THE ELEPHANT MAN By Bernard Pomerance

For ages, I have been wondering what I should read for the play category and then it twigged, tonight is the opening night of my dramatics society's performance of The Elephant Man. I've been reading a play every night for the last two months.

This is an absolutely phenomenal play and you need a strong constitution to avoid being brought to tears. This is the true story of John Merrick, a young man burdened with horrific physical disfigurements, known to many as The Elephant Man. For many years John worked in freak shows, touring the country and selling himself for the rich and famous to gawk and laugh at. In this play we see the saviour, Dr Frederick Treves, take Merrick off the streets and into his own care, and attempt to introduce Merrick to society. It is an utterly moving story and one that I am all too familiar with, and feel I will be for many, many years to come.

The script in itself is rather basic, however I personally feel that Pomerance has done this to allow the actors enough room to interperate and develop the play as they see fit, something very important to actors, professional and amateur alike.

The only quarm I have is the use of modern americanisms such as 'alright' but other than that I have not a bad word to say.

ITCH By Simon Mayo

This has been on my reading list ever since it came out just under three years ago. It wasn't something I found myself dying to read, it was more of a book which I figured looked like something interesting have a go at if I found myself with nothing else to read, however I am very glad that I picked it up at work and gave it a read.

Itchingham Lofte is a young boy in high school who has a hobby just like most other kids in school do; he collects things. However, unlike the other kids, Itch doesn't collect trading cards, footballs or bottle tops.... he collects elements. It isn't until he manages to get hold of some of the higher elements on the table that he begins to see just how dangerous some of them can be. Undeterred, this fourteen year old boy continues to travel round fairs and contact dealers, faking his age to by out of date medical equipment. He just never imagined he might find something that no one else had.

I really did enjoy this book. I expected to enjoy it and I did and I think the best thing about this book is that it can be enjoyed by people of all ages no matter how old you are, even though it's supposed to be a kids book. I should imagine that this idea has been used before, but not in this sort of way.

I found the book easy to read and the story line easy enough to follow. It was refreshing to read a book that simply satisfied your need for a good book that excited you and you enjoyed, without having to put a marathon amount of effort into reading it.

This is a definite read for all readers, young and old, boys and girls, and I look forward to reading more of Mayo's novels.

THE METHOD By Juli Zeh

Okie dokie! Here we are with the fourth book I have read for the POPSUGAR 2015 Reading Challenge. This time I've read a book to fill the category 'A book originally written in another language'. The Method was originally written in German and the translated into English by Sally-Ann Spencer.

Mia is a scientist in the world run by The Method. Everything about this world is completely health based. Everyone is required to submit various blood tests and urine samples to The Method in an attempt to create an completely illness free human race. Things begin to get a little heated when Mia stops submitting her data. She is now technically a criminal and could be facing a fate worse than death.

Ermm.... I'm not really sure where I should start with reviewing this book. It had the weirdest effect on me, no word of a lie. I found that while reading this, I wasn't particularly hooked, I wasn't gripped to the story line, I didn't even find the book overly special or interesting, but something kept the pages turning. I'm not entirely sure what it was. It could have been the fact that I wanted to make sure it ended right, or I had a slight hint of hope that it might get a little more gripping.

I really, really liked the idea and the structure of the world that Zeh created and I think there is a lot of potential for this to have been a really good book. I felt that the relationships between characters were very confused. As a reader, on many occasions, I wasn't sure whether the writer wanted me to like a character or not.

Over all I think it was an interesting book and a good idea that maybe could have been written down better. Whether or not the German manuscript read better or not, I don't know and unfortunately as I don't speak German, I will never know. I didn't not enjoy this book but I didn't particularly enjoy it either and unfortunately I don't think I'll be reading an of this author's other books in a hurry.

As usual I don't like telling people what they can an can't read. We all have different preferences and this blog is purely my personal opinion. If the synopsis sounds like something you would like to read, go for it. It's only a short book. What have you got to lose?

