Movie Adaptation: Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist

Hey, guys!  A few weeks ago, I read the book, Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist by David Levithan and Rachel Cohn.  I really enjoyed it, as you can see by my review.  It was just a fun read.
After reading it, I saw that they had made a movie adaptation of this book.  I watched the trailer, of course, and was worried.  I could tell that they got a lot of things wrong and postponed watching it for a bunch of weeks.  A few days ago, I caved and loaned the movie from the library.
My earlier suspicions were confirmed, it strayed quite a bit from the book.

Overall movie: 4/5 stars

Movie compared to the book: 2.5/5 stars

The main issue that I had with this movie was its diversions from the book.  They added an entire storyline about a drunk girl, Caroline, who was an almost insignificant character in Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist. 
Also, the main point of the movie was for the characters to find the band Where's Fluffy?, while finding the band only took place in the first half of the book.  It was as if the film creators messed up and had to end the movie at the halfway point.
All of my favorite scenes were not included, in order to make space for Drunk Caroline roaming around New York.  Scenes that were just amazing, beautiful, and/or hilarious were missing from the movie.  It was missing the umph that made the book so good.
There were certain sections of the book with really deep undertones and amazing quotations that also weren't included.  I understand that these may not have been able to fit into a film adaptation, but at the very least, I think they should have included a brief acknowledgement to the title.  It would be easy to walk out of the movie without understanding what an "infinite playlist" had to do with anything.

Overall, the movie was decent and was slightly similar to the book.  Expect frustration, but you'll be able to watch it.

Happy Reading!

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BookshelfSecret
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BookshelfSecret

Every Day by David Levithan 4/5 stars

Hey, guys! I've read David Levithan's Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist and Will Grayson, Will Grayson and loved both, so I decided to read another of David Levithan's most popular books, Every Day.  I definitely enjoyed it, reading it in a single day, and its concept was really interesting.

The Cover:

The Cover:

I can only describe this cover as randomly artistic.  Oh, look! Clouds and flying people! I'm also not a big fan of the title, "Every day."  It works with the story (every day A wakes up in a new body) but its a little melodramatic, in my opinion.

Official Description:

Every day a different body. Every day a different life. Every day in love with the same girl.
There’s never any warning about where it will be or who it will be. A has made peace with that, even established guidelines by which to live: Never get too attached. Avoid being noticed. Do not interfere.
It’s all fine until the morning that A wakes up in the body of Justin and meets Justin’s girlfriend, Rhiannon. From that moment, the rules by which A has been living no longer apply. Because finally A has found someone he wants to be with—day in, day out, day after day

My Review:

I really liked reading this book.  The writing style worked.  I loved the concept behind the book.  Its really cool to have the main character have no gender/ race/ hair color/ body type but regain the same personality. You can't help but be surprised at each transformation.  It was really neat to be able to have the main character randomly thrusted into different situations.

I enjoyed this book and would probably rate it at five stars except for three things (1) the ending (which I will talk about later in a spoiler section), (2) the lack of chemistry between Rhiannon and A, and (3) too much of a message/moral.

Let's start with the chemistry problem.  I just didn't buy that A and Rhiannon were into each other. I believe that A thought that s/he was, but I couldn't quite see it.  There were not a lot of cute moments between the two.  I got more of the feeling of friendship from them than the feeling of a relationship.

Also, the message.  The author was a little heavy handed in laying out the message he wanted his book to give across.  "All types of people, despite sexuality (main point) or race or gender are essentially the same."  It's not that I disagree with his message, but that I disagree with books actively trying to teach me a lesson.  I just end up feeling a little brainwashed.  If you can manage to make your message a little less intrusive to the storyline, I wouldn't mind a "moral of the story" but that wasn't the case in Every Day.  If you've read the book and don't know what I'm talking about, look at the day with Vic.

My last problem was the ending.  (ATTN: SPOILERS IN THIS PARAGRAPH)  The ending was not enough.  I love open endings, but this wasn't an open ending.  It was, in my opinion, the wrong ending.  I would understand if A decided that he and Rhiannon couldn't be together and left.  I get that.  My problem is that he hijacked Andrew's life and hooked him up with his girlfriend.  What was that?  I am also not content that we never learned how A got to be the way he was.  (I would've been happy with a single sentence about it! Maybe from the Reverend?)  Either way, the ending caused me to rethink my evaluation of the entire book. (SPOILERS END HERE)

I just learned that there will be a sequel, Another Day that is told from Rhiannon's perspective.  I don't think that this is necessary and frankly a continuation of a stand-alone book that does not need a continuation, and if it did need a continuation, it's not in the form of a Rhiannon POV.

