House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski

"Years ago, when House of Leaves was first being passed around, it was nothing more than a badly bundled heap of paper, parts of which would occasionally surface on the Internet. No one could have anticipated the small but devoted following this terrifying story would soon command. Starting with an odd assortment of marginalized youth -- musicians, tattoo artists, programmers, strippers, environmentalists, and adrenaline junkies -- the book eventually made its way into the hands of older generations, who not only found themselves in those strangely arranged pages but also discovered a way back into the lives of their estranged children.

Now, for the first time, this astonishing novel is made available in book form, complete with the original colored words, vertical footnotes, and newly added second and third appendices.

The story remains unchanged, focusing on a young family that moves into a small home on Ash Tree Lane where they discover something is terribly wrong: their house is bigger on the inside than it is on the outside.

Of course, neither Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist Will Navidson nor his companion Karen Green was prepared to face the consequences of that impossibility, until the day their two little children wandered off and their voices eerily began to return another story -- of creature darkness, of an ever-growing abyss behind a closet door, and of that unholy growl which soon enough would tear through their walls and consume all their dreams."

Okay, first of all, yay for Jolie being amazing and helping out with reviews!! Especially as my time here is pretty much reaching its end, so best of luck to her and anyone else potentially recruited. And I know, it's been forever from me, but in all honesty, this book was a long project of a read--the better part of a month or two, at varying levels of dedication. But dear lord was it worth it. This book is unlike any other I've ever come across, and the sheer amount put into it is staggering. It's very psychological, and there are stories within stories that reach a level of scrutiny that makes you forget it's not true. The experience of the man, Johnny Truant, who found this crate of papers and writings is chronicled through sporadic footnotes, and all levels of the story are mind-twisting. The text crawls up the page, sometimes upside down, fragmented, mirrored, tilted... you get the idea.  A simple Google image search for 'house of leaves' gives you a pretty fair impression. 

The experience of reading the book is very... organic, if that's the right word. There's nothing slick or processed about this--it's gritty and believable, in the best and worst way. Even the way it fell into my hands mirrored that--it was a title mentioned to me by the strangest assortment of people (including an astrophysicist, a friend, and a dancer) over a gradual period of time until I couldn't help but buy a copy. That's some of the beauty of this book. It feels secret somehow, passed around from person to person, and the story itself extends that feeling.

I loved it. It was so brilliant and twisting and terrifying and analytical, and the ways the text would start to shrink on the page did a brilliant job of evoking the claustrophobia of the house, and just wow. There are symbols and codes embedded, and nothing presents itself completely without effort. It's the type of book that you could read so many times and each time peel back another staggering layer of it. It's a huge undertaking, and if the possibility of a dark, fractured, spine-chilling, human ensemble of a story appeals to you, I so urge you to go check it out. I'm so glad I did.

There's a copy at Kettleson in the new adult fiction section, and I super highly recommend it. Five stars, no doubt about it.

The Tragedy Paper by Elizabeth LaBan

"Tim Macbeth, a seventeen-year-old albino and a recent transfer to the prestigious Irving School, where the motto is “Enter here to be and find a friend.” A friend is the last thing Tim expects or wants—he just hopes to get through his senior year unnoticed. Yet, despite his efforts to blend into the background, he finds himself falling for the quintessential “It” girl, Vanessa Sheller, girlfriend of Irving’s most popular boy. To Tim's surprise, Vanessa is into him, too, but she can kiss her social status goodbye if anyone ever finds out. Tim and Vanessa begin a clandestine romance, but looming over them is the Tragedy Paper, Irving’s version of a senior year thesis, assigned by the school’s least forgiving teacher.

Jumping between viewpoints of the love-struck Tim and Duncan, a current senior about to uncover the truth of Tim and Vanessa, The Tragedy Paper is a compelling tale of forbidden love and the lengths people will go to keep their love."

Overall, I would have to give this book 4.5 stars! It's about a boy, Duncan Meade, that was involved in this problem and he's being told the story from Tim Macbeth's point of view through a video recording. That's not it though, it does describe in detail what happens to Tim while at Irving, it also describe's Tim's last year there also, in an uncomplicated way of course.

