I’m telling you why we broke up, Ed. I’m writing it in this letter, the whole truth of why it happened.

Min Green and Ed Slaterton are breaking up, so Min is writing Ed a letter and giving him a box. Inside the box is why they broke up. Two bottle caps, a movie ticket, a folded note, a box of matches, a protractor, books, a toy truck, a pair of ugly earrings, a comb from a motel room, and every other item collected over the course of a giddy, intimate, heartbreaking relationship. Item after item is illustrated and accounted for, and then the box, like a girlfriend, will be dumped.

After visiting the HarperCollins booth at the OLA conference, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on Daniel Handler’s book, Why We Broke Up. The booth was promoting the book with a ‘why we broke up’ display, allowing people to post the reason why their relationship ended.  Not only was the title heavily promoted, it also received recognition as a 2012 Printz Honor Book (excellence in young adult lit). Lastly, readers may better know author Daniel Handler as his other pen name ‘Lemony Snicket’.  Yes- it’s true! Handler wrote the fabulous, A Series of Unfortunate Events.  With all this build up, I was expecting great, great things from this book. 

Unfortunately, I’m telling you why I didn’t like your book, Daniel Handler.

First off, I could never connect with the sophisticated/artsy/mature/old soul of a teenager, Min. She never felt authentic to me and I was annoyed when she constantly referred to old movies/scenes.  I’m not even sure they were real movies, but honestly, I don’t care enough to find out. I mostly skimmed through any reference to an old movie or actor (which was a lot!)

Min’s narration made me bonkers. It was stream of consciousness writing, so she just wrote on and on and on with really long sentences that didn’t always make a lot of sense. It made the writing really hard to follow and I often had to go back and re-read the passages.  If I had a difficult time reading the break up letter, I’m pretty sure the co-captain of the basketball team isn’t going to read a 300+ page break up letter.   Min would be better off burning the stuff.

I almost wish I got an e-book version of this book because it is physically heavy. The thick glossy pages made my wrists hurt! Also, in terms of formatting, the book could have done without all that white space surrounding the text. However, I did really like the addition of Maira Kalman’s drawings of things Mina placed in the breakup box. I also loved reading the break up stories of other YA authors on the back of the book.

Overall, it’s really up to you to decide whether you want to start a relationship with this book…  our personalities didn’t match, but perhaps you fared better? Let me know!

From Goodreads:

In the violent country of Ludania, the classes are strictly divided by the language they speak. The smallest transgression, like looking a member of a higher class in the eye while they are speaking their native tongue, results in immediate execution. Seventeen-year-old Charlaina has always been able to understand the languages of all classes, and she’s spent her life trying to hide her secret. The only place she can really be free is the drug-fueled underground clubs where people go to shake off the oppressive rules of the world they live in. It’s there that she meets a beautiful and mysterious boy named Max who speaks a language she’s never heard before . . . and her secret is almost exposed. Charlie is intensely attracted to Max, even though she can’t be sure where his real loyalties lie. As the emergency drills give way to real crisis and the violence escalates, it becomes clear that Charlie is the key to something much bigger: her country’s only chance for freedom from the terrible power of a deadly regime.

This book is described as a dystopian fiction novel, but it also ventures into the fantasy realm. Seventeen year old Charlie, nicknamed Chuck by her best friend Brook, lives in a world of hierarchy classes ruled by an evil queen with magical powers. I am a fan of both genres, but for those of you who prefer high-tech gadgets and more scientific explanations of the future you will find this text lacking. The dystopian aspects come in the form of mandatory ID badges and ranks, armed checkpoints, underground clubs and rebel hideouts. These aspects converge with the historical storyline of fallen kingdoms, anarchy, castle ruins, and Charlie’s quest to discover more about herself and her family. Charlie’s innate secret power to comprehend all forms of communication (from verbal and body language to ancient pictographs) is a blessing and curse.  When a war fuelled by rebels and outcasts breaches Charlie’s door-step, she is forced to re-evaluate the safety of the life she has always known and her own ideological beliefs.

