Hi! It's Rin!

So, I'm finally posting! Well, I'm very MOLDY! The definition of MOLD is basically a definition of me. I also really like writing. Here are some of my favorite books:

All of Shannon Hale's
The Shadow of the Bear by Regina Doman
My Fair Godmother by Janette Rallison
East by Edith Patou
Dragon Slippers by Jessica Day George
The Ranger's Apprentice series by John Flanagan
The Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by Rick Riordan
Kiki Strike: Inside the Shadow City by Kirsten Miller
Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier
Beauty by Robin McKinley
Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

and lots more.

Special Waiting Room

Wow, guys, sorry I haven't posted in FOREVER. I'll post a real Waiting Room soon, but for now, here is a special announcement:
Ally Carter is giving away an ARC of Gallagher Girl Book 3: Don't Judge a Girl By Her Cover which will be released June 9. All that's required is a short essay (250 words or less) on "What it means to be a real Gallagher Girl."
Rules are as follows:

Entrants should write an essay on the topic "What it means to be a real Gallagher Girl." Please email your essay to AllyCarterContest@gmail.com on or before April 30, 2009. Your essay cannot be longer than 250 words. Essays may be shorter than 250 words, but essays over this length will not be considered. Essays will be judged both on what you say and how you say it, so be sure and spell-check, proofread, and turn in an essay that would make a Gallagher Girl proud. A parent, guardian, or teacher may assist, but you must write the essay yourself. Entries must be included in the body of the email—no attachments. Emails that contain attachments will be deleted immediately and will not be considered. The subject line of your email should read GG3 ARC contest. You may only submit ONE entry, so make it a good one. Along with your essay, you must include the following information:
Your Name
Your age (if under 18)
A complete mailing address where any prizes you might receive should be mailed (this could be home, school, your parent's work address, etc.—please note to whose attention the package should be addressed)
Your preferred t-shirt size
Your email address Unfortunately, due to the cost and difficulty of shipping overseas, the contest will be limited to people in the U.S. and Canada.

Winners will be notified by May 8. First place will recieve an ARC and a T-shirt, as well as their essay being posted on the website. Second place will recieve a play away version of Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy and a T-shirt.

Start writing!

*Note: Information came from the Ally Carter Newsletter, Volume 15

Fruits Basket

This is one of my favorite manga. It's about a girl who figures out one of her class mates has a curse placed upon him. I don't want to give away to much... It's a romantic comedy with some adventure/actionish stuff. It's tres cute. ^-^ The ending is perfect, so if you're tired of reading those depressing books where your favorite characters die (coughHarryPottercough) then you should read fruits basket. It's a fairly short manga (for manga). I think it contains 130 chapters, but each chapter takes hardly 5 min to read. It's originally in japanese, so the book is read opposite an american style book.

Let's revive this blog!

Even if you're too busy to keep up a blog of your own, you could still probably contribute one MOLDy post every two weeks or so. And I know I'm not the only MOLDy girl out here. Besides, this blog's a decent enough way to keep in touch. And the summer's coming up. Plenty of time to read and give into MOLD then. ;-)

So post!

I'll be back soon with something MOLDy, be it a book review or something else. Promise. 

♥anilee

Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox

I love this series! I have every book except for this one! It will soon be added to my collection. Artemis Fowl is the best bad guy to good guy story I've read yet! I love how Eoin Colfer creates his world of fairies!

I really liked this book. Not to much unnecessary stuff explanations and description. I really liked how the plot kept going and surprised you a lot and the unexpected little twists on the plot that made the story not to generic. It's one of those books that gets you thinking about what would happen if time travel was possible. It's a good book if you like Action and Adventure mixed with a bit of fantasy and a little romance. It's very funny and witty. Eion Colfer is one of my favorite authors ever!

A Great MOLDY Book

The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen
by Syie James


Oh my, this book was lovely. Syrie James does her very hardest to convince you that this is Jane Austen's very words written down on paper, and she did a wonderful job. She must have read Jane's books many times, because she had the Regency language down to an art.

I really came to know and love Jane Austen more, even though a lot of it was only probable. I really wanted this story to be real, I loved the characters . . . especially Mr Ashford.

