The Help - Kathryn Stockett

The Help

Kathryn Stockett

2009

My mom made me read this book. Well, she didn't force me to, but she spent an entire car ride talking about it and pretty much spoiling all the good parts for me. But she made it sound so good, so I ended up reading it myself. And it was good. 

The Help is set in Mississippi in 1962, where maids are hired and white women think they're all that. It is the story of three different women, told from each of their perspectives. There's Aibileen, a maid, who is raising her seventeenth white child; Minny, who is Aibileen's best friend, a maid, and also one of the sassiest women in Mississippi; and Skeeter, who has just graduated from college and her mother wants her to marry. The three women, as well as a few others, team up on a project which changes their town and the people in it. There's a lot more to the story than that little bit I've just written, but I don't want to do what my mother did and give the plot away. 

The characters are very well written. You fall in love with them right at the beginning and then you just want the best for them throughout the novel. The plot was carefully crafted and was unlike and book I had read before. Having not grown up in the 1960's, I had only heard about things like this, but reading about them was entirely different. Some of the things that happen make me question what people were thinking in that time*. 

I will tell you that my favourite part involved chocolate pie.  Chocolate pie is my favourite type of pie, and the book kind of made me have a different perspective on that. You'll see why if you've read the book. My other favourite part involved a lot of toilets. But that's all I'll say on the matter. 

The Help has also been made into a movie, and it's also very good, but it leaves a few things out. I highly suggest reading the book first and then watching the movie.
The Book Club at my school also read this book first term. It was such a good reading experience because  you got to have everyone's different perspectives on the events, and we ended up having some very good discussions. Our leader even looked up Sugar Ditch and told us about what she found. We also watched the movie together at the end of book club, but I wasn't able to make it that day. If you are in a book club, this is a very good book to read!

I give this book 4.4 stars out of 5. I loved the characters and the plot. Everything was believable (even though you may want it to seem like it's totally fictional). Just don't let your mom tell you everything that's happening ;) 

*They let them cook their food, but not use their toilets because of germs. 

The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake - Aimee Bender

The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake

Aimee Bender

2010

I was drawn to this book for two reasons. The first being the colour of the cover (which is one of my favourite colours I think) and the second is the piece of cake on the cover. I know. I judged a book by its cover (again), but this time I was wrong.

The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake is about a nine year old girl, Rose Edelstein, who has a magical gift. She can taste emotions. The magical gift is discovered on her ninth birthday, and the cake that her cheerful mother makes her tastes of despair and desperation. The story is about how as she grows older, she learns more about this gift, and learns secrets about her family members and others.

I was not a fan of this book. I had such high hopes for it, and it was just kind of a disappointment. The writing was simple, which was alright, but I never felt like the plot was fully explained or developed. I'm still not entirely sure of how this novel ended. The characters were alright, but I wasn't drawn to them, nor did I really care about their plot lines. 

The premise of the story is interesting, but I felt like the author could have done something more with it. I have read several other reviews online that feel the same way I do. All of the reviews have given it a lukewarm reception. If you're looking for a book that's alright, doesn't take too long to read and doesn't really have much of plot, then give this book a chance. Otherwise, it's just a pretty cover.

I don't think I have a favourite part of this book. I really really do like the cover though. I think the cover was my favourite part.

I give this book 2 stars out of 5. I liked the characters and the cover, but that was about it.

Have you read this book? Did you like it? 

The Invention of Hugo Cabret - Brian Selznick

The Invention of Hugo Cabret

Brian Selznick

2007

I was on the waiting list at the library for about a month and a half for this book, but it was worth it. It didn't take very long to read, because a large part of the story is told through pictures, but it was fantastic. I had seen the movie in February, around Academy Awards time, because it was nominated for so many things. I would have liked to have read the book first, but I didn't have access to a copy and I really wanted to see the movie.

They are both excellent, and the movie is such a good recreation of the story. The Invention of Hugo Cabret is about a young boy named Hugo who lives in the walls of a Paris train station fixing the clocks and trying to fix something his father had shown him. He meets Georges and Isabelle and the adventure takes off from there.

There wasn't much actual text in this novel, despite it being 533 pages (including acknowledgements), but there didn't need to be much writing. The illustrations told such a good story, and they were entirely necessary. I don't think this story could be told as effectively in just words. Even just flipping through and looking at the pictures you get a good sense of the story. 

My absolute favourite part is page 378, when Hugo and Isabella are looking out from behind the clock at all of Paris. Not so coincidentally, it was probably one of my favourite parts of the movie as well.

Speaking of the movie, the adaptation was very true to the story, with just a few things changed (i.e., there were some more action sequences and stuff like that), but the actors they chose fit the illustrations in the book so well.  

I have this book from the library until the 5th of May, so I'll probably read it again before then. I did read most of it in the car ride from my house to my school yesterday (it's about an hour and a half drive), so it doesn't take very long to read. 

I would highly recommend this book to people who don't have a lot of time to read and who liked the movie, as long as they can get over the fact that it's so long.

