The Selection

Title: The Selection
Author: Kiera Cass
Series: The Selection Series (#1)
Published: April 2012 by HarperTeen
Pages: 336 (hardcover)

Summary: For thirty-five girls, the Selection is the chance of a lifetime. The opportunity to escape the life laid out for them since birth. To be swept up in a world of glittering gowns and priceless jewels. To live in a palace and compete for the heart of gorgeous Prince Maxon.

But for America Singer, being Selected is a nightmare. It means turning her back on her secret love with Aspen, who is a caste below her. Leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a crown she doesn't want. Living in a palace that is constantly threatened by violent rebel attacks.

Then America meets Prince Maxon. Gradually, she starts to question all the plans she's made for herself—and realizes that the life she's always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined.

My Thoughts: It is no secret that I'm quite a fan of the reality show, The Bachelor, so when I heard about a story that was very similar to this show but set in a dystopian world, I had to read it.  Initially, the protagonist, America Singer, got under my skin, though. She was so blindly in love with her boyfriend, Aspen, near the beginning, she was stubborn to a fault, and jumped to conclusions at the worst possible moments. This did not deter me from wanting to devour this book, however.

America proved to be a bit of a complicated mess sometimes, but so did her family and her family dynamic really interested me early on. Her mother reminded me of Lizzie Bennet's mom from Pride and Prejudice, as well as my own mother: a little nagging, obsessed with the futures of her children, but a truly caring and loving parent. 

But it wasn't just the characters' that drew me in. The background and world of Illea was very believable in terms of how this land came to be and how the world has ended up in this time period. Once again, I wish we could have read more about it and how the other parts of the world and country lived in this day and age.

I was a little confused near the beginning about how the caste system worked, thinking it was similar to how The Hunger Games society was set up, when it was nothing like that at all. And I loved the feeling of unspoken understanding and loyalty that the lower castes felt toward one another while the more opulent castes were ignorant towards the lower castes' lifestyles, very much how today's society works.

Now let's talk about this love triangle. They happen quite a bit in young adult literature, and many times it can be a little transparent and tired, but this one made me root for team Maxon all the way. I found it refreshing that there was no insta-love between America and Maxon and how they were attracted to each others personality and mind before physical attractions came into their relationship. This was not the case with America's and Aspen's relationship towards one another, though.

This made it very frustrating whenever America would still be hung up on Aspen when Maxon was trying so hard waiting patiently for America to grow to love him. But when she actually did show kindness and that her feelings for Maxon were growing more affectionate, let me tell you, it was so satisfying as a reader.

I really enjoyed this perfect for summer, quick read, but I just wish that the book hadn't ended so open endedly. I know that there are two more books to this series, but come one give me a little something to work with! With an ending like that I will definitely be reading the next book of this trilogy, The Elite, next. I need to know who Prince Maxon chooses and, more importantly, who America chooses!
My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

The Fault in Our Stars Movie Review

Title: The Fault in Our Stars
Book the Movie is based on: The Fault in Our Stars - by John Green
Director: Josh Boone
Starring: Ansel Elgort and Shailene Woodley

Summary: Hazel and Gus are two teenagers who share an acerbic wit, a disdain for the conventional, and a love that sweeps them on a journey. Their relationship is all the more miraculous given that Hazel's other constant companion is an oxygen tank, Gus jokes about his prosthetic leg, and they met and fell in love at a cancer support group. (photo and summary from the movie's imdb page.)

My Thoughts: Okay, so John Green's The Fault in our Stars is one of my favorite books so needless to say, I had high expectations going into this movie. As far as book to movie adaptations go, this one was pretty damn loyal to the book. I mean, there were parts missing from it that I wish were there, like the part near the end when Hazel and Isaac play a video game which really warmed my heart and made me laugh but I can see why it didn't make it into the movie. This missing piece along with a few others, however, in no way lessened my love for this film.

Ansel Elgort as Augustus Waters, aka Gus, just broke my heart. He was amazing as the charming, oblivion-fearing teen who tries is hardest to woo Hazel. And Shailene Woodley as Hazel Lancaster took my broken heart, broken a couple more times, then in the end mended it and gave me hope again. I saw somewhere where someone had said this movie made them feel alive, and that's totally true. You appreciate what you have even more and not because it's a story about kids with cancer, but because it's a story about young love.

Everything that made this movie so wonderful, from the aesthetics to the dialogue, came together so beautifully. I had loved this story before seeing the movie and I think I love it even more because I got to see it come alive. And my goodness did I cry during this film! I went through pretty much the whole spectrum of emotions during the movie, and it was amazing. Movies that do this usually end up being favorites of mine, and I have no doubt that The Fault in Our Stars will do just that.
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

June TBR

I'm a sucker for a good TBR list. Even though they breed false promises, I still like to have one for a little bit of an outline to what my month will look like and also I like to set goals, you know? And my goals for this month are: run more, attempt to watch the FIFA world cup, apply to more jobs (the job market is tough, yo), and read more. I know what you're thinking. "But Meredith, why even try to watch the world cup when we all know you'll just end up watching The Bachelorette?" Because I like variety dang it. And I know what else you're thinking. "But Meredith, we all know you don't read all the books on your list and end up reading something else anyways." To that I say you're probably right BUT like I said I love me a good list and TBR lists are at the top of my list of favorite lists. Here are the books I'm going to attempt reading at some point or other this month! Go soccer!

The Elite - by Keira Cass
One of my best friends has been talking about how cute, slightly frustrating, and awesome the series that this book belongs to is, and I've waited until the last installment of the series was published to finally give it a chance. Not only that, but the author is doing a signing next week at a bookstore near me. I'm always down for a good book signing, but I like to have read at least one book if not most of the books of a series that the author is doing the signing for. I'm currently reading the first book of this series, The Selection, and so far it's pretty good and I'm looking forward to finishing the series this month (which I've never done before! Finish a book trilogy in a month?! I'm actually quite excited to change my reading related procrastinating habits and this is the month I will accomplish it. I can feel it in me bones...)

Where'd you go, Bernadette? - by Maria Semple
I've seen this book in every store since it's release two years ago and I've heard even more rave reviews about it since then. Not only that, but it's soon to be a movie and seems like a great summery read for June. It looks like a quick read, which is good because I rented this book from the library and I'm notorious for not finishing my library books or keeping them for like a month before returning them unread, but that's all about to change! Hopefully.

To All the Boys I've Loved Before - by Jenny Han
Speaking of books with rave reviews, this one has only been out for a couple of months and I've heard nothing but good things.  I've read a couple of Jenny Han's novels and loved her writing style. It has a fluidity and relatability that I admire and can devour easily as a reader. This book is the first of a duology, which is a rare thing these days apparently making me even more exciting to delve into it. It has such a cute summary and I love me a good romantic comedy, and this book seems to fall into that category.

Paper Towns - by John Green
With The Fault in Our Stars movie adaptation *girlish screams* coming out at the end of this week, I am slowly realizing that I need more John Green novels in my life.  I've only read two of his more popular books, but have heard from a few sources that this one might take the cake. John Green is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors ever, which means I want to consume as many of his novels as I can get my hands on. I'm not all too sure what this particular book is about other than maps are involved, it's by John Green, and that it's stellar ratings on goodreads led me to go ahead and buy it even with the lack of information. But I'm fine with a lack of insight when I go into a book! Sometimes when I go into a book blind, it makes the reading experience that much more intriguing and special especially when that book is as popular and highly-lauded as this one. So to say I'm excited to delve into this novel is an understatement.

I'm so excited to start on my TBR list this month and would love to hear about what y'all plan on reading this month or for the summer! I would love to know what y'all plan on reading this month so go ahead and leave a comment about your reading goals! And happy reading!

(All links lead to the books' goodreads pages, respectively.)

Demonglass

Title: Demonglass
Author: Rachel Hawkins
Series: Hex Hall series (#2)
Published: March 2011 by Disney
Pages: 359

Summary: Sophie Mercer thought she was a witch. That was the whole reason she was sent to Hex Hall, a reform school for delinquent Prodigium (a.k.a. witches, shape-shifters, and faeries). But then she discovered the family secret, and the fact that her hot crush, Archer Cross, is an agent for The Eye, a group bent on wiping Prodigium off the face of the earth.

Turns out, Sophie's a demon, one of only two in the world-the other being her father. What's worse, she has powers that threaten the lives of everyone she loves. Which is precisely why Sophie decides she must go to London for the Removal, a dangerous procedure that will either destroy her powers for good-or kill her.

But once Sophie arrives, she makes a shocking discovery. Her new housemates? They're demons too. Meaning, someone is raising demons in secret, with creepy plans to use their powers, and probably not for good. Meanwhile, The Eye is set on hunting Sophie down, and they're using Archer to do it. But it's not like she has feelings for him anymore. Does she?

My Thoughts: This is one of the few cases where I would not want to be a witch in a book I was reading. It's just way too complicated of a way of life.

Sophie Mercer not only has to deal with boy drama but also with the fact that she's a demon and has some equal parts dangerous and crazy awesome powers, one of her love interests is part of a league of Prodigium hunters (don't you just hate it when that happens?), and that someone is raising demons again even though the handy dandy book o' spells in which this demon-raising spell is in has been sealed and guarded for decades. So yeah, excuse me for not wanting a one way ticket to Hex Hall or Thorne Abbey any time soon.

With all of this drama, there was never a dull moment, which really helped with my current case of reading-slump-itis. It was either action upon action scene or so much witty dialogue that you're head would spin with glee. I loved the sarcasm of the characters and the cute back and forth in their conversations, but it wasn't excessive and didn't feel like it was trying to hard I thought.

However, since it's been about a year since I read the first book in this series, Hex Hall, I had a hard time with remembering certain events or even characters. Like, for example, who the heck is Vix? She pops in and out of the book like a handy-dandy little plot device but I cannot for the life of me remember what purpose she served in Hex Hall other than "love interest" to Jenna in this book and the previous one.

Most of the events that happened in the past novel that affected the plot in this one were explained, especially if they were important, but I just wish that more of the side comments pertaining to Elodie for instance would have gone into more detail.  This is mostly a personal preference since I don't own the first book and because I have a tendency to never read books in a series back to back, which is why I suggest that if you're going to read this series, do it all within a year of each other.

I did really enjoy this book, though.  Rachel Hawkins had me hooked from beginning to end and laughing at the wittiness of the writing and cringing when my favorite characters got in a jam. And THAT ENDING! That. Ending. That ending gets a resounding "OMG WTH" in my book. I hadn't planned on reading the next installment in this series, Spell Bound, for a while but I will definitely be moving it up on my TBR list. I mean what a cliff-hanger. I honestly cannot wait to get my hands on the next installment of this series, Spell Bound. The sooner the better.

In other news, I have used the words "handy-dandy" one too many times in this review but it's just too much fun to say. Anyways, let me know your thoughts on Demonglass! I would love to know y'all's opinions on it and the rest of the books in the series in the comment section below.
My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me (And Other Concerns)

Title: Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me (And Other Concerns)
Author: Mindy Kaling
Published: November 2011
Pages: 222 (hardcover)

Summary: Mindy Kaling has lived many lives: the obedient child of immigrant professionals, a timid chubster afraid of her own bike, a Ben Affleck–impersonating Off-Broadway performer and playwright, and, finally, a comedy writer and actress prone to starting fights with her friends and coworkers with the sentence “Can I just say one last thing about this, and then I swear I’ll shut up about it?”

Perhaps you want to know what Mindy thinks makes a great best friend (someone who will fill your prescription in the middle of the night), or what makes a great guy (one who is aware of all elderly people in any room at any time and acts accordingly), or what is the perfect amount of fame (so famous you can never get convicted of murder in a court of law), or how to maintain a trim figure (you will not find that information in these pages). If so, you’ve come to the right book, mostly!

In Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?, Mindy invites readers on a tour of her life and her unscientific observations on romance, friendship, and Hollywood, with several conveniently placed stopping points for you to run errands and make phone calls. Mindy Kaling really is just a Girl Next Door—not so much literally anywhere in the continental United States, but definitely if you live in India or Sri Lanka.

My Thoughts: Can I just go ahead and say that Mindy Kaling has officially make it onto my "People I wish I was best friends with" list?  She writes with the confidence and flair that I can only wish I could have in my writing.  Very intelligent and self-aware, not to mention hilarious, Kaling's book is a must-read for comedy lovers, The Office fans, and pretty much anyone who enjoys light-hearted, fun books.

However this book does not quite hit the Bossypants a la Tina Fey level of riotously funny, I still think Kaling is one top notch comedy writer.  She's so relatable it hurts, her stories are palatable, and although she's confident in her humor-prowess, it never reads as arrogant. So yeah, add humble to the list of awesomeness that is Mindy Kaling.

Speaking of lists, I think I enjoyed that part of this book the most: her organization and her lists.  Whether it be her favorite moments in comedy, alternate titles for her book, or best friend right and responsibilities, I found that this little tidbits all had an air of honesty and hilarity to them.  Those along with the very specific topics (I love specificity), her opinions, and let's not forget the relevant photos, it made for a quick, fun, and easy read.

I loved Kaling and her writing on The Office as well as The Mindy Project and I honestly cannot wait to see what other laugh-out-loud bits of hilarious genius or observational comedy that are spawned from her career and creativity as a great writer and actor. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and will definitely be recommending it to all my friends and family who want a summer read they can wholeheartedly laugh along with.
My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Off to the Outer Banks!

If you couldn't tell from the title of this post, I'm going to North Carolina's Outer Banks next week for our family vacation! While there is plenty to do there like kayaking and visiting historical Wright Brothers places, I will definitely be taking some time to myself to read on the beach. Which begs the question, what am I going to read? I've been pouring over my to-be-read list trying to pick out the best compilation of vacation books for myself, and since I've been reading a lot of fluffy books recently I thought I'd pick a wider variety to take with me to the coast. After all, variety is the spice of life! Here are the books that made the list:
(All links lead to the books' respective summary page on Goodreads).

Confessions of a Shopaholic - by Sophie Kinsella
I've just started reading this novel a few days ago. I'm not even 25% of the way through and I can already say it's positively a delight.  As someone who has just graduated college and is dealing with the stress of money, loans, affording the basics, etc. etc. I feel like I can relate. Not only that, but the witty writing, humorous dialogue, and relatable awkward situations that Rebecca gets herself into are what make this book a must for my getaway. Not only that, but I loved the movie adaptation of this novel with Hugh Dancy (can you say swoon?) and Isla Fisher, and I'm quickly finding out that while the movie was great, the book has the potential to be even better and more delightful.

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me (and Other Concerns) - by Mindy Kaling
About three years ago I read Tina Fey's Bossypants and fell in love with humor memoirs. It's a small genre, but a very enjoyable one, I assure you.  My old roommate recommended this book to me after having borrowed Fey's book from her, and at the time I was a little hesitant. I only knew Mindy Kaling from The Office and nothing else. I thought she was pretty funny then, but didn't know if a whole book written by her would be worth it. Now this book is everywhere in the best possible way and I can confirm that Kaling is in fact funny. Words cannot do her TV show justice. So I will finally cave into the hilarity and give this book a go.

The Bell Jar - by Sylvia Plath
I've been trying to beef up my list of classics I've read, and after having read Sylvia Plath's poems this past Fall, I had to get my hands on her Plath's only novel, The Bell Jar. A semi-autobiographical account of her life, this coming of age novel has touch millions of lives and is usually a required reading amongst high schoolers. I, however, was not so lucky to get to discover this novel at an early age, but I'm glad to have discovered it along with Plath's poetry.  Side note: if you have not read Sylvia Plath's poetry, I highly recommend it. Her sharp, unashamed, brash words will leave your mouth watering for more. And I'm hoping for some of that kind of prose in this world famous novel.

Asylum - by Madeleine Roux
I have a strange fascination with mental illness and mental institutions. Is this a controversial and macabre subject? Yes. But I can't stop reading about it.  And this is a novel that goes along those same lines of macabre yet fascinating. A bone-chilling photo-novel, much like the amazing Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, this book is about sixteen-year-old Dan Crawford who while spending a summer in an old asylum (hence the title) decides to go exploring with his classmates one night only to realize that he and his friends didn't end up at this asylum by coincidence. There isn't much else in the summary of this book, but honestly that just makes me even more excited to read it.

Burned - by Ellen Hopkins
Last year, I was hooked by a number of Ellen Hopkins' other books of verse. I mean I was enraptured. Like so many others, I can read a Hopkins book in less than two days and still be wanting more of the drama that comes with them. And after looking at the reviews of this book, it looks even better than the others! I'm so pumped to delve deep into what looks to be another promising, dark, twisted read from Hopkins. I'm not too sure what it's about, but I think that makes it even more exciting to read. I love to be surprised at the twists and turns of dramatic novels, especially Hopkins' works. 

Girl at Sea - by Maureen Johnson
Ah yes. Another perfect YA beachy read for me to devour.  Not many people know this, but I get my life force, my essence if you will, from books like this one. It's got everything! A boy meets girl story, romance, beachy/oceanic fun times, and underwater treasure. Yes I just said underwater treasure, aka the best kind of treasure next to buried. What does this treasure do? Oh you know, it could unlock the secrets of civilization itself, no biggie. Written by Maureen Johnson, one of the baronesses of chick-lit and young adult literature, this novel hasn't made as much of a splash in the YA book review world as her other books, have but it looks just as promising for an entertaining read.

If you can't tell, I'm extremely pumped for my vacation and for my vacation reading.  I can't wait to marathon read all of these wonderful books from my beach chair for a whole week. And if you're going on vacation soon with a pile of books like me or if you're just daycationing (real word? it is now!) and reading from the comfort of your own back yard, let me know what is on your vacation TBR list! Happy reading!

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

Title: Me and Earl and the Dying Girl
Author: Jesse Andrews
Pages: 295
Publication: March 2012

Summary: Greg Gaines is the last master of high school espionage, able to disappear at will into any social environment. He has only one friend, Earl, and together they spend their time making movies, their own incomprehensible versions of Coppola and Herzog cult classics.

Until Greg’s mother forces him to rekindle his childhood friendship with Rachel. Rachel has been diagnosed with leukemia—-cue extreme adolescent awkwardness—-but a parental mandate has been issued and must be obeyed. When Rachel stops treatment, Greg and Earl decide the thing to do is to make a film for her, which turns into the Worst Film Ever Made and becomes a turning point in each of their lives.

And all at once Greg must abandon invisibility and stand in the spotlight.

My Thoughts: Greg Gaines is a boy of many flaws.  He's overly self-deprecating, not self-aware, can't take a compliment to save his life, and not to mention a tad selfish.  And you know how whenever a character does something stupid and you get secondhand embarrassment from just reading about that stupid something? Yeah, that's very prevalent in this novel when it comes to Greg Gaines.  That's not to say he doesn't eventually win you over, though, because that does happen. Eventually.

For the first third of the book, I found myself either laughing at the witty writing or skipping over the massive info-dumps of background about Greg, Earl, and even sometimes Rachel (aka the dying girl). With these info-dumps came stories of how Greg did something stupid or was at a loss for a socially acceptable response to a question and sometimes it was funny, however other times it got a little annoying when these ridiculous responses would take pages to end and you're just cringing because of it.

Other than that, I did think this was a funny book. It was witty and enjoyable from beginning to end. But don't go into this book thinking, "Hey! I'm going to read this because someone is going to fall in love with the dying girl! Right?" Wrong. It's not a romantic book at all. It's a book about friendships, figuring out what it's like to start thinking about others, making better life decisions. At least, I think that's what it's about.

I say that because you can get all kinds of morals from this story and you can learn a lot from Greg's mistakes, like he eventually does himself.  Also, if you like a fair amount of cussing, bad movie remakes, and 12 year old boy level kind of humor, then this book is made for you. It's your soul mate. Pick it up, give it a nice ceremony it's been dreaming of since it was just a picture book, and marry it. You are no doubt bound to love it.
My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars