Teaser Tuesdays (3): The Boy Recession by Flynn Meaney

My Teaser Tuesdays for this week comes from The Boy Recession by Flynn Meaney:

"They have to reexamine their priorities."

"You mean lower their standards?"

-page 37

Goodreads - Amazon

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Teaser Tuesdays is hosted over at Should Be Reading.

Moving in Day!

I've been lagging in my posts recently, I know, but I have a good reason: college! I move in on Thursday, August 30th, and have been packing and planning and getting all loose ends taken care of before I leave. Posting will resume as soon as things even out a bit, so thanks for your patience!

Camp NaNoWriMo Week Four (8/18 - 8/25)

30,351

What it should be: 38,709 (as of midnight, 8/25)

Favorite lines:

I’m halfway through a waffle cone of cherry ice cream when my phone rings. My heart nearly jumped out of my chest, it had to have been my parents, or Penelope’s parents, wondering why the heck we weren’t in school. I check the phone’s screen cautiously, exhaling when I see Fran’s number. I answer.
“Hey, Fran. I can’t talk a lot, I’m in school.”
“Oh, quit it with the bullshit, deary, I saw you and your little friend at that pep rally in the center of town earlier,” Fran says from the other end. I blush, thankful that she can’t see me now.

Biggest stressor: I'm worried more about finishing my packing for school, getting all (or at least most) of my required reading done, and finishing all of my pleasure reading before I have to return all of those books at the library. That, along with going and buying the things that I'll need, making lists for more things I'll need, and communicating with my roommate has kept me really busy. My drive to write has been pretty low.

How I feel about this week: Kind of crummy, but I'm still pressing on. I haven't given up yet, and are kicking it into overdrive to finish this thing before I leave next Thursday.

Want to join me for Camp NaNoWriMo? Sign up here!

Feature and Follow Friday (10)

Feature and Follow Friday is hosted over at Parajunkee and Allison Can Read. This week's question:

Q: Worst cover? What is the worst cover of a book that you've read and loved?

I... do not know who made this decision. The hardcover copy of Leviathan has such a beautiful cover but they removed it for the paperback so that the first could match the models on the second and third books. If you ask me, the second and third should have been more like the first.

I also have no idea where Alek got a pilot's cap/goggles; I'm pretty sure he's not wearing anything like it in any of the book's illustrations. Go figure.

For reference, here was the original cover:

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Feel free to leave a comment or follow any way you please! (Twitter - Goodreads - RSS)

Review: Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

From Goodreads:

Everybody gets to be supermodel gorgeous. What could be wrong with that? Tally is about to turn sixteen, and she can't wait. Not for her license -- for turning pretty. In Tally's world, your sixteenth birthday brings an operation that turns you from a repellent ugly into a stunningly attractive pretty and catapults you into a high-tech paradise where your only job is to have a really great time. In just a few weeks Tally will be there. 

But Tally's new friend Shay isn't sure she wants to be pretty. She'd rather risk life on the outside. When Shay runs away, Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world and it isn't very pretty. The authorities offer Tally the worst choice she can imagine: find her friend and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all. The choice Tally makes changes her world forever.

I had to sit on this one for a while. It wasn't as cut and dry for me as the Leviathan series (seriously some of the best young adult fiction I've read), but at the same time I wouldn't be opposed to recommending it to a friend.

The premise is intriguing and stands out against what I see as a lot of repeat themes coming out in dystopian lit. today. A lot of authors, especially newer ones, have been forgetting that for a society to be dystopian the people of that society play a part in the oppression. The people considered "uglies" in the book want this operation to become pretty because they've been taught from birth that they'll be inferior if they don't. No on brainwashed them, they did that to themselves.

Tally, the main character, is where this review starts to get a little negative. Basically, how the same author created her, description to follow, and Deryn Sharp (strong, quick-witted, loyal, brave, and one of my favorite characters ever) is beyond my comprehension.

I understand Tally's desire to become a pretty, and her repulsion of anything that implies different. That makes sense; she's spent her entire life in an environment that's taught her just this. What I don't get is how she's able to snap out of it so quickly. In a month's time she breaks away from everything she's ever been taught, everything she's ever believed, and is totally okay with that. That just doesn't happen.

