Monthly Archives: March 2016

Top Ten Tuesday: Ten Recent Books I Didn’t Finish

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Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by the lovely folks over at The Broke And The Bookish.  Every week, bloggers share their own bookish top ten lists based on the topic of the week.  You can check out Ten Tuesdays here.

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Ten Recent Books I Didn’t Finish

There haven’t been a lot of books I’ve loved lately, but there have been a bunch of books I DNF’d, so I thought I’d share those 10 books instead.  Here are ten recent books I couldn’t finish.

  1. A Little Something Different by Sandy Hall.  This sounded so cute, but there were way too many narrators, and it made me feel distanced from the actual romance to care about the romance.  It’s a shame, too, because the idea of a romance told by everyone except the couple is a really interesting concept.
  2. Anastasia And Her Sisters by Carolyn Meyer.  I can’t even remember why I didn’t finish this one.  I really can’t.
  3. Out Of Darkness by Ashley Hope Perez.  This is another one where I can no longer remember why I didn’t finish it, but I think maybe I didn’t like the multiple narrators, and I vaguely remember being slightly confused at the beginning…maybe?
  4. Princess Academy by Shannon Hale.  The story sounds so cool, but the audio drove me crazy!  It was my first time listening to a full cast, and it was really distracting.  It took me out of the story to the point that I didn’t want to keep going.
  5. The Sacred Lies Of Minnow Bly by Stephanie Oakes.  I was so excited about it, but then I wasn’t into it at all. I got bored, and the flashbacks were weird and not integrated into the story well…from what I remember, which isn’t a lot.
  6. Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raash.  I was bored reading it, and the beginning was kind of confusing.  But mostly, I got bored.
  7. The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima.  I couldn’t get into it, even though the idea is pretty interesting.
  8. This Is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp.  I really wanted to like this book, but it was so hard to get through. The multiple narrators made it more confusing than it needed to be, and it made it hard to get a good handle on the shooter, and the narrators themselves.
  9. Salt To The Sea by Ruta Sepetys.  I loved her first two books, but I couldn’t get through this one.  The multiple narrators didn’t work for me, and it made the story a little too weird.
  10. Fallen by Laury Falter.  I found the implied hints that there was something paranormal going on to be really frustrating.  Not only that, but you’re just thrown into the world with no explanation of what’s going on, and nothing is really explained, and it just made me not care about what was going on.

Book Review: Delirium Stories by Lauren Oliver

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Delirium Novellas CoverBook: Delirium Stories: Hana, Annabel & Raven by Lauren Oliver

Published March 2013 by HarperCollins|208 pages

Where I Got It: I borrowed the paperback from the library

Series: Delirum # 0.5 (Hana), 1.5 (Annabel) and 2.5 (Raven)

Genre: YA Dystopia

Blog Graphic-What It's About

For the first time, Lauren Oliver’s short stories about characters in the Delirium world appear in print. Originally published as digital novellas, Hana, Annabel, and Raven each center around a fascinating and complex character who adds important information to the series and gives it greater depth. This collection also includes an excerpt from Requiem, the final novel in Oliver’s New York Times bestselling series.

Hana is told through the perspective of Lena’s best friend, Hana Tate. Set during the tumultuous summer before Lena and Hana are supposed to be cured, this story is a poignant and revealing look at a moment when the girls’ paths diverge and their futures are altered forever.

Lena’s mother, Annabel, has always been a mystery–a ghost from Lena’s past–until now. Her journey from teenage runaway to prisoner of the state is a taut, gripping narrative that expands the Delirium world and illuminates events–and Lena–through a new point of view.

And as the passionate, fierce leader of a rebel group in the Wilds, Raven plays an integral role in the resistance effort and comes into Lena’s life at a crucial time. Crackling with intensity, Raven is a brilliant story told in the voice of one of the strongest and most tenacious characters in the Delirium world.

Blog Graphic- What I Thought

I randomly saw this at the library and thought it might be interesting to read!  This one is the three novels set in the same world as Delirium trilogy, and I loved Hana but thought Annabel and Raven were okay.

Hana is definitely my favorite of the three.  I liked seeing Hana on her own, and something about her story really struck me.  Maybe it’s because she really just needed to have her moment of rebellion before going back to her life.

Annabel’s story was okay, as was Raven’s.  I could care less about Annabel, but we do see her life now and through flashbacks, but I’m so ambivalent about her that I can’t outright hate her story.  And Raven’s was just re-hashing what we already knew about her.

