Looking for Alaska by John Green

True confession:  I ruin things.  Usually nothing that important (though if you had queried my son the other day after I made him put a coat on before playing outside, you would have received a different point of view), but more like I am my own worst spoiler kind of ruin things.  I blurted out the twist in The Sixth Sense when I figured it out.  I watch cop shows and know who did it before we start a line-up.  I have a tendency to know how a book will turn out before I'm halfway through.  I try not to do this, because what's the fun in knowing it before it happens?  But I seem to have no control over it.  Please don't misunderstand.  I'm not saying I'm awesome or that I'm really smart or anything.  What I'm saying is: I ruin things.  That being said, I would like to make a disclaimer about this book.  So here goes.

Disclaimer:  I liked the book.  Really.  But I ruin things.

I've reviewed another book by John Green, The Fault in Our Stars, which I also liked.  But I ruined it for myself on a couple of different levels.  First and foremost, John Green's target audience is teen to young adult.  I am not a teen and sadly no longer a young adult. But as I read the book (in this case, both books) I could not put myself in the teen/young adult mind space.  If I had, I think I'd probably be writing John Green a fan letter right now rather than writing this review.  So that's my own issue, not Mr. Green's.  On another level.....I ruin things.  Both books were too easy to figure out.  Again, had I been a teen/young adult I would probably feel differently.  But I am old, so therefore I ruin.

In Looking for Alaska, we follow our narrator Miles to boarding school.  Miles asked his parents to be

Not the Alaska we're looking for.

sent to his father's old stomping grounds as part of his search for a connection to something  that he wasn't finding at his public school.  Miles goes seeking Rabelais' "Great Perhaps" and does indeed find friendship, challenges, and an irritating number of pranks (sorry, as a teacher I can not condone half of the behavior in the book though that's not really my issue).  Miles becomes friends with his roommate Chip in short order as Chip introduces Miles to life at Culver Creek.  It seems there is a division between the boarders and the commuters, with the implication being that the boarders are of the "have not" variety while the commuters are the obnoxious and entitled "haves."  Nothing new there.  Through Chip, or the Colonel, Miles, or Pudge (also an annoying number of nicknames), becomes friends with Alaska.  Alaska is not a nickname.  And she immediately becomes the desire of young Pudge.  Nothing new here either.

I feel like this book and this movie
are second cousins.

Other things happen:  classes are attended, pranks are planned and pulled, alcohol and cigarettes get a lot of play.  However we all know the story really revolves around Pudge and Alaska; after all, he's the narrator and she's the title of the book.  Alaska has a boyfriend.  Pudge tries to date another girl.  Alaska is not exactly mentally stable.  Alaska, the Colonel, and Pudge must play the ultimate prank on the commuters AND the Eagle (the resident teacher/dorm monitor).  And so on and so forth.  I won't tell you the rest because I don't like to ruin things for other people, but I'm guessing you can probably take it from there.  I will say it's not the happy ending that "The Breakfast Club" is, but I bet you can navigate the issues that do come up.  

So to sum up:  I liked the book.  I thought it was too easy to figure out.  That might be because I'm old and have a preternatural way of ruining all things.  I also want to say to all teenagers everywhere that though you feel your pranks are epic and will never be outdone......they already have been.  So knock it off.  Anyway, it's a good book for the right person.  I am not that person.

Slammed by Colleen Hoover

I think my last post set a new record.  Six comments on the blog, numerous comments on my personal Facebook page and the blog's Facebook page (have you "Liked" us on there yet?) and something like 175 pageviews.  Thankfully, many of you were in agreement with my review of FSOG (that's right, it has it's own acronym now) and I didn't feel half as silly as I thought I was going to feel for thinking the book was a waste of my time.  This time around, I hope the same holds true.

After my review of FSOG I went Facebook stalking.  You know, when you read something that someone wrote on your wall so you click on their page and see where another person commented on their page then you click on that person and read stuff on their wall?  Yeah, well I did that and ended up finding a recommendation for Slammed.  A bunch of people on that page insisted Slammed was a "must read."  Pretending that conversation was intended for me, I downloaded it that night.

