Oops I'm in Florence

Last year my friend Elena and I went to Rome for a long weekend and fell head over heels in love with Italy. Now that we're no longer at university, I no longer see her every day like I used to, we decided we'd try and make this an annual trip - this year we're in Florence, a place I've been wanting to visit for a long time.

Luckily, unlike last year, I haven't forgotten to schedule posts for my blog! There'll be a review up on Monday, so this is just a warning that I'm likely to be fairly quiet (in terms of replying to any comments) until the end of next week. We're back in the UK on Tuesday, but I won't be home until Wednesday evening and then I'm back to work on Thursday morning.

ANYWAY. This is a very long-winded way of me saying I'm on holiday, I may be a little quiet, and I'll be sure to share lots of photos of my trip when I return!

Ciao!

Top Ten Tuesday | My Spring TBR

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature created at The Broke and the Bookish. Each week you compile a list of ten books which coincide with that week's theme. You can find everything you need to know about joining in here!

Today I'm going to talk about the books on my Spring TBR! As always, I don't tend to like TBRs much, but I do like creating seasonal TBRs.

The Rose by Jennifer Potter: This non-fiction book is all about what roses mean throughout history and around the world. It's a really heavy book, published on very thick paper for all the pictures, but it looks fascinating and I'm looking forward to reading it. Spring seems like the best time to read a book about flowers!

Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen: Even more gardens! I love witches, so the more the merrier for me!

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett: Speaking of gardens, I'd quite like to read The Secret Garden this Spring - it's one of my favourite classics, and it's such a heart-warming tale.

The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh: I picked up a second hand copy of The Language of Flowers in one of my local charity shops years ago, and still haven't read it despite it having brilliant ratings on Goodreads. Continuing with the flowery theme, I think this will make a great spring read.

The Signature of All Things by Elizabeth Gilbert: And to complete this gardening theme I've got going on, the heroine of The Signature of All Things is a botanist in the 19th century. I love reading historical fiction novels about women in science, particularly when they're set during the 18th and 19th centuries, and I've yet to read any of Gilbert's fiction.

The Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim: April's in the title, so what better time to read this modern classic? This book is about four ladies who decide to spend April in Italy and have some time to themselves for a change. I started reading it last April but, for whatever reason, I put it down and didn't pick it back up so I'd like to give it another shot. I'm actually going to Florence in two days, so I might take it on holiday with me!

The Sparrow Sisters by Ellen Herrick: This is one of the novels the lovely Mikayla @ Mikayla's Bookshelf got me for Christmas! It's another book that seems to heavily feature flowers, herbs and plants, so it should be another great read for Spring.

The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton: Yup, even more gardens. Are you sensing a theme? Apparently this book features an old book of dark fairy tales, a secret garden, an aristocratic family and a mystery. Sounds like everything I like to read, then!

Faery Tale: One Woman's Search for Enchantment in a Modern World by Signe Pike: This is another piece of non-fiction, and one that sounds lovely. Signe Pike decided to leave her job and go in search for people who still believe in faeries. I really want to read it.

Among Others by Jo Walton: Speaking of faeries, I believe they feature in Jo Walton's most famous novel. I'm pretty sure Among Others was on my spring TBR last year too but I still haven't gotten to it, I really need to though because I think I'm going to love it.

Which books made your list this week?

From Screen to Page #3

Today I'm back with another From Screen to Page post! For any of you unfamiliar with these posts, From Screen to Page is a feature in which I recommend a piece of historical fiction I think people will like if they like whichever film I happen to be talking about. For example, in my very first post I recommended Maeve Haran's The Lady and the Poet to anyone who's a fan of Shakespeare in Love.

It's been a while since I last did one of these - check out #1 and #2! - and today I'm going to do something a little different: instead of recommending a book that's like a film, I'm going to recommend a book that's nothing like a film at all. Why? Because Grease is kind of awful.

*ducks*

... Is it safe to come out now?

Now when I say Grease is awful, I don't mean it's an awful musical. It's not my favourite - I like my musicals a bit more epic, like The Lion King and Les Mis - but there's no denying that it's a fun musical. People pop out of the womb already knowing all the words to pretty much every song, and because it's been a favourite for so many years, thanks to the 1978 film, it's the kind of story that entire families will sit down to watch together at Christmas. Kids love the songs, parents remember watching it when they were young, and grandparents can remember those unfortunate hairstyles.

