Seeing Redd

Seeing Redd
written by Frank Beddor



From the beginning, I felt that I was going to like this book. It was finished in one sitting. Beddor dives right in with the new story instead of recapping everything that had happened in the first book. Along the way, as different characters step up to the spotlight, a bit of their backstory is given, all given on a need-to-know basis. There is so much more time dedicated to develping the characters and the world they live in. Hatter is given an extremely powerful story, and Alyss and Dodge's romance moves along as well. So much happens, new characters, new situations, old characters returning and leaving. Arch Enemy is going to be one amazing book to look forward to! One thing really worth mentioning, I'd read the hardcover version of The Looking Glass Wars. Apparently, I'd missed out. The paperback versions of both books have these incredible images in them, and for once, the paperback is a much better buy than the hardcover, just for that. The only thing I slightly disliked about Seeing Redd was the over-description of battles. I like reading about them, but I'd much rather prefer something along the lines of "They fought. ____ won." although I'm sure it keeps some readers reading. Beddor ends on a cliffhanger, and I'm sure fans of the series are already anticipating the final book in the trilogy, where apparently, everything, including the main protagonist, changes. I can't wait!

Rating: 5/5

The Shape of Water

The Shape of Water
written by Anne Spollen



The Shape of Water was just a little difficult to get into--it opens with a huge chunk of descriptive babble that seems to make absolutely no sense. It took a while to understand what the book was about, and even now, it's a little hard to explain. The Shape of Water lacks a solid plot, everything about it, the wording and the structure, is fluid and always moving and changing. I really enjoyed the dialogue; it was highly realistic. I think the main character's need to set fires could and should have been explored in more depth, as it was pretty much the closest thing to a plot that the book had. It took a while to understand the Fishes, and like everything else in this book, I still don't think it's possible to fully understand, but everything gradually began coming together and making more sense. I found parts of the book intriguing (fortune teller), parts very predictable (sibling), but parts unexpected (Andrew). I'd like to talk about that last one a little more. I really liked that something Andrew was going through, something that would ordinarily separate people, brought them together in such a unique way. It's a strange book, not like anything else I've read, but I'm glad I did.

Rating: 4/5

"We're in the process of unknowing one another."

Booking Through Thursday-7/23/09

Which do you prefer? (Quick answers–we’ll do more detail at some later date)

• Reading something frivolous? Or something serious? Seriously frivolous, probably? I don't like authors that take themselves too seriously and the book is all sad sad sad, but I really dislike books that have absolutely no seriousness to them. I like a good balance. Serious subject, real humans, with humor in the mix.
  
• Paperbacks? Or hardcovers?
  
• Fiction? Or Nonfiction?
• Poetry? Or Prose?
• Biographies? Or Autobiographies?
• History? Or Historical Fiction? Oh, God, NEITHER.
  
• Series? Or Stand-alones? I...tend to lean towards series, but I can't find a good one now, so I'm reading more and more stand-alones. Kind of getting tired of it.
  
• Classics? Or best-sellers? Again, neither. I hate hate HATE classics. Best-Sellers tend to kind of suck. I like YA best sellers.
  
• Lurid, fruity prose? Or straight-forward, basic prose?
• Plots? Or Stream-of-Consciousness? I like plots in stream-of-consciousness form :)
  
• Long books? Or Short? Typically "long" but not exceedingly. Not that big a fan of short stories.
  
• Illustrated? Or Non-illustrated? Heh, always up for a few pictures :) Both are wonderful, though.
  
• Borrowed? Or Owned? Ehhhh, I used to be a huuuuge borrower, this has now changed.
  
• New? Or Used? Both.
  

