YA books

Mar 11

Rating: 5 out of 5

(summary from GoodReads) Nina Oberon’s life is pretty normal: she hangs out with her best friend, Sandy, and their crew, goes to school, plays with her little sister, Dee. But Nina is 15. And like all girls she’ll receive a Governing Council-ordered tattoo on her 16th birthday. XVI. Those three letters will be branded on her wrist, announcing to all the world—even the most predatory of men—that she is ready for sex. Considered easy prey by some, portrayed by the Media as sluts who ask for attacks, becoming a “sex-teen” is Nina’s worst fear. That is, until right before her birthday, when Nina’s mom is brutally attacked. With her dying breaths, she reveals to Nina a shocking truth about her past—one that destroys everything Nina thought she knew. Now, alone but for her sister, Nina must try to discover who she really is, all the while staying one step ahead of her mother’s killer.

Let me start by saying that I LOVED this book. I loved it so much I couldn’t put it down. That’s right. Instead of enjoying the comfortable, fully reclinable, first class seat I got upgraded to on my flight to Rome, I taped my eyelids open and devoured this book. And I didn’t even care that this meant I would have nothing else to read the entire trip or that I would start my trip half-asleep. Nothing mattered except finishing the book and finding out what was going to happen.

Karr has created a dystopian society that seems completely plausible. While some of the elements in Suzanne Collins’ world from the Hunger Games trilogy seemed a bit far-fetched, the sci-fi, futuristic, dystopian elements of Karr’s world seemed very likely. Children had tracking devices installed in them at birth; listening devices were used to hear conversations; society was split into tiers; and women were treated as goods, something that has never fully left our society and could very easily come back.

As a book for teens, I applaud Karr’s courage. Sex in YA books is controversial, especially when the main subject of the book is sex. But the way Karr explores this theme is thoughtful. She does not come out and say teenagers should be sexually active. In fact, Nina is horrified at the thought and the characters who are past 16 but have chosen abstinence are applauded. Karr seems to be encouraging more the necessity in thinking through your actions, rather than chiding or encouraging sexual behavior, an important lesson for teens.

Of course, the book is not just about sex. It is full of mystery, corruption, romance, and suspense. Karr creates captivating characters, including Sandy, Nina’s ignorant, but lovable, best friend. The reader cares for the characters and wants to see them come out on top, an element that is almost always necessary for a successful book. And when coupled with her impeccable world building, this really is a must read.

If you are overly sensitive to discussions of sex, this may not be the best book for you, but I challenge you to give it a shot anyway. And if you are not overly sensitive to sex in books, definitely give this a read. You won’t regret it.

P.S. This is a great crossover book too, meaning adults should not be ashamed to get caught reading it.

Feb 04

Across the Universe, by Beth Revis

Rating: 3 out of 5

Amy, 17, is cryogenically frozen so that she can join her parents on a special mission to a new planet, one that will take 300 years to get to. 50 years prior to their scheduled landing, Amy’s cryo chamber is unplugged. Not only does she almost die, but she is now stuck on the ship, unfrozen and an outsider. When additional ‘frozens’ are found unplugged, Amy teams up with Elder, next in line to rule, to find out what’s going on before anyone else, including her parents, dies.

There was a lot of hype leading up to the release of this book, and I was incredibly excited about it. The concept alone was enough to make me rush out and buy it. But as I started reading it, I found my excitement ebbing.

The story is well-developed and the world is richly described and convincing. I guessed at some of the twists, but the majority of them came about in unexpected ways and with unexpected consequences. The one element that took away from the story was the use of voice.

Across the Universe is told in first person, but split between two narrators – Amy and Elder. I did not feel that either voice was developed enough for me to easily identify the speaker. I had to keep flipping back to the beginning of the chapter to see who was telling the story and I even thought Elder was a female for several pages into his first chapter. I’ve read other books where first person narration is split among two characters. For this to work, the voices need to be very well-developed (check out Leviathan for an excellent example). Because this fell short for me, it took away from the story. I kept getting distracted, trying to remember who was talking.

