Book Review: The Five People You Meet In Heaven

Following Heaven is For Real, I thought this would be a good choice for my next read, especially since it is such a short novel.  The aforementioned is a non-fiction (read my last post to see my true feelings on the non-fiction status) and this a work of fiction, but both books surround the idea of what Heaven is.

In this book, the narrator is an old man who dies and meets five different people from his past who help him better understand his life and the lessons he has to learn from his entire life.  It was an incredible story and I did not want to put it down at all (but being a mommy prevented me from reading it straight through). The people he encounters aren't who you would expect, some being people who seemed insignificant in his life or whom he never met at all, but they are so perfect and the story makes Heaven feel real. 

What I enjoyed most about this book is how much it made me reflect on my own life.  If this were truly how things work when you die, who would my five people be?  What people in my life did I meet that would have a lesson to teach me? Is there any person I inadvertently caused the death of? Would I meet someone whose choices in life were the reason I had a job or a place to live? Would I meet someone who would explain the actions of another who hurt me? In the book, you learn that the narrator would also have to at some point meet a newly deceased person as one of the five people they meet. It's a cycle. That of course made me wonder about myself and who I might greet and explain heaven to. Would it be a past love or an old coworker? For me the goal of this book was not to tell the story of a man who died, but to make readers ponder about what heaven really was like. It's to make readers reflect on who they are and what things they would be proud or ashamed of when they see what is on the other side of life.

Another thing that I really enjoyed about this book was the lack of religion. I feel that anyone could pick this up, no matter their religious affiliation and get something out of it. As opposed to Heaven is For Real which presented heaven as only a Christian place, this book gave heaven to all people.

The writing style was different, but worked very well. The book started with the character's death. Then, there would be a series of chapters that went though the five people he met in heaven as well as back stories from his life. The author did a great job of keeping the flow even though the tense of the story went back and forth from chapter to chapter.

My final opinion- get your hands on a copy!

Book Review: Heaven Is For Real

I was given a copy of this book to read by my "mother-in-law" when she visited for Thanksgiving. I feel it is a harder book to review simply because of the nature of it.

The book itself is an easy read. The chapters are relatively short and switch between being independent and building up from the previous chapter. There is nothing fancy about the vocabulary, making it very easy for anyone from a child to an adult to comprehend. The subject matter is far from thought-provoking in an educational perspective, but stimulating on a theological plane.

The book revolves around Colton Burpo and a medical emergency that could have resulted in his death but rather resulted in him having a miraculous recovery after traveling to heaven.  Colton's father is a pastor and gets very excited to learn about what his son has seen and heard in heaven.

While reading the book I found myself constantly questioning the authenticity of the author's claims.  I do believe that Colton experienced something special, that God gave him a gift of life and a glimpse of what we encounter when we die.  My issue with the book is that I almost feel it is more the story of the dad being a pastor than of what his son experienced.  The pastor seems to forget that the Bible was written 400 years after the death of Christ and that there are things that historians has proven wrong.  Every single thing that Colton experiences, his father relates to at least one passage in the Bible.  When Colton tried to explain the stake marks that Jesus received from being crucified, Todd forgot that they would actually be in his wrist and not his hands (as is almost always portrayed incorrectly by artists). Todd says that since he is not Catholic there was no way Colton was exposed to any depiction of Jesus being crucified and therefore he had to have really met Jesus in heaven. For me, I think that Colton saw something but that he saw his parents react to him telling them what he saw and he may have created false memories of heaven to please his parents, especially his father. We are all sponges as children and even if Todd does not believe his son was listening, it is impossible for a child to not pick up on all the bible stories his dad reads him every night or the prayers they pray together at meals or before bed or the sermons he preaches every Sunday at church. While there are things, like knowing his great grandfather's young face, that are unexplainable and must be the work of God, there are too many holes in other parts of the story to believe it all to be true. So, in the end, my opinion of the book is that Todd wrote more than what Colton experienced because Todd is a pastor from a small town who has extensive money troubles that his congregation took care of and he needed a reason to stay relevant and keep his job.

I also want to add, that I saw the movie prior to reading the book and the two really are so different.  Since it seems the Burpos were involved in the making of the movie, I wonder how much of the book is real and how much of the movie is real. In the book, Todd seems so excited and calm about his son's experiences, in the movie he obsesses and almost loses his job over it.  In the book, it seems that people rejoice over hearing Colton's stories, but in the movie people are weary about their pastor preaching that his son went to heaven and came back to tell people what it was like.  Todd's character is much more likable in the book, but in the movie he is comes off much less "preachy" because he himself struggles with understanding what his son is telling him.

At the end of the day, I would rate both the book and the movie as passable.  What I mean by that is if you are looking for something incredible to read, something you just can't put down, this is NOT the book for you.  If you would like something to just pass the time and mildly entertain you, then this is a good choice.  If this book did nothing else for me, it made me want to dig up an old book I read in middle school about people who had experiences with angels and another book about the miracles of saints and their animation after death. So, for bringing me back to a point where I want to delve more into books related to my catholic faith and superstitions, I have to commend this book.

Book review: George R.R. Martin's "Game of Thrones"

I made the mistake of trying to read this book the same week I was packing to move and finishing my final two weeks at my job. Needless to say, I spent too much time reading and not enough sleeping. It was so exciting.

Martin writes the book so that every chapter follows the perspective of a different character. This is actually one of my favorite styles of writing. I feel that books that allow you to intimately connect with multiple characters are so much stronger. The technique also allows Martin to bring the reader along to multiple locations and multiple story lines.

The story starts in what I found to be a somewhat slow manner, but nothing about the book is truly slow. The plot always had me guessing who was trustworthy, who was acting smartly and who was just making mistake after mistake, and who really had the upper hand in the game of thrones. The twists were as they should be- completely shocking to me.

I really appreciated that the title is actually the theme of the book, a theme that the characters all come to realize in their own time and their own way. Children are forced to grow up, adults are forced to play games that they would rather stay out of, and royalty is forced to see what a crown really is. The winter is coming and the realm is in turmoil.

The most interesting thing about the book though, is Martin's killing off of major characters. One minute I am there reading the story of a character whom I wasn't too fond of, the next, said character is dead. It's a hard pill to swallow as I had assumed that he would be instrumental in the series, but at the same time, it's exciting to wonder where the story will go without him there. Martin is fearless in doing what most authors would run from, and the result is phenomenal.

I don't want to give ANYTHING away, so all I can say is GO BUY THE BOOK!!! It's a good read and I can't wait to read the next instillation in the series.


-KABO

1510- 1st draft- Story written June 5, 2012

           Mrs. Leigh Garnet moved into the Marquee on February 14^th.  She picked the day specifically because moving was stressful and if her mind was full of worry it would keep her heart from breaking. Upon walking into her new apartment she sighed, there would be a lot of work for her to do.

            “Mrs. Garnet, I’m Mark, the Assistant Manager here at the Marquee,” the young man said. He had snuck up on her as she stood in the doorway and tapped her on the shoulder. “Sorry I missed you in the office, I was hoping you had a minute for me to show you around the apartment.”

            Mrs. Garnet felt her breath catch in her chest and her heart freeze. The man had to be in his early twenties. He was tall with pale skin and acne.  His eyes were sunken into his face and his dark circles looked tragic against his fair skin.  He was not an attractive man.  Mrs. Garnet’s first impression of him was that he was cocky and arrogant. She watched his mouth move as he walked her around the apartment and showed her dials on some fancy kitchen appliances and some strange box that he called an HVAC unit. She didn’t hear anything he said to her though, all she saw was her husband in him.

When she met Johnathan she was eighteen and about to graduate from high school. Her mother invited her to a charity event on the Upper West Side. She was wearing an elegant red floor-length dress. It was one of her favorites because the way it was cut made her small five-foot-one frame look so much taller. He told her that he had looked up from his drink and saw her walking in like something out of a movie. When he approached her she didn’t think much of him. He was far too tall for her and had an awkward look about him. “May I introduce myself? My name is Johnathan Garnet.” She knew the name, his family was very wealthy and respected, “It’s good to meet you Mr. Garnet, I’m Leigh Warson.” Her mother was estactic when he asked her out on a date the next evening. Leigh had never shown much aptitude in her schoolwork and didn’t have any special talents for music or art so she had always planned on following in her mother’s footsteps and marrying wealthy to secure never having to work. As Johnathan courted her she grew to like him. He was awkward but full of himself. She liked the contrast in his personality and saw his weaknesses as her gains. Despite his family name and money, she didn’t find much competition for his love. It only took two months for him to propose.

“Well Mrs. Garnet, if you have any questions please don’t hesitate to call or stop by the management office downstairs. We are open Monday-Friday, 8am-5pm.”

She looked at his outstretched hand, “Thank you.”

They shook hands and he walked away. It was only a few minutes before the phone on the wall rang, “Good morning Mrs. Garnet. This is Chuck, from the service entrance. I have your movers here and was wondering if I could let them up.”

“Yes, thank you,” she said after a deep breath. She turned and shuffled over to her front door. Her hands were twisted from arthritis. She missed when they were slender and soft. She didn’t recognize the hands she had grown into. Her knuckles stuck out and her hands curled in and doing anything with them was so difficult. The new handles and locks at the new apartment were foreign to her and getting them to turn was harder for her to do than if someone asked her to explain Einstein’s theories. She missed the doors that she had used for sixty years, the doors at her home with Johnathan.

Halfway through the move, she realized she had too many possessions for her new abode. She called the management number from the move-in packet that Mark had given her.

“Thank you for calling the Marquee, this is Alejandro.”

“This is Mrs. Garnet in 1510. My apartment is too small, my stuff won’t fit. Can I please have a different apartment?”

“You want a new apartment?” the man’s voice was full of confusion and shock. “Ma’am, you will have to call the renting office about that. You signed a lease for that apartment, I can’t help you change apartments.”

She liked the sound of his voice. She knew the request was preposterous, but Johnathan had told her that he would never take no as an answer so she resolved to never take no as an answer either.

            For the next month she called Alejandro as much as she could. She had nothing to do, so it was something to do. She would call and ask for help using her dishwasher. She would call and ask for help because her apartment was too cold and she couldn’t figure out how to use the dials. “Mrs. Garnet,” he would say with exacerbation in his voice, “the Super determines the temperature in your apartment, we can’t make it hotter just for you, there are 899 other apartments in the building and most of them would not be happy if we turned the heat on when it’s 86 degrees outside.” When she complained about something the office could help with he would tell her he was going to send a handyman up. She would tell him, “I only want Gio, send me up Gio!” When it took too long for Gio to get to her apartment she would call incessantly. Alejandro would tell her, “Mrs. Garnet, there are other work tickets. You are on the list but we go in order of when people called us. Gio is in another apartment, he will get to you as soon as he finished his other jobs.”

            One day Alejandro called her up first thing in the morning, “Mrs. Garnet, I was wondering if I could schedule a time for you to meet with Mr. Parson. He’s the Senior Manager at the building and is concerned about all the problems you have been having with the apartment.”

            “Can he do tomorrow at three?” She asked.

            “Of course, Mrs. Garnet. I’ll call and confirm tomorrow okay.”

            She started to panic. She wondered if she was in trouble for calling the office too much. Would they kick her out of the building. When she complained that “this place will kill me!” or “I just can’t live like this, I just can’t,” she didn’t really mean it. What she meant was that she just couldn’t live without Johnathan. He had always done everything for her. She had left their co-op apartment because everything reminder her of him. The bedroom reminded her of all the nights she fell asleep with him by her side. The kitchen reminded her of all his favorite dinners, like stuffed peppers and lemon chicken, and all the times she surprised him with them after he had a rough day at the office. She had to leave their apartment, but it didn’t change her memories. She had Gio hang her portraits in the new apartment. Johnathan had always told her that she was his “beauty queen” and constantly commissioned artists to paint her. At the time she appreciated him supporting her vanity. Looking at the pictures in the Marquee just made her sad. She didn’t look like that, despite the hair dye and facials and expensive creams and makeup. With Johnathan gone there was nobody to call her a beauty, and the pictures seemed to mock her aging body.

            Mrs. Garnet wished that Mark was the one coming up to see her. She wanted to be reminded of how Johnathan was when they met. She wanted to relive the days when she thought he was pretentious and annoying. Mark reminded her of the man she married for all the wrong reasons. It was easier to think of Johnathan like that, so much easier than thinking about how she had fallen in love with him. They had been married a year before she realized she loved him. She had been sick and in bed for three days when he came home early from work. He brought her flowers, chicken noodle soup, and fresh French bread. He put on his pajamas, got into bed with her, and said, “I can’t stand the thought of you here, sick, and alone. Tell me what will make you feel better and I’ll do whatever it takes. Then, once you are back to your health, let’s go on vacation, anywhere you want.” She had started to cry and replied, “I love you.” She had never said it to him before, they both knew why they got married, but that moment changed it all. It was only a few months later that they conceived their first child.

            She called Alejandro, “It’s too loud. I can hear my neighbors. They are making so much noise. I think there are children running around above my head.”

            “Can I send someone up to your apartment to listen to what the noise is that you are hearing?” Alejandro inquired.

            “Do you think I’m lying? I know what children running around sounds like. I can’t live with this noise.” She was furious. She had raised two children, she knew what playing and laughing and growing up sounded like.

            “I understand Mrs. Garnet, but if I can please send someone up they can try and help me figure out which apartment the noise is coming from.”

            “Will you send Gio? Or Mark?”

            “They are both busy. I’m going to send Chuck from security to you okay?”

She hung up on him. She could deal with noise from the street or people arguing or a party, she couldn’t deal with children laughing or crying or existing. She missed her children too much. She never thought she would want children of her own, and once they were born she couldn’t remember life being happy before she had them. He oldest was a boy. He was big like his father. The youngest was a daughter who came out taller than her but nowhere near as tall as her dad and brother. They had been trouble but she adored them. The night they died she didn’t know how she would ever be able to breath normal or have dry eyes. They had been out to a party and the car was involved in a crash on their way home. A cab ran a light and hit them. They weren’t wearing seatbelts, the driver was. They died and he lived. Johnathan took care of everything from the funeral to the lawsuit. She fell in love with him even more after the children died. He held her together. He never got angry with her as her sorrow consumed her. When her depression got so bad that she couldn’t get out of bed he started doing much of his work from home, or more correctly, from bed. She couldn’t believe the man she married for convenience, the man who was so in love with himself, could love her above everything else. His company suffered with him so distracted, but he never complained to her about it. When she finally came out of her intense grief she gave him all the extra love in her heart, the love that was meant for their children. She wished Mark would come up and stop the children and remind her of the Johnathan she put up with.

            Her meeting with Mr. Parson wasn’t as bad as she expected. He was a short man, just a tad taller than herself. He asked her to show him all the problems with the apartment. When she showed him the door and how difficult it was to open, he said, “I see what you mean. That does stick. I’m sorry nobody has fixed this. I’ll make sure Gio comes up today and makes this easier for you to use. We don’t want you stuck in your apartment, and we don’t need you feeling unsafe when you can’t get back in. I’m very sorry that this is like this.” When she showed him the kitchen he told her, “You have a very nice kitchen, one of the nicest in the building because it’s so new. Everyone wants the stainless steel appliances that you have. I see how the shelves are too tall for you, I understand being short. I’m going to call the main office and see if we can do something about maybe building you some lower shelves on this blank wall here.” He seemed very nice, but she didn’t really like him because she would have rather had Mark or Alejandro visit her.

            She spent the rest of the day calling Alejandro and asking when Gio would be coming up and installing the new shelves. Each time he would tell her, “Mrs. Garnet we have to get approval from the main office. You’ll have to sign the alteration agreement once they give it to us. After all that we can schedule Gio to go and put them in, but he can’t do that today. It will probably be at least a week before we get the contract, maybe longer.”

            That evening she decided she couldn’t deal with it any longer. She took her walker and headed downstairs. It was slow work and exhausting, but it would be worth it. She got to the street corner at York and 79^th and waited for the light to change green. It had to look like an accident, the poor old lady who couldn’t get across the street in time. She stepped off the curb and started across the street. After she was almost halfway she stopped. She was out of breath. The cars were starting to come and it would soon be over. She didn’t move into the Marquee to live, she moved there to die. She had nothing left since Johnathan had died of cancer in December. Horns were honking and cars were swerving around her. She kept on walking. The tears were pouring down her face as a car pulled up behind her and a man jumped out.

