Belinda’s new column for 2014!

There has been a huge rush for film makers to create fresh content rather than reinventing the wheel. Please, god, no more Herbie Movies!!! One of the richest sources for new and inspiring premises for movies is the young adult book market. What’s not to love? The books can range from contemporary love stories to post apocalyptic tales of survival… not to mention some serious supernatural stuff.

Things had been slow for years then in the late 90’s suddenly everything kicked up a notch with the Harry Potter books being made into films, Spiderwick, Lemony Snickets, and Twilight had the Hollywood treatment. More recently it has been The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and in the near future Divergent by Veronica Roth.

Among other films to be adapted to screen are, John Green’s The Fault in our Stars, John Dashner’s The Maze Runner, and The Perks of being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky. This is seriously just off the top of my head and after a simple google search.

So then the big argument starts. Which to consume first… the book or the movie?

I look forward to doing comparisons between books and their film adaptation during 2014, you’re welcome to read and watch along with me during the year and give your opinion on either book or movie or both.

Remember to give me suggestions of other book to film adaptation you think we’d all enjoy making comparisons on.

Here’s the first 4 months attack plan:

January: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

February: Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia

March: Divergent by Veronica Roth

April: Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by J.K Rowling

Lisa shares the Top 5 December Book Releases she’s excited about!

Ashes to Ashes, by Melissa Walker

“A timeless and romantic ghost story that will haunt readers long after the last page is turned.

When Callie’s life is cut short by a tragic accident in her hometown of Charleston, South Carolina, her spirit travels to another dimension called the Prism. Here she meets a striking and mysterious ghost named Thatcher, who guides her as she learns how to bring peace to those she left behind. But Callie soon uncovers a dark secret about the spirit world: Some of the souls in it are angry, and they desperately want revenge. These souls are willing to do whatever it takes to stay on Earth, threatening the existence of everyone she ever cared about.”

Rise, by Anna Carey

“When Eve lost her soul mate, Caleb, she felt like her world ended. Now, trapped in the palace, as a reluctant bride and unhappy princess, Eve’s entire life is a lie.

The only thing that keeps her going is Caleb’s memory—and the revolution he started. Eve plots to destroy the New America, beginning with the capital, the City of Sand. Will she be able to bring about a new, free world when she’s called upon to perform the ultimate act of rebellion—killing her father, the King?”

The Third Lie’s the Charm

“Katie Lowry knows she could’ve stopped Alistair from doing something stupid if only she’d picked up the phone. Now she has to live with the guilt. She’s sick of the lies, sick of the secret societies that rule life at Pemberly Brown Academy. But there’s only one way to take them down: from the inside…”

Mind Games, by Kiersten White

“Fia and Annie are as close as two sisters can be. They look out for each other. Protect each other. And most importantly, they keep each other’s secrets, even the most dangerous ones: Annie is blind, but can see visions of the future; Fia was born with flawless intuition—her first impulse is always exactly right. When the sisters are offered a place at an elite boarding school, Fia realizes that something is wrong . . . but she doesn’t grasp just how wrong. The Keane Institute is no ordinary school, and Fia is soon used for everything from picking stocks to planting bombs. If she tries to refuse, they threaten her with Annie’s life. Now Fia’s falling in love with a boy who has dark secrets of his own. And with his help, she’s ready to fight back.”

Let the Sky Fall, by Shannon Messenger

“Seventeen-year-old Vane Weston has no idea how he survived the category five tornado that killed his parents. And he has no idea if the beautiful, dark-haired girl who’s swept through his dreams every night since the storm is real. But he hopes she is.

Seventeen-year-old Audra is a sylph, an air elemental. She walks on the wind, can translate its alluring songs, and can even coax it into a weapon with a simple string of commands. She’s also a guardian—Vane’s guardian—and has sworn an oath to protect Vane at all costs. Even if it means sacrificing her own life.

When a hasty mistake reveals their location to the enemy who murdered both of their families, Audra’s forced to help Vane remember who he is. He has a power to claim—the secret language of the West Wind, which only he can understand. But unlocking his heritage will also unlock the memory Audra needs him to forget. And their greatest danger is not the warriors coming to destroy them—but the forbidden romance that’s grown between them.”

How to get your brain ticking over.

Funks suck, and I’m not talking about that Wild Cherry song…

which can pull you out of any bad mood!

You know what I’m talking about. Moods that resemble something that would create a weather warning if it were to be let loose on the world. Feeling like you can’t get out of your own way and damn it, if only you could think about something else, ANYTHING else, you’d be able to get on with what ever it is the funk is holding you back from.

Here are a few things I do to rip myself out of a funk (besides playing the Wild Cherry song that is)

• Go for a walk. You really can not be angry if you walk far enough.
• Retail therapy. A new lipstick can be a mood lifter.
•  Manicure. I do my own so I can do nail art and go crazy with colour without breaking the bank. Compliments can make you smile.
•  Fresh air. After a winter of windows closed and not a whole lot of air flowing through the house, throw those windows wide… burn some incense to get the ball rolling.
•  Spring cleaning. UGH yuck. Works though… damn it!
• Eating fresh fruit. All that healthy vitamin stuff, but that crunch of a really good apple or the tang of a kiwi fruit. Yep, sounds like bliss to me.
•  Dance around your living room to a good song. *note, this is even better with the disapproving stares of a younger sibling or your kid while you get down and boogie.
•  Visit the library and try a new author, genre or format of book. If you always stick to the Morganville Vampires, you’ll be missing out on all the other fangy fiends that can change your outlook. Try an audio book, a large print book or a graphic novel. Borrowing from the library is the best way to get something new without the risk of paying for something you may not like.
•  Watch your favourite movie. That daggy one that you don’t tell anyone you actually like.
•  Pamper you pets. Brush them, play with them, make them bliss out. They’ll love it and you’ll giggle at the expressions they make. (in lieu of a pet, maybe volunteer at the RSPCA or another animal shelter. All animals need a little love)

 Good luck beating the funk. Let me know if any of these tips work for you too!

Bel happily discovers the free e-books and audio books available from Brisbane Council Libraries.

I am a massive fan of audio books and I have a feeling Brisbane City Council Libraries need to promote something I am learning to use as I type this blog. Over Drive electronic books. Which show up as a DOWNLOADABLE AUDIO FILE, or DOWNLOADABLE ELECTRONIC FILE when you do an online catalog search.

So far all I’ve done is download the Open Drive program for windows 7, logged into the log in page, via the elib catalog, using my library card details and pin, and downloaded the book I wish to listen to.

According to the borrowing page I can choose what format I want the audio file to be in when I download. I have 7 days to listen to the book/s I chose, though I can also alter how long I want to borrow the book for. I have a capacity of 10 audio books to borrow at a time and, oh my gosh, the sound quality is equal to an audio book you’d buy from a book shop or borrow in disc form from the library.

They look like they have the option of putting the ‘app’ on mobile devices like nooks, androids and iproducts.

You can borrow e-books, so you’re not just restricted to audio books, and the variety of e-books is actually a little more substantial than the audio formats.

So far I’ve started a list of books I’d like to borrow, and I’m still searching through the catalog to see what else I might like to experience.

Go ahead and give Over Drive a chance if you’re a member of Brisbane City Council Libraries. Ask your caregiver before downloading the program, you know the drill. E-books and audio books for free… yes please!

Let me know if you’ve given this program a go and what you thought of it. 

Chris Kneipp answers the tablet versus PC dilemma for us by comparing the new hybrids!

Recently, my faithful old Toshiba netbook began to show signs it had some sort of computer dementia, losing things and developing memory problems. It was obvious the time had come to replace it.

Now when you’re buying any new tech it’s always a good idea to work out what you need, what you want and what you can afford before you head out to face the mind boggling variety of options on offer. If you don’t, you may fall victim to the Tech equivalent of the impulse buy chocolates they put at supermarket checkouts.

So I made my list of wants and needs, and began the search for my new electronic buddy (Yes, I do get too close to my machines). Very quickly I realised there was one more question I needed to ask. Tablet or PC? (Want or Need?) Now I do a lot of writing so a keyboard is a must. A REAL keyboard (on screen keypads just don’t cut it and you lose half your screen). You can buy compatible keyboards for most tablets but most felt like using a toy.

About then I got my first look at one of the many Tablet PC crossovers that have started appearing on the market over the last year and there were a lot. So began the task of narrowing the field. Windows 8 or Android? For me Microsoft won, so I could use my old files on the new tech without learning a new office program or having to deal with the potential conversion problems. This decision cut my choices way down and sticking to my $1000 budget reduced it further until only a couple of real contenders remained. The SAMSUNG ATIV Tab 5 and the ASUS VivoTab.

It seemed like a tough choice and at first glance you might think they were much the same.

• Both have an 11.6 inch touch screen that detaches to become a tablet.
• Both run on the 1.8Mhz Intel® ATOM™ processor (Z2760),
• have 2GB’s of ram
• and 64GB of storage, front (8MP) and rear (2MP) cameras
• and both come with a stylus.

In fact, if it wasn’t for going away and doing a little research, I would have thought “Hey, the Samsung is a couple of hundred bucks cheaper, problem solved.” Ten minutes on the Internet made it clear why the price difference.

Behind the sleek silver-grey exterior, the ASUS has a couple of features that the Samsung doesn’t, and none of the problems.

Removing the tablet from the keyboard dock of the Samsung can cause you to lose whatever you’re working on. This would be less of a problem if it weren’t for the repeated complaint that the tablet undocks itself when you least expect it. Obviously this has caused more complaints than anything else, though users also seemed disappointed with things like its restricted viewing angle when docked and glitch ridden keyboard.

The ASUS, on the other hand , has a much more secure docking lock, and does not have any issue with being docked or undocked while you are working on something. On top of this, the build is generally sturdier and the design seems to have had a lot more thought put into it. Especially impressive is the dual battery, one in the keyboard and one in the tablet giving you 16 hours plus of use between recharges. I’ve been using it all day and I still can’t kill it. Recharging takes a while, but plug it in at night and it’s ready to play all the next day.

Needless to say, I ended up buying the ASUS. By shopping around I managed to get it for a price not that much different from its competition.

So if you’re in the market for something that can meet your tablet and portable PC needs, the ASUS VivoTab may be just what you’re looking for.