"The Casual Vacancy" by J.K. Rowling - REVIEW

Hello Muggles,

today I would like to give you my thoughts on J.K. Rowlings current novel "The Casual Vacancy", which is her first book for adults after writing so many Harry Potter related things.

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What is it about?

And here starts the difficulty. If you're interested in the book and look online for some content or storyline summaries you know that they're not that easy to find and there's a simple reason for that: It's almost not possible to write about "The Casual Vacancy" without revealing too much. But I will try my best:

The whole story takes place in a very small town in south-west England (am I right, here?) and begins with Barry Fairbrother's sudden death. He is a member of Parish Council and after he dies there are some people, who are quite eager to get his place. There's a voting going on and everything but the main focus lays on the many, many different characters story. There are about 34 characters, who are mostly related to someone else from the town due to family background, friendships or just loose contacts.

The plot goes through all kinds of social origins (mostly English working and middle class) without avoiding the ugly sides of each.

Basically it's about people's behaviour in very stressed situations, I think.

What do I think about it?

Okay, as many people probably I bought the book because I love J.K. Rowling for Harry Potter and her way of writing and creating new worlds through words. Because of my very high image I have of Mrs Rowling in my head starting to read "The Casual Vacancy" was quite hard. I didn't really know what to think about the whole thing until I got to page 150 / 200... so quite a while! I had some problems with remembering all the different characters and their relation to each other and sometimes I struggled with vocabulary because I read in English and those Parish Council vocab is totally new to me and I'm not sure if I got everything right.

What I found extremely difficult is that there are 34 characters but I didn't like one of them very much... I felt more dislike and disrelished most of them (which is far too much real life for me xD There are enough people to dislike in life and this is why I would like to have at least one character in a book that I find super sympathetic) - the only one, who I felt slight sympathy for was Kay Walden maybe but... uhm, not enough actually.

So, after the first 200 pages I got used to it and started to feel some interest in the characters. I especially "enjoyed" reading about Krystal Weedon, who represented the people from very, very difficult social backgrounds (I don't know the exact term for it - in German it is "sozialer Brennpunkt", which would be something like "social hotspot" but with a very negative meaning). I didn't like what I read but I just felt moved by her story and found it incredibly sad to see what's going on there.

While reading I didn't expect the end to be that tragic actually. I don't want to spoiler, so I can't tell you too much only that I didn't expect it and it really left me there being confused and sad and feeling miserable... which I don't consider as bad after reading a book. I like books that make me think a lot afterwards and "The Casual Vacancy" definitely made that but nevertheless it wasn't strong / convincing for the first half. :/

What I really didn't like that much was the language. I know it's supposed to be real but do people really swear this much? I think J.K. Rowling just put that many slang words and curses and raw language in it to clearly distance from Harry Potter - which I don't think is the cleverest thing to do.

Would I recommend it?

Hm... all in all I probably would. 

I would recommend it if you're interested in a good, real-life based novel and if you're not struggling with having many characters and a lot to remember (I know my Mom does have huuuge problems with remembering names and stuff and she literally reads one book every other day, so I don't think she would be able to keep a proper view^^) AND if you have strong nerves. There are some very intense moments, whether it is a very harsh (verbal) fight, someone gets battered or is just being a little too vulgar. There are SO many swear words that I sometimes was glad my English isn't perfect and I didn't know their meaning.

The point that lets me recommend it anyway is the thing that happens in the 2nd half. You just feel a tiny connection with the characters and your interest gets aroused. In the end it leaves you speechless, no matter if you think that's fine or bad - I think this is what a book is supposed to do.

Definitely give it a go and read through it because there's no sense in putting it away after a few pages; it gets better!

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Okay, this was my review for J.K. Rowlings first adult novel "The Casual Vacancy" - I hope you liked it and are more / less determined to get and read it now. 

If you have any suggestions or questions feel free to leave a comment or write me a private message! 

I would love to know what you think about it if you have already read it, so please write a comment if you did so! :)

See you next time,

Hermione

Follow me on Twitter: @HermioneG7

"10 Day You Challenge" - Three Films

Hello Muggles,

today it's time for another part of the "10 Day You Challenge":

Three films:

1) Grave of the Fireflies

"Grave of the Fireflies" was the first film I watched that really made me cry. When little Setsuko puts buttons into her mouth thinking they were candy (and because I don't want to spoiler, I won't talk about what happens after that) just made me cry SO hard! I felt confused and sad.

