Where She Went by Gayle Forman: ARC Review

*Warning: if you haven't read If I Stay yet, you might want to skip reading this review*

Of all the books to come out in 2011, Where She Went is probably the one I have been coveting the most.  I vividly remember sitting in my bed three years ago, reading If I Stay with a box of tissues, and a major headache from all the crying I did, yet loving every minute of Gayle Forman's masterful story-telling and characterization.  I can't even tell you how real these characters seem to me.  So real in fact that I finished this book before bed last night and proceeded to have a dream about Adam.

Oh Adam, your angsty, rock-star persona would be the type of fodder tabloids and TMZ thrive on in real life.  If you were a real rock star, I'd probably think you were an entitled, whiny jerk.  I'd dismiss you as a selfish bastard with too much money and not enough sincerity for your fans and bandmates.

In fact, that's how I felt about him at the beginning of this story.  Having experienced the first book from Mia's point of view, Adam is now the narrator in this second installment as we learn about what has happened in the lives of Mia and Adam since she chose to live.  His rock star mentality is quite off-putting at first: elusive, entitled, and unable to deal with the realities of life without some sort of chemical aid to get him by. However, as Adam continues to narrate the story his voice sounds less whiny and angsty, and more filled with pain at the knowledge of Mia leaving him without so much as an explanation.

So when a chance encounter in New York City brings Mia and Adam back together for one night, we are all dying to know, along with Adam, why Mia chose to stay, and then proceeded to leave the very person who stood by her side through the horrible tragedy of losing her family, and also the long road to recovery that she had to endure when she awakened from her coma. 

In the beginning, I feared that these two characters that I so adored in the first book had become unlikable and difficult to empathize with in this sequel.  But as the book continued and the layers of guilt and pain finally began to reveal themselves, I realized that both of them just did a really bad job of communicating that pain.  This night in NYC together was a way for them to finally come to terms with what really happened and what they were really feeling as a result.

I would love to say more but I don't want to give too much away.  There is nowhere near the same level of emotion in this book as the first book, but that doesn't mean you won't be needing the tissue box at hand.  Rather than an entire book of Kleenex-driven moments like the first book, however, there is really only one scene in this book that will leave you teary-eyed and it is probably the best scene in the whole book .

And, as usual, when the book ended, I was left mourning the loss of Mia and Adam once again.  I didn't want the book to end because when it did, that meant I had to leave their world and return to my own.  I want and crave for them to be real because I have invested so much emotional memory to their story.  Ms. Forman, I don't know how it would be possible to continue their story, but I think fans for your books would be more than willing to see this turn into a trilogy.  What do you say? 

Check out Gayle Forman's tour of some of the places Mia and Adam visit in the book:


And here is the book trailer:



Where She Went by Gayle Forman
Publish Date: April 5, 2011 by Dutton
Pages: 262
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Audience: YA

*Thank you to Audrey at Holes in My Brain for providing me with a copy of the ARC!

In My Mailbox (20)

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren.  The books you share do not have to be ones you actually received in the mail.  They can be ones you bought at the book store, checked out at the library, or downloaded to your e-reader.  The idea is just to share what's on your TBR pile for the upcoming week.

I'm so excited about the books I received this week.

One of the most anticipated books of 2011 for me is this adorable book:

A Pug's Tale by Alison Pace
This is the sequel to the adorable Pug Hill, and as a pug owner and pug lover, I am giddy with glee at the prospect of reading this one!

Yet another book I am giddy to read is...

I won the ARC of this beauty from Audrey over at Holes in My Brain.  I have been coveting this ARC for the longest time and can't tell you how thrilled I am to finally have gotten my hands on it!  I'm only about 70 pages from finishing and it is sooooooo good!

From Harper Children's audio, I was excited to receive the audio books of:

Delirium by Lauren Oliver

The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Hidden Gallery by MaryRose Wood

As someone with a very long commute to work, audio books are my godsend.  I already read Delirium a few months ago and loved it, so I'm really looking forward to listening to the audio version.  And last year at this time, I listened to the audio version of the first book in the Incorrigibles series and I absolutely loved Kathrine Kellgren's narration of the story.  So I was extremely excited to see that she was still narrating this next installment of the series.

