The beast in me is finally out!

The one word I am going to have to say now is..... fantastic! I really thought that this book is exactly like beauty and the beast. But it is actually very similar but different in the some way. Beastly is about a boy (Kyle Kingsbury), who is living in New York City (NYC as they say in the book). For him, only the outside looks matter, and popularity. When he asks in-attractive girl ( Kendra- goth girl) out to the dance because of his rudeness to her. But he actually confirms going to the dance with his girlfriend (Sloane)! When they are at the dance, he recognizes both girls there. When he goes to talk to Kendra, Sloane decides to kiss Kyle to make the girl jealous! After that, Kyle starts to be arrogant again! All of a sudden, Kendra changes her form and becomes a witch! She then casts a spell on Kyle changing him into a beast. Not a gorilla, monkey, but a strange creature. A hairy creature that can walk upright and can howl and growl. A creature with pointy fangs. An ugly thing. She tells him that only true love and a kiss can break the spell. He has to find true love before 2 years or all will stay the same. Kyle Kingsbury will stay a beast. Kyle, terrified, tries everything to break the spell.

1) He seduces Sloane to try to kiss him to break the spell. It didn't work because it wasn't real love between the both of them.

2) His father (Kyle's father), goes to all the best plastic surgeons in New York to try to operate or do some plastic surgery to change him. All the doctors and surgeons said there is nothing that could be done.

After all this, Kyle's father still had faith.

One day, Kyle finds a mirror in his room. In it, Kendra appears and tells Kyle that he can see anyone, anywhere in the mirror. It was magic. Kyle, frustrated, tries to break the mirror but finds out that it might be useful later on.

Rating so far:

Website Review

As you know, I am now reading the book Beastly, and I wanted to talk a little about the official website of the author (no official website for the book). The site is called called Alex Flinn, young adult author. Here is a link to the website: www.alexfinn.com . When you enter the main site, you can see the covers of all the books she has written and critcis. At the top of the website you can see the name of the website and a picture of Alex Flinn. The main menu is interactive because when you click on the cover of a book, it brings you to a page explainig the book and writing about it in depth. On the side, there are subtopics that let you know more about the author (biography). Some of the topics found on the side are: my books, biography, school visits/speaking, book talks, favourite books, short stories, and many more. She doesn't have a search icon on her website but it is easy to find everything. There are titles, subtitles, and captions to make it easy to find what you are exactly looking for. Also, the nice thing that I really like with this website, is that whenever you are on one of the titles on the side of the website, you can see which you are on because it is bolded. She also lists how to contact her by email or by post. Her email is alixwrites@aol.com . The company she works for is Harper Collins and it is a very known publisher. They publish all kinds of novels starting from books of 5 year olds all the way to the adult age. Also, the company that produced the site is called 2-Tier Software Inc. They build websites of all kind for any person who wants to start there own official site, bussiness or just for the pleasure. The connection time took 2 seconds. This is very quick and efficient and it is 12K. In my opinion, I think that the layout of this site is perfect. Although the site is plain and doesn't have a great design, the way things are organized and put in order. You know where everything is and you know where to look for points. I think that this site needs a little bit more information on the books she writes. I think that everything is well explained and there is enough information except for the point a said. In conclusion, I think that this website should be visited because its is very well-written and if you read one of the books, and you want to know more about your book, this is the website to visit for Alex Finns' books. Also, when you need to know more about the author or want to know something for an assignement this is the most suited site (it is the author herself writing!). In conclusion, if you ever read a book by Alex Flinn, and need some infromation, you know where to go!

Literary use

In the book beastly, there is not that many literary devices used. Although the one that striked me the most like a bolt of lightning was the forshadowing found on page 6 when she says " Kyle Knigsbury, you are beastly." And the way the author explains what the perspective of Kyle was when looking at Kendra was fantastic!

There is also a literation found on page 3 where he expalins about when Kyle and his father have a talk when he was 7 - 8 years old. " You love...........me?" says kyle to his father. The literation used is the way he uses the points to explain he is pausing in a dramatic way.

These are some of the literary terms used in the book.

P.S - There are more in my sticky notes.

Characters

Kyle Kingsbury- A selfish self-centered boy who only cares about himself. He is one of the most popular kids in school. He is also running for the ninth-grade prince. I really don't know why people like him so much. Even though is the the protagonist (main character) of the book, he is so rude and doesn't care about anyone (except himself).

Trey Parker- A secondary character of the book, Trey is Kyle Kingsbury's friend. He seems honest and kind. He seems like a nice guy. Kyle and him always talk to eachother about everything. They trust eachother so much.

Kendra Hilferty- Kendra is the misunderstood character. She is a goth girl who transfered from another school. She stands up for people who cant talk for themselves. She is cold but deep down, dedicated.

Kyle's father- He is a patriarch (father figure). Kyle's father is a new reporter and is very known.

Kyle's real date:Sloane Hagen- As Kyle describes her, she is a typical toned, BlackBerry-wired, Evian-swigging, fake blond, belly-pierced daughter of a CEO.

