Matched

Matched by Ally Condie

I recently read (and forgot to add it to the Current Reads blogpost) Matched by Allyson Condie. It's yet another dystopian novel, of which I've read literally ten in the last few months (i.e. Uglies, The Hunger Games Trilogy, Divergent and Insurgent, The Selection and The Elite), and yet another in which the government is completely tyrannical over those underneath them. This government goes so far as to say whom you may and may not love. At a ceremony, upon the eve of your sixteenth birthday, you are Matched, or basically told with whom you are to foster a relationship with the future goal of marrying and producing children. Typically all goes well, and the two comply to the matching and procreate and live on in complete ignorance of the fact that they are being controlled at every turn in their lives. Such is not the case with Cassia Reyes. When she's matched to her best friend it appears that she's going to live out every girl's greatest wish - not only getting matched to someone she knows, but having it be the smart, attractive and sweet Xander? Unthinkable.

When she goes to look at the chip with Xander's information on it, there's a glich... and the face on the screen isn't Xander's.  For a brief second she questions whether or not she was supposed to be with Xander - whether the government is right - and this question grows into general unease about the way things are. She begins to foster a relationship with the boy behind the face - Ky, a boy who is, unbeknownst to the general population, an aberration, someone who cannot be matched. Her act is seen as rebellion to government officials and is treated as such, the consequences being drastic. Cassia finds out that the government can give great joy, and can take it all away if she displeases them. Subtle acts of rebellion don't go unnoticed, and Cassia intends (in the later installments of the series) to do something much more than subtle.

All Will Be Sorted

I enjoyed the novel, though I'm getting to be a bit jaded about the whole formula behind the teen dystopian novel. The inner dialogue of Cassia's character was interesting in it's honesty, and Ky Markham is a bit of a puzzle to figure out. Towards the end of the book I felt rather sorry for Xander, and proud of his loyalty to Cassia as a friend. He's far more than he seems, which may end up being beneficial to Cassia throughout the rest of the novels. The idea of the government dictating who, when, and what I did with my love life was upsetting... admittedly, I'm not a hopeless romantic, but I still am far too rebellious and cannot stomach the idea of another allocating what I do with my life. I'd give the book 6 out of 10, but largely because this was like... the tenth book of its type that I'd read. As always, read on!

The Elite

The Elite

Guys! Guys! GUYS!

I've gotten my hands on a ARC (Advanced Reader's Copy for all you noobs) of The Elite by Kiera Cass. This is the second book in The Selection Trilogy, which will be completed with the final book coming out in... no one knows yet! The Elite will be on sale to the public on April 23rd, so definitely run out and get it the second it does! OR pre-order it! Hardcopy, ebook, whatever!

So... America is still at the palace awaiting the decision of the lovely Maxon, and still meeting occassionally illicitly with Aspen, her once-love. She's having a really hard time deciding bet

ween the two... I mean... seriously? Can you go wrong with two attractive, upper-echelon, white collar men? And both of them are good kissers... I feel
your pain in choosing, America, I really do.

Willy Wonka agrees

Meanwhile, the palace is under intermittent attacks from the rebels. America, named for her feistiness in the womb - her mom had the creativity of 2 Chainz, "she gotta big booty, so I call her big booty...." (Birthday Song, 2 Chainz) (Does anyone else think that is the most obvious rap lyric in history?!) - I'm getting sidetracked. America, because of her rebellious nature and her previous status as a Five, chooses to basically reform the country after getting her hands on some choice banned literature. (Spoiler: it's George Illea's diary of how he overthrew the presidency and made Illea.) 

America is nearly certain, at the beginning of the book, that she is the one who hold Maxon's heart, but as stuff goes down in the castle, and more girls are eliminated, she becomes less certain that his heart belongs to only her. Does Celeste, the pompous and self-important Two who seems to flaunt herself to Maxon, have import in Maxon's life? Does Kriss, the sweet and pretty Three? Do any of the others matter to him? Is Maxon just playing the Selection through politics like a game of chess? Are all the girls simply pawns in his mind? I'm dying to find out who will win in the next book, but until then pick up The Elite in stores on April 23rd!

Hamlet

William Shakespeare

Ghost: "Yo, Hamlet, dawg, that man dat married yo ma? Yeah, ya know, bro. Ya uncle? Yeah, dude. He killed me. He put dat poison stuff in my ear."

Hamlet: "Sup, brah? Yeah, dude. I always thought him marrying my ma was wacked-up, chea. I must shoot him up. Foshizzle."

