Places I Never Meant To Be: A Review

Title: Places I Never Meant To Be
Edited By: Judy Blume
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
Where I Found It: Library
Summary: A collection of short stories accompanied by short essays on censorship by twelve authors whose works have been challenged in the past.
General Impression: It's hard to come up with a true opinion of a collection of short stories by multiple authors, some of the stories you'll like, and some you won't. I liked a vast majority of the stories and the ones I didn't really like weren't awful or anything. The little essays on censorship were really intriguing. The different takes by different authors was an interesting way to explore the issue. I encourage anyone who is against censorship to read this book and hopefully purchase it (all profits go to the National Coalition Against Censorship).
-Heather

Vampires = Perfect Teen Book

I was just at the Mall of America and of course had to visit Barnes and Nobles. While I was buying On Writing by Stephen King, Life as We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer, and Black Rabbit Summer by Kevin Brooks; I noticed something that disturbed me. It would seem that after the success of Twilight the number of teen vampire novels has skyrocketed. I find this insulting as a reader and as a writer.
That writers would forgo all sense of originality to copy the latest big thing. I mean why copy the latest big thing, why not try to BE the NEXT big thing? And why do they think that the readers of America are content to just sit in a pile of ever growing vampire novels? I like variety in my reading. Plus, the vampire genre is riddled with cliches that are becoming increasingly difficult to avoid.
As a confession, I do have a vampire character in my fantasy novel, but she really is no where near a main character. To say the plot revolved around her would be like saying the sun revolves around the earth.
Anyway, rant done.
-Heather

Writer's Molasses

I am coining this term, Writer's Molasses. It's what I have right now. Personally, I think it's worse than writer's block, mainly because you know what you want to write, you just don't know how to write it. So it ends up taking you an hour just to write two or three sentences and it's so easy to get distracted since it's not like you're coming up with much anyway. At least with writer's block you have no idea what you want to write. If writer's block is wanting cookies, writer's molasses is wanting cookies that you can smell your mom making for the band booster's bake sale and you can't eat any of them, and they're your favorite kind made just how you like them and the smell is so mouthwatering that you'd gladly wade through ten miles of raw sewage (since the smell is strong enough to cross through the stench somehow) to them.
Yeah, I hate this.
-Heather

Lemonade Mouth: A Review

Title: Lemonade Mouth
Author: Mark Peter Hughes
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
Where I Found It: Library
Summary: A desperate group of high school students thrown together in detention form a band to play at a school tablet show and end up competing wit a wildly popular local rock band.
General Impression: Really fun read. Not many books can pull off the multiple narrators as well as this book did. It didn't matter if I missed the heading with the characters name on it, a few sentences into the first paragraph, and I'd know who was talking. The characters were amazing, mainly because they were so relatable while having their own individual quirks. Their struggle were struggles you'd expect from high school teens, but as you got to know the character more, you see just how much these struggles effect them on the most basic levels. I would recommend this book for anyone who hates the high school hierarchy or anyone who loves books about high school life.
-Heather

Running Loose: A Review

Title: Running Loose
Authour: Chris Crutcher
Rating: 7.5 out of 10 Where I Found It: Library
Summary: Louie, a high school senior in a small Idaho town, learns about sportsmanship, love, and death as he matures into manhood.
General Impression: The book had the emotional moments, interesting characters, and deeper themes that I've come to expect from Chris Crutcher. So, of course it was good, just not anything suprising. So basically, if you want to know how I feel about this book, check out some of my other reviews for books by Chris Crutcher, it'll amount to about the same thing.
-Heather
P.S. Don't let that football player on the front confuse you. This isn't much of a sports book.

Plethora of Reviews

Ha, I know I've been holding back by waiting till now to review all the books I've read in the last month or so, but it's summer and blogging is now more work than my normal activities (back during the school year it was a welcome break from homework) and I would rather read more or sleep than take the time to blog. So that's the reason behind this massive bunch right now.
-Heather

Revenge of the Cheerleaders: A Review

Title: Revenge of the Cheerleaders
Author: Janette Rallison
Rating: 7.5 out of 10
Where I Found It: Library
Summary: High School Cheerleader Chelsea seeks revenge against her younger sister's rock-and-roller boyfriend after he embarrasses her once to often, but when she falls for his older brother, things become really complicated.
General Impression: I was impressed, expecting the normal light comedy from Janette Rallison, this one had more character development and depth than I think I've ever seen in her writing before. She didn't slack off on the humor front though. I was shocked by Janette creating a cheerleader character that I could relate to on as many levels as I did and yet at the same time be able to relate to her little sister. Her little sister whose goal it is to be the her exact opposite, no less. Anyone who wants a humorous romantic little teenage drama, this is your book.
-Heather

"How about that tall blond guy by the door?" Rachel said. "He's here with a friend but he keeps looking around - a sure sign he wants to meet someone."

