'I measure the progress of a community by the degree of progress which women have achieved' - B. R. Ambedkar

Good Afternoon, I am writing this today after finishing a great book whilst relaxing on a rainy Sunday afternoon. As I have some time to spare at the moment, I thought I would get ahead on my reading and this seemed like a great place to start. For my course next year we are doing a module on distopia and utopia. These are my two favourite genres and when I saw the books we were reading, I got really excited. The book I'm reviewing today is a classic that comes highly recommended, but surprisingly I have not actually read much of her work to date. However, after reading this book, I am definitely inclined to take a look at her other works.

The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Attwood

Imagine a society where a woman's one role is to get pregnant. They are rarely allowed to leave the house and they are no longer permitted to read. This is the reality for the women of the Republic of Gilead. Women only have value if they are able to fall pregnant because the birth rate is rapidly declining and things are becoming dire. However, things were not always like this, Offred, a subservient handmaid remembers a time when she used to have a job and money, make love to her husband and play with her daughter. Yet, only traces of her old life remains and she does not know how things will ever be the same again. 

Lots of Love, 

Elouise 

xxx

#Book reviews in 140 characters#

The Red Tent, A Novel - Anita Diamant 

# A unique view of biblical women's society, Dinah from Genesis tells her story and reveals the traditions and turmoils of ancient womanhood. #

The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon 

# Daniel holds the last copy of Carax's curious book as someone has been destroying all the other copies in the hopes of hiding a dark secret. # 

 

Cutting for Stone - Abraham Verghese 

# Orphaned, twins are bound by love which eventually tears them apart. Marion runs away but discovers that medicine cannot heal all wounds. #

Lots of Love

Elouise 

xxx

I'll Be Watching You...

Over the past few weeks, I have been playing around with photoshop and this is one of mock double page magazine articles I have written. I hope you like the design and layout!

This is the article reprinted because I don't think the article is that clear in the picture, it is about the issues of stalking in society, which I think is a really interesting topic. 

Recently, the book world has become 

fascinated with stories from the darker 

side of town. Although you my not 

have realised it yet, the next best seller 

is going to be about stalking..Overnight 

the psychological motivation and the 

consequences of stalking is going to 

become a national obsession.Worryingly, 

in these new releases the blurb suggests 

that not only are they subverting old 

ideas about the subject but they are 

making it glamorous.Women in high 

powered jobs are being targeted and 

a teenager with ‘hot’ stalker comes 

under attack (can anyone else see

this developing into the next twilight 

esque hit?) However, these novels 

may simply be trying to dispel 

the myths, not all stalkers are on 

the fringes of society and claims of 

unwanted sexual advances should not 

be dismissed as simply ‘banter.’ 

 This obsession with stalking 

articulates societies anxiety about 

the blurring lines between love, lust

and unwanted attention. This 

becomes more evident when we look 

at the figures 19% of women and 12% 

of men have experience stalking or 

harassment at some point in their lives. 

I mean, who has never casually facebook 

stalked someone to find out about them? 

There are some who are willing to step 

over the line and this should not be 

ignored. 

Personally, the attention this subject 

is receiving in the book world is mainly 

positive because it brings it to the 

attention of a mainstream audience and

starts conversations which will 

hopefully lead to action. This subject has 

too long been a taboo in the literature 

world and these new book highlight the

real life dangers of stalking in our society.

I really like thinking and writing about issues that really effect society and hope to one day write about these issues for real magazine, I hope you enjoyed reading it. 

Lots of Love 

Elouise 

xxx

Sorry I've been away, exam deadlines and stress has meant that I've hardly had a minute to myself. Thankfully my last exam is tomorrow so I will be able to spend a lot more time to do what I love. For this review I thought I would do something different and look at one of my favourite artists. 

Gideon Rubin    

Gideon Rubin is fascinated by the course of time; in the new series of paintings the artist has used a found photograph album from the 1920’s as his source material. Rubin selects figures and scenes from these amateur snapshots that have some sort of narrative but one that is open to discussion. Installed together and independently the paintings hint at numerous narratives and histories offering no definitive reading or insight into the selected characters. I found it interesting that he just drew people with no fixed story behind them and how the people viewing the paintings had to make up their own minds. In the latter part of my project I took inspiration from his work finding random pictures and making them into something interesting that people would enjoy looking at. I also found it interesting that many of his people lacked faces, I found liked this because it shows how sometimes people lose their identity which is what he has done in his paintings. This also makes the paintings relatable because they could be anybody.

