The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August by Claire North 4/5 stars

I've been on a bit of a "time-loop" craze lately. I thought this was a slightly different approach to the idea of a time-loop. 

The Cover:

The Cover:

It shows the recursive nature of Harry August's lives. Each childhood version of himself looking through the past versions of his life.

Official Description:

Some stories cannot be told in just one lifetime. Harry August is on his deathbed. Again. No matter what he does or the decisions he makes, when death comes, Harry always returns to where he began, a child with all the knowledge of a life he has already lived a dozen times before. Nothing ever changes. Until now. As Harry nears the end of his eleventh life, a little girl appears at his bedside. "I nearly missed you, Doctor August," she says. "I need to send a message." This is the story of what Harry does next, and what he did before, and how he tries to save a past he cannot change and a future he cannot allow.

My Review:
Harry August is reliving his life over and over again. He dies only to be reborn with all of his memories in the same place and time that he always is, forced to live the same time period again.

I'm not sure what to think of this book. It took some effort to get through as the story describes elements of each of Harry's fifteen lives interchangeably. Something from his tenth life will remind him of a story from his fourth that is interjected into the story before resuming at the tenth life. That makes it a little disorienting to read at times, and I had a rough time trying to find what the main plot of the story was. It took some time to finish this book, and I was a little bit bored at times. However, from about 50% through, I was hooked. The main plot line became apparent and got very exciting, and the reasons behind all of the little stories from previous lives started making sense. 

This book called into question all sorts of concepts related to the self. How much do memories make up what make us ourselves? What are the effects of our actions and do we make an impact? Is living a life that makes no discernible difference fulfilling? Do your actions have consequences when they can reverted?

The ending of this book was amazing in a way that only good books can be. All of the pieces come together in an amazing way. I had to cool down a bit before posting a review so that I could be less biased by the ending. But, during that period, I keep thinking about this book and the questions that it raises. In my opinion, books should leave you with something after you finish, and this book definitely does that! 

I would recommend this book if you are looking for an intellectual, exciting book and are willing to put some time into it.

Phrase:
My "father"

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Thunderhead (Arc of a Scythe #2) by Neal Shusterman 5/5 stars

Hey, guys! Sorry for the lack of posts for this summer. I've been busy, but I have a bunch of great books lined up for reviews. Lots to come!

Since reading Scythe when it first came out, I've been waiting to read Thunderhead. 
(Click here to read my review of book one)

The Cover:

It shows the interlocking robes of Scythe Anastasia (Citra) and Rowan with blue fire behind them. It fits the theme of the previous cover, while still being relevant to this book. A- cover

Official Description:

Rowan has gone rogue, and has taken it upon himself to put the Scythedom through a trial by fire. Literally. In the year since Winter Conclave, he has gone off-grid, and has been striking out against corrupt scythes—not only in MidMerica, but across the entire continent. He is a dark folk hero now—“Scythe Lucifer”—a vigilante taking down corrupt scythes in flames.

Citra, now a junior scythe under Scythe Curie, sees the corruption and wants to help change it from the inside out, but is thwarted at every turn, and threatened by the “new order” scythes. Realizing she cannot do this alone—or even with the help of Scythe Curie and Faraday, she does the unthinkable, and risks being “deadish” so she can communicate with the Thunderhead—the only being on earth wise enough to solve the dire problems of a perfect world. But will it help solve those problems, or simply watch as perfection goes into decline?


My Review:
Thunderhead picks up all of the storylines and intrigue of book one and develops them into an even more exciting plot. The characters move on to the next stage in their evolutions.

Citra and Rowan's paths separated after the events of Scythe, and in Thunderhead, we get to see how them do very different things to get to the same goal. It really goes into moral gray areas and the definitions of what constitutes as mercy and justice. An exciting book that makes you think!

There are also some new characters. We have perspectives from the Thunderhead itself, which is an interesting detached and all-knowing point of view. It really adds something to the book. We also have a new character Greyson, who is one of the Thunderhead's agents. He faces some interesting dilemmas and serves as a contrast with the scythes who are prohibited from interacting with the Thunderhead.

