Weekly Wrap-up for July 14, 2013: Organization.

Hi everyone! When this post goes live, I'll actually be out of town (I'm a sneaky one). Matt and I will be traipsing along somewhere near Traverse City today (we came up here for a wedding on Saturday). Nevertheless, I have a question I've been meaning to ask, and perhaps you can help me!

I know I have talked about book organization before. However, I'm looking for some ideas from you about my shelves. As of right now, I have 5 shelves. 4 are big, full-sized beasts, and I have one tall, skinny shelf. 2 of my shelves are in our living room and they house all of my classics. The other 3 are in our second bedroom/office and have a mish-mash of YA, Science-fiction, Fantasy, History, and random other books I didn't want boxed up anymore.

Here is my problem.

Since I started collecting the new Penguin English Library books, my classics collection has grown...a lot. In fact, since I started blogging, my classics collection went from about half a big bookshelf to filling 2 big shelves (and then some). Right now, I have my clothbounds and PELs separated out from the rest of my classics-they look very pretty all together on the shelf-but they are growing as I continue to acquire and now I don't have room for all my classics in our living room. So what gets moved to the other bedroom? My classics are mainly organized alphabetically by author, so should I just take my poor end of the alphabet classics and moved them out? Or should I take a big set of titles (like my Shakespeare-which takes up a whole row...and then some) and move them over? WHAT WOULD YOU DO?

And second problem...

My shelves in the second bedroom are also overflowing...which is a surprise to my husband...I mean, where are all those extra books coming from? (*whistles innocently*). I need to put some books away in a box to clear room for the classics moving in, and to get rid of the excess double stacking. But what do I put away? Should I keep old favorites on the shelves just because I love them? Or should I just keep unreads out so they taunt me into picking them up?

See, this is a very serious problem. :) I need your ideas! How do you organized your shelves? Be super specific and help a girl out!

Thanks in advance for all your help!

(And I'll be back in person on Wednesday). :)

Mini-Reviews Part 2 (YA).

Today I bring you the second half of the young adult mini-reviews from what I've been reading this year. Like the first post, this will focus on those novels I've been reading and not writing about. And this second half has some GOOD books!

Every Day by David Levithan

My first Levithan experience wasn't as awesome as I had hoped, so I decided to try another novel before giving up on Levithan. I am so glad I did.

I settled on Every Day after a few people raved about it. The story focuses on a boy who wakes up in the body of someone new every day. Each morning he has to determine who he is and what his life will be. And each night he closes his eyes knowing he will end up somewhere else.

It's a great concept for a novel, and Levithan executed it brilliantly. I found myself truly sympathizing with the main character and his struggle to build some kind of a life with the people he meets. It got me thinking about the people you see every day-how you really don't know what their life is like at home. This book gave you a glimpse of it.

I'm ready to tackle more by Levithan, so please tell me some other titles to read!

Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys

I am in LOVE with Between Shades of Gray, so I bought Out of the Easy the day it came out. It didn't disappoint me.

The novel takes place in New Orleans in the 1950s. Our main character, Josie, has lived there since she was a little girl. Her mother works at a brothel as a prostitute, and Josie is responsible for cleaning it each morning. She refuses to fall into a life like her mother's, so she works hard to save money to get away and out of New Orleans.

This novel truly sucked me in. Sepetys has the ability to craft truly engaging stories with relate-able and likeable characters. Josie was someone I really rooted for. Her life was hard and her mother was truly a horrid person. But she persevered with class and strength. It was riveting.

Sepetys is an author that I will continue to follow!

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith

This was a title I picked up at the book fair after seeing a bunch of students reading it and favorable reviews online. I decided to read it near the end of the school year when I was stressed out because I needed to be entertained. And entertained I was.

This is a cute story of an angry girl, Hadley, traveling overseas to her estranged father's wedding. She meets a cute and dashing boy, Oliver, at the airport, and the next 24 hours chronicle their time together.

The story was cute. I'm not a big fan of the whole "angry girl meets cute boy who shows her the error of her ways," but this was truly entertaining and very sweet. It was a just a happy book that delivered on its title. And that is something you need once in awhile!

Legend and Prodigy by Marie Lu

So, I do this thing where I buy new books that are coming out, then learn they are part of a series, and then I let them sit on my shelves until all are published. Perhaps it has to do with my need for instant gratification, but I really enjoy reading a series straight through. Legend was one of those books, until my husband picked it off the shelf for me to read next. It helps that the third and final book will be out this fall...I really don't have long to wait.

These are some of those novels that are for "fans of The Hunger Games." I personally find that to be an annoying comparison, since novels shouldn't have to be compared to something else to find readership. And while they do have things in common with The Hunger Games, they aren't that similar.

