Ten Things We Did (and Probably Shouldn't Have) by Sarah Mlynowski Review

• Ten Things We Did (and Probably Shouldn't Have) by Sarah Mlynowski
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Publication date: 6/7/2011
• Pages: 368

2 girls + 3 guys + 1 house – parents = 10 things April and her friends did that they (definitely, maybe, probably) shouldn't have.

If given the opportunity, what sixteen-year-old wouldn't jump at the chance to move in with a friend and live parent-free? Although maybe "opportunity" isn't the right word, since April had to tell her dad a tiny little untruth to make it happen (see #1: "Lied to Our Parents"). But she and her housemate Vi are totally responsible and able to take care of themselves. How they ended up "Skipping School" (#3), "Throwing a Crazy Party" (#8), "Buying a Hot Tub" (#4), and, um, "Harboring a Fugitive" (#7) at all is kind of a mystery to them.

In this hilarious and bittersweet tale, Sarah Mlynowski mines the heart and mind of a girl on her own for the first time. To get through the year, April will have to juggle a love triangle, learn to do her own laundry, and accept that her carefully constructed world just might be falling apart . . . one thing-she-shouldn't-have-done at a time.

-Overview from Barnes & Noble

What I Loved: 

• A realistic main character! April thought, spoke and acted like a real high school girl. Not only did this help the story to come alive for me, but I can see how it would help speak to actual teenage girls
• A great moral! I think that readers (a little younger than myself) could really gain some insight into real life relationships - with families, friends, and significant others alike
• The book was really funny! It makes me wish my parents ditched me back in high school and let me live with my best friends unknowingly for sure! 
• Though I am a total romance-a-holic, what I really valued about this one were the friendships between the girls
• The ending :) I think a lot of teenage girls lose themselves outside of a boy, and I think Mlynowski does a nice job of making this book about more than that. 

What I didn't love:

• I am definitely not Mlynowski's target audience with this one. It was obviously written for a younger reader. The morals were sort of lost on me toward the end of the book, because they aren't lessons for me to learn. This certainly isn't the authors flaw, however! It's just the issue I sometimes find with being an older adult reading young adult books. 
• "Hells yeah" and "Hells no." C'mon, Vi! Every time she said it I cringed a little. 
• It was a little predictable. I, and I'm sure a number of others, knew where the author was headed at times. So, it made it a little less interactive a read. 

I really did enjoy reading this book. It was a light and fun read for the most part. I think my expectations were a little high for this one considering the rave reviews and ratings I've seen. I'd give it a solid 3.5/5 stars. It served as the perfect book after reading City of Bones. Now off to City of Ashes!

JOHN GREEN!?!?!!

Okay, so PLENTY of you have recommended his books. No one has recommended his vlog?! Vlogbrothers is one of the single most interesting youtube channels I've stumbled across. He is hilarious. John Green, where have you been my whole life?

This wasn't the funniest of all the videos, but it made me more excited to read The Fault in Our Stars which I will definitely be picking up :)

In My Mailbox!

In My Mailbox (IMM) is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at TheStory Siren.  Sharing books that have been received for review, purchased or given as a gift.  The hope is that you will share in the comment section what you received this week.

So, since this is the first time I'm participating in IMM you guys will have to let me know if I'm doing it wrong! 

All of the books I got this week were E-reads! 

I was glad to see so many positive responses about the rest of The Mortal Instruments Series, because I had already committed to sticking with it! I'll be sure to update you all once I get into that one. I also had heard such enthusiastic reviews about The Infernal Devices that I thought I'd give that one a go as well. Ten Things We Did (and probably shouldn't have) I've heard good things about. I thought it would make for an easy and fun read inbtwn my Cassandra Clare reads :) 


What's in your mailbox?

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare Review

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books

Publication date: 2/19/2008

Pages: 512

When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder—much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It’s hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing—not even a smear of blood—to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?

This is Clary’s first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It’s also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace’s world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know. . . .

-Overview from Barnes and Noble

What I loved:

• Very witty dialogue - I actually laughed out loud several times throughout this book. Humor was incorporated into this story very well. 
• JACE! Okay, so, he's this dreamy sort of jerk who would do anything for his leading lady. Just my sort of leading man! (Except for that little bit at the end when he got all nostalgic and weird)
• Vocabulary! There were a few times I had to use the "look up" feature on my NOOK while reading this book. I can really appreciate a YA read that can still offer a challenge here and there
• The action - it came quick and often. Clare did a really nice job helping the reader to envision and engage in the action throughout the story

What I didn't love:

• CLARY! Ugh! I felt like she was so wimpy and whiny during so much of this book. She was in this constant state of despair for most of the book, and then every once in a while she really took some action. When she did it was so unexpected and out of character that I just didn't buy it. 
• The word MUNDANE. Could she have possibly used it once more than she did? 
• Slow start - I think Clare took so much time trying to give the reader insight into the world of Mundanes, then Shadowhunters, then Downworlders . . . that the story just didn't hold my attention until the latter half once all of that had been developed
• Sort of surprise twist - I didn't like it one bit. I'm sure it'll turn around, but I felt like it was such a disappointing end to this one for me being the love junkie reader that I am. 

I heard SUCH great things about this series that I HAD to download it right away. I started this on a day off from work expecting it to grab me and pull me in right away. I spent all morning doing housework, poured myself a tall glass of water, brought a snack with me and plopped down in the corner of my couch with plans to do nothing for the rest of the day but read. I found myself doing everything but reading.

After the first 30 or so pages I found myself browsing the internet, blogging, watching television, listening to my husband (who I usually can ignore pretty successfully when I read, SORRY HUBS!), etc between pages. I just couldn't get into it. DETERMINED to like this book, I kept trudging along. It worked. By the end of the book I did like it. I just didn't love it. 

AM I THE ONLY ONE? Does the series get better or is it a lot more of the same? I still have hope for the other books! Let me know what you think! 

Building my TBR list!

My favorite books at the moment are VERY different from one another. So, I really do like all types of literature.

I am absolutely, positively obsessed with The Hunger Games trilogy and have always loved The Perks of Being a Wallflower. 


If you've followed along my very new blog at all, you know that I've taken a recent dive into YA fiction. I've plowed through seven books so far this year (The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, Mockingjay, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Matched, Crossed and City of Bones). 


Since I'm SO new to this genre, I was hoping some of you could share your FAVORITE book with me and just a quick blurb about why you recommend it. I see a lot about newer books that are hitting the shelves, but would be interested to hear about some older faves as well. I'm behind the bus! Thanks in advance!

Follow Friday!!

Follow Friday is a weekly meme hosted by Alison Can Read & Parajunkee. It's a great way to meet and follow new blogger friends!

Question of the Week: Many readers/bloggers are also big music fans. Tell us about a few of your favorite bands/singers that we should listen to in 2012.

Answer?

FLORENCE AND THE MACHINE! 

I can't get enough of the new album. Highly recommended!
What's yours?!

Twitter

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