hello there invisible readers,
yeah, today is an ok day. i'm sick. that's right, the black plague finally got me.
also i am sad. i guess since this is the internet it would be in my best interest to not post the reasons, but i can rebel by not using capitalization. that's right. ooh rah.
this may be the weakest post i've ever posted to my blog, but in retrospect this is the weakest i've ever felt while posting. oh the irony.
- Sadness.
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![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif?v=88.8)
englishgentlman- December 15th, 2011
sad
- The Hunger Games Movie is COMING!!!!
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- englishgentlman
- October 17th, 2011
giddy
Beloved Readers,
Oh. my. god. Years of anticipation and suffering are finally coming to an end. If you are as interested in the progress of the Hunger Games movie as I am then you might enjoy my favorite Movie-stalking site:
http:// www.myhungergames.com !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I live in fear, that my hope will lead to nothing and that this movie will be another Eragon. NOOOOOOOOOOO.
Well bye bye for now, this is a pretty short entry...- we'll talk again later yeah? ;)
-Englishgentlman
- Official Book Review #4
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- englishgentlman
- April 7th, 2011
working
BOOKSNEEZE BOOK REVIEW # 4:
"Will the World End in 2012?"
by Raymond C. Hundley PH.D
Well hello my invisible readers! Today I'll be reviewing this book I recieved from the lovely company of Booksneeze.com where you can get and review free books at your leisure!
Ok. . .will the world end in 2012, where to begin. First off might I just say that the cover of the book is really pretty which was one of the reasons it attracted me (wow- the graphics impressed me more than the world ending- I think I need to reprioritize ^^)
This is a nice book for those of you who are really interested in doomsday theories, it goes through around ten different possibilities and then elaborates on each one in each chapter- pretty straight forward. The writing style was fine, but it did drag on a bit. The intro to the title of this book is "A Christian Guide" but apart from the scripture in chapter 10, there really wasn't much christianity in it- which was totally fine with me because I'm athiest, but depends on the person- you might want that feature so keep that in mind. Personally I just felt like it dragged on a bit and got bored; also the ideas just don't seem very well backed-up I read online about one of his sources and it's some random guy's blog that he hadn't updated in half a year...that's a little too sketchy of a source for me. Honesty I've been putting off this review for a while because this book is just so blah, not too much fun, and more than a couple pages already becomes a chore. Even though I gained a bit more insight into what sort of things doomsday theorists dream about at night and spell with their alphabet soup, I was glad it was a thin book that could be read moderatly fast. (not that you would know considering how long it's taken me to get around to writing about it!) A lot of this book is Hundley fleshing out personal opinions- I would give this book one or two stars out of 5, not my cup of tea at all. Unless you're super super interested in this specific subject, englishgentlman is suggesting- don't buy this one.
- Whiny Teenage Blogs
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- englishgentlman
- January 16th, 2011
cold
here is some classy music for my invisible readers to listen to my ramblings to- enjoy.
EXPERIANCE THE PURE AND EPIC WRATH OF DANNY ELFMAN's MAGICAL COMPOSITION!!!!!!!! Hello Invisible Readers,
I'm going to put off my book review once again to talk about something that nobody will ever read- Whiny Teenage Blogs. Truth to be told, I just finished the incredibly unrealistic yet incredibly entertaining movie- Easy A. The main character Olive, she has this online video blog where she talks about her life problems, I have a blog, but- um, let's be honest, or in this case let me be honest with myself. Nothing turns out like it does in the movies, as cliche as that sounds, no incredibly attractive guy that lives within a 50 miles radius is going to sit down at his computer and read this entry, and be like .. . . hmmm.. .. . now this is a girl that I never noticed. . .and suddenly. . .THE EMOTION BURSTS FROM WITHIN ME. . . .. I MUST. . . .GO. .. . GO AND . . . .BUY HER FLOWERS!!!!!!! . . .. I MUST TELL HER HOW I HAVE PINED FOR HER EVERYDAY SINCE THE 2ND GRADE!!!!!!. . . oH GOD WHY DIDN"T I SEE IT BEFORE?!?!?!?!?!!??! . . . .hahahaha. . . .cracks me up. . .. oh how sad. . . . god now I'm depressed. . . .hahahahaha
Next time I want a pick-me-up I shouldn't watch a movie where the girl with the questionable popularity and social issues looks like she could be modeling for Victoria's Secret- why can't Hollywood get it right? Cause it wouldn't sell .. . yeah yeah. . .I've heard it all before.. .
I wonder how many teenagers even do blogs anymore; hmmm, youtube seems to be the calling to popularity these days. What is the psychology behind writing in these things anyway. . .