Luna

Luna
written by Julie Anne Peters



I definitely haven't read any other young adult books on the topic, but it is an important one, and this book illustrates exactly why. Luna is the chosen name of Liam, a transgendered individual, who is trying to find their place in the world. The book is narrated by Liam/Luna's sister, Regan. I was greatly educated about what being transgendered is like to the individual and those around them. Luna illustrates that being transgendered isn't a random, once-in-a-while thing, that it's a constant state of being taking over someone's life. There are two stories going on at the same time, Liam/Luna's, and Regan's. Regan is trying to gain a life of her own, but her sibling needs attention, and as the keeper of his secret, Regan's life revolves around Luna's. In addition, the kids are constantly struggling with their parents, and watching the interactions with their dad was probably one of my favorite parts of the book. I was very confused at the beginning with the difference between transgendered and transsexual, and was glad this was cleared up in the end. I was disappointed by the ending, but then again, I should have seen it coming. Leaving, while incredibly depressing, was the right thing for Luna to do, making for such a bittersweet ending, Luna flying off and Regan getting a life of her own. I really recommend this book if you are interested in transgender issues, or if you, like me, had no idea about them and what they were, and are in need of a little enlightenment.

Rating: 4.5/5

Along for the Ride

Along for the Ride
written by Sarah Dessen



I really want to gush about how awesome this book is, but sadly, I don't think I can. I wanted to like it, I really really wanted to like it, and as a book, it was pretty decent, but I'm getting so sick of the standard Dessen formula. It was cute the first time. And maybe the second. But by now, it's gone way too far. It's always the same: Annoying, messed up family situation, girl doesn't know how to deal with it, girl meets boy, boy fixes everything in girl's hypothetical world, and then there's always that really annoying cringey moment when you just know that Dessengirl and Dessenboy are going to have a falling out, but you also know that they'll be back together by the end. The story moves along quickly, which is what I've always liked about Dessen, but I'm reading the same story over and over and over again. I'd like some change! I love all her characters, but why is it always the same outline? Character-wise, Auden's a sweetheart, and I definitely sympathize with her. Eli is not as well developed as the other Dessenboys, but he's still someone you can get to like. The family situation is aggravating, and I'm sure I wasn't the only one really wanting to pummel Auden's dad with a baseball bat (and what happened to that, anyways? Dropped storyline, much?). I'm glad Jake wasn't used as the character to come between Eli and Auden, as that would have made me flip out even more. I don't know, I really want to be enthusiastic and tell you to buy the book and read it and love it, but it's all the same. Pick up any Dessen novel (and do pick one up, they're fantastic and should be read by every teenage girl out there) and you'll get the same story with minor changes. I want some more originality. I know she can do it, she's done it before, why the rut? She's such a fantastic writer, and I want to see more of her writing, but I'd like a new story next time, okay?

Rating: 3/5

Help a Friend Out!

Hey everyone,
I just wanted to spread the word about this scholarship a friend of mine is trying to get. If you could spare a few seconds to vote for her entry, it'd be greatly appreciated!

VOTE HERE

Thanks!

Magic or Madness

Magic or Madness
written by Justine Larbalestier



This book, like many others I've recently read, was difficult to get into, but once the reader familiarizes themselves with the tone, reads wonderfully. There is heavy description in places, and that got extremely distracting, but the story itself is a good one. There is suspense, although one could easily argue that there is far too much suspense, leaving the reader to want answers more than the main character herself! The sometimes-alternating POV is confusing and probably not entirely necessary, as the story moves along great when Reason is the one telling it. Some things still make very little sense, and I'm hoping they are explained in the later books. I feel like Reason's mom should have gotten more time on the page, and again, there's something I hope is remedied in Magic Lessons. The end leaves the reader still not entirely sure who to trust and desperately hoping to see what happens next. There is heavy foreshadowing, and I really do hope, as suggested, that Reason does have more options than just the very bleak ones she is currently being offered. Looking forward to Magic Lessons and hopefully more intriguing revelations!

Rating: 4/5

Good Omens

Good Omens
written by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman



This was my first experience with Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, although I'd heard plenty about both. It was, for the most part, a pretty positive one, although they aren't authors I'd immediately go rush out to get their other books. I was pretty reluctant to read this. I don't know, it feels...blasphemous in a way, even after reading it. I don't exactly regret reading it, but I do think that it needs to be taken lightly. The book itself was well-paced, with interesting writing that kept me wanting to read more. My favorite characters were Aziraphale and Crowley, and I definitely loved the banter and chemistry between the two. Adam was also a pretty fantastic character. However, I don't know about you, but I got pretty annoyed when about halfway through the book, the characters that I just named lost a lot of screen time, barely appearing at all until the very end. Huh? Aren't they the main characters? I lost a lot of the enthusiasm that kept me hooked at the beginning, because all of the interesting characters had, for some reason, received boring tiny storylines all of a sudden, leaving the readers with too many stories all over the place, not one of them particularly interesting. It became just another book that tried much too hard to be quirky and by doing so, failed to be quirky. The reader is left with an unsatisfying, predictable, and anticlimactic ending that really confused me at first, because I couldn't understand why the authors had decided to end it this way. It could have been a great book, but it unraveled and fell apart, and I'm very sad that I had to witness such a great story falling apart.

Rating: 3.5/5

How to Ditch Your Fairy

How To Ditch Your Fairy
written by Justine Larbalestier



While I adored the concept of everyone having their individual 'fairy' that would enhance abilities, the storytelling wasn't exactly top-notch. Unlike say, Louise Rennison, I got used to the slang pretty quickly and managed to start enjoying the story. Everything was light and conversational with a good story, but not that much really happened. I don't know, there's not much to remark on. It's not that the book was a flop, because it's really not, but there's not much of anything that's really awesome about it other than the fairies. I just feel like the story could have been done much faster. There also could have been more sideplots, instead of this one huge plot that took up more time than it needed. I did love everything to do with the fairies--the different types, the mythology, etc. I kind of wish Fiorenza's mother's book was what I was reading instead of this book. Still, it's not *too* bad as a book, just skip it if you're looking for heavy literature.

Rating: 3.5/5

Skin

Skin
written by Adrienne Maria Vrettos



I was definitely excited about Skin once I saw that it was a Simon Pulse book--I don't think I've ever disliked one of those. I didn't quite dislike it, but I'm not entirely sure if I liked it either. It was real and raw, that's for certain, but something just seemed off. The main character is an interesting and complex one, but I wish his sister had been the focus. I would have really liked to have seen alternating POVs, because I think both of them had stories to tell, and just focusing on his story and not hers as much, it was all skewed. We never find out much about Karen, because well, Donnie doesn't know much about Karen either. It is a unique perspective, yes, but it also leads to many moments of downtime where not much happens. Donnie's perspective really doesn't hit home until the very end, which, you know, with alternating POVs, would have been entirely do-able. That said, I do like that it's a brother/sister YA book as opposed to your typical teen romance (not that I have anything against those). Skin leaves the reader with much to think about long after the book is done, and it's a bittersweet end when you realize that it had to happen for Donnie to find his place.

Rating: 3/5

The Looking Glass Wars

The Looking Glass Wars
written by Frank Beddor



The Looking Glass Wars took a while to get into, I'm not going to lie, but once I was about a quarter of the way in, it was smooth reading. The problem is, while the pace picks up and more time is dedicated to storytelling, the time for character develpment is sadly lost, and some of the characters are not explored as in-depth as they should have been. All the connections to Alice in Wonderland are great, but you don't have to be a complete Wonderland Fan to understand and enjoy the story. The weird thing about this book is that, well, technically, it's an Alternate/Author's Universe Fanfic. It's good writing for the most part, though dense at times, but the story isn't as original as it could have been. Nevertheless, I did enjoy this unique new spin on things, as I am a complete sucker for fractured fairy tales. It was very interesting to see the original author now presented as a character in the story, very mind-blowing, but in an awesome way. My personal favorite was Dodge, and I can't wait to see where his story, along with Alyss's go in the next book.

Rating: 4/5


In other news, you may have noticed a new link in my sidebar. This is to a fantastic microfinancing nonprofit called KIVA. I definitely encourage you all to check it out and maybe make a donation. The money you give will allow someone to go out, make some money, and in a couple months time, pay you back, allowing you to keep giving and making more peoples lives better. Hope you consider this great way of giving!

[In other, other news, guess who has gotten completely obsessed with Brotherhood 2.0? Yeah, that'd be me.]