I hope you liked my section on artists, who is your favourite modern artist? 

Lots of Love 

Elouise 

xxx 

A Picture Says a Thousand Words - Anon

Literature is my life. Well, it is as the moment with all my final deadlines for essays following me around like a dark cloud, threatening to rain on my sunny outlook. So, I thought today I would do something I have never done before, a post about a book without words. Exciting!

Lots of Love

Elouise 

xxx

“April hath put a spirit of youth in everything. (Sonnet XCVIII)” ― William Shakespeare

This week I am promoting hot books to read to escape the April Showers and this is one of my favourite new releases. I love teenage reads that do not focus solely on the love story which have an amazing *plot twist* keeps you guessing and reading right until the last page.

Liv, Forever - Amy Talkington 

This is the story of Liv who gains an art scholarship to Wickham Hall, allowing her to escape the foster system and finally start a new life. Not only does everything academically start to go to plan, but she also starts to fall in love with bad-boy Malcolm despite her best friends Gabe's warning. Then she is brutally murdered. In death she finds out that she can see all the other ghosts at Wickham hall and discovers that her death is actually part of a bigger conspiracy, she is not the first student to die at the school. Now, Gabe is her only link to the world of the living and together with Malcolm, they have a battle on their hands. Think Ghost Whisperer with sexy students. 

What was the last book that you read and could not put down?

Lots of Love 

Elouise 

xxx

A man's face is his autobiography. A woman's face is her work of fiction. - Oscar Wilde

I like to gossip... I am really interested in learning about other people's lives and this may be the reason I fall in love with autobiographies. Sometimes, the stories within them are really strange and unbelievable, but I always love the fact that it is all true (although, probably a bit exaggerated sometimes). I am really keen to hear about their lives from their own point of view as it often feels like you are having a personal conversation with them and they are entrusting you with secrets that they only tell their friends. Writing a biography is really brave because you have nothing to hide behind, so if people criticise it, they are really criticising you. My favourite autobiographies are the rags-to-riches (through hard-work, setbacks and determination) stories and comedian's autobiographies because usually they have actually had a hard life (much like the tears of a clown cliche). Here are my top three which I would recommend for a laugh, cry and inspiration (you can decide which is which).

Russell Brand - My Booky Wooky 

At the time, I was probably a bit young to be reading about Mr Brand's escapades but when reading his book, I literally fell in love with the man. Following him from when he started school as the fat boy, having his first gloriously awkward and somewhat confusing sexual experience to his move to acting and drugs and his painful rehabilitation and consequential fame and success was simply inspiring. What amazed me about his life was ability to mess everything up and it was all still alright in the end because he had a passion for life and was surrounded by people who loved him. He is also really smart which is clear in his writing style which is witty but also intelligent, this helps you to understand the complexities of his brain and also his motivation. After reading his autobiography I was so inspired I became a vegetarian to be like him, unfortunately, my stand-up still needs a bit of work. 

Ugly - Constance Briscoe 

This story made me cry. Repeatedly. It recounts the childhood of Constance whose mother both emotionally and physically abused her on a daily basis. When Constance was thirteen her mother simply moved out and she is forced to fend for herself. Despite all of this, she goes onto become one of the first Black women in the UK to sit as a judge. This story demonstrates that anything is possible with a bit of determination. 

I Love You Philip Morris - Steve McVicker 

So, technically this is not an autobiography, but I'm sure if Steven Russell had time in-between repeatedly escaping from prison, this is the story he would have wanted to tell. Written by noted journalist Steve McVicker, this biography exposes the true story of how one gay man in his quest to be reunited with his lover escaped from a Texan jail four times in five years always on Friday 13th. Coined the 'Jailhouse Houdini' this man is stuff of legend. Unfornately, his knack for escaping was only equalled by his habit of getting arrested. This book is hilarious and also surprisingly heartwarming. 

If you do not think you will have time to read the book, you can always check out the movie starring Jim Carrey and Ewan McGregor which, although not as good as the book, definitely comes close. 

Have you read any great autobiographies lately?

Lots of Love 

Elouise 

xxx