Off The Shelf

{Already missing the summer days} So it seems yet again, I have taken an unintended hiatus. I promise, it was not intentional. I am ready to return, to tell what I've been reading, and to post reviews in the coming weeks. But first, there is quite a bit of book-related news to share and be excited about. Let's catch up on a few things, shall we? The New York Times  has reconstructed their Bestsellers List once again, expanding the Children's list to include hardcover, paperback, and e-book editions .   Go Set a Watchman , Harper Lee's much-anticipated sequel to her 1960 classic, has been on the Bestsellers List for 9 weeks and sold over 700,000 copies in its first 6 days on the shelves.  Bloomsbury Publishing and artist Jim Kay have teased illustrations from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone: The Illustrated Edition . The book will be released October 6th, but is currently available for pre-order.  Speaking of Harry Potter...his son Ja...

{Driving north on Vermont 100, is always happier than driving south, towards home} I spent last week up in Waitsfield, Vermont, skiing Sugarbush with my family. The weather was great, the snow was good, and I felt the happiest I had been in a while. To get to Waitsfield, we drive through New York state, and when we finally cross the border into Vermont, the journey further northward continues on Vermont 100.  On this trip, I sat in the back seat of our Jeep Cherokee, looking out of the window for most of the way, watching the mile count on the green road signs dwindle with excitement. The further north we traveled, the taller the mountains became, the denser the forests, the fewer cars on the road. Red barns and silos, cloudy skies, and a popping sound in my ear as the incline became steeper.  I've discovered over the years that long car rides are one of the perfect times to think - that speeding along roads, watching the outdoors blur past, is both quiet and ...

{Standing in front of the Library of Columbia University}   On Monday, I attended Columbia University's Scholastic Fall Press Conference with other staff members of our school's yearbook, newspaper, and literary arts magazine. Although the day started off by sitting in two hours of traffic, the rest of the day was extremely worthwhile.   Attendees were able to tour the campus (which is absolutely beautiful, I might add) and go to several workshops instructed by notable professors and speakers.   Workshops I attended: Nuts and Bolts for Magazines - learn about all of the essential tools needed to create a cohesive and readable literary magazine Writing Song Lyrics/Poetry (Inspiration and Craft) - discover how to search for inspiration for your writing in everyday life "Journalism Students are Destined to be Poor" and Other Stupid Lies, Debunked - learn about what jobs are available for writers and commun...

{6. Hydrangeas}   I thought I would blog only once on this vacation, but I couldn't help but share five more things that help make Cape Cod so special for me.   In the backyard here, there are several hydrangea bushes. The blue ones are my favorite, but there is a house around the corner with vibrant purple flowers, and a white one with yellow hues.   After getting ice cream this evening, we visited The Brewster Store. This general store is always filled buckets and baskets of odds and ends - wind up cars, refrigerator magnets, soaps, maps, and greeting cards. It's the perfect place to buy a souvenir or a kitchen item your rental house seemed to neglect.    {7. The Brewster  General Store}   {8. Harbors}  {9. The Cape Cod Rail Trail } Besides the beach, the CCRT is probably the one place on the Cape where I have spent the most time. The rides are always incredibly scenic, whether you are passing the cranberry bo...

{1. Lighthouses} For as long as I can remember, my family has been coming to Cape Cod for our summer vacation. Over the many years of staying in homes anywhere from Harwich to Orleans, there are many things I have come to love. The following photographs are five of these things.   Usually the mornings here are foggy and a little chilly, but this week the temperatures are much warmer. This hotter weather has certainly not kept us indoors though! We kayaked yesterday to the Stage Harbor Lighthouse (shown above), and this morning rode our bikes to the  Hot Chocolate Sparrow for lunch by way of the Cape Cod Rail Trail.    {2. Fishermen's Cedar Shake Sided Shacks  }   {3. Local Farm Stands}   {4. Cranberry Bogs} Along those rides we passed numerous cranberry bogs, each very green and very picturesque. As we shifted into higher, and faster gears, we whirled past small ponds and thickly settled cottages, a rustic general...

