Friday 11 March 2016

BADASS, STRONG, SMART WOMEN IN FICTION | THE BLOGGER EXTRAVAGANZA

I got my picture from @https://aimalfarooq.wordpress.com 

Get Up Offa That Slump: A Blogging Extravaganza was created by the lovely Rachel over at Beauty and the Bookshelf, and it is a blogging “challenge” that attempts to get bloggers to post bookish content outside of just reviews, memes and tags. It’s a way to showcase the many ways to blog about books without it getting repetitive and monotonous. It runs from March 9th to March 30th. There are three posts scheduled in a week (Monday, Wednesday and Friday). On many days, you’ll get the option to choose between two topics! And yes, I am a day late but stay with me. 
Today’s topic is an ode to women, in honor of International Women’s Day which was on March 8th. In this post I will showcase some of my favorite female characters. I may include a couple from movies or TV series because I can't leave them out. 

TO ANNABETH CHASE, WHO TAUGHT ME THAT KNOWLEDGE IS ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL WEAPONS!
The Percy Jackson series is one of my all time favorites partly due to the hilarious banter and jokes and plot. But also due to the strong female character, Annabeth Chase. I might not have even read it if I didn't know for sure that one of the main characters was a strong, kickass female. Annabeth isn't only a total badass with a sword but she's also extremely smart who often gets herself and her friends out of tough situations using her intellect.  She teaches girls everywhere that you don't have to be good at sports or something like that to be strong. 

TO HERMIONE GRANGER, WHO TAUGHT ME TO ALWAYS FIGHT FOR WHO YOU LOVE AND TO STAND UP FOR WHAT YOU BELIEVE IN!
The Harry Potter series was introduced to me by my mom and I love the series to death. Part of the reason is because Hermione Granger is such a wonderful character. She loves her friends with all her heart and will always fight for them no matter what. From when she saved Ron and Hermione from a mountain troll, to altering her parent's memories just to keep them safe, she was always protecting and fighting for the people she loved. Hermione will also always stand up for what she believes in. She created SPEW to stand up for the house-elves. She helped rescue Buckbeak and she is never not willing to snap at someone who bullied one of her friends. Hermione's ability to stand up for others and to fight for the ones she loves has taught me to do the same. 

TO KATNISS EVERDEEN, WHO TAUGHT ME THAT BRAVERY IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN BEAUTY!
Katniss was never concerned about how she looked. She stood up for her sister and that was all she ever wanted. She never wanted to be a pawn who was dressed and primped at every occasion. She knew that standing up for herself and others was one of the most important things and she has taught girls all over the world that lesson. 

TO ALLISON ARGENT WHO TAUGHT ME YOU CAN BE PRETTY AND KICKASS!
Allison Argent is on the TV show Teen Wolf and she is very pretty but totally kickass with a bow and arrow. She never hesitates to stand up for her friends even if it could cost her, her life. She cares about her friends and is brilliant at fighting in order to help them. 

TO CINDER WHO TAUGHT ME THAT YOU DON'T NEED TO CONFORM TO SOCIETY!
Cinder is one of the main character in The Lunar Chronicles series and she doesn't care what people think. She's a cyborg who is disgraced by society but she stands up for what she thinks is right and is eventually rewarded for it but she didn't do it for a reward. She was just helping who she cares about. 


That's all for today's post. I may add more later but those were the main ones. There are obviously tons of other strong women such as Rey from The Force Awakens, Emma Swan from Once Upon a Time, Feyre from A Court of Thorns and Roses, and Adelina from The Young Elites, but the women above are some very obvious standouts. Let me know about your favorite strong, badass and smart women in fiction or link me to your post! See you all soon!

One Paris Summer by Denise Grover Swank Review

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This is also spoiler free!



One Paris Summer
Written by Denise Grover Swank
Genre: Young Adult/Contemporary/Romance
Publisher: Blink
Release Date: June 7, 2016
Pages: 272
Source: NetGalley
Places to Get this Book: COMING SOON
Recommended Age: 13 and up!

Summary:

Most teens dream of visiting the City of Lights, but it feels more like a nightmare for Sophie Brooks. She and her brother are sent to Paris to spend the summer with their father, who left home a year ago without any explanation. As if his sudden abandonment weren't betrayal enough, he's about to remarry, and they’re expected to play nice with his soon-to-be wife and stepdaughter. The stepdaughter, Camille, agrees to show them around the city, but she makes it clear that she will do everything in her power to make Sophie miserable.

Sophie could deal with all the pain and humiliation if only she could practice piano. Her dream is to become a pianist, and she was supposed to spend the summer preparing for a scholarship competition. Even though her father moved to Paris to pursue his own dream, he clearly doesn't support hers. His promise to provide her with a piano goes unfulfilled.

Still, no one is immune to Paris’s charm. After a few encounters with a gorgeous French boy, Sophie finds herself warming to the city, particularly when she discovers that he can help her practice piano. There’s just one hitch—he’s a friend of Camille’s, and Camille hates Sophie. While the summer Sophie dreaded promises to become best summer of her life, one person could ruin it all.



Review:

I went for this book mainly because I thought I should be reading more contemporary books and I didn’t go in with high expectations.  

I like how the book starts and how the main character isn’t happy with having to spend summer in Paris which was ironic since most people would be thrilled.  

PLOT

The plot was creative. The main character: Sophie, didn’t want to go to Paris to spend time with her father and soon-to-be wife. Her stepsister is totally rude and disrespectful towards her. She is also forced to be a ‘tourist’ with her stepsister as a guide. Can you imagine?  

SOPHIE

We first meet Sophie when she is on a plane flying to Paris with her brother. She is mad at her dad for leaving her a while back and mad at him for wanting her and her brother at his wedding. I liked how she is not a glamoured up person and how she has feelings and thinks like a normal person. For example, she can’t figure out directions which is totally relatable. She doesn’t pick up French like she’s been speaking it all her life, because no one can do that. And she has faults just like everyone else. I also love her growth throughout the book.

MATHIEU

Mathieu is Sophie’s love interest who seems to not get along with Sophie at all when he meets her. Part of the reason is he has a past with her stepsister and she is kind of influencing his decisions. I really didn’t like how it seems like he couldn’t think or feel for himself. But I loved how much he seemed to care for Sophie. He even taught her french and let her play his piano. Aww <3

ERIC

Eric is Sophie’s brother. He seems to not really care about her at the beginning which bothered me a little but brothers and sisters often don’t always get along so it should have been normal. I loved how he was so protective and kind towards her later in the book which showed how much he grew.

DANE

Ugh. I can’t begin to express how much I hate this character. Sophie used to have a crush on him but seriously, I can’t see why. He’s so rude and treats her as more of a possession than anything else. I just wanted to kick him sometimes.

CAMILLE

Camille is Sophie’s stepsister. As I mentioned before, she is totally rude towards Sophie but she was jealous of her and annoyed that she was staying in her home so I don’t blame her. But I still didn’t like her that much.

I also really liked Sophie’s new stepmother. She was so kind and sweet and I’m glad Sophie warmed up to her pretty quickly.


ROMANCE

The romance in this book wasn’t too insta-lovey which made me so happy. I like the types of romances where it is slow-burning and I have to crave it so much before it actually happens. Sophie and Mathieu were so adorable and I loved them a lot.

Final Thoughts:

This book didn’t make it to 5 Crowns because of some things that had me cringing but otherwise it gets a pretty high rating. I recommend this book if you want a cute, short read that should leave you satisfied.


Quotes from the Book:

Coming Soon!



My Rating: 4 out of 5 Crowns