After a certain point Tally's specialness became a bit grating. I mean, she's the first to make it to the smoke on her own? People never give gifts in the smoke, but she gets one after only a month? No one ever learns the truth about the operation, but oop, there she goes learning it after just a few weeks of being away?

And her romance with David was just bizarre, and definitely a bit forced. She loves him after about a month of knowing him, and that isn't even the creepy part. Towards the end of the book a trajedy happens to David and Tally becomes upset not once, but twice, for the time he's spending with his mother. She can't comprehend why she can't be by his side 24/7.

Still, the world-building more than makes up for Tally's odd sense of entitlement. Uglies has a very interesting society, and I'm looking forward for the next book to explore it more. Westerfeld also leaves us with quite a nice ending that segues perfectly into a sequel, one that I plan on picking up soon.

Amazon, Goodreads, Author's Website

Title: Uglies (Uglies series #1)

Author: Scott Westerfeld

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing

Publication Date: February 8th, 2005

Page #: 425

ISBN: 0689865384

Reviewed for Dystopian August (2012) over at Presenting Lenore!

Waiting on Wednesday (20): The Dark Unwinding by Sharon Cameron

From Goodreads:

A spine-tingling tale of steampunk and spies, intrigue and heart-racing romance!
When Katharine Tulman's inheritance is called into question by the rumor that her eccentric uncle is squandering away the family fortune, she is sent to his estate to have him committed to an asylum. But instead of a lunatic, Katharine discovers a genius inventor with his own set of rules, who employs a village of nine hundred people rescued from the workhouses of London.
Katharine is now torn between protecting her own inheritance and preserving the peculiar community she grows to care for deeply. And her choices are made even more complicated by a handsome apprentice, a secretive student, and fears for her own sanity.
As the mysteries of the estate begin to unravel, it is clear that not only is her uncle's world at stake, but also the state of England as Katharine knows it. With twists and turns at every corner, this heart-racing adventure will captivate readers with its intrigue, thrills, and romance.

Publisher: Scholastic Press
Publication Date: September 1st, 2012
Amazon, Goodreads, Author's website

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I'm a big fan of steampunk but don't indulge in it nearly as often as I should. I mean, I love history and sci-fi, so why not mash the two together to get a whole new awesome subgenre? The darker elements of this story, what I garner from the description, have me interested, and who doesn't love an eccentric genius? (I'm a fan of Nikola Tesla myself.)

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Waiting on Wednesday is hosted over at Breaking the Spine.

Camp NaNoWriMo Week Three (8/11 - 8/17)

19, 093

What it should be: 27, 419 (as of midnight, 8/11)

Favorite lines:

“You have reached Francine Weathers at the Red Efts Nature Education Center. For visitors information and hours, please press one. To leave an administrative related message, please press two. If you would like an interview regarding that insufferable book with our lovely park as a setting, please lift yourself by the seat of your pants and kick your own ass out of my town. Thank you for your cooperation.”

Biggest stressor: Remembering to write! I've had such a busy week; my family got back from camping Monday, I had a friend over to watch a movie Tuesday, Wednesday night I saw Spider-Man, Thursday night I practiced driving and spent the day reading, and today I took (and passed!) my driver's test and saw Paranorman with some friends. Writing comes easiest for me at night, but I know that not writing during the day is no excuse, but I'm usually doing other things then (read: procrastinating.)

How I feel about this week: Neutral. I'm not any further or behind than I planned to be. Writing is still coming very easily for me, I just keep putting it off! I hope to spend more time writing tomorrow, the house should be pretty quiet.

Want to join me for Camp NaNoWriMo? Sign up here!

Feature and Follow Friday (9)

Feature and Follow Friday is hosted over at Parajunkee and Allison Can Read. This week's question:

Q: What blogger inspires you? It can be any kind, it doesn't have to be a book blog.

The first that came to mind was Lenore Appelhans from Presenting Lenore, and no, I'm not just being a butt kisser because of that sweet Dystopian August prize pack. She was the first book blog that I started reading about a year and a half ago, and since then I've participated in two Dystopian Augusts, one Dystopian February, and have been keeping up as she worked hard to publish her novel, Level Two. 

Hard work has paid off for the both of us: her novel is coming out in 2013 and my blog just passed 7000 views. Her blog is a pleasure to read, and I love her devotion to the dystopian subgenre. So, go visit her blog and spread some love!

