By popular demand, I'll post something. And that something is... a list. Oh, joy.

Lately: I've been...

Reading manga.

Reading books: Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman, Persuasion by Jane Austen, and The Lions of Al-Rassan by Guy Gavriel Kay.

Working my butt off. I've been insanely busy the past weeks, but I've actually been having fun. leGASP! Yes. I'm not being sarcastic. I'm actually enjoying my job again. Of course, my schedule still sucks, and my wallet's still in agony, and bills have been screaming at me, but...yeah. I'm smiling again. Tiredly, but smiling nonetheless.

Planning for NaNoWriMo only to scrap all plans, and then replanning, and then scrapping them again, only to end up deciding to say "oh, whatever" and NOT to have any plans at all for it. At first I wanted to have an outline of some sort, or at least a main plot, before diving into this, but since I've ALWAYS planned my stories, I thought I'd try something new. And, hey, top-of-the-head writing is the whole point of NaNoWriMo, anyway. Heeheehee.

Writing Nathaniel and the Orphan. If you're my reader, do not fear. I am writing it. Seriously. I'm just... Having a really really hard time because I'm nearing the end of the book.

Rereading the Blue Star stories. Just for the heck of it. I didn't really plan to: one day I just saw my FPcom profile and saw my old titles. I checked out the first episode I ever wrote, and before I knew it, I was sucked into the Blue Star world all over again.

Trying to pick up The Death and Life of Matsuo Yuuji. Yes, omg, I tried to write a new chapter. I really did. I haven't written a word of it, though, but...I tried. Yes. I think this was brought about by my rereading of Blue Star. Haha!



So...obviously, I've been writing a whole lot of things (or trying, anyway) that if I actually had a writing blog, I would've had a gazillion posts already as I vent out my frustrations and crappy ideas. Heh.

Saturday, October 20, 2007

read :: October 2007

I was replying to a post in the Crystal Skies forums. I didn't intend the reply to be comprehensive, but when I finished writing it, I looked it over... and decided to post it here, as well.

This time last year, I was watching Victorian Romance Emma, Ouran High School Host Club, and The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi, among others. I was also a new employee in my company. The months went by, and more and more I got sucked into the lovely thing called WORK. My time for anything else was lessened, and... yeah. I won't get into any more details lest I begin to rant.

Anyway, I'm still a workaholic, but I'm proud to say that I've been slipping my hobbies back into my schedule. Hobbies, that is, that don't involve web design. I've been writing again, I've been playing the piano again, and I've been reading again. Wheeeee~ Right now, my stories have been getting good feedbacks, I've remastered three (going four) piano pieces, and my reading list is getting long.

Among the things I'm reading now is manga. Before, I was more into anime than the original manga, but somewhere in between, I saw the light. Read full post...

So, going back to my first sentence: I was replying to a post in a manga recommendation forum in Clear Skies. So here's my top 5 manga at the moment. Most of 'em are light romantic comedies, but they're all hilarious. Yey for comedy! Hehe.

I've been planning to write reviews for these five titles, but I never really got to. Meh. I already blogged about HanaKimi. It's more on the TV series, I suppose, but...anyway.

Here's my Top 5 ultimate favorite manga as of October 2007.

Hanazakiri no Kimitachi E
(For You in Full Blossom)
Summary: A girl begins to admire a high jumper, so she transfers to the high school he attends so that she could meet him. The catch, though, is that it's an all-boys' school. Does she fool everyone? Hell, yeah! ...right? (Mehehehehe.)
Genre: [shoujo] high school romantic comedy (it's got sports in it, too, but it's not a sports manga)
Status: Finished
What I love about it: The comedy! Oh my goodness the comedy. I love how insane things get while still amazingly staying within the boundaries of realism. Another thing is the dialogue and plot flow: Punch lines are delivered effortlessly, and serious points, when they do surface, always hit home. And the art? This is the perfect example of how comic books are so awesome because they convey emotions, be it inner turmoil or bubbling laughter, in a single frame.



Hagane no Renkenjutsushi
(Fullmetal Alchemist)
Summary: In a world where alchemy is a significant part of of life, a child prodigy attaches his dying brother's soul onto a suit of armor in order to save the younger boy's life. Guilt-ridden, he sets out with fierce determination to make things right and return his brother to his body. And he could do that with the Philosopher's Stone.

I initially wanted to type out "If you haven't read (or, at the very least, heard of) Fullmetal Alchemist, then you must be living under a rock." But that might be a little too harsh. HagaRen is extremely popular --and has full rights of being so-- but I discovered that a lot of anime and manga enthusiasts haven't ventured into the world of Edward Elric.
Genre: [shounen] action/adventure, fantasy (alchemy)
Status: Ongoing
What I love about it: Awesome action, surprising twists, superb art, incredibly hilarious ROFL comedy. Read the manga. It's far, far, FAR more awesome than the anime.