Anyway, Legend introduces the reader to a future world full of violence and anger-especially with children. June, a young prodigy in the military of the Republic, is on a mission to find the Republic's most notorious criminal, Day. It's a very action-filled book and I read it quickly. The point-of-view switches each chapter between Day and June (and I find it really annoying that Day's portions are in a different colored font. It made my eyes hurt. Don't try to be cute publishing houses).

I really enjoyed both titles and will definitely be picking up the third title when it debuts (I also plan on finishing my reading of the Divergent series), but after that, I need to step away from the post-apocalyptic world titles. While they are all entertaining, they are all starting to contain the same elements and it's driving me crazy. I just need a breather from the YA. :)



There you have it-I'm caught up on mini-reviews for all the YA I've read this year. Stay tuned for one more mini-review post on some adult titles. 

Winger by Andrew Smith.

I had the opportunity to read a few Andrew Smith books last summer for a reading event. While I didn't finish out the event (school started and everything disappeared), I did read both In the Path of Falling Objects and Stick, both of which impressed me with their honest portrayal of teens. So, when Adam over at Roof Beam Reader starting talking about Smith's newest book, Winger, I knew I needed to pick it up. Then he reviewed it and really made me want to read it. So, I ordered it and when it came, I promised myself I would finish the two classics I had on my nightstand before picking it up.

That didn't happen. I settled in to read a few pages and became absorbed with the novel. I ended up reading it all in one go, unable to set it down. It was just that amazing.

Ryan Dean West, aka Winger, is a 14-year-old junior at an elite boarding school who plays rugby and is obsessed with his friend Annie. Clearly gifted in academics, he struggles with his age and how those around him see him. He begins his junior year by living in Opportunity Hall, a place for the "problem" kids at school. He winds up living with the biggest bully on the rugby team and from the beginning of the year, he struggles to find his identity with the other boys in Opportunity Hall.

I have to say that I am a sucker for any book that takes place at a boarding school. There is something about the idea of kids running rampant at a school with minimal adult supervision that gets me every time. Winger is no exception. From the beginning, there seems to be little adult interaction with the kids (with the exception of Mr. Wellins, the teacher in charge of Opportunity Hall, and a short excursion to Annie's home). Most of the book focuses on the interactions of the kids, all from Ryan Dean West's point of view.

I loved Ryan Dean as a main character. I had to remind myself at the beginning of the novel that he's only 14-2 years younger than many of the characters he interacts with. And once that piece of information was firmly embedded in my mind, I understood his actions so much better. He's obsessed with his friend Annie in a way that only teenagers can be. He thinks about her often, worries what she thinks of him, and tries hard to lift himself up in her eyes. As someone who works with teenagers at school, I've seen the same thing happen in front of my eyes with some of my students. Being a teenager is tough, but to be younger than most of your peers, well, that's hard.

And that conflict in his maturity level-the fact that he is gifted academically but clearly immature when it comes to social interactions-is what makes the novel shine. Ryan Dean is awkward at points. He DOES react immaturely to some situations because he simply doesn't know any better. But he grows and matures over the course of the novel, and the reader can truly see him growing up.

One of the highlights of the novel was Ryan Dean's growing friendship with Joey-a gay teammate and another occupant of Opportunity Hall. I loved that Ryan Dean was honest enough to acknowledge the fact that some might see their friendship as something as other than friends, but was man enough not to let it bother him. It was one of those pieces that showed his growing maturity. I also just liked the friendship and how it was portrayed. It's clear that Joey took Ryan Dean under his wing, and was open enough to tell him to quit being stupid and to "grow up" on more than one occasion. Their friendship just warmed my heart.

I just...I really loved the honesty here. Ryan Dean just felt like a real teenage boy, fighting real teenage problems-being ostracized from his peers, fighting to fit in, and trying to win the girl of his dreams. The novel was just...right. It made me think about those insecurities I used to have in high school-and that struggle to fit in with my peers. In Ryan Dean's voice, it just felt right and perfect. It wasn't a caricature of a teenager.

There is so much more I could say about this novel, as I have barely scratched the surface of what this novel is about and how truly powerful it is. If there is one novel you need to read, this is it. I promise you won't regret it. 

Odyssey Readalong Books 1 and 2.

I'm trying to be good about stopping and writing down my thoughts after every book I finish, but I haven't been good about typing up my thoughts and sharing them with those of you participating.

