Review: No One Is Here Except All Of Us

Title: No One Is Here Except All Of Us 

Author: Ramona Ausubel
Publisher: Riverhead
Publication Date: February 2nd, 2012
Genre: Historical Fiction

It is 1939, and the one hundred residents of an isolated Jewish Romanian village live in fear as they feel the war closing in on them. When a stranger arrives in the village with news about the horrors taking place where she is from, eleven year old Lena gets an idea. When the sun rises on the next day, they will start over, as if it’s the first day in the world. Their village will be the only place that exists, and by ignoring the past and the rest of the world they hope that they will be able to protect themselves. As Lena grows up in this new world she helped create, she becomes a wife, a woman and a mother. But as hard as the villagers try, they can’t truly keep out the outside world. When Lena and her children are forced to hide out in the woods to protect themselves, she will have to be the one who carries on the story of their village.

I was really looking forward to this original story about the Holocaust. I expected more of a fantasy novel, in which the villagers truly do create their own world, but find traces of the old one slowly sneaking in and threatening their safety. In the book, the villagers try and rewrite the world and pretend everything has started anew, when in reality it hasn’t. The author’s prose was poetic and had the style of a fairy tale. The writing style reminded me a bit of The History of Love, although the two books are completely different. While the concept was interesting, I don’t think that this novel was for me. My expectations may have played a role in this, but overall I was disappointed. I wanted characters I could relate to that felt real, and this book didn’t have that. The villagers just felt like people that were made up for a story, partly due to their illogical naivety. I wasn’t interested in the story, but I did like the book’s themes, such as the importance of stories and how war can make you forget who you are. If you’re looking for lyrical prose and a uniquely written story about World War II, than you might enjoy No One Is Here Except For All Of Us.

2.5/5

Review: The Unseen Guest

Title: The Unseen Guest (The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place)
Author: Maryrose Wood
Illustrator: Jon Klassen
Publisher: Harper Collins
Publication Date: February 21st, 2012
Genre: Junior Fiction, Fantasy, Historical Fiction

After their misadventures in London, the Incorrigible children of Ashton Place are trying to go about their life as normally as possible. This is more difficult than it would seem, for the Incorrigible’s are not ordinary children. Found living in the woods by Lord Ashton, their governess Penelope Lumley has done her very best to turn her peculiar charges into well-bred children. Alexander, Beowulf and Cassiopeia have proven to be gifted students, and their latest academic endeavor is bird watching. Things become much more interesting than watching sparrows and finches when as ostrich appears at Ashton Place. Lord Ashton’s mother has brought her friend and explorer, who looks to the Incorrigibles for help in locating his lost ostrich. Together, the children, Penelope, and the explorer venture into the vast forest. In the classroom, Penelope is at her element and has many things to teach her eager pupils. However, in the forest Penelope is in the Incorrigibles’ world and finds herself clueless when it comes to the great outdoors. Although Penelope knows little about forests, she is quite sure that sandwiches and comforters are not usually left in caves. Someone has been looking after the Incorrigible children, but who? As Penelope delves deeper into the many mysteries of Ashton Place, she begins to wonder if the children are really better off in Ashton Place, when they clearly belong in the forest.

This is the third book in the Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place series, which follows three wolf like children and their governess in Victorian England. Mysteries are abundant at Ashton Place, and the plucky young governess, Penelope, does her best to string everything together. The Ashton’s are self-involved and rather silly, neglecting their wards. The Incorrigible children are charming and very clever, and in this book we get to see them at their element and learn more about the dangers they are in, due to their peculiarity. A lot of what I’ve said in the previous two reviews is still the same for this book. I love the writing style, the wit and the humour presented in this book. While the writer utilizes the Snicket style of writing and explains words and phrases, at the same time it never feels like she is talking down to the reader. The plot is fairly simple, but there is enough excitement to keep to reader interested, from ostrich chasing to séances. Towards the end, I was worried The Unseen Guest would hit the third book slump, and that things would become too farfetched or ridiculous. While there were a few moments when this came close to happening, the series is still going strong. Delightful and original, the third book does true to the other books in the series. The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place combines magic and fantasy with a story about a Victorian governess. While books in a series can sometimes disappoint, The Unseen Guest still has the charm that drew me to this series.

