The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer

Hello, friends. Just finished up Michelle Hodkin's debut novel, The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, and I was not disappointed. First of all, check out this cover:

Isn't it pretty? And not only is it pretty, but it also feels pretty, kind of satiny smooth. Enough about the cover, here's the dish on the book itself.

I honestly didn't know what to expect from the book because I hadn't seen/read anything about it. I was intrigued by the cover (because yes, I do judge books by their covers) so I thought it would be a good read. The story itself is something many people can relate to. Mara is a teenage girl recovering from a tragic experience in a new town. From there, the story takes on a more psychological exploration of how she deals with her previous trauma as well as adjusting to a new school, where she manages to ostracize herself from day one. The story takes a quirky turn into some supernatural elements that I was not really expecting. However, I probably should have expected them. They are slowly unraveled as the story progresses, sometimes almost too neatly. And the ending? There are really no clear answers at the end of the story, which pretty much ensures that there will be a sequel (yay!). Would I recommend it? Absolutely.

Now I'm trying to decide which of the hundreds of books I have I will read next. Any suggestions?
Until the next time, happy reading!

Back in the blog-o-sphere!

Hello friends. I am officially back in the blog-o-sphere and have just returned from this year's fabulous NCTE/ALAN conference with a huge pile of new books to read and review. First up is this book:

I received this book Friday and finished it Sunday. I definitely gobbled it up. First off, I was totally fasinated by this book because it is a combination of pictures and literature. From what I have heard, the author (Ransom Riggs) collected the photos then used them to write a story. Intriguing? Absolutely.

The photo/literature combination is well balanced throughout the book. I can definitely tell that a lot of planning went into the story because there were pictures later on in the story that just fit so well with where he took the story. Also, the story itself is fascinating. I won't give too many details, but basically it is all about a young man who finds himself as he realizes that sometimes stories that seem fantastical can come true. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and found that I couldn't put it down. Some of the pictures are a little creepy (and they are actual vintage photos the author collected from others), and initially I chose this book first because of that. Here are a few:

          

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone interested in a good story.

Next up? The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin. So far, so good.

Until next time, happy reading!