Annihilation Book VS Movie

  

I loved the Southern Reach Trilogy, especially Annihilation. I wouldn’t say the book is for everyone it is weird, very, very weird, but I was hooked. I was really excited to see the movie to get a better visual of the story, more than what I had made up in my head while reading.

I finally got around to watching the movie, and it’s a pretty good……..Nothing like the book, but good. I would say that the movie was rather loosely based on the novel. If you go into this wanting to see a movie that is exactly the same as a the book, you will be disappointed, so just sit back and enjoy the film.

 

**Spoilers**

 

General Plot

It seems to me they took the general premise of the book, and wrote a whole new story. The main draw to this book for me was the Tower, its mystery and suspense around it. The Tower wasn’t in the movie at all, I kept waiting for it’s discovery and it never happened. I was really disappointed about that part, I wanted to see the writing on the wall and the Crawler.

One thing that I thought was well done, was the animals. The creatures that people in Area X had transformed into was everything that I had hoped for. Hearing their distorted voices and seeing them all disfigured was pretty much exactly what I had been picturing in my head.

Area X

I can’t really say they changed Area X all that much since visually its basically a forest, beach and some swamp. Buuuuuut, the border is visible in the movie….. I don’t know how I feel about that. On one hand it looks really cool, like a giant bubble. On the other hand, I also liked the mystery of a border no one can see, like a giant scary version of a two way mirror, everything looked normal but all was not well on the other side.

They spent a lot more time in the movie out side of Area X, this did no go over well with me. That was the whole point of the book. If they had spent less time on an affair that never happened, maybe they could have included the Tower. These parts I just found to be annoying, I wanted to see Area X!

Characters

I thought the Psychologist and the Biologist were perfect for their rolls, while the others I found it hard to distinguish who was who. Unlike where they gave the women names in the movie, in the novel I liked the fact that they were only identified why their rolls on the team. I felt like it added something to the story. Since very little was given about their backgrounds they only way for me to identify them was through their rolls on the team. In the book it remained clear what each of them was there to do. But in the movie, it was very unclear what their jobs were, so the names didn’t help me (also the 5th woman went into Area X in the movie, so that threw me off quite a bit too).

Ending

Okay, now the ending. The ending in the movie had zero to do with the book. Where the novel leaves the ending open for the following two books to come. The movie, gives a more concrete finale, which still had nothing to do with the ending of the series even. I am going to say the film ending used some creative license.

In the end I am going to say I definitely preferred the books. But if you have no intention to read them and are interested int he movie alone. It’s alright, you are going to find it very weird and most likely when the credits start rolling you will most likely be saying to yourself WTF did I just watch.

I find it hard to compare a book to its movie counterpart when it is so different, but in the end I think it is best too look at these as two separate pieces of work. Enjoy them for what they are, comparing is just frustrating.

Random Wrap Up (11-15)

Hello everybody,

It’s been a while since I have done a normal post. So I thought I would dust off the cobwebs by doing a nice easy wrap up. So without further ado, the next 5 books I have read this year:

⭐⭐⭐⭐ The Best We Could Do by Thi Bui

This is a graphic memoir about a family journey of immigrating to the United States from Vietnam in the 1970’s. This memoir actually tackles quite a bit: what it means to be a mother, starting over in a new country, the effects of war. Overall this is very well done and overall very touching. At times it felt like she was trying to say too much in a small space, and should have maybe split it up into a few volumes to go a bit more in depth. Just a little more focus on which point she was driving home, it felt slightly divided. But a beautiful story nonetheless.
⭐⭐⭐⭐  Acceptance by Jeff Vandermeer

The final book in the Southern Reach Trilogy. If you have read any of the previous books you will know, this series is very weird and it’s hard to say anything without spoiling. I will keep it simple, if you started the series, I would recommend finishing it. It’s worth it to get some answers.

