Reading versus the Internet

INTERNET (Photo credit: fisakov)

I don’t know about anyone else, but i personally find that it’s harder to make myself read a book now i have easy access to the internet, whether on my laptop or my phone.

I always loved reading since i was little, and even though i’ve gone through stages of reading lots and reading very little at all over the years, i always come back to  reading a book eventually.

However, since the Internet invaded my life and became a fact of everyday life, i find it harder to open a book and read. There are so many distractions online, from social networks and instant messaging, to addictive online games and blogs. I am easily distracted these days, as proved by my frequent bouts of procrastination when i was at university for 4 years. There were days when i knew i should have been studying, but found myself playing games into the small hours of the morning. Oops.

These days, i am working 5 days a week during the day, and as i finish about 3pm, i have a lot of free time leftover. I try to read and i try to write blog posts here, but lately i find myself playing Tetris instead, determined to beat my best time and beat other people to a higher level of skill. It’s a little bit sad!

I have a large pile of books on my shelf waiting to be read, yet sometimes i find myself scrolling through the book pages of Amazon looking for ebooks to download onto my Kindle instead of picking up a physical book! And this is the girl who said she would never accept the Kindle as book replacement!

I still like physical books, but my Kindle means i can take a dozen books on long train journeys and switch between them if i get bored of one. That said, i still find myself listening to music on trains or playing on the internet on my phone. There it is again: the Internet!

Sometimes i wonder what would happen if i got rid of my phone and my laptop (and my Kindle!), and forced myself to find other forms of entertainment. I guess i would pick up a paper book! I will always return to the physical book!

Summer Holiday Reads

As you may or may not know, i have been away on holiday recently.

Having not been on a proper holiday for 2 whole years, it had been a long time coming, and i was determined to make the most of it! I went to Devon with a friend and spent nearly a fortnight in the hot sunshine (which was somewhat lacking in the North!).

Therefore, i wrote a bunch of posts and scheduled them to be posted each day i was away. This made up my Alphabet Author and A Book Challenge, which i started on 1st September and is due to finish on 26th September. As i was away from a computer, i thought it best to do something which didn’t involve a lot of maintenance! So, hopefully that challenge has been interesting!

As i spent a fair bit of time on the beach and had more free time in the evenings (usually after i’d eaten a huge meal and was unable to move for a few hours!), i started reading more books. I took my Kindle with me, which was great because i didn’t have to lug several books with me and i was trying to cut down my luggage (i had to carry it, and i like packing light!).

So i finished two books while i was away! My choices were both kind of supernatural:

“Wild Talents Book One: The Gathering” by Scott Sherman

Wild Talents Book One: The Gathering – Scott Sherman (via Amazon)

“Vampire State of Mind” by Jane Lovering.

Vampire State of Mind – Jane Lovering (via Amazon)

 

Both are excellent reads which i really enjoyed! I won’t go into what’s so great about them here: if you want to know more, click the links for each title, and it’ll take you to my reviews!

I also spent time wandering around bookshops, and in one secondhand bookshop i found a battered copy of “When The Earth Died” by Karl Mannheim:

When the Earth Died – Karl Mannheim

I thought it sounded interesting, so i bought it! Hopefully i’ll get around to reading it soon!

I really enjoyed my holiday, and i wish i hadn’t had to come back home to such vile wet weather up here in the North! But as the nights draw in, i can at least be happy that i can wrap myself up in my duvet and read lots of books!

Book Review: The Secret Intensity of Everyday life

I have just finished reading “The Secret Intensity of Everyday Life” by William Nicholson. I actually bought this ebook back in May and it’s taken me a while to get around to it, but now i decided that i fancied a less frantic paced book to my usual choices!

The Secret Intensity of Everyday Life – William Nicholson (via Amazon)

It is somewhat different to my usual book choices, but it was easy to read and fascinating with the interconnecting stories of the characters.