4.5/5

Top Ten Books I'd Like To Read This Summer

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week's topic is Top Ten Books I'd Like To Read This Summer. I'm currently working at a summer camp, and probably won't be able to read most of these books until I'm home in mid-August. However, these are the books I want to read.

1. The Disenchantments by Nina LaCour. Colby and Bev have always vowed to take off with Bev's band, The Disenchantments, after graduation. When Bev decides to go to college instead, Colby is left confused but continues the tour with The Disenchantments, minus Bev. I've wanted to read this book for a while, although I was surprised to learn that the main character, Colby, is actually a boy. From the cover, I assumed that both Colby and Bev were girls. This looks like a good book, and an especially good read for summer.

2. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews. Greg is an invisible high schooler with only one friend, Earl. When his mother pressures him to visit a childhood friend who has leukaemia. This book is a less obvious summer read, but I really want to read it all the same. It looks unique and I especially like the cover. 

3. The Girl Who Could Silence the Wind by Meg Medina. This is literally the best cover ever. I like everything about it, including the title and even the author's name. Everyone in Sonia's village believes she has a special ability. She was born during a vicious storm that suddenly ended just as she entered the world. Sonia knows she has no special abilities, and when she is given a chance to leave her village, she finds solace in the freedom. 

4. Eight Keys by Suzanne LaFleur. Elise and Franklin have been best friends for as long as they can remember. Elise is an orphan, and has always lived with her aunt and uncle in a house with a barn behind it. The barn has eight locked doors, and Elise has never known what's behind them. Now that Elise is twelve, her friendship with Franklin doesn't feel right. When Elise receives a mysterious key, she might finally find out what's in the barn.

5. Dreams of Significant Girls by Christina Garcia. The comparisons to The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants made me want to read this. Three girls from different parts of the world spend their summers at a Swiss boarding school. The girls form close friendships and spend summers together and school years apart as they grow together.

6. My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick. Samantha Reed enjoys watching the family next door, the seemingly perfect Garrett family. They're the opposite of the Reed family, and when Samantha starts a summer romance with Jase Garrett, everything changes. 

7. Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson. I read Amy and Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson earlier this year and loved it, so I'm looking forward to checking out her next book. When Taylor Edwards' father is diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and the family decides to spend their last summer completely together at their old summerhouse. As they become closer as a family and discover that the past didn't go anywhere, they can't forget that their time is still limited.

8. Bittersweet by Sarah Ockler. When Hudson's dreams were crushed by a betrayal, she decides to stay under the radar. Spending her time working at her mother's bakery, when she has the opportunity to chace her dreams again, she's terrified of being let down again. Sarah Ockler is also the writer of Twenty Boy Summer.

9. Alice on Board by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. I've been reading this series since I was 12, and I will definitely be checking out the 24th book in the series. Alice has just finished high school and before she starts college she's spending the summer working on a cruise ship with her best friends. As she spends the summer working at the best part time job imaginable, she knows that after this summer nothing is ever going to be the same.

10. Chopsticks by Jessica Anthony. I want to read this book because 1. It looks interesting and 2. I don't understand it. The book is told in words and pictures, and flipping through it in the store I couldn't really understand how the story was told. Anyways, Glory is a piano prodigy who retreats into her music after the death of her mother. 

What books do you want to read this summer? 

Review: Twenty Boy Summer

Title: Twenty Boy Summer
Author: Sarah Ockler
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: June 1st, 2009
Genre: YA, Realistic Fiction

Ever since she was ten years old, Anna has been in love with Matt, her best friend that’s a boy and brother of her best friend Frankie. Everything changed when Matt and Anna kissed on her fifteenth birthday. Looking out to protect his little sister, Matt wanted to wait and tell Frankie about them in a month. Before he could, he died due to a heart defect that no one knew about. Over a year later, Anna hasn’t told anyone about her relationship with Matt, and he died without her knowing exactly what she was to him. While Frankie used to be shy, she’s become outgoing and flirtatious. Anna is going to spend twenty-three days of summer with Frankie at a summerhouse in California. Frankie decides that together they’re going to meet twenty boys, looking for the special one that could be Anna’s first. Together, Anna and Frankie experience a summer full of beaches, boys and firsts. As Anna struggles with the secret that she never wanted to keep, she’s not sure if she’s ready to move on yet. But it won’t take twenty boys to convince her, but maybe just one.

