Book Review : Shut Out

Book: Shut Out
Author: Kody Keplinger

Publisher: Poppy
Date Published: September 5, 2011
Pages: 273
Source: ARC
Date Read: June 7, 2011

Most high school sports teams have rivalries with other schools. At Hamilton High, it's a civil war: the football team versus the soccer team. And for her part,Lissa is sick of it. Her quarterback boyfriend, Randy, is always ditching her to go pick a fight with the soccer team or to prank their locker room. And on three separate occasions Randy's car has been egged while he and Lissa were inside, making out. She is done competing with a bunch of sweaty boys for her own boyfriend's attention.

Lissa decides to end the rivalry once and for all: She and the other players' girlfriends go on a hookup strike. The boys won't get any action from them until the football and soccer teams make peace. What they don't count on is a new sort of rivalry: an impossible girls-against-boys showdown that hinges on who will cave to their libidos first. And Lissa never sees her own sexual tension with the leader of the boys, Cash Sterling, coming.

Summary Taken from Goodreads

Yani's Review:

I have yet to write a review on my blog for Kody’s first book- The D.U.F.F.- but just as a side note… I ADORE that book and its one of my favorites. The type of book I make time to re-read on top of my busy school/work/ reviewing schedule. And while in the end I did enjoy Shut Out, The D.U.F.F. was so much more than a story to me.

Written in the same Kody style, Shut Out is funny and real. It deals with real issues about girls, sex, self-image, and peer pressure and the pressures society places on both boys and girls. It deals mostly with the girls, but still I liked that all these issues were brought up so openly. The girls learned that no matter what they felt, they shouldn’t be ashamed of it as long as they were true to themselves.

I really liked that Lissa’s boyfriend had some redeeming qualities, because sometimes I feel like what type of girls are they if they are with a guy that is such a blatant asshole. And I loved loved loved Cash Sterling, though I wish he was a little more developed.

My Review in a Tweet: I wish this book was around when I was a teenager, so I could have just accepted my beliefs and myself. Like Kody's other work, this is an amazing open discussion about sex and image. Don't shut this book out!

Ratings:

Plot: 4/5
Writing Style: 5/5
Uniqueness: 4/5
Characters: 5/5

Memorable Quotes:

"Being ashamed  of what you want or how you feel is pointless, and letting anyone else make you feel ashamed is a waste."

Similar Titles:

Other Reviews:

• GReads

Book Review : Top Ten Uses for an Unworn Prom Dress

Book: Top Ten Uses for an Unworn Prom Dress
Author: Tina Ferraro

Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Date Published: March 13, 2007
Pages: 240
Source: my bookshelf
Date Re-Read: April 19, 2011

Sophomore year, Nicolette Antonovich was dumped two days before prom by the hottest guy at school. As a result, she became the proud owner of one unworn, perfectly magical pink vintage dress. But Nic is determined to put that night behind her for good. 

She's a junior now— older, wiser, and completely overwhelmed by a new set of problems: (1) The bank's ready to foreclose on her childhood home. (2) Her father's too busy with his "replacement" daughter to care. (3) Her best friend's brother is an eternal thorn in her side. (4) Her best friend isn't exactly the rose attached to that thorn. (5) Rumors are flying around school that could get her kicked off the volleyball team, which would (6) ruin all chances of a college scholarship. (7) She still likes the boy who dumped her in the first place. (8) And what in the world do you do with an unworn prom dress, anyway? Strangely, it's getting to the bottom of this last dilemma that just might hold the answer to all Nic's problems.

Summary Taken from Goodreads

Yani's Review:

I read this book when it first came out and it instantly became one of my favorite happy reads. I have read it so many times I already know the page numbers of a few of my favorite scenes. {48, 67, 72, 101-129 and 194} This book seriously gives me butterflies. It is the epitome of my favorite type of easy, fun, beachy read.

Let me tell you what I love about his book:

1. Nic. I love that she is young, but not too young (if you understand what I mean). She is me (or like me) when I was a teen, always trying to do what’s best but never really understanding what that is. She is sporty and tough, but like every girl still pictures her perfect prom with the perfect boy and the perfect dress. The one that makes you look at yourself and just go wow.
   
2. Supporting Cast. This book has great secondary characters, there are a lot of them, but they are so well developed for such a short book. Jared, Rascal, her best friend Alison are awesome, funny, and so real. I love the manly rivalry Jared and Rascal have going on I can pretty much picture their grunts and cocky faces in my head. And Alison reminds me so much of my best friend with her tough love act.
   
3. Emotional. Yes this is a super happy, light, and funny read, but Tina still manages to incorporate the emotional struggle Nic has going on with her father and her “replacement” sister.
   
4. The list. The actual list of Top Ten Uses for an Unworn Prom Dress is hilarious! And the last number was just heartwarming. Kind of reminds me of David Letterman’s Top Ten with the wacky, absurd, and sarcastic comments. {Please Read #8)

What can I say other than I love this book! While my reading tastes have matured, this book never fails to put a smile on my face and warmth in my chest.

