Off The Shelf

After completing my last final exam on Friday, I can officially say that summer has started. Not only does the arrival of warmer days and longer hours mean it is time to re-read and re-watch Harry Potter, but to finally check out those books that I have been adding to my "To-Read" list all year long. Here is what I plan on reading over the next few months: 1. Daisy Miller , Henry James 2. Bad Feminist , Roxane Gay 3. Saint Anything , Sarah Dessen 4. Attachments , Rainbow Rowell 5. The Poisonwood Bible , Barbara Kingsolver * 6. How to Read Literature Like a Professor , Thomas C. Foster * 7. Beloved , Toni Morrison * 8. Unbearable Lightness , Portia de Rossi ** 9. The Return of Martin Guerre , Natalie Zemon Davis *** 10. Paper Towns , John Green *Required Reading for AP Literature **Required Reading for Women's Studies and Literature ***Required Reading for AP Modern European History

"This is the only chance we have to rescue what little civilization we have left." On Friday night, I saw Insurgent in the theaters. The film is based upon the second novel in the Divergent Series by Veronica Roth.  All of the main cast members from Divergent (including Shailene Woodley, Theo James, and Kate Winslet) reprise their roles in Insurgent. Naomi Watts joined the cast to play Four's mother, Evelyn, and Octavia Spencer to play the Amity leader, Johanna.  As was seen in the movie's trailer , there are clearly some big differences between the book and the film. Veronica Roth endorsed the changes though, so, as I always say, if the author thinks its fine, then its fine by me too. At this point, I'd like to discuss some of the most important differences. If you have not yet read Insurgent , I encourage you skip down to the paragraphs at the end. Spoiler alert.  The biggest change is that hard drive in the book was replaced with a mystery box...

Hello! I hope everyone is enjoying the holidays - eating lots of gingerbread and spending lots of time with family. Today, I will be wrapping up my "Best of" posts for 2014. So far, I have posted my Best Nonfiction / Memoir / Autobiography  books and my Best Historical Fiction books of the year.  In 2014, I read a total of 26 books, or 7,876 pages. I gained several new favorites this year, including Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald and The Catcher in the Rye .  I re-read several books this year before seeing their movie adaptations on the big screen. The Fault in Our Stars and Mockingjay Part 1 were just two of many Hollywood blockbusters of 2014 that were based on novels. This past year I was also selected to attend a five-day creative writing program at Alfred University, and became the Editor-in-Chief of my high school's literary arts magazine.  2014 was a great year for books and for me...so without further ado, here are my top 10 Fiction novel...

"Fire is catching! And if we burn, you burn with us!"   On November 21st, Mockingjay Part 1 , based on the bestselling third book in The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins, opened in theaters.  All of the fan-favorite actors and actresses returned to play their leading roles, but a few new additions needed to be made. Natalie Dormer joined the cast to play Cressida, as well as Julianne Moore to play President Coin.  The following are some differences between the film adaptation and the book - some for the better, and some for the worse. If you have not yet read Mockingjay, please   be aware because... SPOILER ALERT.  Effie Trinket makes an appearance in District 13 very early in the movie, unlike in the book where she does not appear until the end. I whole-heartedly believe in this change because 1) by replacing Katniss's three stylists, Effie works as a symbol for even greater change within the rebellion, as now even Capitol people are...

"I believe we have a choice in this world...about how to tell sad stories. On the one hand, you can sugarcoat it. Where nothing is too messed up that it can't be fixed with a Peter Gabriel song. I like that version as much as the next girl does. It just isn't the truth. This is the truth."   After months of waiting, I saw The Fault in Our Stars movie on opening night with some friends. The theater was so crowded that they had to turn many people in line behind us away! Hazel Grace Lancaster was played by Shailene Woodley ( Divergent ), Augustus Waters was played by Ansel Elgort, their friend Isaac by Nat Woolf, and Mr. and Mrs. Lancaster by Sam Trammell and Laura Dern respectively. Above are the opening lines to the movie, and right away Hazel tells the viewer that this is not your traditional love story. My friends agreed that this was one of the best parts of the movie because it makes the story more real, and less Nicholas Sparks-esque where everything is...

