REVIEW: The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E Pearson

Who is Jenna Fox? Seventeen-year-old Jenna has been told that is her name. She has just awoken from a coma, they tell her, and she is still recovering from a terrible accident in which she was involved a year ago. But what happened before that? Jenna doesn't remember her life. Or does she? And are the memories really hers? This fascinating novel represents a stunning new direction for acclaimed author Mary Pearson. Set in a near future America, it takes readers on an unforgettable journey through questions of bio-medical ethics and the nature of humanity. Mary Pearson's vividly drawn characters and masterful writing soar to a new level of sophistication.

I really enjoyed The Adoration of Jenna Fox. I'd been looking forward to it for awhile, and read it bit by bit over the week I was away at a course. I do wish that I'd had more time to focus on it and let the ideas and its themes sink in. But I didn't have that luxury. It didn't matter, it was still really gripping to read.

Jenna Fox wakes up and remembers nothing of her life. She can recite whole sections of Walden and recall strange facts from history, but she has no memories of her own. She's been told she's been in a coma for over a year after a car accident. Her family have mysteriously moved very far away from home. Her father is away for work and her grandmother can barely tolerate being near her. She's given videos of her life, long and detailed videos that seem to capture Jenna Fox growing up from every angle. Jenna Fox in those videos seems to be perfect, and the Jenna Fox who woke up from that coma just doesn't feel right.

The entire book is seen through Jenna's eyes as she slowly discovers more about herself, her life and the things that have happened to her. It's quite chilling, unravelling this mystery. The reader isn't told anything that Jenna herself doesn't know and there's this sense that the secret everyone's keeping is pretty bad. And it is.

But on the way, there's some fantastic themes and issues brought up. Memory and tampering with the mind. The lengths in which a parent would go in order to protect their child. The ethics of bio-engineering. What it is to be human, to have a soul. Jenna struggles with them all, and the reader struggles with her. I was never quite sure what to think. I felt just as confused and unsure as Jenna did.

My only complaint is the ending. I'm not a big fan of epilogues, and this one is no exception. I feel like the distant ending took something away from the book. It could have been just me, but I read the ending and felt myself slump, just a big. Otherwise a really interesting and engaging read.


This has been read as part of Presenting Lenore's Dystopian August! Highly recommended.

REVIEW: Candor by Pam Bachorz

In the model community of Candor, Florida, every teen wants to be like Oscar Banks. The son of the town's founder, Oscar earns straight As, is student-body president, and is in demand for every club and cause. But Oscar has a secret. He knows that parents bring their teens to Candor to make them respectful, compliant–perfect–through subliminal Messages that carefully correct and control their behavior. And Oscar' s built a business sabotaging his father's scheme with Messages of his own, getting his clients out before they're turned. After all, who would ever suspect the perfect Oscar Banks? Then he meets Nia, the girl he can't stand to see changed. Saving Nia means losing her forever. Keeping her in Candor, Oscar risks exposure . . . and more.

Let me start by apologising to my readers for that cover. I'm sorry, I know that some people have issues with the wasp. But what can I say? I kind of love it. I think it fits wonderfully with the story, much better than the boy with the headphones. This one stands out more. I had to use it.

I'm still not really sure what I think of Candor. On the one hand, I thought it was creepy and loved the subject matter. A Stepford-Wives-esque town, subliminal messages, that wasp on the front cover - all very shudder-inducing. But on the other hand, I didn't feel very emotionally connected to Oscar or any of the characters. He keeps going on about being 'perfect' but he doesn't treat people very well.

It was an interesting concept, having these messages played out, but only in this one town as opposed to a national or worldwide thing like other dystopias. The motivations of Oscar's father seemed believeable as to why he would go to these lengths, but the power one person has over everyone in this one town is a horrifying thought. The messages seem to originate through the idea that unruly teenagers involved in illegal activity, promiscuity or drugs could come to Candor in order to be helped. People who are having marital problems or aren't able to give up smoking on their own. It all sounds like it could be a good idea, right?

Until we found out what happens to people who leave, or to people who try to resist the messages... Oscar is aware of all of this, but tries to play both sides. Go along with some messages, pretend to be his father's perfect son, but also use his knowledge and position in order to get some teenagers out. For a price, naturally. How far will Oscar go to protect someone he cares about, especially if it means standing up to his father?

I did enjoy certain aspects of the novel. It looks at the importance of art and highlights the power of the mind. There's a lot about control and this overbearing adult figure. The meaning of perfection. Despite not connecting well with Oscar, the last quarter of the novel is suprisingly heartbreaking.

This has been read as part of Presenting Lenore's Dystopian August!

REVIEW: Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Oh dear god, more Mockingjay! I'm sorry! I don't feel entirely comfortable adding my little (spoiler-free) review to the thousands of other reviews out there, but oh well, right?

Everyone's been hotly anticipating this final installment of the Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins, including me. I had N go out and buy it for me on the release day, as he works close to a large bookstore and I do not. I had to wait until he got home and it just happened to be the night I promised myself I'd go for a run and then work on an assignment for my university course! Such bad timing. No matter, I still finished Mockingjay pretty quickly and am still slightly reeling after closing that final page.

You know, when I first picked the book up, my initial (entirely superficial) thought was how excited I was to finally learn who Katniss chooses - will it be Peeta or Gale?!

And then I began, and Mockingjay jumps in right after the explosive ending to Catching Fire and Katniss is struggling with the aftermath of the events that occurred. And the whole thing is sort of hammered home for me that this isn't a light-hearted romance novel. While this series does have a focus on the Peeta-Katniss-Gale, it's also a political dystopic novel. And that these characters are living in it and suffering and it didn't seem to matter so much about who ended up with whom. (OK, it does still matter, I just had a bigger perspective to work with)

This novel especially, as they are in the midst of a rebellion against the Capitol, highlights the complete lack of regard for human life and human rights that we witnessed by the government's participation and organisation of the chilling Hunger Games in the first two novels in the series. And it continues with Mockingjay, as the two opposing forces pit against each other. Terrible thing happen and are witnessed over the course of this book and I did cry quite a lot. I won't go into it too much, but as it is a war, expect casualties. There are some horrific events and plenty die. Where does one draw the line? What's too much? Is all fair in war?

What I love about the series so much, apart from the action and political drama, is Katniss. She's a strong, kick-ass heroine. She can take care of herself and her family. And in especially when comparing her to other YA main characters, it is always wonderful to see her make her romantic relationship choices slowly and wisely. It takes her nearly all three books in the series in order to choose between Peeta and Gale, whereas I have noticed a large trend of relationships in other YA novels where the love is instant and all-consuming.

There's a lot of harrowing scenes, a lot of downcast characters, lots of action and explosions, fab characters old and new and yes, a choice is made.

So, aside from the epilogue, a thoroughly enjoyable end to a fantastic series. One that lived to my anticipation and expectations!


This has been read as part of Presenting Lenore's Dystopian August! Highly recommended.

Jealousy by Lili St Crow

If you're going into withdrawals from my lack of my blogging wit and charm, then head over to my favourite YA book blog, Chicklish, where I am today guest reviewing Jealousy, the third book in the Strange Angels series by Lili St. Crow!

And I shall be back here regularly blogging very soon!

Busy busyness

I've been a bit MIA on the blog lately, sorry about that. Life has been busy. We were at the zoo the other day, Bournemouth yesterday. It's been a lot of fun :)

I've been reading some incredible books (Waiting For You, Impulse, Jealousy, Forbidden, Candor, The Chosen One) and have had either no time or no interest in writing blog posts lately! I feel like it's summer, if now isn't the time to relax and enjoy myself, when is?

Already the deadline for handing in my latest course is looming over my head, the textbooks have arrived for my newest course, starting in a week's time. I have three chunky textbooks as required reading for the course after that... And I'm looking forward to it all, I am. I get excited still, thinking about what's ahead for me.

But for now, I'm taking a bit of a break, to enjoy what's left of the summer holidays. To enjoy this bit of time before my Oldest goes off to Big Boy school, and I go off to mine.

I will be posting some reviews in the next few weeks, but not much. Possibly just two more reviews for Dystopian August and that'll be it. Otherwise, I do hope you're having a great time whatever you're doing, and I'll see you in a couple weeks!

In my mailbox 8

Here are the books thatI picked up in the last week. Sorry that photo is the worst in the world. I am no photographer! As always IMM is hosted by The Story Siren, check her out!

Bought:
Candor by Pam Bachorz
The Double Life of Cassiel Roadnight by Jenny Valentine
Fade by Lisa McMann

Yay for these books. I was so excited to get started, that I've already finished Candor. Expect my review very soon. Jenny Valentine is just one of those authors for me, I cannot wait.

Swapped for:
The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan

I've been waiting for this one for awhile! It's been difficult finding books to swap with at my local place, maybe I'll have to look for alternate ways to swap books. Any other UK book bloggers interested? Send me an email, we can swap lists and wishlists if you'd like :)


UK ARC tour:
Matched by Ally Condie ( sadly not pictured as its no longer in my possession)

UK book tours have started, and I was lucky enough to recieve Matched first! It was amazing. You can read my review if you like.

Won in a giveaway:
The Midnight Charter by David Whitley
The Children of the Lost by David Whitley

Thank you very much to Splendibird at The Mountains of Instead and Penguin for these!

Yay for birthdays:
Watership Down by Richard Adams

A very kind friend gave me this wonderful hardback book of Watership Down (his favourite book) for my birthday. It was unexpected and really nice of him. I don't think he reads my blog, but thank you, S!

