Sunday Special (18) The Challenge That Completes June

This June holds the birthday of a really really great YA author, someone whose books capture the hearts of teenagers, not only ones in USA but all over the world. Her style of writing is amazing - simple, close to heart but still so profound. Her latest book is also coming out at the end of the same month. So who is she?

Well, you all are right. It's Sarah Dessen! :D I love her so much. She's such a great person. She's talented and she's also nice and kind, too. Even though I've only read The Truth About Forever, I'm already deeply in love with her writing. And I guess so are you. As you can see, there're so many celebrations in May-June for Sarah's birthday as well as Along For The Ride. One of them is that at The Sarah Dessen Diarist which features a lot of authors and bloggers' posts dedicated to Sarah. And another one, which I want to mention today, is Sarah Dessen Challenge hosted by Em @ Em's Bookshelf. The goal is to finish all of Sarah's books before June 30th, and in plus, spread the word and the love to whoever you can. So if you're interested, please head to Em's blog and sign up.

I myself couldn't enter so I joined the fun by making some buttons for the challenge. Here they are

I think this challenge is nothing but awesome, hence, if you have time, make sure you don't miss it. The books will definitely satisfy your crave for excellent reads, especially in the summer. So what are you waiting for? RUSH to EM'S!!!!

Okay one thing before you go, because I'm a curious cat, please tell me your favorite Sarah Dessen book and why. You won't leave me dying in curiosity will you?

After The Moment by Garret Freymann-Weyr

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Pub. Date: May 2009
Age Range: Young Adult
Pages: 336
Format: hardcover
Source: from publisher - Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Maia Morland is pretty, only not pretty-pretty. She’s smart. She’s brave. She’s also a self-proclaimed train wreck.

Leigh Hunter is smart, popular, and extremely polite. He’s also completely and forever in love with Maia Morland.

Their young love starts off like a romance novel—full of hope, strength, and passion. But life is not a romance novel and theirs will never become a true romance. For when Maia needs him the most, Leigh betrays both her trust and her love.


If you assume you can tell from the beginning to the end of this book just by glancing at the summary, let me tell you something, you.are.wrong. Before I actually started the book, I'd expected it to go this way - the couple met, fell deeply in love like everyone else, then he cheated, broke her heart and everything went downhill since then. But, After The Moment wasn't anything like my prediction.

The book tells the story about the first love of a young man, Leigh, who seemed stuck in his own world not knowing what directions to take or even what he really needed in life. It was a strange, tempestuous yet peaceful love that vaguely begun and ended in just the same way. Throughout the romance, readers will explore lives of two typical teenagers and their adventure to gain self-understanding.

On reading this book there was one word that bounced up and down in my head - slow. Everything went on slowly, like the author paid really much caution on the plot and more carefully put it into words. It was neat and the pace allowed us to keep up with the characters' thoughts and feelings. However, the first few 100 pages, to me, was draggy -Garret used one-third of the book just to introduced the background of Leigh's life. Not that I said it was a waste of paper or words, but, let's face it, some will find it boring and put down After The Moment before the actually interesting part came to view.

I found the main characters quite shy and quiet. Even though there were some moments when they exposed themselves to the world, most of the time it felt like they were holding back a lot from each other. Also, it was really fun that even though the book was set in modern life, it had a touch of the past - all the walks, the dinners, books and gardens, they reminded me of a classic novel.

I wouldn't call it a betrayal like the synopsis claimed Leigh's action to be. It was merely a mistake and everyone made mistakes, including Maia herself. What Leigh did was just the last straw and it pushed things to the point that it couldn't be improved. The book shows us another side of love which is painful, heartbreaking and not so beautiful. Love isn't a fairy tale, nothing is easy in love and a mishap can turn everything upside down. Having said that, what I saw from the book was also a lovely romance which freed both Leigh and Maia from their shells, giving them first bittersweet experiences in love.

Overall, After The Moment is just like how Leigh once described Maia - hugely strange yet so captivating you just want to know more about.