Nodame Cantabile
Summary: Extremely talented pianist and naturally gifted conductor. Another extremely talented pianist and your all-around weird girl. Put them together and what do you get? An impossibly addicting manga on classical music, love, and the love of music. And, yes, it's hilarious, too.
Genre: [josei] music, romantic comedy
Status: ongoing
What I love about it: If I'm to be totally blunt, I'd say that I wasn't really impressed with the art when I first started reading this. But since Miii recommended it to me (and since Miii is one of the girls I've been watching anime with since high school) I decided to give it a chance. Ha. I'm so very glad I did, because once the melody started floating a few pages into the series, I was hooked. (And I realized that the art is nice, after all.)

Musical types will appreciate this manga, lovers of comedy will enjoy the chemistry between the characters, romantics will love the hilarious scenes, and everyone's going to have a sudden renaissance and be interested in classical music. That's what I think, anyway.


Koukou Debut
(High School Debut)
Summary: Haruna had dedicated her life up until junior high to softball (and she's pretty good at it, too). So, upon stepping into high school, she sets out to get a boyfriend. Grow out the hair, put on the make-up, revamp the wardrobe. Easy, right? NOT!

Salvation comes, however, in the form of school heartthrob Yoh, whom Haruna believes can teach her what guys want. At first Yoh refuses because he hates women, but eventually agrees, on one condition: Haruna must never fall in love with him.
Genre: [shoujo] high school romantic comedy. COMEDY! Lol!
Status: ongoing
What I love about it: If you don't laugh at least once while reading this manga, I'd be surprised. What I love about this series (apart from the seamless movement from insanity to normalcy to seriousness to romance and back again) is its ability to make you all giddy or warm and fuzzy even without the usual things that make you giddy or warm and fuzzy. Heh. A breath of fresh air, really. Wonderful characters, awesome plotlines. Love it!



Saiunkoku Monogatari
(Tales of Saiunkoku)
Summary: Shuurei, a profit-conscious heiress of a noble (but very bankrupt) family is asked to be join the royal court in order to make the emperor more responsible. But in order to make someone more responsible, that said someone must be responsible to some degree. But, to Shuurei's dismay, it appears that the Emperor of the realm is a lazy slacker with the enthusiasm and cluelessness of a child, and with no interest in politics whatsoever. And, by the way, he's extremely handsome. How unfortunate. *sarcasm*

A manga dealing with politics and intrigue abounding in comedy... plus a whole lot of bishounen. *giggle*
Genre: [josei] politics, comedy, romance
Status: ongoing
What I love about it: This series is actually pretty serious, although it definitely doesn't feel like it. I love how surprises keep popping out: people aren't what they seem, plot twists spring out of nowhere, the character developments are addicting... The more you read, the more you'd be impatient for the next chapter. Haha!


Yahoo~ So those are my Top 5 manga, and 5 of the many volumes I'm reading now. Heh. I hope you saw something that sparked your interest, so you can laugh along with me. ^_^

Wednesday, December 27, 2006

bookworm

Got this from my Vox blog. (Yes, yes, I got myself yet another blog. I'm an addict. I know.) This was supposed to be posted in Dec 15, but... oh well.

qotd: What books did you love as a child?
Ha! Lessee...

How the Grinch Stole Christmas: (Dr. Seuss, 1957) It was Kuya Tim's book, actually. But we read it over and over even if it wasn't Christmas. I can still remember the illustrations! A classic book about how Christmas is not about presents, Christmas trees, or anything else materialistic, and about how Christmas can change the hardest (or the smallest) of hearts. (But, hey! let's not forget the real reason for Christmas: Jesus Christ!)

Benjamin Alexander Sheep: (Bob Friedman, 1974) God, I LOVE this book. Thank you for making Bob Friedman write it. Simple, easy to read, and absolutely beautiful. I read it over and over when I was small, and I enjoyed the illustrations. I read it again when I was a bit older, and I liked the plot. I read it again a few years later, and I liked the writing style. I read it again... and I LOVED the meanings behind it. A must-read, in my opinion.

The Chronicles of Narnia: (C.S. Lewis, 1949-1954) It was Kuya Jabes' collection, given to him when he turned 10. I wasn't even born yet at that time, but I read it when I was... Lessee... Eight... I think. I only got to read The Magician's Nephew, though. (Yes, I actually wanted to read it chronologically) I think Kuya brought the series to college, and... I never saw it again. I read The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe a few years later in our school's library, and I watched the Trumpets plays of the same book several times, and, of course, I watched the movie, too... Sadly, though, I have yet to read the other books.

A Little Princess: (Frances Hodgson Burnett, 1888) How could I NOT read this, when the title is the meaning of my name? An enchanting book about a little girl who lives the life of a princess, yet is far from spoiled. She's very responsible, intelligent, and... well... nice. Too nice, actually, that some people take advantage of her. Her perfect life takes a turn for the bad when her father dies in another country, and is forced to work as a terribly-treated maid in the very school that she attended. A happy ending follows, of course, but not before we see how she bravely copes with emotional torture, stress, and exhaustion. A riches-to-rags-to-riches story, but with cute little twists.