It is just an excellent movie.

 Aaand it's representative for all Animes and especially Studio Ghibli films, which I looooove! *.* My favourites are: My Neighbor Totoro, Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle, Ponyo

 

2) The little Mermaid

It was so hard to choose one Disney film because I love so many of them (my fav's beside The little Mermaid are: Peter Pan, Alice in Wonderland, Mulan, Beauty and the Beast, Tangled...).

What else is there to say?

3) Emma

   
Since the last two or three months I'm obsessed with Jane Austen and the Bronte Sisters' work and the most fun I had watching "Emma". This won't be an all time favourite of me but I just like it at the moment, so I included it. :)

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Although I always answer the question "What's your favourite film?" with "Harry Potter" I chose to not put in on the list because I don't really like the actual films but it's much more an emotional thing because I love the books, characters and the story in general so much. Unfortunately I don't think they made a big deal out of it and I was extremely disappointed with part 7 (1+2) because even J.K. Rowling said that they are close to the books... uhm, no? -.-


Well, the challenge is almost over - I hope you enjoyed it so far and I hopefully "see" you tomorrow when it's about two songs. ;)

Leave a comment telling me your top three films if you'd like to - it would make me happy. :)

See you next time,
Hermione 

"10 Day You Challenge" - Four books

Hello Muggles,

today it's time for my favourite bit of the "10 Day You Challenge". 

Four books

1) "The Storyteller" by Antonia Michaelis

If there is one thing I am really excited about it is to read "The Storyteller" by german authot Antonia Michaelis in English. I have already read it in German of course, which is why I can tell you that it's the best book I have ever read! I am going to write a detailed blogpost about it now that it is published in English and I can just recommend it to anyone that has a preference for some tragic in books because it really is tragic - but beautiful at the same time.

I just love it and since I read it in summer 2011 I still think of Abel Tannatek, who is one of the main characters, everday!

2) Harry Potter and the Prizoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling

 

Harry Potter probably is the thing I talked about the most on my blog. 

However, I chose "Harry Potter and the Prizoner of Azkaban" to be my top 2nd book because it's my favourite one besides "Deathly Hollows". What I love about this one is that what happens inside of Harry becomes clearer and I think the story of his parents and their friends (Sirius Black, Remus Lupin...) is so exciting. Sirius Black is my favourite Harry Potter character after Hermione Granger. :)

3) The Lord of the Rings - The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien

Of course I had to add this all time classic to my list. 

The first book of the series is my favourite because I love the introduction into what Hobbits are and how they live and the beginning, which lets you have a look into the Shire is just my favourite part ever. :') 

What I think is the most astonishing thing about "The Lord of the Rings" is the writing. When I read it for the first time I was literally out of my mind because of the beautiful language Mr Tolkien used. Just reading the first lines makes me smile all over my face. 

4) Dark Canopy by Jennifer Benkau

I'm sorry but this one hasn't come out in English yet. :/  
BUT I just love it and can't wait for the second book to be published in March 2013, so I included it to my little list. :)


I hope you liked it.

Please leave a comment telling me what your four favourite books are or link your "10 Day You Challenge" if you did it on your blog. :)

See you next time,
Hermione

"10 Day You Challenge" - Nine loves

Hello Muggles,

it's time for another part of the "10 Day You Challenge"! :)

9 Loves

1) My family

I'm especially talking about my boyfriend and my dog Baylie because I live with them and I am surrounded by them every single day.

This obviously is not my dog and my boyfriend but my dog and my Mom's cat Lizzie... after I  caught them red-handed sleeping in my old bed! :D

2) England

I just love the language, England as a country (sadly I've never been to the rest of GB) and the little things about the english culture. Take the beautiful cottages and gardens for example... although I'm probably a little too tall for those tiny houses I would love to live in one! :)

3) Harry Potter

Seriously, what is there to say? I already did several Blog posts about my passion for Harry Potter. You can read about my Harry Potter history here or have a look at what I think about the Harry Potter Audio Books (UK Version) over heeeere. ;)

Image by availableimages.com

4) Spring / Summer

I already feel my winter blues coming. I'm not exaggerating when I say that I don't feel very good on cold days. Although I don't like to be in the bare sunshine because my skin is quite sensitive I definitely need sunshine and warmth! This is why spring and summer are my favourite seasons and although summer just ended I can't wait for the first day of spring when the air smells flowery and warm. :)

5) Sweets

 I'm not a good role model at all... because I eat more sweets than other "grown ups" in their whole life. I can't help it but when people ask me about my favourite food the first thing that comes into my mind is "Cake!" (followed by salad, which is way better ;)) You can't say that freaking cake is your favourite food? How strange am I? Or better say: What did sugar turn me into? o.o I smell a conspiracy over here!

