The Chrysalids

"If you run away from a thing just
because you don't like it, you don't
like what you find either."

Title: The Chrysalids

Author: John Wyndham

First Published: 1955


Series: Stand-alone

Genre: Classic, Dystopia

Available As: Paperback, hardcover, ebook

My Rating: 7.5/10

Watch thou for the mutant! These phrases has stuck with David all his life. Anyone found with a deviation must be killed. At first, David believes in this saying, but as the years go by, he slowly by slowly loses his faith. He just doesn't understand! What makes them so different, just because of a small physical difference? Until David realises he also has a
deviation. And everything is now at stake.

Reading The Chrysalids was like a taste of fresh dystopia. It was told a bit differently from the dystopian books we read nowadays. It is almost scary how much Wyndham was close to predicting how our world is like now.

David started off as a young, naive boy in the beginning. He blindly accepted everything that was happening, even when he knew it was wrong. Throughout the book, he slowly opens his mind more and more to the world around him, and he finally understands how it is wrong to live the way he has lived all his life.

One thing irked me in the book though. Why does David have to fall in love with Rosalind? And vice versa? But I guess, love is love and there is no controlling it.

The ending is an open ending. We never really find out what happens to all the characters (do we ever?), and all we know is that most of them will get their happy ending. This was a really good dystopian book, written about half a century ago. Does it remind us of our world today? In some ways, it does. These older dystopian books aren't really just for enjoyment (although it can be), but rather some kind of foreshadowing, if we're assuming our whole existence is like a book. Foreshadowing for a future that is yet to come.

Winter Reads

Winter is here! And it's the perfect time to find a great book to snuggle and read with. A cup of hot chocolate anyone? Cookies? Gingerbread cookies? Or... Starbucks? Tea?

Enough about food. What about the books?!

Here in this little post, I'll give you a small list of my all-time favourite books to read during the winter, and maybe you would like to check them out! Or maybe tell me your favourite winter books, if you have any!

Let's begin.

1. Let It Snow by John Green, Maureen Johnson and Lauren Myracle. Who doesn't love this book for Christmas-y feels? It is a winter romance anyways. Three little stories about different people. But they all link together in the end! It's really cute, and I love how they seem to intertwine and end. It's a really sweet story; what can you expect from these three authors? They're the best!

2. Girl Online by Zoe Sugg. It's a cute love story, but it's not only about love. It's also about life, facing fears, and standing up for what's right. Who doesn't love a story with so many different themes? Oh yeah, the main character Penny is also a kind girl, and it's hard not to like her.

3. Sweet Honey by Cathy Cassidy. It's actually the fifth book in the Chocolate Box Girls series, but who cares? Although, it may be better if you read the first few books in the series. It's great, really. It's about Honey turning over a new leaf, but of course, the past never really goes away. Like they say!

4. My True Love Gave To Me, which is a collection of 12 short stories. The stories are very cute, and the short stories are written by famous romance authors! The book was put together by Stephanie Perkins, and it's really pretty.

Are there more? Yeah! Of course! They're tons of books to read over the winter, and here are just some suggestions. If you have any recommendations, feel free to just comment!

Stay warm, and read a book!

Girl Online

"Every time you post something online
you have a choice."

Title: Girl Online

Author: Zoe Sugg (A.K.A Zoella)

First Published: 2014

Series: Stand alone

Available As: Hardcover

My Rating: 8.5/10

Under the pseudonym 'Girl Online', Penny writes all about her life, her troubles, her happiness on her anonymous blog. It was just her way of escaping her life and be herself. She was able to write all her feelings without the fear of being found out. Except for her best friend Elliot, of course. He was the only one who knew about her blog.

When her parents bring Penny to America to help with organising a wedding, she meets the charming, mysterious, sweet Noah. The guy that seems to be her soulmate, her first love. Life just seemed to get a lot better in a couple of days. And of course, she blogs about this Brooklyn Boy. But, what if her sweet relationship just got a whole lot sour?

Girl Online was such a great book about facing your fears and first love. Penny was an awkward, down-to-earth girl, who is likeable. She learned to face her fears and conquer them through many different ways, thanks to the support of her family and friends. She's quiet, shy, but also stands up for what's right. And this book can teach you so much.

This here is Penny's tent. Keep out!
... unless your name is Noah.

Girl Online is Zoe's first novel, and it was written perfectly. It had those moments where you would just want to melt, cry or laugh at the same time. It was very mature, and told exactly from the perspective of a teenage girl. Overall, it was a really good read, and it is perfect for a warm winter day.

Why winter? I don't know. Probably because I read this during winter. By the way, don't you wish for a tent with fairy lights? How beautiful would that be?