I Capture the Castle (Dodie Smith)

****

         Seventeen-year-old Cassandra Mortmain lives with her family in a run-down castle in the English countryside.  Her father was once a famous writer, but he hasn't published anything in years and spends the majority of his time reading detective novels.  Cassandra, a bit of a writer herself, decides to "capture the castle" and all of the people in it to develop her writing skills.  Her notebooks tell the story of life at the castle and the turn of events that makes everything infinitely more exciting.

         This was a great book!  It was a little slow at first, but before long I was picking it up to read any chance I got.  Cassandra is a charming narrator who does a good job of describing the castle and the eccentric people who live in it.  The characters are interesting and well-developed, although some (like Topaz, Cassandra's stepmother) are quite shallow.  This wasn't an action novel by any means, but the story was funny and there were some unexpected twists.  If you don't mind older books (think 1940s), you should definitely give this one a go.  

Rating: 4/5

Completed: December 21, 2012

My Name Is Asher Lev (Chaim Potok)

****

         Hasidic Jew Asher Lev comes from a long line of very important religious people.  From his father, who establishes yeshivas (schools) in Europe, all the way back to his great-grandfather, Asher's family members have put religion before self.  But Asher Lev is different.  He is a Jew, but he is also an artist.  In such a strict religious community, Asher's attempts to capture an emotion can easily be interpreted as blasphemy.  Asher wants to embrace both aspects of his identity, but his family cannot do this.  He is forced to choose which side of his identity is most important to him.

         This was one of the best books I've ever read in school, and a great book in its own right.  There were so many likable characters.  No surprise here, but I've found that the more you like the characters, the more you like the book.  Asher is a really good person in a tough situation.  He loves his family and wants to be a devoted Jew, but also loves art and needs it to express himself.  Hard as he tries, Asher's father, Aryeh, can't understand his son.  From the outside, Asher and Aryeh would both seem terribly stubborn.  As the book goes on, however, you realize that neither one is at fault for their tense relationship.  They are both trying to do what they believe they're called to do, and their paths just don't line up.  Asher's mother, Rivkeh, desperately wants to bring the two together.  She sacrifices everything for her husband and son so they both can do the things that are important to them. Despite this, she can't force them to reconcile.  Amid this family tension, Asher struggles to find balance between his Jewish beliefs and artistic expression.  On one hand, My Name is Asher Lev is a great "literary" book and makes for some serious discussion.  But it's also a really enjoyable story without the analysis.  No matter what you're looking for, I'd recommend reading this book.

Rating: 4/5
Completed: November 21, 2012

Days of Blood and Starlight (Laini Taylor)

****

Sequel to Daughter of Smoke and Bone (!).  Serious spoilers, so watch out . . . 

         Karou is not just art student and tooth snatcher Karou anymore.  She's also Madrigal, a chimaera who was executed for loving the enemy.  A chimaera who has been betrayed by the very same angel she died for.  Karou has left Akiva and left this world entirely.  Most of her people are dead, but she has gone back to her homeland in search of those who are left.  Karou is determined to avenge the dead, and she will do anything necessary to make it happen.  Even if it means allying herself with the very monster who sentenced her to death.

         I loved this book!  It wasn't quite as good as the first one, but it seems as though very few second books are.  I found it pretty frustrating that Karou gave up on herself after realizing that most of the chimaera - including Brimstone - had been killed because of her.  She lost a lot of her identity and personality for a while.  It took a lot of time for her to realize that she wasn't the complete villain the chimaera were making her out to be.  I was so happy that Zuzana and Mik had a bigger role in the book.  Those guys are the best!  With their help, Karou made a good comeback in the end.  On the whole, I'd say this was another success for Laini Taylor, and I can't wait to read the next book.

Rating: 4/5
Completed: November 21, 2012

Merry (day after) Christmas, if you celebrate it!  It's hard to believe there are only five days left in this year . . . it's not looking too good for the book goal, huh?  I guess I'll just have to post the rest of my reviews this week and start fresh next year!

Monument 14 (Emmy Laybourne)

***

         Monument 14 is the kind of book that - at first glance - seems like a kid's dream.  After all, who hasn't thought about being stuck in a department store at some point?  But the experience Dean, his little brother, and twelve other kids have trapped in a store is anything but fun.  On what starts out as a normal ride to school, giant hailstones start falling.  Dean's school bus crashes and most of the kids on it are killed.  A few of the teens, including Dean, are rescued by the elementary school bus driver and brought into a Target-like store where a group of younger kids are waiting.  While the bus driver is away trying to find help, the gates of the store close and everyone is locked in.  At first, Dean and the other high schoolers are worried about getting along and taking care of the little kids for a few nights.  As the hours and days go by, however, more disasters strike and they face the possibility that they are stuck in the store for the long run.

         As far as apocalypse books go, this one was pretty good.  It was kind of a milder version of Michael Grant's Gone series - freaky in a lot of ways, but not freaky at that level.  I picked this up because I had five minutes to grab a book for English and I happened to know what it was about.  Unfortunately I wasn't really in the mood for an apocalypse book.  Even so, it was a pretty quick and suspenseful read.  If the apocalypse genre is your thing, you'd probably like Monument 14.

Rating: 3/5
Completed: November 10, 2012

Sorry I've been MIA for the past few weeks.  There are only a few weeks left in the semester, so my teachers are really piling on the work.  Hopefully I'll be able to post more over winter break, which starts next weekend.  In the meantime, what have you been reading lately?  I've been rereading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows for about the millionth time.  I swear it gets better every time I read it.

Lies, Knives, and Girls in Red Dresses (Ron Koertge)

***

         Lies, Knives and Girls in Red Dresses is a collection of fairytale retellings written in free verse.  It includes a modern take on everything from Cinderella to Bluebeard with a dark twist.

         As you probably have figured out, I love a good fairytale retelling.  I sped through this collection, although I'd have to say that it wasn't my favorite.  Some of the stories had a cool or creepy side to them that is vaguely reminiscent of the original tales.  (Have you read any of the Grimm brothers' stories?  They're no Disney movie, I'll tell you that.)  I found that I couldn't really connect to the characters well, though - probably because each story was no more than a few pages long.  This was a good collection, but it didn't particularly stand out to me.

Rating: 3/5
Completed: November 10, 2012

Daughter of Smoke & Bone (Laini Taylor)

*****

         To her classmates, blue-haired art student Karou seems very strange.  She disappears mysteriously without warning and returns days or weeks later as though everything is normal.  Her sketchbook is full of elaborate drawings of monsters who collect teeth, and she claims the creatures are real.  Though nobody quite believes Karou, it's true.  But Karou's world is full of mysteries, and not even she understands who or what she is.  When a strange young man with eyes like fire arrives in Prague, Karou may have her chance to discover who she is - if she can stand to know the truth.

