Tuesday 21 February 2012

A selection of books that are cool and you should really read.

The number of books I read in 2011 was, frankly, pitiful. I've never actually kept track of numbers before, but in April I joined Goodreads (which if you don't know about is a website you can use to berate yourself for how few books you can remember having read. You can also create a virtual to-be-read pile which will become insurmountable and make you feel inadequate. I think that's what it's for anyway.) Here's my profile. You can friend me as long as you don't look at said pitiful record in 2011.

I'm already doing A LOT better in 2012, which is because I'm on a huge YA fest of brilliance, and because - as I might have mentioned before - I heart my Kindle. And when I read great books, I feel the need to make YOU read great books too. So here's a quick visual of four books you should go and get right now and read immediately.





Catching Fire (The Hunger Games, #2)Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins


I think I love it more than The Hunger Games. Mockingjay purchased immediately upon finishing. If you're one of the three remaining people on the planet who hasn't read this trilogy now that I have, then you really need to do something about it.


Mockingjay (The Hunger Games, #3)Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins


Totally blown away by this series. Just LOVED it!







ForbiddenForbidden by Tabitha Suzuma


Reading this hurt my heart. 5 stars, just...5 stars.

Ultraviolet (Ultraviolet, #1)Ultraviolet by R.J. Anderson


Incredibly readable, interesting, intriguing, other stuff beginning with 'i'. Very much a page-turner. I'm the world's slowest reader and this took me three days. Loved it!





Right now I'm looking for YA sci-fi or ghost stories to read. Any recommendations? Or have you read something else that you think I should read RIGHT NOW or I will fail to be a complete human being? Give me the best YA book you've read this year so far. 






12 comments:

  1. A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness. Best book of the year, and possibly my life :)

    Great call on Hunger Games and Forbidden - love them!

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    1. Your life?! With that high a recommendation, I can't possibly ignore it. Just d/led the sample to my Kindle :)

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    1. It's next on my list! I've just started Anna and the French Kiss, but the Cinder sample is waiting!

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  3. So many books, so little time to read. I'm making more of an effort to read this year, too. It's funny though, I thought I'd pay more attention to blurbs when choosing books on-line, but it's still the pretty covers that draw me in. I do read the blurb, and I even read the first few pages using amazon's 'look inside' feature, but the cover is still the decider. :-) I think that's what has put me off reading Suzanne Collins. I just can't get excited about her book covers.

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    1. I PROMISE that you would love The Hunger Games! I didn't even look at the cover for it tbh. Just d/l the sample on Amazon and give it a go!

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  4. Delirium by Lauren Oliver, Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher, Matched (and the new 'Crossed'] by Ally Condie - enjoy, Sarah

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    1. Thanks Sarah. I have Before I Fall by Oliver, but not Delirium. I'll check out those others (I've been eyeing Matched for a while now : )

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  5. I took your advice and added Forbidden and Ultraviolet to my TBR list!I would recommend The Daughter of Smoke and Bone. It was my favorite read from last year. Also, if you are looking for a ghost story, I enjoyed Anna Dressed in Blood and am currently liking The Name of the Star.

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    1. Thanks Stephanie. I have Anna Dressed in Blood on my tbr. Off to check out The Name of the Star now : )

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  6. I don't have any reading recommendations (the YA stuff I read tends to be heavily issue-based - gangs, absent parents, drugs, pregnancy - that my students would relate to rather than sci-fi/fantasy), but I would like to recommend the Goodreads app for your phone if you don't have it already. It's great for when you're browsing in a bookstore and either want to add a book to your to-read list, or want to read reviews before you buy it.

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    1. Just last week I entered this century and got a smartphone (is that how the kids say it, smartphone? :D)

      I discovered the Goodreads app a few days later. It's great!

      And if you're looking for issues based, check out Forbidden - alcoholic neglectful mother, incest between brother and sister, depression... Am I selling it? It's the most thought provoking book I've read for a long time.

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