Miss Lowe's Book Nook

Oh, Thanksgiving break! A great time to catch up on reading. I just breezed through Denton Little's Death Date  by Lance Rubin. It was not at all what I expected, and I was pleasantly surprised! Imagine a world in which you knew the exact day you were going to die. In Denton's world, that's exactly what it's like. When you're born, they take a bit of your hair and blood and do some scientific mumbo-jumbo and boom, they can figure out the day the Grim Reaper is going to come knocking on your door. Denton is what they an "early"- he's slated to die before he turns 21. Before he graduates high school, in fact, on the day of senior prom. He has been living his life as normally as he can, going to school and being an average joe. Two nights before his "death date", his average streak is shattered. After an alcohol-blurred night, things get weird. Strange people show up. Odd things start happening. Denton's death date is nothing like he imagi...

Wow, I am on a roll this week! Another book down. I sped through a newer novel this weekend- The Rest of Us Just Live Here , by Patrick Ness. I was pleasantly surprised by it! Have you ever wondered what the background characters in a book feel? In your dramatic fantasy novels, with zombie apocalypses and vampire love triangles, what is going on in the heads of the innocent bystanders? That's who this story was about. Mike, Mel, Henna, and Jared all live in a nondescript suburb of a nondescript city. They're not "indie kids", those cool-but-also-geeky types who always end up saving the world. They're just average. There are indie kids around, sure, but they don't really talk to the normal kids- too busy stopping soul-eating ghosts to mingle. But Mike and his pals have their own, less supernatural, problems. Anxiety, complicated family lives, teen love, and even more complex issues come up. The four friends just want to make it through graduation- but will th...

It's November! Less than two months until CHRISTMAS! I really really really love Christmas. So I started my holiday season off right, with an excellent re-read - Let It Snow , a three-part story by John Green, Maureen Johnson, and Lauren Myracle. I first read it last year around Christmas time, so I was looking forward to reading it again. It was just as good the second time around! Each author wrote their own story, but they all intertwined and overlapped, sometimes in unexpected ways. It was so fun to be reading one story and recognize characters from another. The individual tales centered on love stories, of course; specifically, Jubilee and Stuart, Tobin and Angie, and Jeb and Addie. All of stories took place within 48 hours- from Christmas Eve through the day after Christmas. They also all take place in the same town- the little hamlet of Gracetown, which is hit with an insane snowstorm, and because of it, six teenagers fall in love. The writers all brin...

Finding time to read in college is hard! But I finally finished another book, Rick Riordan's latest teen-hero extravaganza, Magnus Chase and the Sword of Summer. This is Riordan's first novel in a new series, one that deals with the Norse gods. He gained fame with his work with the Greeks, so I was interested to see how he handled the opposite end of the spectrum- the harsh Norse myths differ greatly from the fun-loving Greeks. With this in mind, I realized I know pretty much nothing about Norse mythology. All the information I had previously gleaned was from the Thor movies, and apparently those are not entirely true to the original myths. So I learned quite a bit on my journey with Magnus. Our adventure begins with Magnus Chase, a young homeless guy in Boston. He's orphaned, ekes out a life on the streets, and loves falafel. When people from his past start looking for him, he attempts to find out more about his family- most specifically, his Uncle Randolph, who his mo...

Gosh, college is busy! But I finally got around to reading another book. I just finished Anatomy of a Misfit by Andrea Portes. I expected a relatively lighthearted read, so it hurt even more when it took my heart and crumpled it up like a paper ball. Our main character is Anika, a tenth grader in Lincoln, Nebraska. Her dad is a famous Romanian professor, and she lived with him until she was ten. Then, she moved in with her relatively normal mother in the middle of America. She is, proudly, the third most popular girl in school. In her somewhat tenuous position in the social hierarchy, her life is a constant struggle between her outer bubblegum self, and her inner, self-described "spider stew". I quite liked Anika as a character. She's snarky, spunky, and has no idea what she's doing most of the time. She's real, and I related to her easily. Her predicament begins in the form of Logan McDonough. Last year's social pariah, this year Logan has a whole new look...

Last week I read David Lubar's classic Hidden Talents . This week I read the sequel, True Talents . It was another fantastic ride! This tale of the boys of Edgeview takes place nearly a year after the first book, after all of the boys have been released from the school. Trash, the resident telekinetic, wakes up in a lab, unable to remember how he got there. He escapes, and is soon fending for himself in the bustling metropolis of Philadelphia. Soon, the other boys find themselves drawn there as well, for various reasons. Problems and foes surround them at every turn, but the boys' talents, and more importantly, their bond, put them on top in the end. True Talents is a bit of a different creature than its predecessor. Though most of the story is from Trash's POV, several chapters are from the POVs of the other boys, which was a bit confusing at times. However, it was necessary for the story, so I was okay with it. The story is also more divided, with sections that...

Hello! I just started college, so I have been super busy, but this week I finally had time to finish a book! This one was actually a reread for me- Hidden Talents , by David Lubar. I first read this book in about 8th grade, so it was really like reading it for the first time again. I loved it just as much the second time! Hidden Talents tells the tale of Martin, a skinny young guy with an attitude problem. He's been kicked out of so many schools that he's on his last chance- Edgeview Alternative, a beat-up and run down dump of a school. He's suddenly surrounded by the worst of the worst, kids who have been kicked out of even more schools than he has. People like Torchie, his roommate, who is constantly setting fires; Cheater, who always manages to have the exact same answers as his neighbor; and Lucky, who can't seem to stop stealing things. But soon, Martin realizes that there may be something bigger going on at Edgeview, and he's determined to get to the bottom...

Within the past year, I have discovered the magic that is Studio Ghibli. My favorite (right now) of their creations is Howl's Moving Castle , an amazing work of art and storytelling. However, I learned that it was originally a book! Diana Wynne Jones created the story first, and her reputation preceded her. I knew I had to read the book. It did not disappoint! I can confidently say that Howl's Moving Castle is now one of my favorite books. The plot is surprisingly similar to the movie, just more complex. (The movie obviously had to slim it down a bit.) There are more characters in the book, and a few of them have slightly different personalities. If you haven't seen the movie (you poor deprived thing!), our main character is Sophie. She lives a boring life making hats, but then is cursed by the Witch of the Waste. She ends up becoming a cleaning lady for the Wizard Howl, who has a fearsome reputation. I won't give much more away- it's too good, read it yourself! ...

With all the buzz about the new Jurassic World movie, I wanted to go back to the beginning. So I decided to read the book that started it all- Michael Crichton's Jurassic Park . And boy, was it a thrill ride! I haven't seen any of the original movies either, so I was coming in with no concept of the plot, except that it was full of dinosaurs. I was pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoyed this read! Crichton's style is boom-boom-boom, with short chapters and constantly changing POVs. It made the book feel like a roller coaster, like you were living the adventure right alongside the characters. There wasn't a "main character" per say, more like a group of characters whose POVs we observed. All of the stories connected and overlapped, and I loved when one character's view would answer questions that had been asked in another. My favorite character, however, was Dr. Grant. He was one of the larger characters, with a large chunk of the plot centered arou...

This week I read the new hit on the indie circuit- Me and Earl & The Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews. I wasn't sure what to expect from this book, but it blew everything I even sort of thought out of the water. I laughed out loud nearly every single page. (People commented on my laughter because it was so obnoxious.) The subject wasn't too laughable itself, but the writing style and asides were HILARIOUS. Our main character, Greg, is The King of Blending In. He's everybody's friend and yet nobody's friend. His only real sort-of friend is Earl, a tough, chain-smoking, tiny, cursing burrito of anger. (I LOVED HIM.) They make films together and are generally disgusting and hilarious. Greg is our narrator, and the first few chapters were dedicated to introductions and backstory. Usually I'm not a huge fan of this, but Greg's self-depreciation and Earl's foul mouth made for an entertaining ride that I quite enjoyed. The meat of the story sounds like the beg...

My brain hurts thanks to this book. Megan Shepherd's The Cage  is pretty twisted. Honestly, I'm not entirely sure if I liked it or not. The concept was really cool- Cora, an American girl, and five other international sixteen-year-olds are abducted by aliens called the Kindred. They wake up in a freakish world that contains a desert, a jungle, a farm, and other biomes that don't really mesh. All Cora wants to do is escape for this strange world that makes her brain hurt. But the odd climates and the stores in the tiny hodgepodge town are full of puzzles. The six are supposed to solve them, and follow three rules. If they don't follow all three within 21 days, they will be "removed". Without my giving anything away, Cora does everything she can do to escape before the 21-day mark.  Overall, sounds cool, right? It was more of an "eh" for me. For some reason, while the majority of the chapters are told from Cora's perspective, every few is from the...

After a long hiatus, I return with a stunning read- Diamond Boy by Michael Williams. When I first picked up this book, I wasn't really expecting to be wowed. It sounded interesting enough, but I really just though I was lacking in the semi-historical fiction department. But this book delivered. We are spun a tale of change, desperation, hope, tragedy, and rebirth. The book seems to begin slowly, but within a chapter or two I could barely but the book down! Patson Moyo is our main character, a young boy from Zimbabwe. At the beginning of the story, he and his family are traveling to a new home. Many obstacles ensue, and they end up arriving on the doorstep of his step-uncle, who runs a diamond mine. When other options fall through, Patson and his father end up working for the mine. We experience everything from Patson's POV, in first person, which makes the story all the more personal. Williams' writing surprised me with its deftness- I could imagine the entire story with ...

I'm on a Sarah Dessen streak- I recently read her newest book, Saint Anything . I absolutely ADORED this book. It's probably my new favorite Sarah Dessen yarn. She weaves us the story of Sydney, a girl invisible in her own life. She lives in the infamous shadow of her troubled brother, who has always been her parents' priority. To escape this shadow after a particularly painful incident, Sydney transfers from her swanky private school to the public high school. There, she blends in, initially. But a spontaneous trip to a nearby pizza parlor changes everything. The family that owns the parlor soon welcomes Sydney in, and she begins to see the world in a completely different way. Dessen's signature wit and charm bring Sydney and the other characters fully to life. We see how all the relationships between Sydney and her compatriots change throughout the book- from strangers to friends and maybe, even more. One of my favorite points of this book is when Sydney realizes that...

What? Two posts in two days? Insanity. Quite quickly, I finished Sarah Dessen's Just Listen . I am not traditionally a fan of her books, but I adored this one. Dessen pulls us into a tale of finding out what you really want, bringing together a family, and learning to listen. Our main character is Annabel, the youngest of three sisters. As the story unfolds, we see the light and dark sides of her family and what they go through. The actions of all the family members affect Annabel's story. The scene is set with Annabel avoiding her once best friend, for reasons then unknown. But Annabel's social ostracization (?) brings new people into her life, including Owen, the large school mystery. With Owen's help, Annabel discovers what is perhaps her true self, which results in an internal struggle that makes Annabel's life spin out of control. I finished this book in just over two days- as you can tell, I was riveted. Dessen's yarn has so many facets, nearly anyone can...

My most recent read had me holding tight to the pages to the very end! I just finished Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard, and boy was it GOOD. I had heard a lot of good things about this book- there was a lot of buzz on EpicReads about it, so I was intrigued. I was not let down! Aveyard weaves us a tale of a somewhat dystopian future in a world that is eerily similar to ours, but also extremely different. The land of Norta is inhabited by two types of people- those whose blood is red and those whose is silver. Those with red blood are just like us, regular humans. However, those with silver had extraordinary powers, ranging from the ability to control fire to the ability to bend light and seem invisible. The Silvers, as they are called, maintain a firm hold over the country as its rulers. The Reds are forced into near slavery, fulfilling all menial tasks, from food preparation to filling the ranks of the army. The main character of Aveyard's yarn is Mare Barrow, a spirited young Red ...

Another of my recent reads is a sequel to a book I've talked about on here! If you can remember, last fall I wrote about The Naturals , a Criminal Minds-esque teen mystery novel. I just finished the next book in the series- Killer Instinct . And let me tell you, Jennifer Lynn Barnes was just as good the second time around! She continues the story of Cassie and the rest of her housemates, all superbly talented in interesting fields, including lie detecting and profiling. They all think they're stuck helping with cold cases- then a new murder crashes into their world, especially affecting one of their own. The thrilling chase to catch a serial killer (or two?!) has the reader on tenterhooks through every page turn. No paper cuts from turning pages too eagerly, please! Barnes' unique perspectives in her writing give the reader intriguing new ways to interpret the story, and help you solve the mystery right along with the characters! All I can say is, this is one rad mystery t...

I've been a busy reader of late, but unfortunately not a busy blogger! But my latest read was so good, I couldn't NOT share it! Just yesterday, I finished Paula Stokes' newest book: Liars, Inc.  And boy, was it a thrill! I was enthralled from the first page, and could barely put the book down! Stokes weaves us the tale of Max, a high school senior who doesn't quite fit. Max is adopted, and doesn't care about much beyond surfing and his girlfriend, Parvati. She and Max's best friend, Preston, are both rich, talented, and popular. But they are the unbeatable trio- the cool kids who don't care to be cool. Part way through their senior year, they come up with a genius money making scheme that they dub "Liars, Inc."- in essence, a lying service for their fellow students. They forge permission slips, call in sick masquerading as parents, even switch tests- all for hefty fees. Soon, the dough is flooding in. Then Preston asks Max for his own cover story, ...

Yet another triumphant return! This time I bring you The Vault of Dreamers by Caragh M. O'Brien. This book was a brain smasher. Our setting is a school, of all things- a very special art school, called The Forge. Students are televised, 12 hours a day. Their entire education doubles as a reality show. The other 12 hours they are asleep, thanks to sleeping medicine. We follow the Forge journey of a girl named Rosie, an aspiring film maker. She makes interesting friends, including a kitchen staffer named Linus. In her journey, Rosie discovers that maybe not everything is as it seems at the Forge school. Rosie tries to follow up on her suspicions, but keeps getting tripped up. Could there be something larger than she ever suspected going on? O'Brien throws us into a tale of madness, emotion, and dreams. The evocative writing and story itself keep the reader glued to the pages to the last- although I personally was let down by the ending. However, an excellent book over all, and I...