Overall, it was a fitting sequel that remained exciting in its own right while still upping the stakes for the last book in the series, The Toll. I can't wait for the next book, especially after the high-stakes ending to Thunderhead. I'd recommend this book to anyone who enjoyed the first book and is willing to read more about the Scythedom!

Phrase:
Scythe Lucifer

More Books By Neal Shusterman:
Challenger Deep
The Shadow Club
The Shadow Club Rising (sequel to The Shadow Club)
Speeding Bullet
The Dark Side of Nowhere
Unwholly (Unwind #2)
Undivided (Unwind #4)
The Schwa Was Here
Antsy Does Time (sequel to The Schwa Was Here)
Downsiders
Tesla's Attic
Edison's Alley (sequel to Tesla's Attic)

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House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski 5/5 stars

Wow. This book messed me up.

I have been wanting to read House of Leaves literally for years. I heard about it through my sister who read a copy while I was about 14. I browsed through it and was intrigued, but it was her friend's copy and she said it was too old for me. (It was. This is definitely an R-rated book.)

It stayed on the back of my mind, but once I decided to read it, I discovered you can't find an ebook copy. For good reason. With its formatting, it'd be impossible to read if you didn't have it in print.

So I had to wait until I could check it out of a physical library. Finally I had this book in my hands, after 5 years of expectations, and honestly, I was still blown away. After finishing it, I stared at a wall for more than an hour, just processing. I don't know how long this book will stay in the back of my mind, but I know I won't forget it anytime soon.

The Cover:

The Cover:

It shows a blueprint of a house, with a large spiral staircase in the middle accompanied by a compass showing no true direction. Also, if you look at the title, the word "house" is written in blue, as it is for the entirety of this book. It draws your focus, no matter the context/content of the sentence. A+ cover

Official Description:

Years ago, when House of Leaves was first being passed around, it was nothing more than a badly bundled heap of paper, parts of which would occasionally surface on the Internet. No one could have anticipated the small but devoted following this terrifying story would soon command. Starting with an odd assortment of marginalized youth—musicians, tattoo artists, programmers, strippers, environmentalists, and adrenaline junkies—the book eventually made its way into the hands of older generations, who not only found themselves in those strangely arranged pages but also discovered a way back into the lives of their estranged children.

Now, for the first time, this astonishing novel is made available in book form, complete with the original colored words, vertical footnotes, and newly added second and third appendices.

The story remains unchanged, focusing on a young family that moves into a small home on Ash Tree Lane where they discover something is terribly wrong: their house is bigger on the inside than it is on the outside.

Of course, neither Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist Will Navidson nor his companion Karen Green was prepared to face the consequences of that impossibility, until the day their two little children wandered off and their voices eerily began to return another story—of creature darkness, of an ever-growing abyss behind a closet door, and of that unholy growl which soon enough would tear through their walls and consume all their dreams.

My Description:

This book is less of a story and more of an experience. So instead of going in to the plot, consider this:

You are sitting in a room watching a scene-by-scene documentary of a filmed-but-real horror movie. It includes clips of the movie followed by a break-down of what critics thought of each scene. Meanwhile, you are sitting next to a young man who periodically pauses the video to tell you the story of his life, including his tragic past, his impressions on the video, and the current state of his unraveling mind, before restarting the video right where it left off, sometimes in the middle of a sentence. 

My Review:

That is what this book is like to read. You're juggling three different storylines. The terrible house in which the Navidsons live, the world which judges their actions, and the young man who's being driven insane by the story being told. 

It's a novel told in context and also subtext. I'd say about 1/4 of the content of this book is told in footnotes. You have to constantly be reading between the lines to get a full picture of the book. It's impossible to get it all the first time. I had to hold myself back from immediately rereading this book as soon as I finished it! But it's amazing, partly because of that. 

