(a delayed) Resolution

Dear Reader,

I had planned to post this on the 1st of January, but unfortunately virtual punctuality has never been one of my strong points, as you may have noticed. Anyway, here is my New Years' Resolution:

In the New Year’s firework harmonies

I hope that these next new days   

Will bring with them some new memories,

That’ll hopefully completely wipe away

These oppressive melancholy skies

That seem to have clouded over my life,

The constant rain that are tired tears

That don’t deign to fall from my eyes.

In the new year, a new sun

A new sky and a new moon

A new perspective for one

A new page to write soon.

New goals to be set.

New words bring new thoughts.

New experiences to regret,

New roads for us to tread.

So momentarily frozen on this brink

I pray that this next new year

Has written in its own dried ink

For me, a better fulfilling career,

And brings us more rhymes, more stories

More laughter to be shared,

More faith, imaan and less worries

And more chances for us all to be weird.

Happy New Year 2013, my dear Reader.

Nida

P.S. - I just noticed that my blog views have crossed 10,000. Thank you. You cannot possibly know how good feels to see that my virtual voice has been heard. 

Uglies, Pretties and Specials' Review

Dear Reader,

I apologise for not informing you before now, but I'm currently on a rather serious blogging break as I'm trying hard to fully focus on my writing, though I have in fact plenty of great blog-post ideas waiting in my drafts folder. By the way, recently I was forced to get a twitter account. I'm not sure how long I'll keep it but you, dear reader, are welcome to follow me here, or add me @Bookaholic786. Today I received an e-mail from google informing me that I have quite a few comments waiting for my approvals and replies. So I thought I'd briefly pop back on to my blog for you dear reader, and update you also on what I've been reading lately.

So in the 24 hours of a day, the time that I have allocated to fictional reading has been occupied by the Uglies Quartet, a series by Scott Westerfeld (a new 'favourite writer'), recommended to me by John Green, (also a writer but unfortunately not a favourite). I'm finished with the first three books in the Quartet and have just started the fourth one Extras. But seeing how the central character in the last book is different to the first three, I thought I'd write some mini reviews for the ones I have read.       

Uglies

About three hundred years from now, in the much flooded North America, human civilization has dramatically changed. In a manner similar to The Hunger Games, our current industrialized age bought about its own ruin and downfall. In Uglies, humanity lives in small self-governing hi-tech cities, isolated and cut-off from the rest world, where it is mandatory to have plastic surgery on your 16th birthday to turn you from an ugly to a pretty. Looking out from her dorm window, Tally Youngblood has always looked forward to becoming a pretty and moving to New Pretty Town, at the centre of her city, where new pretties party all night and always have the best of everything. That is until she meets Shay, two months before they both turn 16. Drawn together by their cleverness and sense of adventure, they soon form a strong friendship. But Shay has rather heretical and radical ideas on what it really means to be "pretty" and "normal". So when Shay runs away, just a week before the operation, leaving Tally with cryptic instructions, Tally is blackmailed by Special Circumstances into following Shay across the wild; in order to find her and betray the rebel group known as "The Smoke"...    

There is not much more I want to say about this book, other than that reading this story was like flying a hoverboard over a rusty old rollercoaster, with so many twists and turns, which I never saw coming. It kept me hooked for hours on end. I was hardly able to do anything productive until I had turned the last page.

***  

Pretties

Life as a new pretty has been somewhat disappointing so far for Tally Youngblood, though she can't really put a finger on what's missing. And for some reason, her subconscious is haunted by the cruel-pretty faces of the grey suited specials. However, there is one thing she's really looking forward to, and that's joying a clique known as the Criminals (aka the Crims), which already includes her best friends Shay and Peris. But there's something about the Crims' tricky and enchanting leader, Zane. Unlike most pretties, he loves to hear stories from their ugly days and just being around him makes Tally feel more bubbly and clear-headed. And there's something about Zane that brings back memories from her past that she had thought the operation had gotten rid of permanently...

