Monday 23 November 2015

Every Day


by David Levithan

'A' is a soul who wakes up in a different body every single day. This has been happening since the day he/she was born. Every day 'A', who is of indeterminate gender, race and physical appearance, gets to be the person whose body he/she is inhibiting, and has access to their memories and to their lives.

The day 'A' wakes up in the body of Justin seems like it will be an average day in the life of a moody teenage jock, until 'A'
meets Justin's girlfriend, Rhiannon.
 

The next day, 'A' is in a different body again, but is unable to forget Rhiannon. From that moment on, 'A' goes against his/her code of conduct and has only one goal each day - to reconnect with Rhiannon, in whatever body he/she may be inhabiting that day.

I loved this book and the questions it brought up - like, how interconnected are attraction and physicality? What is it that makes you love a person? What, if anything, separates what 'A' does from what some religions would consider demonic possession? And if you could truly walk in another person's shoes for a day, how do you think it would change you? 

Another Day is the companion novel, which tells the story from Rhiannon's perspective.

 

Tuesday 3 November 2015

Stone in the Sky


https://yourlibrary.bibliocommons.com/item/show/1016357101_stone_in_the_sky
Stone in the Sky
By Cecil Castellucci
Have you ever gone to the library to pick up the newest book series only to find that the first book in the series is out. Well that is what happened here but I decided to try reading the second book first and see how it went. I was not disappointed at all. I was able to follow the story even though I had not read the first book, Tin Star. Stone in the Sky is set in space and filled with aliens and adventure this book is a wonderful look at the human experience. Our main character, Tula, has not had it easy but she has found her place, safety, a home and a family. Award winning author Cecil Castellucci brings the reader to a remote space station near a resource rich planet. Beings from across the universe, some very dangerous, are descending upon the planet in the hopes of becoming rich. Unfortunately, for Tula, one of these people is the man who nearly killed her many years ago. Readers should be ready for an intense read when they pick this up. Adventure, intrigue and romance fills this duet of novels. According to the author this series is only going to be two books long, unlike many series and trilogies on the YA shelves.

Monday 2 November 2015

Book of the Month: November - 100 Sideways Miles

100 Sideways Miles
by Andrew Smith

Here's what you need to know about Finn Easton: He has one blue eye and one green eye. He lives in the shadow of his father's cult-classic book, in which the main character bears an uncanny resemblance to Finn. He measures the world in miles instead of minutes. He plays baseball. As a little kid, a dead horse falling from a bridge broke Finn's back and killed his mother. The aftermath is that Finn is scarred and suffers from epileptic seizures.

If this is sounding a bit strange, let's not forget that this story also features knackeries, abandoned prisons, and a lot of raunchy analogies for the symbol : | :

One summer, Finn falls in love with a girl named Julia. After Julia moves back home, Finn and his best friend Cade go on a road trip to Oklahoma. The boys leave in hopes of figuring out life after high school, but their involvement in an unexpected accident rewrites their future.

When author Andrew Smith went on a book tour earlier this year, his tagline was "Keep YA Weird". He is the master of offbeat, experimental fiction and this coming-of-age story was the perfect combo of great writing, likeable characters and a dash of weirdness.

Other books like 100 Sideways Miles: An Abundance of Katherines by John Green, Noggin by John Corey Whaley, Grasshopper Jungle by Andrew Smith, Going Bovine by Libba Bray