I Read “The Hunger Games,” Now What?

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So, you read “The Hunger Games.”

As did we all.

Or say we all.

Or somethin’.

What next? Is there anything else like it? Are there other books that are similar?

Oh.

Yes.

Let’s talk.

I loved “The Hunger Games.” Before The Hunger Games, I had previously read the author Suzanne Collin’s earlier work, The Underland Chronicles. Unfortunately, I barely remember it. I know she killed a lot of the characters and I remember not liking the ending. It was about a world of people who are minature. And they live among giant (to them) rats and cockroaches. I love anything miniature. Um, see the title of my blog. But I did not love this series. I want to discuss books like “The Hunger Games” that I really did enjoy.

But first, I am going to tell ya something embarrassing.

I was at Comic Con last year.

That’s not the embarrassing part.

The very best part about Comic Con are the free books. Every year we come home with about fifty free books. It is fabulous.

Ahem. Jenni. Yous gots to get to the point.

So, I went up to a publisher’s booth and it was being run by a sole girl in her early twenties. It was a booth dedicated to teenage novels. Most of the book booths at Comic Con are manned by the editors for the publishers. Which is cool. And intimidating.

I asked her, “Do you have any free books today?” As one does.

She smiled at me like a cat seeing a canary or a cockroach seeing a human, depending upon which book you are in. In my mind she uncurled from the chair she was sitting in and stretched her arms above her head.

“Su-rrrrrrrre,” she purred. “But first I’m going to ask you a few questions to find you the perfect book.”

“Great!” I said with genuine enthusiasm.

“What type of books do you like?”

My mind went blank. I seriously could not think of a single book. Not one. Not even a genre. I stood there rapidly blinking. My eyes finally landed on a poster for “The Hunger Games” behind the girl’s head. Aha!

“I like the Hunger Games,” I triumphantly declared as I drooled.

I could see her visibly trying not to roll her eyes.

“So you like Dystopian?”

“Um, I’ve never read that book?” I ignorantly replied.

She looked at me and started laughing. “No! It’s not a book! It’s a genre. Like “The Hunger Games.” You know, future apocalyptic science fiction.”

I blushed furiously. In the back of my head… the very, very back… I had somehow known this. But it did not make me feel less dumb or make my husband laugh any less at my answer when I told him the story later that day.

She handed me a dystopian book. Quite honestly, I am not even sure which one. I ran faster from that booth than Katniss from a fireball.

And I quite forgot about that moment… until each time my husband brings it up. It is always when I am reading.

“Whatcha reading?” He’ll innocently ask. But then before I can answer he will insert, “Is it ‘Dystopian’? I’ve heard that is a great book!” Then he will cackle with laughter.

But the truth is, the book I am reading at the time of his question probably is a dystopian novel. I have read many of them. Here are some short reviews of some other enjoyable series similar to “The Hunger Games,” in case you, too, like “Dystopian.”:

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The Maze Runner by James Dashner. This series is perhaps closest to “The Hunger Games” in the bleakness of the world and grownups trying to use children for their own purposes. This is my fifteen year old daughter’s second favorite series. I liked it. However, I did not enjoy the ending of this series. It was not awful, but I felt the series quickly changed in terms of plot from book one to book four. In fact, the theme changes so much it almost feels like a completely different series throughout all four books. And definitely a different world.

The books begin with a boy waking up in a world similar to “Lord Of The Flies.” The kids have to survive on a small patch of land while terrors outside of the walls where they live keep them from exploring. The first book is pretty much based upon why the kids are in this isolated spot and how they are going to get out of it. The first book is the best book of the series.

My daughter appreciated that there was not a lot of romance in these books. I missed it. These books were interesting. The first book earns an 8/10 from me. I would give the series as a whole a 6.5/10. I do recommend them, but they just were not my favorite. It was not a smooth ride.

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The 5th Wave by Rick Yancy. This series is currently on book two. I am anxiously awaiting book three. This series is about an alien invasion and attack on humans. We start with the main character, a sixteen year old girl, being completely isolated and alone and not knowing if she is the last human being alive. We follow her around in this post-apocalyptic world as she remembers how she got to the place she is in. All of the while, though, she is unknowingly being hunted.