My opinions on this book are rather divided. I loved the running metaphor of the beautiful princess locked in the tower, and how the reoccurring dream was used to summarize and make sense of what was happening in the story. But the way the pretties spoke and their "pretty-talk" / happy-slang I found utterly annoying, because no one in their right mind would talk with that silly limited vocabulary. Then again, I think that's the whole point: they're suppose to be annoying and not in their right minds. And without giving away any major plot points; when I actually finished the book I was so full of despair, anger and frustration that I threw it across the room. I so badly wanted to go up to the author, take him by the shoulders, and shake him vigorously while yelling "HOW COULD YOU DO THAT?????!!!!!!" This in itself is rather astonishing as I'm known to be a rather calm and "bubbly" person, more prone to smiling than yelling, especially at complete strangers.  But the mere fact that Westerfeld was able to provoke such emotions from me means that he is a really good writer. Because, in the few short days that it took me to get to this point, I head quite come to care for his characters.  

***  

Specials

I'm not going to write a summary paragraph for this book because, dear reader, if you haven't read this series already then a summary of this book would be a spoiler for the first two books. So instead I'll just tell you what I thought of it.

As you can imagine, I was rather reluctant to start this novel, given all that had happened by the end of Pretties. I wasn't entirely sure that I wanted to see what Tally would become next. But being the completionist that I am, I read it anyway. And I loved it. I will honestly admit that there were times when I was so aggravated with Tally and the author that I just had to close the book, wishing I'd never started the series. And yet, it was the the writing itself, the plot and the need to know what happens next, that kept bringing me back the moment I closed the book. Now I'm quite glad to say that it was well worth it in the end. Because the ending, the last few pages themselves, are so rewarding and so apt that Specials has found a home amongst my "special" favourite books.

***  

I don't really listen to music any more but there is this one song, In Between by Linkin Park, that quite reminds me of Tally Youngblood's situation throughout these three novels, a bit like a running theme, but one that she manages to overcome. If you, dear reader, are like me and not really interested in music, then for you I'll end this post with the lyrics from In Between.

Nida

In Between

Let me apologize to begin with
Let me apologize for what I'm about to say

But trying to be genuine was harder than it seemed
And somehow I got caught up in between

Let me apologize to begin with
Let me apologize for what I'm about to say
But trying to be someone else was harder than it seemed
And somehow I got caught up in between

Between my pride and my promise
Between my lies and how the truth gets in the way
And things I want to say to you get lost before they come
The only thing that's worse than one is none

Let me apologize to begin with
Let me apologize for what I'm about to sa
But trying to regain your trust was harder than it seemed
And somehow I got caught up in between

Between my pride and my promise
Between my lies and how the truth gets in the way
The things I want to say to you get lost before they come
The only thing that's worse than one is none


And I cannot explain to you
And anything I say or do or plan
Fear is not afraid of you
But guilt's a language you can understand

I cannot explain to you
And anything I say or do
I hope the actions speak the words they can

For my pride and my promise
For my lies and how the truth gets in the way
The things I want to say to you get lost before they come
The only thing that's worse than one is

Pride and my promise
Between my lies and how the truth gets in the way
The things I want to say to you get lost before they come
The only thing that's worse than one is none

what Makes a Heroine?

Dear Reader,

Since I started thinking about the quartet I'm currently working on, Chronicles by Anamika, which is to say for about 6 years now, I've often found myself asking this question: "what makes a heroine?" It's also the question that Jane Austen explored quite well in her first complete novel, Northanger Abbey, especially in the first chapter: "No one who had ever seen Catherine Morland in her infancy would have supposed her to be born a heroine."   

To answer this question, I've often turned to my favourite stories, looking at the characters in particular and analysing why I liked them so much. That is how I formed my list: 'Favourite Fictional Heroines (not including Fairytales)' which I plan to share with you today. Aside: this list is not ranked by favourite first, but rather in order of how I read them.  

Matilda by Roald Dahl:

The first book I ever remember reading was a picture book by Roald Dahl called The Enormous Crocodile. From then on, my childhood was littered by his books, including the famous Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. But the one that stayed with me the most was obviously Matilda. As a child, she was the one I identified with the most: she had this endless thirst for knowledge and loved to read. Though, Matilda also had many qualities that I aspired towards: she was spunky, mischievous, always did what she believed was right and just, and had the power to move things with her mind! You, dear reader, can probably see why this appealed to the shy little girl that I was.    

