Absolute Favorites of 2011

I've posted a few lists this week, but to wrap up the year, I thought I'd post my top five (well, six) favorite books I read this year regardless of when they came out, in no particular order:

1, 2. Every You, Every Me and The Lover's Dictionary by David Levithan 

Neither of these appeared on any of my other lists this week, but I still count them as some of my absolute favorites because, hello, they're by David Levithan. He is my favorite author and thus anything he writes becomes a favorite too.

3. Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

This book is just too adorable, romantic, funny, and happy-making (but also tear-inducing) for me not to name it a favorite.

4. Slice of Cherry by Dia Reeves 

I read this one only a week ago but have been thinking about it since; it's just so twisted and imaginative that I can't help but delight in its craziness.

5. Sweethearts by Sara Zarr 

So many feelings on this book, most of them being feelings of extreme love.

6. I'll Be There by Holly Goldberg Sloan

Truly a beautiful story, in every way.

Favorite Non-2011 Books

Shout-outs to some awesome books I read this year that came out in years prior:

1. Not That Kind of Girl by Siobhan Vivian - I was delighted to discover that I read this in January because that means I now have the opportunity to proclaim my undying love for it. It's smart, funny, and, despite Natalie's stubborn and overpowering attitude, manages to have plenty of emotion too. Don't let the awful cover fool you.

2. Sweethearts by Sara Zarr - I will trust in Jordyn of Ten Cent Notes's recommendations 100% forevermore because of this book. Words fail to describe how much I love it, so I'll just say it's definitely one of my all-time favorites now.

3. The Pox Party by M.T. Anderson - Stunning in every possible way, most notably the fantastic writing. I still need to read the sequel to this one, shame on me.

4. Sorta Like a Rockstar by Matthew Quick - Amber Appleton may very well be one of my favorite heroines because even when's down, she manages to come back up in the most humorous, inspirational, and delightful ways.

5. To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf - Hey, no one said I had to keep my lists strictly YA. This book is one of the few I've liked reading for school, so much that I chose it for pretty much every writing assignment in class. And the fact the pretty much everyone in my English class besides my best friend and I hates it makes me like it all the more.

Favorite Contempary of 2011

Because contemporary is the primary genre I read, it's only fitting that it gets a list all its own.

1. Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins - It only makes sense that the follow-up to my favorite book of 2010, Anna and the French Kiss, be on this list. It's not quite possible to match my love for Anna, but my love for this book comes oh so very close because of how quirky, funny, and purely enjoyable it is.

2. Sean Griswold's Head by Lindsey Leavitt - Although I read this at the beginning of the year, I find myself thinking back to it often. It's just so sweet and realistic that I can't help but mark it as a favorite of this year.

3. I'll Be There by Holly Goldberg Sloan - I heard nothing but praise for this book prior to reading, and I found that it deserves every bit of it. I laughed, I cried, and then I cried some more.

4. Beauty Queens by Libba Bray - Over-the-top and ridiculous in the best possible way, this one had me laughing and analyzing the whole time.

5. Where She Went by Gayle Forman - I'll Be There brought plenty of tears but it still can't rival the emotional havoc that this book caused. Every time I thought I was alright while reading, Adam broke my heart all over again, and I loved every minute of it.

Five Surprises of 2011

Because I am so hard to please, I often don't anticipate liking certain books very much. However, there are plenty of times where I am pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoy things. Here are five books that came out this year and that I liked more than I thought:

1. How I Stole Johnny Depp's Alien Girlfriend by Gary Ghislain - This premise is so strange that I didn't quite see how it would work, but it worked fantastically well.

2. Back When You Were Easier to Love by Emily Wing Smith - I thought I had this book figured out from the start, but, happily, it ended up being far more adorable, quirky, and emotional than I anticipated.

3. Without Tess by Marcella Pixley - Quite possibly the best "dead sibling" novel I have read for its attention to Tess's issues.

4. The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen - The premise definitely implies there will be plenty of intensity, but I didn't realize just how emotional and moving a story it would be.

5. Stay by Deb Caletti - I'd always meant to read a Deb Caletti book, and this was an excellent one to start off with because it is seriously awesome despite its disturbing aspects.

Favorite Covers of 2011

Just because I like covers a lot, a list of my favorite covers of 2011 books, regardless of whether I've read the book or not.

1. Imaginary Girls by Nova Ren Suma

So creepy, and yet so serene.

