Shine

I loved Shine. Loved.

I think Lauren Myracle is a very cool person, so I was prepared to love it and was thankfully not disappointed.

Shine is the story of a teenager trying to solve the mystery of who severely beat her gay friend. The sheriff and town don't seem too concerned about the crime so Cat, the main character, sets out to find out who did it.

Shine is set in a rural southern town, a place that is struggling with drugs, a lack of jobs, and the belief from outsiders that they are just a bunch of "mountain niggers." The book is set in Transylvania County, NC, which is a real place. The specific town in the novel doesn't exist. My parents have a house in the mountains in Transylvania County, so I was really interested in reading this book.

Photo taken down the hill from my parents' place:
Complete with trailer, confederate flag, ex-con owner, and mean ass dog.

E and I visited my parents' place earlier this summer and I read Shine while I was there. My parents don't stay at the house full-time and right before we got there someone kicked in the front door and stole all the alcohol. The person they were pretty sure did it was an alcoholic with no job and a criminal history (not the guy who lives down the hill.) So the real side of this small town with lax law enforcement was very much what we were experiencing. I could picture the story in the exact setting.

I loved Shine. I am sure my biased view helped, but I thought it was a wonderful book. I thought it was a great mystery with lots of insight to many social issues.

The House on Mango Street

I enjoyed The House on Mango Street, but I probably would have enjoyed it even more if I hadn't read it right after reading The Frozen Thames.

Both are short stories and both are worth the read. The House on Mango Street is vignettes from a young girl's year living in a house on Mango Street, a poor area of Chicago.

Some of the passages are so beautiful.

"People who live on hills sleep so close to the stars they forget those of us who live too much on earth."

"She [her grandmother] looked out the window her whole life, the way so many women sit their sadness on an elbow. I wonder if she made the best of what she got or was she sorry she couldn't be the things she wanted to be. Esperanza. I have inherited her name, but I don't want to inherit her place by the window."

Book Review-a-thon

Lovely Little Shelf is doing a catch up on your reviews Review-a-thon August 14-20. I have at least 10 reviews in progress, so I thought I'd join and hopefully get some of them done.

The Daughters of Juarez

Juarez, Mexico has serious crime and drug issues. It has one of the highest murder rates in the world. The Daughters of Juarez focuses on one portion of the crime in the area: the unsolved killings of young women. Over the years hundreds of women have been killed. Many of them have been raped and mutilated.

After I read the book, I felt stunned. How in the world is the government and police so corrupt that this has happened? I am appalled by what has happened. I know everything our government does isn't right, but good heavens. Hundreds of women have died and the officials in Juarez have purposely ignored the problem.

The book's writing wasn't that outstanding. I would even say it wasn't that good. But, the story itself is so unbelievable that it's worth the read. It's pretty horrifying how poor women are treated in this area of Mexico.

Luv Ya Bunches

Luv Ya Bunches is first in a children's series by Lauren Myracle. I picked it up when I heard her speak last year. Her ttyl series has been challenged, as well as books from the Luv Ya Bunches series.

Myracle was told if she changed the story so one of the main characters had a mom and a dad instead of two moms, Scholastic book fairs (the ones in schools across the country) would sell the book. If not, the book wouldn't be included. Myracle stuck firm and her book was not carried. I thought this was SO COOL. Based on the prevalence of the book fairs, not having her book included certainly had a impact on the money in her pocket.

The story follows four girls who meet and become friends. The story is told from each of the girls'' perspectives through IMs, emails, etc. I thought it was super cute. The girls each have some aspect that they are concerned about: the girl whose mom is in a mental hospital, the girl who is Muslim, etc. These issues are dealt with matter of factly.

If I had a kid (besides my dogs, of course), this is the kind of book I'd love for her to read.

Wither

Wither is a young adult dystopian story. (Is it just me or are they all dystopian these days?) Anyhow, I watched a vlog by Lauren DeStefano and thought she was hilarious. My library had Wither as a downloadable audio book so I checked it out.

Wither is set in a world where girls die at age 20 and boys at 25. Scientists are working to find a cure, but in the meanwhile, each new generation dies off very early.

In Wither, Rhine is kidnapped to be a bride for Linden, son of a very wealthy and important man. Rhine is a virtual prisoner at her husband's estate. Her father in law, Vaughn, is older and is not infected with the virus that is killing off society's young. He is working on a cure, but Rhine is suspicious of how he's going about his research. Rhine is also concerned about her twin brother. She has no way of contacting him to let him know she's still alive.

Rhine spends most of the book plotting her escape from Linden and Vaughn's house. Her relationship with her sister wives was really interesting.

I enjoyed Wither, but I'm glad I was able to check it out from the library instead of buying it. I will be interested to read the next book in the trilogy to see where the story goes.

Awesome Book Blog

I'm in love with Awful Library Books, a blog about library book that should have been culled years ago. We get lots of these types of books as donations to the book sale. In fact, I saw one of the books posted when I was volunteering the other day. I will find some good ones to share with you. In the meanwhile, check out the blog.