I’m not sure if the individual stories were published as the series was coming out, or if they were all published later on, but having read all three after reading the series has come out, I wasn’t super into it.  They didn’t really add much in terms of world-building, and other than Hana and Annabel, I feel like we don’t learn a lot about the characters. Annabel and Raven’s stories are also pretty forgettable, because I’m writing this several hours after reading Annabel and Raven, and not much has stuck.

I don’t know if re-reading the series would have made a difference in liking it more, or if, at this point I just don’t care.  And while I liked the series overall, I’m not sure if I liked it enough to read the novellas…which I did because I was curious.

Blog Graphic- My Rating

2 stars.  Overall, it’s pretty forgettable, especially if you haven’t read the Delirium trilogy in a while.  And for me, it didn’t add a lot to the series or the world.

Book Review: Where The Streets Have A Name by Randa Abdel-Fattah

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0-545-17292-6Book: Where The Streets Have A Name by Randa Abdel-Fattah

Published January 2008 by Scholastic|313 pages

Where I Got It: I borrowed the hardcover from the library

Series: None

Genre: YA Contemporary

Blog Graphic-What It's About

Thirteen year old Hayaat is on a mission. She believes a handful of soil from her grandmother’s ancestral home in Jerusalem will save her beloved Sitti Zeynab’s life. The only problem is that Hayaat and her family live behind the impenetrable wall that divides the West Bank, and they’re on the wrong side of check points, curfews, and the travel permit system. Plus, Hayaat’s best friend Samy always manages to attract trouble. But luck is on the pair’s side as they undertake the journey to Jerusalem from the Palestinian Territories when Hayaat and Samy have a curfew-free day to travel.

But while their journey may only be a few kilometers long, it could take a lifetime to complete…

Humorous and heartfelt, Where The Streets Had A Name deals with the Israel-Palestinian conflict with sensitivity and grace and will open a window on this timely subject.

Blog Graphic- What I Thought

I liked Where The Streets Had A Name!  Not as much as the other books I’ve read from her, but I still really liked it!

Unfortunately, the conflict we see in the book is something that I know nothing about, but I really am glad that Abdel-Fattah wrote such a great book.  I can’t even begin to imagine what it’s like to live in Hayaat’s world, and it definitely made me realize how little I pay attention to what’s going on in the world.

I think there may be an assumption that the reader knows at least a little bit about the Israel-Palestinian conflict, and I think an author’s note would have been nice.  Not that I, or other reader’s, can’t learn more about it on their own, but…it still would have been nice.  It didn’t take away from the novel at all, and it’s a story I think everyone needs to read.  And even though I’m not at all familiar with the conflict we see in the book, I think this book is so important because I think it’s about a side that probably doesn’t get the coverage that the other side does.

You still get a clear picture of what life is like for Hayaat and her family, especially with some of the flashbacks/stories we see in the book.  I really felt for them, and Abdel-Fattah does such a wonderful job at showing several different perspectives, and how everyone…they’re just people.  It would have been so easy for her to write one side as…bad…but she doesn’t.  She’s very neutral, but it’s also clear that it was important to her that this story be told.  While it’s very different than her other books, I am glad I read it because it’s about hope and courage and how important family is, even when things have changed so much.

I also really liked the glossary at the end of the book, and I did find myself flipping back and forth when I came across a word I didn’t know.  It was really helpful to have!

Blog Graphic- My Rating

4 stars.  I really liked it, but I didn’t love it.  I still recommend it, though!

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books I Love But Haven’t Talked About In A While

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Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by the lovely folks over at The Broke And The Bookish.  Every week, bloggers share their own bookish top ten lists based on the topic of the week.  You can check out Ten Tuesdays here.

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Top Ten Books I Love But Haven’t Talked About In A Long Time

There are so many books I feel like I haven’t talked about in so long!  I’m always reading new books, and there are periods where I talk about the same books over and over, so it’s actually really fun to talk about the books I haven’t talked about in a long time.

