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Since starting Hannibal 3 days ago, I’ve gotten not only my boss watching it but also my boyfriend and roommates/friends i’m on a mission

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Can i get some good Hannibal fics? I just started watching, it’s my new hyper fixation and it need fics that are on the level of classical literature essentially

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Chat i just started Hannibal and now im obsessed and about to draw copious amounts of biblical fanart (I’ll update my book blog soon I’ve been busy ;-;)

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The Big Sleep - Raymond Chandler

Hey hey!! So sorry for the lack of updates, I’ve been quite busy with work and I’ve also started going to the gym! Working at an office job really does a number on ya lmao.

Anyways, I started reading The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler and so far, I have slightly mixed feelings. The plot is there i’ll give you that, but the way the writing is structured is almost too stagnant + there is constant casual misogyny (it was written in 1939 i’m not surprised). I can appreciate the artistic point of view while criticizing this piece so I’m curious as to how I’ll feel when I’m finished. Just wanted to give you all an update and I hope you all have a lovely day!!

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Nosferatu and Dracula - A comparison

Hey Hey everyone! As we all know, the re-make of Nosferatu (1922) recently came out in December and I finally watched it last night. Since the OG film is an unauthorized adaptation of Dracula, I thought that I should do a comparison review of the two.

----Brief background----

If you haven't read it, I have done a book review on Bram Stoker's Dracula and I'll link it here!

In the 1922 film, it's expected that some details were altered for the taste of German audiences however, the similarities are everywhere! Despite small details being altered, Stoker's widow sued for copyright and ordered that all copies were to be destroyed. Naturally, some copies survived and now we have the modern Nosferatu.

----Similarities----

In both pieces of media, the two male leads (Jonathan Harker and Thomas Hutter) both work with real-estate firms and are sent to close a deal with the antagonist (Dracula and Orlok) It's crazy how both of these films are because some vampires wanted prime real-estate smh.

The two female characters in Nosferatu are based on Mina (Jonathan's fiancé) and Lucy (as Ruth in Nosferatu). Their physical attributes and obstacles, despite the changes that were made.

We have the male leads (Jonathan and Thomas) escape the antagonist's castle and they are both found by nuns and delirious. Meanwhile while this is happening, we also have the shipwreck that is transporting the antagonist to his new land (England in Dracula and Germany in Nosferatu respectively)

We have characters representing the insane asylum patient, Renfield, and Van Helsing. Of course, the details of the characters were changed including their attitudes but they all play the roles they were based on and while watching the movie, John Gottowt (Van Helsing's character) is starkly different than his book counterpart. His method and end goals are different (of course, that was the whole point) however, there are enough similarities to where I kind of got tired of it. (This is simply my own opinion, I encourage you to watch/read both pieces to form your own perspective)

I also noticed that the themes regarding societal views and the analogy that both Dracula and Orlok are representations of Satan/death. Vampires are written as satanic creatures who cannot fulfill their blood lust and are weak to Christian symbols like crosses and wafers. This is important symbolism to consider.

Both pieces of media place this societal view and expectation that women are to be chaste and pure, uncorrupted by the evil in the world. With the two female characters, they are both "tainted" and you can see in both works that this causes them to feel outcasted.

If you would like a more in-depth explanation, I would suggest reading my review of Dracula and reading the book!

----Differences----

Of course, we have differences between the two pieces, that being parts of the plot and characters. The main difference is from the female lead, Mina and Ellen, and the events that happen to them.

In the newly released Nosferatu, Ellen is depicted to have been assaulted by Orlok and references him as her shame (as someone who had similar experiences, I can most definitely see similar attributes in response to her trauma), and by the end of the movie, she learns that the vampire can be destroyed if a pure-hearted woman offers him her blood willingly. Basically, she decides to sacrifice herself and after Orlok is defeated, she lives just long enough to see her husband and then DIES. Bruh.

In Bram Stoker's Dracula, Mina is attacked by Dracula after Lucy's death and is now running on limited time. Instead of abandoning her like his movie counterpart, Van Helsing is determined to save Mina and defeat Dracula. The sense of friendship between the characters in the book is much stronger and more defined than the characters in the movie and it's something that really caught my attention. At the end of Dracula, Dracula is defeated and Mina is saved and gets to live a happy life with Jonathan.

To me, the main differences (like I stated above) regard not only the details of the journey that the characters go on but also their bonds with each other and their goals.

