Review: "Delirium" by Lauren Oliver

Last weekend I wanted to read something light and fun and essentially YA. I had that YA craving - do you know what I mean? So I went scouting on the shelves in our new study/library to see what I could dig out and ended up with Lauren Oliver's "Delirium". I kind of had regretted buying it and had occasionally thought that I would never get around to reading it but I decided to give it a try - my deal with myself was that if I was not captured by page 20, I would just forget about it and give it to charity. 

Surprise, surprise, by page 20 I had no idea about which page I was on as I was so engrossed in the plot! This is fine YA! It is a dystopian book in theme with books such as Hunger Games and just like many of these books, the protagonist is a teenage girl with an independent spirit. 

Lena Holoway is an orphan who lives with her aunt and uncle and spends her time either at school, running or with her best friend. the beautiful, stunning Hana. In this dystopian version of Portland, Maine, cities have become little islands in a desert of forgotten countryside. It is a world dictated by a disease, deliria also known as love. Scientist have found the cure for love and when you turn 18 you get the cure and are set on your life path. Based on interviews and data, society will dictate who you marry, what job you will do, how much money you will make and so on. All there is left for the individual to do is to navigate life within these strict and non-negotiable boundaries. 

Lena comes from a family of deliria sufferers and she looks forward to the day where she will be cured and free to start living without the fear of falling ill. But then something happens... or actually someone happens. She meets Alex who has not been cured and he awakes feelings in her that she never knew existed. 

Right, so as you can probably guess this is not the most surprising of novels. Actually, a lot of the plot is down-right predictable. The only part that really surprised me was the ending which was absolutely fantastic. It was a bit of a cliff-hanger but I might not read the sequel (or I might, we'll see) and it worked for me anyway because it had a real statement to it. 

The lack of surprise in the plot is counter-acted by the detail with which this dystopian world has been created; it is a believable and engaging. It really caught my attention and imagination and it kept me reading even when I knew what would happen next and that is the strength of the book. 

The plot is standard, as it were, the characters were ranging in quality with some being better and more believable than others but the dystopian setting is superb - if nothing else, read it for that. 

Read it if: You want a lighter, more YA appropriate version of the world from Margaret Atwood's "The Handmaiden's Tale". You are working your way through the best parts of YA dystopia. 

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I'd Hand to Someone Who Says They Don't Like To Read

You and I both know it - one book can make the entire difference. One book can turn a "nah I'd rather watch a movie"-person into "book please"-person. They know that over at the Broke and the Bookish and this weeks TTT topic is Books I'd Hand to Somebody Who Says They Don't Like to Read.

10) "Speak" by Laurie Halse Anderson
For teenage girls who don't like to talk and who keep to themselves, this is dark, deep YA at its best. Reading this one hurts because it is so sincere. I love it and so will most teenage girls I think.

9) "How It Ended" by Jay McInerney
This one is for the non-readers with short attention spans. Short stories that burst at the seams with energy, life and action - if this can't keep your attention grabbed, I don't know what will.

8) "Valley of the Dolls" by Jacqueline Susann
This one is for the girls who love Hollywood glamour and glossy magazines! It has more drama than any glossy and will keep them turning the pages.

7) The "Orphan Train Adventures" series by Joan Lowery Nixon
This one is for the younger (pre-teen) non-reader. I read this series over and over again when I was a small girl and they sent me on imaginative journeys into historic America. Amazing books. If you like "The Little House On the Prarie" you will love this series.

6) "Driving Over Lemons" by Chris Stewart
This one is for the adventurous and the daydreamers alike. It is the story of how Chris Stewart and his wife left the safety of their normal lives behind and sought happiness in Andalusia. Pure inspiration.

5) "Stardust" by Neil Gaiman
For the teens and the imaginative adults. Not too long but full of an energy that will take even the most reluctant reader by storm.

4) "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins
This series is perfect for non-readers who like reality shows and lots of action because not is the series a prime example of dystopian, dark YA, it also contains a) reality shows and b) lots of action.

3) "Liar's Poker" by Michael Lewis
For the ambitious business school or finance student who doesn't see the values in books. This is a non-fiction book that is the a testament to the fact that real life is sometimes stranger than fiction.

2) "Emma" by Jane Austen
For those of your girlfriends who don't read but who can appreciate a good intrigue. If they like Blair from Gossip Girl, they will flat out love Emma.

1) The "Harry Potter" series by J.K. Rowling
This is for everyone! Not only is this series about magic, about witches and wizards, it is also magical in that it has transformed legions of non-reading children into book-devouring young adults. My absolute foolproof remedy for non-readers.

So what do you recommend to remedy non-reading?

Review: "Never Let Me Go" - Hard to let it go

It was seriously hard to let go of "Never Let Me Go" by Kazuo Ishiguro, when I had finished the last sentence. It almost clung to my hand and I re-read pages and paragraphs over again. It is strange because when I first started out reading the novel, I gave up a few pages in and thought that it would be one of those books that end up gathering dust without me ever getting them read. However, when I gave it a second try something clicked and I became absorbed in the story. I will try to write a brief review here with no spoilers because this is one of those novels that deserve to exist in a spoiler-free environment.

It is England as we know it and then not really. Kathy H., a women in her late twenties, is reminiscing about her idyllic childhood at the oh-so-English boarding school Hailsham. Her memories are full of afternoons playing rounders, doing arts and crafts projects and hanging out with the other children, especially Ruth and Tommy who becomes Kathy's two closest friends. However, as the plot evolves, it becomes apparent that something is going on. It is not all as perfect and peaceful as it seems on the surface, actually something rather sinister is looming just around the corner.

I won't tell you anymore but if you like a book to surprise you, to keep you on your toes, to engage you and leave you breathless, you simply need to read this book. Especially as it has been made into a film starring Andrew Garfield, Keira Knightley and Carey Mulligan. I really want to see it now that I have read the book - and I hope that you will also feel the need to see it when you have read this incredible novel.

Review: "Under the Skin" - it does actually get under your skin...

I read "The Crimson Petal and the White" by Michel Faber a couple of years ago and immediately loved it. Since then it has been one of those books that I use when I need a good present for someone because it really is an amazing book.
So a couple of days ago I read "Under the Skin" by Michel Faber, hoping for the same kind of amazing reading experience. I got a reading experience but not quite the one I had bargained for... It actually left me with physical reactions.

Isserley spends her days driving through Scotland, forth and back on the A9. She knows all the good place, she knows exactly where the good spots are. Where she will find the good hitchhikers. Isserley won't pick up any random hitchhiker, she only wants men and she only wants men with large muscles, men that have broad shoulders and big biceps. The scrawny ones she leaves behind. Then she cross-examines them: do you have a wife, girlfriend? Are you expected somewhere? Does anyone know where you are? Are you employed? As she questions them, she decides their fates. All I can say is that for the hitchhikers' sakes, I hope that they are found lacking because this will be the last drive of their life.

What happens with the hitchhikers? Where does Isserley take them? And what is it actually with Isserley? Why is she so different?

This novel was nothing like I expected. Nothing. Once I began reading it, it was impossible to put down. Even though it was not exactly a pleasant read. For every page I got more and more nauseous and even just writing this review, my stomach has started to turn. This was a nasty book that raised a lot of questions in my mind about the way we live, about how we treat each other, about what the world is coming to. It is a very very creepy book. If you like dystopia, fantasy, thrillers, mystery, great quality writing from a very accomplished author, then this is something for you.
Will I read it again? I seriously doubt it... At least right now, I can't stomach it.

Review: "Catching Fire" - Reading as if the book was on fire!

So after reading "The Hunger Games" I was impatiently waiting for "Catching Fire", the sequel which promised many more hours spent deep in reading about the country of Panem and the courageous Katniss. When it finally arrived in my mailbox, I saved it and took it with me when traveling to my parents' place for Christmas. And ended up spending most of the night between the 23rd and the 24th of December reading in bed because this book was unputdownable (if that is a word).

IF YOU HAVE NOT READ THE HUNGER GAMES AND CATCHING FIRE, PLEASE STOP HERE AS THE REVIEW IS FULL OF SPOILERS!
Just wanted to warn you :-)

Katniss is back home in District 12, now living with her mum and sister Prim, Haymitch and Peeta in the Victor's Village. Finally they have some stability, enough to eat and a safe place to live. But Katniss and Peeta have to keep up the pretence of being star-crossed lovers as they go on a Victory Tour to the other districts. However, since leaving the Hunger Games the relationship between Katniss and Peeta have been akward and cold and the act is by no means easy to keep up. However, President Snow soon makes it clear to Katniss that the act is crucial to her and Peeta's survival. So Katniss has to do the best she can - and as this is not good enough, she soon faces another round in the Hunger Games arena, taking Peeta with her.

This is a great book. Not as great as "The Hunger Games" but a great sequel. I loved the plot that kept twisting and turning and the growing love triangle featuring Peeta, Katniss and Gale. It was a really strong book for me, mostly because of Katniss. She is so cool. Full of flaws but full of virtues as well. Cold, pragmatic, calculating, no-nonsense - loving, caring, rebellious, thoughtful, clever. She is a really facetted characters, better than most of the other ones out there in fantasy-world.

Want to read what others think?
In Bed With Books: http://www.inbedwithbooks.blogspot.com/2009/09/review-catching-fire.html
Bart's Bookshelf: http://www.bartsbookshelf.co.uk/2009/09/12/review-catching-fire-by-suzanne-collins/
My Friend Amy: http://www.myfriendamysblog.com/2009/08/review-catching-fire-by-suzanne-collins.html

Review: "The Hunger Games" - I'm hungry for more!

After seeing so many people out there in the blogosphere raving about the Mockingjay series I thought I would give it a chance but to be honest I did not expect much. I kind of expected something rather interesting where I would read the first book in the series - "The Hunger Games" - and then decide that this was nothing for me. How wrong I was. Once I began reading this book there was no putting it down again. I read everywhere until I had turned the last page - and when I say everywhere I mean everywhere. On the bus, at the gym, while walking to the gym, even while cooking (and that cannot be recommended unless you are a trained read-while-you-do'er).

So for those of you who haven't yet been convinced to read this yet, what is this all about? "The Hunger Games" is the story of the teenager Katniss who grows up in North America sometime in the future. The world has changed drastically and American has been renamed Panem and is divided into twelve districts, of which Katniss lives in the poorest district where most people work in the coal mines. Katniss has had to take responsibility for her mother and her sisters and is the main breadwinner of the family. She is fiercely protective of her family and when her sisters is called on to take part the hunger games, Katniss volunteers to take her place, thinking that this is sure to be a death sentence. Because the hunger games is not just any old games - it is a reality tv-show where 24 teenagers are forced to fight until only one is still alive and is crowned the winner. Katniss' chances do not look good but she would die for her sister and alongside another teenager from her district, she goes to the capitol to fight for her life.

Normally I am not one for these futuristic/dystopian tales - the only other one I have ever liked is "The Handmaid's Tale" but not liking this book was not an option for me. This is YA at its best. It is well-written and the universe that Katniss exists in is well-constructed and believable. It is logical in the way that it is build up and nothing sticks out as seeming wrong. It is no pleasant universe though. The rules and rulers are evil and inhuman and it takes a lot of courage and cleverness to survive.
Even more courage and cleverness is needed to survive the hunger games and I really enjoyed reading about the way Katniss handled herself. Trying to survive while sticking to her ideals and principles. As a main character I loved Katniss. She has lots of flaws and she is not aware of all of them herself but she is a cool chick with a lot of backbone and a lot of personality. She lets no one mess with her but at the same time she is vulnerable and doesn't always find it easy to understand other people. I loved her instantly.

My only complaint is that I did not buy the next two books in the series when I bought the first one - but I only have myself to blame for that :-)

So here is a question for those of you who have read "The Hunger Games", what did you love most about the book? For me the best part was Katniss, I can't wait to read more about her.