Books On Film | Teen In '14 (Vampire Academy/Divergent)

Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead is the first book in a series of six. Rose Hathaway and her best friend Lissa are forced attend the Vampire Academy, where mortal vampires, like Lissa, are trained in magic and half-humans, like Rose, are trained to protect them from immortal vampires.  

Of course, even a vampire high school is full of boy drama and teen rivalry. Add the danger from immortal vampires hunting Lissa and you've got a recipe for a crazy high school experience.

The movie adaptation is schedule to be released in February. The film is directed by Marc Waters, who directed the teen cult-classic, Mean Girls. You can tell from the trailer that they are aiming for an off-beat action-dramedy.

Vampire Academy Trailer

Divergent by Veronica Roth is the first book in a trilogy. The story takes place in dystopian Chicago. Society is divided into five factions dedicated to cultivating either honesty, selflessness, bravery, peacefulness, or intelligence. Every person is permanently assigned to a faction after being tested on their sixteenth birthday.

Beatrice's (Triss) is shaken after she realizes that she doesn't fit neatly into any one faction and she begins to loose trust in ideals of her society.

The movie adaptation is scheduled to be released in March with Shaileene Woodley, who also stars in the adaption of The Fault of Our Stars, as Triss.

Divergent Trailer

Covers courtesy of LibraryThing.

The Wanderlust Librarian | Throw Back Thursday: Have you seen any British People?

It was *cough2008cough* when my best friend Lizzie and I had thrown about an idea to travel to London. There was always an allure about the British that I wanted to experience first hand. After all, I already loved watching British shows and adored British actors (I love you, Colin Firth!!). Why not go the extra mile and experience the magic in person? It took us about 6 months to plan and reserve everything for our trip. 

During our British adventure, I wrote about my experiences and I'd like to share one of my favorite posts with you. Enjoy! 

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March 17, 2009

We've had a long day. A loooooong day!

Let me preface by saying, we were...are both tired nellies, but have gotten through the day with grace and humility. If you're in Califonia, please keep in mind that Lizzie and I are 7 hours ahead, so as I'm writing this at 11:30 PM, it's an early 4:30PM there. If I mention time, in the posts from London, it will be GMT and not California time. Feel free to do your own math!

We landed at about 7:15 AM after circling Heathrow. We got off the plane at about 8:00 after circling the gates. It was a ginormous pain the the rear to get off that plane. I can only speak for myself when I say I didn't sleep a wink on the plane. Not to say I didn't try. I did. It was really noisy in the plane when I tried to nod off. Noisy like... machine noisy, not people noisy.

When Lizzie and I went on the Tube.... we were following the lead of the locals and remaining quiet and non-squealing. We couldn't help but give a smile when the recording told us to "Mind the Gap"

It took us a while to get from Heathrow to the Tower Hill station to meet the gentleman who would be giving us the keys to our flat. It's a great little area, but it is a little bit of a walk from our flat to the Tower Hill Tube station. We lugged our luggage from the station to the flat. I threw a fit. Yes.... I threw a fit. It was a combination of being up for about 24 hours, 2 hours of sleep and a lot of transport in between.

Needless to say, we got to the flat and we found out it wouldn't be ready for about an hour and a. half. We wasted time at the supermarket, Waitrose. It's a lovely little store. Not little... but it IS lovely. We got some tasties for us to eat at the flat. I'll be sure to post pictures. On the way back from the store, I got 2 charley horses. One in each leg. It rendered me (almost) crying on the ground. It hurt like crazy! When I said it made me feel old, some little old lady came bounding up the stairs next to us. It was irony at it's finest. Well played, Irony.... well played.

As a side note, I quickly called Scout (my daughter) and she asked me the question... "Have you seen any British people?" To which I answered "Um... they're EVERYwhere. " Scout is an intelligent girl. She reads, she draws.. she's a regular renaissance girl. It was innocent enough and charming for a little lady who got up at 11:30 p.m. to talk to her mom. 

The flat is adoreable. Spending time here really helps with the city experience. I love having a home base that's so personal!

It's about 10:30 AM on Wednesday and we're on our way to the Tower for some tours and then going to take the double decker in true tourist style and go to different places.

Until later, stay sane and know that we're thinking of you all working... you know... while we don't work and pander around London for the week.

---------------------------

A couple of  books we championed while planning out our trip was:

Rick Steves' London

and

Rick Steves' Best of Europe

Lizzie and I found that his writing was honest, funny and current. These are things you need when making sure that your trip is planned right! 

I don't know how far my writing has come since then... but I can tell you that there have been many adventures that I have shared since then and many that I plan to share with you in the future. While reliving your old adventures, plan your new ones for 2014! 

Until then, plan big. You're worth it! 

xoxoxo

The Library Bloggess

I'm standing in the Tower of London and taking a picture of Tower Bridge

Westminster Abbey on a cloudy day

The awesome Sherlock tiles at Bakerloo Station

Book Bucket List | New Series for a New Year!

I've been in a reading rut lately where it's been hard for me to keep reading a new book after starting.  I was looking through books that are coming out in 2014, and a lot of them are the latest in a series.  So here are a few series to start if you need extended reading material.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs was one of the most popular paranormal books in the last couple of years.  The story follows Jacob, a sixteen year old reeling from a recent family tragedy.  On the island of Wales, he comes across an abandoned orphanage and finds clues about what happened to its residents and why they're no longer there. Hollow City is the next book in this series and it comes out on April 14th.  Jacob ends up in London, which is the hotbed of Peculiars.  Unfortunately, Jacob and his friends are at risk again, but this time from a super natural threat.

