Braving the World: Eleanor & Park

Title: Eleanor & Park
Author: Rainbow Rowell
My Rating: 4.5/5

"Set over the course of one school year in 1986, ELEANOR AND PARK is the story of two star-crossed misfits – smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try. When Eleanor meets Park, you’ll remember your own first love – and just how hard it pulled you under." - Goodreads

I read this novel over the course of one weekend, at first one or two chapters at the time, and then just desperately gulping it all down. For me, this novel definitely picks up speed and strength as the story progresses, and then you truly see and feel and believe the love between Eleanor and Park, and how hard life is pulling them apart.

This story is about love, but at the same time about so much more. It's about life in the 80s, about adolescence, school, sibling rivalry, domestic violence, prejudices, and poverty. Written alternately from Eleanor and Park's points of view, this romantic, tender, but also very raw and true-to-life story slowly sucks you in, grabs you, pulls you under, until you just can't stop reading and can't stop feeling and can't stop yearning for more.

One thing about this book that touched me the most is its language. Simply beautiful, borderline poetic (I know that's technically not right but just bear with me please). Sentences like "There's a place on his chest, just below his throat, that makes her want to keep promises," and "'I don't like you,' he said. 'I need you,'" and "Park's face, asleep, was a brand-new kind of beautiful. Sunshine-trapped-in-amber skin." The descriptions are so evocative that you can't help but picture each character in your head and feel them come to life.

Another thing that I really loved (and also made me tear up) is the ending. I won't spoil it for y'all, but let's just say it's pretty indicative of how life gets into the way of first loves. The ending will definitely remind you of your own very first romance, and all the bittersweet things you felt, all the awkward and shy moments shared, all the distant memories refreshed.

By all means, read this book.

xx

Vanessa :]

"For ever and one day": Just One Day

Title: Just One Day

Author: Gayle Forman

My Rating: 5/5

"A breathtaking journey toward self-discovery and true love, from the author of If I Stay

When sheltered American good girl Allyson "LuLu" Healey first meets laid-back Dutch actor Willem De Ruiter at an underground performance of Twelfth Night in England, there’s an undeniable spark. After just one day together, that spark bursts into a flame, or so it seems to Allyson, until the following morning, when she wakes up after a whirlwind day in Paris to discover that Willem has left. Over the next year, Allyson embarks on a journey to come to terms with the narrow confines of her life, and through Shakespeare, travel, and a quest for her almost-true-love, to break free of those confines." - Goodreads

I haven't given a book such a high rating since I can't even remember (okay maybe I do. I think it was The Fault In Our Stars, which moved me to tears no less than ten times). Just One Day, though, totally blew my mind.

Perfecto.

When I first started the book on a five-hour train ride to visit a friend, I didn't set the bars high. Some decent romance would do, I thought. Never did I expect to be so out of breath, moved, and yearning for more when I finished by the time the train pulled into the station.

It's funny, really, because the most appropriate place to read this book is probably when you're traveling, because a large part - or I should say the most important part - of the story happens on trains, planes, different places on a journey. Being on a train filled me with the kind of wanderlust that was just right for this book.

Allyson/Lulu and Willem's quick-sparked romance surprised and captivated me. Personally I'm never a big fan of insta-love! in YA books. But this one, oh how this one makes me swoon! Everything seems to click between the two of them, and the chemistry is undeniable, yet at the same time full of guessing games. In retrospect I think the time they spend with each other - one day - is what makes this love so believable. This one day that was given to them is full of uncertainty, curiosity, unasked questions and imperceptible answers, and that is why they feel brave enough to fall for each other, or more accurately, the image of each other. This kind of love cannot stand the test of time, but is enough to make Allyson, and the reader, think deeply about love. 

In Allyson's college course Shakespeare Out Loud, the students perform As You Like It. One of the lines struck me the most. It's in Act IV, when a jealous and desperate Rosalind asks the confused and smitten Orlando if he'd take Rosalind as his love. Then comes Orlando's reply, "For ever and one day."

Can one day be forever? Can forever be condensed into just one day?

The answer is, in my opinion, both yes and no. No because no promise could and should be made beyond the one day if all you ever came for is adventure; yes because the amazing things that can happen in one day will last a lifetime.

Lastly, a song that I think goes with the book quite well.

xx

Vanessa :]

for high school graduates: Roomies

Title: Roomies
Authors: Sara Zarr & Tara Alterbrando
My rating: 3.4/5

"It's time to meet your new roomie.

When East Coast native Elizabeth receives her freshman-year roommate assignment, she shoots off an e-mail to coordinate the basics: television, microwave, mini-fridge. That first note to San Franciscan Lauren sparks a series of e-mails that alters the landscape of each girl's summer -- and raises questions about how two girls who are so different will ever share a dorm room.

As the countdown to college begins, life at home becomes increasingly complex. With family relationships and childhood friendships strained by change, it suddenly seems that the only people Elizabeth and Lauren can rely on are the complicated new boys in their lives . . . and each other. Even though they've never met.

National Book Award finalist Sara Zarr and acclaimed author Tara Altebrando join forces for a novel about growing up, leaving home, and getting that one fateful e-mail that assigns your college roommate."


**Announcement: I got this book as an ARC at BEA. The expected publication date of Roomies is December 2013**

I finished Roomies in one sitting on my thirteen-hour flight from New York to Beijing. It's been four days since I finished reading it, and I'm still trying to sort out how I feel about it. It's really sort of like "hmm...eh...oh well."

Why do I say so?

Part 1: Hmm.
The beginning of the book had a lot of promise. The email setup is refreshing and sums up a lot about the two protagonists EB and Lauren in a few short emails. The narration in between the emails spell out the protagonists' thought processes fairly well, as a supplement for the emails. It's understandable, since you don't expect two otherwise strangers to spill out their hearts to each other upon the first email exchange. By adding the narrative the authors help us get a better understanding of EB and Lauren's personalities. This first part of the book I liked. Not loved, but liked. I was starting to expect something great to unfold.

