Lola and the Boy Next Door: Review

Title: Lola and the Boy Next Door

Author: Stephanie Perkins

Release Date: September 2011

Published By: Dutton

Pages: 338

Goodreads Rating: 4.23 stars

Review: Anna and the French Kiss was one of the most hotly anticipated books of last year and certainly lived up to the high expectations; now here's it's sequel. Budding designer Lola lives and breaths costumes, and her life is pretty much perfect, what with her rock star boyfriend - that is, until the Bell twins, Cricket and Calliope move back to town. Suddenly everything changes and she must reconcile a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door.

Well, I mean, it is Stephanie Perkins, so of course LOLA AND THE BOY NEXT DOOR was absolutely incredible. Somehow she manages to slap words on a page and they become ridiculously addicting, weaving a gorgeous story that has you satisfied and entertained with quite a bit of depth to go along with it. I had such a hard time putting this book down, and I was always looking forward to picking it up again.

One aspect I especially loved was just how realistic the romance felt. Usually in books when the girl has to dump the current boyfriend for the shiny new (or in this case, old) boy, it's painfully obvious to everyone but the protagonist just how awful the boyfriend is. However, here, while it was still clear that Max was a jerk, I could definitely understand why she still felt lingering emotions for him for part of the book.

As for Cricket, well, he's no St. Clair. He was still sweet and adorable, but I wasn't feeling it for him that much, which may be due in part to the name and the pin-striped pants. (Sorry, but I don't dig a guy in circus pants.) He's still better than most love interests, but just didn't live up to the expectations I had set up after meeting St. Clair in the companion novel. However, I will say that by the end of the book, the romance was just so freaking adorable that I even teared up a little in a certain scene.

And speaking of St. Clair, he and Anna made a cameo appearance that was totally welcome. It was interesting to see them through the eyes of a new set of characters, and it added that little extra fun element the novel. And really, that's how I would describe this book: fun. There was, of course, plenty of emotional happenings to beef up the plot and depth, but this is the kind of book you enjoy so much that you wait forever in line get your hands on the next companion novel - and that's exactly what I'll be doing.

The Kneebone Boy: Review

Title: The Kneebone Boy

Author: Ellen Potter

Release Date: September 2010

Published By: Feiwel & Friends

Pages: 288

Goodreads Rating: 3.84 stars

Review: When their father accidentally sends them to London to stay with an aunt who's actually on holiday, the Hardscrabble children have two choices: return home... or go on an adventure. Of course, they choose the latter. What follows is a wickedly dark and unusual adventure beginning with the seedy streets of the city and ending with a legendary creature who is reportedly half monster, half boy: the Kneebone Boy.

If you love the Series of Unfortunate Events, THE KNEEBONE BOY is definitely for you. It's the same time of charming middle grade novel that I absolutely loved in my younger years, and still enjoy now. From the mature humor to the wild and unique characters, this is a book made of pure awesome that will no doubt top my list of recommended middle grade lit.

Given that the synopsis mentioned that this is an adventure book with a mysterious Kneebone Boy, I expected a much faster pace than what actually happened. However, I don't think this is necessarily a bad thing, especially since the voice was just so readable. The narrator is supposed to be a secret (so you're not told which of the Hardscrabble children it is), but I thought it fairly obvious who it is, and he/she (in keeping with my no-spoilers policy) was delightfully funny.

Just like any charming middle grade novel, the characters were brilliantly dimensional. Each one clearly had a lot of thought put into him/her with a fully fleshed out personality and interesting traits. Their actions were at times unexpected (in a good way!) and this was true for the story overall; the ending was shocking and completely unanticipated, which made it all the more amazing.

All in all, THE KNEEBONE BOY is an excellent example of middle grade literature with well-rounded characters and a fascinating premise. The narration was humorous, the pacing was even, and the depth of the story was wonderful. This is truly a book I would have absolutely loved when I was younger, so I recommend it to any fans of MG lit or any one in the MG range.

Waiting on Wednesday (27)

This week, I'm waiting on...

Touching the Surface by Kimberly Sabatini. Here's what Goodreads has to say: Life altering mistakes are meant to alter lives…

When Elliot dies for the third time, she knows this is her last shot. There are no fourth-timers in this afterlife, so one more chance is all she has to get things right. But before she can move on to her next life, Elliot will be forced to face her past and delve into the painful memories she’d rather keep buried. Memories of people she’s hurt, people she’s betrayed…and people she’s killed.

As she pieces together the mistakes of her past, Elliot must earn the forgiveness of her best friend and reveal the truth about herself to the two boys she loves…even if it means losing them both forever.

Seriously, how awesome does this sound? I can't wait until it comes out!

Book Trailers

More and more, I see trailers being made for books, and I'm still not entirely sure how I feel about them. On one hand, they can often be very interesting and it's just always nice to see film interpretations of novels. For example, the "Shatter Me" trailer was very cool, added a lot to the book, and was just an intriguing portrayal overall.

However, I'm not convinced that trailers actually do much to heighten excitement for a book. I rarely watch them, and when I do, it's only for books that I'm already excited about. I guess overall book trailers don't really help or hurt - if I saw a really good one, I probably already plan to read it anyway, and if I saw a bad one, I'd assume it's just poor marketing because I'd already be appealed by the synopsis or cover.

What do you think about book trailers?