From the library:
Withering Tights by Louise Rennison (also not pictured)

Everytime I walk into the library these days, I leave with less and less. It's a little disturbing. But I have to balance that statement out by saying that after I've finished the book I'm reading, I will have read 100 of my OWN books this year.

So that is it for me this week. Have you read any of these books? What came into your house this week?

REVIEW: Life As We Knew It by Susan Pfeffer

Miranda’s disbelief turns to fear in a split second when a meteor knocks the moon closer to the earth. How should her family prepare for the future when worldwide tsunamis wipe out the coasts, earthquakes rock the continents, and volcanic ash blocks out the sun? As summer turns to Arctic winter, Miranda, her two brothers, and their mother retreat to the unexpected safe haven of their sunroom, where they subsist on stockpiled food and limited water in the warmth of a wood-burning stove.

Told in journal entries, this is the heart-pounding story of Miranda’s struggle to hold on to the most important resource of all--hope--in an increasingly desperate and unfamiliar world.

I really loved this book. I'd been looking forward to reading it for a long time and it lived it up to my high expectations!

Life as We Knew It is a post-apocalyptic YA novel and is entirely journal entries of 16 year old Miranda. At the beginning, we are introduced to Miranda's rather normal-sounding life. Her older brother is away at university. Her parents are divorced and her father and new step-mother are expecting a child. Her little brother is mad about baseball. Miranda is heavily interested in keeping up with the gossip of a particular male ice-skater and is keen to get back into ice skating herself. But soon, everything begins to change, as the news reports that an asteroid is on a collision course for the moon.

When this happens, everything slowly begins to change. Luckily, Miranda's mother has the foresight to see how things might be different and stocks up on the neccesitites. Tsunamis and earthquakes and volcanoes begin to destroy things that most people take for granted. Food and water is scarce. Electricity and heating. It's the start of a very different world as Miranda and her family must change in order to survive. It's a very chilling thing to think about. I couldn't help but wonder as I was reading it, 'how would I survive? What if it happened to me and my family?'

I loved seeing the transformation of Miranda and her family and friends as they dealt with this situation in very different ways. From the immature 'why has this happened to me' whining, to the sacrifices in terms of food, to the different ways in which each character held on to their hope. Miranda and her family don't have it easy, but they were able to really come together as a family and that always makes me a little sad. I finished this novel on the train, as I couldn't bear to stop reading it, and luckily the person next to me was kind enough to ignore my steady flow of tears.

I cannot wait to find out how everything turns out in the next two books in the series, The Dead and the Gone and This World We Live In! I need to know what happens to Miranda and her family!

This has been read as part of Presenting Lenore's Dystopian August! Highly recommended.

REVIEW: Unwind by Neal Shusterman

In a society where unwanted teens are salvaged for their body parts, three runaways fight the system that would "unwind" them

Connor's parents want to be rid of him because he's a troublemaker. Risa has no parents and is being unwound to cut orphanage costs. Lev's unwinding has been planned since his birth, as part of his family's strict religion. Brought together by chance, and kept together by desperation, these three unlikely companions make a harrowing cross-country journey, knowing their lives hang in the balance. If they can survive until their eighteenth birthday, they can't be harmed -- but when every piece of them, from their hands to their hearts, are wanted by a world gone mad, eighteen seems far, far away.

In Unwind, Boston Globe/Horn Book Award winner Neal Shusterman challenges readers' ideas about life -- not just where life begins, and where it ends, but what it truly means to be alive.

I really liked the idea of Unwind a lot more than I enjoyed actually reading the book. Let me just get that out of the way right now. I didn't hate the book by any means, but I felt like the third person narrative over many different perspectives distanced the reader too far away from the characters, at least for me. I've heard a lot of people say nothing but good things about Neal Shusterman, but the structure of the novel just didn't work for me. :( I hope this isn't the case for all of his books...

Unwind is a scary dystopic YA novel which focuses mostly but not entirely on the journeys of three different characters, all with different backrounds and reasons for running away from the system and the title of 'Unwind' What is unwinding? These three characters live in a not-too-distant world whereby children can be aborted retroactively. From the ages of 13-18, a child can be 'unwound' and organs and tissue will be distributed to those who need it. The child being 'unwound' will continue to exist, only in individual parts instead of as a collective whole.

Each of the three characters represent different areas of society that people would choose to use such a function. Connor, as a trouble-maker, is sent away for unwinding by his parents for convenience. As a parent, I couldn't relate to this decision at all and wasn't able to fully believe those type of decisions can be made. Risa, on the other hand, is a ward of the state and to make room for others, she's sent off to be Unwound. I can understand this. Lev has a different title to the others - he's a 'Tithe' which means he is an embodiment of a religious sacrifice. I don't understand this, but was able to accept it in terms of the story. Already, it was a little bit too much of a stretch for me to believe and relate to these people's circumstances. If I were able to believe without question, I think I would have found Unwound to be a lot more powerful and emotional than I did.

