Wildlife by Fiona Wood

Wildlife by Fiona Wood

Pages: 365, paperback

Publisher: Pan Macmillan Australia

Genre: Young Adult; contemporary

Source: library

Premise: 

During a semester in the wilderness, sixteen-year-old Sib expects the tough outdoor education program and the horrors of dorm life, but friendship drama and an unexpected romance with popular Ben Capaldi? That will take some navigating.

New girl Lou has zero interest in fitting in, or joining in. Still reeling from a loss that occurred almost a year ago, she just wants to be left alone. But as she witnesses a betrayal unfolding around Sib and her best friend Holly, Lou can't help but be drawn back into the land of the living.

Fans of Melina Marchetta, Rainbow Rowell, and E. Lockhart will adore this endearing and poignant story of first love, true friendship, and going a little bit wild. (Taken from Goodreads)

This is the kind of book pre-teen me would have read to learn about love, friendships, life, and sex. I find it to be just as important as Judy Blume's books, when it comes to the frightening world of growing up.

And the Ass Saw the Angel by Nick Cave

Pages: 320, paperback

Publisher: Penguin

Genre: Southern gothic

Source: library

Premise:

"Euchrid Eucrow - outcast among outcasts. Born mute to a drunken mother and a father who spends his days building vicious traps and his nights building delicate towers of cards. Euchrid has a mind that seethes with words to express his vision of the world around him. " 

It is Euchrid alone - ever hidden to escape the town's self-righteous rage, finding more compassion in the family mule than in his fellow man who will grasp the cruel fate of Cosey Mo, the beautiful young prostitute in the pink caravan on Hooper's hill. And as years pass and events unfold, it is Euchrid, driven farther and farther from the human fold, deeper and deeper into his mad angelic vision, who will both redeem the town and its people with his pain and sacrifice - and wreak a terrible vengeance.

Let me just start off by saying that I adore Nick Cave's music. And I adore that he's Australian. I like to describe his music, and as a result--this book--Australian gothic. This is a genre that I think needs to be further expanded. Ass and the Angel is a book that feels like a song.
As always, there are spoilers.

It's Monday, What are You Reading? (03)

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila over at Book Journey as a way to show what books have been read over the past week.

It's been a long while since I wrote on this blog, but I hope to be more vigilant. I've been in a bit of a reading slump these last few weeks.


So, time for my IM!WAYR!

This week, I'd read

Illusions of Fate by Kiersten White 3 ½

What I'm currently reading

My True Love Gave to Me - edited by Stephanie Perkins

Yes Please - Amy Poehler

Eve - Anna Carey (audiobook)

Reviews I've Posted 

Divergent - Veronica Roth

Books I plan on reading this week

Through the Woods - Emily Carroll

Legend - Marie Lu

How have your weeks been? Got many books read? Feel free to leave your links to your It's Monday! posts. :) I love making new friends.

Late to the Party: Divergent

Divergent by Veronica Roth

Pages: 487, paperback

Publisher:  HarperCollins

Date Published: May 2011

Genre:  Romance / action / dystopian

Source:  library

Get from Book Depository

Premise:

In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue--Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is--she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself. 

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are--and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

I'm so late to this bandwagon. Like, 4 years late, so I supposed it was about time I read it and found out what the big deal was about. *SPOILERS AHEAD*

I'm back, and better than ever!

It's been such a long time since I've posted on here. Far too long. It pains me, so keep my book feels to myself.
The last several years have been difficult for me; having to deal with untreated mental illnesses, and the anxiety that a certain anti-Goodreads group incites in so many people. It was a time that made reading books for review a chore.

But, I'm finally out of this slump. I feel better, I'm on medication that makes me stable, and I no longer fear the implications that aspiring authors face when they choose to review books. I have nothing to be sorry or scared for.

So, this is me saying hello. Again. Let's make this last forever.

In My Mailbox (07) - The Christmas edition

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi over at The Story Siren where bloggers showcase the books they received over the week.


Now, I know I haven't been around much. I've been busy with life, NaNoWriMo, mental issues and reading. I'm hoping to get back into the swing of things with the New Year.
So, without further ado, here's my Christmas haul!
Sorry for the crap picture quality. I took the picture on my phone.

-  Spectyr by Phillippa Ballantine

- The Hidden Goddess by M.K. Hobson
- Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon vol 1 by Naoko Takeuchi
- Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys
- Ashling by Isobelle Carmody
- The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly
- Fixing Delilah by Sarah Ockler
- Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler
- Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott
- Tales from the Tower vol 1 & 2 by Carmody & McNab
- Harry Potter 1-7 by J.K. Rowling

What did you get in your mailboxes for Christmas? What do you think of the books I got? Feel free to leave your links in the comments

Dewey Read-a-Thon: October 2011

It's that time of year! It's Dewey's 24-hour read-a-thon!
I love read-a-thons. I don't have a job at the moment, and I'm not in school, so I pretty much just sit at home and read. That's both good and bad.
It's good because, well, I get to read.
And it's bad because, well, sometimes, I get distracted. So, hopefully this will motivate me to knock a few books off my tbr pile.

I'll update this post every few hours with stats on my progress.

Hope you're all participating. Good luck if you are! :)

Update 1 (11:37am; 12 hours into the read-a-thon):
So, I haven't done any reading yet.
Wait, wait! Don't yell at me! It's partly because it started at 11pm for me, and I was pretty tired. But now that I'm awake, I plan on doing ALL OF THE READING. Plus, I think I'll be able to do a lot of reading done in 12 hours, dontcha think?
Hopefully, my next update will be impressive. You can also follow my progress on my Twitter.
Catcha!

Update 2 (5:59pm; 20 hours into the read-a-thon):
Man, I have been bad at this reading thing. I've just finished my first book. Blah. Hope to do a lot more reading in the next 4 hours.
Books read: 1
Last book read: Act of Faith by Kelly Gardiner (4 stars)
Pages read: 182
Currently reading: All I Ever Wanted by Vikki Wakefield