"Fear does something strange to people, but not you. Fear doesn't shut you down, it wakes you up."   On Friday, I saw  Divergent in the theater with a few friends. I read the three-book series by Veronica Roth this past fall. (I reviewed the first and third book a few months ago)   Divergent is the story of Tris Prior, who lives in what is supposed to be a very Utopian-like Chicago. The people of Chicago are divided into five factions: Erudite (the intelligent), Amity (the peaceful), Abnegation (the selfless), Candor (the honest) and Dauntless (the brave).  Upon turning 16, Tris and others must decide which faction they belong to. For Tris, she must decide between her family, and the chance to discover who she really is.   Tris Prior is played by Shailene Woodley, her brother Caleb by Ansel Elgort, Four by Theo James, and Christina by Zoe Kravitz.   Before seeing the movie, I had read an  interview with Shailene Woodley in Teen ...

Eleanor and Park Rainbow Rowell 328 pages “You can be Han Solo," he said, "And I'll be Boba Fett. I'll cross the sky for you.”    It's 1986 in Omaha, Nebraska and Eleanor meets Park in the most un-romantic place ever. The school bus. They instantly bond over their shared love of rock music, comic books, and disdain for the conventional. And just when they think they know each other inside and out, Eleanor's past comes shooting into the present, with enough force to blow them apart. As the winner of the 2014 Printz Honor and the 2013 Goodreads Choice Award for Young Adult Fiction, Eleanor and Park has quickly become one of the most popular YA novels of the past year. Told in a dual perspective, Eleanor and Park is a sweet and comforting read - one that is different than most other love stories. Rowell creates main characters that are very unlike others found in YA novels. Eleanor is a curly red-haired girl who dresses in oversized sweater...

   Over the course of 2013, I read a total of 25 books, or 8,108 pages. Of those 25, I gained several new favorites, including The Great Gatsby , and Between Shades of Gray - novels that I feel have made an important impact on my life.   Several books were also made into movies during 2013, including Gatsby, Catching Fire , The Host, and Safe Haven . The film industry has seem to found a new jackpot in YA novels! 2014 promises to be a year of more books-turned movies as well. I am looking forward to Divergent in March, The Fault in Our Stars in June, and Mockingjay Part 1 in November!   Not only was 2013 a year of great books, but a year of some of my best accomplishments. I  was published in my school's literary arts magazine and became Literary Editor of the magazine for the 2013-14 school year a few days later. My travels took me to  Cape Cod , Sugarbush, VT ,  Columbia University , and Strand Books.   I do not plan ...

Allegiant  Veronica Roth 526 pages   “There are so many ways to be brave in this world. Sometimes bravery involves laying down your life for something bigger than yourself, or for someone else. Sometimes it involves giving up everything you have ever known, or everyone you have ever loved, for the sake of something greater."  - page 509 It is very, very hard to write about this book without giving away spoilers from Divergent  and Insurgent, but I will try my best. Please stay away if you have not read the aforementioned titles...   The faction-based society of Chicago that Tris Prior and Tobias Eaton had once called home is now completely shattered. War, unjust power, and betrayal has interrupted their world indefinitely. When they are given the chance to escape the city and go beyond the fence, there is no way they can refuse. What they find there is not at all the quiet, safe, life together they had imagined. Tris and Tobias are sudd...

Having bought my ticket at the beginning of October, I was anxiously anticipating the release of Catching Fire until last Friday. A group of friends and I went to the local theater this year, instead of AMC - not only was it cheaper, but completely stress free (meaning no long lines, no sprinting to get good seats). All members from the cast of The Hunger Games returned for Catching Fire, but some great additions were also made: Sam Claflin (as Finnick Odair), Phillip Seymour Hoffman (as Plutarch Heavensbee), Jena Malone (as Johanna Mason). Francis Lawrence, the new director of the film, I felt did a great job in keeping things consistent with the first film. For example, the Capitol looks relatively the same as it did in The Hunger Games , along with the village and woods in District 12. Note: at this point in the post, I would like to discuss some of the differences between the movie and the book, so please, stop reading now if you have not read  Catching F...