Overall I liked the storyline of the book because it was fast paced and contained many of the genre elements I enjoy. Thus, it was a quick interesting read. However, it did not rock my socks off. I found some of the character relationships and story plot decisions not fully explained or rationalized. Although, Charlie posses this special communication power that should give her the ability to easily understand others, she discovers that her best friend and her own family has hidden many secrets from her. Also Max claims not to be interested in her because of her ability, but no other explanations are given, and their romantic relationship heats up quickly despite her inability to uncover the mystery of his intentions. Furthermore, the explanation as to why a ruling female monarch is deemed necessary in order for the country to live happily ever after is filled with wholes of inquisition.

After finishing the book I flipped to the front and read the acknowledgments. There I discovered that the premise for The Pledge and the character Angelina, Charlie’s little sister, came from the survival stories of a woman who lived through WWII as a child and had shared many of her experiences with the author. This real world connection can be used to bridge this book with other young adult war stories, and even create conversation about comparisons between Charlie’s world and our own. I was really glad my eyes feel upon this tiny portion of the book, and in the future I will definitely make sure I don’t just skim the acknowledgement section. You never know what you might find out, and where the inspiration for a story comes from.

I give it 3 out of 5 J

Happy reading,

Bookit

I finally got around to reading The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan.  This book is the first in the ‘Forest of Hands and Teeth’ series, with The Dead Tossed Waves, and The Dark and Hollow Places following. Zombies aren’t usually my thing, but months ago I read Rot & Ruin and really enjoyed it. When comparing both novels, one definitely comes out the clear winner—Rot & Ruin. There were too many things that bothered me with this book.

-Mary and her community are constantly under threat of being attacked by zombies. Knowing this information, I would expect them to be more prepared (secure locations, food, etc.). Rather, they remain ‘protected’ by a simple fence.

-Too many questions were left unanswered. Where did the zombies come from in the first place? Why was Gabrielle the ‘fast one’?

-The character of Mary. She was the beyond selfish female lead, willing to sacrifice her community, family and friends, all in her quest to find the ocean. I understand that the ocean refers to the bigger picture of hope and fighting for your dreams, but she continually placed herself first.

-The love between Travis and Mary. This romance was never developed or explained and I didn’t understand why Mary was so in love with Travis in the first place.

-Cool title. Grabs the reader’s attention immediately.

-Descriptions of the zombies. I was scared reading this book at night! I kept picturing the groaning zombies with rotten teeth and bony fingers.

Extras:

I found the book trailer on Youtube and it scared the heck out of me!

Then Coley Taylor moves to town. Beautiful pickup-driving Coley is a perfect cowgirl with the perfect boyfriend to match. To Cam’s surprise, she and Coley become best friends—while Cam secretly dreams of something more. Just as that starts to seem like a real possibility, her secret is exposed. Ultrareligious Aunt Ruth takes drastic action to “fix” her niece, bringing Cam face-to-face with the cost of denying her true self—even if she’s not quite sure who that is.

              Expected publication: February 7th 2012 by HarperCollins. 

REVIEW:

First off, thanks to Helen from Library Bound Inc for the ARC of this novel.  I was intrigued when she raved about the ‘compelling romance, strong characters and relentless suspense’.  As much as I wanted to love this book, I just found it OK.

I must admit that I did a lot of skimming while reading this lengthy 467-page book.  I found it very richly detailed/character driven which ultimately affected the pacing of the story. Yet, I do know some readers that prefer tons of detail so it does boil down to personal taste. Second, I disagree with the publishers recommended rating of aged 14+. There were some pretty graphic scenes (drug use, sexual nature, self mutilation) that made even myself uneasy.  However, that being said, this is not a light and fluffy book.  This is an important coming of age story of twelve-year-old Cameron Post as she questions her life and the world around her. Since there aren’t that many books for LGBT youth, I’m so happy I now have another option to recommend.  If placed in the right hands, this book could make a huge difference in the life of a questioning teen.  This leads me to my last issue with the book. Nowhere does it blatantly reassure the reader that sending someone away to ‘fix’ them for being gay is NOT OKAY.  Not then, and definitely not now. 

