Book Bouncer Movie Release: In The Heart of The Sea

MOVIE RELEASE: In The Heart Of The Sea

Based on the novel written by Nathaniel Philbrick:

Synopsis: 'In the Heart of the Sea brings to new life the incredible story of the wreck of the whaleship Essex—an event as mythic in its own century as theTitanic disaster in ours, and the inspiration for the climax of Moby-Dick. In a harrowing page-turner, Nathaniel Philbrick restores this epic story to its rightful place in American history.

In 1820, the 240-ton Essex set sail from Nantucket on a routine voyage for whales. Fifteen months later, in the farthest reaches of the South Pacific, it was repeatedly rammed and sunk by an eighty-ton bull sperm whale. Its twenty-man crew, fearing cannibals on the islands to the west, made for the 3,000-mile-distant coast of South America in three tiny boats. During ninety days at sea under horrendous conditions, the survivors clung to life as one by one, they succumbed to hunger, thirst, disease, and fear.

In the Heart of the Sea tells perhaps the greatest sea story ever. Philbrick interweaves his account of this extraordinary ordeal of ordinary men with a wealth of whale lore and with a brilliantly detailed portrait of the lost, unique community of Nantucket whalers. Impeccably researched and beautifully told, the book delivers the ultimate portrait of man against nature, drawing on a remarkable range of archival and modern sources, including a long-lost account by the ship's cabin boy. At once a literary companion and a page-turner that speaks to the same issues of class, race, and man's relationship to nature that permeate the works of Melville, In the Heart of the Sea will endure as a vital work of American history.'

- Goodreads, Rating: 4,17/5

Book Cover

Based on the 1820 event, a whaling ship is preyed upon by a sperm whale, stranding its crew at sea for 90 days, thousands of miles from home.
Starring Chris Hemsworth, Cillian Murphy and Tom Holland, and directed by Ron Howard.

Initial Release Date: 12 March 2015

Book Bouncer Exclusive: The Hunger Games Book Covers

EXCLUSIVE: The Hunger Games - How many covers?

Whenever I go to bookstores, I see so many covers for the same book. And then I wonder: Which one do I want to buy? And so, instead of doing an author summary on Suzanne Collins in this post, I decided to just help any viewer who wanted to decide which cover they wanted of a certain book (in this case, The Hunger Games trilogy). This way, they could simply view all the editions' covers here. Here are the various versions of The Hunger Games that are on sale. And those covers... They are just breathtaking!

Top 3: The original covers when the books were first published

Bottom 3: The version with recently updated new covers

Top 3: Classic/Adult Editions

Bottom 3: Versions with the movie adaptation as the covers

The Paperback Foil Edition

Updated Version (Luminescent Colours)

Fan Art

I wish the fan art covers were real. They're too brilliant.



I know this was a short post, but I wanted to do something slightly different from the usual reviews I've done. So when the wide range of covers piqued my interest, I was like: "Why not?"

Quote Of The Week #9

"In books and movies, people were either whisked away to a magical land in the clothes they were standing up in, or they glossed over the packing part entirely. Simon now felt he had been robbed of critical information by the media. Should he be putting the kitchen knives in his bag? Should he bring the toaster and rig it up as a weapon?"

- Welcome To Shadowhunter Academy, Cassandra Clare and Sarah Rees Brennan 

Book Bouncer Review: 'The Hunger Games: Mockingjay' by Suzanne Collins

'The Hunger Games: Mockingjay' by Suzanne Collins

Everything's changing.

Katniss Everdeen has become the face of a rebellion that she hadn't known she was part of, until she happened to shoot an electrified arrow at the arena of the 75th Hunger Games.

A lot has happened after that one moment of adrenaline and desperateness.

There is no District 12, and what little is left of the population of the Seam have sought refuge at District 13. Secretly, they are awaiting for Katniss to step up to her much anticipated role as the Mockingjay. But there are much more pressing matters on Ms Everdeen's plate.

Peeta has been captured by the Capitol, along with Johanna Mason, an ally made along the way of the Hunger Games that stunned every citizen of the Capitol to the bone - especially President Snow. It doesn't help that there is a new threat at District 13, recognized as President Coin. She controls district 13, and in turn, controls Katniss as long as the Mockingjay seeks shelter from them.

