Mini-Reviews: Contemporary Edition #1

Contemporary YA Edition #1: Moonglass and Ten Things We Did

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Author: Sarah Mlynowski
Publisher: HarperTeen

Released: 6/7/2011
Pages: 368
Rating: 5 Stars!

2 girls + 3 guys + 1 house – parents = 10 things April and her friends did that they (definitely, maybe, probably) shouldn't have.

If given the opportunity, what sixteen-year-old wouldn't jump at the chance to move in with a friend and live parent-free? Although maybe "opportunity" isn't the right word, since April had to tell her dad a tiny little untruth to make it happen (see #1: "Lied to Our Parents"). But she and her housemate Vi are totally responsible and able to take care of themselves. How they ended up "Skipping School" (#3), "Throwing a Crazy Party" (#8), "Buying a Hot Tub" (#4), and, um, "Harboring a Fugitive" (#7) at all is kind of a mystery to them.

In this hilarious and bittersweet tale, Sarah Mlynowski mines the heart and mind of a girl on her own for the first time. To get through the year, April will have to juggle a love triangle, learn to do her own laundry, and accept that her carefully constructed world just might be falling apart . . . one thing-she-shouldn't-have-done at a time.

 Summary Taken from Goodreads

My Mini-Review:
I have so much love for this book. I would go as far as to say that this has been one of the funniest and sweetest reads of the year. Once I started reading it, it was really hard to put down and I am not usually a fan of such unrealistic shennanigan type books, but April is a character I think everyone will fall in love with. Even in the OH MY GOSH that did not happen moments, I couldn't help but laugh out loud at her sarcasm. It is definitely an adventure, one I recommend you take with you to beach to enjoy a day of sun and laughter! To read a more in depth and awesome review, see Ginger from GReads review here.

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Author:  Jessi Kirby

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Released: 5/3/2011

Pages: 224

Rating: 3 Stars!

From Jessi Kirby, a debut novel about confronting the past in order to move ahead.

I read once that water is a symbol for emotions. And for a while now, I've thought maybe my mother drowned in both.

Anna's life is upended when her father accepts a job transfer the summer before her junior year. It's bad enough that she has to leave her friends and her life behind, but her dad is moving them to the beach where her parents first met and fell in love- a place awash in memories that Anna would just as soon leave under the surface.

While life on the beach is pretty great, with ocean views and one adorable lifeguard in particular, there are also family secrets that were buried along the shore years ago. And the ebb and flow of the ocean's tide means that nothing- not the sea glass that she collects on the sand and not the truths behind Anna's mother's death- stays buried forever.

 Summary Taken from Goodreads

My Mini-Review:
I liked this book, plain and simple. However, I wanted to LOVE it! It has all those elements that lead for a great book: the beach, a cute boy, single dad, loss of a family member... but for some reason I just didn't connect like I wanted to. Don't take it the wrong way, it was still a tragic and beautiful story - definitely al la Sarah Dessen style - but I can't profess my love and favoritism over it. I think if you are looking for something that touches your heart and has a little romance, you might enjoy this book.