The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer is an updated take on the Cinderella story.  Instead of being the downtrodden step sister, Cinder is half android, which makes her a second class citizen.  However, she is unaware of her true identity which turns out to be too dangerous of a secret.  The third book in the series, Cress, is being released this February.

Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion was a popular title after it's release because it was almost a spoof on teen romance stories like Twilight. (Because honestly, who falls in love with a zombie??)  In a recent interview, Marion said that he set out for Warm Bodies to be a self contained story in a single book, but the world kept expanding in his mind.  In 2014, the sequel to Warm Bodies will be released.  You can also see the film based on the first book, which we have in our collection.

She's Crafty | Renegade Craft Fair!

There were renegades everywhere in San Francisco's Concourse Exhibition Center on December 21 & 22 this year. Renegade indie-crafters and craft lovers, that is. If you have ever been to one of the free Renegade craft fairs, you will know that the San Francisco Renegade Craft Fair Winter Market 2013 was a huge event. Even the title is huge these days. You see, with a fair that's been offered twice a year, every year, and now, in six different locations, you need a number of words to distinguish one Renegade Craft Fair from another.

According to Wikipedia, the first Renegade Craft Fair was held in 2003 at Chicago's Wicker Park (you can see the first poster, down below). That Fair was a success, so they did it again the next year.  Then, in 2005, there was a Renegade Craft Fair in Brooklyn, too. San Francisco joined the Renegades in 2008 with a Summer Fair at Fort Mason, and added a Winter Market in 2009.

RCF Chicago 2003. Original by Mat Daly

A Renegade Craft Fair was held in Los Angeles for the first time in 2009. The next city to join the fun was Austin, Texas, with a Renegade Craft Fair in 2010. Finally, the Renegade Craft Fair has become an international phenomenon with the addition of London to it's list of locations. The first Fair there was held in 2011 at a place called The Old Truman Brewery, and had planned to return in 2013 for a Winter Market.

RCF revelers at the 2013 SF Winter Market

When we entered the Exhibition Center, the sight that met us was at once overwhelming and inviting. There was so much to see, I thought we'd never be able to see it all in the time we had to see it--about 5 hours. However, we made a plan and started in on the left with some food, of course. After a really fresh and wonderful veggie wrap, I was ready to experience the fair up close. 

Beep. I make an efficent and tasty cup of tea. Boop.

Still in the food area, there was a booth offering lots of great loose-leaf artisan teas and some interesting strainers to go with them. Little did I know at the time that I'd be getting a cute little robot strainer with some minty green tea called Madame Morocco (I understand Moroccans love mint in their tea, and now I do too) for Christmas from my very attentive grandson, Andrew.





As we moved on, we stopped at a booth selling art prints by local artists. Although all the prices were reasonable, I found a great way to collect a few prints for only $5--postcards! My favorite is what, at first, just looks like the profile of an elephant swimming in a large body of water under a starry moon-lit sky. Then, when you look closer, you see that the parts of the elephant exposed above water are actually land masses; the tip of a tusk is an island, his head is a rocky promontory, and his back is the beginning of a continent. What a way to get lost in some great art!

At another booth, there were these cork coasters. Quite ordinary looking, until you see they have misunderstood song lyrics printed on them. My favorite here was still the Jimi Hendrix classic, "Scuse me while I kiss this guy," although I found many others to chuckle about. I should have bought them!

Malia here, and if anyone were to ask me to sum up my Renegade Craft Fair experience in two words it would be: absolutely mind-boggling. And since I'm a bit of a rambler, I'd also add: with a touch of euphoria. There is so much to take in! All the people, all the color, all the cool ideas...it's a whirlwind of awesome. And to help me remember what exactly happened in the vortex, I collect business cards at booths that have items I adore but can't purchase. I also take a lot of pictures.

My growing business card haul.

A fun machine with lights on it!

On the subject of actual acquisition of goods, I feel like a bloodhound sifting through all the weird and wonderful trying to find the few items that catch my eye. When almost everything appeals, I attempt to set firm boundaries. When something catches my eye, I admire, ask questions, and roll the price around in my brain. I thank the artist, take a card and move on. I rarely buy on the first pass. I like to go through the entire fair and sit with all the memories for a bit. Those items that I just can't get out of my head become contenders and those items I can actually afford make the cut.

I'm obsessed with these VOZ wooden bracelets!

And every year, without fail, I dream of a booth I might have at a fair like the RCF. What would I call my business? What would be my wares?

The RCF is a wonderland for the senses and as full of inspiration as it is stuff to buy. I definitely recommend a trip!

Until next time,

Kaye & Malia 

Just Life| Are You A Divergent?

Awhile back, at the movie theater, the movie trailer for Divergent caught my eye. "I bet that is based on a book", I mumbled to my husband sitting next to me. Later that day, I checked our library catalog and found out that the movie Divergent is based on a young adult book series by Veronica Roth.

Here is its storyline:

Imagine living in a rigid society that boxes you in one of its 5 factions. At 16, you are forced to to choose your faction. Sometimes that means leaving your family and friends behind to join a new faction. The book follows Beatrice Prior as she prepares to choose her faction.

The book is a bit of an adventure with a sprinkle of romance. It is also the universal story about struggling to fit in and having the overwhelming feeling of being out of place.  

Here are the factions of this society.

• Candor or the honest ones
• Abnegation or the selfless ones
• Dauntless or the brave ones
• Amity or the peaceful ones
• Erudite or the intelligent ones

Which faction do you think you belong to? Or are you a Divergent like Beatrice?

I bought copies of the first two books and at the end of the first book, there is a questionnaire that you can take to find out which faction you belong to.

Apparently, I am a candor. You better find out which faction you belongs to before watching it on March 21, 2014. 

Here are the books in this series (Divergent, Insurgent, Allegiant)

Signing off until next Monday- Panteha