Looking for a roarmantic read?

Or okay, in regular terms, a romantic read?

I suggest Beastly by Alex Flinn. It's a modernized retelling of Beauty and the Beast. In it, the popular, gorgeous, and pretty darn mean Kyle Kingsbury is transformed into a beast by a witch. Because of his one act of kindness, he is given a chance to escape the curse: he has two years to kiss someone and have it be true love. This is pretty difficult, seeing as he's monstrous looking and can't even leave the house. That is, until he discovers a way to have Lindy, a sweet, plain scholarship student Kyle once would've overlooked, stay with him...The book is cute and romantic. It was a touch predictable, but it had enough to make it unique. For example, I loved all the transfiguration chatroom stuff. This book even made me cry a little bit, though I don't guarantee you the same results; I can be pretty sappy. If you do decide to give Beastly a try, bear with Kyle in the beginning, since he's a major jerk. Trust me, though, he has a very rewarding transformation.

Other people must have seen what I saw in the book, since it's being turned into a movie, due out in 2010. I'm so excited about Neil Patrick Harris's involvement; he'll be playing Kyle's blind tutor Will. Knowing Neil Patrick Harris, he'll be perfect at the part. Playing Kyle is Alex Pettyfer. He was in the Alex Rider movie, if anyone's seen that. He's pretty gorgeous, so I see that working, though I'm not too sure about his acting ability yet. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt. I am a bit worried, however, about the picture I've found of him in presumably his beast state, which I've included in the post. It doesn't strike me as quite beastly enough. The author describes him as having hair all over and looking less human. I pictured him looking a bit more werewolf like. Anyway, Mary Kate Olsen is also in the movie, playing the witch. The person that gives me most pause is Vanessa Hudgens as Lindy. I'm not a huge Vanessa fan, and I can't picture her as the character at all. In the book, Lindy is a plain and sweet rehead.

I guess I'll just have to wait and see, right? With most of these movie adaptions, you have to accept the movie as a seperate entity from the book, which reminds me, I'm off to see Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince for the second time today. WOOO!

He's Just Not That Into You

Just a few hours ago, I got back from seeing the movie He's Just Not That Into You, which stars big name celebrities such as Jennifer Aniston, Scarlett Johannson, Drew Barrymore, and Ben Affleck. If you haven't seen the previews, it's basically a movie about the ensemble's intertwining love lives. One of the main characters, Gigi (Ginnifer Goodwin), is a bit unlucky in the love department. Some of the guys she goes after are, as you'd guess, just not that into her.

Someone not returning someone else's feelings is always an interesting topic, whether it be in film or in books. In some of my manuscripts, there are guys who are just not that into the main character. For example, in my YA novel A REAL FIRST KISS, one of Lara's crushes flirts with, her hoping to use her for help with math. He readily admits to his friends that he has no interest in her whatsoever. In one of my middle grade works-in-progress, a girl named Farren has a crush on a guy who has fallen for a popular, pretty girl rather than her nerdy self.

I'm starting to notice something: most of the guys who don't reciprocate my main characters' feelings come off as jerks at some point. Maybe I do this subconciously since I like my main characters so much and can't imagine guys they like not liking them unless they have some kind of character defect. I don't want to make it sound as if I have guys just throwing themselves at my main characters, because it's not like that either...I guess it's just, in writing, I usually like to focus on burgeoning relationships rather than dead-end ones. After all, that's when the romance really comes in, and I love me some romance.

Anyway, He's Just Not That Into You was super cute. A great chick flick! Go see it if you're in the mood for some romance, some awws, a couple of laughs, and maybe even a few tears.

"Books make great gifts because they never come in the wrong size."

Yesterday I went Christmas shopping. Seriously, malls during the holiday season are insane...and not at all like the surprisingly serene picture to the left.

Despite being a teenage girl, I am not a big fan of shopping. In fact, the only things I really like shopping for are books (because, duh, they're books!) and purses (cute, and really one size fits all). To me, the mall is no safe haven. It is a place that quickly grows boring unless I'm there with plenty of friends. Add to that large crowds and long lines and the pressure to find the perfect gift, and it's a recipe for a Megan Shopping Meltdown, which I have been known to have.

Speaking of shopping meltdowns, last night I watched Jingle All The Way with Arnold Schwarzenegger. If you haven't seen it, it's about a workaholic dad who forgets about buying his son a Turbo Man action figure until Christmas Eve. He's determined to find one to make up for missing his son's karate lesson. It's kind of a ridiculous movie (the ending involves lots of flying on a jet pack), but its scenes of Christmas Eve shopping madness rang true. I'm glad that I am only sixteen and am not a parent having to fight tooth and nail for the season's hottest toy.

Though, I guess it does say something about our society that parents feel it such a necessity to get their kids the hottest toy. Honestly, a lot of the big Christmas gifts I've gotten haven't worked out. I used them for a while, then I moved on. I got a guitar a couple years ago, and I still haven't learned how to play it I feel pretty bad about that one, actually. The point is, kids don't really need the hottest toy out there. There are things that are more important, like having nice family memories and spending time together, which actually is the message of Jingle All The Way.

Back to my own shopping...it went fairly well. Though it was too crowded for my taste, the mall wasn't overly chaotic. I got some cute little gifts to give to my friends, a DVD for my mom, and books for my aunt and brother. I have one more book to get today, and then I'll be done.

As most writers do, I love giving people books. Many of you have probably seen the youtube video about how books make great gifts. If not, check it out! I've got to say, I also hope I get some books too, or at least a gift card to my favorite bookstore. For once, I don't have a huge To Be Read pile, and I really want to go shopping for some books of my own.

How has everyone else been surviving the malls, and what books do you guys have on your wish lists? And, of course, thoughts on Jingle All The Way are welcomed!

Credit for the Christmas pic goes to Paul Keleher, and the image of Jingle All The Way came from Overstock.