December Books

The Rainbow Boys Trilogy (which consists of Rainbow Boys, Rainbow High, and Rainbow Road) was, in my opinion, a totally awesome series to read! It centers around these 3 gay guys who all go to school together. Every alternating chapter is told through one of their points of view. Each of their personalities were really interesting, and it was fun reading about what happened to them.

The Death Cure, the last book in the Maze Runner Trilogy (unless you count the prequel James Dashner is rumored to be working on), made a pretty good ending to the series. I hadn't read the other books, Maze Runner and Scorch Trials, for a long time, but it brought me up to speed quickly, and I cared a lot about what happened to the characters I remembered and loved. It was quite tough, because a couple of my favorite characters (not gonna say who!) died, and Thomas, the main character, gets completely torn up over them. Near the end, it kind of reminded me of how Harry Potter ended, because (spoiler alert!) Thomas is required to give himself up basically to die, and it very nearly looks like he's going to die, and he accepts it. But despite that, the story has a pretty happy ending, and it's open, so the reader is left to decide what happens next.

All in all, I'm glad I read these books, and highly recommend them. Sorry these were rushed reviews. =P But now it's a new year tomorrow! YAY!!! ^_^

Mockingjay, by Suzanne Collins

I'm not sure how I feel about doing a full review for this book. Don't get me wrong, I love the Hunger Games series! You can see how positive my response to the books were by reading my reviews for The Hunger Games and Catching Fire. I thought those 2 books were totally awesome, and I was sure that the final book promised to be epic and a satisfying end to the trilogy.

Sadly, my feelings pretty much match those of my friend Graham, whose review can be seen here. I think he says it better than I could. Well, he's already said it, anyway.

I didn't hate this book, but I didn't really love it either. I was sad that the main character, Katniss, had to endure so much physical pain, get addicted to the drug morphling, have her boyfriend Peeta go insane and brainwashed to kill her, and see all her friends die around her (even a member of her family!). I don't blame her for being so suicidal near the end.

Because of all this sadness, I was pretty confused how in the epilogue, Suzanne Collins managed to create a semi-happy ending, where the Districts don't do Hunger Games anymore but just try to rebuild their lives, and Katniss and Peeta get married and have 2 kids. It was just really weird, you know? It's obviously meant to be a bitter-sweet ending, but I don't know why after all the awful stuff, she even attempted to make it happy.

But like I said, the book isn't all that bad. I liked some aspects of it. The writing was really good, and I liked how Suzanne built the world of District 13. Interesting how that's like a big melting pot for all the rebels of the districts, and even some people from the Capitol are there. The character of President Coin, leader of District 13, is quite a piece of work. Like Katniss, I was really suspicious of her (you should be too).

And besides, this book has some cool memories attached to it. I actually bought this novel from the bookstore (a rarity for me, since I'm more of a library girl) so that I could get to meet Suzanne Collins herself! She couldn't really sign her books, because she had some condition with her hand, but she stamped this special Mockingjay mark in the front of each person's copy.

I was the 71st person in line to meet her. I know, because they handed out these tickets to people in the order that they arrived. There must've been over a hundred and fifty people in the room by the time Suzanne arrived, so I guess I was lucky. See how happy I am, holding up her book? My brother Adam is the one who took the picture. For some reason, only he and I were able to make it to this special event. My parents and sister were working at our apartment in Boston. It was our last day there, so I guess it was pretty hectic. O,o

In the fliers for the event, it said the author couldn't exactly pose with every single fan, but pictures seemed to be allowed. So my brother snuck this one in. Sorry for the blurriness. Anyway, it's proof that I got to meet Suzanne Collins. ^_^

She seems like such a sweet person. You almost wouldn't think that she is the individual responsible for creating such a dystopian universe for her characters to live in, not to mention making most of said characters suffer so horribly. I mean, she writes so well that she makes me believe that these are actual people, and then she just kills them off one by one (since there's no way around it in the Hunger Games). It's as if she's a murderer, although I'm pretty sure that she's not in real life. It's just... weird. O,o I guess that's how it goes for all authors who kill their characters at one point or another. How do they sleep it night, I wonder?

Oh by the way, at the event they had this table that suggested what other books readers might enjoy if they like the Hunger Games trilogy, so I took a panorama picture in order to get the entire table. Do you see that green book in the very middle? ^_^ Yes, it's the Maze Runner! I thought it was so nice of Suzanne Collins to help promote James Dashner's book like that. I'm very excited for the next book in that series, the Scorch Trials, to come out in October.

So yeah, it seems like I was able to give a pretty full review here after all. Didn't know I had it in me. ^_^ Until next time. *Bettina out.*

Short Stories

It appears that what I think are my favorite types of books in the world seems to come in phases to me. In 2007, my Harry Potter phase pretty much ended (because all the books were written), along with my ASOUE (A Series Of Unfortunate Events) phase around that same time. Then in 2008 I started my Pendragon phase, which sadly ended last year ~,~ (but it was an awesome ride all the same! ^_^). By the end of that year, I began blogging and a new collective phase opened up: James Dashner books, the Twilight saga, and popular books recommended on other book blogs in general. Also really big books. I loved big tomes that I could spend more than one day on.

For much of 2009 and 2010, it was clear that I was in my graphic novel phase. Maybe my readers have noticed this? First there was Bone and Flight, and then Cirque Du Freak and Runaways, plus lots of others. I only post about the good ones though. I've probably read many more graphic novels than I've bothered to mention, because I always read them very quickly. So I can be in a bookstore or the library, and if I see a catching graphic novel, I'll read it in one sitting. And then I'll gobble up another, and another if I'm lucky. Yes, graphic novels are truly awesome. I love their quickness. ^_^

And now folks, you will be witness to the birth of another book-loving phase. Now I am in love with *drumroll, please*: The Short Story. Or to be more specific, the Short Story Collection. Here's what happened.