The plot of the book was an interesting one. It did not exactly say what was going to happen, but throughout the book it was describing how everything goes from order to chaos, and back to order again; slightly giving away that something was going to happen but not knowing just gave you the inspiration to continue reading it.

An Ember In The Ashes By Sabaa Tahir

"Laia is a slave. Elias is a soldier. Neither is free.

Under the Martial Empire, defiance is met with death. Those who do not vow their blood and bodies to the Emperor risk the execution of their loved ones and the destruction of all they hold dear.

It is in this brutal world, inspired by ancient Rome, that Laia lives with her grandparents and older brother. The family ekes out an existence in the Empire’s impoverished backstreets. They do not challenge the Empire. They’ve seen what happens to those who do.

But when Laia’s brother is arrested for treason, Laia is forced to make a decision. In exchange for help from rebels who promise to rescue her brother, she will risk her life to spy for them from within the Empire’s greatest military academy.

There, Laia meets Elias, the school’s finest soldier—and secretly, its most unwilling. Elias wants only to be free of the tyranny he’s being trained to enforce. He and Laia will soon realize that their destinies are intertwined—and that their choices will change the fate of the Empire itself. " 

This book was entertaining.  It kept me reading for hours on end, personally I'd give it 4 stars. At first, this book confused me. I could not tell where it was placed. i eventually found out. Aside from the confusing part, this book is based in the past.

It's about a girl named Laia and she did not start out as a slave. All she really wants is her brother back. She is also willing to do almost anything to get him back; however crazy it may be. The plot could have been better but all the same, it was amazing.

I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson

"Jude and her twin brother, Noah, are incredibly close. At thirteen, isolated Noah draws constantly and is falling in love with the charismatic boy next door, while daredevil Jude cliff-dives and wears red-red lipstick and does the talking for both of them. But three years later, Jude and Noah are barely speaking. Something has happened to wreck the twins in different and dramatic ways . . . until Jude meets a cocky, broken, beautiful boy, as well as someone else—an even more unpredictable new force in her life. The early years are Noah's story to tell. The later years are Jude's. What the twins don't realize is that they each have only half the story, and if they could just find their way back to one another, they’d have a chance to remake their world."

Okay, I know it's been forever. Senior year will do that to you, I guess. I have been reading, though, and I hope to start getting some more reviews up here soon. The first order of business is my latest obsession. I'd been meaning to read it for the longest time, and when I finally found the time I completely fell in love. Seriously. This is the best book I've read in quite a while. I can't even comprehend its amazingness. One of the most incredible things about it was the style of writing--oh my god. It's brimming with vivid imagery and unconventional but piercing language. Noah sees things through an artist's eye--a view huge and without restraints and pushing itself into every crack and right off the page. I swear at one point it probably took my breath away. Jude's perspective is raw and uncompromising and so much more.

Another huge impact of this book was the plot. It was, frankly, amazingly done. The two perspectives switching off between past and present put the picture together slowly. The magic of it is that it starts seeming deceptively simple, but then gaps fill in that you didn't even realize were there, and they change the game completely. Everything connects, and this book is practically made to be read a second time. It's a study in things falling apart, things falling together, and the times when things don't naturally fall together. It was heartbreaking and hopeful and real and dealt with topics so unapologetically human that you can't help but be drawn in.

I'm currently recommending this book to everyone. Seriously. It's worth it a million times over. There's a copy in the new teen section at Kettleson. Go.

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

"Guy Montag is a fireman. His job is to burn books, which are forbidden, being the source of all discord and unhappiness. Even so, Montag is unhappy; there is discord in his marriage. Are books hidden in his house? The Mechanical Hound of the Fire Department, armed with a lethal hypodermic, escorted by helicopters, is ready to track down those dissidents who defy society to preserve and read books.

The classic dystopian novel of a post-literate future, Fahrenheit 451 stands alongside Orwell’s 1984 and Huxley’s Brave New World as a prophetic account of Western civilization’s enslavement by the media, drugs and conformity."