Slammed is really kind of a tragic story.  Layken is 18 years old and has recently moved to Michigan from Texas due to the unexpected death of her father.  Her mom works the night shift as a nurse so Layken must balance starting a new school at the beginning of her senior year as well as caring for her nine-year-old brother.  She handles being thrust into responsibility very well and even finds a fast friend in the same situation across the street.  Her neighbor Will is also raising his younger brother due to tragic circumstances.  They quickly fall for each other and just when Layken thinks Michigan might not turn out to be SO horrible, she sees Will at school the next day.  As in he is her third period teacher.  Oops.  In the best interest of both parties they decide to end their relationship but we all know it's never that easy, is it?  Tragedy strikes again and Layken and Will have no choice but to lean on each other.  At the risk of Will losing his job and his only means of financial support and Layken being expelled from school they continue their relationship.  Is it the right choice?  Can they make it through together?  Will love really conquer all? I liked the book enough not to spoil it for you, so I won't.

Like I said, I did like the book.  I was surprised at how much I liked the characters seeing as I have such strong feelings about student/teacher relationships.  (They are icky and wrong.  Did I mention they are icky?).  It was a bit unbelievable that the subject of school and jobs didn't come up in the days their relationship was new, but the author did a good job of covering for it in the book.  Layken and Will were very normal and real though, so I was able to look past it.

I think I would have liked the book more if it wasn't so sad.  Both families involved have been kicked in the gut with some really unfortunate circumstances and that's just not what I was in the mood to read.  (Disclaimer:  I haven't seen my kids in four weeks and that might have just a little bit to do with it..maybe.)   The writing was good, so please don't think it's not.  And I did read it in three days.  There is a sequel to this book called Point of Retreat that was released in April.  I will read that one too, just not right away.  I need something happy and uplifting right now seeing as I don't pick up my kids for another week.  Anyone have any recommendations or do I have to start Facebook stalking again?

Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler

So Carrie has set up a calendar for the three of us.  It sends us reminders that it's our turn to post.  It was incredibly thoughtful of her to do so.  Of course I'm her sister, so I know it's really just her way of being bossy by proxy.  My point is that I got my reminder that I was to post on Monday.  Then Monday came and went with post-Easter sugar coma and getting back to the routine and other family issues.  Then Tuesday came with a malevolent, post-eating Blogger and then a mysterious lack of internet connectivity.  So, despite Carrie's best intentions, I am two days late posting.  My original post was on A Team of Rivals.  It's a great book about Lincoln's Cabinet members.  I'm fairly certain my review was great as well, but it is floating somewhere in the interwebs trash ring.  I will re-write a review for it next week.  But for now, here's my review that I did over on BeTween Books.  If you haven't checked it out yet, you should.  Really.

Why We Broke Up

If it's been awhile since you were in high school, prepare yourself.  This book is written from the perspective of a sixteen year-old girl.  A sixteen year-old dramatic girl.  A sixteen year-old dramatic girl that has been rather unceremoniously dumped.  Well sort of.....anyway, expect to spend a couple of pages thinking "Wow.  She is self-absorbed and needs to ratchet it back a bit."  Also, "This is not going to win any Grammarian Prizes due to the proliferation of sentence fragments and run-on sentences." (One could say that about this review as well, I suppose, but then you're being awful picky aren't you?)  And then try to remember that she's a sixteen year old girl.   A sixteen year-old dramatic girl.  A sixteen year-old dramatic girl that has been rather unceremoniously dumped.

