Notable Quotable: Harper Lee (#69)

"Mockingbirds don't do one thing but make music for us to enjoy.  They don't eat up people's gardens, don't nest in corncribs, they don't do one thing but sing their hearts out for us.  That's why it's a sin to kill a mockingbird."
     -- To Kill A Mockingbird

Harry Potter Moment of the Week (#32)

hosted by Uncorked Thoughts.

What would your patronus be?

I've thought quite a bit about this and I've taken numerous quizzes telling me what my patronus should be and I've come to a conclusion:  I really have no idea.

I think that my patronus could be a wolf because they are comfortable in packs and by themselves.  They are loyal and brave.  All of these things describe me in some fashion.

I also think my patronus could be a giraffe to reflect my favorite animal.  They are sharp creatures who have their wits about them.  They know what's going on most of the time.  They are majestic with beautiful strides that carry them across the grasslands without trouble.

Those two are probably my favorite options to the patronus dilemma.  I've been told my patronus could be an otter or a dophlin, even a hummingbird.  Those are all really good ideas, it's just hard to know without ever producing the Patronus Charm myself, you know. ;)

Matilda

by Roald Dahl
published: Puffin, 1998 (originally 1988)
pages: 240

It isn't Matilda's fault that she was born into a family that doesn't understand or care for her.  They don't notice that at five and a half years old she can do double digit multiplication and read classics like Moby Dick and Charles Dickens.  They barely notice that she is old enough to go to school.  At school, Matilda and her friends face the terrifying Trunchbull.  Miss Honey is one of the few to acknowledge Matilda's extraordinary gifts.  But what makes her special, also has the tendency to get her in trouble.

This book was incredibly enchanting.  I found myself immersed in Matilda's world, wanting to read the books she read and have class with Miss Honey.

Matilda is everything I wanted to be when I was younger, brilliant and nice with powers.  The only thing about her life that saddens me is that her parents were completely neglectful.  She may be extraordinary but her life is run of the mill.  I love that Matilda just takes things into her own hands when it seems the adults around her either can't or won't.  She is incredibly imaginative and clever for someone not yet six.

I grew up watching and loving the movie and I am delighted to say that this book has given me the same feelings that the movie did.  The only thing I wish is that the book gave more information.  I would have enjoyed learning a bit more about Miss Trunchbull and Miss Honey, and even Matilda's family as odd as that sounds.  There are many cringeworthy Trunchbull moments and great sweet Miss Honey moments.  This book is just so fun.

I've always loved Roald Dahl's imagination and Matilda now sits right up there with The BFG for me.  I'm glad I finally picked up this book and read it!

Stars: 4/5

Praise:

"Funny, witty, fresh...Dahl at his outrageous best!"
     --The Baltimore Sun

"A funny book  with a child's perspective on an adult world.... Children will be waiting in line to read it.
     --School Library Journal, starred review

"A tour de force that kids will undoubtedly love"
     --The New Yorker

"Roald Dahl has done it again.... Matilda will surely go straight to children's hearts.
     --The New York Times Book Review

A 2015 TBR Pile Challenge book.
An Eclectic Reader 2015 Challenge book.
An Alphabet Soup Challenge book.
A Full House Reading Challenge book. 

Top Ten Tuesday: Books for People Who Like Fairy Tales

hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

If you like Fairy Tales, then I'm about to share with you 10 retellings that I have fallen in love with and I hope you will like too.

1. Cinder (Cinderella) by Marissa Meyer
2. Scarlet (Little Red Riding Hood) by Marissa Meyer
3. Cress (Rapunzel) by Marissa Meyer

This series has become one of my favorite of all time.  I read them for the first time at the end of 2013 and then when Cress was released and ever since I've been waiting for the fourth installment.  I have fallen so in love with the characters and the creativity in the world of these retellings!

4. Dorothy Must Die (Wizard of Oz) by Danielle Paige - Think Dorothy post Oz, when she sort of goes power crazy.  It's a really interesting read if you've ever wondered what happened after.