I took this one out from the library a few months ago, and ended up never getting past the first twenty pages. This was partly because I was busy and also because I couldn’t get into the story. Later on I decided to give it another chance, since I heard so many good things about it. Summer is just starting so it was a great time to read Twenty Boy Summer. First off, the cover is amazing. I love how it references the sea glass in the book and Matt’s heart defect. This is Sarah Ockler’s first novel, and at times the writing was beautiful. I’m very glad I gave this book a second chance. It was the perfect summer novel, focusing on summer fun while also about more serious themes, like loss. I enjoyed the story and the combination of summer fun while coping with grief. However, Anna never felt like a believable character. There wasn’t much to her personality other than being Frankie’s rock and loving Matt. I did love her witty comments in conversations, and Frankie was a convincing character. I loved the bits of romance we got to see, but we never saw enough to make me love the relationships Anna has. With Sam, I got to see bits of why Anna liked him, but I never felt like I ever really got to know them as a couple. That may have been the intention, because the book isn’t really about Anna and Sam, it’s about Anna learning that she can be with someone else without having to forget Matt. While Frankie and Anna don’t make it to twenty boys, they do learn a lot about moving on. Nothing that happens will ever erase Matt from Anna’s memory. Overall, this was a great beach read that touched on some more serious issues. I will definitely be checking out more of Sarah Ockler’s books after enjoying Twenty Boy Summer.

4/5

“Every story is part of a whole, entire life, you know? Happy and sad and tragic and whatever, but an entire life. And books let you know them.”

Books You Might Like Even If You Hate The Genre

So many people have genres of books that they avoid, whether because they've read that type of books and didn't enjoy it, or they assume that they're not for them. There's usually an exception to most rules: if you hate pop music there's usually at least one catchy song you can't help but love. If you have a genre of books that you don't think are for you, you might want to give these picks a chance all the same.

Paranormal Romance With the popularity of Twilight, a lot of people are sick of books following humans in love with vampires, werewolves, angels and the like. Even if you feel that way, Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor has excellent world building and great writing. Karou is an art student at Prague who lives two very different lives. While her friends admire her fantastical drawings, they don't know that the monsters featured in her sketchbook are real. In a world full of monsters and angels, Karou will have to delve deep into the past if she wants to find out who she truly is. You can read the full review here.

Supernatural The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson follows a mimic of the Jack the Ripper killings in modern East End London, with a supernatural twist. While Maureen Johnson is best known for books like 13 Little Blue Envelopes, this supernatural YA novel took me by surprise. When Rory Deveaux leaves her small town in Louisiana for a boarding school in London’s East End, she expects a bit of homesickness and some culture shock. Never would she have imagined that her arrival in England would coincide with the first of a series of murders mimicking Jack the Ripper. Or that she would find herself in the middle of the mystery. You can read my review here.

Fantasy The Harry Potter books are the obvious recommendation, and were actually my first introduction to fantasy. Neil Gaiman's books are fantastic, whether you're reading his urban fantasies like American Gods and Neverwhere or his more traditional fantasy like Stardust. His junior fiction is also amazing, especially The Graveyard Book for younger readers. The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly is a sort of fairy tale retelling in which young boy from WWII London finds himself in a world reminiscent of the fairy tales we all know. A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin is a political fantasy about the fight for the throne. I'd also recommend The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, which is about a magical circus which is the playing field for a competition between Celia and Marco, who have been raised to compete against each other nearly their whole lives. However, even they don't understand the real nature of the competition.

