Review: Endless Summer

Author: Jennifer Echols

Release date: This paperback bind up, US 2010

Genre: Romance, Contemporary YA

Target audience: 12+

Review:

Endless Summer is a contemporary summer romance set by a lake in the USA. It’s a romantic-comedy and was originally published as two separate novels – The Boys Next Door and Endless Summer.

Lori has lived next door to the Vader brothers all her life. She grew up wanting to be one of the boys but this year things are different. This summer she will do anything in her power to make the boys notice she’s a girl. She’s making an effort to give up her tomboy-ways and find her inner femininity. This year she will make Sean fall in love with her. She has a plan and she ropes Sean’s younger brother Adam into helping her. The course of true love never did run smoothly and this novel is no exception. It’s a funny mess that Lori winds up in but she risks heartbreak if she doesn’t work things out.

This is the third book that I’ve read by Jennifer Echols and it is by far the best. This storyline is at times a little melodramatic; however, the overall plot elements are much more plausible than say Forget You. The characterisation is also stronger in Endless Summer as it the quality of the writing. This book felt very polished and like the finished article which I think is lacking in Forget You and Going Too Far. But perhaps what is lacking in this book is the real sizzling chemistry that you find in the books I’ve just mentioned. I think this book is aimed at a slightly younger audience and it works just fine for them.

I loved the way the story all took place around the lake and over a short period of time. The landscape and the people really came to life and I felt that I could see everything in my mind’s eye. I think if you are looking for a sweet summer romance with a touch of comedy, then this is the book for you. It’s easy to read and it’s entertaining. Perfect beach reading.

  

Source: Books from Waterstones

Review: Maggot Moon

Author: Sally Gardner

Release date: September 2012

Genre: Dystopian

Target audience: 12+

UK Publisher: Hot Key Books

ISBN: 9781471400049

Review:

Maggot Moon is a dark almost dystopian Young Adult novel. It’s a story of oppression and the struggle for survival in an unjust society.

I’m not sure what I expected this book to be but it really wasn’t what it is. That’s not to say that what it is isn’t striking, refreshingly different, compelling and imaginative. It is all those things but somehow I got it into my head that this would be a comical tale of a boy not quite fitting in.

Standish Treadwell has never been any good at putting things now on paper. He can’t read too well but he does love words. He loves their sounds even if he finds their shapes elusive. He’s full of imagination and dreams of landing on a new planet. At school he is bullied by the other boys but he’s also picked on by the horrid Mr Gunnell. He’s pretty miserable there until he finds a friend in fearless Hector. They live in the same street. A street that’s almost deserted. People are taken without warning. Standish believes they become maggot meat. But really they are victims of the Motherland. Standish and his grandfather are living on the poverty line. The world of luxury is reserved for the people who live in Zone 1. Out in Zone 7, only the traitorous snitches have enough food to eat. A boy like Standish – who everyone thinks is dumb – holds the peoples’ freedom in his hands.

I found this book so easy to read. The chapters are short and the language is at once accessible and startlingly imaginative. The interesting thing about this book is that the dystopian society is not explicit. The author chooses not to spell everything out. So in fact I “read” it as more of a parallel universe story. This is an England where the Second World War was lost. It was not the Führer that lead the mass extermination of innocent people but a Mother-figure in this book. Well that’s my interpretation I’m sure there are many of equal value.

The characterisation was quirky and authentic. The capacity for humanity to do the most inhuman things is felt so strongly. But so is the capacity for random acts of kindness. The ending was bitter-sweet and left me with a lump in my throat.

So yes, what I got from this book, I never expected to. It was a pleasure to be surprised and though this book explores some very bleak, brutal issues, it is none the less a captivating read. Maggot Moon is a worthy contender for the Carnegie Award.

Source: Review copy from the publisher. Thank you.

Blog tour: The 5th Wave / Rick Yancey's Top 5 Childhood Reads

The 5th Wave is finally here. Are you ready for it? 

They are coming for us...

My Top Five Childhood Reads by Rick Yancey

1. The Hardy Boys series by Frank W. Dixon. This series occupied an entire shelf in my bedroom; I still remember the blue covers and the cheesy artwork. Funny thing is now I can’t remember a single plot, but I do remember anxiously awaiting each instalment.
2. The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien. I remember the day I got this book, thinking, “Why does he have two middle names?” It was my first foray into fantasy, after which I dived into Terry Brooks and the Thomas Covenant books.
3. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle. What can be said? Well, this: brilliant.
4. The Grinch Who Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss. I saw the animated version starring the voice of Bella Lugosi before I read the story. But I loved The Lorax and Green Eggs and Ham. Was never crazy about Cat and the Hat (it made me nervous for some reason). I am convinced now that my love of language, the way words sound and the way juxtaposition creates unforgettable effects, began with Dr. Seuss.
5. Encyclopedia Brown by Donald J. Sobol. A kid detective? And he’s smarter than his own dad? And the author is kind enough to put the solutions in the back of the book for thick-heads like me? Gimme!  