5. Ella Enchanted (Cinderella) by Gail Carson Levine - This book is so good!  I read it when I was younger and my 11-year-old self couldn't get enough of it!

6. Just Ella (Cinderella) by Margaret Peterson Haddix - Speaking of 11-year-old self, she read and loved this one too!  I read them both around the same time and loved the idea that one story could be told in different ways and still be incredibly engaging.

7. Sisters' Grimm (Grimm Fairy Tales) by Michael Buckley - The main characters are descendants of the Grimm Brothers and their neighbors are straight out of fictional characters.  They solve crime too!

8. Peter and the Starcatchers (Peter Pan) by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson - It's essentially the story of how Peter became Peter Pan and it's so good! It took me a couple tries to read, but once I was in the mood I couldn't put it down.

9. Avalon High (King Arthur) by Meg Cabot - In middle school this was one of my favorite books.  It took Arthurian Legend, which I find absolutely fascinating and matched it with real life.  I found myself looking for clues that I was part of some Camelot reincarnation for months after I read it.

10. I've saved this space for the 8 unread retellings sitting on my bookshelf right now.  I won't (can't) put them on this list yet, but I'm sure some of them belong here.  Just creating this list makes me want to read them all right now!

Notable Quotable: Piper Kerman (#68)

"Every human being makes mistakes and does things they're not proud of.  They can be everyday, or they can be catastrophic.  And the unfortunate truth of being human is that we all have moments of indifference to other people's suffering.  To me, that's the central thing that allows crime to happen: indifference to other people's suffering."
     --Orange is the New Black 

Harry Potter Moment of the Week (#30)

hosted by Uncorked Thoughts.

Neville Moment:

I absolutely love Neville. There are so many good moments in these books: In the first book, he stands up to Ron, Harry and Hermione.  In the fourth book, he asks Ginny to the Yule Ball and it's the sweetest.  In the fifth book, he accompanies Harry and the others to the Ministry of Magic and defends them.  In the last book, his extreme badassness is revealed to the world when starts Dumbledore's Army again and causes all sorts of choas at Hogwarts culminating with him killing Nagini.

I don't know if I have a favorite moment.

So I'm going to say: Neville, Ginny and Luna regroup the Dumbledore's Army. 

With Harry, Ron and Hermione gone from the school, Neville took it upon himself to keep the DA running.  I absolutely love that these three get a moment to shine, even if we don't get to see any of it first hand. They run around school causing havoc and mayhem and really just making Shape's life miserable.  It's amazing!  I wish we could learn more about their time there.

March TBR: New To Me

I was trying to figure out what theme I should do this month and I wasn't really feeling a genre theme.  I felt myself drawn to the books I've acquired and heard about recently.  I want to read them but also I felt restricted by the original theme for this month.  So I changed it.  I will be reading books I've bought recently or checked out from the library, anything that is new to me.




Currently Reading

• Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline

Possible Candidates

• The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly (New)
• How Zoe Made Her Dreams (Mostly) Come True by Sarah Strohmeyer
• Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
• Starters by Lissa Price
• Meant To Be by Lauren Morrill
• Monstrous by Marcy-Kate Connolly (Full)
• The Shadow Cabinet by Maureen Johnson (Full)
• The Duff by Kody Keplinger
• The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Koningsburg (New)
• We Should Hang Out Sometime by Josh Sundquist

Book Club

• The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

New Releases

• The Wrong Side of Right by Jean Marie Thorne (March 17) 
• The Cemetery Boys by Heather Brewer (March 30)
• The Wicked Will Rise by Danielle Paige (March 31)
• The Lost Track of Time by Paige Britt (March 31) 

Book to Movie 

• Serena by Ron Rash (March 27)

Key:
(Ecl.) = Eclectic Reader Challenge
(New) = Newbery Reading Challenge
(Full) = Full House Reading Challenge
(TBR) = 2015 TBR Pile Challenge
(ABC) = Alphabet Soup Challenge
(Ult.) = Teenreads Ultimate Reading