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Extras

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Book: Extras by Scott Westerfeld

Publishing Info: Published by Simon Pulse; 417 pages; hardcover

Goodreads Summary: Fame

It’s a few years after rebel Tally Youngblood took down the uglies/pretties/specials regime. Without those strict roles and rules, the world is in a complete cultural renaissance. “Tech-heads” flaunt their latest gadgets, “kickers” spread gossip and trends, and “surge monkeys” are hooked on extreme plastic surgery. And it’s all monitored on a bazillion different cameras. The world is like a gigantic game of “American Idol.” Whoever is getting the most buzz gets the most votes. Popularity rules.

As if being fifteen doesn’t suck enough, Aya Fuse’s rank of 451,369 is so low, she’s a total nobody. An extra. But Aya doesn’t care; she just wants to lie low with her drone, Moggle. And maybe kick a good story for herself.

Then Aya meets a clique of girls who pull crazy tricks, yet are deeply secretive of it. Aya wants desperately to kick their story, to show everyone how intensely cool the Sly Girls are. But doing so would propel her out of extra-land and into the world of fame, celebrity…and extreme danger. A world she’s not prepared for.

This is the final book in the Uglies series, and while I liked it, I didn’t like it as much as the other three.

I think part of it is the fact that it felt tacked on.  Like an afterthought.  I had low expectations, because the series was originally a trilogy.  Perhaps that is why it feels like an afterthought.  It certainly doesn’t feel like a part of the series.

That being said, I liked that we got to see what life was like several years after Tally took down the old ways.  And it was interesting seeing life in a different city.  And using fame and reputation to decide who gets what?  It’s an interesting concept, especially with people trying to gain fame, and what they’ll do to get it.  I almost wished that Westerfeld had focused on that, instead ending up in Singapore trying to figure out what the metal cylinders are for.

Tally was interesting in this book, because she wasn’t a main character.  I liked seeing her through the eyes of someone else.  She came across a lot harsher, more violent, and more mentally unstable than she seemed in the first 3 books.  Given everything that’s happened to Tally, it wasn’t a surprise.

And what didn’t I like?  It didn’t draw me in the way the rest of the series did.  It was slightly more boring than I expected, and the new characters weren’t particularly interesting.  I just couldn’t care about about them.

Overall, it gets a 3 out of 5.  It was well-paced, and enjoyable, but missing that something special the other books had.

Every Soul A Star

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Book: Every Soul A Star by Wendy Mass

Publishing Info: Published by Little, Brown Young Readers; 322 pages; hardcover

Goodreads Summary: Told from three very different perspectives and voices, this compelling and humorous novel weaves an intricate story about friendship, dealing with change, and discovering one’s place in the universe.

I’m not really sure what to think of this book.  I liked the 3 different voices, but the characters weren’t engaging enough for me.  They were all pretty typical, but I can see younger teens and even tweens liking them and relating to them.

I liked that 3 kids, who wouldn’t have met otherwise, all came together to witness a solar eclipse.  Ally was pretty sheltered, since she lives in a campground in the middle of nowhere.  Her parents decide that they want Ally and her brother Kenny to experience life in the “real world.”  It’s strange that after a good 10 years in the middle of nowhere, her parents suddenly decide that their kids need to be around kids their own age?  But then again, them moving means that Bree has to live in a world that’s completely different than the one she’s leaving.  Bree seemed really spoiled, but she seemed to mature a little throughout the book.  Jack was the most interesting of the 3, and it was nice to see that they’d still be friends, even after going back to their lives.

I found the astronomy aspect really interesting, and it was done a way that wasn’t boring.  I even wanted to know a little more, and I’m glad there were some resources at the end of the book.  I totally want to see a solar eclipse now.

It started off a little slow, but then the pace started to pick up.  Overall, it was pretty well-written, and well-paced.  And I liked that I knew who was narrating without having to look at the chapter title.

It gets a 3 out of 5.  It was a little younger than I expected, but still enjoyable.

Specials

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Book: Specials by Scott Westerfeld

Publishing Info: Published by Simon Pulse; 384 pages in hardcover

Goodreads Summary: “Special Circumstances”:

The words have sent chills down Tally’s spine since her days as a repellent, rebellious ugly. Back then Specials were a sinister rumor — frighteningly beautiful, dangerously strong, breathtakingly fast. Ordinary pretties might live their whole lives without meeting a Special. But Tally’s never been ordinary.

And now she’s been turned into one of them: a superamped fighting machine, engineered to keep the uglies down and the pretties stupid.

The strength, the speed, and the clarity and focus of her thinking feel better than anything Tally can remember. Most of the time. One tiny corner of her heart still remembers something more.

