Title: Never Too Late To Be Great

Author: Tom Butler-Bowdon

Genre: Non-fiction, Self-help

Publisher: Ebury Publishing

Publication Date: 22nd March 2012

Goodreads Summary: Never Too Late to be Great is about the power of thinking long. Exposing the myth of 'overnight' success, author and motivational speaker Tom Butler-Bowdon shows us that contrary to popular belief, people, companies, products and ideas invariably need a long time to realise their potential.

Highlighting the importance of the 'ten-year rule' as referred to in Malcolm Gladwell's Outliers, which suggests that significant achievements rarely happen without a decade of intense work and practice in any given area, Never Too Late to be Great offers inspiration for the impatient or disheartened to stay the course, and gives reassurance to us all that we have more time than we think to achieve our goals. 

{ Review } 

So as I've said in previous reviews, I'm currently making my way through books that I've found at the back of my bookshelf that I said I'd reviews years ago - literally years ago. I received Never Too Late To Be Great back in 2012 as part of the Goodreads First Reads programme but I've been putting it off because I was the greatest fan of non-fiction back then and I thought this book looked dull and uninteresting. How wrong was I! Never Too Late To Be Great has actually proved to be pretty inspirational so it's true - never judge a book by its cover. 

Never Too Late To Be Great is, as you can imagine, a non-fiction book about how it's never too late to achieve your dreams and that despite what popular opinion is about numerous billionaires who were 'overnight successes', it takes years and years of work and effort, even if it's subconscious, to achieve one's goals. This book is made up of nine chapters, each one discussing either how important a certain decade in one's life or how one's potential in life progresses, through the use of numerous examples of celebrities and million, even billionaires. Each chapter begins with the thoughts of the author, followed by examples of others who exemplify what he has said, ending with a brief summary of many other achievers. 

Never Too Late To Be Great gets off to a great start. I was completely sucked in by the opening pages as it seemed to be a really good, but most importantly, different, look at success. I've never read anything of the sort before but I am aware that there are hundreds and thousands of books out there targeted at people trying to 'get rich quick' or find easy routes to success. Butler-Bowdon's book does the complete opposite. The saying "slow and steady wins the race" couldn't be more appropriate for this title. The author dismisses the myths that people like Steve Jobs or Mark Zuckerberg were overnight successes and explains that every single successful person has dedicated years and years to their craft, whether they're aware of it or not. The beginning chapters are the best in my opinion because all the advice given is directly from the author, who writes in a very persuasive and understanding manner.

Whilst the book got off to a flying start, I was slightly disappointed by the rest of the book as it became more and more about listing examples of people to back up the author's point. At first this was inspiring, but as the book progressed this became repetitive and I have to admit that I skim read through several passages, especially if they were referring to successful people that I had never heard of. The majority of the chapters followed the format I stated above: a short introduction by the author, followed by a detailed look into the lives of several successful people and ending with pages and pages of short summaries of other successful 'celebrities'. I actually quite liked this general format, it was just that it was repeated again and again with each chapter and it started to feel like I was reading a condensed biography of every successful person of the last century.

That said, the examples provided were (mostly) of people that are still relevant in today's society or are people that are very well known for what they created, though perhaps not known at all for how they got there. Butler-Bowdon stresses time and time again that one should look at how successful people got to where they are and not what they did after their initial success. All these stories were fascinating, but as I said, there were just a few too many of them which meant that reading about that became a little tedious after a while.

Despite the negatives, overall my impression of this book is very positive. It achieved it's goal of inspiring me and giving me fresh hope that success may still come in the future. At only 18 years old, this book is definitely not aimed my age group as the author's measure for potential only begins at 20 years old though I still found it to be a thoroughly encouraging read. I would say that this book would suit those in their 40s the best or anyone else who's going through a bit of a slump and ready to give up on their dreams. Don't give up! This book will show you that you've still got years of potential left in you, even if you and those around you feel 'old'. A lot of successful people actually didn't find their true success until they were well into the second half of their life and there really is no such thing as 'too old'. Reading these stories should help anyone kick start their ambitions and get themselves back on track. 