First, I came upon this book in the library. The curious cover caught my eye, and when I saw Diana Wynne Jones on the cover I got even more interested (name recognition). So I took it out. I'm quite glad I did. There's a lot of funny stuff in those 15 short stories + 1 novella. Characters, worlds, styles, situations, mostly different, but all thoroughly entertaining. ^_^ Just like a graphic novel, I read through them all pretty quickly, but I also took my time a little, taking breaks between stories.

The theme for each story was pretty much what the title says: Unexpected Magic. Which meant that in each story, the characters either try to use magic but it doesn't turn out the way they thought it would, or they're normal people who fall victim to strange occurrences. I believe my favorite stories were the couple that were told from a cat's point of view. I loved the way the cats thought and reacted to situations.

The next time I went to the library, I found 2 books entirely by chance. I don't really remember why I took them down from the shelf in the first place. I'd certainly never heard of a guy named Bruce Coville before. But they looked like thin quick reads, and the titles kind of caught my eye. Oddly Enough, and Odder Than Ever. Obviously, these books were part of a series. Then I saw that they were both short story books, just like the one Diana Wynne Jones wrote! Once I looked at the inside flaps of both books, I was sold.

As with Unexpected Magic, the title said it all. These stories, in one way or another, were odd. The characters were odd, or the whole situation was odd. The hero either meets, or becomes, something entirely strange. Mythical creatures like ghosts, vampires, werewolves, monsters, brownies, elves, and angels are covered in this book.

When the stories were supposed funny, I really enjoyed their humor. And when the stories were told in all seriousness, I appreciated the worlds and ideas that Bruce had come up with. Definitely a wonderful book to read. Which is why I was very happy that I had the foresight to take out the next book.

This was kind of more of the same, but the stories were all totally different. I loved them all a lot. ^_^ There's nothing more for me to say.

I didn't see this in the library, but I heard that it was another book in the Odd Story Collection series. I am definitely going to look for it next time I'm there, just because I loved the first 2 books, and because I am now crazy about short stories. ^_^

Really, you've got to read these books. They are all utterly amazing. Those short stories I read gave me lots of ideas, perhaps even inspired me, as a writer. They made me think about how you don't have to tell a story that spans 200 or 300 pages long. The story can be simple and to the point, and it can affect the reader just as much, in a fraction of the reading time.

Morpheus Road: The Light, by D. J. MacHale

Reading this kind of book really just makes me go... "WHOA!"

I love D. J. MacHale's writing style. I have compared his best-selling book series of 10, Pendragon, to the Harry Potter series a few times before, I believe. But after reading this new book, published just this year, I'm telling you this dude, without a single doubt, is in the stratosphere! He's in the leagues of J. K. Rowling and James Dashner here. I'm now certain that no matter what he writes, even if it's the farthest thing from Pendragon, (to tell the truth, this isn't that far from it 0,o) I will absolutely enjoy it.

I'm kicking myself for ever judging this book by it's cover. When I heard that MacHale would write a new horror series, I already thought "Oh, that's not for me," because as a rule, I don't pick up horror novels. I mean, maybe the books I read have some sort of horrors in them, but I never consciously think "I'm reading horror." Then when I started seeing this book in the store... well, look at it! Looked like a total creep fest to me. No way would I read this.

There where 2 things that gave me the confidence and curiosity to give this book a try. The first thing was Graham's review. He hasn't read as much Pendragon as I have (only the 1st book, in fact 0,o), but he liked MacHale's style as much as I did and he tested the waters for me. He gave it really positive marks and gave me the impression that I'd actually enjoy it. The second thing was the last time I was in the bookstore (this was after I read Graham's review). I saw the book on a shelf and I decided to take a small peek in it, see if I liked the beginning. I read the foreword by D. J. MacHale, which was as great as his Pendragon forewords. ^_^ Then I got to the prologue...

Which really hooked me in! You know why? Because this story actually seems to takes place in the same universe of Pendragon! The main character lives in Stony Brook! He eats fast food at the Garden Poultry! There's even a mention of Mark Dimond! Familiar territory, baby! ^_^ Now I've gotta read this thing. When I got home I reserved the book online, and the next time we go to the library, it's in my hands. Now I'm done with it. (Obviously, otherwise I wouldn't be writing a review for it.)

Where to begin? Well, there's these 2 guys, Marshal and Cooper, who share a similar relationship to Mark and Bobby. One is shy, responsible and likes graphic novels, the other is more popular and outgoing and doesn't care what others think of him. Without giving too much away (you can see more details from Graham's review), Cooper (the wild one) gets in trouble and goes missing, and Marshal (the quiet one) has to save him, with the help of Coop's older sister, Sydney. What's the catch? Well, like I said, it's a total creep fest... but I actually liked that. ^_^

Marsh is an artist and drew this character he calls the Gravedigger (the psycho on the cover). One night, the Gravedigger comes to life and starts haunting Marsh, giving him the creepiest supernatural visions. Scared out of his life, he gets Sydney (who at first is pretty mean to him) to take him up to the lake where Coop is spending the summer. But that's just the beginning. What follows is a chilling, suspenseful mystery and crazy paranormal events that would drive lesser folks over the deep end. But not our heroes, Marsh and Sydney. They may be scared, but they're on a mission: save Cooper.