This series has a lot of romance. It has a lot of violence. Again, we are looking at a group of teenagers trying to save the world. I thought it was very brilliantly written. I would give it an 8/10. Many times I could guess what was going to happen, so that earned the series a less than perfect score from me. And book two had some parts that I felt dragged on. However, I highly recommend these books. There are occurrences of sex, but it is more vague, such as they went to bed kissing and it starts with them waking up the next morning together. Nothing, in my opinion, too graphic for teenagers or even the more mature preteen. Of course, this is coming from the girl who read all of the V.C. Andrews books by the age of fourteen, so take that for what you will.

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The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken. This was the latest series I read. This series of three books had so much potential. When I think about it my hands immediately go in front of me and I shake a poor sad invisible soul due to my frustration. It makes me sad to reflect upon some of the plot choices that were made or unused talents that went to waste. The premise of the series is a virus sweeps across America and kills almost all of the children twelve and older. Eighteen year olds are safe, but the younger kids could still get the virus as they age. The children who survive the virus are sent to concentration camps because they develop different powers. The powers are condemned by the adults. There are kids who can start fires. Kids who can affect electronics. And children who can read minds. All in all, the powers are concentrated into five groups. Our main character, Ruby, has one of the powers.

I hastily blew through these books. And I liked them, I did. But, there was a great deal of wasted plot opportunities and too many pages of teenage yearnings that I felt could have been curtailed to take it from a good series into a great one. I would give the series a 7/10. I really liked the ending and that seems to be a hard thing to get right in dystopian fiction.

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Inhuman by Kat Falls. A biological apocalypse has happened and it is illegal to travel outside of the city limits. So, you can guess what is about to happen. A teenage girl travels outside of the city limits. Outside of the city zone is called the feral zone, because some humans have turned into different versions of animals due to the biological disaster. The main character gets to witness this biological development first hand as she goes on her journey.

This is my daughter’s favorite book. She begged me to read it. I admit that I thought the premise sounded a bit far-fetched and it did not interest me. However, I read it for my daughter. It is a very easy read. I loved it. Another high mark from me. 8.5/10. I do hope that this series continues. It is only on book one with no release date for book two yet. And with the ending being a cliffhanger, I hope I am not disappointed when the series does continue. I can recommend this book to kids in junior high school and high school. I think it will appeal to most kids (and the kids at heart).

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Uglies by Scott Westerfield. This was a good series. If. And I mean IF. IF you pretend it only had three books and not four. Reading the fourth book ruined it for me. It is completely out of context. It does absolutely nothing for the series. This is a book about children who once they reach the age of sixteen must have an operation that will make them “pretty.” Then the pretties all have mindless parties and life is great. Except, what if it wasn’t? Young Tally is fifteen and is on track to having the operation that will take her from an “Ugly” to a “Pretty.” But before her operation, she is suddenly required to track down her friend Shay, who has escaped Utopia and is living with the rebels. It sounds silly and it is. But it is also surprisingly smart. I give the series with books one through three only, a 6.5/10.

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The Girl With All the Gifts by M.R. Carey. This a singular book and not a series. It is in the adult dystopian section, however, I feel it could easily be read by a teenager. I don’t want to write exactly what the book is about because it would ruin the suspense of the first few pages for you. Needless to say it is a very scary and graphic dystopian book. It is told from the point of view of a little girl named Melanie. My husband read this one, too. He liked this book as much as I did. 9/10 from me. It is an enjoyable, smart and easy read. This is an equal parts horror and dystopian book, so keep that in mind when making your selection. Also, due to it being in the adult section, there is a sex scene, so I would not recommend this for preteens.

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“The Reckoners” series by Brandon Sanderson. The series starts with the book Steelheart. This author is one of my very favorites. He typically writes adult fantasy, which is the genre that is number one in my heart. In fact, for one of my birthdays, my husband purchased all of his books signed to me directly from the author. That is the epitome of romance to me.