I give this book 4.3 stars out of 5. I just really really liked it. 

Have you read Hugo? Did you see the movie? Did you like either of them? Leave your answer in the comments!

Anna and the French Kiss - Stephanie Perkins

Anna and the French Kiss

Stephanie Perkins

2010

I have read this book so many times, and every time I read it it just gets better and better. I think I first heard about this book from someone on youtube (probably John Green). I had only heard good things about it, so I figured I'd give it a chance. And it was so good

Anna and the French Kiss is about Anna, an American, who goes to the School of America in Paris. She meets a boy, sees Paris and grows as a person. I really don't want to give plot spoilers of any books. 

It's kind of a romance novel, but it's not a romance novel in the way that there is just constant kissing and other stuff. It's a romance novel in the way that people meet, fall in love, and then have adventures.
I really liked this book. The characters were witty, funny and realistic, the plot was well written (and unlike Lola and the Boy Next Door, it was a little bit unpredictable!) and the overall story was just a fun read. I think I've borrowed this from the library six or so times since I first read it.
The characters are what make this book as good as it is. I felt myself rooting for the different characters at different times. They are created so realistically that you feel as though they're just some friends you have (or people you know). Their lives aren't perfect and they aren't perfect, but they're wonderfully written.
I'm not too sure what my favourite part of the novel is. Usually there's one clear part that stands out as my favourite, but in this book I actually liked pretty much everything. St. Clair was probably one of my favourite parts. And then the part with all the stairs. If you've read the book you probably know this part. And Anna's dad. His occupation was fantastic.
The author is also fantastic, and wrote an additional scene. Her whole website is fantastic. There's also information about her third novel which comes out in 2013 I think. She has created playlists to go with this book. There's the version without spoilers (and here's a link right to the 8track page) and then she also has the same list, but she has explained why the most important songs are on the playlist.

I give this book 4.3 stars out of 5. I think this may have to be a book I purchase and not just continually borrow from the library every two months or so.

Have you read Anna and the French Kiss? What did you think about it?

Lola and the Boy Next Door - Stephanie Perkins

Lola and the Boy Next Door

Stephanie Perkins

2011

Well, that didn't take too long. I wrote about this book yesterday in my April Reads blog post, and since then have finished the novel. It was good.

Lola and the Boy Next Door is a sort of romance novel, but also just a fun novel. It's the kind of romance novel where a girl (Lola) is dating a guy (Max) and then a mysterious new guy (Cricket, who isn't so mysterious in this case) comes into the picture. Lola is just minding her own business with her (much) older guitar playing boyfriend when there's a moving truck at the house next door. She's worried that it could be someone, and sure enough ... well, I don't want to ruin the plot.

One of my absolute favourite parts of this novel is how she brought in two characters, and their associating plots, from her previous novel, Anna and the French Kiss. This just linked everything together in a very Emily Giffin kind of way. I also loved how Lola goes through so many different characters and costumes and personas. I also really enjoyed the character's names. Lola, who's real name is Delores, Cricket, Calliope. They're unique which is reflected in the character's attitudes and beliefs. 

This book is in no way an unpredictable novel. The book mostly follows the path you think it's going to take at the beginning of the story, but there are a few little things that happen here and there that are a surprise. I didn't mind the predictability aspect too much, because I wasn't expecting it to be some unpredictable-fantasy-and-wild-adventures novel like Harry Potter or the Hobbit.

I really enjoyed this book, however I think I may have been more of a fan of the author's first novel. I may give this one another read before I have to return it to the library at the end of the month though. So that opinion may change.

I give this book 3.4 stars out of 5. Interesting and unique characters, but a rather predictable plot line.

Have you read this book? What did you think?

April Reads

I know this is really late, but this is my April Reads list! It's finals time around here, so therefore textbooks are probably my top priority. I'll put the most exciting ones on this list. And then there's really only one novel I hope to finish this month.
I got Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins from the library yesterday. It's her second novel (her first was Anna and the French Kiss). I'm about 40 pages in so far, and it's pretty good.
Here are the covers for this month's reads:

Okay, so that last one isn't so exciting. But I'm hoping if I tell myself it is, maybe I'll be able to get through it. One of my textbooks is all online (which means it was free - bonus!) and another is a 'custom course pack' so those don't have exciting covers. The other one is a statistics book which is so boring to read.

What are your April reads? Are they more exciting than mine? I'm not going to post reviews of the textbooks (probably), but I will review Lola and the Boy Next Door once I finish with it.

March Reads - The Results

Well, March is over and so it's time to look back over the books I wanted to read during the month. I think I may have been a little bit ambitious with my choices.
But I did manage to read Charmed Thirds.  I also read Fourth Comings, which is the fourth book in that series.
I also read Pick Me Up by Samantha Hunter which was romance novel. I don't normally read these, but the main female character and I shared a first and last name, so I had to. I'm thinking I might do a review of this book.
I didn't manage to read any of the other three novels (Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, We Bought a Zoo and Eragon) this month. Oh well, there's always next month to do it!