The Fault In Our Stars by John Green (Hannah)

“Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s story is about to be completely rewritten.

Insightful, bold, irreverent, and raw, The Fault in Our Stars is award-winning author John Green’s most ambitious and heartbreaking work yet, brilliantly exploring the funny, thrilling, and tragic business of being alive and in love.”

 

Rating: 4 stars

A few months ago, my mom was walking around Walmart with Nora. Of course, she stopped to look at the book section like always. She picked up John Green’s new book, The Fault in Our Stars, and asked Nora if she had read it yet. Upon opening the front cover of the book, she noticed that it was a signed copy. As many people many already know, Green’s latest novel hit #1 on the New York Times bestseller list this summer before he even finished writing the book. Green released the title through his Twitter and Tumblr page and then announced that he would sign every pre-ordered book and the entire first print-run. So that’s the story of how we ended up buying a signed copy of John Green’s new book from a Walmart in Baltimore.

John Green always makes you think deeper and in this moving novel about love, dreams, and making the most of life it’s hard not to. The main character Hazel is sharp and intelligent like all of Green’s characters, but has a softer feminine side as well. There’s a delicate balance between her lively personality and her lurking illness. Even though the book is essentially about sickness and loss, there is so much love and life between the characters that there is little room for sadness. This book will no doubt leave you in tears wondering, as always, how John Green can describe the indescribable.

The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler (Hannah)

“Josh and Emma are about to discover themselves–fifteen years in the future

It’s 1996, and Josh and Emma have been neighbors their whole lives. They’ve been best friends almost as long–at least, up until last November, when everything changed. Things have been awkward ever since, but when Josh’s family gets a free AOL CD-ROM in the mail, his mom makes him bring it over so that Emma can install it on her new computer. When they sign on, they’re automatically logged onto Facebook . . . but Facebook hasn’t been invented yet. Josh and Emma are looking at themselves fifteen years in the future.

Their spouses, careers, homes, and status updates–it’s all there. And every time they refresh their pages, their futures change. As they grapple with the ups and downs of what their lives hold, they’re forced to confront what they’re doing right–and wrong–in the present.”

Rating: 3 stars

The Future of Us had an incredible premise, but shaky execution. The story spirals out of control in too many different directions and the ending becomes obvious halfway through the book. Emma and Josh, the main characters narrated by Mackler and Asher respectively, don’t initially come off very likable. Emma seems shallow and self-involved while Josh appears kind of pathetic. As the book progresses, the characters begin to round out, but the plot begins to decay. As a kid of mainly “the aughts”, I didn’t catch many of the 90’s references. Perhaps the book would score higher with a slightly older audience. Despite my criticism of the characters and story arc, I did look forward to reading this book when I first heard about it and would recommend it to a reader looking for a brief, interesting read.

Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary (Video Review)

Our little brother did a video review of Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary for us. Enjoy!

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling (Nora)

Summary from Amazon:

“Mindy Kaling has lived many lives: the obedient child of immigrant professionals, a timid chubster afraid of her own bike, a Ben Affleck–impersonating Off-Broadway performer and playwright, and, finally, a comedy writer and actress prone to starting fights with her friends and coworkers with the sentence “Can I just say one last thing about this, and then I swear I’ll shut up about it?”

Perhaps you want to know what Mindy thinks makes a great best friend (someone who will fill your prescription in the middle of the night), or what makes a great guy (one who is aware of all elderly people in any room at any time and acts accordingly), or what is the perfect amount of fame (so famous you can never get convicted of murder in a court of law), or how to maintain a trim figure (you will not find that information in these pages). If so, you’ve come to the right book, mostly!

In Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?, Mindy invites readers on a tour of her life and her unscientific observations on romance, friendship, and Hollywood, with several conveniently placed stopping points for you to run errands and make phone calls. Mindy Kaling really is just a Girl Next Door—not so much literally anywhere in the continental United States, but definitely if you live in India or Sri Lanka.”