All in all, Never Too Late To Be Great is a refreshing read that is suitable for those of all ages, though clearly targeted at those who have already lived a great portion of their lives. I found this book to be really uplifting so if you or somebody that you know are in need of a life then this is what you should be reading! As I said, I haven't read any other non-fiction books about how to be successful, though I'd say that this is a pretty good guide and is probably one of the forerunners in this genre. So, if you're in need of inspiration, pick up a copy of Never Too Late To Be Great and change your attitude today! 

Title: Divergent

Author: Veronica Roth

Genre: Young Adult, Dystopian

Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books 

Publication Date: 7th November 2013

Goodreads Summary: In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue--Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is--she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are--and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, Tris also learns that her secret might help her save the ones she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

{ Review }

I've taken my time with getting to the Divergent series by Veronica Roth because I was afraid of all the hype surrounding it but boy do I regret it. I have just finished reading this book and I can't believe that I put it off for so long! This book isn't quite what I expected but it's certainly action-packed and I never knew what was going to happen next. 

Divergent follows the story of Beatrice (Tris) Prior in a new dystopian world. In an attempt to proven the outbreak of war, humankind broke into five different 'factions': Erudite, for the clever, Amity, for the peaceful, Candor, for the honest, Abnegation, for the selfless and Dauntless, for the brave. Children grow up in whichever faction their parents belong to, but at the age of 16, they go through an aptitude test to show them which faction they belong in and the following day, at the Choosing Ceremony, they must decide the path for the rest of their lives. Tris knows that she doesn't belong in Abnegation like the rest of her family and so she makes the difficult decision to leave her family behind and join a new faction, Dauntless. A tough initiation process follows - one that not everyone will survive. As Tris tries to fit in among the Dauntless she struggles to figure out who she is and who her real friends are. As if finding herself in a new faction wasn't difficult enough, Tris has a secret that she learned about herself during the aptitude test. A secret that she has been warned to never tell lest it destroy her. 

What I love about this story is that it doesn't seem fantastical in the slightest. The characters and the setting all felt very real to me that's all down to Roth's genius. Each character is flawed, some more than others, and this made it easy to relate to them as a reader and I found that I actually cared about what happened to the characters. When they felt sad, I felt sad; when they felt pain, I felt pain and when they felt happy, I felt happy. It is rare that you find a book in which you can truly share your emotions with the characters but Divergent is one of those gems. The book is written in the first person from the perspective of Tris herself. She often finds herself torn between what she thinks she should do and what she actually wants to do and isn't afraid to admit that she is sometimes selfish. I really loved this about her because, let's be honest, very few of us can say that we don't often have selfish thoughts no matter how hard we try to be moral people. Tris isn't afraid to admit it when she's afraid or weak but she's also strong-willed and determined not to be beaten. She is well aware of what her short comings are and that she hasn't been blessed with the best physique for a member of Dauntless, but she tries her hardest and at the end of the day, that's all that matters right? 

The character of Four was also really interesting because his emotions were always undercover and you could never really tell what he was thinking. Four isn't a difficult character to love but because he doesn't show his true emotions very often, you're also sort of frightened and unsure of him for a large part of the novel. I guess this is perfect because that's pretty much how Tris feels about him for a large part of the story too so the reader and Tris really are as one on this adventure. I love that Roth didn't make him the stereotypical 'bad boy' (I guess that's what he is) but made him a real character that has much more to him than meets the eye. He does what he wants and he isn't easily influenced by the opinions of others. 

Sometimes I felt like the characters seemed a little deadpan but I suppose that's all part of the 'dauntless' act and it made the moments when the characters were happy and laughing all the more special. This certainly isn't a happy story and it isn't one that suddenly retreats in a world filled with fluffy clouds. There is a darkness lining this book that is ever-present, even when the story takes a more positive turn. It is evident that there is more going on in this story than meets the eye but Roth has carefully staged this story so that the reader has absolutely no idea what's going on until it hits you in the face. The reader is on a level with Tris throughout the story - what she knows, we know, what she doesn't know, we don't know. At least, that will be the case if you have been completely unexposed to the spoilers that are just about all over the internet. I knew very little about Divergent prior to reading the story so I found all the twists and turns to be incredibly shocking and exciting. 

