Discussion Topic: What to do FIRST? Read the book or watch the movie?

What should you do first? Read the book or watch the movie/show?

This topic has come up in discussions before, but we never just talked about how you choose and what seems to be the best way to go about doing things.

In the past, I have found that most people say to read the book first. However, I feel that reading the book first sets too high of an expectation for the movie. You read the book, fall in love with every word of it, and you expect the directors and writers to fit it all into a 2 hour period. Yet, this never works. Lines must be cut, scenes must be rearranged, and all in all, many of us end up hating the movie for it!

Seeing the movie/show first can allow you to enjoy it for what it is, without the heavy expectations. You take the new twists and turns for what they are, just some wonderful entertainment.

But the discussion goes both ways. When in came to Harry Potter, I'm very happy that I read the books first. I think it helped me understand the movies better, know more of what was really going on, especially in a world that is so new. The same goes for Lord of the Rings. That movie would have been terribly confusing (not really the plot, but all the names) without having read the book first.

On another note, sometimes I have watch a series/movie, loving the characters, the ongoing plots, etc. Then, turned to read the books for the full inside info, and absolutely condemned the book for not being as good. Case and point would be my two reviews of The Vampire Diaries and Pretty Little Liars. I LOVE the shows, but really can't stand the books at all.

It's hard to decide which is the better route.

Perhaps if I make a list, this will help...

Read the Book First and was Happy with the Show/Movie:

• Harry Potter
• Lord of the Rings
• Pride and Prejudice
• Frankenstein
• Confessions of a Shopaholic
• To Kill a Mockingbird
• Much Ado About Nothing

Read the Book First and was Unhappy with the Show/Movie:

• Twilight
• Romeo and Juliet
• Beastly (was a little better the 2nd time around)
• Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Saw the Show/Movie First and was Happy with the Book:

• The Last Song
• Matilda
• James and the Giant Peach
• A Midsummer Night's Dream

Saw the Show/Movie First and was Unhappy with the Book:

• The Vampire Diaries
• Pretty Little Liars
• Great Expectations

Seems to be just about even to me.

However, I think your best bet is to read the book first, but WELL BEFORE the movie/show comes out. Give yourself enough time to forget some of the book, so it can be a pleasant surprise when certain parts show up in the movie to remind you.

What do you all think?
Do you have a list of your own that you could make out?

Mini-Series Marathons!

I've always been a sucker for a good mini-series. What's that you say? This movie is 6 hours long? COUNT ME IN!!!

Lately, I have been really into BBC and with the benefit of Masterpiece Theatre I have been able to see quite a few of them, but none of them have struck a cord like Downton Abbey! (The second season started last Sunday with the first two episodes and the next two are on tonight!) Perhaps some of you have heard of this wonderful series, as it has become so popular that even magazines like Entertainment Weekly have given it a spot more than once, plus a 4-page spread complete with pictures! I don't want to say much to give it away, but it was based on the popular mini-series Upstairs, Downstairs, one of the first to not only feature the aristocratic lords and ladies of the upperhouse, but the maids and butlers of the lowerhouse as well.

Next, there's Pillars of the Earth, based on the book by Ken Follett. My parents both read the book so I was thrilled that they were willing to watch the 8 hour mini-series with me! We just completed it this week! It was fabulous, with a great cast like Matthew Macfadyen (Pride and Prejudice, The Three Musketeers, Any Human Heart), Donald Sutherland (Pride and Prejudice), Eddie Redmayne (Tess of the D'Ubervilles), Rufus Sewell (A Knight's Tale, The Tourist), Hayley Atwell (Any Human Heart), Ian McShane (Pirates of the Caribbean, Death Race), and so many more!

Not only that, but I found out that one of the books I just purchased, Tess of the D'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy, was also turned into a BBC miniseries, starring Gemma Arterton (Prince of Persia, Clash of the Titans) and Eddie Redmayne (Pillars of the Earth). This one was really hard to find. It wasn't in any of the stores I looked at, no talks of it showing on BBC America or PBS as a masterpiece theater. Netflix didn't even have a DVD copy of it let alone on instant play. Nevertheless, after digging on the Internet, I did find the first two episodes and am now searching for the other two through some streaming HD sites! YEAH! The first two episodes were very good. I just hope it ends happily. If anyone has seen it or read the book (like I should have done first!) Just tell me if it is happy. Nothing else, just happy, not, or bittersweet! Those are your only options!

