ByMarlida

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THE SECRET GARDEN
BY FRANCES HODGSON BURNETT
PUBLISHED: 1911
AVERAGE RATING: 4.10
331 PAGES
READ: NOVEMBER 17TH - NOVEMBER 23RD 2015
★★★★☆
When I saw that this book was available in the e-library, my heart almost skipped a beat. I'd completely forgotten about this book, but in a split of a second I remembered the nights when my mom read it to me when I was little. I remembered that even when we finished reading and I was supposed to go to sleep, I could just lay there and imagine how beautiful and wonderful this garden was, and I wanted to be there so badly. After reading it again, about 16 years later or so, I still wish I could be there.

“At first people refuse to believe that a strange new thing can be done, then they begin to hope it can be done, then they see it can be done--then it is done and all the world wonders why it was not done centuries ago.”

The secret garden is written by Frances Hodgson Burnett and was first published in 1911. It's considered a classic, and a lot of painting books is based on it. It's a beautiful story with lots of morals and definitely what I consider a good and "healthy" book for a child to read.

Recently arrived at her uncle's estate, orphaned Mary Lennox is spoiled, sickly, and certain she won't enjoy living there. Then she discovers the arched doorway into an overgrown garden, shut up since the death of her aunt ten years earlier. Mary soon begins transforming it into a thing of beauty--unaware that she is changing too. But Misselthwaite hides another secret, as Mary discovers one night. High in a dark room, away from the rest of the house, lies her young cousin, Colin, who believes he is an incurable invalid, destined to die young. His tantrums are so frightful, no one can reason with him. If only, Mary hopes, she can get Colin to love the secret garden as much as she does, its magic will work wonders on him.

“Two worst things as can happen to a child is never to have his own way - or always to have it.”

Although it's a child's book, this was a really beautiful book to read now as I'm 21 years old as well. It's an easy read, and it kind of puts you to peace. It's so easy to imagine the wonderful wind blowing in your hair as you run up the hills and then walk in to this amazing garden to spend hours just breathing the fresh air and smelling the flowers. I read this during my exams and it was the nicest breaks I could have had. Also, the characters here are really beautiful, and the character development is both astonishing and exciting to read about, and also gives a valid lesson of how children's logic work, and what's healthy for a child and what's not. And how "bad children" often are bad because they've never learned anything else. It's just a book that gives me hope and makes my heart warm inside.

If you're looking for a perfect book to give to a child, this is it. And, if you're looking for a nice break from your stressful daily life, this is also it.

Tore Renberg is a famous writer (and also a musician and literary critic) from Norway. He's most known for his books about Jarle Klepp, several of them being adapted into norwegian movies. See You Tomorrow is the first book in the teksas-series, and was first published the 25th of October 2013 in Norway. It's the story about a whole bunch of people living in Stavanger, and how their lives connect to each other's during a few October days.

Pål has a shameful secret that has dragged him into huge debt, and he is desperate that his teenage daughters and ex-wife don't find out. Sixteen-year-old Sandra also has a secret. She's in love with the delinquent Daniel William, a love so strong and pure that nothing can get in its way. Cecilie has the biggest secret of them all, a baby growing inside her. But she's trapped in her small-time, criminal existence, and dreams of an escape from it all. Over three fateful September days, these lives cross in a whirlwind of brutality, laughter, tragedy, and love that will change them forever.

Before I started to read, I thought it would be hard to read about so many main characters at the same time. I thought that I would mix them and it would all be chaotic. That never happened. The book is divided in chapters with one main character in focus in each chapter, and that made it easy to keep on reading because I constantly wanted to know what would happen with everyone of them. Each and every character in this book is both interesting and very well made; everything they do makes sense and stay true to their characteristics and they're all just genuinely fascinating in their own special way.

The way Renberg manages to connect all of them together in this story is amazing.

This is a book with not only one major story, but several different stories in one. You hear about the typical youth-problems like finding yourself, discovering who you are, the first romance and how strong it feels. It's a story about family, and how to stay together as one, and how to manage when problems come. It's a story about people that have been fucked up their whole life, about the different one. It is impossible not to relate or at least understand several of the characters, although some of them does some really stupid things.