(And if you're reading this, Lenore, just let me know if you ever need a guest post for one of your dystopian months!)

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Feel free to leave a comment or follow any way you please! (Twitter - Goodreads - RSS)

Five Books I'm Bringing To College

Well, it's finally here. Two weeks from today I'll be piling into my family's Honda, all of my stuff shoved into the back, and we're taking a trip to Long Island for me to start my first year at college!

With so many unfamiliar things coming my way, obviously I'm going to bring comfort objects to help make the transitions. And really, what kind of book blogger would I be if those comforts didn't include books? I've been thinking a lot about it, and here are the five books that will be definitely be starting my new life with me:

1. Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld

The absolute, 100% perfect answer when someone inevitably asks me, what do you like to read? A strong, entertaining series about finding yourself (and giant machines and fabricated animals, among other things), paired with gorgeous pencil drawings, there's no way I'm leaving this one behind.

2. Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin

I don't know why I've been putting this one off for as long as I have, but I have. A perfect read for lazy nights back in the dorm room, I'm also hoping to use my copy to help connect with other bookish nerds in my dorm building.

3. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling

One of the books that I'm quite guilty about never getting to, now here's my chance! This book has helped bring so much joy to my friends and I'm hoping that it will be a great reminder of who I still have back home.

4. Artemis Fowl: The Arctic Incident by Eoin Colfer

The Artemis Fowl books have been so important to me for years I can't see how I can head off without bringing at least one! I'm bringing my favorite, book number two.

5. Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett

For whenever I'm feeling down or need a laugh I checked my library system, thinking that they must have a copy, and was shocked to see that they don't! Well, now I'll just have to bring it with the hopes of converting people to one of the greatest books I've read this year!

Waiting on Wednesday (19): The Diviners by Libba Bray

From Goodreads:

Evie O'Neill has been exiled from her boring old hometown and shipped off to the bustling streets of New York City--and she is pos-i-toot-ly thrilled. New York is the city of speakeasies, shopping, and movie palaces! Soon enough, Evie is running with glamorous Ziegfield girls and rakish pickpockets. The only catch is Evie has to live with her Uncle Will, curator of The Museum of American Folklore, Superstition, and the Occult--also known as "The Museum of the Creepy Crawlies."
When a rash of occult-based murders comes to light, Evie and her uncle are right in the thick of the investigation. And through it all, Evie has a secret: a mysterious power that could help catch the killer--if he doesn't catch her first.

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: September 18th, 2012
Amazon, Goodreads, Author's website

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I'm moving to Long Island for college in a few weeks, and I'll  be right outside New York City. I know that there are a ton of YA books out there set in the Big Apple, but so many of them are realistic fiction. That's all fine and dandy, but you can give me paranormal fiction any day!  This book sounds like the perfect way to start a new chapter in my life!

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Waiting on Wednesday is hosted over at Breaking the Spine.

Teaser Tuesdays (2): Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

My Teaser Tuesdays for this week comes from Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater:

"And suddenly a volley of shots snapped and snarled, not far away. Not little pops, like they were from the roadside, but crackling fireworks, unmistakable gunshots."

-page 57

Goodreads - Amazon

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Teaser Tuesdays is hosted over at Should Be Reading.

Review: The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau

From Goodreads:

Citizens of Ember shall be assigned work at twelve years of age...
Lina Mayfleey desperately wants to be a messenger. Instead, she draws the dreaded job of Pipeworks laborer, which means she'll be working in damp tunnels deep underground.
Doon Harrow draws messenger - and asks Lina to trade! Doon wants to be underground. That's where the generator is, and Doon has ideas about how to fix it. For as long as anyone can remember, the great lights of Ember have kept the endless darkness at bay. But now the lights are beginning to flicker....

Not a very deep read, but good none-the-less.

This book is a great introduction to the dystopian subgenre for middle-grade/ early high school students. The book is rather short too, so it would also make an ideal book club read for students.

I don't have very much to say about this book. I liked the world-building very much (for some strange reason I have a thing for fiction with people living underground), but I do wish that there were a little more insight into the lives of the people of Ember. What do they do with their dead? Why did not as many people seem to know each other, despite the fact that the same family lines have been living there for 200+ years? There are three more books to go, so I know that more answers will come, but a little more detail would have been nice in book one.

