What the haeck!1!!

What the what! I am mad because when I checked G+ with my other email, I saw this post on my feed. I forgot that people actually might see this because it posts to Google plus. SIGH, stupid me.

Writing blog posts is hard to do when I have nothing to write about. Whatever! I'm still gonna post anyway, because it's kind of fun. I doubt this can be counted as a post, since it's just me writing down a few thoughts, laughing, and then jumping onto a different topic.

Oh, and HI, if you are reading this. I appreciate that you take time to do so, though you could be doing something much more productive. HAHAHAHA. Not that I am ever productive. It's spring break, but I think it's almost over. So sad.

yEP.

Have a good day byebyebyebyebyebye (・∀ ・)ノ

LOL

A nice picture, I think

Hello. HHAHHAHAH this is so weird !
I don't think anyone will ever see this, but that's okay because I don't really want anyone to see it anyway. But if you dooooo see it, then hihihi :0 it has been a long time. I haven't written for this blog since the end of freshman year. So weird

I don't read as much as I used to -- excluding my APUSH textbook and Macbeth -- but I managed to get one book in this year. That's pretty good, I mean the book was decently long. 300 pages maybe? OK. Maybe I will write on this blog like, once a month or when I'm super bored. Not that anyone cares, because no one will read this. Goodbye invisible reader. Until next time !

Noooooo

I literally have not read since last week and am currently being destroyed in Harvest Moon.

books are great

You may be wondering, 'how does one get destroyed in a farming game?' Well let me tell you, Harvest Moon is much more complex than your simpleton brain might think. My character Jack is currently having an issue with his health and gets tired every time he tries to do anything so then when he is all tired out only half of the day is over and then all I can do for the rest of the day is run around and try to find so wild grass to eat so that I can regain my stamina. Also my crops aren't growing. 

I can't find any books to read. Well, I have a list, but I don't know when I'm gonna get my hands on them. So I figured I may as well tell you about the books I want to read because I have nothing better to blog about. It's a miracle I'm not crying right now because I have a violin recital in 3 hours. Trying not to freak out. 

There's also movie :0

Anyhow the first book on my list would be Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close. I originally had checked this book out at the school library but ended up not reading it because The Night Circus took me forever to read. Now I have a fine of $1.20. Thanks Erin Morgenstein. 

Why are there movies for all the books

The book itself seems like a touching and heart-wrenching story. Apparently it's about a boy named Oskar Schell who lost his father in the tragic incident that we know today as 9/11. He's trying to find the lock to a key that his father left behind, and ultimately goes on a journey of rebuilding. Through this book I would hope to learn more about what happened on that day.

I've also heard much praise for the popular novel, The Lovely Bones. Lovely bones, lovely book, right?  Wrong. It's a scary book.

The movie Paper Towns is coming out, and I'm scrambling around trying to find someone who owns this book because I hate watching the movie before reading the book. So if you do own it, I'd greatly appreciate it if you let me borrow it to enjoy!

I also intend on reading Catch 22, Water for Elephants, I'll Give You the Sun, Unbroken,
 and The Time Travelers Wife. It's ambitious, I know, but I hope that I can make time in my days to do this because I seriously need to read more. (lol).

These are just a few books I hope to read! Yay!

Finishing The Night Circus

It's a shame that I'm not doing a "Continuing The Night Circus" post, since I did starting and finishing  posts about it. Anyhow, during the week before spring break, I speed read this book because the due date was approaching... Unfortunately, because I had chose to procrastinate in my reading and now I have a fine and only finished 2/3 of the books I checked out. I cry every time.

Anywaaays, if you read my previous post on starting this book, you'll know that I was hooked in right away due to the unique writing style the author used.

I love how the book is not just a romance book, but it's also filled with mystery and excitement. The amount of description in the book is incredible, in a mind-boggling way that makes you wonder how much more of the boring detail you have to read. It doesn't feel like you're being swept away by a gigantic tidal wave of blah, but more like...I don't know, basking in a sea of wonder? HAHA. How to write. Just know that it's surprisingly pleasant and not overwhelming or overbearing in anyway. In fact the extensive amount of description helps add to the readers understanding and allows you to feel like you are actually in the setting. Basically magic.

Starting The Night Circus

Thanks to PARCC testing, I actually read! How satisfying.

During the end of February, I went down to the school's library and checked out 4 books, The Night Circus, being one of them. (The others are The Perks to Being a Wallflower, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, and If I Stay, if you were curious to know. Also, boil your eyes and keep them peeled for future posts about these books, mwahaha).

Anyhow, I started this book before the others because of the high praise it gets from my friends. It's a compilation of certain highlights within each characters life, all stories relating to one another, creating a magical and exhilarating story.

It took me a few chapters to get the hang of this story format, because it switches around to certain moments in any character's life. Also, if you read this book, pay attention to the date listed at the beginning of each chapter. This will help you out A LOT. (I learned that the hard way).

So the story starts out in 2nd person point of view, a very unpopular choice but in this book it was effective and enhanced the story, filling the readers mind with vivid visualizations of the circus. The story continues on in third person limited, following a talented "magician" called Prospero the Enchanter!

And well... yeah, I actually haven't gotten very far yet so I'll update my opinions on this book in another post.

The False Prince

Hello! It's been too long, I've missed your beautiful face. Please press it against the screen so I can pet it.

SPOILERSSSSS. Please read only if you have read the book. But if you choose to read anyway...why? You're totally gonna ruin your experience.