This series is young adult and about the apocalypse and super heroes. Or what I would define as super heroes in a small description of someone with supernatural abilities. It is a fun series. The world is ruled by evil superheroes. Which I guess are more supervillain than superhero. I hate superheroes. I do not know why, but I do not enjoy any of the “Spiderman,” “Batman” or “Superman” themed books or movies. However, I liked this. It is such a different viewpoint to think of. I have not read a series like it. Brandon Sanderson is the best at surprise twists. Even knowing that this is what he is the master of, he still manages to trick me with each book he writes. Every single one, he blows my mind with a plot twist. And it is genius and it is brilliant. Another 9/10 from me. I think it is recommendable for all ages. I was thrilled, when writing this review, to discover the second book in this series, Firefight just came out this month. It looks like it is getting great reviews. I just ordered mine and will be receiving it on Friday. I cannot wait!

Have you read any of these books? Are there any other dystopian books I should read (not “Divergent”)?

This post contains affiliate links. Purchasing from the links in this post will provide a small commission for the search for “Dystopian” this site.

Watching: Housebound

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Are you a fan of horror movies? Well, I am not. That is to say, I am not now. However, that was not always the case. I believe all teenagers go through a phase where they cannot get enough of fear inflicted adrenaline. I think it has to do with the fact that their brains are not fully developed and there is a part of the brain tissue that makes one aware of danger and mortality that does not become fully active until the age of nineteen (I played a doctor on t.v. once. Just kidding. I once drank coffee and watched a doctor describe this phenomenon on t.v. once. Which, if you ask me, is exactly the same thing. I wonder which part of my brain has not fully developed yet. don’t answer that).

Does “The Walking Dead” count as horror? Well, of course, you answer. But does it really count as horror when the viewer reads the entire plotline before each episode so that they may cover their eyes or leave the room well in advance of each gory scene? I am not sure. But I do watch “The Walking Dead.” Or at least most of it anyway.

What is my point?

Sorry. I tend to prattle on. My point being that I am a wimp. Being scared is, well, scary. But I watched a horror movie recently that I really enjoyed. In fact, I liked it so much that I made my husband watch it with me again the next day. I liked it so much that I decided to write a post about it.

I liked it. A lot…

My daughter and I were on a date. Don’t let her know that I just called it that. We went out to dinner where I ordered the chicken strips and she ordered the halibut. The person bringing out the food set the plates down wrong. I can’t imagine why.

My husband was at work. My son was at a sleepover (the technical term for a boy slumber party. Don’t ever call a preteen boy’s sleepover a slumber party. It is funny the things you do wrong learn as a mom). My daughter and I decided to lay in my bed and watch a scary movie together when we got home from our dinner.

I was dreading it.

But as I was flipping through the movie choices, I stumbled upon “Housebound.” I looked it up on Rotten Tomatoes where it had a rating of 96%. It is rare for a horror movie to get a rating above a 65% so I was intrigued. We read the reviews and decided to go for it.

I cannot really describe it. If I were to use two words to do so, I would say it was wonderfully absurd. I had read the reviews online calling it a horror/comedy and I could not understand what that meant. But then I watched it and it all became clear.

The synopsis is a young girl (Kylie) in New Zealand with a cruddy attitude who commits a crime and her sentence is having to be under house arrest in her mother Miriam’s home. Kylie quickly learns her mother thinks the house is haunted. And the story goes from there.

Here is why it is different from other horror movies and why it works:

1. Why do they stay in the house? You know how irksome it is screaming at the t.v. when you are watching a horror movie wondering why the heck the people just don’t leave? I mean seriously, who would stay in those houses? Nobody. Not a single sane person. I liked that “Housebound” explains from the get-go why the main character has to stay in the house. It is essentially her prison. It was a different scenario and I appreciated that the writer, Gerard Johnston, (who was also the director) treated the audience with intellectual respect.

2. The main character isn’t an idiot. How many times do we see the heroine in a horror flick be a screaming and whimpering fool? I am not saying that I would not be the same way. But it is annoying. This character is a bada** from the beginning. Kylie has an attitude but it works in a horror movie. You don’t like her but you feel like she is capable. All of the side characters are well executed (pun not intended) as well. They had a genuine depth to them that I was not expecting in a horror movie.