Science Fiction It's not all aliens and robots, but even when it is it can still be entertaining for those who usually avoid the genre. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams is my go to book when ever the end of the world is predicted, which is happening more often lately. Arthur Dent is your typical Englishman, but his life takes a turn towards adventure when the world is about to come to and end and he learns his best friend is an alien. Great read for fans of comedy. A Wrinkle In Time by Madeleine L'Engle is junior fiction science fiction, with plenty of literary references. Meg's father is missing and she will do anything to find him. With her younger brother Charles Wallace and schoolmate Calvin, Meg travels through a wrinkle in time to rescue her father. This book is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, and aside from a reference to a type writer it doesn't feel dated at all. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card is also a popular choice, which I read in book club maybe four years ago. Another Science Fiction loved by all is Ursula Le Guin, and while I haven't yet read any of her books I've heard some very good things.

Romance Even if you've never cared for Nicholas Sparks novels or movies like Titanic, there still might be one or two romance novels that make the romantic inside of you swoon. Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins is about a girl who spends her last year of high school at a boarding school in Paris. There, Anna meets Etienne St.Clair, and sparks fly in the City of Lights. Anna and St.Clair have excellent chemistry and you'll soon find yourself rooting for them. You can read my review here. For adults, The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger is excellent. The relationship is unique and convincing, with time travel thrown into the plot to make it interesting. On the complete other end of the spectrum, I would really recommend giving Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen a chance. Everyone know this story; girls meets boy and he makes a horrible first impression. She finds out how blind she was and they fall in love. Of course, there's a lot of stuff in-between: awkward proposals, broken hearted sisters, crazy mothers, attractive navy officers. Featuring one of my favourite characters (Elizabeth Bennet,) Austen's wit shines in this book, and while the plot doesn't sound overly appealing and exciting, Pride and Prejudice had surprised many a skeptic and even converted them into Jane Austen readers.

Young Adult YA actually refers to the suggested age group the book is for, and is not really a genre. However, a lot of people look down on YA books and don't believe they have as much literary merit. Obviously since I read a lot of YA, I don't believe that. This small selection of great YA books will hopefully convince you to give other YA novels a chance. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak follows a young girl who lives in Germany during World War II. Narrated by death, this girl finds hope in the words she reads from stolen books. You will sometimes find this book in the adult fiction section, but it was written for teens. You can read the full review here.

While all of John Green's books could fit in this list, The Fault In Our Stars is my favourite. Hazel Lancaster is a sixteen year old cancer patient. While a miracle drug has bought her time, she lives knowing that the cancer will eventually kill her. When Hazel meets Augustus Waters at support group, she knows she could care about him if she let herself, but she fears getting close to anyone, knowing she could die any time. When Hazel and Augustus bond over her favourite book, they decide to visit the writer in Amsterdam to learn what really happened to the characters after the last page. You can read the full review here.

If you're normally into classics, I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith might be a good fit for you. I had my mom read it and she's usually strictly a Charles Dickens, Jane Austen kind of girl, but she enjoyed it. In 1930's England, two sisters live in an old castle in the country side with their writer father, eccentric step mother and younger brother. In her journals, the younger sister, Cassandra Mortmain, attempts to capture the castle and the people who live there. When young Americans move into their village, things become much more exciting for Cassandra, who conspires with her sister Rose to make sure one of the brothers falls in love with Rose. But things become rather more complicated when Cassandra's own feelings get in the way.

Junior Fiction Again, not exactly a genre, but many people, teens and up, think they're too old for books aimed for the younger set. While Harry Potter is an obvious example of a book people of any age can enjoy, there's many others. This might be because I read it in University, but I honestly don't think I would have got as much out of The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman if I had read it when I fit into the suggested age group. Pullman challenges popular conceptions of Adam and Eve and the Fall, and believes that it was actually a good thing. He believes that it brought knowledge and that a sexual awakening isn't a bad thing. The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart is perfect for lovers of puzzles and riddles. It's a really clever book that doesn't underestimate its readers. You can read my review here. Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events is full of dark humour and literary references. The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place by Maryrose Wood utilizes a similar style as Snicket, while still being a unique book about a three children who were raised by wolves and their governess who has to turn them into model pupils. The classics are classics for a reason, and all always always worth checking out no matter how old you are. Some great classics include Peter Pan, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, The Secret Garden, The Little Prince and Anne of Green Gables. 

