Book Talk- Since You’ve Been Gone by Morgan Matson

Finished: 7/27/15

Before Sloane, Emily didn’t go to parties, she barely talked to guys, and she didn’t do anything crazy. Enter Sloane, social tornado and the best kind of best friend—someone who yanks you out of your shell. But right before what should have been an epic summer, Sloane just…disappears. There’s just a random to-do list with thirteen bizarre tasks that Emily would never try. But what if they can lead her to Sloane? Apple picking at night? Okay, easy enough. Dance until dawn? Sure. Why not? Kiss a stranger? Wait…what? Getting through Sloane’s list will mean a lot of firsts, and with a whole summer ahead of her—and with the unexpected help of the handsome Frank Porter—who knows what she’ll find. Go Skinny Dipping? Um…

There should be an official sub-genre of YA novels called “life changing summer books”, because then they would be easy to identify and I could go out and read all of them. I have no idea why, but I have a huge thing for those books that follow the main character through a series of existential-ish experiences that change their life in some way over the course of one summer. They’re usually really fun and cute and romantic, and they always serve as great buffer/recovery books. And that’s exactly what I needed after the huge book hangover that came after the insanity of finishing Heir of Fire.

When I first saw the summary of “Since You’ve Been Gone” it sounded like the perfect recovery book after finishing the “Throne of Glass” series. The premise actually kind of seemed like a mix of “Paper Towns” and “13 Little Blue Envelopes” (two of my all-time favorite contemporaries, or really just books in general.), so I was super hyped to read it. And oh my god, it completely lived up to the hype. Honestly, I definitely recommend it, the characters were identifiable, the romance was amazing, and the plot was very well written. This is actually my first book by Morgan Matson, but now I’m probably going to look into reading her other books!

SPOILERS FOR “SINCE YOU’VE BEEN GONE” BEYOND THIS POINT

Book Talk- Past Perfect by Leila Sales

Finished: 6/25/15

All Chelsea wants to do this summer is hang out with her best friend, hone her talents as an ice cream connoisseur, and finally get over Ezra, the boy who broke her heart. But when Chelsea shows up for her summer job at Essex Historical Colonial Village (yes, really), it turns out Ezra’s working there too. Which makes moving on and forgetting Ezra a lot more complicated…even when Chelsea starts falling for someone new.      Maybe Chelsea should have known better than to think that a historical reenactment village could help her escape her past. But with Ezra all too present, and her new crush seeming all too off-limits, all Chelsea knows is that she’s got a lot to figure out about love. Because those who don’t learn from the past are doomed to repeat

After binge reading the entire “Legend” series and the giant pile of sad that was “Maximum Ride Forever” I figured it was time for what I call a “buffer book”, AKA a light, somewhat happy, and usually contemporary book to contrast all the emotional pain and feels from the stuff I usually read. And after reading the summary online this one sounded like a cute premise, and oh my god, it was so much fun to read!

First off I have to say that the cover and summary for this book really don’t do it justice at all. The cover is very cute and all, but how is anyone supposed to look at that and know it takes place in a colonial historical village? I don’t know, I guess I’m just nitpicking. But the summary doesn’t even get into the best part!

Like the synopsis says, the book follows a girl named Chelsea who works with her parents as a reenactor in a historical village that’s set around 1774. What it doesn’t mention is that across from the Colonial village, there is a Civil War reenactment attraction, and every summer the teenage reenactors from the Colonial and Civil War attractions secretly go to war with each other. And it is just as beautifully entertaining as it sounds. Like they all have secret meetings to plan strategies and plant anachronistic items in each other’s attractions and go on undercover missions and everyone takes it completely seriously and it is for the most part amazingly hilarious and fun to read about.

SPOILERS FOR “PAST PERFECT” BEYOND THIS POINT

Book Talk- Paper Towns by John Green

Quentin Jacobsen has spent a lifetime loving the magnificent Margo Roth Spiegelman from afar. So when she cracks open a window and climbs back into his life—summoning him for an ingenious campaign of revenge—he follows. When their all-nighter ends and a new day breaks, Margo has disappeared. But Q soon learns that there are clues—and they’re for him. Embarking on an exhilarating adventure to find her, the closer Q gets, the less he sees the girl he thought he knew.

Finished 6/9/14

Hey everyone! Welcome to my first book talk! I’m starting with the first book on my “Books I couldn’t read over the semester because all my time belonged to college readings” list: “Paper Towns” by John Green!

I had actually been meaning to read “Paper Towns” since I read “The Fault in Our Stars”, sobbed my eyes out, and then decided it was one of my favorite books of all time, and now, with the movie coming out soon, I figured now was as good a time as ever. And now that I’ve finally read it I can say that I definitely recommend it. I don’t read a lot of contemporary lit, and I definitely loved this book!

SPOILERS FOR “PAPER TOWNS” BELOW THIS POINT