Rating: 5 stars

Well-known for her role on the hit TV show The Office, Mindy Kaling shows off her striking brand of hilarity in her debut book. Chock-full of hysterical anecdotes about her life and tidbits of her personal philosophy, Is Everyone Hanging Out With Me? (And Other Concerns) is an absolute gem. Her recollections of an awkward spell spent on Saturday Night Live include encounters with famous funny-women Kristen Wiig, Amy Poehler, and Tina Fey that will have you roaring with laughter. Kaling’s voice is unique in that she succeeds in being completely honest, but still manages to be likable. This quote from the New York Times sums it up for me: “She’s like Tina Fey’s cool little sister. Or perhaps… the next Nora Ephron.”

12 Things to Do Before You Crash and Burn by James Proimos (Nora)

“James “Hercules” Martino has until the end of the summer (a.k.a. two weeks) to accomplish the twelve tasks given to him by his Uncle Anthony. The tasks will take him to the far reaches of Baltimore, lead him to a Beautiful and Unattainable Woman, and change the way he sees his past, present, and future. Spare in words, but abundant in big ideas and laugh out loud humor, James Proimos has crafted a novel for any teenager who’s ever had a complicated relationship with a parent. In other words, everyone.”

Rating: 4 stars

12 Things to Do Before You Crash and Burn is a quick, but immensely enjoyable read. Centered around a to-do list twelve items long given to him by his Uncle, each chapter follows Herc through his hilarious and endearing antics to return an old copy of Winnie-the-Pooh to a college girl he saw on the train and ultimately complete his list. Herc’s Superbad-like manner of speaking and his snarky sense of humor results in lines like “I hip-check the old broad…” Even though it only took me about 45 minutes to read, I thoroughly enjoyed 12 Things to Do Before You Crash and Burn. I’m a softie for a good “boy book” and I highly recommend this to those in search of a male hero who will actually make you laugh out loud.

Gil Marsh by A.C.E. Bauer (Nora)

Summary from Goodreads:

“Good looking, athletic, and smart, Gill Marsh is the most popular kid at Uruk High School, even though he is only a junior. When Enko, a new kid from Montreal, shows up, Gil is wary. Yet Enko is easy going and matches Gil’s athletic prowess without being a threat. Soon, the two become inseparable friends, practicing, studying, and double-dating.

Then suddenly, to everyone’s shock, Enko succombs to an aggressive cancer.

When Enko’s parents take his body and return to Canada, Gil is unable to even say good bye. He is inconsolable. Determined to find Enko’s grave, Gil sneaks away and heads north.

Closely based on the ancient story of Gilgamesh, the Sumerian King from 3000 BC, A. C. E. Bauer has carefully woven the classic elements of myth to follow Gil’s quest and explore the grief and growth of a young man.”

Rating: 5 stars

Gil Marsh by A.C.E. Bauer is an eloquently written, moving retelling of the story of Gilgamesh. The way Bauer brings her characters and their relationships to life using the elements of myth is masterful and very original. Gil’s struggle with the death of his friend is touching and realistic. The best thing about this book is that it’s about dealing with death, but the story isn’t laden with grief like many stories with similar themes. There is a mythical, magical element to the story, but it adds to the plot and makes Gil’s story sweet and hopeful.  I don’t want to give too much away about the story because the way it unfolds is part of the magic, but Gil Marsh is a rare gem among YA novels and I highly recommend it.

Coming from Random House, February 2012.

The Summer I Learned to Fly by Dana Reinhardt (Nora)

Summary from Goodreads:

“Drew’s a bit of a loner. She has a pet rat, her dead dad’s Book of Lists, an encyclopedic knowledge of cheese from working at her mom’s cheese shop, and a crush on Nick, the surf bum who works behind the counter. It’s the summer before eighth grade and Drew’s days seem like business as usual, until one night after closing time, when she meets a strange boy in the alley named Emmett Crane. Who he is, why he’s there, where the cut on his cheek came from, and his bottomless knowledge of rats are all mysteries Drew will untangle as they are drawn closer together, and Drew enters into the first true friendship, and adventure, of her life.”