  1. The Iron Fey by Julie Kagawa.  I used to talk about this series all the time, and it felt like I was also including it in old TTT’s.  I love how technology and faeries collide in this world, and I think I’ve long overdue for a re-read.
  2. Hate List by Jennifer Brown.  This book was such an emotional read for me, and even though I read it over 4 years ago, I think it deals with such an important topic.
  3. Morganville Vampires by Rachel Caine.  I love this series, and I can’t wait to read the short story collection, because I just really love this world.
  4. Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins.  This series is so different than some of the other angel series I’ve read!  It’s awesome because it’s about demons, and Anna is so much more innocent than I thought she’d be, but I really like that about her.
  5. The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han.  This is one of my favorite series, and it makes me cry every single time.  It makes me feel so nostalgic and I need to talk about it more!
  6. Anna And The French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins.  Anna is just awesome, why do I not talk about this book more?
  7. Soul Screamers series by Rachel Vincent.  It’s a paranormal series that’s about banshees, what’s not to like? And I love that you see Kaylee working with her friends!
  8. Wings by Aprilynne Pike.  I just love how the faeries in this world are sort of like plants, and how faeries bloom in different seasons.
  9. Reason To Breathe by Rebecca Donovan.  It’s been a while since I’ve read this series, but it is one of my favorites, even though it always makes me cry.
  10. The Sky Is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson.  This is not the only book on the list that made me cry, but I felt for Lennie, and I felt like I was along for the ride!

Book Review: The Distance Between Us by Kasie West

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The Distance Between Us CoverBook: The Distance Between Us by Kasie West

Published July 2013 by HarperCollins|218 pages

Where I Got It: I own the e-book

Series: None

Genre: YA Contempoary

Blog Graphic-What It's About

Money can’t buy a good first impression.

Seventeen-year-old Caymen Meyers learned early that the rich are not to be trusted. And after years of studying them from behind the cash register of her mom’s porcelain-doll shop, she has seen nothing to prove otherwise. Enter Xander Spence—he’s tall, handsome, and oozing rich. Despite his charming ways and the fact that he seems to be one of the first people who actually gets her, she’s smart enough to know his interest won’t last. Because if there’s one thing she’s learned from her mother’s warnings, it’s that the rich have a short attention span. But just when Xander’s loyalty and attentiveness are about to convince Caymen that being rich isn’t a character flaw, she finds out that money is a much bigger part of their relationship than she’d ever realized. With so many obstacles standing in their way, can she close the distance between them?

Blog Graphic- What I Thought

I thought I’d like The Distance Between Us a lot more than I actually did.  I loved On The Fence, and thought I’d be reading something sort of similar, but it was something I didn’t like as much as I thought because it left me feeling like I was reading something really different than what I thought I was getting.

I did like the humor in the book, and I think that’s something West does well.  But I think, of the books I’ve read by West so far, this one is my least favorite.

I didn’t care about the romance and it was a bit too much on the Cinderella-side.  It’s not that a guy like Xander couldn’t be interested in Caymen, because he could, but something about it felt a little too fake.  It’s a little hard to believe that a guy with Xander’s social status would be interested in Caymen.  It seemed a little too cliche, and it wasn’t done in a way that made me not care how cliche it was.  I just felt like there was no chemistry between them, but I did like that they were both trying to find their place in the world.  It felt more platonic than romantic.

I also felt like their financial situation and why Caymen never knew her grandparents was a little bit forced.  The grandparents showing up seemed really abrupt, and things were perfectly fine, even though they weren’t part of her life until that point.  Even though I can understand why her mom had issues with wealthy people, it also seemed a little fake, like it was there just as a random obstacle coming between Xander and Caymen.

I also wish we saw more of the relationship between Caymen and her mom, because while Caymen talked about how good of a relationship, I also wish we saw it instead of having it be told to us.

Actually, now that I think about it, a lot of the elements of the book reminded me of Gilmore Girls…but as a book, and not as good.  I just felt like some of the issues that we see in the book weren’t given a lot of attention, and even though I really like the premise, this book just didn’t work for me.  Adult me wasn’t a fan, but I think maybe teenage me would have loved the book.

Blog Graphic- My Rating

2 stars.  The Distance Between Us was just okay.  I liked how Caymen was really sarcastic, and her dry sense of humor, but the romance felt forced and cliche.

Book Review: This Raging Light by Estelle Laure

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This Raging Light CoverBook: This Raging Light by Estelle Laure

Published December 2015 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt|160 Pages

Where I Got It: I own the e-book

Series: None

Genre: YA Contemporary

Blog Graphic-What It's About

Can the best thing happen at the worst time?

Her dad went crazy. Her mom left town. She has bills to pay and a little sister to look after. Now is not the time for level-headed seventeen-year-old Lucille to fall in love. But love—messy, inconvenient love—is what she’s about to experience when she falls for Digby Jones, her best friend’s brother. With blazing longing that builds to a fever pitch, Estelle Laure’s soulful debut will keep readers hooked and hoping until the very last page.