         This was an awesome book!  I couldn't put it down.  It's fast-paced and the concept is really cool.  When an author creates a fantasy world, it's really important that there are enough details that it feels real and the reader believes it.  Laini Taylor did a great job of this; I was sucked into Karou's world.  I loved the characters, as well: Karou's mysterious exterior and childish interior, Zuzana's spunkiness and loyalty, and Akiva's pensive nature.  Though this book has the feel of other books (like Cassandra Clare's Immortal Instruments), its content is unique.  I thought about giving it four stars, but that didn't seem like enough, and I decided that sometimes sheer awesomeness counts for an extra star.  If you like fantasy (and maybe even if you don't) you should read Daughter of Smoke and Bone!

Rating: 5/5
Completed: November 2, 2012

Happy day after Thanksgiving, if you celebrate it!  I found these ecards from fictional characters yesterday on figment.com.  Best holiday cards ever, in my opinion.

The Casual Vacancy (J.K. Rowling)

****

         In the small town of Pagford, the death of a man does not go unnoticed.  Barry Fairbrother's premature death by aneurysm leads to chaos within the village's social circles.  A seat on the parish council is now vacant, and there are unexpected candidates for the upcoming election.  Beneath the obvious political battle lurk many other conflicts that create confusion as the townspeople prepare to vote.  Several teens are battling with their parents and with themselves.  Spouses are facing deep-rooted conflicts that they have been trying to disguise.  The residents of Pagford would like to think that theirs is a perfect town, but as they try to fill the casual vacancy, they are forced to accept that their lives are anything but perfect.

         The Casual Vacancy was an interesting book.  In some ways I feel like it's bad to compare it to Potter, but in other ways it's sort of inevitable.  After all, Harry Potter is a huge part of the reason I picked this book up in the first place.  The two books are very different, though.  Whereas Harry Potter tends to focus on the humanity and vulnerability in people, The Casual Vacancy focuses on the darker side of the residents of Pagford.  It's heavy on the social satire as well.  So it wasn't a light read, and it wasn't very speedy, either.  But it was interesting to get into the heads of each character and see who they really are.  J.K. Rowling did a good job of developing all of the characters and their personal demons.  Although I didn't always love her negative portrayal of humanity in this book, I can at least say that it was well-executed.  The verdict: it was really good, but I liked Harry Potter better.

Rating: 4/5
Completed: October 26, 2012

Did anybody read this book?  What did you think?

Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (James Joyce)

***

         This semi-autobiographical novel tells the coming-of-age story of Stephen Dedalus, a young man growing up amidst the conflict for Irish home rule.  Stephen is used to letting other people dictate how he thinks about the world.  Issues like religion and patriotism play a central role in the Irish identity.  Stephen willingly goes along with the beliefs of his family and his teachers.  As he gets older, he realizes that those people weren't as wise as he once thought they were.  Without guidance from the people he used to respect, Stephen has to figure out what he believes to be true and find his own voice.

         It's been a while since I've had to write a review on a book that I read for school.  You might remember that those reviews are pretty short.  This will probably be short also; I get pretty tired of talking about books after a point.  The good news is that I actually liked Portrait, and class discussions didn't completely ruin it for me.  In fact, this book lends itself to deep philosophical discussion and analysis.  This is a good book at surface level, but there are lots of deeper layers that are worth thinking about.  Stephen deals with some pretty heavy themes: religion, nationality, family, and eternity, to name a few.  We get to know Stephen from inside his head (Joyce was apparently famous for this stream of consciousness style).  Sometimes it can be confusing, but I found that it also helps you to understand Stephen's thoughts and experiences.  I liked Stephen as a person despite the many mistakes he made.  He is annoying at times, I guess, but his determination to find out who he is and then stick with it is admirable.  On the whole, I thought that Portrait was a pretty good book, especially for a school assignment.

Rating: 3/5
Completed: October 22, 2012

Hello, blog.  I have neglected you.
It's been a while.  I've finally made it through Portrait as well as The Casual Vacancy and am on to the next book.  Which is awesome, by the way.  I promise I will try to post again soon, just in case there are people who sometimes read this blog.  :)
Reading this book made me think it's been a while since I've read a properly old book.  When is the last time you read a classic for fun (if you've ever done that at all)?  Mine was Sense and Sensibility in June 2011.  Maybe I should pick up another sometime soon . . .

My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece (Annabel Pitcher)

****

         Ten year-old Jamie doesn't remember his older sister Rose very much.  He was only five years old on the day of her sudden and violent death, but Rose has lived on to haunt his family ever since.  When Jamie's mother can't take the painful memories anymore, she leaves.  Jamie, his dad, and Rose's twin Jas move from London to the countryside for a new start.  They don't get the start that Jamie hopes for, though, because his dad is still an alcoholic and still worships the golden urn in which he keeps Rose's ashes.  Jamie is teased at school and has only one friend, a girl named Sunya.  He's very conflicted because his dad has forbidden him to speak with Muslims, and Sunya is one.  On the other hand, Sunya is kind and loyal, and Jamie knows she's a good person.  Jamie wants to change his life for the better, and he's determined to put his family back together.

         This book was really, really sad, but I loved it.  I originally thought that this might be geared towards younger kids because the protagonist is ten.  That's not at all the case, though - this book gets into some deep concepts and heavy stuff.  Jamie is such a sweet little kid, and his portrayal of his family life is raw and honest.  I felt awful for him because he wants so badly to believe that things will go back to normal, even when it's hard to imagine how that's possible.  Annabel Pitcher did a great job of portraying all the conflicting ideas Jamie is presented with, and how he eventually comes to figure out what he believes in.  Jamie doesn't have many perfect role models in his life, but he manages to find the best sides of his broken family.  I definitely recommend this book!

Rating: 4/5
Completed: September 29, 2012

What have you been reading lately?  You hear a lot from me but I don't get to hear much from you . . . post in the comments!  (You don't have to follow the blog to do it.)

The Happiness Project (Gretchen Rubin)

****

         Gretchen Rubin wasn't depressed when she started her Happiness Project; she just realized that she wasn't as happy as she wanted to be.  So she made a one-year plan to become happier, complete with resolution chart and monthly goals.  This book takes you through what she learned and decided over the course of her Happiness Project.

