Tag Archives: book review

Review: The Lover’s Dictionary by David Levithan

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lover's dictionaryHaving enjoyed David Levithan’s recent YA book (Every Day) as well as his co-authored book with John Green (Will Grayson, Will Grayson), I was excited to see he had another novel out, The Lover’s Dictionary.

I read it in about an hour.

It’s a delightful little novel/poem/dictionary with short entries and unnamed main characters, just “you” and “I.”  I didn’t know how much I’d get to know the characters through the tiny little vignettes, but the answer was a lot.  And it was a story too– a novel, though a non-traditional one.  The ending is a bit of a cliffhanger, but it seemed quite satisfying for it to end that way.

I hope you’ll enjoy it.  It includes delicious little lines like these:

“Knit me a sweater out of your best stories.”

“It was after sex, when there was still heat and mostly breathing, when there was still touch and mostly thought …”

“Cranes, the birds with the rubber necks, don’t always find carnage.  Sometimes it’s just rain.”

Favorite Endings

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Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme over at The Broke and the Bookish.  Today’s topic is

TOP TEN BEST BEGINNINGS & ENDINGS.

I’m focusing on endings today.  Remember, I come at this not just as a reader but as a writer … so my favorite endings are not necessarily happy ones.  Sometimes they’re downright sad– but that perfect, satisfying, necessary sadness that works at the end of an incredible story.

I’ll try to go ultra-light on the spoilers, though it’s hard when this post is about endings.

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10. Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White | That ending!  That speech!

9. Stargirl & Love, Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli | Yes and yes.  I couldn’t figure out how Love, Stargirl could end in a satisfying way, but Jerry Spinelli pulled it off masterfully!

8. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern | The way it had to end.

7. When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead | All i’s dotted and t’s crossed.

6. Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis | BOOM!!!  The ending is INTENSE.

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5. Every Day by David Levithan | A selfless ending.  Blew my mind.

4. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak | Max.

3. The Last Unicorn by Peter Beagle | Mmm, epic.

2. Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling | An ending seven books in the making.

1. The Last Battle by C.S. Lewis | No better ending.

Your turn!  What books have your favorite endings, happy or sad?

Review: The Sea of Tranquility by Katja Millay

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Extra points for an awesome cover!

Extra points for an awesome cover!

I had read some advance reviews of The Sea of Tranquility, and they were SO good that I pre-ordered this book months before it came out.  I also bought it on Audible.  I listened to the first half while exercising and tanning (both in preparation for Des’s wedding), and at the halfway point, I decided, This needs to happen RIGHT. NOW.  So I stayed up till 2 am finishing up my paper copy.

I very much enjoyed this book, though I’m not quite willing to add it to my list of favorites.  I also was very fascinated by Josh Bennett, yet he’s not going to make it onto my list of literary boyfriends.  Should you read this book?  Yes, no hesitations there.

It’s about Nastya, a girl who stopped speaking after she was randomly attacked, and about Josh, a boy whose entire family has died.  They are both incredible characters, so deep and rich and FUNNY and real (gosh, this is making me want to go re-read it already!).  This is their story.

Millay’s writing is this no-holds-barred, slap-you-across-the-face kind of wonderful, and the book’s content doesn’t hold back either.  If you’ll be offended by underage drinking, drugs, and sex, then this book is not for you– although I would definitely not call this book gritty.  Not in the usual sense– where teenaged hoodlums are living lives of crime on the street.  These are normal ol’ kids in the ‘burbs– except that they have seen terrible things.

Loved the characters.  Loved the writing.  Loved the story.  It’s fascinating that the book addresses that girls each have “one unforgivable offense” for boys– because this book kind of broached mine— and that alone is why I am not throwing a parade in honor of The Sea of Tranquility.

Read it.  You’ll like it.

