My Historical Fiction Evolution Part 4

Welcome back to the next installment in my series about how my love for historical fiction has evolved.

Here is a recap of my previous posts. Click on the links to check them out.

Part 1: My introduction to historical fiction in elementary school with Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr.

Part 2: Historical fiction close to home with Booky: A Trilogy by Bernice Thurman Hunter and Guest of War Trilogy by Kit Pearson.

Part 3: Learning about the holocaust.

Notable Time Periods

Today I will spotlight some of the other different time periods I have discovered through books.

As I got older I began to read adult books (both fiction and non-fiction) and this opened the door to discover more events, eras, cultures and places throughout history. I began to branch out from books set during World War II to include a wider variety that fascinated me just as much.

Some of these books include:

The Russian Revolution including The Romanov’s

Edwardian Aristocrats and the people who worked for them

Old New York City

The Immigrant Experience

Pre-20^th Century America

The Tudors

Among others..

I just love being transported to a different time and discovering all there is to know about. I know that my future reading will only take me farther and I can’t wait to learn more about the past.

In the 5^th and final installment of My Historical Fiction Evolution will focus on today’s technology and how it has enhanced my reading experience.

What are some different time periods you enjoy reading about? Leave me a message in the comments. Recommendations are always welcome. 

My Historical Fiction Evolution Part 3

Welcome to part 3 in My Historical Fiction Evolution series where I discuss my love for the genre and how it has changed over the past 20 years.

Click the links below to check out the first two posts in this series.

To recap:

Part 1: My introduction to historical fiction in elementary school with Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr.

Part 2: Historical fiction close to home with Booky: A Trilogy by Bernice Thurman Hunter and Guest of War Trilogy by Kit Pearson.

After learning about the terrible lasting effects of the atom bomb in Japan and the hardships of those during Great Depression and World War II Toronto, my historical fiction evolution was about to delve even deeper.  

It was my grade 7 teacher who introduced me to the horrors of the Holocaust, when my class watched the film Life is Beautiful. Click below to watch the movies trailer.

This film follows a Jewish man and his son as they are sent to a concentration camp during World War II. The atrocities the Jewish people faced absolutely horrified me, but it also made me want to learn more.

So naturally I turned to my newfound love of history and historical fiction. This would also mark the first time I would read non-fiction.

Now you are probably expecting me to mention The Diary of aYoung Girl by Anne Frank, however I admit that this wasn’t one of my favourite books. Instead I will focus on the following middle grade and young adult books set during this time period:

Surviving Hitler

Surviving Hitler: A Boy in the Nazi Death Camps by AndreaWarren gives the true account of a holocaust survivor as he recounts his harrowing tale. This book is chalk full of pictures, many of which were extremely hard to look at. These pictures made the time period come alive for me.

My Canary Yellow Star 

My Canary Yellow Star by Eva Wiseman was a book I was given in high school by my mom who met the author. Like Surviving Hitler, it follows a young Jewish person (in this case a girl named Marta) as their rights are stripped away by the Nazi regime and sent to a concentration camp.

I have reread both of these books several times over the years (and will continue to do so), but their horrors and message of hope will never dull. It is with books like these that the people whose lives were tragically cut short are remembered. They are also a great learning tool for the youth of today.

Stay tuned for part 4 in my series where my evolution in historical fiction continues.

Are there any books set during the holocaust that you would recommend? Leave me a message in the comments. 

My Historical Fiction Evolution Part 2

For the first post in My Historical Fiction Evolution series I discussed how Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr sparked my love for the genre when I was a child. Today I will talk about how that love evolved during the years of my youth.

Booky

Shortly after being introduced to historical fiction with Sadako, I was introduced to another young fictional girl by the name of Booky. Like Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes, Booky: A Trilogy by Bernice ThurmanHunter was also read aloud by my teacher to the class. The main character in this series was also close in age to myself at the time. But what made her even more relatable was the fact that this trilogy was set in a place not far from home: Toronto! Even though the time period was set during the Great Depression, it mentioned many different locations in and around the city that are still there today (or were about 20 years ago). Some of those locations include: Eaton’s and the CNE, not to mention the different neighbourhoods Booky and her family lived in.