Blog Graphic- What I Thought

I was so excited about reading This Raging Light, but I ended up not liking it.  Which makes me a little sad, because I really liked the premise of the book.

I don’t read a lot of stories where the protagonist is helping pay bills and takes care of a younger sibling to the point that they are basically like a parent to their sibling, but it wasn’t until I was reading this book that I realized how tired I am of this trope.  The parents aren’t in the picture, and Lucy is left to get a job once the money her mom left runs out, and it was just really frustrating to read.  Especially because nothing really gets resolved in terms of her mom leaving.  There really isn’t anything resolved in terms of her dad either, but given her dad is in a halfway house, it makes sense things aren’t really resolved with him.  But we never find out if her mom comes back, or even find out what’s going on with her mom while she’s gone.

And we don’t really get anything about why her parents left, and why Lucille is left to take care of her younger sister. We do get a little bit of backstory, but we’re sort of thrown into Lucy taking care of her sister with no explanation. I also didn’t understand what the point of them leaving was when their story wasn’t completely resolved.

Things are really unresolved at the end of the book, and there are so many things going on that everything is left fairly open-ended at the end of the book.  I don’t mind when things are a little unresolved, but I felt like things were going in so many different directions that I wasn’t sure where the book was going, and things felt glossed over.  I felt things weren’t dealt with very well, especially with how short the book is.

As for the romance…I didn’t feel it at all.  For one thing, Digby cheated on his girlfriend, and she wasn’t really in the book until the end (I think- but I can’t really remember, but I’m pretty sure either her or someone close to her did show up at the end).  I’m confused about why he even needed a girlfriend if she doesn’t even show up. He didn’t even seem interested in Lucille, and then they kiss and all of a sudden, he’s interested in her.  I felt like there was no chemistry between them.

I felt for Lucille, and she was in a tough position, but she also didn’t really stand out to me as a character.  She did seem to have some support from her neighbors and from Digby, and even a little from her best friend, before her best friend gave her the silent treatment for no apparent reason.  I didn’t really feel their friendship, and that too was a little lackluster for me.

I didn’t like the attitude some people seemed to have that it was perfectly okay for a 17-year-old to take care of her sister, and not call anyone about it.  It does seem like a small town, but still.  Just because Lucille’s mom and aunt were in a similar situation when they were kids doesn’t mean it’s okay for Lucille to have to take on that role, even though Lucille is 17-going-on-18.  It’s okay, because her mom went through something similar?  No, it’s not okay. It just really bothered me that people knew and just randomly filled her kitchen up with food.

Blog Graphic- My Rating

1 star.  I didn’t like This Raging Light- I thought it was going in too many different directions that were never fully resolved, and the romance was pretty lackluster.

Book Review: Gabi, A Girl In Pieces by Isabel Quintero

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Gabi, A Girl In Pieces CoverBook: Gabi, A Girl In Pieces by Isabel Quintero

Published October 2014 by Cinco Puntos Press|284 pages

Where I Got It: I borrowed the paperback from the library

Series: None

Genre: YA Contemporary

Blog Graphic-What It's About

Gabi Hernandez chronicles her last year in high school in her diary: college applications, Cindy’s pregnancy, Sebastian’s coming out, the cute boys, her father’s meth habit, and the food she craves. And best of all, the poetry that helps forge her identity.

July 24

My mother named me Gabriella, after my grandmother who, coincidentally, didn’t want to meet me when I was born because my mother was unmarried, and therefore living in sin. My mom has told me the story many, many, MANY, times of how, when she confessed to my grandmother that she was pregnant with me, her mother beat her. BEAT HER! She was twenty-five. That story is the basis of my sexual education and has reiterated why it’s important to wait until you’re married to give it up. So now, every time I go out with a guy, my mom says, “Ojos abiertos, piernas cerradas.” Eyes open, legs closed. That’s as far as the birds and the bees talk has gone. And I don’t mind it. I don’t necessarily agree with that whole wait until you’re married crap, though. I mean, this is America and the 21st century; not Mexico one hundred years ago. But, of course, I can’t tell my mom that because she will think I’m bad. Or worse: trying to be White.

Blog Graphic- What I Thought

I really liked Gabi, A Girl In Pieces!  I can’t believe it’s Quintero’s debut novel, because, for some reason, I thought that Quintero was a lot of other books out there.

I really liked Gabi’s story, and how it’s told through diary entries.  Something about this book made me think of Princess Diaries, and I think they’re a good read alike for each other.  Gabi’s honest, and she has to deal with so many things.  I really felt for her, and I really liked her and there’s something about her that made me want to hug her. She’s also really funny, and I really wish that a book like this was out when I was in high school, because I am pretty sure teenage me would have LOVED it.  I still really like it, though, and I think the thing I related to the most was how she sometimes felt insecure about how she looked (don’t we all, though?) and I can really relate to turning lobster red after being in the sun for a while.

I feel like Gabi is so aware of everything going on in her life- the diary format really gets her to reflect on things, and we really see her change over the course of a year.  There’s something very sincere about Gabi and she does have her flaws, but I love that she’s flawed, and doesn’t try to be anyone other than herself.

I did want to talk about the cover!  This is a book I’ve wanted to read for a while, and while I like that the cover is totally how Gabi sees herself, and that it’s a color version of the illustration we see in the book, that she draws for her zine.  I can see people not picking up the book because of the cover, but if you can get past the cover, this really is a great book.

Blog Graphic- My Rating

4 stars.  I didn’t love it, but Gabi definitely has a unique voice!

Book Review: Soundless by Richelle Mead

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Soundless CoverBook: Soundless by Richelle Mead

Published November 2015 by Razorbill|266 pages

Where I Got It: I borrowed the hardcover from the library

Series: None

Genre: YA Fantasy

Blog Graphic-What It's About

In a village without sound…

For as long as Fei can remember, no one in her village has been able to hear. Rocky terrain and frequent avalanches make it impossible to leave the village, so Fei and her people are at the mercy of a zipline that carries food up the treacherous cliffs from Beiguo, a mysterious faraway kingdom.

When villagers begin to lose their sight, deliveries from the zipline shrink. Many go hungry. Fei and all the people she loves are plunged into crisis, with nothing to look forward to but darkness and starvation.

One girl hears a call to action…

Until one night, Fei is awoken by a searing noise. Sound becomes her weapon.

She sets out to uncover what’s happened to her and to fight the dangers threatening her village. A handsome miner with a revolutionary spirit accompanies Fei on her quest, bringing with him new risks and the possibility of romance. They embark on a majestic journey from the peak of their jagged mountain village to the valley of Beiguo, where a startling truth will change their lives forever…

And unlocks a power that will save her people.

Blog Graphic- What I Thought

I was really intrigued by Soundless, because not only is it a fantsasy inspired by Chinese mythology, but it’s a village comprised of people who cannot hear.  Unfortunately, Soundless was really lackluster, and I didn’t like it as much as I thought I would.  Actually, I didn’t like it at all.

First of all, this book is a stand-alone, and I don’t know that fantasy works very well as a stand-alone.  It’s just, how do you give enough world-building to make the world feel real, while also keeping the story contained to one book? It seems like something that’s very hard to balance and do well, and things were really vague and pretty much happened because they needed to happen with no real explanation.

As for Fei’s village…I was intrigued by the fact that they couldn’t hear, but it didn’t work for me.  It came across as them being telepathic, rather than signing to each other, and I actually forgot that they couldn’t hear until signing was mentioned.  I don’t know if it’s something that doesn’t come across well in print, or if maybe it can be done well in print, but not with how Mead did it in this book, but it really came across as mental telepathy.  I did like how some of their signs were different than signs in a couple of near-by villages, and I wish we got more of that.  And back to the vagueness of world-building, I thought why they had issues with hearing and, for some, seeing, was interesting, but could have been a lot more interesting with more background.

And…I didn’t really get the sense that the book was steeped in Chinese mythology.  Granted, I know nothing about about Chinese mythology and folklore, so maybe that’s why I didn’t get the connection to Chinese mythology.  But at the same time, I felt like, if you changed the character names, Fei’s village could have been on any mountain on any continent.  It seemed like the names were the only part of the book that were Chinese.

Overall, I really wanted to like the story, but I couldn’t.  Which is a little disappointing, because her Vampire Academy series was a lot of fun too read, and the concept is such a cool idea.  Maybe Soundless would have worked better as a series, instead of trying to fit everything into one book.

Blog Graphic- My Rating

1 star.  Soundless fell really flat for me, and it could have been really interesting, but unfortunately, it had a lot of things working against it.

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books On My Spring TBR

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Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by the lovely folks over at The Broke And The Bookish.  Every week, bloggers share their own bookish top ten lists based on the topic of the week.  You can check out Ten Tuesdays here.

Blog Graphic- Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Books On My Spring TBR

There are a lot of books I want to read this spring, and it was a little hard picking just ten.  These ten are the ones at the top of my list!