BEHEMOTH By Scott Westerfeld

Well, here we are. The sequel to Scott Westerfeld's Leviathan which I reviewed two books ago. At the time I said I wouldn't mind reading the next one and so, guess what?! I ordered it from the library and gave it a read.

This time round, we join Alek and Deryn on the run in Istanbul. Deryn is given a top secret mission which doesn't exactly go to plan and Alek and his men attempt to escape the Leviathan now they are technically prisoners of war. This too doesn't go to plan and the team gets slip up rather spectacularly.

Alek finds himself alone and fully in charge of his men for the first time in his life, how will he cope, and how many seemingly bad choices will he make along the way?

I liked the way that this book was so completely different to it predecessor. You knew that it had a book before it and you knew it was part of a bigger picture. It followed the story very well and it wasn't just the same characters in an entirely different book. The linking between the two books is incredibly well done and I say 'Well done Mr Westerfeld!'

There were a couple of odd occasions where I felt a little bit disappointed. Not with the author for the way he'd written the book. But because I felt almost like I had entrusted my friends to him and when something bad happened to them, it was the authors fault. Something inside me really rang out if the author hadn't kept one of his characters safe. This is the first book to ever really make me have that reaction. It was bizarre and took me a while to work out how I felt, but I guess it just goes to show how well Westerfeld linked his characters with his audience.

I really enjoyed reading Behemoth and will no doubt carry on to read the third and final book Goliath in the not too distant future. I found the pace a little slow in places and sometimes it was a little hard to keep reading, yet at other parts of the book, I could hardly bring my self to put it down and go to sleep. I've not been left with too much of a Book Hangover, yet I feel satisfied that I've read a good book. Not as good as the first but never-the-less still a good  read :) What will Goliath bring I wonder?

THE BEHAVIOUR OF MOTHS By Poppy Adams

This is an interesting story about an elderly woman named Virginia who has lived alone in her family mansion for nearly fifty years, when suddenly her sister Vivien decides that  she is suddenly moving back in to the house to be with her older sister. This triggers memories and feelings to surface for the first time in decades and suddenly, the truth comes to light and the prices are finally paid... but is it to many decades to late?

I gotta say that I really enjoyed reading this book and it had me hooked quite definitely. The story line was simple and relatively easy to follow. Although I normally read something a little more complex in structure, it was nice to be able to read something that didn't take too much thinking about.

I really liked the back story of the protagonist, it was something different and something that is very memorable. Its a story that stands out among the thousands of other characters in the thousands of other books in the thousands of book stores across the globe.

I thought that the use of the child surrogacy plot line was an interesting addition to the story and really added another dimension to the intercharacter relationships. Although I can help but wonder what things would have been like if the child hadn't died so young... hmmm....

The ending of the book was very very sudden and I'm not entirely sure how I feel about that. I kinda liked it and I also kinda didn't. It left me feeling a little bit helpless and I knew that I felt uncomfortable with the direction that the book was heading in. Ultimately I was saddened my the ending, but that doesn't make it any less of a really good book.

The only quarm I have is that the questions that Virginia asks all the way through the book don't get answered at the end of the book leaving you a little bit lost and disappointed with the lack of closure you are left with.

A good book that I would recommend to anyone who enjoys a good book that doesn't take too much concentration to read. A good book, a good good book.

LEVIATHAN By Scott Westerfeld

A good friend of mine recommended this book, but in my awful judgemental ways, I assumed that because my friend is slightly older, that this book would also be a more adult book. So you can imagine my pleasant surprise when I opened the cover to start reading a teen/young adult book.

The world is at war, however this world war is nothing like we would remember it. The Germans and their allies, have developed their Clanker machinery. Tanks, and walkers and mobile military units! Meanwhile, the Brits and their allies have created a vast army of Darwinist fabricated beings. Living warships and ferocious warriors. What would ever happen if these two sides were ever to meet? Well when Austrian Prince Alek has to go on the run after his royal parents are killed, and Deryn disguises herself as a boy to join the British air force, the two meet and things get interesting.