Jackie’s Favorite Adult Fiction

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So, it’s no secret that I’m a YA junkie, but I still have adult novels that I adore (like, head-over-heels-feeling-giddy-and-lightheaded adore):

Peace Like a River by Leif Enger
This is the story of Reuben Land, who– along with his father and sister– set out on a journey to find Reuben’s outlaw brother Davy.  Filled with his sister Swede’s hilarious epic poetry and his father’s deep faith, this story is some of the most beautiful prose I’ve ever read.
Recommended for: anyone who loves literary fiction, parents, folks from the Midwest, readers looking for a masterful roadtrip book

The Last Unicorn by Peter Beagle
If you click here, you can read my desperate plea for people to read this incredible grown-up fairytale.
Recommended for: people who want the meat of fantasy, not the candybar version (i.e. vampire lit), people who love incredible writing, people who just plain-and-simple love story

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
This book is richer than chocolate.  It has magic and competition and romance– and it avoids all cliches.  It is a sensory extravaganza.
Recommended for: people who love Harry Potter and are ready for magic from a grown-up perspective, anyone who values great imagery

C.S. Lewis’s space trilogy: Out of the Silent Planet, Perelandra, and That Hiddeous Strength
In general, I’m not a big sci fi fan.  But then there’s C.S. Lewis sci fi, a whole different breed.  It’s like mixing deep thoughts, deep theology, and deep space into a hearty stew.  Each book is better than the one that came before it, so don’t stop reading!
Recommended for: fans of C.S. Lewis, deep thinkers, people who love theology, readers who love rich writing

East of Eden by John Steinbeck
Forget Grapes of Wrath– this is Steinbeck’s magnum opus.  This is the story of Adam Trask, his brother Charles, and Adam’s sons Aron and Cal.  It’s a re-telling of the story of Cain and Abel, mixed with Steinbeck’s own history, and it is brilliant.
Recommended for: people who enjoy generational stories, theologians, connoisseurs of fine writing 

Rosie by Anne Lamott
I wanted to add another contemporary writer to this list, and Anne Lamott is one of the best out there.  While I think her truest forte is in memoir writing, she still writes incredible fiction.  Rosie is the first book of a trilogy, but it can also stand alone.  It’s the story of Elizabeth Ferguson and her daughter Rosie while Elizabeth is sinking into alcoholism.  It is great.
Recommended for: people who want to laugh and have their heart broken by the same book, readers who want incredible characters and great writing, fans of Anne Lamott’s memoir

The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis
A work of “theological fantasy” from the best of the best.  A fascinating look at heaven and hell, which uses Dante, Augstine, Milton, and Bunyan as sources.  Brilliant.
Recommended for: Christian thinkers, non-Christian thinkers

Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
I have to admit here that I’ve only read the 500-page abridged version, but it was fantastic.  What an incredibly well-written story of grace.  I gobbled this one up!
Recommended for: anyone who loves the classics, anyone who loves grace

I also recommend the following:
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis
Exodus by Leon Uris
Attachments by Rainbow Rowell
The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker

Review: Chaos Walking Trilogy

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I just finished gobbling up the Chaos Walking trilogy, written by Patrick Ness.  I really loved it and thought I’d share with you the reasons why.

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Book One: The Knife of Never Letting Go

The first book was a wild ride as I tried to situate myself on New World, the planet now inhabited by human settlers, a planet where men’s thoughts (their “Noise”) is audible.  Our protagonist is Todd Hewitt, on the verge of manhood and about to discover the dark secrets of his small town’s past, as he desperately attempts to out-run an army.

Huge, unapologetic cliffhanger.

Book Two: The Ask and the Answer

Book two, though, is when it gets really, really good.  War erupts.  As this is a spoiler-free review, all I will say is that it ends with another huge, unapologetic cliffhanger.

Book Three: Monsters of Men

Again, I don’t want to give anything away, but let’s just say that the war being fought in book two adds in another side.  Three-way war?  Heck yes.

Things I Loved:

* The books were incredibly thought-provoking.  I felt like they accurately showed just how much gray area there is no matter how desperately we want things to be black and white.  I love books that make me think.

