So, I've been on a bit of a reading streak this summer. After a whole year of college in which I might have read a whole two books on my own time (one being Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater...and oh yes, rereading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling), I have been running through books like its no body's business.
I think this is due in great part to my determination to be a writer and to get something actually written before I get out of college. Everywhere you look you see published authors telling apiring novelists TO READ. It's actually important. It's more important to read within the genre you're hoping to get published in. Just sayin.
Since summer started up I reread Eclipse, then A Great and Terrible Beauty, City of Bones...
The last thing I tackled:
Who knew our 16th president was a vampire hunter? Who knew??
What humored me the most about this was just the entire seriousness the author stuck to. I was constantly left laughing at among other things, the book jacket.
"Using the journal as his guide and writing in the grand biographical style of Doris Kearns Goodwin and David McCullough, Seth has reconstructed the true life story of our greatest president for the first time--all while revealing the hidden history behind the Civil War and uncovering the role vampires played in the birth, growth, and near-death of our nation."
Now see, if I had read that first, I would have probably been less disappointed when I actually started reading this book. I knew it was historical fiction. However, by some stroke of genius, I didn't realize this thing was going to read like a textbook.
Never the less, it was still a great story. I didn't really get into it until 100+ pages in (but trudged through it because I didn't want my $10 to go to waste) and was somewhat disappointed because I had higher hopes for it (meaning again I'm an idiot and didn't realize it really would be written as a BIOGRAPHY). But after we really got into Lincoln's life it did make a turn for the better. I just found the beginning chapters a bit dull between Lincoln running here and there and getting a vampire, not getting a vampire...
It took me 3 days to read, not particularly difficult. It alternates between Grahame-Smith dictating about Lincoln's life and the president's journal entries, which are more than likely fabricated. I find it a bit hard to believe that this vampire tale is actually true...surely if it was we would see backing in the journals of the other political figures. However, if you keep an open mind its still a nice read. A bit gory of course, but I enjoy the paranormal violence.
But, again, the biography aspect virtually killed any and all writing I had been doing. I don't think I wrote at all in the three days I read this because it just lacked voice. So I'm going back to young adult stuff... Freaks by Annette Curtis Klause is the next thing I'm hoping to read. What I've read of her stuff has been good, I really enjoyed the book of Blood and Chocolate.
P.S. I really friggin hate the interent some days. I had a whole post written up and then it decided to die. Hey. Hey Mac. I thought you were supposed to be SUPER AWESOME? Good thing this blog has an auto-save feature for drafts...who wins now Super Awesome mac? Hmm?
P.P.S. I got a MacBook Pro for school last summer and it has actually been Super Awesome except on like, 3 occasions. I used Windows since I was 3 years old. I like them both.
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