Still, it’s easy to tune that out — until Tally’s offered a chance to stamp out the rebels of the New Smoke permanently. It all comes down to one last choice: listen to that tiny, faint heartbeat, or carry out the mission she’s programmed to complete. Either way, Tally’s world will never be the same.

Specials is the 3rd book in the Uglies series.  I think this one is my favorite one in the entire series.  It’s been so interesting to see how Tally has changed during the series, going from an Ugly to a Pretty to a Special.

While physical beauty is an important throughout the series, and especially important in the first two books, it wasn’t so important in this one.  The power of choices and the individual was pretty important- Tally always seems to overcome whatever surgery is performed on her.  And while beauty is skin deep is an important message, our choices andwhether we can overcome things is just as important.

It got me thinking about how we’re conditioned (or socialized) to act and behave.  And that there is a price to freedom, whether we realize it or not.  And I like the idea that we need to take care of the environment instead of destroying it.  It was there, but very subtle.  Westerfeld does a great job of making you think.

It was well-written, and I’m impressed with how relevant the themes are.  It gets a 5 out of 5.

Sharing Is Caring!

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Here are some more blogs I thought I’d share with everyone.  I’ve come across them pretty recently, and they are pretty cool.  It’s actually occurred to me that I should probably add all of the blogs I read to Google Reader, since there are a lot of them.  It would be nice to have them all in one place, instead of going to each blog…

Meadowbrook Farm is pretty cool.  It has recipes and lots of photos.  I like the photos, they’re pretty!

Black*Eiffel also has some cool photos.  For some reason, I’ve been looking at a lot of photo blogs lately.

I also The Drifter And The Gypsy.  It’s mostly photos of different things that inspire the blogger.

I came across The Freedom Experiment because I saw a link to a post on gratitude on another blog I read.  I’m not completely sure about, but I’m intrigued enough to keep reading it for a while.

The Party Dress has some pretty cool party ideas.  I haven’t looked at the magazine or store, but the blog is really cool.

I think the last one for today is pretty light, which is another photography blog.    The photos are so pretty…

I think the next time I do one of these, I need to focus on the wordpress blogs I like.

Pretties

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Book: Pretties by Scott Westerfeld

Publishing Info: Published by Simon Pulse; 370 pages in paperback

Goodreads Summary: Tally has finally become pretty. Now her looks are beyond perfect, her clothes are awesome, her boyfriend is totally hot, and she’s completely popular. It’s everything she’s ever wanted.

But beneath all the fun — the nonstop parties, the high-tech luxury, the total freedom — is a nagging sense that something’s wrong. Something important. Then a message from Tally’s ugly past arrives. Reading it, Tally remembers what’s wrong with pretty life, and the fun stops cold.

Now she has to choose between fighting to forget what she knows and fighting for her life — because the authorities don’t intend to let anyone with this information survive.

Pretties is the 2nd book in the Uglies series, and I really liked it.  I thought it was a good continuation of the series, and it is another one that can stand on its own, but also adds to the series and the overall story.

It is hard to believe that a lot of the characters are 16 to 18, because they seem so much older than that, but they’re still really easy to relate to.  The use of bubbly wasn’t annoying, which was surprising considering that it was used somewhat frequently.  I love New Pretty Town, and I continue to be amazed by the world and the characters that Westerfeld has created.  He has a way of making you think about what’s going on in the world, and he does it in a way that’s not obvious.  I think he understands his audience really well, and portrays all the different friendships and possible romantic relationships realistically.

It was really nice to see what it was like to be pretty, and Tally was really interesting.  It seems like Tally managed to retain some of her “ugly” self, and struggled to remember what it was like to be ugly.  It seems like the lesions can be overcome, and don’t need an actual cure, but I’d really like to see how it plays out in the next book.

And the ending!  Definitely a cliffhanger, and I really want to know what happens, so I can’t wait to start reading the next one.  I do like that you’re wondering what happens next…but could stop reading after any book and be fine.  He really is good at wrapping things up and not making me feel like I’m reading 1 or 2 books that are split into 3 or 4.

It gets a 4 out of 5.

Exposed

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Book: Exposed by Kimberly Marcus

Publishing Info: Published by Random House Books; 255 pages in hardcover

Goodreads Summary: Sixteen-year-old Liz is Photogirl—sharp, focused and confident in what she sees through her camera lens. Confident that she and Kate will be best friends forever.