Is it really a beastly of a book?

Kyle is a self-centered, superficial boy. He is one of the most popular boys in school and loves to talk about himself. He goes to a private school where rich kids only go to (The CEO of companies, etc.). He is also running for for ninth-grade prince. All the girls dream to go out with him! He thinks that his good looks and amazing skills will get him the crown! He has so much to think about. Until one day, a gothic girl shows up in his life! Her name is Kendra Hilferty.

During english class, Kendra stands up for people that lets just say, aren't the most beautiful of the group. She explains that people always look at the nice girls but not at the average ones. Kyle stressed out jumps out and says " If someones so smart, they'd figure out how to get better-looking. He tells her that she should change her face (plastic surgery)! He explains that his dad always tells him that people shouldn't look at ugly things! "Is that what you really think Kyle Kingsbury?" she says. "Kyle then you'd better hope that you never get ugly, Kyle. You are ugly now, on the inside, where it matters most, and if you ever lost your good looks, I bet you wouldn't be smart or strong enough to get them back. Kyle Kingsbury, you are beastly." After what she had said, him always thinking of himself not getting hurt, went to talk to her and asked her to the dance. Of course, she accepts.

Later that night, he gets a call from his real date to the dance, Sloane Hagen, telling her that everything is good and set to go! He then finds out that this is the biggest mistake of his life!



I rate this book so far:

New book?

Unfortunately, as you can see the title, I am writing about a new book. The reason of this is because I could only have the book for a limited time before having to give it back to the library. So until I get the book back, I will be talking about the new book... Beastly!

Song choices

I am at the commence of the book as I mentioned and I just wanted to also put out that this book is amazing. The author has written it in such an original way, that no other ever did. On the plot profile below, you can see that I only wrote the exposition because this is the part I am at and I was just introduced to the main character and secondary character and I don't know in depth about them. As a song to explain the exposition of the book Sucks to be Me, I have chosen Hannah Montana's original song, the other side of me. I chose this song to represent my exposition because Mina and Miley/Hannah Montana are going through the same situation. Mina doesn't know which path to take and she is getting worried. The same for Miley/Hannah Montana. Miley Stewart is a normal average girl who attends school by day. But at night, she is the famous superstar Hannah Montana. Sometimes she is troubled by living a double life and can't take it anymore. Also, the music connects with tone a little bit. The tone is humorous. The book can connect to the television series because the series is a comedy. Both the book Sucks to be Me and Hannah Montana have actually something in common. Later on, as I read more of Sucks to be Me (as I complete the other sections of the plot profile), more song choices will be revealed, so stay tuned!

Here a link is to here the actual song with the lyrics:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pXlYFxtnD2w

What will happen next?

As you know, I am reading Sucks to be Me, and I have to predict what will happen next. At the moment, I am at the part where Mina, meets a lady that will work in the future to help her decide if she wants to be a vampire or not. Mina is going to have to take lessons (vampire classes). I think that throughout the book, something unforgettable will happen! For example, her whole life could be ruined. Examples of this would be Mina telling her friend Serena, that her parents are vampires. Also, if she is a vampire, the course of her whole life will change with one decision. These situations can be found in other books,movies, and television series. This is how a assumed what will happen next in the book. I refered to other cases. Now we will have to wait and see!

Plot Profile- Sucks to be Me

About the author

Kimberly Pauley has written her first book Sucks to be Me that was published in August 2008. She was born on January 24th, 1973 in San Mateo, California. From the ending of her high school years, Kimberly started writing but never published anything at school. Her boyfriend at the time (now husband) encouraged her to write. She studied young children's literature at college. She has started writing her second book (sequel) to Sucks to be Me. She lives now in Illinois with her husband, her new baby born boy, and her cat Grace.

For more information, visit Kimberley’s official website at: http://kimberlypauley.com/about/

Kimberly Pauley- Sucks to be Me

Hello and welcome to the life of Mina Hamilton! Sucks to be Me is about a girl named Mina Hamilton, who is the protagonist of the book has to decide wether or not she wants to be a vampire.



I am at the commence of the book and this book is exceptional. I love how the author, Kimberly Pauley, writes her book and how it seems like she is actually Mina in reality. I can find literary devices throughout the book. I am at the exposition. Some of the literary devices I found in the book were on page 6 where a literation was used. A literation is a represantation of a sound using letter. In this case, the literation used here is when Serena says “wassup!”. Another literary device used is forshadowing on page 15. Now that I have shown some examples of some literary devices, I am going to talk more about the characters and there personality.



