Beauty Queens by Libba Bray Review

What do you think of when you see this cover? Now that I've listened to this wonderful book all it makes me think of is 13 unique girls who are put in a unique situation and have to fight for their lives. Well, mostly fight to stay beautiful but still. With Bray's own twist on the stereotypes girls are presented these days and some sexy pirates thrown in the mix, not to mention a crazy dictator named MoMo B. ChaCha and explosive hair remover, makes for a fun read. Personally I listened to the version narrated by Bray herself and was not disappointed. I would suggest reading it this way as she adds accents. No more needed to be said there.
My favorite thing about this novel is the way it empowers women. It has something for every type of girl, even the transgender girls! It provides something modern culture today sometimes lacks, respect. This book, while being funny, teaches us to respect and stay true to ourselves. To be able to find a book that made me think and laugh at the same time is something that doesn't happen often.
The interview with Bray at the end of the book really sums up everything. Bray had been in a car crash right after High School graduation and had to have reconstruction on her face. If anyone knows anything about beauty in today's culture, it's Bray.
This book will remain forever in my top favorite books, and I'm sure it will in yours too. Let me know what you thought of it in the comments!

~MG

Adina appealed to the sky. "We asked for rescue and you sent us incompetent rockstar pirates with a broken ship and perfect abs?"
"Thank you, God," Petra said
~Beauty Queens By Libba Bray 

The Fault in Our Stars

For years now I've been seeing many of my fellow schoolmates spending hours with their face in this little blue novel with black and white clouds on the front. The book I'm referring to, as you may have guessed by the title of this post, is The Fault in Our Stars by the wonderful John Green. 

My best friends have been trying to get me to read it for years, but it wasn't until this year that I picked up my first novel by John Green, Looking For Alaska. Then I went on to Paper Towns and, An Abundance of Katherine's. I had TFIOS on hold for a while, but it wasn't in for a while. In fact, I was able to read the three books I mentioned above in 2 months before even getting under 100 on the waiting list. I had just gotten Will Grayson, Will Grayson that I got the email that I could finally read the book I'd been hearing about for so long. 

I can't remember the exact moment when I first opened the book (it was on my nook so I guess I technically never opened it, but still), but I can remember that it was hard to put down. I regret that I didn't get more than a few pages into Will Grayson, Will Grayson, but I must say it was worth it. I found so much hope and strength in this novel when I needed it the most. 

I personally have never been sick, but someone very close to me right now is going through chemotherapy. It is the hardest thing to watch, but at the same time it makes me grateful for my small infinity on earth, that I can spend it healthy and not too worried about how long I have left. Now, the person in question is, at the moment, cancer free, but we still try and make the most of the days we have, even if this infinity is a much longer one than Augustus Waters was. 

I would like to thank John Green for this book, for giving me an understanding of what cancer and terminally ill people are going through, and for giving me a reason to appreciate life again. Even though the world is not a wish granting factory, we have the power to grant our own wishes and make them come true. Only we decide our happiness, not the stars, not the people around us, only ourselves. For the fault is not in our stars, but in ourselves. 

If you haven't had the privilege of reading this novel, please do. Also, I would like to mention This Star Won't Go Out, the charity in memory of Esther Earl, one of the inspirations for this book. 

DFTBA, 

MG

Delirium by Lauren Oliver review

I recently read Delirium by Lauren Oliver. In this novel, Lena Haloway is living in Portland, Maine in a United States where love has been declared a disease. Near their 18th birthday, each citizen is required to have their procedure, which cures them of love, or amor deliria nervosa. Before your procedure, you are to have an evaluation in which you are scored and given a list of approved matches. You choose your match and will be married after you both finish schooling. You are also told how many kids you will have with your match. 

However months before the procedure Lena has been waiting for years to get, she meets a cured named Alex. She falls for Alex, and she falls hard. They get to know each other more and more until they start to share secrets. Like how Lena's mother had been cured many times but it never worked, and how she ended up committing suicide to get away from another procedure. Alex also has a secret, one so dangerous it could get them thrown in the Crypts to rot for the rest of their days.

Definitely check this book and its two sequels out at the library. It is worth the two hours it will take you to finish it if you read slowly... It is such a fast read, I listened to it on audio and it was 11 hours, but it takes so much longer reading it aloud. Go get this book and start reading!!!

“I know that life isn't life if you just float through it. I know that the whole point- the only point- is to find the things that matter and hold onto them and fight for them and refuse to let them go.” 
 

~MG
Two posts in one day!!!