I would advice people who have not read Sense and Sensibility or Pride and Prejudice should read them before devouring this book, as it gives away some of the plot, since Jane is working on them through most of the story.

I hope others enjoy this book as much as I did. Except for the ending, which was historically accurate and made me wish history had been different, I still thought this book was great, and I'm glad my mother found it while we were perusing a bookstore on my birthday.

The Therapist Returns

Wow. I'm sorry that I've been out of touch so long, but I have been conducting some serious undercover research on one of the new symptoms of MOLD. My findings have been somewhat disturbing.
It started when I received a copy of one of my regular patients essays. A regular high school book essay, or so it appeared. But this particular essay seemed to demonstrate a rather flawed view of reality. It was on a book called The Life of Pi, by Yann Martel. An excellent piece of literature, but complete fiction. This essay recognized it as fiction, which is odd for a victim of MOLD, but it also recognized it as a deliberate literary distortion. Which is to say, the patient read the book and not only identified the story as "make-believe", but realized that the author had purposefully twisted an otherwise believable story to make a point! AND THEN THEY IDENTIFIED WHAT THE POINT WAS!!!
It was incredible. Throughout my career, I had never seen anything like it. Usually those with MOLD read commercial fiction, books that are blatantly fantastic, and then identify those stories as fact. Or at least, they treat them as seriously as if they were fact. I had never encountered an example of what would happen if a MOLD patient actually read something that was more 'realistic' than not.
And so I have been conducting secret research on the phenomena of what happens when a victim of MOLD encounters a work of literary fiction. It was not easy. It involved more essays, numerous interviews, elevator shafts, the infernal No Child Left Behind Act, eccentric English professors, secret documents, an unpleasant brush with the FBI, an annoying reporter from the New York Times, and hidden recording devices. The results have been amazing. I have discovered that the mind of a MOLDy individual processes literary fiction differently than a 'normal' individual. It would seem that the mind of a MOLD patient is preset to understand the allusions, analogies, and obscure intentions of the authors of novels like Life of Pi. In other words, they actually know what the author is really saying, as versus what is actually written in the pages of the book. I have discovered that MOLDy people can do instinctively what science has dubbed impossible.

They can crack the infamous literary code.

This discovery could revolutionize the study of MOLD as we know it.
Keep standing by.

Darkings

Wow, I'm finally part of MOLD4EVR! Let me express my honor and gratitude of being a part of this community of MOLDY bloggers, etc., and how excited I am, etc., and I hope that the future of this blog will be brighter than it already is, etc., etc. *Bows deeply* :)

Now...to the subject of darkings (if you've read Trickster's Queen by Tamora Pierce). Personally, they intrigue me, those imaginative little drops of blood and magic combined (might sound *gross* but that's how it is). I mean...they just sound cute. And fun. Like little tiny round puppies that talk to you.

And also... darkings, I've heard, make really great accessories (the word *necklace* ring a bell?).... ;)

Ella Enchanted

Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine is a wonderful tale about an obedient girl. Or, more so, a tale about a fiercely independent girl forced to be obedient due to a curse placed upon her by the fairy, Lucinda. When Ella is but a babe Lucinda bestows her with the "gift" of obedience that enforces even the simplest of commands. As Ella grows older she resents her curse and is constantly finding ways to bend orders to her will. When Ella is about 14 years old her mother dies leaving her heartbroken, if not for Prince Char. Even through her sadness he entrances her, and vs. versa.

Enter evil step family.

Well, not quite. They aren't family yet but they will be. The evil mother convinces Ella's father that she must be sent to finishing school to improve her oafishness. Her Father willingly agrees. When Ella arrives at the school she becomes finished (through direct orders) and miserable. So she runs away in an attempt to find Lucinda and beg her to remove the curse. On her way she runs into Char (almost literally) who with his guard escorts her to a Giant Wedding where she believes she will find Lucinda. This she does, but with mysterious consequences. Now what happens next, only Ella can determine.

Ella Enchanted is my favorite retelling of Cinderella. Many have read it, many have loved it, and I highly recommend it to fans of fairy tales, and kick butt heroines.

