Moving Blog

Hey everyone! Just wanted to let you know that I'm in the process right now of moving this blog onto Tumblr because it's a lot easier for me, and I'll actually probably do it more since I'm always on there. So this will still be here, but any posts that I'll make later on will be on the tumblr site, which would be kristireads.tumblr.com. So yeah. Hope you read it! =D

To The Scaffold

Author: Carolly Erickson

One of history's most misunderstood figures, Marie Antoinette continues to symbolize the glamour, the extravagance, and the decadence of French society before the French Revolution. Yet there was a poignant innocence about Antoinette, sent away in her early teens from her home in Vienna to the chillingly formal French court.

Married to the maladroit, ill-mannered dauphin and condemned to childlessness by his inability to beget an heir, Antoinette sought pleasure in costly entertainments and grotesque eccentricities of dress. Along with most members of the court, she spent lavishly while her husband's subjets, overtaxed and increasingly hostile toward their sovereign and his mismanaged government, blamed her from France's plight and accused her of every imaginable vice.

In time Antoinette matured into a capable and courageous queen, though her husband, Louis XVI, remained timid and inept at a time when France needed bold and visionary leadership. When the forces arrayed against the monarchy finally closed in, however, Antoinette followed her husband to the guillotine, an aged, white-haired widow not yet forty.

In To the Scaffold, acclaimed biographer Carolly Erickson provides an unusually nuanced portrait of a lost queen, a portrait that is psychologically acute, richly detailed, and finally, deeply moving.

So, pretty much, I've wanted to read this biography for quite a while since I've read Carolly Erickson's novel about Marie Antoinette several times and I wanted to see how they compared, since, frankly, the novel is extremely historically incorrect. I was actually really surprised because I thought it was a pretty good biography, because the reviews that I read weren't so great.

Erickson presented a lot of information that I've never heard before. She gave some really interesting details, for example, Marie Antoinette's childhood. Normally, biographers give you a quick overview and don't really talk about it in depth much. I was very excited that Erickson decided that that information was important enough to include! I feel like I definitely learned a lot of new things about Marie Antoinette from her book.

However, there were some points where I didn't feel like there was enough details. Her friends weren't mentioned much, and they were a huge part of Marie Antoinette's life. There was a short section about the Polignacs, but not much on Princesse de Lamballe, who was Marie Antoinette's first best friend, and the one that was with her in the end. The time that the royal family spent in the Temple prison doesn't get very much mention at all, and that disappointed me a bit.

I thought that the book was very well written. It definitely read more as a story than a biography, in my opinion. That makes it a really good choice for those people that are interested in Marie Antoinette's story, but are turned off by a biography.

However, Erickson wasn't very kind to Louis XVI. While I know he was not the best leader in the world, I don't think he was as horrible as she thinks he was. She also says that Marie Antoinette made all the decisions for many more years than any of the other books I've read say. So I guess that I wasn't a big fan of her portrayals of some of the people.....

And finally, I, of course, have to mention the Axel Fersen myth. Erickson did present why everyone thinks the affair did happen, but she treated it as a complete truth. I feel like she also made up facts to make it seem like a bigger deal than it actually would have been. It felt like she was saying that Fersen was the most important person to her, even over her children! This I know not to be true from everything else I've read.


I didn't really have a ton to say about it, but I was pleasantly surprised. You should read it. =D So next up I think I'm going to reread Sharon Lathan's In the Arms of Mr. Darcy because I really feel like more Darcyness. =D After that, I have quite a few choices of new books on my shelf to choose from. So I'll review one of those next. =D And sorry for my super short review!

Thanks for reading!

Love,

Kristi

In the Arms of Mr. Darcy

Author: Sharon Lathan

If only everyone could be as happy as they are...

Darcy and Elizabeth are as much in love as ever-even more so as their relationship matures. Their passion inspires everyone around them, and as winter turns to spring, romance blossoms around them.

Confirmed bachelor Richard Fitzwilliam sets his sights on a seemingly unattainable, beautiful widow; Georgiana Darcy learns to flirt outrageously; the very flighty Kitty Bennet develops her first crush, and Caroline Bingley meets her match.

But the path of true love never does run smooth, and Elizabeth and Darcy are kept busy navigating their friends and loved ones through the inevitable separations, misunderstandings, misgivings, and lovers' quarrels to reach their own happily ever afters...

