Fragment Friday

The Murder on the Links by Agatha Christie

'It was the short man who was holding me. He forced a gag into my mouth , and then bound me with rope hand and foot. The other man was standing over my husband. He had caught up my little dagger paper-knife from the dressing table and was holding it with the point just over his heart. When the short man had finished with me, he joined the other, and they forced my husband to get up and accompany them into the dressing-room next door. I was nearly fainting with terror, nevertheless I listened desperately. 

'They were speaking in too low a tone for me to hear what they said. But I recognized the language, a bastard Spanish such as is spoken in some parts of South America. They seemed to be demanding something from my husband, and presently they grew angry, and their voices rose a little. I think the tall man was speaking. "You know what we want?" I do not know what my husband answered, but the other replied fiercely. "You lie! We know you have it. Where are your keys?"

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

MAY THE ODDS BE EVER IN YOUR FAVOUR

Winning will make you famous. 

Losing means certain death.

In a dark vision of the near future, twelve boys and twelve girls are forced to appear in a live TV show called the Hunger Games. There is only one rule: kill or be killed. 

When sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen steps forward to take her sister's place in the games, she sees it as a death sentence. But Katniss has been close to death before. For her, survival is second nature.

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Wow is all I can say about this book. It is both deeply disturbing and amazingly addictive at the same time. I sat up finishing it until 5.30am. It was simply to good to put down. It was a combination of fantastic characters, imaginative writing and a wonderfully fast pace which made the book such fun to read. 

The characters were really well written, I really liked Katniss and Peeta. I was behind them both 100% Every time the cannon sounded my heart all but stopped and I was compelled to read on as quickly as possible to find out who had fallen. I enjoyed the fact that Katniss was a very strong female character, she didn't need or depend on the boys for food, warmth or protection. The fact she was also able to remain kind and sensitive to the feelings of others such as Rue also made her more endearing.

I'll admit in parts it was disturbing but I was aware of that from the beginning. Any book that involves children having o fight for survival and murder each other is obviously going to be hard to read. It is one of the reasons I avoided the book for so long. However I was pleasantly surprised at how well it was dealt with. The author doesn't glorify the killings and in most situations you don't even see the deaths. Instead they are announced by a simple projection into the sky of a photograph of the victim taken before the event began.  It was done tastefully and with the age of the audience in mind. However some people may still find this to much, my partner for one still doesn't like it or what the book portrays so it is honestly down to personal choice. 

Overall I loved the book. It was addictive from start to finish and left me eager for the next installment. In this case I can honestly as that it deserves the hype it has been getting and I'm terribly pleased I decided to give it a go.  

I give this book 5 out of 5 stars. 

It was a thrilling, exciting and thoroughly entertaining book. I plan to keep it and read it again in future.

Fragment Friday

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

The woods became our saviour, and each day I went a bit further into its arms. It was slow going at first, but I was determined to feed us. I stole eggs from nests, caught fish in nets, sometimes managed to shoot a squirrel or rabbit for stew, and gathered the various plants that sprung up beneath my feet. Plants are tricky. Many are edible, but one false mouthful and you're dead. I checked and double-checked the plants I harvested with my fathers pictures. I kept us alive.

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte

 

 

As the new tenants of Wildfell Hall, beautiful, reclusive Helen Graham and her young son find themselves the objects of gossips and scandal.

 

Gilbert Markham has formed a deep attachment to Helen. He does everything in his power to staunch the rumours that she is an immoral woman with a past she needs to conceal; but he himself does not know the truth.

 

Gradually coming to trust Gilbert, Helen reveals her past life to him: a miserable marriage in which she was tormented by her adulterous, drunken husband, Huntingdon, who mocked her religion and tried to corrupt their child. But despite her bid for independence, Helen is still in Huntingdon's power, and only death can end her terror.

 

A novel of surprising modernity, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall shocked Anne Bronte's Contemporaries in its outspoken treatment of the issue of women's equality and it is unforgettable for its passionate sincerity and psychological honesty.

 

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This book was wonderfully written. I found myself lost within the language and transported to a different era. The characters pulled at my heartstrings and I felt their pain, sorrow, happiness, disgust and relief as the story unfolded. Do not be put off by the labelling of this book as a classic, it is still easy to read and understand, and the language used is not difficult to adapt too.

 

I read it over a few days and found the story captivating. I loved Gilbert and felt his pain and worry throughout. I positively despised Huntingdon on many occasion while at others I felt sorry for him and wished things could be different in much the same way that Helen did. The characters really make this story come alive due to their depth and the painstaking detail that has gone into them.

 

I can't recommend this book enough. I loved it. I laughed, cried and sulked over certain parts and really enjoyed the entire thing. The first 200 pages went by in a heartbeat and the fast pace continued until the very last page. However I never felt that my reading was hurried, in fact it was the opposite, I felt as if I entered into the 1800s and everything was at a relaxing pace. It's the perfect book for cold winter evenings with a hot drink and a blanket.

 

I give this book 5 out of 5 stars.

It was breathtaking and I will no doubt read this book again.

