Siobhan Vivian's Not That Kind of Girl
This is about what happens when a total type-A high school senior--the student council president type--wants to raise the consciousness of freshman girls who are deliberately dressing like sluts, and also a boy maybe likes her, and her best friend maybe wants to start having a little fun. Occasionally I wanted to give the protagonist a shake and scream "relax a little!!!!" I don't think any of the girls I knew in high school were THAT uptight. Fun read anyway. B/B+.
Friday, December 31, 2010
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
2010 book 311
Melina Marchetta's Saving Francesca
Marchetta is one of my favorite discoveries of this year--all of her books are just completely satisfying reads. In this one, teenager Francesca is dealing with starting at a new school that has only just gone co-ed, and meanwhile, her mother has stopped getting out of bed. Making new friends, crushing on a boy, and trying to save her mother make for a stressful school year and for a great read. A.
Marchetta is one of my favorite discoveries of this year--all of her books are just completely satisfying reads. In this one, teenager Francesca is dealing with starting at a new school that has only just gone co-ed, and meanwhile, her mother has stopped getting out of bed. Making new friends, crushing on a boy, and trying to save her mother make for a stressful school year and for a great read. A.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
2010 book 310
Matt Haig's The Radleys
The Radleys are your typical small-town-England family--father a doctor, mother an artist, two angsty teenage children. Only they're not a typical family at all--they're secretly vampires who abstain from drinking blood, and the kids don't know. Things come to a head when daughter Clara is attacked after a party, and overcome by bloodlust, kills her assailant. Dad Peter calls in his brother, a practicing vampire, for help dealing with the mess, which raises a whole new set of problems. Even the minor characters are interesting here, and I liked this more lighthearted take on a vampire story. Very fun read. A.
The Radleys are your typical small-town-England family--father a doctor, mother an artist, two angsty teenage children. Only they're not a typical family at all--they're secretly vampires who abstain from drinking blood, and the kids don't know. Things come to a head when daughter Clara is attacked after a party, and overcome by bloodlust, kills her assailant. Dad Peter calls in his brother, a practicing vampire, for help dealing with the mess, which raises a whole new set of problems. Even the minor characters are interesting here, and I liked this more lighthearted take on a vampire story. Very fun read. A.
2010 book 309
E. Lockhart's Real Live Boyfriends
The fourth (and I believe final) Ruby Oliver book is just as enjoyable as the first three, and though some drama felt a little manufactured at first, it all came together in the end. Not much else to say about it--A-.
The fourth (and I believe final) Ruby Oliver book is just as enjoyable as the first three, and though some drama felt a little manufactured at first, it all came together in the end. Not much else to say about it--A-.
Monday, December 27, 2010
2010 book 308
Scott Spencer's Man in the Woods
Michael T. dropped this off for me tonight, and I was curious about it, since it's made a bunch of best-of-the-year lists. But then I remembered why I hadn't read it yet--part of the plot hinges on a dog being beaten, and you all know I can't stand stories where bad things happen to animals. For the most part, the characters and story made reading this worthwhile--it's about a fancy carpenter named Paul and his girlfriend Kate, who's written a bestseller about getting sober and finding God, and her somewhat troubled daughter Ruby, and their family and friends and neighbors. And it's about what happens after Paul attacks a man who's beating his dog. I felt almost nervous while reading this book--Spencer does a good job building Paul's tension and fear--but in the end I did think the murder subplot wrapped up in a fairly unbelievable manner and some other plot points weren't really resolved. The atmosphere is pretty stellar though. I guess that works out to a B.
Michael T. dropped this off for me tonight, and I was curious about it, since it's made a bunch of best-of-the-year lists. But then I remembered why I hadn't read it yet--part of the plot hinges on a dog being beaten, and you all know I can't stand stories where bad things happen to animals. For the most part, the characters and story made reading this worthwhile--it's about a fancy carpenter named Paul and his girlfriend Kate, who's written a bestseller about getting sober and finding God, and her somewhat troubled daughter Ruby, and their family and friends and neighbors. And it's about what happens after Paul attacks a man who's beating his dog. I felt almost nervous while reading this book--Spencer does a good job building Paul's tension and fear--but in the end I did think the murder subplot wrapped up in a fairly unbelievable manner and some other plot points weren't really resolved. The atmosphere is pretty stellar though. I guess that works out to a B.
2010 book 307
Lauren Oliver's Before I Fall
This was one of my favorites of 2010 (see the entry below if you don't believe me) and totally holds up to rereading. Oliver is currently writing a YA dystopian trilogy, and I can't fault her for that (and I liked the first one), but I wish she'd write another one like this. The story of a bitchy, popular high school girl reliving the day of her death could just be a teeny-bopper Groundhog's Day, but Oliver makes it much more powerful and special. Yet another book that makes me weep, but sometimes that's what you want in a book.
This was one of my favorites of 2010 (see the entry below if you don't believe me) and totally holds up to rereading. Oliver is currently writing a YA dystopian trilogy, and I can't fault her for that (and I liked the first one), but I wish she'd write another one like this. The story of a bitchy, popular high school girl reliving the day of her death could just be a teeny-bopper Groundhog's Day, but Oliver makes it much more powerful and special. Yet another book that makes me weep, but sometimes that's what you want in a book.
best books of 2010!
I read a lot of really awesome books this year, in a variety of genres. Well, I read a lot of books in general, but many were awesome. This list reflects a wide variety of books--literary fiction, YA (fantasy and otherwise), mysteries, even a choose-your-own-adventure. Because I read so many books, narrowing it down to ten was impossible. I narrowed it down to a top 25.
And now, without further ado, my favorite books of 2010!
Sarah Addison Allen's The Girl Who Chased the Moon
Aimee Bender's The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake
Chelsea Campbell's The Rise of Renegade X
Suzanne Collins' Mockingjay*
Emma Donaghue's Room
Heidi Durrow's The Girl Who Fell from the Sky
Louise Erdrich's Shadow Tag
Jennifer Egan's A Visit from the Goon Squad
Julia Glass' Widower's Tale
Rebecca Newberger Goldstein's 36 Arguments for the Existence of God
Gail Godwin's Unfinished Desires
David Grossman's To the End of the Land
N.K. Jemesin's The Broken Kingdoms
Nina LaCour's Hold Still
Lisa Lutz's The Spellmans Strike Again
Melina Marchetta's Finnikin of the Rock
Wendy Mass' The Candymakers
Heather McElhatton's Million Little Mistakes
Paul Murray's Skippy Dies
Pete Nelson's I Thought You Were Dead
Maggie O'Farrell's The Hand that First Held Mine
Lauren Oliver's Before I Fall
Julie Orringer's The Invisible Bridge
Scarlett Thomas' Our Tragic Universe
Ayelet Waldman's Red Hook Road
MaryRose Wood's The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Mysterious Howling
__
*I know a lot of people weren't into the third Hunger Games book, but I really liked it.
And now, without further ado, my favorite books of 2010!
Sarah Addison Allen's The Girl Who Chased the Moon
Aimee Bender's The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake
Chelsea Campbell's The Rise of Renegade X
Suzanne Collins' Mockingjay*
Emma Donaghue's Room
Heidi Durrow's The Girl Who Fell from the Sky
Louise Erdrich's Shadow Tag
Jennifer Egan's A Visit from the Goon Squad
Julia Glass' Widower's Tale
Rebecca Newberger Goldstein's 36 Arguments for the Existence of God
Gail Godwin's Unfinished Desires
David Grossman's To the End of the Land
N.K. Jemesin's The Broken Kingdoms
Nina LaCour's Hold Still
Lisa Lutz's The Spellmans Strike Again
Melina Marchetta's Finnikin of the Rock
Wendy Mass' The Candymakers
Heather McElhatton's Million Little Mistakes
Paul Murray's Skippy Dies
Pete Nelson's I Thought You Were Dead
Maggie O'Farrell's The Hand that First Held Mine
Lauren Oliver's Before I Fall
Julie Orringer's The Invisible Bridge
Scarlett Thomas' Our Tragic Universe
Ayelet Waldman's Red Hook Road
MaryRose Wood's The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Mysterious Howling
__
*I know a lot of people weren't into the third Hunger Games book, but I really liked it.
Sunday, December 26, 2010
2010 book 306
Rebecca Stead's When You Reach Me
I think this was my third or fourth time reading this book, and I still spent the last third of it crying, b/c it's just that good. Here are my initial comments on it.
I think this was my third or fourth time reading this book, and I still spent the last third of it crying, b/c it's just that good. Here are my initial comments on it.
