Listen, Slowly by Thanhha Lai

Publisher: HarperCollins

Publication Date: February 17, 2015

Number of Pages: 272

Genre: Middle Grade

Source: Borrowed from local library

Summary {via GoodReads}: 

This remarkable novel from Thanhha Lại, New York Times bestselling author of the National Book Award-winning and Newbery Honor Book Inside Out & Back Again, follows a young girl as she learns the true meaning of family.

A California girl born and raised, Mai can't wait to spend her vacation at the beach. Instead, though, she has to travel to Vietnam with her grandmother, who is going back to find out what really happened to her husband during the Vietnam War. Mai's parents think this trip will be a great opportunity for their out-of-touch daughter to learn more about her culture. But to Mai, those are their roots, not her own. Vietnam is hot, smelly, and the last place she wants to be. Besides barely speaking the language, she doesn't know the geography, the local customs, or even her distant relatives. To survive her trip, Mai must find a balance between her two completely different worlds.

Listen, Slowly is an irresistibly charming and emotionally poignant tale about a girl who discovers that home and culture, family and friends, can all mean different things.

She thinks: I wanted to like this book. I really, really did. But, I just couldn’t. Mai was just too whiny. She complained about nearly everything and was somewhat manipulative. More of a “I’ll do that if you do this” manipulation mentality.

I think it was a beautiful story that would have worked better had Mai been an older teen. Her boy crazy attitude and “best friend” seem more reminiscent of a young girl in the beginning years of high school. Everything expected of her and asked of her was a bit much for such a young girl, in my opinion.

Now to be fair, I’m sure as a 12-year-old, I whined a crap ton when I was made to go on trips to places I had never been, but I felt she should have evolved from the whining. That she should have learned something. And, when we got to the part of the story where I felt that could truly happen, it didn’t. She continued to whine. I found it frustrating that her only growth was learning to speak Vietnamese well and getting closure with her grandmother. I hope, as I get more into Middle Grade books, that this is not the norm. I very much enjoyed Wonder, which I did not find whiny at all.

Max the Brave by Ed Vere

Max the Brave by Ed Vere

Publisher: Puffin Books

Publication Date: September 8, 2015

Genre: Children's Picture Book

Source: eARC via NetGalley

Summary:

Are You My Mother meets I Want My Hat Back in the hilarious new picture book, Max the Brave, by author and illustrator Ed Vere. 

Follow fearless Max as he encounters every other creature except the one he's searching for...mouse. Check out the trailer!

Squeeeeeeeeee! I'm so excited to get this book in my hands!! I love Ed Vere's books and can't wait to get a copy for my library.

Life or Something Like It by Annie Lyons

Life or Something Like It by Annie Lyons
Publisher: Harlequin (UK) Limited; Carina UK
Publication Date: July 13, 2015
Genre: Fiction
Source: eARC via NetGalley

Summary via GoodReads:
Step into someone else's shoes for a day...And it will change you for a lifetime.

Cat is very good at her job. She runs a PR company with her best friend (and secret crush) Jesse, and is never happier than when her high-profile celebrities are glittering in the spotlight.

But when her footballer client gets in the press for all the wrong reasons, Cat's career takes a sudden nosedive. So when her brother Andrew unexpectedly needs her to look after his kids for a few weeks, she can hardly say no. She's happily single, hasn't exactly been the 'World's Best Auntie' over the years, and what she knows about looking after children would fit on the back of a postage stamp. But it's only temporary until she gets her real life back on track - isn't it?

She thinks: This is a great summer read! I very much enjoyed lying out in the sun and reading this book. I found it very relatable too: I'm an aunt without children and had an unrequited love interest too. Of course, what women hasn't suffered from unrequited love though?! Besides the love story, my favorite parts were the ones about the niece. I have a relationship like that with my 5 year old niece, and now all I want to do is cuddle with her. It was a little slow at parts but the end was worth it. If you're looking for good beach read, pick this one!

More Than This by Jay McLean

More Than This by Jay McLean
Publisher: Amazon
Publication Date: July 10, 2013
Number of Pages: 311
Genre: Young Adult, New Adult
Source: eARC via NetGalley

Summary via GoodReads}:
When Mikayla imagined her prom night, she envisioned a fairy-tale evening full of romance. So when betrayal and tragedy come in quick succession, Mikayla is completely destroyed. Suddenly, everything she loved and everyone she relied on are tragically, irrevocably gone.

Jake, a handsome boy she just met, happens to witness her loss. With no one to turn to, Mikayla is forced to depend on this near stranger and his family, and he in turn is determined to take care of her. But Mikayla - thrust into adulthood with no one to guide her - is desperate to contain her grief and hide what she considers to be her weakness. Mikayla and Jake both want more, but despite their growing closeness and intense chemistry, she tried to keep her distance and protect her heart. As he does everything in his power to win her trust, Mikayla must choose between remaining alone and safe or letting love in.

She thinks: This book is both unbelievable as well as believable. That sounds very convoluted. There are parts of this book that I believe wholeheartedly could happen - feeling a deep connection to someone you've just met, having everything taken from you in the blink of an eye, not knowing how to process your feelings, etc. The author has a good grip on how a teen/new adult might feel in these fascinatingly unusual circumstances. Then, there are moments are not nearly as plausible - random strangers offering up their home as a place to stay, being allowed to go on a trip with a boy you've just met, etc. Of course, there are extenuating circumstances in this book, but I wish it was a little more grounded in reality. I would love to believe that all these nice things would really happen, but it just doesn't seem likely.

BUT...if you look past all that and just enjoy it for the story it is, it's romantic and angsty and full teenage drama. Sometimes that's just the kind of book you need. It's also a quick read so if you need to get back into reading, this is a great book to break your dry spell. Sink yourself into the sappy sweetness of true love and transport yourself back to your teenage years!

Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys

Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys
Publisher: Philomel Books
Publication Date: January 1, 2011
Number of Pages: 344
Genre: Young Adult, Historical Fiction
Source: borrowed from library

Summary {via GoodReads}:
Lina is just like any other fifteen-year-old Lithuanian girl in 1941. She paints, she draws, she gets crushes on boys. Until one night when Soviet officers barge into her home, tearing her family from the comfortable life they've known. Separated from her father, forced onto a crowded and dirty train car, Lina, her mother, and her younger brother slowly make their way north, crossing the Arctic Circle, to a work camp in the coldest reaches of Siberia. Here they are forced, under Stalin's orders, to dig for beets and fight for their lives under the cruelest of conditions.

Lina finds solace in her art, meticulously--and at great risk--documenting events by drawing, hoping these messages will make their way to her father's prison camp to let him know they are still alive. It is a long and harrowing journey, spanning years and covering 6,500 miles, but it is through incredible strength, love, and hope that Lina ultimately survives. Between Shades of Gray is a novel that will steal your breath and capture your heart.

She thinks: This book will touch you way down deep in your soul. I constantly found myself holding my breath in anticipation for the next horrific event. It doesn't feel real, and yet it happened. We focus so much on Hitler's reign of terror that we push the atrocities from Stalin to the back. It is incredible to me that less than 100 years ago thousands of people were trying to survive any way they could in the Arctic Circle. My heart broke over and over again each time I discovered a new detail. I, for one, now know that I am not as strong as Lina and her family. I know I couldn't have survived; I won't even entertain the possibility. I would be lost and helpless.

Lina's will to survive and strength are not something she starts out with, and that's one of the things I love about this book. She develops it through hardship. She is true to herself throughout the book and acts like a fifteen year old would based on her circumstances and the situations she encounters. She doesn't hide who she is, even though it gets her into trouble with guards and other adults.

I was scared to pick up this book and read it. The subject matter is heavy to say the least, but I am so glad I did. Now, I'm prepared. Every year, my city takes about a month and a half to conduct a city-wide book club to broaden our horizons. This year, the selection is Between Shades of Gray. I have a feeling this is going to be one of the more popular picks!

If you haven't read this book yet, stop what you're doing and read it now. I listened to the book during a recent road trip. You won't be disappointed, but pick a long trip because you won't want to stop listening!

Being Sloane Jacobs by Lauren Morrill

Being Sloane Jacobs by Lauren Morrill
Publisher: Delacorte
Publication Date: January 7, 2014
Number of Pages: 352
Genre: Young Adult
Source: library ebook

Summary {via GoodReads}:
Meet Sloane Emily Jacobs: a seriously stressed-out figure-skater from Washington, D.C., who choked during junior nationals and isn't sure she's ready for a comeback. What she does know is that she'd give anything to escape the mass of misery that is her life.

Now meet Sloane Devon Jacobs, a spunky hockey player from Philly who's been suspended from her team for too many aggressive hip checks. Her punishment? Hockey camp, now, when she's playing the worst she's ever played. If she messes up? Her life will be over.

Where the two Sloanes meet by chance in Montreal and decide to trade places for the summer, each girl thinks she's the lucky one: no strangers to judge or laugh at Sloane Emily, no scouts expecting Sloane Devon to be a hero. But it didn't occur to Sloane E. that while avoiding sequins and axels she might meet a hockey hottie - and Sloane D. never expected to run into a familiar (and very good-looking) face from home. It's not long before the Sloanes discover that convincing people you're someone else might be more difficult than being yourself.

She thinks: Lauren Morrill does it again. In 2014 (which feels really weird to type right now), I read Meant to Be and loved it. A sweet story that had just the right amount of sap and life problems. My inner teen easily identified with the main characters of Meant to Be. I felt the same connection as I read Being Sloane Jacobs. This was a great book to break me out of my slump. I mean, I hadn't finished a book since October of last year! O.C.T.O.B.E.R. It felt like forever............. But, I am so glad that I picked up this book and read it. My world feels righted, and this is a great start to my new year! Plus, who wouldn't want to read about hockey hotties and very good-looking guys from home. Be still my beating heart!