2. I'll Be There by Holly Goldberg Sloan

I love more artsy, hand-drawn covers and this one is so great and fits the book so well.

3. Slice of Cherry by Dia Reeves

Creepy, creepy is good.

4. Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

I haven't read this one, but the blue mask catches my attention every time I see it somewhere.

 

5. Awaken by Kate Kacvinsky

Again with the spooky! This one is definitely more atmospheric, and therefore I love it.

Favorite Non-Contemporary of 2011

It's the most wonderful time of the year: end-of-the-year lists! Lists are some of my favorite things, and I love the excuse to make many of them.

Today's list: my favorite paranormal/supernatural/dystopian/sci-fi/fantasy/non-contemporary books that came out in 2011. All those categories have been lumped together because I did not read a lot of paranormal, sci-fi, etc. this year, and therefore couldn't make separate lists for each category.

In no particular order:

1. Slice of Cherry by Dia Reeves - Crazy and twisted in the best possible way.

2. Dead Rules by Randy Russell - Delightfully dark and funny.

3. Divergent by Veronica Roth - Although this book had an insane amount of hype before it was released, it managed to live up to the praise, which is a feat not often achieved.

4. Fury of the Phoenix by Cindy Pon - I waited for this book to come out for ages and was so very excited to find that it met my expectations of awesome.

5. The Near Witch by Victoria Schwab - Possibly the most atmospheric and one of the best written books I read this year, and those two qualities alone earn it a spot on this list. (Those and the fact that I really enjoyed it.)

Happy Christmas Weekend!

Please enjoy this excerpt from my favorite Christmas read, Dash and Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan, in celebration:

My best Christmas was when I was eight. My parents had just split up, and they told me I was really lucky, because this year I was going to get two Christmases instead of one. They called it Australian Christmas, because I would get presents at my mom’s place one evening and at my dad’s place the next morning, and it would be okay because they would both be Christmas Day in Australia. This sounded great to me, and I honestly felt lucky. Two Christmases! They went all out, too. Full dinners, all the relatives from each side at each Christmas. They must have split my Christmas list down the middle, because I got everything I wanted, and no duplication. Then my father, on the second night, made the big mistake. I was up late, way too late, and everyone else had gone home. He was drinking something brown-gold—probably brandy—and he pulled me to his side and asked me if I liked having two Christmases. I told him yes, and he told me again how lucky I was. Then he asked me if there was anything else I wanted.

I told I him I wanted Mom to be with us, too. And he didn’t blink. He said he’d see what he could do. And I believed him. I believed I was lucky, and I believed two Christmases were better than one, and I believed even though Santa wasn’t real, my parents could still perform magic. So that’s why it was my best Christmas. Because it was the last one when I really believed. 

 If that doesn't get you in the holiday spirit I don't know what will.

Slice of Cherry by Dia Reeves

[description goodreads]

Kit and Fancy Cordelle are sisters of the best kind: best friends, best confidantes, and best accomplices. The daughters of the infamous Bonesaw Killer, Kit and Fancy are used to feeling like outsiders, and that’s just the way they like it. But in Portero, where the weird and wild run rampant, the Cordelle sisters are hardly the oddest or most dangerous creatures around.

It’s no surprise when Kit and Fancy start to give in to their deepest desire—the desire to kill. What starts as a fascination with slicing open and stitching up quickly spirals into a gratifying murder spree. Of course, the sisters aren’t killing just anyone, only the people who truly deserve it. But the girls have learned from the mistakes of their father, and know that a shred of evidence could get them caught. So when Fancy stumbles upon a mysterious and invisible doorway to another world, she opens a door to endless possibilities….

Review:

Any break from school is a chance for me to read the books I've had for ages but never got around to, and this winter vacation started with Slice of Cherry. It's criminal that I let it wait for so long, but what a way to start my reading for the break; it's nine kinds of twisted, and I loved every minute of it. 

Dia Reeves's books are not for the faint of the heart or for those who do not appreciate all things strange, but if you're like me and delight in blood and mayhem,* her books are the best. The world of the Cordelle sisters is like all the best parts of Alice in Wonderland, Pan's Labyrinth, and Tim Burton mixed together but even better-- as in, the creatures and the girls' imaginations are absurdly creative, strange, dark, and just a bit magical. It often doesn't make sense how Kit and Fancy's world exists, or how the girls could get away with the crimes they commit, or how anyone could respond in the way they do to what's going on around them, but that's part of this book's charm. The lack of explanation of certain events and motivation just makes this book feel more like a nightmare come to life, in the best way possible. And, to be honest, I didn't really mind the lack of back story because I was too busy flipping pages to see what insanity the girls would be involved in next, because every time I thought things would calm down, they would instead get crazier. 