Part 2: Eh.
As the story carried on, however, I started to feel a little disappointed. Other than the unconventional email setup, everything else about this book seems just so...average. Nothing dramatic seems to happen, besides the typical high school stuff (oops I just cheated on my boyfriend. Oh wait, maybe he's not my boyfriend anymore. He's with so-and-so anyway). There is a bit of family drama for both EB and Lauren, that I have to admit, is one of the deeper topics this book touches on, however it doesn't touch on it quite deep enough that the protagonists gain something significant from it. So this is the "eh" part, where I feel like I'm rereading any chick lit book from my 10th grade stash.

Part 3: Oh well.
Towards the end I started liking the story again, especially in the last few pages, where both EB and Lauren start to approach the dorm, and your expectation just builds and builds and builds. You think about all the emails they exchanged, their virtual friendship, wrecked and pieced together again. You wonder if they will get along, just like I as an upcoming college freshman wonder if I will become good friends with my own roommate. I guess in this sense the book has come to me at a right time; I can totally empathize with the protagonists. Above all, the writing is still good and enjoyable, there is an okay flow to the story. For when you are on the airplane, or on the beach with not much to do, this is just the right casual book to read.

xx
Vanessa :]

when nonsense makes more sense - The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls

Title: The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls
Author: Claire Legrand
Rating: 4.8/5.0

"Victoria hates nonsense. There is no need for it when your life is perfect. The only smudge on her pristine life is her best friend Lawrence. He is a disaster—lazy and dreamy, shirt always untucked, obsessed with his silly piano. Victoria often wonders why she ever bothered being his friend. (Lawrence does too.)
But then Lawrence goes missing. And he’s not the only one. Victoria soon discovers that The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls is not what it appears to be. Kids go in but come out…different. Or they don’t come out at all.
If anyone can sort this out, it’s Victoria—even if it means getting a little messy."

This is one of the few books that I bought because I liked the cover on a whim. I had heard some good things about it on Goodreads and decided to buy it. After it shipped I looked a little deeper into the reviews and realized that it was written for a younger demographic than me. It was something that I would have read when I was in sixth grade. Needless to say I was worried that I'd wasted money on a book that was far too easy for me. I was afraid that the plot would not be complex enough. Once the book arrived I put it on its shelf where it stayed for three months. I was too afraid to open it on the chance that it would be awful.

Finally, a week ago, I got up the courage to try and read it. I wasn't expecting much at all. I was pleasantly surprised. From the first paragraph it was obvious that this was not your average middle-grade novel. The word choice is superb and is indicative of Coraline and The Mysterious Benedict Society. Once I got started I just couldn't stop.

Our heroine, Victoria Wright is our competent and likely heroine. She's the best at everything. Top of her class. Perfect hair. Perfect parents. Perfect house. Perfect city. Not so perfect friend. Well, friend is a loose term. More like project. Lawrence Prewitt, in Victoria's exact words, “...lived in a dreamer's world of ivory keys and messy shirts, unconcerned with the people around him.” And in a perfect town such as Bellview something as strange as Lawrence was not permitted. Victoria doesn't have time for friends. They slow you down. But something needs to be done with Lawrence. He's just not right and it's her job to fix him. He's obsessed with music, playing his piano whenever he gets the chance. He refused to look neat and tidy like the rest of the children. Instead, he walks hunched over, hands in his pockets, humming the tune of his favorite concerto. He's a freak. A degenerate.

But when that degenerate goes missing, it's his only friend's job to find him.

“Being nothing felt quite the same as being something. Maybe she had never been something at all.” 

Why doesn't anyone remember Lawrence? Why are his parents unconcerned with his disappearance?  And what is up with these black bugs? Victoria searches for the answer to these questions and realizes they all have one thing in common. The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls.

Along with the beautifully written text comes some amazing illustrations by Sarah Watts. I really enjoyed them throughout the story. They brought it to life, adding a beauty and creepiness to the book.

moderate spoilers ahead: skip the following until the next red text

Now, let's talk about my likes and dislikes. Usually I start with the things I didn't like...but I can't really narrow any down. So we'll just jump right into things I liked. 

First thing I liked: I didn't dislike anything! It's always nice when you run across a book that you can't say anything bad about. So you're probably wondering, why the 4.8 rating then? Because it didn't do anything that jumped out at me. It wasn't like TFioS where I cried and felt all the emotions of Hazel Grace. There are no memorable quotes that will serve me later in life. But that also wasn't the point of the book. It's supposed to be creepy and crawly and it does just that. So 4.8 because it's still a children's book and...okay so it should probably be a 5.0. But I'm being stubborn and I hate giving out 5.0's.

Second thing I liked: The parallels between Victoria and Mrs. Cavendish. It was great to see the subtle hints given throughout the book showing just how similar these two were. You really hated what Mrs. Cavendish was doing. It was wrong and unwarranted  But what was so different between what she was doing with the kids and what Victoria was doing with Lawrence?

Third thing I liked: Speaking of subtle hints, I really liked how the author was able to keep it mysterious throughout the entire book. Everything that happened in the beginning tied into something at the end. The gofers for instance. Their eyes and the candy. That was creepy. The meat and the children. The puppets and the people. The garden and Vivian. 

Fourth thing I liked: The ending. It was very "Harry Potter-esc"seeing her all grown up on her way to visit Lawrence. It gave you the closure you needed without throwing it in your face. But we all know that the epilogue for Harry Potter was crap and that it was definitely not what we wanted. Admit it. You were hoping that Voldemort would come out of the train and steal Albus Severus Potter away and the trio would whip out their wands and it would start over again. Admit it. You know you wanted it. And that is where this book really triumphs. The author restarted it over again and left it open for interpretation. I absolutely loved it. It's so hard to end it and she did it with style. 