So that's the latest and greatest mini-series I have dived into in the last few weeks. What about you guys? And it doesn't have to be the last few weeks. It could be EVER! I just didn't do ever because there would be too many. Although, I will mention Wives and Daughters (based off of Elizabeth Gaskell's novel), North and South, Love and War, and Heaven and Hell (all starring the wonderful Patrick Swayze and some soap opera people), and then there is a different North and South (starring the dark Richard Armitage from the BBC Robin Hood). Now, I better stop before I get into all the great Jane Austen mini-series!

So, again, I ask, what mini-series do you love!?!?

Discussion Topic: The Real Reason Children Don't Play Outside Anymore!

It's been ages since we had a discussion topic!!!

There wasn't really a reason for stopping except for the fact that I hadn't heard of or thought of anything good lately, but judging by my top posts on my right hand side bar, the discussion topics are the HUGE hit, even after being stagnant of months! So, here we go, back to the good old days!

Discussion: The Real Reason Children Don't Play Outside Anymore!

There is an obvious trend going on in America where children seem to no longer play outside. Now, one of the obvious explanations is that the new generations are more and more technology driven. And with technology replacing simple entertainments and almost all social practices, who can really blame the children?

Nevertheless, my father has a different idea. His reasons for why children no play outside come down to three very specific kinds of creatures:

1. Zombies
2. Bigfoot
3. River Monsters

Yes, that's what I said!

Dad and I spent a rather leisurely day in the living room watching a marathon of The Walking Dead (excellent television for a Sunday afternoon!) when suddenly he popped up from his chair and said, "This is the reason children don't want to go outside! After watching shows like this, who would!? They're all afraid they're going to get eaten by zombies, Bigfoot, or river monsters every time they walk outside their back door!"

I laughed, but once the fit of giggles was over with, I calmly replied, "You may be on to something!"

With all these new tv shows about finding Bigfoot or Sasquatch, paranormal ghosts, zombies, river monsters, creatures of the deep, unsolved animal attacks, werewolves, vampires (even the cute ones), who knows what has gotten into our heads! We've got kids not wanting to sleep in their beds or with the closets open, teenagers biting each other or exchanging blood, the crazies coming out for the end of the world, and even a show called 1,000 Ways to Die. Can we get a little more morbid up in here?

Don't get me wrong. I LOVE me some romantic paranormal whatever! BUT, could this kind of entertainment be affecting us in one way or another?

What are you thoughts?
Why don't children play outside anymore?
Why the turn towards this monstrous (I mean this in the best way), paranormal, and dark (I also mean this in the best way) entertainment? It's not really anything new, but it is more prominent now than in the last decade.
Do you think it affects certain people? Children?

Thank You for TV on the Internet!

Since November is all about giving thanks, I thought I would share some of the things I am thankful for, even if they are frivolous! Because, if you aren't thankful for EVERYTHING that you have, then who are you?

So, to start off on a serious note, I am SERIOUSLY thankful for...

• my family (I love you)
• my friends (I love you...most of the time lol)
• anyone and everyone that loves or simply appreciates me (thanks!)
• my education (not everyone gets the chance)
• my home (not everyone has a place to call home)

Now, onto the other, not so important, a bit frivolous, but still totally awesome things that I am thankful for...

• books! (SO many books!)
• movies! (thanks for the adventures!)
• the internet! (for connecting me to people I never would have been able to connect with before)
• food (even though I gained 10 lbs in the last 2 years)
• TV! (for never leaving me with a moment with absolutely nothing to do!)
• and under TV I must mention DVR (yes!) and TV on the Internet (heck yes!!!)



Now, onto the more shallow reason I had to write this post this week: Did anyone else realize how many TV shows you can watch on the Internet now? Who needs an actually TV anymore?!?!?

Let me explain something real quick, for the longest time, our family ONLY had 4 1/2 channels. (NBC, CBS, ABC, PBS, and FOX, but only when the leaves came off the trees and it wasn't overcast.) That's probably why I love movies so much and why my family and I have an extensive collection. However, now I have satellite and am watching a bit more TV. However, even with our 300+ channels, we are still missing the oh-so-vital CW channel in which I am obsessed with more than one teen-angst-filled, fantasy-driven, delectibly-debauched drama. BUT NEVER FEAR! THE INTERNET IS HERE! I am LOVIN it!