Ratings:

Plot: 5/5
Writing Style: 5/5
Uniqueness: 4/5
Characters: 5/5

Similar Titles:

Memorable Quotes:

"Yeah Rascal," I said, my thoughts racing, "you're the coolest guy I know. But Jared?" I said, forcing a smug smile. "He's the hottest."

Look out for out interview with Tina on May 31, 2011.

Review: You Against Me

Book: You Against Me
Author: Jenny Downham
Publisher: David Fickling Books
Release Date: September 13, 2011
Pages: 416
Source: Bought in UK - Yes it's out already (buy)
Date Read: March 24, 2011

Summary:

If someone hurts your sister and you're any kind of man, you seek revenge, right? If your brother's been accused of a terrible crime and you're the main witness, then you banish all doubt and defend him. Isn't that what families do? When Mikey's sister claims a boy assaulted her at a party, his world of work and girls begins to fall apart. When Ellie's brother is charged with the crime, but says he didn't do it, her world of revision, exams and fitting in at a new school begins to unravel. When Mikey and Ellie meet, two worlds collide. Brave and unflinching, this is a novel of extraordinary skillfulness and almost unbearable tension. It's a book about loyalty and the choices that come with it. But above all it's a book about love - for one's family and for another.

Yani's Analysis:
I read an ARC copy of Before I Die many years ago, and I was amazed by how open Jenny Downham is with her writing. With such a sad story as that one it hard to convey any hope or happiness, but she did. And while that story isn't one of the saddest I have ever read, it didn't leave me drowning in a depression. Actually after enjoying this book so much, I might go back and reread that one.

You Against Me has one of my favorite type of love premises, the love/hate family rivalry Romeo and Juliet type background. Rich vs poor, both parents vs one parent, Mickey and Ellie couldn't be more different. As much as the try not to like each other, they can't help to be drawn to one another. I loved their chemisty, I loved Ellie, I loved Mickey... that aspect of the story was just perfection. And if you have read some of my other reviews you all know how much I LOVE alternating viewpoints!

The other aspect of the story, Mickey's sister's rape, was a deep lock in to today's society and whether being drunk gives guys consent to do as they please. At first it was all very gray, you see Ellie and her love and admiration for her brother and think how could someone like him do that.... and then your thrown into Mickey's house with his sister locked in her room and avoiding any human connections. As the story progresses it becomes clear what happened that night.

The book is very enjoyable even with such sad and deep topics such as rape. There where only two things I didn't like: one I didn't understand some of the English terminology (but that I got used to and in the end learned some new words) and it felt a little long. But those things are so miniscule compared to the greatness of this book! I highly recommend!!

Ratings:

Plot: 4/5
Writing Style: 5/5
Uniqueness: 5/5
Characters: 5/5

Other Memorable Quotes:

"She'd emerged as Phoenix from X-Men movie - the one with the red eyes, so angry that she's off the scale, able to destroy the universe with the power of her mind.

And if she was Phoenix, then anything could happen next."

Review: Overprotected

Book: Overprotected
Author: Jennifer Laurens
Publisher: Grove Creek Publishing
Release Date: April 29, 2011
Pages: 243
Source: Bought
Date Read: March 3,2011

Summary:

Ashlyn: A lonely society princess living in New York City.

Daddy hired you to be my bodyguard.

Colin: Childhood enemy, now her protector.

Daddy thought I’d be safe. He thought I’d never fall in love. He thought he could keep me forever.

Charles: obsessed with keeping her safe, keeping her his, he hires the one person he knows she could never fall in love with: Colin.

Daddy was wrong.

Yani's Analysis:

E-Readers: DO NOT GET THE KINDLE VERSION! Unless you like reading books with chopped off sentences and no organization what so ever, do not get the kindle version!

For a while I was not sure how I felt about this book This is my second Jennifer Laurens book and the first one left me stumped like this as well. Though, I did like this one way more. I thought it would be a cute romantic read about a love hate relationship - which side note I love the passion in those- instead it was a deep novel about bigger issues than "I now love the guy I used to hate." It's kind of a look into the seemling perfect lives of a stepford family.

One of my quips about the first Jennifer Laurens book I read was the the character's actions didn't match the way they felt. The book left me confused. In this book there was no confusion, but I did think that the father must be crazy to have such strong security measures for his almost 18 daughter. I mean she can't even leave school for lunch?? That's insane! (This coming from a girl with her own experience with overprotective families) Overall, I was hooked. I couldn't put the story down. It was like reading a soap opera.

It was not what I expected, but still an enjoyable read, current Jennifer Laurens fans will not be disappointed.

WARNING: This is a little hotter than most young adult stories, but I enjoyed it that way =)

Ratings:

Plot: 4/5
Writing Style: 4/5
Uniqueness: 4/5
Characters: 4/5


Other Memorable Quotes:

I might be his child, but I was tired of being owned.