The whole thing was written like an awesome movie! I could honestly see the action unfolding in my mind, as if a camera was showing everything. I guess it's no surprise, since MacHale also writes for TV. My favorite scenes are when Marsh is being haunted for the first time, in his house, at night, all by himself (Dad is conveniently out of the picture on a business trip) and this bloody wave scene right out of the movie The Shining. Anyone know about that scene? Totally creepy, but a priceless scene nonetheless. A few chapters before it finishes, the mystery is solved and it seems like it's going to be a sad and bittersweet ending (there's a very touching funeral), but then the action comes back full-force. There is plainly a reason why this is going to be a trilogy.

If, like me, you fell in love with Pendragon, I see no reason why you shouldn't feel comfortable curling up with this book. It's just the kind of story that sucks you in on a wild ride you'll never forget!

Shades of Grey, by Jasper Fforde

I've got to say, even though I haven't read a Jasper Fforde book in at least 2 years, I was able to pick up on his style once again, and I very well believe that this was the best novel I've read this month! Most of it is really world-building, but it was really incredible. Amazing how this all came from one person's imagination.

The story takes place in a post-apocalyptic world of some sort, probably over 500 years ahead of today, or Something That Happened. In this world, all the people have, for some reason, evolved so that they're mostly colorblind except for one color. So whatever a person could see reflected their social rank. It's all a rather complicated government with rules for everything, and all centered around color. What job you can do, who you can marry, acceptable behavior. Everything runs on merits and feedback. If you get too many demerits and negative feedback, it means you're up for Reboot, which will set you apparently right. At twenty years of age, a citizen takes a test to see what color he can see, and his life is mapped out after that. Besides the people who can see color, there are a lot of people who don't, so they're referred to as Greys, who are lowest in the social hierarchy.

It's really hard to explain what happens in the story, but there were lots of things I liked about it. An entertaining aspect of this world is that everyone has a color for a last name, representing what color they can see, like our hero Eddie Russet. He's the son of a Swatchman, who is like a doctor in that world, only instead of giving people medicine, he shows them a certain shade of color and they get better. The places are also named after colors, it seems, such as East Carmine, Vermillion, and High Saffron. Another important thing is that night is a total mystery to people. Since everyone can see very little color, at night no one can see anything. Also, certain trees evolved so that they've become carnivorous. 0,o

By making the acquaintance of a feisty Grey named Jane, Eddie starts to question the ways of his world and wonder what exactly happened that led to the Something That happened. He does his best to solve the uncountable mysteries that start to pile up on him, but being curious makes one stand out, so he needs to be really careful about the sort of questions he asks people. Like I said, most of the book is dedicated to building up this world, but somewhere in the second half the story picked up, and then I couldn't turn the pages fast enough! Trust me, the ending is completely explosive, blows your mind. ^_^

The great thing is that at the end of the book it promises that a sequel and a sequel after that will be written very soon, so that means Jasper Fforde means this to be a trilogy. I absolutely can't wait until the next book comes out.

In the meantime, I'd like to add that I've started reading one of Fforde's other books, The Big Over Easy, to my brother Adam. So far he really likes it, which is quite awesome because the first time I tried reading it to him, he thought it was boring. But now that he's older, he can appreciate the humor and style of it. It's quite fun to read aloud. It'll probably take a long time, but I'll let you know if/when we finish this book.

The Time Quake

Gee, this book was kind of a disappointment. ~,~ A little background. This book, the Time Quake, is the last installment in the Gideon Trilogy. I read the first couple books, "The Time Travelers" (previously titled Gideon the Cutpurse) and "The Time Thief", in the middle of 2008, so it was about a year and a half since I was able to complete the series, because this book was published just this year.

I had thought I really liked the series. It was all about time travel, and these two kids get stuck in the 18th century thanks the girl's father's anti-gravity machine. Whatever. In the second book, they accidentally leave the boy behind, so the girl and the boy's dad have to go back for him, but they end up in the wrong time, like 30 years after their episode in the past, so the boy is now all grown up and gotten used to the past. Then I think the bad guy got hold of the time machine and time started getting wacky. Also the girl started getting these weird powers that allow her to "fast-forward" through time, so everything stands frozen while she's still moving. This doesn't stop until she touches the boy again.

Now this book here was, frankly, a disappointment for me. With so much time passed between readings, I'd forgotten a lot of what had happened, and where the book picked up didn't exactly help things much. And when the book was wrapped up... it didn't feel right somehow. It was like the author simply decided to quickly tie things up, when I think if you had to do the thing right, there should have been some more chapters added to explain everything. For example, the bad guy's plot was to go back in time to when George Washington was crossing the Delaware and kill him, so that America would never get it's independence. Kind of stupid if you ask me, because he had actually gotten to like New York. He just wanted to keep America under British Rule. Also the girl kind of dies, because of how fast she fast-forwards or something, and there's nothing anyone can do about it. Luckily she took the bad guy with her, so that got rid of him.

The weirdest thing was that in the end, the boy was able to go back to the time he and the girl were about to go to the anti-gravity machine, and stop all the time events from happening. I was thinking, "How the heck did he get there?!" I mean, the time machine they had was broken, and besides, the future was ruined already, because the bad guy had actually succeeded in killing George Washington! Everything must have turned out different, so how did their families still exist? What, did they have time to fix up the Washington mess? Nothing was said about it. It's just a happily ever after ending, but it didn't feel justified.