So, if anyone has been paying my Twitter any attention, you'll know that I've been looking forward to it ever since I realized that it didn't come out when I thought it did. I kind of have mixed emotions about it. I liked it, but it wasn't as awesome as I was expecting, which was disappointing...

The reason it probably didn't reach my expectations is because, surprisingly, despite the book having Darcy in the title, I didn't think that it focused on Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy as much as it should have. Instead, it changed perspectives quite a bit. Sharon Lathan has done this before in her other novels, but not to the extent that she did in this one. I mean, I love Austen's Pride and Prejudice and Lathan's Darcy Saga mostly because I love Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth. So it just seemed that they were ignored way too much in favor of other characters, especially Lizzy. I just feel like she didn't have a huge part in this book, which is a shame.

However, I did like that we got to see the characters in their own mindset more. I just think it was a tad too much. The fact that we got into other characters' perspectives, like Colonel Richard and Mrs. Smyth along with others, definitely helped me know them better. I was able to make connections with some of them and developed some very strong feelings for others. For example, I've decided I hate Mrs. Smyth. She's a jerk. =D Also, it was a better way to depict some scenes, like Caroline's engagement than just having Lizzy and Mr. Darcy summarize it later. But like I said, it was just used way too often for my liking. I miss Lizzy and Darcy!

Also, I thought a lot of the events were way too rushed! It was very strange and I definitely wasn't expecting it, since usually Lathan is very detailed. But some scenes had a huge buildup and then were resolved in two paragraphs! I thought it made it kind of anti-climatic. There were also a lot of skipped events that I was really expecting to see in this book, since they were such a big part of the last book. For example, Mary's wedding to Mr. Daniels, as well as Anne's to Raul Penaflor. Mr. Darcy and Lizzy discussed them for about five seconds, each getting maybe five sentences as a summary. However, I do see reason for shortening them (just not to this extent). I mean, there were two weddings in one month, so it would have been repetitive. I just wish they had gotten a little more mention. Another example would be the Darcy's second anniversary/ Alexander's birthday! They got no mention other than saying they were two days away. The book was 355 pages and covered a whole year, while the previous three each covered a few months each, if that gives you any idea how rushed it was.

Also, a few of the events seemed a little pointless, especially in the beginning of the book. Things would happen and then it would go away and make no difference to the story. For example, the whole murder thing in the beginning. It happened and had a big build up, then was pretty anticlimactic (although I may just think this because I do read quite a few of murder mystery books and I'm used to the big ending), and then Darcy went home, summarized it in a paragraph or so and then it was never mentioned again. I just wasn't very impressed with that.

Now, the other problem I had has all to do with my OCD. In the beginning Cast of Characters, it said Darcy was 29, but he's 30, as he had his 30th birthday in the 3rd book. And then there were several spelling errors. So I just think a little more perusal by the proofreader would have been nice. =D

One last thing, I don't really care how old your kid is, whether they're only a few weeks old or much older, having sex while your kid is in the room is just nasty. I'm sorry.

Overall, I liked it, it just didn't reach my expectations. The third is still my favorite, but this one wasn't bad. I'm looking forward to the next one, which I just realized is called A Darcy Christmas, which is a collection of three stories by three different authors. Maybe that one fills in some of the blanks from this novel about Lizzy and Mr. Darcy's doings at Christmas... So I might read that one, but I can't promise anything since I have a thing about more than one author in one book. I think it's kind of awkward. But then again, I'm a strange, weird person as my roommate likes to say.

So up next is Carolly Erickson's To the Scaffold, which is, of course, a biography about Marie Antoinette. I'm really excited to see how Erickson's novel and biography compare, since the novel isn't exactly the closest thing to historical accuracy ever, but whatever. =D I'm excited! I'll definitely review it. I'd also like to point out that this is my first post since I got into college! I feel totally accomplished now. =D So, as always, please comment about anything. I love talking, so I'll respond to anything you say, unless it's just dumb. Then you're on your own. =D

Anyways, thanks for reading!

