'Neil Gaiman in conversation with Claire Armitstead' & The Ocean at the End of the Lane

 



The date was Monday 17th June, the time is 19:00, the location was the Peacock Theatre in London where The Royal Society of Literature were holding an event called 'Neil Gaiman in conversation with Claire Armitstead' and where I was sitting in the fourth row.

 

Read that last bit over. I was in the fourth row in the same room as Neil Gaiman. Now, imagine my excitement.

 

Neil Gaiman is basically my favourite author/writer/genius/person in the entire world thanks to his amazing writing skills, his endless imagination, witty humour, great works such as Coraline, Stardust, Neverwhere and of course those Doctor Who episodes (The Doctor's Wife is my favourite ever). Neil Gaiman is, in simple terms, my hero. If I could achieve even half of what Neil Gaiman has in his life, it will be more than I could ever hope for.

 

Neil Gaiman sauntered onto the stage at exactly 19:00 and he looked exactly like he does in the photos with the crazy hair and the all-black clothes and the confidence of somebody who knows they are a legend. With the hair and the reputation, I guess Neil Gaiman is sort of to literature what Slash is to music, minus the drugs and the alcohol and the crazy rock 'n' roll antics. I clutched the signed, first edition hardback copy of 'The Ocean at the End of the Lane' that I bought with childish excitement and when he read an extract from the book, I made a mental note to remember that moment when I came to that particular part of the book.

 

Overall, the evening was amazing, Neil Gaiman was funnier than I expected him to be and gave hilarious anecdotes that had everyone in stitches, such as his mistake in reccommending Chloe by Stephen King to his daughter while she was still young and Stephen King's advice to him as an author ("Enjoy it"). I also decided that if I couldn't grow to become an amazing author like Neil Gaiman I would grow to be an amazing journalist like Claire Armitstead.

 

Thus far, I have started the new book and am half way through. The words flow like poetry, a characteristic of Neil Gaiman's writing that I love, the characters are intriguing (Neil Gaiman wouldn't say whether or not the Hempstock family are witches), and I can't wait to find out the key to the mystery of the storyline.

 

I will update again when I have finished reading it.

 

(I do notice that I always refer to Neil Gaiman as 'Neil Gaiman'. I tried several times to simply write 'Gaiman' or 'the author' to make sentences sound nicer but he is such a legend to me that I have to write his whole name.)

What I'm Reading: The Perks of Being a Wallflower -First Impressions

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Stephen Chbosky

So I just bought this book yesterday in Waterstones. Why did I buy it? Well, not that I mean to sound shallow, but this book's film adaptation is being released in 2012, and it stars Emma Watson (Harry Potter), Logan Lerman (Percy Jackson), Nina Dobrev (Vampire Diaries) and many more brilliant actors. Now, although I said this at the risk of sounding shallow, in an attempt to redeem myself, I will admit that I am the kind of person who always tries to read the book before watching the film. And so I have been searching for this book everywhere, and found a single copy in Waterstones.

The book is written by Stephen Chbosky and follows a teenage boy going by the alias 'Charlie' as he sets out as a freshman in high school. He is writing letters to an unknown person, who he calls 'friend' as he describes various scenes of his life. I've heard a lot of good things about this coming of age novel, and I'm super excited to finally have it!

So far I've read the Part 1 of 4 (just over 40 pages) and I am loving it! Charlie writes to us, the reader, in a form that is easy to read. The sentences flow easily and if you are anything like me and Charlie, and long, dull descriptions full of complex vocabulary sometimes baffles and bores you, this book is perfect for you. Chbosky skips over all the pages and pages of descriptive waffle that other authors include, and simply includes the plain truth; Charlie's experiences.

Charlie is one of the sweetest protagonists I have come across; he seems to be so innocent as he sets off into high school. He doesn't experience much, simply witnesses. He stays in the background and observes. Through his letters, we follow Charlie through school, his Advanced Level English, his family life including his sister's relationships, his brother's football scholarship, his friendship with brother and sister Patrick 'Nothing' and Sam, who is Charlie's first crush, and the star of his fantasies. Charlie's first 'real' party includes him getting high, albeit accidentally, and discovers the power of the perfect song at the perfect time.

So far, I'd say that this is definitely a book to read. Any teenagers out there would most likely adore this as much as I have so far; Charlie's honesty is great fun to read and is reminiscent of many teenager's experiences and thoughts. I specially love how Charlie just tells us everything that happens, and what he thinks, but without judging the people he's talking about. It definitely makes me think that the world would be a lot nicer if people were more like Charlie - understanding. 

I can't wait to read on to Part 2 and the rest of the book - I will keep you updated!!