It has been much too long since I have posted here, but I finally have something exciting to write about. Last Wednesday, I was choosen to attend the Teen Arts Festival as a representative of my school in the Creative Writing category. It was a day-long event filled with feedback seminars, art-viewing, and workshops for all kinds of artists. In attending the Writing Feedback Seminar, I received great praise for my short story, as well as advise and suggestions about the writing life in general. Attendees were placed in small groups of four to five, and were able to read aloud their writing while others looked on with their own copies. After this session, a friend and I attended a poetry reading, where anyone was welcome to make their way to the podium and read aloud. The rest of the day was spent viewing dance performances, browsing the art exhibits and getting a bite to eat in the cafeteria. Overall, it was a fantastic day, and I hope I get the oppo...

As I think I stated in a previous post, my English class had been reading the famous play The Crucible by Arthur Miller. The Crucible was written in 1953, in the midst of The Cold War, but with a setting during the Salem Witch Trials which took place in the 1690s. I finished the story a few weeks ago, but we completed watching the film just yesterday. Right after the final scene, when John Proctor, Rebecca Nurse, and Martha Corey are hung, my teacher stopped the film for a minute or two, at the very final image: a close-up of the rope, against a beautiful bluebird sky. At this point, the whole class was trying to stifle their tears, but she just turned to us and said, "Write." She then continued to say, "Write about the rope. What's the point? Channel your emotions, and write." She gave us about ten minutes or so before we shared them out loud, but I've taken the time to develop my piece a bit more here: The Rope A rope is something strong and roug...

Yesterday, I posted the first half of a story written during a discussion I started on Goodreads. It is a fan's take on what happened after the book Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K Rowling. By clicking here , you can read the rest of the story. This material is the compiled work of several Goodreads members, and therefore what they contributed is their property. I have listed their usernames on the bottom of the document to give credit where credit is due. Please respect that. Thank you. To read the previous part of the story, click here

The following was a discussion I started on Goodreads, a website that allows readers to talk, share and write about what they are reading or have read. I figured as Harry and Ginny's wedding scene never made it into the book or the movie of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K Rowling, it would be fun to write it as a group: The Weasley's kitchen table was covered in white envelopes, each with a neatly folded piece of parchment inside. Three quills floated above them, addressing them without a hand. Harry leaned over the table and studied some that had already been addressed. Written in perfect script, were names like: Professor Neville Longbottom, Mr. and Mrs. George and Angelina Weasley, Ms. Luna Lovegood, and Professor Horace Slughorn. Behind him, Harry heard the creaking of the stairs. Ron appeared beside him. “What are you doing down here?” said Harry. “Mum sent me down here to keep you occupied. You are not allowed upstairs.” Ron replied. “Why not?” “...

Just as a reminder, "Something to Think About" posts are short poems or passages from novels that I think send a message to think about during your busy days. The following passage is from the book Paper Towns by John Green which I finished yesterday (a review will be coming shortly), so I figured I would post my favorite part here. "When I've thought about him dying, which admittedly isn't that much, I always thought of it like you said, that all of the strings inside him broke. But there are a thousand ways to look at it: maybe the strings break, or maybe our ships sink, or maybe we're grass; our roots so interdependent that no one is dead as long as someone is alive....If you choose the grass, you're saying that we are all infinitely interconnected, that we can use these root systems not only to understand one another but to become one another. Maybe it's like you said before, all of us being cracked open. Like each of us starts out as a water...

I am now beginning a new series of posts entitled "Something to Think About". These posts will consist of a poem, or passage from a story in which I hope you will take the time to think about during your very busy days. I might even share my own thoughts as well. We'll start the first post off with... The Road Not Taken Robert Frost Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth; Then took the other, as just as fair, And having perhaps the better claim, Because it was grassy and wanted wear. Though as for that the there Had worn them really about the same, And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back. I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and age...