Spoiler-Free Review: PARANORMALCY

Paranormalcy (Paranormalcy, #1) - Kiersten White
Genre: YA Paranormal (duh) fantasy
# of pages: (ARC)
Publisher: HarperTeen
Recommended for: ALL AGES.
Paranormalcy @ Parental Book Reviews

(Isn't this cover beautiful?)

The following review has been declared SPOILER FREE:

I’ve been fortunate to read MANY amazing, 5-star-worthy books this summer, so it’s no little thing when I say that Paranormalcy blows them all out of the water. In fact, Paranormalcy is the newest Must Have book for the fall, a treat every teen needs to ease those back-to-school blues.

While I love to hand out hugs and giggles,I’m pretty stingy handing out my A+ grade. Kiersten White's Paranormalcy didn't get an A+, it EARNED it. There is no way that I could give it anything less.

The characters were all so unique, quirky and absolutely lovable. The narrator, Evie, is just about as awesome as her zebra dress and pink boots. Her voice was funny, sassy and endearing – all the ingredients needed to cook up one of the best fictional characters of 2010! It was so great to watch her grow and mature over the course of the story. Oh, Evie, I'd love for you to be real. If you thought high school was fun, just you wait until you come to college with me! :P
But I can’t forget the love interest, Lend. Abso-freaking-lutely going in my Boyfriends! file. Besides being completely swoon-worthy, Lend is also an incredibly original character. Vampire? Nope. Werewolf? Uh-uh. Faerie? No way. Angel? Fuggedabadit. You’ll just have to see for yourself. And Reth… you know, I didn’t expect this to happen, but he became one of my favorite characters. His scenes were absolutely delicious. WORD to Aprilynne Pike’s blurb.

But characters aside, what impressed me the most about P was its sheer originality. I’ve read YA nearly exclusively for 2 years now, and I can honestly say that Paranormalcy was like nothing I’d ever read before. If we’re all sitting in a circle, holding hands and being honest, I thought I had this story pegged from page one. I thought I knew – because it was a “paranormal” book – what would happen in the story. Guys and girls – I wasn’t EVEN close! I can’t tell you all enough just how creative and ORIGINAL Paranormalcy is. This amazing story full of amazing characters populating an amazing world came straight out of the mind of the intensely talented Kiersten White, and I WAGER that you have not read anything like this! Evie and the world of the IPCA was so brilliantly created and put together.

From one YA lover to all of you, I guarantee you don’t want to miss this phantasmagorical thrill ride.

Paranormalcy will be released August 31, 2010.

(PS – am I the only one who is surprised that ‘phantasmagorical’ is a real word?)
Reading Teen's review and content radar for Paranormalcy

Final Grade:

ARC Winner!

Hey everybody! Thanks for entering my last-minute contest.
Cutting right to the chase -
the winner is

BRIANA

Congratulations! Email me with your info and I'll get the book to you right away!

Thanks again everyone!

[Was] In My Mailbox & What I'm Reading This Week

This actually came the day before I went to camp, so I never got to post, but I got

Paranormalcy (Paranormalcy #1) from Harper Teen. Thank you so much! I'm reading it now and it's excellent!

Up next is
followed byHave you read any of these?
What did you get in your mailbox - last week or this week?

What makes a good character?

What makes a good character? To be specific, what makes a good main character or narrator?

I’ve been wondering about this more and more lately, especially after finishing the Hunger Games books and rereading some random book reviews. I think it’s interesting the words that keep reappearing when describing characters:

Strong, Shallow, Boring, Stupid, Cocky, Relatable, Funny, and the most descriptive word of all: … “Great”

I bet my criteria for a good main character and/or narrator is different from some of yours, and it dawned on me today that I’m actually a pretty capricious person in this regard, because I realized that I don’t even follow a set formula. Some characters just click with me, and others – for no major or noteworthy reason whatsoever –just don't.

I've copied some really interesting points made in reviews by one of my Goodreads friends and scatter them throughout this post. She has some really good ideas!

Now, for the reason I won't say, (Character) has an excuse for acting out of character, but EVEN considering said reason, he still acted like a jerk. Not once in the book did he do anything remotely redeeming.

