"Corelli's Mandolin" by Louis de Bernieres (1994)

 

Extravagant, inventive, emotionally sweeping, Corelli's Mandolin is the story of a timeless place that one day wakes up to find itself in the jaws of history. The place is the Greek island of Cephallonia, where gods once dabbled in the affairs of men and the local saint periodically rises from his sarcophagus to cure the mad. Then the tide of World War II rolls onto the island's shores in the form of the conquering Italian army.

Caught in the occupation are Pelagia, a willful, beautiful young woman, and the two suitors vying for her love: Mandras, a gentle fisherman turned ruthless guerrilla, and the charming, mandolin-playing Captain Corelli, a reluctant officer of the Italian garrison on the island. Rich with loyalties and betrayals, and set against a landscape where the factual blends seamlessly with the fantastic, Corelli's Mandolin is a passionate novel as rich in ideas as it is genuinely moving.

I picked this book up because I hadn't read many books taking the point of Greece during WWII (then again, I hadn't really been looking haha), and it seemed interesting and had a lot of critical acclaim. The first thing I'd like to point out is how spot-on the synopsis is to the book, except for one detail: I don't know if I'd agree that there are "two suitors vying" for Pelagia's love. But whatever. Will go into that later.

• This book actually made me cry. That's not a common occurrence for me at all. The story's genuinely moving and engrossing, with characters so real that you can feel their pain, their joy, their awkwardness, and everything else in between.
• A definite pick-me-up for history lovers. It goes into the predecessor history of Greece, and plunges right into the tragic setting of WWII. Each soldier representative of a country might make you laugh only because of the other character's perspective on their strange behavior and actions, but in the end you understand that they're all the same in that they're people.
• Be sure to have your vocabulary expanded. This was a definite workout to read because the author's vocabulary is so refined and detailed, and he made sure to have words that described the situation or person perfectly. These won't be commonplace words now, but it adds on to the language and flow of the story.
• There are a lot of funny parts in here, despite the intense story. Many of them made me snicker or laugh out loud, and the ones that didn't, only didn't because it was subtle British humor. Loved it.
• The characters are too beautiful: there's the real-hero gentle giant, Carlo, who has been hiding a heavy burden of a secret all his life; the engaging and silly-insouciant titular character, Captain Corelli; the feisty Pelagia; the ugly but motherly Drosoula, who will ultimately choose to love and care for her daughter-in-law over her own son; the eccentric Dr. Iannis; the Nazi Weber, who will eventually be haunted by what he has done to his former friends. Psipsina, the pet of the family, is just as real as her human owners. Even the unsympathetic Mandras is a tragedy.
• Also very romantic - not in a silly maudlin way, but in a very well-written way. Here, love is clearly delineated from lust and pity: between Corelli and Pelagia, we understand what true love really means, whether it's between lovers or between family members. In the words of Dr. Iannis, it is the affection left over even when all the "passion" is gone.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars!!

Sterling Tea's Strawberry Hibiscus Review

Award winning blend with rosehips and lemongrass. Delicious hot or iced.

Price: $7.50 per 2 oz/$3.75 per oz... I got this at a sale, for $4 total of 2 oz.
Preparations: 1 tsp, 185-205 degrees F, 5-7 min.

• Smelled so good - yum yum!
• Tastes so good - yum yum! Strawberries... Very tangy and fruity, sweet and tart. Enough said. 
• Would definitely recommend for fruity-tea lovers... Works well as an ice tea too, and is full-flavored, not at all weak. Could hardly taste lemongrass, but definitely got a lot of that good hibiscus yummm.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Davids Tea's Mango Madness Tea Review

 

One sip of this tea and you'll do anything to get your hands on more. In fact, we're a bit worried about letting people get a taste. There might be riots. Looting. Traffic jams. It's a lot of responsibility! But who can blame you for going crazy over this delicious white tea? It's fruity. It's refreshing. It tastes just like a ripe piece of mango. In short, it's total madness.

Price: $10.50 per 1.76 oz/$5.97 per oz
Preparations: 2 tsp, 201 degrees F, 5-7 min.

• Delicious! Sweet and tangy; mango flavor is not artificial at all, but there are some sugar cubes and candied fruits as well.
• I finished the entire 3.52 oz tin after four months. During the fourth month, the taste seemed to be diminishing, and I think it's either because the bottom of the canister had the "crap pieces" or because the tea doesn't stay fresh for long. If it's the latter reason, then I'm actually relieved because that probably means the tea is indeed organic.

Overall, I would recommend this for mango lovers of any kind (I know I am!) or those who enjoy fruity teas.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars.

"The Piano Teacher" by Janice Y.K Lee (2009)

 

In 1942, Will Truesdale, an Englishman newly arrived in Hong Kong, falls headlong into a passionate relationship with Trudy Liang, a beautiful Eurasian socialite. But their love affair is soon threatened by the invasion of the Japanese, with terrible consequences for both of them and for members of their fragile community, who will betray one another in the darkest days of the war.

Ten years later, Claire Pendleton comes to Hong Kong and is hired by the wealthy Chen family as their daughter's piano teacher. A provincial English newlywed, Claire is seduced by the colony's heady social life. She soon begins an affair... only to discover that her lover's enigmatic demeanor hides a devastating past.

As the threads of this spellbinding novel intertwine and converge, a landscape of impossible choices emerges - between love and safety, courage and survival, the present, and, above all, the past.

The novel is split into two time periods: 1940's, and ten years later, both in Hong Kong.