Sage, a young mischievous boy was bought from his orphanage by mysterious man named Bevin Conner. He and two other boys, Tobias and Roden, have been rounded up, given the task to become the role of the long presumed dead, Prince Jaron. (The whole royal family is dead now too). Each boy was different, Tobias is smart and nonathletic, Roden is straightforward but strong and burly, and Sage, a brave, clever thief. The only thing they have in common is the somewhat similar features shared with Prince Jaron. Sage senses that Conner is a bad person, but given the options of becoming a pawn of Conner's evil plots, or being murdered, he has no choice but to go along with the plan.

Together, the three boys take lessons on different subjects, sword fighting, history, manners, and horseback riding in hopes to increase their chance in becoming Prince Jaron. However, only one boy will be chosen for the crown and the other two are sentenced to death.

My favorite character in the book is Sage. He has long, shaggy light hair that often hides his eyes, and a slouchy stance. He's a unique and fun character that always surprises me with his actions.

"The saddest thing is there won't be anyone to miss us when we're gone. No family, no friends, no one waiting at home."
"It's better that way," I said. "It'll be easier for me, knowing my death doesn't add to anyone's pain."
"If you can't give anyone pain, then you can't give them joy either."

This quote shows that while he acts like he doesn't care, he's actually loyal and doesn't want to hurt anyone with his actions. Sage doesn't want to be responsible for anyone's sorrow.

Okay, but not only is he a really considerate and thoughtful boy, but what I like about him is that he is a very real character. Sage isn't some kind of glorified hero who goes into battle with a decided victory. Sage is like any kind of guy out there. He feels happiness, guilt, fear. Sage cries and smiles, he feels triumph and defeat. The fact that he's such a relatable character only makes the story so much better.

Coin rolling trick

Yeah so anyways, when all is going badly for Sage, and you're all like 'Oh no! Sage can't be killed off, he's the main character! Why is he still failinggg?'. Do not fret my dear child! Right before Conner chooses who will take the role as Prince Jaron, Sage pulls out a coin and begins to pass it between his knuckles. This is only significant because this is one of the tricks that Prince Jaron is known for thus, making Conner choose Sage to take the crown.

Yay! This is good right? Especially because at this point,
Sage reveals that he is actually Prince Jaron himself. Whatwhatwhatwhat. 

 Ms. Nielsen may I have a refund for all the energy I spent on fretting over Sage's safety and general well-being and how he was ever supposed to win this ridiculous competition when he was literally competing for his own identity, and supposedly learning how to be more like himself.

But it's kind of hard to explain how this all played out because throughout the book we are literally in Sages head, which makes this plot twist a lot more interesting and enjoyable.
I guess because I'm lazy and generous I won't spoil the ending (even though I just gave away the biggest spoiler) for all of you rebellious readers who still continued to read this post. This book is apart of a trilogy and I really hope I can read the second book soon!

Last Spurt

Ooh, it's the last post of the semester. How exciting.

I must say, I haven't read as many novels as I would've liked to. However, I did read The Lover's Dictionary, and Forged, and am currently reading It's Kind of a Funny Story. I didn't exactly have a specific reason to pick these books, it sort of just happened. I was supposed to read The Lover's Dictionary for my summer reading project, but it came late in the mail so I was forced to switch books. Forged was only because it was the sequel to Chains, and I'm only currently reading It's Kind of a Funny Story because the book I had my eyes on for the book swap was claimed right before my very eyes, leaving me with no choice but to pick a random book. No regrets though, haha.
I've also read a plethora of random things. Packets about composers from Orchestra, chapter after chapter in my boring history textbook, as well as (not sure if this would count) multiple folktales from my mandarin class. I've liked all the things I've read, (except for the history stuff) and even though some things didn't work out the way they were supposed to, I'm very glad I got to read the amazing things that I did.

My blogging in the beginning was pretty stiff. I really just spat out information, keeping it formal and totally defeating the purpose of a blog post. Now, I'd like to think I have a lot more voice and I'm more friendly. I mean, I'm not naturally a funny type of person, so bringing humor and showing my personality through my writing was hard, but I did my best, and hopefully you will be able to see it threaded through my posts. Up until around 4 blog posts ago, all I would ever do is write book summaries. Now, I've learned to branch out and write about different topics, which definitely will make my posts more interesting and less repetitive. That's nice.

Okayy, continuing on... I have literally been late when writing all my blog posts and comments. I put them off, thinking I can easily do them later. What a fool I am. For me, blogging is soo tedious, I literally sit in the chair for an hour typing, deleting, retyping, flipping through pages, rushing to get a post done. I'm disappointed in my time management, and baffled by how badly I procrastinated. Can I just say that it's like, the night before this post is due and I'm writing it now? I. Regret. Everything. It's only the first semester, and as a lowly freshmen in a busy high school environment, I should have lots of time. So one thing I plan on improving is definitely turning these posts in on time. (Because it's gonna seriously effect my grade). Also, I hope to be able to write about different topics. In the beginning of the school year, we were given a list with a large number of prompts, so I have plenty of ammo. One last thing is to read more. Just kidding. I hope to read books that I wouldn't normally pick up. Because the books that are totally out of my reading level, I do hope to read them someday. So I will start slowly, but surely I will build onto my vocabulary (as you can tell, my vocab is quite limited...) while reading, and become a stronger and more independent reader! I know I still have so much more to learn, and I hope to share that with everyone in the second semester.

And on that note, ugh yes, I am finally done with the last post. (Of the first semester).