It's a very sad day on Bettina's Book Club when I have to review a book I didn't like very much. ~,~ If you happened to like the Gideon Trilogy, I suggest you not read this book and pretend that Peter and Kate get back to their own time and world in a believable and satisfying manner. If you've never heard of this series, then I suggest you not bother picking it up. The last one is very disappointing.

Catching Fire, by Suzanne Collins

What can I say? Catching Fire, the sequel to The Hunger Games, was just as good as, perhaps even better than, it's predecessor. You just fly through the pages, because it has the same high level of urgency and danger. It's interesting, because I reviewed the Hunger Games way back in February, so it was a little bit hard to remember all the characters, but I think I got by alright.

By now, everyone should know that Katniss survived the Hunger Games, because she's the main character, and there wouldn't be a sequel if she'd lost. However, she also managed to pull Peeta out alive, even though there's only supposed to be one winner in a Hunger Games. Hey, love conquers all, right? So now the two of them are in the lap of luxury. They and their families don't have to starve anymore, because they enough food and money to last the rest of their lives.

That doesn't mean that Katniss and Peeta's troubles are over. Far from it. They have to go on this Victory Tour around the country to celebrate their winning the Games (and rub it in the other Districts' faces, I think), and still pretend they're in love. Well, Peeta is for real, but Katniss is on the fence. At the same time, there's some kind of rebellion stirring up among the 12 Districts. If Katniss and Peeta can defy the Capitol by coming out both winners when it's always been one, couldn't anything happen? Well, I couldn't tell much about the rebellion, maybe they'll discuss it more in book 3. ^_^ Yes, there's got to be a book 3, because the ending to this one was so open-ended! I'll tell you why.

Now the Hunger Games isn't just going to disappear from Katniss and Peeta's lives, because now they get to be mentors for the following Hunger Games. Remember, this thing happens every... single... year! No excuses. It's been that way for 75 years. And every 25 years they have a special version of the Hunger Games, called Quarter Quells. This year, the new rules of the Hunger Games is that instead of having fresh blood in the arena, the competitors are the people who have won the Hunger Games before. Now quickly, do the math! District 12 only has 3 victors who are still alive. Katniss, Peeta, and their drunk friend Haymitch, who was their mentor in the previous book. Now out of those 3, who is the only female in the group, and therefore will HAVE to compete in a game she thought she'd never have to do again, especially not in the following year?!!! That's right, Katniss is back. Man, you should read the scene where she finds out she has to do the whole thing again. She almost cracks! ~,~

My favorite part was when they and the other people were in the arena, which was very different from the one in the original book. It was weird, because to me it kind of felt like the Games were much too short. In the story it only takes a couple days, but the chapters covering it took a very short time to read, I felt. I won't tell you much else about the Games, except that Katniss and Peeta make a lot more alliances than they did in their first Hunger Games.

I really, really, really liked this book! Even when it had been ages since I read the last book, Suzanne Collins had made her characters memorable enough for me to remember them fondly when they were introduced in this installment. And then she manages to stuff a few more cool characters into my head, but I think I'll be able to remember them all when I read the next sequel. You know, I'm noticing more and more how cool it is when an author decides to write in the present tense. Like, not as if it's happened already, but as if the story is happening right now, as you turn the pages. It really gets you into the thick of things, especially when the story is in first person, so it's like you are the person the book's about. It's just funny that I've only started noticing it now. =P

Read this novel! It's a keeper!

The Lost Symbol, by Dan Brown

Aw, darn it! I finished this book more than a week ago, and I made a draft for it in advance, but I completely forgot to write what I thought about it! How weird. That doesn't usually happen...

Well, I'm really sorry about this. I'm not sure what to say about The Lost Symbol now. It's been so long since I finished reading it, though I did really, really like it. So since I'm feeling lazy this particular post, I'll just link to the review my friend Graham Chops did on the same book. I pretty much agree with his opinion, especially the part about loving to hate this book's villain, and how this will probably make the best movie out of Dan Brown's 3 "Robert Langdon" novels. (Incidentally, Wikipedia says they'll make a film version in 2012.) Plus I agree that Mr. Brown used way too many proper nouns, and not enough pronouns. =P

Again, sorry that this post had to be so abnormally short. But I've got another book review to write today.

The Guinea Pig Diaries, by A. J. Jacobs

Okay, this book was really funny, a great read. I first heard about this book while watching The Colbert Report, where Stephen actually interviewed the author. I've read this guy's other two books in the past (not this year or on this blog, but in the past), so I knew I would enjoy this new book.

Basically, it's a book full of short, but true stories about this guy who likes doing weird experiments with his life. His previous books were about experiments he'd devoted about an entire year to, such as The Know-It-All, where he attempts (and actually succeeds!) to read the entire Encyclopedia Brittanica, from A to Z, and The Year of Living Biblically, in which he spends an entire year doing his best to follow every single rule that is outlined in the bible (Old and New Testament!). Anyway, this book that I've just finished is about much smaller, but equally life-changing experiments that he spends, on average, about a month on.

All of A. J.'s stories are very interesting and, to me, really funny! From being radically honest all the time, to outsourcing his life to India. From trying to be the most rational person ever, to doing every little thing his wife tells him to do. From following George Washington's 110 rules of "Civility and Decent Behavior in Company and Conversation" to the T, to going on a dating service website and pretending to be the opposite sex! There are a couple other experiments he does, but I'll leave you to find out what they are, so you can read this book too.

