Hate List by Jennifer Brown

Hate List

By Jennifer Brown

Publisher: Little, Brown and Company, 2009

405 pages, paperback

Date Finished: 24/5/2011

Genres: Young Adult, Coming of Age, Realistic Fiction, Romance, Some Action

Five months ago, Valerie Leftman's boyfriend, Nick, opened fire on their school cafeteria. Shot trying to stop him, Valerie inadvertently saved the life of a classmate, but was implicated in the shootings because of the list she helped create. A list of people and things she and Nick hated. The list he used to pick his targets.
Now, after a summer of seclusion, Val is forced to confront her guilt as she returns to school to complete her senior year. Haunted by the memory of the boyfriend she still loves and navigating rocky relationships with her family, former friends and the girl whose life she saved, Val must come to grips with the tragedy that took place and her role in it, in order to make amends and move on with her life.
~from goodreads.com~

~First Line: "The scene in the Garvin High School cafeteria, known as the Commons, is being described as "grim" by investigators who are working to identify the victims of a shooting spree that erupted Friday morning."
~Last Line: "And I'd gone home and packed, leaving the suitcase open on my bed, next to the horses in the wallpaper, which were -- as they'd always been, of course -- completely motionless."

Review: The first time I heard of this book was when my bestie Leanne got it from the library and loved it. She recommended it to me and gave it to me as a birthday present. I'm very glad she did.

The main character, Valerie, wasn't exactly the most popular girl in school. She was far from it. Between being called "Sister Death" by her peers and having to listen to her parents' constant arguing, her only escape is her boyfriend Nick. Until Nick is the shooter in a shooting spree, and takes his life last.

The novel was just soo good. There were a lot of times where it was just too sad, and you couldn't help but feel sorry for Valerie. She definitely went through some tough times that school year. Some of the people she despised even became some of her best friends after the incident.

You're probably wondering exactly what the Hate List is. Well, whenever something happened that Valerie or Nick hated, they added it to the Hate List. They added people, things, anything. Some of the people that Nick killed and injured during the shooting were on the Hate List.

All in all, this novel was so real i nmy eyes. Valerie had so much to go through after the shooting. You really can't help but feel bad for her. A story that definitely touched my heart time and time again. I wish Jennifer Brown would write a prequel to it! :)

Beastly by Alex Flinn

Beastly

By Alex Flinn

Publisher: HarperTeen, 2007

200 pages, paperback

Date Finished: 23/5/2011

Genres: young Adult, Fantasy, Coming of Age, Some Action

I am a beast.

A beast!

Not quite wolf or bear, gorilla or dog but a horrible new creature who walks upright. I am a monster.

You think I'm talking fairy tales? No way. The place is New York City. The time is now. It's no deformity, no disease. And I'll, stay this way forever ruined unless I can break the spell.

Yes, the spell, the one the witch in my English class cast on me. Why did she turn me into a beast who hides by day and prowls by night? I'll tell you. I'll tell you how I used to be Kyle Kingsbury, the guy you wished you were, with money, perfect looks, and the perfect life. And then, I'll tell you how I became perfectly...beastly.
~from goodreads.com~

~First Line: "Welcome to the first meeting of the Unexpected Changes chat group."
~Last Line: " 'May I have this dance?' "

Review: The first and foremost reason that I wanted to read this book was because of the movie hype. If the movie is anything like the book, I will love the film!


Our main character, Kyle Kingsbury, is rich, popular, good-looking. Everything a kid could hope for. He also has one of those snotty attitudes, and because of this, a witch turns into, well, a beast. The only way  for him to be turned back into his handsome self is for him to find true love and be kissed by her. For Kyle Kingsbury, this wasn't an easy-as-pie task that could be solved with daddy's money.


I loved how when his looks changed, he changed his name as well. Adrian is a good name. It fit for him once he changed his wats. It was weird but interesting to read about someone that was locked away from the rest of human life. Although, in modern-day New York City, you can't exactly go out in public looking like a beast and expect people to keep their cool.

Kyle -- Adrian -- met some really awesome people while he was locked away. Well, actually he only met two people: one that lived with him as a tutor, and the other was sort of brought there against their will. But the person still contributed a LOT to the story!