Love,

Kristi

Little Bits of Wisdom- May, August, and Septemer 2010

So I haven't posted my monthly quotes in forever! So here's a catch up:


"It was harder to be bold when the whole world seemed to be watching your every move." -Michael Grant, Gone

"Evil things love chaos." -Michael Grant, Lies

"Sometimes life gets tough and scary, okay? We've all been scary places before. But here we are, right? We're all still here." -Michael Grant, Lies

"There was no better way to understand life than to live it-if not through your own life, then through another's... Not to read was to turn your back on the wisest of minds." -Ted Dekker, Thr3e

"You don't fight evil with evil; it just creates anarchy." -Ted Dekker, Thr3e

"The heart is always at liberty- the sudden spark of feeling, the quick jet of passion, the mellow glow of satiated love. In all these states, the heart has its independence and will not be governed. The great secret is that all the conventions of society can be satisfied, and still the heart is at liverty. The heart knows what it knows, and it knows when it is met in a rapture of recognition." -Sena Jeter Naslund, Abundance: A Novel of Marie Antoinette

"It's never something huge that changes everything, but instead the tiniest of details, irrevocably tweking the balance of the universe while you're busy focusing on the big picture." -Sarah Dessen, Lock and Key

"'And the rest is history.' I said.
'Nah,' he shook his head. 'The rest is now.'" -Sarah Dessen, Lock and Key

"Not everything's perfect, especially at the beginning. And it's all right ot have a little bit of regret every once in a while. It's when you feel it all the time and can't do anything about it... that's when you get into trouble." -Sarah Dessen, Lock and key

"Dark days often force us to become more ingenious, to monitor and modify the ways we reached failure and reshape them into a new patter of success." -Isaac Fleischmann


Ok, I admit it. I only found one in September and I found it in my business textbook (thank you Mr. Fleischmann!). So I took it out of context a little, who cares? I mean, you would never have known that the last quote was actually talking about how patents have actually risen since the whole economic crisis rose, would you, now? =D But whatever. But I'm just starting My Dearest Mr. Darcy by Sharon Lathan, so once I finish that one I'll move onto the new book in the series and review it, yes?

As always, feel free to comment and follow me on Twitter and stuff. You can see my THREE latest tweets over on the right hand side of your screen. It always makes me happy when I get new comments and followers! *hinthint*

Anyways, thanks for reading!

Love,

Kristi

My NEW Bookshelf

So I don't know if anyone remembers my post I did about my bookcase, back in May, but I just realized that I have a new bookshelf now since I'm in college and such. So, I decided to write a post all about it since I haven't written in forever and I'm a major bum of a blogger.

There it is! It's definitely a lot smaller than I'm used to, but I manage. I didn't bring all of my books with me to college! I only brought 48! But I did buy a lot more, so I guess that kind of cancels it out.... But whatever. =D

It's organized in pretty much the same way as the old one. My books are up top in alphabetical order by author's last name, then first name, then book title, or volume. And my DVDs are organized alphabetically too! You can't see it, but they're double stacked on the two shelves to the left and continue onto the shelf on the top right. I can't really stand it, since I can't see all of my movies at the same time, but I deal with it. Also, my books are way too high for me to reach, so I had to buy a stepladder. Yeah, I'm short, but who cares?

The gap you see is where the book I'm currently reading, Loving Mr. Darcy by Sharon Lathan and the future home of her new book, In the Arms of Mr. Darcy, which I should hopefully be getting on Friday if the post office doesn't get everything all messed up! So, you know what I'm reading, but I should add I still have the third book in the series to read, My Dearest Mr. Darcy, before I can move on to the new one. But once I finish the fourth one, I PROMISE to write a review! I can't believe I haven't posted anything since August! But, then again, I have been super busy, adjusting to college and studying, plus I've only read two new books recently. One I didn't have a lot to say about and the other I probably could've written a very strongly opinionated review about, but I had a ton of homework, so never got to it.... And I always review stuff right after I finish it, so it didn't work very well. The book was Nanny Returns, which is a sequel to The Nanny Diaries, which I wasn't the biggest fan of.... But whatever, it's my own fault for reading it. And excuses are over now. =D

As always, please feel free to comment! I love getting those and they make me really want to write more posts and such. Also, if you want to know what my opinions are on the books I mentioned, just let me know, and I'll gladly tell you. =D You can always talk about others too! Like the top of the page says, anything book related is fair game. However, I am a pretty talkative person (if you haven't realized) so if you want to say something else, go for it! =D

Thanks for reading!