Fifth thing I liked: It had a subtle lesson!!! It teaches that being different is okay. Not everything has to fit into your, or everyone else's idea of normal. If everyone was the same then no one would care about anything. Society is mixture of everyone's tastes. That's what makes it so interesting to be alive. What you think is important is what is important to others. 

Now I could go on about the things that I liked about this book like it's innocent puppy love, or the imagery  or the length, or plot twists, or who knows what else. But I'll stop at five for the sake of length and keyboard cramps. 

you are safe now my children: no more spoilers from here on out

I really enjoyed reading this book. It was disturbing and beautiful at the same time. I found the plot to be intriguing and the characters very likable and unique. The author planned this book meticulously and it shows. Everything ties together perfectly. I would definitely recommend it to anyone wanting a creepy but not terrifying read. 

Parents: If you're a parent you may want to look it over to see if it's something you want your child reading. If I was ten years old, it would give me a few nightmares. There are also a few very disturbing parts that even I read with my mouth agape. But I don't really see anything wrong with a middle-schooler reading this. There's nothing obscene or overdone. 

If you were a fan of Coraline then the Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls is definitely up your alley. I recommend it with no reservations. It's a quick and easy read, but is definitely not unforgettable in any way. I'll be reading it again. 

The taste of leaving: Paper Towns

Title: Paper Towns
Author: John Green
My Rating: 4.4/5

"Quentin Jacobsen has spent a lifetime loving the magnificently adventurous Margo Roth Spiegelman from afar. So when she cracks open a window and climbs back into his life—dressed like a ninja and summoning him for an ingenious campaign of revenge—he follows.  After their all-nighter ends and a new day breaks, Q arrives at school to discover that Margo, always an enigma, has now become a mystery. But Q soon learns that there are clues—and they’re for him. Urged down a disconnected path, the closer he gets, the less Q sees of the girl he thought he knew."

Despite the high rating, I have mixed feelings for this book. And by mixed feelings I mean I'm not a fan of the relatively slow start of the story. I understand that the night Margo and Quentin spend together in the beginning of the book has a big significance later in the plot, and the things they did that night is great and all, but at some point it just didn't really engage me anymore. 

So I had a slow, growing-to-love kind of relationship with this book. But as the story carried on, I became completely engrossed in it. Sorry about that French worksheet that I never turned in, Madame . The thing about John Green is that, as a YA author, he never tries to talk down to his readers. He has these amazing insights into coming of age, and sometimes these insights require some thinking on the reader's part, and he doesn't dumb it down for us. It is in this rewarding thinking that I often find myself transformed into some new level of self-awareness and understanding of the world. It's truly incredible, especially when the story is not only philosophical but also very frequently hilarious (*SPOILERS*: oh my god Ben's little problem on their "graduation road trip" oh my god I just laughed to death at one in the morning while my roommate slept soundly on the bed next to mine).

The ending is especially enlightening, and it totally made me cry. Dang it, the entire read I was like wow I didn't cry to this one isn't that something now--come ending and I am oh so screwed. If I explain why I was so moved by the ending, I will probably totally ruin the story for you, so I am going to be a nice person and not do that. I am going to talk about a few quotes from the book that really got me.

Timeout. Before getting to the quotes, I forgot to tell y'all something: I am currently a high school senior, 61 short short short short days away from graduation. I have people (okay, one person especially) that I hold very dearly to my heart, and the thought of having to say goodbye--maybe forever--just breaks my heart. So this book was the perfect, spot-on, just-in-time remedy for me.

Now, back to those lovely quotes:

"Doing stuff never feels as good as you hope it will feel." (77)

"She raised on leg and gave me all her weight as I dipped her. She either trusted me or wanted to fall." (79)

"It's a metaphor for adolescence: writing in a language--adulthood--you can't comprehend, using an alphabet--mature social interaction--you can't recognize." (86)

"Margo was not a miracle. She was not an adventure. She was not a fine and precious thing. She was a girl." (199)

"It is so hard to leave--until you leave. And then it is the easiest goddamned thing in the world." (229)

"Marco knows the secret of leaving, the secret I have only just now learned: leaving feels good and pure only when you leave something important, something that mattered to you." (234)

"But there she is, and I am watching her through the Plexiglas, and she looks like Margo Roth Spiegelman, this girl I have known since I was two--this girl who was an idea that I loved." (282)

xx
Vanessa :]


EDIT:
Forgot to say: surprisingly I liked this book more than Looking For Alaska.

The town was paper, the memories were not.

Title: Paper Towns
Author: John Green
Rating: 3.9/5.0

"Quentin Jacobsen has spent a lifetime loving the magnificently adventurous Margo Roth Spiegelman from afar. So when she cracks open a window and climbs back into his life—dressed like a ninja and summoning him for an ingenious campaign of revenge—he follows.  After their all-nighter ends and a new day breaks, Q arrives at school to discover that Margo, always an enigma, has now become a mystery. But Q soon learns that there are clues—and they’re for him. Urged down a disconnected path, the closer he gets, the less Q sees of the girl he thought he knew."

I really wanted to fall in complete love with this book like I did when I read The Fault in Our Stars. Unfortunately, I did not. It's not that it's a bad book. Don't get me wrong! But it isn't as brilliant  as some of his other work.

To like this book you have to look deep inside of you. I'm a senior in high school. I've got less than two months until I graduate. So this book hit me at a perfect time in my life.

John Green does something that John Green in best at. Understanding teenagers better than teenagers understand themselves. Green has this uncanny ability to create something prolific from something so minuscule.

Now maybe I didn't like this book as much because it kind of lost me in the middle. Maybe it's because it didn't make me cry. But it made me think. It made me think about what was important in my life. About how I looked at my life, and what I was going to do with it.