I am super-anxious to see the movie now! Sadly, I'll hav eto wait till it comes out on DVD. But that's fine. More time to read Cloaked. :)

Book Review: The Day Before

Title: The Day Before
Author: Lisa Schroeder
Publisher: Simon Pulse, 2011
Number of Pages: 307
Genre(s): Young Adult; Realistic Fiction

Amber’s life is spinning out of control. All she wants is to turn up the volume on her iPod until all of the demands of family and friends fade away. So she sneaks off to the beach to spend a day by herself.
Then Amber meets Cade. Their attraction is instant, and Amber can tell he’s also looking for an escape. Together they decide to share a perfect day: no pasts, no fears, no regrets.
The more time that Amber spends with Cade, the more she’s drawn to him. And the more she’s troubled by his darkness. Because Cade’s not just living in the now—he’s living each moment like it’s his last.
(from Goodreads)

When we first open the book, the readers have no idea why "Amber's life is spinning out of control" and what, exactly, she wants to run away from. But she does run away, and take a full day for herself, preparing for what to come. I won't tell you her secret, because I'd hate to spoil it for you! But I can relate to her as to why she needed a day for herself, and as for Cade, well, he has his reasons as well.
We learn about Amber's situation through the letters sent from people called Jeanie and Allen, and some from Amber and her mom. They work as flashbacks, but the last letter gives us a clue to how Amber's and Cade's (two separate) problems have worked out.
Of course, the whole book is written in verse, just like other Lisa Schroeder books, and if you haven't tried a book in verse before, you should! They enable the readers to slip right into the main character's skin, allowing us to feel what Amber feels and think what she thinks. The 307 pages flew by, and soon I was closing the book with a contented sigh!
My only complaint is the romance between Amber and Cade - it felt kind of awkward at first. I mean, there she is, attracted to him the second she lays her eyes on him, and I was like "okaaaay....". At least she didn't say/think/hope that she was madly in love with him and couldn't live without him or some other cliché.

I have read Schroeder's debut novel, I Heart You and You Haunt Me, and I have to say that her writing style has improved considerably. My favorite writing-in-verse author is still Ellen Hopkins, but I sure will be looking out for more Lisa Schroeder in the future!

The Night My Life Changed Forever by Sara Lisowski

The Night My Life Changed Forever

By Sara Lisowski

Publisher: via Smashwords, 2010

113 pages, Kindle Edition

Date Finished: 23/4/2011

Genres: Mature Teen, Romance, Coming of Age, Realistic Fiction, Serious Issues

Mary is a 16 year old girl, that goes to a party to hopefully get with the boy she thought she loved. After some events at the party, she realises that he isn't the boy for her. A new boy walks into the party and changes Mary's life forever, is this the real thing? Is this what Mary has been striving to have?
~from goodreads.com~

~First Line: "A life of danger, boys, trying to gain respect, 'fun' and never-ending turmoil . . ."
~Last Line: "This has been the most romantic moment of my life, dancing and experiencing this with my love, my heart, my life, my Zackary."

Review: This novel was a great short story to read in between book tours and Buddy Reads. The love scenes could have been minimized, or even taken out completely, but the general plot line was awesome.

The two main characters, Zack and Mary, never knew each other until one night at a party they both happened to be attending. Over the next few days they fall deeper and deeper in love with each other. It was definitely true love, and their parents, especially Mary's, were happy to see their children happy.

Zack cared for Mary, like, a LOT. There was no mistaking his love for her. He would do anything to keep her safe, anything to make her happy. Mary cared equally for Zack -- well, maybe a little less that Zack's extreme. She was so much happier after she met Zack. Her previous events in life had been haunting her for years.

Zack and Mary sort of remind me of Clary and Jace from the Mortal Instruments series, as far as loving each other goes, anyway. It was all they could do just to stop thinking about each other for even five minutes.

There's actually only one love scene in this book, and it was a little graphic, but not an extreme caution. This novel was pretty good. I hate that it was so short, though, because the plot was one that would've been great in a 200 - 350 page book :).