2010 book 305
Stephanie Perkins' Anna and the French Kiss
In this cute and fluffy YA book, a teenage girl's bestseller author father decides to send her to boarding school in France, where she miraculously makes friends easily and of course falls for the cutest boy in class--who has a girlfriend, but seems to like her too. Which is pretty much all that happens, and I found the end to be a bit silly, but I'm sure I'd have eaten it up when I was a teenager. Interestingly, this is one of those books where the protagonist is never described in detail--except that she has a bleached streak in her hair--which according to common wisdom is so every girl reader can feel like she's the character, or something. And I actually have had bleach streaks in my hair at several points in the past, but this character wasn't one I particularly related to. Anyway, yeah, cute and fluffy. B/B+.
In this cute and fluffy YA book, a teenage girl's bestseller author father decides to send her to boarding school in France, where she miraculously makes friends easily and of course falls for the cutest boy in class--who has a girlfriend, but seems to like her too. Which is pretty much all that happens, and I found the end to be a bit silly, but I'm sure I'd have eaten it up when I was a teenager. Interestingly, this is one of those books where the protagonist is never described in detail--except that she has a bleached streak in her hair--which according to common wisdom is so every girl reader can feel like she's the character, or something. And I actually have had bleach streaks in my hair at several points in the past, but this character wasn't one I particularly related to. Anyway, yeah, cute and fluffy. B/B+.
2010 book 304
Lisa Lutz's The Spellmans Strike Again
Now that I know Lutz is working on a fifth Spellman book, I do wonder how she'll match the awesomeness of this one. This is easily my favorite of the series--but of course, it couldn't be as great as it is without the buildup of the previous three. Ms Lutz, thank you for inventing such fun characters for our enjoyment.
Now that I know Lutz is working on a fifth Spellman book, I do wonder how she'll match the awesomeness of this one. This is easily my favorite of the series--but of course, it couldn't be as great as it is without the buildup of the previous three. Ms Lutz, thank you for inventing such fun characters for our enjoyment.
Saturday, December 25, 2010
2010 book 303
Lisa Lutz's Revenge of the Spellmans
Yeah, I'm rereading this whole series. I love these books.
Yeah, I'm rereading this whole series. I love these books.
2010 book 302
Lisa Lutz's Curse of the Spellmans
Holiday time is light reading time! I've said before that the mystery in this one annoys me a bit, but the Henry/Rae/Isabel interactions--and all the discussions of Doctor Who--still make it worth a reread.
Holiday time is light reading time! I've said before that the mystery in this one annoys me a bit, but the Henry/Rae/Isabel interactions--and all the discussions of Doctor Who--still make it worth a reread.
Friday, December 24, 2010
2010 book 301
E. Lockhart's The Treasure Map of Boys
The third Ruby Oliver book is just as sweetly satisfying as the other two, with more friend and boy drama. Sadly, I have to wait to read the fourth, since it doesn't come out till Tuesday. A.
The third Ruby Oliver book is just as sweetly satisfying as the other two, with more friend and boy drama. Sadly, I have to wait to read the fourth, since it doesn't come out till Tuesday. A.
2010 book 300!!!!!!!
E. Lockhart's The Boy Book
Ruby Oliver's junior year is just as entertaining as her sophomore year--though the excerpts from a notebook Ruby and her former best friend kept (the titular Boy Book) didn't really entertain me. Of course, I'm a grownup, not a fourteen year old girl, so I'm not really the target audience here anyway. B.
300 books!! And more to come! Who wants to guess what the final number will be?
Ruby Oliver's junior year is just as entertaining as her sophomore year--though the excerpts from a notebook Ruby and her former best friend kept (the titular Boy Book) didn't really entertain me. Of course, I'm a grownup, not a fourteen year old girl, so I'm not really the target audience here anyway. B.
300 books!! And more to come! Who wants to guess what the final number will be?
2010 book 299
E. Lockhart's The Boyfriend List
Lockhart's The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks was one of my favorites of 2008, so I figured I'd give her other YA series a try. These books focus on Ruby Oliver, a high school sophomore dealing with all sorts of teen drama after her first real boyfriend breaks up with her. Very likable character and I'm off to read the sequel now.
Lockhart's The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks was one of my favorites of 2008, so I figured I'd give her other YA series a try. These books focus on Ruby Oliver, a high school sophomore dealing with all sorts of teen drama after her first real boyfriend breaks up with her. Very likable character and I'm off to read the sequel now.
