Letters to the Lost by Brigid Kemmerer [Spoiler-Free Review]

Letters to the Lost 

by Brigid Kemmerer 

Genre: YA contemporary romance

My Rating: ★★★★★

Description: 

Ever since her mother, a famous photographer, died, Juliet Young has left letters on her grave. They're personal, private. 

That is, until Declan Murphy, working in the cemetery for court-ordered community service, finds one of Juliet's letters. And writes back. 

What happens next will change both their lives. 

Overall Thoughts

This book is beautiful and heartwrenching and hopeful all at the same time. I loved every minute of it. I loved the characterization and the writing style and the plot. I've always had mixed feelings about the young adult contemporary genre -- I either love the books, or there's something that takes away from my overall enjoyment of an otherwise good book. That was not the case with Letters to the Lost. 
I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a good read.

The Characters

I love the cast of this book so much. You have Juliet, who's mourning the loss of her mother and dealing with that grief as she struggles with school and relationships. She makes a lot of mistakes, like judging people on face value, but I loved how much growth she experienced over the course of the book.
Then there's Declan, who is working in the cemetery for his court ordered community service. His struggles with guilt and depression felt genuine and honest, and I loved his personal growth as well.
The secondary characters were excellent. I want to thank Brigid Kemmerer for creating some excellent parental figures in a YA book -- Juliet's dad, Rev's parents, and Frank all felt very genuine and real and human, which is more than I can say for a lot of YA parental figures.
I can't really get into a discussion about every single character in this book, but just know that they're all amazing.
(And sidenote, I loved the portrayal of a Christian character in a piece of secular media in a way that doesn't make me angry. In fact, I would say that Rev is one of my favorite portrayals of a Christian character in media.)

Writing/Plot

Something I found very interesting about this book was the fact that although it's a first person, dual perspective book, the chapter headings don't tell you who's narrating the chapter. A few times early in the story, I had to do a doubletake when I realized that it wasn't Juliet's POV that I was reading (or vice versa.) But once I was into the story, it wasn't confusing at all.
I liked how every chapter starts with one of Juliet's or Declan's letters to each other, and I loved seeing the way their relationship develops through those messages.
The plot was well-paced and compelling. This book is definitely character driven, but the plot events hold up well and helped to structure the book.

Content

Recommended for ages 15 and up.

TRIGGER WARNINGS: References to physical abuse. References to a suicide attempt.
There is some swearing. Not too much as I can recall, though.
A few sexual references. At one point in the story, a character finds a photo of two people in bed (with the implication of sex.) An instance of nudity.
There isn't any horribly violent content that I can recall.
A character smokes. 

The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen [Spoiler Free Book Review]

The Running Dream
by Wendelin Van Draanen

Genre: YA contemporary

My Rating: ★★★★★

Description:

Sixteen year old Jessica was born to run. She lives and breathes running. It's more than a hobby. It's who she is. So when a tragic accident causes her to lose one of her legs, Jessica's life falls apart.
The doctor's promise that she will be able to walk again, but recovery is slow and painful. She not only has to deal with the rehabilitation, but also the knowledge that she might never run again. In the midst of all this, Jessica meets Rosa -- a girl with cerebral palsy who she's always overlooked. Rosa helps Jessica see that she can reach for a future where she can not only walk -- but run.

Overall Thoughts

I read Wild Bird for my book club last year, and I actually loved it so much I wanted to read more of the author's work. That resulted in my reading the sample chapters of The Running Dream in the back of Wild Bird, and eventually, my getting the book itself for Christmas. And am I glad I did!

I was moved by the way that Van Draanen addressed disability. I am a fully abled person myself, so I lack that perspective on this book, but I thought it handled the issues it addressed really well. The book didn't gloss over Jessica's struggles during her recovery, both physically and emotionally, and I'm glad of that. Books like this, that address issues like disability, can help readers who don't share the same experience to, in a way, build empathy with people who are struggling through this. And I think that's fantastic.

Writing

Wendelin Van Draanen's writing style is addictive. The chapters are short, making the story feel like it's always moving, and it keeps the story fairly fast-paced. Which might be a little strange for contemporary, but I like it a lot.