As it was, I still found Shusterman's messages and ideas about good and bad, adoption and the soul to be quite interesting. When does life begin? Are we beginning to lose sight of what it means to be human and are there lines that shouldn't be crossed? It's a thought-provoking book, one that will hopefully ask some controversial questions. I just wish that it was done in a way that I didn't have to suspend by disbelief by so much and in a way in which I could have felt closer to the characters and the decisions and actions that they take.


This has been read as part of Presenting Lenore's Dystopian August!

REVIEW: Matched by Ally Condie

On her seventeenth birthday, Cassia meets her Match. Society dictates he is her perfect partner for life. Except he’s not. In Cassia’s society, Officials decide who people love. How many children they have. Where they work. When they die. But, as Cassia finds herself falling in love with another boy, she is determined to make some choices of her own. And that’s when her whole world begins to unravel . . .

Oh wow. How much did I loved Matched?! I'd really love to count the ways with you... But before we begin, a big thank you to Lynsey for organising this ARC tour, and for Splendibird for sending it on to me! I had fantastic time with this book.

First, let me tell you that I LOVE reading dystopic books. There's usually something a little creepy or sinister lurking about. And Matched is no exception.

At first, all seems well. With Cassia happily preparing for her Matching ceremony. She has her supportive parents there with her, her best friend Xander, her little brother is at home. Her grandfather has given her a beautiful and treasured gift. And yet...

Slowly we're introduced to the world that she lives in where everything is controlled. Who gets married to whom, the portions of food consumed, which clothes are to be worn, jobs, locations, even each person's time of death. This amount of control didn't seem like it was much of a problem at first, everything seems geared to giving people happy, long and stable lives. And then more and more is revealed and suddenly, for Cassia, it feels a little suffocating. Is there any point in struggling against the system? Will one person make a difference?

Other things are controlled as well. The officials decided long ago to limit the number of songs and paintings and poems to a hundred of each. It broke my heart to hear of such a thing. How would you pick out only one hundred songs or poems or pieces of art to keep and which to destroy forever? Poetry plays a big part in Matched, and though I don't read a lot of poetry, I've been inspired to read Dylan Thomas. But even though poetry and paintings and songs are limited, that doesn't stop people from remembering. Nobody can take that away.

But of course, aside from this new Society that Condie has created, she also gives us some wonderful characters. Characters to fall in love with. There's Cassia, a little naive to the world that she's living in, a little easy to believe everything she's told and a bit resistant to see how much of her life is controlled and manipulated by The Officials. Her parents, who are supportive of both of their children in very different ways. Cassia's grandfather, who she's able to talk to the most about all of the changes occurring in her life, the one who tries to steer her into being more curious and wonder about her world.

Steady, loyal Xander. Her best friend and her Match in every way. But is he? When Cassia sees another face as her Match, she does begin to wonder... is she meant to be with Xander, her closest friend? Or Ky Markham, a mysterious boy from the Outer Provinces? The boy who opens up to her, tells her his story and teaches her to create new things.

There's such a high amount of romantic scenes in Matched. It had my heart absolutely ACHING. I loved Xander and Ky! I want them all to be happy. There's so many different types of love portrayed in this book, with all of Cassia's different relationships. And I also really adored the psychology aspect of the novel. With the Matching, the mind games, the levels of control, the pills. Ky even brings up a psychological theory - the Prisoner's Dilemma, which I studied last year on a psychology course.

It makes for very interesting reading, this combination of a controlling society, psychology and a heart-wrenching love story. Matched is one not to miss!

This has been read as part of a tour as well as for Presenting Lenore's Dystopian August! Highly recommended.

My Top 5 Comfort Reads

I was on twitter the other day, when India Knight asked for people's top comfort reads. She mentioned a few (I Capture the Castle) and I thought ooh, I could make a list. So I have done. Here are my top 5 comfort reads, books that I turn to in a reading slump to put a smile on my face, or to make me feel.

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen - I don't know how many times I've read Pride and Prejudice. And if I'm honest, I don't know how many times I've watched the BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice either.

I remember the first time I read it. I was a freshman in high school and I asked the school librarian for a recommendation. She handed me the Collected Works of Jane Austen. I took it home and read them all that week. I wanted to give that librarian a hug. I should have given her one.

I'm thinking a lot of people would have Pride and Prejudice on their list of comfort reads? Let's move on...

Born Confused by Tanuja Desai Hidier - I think I just picked this book up on a whim in the library many years ago. But I've since read it quite a few times, something about it just clicks with me. Her lack of a relationship with her parents, her failing relationship with her friend. Her insecurities about her appearance and around guys.