Summer Reading 2012

How on earth do you pick 8 books to bring to summer camp? I'm leaving today to work in the kitchen at a camp in Algonquin Park until August 25th. I managed to pick which books I'm going to take with me, since I have no idea when I'll go home or see my family. Anyways, here's what I plan to read this summer.

• The Disenchantments by Nine LaCour
• I Am The Messenger by Markus Zusak (reread)
• The Solitude of Prime Numbers by Paolo Giordano
• Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins (reread)
• 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson (reread)
• The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank (reread)
• As You Like It by William Shakespeare
• Falling In Love With English Boys by Melissa Jensen (not pictured)

On my kobo I have a bunch of classics, and I recently bought Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson. While I won't be able to read as much (it's likely I won't finish these books) I just want to make sure I always have something to read. I hope everyone has a great summer! 

In My Mailbox (42)

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren, in which book bloggers post about the books they've bought, borrowed or received in the past week. This will be my last In My Mailbox until the end of August, since I leave for summer camp on Sunday. I have regular posts scheduled, but no IMMs.

This week I bought Falling In Love With British Boys by Melissa Jensen, author of The Fine Art of Truth or Dare. At first I wasn't going to pick up this book, but when I found out it was about two different girls in two different centuries I changed my mind. The title reminds me of how my friend went to summer camp and met an English boy there. Later on she told me that his accent was the most beautiful thing in the world and how wonderful it sounded when he said "Pass the peanut butter." 

This week I took out Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler from the library. A few months ago I took this book out and even started it, but for one reason or another I never got past the first few chapters. Not long after I returned it I decided to give it another chance, and my hold finally came in this week. I'm glad I read this book- it was a deeper summer read that was well written. It's basically about a girl named Anna who was in love with her best friend Frankie's brother, but never got a chance to tell her about their relationship before he died. Now a year later, Anna is dealing with grief and the weight of the secret, when Frankie decides that together they will try and meet twenty boys over their summer vacation. 

I bought my third e-book ever to take with camp with me (I usually read free ones instead of actually buying them.) Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson is about Taylor Edwards, whose family is changed forever when her dad becomes sick. The family decides to spend the summer together at their old summerhouse where they become closer and get to know each other again. Morgan Matson also wrote Amy and Roger's Epic Detour, which I really liked. 

This book definitely doesn't fit with the summer theme of the rest of the books I got this week. Yesterday I read Anne Frank: Beyond the Diary, which is a very good book about Anne Frank (with lots of photographs) that I've had forever and would definitely recommend. Reading this made me want to reread the actual diary, which I read in maybe the 5th grade. I bought it today for $4 at a used bookstore. It will be interesting to read it again, since I was fairly young the first time I read it. 

That's it for me! Feel free to respond with links to you own IMM! 

Review: Beauty

Title: Beauty
Author: Robin McKinley
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Publication Date: January 1st, 1978
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Fairy Tale Retellings

Beauty has never been fond of her nickname, which she never felt fit her. Her older sisters Grace and Hope are the true beauties, and Beauty is the brain of the family. She falls upon misfortune when her family loses everything, including her sister’s fiancée. Together, they move from the city to a town outside of a forest that is rumored to be enchanted. For two years, Beauty avoids the forest, but when a storm after a long trip drives her father into its depths, he finds himself at a strange castle inhabited by a Beast. Although the strange creature allows her father to leave, once he tries to bring home a rose the Beast vows that if the man does not return in a month to stay with him or bring his daughter to serve in his place he will personally come and find him. Since the rose was a gift for Beauty, she decides to stay with the Beast in her father’s place. The Beast is different from what Beauty first imagined, and treats her with kindness, giving her all of life’s luxuries. Immersed in the magic of her new home, Beauty wonders if anyone can truly love a Beast.

