Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher Review

Title: Thirteen Reasons Why
Author: Jay Asher
Published:
ISBN: 1595141715


Synopsis from Goodreads:

Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a mysterious box with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers thirteen cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker, his classmate and crush who committed suicide two weeks earlier.

On tape, Hannah explains that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he'll find out how he made the list.

Through Hannah and Clay's dual narratives, debut author Jay Asher weaves an intricate and heartrending story of confusion and desperation that will deeply affect teen readers.

My thoughts:

..>0<..What can I say about this book. It's not a happy one for sure. It's different and really good. The switch between Hannah's voice on the tape and Clays' reactions to her is really fascinating. Hannah's narration felt like she was a real teenage girl in crisis. As the story progress, there were many unfortunate events that happened to her, which led to her death. Clay, the main character of this book, plays more like a middle person. Each places Clay goes to, he felt like he was with her. The unfortunate part was he couldn't do anything. I really felt sorry for Clay. He finally understand more about the girl that he love but it was too late. There were heart wrenching moments in this book that was hard to forget. It's really difficult to put into words but I do feel for Hannah. All in all , no one should end up like Hannah. There's always people who can help you. It's really amazing how the tiniest actions can affect another person's life significantly. It makes me re-evaluate the value of a life and I'll definitely treat people with kindness. Overall, Thirteen Reasons Why was a great book that left me with a big message.

The Selection by Kiera Cass

Title: The Selection
Author: Kiera Cass
Published: April 24, 2012
ISBN: 0062059939

Synopsis from Goodreads:

For thirty-five girls, the Selection is the chance of a lifetime. The opportunity to escape the life laid out for them since birth. To be swept up in a world of glittering gowns and priceless jewels. To live in a palace and compete for the heart of gorgeous Prince Maxon.

But for America Singer, being Selected is a nightmare. It means turning her back on her secret love with Aspen, who is a caste below her. Leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a crown she doesn't want. Living in a palace that is constantly threatened by violent rebel attacks.

Then America meets Prince Maxon. Gradually, she starts to question all the plans she's made for herself—and realizes that the life she's always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined

My thoughts:

The Selection was a nice book. I had fun reading it. I felt something was missing though. The concept was interesting but it was hard for me to relate. The setting was in the world where there's a caste system. America Singer, the heroine, is a five and her family is barely making enough money to survive. I found out a bit later that the ones are the people who are the richest and the higher the number the people are categorize, the poorer they are. America's parents and ex-boyfriend suggest her to join the selection. The story started out as her life was falling apart and being in the selection is what holds her together. The interactions between America and Prince Maxon was good. I just wanted more. I don't expect a fairytale story but it was almost there. It could be that the timing for those two are just not right. There were memorable girls from the selections but I wanted to know them more. The dates the prince had with the girls was nice but a bit short. Overall, The Selection was not bad but the story could expand even more. I guess that was why there was two more books after this. I'll continue on to Elite to see what happen to America.

2013 TBR Pile Reading Challenge ^0^

6 BLOGGERS, 12 MINI-CHALLENGES, 24 BOOKS TO WIN!!!


Yep it's half a year into 2013 so I decided join a reading challenge. This 2013 TBR Pile Reading Challenge is hosted by Bookish and her awesome book blog host friends. This is a pretty neat challenge since I can catch up on the older books in my To Be Read pile. Feel free to click the icon above if you would like more info about this challenge and if you would like to sign up :)

Levels:
(how many books you're planning to read for this challenge in 2013)

1-10 - A Firm Handshake
11-20 - A Friendly Hug
21-30 - A Sweet Kiss
31-40 - Love At First Sight
41-50 - Married With Children

My Goal: For 2013 I'm aiming for 10 books for - A Firm Handshake. If I am able to read more I'll upgrade my level.

Here are the tentative list of TBR books I plan to finish in 2013:

1. Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
2. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
3. Gone by Michael Grant
4. Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith
5. Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
6. Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake
7. Rot and Ruin by Jonathan Maberry
8. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
9. Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson
10. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Let the challenge begin ^O^

(* ゝ艸・) Graduation Book Haul

First off, I wanted to congratulate all the graduates for finishing school of any level. I just graduated from college myself last weekend. Therefore, I decided to give myself a little present for finishing school ^O^. In addition, there were some e-books I borrowed from the library and e-book ARC from Netgalley that I've received. So here we go...

Books purchased:

The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey

->This book was the talk in many book blogs and book tube channels. I wanted to see if this sci-fi YA will be good. This reminds me that I should start the Monstrumologist books by the same author too.

Siege & Storm by Leigh Bardugo

->Book 2 of the Grisha trilogy. Also read that it was really good. Russian mythology is just very interesting.

Unravel Me by Tehereh Mafi

->I enjoyed reading Shatter Me and I really want to know what happens next.

From Netgalley:

Souls of the Stones Omnibus by Kelly Walker
Contains vol 1-3 in this omnibus.

Apocalyptic Organ Grinder by William Todd Rose

Borrowed from the library:

The Spindlers by Lauren Oliver
Good book for young audience.

The Elite by Kiera Cass

Rush by Eve Silver

Born of Illusion by Teri Brown

The School for Good and the Evil by Soman Chainani

That is all for now. Got quite a bit of reading to do. Reviews will be up once I'm finish. Hope you all have some cool books to read over the summer.

Unwind by Niel Shusterman Review

Title: Unwind
Author: Neal Shusterman
Published: June 2, 2009
ISBN: 1416912053

Synopsis from Goodreads:

The Second Civil War was fought over reproductive rights. The chilling resolution: Life is inviolable from the moment of conception until age thirteen. Between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, however, parents can have their child "unwound," whereby all of the child's organs are transplanted into different donors, so life doesn't technically end. Connor is too difficult for his parents to control. Risa, a ward of the state is not enough to be kept alive. And Lev is a tithe, a child conceived and raised to be unwound. Together, they may have a chance to escape and to survive.

My thoughts:

O! How I adore Unwind. This was the first book written by Neal Shusterman that I read and it entertained me to the very end. I love the plot and the world building in this story. The crazy AWOL scene on the freeway was memorable. The lead characters' story intertwined as the book progress, which was very well done. I really like the lead characters in this book. Connor was the tough kid with a good heart. Risa was the unfortunate girl in an unfortunate situation. Lev was made to believe he was doing it for the good of the family. What's even better was that they were all dynamic characters that evolved. Some were for the better and some were not. Neal Schesterman explain each character backstory well and he crafted the story that didn't bored the readers. Yes, the unwinding scenes was very detailed and gruesome and sad. It wasn't as bad though but very memorable. I definitely recommend this book for older teens and up due to some violence scenes and the unwinding scenes. I did pick up Unwholly and will continue with book 2. Also I can't wait for the third book UnSouled to come out later this year too. Kudos to you Neal Shuesterman for making Unwind one of my favorite books.