         I loved this book!  It was so interesting and informative.  There was a good blend of factual information and Gretchen's opinions based on her personal experiences.  It wasn't too dry, either.  I found her classification of clutter completely hilarious (probably because my house is pretty cluttered).  One of my favorite parts of The Happiness Project was that, unlike many other "self-help" books, Gretchen doesn't try to sell her system.  She doesn't claim that her way is the best or only way.  In fact, she emphasizes that everyone's happiness project will be different from hers.  I think many of the things she did could be applicable in my life, but I appreciate that she didn't try to force anything on me.  The Happiness Project makes me want to make positive, happiness-inducing changes in my life.  For a while, I even wanted to clean my closet like Gretchen did, which is really saying something.  You are very likely to find something in here that resonates with you.  Anyone who's interested in the concept of happiness will enjoy this book.

Rating: 4/5
Completed: September 21, 2012

Self-help books can be really great (like this one), or really terrible.  Personally, I despised The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Robots . . . er, Teens because it came across as condescending and was full of no, duh kinds of advice.  What's your experience with this genre?  Helpful and inspiring or unrealistic and condescending?

Bittersweet (Sarah Ockler)

***

         Hudson used to be a great figure skater, but she hasn't competed since her dad betrayed her family and left them.  Now she bakes cupcakes at her mom's failing small-town diner and tries to accept spending the rest of her life working there.  Lately, though, Hudson has been feeling trapped.  She's been making secret excursions to the frozen lake to skate and think about the future she could have had.  Then Hudson gets a letter in the mail inviting her to compete for a skating scholarship.  She realizes that it's her final chance to make her dreams come true.  The only problem is that her childhood dreams don't fit easily into the life that Hudson is living now.

         This was a good chick-lit novel, but not outstanding.  It's been a while since I read it, so I don't really remember much.  I only know that I wasn't a huge fan of the ending.  It felt a little abrupt to me, as though Hudson hadn't developed enough as a character or as a person to make the decision that she made.  Bittersweet was kind of a cookie-cutter book, but as I've said before, that's not always a bad thing.  If you like chick-lit, you'll definitely like this - but I wouldn't recommend that you go out of your way to read it if chick-lit isn't usually your thing.

Rating: 3/5
Completed: August 31, 2012

Enchanted (Alethea Kontis)

***

         If folklore were true, then Sunday would be the most cheerful daughter in her family - but she isn't.  She gets a little lost in the chaos of a large family and likes to spend her time writing.  Unfortunately, Sunday has to be careful what she writes because it tends to come true.  When Sunday meets Grumble, an enchanted frog who likes to listen to her stories, she thinks she might be in love.  But trying to kiss Grumble doesn't work, and one day he disappears altogether.  What Sunday doesn't know is that Grumble isn't a frog anymore - he is Prince Rumbold, a man Sunday's family has held a grudge against for years.  Rumbold is determined to get Sunday to fall in love with the real him, and he's willing to do anything it takes to make that happen.

         I've always really liked fairytale retellings, so I try to read every one that comes in my path.  Enchanted wasn't my favorite retelling, although it did have some cool concepts.  I loved the fact that there were many fairytales tied together in one plot line.  There was a reference to a fairytale for most of Sunday's sisters.  Some were pretty obvious, but others were more obscure stories, which was very interesting.  However, I wasn't a fan of Sunday.  In some ways she was a strong character, but in other ways she fell flat.  Sometimes her attitude just annoyed me a bit.  That made it hard for me to get into the book, but it turned out to be good in the end.

Rating: 3/5
Completed: August 24, 2012

I am going to start reading The Casual Vacancy now.  Hope it's amazing, otherwise my dreams will be crushed . . .  Has anyone gotten their hands on it yet?  (If anyone actually decides to comment, which doesn't happen often but is encouraged, please DON'T SPOIL ANYTHING.)

Guitar Notes (Mary Amato)

***

         For Lyla, using the school practice room is part of her cello routine.  She's been playing since her mother died, and she's very talented.  But over the years, the pressure of competition has gotten to Lyla and her love of the cello has faded away.
         For Tripp, the practice room is a means for survival.  His mother took his guitar away in an attempt to force him to get a life.  Tripp doesn't want a life; he wants a guitar.  So he is secretly borrowing a school instrument to play during his lunch period.
         Lyla and Tripp use Practice Room B on alternate days.  They never see each other, but Lyla sees the trash Tripp left behind and leaves him a note of complaint in the strings of the school guitar.  And Tripp writes back.  Soon snappish exchanges turn into a musical challenge, and the unlikely pair become better friends than they would ever have thought possible.

         I liked the characters in this book quite a bit, but the progression of their relationship didn't really flow for me.  Lyla and Tripp are both nice people, so it's funny to see what they think of each other before they really know what the other person is like.  I was happy when they became friends because they understood one another in a way that their other friends (or not, in Tripp's case) didn't.  But when their casual friendship turned into a secret love, I just wasn't feeling it.  The ending just didn't seem right to me.  Over all, though, I thought Guitar Notes was a pretty good book.

Rating: 3/5
Completed: August 20, 2012

Happy first day of fall!  It's actually pretty nice weather today.  Much better than the cold and rainy homecoming game last night.  I skipped out on the game, but apparently we crushed the other team.  Football isn't really my thing, though - I get more excited about baking pumpkin treats.  What's your favorite part of autumn?  Post it in the comments.

My Life Next Door (Huntley Fitzpatrick)

****

         Samantha Reed's mother does not approve of the next door neighbors, the Garretts.  They're noisy and messy, have lots of kids, and don't seem to care what other people think of them.  But those are the exact reasons that Samantha's been watching the Garretts since they moved in when she was a little girl.  The idea of a close-knit family is very appealing to Samantha, who is getting sick of her mother's quest for perfection both in public and at home as she runs for reelection to Congress.  While her mom is busy campaigning, Samantha meets Jase Garret and is quickly absorbed into the chaos of his family.  Just when it seems as though Samantha has found a place with the Garretts, her mother does something unforgivable and puts Samantha's relationship in jeopardy.

         If you're craving some serious chick lit, My Life Next Door is the sort of thing you want to read.  There's plenty of drama and a super-sweet guy.  What more could you ask for?  This novel is a Sarah Dessen read-alike, for the Sarah Dessen fans out there.  I thought it was really cute.  To be read when you're in the mood for something girly, or when you've just finished a depressing book and are looking for a happy ending.

Rating: 4/5
Completed: August 17, 2012

What do you think about chick lit - love it or hate it?  Share the best and/or worst chick lit books you've ever read in the comments.