The Characters

Another thing I like about Van Draanen's books -- the relationships between the characters are really great. I love the fact that Jessica's parents aren't nasty or almost totally absent from her life -- they actually care about her, and I liked that.
I also love the female friendships in this book. It's so rare to find a YA with great female friendships, but this one did, and so I'm glad.

Overall, I really enjoyed The Running Dream and would highly recommend it!

Content

Recommended for ages 12 and up.

I don't recall any swearing, though there may have been one or two instances. Some brief descriptions of a vehicle accident. Some descriptions of medical procedures.
A boy and a girl share a brief kiss.

The Last of 2019: Mini-Reviews for The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson and Wild Bird by Wendelin Van Draanen

Hey everyone! After taking a long break on book reviews over the holidays, I let the last few books I read in 2019 slip through my fingers without being reviewed. I'm shaking my head at my younger self right now.

But anyway, since I want to post reviews in 2020 that I actually read in 2020, I'm just going to get the last two books I read last year out of the way -- The Well of Ascension, which is the second book in the Mistborn Trilogy by Brandon Sanderson, and Wendelin Van Draanen's contemporary stand alone Wild Bird. 
Both were five star books for me, which also makes me really happy. What a great way to end the year. :)

Wild Bird by Wendelin Van Draanen

Genre: YA contemporary

My Rating: ★★★★★

Description: A girl is sent to a wilderness rehabilitation program by her parents after her drug and alcohol abuse spiral out of control. 

I did not think I was going to like this book as much as I did, and I literally only picked it up because my book club was reading it that month. And what do you know? I actually ended up loving it. There's so much to like about this book -- an exploration of family and friendship, themes of forgiveness and self-forgiveness, a great female friendship, and wilderness survival.
One thing I liked was how clean the book was. It dealt with some really tough topics, but it did it in a way that wasn't graphic, while at the same time not diminishing the severity of the topics it was dealing with. I consider this a huge feat just by itself.
On top of that, there was some excellent character development, especially for Wren and her family members, as well as the camp counsellors and other kids in the program.
I highly recommend this book!
5/5 stars.


The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson (SPOILERS for The Final Empire)

Genre: Adult high fantasy

My Rating: ★★★★★

Description: After the events of The Final Empire, Vin and Elend struggle to hold the city together under the threat of an invasion.

This book ended up being my last completed book of 2019, which was somewhat disappointing, since I'd hoped to finish the entire Mistborn trilogy before the New Year. That never happened, but you know what wasn't disappointing? This book!
While I still ended up enjoying The Final Empire a tiny bit more, this book was excellent as well! There were a lot of fantasy politics, great character development carried over from the first book, and, of course, the truly epic magic system and worldbuilding.
I do have to recommend this book for older readers only; there is a number of violent and brutal scenes in the book, some, while not heavily graphic, do include gory details. There's also some (mostly implied) sexual content, and one or two descriptions of a woman's body (not hugely graphic, again, but definitely there.) I would say there's a bit more sexual content in this book than in The Final Empire, mostly because of a certain new POV. TRIGGER WARNING for self-harm.
The plot was well-put together, including a few excellent twists and a great cliffhanger ending.
Again, 5/5 stars.

Stargirl [Stargirl, #1] by Jerry Spinelli

Stargirl [Stargirl, #1]
by Jerry Spinelli

Genre: Middle grade contemporary

My Rating: ★★★★

Description:

Leo Borlock's life is pretty ordinary. He goes to an ordinary school in an ordinary town filled with ordinary people who blend with the crowd and try not to stand out too much. And then one day, a new girl shows up at Mica high school -- a girl who doesn't blend in, who doesn't even try. Her name says it all: Stargirl Caraway.
Stargirl becomes a bright spot in Leo's ordinary life. But in a school like his, unique and popular are two different things entirely. Soon, he's forced to ask himself -- what does his value more? His social standing, or the girl he's quickly beginning to fall in love with?

Overall Thoughts

My brothers were actually reading Stargirl for literature class this year, and my Mom (aka, the Literature teacher) told me I'd really like it. And guess what? I did. I actually read the whole thing in just a couple of hours. I liked the message of celebrating nonconformity. The writing style. And the homeschool rep! (Which I do not see enough of in fiction).