The plot is exciting and horrifying. It's scary in an abstract way, as in the unsettling feeling you get crawl over you. It's the fear of the unknown that creeps up on you. (After reading this during a thunderstorm, I laid awake for what felt like hours until I could calm myself enough to sleep.) The story keeps you captivated. Even if you loose interest in one segment of the story, you are hooked by another part. 

The characters were amazing. They felt flawed in a very human way. Also, the method unique to this book of presenting a character's actions and then having multiple critics break their decisions down was interesting. Each critic would rather praise or mock the character's choices in a way that can't help but make the characters deeply sympathetic even as they make choices I wouldn't have made sense of. 

Characters and plot, while really good in House of Leaves, are not what make this book so intriguing. The formatting is what makes this book so cool. 

During large action scenes, there is often only one sentence per page, making you physically frantically turn the pages. (Which definitely builds the tension and is super fun.) There is upside down writing and crooked footnotes. The paragraphs form shapes. Here are some sneak-peaks of what you can expect: 

(Warning: actual text may include some spoilers)

Obviously, every page is not like the ones above. The formatting generally goes crazy as Johnny (our compiler of the story) does. It also gets more choppy during action scenes. The majority of the pages look closer to this format with a main body and a long sequence of footnotes:

The normal format makes it easier to read, but it still contains the unpredictability and excitement contained on the unexpected pages. 

This book was just so cool and so haunting. 

I could write a thesis on everything this book make me think. For example, the parallels between Navidson's careful framing in his work in photojournalism and Zampano's formatting of his documentary of The Navidson Record. Also, the fact that Zampano was a blind man, yet wrote of a man who was praised for his visual work and the fact that much of the main plot of this book was a video put down on paper and ... 

I'll let you form your own thoughts and ideas. I'll leave you with this: read House of Leaves. It will make you feel the things that books should. You have to struggle with it for the first 50 pages until you get a handle of the formatting, but it will get you out of your reading slump and back into a world full of questions. Just do it. For your own sake. 

Also a recommendation, when the footnotes reference the Appendixes, actually go look at them. It may seem like a long detour, but I found it added a lot. Especially the letters from Truant's mother. 

Phrase:
Minotaur

If You Liked This Book, You Might Also Like:
The Knife of Never Letting Go

Misery

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The Princess Bride by William Goldman 5/5 stars

Hey, guys! In a weird fit of nostalgia, I decided I wanted to read the book that the classic The Princess Bride was based off of. Now, I had seen the movie tens of times, which I am normally against before reading the book, but really, who hasn't seen The Princess Bride?

I was actually surprised quite a few time throughout the book, though it follows the outline of the movie almost perfectly. I actually really enjoyed it, and it was no problem (for me anyway) that I already knew so much of the story.

The Cover:

It shows the man in the black mask taking Buttercup away from the men who kidnapped her. I like this cover. It's simple, but implies a lot of action and emotion behind it. I like the cover, with its simple elegance. A+ cover

Official Description:

What happens when the most beautiful girl in the world marries the handsomest prince of all time and he turns out to be...well...a lot less than the man of her dreams?

As a boy, William Goldman claims, he loved to hear his father read the S. Morgenstern classic, The Princess Bride. But as a grown-up he discovered that the boring parts were left out of good old Dad's recitation, and only the "good parts" reached his ears.


Now Goldman does Dad one better. He's reconstructed the "Good Parts Version" to delight wise kids and wide-eyed grownups everywhere.


What's it about? Fencing. Fighting. True Love. Strong Hate. Harsh Revenge. A Few Giants. Lots of Bad Men. Lots of Good Men. Five or Six Beautiful Women. Beasties Monstrous and Gentle. Some Swell Escapes and Captures. Death, Lies, Truth, Miracles, and a Little Sex.
In short, it's about everything.

My Review:

Let's start with the things that you would expect from The Princess Bride. The novel contains, as marketed, Love, Fighting, Beasts, Lies, Truth, and everything. It has all of the scenes you remember from the movie, told with a bit more detail and background information. There is romance and violence in a constantly shifting relationship with one another.

I was riveted by The Princess Bride. I couldn't put it down, despite knowing what was going to happen. The story was just well-written. The writing and humor is what makes it special. It manages to walk the fine line of being funny and being dramatic, without overdoing it on one side or the other. 

The characters were shallow, as they were supposed to be. Comically shallow in most cases. But, I was actually surprised at the depth of Inigo Montoya's character, as well as Westley's. With characters, too, Goldman walks a fine line well of depth and shallow-ness.

Now, moving on to what you might be surprised at. The story itself is told as a copy of Goldman's abridgment of S. Morgenstern's novel, which his father read to him as a child. Firstly, this is all fictional. Goldman made up the whole story as is. But, according to The Princess Bride, it is an abridgment of an original, boring book. The story goes that Goldman's dad read him The Princess Bride when he was young, but only read the exciting parts aloud and skipped all the boring bits. Throughout the novel, a chapter will occasionally start off with an explanation of what was left out (dining etiquette, etc.). It adds something to the book to have the little snide remarks every so often.

Overall, I would definitely recommend reading The Princess Bride. It is almost exactly what you would expect, but it was still fun. However, if you are the kind of person who doesn't enjoy rewatching things, maybe steer clear.

Phrase:
But I'm left-handed!

If You Liked This Book, You Might Also Like:
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead

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They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera 5/5 stars

Hey, guys! Again, sorry for the big gap between updates! Summer has officially started and with it, I can read again.

My first choice book for the summer was The Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera. I had been putting off this book for ages because I thought it would be depressing, and I didn't really want to be sad. Though once I started reading it, I was so glad I did.

In fact, if I had to pick an adjective for this book, I would choose sweet long before depressing!

The Cover:

The cover shows Mateo and Rufus walking down the river on their End Day together, with their shadows depicting the Grim Reaper. It's a pretty accurate still of this book. It's sweet, with the threat of death looming right behind you. A+ cover.

Official Description:

Adam Silvera reminds us that there’s no life without death and no love without loss in this devastating yet uplifting story about two people whose lives change over the course of one unforgettable day.

On September 5, a little after midnight, Death-Cast calls Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio to give them some bad news: They’re going to die today.
Mateo and Rufus are total strangers, but, for different reasons, they’re both looking to make a new friend on their End Day. The good news: There’s an app for that. It’s called the Last Friend, and through it, Rufus and Mateo are about to meet up for one last great adventure—to live a lifetime in a single day.

My Review:

This book surprised me. Instead of making me sad, this book made me want to seize life. It was actually super uplifting. The overall tone of this book was less cancer-patient (Fault in Our Stars) in terms of seizing the day and more coming-of-age novel. This book was set in an alternative universe where on the day that you are going to die, you get a phone call that informs you of your passing. You don't know what time or how it will happen and you can't avoid it, but you have to make it the best day you can with what you have left. 

They Both Die at the End really centered on two boys from drastically different backgrounds and lives who meet because of their imminent deaths and help shape the other into the person they wanted to be. Rufus helps Mateo get out of his comfort zone, and Mateo helps Rufus calm down and take a step back from his inner baggage. 

The actual writing of this book was straightforward but engaging. Each chapter alternated first person point of view from Mateo and Rufus's perspectives. It was really easy to tell the characters apart as each had a very distinctive voice. 

The characters were really what made this book incredible and such a joy to read. They both start off the book with strong characteristics but also wanting to change themselves into the person that they want to be/be remembered as. They morph throughout the book closer and closer to their ideal selves, taking sidetracks on the way to become their best selves. The character development was what made this novel so special. It was written perfectly, and it was great to see a person choosing to alter who they wanted to be and being able to accomplish that. 

The plot was fairly loose, though there were certain themes that ran through. Themes like the current status of Mateo and Rufus's friends/family and the fact that the police were chasing after Rufus. These themes gave it a sense of continuity and plot, linking the overall story together into one big arch even when the actual story seemed to jump around based on the characters' moods. 

Overall, I loved this book. It made me think and was deep without being hard to digest. Mostly, the story was sweet and hopeful, even in the face of catastrophe. And, just so you all know, the title is accurate. There are no last minute miracles. You think there will be something different when you read this book, but it's true. They both die at the end. And, that's okay. 