 

 

 

 

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ The Yellow Wall-Paper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman

This is a short story written in 1892, I picked it up after reading a post recommending short stories and it was available at my library. Holy this was so much better than I thought it would be, it blew me away.  According to Goodread this is based on the author’s own experiences. It is the story of a woman after child birth, who isolated in an old mansion with bars on the window and yellow wall-paper that is starting to tear. Which is all slowly driving her insane. I would tell everyone to pick up this book it’s 63 pages and it’s amazing. Even if you don’t like it….it’s only 63 pages.

 

⭐⭐⭐⭐  Descender Vol.1 by Jeff Lemire & Dustin Nguyen

This is the first in a graphic novel series about  boy robot living in a world where robots are now illegal. Showing his story while also running from people trying to kill any robots left. It was very good and I plan to continue with the series.

 

 

 

 

⭐⭐⭐⭐  The Universe of Us by Lang Leav

This is a poetry collection, about love and broken hearts. Her writing is beautiful. I just wish there was some more variety, different subjects. I typically sit down and read most of a collection at once, so when doing that it felt repetitive. I think I am going to try one more of her collections with a different theme and see how that one goes for me too. Because the images she creates are amazing.

 

 

 

 

Well I am very behind on my wrap ups, but I am reading so slowly these days that it is working out quite well for blogging purposes.

Have you guys read any of these books, let me know what you thought in the comments 🙂

Life Update

Hello Everyone,

I know I have been MIA for 3 weeks now, but I think I finally have a new routine set up to make time for reading and blogging again. In case anyone is curious I give you the story on why I have been missing.

So, I accepted a second job for the summer working for the government,  I am currently doing my best to work two full time jobs for the time being. While I was training, my brain was sort of feeling like it was going to explode haha. But I think I have things figured out and am now slowly reading some more and I plan to try and get caught up on my long overdue blog hopping this week. Sorry if I miss anyone I will do my best.

Part two in Asia’s life: I knew I needed another ankle surgery and I hadn’t gotten a phone call…..Turns out some paperwork was lost, and they found a spot to get me in last minute, so surprise!! I am still on the mend from that plus working from home on evenings and weekends I have been stretched pretty thin.

Part three: I am now considering going back too school. I currently work in payroll and finance. Lots of numbers, invoicing and data entry. I am now looking at getting a diploma in human resources and then slowly working toward a bachelor in commerce. Lots of things going on all at once, but I am finding my bearings.

I think by this point I have read maybe 200 pages since I started the new job about a month ago, so I won’t have as many books to review or posts to make but I’ll do what I can. Don’t forget about me 🙂 Okay, long life story now complete.

A Day Out With The Boys by John Ingle

⭐️⭐️

I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is the story of John Ingle’s life and his ability to communicate with his subconscious. John goes through most of his life, giving examples of his subconscious mind helping him through traumatic events. It was about growing up with a mind that functions differently than what we are used to. John was able to override pain when faced with extreme circumstances.

I was drawn into this one because it is about human subconscious. I have a weak spot for anything about the human brain. I find them fascinating, and am always looking to learn some more about how they tick. Typically first hand experience is better than listening to a scientist.

The overall idea behind the autobiography I found fascinating. I knew nothing about having ‘two minds’, as John described it. He gives examples throughout his life including childhood, when he was able to block out the physical pain. As a child he did not know why there was not any pain, and even as an adult he didn’t understand it for quite some time. John did not shy away from discussing his experiences with doctors and psychologists, and how he became diagnosed with this ability. He also brings up how, even within the medical community, “dichotomies of the mind” does not seem to be agreed upon. Many assessed him a schizophrenic due to his description of the splitting of the mind. I found it interesting to see how it would feel from the inside to see the doctors disagree with the reason you are feeling this way. To be feeling off, and be getting the run around to different doctors, all telling him different things. I will say that this book made me think and I spent quite a bit of time on Google trying to learn more about this subject.

I did have some issues with this book. I couldn’t grasp the organization of this book – I spent a lot of this book confused about what exactly was he trying to tell me. There are many chapters: the first few are named, then they are numbered, back to named, and then it ends with another chapter one. If there was a purpose to this format it was not clearly stated. I couldn’t get into the writing because I couldn’t get into any type of natural flow. It seemed to be written as more of short story tidbits from his life, rather than following any type of order.