Okay, sorry, I know I've been MIA. Trying to do six million things at once will do that to you, I guess. But hopefully I'll be posting a bunch more soon. So, I've heard people say different things about this book--some like it, some don't. I found that I liked it. Some people have complained that it moves slow, but I didn't get that at all. It moves much quicker and easier than many classics I've read, and it stayed interesting for me. Granted, this comes with a bit of a flipside: the themes pretty much hit you over the head, so if you're the type who likes to painstakingly dig the meaning out of your books, this may not interest you as much. Bradbury didn't dance around things, which made for a nice, interesting, straightforward read. The universe was extremely well-crafted and conceived, and equal parts troubling and thought-provoking as it was meant to be. I loved the questions posed by it, and I'd definitely recommend it. There are copies as Kettleson, SHS, Blatchley, and Mt. Edgecumbe. Enjoy!

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

"Oct. 11th, 1943--A British spy plane crashes in Nazi-occupied France. Its pilot and passenger are best friends. One of the girls has a chance at survival. The other has lost the game before it's barely begun.

When "Verity" is arrested by the Gestapo, she's sure she doesn't stand a chance. As a secret agent captured in enemy territory, she's living a spy's worst nightmare. Her Nazi interrogators give her a simple choice: reveal her mission or face a grisly execution.

As she intricately weaves her confession, Verity uncovers her past, how she became friends with the pilot Maddie, and why she left Maddie in the wrecked fuselage of their plane. On each new scrap of paper, Verity battles for her life, confronting her views on courage, failure and her desperate hope to make it home. But will trading her secrets be enough to save her from the enemy? 

A Michael L. Printz Award Honor book that was called "a fiendishly-plotted mind game of a novel" in The New York Times, Code Name Verity is a visceral read of danger, resolve, and survival that shows just how far true friends will go to save each other."

Huh. So I'm a little surprised. Well, this review doesn't come with a clear-cut opinion. The first thing I'll say is that it goes slow. It's only about 300 pages, but I ended up taking quite a while to get through it. That changed a bit, though, somewhere around two-thirds of the way into it when the perspective shifts to the other girl. I'd just spent 200 pages getting through the Verity's story and getting a grasp on what happened, when Maddie's narrative comes in (starting from the beginning again) and slowly tugs at threads of the story, unraveling things here and there to present a completely whole view. I was a little blindsided, and impressed, as everything started to subtly shift. This is definitely one that wants to be read again. It's true, though, that although Maddie's story was more interesting, it wasn't any less dense. You have to want to get through this, or you'll just end up setting it down and not working up the willpower to pick it up again. It was a pretty well-done story, in my opinion: their friendship is realistic and powerful and the book is personal and surprisingly intricate. Just, if you don't have patience, beware. Still, I think it's worth reading. There's copies at Kettleson, SHS, and Mt. Edgecumbe.

What If? by Randall Munroe

"Randall Munroe left NASA in 2005 to start up his hugely popular site XKCD 'a web comic of romance, sarcasm, math and language' which offers a witty take on the world of science and geeks. It's had over a billion page hits to date. A year ago Munroe set up a new section - What If - where he tackles a series of impossible questions: If your cells suddenly lost the power to divide, how long would you survive? How dangerous is it, really, in a pool in a thunderstorm? If we hooked turbines to people exercising in gyms, how much power could we produce? What if everyone only had one soulmate? From what height would you need to drop a steak to ensure it was cooked by the time it reached the ground? What would happen if the moon went away? This book gathers together the best entries along with lots of new gems. From The Lord of the Rings, Star Trek and the songs of Tim Minchin, through chemistry, geography and physics, Munroe leaves no stone unturned in his quest for knowledge. And his answers are witty and memorable and studded with hilarious cartoons and infographics. Far more than a book for geeks, WHAT IF explains the laws of science in operation in a way that every intelligent reader will enjoy and feel the smarter for having read."

