All posts tagged: young adult

All the Feels

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Confession: I read this book months ago. While details of the story might be fuzzy, how I felt about it isn’t. I devoured this book, so consumed by the relationship of Eleanor and Park that I stayed up into the wee hours, finishing it in a couple of days. I recommended it to anyone who hadn’t already been charmed by the quirky characters and the innocence of first love. This is why I love books; how it resonates – or doesn’t – with the reader varies from person to person. It’s dependent on their life experiences, who they are, what they believe, what makes them feel. For Katie C., this book didn’t resonate, a totally legitimate reaction. But for me, it took hold within the first few pages. I was what some might call a late bloomer. I didn’t have my first kiss until I was 16, my first boyfriend until 17. This kind of young love that bonded Eleanor and Park is something I’m unfamiliar with. And that might be the reason it fascinated …

Just not that into… this book

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This was the first Rainbow Rowell book I’ve read. But I’ve been hearing a lot about her recently. Similar to John Green, I feel like her books have found sudden popularity in the YA world. So with all the hype, especially surrounding Eleanor & Park, I was definitely excited to read this one. I’ll be honest, I’ve never been a huge fan of YA books. Well, let me explain. A book like this is not typically my first choice, but when I have read YA books I’ve really enjoyed them. I’m not ashamed to admit I’ve read all the Hunger Games, Twilight and Divergent series, and loved each and every one of them. Anyway, I didn’t have SUPER high expectations for Eleanor & Park, but I did expect to enjoy it… unfortunately, I was wrong. Maybe it’s because I didn’t fall in love until I was in my 20’s, or maybe because I never had a high school relationship, or because by the time I was 18 I’d moved six times and never quite experienced a typical adolescence, but I couldn’t …

February Book

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Image © Haiku Deck We’ve come full circle! This is our last book of 2015/2016 before we start anew in March. If you’ve been with us since the beginning you’ll recall that we first launched Bookly in March 2015 with Still Alice as part of our Screenplay theme in honor of Hollywood’s awards season. For February, the month of Valentine’s Day, we’ll be reading a love story… … Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell. Although many are now familiar with Rowell’s name, and her books (Fangirl, Attachments and Landline), this was her first young adult novel. Published in 2013, Eleanor & Park follows these two protagonists from Omaha, Nebraska as they fall in love in the late 1980’s. At the young, innocent age of sixteen Eleanor and Park build a connection over mix tapes and comic books, and find themselves in the dramatic world of young love. And since this book has such a strong emphasis on music we’ve brought back our Bookly playlist this month. So during your reading sessions, take a listen to the Bookly {February} “mix tape” on Spotify: …

Eager for the End

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After reading (and loving) Ready Player One I was excited to give Ender’s Game a try. I’d heard from many trusted fellow book nerds what a great book it was but had shied away because I thought it wasn’t “my kind of book.” I should have trusted my gut. This book tested my patience as I struggled through the first third, finding nothing that captured me or held my interest. After setting it down for a few days (instead I read Wonder, which I would highly recommend, and The Good Girl), I picked it back up, determined to chug through. Plus, I was told the ending would change my mind. Eager to get to said ending, I admittedly skimmed a large part of the middle half. So as not to give anything away, all I’ll say about the ending is I appreciated what they were trying to do. And I certainly enjoyed the last quarter of the book much more than the rest, I just wish I didn’t have to slog through the other three-quarters just to …

Sooner rather than later

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Hello, all. Long time no talk to. I have to say, it was a good thing we decided to combine May and June and to just read one book over two months… phew! Life’s been busy! Anyway… I did finish Ender’s Game a few weeks ago. And I have mixed feelings. Overall, I liked it. But I feel like my impression suffered a little from high expectations. I know this is a favorite for a lot of readers in my generation, and I can see why. But it didn’t quite hook me as strongly. Mostly because I didn’t love the pacing. It felt to me a lot like the third book in the Hunger Game series… 200 pages were dedicated to some very slow-paced events, and then the remaining pages had years worth of action. It felt a little rushed. But the sprint to the finish line aside, there were some really interesting themes that pulled me in… The difference between the male and female persona. Although I’m not entirely sure this book depicted those differences …

{Ender’s Game} Cover Redesign

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I thought the hyper-scifi, ultra-nerd Ender’s Game cover could use an update. No offense to those scifi covers, they definitely serve their purpose. But I thought it’d be fun to rethink the look for Ender’s Game (it’s been a long time coming). Since the book was first published in early eighties, I thought something colorful and slightly retro was fitting. And if you’re a fan, you’ll notice I used the colors of the Dragon Army color code… it seemed appropriate 🙂 Ultimately, as I was reading Ender’s Game I just had this image in my head of a young boy overwhelmed and surrounded by different pressures, looking so child-like and alone…        

Bookly Recommends {YA}

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Maybe you’ve already read Ender’s Game. Maybe you want to wait and read Ender’s Game later this month. Whatever your reason, we’ve got you covered with more {School’s Out} recommendations to get you through May and June. Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling: Does this actually need an explanation? Read the books! The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins: If you haven’t read these books yet, you need to! They’re fast, action-packed, and thought provoking. And who doesn’t love a powerful and strong female lead? Twilight Series by Stephanie Meyer: If you’re as into YA novels as we are, you’ve also probably already read this series. If you haven’t, it’s worth a read. These books have been very hyped and highly criticized since their release, and we aren’t here to take sides. Give them a read and decide for yourself. The Lorien Legacies Series by Pittacus Lore: The first book in the series, I Am Number Four, was made into a movie a few years ago. Rest assured, the books are SO much better. If you start now, you’ll definitely …

May & June Book

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This month’s theme is …. Schooooooool’s OUT. For. The summer! (Get ready for that song to be stuck in your head for the rest of the day) Spring is here, school’s almost out, and summer’s on it’s way. Now begins those few precious months all of us post-grads miss so desperately… Summer Break (excluding the teachers in the group). So forget required reading for awhile and enjoy! In honor of school days past, we’re reading the young adult classic Ender’s Game!   Written by American author Orson Scott Card in 1985, Ender’s Game is a scifi novel set in Earth’s future, when mankind is about to face a third attack from alien life. The main character, Ender, is one of the many children trained from an early age to fight in this ongoing war. But apparently there’s a certain genius to Ender’s tactics… we’ll have to read to see what that is exactly. Some of you might remember the movie that came out in 2013 with Harrison Ford and Ben Kingsley. Yes? No? It looked pretty awful and it didn’t seem to do very well considering the book’s existing fan base… …