Poison Study

So I just read a great Young Adult Novel. A fellow blogger that I have been following makes a lifestyle of reading and reviewing YA books, and she is good at it.

In one blog she mentioned a book called Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder. It was thrilling. Yelena grows up an orphan in a part of her world which has been converted to a military dictatorship. Through a series of events she ends up in jail for killing someone. The dictatorship has a policy - everyone who kills another person is put to death - no exceptions. However she is given the opportunity to instead become a Poison taster for the Commander of this military dictatorship. Magic is also something that is not allowed in this military world, which makes things interesting for Yelena who has magical abilities.  I really enjoyed this book and am trying very hard not to spoil it for anyone who wants to read it. It has just the right amount of action, adventure, love and character development I would expect in a first of a series, and I have to say after I finished this I went and bought the second book (and have since read it).  It just gets better and better!

All for now. I am trying to procrastinate studying for my Renaissance Literature final exam - so I will go check out that fellow blogger - cuz she looks like she has loads of books down as must reads!

A Call to Free Ai Weiwei

Artist and activist Ai Weiwei has been detained in China on his way to Hong Kong on Sunday.  He has been missing for 96 hours so far and no one has any details about where he is and whether or not he is even being charged with anything.  Human rights lawyers can't do anything until he has been formally charged.

 

Please join the facebook page to free Ai Weiwei to spread awareness and exert pressure on the Chinese Governement to at least charge him or let him out of the country.

 

 

 

More info on Ai Weiwei here, from the New York Times here and Washinton Post here.

Hush - Eishes Chayil

I have not been keeping up with this blog and since I am trying to procrastinate writing a paper, (or three) I have decided to update the world wide web on whats going on.

In January I was reading one of my favorite author's blog (Kristin Cashore) and she mentioned she was reading a book called Hush - by Eishes Chayil - which is a pseudonym meaning woman of valor. Since the author still lives in an orthodox community, she had to publish under a different name. Though she mentions in an interview (link below) that she doesn't think her community knows about the book or that she has written it. The book looked so good I had to go out and buy it. I HAVE to say it was heart-wrenching.

The book describes a teenage girl about to be married, who grew up in a Chassidic community in Brooklyn. She is remembering her best friend when she was young.  She saw something happen to this friend that no child should see, and as she tells people like: her father, her principle, everyone in her community tells her to be silent - otherwise she will not have a good marriage. As she prepares herself for her marriage nine years later, she wonders whether or not to tell anyone outside the community that has so many walls in place to stop people from speaking out. This book is beautifully written.

The author has a fascinating interviews you can read here, here and here if you are interested.

Alright I have put my paper off long enough - back to the grind stone.