Geek Girl Review

This review is for Colne Primet Academy Teenage Reading Group – thanks for joining the blog and welcome to the Lilypad Library. I hope that you find some inspiration  J

Title: Geek Girl

Author: Holly Smale

Release date: 28^th February 2013

Publisher: HarperCollins Children’s Books

Harriet Manners knows a lot of things.

• Cats have 32 muscles in each ear
• Bluebirds can’t see the colour blue
• The average person laughs 15 times per day
• Peanuts are an ingredient of dynamite

But she doesn’t know why nobody at school seems to like her. So when she’s offered the chance to reinvent herself, Harriet grabs it. Can she transform from geek to chic?

geek/gi:k/h noun informal, chiefly N. Amer.

1 an unfashionable or socially inept person.

2 an obsessive enthusiast.

3 a person who feels the need to look up the word ‘geek’ in the dictionary.

DERIVATIVES geeky adjective.

ORIGIN from the related English dialect word geck ‘fool’.

Harriet Manners doesn’t really fit in at school and when she is dragged along on a school trip to The Clothes Show Live in Birmingham, it’s just another opportunity for her to show how socially awkward she is but she didn’t realise that this would  involve having her photo taken by someone from Infinity Models. Whisked into a world that is definitely not her own, Harriet wants to re-invent herself … but that might be harder than she thought.

Despite being a bit predictable, I did enjoy this book. Sometimes, I find, when you want an easy read, predictability is a good thing, like walking down the street and knowing home is just around the corner. That’s not to say that the book didn’t offer some surprises but it’s an easy, read in one sitting kind of book, suiting readers who are after something light-hearted.

Harriet Manners is a brilliantly constructed laugh out loud character (almost as good as Georgia Nicolson- although Georgia is definitely NOT a geek!)  which is demonstrated through her narrative and continues list and plan making. In fact all the characters are well developed (even though some of them are a bit too eccentric – but this only adds to their charm).  Toby (Harriet’s stalker) and Wilbur (from Infinity Models) are hilariously weaved into the story, adding humour and a touch of the ridiculous to Harriet’s world.

For me, it was definitely a girly book, showing an insight into how fickle and mean teenage girls can be (for anyone who has never experienced that!) as well as a love interest, although for me, these are not the main focus of the story. Harriet has to learn to accept that she can’t change who she is and it is only the realisation of this that will make her truly happy – along with the love and support of her family and friends.

A typically teenage read about the struggles with loving who you are and the difficulties of growing up, with lots of laughs and an absorbing plot - I would definitely give the second book a go.

3.5/5 A fast paced, easy read that will make you giggle.

New bookworm arriving soon!

Just to update all the Lilypad Library lovers out there - there will be a new addition to the family arriving in August! So excited about welcoming our little bookworm, no doubt he will love reading just as much as his mummy and daddy ♥

Unfed Review

Title: Unfed (Book 2 in the Undead series)

Author: Kirsty McKay

Release date: 6^th September 2012

Publisher: Chicken House

THEY’RE BACK... AND THIS TIME THEY’RE HUNGRY.

THE GOOD NEWS: BOBBY SURVIVED HER UNREAL SCHOOL TRIP. THE BAD NEWS: HER BEST BUDDY SMITTY IS MISSING, THERE ARE UNDEAD EVERYWHERE AND THEY’RE GETTING HUNGRIER ...

IT’S A NO-BRAINER. SOMEHOW SHE MUST FIND SOME LIVING FRIENDS – AND THE ANTIDOTE – BEFORE EVERYONE’S TOAST.

Bobby wakes up and realises that maybe the worst is yet to come. Having survived the coach crash and not (yet) being bitten by the undead, she’s one of the lucky ones. With her mum and Smitty missing, Bobby must carry out a search through zombie –ridden Scotland. But with more than just zombies hot on Bobby’s tail, will she ever escape and find her loved ones?

