Weekly Reads: Guy in Real Life

 I was super excited to read Guy in Real Life because it seemed like the ultimate nerdy-nerd read (aka right up my alley!), throw in a side of teen romance and drama and I'm sold. There were shining gems in the story, and other parts that just drug on that I didn't care about. I think if you're a serious gamer, you may enjoy this more than I did. I really didn't care during the fantasy worlds described in the story, and sometimes got confused from the multiple perspectives.

My rating: 3 stars


Summary from goodreads:

From the acclaimed author of Brooklyn, Burning comes Guy in Real Life, an achingly real and profoundly moving love story about two Minnesota teens whose lives become intertwined through school, role-playing games, and a chance two-a.m. bike accident.

It is Labor Day weekend in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and boy and girl collide on a dark street at two thirty in the morning: Lesh, who wears black, listens to metal, and plays MMOs; Svetlana, who embroiders her skirts, listens to Björk and Berlioz, and dungeon masters her own RPG. They should pick themselves up, continue on their way, and never talk to each other again.

But they don't.

This is a story of two people who do not belong in each other's lives, who find each other at a time when they desperately need someone who doesn't belong in their lives. A story of those moments when we act like people we aren't in order to figure out who we are. A story of the roles we all play-at school, at home, with our friends, and without our friends-and the one person who might show us what lies underneath it all.

Weekly Reads (Listens): Zac + Mia

Zac and Mia is often marketed as the Austrialian The Fault in our Stars. And it is, but it really isn't. Yes it's a book about a teen boy and girl who have cancer, but that's where the similarities end. I listened to this on audiobook and enjoyed the narration of both Zac and Mia's sides of the story. The story is predominantly from the perspective of Zac but as the story progressses, we get to hear Mia's side as well. I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good teen tragedy read! (However, I may need to take a break from teen hospital books soon, I just read 3 in a row!)

My rating: 4

Summary from goodreads:

The last person Zac expects in the room next door is a girl like Mia, angry and feisty with questionable taste in music. In the real world, he wouldn’t—couldn’t—be friends with her. In hospital different rules apply, and what begins as a knock on the wall leads to a note—then a friendship neither of them sees coming.

You need courage to be in hospital; different courage to be back in the real world. In one of these worlds Zac needs Mia. And in the other Mia needs Zac. Or maybe they both need each other, always.

Weekly Reads: 100 Sideways Miles

100 Sideways Miles is the newest book by Andrew Smith. I'm somewhat convinced this man is a robot with the frequency he's churning out amazing YA books. You keep writing 'em, I'll keep devouring 'em, Andrew. Cool? Cool. This book had me laughing out loud more and cringing less than his most recent Grasshopper Jungle (a truly unique book like none I've ever read before--my review here). I loved Finn's perspective on the world, and his passage of time though distance traveled through space instead of minutes and hours on the clock. I loved the random ideas his best friend Cade had for his birthmark :|: throughout the book. Most of which made me laugh out loud (like I've already said). There are some weird/great twists and turns which I've come to expect from Smith's writing style, and overall I loved it (which you could probably gather from my over usage of the word "love" throughout this review, but whatever).

My rating: 4 stars

Summary from goodreads:

Finn Easton sees the world through miles instead of minutes. It’s how he makes sense of the world, and how he tries to convince himself that he’s a real boy and not just a character in his father’s bestselling cult-classic book. Finn has two things going for him: his best friend, the possibly-insane-but-definitely-excellent Cade Hernandez, and Julia Bishop, the first girl he’s ever loved.

Then Julia moves away, and Finn is heartbroken. Feeling restless and trapped in the book, Finn embarks on a road trip with Cade to visit their college of choice in Oklahoma. When an unexpected accident happens and the boys become unlikely heroes, they take an eye-opening detour away from everything they thought they had planned—and learn how to write their own destiny.

Weekly Reads: The Fever

The Fever is the newest novel by Megan Abbott. Her previous book, Dare Me, has been on my to read list for the last year, but it just hasn't made it to the top of that list yet! When I saw this one in several "up-and-coming" blogs and news releases, so I put a hold on my library's copy! It's catalogued as an adult book, but the content and telling seem more Young Adult to me, OLDER YA, but YA none the less. The story drew me in from page one and I read it all in just a few sittings.