The central story is of the sudden return of happily married Laura’s first love, Nick. We discover the intensity of their short relationship and its sudden ending, and see that neither party has forgotten that first love. Things are more complicated now, as Laura has grown older and has her own life with her husband and children. It is interesting to see how Nick’s return affects Laura, and also her husband, Henry.

We get an insight into Henry’s life at work and his feelings towards his wife and to the star of the show which he wrote.

We also see how Laura and Henry’s son, Jack, struggles with trying to fit in with the right boys at school, even though the decisions made are potentially damaging to him and to the boys’ hero, dubbed the “Dogman”. The boy’s point of view is a nice change from the angle of the adults, bringing in his naivety to the story.

We also discover what goes on behind closed doors. In the case of the young teacher, Alan, we discover his anguish towards the many rejections he receives because of his writing, and also his growing feelings for the single mother whose child he tries to help through bullying. We also find that Alan’s old lonely neighbour has secret desires for Alan, and she is sure he feels the same, although as the reader we unfortunately know better.

Other characters who are explored include: the single mother’s mother and her relationship with her dog, the village rector and his different approach to religion, and the so-called  ”Dogman” and his little family.

I liked this book with all the facets which make up a satisfying whole. Themes covered include all kinds of love, death, grief, midlife crisis, identity, happiness, and so on.

I give this book a respectable 7 out of 10 because it is well written, with enough juicy bits to make you want to find out what happens to the characters. We get satisfactory closure on some of the characters’ stories, although a few are left unanswered. The main story with Laura and her feelings for Nick has a good ending, one which i actually hoped for because some things are better the way they are! Definitely a good read if you want something realistic and a quiet easy read.

Note: I read this on my Kindle.

Book review: H10N1

I have just finished reading “H10N1″ by M.R. Cornelius.

H10N1 – M.R. Cornelius (via Amazon)

It is a disaster novel about a pandemic which devastates most of the world but is set in the USA.

The blurb reads:

“A deadly influenza virus rages out of control. There is no easy-fix vaccine. No eleventh-hour containment. Only death.
With no workforce, power plants are unmanned so there’s no means of communication; police and fire departments have collapsed so no one is safe; looters are scavenging everything from big-screen TVs to canned peas.
When Dr. Taeya Sanchez finds herself unceremoniously dismissed from an emergency medical facility in New York, she decides to steal the hospital’s armored van for a midnight escape. 
Unfortunately, Rick DeAngelo, a driver for the hospital, has already stocked the van for his own getaway.
Thrown into an unfriendly alliance, these two must pick their way across the dangerous wasteland of America in search of a safe haven. And as the miles roll by, they discover that the living should be feared much more than the festering corpses out there.”

What is interesting is that it starts out as a pandemic with the horrible sickness, the dying, and the rotting corpses everywhere, but then it turns into a story about the aftermath when the virus has killed the unlucky ones and the lucky ones try to stay alive and keep their precious cargo of food and fuel away from others.

Sanchez and Rick steal a specially adapted van to get away from the sickness and the terrible political madness of New York and go off in search of safer places. despite their arguments and initial dislike of each other, they manage to evade the many dying and desperate souls and the decaying bodies everywhere, and find a safe haven with Rick’s friends on their commune where they are self-sufficient and cut off from the rest of the world in order to protect themselves. Soon, Rick and Sanchez’s presence draws enemies who ruin their safe haven, so the four of them go in search of the Biosphere which Sanchez’s friend Mai has started living. They find this amazing place which provides safety, food and companionship.

However, there are several unpleasant characters, with one particularly nasty one called Michael who is creepy and lazy. The four try to make the Biosphere more productive and work hard to get everyone to chip in as they all have to live there. Here, Rick and Sanchez’s relationship turns into romance, which seemed inevitable once they stopped thinking about going their seperate ways as first planned. Their separate losses bring them together and they find happiness in the midst of all the turmoil around them.