The novel manages to maintain a fast paced chase momentum throughout detailed locations, taking the reader along for the ride. Unfed offers typical zombie story tropes, Bobby wakes up in a hospital which is also a holding/ testing facility for zombies and she gets chased across Scotland by military style mercenaries that clearly work for some evil pharmaceuticals company... ring any bells?  I’m not suggesting that this story is boring or predictable, just that it offers a comfortable narrative security (at least at the beginning of the novel) and this allowed me, as a reader, to settle into the story before it all really kicks off! As the novel progresses and Bobby searches for her mum and Smitty, clues are revealed as to what has happened with the zombie outbreak, why her mum and Smitty are gone who exactly is chasing her and why. It’s almost a murder mystery but with more intrigue!

I think my favourite part of the book was Bobby’s internal conversations with Smitty. Smitty was Bobby’s love interest in the last novel and in this book, it’s clear that Bobby misses him very much. He is the driving force urging her not to give up her search and at times their conversations are really touching (as well as funny). Without revealing too much, he doesn’t make a physical appearance until towards the end but these little occasional one liners mean that he has become my favourite character. He is the typical teenage bad boy but his clear affection for Bobby (both in her head and when they meet again) create multiple layers to his character and offer some light relief amongst all the mystery and horror that Bobby faces.

Similarly to Undead, the audience are left on a cliff-hanger… much to my annoyance! If you are a fan of apocalyptic zombie novels you’ll definitely enjoy this but I think it would also appeal to mystery lovers. There are codes to crack, clues to unravel and lots of adventure. Those who Bobby is relying on to help her often have ulterior motives, keeping her and the reader on their toes. This book kept me hooked because at each turn the danger increases and despite some mysteries being solved, there are always more in their place!  

4.5/5 Another really good book by Kirsty McKay.

Parasite Positive Review

Title: Parasite Positive

Author: Scott Westerfeld

Release date: 7^th June 2007

Publisher: Atom

One year ago, Cal Thompson was a college freshman more interested in meeting girls and partying in New York City than in attending class. Then he met a girl called Morgan, they had a fun night together and she passed on a parasite that turns people into ravenous vampires. You know how it goes.

Cal himself is only a carrier, but he has infected the girlfriends he has had since Morgan, and it’s now his job to hunt them down before they can create even more of their kind.

Cal is carrying an infectious parasite which has completely ruined his social life! As a carrier, Cal has become part of the Night Watch to track down those who have not been so lucky and have been turned into murderous beasts by the disease. But when the parasite begins to change and adapt, using different hosts, can the Night Watch save New York?

This review is for my brother, Kane, who would love this book! Kane is currently off doing the student thing at Bangor University and I am very proud of him. He is very interested in Science-y stuff (he is studying Zoology with Marine Biology) and this is definitely for anyone who likes an element of non-fiction to their novels.

This book was relocated to my local library recently and it was the unusual title that made me pick it up. I know it is quite a few years old but I am so glad I gave the book a chance! I really enjoyed it because it offered me something different as a reader. In between the chapters there are brief scientific interludes which offer more details about parasites.... which is weird.... and a little disturbing... but also really interesting and (I hate to use this word again but) different! It is almost like a crime novel with the background to the characters being revealed, adding another element to the tale and allowing us to see more than an average bystander would. Well in this novel, the background to parasites is given. Like I said, it is a little disturbing and eeewwww! at times but really useful for the rest of the book, giving it context and also expanding the novel in a way that I have never seen any other vampire novel do. These chapters also allow the reader to understand the situation just as Cal does as a member of the Night Watch so that we can ground the novel in real 21^st century science.

The character of Cal is really easy to engage with because he is so realistic and unapologetic. He is a young man, hungry and horny and frightened and raw and the author really captures his spirit and instils it in his actions and reactions. Written from Cal’s point of view the book is one long flow of emotional energy.

I know I have stressed the science element of the book, and I think that made the story for me, but there are so many effective layers which Scott Westerfeld brings together, his characters are engaging and believable and the story is rooted in fact, this could happen. It is also an unusual look at the vampire, their lore and mythology and links myths with the historical facts, not just the scientific ones.