Oreo cupcakes I made for my brothers birthday. :)

6) Animals

Who doesn't love animals? They are the most pure creatures in the world and don't do anything to harm anybody - if a lion kills an antilope it is only natural because it's a cat of prey. (Human beings are, in my opinion, not allowed to kill animals because we don't live in a world where it's all about hunting for surviving. It is also proven that the human set of teeth is not for eating meat but vegetables, grain and seeds!) My favourite animals are Koalas - I love them since I can remember. Probably because I always watched a show called "Blinky Bill". Is this popular in the UK and the rest of the world as well? :)

7) Books

It's time for me to say that this is in no specific order because I love books a little more than sweets for example. ;D Well, what fascinates me in books and literature is the fact that you are able to "be another person" while reading because - in the best cases - the author "pulls" you into the action and you experience everything through the characters of the story.

I don't have a favourite genre I like to read but my favourite books in general are: Harry Potter (as you all know now) and "Der Märchenerzähler" by Antonia Michaelis, who is a German author. I definitely have to do a Blog post about it although it's German because it changed something deep inside of me. It's quite rough and hard to read but beautiful at the same time. :)

8) Children

Although this may sound strange but I think with children it's similar to what I wrote about animals: they are pure. Childhood is something beautiful I think. Everything is new and exciting and you are allowed to create your own opinions about everything and in the best case you don't have anybody standing next to you saying what you should think - children should be free. They should be able to form their free minds themselves and childrens free spirits are what I love. :) I always wanted to work with children and doing English but couldn't figure out a way to do so except for teaching and I now know that this wouldn't be my thing for 100 %. I think it's better for me to have my own children one day - and I'm super excited for this time to come! :)

9) Freedom

I think there's not enough freedom in our society at all although everybody is always proud of how "free" we are in Europe. Would you like to hear what I think about it? It's the biggest lie ever. Probably the majority here isn't happy because they feel they have to do things like go to work 5 days a week from 8am - 4pm, buy a house and a nice car, have two perfect children etc. I would like people to be theirselves and do what they really want to do - to be free and not to change theirselves to fit in this strange world. :/  Difficult topic to talk about, I think!

I hope you enjoyed that little "view into my life". 
Leave a comment and have a wonderful day!

See you next time,

Hermione

The ultimate Harry Potter TAG! :)

Hey everyone,

today I watched the Harry Potter TAG by Joey Graceffa and Jim Chapman (click on their names to get to their Youtube-Channels) and I just had to do it of course! By the way: I did the full TAG - I think Joey and Jim left some questions out. ;)

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I hope you'll enjoy it and I would be sooo happy if you would do the TAG as well. You can either answer it in the comment section or link your channel, where you did the TAG. :)

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Let's get started...:

1) Favorite book

- My fav's are Harry Potter and the Prizoner of Azkaban (because you get to know more about Harrys father, Lupin and Sirius and it's just so interesting!) and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows (just because it's the ending of it all - not that this would be a good thing but I love how everything becomes clear and gets explained).

 2) Favorite movie

- It's part 3 again. I think there are still huge gaps in parts 4-7 and this is why I don't prefer the last movies.

 3) Least favorite book

- I don't have a real least favourite book but I don't like Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix as much as the other because Prof. Umbridge just drives me insane! She's even more horrible in the book than in the film! 

 4) Least favorite movie

- This is quite easy: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire! I just don't like the whole atmosphere in the movie and I really don't like Beauxbaton and Durmstrang and their people in the movie. :/

  

 5) Parts of the books/movies that made you cry?

- There were so many but as an example I choose the death of Fred Weasly (I was sitting in an overcrowded bus full of pupils reading that scene for the first time and people were starring at me like I was crazy^^) and the scene when Bellatrix tortures Hermione and Dobby dies shortly after this (I cried my eyeballs out in the cinema!).

 6) Twilight vs. Harry Potter...

- Wtf? 

 7) If you could hook up with any HP character who would it be?

- Actually there is nobody I'm very attracted to... when I was younger I had a crush on Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter) but not nowadays anymore. :D

 8) Favorite character?

