Hi
Just a quick post explaining things
So I finished VCE and year 12, and got the score I wanted so I am now going to attend my dream school, Melbourne University this year, doing an arts degree. Unfortunately, soon after I finished school I became severely depressed.I haven't been doing anything I used to lately including looking at blogs, posting or even reading books. I really wanted to post but I just haven't had the energy. Again, unfortunately I have not fully recovered and so instead of saying nothing, I wanted to tell you all where I have been and why I haven't been posting. I have come to the conclusion, that instead of posting sporadically whenever I can muster the energy, I will take a break from blogging, although to be honest I wasn't doing it much before. I can blame a lot of things but honestly it came down to me, and I just didn't step up. So, hopefully I can beat this, and come back refreshed and finally start being a true blogger. I'm not sure how long I will be gone, but I will still be reading you're blogs and commenting!
So that's it, bye for now :)

I'M FINISHED!!!

I'M FINISHED WITH EXAMS!!!! I'M FINISHED!!!! FINISHED!!! FINISHEDDDDDDDDDDDDD!!!!!!!!!
Did I mention I'm finished with exams? :D

That's right, year twelve exams are over for me, my last one was literature!!!
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Please excuse my lack or rational or logical thought as studying for exams, has scrambled my brain. I had one every day!! Thursday, Friday, weekend, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday !!! I'm done!!!!!!!
I shall now go into a sleep coma for three days to make up for the sleep I have missed, which if you did psych you know you don't have to do, but that is irrelivent
Then after that I'm going to go on a reading frenzy, then a doing nothing marathon and I'm going to learn how to make Jambalaya
I just really wanted to make it but I couldn't cause of exams.... so yeah Jambalaya!!
So as you may have noticed, I am a bit crazy.... wooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!
I should go now, hopefully I shall be posting soon
Byes!!

Foals Bread - Readalong- Chapter Twenty to the End

Sorry again for the late review, but this time it's because my internet decided not to work for the past week!

Here goes #spoiler alert#

So first off I want to thank Danielle from The Book Nerd Club for hosting this readalong and Allen and Unwin
It was my first readalong and it was really cool knowing that the other bloggers were reading the same parts and it was interesting reading the different perspectives.

So I have finally come to the end of the book. In the last chapters Lainey claims she has given up on Noah, and it was so sad to me to see her long for her mothers love, for the Noah she used to know. It really hit me, the sadness of their relationship. The part that described Noah's experience with Uncle Nipper and Lainey with Uncle Noah was really hard to read, even harder than before. I felt so sick reading it and I nearly jumped up and cheered when Noah came and saved her. And part of me was horrified, and part of me was slightly amused when she did what she did to Uncle Owen, I think because it seemed so unreal, not in bad way though, if that makes sense. Of course, when I found out his fate the amusement left me, but still.

Noah's storyline really leaves a lasting impression. I remember my first thoughts on her, as being bright and lively, and then due to unfortunate circumstances, her life becomes quite tragic. Her character is very real, and there so much to her, that I really wanted things to work out for her. It really shows how things never turn out as you expect.

The epilogue was really beautiful. I was really glad that Lainey had found some measure of happiness, she has grandchildren and had two husbands. I wished she had mentioned George, it would have been nice to know if he had lived past his teens. The ending wasn't exactly happy but it was very real, and it fits in with the whole book as being a chronicle of their lives.

Overall, I must say I enjoyed the book, but to be honest I would have stopped reading it if I had read it without there being a readalong. A lot of parts were difficult for me to read in terms of content and writing style, but I think Mears portrays these life events really well. I wonder if maybe, I didn't this book as much as I could have because of my age? Or perhaps its because it's not really the type of book I read, but after this I think I may read more. I think this type of book is one you have to read numerous times to fully appreciate it, to get all its meanings, and in my case, to understand the finer points of the language.
So once again thank you for giving me the opportunity to read this.

Now it's off to exams:( English is first!!!

Foals Bread - Readalong- Chapter Eight to Chapter Nineteen

Hi guys! Sorry for the late post, it totally slipped my mind
So, spoiler alert just in case

I'm finding it difficult to read this book, I don't do well with the real or the nitty gritty which is what this book is definitely becoming.