Nevermore (James Patterson)

***

Final installment in the Maximum Ride series.  To avoid major spoilers for those who haven't read Nevermore yet, I'll be as vague as possible.

         After evading demented whitecoats and fighting evil, Maximum Ride and her flock are trying to settle into a normal life.  Fang is out of the picture, leading a gang of his own while leaving Max to fulfill her destiny, whatever that may be, with Dylan.  Right now, that means going to school and pretending to be average kids.  But the flock has never been able to stay in one place long without attracting trouble.  When events spiral out of control and it seems as though life as we know it is about to end, Max is presented with a way to save the people she loves - if she's willing to make other sacrifices to do it.

         I have to admit that I was a bit let down by Nevermore.  When I read the first few Maximum Ride books in middle school, I loved them.  They were action-packed and Max's dry humor was refreshing compared to my usual reads.  But as time went on, this series seemed declined quite a bit.  The books just weren't as good from The Final Warning on out.  Though Nevermore was better than some of the books from the middle of the Max series, it wasn't one of my favorites, either.  The ending was almost anticlimactic.  And kind of confusing and weird, as well.  I finished the book, and my first thought was: wait, what?  After everything Max and the gang had been through, it seemed like a cop-out to finish the way it did.  Nevermore was lacking in a proper resolution.  Sometimes, that can be okay - great, even.  But maybe the execution was a little off, because the ending seemed to be missing something.  On the positive side, I was relieved to find that the love triangle has been resolved.  (Although I wasn't a huge fan of that plot development in the first place.)  Despite the fact that it wasn't my favorite Max book, I'm still glad I read it.  And I'll probably end up reading James Patterson's next series, an excerpt of which was very helpfully included in the back of Nevermore.

Rating: 3/5
Completed: August 9, 2012

Ever been disappointed by a book series that you really loved?  Post in the comments!

BookWatch: Something to Get Excited About . . . Big Time

         Blog readers, there is something that many of you do not know about me (at least, those of you who don't know me personally).  It's something you probably should know, seeing as this is a book blog, so I'll tell you.  I am a huge fan of Harry Potter.  I say "huge", but that's only a verbal representation of something that cannot really be expressed in words.  I've read J.K. Rowling's books so many times that I've lost count.  I finished Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows the day it was released.  I love, love, love everything J.K. Rowling has written.

So, I'm obviously quite excited about her new adults' book, which is coming out on 27 September:

Want to read a summary of the book on goodreads.com?  Click here.

Apparently, The Casual Vacancy won't have anything to do with the wizarding world.  Part of me is sad about that because I can't get enough of Harry Potter.  On the other hand, though, I'm excited to see what else J.K. Rowling can come up with.  My expectations for the book are super-high (which is probably unfair to the book), but I think Rowling will deliver.  Who knows?  Maybe this will be better.  Actually, I'm not sure that's humanly possible . . . but hopefully it's just as good as Harry.  

Any other Potter fans out there?  Will you be reading The Casual Vacancy?  Post in the comments to tell me what you think!

Introducing BookWatch

In an effort to mix it up a bit (book reviews can get a bit boring, after all) I'm going to start posting about exciting books that haven't yet been released.  BookWatch posts will mostly be about books by authors I've already read, either here on the blog or Before Books on the Bluff.  I'm always trying to keep track of the authors I love and all of their upcoming releases, and I know it can be a lot of work.  Hopefully BookWatch will help you stay on top of the list of books you're dying to read!

Expect the first BookWatch post sometime this week.  :)

Texas Gothic (Rosemary Clement-Moore)

****

         Amy Goodnight is one normal girl in a family full of witches.  Her mom, sister, and aunts all embrace their abilities, but Amy prefers to separate herself from the supernatural.  She accepts a summer job ranch-sitting for her aunt in Texas hoping that it will bring her away from her family's crazy antics.  Instead, Amy arrives just as a dead body is discovered at a construction site near the ranch.  People are being mysteriously injured and rumors of a violent ghost are spreading through town.  Worst of all, the infuriatingly cute cowboy next door is sure that the Goodnights have something to do with it.

         Texas Gothic was an awesome mystery/ghost story - I plowed right through it in a few days.  It had all of the right elements: cool characters, an architectural dig, a family feud, and a little romance on the side.  Plus, there were nice unexpected twists and it was super-creepy in a good way.  Granted, it doesn't take too much to creep me out, but whatever.  I stayed up late reading this book even though it kind of freaked me out when I did.  It was worth it, because the story was so interesting and I was dying to know what was coming next.  If you're in the mood for a great ghost mystery, I would definitely recommend this book.

Rating: 4/5
Completed: July 31, 2012

It's supposed to be lovely and sunny and warm this week.  Unfortunately, I won't be able to enjoy it much, as today was the first day of school.  This seems to happen every year in my town: it's chilly when we get out of school in early June, but gorgeous when school starts again at the end of August.  Someone should seriously rethink this system.  Has school started for you yet (assuming you do, in fact, go to school)?  Are you excited, indifferent, or dreading it?  Post in the comments - you don't need to be a follower to do it!

Prized (Caragh M. O'Brien)

****

Sequel to Birthmarked

         Gaia Stone managed to escape from the Enclave with her baby sister, but that doesn't mean they're safe.  After a short time in the Wasteland, newborn Maya is weak and sick.  Gaia is relieved when a young man arrives and takes her to his home, a community called Sylum.  When they arrive, the powerful matriarch takes Maya away to be raised by another family.  If Gaia wants to see her sister again, she has to play by the matriarch's rules and gain her trust.  That means treating men as inferior and avoiding physical contact with them.  Just when Gaia is making headway with the matriarch, someone unexpected reappears in her life and she is forced to question everything about the life she's making for herself.

         One thing I really like about this series is Gaia's moral strength.  She faces a lot of conflicting ideas about what is right and what is wrong, especially when her survival relies on her ability to live by somebody else's beliefs.  At first, Gaia has a hard time figuring out whether the Enclave's system or Sylum's system is better.  Both societies had convincing arguments, but in the end Gaia was able to come to her own conclusions regarding fair treatment.  I think it's a pretty admirable when someone risks everything because it's the right thing to do, and Gaia is more likable because of it.  This was a good addition to the series, and I'll definitely be reading the next one when it comes out.