- Easy-peasy: It's Hermione! She's just so intelligent and helpful and I just love her for doing "S.P.E.W." :')  I also like Sirius Black a lot. :)

 9) What would your Patronus be?

- It would probably be a Deer... or a Koala. :D

 10) If you could have the Resurrection Stone, Invisibility Cloak or the Elder Wand which one would you choose?

- None of them because they are the "Deathly Hollows" but if I really had to choose one I would go for the cloak.

 11) Are you upset with any parts left out in the films?

- Hell yeah! I think there's a scene in every book, which is not in the movies but right now I'm quite mad about the scene from Part 5 when Harry & co are in St. Mungos and they meet Nevilles parents. Especially because Nevilles part is quite big in the last movie I think it would have been important to show his parents and his situation. 

The second scene, which isn't in the movies is when Dudley says goodbye to Harry at the beginning of part 7. They filmed it but it git deleted in the end. :/

I could go on and on but I don't think that anyone's interested in reading it, right?^^

 12) What House would you be in?

- I'm sure that I would be in Hufflepuff. In Pottermore I'm a Hufflepuff as well... and I like it! I'm nobody, who laughs about them - I like being a Hufflepuff. :D

 13) Favorite subject at Hogwarts?

- There was a time when I did some "Hogwarts online" stuff and we had to take classes and do homework and so on (was quite fun actually - although it's nerdy as hell^^) and I enjoyed "History of Magic" the most. But because I didn't like history in my real school life I would go for "Charms" or "Defense Against the Dark Arts". :)

 14) Favorite professor?

- Professor Lupin! :)

 15) If you could meet any member of the cast who would it be?

- Maybe Emma Watson.

 16) If you could do one spell in real life what would it be?

- It would be "Lumos" because I'm afraid of the dark and that would help. :D

 17) Have you played any of the video games?

- I started several of them but didn't like them that much. I played the 1st one on PlayStation, the 3rd / 4th (I think) on NDS and the 7th on XBOX360.

 18) If you were on the Quiddich team which position would you play?

- I would suck at Quidditch! Seriously! But being a seeker sounds better than the rest. ;)

 
19) Were you happy with the ending?

- Yes, I was. I didn't like the "19 years later" thing but the ending before was totally fine.

 20) How much does Harry Potter mean to you?

- Oh, quite a lot to be honest. This is what I grew up with and I always saw Harry Potter as my hero (like Spiderman or whoever is for other people). I'm just in love with the whole magical world and the character and I'm really thankful that Joanne K. Rowling wrote the books and got the opportunity to publish them! :)

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Thanks for reading my TAG, I hope you enjoyed it and like I said: leave some replies! :)

See you next time,

Hermione 

Sunday Favourite #2 : Harry Potter Audio Books

Hey everyone,

today it's time for another Sunday Favourites and it will be the Harry Potter Audio Books (UK Version)! :)
I don't want to repeat my love for Harry Potter over and over again but...

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After reading all the books in German and Englisch and watching every film in every language I know (;D) I also got the Audio Books in English because there was a lot of advertisement on Pottermore and I couldn't resist anymore. ;) 

shop.pottermore.com ;)

 The books are read by Stephen Fry in the UK version, while Jim Dale reads the US Version. After comparing the two man a little I have to say that Stephen Fry is my favourite! He just has such a calm and interesting voice, which is perfect for audio books because they can become a little dull I think - especially when the "reader" only has one voice. Stephen Fry gives personality to every character through his voice and this is just amazing.

 I'm currently listening to Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Chapter 15 - The Unbreakable Vow :D) and I really enjoy it. Mostly I listen to it before going to bed and that reminds me of being a child and listening to audio cassetes in bed. :) (At this point I would like to apologize to my boyfriend because I never turn them off. ;D)

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For the case that I finish the HP Audio Books I got some english literature classics like "Jane Eyre" and some from Jane Austen to listen to because I think I will become an Audio Book addict. :)

What do you think about Audio Books? Did you listen to the Harry Potter ones yet?

Hope you liked that little post and I can just recommend to give Audio Books a try - especially when they are about Harry Potter. :)

See you next time,
Hermione

Talking about ... Harry Potter!

Hey everyone,

today I would like to introduce a new "topic", which is "Talking about...". I will just talk about random stuff in this category, which you maybe already figured out yourself. ;)

As my Bloggername is Hermione and I'm actually always talking about Harry Potter I thought it would be nice to have it all written down in this specific Blogpost. 

