Saturday, July 24, 2010

Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

Stargirl is the story of an eleventh grade boy, Leo Borlock and a new tenth grader named Stargirl. At the very beginning of the new school year everyone noticed Stargirl immediately. Everything was different about her, from the way she dressed to the way she acted. Leo soon found himself drawn to her but when the school turned on her he tries to convince her to become ‘normal.’

The first thing I thought when I saw this book was that its cover is really cute. The bright blue color and the yellow star and green stick figure with a dress tell you the title without using words. It’s a book that I wanted to be good so that the cover isn’t wasted.

After actually reading the book, I wasn’t disappointed. I liked it a lot. The characters were like-able, or hate-able depending on who we’re talking about, or both sometimes but I’ll save that for you to figure out when you read it. I was a little surprised that I found myself attached more to Leo than Stargirl, the one the book is named after. I guess you could say that it’s more his story than hers.

Anyways, I think Spinelli did an excellent job on this. It’s a short read, good for those who think they might not have time for thick books. It’s good for kids too. It might sound cheesy but it does convey the message that it’s ok to be ‘weird’ or different as long as it’s what you want and it makes you happy. That’s a message we all need to hear sometimes.

Saturday, July 10, 2010

I want new books!

I’ve been waiting for some new books to come out, some longer than others. Here’s a short list of a few that’s been on my mind:

Midnight Sun – Stephenie Meyer

That’s right. Twilight’s Stephenie Meyer IS working on Midnight Sun!

If you haven’t heard about Midnight Sun, it’s going to be Twilight in Edward’s point of view. A few years back Meyer found out that the first chapter had been leaked and was so upset about it that she wasn’t sure she would finish the book. Her website (stepheniemeyer.com) now says that she is working on it but it’s nowhere near finished yet.

Dark Flame (Book 4 of the Immortal Series) – Alyson Noel

The Immortal Series starts with the book Evermore. Ever is a sixteen year old girl who lost her family in an accident. Since that accident she gained abilities including hearing other peoples thoughts and seeing their aura. Her efforts to hide these abilities labeled her as a freak at school until a boy named Damen showed up. He was the only one who could make the noise in her head stop. She knew there was something familiar and special about him but she just didn’t know what.

I really got into these books. I got done with the third and looked up this one only to find that it wasn’t out yet. Now that it is finally out I’m just waiting to get my hands on it.

Meanwhile, book 5, Night Star, comes out on November 16th, 2010

The Scorch Trials (The sequel to The Maze Runner) – James Dashner

In the first book, The Maze Runner, Thomas woke up in a dark box only knowing his name. The box opened and he met a group of boys in an area called The Glade. Only the young boys kept this place going with only one objective in mind, find a way out the Maze.

This is the type of book that drives me crazy, in a good way. I couldn’t put it down. I had to know what exactly was going on and now I’m left with that feeling without the second one to relieve me.

His blog (jamesdashner.blogspot.com) says that the hardback edition will be released on October 12th.

“Book 4” of the Inheritance Cycle (Eragon) – Christopher Paolini

The Inheritance Cycle follows the story of a boy named Eragon who found a dragon egg and, in turn, learns more about the history and the future of Dragon Riders.

The latest installment of the Cycle, Brisingr, came out in 2008. I’ve been waiting for this one a LONG time! There has been no release date set, not even as much as a title to go with. I will definitely have to reread the first three now.

Anyways, the most recent I can find about its progress is from one of his websites (shurtugal.com) that posted a newsletter from Paolini a while back that said “this is going to be a newsworthy year for the Inheritance cycle, with lots of big announcements coming up.” Another site (suvudu.com) had an interview with the artist that does the cover art for the Inheritance Cycle and he says he’s finished with Book 4’s cover and the title lettering. Does that mean the title has been settled on too?

I’m keeping my fingers crossed.

Open Secrets (The final installment of the Forbidden Bloods Series) - Evelyn Burdette

This series began with Silent Screams, following the story of twin sisters, Claudia and Melina Grimwood. On their 16th birthday they found out about another world that they were about to become apart of. They were moved out of their home in California to live at Nicholai's Academy in the Canadian Rockies, a school for vampires, witches, werewolves, and shapeshifters.

These books are actually self-published so they're not on any store shelves unfortunately, but you can order them online. For more info on how to do that go take a look at her blog (evelynjanelle.blogspot.com) . I really encourage you to do so, it is an excellent series.


What are some books you’ve been waiting on? Is there anything that’s been keeping you waiting on the edge of your seat?