I'm still alive but I'm barely reading

Barely reading. What can I say? I guess I'm not quite the avid reader that I was so proud of being. Or I just got a little burned out. Either way, I've hardly been reading at all lately. I realize I didn't post a progress update at the end of May- it was because I didn't really read much in May. I didn't feel like there was much to update. I thought June would be better. So far, it's been worse. I've only read two books- and really we should say only one, because the other one was an audio book that I've been listening to for months and finally finished. But that one book I did read was a good one- 1984 by George Orwell. It was on my must read list AND it's a classic, which I have to read 10 of this year (this makes two). So I do feel a little proud of myself for finishing that, and for the most part, enjoying it.

Hopefully my reading will pick up in the next month or so, because I'm going to the beach. (Twice!) There is something so appealing about the idea of spending a day just reading a good book on the beach. So in anticipation I've been saving two supposedly awesome books for beach reading- Divergent by Veronica Roth and The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson. Hopefully they will live up to my high expectations, and get me back to being a reader again. I'll let you know.

In the meantime, if you are looking for some good beach reading, might I suggest Delirium by Lauren Oliver? You won't regret reading it, I promise!

Progress!

Well guys, I am excited to tell you all that I have officially finished my first nonfiction book. 127 Hours by Aron Ralston. Yes, this is the book about the guy who was hiking alone, got his hand stuck in between two rocks, was stuck there 127 hours, then cut his hand off. It's now a movie starring James Franco, which I really want to see.

I started reading this book way back in February. It took me several months to get through the first half. Not because it was bad. Just because it wasn't quite a page-turner and I was always reading something else at the time. And the first half of the book was a lot of flashbacks to past outdoorsy expeditions, which were described in a technical outdoorsy way, and I just wasn't super interested. However, I finished the last half of the book in three days. It was a page-turner by that point! I knew he got out, and I knew how (from the back of the book), but I still couldn't stop reading. We got to hear about things from his point of view, and what his friends and parents did once they realized he was missing. His thoughts, visions, ideas, and the things he went through while he was stuck were just fascinating, (in a horrifying sort of way). I'm really glad I read this book and I'm really glad I stuck with it through the end.

I've read three other books since my last update. One was great- Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver. If you haven't already, read my previous review about Lauren Oliver's second book, Delirium. I was blown away by Delirium, and not only because it was dystopian but also because of Oliver's beautiful writing. So that's why I decided to give Before I Fall a shot. It's about a snobby, mean, popular teenager who dies and has to live her last day over and over again. Sounds kind of horrible, right? But it really wasn't. I LOVED it. Main character Samantha really grew and changed and learned and loved. And even though the whole story was the same day 7 times.. it didn't feel repetitive. Samantha did different things with her last day every day, and the book was actually impossible to put down. And like Delirium, it was beautifully written. I think I may have just discovered a new favorite author!

The other two books I read weren't as good- If I Stay by Gayle Forman, and the sequel Where She Went. The first book is about a girl named Mia who is in a car accident with her family. Her entire family is killed, and she gets to watch through an out of body experience as her friends and family gather around her unconscious body at the hospital. She realizes that she gets to choose- does she stay here without her family? Or does she leave with her family? (aka die) I really didn't like this book much.. and I don't think it was only because it was morbid, because I loved Before I Fall. It just didn't capture me. The sequel was slightly better, it was told from Mia's boyfriend's perspective after the accident, but I still just didn't really like it. And it didn't feel like a young adult book either. Anyway, those two books just weren't for me.

In other news, I've done really well on my no buying new books in May rule, so far, but I've just heard about a new YA dystopian that I'm dying to read. So we'll see if I can last.. Surely it'd be ok to buy one new book in May, right?

p.s. I forgot about one other book I read. Linger by Maggie Stiefvater, the sequel to Shiver, a paranormal romance that anyone who even remotely liked Twilight will love. (Click here to read my review!) Linger was just as good as Shiver, and I'm absolutely dying to read the third one, which comes out sometime this summer.

Delirium by Lauren Oliver

I am on a constant quest for good, young adult dystopian book. Sometimes I find one, but that just leaves me hungering all the more for another one. Which is what led me to Lauren Oliver's Delirium. Imagine a dystopian world where love is a disease. A deadly, contagious disease that must be cured at all costs. Lena will receive the cure in a few months, on her 18th birthday. She can't wait to be safe from the disease. Until she meets a boy, who turns her world upside down.

I LOVED this book. I might even go so far as to say, best book of the year so far. I don't want to get your expectations up too much, because then you might be disappointed, but really, it was really good. The book was riddled that powerful imagery. The characters were very real and honest. The book focused a lot on Lena's relationship with her best friend, Hana, as well as her budding romance. The book dealt with the importance of all kinds of love, love between friends, love between family. Basically just a really great book. And really, come on. It's a young adult dystopian book- how could I not like it?

So what are you waiting for? After this glowing review I expect you all to go out and buy this book. Okay maybe not really, but if your looking for a good read, you might have just found it!

April Update!