I had to go out and buy my own copy because I wanted to read it when I was down once and it wasn't available. I think the cover is quite pretty and I had a bit of a crush on Karsh. When he calls her 'rani' I swoon.



Unsticky by Sarra Manning - The first book I ever read by Sarra Manning and is now one of my favourite authors. I really just love the dysfunction in the relationship between Grace and Vaughan. I really like the fashion and the art. Plus, there were really hot scenes as well.

Grace has a problem similar (in terms of hiding and avoiding the subject) to one of my own problems, so everytime I read it's as though I'm being told I'm not alone.




Twilight by Stephenie Meyer - I chose this (awful) cover for Twilight, because it's the cover on my ARC copy. I remember I was given the ARC and told that this book would be big. I wasn't entirely convinced by that cover but as soon as I started reading it, I couldn't put it down.

I remember I left it on the staff room table and another co-worker asked if she could read it as well. I said OK, and she read a bit during her break. When I came back into the staff room, I saw that she'd bent the cover back and creased the spine. I stuck the book in my locker after that and she and I didn't speak about Twilight again.

It's been read its fair share of times, but sometimes I just skip to the good bits - the bits where there's tension. The magic seems to be wearing off just a little, so I haven't turned to it in awhile though!

Anne of Green Gables by LM Montgomery - Anne of Green Gables makes me smile. In fact, I don't even have to read the books to cheer up, sometimes just thinking about reading the books will make me happy.

Anne really is a wonderful character and I feel like whenever I'm blue, she'd be able to help me. Reading the books makes me feel like I'm on Prince Edward Island and surrounded by her friends and family. I adore Diana and Matthew and Marilla and descriptions of the town and the people and Anne's over-active imagination. Just everything about it.

The Anne books are the first books that I bought for myself. I remember I was dying to find Anne's House of Dreams and couldn't find it anywhere... until someone in the neighbourhood had a garage sale and I bought it for a quarter. That made my life.

Those are my top comfort reads. Now tell me yours!

Graphic novel round-up

I'm really loving all of the graphic novels that I've been reading lately. Here are some mini-reviews of them. Are there other graphic novel fans out there willing to give me recommendations?

Skim by Jillian and Mariko Tamaki - After a boy at school takes his own life, teen-witch Skim's fragile world seems to topple and turn upside down too. In witty, moving and painfully honest diary entries Skim confides the frenzy of grief that surrounds her, while deep down she struggles with her own loneliness and the secret inner stirrings she feels when falling in love for the first time.

I'm not sure what I was expecting with Skim, but this wasn't it. It was slightly strange.. I felt like the boy at school who committed suicide would have more of a role to play in the story but it isn't until late into the story when we found out the boy's motivations for suicide that we can see the relevance to Skim's story. 'Skim' is a bit unusual main character, a mixed race goth girl, a bit overweight, who practices Wicca and has a crush on her teacher, Ms. Archer. I really enjoyed it, the illustrations are really beautiful, and even though I didn't quite know where everything was going, I find it an interesting journey to take along with Skim.

Maus II by Art Spiegleman - In a comic-book-style tale of the author's parents, Vladek and Anja, Vladek survives Auschwitz, is reunited with Anja, and sires young Art.

I was finally able to read the second part of Maus. I was hoping that it would answer some of my questions about Anja's suicide but as you'd expect, a lot of the story focuses on how Vladek manages to survive Auschwitz and a lot of the harrowing experiences that he went through. I wish that I'd read the two volumes closer together, as I only remembered the feelings I felt when reading the first Maus and not many of the details. I remember feeling a bit heartbroken at the first, and it was the same, if a little more with this second volume.

Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life vol. 1 by Bryan Lee O'Malley - Scott Pilgrim's life is totally sweet. He's 23 years old, he's in a rock band, he's "between jobs," and he's dating a cute high school girl. Nothing could possibly go wrong, unless a seriously mind-blowing, dangerously fashionable, rollerblading delivery girl named Ramona Flowers starts cruising through his dreams and sailing by him at parties. Will Scott's awesome life get turned upside-down? Will he have to face Ramona's seven evil ex-boyfriends in battle? The short answer is yes. The long answer is Scott Pilgrim, Volume 1: Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life.


I admit to not having heard of Scott Pilgrim or these graphic novels before I saw the trailer for the new movie (Michael Cera!). But once I got past the movie trailer and realised it was based on these graphic novels (more volume 2), I started my hunt to track them down. I've only managed to find the first volume and sadly, if you've seen the movie trailer (there I go with the movie trailer again!) you know the basis of the plot for volume 1. It's still fun to read as we're introduced to Scott, his friends, his girl friend and his new love interest. And the first of the Evil exes. I laughed out loud on more than one occasion. And the fight scene at the end was worth the wait!