There seemed to be a couple of times where two chapters seemed to be telling me the same life story in two slightly different ways. Now I’m not sure if that is supposed to be showing me the two minds and their interpretation of the scene respectively, or if it was just redundant. But the information is different even though the same conversations are mentioned and partially quoted. This just left me more confused than fascinated. I think this could have easily been fixed by better communicating what the chapters were trying to do rather than just putting them sequentially.

In the middle of the book John describes something that is happening in his brain. By this I mean characters that are in his head. It was almost like a random piece of fiction wedged in the middle of the autobiography. I feel like he was trying to show us how his brain works and what happens sometimes. But this section was three chapters of these characters interacting, and I don’t see what I got out of that. I found myself trying to speed read through those sections.

The idea behind this book was good but, tell me more about brains and what it is like living with different conditions! There seemed to be very little information about how John’s brain works. I’m still not sure I understand what he means when he says he has two distinct minds or that he can communicate with his subconscious. I guess I was hoping for a bit more science. I know he is not a doctor, but overall this wasn’t exactly what I was expecting and it just wasn’t for me.

If you have read this let me know I would like to have a better understanding of this.

20 QUESTIONS BOOK TAG

It has been an eternity since I have done a tag. I have a habit of being tagged and not doing it…..So I don’t get tagged very often. But Danielle from Books, Vertigo & Tea pity tagged me in the comments. I am not sure who the original creator is so please let me know so I can credit them.

The 20 Questions…

1.How many books are too many books in a book series?

Well I like standalones, but if I am choosing series I would go with a trilogy max maybe even a duology.

2.How do you feel about cliffhangers?

I am a sucker for cliffhangers, they keep me hooked and moving through the series. When it comes to a series ending with a bunch of questions, I hate that I want some closure.

3.Hardback or paperback? 

Paperback, always paperback. Hardbacks are heavy and hard to carry around.

4.Favourite book?

No such thing.. But I do love the novella Wenjack by Joseph Boyden.

5.Least favourite book?

American Psycho, I hate that book with every fiber of my being. Unnecessary violence and gruesome scenes, for no reason.

6.Love triangles, yes or no? 

Hell no, why you ask, because they never happen.

7.The most recent book you just couldn’t finish? 

John Dies in the End by David Wong, I read probably like 100 pages of this and I was really enjoying it but it was weird and was just getting too long and I didn’t feel like reading the whole thing.

8.A book you’re currently reading? 

Aru Shah and the End of Time by Roshani Chokshi, so far I am in love.

9.Last book you recommended to someone?

That would be Aru Shah and the End of Time, loved the cover and so far I am hooked too the characters.

10.Oldest book you’ve read? (Publication date)

As far as I can tell that would be Romeo and Juliet.

11.Newest book you’ve read? (Publication date)

I have no idea how to figure that out, since Goodreads just seems to tell me the year.

12. Favourite author?

I honestly don’t have one, I am a major mood reader so it changes constantly.

13.Buying books or borrowing books? 

I love to buy books and add them to my shelves, but for cost and books I am unsure of I love my library.

14.A book you dislike that everyone else seems to love?

The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead, writing style is the only reason I didn’t like this book. I know it really popular and it should be, I just couldn’t get into the book.

15.Bookmarks or dog-ears? 

Bookmarks, you heathens.

16.A book you can always reread? 

I don’t reread… I have been thinking of listening to Harry Potter on audio because I just loved that series so much.

17.Can you read while hearing music? 

Nope, not at all.

18.One POV or multiple POV’s? (POV’s = Point of views) 

I really enjoy multiple POV’s if it’s done well.

19.Do you read a book in one sitting or over multiple days? 

Multiple days, I don’t read very fast and if I read too long my eyes hurt. Apparently I am a delicate flower who can be inured reading.

20.A book you’ve read because of the cover?

I can’t think of any, that I read just because of the cover. I did however buy a specific copy of Sleeping Giants because the covers are gorgeous. Great book by the way.

It’s even nicer in person.