Looking back at it, the middle (where I got lost) was probably the most important part. It's the part where the main character begins to realize who he is. You see Quentin realizes that all the people in his life are very different from what he believes them to be. Not because they're leading him on, but because he has a mental picture of who his friends are. While it's not completely incorrect, it's not perfectly accurate.

We see people in our lives how we want to see them. We do things because we believe that we need to do them. We spend every day of our lives planning for the future. And as soon as that future gets here, we begin planning ahead for the next day.

I'd really like to write a longer review of this book. But there's not a lot to say. If I were to try to paraphrase the 332 pages of this book I would never do it justice. Because what I get out of it will be completely different than what you reading this right now ever would. This book draws from the experiences of the reader. You project your own feelings into this book, and that's what makes it so great.

[Source: Goodreads, DeviantArt]

A Quest for family: The Reece Malcolm List

Title: The Reece Malcolm List
Author: Amy Spalding
My Rating: 3/5

"Things I know about Reece Malcolm:

1. She graduated from New York University.
2. She lives in or near Los Angeles.
3. Since her first novel was released, she’s been on the New York Times bestseller list every week.
4. She likes strong coffee and bourbon.
5. She’s my mother.

Devan knows very little about Reece Malcolm, until the day her father dies and she’s shipped off to live with the mother she’s never met. All she has is a list of notebook entries that doesn’t add up to much.

L.A. offers a whole new world to Devan—a performing arts school allows her to pursue her passion for show choir and musicals, a new circle of friends helps to draw her out of her shell, and an intriguing boy opens up possibilities for her first love.

But then the Reece Malcolm list gets a surprising new entry. Now that Devan is so close to having it all, can she handle the possibility of losing everything?" (from Amazon)

Again, not a surprise, I read this book while I was traveling in India. (Just for the record, I read a total of four books while I was there: the Silver Linings Playbook, the Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight, this book, and a re-read of Anna and the French Kiss.)

This book was an okay read, given that I was on vacation. It's a typical vacation-y read, very relaxing, sort of a no-brainer, easy to follow (and, sorry, Spalding, easy to put down, too). The plot is very bland, although the idea of the List is novel and refreshing. Actually, the List is probably the one great thing about this story. Other than that, the rest is typical and quite predictable.

One thing I didn't really buy, of the entire story: Reece's attitude change. For me, it seems like it took her way too short of a time to come to loving her daughter, who she gave up at birth. I mean, it's not so detrimental to the plot line overall, but, if only the author explained it better, it would've been more natural.

Recommended for when you are generally bored and need something you could easily read on an on-and-off basis.

xx
Vanessa :]

Roller coaster love: The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight

Title: The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight

Author: Jennifer E. Smith

My Rating: 4/5

"Today should be one of the worst days of seventeen-year-old Hadley Sullivan's life. Having missed her flight, she's stuck at JFK airport and late to her father's second wedding, which is taking place in London and involves a soon-to-be stepmother Hadley's never even met. Then she meets the perfect boy in the airport's cramped waiting area. His name is Oliver, he's British, and he's sitting in her row.

A long night on the plane passes in the blink of an eye, and Hadley and Oliver lose track of each other in the airport chaos upon arrival. Can fate intervene to bring them together once more?" (from Amazon)

I read this book when I was in Periyar, Kerala, India. I was chilling up in the mountains. In the cool mountain night air, this book is just such a page-turner: the romantic, cinematic execution of the plot, and to-die-for type of characters, made me unable to put this book down. Bravo, Jennifer E. Smith!

What I liked about this book: 

The characters. While Hadley is very...typical indecisively girly sometimes, Oliver is the "to die for" type I was talking about. Boy, is he hot. And totally thoughtful and kind. And in a way that feels real instead of fictional (yes, I know, he is, technically, very much fictional. I meant that he doesn't sound fake; Oliver sounds like he could be someone that exists). 

The descriptions of emotions. This books talks a lot about Hadley's struggle with her dad's marriage to a woman she has barely met, not that long after leaving her mom and her. While I cannot relate to her at all, given my life experiences, Smith did a good job describing Hadley's complicated emotions. As her relationship with Oliver develops, Hadley rethinks her feelings towards her dad and her family, and this "rethinking" is very nicely done. I felt like Hadley's character growth is very easy to follow, and very reasonable (as in, readers expect her to feel a certain way after a certain incident).

The insertions of past events in Hadley's thought process. Smith did a good job giving informational background to help us understand why Hadley is feeling a certain about a certain experience, without seeming intrusive to the main storyline. This is a very sophisticated skill, so I was very impressed.

And... the lurrrrve. All I want to say is the ending. OMG the ending. 'Kay I'm done.

What I'm not so in love with about this book:

Pacing. The entire story happens in a span of two days, and most of the time the pacing is excellent--not too stretched nor too compressed. Readers feel at ease, going through the story. Sometimes, though, just once in a while, I wish it could be more...rushed. There could've been more urgency at places.

And most of all, the book just didn't...have that chemistry with me. (Don't get me wrong, the chemistry between Hadley and Oliver TOTALLY works.) For me, I have to personally have that one special moment with a book/film to be able to say it's perfect (or near perfect). This book, sadly, as much as I love it, didn't have that special moment with me. So, no 5/5 rating, sorry. Good read though--recommended for sure.

xx

Vanessa :]

P.S. What a cute cover. just, stapit!

Always hoping for the best: Silver Linings Playbook (the book not the movie)

Title: Silver Linings Playbook
Author: Matthew Quick
My Rating: 3.8/5.0

"Meet Pat Peoples. Pat has a theory: his life is a movie produced by God. And his God-given mission is to become physically fit and emotionally literate, whereupon God will ensure him a happy ending—the return of his estranged wife, Nikki. (It might not come as a surprise to learn that Pat has spent several years in a mental health facility.)