I thought it might help those of you tackling this for the first time to have a place to talk about things as you read, so I'm sure these posts will be a bit of summarizing, and a bit of my own observations reading through this for the umpteenth time. :)

I already discussed the opening lines, which remain my favorite lines of the entire work, but there is so much more that happens in the opening books! We don't start with dear Odysseus, but rather with his son Telemachus and his journey to set things right in Ithaca.

Book 1: Athena Inspires the Prince

So, after the opening lines of The Odyssey, in which the bard reciting the story invokes the Muses to inspire their recitation, we learn about the state of affairs in Ithaca since Odysseus has been away from home. When The Odyssey was originally recited, or performed, by the bards in Ancient Greece, everyone knew the history behind it-that men from Greece rallied behind Menelaus and Agamemnon to get Helen back from Paris. So, all the Greeks ventured to Troy to get Helen back, and after ten years of fighting, Odysseus comes up with the idea of the Trojan Horse and Troy falls.

It is now years later, and while many other men have returned home, or have perished on the way home (news has traveled to let their families know), nothing has been heard from Odysseus or his men. All of the gods, with the exception of Poseidon, have taken pity on Odysseus, who is still far from home in the clutches of Calypso. Poseidon is still a bit mad at Odysseus for stabbing out the Cyclops' eye (something we will read about in a bit), so he has delayed poor Odysseus from returning home. However, the rest of the gods agree to help Odysseus when Poseidon conveniently isn't in attendance, and Athena decides to interfere directly with Odysseus' son Telemachus so he can take back his home in preparation for Odysseus' return.

Athena disguises herself and arrives in Ithaca at Odysseus' home. In his long absence (which is 20 years by the time he eventually returns), his son has grown up and his home has been overrun by suitors for his wife. Athena arrives to discover the suitors lounging around the home, eating and drinking and otherwise dishonoring Odysseus in his absence. Telemachus seeks out the stranger and they talk. it is during this discussion that Telemachus confides that he is unsure of what to do-how to drive the suitors away from his home and mother and take back his home;

"Dear stranger, would you be shocked by what I say?
Look at them over there. Not a care in the world,
just lyres and tunes! It's easy for them, all right,
they feed on another's goods and go scot-free-
a man whose white bones lie strewn in the rain somewhere,
rotting away on land or rolling down the ocean's salty swells.
But that man-if they caught sight of him home in Ithaca,
by god, they'd all pray to be faster on their feet
than richer in bars of gold and heavy robes. 
But now, no use, he's died a wretched death.
No comfort's left for us...not even if
someone, somewhere, says he's coming home.
The day of his return will never dawn." (lines 184-196)

Poor Telemachus is clearly lost-he doesn't know what to do to regain his home and honor his father's memory. Unlike the other Greeks who fought at Troy, Odysseus' fate is unknown. Others who died in battle or on the way home-that news has already made it. Odysseus is simply lost, and because of the uncertainty surrounding where he is and what has happened to him, Telemachus is at a loss for what to do.

Athena counsels Telemachus to go abroad to seek news of his father and to "become a man." By leaving home and taking action, she is taking him away from the uncertainty and anger regarding the suitors and will empower him to seek his own fate. She suggests traveling to Sparta and Pylos to seek information about his father and his fate. Telemachus agrees to her plan before Athena leaves.

For reference: Ithaca (Odysseus' Home, Pylos, Sparta, and Troy (location of the Trojan War)

Telemachus and Penelope

Penelope appears briefly and talks with her son about missing Odysseus and wanting to be rid of the suitors plaguing their house. After she leaves, Telemachus musters the courage to call out the suitors for dishonoring his father, but they pay little attention. He turns to bed and goes to sleep thinking over Athena'a plan and whether he has the courage to accomplish what she has set for him.

Book 2: Telemachus Sets Sail

The second book of The Odyssey opens with Telemachus waking the morning after his talk with Athena. He calls the Achaens to assemble to speak about his plans. Athena only intervenes slightly;

"And Athena lavished a marvelous splendor on the prince
so the people all gazed in wonder as he came forward,
the elders making way as he took his father's seat." (lines 12-14).

Athena

Athena hopes to give Telemachus the illusion of manhood as he takes his father's role at the head of the counsel, especially because the counsel has not been called since Odysseus left some years before. Once together, Telemcahus speaks to the counsel and explains he was the one to call it. He outlines his plans and that there are 2 issues that need to be dealt with: 1. the loss of his father has created a huge hole in Ithaca and 2. there are suitors plaguing the house that are dishonoring his father and pressuring his mother.