* Understated love triangle.  The romance elements not only took a backseat in this series, they took the waaaay backseat– like in a 15-passenger van.  That said, it made everything seem so much deeper.  When teenagers liked each other, it was out of deep respect and appreciation for each other, not silly, fluffy, he/she-is-so-hot-that-I’m-melting nonsense.

* Complicated villains.  What’s better than a bad guy that might not be fully bad?

* POV.  Book one is from Todd’s perspective; book two alternates between Todd’s POV and Viola’s; book three adds in a third voice (but I’m not saying whose!).

* An unusual conclusion.  Not the pat, tied-in-a-bow finale YA so often presents.

* I repeat: thought-provoking.  What are the ethics of war?  Can every person be redeemed?  Should war be personal?  What would I do if suddenly everyone had access to all my thoughts?  **shudders**

I highly recommend this series by Patrick Ness.  If you’ve read it, leave your additional comments below.  I also want to know: Team Todd or Team Lee?  What did you think of the ending?

Best New-to-Me Books of 2013 (so far!)

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Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme over at The Broke and the Bookish.  Today’s topic is

TOP TEN BOOKS I’VE READ SO FAR THIS YEAR.

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10. Stupid Fast by Geoff Herbach | The voice in this one is so great, and it’s not super often I read YA aimed at male readers, and I can appreciate that.  It’s about Felton Reinstein the summer he went “from a joke to a jock,” but it’s really about a family falling apart and about friendship in unlikely places and about keeping things together when everything is falling apart.

9. Dr. Bird’s Advice for Sad Poets by Evan Roskos | This was a brilliant debut book by Roskos, and again, great voice!  The main character is an ultra-self-aware high schooler who understands that he is depressed and needs help, only his parents aren’t willing to get him that help.  This is his story of stumbling toward something like healing.

8. Shatter Me by Taheri Mafi | Although I didn’t love the sequel to this book, the first one was riveting.  Juliette’s touch is lethal– to most people, that is.

7. Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi | While I didn’t adore the superfastcramthingsin ending, I was very much drawn to this story about Aria, who lives in a biosphere, and what happens to her outside of it in the “Death Shop.”  I mean, come on.  How can you not want to read a book that has a “Death Shop” in it?  (The sequel– Through the Ever Night— is waiting impatiently on my bedroom floor to be my next read.)

6. The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker | What happens when the rotation of the earth begins to slow?  Beautiful writing.

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5. Attachments by Rainbow Rowell | I think Rainbow Rowell is my best author find of the year so far.  She has the funniest, cleverest voice I’ve read in a long while.  I really liked Attachments, which is about a computer IT man who falls in love with a woman through secretly reading her emails to her friend.  Awkward.

4. Every Day by David Levithan | Gender-bender!  “A” inhabits a different body every day– but loves the same girl every day.

3. Fire by Kristin Cashore | This is the companion book to Graceling, but I actually liked the characters even more than the first book (I liked them too!).  Gosh, how to describe this book?  Fire is a “monster” with red-orange-pink-gold hair, and she can control most people’s minds– but not Prince Brigan’s.  Swoon-worthy.

2. The Knife of Never Letting Go & The Ask and the Answer, both by Patrick Ness | Okay, so I am loving the Chaos Walking trilogy (I’m on the third book right now, so be prepared for a big review!), which takes places on another planet– “New Earth”– where you can hear men’s thoughts– their noise.  Book one was great– book two was incredible.  

1. Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell | This book was brilliant.  I love so much about it– the characters and the writing.  Oh my gosh, the writing is unreal.  I am a total sucker for any YA writer whose words are like lyrics.  This book is about two teenagers who are young enough to know that first love almost never lasts … but willing to try anyway.  I am so excited for her next novel (Fangirl) to be released later this year!

