Beastly by Alex Flinn: Review

Beastly
By: Alex Flinn
Young Adult Fiction

Beastly is a modern retelling of "Beauty and the Beast" through the eyes of the Beast, Kyle Kingsbury. Kyle is the son of a rich and famous anchorman. Due to his selfish behavior, he is transformed into a beast, and disowned by his father and sent to live in a secluded apartment, with his only company being his maid and tutor. Kyle must find a girl that will fall in love with him and kiss him within two years or he will remain a beast forever.

This book was a lot of fun. I haven't read many stories from the viewpoint of the beast. I found this book to be incredibly funny. There were parts that I was actually laughing out loud, and that doesn't happen often for me. I worry though that in a few years many aspects of the book will be outdated, particularly the mention of technology. However, it was a really enjoyable read for me. I'd recommend it to people who like fairy tale retellings and romance, because this book has a fair amount.

I gave it 4 out of 5 stars.

It's the End of the World as We Know It

This is probably my favorite genre of Young Adult Fiction. Post-Apocolypse or otherwise the end of the world. I seriously can't get enough. This challenge is hosted by Becky's Book Reviews. Here are the details of the challenge.

Read at least four books about the end of the world.

My list (with links to my reviews):

1. City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau
2. Uglies by Scott Westerfield
   
3. Little Brother by Cory Doctorow
4. Gone by Michael Grant

Take a Chance Challenge

I am going to embark on the wonderful world of book challenges. The first one comes from Find Your Next Book Here. It's called "Take a Chance." This one should be interesting. I don't know how I feel about the last 3 that involve writing, but I guess that's what happens when you take a chance.

Here are the details of the challenge, taken from the website.

1. Random Book Selection. Go to the library. Position yourself in a section such as Fiction, Non-Fiction, Mystery, Children (whatever section you want). Then write down random directions for yourself (for example, third row, second shelf, fifth book from right). Follow your directions and see what book you find. Check that book out of the library, read it and then write about it. (If you prefer, you can do the same at a bookstore and buy the book!)
2. Random Word. Go to this random word generator and generate a random word. Find a book with this word in the title. Read the book and write about it.
3. Birth Year Book. Find a book that was published or copyrighted in the year of your birth. Read the book and write about it.
4. Judge A Book By Its Cover. Pick out a book based SOLELY on the cover. First, write about what you expect the book to be about based on the cover art. Then read the book and write about how the book was different from and/or similar to what the cover art led you to expect.
   
5. Phoning An Author. Pick a random last name out of the phone book. Find an author with the same last name and read a book by them. Write about it. (I'm flexible ... if the first random name you pick is Xprxyrsss, you can pick again!)
   
6. Public Spying. Find someone who is reading a book in public. Find out what book they are reading and then read the same book. Write about it.
7. Random Bestseller. Go to Random.org and, using the True Random Number Generator, enter the number 1950 for the min. and 2008 for the max. and then hit generate. Then go to this site and find the year that Random.org generated for you and click on it. Then find the bestseller list for the week that would contain your birthday for that year. Choose one of the bestsellers from the list that comes up, read it and write about it.
8. Lit Riff (inspired by the book Lit Riffs by Matthew Miele.) Choose a song and then write a brief story that is inspired by or further explains the lyrics of the song.
9. Poetic Review. Write a book review in three different forms of verse: haiku, limerick and free verse. (You can pick any book you want to write about.)
10. Movie/Book Comparison. Find a book that you haven't read that has a movie based on it that you haven't seen. Read the book and watch the movie within a few days of each other. Write about your reactions to both the book and the movie and compare the two.

If you're going to participate in the challenge, be sure to sign up at Find Your Next Book Here.

My List of Books

1. TBD
2. Climb or Die by Edward Myers
   
3. Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
   
4. TBD
5. TBD
6. TBD
7. Joy in the Morning by Betty Smith
   
8. TBD
9. TBD
10. Coraline: The Graphic Novel by Neil Gaiman
    

10 Books that Changed My Life

We all have those books that we will remember how we felt when we read them. I would also love some feedback on the books that have changed your life. Either list them in the comments, or blog about it, and I'll post a link to your post.

1. The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ
2. John Adams by David McCullough
3. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
4. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by JK Rowling
5. Inkheart by Cornelia Funke
6. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
7. Alliance by Gerald Lund
8. Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
9. The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale
10. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Can't wait to see the lists you come up with!

East by Edith Pattou: Review

East

By: Edith Pattou

Young Adult Fiction

East is a retelling of the classic fairytale "East of the Sun, West of the Moon" mixed in a little with Beauty and the Beast. In Norway, there is a superstition that children take on qualities based on the direction in which they were born. Nymah Rose grew up being told by her parents that she was an East born, and a replacement for her sister that died that was also an East born. In reality, she was born a north-born, and was destined for adventure. When her father's business fails and her sister is sick, the family is forced to choose between losing a daughter to death, or a daughter to the North.

I've never heard of the fairytale East of the Sun, West of the Moon, but when I was reading this story, it was almost identical to the greek myth of Eros and Psyche. Either way, the story was pretty familiar. I liked this book, but I didn't like the shifting of perspectives. I felt like it made the story much more confusing than it needed to be. That aside, the story was beautifully written, and I really enjoyed it. I think it might be a little too long for younger readers and they might lose interest.

I gave it 4 out of 5 stars.

The Supernaturalist: Review

The Supernaturalist
By: Eoin Colfer
Young-Adult Fiction

In the futuristic city of Satellite, Cosmo Hill is born with no family. He enters the Clarissa Fray Institute for Parentally Challenged Boys, and dreams of breaking out. He gets his chance later, and finds himself part of a band of ghost hunters.

I really enjoyed this book. This is a pretty short book that would be easy to give to a reluctant reader. It's fast-paced and has a great ending.

I gave it 3 out of 5 stars.

The Book Thief: Review

The Book Thief
By: Markus Zusak
Young-Adult Fiction

Death is the narrator in this WWII novel about survival, human suffering, love, and hope. It follows the story of Leisel Meminger as she learns how to read, and with that comes a whole new world of understanding.

This book was, in my opinion, not Young Adult. It's just too heavy for your average teen. That aside, it was a great book that left you thinking. The writing style is different, and kind of neat. I really enjoyed the dialogue that was in German. At first, I wasn't really into the book. However, as time went on, I really got sucked into the characters. Not so much the story, that was only s0-so for me. But, I grew to really love the characters and their different personalities.

I would recommend this book for anyone who enjoys WWII historical fiction. Also, for those looking for a really deep read. I gave it 4 out of 5 stars.