Despite my issues with voice, I thought the story was original and intriguing. Not only does Revis tell a good story, but she alludes to some deeper issues that make you think. I can see several English class/book club discussions coming out of this book.

Do I think you should give this book a shot? Yes. It’s worth the read.

Jan 21

Anna and the French Kiss, by Stephanie Perkins

Rating: 5 out of 5 (One of my new favorites)

Anna, 17, is gearing up for her senior year in Atlanta, only to learn that she will be finishing high school at a boarding school in Paris. Anna is less than thrilled to be leaving her friends, family, job, and almost boyfriend behind. But when she gets to Paris, Anna meets St. Clair, the attractive, charismatic heartthrob of the school, and suddenly Paris doesn’t seem so bad. St. Clair quickly becomes Anna’s best friend, but will they be able to overcome all the obstacles in front of them and become more than just friends? You’ll have to read the book to find out.

I was instantly hooked. But I may be a bit bias. Like Anna, I grew up in Atlanta and, just when it seemed like things might finally be falling into place with the boy I had a huge crush on, I was forced to move to Europe. Unlike Anna, my family came with me.

Having spent three years in an International School located in a country where I did not speak the language and of which I knew little about before moving to, I can attest to the authenticity of Perkins’ story. She captured what it is like to be thrown into this type of situation, and how off it feels when you return home. Upon finishing the book, I immediately looked up her information to find out if Perkins’ was the product of an International School. And I was shocked to learn that she was not. More props to her and her storytelling abilities.

Even if you cannot relate to Anna as an American teenager forced abroad, Perkins’ so honestly captures the turmoil of high school relationships, the angst of moving to a new school, the heartache of betrayal and losing a friend, the complex relationships between teenagers and their parents, that this story has universal appeal. Everyone can relate to it on some level. And Perkins’ captures these feelings and relationships so fully that at times, I felt like I had been thrust back into those teenage years.

Take, for example, the following passage describing a trip to the movies with friends (since I read this on my Kindle, I only know the ebook location, which starts at 1309):

“St. Clair coughs and shifts again. His leg brushes against mine. It stays there. I’m paralyzed. I should move it; it feels too unnatural. How can he not notice his leg is touching my leg? From the corner of my eye, I see the profile of his chin and nose, and -oh, dear God – the curve of his lips.

There. He glanced at me. I know he did.

I bore my eyes into the screen, trying my best to prove I am Really Interested in this movie. St. Clair stiffens but doesn’t move his leg. Is he holding his breath? I think he is. I’m holding mine. I exhale and cringe-it’s so loud and unnatural.

Again. Another glance. This time I turn, automatically, just as he’s turning away. It’s a dance, and now there’s a feeling in the air like one of us should say something. Focus, Anna. Focus. ‘Do you like it’ I whisper.

He pauses. ‘The film?’

I’m thankful the shadows hide my blush.

‘I like it very much,’ he says

I risk a glance, and St. Clair stares back. Deeply. He has not looked at me like this before. I turn away first, then feel him turn a few beats later.

I know he’s smiling, and my heart races.”

The moment I read this, I was transported back to the movies as a teenager, sitting next to a boy, uncertain if he liked me, uncertain if I should hold his hand, uncertain if this was a date or just a friendly outing. The way Perkins’ paints this scene is perfect, and the rest of the book depicts the teenage years equally as well.

I cannot express how much I loved this book, or how highly I recommend it. So what are you waiting for? Go get your copy today.

Jan 14

Feed, by M.T. Anderson

Rating: 4 out of 5

Feed provides a haunting glimpse into what the future holds. Set in an America of the future, where citizens have feeds implanted into their brains and the planet is on the brink of collapse, the book follows the story of Titus, a rebellious teen who, through the course of the book, learns that actions have consequences, and even the simplest moment can change everything.

I struggled with this book when I first picked it up. In many ways, Feed reminds me of Catcher in the Rye (not my favorite book). This, coupled with the language Anderson has created, full of rich slang and an authentic voice, took some getting used to. But once I had gotten past the second chapter, I became immersed in the story.