There's no insta-love in this story! I think this book deserves a big fat hooray just for that. It's hard to find YA books that aren't centred on romance that still get the romance perfect but I think Veronica Roth may have done it. The chemistry between Tris and Four takes a backseat in this story, but it's always there lurking in the background. There aren't any PDAs or sexual scenes, in fact, the romance is rather chaste which I guess can be put down to the factions in which the characters were brought up in and the ones they currently reside in. 

The story doesn't exactly end on a cliffhanger so you could almost read Divergent as a standalone novel and be satisfied at the end. That said, this almost certainly won't be the case because you'll want  to find out more about this phenomenally interesting world. I did find the ending to be a tad abrupt as I turned the page on my kindle expecting to find more story when, in fact, it was already over. There were no clues whatsoever as to how this story will continue so you really are in the dark and I can't wait to get my hands on a  copy of Insurgent! This is, I think, one of the keys to this story's success. This book wasn't predictable in the slightest and never knowing what was coming next made me desperate to keep reading. 

All in all, Divergent is a fantastic and captivating read that I would highly recommend to all fans of dystopian novels. The combination of very real characters and an original plot make this an absolute must read and I understand now why there is so much hype surrounding this series. If you're looking for a YA book that stands out from the rest, then this is your book. I absolutely cannot wait to read Insurgent now and watch the Divergent film, which I've heard is actually better than the book, believe it or not! 

Title: Crow's Revenge

Author: Marcus Alexander

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy

Publisher: Puffin Books

Publication Date: 2nd February 2012

Goodreads Summary: I've just had a flesh-eating giant tearing around my house and now I'm in this strange land I don't know anything about'!

Before she can untangle the mystery that will save Bellania, Charlie Keeper needs the answer to a life-changing secret her guardian, the dastardly Mr Crow, has been keeping from her ...Just who is Charlie Keeper?

{ Review }

I recently became aware of this series when I won a copy of The Dark Army (Keeper of the Realms #2) from Goodreads and whilst I wasn't too keen to get started on Crow's Revenge, I was surprised to find that I was actually quite drawn into it from the opening pages. 

In Crow's Revenge, we meet Charlie Keeper, a young teenage girl who has lost her parents and lives with her grandma in a big shabby house. Her lawyer Mr Crow is a selfish man who constantly makes her sign forms without telling her what she is signing and she is convinced that he is stealing her family fortune. One day, Charlie finds a strange creature in her home, Jensen the treman. Of course, Charlie has no idea what a treman is but after going through several doors and corridors she has never explored before in her house, she discovers herself in Bellania, a whole new world, that she has entered via a portal in her house. She learns that she is a Keeper of the Realms which means that it is her duty to guard the portal between the human world and Bellania where magic exists. Trouble is brewing in Bellania though as Bane, an evil spirit, tries to capture Charlie and the pendant which is so precious to her. Just as Charlie was starting to think her life in London was really dull, she is thrust into a whole new world with new responsibilities. 

The plot is really well thought out and there are several major twists along the way. I was constantly wondering what was going to happen next and begging for someone to explain how things worked in Bellania, a new world. It is impossible to know which characters are the good guys and which are the bad guys which keeps your attention focussed on looking out for the smallest clue that might help you figure it out. There are several plot strands working throughout this story, all involving Charlie Keeper but also many other characters as well so there's always a lot going on. My only complaint would be that I think the plot could've been condensed and the end of the book could have been reached a lot sooner. There was a lot of to-ing and fro-ing with the plot line and some parts seemed a little repetitive to me, despite the fantastic amounts of detail. There were a few parts that I thought were unnecessary that didn't progress the plot in any way and I think I would've enjoyed the book a bit more had these extra parts been removed. 

The characters were all really likeable, those you were supposed to like anyhow, which made me really root for these characters and their cause. The main character, Charlie, is an admirable character who has such spunk for someone so young. I felt like I'd gotten to know her character really well quite early on in the novel which made me feel closer to her as a character. She's not a perfect character as she has her strops and can be a little selfish at times but she's a young teenage girl so it seems justified. The fact that she's not a perfect princess makes her all the more likeable and young girls reading this story will no doubt want Charlie Keeper to be their new best friend. 

The description of the bad guys is really quite creepy and scary and the pictures to go alongside them don't make me feel any less uneasy about them! There is such a great atmosphere in this book and I was spooked out by several of the creepier passages in this story. The characters of Mr Crow and Bane, two of the most evil characters in the story, are also really fascinating and although you can't like them as characters, I greatly enjoyed reading about them. 