I'd recommend this book to you if you like contemporary novels (or even light dystopians). It read a lot like a Neal Shusterman or a Patrick Ness book in the way that it was set up, in formatting and the mix between alternative universes and contemporary fiction. I'd definitely recommend this book if you want to read something cute, something deep, or something creative. 

Phrase:
_____ wasn't called by Death Cast today because he/she is not dying today.

If You Liked This Book, You Might Also Like:
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe
The Rest of Us Just Live Here
More Than This

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Wizard for Hire by Obert Skye 4.5/5 stars

Hey, guys! Many, many years ago, I read Obert Skye's Leven Thumps series, and it was my favorite series for a long time. (I'd recommend it if you haven't already read it!) So, when I heard Obert Skye had written another book, I knew I wanted to read it, even if I have definitely aged out of the target audience for this book.

The Cover:

The Cover:

It shows Rin, sitting on the back of his ex-wife's car, getting ready to give some solid, wizardry advice. The cover fits the book, even if it's a bit too busy for my tastes. A- cover

Official Description:

Fourteen-year-old Ozzy lives near Portland, Oregon, and is desperate for help. His scientist parents have been kidnapped after discovering a formula that enables mind control. Their work was so top secret Ozzy is afraid to go to the police, but without help, he fears he'll never find his parents. Then he stumbles across a classified ad in the local newspaper that says "Wizard for Hire. Call 555-SPEL." Ozzy has read about wizards in books like Harry Potter, but wizards couldn't actually exist today, could they? After Ozzy meets the wizard Labyrinth--aka Rin--he's even more skeptical.

Sure, Rin dresses like a wizard, but the short robe and high-top tennis shoes seem unorthodox, as does Rin's habit of writing notes on his shoes and eating breakfast for every meal. Plus, Rin doesn't even cast any magic spells, which means that the unexplained coincidences that start happening around Ozzy are just that--coincidences.
With the help of a robotic-talking raven invented by Ozzy's father, a kind and curious girl at school who decides to help Ozzy, and, of course, a self-proclaimed wizard who may or may not have a magical wand, Ozzy begins an unforgettable quest that will lead him closer to the answers he desperately seeks about his missing parents.

My Review:

Wizard for Hire was an exciting, wholesome book. Ozzy is on a mission to find his missing parents while trying to avoid the men that he knows took them. He is willing to do whatever it takes to trace down what happened to his parents many years ago. He also has to acclimate back to society after living on his own (Hatchet-style) in an isolated cabin for 7 years.

One of the interesting things about this book was Rin's character. I spent the entire book going back and forth on whether he was really a wizard or just a crazy man. I think that's one of the charms of this book. You can't tell how crazy the main character is, so it leaves the door open for magic in the real world.

The characters were fun. I wouldn't say that I was astounded by their complexity one way or another, but I did enjoy their interactions. The dialogue was natural and often witty. It kept me caring about what was to happen to Rin and Ozzy and all of the other characters in the novel.

The plot was paced well. It balanced action scenes with scenes to get to know the characters remarkably well. The action kept you hooked, but there was also a fair amount of substance between the characters and the situation.

Overall, I would recommend Wizard for Hire to anyone wanting to read a mash-up of a fantasy book and a survivalist novel. You won't be disappointed!

Phrase:
Solar panels

If You Liked This Book, You May Also Like:
Leven Thumps
A World Without Heroes
Five Kingdoms Series

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*Note: This book was given to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This had no effect on my thoughts on the content/quality of the novel*

The List by Patricia Forde 4/5 stars

Hey, guys! I decided to pick up The List after reading its description. It seemed like an interesting story to me, and I wasn't disappointed. This book delivered exactly what it said it would.

The Cover:
It shows Leta standing on the top of a building of "list" words and being taller than any other structure in the city. It's a really pretty cover that sums up a lot of the contents of the book. A+ cover.