Love,

Kristi

Sarah's Key

Author: Tatiana de Rosnay

Paris, July 1942: Sarah, a ten-year-old girl, is taken with her parents by theFrench police as they go door-to-door arresting Jewish families in the middle of the night. Desperate to protect her younger brother, Sarah locks him in a bedroom cupboard- their secret hiding place- and promises to come back for him as soon as they are released.

Sixty years later: Sarah's story intertwines with that of Julia Jarmond, an American journalist investigating the roundup. In her research, Julia stumbles onto a trail of secrets that link her to Sarah, and to questions about her own romantic future.


So, my best friend has been trying to get me to read this book for about a year. And if you knew my best friend, you would understand that she doesn't give me book recommendations a lot, because she doesn't really read as much as I do (which might be understandable, seeing how I always call her when I finish reading a book and rant on about it while she pretends to listen. =D). But I have never been disappointed by a book that she tells me to read, so I don't really know why I don't listen to her right away.

Obviously, since Maria's recommendation never fails, I really liked Sarah's Key. I think it had a really good balance of predictable and unpredictable moments. Honestly, I love when something unexpected happens, but occasionally, if every single thing is unpredictable, it feels over the top. But if it's all predictable, it gets really boring. However, this book has the perfect combination, which makes it feel much more realistic. The author also makes the unpredictable things plausible, which helps the story extremely. She didn't take it to the extremes, she put in plot twists that, while you would never have expected them, also makes sense. For example, when you find out what actually happened to Sarah, my jaw did drop, but I also thought, "Well, why didn't I think that would happen?"

I also loved that the author chose to write about such an obscure point in history, the Veldrome d'Hiver roundup that occurred in Paris on July 16, 1942. I've never heard of this, ever, and I'm a history freak, so I'm not used to reading books where I don't at least have a small amount of knowledge about the history. That means that I learned quite a bit, while reading a really enjoyable book. That's always a plus. =D

Another great thing about Sarah's Key is the setup or layout (I'm having problems thinking up words tonight because it's about 3 am). I love how in the beginning the perspectives change every chapter between Sarah in 1942 and Julia in 2002. I think it's really interesting and I think de Rosnay handled it very well, by making sure that neither of the characters knew anything they weren't supposed to know until they were supposed to know it, even though the other character may have known. (Confusing sentence, eh?) Personally, I would've jumbled it all up (like I do with everything), so I have major respect for her, especially since I think that a lot of authors really don't handle it very well, either, when you've got two different people in two different time periods. I also think that she chose the right time to end Sarah's narrative. Not only would it have ruined some of the bigger plot twists, it also seemed (to me, at least) kind of symbolic of when Sarah really lost her spirit, no matter how cheesy I just made that sound.

I only had a few things that bugged me. It kind of got annoying how Sarah was referred to as "the girl" through most of her perspective chapters. I mean, it was obvious who it was. The book is called Sarah's Key and the synopsis on the back of the book says that Sarah locked her brother in a cabinet. So wouldn't it make sense that girl who locked her brother in the cabinet and had the key would be named Sarah? I'm sure there was a reason for doing it, but it just bugged me, because I didn't see that reason.

Also, I thought that ending kind of dragged, after it transistions to 2005. I thought it was pretty unexciting compared to the rest of the novel, until it got to the very last chapter. I liked that. =D

But anyways, overall, I did really like it, so I'm glad that my best friend told me to read it and my aunt gave it to me. I would highly recommend it to anyone who's interested in a little historical mystery. =D Sorry if my blog sucked, but I haven't written in quite a while, plus it's super late. But, anyways, I think that I'm going to read The Private Life of Marie Antoinette by Madame Campan next, because I've only read it once and I don't really remember how much I absorbed of it last time. So, I'm not going to be reviewing it, since I have read it before. I start college in 2 weeks so if I have time after that (which I'm pretty sure I will), I'm going to try read something that I've decided to leave behind. Yes, my parents and my best friend have convinced me that I will not have enough room in my dorm to bring all of my books, so I've narrowed it down to about 48, so I'm proud of myself. =D As always, please feel free to leave me comments about anything, and I really do mean anything. =D Chances are, I'll respond!

Anyways, thanks for reading!

Love,

Kristi

I'm Back!

