The Hunger Games/Catching Fire Fever…

I haz it.
I have badgered everyone I know into reading them. Evangelized to strangers in the doctor’s office waiting room. The only problem was, I didn’t have my own copies. I had borrowed them from my public library.

But now, a month after my birthday, I was belatedly gifted a copy of each.

So, now, am re-immersed in the stories. Which is exactly the way to spend Thanksgiving weekend!

(oh, and just so I don’t forget…I got 3 Elizabeth Scott novels: Bloom, Perfect You & Stealing Heaven. Just as awesome as Suzanne Collins’s books…I’d been wearing out my library’s copies of those books as well!)

My friends rock!

Book Review: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

I should state upfront that I’ve got a pretty serious crush on Sherman Alexie. Even without this crush, I’d still say I loved this book.
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is about Arnold “Junior” Spirit at a time when his entire life changed. He draws comics and loves basketball. One day, he finds his mother’s name in his school textbook, and this is the catalyst that drives him to enroll in the nearby all-white school, leaving his family & peers on the reservation …more I should state upfront that I’ve got a pretty serious crush on Sherman Alexie. Even without this crush, I’d still say I loved this book.
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is about Arnold “Junior” Spirit at a time when his entire life changed. He draws comics and loves basketball. One day, he finds his mother’s name in his school textbook, and this is the catalyst that drives him to enroll in the nearby all-white school, leaving his family & peers on the reservation confused and hurt(especially best friend, Rowdy).
Junior is on a journey and it’s a journey like most of us are on: sometimes happy, sometimes sad, sometimes heartbreaking.

I’m not going to say it the perfect book because no book is absolutely perfect. There are some parts in it that may not be suitable for younger kids/teens(Junior masturbates) and there is a portrayal of white kids not being so nice to him at his new school. Having seen Sherman Alexie speak in person, I expected this. He seems to hold nothing back and says what he wants, no matter the venue. It’s one of the things I love about him. He has opinions and is not afraid to share them.

All in all, if you like Sherman Alexie, you will probably like this book – it shares many of the same themes found in Reservation Blues and Sherman’s sense of humor is riddled throughout. I think it is pretty standard YA fare and well worth your time.

John Hughes: A YA Classic of a Different Sort

I wouldn’t have nearly as much interest in the lives of teens or reading and writing about them if it weren’t for John Hughes. His death saddens me greatly.

When I was 9 years old when The Breakfast Club came out. I remember seeing the commercials on TV and I remember my older sister seeing it. I remember when I finally did see it, years later, I thought that John Hughes was the best writer ever. He just got teens and their inner thoughts, daily lives.

I watched Pretty In Pink a few months ago. Unlike many films of the 1980s, John Hughes movies don’t make me cringe. I’m always transported right back, even though I was a teen a decade later.

One thought I’ve been having since I read the news is, he made me want to be a teenager. For which I thank him.