Fail Harder

Fail Harder by the failblog.org community
Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC, 2011
182 pages
Non-fiction; Humor
3/5 stars

Source: Received an e-ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I love to laugh but I don't spend much time online at sites such as failblog.org. So I thought this would be a funny and quick read with new to me pictures. According to other reviews, these pictures have appeared on the site so if you're a long-time reader of the site who doesn't want to spend the money, this probably isn't for you.

As for me, most of the pictures made me crack a smile although a few were a little hard to see on my computer. I feel like this kind of book is better in person with the glossy colorful pictures and the ability to examine it more closely and in detail.  However none of the pictures made me laugh as much as I wanted to and because these are pictures, I could speed through them; it took me maybe 10 minutes because I was too impatient to savor the pictures.

Overall: Not as funny as I expected but a worthy book to buy if you want to support the failblog.

To-Do List: Week of 04SEP11

When I saw about The Vintage Bookworm's new meme, I figured I'd give it a try since I already make my own to-do lists. I'm a bit behind on reviews and I've got a big stack of books to read so that forms the majority of my list.

To-Do List for this week:
1. Write review of Guantanamo Boy, scheduled for 15 September
2. Write review of Pregnant Pause, scheduled for 21 September
3. Finish reading and write review for Pirate King.
4. Post Pirate King review on Amazon as it's a Vine book.
5. Clean out saved google reader posts; update goodreads shelves.
6. Finish The Sweetest Thing and review.
7. Read Circle of Fire; review.
8. Read Small Town Sinners; review.
9. Read Variant; review.
10. Read The Queens of All the Earth; review.

I decided to cap it at 10 although of course I hope I can read more especially as I have tomorrow off (Labor Day!) Of course, I kind of cheated and combined a couple of things as I like to have read and review in the same item. This is also roughly in the order I hope to do them but I'm open to switching it up if I feel like it because hey, it's my list!

So what's on your to-do list this week? Leave a comment here or hop over to The Vintage Bookworm and add your post to her linky.

The Rites and Wrongs of Janice Wills

The Rites and Wrongs of Janice Wills by Joanna Pearson
Arthur A. Levine Books, 2011
215 pages
YA; Contemporary
3/5 stars

Source: Library

I'm not entirely sure where I first heard about this but it sounded like a cute, quick, fun YA contemporary so I figured I'd give it a shot. And it was a pretty light, fast read.

The main character is Janice Wills, an aspiring anthropologist who kind of hates her hometown and uses her interest in anthropology to distance herself from experiencing the world. The book partially focuses on her learning that fact about herself and her transformation into a more impartial observer who also enjoys her own life more. Once she began that change, I was more interested because the earlier Janice was rather caustic and bitter while the later Janice was happier and more upbeat. Her observations were funny but the stings behind them made me cringe about how angry she was.

There are the other characters you'd expect: Janice's sole best friend Margo; her guy friend who she once almost-kissed Paul; mean girls; the seemingly unattainable more popular hot guy (who actually had a bit more depth than I expected); and a motley crew of high school kids.  I also really enjoyed Janice's mom, who is an enthusiastic dancer of The Pony step and made me laugh in her few appearances.  I thought some things could have received more treatment: namely race relations in this small North Carolina town, which are briefly mentioned but largely ignored, and the conflict between Janice and Margo that was summarily brushed over. I expected a lot more page time about their friendship.

Otherwise there isn't very much in this book: Janice's observations about high school and her small town and a fluffy plot around her relationship to anthropology. A cute YA contemporary that's an okay read.

Read for YA Debut Author Challenge.

In Trouble

In Trouble by Ellen Levine
Carolrhoda Lab, 2011
198 pages
YA; Historical
4/5 stars

Source: Received a free e-ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Some spoilers although I don't think knowing them will ruin your enjoyment.

This book is kind of tricky to review because it looks at abortion during the 1950s, when abortion was very much illegal in the United States but is been read by a 21st century audience where abortion is still very controversial if technically legal (according to the author's note, 87% of US counties are effectively denied the choice because there is no doctor willing to perform the procedure).  I was hoping for a fairly impartial (meaning not strongly for or against abortion) book. Other reviews I've read thought it was very pro-abortion; I thought it leaned in that direction but was not as blatant as others thought.