The Characters

Most of the characters were fairly stereotypical, but I'm going to venture to say that that was an intentional choice made by the author. The character that truly stands out is Stargirl herself, both in the story and on the page. Everyone else feels average, one of the crowd, including the narrator, Leo. But I think that this really helps emphasise the themes of the book.

Writing

The writing was really simple and also really impactful at the same time. I find that a lot of middle grade falls into one of two camps -- simplistic, dumbed down language choices, or simple, purposeful language choices that can be enjoyed by any audience. Stargirl falls into the latter category. I especially loved the descriptions of the desert, because those were just beautiful. 

Overall, I really enjoyed Stargirl. 

Content

Recommended for ages 9 and up. 

No swearing that I can remember. Mentions of kissing. Stargirl is bullied. 

Contemporary Reads Wrap-Up [Everything, Everything; The Outsiders; Eliza and Her Monsters]

I have recently discovered the joy of the mini-review. More specifically, the joy of not having to slave over writing non-spoilery book descriptions. I love it! While I still will be posting full reviews for some of the books I read, I also want to give mini-reviews a whirl and see how you all like them.

Sidenote: If any of the books I review here look interesting to you, but you'd like more information about them before committing your time to reading, just leave a comment down below, and I'll write up one of my full, non-spoiler reviews for it. Or if you just want more content specifics, I can address that in the comments. Sound good? Awesome.

Without further ado, here are my three mini-reviews for some contemporary books I read recently.

Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon

Genre: YA contemporary romance

My rating: ★★★

Description: A girl who's allergic to the world meets the boy next door. Things happen.

There's one thing I've found from reading Nicola Yoon's two published books (the other being The Sun is Also a Star) and that's: I really like her writing style. There's something about the way she writes that sucks me into the characters' stories and doesn't let me go until I'm finished. Both The Sun is Also a Star and Everything, Everything were super hard for me to put down. But Everything, Everything did have some issues that made me not willing to give it a higher rating. 

First of all, about halfway through the book, some characters (including an authority figure in Maddie's life) made some really poor decisions. I couldn't really understand the motivations behind these decisions, and so I had trouble with the next whole section of the book. 

There was also the sex scene. It bothered me for a lot of different reasons, but in a literary sense in terms of how unnecessary it was. It didn't add anything to the story, nothing at all, and that bothered me. A lot. 

So overall, I didn't enjoy this one as much as The Sun is Also a Star, but if you liked Nicola Yoon's writing style from that book, I still recommend trying Everything, Everything.

The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton

Genre: YA contemporary

My rating: ★★★★★

Description: Two boys from the "wrong side" of town get into a fight with some rich kids, and things goes badly wrong.

I feel like it took me way too long to actually pick up this book. I ended up really, really loving it. There's a reason this one became a classic. 

The book itself is really short, so I'm finding it hard to say anything without spoilers. But. The characters were really well crafted, especially considering the page count of the book. The emotions were well-written and some scenes were honestly like a punch to the gut. 

There is definitely some gang violence here, as well as teen drinking and smoking. As far as I can recall, there was not much swearing. Maybe one or two swear words, but most swearing wasn't written in the text. A few sexual references. 

Eliza and Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia

Genre: YA contemporary romance

My rating: ★★★★

Description: Eliza is the anonymous creator of the popular webcomic Monstrous Sea. She's built her whole life online, but when she meets Wallace, she begins to wonder if a life off-line might be worth it after all.

There were moments while I was reading this book when I was planning on being so angry at the author for how the story turned out. Especially as the book neared the climax. But thankfully, everything was resolved in a way that made me happy, and now I'm glad I took the chance and read this book. 

I loved how Eliza was a storyteller, and I found that aspect of her life super relateable. I'm an amateur storyteller myself, and I could definitely relate to Eliza's attachment (and sometimes obsession) with her story. I also thought the descriptions of anxiety in this book were really well done while also not taking over the story or being romanticized. Another thing I liked: that Eliza wasn't perfect, and that she grew from the events of the story. 