The counsel turns on Telemachus. Many place blame on Penelope for not simply choosing a new suitor (she actually spent three years tricking the suitors by saying as soon as she finishing a weaving, she would marry, but she unraveled her weaving every night. They eventually caught on). In response to the negativity and anger pointed in Telemachus' direction, Zeus sends down eagles as a sign of the gods' favor toward Telemachus and his quest to find his father. This is ignored by the counsel.

Telemachus then outlines his plans for journeying to Pylos and Sparta in hopes of discovering Odysseus' fate. He is laughed at as the counsel disbands. Feeling discouraged, he prays to Athena and she encourages him to continue on with the plan, even without the support of the counsel;

"...Telemachus,
you'll lack neither courage nor sense from this day on,
not if your father's spirit courses through your veins-" (lines 302-304).

Telemachus returns home where the suitors also mock him for his plans, while Athena goes in search of a ship and crew for his journey. He makes plans with a servant to arrange supplies for the trip, then sneaks away to pack the ship and begin his journey in search of his father with Athena by his side.

 

Thoughts:

I've already mentioned that the parts most are familiar with in relation to The Odyssey are only a small piece of the story. Because in addition to Odysseus' actual journey home and the monsters he faces, there is also the coming of age of Telemachus, and Odysseus' plan to retake his home once he sets foot in Ithaca.

This first 4 books focus closely on Telemachus and the life he has without Odysseus at home. he is first portrayed a bit of a list boy. He was only a baby when Odysseus left for war, so he has grown up under the protection of his mother, Penelope, and the servants in the household. And once Odysseus didn't return, his home became overrun with suitors, eager for a chance to marry Penelope and take everything Odysseus worked for. Telemachus is lost. His mother is too consumed by her grief for Odysseus to notice that her son is suffering from the pressure of the suitors taking over the home. Telemachus has no male role model to guide him, so once the gods interfere, he is eager for their help.

I quite enjoy the story of Telemachus. He IS weak at the beginning-he allows the open dishonor of his parents and lacks the courage to stand up for them. It is only after Athena speaks with him and inspires him to be proactive that he gains the courage to speak out to those around him. As Athena tells him, he must "become a man." The first step is take action be seeking information about his father and where he may be. 

We still have two more books that focus on Telemachus. He'll visit Pylos and Sparta to learn about his father's whereabouts before returning home to deal with the suitors. We'll see more growth from him, but it is only when Odysseus comes home that we see that he does, eventually, "become a man."

The other thing I want to mention is the interference of the gods. The Greek gods are notorious for interfering with mortals, and Odysseus has been a victim of that. Poseidon hates Odysseus, for many reasons we'll learn later, and has prevented him from returning home. The other gods only interfere when Poseidon is occupied elsewhere, a fact that cracks me up every time I read it. But you do have to keep in mind that since Odysseus must return by sea, Poseidon can really prevent his journey. 

But Athena is sick of sitting by and watching as things turn sour in Ithaca. As the story continues, we'll see the places where the gods decide things are important enough to interfere...and what they let go. 

**Please let me know if this format was helpful for you. And ask questions below! I'd love to get a bit of discussion going.*

Mini-Reviews Part 1 (YA).

Since I haven't been blogging on a regular basis, I have a pile of books waiting that I've read and haven't talked about. I figured I should remedy that, so I give you mini-reviews! I read some of these so long ago that some details are hazy, so this is really the best option for me to at least tell you what books I liked and didn't like. :)

This post will focus on half of the young adult novels that I've read over the last few months. Since this post has been sitting in "draft" mode for...well, a long time, some novels are a little hazier than others (these are in order from the furthest away to the most recent reads).

Feel free to tell me in comments if you've read the same novel and your thoughts! :)

Requiem by Lauren Oliver

I read both Delirium and Pandemonium shortly after they were published, and I was ready to read Requiem when it came out. I wasn't all that happy with the end of either of the two previous books-both made me roll my eyes. Of the two, Pandemonium irritated me more, but I still wanted to know how the story ended.

While I certainly flew through Requiem, I was left feeling very unimpressed. The book felt a bit disjointed. And the romantic conflict felt forced to me. It left a bitter taste in my mouth. However, I did like the storyline with Hana, and felt that it connected well with Lena's story.

Overall, I enjoyed the series, and I've recommended it to a bunch of students. They all seemed to really enjoy it, so I consider that to be a success.

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Graceling is one of those titles I've been meaning to read, but hadn't picked up at the store. I finally caved when one of the students from the school's book club convinced me it was really good.

And she was right. Hands down, Graceling is one of the best YA fantasy novels I've read in a long time. I found it to be original and compelling. Katsa was a narrator and character that I truly rooted for. She underwent a great deal of change in the novel, but maintained her identity no matter the circumstances. That was something I really admired from Cashore-that she didn't sacrifice her character's real identity to go along with what the read might want.

