The Existence of Amy* by Lana Grace Riva | Book Review

Trigger warning - this book contains depictions of OCD, depression and suicidal thought patterns.

This is a no spoiler book review.

Hello you lovely folk and happy Saturday! I hope you're having a swell weekend. As I mentioned in my last book review, for a few months now I have been really struggling to get into a book. Only a tiny fraction are cutting it. I've currently got three books on the go and they're all very mediocre. So, I was delighted to read 'The Existence of Amy'* by Lana Grace Riva last weekend because it gripped me straight away and I finished it within a few hours.

What's the story?

From the outside you'd be forgiven for thinking Amy was normal (whatever 'normal' actually means...). She has a great job in digital marketing, brilliant work friends and a nice house. However, we are privy to Amy's perspective, and from the inside her life is a constant struggle. The title pretty much sums it up: she's just existing, not living.

Amy's whole existence is dictated by her OCD (and subsequent anxiety and overthinking) and bouts of depression. She fights with herself to keep up appearances and continue the charade of a normal life but its exhausting.

Harry Potter and The Cursed Child Review

This is a spoiler-free book review I hadn't actually planned on buying or reading Harry Potter and The Cursed Child for the simple reason that although I am a huge HP fan, I've never been very drawn to the 'extra' stories that have been released since the seven books came to an end. I think I was initially put off by the fact I could never find the extra stories published by J.K.Rowling to read online and I didn't even get to the Sorting Ceremony on Pottermore as I found it quite boring. I do love finding out extra or background information about the series itself through facebook fan pages, and I am really excited to see Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.
Anyway, my whole attitude changed when my mum came in from Sainsburys one day a few weeks ago with a copy of The Cursed Child for me as a treat. Having the actual book in my hand made me so, so excited and I wanted to read it straight away. My uni reading list took a decisive backseat. It was like I was back when the original books were coming out and I had the chance to relive the excitement and anticipation of a new story. The story is in two parts and is just over 300 pages but it only took me a night to read the full thing. 
One thing I will address straight away is that The Cursed Child isn't a narrated novel like the original Harry Potter books- its the script of a play. In many of the reviews I read, this majorly put people off. To be honest though for me it wasn't a big deal. I'm quite used to reading scripts as literature on my course and I didn't miss the depiction of scenery or description of character as much as I thought I might. I think the main thing you have to do when reading this is take it for what it is- the script of a play which is intended to be acted out rather than read. For this reason I would really love to see the actual show. The writing isn't anything like the original books, which is to be expected considering it was actually written by Jack Thorne. It might be considered a little misleading that J. K. Rowling's name is so prominent on the front cover.
I had pretty mixed feelings overall towards the book. I thought the plot line was quite predictable, like something a fan would come up with. Perhaps if it had taken a more decisive step away from the original story, it wouldn't be judged so harshly against it. I think it struggled in forging a link with original story while staying true to it. For example, the Harry in The Cursed Child and the Harry of the original series seem to me like two completely different people. It's a really fine line between wanting to know what happened when Deathly Hallows ended and having your expectations ruined. For me, I've decided to try and appreciate the details about the future, like what the golden trio are working as, without letting it ruin the impression I held at the end of book seven. In other words, I'm trying to be thankful that we got a little bonus, extra story after all these years, keeping in mind it could never truly live up to the original books.
I did like the introduction of the younger generation, and the exploration of the Malfoy family. In fact, Scorpious Malfoy was my favourite character. For me he was the most likeable and the least one dimensional. Again, I don't want to sound too harsh because I know that characters who may seem one dimensional in a script are supposed to be brought to life on the stage. I also liked the twist (which I won't say explicitly for fear of ruining it for anyone) as it was pretty unexpected, though perhaps a little hard to believe. 
As you have probably gathered, I didn't love The Cursed Child, but I didn't hate it either. I appreciate the story and the excitement of going back into the magical world but I sort of preferred the story ending where it was. It allowed HP lovers to form their own opinions of what happened next, what is really what you're supposed to do at the end of the story. The bittersweet nature of an ending is not being told anything more, but being able to guess at it.