When I didn't protest, she nodded in his direction, sizing him up again. "We'll have to approach slowly so as not to scare him off. Blonds startle easily."

Th1rteen R3asons Why: A Review

Title: Th1rteen R3asons Why

Author: Jay Asher

Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Where I Found It: Borrowed From Friend

Summary: Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a strange package with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers several cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker - his classmate and crush - who committed suicide two weeks earlier.

Hannah's voice explains that there are thirteen reasons she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he'll find out why.

Clay spends the night crisscrossing his town with Hannah as his guide. He becomes a first-hand witness to Hannah's pain, and learns the truth about himself - a truth he never wanted to face.

General Impression: Well done, the only problem I had with this book was knowing exactly who was talking sometimes, Clay or Hannah. Then there was one moment that sort of felt like a cop out, but other than those two things, it was brilliant. I felt so deeply for these characters, Jay Asher did a truly amazing job of weaving this tale. It made me think, and begin to understand that everything you do, effects someone, in someway. No matter how small you think an action is, it has the power to completely shred someones life. I'm going with my typical recommendation for books with serious themes, only read this book if you're willing to acknowledge the pain that's gong on in the world.

-Heather

Fame, Glory, and Other Things On My To Do List: A Review

Title: Fame, Glory, and Other Things On My To Do List
Author: Janette Rallison
Rating: 7.5 out of 10
Where I Found It: Library
Summary: Jessica is thrilled when a son of a movie star moves to her town, sure her big break is at hand. However problems arise when the Principal decides that West Side Story isn't politically correct and insists it be rewritten to today's social standards.
General Impression: Janette Rallison, you never fail to write books that make me likely to cause damage to my internal organs because I'm laughing so hard. The way the character's interacted never got tiring, and even if the plot was a little on the predictable side, and maybe had to great of a happy ending, it was okay because it's a romantic teen comedy. The two main characters get together (seriously not a spoiler, you know it has to happen from chapter one) because it's a romantic teen comedy. The point is to get caught up in the humor filled whirlwind and go along for the ride. So if you want a book filled with Awww's and HAHAHAHA!'s, this is a must read. Especially if you're into acting.
-Heather

"No, I'm not Jessica's boyfriend. I'm the guy she likes but is giving to Kate because it's her best friend's turn to have a boyfriend."

"Jordan . . ." I said.

"What?" Brendan asked.

Jordan held up his hand, a gesture of disbelief. "You didn't know girls could give guys away either? Apparently they have an entire system set up that we don't know about. Just think of all the effort we could have saved ourselves if we had known."

The Sledding Hill: A Review

Title: The Sledding Hill

Author: Chris Crutcher

Rating: 9 out of 10

Where I Found It: Library

Summary: Billy, recently deceased, keeps an eye on his best friend, fourteen-year-old Eddie, who has added to his home and school problems by becoming mute, and helps him stand up to a conservative minister and English teacher who is orchestrating a censorship challenge.

General Impression: I was so pleased to see Chris Crutcher take on a book that didn't have as heavy of a sports background, it was still there, just not as much. I have to say I loved this book, more than, maybe all but one of his other stories, which is Deadline for anyone who may want to check it out. I felt like I could relate to this book more than any of the others he's written. It was really clever, I think, to write a book about censorship by the way even if the tid bit of self-promotion ticked me off a little. I would suggest this for anyone you would like to get interested in Chris Crutcher who you don't feel is ready for his other work yet (in my example, probably my mom or something like that).