Phrase:

The devil

Happy Reading!

Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist by David Levithan and Rachel Cohn 5/5 stars

Hey, guys! Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist has been on my to read list for years, but I didn't know much about it, so it just kept being postponed.  However, I learned last week that one of the co-authors was David Levithan (co-author of Will Grayson, Will Grayson).  I really loved Will Grayson, Will Grayson, so I thought I'd give it a shot.  And man that was a great idea!
I started this book at 10:30pm and kept reading until I finished (2:30am).  My eighth grade English teacher classified short stories as books that you can read in a single sitting, and, by that logic, this book was a short story.  It was fantastic, and I'd highly recommend it.
However, I must warn you that this book has quite a bit of swearing and a few... sexual situations.  I don't like to recommend ages for books (because it varies so much and I don't want to be responsible for some parent not allowing their kid to read a book) but I would probably limit the target audience to high school aged kids and up. Read the first chapter online and decide for yourself, but that's my loose recommendation.

Anyways, the cover:

The Covers:

This is one of the few books that has multiple cool covers.  The top cover shows New York City at night, where most of this book is set.  It also has a little blurb, "You never know where the night will take you." The second shows intertwining headphones in front of a raining (nice detail) New York City.  I like them both.  A+ covers!

Official Description:

So you're a guy; you're at a band show and your ex, the girl who dumped you, walks in with the new guy. Looking for a safe exit, you ask the girl you happen to sitting with to be your girlfriend for five minutes . You're a girl; you're at a get-together and your least favorite female strolls in. The stranger sitting next to you asks you to be his five-minute date. So what do you? You lock lips . Nick and Norah's instant connection begins a roller-coaster "first date" that takes them through Manhattan and into themselves. A novel concept that works.

My Review:

This book was great! Told in alternating point of views of Nick and Norah, we read about one awesome night where anything can happen.  Both main characters are recovering from a doomed relationship and need a night out, which they accidentally stumble upon with each other.  It was hilarious and awkward and really cute.  

Music is a key point in this book (which you might've guessed from the title).  It ranged through debating if a punk band can work without a drummer, thinking up song lyrics, and wondering if you true nature of relationship is really just the desire to "hold your hand" (Beatles song).  The music was a constant soundtrack underneath the book.  

All of the characters in this book were awesome! Not only were Nick and Norah complicated and complex characters, but so were the minor characters, like Tris/Dev/Caroline.  They also had their own motives and needs. 

The plot line was also lovely.  I was really invested in it! It was very fast paced and exciting.  The writing style was also interesting.  It was told in a more "stream of conscious" style than most books, while still being completely understandable.  It made it really easy to read and added a little something.  

I am a big fan.  The ending in particular was really nice.  It (SPOILER: didn't wrap everything up perfectly so there is plenty of room for imagination SPOILER OFF).  This book was much better than I expected.  It made me want to go read more of David Levithan's and Rachel Cohn's books!

I hear there's a movie? I just watched the trailer and its so off that I'm already mad.  Has anyone read the book and watched the movie? Is it worth seeing?

Phrase:

Where's Fluffy?

Happy Reading!

2014, A Year of Books

I thought that since the year is ending, I'd give you the highlights of the books I read this year.  I read 75 books this year, most of which I loved, and I had a hard time narrowing it down, but here are most top 10 favorite books of the year, in no particular order. (If I read multiple books in a series, they're counted as one).  All of the official descriptions came from Goodreads, and the brief reviews were written at the time that I finished the book.

An Abundance of Katherines by John Green

Official Descriptions

When it comes to relationships, Colin Singleton's type is girls named Katherine. And when it comes to girls named Katherine, Colin is always getting dumped. Nineteen times, to be exact. On a road trip miles from home, this anagram-happy, washedup child prodigy has ten thousand dollars in his pocket, a bloodthirsty feral hog on his trail, and an overweight, Judge Judy-loving best friend riding shotgun–but no Katherines. Colin is on a mission to prove The Theorem of Underlying Katherine Predictability, which he hopes will predict the future of any relationship, avenge Dumpees everywhere, and finally win him the girl.