The novel, as a whole, was well-written and evenly paced. I flew through it in a night and couldn't read it fast enough. It also caused me to go out to the store and immediately pick up Cashore's other 2 titles.

Fire by Kristin Cashore

Fire is set in the same world as Graceling, but takes place in a neighboring realm. While in Graceling certain characters are marked with different colored eyes as a sign of their grace, or high skill in a certain area (Katsa's is survival), the country in which Fire takes place is one of violence and anger. The main character, Fire, is a woman with brilliant hair-a trait that attracts violence and anger since her hair also has power.

The story was similarly paced to Graceling. Again, I found the world believable and well-developed. In many ways, the country of Fire's story was similar to the places Katsa journeyed through. Both women had to struggle to be understood for their particular traits. However, I did find Fire to be more...violent than Graceling, and it was missing something to really push it over the edge (and that isn't to say I didn't enjoy it, I did, but not as much as Graceling). In any case, the book left me thinking after I closed it.

Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore

The last of my Cashore binge is her most recent novel. Bitterblue goes back to the realm that Graceling takes place in and reintroduces us to some of the same characters, but focusing on Bitterblue.

Of the three novels in this world, Bitterblue was by far the most political. That is an aspect of fantasy literature that I really love, but puts some people off. I also really enjoyed seeing old characters in new roles, and seeing how Bitterblue had changed from the first novel.

I also loved that like Katsa, Bitterblue stayed in character throughout the duration of the novel. She didn't slip into any YA character traps that seem to be so popular in YA lit, and I found it refreshing.

After finishing all 3 of Cashore's novels, I can say that she has a fan for as long as she writes fantasy literature. She writes beautifully and I love her characters.

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

This was a book I picked up at our school's book fair on a whim. I think I heard some murmurs about it on a few blogs, and since I was focusing on the Holocaust in my history classes, it was good timing. This is a historical fiction novel set in Nazi-occupied France. A girl was taken captive by the Nazis for spying, and as the novel unfolds, she tells her story.

At times the novel was very beautiful At other points, it was gruesome and harrowing. There is also THAT SCENE that shocked me very deeply (I had to reread it to let it sink in).

However, it was well-written and I enjoyed it well-enough. I do think there were a few pacing issues in spots, but the story was powerful enough to overwhelm that.

Every You, Every Me by David Levithan

I had heard many good things about Levithan, so I decided to try one of his novels on a whim, and this happened to be the lucky title.

I probably should have started elsewhere, since I really did not enjoy this that much. I found out, after I read it, that the novel was a bit experimental for Levithan. The pictures included were shot and given to Levithan as he wrote the book...so the story unfolded as new pictures emerged. It's an interested concept for writing, but the final product didn't work for me.

In a nutshell, Evan starts finding photographs that seem to be targeting him in some way. He begins investigating the source of the images and a whole bunch of things unfold.

For me, the story felt off from the beginning. The pacing jolted me, and it felt...just awkward.

The Raft by S.A. Bodeen

Our media specialist bought this and begged me to read it over our Spring Break, and I caved in. She wanted someone's opinion on it since it was a new title, but she hadn't been able to convince a student to read it.

Ummm...yeah. It's a good thing that the novel was short and very simple. I flew through it in about an hour or so. Basically, the story is about a young girl in a plane crash who ends up in a raft on the ocean when her plane crashes. It's the story of her "survival" and how she copes with things on the raft.

It was not my cup of tea. I found the writing to be almost childish considering that the novel focused on a teenager. And then there was the "twist" near the end that made me roll my eyes and almost throw the book across the room.

It just didn't work for me.

The Jessica Darling Novels by Megan McCafferty

Apparently I was living under a rock when these novels debuted when I was in high school. Had I found the first title, Sloppy Firsts, back then, I would have been a total fan-girl over these. The narrator, Jessica Darling, is the perfect amount of sassy I always wanted to be. She is also funny as all get out and makes some very humorous choices.

The rest of the series continues her life through the end of high school, through college, and then when she is out in the workforce. They come to a satisfying ending that I almost feel McCafferty wrote for her fans rather than her characters, but they were entertaining enough.

By far the best in the series is the first novel, followed closely by the second. They are funny, sarcastic, and wonderfully written. I just found Jessica got to be a bit stale as the novels progressed, and I didn't see her growing or mature. But, they were funny and light-hearted, which is what I needed when I read them.

And I will say...I don't get the fascination with Marcus Flutie. I just don't. He doesn't float by boat ladies-not even close.


So, there is part 1 of who knows how many mini-reviews. Let me know below what you think!