Rating: 4/5
Completed: July 28, 2012

Yesterday I got all of my wisdom teeth extracted.  I have a slight case of dentist phobia, probably because of a dentist who pulled about half of my teeth thinking it would prevent me from needing braces.  (He was wrong).  Anyway, I was pretty freaked out by the whole thing.  They had loads of trouble finding a vein for the IV, so they stabbed me five times.  Once I came to, I was apparently delirious.  I hate the feeling of having no control of what I say or do, especially when I'm not going to remember it afterwards.  I hear some people actually like this drugged state, though.  Now my cheeks are all swollen and I hardly have an appetite.  I suppose the pain could be a lot worse, though.  What about you?  Have any dental/wisdom tooth stories to share?  Even though the dentist has nothing to do with books, let's hear about it!

Unbreak My Heart (Melissa Walker)

***

         Clementine's sophomore year didn't go quite as planned.  She broke the most important friendship rule in the book and ended up losing all of her friends.  Clem's lack of a social life is the only reason she's going along with the idea of a summer-long family sailing trip.  Even though Clem isn't putting up a fight, being stuck with her parents and little sister on a tiny boat for two months is a little more than she can handle.  So it's a really good thing when she meets James, who's sailing the same route she is with his father.  Maybe James will be the one to help Clem get over last year and start enjoying everything that she has left.

         Unbreak My Heart was a good but not super-memorable book.  Clementine was (understandably, I suppose) a little snippy with people at first, but she made some emotional progress.  She was really lucky to have such a kind, understanding family.  However, the contrast between their niceness and her angstiness (I'm not sure that's a word) made Clem seem like a worse person than she actually was.  James was also a really nice guy - despite the family problems he had, he was cheerful 99% of the time.  On top of that, he got over anything upsetting very quickly.  It might have given the story more depth if Clem wasn't the only person who was struggling with negative emotions.  Luckily, this is the kind of book where everything works out in the end, so Clem's problems all get solved.  Unbreak My Heart isn't the best chick lit I've ever read, but it was a pretty good book on the whole.

Rating: 3/5
Completed: July 22, 2012

So, to get completely off the topic of reading, the Olympics are over now.  Very sad.  I absolutely love the summer Olympics.  They're really bad for my book goal, but I'm willing to make the sacrifice for swimming and diving and gymnastics.  It was a great year for the US swim team; they were so fun to watch.  Did you watch the Olympics?  Which are your favorite sports and athletes to follow?  Let me know in the comments.

Back When You Were Easier to Love (Emily Wing Smith)

***

         When Joy's boyfriend, Zan, decides to go to college a year early with no warning or explanation, Joy is devastated.  Zan was the only one who understood Joy and her feelings about life in conservative Haven, Utah.  After a few months of going through the motions of her senior year, Joy concludes that there is only one option left: go to California to find Zan and get some closure (or, if she's being honest, get Zan back).  Unfortunately, none of her friends are willing to accompany her on this secret mission.  That leaves Noah, Zan's former best friend, who got as little closure as Joy did when Zan left.  As this unlikely pair goes out in search of Zan, they discover that some friends aren't worth keeping.  

         Back When Your Were Easier to Love is a lot like another book I read recently, Getting Over Garrett Delaney.  When two books are this similar, it's really hard not to compare them.  Personally, I liked Garrett better.  Joy wasn't as strong a character (or a girl) as Sadie was.  Both were obsessed with the guys in their life, but Joy spends almost the entire book clinging to Zan.  It got kind of old after a while, especially when it became clear that Noah liked Joy.  Which is really strange, actually, seeing as Joy was openly mean and prejudiced against Noah because he was popular.  Joy's personality brought the book down for me.  However, Back When You Were Easier to Love would have a strong appeal for people who don't like to read books that include teens drinking alcohol or even kissing.  Most of the characters are Mormon, and their behavior is heavily influenced by their religious beliefs.  Kissing was only barely mentioned, and the strongest thing Joy and her friends drink is Sprite.  Unless this is important to you, though, I would recommend reading Getting Over Garrett Delaney instead.  In the end, I think it's a more enjoyable book.  

Rating: 3/5

Completed: June 20, 2012

Destined (Aprilynne Pike)

***

The final installment in Aprilynne Pike's Wings series

         Laurel now knows that Yuki is a Winter faerie, and she is more than capable of helping Klea destroy Avalon.  Laurel, Tamani, David, and Chelsea must open the gates to warn everyone that Klea is coming.  Even with advance notice, Avalon doesn't have enough time to prepare for the battle that will determine the survival of the Winter dynasty.  Their only hope lies in humans Chelsea and David, who might be able to turn the tide in a war that can't be won with faerie magic alone.

         I really, really loved this series when I read the first book, Wings.  I didn't enjoy the following books quite as much, including Destined.  However, it was a pretty good ending to the series.  I was glad to get some closure on the Laurel-Tamani-David love triangle (I won't tell you how it ended, but it was a relief for me).  I wish that instead of having four books in this series, books three and four were sandwiched together.  There is a lot of action covered in Destined, but it really feels like the next chapter in Illusions instead of a new book.  If you've read the other Wings books and plan on reading this one as well, make a point of reading Illusions again first.  I think that's the best way to maximize enjoyment of the last book in this series.

Rating: 3/5
Completed: July 19, 2012

Hello, Blog Viewers!
If anyone has a good book recommendation or two, I would love to hear from you in the comments.  Or you could say hello, if you don't have any suggestions.  I just want to meet the people who read the blog.  Don't be shy!

The Night Circus (Erin Morgenstern)

*****

         "The circus arrives without warning.  No announcements precede it, no paper notices on downtown posts and billboards, no mentions or advertisements in local newspapers.  It is simply there, when yesterday it was not."
         - The Night Circus, p. 1

         Le Cirque des Rêves stirs up a quiet sort of excitement wherever it goes.  It doesn't look like a normal circus: no circus of the usual kind is entirely in black and white.  Nor does a normal circus open at night and close as the sun begins to rise.  Inside are countless tents, each home to an attraction that is simply too marvelous to be real.  So wondrous is the Night Circus that hundreds of people - the rêveurs, as they are called - share fond memories of the circus as they track its progress around the globe, waiting for their next chance to visit.  Though the rêveurs know that Le Cirque des Rêves is more than just a circus, they could never guess at its true nature.  The Night Circus is the venue for a magical game with devastating consequences to all involved.  The players in the game are Marco and Celia, who have been training for this exhibition of talent since childhood.  When the game begins and identities are discovered, Celia and Marco fall in love.  As the pair tries to keep the circus from damaging all of the people it touches, they discover that the rules of the game are not at all what they had expected.