I love this book. So much. I can't express the nerdy heaven that is this book. The whole thing is quite as good as the premise suggests, and my level of respect for Munroe is at an all-time high: he's capable of these hugely complicated equations concerning ridiculous topics, and at the same time he'll give occasional hilariously practical remarks to finish up his answer. That, added in with the half dozen random interludes for the weird and worrying questions he doesn't really think would be a good idea to answer (but often forms a reaction comic to), assures that you'll never get bored reading this. I learned a lot of useless but thoroughly entertaining info, and a large trove of really useful stuff too. Anyone who's interested in science at all--or even science fiction--should most definitely read this. In fact, everyone should. In my humble opinion, of course. There's a copy at Kettleson, in the new section.

Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton

"Ethan Frome works his unproductive farm and struggles to maintain a bearable existence with his difficult, suspicious, and hypochondriac wife, Zeena. But when Zeena's vivacious cousin enters their household as a "hired girl", Ethan finds himself obsessed with her and with the possibilities for happiness she comes to represent. 

In one of American fiction's finest and most intense narratives, Edith Wharton moves this ill-starred trio toward their tragic destinies. Different in both tone and theme from Wharton's other works, Ethan Frome has become perhaps her most enduring and most widely read novel."

Well. If you're looking for a feel-good Thanksgiving break book, this isn't it. Part of the main theme is bringing out harsh winters that suck the happiness and life out of people, so that's fun. It's a bit of a confounding book, all the way through. That's not to say that it's uninteresting, just definitely needing some extra patience and consideration. It's got a mine of literary angles to it, what with ironic twists and kinda depressing character flaws and such. And there's a definitely ironic ending, so if you like those this may appeal to you. Keep in mind, though: it isn't the type of "karma via irony" where everyone gets what's due to them and lives happily ever after or meets justice or whatever. There isn't much black and white in this book, and there definitely aren't any happy endings. That said, I'll remind you that it's a very literary book and has a lot of depth and thoughtfulness to it. It wasn't exactly a book I was tripping over myself to keep reading, but I'm glad I did. Honestly, I think you kind of have to decide for yourself on this one. It's a bit polarizing. There's a copy at SHS, MEHS, and Kettleson.

Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson

"Ten years ago, Calamity came. It was a burst in the sky that gave ordinary men and women extraordinary powers. The awed public started calling them Epics. But Epics are no friend of man. With incredible gifts came the desire to rule. And to rule man you must crush his wills. 

Nobody fights the Epics...nobody but the Reckoners. A shadowy group of ordinary humans, they spend their lives studying Epics, finding their weaknesses, and then assassinating them. 

And David wants in. He wants Steelheart - the Epic who is said to be invincible. The Epic who killed David's father. For years, like the Reckoners, David's been studying, and planning - and he has something they need. Not an object, but an experience.He's seen Steelheart bleed. And he wants revenge."

I will admit, when I first picked this book up, I was very skeptical, simply because rip-roaring action/adventure is not my typical reading choice. After reading the first few pages though, I was utterly hooked; the fighting is described in a way that reads like a good heist movie, the concept is a captivating twist on superheroes, and the motivation of the main character is believable and interesting to follow. The characters who fight alongside David all have their own quirks that make them fun to read about and easy to cheer for, as well. 
There is a dry humor throughout the dialogue and in David's narrative, and the friendship he has with the main female character really is quite amusing. 

To be completely honest, my favorite part of the book was the ending--the entire book was an extremely well done, fast-paced build-up to what was a truly satisfying ending, and I highly recommend that if you spot this book on a shelf you should snatch it up and immerse yourself in a world of steel, action, and superheroes gone wrong. 

Outcasts United by Warren St. John

"This young people's version of the adult bestseller, Outcasts United: An American Town, a Refugee Team, and One Woman's Quest to Make a Difference, is a complex and inspirational story about the Fugees, a youth soccer team made up of diverse refugees from around the world, and their formidable female coach, Luma Mufleh. Clarkston, Georgia, was a typical southern town until it became a refugee resettlement center. The author explores how the community changed with the influx of refugees and how the dedication of Lumah Mufleh and the entire Fugees soccer team inspired an entire community."