Blogs are supposed to be the place were people talk about sexting and commiting suicide. . . I'm like the nerd of the blog world hahahahaha I love it .. I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!
well- whats more entertaining than social failure; I endorse it- it's incredibly refreshing; I'm a proud intellectual. That's what I don't get, nerds, geeks, and losers- I don't know how it works in the traditional High School system, but it sure came in handy to care about academic success when I got into college. Hey- I'm just saying. . .. let's be rational here and try and get along.
oh and by the way *cough** booksneeze books are great- check it out. bye!!!!!!
- It's Been A While. .. but who reads my blog anyway. . .hahahahaha...
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- englishgentlman
- January 13th, 2011
on verge of loosing my wits
Dear Invisible Readers of my Blog,
I feel like going crazy with the font... How are you? It's been almost a year since my last post, which means that one reader I had "Term Paper" is probably long gone. oh sadness. I am going to start reviewing books again, I'm not going to bore you with the myrad of excuses which detained me from the computer desk- let's just say there were many. haha but I'm back in action!!! I am soon going to review the book "Will the World end in 2012" a book that I've been holding on to for about 9 months from booksneeze and never got around to reviewing. I have a completely new schedule of courses at school, among them a very interesting AP Psychology class, Film class, and Portfolio class! Oh this year is SO much better than last year- I actually enjoy the subjects ^^ I am actually really enjoying English class again for the first time in a while, and it's even an AP Class. . .way to go Ms. Nile. . . :D ...props. . .. hmmm. . .anything else?. . .
oh! something interesting and book related- I read some readings for Librivox recordings and had a great time! Are you guys familiar with Librivox.org? Let me explain:
Librivox.org is similar to the Gutenburg Project (an online project which strives to, upload to the internet and, create widespread availability of texts up to a certain point- with no copyright; so old books are there!) Well- Librivox is like that, but instead of in print, it comes in audiobooks. And the coolest part is- everything is read by volunteers, and they're really good! It is refreshing to hear somebody's hardwork, good diction, and storytelling skills- knowing that they are like me, and not highly trained actors being paid by the half hour. I did a reading of a fairy tale, and really enjoyed myself- that's why it's so beautiful- anybody with a computer, internet, and a microphone can do this. I highly reccomend it, and if recording isn't your fancy, the site is filled with awesome books for everybody; from a variety of really great readers. (seriously, some of these people must have pro training, cause. .. .they are gooooood.)
It's almost midnight, and I have to go to academy-a-la-annoying tommorow morning- so I guess I'll wrap it up. OH! funny tangental anecdote; We've been out of school for 2/3 days because of snow, and now we are actually expected to go back and learn- Surley there is some black ice sneaking into hidden corners of the road that shouldn't allow us to go to school- *sigh** I forgot the point of this story- too tired to think rational,
talk to you later~Englishgentlman
- Book Review #3: Why You Say It
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- englishgentlman
- April 10th, 2010
apathetic
Why You Say It
{THE FASCINATING STORIES BEHIND OVER 600 EVERYDAY WORDS AND PHRASES}By: Webb GarrisonHello! Welcome to the blog of englishgentlman :D. This book is another piece of literature graciously given to me by booksneeze.com as a review product~ a great company!
Description of the book given on the market:
The Fascinating stories behind over 600 everyday words and phrases such as...
Shindig - A veteran square dance caller will tell you that bruised shins result from the swigging feet of beginning dancers. A dance that leaves telltale marks on the lower legs of participants is a shindig.Alibi - The word is taken straight from Latin and means "elsewhere." The perfect "alibi" is to prove one was "elsewhere" when the deed was done.
And many more...
My thoughts: Although this is usually not the case, I would venture to say that the description for this book given by the "salesmen" is actually pretty accurate. It is exactly as it is described- a book similar to a dictionary in format which gives a short paragraph or less about each word and phrase. It is not a very captivating read for hours on end, but it is ok for a quick read, a phrase a day, or what have you. Some of the words seemed very random while others just seemed extraneous, like they just needed to get past 600 words- but I will say that there are some interesting descriptions. (Sometimes the descriptions weren't satisfying enough though- like it lacked a couple more sentences of explanation.) Believing that I live in a perfect world, I did approach the book a couple at different times with some phrases and words that I really wanted an explanation for- they were really really common phrases- and none of them were featured, a little disappointed i'm not going to lie. But that is not the book's fault so I'm going to stop rambling. My final thoughts are- it was ok, I'm not going to jump into the street to push it out of oncoming traffic that it didn't see when it was carelessly crossing the street and risk my life, but I might shout WATCH OUT or something- that's about the level of caring. xD anyhow. I would say meh ~> buy it for your bathroom, or check it out from the library to read while you wait for your kid to get out of soccer practice.
