Howl and Other Poems - 4/5

Poetry is NOT my thing. By the time I'd studied English Literature at GCSE I'd resigned myself to the fact that studying poetry was just something I was going to have to put up with if I wanted to continue studying the aspects of literature that I did enjoy. Then I moved on to studying at English Literature at college and for a while it seemed as if my opinion would stay the same - I just wasn't the type of person who enjoyed poetry. Then about halfway through my first year, at the very end of term when we'd been reading the books for our essays the whole time, my literature teacher started a quiet afternoon lesson on 'Howl' by Allen Ginsberg, and began setting about changing my opinion of poetry forever. Read more: 

LLLBookClub: Little White Lies by Lesley Lokko

LLL Book Club has been lucky enough to be gifted this gorgeous set of books to review! I am really pleased to be able to offer a copy of Little White Lies by Lesley Lokko to all members of LLL Book Club, and several to any new members who may want to join up. Little White Lies is an Orion Books publication which explores the question of whether or not money really is the answer to everything on the backdrop of the seemingly idyllic lives of three close friends - all of whom harbour secrets that threaten to tear their lives apart.

Since these have been gifted straight from the publisher, they have requested that all members who read the book submit a short review to them. I can send you a really short form that you can use for that if you would like a book. Reviews aren't due until mid-June, so feel free to read at your own leisure! 

Hope everyone is enjoying Emma which is this month's read! Any new members, details of and the sign up form for the book club can be found here and you can follow us on Twitter on @LLLBookClub. 

- Natalie XOX

Guest Blogger: Oryx and Crake/The Year of The Floor - 5/5

Hi guys! Today's post is another guest post written by the lovely Catie, who's kindly reviewed two Margaret Atwood novels for us. You can follow Catie on Tumblr here and on Twitter here, so be sure to check her out if you enjoyed this review :) 

Oryx and Crake/The Year of the Flood - Margaret Atwood

5/5 stars

In a sea of Hunger-Games spinoffs, I’d got a bit tired of the post-apocalyptic/dystopian genre, everything seemed very samey, and there were far, far too many love triangles. But when in doubt, Atwood is always the answer. 

LLL // Online Book Club

Good afternoon all! I have some rather exciting news today... I have decided to set up an Online Book Club!

Starting from next month (March 2014) we will be reading approximately one book per month, as chosen by a member of the club, and discussing it across a range of social media platforms. Each member write a short review of the book and share it with the others to read, and on the last Sunday of each month the whole group will get together in a group chat to talk about our opinions of the book and some book club style theme and character discussion questions. 

Now I understand we're all pretty busy people, so by no means will members be required to read and review a book every single month. If you want to drop in for one month and then leave it out the next, feel free to do so. This is just a bit of a fun way to get to know other people who enjoy reading and want to discover some new books, or even some new perspectives on one of their old favourites. 

If this sounds like something you might be interested in, please leave your details below! They'll only be seen by me and only used to contact you about this club occasionally. It's really just to get a general idea of how many people are interested :) 

The club's twitter account can be followed at @LLLbookclub which will tweet reminders, book questions and themes to consider. The first book choice will be posted here on this blog and on the twitter on the 1st March, so be sure to check back soon!

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Guest Blogger: The History Boys - 4.5/5

Hi guys! Today's review is our first ever guest blog post, written by student Isabel Radice who has kindly reviewed British play 'The History Boys'. You can follow Isabel on tumblr here, or keep up with her on twitter here, so be sure to check her out if you enjoyed reading this review. Back to regular reviews next week! 

When I found out in September that I would be studying The History Boys as part of my AS Literature coursework, I was over the moon. I’d seen the film so many times, but had never actually read the play. I know a lot of students don’t like reading plays, especially comedies, as it’s easier to see them performed than to actually read- but in my opinion, the comedy is clear right from the get-go in this play. Move over Gatsby and The Kite Runner, this is my ultimate AS Lit favourite. Read More: 

Doctor Faustus - 4.5/5

As most of you probably know, I am in my final year studying English Language and Literature at University. Whilst my interests do lean very heavily towards the language part of my course, I do enjoy many examples of classic literature, and some of the books and plays i've studied have entered my general favourites. In this post, I'm going to attempt to convince you that a blank verse play about a man selling his soul to the devil, written in the 1500's by a guy who was stabbed to death and may have been an enemy of the state. I know. Bear with me, and I swear it'll be worth it. 

Neverwhere - 3.5/5

I first read Neverwhere about two years ago, and very much enjoyed it at the time. I recently re-read it late last year, and listened to the radio play adaptation last summer, so I thought it was about time I got around to reviewing it already. This was the first book I read by Neil Gaiman other than his collaborative book Good Omens, which was co-written with Terry Pratchett (previously reviewed here). Therefore I wasn't quite sure what to expect, and went into this book slightly nervously at first, with only the very bizarre synopsis on the back giving me any indication of what to look forward to inside. I have to say though, i'm extremely glad I carried on. Spoilers for character names and plot points ahead: