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812 reviews
Stone Mattress: Nine Tales by Margaret Atwood
5.0
In these nine fantastical tales, murder is plotted, a woman searches for her husband in a fictional world, a girl is mistaken for a monster, and an angry mob torches a retirement community.
I’ve read almost all of Margaret Atwood’s short story collections, and Stone Mattress is one of my favorites. These stories feel more “genre” than Atwood’s other works, but it’s a refreshing change. I love the elements of sci-fi, fantasy, and horror. The author definitely puts her unique (and hilarious) spin on the genres. It makes these stories feel both familiar and innovative.
Usually with short story collections, there are a few stories that I just don’t like. I can honestly say that I enjoyed everything in this book. It’s darkly funny and doesn’t take itself too seriously. As always, Atwood’s writing is poetic. The descriptions are vivid, and the characters have big personalities. I especially like that many of the protagonists are older retired people. I haven’t read many stories that focus on that stage of life.
All of the stories in this collection are great, but here are a few of my favorites:
In “Revenant,” a sex-obsessed elderly poet scares away the graduate student who comes to interview him about his ex-girlfriend’s novels. I think this is the funniest story in the collection.
In “Lusus Naturae,” a girl with a rare illness fakes her own death . . . then is later mistaken for an undead monster by the people in her town. This story reads like a fairytale. It’s a familiar tale, but Atwood’s writing is so strong and intelligent that it feels new.
In “Stone Mattress,” a woman goes on an Arctic cruise hoping to find love, but she ends up plotting the murder of a man who raped her fifty years ago. This is the story that I remember most from the collection. It’s funny, sad, and rich in symbolism. I was still thinking about it days after I read it.
Stone Mattress: Nine Tales is a great addition to my big collection of Margaret Atwood books. I’m looking forward to whatever she writes next.
I’ve read almost all of Margaret Atwood’s short story collections, and Stone Mattress is one of my favorites. These stories feel more “genre” than Atwood’s other works, but it’s a refreshing change. I love the elements of sci-fi, fantasy, and horror. The author definitely puts her unique (and hilarious) spin on the genres. It makes these stories feel both familiar and innovative.
Usually with short story collections, there are a few stories that I just don’t like. I can honestly say that I enjoyed everything in this book. It’s darkly funny and doesn’t take itself too seriously. As always, Atwood’s writing is poetic. The descriptions are vivid, and the characters have big personalities. I especially like that many of the protagonists are older retired people. I haven’t read many stories that focus on that stage of life.
All of the stories in this collection are great, but here are a few of my favorites:
In “Revenant,” a sex-obsessed elderly poet scares away the graduate student who comes to interview him about his ex-girlfriend’s novels. I think this is the funniest story in the collection.
In “Lusus Naturae,” a girl with a rare illness fakes her own death . . . then is later mistaken for an undead monster by the people in her town. This story reads like a fairytale. It’s a familiar tale, but Atwood’s writing is so strong and intelligent that it feels new.
In “Stone Mattress,” a woman goes on an Arctic cruise hoping to find love, but she ends up plotting the murder of a man who raped her fifty years ago. This is the story that I remember most from the collection. It’s funny, sad, and rich in symbolism. I was still thinking about it days after I read it.
Stone Mattress: Nine Tales is a great addition to my big collection of Margaret Atwood books. I’m looking forward to whatever she writes next.
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (Revised Edition) by Jesse Andrews
4.0
This isn’t your typical dying-kid novel, which is great because I usually hate those things.
Seventeen-year-old Greg is a social outcast at his school—and he likes it that way. His only friend is Earl, and the only thing they do together is make terrible movies. Greg’s life is just the way he wants it, until his mother forces him to spend time with Rachel. Rachel has just been diagnosed with leukemia. Greg has no idea how to help her feel better. He decides to make her a movie, but it turns into the worst movie ever made, and suddenly the whole school is looking at Greg. This book is part novel, part screenplay, and part bullet point list.
Like the back cover says, this is “The funniest book you’ll ever read about death.” I was laughing pretty much the entire time I was reading. I don’t think I’ve ever laughed so hard at a book.
The best part of this novel is its realism. Cancer is not romanticized, and there is no sappy love story. Greg and Rachel are very realistic characters. They are both flawed and far from perfect. Sometimes, Greg does not want to deal with Rachel’s illness because it’s difficult and depressing. He just wants to hang out with Earl and be a regular teenager. This is a very normal way for a teen to feel, and the author does not vilify Greg for it. I love that.
I also love the dialogue. It’s vulgar, disgusting, and full of swear words. It sounds exactly like how I talked to my friends when I was a teenager.
Even though I thoroughly enjoyed this book, I did have a few issues with it. First, Greg got on my nerves pretty often. I wanted him to shut up and stop criticizing himself and the book. It seems like every few pages he says, “This book sucks. I don’t know why I’m writing it. I suck.” It’s funny the first few times, but then it just gets obnoxious.
I also have a slight problem with Earl. He’s a great character, but he doesn’t feel as complex as the other characters. The way he acts and speaks makes him seem like a stereotype of an inner-city black teenager. I wish we got to know him better so that he seemed more human.
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl is a quick, hilarious read. It has a few problems, but I would still highly recommend it.
Seventeen-year-old Greg is a social outcast at his school—and he likes it that way. His only friend is Earl, and the only thing they do together is make terrible movies. Greg’s life is just the way he wants it, until his mother forces him to spend time with Rachel. Rachel has just been diagnosed with leukemia. Greg has no idea how to help her feel better. He decides to make her a movie, but it turns into the worst movie ever made, and suddenly the whole school is looking at Greg. This book is part novel, part screenplay, and part bullet point list.
Like the back cover says, this is “The funniest book you’ll ever read about death.” I was laughing pretty much the entire time I was reading. I don’t think I’ve ever laughed so hard at a book.
The best part of this novel is its realism. Cancer is not romanticized, and there is no sappy love story. Greg and Rachel are very realistic characters. They are both flawed and far from perfect. Sometimes, Greg does not want to deal with Rachel’s illness because it’s difficult and depressing. He just wants to hang out with Earl and be a regular teenager. This is a very normal way for a teen to feel, and the author does not vilify Greg for it. I love that.
I also love the dialogue. It’s vulgar, disgusting, and full of swear words. It sounds exactly like how I talked to my friends when I was a teenager.
Even though I thoroughly enjoyed this book, I did have a few issues with it. First, Greg got on my nerves pretty often. I wanted him to shut up and stop criticizing himself and the book. It seems like every few pages he says, “This book sucks. I don’t know why I’m writing it. I suck.” It’s funny the first few times, but then it just gets obnoxious.
I also have a slight problem with Earl. He’s a great character, but he doesn’t feel as complex as the other characters. The way he acts and speaks makes him seem like a stereotype of an inner-city black teenager. I wish we got to know him better so that he seemed more human.
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl is a quick, hilarious read. It has a few problems, but I would still highly recommend it.
If You Find Me by Emily Murdoch
3.0
It took me a long time to write this review because I have mixed feelings about this book. I think I wanted to like it more than I actually did.
Carey and her younger sister have spent ten years living in the woods with their drug-addicted mother. After their mother disappears, they are sent to live with their father. Carey must then deal with a new family, high school, and all the lies that her mother told her over the past ten years.
I don’t think a book has ever hooked me so quickly. Within a few pages, I was totally invested in the story. The main characters and their lifestyle are so interesting that I flew through the beginning of the book. The writing is stunning (despite a few clunky metaphors), and the narrator, Carey, has a very strong and unique voice. I can feel her passion when she describes the woods that she loves.
Family is a big element of this story. Carey’s stepmother is my favorite character. She’s very patient, loving, and understanding. All children deserve a parent like her, and I’m glad that she has such a big part in the book. A lot of YA books lack a good adult role model, so I was happy to find one in this story.
My issue with the book is that it’s predictable and not very believable. Carey has a secret that is hinted at through the entire novel. As soon as she mentions that she has a secret, I guessed what it was. When the big reveal happened at the end, my reaction was, “Meh, I knew that 200 pages ago.” It was a little disappointing.
I also had a hard time believing the story. Carey moves to the woods when she is five years old and spends ten years of her life there. She has a few books, a violin, and very little contact with the outside world. Her mother is rarely around. But, somehow I’m expected to believe that Carey is super-model beautiful, a violin prodigy, and two grade-levels ahead of other kids her age. How did she teach herself without help or good resources? How did a five-year-old survive alone in the woods without doing any permanent damage to her body?
The plot works out a little too conveniently for my tastes. I think this book would have benefited from being longer so that the relationships could have been explored in more depth. For example: Carey’s little sister adjusts to family life pretty much immediately; the most popular boy in school falls in insta-love with Carey; and the issues between Carey and her stepsister are resolved with one conversation. I just didn’t believe everything could happen so easily.
If you’re looking for a beautifully written feel-good story, then this book is definitely for you, but you have to be willing to overlook a few believability issues.
Carey and her younger sister have spent ten years living in the woods with their drug-addicted mother. After their mother disappears, they are sent to live with their father. Carey must then deal with a new family, high school, and all the lies that her mother told her over the past ten years.
I don’t think a book has ever hooked me so quickly. Within a few pages, I was totally invested in the story. The main characters and their lifestyle are so interesting that I flew through the beginning of the book. The writing is stunning (despite a few clunky metaphors), and the narrator, Carey, has a very strong and unique voice. I can feel her passion when she describes the woods that she loves.
Family is a big element of this story. Carey’s stepmother is my favorite character. She’s very patient, loving, and understanding. All children deserve a parent like her, and I’m glad that she has such a big part in the book. A lot of YA books lack a good adult role model, so I was happy to find one in this story.
My issue with the book is that it’s predictable and not very believable. Carey has a secret that is hinted at through the entire novel. As soon as she mentions that she has a secret, I guessed what it was. When the big reveal happened at the end, my reaction was, “Meh, I knew that 200 pages ago.” It was a little disappointing.
I also had a hard time believing the story. Carey moves to the woods when she is five years old and spends ten years of her life there. She has a few books, a violin, and very little contact with the outside world. Her mother is rarely around. But, somehow I’m expected to believe that Carey is super-model beautiful, a violin prodigy, and two grade-levels ahead of other kids her age. How did she teach herself without help or good resources? How did a five-year-old survive alone in the woods without doing any permanent damage to her body?
The plot works out a little too conveniently for my tastes. I think this book would have benefited from being longer so that the relationships could have been explored in more depth. For example: Carey’s little sister adjusts to family life pretty much immediately; the most popular boy in school falls in insta-love with Carey; and the issues between Carey and her stepsister are resolved with one conversation. I just didn’t believe everything could happen so easily.
If you’re looking for a beautifully written feel-good story, then this book is definitely for you, but you have to be willing to overlook a few believability issues.
Severance: What goes through a person's mind before they are beheaded? by Robert Olen Butler
4.0
This is probably the most creative concept for a book I’ve ever seen. Supposedly, a head remains conscious for 90 seconds after decapitation. The author takes historical figures, animals, and mythological creatures who were decapitated and writes 240-word prose-poems about what goes through their minds in the 90 seconds after they lose their heads.
First, I have to say that I love the design of this book. The pages are really thick, and the colors, fonts, and layout are unusual. Whoever designed it did an amazing job. It’s definitely an eye-catching piece of artwork.
The stories didn’t have as much decapitation as I expected. Many of the severed heads focus on points in their lives before the actual decapitation, so most of the stories are tasteful. None of them are particularly gory or graphic.
If you don’t like poetry, you probably won’t like this book. The stories are written stream-of-consciousness style with minimal punctuation and explanation. They feel more like poems than short stories. Luckily, I like poetry, so I found these prose-poems fascinating and weird. I was going to read a few of them before bed one night, and I ended up finishing most of the book.
Since the stories are so short, I can’t summarize them without spoilers, so I’ll give you the titles of my favorites.
“Dragon (beast, beheaded by Saint George, 301)”
“Ah Balam (Mayan ballplayer, beheaded by custom as captain of losing team, 803)”
“Pierre-Francois Lacenaire (criminal and memoirist, guillotined for murder, 1836)”
“Ta Chin (Chinese wife, beheaded by her husband, 1838)”
“Charles H. Stuart (Texas farmer, beheaded by his two teenage daughters, 1904)”
“Chicken (Americauna pullet, beheaded in Alabama for Sunday dinner, 1958)”
My only criticism of this collection is that the stories start to feel very repetitive. I would have liked more variation in the way that they are written. There are 62 of them in the book, and they all start to blur together by the end.
I think I would have appreciated the collection more if I had more knowledge of history and mythology, but overall, I really enjoyed these strange little prose-poems.
First, I have to say that I love the design of this book. The pages are really thick, and the colors, fonts, and layout are unusual. Whoever designed it did an amazing job. It’s definitely an eye-catching piece of artwork.
The stories didn’t have as much decapitation as I expected. Many of the severed heads focus on points in their lives before the actual decapitation, so most of the stories are tasteful. None of them are particularly gory or graphic.
If you don’t like poetry, you probably won’t like this book. The stories are written stream-of-consciousness style with minimal punctuation and explanation. They feel more like poems than short stories. Luckily, I like poetry, so I found these prose-poems fascinating and weird. I was going to read a few of them before bed one night, and I ended up finishing most of the book.
Since the stories are so short, I can’t summarize them without spoilers, so I’ll give you the titles of my favorites.