 

 

I am going to tag:

Anyone who wants too and:

Lashaan 

Marie

The Orangutan Librarian

Kim

Bookstooge

Random Wrap Up (6-10)

Hello everyone,

I thought it was about time for me to talk about the next 5 books I have read so far this year.
⭐️⭐️⭐️ The Wild Robot by Peter Brown

This is a middle grade book that I randomly heard about on bookTube and thought it sounded cute. It’s about a robot that has made a life on an island and doesn’t realize what her intended purpose was. To be honest it is cute…..Buuuuut this was written for someone much younger than I thought it was going to be. I was expecting more of A Monster Calls type writing. I think I was just not the target audience for this book.

 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ The Sacrifice by Indrajit Garai

This short story collection has a common theme of sacrifice. All the circumstances are different but all  hard decisions were made. It was a very interesting, I don’t often read short stories so I think it says something about how much I like this one giving it 4 stars. Here is my full review if you are so intrigued.

 

 

 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Authority by Jeff Vandermeer

The second book in the Southern Reach Trilogy. So I can literally tell you nothing about the plot of this book without spoiling the first one. All I can say is this book does not pick up where the last one left off and it is written in a different way. Many people didn’t like this one but I would recommend making it too the end, it’s worth it if you need to know what happens like I do.

 

 

⭐️⭐️ The Tiger: A True Story of Vengeance and Survival by John Vaillant

This all started because I thought this book sounded interesting so I made my significant dork listen to the audio book. Well he really liked it bought me a copy and I was convinced. A non-fiction book about a tiger in Russia that has a vendetta… Well I found the author to go on major tangents about random history that has absolutely nothing to do with the story he was telling. I loved the stuff about the tiger but I go really bored when he started talking about the Russian politics and the history of a town.

 
⭐️⭐️⭐️ The Illustrated Dictionary of Snark by Lawrence Dorfman

This is pretty much exactly what it sounds like. Lots of quotes of many different subject matters, with lots of attitude and sarcasm. It’s fun and great to just flip through.

 

 

 

 

Alright those are the next five books I have read so far. Let me know if any of these are on your TBR of better yet if you’ve read any of them.

Dancing With Shadows by Adrian Churchward

 

⭐️⭐️ ½

I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is the story of Scott Mitchell, a human rights lawyer. He is arrested in suspicion of money laundering, and looses his job at a big London law firm. Scott has now made it his mission to prove his innocence, which leads him to a complicated adventure in Russia. Mitchell ends up stuck in the middle between the powers that be, being pushed in all directions. He must find the best way to exonerate himself.

I was immediately intrigued by the idea of a lawyer fighting for his own innocence. Once you add in the sketchy police charges and all the officials that have an interest in the outcome, sounds like a great read. Overall this book was entertaining.

Scott was a very interesting main character. Having a lawyer at the centre of the very serious accusation of laundering millions really got me invested in the story. I had this constant feeling that Scott was in panic mode, not understanding how he got into this predicament and why it was so complicated to get out of it all. He was a human rights lawyer receiving an award when arrested. How could this happen….and why?

The plot of the story had twists and turns. I had no idea which way it was going to go. With so many people influencing the outcome of the case, it was hard to tell who was actually on Scott’s side. Were the officials really trying to help or Were their motives selfish? This book kept me guessing.

The issues I had with the book that made this a two and a half star rating were the other characters. There were so many characters and new ones were being introduced throughout. I had a very hard time remembering who they were and what their significance was. It felt like I hadn’t even come to understand the characters’ motives before another one was introduced, and found myself spending a bit too much time trying to remember who was who.

Overall it was an interesting read but I felt like it had more potential. With all that being said, I think it could make a really good movie; the plot was great and having the visual would help keep everything straight I think.

Random Wrap Up (1-5)

Last year I was doing weekly wrap ups, but recently my reading seems to be sporadic. So I thought I would just wrap up after every 5 books, I have read a little over ten so far this year so I’ll post them pretty close together to get caught up.

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ Dancing With Shadows by Adrian Churchward

I’m not going to say really anything about this one because I have a review I will be posting next week and I won’t spoil it for you. But in a nutshell the book is about a human rights lawyer trying to clear his name, from being accused of laundering 250 million dollars.