There's actually a lot about the story that I like. I think Danny Zuko is quite a charming hero, struggling to maintain his reputation as the high school bad boy while also falling head over heels for a girl who doesn't quite fit into his circle of friends, and I love Rizzo who, in my opinion, is one of the most complex and interesting characters in the musical.

My biggest problem with the story is the way it treats Sandy. I'm all for coming of age stories, including coming of age stories set at high schools, but Sandy's story concludes with her being rewarded with her happy ending because she essentially changes everything about who she is. I'm not suggesting that because she smokes and puts on some leathers she's no longer the same kind, innocent girl, but there's something about a girl who changes that much for the sake of a boy that makes me sad. 

Grease is set in 1958, and Robin Talley's debut novel, Lies We Tell Ourselves, is set a year later in 1959, with a very, very different atmosphere.

While there are some similarities between Grease and Lies We Tell Ourselves in that they're both set at high school in the '50s, and both feature a love story between two people from very different social circles, they're not alike at all. Lies We Tell Ourselves tackles racism in the mid-20th century, and in particular how black students struggled when they were finally admitted to better, previously all-white schools.

It's one of those books that'll just hit you right where it hurts, because it's so difficult to think that human beings were treated in this way. It's even more difficult to think that many are still being treated in this way.

Sarah Dunbar is one of the first black students to be admitted to her previously all-white local high school, and the novel follows her as she battles racism on a daily basis and also tries to understand her sexuality. Everything becomes even more complicated when she meets and develops feelings for Linda Hairston, a white girl whose father is a huge bigot.

If you want to know my thoughts on the book then you can check out my review here. From what I've said I think you can gather that other than the '50s setting and vaguely Romeo and Juliet style romance there are practically no similarities between Grease and Lies We Tell Ourselves, but that's no bad thing. Lies We Tell Ourselves is the perfect story if you want to read a story set in the '50s that actually deals with issues from the '50s beyond who's taking who to the dance. It's a powerful debut from a much-needed voice in the world of YA, and one that challenges the fairly problematic way that Grease portrays the '50s, where's there's not a poc in sight and oh wasn't everything just smashing?

For me Lies We Tell Ourselves is like a version of Grease where Sandy falls in love with Rizzo, and the musical numbers are replaced by explorations of racism and sexuality. If that sounds more like the kind of story you want set in the '50s, then you need to pick up this book!

How do you feel about Grease?

The Liebster Award

The lovely Catherine @ Based on the Book/When it does nominated me for the Liebster Award - thanks Catherine!

The rules:

- Thank the blog who nominated you and link back to them.
- Nominate up to 11 other bloggers to receive the award.  To be eligible, they need to have 200 followers or less.
- Answer 11 questions from the blogger who nominated you.
- Tell your readers 11 random facts about yourself.
- Give your nominees 11 questions to answer on their blog when they post their nomination.

I've actually been nominated once before for the Liebster Award so I won't tag anyone, but I will answer Catherine's brilliant questions and share some facts!

Questions from Catherine:

Do you have a favourite song?

I don't know if I have one favourite song because there are so many songs I love, and I'm the kind of person who will obsessively listen to one song until I'm sick of it. That being said, there's a song I love because it means quite a lot to me, and that's 'Home' from the Beauty and the Beast musical; I love the version sung by Susan Egan, who was also the voice of Meg in Disney's Hercules.

What literary character do you think you're the most like?

Oo, that's a tough one. I don't know if I'm really anything like her at all, but one of the reasons I loved Signal to Noise so much last year was because I loved Meche so much; something about her reminded me of my teenage self.

Cats or Dogs?

I like both, but I think I'm more of a dog person. They're just so friendly!

What film always cheers you up?

The Mummy. It's one of my favourite films, and one that I could watch over and over again and never get tired of.

Frodo, Sam, Merry or Pippin?

Always Sam.

What would be your specialist subject on a quiz show?

It'd probably be '90s animated Disney films. I know way too much about those.