----Overall review----

All in all, I would say that while I enjoyed watching the movie (despite the awkwardness of the sex scene) I wouldn't necessarily go out of my way to watch it. I respect it as a piece of media however, I personally enjoy Dracula more. I say this because the characters and plot have more depth which is to be expected after watching a remake based off of an unauthorized adaptation. Like I said, I think you should explore these pieces on your own and form your own opinions and if you have any questions or more to add, feel free to DM me! (Also sorry for the confusing layout of all the characters, it's most definitely a mess)

Overall, I rate this movie 5/10!!

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A Country Doctor's Notebook - Mikhail Bulgakov

Hey Hey everyone! So slight change of plans, I decided to read A Country Doctor's Notebook, and holy shit this book is fantastic I finished it within a single night! I'm going to delve into the facts immediately because I'm so excited to write this.

----About the author----

Mikhail Bulgakov (1891-1940) was actually a doctor who served on the front lines during World War 1 until he was discharged after being injured. Within the same year he was discharged, he was transferred to be a doctor in Moscow and then the village of Nikolskoye. It was during this time that he was inspired to write A Country Doctor's Notebook.

The short story Morphine (which is featured in A Country Doctor's Notebook) is actually based on Mikhail's own addiction to the substance. Mikhail wrote other stories such as The Master and Margarita and several plays however, the plays weren't allowed in production due to being personally banned by Stalin (I really encourage you to read about his life, it's interesting!)

----Things I enjoyed about the book----

First thing first, this work is only 108 pages (depending on the copy you have) and I was able to finish this within a single night! I was absolutely enthralled with the story I couldn't stop reading it! The style of writing is a short story cycle, which is a collection of short stories in which the narratives are specifically written to enhance the reading experience as a whole rather than reading each story individually. Trust me, every short story was amazing to read and I was so excited when I saw the next one come up.

Another thing I enjoyed was the development of Dr. Bomgard, the main character of the book. In the beginning, he is a young 24-year-old doctor who just got out of medical school with no real experience whatsoever. He is transferred to a hospital in rural Russia and during his stay of 2 years, he gains the reputation of an excellent doctor until he eventually leaves for Moscow.

The character of Dr. Bomgard is really interesting! When I first started reading, I was thinking that this man was going to lose his shit at some point. He has had successful surgeries from pure luck in the beginning and he is CONSTANTLY panicking if a patient comes in with a hernia. (Seeing his panic about it in the book is actually really funny) Throughout the book, you read more of his inner thoughts and there is still an arrogance in him but at least he's saving people? His mind is constantly going back and forth with indecisiveness at points and from a reader's perspective, it's really intriguing.

The short story Morphine, now THAT is a good one. This short story is when Dr. Bomgard receives a letter from his replacement in the rural hospital and when he arrives, he is greeted with a dead doctor and his diary. It is within this diary, that we see journal entries depicting a descent into an addiction. This section had me entranced because not only was it based on the author's real-life experience, but you could see and feel the decline of the doctor's health while reading his entries until his untimely end.

Stories that make you feel as if you are experiencing the character's feelings are most definitely my favorite, it helps me feel immersed and understand the work better!

----Overall review----

This book was absolutely just what I needed to recover from Dead Souls and I highly encourage you to check out this short story! It's an amalgamation of short stories that form a larger picture featuring the author's own experiences. It was thrilling to read, feeling the main character back and forth emotions while trying to maintain his ego, and this honestly might be one of my new favorite books (until I find another gem)

While Morphine may seem like a sudden turn of events, personally, I enjoyed the entirety of the book (and I sound like a repeating record but you should read it too and form your own opinion) If you have any questions or have more to add, feel free to DM me and check out my small blog :)

Overall, I rate this story a 10/10!!

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Hey hey everybody, sorry for the lack of posts this week I’ve been nursing a migraine. I’ve also been reading Democracy in America by Tocqueville and it’s pretty interesting! I definitely encourage reading primary sources and such (especially regarding today’s political climate) Remember that to be alt is to be informed!!!

Ill give an update when I’m halfway through the book and I hope you all have a lovely day of reading/existing!

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Dead Souls - Nikolai Gogol

Hey hey! Despite my wanting to continue reading this book, unfortunately, I cannot. I started reading Dead Souls on Jan 31 and decided to stop Feb 6th (yesterday) and every day while reading, the book tired me mentally tbh. While there are some enjoyable aspects, the way the piece is structured is to put it shortly, a nightmare!

Disclaimer, this is my opinion based on reading this book and I encourage you all to read and form your own :)

Despite this book being a hard read (and me deciding to stop 8 chapters in) there were some fun tidbits! (Nikolai Gogol also had ties to Fyodor Dostoyevsky and Pushkin so if you like BSD, maybe check it out?)