            “Mrs. Garnet, are you okay?” Mr. Parson said, “let me help you.”

            He walked her across the rest of the street. She knew he was just trying to be a good person, but his act of kindness felt like another win for the cruelty of life.

Book Review- Tim Struby's "The Other Side of Comfort"

Before I get into my review, I want to give you, my readers, a bit of a back-story on this book because it's a pretty neat way that I came about reading it. It all started one night at a NYC bar. My sister and I were discussing the whole ESPN "Chink in the Armour" headline and the guy sitting next to us decided to give us his opinion on what happened. It turned out that he actually writes for ESPN. We got to talking and it came out that not only was he a writer like me (or better since he actually makes money from what he writes), but he graduated from Fordham like my sister. As the night progressed we had a great time talking together. My sister and him reminisced about their alma mater, him and I discussed writing and literature, and we all had a good amount of Jagerbombs and drinks. The next day I woke with quite the headache and an email from him with his soon-to-be-published novel attached. It took a few weeks to read because I hate reading long things on the computer, but I did it and now I'm going to share with you why you should purchase this once it comes out in stores!

Tim Struby, took on what I consider a very hard style by writing in the present tense. The story starts out with a hilarious scene about the main character's father having cut their hedges to resemble breasts and penises. From what I saw in that first chapter, I knew that there was going to be a lot of interesting happenings in the entire novel. I was not let down. The book follows Ned over the summer months. Tim described it to me as a coming-of-age tale, and in many ways it is, but in many ways it is something entirely different.

Ned is your normal, stereotypical, smart kid with a weird best friend- Douglas. Both boys have two dysfunctional parents and an older sister. Both boys don't  seem to fit into their own homes. Ned escapes by bird watching, Douglas by hot-tubbing. Both boys also rely heavily on drugs and alcohol to get them through their lives. The two differ though in the fact that Ned seems to want to be socially accepted even if he doesn't pine over the idea, and Douglass can't wrap his highly intelligent mind around social etiquette and therefore can't even realize how far from being accepted he truly is. For me, the characters represented the turmoil of who Ned was on the inside in a physical way. Ned was Ned, the kid who gets caught by the cops and somehow gets the girl even if it's just for a moment. Douglas was Ned if he had been more outright with his intelligence and more troubled by his family life.

It may have been a typical summer for the boys had Mikey not shown up. Mikey was Ned's neighbor's grandson who was on house arrest. Over the summer he befriends the boys and they look up to him like a big brother. He gives them all confidence in themselves and never treats them as the social pariah that they were thought to be by their classmates. Through Mikey, Ned and Douglas even become friends with Nebbler, a boy who seemed strange even to them. This friendship leads the three boys to attend parties they may have skipped, to stand up to people they never would have stood up to, and to see others in ways that they would have never thought to before. Mikey, with all his problems, somehow teaches these boys to be better people, one could even argue that he was the catalyst to them coming into their manhood. The most amazing thing that Mikey does for Ned though is how he brings Ned's father back into reality.

One of the greatest strengths of the book is the immense wealth of knowledge that Struby shares with his readers. There must have been a lot of research that went into writing this book and it shows in a beautiful manner. Ned's fascination with birds made me both want to learn more about birds ad bird watching, and made me feel as though I would never look at a bird the same way. One of my least favorite things though was Douglas and his hot tub. The descriptions of how many times he fell asleep in his jacuzzi or the idea of him in the jacuzzi on a sweltering hot day made me want to vomit.

Overall, I think that once this is available, everyone should grab a copy. The book says a lot about life, about growing up, about love, about loss, and about friendship. There is a twist at the end that I didn't see coming and that makes me want to read the book all over again to see it from a different perspective. It is truly a work of art that can be appreciated by readers of all ages.

Recent feedback

So, since I always appreciate when people tell me how my stories talk to them and how they look at me as a writer, I decided to post some of my recent emails. If you don't agree with something someone said, if you think I'm terrible, speak up, because both good and bad reviews are helpful to me. I'm going to try and update this as people send me their thoughts, so don't be shy, I'm waiting to hear from you. -XOXO KABO

"Hey I just decided to tear through a big part of your blog. You have a talent for writing. The story about the dog and the women written from different perspectives was wonderful. It reminded me of an old Johnny Carson interview that can still bring tears to my eyes." -Eric, April 15, 2012

"Your stories are very interesting- I feel like you have an ability to write with an almost exclusive voice of your protagonist. This seems pretty unique to me.. It sometimes made me feel as you- the writer- were actually framing your personal experiences, actual events form your life, or thoughts in the form of these stories- which becomes erie as you have some twists, and unexpecedted intensity (in the case of the anti-semite piece). I also think its elegant how you end all your writing, with a whisper- not a bang. You seem to lead everything to a crescendo, only to quietly but poignantly fade it out at the end- a very nice style." -Italia, April 14, 2012

" Your blog is pretty fascinating. It's pretty dark but at the same time you've got a very unique style and voice in your writing, it's incredible. I think you've got a fantastic career ahead of you there." and, "For the record, I completely didn't mean "dark" to be negative or depressing or anything, just a unique tone - I guess "real" is probably the better word for it. Definitely impressed though, you've got a hell of a range of writing."
-Steve, April 10 &12, 2012

"I enjoyed your writing (The Eva Braun story was particuarly interesting and creative)" -Joe, April 8, 2012

Story written April 6th- Staying Firm (1st draft)

      We had been on the perfect date. The fancy restaurant and nice bottle of wine made me feel like I was in a movie. Then he took me on a carriage ride around the park.  We finished the night back at his place, cuddled up on the couch watching The Notebook, because he knows how much I love it. I had never felt so openly happy in my life.

    “Happy six month anniversary baby,” he smiled, “I love you so much and am so happy I found you.”
   
    I leaned in to kiss him, “I’m the lucky one, you chose to be with me when you could have had anyone you wanted.”

    The kiss was passionate. He grabbed the back of my hair and pulled me into him. Our bodied were so close it felt as if they were in danger of defying the laws of physics and blending into the same space. I had to pull away for breath, but it felt as though there was a gravitational pull resisting my lungs’ desire for air.
   
    “Let’s do it babe,” he panted, “let’s make this night perfect.”
   
    My heart froze in my chest, I could hear my blood stop flowing in my veins. “You know I love you,” I stammered, “and I know you love me, so you have to accept that I want to wait until I am married to lose my virginity.”

    The change in him was immediate. He pulled back and stared at me with eyes full of disgust. “Are you serious?” The tone in his voice reminded me of one of those teen-bopper flicks with the bitchy cheerleader who talks down to everyone.

    “Jason, please don’t do this. You knew how I felt before we started going out, just like I knew your reputation. You told me I was worth it.”

    “You are such a bitch. You’ve got to be kidding me, we’ve been together this long and you won’t even touch it. You are twenty-four years old and you are scared of my penis. Get a life. Having sex doesn’t make you a bad person, it’s fun and it feels good. I don’t understand what your problem is. I thought you loved me, but maybe this is just some twisted game.”

    I held back my tears, how could he turn this around on me and say I was just playing a game with him? My mother had always told me that the right man would be willing to wait for me. I knew Jason was a playboy when we met, but I saw the softer side of him and gave him a chance. My mom told me he was bad news and she could see it from a mile away. My friends told me that he would break my heart, use me and let me go. I told everybody off.

    “What, just going to sit there and stare at me?” he said. His eyebrows were pulled down, his lips boxed up, and his nose scrunched. If he hadn’t of been angry with me it would have been an adorable confused expression, but the anger behind it made it scary. “Fine,” he stood up, “there’s the door, get out.”
   
    “Jason, don’t,” I reached out for him, “it’s been such a good night, please. Sit down with me and let’s finish the movie.”

    “It was a good night until you ruined it. I did everything I could to make this special. I’ve never been with anyone this long, I thought you would see that and understand that I need a little something to keep me interested. I turn down offers for sex all the time because I don’t want to hurt you by cheating, but why? Why should I care about how you feel when you don’t seem to care about my needs? I don’t want to look at your face, get out or I’ll call the cops and they can make you leave.” He walked to the front door and opened it, “Now!”

