiler free)

OMG I cannot believe I have actually finally seen this film!!!!!!!

 I've been waiting for it for so, so, so long for this film and now I've finally seen it I can say it's overall amazing. Of course, as soon as my friends and I got out of the cinema, and after we stopped mourning Dobby, we ripped it apart, piece by piece... But then we had to admit that we actually really did really, really LOVE the film, as well. They missed out some things I loved but they also INCLUDED so many that I don't mind an awful amount.

I went on the day of the release (naturally) with my awesome friends Matt, Lauren, Megan, Kirsten and Abbi and while no blog reader will be interested in the details of the trip, I on the other hand want to remember this day. We pre-booked the tickets ages before but there was a bit of a crisis with a bus and we ended up getting a taxi there which was actually quite cheap, considering. Then, we had a bit of lunch in some restaurant where most of us drunk tap water, much to the waiter's annoyance and got excited about the film and discussed predictions. Then we went in (half an hour early in to an empty cinema screen). Lucky it came out on our in-service day really.

I'm not going to give away any details but I'll say that it stayed very true to the book, they added some really nice details and the acting was mainly very good. There was also some very good humor, but sometimes it was badly timed and therefore took away from tense or "scary" scenes. It wasn't perfect but it was definitely one of the best, I haven't decided if this one outdoes Goblet of Fire yet ...but it's a close one to call. I was very affected by a lot of the moments in the film and I thought, in particular, that Daniel, Rupert and Emma portrayed the relationships between Harry, Ron and Hermione perfectly. Uh oh, I'm feeling sentimental crap about to burst from me now so I will conclude...

As an awesome hard-core Harry Potter book fan I'm never going to be 100% happy with any of the films but I try to enjoy them as a separate thing, as an interpretation and that usually works out fine. I cannot wait to read other blog posts and you-tube videos about the film and am looking foward to seeing my friends again to talk about it. So, you, yes you, if you haven't watched this film yet, go watch it because it really is EPIC and I cannot wait for part 2!

Happy HarryPottering Everyone

A Short Mockingjay Review (no spoilers)

Mockingjay is the third book in the series of The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins. Check it out here.

I said I would write a review on here ages ago now and I feel like now is the time to keep my promise. Mockingjay is overall a powerful, unique and tragic book, without being depressing to read. I'm definitely not saying that the book hasn't affected me, it has immensely. It is a incredibly sad story, just written in a optimistic way. This is mainly due to the fact that the characters do not dwell in their misery, therefore neither do we, as readers.

I'm not going to give away any of the plot in this post, as I was initially planning to, because I find that I mainly read reviews of books I'm planning to read, not ones I already have. So to be concise, here is a list of the main reasons that I love The Hunger Games series and you will too;

1. The characters are gutsy, vivid and unforgettable
2. It is a unique storyline which stays with you forever
3. It has tension, excitement, action, romance, politics, war, science fiction and even an interesting food aspect

In an interview, Suzanne Collins was asked this Question: What do you hope young readers take away from your books?


And she answered:
 One of the reasons it’s important for me to write about war is I really think that the concept of war, the specifics of war, the nature of war, the ethical ambiguities of war are introduced too late to children. I think they can hear them, understand them, know about them, at a much younger age without being scared to death by the stories. It’s not comfortable for us to talk about, so we generally don’t talk about these issues with our kids. But I feel that if the whole concept of war were introduced to kids at an earlier age, we would have better dialogues going on about it, and we would have a fuller understanding.


I really like her response to this question and I agree with what she says. It is a spectacular book for these reasons and more.

So, in conclusion,  if you're looking for an action packed, thought provoking, unforgettable read then delve in to the dark, compelling world of The Hunger Games and I promise you that you won't regret it!

P.S. Check out my video review/response to Mockingjay which DOES contain spoilers!!

