Application

[psychedeliceyes]

I notice that the last post was on September 30 but I've decided to post my application in the hope that there are some people lurking. My name is Amanda. My top fifteen in no particular order:

1. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
2. Wasted by Marya Hornbacher
3. Looking For Alaska by John Green
4. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling
5. Lord

Comments

[barefoottomboy]

Three questions, no need to answer more than one if you don't want to!

1) Who's your favourite character in "Looking for Alaska", and why?
2) Have you seen the film of "Mysterious Skin"? If so, how does it compare to the book?
3) Assuming you've read the whole series, what makes "The Goblet of Fire" your favourite Harry Potter?

[psychedeliceyes]

1) Alaska was my favorite. I think that part of what made Looking For Alaska so tragic was the way that John Green got the reader to fall in love with Alaska just as Pudge did. All of the time I was reading I found familiarity in Alaska because I saw traits--good and bad--of people that I knew in her. At the same time I was intrigued--I wanted to dig into Alaska's head, sit in there a while, look around and say, "Oh! So this is how she functions."

2) Unfortunately, I haven't seen the movie. It's on my extensive to-watch list.

3) I chose the The Goblet of Fire out of the seven wonderful books because I particularly enjoyed how J.K. Rowling depicted Harry's transition period. This books is meatier than the first three and--in my opinion--it's the book that truly expands and enriches the magical world. I say that this is a transitional book because this is the first book in which Harry has to put the magic he's learned to practical use (in the Tri-wizard tournament and against Voldemort). I also liked the way in which J.K. Rowling

Leaning towards 'yes'...

[barefoottomboy]

I just wanted to give my responses to your answers & see what you think:

1) This is interesting, because I actually found Alaska supremely irritating (Pudge as well, to a lesser extent), but enjoyed the book anyway. (Incidentally, my favourite character was probably the Colonel.)

2) In that case, can you tell me what your experience of reading the book was like? Because I've only seen the (unbelievably good) film, and I'm really intrigued as to what the book is like.

3) Again, this is interesting to me because Goblet for me marked the beginning of the downturn in the series. :-) I can definitely see where you're coming from, though: the expansion & enrichment of the wizarding world is certainly clear in the fourth book, it just happened to change the series in a way I didn't happen to enjoy.

Re: Leaning towards 'yes'...

[psychedeliceyes]

1) I can see where you're coming from when you say that you found Alaska irritating. I found her irritating at times to, but I thought that this added to her character. I don't think she was a character that was meant to be fully understood which is the reason for the amibivalence at the end of the book and sometimes, not understanding a characters motives is profoundly annoying. At least this is why I found her irritating at times. You might have a completely different reason. And I loved the Colonel as well. If I had to rank them, he would be my second favorite.

2) Mysterious Skin is one that I couldn't put down. What really grabbed me was the atmosphere of the story. I honestly felt like I was part of the experience because Heim's descriptions can really pull the reader into the story. It felt almost nostalgic like I was reading and remembering things about my own childhood.

3) It seems that we have a few opposite tastes. Not that that's a bad thing by any means. :)

YES

[barefoottomboy]

3) It would indeed! And that's part of the fun of discussing books - I always find it really interesting how the same piece of work can provoke such different responses in people. :-)