Geeking Out: Books Come to Life

I'm geeking out about some books-turned-movies!

In the last week alone, I've seen Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters and The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones. I had read both books, so I was eagerly anticipating seeing them come to life. It helps that my 13yo daughter was as excited as I was.

A brief review of each...

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters

Fun. After being disappointed with The Lightening Thief (book one in this series) movie, thanks to too many changes from the book, I wasn't sure what to expect from this installment. But I really enjoyed it. It probably helped that I was further removed from reading the books so any changes weren't as obvious.

The action starts in the first frame and never lets up. Plus, there's a sweet side story with Percy and his newly found brother who is also a Cyclops.

*****

While my daughter was the one to suggest The Lightening Thief series to me, I recommended the City of Bones series to her. All you moms out there can relate... there's something cosmic about your 13yo daughter thinking anything you suggest is cool.

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones


I SO wanted this to be good. I thought Lily Collins was excellent casting, but I was a little disappointed in the actor chosen for Jace. Please don't think I'm totally superficial for saying this, but he's just too skinny and not the stud I had created in my mind to represent Jace. But, I must say... he did an excellent job.

Still, I was a softie for Simon, Clary's best friend, in the book and even more so in the movie. Robert Sheehan is sexy and so expressive with his eyes. I'm still on the fence about the casting of Magnus Bane and his role in the movie. My image of him was much "bigger" and more sinister. They kind of played him like a drag queen with a soft side. 

There were a few changes from the book, but I didn't find them distracting. It was a bit scary for my daughter, especially the demon images, but overall I really liked it.

*****

But the book-turned-movie I'm most excited to see is this November's The Book Thief. However, I'm nervous. This is one of my favorite books ever, and I want to cherish this movie.

Here's the book trailer:

 
What was the last movie that had you geeking out?

Reader Consideration Vs. Savvy Business Moves

As both a writer and an avid reader, sometimes the reader takes over. Heck, most of the time the reader drives the writer. The more I read, the more I want to write.

But, today I have on my reader hat, and I'm mulling something over and would love some other readers' (even if they are also writers) thoughts.

Recently, my email heralded the newest book by Cassandra Clare. I read the first three of the City of Bones trilogy, but my 13yo daughter has read every single book by her and has been asking for more reading material for summer. So I thought I'd surprise my dear daughter by downloading a new book to her Kindle. When I went to look the book up, I saw that it was part of a series I had somehow missed.

Call me excited!

Not only was the price ($2.99) excellent for Book 1, but the description sold me: Fans of The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices know that Magnus Bane is banned from Peru—and now they can find out why. One of ten adventures in The Bane Chronicles. (from Amazon)

I purchased.

Then, and only then, did I look into the other books. I ventured over to Cassandra Clare's website and found some great information about The Bane Chronicles here. Then, some important words jumped out at me... short stories.

What? (note: it was in the Amazon description if I had read two more paragraphs)

The books range from 40-50 pages on average.

I know traditionally published books are more expensive than all my indie favorites, so I should have been wary of the $2.99. And I have no problem with Cassandra Clare issuing some ebook-only short stories for her fans, but $29.90 for ten stories that are 40-50 pages each... I'm just not so sure how I feel about that.

Upon further research, I came across an article about Cassandra Clare and her father, a successful author and business school professor, and the left-brained side of me was impressed. She's in the business of writing. I respect that, truly.

But, as a reader, I'm still left with a sour taste in my mouth.

Help me, please. Which side of me should win.. the BBA grad who respects smart business choices that allow writers to make a living or the reader who feels a bit taken advantage of?

Middle Child Day: Friday Feature

Somewhere this week, and I say somewhere because I read so much both online and elsewhere I have no idea where I find things anymore, I saw that August 12th is Middle Child Day. I'm the first born of three girls, but today happens to be my middle sister's birthday. Happy Birthday, Tara! I'm also married to a middle child. For today's Friday Feature, the best thing I read this week and why, I wanted to talk about the middle.

My husband and I both come from families of three (and same-sex families of three at that). The nice thing about three... it is well-defined with a beginning, a middle, and an end. The bad thing... it is well-defined. Many scholars have studied birth order and its effect on the family and the individual. What I find interesting is how often you hear the term "middle child syndrome" versus talking about first or last borns. My husband and sister would agree they felt lost in the shuffle.

Then I realized I could tie this into reading. Actually I've found I can tie just about anything back to reading or writing, but I digress. I enjoy series, but almost always note the second book syndrome in a trilogy. This happened for me in the Twilight (okay, second book of four), Hunger Games and City of Bones series. So maybe there's some validity to lost in the shuffle. The first book lands the author the series commitment, so it needs to be stellar and attention-grabbing. The second book usually fills in story to prepare the reader for the thrilling conclusion of the third book. It's sad, because the second book can keep me from continuing the series. I devoured Hunger Games, but Catching Fire lacked the spark to propel me to the third which is collecting dust in my to-read pile.

A lesson can be learned by both parents and writers: give special love to your second baby and make sure they don't feel lost or neglected. I know I strive to do this with my beautiful second daughter, Reagan. Of course, it helps to have both my sister and husband constantly reminding me.

A special shout-out to all who find themselves in the middle. It can truly be a special place, especially if you make sure people see you.

Here I am with my sister, Tara

My middle daughter, Reagan

My two middles, husband Ed & Reagan

Are you stuck in the middle? What's your story?