Summer readin', it happened so fast...
We're lucky here; school doesn't start for another week, so I can remain on summer schedule a little longer while semesters have already started at many schools across the country. As always at times of transition, I tend to look back and look ahead and think about what I've done and what hasn't gotten done. So this is an ideal time to think about our summer reading trends and best-of lists, right?
I've read a whole bunch of YA sequels in the last month or so; by far the best was The Immortal Fire, Anne Ursu's final book in the Cronus Chronicles. Great blend of Greek mythology, contemporary teens, and snarky humor. In a similar category: Rick Riordan's The Last Olympian, also an excellent conclusion to a series.
I feel like I read a whole lot of books that I thought were just okay but not particularly memorable. Standouts, though, are People of the Book (Geraldine Brooks), Sorcery and Cecelia (and sequels, by Patricia Wrede and Caroline Stevermer), and The Latehomecomer (Kao Kalia Yang).
Booby prize goes to Heavenly (Jennifer Laurens), which will go down in history as one of the most-maligned books I've ever read.
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3 comments:
Thanks for saving me from Heavenly. I had it on my to-read list.
Hmm, I think someone has Grease on the mind, maybe because of the Pine Prairie production!?
I agree about those YA sequels--the two you mentioned were both really good.
The Help sticks out in my mind as a good one--I keep thinking about it. And of course, The Girl Who Played with Fire. For fun, I really enjoyed Thanks for the Memories and Twenties Girl.
And I was disappointed a few times this summer as well. (can we all say Jennifer Weiner?) I don't know why, but a couple of those "supposed to be great" summer books just fell flat for me.
Julia, you're right! It must be the Pine Prairie production, because it just popped into my head...
I was disappointed by the last couple Jennifer Weiner books I read, so I'm not jumping to read anything she wrote anymore. Too bad...
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