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Just finished …

Reached by Ally Condie | This is book three of the Matched trilogy (preceded by Matched and Crossed).  If you’re not familiar with the concept of these books, they are set in the future in a time when the Society rules and in order to “simplify” things, the Society has only retained 100 poems, 100 stories, 100 etc., etc. from the past.  As teenagers, couples are “matched”– and that is whom you will marry.  The first book was quite fascinating because Cassia was matched with her best friend Xander but was secretly falling in love with Ky.  The second book was much less interesting, particularly because Cassia, Xander, and Ky were all separated– I essentially skimmed Crossed.  I still wanted to know how the story ended, so I requested Reached from the library long before it was released and was relatively near the top of the waiting list (within the first 100 probably).  I started reading it, and it was more interesting than the second book, but the library book ended up being due back sooner than I could finish it, so I skimmed the rest of the book (a very thorough skim!), and I think I made the right choice.  It was good, and I liked the ending, and Condie has brilliant moments in these books, but all told, I think the third book might have been drawn out too long.  Can’t say for sure since I didn’t fully get to read it.  But I don’t think I will return to it to do just that.

Finnikin of the Rock by Melina Marchetta | I re-read this one, this time on audio, and was just as thrilled with it the second time through.  Finnikin’s country has seen half of the people in bondage inside the country’s borders and half of the people in exile outside of it.  He is on a quest to come up with a solution of some kind, and he has to take a young novice named Evanjalin with him.  This book has lovely twists and surprises, and it is such a delight.  This second time through (since I knew the ending), I would actually talk aloud to the characters in my car: “Oooooh, you’re gonna regret that later!!” and “Oh man, if you only knew what I knew!!”  I know I’m a nerd.  But it’s pretty awesome when a book can suck you in that much– especially with all its secrets already laid bare.

Graceling by Kristin Cashore | This book was recommended to me by a friend, but others warned me that I wouldn’t like the ending, so I devoured it … but nervously.  I loved the characters in this story about a land where some people are Graced– that is, they have a special skill.  Katsa’s skill is killing– or so she thinks.  She meets Po, another Graceling, and they go to another country in search of a secret.  It is fascinating, and the dialogue is incredible.  Loved this book, even though I read it nervous that I’d hate the ending.  And did I?  No.  Not exactly.  It wasn’t as disappointing as I’d been guessing from the warnings I’d been given.  Still– it is obvious that Cashore is a feminist, and she inserted her beliefs into this book decently, I thought (though I am not a feminist myself).

Fire by Kristin Cashore | This is a companion book to Graceling, although it has a new set of characters, save for one important person.  This. Book. Was. Great.  Wow!!  I think I liked it even better than Graceling— maybe since I could relate better to Fire, the protagonist, than to Katsa.  This book takes place in a kingdom east of the lands where Graceling occurs, in The Dells, a kingdom on the verge of civil war and filled with gorgeous but dangerous “monsters”– monster animals … and even a few monster humans.  Fire is a monster human, with bright orange-red-gold-pink hair that is so beautiful that many people can’t control themselves around her.  She can also read minds and influence them, although she has been careful with her power and guards herself against manipulating others.  She can read almost anyone’s mind … except for Prince Brigan, the younger brother of the king.  When the royal family asks Fire to use her powers to save the kingdom, Fire has to make some big decisions … and she is mysteriously drawn to and scared of Brigan, who looks at her with hate.  I loved these characters– so real, so flawed, so layered.  I love the conversations Cashore creates, and I love the secrets she reveals at strategic times in both this story and Graceling.  This is a must-read.  And while you can read this book without reading Graceling, it is even more fascinating if you have.