- Buried Alive- Book Review #2
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- englishgentlman
- March 1st, 2010
tired
Official Booksneeze Review #2
Buried Alive
(The true story of a kidnapping, captivity, and a dramatic rescue.)
By: Roy HallumsHello everyone today I will continue my booksneeze reviewing with another book called Buried Alive by Roy Hallums. The story is advertised as:
"In November 2004 Roy Hallums was working late at his office in Iraq at the Saudi Arabian Trading and Construction Company, supposedly well-protected by armed security guards, when four kidnappers broke in and hauled him away at gunpoint. The next ten months were the darkest of his life. Hallums spent most of his time in a concrete pit beneath a farmhouse, constantly bound and blindfolded. A small pipe in the ceiling provided the room's only oxygen - and its only link to the outside world. Hallums banked on one group in particular not forgetting his existence-the US military. And sure enough, on September 7, 2006, they successfully rescued him. This is the edge-of-your-seat story of a trip through hell for Hallums, the daring rescue mission, and faith that brought him through the experience."
My thoughts on the book were varied. I decided to read this book under the impression that it would be frightening and eye opening. I think that it was able to satisfy those predictions; as far as, gut wrenching horror for the man as he lives through this hell that he is plunged into, I'm not exactly sure if that's how I would describe it. Roy Hallums is a brave and amazing man to have been able to survive such a horrible situation and then be mentally stable enough to write it all down in a book. That being said the book's writing from a critical standpoint was ok, not terrible not great. As Roy's ex-wife will say in the book, Roy is a laid back guy, and that is sort of what the story feels like. It's almost as if he is telling all the things that happened to him like a narrative and not with the emotion of actually having been the one in pain. It's sort of a strange thing. I do not know Mr. Hallums personally so I have no way of knowing if that is just his way of being or if he needed that disconnect to be able to write the story.
I would say that the story was interesting and informative but not " edge-of-your-seat" as it is described in the sales pitch. It is apparent that there are certain biases (religious and political) in the book that some readers may or may not agree with, but they did not bother me at all, and certainly not to an extent were I didn't want to read the book anymore. There were a couple points were I had to push to finish reading becasue everything slowed down so much- but I suppose to a certain extent that just shows the monotony of Mr. Hallums days. I have neither a great or bad review for this book- so, I suppose reading it or not is the decision of the buyer if this is the type of literature that they like, it has a lot of information about Iraq and the state of relations between the US and Iraq. Also social customs and many other tidbits of information that are interesting no doubt.
- City of Thieves- profanity never made me laugh so much
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- englishgentlman
- February 23rd, 2010
sore
A quick explanation of my mood: I"M SO SORE. . .OMG I"M SORE, i've been running; i'm sore, uh h hh hhhhuuuuu *sobbing*
*looks at watch* yay complaining time is over! :D
HELLO EVERYONE! The time has come. . . Best Sellers Book Club has provided me with yet another wonderful book that I feel like talking about. . .. . . . .. .The City of Thieves
by: David Benioff
and here's the picture (except you can't look inside, that would be too easy, xD wat? )Ok so the book synapsis:
Author and screenwriter Benioff follows up The 25th Hour with this hard-to-put-down novel based on his grandfather's stories about surviving WWII in Russia. Having elected to stay in Leningrad during the siege, 17-year-old Lev Beniov is caught looting a German paratrooper's corpse. The penalty for this infraction (and many others) is execution. But when Colonel Grechko confronts Lev and Kolya, a Russian army deserter also facing execution, he spares them on the condition that they acquire a dozen eggs for the colonel's daughter's wedding cake. Their mission exposes them to the most ghoulish acts of the starved populace and takes them behind enemy lines to the Russian countryside. There, Lev and Kolya take on an even more daring objective: to kill the commander of the local occupying German forces. A wry and sympathetic observer of the devastation around him, Lev is an engaging and self-deprecating narrator who finds unexpected reserves of courage at the crucial moment and forms an unlikely friendship with Kolya, a flamboyant ladies' man who is coolly reckless in the face of danger. Benioff blends tense adventure, a bittersweet coming-of-age and an oddly touching buddy narrative to craft a smart crowd-pleaser.
My response, an enthusiastic 7 thumbs up! *small golf clap* I really enjoyed this book; i can't quite place the reason for it, because usually I'm not into the whole war book thing, but this book wasn't really taking place in battle so maybe that explains it. The book isn't really a comedy, in fact it could be interpreted as depressing if you wanted it to spin that way, but it just has such simple and circumstancial humor that reminds you of funny everyday events that don't revolve around a plot line (well . . .at least MY life doesn't have plot line. . .) It's just like a slice of life really. There is a fair share of profanity and explicit "stuff" but I thought it was manigable and honestly that stuff never really bothers me anyway. The explicit stuff was just funny to me- maybe i'm twisted in the head, but read it yourself and prove me wrong. xD It really provided for a "corking" time (as Fred and George from Harry Potter would say). The characters have a charm about them, even though their surroundings and frankly their bodies are severly. . em i don't know destitute, decrepid, crrrrap- they still have this specialness in them, that makes you want to read more about them, and really care what happens to them. Koyla can charm the ladies in and out of the books xD, not really but, he has a funny personality.
My final comment: my rating of the books is good, which as always by my scale means- this is a yes, go read it, yes you, GO, now, enjoy it :D *pause* I toldddd you that you would like it. . .hahahaahah ho ho ho
- The Hunger Games Trilogy- Book Three, a time for joyous celebration.
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- englishgentlman
- February 17th, 2010
enthralled
Today I stumbled across this timer (http://www.scholastic.com/thehungergames/downloads/index.htm) for book three from the Hunger games trilogy today. It is a wonderous and beautiful contraption. . . If you haven't already read the Hunger Games books I highly recommend them, they provide entertainment to all types of readers, from the ones yearning for blood, to the ones searching for a little love. Seriously- it is a great read, enjoyed by both males and femals. The description from the site is: Twenty-four are forced to enter. Only the winner survives.
In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. Each year, the districts are forced by the Capitol to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the Hunger Games, a brutal and terrifying fight to the death – televised for all of Panem to see.Survival is second nature for sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who struggles to feed her mother and younger sister by secretly hunting and gathering beyond the fences of District 12. When Katniss steps in to take the place of her sister in the Hunger Games, she knows it may be her death sentence. If she is to survive, she must weigh survival against humanity and life against love.
You may think that this is not your type of book~ but believe me, this is everyone's type of book, at least in my opinion xD and i have a little bit of a bias. BUT SERIOUSLY give it an honest chance~ you won't be disapointed.
Also by the way the books are, Book 1: The Hunger Games (released), Book 2: Catching Fire (released), Book 3: Mockingjay (being written) so look forward to it! I know I am!
- Book Review #1: Revolve 2010: The Complete New Testament
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- englishgentlman
- February 1st, 2010
bored
Review #1
Revovle 2010: The Complete New TestamentSo hello guys welcome back to my blog! Today I am going to speak on this book (or rather a magazine) I received in the mail from booksneeze.com. It is a New Testament (NVC) that is targeted towards female teenagers.
"With its sharp look and relevant articles, Revolve 2010 is a must-have for teenage girls! This 6th edition includes new and updated sidebars, features, and images! With over 1 million copies sold, this New Testament continues showing teen girls that the Bible is relevant to their lives."
It attempts to get teenage girls interested in biblical stories by applying them to modern 21st century teenage life. Good idea. Ok product. The format is attractive and colorful. It does a good job of making in visually pleasing, and even has sections that looks like a blog or a facebook page in order to introduce biblical characters. Also throughout the "biblezine" as it is called, there are cute little 17 Magazine type attempts to drag girls in with a picture of an attractive guy and dating tips, fashion, and friend problems at school. Basically my reaction ended up being- bored out of my WITS. Although it does a good job putting the stories from the new testament into understandable modern lingo, after getting to page 5 my brain couldn't take anymore preaching. I found myself skipping to the colored boxes with the more interesting quizzes and other "fun" additions (although corny). This magazine, has taken all the beauty of old scripture and reduced it to a very mentally taxing and corny advice column. Although there were times when the messages are positive such as morality, some of the entries were a bit sexist and degrading as well as contradictory. After generally catagorizing and labeling all girls and boys and how they act; it attempts to convince girls that they should never try and pursue a boy- and that boys have to learn to do it themselves to "grow their guts muscle". Instead of making me want to follow the "teachings", it made me feel slightly put off, like "OH COME ON, THIS IS THE 21ST CENTURY, SORRY HONEY WAS I YELLING TOO LOUD, LET ME MAKE YOU A SANDWHICH AND MASSAGE YOUR FEET". Then it turns around and tells a touching success story of a girls with no date to prom who, although scared out of her wits, managed to ask a guy in her youth group and had a great time. My reaction- ?!?! I will say that I opened this biblezine with a complete open attitude, and being an atheist I hoped to learn something about the religious world that I didn't know- because although I may not be in perfect agreement with it, there is always something of value that can be taken away from most reading. I just found myself bored and annoyed~ I will say this: This biblezine may be ok for a shallow high school girl who wants the comfort of Jesus; because thats the only group I feel this would be perfectly targeted too. The magazine was that, Shallow!!!!!!!!! Stories made sense, but Yawn!!!! "Sometimes even free, is too expensive"- Dad; would apply to this; my final comment; I didn't feel any smarter after reading this; I'd rather buy Cosmo, and get yelled at by my mom for my life choices.
