Showing posts with label I am the messenger. Show all posts
Showing posts with label I am the messenger. Show all posts

Monday, September 09, 2013

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Would Love To See As A Movie/TV Show

When it comes to books made into movies and TV shows, I do not have a good experience. Ofcourse, they cannot capture every minute detail in a 2 hour movie. And the best example of this disaster is none other than Harry Potter. But like any other Bibliophile, I still have hope that someday all the movies will be made like I want. It will have the cast as I visione it and everything from the clothes to the props to locations will be of my choice. That has not happened yet but you never know. 

Top Ten Books I Would Love To See As A Movie/TV Show (set in a perfect world...in which movies don't butcher the books we love.


1.Looking For Alaska by John Green:

The main reason I want to see this as a movie is because of all the awesome pranks they do. I love pranks and have done my share of them in middle school. I really want to see the last prank that they do in the book, being done in real life. I think that was the best part about this book. 

2. The Girl Who Played With Fire by Steig Larson:

I watched The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo first and than read the book. I loved the movie, so I did contemplate whether to read the book or not. But ofcourse I read it. And I have to say, it is the first book that has been made into a perfect movie. There are literally no changes, not a single word or scene. So I really am looking forward to watching the rest of the movies as well. 

3. I am the messenger by Markus Zusak:

If the essence of this book is portrayed on screen, than this will be a perfect movie. It is different than your average romantic or comedy or action movies. 

4. Amar Bail by Umera Ahmad:

Being  a huge Umera Ahmad fan, I obviously want this to be turned into a television show. But I want it to be perfect with the dream cast who can actually create magic like Umera does in the book. And this is almost impossible. But I do hope that it happens.

5. The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke:

This book was in my brothers books. I just picked it up to read it at the dinner table but I have to say, I ended up falling in love. The story is so awesome. This book made me want to have a gang of my own and be a thief. And till today, I had no idea that it has a movie as well. I haven't watched it yet but I hope it is upto my expectations. 

6. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen:

This is one book that is never made into a movie right. Something is amiss in the movie. And I hate that. Although I did sort of get the perfect version through the Lizzie Bennet Diaries which is almost perfect. But I do want a movie. 

7. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn:

I just heard that a movie is being made and Ben Afflick has been cast as Nick. I think he will do a good job. But I want the movie to be like the book. I want to decide between good and bad on every scene of the movie. This book has very strong and complicated characters and the movie will be nothing if the actors don't do a good job. 

My movie watching strategy is that I do not go for movies made on books. I watch the movie regardless of whether it is a book or not. But now I have to keep track, so I don't end up watching the movie before the book. And as far as movies are concerned, I am an action person. So my movies and books, thankfully, rarely cross paths. 

...SAP...

Tuesday, September 03, 2013

Top Ten Books I Wish Were Taught in Schools

This is actually very ironic. I remember reading What Katy Did, Oliver Twist, Robinson Crusoe, etc in middle school but when I moved to Qatar in 6th grade, class reading changed drastically. There was no concept of reading novels as part of a syllabus. Our books had excerpts from different classics which was very boring. So obviously, for me I would have loved to be taught books in school. Because I know how much fun it is, reading and having book discussions over a book. These are some of the books that I would have loved to read in class with the amazing English teacher I had.


Top Ten Books I Wish Were Taught In Schools:

1. The Count of Monte Cristo :



This is a perfect high school book. It is a classic. So all the teachers who are more into literature and classics will not oppose this. It is a story of revenge, betrayal, trust, integrity, patience, everything that one would want in a book. It took me about a week to read it and it is 1600 pages long. But it is worth the read. And this is my most favourite book.





2. Hunger Games:


Or any good dystopian novel. High school is like playing Hunger Games. Instead of districts, there are different groups from the most popular to geeks, drama queens etc. Its all about surviving in those four most important years of your life where you have to enjoy your teenage life while making a future for yourself. Reading such a book gives you the satisfaction that you are not alone in this fight of yours with the world. And it is not boring.

3. 19 Minutes:

This is such a perfect book. I read it after I finished High School this year and I truly understood what bullying does to a person. It breaks you. It destroys a person. This should be taught so students would know how it feels to be bullied. I know that not everyone is attentive in school, but even if you get the message across one person, that is all that matters.



4. Paper Towns:

When I finished reading this book, I so badly wanted to discuss it with
my English teacher. There were so many things I had a problem with and I thought to myself, damn, I wish I was taught this in school. It has a lot philosophy in it which needs class discussions and a teacher to make you go into the depth of things. I understood the story but I know I would have gotten much more out of it.





5. I Am the Messenger:

Aaaaahhhh. Markus Zusak. What should I say ? The message of this book is beautiful. At first you might not be into the book but it leaves a life lasting impact on you. After reading this book, Zusak shot up on my Best Author list. This is for all the lazy asses out there who instead of doing something in life, just lie around waiting for things to work out by magic.





6. Little Women:

I read this book when I was very young and I loved it. It is my mothers favourite book and I think this was the first classic she bought me. Its such a great story of love, family, friendships and so much more. Jo and Larry are my favourite characters and I was devastated when Jo says no to him. That was the first time I wanted to have a sister, looking at the fun that Jo, Meg, Amy and Beth have. I have read this book countless times, so obviously I know their names by heart.



7. The Book Thief:

Teachers want their students to learn something new everyday. What is a better way of learning what Nazi Germany was like than reading about it from a very different perspective ? I have read a lot about the era of Hitler and Nazism but this was such a different read on a very common topic. And its a book about a girls love for books and words. Nothing can be better for me.


...SAP...