Awesome Mockingjay Quotes

I will be doing a proper review of Mockingjay soon but for now here are some of the most epic quotes from it:

"President Snow says he's sending us a message? Well, I have one for him... Fire is catching!.. And if we burn, you burn with us!"

"Ask yourself, do you really trust the people you're working with? Do you really know what's going on? And if you don't... find out."




'That I knew that I have misjudged you. That you do love him. I'm not saying in what way. Maybe you don't know yourself. But anyone paying attention could see how much you care about him."




"That what I need to survive is not Gale's fire, kindled with rage and hatred. I have plenty of fire myself. What I need is the dandelion in the spring. The bright yellow that means rebirth instead of destruction. The promise that life can go on, no matter how bad our losses. That it can be good again. And only Peeta can give me that." 




"You love me, real or not real?"


"Real"




"I raise my left arm and twist my neck down to rip off the pill on my sleeve. Instead my teeth sink into flesh. I yank my head back in confusion to find myself looking into Peeta's eyes, only now they hold my gaze. Blood runs from the teeth marks on the hand he clamped over my nightlock.


"Let me go!" I snarl at him, trying to wrest my arm from his grasp.


"I can't," he says."




"Sometimes when I'm alone, I take the pearl from where it lives in my pocket and try to remember the boy with the bread, the strong arms that warded off nightmares on the train, the kisses in the arena." 




"...I ate your lunch."
Haymitch" 




"You're still trying to protect me. Real or not real," he whispers.
"Real," I answer. "Because that's what you and I do, protect each other." 




"I clench his hands to the point of pain. "Stay with me."
His pupils contract to pinpoints, dilate again rapidly, and then return to something resembling normalcy. "Always," he murmurs." 




"Closing my eyes doesn't help. Fire burns brighter in the darkness." 




"Because something is significantly wrong with a creature that sacrifices its children's lives to settle its differences. You can spin it any way you like... But in the end, who does it benefit? No one. The truth is, it benefits no one to live in a world where these things happen"






p.s Check out my video review of "Mockingjay" which contains spoilers!!! 

"Catching Fire" rambling review (SPOILERS)

I just had some cheese topped bread for lunch and it made me think of Peeta so I decided that I'm ready to do my review of "Catching Fire"! Yay! I really shouldn't technically be doing this as my only follower hasn't even read any of "The Hunger Games" YET so he won't be reading this and if he is then he is very, very bad! Oh, also if you are a non-follower reading this who also hasn't read this book then I strongly recommend it to you. It's a book who would be insane to miss out on!

Moving on... I finished "Catching Fire" a couple of days ago but haven't felt like writing about it until now. It was a powerful, honest book which I think I loved even more than "The Hunger Games". Throughout the book I could feel the rebellion building and building and I knew it was only a matter of time until the situation effectively exploded in to the inevitable bloodbath which I'm sure is coming in "Mockingjay".

The book pretty much starts off where it left off; the aftermath of Katniss' mini rebellion at the end of the Games. I found myself falling even deeper in love with Peeta in this book. He demonstrates such loyalty and love towards Katniss and I just adore his character. he is selfless, caring and humble and overall amazing. I have a tendency to fall in love with characters but I guess that's not really a surprise, they are fictional! Right now I am just terrified that he will die in "Mockingjay" and I really, really need to read it or I am going to loose my sanity. When I read that Katniss was going to have to enter the hunger games a second time I went in to a temporary state of shock. It was just so unexpected! Her reaction to it was extremely, extremely well written though; for example the way it didn't sink in at first etc. I guess one of the reasons I loved Peeta even more in this book was that he was determined to enter in to the games again just to protect Katniss. Awwwwhhh. Oh My God I love this book...

I loved Cinna's death too. No, that sounds awful! I hated that he died but I love his character and the way he died for Katniss and for what was right. It was really brutal the way he died, especially the way they did it just before Katniss entered the Games. I love Cinna for his quiet confidence, bravery and empathy :)

Now I'm going to talk about the end of "Catching Fire"...I loved it and even though I didn't expect it I did however know all along that Johanna was on Katniss' side. I'm not entirely sure why but this gut feeling was made stronger when Suzanne Collins wrote that Johanna looked at katniss with "approval" and also the way she shouted the abuse at the Capitol, whilst in the arena. Awesome moment! As I have said, I didn't see the ending coming but I knew that neither Katniss nor Peeta were going to die in the second games but I also knew the Capitol were definitely not going to let them live. But yeahhh man I WANT PEETA BACK! Arghhh

Just a quick note about Gale: I love him as well as Peeta, for his bravery and passion although I think his passion can make him slightly blind.

P.S I do actually have a few gut feelings/predictions about "Mockingjay" including the following:
1. Things will not be as they seem
2. Peeta may die :'(
3. Katniss will get pregnant for real with Peeta
4. Gale may die (if Peeta doesn't) in a very heroic, dramatic way because that is just SO him
5. Peeta will kill somebody directly
6. There will be a "final battle scene" as such

Happy Reading!

England really can rain when it wants to!

I'm writing this mainly for my friend and follower, Matt, because he told me to but also because I told myself I was going to keep this blogging thing up...so here goes.

Hmm, I guess I'll tell you about yesterday... I was sat in geography, in the morning, when I heard magical, lighthearted music drift in from next door.
"Could it be?" I thought to myself and after straining to hear it for about twenty minutes I decided that Yes! some kids were watching Harry Potter next door whilst I was revising COASTS! So not fair! Ahh but the day improved when I went to I.T and, due to my teacher being absent and the school internet system screwed, I got on to youtube with Matt (who I seem to mention a lot) and watched random crap. I annoyed my "acquaintance", Jack, too! Good times :)

I've been told to include that later on in the day me and my friends saw a squirrel with a conker in it's mouth. Cool stuff. Granted it was a funny sight but I really think you had to be there!!

Right, fast forward to today... yeah, all I have to say is drum sticks make good wands, I like using imperio on my classmates and England seems to have an endless supply of rainwater! I'm still wet :(

Ok, this post is boring... but you'll forgive me :D

The Autumn Feeling

Walking home from school today and feeling the chill sneak in to my open shoes and through my thin jumper really gave me the "autumn feeling". I walked and talked with two of my best friends Matt and Lauren about the awesome things we talk about... our hatred of certain teachers, random TV shows and um conkers. Yes, we seem to have a new obsession with gathering conkers. I guess my excuse would be that I grew up collecting conkers, in my primary school. Right in the middle of the playground there was a gigantic Oak tree which was so big there was enough conkers for everyone in the autumn and the roots were big enough and high enough to actually climb on.
 Anyway, back to the present... we stopped by a fairly small Oak tree or "conker tree" as we call it and dived on the prickly green shells like little kids. The falling of conkers makes it official to me that autumn has begun, not to mention the icy wind that, I think, has left me with a chill now. But who can resist the wonderful, shiny brown and what can only be described as auburn qualities of the conker? And now I feel like an Autumn watch presenter. Great.

(bad) Conker Photography

Ah well, here's a picture I took of some of my beloved conkers.

p.s I've just had a really autumnal tea too, shepherd's pie and Apple pie. Lots of pie mmmm

Happy Autumn Everyone (Who am I even talking to? )

Youtube talk

I started on YouTube because I really love watching videos from the people on there. Sometimes I feel like I have more in common with my subscriptions than most people in my school. Anyway, I started an account before with one of my friends as a joint account which was fun until she had to pull out as her parent's withdrew permission for her to be on the internet. After closing this account I decided that if other people had the confidence to start YouTube videoing on their own, so could I. I love to talk and getting my opinions across is something I do on a regular basis so I planned to do this in the form of videos.
Anyhow, I made this channel which is currently a little empty.