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Let's get started...

When I was about 8/9 years old my Mom bought the first Harry Potter book because everyone read it, everyone loved it and she thought my brother and I would like it as well. Mommy, you did a good job! - I loved it! I have to say that reading a "real" book was not that easy when I was 8/9 years old... especially when there are names like Hagrid and Hedwig and I always took Hagrid for Hedwig and the other way around, so for a period of time I thought Harry had a speaking owl :'D What I also didn't get was the term "Sir" because it's not very German and because I thought Hagrid was the speaking owl I thought "Sir" was a noise "he" made. o.o  Oh my god - I was stupid. :D

Okay, well in the end I read it and I loved it and just wanted to have anything Harry Potter related. I had a Harry Potter and a Ron Weasly doll, Harry Potter sparklers, Harry Potter letter paper with little owls on it, a Harry Potter pullover and last but not least: Harry Potter shampoo and shower gel! I really owned a Barbie-sized figure of Harry Potter, which you could "screw apart" and then you had some shampoo in it. I  still remember the smell of it! 

In 2001 (I think) I went to the movies to watch the first Harry Potter film... and of course I loved it! I probably was in love with Daniel Radcliffe and I still own a real autograph! If I find it, I will definitely post it because it is just too cute! :)

Aaaand here it is - best signing ever! xD

After that I had to deal with my classmates, who didn't like my Harry Potter pullover that much and who thought that Harry Potter was for children only - of course 11-year-olds aren't children no more...

I think Harry Potter and the prizoner of Azkaban was the only film I didn't watch in cinema, although it is my favourite by now!

When I was about 14 I watched Harry Potter and the goblet of fire with my best friend Sarah and I know she will hate me for it but: she loved Robert Pattinson back then! She always said: "Oh look at this Cedric Diggory - he is hot!" xD
Afterwards I read all the books again (had to lend them because I didn't own them anymore whysoever) and fell in true love (again). :) I really was overwhelmed by the whole world Joanne K. Rowling created and I wished it was real so badly - I still do btw. 

When I was about 17 my boyfriend gave me books one to seven for christmas (*.*) and one year later I bought the english versions myself.
I actually got two versions of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows because I bought one in Berlin when I visited my Grandpa and when it was brand new and the other one I got in the set I bought later. Maybe I can do a little giveaway when my Blog is bigger and has some followers?! :)

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My love for Harry Potter just doesn't stop - it actually becomes stronger and bigger. xD Of course I am a member on Pottermore and my Username is ZauberHimmel5, so feel free to add me to your friendlist. ;D 

Currently I am listening to the Harry Potter audiobooks. I finished the first five ones and listen to Harry Potter and the halfblood prince at the moment - and (what can I say) I love it. I'm so into english accents and Stephen Fry just has an amazing voice especially because he speaks in like 10.000 different accents!

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I think I have to stop now - this post is long enough already and I hope you liked it.

Please let me know what you think of Harry Potter in the comments section! :)

See you next time,
Hermione

Look what I got today!

Hey everyone,

so today I found something reeeeeally nice in my letterbox. :)

First, I'd like to tell you a tiny little story...
In March 2011 I was on a concert of "The Chariot" - this is not my favourite type of music but my boyfriend and the band he played in that moment were the supporting act. Soooo, the bass player of the Chariot wore this super cool white Shirt with the symbol of Harry Potter's Deathly Hollows on it and from that day on I looked for that shirt SO badly! It was love at first sight. ;)
Last week I found zoella280390 on Youtube and saw that she has the exact same shirt - and as nicely as she is, she posted the link where to buy it in the description box! Good girl, Zoe, good girl! :D

http://orangecircle.spreadshirt.co.uk/deathly-hallows-cosmic-ladies-tshirt-A18722272/customize/color/321

You can get that shirt in different colours and sizes and I got mine in size M and chose the brownish type of colour. On the webside it looks olive, which I absolutely love but in reality it comes in a brownish colour as I said. Nevermind, this looks nice as well. ;)

The symbol has quite a cool pattern, because it looks like the nightsky or a picture from space, which is very pretty I think!

This little shirt made my day and I can overlook the fact that there's no summer at all over here in Germany (in July!)... but only for today. ;)

I hope you like it as much as I do... and I really recommend getting one because I think it's a bargain. I got the Shirt from the UK and it was 14,49 Pounds + 2,00 Pounds for shipping, which is great I think!

Have a nice weekend and see you next time,
Hermione :)