Rating: 3.5/5

Waiting On Wednesday (17)

Idea taken from Breaking The Spine

By The Time You Read This, I'll Be Dead by Julie Ann Peters.

Dear
___mother
___father
___other

There was nothing you could do to stop me because:
___I’d already made up my mind
___I have been suffering my whole life
___ you were too slow to notice

I offed myself because:
___my life sucks
___the world sucks
___ you suck

Good-bye,
Daelyn

Reasons why I cannot wait to read this book any longer:
-1. It's about suicide. The subject is touchy and is now a big issue not only in teenagers' lives but adults too. I'd love to know more about this.
-2. The excerpt sounds very vague, hence I'm super duper curious. Seems like it's written in verse too (or it's just a way of how the girl writes in her diary?)
-3. Great title and very emotional cover. Such a perfect match.


By the time you have this book in hands, it'll be January 2010.

In My Mailbox (18)

Idea taken from The Story Siren

Some cool book arrived for me last week. Check them out.


My Invented Life by Lauren Bjorkman.

With Roz and Eva everything becomes a contest—who can snag the best role in the school play, have the cutest boyfriend, pull off the craziest prank. Still, they’re as close as sisters can be. Until Eva deletes Roz from her life like so much junk e-mail for no reason that Roz understands. Now Eva hangs out with the annoyingly petite cheerleaders, and Roz fantasizes about slipping bovine growth hormone into their Gatorade. Roz has a suspicion about Eva. In turn, Eva taunts Roz with a dare, which leads to an act of total insanity. Drama geeks clamor for attention, Shakespearean insults fly, and Roz steals the show in Lauren Bjorkman’s hilarious debut novel.

I'm really excited about this one - bestfriends drifting apart sounds good already but bestfriends suddenly no longer bestfriends is even more interesting. This book seems hilarious, mysterious, serious and light-hearted at the same time. I'll read this one fast and lend it to my bestfriend. I bet we'll both enjoy it.

Academy 7 by Anne Osterlund.

With a past too terrible to speak of, and a bleak, lonely future ahead of her, Aerin Renning is shocked to find she has earned a place at the most exclusive school in the universe. Aerin excels at Academy 7 in all but debate, where Dane Madousin—son of one of the most powerful men in the Alliance— consistently outtalks her. Fortunately Aerin consistently outwits him at sparring. They are at the top of their class until Dane jeopardizes everything and Aerin is unintentionally dragged down with him. When the pair is given a joint punishment, an unexpected friendship—and romance—begins to form. But Dane and Aerin both harbor dangerous secrets, and the two are linked in ways neither of them could ever have imagined. . . .

I'm dying to read something about school - especially exclusive school so Academy 7 came just at the right time. It also has secrets, competition and romance - I couldn't ask for more couldn't I? The cover is really intriguing too, love the pose of the couple.

Initiation by Susan Fine.

The halls of St. Stephen's reek of money, secrets, and desperation. Competition to be top dog at the Manhattan private school is fierce. But Mauricio Londoño—Latino, middle-class, and new to the brutality of prep school life—just wants to survive ninth grade.

Apartments the size of a city block...Vacations in the Hamptons... Being near all this extravagance, intellect, and beauty is a thrill. But navigating their sparkling world is another story. When two warring freshmen use the Web as a weapon, Mauricio gets burned in the online crossfire and learns firsthand how the privileged don't always play by the rules.

This book is not my usual type but something about it still interests me. I saw quite a few negative reviews on it but I'll try hard not to judge before actually getting to read it.


Thanks Lauren, Anne and Susan for sending their lovely children to me :)

Have a bookastic week ahead everyone!

Sunday Special (17) Six Pick For Summer

Summer is here everyone~!!! Are you excited? It's my favorite time of the year because I can finally rest and have more time to myself. Time to READ! We all know that there're a lot of books coming out in the next three months, so which to pick up first and which to put aside for later? Have you decided yet? This week I want to show you top 6 of my summer list along with ideal reading spot.

