Archive for August, 2008

Uglies is the first book in the trilogy written by Scott Westerfeld that also includes Pretties and Specials. I must say, what got me to read this book was its cover. (I guess judging a book by its cover also has benefits.) The cover depicts half of the face of a young teen. The word UGLIES is written boldly in the center. I thought to myself, this girl does not look ugly, do they think she is? What I was asking myself is in fact a key point in these stories.

The main character in Uglies is Tally. In this futuristic world, at the age of 16 everyone undergoes a surgery that transforms them from being uglies to pretties. All of the children in New Pretty Town become supermodel-like, with big eyes, fat lips, and a perfect weight. Tally and her friend Shay are almost 16, waiting to become pretties. Shay, however, doesn’t trust the process that makes everyone “pretty”. For one, she thinks some of the uglies, like Tally, are pretty without the operation. Secondly, being a pretty doesn’t seem as great as it used to be. Something about the way the pretties act just doesn’t seem right. The day before Shay’s surgery is scheduled to occur, Shay disappears. Tally might have the only clue that could help her find her friend, but does she want to be found?

To find out what happens, you’ll have to read the book. It is truly a thrill, with great action sequences in a fast-paced book. After Uglies comes Pretties, then Specials. Book 4 of the trilogy (yes, book 4) was recently released; it is called Extras. All four books have been New York Times bestsellers, and Extras even made it to the #1 spot. I’ve read the first three, and I can’t wait to get my hands on a copy of the Extras. I’m positive that the book won’t leave my hands until I’ve read every last word.

Recently released was Breaking Dawn, the fourth and last book on the gripping love story of Edward, a vampire, and Bella, a mortal. It all started with Twilight, the first book of the series, released in 2005. Isabella “Bella” Swan is the new girl in the town of Forks, Washington, coming from Phoenix, Arizona, to live with her father. She is quickly befriended by students in her new school and becomes the object of affection of a lot of her male schoolmates. Except for Edward.

Edward Cullen sat beside her in biology class and becomes repulsed at the sight of her and tried to stay as far away from her as possible. This confuses Bella as she has done nothing to explain his behavior. Bella soon finds out that Edward is a vampire, a vampire in love with her. Their story becomes the ultimate story of forbidden love between a vampire and a mortal.

In the next book in the series, New Moon, Edward goes into hiding to protect Bella from other vampires. He believes that this will keep her safe, not knowing that an old family friend that Bella spent a lot of time with is actually a werewolf. Problems arise when Edward’s sister gets a vision that Bella is dead. Fearing the worst, Edward seeks the help of a band of peace-keeping vampires who tell him to kill Bella because of everything she knows.

In the third book, Eclipse, Bella realizes she is in love with both Edward, the vampire, and Jacob, the werewolf. How will she decide? Who will she choose?

And in the concluding book, Breaking Dawn, Bella must decide once and for all, if she will continue to live life as a mortal or part of the undead world.

This vampire love story series has captivated the attention of the world and has spawned a movie to be released worldwide this December 2008.

Have you read these books by Stephanie Meyer? Is it a love story to rival all love stories? Do you think the love of Bella and Edward should endure? Who should Bella choose?

Ever heard of Chad Kultgen? Look on Myspace and his profile “The Average American Male” will show that you will need to read this novel. If you’re culturally aware and a tad cynical or just part of the title’s social group, then you will have a good idea of the protagonist.

According to the man himself, the author has based the unnamed main character on himself. Like the writer, our anonymous narrator likes nothing more than to play videogames, get paid from his insignificant job, and pretend to care about what his girlfriend has to say just for the sex (while not cheating on her).

As the story begins, this life is going quite well for the twenty-something until one fateful night- his girlfriend coaxes him into engagement. Soon he finds out her parents are on their way to help plan for the wedding, and the narrator’s world begins to crumble. From this point, he must make the decision either to leave his bride-to-be or see if the married life is the best shot at happiness…or at least contempt.

From a grand perspective, this is a novel about the image America has created for the young male and the one he has created for himself at the same time. The anonymous narrator’s storytelling matches his dialogue, so he hardly ever feels the need to tell what is on his mind.

I would recommend this book to almost anyone out there who can find it (and it’s not hard). Although, some of the punch lines will hit home more with an average American male.

I’m not finished with it yet, but I am currently greatly enjoying Beth Lisick’s Helping Me Help Myself. Helping Me Help Myself is a humorous look at the self-help industry. The official title of this book is Helping Me Help Myself: One Skeptic, Ten Self-Help Gurus, and a Year on the Brink of the Comfort Zone. If you have any doubt about the popularity of this book, you should know that even though it was published seven months ago, the hold list at my library (a large metropolitan library) is still hundreds of people long.

In this book, Beth Lisick decides that she wants to improve her life. She assigns one calendar month to each area of her life that she wants to work on and then seeks out a self-help guru to help her figure out an improvement approach. Among others, she turns to John Gray (of Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus fame), Jack Canfield (the mind behind the Chicken Soup for the Soul books) and Stephen Covey (The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People). While she doesn’t meet with them individually, she takes part in their seminars, reads their books and looks for ways to implement their philosophies in her life.

So far, the book is very entertaining. I like how honest Lisick is about her life and that nothing gets glossed over. I really like that she enjoys her part time job as a Giant Banana. Most people wouldn’t consider dressing up as a giant banana and passing out fruit on the streets of San Francisco to be fun, but Lisick seems to revel in it. She loves her son, is trying to improve communication with her spouse and get control of her finances, all while doing her best to keep her sense of humor.