Thursday, December 23, 2010
2010 book 298
Mira Grant's Feed
I've been putting off reading this for a while, even though Grant is an author I like (she writes the Rosemary and Rue books under her real name, Seanan McGuire) because it's a zombie book and I'm not really into horror. But the thing I'm discovering about zombie books (including The Walking Dead comics) is that really they're postapocalyptic dystopias that happen to feature zombies occasionally, and I do like my postapocalyptic dystopias. Anyway, in this one, it's 2039 and the zombie outbreak happened like 25 years ago; our protagonists are a brother-sister team of blogger/journalists who get tapped to cover a presidential campaign. Only the zombies aren't the only menace out there . . . DUN DUN DUN! Great characters and a riveting story, though some of it is a bit far-fetched (I mean, as far-fetched as anything can be in a zombie book) and the tech is really not different from what we have today, which is a minor weakness in such a tech-heavy story. Also, who calls smartphones PDAS anymore? Will we really be calling them that in 30 years? OK, that's just quibbling. I liked it! Two books to go!! B+.
I've been putting off reading this for a while, even though Grant is an author I like (she writes the Rosemary and Rue books under her real name, Seanan McGuire) because it's a zombie book and I'm not really into horror. But the thing I'm discovering about zombie books (including The Walking Dead comics) is that really they're postapocalyptic dystopias that happen to feature zombies occasionally, and I do like my postapocalyptic dystopias. Anyway, in this one, it's 2039 and the zombie outbreak happened like 25 years ago; our protagonists are a brother-sister team of blogger/journalists who get tapped to cover a presidential campaign. Only the zombies aren't the only menace out there . . . DUN DUN DUN! Great characters and a riveting story, though some of it is a bit far-fetched (I mean, as far-fetched as anything can be in a zombie book) and the tech is really not different from what we have today, which is a minor weakness in such a tech-heavy story. Also, who calls smartphones PDAS anymore? Will we really be calling them that in 30 years? OK, that's just quibbling. I liked it! Two books to go!! B+.
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
2010 book 297
Jenny Han's It's Not Summer Without You
This one picks up a year after the other one, and it's the first summer ever Belly isn't at the summer house. She's dealing with multiple kinds of heartbreak when she gets called to help save the day. I liked that part of the narrative duties were taken over by the younger brother, and I liked the ending (except for the very brief and mysterious epilogue that presumably implies a sequel). B+.
This one picks up a year after the other one, and it's the first summer ever Belly isn't at the summer house. She's dealing with multiple kinds of heartbreak when she gets called to help save the day. I liked that part of the narrative duties were taken over by the younger brother, and I liked the ending (except for the very brief and mysterious epilogue that presumably implies a sequel). B+.
2010 book 296
Jenny Han's The Summer I Turned Pretty
The title of this book was a turn-off, but I was in the mood for some realistic YA and this has gotten good reviews. It's about almost-16-year-old Belly (Isabel), who spends every summer with her mom, older brother and their mom's best friend and her two sons. The book flashes back and forth in time, chronicling Belly's crush on the older of the two boys, and the climactic summer when she turns 16. Han pretty well nails the dynamics of both sibling relationships and crushes, and I'm going to read the sequel next. A-.
The title of this book was a turn-off, but I was in the mood for some realistic YA and this has gotten good reviews. It's about almost-16-year-old Belly (Isabel), who spends every summer with her mom, older brother and their mom's best friend and her two sons. The book flashes back and forth in time, chronicling Belly's crush on the older of the two boys, and the climactic summer when she turns 16. Han pretty well nails the dynamics of both sibling relationships and crushes, and I'm going to read the sequel next. A-.
Monday, December 20, 2010
2010 book 295
Isobelle Carmody's The Winter Door
It's a few months after the events of The Night Gate, and Rage Winnoway is dealing with the aftermath of her adventures. Meanwhile, her mother is still in the hospital, there are some jerks at school, and winter seems like it will never end. That's when she starts traveling to the magical world of Valley in her dreams, to try and help solve a new crisis there. And it's just as satisfying as the first one. Rage and Billy Thunder are totally lovable characters. The only problem with liking these books so much is that they're the first two of a trilogy, and the third one hasn't come out, even though this one came out in 2003. Sigh. A.
It's a few months after the events of The Night Gate, and Rage Winnoway is dealing with the aftermath of her adventures. Meanwhile, her mother is still in the hospital, there are some jerks at school, and winter seems like it will never end. That's when she starts traveling to the magical world of Valley in her dreams, to try and help solve a new crisis there. And it's just as satisfying as the first one. Rage and Billy Thunder are totally lovable characters. The only problem with liking these books so much is that they're the first two of a trilogy, and the third one hasn't come out, even though this one came out in 2003. Sigh. A.
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