I ended up liking this book quite a bit, but our relationship was pretty tenuous at the beginning.  Like I said, sixteen year-old and whatnot.  This book is a letter that Min (short for Minerva) writes to Ed after their relationship has dissolved.  Min is a theater kind of girl; not Drama Club, but film buff.  Ed is the high school basketball star.  Ed is a year older and about twenty high school relationships wiser than Min, and when they meet at Min's (male) best friend's Bitter Sixteen party (natch) they are intrigued by one another enough to go on a date.  From that a relationship is born fraught with high school drama and the tension that is walking a tight rope of clique social norms.  In other words, Jock meets Film Girl and the only two happy about it are Jock and Film Girl.
This is the box that Min leaves for Ed along with the letter.  It is one of many lovely illustrations within the book which is printed on lovely high gloss paper.  The book weighs approximately one ton due to aforementioned gorgeous paper.  Well, the paper and the earnest teenage emotion.  What's in the box? I'll let Min tell you.  "Every last souvenir of the love we had, the prizes and the debris of this relationship, like the glitter in the gutter when the parade has passed, all the everything and whatnot kicked to the curb.  I'm dumping the whole box back into your life, Ed, every item of you and me."  See what I mean?  That's on page 3.  And it is absolutely appropriate for the sixteen year-old dramatic girl to have these feelings about a relationship that lasted little over a month, but I had to remind myself of that for the first 30 or so pages. 


Once you get past that, though, Mr. Handler (or Lemony Snicket to other Series of Unfortunate Events fans) writes a lovely and true account of a high school relationship between a not-quite-perfect-match.  I included the Pretty in Pink photo at the top because I am 90% sure if John Hughes were still around, he would option this book as his next teenage-centric movie.  There's a basketball game, bonfire, and two Halloween parties that he would capture pretty gloriously (and I know Min would approve of all the movie talk), and some family issues that he would know how to handle.  Then, of course, there's the male best friend that most people assume is either gay or simply too marginal to be an individual with an individual's feelings.  He also happens to be smitten with the (fairly naively) unknowing Min, which is a story line Mr. Hughes already did well (looking at you, Ducky).  It would have to be PG-13 because there's underage drinking and sex.  The sex is not graphic and is actually written in the perfect kind of way, but it happens. They also drink more than a healthy amount of coffee, though really it's just warm creamer and sugar.  Ultimately, I kind of fell in love with this book.  But the book ended.  And that is why we broke up.

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

You know, I make fun of my daughter for things like this.  She won't read the 7th and final Harry Potter because she doesn't want it to be over.  I kid her about it daily.  Don't tell her, but I've been putting off writing and posting the review of this book because like the final Harry Potter, this means the end.  Mockingjay is the third in the Hunger Games series and I've already reviewed the first two.  Remember how much I loved The Hunger Games?  And even better, Catching Fire?  Once this review is posted, it's like the series will vanish.  No one will remember them or worse yet, want to talk to me about them.  The only comfort I have is that I didn't enjoy Mockingjay  near as much as the first two, so writing this review may not sting quite as much.

In this installment, Katniss is back having survived a record two Hunger Games.  And just as you would guess, the Capitol is angry.  They've been made to look the fool yet again and now they want revenge.  President Snow is full of rage and vows to take it out not only on Katniss, but on her family, friends and her entire home district, District 12.  

Doesn't that sound like it would be exciting, thrilling and suspenseful?  It was.  It was all of those things, just on a very different level.  Katniss had endured two whole novels full of excitement, thrills and suspense.  She'd given us page after page of defeating the enemy.  We were her biggest fans.  We couldn't wait to see her stick it to President Snow and the Capitol and live happily ever after.  But as we all know, that's not what happens in war.  I guess I just didn't think Collins would let it end the way she did.  It was emotionally draining for me to read parts of this book.  And when I finished the book I was mad at Collins for not leaving us a whole and perfect Katiniss in the end.  And then I remembered that Katniss was at war.  In fact, her entire country was at war.   No wonder Collins didn't wrap it up nice and neat with a bow on top.  When is war (fictional or not) ever wrapped up pretty with a bow on it?

When did the light bulb go off?  About 2 days later.  One of my Army wife friends told me she didn't like Mockingjay because it hit too close to home.  She said Katniss reminded her of a modern-day soldier, haggard and tired from his last deployment.   Yep.  That was it.   She DID remind me of a soldier.  Dedicated.  Loyal.  Well-trained.  Intense.  Katniss shares many of the same qualities I see in my husband and other soldiers in my life.  And to see someone like that go through so much and not experience a happy ending...well, that just wasn't okay with me.  I think it's safe to say if I ever was to become a published author, all of my books would have happy endings.  Boring?  Yes.   Fine by me?  Yes.