Every Day by David Levithan | I have been intending to read this book for so long, and I finally got it on audio from the library (though I purchased the hardcover months ago).  Audiobooks I seem to get through faster, since I use a lot of my free time for writing instead of reading– but you can’t write while driving! 🙂  This. Book. Was. Fascinating.  First there is A, who inhabits a new body every day.  A has done this for 16 years without questioning it too much until one perfect day A spends with Rhiannon.  After that, A wants to spend EVERY day with this girl.  This is a problem, obviously.  I have never read a more gender-bending book in my life– some days A is a girl, some days A is boy, all days A loves Rhiannon.  I just gobbled this book up, could not wait to find out what would happen next.  The ending was PERFECT and unexpected, but I can’t tell you how it made me feel because I want you to experience it for yourself.  Interestingly, the audiobook was read by a girl.  I didn’t know if that was subliminal or not … on the other hand, although A is the protagonist, since A changes bodies daily, Rhiannon’s voice is the most consistent one, so in that sense, it fits that they chose a female reader.  The book was really, really, really good– except for the moments Levithan got on his homosexual soapbox.  Those diatribes interrupted the story and felt as if Levithan were intruding out of nowhere.  The book already makes the reader ask a lot of questions; I didn’t think Levithan needed to provide his own answers.  All that said, though, this is an EXCELLENT book.  I loved it, as in, really, REALLY loved it.  Highly recommend.

 

Currently reading …

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern | Got this on audio for Christmas and so am re-reading this one.  Jim Dale is the narrator!!!

Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore | The sequel to Graceling … I AM LOVING IT!!!  Almost done … review to come.

Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta | Just as brilliant the second time around.

 

Up next …

Son by Lois Lowry | The brand-new fourth book in The Giver series!

Divergent by Veronica Roth | It’s about time, right? 🙂

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Just finished …

The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling |We’re not in Hogwarts anymore, Toto.  This is Rowling’s first book after the Harry Potter series, and it is absolutely nothing like them, which I’m sure was her point.  I mean, how do you compete with one of the most popular children’s series ever?  You avoid the competition and write an adult novel instead, I guess.  The Casual Vacancy was hard for me to get into at first– I felt that Rowling was trying to shock me just because she could.  Also, I couldn’t tell what the story was about for quite a while.  It is a book about smalltown politics– both literal politics and also the inner workings of a town that is all interconnected and where people often say and do things that are different from what they think or believe.  The book is very well-written, but very raw, real, gritty, and sad.  Very, very sad.  While I will re-read the Potter series for the rest of my life, I think one time through of this book will be enough for me, period.

Map of Time by Felix J. Palma | I had heard this book likened to The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, one of my favorite books I read this whole year.  But it just wasn’t true, and I’m not sure at all where the comparison came from.  Map of Time started off fascinating– telling the story of a man in love with one of the Whitechapel prostitutes in the time of Jack the Ripper.  (I have researched Jack the Ripper in both high school and college, so this was particularly interesting to me to hear about the incidents from the other angle!)  The premise seemed interesting, and I was starting to care about the characters … and then suddenly, I felt duped and we were onto the second story of three in the book, and the person I thought had been the protagonist had to climb down off the stage.  It was just such a strange format, and it didn’t work for me.  In the end, the book was too shallow for me, and I never felt like I really got to know the characters.  Palma tries to trick his readers multiple times throughout the book, and I’m not sure how I feel about that.  In most books, I am thrilled when I discover a twist, but Palma’s just disappointed me.

Gorgon in the Gully by Melina Marchetta | As I just posted recently, I think everyone should read Marchetta’s books.  Unlike her usual writing for teens, this book is for younger readers.  It still appealed to me because 1) Everything she writes is marvelous and 2) It is about Danny, the younger brother of Jonah Griggs (of Jellicoe Road).  It is a delightful little story about pulling together a group of friends from various groups.  I think it would be the perfect read for a middle schooler!  It inspired me to re-read

Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta | Masterful.  Just masterful.  And so absolutely original.  A book centered around the territory wars between the boarding school kids, the town kids, and the cadets in the visiting military school– but really, that’s just the venue for the story.  The real story is one of love and friendship and generations.  This is such an incredible book, and I can’t recommend it highly enough.  If you read it, you will fall in love.