The problem is, Pat’s now home, and everything feels off. No one will talk to him about Nikki; his beloved Philadelphia Eagles keep losing; he’s being pursued by the deeply odd Tiffany; his new therapist seems to recommend adultery as a form of therapy. Plus, he’s being haunted by Kenny G!" (from Amazon)

(Announcement: This is a review of the BOOK not the MOVIE. For the review of the movie, see here.)

I read the book on my plane to Dubai (connecting to Bengalore, India), prior to re-watching the movie (which is AH-MAZING). However, about this book, I have some mixed feelings.

Clearly the book is well-written, the language is fluid, the plot consistent. Call me biased, because I saw the movie first, but the book is so very fairly different from the movie. (*SPOILERS ALERT*) In the movie, the blossoming of Pat and Tiffany's relationship take up a rather big part, whereas in the book, Tiffany's appearances are rare, and their relationship is barely there at best. Only towards the very tail end does Pat actually start to have feelings for Tiffany (which is NOT OKAY). Instead, the book deals largely with Pat's family drama: no, Pat's dad isn't the loving, forgiving person in the movie; he is rather an ass and pretty violent. 

Honestly, I don't think I enjoyed the book half as much as I enjoyed the movie, but again, my personal attachment to the character Tiffany affected my judgment severely. So, do as you see fit, whoever's still reading at this point. Read the book if you just want to get more of this story; otherwise book-reading is not very much necessary.

xx

Vanessa :]

A story of reality : Life of Pi

Title: Life of Pi
Author: Yann Martel
Rating: 5/5

When I began this book I was expecting a story about a small boy on a small boat with a big tiger. How truly mistaken I was...

I'm not sure how to begin this. I don't think there's really any words that can explain the depth of this book. Brillance and inspirational do not scratch the surface. This book is the Pacific and adjectives are but lifeboats floating atop its waves.

"As an aside, story of sole survivor, Mr. Piscine Molitor Patel, Indian citizen, is an astounding story of courage and endurance in the face of extraordinarily difficult and tragic circumstances. In the experience of this investigator  his story is unparalleled in the history of shipwrecks. Very few castaways can claim to have survived so long at sea as Mr. Patel, and none in the company of an adult Bengal tiger."

I believe that is the best way of putting it. This excerpt from Mr. Okamoto's report of the sinking of the Tsimtsum is the only logical way of explaining the book. And maybe that's because there is no logical way of explaining such a story.

As Pi said:

"To choose doubt as a philosophy of life is akin to choosing immobility as a means of transportation."

 “If you stumble about believability, what are you living for? Love is hard to believe, ask any lover. Life is hard to believe, ask any scientist. God is hard to believe, ask any believer. What is your problem with hard to believe?” 

I think that this is the main point of this story. The bravery of belief. When you set out to read this novel you think that it's going to be some inspirational junk about some Indian boy going on a boat ride with a mean cat. You would be wrong.

It takes a brave author to begin a book by informing the reader about three-toed sloths. It takes an even braver reader to continue reading said book. Until page ninety-five he's not even on a boat, and it kills you. But looking back, the most important part was that first one hundred pages.

Let's talk about the writing itself for a moment. It's good. Better than good. It's brave. This story is such a jumble. It jumps around a timeline like a fruit fly buzzing from flower to flower. You begin to understand the boy on the boat. Like repeating a story aloud, it's never in a straight line. You must back-track and flash-forward to explain. One memory opens to another and then jumps back.

Martel's writing is delicate, yet strong when needed. His mesmerizing depictions of the sea will enthrall all of your senses. His gruesome depictions of survival will make you squirm in your seat. And then, once you've sailed through a sea of emotions. Once you've felt the torrential downpour of this poor boy's pain. Once you experience the overwhelming beauty as the story comes to a close, the book transforms before you in an instant and you are forever left in a state of pure humanity.

The scene has changed, the characters have changed. The truth which you once believed is no more. The moral you expected is gone. And in its place is a question:

"It makes no factual difference to you and you can't prove the question either way, which story do you prefer? Which is the better story, the story with the animals or the story without the animals?"

This question is not for the investigators. It's for the reader. Do you believe the lovely, but less rational story? Or would you believe the rational, but terrible version? What is your reality? Which makes you happier? Each version takes some faith. The choice is yours. There is no wrong answer.

But you want facts. You want the truth. That's human nature, isn't it? To seek out the truth, and nothing but the truth, so help us God. But that's ironic isn't it. Because God is faith, and faith isn't truth. Faith is acceptance beyond the realm of truth.

Pi shows us that faith is an ideal. Faith is something that isn't controlled by religion or by social normals. Faith isn't what our parents or our neighbors believe. Faith is something that enriches our lives.  Faith is something that makes us happy. Faith is the ideal of living.

In my opinion, I choose the story with the animals because, like Pi, that's the one that makes me happiest.

Reality is a story. You choose your own.

A life story: When Love Comes to Town

Title: When Love Comes to Town

Author: Tom Lennon

My Rating: 3.9/5

"A new edition of this acclaimed novel. Meet Neil Byrne - try-scorer on the rugby field, prizewinning student, one of the in-crowd at the disco, regular guy, gay. Presenting one face to the world and burying his true feelings in fantasy, Neil manages to keep his secret. But when fantasy isn't enough and he becomes caught up in the bizarre subculture of Dublin's gay nightlife, the pretense must end. It is the time for truth. The consequences are both hilarious and painful. Told with honesty, humour and originality, When Love Comes to Town brings a new type of hero to modern Irish fiction."