The similarities to our own society were disturbing. The feed has been implanted directly into the brains of the majority of the population. The feed can be used to message a friend or watch a t.v. show or a movie. When you enter a store, ads flash through the feed. The feed even follows individual trends and maps out consumer identities, all to offer customized ads. Does any of this sound familiar?

Today you may find yourself at the dinner table, sending text messages or checking your email, watching YouTube clips on an iPhone or iPad, or sharing everything about your life through Facebook. In Feed, no specialized hand-held device is needed. The only way you can tell someone is using the feed is by their dazed, distracted look. And it’s completely normal. Gone are the days when these activities would be seen as rude. Gone is the sanctity of technology free dinners. And the scary thing is, I can see the Feed being invented in my lifetime.

I don’t usually read books like this, but I’m happy I gave Feed a chance. Not only was Anderson’s creation of voice outstanding and authentic, but his world building was honest and his message was clear. If you want a haunting read or a book that raises questions about the direction our society is heading, this just might be the book for you.

Jan 07

Rumors (Luxe, Book 2), by Anna Godbersen

Rating: 4 out of 5

Rumors is the second book in the Luxe series. Rumors, set in the second half of 1899, continues the story of society girls Elizabeth Holland, Diana Holland, Penelope Hayes, and the maid turned society woman, Lina (Carolina) Broud.

Last week I looked at the first book in the series, The Luxe, and decided I had to find out what happened next, the sign of a successful series. And I was not let down. In fact, I enjoyed the second book more the first.

When you are engrossed in a series, you already care about the characters. If you didn’t care about them, you wouldn’t have continued reading the series. My need to know what happened and Godbersen’s ability to deliver kept me engaged from beginning to end.

What I really liked about this book, especially in comparison to The Luxe, was that, whereas The Luxe was a bit predictable, Rumors kept me guessing. Although I did spend most of the book in a state of anxiety, this wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. I like a book that surprises me, and Rumors delivered surprise after surprise.

Although I enjoyed Rumors more than The Luxe, Rumors did have some of the same downfalls from the first book – Penelope’s character did not grow. I grew bored with her antics and would have liked to have seem some growth. Instead, she was static. Henry grew a little bit, but he also seemed mildly static to me.

All in all, I found this to be an enjoyable read and, based off of the first two books, I recommend this series.

Dec 31

The Luxe, by Anna Godbersen

Rating: 4 out of 5

The Luxe is the first book in a young adult historical fiction bordering on historical romance series. Set in 1899 New York, The Luxe delves into the lives of the New York socialites at the turn of the century. The Luxe begins with a funeral and then takes you further back in time to the events leading up to the death by following the story of four females whose lives are intertwined through a complex series of love triangles: Elizabeth Holland, the well-mannered socialite from an old-money family; Elizabeth’s wild and unconventional little sister, Diana; Penelope Hayes, a new-money socialite eager to pave her way in society and not used to hearing no; and Lina Broud, the once childhood friend and now lady’s maid to Elizabeth.

I thought this book was well done. The descriptions were rich and I felt like I was living in 1899 New York. Godbersen not only revealed the daily life of the upper class, but also gave the reader insight into the less glamorous lower class.

Where the book was lacking was in the development of the supporting characters. I thought that Elizabeth and her sister grew throughout the books along with one of the male love interests, Henry Schoonmaker. Lina and Penelope, however, did not seem to have much dimension. There were attempts at giving Lina dimension, but for me, it fell a bit short. And Penelope had little to no dimension at all. She was a spoiled girl and lacked anything that would cause a reader to sympathize with her.

In addition, I thought some of the foreshadowing was a bit too obvious. I like to be surprised, and while I was surprised in how the ending came about, I was not very surprised by the ending.

What I really liked about the book was that this was an appropriate young adult version of a historical romance novel. While there were suggestions of sexual activity, it was not overtly descriptive. If you read my review of Kristin Cashore’s Fire, you will recall that I think sex in ya books can be tricky. I thought that Godbersen handled this topic with grace that was especially appropriate to the time period in which she was writing.

Another thing I enjoyed about this book was the way Godbersen began her chapters. Each chapter began with either a newspaper excerpt, letter between the characters, or an excerpt from a manner’s book from the time period, and each excerpt foreshadowed the events of the upcoming chapter.

I highly recommend this book, not just to lovers of history, but to anyone looking for a good love story to get wrapped up in. And perhaps the greatest thing about this book: you won’t have to wait for the sequel, Rumors, to come out, because it and two other books in the series, Envy and Splendor are also already out.

Dec 17

Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment, by James Patterson, tells the story of a group of genetically altered kids on a mission to save the world. This concept probably sounds similar to things you’ve read before.

But what makes this book (and the series) different is that Max and her ‘family’s’ DNA was spliced with bird DNA, giving them bird bones, a fast metabolism, and wings. In addition, extra ‘talents’ show up every so often, just to keep things interesting and add a bit of aid to the Bird Kids when things get tough.

I’m not going to lie. It took me a while to get into this book. I started reading it about this time last year but kept putting it down. Once I got past the first couple of chapters, I found myself wanting to know what was going on behind the scenes, how the mystery would play out. And I wasn’t all-together disappointed.

Where I was disappointed was in the main character, Max. She seemed to fit too neatly into the hardcore heroine mold that, in my opinion anyway, has been a bit overdone. Whereas Katniss in The Hunger Games managed to merge her hard edge with a realistic vulnerability, Max’s vulnerabilities felt a bit forced; she lacked the honesty found in some of the more memorable characters I’ve encountered in my reading life.

Another problem I had with the book was that sometimes the action became a bit confusing and, at times, forced. I don’t want to go into specifics and give away important scenes, but, like with Max’s character, the writing was not as honest as I would have liked.

All that being said, I read the second and third books in the series and, while I did not find that my general issues with the writing and character development improved with the series, I still found the books to be an entertaining read. If you are in need of airplane or beach reading, give this book (and the series) a try. If you want to recapture the feeling you got reading The Hunger Games, you may want to try something else.

Dec 03

Kelley Armstrong’s YA paranormal, The Summoning, tells the story of Chloe Saunders, a 15 year old girl who is either insane or actually seeing dead people. Following an incident at school, Chloe is forced to enter a group home for ‘troubled’ teens. Once in the home, things are not quite what they seem, and as Chloe begins to unravel the mystery surrounding Lyle House, she discovers that friends can be found where you least expect them and that some things are better left alone.

Chloe is not your typical YA heroine. She is small for her age, awkward, a bit of a goody two-shoes, and cast as the ‘damsel in distress.’ But I found this to be one of the most refreshing things about the book. So many YA books these days portray a bad ass heroine who snubs her nose at authority and is capable of quick, wity responses and rarely needs saving. Chloe felt more real to me; her personality was more like that of girls I knew growing up, more like mine when I was a YA.

The concept behind the book was also engaging. (Warning – sort of spoiler coming up). Although the school for kids with special abilities is a well-known concept, I think Kelley Armstrong did a great job reinventing it, making it something new and unexpected. By placing it in a mental hospital, new challenges were presented that are missing in the other school for wizards/genetically-engineered kids/kids with special powers/x-men stories. I really enjoyed what she did to make this story her own.

And finally, I loved the mystery. I wanted to know what would happen, so much so that the second I finished the book, I bought the next book in the series, The Awakening. So would I recommend this book? Absolutely.

Nov 12

I have a confession to make. I love sci-fi. This is something I do not often admit. An interest in sci-fi is not exactly the coolest thing. Despite the resurgence of Dr. Who and and the success of Avatar, sci-fi has maintained it’s stigma. So I’m sure you can imagine my excitement when I stumbled upon Pittacus Lore’s I am Number Four, a YA sci-fi book that has reached enough popularity to earn it movie status.

I am Number Four takes place on Earth, but revolves around an Alien from Lorien, known to his people as Number Four but known to Earthlings as John. After his planet was attacked, John fled with nine other children to Earth. A spell was placed on the Lorien children making it so that they could only be killed in order, Number 1 first, 2 second, etc. The race that destroyed their planet is hunting them, and it’s Number Four’s turn to run.