• Very engaging book. In all actuality though, I found the 1940 storyline much more vivid and interesting than the 1950 storyline; Claire is a boring girl (though I understand that the author probably made her that way to let the readers see her development).
• Trudy is an extremely singular character, she really stands out in the pages - through her quirks, her fickle observations, etc. She is witty and charming, resourceful and practical, and ultimately proves to be somebody truly good in such a devastating time period, which makes her downfall even more tragic.
• Will also packs on allure and interest in the story, which is good since he is such an integral part of the novel. He is constantly haunted by his regrets and his past love, and it makes the reader feel for him.
• The pieces really connect together in the end, as you gather bits of information from everybody in the small community. There are a few things that are never explicitly explained (what spooked Victor with Will in the car, what really happened to Trudy), but it does not distract away from the story and lets the reader interpret these small mysteries using other clues and what is already known. I felt like that really added on to the destructive and chaotic nature of war.
• Overall, most of the characters are so alive and human that you can feel as if you're really seeing them as you read.

By the time I had reached the end, I was truly sad for these characters, which hardly ever happens to me when I read a book. This is a very well-written historical fiction, and I would highly recommend it for anyone with an interest in WWII, Hong Kong/China, or even anyone who just likes romance.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Sterling Tea's Yerba Chai Red Tea Review

A spicy cinnamon chai blend of organic rooibos and energizing mate.

Price: $8.50 per 2 oz/$4.25 per oz... Got this at a sale for $4 of 2 oz.
Preparations: 1 tsp, 185-205 degrees F, 5-7 min.

• Despite being classified as a "red tea," this drink is an energizing brew because of mate, so it's a pretty good pick-me-up for those days where you need a boost of energy but don't want too much caffeine.
  
• Ginger flavor can be pretty strong... I don't taste much orange, so I wouldn't recommend this for fruity tea lovers.
• Not strong or spicy enough to be an actual chai substitution either!
• I was "meh" with it overall. It was alright, but I was a little disappointed because I was expecting more spiciness, more flavor from this tea. Even when I increased the tablespoon dosage, the tea still lacked aroma.

Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

Wuthering Heights (1967)

So this adaptation is fairly old, but I loved it. This BBC miniseries has portrayed Catherine and Heathcliff most faithfully. Many other adaptations neglect to show Catherine's selfishness and Heathcliff's wrath, which are important parts of the characters. I don't know why this version hasn't received a lot of attention; I feel like it's underrated especially since this version of Heathcliff is so brilliant.

Characters and Casting (4 out of 5)

• The actor for Heathcliff, Ian McShane, is absolutely fantastic. He's the perfect representation of Heathcliff - not conventionally handsome but definitely still eye candy - and really shines in the second portion of the miniseries, when wreaking havoc among his "families" for revenge. I was never bored for an instant because he makes Heathcliff so utterly fascinating and consuming.
• The actress for Catherine was also a wonderful choice. This is probably the first time Catherine is portrayed the way I've always seen her while reading the books: wild, impulsive, passionate, immature, and spoiled. Angela Scoular did a good job acting mad towards the end of Catherine's life, and these tantrums were great too.
• On the other hand, I really wished the same actress did not portray Cathy, the daughter of Catherine. While the acting was fairly good (most noticeably the transition from a bright and cheery girl to a sulky and lifeless one under Heathcliff's control), her unusually high-pitched voice seemed way too forced at times.

 Style (3 out of 5)

• The beginning was a little slow and choppy.
• I really liked that they didn't have Lockwood narrating throughout. The way they incorporated him was more suiting for a miniseries of this duration, and the sequence of events made sense.
• Some people would probably complain about the lack of soundtrack aside from the wind constantly blowing, but I thought it added to the entire feel of the movie. That, and the fact that it was filmed entirely in black and white even though technology back then allowed them to film in color, gave it a very classic feel.
• A few lines from the script deviated from the book, but all the important lines and scenes from the book were displayed on screen.
• It drove me nuts that Hindley's hatred towards Heathcliff seemed to be mostly derived out of a hatred for gypsies as well as a competitive jealousy for his father's affections..? I don't know, just a vibe I got, probably because Hindley constantly referred to Heathcliff as a gypsy in the beginning.
• The ending was satisfactory, nothing particularly outstanding or dreadful. It pretty much follows what happens in the novel.

Notable Scenes

• Catherine explaining to Nelly why she will marry Edgar and not Heathcliff. Of course, the famous line "I am Heathcliff," and the acting was great.
• Heathcliff and Catherine's last scene before she dies. Executed perfectly. Heathcliff is reminding her that this is all her fault, that she was the only one to break her own heart, and that he will never forgive her while agonizing over the upcoming loss of his beloved. And Cathy is pretty much "damned," so they'll both be damned together. McShane puts just enough drama in the acting without going overboard. A lot of other versions seem to make Heathcliff overly romanticized, as if conveniently forgetting that his purpose in returning is to get his revenge on those who separated him from Catherine. There are so many hints leading up to this scene that shows how terrible these two people really are, and why they deserve each other.
• Cathy's ghost at the window. That was just pretty damn scary.

Good to be back

Fun with my old high school classmates Jelly and MsPink :) So good to be back home!

Dancing With the Stars: UT Edition

Watching my chemistry professor dance across the floor was definitely exciting, interesting, and fun! It was a delight to watch, especially since he was cool enough to get his students a ticket of admission and my old high school friend M came with me.

Professor gave us a penny electrolyzed with fake gold! It's now my good luck charm for finals, I suppose.

Next week is going to be one hell of a week. But once I'm free, I'm done with school, so I'll be super relieved.