Marcus Alexander really does need to be commended for his excellent use of description. The world of Bellania, or even the ordinary London, is so vividly described that you can visualise every last detail of this new setting. There are also a few pictures along the way in this book which gives you even greater clarity as to what the different beasts and species are supposed to look like (rather helpful in some cases where the description was so in depth that my mind couldn't keep up!). He has created so many different creatures, places, and ways of life that all need to be explained and he manages to do this without overloading the reader with new information. 

What I would say, however, is that this book is aimed at the lower end of 'young adult' readers I would not recommend this book for children over the age of around 17. Although I could still appreciate the detailed descriptions and the intricate world that Marcus Alexander has built up, I did find the whole book rather childish at times and this made me feel a bit bored, but I think this was down to my age rather than the content itself. I imagine that a 14 year old would find this to be an incredibly interesting and stimulating read, however, in my opinion, this book is largely inaccessible to those that have progressed beyond their teen years. 

All in all, Crow's Revenge is a great read that has perhaps passed a little under the radar and should definitely be picked up by those interesting in fantasy in their teen years. Crow's Revenge ends on a cliffhanger and there is clearly much more to come which I am rather excited for. I can't wait to get started on the second book to see what new adventures lay in store for Charlie! 

Title: The Importance of Being Earnest

Author: Oscar Wilde

Genre: Play, Comedy, Farce

First published: 14th February 1895

Summary: Oscar Wilde's madcap farce about mistaken identities, secret engagements, and lovers entanglements still delights readers more than a century after its 1895 publication and premiere performance. The rapid-fire wit and eccentric characters of The Importance of Being Earnest have made it a mainstay of the high school curriculum for decades.

Cecily Cardew and Gwendolen Fairfax are both in love with the same mythical suitor. Jack Worthing has wooed Gewndolen as Ernest while Algernon has also posed as Ernest to win the heart of Jack's ward, Cecily. When all four arrive at Jack's country home on the same weekend the "rivals" to fight for Ernest s undivided attention and the "Ernests" to claim their beloveds pandemonium breaks loose. Only a senile nursemaid and an old, discarded hand-bag can save the day!

[[ Review ]]

I was under the impression that The Importance of Being Earnest was a serious piece of work for some reason but I couldn't have been more wrong. This play, written by Oscar Wilde, is incredibly funny farcical comedy that was written in the late 19th century. It follows the story of two men, John and Algernon who both have separate identities for when they are in town and when they are in the country. When John is in town, he goes by the name Ernest and claims to be in love with a young lady named Gwendolen, whom he wishes to marry. The problem is that the name Ernest is of great importance to Gwendolen, but of course, it isn't his real name. Algernon usually resides in town but upon hearing that his friend John has a young ward by the name of Cecily in the country, he takes on the persona of John's fake brother 'Ernest', and goes to visit John's house in the country. As you can imagine, numerous funny incidences occur as there is more than one man named 'Ernest' and people are not who they say they are. 

This play is rather short and I managed to read the entire play in about an hour. There are very few stage directions in The Importance of Being Earnest, but this play is all about what people are saying, rather than what they are doing. Everything the characters say is either nonsense or completely backwards which is very funny for the reader. I must admit that even I got a little confused with all the identity switches but this short and sharp play keeps you entertained the entire way through and laugh-out-loud funny. Reading this play was a thoroughly enjoyable experience and I would imagine that seeing this played out on stage would be even better. I haven't read any of Wilde's other plays but I can't imagine them getting much better, or funnier, than this. 

Of course, whilst it is incredibly funny, if you read between the lines this is a satire of society and social commentary  with Wilde making remarks on love affairs and marriage in the 19th century as well as the vanity of the upper classes. Of course everything the characters say is quite ridiculous and you absolutely cannot take them seriously and yet I suppose the idea of these characters being real people is not funny at all. 

All in all, Wilde is a master and The Importance of Being Earnest is a must read/watch for all. Having read the play, I am now desperate to see it performed on stage which will no doubt be down right hilarious. This play is very short and easy to read so there are absolutely no excuses. Although written over a century ago, this witty play is a timeless classic that even modern readers will appreciate.