But everything changes in one blurry night. Suddenly, Kate is avoiding her, and people are looking the other way when she passes in the halls. As the aftershocks from a startling accusation rip through Liz’s world, everything she thought she knew about photography, family, friendship and herself shifts out of focus. What happens when the picture you see no longer makes sense? What do you do when you may lose everything you love most? 

Exposed is such an interesting book.  I liked that it was told through poetry, and the fact that it is through the eyes of the rapists’ brother made it a very interesting read.  I feel like a lot of books about rape are about the victim, but I may be wrong here, since Speak is the only book that comes to mind.  It is nice to see all of the people who are affected by it, not just those directly involved.

You can see life around Liz slowly change and fall apart.  Her relationship with Kate changes completely, and by the end of the book, they barely speak.  Her brother is also compeltely different by the end of the book, and she is torn between being glad he was found innocent and wanting justice for Kate.  You see her parents obsession with the trial, and the effect it has on them, and you see that people at school start acting differently.

I thought it was very moving, and the fact that it was told in verse made it very real.  You saw her thoughts and feelings spill out, and by the end, she learns that things are not always black-and-white.  I really felt for Liz, because she was caught in the middle, and wasn’t sure who to believe.

It gets a 4 out of 5.  It felt very real, and it was very vivid.

Fever 1793

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Book: Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson

Publishing Info: Published by Aladdin; 256 pages in paperback

Goodreads Summary: It’s late summer 1793, and the streets of Philadelphia are abuzz with mosquitoes and rumors of fever. Down near the docks, many have taken ill, and the fatalities are mounting. Now they include Polly, the serving girl at the Cook Coffeehouse. But fourteen-year-old Mattie Cook doesn’t get a moment to mourn the passing of her childhood playmate. New customers have overrun her family’s coffee shop, located far from the mosquito-infested river, and Mattie’s concerns of fever are all but overshadowed by dreams of growing her family’s small business into a thriving enterprise. But when the fever begins to strike closer to home, Mattie’s struggle to build a new life must give way to a new fight-the fight to stay alive.

This has been on my to-read list for a while.  I’m a big fan of Laurie Halse Anderson, and I assumed I would love this book.

But I didn’t.  I’ll admit, it’s strange to be reading historical fiction by Anderson, when I’m used to reading her more contemporary stuff.  And she did set the bar high with both Speak and Wintergirls.

I was bored while reading it.  I couldn’t connect with any of the characters.  They fell flat for me, and didn’t feel like real, living, breathing people.  I felt like I didn’t know anything about the characters by the end of the book.  The setting  was pretty generic, with very little descriptions of smells, sounds, or scenery.  If I didn’t know that it was set in Philadelphia, I would never have guessed that the novel took place there.

However, it is a good introduction to the yellow fever outbreak, and Halse clearly did her research about the yellow fever epidemic.  But I felt like her characters suffered for it, and that’s a disappointment, because creating vivid, memorable characters is one of Halse’s strengths.

I have to give it a 2 out of 5.  It was just okay, and not was good as I was expecting.

Entice

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Book: Entice by Carrie Jones

Publishing Info: Bloomsbury USA; 266 pages in hardcover

Goodreads Summary: Zara and Nick are soul mates, meant to be together forever. But that’s not quite how things have worked out. For starters, well, Nick is dead. Supposedly, he’s been taken to a mythic place for warriors known as Valhalla, so Zara and her friends might be able to get him back. But it’s taking time, and meanwhile a group of evil pixies is devastating Bedford, with more teens going missing every day. An all-out war seems imminent, and the good guys need all the warriors they can find. But how to get to Valhalla? And even if Zara and her friends discover the way, there’s that other small problem: Zara’s been pixie kissed. When she finds Nick, will he even want to go with her? Especially since she hasn’t turned into just any pixie. . . She’s Astley’s queen.

I liked it.  Not as much as Need.  In fact, I’d say that I liked it as much as I liked Captivate.  To me, it felt like Captive and Entice were one book that was split into two.

Zara was slightly annoying in this one.  Not as annoying as Captivate, but she was still annoying.  Her need to save Nick was getting completely ridiculous.  No matter how hard she tried, she kept trying to get to Valhalla.  And of course, she makes it there, fights Frank, an evil pixie king that turns out to be Astley’s uncle, and manages to rescue Nick.  Who, of course, seems to be okay with the fact that Zara became a pixie to save him.  There’s no telling how long that will last, because his memories of Valhalla were wiped clean.

But back to Zara.  She is very determined to save Nick, I’ll give her that.  And things were not going her way, which was a nice change from other books, where things are wrapped up nicely.  But her insistence to get him out of Valhalla…I don’t know why, but something about it was off.  The battle against Frank was a little too nice, now that I think about it.