“Dragon (beast, beheaded by Saint George, 301)”
“Ah Balam (Mayan ballplayer, beheaded by custom as captain of losing team, 803)”
“Pierre-Francois Lacenaire (criminal and memoirist, guillotined for murder, 1836)”
“Ta Chin (Chinese wife, beheaded by her husband, 1838)”
“Charles H. Stuart (Texas farmer, beheaded by his two teenage daughters, 1904)”
“Chicken (Americauna pullet, beheaded in Alabama for Sunday dinner, 1958)”
My only criticism of this collection is that the stories start to feel very repetitive. I would have liked more variation in the way that they are written. There are 62 of them in the book, and they all start to blur together by the end.
I think I would have appreciated the collection more if I had more knowledge of history and mythology, but overall, I really enjoyed these strange little prose-poems.
The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart
3.0
Frankie’s new boyfriend is a member of the all-male secret society that is responsible for pulling the biggest pranks in school history. Frankie desperately wants to know what happens during the society’s secret meetings, but every time she asks, her boyfriend lies to her. What he doesn’t know is that Frankie is controlling the society. She’s the one coming up with the pranks and pulling all the strings. She can make her boyfriend and his friends do whatever she wants just by sending an email.
Frankie is a great character. I can’t say that I understand her or relate to her, but she’s fascinating to read about. She’s power-hungry and ambitious. She doesn’t want to be a nice, sweet, sensitive girl who does whatever her boyfriend asks. Frankie is obsessive and refuses to be underestimated. She has goals, and she’ll do whatever it takes to achieve them, even if it means manipulating people. She’s far from your typical YA heroine. So, if you read a lot of YA, Frankie is a refreshing change.
I like the detached way that this story is written. The third-person narrator examines Frankie’s behavior and shows how much calculation she puts into every decision. The book is almost written like a cautionary tale or an old-school children’s book, but it’s not preachy or heavy-handed. The writing style creates a mysterious tone. It made me keep reading because I needed to know what Frankie did to get herself into so much trouble.
I do have one big criticism of the book. It’s marketed as YA, but I think a lot of YA readers would find it juvenile. Some aspects of the story seem more middle grade than YA. I had a hard time staying interested in the plot because I couldn’t force myself to care about high school pranks. I didn’t even care about pranks when I was in high school. The story wasn’t interesting to me, but kids and younger teens would probably love the suspense, mystery, and humor.
Frankie is a wonderful character, but I wish the book had more going on in the plot. It mostly focuses on pranks, so I’d recommend this book to younger readers, but older readers may want to skip it.
Frankie is a great character. I can’t say that I understand her or relate to her, but she’s fascinating to read about. She’s power-hungry and ambitious. She doesn’t want to be a nice, sweet, sensitive girl who does whatever her boyfriend asks. Frankie is obsessive and refuses to be underestimated. She has goals, and she’ll do whatever it takes to achieve them, even if it means manipulating people. She’s far from your typical YA heroine. So, if you read a lot of YA, Frankie is a refreshing change.
I like the detached way that this story is written. The third-person narrator examines Frankie’s behavior and shows how much calculation she puts into every decision. The book is almost written like a cautionary tale or an old-school children’s book, but it’s not preachy or heavy-handed. The writing style creates a mysterious tone. It made me keep reading because I needed to know what Frankie did to get herself into so much trouble.
I do have one big criticism of the book. It’s marketed as YA, but I think a lot of YA readers would find it juvenile. Some aspects of the story seem more middle grade than YA. I had a hard time staying interested in the plot because I couldn’t force myself to care about high school pranks. I didn’t even care about pranks when I was in high school. The story wasn’t interesting to me, but kids and younger teens would probably love the suspense, mystery, and humor.
Frankie is a wonderful character, but I wish the book had more going on in the plot. It mostly focuses on pranks, so I’d recommend this book to younger readers, but older readers may want to skip it.
Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed
4.0
When Cheryl Strayed was twenty-six years old, she decided to hike 1000 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail. She hoped that the trip would help her come to terms with her mother’s death and the disintegration of her family.
I’m a little surprised by the reviews of this memoir on Goodreads. Some people seem to really, really hate the author. Memoirs are difficult to review because it’s nearly impossible to separate the author/narrator/main character from the book, but I’m going to try. I’m not comfortable judging a human and the decisions she made twenty-something years ago. The author writes about her life honestly in this book. She doesn’t sugarcoat anything. She doesn’t pretend to be perfect. It is hard for the reader to feel sympathy for her at times, but that didn’t bother me while I was reading. I think it took a lot of bravery to tell this story.