Flavors by Emily Sue Harvey

Flavors

By Emily Sue Harvey

Publisher: The Story Plant, 2011

115 pages, paperback

Date Finished: 20/3/2011

Genres: Young Adult, Coming of Age, Realistic Fiction

In Flavors, this master storyteller of the human heart sweeps us along with twelve-year-old Sadie Ann Melton as she enters a life-altering season. The summer of 1950 will change everything for her. For in that summer, she will embark on an odyssey at once heartbreakingly tender and crushingly brutal. At times, she will experience more darkness than she has ever witnessed before. At others, she will thrill to lightness and joy she never imagined. By summer’s end, the Melton women in Sadie’s journey &ndash loving her, coaxing her, and commanding her &ndash will help shape her into the woman she becomes. And they will expose Sadie to all of the flavors of life as she savors the world that she brings into being.
~from goodreads.com~

~First Line: "Today, lounging here in my easy chair, eyes closed, with television tuned to Sirius 40s and 50s Pop hits, I listen to a familiar old song by the Nat King Cole Trio."
~Last Line: "It gave me. . . . Me."

Review: This novella was really more interesting that I initially thought it would be. I'm really glad that I agreed to participate in the Flavors book tour.

The main character, Sadie Ann Melton, and her little brother stay with their grandmother for the summer. Sadie has so many aunts and uncles it's crazy (but a fun challenge trying to remember them all). She is only a few years younger than some of them! They were all super-engaging, though, with their differentiating characteristics and looks, and behaviors.

Grandma Melton, above all, was the most absorbing charrie. The men in her family come first. She was bitter towards Sadie for some time before she actually started looking out for her. However, you could never stop loving her; even if she never said "I love you" or anything of that sort, she stil wished nothing but the best for you. She cared, even if you didn't think so.

Sadie Ann Melton. The name makes me remember so many moments that were told from sadie's  perspective. Miss Melton experiences everything for beginning the next stage in puberty ti losing a dear friend, or, in this case, a dear uncle. *tear, tear*

But anyway, Flavors was a spectacular novella. Everyone should take a chance to indulge themselves in its 115 pages. Through thick and thin, good and bad, Sadie Ann Melton's free-roaming spirit and mind are a great wonder to the reader's brain :)



Quotes from the Book:

"Youth is like spring. An over praised season." ~Samuel Butler

"The deepest definition of youth is life as yet untouched by tradegy." ~Alfred Noth Whithead

"And then the day came, when risk it took to remain tight in the bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." ~Anias Nin

One Night That Changes Everything by Lauren Barnholdt

One Night That Changes Everything
By Lauren Barnholdt
Publisher: Simon Pulse, 2010
242 pages, hardcover
Date Finished: 21/3/2011
Genres: Some Adventure, Coming of Age, Realistic Fiction, Romance, Young Adult

Two years ago, when Eliza Sellman was in ninth grade, her dad found out he was being transfered and the family was going to move. Having always been shy and not so confident about her body, Eliza took that opportunity to start a list in her private notebook of all the things she planned on doing when she moved but had always been afraid to—like wearing a miniskirt and asking guys to dance; singing karaoke in front of strangers; posting a photo of herself on her Facebook wall in a bikini...you get the idea. New town, new Eliza, right? Well, she'll never know because the transfer fell through and they didn't move. But Eliza kept adding her goals and secret fears to the list in the notebook. Now it's two years later, and in that time Eliza has had and lost her first boyfriend. But this was more than your average breakup...turns out the sweet and cute Cooper was only dating her as a hazing stunt by a secret society. Eliza got her revenge by posting some pretty nasty (and only sort-of true) stuff about Cooper online. That posting has had major consequences and now Cooper and his buddies have stolen her private notebook and won't give it back until she performs all the things on her list in one night. It's torture...until Eliza steals something from the boys she knows they'll want to trade her notebook for. What starts out as a night of humiliation turns into a night of revelations as Eliza learns what Cooper was really thinking when they dated, the real reason he's stolen her notebook, and how freeing—and life-changing—it can be to do the things you fear the most.
~from goodreads.com~

~First Line: "I lose everything."
~Last Line: "And finally, when my notebook's nothing but ashes, I put the fire out and head up to bed."

Review: I first learned of this novel when Leanne let me read the sample of it she'd gotten on her iPod. I instantly fell in love with it and wanted to read it. After I gave it to her as a birthday present and she read it, she let me borrow it.

One Night That Changes Everything was a little adventurous; the characters were only traveling around their hometown, but they were going all over the place. The characters were awesome. They were developed really weel; I think my favorite would have to be Cooper. He's Eliza's (the main charrie) ex, and he still has feelings for her, of couirse. I think what made me love him so much was that he was a really good actor. His friends didn't know he was helping Eliza until the end. Obvioiusly, Eliza wasn't oh-so-grateful for his help. At first.

Eliza's character was just sort of iffy to me. I liked her, but at times I didn't like her. She was so stuck up on why she and Cooper broke up that she wouldn't let herself believe she still had feelings for him. Or that she should accept his aid. The secondary characters, which in my opinion were Eliza's best friends, Clarice and Marissa, were likable. They weren't the best, but I really enjoyed how they added to the story; in the beginning they couldn't stand each other, but after that one terrible night, they were super-close.

Yes, you read that right: All 242 pages take place in one night. That's another part I liked. Lots of action in a small amount of time :).

I definitely recommend this book. It's a great book to read in between a ton of paranormal reads!



Quotes from the Book:

" 'That's what you put in your notebook? That you're afraid to ask some guys to dance?' She looks at me skeptically, like I've just announced I'm afraid to go to school or something. Which, actually, now that I think about it, it isn't that weird of a thing to be afraid of."

"So, the thing is, I don't really know how to dance. Like,my experience with dancing is kind of . . . limited. And when I say limited, I mean, you know, nonexistent."

" 'Don't you think that's a little dangerous?' I ask delicately. I know Clarice is from the South and all and she gets totally shocked when people actually (gasp) lock their car doors, but this is taking it alittle too far."

Book Review: Th1rteen R3asons Why

Title: Thirteen Reasons Why
Author: Jay Asher
Publisher: Razorbill (Penguin Group USA), 2007
First Read: December 19th, 2009
Page total: 288 pages
Genre(s): Realistic Fiction, Suicide, Young Adult

Synopsis: Clay Jensen doesn't want anything to do with the tapes Hannah Baker made. Hannah is dead. Her secrets should be buried with her.
Then Hannah's voice tells Clay that his name is on her tapes - and that he is, in some way, responsible for her death.
All through the night, Clay keeps listening. He follows Hannah's recorded words throughout his small town...
... and what he discovers turns his world upside down.
(adapted from the back of the book)


Every time I read this book, my own world looks less gray - because, unlike Hannah, I know I have people I can turn to. I may not have best friends whom I feel totally comfortable with, but there are people who talk to me when I look lonely. There are people who are really interested in what I have to say, who appreciate what I do and who make me laugh with their easy-goingness. And yes, I'm sure there are people who would reach out for me if I asked them for help.
So, thanks for writing this book, Jay Asher. Your book makes me appreciate what I have more. One of my all-time favorites.

Now something on the book itself: Thirteen Reasons Why is a page-turner you won't be able to put down until you have clued bits and pieces of Hannah Baker's life together. It's heart-wrenching but has a hopeful future prospect at the end of the book. I'd recommend it to everyone.

Reasons On My Wrist by Racaneya

Reasons On My Wrist
By Racaneya
Publisher: Racaneya (via Smashwords), 2010
465 pages, e-book (iPod Touch)
Date Finished: 4/3/2011
Genres: Young Adult, Coming of Age, Romance, Contemporary, Realistic Fiction

Cassie, a suicidal teen, learns many reasons about her purpose in life after dealing with death, a love triangle, saving another life, and going through a life changing event.
~from goodreads.com~

~First Line: "I thought I was dead."
~Last Line: "Because I would rather be a bad soul, than one that does not exist."

Review: My bestie Leanne got this novel on her iPod and let me read it. The first thing I thought, just from reading the title, was, "What in the world?! Don't wanna read about an emo girl." Then Leanne explained to me that she doesn't cut herself frequently. To reassure all ofyou, she honestly doesn't.