Official Description:
In the city of Ark, speech is constrained to five hundred sanctioned words. Speak outside the approved lexicon and face banishment. The exceptions are the Wordsmith and his apprentice Letta, the keepers and archivists of all language in their post-apocalyptic, neo-medieval world. 

On the death of her master, Letta is suddenly promoted to Wordsmith, charged with collecting and saving words. But when she uncovers a sinister plan to suppress language and rob Ark’s citizens of their power of speech, she realizes that it’s up to her to save not only words, but culture itself.

Review:
This book is an interesting mix of things. It is a dystopian society that seems both to be set in the future and in the far past. At some point in the future, a flood came and destroyed all of civilization but those who got on the Ark. The setting is that of a small community that is set up more like an ancient village than anything else, with apprentices, etc.

The List has been described as The Giver meets 1984. And, I think that that is a fair estimate. It has the job specialization and the realization that you are able to see more of the world from The Giver and the desire to overthrow the corrupt government from 1984. I think there is also an element of Divergent worked in there with the characters' interaction with the "Wordless". It's an interesting mix, but it works perfectly for this book.

The List is well-written with a fairly interesting, if a bit overdone, plot. I liked the characters and empathized strongly with Letta, the lead. They were easy to root for on their journeys.

Really, my one and only real issue with this book was minor but devastating to my view of the book. It just distracted me to no end constantly and made me kind of scoff. It's the issue of what is on The List. We can see from conversations that the word choice is limited at best in the jumpy sentences, etc. Fine, I believe you might be able to get by with 500 words for conversations, if you count in the fact that the conversations won't really be worthwhile. I understand that and that it's the point of the book.
My problem is that there seems to have been no plan as to what The List actually holds on it. Each chapter starts off with a list word, including the word and its definition. And those chapter starters were completely nonrealistic! When defining water, it is said to be "clear and translucent." In a world where colors were eliminated from the English language, I highly doubt that "translucent" made the cut. And in that case, why would they bother defining the words at all? No one who reads it will have no idea what the definition means, which won't help them to understand the List word.

Overall, The List was good. It was well-written and had a bit of a spin by using the idea of limited language. It did have some drawbacks, such as the lack of a plan for the List words and its general lack of originality (I felt like I'd already read three versions of this book). That being said, I would recommend this book if the premise sounded interesting to you! It is exactly what it said it was going to be.

Phrase:
Beet juice

*Note: This book was given to me through edelweiss in exchange for an honest review*

If You Liked This Book, You May Also Like:
Matched by Ally Condie

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Inferno (The Divine Comedy #1) by Dante 4/5 stars

Hey, guys! Reading Dante's Inferno has been an end goal of mine for a few years. I kept hearing it referenced, and I thought I might enjoy it. I told a friend, and she leant me a copy to read while traveling. I basically wanted to read the idea of this book and knew absolutely nothing about it.

The Cover:
There are so many covers of this book. None of them I particularly like, so this is the version that I ended up reading. It shows a spiral, depicting the layers of hell. B cover.

Official Description:
Belonging in the company of the works of Homer and Virgil, The Inferno is a moving human drama, a journey through the torment of Hell, an expression of the Middle Ages, and a protest against the ways in which men have thwarted the divine plan.

Review:
Going into it, I knew the vague concept of this book and that was it. I opened it and was immediately surprised. The Inferno is composed entirely of poetry. It flowed beautifully, which is pretty amazing considering it was originally written in Italian.

However, it was also difficult to read. The poetry was beautiful, but it was easy to get lost in the words and lose the meaning. In fact, in this version, each chapter started out with a summary of the chapter in plain english and then moved on to the actual chapter in its poetic form. I don't know how much success I would have had reading this book if it wasn't for those summaries, either.

That being said, the ideas in The Inferno were just as solid as I had heard they would be. It is a mix of controversial statements (for example, there are many Popes in the deepest layers of hell) and political statements, as well as a commentary on what values to us as human beings and what justifies a crime, as well as what worthy punishments are.