I also liked the two main characters, Doon and Lina. I love younger protagonists (they're both twelve), as well as the fact that The City of Ember didn't even bring up the possibility of a romantic relationship between the two of them. This may make the book a bit boring for older audiences, but again makes it perfect for younger ones.

The City of Ember was a nice read overall, and I wish that I had more to say about it. I figure that I would have liked this book quite a bit when it first came out, I was about nine, but now the writing comes off as a bit juvenile. Still, the action moments, especially towards the ending as more secrets are uncovered, did hold my attention, as they will for anyone looking for a younger dystopian/ post-apocalyptic book to enjoy.

Do you have any more middle grade/ younger-teen appropriate dystopian novels? Share them in the comments!

Amazon, Goodreads, Author's Website

Title: The City of Ember (Book of Ember #1)

Author: Jeanne DuPrau

Publisher: Yearling

Publication Date: May 25th, 2004

Page #: 270

ISBN: 0375822747

Reviewed for Dystopian August (2012) over at Presenting Lenore!

Camp NaNoWriMo Week 2 (8/4-8/10)

12,317

What it should be: 16,120 (as of midnight, 8/11)

Favorite lines:

“Would I want to what?” I whispered back, then cringed. Even my whispers sounded loud compared to his, as though I would wake the entirety of Red Efts if I uttered another hushed word.
“Have you ever thought, you know, about...” he trailed off again, like he expected me to finish. I shook my head and shrugged. I had no idea what he was talking about?
He took a deep breath, like he was preparing for his news. “Have you ever thought about becoming like me?”

Biggest stressor: Trying to keep up. Words have been coming to be much easier than past NaNos, but something just feels off about the story. I'm just not used to writing paranormal romance, so I guess it just feels a little strange seeing as I don't read it either. I feel like I'm procrastinating because I know that it will be so easy to catch up later, which is really dangerous!

How I feel about this week: Okay. I'm crazy far behind, but that's never stopped me from winning before. I'm going to be away this weekend, but I'm bringing my laptop so hopefully I'll get some good inspiration and up my word count! I feel good about the story itself, it's coming along pretty strong and I have a solid ending planned! I'm really excited for it.

Want to join me for Camp NaNoWriMo? Sign up here!

Fantastic Covers Friday (15): Dead Connection by Charlie Price

Fantastic Covers Friday is a weekly meme over here at Brave New Shelf where I highlight beautiful covers that I find, from both old books and new, from young adult books. This Week:

Dead Connection by Charlie Price

Jacket Design by Patti Ratchford

Jacket Photo Alan Thornton/Getty Images

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Isn't this creepy cover great? I'm not entirely sure how it came to be, whether that perfect sky is a really lucky shot or that there's some computer magic in there somewhere. I love the tagline too, "He talks to the dead. The dead talk to him." I'm surprised that they left it hidden at the top of the page above a review; I feel like the review would normally be on the back, leaving more room for the tagline and whatnot on the front.

Feature and Follow Friday (8)

Feature and Follow Friday is hosted over at Parajunkee and Allison Can Read. This week's question:

Q: What would you do over if you were to start your blog again from scratch?

I would definitely experiment with voice a little bit more. How I write posts on my blog now comes off as robotic, I feel, but that's also just how I write. I want to be able to put more emotion into my posts without sounding losing my own personal voice, but I'm finding that it's a lot easier said than done. But I'm trying!

Feel free to leave a comment or follow any way you please! (Twitter - Goodreads - RSS)

Movie Review: Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightening Thief

From Wikipedia

You know a movie's bad when even Sean Bean can't save it for you.

To be honest, I wasn't expecting a whole lot from the Percy Jackson movie. I had heard that it wasn't great, and young adult/ middle grade books don't exactly have an awesome track record when it comes to movie adaptions. Some changes are understandable, but what I don't get is when directors feel the need to cut out or change major characters and moments during the process.

The most noticeable difference would be in the major personality changes in the main characters. Annabeth (a blonde played by a brunette) is supposed to be tough, certainly, but that first scene where we saw her practice fighting I thought that she was Clarisse (a brunette to be played by a blonde), a character from the books known for being rather rough and short-tempered compared to serious and calculating book-Annabeth.