On the flip side–In addition to the beautiful cover, there are some pretty fantastic elements in The Miseducation of Cameron Post. I loved the little special visual additions such as the ‘God’s Promise’ flyer, Cameron’s iceberg therapy drawing and a hand written note from her friend Jamie.  It was an appreciated break from the text. Although lengthy, the novel was very well written! In fact, so well written that I can’t believe it was Danforth’s literary debut. Overall, I’m glad more books like The Miseducation of Cameron Post are being published and gaining attention.  Despite my critiques, it’s definitely worth a read.

Extras:

Watch the book trailer on Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qlZVTQcR35Q

Click here to access  Harper Collins’  online book club guide. 

Kira, a sixteen-year-old medic in training, is on the front lines of this battle, seeing RM ravage the community while mandatory pregnancy laws threaten to launch what’s left of humanity into civil war, and she’s not content to stand by and watch. But as she makes a desperate decision to save the last of her race, she will discover that the survival of humans and Partials alike rests in her attempts to uncover the connections between them—connections that humanity has forgotten, or perhaps never even knew were there.

Partials by Dan Wells is another monster of a book (472 pages) that will appeal to YA dystopian fans. My colleague passed along this ARC after giving it glowing reviews. Although I enjoyed it, I wasn’t as hyped about it as she was.

The Bad

-Too many characters. New cast members were continually added to the plot making it increasingly difficult to differentiate between them, remember what side they were on and ultimately connect with them.   It was also really challenging to visualize them due to a lack of physical descriptions.

-Slow moving. The characters spent the majority of the story problem solving, discussing what to do, whom to trust, etc.  Since I didn’t connect with the characters, I didn’t really care what their thoughts were so I found myself skimming a lot in this drawn out book. Thankfully, the book really picked up in the latter half of the book—tons of action to get your adrenaline going!

The Good

-Plot Twists. I found the book’s concept really interesting and LOVED the plot twists. They got me every time—especially the big last reveal!

-Wells’ world building. Wells did a fantastic job at describing with detail the future world of 2076.

-Book cover.  Partials has such an intriguing cover and fantastic tag line—‘the only hope for humans isn’t human.’  This cover grabs the reader’s attention!

Like many other YA novels, the next instalment in this series was perfectly set up with the cliff-hanger ending and unresolved questions.  I think it would be interesting to read about their future society post-virus.  Look for Partials at bookstores and libraries February 28^th, 2012.

***CONTENT WARNING—Before the summary and review, I would like to give a content warning that this YA book contains sexual, drug and alcohol content, and course language.

GOODREADS SUMMARY: When Carlos Fuentes returns to America after living in Mexico for a year, he doesn’t want any part of the life his older brother, Alex, has laid out for him at a high school in Colorado . Carlos likes living his life on the edge and wants to carve his own path—just like Alex did. Then he meets Kiara Westford. She doesn’t talk much and is completely intimidated by Carlos’ wild ways. As they get to know one another, Carlos assumes Kiara thinks she’s too good for him, and refuses to admit that she might be getting to him. But he soon realises that being himself is exactly what Kiara needs right now.

Review:

I’m not sure how I ended up with Rules of Attraction on my shelf, but I’m happy I grabbed it for my vacation in Jamaica! Although I had not read the first book in the Perfect Chemistry series, I was still able to understand and enjoy this book. Apparently, the whole series (three books in total) have pretty similar plots as they follow the three tough Fuentes brothers as they rebel against society until they all find that special lady that changes their lives.

In this book, the love story revolves around Carlos and Kiera. We get to understand both their perspectives as the book shifts first person narration chapter by chapter. I did like the quiet, shy character of Kiara and her love for over sized t-shirts and old cars. For the most part, she is a goody good girl, yet a different side of her is exposed when she is around Carlos—a bolder sexual side. This romance between Carlos and Kiera does develop nicely, and the sexuality that comes along with it is spicy hot. 