It really is quite fun and I am definitely looking forward to reading more!

Twilight: the graphic novel, volume 1 - When Isabella Swan moves to the gloomy town of Forks and meets the mysterious, alluring Edward Cullen, her life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn. With his porcelain skin, golden eyes, mesmerizing voice, and supernatural gifts, Edward is both irresistible and impenetrable. Up until now, he has managed to keep his true identity hidden, but Bella is determined to uncover his dark secret... Beautifully rendered, this first installment of Twilight: The Graphic Novel is a must-have for any collector’s library.

Like I said, I picked this book up on a whim at the library the other day. I was in a bit of a book reading slump at the time, and I thought something with lots of pictures and a story that I was familiar with would help. I did enjoy the illustrations, though Bella and Edward look very different in my head. And I think the graphic novels would be a great stepping stone into the series, if readers are a little unsure if they'll enjoy the plot. And for Twilight-collectors, of course.

But as I was familiar already with the novel, I found myself focusing on the parts that were missing. Some scenes and conversations have been reduced to the basic functions and I can understand that. It's a bit like when books are turned into movies and the die-hard book fans keep complaining that little details are left out. It's very much the same when a book is turned into a graphic novel, I feel. It's telling the story, just in a different medium and with different techniques. I found myself slightly annoyed with the missing details, so I don't feel like I'll be reading the other volumes. But the pictures were pretty!

I have a stack of graphic novels laying about, would anyone be interested if I hosted a giveaway?

Books read in July

Here is the list of books I read in July. Already July feels like forever ago, sorry I'm only posting this now. It was an interesting month, July. With 21 books read. That included two graphic novels, four books for the Body Image and Self Perception month, books about vampires, angels, fairies, the dead, first love, road trips, Ramadan, exes, and different cultures. It's been an exciting month for reading.

1. Maus II by Art Spiegelman
2. Fat Kid Rules The World by K L Going
3. Everything Beautiful by Simmone Howell
4. Leaving Paradise by Simone Elkeles
5. Big Mouth and Ugly Girl by Joyce Carol Oates
6. Angel by LA Weatherly
7. Glass Houses by Rachel Caine
8. Unwind by Neal Shusterman
9. Dead in the Family by Charlaine Harris
10. Two-Way Street by Lauren Barnholdt
11. Something, Maybe by Elizabeth Scott
12. The Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy: and Other Stories by Tim Burton
13. Scott Pilgrim's Precious Life by Bryan Lee O'Malley
14. The Ex Games by Jennifer Echols
15. Boy vs Girl by Na'ima B Robert
16. Wintercraft by Jenna Burtenshaw
17. Lost It by Kristen Tracy
18. The Dead by David Gatward
19. Magic Under Glass by Jaclyn Dolamore
20. Love, Aubrey by Suzanne LeFleur
21. Looking For Alibrandi by Melina Marchetta

My favourite of the month? Love, Aubrey by Suzanne LeFleur. But I'm also excited for lots of other books. I started the Morganville vampire series this month and the Scott Pilgrim graphic novels and I can't for more in the series. Angel is a really promising new series coming out later this year. I've loved reading more of some of my favourite YA authors, like Jennifer Echols and Elizabeth Scott. Can I also have a pat on the back for the amount of books I've reviewed this month! I almost never review books that quickly, so well done me.

As for August, I have big plans. I'm taking part in Presenting Lenore's Dystopian August and have a whole stack of dystopic/post-apocalyptic books to read and hopefully review. Here's that list, if you're interested.

(books I've already read and have not yet reviewed)
Unwind by Neal Shusterman
Life As We Knew It by Susan Pfeffer
The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E Pearson

(books waiting for me to read)
The Maze Runner by James Dashner
Candor by Pam Bachorz
Matched by Ally Condie
Tomorrow When The War Began by John Marsden
Little Brother by Cory Doctorow

Plus, loads more books that I'm excited to read. I usually take out books from my TBR shelves/piles and create a shortlisted TBR pile. My shortlist pile currently includes about 15 books. Oh dear.

How was reading in July for you? Favourite of the month?

In My Mailbox 7

Just a quick post today. I am back from my weeklong residential school at Bath University - but I'm still feeling quite exhausted and also finding it really difficult to get back into my normal routine. Everything seems to be a struggle so I'm easing myself back into things very, very slowly. I didn't get much reading done while I was away, but I still managed to acquire a fair amount of books! As always, IMM is hosted by The Story Siren. Also, sorry again for the very poor picture quality :(

Fallen Grace by Mary Hooper
Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma
The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
Lottie Biggs is (Not) Mad by Hayley Long
Lottie Biggs is (Not) Desperate by Hayley Long
The Maze Runner by James Dashner
The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E Pearson

Here are the books that were bought these week. I went a little mad with it, if I'm honest. Luckily, I found Fallen Grace in a charity shop. And I've just finished The Adoration of Jenna Fox, having read that between lectures this past week in Bath. Having a bit of a dystopian August, to go along with Presenting Lenore's theme month... Really looking forward to all of these.

