Mockingjay

All year I have been patiently waiting for the third and final installment of The Hunger Games trilogy. I'm not a big book buyer so I had been waiting patiently for the Mockingjay to become available at my local library. I was 71 out of 125 last week when I last checked. Then a colleague came to my rescue and let me borrow her copy.

Book Description:

Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has survived the Hunger Games twice. But now that she's made it out of the bloody arena alive, she's still not safe. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge. Who do they think should pay for the unrest? Katniss. And what's worse, President Snow has made it clear that no one else is safe either. Not Katniss's family, not her friends, not the people of District 12.

I read the story in five days. It started off really well, but then just dragged on and was so depressing to read at times. I know the depressing nature was Collin's intent as she was trying to get across the point that war is pointless - no one wins. But, it was so violent that it just got me down. AND...she didn't end up with the guy I wanted her to! {No spoilers, but I've talked to some people and you are either Team Peeta or Team Gale. Some people loved the ending so don't take my review as gospel that it's not a good ending. It's just not the one I would have liked!}

I have to say though that Collins paints a vivid and believable future reality. She is an incredibly creative writer who doesn't write the expected and for that she should be applauded. I was just rooting for the other guy, but it's alright that I don't always get my way. It will be interesting to see how this story is portrayed when they turn this into a movie.

To recap:

Worth reading? Yes...I mean who wouldn't want to know how this whole story ends

Worth buying my own copy? No

Recommend to friends? Only ones with a strong stomach and not overly sensitive

Stars: 3 out of 5

What I Saw and How I Lied

Several months ago I was browsing at Barnes & Noble and came across “What I Saw and How I Lied” by Judy Blundell. After reading the description I thought it sounded interesting and sent myself an email home on my Blackberry so I’d remember the title and author. Fast forward several months and I found myself browsing a blog (it’s killing me I can’t find the blog where I saw this so I could link to the review!) that had a favorable review of this. So, I decided to put it on reserve at the library.

Inside Book Flap:

When Evie's father returned home from World War II, the family fell back into its normal life pretty quickly. But Joe Spooner brought more back with him than war stories. When movie-star handsome Peter Coleridge, a young ex-GI who served in Joe's company in postwar Austria, shows up, Evie is suddenly caught in a complicated web of lies that she only slowly recognizes. She finds herself falling for Peter, ignoring the secrets that surround him...until a tragedy occurs that shatters her family and breaks her life in two. As she begins to realize that almost everything she believed to be a truth was really a lie, Evie must get to the heart of the deceptions and choose between loyalty to her parents and feelings for a man she loves. Someone will have to betrayed. The question is...who?

It was interesting reading a novel about the timeframe just after WWII – I just don’t come in contact with much media that dwells on that time in history. I thought this book moved along very well and it certainly kept my interest. However, I had a hard time suspending belief that a 23-year-old soldier would shower affections on a nearly 16-year-old teenage girl. Granted this perception was from the 16-year-old’s point of view so it was a bit warped, but overall it was just sort of creepy and not believable for me.

Nonetheless, there were enough twists and turns in this YA book to have made it worth my while to read. That's probably why it was named a National Book Award winner in young people's literature. It was a fast, easy read that was a nice departure from some of the "heavy" books I’ve read lately.

To recap:
Worth reading? Yes, if you like YA
Worth buying my own copy? No
Recommend to friends? No (I don’t think most women my age would like it.)
Stars: 3 out of 5

The Dust of 100 Dogs

Back Cover Description:

In the late seventeenth century, famed teenage pirate Emer Morrisey was on the cusp of escaping the pirate life with her one true love and unfathomable riches when she was slain and cursed with "the dust of one hundred dogs," dooming her to one hundred lives as a dog before returning to a human body-with her memories intact. Now she's a contemporary American teenager and all she needs is a shovel and a ride to Jamaica.

I wrapped up reading The Dust of 100 Dogs tonight. For as much as I live under a rock, I had read a lot of buzz about this book and was interested in finding out what made it so special. While it didn't blow me away, I did find it an enjoyable read and certainly applaud A.S. King with having a vivid imagination to pair up stories of 17th Century Ireland, piracy and modern teenage life into one story.

I really liked the character of Emer. I thought King did a nice job of developing her and maturing her through the book. Even though she was a feared pirate, she retained some of her Irish girlhood sweetness. I would have liked to have seen more character development of Seanie and their relationship.

The relationship of David and Emer would have been interesting to develop more. There was sort of a "Edward/Jacob" thing going on her (although likely very unintentional I'm sure.) I really wanted to see David fight more for Emer instead of just walking away like he did.

One point I have to say though. The character of Fred Livingstone was revolting. I know...he's suppose to be, but I think, considering this was labeled as YA, he was written a bit too crude and creepy for my taste. We could have used our imaginations more instead of reading about all the perverted things he did in the confines of his beach home.

The ending was really sweet...loved how King tied up the story and kept the magical tale of Emer and Seanie alive.

To Recap:

Worth Reading - Yes

Worth Buying My Own Copy - No

Recommend to Friends - Maybe...only the ones that would appreciate the creativity of it

Stars: 4 out of 5