The Casual Vacancy: Book Review

We're definitely not at Hogwarts anymore.

Very long and slow-paced, more character sketches than plot-driven. There's no main character; you follow the stories of several people in the small town of Pagford and how their lives are affected by the death of council member Barry Fairbrother. No one is painted black or white, but rather shades of gray, so it's difficult to fully like or detest any one character. Rowling is a fantastic storyteller. I'm always amazed at her talent for developing characters and interweaving their story lines. Even though the book was sometimes tedious and slow, and quite depressing throughout, I found myself compelled to read on. I wanted to know how it would all end, how Rowling would tie it all together. I was a little disappointed in the ending. It seemed a little anti-climactic after all the excitement of that one fateful day about 3/4 of the way through. But in the end I was just kind of relieved it was over, so I didn't care all that much about how it ended. Now I feel like I need to do something uplifting and fun-filled, to get the heavy, depressive feeling off me. Ugh. Three stars from me.

Get the book on Amazon.

Read reviews of it on Goodreads.

Read about J. K. Rowling on her Goodreads page.

Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey: Book Review

This book must not have been too terribly compelling because it took me nearly a month to read. I felt a bit like it was an effort to cash in on some of the Downton Abbey craze and fame, but I didn't really mind that so much. It was well-written and easy to read, and it definitely gave me a deeper understanding of and appreciation for the culture and times of Downton Abbey. I had already read about 30% of the book before watching the last two episodes of season 3, and it did enrich the experience for me. I have since gone back and started season 3 again, and I absolutely understand and appreciate the show even more after having read about the real people who lived at Highclere Castle. Just little things like why the younger servants asked Carson for permission to go see a movie after work make more sense to me now. The entire social structure makes more sense to me now.

I feel the book really got bogged down in the middle, and don't fully understand why the current Countess of Carnarvon felt it necessary to spend so much time talking about WWI in such detail. There really was very little need for all the details of the war that she provided. Some of it was somewhat difficult to read; it was a downer and most certainly contributed to my lack of enthusiasm about finishing the book.

In reading this book, you can easily see the real people and events that have inspired certain story lines in the TV series. Not everything that happens on the show actually happened to the real 5th Earl and his wife, but most of them happened to people in their circle, home, or to their contemporaries. I laughed out loud to find that there truly was a Mr. Bates who had an injury and walked with a limp!

I had no idea that the 5th Earl of Carnarvon was the man who discovered King Tut's tomb; that part was fascinating. I only wish the author had included more photos of this discovery, from the first time the Earl ever went into the tomb. It was so sad that he passed away before ever actually seeing everything he had discovered. I also find it interesting that archaeology, specifically in Egypt, was such a huge part of the real Earl's life, yet the writers of Downton Abbey have not used it at all.

In the end, this is probably a book that only the most dedicated fans of Downton Abbey (or of English social history) will be interested in reading. Three stars from me.

Buy this book on Amazon.
Read more about Lady Fiona Carnarvon, the current Countess of Carnarvon.

Butterfly Shirmp Sho' Is Guud!

One of my favorite things to do is to find grammar and spelling mistakes out and about, take photos, and make fun of them. Luckily, all my friends and family know this about me so they send me pictures of things they find too. I love it! (Yes, I know I'm a geek.)

Here's a recent photo, sent to me by my parents (see photo, right):

They bought the meal deal and reported that the shirmp was pretty good; it tasted just like shrimp!

Here's another one, sent to me by my cousin (see photo, left):

I never feel very welome at Moe's. Do you? Moe might know his burritos, but he sho' don't know his spelling!

If you have any photos of stupid mistakes like these, please send them to me. I love to share!

Vera Bradley + Mickey Mouse = Love

Vera Bradley and Disney? Love! Now you can have the perfect luggage, tote bag, and carry-on for your trip to The World! And I'm sure it will only cost you an arm and a leg...or maybe just half a leg.

I love that the bags aren't obviously Mickeyfied. From the larger picture below it seems the pattern is pretty subtle on both prints. I also like that they chose the classic, vintage Minnie and Mickey look. That fits the Vera Bradley style much better in my opinion. I had kind of stopped buying Vera Bradley bags as purses recently, but the black Mickey print might be worth getting.

The names they've chosen for these two new patterns are just as cute: "Just Mousing Around" and "Midnight With Mickey."

The new patterns will be released this coming fall. I'm not clear on whether or not they will be sold exclusively at the Disney Parks and on Disney websites. Hopefully you can also purchase them at your local Vera Bradley retailers.

What do you think?

For more information, see the Disney Parks Blog.

Downer Abbey and Idiots on GetGlue

I just finished watching season three of Downton Abbey, and I've decided they should change the title to Downer Abbey. What in the world?! I don't want to spoil it for those of you who haven't seen it, but OMGoodness! Why, Julian Fellowes, why?!

Speaking of spoilers, let me just rant here for a moment. (Right now I'm the Rantin' Maven rather than the Ravin' Maven.) Nowadays, most people have DVRs, am I right? So, if you're like me, you don't ever get a chance to actually watch the show when it first airs. I'm lucky if I get to see it within three months of its airing. I don't know many people who actually do get to watch a show live. (I couldn't even tell you when my favorites come on. I just set the DVR and when I go look for them, they've magically appeared.) So, DON'T SPOIL IT FOR US! I love GetGlue. I love getting the stickers (although I never know what to do with them once they arrive). So I check in to GetGlue when I finally get around to watching my shows. I usually do it as soon as I sit down to watch. And once you check in, you get the screen that shows everyone's comments who have recently checked into that same show, right? Well three times now in one month, things have been spoiled for me by idiots on GetGlue!! Once was with The Vampire Diaries (I now know who has recently died even though I still have not gotten that far in the episodes, so now I'm just watching and waiting for it to happen.), and the other two were with Downton Abbey. I'm so frustrated! So I knew it was going to happen before it did, and the entire last (double) episode was a downer for me. It was made worse because Mr. Maven did not know exactly what happens, but he knew something was up because of my being spoiled by idiots on GetGlue. So the experience was kind of ruined for him too. So just don't do it. If you get to watch the episode as it airs originally, good for you. But don't run to a social network and blab to the world, because someone might just be checking in so she can get the limited-time sticker, but is delayed in watching because she's got to put her baby to bed. She doesn't want to know!

So now I don't know if I want to watch season four of Downton Abbey. (But you know I will because how could I not? The show is amazing.) I just don't see how they can do it now! Which way is the story going to go? Oh how I love this show.

If you have no idea what I'm talking about, go now and rent season one. You must. Your life is not complete yet. And once you've done that, come back and thank me. Here it is on Netflix. Here it is on Amazon Prime Instant Video (free for Amazon Prime members!). You're welcome. Just don't check into GetGlue yet. There are idiots on there.