Critiques

-I didn’t understand why Carlos and Kiera ever pretended to be boyfriend/girlfriend. Why was it necessary to fool Madison? I don’t get it.

-The ending. I didn’t buy it. It wrapped way to quickly and easily for the couple. It made it unbelievable for the reader. 

-The epilogue. Whyyyyy? It was painfully beyond cheesy. SKIP IT!

Overall, this book was a quick fun beach read. Despite my critiques, I did enjoy this angsty, romance book and I can understand why readers love this series.  If you would like to read the series, I’ve listed the titles in order:

1. Perfect Chemisty

2. Rules of Attraction

3. Chain Reaction

*FYI-The book trailers are available on Youtube. If you want to see the worst book trailer ever, click here to watch the rap book trailer of Perfect Chemistry. Sigh… just why?

From Goodreads:

What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic’s wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic’s highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country’s most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem.

Full of nonstop action, suspense, and romance, this novel is sure to move readers as much as it thrills.

I really enjoyed this book, especially since I had recently finished The Hunger Games. Dystopian fiction is a popular genre, and Legend makes a great next read for those that enjoyed The Hunger Games and are interested in escaping into what the future may be like (past 2012)! What is the world like after surviving horrific natural disasters? Are the children in the dystopian world of Legend also subjected to some sort of cruel process?  Does the government have a hidden agenda? Could a romance bloom between two characters who were supposed to be lethally opposed to one another?

Set in the Republic of America, what was once Los Angeles, California in the year 2031 we find the two main characters Day and June. Chapter one features Day perspective (in gold print), the following chapter is of June’s (in black print), and the book continues like this flipping back and forth so that the reader is able to understand their experiences and become attached to both as their characters develop.

When we first meet Day he has just seen one of the many JumboTrons displaying a ‘wanted’ add for his arrest:

WANTED BY THE REPUBLIC

FILE NO: 462178-3233 “DAY”

——————————-

WANTED FOR ASSULT, ARSON, THEFT,

DESTRUCTION OF MILITARY PROPERTY,

AND HINDERING THE WAR EFFORT

200,000 REPUBLIC NOTES FOR

INFORMATION LEADING TO ARREST

The author Marie Lu’s effort to put in unique text add-ins, such as the one above, and changing the print colour, aid in creating the ambiance for the story. Her writing style of bouncing between the two characters also creates foreshadowing, while at the same time she puts in plot twists that make this a suspenseful read you don’t want to put down.   

Like many YA titles, Legend is the first book of a planned series. Currently, the release date for the next title is unknown, but let’s hope it’s not too far away! I give it a good 4 out of 5.

Happy reading, Bookit

p.s. for more information about the author or book visit her website

                 

Anna is looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris – until she meets Etienne St. Clair: perfect, Parisian (and English and American, which makes for a swoon-worthy accent), and utterly irresistible. The only problem is that he’s taken, and Anna might be, too, if anything comes of her almost-relationship back home.

J’adore this book.  I devoured this YA romance chick lit book within a day.  Chalk full of teen entertainment and drama, this book will transport you back to your teenage years. Perkins is able to nail every aspect of having a teenage crush. The sweet romance between Anna and Etienne St.Clair (swoon) will make you blush and put a goofy smile on your face. It is a gradual, complicated love that readers will eat up.  The best part? This love story is set in the most romantic city in the world- PARIS! Clearly, Perkins did her research on the city before including details about food, arts, and architecture. I’ve never been to Paris, but this book has made me want to go even more! Sigh…

I also really loved the rich cast of secondary characters–Josh, Meredith, Rashmi, and Bridget. All of these high school students face real problems ranging from relationships, friendships and parents. They realistically handle the situations as any teen would. In the end, readers will connect with these individuals and feel apart of this group of friends.

Overall, this book is an entirely addictive, fun read. Please don’t dismiss it for the cliché title and cover.

DIVERGENT by Veronica Roth!!!

followed by a close second… MY NAME IS MINA by David Almond.

Click the book titles to access their reviews. What was your favourite YA read of 2011?