Illustration of Matilda by Quentin Blake

Lucy Pevensie from The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis:

I first read The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe back in year five with the rest of my class. It took me another year or two before I found the rest of the Narnia books and fell deeply in love with them. Of the two Pevensie sisters, I only liked Susan because she was 'the voice of reason', cautious and practical (much like myself), but it was Lucy who really found a way into my heart. Looking back now I've realised why that was. Lucy was the embodiment of childhood innocence, she was imaginative and trusting and completely loyal to her family and friends.  

Miranda Otto as Eowyn,
The Shieldmaiden of Rohan

Éowyn daughter of  Éomund from The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien:

Back in 2001, when I was just on the brink of my teenage years, my cousin (who is 8 years older than me), took me and my elder brother to the cinema to watch The Lord of The Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. She was already a big fan of the books and told me to read them as well. It goes without saying that I'd read the entire trilogy and The Hobbit before the next film was released a year later. There aren't actually many female characters in Tolkien's works, but the few that there are, are all rather memorable. My favourite of the lot is definitely Éowyn, though she is not my most favourite character from the trilogy (that would be Gandalf and Sam Gamgee). The reason why I like Éowyn so much (and on whom I somewhat modelled my own character Sharon) is because she is brave and she wants to prove that women can do so much more than just take care of hearth and home, and that when it comes to courage, size and strength doesn't matter. Plus, she says the simplest things in a very interesting manner: "I have waited on faltering feet long enough. Since they falter no longer, it seems, may I not spend my life as I will?" (I wish people still spoke like that *sigh*). 

Sally Lockhart from The Sally Lockhart Mysteries by Philip Pullman:

While Philip Pullman is better known for His Dark Material trilogy, I personally much prefer The Sally Lockhart Quartet. I actually found these books in a neglected corner of my secondary school library, when I was 16 and was working there as a library assistant. I was just beginning to develop my love for history and all things Victorian, so these books (which are set between 1872 and 1882) greatly appealed to me and were also written in modern English, making them easy reads. So, when we first meet Victoria (Sally) Lockhart, she's a feisty 16 year old, albeit one in mourning for her beloved father and thoroughly determined to solve the mystery surrounding his death. Then over the years (and books) she goes on to become a successful businesswoman, then a single mother trying to juggle her work, an old nemesis and her personal life, when all the while she's also been battling against the stereotypes of the British Victorian Society. This unconsciously taught me an important lesson in writing, that heroines are much more interesting when they don't conform to society's view of a 'typical woman'.  And being a bit of a nonconformist at heart, these books gave me the courage to just be who I am and not care much for how inconsequential others saw me.     

Lirael by Garth Nix: 

I read The Old Kingdom Series (aka The Abhorsen Chronicles) just a little while, maybe only a few months, after The Sally Lockhart books. Anyway, in the very north of the Old Kingdom lives the Clayr, who are all fair-haired women and all are Seers. Amongst the Clayr is dark-haired Lirael, a misfit since her birth. The only place she finds sanctuary is in the mysterious and convoluted Library, where she works as a librarian and is usually accompanied by her unusual companion: the Disreputable Dog. But soon enough her adventures in the Library lead her to begin a journey that takes her all the way across the Old Kingdom, in which a dark evil is rising once again. And it is in the murky waters of Death itself that she finally begins finding her identity. The last time I read Lirael was about six years ago now, and considering the hundreds of books I've read since then it is only understandable that I no longer remember much of the story or the names of other characters in this one. But the fact that I have a lasting impression of Lirael in my mind and still see her as being one of my favourite heroines, is testament to the fact that she was such a well written character. 