**THIS REVIEW IS BASED ON A THIRTEEN-CHAPTER PREVIEW OF WHEN LOVE COMES TO TOWN THANSK TO ALBERT WHITMAN & COMPANY (ARC PROVIDED BY NETGALLEY)**
I've never read a gay/lesbian romance before, so honestly, I didn't know what to expect coming into this. Even with no standards, When Love Comes To Town still manages to sweep me off my feet. I am a perfectly straight person, however, Neil's story of his struggles as a gay person still deeply touches me, which I consider a great success on the author's part. The book wants to attract as big an audience as possible, after all.

The characters in this book are very relatable, and I personally really enjoy being brought back to the 90s. The narration is very detailed, which I'm not usually so hot about, but this time it worked just fine for me--it is these details that show how SCARED Neil is of coming out, of becoming the person that he truly wants to be. On a grander scale, this not only applies to all that who are still awaiting the perfect time to declare their homosexuality, it is also an acute description of young adult life in general. How many of us have fidgeted and worried ourselves sick over one little thing that might have turned out absolutely trivial? How many of us have fought to voice our true thoughts? I think in this aspect, the author does a phenomenal job of writing a very sensitive yet mature voice.

One little thing that kept it from being a perfect read: since the story was written in the last decade, the culture back then is much less accepting of homosexuality, so there are some cultural beliefs that are somewhat outdated, which takes away from the modern-day reading experience.

**This book was originally published in UK, under this cover:

which one do you guys like better? Lemme know :)

xx

Vanessa :]

A peek into Edwardian England: Cinders & Sapphires (SNEAK PEEK)

Title: Cinders & Sapphires
Author: Leila Rasheed
My Rating: 4/5

"One house, two worlds...

Sumptuous and enticing, the first novel in the At Somerton series introduces two worlds, utterly different yet entangled, where ruthless ambition, forbidden attraction, and unspoken dreams are hidden behind dutiful smiles and glittering jewels. All those secrets are waiting . . . at Somerton"

**THIS REVIEW IS BASED ON A THIRTEEN-CHAPTER PREVIEW OF CINDERS & SAPPHIRES THANSK TO DISNEY-HYPERION (ARC PROVIDED BY NETGALLEY)**

Ah, what a book! The first thirteen chapters of Cinders & Sapphires (which I believe is the first installment of a series) is like Downton Abbey meets Mean Girls: taking place during Edwardian England, the book tells the story of people--young and old--in one house, Somerton, of their hopes, love, and ambitions. 

The characters, although clearly not from our time, are surprisingly relatable. Rose, a housemaid who is later promoted to a ladies' maid, is this young, beautiful, insecure girl who is unsure about her own place in the house. Her kindness, curiosity, and good humor makes me as a reader sympathize with her. Plus, the mystery shrouding her identity is all the more intrguing... Rose's lady, Ada, is the oldest daughter of the owner of Somerton. Although vastly different in social status, Ada and Rose share many similarities: both young and sometimes childish, they dream of opportunities they aren't supposed to have, things they aren't allowed to yearn for  (boys included, may I mention). By making them utterly human, the author brings the characters to life--they feel so endearingly close to us the readers.

The author also does a good job describing the lifestyle of Edwardian England. While reading, I found the elaboration on architecture and interior designs of Somerton quite intriguing and evocative. Details concerning the ladies' dresses, etc, are also well paid attention to.

Having read only the first thirteen chapters, I don't really know enough about the story to give much criticism. One thing about this story, though: because people during that time of history have so many titles/names (Rose, for example, is referred to as Ms.Cliffe by people "lower" than her after her promotion), it might be hard to get into the story in the beginning. However, after some getting used to, I'm sure you will find yourself enjoying the read!

xx

Vanessa :]

marriage can be a real killer: Gone Girl

Title: Gone Girl
Author: Gillian Flynn
Rating: 4.2/5

Let's begin by saying that this book will mess you up in the head. You will fall in love with one character, while you despise another. Then, the next chapter you'll change your mind. By the end the lines between "good" and "bad" are slightly blurry and you'll be left wondering who exactly you should hate (I vote everyone).

This book is like a car wreck, you just can't look away. I would reach the end of a chapter knowing full-well who was the antagonist only to be twisted like a pretzel in the next one.

I really like the format of the story. Flynn creates a plot that is easy to understand, yet impossible to follow. It's told from two points of view. The man's (Nick) and the woman's (Amy). Nick's is a first-person present POV while Amy's is a flashback journal entry (and other things that I can't spoil). This keeps the story fresh and keeps the reader guessing until the very end.

I think the thing that jumps out at me most while reading this was Amy's disposition towards men (and people in general). She talks about how she creates personalities to fit what she wants people to think of her. When she gets bored, she changes herself into something different. While it sounds crazy...it's what we all do. We're just less psychotic about it. She also points out all the ways that women change themselves to make men happy. She says that she was the, "Cool Girl." They kind of girl that men like. It's a really good look into what we do socially to please people.

This book is also a good example that everyone is insane and we should probably seek help. Amy is creepy and yet totally endearing. Throughout the book you'll draw parallels between yourself and her. If you don't then you're lying to yourself. She is just a more extreme version of humanity. Too smart for her own good.

This story is so full of twists that it's hard to remember what's true and what's fictional. Anymore information and I'll ruin it for you. All I can say is that the writing is spot on. It's been a long time since I really enjoyed reading something.

Definitely worth the read + a secondary one (because i'm sure i didn't catch everything).

[Fair Warning: there is some pretty strong language and some sexual situations in this book so consider yourself warned]

A story about solitude: The Age of Miracles

Title: The Age of Miracles
Author: Karen Thompson Walker
My Rating: 3.2/5

“It still amazes me how little we really knew. . . . Maybe everything that happened to me and my family had nothing at all to do with the slowing. It’s possible, I guess. But I doubt it. I doubt it very much.”

