Everybody Sees the Ants

Summary

Lucky Linderman didn't ask for his life. He didn't ask his grandfather not to come home from the Vietnam War. He didn't ask for a father who never got over it. He didn't ask for a mother who keeps pretending their dysfunctional family is fine. And he didn't ask to be the target of Nader McMillan's relentless bullying, which has finally gone too far.

But Lucky has a secret--one that helps him wade through the daily mundane torture of his life. In his dreams, Lucky escapes to the war-ridden jungles of Laos--the prison his grandfather couldn't escape--where Lucky can be a real man, an adventurer, and a hero. It's dangerous and wild, and it's a place where his life just might be worth living. But how long can Lucky keep hiding in his dreams before reality forces its way inside?

Review

Do you know how some books can just speak to you? "Everybody Sees the Ants" is an incredibly powerful novel. Everyone meets some sort of bully somewhere in their lives. Lucky  is a character that everyone can relate to in some way. It really depends on the person, but as you read you'll find a little bit of the character inside of you. Although it is a novel about bullying, it is also a novel about finding peace and letting go. The characters are great too. They make you want to laugh sometimes and cry at other times, for every single one has a flaw that they struggle with. By the end of the book, I wanted to give the author a standing ovation. Her story was flawless. It made me want to laugh, cry, and jump up in down. "Everybody Sees the Ants" takes you on a journey. It isn't necessarily Lucky's story. It causes you to look inside yourself while you read it and really explore because everyone has seen the ants at sometime or another. Sometimes its time to face reality.

4 out of 4 stars

Mark of Athena

Summary

In The Son of Neptune, Percy, Hazel, and Frank met in Camp Jupiter, the Roman equivalent of Camp Halfblood, and traveled to the land beyond the gods to complete a dangerous quest. The third book in the Heroes of Olympus series will unite them with Jason, Piper, and Leo. But they number only six--who will complete the Prophecy of Seven?

The Greek and Roman demigods will have to cooperate in order to defeat the giants released by the Earth Mother, Gaea. Then they will have to sail together to the ancient land to find the Doors of Death. What exactly are the Doors of Death? Much of the prophecy remains a mystery. . . .

 

Review

Rick Riordan has done it again! A thousand fans will die from anticipation thanks to another one of his famous cliffhangers. As usual, it wasn't the most serious book, but it was still fun to read. One of my complaints with "The Son of Neptune" was that Riordan didn't really bring out his characters very well. They just seemed like repeats of what we saw from Piper, Jason, and Leo in "The Lost Hero". In "Mark of Athena", we really see the personalities of his characters come through. Annabeth takes on a leadership role, and plays it quite nicely. Also, best of all, Percabeth returns in full force and romance! The book has great themes about the importance of working together, which resonates with all audiences. Ultimately, I would highly suggest this book for lovers of Rick Riordan and those who are looking for something fun to read. 

4 out of 4 stars

Under the Never Sky

Summary

Aria has lived her whole life in the protected dome of Reverie. Her entire world confined to its spaces, she's never thought to dream of what lies beyond its doors. So when her mother goes missing, Aria knows her chances of surviving in the outer wasteland long enough to find her are slim.

Then Aria meets an outsider named Perry. He's searching for someone too. He's also wild - a savage - but might be her best hope at staying alive.

If they can survive, they are each other's best hope for finding answers.

Review

I thought this was actually a pretty fun read. Under the Never Sky definitely runs with the dystopian    trend of the last few years. There is fighting with metal weapons and (gasp) bows, which sounds a bit familiar. The story as a whole was very imaginative. The earth is a wasteland filled with outsiders who have developed mutations in order to survive. Aria has lived in a dome called Reverie her who life. One of the coolest things about the book was the inclusion of the "realms", which basically are virtual worlds that you can travel to. The theme of family was also very important. The story was fast paced and engaging with a great plot twist at the end. The only thing I didn't like was the hurried romance. It didn't seem to have time to develop. 

3 out of 4 stars

Bloom

Bloom

Elizabeth Scott

Lauren has a good life: decent grades, great friends, and a boyfriend every girl lusts after. So why is she so unhappy? It takes the arrival of Evan Kirkland for Lauren to figure out the answer: She's been holding back. She's been denying herself a bunch of things (like sex) because staying with her loyal and gorgeous boyfriend, Dave, is the "right" thing to do. After all, who would give up the perfect boyfriend? But as Dave starts talking more and more about their life together, planning a future Lauren simply can't see herself in -- and as Lauren's craving for Evan, and moreover, who she is with Evan becomes all the more fierce -- Lauren realizes she needs to make a choice...before one is made for her.