Grover was also acting strangely. Normally introverted and skittish, throughout the movie he was cracking jokes and flirting with women just about every moment he was on screen. Also, within the same setting, he would switch between his satyr form and his human disguise, which came off as sloppy directing-wise. His desire for a searcher's license, also a major plot point in later books, is not even mentioned in this film. How they're going to work this out in their planned future movies, I have no idea.

Percy's attachment to his absent father kind of bothered me in the books,  but I never realized just how nice it was until I saw how cold their scenes in the movie were. That's Luke's thing, and paired with the movie backdrop of Zeus forbidding the gods from seeing their children I again don't know how that will fare for future Percy Jackson movies.

And then there's who they left out. Ares plays a major part in the first book, fueling the actions of not only Percy and his friends but the other gods as well, and the fact that he has no speaking role in this movie is what crumbled the film for me. Essentially, the entire climax of the book was changed for reasons I don't totally understand.

On a positive note, the movie was beautiful from a visual effects point of view. Gone are the plastic, campy monsters used in old Greek hero movies, the sleek CGI of this film looked fantastic. I was especially impressed with Percy's healing abilities, involving water climbing up his arm, which looked incredibly realistic.

Overall, I'm embarrassed to hear that they're making a second film. I certainly have no plans to pay to see it unless another fan of the books confirms to me that it's accurate, or at least takes a good shot at accuracy. Every book in the series compounds on those that come before it, so a very different movie right from book one doesn't give me good vibes about the potential rest of the series.

And don't get me started on Persephone, my favorite Greek goddess who appears only in the fifth book.

Waiting on Wednesday (18): The Lost Girl by Sangu Mandanna

From Goodreads:

Eva’s life is not her own. She is a creation, an abomination—an echo. Made by the Weavers as a copy of someone else, she is expected to replace a girl named Amarra, her “other”, if she ever died. Eva studies what Amarra does, what she eats, what it’s like to kiss her boyfriend, Ray. So when Amarra is killed in a car crash, Eva should be ready.
But fifteen years of studying never prepared her for this.
Now she must abandon everything she’s ever known—the guardians who raised her, the boy she’s forbidden to love—to move to India and convince the world that Amarra is still alive.
What Eva finds is a grief-stricken family; parents unsure how to handle this echo they thought they wanted; and Ray, who knew every detail, every contour of Amarra. And when Eva is unexpectedly dealt a fatal blow that will change her existence forever, she is forced to choose: Stay and live out her years as a copy or leave and risk it all for the freedom to be an original. To be Eva.
From debut novelist Sangu Mandanna comes the dazzling story of a girl who was always told what she had to be—until she found the strength to decide for herself.

Publisher: HarperCollins
Publication Date: August 28th, 2012
Amazon, Goodreads, Author's website

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I shouldn't have to go into detail of the fact that we need more paranormal, dystopian, sci-fi, etc. stories starring a woman of color, or in this case her copy. That's the first thing that draws me into this book. The second would be the premise, that idea of replacing someone after they die, with their family knowing. I had heard of creating people to replace lost organs, but never entire lives. I think it will be interesting to see how this plays out.

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Waiting on Wednesday is hosted over at Breaking the Spine.

Review: Y: The Last Man (series) by Brian K. Vaughan

*Spoiler Free!*

From Wikipedia

Y: The Last Man tells the story of Yorick, a young man who finds himself to be the last male on the planet, aside from his pet monkey Ampersand, after a mysterious even called "the plague" results in the deaths of every creature possessing a Y chromosome.

Divided into several arcs that take Yorick and Ampersand, along with Agent 355, the woman protecting him, and Dr. Allison Mann, a genius geneticist, across the world in search of a cause for the plague and to find Yorick's girlfriend, Beth. Along the way they meet up with women some strong, some violent, some desperate and broken, but all trying to make it another day in a collapsed society after many of their friends and family die.

I had reviewed the first volume of Y: The Last Man earlier, but felt that since the series spans ten great, well-written books it was worth writing another review once I had finished.