Roley is finally bed ridden, unable to walk and bitter and desolate because of it. I felt Mears did a great job with the writing in terms of his despair and condition, which is why it made it so hard to read because it was so realistic. Having seen one of my own family members deteriorate, not in the same manner, it hit very close to home. Of course it greatly affects the rest of his family, Noah and Lainey especially. Noah and he don't talk, and have trouble conveying their feelings and so Roley dies leaving their relationship bitter, which is so sad since it was once so sweet. When Angus, hit on her I honestly thought she would go with it, and was surprised when she didn't.

Noah turns to drinking and develops a serious problem, and becomes jealous of Lainey. Lainey, seems to be the last person left who loves Noah as the rest of their family have turned their backs on her. Minna, whom I dislike so much is a hard woman, whose one redeeming quality, I feel is her intense love for her family even if it is slightly misdirected. After Roley's death she becomes even worse, directing all her anger at Noah.

I really enjoy Lainey as a character, I feel she inherited the best from her parents and I'm glad that she didn't let the horrible circumstances in her life turn her bitter or cruel, at least yet. I feel she's really bright and lively, and her voice is really the only one I enjoy reading.

There is only so many chapters left and I feel that this book is going to make me sad, I really don't think their can be any happy ending which, I suppose from the start I kind of felt would occur.
I am definitely interested though to see how it ends.

Sorry for the sloppy review! I will try harder next week for the final chapters.
Bye!

Foals Bread - Readalong- Chapter Seven to Chapter Thirteen

Hi guys!!
So here is my readalong part 2!

Okay, so first a little summary, and yes spoiler alert
After being hit by lightning Roley is progressively loosing the feeling in his legs, he is experiencing a sort of numbness and this is making him inactive, meaning Noah has to take on more of the work. This is putting a strain not only on their marriage but with their relationships with their extended family. Noah is gambling and may be developing a drinking problem, and finds she is no longer satisfied with her relationship, and is even beginning to 'flirt' with other men. Roley, understandably is becoming increasing frustrated and ashamed of himself and his legs, at the end of chapter thirteen he is witnessed by his daughter, Lainey, loosing it, hitting his legs and crying. Septumus, Roley's father dies, and Minna, his mother and Noah's relationship has become even more strained. Lainey is growing up to be a good horsewoman, strong and slightly reminiscent of her mother. George, is growing up happy but has been subjected to attacks due to his mental state.

So, after reading these chapters I found myself confused, I'm not really sure where the book is going, or the encompassing theme of it. It is basically an account of their lives in war time and the various ups and downs they experience.

I found myself getting increasingly frustrated with the characters, especially Roley and Noah, and their lack of communication, which I suppose was common back then. But knowing that doesn't stop me from wanting to scream out "Talk to each other!!!!". It's obviously putting a great strain on their relationship, and this is a problem they are both responsible for. Noah, has changed becoming slightly cruel and risky, dressing nice for other men, and still thinks fondly of her 'Uncle Nipper', I find it very difficult to read the parts where she describes him.I find myself being unable to relate to the characters anymore, and even dislike many of them.

The writing has gotten easier to read, but that's only because I've been skipping words I don't know, which unfortunately a lot, it's mostly slang though and I can infer the approximate meaning usually. As in previous chapters, horses and jumping are a constant presence, the death of a horse one central event that occurred in the chapters.

Lainey has grown to be very spirited, and good with the work her family does. She quite valiantly protected her brother when he was being attacked and I feel that a great portion of the next chapters will be about her. I was surprised by the fact that in previous chapters Noah's first child was mentioned many times, but in these one it was hardly mentioned at all.
It has stopped jumping so much in time, but ironically I wish it would now.

Can't want to read everyone else's thoughts!

Foals Bread - Readalong- Preamble to Chapter Six

Hi Guys!
So as I said I am participating in the Foal's Bread read along, and this post is about the Preamble to chapter six, I'm going to try and not post spoilers but I may, so beware.

So to start off I have never read anything of Gillian Mears, to be honest I had never heard of her before I signed up for the read along. I tried to gain a little background information but I couldn't find much.

Anyway, here are my initial thoughts!

To start of, the preamble was very poetic, descriptive and sort of spiritual, I can't really think of another way to describe it.

When I started reading the first chapter, what I noticed first was the language. I found myself having to reread parts twice, even three times for it to make sense or sometimes it still didn't. It is full of traditional Australian jargon and horse related metalanguage. It's very dated language too, as this is set, and forgive me if I get this wrong, post world war one and pre world war two. Once I got used to it though, it became easier to read.  It's very beautiful, descriptive language that instantly gave me a image when I read it. I could clearly see in my mind the land, the blossoms of the honeymoon and even the hospital.

There are two main characters, Noah and Roley. At first I was a bit worried for Noah, and to be truthful I still am. I'm not sure if she knows that what occurred between her and her uncle was wrong as she still seems to care for him. I really dislike her father, as the animal cruelty part was really hard to read for me personally. Noah is a strong, wild, determined character that I really like. I also adore Roley, he is really sweet and the way he describes Noah is so cute, he obviously really cares for her. In a weird way I like his family, even his mother. They have their moments of ugliness, especially the racism towards Aboriginals, but overall I see them as a loving dysfunctional family, at least for now:)

The novel jumps in time a lot, it is linear but months, even years pass, which threw me a bit. I would have liked to see some moments that are only described when they think of the past.

Overall, even though it took me a while to get into the novel ,I am really enjoying reading it. Normally I guess what's going to happen but honestly I have no idea, so I'm really curious to find out.

Hi guys!
I have a couple of things to tell you!
1) I have been a horrible blogger and for that I apologize. I promise reviews and don't deliver, I ask for recommendations and either read them and don't review or don't even read them, and my posts are so sporadic. All I can say in my defense is Year 12 happened. I never expected it to be like this, so time consuming and draining. But I can promise that once this is all over, in a few months (OMG!! A few months!!!!! That's all I have left, not sure if that's good or bad....) I will try to make up for my misdeeds:) and be a better blogger. I want to say a big thanks to everyone who follows me, despite my once in a blue moon posts and thank you to all the comments that make me want to write a new post, even when I am up at 1:00 in the morning completing a literature exam! Don't worry, I don't stay up that late anymore, its not good! A big thanks to Jess from the Tales Compendium, who first commented on my blog and inspires me to be better blogger!

2) Despite my lack of time and posts I am participating in the Foal's Bread by Gillian Mears read-along hosted by Danielle from The Book Nerd Club. This is most likely the only reading I will do besides my literature and English texts and also the thing that will keep me from going insane! I will be posting from the 8th of October about the novel, along with five other awesome bloggers! I can't wait to share my thoughts with you guys.

3) Just quickly, in August, I got the chance to meet Maria V Snyder!!! Ahhhh, she is like in my top ten authors, it was simply amazing! She talked for a bit, answered questions and then signed books. I got three books signed and told her how much I loved Ari and Janco and how much I wished they were my friends/ brothers. I was so excited!

4) Yesterday, was MY BIRTHDAY!!! I turned 18! But unfortunately, due to it being year 12 I had to go into school for two hours and a half to do math, my most hated subject. Not much fun, but luckily the week before on Sunday I went to Luna Park with my friends and we had an awesome time. I had never really been on rides or roller coasters before so that was new. We also had a wooooing battle with a guy on a viking ship, needless to say we won! So yeah, I am officially, (in the eyes of the law anyway) an adult! In the eyes of my parents... not so much:-)

5) I was one of the million to receive early entry into Pottermore. I was just wondering if anyone else had, please tell me your thoughts on it. My name is BloodMagic161 and I am a Ravenclaw, my friends joke that my name is too pure blood and that I should be in Slytherin!

6) Lastly, I just wanted to inform people that my to be read pile of books has somehow grown puppy eyes and is looking at me saying "read me!!! Why aren't you reading me?" I hid it but I am still somehow always aware of it. (No, I'm not insane..... right?)

So anyway, that has been me for the last couple of months. After the read- along I will most likely disappear until December/ January. But I shall be back!!
Bye!