Review: I actually liked this book more than I would rather say aloud. It wasn't a hard read, but there were parts of the book hard to read due to the events taking place. But that was oddly in a good way, it made me feel for certain characters and want to scream at them as if to say "What are you doing?! This is bad! I want you to, but don't!" The perfect boyfriend was quite the Plain John, with seemingly no faults, but that only made Evan more of a complex character with more of a story. Elizabeth Scott even throws in a few much needed emotional scenes that help tie up loose ends and patch up some rough spots. One thing that I didn't fully understand was why Lauren's self-proclaimed average life was constantly thrown in there. I didn't find her average at all, even next to Mr. Perfect Pants. Especially when  Evan made an appearance.

Stars: 3 out of 4. Very nice (:

This Is So Not Happening.

  Summary:
     After their long summer apart, Ally and Jake were hoping for a drama free senior year. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like things will work out that way...again. — It turns out that Chloe is pregnant and says that Jake is the father. Hammond is pissed at his best friend, but mostly can't believe that Ally would stay with Jake. But Ally is tired of being apart from Jake and is willing to make it work. But that is easier said than done when Jake starts blowing Ally off to go to doctor's appointments with Chloe and Ally joins the school play and meets a new cute guy. But as graduation approaches, things get more complicated as new secrets come out and Ally realizes maybe Jake isn't the guy she thought he was. After everything they've been through can Ally and Jake get out of Orchard Hill with their relationship intact?

Thoughts:
The entire time I was reading this book I thought, "Ally, you're so stupid." Ally is in love with Jake, she loves him, we get it. But Jake keeps putting Ally through all this crap. He got a girl pregnant for God's sakes, someone who used to be Ally's best friend! Then Jake starts to really attach to being a father role, and would get upset at the mention of him not being the father of the child. Come on Ally, when Chloe and Jake have their kid, they will be a family. You won't be in this family. Sorry. I do believe that Kieran Scott wrote this book is a great manner, however. She was able to hook you into the story line no matter how much it infuriated you. She even gave you a chance to root for a different couple other than the main one (Jake and Ally). All in all, the book was an easy read in terms of literacy.

Stars: 3/4.

Unwholly

Synopsis:

Thanks to Connor, Lev, and Risa—and their high-profile revolt at Happy Jack Harvest Camp—people can no longer turn a blind eye to unwinding. Ridding society of troublesome teens while simltaneously providing much-needed tissues for transplant might be convenient, but its morality has finally been brought into question. However, unwinding has become big business, and there are powerful political and corporate interests that want to see it not only continue, but also expand to the unwinding of prisoners and the impoverished.

     Cam is a product of unwinding; made entirely out of the parts of other unwinds, he is a teen who does not technically exist. A futuristic Frankenstein, Cam struggles with a search for identity and meaning and wonders if a rewound being can have a soul. And when the actions of a sadistic bounty hunter cause Cam’s fate to become inextricably bound with the fates of Connor, Risa, and Lev, he’ll have to question humanity itself.

Thoughts:

Once again, Neal Shusterman exquisitely explores the enigma of what it truly means to be alive. He does it brilliantly, using a futuristic Frankenstein to explore the idea of what makes one human. Overall, the book was a very enriching read.  However, after reading, I wished that the author could have brought back more of Unwind. Risa and Conner spent nearly the whole book separated, and Lev spent most of his time being worshiped by a group of tithes. Shusterman does bring in some interesting new characters, though. Miracolina was a tithe created for the purpose of helping her brother with a medical problem. Her parents swore to give her back to God, and she wanted to be the tool that God uses to touch people. The idea that a child could be made simply for the sake of helping a sibling and then unwound was intriguing and disturbing. The relationship with her parents and the love that they have for her was a great storyline as well. Starkey introduced the whole new aspect of storked children. Storked children were generally looked down upon in the unwinding world, and he wanted to change that. While this storyline was engaging, it was also a bit cliche. A little remembered character from Unwind was brought back in Unwholly. The Bounty Hunter's job was to pick up kids off the streets and sell them on the "Black Market" for unwound parts. Due to the events as the result of Happy Jack Harvest Camp, there had been a shortage for quite sometime. Any parts would do, whether they were from an AWOL Unwind or a random victim. One of the best part of the book was the discovery of how unwinding began and the organization behind it. Schusterman points out how we look at our own teenagers as "feral" and how the media can spread fear. 

Stars: 3/4

NIGHT

warning: i suck at writing reviews, but give credit where it counts (it will, unfortunately be short).

SYNOPSIS:
This book follows the adventures of Elie Wiesel and his family before, and during the holocaust,
shedding light on the horrific events in the concentration camps. The torture, starvation and cruelty given to the camp members paired the triumph exonerated in the book create a capturing and unforgettable story.