Therein the story of Hamlet is told... except in like... weird Shakespearean speech, not weirder ghetto slang. Sorry, guys... I'm bad at that. So, William Shakespeare, infamous playwright, author, poet, actor, architect, and basically all around literary badass, wrote Hamlet. You've probably heard of this if you're over the age of 10 and have read any book... ever. Even children know a version of it! Disney's The Lion King was a spin off of the play (think about it... Uncle Scar kills epic dad Mufasa in a awful way, son Simba leaves, takes over throne with the help of two friends Pumba & Timon... yeah...). It's literally one of the most legendary plays in the English language, so, read it! If you don't get "to be or not to be" references (there was one on How I Met Your Mother) then that's sad.

Educate yoself, dawg... I'm stopping. I swear. No more ghetto.

So Hamlet and his little family live in an older version of Denmark. There's a whole dealio with this conqueror dude named Fortinbras whose going around taking over countries and doing crazy stuff. Meanwhile, Hamlet's dad has been killed by god knows whom and his uncle (probably Hamlet's dad's twin), seemingly innocent of all wrongdoing, has taken over the throne and married Hamlet's mom... hello, twincest. Creepy, right?

It gets better... there's been a ghost lurking around the castle, and Hamlet checks it out only to find out that it is purportedly the ghost of his dead father who is seeking a hero to revenge his murder... the murderer? His own BROTHER. In the wise and all-knowing words of Lil Wayne -  "what a f***ed up family picture."  (6 Foot 7 Foot) Pardon my French, but seriously? You killed your own brother, usurped his throne, and took his wife? Not cool, bro, not cool. Bros before hoes... bro code... Claudius forgot it all and committed the sin that would lead to his death.

Lil Wayne speaking to a skull... much like Hamlet

In a twist of fate, Hamlet decides to avenge his father's death and goes mad with the obsession with revenge, delivering the famed "To be or not to be" speech where he talks to a skull and considers suicide... Dat  s**t cray. He ends up killing Polonius, some ridiculous character that is his betrothed, Ophelia's, father. Ophelia goes crazy, kills herself or drowns in the river... it's not really clear what happened to her. Suicide or not, she's dead and gone. Laertes, Ophelia's bro, comes back and wants Hamlet's head. 

I'll spare you the gory details of all the action, but the book essentially ends with the castle flowing rivers of blood... for real. Hamlet's dead, Claudius is dead, Laertes, Polonius and Ophelia are dead, both of Hamlet's parents are dead, and Hamlet essentially sent two of his friends unto death, though it's unsure whether or not they actually died.... everyone that was important in the government of Denmark died. Tragedy this is... comical in it's unnecessary brutality? You begin to laugh a bit after reading the play three times, as I have.

Laurence Olivier as Hamlet

Hamlet has been turned into countless movies, screened by numerous famous actors, and been performed in more playhouses than you can imagine. One ofHamlet done through Laurence Olivier, married for a time to Vivien Leigh (see A Streetcar Named Desire), one of the greatest actors of the twentieth century, in my humble opinion. His portrayal of Hamlet's death scene is worth to behold... the way he leaps to stab that guy? Epic. Another fantastic version is done by Mel Gibson. The scene between Hamlet and Gertrude, his mom, played by Glenn Close, is extremely interesting and fraught with family tension.

I'm giving the play a 9 on the ADDICTING SCALE. What more could you ask for? It's got more blood and gore than an Roman era action film, more drama and intrigue than Gossip Girl, and more incestuous sex than a soap opera. Subscribe, comment and all! Be back later with The Elite!

The Selection

The Selection

The Selection is the first novel in a trilogy by Kiera Cass an up-and-coming author. This was only her second work, and may I just say it turned out wonderfully! I finished the book in under 3 hours... and I may not have a life, but I am not one whit ashamed! It's a dystopian novel about a kingdom called Ilea, which resides where the United States is currently. In this new country, there are castes based upon your occupation. The royal family members are all ones, celebrities are twos, soldiers are threes, manual laborers are fours, artists are fives, and servants are sixes. America Singer, a girl that sings (okay, so maybe the name isn't all that inventive), is a five along with her family. She is in love with a six, Aspen, which is unusual because girls typically marry up, much like America's sister, who marries a four.

The Elite

She has relegated herself to living life as a five, or even as a six, as long as she gets to marry Aspen, but when the Selection, or the kingdom's process of choosing a queen, comes around, and she is chosen to join the competition at the palace, all of her plans are upset. She's one of the people lowest on the caste system there and quickly discovers that the palace lifestyle is not her favorite, but remains in the competition for the good of her family. Will she win the hand of the dashing Prince Maxon? I'm not gonna tell you the entire plot for the good of... ya know, making you read it and all! You guys definitely should. I got it from my friend, and gave it to another girl who finished it in a day... not a single one of us had any complaints about the writing style or plot line or anything. Judging by this I'd say it rates a 9 on the ADDICTING SCALE, so check it out!

Also, the new book, Elite, is coming out on April 23, 2013! I'll review it as soon as I can get my hands on it!