         The Night Circus was a very unique book, unlike anything I have ever read before.  Erin Morgenstern has a great eye for the details, bringing Le Cirque des Rêves to life with powerful descriptions of things including a dreamlike clock, caramel-scented air, and a pair of eccentric red-headed twins.  Morgenstern's writing made the circus feel quite real.  The characters were also done really well.  There's a lot of jumping back and forth in time, so you get an in-depth understanding of the most important people.  I would recommend this to everybody based on how much I enjoyed it, but I think that it might feel too "slow" for some people.  Personally, I thought it was a really nice change from what I normally read.  If you don't mind a book that isn't action-packed (at least in the usual sense) and moves at a relaxed pace, you should definitely read The Night Circus.  It was all kinds of awesome!

Rating: 5/5
Completed: July 18, 2012

Birthmarked (Caragh M. O'Brien)

****

         Each month, teenage midwife Gaia Stone is required to separate three newborns from their mothers and advance them to the Enclave, a privileged society inside of a wall.  Gaia believes that she is giving the infants a better life, even if it causes grief to the families they leave behind.  She doesn't question her duty to the Enclave until her parents are arrested after years of service, leaving behind a long ribbon with a secret code written on it.  Despite the risks, Gaia is determined to get into the Enclave to rescue her parents.  She quickly discovers that life in the Enclave isn't as good as it appeared from the outside, and the problems they face make her own knowledge essential to their survival.

       Birthmarked was a really good, fast-paced read.  The main characters were developed well - Gaia, for instance, was not a perfect person, but she had a really good heart and was easy to care about.  Both Gaia and Leon (an officer for the Enclave) had strong identities rooted in their childhoods, and you could see how that shaped the way they saw their society.  The concept of an inbred society was interesting as well . . . kind of made me think of AP Modern Euro, though.  It was cool/freaky to see how the Enclave tried to deal with this issue, and also how outsiders like Gaia reacted to it.  More importantly, Birthmarked totally sucked me in.  It was exciting enough to give me the chills and make me want to stay up all night reading.  Anyone who likes dystopian future should read this book.

Rating: 4/5
Completed: July 5, 2012

Breathless (Jessica Warman)

**

         Katie Kitrell can't help but be a little relieved when her parents send her away to boarding school; after all, her family situation isn't exactly ideal.  Katie's brother Will is schizophrenic, and getting more aggressive every day.  Boarding school is a chance for Katie to get a fresh start and pursue her swimming dreams.  In an effort to move past her difficult relationship with Will, Katie tells her new classmates that her brother is dead.  She then falls into a rhythm of studying, swimming, and hanging out with the in-crowd.  A secret as big as Katie's can't stay buried for long, though.  As Will continues to get worse, the truth about Katie threatens to surface.

         I wasn't a huge fan of the characters in Breathless.  Katie's family problems were pushed aside for a good part of the story, eclipsed by issues with boys and catty girls.  This made her seem more immature than troubled, and therefore much less likable.  Also, it didn't feel right that Katie's family was so rarely present, seeing as they were a big part of the conflict in the story.  Katie and her peers spent a lot of time drinking and smoking as well - I understand that this does happen, but it seemed overdone.  I tend not to like characters who make bad decisions, so I had a hard time with Katie and her friends.  Since I didn't connect well with the characters, I didn't particularly enjoy this book.

Rating: 2/5
Completed: June 29, 2012

The Watch that Ends the Night (Allan Wolf)

***

         Written in verse from the perspective of two dozen or so people, animals, and inanimate objects, The Watch that Ends the Night tells the story of those involved in the Titanic's maiden voyage.

         This was a really neat way of reading about the Titanic - it blended fact and fiction nicely.  Some of the characters were created by the author, but many were real people who were on the ship when it sank.  In the back of the book, there is a whole section that tells you about the characters' lives and whether they survived or not.  This would be a good read for those who are interested in the Titanic.

Rating: 3/5
Completed: June 26, 2012

        Sorry for the super-short description and review today.  I've decided I should probably get started on my summer assignments for school.  So far I haven't been able to shrink the workload by putting it off . . . go figure.  Native Americans, here I come!

Change of Heart (Shari Maurer)

***

         High school soccer star Emmi Miller is not the type of girl who can be stopped by a virus.  So when she gets sick right before a big match, Emmi doesn't tell anyone how terrible she feels.  After all, she can't risk being pulled out of the game because of a cold.  It turns out that Emmi doesn't have a normal bug, though.  After collapsing on the field, Emmi goes to the doctor and finds out that the virus weakened her heart so much that if she doesn't get a heart transplant soon, she'll die.
         No longer is Emmi a popular, athletic teenager.  She is too tired to show up at school, let alone play soccer and hang out with her friends.  Though she's looking and feeling terrible, Emmi isn't all alone.  Her closest friends are still there for her, and a super-cute baseball player named Sam is texting her all the time.  lThen there's Abe, who's already had a heart transplant and gives Emmi the support that nobody else can.  Emmi doesn't know which boy is more important in her life, and she doesn't know if she will have enough time to figure it out.  After all, she's learned that life is not a guarantee.

         So for a few days now, I've been completely stuck trying to decide what I thought about this book.  Normally it's not an issue if it's been a while since I've read a book because the things I liked most and least stick with me.  That hasn't really been the case this time.  Change of Heart was a quick read, but not because I had to keep going back to it.  I didn't instantly connect to the characters or feel compelled to find out what happened next.  That's not to say that it was bad, because it wasn't. It just didn't have me hooked the way some of the books I've read recently have.  On the whole, Change of Heart was good but not a stand-out.

Rating: 3/5
Completed: June 24, 2012

Getting Over Garrett Delaney (Abby McDonald)

****

         Sadie is one hundred percent sure that she is in love with Garrett Delaney.  They spend all of their  time together, share the same interests, and have the same views about their unenlightened small town.  The only problem with their perfect relationship?  Garrett thinks of Sadie as his best friend, not his girlfriend.  In fact, Sadie has supported Garrett through countless relationships and break-ups with other girls.  When Garrett goes to camp for the summer, Sadie can't help but hope that he will miss her and conclude that she is the perfect girl for him.  Instead, Garrett falls for somebody else and Sadie realizes that he is never going to love her.  She decides that it's time to kick her Garrett addiction once and for all using a special self-help plan.  With a job at the local coffee shop and a group of new friends who are determined to help her, Sadie hopes to find a way to build an identity that isn't centered around Garrett.  

         This is a really good summer read: it's light and sweet, and there's a happy ending.  I liked Sadie's personality even when she was going a little too crazy about Garrett.  I was relieved when she decided to become independent from Garrett, because it was pretty obvious even after the first few pages that Garrett didn't have romantic feelings for Sadie.  It was a nice change of pace to read about a girl who recognizes that she has problems with a guy and then actually does something about it.  Sadie's plan was bold - each (somewhat drastic) step was designed to knock Garrett off of his pedestal and help her realize that there were other guys out there.  Sadie's success in getting over Garrett and making herself into a new person made me like her even better.  The main pitfall of this book was that it was super predictable.  It's not too difficult to guess the entire plot line based on a quick summary.  Sometimes that can be a good thing, though, and I think that's the case with Getting Over Garrett Delaney.  This would be a great read if you're really craving some chick-lit (and what girl doesn't crave that every now and then?).  

Rating: 4/5

Completed: June 22, 2012

The Iron Knight (Julie Kagawa)

***

         Meghan Chase managed to stop the Iron Fey from destroying all of Faery, but it came at a cost.  Now she is a queen, ruling over the Iron Realm.  This wouldn't be such a problem if Ash, the former prince of Winter and Meghan's lover, weren't poisoned by the very essence of Meghan's land.  Ash swore that he would find a way to be with Meghan in the Iron Realm.  With the help of his enemy, Puck, and an irritating cait sith, Ash sets out on a journey to the end of the world.  It has been rumored that there he can win both mortality and a soul - if he can pass the tests that no one has ever passed before.  The trip is nothing like Ash expected.  Whether he succeeds or fails, it will change the way he sees himself forever.

         Though I did like this book, it didn't hold up to the standard of the rest of the series.  The Iron Knight didn't draw me in at first, but it improved quite a bit after the first hundred pages or so.  One thing that bothered me was that Ash was acting way out of character.  He has a very distinct personality in all the books leading up to this one, and the change in behavior wasn't as smooth as it could have been.  However, the concept of earning a soul was pretty cool, and was executed reasonably well.  This wasn't my favorite book by Julie Kagawa, but that won't stop me from reading any of her future books (I hear she's planning a spin-off series about Meghan's brother).

Rating: 3/5
Completed: June 18, 2012

City of Lost Souls (Cassandra Clare)

****

Disclaimer: this summary will almost definitely be confusing unless you have read the other books in the Mortal Instruments series.  Which I recommend that you do.

         Less than half an hour after the demon Lilith was banished, Jace disappears.  Also missing is the corpse of Sebastian, Clary Fray's hated brother.  The Clave has searched for both boys, but they have given up to focus their energy on other problems.  Clary is sick with worry for Jace, but soon he shows up at her house - with Sebastian, who is alive - and asks her to come and live with them.  Jace reveals that he and Sebastian were bound together both physically and mentally by Lilith.  Despite the fact that he is in on Sebastian's twisted new plan, Clary can't bear to abandon Jace.  Clary risks everything to go with Jace and try to save him from Sebastian and from himself.  Meanwhile, Jace's closest friends are trying to find a way to sever the bond and separate him from Sebastian.  The Clave will stop at nothing to kill Sebastian, even if it means hurting one of their own.  If Clary, Simon, Isabelle, Alec, and Magnus don't succeed, the Clave will take Sebastian out - despite the fact that Jace will die in the process.

         I always enjoy reading Cassandra Clare's books, and City of Lost Souls was no exception.  Though the concept behind the Mortal Instruments series seemed strange to me at first, it's really easy to get sucked into the New York City that is crawling with warlocks, Shadowhunters, vampires and demons.  All of the books in this series (and its companion series, the Infernal Devices) are full of evil plots by power-hungry psychopaths and epic plans to stop them from taking over.  Cassandra Clare usually achieves the perfect balance between romance and bone-chilling encounters with creepy demon things.  I definitely recommend this series - start with the first book, City of Bones.

Rating: 4/5
Completed: June 15, 2012

Love & Leftovers (Sarah Tregay)

****

         When Marcie's dad divorces her mom in favor of a handsome bartender, Marcie goes to New Hampshire with her depressed mother for the summer.  She's leaving behind her friends and boyfriend, who call themselves the Leftovers.  Marcie doesn't realize that she's in New Hampshire to stay until Labor Day rolls around and she has to enroll in the local high school.  She feels lonely without her friends and her dad until a classmate starts bringing her coffee and a donut every day, and a romance blossoms.  Marcie doesn't know whether to push him away (she is, after all, still dating somebody else) or start a relationship that will give her the affection she craves.  

         This book, written in verse, was good in a fluffy sort of way.  Marcie's problems were mainly relationship-centered, and she made some pretty terrible decisions, but (against all odds) things worked out for her anyway.  My chief complaint with Love and Leftovers would be that the ending was perhaps a little far-fetched . . . maybe everything just happened a little too soon.  Despite that, it was a good book, especially for summer reading.

         Since I'm going on a road trip over the next ten days or so, I may or may not be able to post for a while.  Internet access is, at best, spotty on this kind of trip . . . Luckily, I can read in the car without feeling sick - we can at least count on a lot of new posts when I get back!

Rating: 4/5

Completed: June 8, 2012

Tempest (Julie Cross)

****

         Jackson Meyer can travel through time, but not in the way one might expect.  As far as he knows, he can only jump short distances back in time, and he can't change the future once he's there.  Jackson and his friend Adam spend the summer testing the bounds of time travel through experiments.  It's all fun and games for Jackson until two strangers burst into his girlfriend Holly's dorm, and Holly is shot.  In his panic, Jackson shoots back farther in time than he has ever gone - two years back, to be exact.  Normally, he would just boomerang right back to 2009, his "home base".  The problem?  Jackson somehow made 2007 his new home base and he can't jump to the future.  In other words, he's stuck in the past and has to find a way back to 2009 to save Holly.

         This was a really cool concept!  First of all, what's not to love about a book that has spies and time travel?  Plus, it was pretty well-executed.  Jackson's jumps weren't too hard to follow thanks to time updates in every chapter.  I loved watching Jackson's interactions in his own past, and it was interesting to see how these interactions did (or did not) affect the future.  Jackson is the kind of guy that you root for and want good things to happen to . . . Tempest left me hanging, wondering whether things will work out.  Hopefully there will be a sequel to this book soon!

Rating: 4/5
Completed: June 7, 2012

How to Save a Life (Sara Zarr)

***

         Mandy is ready to escape.  And the baby she's having is her ticket out of town, away from her mother and her mother's boyfriend.  She chooses a woman named Robin MacSweeney to adopt her baby and asks to stay with Robin until she gives birth.  When she arrives at the MacSweeney's house, Mandy has no doubts about giving her baby to sweet, supportive Robin.  As time passes, however, she realizes that she might be more attached to her child than she thought.  