Now, for the book. I enjoyed it immensely. I’m very interested in backpacking, so I’m probably preprogramed to like these kinds of books, but there is a lot of content in this story that will appeal to non-backpackers. The majority of the plot focuses on the Pacific Crest Trail, but Cheryl doesn’t spend all of her time hiking. She occasionally gets off the trail and meets interesting people. There are also flashbacks to her childhood and her mother’s death from cancer.
I have read a few other books about hiking. The descriptions can sometimes feel very repetitive: “There’s a tree, there’s another tree, there’s a lake, there’s another tree.” This book doesn’t feel repetitive at all. There’s enough description that I can picture the scenes, but there isn’t so much that it bogs down the story. The plot moves quickly, and I was never bored.
The writing isn’t phenomenal, but it’s powerful enough that I was completely engaged in the story. I was rooting for Cheryl. I wanted her to reach the end of the trail, and I wanted her to be a better, happier person when she got there.
The only thing that really bothers me about this book is the horse-euthanasia scene. I’m not overly sensitive to that type of thing, but the scene feels out-of-place. The book is fairly upbeat right before that scene, and it goes back to being upbeat immediately after. It feels like a super-graphic death scene just comes out of nowhere. After the scene ended, I actually stopped reading and thought, What the hell was that? I was so blindsided that it took me a while to get back into the story.
I read memoirs because I want a small glimpse into someone else’s life. This book gave me exactly what I wanted. The author/narrator does make some controversial decisions in her life, but the book is still worth reading. I enjoyed it.
I’m a little surprised by the reviews of this memoir on Goodreads. Some people seem to really, really hate the author. Memoirs are difficult to review because it’s nearly impossible to separate the author/narrator/main character from the book, but I’m going to try. I’m not comfortable judging a human and the decisions she made twenty-something years ago. The author writes about her life honestly in this book. She doesn’t sugarcoat anything. She doesn’t pretend to be perfect. It is hard for the reader to feel sympathy for her at times, but that didn’t bother me while I was reading. I think it took a lot of bravery to tell this story.
Now, for the book. I enjoyed it immensely. I’m very interested in backpacking, so I’m probably preprogramed to like these kinds of books, but there is a lot of content in this story that will appeal to non-backpackers. The majority of the plot focuses on the Pacific Crest Trail, but Cheryl doesn’t spend all of her time hiking. She occasionally gets off the trail and meets interesting people. There are also flashbacks to her childhood and her mother’s death from cancer.
I have read a few other books about hiking. The descriptions can sometimes feel very repetitive: “There’s a tree, there’s another tree, there’s a lake, there’s another tree.” This book doesn’t feel repetitive at all. There’s enough description that I can picture the scenes, but there isn’t so much that it bogs down the story. The plot moves quickly, and I was never bored.
The writing isn’t phenomenal, but it’s powerful enough that I was completely engaged in the story. I was rooting for Cheryl. I wanted her to reach the end of the trail, and I wanted her to be a better, happier person when she got there.
The only thing that really bothers me about this book is the horse-euthanasia scene. I’m not overly sensitive to that type of thing, but the scene feels out-of-place. The book is fairly upbeat right before that scene, and it goes back to being upbeat immediately after. It feels like a super-graphic death scene just comes out of nowhere. After the scene ended, I actually stopped reading and thought, What the hell was that? I was so blindsided that it took me a while to get back into the story.
I read memoirs because I want a small glimpse into someone else’s life. This book gave me exactly what I wanted. The author/narrator does make some controversial decisions in her life, but the book is still worth reading. I enjoyed it.
5 to 1 by Holly Bodger
3.0
I was super-excited to read this book, but I was a little disappointed when I finished it.
5 to 1 is set in a futuristic Indian society. There are five boys for every one girl, so when a girl turns seventeen, a group of boys compete for the chance to marry her. It’s basically a dystopian version of The Bachelorette. The winning boy gets to marry the girl, and the losers are sent to guard the wall around the city, where most of them die. The story is told from duel perspectives. Sudasa’s chapters are in free verse and Kiran’s are in prose.
There are some elements of the book that I love. First, it’s a beautiful book. The cover and the illustrations at the beginnings of the chapters are gorgeous. Also, it’s a really quick read. I got through it in a few hours. I like the Indian setting—it’s something that I haven’t seen before in a dystopia. The mixture of poetry and prose is an unusual way to tell the story, and most of the poetry is very well-written.
The greatest thing about this book: No romance! None at all. I’m not a huge romance-lover, so I’m always excited when I find a young adult book that isn’t romance-based.