Jealousy by Lili St Crow
I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore
My Name Is Memory by Ann Brashares

Two of the books are the pre-stop before sending them off on book tours. (Thanks asamum) And Luisa Plaja really is just the nicest person ever, and she agreed to send me her copy of Jealousy! Thank you Luisa!

The Chosen One by Carol Lynch Williams
Nicholas Dane by Melvin Burgess
Freak the Mighty by Rodman Philbrick
Twilight the graphic novel vol. 1 by Stephenie Meyer and Young Kim

And here are the books that I picked up in the library this week. Twilight: the graphic novel was a bit of an impulse selection, the others I'd seen reviews of recently around the blogging world. Looking forward to them all, for very different reasons.

Anyway, that is it for me. What did you get in your postbox this week?!

REVIEW: The Dead by David Gatward

Lazarus Stone is about to turn sixteen when, one night, his normal life is ripped to shreds by a skinless figure drenched in blood. He has a message:

The Dead are coming.

Now Lazarus is all that stands in their way. To fulfil his destiny, he must confront not only the dark past of his family, but horrors more gruesome than even Hell could invent. And it all begins with the reek of rotting flesh ...

A big thank you to Waterstones for sending this new horror book for me to review. I don't read much YA horror books, but I really should. And I think that I will very soon, as The Dead is the first in a new series of books by David Gatward.

It follows Lazarus Stone, nearly 16, as he learns some very surprising things one night as this really creepy and horrific thing appears in his house and tells Lazarus that unless something happens very quickly, a torrent of angry demons will start ripping through the veil that separates Lazarus's normal life from The Dead. Didn't you just get chills just reading that synopsis? I did.

The book is quite short, but action-packed. Lazarus and his best mate, Craig are on a mission to find some answers. Specifically to find out about these demon-visits and the dead, but also, what has happened to Lazarus's dad?! What I loved about The Dead is that it isn't all one big gore-fest. Yes, it is gorey and some gruesome things do happen, but it also seemed to really concentrate on this idea that Lazarus has no idea who his father is. It's so easy to scratch our parents off as being nothing but parents and Lazarus really has his eyes opened to the fact that his father in particular is very a different person to who he thought he was. Maybe all of our parents are.

The horror aspects of the book were done well. I was sufficiently creeped out and I really would not recommend reading this book late at night, or on your own. There's a scene in a hospital that I would like removed from my brain because everytime I think of it, I am a little bit afraid.

REVIEW: Love, Aubrey by Suzanne LaFleur

Something terrible has happened. Eleven-year-old Aubrey is on her own. ‘It was fun at first, playing house. Nothing to think about but T.V and cheese. A perfect world.’ She’s determined to hide away and take care of herself, because facing the truth is too much to bear. ‘I couldn’t let anyone know that I was alone. I was staying right here.’ But with the love of her grandmother and the letters she writes, can Aubrey begin to see that even though she’s lost everything – all is not lost?

Oh dear, where to begin with this book? Love, Aubrey wrenched out my heart and stomped on it. But in a good way. I started it in the late afternoon/early evening and I couldn't bear to put it down. By 1am the following morning, I had finished it and was bawling like a baby in my bed. Actually sobbing big fat tears. So be warned! This one is a weep-inducing book.

Before I started reading this book, I knew it was going to be sad. But I thought that 11 year old Aubrey would be on her own throughout the novel, and that isn't the case, thank god. She is eventually rescued by her grandmother and taken somewhere safe and stable. But that time spent on her own? Using her birthday money to buy Spaghetti-Os and a pet fish for company? Broke my heart. The whole thing did.

As the reader, you aren't told straightaway all the details of how Aubrey is left on her own, instead the story is drawn out a bit and you can piece it together through some of Aubrey's flashbacks of life before and through her letters. When she goes to live with her grandmother, things are a bit difficult for everyone. Aubrey struggles to adjust with her new life, the different relationship with her grandmother. She's feeling angry at her mother, grief at the loss of her father and little sister. You can see how hard it is for her to trust again and the deep depression she Aubrey is in, as she doesn't want to get out of bed or just sits and watches television and avoiding any conversations where she might have to feel or remember.

Eventually though, with the help of a new best friend, a guidance counsellor and her grandmother, Aubrey is able to fight her way to back to some semblance of a normal 11 year old girl who goes sledding in the snow and has pizza parties on her birthday instead of worrying about her loved ones abandoning her and how she'll cope.