I want to recommend this book to anyone who likes reading (and that isn’t a flippant remark). What I mean by this is that Parasite Positive offers something unusual in the way that it is written and so even if you aren’t keen on the content, I think that you would enjoy the form. If  you like traditional vampires, you might be taken aback but I am a big fan of the vampire (as much as you can be of a blood sucking maniac!) and I enjoyed it.

5/5 If you are a tiny bit squeamish then avoid this book but otherwise YOU MUST READ IT! I am looking forward to getting the sequel!

It is winter... and the time for snuggling up with a good book!

Hello ladies and gentleman and welcome back to my blog. Apologies for not writing for a while... I have been busy being ill (bad back which meant time off work to read but also lack of ability to sit at a computer and type for any length of time), decorating my home (although we have only got one room actually painted, I have been choosing carpet colours etc which is really exciting and not at all boring!), rehearsing for a pantomime (I am playing villager number 5 and the part of the bear) and just generally snuggling up with a good book/film, attempting to ignore the cold weather and hiding beneath the duvet. This is in fact the first time I have picked up my laptop in a while!

If I am honest, I have missed you, my lovely, committed blog readers. I have read some great books and I look forward to sharing my thoughts on these with you over the next few days amid my hectic schedule of Christmas shopping, panto rehearsals and visiting family and friends (I am lucky enough to be spending the weekend with my lovely Grandma next weekend to shop in Blackpool!).

Much love and happy winter wishes to you all !

Georgia x

The Face on the Milk Carton Review

Title: The Face on the Milk Carton

Author: Caroline B. Cooney

Release Date: 1^st April 1991

Publisher: Laurel Leaf Library

Re-released by Ember on 22^nd May 2012 with a stylish new cover!

The little girl on the milk carton stared back at Janie… an ordinary little girl, three-year-old who had been kidnapped twelve years ago from a shopping mall in New Jersey. ‘It’s me,’ whispered Janie. ‘But I have a mother and father… I have a childhood… I was not kidnapped… kidnapping means bad people…I don’t know any bad people… therefore I am making this up…’

Fifteen-year-old Janie can’t believe that her loving parents had kidnapped her, until she begins to piece together things that don’t make sense. Why are there no pictures of Janie before she was four? Why is the dress in the photo in her house?

Something is terribly wrong and Janie is almost too afraid to find the truth.

This book found itself on the returned today shelf at my library the other day and despite knowing the story, having read the book years before, I was intrigued about what made this book appeal to a new generation of teenager readers. The story is essentially very simple, outlined in the blurb, so no surprises there. But what makes this story great (and made me want to reread) is that you live the story along with Janie, finding out what has happened piece by piece and asking the same questions she does.

Also, Janie is an average girl, she has a family that love her, friends that (sometimes) don’t really ‘get’ her and a relationship with the boy next door that becomes increasingly more racy as the book progresses (in a really nice innocent way, not a seedy way!). Her life is then thrown upside down when she sees her younger self on a milk cartoon missing advert. What grips me as a reader is that this could be me, or my best friend, or anyone (It couldn’t be me though, I’ve checked and there are baby photos of me with my Mum!)… Janie has never doubted her family unit and yet this one thing throws her life into turmoil. From then on in the story, Janie tries to unravel her past, while not being able to believe that her loving parents would kidnap her and questioning her own sanity.

I can identify with Janie as a character and have the same curiosity she does with regards to revealing her past. Her relationship with Reeve (the boy next door), isn’t key to the story but adds meat to the bones, showing their strained relationship as Janie pursues her desire to know what has happened. As young people, they are just beginning an intimate relationship and the book delves into the passion and desire they feel as well as the awkwardness that comes with exploring sexual feelings. This building of Janie and Reece’s characters allows you to take a step back from the intensity of the kidnap story and just enjoy the characters that Caroline B. Cooney has created.

