Right so I've finished my first book of the year. After my barren three months of non-reading I started with a quickie; Eight keys by Suzanne LaFleur. I first came across this author last summer when I read and fell in love with Love Aubrey.
Eight Keys is a book about the awkward transition between childhood and adulthood. The desire to fit in, make friends and be loved. The Goodreads blurb says:
Elise and Franklin have always been best friends. Elise has always lived in the big house with her loving Uncle and Aunt, because Elise's parents died when she was too young to remember them. There's always been a barn behind the house with eight locked doors on the second floor.
When Elise and Franklin start middle school, things feel all wrong. Bullying. Not fitting in. Franklin suddenly seems babyish. Then, soon after her 12th birthday, Elise receives a mysterious key left for her by her father. A key that unlocks one of the eight doors upstairs in the barn...
I thought Eight Keys was another touching and beautifully written novel from Suzanne LaFleur. It was slightly mysterious without being fantasy. It had depth and emotion and the characters all felt very real. I felt every moment of Elise's need to feel loved, her anguish following her mistakes and I enjoyed seeing her grow as she discovered more about her past.
I will happily pass this onto my daughter to read when she is ten+ as I think it is a lovely novel with some good morals.
Equally enjoyable was my trip to the movies with my husband, last night. It has taken us far too long to arrange babysitters this time as the last time we went out was for Breaking Dawn back in early November! Now both of us are musical fans, he has seen Les Mis in theatre, but I have not. Les Miserables the movie was a definite must see for us both and it didn't disappoint!
The premise of the story is based around the character Jean Valjean, who for decades has been hunted by the ruthless policeman Javert after he breaks parole. Valjean agrees to care for factory worker Fantine's daughter, Cosette. The fateful decision changes their lives forever. Set amid the heartbreaking squalor of the 19th-century French Revolution Les Miserables is a film that had me sobbing and haunted my dreams by the frightening events that take place. Apparently both Anne Hathaway (as Fantine) and Hugh Jackman (as Jean Valjean) are nominated for Oscars, Golden Globes and Brits... I hope they get them. They thoroughly deserve it. I have never heard 'I Dreamed a Dream' sung with so much emotion... how the hell did she sing, cry and scream all at the same time and it come out sounding so beautiful? This is a film I'll be owning on dvd when it comes out.
So what book shall I read next and what films have you been to see this week?
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