With such a twisted storyline, there must be heroines to match, and Slice of Cherry totally delivers in that regard. It's hard to decide whether or not Kit or Fancy is the crazier sister, which is one of my favorite things about this book. Every time I thought I figured out who was the "worse" girl and who was more sympathetic, the girls would take actions that totally flipped my perception of each of them, constantly keeping me on my toes to see whether each girl would descend further into madness or return to normalcy. I felt the same way about each of their love interests; although I disliked the focus on the romance that sometimes prevailed, because I liked the mayhem so much more, I did appreciate the ever-changing information given about the boys that turned both the plot and my views of them upside down. 


Slice of Cherry is surely not for everyone, but those who appreciate it (like me!) will love it for the imaginative, nightmarish, twisted tale it tells.

*There's really no way to say that without sounding creepy. 

Book details: Simon Pulse/Paperback/$9.99


Source: bought

"You are waiting on" Wednesday: Bittersweet

Waiting on Wednesday was started by Jill over at Breaking the Spine. Descriptions and such from goodreads.

Normally, Waiting  on Wednesday highlights books I'm excited to read, but today I'll be discussing a book that I've read that I'm telling you to be excited about, because I'm bossy like that. It's a pre-review of sorts.

Today that book is none other than: 

 Bittersweet by Sarah Ockler

Hudson can't wait to get out of Watonka, her working-class town outside of Buffalo. Once upon a time, her talent as a skater was going to be her ticket out... but when her parents' marriage unraveled three years ago, so did her dreams. Now, she buries herself in making cupcakes for her mom's diner and imagining her parallel life where she went on to skate to glory. But when she gets a letter inviting her to audition for a skating scholarship *and* the hockey team asks for her help with their technique (read: free ice time for Hudson), it's impossible to ignore the signs. Is she ready to get back on the ice? Could this be her ticket out? Hudson's determined not to let anything stand in her way. But between baking and waitressing at the diner, the love triangle that's developing with two outrageously cute hockey boys, and the simmering drama with her best friend, her future is anything but certain...

---

Sarah Ockler is one of my favorite authors, and this book may be my favorite of hers yet  ("may be" because sometimes I have trouble choosing the best). It's sweet, funny, and a constant delight to read despite the fact that it made me want an obscene amount of cupcakes. It also comes out on January 3, soon enough for you to spend your Christmas gift cards on it, because you will so want to.

Falling for Hamlet by Michelle Ray

[description from goodreads]

Meet Ophelia: a blonde, beautiful high-school senior and long-time girlfriend of Prince Hamlet of Denmark. Her life is dominated not only by her boyfriend's fame and his overbearing family, but also by the paparazzi who hound them wherever they go. As the devastatingly handsome Hamlet spirals into madness after the mysterious death of his father, the King, Ophelia rides out his crazy roller coaster life, and lives to tell about it. In live television interviews, of course.

Passion, romance, drama, humor, and tragedy intertwine in this compulsively readable debut novel, told by a strong-willed, modern-day Ophelia.

Review: 

Its eponymous hero might be overly angsty and annoyingly passive, but of the Shakespeare I've read, Hamlet is at the top of my list of favorites. I also love the play's spin-offs (Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead is flawless), so it was with great excitement that I jumped into this book. I feel it would be more appreciated by those who have read the source material, but it's still a fun and clever story that does a great job of rewriting Ophelia into someone tolerable and even admirable.

Because this is a rather faithful adaptation, it was initially strange getting used to there being all these bizarrely named characters in regular high school. It was also strange to think that modern Denmark would have a royal family with such large say in the government, but despite my qualms about this setting, I enjoyed the retelling. Because Ophelia is so often offstage in the original play, there are plenty of new scenes and thoughts in her narration; I loved getting her perspective on things that didn't get much time in the play itself, such as Ophelia's relationship with Queen Gertrude. Their relationship was all kinds of manipulative and complex, and seeing Ophelia deal with Gertrude's overbearing nature while also handling her father's instructions, Hamlet's insanity, and her friends (who aren't in the original play) was a consistently dramatic and entertaining tale.