3. Moments. It is just a smart movie. There is a moment about a quarter of the way in to the film that is so unexpected and funny that it is now one of my favorite scenes in a movie. There is cursing and bloody scenes so please be aware that while this is a different twist on a traditional scary movie, it still has those elements. Usually horror flicks are cut and dry with horrible scripts but this has many surprising turns. The dialogue is excellent. Some of the moments are ridiculous. Some are gory. Some are scary. But I admit that I enjoyed the whole thing.

My daughter and I both gave this movie a ten out of ten. It reminded me of the eighties movies that I adored. I also love a dark comedy. I enjoyed both “Zombieland” and “Hot Fuzz” in years prior. Although neither one made me smile enough to write a post about them, like this film did.

Have you seen this movie yet? Had you heard of this movie before? Because I do not typically indulge in the horror genre, I had not even known of this movie’s existence prior to last week. Take the advice of a girl who once played saw a doctor on t.v.: Watch it!

READING: “The One And Only Ivan” and “The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane”

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Two book reviews at once? There is a reason for my madness. I read two books to my ten year old son (who turns eleven on the eleventh) in July. He really enjoyed one of them and he was not enthused about the other one. As an adult, I liked both of them. As a mother, I will recommend one of them for children.

Since I found the two books both similar and dissimilar and I read them within one week of each other, I decided to review them together. Both books are supposedly geared towards children. Both books deal with mature themes. And both books are told from the point of view of a non-human narrator.

However, the two books are vastly different, as well. Let’s get to that:

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Now, first I need to say that I love Kate DiCamillo. After reading and raving about “The Magician’s Elephant”, I happily devoured more of her work. It was good. “The Magician’s Elephant” is still my favorite. So, when I picked up her book, “The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane”, I excitedly began reading it out loud to my child without reading it myself first.

I trusted her.

On the night of my birthday, I finished reading my son that book.

It involved many tears and sobs.

Without wanting to spoil anything, but also needing to discuss an important part of my review, I must say there is a spoiler in this paragraph. Please skip it if that bothers you. This book is about a pampered porcelain rabbit who goes on a journey not of his choosing to learn compassion. If you took “Pinocchio” and combined it with the “Velveteen Rabbit” and then cut out three quarters of the happy ending, you would get this book. It has a part in it where a child dies and I found the situation involving the body definitely not appropriate for the age group it is intended for. Then something else tragic happens to a child and you get no closure from it. That part was the most difficult scene in the book for my family. Not just the dying child but the extreme cruelty to another child by three different men in a row. And I get it. I do. That is the real world.

But I read children’s books as an escape from the real world. The conclusion was predictable and it did not satisfy the ache that was left in my heart from the unresolved ending with one of Edward’s owners.

In fact, almost all of Edward’s companions’ stories are tragic. They all took possession of this porcelain rabbit and are left with a sadness that is never resolved.

According to the Amazon description, this book is supposedly for children ages seven to ten. I do not find that to be true. If I had read this book as an adult short story knowing in advance that it would be melancholy, I would have enjoyed it more. So, if you are an adult who enjoys reading children’s books like I do, then I highly recommend this one to you. It was gut-wrenching but gorgeous. My good friend informed me last week that her twelve year old son loved this book. Each child is different. If your child wants to read this book, I would recommend you reading it first to see if it is appropriate for your child.

Now let’s get to a book I highly recommend for children.

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Before it is said in defense of the book review above that children need to deal with death and life and different hard-knock scenarios through reading books, I am going to agree. I am also going to write that “The One and Only Ivan” has those things. It has death. And in the same vein as “The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane,” it even has an unfortunate occurrence with a body, although this one is not human. However, it is handled with finesse. It teaches children that there will be hard times and that people can be cruel but that there is always hope.

Hope.

That is what I feel was missing from the book in the previous review.

It emphasizes that just one of us can make a huge difference. We cannot wait for someone else to change our circumstances, we have to do that ourselves.

My son and I both loved “The One And Only Ivan.” It won The John Newberry Award. It is recommended on Amazon for ages 8-12 and I would lean towards it being for ages 10-12 (although I happily devoured its pages, too). The writing is short and choppy at first. I had a difficult time settling into it. But it is being told from the point of view of a silverback gorilla, so it is to be expected. And once you recognize that, then it is a very easy and enjoyable book. While reading this story, I had strong reminiscent flashes of reading “Charlotte’s Web” as a child.

