I Enjoy Being A Girl — Page 108

I think I am kinda done with being the one to put the effort in.

You are so right there. If he really wants you, he'll let you know, unless he's one of those shy ones who is not in touch with his emotions in which case he needs to learn to take the initiative or else he's out.

If he's half-ass he'll be half-balls, too.

Tofu- I think we're soul sisters or something. I HEART Jason Bateman with every fiber of my being! Lol

Nick and Nora was cute.

Withoutu- I think you're being smart about this. It sounds like he's giving you the run around. Keep being strong, girl. :)

Yeah, all of my friends have that Les Mis shirt from Delia's! And I'm the crazy one who has the entire score and lyrics memorized and sings it in ridiculous character voices. How is this fair?

Old Navy clothes are too baggy on me and then too tight.
Ha, it's the opposite with me! I buy Old Navy pants a size or two smaller than I usually wear and they're usually tight on me when I buy them. But no matter what, they are always baggy on me after I've washed them and put them on. After two hours, my pants have always fallen down. And the shirts just don't fit my body at all-- they're always tight around the chest and baggy around the waist. I guess that's because there's no Juniors' department, but non-Juniors jeans usually fit me better from other stores.

Speaking of which, I have a huge Schmerg_The_Impaler rant about... books.

When I was little, I used to go to the library and get a ton of books, and I almost always loved every book that I got. But now I'm too old for kids' books, and all of the teen books are either depressing and angsty and full of 'issues' like drugs and suicide or mental disorders, or else they're mindless chick-lit fluff. It's almost impossible to find well-written teen books, and I get so exhausted combing through the teen section for something readable that I almost never check anything out.

Well, I got a book yesterday from the regular "grown-up" fiction section-- Ragtime by E.L. Doctorow, because I absolutely love the musical that it inspired and I'm going to see the musical in May. At first I really liked the book, but soon it just started to disgust me because it was SO full of sex and sexual stuff, and that just made me feel uncomfortable. Every regular 'fiction' section book that I've ever checked out has been like that-- and I only check out books that adults have recommended and that have good reviews.

Are all fiction books for adults like that? I've pretty much been only reading classics for years because I can't find anything that's well-written but not horrifically inappropriate for me.

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Schermg, I'm probably a bad authority on the subject because at your age I was sneaking Harlequin romance novels from my friend's mom, but no, they aren't all like that. blonde's Jodi Picoult suggestion is a good one, and if you go on Amazon or something and look at what people who have bought Picoult books also liked, you might get some ideas.

Sounds like you mostly like fiction...if you want, I could e-mail my mom and ask for some ideas; she's in a book club and I know they read stuff that's a little more appropriate. There have been some interesting books on their lists, though. I'm a nonfiction (true crime) girl myself, so I'm not sure if you want any of my advice!

Although: if you haven't already, look at "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel. It's one of my favorite fiction books; captivating, appropriate, and very well-written. It's a fantasy/adventure type thing. Nick Hornby also has a few books that aren't too revved up on sex that I like..."About a Boy" is great.

Well I'm off for the night. I'm meeting up with a friend from school for a night out! Behave yourselfs

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But now I'm too old for kids' books,

I BEG your pardon? Hey, I'm almost 26, and one of my absolute favourite books is Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus by Mo Willems. People should read what they enjoy reading, and balls to age boundaries!

and all of the teen books are either depressing and angsty and full of 'issues' like drugs and suicide or mental disorders, or else they're mindless chick-lit fluff. It's almost impossible to find well-written teen books, and I get so exhausted combing through the teen section for something readable that I almost never check anything out.

See, I read teen books because I enjoy chick-lit fluff with issues. XD I'm a BIG fan of Sarah Dessen; sure, the characters have issues and the plots are very "boy meets girl", but they're so very well written that I just don't freakin' care. Not quite fluffy, but definitely well-written. I also love Louise Rennison - those really are chick-lit fluff but they are genuinely hilarious.

Do you guys have Philip Reeve books over there? Mortal Engines and whatnot? That series is probably the finest quartet of books I've read in my LIFE. And he's such a nice man. :3b I also enjoy Robert Muchamore; he's a terrible writer, but I enjoy his action-packed stories and appreciate his strong female characters. Speaking of strong female characters, if you've not read Philip Pullman, you SHOULD. His Dark Materials is the famous series, but the Sally Lockhart quartet are aces too.

How do you feel about fantasy fiction? When I was crossing over from kids books to adults, I got lost in fantasy for a good long while, courtesy of Terry Pratchett and David Eddings. I've also been reinvestigating science fiction: Alfred Bester is as great as his name suggests, and I will always love H.G. Wells. Speculative fiction is a most excellent cross-over genre; the imagination that goes with kids books combined with the themes that make the books for adults. :)

Failing that, pick up a classic (although avoid Fanny Hill). The books are awesome enough to stand the test of many many years, but they had different ideas of decency so most should suit even the most prudish matron (not you, Schmergy, prudish matrons generally ). (Except you said you already do read classics, sooo... keep it up? O_O)

The reason it's called adult fiction is not because we read nothing but filth once we've moved out of the kids section. XD Sure, we like some filth, but there's tons of good books without. If I could tear myself away from the constant stream of Diana Wynne Jones books, I'd write a list of adult books without adult themes. But I can't. Sorry. Kids books ftw! o/

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Updated On: 3/4/09 at 06:12 PM

jag, I LOVE Life of Pi. What a great book

and I'm with all of you about Jason Bateman!

I'm reading a good book called March by Geraldine Brooks. It's about the father from Little Women as he is away from his family fighting in the war. So far it's pretty good! Loved Life of Pi as well!

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Thanks for the recommendations, guys!

Oh, and Weez-- I'm not too old to read kids' books at all, and most of my favorite books are technically "kids'" books (Harry Potter, for one)... but I am too old to be skulking around the kids' section of the library! It makes me look ridiculous, especially since the shelves are like three feet high and I keep seeing people from my school walking by.

But yeah, I have nothing against a little consensual sex in the books that I read, but Ragtime had things like a 'porcine'-looking dude standing naked in a jail cell flapping his... private part between the bars and moaning at Harry Houdini. And he also whips his wife, who had an affair with a guy who drugged her drink, leaving her to wake up with... um... ejaculation all over her 'like a bakers' glaze.' And there's a stalker guy who hides in a closet watching a woman massage a naked young woman (who seems to like sexually enjoy the massage), and then he bursts out of the closet screaming and rolling around and holding onto his... private part... and spurting uncontrollably all over the place. And stuff like that happens in every chapter. THAT'S the type of thing that disturbs me. And that's the type of thing I keep finding in books written for adults, for some reason.

The reviews on Amazon definitely did NOT mention that Ragtime had that kind of stuff in it, especially since the musical's pretty tame in comparison.

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Withoutlove-- good luck! (Both with the boy and with getting to see show.) I've actually only been to New York City once in my life-- I survive on touring productions and cast recordings!

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Thank you 25th....I'm glad SOMEONE agrees with me!

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Updated On: 6/12/20 at 09:20 PM