The only thing I wish could have been resolved has to do with Eliza's parents. While I do think their relationship with Eliza did get addressed, I feel like it could have been gone into a little more. It's only one small nitpicky thing, though, and I really enjoyed the rest. 

There were a few sexual references and some instances of strong language. I'd recommend this book to ages 15 and up.  

And there you have it! Three contemporary books that I read recently. 

Have you read any of the books I mentioned here? What did you think of them? Are there any books I mentioned that you're interested in? Let me know in the comments! 

Wonder by R.J. Palacio

Wonder
by R.J. Palacio

Genre: Middle Grade contemporary

My Rating: ★★★★★

Description: 

August "Auggie" Pullman is just a normal kid. At least, that's how he sees himself. He just wishes other people would see him that way. He was born with a facial difference that has, up to this point, kept him out of public school, and now, starting fifth grade at Beecher Prep, he just wants everyone else to see him the way he sees himself -- perfectly, wonderfully ordinary.
But his classmates can't seem to get past viewing Auggie as different.

Overall Thoughts

I've wanted to read Wonder for a while. (Shout out to the awesome person who lent it to me!) It's an amazing story, and I'm so glad I finally got the chance to read it! I finished the whole novel in about a day and a half, which should give you some idea to how much I enjoyed it.

The Characters

I think the characterization was the strong point in this novel. I liked that the author chose to explore the situations from the point of view of multiple characters (you have Auggie, the main character; his sister, Via; her boyfriend and her best friend; and two of Auggie's friends, Jack and Summer.) Seeing all of the characters and their different points of view made the novel really unique. I loved seeing different sides to the same story, how different events meant different things to different people. All the point of view characters were well-developed and felt human. One character who didn't get a lot of development was Julian, the bully: however, I've read that R.J. Palacio wanted to tell his story, but couldn't find a way to do that in Wonder without disrupting the story. She released an e-book in 2014 called The Julian Chapter which tells his story. She said she didn't want to justify his behavior, but she did want to humanize him, which is what the book apparently does. Another addition to my TBR, apparently. :P

Plot/Pacing

The plot centers around Auggie's first year in public school, navigating fifth grade. (Also, yay for homeschool rep!) It's not an incredibly twisty or riveting plotline in and of itself, but it's compelling in its own, quiet sort of way. The everyday events in the lives of the people in Auggie's life are relateable and sympathetic -- I especially related to Via, Justin, and Miranda's POVs, because I recently graduated high school myself, and a lot of their struggles hit really close to home.

Writing/Theme

The message of the book was excellent -- a theme of kindness, forgiveness, and compassion that I believe is universal. Though the book is marketed as middle grade, I think that this book would appeal to many who have long since grown out of grade school, high school, even college. It's a lovely, heartwarming story.

Content 

Recommended for ages 8 and up.

Bullying. Name calling. One character punches another character in the face. Several boys are attacked by older boys, and a fight ensues, not described in detail. 

Several instances of bathroom humor.
I don't recall any specific instances of swearing.

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

Hey everyone! I'm not going to be doing my regular post today because I'm going book shopping. So instead, here's a review for an exceptional book that I think you'll enjoy -- A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness.

A Monster Calls
by Patrick Ness

Genre: YA contemporary/magical realism

My Rating: ★★★★★

Description: 

Ever since his mother became ill, Conor has had the same nightmare. But tonight, it's different. Tonight, a monster appears outside Conor's window.
It wants to tell him three stories... and after the stories are over, it wants to hear the most terrible thing of all -- the truth.

A Monster Calls is a Carnegie-winning story of love, loss, and hope.

Overall Thoughts

If you want a book to make you cry, look no further than A Monster Calls. This book is devastatingly sad and hopeful and beautiful all at the same time. I'm finding it incredibly hard to look at each piece of the story as a piece of the story, because everything was so beautifully interwoven. But I'm going to try anyway. Because I'm stubborn.

The Characters

The characters felt real. Looking back, I realize I don't know a lot about most of them, but Ness chose the details he shared perfectly to let us get to know them. They felt like people, and I think that this is the crowning achievement every author should be striving for. Conor, the main character, was sympathetic, and his point of view was interesting and complex. We know, almost from the first page, that Conor is hiding something from us... but we don't know what that is until much later. I enjoyed how complex his inner struggles were, and his grief and anger and guilt felt so realistic. 

