Spontaneous Reviewing

In poker, it's called steaming when you've lost a hand you thought you'd win (or deserved to win, or whatever), and I promised I wouldn't review while I was steaming. But I tried to sleep on it, and here I am, still so friggin' irritated that I couldn't sleep.

Some mornings you couldn't wake me up with a hot poker (yesterday, for instance, or the day before that, and the day before that) and this morning, inexplicably, I woke up two hours early, still peeved about the book I finished last night, 31 Hours.

Let me explain. I started the book Tuesday night and only got two chapters into it. I was not really interested, but it had come highly recommended on www.flashlightworthybooks.com so I persevered. I continued and found, surprisingly, that the story got more interesting by the end of the third chapter and I was delighted. Essentially, the premise of the book is that this white, Anglo, American guy has converted to Islam and (SPOILER ALERT!) is part of an upcoming terrorist attack on NYC via the subway system. Let me tell you, it was fascinating. Literally. The book chronicles the, you guessed it, 31 hours, before the attack is to take place. It's told from various viewpoints- characters that are loosely connected, but ones you grow to love nonetheless. Each one is somehow tied to the events coming up- the terrorist attack on the NYC subway system- and as it turns out, several of the main characters may or may not be on the subway when the attack takes place, if it even does.

Then it ends.

Seriously, there is NO FRIGGIN' ENDING. The fella is wavering, unsure he wants to do this and he gets onto the subway and... the end. What about his girlfriend's little sister, who might be on the subway because she was trying to save her parents' marriage? What about the homeless guy that's friggin' adorable? No idea. Does the attack take place? Probably yes, but your guess is as good as mine.

ARGGGGGGG!!!!!

So yes, I just wrote an entire blog about it to vent. I absolutely believe in (and love) ambiguous endings, but this wasn't an ending, for heavens sake. *ANGRY SIGH!* So now I go to you, friends. How do you feel about ambiguous endings? What's a book with an up-in-the-air ending that you loved? Am I bonkers? Thanks for your opinions!

The book had one upside- I'm going to start reviewing books again. :)

Happy Reading!

Grammar? Punctuation? Artistry?

Hey friends, it's another chance for me to pick your brain on a random topic. This time, I'm wondering about grammar rules and your opinions.

Now, I know this seems general, and that's because it is. I'm a fierce grammarian and spelling is my FAVORITE (seriously) but I know it can all get a bit... annoying. And rigid. And overdone. I mean, I understand that there are rules that need to be followed, but seriously- what about artistic license? Sometimes saying things incorrectly is more dramatic, and therefore part of your own way of writing.

So what I'm asking is this- what are the grammar rules that you believe CANNOT be broken, and why? What rules do you flout with a smile? Where do you draw the line between artistic license and lunacy?

Short post, I know- I want some feedback, people!

Happy Reading!

onomatoPOEia?

This is going to get to books in a second, I swear, so just follow my train of thought. I'm going somewhere, I promise.

So, I was at a wonderful concert last weekend with Christmas carols given a rock edge, and this band, Future of Forestry, managed to do what NO ONE else has ever done- make me look forward to the song Little Drummer Boy.

Generally speaking, I really, really hate that song. HATE IT.

This band does a long drum section to finish the song- I saw it last year so I knew it was coming- and it is PHENOMENAL. But that's not the point of this.

So a friend couldn't believe that I generally don't like Little Drummer Boy, and I was trying to explain my peeve to her. Then, I realized the problem.

Pah-rum-pah-pum-pum.

It really annoys me that the song so literally states the drumming. Yuck. I mean, why? Is it necessary? You are playing instruments, for goodness sake- let the drum speak for itself! Sigh.

But it got me thinking about onomatopoeias- words that imitate a sound, like "bang", or "zap!" or "meow...". I was told by a creative writing teacher that they were named after Edgar Allen Poe (thus the spelling of onomatoPOEia) because he used them so much, especially in his poetry. For those of you better suited to this than me, is this rumor true? Have you ever heard this before, and is there anything to support this? I've read a LOT of Poe, and I've never noticed an irregularly high number of onomatopoeias. Am I missing something?

Also, what are your favorite onomatopoeias? This goes out to everyone! Before you laugh and say to yourself, "PSSSSHHH, what kind of nerd has a favorite onomatopoeia?" stop and this about it. Think about Batman and POW! or that stupid kid from the Mazda commercials saying ZoomZoom in that freaky voice. Onomatopoeias are a pop culture stigma, especially (to my knowledge) in English. For those of you that I KNOW are reading and have never commented, this is your chance! Give me your best contributions- I would love to hear them! Or just rip me apart for hating the little drummer boy- he really annoys me to death. Thanks to everyone that's been following!

Happy Reading!

Confession # 2...

It's been a while, I know. So let's go with another confession to get things rolling again.

Confession # 2- I'm a title snob.

Now, I know Shakespeare is sort of a genius and all, but when he says "What's in a name? A rose by any other name would smell as sweet", I've gotta say, I disagree. Not that he doesn't have a sweet sentiment there, but some words are just GROSS. You know the ones I mean- crusty, moist (hehe, I know a few of you just shuddered)... need I go on?

So the thing is, I like books with awesome titles. By awesome, I mostly mean snobby. I am far more likely to pick up a book called The Elegance of the Hedgehog (it's true, I bought it at an airport) than, say, Catching Fire. Incidentally, I liked The Elegance of the Hedgehog, but I LOVED Catching Fire, so that goes to show you what kind of indicator my snobbery is of actual quality.

Other evidence of this can be found in The Imperfectionists, The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, and... another book that I read recently that I'm forgetting. Arg. I don't always like these books, necessarily, but I'll pick them up over others just based on the title. These Is My Words? Yes please! The Book Thief? Meh... (Both were phenomenal books, fyi...)So why do I do this to myself?

Anyways, the point is, I don't think I'm the only one. Do you judge a book by its title? This is different from judging it by its cover (which will be another confession). What book titles have been intriguing enough for you to pick it up, knowing nothing about it? For funsies, what are some other gross words?

Happy Reading!