I thought these stories were quite eye-opening and great fun to read about. The author has a humorous and smart writing style, and it's amazing when you think that these are actually true stories! I mean, this guy actually performed these experiments, and they changed his life, for real! I like those kind of weird but true stories. Especially if they're written particularly well. Pick it up and tell me what you think of it!

I really appreciate any comments you want to post on my reviews. Before my last post, the one about Angels and Demons, I didn't get any comments at all for several posts in a row! I'm really fond of comments, as I'm sure all book bloggers are. So if you feel to, please go back a little, read my other reviews, and if you are so moved, drop me a comment. I'll really appreciate it. ^_^

Angels and Demons, by Dan Brown

Okay, this is the first time in a while that I actually post a review of a book I actually finished reading today! A great improvement, as of late. ^,~

Angels and Demons was an awesome, totally breath-taking read for me! (btw, this isn't the exact cover of the copy was reading, but it looked really cool to me. Fascinating anyway, isn't it? If you tilt your head to read it upside down, the title will look exactly the same way it does right-side up! This kind of trick, known as an "ambigram," actually features a lot in the actual story. I'd never heard of ambigrams before now, so I thought this was really cool!)

This book was written by Dan Brown, author of The Da Vinci Code, which I remembered reading and enjoying very much 1 or 2 years ago. (The book is a ton better than seeing the movie, I promise!) Dan actually published this book and meant for the story's events to come before The Da Vinci Code, so I thought it was a little strange that there's a movie of Angels and Demons now instead of earlier. Oh well, I guess Da Vinci Code seemed the better story, and maybe was a bit more controversial.

Okay, so back to this book: I'll admit that the beginning was a tad slow and needed some momentum to get the ball rolling, but besides that, the entire book was honestly a wild rollercoaster ride of mind-boggling mysteries, adrenaline-pumping action, heart-stopping suspense, cliff-hangers you can't resist at the end of every chapter, and characters that keep you guessing their true intentions right to the finish!!!

Even though this was published almost a decade ago, I feel some hesitation in revealing the story, in case there are some people who haven't read the book yet (it's meant for adult readers, after all). But basically the conflict is between religion and science. There's this whole dirty plot where there's an antimatter time-bomb set to blow up the Vatican City (in Rome) in just hours, so it's amazing that the entire huge book takes place in just one night. Meanwhile 4 cardinals are going to get murdered by an old brotherhood called the Illuminati, and about the only person who can save them is a symbologist professor from Harvard named Robert Langdon, who has to interpret the clues and signs so he can find out where they're hidden. Of course, there are people who help him, but it's hard to tell who is on the side of good or bad.

Just trust me, it's a very riveting read. Only I wouldn't advise seeing the movie first. Not that I have, but I've read the description of the plot on Wikipedia, and it seems too different. They even got most of the names all wrong! I might still watch it, but I don't think I'll like it. But in my opinion, the book is the best!

Link to the trailer.

The Maze Runner, by James (who else) Dashner ^,~

Well, I know how many people were expecting and anticipating this post (including the author himself! ^_^), so I'll just get it over with already. I read 5 chapters the evening I got the book (after I'd finished blogging about how excited I was and everything), and used practically all of yesterday just to finish the much awaited ARC. That meant a lot of reading for me. It was almost too much! But I didn't care. Every minute curled up with that book, turning page by page, moving ahead chapter by chapter, until the very end... I think it was all very much worth it. ^,^

But good-golly-gosh, how on earth can I describe such an awesome book without spoiling it for everyone else?! When I remember that I'm among the only people who knows what happens before the rabid general public even gets a single copy... I find myself smiling extra widely. But then again, this makes it so much harder to say how much I liked this book, because most of you would have little idea what I'm talking about. I'll do my best, though, and I promise I'll do my best not to reveal anything you'd rather wait to read to find out...

From the start, I should say that this book is recommended highly to the young male population. I'm not saying that girls wouldn't enjoy this (because I surely did), but for a long time, almost the entire book actually, all the characters in the story are teenage boys. Except for one girl, who seemed pretty tomboyish. And except for the very end, which I promised I wouldn't spoil. ^,~ Another thing I'd like to say (and I'm congratulating Dashner on his immense creativity here) is that I thought it was really funny how these boys, living in the middle of a giant maze, made up such interesting slang for themselves. Words they could curse with, so that the young boys who read this book won't use real curse words and make parents ban Dashner's book from stores. =P

I really liked the story, because it had such a unique and original feel to it. Like, every once in a while I'd be reminded of certain elements from other books I've read, but it felt very new and cool. I remember thinking, when I was in the middle, "Why does James need to make this a trilogy? I mean, these kids are in a maze, right? If this story is any good, they'll be out of the maze by the end of the book, and then what?" Well, I was half right, half wrong. Around the last several chapters, I realized that as each chapter got me closer to the end, I could only guess at what would happen next, and I knew that Dashner would not fail in leaving me begging for the next volume in the series.

I'm only sorry that I can't bring myself to reveal any more details. In the meantime, I hope this keeps people occupied for another couple months. ^,~ James, what you've written here is amazing! I'm sure that you've penned an instant classic. I'm just tickled that this book gets to remain on my shelf even after I've finished reading it, since I'm usually content with borrowing from my library. You'll be thrilled to know that my younger brother has shown interest in Maze as well. I guess my excitement was pretty contagious. =P I'll let everyone know his reaction when he finishes it (although he usually takes a lot longer to read books than it takes me, so don't hold your breath).