  1. The Fifth Wave by Rick Yancey.  The movie trailer really made me want to read the book!  Which has been sitting on my shelf for at least 2 or 3 years.  I am very determined to read it, and soon!
  2. Among The Janeites by Deborah Yaffe.  This look at the Jane Austen fandom looks really cool!
  3. Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris.  I’m pretty sure I’ve read the first two or three Sookie Stackhouse books, but that was well before I started blogging, but I did buy the e-book on sale ages ago, and when I was randomly looking through my TBR on goodreads, I thought spring might be a good time to re-read it!
  4. The Heart Of Betrayal by Mary Pearson.  Somehow, I never got around to reading it last year, and I really need to read it before the next book comes out!
  5. Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy by Karen Abbott.  I’ve heard a lot about this book, and considering I really like history, this book seems up my alley!
  6. Actually, pretty much any of the non-fiction I have on my shelves.  Why do I not read more non-fiction?
  7. Night Study by Maria V. Snyder.  I can’t wait to see what’s going on with Yelena!
  8. More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera.  This book seems like a book I’d like- even though books about characters who are dealing with the suicide of a loved one are hit-or-miss for me, I’m still intrigued with this one.
  9. Mouse Guard: Spring 1153 by David Petersen.  It’s warrior mice!  And the first two were absolutely adorable, and I just need to read this one.
  10. A Court Of Thorns And Roses by Sarah J. Maas.  I really want to read it!  I’ve heard a lot about it, and I really liked Throne Of Glass, so I definitely need to read it!

Book Review: Every Last Word by Tamara Ireland Stone

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Every Last Word CoverBook: Every Last Word by Tamara Ireland Stone

Published June 2015 by Disney Press|257 pages

Where I Got It: I own the e-book

Series: None

Genre: YA Contemporary

Blog Graphic- What I Thought

If you could read my mind, you wouldn’t be smiling.

Samantha McAllister looks just like the rest of the popular girls in her junior class. But hidden beneath the straightened hair and expertly applied makeup is a secret that her friends would never understand: Sam has Purely-Obsessional OCD and is consumed by a stream of dark thoughts and worries that she can’t turn off.

Second-guessing every move, thought, and word makes daily life a struggle, and it doesn’t help that her lifelong friends will turn toxic at the first sign of a wrong outfit, wrong lunch, or wrong crush. Yet Sam knows she’d be truly crazy to leave the protection of the most popular girls in school. So when Sam meets Caroline, she has to keep her new friend with a refreshing sense of humor and no style a secret, right up there with Sam’s weekly visits to her psychiatrist.

Caroline introduces Sam to Poet’s Corner, a hidden room and a tight-knit group of misfits who have been ignored by the school at large. Sam is drawn to them immediately, especially a guitar-playing guy with a talent for verse, and starts to discover a whole new side of herself. Slowly, she begins to feel more “normal” than she ever has as part of the popular crowd…until she finds a new reason to question her sanity and all she holds dear.

Blog Graphic- What I Thought

This book is so, so special!  It’s my favorite book of the year so far, and I love it for so many reasons!

Like, I love that there’s a book about a character who’s OCD.  It’s nice to see a book about someone who’s not depressed/suicidal.  Don’t get me wrong, there are some fantastic books that deal with depression/suicide, but it’s really nice to see a book that deal with mental illness- and something that’s not depression.  Reading this book really makes me want to read more books that deal with mental illness that’s not depression.

I also love that she sees a psychiatrist, and that we actually see her sessions- and that while she worries about her friends finding out, she does work hard to not let it take over her life.  I loved that she had swimming and that she had the Poet’s Corner, and that poetry became such a great outlet for her.  The poetry throughout the book was beautiful, and she has such good friends in the Poet’s Corner.

The ending had me crying, and it was one I didn’t see coming, but at the same time, it somehow fit with what was going on in Sam’s life.

I also really liked the aspect of Sam’s friendships with the popular girls.  It was interesting to see her have such toxic relationships, and how hard it was for her to let them go because they had such a shared history.  But she really did become a lot stronger than she already was, and she really become someone completely amazing.

The note that Stone had at the end of the book was also really nice to read because it felt like Stone put a lot of care into the book, and into making sure that her portrayal of Sam was authentic and accurate as possible. Something about Sam’s story rang true, and while it isn’t representative of every single experience of OCD,  I also thought it was a really great representation of one person’s story.

Blog Graphic- My Rating

5 stars.  I think this book is really special and amazing, and words cannot express how much I loved this book!