    Tears started to run down my cheeks. I slowly started to rise, I felt lost. I didn’t know what he meant. Was it just a small fight or was this the end? He had never kicked me out any time we had fought. He looked so sure of his choice. My whole body started to shake and my head felt like I was on an extreme roller coaster. I couldn’t get my bearings and I stumbled. Jason didn’t even flinch to help me up. It was only a few feet but it felt like it took ages. I made it to the door and tried to look him in the eye. I hoped he would just grab me and tell me he was sorry for it, that it was all just a mistake. Instead, he took out his phone and dialed a number. As he closed the door I heard him say, “Hey, Bobby, it’s Jason. Want to come over and hang out?”

    It was at that moment that I wished I hadn’t of been born gay. Women seemed to be so much more understanding of wanting to wait for marriage. Gay men were so stereotypical about just hooking up and not making a commitment to wait for the right person. I think that even if Jason were straight he would have been a manwhore, but I felt so little knowing everyone had been right about him except for me.
  

Book Review- Suzanne Collins' "Mockingjay"

Let me start out by saying that I both love and hate this book. It was an emotional roller-coaster but at the same time I don't know if it really tugged at my heartstrings enough.

This final installment covers the revolution and over-throwing of the Capital. You find out that District 13 has been hiding underground for 75 years to build up the strength to finally free the land of the Capital's mistreatment of its' people. Katniss awakes to find that she is wanted to be the face of the rebellion and she finally accepts after much deliberation with herself. Everything that she knew about herself and those around her is lost throughout the war, and in the end she is faced with a future that she could have never expected when she took Prim's spot in the Hunger Games.

I found myself as confused as Katniss about who to trust and whether or not she was making the right choices. This book is the first time we really get to know Gale as a person and the more we learned about him the more I disliked him and the more I hoped to be wrong about her ending up with him. He reminds me of the "bad boy" that girls go for. For Katniss he was always just a friend until she started kissing Peeta, then her mind wondered about whether or not she loved Gale. In this book we learn that it was six months prior to the Hunger Games that he decided he cared about her as more than a hunting partner. This realization only came when someone else flirted with her. He has no trouble telling her of the many girls he kissed, and his arrogance doesn't stop there. Katniss loves the boy she knew in the woods, but it is apparent to the reader that she only saw him for his good points, never realizing his hatred consumed him and his ability with snares would mean the death of so many, including one she loved above all others. We also see a different side of Peeta. His charm and love is destroyed by the Capital while they hold him captive and he comes back to Katniss a different person. It becomes easy to hate Peeta for how he treats Katniss, to think he is the biggest jerk and to want Katniss to run into Gale's arms. Gale tells Peeta that Katniss will end up choosing the one that she can't survive without. It seems weird that both boys agree that her only choice would be one or the other, it shows their immaturity and idealism. These characteristics of the two boys kept me conflicted throughout as to who I wanted her with. Peeta has lost all the traits that made me fall for him, and while Gale isn't my cup of tea, he is still by Katniss' side, trying to keep her safe and loving her no matter how she acts.

Through Peeta's memory problems, we are shown a side of Katniss that isn't flattering. She seems so weak and unforgiving. This though, makes sense when you remember she is only a 17-year-old girl who was turned into a murderer because everyone around her keeps wanting to kill her. Her mental break downs make sense, as does her coldness, but both are beyond frustrating as a reader. Everything she goes through leads her to holding the bow and arrow and killing the leader of Panem who wants the Hunger Games to live on. She is able to see that everyone has an agenda, and that people who seem to have good ideals can be as evil as people who have ideals different to your own. Katniss causing the last death of the war seems to be a symbolic irony, as she is trying to end a world where children have to be murderers while she is still a child herself.

The writing style in this novel was in many way more sophisticated that the other two. The first book was grotesque but about the power of love to conquer. The second book reminded me of Murphy's Law- whatever can go wrong, will go wrong, and at the most inopportune times. The third instillation was about the evils of humanity. It was about falling into drugs, it was about learning who people really were, it was about how people can be mislead into fighting wars they don't know they are fighting. In the end though, it is also once again a story about true love, that when everything seems lost, a person whom you truly love and loves you will eventually make things as right as they can ever be.

While reading the book there was something bothering me about it, that I couldn't place my finger on. I think what it is, is that this is supposed to be a story for young adults. For that awkward time in a person's life where fairy tales are passe but the mind is still impressionable and material should be carefully presented. This book seems to ignore those ideas and goes straight into the worst qualities of humanity. As the young teen sees her hope of mankind be shattered time and time again, the reader is opened up to a world of pessimism. Stories don't have to be happy, and if they are only happy they are usually no good, but this story leaves nothing but despair in my heart. I wonder if children experience it the same way, or if they cling to the good points and ignore what an older reader is troubled by. I suspect that to some extent this is the truth, which would make this book one of the best written because it would mean that as a person grows they will see the book differently. Books like Twilight and Harry Potter have a similar following, but while they are both good in their own ways, I do no see them comparable in their reach into the depths of relationships and motives. Professor Snape in Harry Potter is a character who touches on similar ideas of trust and motives, but not to the extent that Katniss faces with everyone she knows. Furthermore, in both these noteworthy books, though there are sad moments, the endings are both happy, promising a bright future. The end of the Hunger Games series shows readers that although things have changed, Katniss will never have her guard down, she will never really be free from the scars of the arena, and no matter how happy she is, her life will always be haunted and therefore bleak.

To end this review, I have to once again say that I love and hate the book. In a few months I will probably pick up the series again, go back through and see what I missed in my rush to know what happens. Maybe then my thoughts will be less jumbled, but for now I think if I don't stop myself I will end up rambling on and on. I hope not too much was given away to enjoy the book for those who have not read it, but for those who have please feel free to leave comments here with your opinion. This is a book that warrants much discussion, I only hope that this review can be the catalyst for your own ideas on what Suzanne Collins was trying to say.

Book Review- Suzanne Collins' "Catching Fire"

I read this book between getting home Monday night from work and 10pm the next night. It was too good to put down and being half-awake at work was completely worth it. I very much considered calling out of work so that I could stay up all night and  finish it. Unfortunately, I'm far too responsible and far too broke to have the luxury to do so. This book would have been worth it.

The story starts following Katniss and Peeta jointly wining the Hunger Games. They are brought back to life and made to once again show off to the world. Katniss soon learns though that her acting as a crazy-in-love teen has set the path for the rest of her life because in outsmarting the game she has started a revolution and pissed off the wrong people. During the first half of the book she struggles with trying to keep her life together. Peeta gets hurt when he learns that she acted up most of her feelings for the camera, and Gale gets hurt because he loves her. She doesn't really want either but wants them both and spends most of the book very confused. She thinks about running away, she thinks about staying, she thinks about just going along with what the Capital wants in order to save everyone around her. Then, the unspeakable happens, she finds out she has to go back to the Hunger Games. The rest of the book is her deciding to give up everything and save Peeta as he tried to save her in the first game. She has no idea that she is just a pawn in yet a larger game.

The writing was again superb, but I found one major flaw with the story. While the entire book was interesting and definitely needed to be there, the end seemed too rushed to me. I wanted a little more action from the new Hunger Games arena, I wanted to know more about the characters in the alliances she made and the struggle to survive. I understand the idea of keeping it short, but to me something just felt like it was missing. I laughed, I gasped, I felt sad, but I didn't feel as connected to the characters in this story as I did the last. Mag's suicide didn't leave me hysterical, nothing did. I did not expect the twist at the end, but I did see parts of it coming because her foreshadowing seemed so blatant the minute it happened, it actually annoyed me that Katniss didn't wonder more about certain situations. I also really don't like that she decides to choose Gale over Peeta, girls are just so dumb. That being said, I still do think this story was great, and I am itching to get my hands on a copy of the next so I can devour it, I just hope it leaves me with something a little more satisfying.

Katniss' evolution of a character is great to see. From the first book to the end of the second, we watch her go from a girl who feels the need to take care of her family to one who acknowledges that her mother should be the head of the house. She goes from a girl who is selfish in ways to one who looks out for the lives other others (ie puts Peta before herself). She starts to see good in people who she would normally have judged and lets people into her heart as friends when before she preferred to be alone. The lessons that she is learning seem to be setting her up for the final book, in which I'm sure she will shine even brighter.

Book Review- Suzanne Collins' "The Hunger Games"

My youngest sister told me to read this book a year or more ago. I've always been too preoccupied to give it a shot. I now see what a mistake this has been because the book was incredible!

The story follows Katniss as she is thrown into a cruel game of survival, where children fight each other to the death as punishment for their forefathers rebellions against a cruel government. Katniss tells herself that she will survive for the sake of her younger sister (and mother). The idea of the glory that the Capital shines on the victors of the Hunger Games is not something that she cares for, it's not something she wants to be proud of, it's not something she thinks anyone should be proud of. The Capital turns the children into a circus like act. Many coming from the deepest poverty and starvation to be pampered before turned loose to slaughter one another. The lives of the children being bet on like they meant nothing. Katniss is bitter the entire book because of what life has dealt her, but she is impossible not to love.

Ms. Collins' writing shocked me. It is very hard to pull off a present tense story. I myself would be much too afraid to do so, but she makes it seem flawless. I never felt like it would have been better in past tense, I never felt like it would have been better in anything but first person. The simple structure of her writing technique makes her amazing, but her story content takes her to the realm of the extraordinary. She found a way to piece together a story about coming-of-age, romance, war, death, loss, poverty, indulgence, and so on, and do it in a way that speaks to a wide range of audience. The vocabulary was never pretentious, and every word felt as it should. There is nothing worse than a writer who tried to "smart up" their piece, which in the end usually takes away something far greater. One of her greatest talents in the story is how real it all feels, she mixes elements of our world with her "future" land of Panem so brilliantly that I almost expect to see a mockingjay out in the woods at some point in my life.

Taking a step back I have tried to piece together her influences. I felt a Romeo-and-Juliet theme going with the romance between Katniss and Peeta. He, from a merchant family, her from the Seams. From his first sight of her he knows that she will be the only one for him, and as a young boy even puts her well-being before his own. He is every mother's dream for her daughter. Unfortunately, Katniss can't decide if she wants to be his Juliet, and she always has her friend Gale in the back of her mind making her wonder if she doesn't want that instead. This torn-between-two-amazing-guys theme is very reminiscent to the popular Twilight series to me. Peeta would be Jacob, and Gale would be Edward. Following this logic, I can only assume that she will break Peeta's pure heart for a man who, while also good, just can't compare. The theme of people hunting each other reminds me of "The Most Dangerous Game" taken to an even more grotesque level.

All in all this is an excellent book, one that everyone should check out.

Book Review- Alison Croggon's "The Crow"

The third book of the Pellinor series was far from what I expected. For this novel, we follow the story of Hem after he separates with Maerad. In this book, Ms Croggon explores her dark side, creating beings that are repulsive and their qualities horrifying. A writer who can make you fall in love with the hero is normal, but a writer who can make you feel the repulsion of the antagonists and their goals is beautiful. Ms. Croggon eloquent writing skills give her readers the desire to jump into the book, become a Bard, and fight for the Light. Her story wraps its tendrils around a person's soul and brings them on an emotional rollercoaster of fear, longing, loss, love, and loneliness.

Much like the first two novels in the series, this story has so many parts. The action is constantly moving and changing like a chameleon. I find it amazing how in all three of her novels there is a lot of time spent traveling from one spot to another, and yet it never gets boring. It's also amazing how Hem and Maerad's stories are so different, yet share a cohesion and parallel structure to one another. Through these similarities, part of her story is clarified through the things he goes through, yet it is obvious still that guessing what will come next is a moot point.

The Crow to me was really one large, tangled up love story. Yes, there is fighting and death and gore, but I think the relationships were what really drove the story. The first love story is that of Saliman and Hem. The admiration for Saliman bordered on an almost homosexual tension. Whenever they admit their devotion to one another I wondered if there was not something sexual about it. At the same time though, these tensions could be due to the fact that Bards are people all about love and helping one another. Hem, on the other hand, was raised in a savage orphanage and then placed in a house of evil Hulls, forcing him to grow up without the concept of what caring and loving another person really is. His incredible love for Saliman, whom he looks at as a friend but also a father figure, may be so intense because he has never been allowed to love before and therefore he is going at it with full force. A different love eventually pops up when he realizes that his friend Zelika means more to him than just a friend. This passion may also be displaced emotion though. She was the first girl he really got to know, his desire to marry her towards the end of the book may simply be because he missed her so much and was idolizing his memories of her. It could also be, that maybe he was trying to repress his homosexual desires by going after a girl (since the story has had no male-male partners, one must assume that in Pellinor there is the same stigma about gays as there is in our present day). Both relationships that Hem develops in this book are exciting and engaging.

My final critique of this book is that, while it is a great read, it is not as strong as the first two were. I would highly recommend reading it still though, because it is a phenomenal book. 

Book Review- Alison Croggon's "The Naming" and "The Riddle"

So let me start off by apologizing for putting these reviews together. I am only doing so because the first on was SO GOOD that I just had to tear into the second one before I had the chance to write a review. I actually just started the third and knew I had to get to this before all four books were under my belt and ended up getting lumped together.

The Naming
This novel starts out a bit slow. I wasn't sure what to expect, but page by page I realized the beauty in Ms Croggon's writing. Shortly after the two main character's meet, their personalities and histories start unraveling at a beautiful pace. As they get to know each other, the reader gets to know them as well. It's fun exploring the relationship and world alongside them, not knowing or being able to truly speculate what was coming next.
The pacing of the story was interesting. On one hand it was slow and on the other it was action packed. This was accomplished because of the main character's lack of knowledge about everything. The reader is introduced to many details, but they don't bog down the story because they are presented as exciting observations. The mix of summary and dialogue was just perfect. All together, I think that her writing style is incredible.
I especially like that Ms. Croggon includes things that many other writers forget or chose to leave out. For example, the main character starts her period and thinks she is dying because she never had a mother to teach her about menstruation. Not only does she bring this issue up here, but she every now and again will have the main character mention that she had just started her period again and was grouchy because of it. One of my favorite parts (though I don't recall if it was the first or second book) was when the main character was traveling and upset that she had no way to take a shower and clean up after the smell of the bleeding. I have always wondered about just that in any fantasy book that I have read, and I am so happy that she doesn't skirt from such a natural issue.

The Riddle
I can't imagine how Ms. Croggon is going to top this book, it was beyond amazing. Her writing is clear and imaginative and enthralling on the reader. Every page made me want to read the next so much faster, but at the same time I wanted to savor every word. So much happened in this book. I laughed, I cried, I made sneak peaks to random pages trying to find out who was alive or dead. Ms. Croggon explored sexual tensions between the main characters without really exploring them explicitly. She brought new characters into the story that enhanced the existing ones, threw in more than one awesome twist, and made every word in the story count. The only negative thing I can say about the book is that I get confused about what everything is. This is my fault though because Ms. Croggon has a clear map included in the second book, it is just the strange names that I get mixed up every now and again.
I have so much I want to say, but I don't want to give any details of the book away. So, after you read this I need you to either run to your local bookstore and purchase the entire series, or search the net for a copy.

Book Review- Chelsea Handler's "My Horizontal Life"

My sister purchased this book for me for Christmas thinking I would find it amusing. I've enjoyed her show Chelsea Lately so I was excited to open it up and give it a try. What happened over the course of my reading it was something I didn't expect.

At the start of the book all I could think about was, "wow, she got around." I was less than amused. I had never pictured her as such a hot mess of alcohol and self-destructive behavior. The first few chapters made me like her less and less as they shattered my notion that she was the kind of girl who would be such fun to go out with. Now I saw her as one of "those girls" who I would see acting out of control at a bar and judge her for it.

As the book progresses though you start to feel her maturing, even though the stories are still obsurd. My judgemental attitude slowly changed to one who saw that deep down she seemed pretty lonely and unhappy with her life. She may have been having some incredibly funny evenings, but reading what wasn't said showed something else. Eventually at the end of the story I realized that all the stories, though originally seeming very random, were tied together in a beautiful way. What was originally presented as a hell of a lot of fun turned out to be something that it seemed wasn't so much fun.

The writing in the book was nothing spectacular. There were times when I felt like I could tell where an editor changed a word/where Chelsea tried to "smart up" her writing and it was just awkward. Some of her strengths as a writer include using just enough detail to paint a picture, but not enough to boggle down and annoy the reader. She also does well to not try and be funny, but just lets her natural humor come through in her voice.

All in all, this is a short book with a good amount of laughs as well as a form of a moral to the story at the end. I would recommend it to anyone who wants light reading that isn't thought-provoking but rather just a good time.

Book Review- Susan Cooper's "The Dark is Rising" series

As it turns out, I was unable to write about each book/section of Ms Cooper's series because it would have said the same thing over and over again. Yes, there are times when the story gets interesting and exciting; but for the most part the book is predictable and, for lack of a better word, retarded. What an Old One really is doesn't make much sense, and how the main character goes from sucking at being an Old One to having all the answers also makes no sense. Bran turning into Arthur's son isn't clearly developed. Why Will stays behind makes no sense. Why everyone has to forget what happened is dumb, as is the fact that "normal" kids would even have been needed in the first place. The bad guys never really do anything but chase the good guys, which leads readers to boredom. The ending is completely unsatisfying.

I have read many books that I have disliked, but this series is by far one of the worst. The writing was poor, the story line had far too many holes, the characters were unimpressive, there was no brilliance anywhere. I hope to be able to sell this book and at least walk away with something from it, as opposed to the blah it has left me with as of right now.

Story written Dec 23rd- Eva Braun (1st draft)

The Jews killed Jesus. That was Drew’s first reason to hate them. Then, throughout history they proved they were slimy and sniveling people, surviving harsh times by only helping each other out. Drew knew why too- when a Christian suffered because they wouldn’t help out, they equated it to killing Jesus all over again. They were the scum of the Earth.

            Drew’s father had been the first to introduce him to anti-Semitism. It was a family tradition that started before his great grandparents joined the Nazi party.  The family even joked that Hitler had stolen their ideas but was smart enough to exterminate the cockroaches known as the Jewish race.

            Drew looked over at the Jew sitting across from him on the crowded subway car. The man was obviously a Jew, he had that “look.” The look that screamed, “We murdered Christ, hahahahahahahahah” through beady eyes and a nose that was four times too large for the face.

            Drew thought back to WWII and wondered how amazing it must have felt to pack those rats into trains and ship them off to their demise. Sometimes when the subway was so crowded that people touched shoulder to shoulder he imagined he had gone back and was one of those Nazis. It was his favorite fantasy.  Drew road the subway to go back to that feeling. He liked to live on the edge, though his concept of what living on the edge was made no real sense to anyone but him. He would stand on the yellow line of the subway platform as the train approached to get his thrills rather than participate in a real extreme sport. He liked to take the subway lines into the shady areas of the city late at night when all the characters came out and all the decent people were tucking into their safe beds. What he didn’t understand was that he gave off an aura of strangeness that gave even the hardest thugs a chill down their spines.

            Drew transferred at Grand Central Station to the uptown six line at 2:35. The car was unusually empty and unnaturally clean. It gave him an ominous feeling. He knew it was a sign that something was about to happen to change his life. A moment later the train pulled into the 51^st street station and the doors opened to reveal the most inspiring thing he had ever seen.

            Drew had grown up a very privileged boy. He had traveled the world, been to the most amazing places, all the wonders of the world. The stained glass of La Sainte Chappell no the Coliseum nor the Mona Lisa nor the Great Pyramids of Giza no anything else in his life made him feel so alive as he did in that moment.

            She could have sat anywhere in the almost empty subway car, but she chose the seat across from him. He felt as if he were the narrator and she his rose, a true life rendering of the Romance of the Rose, Chaucer’s biggest literary inspiration. He knew also though that this meant she would be near impossible to attain, or worse yet, undesirable once she was had.

            He pushed these thoughts to the back of his head, as they were of old love poetry and he was a modern man. He glanced at her as best he could through the corner of his eyes, drinking in her essence.

            She was of the perfect Arian features- soft, long blonde hair, crystal blue eyes, a slender hourglass figure of creamy white skin.

            Drew knew he wanted her forever in the first moment he saw her. He felt as though the empty subway was a sign, a sign from God (or Hitler himself) telling Drew that she was the classy sort of woman who would never be found amongst the swine of a crowded NYC subway.

            Drew decided to follow her that Saturday afternoon.  She got off the train at 86^th street. She walked to 84^th and Lexington and had a slice of pizza at Mimi’s pizza.  Drew loved pizza and the fact that she had hers with sausage meant that she wasn’t a dirty Jew. From there she walked back towards 86^th and did some shopping. She tried on 6 pairs of shoes at Steve Madden and bought the most expensive pair. For Drew this was another sign that she was the perfect woman because a Jew would have gone to the nearby Payless and bought a similar pair for a fraction of the price. After getting shoes she walked into a few different boutiques and then to what Drew figured was her apartment building. He sat in the coffee shop that it was over for hours just waiting to see her leave. She never did so he decided to go home for the night.

            When Drew said his prayers that night he asked God to grant him her. He dreamt about their lives together that evening. They would have a large, extravagant wedding that all the papers would be buzzing over.  They would spend their honeymoon traveling wherever she wanted for as long as she wanted. Once back she would start setting up their first apartment together and she would get pregnant and start their family. He would have to actually make a name for himself in business and stop living off his trust fund. He didn’t want his sons to grow up thinking their father wasn’t an important man. In his dream he was a politician, cleansing America of many of its’ problems.

            Drew didn’t want to wake up that Sunday, he knew reality wasn’t as sweet as what he lived when he wasn’t conscious. He wanted to go and look for her, but he always spent Sunday with his family. He was anxious to tell them about her, he knew they would be excited to hear that he had finally found a woman worthy of his attention. On Monday he would try to find out more about her and hopefully figure out a way to bump into her and bring her out on a date.

            The next day he woke up before the sunrise, he was too nervous and impatient to sleep any longer.  He decided to start the day with a prayer, hoping Jesus would hear him and guide him. He even knelt on the floor near the bed with his hands held together in reverence to pray like he had when he was a little boy. It felt invigorating to him.  He walked into his closet and stared at his clothing for a very long time. Everything was organized precisely. Long sleeved dress shirts together, sorted by color with the most expensive fabrics in the front. He wanted to look his best for their “meet cute” that day.  First he considered a blue shirt to match her blue eyes, then he thought maybe a classic white to make him appear to be a professional. Nothing he saw struck him as fabulous. He almost wished he had a yellow shirt to match the beauty of her blonde hair, but laughed at the thought of even being caught dead in the same color that the Jews had donned on their chests so many years before. Black seemed too cold and he didn’t want to put her off. He finally decided on a red because he hoped it would make her think he was passionate and desirable. Plus, he heard that red made people hungry and that would make her more likely to agree to go to dinner with him.  

            He showed up to the coffee shop she lived above at six am.  He had two cappichinos before he saw her leave the door and start walking towards the subway.  He followed at a leisurly pace and waited a few paces down from her on the subway platform. He tried to play it cool but the anticipation of finding out about her and meeting her was driving him insane. She got off at 33^rd street and walked to a small office building off 30^th.  There were three companies located in the building and he knew that she must have worked at one of them.  The first was a travel agency, the second a law firm, and the third a headhunter’s office.  Drew jotted down the names of each and walked to a nearby internet café to do some research.  He didn’t find any information about the employees of the travel agency, but figured that she was too classy to work for a place like that. He looked up the headhunter next, praying she didn’t work for them because he found it boring. The website was mostly unimpressive and uninformative.

As he searched for the law firm he could feel his heart pumping the blood through his body faster than it had in a very long time and perspiration developing in his palms.  What he found made that same blood feel like ice in his veins. The Law Firm of White, Smith, and Jones was dedicated to hippie ideas of helping those who had been wronged by one stupid thing or another. They handled cases of reparations for various reasons mostly.  He couldn’t believe she would be part of a group of low-lives like that. They had a “meet the staff” link that he did not want to click but knew he had to. He scrolled slowly, his hands shaking with each click of the scrolling wheel on his mouse.  She wasn’t a partner, that was a good thing, maybe she wouldn’t be on the staff at all. The travel agency was starting to look like a much better option for her employment, in fact it meant she would be even better about planning their honeymoon if she worked there. The further and further down he looked the better his spirits became. He didn’t see her, she wasn’t one of them.  About to sigh a breath of relief, he came to the last member of the staff and staring back at him was her angelic face.  Immediately the two coffees came out of him like the water from Old Faithful and soaked the computer station he was at.

Drew didn’t know what to do. He stared at her face for a long time before he had the nerve to click on her and learn about her and the cases she was working on.  Things were worst than he thought when he saw that she was assisting on a case to help the families of victims of the Holocaust recover heirlooms that had been “stolen” by the Nazis while the “rightful” owners were shipped off to concentration camps. If he hadn’t of already thrown up the contents of his stomach he would have upon reading that. The news made him heave, it made him feel as though all happiness had been sucked out of his life and out of the world.

He walked to the bathroom to clean up. He needed to clear his mind and figure out what to do. While washing his face he realized that Jesus had sent him to save her. She was meant to be his Eva and for that to happen he would have to show her the right path in life. Drew suddenly felt very optimistic.  God had sent him on a very important mission because he had faith that Drew was capable and Drew decided he was more than happy to accept it. 

He waited outside her office and when she came out he “accidentally bumped into her with his coffee. “I’m so sorry miss, are you okay?”

“Oh my, my new shoes! Do you have a napkin? Oh, I hope they aren’t ruined.”

Drew handed her the napkin in his hand, “Take this, I’m so sorry. I will replace them for you, I should have been paying more attention to where I was going.”

“It’s all right. I wasn’t watching either so it’s my fault too.” She looked up into his face with apologetic eyes that made him tingle all over, a strange sensation he had never before experienced.

“Please, let me do something to make it up to you Miss. I’m Drew by the way.”

She blotted her shoes a bit more, “Really, it’s not a big deal Drew. I think they are fine, no harm done.”

“Well, you are extremely attractive. I hate that we met this way, but would I be out of line asking you to have dinner with me? Your choice of course.”  Drew wondered how he was able to get the words together and sound so confident. He had never asked out a girl before.

She made a face much like that of a girl who just learnt that Santa wasn’t real, “Thank you, that’s very kind of you, but I’m not interested. I’m sorry. I just have a lot of work to do and it would be wrong of me to lead you on.”

Drew stood there motionless as she walked away.  He couldn’t believe she had said no. He never imagined that she would say no to him. Nobody ever said no to him. He was hurt and angry and confused and betrayed and so many emotions at once that he didn’t know how to make his head stop spinning.

            Drew woke up in a hospital bed with his mother at his side.

            “Oh darling, are you okay? The doctors think you had a mild panic attack. Luckily there was this sweet lady who saw you fall and called an ambulance to come take care of you. Waited with you until they arrived.  You were lucky she forgot something in her office or who knows what may have happened to you laying there on the street.”

            Drew knew the lady had to have been his lady. It was another sign from God. He had to save her from herself, just as she had saved him from being mugged or beaten or maybe even dying on that sidewalk.

            The next day Drew hired a private detective to follow her and find out what he could about her. He would have done the work himself but his mother was fretting about his health and making him take it easy for a few days. It was a good excuse though to set some things in motion. He placed a craigslist ad for  an assistant. Within an hour he had hundreds of resumes and took down the ad just so he would have time to go through them. He hired the first person who emailed him back saying she would be able to start immediately. Drew told her he would pay her 200 dollars a day in cash on the stipulation that she be discreet and understood that he only needed temporary help and therefore would appreciate it if she kept her work for him quiet. She agreed, thinking the cash would be great until she found a permanent gig.

            The first errand Drew sent her on was to buy him a new car. A black car that would blend in with the hundreds of other black cars carrying executives and elite around the city, though he didn’t tell her why it had to be a black car. He then asked her to get him a list of different warehouses that were out of the way of the busy city and available to rent. He sent her to look at a dozen of them and report back to him with pictures, measurements, neighborhood details, and so on. He told her that none of them were good enough and to just give up. He then asked her to get him a uniform for a driver and then to interview a couple of drivers for the car she had found him. He denied all the drivers but kept the uniform. After a week he fired her.

            When Drew awoke on that Monday he again got down on his knees and prayed. He walked to his closet with confidence, knowing that God sending him to do his work. He carefully put on the uniform and went over the plan in his mind again. He had agonized over the details and knew that nothing would go wrong. He got into his car and pulled out his cell phone.

            “Hello, I have an urgent message for Miss Holly Brown. She is needed at the courthouse immediately, there are some papers relating to her case that are missing signatures and if she doesn’t get down here the judge will have to throw it out before it gets to court. We have a town car on its way right now, number 143. Tell her to get here as soon as she can, it is very important. Thank you.” Drew felt the adrenaline run through his veins as he hung up the phone and turned the key in the ignition.

            Holly was waiting outside for him when he pulled up. She had a briefcase and threw herself into the car, not even waiting for him to open the doors for her. Drew knew that it was going to be easier than he had though. She was so busy studying all her legal papers that she didn’t notice they were heading in the wrong direction, speeding along a route that was heading out of Manhattan. It wasn’t until they were in traffic on the bridge that she saw something was wrong.

            “Excuse me driver,” Holly said with agitation in her voice, “why are we on the Brooklyn Bridge? I have to get to the courthouse, it’s imperative and this is the wrong way. You need to turn this car around.”

            Drew chuckled, “Holly, Holly, Holly. We are going to the courthouse and the manner of getting there is direr than you realize. It’s just that we are going to a courthouse of God so to speak. You have been poisoned by the Jewish parasites and I have to help you see the error of your ways. I tried to do this the easy way weeks ago but you turned me down and left me with no choice but to show you the truth this way”

            Holly started tugging at her seatbelt and trying to open the door, “Let me out of here you freak!”

            “I’m sorry darling,” Drew said as he looked at her struggling through the rear view mirror, “but I’ve made some adjustments to the car. The doors only open on the outside thanks to the child lock and the seatbelts can only be undone with a key. And, thanks to the privacy tint on this car nobody will be able to see you trying to get away. Just relax, I promise that you will thank me for these measures very soon.”

            Holly stopped squirming and just stared at him. Drew turned on the radio and pleasantly drove to the warehouse that he had picked from the pictures his assistant had given him. It was remote, abandoned, and full of “junk” that he knew would be helpful to teaching Holly about why she should love him and save herself from the fires of Hell that were waiting for her if she continued her life the way she was going with it.

            When they arrived Drew turned back to Holly and shoved chloroform into her face before she realized what he was doing. He needed her sedated so that he could get her inside.

            Drew was looking at Holly as she woke up, tied to a chair in the empty building. He painstakingly explained to her the signs that had told him of her coming into his life, of his noticing how perfect she was through her actions that day, of how she made him feel, and of everything that had come to pass since he discovered what she did with her life. She was gagged but didn’t even attempt to say anything. She listened calmly and Drew prayed that she was taking to heart the truth of God’s plan. He then told her about his life, his family history, and the history of the rotten Jewish race. He explained that while they were around they would try to run the world and that they had to be kept in check until they could be all together eliminated. When she started to look sick he tried to lighten the mood with a cute saying he had been told once, “Roses are red, violets are blue-ish, if it weren’t for Christmas, we’d all be Jewish.” She didn’t seem to find it amusing.

            “Now that I’ve explained myself and witnessed to you I hope that you see that I am doing this out of love. I’m going to take the gag out of your mouth and we are going to have a conversation about all of this. Please ask me any questions that you have and we can work the out together. Okay?”

            Holly nodded her head in agreement and Drew walked to unbind the knot from behind her head. Once she stretched her jaw a bit she looked at Drew with one of those piercing looks that made Drew feel as if she were looking into his soul. It was very intimate for him.

            “I have but one question for you Drew,” Holly said slowly and with a tone of superiority in her words, “Wasn’t Jesus a Jew? Didn’t his parents celebrate the Jewish holidays and bring him to temple with them?”