Flight 3 and Flight Explorer, plus Pendragon: Before the War #3, by Walter Sorrels

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. I kind of forgot to say that I finished Flight #3 a couple days ago. I finished it so fast that I didn't think it meant anything. But it was really a good graphic collection. That fox cartoon on the other Flight post? That continued in this. That little guy is my favorite character! Now I'm all caught up with the Flight series and just have to wait until Flight 5 is in my sights.

In the meantime, yesterday I went to Borders (one of my favorite place in the world!) and read Flight Explorer. This is related to the Flight series, in that it's a collection of comics made by some of the same artists that contributed to the regular Flight books. I think it' supposed to get the kids into comics, because there's a lot fewer stories in it. Still, I liked it. This whole graphic series is definitely something to get into, I can tell you.

I was a little sad in Borders, because I'd been hoping to find James Dashner's Dark Infinity and read as much as I could of it straight out of the store. Only I didn't find it. You know, I don't even think they carry any of his Jimmy Fincher books? I'm really curious about this early series of James's, but they weren't there. Oh well.

I whiled away the rest of my bookstore stay reading almost the rest of the third Pendragon: Before the War book. I think if I'd been given enough time, like another half hour or something, I might've had a chance of finishing it, but we had to go. I read the first two stories, about Loor (Zadaa) and Siry Remudi (Ibara), and was well into Patrick Mac's story. I believe I'm on page 159. I don't want to lose my place. I'm not sure whether I've gotten a good impression of Third Earth thus far. It sounds more like a utopian Veelox so far. I really liked the Third Earth that MacHale described in Pendragon #3, the Never War. (You know, come to think of it, I wonder why it was called Never War in the first place?) Anyway, I quite enjoyed the book, but I don't think it's my favorite out of the prequel Pendragons. It's a very good thing #10 is just around the corner. I can barely wait for that! Now that book I would buy.

Pendragon: Before the War #2, by Walter Sorrells

Facts: I read this book in just one day. I think that's awesome because that's 1 day faster than I read the first book in this series. It was a super fun read. What else can you expect from a Pendragon novel? Even if D.J. MacHale didn't write it himself? Like the book before, it was just published this year. I consider myself very fortunate to have read this so recently after it came out. The only thing different about this book is that it's 230 pages-- 10 shorter than the first one. Maybe that's because this didn't have any sneak preview for book #3 at the end. Too bad. ~,~

The people you see on the front here are three more Travellers from the world of Halla. The first story in the sequence was Aja Killian's, the girl in the center with blond hair and tinted glasses. She looks so cool. Exactly as I had imagined her in the other Pendragon novels. The second story was about Elli Winter, the woman on the right. Then there was the one about Alder, the awkward looking guy on the left. I don't know about his looks. I already got a picture of him from reading the Pendragon graphic novel, and he doesn't look much like that here. But his story was still great.

My opinions: This Pendragon prequel makes me even more anxious to get back into the real story, the one where Bobby and all his friends left off. I have to wait a couple more agonizing months! It's unbearable!!! (Well, I guess I'm being a bit dramatic. It's only unbearable when Pendragon is on my mind, but when I'm not thinking about it, you can say it's bearable.) I hope that since reading my first review of the Pendragon series, some people have picked it up. That means you too, my curly friend between letters P and R. (She hasn't read any Pendragon. Can you believe it?) (Hehe, sorry about that, Curly.)

What was really cool about this collection of stories is that Press and Saint Dane have much more of a role in all of these travellers' adventures. Bobby's uncle appears directly in every tale, and Saint Dane is in disguise in two of them. You can tell quite clearly who he really is in both, though. Just look for the guy with pale, cold eyes in each story. Even if the main characters can't tell it's him, I sure could.

Aja's world is amazing. The one where people can go into a virtual reality? I'd love to be there. And Aja is so super smart. I like her. She can memorize and calculate mathamatical programs like no one's business. I could've used her to tutor me in SAT math! Press is quite helpful to her in the "game" she gets into and she learns that logic alone doesn't always solve problems. Sometimes you just have to go with your gut feeling...

Elli Winter seems like a nice, polite middle-aged woman. When Press meets up with her, she doesn't exactly feel like she's the Traveller type. But after reading about what she does on Qullian, I think she was wrong. I especially think she didn't make a good choice with letting her daughter Nevva become Traveller instead of her. Us fans know how that turned out in the end...

Alder, the Bedoowan knight, makes quite the transformation in his journey to knighthood. I was pretty amazed at how far he went in such a short time. I'm not sure how to talk about it anymore so I don't reveal anything, but in this story you can really tell which character Saint Dane is. It sure is funny knowing something that Alder plainly doesn't. But he finds out soon enough, when Bobby comes around...

Haha. I ended each segment about the Travellers with an elipse... Thanks for teaching me that word. Before then, all I used to call them was dot-dot-dot. Elipse sounds a lot fancier.

I really feel sorry for all the Travellers in this book. The ones from Book 1 had it a lot better than these guys. I mean, you can tell that the territories of Veelox and Quillian are already doomed, with the direction you know they're going in, and the situation on Denduron sure didn't sound good. But, when I remember that these are only fictional worlds, I feel a lot better. This book (and the author who wrote it) did the job it was meant to do. It entertained me. And made me wish I had the next adventure in my hands right away.