Who's your favourite Disney Prince/hero?

The Beast. He was the first Prince to really get a personality and have quite a lot of his own scenes, and I think he's such an interesting character. I also love Tarzan, Milo and Flynn/Eugene.

If you could bring back one fashion from the past (e.g. poodle-skirts, togas, scrunchies) what would it be?

It's probably a very typical answer, but I think flapper dresses are so much fun.

What's your favourite gemstone?

I've always liked emeralds, I don't know why. They're so pretty!

What are your current favourite baby names (boy and girl)?

I don't know if I'm ever going to have kids, but if I did I do have names: I like Alice for a girl (looking at my blog, you'd never tell) and Orion for a boy.

Can you tell us a piece of random trivia?

Of course, I'm full of pointless random trivia! The phrase 'fallen off the wagon' actually comes from executions; prisoners were taken to their place of execution on a wagon and allowed a last drink, if they decided to go and have that last drink they'd 'fallen off the wagon'.

Facts About Me

1. This year I've decided to keep a document in which I'm recording the authors I read throughout the year, because while I know I read more women than men (not on purpose, I just tend to read more books written by women) I don't know how many BAME authors or non-British/North American authors I read. And I like lists.
2. I accidentally ended up having dinner to celebrate my 21st birthday next to the Welsh rugby team.
3. When I was in primary school I was bullied by another girl called Jess, and in secondary school another girl called Jess accidentally broke my finger during basketball. Clearly I should stay away from other Jesses.
4. I didn't start wearing lipstick until I was in my 20s because I convinced myself I wouldn't suit it, and now I love it. To any other brunettes, orange lipsticks look great on us!
5. I love ghost stories and haunted house stories, but I'm such a scaredy-cat. If I watch a horror film I probably won't sleep well for a week afterwards.
6. Last year my friend Elena and I went to Rome for a long weekend and I fell in love with Italy. We decided then to try and go back every year, and next week we're off to Florence - I'm very excited!
7. I currently work in academic publishing. It's very busy, but very interesting.
8. Thanks to period dramas, Horrible Histories books and pure morbid childhood curiosity, I know way too much about historical execution and torture methods.
9. I'm not a big drinker - I've never been the kind of person who can just drink alcohol for the sake of it - but I do love toffee apple cider. Omnomnom.
10. I always struggle with fact lists. I don't think I'm that interesting.
11. Unicorns.

Thanks again, Catherine!

Review | The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters

The Paying Guests

by Sarah Waters

My Rating: 

It is 1922, and London is tense. Ex-servicemen are disillusioned, the out-of-work and the hungry are demanding change. And in South London, in a genteel Camberwell villa, a large silent house now bereft of brothers, husband and even servants, life is about to be transformed, as impoverished widow Mrs Wray and her spinster daughter, Frances, are obliged to take in lodgers.

For with the arrival of Lilian and Leonard Barber, a modern young couple of the 'clerk class', the routines of the house will be shaken up in unexpected ways. And as passions mount and frustration gathers, no one can foresee just how far-reaching, and how devastating, the disturbances will be.

Check out my reviews of Tipping the Velvet, Affinity, Fingersmith and The Little Stranger!

At this point I think it's no secret that I'm a fan of Sarah Waters' work. Having already read four of her novels I thought the next book I picked up would be The Night Watch, but something about The Paying Guests, her most recent novel, was calling to me despite not hearing rave reviews about it.

The Paying Guests is set in London in 1922, where Frances Wray and her widowed mother have had to take on lodgers - or 'paying guests' - to support themselves after Frances's father died and it was discovered he hadn't done a spectacular job with the family's finances. They rent out their upstairs rooms to Lilian and Leonard Barber, and when Frances and Lilian fall in love their relationship escalates into something dangerous.

I wasn't expecting too much from The Paying Guests. I love Sarah Waters, she's a fantastic storyteller, but I'd seen enough reviews to know that her latest novel isn't considered to be her strongest, and having finished it I'd have to agree.