The main character Cassie, has a lot of problems in her life, including her home life and frequent hospital visits, and she cuts herself to deal with it all. Then add in Jordan, Cassie's crush. Maybe not a first, but she turns from hating him to loving him. A lot of stupid lies get her lots of places; almost all of them were unexpected and unnecessary.

There was, as in all novels these days, romance. There were also sadness-watery-eye moments scattered throughout the book. I liked this because it meant that the work wasn't just musht and emotional, nor was it too serious in every chapter.

I can't really think of anything that I just "hated," but Cassie does make some absolutely stupid choices in the book. She has way too many emotions and problems in her life, and she's getting caught up. She tries to please everyone except her, really, and in an overall view, it doesn't work out for her all too well.

Anyway, I would definitely recommend this novel. Great entertainment when you're reading a slow book, or a book that you're just not feeling at the moment.



Quotes from the Book:

" 'Can I draw your feet?' I said. . . .
'My feet?' he gasped. . . .
'Yes, your feet. You act like I'm asking to draw--'
'Okay, that's enough,' he said."

Book Review: Snitch

Title: Snitch
Author: Allison van Diepen
Publisher: Simon Pulse (imprint of Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing Division), 2007
First read: March 18th, 2011
Page total: 297 pages
Genre(s): Serious Issues, Realistic Fiction, Young Adult

Synopsis: In a school run by gangs, it's almost impossible to stay neutral - but Julia DiVino and her best friend Q have made vows to stay that way until they graduate and get the hell out of the place. But everything changes when Eric Valienté enters her life. Lines are redrawn. And then they're crossed.


All I can say is, WOW!  Julia's voice is so real, I can practically picture the whole thing. Julia's friendship with Q and Black Chuck, her falling in love with Eric and her dealing with Crips and Bloods...
Julias smart, but she's also very human. I immediately liked her. No matter how reckless and dangerous her choices are, I can't not like her. Oh, and the turns and twists that kept coming, I never expected them! I won't say anything because I don't want to spoil anything but I never thought
a) Eric would do what he did
b) Julia would do anything to protect him.

The situation Allison van Diepen tries to capture -many gangs that divide people into many groups, students dropping out, violence, the revenge, the gang life (i.e. gang "family" members etc.)- is so very real.
Julia's position in the whole mess of gangs was one of the main topics in this book and it held my interest. When we first meet Julia, she isn't into the whole gang crap and stays out of their businesses together with her friend Q. But she's not a goody-goody girl by any means. She knows the dangers of streets and she knows of the temptations of the drugs. She decided it's not her thing, so she's staying out of it. Until she meets Eric... and everything she's believed in spins out of control. And later, when she wasn't... neutral, it was interesting to see how her attitude toward the gang life changed. But again, she had her reasons for what she did and I can't really judge her, can I?
The tension remains until the very end and I was so devastated to see the book end but it was wrapped up nicely. And even though it is told from Julia's PoV (I've got the feeling the author did it so the readers wouldn't be able to get into Eric's head) the narration is very neutral and it often comes off as third person narrator.

So very realistic, so very intense and so very captivating.

Read It With A Buddy #4 - How to Say Goodbye in Robot

How to Say Goodbye in Robot
By Natalie Standiford
Publisher: Scholastic, 2009
276 pages, paperback
Date Finished: 18/1/2011 (Leanne), 31/1/2011 (Zakiya)
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance, Coming of Age

New to town, Bea is expecting her new best friend to be one of the girls she meets on the first day. But instead, the alphabet conspires to seat her next to Jonah, aka Ghost Boy, a quiet loner who hasn't made a new friend since third grade. Something about him, though, gets to Bea, and soon they form an unexpected friendship. It's not romance, exactly - but it's definitely love. Still, Bea can't quite dispel Jonah's gloom and doom - and as she finds out his family history, she understands why. Can Bea help Jonah? Or is he destined to vanish?
~from goodreads.com~

~First Line: "Goebbels [pronounced gerbils] materialized on the back patio, right before we moved to Baltimore, and started chewing through the wicker love seat."
~Last Line: "That's how I imagined it, anyway."

Leanne's Review: The novel How to Say Goodbye in Robot, was truely one of a kind. I read it last year, but I was not as good at reviwing or analyzing books back then. It was my favorite book because it made me cry, until I re-read it. Then I saw the lack of character substance at some points and plot holes. I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone, but it bounced around a lot. Bea was a very understandable character, and you just HAD to love Jonah. Everyone wants a relationship like Jonah and Bea's, being able to be in love without having to use titles or show it every five seconds. This book isn't something we all go through, far from it, but it is relatable, which is something we all enjoy. The whole radio show aspect is fun and corky; I really enjoyed this book. Definitely will read more of Standiford's books, she is an amazing writer, who really captures a story.

Zakiya's Review: This novel was first recommended to me by Leanne. I'm so glad that she got me a copy for my birthday. It really was a great read!

Beatrice, our main character, is new to Baltimore, and her first friend at her new school is Anne Sweeney. Her first curiousity: Jonah Tate. It was, in my opinion, really fast at how she and Jonah started talking to each other. It was good, though. They were totally in love, and they were almost completely oblivious to their feelings. I mean, they were basically dating, but they never admitted to being together; it was sort of nauseating.

Jonah introduces Beatrice to a wonderful and very appealing late night radio show called Night Lights. I have to say, it's not your regular music station. The callers are all really great, and their personalities are well-represented. They make me wonder: Did Natalie Standiford "create" these characters off of people she knew? Or does she just have a super-good imagination? My inner thoughts are saying probably both :).

This novel was a contemporary romance, but it was sort of a hidden romance; like, it was there, but you had to be into the characters and their actions and feelings. No blood-and-gore action, although they do "fly" on the "magic carpet," which I'm sure was a lot of fun!

Overall, you need to read this spectacular novel. Sadly, it's a stand alone novel, but the ending was so great that you don't really need anymore books with Beatrice and Jonah (although it would be nice). You seriously need to read this book if you haven't already! :D



Quotes from the book:

"I turned a corner and came to a small church. There was a headstone near the path leading to the church's wooden doors. I stepped closer to read the headstone. It said 'For the Unicorn Child.'
That is so cool, I thought. What a funky town this was. I imagined a neighborhood Legend of the Unicorn Child, about a one-horned little boy who'd died tragically, hit by a car or shot by a mugger or maybe poisoned by lawn pesticides. The story of the Unicorn Child was so real to these people they'd erected a stone in his memory.
Then I read it again. The stone didn't say 'For the Unicorn Child.' It said 'For the Unborn Child.' "
" 'She don't want a boyfriend, she don't need to be pushed. She and Ghost Boy will fall in love when they're ready.'
'But they're meant for each other,' Myrna said.
'Sure, like crabcakes and crackers,' Larry said. 'I didn't say they wouldn't get it on sometime.' "

Book Review: Just Listen

Title: Just Listen
Author: Sarah Dessen
Publisher: Speak (a division of Penguin Group USA), 2006
First read: March 10th, 2010
Page total: 371 pages
Genre(s): Young Adult; Realistic Fiction

Synopsis: "The girl who has everything" That's the role Annabel Greene had played in the commercial. But that was before the big fallout with her best friend, Sophie. Now Annabel has no friends, wants to quit modeling and is afraid to tell the truth - what really happened the night she and Sophie stopped being friends.
But then she meets Owen Amstrong, a fellow student who's determined to tell only the truth. It is him who changes the way Annabel views the world. But can he help her emerging from her safely guarded shell?

A bittersweet story. It's amazing to see how I grow slowly yet steadily fond of the characters. When I first read the book -which was 11 months ago as you can see- Annabel honestly freaked me out. I couldn't understand why she wouldn't just stick to the truth. Why she would prefer slumming in her cocoon. After going back to the story and savoring each and every word, I can finally say I can understand what she must feeling. I took the time to get close to her, and didn't let the prejudice standing in our way. It's probably weird to bond with a fictional character this way but Sarah Dessen's characters don't feel fictional. They feel real because they're not perfect. They make mistakes. They try to make it good. They're unsure of themselves.
I don't seek confrontations like Kirsten, the oldest of the Greene sisters, but unlike Annabel, I don't shy away from them either. Also, I'm not used to the silent treatments the way Whitney, the middle girl, is used to. If you ask me, I'd say while I don't like confrontations, I do what I have to do - I deal with them in order to protect myself. For Annabel, it was holding back the truth, hoping everyone -including herself- would forget the incident soon.
Several important topics are touched in this novel, such as Whitney's anorexia, Annabel's speaking up for herself, Owen's anger management. Each character struggles to live with her/his problem and while Annabel's clearly the major character, the others don't feel like left out, either - they're just as real as Annabel is.
At the end, Annabel learns to stand up for herself, and that while running away may be the easiest way out, it is not always the right way to deal with problems. And for that, I truly admire her.

Also, this book is packed with wisdom we all know subconsciously but that has never been pointed out to us. So, some quotes:
"But being nice wasn't as easy as it seemed, especially when the rest of the world could be so mean."
-Annabel

"I was beginning to see, though, that the unkown wasn't always the greatest thing to fear. The people who know you best can be riskier, because the words they say and the things they think have the potential to be not only scary but true, as well."
-Annabel

"What's wrong with nice?"
"Nothing. Except it usually involves not telling the truth."
-Annabel and Owen

"Anger's not bad. It's human. Anyway, just because someone's upset doesn't mean they'll stay that way."
-Owen

"Don't think, or judge. Just listen. [...] And then [...] you can make up your mind. Fair enough, right?"
-Owen.

This is a great book.
Sarah Dessen is an amazing author.

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson (Second Review)

SPEAK (Platinum Edition)
By Laurie Halse Anderson
Publisher: Penguin Group, 2006
198 pages, paperback
Date Finished: 12/1/2011
Genres: Young Adult, Realistic Fiction, Coming of Age, Serioius Issues

Since the beginning of the school year, high school freshman Melinda has found that it's been getting harder and harder for her to speak out loud: "My throat is always sore, my lips raw.... Every time I try to talk to my parents or a teacher, I sputter or freeze.... It's like I have some kind of spastic laryngitis." What could have caused Melinda to suddenly fall mute? Could it be due to the fact that no one at school is speaking to her because she called the cops and got everyone busted at the seniors' big end-of-summer party? Or maybe it's because her parents' only form of communication is Post-It notes written on their way out the door to their nine-to-whenever jobs. While Melinda is bothered by these things, deep down she knows the real reason why she's been struck mute...
~from goodreads.com~

~First Line: "It is my first morning of high school."
~Last Line: " 'Let me tell you about it.' "

Review: WOW! I have to start off with that word. I absolutely love this novel, and I'm glad that I spent my birthday money on it. It truly was worth it.

The main character, Melinda, was my favorite; of course, like every favorite character, there's a few things I would change. Although I understand why she stayed quiet about the whole unfortunate deal, I still would have told someone what happened.

I would say no real adventure, some action that terrible night at the party, and one time later in the novel that I won't spoil. The characters were well-written. My least favorite character -- well, not my least favorite, just one I didn't like all that much -- was Heather. In the beginning I loved her; then she tried to get with the Marthas and began using Melinda. NOT a good friend. Not someone I would hang with once I caught on to the fact that she never talks to me until she needs my help.

Overall -- before I start spoiling -- I really LOVED this novel, and for those of you who haven't read it yet, you really need to!



Quotes from the Book:

"She wears black stockings with runs and doesn't shave under her arms. She waves her hand in the air and you find yourself thinking of young chimpanzees."

"The other guys run drills and pass in to him. Brendan reaches up a skinny octopus tentacle and casually drops the ball through the hoop. Our boys are unbeatable as long as they are the only team on the floor."

"[In middle school] To tell someone you liked them, you had to use layers and layers of friends, as in 'Janet told me to tell you that Steven told me that Dougie said Carom was talking to April and she hinted that Sara's brother Mark has a friend named Tony who might like you. What are you going to do?'
It is easier to floss with barbed wire than admit you like someone in middle school."

"When I was in the sixth grade, my mom bought me all these books about puberty and adolescence, so I would appreciate what a 'beautiful' and 'natural' and 'miraculous' transformation I was going through. Crap. That's what it is. She complains all the time about her hair turning gray and her butt sagging and her skin wrinkling, but I'm supposed to be grateful for a face full of zits, hair in embarrassing places, and feet that grow an inch a night. Utter crap."