MOLDy Banners and Affiliates

Here are some banners I've have created for blogs and websites. If you would like to support this site, go ahead and copy and paste the code into an "HTML/Javascript" page element. It's that simple.

<a href="http://embracethemold.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u253/Taiger_photos/MOLD/Got-MOLD-.gif" alt="Photobucket" border="0" /></a>

<a href="http://embracethemold.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u253/Taiger_photos/MOLD/MOLD4.gif" alt="Photobucket" border="0" /></a>

<a href="http://embracethemold.blogspot.com/"><img src="http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u253/Taiger_photos/MOLD/MOLDy-Banner.gif" alt="Photobucket" border="0" /></a>

Phew, that was a lot of coding.

Your new patient

Hello, my name is Taiger.

Hello, Taiger!

I've been a bibliophile for about thirteen years now, and I guess I've gone a bit insane.

*cackles of laughter* Haven't we all?

And guess what . . . I LIKE IT!

*rambunctious cheers*

The Waiting Room 2

Hello! Welcome again to The Waiting Room (yes, it is important enough for capitalization...hmph). Anyway, here are more books. Reader reviews of the books listed are always appreciated!


New Releases:
The Summoning (Darkest Powers, Book 1) by Kelley Armstrong

My name is Chloe Saunders and my life will never be the same again.
All I wanted was to make friends, meet boys, and keep on being ordinary. I don't even know what that means anymore. It all started on the day that I saw my first ghost—and the ghost saw me.
Now there are ghosts everywhere and they won't leave me alone. To top it all off, I somehow got myself locked up in Lyle House, a "special home" for troubled teens. Yet the home isn't what it seems. Don't tell anyone, but I think there might be more to my housemates than meets the eye. The question is, whose side are they on? It's up to me to figure out the dangerous secrets behind Lyle House . . . before its skeletons come back to haunt me.


Lost and Found by Andrew Clements
Although it's a drag to be constantly mistaken for each other, in truth, during those first days at a new school, there's nothing better than having a twin brother there with you. But on day one of sixth grade, Ray stays home sick, and Jay is on his own. No big deal. It's a pretty nice school, good kids, too. But Jay quickly discovers a major mistake: No one seems to know a thing about his brother. Ray's not on the attendance lists, doesn't have a locker, doesn't even have a student folder. Jay almost tells the school -- almost -- but then decides that this lost information could be very...useful. And fun.
As Ray and Jay exploit a clerical oversight, they each find new views on friendship, honesty, what it means to be a twin -- and what it means to be yourself. Entertaining, thought-provoking, and true-to-life, this clever novel is classic Andrew Clements times two: twins!

Coming Soon:
What If... All the Rumors Were True by Liz Ruckdeschel and Sara James (July 8)
After a year at Hillsdale High, Haley thinks she knows what she’s in for as she starts her junior year. She knows what to expect from the it girls, the brains, the rockers, and the artists. She knows how to handle drunken disasters, shoplifting scandals, IM warfare, and out-of-control false rumors. But none of the lessons learned during her sophomore year can prepare her for this dilemma: what’s Haley supposed to do when everything they’re saying about her is true? (A Choose Your Destiny Novel)


Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox by Eion Colfer (July 15)
Artemis's mother has contracted a deadly disease -- and the only cure lies in the brain fluid of African lemurs. Unfortunately, Artemis himself was responsible for making the lemurs extinct five years ago. Now he must enlist the aid of his fairy friends to travel back in time and save them. Not only that, but he must face his deadliest foe yet...his younger self.

Lordy Lordy.

weeeell. i had intended to post on monday ahead of time but oops its monday and i say oh lordy what am i gonna post? well this is what popped in my head having learned about it only this weekend

on August 6th 2008 we will see the realease of

"The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2" the movie.

wow. was not expecting that. even though the first movie had only tiny inacuracies i still wondered howd they do a second one. well i guess its possible.

idk about other people but i did not read these books voluntarily. my mom got me the first one when i was in sixth grade before MOLD had taken a hold of me and when i was quite quite picky and reluctant in reading.

The first book was cool and okay for me but i didnt have any intention to read the other ones until just this year a friend of mine would absolutely not leave me alone until i had read the second book. (oh how i loath to be forced to read anything, even if it is good). fortunately i liked it.

now as to how the adaptation will go this time. i have not a clue.

What makes a book popular?

Reviewer X asked this question recently, and I decided to blog about it myself.

(And right now, I'm calling Sunday as my day to post weekly ramblings about bookish topics, 'kay? And I realize that this is Monday, not Sunday, but I started writing this on Sunday with the intention of finishing it, but then I felt like watching Music and Lyrics and then my younger brother and I watched Camp Rock and laughed at it and by then it was like ten thirty and I went to sleep.)

When I was younger, I really didn't read that many bestsellers. I mean, I liked historical fiction. That wasn't exactly mega-popular for the most part. I mean, yes, there was American Girl and Little House on the Prairie but for the most part, who read historical fiction? Not many.

Eventually, my reading tastes started to change. I remember when The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants came out. I didn't really want to read it; it didn't seem like my kind of book. (And one of the rules of the Sisterhood...well, let's just say I was positive the book would not be appropriate.) Regardless, I added it to my "list of books to read someday" because it was so popular. And one summer when I was at camp, I bought it and ended up really enjoying it. The same with The Lord of the Rings and Twilight. It seemed like everyone else had read them so I thought that I should.

In the case of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, one reason I think it became so popular is simply because it was real. You could relate to Carmen, Lena, Tibby, and Bridget. So there probably is no such thing as a pair of pants who fit four girls with very different body types, but it's not really about the pants. It's about four young women who are best friends spending their first summer apart. And the story is real. The characters, their emotions, are real. They don't always make smart decisions, aren't always likable, but they are girls you can know, girls you could be friends with yourself. Despite being a great summer read, Ann Brashares' young adult series has substance. It's not all happy-happy, but nor is it depressing. It's about life. Why wouldn't it be popular?

Gossip Girl and similar series are very popular right now. I've never read Gossip Girl, The A-List, or The Clique. I've read Private by Kate Brian, though. It's about a girl from the suburbs of Pennsylvania who ends up with a scholarship to an elite prep school and what happens when she falls in with the most powerful girls at the school. The seventh book, Ambition, recently came out, and I decided not to buy it. I've already read spoilers online, and I know there's just going to be another cliffhanger, probably more frustration, and it would just probably be a waste of ten dollars. Probably fun to read, but just overall not worth it.

Private is highly unrealistic. Seriously, if you thought the drama in BoBRPGv1 was over-the-top, I don't know what you'd think about Private. But it's addicting. Really. Who doesn't want to read about girls who have like zero self-respect despite seeming super-confident? And who doesn't read about a life they can only dream about: the life of the mega wealthy. I imagine the draw of Gossip Girl is the same.

Reviewer X discusses the Gallagher Girl books by Ally Carter. I have read both these books and I really enjoyed them. They're clean, fun, cute, and just impossible but whatever. Still fun, and that's all they're supposed to be. But then I reread the first (I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You, and for the sake of my sanity, from now on, I'm going to call it LYKY) and thought it was only so-so. It sort of annoyed me, mainly the writing. The premise is so farfetched, and why the writing is just so spy-oriented...it just became "Enough already!" I wasn't sure I hated it, but I'm kind of sorry I reread it because the books are kind of ruined for me now. Actually, I'm hoping that they do make LYKY into a movie (it's been optioned) because it might be a better book than movie.

I think part of what makes the Gallagher Girl books popular is that how many books are about teenage girls who attend spy school? Not that many. I think that books that take place at boarding schools of any kind are popular (Private is another bestselling series, and there is of course Harry Potter) and the Gallagher Academy is like Hogwarts in that it's populated by normal enough kids with super-special talents and the actual building is just so zany and you'd love to take a class or two there someday.

Maybe it's sort of the same draw as Hannah Montana: A mostly normal teenage girl with a huge secret.