All in all, this was truly hard to put down And I'm really pleased with how we get to know all these different persons and that they are all so deeply developed. The story in itself is believable, stays true thorought it all and was really exciting as well. I finished it much faster than I though I would.

Read 29th of October to 12th of November 2015
★★★★☆

Britt-Marie was here is written by the Swedish writer Fredrik Backman and was first published October 3rd 2014. it holds the genres fiction and comedy.

when Britt-Marie, a woman in her 60's decides to leave her cheating husband, she don’t expect to end up as the leader of a youth club in a deserted little place called “Borg”. And the fact that she soon will experience being a football trainer against her will, being asked on a date by a cop and a lot of other things makes her future something she never in her whole life would agree to or belive in.

Britt-Marie can’t stand filth, and cutlery not sorted in the right way make her scream inside. She eats dinner at the right time, and get up at 6 in the morning, because only lunatics get up later than that. And she is not passive-aggressive. Definitely not.

Backman has done it again. As I've mentioned so many times before, his book "a man called Ove" is one of the books I'll forever hold most precious in my heart. I was a little disappointed with his book "mormor hilser og sier unnskyld" (notice the word "little" in this sentence, because that too is really a good book), but this time I'm more pleased that I could have hoped for. He's done it again.

In my review of “a man named Ove”, i wrote this: “he is that grumpy old man you sigh at when you see him entering the store you work in, because you know there will be arguing. He is that always pissed-off neighbor you used to have when you were a child, the one that always yelled at you for kicking the in his garden or yelling to loud”.

Britt-Marie is not exactly the same character, but she’s definitely one of those you see weekly and sigh at. And this is the biggest reason Backman is a good writer. He manages to make the people you disguise into someone you completely fall in love with. He reminds us that we are all people, and we all have our stories. And he creates a reality and characters you just don’t want to leave. Britt-Marie is without doubt the strongest character I’ve read about sine Ove.

★★★★★

The original title of this book is "Kjære" and is so far only published in Norway. The title "dear" is my own direct translation of the original title, and I've chosen to use it to make it easier to read the review. The same goes with every quote from the book.
"Dear" is written by the Norwegian ex-blogger and semi-celebrity Linnéa Myhre. It came out October the 14th , and it is the second book that she's written. Linnea Myhre has suffered with eating disorders and depression in many years, and has through her books described how her life is and has been like. In her first book, "Evig søndag" (directly translates to "eternal Sunday"), we get to know some dark sides as we follow Linnéa through a year of her life. This book, is somewhat different.

“A couple of years ago I insisted that I am “designed to be alone”. What a ridiculous thing to say and imagine. Who did I think I was? No one is designed to be alone.”

The book contains a number of letters addressed to different persons where Linnéa opens up about things she wants to say. All from letters to her Psychiatrist about her mental health to her bird about the relationship they had. It’s addressed as a novel, but we know that a lot of it is real.

The thing that makes Linnea's books so good is that she writes in a open and honest, but also funny way. The theme is serious, and yet she manages to make us laugh at certain things as well. She tells things exactly the way they are, and you easily get attached to her story.

“One should always respect each others taco habits. In taco, nothing is wrong. Some like shells, others like tortillas. Some mix everything to a salad, while other use two tubs on top of another. Everything is allowed and I myself have accepted raisins, grapes, mayonnaise and thousand island-dressing on my own taco table in my own home. Even if you despise corn, your friend’s taco is not wrong even though it contains corn. You can’t be mad about taco. Taco is everything, and everyone has different preferences with taco. The line is however drawn with ketchup”

I like this book better than the last, although I liked that one as well. This one has a little lighter tone than the other. Linnéa is at a much brighter point in her life, having a boyfriend and starting to master things she couldn't do before. It's so great reading about this, and I feel really happy for her while reading. I've liked her a while, but I don't think you even have to know her to like this book. She writes in a way that makes it feel so real and accurate that you care for her anyway.

All in all, I really liked this book and I hope she'll consider writing another.

★★★☆☆