Skinny Dipping Into Books
I like the rain. I want to have a spring bookworming rain party full out with wellies—but not those Hunter Boots; absolutely not—, with yummy airy things like puffed pastries, meringues, mini fluffy cheese cakes, mousse dessert, macaroon, biscuits, crepe, and Earl Grey tea, definitely Earl Grey tea. and Tillandsia. We'd have lots of "air plants". Lots! And We'd read, but not anything structured. We'd bring books, trade books, read out-loud, pass books around between sentences and paragraphs. We'd leave with books we hadn't discovered.
I like books like I like my Jazz; euphoric, dangerous, occasionally a bit manic, sorrowful, bleak, raging, mood-incongruent, mournful, unforgivingly ragged, symbolic in a quiet way, warm apple pie for the soul. Give me a Plath style. Yōko Ogawa, M. Roach,
Criteria: Not rated on likability of characters. Not objective. I like Moxie Soda; chances are you don't.
time spent in that before bed reading slot:
5-until blurry eye 4-Later than I intended, but I still kept to my extended, extended reading time 3-I really should have been to bed an hour ago 2-customary 30 minutes. 1-book. side table. eyes closed.
How are common themes handled?
5-With an aesthetic that repurposes everyday themes into something fresh. Think of Hole Celebrity Skin covered by Cat Power 4-there is a comfortable air of familiarly.
3-Deja Vu 2. No deviation from its mates 1. Devastatingly trite, redundant, and stale.
Where would you keep it post-reading?
5-Next to my bed. 4-it's the center piece of my favorite bookshelf 3. On my other favorite bookshelf, but it's a bit dusty over their 2-Great cheap bookends 1-It never made it out of the box marked 'moving'.
Emotional response-
5- Where is my teddy bear? Emotional-hangover 4- If I wasn't so emotionally stunted I'd cry.
3. Did James Cameron co-wrote this? Artfully contrived.
2- calculative emotional manipulation. This was literally written by James Cameron.1- I…feel…..nothing.
Mechanics (plot structure, voice, presentation, word choice, sentence structure, characters, writing style, pacing, and consistency):
5-Chanel 4-Prada 3-J-Crew 2-Gap 1-Old Navy
If this is the best of YA im out....
net galley
I love a good tease, and Buzz Books never ceases to offer the most amazing teases of the season. I haven't, until now, ventured into the YA version of any pre-released review publication. YA has suffered under the infectious clutches of Hunger Games, and its numerous cousins that can't stop producing babies. Unfortunately, from the bulk of the excerpts, maybe they should keep having babies.
The book offers up the same consistent format. We have a summary, which i followed by a few chapters of the book. Its reliability is one of its essential charms, and I really can't go into a reading season without sampling the buzzed about books. Very few of these books even sparked an interest, and even when I attempted to view them through the eyes of someone younger, I still failed to see the appeal.
Ben Tripp's The Accidental Highwayman doesn't only have a title that makes me all anxious and knotted inside, but it sparks with individuality. It has a rather clean and crisp writing style, and the cover is just fabulous. It is simple, but keenly aware of its simplicity, and intentionally shy. I enjoyed this over the rest of the bunch that just seemed simple, shrunken down versions of novels, from the minds of writers very young in their careers.
Meg Wolitzer, Belzhar is another one that is worth checking out. Compared to its counterparts, this novel appear to be written in a more expansive, less constrictive style. It is, as the category suggests, intended for the younger side of YA, but from what I read it could easily be accessible and enjoyed by an older population; probably not above early teenagers.
Amy Zhang's Falling into Place is going to get some buzz. The summary throws out names like Jay Asher and Lauren Oliver and with that type of heavy backing the book will get attention even if it isn't truly earned. There is something very intentionally neat about the style of writing, and it is quite inviting. The very brief introduction doesn't seem to push the whole 'life lesson' agenda that is cranked out in the YA genre, especially when dealing with darker areas of life like death. This book in particular has a meatiness about it that will find its way in that gray stretch of land where both teenagers and adults will enjoy it.
minus one star because it was just so boring…
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