Review: The Disreputable History of Frankie Landeau-Banks by E. Lockhart

Publish date: 2008
Source: Gifted from my Secret Santa!
Format: Paperback
Length: 345 pages
"Frankie Landau-Banks at age 14:

Debate Club.
Her father's "bunny rabbit."
A mildly geeky girl attending a highly competitive boarding school.

Frankie Landau-Banks at age 15:
A knockout figure.
A sharp tongue.
A chip on her shoulder.
And a gorgeous new senior boyfriend: the supremely goofy, word-obsessed Matthew Livingston.

Frankie Landau-Banks.
No longer the kind of girl to take "no" for an answer.
Especially when "no" means she's excluded from her boyfriend's all-male secret society.
Not when her ex-boyfriend shows up in the strangest of places.
Not when she knows she's smarter than any of them.
When she knows Matthew's lying to her.
And when there are so many, many pranks to be done.

Frankie Landau-Banks, at age 16:
Possibly a criminal mastermind.

This is the story of how she got that way." (Goodreads)

During last year's readathon, I read book one of the Ruby Oliver series, The Boyfriend List. I absolutely loved it and decided I needed to read The Disreputable History of Frankie Landeau-Banks, also by E. Lockhart. My lovely Secret Santa got it for me and I just read it, which is sad because it was AWESOME and I wish I'd read it way sooner!

Reasons I loved this book:

Frankie herself: She was a great character and I just understood her on so many levels. Her wanting to hang out with Matthew and his friends because they were goofy and fun: that was like E. Lockhart took a trip to my past, met my high school self, and then put me into Frankie. I also loved that she was righteously upset at how certain things were okay if boys did them, but not her. I GET THAT and it infuriates me too.

The setting: Boarding school, secret societies, and pranks? All wins.

The writing style: I was surprised to see that this book, like The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight, was also written in third person (and has a similarly long-winded title). Unlike Statistical Probability, I thought the narration and point of view really worked well here. It didn't bother me, although it took a few chapters to get used to.

Basically, this book was amazing and I enjoyed it way more than I thought I would. I knew I'd like it, since it's E. Lockhart, but I wasn't prepared for how much I would relate to Frankie. If you haven't read this one, do it! If you know me, a YA contemp recommendation is a big deal!

Review: How to Save a Life

Author: Sara Zarr
Publish date: 2011
Source: Won in contest
"Jill MacSweeny just wishes everything could go back to normal. But ever since her dad died, she's been isolating herself from her boyfriend, her best friends--everyone who wants to support her. And when her mom decides to adopt a baby, it feels like she's somehow trying to replace a lost family member with a new one.

Mandy Kalinowski understands what it's like to grow up unwanted--to be raised by a mother who never intended to have a child. So when Mandy becomes pregnant, one thing she's sure of is that she wants a better life for her baby. It's harder to be sure of herself. Will she ever find someone to care for her, too?

As their worlds change around them, Jill and Mandy must learn to both let go and hold on, and that nothing is as easy--or as difficult--as it seems."

I won this book in a contest last month and when it arrived, I stuck it on a bookshelf and decided to wait to read it until I was in the mood. After recently finishing Clockwork Angel and Ashes, I was ready for a contemp, so I gave How to Save a Life a try. I read it over the past 2 nights and really liked it.

One of the things I liked best about this book was the two different narratives. The story is told from both Jill and Mandy's perspectives, in alternating chapters. Even though this is not a new concept, Sara Zarr did SUCH an incredible job with creating two distinct voices. The characters are two completely different people and I am impressed with how their personalities were maintained throughout the narrative. Teacher moment: This book would be a great example to show writing students when explaining the importance of voice.

How to Save a Life was also pretty emotionally hard-hitting. Jill is dealing with the death of her father and continuing life with her mother, and Mandy is pregnant and has moved to Denver to give her baby to Jill's mother Robin. I felt like I could understand with what each girl was going through, but the book wasn't TOO emotional. I didn't feel like I had to wade through any of the writing, which sometimes happens with me when reading contemporary novels that deal with heavier stuff like death.

All in all a great contemp that fans of Sarah Dessen (like me!) would definitely enjoy!