Sabriel & Lirael by Claire Lenth

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë:

When I was studying for my A Levels in English Literature (as well as Biology, Chemistry, Maths and History), I was also going through 'my Classics phase'. That's when I read Jane Eyre for the first time, as well as all the other books by the Brontë sisters (save for Villette, since my local library didn't have a copy). There are so many reasons why the character of Jane Eyre is such a brilliant a heroine that I'm not sure where to start. I suppose it'll only be true to Jane if we use her own words: "Do you think because I am poor, obscure, plain and little, I am soulless and heartless? You think wrong! - I have as much soul as you, an as much heart!" Actually I think this quote by an 'anonymous' reviewer, also captures her just right: "The book revolves around the trials and tribulations to which she [Jane] is subjected. Jane is headstrong and fights for what she believes in; she stands up for her rights and retaliates when harassed. She can be passionate and determined." I would like to add that what I liked best about Jane Eyre was that when she finally married Mr. Rochester, they were completely equal, both in terms of wealth and status as well as their dependency on each other.  

Anne Elliot from Persuasion by Jane Austen:

Sally Hawkins as Anne Elliot
from the 2007 ITV adaptation of
'Persuasion'

(Also a part of my 'Classics phase'.) Of the six complete novels that Jane Austen wrote, Persuasion is my favourite. It's all about second chances and persuading each other to not give up on hope and love, even when there is little chance of it. And as for Anne Elliot, the protagonist, I feel a lot of empathy towards her. Her family, and some of her friends, are very negligent of her and constantly under appreciating her kindness, compassion and good sense. They never miss an opportunity to impose their arrogant aristocratic values on her. Anyway, what better way is there to describe Anne Elliot than with the words of Captain Wentworth (the 'hero') "[There was] no one so proper, so capable as Anne ... Her character was now fixed in my mind as perfection itself, maintaining the loveliest medium of fortitude and gentleness." So basically I really look up to Anne Elliot, she seems to embody all the values that should be in a down-to-earth young woman. On a side note, her personality greatly reminds me of my mother.    

Margaret Hale from North & South by Elizabeth Gaskell (both my favourite book and author):

Another amazingly-realistic and moving book written in the Victorian Era. I won't say too much about Margaret today because I plan to write an entire review post about this book in the near future, Inshallah. I will say however that one of the things I like best about Margaret Hale and Mr. Thornton is the way they both change and develop into better, less stubborn, people over the course of the novel.

Lady Fire from Fire by Kristen Cashore (the only American author on this list, funnily enough):

It took me only two and a half days to read this book, that I had purchased on the day of its release in the UK, which happened to be only a few years ago (2009). What kept me so hooked on this book was not only its fast paced and engaging plot, but also the way that Cashore uses the character of Lady Fire as a medium through which to explore broad and thought provoking themes. For example, the struggle between control and freedom, which was embellished with the exploration of the idea that hardly anyone is either entirely good or entirely evil, everyone has their own shade of grey (ETA - no reference any other rather "popular" book), as well as the concept that if one has power, it is so very easy to abuse it. I hope to convey similar themes in my novels, and the fantasy genre seems to be a really good way to go about doing that.    

UK book cover

Elinor Dashwood from Sense & Sensibility by Jane Austen (again): 

Surprisingly enough, I didn't get around to reading this one until only 2 years ago. I'm not exactly sure why that was, but I'm sure it no longer matters since I have finally read it. Simply put, I like her because Elinor Dashwood is 'sense' personified. Though she also has a great deal of patience, fortitude and faith in her too. To this effect, she is described quite well by Austen in Chapter 1: "Elinor, this eldest daughter whose advice was so effectual, possessed a strength of understanding, and coolness of judgement, which qualified her, though only nineteen, to be the counsellor of her mother ... She had an excellent heart - her disposition was affectionate and her feelings were strong; but she knew how to govern them."  There is not much more that I can add to that. 

Hermione Granger from The Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling:

Emma Watson as Hermione
Granger (2003) 