Dowloaded from NetGalley:
 
Bumped by Megan McCafferty
Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
I am so excited to read this middle grade version of The Art of Racing in the Rain which is one of my favorite books of all time.  

Library Loot:

Cookbook:

Barefoot Contessa: How Easy is That? by Ina Garten

Audio book:

Hole in My Life by Jack Gantos

Picture books:

Animal Colors: A Rainbow of Colors from Animals Around the World by Beth Fielding
The Life of Rice: From Seedling to Supper by Richard Sobol

Mirror by Jeannie Baker
Bad Kitty by Nick Bruel

Purchased:

Heart of a Samurai by Margi Preus
Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale

Waiting on Wednesday: A Pug's Tale by Alison Pace

I loved Alison Pace's Pug Hill.  I absolutely can't wait to read the sequel set to hit book stores on June 7th.

From Amazon.com:

A Pug's Tale by Alison Pace
Publish Date: June 7, 2003 by Berkley Books
Pages: 289
Genre: Mystery
Audience: Adults

There are pugs in the Metropolitan Museum of Art!

In the many years that Hope McNeill has worked at the museum, this is the first time she's been able to bring along her pug, Max. (Officially at least. Previously she's had to smuggle him in inside her tote bag.)  The occasion: a special "Pug Night" party in honor of a deep-pocketed donor. Max and his friends are having a ball stalking the hors d'oeuvres and getting rambunctious, and making Hope wonder if this is also the last time she gets to bring Max to the museum.

But when a prized painting goes missing, the Met needs Hope's--and Max's--help. In her quest for the culprit, Hope searches for answers with an enigmatic detective, a larger-than-life society heiress, a lady with a shih tzu in a stroller, and her arguably intuitive canine. With luck, she'll find some inspiration on her trips to Pug Hill before the investigation starts going downhill...

In order to get up to speed before June 7th, read Pug Hill first:

Oogy: The Dog Only a Family Could Love by Larry Levin

In 2002, Larry Levin and his twin sons, Dan and Noah, took their terminally ill cat to the Ardmore Animal Hospital outside Philadelphia to have the beloved pet put to sleep. What would begin as a terrible day suddenly got brighter as the ugliest dog they had ever seen--one who was missing an ear and had half his face covered in scar tissue--ran up to them and captured their hearts. The dog had been used as bait for fighting dogs when he was just a few months old. He had been thrown in a cage and left to die until the police rescued him and the staff at Ardmore Animal Hospital saved his life. The Levins, whose sons are themselves adopted, were unable to resist Oogy's charms, and decided to take him home. - from Goodreads

I am a sucker for books about dogs.  I can't get enough of them.  Even when I know the endings will always break my heart because the dog dies.  I'm going to be spoilery here and tell you that this is not one such book.  The only tears you will shed are in the beginning when you read of the horrific condition Oogy was originally found when he was rescued. 

What makes this book different from all other dog books, besides the happy ending of course, is that Oogy's presence in the Levn family was not only heartwarming, it was downright inspirational.  He is a symbol and a lesson to the human world that anyone, be it dog, cat, or human, can overcome some of the most horrific of circumstances.  This is a dog that should have been put to sleep due to his condition when he was found.  This is a dog that, had he been saved from his physical scars, should have been destroyed due to his psychological ones and aggression toward people and/or other animals.  

But,  impossibly, none such thing happened. Miraculously, he lived, and the only rehabilitation he needed was from the physical scars. When you read this book, you are in a constant state of awe that Oogy only has the ability to show love and devotion to, not only his family, but to all the people he meets.  

When people fear Oogy due to his gruesome appearance, or just their prejudice at his breed (which most people assume is pit bull, but he's really a dogo), all Oogy does is wag his tail and hope to say hello.  

If you're a dog lover and you're looking for a book that will inspire you and won't leave you a weepy mess at the end, I highly recommend you give Oogy a chance.  I guarantee you will fall in love with him long before you reach the last page.  


