Top Ten Tuesday – More Books Please!

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme created by The Broke and the Bookish.  A lot of blogs I follow also play along, so I’ve decided to join.  Hopefully it’ll be a fun easy way to start blogging again.

This week is Top Ten Authors I Wish Would Write Another Book.

1.  J.K. Rowling – I’m pretty sure she’s on everyone’s list, and honestly I don’t know if anything else she would write would live up to HP7, but I’m willing to take that risk.

2.  Meg Cabot – Ok, Meg Cabot’s pretty busy still writing books, but honestly I’d love more Allie Finkle.  I think she’s done with #6 and that makes me sad.

3.  Michelle Cooper – Have you all read A Brief History of Montmaray and The FitzOsbornes in Exile yet?  Do it!

4. (Avert your eyes Jen!!!)  Stephanie Perkins – Isla and the Happily Ever After has been pushed back to 2013 to make a better novel, which I respect, but I sure wish it were easier to pop out more books.

5.  Jon Scieszka & Lane Smith – The Stinky Cheese Man, Math Curse, Squids Will Be Squids, etc.  Together is where they belong.  Collaborate more often!

6.  Rick Riordan – He’s practically as prolific as Patterson (when you remove the co-writers), and we’ve established his books are candy.  I wouldn’t mind getting cavities for more Percy Jackson.

7.  Ally Carter – I am officially declaring Ally Carter the female Rick Riordan.  In that her books are also like candy.  More Gallagher Girls and Heist Society please!

8.  Melanie Watt – I’m pretty sure if there were 100 books about Scaredy Squirrel, I would read them ALL.

Hmm, well that’s only 8, but since it’s my first Top Ten, I deem that ok.

What would you put on your list?

– Jill

New YA Books

Since I’m the librarian who orders YA books at my library, I get to hear about great new books coming out.  I’ve been to a few workshops lately and read a ton of journals.  Some of the books I order are ones I have to because they’re popular author or celebrities and teens will read them (Tyra Banks, Hilary Duff, Twilight graphic novel).  But most times the books I order look awesome.  Here are some good ones that recently came out, from oldest to newest.

The Poisoned House by Michael Ford

Life can be cruel for a servant girl in 1850s London. Fifteen-year-old Abi is a scullery maid in Greave Hall, an elegant but troubled household. The widowed master of the house is slowly slipping into madness, and the tyrannical housekeeper, Mrs.Cotton, punishes Abi without mercy. But there’s something else going on in Greave Hall, too. An otherworldly presence is making itself known, and a deadly secret will reveal itself—a secret that will shatter everything Abi knows.

Just in time for Halloween, who doesn’t love a good ghost story.

 

The Eleventh Plague by Jeff Hirsch

Twenty years after the start of the war that caused the Collapse, fifteen-year-old Stephen, his father, and grandfather travel post-Collapse America scavenging, but when his grandfather dies and his father decides to risk everything to save the lives of two strangers, Stephen’s life is turned upside down.

I heard the author speak at Anderson’s Bookshop’s YA Literature Conference last weekend and ended up buying a copy of the book.  I’m a fan of dystopian books, and this one sounds really good.  Plus, Suzanne Collins liked it!

 

Sweet Venom by Tera Lynn Childs

As monsters walk the streets of San Francisco, unseen by humans, three teenage descendants of Medusa, the once-beautiful gorgon maligned in Greek mythology, must reunite and embrace their fates.

As soon as I heard that this is essentially Percy Jackson with a female twist, I wanted to read it.  Thanks to Rick Riordan, I am interested in Greek mythology, so I am on board with another book about it.  And it is supposed to be good, not just a Percy Jackson knockoff.

 

Blood Wounds by Susan Beth Pfeffer

Willa is lucky: She has a loving blended family that gets along. But when a bloody crime takes place hundreds of miles away, it has an explosive effect on Willa’s peaceful life. The estranged father she hardly remembers has murdered his new wife and children and is headed east toward Willa and her mother. Under police protection, Willa discovers that her mother has harbored secrets that are threatening to boil over. Has everything Willa believed about herself been a lie? But as Willa sets out to untangle the mysteries of her past, she also keeps her own secret—one that has the potential to tear apart all she holds dear.

