The "Inky Awards"

Hello Brains!

Just recently I was selected to be a judge for the Australian Inky Awards, which celebrates the popularity and beauty of two books, one Australian, and one International. There are 20 longlisted titles that can be viewed at: http://insideadog.com.au/inkys/2013-longlist

The "Inside A Dog" website (website that runs the competition) can be seen here: http://insideadog.com.au/

It is my job to read all of these books and then deliberate with the 5 other judges on which 10 make the shortlist. Part of the agreement I make with becoming a judge is that I am unable to post a review of any of the books on the longlist until after the shortlist is released. This doesn't mean I won't be posting reviews for the books, after August 26, I will post one of these every day. I will write the reviews as I finish reading the titles and leave them unpublished.

Due to this, my reviews will not be as recent and will focus on some of my favourite books, and will focus on lesser known titles. Instead of posting reviews of books as I read them, I will post a review twice a week of a book or series that I loved and enjoyed. And every time I finish reading one of the Inky titles I will post a brief summary of the book (Would we prefer SPOILER or NON-SPOILER?).

Hope you're looking forward to the reviews to come, smell you later.

Book versus Movie: The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins

Before I begin this post, I would like readers to know that this is not spoiler free, and is highly opinionated. I would like to ask that if you have a comment that is disrespectful of my opinion, that you take yourself elsewhere.

Okay, sombre attitude aside, let's get busy!

Hunger Games is a highly touched on topic, and I thought it'd be pointless doing a review, as most lovers of young adult fiction have already touched on the book, but I thought it'd be a great opportunity to discuss the shortcomings and the positives of the movie in comparison to the book.

Going to see the movie, I had high expectations. I had looked over all the casting, and seen the trailer multiple times, and honestly, I was naive as a fourteen year old nerd can get. Of course, in some aspects, the movie did live up to expectations, yet mine were a hell-of-a-lot lower than most of the freaked out teenagers, most who followed the books with undying love (NOTE: My high opinion of the first in the trilogy does not reciprocate to its sequels).

In the book you really understand how hard it is for everyone, including Katniss, Peeta, and even Cato. For some, the event is glorified, much like war used to be. But I don't feel we really feel that in the movie. Cato and the Careers all come across as dirty sadistic (insert rude word here). And the only time when I feel that this is shown is in the scene where (SPOILER!) Clove is killed by Thresh, and she yells desperately for Cato to save her.

Another thing, many people complain about the non-appearance of Madge, and the Mockingjay pin and Peeta's Dad. But these were unnecessary characters, that would of added to the cost of the movie without real reason.

That's all we have time for today, Goodnight Booktopia! Tune in next week for another great bookish post!

Magician - Raymond E. Fiest

Bookity-dookity-woo! Time for another book review!

Magician by Raymond E. Fiest, high fantasy, magnificent! Magician revolves around Pug, a young orphan that resides in the castle of Crydee, along the eastern coast of Midkemia, a medieval kingdom. Fourteen months are Pug is apprenticed to a master magician, Pug comes across something very strange, an alien ship broken up along the coast. When the Duke of Crydee forms a party to ride west to inform the king of the possible invasion, things go downhill. Tragedy strikes and Pug seems to be lost forever.

Magician is high fantasy at its greatest. With simplistic writing, keeping even young readers entranced in its deep storyline with immense detail used when describing different events within the story. Normally, high fantasy with increasing complex background stories and complicated magic don't appeal to me, as it takes a large degree of concentration to read them and focus on them, but this was not the case with Magician.

Although many, many years pass in Magician, many of them not delved deep in to during the book, we are able to capture a broad idea of what happens during the book, and I'd easily recommend the book to an avid reader as young as ten or eleven.

This is easily one of my favourite fantasy novels, possibly my most favourite. Awesome!