Oogy: The Dog Only a Family Could Love by Larry Levin
Published: October 2010
Pages: 214
Genre: Memoir
Audience: Dog lovers

IMM (19)

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren.  The books you share do not have to be ones you actually received in the mail.  They can be ones you bought at the book store, checked out at the library, or downloaded to your e-reader.  The idea is just to share what's on your TBR pile for the upcoming week.


Bought from my library's used book store:

Harry, A History: The True Story of a Boy Wizard, His Fans, and Life Inside the Harry Potter Phenomenon by Melissa Anelli
Letters from a Nut by Ted L. Nancy

The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke
Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis

From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg
Goose Chase by Patrice Kindl

I.Q. by Roland Smith

What did you get in your mailbox?

Author Interview: Adam Rex

Author and illustrator Adam Rex agreed to stop by to answer a few questions about his novel The True Meaning of Smekday. I recently finished listening to his first novel and never laughed so hard in all my life at the hilarity of the plot and the characters.

From Goodreads:

When twelve-year-old Gratuity (“Tip”) Tucci is assigned to write five pages on “The True Meaning of Smekday” for the National Time Capsule contest, she’s not sure where to begin. When her mom started telling everyone about the messages aliens were sending through a mole on the back of her neck? Maybe on Christmas Eve, when huge, bizarre spaceships descended on the Earth and the aliens - called Boov - abducted her mother? Or when the Boov declared Earth a colony, renamed it “Smekland” (in honor of glorious Captain Smek), and forced all Americans to relocate to Florida via rocketpod?

In any case, Gratuity’s story is much, much bigger than the assignment. It involves her unlikely friendship with a renegade Boov mechanic named J.Lo.; a futile journey south to find Gratuity’s mother at the Happy Mouse Kingdom; a cross-country road trip in a hovercar called Slushious; and an outrageous plan to save the Earth from yet another alien invasion.

Fully illustrated with “photos,” drawings, newspaper clippings, and comics sequences, this is a hilarious, perceptive, genre-bending novel by a remarkable new talent.

Foodie Bibliophile: I know this is an unusual question and you’ve probably never heard it before but.... wait for it.... what was your inspiration for writing Smekday?

Adam Rex: A number of things. I'd been doing a lot of reading about American and world history at the time, and had my eyes opened to a number inaccuracies I'd been fed back in school. I'd always thought that an alien invasion would be a fair way to examine things like Manifest Destiny, and colonialism, and any number of other presumptions we as Americans make or have made in the past. The Rabbits by John Marsden and Shaun Tan was a big influence, too. So much so that The True Meaning of Smekday began life as a picture book. A really crappy picture book. Eventually I realized I was trying to write a novel, and eventually a potentially didactic allegory about imperialism turned into more of a buddy comedy road movie with spaceships. And thank goodness.



FB: An alien named J. Lo, a girl named Gratuity... is there a bit of madness involved with a sense of humor like that? Or is it just pure genius?

AR: That's quite an either/or. I think I'll choose C) that these names would make a fair amount of sense if you'd been there to watch me connect the dots. 

With J.Lo, I liked the idea of an alien choosing what he assumes to be a common earth name and getting it all wrong. Maybe he hears a particular name over and over in human broadcasting and fails to recognize that every instance is referring to the same celebrity. J.Lo was originally named Oprah, but then I recalled that this joke had already been done in the first Austin Powers movie–Austin is undercover with Elizabeth Hurley, and he introduces her as Oprah because he, presumably, had been hearing this name a lot since emerging from thirty years of cryogenic suspension and figures it to be nicely inconspicuous.

So I was disappointed to discover that I'd hit upon essentially the exact same joke. Then I thought about it a little harder and realized Douglas Adams had done the same thing with his alien Ford Prefect (named for an English automobile), but by this point I was inclined to cling to the joke out of pure stubbornness. 

Gratuity's mom intended to give her daughter one of those virtuous girl names like Hope, or Grace, or Charity. She thought gratuity meant something like "a state of being grateful," and by the time she realized she was only tangentially right the birth certificate had already been signed.