I assume it would be hard to write about characters you didn't create yourself, but if it is difficult, it didn't seem that way in this book. Each character managed to move beyond the personalities provided in Hamlet, but not always in a way I liked one hundred percent. For example, I like my Prince Hamlet crazy as can be, but in this book I didn't feel like there was enough time for the impact of his insanity and presence to be made. However, at the same time, despite his lack of crazy, I did like the development of his and Ophelia's relationship, for their easily misinterpreted way of interacting was described in a way that made perfect sense. I also liked that Ophelia got more time to deal with other characters she doesn't really get to hang out with in the play, such as Horatio, Hamlet's best friend.

Although it was sometimes awkwardly placed in the modern setting, and it was missing some of my favorite parts of the play, I did quite enjoy Falling for Hamlet. It's fun and provides reasonable, intriguing, and amusing explanations for events and relationships Shakespeare never expanded upon.

Book details: Poppy/Hardcover/$17.99

Source: ALA conference

In My Mailbox

In My Mailbox was started by The Story Siren and inspired by Pop Culture Junkie. Descriptions and such from goodreads.

I got five books this week, which is too many to post summaries for, but I'll post the most exciting ones:

All These Lives by Sarah Wylie

Sixteen-year-old Dani is convinced she has nine lives. As a child she twice walked away from situations where she should have died. But Dani’s twin, Jena, isn’t so lucky. She has cancer and might not even be able to keep her one life. Dani’s father is in denial. Her mother is trying to hold it together and prove everything’s normal. And Jena is wasting away.

To cope, Dani sets out to rid herself of all her extra lives. Maybe they’ll be released into the universe and someone who wants to live more than she does will get one. Someone like Jena. But just when Dani finds herself at the breaking point, she’s faced with a startling realization. Maybe she doesn’t have nine lives after all. Maybe she really only ever had one.

This sounds simultaneously crazy and emotional-- I can't wait.

  The Raft by S.A. Bodeen

Robie, 16, lives with her family on the Midway atoll, a group of islands in the middle of the Pacific. Her parents are scientists; it’s an isolated life. Robie enjoys visiting her aunt in Hawaii – she gets back and forth on a cargo plane that brings supplies to Midway.

During a visit, her aunt is called to the mainland for a work emergency, leaving Robie to get home on her own. On her flight back to Midway the cargo plane hits nasty weather, and goes down. It’s just Robie, the pilot, and Max, a co-pilot she’s never met till this flight, on board. Robie is pulled aboard a raft by Max, who is injured and slipping in and out of consciousness. They have a bag of candy and very little water between them. When they finally reach an island that seems abandoned, Robie hopes they’ll be found quickly. But she’s not sure she was even on the flight manifest. Her parents must be looking for her…aren’t they?

In THE RAFT, S.A. Bodeen creates a hair-raising suspense story that will have readers agonizing over the same question as Robie -- how long can they survive?

YESSS! Survival stories are the best.  


The other books I got: 

• Before You Go by James Preller - More crazy emotional intensity!
• Wicked Sweet by Mar'ce Merrell - CAKE! 
• Blue Bloods by Melissa de la Cruz - My friend got me this book for Christmas because 1) she likes it and 2) she didn't think I'd already read it. I haven't! Vampires and I don't get along too well but I'm always inclined to trust friend recommendations.

Winner!

The winner of Legend is Elena. Congrats! I'll email you shortly.

In other news, I'm excited to say that I will be able to return to normal posting now that winter break has begun! Well, return after I sleep some more. And finish college apps. And do my Christmas homework. But, let's be honest, I will end up reading before I do some of those things.

And, as per winner post tradition, my jam of the moment:



We shall return to your regularly scheduled blogging tomorrow.

The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff

[description from goodreads]

Mackie Doyle is not one of us. Though he lives in the small town of Gentry, he comes from a world of tunnels and black murky water, a world of living dead girls ruled by a little tattooed princess. He is a Replacement, left in the crib of a human baby sixteen years ago. Now, because of fatal allergies to iron, blood, and consecrated ground, Mackie is fighting to survive in the human world.

Mackie would give anything to live among us, to practice on his bass or spend time with his crush, Tate. But when Tate's baby sister goes missing, Mackie is drawn irrevocably into the underworld of Gentry, known as Mayhem. He must face the dark creatures of the Slag Heaps and find his rightful place, in our world, or theirs.

Review:

Paranormal fiction and I don't have the best relationship, but every once in a while I give something supernatural a shot to see if it surprises me.  Sadly, I think my hard-to-please attitude when it comes to paranormal got in the way of my enjoyment of this book, but I still at the very least liked it. 


Like with most supernatural stories, I felt like my knowledge of the spookier side of Mackie's world was lacking to a point where I was often more frustrated than fascinated. This book does take a long time to get started, which made me think I would find out more about the strange creatures and magic in this world, but I never did. The topic of replacements and those who aren't quite human is never really explicitly acknowledged by the characters, making it hard for me to realize what exactly was going on and why they took certain actions for or against the underworld. It did help create a spooky and mysterious atmosphere, but eventually I just wanted to know more about what was going on instead of waiting for some of the mysteries to be solved.


However, despite my annoyance at the lack of information, I still enjoyed this book because once it gets going, it did manage to keep my attention. Even though I was confused as to what exactly was going on between the humans and the otherwordly creatures, I enjoyed seeing the conflict between the two groups, especially as Mackie gets involved. His place between the worlds is so precarious and tense that I couldn't help but eagerly await for instances in which his worlds would collide. I especially enjoyed the conflict when it involved his family, for his family's position in the town and their involvement in certain events lead to plenty of shady happenings and reveals of secrets.

It's got a cool concept and intriguing conflict between the real and the supernatural, but my inherent high standards for paranormal fiction and desire for more development prevented me from enjoying The Replacement beyond the "I like it" level. 


Book details: Razorbill/Paperback/$8.99


Source: sent by publisher for review
 

Virtuosity by Jessica Martinez

[description from goodreads]

Now is not the time for Carmen to fall in love. And Jeremy is hands-down the wrong guy for her to fall for. He is infuriating, arrogant, and the only person who can stand in the way of Carmen getting the one thing she wants most: to win the prestigious Guarneri competition. Carmen's whole life is violin, and until she met Jeremy, her whole focus was winning. But what if Jeremy isn't just hot...what if Jeremy is better? 

Carmen knows that kissing Jeremy can't end well, but she just can't stay away. Nobody else understands her--and riles her up--like he does. Still, she can't trust him with her biggest secret: She is so desperate to win she takes anti-anxiety drugs to perform, and what started as an easy fix has become a hungry addiction. Carmen is sick of not feeling anything on stage and even more sick of always doing what she’s told, doing what's expected.

Sometimes, being on top just means you have a long way to fall....

Review:

The summary of this book is both excellent and not; it captures Carmen's angst and nerves, yet doesn't put enough emphasis on them. It makes it sound like the novel is about her and Jeremy, when, really, it's pretty much only her story.


However, I'll stick with the summary's order of topics just to make my life easier. Although I felt like his role was somewhat smaller than anticipated, I did enjoy Potential Boy Jeremy's place in the story. He's refreshingly not-perfect and the fact that he creates conflict for Carmen beyond their budding romance made me always look forward to his next appearance. I loved seeing the bigger effect he had on all aspects of her life, particularly the musical parts, because it's thanks to him that some of this book's craziest and most wonderfully shocking moments occur. I often wished he had just a bit more personality, but as the story goes on and he reveals more of his motivation, I couldn't help but love him.


But, this book really isn't Jeremy's story; it's Carmen's, and oh what a story it is. She has an overwhelming number of problems to deal with-- the violin competition, her growing addiction to anxiety drugs, her overbearing mother, and often the conflict between sticking with violin or leaving it behind. It sometimes seemed like each of these dramatic and compelling problems weren't getting equal attention, or at least the attention they deserved, but no matter how much time they receive, they always managed to keep me reading. They also always managed to make me sympathize with Carmen, for her stress is so intense that it's impossible not to relate to her or feel bad for her in such an insane, emotionally charged environment. 


Although I wished for a bit more development here and there, I still really, really enjoyed Virtuosity for its intensity and abundance of drama. 


Book details: Simon Pulse/Hardcover/$16.99


Source: sent by publisher for review

In My Mailbox

In My Mailbox was started by The Story Siren and inspired by Pop Culture Junkie. Descriptions and such from goodreads.

Normally I try not to go so long without posting, but finals are this week and I don't think I have any extra brain power to use in attempts at coherent posts.

However, I did get two exciting books for review this week and I couldn't resist sharing my excitement:

 Ditched by Robin Mellom

High school senior Justina Griffith was never the girl who dreamed of going to prom. Designer dresses and strappy heels? Not her thing. So she never expected her best friend, Ian Clark, to ask her.

Ian, who always passed her the baseball bat handle first.
Ian, who knew exactly when she needed red licorice.
Ian, who promised her the most amazing night at prom.
And then ditched her.

Now, as the sun rises over her small town, and with only the help of some opinionated ladies at the 7-Eleven, Justina must piece together — stain by stain on her thrift-store dress — exactly how she ended up dateless. A three-legged Chihuahua was involved. Along with a demolition derby-ready Cadillac. And there was that incident at the tattoo parlor. Plus the flying leap from Brian Sontag's moving car...

But to get the whole story, Justina will have to face the boy who ditched her. And discover if losing out at prom can ultimately lead to true love.

Filled with humor, charm, and romance, Ditched: A Love Story by debut novelist Robin Mellom will have readers dreaming of love on their own prom nights.

  This book sounds so delightfully funny and crazy; I can't wait to read it.

Bittersweet by Sarah Ockler

Once upon a time, Hudson knew exactly what her future looked like. Then a betrayal changed her life, and knocked her dreams to the ground. Now she’s a girl who doesn’t believe in second chances... a girl who stays under the radar by baking cupcakes at her mom’s diner and obsessing over what might have been.

So when things start looking up and she has another shot at her dreams, Hudson is equal parts hopeful and terrified. Of course, this is also the moment a cute, sweet guy walks into her life...and starts serving up some seriously mixed signals. She’s got a lot on her plate, and for a girl who’s been burned before, risking it all is easier said than done.

It’s time for Hudson to ask herself what she really wants, and how much she’s willing to sacrifice to get it. Because in a place where opportunities are fleeting, she knows this chance may very well be her last....

Confession: I've already read this one, and I loved it! I'll post more thoughts on it later, but trust me, it's awesome, and not just because it made me want cupcakes.

Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday was started by Jill over at Breaking the Spine. Descriptions and such from goodreads.

Today I'm waiting on:

 Wonder by R.J. Palacio

I won't describe what I look like. Whatever you're thinking, it's probably worse.

August (Auggie) Pullman was born with a facial deformity that prevented him from going to a mainstream school—until now. He's about to start 5th grade at Beecher Prep, and if you've ever been the new kid then you know how hard that can be. The thing is Auggie's just an ordinary kid, with an extraordinary face. But can he convince his new classmates that he's just like them, despite appearances?

R. J. Palacio has written a spare, warm, uplifting story that will have readers laughing one minute and wiping away tears the next. With wonderfully realistic family interactions (flawed, but loving), lively school scenes, and short chapters, Wonder is accessible to readers of all levels.

 

---

Alexandra Bracken, author of Brightly Woven, a book I adore, recently posted about this book on her blog; her recommendation is enough to make me want to read it. However, even without her enthusiasm, I think this one would have eventually caught my eye for how touching and emotional it sounds. 

Released February 14.

Top Ten Tuesday: Childhood Favorites

"Top Ten Tuesday" is a totally awesome feature hosted by The Broke and Bookish!

Today's topic is "Top Ten Childhood Faves," which is a topic that I love, love, love. Seriously, if there's anything I like as much as talking about books I currently love, it's books I loved when I was little.

In no particular order:

1. A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket - My absolute favorite childhood series for how absolutely smart and funny they are.

2. Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling - Duh.

3. Half Magic by Edward Eager - Love this whole series! They're so whimsical and, well, magical but I definitely read Half Magic the most as a child.

4. Charlie Bone series by Jenny Nimmo - I absolutely adored this series as a kid but still haven't finished the last few books. New goal: set.

5. Dive series by Gordon Korman - I read five or six of Gordon Korman's series over and over, but since this is the first by him I read, I chose to include it.

6. The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatley Snyder - Huzzah for required school reading that doesn't suck! 

7. Inkheart by Cornelia Funke - Also haven't finished this series, but Inkheart has just about everything that I love.

8. Guardians of Ga'Hoole series by Kathryn Lasky - I made it to the second to last book in this collection, not knowing there would only be one more. However, I loved the dozen I read. Owls!

9. Shadow Children series by Margaret Peterson Haddix - This series is so tense and adventurous and also managed to achieve the difficult feat of having a great conclusion.

10. The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare - I don't even think I can count how many times I read this book in the second grade. I'm pretty sure I took it from the classroom library at least once every other week.

The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler

[description from goodreads]

It's 1996, and less than half of all American high school students have ever used the Internet.

Emma just got her first computer and an America Online CD-ROM.

Josh is her best friend. They power up and log on--and discover themselves on Facebook, fifteen years in the future.