Guests of War

Around this time my love for reading in general had picked up and I was beginning to try different books outside of The Babysitter’s Club and Sweet Valley High, which I had been reading for several years prior. I came across another historical fiction book by another Canadian author.

Guests of War Trilogy by Kit Pearson was also set in Toronto and followed a young girl around my age. However this one was set during World War II and followed two British children as they are sent to Canada for safety.

There is something about reading of familiar places during a different time period that I find so interesting. Not only is it a great learning experience, but it is also interesting to compare the old ways of life to the present day.

Even after all these years I still consider Bernice Thurman Hunter’s Booky: A Trilogy and Kit Pearson’s Guests of War Trilogy to be my lasting favourites.

Stay tuned for part 3 of My Historical Fiction Evolution series where I will talk about books set during the Holocaust. 

My Historical Fiction Evolution Part 1

I am a member of many different groups on Facebook, as I’m sure many of you are. One of which I find I participate in more than others and that group is called BookAholic Café. Recently a member posted a question about going back and reading or rereading older children’s books as an adult. This is something I have been doing myself over the past couple of years. Just last year I read Tuck Everlasting and started the Nancy Drew series. I have also been re-reading the Little House on the Prairie books as well.

One of the members mentioned re-reading Sadako and theThousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr. This brought back memories for me of when I read it back in the mid 90’s. It was first introduced to me by one of my teachers in elementary school, when she read it aloud to my class. Afterwards I borrowed it from the library and read it aloud with my mom.

Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes follows a young Hiroshima girl who has leukemia, or the “atom bomb disease” as it is also known. Sadako’s story is absolutely heart wrenching and I still remember the tears that flowed each time I read it. As I was only young at the time I didn’t even know what leukemia was, nor did I know of the terrors that occurred when the atom bombs were dropped on Japan during the Second World War.

Thinking back I now realize that it was from reading Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes that my love for historical fiction began. It sparked a curiosity in me to learn about different time periods and how different it was compared to the present day.

Over the past 20 years my love for historical fiction has grown and evolved to where it is today. But it all began with Eleanor Coerr’s Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes.

For the next post in My Historical Fiction Evolution series I will discuss how it evolved during the years of my youth.

Is there one specific book that kicked off your love for a certain genre? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below. 

Books I Couldn't Stop Thinking About

A couple of weeks ago, BuzzFeed posted an article by staff member Lincoln Thompson called "31 Books You Won't Be Able to Stop Thinking About." Some of them are newer releases, while others are older. Out of the 31 books mentioned I have only read one, however I do have some others on my TBR.

The one book listed that I have read before is The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield. It has been quite some time since I first read it, but I remember enjoying this story and piecing it all together to uncover the mystery. I gave it a 4 star rating, however I wouldn't quite say that it was a book I couldn't stop thinking about.

This article got me thinking: what are some books that stayed with me long after I finished the last page? I would like to share a couple of those with you today.





Marley and Me: Life and Love with the Worlds Worst Dog by John Grogan 
This book along with the movie based on it, really hit home for me, especially since I read it around the time that my childhood dog Pal passed away. I could really relate to the love Grogan and his family had for Marley dispite all the trouble he got into. Long after the last page (or scene in the case of the movie) I would remember parts and smile or shed a tear.






I Love You Forever by Robert Munsch / Illustrated by Sheila McGraw
Yes, this is a children's book. And yes I've mentioned it many, many times here on ML's Many Reads. But this story of the love between a mother and her son is just so timeless and heartwarming. I Love You Forever is even more meaningful to me now that I have my own little boy.




See Jane Run by Joy Fielding
See Jane Run is a suspenseful story about a woman who suffers an accident resulting in amnesia. That description sounds pretty similar to other books right? But this one touches on some pretty disturbing occurrences that still send chills down my spine. I would also like to add that this was the first time I had read a book of this nature, so this may play into its lasting effect on me.