 

 
 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Naruto Vol.11 by Masashi Kishimoto

I am slowly working my way through this massive series, they are getting a little better every volume I think but still sitting at three stars for me. This volume is about Naruto preparing for Selection Exams with a new mentor, and him struggling to harness his chakra.

 

 

 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Love Her Wild by Atticus

I fell in love with this collection of poetry, I picked it up because Trang from Bookidote mentioned it in a post. Atticus (which oddly enough is also my dogs name), put so much feeling  into each poeam with so few words. There was just so much depth in every poem and I highly recommend it. The poems are short, he started out with Instagram, but if you are a fan of Rupi Kaur I think you would love this collection as well.

 
⭐️⭐️ Against the Odds by Marjolijn Hof

I read this book because it was a selection from a read around the world book club that choses women writers. It is about a girl named Kiki who is trying to get her dad to stay home from his work as a doctor that takes him to dangerous areas. I am sad to say this book really didn’t work for me, the girl seem to be acting too young for her age. There seemed to be little supervision from her mother, which seemed odd. Over all just didn’t do it for me.

 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Annihilation by Jeff Vandermeer

I heard about this book a long time ago, when I found out it was going to become a movie this year I bought it right away. This is the story of a 13th expedition that is going in to a secluded area known as Area X, many expeditions did not return or committed suicide and the last one came back as  shadows of their former selves. I loved this book, it was weird and fast paced and I just had to know what was going to happen next. The book is odd and probably not for everyone but if you have been considering it….pick it up!!

 

Alright so those are the first five books I read this year, I hope you guys like the new format I am trying for wrap ups. If you have read any of these books please comment down below and we can chat about them.

The Sacrifice by Indrajit Garai

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I received a free copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.

This is a collection of three short stories, which all have a common theme of sacrifice in one way or another. It starts with The Move about a dairy farmer who sacrifices it all for his son; then The Listener about a boy who risks his life for his favourite tree; and finally The Sacrifice about a grandfather who gives up everything for his grandson.

This collection was very interesting to me. At first I was a little worried that the stories would be similar to each other and therefore redundant. No worries there, every loss was completely individual: the theme of sacrifice was shown in a great variety. They were all major decisions all for very different reasons, besides the fact that they were for family or a friend of sort. They were almost beautiful in a way.

One thing that I found interesting in the collection is that all the sacrifices were made by men for their loved ones, I think because of stereotypes: I assumed there would be a mother making a sacrifice for her children. I really appreciated seeing a father taking that role.

I find it hard to talk about character development in short stories, since we get thrown in the middle of a life changing event for each of them. But we are given just enough of their history to see where they started out and how they got to this position. So I think it is safe to say that in their own ways, we saw a change in the character even if it meant looking back rather than watching it happen in present time – which I found to be an interesting way to look at someone’s life choices.

The writing style was a little different from what I am used to, but I found that it really enveloped me into the stories. Garai’s writing has a way of bringing up almost hidden emotions. They are subtle. They hit harder than it seems while reading. I found myself thinking of the stories a week later and the feelings were still as fresh as if I had just closed the book.

If I had to pick one I think I would say my favourite story was The Sacrifice. But, to be honest they all bring something different to the table, and they evoke emotions in different ways.

Overall if you are trying out short stories and are new the genre then this might be a good start-off point. The stories are a bit longer and have a concrete ending. Even if you are an old pro, I still think this is worth picking up.

I’m Back…. Finally

Hello everybody,

I am back, and happy to say that my absence was because I got to go on vacation to Seoul, South Korea….To meet my boyfriends parents. And, I am pleased to announce it went great!! So we spent two weeks in Seoul and we went to watch an Olympic hockey game in a nearby city.  I got to be a tourist with my boyfriend and his mom giving me a personal tour. I got to see all lots of stuff: from museums and a palace to a themed cafe. I though I would share some pictures for you guys:

Thanks for checking it out, and I’ll have a few book reviews coming, they are written just need some editing:)