Rating: 4 stars

The Summer I Learned to Fly is a very satisfying little coming-of-age novel. Drew is a believable, likeable albeit a tad quirky girl. I wasn’t expecting to like the book because when I read the summary on the back it seemed a little ridiculous. I mean, “who he is, why he’s there, where the cut on his cheek came from, and his bottomless knowledge of rats are all mysteries.” That description is a little bit of a turn-off, but the Publisher’s Weekly review was a much better description of the plot and that summary made me want to read the book. The Summer I Learned to Fly is original and refreshing. My favorite aspects were Emmett and Drew’s genuine friendship and it’s gentle blossoming throughout the book and the nice touch of fantasy. I enjoy a little bit of magic and mystery and The Summer I Learned to Fly had just enough without being overwhelming. It was a well-written, quiet coming-of-age story and I recommend it.

Every You, Every Me by David Levithan (Nora)

Summary from Goodreads:

“In this high school-set psychological tale, a tormented teen named Evan starts to discover a series of unnerving photographs—some of which feature him. Someone is stalking him . . . messing with him . . . threatening him. Worse, ever since his best friend Ariel has been gone, he’s been unable to sleep, spending night after night torturing himself for his role in her absence. And as crazy as it sounds, Evan’s starting to believe it’s Ariel that’s behind all of this, punishing him. But the more Evan starts to unravel the mystery, the more his paranoia and insomnia amplify, and the more he starts to unravel himself. Creatively told with black-and-white photos interspersed between the text so the reader can see the photos that are so unnerving to Evan, Every You, Every Me is a one-of-a-kind departure from a one-of-a-kind author.”

Rating: 2 stars (only because I made it to the end)

David Levithan’s novels are usually sort of different and contemporary, but Every You, Every Me was the most extreme example of contemporary overkill I think I’ve ever encountered in literature. There’s only so much “new and fresh” that a book can take before it’s strange and pointless and this book had way way too much “new and fresh”. As I often say, this book has “reached the point at which it’s no longer OK”. I took one look at this book and not only did I not want to start it, but once I forced myself to start reading, I did not want to force myself to finish it. First thing that I hated about this book. The cover. I really can’t stand when book covers have upside down images or text. When I first saw this book I thought it was called Every You, Every You and I assumed if I flipped it over I would be able to read it backwards like a Japanese comic book or something like that. Extremely distracting and confusing. The second thing that I hated about this book were the crossed-out words. I can never decide if I’m supposed to read them or ignore them or glance at them without really taking them in. It chops up the sentences and makes it ten times harder to read the book which was already interrupted every few paragraphs by weird chapter markers such as 5C, 5D, etc. Last time I checked chapters either had titles (i.e. Chapter Twenty-Four of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows entitled “The Wandmaker”) or numbers (i.e. 1). And what is the point of having one paragraph long chapters? The photographs, supposedly an important part of the book, seemed completely random and I didn’t understand how the summary on the back of the book described at all what actually happened. Maybe I missed the point of Every You, Every Me completely and it’s genius, but in my opinion this book was what us kids would refer to as a “hot mess” (for an urban dictionary definition click here).

On sale: September 13, 2011

Variant by Robison Wells (Nora)

Summary from Goodreads:

“Benson Fisher thought a scholarship to Maxfield Academy would be the ticket out of his dead-end life.

He was wrong.

Now he’s trapped in a school that’s surrounded by a razor-wire fence. A school where video cameras monitor his every move. Where there are no adults. Where the kids have split into groups in order to survive.

Where breaking the rules equals death.

But when Benson stumbles upon the school’s real secret, he realizes that playing by the rules could spell a fate worse than death, and that escape—his only real hope for survival—may be impossible.”

