Pretty Little Mistakes

books. i have been slacking on the book front. not on the reading, just on the reporting. i have 4 new books that i need to list up here. a couple of which are weeks old now.. so i will continue to slack, and talk about the one that was the most fun to read.

Pretty Little Mistakes by Heather McElhatton

Paperback: 512 pages 
Publisher: Harper Paperbacks (May 1, 2007)

how many people remember reading Choose Your Own Adventure books when you were younger? it is a generation thing, so older visitors may be familiar with them whilst never having read one themselves.? Those who have read them inevitably have a similar response when they are brought up. They all enjoyed them and they all wish that there were adult versions of them to read.. well get used to it, there are not. get over it.. nah, just fucking with you.. there were not.. now there is one..

Pretty Little Mistakeswas written by Heather McElhatton is the adult answer to “why are there no adult choose your own adventure books?” She calls them “Do Over” books and has filled a gaping hole in the consumer world.. addicted adults with no outlet for their addiction to manifest itself. She has created a story that begins on the day you graduate highschool.

• do you go to college? if so, do you major in art or science?
• do you say “fuck college” and go touring the world with a back pack and an eye for adventure?
• do you start making drugs and selling them to an unsuspecting populace?

and one of my favorites…

• do you strap the meat to your naked body?

this book is not for younger kids. some of the sections you would not want your 5-11 year olds reading. it is not meant for them, it is meant for us! We are taking back the genre!!? this book is filled with tumerous cocks, bullets, random accidents, numerous versions of heaven and hell. angry gods, flacid boyfriends, lesbian lovers, fame fortune, porn stars, disease.. that is the short list.

unlike a normal choose your own adventure, and contrary to how you are told to read the book, Heather has made i easy for you to quickly navigate the story lines. it is simple to “do over” decisions that you feel were not the best. each decision is set before you with a section number as well as a page number. i found that the section numbers were easier to navigate as they are presented in large bold print in the top corner where as the small print page numbers in the bottom left were cumbersome. each section begins by telling you what section you came from, thus allowing you a fast back pedal action if you decide not to start from the beginning.

i read this book through to its completion, which can be difficult with 150 possible endings. there seemsed to be an underlying theme to the whole story. regardless of what choices you make, you were still brought back to some similar situations. almost as if heather’s book was a chronicle of fate’s tangled web. you have a path, and you can stray from it, but in the end fate only gives you a few scenarios to play with.

it was interesting to read extra into the stories. i found myself pondering creationism and evolution.. considering that one person could be fucked for life from the get go with only one decision to sway the odds. it was fun, and suprisingly compelling.

i officially have fed the addiction and anxiously await more of my drug.

anyone who wants to try it out before going to the book store, see below. As part of her website, Heather has placed a section of the book online in a semi-low tech fashion. it is not the same as having the weight of the book in hand, but will give you an idea of the writing style. i suggest traveling after school. try going to californication.

CLICK HERE TO TEST OUT A PREVIEW OF THE BOOK

i am excited, a second book called million little mistakes is being written by her right now. i hope a third book later will have a less predictable title.

per her website http://www.prettylittlemistakes.com

***million little mistakes***
won’t be out till next summer!**Why?
Because Heather McElhatton is the worlds slowest writer
and mlm is going to be so so so good!

as you may have noticed, i made an alteration to this page…again…

i got tired of the normal layout and noticed that on some computers the text was a bit hard to read.. i am all about accessibility. i dont like to squint or search, so poof. newness comes forth and assaults your sensibilities with colors that should never be put together.

opinions?

background image came from some medical website, and was altered a great deal, duplicated, rebuilt, masked, etc. it reminds me a little of some newer pinkfloyd artwork now, though i do not really know why it does.

there are a few quirks i need to work out still, but for the most part, it is ready for use.