Just a warning, this book does end on a cliff-hanger and you will be desperate to read the next book so make sure that you borrow/buy the series together and not just the first book (a major mistake I made!). Caroline B. Cooney has always been one of my favourite authors for her point horror titles and I remember this was what first drew me towards ‘The Face on the Milk Carton’ all those years ago. If you haven’t read anything by this author before… give it a go. You are missing out otherwise!

9/10 Despite this being an old(er) title, it still resonates with me and grips from the beginning

The Fault in Our Stars Review

Title: The Fault in Our Stars

Author: John Green

Release date: 3^rd January 2013

Publisher: Penguin

Despite the tumour-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s story is about to be rewritten.

Hazel has cancer and feels that it defines her life. It isn’t until she meets Augustus at a support group that she realises she has so much more to offer to him, her parents, her friends and most importantly herself.

‘The Fault in Our Stars’ has recently been released as a film (if you didn’t know this … where have you been?!?) and that’s what finally tipped me over the edge to read it. I had heard great things about this book prior to the film but just couldn’t bring myself to read it. I don’t do sad books if I can help it. I especially don’t do sad books about people with cancer. 331,487 people in the UK were diagnosed with cancer in 2011 (these are the latest stats published by http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/). Two years ago my grandad was diagnosed with cancer and passed away just a week later and more recently my friend’s mum passed away after a long battle with cancer. I didn’t want to read a book about someone with cancer.

But there are only so many times you can explain the reasons why to people before you realise you just have to read the damn book. So I did. And I didn’t cry. I felt sad for the characters, really really sad. But I didn’t cry. I’m not sure why but having experienced the trauma of losing someone I loved dearly to the trauma that is cancer; I wasn’t shocked by anything I read. The book, as well as offering humour and passion and joy, also looks at the reality of someone suffering from cancer and the brutality of them losing their battle. Wetting the bed and being unable to eat is what actually happens when someone with a terminal illness comes to the end of their life – we were given a leaflet about it in the hospice when my grandad was there. So, although I enjoyed the book for its humour and its beautiful portrayal of young love, I also have to praise it for its honest depiction of someone suffering from cancer.

The book is a love story written from the point of view of Hazel, a long term cancer sufferer. She meets Augustus Waters at a Support Group and the sparks fly from the word go. But of course, their path is destined to be rocky and can’t have a happy ending. There are some hilarious moments along the way and Hazel and Augustus are very intelligent and eloquent, their language beautiful in places. There are also some really magical moments where Augustus surprises Hazel and we see their relationship bloom.

At one particular point, Hazel is talking to Augustus on the phone and she mentions that she can hear his crooked smile. My wonderful husband has a crooked smile and in the early stages of our relationship, I would have said something similar (I don’t call him as much now that we live together!) Those sort of little moments are really romantic and build empathy for the characters aside from the illness element of the tale. They are just two teenagers in love with the added complication that Hazel is terminal and Augustus has one leg.

As I said, I didn’t cry but I know many people who did and who have said the film is just as upsetting (I’m fairly sure I can’t put myself through that as well but who knows?) I’m not going to say, ‘This is awesome, you must read this book!’, not because I didn’t enjoy it nor because I don’t think it’s a good book. Far from it. I just think that this is a hard book to read as it faces the reality of some people’s lives (as sufferers of terminal illnesses and as their loved ones). My thoughts and prayers go out to anyone who lives this story on a daily basis and their loved ones.  

10/10 I did enjoy this as the characters are so realistic, beautifully written and have so much humour to offer, despite their circumstances. But be prepared for a sad ending.

There are a lot of wonderful charitable organisations out there to help people with cancer and their carers. I have just put a few sites together in case you want to have a look but there are loads more:-

Cancer Research UK  http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/

Marie Curie Cancer Care http://www.mariecurie.org.uk/

Macmillan Cancer Supporthttp://www.macmillan.org.uk/Home.aspx

Cruse Bereavement Care http://www.cruse.org.uk/