Thursday, 29 March 2012

Someone Like You

Someone Like You


By Sarah Dessen

Summary:



Halley and Scarlett have been best friends forever. Scarlett is the popular one, who is outspoken and outgoing and Halley is the shy sidekick who is always known as 'Scarlett's best friend Halley'. The two girls balance each other perfectly though and have an unbreakable friendship.

Now it's summer and it's the day after Scarlett's only true love, Michael died in a motorcycle accident, and now Scarlett finds out that she is pregnant with his child. For once it's Scarlett who needs Halley's support.
Scarlett is heartbroken about Michael's death, but is uncertain about what to do about her baby, keeping in mind that she is only sixteen and that her future lies in front of her.

Scarlett's mother is forcing her into abortion, but Halley is telling her to do what she feel's is right. Realizing that her baby is the only bit of Michael left in her world, Scarlett decides to keep her baby and go on an incredible adventure with her best friend, Halley, for the next nine months of her life.

When the two best friends go back to school, Scarlett introduces Halley to Michael's best friend Macon Faulkner. Halley and Macon soon develop a good relationship, which leads them to start dating. But before Scarlett and Halley know it, Scarlett is five months into her pregnancy and Halley is sneaking out to see Macon. Everything seems to be going perfectly, but when Macon asks Halley to take their relationship to the next level, Halley is unsure about developing her relationship even more with Macon if their is a chance that she might end up like Scarlett...

Scarlett and Halley soon get into a fight that might ruin their so-called-unbreakable-relationship and for once both girls need each other more than ever...

Along the way of nine months Scarlett and Halley realize that life is the worst place not to have a best friend.

Can they make it through together without ruining their one of a kind relationship?

Review:


Someone Like You. Wow. I am speechless. Once again Sarah Dessen had written a masterpiece. Absolutely incredible. Someone Like You is the ultimate coming of age book that all teens must read. I read this book in about four days and it was extremely thought provoking.
In this book, Dessen, forces us to reflect and to think about our future life as teenagers. Dessen also write about all of the mistakes that the teenagers at Scarlett and Halley's school make and the mistakes the two best friends themselves make. I think that the book prepares us in some ways, for the next step in our life.

The plot of the story was a good one which combined all of the elements of a teenager's life; heartbreak, worry, friendship problems, insecurities and growing up. I think that all tweens want to be prepared for their teenage years and want to know what silly things not to do and what to do when you have a friendship problem, or any kind of problem and I find that Dessen has done a very good job of explaining many things.

I also find that Halley is a very believable character and I think that any tween of teen would be able to feel as if she was Halley in the book, just the way that I felt while reading the Someone Like You. Halley is real and alive and the description of her actions is well done that makes us, the readers, feel as though she is coming off of the page and telling us all about her life as a teenager with so many worries and uncertainties in her life.

I do think though, that I might have been a little too young to read Someone Like You and I think that teens should read it when they are about 13 or 14 years old, because of Halley and Macon's relationship. But having said that, I am extremely happy that I read this book because I was waiting for a book like this to come along on my list!

What a magnificent and thought-provoking book, one of Dessen's best!

Recommended for all teens age 14+

Saturday, 17 March 2012

Mockingjay

Mockingjay

By Suzanne Collins

Happy St. Patrick's Day Bookworms!!! In honor of St. Patrick's Day, we have a guest blogger! The Anonymous Pug! Happy St. Patrick's Day, and a special shout out to all of my Irish bookworms! -Gia

Summary:

Katniss Everdeen, aged 17, has managed to make it through two Hunger Games, the second of which being the third Quarter Quell, where the tributes were picked from a pool of surviving victors, meaning that Katniss and Peeta were sent back into the arena. Near the end, she sent an arrow into the 'chink in the armor' of the force field, effectively destroying the entire arena. She, Beetee and Finnick were successfully rescued by the rebels; however, Peeta, Johanna and Enobaria were taken captive by the Capitol.

Katniss and the other two were taken to district 13, which was destroyed by the Capitol at the end of the dark days, 75 years ago, for rebelling. They rebuilt their society underground, doing everything in and orderly (and rather boring) fashion. On the way, Katniss learns from Gale that district 13 has been bombed, that 90% of it's people are dead, and that he organized the escape of the 900 or so who survived. 13 have been planning to take over each of the district one by one, ending with the Capitol. Panem is in a state of open warfare, and the rebels are desperately trying to get the rest of the country to side with them. Meanwhile, Katniss is being forced to accept the truth. Katniss Everdeen, the girl who was on fire, has become the face of the rebellion, the rallying point for all rebels. She has become the Mockingjay.

Review:

Once again, big thanks to Gia. This is probably my favorite book in the trilogy, primarily because now Katniss really started to take action against the Capitol. The are some EXTREMELY intense battle scenes, and readers must be prepared to lose many of their favorite characters.
As Katniss and Finnick say themselves, it feels, towards the end, like they really are back in the Hunger Games, the Capitol watching their every move. The rebels are deadly and unforgiving, determined to make the Capitol suffer as they have suffered. The battle is very frighting, as it seems so incredibly real.

This book has an undeniably sombre air to it. They are constantly watching people die, and many of them their close friends. The final battle everyone has been dreading has arrived. Some of the deaths are rather gruesome, which is saying something, given the amount of gore in the earlier books.

A truly incredible book, and the last of the Hunger Games trilogy.

445 pages

Wednesday, 29 February 2012

The Beacon Street Girls: Book 1: Worst Enemies / Best Friends

The Beacon Street Girls: Book 1: Worst Enemies / Best Friends

By Annie Bryant

Summary:

Charlotte Ramsey and her dad have been moving around the world over the past couple of years, but this time they are settling down for the long haul. They are moving back to Brookline, Charlotte's birth place, and her mother's burial place.

When Charlotte and her dad arrive in their new home -- a huge, old, bright yellow mansion --  Charlotte is fascinated by it and wants to know more about it.  But her landlady, Ruby, told Charlotte not to go poking her head around every corner of the house...

Having just come from Paris in France, Charlotte doesn't have a clue about fitting in on her first day of school. Before she knows it, she's zipping the cafeteria tablecloth into her jeans, and is embarrassing herself in front of every student at the school, including the food-spattered girls who soon become her new worst enemies: Avery, Katani and Maeve.

To fix her relationship with Avery, Katani and Maeve, Charlotte invites them all over for a sleepover and they all, strangely, accept Charlotte's invitation. When the three girls arrive, they too are fascinated by the house. When the girls find a trap door in the house they want to know even more about the house and its history.  The only way to do that is by going on an adventure together...

This is the story of four girls brought together by a house, a landlady, a dog and an adventure...

Review:

I started to read the Beacon Street Girls series when I was about nine years old and finished the series around my tenth birthday, but I think the great plots mean the series can be enjoyed by any tween up to the age of about thirteen. The author, Annie Bryant, creates great stories with a mix of friendship and mystery. I loved how in Worst Enemies / Best Friends Maeve, Katani, Avery and Charlotte try to solve the mystery of the trap door and the old house individually, but they are eventually forced to work together to solve the mystery. Being forced to work together creates tension between all of the girls and it adds elements of betrayal and fighting to the story. These tensions make the story a lot more interesting to read and make the book become a page turner.

I can definitely related to Charlotte as a character. We have both lived in and explored Paris, and we both know what it feels like to be the new girl and to do a big move. I think that having a character in a book who you can relate to is comforting for the reader, because they know that there are other people like them in the world. Every tween can find a girl in the book that they can relate to. There is Avery, the smart and sporty animal lover; Katani, the creative fashionista and inspiring model; Maeve, the bubbly, dyslexic redhead and inspiring actress; and finally, Charlotte, the traveler, klutz and writer.

This is the perfect book for tweens who are trying to learn how to be a good friend and are preparing to become teenagers.

Recommended for any tween age 11+ 

240 pages

P.S. Happy Leap Day to all of my Bookworms and their families! I hope that you are enjoying this extra day in the year!

-Gia

Monday, 27 February 2012

IT'S OUR 1 YEAR ANNIVERSARY!!!

HAPPY 1 YEAR ANNIVERSARY BOOKWORMS! WE DID IT!!!

HAPPY 1 YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF BLOGGING BOOKWORMS!!! I am so happy to have accomplished this much (with all of your help, love and support of course)! I have learned many things while writing this blog and will continue to blog until I am certain that I have convinced tweens all around the world to read and to open themselves up to new styles of books! Now, I won't write an extremely long and boring account of everything that I have learned in the past year, but I will just bring your up to date on me, and my tweenage life!

Favorite Book: A Brief History of Montmaray - By Michelle Cooper

Favorite Author(s): Wendy Mass - Ally Carter

Favorite Series: The Gallagher Girls - By Ally Carter

Favorite Thing(s) To Do: Travel - Read

Energizing Song: Hit The Lights - Selena Gomez & The Scene

Before I end my post, I want to first mention the cupcake in the photo at the top of the page. That cupcake is a 'Diva' cupcake which I bought from CUPCAKES VANCOUVER, which is the best place in the world to buy cupcakes!
I know that this blog is all about books but just this once I am going to tell you some things that I have learned throughout my experience of life and as a blogger...

Life is like a song, when the music changes, YOU, just keep on dancing...

Life is a ride, so plug in your music, turn it up to the max, and enjoy every single minute of your life.

I hope that I inspire you just as you inspire me to spread my love of books!

Love and many thanks for your help with this wonderful achievement,  

-Gia

P.S. If you want to win a couple of books from my 'Top 10 Books' list please e-mail me by clicking on the little letter underneath 'Contact Me' on your right, or by leaving me a comment in the 'Bookworm Comments' sections at the bottom of every page! Thanks!

Saturday, 25 February 2012

The Cardturner

The Cardturner 

By Louis Sachar

Summary:

Alton Richards's summer is looking pretty bad. His now ex-girlfriend, Katie, just dumped him for his best friend, Cliff. He has no money. His dad lost his job. His parents need money to finish installing their new pool. And to make things worse Alton is forced to drive his extremely wealthy Uncle Lester to Lester's bridge tournaments four days a week.

Alton wants absolutely nothing to do with his Uncle Lester, especially because Alton knows that his mother is making Alton drive Lester to bridge tournaments just so that it will look like Alton cares about his 'dear Uncle Lester' and will make Lester want to give his money to Alton's family.

Unknown to Alton and his family, there is another family, the Castanedas, also fighting for Uncle Lester's inheritance...

Before he knows it, Alton is discovering family secrets of betrayal and backstabbing between the Castanedas and the Richards, Alton is playing bridge with Toni Castanedas, Alton is fighting for his Uncle's inheritance, and he is being taught that life is just like a game of bridge...

Welcome to a world of discovery, betrayal, confusion and romance...

Review:


The Cardturner is the third book that I have read by Louis Sachar and it is probably the most difficult, but at the same time most interesting book that I have read by this author.

It was difficult to read because, in the middle of every chapter Alton stopped the story and explained to the reader what he learned that day during his game of bridge. The author clearly wanted to make us read a great book, and at the same time learn how to play bridge.  I found the plot so confusing that it was hard to do both. The plot was confusing, but addictive, because it was such a good puzzle.   It was very hard to concentrate on both, so in the end, I just put my mind to the plot, and that was the right thing to do...

The book has a great plot and timeline. I liked how Sachar (author) took us to the past so we could see what happened between the Castanedas and the Richards. It gave us a break from Alton playing bridge, and him explaining to us what he had learned.

The Cardturner isn't a page turner, but it is a book that, forces the reader, after every chapter, to take thirty seconds to think about the chapter.  I think it is good to read books like that every once in a while, because we all need to read something that will make us think and try to understand what is going on in a book or in life.

The last thing that I want to say about The Cardturner is that whenever Toni and Alton are together, they bring a very comedic side to the story. There was always something or someone to laugh at when they were together. I think the story's humour made the story very enjoyable to read, because it made the story seem less bridge-serious!

The Cardturner was a fun and interesting book to read, which I recommend to girls in their late tweens and early teens.

336 pages