Review - The Sky is Everywhere

Author: Jandy Nelson

Published: March 9th 2010 by Dial

I purchased this book myself.

Seventeen-year-old Lennie Walker, bookworm and band geek, plays second clarinet and spends her time tucked safely and happily in the shadow of her fiery older sister, Bailey. But when Bailey dies abruptly, Lennie is catapulted to center stage of her own life—and, despite her nonexistent history with boys, suddenly finds herself struggling to balance two. Toby was Bailey’s boyfriend; his grief mirrors Lennie’s own. Joe is the new boy in town, a transfer from Paris whose nearly magical grin is matched only by his musical talent. For Lennie, they’re the sun and the moon; one boy takes her out of her sorrow, the other comforts her in it. But just like their celestial counterparts, they can’t collide without the whole wide world exploding. This remarkable debut is perfect for fans of Sarah Dessen, Deb Caletti, and Francesca Lia Block. Just as much a celebration of love as it is a portrait of loss, Lennie’s struggle to sort her own melody out of the noise around her is always honest, often hilarious, and ultimately unforgettable.

Grief books are a hard thing to master. I mean, just think about it. How do you write about a depressed, broken character who can't stop thinking about the one person she's just lost and make her interesting to read? It's a daunting task to say the least. I'm not sure I could pull it off. But let me assure you, Jandy Nelson does that and much, much more.

I mean stir in the following factors: that the girls' only know their mother as half-mom, were raised by their grandmother who paints willowy green women with a feverish obsession, Lenny is fighting an unexplainable and inexplicable lust for her dead sister's boyfriend, Toby while simultaneously falling in love with the new boy in town, musical wonder and all around half-French hottie, Joe Fontaine... and what do you get?

One Hell of an amazing book. That's what.

Don't be fooled. This is not a grief book. This is a book about a girl who is grieving, yes; but that's only part of her story. There's so much more going on. This is a story about first love. About tenuous friendships struggling to withstand the strain of life and loss and growing up. About losing first love. About trying to regain first love. About mothers that don't raise their little girls. About a grandmother that is a mother to said little girls. About finding out who you have the potential to be. And about breaking through the shell that you've been turtling along in your entire life and finally becoming that person.

Author, Tahereh Mafi, said at an author signing I attended the other night that this book broke her in half. I can attest to her statement. Because it did the same to me. Hello, world. I am the newly halved Amy Rose. How's it goin?

Now stop reading this blog and go pick up The Sky is Everywhere. Read it and revel in its beauty. And then come back and tell me what you thought. I'd love to know. Happy reading!

Visit Jandy Nelson on her website HERE and on Twitter HERE.

Review - Bad Taste in Boys

Author: Carrie Harris

Published July 12th 2011 by Delacorte Press

I purchased this book myself

Someone's been a very bad zombie.
Kate Grable is horrified to find out that the football coach has given the team steroids. Worse yet, the steriods are having an unexpected effect, turning hot gridiron hunks into mindless flesh-eating zombies. No one is safe--not her cute crush Aaron, not her dorky brother, Jonah . . . not even Kate! She's got to find an antidote--before her entire high school ends up eating each other. So Kate, her best girlfriend, Rocky, and Aaron stage a frantic battle to save their town  . . . and stay hormonally human.

Zombiesssssss. I love 'em. I mean, really. The older I get, the more I love them. Maybe it's the fact that with each day we grow closer to death and that zombies are more than just a little bit fascinating when you really think about it. I mean look at the hordes of horror movies that have spurred from the thought of walking dead humans who crave the flesh of the living. Zombies are a true phenomenon of pop culture.

A good zombie movie or book is hard to come by. Most of them, honestly, are just crap. I will admit that I do prefer the more serious takes on them. The Walking Dead is one of my favorite shows of all time. But I'm also a big fan of the more campy takes on the flesh-eating fiends that my imagination loves to play with. My favorite zombie movie is Planet Terror.

So, naturally when it comes to books, my tastes are the same. I like my zombies either super dark and twisty or super campy and funny.

Bad Taste in Boys is the latter. And in the best way. Carrie Harris is a brilliant woman and hilarious. If you follow her on Twitter, you know what I mean. If you don't follow her on Twitter yet, what the heck are you waiting for?! Get to it! Here, let me help you. CLICK HERE.

This is an extremely fast-paced book that I devoured easily in one night. The main character, Kate Grable, is a dork extroidinnaire and fancies herself a modern-day superhero when she is the first and only person to figure out the zombie virus that has infiltrated the football team of her high school. How so? Let's just say instead of a nice kiss, Kate got a nice chomp on the lip.

Through Kate's exploits in the book, she finds her footing in a world where she was pretty much invisible before. She builds a stronger relationship with her brother and finds out how to trust her Dad again. And most importantly she finds first love... or crush. This is high school after all.

If you're a zombie fan like me, you really should pick up this book. Don't expect it to be serious. If you do, you're a bigger dork than Kate... or me for that matter. And that's saying a lot.

Visit Carrie Harris at her website HERE.