----The parts I enjoyed--

Writing structure and characters aside, the book's plot has great potential! The plot revolves around Chichikov, a man who arrives in a new village and buys all the dead serfs (or souls) to get a mortgage and buy himself an estate. It has potential because firstly, no one thinks to write a book from this perspective. I mean, who buys dead people and manages to weasel himself an estate.

Another tidbit that I enjoyed is that I can see some criticism of political corruption! It is always fantastic to see pieces that criticize the government and while I did not finish the book, I can see the theme hinting at the overall message. If you want to know more, I suggest reading about Nikolai Gogol and his life, it is really quite interesting!

I completely respect the time and work put into writing this piece. Writing a book is no easy feat and for it to be considered not only 1/3 of Gogol's masterpieces but also a classic Russian comic. If a nation can consider it to be a classic, then there is respect in that alone. (I wasn't able to even get through part 1 lmao)

----The Structure----

The first reason I couldn't get through this work was the grammatical structure. In this work, the sentences are constantly run on and seem to have no end in sight. The pages are filled with 4-5 run-on sentences at times, which are also overly descriptive, and it can be hard to focus (and not become bored immediately) I particularly had a hard time remembering all of the details due to everything being TOO detailed. I find that there is a fine balance in regard to details and besides, it's nice to have something to the imagination.

Secondly, I couldn't finish this book because of the humor. I completely understand that this is a comic and I will admit that I did let an exhale through my nose at some parts, but personally, I find the humor not funny :/ The humor is Gogolian and is heavily focused on characteristic and situational instances (it has the same weird sentence construction of one of Gogol's' other works The Overcoat so most of it is linguistic humor) The portrayal of Jewish characters in the chapters that I read gave me the ick, I don't like reading books where humor is based upon caricatures. There are so many ways to go about humor but he chose this one sigh. the other instances of humor were also just dry in my opinion and it felt like he was trying too hard to be funny.

----Overall review----

Despite this book being a hard read, there were a few parts that I did enjoy. Apparently, many others have also put down the book shortly after reading and I'm glad I'm not alone in this endeavor! Despite my opinion on this work, I encourage you to read it just a little and form your own opinion because who knows, you might enjoy it! (It's okay if you don't though because SAME) If you want to ask questions or have anything to add, my DMs are open and if you want to read more book reviews you can check out my blog! What book should I read next?

Overall, I rate this book a 5/10!!

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A Complaint of Dead Souls - Nikolai Gogol

So I've read another 2 chapters from where I left off last night and my mind is now exhausted from reading this. It's the constant, over-descriptive, run-on sentences and the poorly placed situational humor that actually kills me (derogatory) I want to continue reading it though because unfortunately, I am stubborn and I want to see this through.

There are good and bad books in life, you know? We just have to read them to find out. I originally wanted to read The Scarlet Letter first, but someone already annotated the copy I have (it's older). I want to be able to write my own thoughts as I'm reading instead of reading someone else's. But anyways, I'll keep trying to make it through the Gogolian torture.

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Dead Souls - Nikolai Gogol (pls save me)

So I'm 4 chapters into Dead Souls by Nikolai Gogol and I don't even want to finish the book at this point ( I will because I'm dedicated to rating this book) The writing style is starting to tire me and the humor isn't funny despite the book being claimed to be a great comic. While I know that some people may enjoy this book ( which is why I am continuing to read despite my exhaustion), I am not so far. Someone who has finished this piece, please tell me it gets better so I can maintain my sanity.

I'm tagging this bsd so if anyone has read the book, they can tell me their opinion. (I also say this because when I looked up his portrait out of curiosity, BSD Nikolai flooded the search history when I wasn’t even looking for him lmao) I'll give my final review when I finish this book so until then, pls save me!

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Dracula - Bram Stoker

Hey Hey everyone! Since finishing the Odyssey, I decided to pick up a gothic classic, Dracula. This is a book I finished in 4 days (Jan 26-29) and this piece is absolutely riveting! This book has 27 chapters and each is more interesting than the previous. Now onto the list of features that I like regarding the book.

----The writing style----

One part of the story that I enjoyed was the epistolary style. Epistolary means that the story is composed of diary entries, letters, telegrams, memos, and even newspaper clippings within the story. I found this exciting, reading the characters' multiple perspectives in different formats. This style is also used in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein which might be another selling point if you're also a fan.