Unfortunately, things soon take a turn for the worse, and, after a devastating showdown, they end up back on the dangerous roads trying to find somewhere else. There is hope at the end of the novel when an old acquaintance turns out to be their saviour and a new kind of life begins after so many months of devastation.

I liked this book because it was terrifyingly realistic and could actually happen! It makes you think about what you would do to save yourself and your loved ones. There is a lot of death, sickness and loss in this book, and the beginning is horrific as it starts with someone being coaxed into swallowing a suicide pill to escape the horror unfolding around them.  The violence is inevitable and it shows just how desperate, greedy and unreasonable people can get under pressure.

I give this book an 8/10 because it is gripping, horrifying and fascinating! I definitely recommend it if you’re into the sci-fi, apocalytpic, dystopian theme books!

Note: I read this on my Kindle (only available as an Ebook)

 

 

 

Book review: Tess of the d’Urbervilles

I have just read “Tess of the d’Urbervilles” by Thomas Hardy. I have never read it before now, and not even studied it at school like some people have, so i thought it was time to give it a go!

Tess of the d’Urbervilles – Thomas Hardy (via Amazon)

I felt sad for Tess because, as the oldest daughter, she was inevitably going to be forced to make a good marriage to help support her big family. The issue of finding out that she was probably a descendant of the once rich and noble d’Urbervilles turns out to be a blessing and a curse. This poor girl is forced to beg for help from her distant relations with the d’Urberville and starts working for an old blind woman and her son. The son is a little creepy and doesn’t leave Tess alone, and this inevitably leads to him raping her. She returns to her family and home after this, but her life has changed so hugely that it will never be the same again.

She suffers many hardships, but becomes very independent, earning her way by any means necessary in the countryside where she is comfortable. She makes friends and enemies but manages to keep herself going. She gains much attention from men, despite her efforts to keep a distance. She meets one charming young man who wants her for his wife but she refuses again and again, knowing that her secret will destroy her and those near her.

The ending of the book was a bit disappointing, after all the events which happen through it, and i was annoyed that it finished so abruptly.

Tess goes from being a figure of beauty and innocence, to a figure of pity and hardship, to a figure of pathetic, self-pitying, glutton for punishment, and finally to a figure of revenge and (short-lived) happiness.

I give this book 7/10 for being a classic tale, with a fascinating protagonist who covers so much ground, and deals with many issues. Worth reading at least once!

Note: I read this on my Kindle (as it is a free ebook).

Book Review: Replica

I have just finished reading “Replica” by Lexi Revellian. I found this ebook for free on Amazon and thought it sounded interesting.

Replica – Lexi Revellian (via Amazon)

The blurb reads:

“Beth Chandler, bright, attractive but unassertive, is accidentally replicated in a flawed experiment at the government research institute where she works. A second Beth comes into being, complete with all her memories. To Sir Peter Ellis, MI5 chief, the replica is an embarrassment that must be hushed up and disposed of. Overhearing him, Beth Two goes on the run. With no official existence, homeless, penniless and pursued by Sir Peter’s agents, she has to find the inner strength and aggression to survive on icy London streets. 

Meanwhile the original Beth, unaware of what has happened, becomes romantically involved with Nick Cavanagh, the spec op she believes is there to protect her. In fact, he’s hunting her double. Nick refuses to face his moral doubts about Beth Two – as far as he’s concerned, it’s not his problem. As events unfold, and the situation grows more complicated, he has to decide whose side he is on.”

The story is a fast-paced thriller with romantic elements which is really gripping! The idea of human clones is rather controversial and i wasn’t sure how i felt about it when i started reading. At first i thought Beth was a bit pathetic with a loser boyfriend who isn’t right for her but she keeps him in her life for reasons i can’t fathom! When she gets replicated, it gets interesting because we have her clone and we get to see what Beth is like when forced to go on the run to save herself. Beth Two is gradually shown to be different to the original Beth, although they share the same memories, knowledge and looks, their temperaments seem to be a bit different: Beth Two is more angry and has a strong sense of self-preservation, especially when she manages to outwit her would-be-captors.