The book has all the things you would expect from a YA book – coming of age, not fitting in, struggle over a first love – but it adds the extra element of aliens, a refreshing change from vampires, werewolves, and wizards (not that there is anything wrong with those). All in all I found the book to be exciting (I read it in one sitting). The story was engaging, the unraveling of the back plot was nicely done and the characters were interesting. Some of the action scenes at the end dragged on a bit and became confusing, but all in all my only real complaint is that I have to wait until next summer for the next book in the series, The Power of Six, which, you guessed it, will no be about Number 6.

Oct 15

I’ve decided to start doing a bi-weekly book review post. So every other Friday I will review one of the books I’ve read. This way you will know when to expect a book review and I will have time to read things. If you want more book reviews, you can always check me out on GoodReads.

Fire

Fire is the second book in Kristin Cashore’s Seven Kingdoms Series. If you follow me on GoodReads (not to over plug GoodReads here or anything), you will know that while I liked the concept behind her first book in the series, Graceling, I was not blown away. I found Fire to be much more inspiring.

While the world in Fire is connected to the world in Graceling, they are separated by an impassible mountain. Because of this, there are differences in the worlds. Think Madagascar or the Galapagos Islands, full of their strange creatures almost like ones you would see elsewhere, but slightly different. That’s what the world in Fire is like. Similar, but different. And personally, I liked the world in Fire better. It was more fantastical. I also found the characters to be more engaging.

The main character, Fire, is a human monster, but monsters in this land are not scary. They are beautiful and can capture your attention without a bit of effort. It is their hunting strategy, a survival mechanism. Fire, because of her monster status, has spent her life hidden away in the woods. When the King summons Fire to the capital city, she goes, eager to see the city in which she was born and to show both the world and the attractive and intriguing Prince Brigan that she is not evil, despite the sins of her father. The book deals with issues of identity, belonging, and choosing your own path in life.

What I liked about this book

The world building: As with the first book in the series, Cashore has created an engaging, complete world. When you start reading the book, you are instantly drawn into the world. I never once forgot where it was set.
The characters: I found her characters to be engaging. They were not as complex as what you would find in a Victor Hugo novel, but they had some depth. Even the goofy, lovesick Archer who initially seemed a bit 1-dimensional proved to have some depth by the end of the book.
The plot: The plot was engaging with a good amount of mystery. I thought her use of mystery was better than Graceling, showing her growth as a writer. There were still some things I figured before I was meant to, but the foreshadowing did not give too much away, which was my main complaint about Graceling.
The prose: Cashore’s writing style is engaging and consistent.

Sex in YA

And so now this brings me to a somewhat grey area. Sex in YA books. There was a lot of sex in this book. There weren’t any descriptive sex scenes, but I felt like every character in the book was having sex. Cashore did use some of the sex scenes to bring up how sex leads to pregnancy and can lead to a broken heart, but most of the sex was pretty casual. I’m not quite sure what my feelings are on having this much sex in a book for teenagers. Certainly teens know about sex and a lot of them are having sex, but I wonder about the author’s responsibility when it comes to incorporating sex in YA. Should authors be concerned with the influence they may be having on teenagers with regards to having sex? Should YA even include sex? I don’t want to go into a long thing about sex in books for teens in this post, and I’m not going to. That topic could take up several blog post, but I thought it was worth mentioning. And speaking of blog posts on sex in YA, there was a good post over at kidlit.com on this subject just the other day.

Final Thoughts

So, to sum up Kritstin Cashore’s Fire, would I recommend this book? Yes. It’s an easy, fun read with engaging characters and wonderful world building. And keep an eye out for the 3rd book in the series, Bitterblue, coming out 2011.

Page 2

Book Review Friday – XVI

Book Review Friday: Across the Universe

Book Review Friday: Anna and the French Kiss

Book Review Friday: Feed

Book Review Friday: Rumors

Book Review Friday: The Luxe

Book Review Friday – Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment

Book Review Friday: The Summoning

Review of I Am Number Four

Book Review Friday: Review of Fire

Fire

What I liked about this book

Sex in YA

Final Thoughts