Doctor Who: The Writer’s Tale: The Final Chapter

by Russell T Davies, Benjamin Cook

A fascinating look at the creative life of the hit BBC series, Doctor Who: The Writer’s Tale is executive producer Russell T. Davies’ personal tour of the Doctor’s universe. A unique collection of correspondence between Russell and writer Benjamin Cook, the book explores in detail Russell’s work on Doctor Who Series 4, revealing how he plans the series and works with the show’s writers. Fully illustrated with script pages, personal notes, and never-before-seen photos and artwork, The Writer’s Tale is a love letter to television, and a fitting tribute to one of the most popular family dramas of all time.

(That description is for the first book published, but The Final Chapter — as seen on the left — is the second installment.  It includes the whole first book plus 300 more pages of content as Russell wrote his final special episodes for Doctor Who.)

First of all, this is not a book about How To Write.  Russell even says so himself in the emails he has with Ben.  This is an open and honest glimpse inside the head of one of the greatest TV writers (in my opinion) of all time.

The very first thing that caught me about this book was how Russell’s voice jumps off the page.  He’s hilarious and insightful and I don’t care what he’s writing about, I could read it FOREVER and never lose interest.  His voice is just that strong.  And in nearly 700 pages of emails and text messages, NEVER ONCE did this book drag.

I found myself (more than once) literally laughing out loud, worried I’d wake Super Spawn because I couldn’t stop laughing at what was on the page. As a writer, there was so much of this book I could relate to — watching the in-the-moment feelings of writing something new of a writer of Russell’s caliber, and seeing the same fears and anxieties that I have is…well, enlightening to say the least.

And as a Doctor Who fan, it adds a whole new depth of understanding to the stories and the workings of the show itself.

I can honestly, and without hesitation, say that this is the best book I’ve ever read about writing.  Ever.  Bar none.  And it skyrocketed it’s way up there to be one of my Favorite Books Ever.  That’s pretty huge.

There isn’t a better word to describe this book than BRILLIANT. It’s hilarious and inspiring and heartfelt and so, so much more.

I really can’t recommend it enough.  Just ask Erinn, I’ve been gushing about it for a week as I was reading it. 

Divergent

by Veronica Roth

In Beatrice Prior’s dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can’t have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles to determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating boy fits into the life she’s chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she’s kept hidden from everyone because she’s been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves… or it might destroy her.

The one thing that struck me with this book was how incredibly real it all felt.  The world, the characters, everything about this society has a ring of truth as you read it.  Roth makes it easy to imagine that a society like this could exist in our future, and I think that’s because of her intricate attention to detail.  Really, not a single bit of information was missed in building this future world.

Tris is probably the best part of it all.  Her character is flawed and easy to like, she’s impulsive yet careful — she has all the contradictory, yet normal, thoughts and actions of any teenager.  That absolutely brings the story to life. 

Four is a huge part of the success of this story as well, in my opinion.  I won’t go into any detail, as I don’t want to spoil any plot points, but suffice it to say that he’ll keep you guessing.

It’s not often that a book sticks with me enough to take me there in my dreams, but this one did.  It crept into my thoughts for days after reading it, which tells you something right there.  If you haven’t read DIVERGENT yet (sometimes I think I was the last one on this boat), then you should.  It is fantastic.

Also, I’d like to direct you to another review from the SOMETHING STRANGE AND DEADLY ARC Tour over at The Book Slayer, who says, “This book rated right up there with Divergent and Angefall.”

These three novellas (and a fourth due out in July) by Sarah J. Maas are leading up to the beginning of her debut YA novel THRONE OF GLASS, which is coming out August 7, 2012 from Bloomsbury!

Past Perfect

by Leila Sales

All Chelsea wants to do this summer is hang out with her best friend, hone her talents as an ice cream connoisseur, and finally get over Ezra, the boy who broke her heart. But when Chelsea shows up for her summer job at Essex Historical Colonial Village (yes, really), it turns out Ezra’s working there too. Which makes moving on and forgetting Ezra a lot more complicated…even when Chelsea starts falling for someone new.

Maybe Chelsea should have known better than to think that a historical reenactment village could help her escape her past. But with Ezra all too present, and her new crush seeming all too off-limits, all Chelsea knows is that she’s got a lot to figure out about love. Because those who don’t learn from the past are doomed to repeat it….

I read this one because of Susan’s fantastic review, and I’m so glad I did!

First of all, the setting of this story is what really makes it stand out.  I mean, a Colonial Village reenactment…how much more original can you get?  It was really fun for me to read, because something my mom, sister, and I did a lot when I was growing up was visit sites like these.  So to “see the other side” was very entertaining.  And to see it from Chelsea’s perspective, well…that took it to an even higher level of awesome.

One thing I adored about this book (aside from its oh-so-cute cover) was the laugh-out-loud quality of the writing.  Chelsea is a wonderful character to read.  Not a single dull moment exists when you’re in her head.  All the characters in this book are full of life and realistic, it’s super easy to get sucked into.

Plus, the boys.  Oh the boys!  And the kissing!  It’s fantastic.

If you’re looking for a fun, light read with a great romantic side, definitely pick this one up.  I enjoyed it immensely.  The bonus is how cute it looks on my bookshelf. 

Have any of you read it?  What did you think?

Lola and the Boy Next Door

by Stephanie Perkins

Budding designer Lola Nolan doesn’t believe in fashion . . . she believes in costume. The more expressive the outfit — more sparkly, more fun, more wild — the better. But even though Lola’s style is outrageous, she’s a devoted daughter and friend with some big plans for the future. And everything is pretty perfect (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the dreaded Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket, return to the neighborhood.

When Cricket — a gifted inventor — steps out from his twin sister’s shadow and back into Lola’s life, she must finally reconcile a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door.

I love it when I have high expectations for a book and it delivers. I sat down with this late in the afternoon and finished it at 1am despite my own resolution to actually SLEEP. That’s when you know a book rocks.

Stephanie Perkins is a sublimely talented author.  (If you still haven’t read ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS, get thee to a book store pronto!)  Her characters are all so full of life.  Cricket is possibly the most endearing boy love-interest-type character EVER.  He is AMAZING.  And that’s not to take anything from Lola because she was such a fresh and original personality to read, it was fantastic.

A total huge bonus was getting to see Anna and Etienne.  (They’re still my favorite, but shhhhh, don’t tell Lola.  I love her too it’s just that whole “first love” thing, you know? lol)

Let’s just be honest.  I recommend Stephanie Perkins’s books to everyone.  Seriously everyone.  Her writing has that make-you-squirm-in-your-seat realness to it that I can’t get enough of.  It really will take you back to how it felt to be a teenager and deal with all these crazy emotions and boys and dads and their ridiculousness.

Just read it. 

Now let’s all gush together.  Tell me, did you love it too?