1. It's Not You, It's Me by Kerry Cohen Hoffmann - at a slumber party with a bunch of giggling girlfriends.
2. Sleepaway Girls by Jen Calonita - at summer camp of course, should be at noon or something alike.
3. Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler - at the seashore at dawn/dust when noone is around.
4. Along For The Ride by Sarah Dessen - at a park after a ride, preferably with an icecream cone.
5. Love You Hate You Miss You by Elizabeth Scott - in my bedroom with a blanket on a rainy days.
6. One Lonely Degree by C.K Kelly Martin - on bleachers at the pool or the court.


How about you, I want to know what you plan to read in the first few days of summer. Share your choice of books and places, will you? *smiles*

My Big Nose And Other Natural Disasters by Sydney Salter

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Pub. Date: April 2009
Age Range: 12
Pages: 352pp
Format: paperback
Source: from publisher - Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

It’s the end of junior year, and summer is about to begin. The Summer of Passion, to be exact, when Jory Michaels plans to explore all the possibilities of the future--and, with any luck, score a boyfriend in the process. But Jory has a problem. A big problem. A curvy, honking, bumpy, problem in the form of her Super Schnozz, the one thing standing between Jory and happiness. And now, with the Summer of Passion stretched before her like an open road, she's determined for Super Schnozz to disappear. Jory takes a job delivering wedding cakes to save up for a nose job at the end of the summer; she even keeps a book filled with magazine cutouts of perfect noses to show the doctor. But nothing is ever easy for accident-prone Jory--and before she knows it, her Summer of Passion falls apart faster than the delivery van she crashes. In her hilarious and heartbreaking debut novel, Sydney Salter delivers a story about broadening your horizons, accepting yourself, and finding love right under your nose.


If I asked "who hates her own nose?" and you raised your hand, then this book will absolutely change your opinion.Told in a fun, realistic tone, My Big Nose & Other Natural Disasters is a compelling read both for body image issue and summer.

First of all, it has a lovely plot, though every typical. With many twists as well as predictable moments, the story will keep readers absorbed in it until the very last page. Jory's journey to discover self-adoration includes lots of ups and downs, sometimes at peace, sometimes full of drama. Mother-daughter conflict? Broken friendship? Shattered heart? Unexpected romance? You name it, you get it. Combined in a skillful way, these turn "I've seen it before" moments into "I've never seen it that way" ones. In addition, Sydney Salter's friendly and natural voice does a great job on making you feel like you're reading about people from real life, someone you know, not a product of imagination.

Jory oh Jory. How much I love this girl! She's so ordinary, one with almost nothing special (if being a total wrecker counts then she does) but to me, she's still the coolest. She's one of the a few character I've ever felt really connected to. Certainly Jory is crazy, clumsy, clueless, unpopular, she doesn't do really well in her study, she isn't that great with guys and she doesn't even know what she wants. But, her inner beauty make up for it all. She has such a pure heart; she's nice, caring and never tries to hurt or harm anyone. And no, she's not an angel or someone too good to be true; she's just nice, real nice.

Apart from Jory, other characters are significant, too, in one or another way. On the good side there're Jory's Mom and Gideon. They both annoyed me in some parts but all turn out to be really good, especially the guy. He was so unpredictable and fun; moreover, never afraid to appear bad or girly. The romance between the two was one of the things I loved the most from the book - and on and off kind that leaves you nothing but the crave for more. How about the evil side? So sad to say even when they "redeemed" in the end, I couldn't stop being pissed at Jory's friends. They're so selfish, mean and ignorant. A true friend wouldn't hurt you like that - acting all lovey dovey with your crush in front of you then insisting nothing happens between them. Ugh!

Above all, this book is a brilliant debut for Sydney Salter. It showed her talent in conveying a common teen issue into something light-hearted, close to heart but still thought-provoking. If you ask me what good it'd do you to read My Big Nose & Other Natural Disasters, I'd ensure you'd gain two things: an unconditional love for yourself, and a fictional bestfriend named Jory Michaels.