Matters get out of hand when Peeta requests a ceasefire upon the growing rebellion, and is labelled a traitor. Katniss agrees to be the Mockingjay in exchange for his immunity from the harsh punishment awaiting him based on his siding with the Capitol. But not everything is the same when he and Katniss reunite.

Katniss needs to fight again, and this time, she has every reason not to hesitate. She has every reason to despise President Snow. And she has every reason to be the Mockingjay.

From past experiences, every finale to a series doesn't turn out that grand because the authors usually aim for a spectacular ending to the entire plot of the series as a whole, and they forget the smaller aspects to what makes a book a great read. There are seldom times where I've come across a final memorable installment that wraps up a series.

Also, these are the 10 things that I ALWAYS notice in any last book.

1. There are fatalities - and 9 out of 10 times, it's the characters you grow to love that happen to be six-feet under in the end. (Example: Fred Weasley from the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling)
2. The main characters tend to argue more, or their ideas mostly differ and so they keep secrets and try to better a situation. The situation just exacerbates way beyond rectification.
3. There's more internal conflict (kind of like there's your very own devil on the left shoulder, and the angel on your right shoulder... and most probably your sanity is in a trash can nearby)
4. *This might differ with every individual, but it seems like the main character gets more emotional and slightly irritating. Personally, they over think way too much.
5. If it's a romantic series, then the relationship between the protagonist and their love interest usually intensifies and becomes deeper - they're more connected.
6. Normally, if not all the information about the past shared by the antagonist and protagonist is revealed withing the books prior to the finale, then it should be mentioned in the last book to connect the dots.
7. 50% of the time the antagonist and protagonist grow emotionally closer. This happens because the protagonist tries to find similarities between themselves and the villain to try to imagine being in the antagonist's shoes and comprehend the situation and circumstances in that way. So really, it is the hero growing emotionally closer to the villain, but the feeling ain't mutual.
8. The other 50% of the time the antagonist and protagonist grow more violent. Meaning there''s more hand-to-hand combat and bombs and war and stuff like that. This happens because the villain targeted someone that the hero knows personally and not out of common knowledge, or family and loved ones are harmed in the end. Sometimes there's a misunderstanding that leads to the protagonist making the first move and running head first into trouble.
9. There's a happily ever after!... 90% of the time, unless the characters you wanted to end up together didn't hook up. Then there's definitely no happy ending.
10. The epilogue usually sets the readers' aching heart to rest after that crazy roller coaster the author calls a book. That means that the epilogue is supposed to be nice and heart-warming, not all depressing and all. (Yes, there's a tone to the entire story to make us readers understand the plot and characters better, but please spare the epilogue and keep that happy at least!)

Mockingjay was a great read and a constant page-turner. But I'll quickly point out what troubled me about this book. In the list above about the 10 things I notice in final installments of series, I pointed out that I really need a good epilogue - if there is an epilogue in the book - to wrap up a series, especially if it's dystopian fiction. And if it's a trilogy like The Hunger Games, you would expect a nice end to all the suffering, right?

Wrong!

That epilogue made me so sad, even if it pointed out a valuable life lesson. If the epilogue had given me a bit more closure than it had made out to, I think I would have given this book a grand rating of 5 stars. If possible, maybe even 5 and a half stars. But alas, this was not meant to be.

Apart from the last few pages of the book that disappointed me, I think this book was brilliant. It was one of the few books that was better than the one before it. The action was there, the romance, unrequited love, and the various emotions that were always there no matter any situation.

Katniss Everdeen's personality is remarkable throughout the entire book, and her struggle extremely evident. It's reviving to know that the protagonist doesn't get whatever he/she wanted along the timeline of plot. Of course, I do want the protagonist to be happy, but it would be incredibly unrealistic if they never had anyone close to them die or that they didn't go through a hard time in their life. In this situation, Katniss gets more than she bargained for, but it doesn't match what she envisioned they would be like.

Peeta's a mystery in the first half of the book, having being captured by the Capitol and televised several times on Caesar Flickerman's show. And with every show, he looks more unhealthy than the previous time. In the second half, the reason behind his state is revealed, and they try to help him get better. (A shout out to all the Peeta fans out there, this book WILL leave you crying an ocean.) Will he ever be healthy again?