The plague's cause isn't laid out in black and white like the apocalyptic disasters of other series. Throughout Y: The Last Man theories range from Mother Earth "cleansing" herself, an act of God, scientific accidents, government attacks, to just an abnormal one-time deal. I enjoyed how this set-up prevented the reader from developing a sense of omnipotence; we're kept in the dark just as the characters are.

I applaud Vaughan's ability to juggle so many characters, some whom we only see for a chapter or two, and give them believeable emotions and realistic lives. Not one introduced character had a boring backstory or a uninteresting exchange upon meeting Yorick, as short as many of those meetings were.

I have a hard time picking a favorite character, but even if I was to I feel that my opinion would just fall flat. I could see a little bit of myself in every character as I thought about how I would deal with my situation if I were in their shoes.

Rest assured that the ending, no spoilers given, was the perfect wrap-up to such a lofty series. I cannot conceive of another way for it to end, Y: The Last Man concluded just as it was supposed to.

A lot of thinking on my part went into reading this series. After every book I spent some time musing about Vaughan's world and our world alike, especially in regards to what it means to survive, to adapt, and my connection to other women both in my community and my world at large. This may have been easier for me because I am a woman, but I still have no doubt that men will take something away from this series too. How would you see yourself in the shoes of the remaining women, or in Yorick's?

Y: The Last Man is a mature, dystopian/ post-apocalyptic series that, despite it's frightening world-building, says plenty about the world we exist in. If you're still unconvinced, here's a fan film that a very talented group of people made. It differs from the plot of the comics, but if the fans are this devoted, just picture how fantastic the series itself is! Now double that. Yup, the comics are that good:

Author: Brian K. Vaughan
Artists: Pia Guerra (lead penciller), various

Publisher: Vertigo

Publication Date: 2002-2007

Books: 10 regular volumes, or, 5 deluxe edition books

Reviewed for Dystopian August (2012) over at Presenting Lenore!

Teaser Tuesdays (1): The Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

My Teaser Tuesday this week comes from Uglies, the first book in the Uglies series, by Scott Westerfeld:

"Tally sat down on the bed, too stunned to cry. She knew she would start bawling soon, probably losing it at the worst possible time and place." 

- page 111

Goodreads - Amazon

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Teaser Tuesday is hosted weekly over at Should Be Reading.

Review: The Runaways, Vol 1: Pride & Joy by Brian K. Vaughan

From Goodreads:

All young people believe their parents are evil ... but what if they really are? Meet Alex, Karolina, Gert, Chase, Molly and Nico - whose lives are about to take an unexpected turn. When these six young friends discover their parents are all secretly super-powered villains, the shocked teens find strength in one another. Together, they run away from home and straight into the adventure of their lives - vowing to turn the tables on their evil legacy.

I feel that my expectations for this book might have been too high, but to say that it is on par with Vaughan's Y: The Last Man, I feel, would be just wrong.

It wasn't the writing that I so much took an issue with, thankfully. Vaughan has managed to pepper the work with music and book references as I've seen him do before, but other than those little snippets I didn't feel a huge draw to the writing.

The plot proceedings were confusing, but I chalk part of that up to the fact that I'm only on book one of the series, and I'm sure that more becomes clear as time goes on. One of the things that confused me was just how evil I was supposed to see Pride, the villainous group of the comic.

I can certainly understand why the teens in the book see their parents as evil, they do witness their folks murder a teenage girl, but I had hoped to see a little bit more of Pride. Why do they have such a hold on the city? Are their threats just threats, or do they frequently carry them out? Why are their costumes so oddly hilarious for a group that I'm supposed to see with hatred? I must just have high expectations for my evildoers, which Runaways didn't fulfill.

I don't like judging art, seeing as I have no artistic skills whatsoever, but being a comic book I have no choice but to do so. The greatest issue I had was with the character's mouths, which seemed to only switch between gaping holes or puckers (say "prunes" out loud) regardless of the words within their conversation.

I had picked up Runaways without knowing that Vaughan had written in, intrigued by the premise, and was still disappointed overall. I have no plans on picking up the next issue, but if the description sounds interesting to you it may be nice to know that my sentiments are not shared in a majority of Goodreads reviews. Rather, the series appears to be well-loved, and I agree it would be fitting for a younger comic fan. For older fans looking for a much more serious series, please try Y: The Last Man. I'm certain that you won't regret it.