I wasn’t sure about Astley in Captivate, but he’s starting to grow on me.  He was very protective of Zara, and did whatever he could to help her.  He’s very interesting, and I want to know more about him, and whether he’s as good as he says he is, or if he’s hiding something.

The love triangle aspect didn’t really play out in this book, but so far, it’s turning out like any other love triangle I’ve read.  For once, though, I feel like it really could go either way.  It’s still pretty one-sided, but hopefully, it’ll be interesting.  I really can’t care about Nick anymore, with people and pixies dying left and right just so Zara can save him.

I give it a 3 out of 5.  Zara has some decisions to make in the next book, and while I didn’t love Entice, I still can’t wait to see what happens next.

Captivate

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Book: Captivate by Carrie Jones

Publishing Info: Published by Bloomsbury USA; 273 pages in hardcover

Goodreads Summary: Zara and her friends knew they hadn’t solved the pixie problem for good. Far from it. The king’s needs grow deeper every day he’s stuck in captivity, while his control over his people gets weaker. It’s made him vulnerable. And now there’s a new king in town.

A turf war is imminent, since the new pixie king, Astley, is moving in quickly. Nick nearly killed him in the woods on day one, but Zara came to his rescue. Astley swears that he and Zara are destined to be together, that he’s one of the good guys. Nick isn’t buying it, though Zara isn’t as sure — despite herself, she wants to trust the new king. But it’s a lot more than her relationship with Nick that is at stake. It’s her life — and his.

I liked Captivate, but I think I liked Need better.

While I liked Zara and Nick’s relationship in Need, it was a little too corny and over the top for me.  And I didn’t like Zara as much either.  Her whole “I don’t want to be a pixie because they’re evil but in the end, I’m going to turn pixie to get Nick out of Valhalla even though he hates pixies because I need to save him and no one else can do it” thing was really annoying.  I was hoping that she wouldn’t turn pixie, but unfortunately, she did.

With a pixie war looming, this book felt like it was a setup for the next one, and there are hints at a potential love triangle in the next book.  She is Astley’s pixie queen, and Jones does get some credit for hinting at it to save everyone.  I have the feeling she might end up with Astley if there is a love triangle.  Oh, who am I kidding, that’s probably what is going to happen in the next couple books.  These pixies seem hellbent on having Zara as their pixie queen.

It was no surprise that Issie and Devyn ended up together, although it was surprising it didn’t happen in the first book.  Zara was complaining and whining a lot, Nick was super-protective, and Issie and Devyn were just there.  Cassidy and Astley were a breath of fresh air next to everyone else.

It does seem like Zara is (possibly) facing her fears, because she only recited phobias a few times.  I did miss it though.  And each chapter is now headed by a pixie tip, which was fun, because pixies are out to get Zara.  I liked how her skin would randomly turn blue and I liked the Norse mythology that was introduced.  Like the mysterious Valkyrie that appeared and eventually took Nick to Valhalla.

Overall, it gets a 3 out of 5.  I liked it, but Captivate was not very captivating.  I’m hoping the next one is better.

All The Things You Are

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Book: All The Things You Are by Courtney Sheinmel

Publishing Info: Published by Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing; 256 pages in hardcover

Goodreads summary: Twelve-year-old Carly Wheeler lives a charmed life. Her mother is a stylist for the soap opera Lovelock Falls, she lives in a nice house, and she goes to an excellent private school. But when Carly’s mom is arrested and charged with embezzlement, everything starts to unravel. There are shocking stories about her mother’s crimes in the local newspaper. Carly’s friends start avoiding her. And her stepfather starts worrying about money. How can Carly put her life back together when it feels like she’s missing all the pieces?

This book was just okay for me.  I know I was supposed to feel bad for Carly, but I just didn’t care that she was going through a hard time.  Overall, I just couldn’t muster up any kind of sympathy or emotion for Carly, her family, and her friends.  It was hard to relate to, as far as a close relatively embezzling money to support me goes.  I guess I can relate to wondering if I can trust people after they’ve betrayed it, but the book just felt bland.

There wasn’t a lot of emotion in it, and I was really bored.  Schinmel did a lot more telling than showing, and I was bored out of my mind reading about what Leigh (Carly’s mom) court case was like.  I kept waiting for something interesting to happen, and unfortunately, it didn’t get interesting.

I did like that Carly learns things like forgiveness and who her real friends are.  And her stepfather did stick by her, even though he didn’t have to.  She calls him Faux Pa, which was cute the first few pages, but by the end of the book, it got way too cutesy and annoying.

It gets a 2 out of 5.  It was okay, but a little bit younger than I was expecting.