Cassandra Clare is the author of The Mortal Instruments, The Infernal Devices, and The Bane Chronicles. All of her literary works surround the world of Shadowhunters, also known as Nephilim, which are a race of beings born with angelic blood. Cassandra’s first book, City of Bones, was released in 2004. Since then, she has released over ten books and she has plans to release more. Cassandra Clare is an influential author of the 20th century because of her unique books, widespread fan base, and successful publications.
One thing that might stand out to a reader of Cassandra’s books is that they are unlike any other. The plot itself in her books may not be original, but the world she created is. Most young adult books are about vampires, werewolves, zombies or another mythical creature. All of those subjects have been seen before in literature. What is unique about Cassandra’s books is that they are about a race of beings called Shadowhunters, mythical beings Cassandra created on her own.
When asked how she got the idea for her novels, Cassandra said:
The idea for the Mortal Instruments came to me one afternoon in the East Village. I was with a good friend of mine, who was taking me to see the tattoo shop where she used to work. She wanted to show me that her footprints were on the ceiling in black paint — in fact the footprints of everyone who’d worked there were on the ceiling, crisscrossing each other and making patterns. To me it looked like some fabulous supernatural battle had been fought there by beings who’d left their footprints behind. I started thinking about a magical battle in a New York tattoo shop and the idea of a secret society of demon-hunters whose magic was based on an elaborate system of tattooed runes just sprang into my mind (cassandraclare).
When writing young adult books, it is much more difficult to capture the interest of adults, considering most young adult books are meant for teenagers. However, The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal devices have attracted fans of all ages. Many of Cassandra’s older fans have said that they shied away from The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices at first because most of the main characters are teenagers (robbingtheromancecradle). What made many people fall in love with her books could be the complex relationships between the characters, the mature subject matter, the romance, the action, or the overall story in general.
After hearing a brief description of the story you might think that there aren’t many good things about they story. However, this is false, there are many good things in this book that makes it a good read. First being that it is a very intriguing book. This is good for teenage readers because often times they don’t willingly want to read, and this story will force the teenage or any reader to continue the book and continue reading the series. Secondly, this is a “good” book because it has a good balance of violence. This is a good thing because it provides readers with an exciting read. We hear and even see violence in our everyday life and I believe that it is something teenagers should be exposed to. This book gives children an insig...
Zora Neale Hurston was a novelist, folklorist, and anthropologist. Zora plays an important role for the Harlem Renaissance. Zora Neale Hurston is considered one of the titans of twentieth-century African American literature. Despite that she would later fall into disgrace because of her firm views of civil rights, her lyrical writing which praise southern black culture has influenced generations of black American literary figures. Hurston’s work also had an impact on later black American authors such as Ralph Ellison, Alice Walker, and Toni Morrison.
Zora Neale Hurston was a phenomenal woman. At the height of her success she was known as the “Queen of the Harlem Renaissance.” She came to overcome obstacles that were placed in front of her. Hurston rose from poverty to fame and lost it all at the time of her death. Zora had an unusual life; she was a child that was forced to grow up to fast. But despite Zora Neale Hurston’s unsettled life, she managed to surmount every obstacle to become one of the most profound authors of the century.
A recent young adult novel has stirred up a lot of controversy in the world of writing literature. The issue is that current young adult literature is too dark for teen readers, or is merely more realistic than previous works for teens. In early June 2011, the Wall Street Journal ran an editorial written by book critic Meghan Cox Gurdon says how dark is contemporary fiction for teens? Darker than when you were a child, my dear: So dark that kidnapping and pederasty and incest and brutal beatings are now just part of the run of things in novels directed, broadly speaking, at children from ages of 12 to 18. As I write rhetorically about this argument meaning the understanding of or approach to human interaction or based on their purpose and motivation.
Margaret Atwood is a widely recognized literary figure, especially known for her themes of feminism. Her novels, including Alias Grace and The Handmaid's Tale are widely known for their feminist subject matter, and one finds the same powerful themes within her poetry. Judy Klemesrud, in her article for The New York Times, once made the wise acknowledgement that "People follow her on the streets and in stores, seeking autographs and wanting to discuss the characters in her novels- most of whom are intelligent, self-absorbed modern women searching for identity. These women also suffer greatly, and as a result, some Canadian critics have dubbed her 'the high priestess of angst'"(March 28, 1982). Indeed, Margaret Atwood has a talent for the conscience feministic perspective, and the tone of much of her work seems to indicate her sense of political responsibility. Her poem "Spelling," for example, is a testament to the power of words and it depicts the victimization of powerlessness of women without language. Atwood describes her daughter on the floor, learning how to spell for the first time, and then leads the reader through a history of persecuted, helpless women. For instance, Atwood depicts "the woman caught in the war/ & in labour, her thighs tied/ together by the enemy/ so she could not give birth"(803). Such disturbing portrayals of women have earned Atwood the reputation as a daring feminist. Yet it is important to recognize that her poetry is not just about feminist themes, it is also an exploration into the depths of human consciousness and loneliness. This consciousness, paired with her curiosities about the power of language, is seen in many of her poetic themes. Atwood focuses on different ...
