Alavi Anan Meem

The Brothers Karamazov is a blend of contrasting worldviews, embodied by its characters - the cold rationality of Ivan, the altruism of Alexei, and the passion of Dmitri; this array of perspectives prompts readers to think about their own approach to life. As I navigated the exceptionally well-woven web of relationships and ideas in this novel, I couldn't help but reflect on parallels with my own life and those of my friends. Some of my friends resemble Alyosha, embodying gentle stoicism, innate goodness, or warm empathy. Meanwhile, like Dmitri, other friends find ourselves wrestling with our demons, troubled by imperfection and impulses. Some of my friends also resemble Ivan, rationalizing all behaviors as “everything is permitted” (and who dares to counteract like Father Zosima, with a “everyone is responsible for everyone and for everything”?) However, all of us contain multitudes inside us, and Dostoevsky's refusal to offer a definitive answer reinforces the complexity of human nature, where morality is not a fixed point but a shifting landscape shaped by individual choices and circumstances. So the novel probes the question of life's best path, mirroring the Karamazovian brothers' dual nature, each harboring conflicting abysses within. In [b:Crime and Punishment 7144 Crime and Punishment Fyodor Dostoevsky https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1382846449l/7144.SY75.jpg 3393917], Raskolnikov's turmoil stems from a relatable clash between his ideologies and conscience, echoing Dostoevsky's own inner struggle amid surroundings of moral ambiguity. Dostoevsky's personal battles, including a gambling addiction, epilepsy, torments endured such as the famous mock-execution ceremony which involved being led to believe he would be executed by firing squad before being spared at the last moment, serving as a form of psychological torture intended to break his spirits, jail time, and complex relationship with an avaricious, tyrannical father as reflected in Pavlovich's character (which the friend who cheekily recommended this to me was aware would resonate) shines through in this novel as a lifelong contemplation on the nature of good, evil, free will, and duty. Perhaps Dostoevsky believed that through such contemplation one could find redemption by embracing the truth of life's suffering.

Fucker snags us on his fish hook, drags us through, I kid you not, NINETY SEVEN of the most heavenly chapters known to man, and then just leaves us to DANGLE IN AGONY.
How much more suspense are we capable of bearing?
Aug 27 is too far away, you sadistic douchebag. What, you can violate the law of Conservation of Energy, but you can't give a girl some peace of mind and just write sooner?

I'm not sure I like America Singer, she was sort of blah. Here's three words for you that describe her: Insecure, immature, icing. Yes, you read that right. America Singer is a mixture of sugar and butter.)

Will I read the sequel? I just might. It's like The Bachelor, you know you hate it but you'll end up watching it anyway.

A Sun Summoner is discovered! Ravka is saved! And Alina, our Sun Summoner, (they are as rare there as an honest politician here) is whisked away from everything she has ever known. Sounds familiar? It is. Once in Os Alta, (where the Grisha live) she is taught by Botkin and Baghra to harness her powers, which is apparently beyond belief. And then there's her new mate, Genya, a Tailor. (I fell for Genya. By the end, I wanted to kill her and make out with her. But not necessarily in that order.) Alina misses her best friend Mal, but she's starting to fancy the Darkling. But while the Darkling and Alina are off having sexy times, Mal is biting his nails off and worrying himself stiff. Let me break down the Darkling, Alina and Mal. Alina: If someone in Ravka is called the Darkling, then I imagine Alina would be called the Weakling. A Sun Summoner sounds too...lively...to be her. If anyone was expecting a paragon of chick spunk, Alina isn't it. She's a nobody. She is the “nothing special” disenchanted creature personified. Not your typical kick ass heroine at all. She seemed a little on the kiss ass side, to tell you the truth. And here's the two men in this luurve triangle. (This one's relatively scalene.)Mal: He is so goddamned perfect and thoroughly sexy in his drunk on kvas and his girl tumbling ways, I wanted his flawless head on a stick right away. Fellow orphan turned best friend, He Who Leaves Swooning Grisha In His Wake (okay, not really.) But I'll have to confess that it was the sexed-up Darkling that I wanted, not the beddable Mal. Darkling: The Darkling, really? (Will he ignite into flames in the sun? Does he bleed mystery and smell like brimstone? He sounds like he rides on the Nazgûl's Hell Hawks and has a few of them Horcruxes stashed away somewhere.) But more ad rem, is he dark and does he brood? Yes. Is he clichéd? YES. So much yes. Will you still fall for him helplessly? Sadly, yes.(And the end felt too slapdash and lackadaisical and slipshod. No, those are not words I've just made up right now.) “The stag had been showing me my strength-not just the price of mercy but the power it bestowed. And mercy was something the Darkling would never understand.” Alina seems to have a very Dumblebore-ian appreciation of mercy here. It really is a decent book though, and to be honest I feel quite guilty for not liking it better. I think the Hype Bunny killed it for me. Millions of [b:Divergent 8306857 Divergent (Divergent, #1) Veronica Roth http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1327873996s/8306857.jpg 13155899] fans fell for it, too. To have someone like Veronica Roth say, “Unlike anything I've ever read.” for your book! I expected more. Alina Starkov(a) couldn't be lesser like Tris. She wasn't even Tris Lite. And Mal isn't the first or the last best friend some girl falls in love with. As for the Darkling, he's just a Sapling of true evil. (See what I did there? -ling? No?)All in all, not haunting, but not spiritless either.