Amazon, Goodreads

Title: Runaways vol. 1, Pride & Joy

Author: Brian K. Vaughan
Pencils: Adrian Alphona

Publisher: Marvel

Publication Date: December 6th, 2006

Page #: 144

ISBN: 0785113797

Week 1: Camp NaNoWriMo August Session (8/1-8/3)

5116

What it should be: 4838 (as of midnight, 8/4)

Favorite lines: (between Henriette, the main character, and her friend Penelope)

     “Blood Lust,” I say, reading the cover aloud. “What’s it about, incest?”
     “No, stupid,” Penelope says, grabbing it back to flip through the pages. “It’s about this mortal girl that meets this hot vampire guy and fall in love despite, you know, the fact that he’s a lot older than her. That’s the part that’s kind of creepy, but I tried not to think about it too much while reading it. It’s really good, if you read anything in that bag it should be that one,” she says, closing up the car and locking it. I stare down at Blood Lust and give Penelope a shrug. “I think incest would’ve been more interesting.”

Biggest stressor: Starting, and trying to decide where my story is trying to go as I'm writing. I don't exactly have time to plan now as I'm trying to reach 50,000 in one month along with reading for Dystopian August, planning for college, spending the last precious moments of summer with friends before we all leave, etc.

How I feel about this week: Pretty good! I'm right on track, I've got some good stuff written, and I'm feeling great about this story, especially since I was so apprehensive before vabout writing a paranormal romance (something I rarely read.)

Want to join me for Camp NaNoWriMo? Sign up here!

Fantastic Covers Friday (14): Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger

Fantastic Covers Friday is a weekly meme over here at Brave New Shelf where I highlight beautiful covers that I find, from both old books and new, from young adult books.

This Week:

Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger

Jacket design by Rex Bonomelli

Jacket photography by Skye Chalmers

..........

The front cover to this book is very eye-catching, an icy, reflective blue. The spine isn't as shiny, but is a stunning color none-the-less. I love how the branches at the edges of the front cover creep in to form the title, and right away I know that this book is going to have some eerie content.

Feature and Follow Friday (7)

Feature and Follow Friday is hosted over at Parajunkee and Allison Can Read. This week's question:

Q: Do your reading habits change based on your mood? Do you read a certain genre if you are feeling depressed or happy?

I feel like, for me, it's the other way around. Reading improves my mood, almost always. If I'm reading an upsetting or uncomfortable book, I become upset. If it's a funny book, I feel good. I think my mood influences my reading habits in regards to how much I actually read, rather than influencing me to change the kinds of books.

Feel free to leave a comment or follow any way you please! (Twitter - Goodreads - RSS)

Haymitch Poster (review?)

Happy Dystopian August everybody! *tosses confetti* Not gonna lie, I seriously think that this is my favorite book blogging related event all year, mainly because it's an entire month devoted to me curled up with a snack of what I believe to be the most beautifully written, politically messed-up books out there.

Today's post isn't so much about books as it is about movies, but it was a movie based on a book, so that's okay right? About a week ago I was sailing through Amazon when I caught sight of some Hunger Games film posters being offered. You've got Katniss, Peeta, and Gale, of course, but they also offered the profiles of other characters like Cato, Rue, Haymitch, Effie, and Cinna.

Amazon

So in my quick thinking I had figured "Hey! These are limited edition! I'd better buy some before they run out!" The first one that I bought was Haymitch's, because he's my favorite Hunger Games character and, you know, teen girls everywhere are clamoring for his face on their bedroom walls, so his was more like to sell out first (or at least that's what I tell myself.)

Step aside, Justin Bieber 

He came in the mail in a HUGE box which was almost comic judging that it contained only the one poster and one hardcover book that I bought. I had friends over, so I didn't unroll him in his full glory until later.

Today, actually.

Ladies and Gentlemen: My Door

It's probably hard to tell, but Haymitch's poster is pretty freakin' big, to use the vernacular. I mean, he's at least a couple of inches wider than my movie posters that I bought from F.Y.E, and you can tell from the picture above that he dwarfs my Figment poster.

Here he is with my paperback copy of The Hunger Games.

I don't think he'll end up replacing my beloved Hunger Games book cover poster, which has reigned over my door for about two and a half years now, but he's still a nice addition to my collection.