Book Review #2

I am reading The A-Z of You and Me by James Hannah. So far, I love the book. The style of writing is unique and interesting and I mainly picked up the book because I thought the cover was interesting. (Who says don't judge a book on it's cover?) After I picked up the book, I read the back excerpt and I found it really compelling to read. So, I started reading it. I must admit that the beginning is pretty confusing with the main character starting out in a hospital. The story is a tale of backstories and reality. It gives the audience questions that makes them want to keep reading in order to find out the answers to their questions. I also found that the style of the writing in the novel lead me to love the book. I enjoy the balance of character development and dialogue that the book has.

I thought it would also be important to mention  how the style of the alphabet in the writing brings the story to life in a way. Each letter is like one chapter of the novel, with the letters repeating. The character narrates the story in his perspective, and he tells each memory as a letter of the alphabet. The nurse that has been helping him throughout the novel told him to start an alphabet game, where he names something with each letter of the alphabet. This leaves the audience on their toes wondering what the next letter and story of the novel will be.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a mysterious story. Although I am not very far into the story and the novel is not in the mystery genre, I think the mysterious element of the novel allows it to be a "mysterious" story. I would rate this novel 5 stars because of the elements and the quality of the writing.

Blog #12

Book covers can change the image of the book and the way the audience perceives it. Basically, book covers can make or break the book.

In my opinion, book covers should be clean and exact. They shouldn't contain unnecessary pictures or images just to "add depth". (P.S. this is not adding depth, it's just cluttering a page) Some examples of keeping it clean and exact that I love include:
Don't Get Caught by Kurt Dinan
Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon
Blink by Malcolm Gladwell

Simplistic is Everything

Covers that I absolutely hate. Anything with a face or any real people on the front page makes me immediately want to turn down the book. It doesn't capture the audience and draw them in, it just leaves them more than a little freaked out. I don't know about you, but up-close and personal is not my forte. Some examples of book covers that I hate include:

Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

If I Stay by Gayle Forman

Clutter, Clutter and more Clutter

Not only do I hate book covers that give a close-up of somebody's face, I also hate book covers that make the awful decision of putting the cover for their upcoming movie as the front cover of their recent book. I'm not saying I hate the book, I'm saying I hate the cover of the book. Examples that I hate:

Martian by Andy Weir (Although I love the book)

Twilight by Stephanie Meyer

Divergent by Veronica Roth

Our movie cover stinks so we'll put it on the book too

Most of society will argue the point that they're all good people and they never base a book off of it's cover. However, all of society is lying. They base books off their covers all the time. Have you ever picked up a book, read the back and then looked at the cover only to put it down? What about the opposite-have you ever looked at the cover and read the back thinking the book was going to be bad but read it anyway because the cover was so good? People today are judging book based on their covers, they just aren't realizing it. 

I know I have based a book on it's cover before too. As shown earlier in the "Simplistic is Everything" section, Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon has a wonderful cover that immediately drew me in and made me want to read it. I read the back and it wouldn't have been my first choice in book but the cover was so good and I bought it anyway. Fast-forward a week later and I had the book finished. I loved the novel, even though I was certain it wasn't by genre. I based a book on it's cover and it turns out, I loved it. 

I'm not saying go out there and buy any book based on the cover, but I am saying that sometimes the cover can make or break the book and society has the right to know this. 

Blog #11

The book I chose to read for our "any-choice" book was Don't Get Caught by Kurt Dinan. I downloaded this book on my phone because it was all sold out in stores and I am now on page 99. I LOVE  this book! It is hilarious and very unexpected. I like all the twists and turns in the novel that keep the audience on their toes. I also enjoy the fast paced action in the novel. Dinan is able to balance the development of the characters along with the quick moving action that gives the story a variety and makes it readable by most audiences. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes humorous stories that can make them laugh and most of all people who enjoy a well-rounded story.


The novel is mainly about a group of unlikely friends and their lives. Essentially, a group of prankers known as The Chaos Club pranks the group, and they soon look for revenge. I am really excited to keep reading and this is one of the books I've really enjoyed in a long time. It is nice not to have any pressure to read a certain amount of chapters, and the fact that there is no assignments with the novel allows me to both read and enjoy more of the novel. My favorite character is Max, the main character because his voice is so funny, yet a lot of thought was put into the character. Now Max is not very popular as you will realize as soon as you pick up the novel. But Not Max (you will find out who he is)  on the other hand, will begin to take more risks, not be as scared of what others think of him all while keeping the same humorous voice.

Overall, I really enjoy the novel because of the balance of action and development along with suspense that keeps the audience on their toes throughout the entire novel. This novel is so unexpected and I would recommend it to anybody who enjoys a humorous and witty novel. (Not to mention I love the cover)