2013 Books
january ;
1. Ashen Winter by Mike Mullin
young adult | dystopia
I quite enjoyed this one. Suitably realistic characters, tough situations, lots of survival. Not much more that I could ask for. Except for the ending. What was that ending? That was not an ending.
2. Jaipong Dancer by Patrick Sweeting
adult | historical fiction
I'd been seeing this in bookstores for months and was super excited to read it. Unfortunately, it didn't live up to my expectations at all. I read it for the dancing, and the understanding of Javanese classical dance was even worse than mine (which isn't good). There were some interesting historical tidbits, but overall it really wasn't worth my time. Where is my good historical fiction about Indonesia and dancing??
february ;
3. World of Shell and Bone by Adriana Ryan
young adult | dystopia
February 22
This had an interesting world to it but not much else. Maybe I'm finally getting over dystopias, I don't know. All I know is that everything seemed pretty predictable. And I had a hard time really believing in the narrator's motivations.
4. The Way We Fall by Megan Crewe
young adult | realistic fiction/dystopia
So one thing that's pretty hard to do is depict the present day collapsing into dystopia. You usually get stories after the fact. Which are fine, but sometimes you want to see the moment. This book managed it. The setting is confined to an island, but that's what makes it work. Realistic and good. The narrator is a little bit of a special snowflake, but I got past that.
march ;
5. Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma
young adult | realistic fiction | 418 pages
March 1
So a common critique of this book is that the characters are really messed up. Honestly, I think this is the point. Lochan is controlling and has huge issues. Lochan and Maya have a hard time seeing themselves for who they really are. Their relationship is messed up. That's the point. People can be messed up and have real emotions.
6. The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson
juvenile | realistic fiction
March 2
I love this book. Church drama at its finest. So good.
7. The Lives We Lost by Megan Crewe
young adult | dystopia
March 3
This was not as engaging as The Way We Fall. Maybe I read the two books too close together or maybe I read Ashen Winter too recently. Whatever the reason, I just didn't feel much of anything throughout this whole book.
8. Empress of the World by Sara Ryan
young adult | realistic fiction
This book is so good because it doesn't deal with Nic's sexuality in a traumatic manner. She's matter-of-fact about things and matter-of-fact about the fact that she likes guys, too. And her feelings just seem very realistic.
9. Here Lies Arthur by Philip Reeve
young adult | historical fiction
I just really like this take on the Arthur story.
10. Afternoon of the Elves by Janet Taylor Lisle
juvenile | realistic fiction
So I remembered this book being vaguely haunting and confusing when I was a child. I'll say that not much has changed. Also, what happened at the end? What happened at the end???
april ;
11. Light by Michael Grantyoung adult | realistic fiction/science fiction
April 8
Caine/Diana ahhhhhh. I have shipped them for so long and ahhhhhh. Ahhhhhhh. So many feelings. Also, so many Animorphs feelings, oh man. Did no one else notice the last line is his closing letter to the readers? Direct Animorphs parallel there. And the way everyone came out of things was so Anmiorphs-like. And I didn't miss the echo of Jalil's issues about Christianity. All that said, I could care less about Astrid.
12. Zorba the Hutt's Revenge by Paul Davids and Hollis Davids
juvenile | science fiction
This was weird. All I really want to know is what the secret of Ken's parentage is. This was not revealed.
13. Daughter of Venice by Donna Jo Napoli
young adult | historical fiction
Ouch. This one hit a little too close to home.
14. The Reapers Are The Angels by Alden Bell
adult | future fiction
Still amazing.
15. Exit Kingdom by Alden Bell
adult | future fiction
Much less amazing. The end felt all weird, like it just crept up on the author all of a sudden. Also I still am not sure how realistic I find Moses Todd.