Friday Connections

 Hey guys! I know I just jumped back into the blogosphere, but I'm going on a trip next week, and won't be able to post as a result.  (I really should have planned things better!)

I did, however, want to leave you guys with a couple of links about two authors who have been dis-invited to visit schools. In the case of Phil Bildner, it appears that a school district that he's been visiting for years has dis-invited him due to a book talk he did in which he talked about, among several other books, George by Alex Gino. Although the school hasn't said why they've dis-invited him, it appears this book, or one of the others he talked about previously might be the cause.

For Kate Messner, apparently she had scheduled to visit a school back in January as part of her release for her new book The Seventh Wish, which deals with the theme of drug addition and it's effect on the family. The kids and parents were given information about the book and Messner's visit months in advance. However, the day before she was to visit the school, they asked her not to come because they feared the topic wasn't appropriate.

Now, anyone who knows me knows I'm a strong proponent against censorship in all forms in the literary world. I can't comprehend keeping any child from a book that has the potential of changing their life. It's for this reason that I'm upset to hear about these stories. I encourage you to share your support for these authors and raise awareness. 

People shouldn't be afraid of letting their children read books that contain ideas contrary to what they believe is right, or because the lives in these stories are different from their own. We talk about encouraging diversity so much in this country, yet when given the opportunity to offer it to our kids, we balk at the idea because we don't want to discuss a certain topic with them, or they might get bad ideas. 

So pop over to these links, share them, share why you think allowing access to ALL books is important for every child, and hopefully in doing so, we can help at least one person understand why books are so important, and why allowing authors like these two share their ideas at schools is important.

 A Statement from Disinvited Author, Phil Bildner

A blog post I never thought I’d be writing on book release day…

 

Friday Connections

Okay guys, it's been a while since I've posted on here, but I'm back and I'm excited to get back to blogging! I've missed you guys!

College is rough, and I'm easily stressed, which is why I kind of dropped off the planet. Also, as a result of so much schoolwork, I wasn't really reading. But it's SUMMER now, so I have all the time in the world! Mostly!

Anyway, in an effort to have some sort of organization, I've decided on a kind of schedule of postings.

Monday= Reviews

Wednesday= Discussion posts

Friday= Friday Connections

So, Monday's posting is pretty self explanatory. I'll be trying to post one review a week on this day.

Wednesdays will be sporadic. I don't plan on making weekly discussion posts, because I'm not going to try to force myself to find something to discuss every week, because that will lead to stress, and stress leads to death. (Okay, maybe not death, but a very unpleasant feeling). But when I do have something I want to talk about, it will go up on Wednesdays!

Friday's post is something I'm a little nervous about, because the plan is to collect interesting links from around the web, including articles, links to interesting blogs, Instagram, and Twitter accounts, and whatever else I feel should be shared with the masses. I'm nervous about this because this particular post might take some digging to find new and interesting links to share. However, I'm excited about this feature because the one thing I love about many blogs is reading fun and interesting content, and I want to share that content with you guys, because I know it's something you'll enjoy too. If you want to help me out with this, I'd love for you guys to send me any links you find interesting either as a comment on my blog, via Twitter (@readerconnected) or just shoot me an email at readerconnected(at)gmail(dot)com.

So stay tuned for exciting stuff! Hopefully you're as excited as I am!

Until next time,
xox

*Review* Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke

Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke
Publisher: Bloomsbury/Audible
Release Date: 2004

Genre: Fiction, Fantasy/Magic, Historical Fiction 

Source: Purchased from Audible

Rating: 4/5

Amazon || B&N || BAM || Goodreads

Goodreads Synopsis
At the dawn of the nineteenth century, two very different magicians emerge to change England's history. In the year 1806, with the Napoleonic Wars raging on land and sea, most people believe magic to be long dead in England--until the reclusive Mr Norrell reveals his powers, and becomes a celebrity overnight.

Soon, another practicing magician comes forth: the young, handsome, and daring Jonathan Strange. He becomes Norrell's student, and they join forces in the war against France. But Strange is increasingly drawn to the wildest, most perilous forms of magic, straining his partnership with Norrell, and putting at risk everything else he holds dear.

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For years, I've been wanting to read this book. However, I've always been a little scared off by the fact that it's a bit of a beast. And I'd tried to read the beginning of the book several times, but it seemed too dense and dry to even continue. I decided, however, to give it one more shot and listen to the audio book. 

Best. Decision. Ever.

Guys, if you're like me, and have tried to read this book and couldn't handle it, give the audio book a shot. Because A) the narration is wonderful and B) this book is so fantastic!

I won't lie, the beginning was a little confusing, because there seemed to be a lot of characters right off the bat, and it took me a minute to figure out what was going on, but if you can push past that first chapter, you will not regret your decision to listen to this book.

I seriously couldn't stop listening. There was so much going on, and several different storylines following different characters, but Susanna Clarke manages to craft this story in a way that makes it pretty easy to follow, once you get the characters in order. Not only that, but her weaving of real historical events with her fictional magical history makes this book so much the better.

Honestly, nearly all of the characters in this book are pretty unlikable, for various reasons, but I think that fact makes the book more interesting. You have each character trying to further his or her own agenda, leading to several mysterious happenings and dodgy meetings and conspiracies. 

I'm really not sure what else to say about this book that will give it proper justice, other than I promise it is very much worth the time to read and you won't regret it.

Until next time,

xox