Scat, by Carl Hiaasen

Facts: This book was published in 2009. (the second book I've read that was published this year!) It had 370 pages and I read it in two days. Mostly today, when I needed it the most. (In case you haven't heard by now, I've completed the SAT test!) This is Carl Hiaasen's 3rd book for kids. I wouldn't say they're in a series, but all the books are similar to each other in three ways; they all take place somewhere in Florida, the stories are about brave kids saving a certain endangered species, and each has a one word title. Hoot, Flush, and now Scat. Hoot was made into a movie by Walden Media (I love how good that company is at turning books into great films) and guess what? The filming actually took place in Florida, and Annette and I got to be extras that made it into the movie! If you haven't seen this movie yet, now you have a very good reason to do so. You can see my sister and I quite clearly close to the end, especially Annette. You can see her making funny faces right behind the lady from Legally Blond, whats-her-name (I didn't watch Legally Blond). I wish I could actually show you where we turn up in the movie, so I can prove myself, but I can't find a good clip on YouTube. So you'll have to look for us yourselves. Be aware, though, that this was a couple years ago, and our hair was extra short then. However, you probably won't have trouble spotting me, since I've got a pastel pink shirt.

Okay, enough talk about my extra days. Let's get back to my opinions on Scat.

Scat is really a sort of an environmental mystery. A really nasty teacher goes missing on a field trip to a swamp when a wildfire starts, and people suspect that this delinquent kid, Smoke, actually started the fire. But he really didn't. There's also a couple of oil drillers aiming to get rich with an illegal lot in the swamp that's supposed to belong to the state of Florida, because of the endangered panthers.
I think the book was very well-written. The story seems so real because there aren't any overly fantastical elements in it; it's just like real life. Although it was cute that Carl was able to sneak in a couple of Harry Potter references. That kind of thing brings the story closer to reality, because I guess if readers see that the characters have read H. P., then they'll become that much easier to relate to. I also like how all the books have highly environmentally conscious characters. It's very true that the wild-life of Florida is disappearing and getting buried under hotels, casinos, parking lots, and who knows what else, just so that a few uncaring people can stuff more money in their pockets.

I think this definitely deserves to be turned into a movie, just like Hoot. Hey, promise that you'll see Hoot as soon as you can? I can't really make sure you keep the promise all the way from my computer, but you've just got to see me and my sister in a Hollywood film. Then you can point and say to your friends that you know someone in a movie! Plus, you know I got Robert Wagner's autograph? I got the main boy, Logan Lerman's, too. I believe he's going to play Percy when they make a movie out of the Olympian series.

Okay, so make sure you watch Hoot soon, alright? And it wouldn't hurt to read Carl Hiaasen's works either. They're all great reads. You won't regret picking them up.

Pendragon: Before the War #1, by Carla Jablonski

Facts: I finished this book in 2 days. It was published in 2009, most likely some time in January, because the second book was just published in February. (How exciting! This is the first book from this year that I've read!) It was 240 pages long.
As Pendragon fans should know, this book (and the two that will follow) is broken up into 3 stories about separate Travelers before Bobby Pendragon ever made the scene in their territory. The story about Kasha, the cat-like "klee" on the left, came first, with 8 chapters; the one about Vincent "Gunny" Van Dyke, the guy on the right, came next and was 15 chapters long, plus a prologue; and the last tale, about Vo Spader, the kid in center, was 13 chapters. Also there was a sneak peek for the second book, about the Traveler Alder, but I'm not going to count that. So in total I suppose there were 37 chapters in the book.

My opinion: Well, it's Pendragon, so what can I say? I really liked all the adventures I read. Even the fact that it was not written by D. J. MacHale doesn't take away much pleasure out of reading about the Halla universe. These prequels to the Pendragon series are meant to keep fans at bay while they wait for #10, Soldiers of Halla. I'd like to think this first book did its job. Now I can't wait for the next bundle of adventures.
I think I liked Spader's part the best. Cloral is my favorite territory, with all the water gadgets and funny expressions the locals use, like the words tum-tigger (meaning trouble) or spiff (a word synonymous to cool), and especially the catch-phrase "Hobey-Ho, let's go!" I love that. Spader's a fun character too, though I think the picture of him on the cover makes him look too young.
Kasha's life in Eelong comes in at my second favorite. Klees are awesome. They're powerful jungle cats that have humanoid intelligence, including the powers of speech and scientific thought. Plus they have a sense of humor and fun. It's a dangerous life, though, with dinosaur like tangs lurking around.
Gunny's story is okay, but since he lives in a regular world (although it is a past world) I wouldn't call it as exciting as the others. However, he does solve an interesting mystery with gangsters in it, so that was cool.

Well, I've thoroughly succeeded in not giving a lot away about these stories, haven't I? Now you guys have to read this and see what the excitement is all about. Of course, if you've never heard of the Pendragon series, (where have you been?) I advise you start from the beginning, with The Merchant of Death, before you start reading the prequels. Otherwise you probably won't understand. But please, Pendragon fans, feel free to comment and start a discussion with me. Have you read this book? What do you think about it? Remember, this is a book club, people!

The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins

Title: The Hunger Games

Author: Suzanne Collins

Published: 2008

Pages: 375

Chapters: 27

Pages per Chapter (on average): 13+

Date Started: Feb. 5-----Date Finished: Feb. 7

My Reading Speed:125 pages a day, or 9 chapters a day

The Main Characters: Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark, two teens from District 12 competing in the Hunger Games.

My Brief Synopsis: Another kind of alternate future, except it's clear that there used to be an America. There is now this country called Panem, and it's divided into 13 sections. I don't now whether to call them states or something, but there are 12 Districts, numbered 1 through 12 (quite unoriginal) and the Capitol in the center. Kind of like Emerald City being in the center of Oz. The Capitol controls the districts somehow, and they make the poor Districts compete in these terrible games every year that are all televised and about survival. One boy and one girl from each district, aged between 12 and 18, that makes 24 kids, must battle to the death in the wilderness, with very few supplies, to be the last one standing. Now, the story follows Katniss, a girl who hunts to keep food on the table for her family. Her father's dead. She lives in District 12, the poorest and worst reputed district in the country. District 12 players rarely ever win the Hunger Games. Katniss volunteers for the games instead of her little sister, who was initially chosen.

The Conflicts: The boy from District 12, a boy named Peeta, is secretly in love with Katniss, even though she barely knows him. So there's a little romance. But that's a problem, because only one person can survive the Hunger Games. It's a very serious competition, kind of like those survivor game shows (I never watch them) except you actually have to kill your opponents. I didn't see any real bad guys except for Katniss' opposition.

My General Comments: Well, I really liked it. The story is much more exciting than I've described it, trust me. I don't think I did it justice. It's just hard to describe. I think the story reminded me a lot of the 7th Pendragon book's plotline. You know, The Quillan Games? The Hunger Games? Very deadly contests? If you liked that, I believe you'll enjoy this story.

My Favorite Part: I liked the part a little before the Hunger Game begins, like when Katniss and Peeta enjoy more food than they're used to, and they go in a parade and get interviewed, and Katniss' stylist, a kind man named Cinna, turns her very beautiful with wild costumes, and she scores an 11 out of 10 for her training score because she surprised the judges or something. I also like the part where the game is almost over and Katniss and Peeta make an alliance and try surviving together. I won't give too much away though.

My Favorite Things About the Book: I like how the characters seemed so believable. Like, you can believe that people like them could really exist. Even the funny ones, like this lady named Effie, who's a bit fussy and annoying, and Haymitch, the last living District 12 victor, who is a bit of a drunk at first but then really helps Katniss and Peeta becuase he believes they can survive, they seem very real. One of my favorite characters was definitely Cinna. He's very skilled at being a stylist, and he brought out the best in Katniss' looks.

A Personal Shout Out to Suzanne Collins: I don't when you plan on unveiling the 2nd book, or what's going to happen next (in the end, the Hunger Games are over and it's very open-ended. I won't say who won though), but I think your series is one worth following. Keep up the good work!

Here's the link to the Hunger Games's Wikipedia Article.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hunger_Games

Below is the Suzanne Collins's website:

http://www.suzannecollinsbooks.com/

What is your favorite part? If you haven't read this book, sorry for all the spoilers, but you can comment and say if this book review was helpful. If you have read this book, please give me a comment or email me so we can discuss it. This would be the closest I've ever gotten to a book club, you know.

The Giver, by Lois Lowry

Title: The Giver

Author: Lois Lowry

Published: 1993

Pages: 180

Chapters: 23

Pages per Chapter (on average): 7+

Date Started: Feb. 5 -----Date Finished: Feb. 5

My Reading Speed: 180 pages a day, or 23 chapters a day

The Main Characters: A 12 year old boy named Jonas and an old man known as the Giver.

My Brief Synopsis: Well, in this alternate future, there's a community with loads of rules and everything is very orderly and painless and all the same. There are very rigid traditions, like what happens when children reach certain ages, and the family units. Everything is just too perfect. No one feels anything, they just do their assigned job and live their lives. But there is a special old man, the Reciever, who holds all of humanity's old memories of what life used to be like, before the Sameness. All the good memories and the bad ones. Since he's getting too old, a new Reciever must be chosen to bear the burden of memories, so at the ceremony of Twelves, Jonas is selected to become the next Reciever and get training from the old man. So the man becomes the Giver. The story is all told from Jonas's point of view.

The Conflicts: There aren's any villains, necessarily, but the bad memories Jonas has to bear, like war, hunger, pain and loss, are very difficult. He learns how people who are "Released" from the community are actually killed by getting a special shot from a syringe.

My General Comments: I've actually read this book before, years ago. After reading the Ember series, I thought I would enjoy this, but I find that it's not the same thing. I think the city of Ember, though underground, was a much more fascinating and active place than this dull Community. Also, I have no idea how the Giver is able to pass the memories on to Jonas. It's a bit like magic. It doesn't make much sense. It's sad how no one is able to have real feelings like the Recievers do. They can't even see in color, for some reason. Somehow, they've done away with that. What do they have, grey? No, that's a color too. So how can you imagine something that's colorless?

My Favorite Part: I'm not sure I have a favorite part here. It's an okay book. Fascinating concepts to think about. But you can only understand it when you read about it. It's very hard to convey to someone who doesn't know. It's hard to imagine how a life like that could be real, but it exercises the imagination and makes you think, "Well, okay, so what if it could happen?"

My Reaction to the Book: I suppose overall I got a funny feeling from this story. I'm not sure I liked it. Plus it was too short. I read it much too quickly. But that's funny, because Lowry's other book I've read this year, The Willoughbys, was short and finished quickly too. I liked that better, I think, because it was much better story. It was more satisfying, so I didn't mind that it was short. I believe there are companion books to The Giver, which make it a trilogy. The other 2 are Gathering Blue and The Messanger, but I don't feel any curiosity in pursuing them.

A Personal Shout Out to Lois Lowry: Sorry Lois, but I liked The Willoughbys a loooad better.

Here's the link to the Giver's Wikipedia Article.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Giver

Below is the Lois Lowry's website:

http://www.loislowry.com/

What is your favorite part? If you haven't read this book, sorry for all the spoilers, but you can comment and say if this book review was helpful. If you have read this book, please give me a comment or email me so we can discuss it. This would be the closest I've ever gotten to a book club, you know.