Ah, How The Grinch Stole Christmas is still popular in my school library. In fact all the Dr. Seuss books are still much loved by my pupils. It’s funny I find it hard to remember my favourite books as a child – I loved The Twelve Dancing Princesses – dancing all night, yes please! But I also loved The Faraway Tree stories by Enid Blyton. (Another author who is still read by my pupils today.)


Tell us some of your favourite childhood reads in the comments. And don’t forget to enter the competition. 

Follow this link or use the sound cloud widget at the top of the sidebar to listen to the audio extract for the answer to this question:

What is Cassie’s name short for?

Send your answer in an email to Puffin. (Details on the banner below.)

Don't forget to read my review of this thrilling read! Follow this LINK

Review: Forget You

Author: Jennifer Echols

Release date: UK Paperback 11^th April 2013

Genre: Contemporary YA Romance

Target audience: 13+

UK Publisher: Simon and Schuster

ISBN: 978147718036

Review:

Forget You is a contemporary teen romance set in Florida. It’s a story of what’s said and what’s left unsaid, what you can remember and what you can’t. It’s also about overcoming family difficulties – parental divorce, mental illness and emotional abuse. But above all it is a love story.

Zoey has enjoyed the summer working at her father’s water park with the rest of the swim team. She got them all jobs except for Doug – who went to juvie and who hates her. She spent the summer listening to Brandon’s sexual exploitation of women. She never thought of him as anything but a friend. Things change the night she comes home to find her mum has attempted suicide. In a state of emotional turmoil, she goes to a beach party and gets it on with Brandon. A week later after another party, she has a car accident at 2.30 in the morning, she rescued from the wreck by Doug. But what happened between leaving the party and the accident is a mystery – she hit her head in the crash and she just can’t get her head around why Doug is acting so differently towards her.

At the very beginning I thought this book was not going to be for me. Zoey had some really unconvincing metaphors to describe her situation and it didn’t have an authenticity to it. But this was mainly in the first chapter, I kept reading and I did really get into the story. I wanted to know exactly what happened on the night of the car accident. I wanted Zoey to realise that actions speak louder than words and that Brandon was not boyfriend material.

However, there were also some flaws to the characterisation. I didn’t really get that Zoey was a control freak who put on a polished exterior. She was trying to put her best foot forward and give a sense that everything was normal in her life. As the reader, Zoey tells us that she spent ages choosing her outfits. But that was kind of where the polished behaviour seemed to end. The characterisation needed more work. Then there is the use of twins in the novel. I’m not really sure why one character with a more rounded, deeper personality would not have sufficed.

I was also completely confused by the reason given for Doug going to juvie. It just didn’t seem logical to me that this is something courts would have given someone a custodial sentence for (however short). Literacy licence perhaps.

So yes, this is book felt slightly hurried and not quite tied together enough. But, I did really enjoy it. I couldn’t wait to finish it. I was hooked in to the relationship between Zoey and Doug. That’s what made the book come to life. I was so into it that I went out and bought Endless Summer. A recommendation from Jenny @ Wondrous Reads who has read many books by Jennifer Echols and assures me is her best. I’ve already read Going Too Far and I really enjoyed that – another book where the lead characters have great chemistry.

Forget You is perfect for a beach read. You’ll race through it. If you love a good hopelessly romantic story, then give this book a go.

Wondering if you might prefer Going Too Far? Then you can read my review of that book at THIS LINK.

It’s now out in the UK too in both Paperback and eBook formats.

Blog Tour: The 5th Wave is coming

This is the coolest blog tour ever! It kicks off tomorrow on SugarScape. 

The 5th Wave is such a great book. You have to read it. I want to win a signed copy myself. If you haven't read my review, you must be crazy. Go HERE!

You should also visit the official The 5th Wave website:

 www.the5thwaveiscoming.com

Twitter and Facebook Links you should follow:

Rick Yancey: @RickYancey

Penguin Teen U.S: www.facebook.com/penguinteenbooks  @PenguinTeen

Penguin UK: www.facebook.com/PenguinUKBooks; @PenguinUKBooks; @PuffinBooks; @Spinebreakers + www.spinebreakers.co.uk

Penguin Teen Australia: www.facebook.com/PenguinTeenAustralia  @PenguinTeenAus