Talking of captors, we meet Nick, the agent tasked with protecting the original Beth and tracking down her double. He develops a closer relationship with Beth while working out how to catch Beth Two.  It gets a little confusing: you wonder how he manages to differentiate between Beth who he has feelings for, and Beth Two who he wants to capture. Nick is an interesting character who seems very attractive from the way he is portrayed!

It gets complicated when the two Beths finally end up face to face and go public with their story, as we don’t get all the information about what really happened when they were received by the world. There is a rather sad element to this, but i won’t spoil it for you if you haven’t read it yet!

I give “Replica” a big 9/10 because it had me gripped from the beginning, and i got really annoyed when things happened which i didn’t want to happen (i guess they were inevitable!), which always makes for interesting reading! It is such a great plot, and it makes you question how far you can go with the ethics of human cloning. I really recommend it if you like something a bit different or controversial.

NOTE: I read this on my Kindle, and had no problems with the ebook at all. At the time of publishing this review, the ebook was still free on Amazon!

A sneak peek…. at my Kindle reading list

Although i am still in love with print books, i am growing increasingly fond of my little Kindle, with its amazing capacity for holding many, many ebooks! I am harbouring a slight addiction to downloading paid for and free ebooks and the fact that it is instantaneous!

Here is a little sneak peek at some of the books sitting on my Kindle reading list:

My Kindle reading list

I have read all of the titles shown, except for “H10N1″ and most of the plays by Shakespeare!

March Madness – Buying Books!

I just realised i haven’t written a blog yet in March! Oops!

I haven’t been doing much, had a few days off work, then a rather busy weekend at work. Managed to round off the weekend with a much needed catch-up and chill time with some close friends in our usual hangout at a local pub. Also managed to wrangle today off work as one of my paid holiday days, of which i have rather a lot left to take and not much time to take any. So i’ve spent most of today watching a bit of TV, and jobhunting!

I haven’t been reading a lot in the last week, as i was mainly waiting for some new books to arrive in the post! I started re-reading the Harry Potter series for the umpteenth time though!

It’s not like i don’t already have new books lying around though – i have books on my Kindle waiting to be read! I currently have the following as yet unread ebooks:

• “H10N1″ by M.R. Cornelius
  

  H10N1 - M.R. Cornelius (via Amazon)

• “Facing the Son, A Novel of Africa” by M.L. Rudolph
  

  Facing the Son, A Novel of Africa - M.L. Rudolph (via Amazon)

• “Little Women” by Louisa May Alcott (i felt i should try this)
  

  Little Women - Louisa May Alcott (via Amazon)

• “Ulysees” by James Joyce (i ought to read at least one of Joyce’s books!)
  

  Ulysses - James Joyce (via Amazon)

And then today, two of my book orders arrived:

• “The Poison Tree” by Erin Kelly
  

  The Poison Tree - Erin Kelly (via Amazon)

• “Every Other Day” by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
  

  Every Other Day - Jennifer Lynn Barnes (via Amazon)

I’m currently waiting on two more book orders to arrive:

• “Shame” by Karin Alvtegen (i read “Missing” and thought i’d try another of her books – good translated fiction!)
  

  Shame - Karin Alvtegen (via Amazon)

• “The Elegance of the Hedgehog” by Muriel Barbery (another translated book)
  

  The Elegance of the Hedgehog - Muriel Barbery (via Amazon)

I have a HUGE list of books which i want to read, and it’s difficult to pick out a few to buy at a time – i am trying not to spend all my wages on them! A lot of these are just random choices which i liked the sound of, but we will see! This feels like a lot of books to me, but it’s enough to keep me going through March!

I’m also still looking for publishing jobs, and i have applied for a few more! Unfortunately, i got rejected (again!) from one application after going for an interview two weeks ago. Ah well, i’ll keep trying!