Review: Shatter Me

Author: Tahereh Mafi
Publish date: November 2011
Source: won in a contest
"The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette's touch is fatal. As long as she doesn't hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don't fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color. 

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war-- and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she's exactly what they need right now. 

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior. "

I won this novel in a Facebook contest and read it over a few days while I was on vacation in Washington, D.C. (pictures to come soon!). I ended up liking Shatter Me a lot, even though it was difficult for me to get into at first.

One of the first things I noticed about Shatter Me was the distinct writing style. The story is told from Juliette's point of view and some of the writing was really distracting, but I eventually got used to it. Since the narrative is from her viewpoint, we got to read exactly what she was thinking: sometimes the words repeated and lines were even crossed out, which I have never seen in a book before. It took a bit to get used to, but I ended up thinking that the writing style added a lot to the story. It was interesting to see how the writing changed as Juliette's living situation changed as well.


Another aspect of Shatter Me that I liked was the characters. I thought Juliette was a well-developed character (although she said a few things that surprised me) and holy moley, do I love Adam. I'll just say that he's pretty awesome. The supporting characters were all great too: Warner, James, Kenji. They all influenced the story and weren't just there for kicks.


I believe that Shatter Me is supposed to be the first in a trilogy, but it can really stand on its own. I'm excited to see where the story is going, but I honestly would not have known it was part of a trilogy if I hadn't just checked Tahereh Mafi's website. It was an interesting, fast-paced, and edgy, if I may say that, dystopian (with a side of paranormal?) that I really enjoyed! 

Review: The Night Circus

Author: Erin Morgenstern
Publish date: September 2011
Source: Purchased
"Opens at Nightfall; Closes at Dawn." The Le Cirque des Rêves is a circus unlike any other, just as this magical debut novel is equally unique. At the center of The Night Circus spectacle are two specially gifted young magicians, Celia and Marco, pitted against each other in professional competition, drawn towards one another in love. Erin Morgenstern's literary fantasy has already drawn raves for its captivating evocativeness: "A world of almost unbearable beauty.... A love story on a grand scale: it creates, it destroys, it ultimately transcends." "A novel so magical that there is no escaping its spell... If you choose to read just one novel this year, this is it.""


This novel, Ms. Morgenstern's first, is unlike anything I have ever read before. I feel like I will never be done sorting out my feelings about it, but in a good way. I had heard only good things about it, so I figured I would just get the book and read it instead of waiting for it at the library. It actually ended up being a gift and I read it over a few days (and will be rereading at some point).


The prose in this book is some of the most beautiful I have ever had the pleasure of reading. I often found myself stopping while reading to go back and reread because the writing was just that wonderful. (Sidenote: I NEVER do that.) Ms. Morgenstern's way with words is just incredible. I could only ever hope to write half as well as she does. I think I would have finished the book more quickly if the writing itself wasn't so beautiful (and I am not one to gush about prose like this).


Let's talk about imagery, shall we? This novel is just FULL of imagery and in the best way possible. With all the descriptions, I could really feel like I was there at the circus or any of the other settings that are in the novel. If you are someone who teaches craft or wants to learn how to employ great imagery, read this book! I was continually amazed at how she showed us her fantastic world.


The plot was confusing at times, I will readily admit that. There are a multitude of main characters and the chapters alternate narration between many of them, but I thought the different points of view really added more depth to the story. The chapters also take place during different time periods, which could add to the confusion, but each was labeled with a time and place at the beginning. That said, the chapters were all fairly short, which was nice and really helped with pacing. 


There is a romance within the story, but it doesn't overpower the plot, which can easily happen in so many other books. I really liked how it just slowly built over time. It, like the writing, was lovely. I thought the two (trying to avoid spoilers) were great characters by themselves and the romance just made me like them more. 


I don't think my review is really doing this book the justice it deserves. I didn't necessarily enjoy the book for its plot, even though it was magical and very creative. I really liked it more for its actual writing, for the world I was easily able to imagine because of, again, the excellent writing. It may start off a bit slowly, but it grows and grows until the end hits you and, like me, you'll want to reread immediately.