I really enjoyed reading both sides of this story, but the storyline that stood out to me the most was Deryn's. Who doesn't love a young girl disguising herself to achieve her dreams? Yeah the ideas a little corny but sometimes, its the things we know and love that make the best story. I found her character easier to connect to and more relateable. Sometimes it can be a little difficult to empathise with a young prince who has just lost both his parents and is heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, but a young girl whose dreams of flying are squished my society? That's a little more real.

Don't get me wrong, I loved Alek and his story. Sometimes you need something completely separate to your one circumstances to get you through the day. However, this time round, I needed something a little closer to home and for me, that just happened to be Deryn.

I really, really, really enjoyed the whole Science Vs Nature argument throughout this book and over all it made me think, is there such a big difference between the two? The Natural world is made up of chemical reactions and scientific equations, and surly it is only natural that we should want to invent and build things to make us more powerful and efficient at humans? Yes this is a YA (young adult) book, but maybe its more than that... Maybe its a simple commentary on the similarities of nature and science and the two put together. After all is it not the two sides coming together in the end that makes them more powerful than the enemy and enables them to escape?

I think the only thing I have left to say is that I've ordered the next two books in the series from the library and I can't wait till they arrive. This is definitely a book I would recommend to any reader of any age. And adults, please don't dismiss a book just because its in the Young Adult section! Read everything!!

THE END OF MR Y By Scarlett Thomas

Well, that started the 2014/15 Six Book Challenge of with a bang didn't it?

This is the story of a young PhD student / part time teacher at the university who happens to come across one of the rarest and possibly most cursed books in the history of literature. Did I mention that the author of said book, was also Ariel's favourite author and subject of her PhD? Now all things considered, what would you do? Read the cursed book of course! She spends every penny to her name on this book, her supervisor and tutor has been missing for over a year and she figures she has nothing to lose. As it turns out, love, time-travel and having the ability to read other people's minds isn't as great as you would initially think so.

This has been a phenomenal book, and if there was a Fandom for this book, I would consider myself par of it. It was amazing and being an English language student myself, I was amazed and overwhelmed (in a good way) by this world that had been created entirely out of language, science and the science of language.

Initially I was a little confused when it first switched from narrator to the first extract of the book because there was very little to differentiate between the two. No font change or subheading, not even a chapter change in some case, and I was very confused by this, but Thomas has done a very neat job of tying this up quickly as Ariel continues to explain about how reading this particular book doesn't allow her to switch between herself and the character, she feels as if she is or should be the character in the book and therefore the mix of narratives are totally in the right place and let the reader experience as much as they can of Ariel's confusion while maintaining clarity in the bulk of the novel.

I thought that the presentation of the girls school was very interesting, and I'm even sure why if I'm honest. I only remember being particularly interested in the way that part was written and it stood out to me possibly more than any of the rest of the book did. What do you think?

I love Adam's character, he's just so lovable and stoic. Initially, I just overlooked him a little, but towards the end I genuinely felt that I wanted him back as much as Ariel did. Although; without giving anything away too much, I feel that the last few pages spoiled Adam a little for me. I feel that he strayed too far from his roots, but ultimately I think that was what Adam wanted, to stray as far away from his own life as possible, until he found something that made him happy, or at least content with his life.

I am genuinely struggling to find the words to rave about this book to the extent that it deserves!

I just love this book for its complexity, yet despite it being complex, it really isn't that hard to follow. I think the hardest part it trying to remember how to pronounce some of the scientific jargon. (just reading about quarks made me feel intelligent :P). The End of Mr Y. is a fantasticly academic book which I would recommend to most people, however:

I would just like to add a note onto the end of this here review to recommend that this book is not read by children or even 'young' adults. This is definitely one for the more mature readers due to its graphic sexual content.

Find out more about the Six Book Challenge here >>>>>  http://sixbookchallenge.org.uk/