Monday, July 21, 2008
As Meghan pointed out last week, I suck.I got so involved in reading The Host, that I never got around to actually blogging about it...
I don't want to give away the ending, or the middle... heck I don't want to give anything away (not for free anyway =p) but I will tell you that this book was an amazing, enthralling read.
I couldn't put it down!
Please note - spoilers may follow, and as I haven't learned to make a jump in my post... well be careful.
Just like in the Twilight series, Stephenie Meyer has proven herself to be a skilled writer with the ability to craft a compelling story with characters you come to love.
Like Twilight, the Host contained exciting moments, an female protagonist (although I found I liked Mel/Wanderer more than Bella due to her independence and strong nature), and more than one sexy scene (mmm sexy).
The Host is Stephenie Meyer's first adult work of fiction. Now when I say adult, I don't mean that it's X rated, and its not like the Twilight series doesn't have its share of border-line adult situations.
I think Wanderer's struggle to fit into society (first that of her kind, and then with the human's community later in the book) is a situation we all find ourselves in at one point or another. As we become adults, and each time we face change in out lives, we have to reevaluate ourselves in context to the society we live in. At points in our lives we might feel that we belong, and others, that something just doesn't click. It's this comparison of ourselves to others that gives us out identity.
I think one of the reason's I really enjoyed this book was the portrayal of two souls in one body. I have always been interested in characters who struggle with their identity. Those with multiple personalities, a dark and a light side, or who have lost their grip on reality - Jekyll/Hyde and Des Howell from Whale Music for example.
Although sometimes it may feel like I'm not the same person I was the day before, this book got me thinking what it would be like to actually share my body with another spirit. How it would feel to be in control, to be suppressed and have to watch as your body does things you may not agree with, or to fight for control.
I suppose this hasn't been the most concise or well crafted review, but thats my own fault for waiting so long and writing late at night.
Hopefully my next review will be more inspiring...
Posted by elyxandra at 7:48 PM
Sunday, July 6, 2008
The Host: Chapters 1-21
Hello!I am Meghan, the previously not introduced blogger. I've been working behind the scenes with the layout and stuff. But now I am here with our first post. Unfortunately its a little late in the game. Both Elyse and I have read about 21 chapters already. Its too good to put down~
So I guess I'll just put some of my thoughts on what I've read so far. You can bet we'll be doing this from the beginning for 'Breaking Dawn' (if we're still in the country then....)
So my first thoughts for this book is about the writing. Both Elyse and I had the privilege of meeting with Stephanie Meyer last year, and as we're both 20 something twi-hards theres obviously a bit more to us then just loving Edward. Possibly. Maybe...
Ok, I love Edward. But I also really admired Stephanie Meyer's writing and told her so. So far, The Host does not disappoint.
The basic story is about a girl about age 20 who unwillingly becomes a host for an alien being known as a Soul. These peaceful beings are looking to take over Earth completely and change human bodies into more intelligent, peaceful and in Melanie-our sometimes-protagonist's words- boring entities. But this girl won't give up without a fight. The unsuspecting soul known simply as Wanderer almost immediately finds herself (I will refer to her as a she) still with the thoughts, feelings and most importantly, desires of her host body, Melanie.
And so begins these two strong willed beings' fight for control and search for Melanie's remaining family, and one true love, Jared. But is it only Melanie who feels this human emotion called love, or is Wanderer falling for him too?
Alright, now begins what might be called spoilers. Do I care now? No, because no one is probably reading this. Maybe later I will add a cut or something.
Wanderer- increasingly unhappy with having Melanie present in the back of her mind- sees a Comforter- a counselor for Souls experiencing problems becoming part of their host bodies. Unfortunately, this meeting leads to a report to a stubborn type of Soul known as a Seeker who wants to have Wanderer skip or change to another host body, leaving Melanie to be destroyed. This causes the two beings to unite and go on a search for a safe house Melanie remembers her uncle having deep in the Arizona dessert. And this leads me to my first comment, that I can remember anyway.
Wanderer and Melanie end up wandering (haha) in the desert lost for a few days without enough food and water. They almost end up dying before they are found by another human, saved and a whole other arc of the story starts. I read this scene literally feeling Wanderer's (I'm just calling her that now) pain from Meyer's descriptive and powerful writing. Little did I know that only a week later I would get to experience some of it. On Saturday I was invited to a birthday party in a neighbourhood in town I didn't know too well. I parked at a school and decided to walk to the house which I thought was up the street. It was 3pm and I had skipped lunch and even water in hopes of being fed and quenched at this party. And so leads me to my lost in the dessert experience. The house was not up the street, or up the other street, or the other street. So I turned to go back but got completely lost. I was Wanderer, wandering in the hot sun in a barely developed neighbourhood (meaning no people around) without food or water for a good hour (plus the six hours or so I had refused to take care of myself before so) . No, I could not find the school where my car was parked, or the house, or any sign of civilization. I wasn't in as dire a situation as Wanderer being that I had a cellphone, a car somewhere and probably would have found a water fountain, but that is my little experience of being lost in the desert, one of the more powerful scenes so far.
Thats enough for now. I'll comment on more of the story another time. Especially being trapped in the caves, and can anyone accurately imagine those things? I'm completely lost. Must be an amazing thing to see.
Labels: description, desert, wanderer
Posted by Meghan at 8:46 PM
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Hey everyone, do you like our new template? We got it from blogskins.com and its awesome!So I guess I should introduce this little project.
This blog is run by Meghan and I.
We've been friends since we were cute little kids and we've both grown up with an insane passion for reading. We've staked our claim on this little piece of the net to blog about the things we read and our thoughts.
We're both fans of the Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer (some might even call us Twi-hards).
To kick off this project we've decided to write about our experiences reading her new book "The Host". Although it's not part of the Twilight series I'm quite excited about this one.
I hope you enjoy reading our thoughts!
We'll do our best to keep spoilers off the main page, but if you decide to click through to full posts, well, that's your prerogative.
Oh! Please feel free to leave comments too!
Posted by elyxandra at 6:46 PM
Monday, June 30, 2008
Hi!Please be patient while we set up our new home.
^^