First comes the issues of RELATABILITY (which is totally not a real word, but if Palin and Obama can make up words, so can I!). I’ve been thinking about characters, both as a reader and as a writer. I guess my question is – are all characters supposed to be relatable? I’ve seen this comment on several reviews, and it’s definitely on a lot of mine – about characters being relatable. And I wonder – do all authors even intend for characters to be relatable? If I say that I can’t relate to a character, am I even supposed to? What do you all think?

For the most part, I try to relate to the main character in each book, and usually I’m met with some kind of success. The last few MCs: Katniss Everdeen, Kelley Winslow (Wondrous Strange), Bertie Shakespeare Smith (Theatre Iluminata series), Jena (Wildwood Dancing), Grace (Wolves of Mercy Falls) and Grace (The Dark Divine) were all relatable in some sense. The characters I can’t really relate to are usually in the books that I give low grades to. That doesn’t mean, though, that characters have to be just like me. All of the above ladies have had experiences (within the realm of their stories) that I have not experienced, and all of them at one point or another made decisions that I probably would not have made, were I in their situation. That, to me, is one of the fun things about reading. In a way, it’s kind of like an out-of-body experience, isn’t it? You get to live vicariously through the characters. In my reviews, when I say that a character is “relatable,” I’m not saying “this character is a carbon copy of myself…” but I do mean that the character’s actions make sense to me. I may not have agreed with everything that Grace Brisbane did in Shiver and Linger, but I pretty much understood why she did them. I could relate to some of her actions, but I could almost always relate to her feelings. I guess this is the best way to explain what I mean when I talk about characters being relatable.

Next Point:

One thing that bothered me was how (Character) seemed to notice no one but herself. She is way too self absorbed, which made it hard for me to like her character.

(Raises hand) I’ve done this! It’s been hard for me to like characters because of their attitudes. I like characters who either start out strong and stay strong, or who gradually develop over the course of the story. Occasionally there are characters who are strong from the very beginning, but most characters have some sort of hindrance that they must work through or overcome. Sure, it’s nice to have characters I can relate to, but more importantly, I like characters I can look up to.

I also love smart characters. I don’t mean geniuses or always-make-the-right decision characters; I mean characters who know when they’ve screwed up and work toward a change. One of my favorite characters of all time is Jena from Wildwood Dancing, and she is the best example I can think of for this point. She’s a smart character to begin with, but at one point in the story she does something really stupid. She eventually sees her mistake and makes it right. I love characters like that!

It’s not necessary, but it’s an added bonus to have characters with a great sense of humor. Percy Jackson, one of my favorite characters of all time (and hands down favorite narrator) has a sense of humor that can’t be beat. It made reading the series more enjoyable, because who doesn’t love a laugh? It also really helps the mood and tone of the novel. Have you ever read a book that you thought took itself a little too seriously? Comic relief is definitely something that I find necessary in long stories.

When it comes to love interests, I personally prefer simple, sweet characters. I love “gentle warriors” who can be both sweet and affectionate and tough as nails if called to do so. Whether or not a guy is tough and good with a sword, though, I like them to be kind to the girl. Anything else is secondary to that. One of the reasons I love Peeta so much is just because he’s so kind-hearted. Every time he says something sweet (which is a lot) I get this big goofy grin on my face that won’t go away. I don’t look for complicated love stories, and I don’t need a lot of drama. The best love stories, for me, are the ones that feel genuine.

Last Point:

He lacked the elements required to make a fictional male of this genre appealing (bad-boy with a hidden heart of gold or an exuberant sweetheart in possession of a sense of humor, or tormented soul); and therefore, I didn't care what happened to him. When you don't care about the main character, a fantastic story is required.

And finally, the part of this post that is going to be the hardest to explain. For better or worse, I’m the kind of reader who almost always makes a decision about characters. I either like them or I don’t (Just liking a character, though, doesn’t mean I turn a blind eye to being objective – like with Katniss, for example). I rarely ever say about characters “I could take them or leave them.” But the weird thing is, I don’t always know why I like certain characters, and why I don’t like others. Are any of you the same way? I definitely agree with my friend’s comment, and I’ve made similar ones on my reviews. If I don’t like the main character/narrator, I will almost always be disengaged from the story. I don’t want to be that way, but I am. The main character is like the gigantic fat Santa Claus at the mall from our childhoods: you either run up to him squealing and laughing, or you turn on your heals and run in the opposite direction, but you can’t just get around him – he’s too big! Well, the main character/narrator is the same way.