I've already explained in this post why I read the Harry Potter books only recently, so I won't go through that again as it might be boring for you, dear reader. When I read about Hermione, especially in books 1 through to 4, I kept thinking back to myself as a teenager. I was a complete nerd, with goofy front teeth (and braces later on, though I didn't acquire my glasses until more recently), spent lots of time in the library, had a penchant for answering questions and getting them right (though I'm not nearly as clever as Hermione), got along quite well with most teachers, was enthusiastic about learning (although not so much about exams), just a tad bit bossy with my friends and brothers (okay, okay, really bossy), and was very neat, tidy and super organised (still am). Furthermore, among many other more unpleasant things, I was often called 'teacher's pet', so much so that for my 13th birthday one of my friends, Codename: Guji (who up until recently possessed my Inkheart trilogy) gave me a teddy-dog with a graduation cap and the words 'teacher's pet' written on it (I still have it sitting among my books). So when it came to Hermione, not only did I feel sympathy for her, but I could very much relate to most of what she went through (except her crush on Ron, as I didn't have a friend like him). But there were also many things that I learnt from Hermione; one of which is that a girl can be adventurous, brave and beautiful while still remaining proud of being a nerd. It's one of the things I like best about her: she has integrity and dignity, as she is not willing to sacrifice her intelligence, or any part of herself, to be more likeable to other people, especially boys.  
       

Though these next two are not technically heroines, I still think they deserve a mention among my favourites. 

Angela from Eragon by Christopher Paolini: 

Eragon is a book that holds a rather special place in my heart, since it was the reason that I first properly spoke to Codename: Pixie, who is now one of my closest friends. This was about 9 years ago, so we have been friends a very long time. You know, dear reader, eccentric Angela rather reminds of Pixie, if she were 40 years old that is. If you want to know what sort of woman Angela is, all you have to do is read page 179 and 180 of Eragon, and you'll also understand why I love her so much.(They are very much the same reasons why I love Luna Lovegood).  

Professor Mcgonagall from The Harry Potter Series (again): 

There are plenty of amazing/noteworthy female characters in the Harry Potter books that I absolutely adore, but I thought that I'll only mention Minerva Mcgonagall in this post. Professor Mcgonagall is all about discipline, on the outside at least, though she is caring and warm enough that no one really hates her. And she also has this way of commanding peoples' respect, including my own. As tough and no-nonsense her exterior is, she has a very soft heart on the inside that, on the rare occasion, makes itself known: for example, in those first few pages, of the first book, when Professor Mcgonagall's eyes tear up, when she hears about James and Lily Potter's death ... *sigh* ... or when she becomes rather emotional when Harry & Ron say that they want to go visit the petrified Hermione. Actually, I really want to know Minerva Mcgonagall's back story, after all, we got to know Professor Lupin's, Professor Snape's and even Professor Dumbledore's. I want to know what she was like as a talented student at Hogwarts, then as a young woman and how that led to her becoming a Professor. And yet, I have a feeling that her story can only be bittersweet.          

Dame Maggie Smith as Professor Mcgonagall

Anyway, it has not escaped my notice that many of my favourite heroines (7 out of 11) are of the 'bookish' sort (i.e. they really like reading). But that is probably because I myself am bookish and so can relate really well to those kind of girls/women. Moving on. So, to answer the question 'what makes a heroine?':

1. I've learnt that a heroine must be relate-able, so the reader can connect with her
2. While she should still symbolise something 
3. She must have the strength, will and determination to shoulder the story's plot  
4. She doesn't have to conform to the norms of society
5. She should be true to herself and I should make sure that her characteristics are consistent 
6. She must also be likeable so the reader doesn't despise her (which may put some people off)
7. She can be a medium through which heavy themes can be explored
8. She should grow and develop into a better person through the course of the novel. 
9. And finally, she should be well written and memorable.

Nida

what Next?

Dear Reader,

So now that I have relatively more time on my hands, I've been doing a lot of thinking. And, of course, this has lead me to the question "what next?" I'm a bit of an obsessive planner, so it goes without saying that I pretty much have my life divided in short term and long term plans. 

The long term plans are all the usually, typical, boring stuff: get training, get a job, find a literary agent, get married, move to different country, go on hajj, so on and so forth. However, it's the short term plans that are much more interesting: what I plan to do with the time I have between now and when I start training.     

Well firstly, as you can probably tell by my previous post, that I plan to  do a lot more sketching and painting. I'm also working on the first novel from my fantasy series, Book 1: The Legend of Sharon, which I hope to complete by the end of this year Inshallah. But, unfortunately, I've been having some difficulty writing Chapter 5, which is turning a lot longer than I had originally planned. I've already split the main events over two chapters, and splitting it further would only make the plot drag. Oh well, I'll finish the Chapter as it is, then come back to it after the whole thing is finished and change as needed.      