Ivan, a silverback gorilla, lives at a mall with other exotic animals. He is the main attraction and the star of a small show. His claim to fame is his likeness on a large billboard that he can see from his tiny enclosure. He paints pictures that are misunderstood. Ivan is content with his life in a compact little cage until a baby elephant arrives one day and makes him take a hard look at the life he has been living. We go on an emotional journey with Ivan as he finally remembers his tragic past and proceeds to try to change the future.

There were several lines in the book that I enjoyed. It was interesting how Ivan saw situations and described things. I enjoyed Katherine Applegate’s writing.

One line from the book that I whispered to myself more than once was, “It is the most beautiful mad I have ever heard.”

Isn’t that lovely? It is Ivan’s way of describing an elephant’s trumpet sound when it is upset. I think it is perfect.

This book brought many tears as well, but I got my happy ending.

Have you read either of these books? What did you think of them? Would you recommend them to children?

*this post contains affiliate links, purchasing a book through the link will provide a small commission for tissues this site.

Reading: “Let’s Pretend This Never Happened”

Have you heard of “The Bloggess”? Honestly, I had been writing my blog for a year before I did. And it wasn’t until my favorite author, Patrick Rothfuss, mentioned reading her book (you can read his review about it here) that I took notice and actually clicked over to her site. Who is this other blogger capturing my crush’s attention? I will admit to a rush of jealousy.

So I clicked over to her blog to read. And I immediately saw why she has earned the accolades that she has. Jenny is hilarious. She tells the funniest stories. I feel like we would be best friends if we were ever to meet. As does everyone who reads her blog and her book. She is very personable.

Seriously, who writes, “Watermelon is the secret code word” in place of their name on those awful name tag stickers?

Jenny Lawson does.

And don’t you just love that? If that was all you knew about this woman, (and if you had not heard of her before this post, that would be it) you would want to meet her based just on that.

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She does curse a lot. So, if you click on a link I have provided here, please be prepared. My blog does not have curse words, because I want it to be able to be read by all ages, but it works for her and all of her stories. I just wanted to put that warning here in case you have an aversion to profanity, so we can delve into the good stuff without any more disclaimers.

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Her book is called, “Let’s Pretend This Never Happened”. You guys, I laughed so hard I cried and then I snorted and cried again. It is a collection of short stories from her life. She is working on her next novel right now.

Jenny grew up with a taxidermist father. The stories she tells about all of the crazy situations this led to, well, it cannot be described. You just gotta read it.

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There is a story in the book that was probably the best short story I have ever read. It is about a squirrel. I read it while I hyperventilated in hysterics. Then I called my son into the room and I read it to him (I edited out the profanity). He also thought it was the funniest story.

My sister purchased the book after I recommended it to her and called me later so we could laugh about it together. And my friend told me she was mailed this book from a friend who said it was a book that had made her happy. My friend thinks we should pick this book for book club one day. I agree.

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As a blogger I enjoy reading other blogs. Stephen King once said, “If you don’t have time to read. You don’t have time to write.” I completely agree with that synopsis. He meant it in terms of books, but I take it in terms of blogs, too.

The Bloggess became famous after she published a post in which she purchased a five foot tall rooster. And presented it to her husband. As an anniversary present. But that was not the best part. The best part was the note attached to the rooster. I still laugh when I read it.

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The book has some of the short stories from her blog, but also a lot of new material, too. I definitely think it is a worthwhile purchase.

Blogger or not, if you enjoy funny short stories (with a bit of the absurd and a high dose of crass), I recommend this book.

Have you read “Let’s Pretend This Never Happened”? What did you think?

*If you have read this book and liked it, I recommend Laurie Notaro’s
books to you. She writes short stories in the same vein of humor. I really enjoy them. Update 6/7/2014: I am bringing the book, “Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns)” by Mindy Kaling, with me to Maui. It received good reviews so I want to try it. And if you want to read a funny short story right now, The Bloggess posted a link this week to a story that made me gasp with laughter: The Scary Ham.

This post contains affiliate links. Purchasing a book through the link will provide a small commission for my own scary ham this blog.

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