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Uglies

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Book: Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

Publishing Info: Published by Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing; 425 pages in paperback

Goodreads Summary:

Everybody gets to be supermodel gorgeous. What could be wrong with that? Tally is about to turn sixteen, and she can’t wait. Not for her license — for turning pretty. In Tally’s world, your sixteenth birthday brings an operation that turns you from a repellent ugly into a stunningly attractive pretty and catapults you into a high-tech paradise where your only job is to have a really great time. In just a few weeks Tally will be there.

But Tally’s new friend Shay isn’t sure she wants to be pretty. She’d rather risk life on the outside. When Shay runs away, Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world and it isn’t very pretty. The authorities offer Tally the worst choice she can imagine: find her friend and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all. The choice Tally makes changes her world forever.

This is such an interesting book, and I love the premise.  A society where people get surgery at 16 so that they can look pretty?  It’s somewhat scary, but also interesting.

I loved the world that Westerfeld built.  The places were interesting, as were the people.  I definitely could imagine the events of Uglies happening in the near future.

I found Tally very easy to relate to.  Her horror at Shay wanting to be ugly, and wanting to be pretty.  It got me thinking about conformity and beauty standards.  Staying an ugly is a bad thing, and it seems pretty unimaginable to Tally that anyone would choose to be ugly.  And it’s not just one surgery, but several over the course of their lives.  As they hit certain stages in life, they go through another surgery.  It turns out that having the 1st surgery causes legions, and those legions change people.  And only a handful of jobs make them go away.

It says a lot about the society, that a lot of importance is placed on beauty.  And that Maddie and Az, who discovered the surgeries caused legions, had to flee or pretend that they don’t exist.  The outside world is bad, and undergoing surgery solved world peace and anorexia, among other things.

It makes you think beauty, and what it means to be pretty.  It’s interesting to see how beauty standards do (or do not) change over time.  In the book, there’s a Pretty Committee that decides what is considered beautiful for the next generation.  It’s very readable, and beauty isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be.

I also like that the book seems to stand on its own fairly well.  It’s the first of 3, and while there are some loose ends that weren’t tied up, things were resolved enough so that you don’t need to continue the series.

I give it a 4 out of 5.  It really does make you think, and his world-building is pretty good.

Need

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Book: Need by Carrie Jones

Publishing Info: Published by Bloomsbury USA Children’s Books; 306 pages in hardcover

Goodreads Summary: Zara White suspects there’s a freaky guy semi-stalking her. She’s also obsessed with phobias. And it’s true, she hasn’t exactly been herself since her stepfather died. But exiling her to shivery Maine to live with her grandmother? That seems a bit extreme. The move is supposed to help her stay sane…but Zara’s pretty sure her mom just can’t deal with her right now.

She couldn’t be more wrong. Turns out the semi-stalker is not a figment of Zara’s overactive imagination. In fact, he’s still following her, leaving behind an eerie trail of gold dust. There’s something not right – not human – in this sleepy Maine town, and all signs point to Zara.

I wasn’t sure about this book at first.  But as it went on, I started to like it more. It even made its way into my dreams, because I dreamt I was in a forest, trying to find the fairy king!

But in all seriousness, it started to creep me out, and YA books generally don’t creep me out.  I thought the plot was really interesting, with a pixie king after Zara and her mom.  Things are not what they seem to be with this book, and things seem relatively normal…until they’re not.  I knew something was up, but  it was hard to figure out what.

I really liked Zara’s thing with phobias- naming them and reciting them over and over.  It made her stand out, and it made her a lot more interesting.  And her grandma was awesome, with her sarcasm and wit.

There were definitely a few clichés in the book, like everyone wanting to get to know the new girl in town, one girl hating Zara on sight, and her realizing that there’s something special about her, which means she’s a pawn in the pixies evil plan to turn her into one of them.  And a romance in the end is pretty standard for paranormal books.  However, Zara is a likeable character, and the romance isn’t too cliche…the romance doesn’t even happen until the end, although it is hinted at throughout the book.