I think everyone knows the story of Beauty and the Beast, whether you’ve read the original text or not. The basic story, stripped of all the magical elements, is still pretty popular: girl meets a mean guy but comes to love him and see him for who he truly is. This retelling doesn’t have any twists, although the author has added original details to make the story her own. In the special features of my Beauty and the Beast (1991) DVD, the filmmakers discuss the difficulties they had making the original story into a film. This was because the story mainly consists of Beauty going to dinner with the Beast every night, during which he asks her to marry him and every night she refuses. This, and my love for the Disney film, both may have been why I found this book to be a bit boring and slow moving. Beauty lives in a world like our own, only with magic existing within her world. She enjoys reading Greek poetry and anything else she can get her hands on. While I at first liked Beauty’s character, eventually I found her to be boring and unrealistic. In fairy tale and fairy tale retellings, I find flat characters to be a common problem. I also never loved Beauty and the Beast’s relationship, but that could just be because I liked the Disney adaptation so much. The writing was very descriptive and eloquent, and I liked the familial focus of the story. I enjoyed all the changes McKinley made to the story, and while I don’t think this book was for me I could why it’s still read after all these years (this book came out in 1978.) Lovers of fairy tales and romance will enjoy how Robin McKinley gave breath to a story as old as time.

3/5

Review: The Time Travellers

Title: The Time Travellers (The Gideon Trilogy)
Author: Linda Buckley-Archer
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: 2006
Genre: Junior Fiction, Fantasy

Peter Schock has been looking forward to spending the day with his father for the first time in what feels like forever, and he can’t help but feel angry when his father cancels at the last minute. Instead of going skiing, Peter and his nanny go to visit friends in Derbyshire. Staying at the Dyer’s farm, Peter meets the redheaded Kate, who is about his age. When Kate and Peter go to visit Kate’s father’s laboratory, something goes terribly wrong and they end up in an unfamiliar place. There, they meet the Tar Man, who takes the anti-matter machine that seems to have brought them to this strange land. At home, it was winter and now it is summer. Kate wonders if perhaps they were knocked unconscious and taken to Australia. Peter and Kate make the acquaintance of Gideon Seymour, former Cutpurse. Gideon’s strange and formal dress and mannerisms give the children pause, but surely the only explanation is impossible. When the children arrive with Gideon into town it becomes very clear that the anti-matter machine took them even further than they imagined- to the past! Kate and Peter have travelled back in time to 1763. Things become even stranger when Kate and Peter learn that they can ‘blur,’ by appearing in their present time as ghost like apparitions. Kate and Peter seem to have nothing in common, but together they’ve been thrown into the past. They will have to learn to trust each other if they want to make it home to modern England.

This book is also titled Gideon The Cutpurse, and the cover was enough to catch my attention. Two preteens find themselves in the 18th century, where they face the evil Tar Man, stifling period clothing, highwaymen, and unfair laws. The author did a good job of recreating the 18th century, although, as with a lot of time travel stories, the characters met too many important figures from that time period. The plot was original but dragged on a bit. However, the ending picked up and changed my opinion on the book as a whole. The discussion of time travel and how the children end up finding the time machine again was very clever. For the majority of the book, I though that it was an all right story, but doubted that I would pick up the sequel. The ending alone managed to convince me to continue with the series. I liked the majority of the characters, including Peter, Gideon and even Sydney, but I disliked Kate, who I first thought I would adore. Kate ended up frustrating me: I hated how she became angry with Peter when he stopped her from blurring away one time, but later on she became paranoid that he would leave her in 1763. This book reminded me of The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel, and I think it would be a good book for fans of that series. Great for young fans of fantasy, adventure and time travel.

3/5

Top Ten Favourite Book Covers

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week's topic is a Rewind, and I decided to do my favourite book covers.

1. The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly. For some reason I'm really big on covers that made almost entirely out of the title, like No One Is Here Except All Of Us or In The Woods.  It's also very cool how little things from the book appear on the cover. It's all very fitting for this adult fairy tale.

2. Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer. Again, a cover where most of it is made of the title. I love all of Jonathan Safran's covers, especially Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, since I like the text and similarity to the cover for Everything Is Illuminated. I also like how the cover was inspired by a character in the book who cannot speak and writes 'yes' and 'no' on his hands to communicate.

3. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. I love this cover to death. I love how it shows the horse from the carousel and the city in the background and I just love the colours as well. A cover that will never look dated.

4. Looking for Alaska by John Green. John just posted about this cover the other day and how there wasn't originally supposed to be a candle, just the smoke. I always kind of assumed it was supposed to be from one of the candles Alaska's always playing with in the book, but cigarette smoke makes sense. I also love this cover of Looking For Alaska, which I really want to own.

5. It's Kind of a Funny Story. I kept going to Chapters to buy this book and only found the movie cover, and since I hate all movie covers I waited until I found this edition. Aside from being very pretty, the cover references the mind maps Craig makes in the book.

6. The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart. I love Carson Ellis so it's no surprise that I love the cover for The Mysterious Benedict Society. I also adore her cover for Wildwood, although her illustrations were the best thing about the book. The rest of the books in the Mysterious Benedict series are illustrated by Diana Sudyka, and although I prefer her Reynie I just love Carson Ellis' Cover.

7. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. The first cover on this list that I don't own (and need.) This is the Penguin Deluxe Edition and looks as if it were sewn. I own a copy of Emma in this edition which is also very beautiful (x). You can see them all here.

8. Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie. I want this book so badly. I love these Puffin Classics since they're so beautiful and simplistic. The Peter Pan one is probably my favourite, but they're all so beautiful. I also like the cloth Puffin Classics for adults.

9. Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. I love these paperback Puffin Classics, two of which I just bought (x). While the last thing I need is another copy of Alice, I love the style and illustrations of this cover, and how it updated the original while still sticking to the basic idea. You can see some more of them here.

10. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling. I really like the US cover for GoF since it shows Harry in the way I picture him in the earlier books. I really just love how bright and magical this cover looks. I also love the back of the US Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince because Ron and Hermione look kind of like like I picture them. The Hermione on the cover of the UK Deathly Hallows is exactly how I picture Hermione.

11. The Girl Who Could Silence the Wind by Meg Medina. I'm going to do one extra for good luck. This is the only book on the list I haven't read, but I just adore this cover. I have a thing for silhouette covers, like the one for The Whole Truth. The colours and design are so beautiful, and it's enough to make me want to check out this book.

Review: Where It Began

Title: Where It Began
Author: Ann Redisch Stampler
Publisher: Simon Pluse
Publication Date: March 6th, 2012
Genre: YA, Realistic Fiction

When Gabby Gardiner wakes up in the hospital she can hardly remember who she is or how she got there. As time goes by she remembers who she is: former nobody at her school in Bel Air until she was made over before junior year and became girlfriend of Billy Nash, school heart throb. But she still doesn’t know exactly what happened the night of her accident. Unfortunately, the facts speak pretty loudly: she was found thrown from her boyfriend’s car with the keys in her hand and had a very high blood alcohol level. Recovering from the accident is made worst with her legal troubles, and the fact that Billy now has to avoid her to keep himself out of more trouble, since he’s already on probation for his own DUI. But something about the accident doesn’t make sense: Billy is certainly not the type to give anyone his car, especially his drunk girlfriend, and how could Gabby have stolen it from him? As she tries to grapple with the hardest time of her life, she looks back on her transformation and how she went from a nobody to the hospitalized girlfriend of the coolest guy in school.

Twice I had misconceived notions of what this book was going to be like. After first looking at the cover, I thought Where It Began was going to be like The Summer I Turned Pretty, partly because of the quote from Jenny Han on the cover. After reading the synopsis, I assumed it was going to be more like Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver. Both of these assumptions were far off. This book follows a girl whose life changed when her mother decided to have her made over in efforts to make her less sub-regular. After this make over, Gabby quickly found a new boyfriend and even became a member of student council. Gabby adores her boyfriend and looks at everything but him with a cynical eye. The tone and writing style reminded me of Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson. I felt detached from the characters, including Gabby, who is just so naïve and clueless. I also can never relate to characters that are obsessed with their boyfriends and seem to live only for them. The writing itself was good, but while the plot was interesting it was also predictable. However, I liked this book the most when the truth came out, even if I had a pretty good (if not vague) idea of what happened when Gabby got in her car accident. What was the most interesting about this was what it implied about Gabby and how people saw her. As much as I liked the resolution, I didn’t really enjoy getting there, since the book didn’t flow very well. However, it did make me think. This book looks at the life of a newly popular girl in an elite school and what rising to the top took from her.