Hmm. Well, it was a true story, which is always nice, and the subject matter was pretty interesting--the background of all the boys and everything touched on different issues that you don't normally read about--but the writing. I'm sorry, but it was not enjoyable to read because it's literally a 200-page news article. That's what it is, and it's going to give you the facts. It gives play-by-plays of the soccer games, way more than I needed personally, but hey. If you're into soccer, might be your thing. And I mean, I didn't hate it; like I said earlier, the story in general was super interesting and all the characters had an incredibly rich background. The story was good all on its own, and I'd suggest it if solely for that. You could try it, I s'pose. There's copies at SHS and MEHS.

The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

"Set in the harsh Puritan community of seventeenth-century Boston, this tale of an adulterous entanglement that results in an illegitimate birth reveals Nathaniel Hawthorne's concerns with the tension between the public and the private selves. Publicly disgraced and ostracized, Hester Prynne draws on her inner strength and certainty of spirit to emerge as the first true heroine of American fiction. Arthur Dimmesdale, trapped by the rules of society, stands as a classic study of a self divided."

Yes, I know. A classic. Shudder. Before you start lobbing the holy water, though, hear this one out: it won't kill you.  In fact, you may actually end up learning something. There are two main points people bring up if they're arguing against or for this book. On the positive side, the story and material are incredibly thought-provoking and compelling. Characters are strong in their attributes, themes are clear and present, and people can get invested in the things happening. On the critical side, Hawthorne's writing is a bit painful at times. He has a fondness for sentences that take three left turns before arriving at his point; commas and semicolons are his addiction. Additionally, some argue that his symbolism is wrought into everything and the reader is too blatantly hit over the head by it. 
So, my opinion? I think the positive's definitely worth considering. It's one of those books that's very worth it to have read and thought about, not just for the sake of being able to say you've read it. It's very true, though, that the criticism of the writing has some true basis. Some sentences need to be read several times to figure out the original point, and the language on a whole doesn't exactly make for a fluid read. Still, I've read worse, and I think the interest of the characters and themes wins out for me. (Especially Hester. She's pretty incredible). I think I'd recommend it--granted you have a bit of tolerance for exposition. There's copies at Kettleson, Sitka High, and MEHS.

The Queen of the Tearling by Erica Johansen

"Kelsea Glynn is the sole heir to the throne of Tearling but has been raised in secret by foster parents after her mother - Queen Elyssa, as vain as she was stupid - was murdered for ruining her kingdom. For 18 years, the Tearling has been ruled by Kelsea's uncle in the role of Regent however he is but the debauched puppet of the Red Queen, the sorceress-tyrant of neighboring realm of Mortmesme. On Kelsea's 19th birthday, the tattered remnants of her mother's guard - each pledged to defend the queen to the death - arrive to bring this most un-regal young woman out of hiding...

And so begins her journey back to her kingdom's heart, to claim the throne, earn the loyalty of her people, overturn her mother's legacy and redeem the Tearling from the forces of corruption and dark magic that are threatening to destroy it. But Kelsea's story is not just about her learning the true nature of her inheritance - it's about a heroine who must learn to acknowledge and live with the realities of coming of age in all its insecurities and attractions, alongside the ethical dilemmas of ruling justly and fairly while simply trying to stay alive..."

Hello, all! My name is Valerie, and I am the latest addition to this fabulous blog. My reading interests are all over the place, but I mostly stick with fiction, epic fantasy being my weakness. I hope that the reviews I will be posting on here will be of interest to you!