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni | So, this is obviously not the usual type of book I review on my blog, but it was quite fascinating.  It is a “leadership fable” about a team that needs to work together better and how the CEO makes it happen.  I read it in two days!  The majority of the book is a story about this fictional company/team, but then the last part of the book goes into non-fiction details of how to put this into effect at your workplace.

The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis | Yes, the whole series.  Yes, again.  Yes, just as incredible as the last time through.

The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson | This was only my second time reading this story, and somehow I forgot how magnificent it was.  The writing is absolutely stunning, which is not surprising, since the author has two MFAs– one in poetry and one in writing for children and young adults.  It is the story of Lenny Walker, whose older sister/best friend Bailey died suddenly about a month before the book starts.  She is trying to navigate her grief all while falling in love for the first time, and it is just so good and sad and good.  If you have a sister, you’ll probably shed a couple tears.  This book will break your heart.

Currently reading …

Reached by Ally Condie | The third book of the Matched series, and again … my opinion is still out.  I liked Matched but was not very into Crossed.  We’ll see if Reached can win me back!

I did just get Finnikin of the Rock by Melina Marchetta on audiobook, and I am so pumped to listen/re-read that one!!  I have so many books that I want to read, and I just keep amassing books (I just bought a new bookcase that is back in my apartment waiting to be assembled after my writing retreat) and am not able to get through them as fast as I’d like (especially since I spend a lot of time re-reading favorites, which I know some people can’t understand).  I guess that’s the problem when you love reading but you LOVE writing.

Questions for today: what are you reading right now?  Do you like to re-read?  If you’re a writer, do you, like me, find a hard time balancing reading and writing?

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Just finished …

When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead | Brilliant!  This is a children’s book, meant for younger ages than the books I usually read, but it was absolutely incredible.  This is the story about Miranda, a young girl in New York City, who starts receiving mysterious notes from an unknown sender, asking her to “write out the whole story, from beginning to end.”  She is, of course, confused, but after a cast of wonderful characters are introduced, everything begins to fall into place.  I actually shouted aloud the moment that everything finally clicked into place for me– I was that excited.  Absolutely loved it.

Where Things Come Back by John Corey Whaley | Another Printz winner, so I had high expectations.  The writing was good, and it had two storylines that merge into one (a device I am rather fond of).  It also was very interesting, especially all the writing about the Book of Enoch, but in the end, the book didn’t wholly touch me.  Whaley didn’t make me love the characters quite enough to care enough.  I wanted to love this one; I really did.  One story is about Cullen Witter, his small town that is going crazy over an extinct woodpecker who has supposedly been seen again in their community, and the disappearance of his younger brother Gabriel.  The other story begins with a young missionary on his first mission.  Seems right up my alley, doesn’t it?  I didn’t hate this book, but it just didn’t go far enough to truly capture me.

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness | Oh man.  So good.  I wept.  This is a fascinating story about Conor, whose mother is dying of cancer, and about the yew tree in the churchyard out of their window.  In the evenings, the tree walks and talks to Conor, telling him stories and demanding one from him, all as he deals with the emotions of his mother’s slow fade.  So real, so raw, so dark, so clever.  A must-read.

Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine | I found myself easily sucked into this re-telling of Cinderella, even though I think that Levine needed a couple more drafts of the manuscript (how pretentious am *I*?  wow.).  Still, a sweet story for children.  Ella was blessed/cursed at birth with the need to obey all orders … as she grows up and falls in love, she seeks a way to end the spell that binds her, and this is the story of what happens.  I honestly did find myself rather heartbroken as I read this story … I applaud Levine for that!

