Review: Babe in Boyland by Jody Gehrman

Title: Babe in Boyland
Author: Jody Gehrman
Publisher: Dial
Publication Date: February 17, 2011
Links: Amazon | Goodreads
Source: Purchased

Natalie is Dr. Aphrodite - the love guru for her high school paper. But Natalie's relationship advice is totally bombing, especially when it comes to knowing what guys really think and want. When she tries to investigate, the guys in her class won't give her serious or straight answers.

The only solution? Disguising herself as a guy and spending a week at Underwood Academy, the private all-boys boarding school in town. There "Nat" learns a lot about guys and girls in ways she never expected - especially when she falls for her dreamy roommate, Emilio. How can she show him she likes him without blowing her cover?

Babe in Boyland is a cute and funny book that is reminiscent of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. It's got cross-dressing disguise, drama, misunderstandings, fun characters, and hilarity.

Natalie is a fun character to follow. She is determined to do what she must in order to get her story, which is admirable. Upon going undercover and disguising herself as a boy, she transforms from girlish and confident to graceless and unsure, since she has no idea how to act like a guy, and there are plenty of laughs to be had at her expense. She's also got an enjoyable cast of characters around her. Her two best friends are awesome - one quirky and sweet, one bitchy but endearing. The guys at Underwood come in all varieties, from geeky but lovable social leper to dreamboat to jerk face.

The first third or so of the novel is a little slower than the rest because Natalie isn't at Underwood for that part - it's groundwork and preparation for the undercover work, and is less interesting by comparison. Once she arrives at Underwood the story picks up considerably as its amusing and awkward factors multiply. Natalie faces plenty of challenges undercover and the absurdity of it all is constantly entertaining. The bits involving Nat and Emilio and the torture that it presents to Natalie are awkward in a fun way. I do wish we could've gotten another few scenes involving the two of them, because I enjoyed those, but I don't necessarily feel that more of them was needed to make the story work. I felt her frustration at being disguised as a boy and by the end I couldn't wait for Natalie to get to be a girl again. The plot is a little predictable, but the shenanigans more than make up for that.

Babe in Boyland is a lively and delightful book. If you saw and liked the movie She's the Man (a re-imagining of Twelfth Night) with Amanda Bynes and Channing Tatum, then you would probably like this book as well. Or if, like me, you just can't help but love a good girl-disguised-as-boy heroine.

Review: Between Here and Forever by Elizabeth Scott

Title: Between Here and Forever
Author: Elizabeth Scott
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Publication Date: May 24, 2011
Links: Amazon | Goodreads
Source: Galley Grab

Abby accepted that she can't measure up to her beautiful, magnetic sister Tess a long time ago, and knows exactly what she is: Second best. Invisible.

Until the accident.

Now Tess is in a coma, and Abby's life is on hold. It may have been hard living with Tess, but it's nothing compared to living without her.

She's got a plan to bring Tess back though, involving the gorgeous and mysterious Eli, but then Abby learns something about Tess, something that was always there, but that she'd never seen.

Abby is about to find out that truth isn't always what you think it is, and that life holds more than she ever thought it could...

If I had to describe Abby in three words, I would say she is ascerbic, sad, and insecure. She's a sympathetic character who is trying to escape her sister's shadow, which is even more difficult now that Tess is suspended in a comatose state. Abby has some self-worth issues that go along with being the little sister to perfection personified, always feeling less than. She's also got an attitude and harshness about her that she mostly uses as a defense mechanism to keep people at arm's length, which I must admit I enjoy a lot of the time even if it is a result of her insecurities. The honesty of her character is something that I appreciate. The relationship that develops between Abby and Eli is a little awkward, sweet, and funny, and it kept me interested. Eli seems perplexed and intrigued by Abby and her seemingly blunt comments and scheme to wake Tess up. His reactions to her are amusing (I mostly picture him looking at her like she is a crazy person) and I think that their characters complement each other well.

The plot has the leisurely pace of a realistic, contemporary story, and it all happens in the somber sort of fog that Tess's coma has cast over Abby's life. Abby is driven by her plans to make Tess wake up, and she drags Eli into them. It's more about Abby's relationship developments, though - to Tess, to Eli, to her sister's ex-bestie, to her parents - and her struggles with the way in which she sees herself and the way she feels the community sees her as well. The situation isn't a lighthearted one and the plot isn't fast-paced or anything, but the book is a short and quick with interesting characters who are rife with lots of little issues. And though it deals with some difficult situations, it does so in a hopeful way.

In My Mailbox (21)

In My Mailbox is hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren.


It's been a couple of weeks, so here are the books that I received since last time:

For Review:
The Witches of East End by Melissa de la Cruz
Sometimes It Happens by Lauren Barnholdt
Wildefire by Karsten Knight
Dreams of Significant Girls by Cristina Garcia
Love Story by Jennifer Echols
French Lessons by Ellen Sussman
Hounded by Kevin Hearne

Bought:
Glimmerglass by Jenna Black (on sale for $2.99 on Kindle)
Like Mandarin by Kirsten Hubbard
What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen
When It Happens by Susane Colasanti


What'd you get this week?

Review: The Unwritten Rule by Elizabeth Scott

Title: The Unwritten Rule
Author: Elizabeth Scott
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Publication Date: March 16, 2010
Links: Amazon | Goodreads
Source: Purchased

Everyone knows the unwritten rule: You don't like your best friend's boyfriend.

Sarah has had a crush on Ryan for years. He's easy to talk to, supersmart, and totally gets her. Lately it even seems like he's paying extra attention to her. Everything would be perfect except for two tiny details: Ryan is Brianna's boyfriend, and Brianna is Sarah's best friend.

Sarah forces herself to avoid Ryan and tries to convince herself not to like him. She feels so guilty for wanting him, and the last thing she wants to do is hurt her best friend. But when she is thrown together with Ryan one night, something happens between them. It's wonderful...and awful. Sarah is torn apart by guilt, but what she feels is nothing short of addiction, and she can't stop herself from wanting more.

What a frustrating, awkward, uneasy situation! The Unwritten Rule does a nice job of capturing the torture that one must feel when the person she loves is the one person that she can't have feelings for. Sarah's guilt weighs on her and she cannot escape it, but she can't stop wanting what she wants either, which makes her feel even worse.

Sarah is a quirky character, which I like. She likes to decorate shoes with various designs, and when she isn't feeling guilty over liking Ryan, she's pretty funny. She's nearly always feeling guilty about Ryan, though, so her personality doesn't shine through a lot of the time, especially since when she isn't feeling guilty, she's living in Brianna's shadow. Brianna is an attention whore if ever I saw one, and sometimes the way that she treats Sarah is abhorrent. She's got a lot of depth though, as a tragic character. Her jacked up parental relationships play a huge role in why she acts the way that she does. Sarah's parents, however, are pretty awesome. Ryan's characterization is similar to Sarah's in that we only get to see his personality shine in a few circumstances.

Most of the plot involves Sarah torturing herself over her feelings and trying to assuage Brianna's troubles, of which there are plenty. There are two points when the reader really gets to see the connection between Sarah and Ryan, and why they would like each other. One happens before Ryan and Brianna start dating, and the other is during a phone conversation. If not for the phone call, I might have had no idea why the two of them would feel a connection, but this one thing really helped to reinforce Sarah's guilty love for Ryan. It gave their relationship substance in the middle of all of the guilt. Still, I do wish the reader could get a little bit more of Sarah and Ryan together throughout the story. They're really cute.

The Unwritten Rule is a quick, light read. The characters are honest and flawed. The story is bittersweet.

Review: Moonglass by Jessi Kirby

Title: Moonglass
Author: Jessi Kirby
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Publication Date: May 3, 2011
Links: Amazon | Goodreads
Source: Galley Grab

When Anna was little, she and her mother walked the beach together every day, looking for sea glass. But one night her mother walked into the ocean and never came out, leaving Anna with only memories - and a collection of ocean-tumbled glass.

Ten years later, Anna's father has accepted a job transfer, and Anna's life is again swept up in a tide she can't control. Despite her reluctance to move, Anna is slowly won over by the beachfront cottage, the gorgeous lifeguards, and early morning runs along the shore. But her new home is a place that holds long-buried history. It's where her parents first met and fell in love, where strangers seem to know more about her family's past than she does, and where she finds that the red piece of sea glass she wears around her neck has a history all its own. As Anna combs the beach for bits of glass scattered in the sand, she discovers that there may be more to her mother's life and death than she and her father have been able to acknowledge.

The sea glass in Anna's collection proves that time can smooth rough edges - but what about when the jagged hurt of loss remains as sharp as ever?

Moonglass is a beachy, emotional book about loss, guilt, acceptance, and forgiveness. It reminded me a lot of Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler (my review), because of the character named Anna, the beach setting, the sea glass, and the loss of a loved one. Maybe too many similarities? But I really like it, regardless. And despite those similarities, the storyline is very different.

Anna took a little while to grow on me. She's different than a lot of standard female protagonists in YA. She's pretty and confident and active, but she isn't arrogant about it, just real. She's a surfer girl. She flirts. Shamelessly. And Tyler doesn't pretend like he doesn't notice. He calls her out on it. Teases her. Embarrasses and infuriates her. I might have thought he was being a dick, if I hadn't felt like Anna deserved to be a little bit humbled. But Anna also has an emotional story that shrouds her at all times, and that is what really connects the reader to her character. She struggles with the loss of her mother and the memories that resurface once she and her dad move back to where her parents first met. The more she finds out about her mom the harder it is for her to deal with what happened when she was younger, and no matter how hard she tries to run from those memories they keep coming. Anna's dad is really awesome. I love seeing involved parents in YA. He's a great father and a great character. Anna's friend Ashley is a funny and interesting character as well, and I wish that there would have been maybe a little bit more of her in the story.

If you like beach settings and activities then there is plenty of that in Moonglass. It has everything from laying out to spear fishing for dinner. A lot of the plot revolves around Anna's beach ventures and running. Anna's pastimes really help bring the setting to life, which should make pretty much everyone want to spend some time at the beach. The rest of the story is filled with her interactions with those around her, her preoccupation with thoughts of her mother, and her attempts to quell those thoughts. There's a lot of internal dialogue - more than there is actual conversation. The ending is a little weird for me. It comes somewhat abruptly and there are several small things that I would like to have seen resolved before the close of the book.

Overall, Moonglass is an engaging story. Part somber and part sandy, sunshiney fun, it makes a perfect summer read.

Review: Just Listen by Sarah Dessen

Title: Just Listen
Author: Sarah Dessen
Publisher: Viking Juvenile
Publication Date: April 6, 2006
Links: Amazon | Goodreads
Source: Purchased

Annabel Greene is the girl who has everything. At least, that's what she portrays in her modeling shoots. But Annabel's life is far from perfect. Her friendship with Sophie ended bitterly, and her older sister's eating disorder is weighing down the entire family. Isolated and ostracized at school and at home, Annabel retreats into silent acceptance. Then she meets Owen - intense, music-obsessed, and determined to always tell the truth. And with his guidance, Annabel learns to just listen to herself and gains the courage to speak honestly. But will she be able to tell everyone what really happened the night she and Sophie stopped being friends?

I loved this book! It is cute and funny and serious and painful all at the same time.

I absolutely adore Annabel and Owen. Their characters are so honest and real, and I can't get enough of their conversations and interactions with each other. Their relationship development is so cute and funny and natural. All of the characters in this book are amazingly real. Annabel's parents are simultaneously strong and vulnerable, and the relationship between her mom and dad is one of love and support. Her sisters are also awesome, with their own strengths and weaknesses, and I loved witnessing the relationship dynamic of their entire family. They're a good family. And while they definitely each have their own issues, they support and love each other fiercely. I also really like the interactions between Owen and his little sister, which are funny and adorable.

It is really easy to become engrossed in Annabel's story. The pacing of the plot is leisurely but steady, with flashbacks. The novel begins after a falling-out between Annabel and her best friend, Sophie, the cause of which is unclear at first though it isn't hard to suspect or guess what it might involve. There are flashbacks throughout the narrative in which Annabel remembers or explains things that have happened. If I'm being nit-picky and looking for flaws, my one complaint would be that there were a couple of times when I became confused regarding the timeline of events, probably because there is a good bit of back and forth with the past and present, and occasionally the boundaries between the two aren't always clear right away.

So now I've read my first two Sarah Dessen novels (Just Listen and Along for the Ride), the only two that I have in my bookshelves. But I really like them, so tell me what your favorite Sarah Dessen books are, and which one(s) I should pick up next, because I am loving her characters and can't stop after just two!

Review: Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen

Title: Along for the Ride
Author: Sarah Dessen
Publisher: Viking Juvenile
Publication Date: June 11, 2009
Links: Amazon | Goodreads
Source: Purchased

Riding a bike is only one of the many things Auden's missed out on. Even before her parents' divorce, she was cast in the role of little adult, never making waves, focusing on academics to please her demanding mother.

Now she's spending the summer before college in the tiny beach town of Colby with her father and his new wife and baby. A job in a trendy boutique introduces her to the world of girls, their friendships, conversations, romances. And then there's Eli, an intriguing loner. A fellow insomniac, Eli introduces Auden to the nocturnal world of Colby. Together they embark on a quest: for Auden, to experience the care-free teenage life she's been denied; for Eli, to put a tragic episode behind him. Combine two lonely people with a charming beach town and an endless supply of long summer nights, and just about anything can happen.

This is my first Sarah Dessen novel. I probably never would've picked up any of those girly covers if they didn't come so highly recommended by the blogosphere, so thanks, guys! I thoroughly enjoyed reading Along for the Ride and will definitely be picking up some more Dessen books.

Auden is such an awesome character. I love the way she metamorphoses from this socially awkward, studies-obsessed recluse into a well-rounded individual. Eli is an amazing character as well, and I love that he is pretty much just a normal guy. He's got his good traits and some that maybe aren't so perfect, and a bit of baggage. The two of them work really well together, and I love to see the way that their relationship evolves throughout the book, and how it changes each of them slowly. No instantaneous magnetism here. Just a natural, honest relationship evolution. And I love that. All of the characters are believable. Maggie and Heidi are my favorites of the supporting cast, but they're all well-written and realistic.

The plot moves at a leisurely pace, but it never gets bogged down with a lack of progression. It follows Auden's transformation and the evolution of not just her, but of her relationships with all of those around her. Her parents, Heidi, Hollis, her new friends, Eli, herself. She really grows a lot over the course of the summer, and so do the people around her.

I'm so glad that I picked up this book. It's a great summery, beach read. There will be many Dessen novels in my reading pile in the future.

Awesome Mothers in YA Literature

So, in honor of Mother's Day, I want to recommend some YA books that have awesome mothers. There are so many books for kids in which the parents are either dead, absent, or uncaring. Lately though, I have read a few books in which there are mothers who are present, loving, nurturing, and engaged in the lives of their children. I want to applaud these literary mothers on Mother's Day:

Elena Vilkas
Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys

This lady is a hardcore mother. It's WWII, Stalin annexes Lithuania, her husband is taken and sent to a prison camp, she and her two children are deported to Siberia. This lady is brave and smart. She does everything she can to take care of not only her family, but also all of the people with whom they are deported. She holds them all together even in the most dire and difficult of situations. She is the rock that every one of those people leans upon, and she bears it all without complaint. She's a supermom to the entire community.

My Review | Amazon | Goodreads

Maggie Gardner

Unearthly by Cynthia Hand

Clara's mother is definitely one of the better parental figures I've read in YA. She's supportive, protective, and is involved in Clara's life. She does everything that she can to help Clara find her purpose so that she can complete it. Plus, she's half angel, so she has superhuman mom powers, like flight.

My Review | Amazon | Goodreads

Molly Weasley
Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling

Is there any other mother in all of YA literature that has such a presence even while the children are away at boarding school? The miles that separate her from her children still can't stop this mother from sending a Howler to yell at Ron in front of the entire school when he messes up. It is incredibly clear that she loves all of her (many) children, and loves Harry as a son as well. Plus, it is my educated opinion that not enough literary mothers get lines like, "Get away from my daughter, you bitch!" Molly Weasley definitely rocks maternity like nobody's business.

Amazon | Goodreads

 Starla Fern

Clarity by Kim Harrington

Clare's mom is loving and supportive. She is a single mom who runs a psychic family business in a tourist town. She takes care of her family and is involved in her children's lives. She can read minds, which can be troublesome for her children, but she can be trusted with their thoughts. Clare can also trust her mother with her problems and can feel confident that her mother will always be there for support when it is needed.

My Review | Amazon | Goodreads

Do you have an opinion on any of these moms? Do you know of any other YA books with uber moms? I'd love to hear about them!

In My Mailbox (20)

In My Mailbox is hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren.


Here are the books that I received this week:

For Review:
Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma
All the Things You Are by Courtney Sheinmel
He's So Not Worth It by Kieran Scott

Kindle:
Songs for a Teenage Nomad by Kim Culbertson - This is currently FREE on Kindle.

     

I've been pretty good lately about not buying more books until I've caught up on my to-read pile, so that's it for me! What books did you get this week?