I first came across Lorenzo Mattotti on Pinterest a few days ago and what I saw compelled me to explore more. Fortunately, I found Fires soon after. I had no idea what a surprisingly wrenching experience this would prove to be. Fires is as obsessed with nature as the Romantic poets were. Clouds like clumps of light move through the sky while rose petals rain down on the island during the day but tongues of fire and their shadows dance in it through the night. Awe and terror are never far from each other when it comes to how Mattotti's characters feel about nature. Eddies of emotions swirl around in its pages, fleeting, surreal, inexpressible but all too human. It speaks with colours, with shapes, with feelings, telling a story that words couldn't have half as well. The story itself is simple enough (but none the less haunting for it) with a few token twists in it but it is the art that has been manipulated to tell it that feels so evocative and deeply personal and is what ultimately makes Fires memorable.

I loved The Little Carol Singer and Stand On Your Own Feet. The Proud Fir Tree reminds me of this story I once read, The Ungrateful Birch. On Firework Night was clever. Christina's Kite, The Toy Soldier's Adventure, A Great Big Story, He Couldn't Be Trusted, Jiffy Gets Into Trouble, The Boy Who Never Put Things Back, Silly Sammy, They Wouldn't Be Friends With Him, Sally Simple's Mistake, No Present For Benny, and Betsy-May in Disgrace were all fun.

During my visit to Kashmir this winter, I picked up several books to better understand the region. I was especially excited to read “The House that Spoke” by Zuni Chopra, as magic-realism is one of my favourite genres. However, I was disappointed to find the novel too simple in both its story and writing style. Overall, it didn't live up to my hopes.

Wow. Just...wow. A well-deserved four star.

I love this book. And the cover is exactly how I imagine Kendra. She isn't my favorite witch, but she's definitely up there in the top five. This book literally blew me away. The...strength of feeling is the best way I can think of describing it. The strength of feeling in her words is awe-inspiring. Alex Flinn takes all these corny cliches and turns it into something original. The woman CAN SO WRITE.

This book reads like a thriller, I couldn't stop turning the pages. The story charmed me from the start. I fell for it hook, line sinker, lock, stock, barrel. The KENDRA SPEAKS were like little slices of fairytale heaven. They were the best elements of the book for me. Her retellings were like a fresh breath of air, inventive and amusing and tragic at the same time. Lisette and Emma's story was good too. Every time you think you know where it is going, the story takes a new turn. It kept managing to surprise me. This book was completely . . . bewitching. Sorry, I couldn't resist.

On the whole, I definitely recommend this to everyone who loves fairytales, or a good read. Alex Flinn has indeed done it again.

This was disturbing and heartbreaking to read.

Chris Kraus is so infuriating! Although, is there anyone in her life who doesn't love her and hate her at the same time? She's narcissistic/selfish and self-victimizing but she's too brainy and honest and I can't help but forgive her even though this is so stalkerish I want to hug Dick and apologise to him on her behalf.

Chris wondered why ‘female lived experience' has been read only as ‘feminist' in her book and I don't want to do that. This isn't just a wonderful book because it talks revealingly about female sexuality and creativity and the creativity bias against women. It is wonderful because I feel like no book can come closer to capturing how being in love really feels, which is ironic, because this is the opposite of a love story.

Chris opens herself up and show us how being in love has truly been for her - how those butterflies in stomach were more nausea than exhilaration, how unhealthy obsession has been love's split identity for her (like every relationship's a disorder), how it's always been one-sided - which is brave.

This isn't the book you're imagining it is and you might be disappointed. This is bitter, has an unreliable narrator and can read like one long rant; but C. S. Lewis once wrote “We do not write to be understood. We write in order to understand.” and I think that's so true for Chris Kraus. Remember that when you read this. This is fascinating because it is showing you the bare bones of writing.

Sometimes, a single book stands out so brilliantly that it becomes the epitome of its genre, overshadowing any other for me. The Metamorphosis of Prime Intellect holds this distinction as the best speculative science fiction I've ever encountered, because it continues to provoke thought. A few of my favourite authors fit into this category: obscure geniuses who produce only one masterpiece, such as [b:Sum: Forty Tales from the Afterlives 4948826 Sum Forty Tales from the Afterlives David Eagleman https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1320528453l/4948826.SY75.jpg 5014561] by David Eagleman or [b:Tell the Wolves I'm Home 12875258 Tell the Wolves I'm Home Carol Rifka Brunt https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1335450415l/12875258.SY75.jpg 18028067] by Carol Rifka Brunt, gems which though inevitably flawed eloquently capture the essence of their creators' ideas before receding into obscurity. The Metamorphosis of Prime Intellect seamlessly joins these ranks. In the book, the super-intelligent creation Prime Intellect triggers a technological singularity, ushering in an immortal Paradise for humanity. However, devoid of meaning in their lives, humans resort to seeking it in the most absurd pursuits, prompting the protagonists to grapple with the consequences of altering reality. Its commentary on human desire, and technology's role in fulfilling or distorting it, is among the most insightful and thought-provoking I've encountered, particularly as discussions on AI ethics gain renewed relevance.Whenever the topic of science fiction arises, particularly speculative sci-fi, I rush to recommend this book. While warnings about uncontrollable technological advancement abound, they often lack compelling presentation. The Metamorphosis of Prime Intellect compels me to contemplate the farthest reaches a decade after I first read it. I hope it does the same for you.

I loved Lola so much I ended up dyeing my hair purple and I still have such a big crush on Cricket I keep comparing him to my boyfriend. This is the book that makes me keep coming back to Stephanie Perkins. I will keep coming back to her even if she churns out a dozen [b:Anna 6936382 Anna and the French Kiss (Anna and the French Kiss, #1) Stephanie Perkins https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1358271931s/6936382.jpg 7168450]s and [b:Isla 9627755 Isla and the Happily Ever After (Anna and the French Kiss, #3) Stephanie Perkins https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1362064564s/9627755.jpg 14515040]s before she throws out another Lola.