Even though there are elements of the book that I love, I still have a lot of issues with it. I think it would have benefitted from being much, much longer. The story is rushed and underdeveloped. I don’t feel like I know either of the narrators. All Sudasa and Kiran really talk about is how much they hate the government of their city, but I don’t feel like I understand the government either. The reader does get to see some aspects of Indian culture, but there isn’t much world-building at all. For me to believe this dystopian society, I needed a lot more background information about the city and how it came to exist.
This story had the potential to be awesome, but there were just too many missed opportunities for me. It’s an entertaining read, but I wanted a lot more depth and development.
5 to 1 is set in a futuristic Indian society. There are five boys for every one girl, so when a girl turns seventeen, a group of boys compete for the chance to marry her. It’s basically a dystopian version of The Bachelorette. The winning boy gets to marry the girl, and the losers are sent to guard the wall around the city, where most of them die. The story is told from duel perspectives. Sudasa’s chapters are in free verse and Kiran’s are in prose.
There are some elements of the book that I love. First, it’s a beautiful book. The cover and the illustrations at the beginnings of the chapters are gorgeous. Also, it’s a really quick read. I got through it in a few hours. I like the Indian setting—it’s something that I haven’t seen before in a dystopia. The mixture of poetry and prose is an unusual way to tell the story, and most of the poetry is very well-written.
The greatest thing about this book: No romance! None at all. I’m not a huge romance-lover, so I’m always excited when I find a young adult book that isn’t romance-based.
Even though there are elements of the book that I love, I still have a lot of issues with it. I think it would have benefitted from being much, much longer. The story is rushed and underdeveloped. I don’t feel like I know either of the narrators. All Sudasa and Kiran really talk about is how much they hate the government of their city, but I don’t feel like I understand the government either. The reader does get to see some aspects of Indian culture, but there isn’t much world-building at all. For me to believe this dystopian society, I needed a lot more background information about the city and how it came to exist.
This story had the potential to be awesome, but there were just too many missed opportunities for me. It’s an entertaining read, but I wanted a lot more depth and development.
The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton
5.0
It took me a week to write this review because I couldn’t find the words to describe how much I love this novel. I don’t know what to say to make you go read it.
The narrator, Ava, is born with feathers and wings. To find out why, she starts looking into her family history. This book chronicles four generations of her unusual family. It’s a story about obsession and heartbreak and wasted lives. It’s both devastating and surprisingly hopeful. “Strange” and “beautiful” are the perfect words to describe it.
I love magical realism, and I like family sagas if they don’t feel completely plotless. This novel is definitely character-driven, so there isn’t much of a plot, but it’s fairly fast-paced, and the characters are fascinating. They’re all so well-developed, which is impressive because there are a lot of them. They each have a distinct personality. I feel like I really understand them.
This is a book about love, but it’s not a love story. The characters’ relationships don’t always work out. Sometimes the swoon-worthy hero doesn’t turn out to be all that swoon-worthy. I love this book because it has elements of magic, but it still feels so real. It’s honest. The author doesn’t hold anything back. The characters’ emotions are raw, and even the good guys have some pretty nasty flaws.
Can we talk about the writing? I can’t believe that this is a debut novel. The writing has a melancholy tone with some bursts of humor. The descriptions are on-point. Most of the story is set in Seattle, but it’s a surreal, otherworldly Seattle. The writing completely embodies the strangeness of Ava’s family. The reader can really feel the characters’ desires and triumphs and heartbreaks. It’s not writing. It’s art.
Since this is a review, I have to come up with something to criticize. If you don’t like magical realism, character-driven stories, sadness, or family sagas, you probably won’t like this book. I love the hopefulness of the ending, but it’s a little rushed. Also, the author repeats names too much instead of using he/she/they. The repetition became slightly distracting.
That’s all I can come up with to criticize. Seriously, I was stunned when I finished this book. I can’t think of anything I hated about it.
This is easily one of the best books I’ve read this year. I can’t wait to read whatever the author writes next.
The narrator, Ava, is born with feathers and wings. To find out why, she starts looking into her family history. This book chronicles four generations of her unusual family. It’s a story about obsession and heartbreak and wasted lives. It’s both devastating and surprisingly hopeful. “Strange” and “beautiful” are the perfect words to describe it.
I love magical realism, and I like family sagas if they don’t feel completely plotless. This novel is definitely character-driven, so there isn’t much of a plot, but it’s fairly fast-paced, and the characters are fascinating. They’re all so well-developed, which is impressive because there are a lot of them. They each have a distinct personality. I feel like I really understand them.
This is a book about love, but it’s not a love story. The characters’ relationships don’t always work out. Sometimes the swoon-worthy hero doesn’t turn out to be all that swoon-worthy. I love this book because it has elements of magic, but it still feels so real. It’s honest. The author doesn’t hold anything back. The characters’ emotions are raw, and even the good guys have some pretty nasty flaws.
Can we talk about the writing? I can’t believe that this is a debut novel. The writing has a melancholy tone with some bursts of humor. The descriptions are on-point. Most of the story is set in Seattle, but it’s a surreal, otherworldly Seattle. The writing completely embodies the strangeness of Ava’s family. The reader can really feel the characters’ desires and triumphs and heartbreaks. It’s not writing. It’s art.
Since this is a review, I have to come up with something to criticize. If you don’t like magical realism, character-driven stories, sadness, or family sagas, you probably won’t like this book. I love the hopefulness of the ending, but it’s a little rushed. Also, the author repeats names too much instead of using he/she/they. The repetition became slightly distracting.
That’s all I can come up with to criticize. Seriously, I was stunned when I finished this book. I can’t think of anything I hated about it.
This is easily one of the best books I’ve read this year. I can’t wait to read whatever the author writes next.
Places I Never Meant To Be: Original Stories by Censored Writers by Judy Blume
3.0
Places I Never Meant To Be is a collection of young adult short stories and essays that contain material that is often banned by schools and libraries. The stories deal with issues surrounding love, race, class, sex/sexuality, illness/dying, abuse, bullying, homelessness, and moral dilemmas. All of the stories are tastefully done. The authors aren’t pushing boundaries just for the sake of pushing boundaries. Even the fantastical stories deal with issues that real teens face.
The anthology also contains personal essays about how censorship and book banning has impacted each author’s life and work. Some of these essays are crazy. I didn’t know that people went to such extremes to get books banned. There are a few essays that I like more than the stories because they are so eye-opening.
Most of the stories in this book are pretty average. The anthology was published in 1999, and the stories are showing their age. Many of them feel dated. However, there are a few that I love:
In “Spear” by Julius Lester, the son of a famous black leader falls in love with a white girl. The two main characters in this story are very well-developed. Both of their families are pressuring them to be something they’re not, and I felt bad for them.
Paul Zindel’s “Love and Centipedes” is a horror story about a girl who uses centipedes to get revenge on a bully. I love horror, so of course I’d like this one. The characters are quirky, and the writing is attention-grabbing.
In Rachel Vail’s “Going Sentimental,” a teenage couple discovers that losing their virginity isn’t as dramatic as they expected. This is my favorite story in the anthology. It points out how our sex-obsessed culture can sometimes give teens unrealistic expectations. It’s also hilarious.
“Lie, No Lie,” by Chris Lynch is about a practical joke that turns out to be very unfunny. Reading this story made me uncomfortable (in a good way). I’m not sure how I should feel about the ending.
This is probably an unpopular opinion, but I’m not a huge fan of Judy Blume’s introduction to this book. She does tell some interesting stories about how censorship has influenced her work, but the introduction feels a little long-winded and preachy to me. I totally agree with what she says, but reading it reminded me of those really long charity commercials that try way too hard to make you feel guilt and outrage.
Overall, this is an okay anthology. I enjoyed it. It’s a quick read. Most of the stories are short and entertaining. Some of them will make you uncomfortable, and some of them will make you think, and you’ll learn a little about censorship in the process.
The anthology also contains personal essays about how censorship and book banning has impacted each author’s life and work. Some of these essays are crazy. I didn’t know that people went to such extremes to get books banned. There are a few essays that I like more than the stories because they are so eye-opening.
Most of the stories in this book are pretty average. The anthology was published in 1999, and the stories are showing their age. Many of them feel dated. However, there are a few that I love:
In “Spear” by Julius Lester, the son of a famous black leader falls in love with a white girl. The two main characters in this story are very well-developed. Both of their families are pressuring them to be something they’re not, and I felt bad for them.
Paul Zindel’s “Love and Centipedes” is a horror story about a girl who uses centipedes to get revenge on a bully. I love horror, so of course I’d like this one. The characters are quirky, and the writing is attention-grabbing.
In Rachel Vail’s “Going Sentimental,” a teenage couple discovers that losing their virginity isn’t as dramatic as they expected. This is my favorite story in the anthology. It points out how our sex-obsessed culture can sometimes give teens unrealistic expectations. It’s also hilarious.
“Lie, No Lie,” by Chris Lynch is about a practical joke that turns out to be very unfunny. Reading this story made me uncomfortable (in a good way). I’m not sure how I should feel about the ending.
This is probably an unpopular opinion, but I’m not a huge fan of Judy Blume’s introduction to this book. She does tell some interesting stories about how censorship has influenced her work, but the introduction feels a little long-winded and preachy to me. I totally agree with what she says, but reading it reminded me of those really long charity commercials that try way too hard to make you feel guilt and outrage.