Everybody wonders what their Destiny will be. Josh and Emma are about to find out.

Review:

A premise as succinct but intriguing as that is pretty hard to resist, so I waited for this book with much excitement. By the time its release date rolled around, I admit my expectations were rather high, which may be why I was left feeling a bit disappointed after reading.

Don't get me wrong, though-- I did like this book. I just didn't love it, or even "really like" it. I think what kept me from enjoying it more was that I was always more interested in the things that weren't being discussed as often. For example, I had more fun reading about the times Emma looked up the future than the times whee she was reacting to the discoveries she found, because I liked to see what had changed since the last update. Clearly those changes couldn't occur without Emma's, and, on a lesser scale, Josh's reactions, but so many of her actions just simply annoyed me. I was so frustrated when she refused to do certain things even though she acknowledged they should be done or when she wouldn't listen to reason. I did like her more by the end as she did exhibit some growth, but getting to that growth often involved too much eye-rolling and repressed sighs for my liking.

However, aside from my annoyance, I do really like the rest of this book. It's rather easy to read, and I often found myself sitting for longer than I usually can stand reading in one sitting because of how breezy and light a read it is. It didn't hurt that I also wanted to keep reading to find out what would happen next; I was always excited to see what the future held, so I looked forward for those glimpses with great excitement. I also enjoyed the interaction between Emma, Josh, and their larger group of friends, especially once the two main characters discover things about their friends' futures. It's fun to see Emma and Josh hide their knowledge and work around it, and I loved seeing the influence their unaware friends had upon them because they allow the pair to get into some sticky and amusing situations. I wish some of the friends got better resolutions at the end, but I enjoyed their time in the novel enough not to worry too intensely about their lack of ending.

My annoyance at some of the characters and a general lack of "oomph" prevented me from really liking this book, but even still, it's light, fun, and has a great enough premise that I at the very least enjoyed my time reading it. 

Book details: Razorbill/Hardcover/$18.99


Source: sent by publisher for review

Winner!

The winner of the This is Teen prize pack is Rachael L. Congrats! I'll email you shortly.

And, as per winner post tradition, my jam of the moment:



Definitely loving The Drums at the moment.

In other news, I'm kind of insanely excited for Once Upon a Time tonight. Just thought I'd share since I ship Prince Charming/Snow White like it's my job.

Without Tess by Marcella Pixley

[description from goodreads]

Tess and Lizzie are sisters, sisters as close as can be, who share a secret world filled with selkies, flying horses, and a girl who can transform into a wolf  in the middle of the night. But when Lizzie is ready to grow up, Tess clings to their fantasies. As Tess sinks deeper and deeper into her delusions, she decides that she can’t live in the real world any longer and leaves Lizzie and her family forever. Now, years later, Lizzie is in high school and struggling to understand what happened to her sister. With the help of a school psychologist and Tess’s battered journal, Lizzie searches for a way to finally let Tess go.

Review:
 
I've read so many novels centering around dead family members that I'm never too excited to read another even if it does have a promising summary. It takes a lot for one of these stories to stand out, and, to my delight, Without Tess managed to have enough of a dark side to differentiate it from all the other "dead family" books I've come across. 


What makes this book stand out is its emphasis on the relationship between Lizzie and Tess before Tess passed away. In fact, I would say more of the book is made up of memories and flashbacks than of the present, which I often disliked as much as I liked. Because of the immense amount of time spent in the past, it never really seemed like Lizzie went through that much growth in the present. I never felt like I got to know the people who were trying to help her, which made it harder for me to see how exactly what influence they had upon her, or even how they tried to get over Tess's death themselves.


However, despite that qualm, I loved the time set in the past and always wanted even more. There's something frightening and magical about the way Tess is characterized through Lizzie's stories and her own included poetry; she begins as whimsical and imaginative but as the novel goes on there is a psychotic dark side that appears so subtly but powerfully that I was always compelled to keep reading to find out what Tess was really all about. I also enjoyed this past narration because it provided a basis for much of the rest of the characters' actions in the present, because Tess's influence was so powerful that it carried on years later into even the lives of people she wasn't close to. 


Despite my initial skepticism because of the unassuming premise, I found Without Tess to be surprisingly dark but beautifully written and compelling novel. 


Book details: FSG/Hardcover/$16.99


Source: sent by publisher for review

Legend Blog Tour!

Today I'm lucky to be hosting author Marie Lu on the blog tour for Legend, the first book in her new series!

A little about the book, in case you need it:

What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic's wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic's highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country's most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem.