Divergent Veronica Roth 487 pages “We believe in ordinary acts of bravery, in the courage that drives one person to stand up for another.”    In a futuristic, dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each valuing a different human characteristic: Dauntless (the brave), Candor (the honest), Erudite (the intelligent), Amity (the peaceful), and Abnegation (the selfless). Upon turning sixteen years old, each teenager must choose the faction to which they belong. For Beatrice Prior, this will mean choosing between her family and the chance to discover who she really is. Tris Prior (as she later renames herself) is a dynamic female character who possess all of the stereotypical characteristics of a weak individual - blonde, petite and pale-skinned - but as readers will come to learn, she is quite the opposite. Her strength not only increases from the physical initiation she must under go in the faction she chooses, but also from the emotional encounters that...

Life: An Exploded Diagram Mal Peet 385 pages At this point I need to take you on a short detour. I'm very much a cause-and-effect sort of a fellow. I'm fascinated by the way things fit together (and come to pieces). And if we were to take what eventually happened to Frankie and me and drew something like a flowchart of how it came about, one of its arrows would lead us into the darkness of a Caribbean night. Clem Ackroyd, the son of a war veteran and a careful bookkeeper, is a working-class boy hoping to one day scrape together the funds to go to art school. Frankie Mortimer is the daughter of a wealthy land owner, living in an inherited estate. Soon, in Norfolk, England, the two will embark on a relationship that must be kept a secret, and if found out, their world could be blown apart. Little do they know, that John F. Kennedy and Nikita Khruschev are about to do just that, as the event later known in history books as the Cuban Missile Crisis begins to unfold. Life: A...

The Future of Us Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler 356 pages Josh and Emma have been best friends and neighbors for as long as they can remember. When Josh's family receives an American Online CD-ROM in the mail, his parents have him bring it over to Emma's so she can install it on her new computer. Upon installing the program, Josh and Emma are automatically logged onto Facebook. But there is only one issue...The year is 1996, and Facebook hasn't even been invented yet. The two friends find themselves looking at their profiles fifteen years in the future - their spouses, careers, homes - it's all there. These unexpected discoveries will force Josh and Emma to re-evaluate what they are doing right, and wrong, in the present. The Future of Us was an incredibly creative story: the plot premise is certainly out-of-the-box and is relevant to today's teens. Emma, Josh and their friends were readable characters, and each of their quirky characteristics brought them to ...

Pivot Point Kasie West 343 pages As a Searcher, Addison Coleman has a unique power. When faced with a choice, she has the ability to look into the future and see both outcomes. The power is supposed to prevent disaster, but when Addie's parents tell her of their planned divorce, she will have to make her toughest decision yet. In alternating chapters, Addie will experience six weeks living with her mother, and six with her father. Both futures promise both love and loss, and for Addie it will come down to which fate she is willing to live through, and who she can't live without. A cross between Paranormal and reality, West has created the most unique novel I have read in a long time. With strong characters, and engaging plot, it was undoubtedly an understandable read. The very beginning was a little confusing, as the reader must adjust to the fictional idea of humans having mind powers must stronger than our own. But, by the end, I found myself re-reading the entire la...

Happy Summer! With school winding down in the next few days, I have found myself looking forward to the season with much anticipation.  The following is a list of novels I hope to read in the coming months. Whether you are seated comfortably on the couch at home, at a picnic table or in a beach chair with sand between you toes, I hope the summer brings you fun, sunshine, and of course, good books! 1. This Side of Paradise, F. Scott Fitzgerald 2. Flowers in the Sky, Lynn Joseph 3. Every Day,  David Levithan 4. On the Road, Jack Kerouac 5. In the Time of the Butterflies, Julia Alvarez * 6. Saturday, Ian McEwan * 7. The Book Thief, Markus Zusak 8. The Silver Star, Jeannette Walls 9. Threads and Flames, Esther M. Friesner 10. The Distance Between Us, Kasie West  *Assigned summer reading for Honors English 2013-2014