--The themes--

I love myself a good gothic classic. Who doesn't? In Dracula, there is adventure, consequences of modernity, the threat of female sexuality, religion, and madness. These themes, while some annoying to see in writing, are interesting to read about because you can criticize them.

The threat of female sexuality is common in older literature, with women usually being written 2 dimensionally either as a pure virgin or as a mother and wife (If they weren't the 2, they were irrelevant). The 2 female characters in the book, Lucy and Mina, are written as chaste and pure (and devoted to their men) A driving point in Dracula is that he threatens to turn them into vampires, which can be inferred as the exact opposite values that Victorian society holds towards women. (Religion also plays into this high-key)

In the book, Dracula is written as this old satanic creature, who is weak against Christian symbols such as holy wafers and crucifixes. While his appearance is a factor, the key detail is the consumption of blood (which is seen as a perversion of Christian rituals) Each of the women in the book, Lucy and the 3 wives (even Dracula!) are transformed after their second death when they are purified, conforming to the Christian promise of salvation. (If you want a more in-depth explanation, I suggest reading the book and making your own conclusions :))

----Now to what I enjoyed about the book!----

While the themes can be criticized/enjoyed, I enjoyed the writing style and setting of the story a lot! The transition from Transylvania to semi-modern London was definitely an experience, and I enjoyed the yearning between the characters (I relate that I too get sad when I don't hear from my boyfriend)

——Overall review——

Reading this book made me remember playing all the Castlevania games and watching the series so if you like vampires and want more vampire content, read this book! If you want to add anything or ask any questions, feel free to DM me!!

Overall I rate this story a 10/10!!

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The Odyssey - Homer

Hey Hey! I’m going to start blogging on my thoughts regarding the books I’ve been reading and hopefully encourage others to :)

To say I needed a distraction when I started The Odyssey was an understatement because I finished this book in 3 days!! (Jan 23-25) Holy shit. The Odyssey has many interesting components that I want to list out for you guys, including a historical debate regarding the author

——The debate of Homer——

The first part I am bringing up is the debate on whether Homer actually exists or not. This has been an ongoing debate since we’ve been able to piece together The Odyssey for many reasons, partly because the poem is so long! (also the use of iron during the bronze age, an inaccurate piece)

Many speculate that Homer was actually the act of oral poetry (one that personally makes sense to me) because of many reasons, one being the fact that the poem is so long. How can one person remember all of this detail to detail? There are multiple parts and don’t even get me started on Homeric language

Another is because of the parts we have been able to recover, some being written down while others were passed down orally. When The Iliad was composed, the estimated date is from 725 to 625 B.C and The Odyssey later during this period. Why would a poet create works as long as these when there wasn’t a writing system developed yet (at least in regards to paper)?

We don’t know when “paper” (papyrus) was first available in Greece even though they had access to wax tablets. Like I said, there are many debates and theories but if I were to continue that would take forever lmao. (If you have any questions though please feel free to ask!!)

——Now to what I enjoyed about the book!——

I thoroughly enjoyed the use of diphthongs, vowels placed next to each other such as ae, ei, eu, ea, ei, etc. Personally I just find the name absurdly funny. Another tidbit that I enjoyed were the Homeric epithets, specifically “Dawn with her rose-red fingers….” Something about it seems so peaceful and I feel like whenever I read it, I have an image of it in my mind.

——Overall review——

Overall, this epic is a classic! It’s a tale of a tragic hero trying to make it home to his wife and son after 20 years of being exiled from his land. Some parts brought a small mist to my eye but that’s what makes it fun! Stories are supposed to reach you emotionally in some way and make you think :)

One thing to consider while reading Homeric tales is that the characters repeat stories. A lot. Over. And. Over. If you want to add anything or ask my any questions, please feel free to DM me!!

(and if you like this review you should check out my developing book blog🔫)

Overall I rate this story a 10/10!!

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Pim and Charlie snowmen :D

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ppl be like: is this a jojos reference?

YES. the answer is always yes. from every breath you take to every time that you wake up feeling so horny, it is a jojo reference.

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tbh i think a full like creepypasta revival would b heavenly

like with modern fandom humor?? literally a breath of fresh air. i see it sometimes, but like what happened to the fandom over the years

it is nice to see newer fan content nd such (rewrites, fanart etc) but i just wish it was more of a Thing in 2024

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ppl be like: is this a jojos reference?

YES. the answer is always yes. from every breath you take to every time that you wake up feeling so horny, it is a jojo reference.

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ngl i understand why jeff the killer snapped. imagine being named jeff. you’re 13 and named jeff.