Fragment Friday

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte

And indeed, I know not whether, at the time, it was for him rather than myself that I blushed? for, since he and I are one, I so identify myself with him, that I feel his degradation, his failings, and transgressions, as my own; I blush for him, I fear for him; I repent for him, weep, pray, and feel for him as for myself; but I cannot act for him; and hence, I must be and I am, debased, contaminated by the union, both in my own eyes, and in the actual truth. I am so determined to love him-so intensely anxious to excuse his errors, that I am continually dwelling upon them, and labouring to extenuate the loosest of his principles, and the worst of his practises, till I am familiarised with vice, and almost a partaker in his sins. Things that formerly shocked and disgusted me, now seem only natural. I know them to be wrong, because reason and God's word declare them to be so; but I am gradually losing that instinctive horror and repulsion which were given me by nature, or instilled into me by the precepts and example of my aunt. Perhaps, then, I was to severe in my judgements, for I abhorred the sinner as well as the sin; now, I flatter myself I am more charitable and considerate; but am I not becoming more indifferent and insensate too? Fool that I was, to dream that I had strength and purity enough to save myself and him! Such vain presumption would be rightly served, if I should perish with him in the gulf from which I sought to save him!

The DUFF - Designated, Ugly, Fat, Friend. by Kody Keplinger

Seventeen-year-old Bianca Piper knows she's not the hottest girl at school, but when school jock and resident moron Wesley casually refers to her as a Duff - Designated Ugly Fat Friend - the gloves are off!

If there's a thin line between love and hate then Bianca has crossed it. She just never thought she was capable of breaking anyone's heart...

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I loved this book and read it one sitting. I was hooked from the first few pages which I can only put down to the absolutely amazing main character Bianca. Wow how wonderfully written she was, I loved her sassy, cheeky, angry, sarcastic and yet obviously vulnerable personality. Bianca was a pleasure to get to know, her little OCD type quirks, and the relationship she with her friends only made her more believable.

I could really understand her situation and how she felt about the world. Keplinger really tuned into the world of the comprehensive / high school years. It is a time in ones life when everything you do, say and how you look is on display and judged. Yes this happens in the 'real' world but during the school years it is amplified. Everyone is growing up and learning their limits therefore things can get vicious at times when the lines are crossed.

This book was a fabulous read. I can't say to much because I really don't want to give anything away. It is simply to great to risk even the slightest hint of the story escaping my lips. However I will say it is perfect for people in high school and beyond, it can really open your eyes to what and who are Duffs.  I loved it and will be keeping an eye on Keplingers future releases with excitement.

                                           I give this book 5 out of 5 stars.
                     It was wonderful. I loved it and wish it could have lasted longer.

Some Sunny Day - My Autobiography by Dame Vera Lynn

 

 

Born Vera Welch in 1917, Dame Vera Lynn's career began at just seven years old when she sang professionally in East End Working Men's Clubs. A successful radio career with Joe Loss and Charlie Kunz in the 1920s and '30s followed - but it was with World War II that she became famous.

With her radio show 'Sincerlty Yours', Vera connected emotionally with the men fighting for their country and those left behind praying for their loved ones, and became known as 'The forces Sweetheart'. Performing the songs she will forever be associated with - 'We'll Meet Again' and 'The White Cliffs of Dover' among others - Vera toured Egypt, India and Burma with the Entertainment National Services Association, bringing troops a sense of 'back home'. But what she saw out there affected her profoundly.

Her career after the war flourished, but Vera never left behind her wartime role. Still heavily involved with veteran and other charities, this is Dame Vera's extraordinary story of her life and her war - from bombs and rations to broadcasts and air raids, and the searing heat of her appearances abroad.

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I have heard the wartime songs of Dame Vera Lynn my entire life, both in the original versions and remakes by more recent artists. However I have never known the story behind the music and the lady who sang them so wonderfully. This book covers Lynn's entire life from her birth through to present day (yes she is actually alive and in her 90's!). However the majority of the book is centred around the war years. I find the Second World War a fascinating subject in any case so I really enjoyed reading about the daily struggles and restrictions that affected the country on a personal level.

Lynn paints a fantastic picture of a time when life was much simpler and the pace of life slower. While explaining the hardships of war she successfully shows how life continued on in much the same way as before. People went to work, enjoyed evening entertainment and children went to school as best they could. I have to say I enjoyed the war years element the most.

I did become a bit bored towards the end of the book which focused on the post war years. It became more of a book about her privileged life and having the ability to buy a twenty-four bedroom house (which turned out to be a much loved but expensive mistake) than a book about a 'real' person. The small details such as the fact she would make her daughters clothes in her dressing room, during breaks between performance's, were what kept me reading. I felt I really gained a glimpse of the real person that I read about in the war years and not the just the image of a music star.

The book also gives a fascinating look into the works of the BBC before, during and after the war. It really portrayed the BBC as having the ability to make or break careers at the drop of a hat, and at times it appeared to have a little to much power and the wish to control society. I found some parts humorous such as the fact that in the 40's television was so expensive that only the rich could afford to view it, so much so that one of the cookery programmes of the day was called 'Cooks Night Off'.

Overall it was a fabulous book to read, I really escaped into the world of music halls, concerts and recording studios. Lynn's voice is strong throughout and you really feel she is talking to a close friend and this really helps make a strong connection with the reader. As I mentioned above I have only heard the wartime songs and so knew nothing of the period or the people, managers or stars she was surrounded by at the time. It didn't matter at all, I was able to easily follow the book and Lynn made me feel like I knew the people she was working with even if I didn't recognise their names personally.

I recommend this books to anyone who has an interest in the Second World War, especially on the home front although it does cover the front line further in. It is also a good read for anyone who likes a good biography about someone who has lived an extraordinary life and achieved remarkable things.

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars.
I really enjoyed it and found it a very interesting and thought provoking book.