Concerning Rivalries

So tonight my hometown is going against it's biggest sports rivalry: Batavia. So I thought I would take this wonderful chance and talk about rivalries and what they have to do with books.
Rivalries are important they give us a clear antagonist, but the also give our protagonist a chance for redemption. Take the series that I've been reading recently, Stravaganza. The main group of characters are rivaled with a powerful political family, called the di Chimici. And we are so introduced into the great conveniences rivalries create.
in the first book, the protagonist, a boy called Luciano, is actually kidnapped. So Number 1 idea of rivalries is that they often help introduce our conflict. If there is a rivalry, you can almost always count on it in being the cause of the conflict.
In the second book, the protagonists befriend their supposed rivals. So, redemption, getting over our beliefs and stereotypes is idea number 2. If we can look through our thick heads every now and then, we learn. Nice thing about rivalries, we can find allies in our supposed rivals sometimes, and that's a fact of life. My choir teacher and track coach are from Batavia, and they're perfectly lovey people!
So what can we learn from rivalries? A lot of things. If they come books, we can guess that either

A) a problem is coming, or,
B) our protagonists are going to form a positive relationship with them

Ok, but when do rivalries come up? Off the top of my head I can think of several Disney movies; Cinderella, Snow White, Pocahontas, Peter Pan, Hercules, Beauty and the Beast, Tarzan. Then there's some older stuff: Romeo and Juliet, West Side Story, anything concerning the Holocaust. So next time you pick up a book, ask yourself, are there any rivalries going on here?

And don't forget to root for Geneva tonight during the big game...

It's All About Authors

So let's talk about my favorite author, James Patterson. Honestly, the guy is amazing. I have never met a book of his that I didn't like, and that's saying something.
First off, Maximum Ride. This series is literally sweeping the nation. Everyone is caught up in the whole Max Fang problem, anyone who's ever picked up the book that is. Now, I've heard it argued that this series is an all-out chick flick, but really it's not. they're some of the funniest books I've ever read, and what kind of chick flick involves a girls bashing heads? I mean, really people? I've read some chick flicks, and believe me, this is isn't one. There's still that whole Max-Fang scenario though. I'm pretty sure that a whole bunch of kids are on the edge of they're seats, wondering what's gonna happen. I know that i am. Here's my ideas on what will happen:

1. Max and Fang will get back together and Dylan will hook up with Maya (Maya="Perfect Max" and who is it that Dylan is "Programmed to love"?)
2. Max and Dylan will get together and Fang will be with Maya (Hey, those of us who read the books all saw it coming in Angel)
3. Some one's gonna die.

OK, so the last one may be a little far fetched, but is there any better solution? Dylan dies saving Max, Max dies saving the guy she decides she loves, Fang dies to save Max. Really, it's the kind of dramatic ending that we expect from a story like this. Not to mention, I think it would be the perfect ending, a symbolic character death. It's what I would do, and I've been turning this over in my head since I read Angel in the spring.
On to yet another of his great series: Witch and Wizard. There' some surprisingly good stuff in there. True, I've heard that The Gift wasn't as good as the actual Witch and Wizard book, but hey, you can't please everyone, or else we'd be living in a utopia. Witch is an idea of these stories. The One Who Is The One is trying to create a utopia of mindless, thoughtless adults, with the occasional child thrown in, basically a land where there is no creativity, because creativity is controversial. Now what do we learn from planned utopias? Well often times they turn into dystopias, but more on that another day. What though, is it that makes this series so good? Lots of things actually. First, we don't see any adults fighting society, our protagonists are a bunch of kids, all on their lonesome. And let's face it, we kids like thinking that we can be better than the adults. What kid hasn't ever dreamed of saving they're world? I certainly have. The fact that Whit and Whisty have magic powers helps it along, along with the way Patterson thinly veils the cultural books, music, art, events, and ideas that we readers can connect with. Why is he doing this? Well some of them are allusions, which is a fancy word for a reference to culture. the people who take the time to look them up get more out of it than the readers who don't. But I digress.
Basically, I've never liked an author as much as I've enjoyed reading Patterson. His chapters are short enough to communicate the point without giving us too much at any given time. his characters remain interesting and connectible for readers of all levels, and he knows how to keep us turning the pages, keep reading. Because in the long run, is there anything more important?

To check out the official Patterson BOOK site, click here.

Let's Get the Show on the Road

Hey!

So I like to write, and read, and basically comment on life as I live it. I started this blog to express who I am, and to express the world I love, so read what I have to say, feel free to comment, and be sure to send me questions, I'm happy to answer them!