Rating: 4/5

Waiting On Wednesday (16)

Idea taken from Breaking The Spine

Betrayal of Natalie Hargrove by Lauren Kate.

A steamy Southern beauty makes one fatal mistake.

Natalie Hargrove would kill to be her high school’s Palmetto Princess. But her boyfriend Mike King doesn’t share her dream and risks losing the honor of Palmetto Prince to Natalie’s nemesis, Justin Balmer. So she convinces Mike to help play a prank on Justin. . . one that goes terribly wrong. They tie him to the front of the church after a party—when they arrive the next morning, Justin is dead.

From blackmail to buried desire, dark secrets to darker deeds, Natalie unravels. She never should’ve messed with fate. Fate is the one thing more twisted than Natalie Hargrove.

I want to read this book because:
-1. The cover is so alluring. So I judge a book by its cover, what's the big deal? It makes the book look half teen, half adult don't you think? I just wish it would be less dark. My eyes hurt : (
-2. Sounds dangerous and sinful. Accidental death is not something I'm into, but the progress of how the secret is hidden and later, exposed is really really fun.
-3. The author seems new (or is it just the clueless me?) I want to check out her writing!

Beware of betrayal on Nov 12th 2009 ><

In My Mailbox (17)

Idea taken from The Story Siren

Cheers for the great books~!!!!


After by Amy Efaw.

Who would leave their own baby in the trash to die?

Certainly not someone like Devon--a straight-A student, soccer player with Olympic dreams, more mature than her own mother. But desparation and panic drover her to do what most people can't even imagine. Now Devon's in a juvenile detention center, charged with attempted murder. If she's tried as an adult, she faces life in prison.

Does Devon deserve that punishment? Your answer depends on whether you believe her story--that she didn't even know she was pregnant. Was she buried in a denial so deep that she was unable to register the seemingly obvious signs of pregnancy? Or were her actions the result of a more devious, premeditated plan?

I caught a glimpse of this book at Reviewer X's blog and knew I had to get my hands on this one other else I'd be crazy. The synopsis created such a strong impression on readers and the cover looked as if it was calling to you "Get.Me.Home. I demand!". The subject of pregnancy is so touchy, therefore I'm really attracted to this book. I'm saving it for a free weekend since it looks long.


Shrinking Violet by Danielle Joseph.

High school senior Teresa Adams is so painfully shy that she dreads speaking to anyone in the hallways or getting called on in class. But in the privacy of her bedroom with her iPod in hand, she rocks out — doing mock broadcasts for Miami's hottest FM radio station, which happens to be owned by her stepfather. When a slot opens up at The SLAM, Tere surprises herself by blossoming behind the mike into confident, sexy Sweet T — and to everyone's shock, she's a hit! Even Gavin, the only guy in school who she dares to talk to, raves about the mysterious DJ's awesome taste in music. But when The SLAM announces a songwriting contest — and a prom date with Sweet T is the grand prize — Sweet T's dream could turn into Tere's worst nightmare....

A contest prize, again. Actually, I won the second price which included Shrinking Violet goodies but because I lived so far, Danielle offered a signed copy of the book instead. So great isn't it? I love reading about shy girls and how they learn to break their shells. Don't you?


Undone by Brooke Taylor.

Kori Kitzler is the "dark angel" of her high school: beautiful, mysterious, the subject of rumors. Serena Moore is just an average girl, until a run-in with Kori in the bathroom in eighth grade. When Kori tells her that they are more alike than she thinks, Serena is instantly intrigued, and their fateful friendship begins.

When the girls are asked to complete a writing assignment listing the five things they would want to happen--their five ways to tempt fate--Serena doesn't take it seriously. But when something tragic happens to Kori, Serena is left with her loneliness and Kori's five things. Can Serena complete her best friend's tasks, or will she leave her list undone?

