So, I've been reading a little bit...

Extras by Scott Westerfeld

The forth book in the Uglies/Pretties/Specials series. In this one, the society is now obsessed with news feeds and almost everyone has a camera following them around to make them attention worthy. This leads one girl to find the best story by secretly following a mysterious group of danger seeking girls and lands her in a heap of trouble (and adventure). This book is really good but probably won't make too much sense until you've read the others.



The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Read it. It's a very weird/disturbing premise, but oh, so intriguing! The book takes place in the future where the country has been divided into twelve sections and each year each section has to choose a teenage boy and girl to go to the capital to fight for them to the death against all the other "tributes". I know, disturbing. READ IT! There are two books in the series out now and I've been advised not to read the second book until July because of the cliff-hanger at the end and the third book comes out in August.

Climbing the Stairs by Padma Venkatraman

Takes place during WWII in India. The main character's family is fighting against British rule and strict Hindu standards. It's a very interesting insight into a world that is usually hidden. The title comes from the stairs leading to the men's quarters that women were not allowed to climb until a brave girl goes up, finds the library, and changes her life.

My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picault

This is a re-read for me. Made me cry. I've heard the ending is different from the movie's ending (I haven't seen the movie) and it's tragic. Really. There is some profanity, but in my taste, it captures a couple of the characters really well. What I love about this book is that is treats the relationships between parents/children, sister/sister, sister/brother, exboyfriend/exgirlfriend, lawyer/client, etc. So many relationships are fleshed out and the reader gets to see a variety of relationships from different points of view.


The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

If you've ever wanted to read a book from the perspective of a dead teenage girl looking down on the aftermath of her death, this book is for you! It sounds really odd, and it sort of is, but it's quite interesting. What I liked about this was the honest treatment of what happens in a family, a neighborhood, and city when there is an unsolved murder. The title doesn't refer to the bones of the girl; the title refers to the relationships that grow up between people in the years following Susie's disappearance.  This one made me cry, too.