Now I'd love to hear from you. Have you read any of the books mentioned in the article and if so did they stay with you? What other books had a lasting effect with you? Leave me a message in the comments. 

Let's Chat: Meme Link-ups and Participation

Hello everyone,

Today I would like to start a discussion post. I'm hoping to be able to post more like this about random bookish topics because I love hearing the different opinions of those of you who visit my blog. So here is today's topic:

Let's Chat About...

Meme Link-ups and Participation! 

For those of you who are unfamiliar with meme's here is a definition:

noun1.

1. a cultural item that is transmitted by repetition and replication in a manner analogous to the biological transmission of genes.

1. a cultural item in the form of an image, video, phrase, etc., that is spread via the Internet and often altered in a creative or humorous way.

verb (used without object), memed, memeing or meming.2.to create and spread memes:
He spends a lot of time memeing and sharing his videos with friends.verb (used with object), memed, memeing or meming.3.to make the subject of a meme:cute cats that get memed.
Source

In the blogging community meme's are a great way to link up with others who are featuring posts on similar topics. Some that I participate in on a regular basis include:

Sunday Post (Hosted by: Caffeinated Book Reviewer)
It's Monday! What Are You Reading (Hosted by Book Date)

Each week on a specified day they publish their respective memes and offer a link-up section for those who wish to participate. Bloggers join by leaving their link so others can visit their post on the topic chosen by the host. 

As I put together my latest Sunday Wrap-up and head over to the memes I link up with weekly, add my own to the list and began visiting those who participated, I began to wonder how other bloggers go about it. So here is my question for today:

For those who participate in meme's:

• Do you have any specific meme's that you participate in on a regular basis? 
• Do you visit all of the other bloggers who participate? 
• For those posts you visit, do you comment on each one? 

My Thoughts:

Every Sunday (with the exception of a few busy weekends) I do a weekly wrap-up for the books I have read, are currently reading and the past and upcoming posts for my blog. I then link up with the two meme's I mentioned above; Sunday Post and It's Monday! What Are You Reading. Once I have published and share my own post I settle in and begin visiting the other participants. There are also numerous other meme's that I join throughout the month, like for instance; challenges, lists, monthly wrap ups and book hauls.

Sometimes there are so many people joined up that it is difficult to visit each and every one listed, but I do try to read as many as I can. 

Personally I don't comment on every single post I visit because sometimes I just don't have anything to add, or that specific post doesn't really interest me. Regardless I feel like just visiting and adding to that blogs page views is good for any blogger whether their page be big or small.

I'd love to hear your thoughts so be sure to leave me a comment below..

ML's Questions and Thoughts On: Synopsis's

Today I thought I’d start a bit of a discussion about something I have been thinking about lately. I have noticed that when some bloggers post reviews they use the actual synopsis on the back of their book, or what is shown on Goodreads, Amazon or other book related websites. There are also some who write their own synopsis for the book they are reviewing. 

So my questions for today are:

1. As a reviewer would you rather use the published synopsis of a book or write your own?

2. As a viewer would you rather read the published synopsis of a book or one wrote by the reviewer?

1. As a blogger I would much rather write my own synopsis for a book I am reviewing. The reason for this is because I often find the published version to be lacking in information. I realize that this is only a brief glimpse into what the book is about, but it tends to leave out key facts that may garner more interest to a potential reader. It also often leaves out facts that may deter a reader from picking up the book. In my reviews I like to include a spoiler free synopsis that gives a more in depth explanation of the topic.

2. Although I do enjoy reading reviews from my fellow bloggers, I often worry about spoilers. Especially if it is a book that I am anticipating. For this reason I tend to skim a review until I reach the part where the reviewer gives their opinion on the book they read. I think that in this case I would rather read the published book synopsis.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this topic. Please leave me a message in the comments. Do you agree with my responses to these questions or do you have a different opinion?

Let’s chat!