What it is in support of though is choice. There are two girls (and I say girl because they're only sixteen) who get "in trouble" during the course of the book and their actions after their pregnancies are revealed. One girl is Elaine, who slept with her boyfriend without a condom because he said that it would show she loved him. After she realizes her pregnancy, he ignores her and her parents take control, telling her what she is going to do, keeping her hidden from the outside world, and denying Elaine any choice in the matter. Elaine is sent to a home, where her baby is given up for adoption, leaving Elaine feeling bereft.

The main character Jamie has a different story. She was raped before the book starts and hopes that nothing will result of it. Even before she knows she's pregnant, she's thinking about the options open to a young girl because she sees Elaine's situation; she knows about the whispers that follow a "fallen" "slut" and she dreams about college and a career. Luckily for Jamie, she has a supportive family who listen to what she wants and help her implement her choice.

But the book is not all about pregnancy and abortion. Jamie is a writer who loves movies and several scenes are presented in a movie script typeface, showing how she has to separate herself from the events (for example, her rape is presented in this format). Although Jamie is not the easiest character to get to know, I fell for her straightforwardness and her worries about growing-up.

While I enjoyed reading all of the above, especially because the chapters were short and the prose was to the point, I was disappointed with the historical setting. Jamie's father is a political prisoner, having been denounced as a Communist; this is explored a little but not enough for my taste. And the book is set in the 1950s but not enough is made of that setting. Except for the teenage characters' innocence and the lack of computers/cell phones, it felt very contemporary.

Overall: Recommended with a caveat about the rape scene for those who may be sensitive to such.

Babe in Boyland

Babe in Boyland by Jody Gehrman
Dial, 2011
292 pages
YA; Contemporary
4/5 stars

Source: Library

I had originally avoided this for some reason, but after seeing Small Review's book review and being struck by the similarities to She's the Man, one of my family's favorite movies, I decided to give it a try, looking for something hilarious.

And this was a really funny book! Natalie writes a relationship advice column that ends up mocked by guys. She decides that she knows nothing about guys and decides to go undercover at the nearby boys' school in order to find out how guys really think.  She is aided by her two loyal best friends Darcy and Chloe.

Although this is a pretty ridiculous premise, it is actually a lot of fun with many very funny moments, like laugh out loud and earn weird looks from the people around me funny.  I read this in only a couple of hours because Natalie's voice was so clear, distinct, and funny. I was immediately able to root for her as she struggled to make sense of boys and relationships.

There were times when she seemed a little young and naive but she is a high school kid with no relationship experience. I think she could be very relateable to younger teens. However she was a bit of a snob; she was always popular so she had scorned the nerdier guys she meets at the new school. Luckily she has a change of heart, which made me happy because I usually like a nerdy awkward guy. 

Overall: A silly, fast-read that should leave you smiling.

The Wolf of Tebron

The Wolf of Tebron by C.S. Lakin
Living Ink Books, 2010
246 pages
YA; Fantasy; Christian
3/5 stars

Source: Received a free e-galley via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I wanted to read this because I was intrigued about the idea of Christian fantasy, somewhat in the vein of CS Lewis.  However I did not find that to be an accurate comparison.  I remember the first time I read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and how I was immediately drawn into the story and identified with the children. And because of how much I love the Narnia books, the memory hung over me and this suffered in comparison.

But with this book, the characters did not do much for me. The main character is Joran, a young blacksmith, who has lost his wife Charris through his anger and despair over his assumption of her infidelity.  He sounded very young despite his marriage and was very childish. A mysterious woman tells him he must set out on a quest to save Charris prompting the events in this book. However Joran also must have some connection to the opening chapter, which prepared me for one story before jarring me into Joran's.  The other main character is the wolf Joran meets, named Ruyah who I thought was going to be like Aslan but who ends up being very different. They were okay but I was annoyed with Joran and I was confused about the wolf's role for too long.

Although the characters didn't really work for me, I thought the writing was absolutely gorgeous. The descriptions of what was happening and the emotions felt-I can't remember the last time I admired prose so much.  Often prose isn't something I care much about but here it made a big difference and helped me keep reading even when it was a bit of a slog. I also enjoyed the discussion questions at the end and Lakin's notes on the works that influenced her.

Consequently this receives 3 out of 5 stars. Although I appreciate the opportunity to review this book, I will not be continuing with the series.

August Stats

Looking Back at August: I learned an important lesson about being more restrained when requesting books from Netgalley as several galleys I wanted to read had expired because it had been almost a year. Alas I also had some difficulties when three books were archived by the publisher even before the release date! I thought they were supposed to remain on there at least until the release date and it has dampened my interest in reading two of them.

And although I read a great deal, I had a lot of disappointing books. My average rating on the books is significantly down this month due to the lackluster books. I am hopeful for a better experience this month.

Looking Forward to September: I'm trying to catch up with my Netgalley books so expect some reviews of those. It also looks like a mostly YA month so that should be a lot of fun.  I would also say that almost all of the books I will review were published this year, which is unique for me in that I usually try to pepper in some older books too.

Monthly Stats:

Books Read This Month: 33
Pages Read This Month: 9720 pages
Average Length of Book:  295 pages
Average Rating of Book: 3.52-a very bad month

Favorite Book: Hands down-Okay For Now by Gary Schmidt-go read this now!

Most Disappointing Book: Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins; I admire Perkins for writing contemporary romances but neither of her books have worked for me yet no matter how much I want them to.

Longest Book: Goliath by Scott Westerfeld at 543 pages

Shortest Book: Ember by Bettie Sharpe-a quickie at 141 pages; I highly recommend this because it's available for free on her website!

Year Stats:

Total Books Read: 305

Total Pages Read: 90,740

Average Length of Book: 298 pages

Average Rating of Book: 3.52

By Genre:
Mystery/Thriller-0
YA/MG-27
Romance-1

Classics-0

Science Fiction/Fantasy-0

Non-Fiction-3
Historical Fiction-1
Short Stories-0
Other-1

Challenge Updates:

Contemps: 1 read, 17 total

Cozy: 0 read, 5 total

British Books: 1 read, 39 total

YA Debut: 8 read, 43 total

Ebook: 11 read, 100 total

Source:

Home Library-14

Own/Borrowed/Won-3

Booksneeze-1

Netgalley-8

Other ebook source-4

Audiobook-0
Amazon Vine-3

Stats for Previous Months: January; February; March; April; May; June; July

Books Read:
273. Life's Biggest Questions by Erik Thoennes
274. I'm Not Her by Janet Gurtler
275. Nightshade by Andrea Cremer
276. Moonglass by Jessi Kirby
277. Compulson by Heidi Ayarbe
278. A Need So Beautiful by Suzanne Young
279. Ember by Bettie Sharpe
280. Fury by Elizabeth Miles
281. Wolfsbane by Andrea Cremer
282. The Rites and Wrongs of Janice Wills
283. Babe in Boyland by Jodi Gehrman
284. A Vision of Lucy by Margaret Brownley
285. Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins
286. Uncommon Criminals by Ally Carter
287. Be the People by Carol M. Swain
288. Fail Harder by failblog
289. Witchlanders by Lena Coakley
290. The Demon's Surrender by Sarah Rees Brennan
291. Forever by Maggie Stiefvater
292. The Wolf of Tebron by CS Lakin
293. In Trouble by Ellen Levine
294. Bitter End by Jennifer Brown
295. Pearl by Jo Knowles
296. This Girl is Different by JJ Johnson
297. Juliet Immortal by Stacey Jay
298. Imaginary Girls by Nova Ren Suma
299. Guantanamo Boy by Anna Perera
300. Cat Vs Human by Yasmine Surovec
301. The Princess Curse by Merrie Haskell
302. Okay For Now by Gary Schmidt
303. Goliath by Scott Westerfeld
304. Prada and Prejudice by Mandy Hubbard
305. Ripple by Mandy Hubbard