Luminous, haunting, unforgettable, The Age of Miracles is a stunning fiction debut by a superb new writer, a story about coming of age during extraordinary times, about people going on with their lives in an era of profound uncertainty."

This refreshing debut novel, full of poetic language and subtle emotions, tells the story of 11-year-old Julia. The world she is used to is changing drastically, starting with what the media calls "the Slowing"--the decrease in the speed of Earth's rotation. The slowing makes the days longer and longer, the nights shorter and shorter. As a result gravity is affected, tsunamis wreck the shore, birds fall dying from the sky... and soon enough the society is in chaos. 

While the story gives the big picture (the society, the Slowing, aka the sci-fi/dystopian aspect of the story) just enough attention, the main plot focuses on how the Slowing affected Julia's life. Essentially The Age of Miracles is a coming-of-age story about Julia dealing with family and friendship problems, falling in and out of love, and ultimately becoming her own person. The Slowing and the bleak big picture adds a subtle, almost invisible but definitely tangible sadness and urgency to the whole story, which is beautifully unconventional, and certainly takes some courage for the author to do so.

With so many good things said, why I couldn't give the book a higher rating is mainly because, although it is very evocatively written and has a very well-imagined world, it lacks the certain "something" that can pull me in. That said, as much as I appreciated the story, I wasn't attached to it. I cared about Julia, and her boy friend/boyfriend Seth (I'm actually really fond of him), but only to an extent. Unlike the 4- or 5-star books I rated, this one simply didn't do it for me. It is a smooth, slow-moving read, with beautiful language, but not a lot of personal appeal.

xx

Vanessa :]

Classic Read: The Haunting of Hill House

Title: The Haunting of Hill House

Author: Shirley Jackson

My Rating: 3.2

This ranks up there with one of the most...engrossing books I've read this year. Not because the story line was so amazing. But just because the psyche of Eleanor was so completely wonky jumping from place to place. I found myself with an enormous headache when I finally finished, and walked around in a haze for a couple of minutes still trying to recover my sense of reality. It's one of those books for people who like to forget where they are. People would talk to me and I wouldn't hear them. I couldn't put it down once I got started.

Jackson paints a pretty picture of an awful scene. It's done in such a way that, even though you know that it will all turn out badly, you want to be there with them. Her characters are beautifully flawed. You hated them, and it was done with careful precision. Your feelings for each character shift throughout the book, causing a jumble of emotions.

This isn't a haunted/mystery story. It's a psychological profile of a troubled woman trying to find a place in the world. Eleanor is who the book revolves around, following her from beginning...to end. Throughout the book, we see her slowly change, though you tend not to notice until the end. Looking back, it was all quite obvious from the beginning.

I was guessing throughout the book, one of the things that I really like about it. Usually one can sniff out the reasons and actions of the book. Most are predictable. Most are forgettable. This is not. I find it difficult to write a review about this book, mostly because after finishing it I strangely forgot. The details are hazy. All I remember is to stay away from the house. At first, I wondered if the hauntings were only a ploy set up by the doctor. They weren't. Then for portions I believed Eleanor to be in a dream. None of it was real. She was still with her mother. Then I believed Eleanor to be imagining all the people around her. Then I thought she wasn't real. Nope. And so it went. Each possible plot was set up, just to be knocked down at the turn of the page.

I would suggest reading it, contrary to the rating I gave it.

Insanity Candoramity: Insurgent

Title: Insurgent
Author: Veronica Roth
My Rating: 3.2
See Vanessa's Review

Wow. First of all I would like to say that Insurgent blew Divergent right out of the water. Secondly, I would like to say that it still didn't live up to my expectations.
This is a beautiful plot, with an amazing setting. The idea behind this book is fantastic, but the execution leaves something to be desired.

First half of this book was...zzzzzzzzz. Huh? Oh, sorry! I fell asleep just thinking about it. So boring, so completely useless.
Second half of this book was...not that great either. But I'm holding my head high, and praying that it's just fallen prey to the "second book curse" and is just setting up the series for a majestic ending to end all endings. *crossing fingers*


And then there were spoilers... (skip to the next purple bit if you don't want them)

Let us begin with the characters. I would like to blatantly say that none of the characters in this story caught my attention. You never fell in love with them. You never hated them. It was like reading a news article about people you don't know, something that doesn't affect you. Seriously, when they started bring back characters...I couldn't remember who they were. I had to go back to the Divergent and re-read parts to remember what the characters had done (I forgot that Will died...and who Will was in the first place)

Tris is...weak. I actually liked her a bit more in the first book. In this one, she seems to spend too much time trying to deal with the death of her parents and Will. Now, while I understand that this had to be hard for her, it still seemed too much. Also, her aversion to guns, while creating an extra conflict in the story, was extremely annoying after multiple mentions. Her insistence on dying for the first half of the book was alarming, but finally tapered off after she "died". One of her redeeming qualities is her divergence, which finally came into play in this book (thank god). Her aptitude for Erudite was very interesting as we witnessed her develop plans and beat Jeanine at her own game.

Moving on to Tobias/Four/whateveryouwannacallhim. Where? Did? He? Go?
Yes, I understand that this book revolves around Tris, and she was always going off by herself and risking her life (and Tobias had to come and save her...multiple times). But seriously, it was like he didn't even exist at times. Tobias was Tris's redeeming quality. Tobias was what made Tris interesting. Yet Roth constantly left him out of the plot line. Why? I don't know.

Even though no time passed between the first and second books, I felt like the characters were completely different. The relationship felt forced. It didn't feel real. Not because the characters didn't feel it. But more like Roth didn't. The relationship seemed to take a backseat (which isn't always a bad thing), and the story lost some of its luster. Don't get me wrong. The relationship was definitely there. They make out every chapter for the first half of the book. But then Tobias tells Tris to be safe, Tris promises to, Tobias falls asleep, Tris slips out to risk her life. EVERY TIME. There just wasn't a point.

