In My Mailbox

In My Mailbox is a post where I tell you the books that I received this week either by buying them from the bookstore, going to the library or from my mailbox. In My Mailbox was created by Alea and turned into a meme by Kristi.

Jack Blank and the Imagine Nation by Matt Myklusch

All Jack Blank knows is his bleak, dreary life at St. Barnaby’s Home for the Hopeless, Abandoned, Forgotten, and Lost, an orphanage that sinks further into the swampland of New Jersey with each passing year. His aptitude tests predict that he will spend a long, unhappy career as a toilet brush cleaner. His only chance at escape comes through the comic books donated years ago to the orphanage that he secretly reads in the dark corners of the library. Everything changes one icy gray morning when Jack receives two visitors that alter his life forever. The first is a deadly robot straight out of one of his comic books that tries its best to blow him up. The second is an emissary from a secret country called the Imagine Nation, an astonishing place where all the fantastic and unbelievable things in our world originate - including Jack. Jack soon discovers that he has an amazing ability--one that could make him the savior of the Imagine Nation and the world beyond, or the biggest threat they've ever faced.

-Amanda

Contest Saturday

Here are some current contests going on in the blogosphere!

Princess Bookie is holding a comment contest. Click HERE to enter. Ends October 2nd.

Book Rat is holding a Zombies Vs. Unicorns contest. Click HERE to enter. Ends when September does.

Ellz Readz is giving away an ARC of The Duff. Click HERE to enter. Ends September 17th.

Book-love Carol is having a Blogfest giveaway. Click HERE to enter. Ends TOMORROW, so get those entries in.

The Compulsive Reader is giving away a signed copy of Mockingjay. Click HERE to enter. Ends September 24th.

-Amanda

Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan

Originality- 17/20

Characters- 20/20

Remembrance- 9/10

Quote-ability- 9/10

Entertainment- 19/20

Ending- 9/10

Recommend to read- 10/10

TOTAL- 93/100

Grade- A

One cold night, in a most unlikely corner of Chicago, two teens—both named Will Grayson—are about to cross paths. As their worlds collide and intertwine, the Will Graysons find their lives going in new and unexpected directions, building toward romantic turns-of-heart and the epic production of history’s most fabulous high school musical. Hilarious, poignant, and deeply insightful, John Green and David Levithan’s collaborative novel is brimming with a double helping of the heart and humor that have won both them legions of faithful fans.

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This book, this book, THIS BOOOOK. I absolutely love John Green, and definitely enjoy David Levithan. The two of them together though? Magic.

Will Grayson, Will Grayson had the perfect mix of humor and seriousness mixed together. I don't know how they do it, but even though this book wasn't terribly exciting, I couldn't put it down. It usually takes an action packed, or super original book for me to be so enthralled.

Both Will Graysons were completely amazing. I want to be best friends with both of them, it's crazy. I've always wanted to meet someone with the same name as me, so this book had me living my dream.

This book had so much. It had betrayal, love, friendship, and a musical. You can't help but love it. Each character was filled with so much awesomeness. Even though Tiny wasn't a main character, you feel like he his. Everyone adds something to the story.

I don't say this often, but I would recommend this book to everyone. It will have you laughing so much, there is no way you'll regret reading it.

-Amanda

The Limit by Kristen Landon

Originality- 19/20
Characters- 18/20
Remembrance- 9/10
Quote-ability- 8/10
Entertainment- 18/20
Ending- 8/10
Recommend to read- 8/10
TOTAL- 88/100
Grade- B

An eighth grade girl was taken today . . .

With this first sentence, readers are immediately thrust into a fast-paced thriller that doesn't let up for a moment. In a world not too far removed from our own, kids are being taken away to special workhouses if their families exceed the monthly debt limit imposed by the government. Thirteen-year-old Matt briefly wonders if he might be next, but quickly dismisses the thought. After all, his parents are financially responsible, unlike the parents of those other kids. As long as his parents remain within their limit, the government will be satisfied and leave them alone. But all it takes is one fatal visit to the store to push Matt’s family over their limit—and to change his reality forever.
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This book was so amazing. You all know how much I love dystopian novels, and this one fit in perfectly with my collection.