This book sounds mysterious. The synopsis left me in awe not knowing what to expect. I have a feeling that it's going to be really sad and deep. I adore the cover really much, too. Have you ever read this one? Care to tell me your opinion?


So that's all I got. Next week should be better cos I'm expecting a few review copies to come.
How about you?

Thanks to Danielle Joseph, Brooke Taylor, Amy Efaw and Jullian from Viking for giving me a chance to have these books.

Sunday Special (16) 13 Reasons Why Going 30!

In case you didn't know, my number one favorite book Th1rteen Re3sons Why has been a New York Times best-seller for 29 weeks, which means...it'll take only a bit to go on 30. Awesome, isn't it? So, on this special occasion, to show how much I'm crazy about this book, I'm going to post all the different editions of its cover today!

Left to right, top to bottom: US, UK, Brazilian, Italian, Polish, German, Korean and Japanese Japanese and Korean (sorry for the confusion).

So what do you think? I'm in love with these. Whoever designed the covers must have been really creative and careful. Look at the Brazilian and Italian one, so impressive! I seriously cannot tell which is the best, for me it's a tie between Brazilian and UK ones at the moment.

Oh and don't forget to enter the contest to win a signed copy of 13RW and many more cool stuff over Jay's blog.

: )

A Certain Slant Of Light by Laura Whitcomb

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Pub. Date: September 2005
Age Range: Young Adult
Pages: 288pp
Format: paperback
Source: from publisher - Houghton Mifflin Graphia

In the class of the high school English teacher she has been haunting, Helen feels them: for the first time in 130 years, human eyes are looking at her. They belong to a boy, a boy who has not seemed remarkable until now. And Helen—terrified, but intrigued—is drawn to him. The fact that he is in a body and she is not presents this unlikely couple with their first challenge. But as the lovers struggle to find a way to be together, they begin to discover the secrets of their former lives and of the young people they come to possess.

Such a lovely read this book is. Although all the thrill and mystery included didn't come up to my expectation, it was still a nice story about ghosts. Scary? No. Dark? A little bit. Meaningful? Hell yeah.

Light is the way the author called the Death, and Quick the Human. They connect to each other one way or another - some ghosts have to cling to the hosts in order to get through the days, while, some, if lucky, could take control of the living body of those whose spirits choose to drift away and let the flesh hollow. This is a fresh take, on exploring the world of the Death, you also learn so much about Life, especially ones of people who are still breathing but are no different from the bodiless creatures.

The first thing I noticed about this story was the ghosts were so nice, not to say vulnerable. Helen didn't float freely in the sky, she didn't stir things to scare people, she didn't even know how she looked like. To survive, she had to be close to her hosts and never to wish for anything more than to be with them. She went through 130 years with so much pain and fear, pain of not knowing how to really interact with them, fear of losing them and being dragged back to darkness. The most ironic thing was when a human saw her, Helen was terrified and embarrassed. I was annoyed at first, but as the story went on, I wasn't anymore. Why? Because in this stories the ghosts were just like human - they had weaknesses, they had feelings, they had desires too.

The adventure of exploring who they were and why they were here of Helen and James - the guy in the boy body was very enjoyable. Love snuck in and everything turned out to be crazy for both. Excitement rose when they found away to be together and got stuck in a bunch of troubles they weren't ready for. During my read sometimes I lost track of the main point, like the story just went on and on and I didn't know what to expect. But as the end neared, everything was cleared - the message was about how precious life is. It can be dark, it can be miserable, it can be so so meaningless you just want to escape from it, but if you drive out all the bads, there're so many things and people to live for. Just the ability to smell, to taste, to feel the skin is enough for life to be cherished. And the key to let your spirit free is to forgive yourself.

One more thing I love to mention about this book - it's so inspiring. After reading it, if you're a writer, you'll love to write more. If you're a reader, you'll want to snatch another book. The way it's illustrated by words is simply beautiful and poetic.

Rating: 3.5/5