Reviewer X brings up The Da Vinci Code, which I've never read. I agree with her that the controversy is responsible for its popularity. Controversy never hurts. However, I must disagree with her discussion of Prep, another book I've never read (but again, set at a prep school). I'm not looking at the Amazon.com page, so I don't know what it's average rating is, but I've seen it appear in many lists and stuff on Amazon.com, and I'm thinking that the number of negative reviews might be a reflection of its popularity. The proportion of fans to non-fans might be the same, but the numbers are larger. Also, if you love a super-popular book, why write a review? Yours is just going to be lost among the other gushing five-star reviews. But if you dislike a bestseller, you want to tell others that they may not want to waste their time and money, that keeping up with the latest trend is just not worth it.

Most people read for fun, so they want fun books. They don't want to have to focus on what they're reading in order to understand it. I know when I'm feeling sick or whatever, I'm more likely to reread one of my favorites or pick up a Meg Cabot book or something similar. Why? Because Meg Cabot's books are entertaining.

It's really hard to pinpoint what is and isn't going to sell well. (Okay, so if you read some editors'/agents' blogs, you'll see that there are some obvious "My goose, what on earth was this person thinking?" type queries, but mostly...) I mean, who knew Twilight was going to be so huge? Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone? How many rejections did J. K. Rowling receive, and what was the initial printing? Bloomsbury was pretty clueless that they were publishing the next literary phenomenon.

So publicity is another thing. I know that I would recommend LYKY simply because it's a pretty easy read (if torturous sometimes) and is fairly entertaining and it's clean. A book being put out on display...talked about a lot...it's going to sell. (So maybe I should just start throwing in Books of Bayern randomly?...) But how does a book get put on display? I don't know. Someone with power really likes that book? And how does a book get talked about? Someone either loves it or hates it.

So really, it comes down to people. Marketing people. Bookstore people. Reader people. And then the readibility/funness/power of a book...that sort of thing. But I don't think it can be pinpointed, my conclusion after this lengthy discussion.

READ BOOKS OF BAYERN BY SHANNON HALE! (Even though I know you guys have. :P)

♥anilee

Notes from the Therapist...

Today I was sitting in my office, perfectly at ease, when a young lady entered, quite out of the blue. I frowned. Usually my secretary will get the okay from me before sending up a patient. I tapped my pencil, annoyed. "Excuse me, miss, are you lost?" I asked, rather irritably. I hate surprise clients.
"Um, uh...sorry, m-ma'am...I'm a...a walk-in," the girl stammered. I sized her up. She did seem like a mess. Uncombed hair that certainly hadn't been touched by water, much less soap, in a few days; stained gray hoodie, mismatched sock...you get the picture. She had a nervous, rabbity look I've seen too many times before.
I sighed and gestured at the chair. "Fine. So spill your issues already." I'm not one of those delicate, "how does that make you feel?" type therapists. Besides, I had actual appointment in ten minutes. With a paying client.
She lay down on the chair. "Well...the other day, my cat died."
So, suck it up, I wanted to say. I restrained myself and gave her a sympathetic smile. "Awww...that's too bad," I said. "I recommend cremation. That way you can put him on the mantel and you'll never be apart. Maybe a nice memorial service, too. Invite all your friends, to see who will still associate with you afterwards."
She gave me a startled look. "Er...but that's not all..."
Finally, we get to the point, I thought. "Continue," I said politely, glancing at my cuckoo clock. I still had five minutes or so...
"Well...my...my boyfriend dumped me...and my friends are all talking behind my back about my Barbie underwear...and my mom is making me get a job and my dad confiscated my cell phone and my teacher told me my book report was off-topic..." She burst into tears. "It's just not fair! I hate my life!"
She blubbered and carried on for quite some time until she noticed that I was staring at her in utter disgust. Then she stopped quite suddenly. "Hey! You're supposed to be making me feel better!"
What are you going to do? Sue me? "Young lady," I said with the greatest dignity I could muster, "I'm afraid you've come to the wrong place. What do you take me for?"
She sniffled piteously. I recoiled. "A...a therapist, of course! Now make me feel better!"
I flipped up the chair, dumping her on the floor. She squealed.
"No, miss, you've definitely come to the wrong place," I said, still as polite as polite can ever be. "This is an exclusive type of therapy that I practice," I continued, showing her to the door. "It's only for those who suffer from Mental Obsessive Literary Disorder. Ever hear of it?"
She thought so hard her eyes crossed. "Literary...as in, like, books? I've never read an entire book in my life!"
I firmly closed the door in her face. "So it would appear."
I buzzed downstairs to talk to my secretary. "Um, Lydia? Why did you let that bimbo in here?"
"Sorry, ma'am," Lydia sounded embarrassed. "I asked her if she had gotten her disorder from a contemporary work of fiction, you know, because most of the girls you're counseling have it from there? She said yes, so I didn't think anything of it. I guess she thought it was some sort of disease."
"That's fine, Lydia. Just don't let it happen again, okay?"
"Understood, ma'am."
I broke off, rubbing my temples. At least it wasn't as bad as that one girl who thought that Communists were responsible for all these adaptations of Little Red Riding Hood...I consoled myself. I'm going to become a lot more picky about my walk-in's from now on...

The Waiting Room

Hello! Welcome to the waiting room! Here you will be able to read information about new and upcoming book releases every other week. Enjoy!

New Releases:
The Crimson Thread by Suzanne Weyn and Mahlon F. Craftt
The year is 1880, and Bertie, having just arrived in New York with her family, is grateful to be given work as a seamstress in the home of textile tycoon J. P. Wellington. When the Wellington family fortune is threatened, Bertie's father boasts that Bertie will save the business, that she is so skillful she can "practically spin straw into gold."
Amazingly, in the course of one night, Bertie creates exquisite evening gowns -- with the help of Ray Stalls, a man from her tenement who uses an old spinning wheel to create dresses that are woven with crimson thread and look as though they are spun with real gold. Indebted to Ray, Bertie asks how she can repay him. When Ray asks for her firstborn child, Bertie agrees, never dreaming that he is serious....

A Thousand Never Evers by Shana Burg
In Kuckachoo, Mississippi, 1963, Addie Ann Pickett worships her brother Elias and follows in his footsteps by attending the black junior high school. But when her careless act leads to her brother’s disappearance and possible murder, Addie Ann, Mama, and Uncle Bump struggle with not knowing if he’s dead or alive. Then a good deed meant to unite Kuckachoo sets off a chain of explosive events. Addie Ann knows Old Man Adams left his land to the white and black people to plant a garden and reap its bounty together, but the mayor denies it. On garden picking day, Addie Ann’s family is sorely tested. Through tragedy, she finds the voice to lead a civil rights march all her own, and maybe change the future for her people.

Coming Soon:
Out of the Wild by Sarah Durst (June 19)
Ever since Julie Marchen helped defeat the fairytale world of the Wild, life’s been pretty much back to normal. That is, as normal as life can be for a girl whose mom is Rapunzel. Yes, that Rapunzel.
Then the Wild mysteriously releases Zel’s prince (Julie’s dad!)—a rescue-minded hero who crashes full-speed ahead into the 21st century! (YOU try teaching a 500-year-old prince to use a seatbelt.) Julie’s over the moon, but when a wicked Fairy Godmother kidnaps Sleeping Beauty and reawakens the Wild, Julie and her dad set off on an action-packed adventure to save the distressed damsel… and the world. If they can’t, they’ll spend eternity in a fairytale.

The Magician: The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel by Michael Scott (June 24)
After fleeing Ojai, Nicholas, Sophie, Josh, and Scatty emerge in Paris, the City of Lights. Home for Nicholas Flamel. Only this homecoming is anything but sweet. Perenell is still locked up back in Alcatraz and Paris is teeming with enemies. Nicollo Machiavelli, immortal author and celebrated art collector, is working for Dee. He’s after them, and time is running out for Nicholas and Perenell. For every day spent without the Book of Abraham the Mage, they age one year—their magic becoming weaker and their bodies more frail. For Flamel, the Prophesy is becoming more and more clear.It’s time for Sophie to learn the second elemental magic: Fire Magic. And there’s only one man who can teach it to her: Flamel’s old student, the Comte de Saint-Germain—alchemist, magician, and rock star. Josh and Sophie Newman are the world’s only hope—if they don’t turn on each other first.