We start off hearing about how a girl was taken because her parent's went over the limit. Right away we are introduced to this strict society that gives each family a spending limit. If the family goes over the limit, even just a few cents, their child can be taken away to a workhouse.

Matt was a fantastic protagonists. He didn't make all of the right decisions, and sometimes he annoyed me, but that's what made him perfect to me. I get annoyed when the main character gets everyone done without a problem, and Matt had a whole lot of problems. The other characters were good too, but none could compare to Matt.

You notice almost instantly that things are not right, and that something is going on. You spend the majority of the book with that paranoid feeling that something bad is going to happen. The ending is both happy and sad. It's a little give and take that made me like the book even more.

Overall I would have to say that The Limit was a completely engrossing read. If you have a thing for controlling governments, or any dystopian book, you should definitely read this.

-Amanda

Waiting on Wednesday

The book that I am waiting on this week is...

Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick

Release date: October 2010

Nora should have know her life was far from perfect. Despite starting a relationship with her guardian angel, Patch (who, title aside, can be described anything but angelic), and surviving an attempt on her life, things are not looking up. Patch is starting to pull away and Nora can't figure out if it's for her best interest or if his interest has shifted to her arch-enemy Marcie Millar. Not to mention that Nora is haunted by images of her father and she becomes obsessed with finding out what really happened to him that night he left for Portland and never came home.

The farther Nora delves into the mystery of her father's death, the more she comes to question if her Nephilim blood line has something to do with it as well as why she seems to be in danger more than the average girl. Since Patch isn't answering her questions and seems to be standing in her way, she has to start finding the answers on her own. Relying too heavily on the fact that she has a guardian angel puts Nora at risk again and again. But can she really count on Patch or is he hiding secrets darker than she can even imagine?

-Amanda

In My Mailbox

In My Mailbox is a post where I tell you the books that I received this week either by buying them from the bookstore, going to the library or from my mailbox. In My Mailbox was created by Alea and turned into a meme by Kristi.

The Limit by Kristen Landon

An eighth grade girl was taken today . . .

With this first sentence, readers are immediately thrust into a fast-paced thriller that doesn't let up for a moment. In a world not too far removed from our own, kids are being taken away to special workhouses if their families exceed the monthly debt limit imposed by the government. Thirteen-year-old Matt briefly wonders if he might be next, but quickly dismisses the thought. After all, his parents are financially responsible, unlike the parents of those other kids. As long as his parents remain within their limit, the government will be satisfied and leave them alone. But all it takes is one fatal visit to the store to push Matt’s family over their limit—and to change his reality forever.

-Amanda

The Sigh of Haruhi Suzumiya

Originality- 19/20
Characters- 18/20
Remembrance- 8/10
Quote-ability- 7/10
Entertainment- 17/20
Ending- 8/10
Recommend to read- 7/10
TOTAL- 84/100
Grade- B

It's the end of the world as we know it- or is it?

Gorgeous, confident, and demanding, Haruhi Suzumiya is the leader of the SOS Brigade, a club comprised of her high school's most extraordinary students. So when Haruhi is bored, It's up to the SOS Brigade to do something about it. In this sequel to the clever and uniquely witty The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, the SOS Brigade goes along with Haruhi's scheme to make a movie for the school's upcoming cultural festival. But when filming begins, strange things start to happen, and Haruhi- who has no idea she's a goddess with the ability to destroy the world- starts show to her devastating powers.

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This book, just like the last one, completely weirded me out. There are just so many interesting elements, and is a bit complicated to keep up with. The book makes sense though when you take some time to think.

The characters are completely enthralling. It was always an exciting moment when Haruhi would say something that made you think she knew about their secrets, but it would always just be Haruhi acting like Haruhi. The other characters were still very fun as well. They are just so out there and weird. I loved it. Just knowing that if Haruhi doesn't get her way, or if she gets her way too much, the world could just go crazy.

I really love reading books that take place in Japan, because then you can get a feel about how life is like there. This book was different though. It concentrated more on the brigade's actions than about where they were. It was fun reading about how their school works though.

I would recommend this book to anyone who likes Japanese, fantasy, or paranormal

-Amanda

Book received free from Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Novel "It's Kind of a Funny Story" Coming to the Silver Screen

Some of you may remember the book "It's Kind of a Funny Story" that came out back in 2006 about a depressed teenager checked into a psychiatric hospital. Well, in an unseen turn of events (for those of us not watching the progress of the book, of course) it has been bought and filmed by Focus Features, and it's set to come out on the 8th of October.

I, for one, am pleased with this turn of events. It's kind of hard to go wrong with book-to-film adaptations (though there are exceptions, I know), and it's just adds more for the Young Adult community.

The film premieres at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival on the 9th for anyone who's interested.

Want to check out the book? Already got it covered for you.

This has been Taylor, filling in for Amanda (her internet is down at the moment). If all goes well, you'll see her back shortly.

Sorta Like a Rock Star by Matthew Quick

Originality- 15/20

Characters- 17/20

Remembrance- 7/10

Quote-ability- 7/10

Entertainment- 17/20

Ending- 8/10

Recommend to read- 7/10

TOTAL- 78/100

Grade- C

Amber Appleton lives in a bus. Ever since her mom's boyfriend kicked them out, Amber, her mom, and her totally loyal dog, Bobby Big Boy (aka Thrice B) have been camped out in the back of Hello Yellow (the school bus her mom drives). Still, Amber, the self-proclaimed princess of hope and girl of unyielding optimism, refuses to sweat the bad stuff. But when a fatal tragedy threatens Amber's optimism--and her way of life, can Amber continue to be the rock star of hope? With an oddball cast of characters, and a heartwarming, inspiring story, this novel unveils a beautifully beaten-up world of laughs, loyalty, and hard-earned hope.

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This book made me so happy. Not only was Amber a truly inspiring and upbeat person, she also cared tons about others. She wasn't stupid, she knew things weren't going great for her and her mom, but she made the best out of it.

The plot is pretty basic, nothing super original, but still I found myself absorbed in Amber's story. Just the way that she talks gives her so much life. The rest of the characters were great as well. For once it wasn't a whole bunch of gorgeous people, or geeky boys who are really gorgeous too. They were real. They had real issues that the whole book kind of circulates around.

It was hard at times to watch Amber's rise and fall throughout the book. She is such a great person, but horrible things keep happening to her, bringing her down. The end of the book was so great, I'm pretty sure that I teared up. It shows that people can really be good and help others, and Quick did a great job at demonstrating that without all the frills.

At times the book progress slowly, but I would recommend this book to anyone who needs help seeing hope in humanity.

-Amanda

Book received free from Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Waiting on Wednesday

The book that I am waiting on this week is...

Plague by Michael Grant

After eight months after everyone over the age of fourteen disaapeared from the town of Perdidio Beach, California, the stakes are still rising. The kids in Perdido Beach are still starving. Yet despite the simmering unrest left behind by so many battles, power struggles, and angry divides, there is a momentary calm in Perdido Beach.

But enemies in the FAYZ don’t just fade away, and in the quiet, deadly things are stirring, mutating, and finding their way free. The Darkness has found its way into the mind of its Nemesis at last and is controlling it through a haze of delirium and confusion. A highly contagious, fatal illness spreads at an alarming rate as sinister, predatory insects terrorize Perdido Beach. And Sam, Astrid, Diana, and Caine are plagued by a growing doubt that they’ll escape—or even survive—life in the FAYZ. With so much turmoil surrounding them, what desperate choices will they make when it comes to saving themselves and those they love?

-Amanda