I wasn’t super-excited about this book at first; I think because I didn’t really know the plot, but I heard it booktalked and it sounds really suspenseful.  And we all know how Susan Beth Pfeffer can keep us hooked!  (Have you read Life As We Knew It???)

Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

Budding designer Lola Nolan doesn’t believe in fashion . . . she believes in costume. The more expressive the outfit – more sparkly, more fun, more wild – the better. But even though Lola’s style is outrageous, she’s a devoted daughter and friend with some big plans for the future. And everything is pretty perfect (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the dreaded Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket, return to the neighborhood.  When Cricket – a gifted inventor – steps out from his twin sister’s shadow and back into Lola’s life, she must finally reconcile a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door.

Ok, you guys know how much we loved Anna and the French Kiss?  I loved Lola just as much, if not more(?).  Seriously, I’m not sure why I haven’t bought this book yet.

The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson

The day Louisiana teenager Rory Deveaux arrives in London marks a memorable occasion. For Rory, it’s the start of a new life at a London boarding school. But for many, this will be remembered as the day a series of brutal murders broke out across the city, gruesome crimes mimicking the horrific Jack the Ripper in the autumn of 1888.  Soon “Rippermania” takes hold of modern-day London, and the police are left with few leads and no witnesses. Except one. Rory spotted the man police now believe to be the prime suspect. But she is the only one who saw him. Even her roommate, who was with her at the time, didn’t notice the mysterious man. So why can only Rory see him? And more urgently, why has Rory become his next target? 

I got an ARC of this at ALA, but I didn’t have time to read more than the prologue.  From that though, I could tell that this is not MJ’s typical book.  Still I’m excited to read it as soon as I get the chance.

Crossed by Ally Condie

In search of a future that may not exist and faced with the decision of who to share it with, Cassia journeys to the Outer Provinces in pursuit of Ky – taken by the Society to his certain death – only to find that he has escaped, leaving a series of clues in his wake.  Cassia’s quest leads her to question much of what she holds dear, even as she finds glimmers of a different life across the border. But as Cassia nears resolve and certainty about her future with Ky, an invitation for rebellion, an unexpected betrayal, and a surprise visit from Xander – who may hold the key to the uprising and, still, to Cassia’s heart – change the game once again. Nothing is as expected on the edge of Society, where crosses and double crosses make the path more twisted than ever.

Woohoo, the sequel to Matched will finally be out on November 1!

Are you looking forward to any of these or others?

– Jill

Recap: HP & the Prisoner of Azkaban

Ahh, Prisoner of Azkaban. I love this book because we get background on Lily & James. Voldemort doesn’t appear in any form, which is also a nice break & help prevent the series from seeming too formulaic.

I remember when I read this for the first time. I was babysitting my cousins, one who is also a big fan. I told her how I loved Sirius Black & accidentally ruined the surprise at the end since she hadn’t read it yet. Oops. Sorry, Katie!

There seems to be at least one thing I’ve forgotten about in each book. This time it’s Cho Chang.

One of my favorite things about this book is the introduction of the dementors.  The idea of the dementors is perfect.  I love when J.K. comes up with ideas for why things happen in the Muggle world.  I read that she came up with the idea after she was clinically depressed.  The concept of the dementors who suck the happiness and positive emotions out of you is fascinating…terrifying…and fascinating.

I just whipped through the last few chapters. There’s so much info you want to know, it’s hard to stop. The scene in the Shrieking Shack is so vivid. I’m not a giant fan of the repeated stuff after they go back in time, but I deal with it. All in all, a great book!

MOVIE

A lot of things are different in this movie, since it’s a new director.  I like the darker tone Alfonso Cuarón took with it.  There are a few things I dislike about it though.  For one, the shrunken heads on the Knight Bus.  I HATE them!

I do like a lot of things about this film though:  David Thewlis as Lupin is great, and I think casting Emma Thompson as Trelawney and Gary Oldman as Sirius was *perfect*.  Michael Gambon as the new Dumbledore is good too, but still doesn’t quite match the Dumbledore I have built in my head.  He’s closer than Richard Harris for me, but still isn’t as playful as Dumbledore seems to be in the books.

