Book Review: The Hunger Games

Title: The Hunger Games
Author: Suzanne Collins
Rating: 5/5
Summary: In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts.The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.
    Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen regards it as a death sentence...But Katniss has been close to dead before- and survival, for her, is second nature..... if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.    (I took the summary from the back of the book, I did leave some parts out)

Where to start with this book? I liked it so much it is difficult to know where to begin! The book is shocking, tragic, dark,and at some moments happy. One thing that I know worries people is if it is gruesome. It is not, the story of the book is violent, and when being told what is happening it is a more mater-of fact way than a gory way, more this is what is happening.

I very much identified with how much Katniss wanted to protect her younger sister. I understood her feelings. I really was able to identify with her character in many ways. There was a wide range of characters, from nice to mean, eccentric to moderate. I could go on and on about different characters, but I don't want to put in any spoilers. :) I will probably do a post where I talk about different characters.

 One thing that I found interesting about the characters names in the Capitol was that some were Roman. I found a lot of the parallels in the book very interesting. The book is set in the future, and I think will make you think about where we are heading. It really made me wonder about where we were heading, especially with all the parallels to our society.

One thing that really impresses me as far a writing went, was how well the author used cliffhangers. Some authors try to use them, but really are not very good. Suzanne Collins knew how to use them and did. Although they did drive me crazy it was in a good way, it made me want to read the book more.

It is heart breaking and tragic. There are moment that are good, and the moment that make you want to cry. The story brings to life all kinds of issues I think few people would be willing to talk about much less write a book about.

Overall I feel that this book tells a good story. It shows things in our society that are not good. Though a shocking and horrific story it is one that is meant to shock and horrify the readers to make them think. Overall this book has made me think about life, it has given my family a lot of good discussions. This is a book I would really really like to own someday to be able to read again and again. I will be adding it to my list of things I want get. :)

I really could go on and on about this book, but I won't. :)

May the Odds ever be in your favor.
~Elizabeth

Fear no more

This song makes me want to cry. So peaceful, sweet and sad. I would love to listen to this while I am falling asleep.

Fear no more the heat o' the sun

Nor the furious winter rages;

Thou they worldly task is done,

Home art gone, and ta'en thy wages.

Golden lads and girls all must,

As chimney-sweeps, come to dust.

The septre, learning, physic, must

All follow this and come to dust. 

Fear no more the frown o' th'  great;

Thou are past the tyrant's stroke.

Care no more to cloth and eat; 

To three the reed is as the oak.

The septre, learning, physic, must. 

All follow this and come to dust. 

All lovers young, all lovers must

Consign to thee and come to dust.

~

 Blessings
~Elizabeth

PS. The lyrics are from Shakespeare. Loreena put them to music. :)

A tag with a lot of elevens

I was tagged by Stephanie from The King's Bookworm! Thank you very very much for tagging me! :)

Here are the rules.
1. Post these rules
2. Post 11 random things about yourself (optional)
3. Answer the questions the tagger posted for you in their post.
4. Create 11 new questions for the people you tag to answer.
5. Go to their blog and tell them that they have been tagged.

11 random things about me. 
1. I just finished reading all three books in Hunger Games!!!! :)
2. I wish I was Irish.
3. I don't like the Beatles
4. I am an ardent Percy Jackson fan!
5. My favorite thing to do is read.
6. History is one of my favorite subjects in school.
7. I can play some of the music from North & South on the piano.
8. Science is my least favorite subject.
9. I like Sci-fi and Period Drama. A weird combo.
10. I like cookies, especially when I get to eat them.
11. I just got a cell phone!

Now for the questions from Stephanie. 


1. When you go on a walk/hike do you like to a) walk, b) ride a bike, c) ride a horse, or d) a combination? 
Well I would have to say it would be a combination of a and b. I like to walk and I like to ride my bike.

2.Do you like to go camping? Why or why not? 
I actually do like to go camping, but the rest of my family is not always so big on it. So we don't do it a whole lot.

3. When traveling, would you rather stay in a hotel or stay in a motor home/trailer? 
Hotel. I don't have to make the bed or clean the room, and there is cable TV, which I don't have at home.

4. When ever you were skirts and/or dresses, what length do you prefer? and what kind of style(s) do you like best? (Post pictures is you can.) 
Well I mostly prefer long skirts, ones that are a couple of inches above my feet, but this is not always practical. I like full skirst A line skirts. I don't know of any pictures. I think what I like also depends on my mood.

5. Do you mind singing in front of people, or do you just sing when your by yourself?
I am terrified of solo singing. I don't know if I could do that. I do sing in the choir at our church so I would not say that I am completely terrified of singing in public. I really like to sing when I am by myself though.

6. Do you like to keep the food on your plate separate, or do you just like it when is all blends together?
Um....... I don't really want all my food to mix together, but I don't mind if a little gravy gets on my vegetables. I am kind of in the middle I guess.