Speaking of reviews, I cannot say enough about The Queen of the Tearling. This was a book that I happened to grab on my way out of the library one day this summer, and I have no regrets in finishing it in one very long sitting. Kelsea, the main character, goes through a truly wonderful character development throughout the book, and the entire time I was reading I was cheering for her. She does not fall into the trap of an angst-filled love triangle while fighting to keep her life; instead, Kelsea takes ahold of the massive job that is handed to her and she runs with it. Immediately upon arriving at what is apparently her new castle, the young queen starts overturning and disrupting every single way of life that had been allowed to become stagnate and foul while she was coming of age. Reading about this scared young woman stepping far out of her comfort zone and seizing the chance to make things better even though she is sacrificing everything is really an incredible read. The fact that there is an attractive bandit hiding out in the woods and loads of fascinating new magic thrown around in the story definitely helps, too. 
Also, one thing that made me want to start over again at page one when I finished the book was a little nugget of information near the end that hinted that the entire storyline that was just read is not entirely what you thought it was...as I don't want to divulge any of the books tantalizing secrets, I will leave off by telling you, dear readers, to go and devour this book. Well, not literally. But I do hope you grab a copy of The Queen of the Tearling and read it if you get the chance, as it is a swashbuckling, adventurous, and magical book that I would easily give a sound five stars to.

Change in the Wind...

Hi! Soo, you might have seen this coming or not, I have an announcement that I think is gonna change things but maybe have an upside! Just hear me out.

Essentially, my free time is at an all-time low. I need to have a serious talk with whoever said junior year was going to be the hardest--yeah, no. Senior year is the year of ten million things and I'm going crazy. The book-a-week thing, while incredibly fun and I love doing it, I have no time for. To that end, I've enlisted my wonderful and gorgeous friend Valerie Chinalski to help me tag-team this blog. At this point we're each going to post one a month, so you'll get a review every two weeks. I know, slower and everything, but trust me, this is gonna work a lot better for us and I'm super excited to have Valerie help me. She's awesome, trust me. And if you, dear reader, love to read and would love to give your quick opinion on a book every month, talk to me! I'm always open to more people!

Alright, that's it for now! Thanks for bearing with me!

Blegh.

I know, I didn't upload yesterday. I succumbed to one of those freaking viruses floating around, and right now I need to sleep and catch up on the homework that was just loaded on me. Sorry, I think that week's kind of a lost cause. I'll have one up for this coming week, though. I hope. Feeling awful can't last forever, right?

Still Life With Woodpecker by Tom Robbins

"Still Life with Woodpecker is a sort of a love story that takes place inside a pack of Camel cigarettes. It reveals the purpose of the moon, explains the difference between criminals and outlaws, examines the conflict between social activism and romantic individualism, and paints a portrait of contemporary society that includes powerful Arabs, exiled royalty, and pregnant cheerleaders. It also deals with the problem of redheads."

So, this was recommended by a friend (incidentally, the same one who gave me Good Omens, so I tend to trust her judgment. This one did pretty well, too). Remember when I said Kurt Vonnegut required a certain type of person to enjoy his stuff? Yeah, that's what's going on here, too. Even more so, if possible. That's not to say it wasn't good--it was. It was pretty unexpected, from every angle, but funny and with some spot-on themes presented very uniquely. The characters were all very colorful, though admittedly none were really completely sympathetic. The problem was just that their choices and actions were, every once in a while, a bit strange or not understandable. The friend who lent me this explained it perfectly: something about a Tom Robbins book just gives you a faint suspicion that you might not like the author very much if you met in person. That's the best way I can find to form it into words. But that's not to say that it was an unenjoyable book, on the whole. He has an interesting relationship with the English language and metaphors/similes that captures things unexpectedly and perfectly (it only occasionally strays into weird nonsense) and there are some really priceless themes in it. Overall, it's a book about a redheaded princess living in Seattle, the redheaded bomber she falls in love with, and the central question of how to make love stay. If you're into Kurt Vonnegut or surrealism, this might be a hit. I think it's one that you kind of just have to form your own opinion about... it's at Kettleson in the fiction section. Try it!

Mostly Harmless by Douglas Adams

"Arthur Dent hadn't had a day as bad as this since the Earth had been blown up.

Depressed and alone, Arthur finally settles on the small planet Lamuella and becomes a sandwich maker. Looking forward to a quiet life, his plans are thrown awry by the unexpected arrival of his daughter.