Or

Katherine V thought boys were gross

Katherine X just wanted to be friends
Katherine XVIII dumped him in an e-mail
K-19 broke his heart 
When it comes to relationships, Colin Singleton's type happens to be girls named Katherine. And when it comes to girls named Katherine, Colin is always getting dumped. Nineteen times, to be exact.
On a road trip miles from home, this anagram-happy, washed-up child prodigy has ten thousand dollars in his pocket, a bloodthirsty feral hog on his trail, and an overweight, Judge Judy-loving best friend riding shotgun--but no Katherines. Colin is on a mission to prove The Theorem of Underlying Katherine Predictability, which he hopes will predict the future of any relationship, avenge Dumpees everywhere, and finally win him the girl. Love, friendship, and a dead Austro-Hungarian archduke add up to surprising and heart-changing conclusions in this ingeniously layered comic novel about reinventing oneself.

My Brief Review:

This book was incredibly funny.  I loved the characters, the situations, and even the calculations.  It was truly masterful, and one of my favorite realistic fiction books.  It's the second-best John Green book, by far.

Miss Peregrines Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Official Description: 

A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. A strange collection of very curious photographs.

It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive.
A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.

My Brief Review: 

I really loved the book's voice. (In a way, it reminded me of the narrator in Beautiful Creatures.) The entire book flowed very smoothly and the storyline was very engaging. This book was definitely worth the hype, which so few books are. It was fantastic. Highly recommended!
In an unrelated note, I love how the author's name on the front cover was so small unlike some others like James Patterson whose name fills each of his books' entire cover so that it's difficult to tell if you are reading "Blah Blah Blah Book" or "James Patterson". I really appreciate it when authors make the book more important than themselves. You go, Ransom Riggs!

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Official Description:

Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten.

Insightful, bold, irreverent, and raw, The Fault in Our Stars is award-winning author John Green's most ambitious and heartbreaking work yet, brilliantly exploring the funny, thrilling, and tragic business of being alive and in love.

My Brief Review:

Easily the best book I've read in a long time. I cried during the last third of the book, but I loved it so much! It is one of those books that seem to reach into your soul and brighten some small essential part of yourself. At least it did for me.

Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan

Link to Full Review from earlier this year

11/22/63 by Stephen King

Official Description:

Life can turn on a dime—or stumble into the extraordinary, as it does for Jake Epping, a high school English teacher in Lisbon Falls, Maine. While grading essays by his GED students, Jake reads a gruesome, enthralling piece penned by janitor Harry Dunning: fifty years ago, Harry somehow survived his father’s sledgehammer slaughter of his entire family. Jake is blown away...but an even more bizarre secret comes to light when Jake’s friend Al, owner of the local diner, enlists Jake to take over the mission that has become his obsession—to prevent the Kennedy assassination. How? By stepping through a portal in the diner’s storeroom, and into the era of Ike and Elvis, of big American cars, sock hops, and cigarette smoke... Finding himself in warmhearted Jodie, Texas, Jake begins a new life. But all turns in the road lead to a troubled loner named Lee Harvey Oswald. The course of history is about to be rewritten...and become heart-stoppingly suspenseful.

My Brief Review:

An amazing book. Not a single slow second in all 800 or so pages. I highly, HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommend this book to everyone! It was both a mystery, romance, and science fiction book all in one! I've recommended 11/22/63 to more people than I can count.

Misery by Stephen King

Link to my review from earlier this year

Legend by Marie Lu

Link to my review of this entire series from earlier this year

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

Link to my review of this entire series from earlier this year

Let the Sky Fall by Shannon Messenger

Official Description:
Vane Weston should have died in the category-five tornado that killed his parents. Instead, he woke up in a pile of rubble with no memories of his past - except one: a beautiful, dark-haired girl standing in the winds. She swept through his dreams ever since, and he clings to the hope that she's real.
Audra is real, but she isn't human. She's a sylph, an air elemental who can walk on the wind, translate its alluring songs, even twist it into a weapon. She's also a guardian - Vane's guardian - and has sworn an oath to protect him at all costs.
When a hasty mistake reveals their location to the enemy who murdered both their families, Audra has just days to help Vane unlock his memories. And as the storm winds gather, Audra and Vane start to realize that the greatest danger might not be the warriors coming to destroy them, but the forbidden romance growing between them. 

My Brief Review:
I loved this book! It was just perfect. I do not have a single complaint (which is a first). The characters were wonderful and non-annoying. The romance was believable, and the plot line was really engaging. Also the voice of the novel (both Vance's and Audra's). 
It's kind of similar to Beautiful Creatures. But better. 
I highly, highly recommend!

Winger by Andrew Smith

Official Description:

Ryan Dean West is a fourteen-year-old junior at a boarding school for rich kids in the Pacific Northwest. He’s living in Opportunity Hall, the dorm for troublemakers, and rooming with the biggest bully on the rugby team. And he’s madly in love with his best friend Annie, who thinks of him as a little boy.

With the help of his sense of humor, rugby buddies, and his penchant for doodling comics, Ryan Dean manages to survive life’s complications and even find some happiness along the way. But when the unthinkable happens, he has to figure out how to hold on to what’s important, even when it feels like everything has fallen apart.
Filled with hand-drawn info-graphics and illustrations and told in a pitch-perfect voice, this realistic depiction of a teen’s experience strikes an exceptional balance of hilarious and heartbreaking.

My Brief Review:

Amazing. It was probably one of the funniest books I've ever read. I just loved Ryan Dean's narration style. It's also not very rugby-oriented like the official description would have you believe. (I'm not entirely sure what rugby IS and I loved it). 

I highly recommend Winger (but only if you have at least a high-school maturity level). 
I didn't have high hopes for this book, but it surprised me by being completely amazing. It had everything you could ask for and placed it all together perfectly.

If you are looking for a book to read this coming year, I strongly suggest trying out one of these.  They are all incredibly different but they were completely amazing, nonetheless.  

Happy Reading!

YALL Fest 2014

Hey, guys!  Two weekends ago, I went to a Young Adult book festival in Charleston, SC.  YALL Fest.  It was incredible! If you live anywhere near Charleston, I suggest that you try to go next year (November 13-14).

I loved every single person there, and I'm not just talking about the authors!  All the people who came were super friendly and seemed to love reading as much as me, which is impressive.  All of the authors I had a chance to meet were very nice.  I wasn't disappointed by any of them, like I was afraid I would.  They must say "Don't meet your idols" for a reason, right?  Not if your idols are authors apparently.

Opening Keynote:

The beginning of the festival was marked by an opening conversation between James Dashner (author of Maze Runner, 13th Reality, A Door into the Woods, and the Mortality Doctrine series) and Sara Zarr (author of a bunch of books including Sweethearts, which I haven't read yet).  They were friends and hilarious together.  They were constantly bantering back and forth with each other.  It was fantastic!

The Signings:
There were three venues for author signings.  All of the authors had a designated time that they would sign during.  It was very well set up, as long as you don't mind standing in line.  There was a LOT of standing in line.  But, if you timed it right, you could go see all the authors you wanted to.  However, a few of the more popular authors (James Dashner, Veronica Roth, Rainbow Rowell) you needed to stand in line for a wristband that would allow you to see them later in the day.

Lauren Oliver:

Lauren Oliver wrote the Delirium series as well as a few stand alone books such as Before I Fall and Panic.  She was super nice and seemed very down-to-earth.  I'm so glad that I got to meet her and have her sign my copy of the Delirium series.

James Dashner:

I was most excited about seeing James Dashner at YALL Fest.  I've read everything that he's written (except his latest book-The Rule of Thoughts because I haven't had much time for reading lately) and loved them all.  I brought all of the books I had in print (A Door into the Woods and the 13th reality series) for him to sign.  At the Opening Keynote, he made a comment about the former series and immediately said, "Don't worry if you haven't read it, no one has."  So when I asked him to sign this series he, for want of a better word, flipped out.  He was amazed that I had read his first series.  He ended up talking to me about it for about ten times longer than he did to anybody else.  At one point, he held up my copy of one of the books and showed the people behind me in line that "this was the book that nobody has read that I mentioned this morning."  As you can probably imagine, this was amazing for me, a diehard fan of everything he writes, to be singled out.  As I was about to leave, he even told me to wait and, because I was such an old fan, STOOD UP to take a picture with me.  He did this with no one else, and I am so happy that he took time to talk with me.  It was definitely the highlight of my day.
If you think I'm exaggerating, when I was leaving the building, I overheard some people who were behind me in line talking and they were grumbling that they had to some back next year after reading his older books.

Ally Condie:

Ally Condie is the author of the Matched trilogy as well as Atlantia.  She was simply really, really nice.  I gained so much respect for her at this festival.  She seemed really sincere and just like a really cool human being.

DJ MacHale:

DJ MacHale wrote the Pendragon, Morpheus Road, and SYLO series.  I love all of these series, despite how completely different they are.  DJ MacHale was the person I was the second most excited to meet (the first being James Dashner).  However, I didn't get to speak to him as much as I would have liked.  The signing happened too quick!  He seemed very nice though.  Basically what I expected.

Other Author Meet-Ups:

Pseudonymous Bosch, the author of the Secret series, was also there.  He's so secretive, even with the croissant on his hat.  (For those of you who don't know, he's a type of Lemony Snicket like author. His bio in the back of the books acts like he is in hiding, etc.)  He was a bit odd, but I expected that. Before YALL Fest, I tried to find his picture online so that I would know if I saw him and failed, spectacularly.  So I saw this guy walking around with a pastry on his hat and thought, "That must be Pseudonymous Bosch".

Closing Keynote:

The ending ceremony was a Q&A between Sarah Dessen and Ally Condie.  It was interesting, but Sarah talked most of the time, and I had no prior knowledge of who she was, making her speeches less interesting.  

Smack-down:

The "smack-down" was the true ending of YALL Fest.  Authors got up onto the stage to read their early writing from any age between high school and preschool.  It was great! They also played games and it was just fun in general.  

Then, the excitement really started as they talked about all the picture book authors who had gotten into YA *cough, Suzanne Collins, cough*.  So, of course, they showed us the covers and read excerpts.  Here's the highlights of the covers:

Yeah... It was so much fun.  They went further than I expected from a YA Festival.

Then, a band made entirely out of authors, Tiger Beat, came out and performed.  They were amazing.  My personal favorite was their original song, The YA Song, or as I like to call it: Holden Caulfield is not an asshole.

It's fantastic, please watch it if you have any time.  (In case you are wondering, the guy in the Viking Hat is David Levithan.)

The Smack-down was amazing and so was the entire experience of this festival.  I loved every second of it.  If you can, please come next year.  You'll love it!

Happy Reading!

Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan (Amazing)

I was really excited about reading Will Grayson, Will Grayson.  This might have stemmed from either (or both) the fact that John Green wrote part of this book or the fact that not one but both of the main characters were named Will Grayson.  I have been liking John Green at an alarmingly fast increasing rate starting about a month ago.  I am working my way through reading all of his books while watching his amazing youtube channel, vlogbrothers.  (It's the best youtube channel in existence, check it out!)  My second compilation to read this book was simple yet may be confusing.  I have noticed that if there is a supporting or main character named Will in any type of fictional story, he will become my favorite character.  I'm not sure if its because I connect them all with my favorite character of all time, Will from Ranger's Apprentice (link to my review in labels), or because writers make the same type of character and decide to name them Will.  Maybe it's a mix of both, but nevertheless, it caused me to be super excited about this book because, well, there are two of them. I was not disappointed.
The cover:

The cover shows what I think are the stage lights for Tiny's musical. It might just be a pattern, but that's how I like to think about it. 

*To distinguish the Will Graysons, I am going to call one "Will Grayson" and the other "will grayson" *

Summary:
Will Grayson and will grayson have very different lives.  Will Grayson is a relatively normal guy, but his best best friend, Tiny, is different.  Tiny is gay and huge.  At the same time, will grayson lives in a different city where he is in love with a man who he talks to on the internet.  In a bizarre twist, both Will Graysons meet during a crazy, perhaps life-altering night.  Their lives collide together, and they might never be the same.

I loved this book! It was so great in every possible way.  The characters were all realistic with their own motives and personalities.  The potentially confusing area of "Which Will are they talking about?" was a nonissue, and the characters were different enough that it wouldn't have been a problem even if the writers didn't do the strange writing technique for will grayson.

Speaking of which, the strange writing technique was that the second Will Grayson's chapters did not have capitalization.  I know that that sounds confusing and terrible, but it actually worked really well for his character.  It may seem like a shock at first, but I found that I didn't even notice it after a little while.  Both Will Graysons were amazing characters with similar problems and vastly different ways of dealing with them.

All in all, this book was amazing, lovely, hilarious, and just plain meaningful.  I feel like a more complete person after reading it, and I know you will too.  I read it in a single day, and HIGHLY recommend it.  Please note that it is geared toward a more mature audience than what I normally post about, but it is worth reading anyway!

Please go out and read this book.  You'll love it, and join my on my new mission to make everyone alive read Will Grayson, Will Grayson.

Phrase: Phil Wrayson