Little Women: (Louisa May Alcott, 1868) A touching book about four sisters dealing with the excitement of growing up, the pains of sibling rivalry, tension of peer pressure, strangling protectiveness of siblings, coziness of domestic life, and other everyday issues. Obviously written from the heart, no matter how you look at it. The two books that followed didn't appeal to me as much as the first one, but I suppose the series as a whole is a good read. (Am I the only one in the world who thinks that Jo should have married Laurie?)

Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew: (The Stratemeyer Syndicate, 1927-1979/1950-1970) Wow, I can still remember this phase well. I was in second grade, and our classroom was right across the library. Ah, bliss!!! Every recess and lunch break (and even in between classes, when our teacher is late), I'd go to the library, asking my friends to call me when our teacher gets in. I started reading books randomly, but eventually, I got hooked on the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew books. And then, when the day is done, I'd borrow a book and take it home, reading until late into the night. My mom would scold me because it was already 10pm (WAY past my bedtime), and I was still reading. But, come on! It was so hard to put down a book in the middle of a chapter, and the chapter endings were always cliffhangers!!!

Anne of Green Gables: (Lucy Maud Montgomery, 1908) The life of an orphan girl who came to live with an elderly couple at Green Gables. Beautifully written. As I read this book, I could imagine what Anne was imagining, I could see what she was seeing, and I could feel what she was feeling. I actually felt very glad I had raven -- not just black, but RAVEN -- hair! Haha! I could SO relate to Anne. Although I'm not as much of a drama queen as she was, we were both walking disasters, especially at the time I was reading this book. As for the books the followed in the series, I read Anne of Avonlea right after reading the first one. Anne of the Island and the other books, I only read when I stepped into college.

The Diary of a Young Girl: (Anne Frank, 1947) A birthday gift to me when I turned 10. I think. This was what made me start writing a journal. I had wanted to keep a journal ever since I started school, but I decided against it thinking that my daily escapades weren't interesting to read, anyway. But after reading this book, I realized that mundane things today can speak volumes several years later. Not that I have any intention of letting other people read my private journal, though. That's for me and me alone. My blogs, on the other hand, are for other people to squeeze lessons from... if they get any at all.

The Tower of Geburah: (John White, 1978) Book 3 of The Archives of Anthropos series. Similar to The Chronicles of Narnia in the sense that it's a children's allegorical fantasy, but don't be deceived: this is not a mere copy of Narnia. Although that might be where it started (White's kids bugged him into writing something similar to the Narnia series), the books have an identity of their own. The story is unique, the adventures are gripping, and the characters are very convincing. I can see myself in the three children in different aspects, and I'm sure you can, too. If you liked Narnia, then you'll enjoy this book just as much.

Mandy: (Dame Julie Andrews Edwards, 1973) A cute little book about a girl and a secret house. For some reason, a distinct memory I have of this book was this one afternoon when I was with my family in the UP Diliman Amphitheater. My brothers were playing Frisbee, my dad was playing golf... and my mom was reading a magazine... I think. I had the beginnings of a migraine headache (though I didn't know that was what it was called, at that time), and I decided to start reading Mandy so I could get sleepy. Well, I didn't sleep as I was sucked into the world of the book (as it always happens when I read), and I managed to finish half the book before we went home. I couldn't eat dinner because my headache was awful by then, so I went to sleep, dreaming of flowers and secret pathways and of shells on walls.

Shakespeare: I bet not many kids read Shakespeare, but, yes. I did. And I loved it. The phase started when I had this project in fifth grade, about the forms of literature. Under plays, I put in an excerpt from Romeo and Juliet: the most famous "wherefore art thou Romeo?" balcony scene. After I finished my project, I went ahead and read the whole thing... And then moved on to the Twelfth Night (my favorite Shakespeare work EVER), then Midsummer Night's Dream... and a few other plays until I was well into high school.

------

I think the World Book Encyclopedia and Childcraft are worth mentioning, as well. I really really liked flipping through those glossy pages with my brothers, way back when I didn't know how to read yet. I just liked the pictures, and my brothers told me what the pictures meant. When I did learn how to read, I had so much fun out of those thick volumes. I still remember what my notebook looked like. And how big my handwriting was. Haha! I wonder why my handwriting didn't improve as much as my vocabulary did...

At some point in elementary school, I also got into the Sweet Valley series as most girls did. But the phase didn't last long, nor did it leave any lasting impression.

So I suppose it's pretty obvious that I like the classics, eh? I got into reading a few "recent" books during high school and college, though. There's Kitchen (Banana Yoshimoto, 1993), This Present Darkness (Frank Peretti, 1986), and Haroun and the Sea of Stories (Salman Rushdie, 1990), among others.

I'm sure there are still a lot of books I haven't mentioned, as I typed all this in from memory. Which means they're the ones that really stood out. Hehe. I think I should check my library when I get home.