         Jill MacSweeney's mom is making a huge mistake.  Shortly after the death of Jill's father, her mother has decided to adopt a baby.  Not only does Jill think it's really stupid to adopt without any kind of legal agreement, but she feels as though her mom is trying to replace her dad . . . or maybe Jill herself.  Jill knows she hasn't been the ideal daughter: she's pushed away her mom, friends, and on-again-off-again boyfriend since her father's death.  Though Jill is determined to hate Mandy, she can't seem to do it.  Especially after meeting Ravi, a corporate employee at the bookstore she works for.  Ravi helps Jill to be a better person, and might just be the fresh start she needs.

         I enjoyed reading this book from the perspectives of both Jill and Mandy.  It was interesting to see their very different takes on life.  In some ways, the book was about each girl separately.  Their stories did overlap, though, giving you insight on the girls' relationship.  How to Save a Life wouldn't be half as good if you saw it from only one side.  However, I do wish this book had been a little less predictable; I knew how it was going to end halfway through reading.  On the whole, a good book worth reading.

Rating: 3/5
Completed: June 6, 2012

Curveball: The Year I Lost My Grip (Jordan Sonnenblick)

****

         The summer before his freshman year, Peter Friedman's baseball career is put to a premature end by an injury he's been trying to hide all season.  Peter is diagnosed with an awful-sounding condition and told that he will never pitch again.  He is coming to terms with his injury while trying to find a way to tell his highly insensitive best friend, AJ, that he won't be trying out for the team in the spring.  In the meantime, he lands a job as athletics co-editor of the yearbook with a beautiful girl from his photography class.  And on top of everything else, Peter is at a loss as to how he can help his grandfather, who has been acting very strangely.

         This book is an easy, quick read - it only took me a few hours - but it is also really good.  I love Jordan Sonnenblick's work because he is able to capture the lives of (usually unhappy) teens in a very amusing way.  Curveball is a laugh-out-loud kind of book.  Peter's problems, from his arm injury to his mentally declining grandfather to attractive and flirtatious girls, feel very real and relatable.  This book would be easy to read when you don't have much free time, without losing out on good writing.  If you like it, definitely try Sonnenblick's other books (especially Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie and Notes from the Midnight Driver).

Rating: 4/5
Completed: June 4, 2012

Insurgent (Veronica Roth)

****

         Sequel to Divergent.  Mini-spoiler alert!

         The Erudite have taken out Abnegation power using advanced simulation technology. They're not done yet, though - they won't be satisfied until they find a way to control the Divergent.  This is bad for Tris and Tobias, who decide to take refuge at Amity headquarters.  It's not in their nature to hide, however, and it isn't long before they go back to the city and the heart of Erudite territory.  There they see that the faction system is deteriorating and a new order is rising up to fill its place.  In this dangerous world, Tris struggles to reconcile her instinct to protect herself with her need to do the right thing - even if it means sacrificing her own safety to keep others alive.

         I really enjoyed this installment of Veronica Roth's series.  Though I liked Divergent just a teensy bit better (probably because there was more action of the purposeful variety), Insurgent had some exciting plot twists.  The ending really left me hanging . . . can't wait till the next book comes out!  Definitely worth reading.

Rating: 4.5/5

Completed: May 14, 2012

Fracture (Megan Miranda)

****

         When Delaney was trapped under a layer of ice in the not-quite-frozen lake, her heart stopped beating.  By the time her best friend Decker pulled her out, everyone thought for sure that she would be dead.  Delaney went into a short coma, but she didn't die.  Even more miraculously, she isn't showing any signs of the brain damage that her oxygen-deprived system definitely should be suffering from.  Delaney is almost normal - except for the fact that she's now physically pulled towards the dying.  This makes Delaney feel isolated and terrified until she meets Troy, a boy who has the same problem.  But as she tries to figure out what her newfound ability means, Delaney begins to wonder whether Troy is the person she depended on him to be.

         Sadly, it's been so long I can't really remember all of the things I liked about this book.  However, I did enjoy the semi-predictable but still good plot twists.  Also, there was a best-friend-romance thing going on, although it wasn't the best description of one that I've ever seen.  Overall, the storyline was intriguing and made me think (in a good way!).  

Rating: 4/5
Completed: April 28, 2012

p.s. - finals are almost over.  once summer starts, there will be a lot more books to talk about . . . 

Winnie-the-Pooh (A. A. Milne)

*****

         This classic children's book tells the story of Winnie-the-Pooh (a Bear of Very Little Brain), Christopher Robin, and all of their friends.  Each chapter is an installment of one of their many adventures.  Woozles, Wizzles, and other strange creatures abound.  

         Winnie-the-Pooh is a great book.  Though it's considered a children's story, it is worth the time for teens and adults as well.  Very funny; a quick, uplifting read.

Rating: 5/5

Completed: April 27, 2012

The Fault in Our Stars (John Green)

*****

         When asked to describe herself, Hazel Grace Lancaster would say she is a "professional sick person".  The past few years of Hazel's life have been dominated by a diagnosis of stage IV thyroid cancer.  Now a drug has stopped the tumor in her lungs from growing (at least temporarily), buying Hazel an undetermined amount of extra time.  Still, it's not a question of if Hazel will die from this cancer - it's a question of when.
         Unsurprisingly, seventeen year-old Hazel finds this more than a little depressing.  Her mother forces her to attend a Cancer Support Group in hopes that it will add an element of normalcy to Hazel's life.  Instead of finding it helpful, Hazel sees Support Group as another depressing aspect of her mostly hopeless life.  That is, until she meets the handsome and hilarious Augustus Waters.  A cancer patient in remission, Augustus understands Hazel like no one else can.  Together, the two search for meaning in a world where death looms closer than it has a right to.  

         The Fault in Our Stars was an amazing read.  The characters were fantastic: unique, spunky, strong, and real.  Hazel, Augustus, and their friend Isaac managed to turn things that should be heartbreaking into something humorous.  Their dry wit in the face of serious situations gave me a few laughs and helped to balance out the depressing nature of a "cancer book".  However, John Green didn't avoid the tough topics - Hazel faced some harsh realities and dealt with them in a believable way.  By the end of the story, you love the three friends for their strong personalities and their honesty.  This is the kind of book that opens you up to think about life, love, and death from a new perspective.  More important than that, though, The Fault in Our Stars successfully captures a piece of the human experience in a way that's both powerful and touching.  

Rating: 5/5

Completed: April 22, 2012