Tour de Nerdfighting, Across the Universe, and Nick and Norah

This post will come to you in parts, three of them to be exact.

Part One, Tour de Nerdfighting.

Last night I had the awesome opportunity to meet John and Hank Green for a second at the Tour de Nerdfighting, the book tour for TFiOS. Hank sang songs, John read from TFiOS and talked about heroism and living a good full life. John got shocked and Hank forgot one of his songs. I gave them hats that I made for them (TFiOS for John and DFTBA for Hank). I sat with nerdy friends and felt a special feeling that can only be found in such a place with no judgement. I got to meet Schubes17, a YouTuber that I'm a fan of. Only Nerdfighers could create an event that was so pure and happy and nerdy and deep and sad and funny all at the same time. I'm sure this won't make coherent sense to anyone that wasn't there, but it is one of those experiences that I may never be able to articulate fully.

Also, the TFiOS van happened to be going the same way we were, so we creepily followed it. In circles. At that point, we realized that they probably realized some crazy creepy nerds were actually following them. So we noticed which hotel they were staying at and left them alone. But it was exhilarating, being in a car with four other girls, most of who don't know more about each other than a name and a love for nerdy things. It was a shared experience that was very appropriate, considering that we were following John Green.

Ok, Part Two: Across the Universe by Beth Revis. (http://www.amazon.com/Across-Universe-Beth-Revis/dp/1595143971).

I have a hard time summarizing this book. But I do like Melissa Marr's blurb on the back of the book, "An astounding ride! Beth Revis erases genre boundaries with a murder mystery, a budding romance, and a dystopian world gracefully integrated into a sci-fi novel that blows away all expectation." That pretty much summarizes my reaction to the book.

The main female character, Amy, is cryogenically frozen and put on a ship sent to colonize a world 300 years away. The main male character, Elder, is the leader-in-training for the civilization on the ship. I can't discuss a lot of this book without spoiling it, but let me just say that the first 75 pages or so are kinda hard to get through. But keep going. Once Amy wakes up, this novel is a roller coaster that you won't want to get off. It was a bit of every genre and masterfully blended. Oh, and if you read this, contact me. I want to talk to someone about it, but I don't know anyone who's read it.

Rating: 4.5/5 (Points off for lack of subtlety on a "twist" and the beginning section)

Finally, Part Three. Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan (http://www.amazon.com/Nick-Norahs-Infinite-Playlist-Rachel/dp/0375835318).

I had high hopes for this book. When I watched the movie, I loved it. But, the book really didn't do it for me. I felt like it was too whiny and angst-ridden while somehow also being full of lust. But this book is about feeling the highs of life without ever using a substance. It's also about the pitfalls of opening up yourself to someone and using your imagination to make the relationship more perfect in your head. This book had some really touching moments and hilariously sarcastic exchanges. But, they almost felt out of place to me. After reading Across the Universe, which was so beautifully blended, this novel almost seemed choppy and ironically, unrealistic. Honestly, I prefer the movie to the book, which is a near-unheard of happening for me.

Rating: 3/5.

Non-YLC: 6

YLC:0

P.S.: I AM NOW AN ENGLISH MAJOR WITH A CONCENTRATION ON LITERATURE AND I COULD NOT BE HAPPIER AND ONLY ALL CAPS CAN EXPRESS MY JOY.

Crying

So, let me preface this by saying that I'm not a crier. There are some girls that cry over happy and sad endings, who even cry for no good reason except to cry. I don't really cry a lot. And when I do, it is either a single tear or huge body racking sobs and my eyes get puffy and red and it's generally unattractive.

There are three things that would have made a normal person who didn't internalize all of their feelings cry over the past few days. The first thing is I watched the quintessential chick-flick, The Notebook. Usually, the end of this movie makes me cry every time. But, I didn't even shed a tear.

Then, I read The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. I will just say that this is a cancer book. That alone should have made me cry. But, on top of it being a cancer book, it is a John Green novel which should guarantee too many emotions and too much thinking. I finally shed a tear when I read the final words, then forced myself to stop.

Finally, today my roommate got in a car accident. She's fine, but she very easily could not have been. If anything, this should have broken me down. I almost did, several times in fact. But, I knew that she was going through enough shock and trauma and didn't need to try to comfort someone else on top of all of that. That's just the kind of person she is- she could be distraught and hurt and she will put someone else over herself.

So, the point of this is I still haven't cried. None of those full body racking sobs. I'm almost scared a small thing will set me off in front of a large group of people and that will be it. Hopefully when it comes, I can just get it over with in private. Like I said, I'm not a crier.

2012 Tracker:

Non-YLC: 3

YLC: 0

P.S: I'm attempting to read 30 Non-YLC books (meaning YA or adult novels for pure pleasure) in 2012. Let's see how it goes!

Back to School, Clockwork Prince, and TFiOS

Well, as soon as I finish this post, I will embark on my journey back to school. I'm not really sure if I'm ready to go back though. Usually by this time, I can't wait to get out of my house and back to school. Maybe it's because I've been on my own a lot of the break, but I'm been enjoying that peaceful feeling. At school, I'm always surrounded by people which is not really a problem because I love them. But I'm not ready to go back into that chaos yet. This isn't even factoring in classes,

which I know for sure that I'm not ready for.

School, like so many other things in life, is on someone else's schedule though, not my own. There are many things that we're not ready for, but have to deal with anyways. As far as topics in that category go, going back to school before I feel like it is pretty mild. Most unpleasant (and a lot of pleasant) things that happen in our lives when we are not ready for them. But, we buck up and go on with life because that is what we do. We deal with it and just move forward.

On a different note, I finished Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare last night. (http://www.amazon.com/Clockwork-Prince-Infernal-Devices-Cassandra/dp/1416975888/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1326220890&sr=1-1) To anyone familiar with her work, it is well known that she was internet-famous for Harry Potter fan fiction before she was ever published with her own original work. Now, Clockwork Prince was her fifth novel, and her sixth is coming out in May of this year. But, Cassie has never lost her feel of fanfic. But, that is a large part of what appeals to me about her novels- that they read like a fan fiction. To most people, that would be a con. But I can't even count how many times I had to force myself away from a computer and the fan fiction on it.

The actual plot of Clockwork Prince was surprisingly compelling. The first book in this series, Clockwork Angel was not all I had expected from Clare. Honestly, I love her first series- The Mortal Instruments. But I was not impressed with the first of the Infernal Devices series. I'm glad I gave Prince a chance though, because it was much better than Angel.

Finally, it is TFiOS Day!! This is the day when John Green's The Fault in Our Stars (http://www.amazon.com/Fault-Our-Stars-John-Green/dp/0525478817) is officially released!! I've had my copy for about a week and a half and it was wrapped in ribbon and unopened. At last, I can open it and enjoy this novel that so many have been praising. But, not until I have finished unpacking. With that in mind, I hasten back to the school so I can finally read this novel. Sometimes, all that's needed is the proper motivation.

2012 Tracker:

Non-YLC: 2

YLC: 0