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★★★★

Book Review: Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

May 29, 2012      6 Comments

“I was horribly bookish, to the point of coming right out and saying it, which I knew was not socially acceptable. I particularly loved the adjective bookish, which I found other people used about as often as ramrod or chum or teetotaler.” ― David Levithan, Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares

Synopsis: “I’ve left some clues for you.
If you want them, turn the page.
If you don’t, put the book back on the shelf, please.”

. . . Lily has left a red notebook full of challenges on a favorite bookstore shelf, waiting for just the right guy to come along and accept its dares. But is Dash that right guy? Or are Dash and Lily only destined to trade dares, dreams, and desires in the notebook they pass back and forth at locations across New York? Could their in-person selves possibly connect as well as their notebook versions? Or will they be a comic mismatch of disastrous proportions?

Dash and Lily are two very different New York City teenagers whose lives become entangled by a red Moleskine notebook. Together they search for the meaning of family, love and the power of words. Dash and Lily is a quirky, fun contemporary that I think would be perfect for  Christmas time.

Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares is the sophomore contemporary romance from the writing duo best known for Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist. I’ve never read any of Rachel Cohn, but from the two Levithan novels I’ve read this is exactly what I expect. A great novel with an interesting premise and a few laughs along the way. …

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Book Review : Royal Street By Suzanne Johnson

May 16, 2012      2 Comments

Synopsis: As the junior wizard sentinel for New Orleans, Drusilla Jaco’s job involves a lot more potion-mixing and pixie-retrieval than sniffing out supernatural bad guys like rogue vampires and lethal were-creatures. . .Then Hurricane Katrina hammers New Orleans’ fragile levees, unleashing more than just dangerous flood waters. . . Now, the undead and the restless are roaming the Big Easy, and a serial killer with ties to voodoo is murdering the soldiers sent to help the city recover. . .DJ learns the hard way that loyalty requires sacrifice, allies come from the unlikeliest places, and duty mixed with love creates one bitter gumbo

The premise of Royal Street is what initially drew me to this novel, I was excited by the idea of an urban fantasy based on a contemporary tragic event.

….

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Book Review: The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith

April 24, 2012      5 Comments

“I like how you’re neither here nor there. And how there’s nowhere else you’re meant to be while waiting. You’re just sort of suspended.”

                                                                                                 – Jennifer E. Smith, The Statistical Probability of Love At First Sight

 

 

This has to be one of the most unique and heartfelt contemporary YA books I have read in a while. With a title containing the words ‘love at first sight’ I was afraid it was going to run into insta-love category, but I found it far from it. It’s not so much about love at first sight, but the possibility of love at first sight and other things.

 The story follows roughly 24 hours of the life of Hadley Sullivan as she catches a plane to London to attend her father’s wedding to a woman she has never met. Along the way she meets Oliver and through the story she  is trying to learn how to reconcile her feelings with her father and his new marriage. 

Smith uses  an excellent writing style that is sparse and simple, but still tells you so much. She is an excellent storyteller–I felt sympathy with the characters and connected through the use of retrospective story telling.  

…

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Book Review : Born Wicked By Jessica Spotswood

April 3, 2012      1 Comment

 

Synopsis: Everybody knows Cate Cahill and her sisters are eccentric. Too pretty, too reclusive, and far too educated for their own good. But the truth is even worse: they’re witches. And if their secret is discovered by the priests of the Brotherhood, it would mean an asylum, a prison ship—or an early grave. . . Desperate to find alternatives to their fate, Cate starts scouring banned books and questioning rebellious new friends, all while juggling tea parties, shocking marriage proposals, and a forbidden romance.

Born Wicked is a debut historical fiction that features an alternate history with a magical twist. In this revision of 1890’s New England, the Brotherhood–a sect of a priest–rule with an iron fist over the lives of women who fear they may be witches.

…

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Book Review: The Pregnancy Project by Gaby Rodriguez with Jenna Glatzer

March 30, 2012      1 Comment

Synopsis: In The Pregnancy Project, Gaby details how she was able to fake her own pregnancy—hiding the truth from even her siblings and boyfriend’s parents—and reveals all that she learned from the experience. But more than that, Gaby’s story is about fighting stereotypes, and how one girl found the strength to come out from the shadow of low expectations to forge a bright future for herself.

The Pregnancy Project first came on my radar in January, when I watched the Lifetime movie based on the book . I had never heard the story and how could it not peak my interest? A teenager who faked her pregnancy for a school project? What was that all about? While the movie was decent, it left me with more questions, so I headed to the library for the book.

Luckily, this memoir provides a concise and pretty powerful story of not just Gabby’s struggles, but her family’s struggles as well. This is the first book in a while I’ve actually had an emotional reaction too. 

…

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Book Review : Divergent by Veronica Roth

March 23, 2012      4 Comments

Synopsis : In a future Chicago, 16-year-old Beatrice Prior must choose among five predetermined factions to define her identity for the rest of her life, a decision made more difficult when she discovers that she is an anomaly who does not fit into any one group, and that the society she lives in is not perfect after all.

When I first got back into reading YA, Divergent was everywhere. When I grabbed it for 6.00 at the used  book store, it just sort of sat on my shelf. However, after Divergent  won Favorite Book of 2011 at Goodreads and Story Siren’s Best of 2011 DebutI knew I had to check it out.
Divergent has a unique concept. Tris and her family live in a peaceful Utopia where society is dived into factions which represent individual ideals Dauntless (bravery), Amity (peace), Abegnation (selflessness ) and Erudite (intelligence).

Every child is raised in their own faction , but when they turn sixteen they are tested to determine the best faction for them. They can  either choose to stay with their faction or leave it all behind to join another faction, never to see their families again.

Faction before family.

…

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