Will he and Katniss still survive the odds and live to see a better future? Will there even be a future worth fighting for?

And Finnick... Finnick! Couldn't guys like him ever be real? That would totally be a blessing to the world...

The Hunger Games is one trilogy that has so many thoughts and ideas behind the initial and apparent meaning. It's an eye opener as well, and if you haven't read the books yet, please do. Wherever you are, leave what you are doing and go to your nearest book store or library and get your hands on a copy now! It's all worth it... Promise!

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay has been split into two films. The first has already released, and Part 2 is releasing on 20 November 2015. Jennifer Lawrence stars as Katniss Everdeen, Josh Hutcherson as Peeta Mellark, Liam Hemsworth as Gale Hawthorne and Sam Claflin as Finnick Odair.

HAPPY READINGS (AND WATCHING), EVERYONE!

Quote Of The Week #8

"He turned to look just in time to see the rain start falling outside, as if the storm had finally decided to weep with shame for what it had done to them."

- 'The Scorch Trials' by James Dashner, pg 138

Book Bouncer Review: 'The Hunger Games: Catching Fire' by Suzanne Collins

'The Hunger Games: Catching Fire' by Suzanne Collins

The 74th Hunger Games are over, and Katniss made it out alive.

There's no more needing to worry about future Reapings with her name scrawled out on pieces of paper. There's no more needing to dread being chosen to participate in the next Hunger Games. Katniss Everdeen is the most recent victor, along with Peeta Mellark.

How are there two victors? In the same Games?

Well, Katniss and Peeta's love was just that believable.

But half of what was televised in the past year was for show, and now the consequences of those actions have sparked the beginnings of an uprising. Unbeknownst to Katniss, she is the face of this growing rebellion. The rebels don't believe in the love story that District 12's victors staged, and President Snow, surprising Katniss with a personal visit, has threatened her - make everyone believe that she's head over heels for Peeta. If not, everyone she loves will be killed.

Tormented by nightmares of the 74th Hunger Games, and helpless against President Snow, Katniss does everything within her power to convince everyone that she and Peeta are completely in love. When she fails, she knows nothing good can come out of all this. It's not too soon before the victors of the recent Hunger Games have to return back to the arena, and this time verse victors of the other districts.

It seems the stakes are even higher than they were before...

It seems that this book was better than its predecessor. Poo really hit the fan in this sequel, and got me thinking how awful it would be to have post-traumatic stress disorder, followed by having your loved ones being threatened, and then reliving your nightmare. Guys... It officially sucks to be Katniss Everdeen. She can't even catch a break!

It broke my heart at how she grew so desperate to save the people she loved, page by page, and then all that effort being discarded away by President Snow. But man, the guy has style. White roses and all sophisticated...

(PS: *whispering* He was talking about Katniss in that scene!)

I think Peeta was just too nice for his own good (which was exceptional given the circumstances he faced) BUT he always seemed like the damsel-in-distress, and you had Gale, who was the 'friend-zoned/inconclusive-feelings-for' guy. Then there was Katniss, who was scared and brave and confused. Oh, and she was the knight-in-shining-armor.

Overall, this book was really good, and had me captured from the first page. Suzanne Collins has this amazing way of just catching me unaware of the next thing, and then BAM! Surprise, surprise, something bad happens to Katniss... or Peeta... or some other beloved character! The sorrow and suspense just never ends, but it's extremely addictive.

So if you still haven't read The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, take this review as a green card to buy or borrow this trilogy and surf through it. The Hunger Games trilogy is truly unforgettable, and some of the best books that adorn my shelf.

Quote Of The Week #7

"I was made, by the law, a criminal, not because of what I had done, but because of what I stood for, because of what I thought, because of my conscience. Can it be any wonder to anybody that such conditions make a man an outlaw of society? Can it be wondered that such a man, having been outlawed by the government, should be prepared to lead the life of an outlaw, as I have led for months, according to the evidence before this court?"

- Nelson Mandela, 'Long Walk To Freedom' by Nelson Mandela, pg 313