The Sky is Everywhere - Jandy Nelson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Sky is Everywhere

AUTHOR Jandy Nelson
GENRE Young Adult – Fiction
FORM Audiobook

SYNOPSIS Dealing with the recent and sudden death of her sister, Lennie is discovering a lot about herself. Mainly that compared to the bright, sunny, and dramatic Bailey, she was always just the sidekick. Now that she’s on her own, Lennie is left without the one person that she could always count on. Trying to cope with the grief, Lennie starts to gravitate to Toby, Bailey’s boyfriend. The two of them together begin to find sparks of life, however betraying to Bailey that might be. But then the new boy at school, Joe, also slides into Lennie’s life, and things start getting really exciting, and precarious.

REVIEWI saw another review that said that this book had an “unoriginal/common plot,” and I do agree, but there is so much beauty in this book, and poetic verse, and healing. The Sky is Everywhere really is just a beautiful book all around. There are so many different things about the book that I really enjoyed, that listing them would not only spoil the book – but it would take all day. Some of the major points were Lennie’s growth. Starting out just sort of floating through life, it is easy to track her progress through the grief and just becoming a better person gradually throughout the book. Another thing I loved, the comparison of Toby to the moon and Joe to the sun. Complete opposites, for the different parts of Lennie.

I can be honest and say, a few times I didn’t really want to go forward listening to this book. I really liked Toby a lot, and I liked Joe a lot too. And everyone knows, it was inevitable that the two were going to collide, and things were going to blow up. Stuff has to get destroyed before it can be put back together. The loss of Bailey seeping through every bit of Lennie’s words, her life; I could hardly stand the thought of the “boy explosion,” so I was starting to decide to opt out. But the thing is, the story stuck with me. When I wasn’t listening to it, the poetry the desire to keep going was always there with me. I HAD to go back and keep listening, to get it all over with, and then resolved. ….and it is THESE moments that define my absolute adoration of books! The authors who suck you in and keep you going. It really doesn’t matter that this story has been done before, what matters is that Jandy Nelson told HER story, and captivated me.

WHAT I LOVED I loved the point that we are all authors of our own story. This doesn’t mean we can manipulate others, because they are writing their story – but we can go and do what we can with our own. Jandy Nelson is much more elegant at saying it than I am… I also loved with Joe would speak French – I sort of wanted a love confession in French…I mean, he was pretty romantic and all.

NOT SO MUCH I sort of didn’t like how we “met” Joe. I don’t know, he came off as EXTREMELY perfect. Also, I’ve never read Wurthing Heights, but I can tell you that after this book, I won’t. I don’t actually go and seek after sad stories on purpose.

SONG DEDICATION “Wake Me Up When September Ends,” Green Day It was meant to be. Right after I was done listening to this book, I switched over to music, all songs on shuffle, and this was the first song that played.

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The Silent Box - D.R. Rux

GENRE: Adult Sci-Fi/Paranormal
FORM: e-Book

SYNOPSIS:  Someone is after the most dangerous historical artifact known to man, and somehow they know that Frank Rice knows where it is. The box that was once thought of as mythical is has now become Frank and his children’s lifeline.  Flashing back to when he and his partner, Beverly, discovered the box, and the realization of its vast power, Frank is now forced to hand over Pandora’s Box to save his and his children’s lives.  To whom, he has no clue, but handing it over may not really help because as Frank finds out, opening the box means the end of mankind as we know it.

REVIEW:  ”Action packed,” is probably the best description for The Silent Box.  The novelette opens up and closes with danger and conflict.  D.R. Rux takes the mythological story of Pandora’s Box, intertwines it with the story of Creation, and creates a world in which humans may rapidly become extinct.  For a short read, he packs in a lot of pertinent information – the key players involved, and story behind the box that is about to change the world.

LOVED IT:   I think this is a great prequel to a work in progress, and look forward to seeing how D.R. Rux takes mankind to the brink of non-existence, and hopefully back again.  I believe this work has the potential for “edge of your seat” action that will keep fans reading.

NOT SO MUCH: The thing I love most about books is getting to “make new friends.”  Character development is a big deal to me.  This book was just the right length to provide the basics on the people in the story, but I don’t really that a feel for “who” these people are just yet.

SONG DEDICATION: Isn’t it obvious?  “It’s the End of the World as We Know It,” REM  (Tell me you’re not singing that song now….it will be stuck on your head for the rest of the day thanks to me.  You’re welcome! )

The Anti-Prom - Abby McDonald

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Anti-Prom

AUTHOR: Abby McDonald
GENRE: Young Adult Fiction
FORM: Audiobook


SYNOPSIS: Three girls who would be voted “Least Likely to Hang Out – EVER,” find themselves stuck together when what is suppose to be the best, most fun day of their entire High School career falls apart. Bliss has just caught one of her best friends, Katelyn, in a rather precarious position with her boyfriend in the back of their limo. Jocelyn, the school outcast, trouble maker, “tough girl” was suppose to meet her (guy) friend and do a little revenge action. Meg, the shy wallflower who just wanted to have a normal day, was set up with a friend of the family as a date to the prom, but he canceled at the last minute. Now the three have teamed up, and have a mission – well Bliss and Jocelyn have their own missions; Meg is just getting caught up in their tidal wave. For one night only, they are an unstoppable team.

