Braaaaaaaiiiiiiiinsssssssss

Hey, look at that!  Me actually keeping a promise!  I am BACK, ladies and gents.  I now know that at least two males will read this, so I can actually say that.  I am LIVING THE DREAM.

Let's talk books, shall we?

I mentioned in my last video the idea of possibly doing a book club.  A few of you seemed interested, so I'm going to do a video about that on my main channel later this week.  I have two ideas for books, so I think we will put it to a vote.

MOVING ON.

Perhaps it is the fact that I went to sleep at 5:45 AM last night/this morning, but today I want to talk about zombie novels.

Peeps by Scott Westerfeld was probably the first YA zombie novel I read, and it is still one of my favourites.  I love the idea of zombies as a disease spread through kissing.  It's very well thought-out; the idea that there can be carriers for the disease, that being a carrier makes the individual more sexually active.  It's also one of the only zombie novels I've read in which the general public does not know about the outbreak, which I found interesting.

Generation Dead by Daniel Waters is one of my favourite in the genre because of three words: politically correct zombies.  In Generation Dead, teenagers that die aren't staying dead.  They come back to life slightly slower and more numb, but very much conscious.  A recently passed law is allowing those kids to return to the public school system.  As with most public schools, though, there needs to be a more PC term for anyone different.  In Waters' the reanimated teens aren't zombies.  They're living impaired.  Be sure to check out the other books in the series, Kiss of Life and Passing Strange.

Zombies vs. Unicorns is, hands down, my favourite anthology.  Ever.  The stories contained therein are so well-written, especially on the zombie side, that I actually switched teams.  They range from laugh-out-loud comedy to simmering romance to heart-pounding adventure, often within the same story.  These are definitely worth a read.  What team are you on?

If you're upset that John Green is not in Zombies vs. Unicorns, be sure to check out his zombie apocalypse novella, available for free here.

Happy Reading!

The Triumphant Return

Ladies and, well, according to Insight, you're pretty much all ladies, I am back!  If any of you are gentlemen (or gentleboys), I am back for you too, I promise.  I missed you.  How's your aunt doing?  Is that a new haircut?  You look good.  SOrry I went on an unannounced hiatus, but I have returned!  Let's talk books.

This semester, I am taking a course entitled "Adolescent Literature."  I was psyched about the course.  I mean, it is pretty much being graded for what I do every day.  Much to my dismay, the class does not contain much of what I would consider current YA novels.  The most recent book on the syllabus is Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (not complaining about getting to analyze HP, by the way).  The more I get into the class and the books, though, the more I like our reading material.  While I'm not sure that every book in the literary canon fully deserves to keep its spot and many contemporary novels deserve a lot more recognition, some classics are classics for a reason.

We started out the year reading Grimm's Fairy Tales.  Now, if you think you know your fairy tales and you haven't read this collection, I urge you to do so.  The version above even has other versions of the tales in the back of the book.  Did you know that, in one version of the story, Red Riding Hood strips for the wolf?  There's way more gore in Cinderella than you might think, and the Virgin Mary is apparently a kidnapper in her spare time.  Enjoy!

Speaking of fantasy tales you thought we read Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass next.  I love these books because, while we were reading them, I was going through a particularly stressful time.  One of my favourite things about these books is that it's nearly impossible to worry about real life while reading them.  These topsy-turvy, completely illogical adventures are a form of pure escapism.

The most recent novel we finished was Treasure Island, a high seas adventure story.  I have mixed feelings about the book, but if you like pirate stories, this book is mandatory.  I remember a girl in the class complaining that the pirates in Treasure Island were too stereotypical.  What she didn't realize was that this book is where the stereotypes come from.  It's interesting, it's action- and gore-filled, and it's worth a read.

I hope you enjoy these, and I'll talk to you all next time!

Happy Reading!