Going Bovine by Libba Bray | This book started out INCREDIBLE and hilarious and interesting– Cameron, a teenaged slacker, is diagnosed with the human equivalent of mad cow disease, which essentially eats holes in your brain, making it like a sponge.  The descriptions were fantastic and dead-on and intense.  And then Cameron starts drifting out of reality and in his unconscious state, he goes on this completely bizarre roadtrip with a dwarf and a yard gnome, guided by a punk angel in torn fishnets.  In a lot of ways, I suppose I have to give Libba Bray credit, since it did seem very dream-like.  The problem was that I was just not incredibly interested– and it went on far too long.  Outside of Narnia, I’m not a huge fan of big quests in books.  This just got too wacky and too long for me.  I finished it though because I was so won over in the first part of the book by Bray’s phenomenal writing.

City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare | Okay, so this is book #5 of the Mortal Instruments series, and it’s (obviously) safe to say I’m hooked.  I am writing this mini-review at 1:25am, having just finished it.  I don’t know how Cassie Clare keeps doing it, but she just introduces such heartbreaking plot elements in every novel.  I feel like I can’t truly review this book without any spoilers, since there are four other books before it, all filled with twists and turns and secrets revealed.  I will say that I am PUMPED for the sixth and final book of this series … which I just looked up and discovered is not coming out until March 2014.  Two-thousand-freakin’-fourteen.  You have got to be kidding me.  Speechless.  (I don’t know how Potter fans did it … I didn’t start the series till Hallows was released.)  Well, I guess it’s time for bed.

Currently reading …
The Narnian by Alan Jacobs, all about the life and creativity of C.S. Lewis, my favorite

En route to my mailbox …
The Casual Vacancy by Jo Rowling
Quintana of Charyn by Melina Marchetta

So. Freakin’. Pumped.

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Oh man, I have been reading like a maniac lately … some delicious books.  I love stories so FREAKIN’ much that I find myself sending out these random text messages to people declaring my love for words as if I had a wounded heart.

Just finished …

Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan | Even though John Green is one of my heroes, I avoided this book for a long time because of its LGBT themes.  (Now, don’t freak out on me– some of my friends are gay.  I love gay people.  But I didn’t think I’d care to read a book centering on those issues.)  But I decided to bite the bullet and buy the book.  Started reading it that night and finished it the next day.  Brilliant.  So good.  The book is about two boys who share the name Will Grayson.  Green and Levithan each write from one Will’s perspective.  I am always a sucker for a book that has two storylines that end up melding into one at the end.  I actually think I may have liked this book more than Looking for Alaska, which is Green’s first novel, a Pritz winner.  Let’s just say this book includes one straight Will Grayson, one homosexual Will Grayson, and this huge tank of a boy named Tiny who is writing and directing an epic musical.  Love.

Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta | Another one of those two storylines telling one cohesive story.  This book (which I have read before) just flabbergasts me.  It is so fascinating and so different than most other books.  It’s about Taylor Markham, a young lady who is the leader of her school during the annual territory wars between the boarders (at her boarding school), the townies (from Jellicoe), and the cadets (a visiting military academy).  This book is brilliantly written, completely beautiful, heartbreaking, and lovely.  I cannot tell you how smitten I am with this story.  A must-read.

City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare | This is book #4 in the Mortal Instruments series, and I have to be honest: at this point, I’m only in it for Jace.  But I will say that I am very in it for Jace.  The sexuality is ratcheted up in book four; Clare is incredible at building tension.  But the books are also exciting and sweet, not … pornographic.  And now, with four books down, I am pretty stoked for book #5.  “I am Jonathan, but everyone calls me Sebastian, and I am going to burn down the world.”  Eeeep!  Terrifying!

Currently reading …

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare
Where Things Come Back by John Corey Whaley
The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton

Up next …

Everyday by David Levitha
Divergent by Veronica Roth*
Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine*

*(I know I have been claiming these two are up next for a while … I just keep finding things I am more eager to read!)

So stinkin’ excited for …

The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling (out this month!!!!)
Quintana of Charyn by Melina Marchetta (out this month in Australia but not in the US till March– never you worry, I believe I will somehow track down an affordable Aussie copy earlier than that!  Anyone have ideas?  Fishpond doesn’t have the Aussie supplier!!!)