            Drew flew into an outrage that he didn’t even know was possible. He couldn’t breath he was so angry. He could feel the fire of his hate for what she had said consuming him. She was beyond help, she was so poisoned that Drew knew he would have to save her from herself by stopping her from going to Hell.

            “By the mission sent to me by God, I forgive you of your sins for you did not understand what you did wrong. I now must cleanse your soul and remove the lies they have infected you with. I am so sorry Holly, I thought you would be the one. I thought that you would see the light. Maybe you were sent to me to show me the light though, maybe you were a test to me from God to see if I was ready to be his willing servant. I promise you that he will take you into his arms for he does not punish those who are innocent by means of ignorance.”

            He then walked to her with another chloroform rag so that she wouldn’t struggle as he moved her again. She woke up as the first nail was driven through her arm, just above the wrist. Her scream was muffled by the gag that Drew had replaced. Tears streamed down her face just as the blood just out of her arm. Drew moved to her other arm and drove another nail into her body. She passed out. He figured it was from the pain and the blood loss. As he drove the nail into her feet she woke up again long enough to make another muffled scream. Drew then dug the crown of thorns onto her head and hoisted up the cross with the pulley system he had rigged. Once she was up he sliced her in the rib area as Jesus had been cut by the Jews. The blood slowly started to clot and run less aggressively down to the floor.

            Tears ran down Drew’s face as he looked at her, “I’m so sorry Holly, but the only way to cleanse you of the Jewish taint in you if for you to suffer as our Christ suffered due to those monsters. When you meet him he will greet you with open arms, thanking you for your bravery in your final moments, and connecting to you on a very deep level. You will not only be saved from Hell because of your death, but you will become one of Jesus’ most precious followers. Give him and all the angels and saints my love and know that I love you dearly or I wouldn’t have cared to save your soul.”

“So, if I might simplify your story for the court Dr. Addol, you are saving that this first rejection, along with being brought up in a family of prejudice lead my client to commit these crimes without realizing that he was doing wrong?”

            “Yes. Drew suffered a psychotic break when he was denied a date by Miss Brown that was misdiagnosed as a mere panic attack. Had he been given the proper attention and put on the proper medication he would have never kidnapped and murdered Miss Brown in my opinion.”

            “And, Dr. Addol, in your opinion the other murders were also an effect of this psychotic break?”

            “Yes. Drew believed that the Jewish people had corrupted a woman he wanted to love and saw a life with. When he had to “save her” because of this corruption it caused his psyche to deteriorate even more. His serial murdering spree was a way for him to punish the Jewish people for his loss. Though the bombings, poisonings, and numerous gruesome murders over the past three years are a tragedy I don’t think he was aware enough that he was doing anything wrong. The greater tragedy would be for him to go to prison rather than a mental health facility that can treat him and help him see the mistakes he made.”

            “Thank you doctor, that is all. The Defense rests.”

Update!

Hey there folks,

Thanks for reading (and following) this blog! I just wanted to say happy holidays to ya'll out there and give you a little update on what's going on and what to expect in the next few weeks on this blog.

1)I just wrote a new story that I will post on here after Christmas. As always, I would love all your feedback on it. Editing is best done by people who aren't connected to the story and can see flaws that the writer can't.

2)I FINALLY finished the Dark Is Rising book series and will put up a review on the last three books from it (as I decided to stop posting individual reviews on them)

3)I have already started reading another YA fiction novel and am about 100 pages in. A review for that should be coming out pretty soon as well seeing as it is pretty interesting thus far.

4)My sister brought with her a copy of The Hunger Games so once I finish the new book I just started/the series if I like it enough, then I will read the HG series and post about it. I'm excited since I have heard nothing but good things about it.

5)I know I have been horrible about writing stories and putting them up here. How will I become a good writer if I am not working on it every day? I plan on becoming better at this and going crazy with the writing. I think I am going to focus on creating a short story book before writing any novellas or novels, but you never know what the future holds so we will see where my writing takes me.

Love and kisses,
KABO

His Missed Exit- short story written Dec 18, 2011

She placed him in her lap, petting his hair. She missed when his coat was silky smooth, age had made it coarse and thin. She wondered if he knew what ageing was, if he understood why he couldn’t see as well anymore. She wanted to know if he missed the sound of her voice as his hearing progressively got worse and worse, or if maybe he just thought she had stopped talking to him.

She prayed that he understood how much she loved him and she asked God to let them stay together as long as possible. She hoped beyond anything that there was a God and a heaven because she knew if there were he would go to wait for her there when he passed, just like he waited for her every day when she left the house.

She gave him a kiss on the nose and started to cry. She couldn’t bear the thought of living without him. He was her prince, the one boy who never let her down. He had stolen her heart the minute their eyes met in the most beautiful and pure forms of love. He gave her so much more than she felt she could ever give him back because his love was unconditional and she didn’t even think people were capable of having hearts that ran so deep.

He sat in her lap, feeling at peace as she stroked his back. He wondered if she understood what ageing was. He hoped she didn’t think he was ignoring her, he just couldn’t see her or hear her or run after her the way he had once been able to. He missed the sound of her voice, it had always soothed him. He wished he didn’t have to strain for it, but understood that he was just fulfilling his life. Life was full of gains and losses. He wanted to tell her how much he loved her, how he didn’t want to leave her, but he recognized that she wasn’t capable of understanding him. He kissed her hand, using actions he knew she could decipher to show her what he couldn’t say.

He felt her tears falling upon his hair. He hated when she cried because she was so amazing in his eyes. From the moment he had seen her, at the start of his life, he could see how pure her soul was. As the years went by he was forced to watch her get hurt, see her sparkle fade through the torments of life. It had been his job and his honor to bring it back every time he could. Making her laugh and smile were the greatest joys of his, the only way he could pay her back for the unconditional love she gave him.

She hugged him tight and he breathed in her aura. He loved when she cuddled him close. He felt that his time was getting short, but he promised himself to hold on as long as he could for her. He wasn’t ready to let her go, he didn’t want to leave her without someone to look after her. He prayed that she would understand that he would have stayed with her forever if it was his choice.

He closed his eyes and started to drift to sleep. He got tired very often, but when he dreamt he was able to go back to days when he could run and jump and play and keep her laughing for hours.

            She felt him falling asleep in her arms. He was her old, little baby and she loved him so much. She wanted to capture the moment forever in time, to carry with her after he was gone.

            Her phone rang and the moment was lost as he woke up with a start.  She had errands to run and the outside world to deal with. She put him down and gathered her things and rushed out the door, missing her chance to say goodbye.

Book Review- Susan Cooper's "The Dark Is Rising"

So, let's first talk about how this book gave the series the name of, "The Dark Is Rising."  Once I realized that I wondered if the series title was set before she started writing them, or if it was decided after the second book was completed and deemed much better than the first, or if it means that of the entire series this is the best section. I really pray to God that the later is not correct, as this book was not of a very high quality.

While leaps and bounds better than the first novel, this story still seemed to lack a good story line that teeters between believability and fascination. The main character, Will, is an eleven-year-old boy who finds out he is immortal (though it never specifically states that). Once he comes into his "learning" he is all of a sudden not a boy anymore, but rather a rational being stuck in a child's body. The concept may have made sense, if the character still hadn't of acted like a child and needed so much guidance. The next flaw is that he was supposed to go on a quest to find the six signs of power, or whatver they were, because he was the sign searcher. What doesn't make sense about this is that everyone already knew where to find the signs and almost always lead him to them. I would more aptly call him the sign collector or sign retriever or just the Old One's go-for errand boy. Not only did everyone help him, but it seems so highly unlikely that the signs would be so close by him, even though he traveled through time for a few of them, because if they were so powerful you would think that the Light would have tried to hide them a bit better than all close enough for an eleven-year-old to walk around town and pick up.
Also, the fight scenes were never really fight scenes as tensions would lead up to no real combat which made for let downs and boredom.

So, although it seems I am really bashing this book, as it was entirely predictable and stupid, I still have to say it was an interesting read and parts of it were almost good. A huge improvement from the first makes me optomistic that she will improve her skills and that the third book will be even better. Stay tuned for the next reveiw, but for now, I'd suggest holding off on buying a copy yourself.

Love and Kisses,
KABO