Book Review: Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

Of Mice and Men was a book I decided to read for Semi-Charmed's winter book challenge because it was 105 pages, one of the challenge requirements. But I also read it because I never got the chance in high school. Of Mice and Men is one of those books that people read because they are told to, or only watch the movie. Then when school is over and you passed your test, you never think about it again.

Which is a shame because it is an excellent book.

Lennie and George are two farm hands who travel from place to place. The book begins with them on the road, walking next to a river bank in Southeastern America. From the moment the characters begin to speak, you'll notice something different.

Lennie has special needs and George takes care of him as best he could in the early 1900s. I always thought Lennie was such an interesting character because Of Mice and Men was published in 1937, a time not necessarily known for being inclusive towards people with disabilities of any kind... or really anyone who wasn't a WASP. But Steinbeck wrote about Lennie and wrote him in such a way where you learn to care for him like George does.

Even though George whines about how easy his life would be without Lennie following him around, you can tell that he likes keeping him around. This relationship is why I enjoyed the book as much as I did. With every situation they got into, George always tried to guide Lennie to do what wouldn't get him in trouble with the boss while also protecting himself. And Lennie looked up to George like a younger sibling does to an older one.

It's difficult to review this book because it's so short. I don't want to give away anything that would spoil the ending. Just know that every moment, every situation, every detail leads up to the last 10 pages. That's what's important about a book that's only 105 pages. Every detail counts.

I would definitely recommend this book if you want a short, quick read. Or if you're interested in reading a classic that is simple to understand and not the length of War and Peace (1,440 pages).

I tried to find an appropriate gif from the Of Mice and Men movie, but when I went to find something, all that came up was some punk/rock band with the same name? This band does not do Steinbeck's book title justice, I tell ya.

National Novel Writing Month

50,000.

That's a pretty big number. I wouldn't mind having that many dollar bills. Or maybe Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. Definitely Legos so I could build all the things.

But that's not what I'm talking about. 50,000 is important because that is my word goal in order to win NaNoWriMo!

What is NaNoWriMo, you ask? Why, it's National Novel Writing Month! Every November, writers are encouraged to join and write 50,000 towards their novel. I've participated a couple times (and won each year!), but I took last year off. Under the encouragement of my boyfriend, I decided in between working, working out, gearing up for the holidays, reading challenges, and my new-found love of organizing, it was a great idea to give this a try! I'll be sure to check in weekly to give everyone an update on my word count and if I actually figure out a plot of some times.

Do I have any idea what I'm going to write? Nope.

Will there be a lot of frustration and confusion? Oh yes.

Do I ever plan things like this out properly? No, never.

Will it be fun? Probably!

If you're interested, feel free to check out the site! You might even be inspired to write your own novel!

Semi-Charmed Winter 2015 Book Challenge

Happy first day of November! The fog is foggy here in mid-Missouri, so I am getting ready to make a nice cup of tea and sit down for the day to read my library books. But first, I figured I would talk to you about a lovely challenge my friend Megan over at Semi-Charmed Kind of Life is hosting this winter!

I've known Megan since college, and she has a significantly better blogging history than I do. But I stumbled across her challenge this morning and I just knew I had to participate. Basically, the goal is to 200 points worth of books between today and January 31st. So what are the points based off of? Well the list is below along with the books I am planning on reading for each category (books subject to change).

5 points: Read a book that has between 100 and 200 pages. - Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck (reread)

10 points: Read a debut book by any author. - Cinder by Marissa Meyer (reread)
10 points: Read a book that does not take place in your current country of residence. - Graceling by Kristin Cashore (fantasy location, does that count? If not, I'll choose something else)
10 points: Read a book that someone else has already used for the challenge. - TBD
15 points: Read a book published under a pseudonym (e.g. Robert Galbraith, Sara Poole, J.D. Robb, Franklin W. Dixon, Mark Twain, etc.). - Naked in Death by J.D. Robb
15 points: Read a book with “boy,” “girl,” “man” or “woman” in the title (or the plural of these words). - Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
15 points: Read a book with a one-word title (e.g. Attachments, Americanah, Uglies, Wild, etc.). - Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
20 points: Read a book with a person's first and last name in the title (e.g. The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry, The Story of Edgar Sawtelle). - Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
20 points: Read a food-themed book. — TBD
20 points: Read a book with a verb in the title. - P.S. I Still Love You by Jenny Han
30 points: Read two books with the same title (by different authors). [Edited to add: The titles must be the SAME save for alternate spellings. For example, The Alchemist and Alchemist would be two different titles and would not work for the challenge, but The Alchemist and The Alchemyst would work.] - Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell and Cloud Atlas by Liam Callanan
30 points: Read a nonfiction book and a fiction book about the same subject (e.g. a biography and historical fiction novel about the same person; two books about a specific war or event; a nonfiction book about autism and a novel with a character who has autism, etc. The possibilities are endless!). - TBD (history major problems, I have a lot of eras in history that interest me. I just need to narrow it down)

Looks like I'll be busy in the next 3 months. Especially since I will be adding other books on my own to read. Not to mention that I will be participating in National Novel Writing Month in November as well (post on this coming soon). I like to live on the edge like that. 

Click on the picture above to learn all about the challenge on Megan's blog.

Happy reading!

New Day, New Blog

Ahh, that fresh blog scent. So nice. So clean.

Like lemon pledge. Only not as overpowering.

Welcome, friends and family and people on the internet I do not know! My name is Amy aka Miss Nerdy and this is my blog. I know, I know. It's so empty. But aren't there some wonderful things that are empty. Like a new bookshelf. Or the dishwasher.

There are, of course, horrible things that are empty such as a wine glass or my bank account, but that's not the feel I'm going for in my opening post, if ya know what I mean.

This little corner of the internet is to serve as my reading center. Here is where I will keep track of what I read, what I want to read, and anything else literature related that I decided to place here. So kick back, grab a cup of tea, and read with me!