Unlike any of her previous books, The Paying Guests is set in the 1920s, but rather than tell the 'typical' '20s story - think The Great Gatsby or Boardwalk Empire - Waters decided to focus on the quieter, more domestic side of the years after the First World War in which an entire generation of people had become disillusioned with pretty much everything. I found this aspect of the novel one of the most interesting parts; we soon learn that Frances was against the war, and even once threw her shoe at a politician, and that she lost both her brothers in the conflict. Some of the comments made about the war and its aftermath really made me think, and made me realise how little I know about the '20s that doesn't involve the typical story of flappers and prohibition.

I think The Paying Guests rivals Affinity in terms of how gloomy the setting is, how mundane and repetitive Frances's life is, and I felt like there was certainly something bleak about the underlying tone of the book that suited many of the topics it touched.

I've seen many reviews criticise The Paying Guests for being the most predictable of Waters' work, and I would have to agree - after reading Fingersmith and The Little Stranger it's difficult not to expect some amazing twist from this book, but instead it just plods along to a conclusion that I ultimately found a little unsatisfying. For me there wasn't enough chemistry between Frances and Lilian, and while I sympathised with them both separately I'm not sure I liked them together. I was actually a lot more interested in Frances's relationship with her ex, Chrissy, whom Frances left after their affair was discovered and she was persuaded by her mother to distance herself from her. Rather than the story Waters chose to tell, I'd've been much more interested in a Persuasion-esque story in which Frances and Chrissy were given a second chance. 

I liked Lilian, but as the novel moves towards its conclusion it's difficult to believe that she and Frances will ever be really happy together. There are some things couples just can't move on from.

If you're a fan of Waters' work I recommend checking this book out so you can make up your own mind about it - Waters is still a brilliant storyteller, and even though The Paying Guests is on the chunkier side I still read it fairly quickly - but if you're new to Waters I don't recommend starting here. Read Fingersmith instead!

Creatures of the Night Book Tag!

I thought I'd do something quick and easy for my first post back after my accidental hiatus, and the Creatures of the Night Book Tag looked like too much fun to pass up! This tag was originally created by Katytastic over on YouTube.

The aim is simply to pick a character that fits with each of these creatures - there are ten in total.

Vampire

I had to go with Skinner Sweet from Scott Snyder and Rafael Albuquerque's American Vampire series. He's kind of terrible, but he fascinates me.

Werewolf

Typical answer, I know, but how could I not choose Remus Lupin?

Zombie

Angel Crawford, star of the White Trash Zombie series, is my choice for this one. She's so much fun to read, and this is a great urban fantasy series!

Ghost

I really liked Elizabeth Hempstock when I read Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book, so I had to choose her.

Witch/Warlock/Spellcaster

Naturally, I chose Meche from Signal to Noise. I love her.

Fairy/Fae

I've barely read any stories about fairies or fae, but near the end of last year I read Elizabeth May's The Falconer and I thought Derrick was a really fun character. I wish I had a fairy living in my wardrobe.

Demon

I haven't read many demon books, either, but I liked Amber from Demon Road - she's not your typical demonic character.

Angel

I'm afraid I'm not a fan of angel books, they're just not my thing, so I don't have a favourite.

Alien

I fell in love with Sissix in The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet. You should drop everything you're doing and read that book, by the way.

Superpowered Human

Kamala Khan from Ms. Marvel of course! Who else?

If you want to do this tag then do! I'd love to see some of your choices.

Accidental Hiatus

So I accidentally didn't post anything in the latter half of February. Oops.

I like to update my blog with posts every Monday and Friday, and 99% of the time those posts are scheduled in advance because that's the way that works best for me. This is something I'm going to get back into through March.

I managed to land myself in a reading slump in February - probably because of that bloody TBR I tried to set myself - and I also started a new job that I have to commute to; every week day morning I leave the house at around twenty past seven, and I don't get back home until around six o'clock. So I spend almost twelve hours of my day at work, at a fairly busy job, and getting there and back. By the time I get home I'm pretty tired, so I haven't been writing blog posts in the evening as frequently and I haven't been reading as frequently either.

On top of that February wasn't the best mental health month for me. I'm not going to go into any detail - I'm fine, by the way - I just needed to take some time to myself where I didn't add worrying about my blog to the list of problems going round and round in my head.

So apologies for my little absence - I'll be back to my usual blogging self from tomorrow!