The dementors are fine with me in this movie, but I know they change as different directors come in, so I’ll have to remember to compare them with other versions.

Ooh, there are several things different from the book!  Maybe I didn’t read the book before anytime I watched the movie?  I really dislike how in the movie Harry’s most powerful happy moment when he’s learning how to conjure a patronus is his parents talking to him.  Um, no.  Harry’s most powerful happy moment is supposed to be when he found out he’s a wizard and is leaving the Dursleys.  Usually if there’s a change from the book, it’s to cut out a secondary plotline or to speed things along – like how Harry sees Peter Pettigrew on the Marauders’ Map and goes looking, which is how Snape gives it to Lupin instead of getting caught in Hogsmeade.  But the change with Harry’s most powerful memory is just really that important, is it?  So why couldn’t it be the same as the book?  It’s really surprising to me since Steve Kloves adapted the book to movie for the first two movies as well, which were very similar.

– Jill

It All Ends Thursday.

I have spent the last ten days re-reading the Harry Potter books for what is probably the 12th time (at least for the first four books).  I went through a period of many years when I read them at least twice a year, but I haven’t read them in at least two years.  It was wonderful to jump back into one of my favorite worlds and meet up with my favorite characters again.  I enjoyed reading each and every book, but in different ways than I had in the past, which was interesting.

I first read the books back in November of 2001.  That was almost ten years ago!!!  Back then I was an immature little college sophomore frolicking around London and having the time of my life.  But as soon as I picked up that first book, I completely gave up sightseeing and going to the pub to sit and read in my little room.  I remember being on the tube on my way to the theater or a museum and seeing at least half a dozen people reading Harry Potter.  It was funny to see the ones who tried to hide it by buying the “adult” covers and then the ones who blazenly didn’t care and were reading the kids version.

Ah, memories.  I can remember what I was doing when I read each of the books for the very first time.  I can also remember my first experience seeing each of the movies.  Even when the books ended, we still had three more movies to look forward to, so it was not as sad as it could have been.  Now it is really all going to be over and there is nothing left to look forward to.  (Don’t come back and say anything about Pottermore.  Don’t even get me started on that…..that just seems like a bunch of rubbish to me.  She should have spent her time working on the Encyclopedia, not a stupid website.  J.K. Rowling’s on my list now.)

Anyway, I am really excited to see the movie on Thursday at midnight.  I am lucky enough to be going with a huge group of people, and I will be the first person to get there to hold our spot in line.  I am going to pack my bag pretty soon so I will have everything I need.  Pillows, blankets, laptop with movies, books, headphones, cards, and lots of food are all necessary to survive the wait in line.

That is going to be a great day for me because it is the last day of summer reading programming.  I am going to clean up from my afternoon program as quick as a bunny (Oh man, why did I have to do a glitter project on the last day!!!) and skip out of the library waving my hands in the air and singing the Hallelujah Chorus.  I have already warned people that I will be doing this, so it probably won’t be seen as too odd.  After that, I won’t have to go back to work till the next Wednesday, so I am going to be the happiest girl in the world when those first few credits start to roll.

I will be very happy, but I’m pretty sure I am going to cry through the whole thing, so I should probably add a box or two of Kleenexes to my bag.

Here is a little video to catch everyone up on all the movies, and to show just how much those crazy kids have grown 🙂

Anyway, I hope that all my nerdgirls have similar plans to see the movie and get to see it with good friends.  I wish I could see it with you, but I haven’t learned to apparate yet.

Jen

Good Luck to the 48 Hour Book Challenge Participants!

Sorry folks, but for the first time in 3 years, I won’t be doing the 48 Hour Book Challenge.  It is a really busy weekend for me and thinking about squeezing the challenge into my schedule makes me feel stressed rather than happy.

This weekend is the annual city wide garage sales for our town and I have already been shopping it up over here.  I plan to go out way early tomorrow and hit the good sales.  One of the sales at the library has GIRL SCOUT COOKIES!!!  The last two years I have rushed through the sales like a crazy person to get back and read, but tomorrow I am going to take my time and browse to my heart’s content.  Then I have a teen program at night and a meeting on Sunday (ugh).  So I am not going to have a lot of time to read.

Not only will I be pressed for time, but I am also well on my way to my summer zombie-fied state.  I read like a freakin’ maniac during the rest of the year, but in the summer I literally stop functioning outside of work.  Last night was our summer reading kick off and there were like 400 people there.  After something like that I just want to sit on my couch and stare at the wall for days, because my brain literally can’t handle a book.  I will try to keep up my reading this summer, but my amount of books read is going to decrease dramatically from now until August.

So, I have rambled on for way to long, just to say that I’m not doing the challenge this year.  So good luck to everyone who is already reading away (go Abby!) and I hope you all reach your reading goals!

Jen

 

So many books

Hooray, I made it through BEDA again this year. Thanks for hanging in there with us everybody!

So now that BEDA is over, maybe I can get back into reading. Here’s what’s currently in a pile by my bed:

– Amelia Lost by Candice Fleming
– Emily the Strange: The Lost Days by Rob Reger
– Abandon by Meg Cabot
– Audrey, Wait by Robin Benway
– Delirium by Lauren Oliver

I’m also already working on these:
– Moonwalking with Einstein by Joshua Foer
– Chasing Lincoln’s Killer by James L. Swanson
– Love the One You’re With by Emily Giffin
– Bumped by Megan McCafferty

*Whew*

– Jill

Linda Urban is My Hero

Today I got to spend the day at the Kids First Conference in Des Moines.  Yea!  It is so rare that I get to escape the library for something like this because with only two people working full time, it is hard for either of us to get away.  I was super excited to go today because the author of one of my very favorite books was doing the speech over lunch.

Linda Urban is the author of A Crooked Kind of Perfect, which I discovered way back when I was working in Illinois.  I have read it several times since then, and it gets better every time.  The book is so amazing that I have talked about it before and will probably never stop raving about it.   A Crooked Kind of Perfect is the rare kind of book that makes me do “the happy cry” as I like to call it.  Now, I do the happy cry all the time during movies.  Any Disney animated film, Jane Austen adaptation, Ramona and Beezus, The Holiday, Enchanted, are just some that come to mind.  But there are very few books that make me so joyful that I burst into tears (I do cry at sad parts of books all the time, but that is different).  There are only a few that can do that including Keeper, Greetings From Nowhere, and A Crooked Kind of Perfect.

I told Linda while she was signing my book that I loved her book and she said, “And I love YOU!”  It made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.  I also told her about the happy cry thing and she seemed really pleased.

Her speech was really really good.  I have heard quite a few authors speak, and I would have to say she is one of my favorites.  She talked about her background and how she became a writer.  She said that A Crooked Kind of Perfect started out as a picture book, which is kind of hard to believe after reading it.  I am SOOOOOOO glad that she ended up writing the novel and didn’t give up when she got her rejection letter saying “This Is Not A Picture Book!”

She was very funny and down-to-earth and talked about how she still isn’t satisfied with the final version of her book and that when she reads it out loud to people she changes some of the words 🙂

So in conclusion:  Linda Urban = pure awesomeness.  I was sitting at a table of people who hadn’t read her book and every single one of them left the room dying to pick it up.  That is the sign of a great speaker.  We also found out that her next book Hound Dog True comes out in the fall and already has a starred review in Kirkus (she didn’t mention this herself, someone else brought it up).  Can’t wait!  Can’t wait!!!!

Jen

P.S.  I am so mad that I left my camera in the car today.  I totally wanted a picture of me with my new BFF!

My Thoughts on “Where She Went” by Gayle Forman

Let me start this out by saying that this is not a review of Where She Went.  If you want to read a real review, check out what Abby (the) Librarian had to say about it.  I am just going to ramble on about how I felt about the book, so don’t expect anything great.  Also, don’t read this review if you haven’t read If I Stay first.

First of all, let me say that I ended up loving this book with all of my soul, but at first I even hated the idea of Where She Went.  If I Stay was such a perfectly realized story that ended brilliantly and I was so furious that there was going to be a sequel.  Not only does it give away what happens at the end of the first book (gee, I wonder if she lived or not) but it just seemed like a ridiculous way to cash in on the acclaim of the first book (I know that this probably is not true at all, but that was where my pessimistic mind immediately went).

Then I heard the plot of the book and got even more mad.  So after Adam stays by Mia and helps convince her to stay, she abandons him for Julliard and then they don’t speak for like 3 years???  Acck!!!  My heart is breaking just thinking about that.  But my dear friend Abby told me that I would like this book, and she knows what I like and I trust her judgement.  There were many times during this book when I thought, “What was Abby thinking???”  But she was right in the end (as she usually is).

If I Stay was told from Mia’s point of view, but Where She Went follows Adam.  His band has exploded in popularity over the last few years and he has become an unwilling celebrity.  He is basically miserable all of the time, constantly dwelling on what Mia did to him.  Mia has also become very successful and is launching her career as a cellist.  They both end up in New York and reconnect over one night spent touring the city together.

I was extraordinarily cautious as I was reading this.  I pretty much read it with my eyes have closed and through my fingers.  I was trying not to look too closely as I read.  It was kind of like a relationship with a new guy.  I was on my guard for the whole first few dates (first 50-100 pages).  Then I started to get more comfortable with it and started to let myself care about what was happening (page 100-150).  By page 150 I was hooked and knew that my heart would be broken if things didn’t turn out the way I wanted them to.

It was really hard for me to read about how sad Adam’s life had become, especially after totally falling for him while reading the first book.  I was also really frustrated because I was so used to seeing things from Mia’s point of view and wanted to know what she was thinking all the time.  I think one time I said out loud, “Mia what is the matter with you, you crazy girl!!!??”

One thing I loved about this book is seeing Mia and her family from Adam’s point of view.  The book alternates between Adam’s thoughts in the present and flashbacks which include Mia, Teddy, and her parents.  In If I Stay, Mia could never quite understand why someone like Adam was going out with her, but in this book, we really see how much he loved her, and her family.  I will say that this opportunity alone was enough reason for her to write the book.

By the end of the book I was in tears, just like I was with If I Stay.  Ms. Forman is a gorgeous writer, but I didn’t have much of a chance to appreciate it with my quick eyes-half-shut read through.  So I am definitely going to pick up this book again as soon as I have the chance and really enjoy the writing, since I know what is going to happen.

So, if you enjoy YA novels at all, you must read If I Stay followed by Where She Went.  If you are a fan of the first book, I know you will like this one too.

Jen

Reading Like a Grownup~~Unfamiliar Fishes

Sarah Vowell is one of my all-time favorite authors. Actually she is one of my all-time favorite people in general. I kind of want her to be my best friend so she will invite me to go with her as she travels the world to research her books.

For those of you who don’t know who she is, she was the voice of Violet in The Incredibles. But, she is also an incredibly intelligent and hilarious woman who writes about history, which is one of my favorite things. Yea!! She wrote one of the best books ever, Assassination Vacation, which is about her trips to various places where American presidents have been assassinated. Love that book!

Her newest book is Unfamiliar Fishes and it is about the history of Hawaii.  Reading this book, I discovered that I knew absolutely NOTHING about this topic, which is kind of sad, since I was a history major in college.  Hawaii was always kind of an afterthought that was tacked on at the end of the discussion of the Spanish-American War.  “Blah, blah blah, we defeated Spain, and acquired all this territory, including Hawaii.”  In reality, the history of Americans in Hawaii is incredibly disturbing.

Vowell covers a lot of ground in this book, and does it in her usual funny, sarcastic way.  She tells the story of the American missionaries who came to the islands and changed them forever.  The historical information is broken up by anecdotes of her own experiences visiting Hawaii.  The stories are perfect additions to the book, like when she describes her nephew Owen’s reaction to an emotional hula performance in celebration of David Malo Day by saying, “If I could marry Hawaii, I would do it immediately.”

As an American, reading this book left a bad taste in my mouth.  This is one of those horrible things from our history that nobody even knows about anymore.  We do such a great job of sweeping all of that stuff under the rug, so literally only 100 years later, nobody knows that we basically went in, overthrew the queen, and took over.  Yikes.

Vowell does do a great job of pointing out that the missionaries who went to Hawaii were not all bad.  They did help create the first written language on the islands and educated the majority of the population so that Hawaii became one of the most literate nations in the world in a matter of decades.  They also helped point out that incest was bad.  Good call there, folks.

Anyway, read Unfamiliar Fishes because it’s awesome.  It’s funny and you will feel really smart after you read it (at least I always feel smart after reading a book like this).  Then you can join me on my trip to Hawaii to go and apologize to everybody I see.

Jen

Dear Josh Hutcherson:

Hi Josh,

You don’t know me, but I am a huge fan of your work.  Now that I think about it, you are probably one of my favorite actors.  Zathura, Bridge to Terabithia, Journey to the Center of the Earth, The Kids Are All Right, Firehouse Dog (yes, even Firehouse Dog….that movie is not bad, actually very enjoyable) I have seen and loved (and own) them all.  And man, your performance in Little Manhattan is pitch perfect.  You did a better job of portraying the agonizingly painful reality of being in love than any actor I have ever seen.  The scene with you crying in your room broke my heart into a thousand tiny pieces and I’m not quite sure if I have fully recovered.  So, in short, I think you are amazing.

Back in the innocent days before you had even heard of The Hunger Games

But Josh……oh Josh.  What are you thinking???  Taking the role of Peeta in The Hunger Games movie!!!!???  I knew that you wanted it way back when I read your interview with EW, but I just kind of laughed it off.  “Oh, that’s great, he’s read the book and he liked it, but he’s dreaming if he thinks he will get the part.”

Well, now you’ve got it, and already the internet has exploded with people saying horrible and vicious things about how wrong you are for the part (granted, I am one of them, but I am trying not to be too mean).  I feel very protective about celebrities that I am a fan of, so I don’t want you to have to deal with all of this horribleness.  Anyone who was cast in the part was going to be subjected to intense scrutiny and criticism, but you are going to get it probably more than anyone else (maybe only Alex Pettyfer would have gotten more criticism).

See, the thing is……you just don’t look anything like Peeta.  And I know this might sound silly……Hollywood magic can transform anyone from a brunette to a blond and so on and so forth.  I am worried that all the main characters of the film are going to be so covered in dye and makeup and wigs that they are going to end up looking like people from The Capital.  Honey, it doesn’t matter how good an actor you are, if you look freaking ridiculous, that is all people will see (example: the entire cast of Twilight….although I don’t know if that is the best example since I haven’t seen many of them act outside of that movie).

I think the main issue I am having is that Peeta’s physicality is such a huge part of his character.  In my head, (and in the book!!) he is a huge, solid, hulking presence.  He’s like the big friendly giant.  The picture in my head of a small but muscly Katniss trying to support the huge form of Peeta through the forest while he is hurt is crystal clear.  You might be able to put on lots of muscle so you can throw things around the room during your training time, but (and I hate to say this) nothing can make you taller.  Jennifer Lawrence is the same height as you.  This might sound like a silly thing…..but it is the same as Annabeth having straight brown hair in Percy Jackson; it just doesn’t work.

I have no doubt in my mind that you can play the part of Peeta acting-wise.  You will do a phenomenal job at that.  But the whole time, I will see you, Josh Hutcherson, not Peeta, the baker’s son.

I hope that I am wrong and that this all turns out well for you.  I am going to try to keep an open mind when I go see the movie.  I would like to say that I have complete faith in the filmmakers, but I think (and I could be wrong) they are getting input from Suzanne Collins……and she wrote the craptastic Mockingjay that ruined the series for me……..so, obviously we can’t trust them.

Anyway, good luck dealing with all the horrible things you will encounter over the next year.  I hope for your sake that everyone loves you and you become the next Robert Pattinson and girls stake out your house and get tattoos of your face…….well, on second thought, maybe that wouldn’t be the best thing…

Wishing you all the best,

One of your biggest (and probably oldest) fans,
Jen

P.S.  I’m not even commenting on the Gale casting because frankly, I just don’t care.  Gale is too small a role in the first movie (but I can see them totally beefing that up to make it more Twilight-y) and I hope they don’t make the second two movies because really, I hated those books.

P.P.S.  In a perfect world…..Chris Pratt circa 2002 would have played Peeta and all would be right with the world.

So totally Peeta