From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths - until the day June's brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family's survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias's death. But in a shocking turn of events, the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them together, and the sinister lengths their country will go to keep its secrets.

Full of nonstop action, suspense, and romance, this novel is sure to move readers as much as it thrills.

And, if you still want a bit more info, chapter one is free from the publisher, or you can check out the cool Legend experience on Facebook.

You can also check out what author Marie Lu has to say about her writing journey, a continuation from yesterday's post over at The Compulsive Reader:

"This was my writing low. After the joy of getting my first agent, now I was suddenly right back where I started. I didn't write for four months. In fact, I became pretty depressed about the whole thing. But soon, inevitably, the itch to tell stories came back. I started Manuscript #4, a historical fantasy about Mozart as a child. And slowly, very slowly, my writing started to flow again. I went back to researching agents. One agent in particular stuck out to me. Kristin was someone I'd met at Pikes Peak Writers Conference during my college years, and in the short conversation I had with her I knew she was a true writer's advocate, someone brilliant and sharp and kind. I liked her so much, in fact, that I was only halfway through writing Manuscript #4 when I decided to query her. (By the way, this is a no-no. Do NOT do this. Usually it does not work out for the better!) A couple of weeks later, she requested sample chapters, and then she requested the full. I panicked. I sent her all of Manuscript #4 that I had (about 150 pages at the time), and bashfully admitted that I still needed to finish the full. Thankfully, Kristin gave me a chance. She asked me to send her the finished manuscript when it was ready. In two weeks, I wrote 30,000 words. I sent off Manuscript #4 to her in a frenzy, completely unedited and unpolished. I also sent it out to several other agents I had queried that had requested the full.

And the impossible happened. I got an offer of representation from another amazing agent. Flustered, I emailed Kristin about the development. A weekend later, Kristin called me to offer representation. I waffled back and forth for a little while, and then finally made a decision.

A smooth patch of road. I had a venerable agent once again. But Manuscript #4 went out on submission at a time when the Great Recession was at its deepest. A story about Mozart as a child isn't exactly blockbuster material, and although my agent loved it as much as I did and sent it out with passion and gusto, every publisher was understandably wary of taking on anything that looked like a risk during such a bad economic time. Rejection after rejection came in. We trudged on. Several editors did express interest in the story, and we came very close to selling it a couple of times. Still, after almost a year, we had no bites. We considered taking the book to smaller publishers. Secretly, I knew it was the end of the road for Manuscript #4. I buried it in my ever-growing archives folder.

Melissa Rosenberg, the screenwriter behind Dexter (the show) and all the Twilight films, once said that to be a writer, you have to be able to get kicked in the teeth. You have to be lying on the ground, bleeding, and be able to pick yourself up and brush yourself off, and keep going. Her words are completely true. For some, writing may lead to instant success. For the rest of us, it is a long and hard road. It is a test of endurance.

While my agent and I waited for slow, monthly responses on Manuscript #4, I began work on Manuscript #5. Unlike my previous stories, Manuscript #5's plot came to me in a flash. I was lying on my living room carpet, lazily watching the movie version of Les Miserables, when I suddenly thought, "Hey, why don't I write a story about a famous boy criminal and a famous teen detective hired to hunt him down?" I remembered one of my favorite characters, the boy protagonist of The Glass Sonata (Manuscript #2) that I had abandoned so long ago. I decided to revive him. Manuscript #5 poured out in six months. My agent, with her unwavering support, guided me through several rounds of thorough rewrites. Finally, over a year after I had first signed with her, we took it out on submission.

Manuscript #5 was Legend. And after two submissions that took a year to fade away into nothing, Legend sold in a few short weeks. The suddenness took my breath away. When everything falls into place, it all seems so easy. But that ease is the end result of a full decade of failure.

I'm no writing prodigy. (Or a prodigy in any field.) It took me a long time to learn my craft, and as I work on Legend 2 I still have blinding moments of self-doubt. Will this one end my career before it even starts? Will I disappoint? But as a writer, we have to be able to take that kick in the teeth. Even if everything falls apart tomorrow, I will still be writing. And for everyone who is an aspiring writer, no matter how many kicks you get, you have to keep writing. Because success won't feel like anything if you don't know what failure feels like."

 Thanks so much for sharing your story, Marie! I'm glad Legend ended up selling, because I, for one, can't wait to read it.

For one lucky winner I have a copy of Legend! Fill out the form to enter.