There were some nice twists that came about in the second half of the book. Peter, finally, turned out to be (moderately) good, and helped to save the plot. Caleb turned out to be bad. Which I guess didn't surprise me since his presence in the story was ultimately useless otherwise.

You are safe now... (no more spoilers from here on)

I would like to state that NO ONE IN THIS BOOK IS EVIL. Jeanine is disturbed. But not evil. I didn't hate her. I just found her annoying. Like a mosquito. Or draperies.

Let's just say that no one is this book is endearing, nor is anyone despicable. They are forgettable at best.

Oh goodness. What happened at the end? It was so strange. I'm not going to talk about it. You can draw your own conclusions. I hate all book endings.

So, after reading this entire review, you are probably wondering why on earth I gave this book three stars? Because the main idea behind this is brilliant. I love the factions. I love the simulations. Let's face it. I'm Jeanine.

While I do find the factions...useless (they never really are explained), and the whole, "Dauntless have to have tats and piercings. They have to jump of trains and pull bullets out of their abdomens without pain killers," and "Erudite have to wear glasses," and "Amity have to act like hippies and be pumped full of drugs so that they act like hippies," is moderately annoying. It's almost too cliche.

But I still LOVE it. If you ignore the serious lack of story line and character building...this book is AMAZING.

In conclusion. It's worth the read in my opinion. The setting is unbeatable. Use your imagination. If you're looking for a quick read, it's totally worth it.

A story about independence: Anthem

Title: Anthem

Author: Ayn Rand

My Rating: 4.0

"It is a sin to write this. 
It is a sin to think words no others think 

and to put them down upon a paper 

no others are to see. 

It is base and evil."

This book drew me in from the first second I opened it. It had been sitting on my shelf for ages. I bought it almost six months ago on a recommendation from an English Professor. He and I had been discussing my writing and the books that I had enjoyed reading. He told me that this one was right up my alley, and was he right!

I was very cautious to read it since some of Ayn Rand's political views can be quite abstract. But none the less I gave it a try. And I'm glad I did. This book isn't about her political views as much as human reasoning.

"We strive to be like all our brother men, 

for all men must be alike."

The first person journal format is sometimes frustrating as the reader can only see what the narrator describes. There was much to this post-apocalyptic world that could have been shown in greater detail, or at least that was my first impression. But when reading this book, one must understand that it's not a YA novel. It was not written with deep imagery so that the reader can picture this futuristic setting. The point of this book is psychological. It is about man and how man acts. About our behaviors. The things that make us human, that shape our society. There are literary techniques that while confusing at first, become second nature to the reader after a few minutes. They add so much the the story and play a key role in the development of the main character Equality 7-2521 (best name ever).

It's very George Orwell and one can also draw parallels between this and most YA dystopian fiction that is read today (most specifically Matched). I found this book extremely compelling and a quick and enlightening read. Four stars because I've read it three times now and still get goosebumps. She was ahead of her time with this, and well beyond any other novels I've read. It was a pleasure.

The beginning will intrigue you, the middle will have you on the edge of your seat, and the ending will send a chill down your spine.

"We are all one in all and all in one.

There are no men but only the great WE,

One, indivisible and forever"-

Quiet anxieties: Where Things Come Back

Title: Where Things Come Back
Author: John Corey Whaley
My Rating: 3/5

Just when seventeen-year-old Cullen Witter thinks he understands everything about his small and painfully dull Arkansas town, it all disappears. . . . 

"In the summer before Cullen's senior year, a nominally-depressed birdwatcher named John Barling thinks he spots a species of woodpecker thought to be extinct since the 1940s in Lily, Arkansas. His rediscovery of the so-called Lazarus Woodpecker sparks a flurry of press and woodpecker-mania. Soon all the kids are getting woodpecker haircuts and everyone's eating "Lazarus burgers." But as absurd as the town's carnival atmosphere has become, nothing is more startling than the realization that Cullen’s sensitive, gifted fifteen-year-old brother Gabriel has suddenly and inexplicably disappeared. 

While Cullen navigates his way through a summer of finding and losing love, holding his fragile family together, and muddling his way into adulthood, a young missionary in Africa, who has lost his faith, is searching for any semblance of meaning wherever he can find it. As distant as the two stories seem at the start, they are thoughtfully woven ever closer together and through masterful plotting, brought face to face in a surprising and harrowing climax. 

Complex but truly extraordinary, tinged with melancholy and regret, comedy and absurdity, this novel finds wonder in the ordinary and emerges as ultimately hopeful. It's about a lot more than what Cullen calls, “that damn bird.” It’s about the dream of second chances."

Going into this book, I had high expectations (MORRIS! PRINTZ!), unfortunately, the story let me down. Maybe if I didn't read it with the intent of gaining so much from it, I would've been able to enjoy it better.

The story is, just like its Goodreads summary, long. I appreciate the tranquil (yet underlying with angst) atmosphere the author tries to create, and I do think in this aspect it's quite successful. The unsettling tension and anxieties gave me the sense that something was sure going to happen, something big and terrible and destructive. However, this something never quite happened, not for me at least. The story is filled with heavy themes such as family problems, religious issues, etc. However I never found the narration engrossing enough to keep me going. 

I found the frequent sentence structure of "When one is...." in this book particularly off-putting. Since the story was told in first person, this sentence structure seemed to take me out of the POV, which didn't work very well. In addition, I wasn't a fan of the heaviness on religious issues. Just personal opinions, though.

I read this book over Thanksgiving break, when I ran out of books to read. Quite unfortunately, it also had to fill the big shoes of Looking For Alaska, since I read that one shortly before starting this book. Overall, I would recommend it if you are just looking for something to read. However, bear in mind that this is not a casual read--it does deal with some heavy issues.

xx

Vanessa :]