I have close to 30 books on my reading list, and that doesn’t include books that I have purchased for my Kindle. That being said, one of the books that I was the most excited about was Great, a modern re-telling of The Great Gatsby. This young adult novel was written by Sara Benincasa.

The biggest change is that Nick and Gatsby are both female characters in Beninicasa’s version. Naomi Rye is a Chicago-bred teen with divorced parents who spends her summers in the Hamptons with her social climbing mother. Now, let’s pause for a moment to acknowledge the wry (ha, do you see what I did there?) pun with the surname Rye and the original novel’s Carraway. Well played, Sara- well played! Read more

Noggin is another novel that I requested from the library before it was released. And once I received my copy, it took me about a month to read it because I had several books in my reading queue that I needed to read first. Now that I have read it, I want to read author John Corey Whaley’s first novel, Where Things Come Back.

Cryogenics has been a fascinating subject for me. I think I recall it being a topic in Matt Groening comics, and I also remember growing up in suburban Los Angeles and hearing rumors that Walt Disney was cryogenically frozen- under the Pirates of the Caribbean ride, no less.

So, I approached Noggin with great interest. The story involves a young man named Travis who reawakens five years after his death. He was saved because he and his parents chose to have his healthy head removed from his cancer-ravaged body and frozen. Medical advancements have come much quicker than expected, and the technology needed to ensure that the surgery can take place is a success arrives five years later. Read more

I requested The Haven from the library before it was released. While I was waiting to receive my copy, I read another of Carol Lynch Williams’ novels- The Chosen One. In that novel, Williams looks into the life of a girl living in a polygamist sect.

The Haven reminded me of The Chosen One. The Haven introduces the reader to Shiloh, a young girl who lives in Haven Hospital and Halls. The story takes place at some point in the future: the hospital was founded in 2020, but it’s not clear how many years have elapsed since then.

Shiloh is a Terminal. She lives with many other children, all of whom are also Terminal. They cannot leave the hospital because they are all sick, but they do not need to leave the hospital. All their needs are provided for; they go to school, receive medical care, and are taken care of. Read more

Many of the books that I have read recently have been Young Adult titles. A couple of months ago, Buzzfeed posted a list of hot new releases, and I have been making my way through that list. I also can’t seem to stop finding interesting books whenever I go to the library. It’s kind of a problem- my reading list never seems to get any shorter!

Without a doubt, the biggest trend in Young Adult literature is dystopian fiction. The most popular dystopian series is The Hunger Games, but there are many others. I had not heard of the Frozen series, but the cover and synopsis intrigued me. This is a young adult series written by Robin Wasserman. Apparently, the series was previously published under a different name- Skinned.

Frozen is the story of Lia Kahn, a girl who survives a terrible car accident. Survived is a relative term; Lia’s body cannot be repaired, but her parents elect to have her brain scanned and downloaded into a new mechanical body. Advancements in science and technology make these mechs humanlike, but the practice is extremely controversial, and mechs have a hard time finding a place in society. Read more

I love going to the library in the next town over from where we live. The library is in a smaller space, and shares a building with the fire station and police station… and also possibly the municipal center. But inside that tiny library is a virtual treasure trove of books. This is where I discovered the Somerton series, and this is where I found The Gathering Storm.

The Gathering Storm is the first book in the Katerina trilogy. This is a young adult series written by Robin Bridges. The series take place in 1880s Russia, and features gorgeous young people from wealthy families enjoying lavish parties as they hope to catch the eye of young European royals (albeit minor royals).

Did I mention that the pretty young narrator has a big secret? Read more

I will admit that I had trouble getting into Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children when I first checked it out from the library a couple of years ago. It just didn’t hold my interest, and then it had to go back. Too many books, not enough time. A couple of months ago, we found the graphic novel version of Miss Peregrine’s Home, and that was a much better experience. When I saw the audiobook version of the sequel- Hollow City– at the library, I picked it up. Please note: if you have not yet read Miss Peregrine’s Home, this review contains information that might be considered spoilers for that book. There are no spoilers for Hollow City. You really need to read Miss Peregrine’s Home before reading Hollow City. The Kindle version is currently on sale for $5.28, and is really worth picking up. Read more

As I attempted to prioritize my reading list by selecting the books that were due back to the library the soonest, I realized that I had two similar titles. The Chosen One and The 19th Wife had similar covers: both featured a single braid of hair, and both books centered around polygamist families. It was hard to choose which book to read first, but I started with The Chosen One.

The Chosen One was written by Carol Lynch Williams. This is the story of Kyra, a young girl living in an isolated polygamist community. Kyra is a fascinating protagonist, and once I started reading, I could not stop until I found out what happened to her. Read more