My hiatus is finally OVER! I'm sure you're very excited. =D haha. That's the main message of this post, so if you don't want to hear my blurb of randomness, that mostly has nothing to do with books, you can stop reading now and I totally won't mind, because I have been told that my blurbs are waaaaaaayyyyy too long. =D

But, anyways, I got back from my longest vacation ever about two weeks ago. I got to visit my wonderful family (my mom's side, along with my dad's mom) in Florida for 6 whole weeks! I haven't seen them for 3 years, so it was really awesome! Also, since my family is HUGE (my mom is one of 7 children and my dad is one of 5), I swear, we are always adding new family members. So, since the last time I was there, we added a new uncle, and 4 new cousins! So I got to meet them and they are just adorable!

Since my brother and I are the only grandkids that don't live in Florida, we normally do get a fuss when we're there, but apparently, that is NOTHING compared to when you graduate high school. =D I'm the oldest grandkids on my mom's side, so, therefore, first one to graduate and first to go to college right afterwards. So, I got a LOT more attention than usual, which was uncomfortable at times, but whatever. I got a party, a cake, and a cousin talent show dedicated to me, full of hula-hooping, spelling, and singing Taylor Swift songs.

My brother left a few weeks earlier than I did, so that he could help my parents move into their new house, but I stayed. My aunt and uncle decided to celebrate my cousin Megan's 7th birthday at Fort Wilderness in DisneyWorld since they just bought a new camper and my mom got us tickets to go to the Magic Kingdom for 2 days! Needless to say, all girls of any age (or at least most of the ones I know) are huge Disney fans, Megan, her older sister (and my oldest cousin at 10 years), Victoria, and I were thrilled! It was their first time doing the whole meet the characters things since they normally just went on the rides before, so we did that, which I LOVE doing (and did most of the time when I went to DisneyLand in May). But, I didn't get my own autographs and pictures, and just let my cousins do it. (Although, I DID stand in for Megan while she went on a ride in Tomorrowland and Victoria wanted to see Chip and Dale, so I have a picture with them.)

Anyways, they also took me to this show called the Hoopdeedoo Review, and despite how corny it sounds, it was probably the funniest thing I've ever seen. If you ever go to Fort Wilderness, SEE IT! Victoria also introduced me as the new Disney princess, so you are now reading words written by royalty, aren't you excited? =D haha.

But anyways, when I had to leave, I started crying REALLY BAD, which was really embarrassing, because I was in the airport with my grandparents, two of my aunts, Victoria, Megan, and my youngest cousin Dylan, and I most definitely don't like crying in front of people. =C So, I flew here to Texas, where my family moved, but to be completely honest, I'm not sure I'm a huge fan of it, no offense to any Texans. But I'm sure I'd probably like it more if I were in a place more like Phoenix, instead of a city that's 45 minutes away from the closest Target. But that's ok. I'm also still adjusting, and haven't really made any effort to make any friends, since I'm going back to AZ in a few weeks to start college!

Anways, I'm excited to go start college, even to actually go to the classes, because they're actually interesting! =D But to relate this post more to books, like it's supposed to be, I'd like to add that I did read a TON while I've been on break, so I may post a list of what I read and a few thoughts on them. I won't do full reviews because I probably won't remember the details of the books, but I definitely read some really good ones. I guess part of being a huge reader/book hoarder in a family of aunts that never keep their books (like my mom, but she actually throws them away, which breaks my heart! =C), that means that I get a whole bunch of new books to bring home! Plus my aunt took me to Georgia to go visit for a few days with one of her friends, so on the drive up there, we found an awesome discount bookstore, full of old library books. We spent two hours there. =D But I'll probably make that list later, since it involves a lot of effort and I'm just in a lazy mood.

In other news, my best friend, and my parents, and pretty much everyone finally convinced me not to bring all of my books with me to college, so I'm only bringing around 48..... So I'm really hoping that I don't feel an overwhelming need to read one of the books I decided not to bring.... But then again, there is a Barnes and Noble right across the street, so it's all good.

FINALLY, we're at the end, so I'm sure you're relieved my blurb is over. =D I'm currently reading Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay, which my best friend has been trying to get me to read for months (and getting a book recommendation from her is a very rare occurance, since she kind of thinks I'm a freak for reading so much. =D But we're just the kind of friends that call each other freaks, so it's not mean, if that's what you're thinking) and my Aunt Jodie gave me when I visited her. So that'll be my first review after my hiatus! =D

And I think that's all I have to say. =D

So, thanks for reading!

Love,

Kristi