I also plan to spend a lot more time with my mum, get in on some of that precious mother-daughter bonding time that I'd been missing so much, which isn't all that surprising as my wonderful mummy is also one of my best friends. We plan to experiment with all sorts of new desserts and she wants to teach me to make some traditional foods like gol-gappay. It's a bit cold now to do much gardening, but we still have some cherry tomatoes ripening in our vegetable bed, so they also require some looking after. And me and mum have been doing a lot of catching up on Pakistani and British TV dramas that we watch together, especially since I had to put all that on hold as I completed my thesis. It's really fortunate that the new series of Downton Abbey just started, which gives me something to look forward to every Sunday.          

But what I want to do most now, is simply just READ. The last fictional book I read was Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, and that was back in July. I've missed reading, so I'm really looking forward to having time to just sit back and read for the pleasure of it. I have quite an extensive list that I want to get through by the end of this year, but I'll only give you, dear reader, some of my most anticipated titles from the list:

1. The Anthologist by Nicholson Baker
2. Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
3. The Mark of Athena by Rick Roirdan
4. Sapphire Blue by Kristen Geir
5. The Named by Marianne Curley
6. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

I was going to write a review about Fahrenheit 451, but I think that this video (part 1) and this one (part 2 and 3) do a much better job of explaining and exploring the book that I could ever do.

Nida

it's Over!

Dear Reader

So basically today's blog post is nothing more than a simple catch up of all the things that have happened in these last few hectic weeks.

When I wrote to you last, it was still Ramadan, or more specifically, the last ten days (during which  we seek Layla-tul-Qadr, the Night of Decree). That in itself kept me so busy that I did not have time to finish writing my final Ramadan Reverie post, which I had planned. Then of course, with the end of Ramadan came Eid-ul-Fitr, which me and my cousins celebrated by spending a week at Skegness (a small coastal town in East England). It was a little holiday that was well deserved, at least on my part.

While there, I prayed Salah on the sandy beach; an absolutely wonderful experience, you should try it too. It really brings one closer to God (swt), when praying to Him (swt) surrounded by His most beautiful creations:   

We also saw some children flying kites (it's England, so even the sunniest days are windy enough for kites). At the time I thought of many metaphors relating to kites. I'd share them with you now, dear reader, but unfortunately I can't remember them any more :-s. 

As soon  as we got back from Skegness, it was back to work, work, work for me. The final draft of my dissertation/thesis was due in the week after and I found out from my Professor/supervisor that I had many changes still to make. I think that in the seven days before the deadline, I only slept for a grand total of 8 hours. It was really tough. But I'm proud to say that, despite everything, I stuck to it, and came through in 1 piece. And now my MSc in Preventive Cardiology IS OVER!!!!!!! It's finished. The End!

There aren't words to describe the physical, intellectual and emotional exhaustion I felt at the day I handed everything in.  

But, since handing in all my work last week, my creative juices have been swirling in my mind. It's as if these past few months as I was working hard on my MSc, creative inspiration had been pouring into my brain's bucket, collecting and building until it reached the brim. Now that I've finally allowed it to flow through my finger tips, it feels like the pressure in my mind has been released. As a result, I've actually spent most of last week painting and sketching. Like I said before, I'm not an amazing artist, haven't ever taken any classes and I don't actually know how to paint properly. But all the same, I thought I'd give you, my loyal reader, some examples of what I've been doing:

So it started off this little doodle using infinity circles, an idea I got from Vihart:

Then I thought, wouldn't it be cool to do a Fibonacci style conch shell using infinity circles:

My friend, Codename: Peachy, liked this so much she told me that I should make a bigger version:

One thing lead to another and I ended up making this last night: 

For those who can't read Arabic, it says La illaha ilallah, Muhammadur rasulallah, meaning: There is no god but God and Muhammad (saw) is His messenger. This is the basis of Islam and the declaration of faith, the Shahada.    

And that's it. Now you know all that's happened in the last 3 weeks.
Nida