My only other draw-back is that it got to be a bit repetitive halfway through. Basically each chapter would be Dante viewing the punishments of a group of sinners, talking with one, and then moving on to the next group. I feel like a lot of those repetitions were not entirely necessary. It dragged a bit in the middle as a result.

Overall, it was very difficult to read through. I'm glad I read it, but I don't think I could ever read it again. It is interesting from a cultural point of view, but you could probably skip half of it and get the same benefit. It was a challenge, but the ideas and concepts that it proposed are, largely, equally valid as they are now. I would recommend it, if you are also interested in the ideas and are willing to work through the dense poetry.

If You Liked This Book:
Check out the classics tag!

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Turtles All the Way Down by John Green 5/5 stars

Hey, guys! For weeks now, really since the book was announced, I have wanted to read Turtles All the Way Down. The only reason I'm not writing this in October is that I haven't had time to read anything other than textbooks.

I was so excited for this book, and my excitement was 100% justified. This is a very different book than the John Green books we are used to (The Fault in Our Stars, Looking for Alaska, Paper Towns, Will Grayson Will Grayson, An Abundance of Katherines), but it is better for it. If John Green had tried to recreate the success of The Fault in Our Stars, it would have felt fake and would be like a sequel to the first, a slightly worse version of the thing you liked. Thankfully, John Green changed things completely. 

The Cover:

The Cover:

It shows the title framed by an endless, ever-tightening spiral. This spiral represents Aza's thought spirals that occupy her mind at any given time. The title is taken from a popular ancedote in the science community: 

A scientist gives a talk on the universe. At the end of the lecture, an old lady stands up and tells the scientist that all he's been saying is bull. That really, the earth is just on a flat plate on a turtle's back. The scientist thinks himself smart and asks, "What is that turtle standing on?" The lady replies, "On top of another turtles back." The scientist grows frustrated ands asks what that turtle is standing on. The lady replies, "Sir, you don't understand. It's turtles all the way down."

It may seem that this has little to do with this book, but it actually ties in meaningfully with the rest of the story. Overall, A+ cover and title.

Official Description:

Sixteen-year-old Aza never intended to pursue the mystery of fugitive billionaire Russell Pickett, but there’s a hundred-thousand-dollar reward at stake and her Best and Most Fearless Friend, Daisy, is eager to investigate. So together, they navigate the short distance and broad divides that separate them from Russell Pickett’s son, Davis.

Aza is trying. She is trying to be a good daughter, a good friend, a good student, and maybe even a good detective, while also living within the ever-tightening spiral of her own thoughts.

My Description:

This book was everything I had built it up to be and more. I was worried that I was overhyping myself, since I had become a big John Green fan (as a person) since I had read his last book. However, I was not let down at all.

This is the kind of book that sucks you in and makes you forget about the world. I read the whole thing in two sittings; it would have been one but I didn't want to rush my way through it! This book makes you take a step back and really consider the various aspects of your life, the things you should and don't appreciate, the intricacies of the most simple thing. All of this and it gives you a fun detective story.

The characters are intricate and easy to like. Aza is the main character and her thoughts are complex and really moving. The other characters were three-dimensional, yet they were not the focus of this book. It is about Aza trying (and often failing) to escape her own mind and in the process, she can often ignore the world around her. You get an idea of the complicated emotions of the other characters, but since Aza can't focus on them, you don't get a complete picture. 

Overall, Turtles All the Way Down was phenomenal. It is a bit depressing at times, but it is a really helpful view of mental illness and just a powerful read. I would highly recommend this book if you are looking something that will make you think and will linger with you for a long time after you set it down.

Phrase:
Band-aid, check for pus.

If You Liked This Book, You May Also Like:

The Rest of Us Just Live Here

Challenger Deep

If you're looking for a good book, check out my Suggestions Page!

Happy Reading!

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P.S. Sorry for the long hiatus. I really didn't have much time to read books last semester! I should have much more for this semester, so look forward to a return of The Secret Bookshelf!

Also, if anyone's curious, I have an interesting story of how I got this book for free.. from John Green.