Mina Hamilton, the main character, and protagonist, is a out going girl and very down to earth. She can sometimes have some attitude but deep down, she is very kind and respectful. Some of the secondary characters are her parents, Serena, and Nathan. Mina’s parents are vampires. They seem like any parent; thinking about their child, also concious of their decisions, and overall being good parents. Serena, the closest friend of the protagonist, always loves a different personality. It lists on page 7 that she has a personality change about every couple of months. At the part that I am at she is going through her gothic stage. Mina says that she also had a Christina Aguilera stage which was disturbing. Last but not least Nathan! Like every average girl, vampire or not, they have a crush. And for Mina, Nathan is a long life crush fantasy. When she is around him, she has an inability to talk in complete sentences. She also adds in that he probably thinks that she has a speech impediment. Now that I have explained a lot about the characters, let me talk to you about the book.



Mina, has been around vampires all her life ( her parents are vampires), but when the vampire council discovers that her house has a non vampire living in it, the council lets her decide if she wants to become a vampire. She can’t tell her friend anything about her situations because Serena doesn’t know her parents are vampires. With all this confusion she also has to worry about school! How can she also concenrate on the crush of her life, Nathan? What will be the decision she will make? Read the book to find out!



If you don’t want to wait that long, wait for next week to find more about the book…. Sucks to be Me!

Rating so far:

Alexandria, Egypt- Exceptional

The next book?

Oh yes! For all you people who thought that I am the kind person who gives up on their blogs, you are totally wrong! Later this week, you will discover a new book! It could be Time of the Reaper, Generation Dead, Poison Ink, Tantalize, or maybe Sucks to Be Me! You are just going to have to wait and see!

Darren Shan- Cirque du Freak

I've always been fascinated by spiders. I used to collect them all the time when I was younger. I'd spend hours rooting through the dusty old shed at the bottom of our garden, hunting cobwebs for lurking eight- legged predators. These are the first sentences/quotes of the book the Cirque du Freak. Darren Shan is the main character of the book. He is also the protagonist. He is a very out going and down to earth person. He loves discussing various situations with his parents and he has a younger sister. I have been reading this book for the past week and I am really connected to him. I can feel what the characters are going through and that is such an important thing to think about when finding the right book. Personally, I think that my personality is similar to Darren's. The three most fascinating things about this book are...

1) The introduction

2) The cover

3) How the author can put in so many literary devices in such a small book (183 pages)

Let me start with the introduction. The thing I like most about the author is that he doesn't start his book with a cliché topic sentence; he starts with how the story connects to the topic sentence. It is like he has the whole plan pictured in his mind before he even starts writing it down with a pen and paper.

Then comes the cover! Below you will see a picture of the cover. On the cover, it seems very normal. There is the name of the book, and the name of the author. But there are 2 things that are really interesting on the cover. The first is the way the colours are chosen. The colours are very mysterious, very frightening. A spider and its web are not red in the real world, but on the cover, it is! The second part that I found very fascinating is the catch phrase. It says: A living nightmare.... After reading that sentence, I felt a strange sensation. It seemed like a tingle in my throat.

Last but not least, I love how the author can put so many different literary terms and archetypes in such a small book. There are some books that are over 500 pages but have no meaning, no moral, no action or suspense, but most important of all, no literary terms used. In this book, you can see many literations like when screaming, Steve, one of the secondary characters, Darren's friend, says "Ahhh!" A literation is a representation of sounds or words by means of alphabetical letters. This literation is found on page 52. Now that I have told you about the Cirque du Freak, all you people who had a hard time to find a book, one load is off your back! Now get ready for the nightmare of your life, the Cirque du Freak!

Spoiler: If you look on the cover of the book, the author is Darren Shan. But in the book, the protagonist, Darren explains that he used no ones actual name and the setting. So keep your eyes open.

Rating System

As my rating system I have chosen different touristic cities of the world. My rating starts from best to worst. As my best touristic place of the world, I chose Alexandria in Egypt. Alexandria would symbolize as an amazing book; a book that is exceptional and that can never be put down. I chose Alexandria because it was the place where I had the most wonderful vacation, It is near the beach and so alive. The second city I chose was Paris. This symbolises a very good book. I can't put it down but it is not exceptional. I chose Paris as my second best book rating because it is beautiful and majestic but not as high as Alexandria. The third city I chose is Varedero in Cuba. Varadero symbolizes a good book, but I am able to put it down. Varadero is a nice city of the Caribbean. The reason I picked Varadero as my third choice is because it is unique, warm, but it is not as excellent as Paris or Alexandria. The last city, I chose to symbolize a book that I despise and that I would never read again is Ottawa in Canada. Ottawa, last place on my list! It would seem a little bit shocking but there is no amusement in Ottawa. Ottawa is the city of government but not the city of fun. This is why I put it for last. If you look below, there are the visuals.






Best Book (Exceptional)

Second Rating (Very Good)








Third Rating (Good)







Last Rating (Horrible)

Blog Manifesto

Have you ever been one of those people who just can't find the right book? There are thousands of books out in the world but do you have a hard time deciding which one is for you? Well, you have come to the perfect place! For people, like me, who always have trouble finding the right book, I struggle. But I want to make it easier for other children who have the same issue as me! I do suggest, if you don't want to see books that will make you insane, and make you go wild, then go to another website. You have entered the zone of crazy about books!