'Is It Just Me?' by Miranda Hart

I've just finished 'Is It Just Me' by Miranda Hart and thought I'd write a little review for anyone who is thinking of giving it a read. I actually got this for Christmas and its been sitting in my 'to read' pile since - reading books is the basis of my degree so I don't get through much personal reading. 

At just over 300 pages, this is no run of the mill joke book, but it made me laugh out loud and I finished it in a couple of days. Essentially, this is a compilation of life's awkward and embarrassing moments. The chapters cover subjects from diet and holidays to pets and weddings. Speaking to her 18-year old self, Miranda revisits her most painfully embarrassing memories with the intention of reassuring her, and us, that they happen to everyone. The frequent back and forth interaction between young and 'big' Miranda did make the book seem a little disjointed, and I think it could have been just as good without 18-year old Miranda's input, but she did offer some insights about how weird today's technology-obsessed population would seem to a teen 20 years ago. 

'Is It Just Me' is fun, light-hearted and has some really amusing illustrations. I very much liked the frequent address of readers and the challenges sprinkled throughout such as speaking affirmations aloud or spontaneously rolly-pollying- wherever you are while reading. There are also periodical checklists- 'Miranda's Amazing Tickbox Game'- where you too can share the elaborate adventures she embarks on. Miranda's wacky take on things is pretty hilarious and the extent of her very British social awkwardness and etiquette hiccups is certainly reassuring. 

I think everyone could relate to this book and it is very light-reading. I think I've been spoiled with really profound literature on my course so I found this book a little too light overall. It might be because I don't read a lot of comedy but I think Miranda's humour comes across better on her TV show (which I would 100% recommend!). I got more out of the book because I have seen the TV show, and read most of it unconsciously in her accent. While I wouldn't reread this or absolutely rave about it, I'd say its still worth a read. 

The Reading Tag

I haven't written a tag post in ages and after seeing The Reading Tag on Fay Olivia's blog a little while ago, I knew this was one which would be perfect for me because although I am quite lazy with reading, I am quite the book worm when I get into it. They're also something a little different to post and let you get to know me better. I won't tag anyone specific just anyone reading this who wants to give it a go. Be sure to let me know if you do.

Do you have a certain place for reading at home?

Usually on my bed but I've been known to actually travel around the house and sit/ hang upside down in every little space until I'm comfortable.

Bookmark or random piece of paper?

I can never find my bookmarks so usually just whatever I have to hand. Recently I've used post its.

Can you just stop reading or do you have to stop after a chapter or a certain number of pages?

In general I can just stop at the end of a page or even paragraph. Stopping midway through a sentence is of course unthinkable.

Do you eat or drink when reading?

Reading is probably the only activity I don't consider snack- appropriate. Perhaps just a cup of tea.

One book at a time or several at once?

One at a time unless they're educational/ completely polar. I'm very easily confused.

Reading at home or everywhere?

Most of the time at home, particularly if I'm really into a book though I'll sometimes take one along on train journeys in case I run out of Facebook/ Instagram updates to scroll through.

Reading out loud or silently in your head?

Completely silently. I used to get so frustrated with my friend in school who read out loud next to me because I'd become so distracted.

Do you ever read ahead or skip pages?

I'll admit I did this when I was younger (and it gave me a rather confusing expectation for the end of HP7 - imagine knowing Dumbledore/ Snape are dead but discovering them speaking on the last page). Now I wouldn't dare.

Breaking the spine or keeping it new?

Keep it new through fear of it crumbling. I learned this the hard way when I broke the spine of my teacher's personal copy of A Scarlet Letter and had to hand it back to her in bits. 

Do you ever write in books?

Ever since I had to annotate and highlight my copy of The Great Gatsby in school I can't stop. I could be reading anything and feel the urge to note at the side that I like the way it is written or what it could represent. Its a curse.

What are you currently reading?

I'm between books just now. I finally admitted defeat with A Tale of Two Cities and now my university books have taken over. I think my next will be Pride and Prejudice though. .