A couple of weeks after I set up this account I came up with this preeetty sweet idea concerning my good friend, Sophie and I and ofcourse our love for youtube and the fact that we sometimes don't see each other for a while. Basically, we have a joint account where we just vlog to each other. We've only just started so we only have one video each but I'll be uploading another today or tomorow. (Sophie's really busy at the moment)

As sad as this may sound YouTube is a very important part of my life. I love watching vlogs, spoofs and music videos. I love the way everyone on youtube has the freedom to pretty much show the world anything they want to. You see people singing, playing instruments, making you laugh and some awesome actings skills being put on show to. Yeahhhhh, it's basically a great creative outlet and I LOVE watching YouTube videos!
I'm not ashamed to say. It is aweeessooommeeee

Bye Blogspot :)

The Outsiders- a book review

YouTube is so, so very amazing that it is difficult to prevent it from consuming your life. I've left my English essay and most of my Art Coursework until the last week of the summer holiday because of YouTube. The question I am now asking myself is, was it worth it? Answer: yes! What does that say about me?

However, the other day I didn't go on YouTube at all. Instead I read a book called "The Outsiders" by S E Hinton, a book about teenagers struggling to fit in, find themselves and surviving in the cruel reality which is life. It's only a short read but one that has stayed with me after reading it. If I was to describe it in three words I would say it was tragic, realistic and thought-provoking.

 Although the book was published in 1967 I don't think it will ever become outdated because it brings up so many issues which readers can and always will be able to apply to their lives and society in general. Part of the reason why I think "The Outsiders" is such a compelling, truthful and powerful book is that the Authoress, S E Hinton, was only 15 when she began writing it and published it at the age of 18. This means that she would have been writing it during her teenage years so the thoughts and feeling of the teenagers in the story would have been similar to her own.

I could blog about this wonderful book for hours but I don't want to give away the plot for anyone who stumbles across this post. Overall, "The Outsiders" is a compelling and eye-opening book which I would particularly recommend to those interested in Psychology or Sociology, or just those who are deep-thinkers.

p.s Uploaded a video on to YouTube today http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unl31X_GFbQ

Hanging off of a Knife Edge

I'm feeling very restless today for the following reasons:
1. They do NOT have "Checkmate" by Malorie Blackman in my local library ("Knife Edge"=huge cliffhanger)
2. Well, there actually isn't a "2"

It may be a short list but it's big for me, OK?

I actually feel ashamed to admit that I haven't read "Checkmate" yet as it is part of such an amazing, popular and wonderful series (Noughts and Crosses) that I cannot believe I've never started reading the series before now. I guess it's just one of those things were people are constantly recommending a book to you and you just get fed up of them nagging you about it. And therefore, if you are a person as stubborn and suspicious of popular entertainment as myself, you don't read it. I aim to fix that.

So, my message to anyone who reads this: When Someone recommends a book, it really is probably because it's genuinely good.

Happy Days

p.s I Filmed a Harry Potter music video yesterday with two awesome friends which naturally means that I am currently sporting Ron Weasley coloured hair! Would be all gooood if I hadn't had to display it in public at various occasions. Anyway,  I won't be releasing the video on the internet but it was awesome fun to film!

The top ten most amazing "things" in my world

What's your most favorite "things"? And by things I mean ANYTHING! What makes you smile? What keeps you entertained for years? Also, what makes your mouth water when you know it's being served at dinner time?

Anyhow, these are my... Top Ten Most Amazing "Things" (NOT in order)

1. The Harry Potter series
2. YouTube
3. Writing
4. Cheesecake
5. Snow
6. Wizard Rock
7. Reading, reading reading
8. Paramore (band)
9. Friends (T.V show)
10. Musical Theatre

Now, knowing me I will probably read over this post later and be alarmed that something I adore is missing from this list. But I'm just going to post it immediately anyway because I know no matter how much I alter this list I'm never going to be 100% happy with it.

p.s Anyone who reads this and feels like commenting about their "top ten", please feel free. I would be interested to hear from people.