Just One Day Gayle Forman 368 pages "We are born in one day. We die in one day. We can change in one day. And we can fall in love in one day. Anything can happen in just one day.”   Allyson Healey has just graduated from high school, and is now embarking on a post-grad tour of Europe with her best friend. At an underground performance of Twelfth  Night in London, she meets Willem De Ruiter, a young and charming Dutch actor. Allyson immediately detects a spark between them, and after spending just one day together, she is surprised to wake up the next morning in Paris, without Willem. Over the next year, Allyson will start college with her mind still lost somewhere in Europe and soon she begins a journey to find Willem. With the help of Shakespeare, friendship, and self-confidence, Allyson discovers more about herself along the way than she ever thought possible. Gayle Forman, the bestselling author of  If I Stay  and  Where She Went  has created yet...

  Most recently, I have been suffering from an overdose of the teenage-tragedy entitled "high school." In order to relieve the stress that Honors classes so heavily pour on, I've been retreating to John Green's The Fault in Our Stars every night. I read this novel of 313 pages for the first time in one day in the midst of last August, but upon receiving the book for Christmas, I decided to re-read my Best Fiction Novel of 2012  in more depth and understanding.     I don't plan on reviewing this book again, as I've already done that here , but this will be more of an analysis, more of a thought-provoking post. I will try to make this post as spoiler free as possible, for readers who have not yet read the book. Introduction Sixteen year-old Hazel, a girl diagnosed with Stage IV Thyroid in her lungs, has always felt like she was a grenade ready to blow up, hurting everyone around her; a side-effect of death. When she attends the Cancer K...

Happy New Year's Eve! For book bloggers, the last day of the year is a time for reflection. As of today, I read a total of 35 books this year which included 11,171 pages. That is a good dozen less than last year, but I realize I read longer novels this year, therefore my total count would be smaller.  From that number I have chosen my top 12 to share with you. The authors I read the most of this year were Stephenie Meyer and John Green. Each of their writing styles are very different from each other, but I think that is what drew me too them. So, if you are in need of direction I would point you there. Thank you all for reading for another year. And I can't wait to see what challenges and events 2013 will bring! By clicking on the title or author in blue, you may view and read my review of the book. Top 12 Novels of 2012 12. Pride and Prejudice , Jane Austen 11. My Sister's Keeper , Jodi Picoult 10.  Looking For Alaska , John Green 9.  If I Stay , Gayle F...

Continuing my series of posts entitled The Best of 2012, Friday brings me to my favorite characters of the year. When I was first deciding what I wanted my lists to consist of, I hadn't thought of characters right away. I then realized that characters are really the most important - their point of view moves the story along, and sets the tone for the entire book. Each one is unique, crafted by the author to send a particular message. My favorite characters are sometimes quite different then myself - for example, Bella Swan was so clumsy, yet so brave, I sometimes wondered what I would do in the situations that were tossed at her. Would I be that courageous? That strong? But in the time that I read The Twilight Saga, I got to be her - I got to be in love with a vampire, best friends with a werewolf, and a mixed up teenager all at the same time - and it was so darn cool. This list is compiled of both major and minor characters and does not include re-reads or series where previou...

Let It Snow: Three Holiday Stories John Green, Maureen Johnson and Lauren Myracle 352 pages "Silly girl, it's not what the universe gives us that matters. It's what we give the universe." Its Christmas Eve, and three teenagers are stuck in the biggest snow storm to hit North Carolina in years.When Jubilee's train to Florida halts due to a ginormous snow drift in the middle of the tracks, she finds herself totally confused in a house where Jewish people celebrate Christmas. Then there is Angie, who is need of some of the Waffle House's greasy and sloppy hash browns, and drags the guys away from James Bond to come along. And Addie must still navigate her way through town to her early morning shift at Starbucks - because no matter what the circumstance, people will always need their coffee. Their small town of Gracetown as been turned into a winter wonderland of perilous mishaps and a little Christmas magic. Let It Snow is the perfect holiday read - a ...