There’s nothing worse than a frustrated teenager with a copy of the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy in their hands. When she runs away – Arthur goes after her determined to save her from the horrors of the universe.

After all – he’s encountered most of them before…"

If I ever give a Douglas Adams book a bad review, please alert a medical professional as it's a very good indicator that I've gone off the deep end. Of course, your mileage may vary with it, because it's a very... interesting niche he's cornered, but honestly these are some of the most enjoyable books I've read. This one was no different--true, I do still think So Long and Thanks for All the Fish might trump it slightly, but it still has the minimum Adams requirements, such as: one fit of unexpected and uncontrollable laughter, two inconveniently timed public giggling spells, and at least a dozen other amazing quotes worthy of marking. Held with the formula, was brilliant as always, and I was quite happy. True, in the lineup of his books it might fall around the middle ranking, but there was nothing actually a problem. A good, solid, pretty-hilarious book. Four stars from me, and as always, if I could personally buy the series for you I would. But I'm cheap and I have no idea who you are, so that's on you. I can offer my undying affection, that's about it. Anyway, go get a copy of this at Sitka High or Kettleson. Ciao!

Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut

"In Breakfast of Champions, one of Kurt Vonnegut’s  most beloved characters, the aging writer Kilgore Trout, finds to his horror that a Midwest car dealer is taking his fiction as truth. What follows is murderously funny satire, as Vonnegut looks at war, sex, racism, success, politics, and pollution in America and reminds us how to see the truth."

Dear God, this man is not afraid of anything. He doesn't care whose feelings he hurts or who he offends, and for me, it's awesome. Because, honestly, every single possibly offensive thing laid out in this book is something that's been believed, said, or done by Americans at one point or another. No lie. He just says it in the simplest forms possible, and if people somehow find it more offensive than the way they'd been rationalizing the issue, that's kind of the point. The book's written as if trying to educate an alien race about America, finding simplistic and surprising ways to explain things about us. A lot of them are funny, most are fairly ridiculous, and all are eye-opening. I liked it a lot (disclaimer: I was raised by reformed hippies, so I have a healthy dose of cynicism about America, and that might tell you a little about whether you might like this book). This little gem popped up in the first chapter:
“1492. As children we were taught to memorize this year with pride and joy as the year people began living full and imaginative lives on the continent of North America. Actually, people had been living full and imaginative lives on the continent of North America for hundreds of years before that. 1492 was simply the year sea pirates began to rob, cheat, and kill them.” 
So yeah, that's a good gauge of his sense of humor. It's not for some, granted.
Now, I'd like to touch on the point that there's a reason this is in the adult fiction section.It's mature, in the very literal sense that you need to have a good measure of maturity for it to get its point across. If you start uncontrollably giggling at suggestive situations, maybe read this in a couple years. It's satire. It's got a message. And it was amazing. Anyway, there's a copy at Kettleson. If this looked appealing to you, I super highly suggest it. 4.5 stars.

Thirteen Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson

"Inside little blue envelope 1 are $1,000 and instructions to buy a plane ticket.

In envelope 2 are directions to a specific London flat.

The note in envelope 3 tells Ginny: Find a starving artist.

Because of envelope 4, Ginny and a playwright/thief/ bloke–about–town called Keith go to Scotland together, with somewhat disastrous–though utterly romantic–results. But will she ever see him again?

Everything about Ginny will change this summer, and it's all because of the 13 little blue envelopes."

Taking a break from the sloggy classics, here's a pure fluff piece that you can get through in a couple of days and stay entertained. And honestly, it isn't quite as flat-out cheesy as you may be thinking. Well, just a little bit. But in a fun way. The summary kinda deceives you, too, I should mention: the Scotland trip's just a shortish bit near the beginning, before she keeps following the envelopes and all sorts of other interesting things happen. So thankfully the romance isn't the end-all. It's more about Ginny processing the circumstances around the person that wrote the letters, her aunt. There's a fair bit of processing and character development and all that--again, only slightly stereotypical--set against a whole slew of pretty European backgrounds and tasks. Plus, Ginny's narrative is slightly quirky and funny, which is kinda nice. It's not Great American Literature or anything, but it's fun and involving to read. I started and finished it with definitely time to spare in a single eight-hour leg of our road trip, so it goes fast. Maybe four stars. There'll be a copy at Kettleson.