Rating: 2 stars

Robison’s Wells’ Variant tries and ultimately fails to be in the category of “Riveting and Painfully Honest Young Adult Dystopian Novel”.  Personally, I like a dystopian novel that is well-written with an interesting premise every once in a while. Even if it’s not the best book ever written, I enjoy reading them to pass the time, but this book was unfortunately struggling to even be described as “not the best book ever written”. The main character is unbearably whiney and spends a good chunk of the beginning of the book complaining about being a foster child. Again, I like the occasional sad foster kid book, but this one was trying way too hard. In a classic dystopian novel, the horrible realization that things are not what they seem creeps up on the characters, but in Variant, Benson realizes almost immediately that there’s something terribly wrong and starts freaking out. Like every dystopian novel, there was a twist or two, which despite being really unpredictable, were strange and uninteresting. It was very original, the first time I’d ever heard it done, but perhaps no one had used the idea before because it’s not a good one. Variant is one of a series and although there were many unanswered questions at the end of the first book, I seriously doubt I will put up with Benson for another few hundred pages.

Variant is coming from HarperTeen on October 18, 2011.

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline (Nora)

Summary from Goodreads:

”

A world at stake.
A quest for the ultimate prize.
Are you ready?

It’s the year 2044, and the real world is an ugly place.
Like most of humanity, Wade Watts escapes his grim surroundings by spending his waking hours jacked into the OASIS, a sprawling virtual utopia that lets you be anything you want to be, a place where you can live and play and fall in love on any of ten thousand planets.

And like most of humanity, Wade dreams of being the one to discover the ultimate lottery ticket that lies concealed within this virtual world. For somewhere inside this giant networked playground, OASIS creator James Halliday has hidden a series of fiendish puzzles that will yield massive fortune—and remarkable power—to whoever can unlock them.

For years, millions have struggled fruitlessly to attain this prize, knowing only that Halliday’s riddles are based in the pop culture he loved—that of the late twentieth century. And for years, millions have found in this quest another means of escape, retreating into happy, obsessive study of Halliday’s icons. Like many of his contemporaries, Wade is as comfortable debating the finer points of John Hughes’s oeuvre, playing Pac-Man, or reciting Devo lyrics as he is scrounging power to run his OASIS rig.

And then Wade stumbles upon the first puzzle.

Suddenly the whole world is watching, and thousands of competitors join the hunt—among them certain powerful players who are willing to commit very real murder to beat Wade to this prize. Now the only way for Wade to survive and preserve everything he knows is to win. But to do so, he may have to leave behind his oh-so-perfect virtual existence and face up to life—and love—in the real world he’s always been so desperate to escape.

At once wildly original and stuffed with irresistible nostalgia, Ready Player One is a spectacularly genre-busting, ambitious, and charming debut—part quest novel, part love story, and part virtual space opera set in a universe where spell-slinging mages battle giant Japanese robots, entire planets are inspired by Blade Runner, and flying DeLoreans achieve light speed.”

Rating: 5 stars

On a scale of 1 to Harry Potter, Ready Player One by Ernest Cline is the best book I’ve read since finishing the Deathly Hallows in 2007. I can’t really describe how or why this book manages to be as amazing as it is, but it’s incredible. Although I wasn’t alive during the 80’s (and Ready Player One is chock-full of 80’s references) so about 95% of the references were lost on me, the pop culture references were gentle and explained enough that I could understand their significance in context. I felt I could relate to the nostalgia about 80’s video games that Ready Player One is so laden with because I grew up playing games like Pokemon Red and Donkey Kong 64 and watching my brother play video games on his Sega Genesis. You definitely don’t need to be a gamer or a geek to love this book though. As a kid of the twenty-first century, I can understand and appreciate the ways that technology has influenced our culture. Ready Player One is a powerful and endearing ode to the age of technology and the ways that it has affected us all.

Ready Player One will be available on August 16, 2011.

Buy it. Read it. Enjoy it.