I may not have liked Mockingjay as much as The Hunger Games and Catching Fire, but I did like it.   I certainly liked it enough to review it here, even risking an "I told you so," from my daughter. 

13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson

Oops.  I was having such a good time on my kid-free stay-cation I completely forgot it was my turn to post.  I guess I was busy sleeping in, reading, napping, running errands and clearing off the DVR.  You know, doing really important things like that.  I need to get back on my game, though.  The kids come home Saturday and time is running out.  Here goes.

I can't remember why I downloaded this book.  Forgetfulness is apparently a theme at this stage in my life.  Oh well.  If I was a bettin' woman, I would bet I downloaded it because it was either free or on sale.  Whatever the reason, I was glad I did.

This book chronicles the life of Ginny Blackstone, a young woman who has never made it out of her home state of New Jersey.  She's quiet, shy and for the most part very sheltered.  The only interesting person in her life, her eccentric Aunt Peg, disappears and isn't heard from in almost 3 years.   When a phone call delivers the news that Aunt Peg has succumbed to cancer, Ginny is devastated.  A few days after that, Ginny gets an envelope (a little blue one, of course) in the mail from Aunt Peg.  It contains $1000 and a list of four rules.  What follows are a series of mini-adventures and 12 other little blue envelopes that lead Ginny to Europe and as a result also lead her to finding herself.

"13 Little Blue Envelopes" made me smile.  It reminded me of growing up and my relationship with my Aunt Jill.  She was the one who did my hair for my First Communion, took me shopping, and was cool enough to take me to see Back to the Future when my parents wouldn't.  As a young girl, she was the one I looked up to. I could always count on her for all things fun...something I think every girl needs. As a bonus, I now get to see that same relationship with my daughter and HER aunts.  How cool is that?

In reading the other reviews for this book I found out it is yet another young adult novel.  Honestly, I had no idea.  Maybe it's because I can so easily put myself back in time and feel that closeness with my aunt, but it really didn't come across to me as a young adult read.

A sequel to this book, "The Last Little Blue Envelope" is due out later this year.  Young Adult or not, I'm going to try and remember to give it a read.  Will someone please help me to remember?

Don't take my word for it.  Read more here.

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Just sitting down to write this review makes me want to read the book again.  If you missed my review of the first in this series, The Hunger Games, or just haven't gotten around to reading it yet (I'm talking to you, Sarah Gallagher) you can read it here.  I read The Hunger Games and Catching Fire back to back because I simply couldn't get enough of the main characters, Katniss and Peeta.  I will go one step further and admit I got so wrapped up in them that I had dreams about being chosen for the Games myself.  To be fair, I've also had dreams that I was a Bluth on Arrested Development, had coffee with Chandler, Joey and Phoebe on Friends and fought crime with Lenny and Mike on Law & Order.  As you can see,  I take my books and my tv shows seriously.

Catching Fire starts right where The Hunger Games left off.  Just as Katniss and Peeta are set to make the rounds on their victory tour, Katniss gets a visit from President Snow.   It seems he's not too thrilled with Katniss and how the Games ended.  Now Katniss must figure out a way to convince everyone that she and Peeta are really in love or risk yet another unthinkable fate.   And that, my friends, is all of the plot I am going to reveal in this review.  This book and it's multiple thrilling plot twists is too good to spoil here.  You'll have to read it for yourself.

Instead, let me point out some reasons why I love this book (and well, the entire series).  As I already mentioned, I love my tv shows.  Reading this book makes me feel almost as if I am watching a tv reality show.  If you hate reality shows, don't let that stop you from reading this series.  (The characters are WAY more endearing than anything you'll see on Jerseylicious or Housewives).  What I liked most is that the characters didn't change from the first book.  Katniss is still Katniss.  Her sense of duty and responsibility is unwavering, her love for family was almost intensified.  Peeta was still Peeta, too.  He stayed consistent, kind and devoted, just like I hoped he would.  In other words, the author didn't feel the need to alter the characters from the first book which made me happy. 

I worried that the suspense element would suffer in this book too and I am happy to report that I was wrong.  Part of me wanted poor Katniss and Peeta to return from the games and kick back and enjoy themselves into old age.  But the other part of me (you know, the part that loves good books) wanted more gut-wrenching drama.  I wanted more plot twists, more of Katniss outsmarting the Capitol and quirte simply... more butt-kicking awesomeness.  The author delivered.

If you've read these books PLEASE back me up here!  Comment and tell me/us what you think.  If not, put it on your summer reading list.  Everyone needs some "butt-kicking awesomeness" in their summer, don't you think?


(You can read other reviews here).

My Blood Approves by Amanda Hocking

Amy says:

A few things you should know before you read this review:  I don't believe in vampires (or werewolves, for that matter).  I have no desire to relive the awkwardness of my teenage years.  Girls that fall for two guys at once and can't decide which one they want annoy me.  All of those things aside, I really liked this book.

My Blood Approves is the classic vampire tale (and by "classic" I mean I've read the Twilight series and am comparing it to them).  Girl meets cute guy.  Cute guy is a vampire.  Cute guy has an even cuter vampire brother.  Girl likes him too.  Girl has a crappy home life, moves in with vampire family, and then spends entire book trying to balance the two.  It's not a book I would ever have pictured myself liking.  So why did I?

I think the most enjoyable aspect of this book for me was that the author kept it simple, and for that I thank her.  Nothing fancy, nothing cheesy. She gets in, tells the story and gets out.  If only every paranormal book could be like this one!  It is a fast read and anything I can pick up and finish in under a week is a plus in my book.  I find that the older I get, the less patience I have for books that require too much of my time (sounds a bit snooty, I know).  I should note that upon further investigation, I found out the author is from the Midwest, about my age and has a strong affinity for the Muppet's, so maybe that is why I liked it so much.  Either way, it's a good book and the second installment in the series, Fate, is even better.   

From the GoodReads website:
Teenager Alice Bonham's life feels crazy after she meets Jack. With his fondness for pink Chuck Taylors and New Wave, he's unlike anyone she knows. Then she meets his brother, Peter. Even though he can't stand the sight of her, she's drawn to him. Falling for two guys isn't even the worst of her problems. Jack and Peter are vampires, and Alice finds herself caught between love and her own blood.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Amy says:  Unlike my last review, I actually paid for this book.  Shocking, I know!  A friend had been talking incessantly about it and her self-proclaimed addiction to its characters on Facebook, so I had to see what all of the fuss was about.  And  while I didn't feel the need to update my status after every chapter (I was a little embarrassed to admit that I was reading a Young Adult novel), I will admit that I devoured this book in a weekend.  

The author created a plot that was intense from the very beginning.  Being introduced to the main character, Katniss, right as she was thrown into a competition for her life left me no choice but to attach myself to her immediately.    I love reality TV (something else I am a little embarrassed to admit) and following Katniss through the competition gave the book  a reality TV feel (think Survivor), which made it that much harder for me to put down.

Like I said, I read this book in basically 48 hours.  But the fact that the author used children, some as young as 12 years old, as competitors in The Hunger Games totally disturbed me.  I found myself on the verge of being sick to my stomach in some chapters and had to remind myself that it was all make-believe.   While that is a testament to the talent of the author, I would think twice about letting a young reader read this book.   

I have since read "Catching Fire" and "Mockingjay," the other two books in the trilogy, and will review those in future posts. 

Amazon's synopsis 

In a not-too-distant future, the United States of America has collapsed, weakened by drought, fire, famine, and war, to be replaced by Panem, a country divided into the Capitol and 12 districts.  Each year, two young representatives from each district are selected by lottery to participate in The Hunger Games.  Part entertainment, part brutal intimidation of the subjugated districts, the televised games are broadcasted throughout Panem as the 24 participants are forced to eliminate their competitors, literally, with all citizens required to watch.  When 16-year-old Katniss's young sister Prim, is selected as the mining district's female representative, Katniss volunteers to take her place.  She and her male counterpart, Peeta, the son of the town baker who seems to have all the fighting skills of a lump of bread dough, will be pitted against bigger, stronger representatives who have trained for this their whole lives.