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

"Since his debut in 1951 as The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield has been synonymous with "cynical adolescent." Holden narrates the story of a couple of days in his sixteen-year-old life, just after he's been expelled from prep school, in a slang that sounds edgy even today and keeps this novel on banned book lists. It begins,
"If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you'll probably want to know is where I was born and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had me, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap, but I don't feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth. In the first place, that stuff bores me, and in the second place, my parents would have about two hemorrhages apiece if I told anything pretty personal about them."

His constant wry observations about what he encounters, from teachers to phonies (the two of course are not mutually exclusive) capture the essence of the eternal teenage experience of alienation."

I'll just come out and say it: this was not an enjoyable book for me. It seems like it might not be incredibly joyous for anyone, but I think the key factor between someone loving and hating this book is whether or not they identify with Holden. I didn't, personally. I couldn't stand him. From someone who's stubborn and determined to the point of insanity, the slacking, apathetic boy who throws away every opportunity and resource just doesn't appeal to me. He's kind of pretentious and obnoxious, and he's exactly the kind of hypocrite he hates. I get that it's part of the theme and the point, but when he goes around calling every single person a phony and gets offended by taking enjoyment from anything mainstream, I get a little tired. I'll point out that it isn't all bad; there are spots where some insightful and human comments sneak out from the cynicism, which are valuable, but overall it's not quite enough to make it enjoyable. Partly it's because of the plot, which never really climaxes and is very repetitive. The one plotline that I really wanted to see followed through, gets left hanging. And partly it's because there's a total of one sympathetic/likable character out of the dozens in the book (Holden's younger sister). Most are actually incredibly grating and awful; I don't find them comical or whatever, it just gets me irritated. It might be very affecting to those who relate, who feel like Salinger "gets" them, but I wasn't one of those people. Sorry for the letdown, Salinger fans. We're just not gonna see eye to eye. The copies are at Kettleson, SHS, BMS, and MEHS. I'm not going to recommend it, but I'll let you form your own opinion.

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

"Paulo Coelho's enchanting novel has inspired a devoted following around the world. This story, dazzling in its powerful simplicity and inspiring wisdom, is about an Andalusian shepherd boy named Santiago who travels from his homeland in Spain to the Egyptian desert in search of a treasure buried in the Pyramids. Along the way he meets a Gypsy woman, a man who calls himself king, and an alchemist, all of whom point Santiago in the direction of his quest. No one knows what the treasure is, or if Santiago will be able to surmount the obstacles along the way. But what starts out as a journey to find worldly goods turns into a discovery of the treasure found within. Lush, evocative, and deeply humane, the story of Santiago is an eternal testament to the transforming power of our dreams and the importance of listening to our hearts."

Hmm. This was very easy to get through, given that it was a fable and written in a deceptively simplistic style. It reminded me a lot of The Little Prince, actually, which is a very good thing. It had a huge amount of themes going on, almost more well-explored than The Little Prince--or at least more expounded upon. It was incredibly deep, and really applicable to anyone. I kind of liked reading it. It's only 160 pages, so it goes fast. The writing did just enough to give a really vibrant picture--nothing too sparse or wordy. One thing that I noticed was that the author says the boy's name in the first sentence and then never again. I got through halfway reading about "the boy" thinking it was just a fable-type trope, before going back and realizing that he actually had a name. So that was a little weird. But eh, I guess it just adds to the metaphor/fable vibe. This was very well-written, too; things were exceedingly symbolic in all ways, there were a lot of subtle layers, and I never got bored. It introduced me to a lot of interesting ideas. I still like The Little Prince probably better because it's just the coolest and cutest thing ever, but this one gave it a run for its money. I give four stars. And it's at Kettleson, Sitka High, and MEHS in the adult fiction section. Yay! Except all of them are closed, so eh. Anyway.