THOUGHTS:
At first glance, I didn't think too highly of this book and thought it would be dull, lifeless, and boring like most holocaust books are. But I soon learned the error in my ways. I discovered the majestic and effective writing style of Mr. Wiesel. Most holocaust discussions, books and articles have an underlining concept never again. This book literally screams it in a way that makes you want to do something to contribute to verbal and physical peace (may it be stopping an argument or preventing a lost friendship or stopping a rumor).  This book makes you feel that you and your family are Elie's family's situation because you quickly form a bond with the characters.

STARS:
4/4

Will Grayson, Will Grayson

 
Synopsis: 
The novel follows two boys who both go by the name Will Grayson. The first Will, whose name is always correctly capitalized, is described as trying to live his life without being noticed. This is complicated by the fact that his best friend, Tiny Cooper, described as "the world's largest person who is really, really gay" and "the world's gayest person who is really, really large", is not the type to go around unnoticed. Tiny is also, throughout the novel, trying to create an autobiographical musical, which further draws attention to himself and everyone around him.
The other will grayson, whose name is never capitalized, goes through his life without anything good to hold onto besides an online friendship with someone who goes by the name Isaac. Intent on meeting up with Isaac, will grayson sets up an encounter one night in Chicago but eventually finds out that Isaac was invented by a girl named Maura.What ensues brings both characters together and changes both of their lives forever in ways they could never have guessed or imagined.

Thoughts:

 I thought the book was fascinating, especially enhanced by the fact that it was co-written by John Green and David Levithan. It meant that, as a reader, you were able to experience two different writing styles, which I think greatly enhanced the entire novel. I think it was spectacular in the fact that it had two separate points of view for two separate characters, while both characters were equally relatable. Although Will Grayson infuriated you with his not-caring and avoiding his own feelings, and will grayson irritated you to no end with everything about his character, you still end up feeling for them both when things go wrong. A general theme of the book, which you don't see too often in teen novels like this, was that romance or a relationship isn't something that you need to survive, or even to be happy. Many of the characters dealt with some type of romantic relationship in the book, but you still get to see that sometimes, two people aren't meant to be together, and that's okay. It didn't have the stereotypical happy ending that I expected, which was nice, and it didn't have a twist tragic ending either, which can often be overused or used incorrectly. Overall, I thought it was a fantastic job by both writers, and a wonderful story. I would recommend it to anyone in book club, perhaps not to a young audience, since a lot of it is focused on relationships, and there's some inappropriate material (if I remember correctly), but I think that almost anyone could enjoy this book.

Stars:
3/4 stars
(Because you should save four stars for absolute perfection)

Looking For Alaska

Synopsis:

Miles Halter is fascinated by famous last words and tired of his safe life at home. He leaves for boarding school to seek what the dying poet Francois Rabelais called the "Great Perhaps." Much awaits Miles at Culver Creek, including Alaska Young. Clever, funny, screwed-up, and dead sexy, Alaska will pull Miles into her labyrinth and catapult him into the Great Perhaps.

Thoughts:

This was a particularly great book. I have heard a lot about how controversial this novel is, and decided to finally read it for myself. Miles Halter leaves his home to attend the boarding school of his father: Culver Creek High School. Obsessed with last words and seeking his "great perhaps", he begins with great a journey that will change his life forever. Soon after arriving, he meets his roommate, The Colonel, and Alaska, a hot but emotionally unstable girl that he becomes totally obsessed with. It is she who introduces him the the last words of Simon Bolivar, "How will I ever get out of this labyrinth?" As the story goes on, this quote begins to elude to a labyrinth of suffering in life that we all try to escape. I began to love this quote because it encompassed what Miles had to actually do when trying to escape Alaska's labyrinth of suffering by forgiveness. Another particularly interesting plot point was the memorization of last words. Miles believes that they hold what the person's life was about, like the conclusion to the end of a story. He too wishes to live a life worth living by seeking his "Great perhaps." Unfortunately, he does this by drinking, smoking, pranking, cussing, and engaging in sexual behavior. I have to admit that several of the pranks were brilliant and well worth reading. The other things, however, were a bit on the edgy side, so I wouldn't recommend this book to a younger reader. These things did serve a purpose, though. Part of the main theme of the book is the self- discovery of adolescence. I thing John Green definitely drove this point home. Alaska was an amazing character. She was so spontaneously brilliant and annoying at the same time. It's hard not to love her, despite her flaws. She was seeking her way out of the labyrinth of suffering that she had felt ever since her mother passed away, and that may have been why she acted like she did. It was she who finally showed Miles his "great perhaps", after he was pulled into her "labyrinth of suffering" after a horrible tragedy. 

Three Stars