As promised, today I'll be talking about J.K. Rowling's new book, The Casual Vacancy, and just summing up fall break :D
Sorry I haven't posted yet, but the few days of classes we had this week were pretty busy. There has been a presentation to prepare (that I didn't end up getting to give >:/ ), a paper to outline, and an o-chem quiz. Ugh.
And, I'll be honest, there was one more thing: I had to finish my book.
I know it was past the end-of-break deadline, but I only had like 100 pages to go, and I finished it last night. It was actually a hilarious (now, but infuriating at the time) story. Here I was, 30 pages away from the end of the book, and my nook dies on me. UGH. Simple enough, just plug it in, wait for it to charge a little and continue reading. Except, the little metal part of the charger that actually goes into the device was hanging out and broken. An hour and a frantic wild goose chase across Newport News (which conveniently rolls up the sidewalks at like 9 at night) later, I was still empty-handed. I ended up having to download the Nook app on my iPhone and finish it on there. Frustrating!
Luckily I'm trying to replace my e-reader with a tablet that does more, so I think my phone will suffice until then. Now I don't have to go buy a new charger!
Anywho, about the actual book itself :P
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My issues may be unique, since I can be rather picky and somewhat pedantic in my reactions to things. First off, pacing and length. It's by no means too long of a book, but a lot of focus tends to be put on very small personal developments among the vast list of characters, and this causes the middle to drag considerably. Honestly, you could carve a chunk out of the middle and still have the story perfectly intact. Secondly, none of the characters are very likeable, or even relatable (to me, maybe you will feel differently. The only "good guy" who does the right thing for the right reasons dies very early in the book, and everyone else squabbles over his seat for selfish purposes. Even the "good guys" are full of vitriol and spite. The only character I could relate to was a teenage girl, and that's only because I've also dealt with insane parental pressure and low self-esteem. Last but not least, and this I acknowledge probably comes from me being old-fashioned, I didn't feel like the ending was truly the ending. Since all of the characters were woven into such an intricate web, there were a lot of issues to be resolved by the end, and I just don't feel like enough of them were. In fact, some issues weren't presented until the very end. There was a small glimmer of hope for a few of the characters, but overall not enough questions were answered. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for an open ending, just not ten open endings. It's not even that it isn't a "happy" ending (Moulin Rouge is one of my favorite movies for crying out loud!), it just doesn't feel complete.
I don't mean to tear the book apart, because in all honesty, I neither loved nor hated it. I liked it, as in I'm glad I read it and spent money on it. It's very well-written, the characters are realistic, and it deals with social issues that are current and very real (both in America and in the UK, where it takes place). I also appreciate how well she tied the characters together to really capture how small of a town the reader's dealing with. I'd probably give it a 7.5 out of 10. What did you guys think?
So, now that that's out of the way, on to fall break! Probably the most important thing is NEW HAIR!
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| I got roughly 6 inches off, and bangs. Technically they're side bangs, but I LOVE being able to brush them across to mix it up. Please excuse my makeup-less face! |
I didn't do too much, besides having lunch with my dear friend Anna from highschool and attending my 2-year-old cousin's birthday party. I did actually do some thrifting though! At a consignment shop that sells furniture from model homes, I found this table that someone had brought in and NOBODY wanted. It's teal and antiqued, and everyone else thought it was ugly, but I thought it was the perfect thing for my bedside table. I've been re-doing my room in shades of blue, and it fits really well. I'll be sure to post a picture sometime :)
At my absolute FAVORITE consignment shop in Manassas, a little place called Carousel, I found this lovely Vera Wang for only $24:
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Another fun thing was clearing space on my bookshelves. They were literally overflowing with books I've been collecting for years, so I decided it was time to make some room for my changing tastes. Twilight? Gone. Private/Gossip Girl? Gone. Anything of that nature went into a giant bin, and then down to the used bookstore. The only two "teenager-y" series I kept were my Harry Potter books and the Luxe series by Anna Godbersen (even if you're not a teenager, they're really good). I ended up taking store credit for them and went a little wild. :)
The first thing I did was hunt down the first two Harry Potter books in hardcover. They were tragically lost the first time I moved in 10th grade, leaving me with only books 3-7 (I feel lucky that I still have book 3 though, because my grandmother bought it for me and wrote a note inside congratulating me on going into the 5th grade), so I definitely needed to right the situation. I found both of them in fabulous condition, and for much cheaper than had I gone online or managed to find them in a bookstore. After that, I found The Dream of the Earth by Thomas Berry, who is a prominent writer on topics relating to deep ecology, or "ecospirituality," and which sounds like something someone like myself is bound to enjoy. I also picked up a copy of Galileo's Daughter: A Historical Memoir of Science, Faith, and Love by Dava Sobel, a biography of Galileo and his relationship with his daughter, Maria Celeste, during his trials and triumphs. I've found her to be a fascinating figure since I learned about her, so I'm excited to get around to that one.
This week was mercifully short and there weren't any labs, so I've had it pretty easy (comparatively). Still, like I said, there's just never enough hours in the day! Here's some outfits I'm proud of from the week:
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| This is from Wednesday 10/24, our first day back. Button-down: American Eagle Cami: Target Leggings: Target? I can't keep track, I have so many! Necklace: Tiffany & Co. (I wore black flip-flops from Old Navy, not pictured) |
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| Thursday 10/25 Shirt and cami: American Eagle Jeans: PacSun Flats: PacSun Necklace: Same as above. Bracelet: Vintage? See below. |
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| I found this beauty in an antique desk that we rummaged from our attic in our old house and that I'm planning on re-painting. No one knows whose it is/was, but I thought it was precious and unique! |
Welp, that's it for today, folks! I know it was kinda long, but I had an entire break to recount! :P Thanks for sticking around and reading. I think coming up I'll share some really interesting illustrations we've been looking over in one of my classes, as well as do an update post on some new cruelty-free products I've been using.
Til then!
<3, Ali
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