-Heather

A Corner of the Universe: A Review

Title: A Corner of the Universe
Author: Ann M. Martin
Rating: 6 out of 10
Where I Found It: Library
Summary:Hattie Owen prefers to be steeped in the familiarity of her small-town life than to think about the vast world beyond her own. Her family's boarding house is where she feels most at home, with its eccentric tenants and predictable routines - so different from the controlling and repressive home of her well-to-do grandparents who live nearby.
But during the summer that Hattie turns 12, her world is turned upside down with the startling arrival of an uncle no one has ever spoken about. Now that Adam's "school" - an institution for the mentally disabled - is closing, Hattie's family must deal with a childlike young man whose existence they've denied for years. And Hattie experiences a summer that expands her world in the most unpredictable ways.
General Impression: Nothing really worth raving over, saw plot twists coming or didn't care when they did, I didn't really feel any connection with any of the characters or the situation. Not a bad book though, just average I guess.
-Heather

Blue Noon: A Review

Title: Blue Noon
Author: Scott Westerfeld
Rating: 9 out of 10
Where I Found It: Schulers
Summary: The five midnighters from Bixby discover that the secret hour is starting to invade the daylight world, and if they cannot stop it, the darklings will soon be free to hunt again.
General Impression: A glorious climax to a the trilogy. Everything about it was fantastic. Looking back on how the character's have grown through the three books, I just have to smile. And for the record Rex has made it onto my Favorite Fictional Men list. There isn't really much for me to say other than, seriously, read this series.

Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes: A Review

Title: Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes
Author: Chris Crutcher
Rating: 8.5 of 10
Where I Found It: Library
Summary: The daily class discussions about the nature of man, the existence of God, abortion, organized religion, suicide and other contemporary issues serve as a backdrop for a high-school senior's attempt to answer a friend's dramatic cry for help.
General Impression: Well, all you have to do is read that summary to know that this book deals with some pretty intense themes. I did have some issues with how certain stereotypes were portrayed, but that was about as far as my issues with the book were. I don't really have much to say other than it's a great read if you want to think and don't mind getting down into the grit of reality. If you don't want to do that, then don't read this book.
The characters were fantastic, maybe not as diverse as the could have been, but excellently written nonetheless. They were all really interesting to get to know. Which is something the last few books I've read could have done better.
I think right now I might have read to many deep social issue books, my next read is more about World War Two from what I can tell, so that'll be a nice change of pace I think, after that is going to be a teen comedy, I think. So I think I'll be ready to review more deep books after that.
-Heather

My stare drifts to Jody. I'm guessing she believes Brittain was victimzed by a couple of insensitive pagan meremen.

Black Rabbit Summer: A Review

Title: Black Rabbit Summer
Author: Kevin Brooks
Rating: 8 of 10
Where I Found It: Library
Summary: When two of sixteen-year-old Pete's childhood classmates disappear from a carnival the same night, he is a suspect, but his own investigation implicates other old friends he was with that evening - and a tough, knife-wielding enemy determined to keep him quiet.
General Impression: This is a hard book to really decide how I feel about it. There are so many things done beautifully: the writing style, the emotion, the pacing, the way the narration makes you feel like you're the character (probably more than any other book I've ever read, I'm nothing like Pete, but yet found myself totally in his mindset when I was reading). But then there are a few things that seem so wrong, mainly the ending, it seemed kind of like a cop-out or something. I dunno' having read other books by Kevin Brooks, I know he likes not tying up all the loose ends (because that rarely happens in real life), and I understood him using that route in Being but in that case it was more a character being themselves, but in this book that wasn't the case. Who would I recommend this for? I'm going to do another who wouldn't I recommend this for, easily offended people, immature children, the squeamish and people who need their endings all tied up, but if your none of those people and you love a good mystery this is for you.
-Heather

The Character is Always Right...

So I have a new character, kind of. I had come up with the idea for him a few months ago, decided his character wouldn't work and got rid of him all in a period of 30 minutes. But he's forced his way back now and I decided to let him in since he wants a role so bad. The funny thing is, now that he's in the story, all these half finished dialouges are being continued and millions of puzzle pieces are coming together. This causes him to gloat quite a bit, but it's worth it.
-Heather

Touching Darkness: A Review

Title: Touching Darkness

Author: Scott Westerfeld

Rating: 9 out of 10

Where I Found It: Library

Summary: As they continue to battle evil creatures living in an hour hidden at midnight, Jessica and her new friends learn about Bixby, Oklahoma's shadowy past and uncover a deadly conspiracy that reaches beyond the secret hour.

General Impression: This is what every sequel should be. Push the characters farther, put more at stake, basically continue the fast pace from the last book to the second. I can barely put into words how unbelievably fantastic this was. Ending was amazing (not as good as Whale Talk, but still) The build up and execution was phenomenal. We get to delve deeper into the characters minds, and the history of the town; digging up some interesting back stories. It deserves to be the sequel to The Secret Hour.

I don't suggest this to you if you haven't read the first book, which I suppose I would suggest to anyone who doesn't mind getting their concept of time warped.

-Heather

Why sleep when you can
look at yourself in the mirror?-Melissa

Whale Talk: A Review

Title: Whale Talk
Author: Chris Crutcher
Rating: 9.5 out of 10
Where I Found It: Schulers
Summary: There's bad news and good news about the Cutter High School swim team. The bad news is that they don't have a pool. The good news is that only one of them can swim anyway.
A group of misfits brought together by T.J. Jones (the J is redundant), the Cutter All Night Mermen struggle to find their places in a school that has no place for them. T.J. is convinced that a varsity letter jacket - unattainable for most, exclusive, revered, the symbol (as far as T.J. is concerned) of all that is screwed up at Cutter High - will be an effective tool. He's right. He's also wrong.
Still, it's always the quest that counts. And the bus on which the Mermen travel to swim meets soon becomes the space where they gradually allow themselves to talk, to fit, to grow.
Together they'll fight for dignity in a world where tragedy and comedy dance side by side, when a moment's inattention can bring lifelong heartache, and where true acceptance is the only prescription for what ails us.
General Impression: Phenomenal, phenomenal, phenomenal. Addresses intense themes, has an amazing cast, amazing plot, amazing ending, overall amazing.
Though, I had a little trouble keeping some of the cast straight name wise, their actions always let me know who was talking.
I think part of the reason I liked this book so much was the connections I made to it. My school, like Cutter High, is a bit overly concerned with athletics (if the basketball team goes to state, we won't have school on Friday!) and not only did I connect with T.J.'s feelings about it, but for the first time really got to somewhat understand the other side of the issue.
This book deals with some deep themes: racism, feeling alone, abusive relationships, mental and physical handicaps, revenge, and death. These themes show up in many different forms throughout the story and weave together beautifully. The biggest theme I suppose deals with acceptance, how really, it's what everyone longs for, and how different people will go around to get it.
Who do I suggest this book to? High school age and up, mainly because it deals with some deep stuff plus there's some language and I'm tired of hearing middle-schoolers swearing all the time because they think it's cool and don't have the maturity to know that just because you know something doesn't mean you talk about it all the time. Plus the one middle-schooler who talked to me about the book made me want to rip my ears off.
-Heather

Ideas, Ideas, Ideas.

So, I'm taking a Biz Tech class and it has taught me that what really takes time with writing is the idea process. I know this because I just typed five pages in under an hour. Typically I could never do that, but because I didn't have to think up anything it was quite easy. I don't know. I just felt like putting that out there.

Ideas take the most time when it comes to writing. It has been proven.
-Heather

Writer FAQ: How can your character's suprise you?

So I recently had this question asked of me by my brother. I was talking about how I couldn't believe that my characters had done something and he had expressed how he never understood the "character's surprising you thing". My mom also made a comment about how I could just make them do what I want.
So I felt the need to add this new topic to the plate along with Novel Updates, Character talks, and Book Reviews, Writer FAQ's.
So here's where the answer lies for the question, How can your characters surprise you?
The answer all lies withing character development. You get to a certain point in your writing where your characters really are their own people, who make their own decisions that you have to go with or face the wrath of breaking the character! As you write you realize that because that character is who they are, they have to do something, and even though that may not be what you had in mind, to do anything else wouldn't be being true to the character.
So that's pretty much the answer I could probably write more on it, but I should probably go to bed or something.
-Heather
P.S. Went to the book store today and got two books I haven't read yet, so reviews coming soon.

Novel Update

I am so psyched right now. I've gotten to some interesting points in my novel where 1) it's less making up what happens and more following through events in a logical course based on what's already been established, and 2) tons of stuff keeps clicking together in new mind boggling ways. Things have started making more sense because of these two things which makes me very very happy, despite how much rewriting it's caused.
So just an update. I'm thinking about posting my "character ringtones" soon, if I can finish going through all my music looking for the songs. Hannah has most of hers done while I don't even think Adelene or Tyler have any. Oh, well.
-Heather