Overall, this is an okay anthology. I enjoyed it. It’s a quick read. Most of the stories are short and entertaining. Some of them will make you uncomfortable, and some of them will make you think, and you’ll learn a little about censorship in the process.
Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
4.0
I liked a romance-y book. What is happening to me? Is this real life?
I can’t believe I almost skipped this novel. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to read it. The synopsis intrigued me, but the reviews made it sound so sweet and fluffy. I don’t do fluffy, and I can’t stand cutesy romances, so I was nervous about this book. But, it turned out to be amazing! It has so much more depth than I expected.
Sixteen-year-old Simon meets someone called “Blue” on Tumblr. They start emailing, and their emails eventually become sexual. All Simon knows about “Blue” is that he’s a boy, and he goes to Simon’s school. One day, a classmate, Martin, sees Simon’s emails and uses them to blackmail Simon in to setting him up with the hottest girl in school.
I flew through this book. It’s so entertaining. Every time I put it down, I picked it up again right away. I read most of it in a few hours because I needed to figure out Blue’s identity and see how Simon would get himself out of this blackmail mess. I love the mystery surrounding Blue. Every time a new character was introduced, I thought Is that Blue? No, it can’t be. Is that other guy Blue? I did figure out Blue’s identity long before Simon did, but I was never 100% positive, so I didn’t mind being correct in the end.
Even though this novel deals with serious subjects, it’s really funny. My favorite part is Simon and Blue’s email conversations. Both characters are extremely intelligent and humorous. There are a few laugh-out-loud lines in the book. At one point, Simon talks about going through puberty and discovering erotic fanfiction. He says, “That was the summer I taught myself how to do laundry. There are some socks that shouldn’t be washed by your mom.” I spent about five minutes laughing like an idiot at that line.
I had a lot of fun with this book, but I do have some issues with it. I think it starts abruptly. It took me a while to figure out what was happening and why all of these characters are important. There are a lot of characters, and almost all of them are underdeveloped. The underdevelopment does tie in to the book’s theme, but it also makes it difficult to keep the characters straight at first.
This story has a great message about identity. It’s impossible to know everything about a person, and you shouldn’t make assumptions about anyone. “People really are like houses with vast rooms and tiny windows. And maybe it's a good thing, the way we never stop surprising each other.”
I would have skipped this book if I had listened to my assumptions about it. I’m so happy that I ignored them and read the book.
I can’t believe I almost skipped this novel. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to read it. The synopsis intrigued me, but the reviews made it sound so sweet and fluffy. I don’t do fluffy, and I can’t stand cutesy romances, so I was nervous about this book. But, it turned out to be amazing! It has so much more depth than I expected.
Sixteen-year-old Simon meets someone called “Blue” on Tumblr. They start emailing, and their emails eventually become sexual. All Simon knows about “Blue” is that he’s a boy, and he goes to Simon’s school. One day, a classmate, Martin, sees Simon’s emails and uses them to blackmail Simon in to setting him up with the hottest girl in school.
I flew through this book. It’s so entertaining. Every time I put it down, I picked it up again right away. I read most of it in a few hours because I needed to figure out Blue’s identity and see how Simon would get himself out of this blackmail mess. I love the mystery surrounding Blue. Every time a new character was introduced, I thought Is that Blue? No, it can’t be. Is that other guy Blue? I did figure out Blue’s identity long before Simon did, but I was never 100% positive, so I didn’t mind being correct in the end.
Even though this novel deals with serious subjects, it’s really funny. My favorite part is Simon and Blue’s email conversations. Both characters are extremely intelligent and humorous. There are a few laugh-out-loud lines in the book. At one point, Simon talks about going through puberty and discovering erotic fanfiction. He says, “That was the summer I taught myself how to do laundry. There are some socks that shouldn’t be washed by your mom.” I spent about five minutes laughing like an idiot at that line.
I had a lot of fun with this book, but I do have some issues with it. I think it starts abruptly. It took me a while to figure out what was happening and why all of these characters are important. There are a lot of characters, and almost all of them are underdeveloped. The underdevelopment does tie in to the book’s theme, but it also makes it difficult to keep the characters straight at first.
This story has a great message about identity. It’s impossible to know everything about a person, and you shouldn’t make assumptions about anyone. “People really are like houses with vast rooms and tiny windows. And maybe it's a good thing, the way we never stop surprising each other.”
I would have skipped this book if I had listened to my assumptions about it. I’m so happy that I ignored them and read the book.