Through satellite, and always on my DVR (TAKE THAT advertisements!), I am keeping track of:

• Terranova (FOX)
• The New Girl (FOX)
• Glee (FOX)
• Fringe (FOX)
• Pretty Little Liars (ABC Family)
• 2 Broke Girls (CBS)
• Big Bang Theory (CBS)
• Wizards of Waverly Place (Disney)
• Jessie (Disney)
• iCarly (Nick)
• Victorious (Nick)



And with the aid of the Internet, I can add...

• Hart of Dixie (CW)
• Ringer (CW)
• The Vampire Diaries (CW)
• The Secret Circle (CW)
• Nikita (CW)
• Supernatural (CW)
• Game of Thrones (HBO)
• Merlin (BBC, not even showing in America yet!)
• The Lying Games (ABC Family)

Yes, I am loving the TV on the Internet. I can watch it whenever I want, and when I have the time. Don't get me wrong, I can't keep up, but the Internet does allow me to save things until later, like when all the Fall seasons end and NOTHING is on! Also, I like having something on in the background when I am working on my jewelry, work at home, or writing. It's so hard for me to JUST watch something. This way, I have so many different options!

So, what is everything thankful for? Serious and Frivolous!

Does anyone else watch TV on the Internet?

Anyone else watch some of the shows I have been watching? If you are, we should talk! I love the discussion!

Book Review #6: “The Vampire Diaries: The Awakening and the Struggle” by L.J. Smith

Title: The Vampire Diaries: The Awakening and the Struggle

Author: L.J. Smith

Publisher: HarperTeen

Edition: Paperback including volume 1 and volume 2: June 26, 2007

Back Cover Summary: Elena: the golden girl, the leader, the one who can have any boy she wants.

Stefan: brooding and mysterious, he seems to be the only one who can resist Elena, even as he struggles to protect her from the horrors that haunt his past.

Damon: sexy, dangerous, and driven by an urge for revenge against Stefan, the brother who betrayed him. Determined to have Elena, he'd kill to possess her.

*******

Once again, I watched the show before reading the books and absolutely fell in love with what I was watching. In the show, the background story is interesting, the characters are gorgeous, the plot line is very active and intriguing, and I was left with only wanting more. So, I picked up the books which I had saved on my shelf since finishing Twilight. And did it live up to the show…Not so much. :(

High Notes: While waiting until I had the time to watch season 2 of The Vampire Diaries online, I turned to the books to get just a little bit more of Elena, Stefan, and the oh-so-irresistible Damon. I figured that the books would just fill me in on more of the deliciousness that the show wasn’t able to fit in. Let me just say that I was in for a surprise. From the first page, I thought, “This is…wrong!” I know this is supposed to be the high note section, but I can’t think of ANYTHING that I really LOVED!!!

I did like that the plot in the book moved fast like the show, but at least the show slowed down the romance. In the show, Elena and Stefan had time to get to know each other, their obvious attraction towards each other, and eventual love and modesty. In the book, it goes from Elena “having to have” Stefan when Stefan ignores her to instantaneous soul mates when Stefan saves her one night.

I did, however, enjoy Damon (my absolute favorite on the show), but it took him forever to show up and without Ian Somerholder’s beautiful eyes staring at you when Damon speaks, it’s just NOT the same.

Low Notes: I have got A LOT to say here!!! But, I will try and keep it short and not let it turn into a rant. (That’s going to be hard, though.)

First off, the book’s plot relies HEAVILY on coincidences. (I feel that one coincidence in a book is acceptable. Anymore is CHEAP!) For example, in the show, Stefan seeks out Elena when he discovers that she looks very much like his 150 year-old, ex-girlfriend, Katherine, that he thinks died sometime around the Civil War. However, in the book, Stefan just happens to move from Italy to this itty-bitty town of Fell’s Church, and just happens to decide to go to this high school so he can integrate himself with the humans, and just happens to see a girl that looks a lot like his dead-undead ex-girlfriend that he knew around the Renaissance period. That’s THREE coincidences in ONE chapter!!! And they just keep coming. It really destroys the believability of the book.

Secondly, the instantaneous romance that I mentioned before.

Thirdly, Elena is a shallow, snobbish b*tch in the book! And Katherine looks like a pretty, frail, naïve child. Because of this, I didn't even like the main character! This is opposed to the show which makes Elena strong, empathetic, self-sacrificing, and lovable while Katherine is her doppelganger, a sexy, manipulative brat. This clearly defines Elena as the protagonist and Katherine as her personal antagonist. The other characters get more background story and bit more of the limelight in the show as well.