REVIEW: Wow, that is a lot of stuff to pack into one night. Especially when prom is already in full swing as the book opens. The Anti-Prom is wall-to-wall action. There is not a single piece of “dead air” in the book, Bliss, Jocelyn, and Meg are moving from the opening to the closing. I loved the mix of the most unlikely candidates – and how they deal with each other. Most of the best moments of the book, for me, were when they were on route to their next destination, and either bickering or chastising each other. For each of the girls prom night ended up being a bit more of a night of self discovery.

Abby McDonald did a great job of creating characters that anyone can relate to. It was easy to find something about one or all of the girls and experience this adventure from their shoes. I know I could relate to two of the girls; Meg, for her shy, standoffish personality. And Jocelyn, for her broken family and father full of empty promises. I can tell you, I think I probably would have had a lot more fun at their “Prom” than I had at mine!

This book would be an AWESOME teen movie! Think a newer and much better Can’t Hardly Wait.

WHAT I LOVED: The wrapping up ending, starting with the 2nd trip to the college. I LOVE how everything fell together at the end for all of the girls, and their attitudes concerning each of their circumstances.

NOT SO MUCH: That really was a lot of action for just one night…but the book wouldn’t have been the same. It’s a divide in my head, a good book doesn’t have to be a realistic one. (This coming from the girl who reads mostly fantasy/sci-fi YA novels..right?)



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13 Little Blue Envelopes - Maureen Johnson

13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

GENRE: Young Adult Fiction
FORM:  e-Book

SYNOPSIS:  Ginny’s Aunt Peg died just a few months ago, so what a surprise it is to receive a letter from her out of the blue.  A letter that  has her packing her bags and traveling across the country to London, and also leads her to 12 more letters, which are full of tasks to be completed.  Tasks which cause Ginny to travel through several different countries and to do things she would never have done otherwise.

REVIEW:  What a fun book!  It’s almost like a teenager’s dream come true in the midst of a very sad situation.  In some ways, though, it reminded me of Amy and Roger’s Epic Road Trip,  plus foreign countries, minus the constant traveling companion.

Ginny is a much stronger person than she realizes, and tackles all of her Aunt’s tasks with a bit of enthusiasm. Despite the situations and sometimes the desire to just go home, it's as if Ginny realizes that the whole adventure is good for her.  I think, in some ways, she surprised herself.   One of my favorite situations was in Amsterdam, where her task didn’t exactly pan out – and she was stuck with a smaller version of the Brady Bunch family for a week.  Regardless, she did her best to complete her task the best she could and moved on.   Then of course, there is Keith.  I actually wanted much more of Keith, but the original picture of him on stage with a top hat and a kilt, red hair – something about the oddness and his wit…I like Keith!

WHAT I LOVED:  The traveling, and how the book didn’t just take you do the popular destinations, but also some back-woods unknown areas of the countries.  She didn’t even go to the Eiffel Tower when she was in Paris.

NOT SO MUCH:  More making out?  Okay, no seriously, I think the entire concept is so cute and fun and I loved the book, but as a mother of three, in the back of my head I’m thinking, “there is absolutely NO WAY!”  She had no contact with her parents.  They were barely even mentioned, and when they were it was in a passing though.  It is as if Ginny was alone anyway, and was completely free to just run off to London whenever she wanted anyway.  Her “permission” was addressed in the book, but I guess the unlikeliness of this happening just really played a constant tune in the back of my head.  I know…it’s a book…anything is possible!  BUT…I do think this would have sat better with me if Ginny were college age, at least.



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Alice in Zombieland - Lewis Carroll/Nickolas Cook

Alice in Zombieland by Lewis Carroll

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

AUTHOR: Lewis Carrol/Nickolas Cook
GENRE: Classic/Horror Mash-up
FORM: Book – Advance Review Copy

SYNOPSIS: Alice and her sister go out to the graveyard to do her reading lesson when she gets distracted and sees a black rat checking his watch. Curious, Alice follows the black rat into a hole, and finds herself in a land where the creatures are zombies and ruled by an overbearing Red Queen. Alice finds that she herself is becoming more and more zombie-like and desperately seeks a way to go home.

REVIEW: Assuming you like the classic/horror mash-up books that are pretty popular now, or if you just like a good Zombie book – this book is perfect! You get an almost humorous amount of blood, gore and zombies; and of course the crazy mixed up land of Alice’s Wonderland. It probably has been about two years ago now that I read Alice in Wonderland for the first time, and I what I loved about the book was the double meanings and contradictions, which are of course still present in this version. I’m not typically a lover of horror- like books (and I’m trying to use “horror” lightly, it’s not scary really, but I wouldn’t read it to your grade-schooler!), but when I was approached about reading the book, it just had that fun, trendy appeal to it. And really, what could make the tripped out Alice in Wonderland even better? Zombies, of course! While it was funny envisioning all of the characters in Alice as flesh-eating Zombies, there were still parts where I was frowning and a little bit grossed out.

WHAT I LOVED: I loved how Nickolas Cook took Alice’s sunny colorful world, and changed it completely into a very dark cold one, starting right out with changing the happy tree opening setting to a dark damp graveyard. I wasn’t expecting the transition to start out so quickly. I think I was expecting Alice to be her same sunny self, but sucked into this dark world, which I think would have changed the entire book, because instead of “curious-and-calm Alice,” you would have had “seriously-freaked-out-screaming Alice”. Written this way, the Alice’s are literally like day and night copies of the same book.

NOT SO MUCH: Why is the rabbit a rat now? I don’t know why this bothered me so much, because I can see how a rat fits in the book’s theme, but a black zombie rabbit would have been FLIPPEN FREAKY, don’t you think? Just imagine it with red eyes and sharp teeth….

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