FB: Oprah still would have been hilarious, but I understand your trepidation in using it.

The dialogue in Smekday was some of the funniest I’ve ever read in a book and much of that had to do with J.Lo’s cadence and way of speaking English. Was his manner of speaking inspired by any particular person?

AR: J.Lo's attitude, and his way of speaking, are kind of an exaggeration of the way I am when I'm at my most comfortable and...playful, for lack of a better word. His speech is reflective of how I might speak around my wife (and no one else). I'm not sure where it came from. Although I should probably admit that I don't really talk like that anymore–now that I've set it in print as J.Lo's way of speaking, I feel awkward doing it myself. It's like I'm doing an impersonation now.


FB: I have to hand it to you, as a male author, you could have easily written this book with a male, Caucasian protagonist and the story still would have worked. Instead, you chose to make your protagonist female and bi-racial. What made you decide to do this?

AR: It's hard at this point to even remember having made the decision. But I do remember thinking that any middle-grade kid who could deal with losing her mother to aliens; and watching her species be conquered in general; and then pick up and get herself across the country and save the world? She'd have to be in possession of a pretty strong personality. And it probably speaks to my own issues with gender roles and so forth that I thought this headstrong and sometimes bossy and self-aggrandizing personality would be more appealing coming from a girl and possibly off-putting coming from a boy.

The question of race wasn't so complicated. I'd recently moved to West Philadelphia when I started writing Smekday, and I was surrounded by black kids. I just started imagining them as little world-savers.


FB: Besides the humor, what do you hope kids get out of this book from reading it? It seems like there’s lots of symbolism and life lessons scattered throughout the humor.

AR: First and foremost, I hope they grow to love the characters, because I love the characters. Honestly, they could fail to even notice the politics and I'd be thrilled if they love the characters.


FB: Well, I'm an adult, but you succeeded in making me love the characters!

In looking at your body of work, you’ve illustrated a great many books. Do you consider yourself an artist who happens to write or do you want to be known as a writer and an artist? Or does it matter?

AR: I think it's interesting that I get this question a lot. It's like people find both writing novels and illustrating books to be a little unseemly, so they want me to choose. But to choose one would be to essentially diminish the other. It would be like I was trying to manage expectations–"I'm an artist who writes, so naturally don't expect so much from my writing." So I do think it matters, and I'd like to be known as both.


FB:  I guess my reason for asking the question is because I love to write, but I don't have an artistic bone in my body.  I'm jealous that someone could be so talented at both. ;)

Which of your books do you think most defines who you are as a writer and/or artist?

AR: Probably a toss-up between Smekday and my picture book Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich.


FB: Any plans to write another novel?

AR: Well, my second novel (and first for teens and adults) Fat Vampire has been out for about eight months. I'm working on a new middle-grade trilogy now. The first book should be out next year.


FB: Well you can be sure that I will be reading it as soon as it comes out.  I'm looking forward to reading your second novel Fat Vampire as well!

Thank you so much for stopping by Adam!  If you're in need of a good laugh, everyone should go out and read (or listen to) The True Meaning of Smekday. 

My review of The True Meaning of Smekday
Adam's website

Happy Read Across America Day!

Don't ever say that junior high students are too old to be read to.  Just for fun, in honor of Read Across America Day, I read my students a couple picture books. One of them being Mo Willems We Are in a Book (I know I'm supposed to read Dr. Suess in honor of his birthday but I'm a maverick, what can I say?) You'd expect them to think this was silly and babyish, but they actually really enjoyed it.  I would go so far to say that they laughed themselves silly.  And these were genuine laughs too.  It wasn't that junior high, "I'm too cool for this so I'm going to mock it" laughter.  I mean, these were some serious giggles.  I couldn't stop smiling all day at the thought of some of these "cool" junior high kids letting loose and allowing themselves to have fun.  It was definitely one of those feelings that reminds me why I do this and why test scores will never dictate what I do, no matter how much the state or the secretary of education think that numbers and data can tell me how to do my job.