So I listed my preferences. For me, it doesn’t matter if it’s a boy or a girl, I like characters to

- be compassionate, and aware of other people’s feelings

- have a sense of humor

- treat the love interest kindly and with respect (in addition to completely necessary sizzling and smoldering kissing scenes!)

- be smart or somewhat intelligent. Not make stupid, random mistakes over and over again

- grow and develop over the course of the story. Overcome obstacles and move towards a goal.

Those are all the really broad things I could think of. What about you – what qualities do you think make a good character?

Giveaway - THE ETERNAL ONES ARC

From Goodreads:

What if love refused to die? Haven Moore can’t control her visions of a past with a boy called Ethan, and a life in New York that ended in fiery tragedy. In our present, she designs beautiful dresses for her classmates with her best friend Beau. Dressmaking keeps her sane, since she lives with her widowed and heartbroken mother in her tyrannical grandmother’s house in Snope City, a tiny town in Tennessee. Then an impossible group of coincidences conspire to force her to flee to New York, to discover who she is, and who she was. In New York, Haven meets Iain Morrow and is swept into an epic love affair that feels both deeply fated and terribly dangerous. Iain is suspected of murdering a rock star and Haven wonders, could he have murdered her in a past life? She visits the Ouroboros Society and discovers a murky world of reincarnation that stretches across millennia. Haven must discover the secrets hidden in her past lives, and loves¸ before all is lost and the cycle begins again...

Razorbill was nice enough to send me a copy when they sent The Replacement, and I'd love to pass this ARC on to one of you!

I'm going to do this giveaway a little different from the other ones, so here are some rules:

1. YOU MUST BE A FOLLOWER - please make sure that you click on "Follow" if you haven't already. I really do check!
2. You must live in the US or Canada. I'm so sorry, int'l pals - I bet you're all really sick of seeing this.
3. You must enter before Monday, August 9 (at 11 PM Central Time)

Extra Points for
1. Doing a blog post - +10
2. Being an 'Old' Follower (following before August 5) + 2
3. Tweeting (+2 for every tweet, and you can tweet as many times as you want)

The way you can enter is to leave a comment below. This is a pretty last-minute contest (I wanted to put it up before I went to camp, but alas that didn't happen) so it would help me so much if you'd help spread the word! The winner will be announced at 12 AM on August 10 (the day Eternal Ones is released into stores).

So long, July!

Whoa, July has come and gone, summer's almost over, and school is just around the corner.
However, this year the start of school doesn't have me crying and whining like usual.
Why?
Well, 1) senior year! and 2) school starts the same day Mockingjay is released! Ohhh, you know I'm gonna be reading that sucker in class!

July was a slightly slower reading month than June, but I still got in 5 books...which for me is pretty good. Actually, I finished Catching Fire on the 2nd, but since I started it in July, I'm counting it!

So here are some quick STATS!
Number of Books: 5
Favorite Read: Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins (just as awesome as THG, but a tad more action put it in the 'Favorite' spot)
Least Favorite Read: Hmmm, I liked them all, but Uglies is probably the odd one out. Still gave it an A rating, though!
Most Original Idea or Story World: Hunger Games. Uglies was intriguing, definitely, but reminded me a tad too much of Stepford Wives to win this category.
Best Narrator/MC: Grace Brisbane, Shiver and Linger
Best Love Interest: PEETA MELLARK
Best Wisecracking Sidekick Character: drunken mentor Haymitch from The Hunger Games series
Author I'd Love to Hang Out With: out of this bunch, probably have to go with Suzanne Collins
Book That Had the Greatest Impact On Me: Shiver - Maggie Stiefvater. I read two majorly popular dystopian books: Uglies and The Hunger Games, and while dystopian novels always strive to make an impression on the reader (and both did!), it was the beautifully written, lyrical, simple love story of Sam and Grace and the intensity of Shiver that won me over.
Total # of pages read: 1,529
Final Grades:

Catching Fire
The Hunger Games
Linger
Shiver
Uglies

Review - CATCHING FIRE

Catching Fire (Hunger Games, #2) - Suzanne Collins
Genre: YA Dystopian, Sci-fi
# of pages: 391 (hb)
Amelia's Age-Level Recommendation: 12+
Publisher: Scholastic
Catching Fire @ Parental Book Reviews


All aboard the Hunger Games train! Yeehaw! Only 3 more weeks to go, folks!
Though it's hard to surpass the original, Catching Fire was in many ways more enjoyable to me than HG. This book covers more ground, and the pacing is crazy-fast, which made my fingers practically glued to the pages. I can't say enough how incredibly satisfied I am with this series. Suzanne Collins is a master-storyteller, and she has created a classic series. As always, I believe in objective reviews, so I'm going to mention the things that I thought were very well-done, and things I thought could use a little work. The "use a little work" things were so microscopic, though, compared to the broad enjoyability of the story, that they had absolutely no bearing on the final grade. Am I giving this series preferential treatment? Most definitely! That's what happens when I find a series I absolutely fall in love with.

Catching Fire finally delivered on the *action* that I felt was sometimes lukewarm in its predecessor. Except for a few lulls in the story, this book went from one major event to another, and the excitement I felt was so incredible and so energizing, I literally dreaded coming to the last few pages. Collins really does know how to catch her readers and hold their attention. This was a strong, strong sequel and I already know, unless Mockingjay totally bombs, that this is one of my favorite series of all time.

While the overall plot was captivating from start-to-finish, I personally thought that the PACING of this book was like, on drugs. It was roller-coaster fast, then inner-tube-floating-down-a-river slow, and freakishly random at times. Like, something major would happen, but because the book is so fast-paced, there was little emotional and in-depth exploration. I thought the Quarter Quell, for example, was way too fast paced (don't worry - that's not a spoiler. I'm not telling you what the QQ is). I always find it interesting to see what an author chooses to emphasize and what he/she chooses to skim over, and it seemed like quite a few aspects of the story that *I* found to be incredibly crucial were just skimmed, and rather insignificant aspects were blown out of proportion.

In all fairness, I'm starting to get a little annoyed with Katniss as a narrator and character. Now that's not supposed to sound critical, because I actually think Katniss is one of the better MCs in current YA fiction: she's driven, she's goal-oriented, she perseveres, she cares about her family, etc. I can excuse her grammar and bleak outlook on life, but her tone really started to bother me. She's way to dry, detached, and matter-of-fact, no matter how dire and emotional the situation is, and as the stakes got higher in this book, I found her detachment hard to understand. She also had a tendency to be quite patronizing, especially towards Peeta. Umm, okay so Peeta obviously isn't a King Leonidas killing machine, but he's not a totally worthless loser, either. Give him some respect, Katniss! He's definitely smarter than you are!

Other high points: always good to have a consistent, strong villain. I've been waiting to read about President Snow ever since I asked my 14-year old cousin what team he was on, and he told me "Team Snow!" (he was just kidding, I think). I definitely was creeped out by President Snow. Bravo for scary-but-mysterious villains!
And now to the love story: Okay, here I absolutely LOVE the concept but am less than impressed with the execution. I think SOME of Katniss' attitude is refreshing. She's not boy-crazy and she's not leading them on, either. She's honest about her feelings (or lack thereof) and expresses fear and uncertainty about her future with either of them. Those are genuine, consistent feelings for a character like her. And I'm going to defend both Peeta AND Gale's personalities. I keep reading that the two needed to be contrasted more, and I just don't get that. To me, they contrast just fine. Gale's more the brooding, quiet, brawny type (he reminds me of Jacob from everybody's favorite series because he just seems to exude manliness) and Peeta is adorable, kind, sweet, incredibly shrewd and clever. Both are "good boys," and I quite enjoy having two characters who were somewhat alike. It makes Katniss' decision way more unpredictable.

Because my little critiques are really ULTRA-specific, they have no bearing on my rating. Catching Fire is one of the most exhilarating, enjoyable and amazing books I have ever read, and all I can do is just implore all of you to read this incredible series! See you all a few days after August 24 for my Mockingjay review. Until then,
Down with President Snow!
(and Peeta had better the heck be alive, or ELSE!)

Final Grade: