Meghan's comments
(member since Jan 19, 2009)
(showing 1-20 of 100)
You have some of my favorites for this year on your list too! I love love love The Shadow of the Wind. Apparently Ruiz has a new one out now as well - haven't read it yet but it is on my list!
74. Sabriel - Garth Nix (11/15/09)
Harry Potter has spoiled me for all fantasy written before 1997. Seriously. At some point, Gath Nix's tale of a young girl saddled with the responsibilities of her death-controlling Abhorsen ancestors would have been intense, a page-turner. But you just can't compete with Hogwarts. And the totally unnecessary romance? Give me Ron and Hermione's innocent but tense love-hate relationship any day of the week.
I bought the trilogy all at once, so I still have Lirae and Abhorsen, the 2nd and 3rd books, staring me in the face. To read or not to read? That is the question.
Welcome! And I must say, I'm pretty impressed that you really read Moby Dick. I put that up on my "Yeah, right" shelf.
73. The Lost Symbol - Dan Brown (September 2009)
Reading Dan Brown's book is a little like taking crack - all of the short little chapters keep me wanting more, more, more! That being said, while this was a pageturner, and while I could not put it down until I finished it, the ending was waaay too preachy. I was completely unsatisfied at the end! But hey - there are worse ways to spend 24 hours than devouring a Dan Brown book!
72. Fire - Kristin Cashore (Early October 2009)
This book was so completely unexpected. Please do not consider it a sequel to Graceling... in the hallowed vein of Lois Lowry's The Giver, The Messenger, and Gathering Blue, Fire is a companion novel to Graceling. And what a companion it is! Set in a parallel world, at a time that (we think) is very shortly before Graceling, Fire follows the story of another young female protagonist, also with very special gifts that isolate her from the world at large and from those she loves.
Please don't take my comparison to Lois Lowry to mean that is was perfect. In fact, there were some parts that were so similar to the Graceling plot (yes, we know you love the troubled young man who seemingly can't stand to look at you) that I was a trifle bored with the pacing. But Cashore can create a world that entraps you in its beauty and ecccentricities, and this alone makes Fire a worthwhile read.
Overall - 4 stars.
71. Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins (Early October, 2009)
Eagerly anticipated follow-up to one of my favorite 2008 YA novels, The Hunger Games. So I really thought the whole novel was going to happen outside the Hunger Games arena - which was cool, in my book. I was ready for Katniss to take the bull by the horns and start a revolution, a la Joan of Arc. So when Collins ... very suddenly, mind you... drops you back into the Arena with Kat and Peeta, I was a little shocked but hey - let's go with it. I mean Hunger Games was TERRIFIC - I'll ride along with you, see where it takes us.
That's where my admiration ended.
The sections of the novel in the arena were paced too quickly for any real suspense to build, the characterization of the new competitors we meet in the arena was uneven and rushed, and the climax - well, I've already given too much away, but let's just say I was like... huh?
So will I read the next one? Yeah, probably. If not just for the fact that reading two books in a trilogy is like playing seven notes in a scale - you feel like there is just something missing until you finish. And will I recommend it to others to read? Well, of course read The Hunger Games. And if you read that one, you might as well read this one too!
70. Waiting for Normal - Leslie Connor (Sepember 2009)
One of those breath-of-fresh-air YA novels, where you like the protagonist from the beginning, root for her through her trials and tribulations (in this case, a bipolar mother and all that entails), and are happy for her when it all works out in the end, with a pretty little bow tied on top. There are a few deviations from the formula- a main character dies, for example, though not unexpectedly - but nothing that rocks your world or makes you think. So was it cute? Of course. Will I recommend it to my 7th and 8th graders? Probably. Will I remember reading it at this time next year? Probably not.
I was so close to finishing in May - and then I quit reading. I don't know why - can't explain it - but it happened. But I'm back! I have read a few books in my absence, and will add these with approximate dates.
69. Hero - Perry Moore (5/25/09)
If this novel hadn't been so drawnout, I think I would have liked it more. I mean, superheroes? Yes, please. But the length of the book wasn't prolonged because it was necessary - only because the author wasn't experienced enough to write it succinctly. But, there are so few Young Adult novels with a gay protagonist, it gains points. Overall, I'm split down the middle - three stars.
68. Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac - Gabrielle Zevin (5/24/09)
When I picked this up, I did not realize it was by the same author of another YA novel I love, Elsewhere. I loved this one even more. It's so real and honest... I love books that really do remind me of high school and adolescence, when everything seems so important but things change so quickly and you're nostalgic but eager for the future all at the same time... this book just left me with a good feeling all over. As Zevin says in her acknowledgements, "I tell you, this is a good life."
67. Storm Glass - Maria V. Snyder (5/23/09)
I really enjoyed this book. I love Snyder's world (this is the same world and characters overlap from Snyder's previous trilogy, Poison Study), though her writing is hit or miss. And I noticed the editing in this one is not so hot. Regardless, she catches you from the beginning and doesn't let you go. You could also tell she had done a ton of research on glassblowing and the like... kudos, Snyder. I plan on reading the second book in this trilogy, Sea Glass, when it arrives.
66. The Other Side of the Island - Allegra Goodman (5/22/09)
Predictable and poorly written dystopian Young Adult fiction. But it did keep me entertained. I think what bugged me the most about her style of writing was there was little to no variation in sentence structure. You would read a paragraph and 9 out of the ten sentences would start with "The girl did...." The girl ran..."The girl saw..." That simple "article noun verb" structure gets so awfully boring to me.
Sorry. English teacher in me coming out.
65. I Capture the Castle - Dodie Smith (5/22/09)
This book took me an entire week to read... and no, it wasn't one of those weeks where I read for five minutes at red lights. I actually sat down each morning and evening, for an hour or two and seriously read. Most books of this size ((about 300 pages) I could complete in a matter ofhours. This, however, with its dense language, intense descriptions, and Jane Eyre-esque romances I took my time with and savored, basking in the glow of an author with a fabulous vocabulary and a knack for putting together metaphors and turns-of-phrases that capture the imagination. This isn't a fly-by-night Young Adult novel that will be read quickly and just as quickly forgotten. Cassandra's coming-of-age will stay with you long after you devour the final page.
64. Cocktails for Three - Madeleine Wickham (5/15/09)
I picked this up because of the Spring Challenge - read two books by the same author that writes under different names(Madeleine Wickham is also Sophie Kinsella, who writes the Shopaholic series). It was as to be expected - fluffy chick lit, with a predictable and happily-ever-after ending tied up in a nice big bow. I didn't even find the characters particularly endearing. But it took up a lazy afternoon, so I don't have much to complain about!
I think it's a great way for me to keep track of what I'm actually reading. I have put little reviews next to each book as well, so that I have a record of if I liked it (or not) and why. My only question is - when we reach 1/2/10, will we start over in a new group? I would hate to lose my thread with all my valuable reading info!! :):):)
63. The Forest of Hands and Teeth - Carrie Ryan (5/14/09)
Such an interesting premise - the world's poulation has fallen victim to a virus that leaves the majority "Unconsecrated" - or, as we commonly know it, zombies. Our heroine Mary lives in a small village in the middle of The Forest of Hands and Teeth, surrounded by intricate fences to keep the Unconsecrated out. The village is run by the highly powerful (and highly suspicious)Sisterhood, a religious matriarchal society. But Mary longs to be free... sounds like the start of a great M. Night Shyamalan movie, right? However, the sketchy character development and the sophomoric writing style make the book fall flat. I mean, come on, can you think of a verb other than "scurry"??? "Mary scurried to the door, Mary scurried across the field, Mary scurried through the passage..." I felt like the main character was a mouse, not a girl. And her overwhelming feelings for Travis, the main love interest, came so quickly, I kept thinking why??? You don't even know this guy! And he doesn't seem all that great to begin with! In the hands of a better author, The Forest of Hands and Teeth (and who can beat a title like that???) would have been a winner. But as it stands - go rent Signs.
I liked it because everything wasn't all peachy keen in the end. Also, the story DEFINITELY changed because werewolves reveal themselves to the world (this is in the summary as well as the first chapter of the book, so I'm not spoiling anything, I promise!). However, I liked the book before this - thought the whole "Vampire COnvention" event was fascinating, and it really gave a lot more depth to Harris' world - so my opinion probably shouldn't mean very much to you! :)
62. Dead and Gone - Charlaine Harris (5/13/09)
I heart Sookie Stackhouse. She is fun and flawed and a total riot to follow along adventures with. I love the world Charlaine Harris has created. I love that I can read the books in this series without falling asleep. If you like vampires - aren't a teenage girl who thinks Twilight is the end-all be-all of vampire books - and haven't read this series - go now!
61. Handle with Care - Jodi Picoult (5/8/09)
I hit a wall with reading for awhile - nothing held my interest. This piece of fluff helped draw me back in again, however. Yes, I know Picoult is really formulaic, that reading one of her books is like reading them all... but they are like reading comfort food for me.
60. Three Cups of Tea One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time - Greg Mortenson (4/21/09)
Another audiobook, and maybe I should have read this one instead. I found myself completely zoning out, especially when he went into his long-winded descriptions about the mountain scenery. Don't get me wrong - what he did (is still doing!) for those children is AMAZING ... and I was actually very intrigued by the scenes in which he bartered for supplies, circumvented local customs in order to accomplish building the schools, etc ... but he lost me in the "in-between" with his lengthy observations.