My rating: 3.5 stars

Summary from goodreads:

The panic unleashed by a mysterious contagion threatens the bonds of family and community in a seemingly idyllic suburban community.

The Nash family is close-knit. Tom is a popular teacher, father of two teens: Eli, a hockey star and girl magnet, and his sister Deenie, a diligent student. Their seeming stability, however, is thrown into chaos when Deenie's best friend is struck by a terrifying, unexplained seizure in class. Rumors of a hazardous outbreak spread through the family, school and community.

As hysteria and contagion swell, a series of tightly held secrets emerges, threatening to unravel friendships, families and the town's fragile idea of security.

Weekly Reads: Everything Leads to You

Everything Leads to You is the newest book by Nina LaCour. I had read, and enjoyed Disenchantments, so I was excited to pick this one up as well. Both books I've read by LaCour have focused on that summer post-high school, pre-rest of your life, and I think that's such a great time for a YA book. Teens look at that summer as a summer of greatness, and the characters in her books always seem to excel at that.

Everything Leads to You is a love story that's wrapped up in a mystery. Her writing style is so magical that you will see every movie scene described in the book as if you were viewing it on film, and you will feel like you're falling in love for the very first time.

Just a beautiful book.

My rating: 5 stars.

Summary from goodreads:

A love letter to the craft and romance of film and fate in front of—and behind—the camera from the award-winning author of Hold Still.
 
A wunderkind young set designer, Emi has already started to find her way in the competitive Hollywood film world.
 
Emi is a film buff and a true romantic, but her real-life relationships are a mess. She has desperately gone back to the same girl too many times to mention. But then a mysterious letter from a silver screen legend leads Emi to Ava. Ava is unlike anyone Emi has ever met. She has a tumultuous, not-so-glamorous past, and lives an unconventional life. She’s enigmatic…. She’s beautiful. And she is about to expand Emi’s understanding of family, acceptance, and true romance.

Weekly Reads: We Were Liars

We Were Liars was amazing. It was somewhat slow moving at first, but then I really got in to it. It was told over the summer on a private island, and I read it on the first official day of summer, so that was good timing. All reviews of it have been super secretive to not have any spoilers, and I TOTALLY GET WHY OMG. It's a quick, awesome, jaw dropping read.

My rating: 4.5 stars.

Summary from goodreads:

A beautiful and distinguished family.
A private island.
A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate, political boy.
A group of four friends—the Liars—whose friendship turns destructive.
A revolution. An accident. A secret.
Lies upon lies.
True love.
The truth.
 
We Were Liars is a modern, sophisticated suspense novel from National Book Award finalist and Printz Award honoree E. Lockhart. 

Read it.
And if anyone asks you how it ends, just LIE.

Weekly Reads: She Is Not Invisible

She Is Not Invisible is the most recent book I've read for our Mock Printz discussion. Marcus Sedgwick won the Printz award for his novel, Midwinterblood, (which I've yet to read....ooops) this past year. This book is all about coincidences, so I was excited to read it. I was even more interested to see all the references to Jung's theory of synchronicity, brought me back to my psych/soci days! I really really enjoyed those portions of the story (told from writings in the father's found journal of notes for an upcoming book) but the actual story left something to be desired. I kept waiting for a giant OMG unveiling moment. With a book totaling 220 pages, there certainly was room for "more." I'm being overly critical of the book just in terms of its Printz potential, but as far as books go, this really was a great read. I also really enjoyed the story told from the perspective of a blind, teen girl.

My rating: 3.5 stars.

Summary from goodreads:

Laureth Peak's father has taught her to look for recurring events, patterns, and numbers--a skill at which she's remarkably talented. Her secret: She is blind. But when her father goes missing, Laureth and her 7-year-old brother Benjamin are thrust into a mystery that takes them to New York City where surviving will take all her skill at spotting the amazing, shocking, and sometimes dangerous connections in a world full of darkness. She Is Not Invisible is an intricate puzzle of a novel that sheds a light on the delicate ties that bind people to each other.