Books Read: 9 / 43 total

Books to go: 68

Best Book of April: 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson

Worst Book of April: There was nothing especially awful in April. I guess I would have to say Switched by Amanda Hocking

0 (0) out of 5 nonfiction

0 (1) out of 10 classics

0 (5) out of 15 New York Times Bestsellers

Genres:7 out of 10

7 (30 total) Young Adult

0 (4) Fantasy

0 (1) Classic

0 (2) Thriller

1 (4) Romance

0 (1) Chick Lit

1 (1) Christian Fiction

April wasn't a very productive month, reading wise or blogging wise. What can I say? I think I just needed a little break. Hopefully May will be a little better, I've already started it off with reading an AMAZING book, which I will review soon! (I hope.) May's theme is going to be books on my shelf month, meaning I can only read books that I already own, or borrow. Maybe my theme should be No Money May. Anyway, it shouldn't be too hard because I have managed to accumulate a massive amount of unread books! So keeping visiting, I will start updating again, I promise!

Book Blahs and Blogger's Block

I've got a case of the book blahs! I haven't really read much lately. I haven't really wanted to read much lately. And I've got a case of blogger's block- I haven't really felt like blogging about anything that I have read.

I think what I need is a breathtaking, exciting, new, fun, fantastic book to get me out of this funk. I need to be excited about reading again, and so excited that I want to blog about it.

Got any book suggestions for me?

Sarah Dessen time!

Alright guys so I've got three different Sarah Dessen books to review. It would be repetitive to review them all separately so I'm just going to write one big post about them right here, right now.

What's a Sarah Dessen book? Well, I like to think of her as the Nicholas Sparks of young adult literature. Her books tend to be about love, relationships, family, friends, teen girls figuring out who they are, that kind of thing. Don't get them confused with surfacey romance novels. These books usual talk about deep feelings and important issues. Here's a little bit more about the three that I read:

Someone Like You - This books focuses on best friends Halley and Scarlett. Scarlett's boyfriend is killed in a motorcycle accident, then she realizes she's pregnant with his baby. Meanwhile, a popular boy is paying attention to shy Halley, which never happens. Can Halley handle a new boyfriend and still be there for Scarlett? I really enjoyed this book, Halley is a strong and likeable protagonist.

This Lullaby- I loved this one! Remy doesn't believe in love. How could she, after watching her mother go through husband after husband? But then Dexter comes along. He's different from all the other guys Remy's dated. Can she overcome her fear and learn to love before it is too late?

Dreamland- I didn't enjoy this one as much, but that wasn't because it's not good. It's really good- it just deals with deeper and heavier stuff. Caitlin is determined not to be like her sister, Cass. And when she meets Rogerson, he seems like the perfect way to step out of her sister's shadow. Soon Caitlin and Rogerson are in love- but what happens when that love becomes dangerous?

Bottom line- I enjoyed all of the books and would recommend each of them. However, my favorite Sarah Dessen book is still The Truth About Forever, and you can read my review of that by clicking here.

One last thing: Despite my love for Sarah Dessen books, there are a few things about them that bother me, and I feel compelled to mention them. First of all, almost all of her high school age characters smoke and drink, and often they do drugs and sleep around a lot too. Sometimes it works because it's part of the issues they are dealing with, or it fits in the story, but sometimes it's just not necessary. Maybe it's realistic, but still I don't feel like I could put any of her books in my classroom library. The second thing that bothers me isn't as easy to put my finger on... But all of her books feel sort of... dated. Or something. Granted some of them were written in the 90's (gosh, it feels weird to consider something written in the 90's old), but they just seem like maybe they take place more in a world that my parents grew up in, rather than the one I grew up in. Not that that is even a bad thing, but it just annoys me a little for some reason.

Despite my minor issues with her books, I would still suggest that if you haven't read a Sarah Dessen book before, you should give one a try. I hope to read more of her books soon, so keep checking back for more reviews!

March Update

Are you ready for this?

Books Read: 10 / 34 total

Books to go: 77

Best Book of March: I can't decide! It might be a three way tie between:

The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima,

Only the Good Spy Young by Ally Carter, and

Across the Universe by Beth Revis

Worst Book of March: The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin

0 (0) out of 5 nonfiction

0 (1) out of 10 classics

2 (5) out of 15 New York Times Bestsellers

Genres: 6 out of 10

5 (23 total) Young Adult

1 (4) Fantasy

0 (1) Classic

1 (2) Thriller

2 (3) Romance

1 (1) Chick Lit

So there it is. 10 books in March. It has been my lowest month so far, but still over my minimum goal of 9 books a month, so I'm pretty happy with it.

However, I did set a goal at the beginning of the month to read more adult books than young adult books. And, as it turns out, I read 5 adult and 5 young adult. So you might be thinking I didn't meet my goal. But actually, as of last night at midnight, I was halfway through my 6th adult book, so technically, I read 5.5 adult books and 5.0 young adult. And, I'm saying that that counts. And, I do make the rules after all. So, all in all, success in March!

Now on to April. I have decided that since I met my March goal AND April is my birthday month, I'm going to read whatever the heck I want. So, most likely you should prepare for a lot of young adult and/or fantasy and/or dystopian and/or romance reviews coming your way!