Zora Neale Hurston was best known for her novels and different collections of folklore. She was a writer who associated with the Harlem Renaissance that celebrated the African American culture of the south. Her first novel, “Their Eyes Were Watching God”, was a best-selling novel in 1937.
Jane Austen’s novels still remain relevant to this day, despite being written more than 200 years ago. This decade, from 2011-2017, celebrates the bicentennial publishing of her six novels. Her novels are classics, and still on many a required college reading list, yet her works are also read by ordinary people who just enjoy a good story. During her lifetime, her books were well received, but quickly forgotten after her death (Harman 65). Considered one of Britain’s most revered authors, her legacy is now passed from generation to generation and has become entrenched in popular culture (Swisher 13).
“The bitterest tears shed over graves are for words left unsaid and deeds left undone.” This quote by Harriet Beecher Stowe was an example of the heartaches she experienced and the wisdom she gained from those experiences. Stowe’s life was not trouble-free; she went through many difficult situations that helped her learn many things about her life, personally, and life in general. Harriet Beecher Stowe’s life experiences- discrimination, exhaustion, and loss- gave her the ability to relate emotionally to slaves which allowed her to write a book, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, that affected public opinion by tugging at people’s emotions.
As children, we all had magnificent dreams and aspirations. Whether they were to walk on the moon or to discover a new plant species, dreams were the things that kept us going; kept us striving towards obtaining what we wanted. For Karen Hesse, many dreams came and went throughout her life, but the idea of becoming a published author was always instilled in her mind.
Originally the novel was for adults, but teenagers connected to the story as well because of Holden’s resistance to adulthood. It teaches both groups that people develop at a different time. Parents should not be forcing their kids to grow up, get a job, and move out; and kids need to understand growing up is a part of life. Sometimes it is easy to feel like you are alone, but everyone goes through periods of frustration pertaining to who they
Fifty Shades of Grey, is one of UK’s best-selling novels, and is written by the famously known author E.L James. E.L James was not a prominent writer until the release of the Fifty Shades trilogy, which, she claimed to have written during her mid-life crisis. This novel has taken female audiences all over the world by storm. It is set mainly in Seattle, and is the first book of the Fifty Shades trilogy (Fifty Shades Darker is the second book, and Fifty Shades Freed is the third book) (Gilman, 2013).
Stephen King is known as one of the greatest horror and gothic writers of our time. The reason for this is his ability to fuse the gothic elements created by stories such as Dracula or Frankenstein and todays horror. King has written hundreds of short stories but two in-particular “The Night Flier” and “Popsy” show his unique ability to combined gothic elements from the old literature with realistic settings and people of our era. One of his greater talents is being able to use gothic element like vampires and make us see them in a different light. Kings unique way of writing with his old gothic ideals, new horror ideas, and use of realistic settings help to put a new spin on what we conceive as gothic story.
One of the major reasons why such a strong connection was made with the fans is the fact that they literally were able to grow with Harry Potter. The books were released gradually, some having up to two years in between releases, so the readers grew up quite a lot across the series of the book; because of this, the book had to maintain its appeal right through teenage years. Rowling’s writing style managed to do this by starting off simple enough for a child embarking on their first novels, and developed into something much more adult and complex, which was compelling enough for both teenagers and adults. Anthony Gierzynski states that “Those 10-year-olds going to the first movie, holding the hands of their parents, ended up driving to the last midnight shows.” By having the series grow along with the fans, both literally and metaphorically, this generation has been able to claim Harry Potter as its own. Furthermore, the values and beliefs of this generation have been greatly impacted by the connection to the Harry Potter series. In his essay “How 'Harry Potter ' shaped the political culture of a generation”, Gierzynski goes on to assert that “Reading the books correlated with greater levels of acceptance for
With over 4 billion copies of her novels sold, written in at least 56 different languages, only the Bible is known to have outsold Agatha Christie. With her series of 80 complex, plot-driven whodunits, Agatha Christie created a name for herself in the world of authors. Her many accomplishments include creating the only fictional character, Hercule Poirot, who had an obituary in the New York Times and having the longest running play in the world, The Mousetrap, with over 23,000 performances. She has been named the best-selling book writer of all time and the best-selling writer of any kind by the Guinness Book of World Records.
Jane Eyre is a Feminist Novel.In the novel Jane Eyre, there is plenty of evidence to suggest that the tone of Jane Eyre is in fact a feminist novel. This book points out the times of unfairness in the Victorian society between men and women, where the man always comes first and is the master of his wife and always the provider. There are many examples that show feminist acts that usually do not occur in the Victorian era, such as wiith strength and integrity, Jane is able to break free from the role that the rest of the society has put her in, which is uncommon in that time