November 2017 – Habiba Tahir

Book Review: How To Stop Time

“It was like being stuck in the same song, with a chorus you had once liked but now made you want to rip your ears off.”

How To Stop Time by Matt Haig

Rating: 3.5/5

I bought this book as soon as I heard Benedict Cumberbatch was going to play Tom Hazard in the movie. I was intrigued after reading its synopsis — after all, this is a topic not every author can handle well.

The most fascinating thing about books is that, anytime you think a topic has been used far too many times, someone comes up with a different way to present the idea. Which is why I truly enjoyed Matt Haig’s story about a man who ages really, really slowly.

The book, divided into five parts, presents Tom’s story in tiny snippets of his entire life. We get to see him as a child and we are able to understand his unusual struggles. But Tom is neither a bad person nor a good one — he is just someone who is trying to live his abnormally prolonged life. And so for me, his story was much more interesting than his character. When you read the book, you may even find Tom’s encounters with a lot of famous people a bit unrealistic.

But since it’s fiction, and the scenes are written really well, I enjoyed reading those parts. One beautiful addition to this book was the poem written by Camille. It’s not a spoiler but just a piece of art that certainly deserves appreciation.

“I
Like
The Way
That when you
Tilt
Poems
On their side
They
Look like
Miniature
Cities
From
A long way
Away.
Skyscrapers
Made out
Of
Words.”

The reason why I took back 1.5 star from the review was because of the ending. It all happened too fast and seemed like a far-stretched coincidence. Another thing I expected from the book was a better explanation of the rare condition anageria. In a way, the story had more potential if the author had not been in a hurry to wrap things up.

How To Stop Time is a book that takes you through different timelines and describes time exactly as it is — uncontrollable. Matt Haig is successful in combining the real and the fictional world in order to present a story worth reading.

What did you think of the book? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!

TV Review: The Punisher

Reviews, TV Reviews

One Batch, Two Batch, Penny and Dime

Netflix has made sure that the last few months of 2017 are the ones we remember the most. Not only did we get the second season of Stranger Things, we also got to see our very own troubled vigilante The Punisher. We will also be treated to the second season of The Crown next month.

The show has received mixed reviews ever since it was released. I binge-watched the entire season and honestly, I enjoyed it.

Here’s the thing: Half the people are complaining about how The Punisher is too violent and brutal, and the other half are complaining about how there’s too much drama and less action.

Now, let me tell you one thing. None of us supports violence and murder – we don’t. But The Punisher is a violent ‘hero’ who kills criminals. It’s as simple as that. So, you really can’t say it’s too much brutality when this is what the comic book is based upon. And while more action would have made it better, there is always the need to make a character more human for the audience. If he were going around killing people the entire season, people would have complained that it got boring and repetitive.

So, give it a chance because even though there are flaws in the show, there are some episodes that will blow your mind away. ‘Gunner’, ‘Virtue of the Vicious’ and ‘Home’ being one of those few.

Also, is it just me or does anyone else find Jon Bernthal’s wobbly head a bit distracting?

You can also read my review on IMDb by clicking here. What did you think of the show? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!

Book Review: Turtles All The Way Down

Book Reviews, Reviews

“… no one ever says good-bye unless they want to see you again.”

Turtles All The Way Down by John Green

Rating: 4/5

Warning: This review is full of spoilers.

A lot of people are confused whether they liked this book or expected just a bit more. I have to admit, I was in a similar place. But I will tell you why I rated it with 4 stars.

First of all, we have to talk about Aza and her mental illness. Not only was she a different character, but also one that was extremely difficult to describe. When she was dealing with her anxiety and becoming overwhelmed with the littlest of things, I wasn’t annoyed. I actually understood her character. And that was only because John Green wrote her really well. I was not a big fan of the car accident because it has been overused as a climax in many other stories. But the event was heartbreaking, because at one point, you actually get to see how helpless she becomes when she is forced by her ‘self’ to drink the hand sanitizer.

Moving on to other characters, you have Daisy, a true friend who vented out her frustration of dealing with Aza in a Star Wars fan fiction. She knew about Aza’s mental illness but found herself getting annoyed sometimes. It made her character feel more human and it made me sympathize with both of the friends.

Davis was a character that I liked, but found too good to be true. After reading the book, I found the entire plot with Russell Pickett to be a bit … unattached to the story. It was the only thing that started and ended the main events of the book. Other than that, nothing that happened to him seemed interesting to me.

Once again, I think that this book gives us a very clear idea of how serious mental illness is. I believe that Green did justice to it by elaborating on it repeatedly. I also liked the ending because it allowed us to imagine what to expect for Aza without really saying it.

Turtles All The Way Down is a book that takes a serious issue, and combines it with love and friendship in a perfect balance. John Green wrote Aza with such dedication that you can’t help but hope that she makes it through her spirals.

What did you think of the book? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!

Wrath

Free Verse, Poetry

Vile,

Inhumane,

Someone

Fits the outline;

Planning,

Reaching out,

For the

Darkest ways;

They are wrong —

But why

Would they still succeed?

Frozen,

Shocked,

Someone

Fits the outline;

Waiting,

Looking forward,

To a day

Of justice;

They have the chance —

But why

Would they still forgive?

Bitter,

Revealing,

Life

Fits the outline;

Destroying,

Moving forward,

To the

Very end;

It is ready —

But tell me

Would they now think twice?