Plot/Pacing

The plot itself is simplistic, I suppose: Conor is visited by a monster who promises to tell him three stories, and then asks him to share his own -- Conor's story. Between the monster's visits are scenes of Conor's day to day life, at school and at home, as he deals with his mother's illness. It's a very quiet story, when I think about it -- quiet, but at the same time hard to put down. It was as though the plot conveyed the normalcy of the rest of the world, while Conor's world is slowly falling apart, and it was breathtaking.

Writing

The setting was not a huge piece of the book -- only a few details about each new place were given, but it really fit the simple, spare writing style Ness used in the novel. The writing was haunting: it's simple, but it says so much. No sentence goes to waste.

In terms of theme, well -- it's what made the book for me. It was beautifully handled, explored in complex ways, and I appreciated that.

In short, I understand why this book has twice won the Carnegie Medal -- it deserves it.

Content

Recommended for ages 12 and up.

I don't recall any swearing, but there may have been one or two minor swear words. 

Conor's parents are divorced, and Conor's father is remarried to another woman. 

There are a few violent scenes, but none are graphically described, sparing many details that would be disturbing to some readers. 

Death is a major theme in this book, so be aware going in that this book deals with a terminal illness (cancer, presumably) and does not gloss over the emotions felt by the characters affected by it. These themes are what would make me hesitant to recommend this book to younger or less mature readers.

The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon

The Sun is Also a Star
by Nicola Yoon

Genre: YA contemporary romance

My Rating: ★★★★

Description:

Natasha is a believer in facts. Logic. Things concrete and tangible. Once, she was a dreamer. But now, with her family twelve hours from being deported to Jamaica, she has no room in her life for dreams. And especially not for love.
Daniel is the obedient son. He doesn't want to become a doctor, but that's what his parents want, and so he keeps his dreams of being a poet out of the picture. But when he meets Natasha, everything changes.
Will twelve hours change the course of both their lives forever?

Overall Thoughts

The Sun is Also a Star was a wild ride for me. In the beginning of the book, it was a four star. Near the middle, I got irritated and decided that I should give it a three point five. And now, it's listed on my Goodreads that I rated it five stars (though in complete honesty, I gave it 4.5). But yeah. It was an interesting book, and I'm ultimately glad I read it.
Thematically, this book is stunning. It's showing how people's lives intersect, how one small action can change everything, and I loved that theme. The theme of destiny/fate was not as well done, in my opinion -- the first theme definitely overshadowed it.

The Characters

The characters were interesting. I instantly liked Natasha, and I found her point of view the most interesting to read. It took me a long time (like 75% of the book) to warm up to Daniel... some of his motivations were random, and I couldn't really sympathize with his stereotypical "teenage boy-ness"... if that makes any sense. I did grow to like him during the last act of the story (the end pretty much decided my eventual rating), and I also liked that he was a poet. I also liked how random side characters in the story -- people Natasha and Daniel walk past on the street, or talk to in an office, or hear over a loudspeaker -- get their own backstories from the point of view of an omniscient narrator known as the Universe. I really enjoyed seeing how all of these different people's stories linked together.

Plot/Pacing

The plot was well paced and engaging. The entire story takes place over the course of twelve hours, which I feel could become boring or awkwardly paced if written badly. But Yoon pulled it off very well, skipping over the boring bits and not including so much that it seems unrealistic to take place within a single day. 

I did have a bit of a problem with the romance in the beginning. It is insta-love, after all... and some of the scenes near the beginning of the romance plot seemed a little forced, mostly on the part of Daniel, whose motivations in these scenes were hard to understand. But again, by the last 40% or so of the book, I really liked it. 

Content

Recommended for ages 15 and up. 

Kissing. Daniel thinks about going further with Natasha physically (which annoyed me, as they've only known each other for half a day at this point.) Sexual jokes/innuendo. 

Language is strong, including at least seven counts of the f-bomb, as well as other possibly offensive language. 

Mention of suicide. Discussion of racism, and includes racist characters. The actions and words of these characters are shown to be wrong.