Ender

While I was at camp this year, I read a ton of good books! The last assigned book we had for L.A. class this year at school was Ender's Game by Orson Scott card, and I was beyond excited. My dad had read the book to Ezra and I a few years ago, and we both loved it. So, I read it at school, and decided it was the best book I'd ever read. I then read the parallel novel, Ender's Shadow, which was almost as good, and ten times more interesting. At camp, I reread Ender's Game, then read Shadow of the Hegemon and Shadow Puppets, sequels to Ender's Shadow. I tried reading the final book in the Shadow quartet, but it seemed really boring (and the book got destroyed by water damage!).

For those who don't know, Ender's Game and Ender's Shadow revolve around an International Fleet military school in outer space, dedicated to turning the most brilliant young minds on Earth into military geniuses, for one purpose: Defending the Earth from the Third Invasion of the Buggers. And their sole hope is Ender Wiggin, a Third child. Both of his siblings were deemed wrong for Battle School, Peter for his ruthlessness, Valentine for her compassion, but Ender, his birth requested by the government, is the perfect mix. But the hand that is Graff, the "principal" of Battle School, can not overwork or underuse this tool that is Ender. If he breaks him, the human race is doomed. Ender's Game follows Ender, while Ender's Shadow follows his right hand man, Bean: a genetically altered boy, the smallest, smartest kid in Battle School fights the system, determined not to become a tool, for fear of being broken.

The remainder of the Shadow series follows the Battle School students after the end of the Bugger Wars, as the take their places in Earths new government, working toward the end of the wars following the Hegemony's fall from power. Bean also tries to survive many attempts at his friends' and his own lives.

TV

Ouch! I'm being eaten alive! The bugs are killing me! Even though I used to live in Georgia, I've gotten used to having no bugs in Seattle! I've been doing a Kayak camp with my cousin, Tilly, and our friend, Yael for the last few days. I'd known I'd been going with Tilly, but I was completely surprised when I heard Yael was coming. We've been going to Camp Judaea for the last 6 years together. She is the daughter of my cousin Michelle's best friend, so that's how she knew Tilly and I. What really surprised me was that she lives in Israel, so it would be an awfully long commute every morning and afternoon. Turns out, she is staying in the US until January, and being homeschooled by her mom.

Anyway, I've been watching more TV lately than I have before. I think it's because I've finally gone to try out new TV shows meant for older audiences than Spongebob. Now, instead of watching those stupid kid TV shows that my brothers watch, I watch some really good shows. The first one I tried out is Lie to Me, on Fox. I loved getting out into some new shows, so I stuck with this show to the end of the season. It's about a guy who can read microexpressions on faces to tell when they are lying. I then tried out a couple of others, including Heroes and Bones. I could never find any episodes of Heroes, so I stopped watching at episode 6. Then I found Bones, and it is the best tv show ever. It is a crime-solving show about a forensic anthropologist who is working with an FBI agent to solve crimes no one else can. I have watched all the way through season 4 in the last 6-7 months, and it is terrific! Sadly, all of the TV shows ended right before I left for camp, so I have to wait until next fall for some new episodes. Luckily, on NBC, I found a new summer show: Merlin. It tells the story of a young Merlin in a Camelot where magic is forbidden by it's ruler, Uther Pendragon. Merlin's duty is to protect the future king, Arther, and often has to use magic to do so. It's unfaithful to the original legend in a thousand ways, but it's still a good show.

Anyway, hopefully I won't get too addicted to TV again. I'll try to spend more time posting instead.

Catching up

Crap!!! Sorry I wasn't able to write another post the night of my last one. After I got off the computer, my brothers claimed it for the rest of the night, and have since then. The only reason I can write now is because Jordan is still asleep, and Ezra flew to Virginia the other day to visit a friend. Jordan and I are still in Savannah for another week, until this Friday, though.

Yesterday, my Grandmama took Jordan and I to a family reunion, where I was able to meet a bunch of the family that I'd done research on for my family tree, and those I hadn't known existed.

Over the last week, I've seen a ton of new movies. I saw Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, and I've gotta say, it sucked. My dad said he felt nauseous afterward, and there weren't even many disgusting scenes.

We also saw Ice Age III: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, and it wasn't half bad for an Ice Age movie. A bit silly of course, but it was way better than Transformers II.

And last, but certainly not least, the best movie of the series so far in my families opinion (Tilly, Jordan, and Ezra), HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE!!! Sadly, we weren't able to see it the day it came out. We had to wait until Thursday. The movie was terrific!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
They did skip a couple of scenes, but what they didn't skip, they did really well. Especially the Weasly's Wizard Wheezes! Awesome place! Oh yeah, and the Felix Felicis scene was hilarious!!!

I'll probably have more time to write now that Ezra isn't going to be hogging the computer, so I'll write later, although I may not get a chance until tomorrow. I've found a lot of really good TV shows. Maybe I'll write about them.

I'm back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm finally back from camp, and I've got a lot to talk about. My brother is nagging me to go on the computer right now (I'm in Savannah, at my grandpa's and I don't have my laptop), but I promise that I'll write about camp, DC, and whatever I meant to talk about before I left ASAP. I'll write a post later tonight.

I'm so glad to be back on Blogger!

Lots to Write About

I did a lot of awesome stuff at camp that I really need to write about. Normally after camp, I wouldn't have much to say, but this year, we got to spend a week in New York City, so there are a lot of different things to write about.

The highlights of our trip were The Lion King (the broadway show), Madame Tussaud (the wax museum), a Mets game vs. the Seattle Mariners, and NBC Studios.