Who I Am: BB's Intro

Hello, MOLDy peoples! I am BB (like you didn't already know), or bookbutterfly. I have like 2 billion nicknames, so go ahead and call me my pseudonym, too, if you want; it's Mariposa Angel Del Libro (the initials are similar to MOLD: MALD :P). I love writing, reading, anything having to do with books; I have since I was able to read, which was at 4 (I dunno if that's supposed to be remarkable if a child can read at 4, but whatever).

Don't get me started on fave bks. I have a list of 70-something bks on Goodreads of all my fave bks, so you can just check it out there. But my fave genres are fantasy (no duh), historical fiction, mystery, and sometimes animal fiction (yes, there is such a thing). To give you a good idea of my tastes, I'll tell you my fave series: American Girl, Girls of Many Lands, the Lady Grace Mysteries, Harry Potter, and the Sisters Grimm. My favorite authors are Jane Austen, E.D. Baker, Michael Buckley, Karen Cushman, Roald Dahl, Tomie dePaola, Kate DiCamillo, Edward Eager, Julie Andrews Edwards, Eleanor Estes, Cornelia Funke, Shannon Hale, Gail Carson Levine, E. Nesbit, Linda Sue Park, J.K. Rowling, and Jacqueline Wilson.

OK, well, that sums me up pretty well. You'll learn more about me as we go. I have several blogs: BB Times, Del Libro Publishing (which is set on private, so if you would like to join, just drop me a line at BB Times, PM me on LRRH, or email me), and a "new-and-improved" blog (which I will alert everyone when I am ready to show it). Adios for now! ☺

♥BB

MOLD's Side Effects

I was doing some research on MOLD a while ago, and I found out a few things. Number 1, the most important, which I'm going to share with you today, is that MOLD has several side effects. This is relatively new knowledge, which is why I'm going to be the first person to bring it up. I'll number them.

1. Clumsiness. This is a side effect everyone with MOLD suffers from. At least, all the people tested with this have been found positive. It's not very serious, except it might sometimes cause you injuries, such as bumping your head on the ceiling when you're in the top bunk or walking into a violin stand. (What? Why are you all looking at me???)

2. Shannon Hale. This is positive. The tests have not yet been completed, but scientists studying it predict 100% positivity. Need I say more?

3. Daffodils. More noticeably, talking to daffodils. This is so-so; it is possible, though not confirmed, that those who have not shown their partiality to daffodils are not so deep into MOLD yet. The most famous Daffodil Speaker is Ani Isilee; she's definitely infected, and deeply.

4. LRRH. Shortened from Little Red Reading Hood, it's the bestest, bestest vaccine for MOLD. And for a grammar freak to say something is 'bestest' is obvious proof that it's the best. So what are you waiting for? Click on the link!

That's all for now.
Verity

A Post on Historical Fiction

I'm experiencing deja vu; when I was in ninth grade, I wrote a 2500 word essay on the genre of historical fiction. It was fun; my bibliography was pretty much made up of my favorite books.

Anyway. When I was younger, historical fiction was my favorite genre. When I was in elementary school, I either wanted to read about times before I was born or else stories about witches. Nothing else. Contemporary fiction didn't really interest me; neither did other sort of fantasy. Except for Ella Enchanted but that book is so awesome. But I'll talk more about why I love fantasy in a different post.

So historical fiction. It's probably my second favorite genre. I still love it. A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly is my second favorite book. And if you haven't read it, you simply must. You girls will probably really like it because you will totally be able to relate to Mattie, the main character. She loves to read and she wants nothing more than to go to college and study writing. She often references literature. And the story is just fantastic. Highly recommended. And I'll read pretty much anything else set in times long ago. (Another reason I love A Northern Light; how many books are set in 1906? Or the Adirondacks?)

What brought about this post is the fact that I recently finished reading The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory. It only took me like five months. *rolls eyes* I started reading it maybe several weeks before I saw the movie. It wasn't that the book was horrible or anything. It actually reads pretty quickly. I just didn't have a lot of time and was reading a lot else at the time.