I give it a 4 out of 5.  It’s a fun book, and really entertaining.

Sara Haze

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I am a big fan of Sara Haze.  I think I came across her music on Pandora…or was it the recommendation thing on iTunes?

Either way, I’m a fan.  I have only, like, 3 songs of hers, but I’ve heard a few others of hers on Pandora.  So there won’t be an album ranking or anything like that.

Cold In California- that song pops up a lot.  I like it.  But I think Lovely is my favorite song that I’ve heard.  The Big Lie and Shine are really good songs too.  There’s something very uplifting and positive about her music, and I can’t help but smile and feel happy.  Listening to her music always puts me in a good mood, so when I need cheering up, I know I can listen to her music.

She’s really talented, and I really would like to see another album from her.  One can only hope.

I can’t think of anything else to add, other than I’m glad I stumbled across her music.  I suppose it’s time to get listening to some more music!

Matched (*A Full Review*)

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Book: Matched by Allie Condie

Publishing Info: Published by Dutton Juvenile; 366 pages in hardcover

Goodreads summary: Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander’s face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is her ideal mate… until she sees Ky Markham’s face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black. 

The Society tells her it’s a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she’s destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can’t stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society’s infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she’s known and a path that no one else has dared to follow.

Matched was a really interesting book.  I was struck by how much it reminded me of The Giver.  A society that has 100 poems, 100 songs, and 100 history lessons so that people don’t get overwhelmed?  A society that matches your spouse for you?  Dying at the age of 80 because that’s a good age to die?  Definitely a society that reminds me of The Giver.

I was really intrigued with her idea, though.  The idea that the Society controls every aspect of your life, and having no input whatsoever, is scary.  For Cassia and everyone around her, it’s completely normal to have everything decided for them.  No one questions it or goes against it.  But Cassia slowly starts to see that there could more than one path for her.

I’m getting a little tired of love triangles, and unfortunately, it looks like they’ll be hanging around for a while.  Condie clearly wants us to want Cassia and Ky to be together, but I can’t really like him.  Sure, he’s interesting, mysterious and off-limits to Cassia, but she’s ignoring her childhood best friend and match, Xander.  Cassia doesn’t seem all that happy she was matched with Xander, especially when Ky appeared on her screen for a couple seconds.  Poor Xander- not only is he not as developed as Ky, but he doesn’t really stand a chance.

I like that Cassia slowly starts to see that things could be different, but I HATE that she starts to question things because of a boy.  At least there wasn’t much romance in the book.  However, her focusing on Ky was annoying given that she kept reminding herself that Xander was her match.

It moved pretty slow, so it’s probably laying the groundwork for the next book.  I wish Condie had mentioned how the Society was formed and how they got to the point that they had to control everyone’s move.  Perhaps it is mentioned in the next book?

Still, I found the book really interesting.  I can’t imagine have to narrow things down to just 100, or having to match people.  I thought the world was really interesting, even though it wasn’t mentioned how they got that way.  Everything was very orderly, and there was a place for everything.  I wouldn’t want to live in such a regimented society, but who knows what I’d actually do if I had to live in such a world?

It gets a 4 out of 5.  It’s well-written and things are not as perfect as they seem.

A Mighty Long Way

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Book: A Mighty Long Way by Carlotta Walls LaNier

Publishing Info: Published by One World/Ballantine; 304 pages in hardcover

GoodReads Summary: When fourteen-year-old Carlotta Walls walked up the stairs of Little Rock Central High School on September 25, 1957, she and eight other black students only wanted to make it to class. But the journey of the “Little Rock Nine,” as they came to be known, would lead the nation on an even longer and much more turbulent path, one that would challenge prevailing attitudes, break down barriers, and forever change the landscape of America.

Descended from a line of proud black landowners and businessmen, Carlotta was raised to believe that education was the key to success. She embraced learning and excelled in her studies at the black schools she attended throughout the 1950s. With Brown v. Board of Education erasing the color divide in classrooms across the country, the teenager volunteered to be among the first black students–of whom she was the youngest–to integrate nearby Central High School, considered one of the nation’s best academic institutions.

But for Carlotta and her eight comrades, simply getting through the door was the first of many trials. Angry mobs of white students and their parents hurled taunts, insults, and threats. Arkansas’s governor used the National Guard to bar the black students from entering the school. Finally, President Dwight D. Eisenhower was forced to send in the 101st Airborne to establish order and escort the Nine into the building. That was just the start of a heartbreaking three-year journey for Carlotta, who would see her home bombed, a crime for which her own father was a suspect and for which a friend of Carlotta’s was ultimately jailed–albeit wrongly, in Carlotta’s eyes. But she persevered to the victorious end: her graduation from Central.

This was such a wonderful book!  And add it to the very short list of books that have made me cry.

This is the 2nd book I’ve read that was written by someone who attended Little Rock Central High- the other one was Warriors Don’t Cry.

Her reason for going to Central High was because she wanted to go to one of the top high schools in the country, and not because of the history it would make.  It was clear throughout the whole book that education was important to her and her family.  Some of the events of the book were very familiar because of Warriors Don’t Cry, but it was very interesting to see a different perspective of what it was like.

I can’t even begin to imagine what it was really like for her.  All the comments, insults, and other things that happened…I can read about it all I want, but it’s just so hard to believe that she made it through to her graduation.  If that isn’t courage, perseverance, and willingness to complete her education, I don’t what is.  It’s hard to believe that, like, 55 years ago, integrating schools was a huge thing.  I know it happened and all, but it’s not something I think about very often…if at all.

Most of all, this book is a good reminder of the past, that not too long ago, things were different but that things can change.

There were 2 things that really stuck out.  One, she could have gone to college after her junior year in high school, and even got accepted to a university.  But she made the decision to go back to Central High, because she had gone through so much just to graduate from there.  And two, the fact that she did her best to put that time of her life behind her.  I don’t blame her at all, and remembering her high school years must have been hard.  But it seems like she’s made peace with it, and wants to make sure that people don’t forget that things were once different.

I give it a 5 out of 5.  It’s a must-read.

My Contract

Posted in 2012 Theme: Self-Love by

This is something I plan on sticking with for the year.

Remember when I said I was going to write out a contract with myself?  I did it! I thought I would keep it simple…I have a tendency to make things more complicated than they need to be.  Keeping things as simple as I can is something I want to work on.  My contract is a good reminder of what I want to do and things I need to remember.

I Will:

  • compliment myself at least once a day
  • ask for help when I need it
  • do the things I enjoy and not feel guilty about it
  • make mistakes
  • do one nice thing for myself everyday
  • compliment myself everytime I think something negative about myself

I Will Not:

  • base my decisions on what I think will make other people happy
  • let the thoughts of others control my life
  • forget that it is okay to have my own opinions
  • let fear take over my life
  • unncessarily complicate things
  • overthink things
  • let myself forget that there are people who care about me

How To Make It Happen:

  • write down all of my compliments and nice things
  • journal for at least 5 minutes 3 times a week (and include both the good and the bad)
  • cook good, healthy food but also enjoy a cookie every now and then
  • spend 10 minutes a day walking or on the elliptical 3 days a week, working my way up to 30 minutes

I know it’s not much, but right now, this is where my focus is.  Sharing those compliments and nice things I’m doing is a good idea!  Especially since I’m writing them down.  And making a nicer version of it is also in the works.  I’ll post a picture of it when it’s finished.

I’ve been working on it all week, putting things on the list, only to take them off later.  There are other things I’ll be working on too, but this is something that I really want to have a record of.

I really am feeling excited about all this.  I feel like everything is starting to click.  I’m ready for this!

Love Is Hell

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Book: Love Is Hell

Publishing Info: Published by HarperTeen; 263 pages in paperback

Love Is Hell is an anthology that contains short stories from 5 YA authors.  Melissa Marr, Scott Westerfeld, Justine Larbalestier, Gabrielle Zevin and Laurie Faria Stolarz all contribute to this anthology.

The first story is Sleeping With The Spirit by Laurie Faria Stolarz.  It’s about a girl who’s in love with a ghost who visits her in her dreams.  I thought it was just okay, but didn’t stand out.

Next up is Stupid Perfect World by Scott Westerfield.  For their final projects, students must select a long-forgotten ill and live it for 2 weeks.  I loved the world-building, and I wanted it to be longer just so I could learn more about a world where sleep doesn’t exist and people can teleport to Mars in a manner of minutes.  This is my favorite of the 5 stories.

Thinner Than Water by Justine Larbaleister is the 3rd story.  In this story, a girl is raised in a tourist town that reenacts life in Medieval Europe.  Her parents take a little too far, and she has to quit school at 16, as well as be married by 16 or 17 and have her first child at 18.  She falls in love with a fairy, he is killed by the village, but ends up returning.  It was just okay, and it’s one of my least favorites.

Fan Fictions by Gabrielle Zevin is the 4th story.  It’s about a girl who falls in love with a vampire…and it turns out that he’s not real, because he’s a character in a book that was recommended to her.  It’s definitely the weakest one in the bunch, and a really strange story…in a bad way.  It did remind me of Twilight, in the sense that I can see some fans falling in love with Edward and Jacob.

The last story is Love Struck by Melissa Marr.  It’s about a girl who falls in love with a selkie, but she feels trapped so he gets his other-skin back.  But in the end, they end up together.  It was just okay, although it was an interesting premise.  I could see this as a full-length novel.

Overall, it was okay.  A couple of the stories were interesting, but I think the only reason why I kept reading was the fact that it was 5 separate stories.

I give it a 2 out of 5.  It was somewhat disappointing, and nothing spectacular.

Ruthless

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Book: Ruthless by Sara Shepard

Publishing Info: Published by HarperTeen; 336 pages in hardcover

Ruthless is the 10th book in the Pretty Little Liars series.

We learn Spencer started doing drugs while taking AP classes at Penn State to help her study.  She gets arrested for possession of drugs, but frames her roommate Kelsey.  She starts having hallucinations after getting the role of Lady Macbeth in the school play.  She thinks Kelsey is A, and getting her revenge for being framed.  Emily, however, meets Kelsey at a party and falls in love with her.  She tells Kelsey what Spencer did, and Kelsey tries to kill herself.   While the girls are visiting her at the Preserve, they realize that Tabitha was a patient there; she happened to be there at the same time as Courtney and Alison.

Hanna helps her father with his campaign, and falls for Liam, the son of the man running against her father.  They break up when she realizes he’s been seeing other people.  As for Aria, she breaks up with Noel, and wants to rekindle her relationship with Ezra, her old English teacher.  Things are strained, and after she discovers Ezra and Klaudia in a closet after the school play, she gets back together with Noel.

I loved the first 8 books, but now?  I’m liking it less and less.  I can’t bring myself to care about who A is or the secrets they’re hiding.  They feel as superficial as they did at the beginning, and they haven’t really changed over the course of the series.  You’d think they’d grow up at least a little, and stop doing stupid things, but they don’t care about- or realize the- consequences.  Not that they seem to face many, if any at all, because they tend to get away with everything.  Even when they do ‘fess up, they tend to get a pat on the shoulder.  That, or everyone thinks they’re crazy.

This one didn’t add really add anything to the series, and I think I might be done with the series.  It’s going on a little too long, but if the 12th book really is the last one, then I might read up to that point.  But I am starting to lose interest in the series.

I give it a 1 out of 5.  It’s by far the weakest book in the series.