7. What was the first kind of pet that you remember owning, and what was its name?
The very first pet I remember was a cat named Daisy, she was a good cat.

8. What is your favorite hot drink? I would have to say that it is a tie between coffee and hot cocoa. I do like some teas though.

9. What is one character from a movie that you wish you could play?
Um... I like a lot of characters so... I would have to say Maid Marian, Elinor Dashwood, there area others but at the moment I just can't think of any names.

10. Do you have a book (or book series) you wish was turned into a movie? 
Hmm...some of the books that I really like, turned into a movie. The Little House books, the TV series was terrible it didn't follow the books very well at all, and completely ruined the characters!

11. If you said yes to #10, then do you have a cast at least partly planned in your mind? Who? If you said no to #10, then do you have a movie you wish you could change some of the casting that you don't like?
Well, I have not really thought much about casting parts for a movie at all since I never really plan on making a movie I guess it didn't matter to me. I also not familiar enough with actors to make an informed decision. But the only thing I can be sure is that if there was any way to get Richard Armitage into the move, you can be I would find it. :)

My questions:
1. Which to genre do you prefer historical fiction, a regular novel, or fantasy? 
2. How do you feel about all these new E-readers? (nooks, kindles) 
3. Do you play and instrument? If so what instrument? 
4. Is there an instrument that you don't play, but wish you could? 
5. What are some of your favorite musicians? 
6. Do you prefer white chocolate of milk/dark chocolate? 
7. What is your favorite month? 
8. If you had the chance to go to 5 countries what countries would they be? 
9. Are yo a country or a city person? Or a little of both? 
10. Who is your favorite character from Narnia? 
11. What is your favorite kind of cookie? 


I tag.....


Miss Elizabeth Bennett at Elegance of Fashion
Gwen at Femininity and Daydreams
Joy at Fullness of Joy
Maria Elizabeth at Miss Georgiana Darcy
Trini at I will Smile

Blessings
~Elizabeth

Happy Saint Patrick's Day

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!!! I hope you all are having a lovely day! We have had a very strange March I will say that much. I woke up this morning to find it snowing. It didn't stay though thankfully!

Anyway to celebrate Saint Patrick's Day on my blog I am going to put up a bunch of Irish songs, as I have a great fondness for Celtic Music. :)




First in line is Loreena Mckennitt's version of Star of the County Down. I like to up beat happy sound of the song, it is fun to listen too.



Here is another happy song. I really love this songs up beat feel, it is a fun sort of party song as well. :)



I love Meav's voice, and this song is simply lovely. It does not have a lot of excess instruments, mostly her beautiful voice.



This is a song on Orla Fallon's latest album. I love her voice it is sweet and gentle. This song always makes we wish I could dance! :)

Well that is all for now I hope you all have a lovely day and enjoy pretending you Irish! :)
Blessings
~Elizabeth

Book Review: Heartless

Title: Heartless
Author: Anne Elisabeth Stengl
Summary: A bored princess longs for love and romance, but when she finally turns 18  and men can start coming to "pay their respects" she finds love and romance are not at all what she expected. Princesses, knights, dragons, and a fairy tale story. (I would like to note that I wrote the summary)

I have to say that fantasy has not been in the past on of my favorite genres. However, as of late I have started to enjoy it more and more. This is one the books that has pulled me into the genre. I was sucked into the story from the very beginning. It was one of those books that you just could not put down. I had to force my self to put it down.

I enjoy the books different take on fairies. They are not the fluttery Tinker Bell kind in the book they are very different. I liked how different from people they were. I was very interested in how she told about dragons it was a new and yet the same kind of dragon. It was I think a very creative and new way to tell a story.

One thing that his me throughout the book was the analogies I made to life, faith, and most especially the heart. I was blown away with the ideas of the heart, both physical and emotional, and how they were shown through the story. They were ideas that I had know for a long time and agree with, but how they were presented in a riveting story just blew me away. I don't want to talk about what exactly they were, at lest in this review, since they are a huge part of the story.

One other thing that jumped out at me was how your prince might not be what you expect them to be. It could be completely opposite of what you think he is, but even more than you thought. It was interesting to see that at play in the book.

I also enjoyed seeing how we can repent of what we are, and change who we are in the story. We should not be afraid to ask for help. There were so many things in this story that pulled me in, and made me think deeper and more about things I already knew. It is a book I would highly recommend to anyone.

Have you read this book? If not would you like to read the book?
Blessings
~Elizabeth

Dark Waltz

I love this song. Every time I hear it I wish I could waltz! I love Hayley's soaring vocals the words are wonderful flow with the melody. I have fallen in love the violin in this song, it is so smooth, and mournful. I like to sing along too, though I don't think anyone would want to hear me sings it! :)

Blessings
~Elizabeth

Icons of the Trinity

Here are some icons of the Trinity.

Blessings
~Elizabeth