When I was younger, I really enjoyed the Young Royals series by Carolyn Meyer. Actually, it was Mary, Bloody Mary that in fifth grade introduced me to the marvelous world of Tudor England. I've loved everything related to Tudor England since.

Historical fiction is really interesting. When I was younger, I'd read it to gain an understanding and learn something about history, so I wanted the books to be as accurate as possible and to have detailed author's notes explaining what was fact and what was fiction, why the author wrote the book and changed what he or she did. That was one of the best things about Ann Rinaldi's books; a lot of her books have fantastic, in-depth author's notes.

But fiction means "made up". Authors don't have to stay true to fact. And sometimes, there's just not enough fact.

Take the person of Mary Boleyn. Mary narrates Gregory's The Other Boleyn Girl. She also appears in Meyer's Doomed Queen Anne (whose narrator is the one and only Anne Boleyn, who is either my first or second favorite of Henry VIII's sixth wives. Katherine Parr also rocks. Both were smart, independent women). Not much is known about Mary other than the basic outline of her life. She married William Carey, became Henry VIII's mistress, her husband died, and she remarried a poor man, William Stafford, for love (have to love her for that). And she a son, Henry, and a daughter, Catherine. That's just about it. But who was she as a person?

Gregory has a sweet, obedient Mary who really hates court life. She's actually sort of dull. (Anne's got a lot more personality, but I'm not a fan of Gregory's portrayal of her, either.) However, when we first meet Mary in Doomed Queen Anne, she's haughty and confident, reveling in being Henry's mistress. Quite a difference, right? Which is right and which is wrong? I don't know; I haven't done enough research into the figure of Mary Boleyn; I don't know what the historical accounts say about her. Since there are two pretty different portrayals of her...I don't think there are many accounts of her.

I think if I had to say which book I liked more...I'd have to say that The Other Boleyn Girl is vastly more entertaining, but I'd rather read Doomed Queen Anne, paired with Mary, Bloody Mary. Why? Because I think Meyer's books portray Tudor England better. It was more than just the setting; it was part of the story. I don't think that you can read The Other Boleyn Girl and come away with the same understanding. I could be wrong; maybe the fact that I knew enough about Tudor England to know that most historians actually think Mary was the elder of the two Boleyn sisters and not the younger as Gregory has her sort of ticked me off. I mean, why change that? It just seemed like Gregory sensationalized the events; Meyer's seemed less dramatic. And as much as I love drama, I'm not into it when it's based on true events and people because I think the author has an obligation to keep it realistic. I mean, if you want to dramatize things, change the names, some of the details, and call it fantasy. Seriously.

So historical fiction...it should entertain. However, I'm more likely to like a "boring" historical fiction novel because chances are, it's more historical.

What about you?

♥anilee

My Take on MOLD?

Hey, I'm Taliesin, otherwise known as Tali, from Little Red Reading Hood. I have a regular, not-so-cool name, of course, but I am a mysterious and private person who prefers to remain that way.
So, this is pretty cool, right? A way to help other sufferers of the ancient, dreaded and newly discovered disorder, MOLD.
If you've been paying attention to the previous posts, you'll know that MOLD stands for Mental Obsessive Literary Disorder and that some of the symptoms are closely akin to escapism. There is one crucial difference, however. Those who have MOLD are not looking to escape into a fantasy world, they are looking to bring the fantasy world into the 'real' world. They do this by talking about anything and everything that is book-related, to anyone and anything that will listen. So, while this is one of the symptoms of MOLD, it is also a type of cure. (There is no real cure for MOLD, of course. At least, it hasn't been discovered yet.) This seemingly insane babble is the only way that MOLDy people can alleviate their mental agitation. It is the only thing that relieves the constant inner tension of being caught halfway between mundania and...somewhere else. Something's gotta give, sometimes.
So, if you have realized that you, yourself, have MOLD and you are wondering how on earth you will be able to survive the ordeal of not having people around you who will understand your need for constant literature chats...never fear. This blog is here for you to talk to and ask advice of those who have been walking the path you now walk. I won't call it 'the road to recovery', but maybe we will find that too.
For those of you who have checked the symptoms and have concluded that you do not, have never, and probably never will be diagnosed with MOLD...please be understanding.