Finally, there is a whole lot of sucking of each other’s blood in the book. Yes, that’s what vampires do, but the book glorifies it as one of the only ways Elena and Stephan can connect and feel close to each other. I found it just plain gross. ("Ouch! You bit me! Why are you cutting yourself? Your blood tastes ucky!" Way to ruin the romance, Mrs. Smith!) I didn't like it.

Ratings:

Character Development: 2/5

Dialogue: 3/5

Prose: 2/5

Believability: 1/5

Style and Grammar: 1.5/5

Overall Rating: 37% Suckage!

This is my personal recommendation…Please read carefully!

SAVE YOURSELF FROM THE BOOK! JUST WATCH THE SHOW!

Book Review #3: “Pretty Little Liars 1-5” by Sara Shepard

Title: The Pretty Little Liars Series (Pretty Little Liars, Flawless, Perfect, Unbelievable, and Wicked)

Author: Sara Shepard

Publisher: HarperTeen

Edition: First HarperTeen Paperback Edition: 2007

Back Cover Summary: Everyone has something to hide—especially high school Juniors Spencer, Aria, Emily, and Hanna. Spencer covets her sister’s boyfriend. Aria’s fantasizing about her English teacher. Emily’s crushing on the new girl at school. Hanna uses some ugly tricks to stay beautiful. But they’ve all kept an even bigger secret since their friend Alison vanished.

How do I know? Because I know everything about the bad girls they were, the naughty girls they are, and all the dirty secrets they’ve kept. And guess what? I’m telling. -A

*******

Disclaimer #1: The Pretty Little Liars Series has 8 books out so far. I have only read the first 5. So, this book review will only cover the first 5 books. I’ll cover the last 3 when I read them.

Originally, I was attracted to these books because of the “Pretty Little Liars” television series ABC Family aired based off of these books. I honestly haven’t enjoyed many shows on ABC Family…ever. And the one show I adored, the hilarious remake of “10 Things I Hate About You,” was cancelled after its first season. (Bad move ABC Family!) Anyway, I was in no mood to watch another show based around teenage sex and pregnancy where some stupid girl gets knocked up, then falls in love with another guy, who is really in love with her little sister, who ends up impregnated only days after her older sister gives birth, but not by the guy who knocked up the first sister or who loved the younger sister, but the mysterious foreign exchange student for Switzerland who’s really a… I’m getting carried away and that sentence is not grammatically correct, but it doesn’t deserved to be fixed. You get the point.

The point is that I was skeptical of the “Pretty Little Liars” television show, but I was willing to give it a go. What I found was clever, funny, and intriguing. So, I continued with the show, watching every single episode, and when it ended (soon to return on January 3^rd) I turned to the books to fill the void.

The first book followed the show to a tee and I was quickly getting bored. However, the second book veered off course entirely! Soon, I found that the book and television show were two different entities with only minor similarities and there were things I enjoyed and disliked in both.

High Notes: One of the best things about the book is the number of different perspectives you are able to read. Each chapter focuses on one of the girl’s point of view, allowing you a deeper look into their inner thoughts and schemes. The girls definitely develop differing personalities that are more unique than the ones in the show. There is also so much more detail in the books than there is in the show. (Obviously! Books always go into so much more detail.)

Disclaimer #2: Nearly all the low notes have to do with elements I enjoyed in the show that were not present in the books.

Low Notes: It is rare, especially in the first four books, to read about all four of the girls hanging out together. A lot of time, each girl is on her own, dealing with her own problems by herself. However, in the show, they are always together, working things out with each other. There is more ground for camaraderie and you feel like these girls truly were the best of friends at one point in their lives, and are now finding their way back to each other.

Also, the love affairs in the book are more scandalous and less believable in the books, especially the relationship between Aria and her teacher. In the books, their relationship just feels like two people’s hormones firing at the same time, but in the show, they meet, find common ground, and then begin to fall in love. It feels less wrong in the show because they knew each other before they knew they were student and teacher.

The final thing that really bugged me was all the brand dropping the book does. I mean, Prada this, Chanel that. It gets old after a while.

Nevertheless, I have enjoyed both avenues, especially since the show and books have begun to differ more and more. It’s as though I am getting two different storylines to imagine instead of duplicates.

Disclaimer #3: I know I have mentioned a lot about the television version of “Pretty Little Liars” but my ratings are strictly based on the books.

Ratings:

Character Development: 5/5

Dialogue: 5/5

Prose: 4/5

Believability: 4/5

Style and Grammar: 4/5

Overall Rating: 88% Entertaining!