3/5

In My Mailbox (41)

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren, in which book bloggers post about the books they've bought, borrowed or received in the past week.

With my birthday money from forever ago I bought The Disenchantments by Nina LaCour. I'm going to work at a summer camp for the summer and I thought this would be fun to read while I'm there. And the Disenchantments has to be the best band name ever. I'm actually really excited about this book- it will be difficult to wait until I'm there to read it. 

Yay library! I'm hoping to read Mockingbird by Kathryn Erskine today. It's about an eleven year old girl with Asperger's. I read Never Eighteen by Megan Bostic on friday, which is about a boy who's never going to turn eighteen and wants to help the people he loves before he dies. At noon when the library opens I'm going to go get Avatar The Last Airbender: The Promise Part One, which is a graphic novel that takes place after the events of the TV show (and before Legend of Korra.) 

What new books did you guys receive this week? 

Review: Love Story

Title: Love Story
Author: Jennifer Echols
Publisher: MTV Books
Publication Date: July 19th, 2011
Genre: YA, Romance

Erin Blackwell has just moved from Kentucky to New York City to go to college, majoring in Creative Writing. Raised on her Grandmother’s ranch, Erin has recently found herself poor for the first time in her life when her Grandmother refused to pay for her education if she didn’t major in Business. As she struggles with juggling classes, writing and work, she takes refuge in her Creative Writing class. Hunter, her farm’s stable boy, became her Grandmother’s heir when Erin refused to major in business. Although Erin should resent him, she still finds herself fantasizing about his blue eyes and muscled chest. While Hunter might be the villain of Erin’s story, he has become the hero of the short story she’s writing. When Erin’s class is about to discuss her romance story, Hunter transfers into the class and recognizes himself in her story. Erin loves romance novels with happy endings, but will she and her stable boy ever get their own?

I wonder how many times the word stable boy appears in this book? Overall, I can’t say I liked this one. I actually disliked mostly everything about this book, so if you don’t want to read a negative review then you should probably stop reading right now. I have to admit that I had my doubts about this book from reading the synopsis, so maybe I was biased against Love Story from the start. The back made it sound like an episode of a dated teen sitcom. The book begins with Erin’s short story, and this worked better than I thought it would. Hunter and Erin’s stories appear throughout the novel, and were short, for the most part. The first thing I disliked about the book as a whole was the characters. None of them felt very realistic, but Erin and Hunter were probably the most dislikeable leading characters I’ve read about in a while. She was arrogant and just a hateful girl. When (in her head) she called a girl who talks to Hunter in class a bitch, I knew I wasn’t going to like her. Erin and Hunter were very immature with the stories they wrote back and forth. A lot of trouble could have been saved if they had just talked to each other like adults. I know I was supposed to swoon over Hunter, but I couldn’t stand him. I hated how he treated Erin, from lying to her about her estranged father coming to see her, to his deal with her Grandmother. I didn’t like Erin, but I’m not even sure if she deserved Hunter. I’m no expert on US universities, but I don’t understand why Creative Writing was a required course. Or how small a New York City college seemed. The plot had too much drama for me, especially towards the end. I didn’t understand Erin’s fear of her professor finding out she based her story on reality, since a lot of great authors do the same thing. Didn’t Hemingway base The Sun Also Rises on a real experience? That being said, Hunter and Erin took writing what you know a bit too far. Although I might have been nitpicking with a few things, I didn’t enjoy Love Story. Perhaps this book just wasn’t for me, but I wouldn’t recommend it.

1.5/5

“And it's time you learned that there's a big difference between your writing and your life. To do it right, your witing takes an incredible amount of work. Your life takes more.”