The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Genre: Post-apocalyptic/Dystopian/Young Adult

This book is about a crumbling US government that devised a way to control the people with a thing they call The Hunger Games.

Back Cover:
In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.
Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before--and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.


I was expecting something entirely different than what occurred in this book. That's not to say it wasn't a good book. Reading the back cover had me intrigued. As I read I felt slightly less intrigued, but continued to read knowing that sometimes it takes about 100 pages to get into a book. The more I continued to read the more I found myself feeling for Katniss and all the hardships she must face during The Hunger Games. I felt myself tear up a couple of times. We get to understand Katniss, but I think, she still has a lot to learn. I'm curious to find out what happens in book 2. If you're interested in a corrupt and brutal government, this is the book to read.

Shame on anyone who thinks evil of this.

Annie on my Mind - Nancy Garden

Genre: Lesbian/Romantic/Young Adult

Basically this is a love story about a young girl who falls in love with another girl. I don't know how more to say it than that without giving a lot away.



Back Cover:

"If you don't put that ring on this minute, I'm going to take it back," Annie Whispered in my ear. She leaned back, looking at me, her hands still on my shoulders, her eyes shining softly at me and snow falling, melting, on her nose. "Buon Natale," she whispered, "amore mio."
Merry Christmas, my love," I answered.

From the moment Liza Winthrop meets Annie Kenyon at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, she knows there is something special between them. But Liza never knew falling in love could be so wonderful...or so confusing.
I thought this book was a really sweet love story between too girls who are discovering what it really means to love someone else. More than anything, it's a story about love, and it was touching, and had a good moral which is this: "Don't let ignorance win," said Ms Stevenson. "Let love."

My favorite part of this book was this "Have you ever felt really close to someone? So close that you can't understand why you and the other person have two separate bodies, two separate skins?" I think that really describes what it means to love someone.

So if that doesn't make you want to read this book, then you're missing out. If you like love stories you might find this to be quite good. I definitely recommend this to anyone who loves shy romance.

Shame on anyone who thinks evil of this.

Twilight: Eclipse - Stephenie Meyer

Genre: Young Adult

Bella's still in love with Edward, and in this book we get to see how much of a jerk Jacob truly is. Edward still wants Bella to marry him before he turns her, despite her wanting it now, under what Edward considers fear circumstance. It's Bella's graduation year and young vampires are running rampant in Seattle. We discover Jaspers past and how it's linked to the up and coming battle with young vampires. The Cullens and the wolves form an ally-ship to fight a battle against these newborns. Still victoria wants to kill Bella. Bella discovers her love for Jacob and wants to set him free.


Wikipedia Summary:
The story opens with the revelation that Seattle, Washington is being plagued by a string of murders, which Edward suspects is caused by a new vampire that is unable to control its thirst for human blood. As Edward and Bella apply to colleges, Bella explains to Edward her desire to see her friend, Jacob Black, a werewolf. Although Edward fears for her safety, Bella insists that neither Jacob nor his wolf pack would ever harm her, and she begins visiting him occasionally. On one of these visits, Jacob tells Bella that he is in love with her and wants her to choose him instead of Edward, but Bella says she just sees him as a friend. To that, Jacob forcibly kisses her and she reacts by punching him in the face, spraining her hand while not even leaving a scratch on him. Meanwhile, Alice Cullen has a vision that Victoria, a vampire who is hunting Bella for revenge, has returned to Forks. A few days later, Edward proposes to Bella and, despite harboring an aversion to marriage, she accepts.

Bella and the Cullens soon realize that the Seattle murders are being committed by an "army" of newborn vampires, controlled by Victoria. The Cullens join forces with the wolf pack to combat this threat. As everyone else prepares for battle, Edward, Bella and Jacob camp in the mountains, hidden during the battle, where they are later joined by Seth Clearwater, a young wolf pack member, to wait out the fight.

In the morning, Jacob becomes upset when he overhears Edward and Bella discussing their engagement and threatens to join the fight and get himself killed. Bella stops Jacob by kissing him, and she comes to realize that she is in love with him as well. During the battle, Victoria tracks Edward's scent to Bella's forest hiding place, and Edward is forced to fight. Edward manages to kill Victoria and her vampire army is destroyed. Afterwards, Bella explains to Jacob that while she loves him, her love for Edward is greater. After receiving a wedding invitation from Edward, Jacob runs away in his wolf form to escape his heartbreak over Bella's rejection.
Let me start by saying this books freaking long dude. I saw the movies before I read the books, but it looks to me like the movies follow the books pretty well. I didn't mind this one, in fact it was my favorite of the series so far. The one thing I have against this saga is that it kinda circulates to the same junk all the time. Detailed circles that just keep reoccurring basically. What I mean by that is, Bella's always strung between Edward and Jacob before she even realizes her feelings for the one guy. Not to mention that someones always trying to kill her because shes 'fragile.' Also she's always blaming herself for the bad stuff that happens and I guess she does kind of draw it to herself. They need to get on with turning her into a vampire already so that the story can get some kind of change. Also, is it just me or does Jacob become more of an ass, as the series continues? Raging werewolf hormones much? If you're into vampires and werewolves and love triangles, you'll love this series, especially if you don't mind some trends that seem to stick with the theme of the saga. It's definitely a series that if I were a teenage girl, I would be crazy about. The flaws probably wont stop me from reading the next ones.

Shame on anyone who thinks evil of this.

Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card

Genre: Sci-Fi

Where's a better place to start blogging about books, than Ender's Game? There isn't one, that I know of.

Ender's game is a Sci-fi novel about a boy taken by the government and trained in battle. It's the first of a saga of books by Orson Scott Card. It's a futuristic war-space novel. I don't know if any of you have read the Halo series of novels, but you'll notice how similar Halo is to this novel. The first time I read this book I thought the beginning felt slow, but the second time around I felt I understood why it was written as it was. It starts with his home life before they come to take him away. Through all of his training you learn how intelligent Ender is and you may find yourself becoming attached to his character and who he is and can become, at least I did. You get to learn a whole lot about his character, seeing the events he goes through, who he thinks he is versus who he truly is. I really like the character development. He does what needs to get done. He even has some really good supporting characters, like his sister. In the end I feel he truly knows what it is he must do, and maybe understands a little bit more about himself than he did throughout the entire novel.

This book was incredibly intriguing and I have read it more than once. In fact I suggested it for a book group of mine, and we read it together, well...those of us who opted to give it a chance instead of opting out. It's not usually a book that females might find themselves wanting to read and even if it doesn't sound like your thing you should definitely give it a shot. I think anyone whose interested in sci-fi novels should pick this one up if they have yet to read it.

Back cover:
"Intense is the word for Ender's Game. Aliens have attacked earth twice and almost destroyed the human species. To make sure humans win the next encounter, the world government has taken to breeding military geniuses--and then training them in the arts of war....The early training, not surprisingly, takes the form of 'games.'...Ender Wiggin is a genius among geniuses; he wins all the games...He is smart enough to know that time is running out. But is he smart enough to save the planet?"

I think this book is freaking amazing. The plot is great, the story carries well, the characters are intense, and the outcome is stupendous. If you don't read this book, you are seriously missing out. It's a must read in my books.

Shame on anyone who thinks evil of this.