While I was in NYC, my group went to the Apple store on 5th Ave. There I had time to use one of the computers to moderate a comment and read a post from J Scott Savage. While there I also learned how to do a Rubix cube.

As you can see, I have a lot to talk about over the next few days... weeks... you know what I mean, so expect more than one post a day. Don't forget to enter my contest. Please.

Not Quite Home

I just got back from camp, but I'm staying in Savannah, Georgia for a week until it's time to go home! Now I'll be able to keep posting, so keep checking back!

Camp Books

Here is my list of camp books:

• Eragon by Christopher Paolini
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by JK Rowling
• The Lost Years of Merlin by TA Barron
• Gregor and the Prophecy of Bane by Suzanne Collins
• The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau
• Farworld: Water Keep by J Scott Savage
• Fablehaven: Rise of the Evening Star by Brandon Mull
  

Also, I'm still finishing Epic. Today is the first day of Camp Judea.

Goodbye!!!

I am going to camp for about the next month, and they have no electronics. I will be back on July 15th. I'll post on all of the stuff at camp next month. Also, there are a few scheduled post, so keep checking back!

Bye!

Epic: Part 1

Right now, I am reading a great Science-Fiction book called Epic by Conor Kostick. I found the book at the local bookstore when I asked the lady at the counter about any new fantasy books.

On New Earth, a planet colonized about 1000 years ago when Earth was consumed by war, there is only one law: No Violence. New Earth is run by Central Allocations, and at the head of Central Allocations is the Committee. They govern the world through Epic, a computer game where conflicts are solved in the arena. Everyone has a character and if you lose in the arena, you will lose all of your wealth and you could be moved to a hard job, like one at the salt pans or the mines.

In Eric's small agricultural district, Hope, Central Allocations is neglecting the district's needs. After the Committee learns the true identity of Eric's father after a battle for the district's needs, he is exiled and Eric and his friends begin a quest through Epic to save him. In doing so, they will face enemies, allies, and they will learn secrets of the game that the Committee has been hiding for years.

So far, it is an awesome story. Since I probably won't finish until I'm gone, I'll finish posting a review after I get back from camp.

Lastly, SCHOOL'S OUT!

The Princess Bride

The Princess Bride is one of the funniest movies that I have ever seen. It is an old family favorite and even my little brothers love it.

The Princess Bride was based off of a book and is about Buttercup and Wesley, two people who have fallen in love. Because Wesley has no money for marriage, he goes off to work at sea, but is killed in a raid by "The Dread Pirate Roberts." Buttercup lost the will to live after hearing the news. After many years, she is chosen by Prince Humperdink to be his bride. Buttercup did not love him, but one day, when taking a ride on her horse, she is kidnapped by three oddballs, Inigo the swordsman, Fezzik the Giant, and Vizzini, a man trying to start a war between two neighboring countries. After a while, they realized that they are being chased by a man in black. After he defeats Inigo and Fezzik, he kills Vizzini in a battle of wits to save Buttercup. After killing Vizzini, he reveals himself to be Wesley, but sadly there is still Humperdink in the way of he and Buttercup's love. Watch the movie to find out how it all ends, and to laugh for about 98 minutes!

Tonight, my neighbor is coming over to watch with my brothers and I. Also, tomorrow is the last day of school!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm leaving for camp this Saturday.

FARWORLD WRITING CONTEST

I just finished reading my ARC of Farworld: Water Keep last night and it was phenomenal. I cannot wait for book 2. Sadly, I'll have to.

Either way, now that I've finished, I'll post the rules of my contest for someone to win a copy of Farword from J Scott Savage. Starting today, I'll be having a Writing Contest. Since Farworld is a fantasy book and because I love reading fantasy, to enter, you must write a short description of any fantastical creature. It can either be one that already exists (that doesn't mean that you can copy the description out of the book that the creature's in) or it can be one that you make up (I prefer those. Much more original.) The paragraph that I like the best wins a copy of Farworld. To send me a paragraph, email it to me at briantillinger at cs dot com. (Sorry, just piece that together.) You can send me the paragraph any time between today, June 7th, and some time in early July (I'll post the exact date soon.) You get that long because I'll be at camp for most of that time. In the email, you must also include your name and your blog URL. Also, it would be helpful if you would post a comment saying that you sent the paragraph.

Also, sadly there are rules about where the ARC can be sent. It can only be sent to adresses in the US or Canada. (Those aren't my rules. Scott said that they couldn't be sent to anywhere other than the US or Canada.) Luckily, J Scott Savage also said that he would hold a contest sometime for people in other countries to win one. Well, those are all of the rules. Good Luck!

Random Stuff: June

Sorry I posted this late. I've been very busy.

1. I have decided on my list of camp books. Check back on June 16th for my list.

2. My Culture Project on James Fontaine is finally done. I know that I got at least an A- on it. My presentation was supposed to be at least 10-15 minutes. Instead, it was 19 minutes long.

3. Hooray!!! School ends one week from today. And the last day is only 20 minutes per period. The second to last day is field day.

4. Hooray!!! Again! Next Saturday, the 14th is the day when I go to sleep-away camp. Sadly, starting then, I wont be able to post until early July. :(

5. I will soon be posting on two movies I've seen recently: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skulls and The Princess Bride. Both are great movies!

6. My brothers have both gotten new video games. It is very distracting when your working on school projects.

7. Speaking of school projects, I have another big project for school. It is a Baseball Statistics Project for school. We were supposed to pick a player and I chose Chipper Jones from the Atlanta Braves.

8. I can't think of any thing else to say.

9. Wait, one last thing. I'm going to have my contest to win a copy of Farworld: Water Keep by J Scott Savage soon, before I go to camp. I'll announce the winner when I get back from camp. Bye!