Michelle

It was fine. I like the way Cornelius's character remained true to himself without following the typical “good to evil” arc, he has always been what he is.

I also like how they gave Lucy Gray unique traits and were very different from Katniss.
However, I felt a bit disappointed with the portrayal of the games. It would have been more captivating to experience the games from the perspective of the other characters, as it would immerse readers in the intensity of the challenges they faced. That and the song definitely will work better in the movie adaptation. Everything was from the perspective of Cornelius so the initial games were a bunch of waiting for everyone to die, we didn't know who was alive, who was dead. and that is why he decided to change and improve the games to make it more entertaining, so seeing that was also very interesting, but it could have been better.
The other problem was that some parts felt a lot rushed. For example, we were waiting for something to happen for chapters, and when it finally happens, it's just over. There is a lot of anticipation but not a great payoff.

Hope Springs Eternal

Shawshank Redemption is about hope.

I have problems writing this review because I like the movie better, it was way more memorable than the book so most things that I remember are from the movie.

We see what prison takes from people, not only their freedom for some amount of years, but it takes their will to be free. There is a nice metaphor: If you cage a bird, and years later you let it go. It will die because it doesnt know how to survive in the new world. So you rather stay locked forever because you are terrified of leaving and being alone. In the movie, they explain better the life of Brooks, and his sad ending, where he couldn't stand it, he couldn't survive in the new world, so he kills himself.

In the movies is also better the way Andy gets his money, by deceiving the guards and stealing everything from them. In the book it was something that he had outside, hidden under a rock. It was interesting that he didn't know if that was still out there, we just hope that is out there. The movie Andy outsmarting everyone else is perfect.

## Summer of Corruption

Apt Pupil is about being careful what you wish for

Todd is a really smart boy who gets obsessed with Nazis, like every kid his age. For his luck, he finds a Nazi commander in his neighborhood and blackmails him, into telling him everything about the concentration camps

The relationship between Dusander and Todd is really interesting; they are meant to be, you can consider them friends that pull each other down.

I like the movie better, especially the ending. In the movie Todd is really smart, you are amazed by the way he solves problems, but in the book, we find out that Dusander was the one telling him what to say, especially the part about the letter, I was in awe in that part, but finding out that it was Dussander´s idea is a bummer.

And the ending !! I am still mad about it. The ending of the movie is amazing. Todd is really smart, you realize that he is a monster. That all the influence of Dussander got to him, he is indeed an Apt Pupil. And in the book... he got carry away by his emotions and ruins everything. I really didn't like it.

## Fall from Innocence

The Body is about the journey more that the destination

A group of boys who want to see a dead body and deal with different emotions along the way. I also like the movie better in this one. We get to know everybody, their fears, how they interact with each other. The movie made few changes, the first one with Chris's character saving his friend, and he always has. That scene shows us that he is the leader, and why Gordi likes him so much. In the book, Gordi is the one who saves him, and that doesn't go much with his character. Another difference and the main one is the relationship between Gordi and his brother, who is dead. In the movie Gordi really loved his brother, and he misses him, he was the one protecting him, and the only one that supported him, because to his parents he was invisible, so you can see the dynamic. In the book, Gordi is invisible to everybody, even his brother and he doesnt feel sad about his death.

## A Winter's Tale

The breathing method is about determination

This was my favorite tale, maybe because there wasn't a movie to compare it to. I always enjoy stories between stories. And the story of giving birth after being decapitated is really gruesome, Stephen King's style. I like twitching as I read, it is the reason you read horror.

This book is about obsessions, letting something consume you, the only thing that makes you stay alive can also be the only thing that leads you to your death.

The protagonist Pete Saubers is the perfect boy, how he cares for his family is unimaginable, her little sister Tina, being the light of his life. He, as the older brother, is very mature, intelligent, and dedicated. Loves reading because books bring him to other worlds.

There is a similitude between him and the antagonist. Morris. Both of them obsessed with the books, the Jimmy Gold novel, they lived in the same house, think of the same hiding spot. It makes you think, what would have happened if the Saubers family had never recovered, would Pete become someone bad?. If the arckys barckys never stopped. He would be a completely different adult. In a way, that vault of money saved him, saved his future, not just financially but psychological too. It saved his humanity.

Or maybe not, maybe one is born bad. Nothing indicates that Morris suffered in any way. He had a bad relationship with her mother, but that was it. Nothing terrible. He has always been that way. A wolf.

Is true that this book would have been fine as a solo, not necessarily with the Bill Hodges trilogy. Bill is almost absent. The whole story is for Pete, so Bill kind of feels like an Ex-Maquina. He appears in the end just to save them. And doesn't really contribute to the story. I really wanted to see how would Pete have won, on his own. Stephen King makes these fantastic stories for kids, and how would kids win against a greater evil. So is really interesting to see what would he have done, alone. Would Pete have burned the notebooks on purpose??, because it was an accident. But we'll never know. Could his plan work?? The notebooks in exchange for his sister?? Maybe. Morris was desperate. They both were enchanted, “My precious”

The only thing I didn't like about this book is what they did to the Mercedes Killer, giving him powers. Stephen King has this trademark that people with a hit on their head, get powers, like in the Death Zone, where the protagonist becomes a psychic. I didn't like it because it's another genre. This book has something special for me, and that is that this story is completely real. There is nothing paranormal or supernatural. So putting that little hint feels kind of off. Doesn't really goes well with the story.

So this book was fine, I really like the scenes of suicide, those were really powerful, showing how a little drop of doubt, of insecurity, can spread through your whole mind. A little voice that whispers hate and disgrace into your head... It's not easy to shut it down and every time the little voice starts to win volume and its grows and stretches, so you listen to it. It starts making sense, it hijacks your thoughts, so you listen to it. Each time more and more. It screams at you, so you listen, and realize it does make sense. It is the only thing that makes sense. A way to take away all your pain and worries. It sugarcoats your decision until you succumb to it.

Even though there were some supernatural elements to this story, they didn't bother me. In the previous book, we are already told that this story will contain supernatural elements, so it's not annoying. We already know that it's going to be that way.

The only thing I didn't like was the ex maquina ending. If it wasn't for Jerome, everyone would be dead