Love, Aubrey could have been more heavy-handed with the emotional issues, but despite how it sounds, it really isn't. In some parts, mostly at the beginning, it's like we're really seeing things from Aubrey's perspective as she tries to detach herself from feeling so much so that it all doesn't overwhelm her. But gradually, Aubrey is able to let out a little of what she's feeling and when that happens? Be ready to get walloped by the strong emotions. Keep tissues handy.

Musical Memories - Thinking of people complexly

I keep hearing this song on the radio, Crazy Love by Michael Buble. And it reminds me of one very specific experience that I had when I was a young teenager. I remember the first time my thoughts and expectations of a person were shattered. I had an idea of what this person would be like based on stereotypes, and he completely surprised me... Let me tell you the whole story.

I have an older brother, and he's very sporty. He was on the football and wrestling teams in high school, and I was forced into attending quite a few football good and wrestling matches over the years. Being a younger sister, I was always teased quite a lot. I didn't always take it well. At the time, I thought of all football players and wrestlers as being a certain 'type' of person. Like the awful stereotypes you still see in some YA novels. All brawn, no brain type of deal. That really was my viewpoint going into high school. Until I went to my first ever wedding.

I was maybe 13 or 14 and quite a horrible, sulky teenager. I was really angry at the world, which is why it was probably easier to think of other people in a certain way instead of getting to know people. I was mostly against that, thinking that if I got to know people, they would just disappoint me anyway. I was that sort of teenager. And the wedding was for a wrestler quite a few years older than my brother (but who we'd known for a few years already) and his girlfriend, who happened to be the sister of another wrestler on the team. And the whole ceremony made my ice-cold heart melt a little bit at a time. The beautiful dresses and flowers. The wedding vows.

And then one of the groomsmen played his guitar and sang Crazy Love in the middle of the ceremony. And I thought of how all of my expectations of this one person changed in the space of that one song. I was thinking of the friendship he must have with the groom to have done this, the guts it took to sing in front of such a large audience, the other interests he must have outside of school and the football time, if it included singing and playing the guitar.

And this whole idea of seeing people in a more complex way really made me think of John Green's Paper Towns where the main character Q has this idea in his head of what his neighbour and long-time crush, Margo Roth Spiegleman (and to a smaller extent, her friends) are like and over the course of the novel, finds out just how different and complicated she (and everyone) really is.

I love how books and music and memories all meshed together in my head to create this post. I'd love to hear how people have surprised and changed your view of them over time or through a specific experience!

The Sunday Salon: Old vs. New

I saw a tweet between John Green and Cassandra Clare recently that's had me thinking. The tweet was regarding space in the YA sections of bookstores. It was said that the focus is given to new titles and less importance on backlist titles. And yes, that does seem to be true. What concerned me is that if the same applies to book blogging?

For many years, I ran this blog, Fluttering Butterflies with no outside source of books aside from what I bought myself. I read and reviewed for the pleasure of sharing what I read with others. If I read a book and liked it, it's possible that I might review it. It's only very recently that I began recieving books from publishers or winning them in giveaways on other blogs or via twitter. And it seems to be a pretty common occurrence amongst other book bloggers, recieving ARCs from publishers. Has it changed the shape of book blogging?

A quick glance at my google reader and the handful of blogs that I looked at with reviews recently ... Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma, Linger by Maggie Stiefvater, two for Firespell by Chloe Neill, Forget You by Jennifer Echols, The Sky Is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson, Withering Tights by Louise Rennison... all published this year. There were a few classics thrown into the mix, one for The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime by Mark Haddon, one for I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith. But on the whole, recent releases.

Do other people review older titles and recieve so few comments that they're discouraged to continue doing so? Are people not reading and blogging about the backlist tiles? I know that I get severely less comments on my reviews of lesser known books. But is that just me? Is it the way I'm writing about these books? Is it just a coincidence? Is it only specific to the book blogs that I read?

One of my birthday presents (last week) was a copy of Linger by Maggie Stiefvater. I'd been dying to read it for ages, but now that I have my copy, a little of my enthusiasm to read it has been dampened by the million or so reviews of it that I've seen since it was published. Do other people feel this way? I'm not saying I don't love the reviews of very recent books published or that I don't read and review recent releases all the time too, all I'm hoping to do is be more aware of what I'm reading and hope that I'm always reading the books I enjoy and not trying to follow a trend. Maybe now that I'm more aware of this old vs new theme, I can try to highlight some more older YA titles that still have a broad appeal.

I read a YA book today published way back in 1992. Looking For Alibrandi by Melina Marchetta. It was excellent. I fell in love with Josie Alibrandi, her mother, her grandmother, her love interest. I cried. When it finished, it left me thinking. I hope to review it soon and convince you that you haven't already read it, than you really should! Watch this space.