Book Review: Matched by Ally Condie

I've been a reading machine lately, and I wanted to talk about one book in particular that I really enjoyed last month: Matched by Ally Condie. If you've been reading my blog for awhile, you know that I am a fan of dystopian literature and a few of my favorite books in the past couple of years have been the Hunger Games series. On a related note, if you're also into this kind of literature, I HIGHLY recommend The Handmaid's Tale by Margaraet Atwood, which is one of my most favorite books ever, in the whole entire world!

But back to the novel at hand. Matched was recommended to me by Amazon, and I promptly ordered the sample to my Kindle upon reading a snippet of the plot.  Two things you should know about me and my reading habits: one, I really love my Kindle for one reason in particular outside of its portability and convenience.  I'm obsessed with the sample feature! One of my favorite things to do is browse Amazon and order sample upon sample to my Kindle. When I go to turn it on later it's like Christmas, and the promise of finding at least one new book to love really makes me happy. And two, I really dislike reading in-depth reviews or summaries of a book. I typically just glance at it to get the main idea and that's it!  In a perfect world I wouldn't know anything about any book ever, and just go off recommendations. I really enjoy going into both books and movies with a completely unbiased opinion. So that's why when I review books I stay very vague and never, ever give spoilers.

So to give you a very brief idea of what Matched is about, here's a small snippet from Amazon:

For Cassia, nothing is left to chance--not what she will eat, the job she will have, or the man she will marry. In Matched, the Society Officials have determined optimal outcomes for all aspects of daily life, thereby removing the "burden" of choice. When Cassia's best friend is identified as her ideal marriage Match it confirms her belief that Society knows best, until... 

See? I gave nothing away. But if you're intrigued even a little bit, I urge you to avoid reading any more of the summary on Amazon and just go get the book, or order it! I definitely enjoyed it and it was an incredibly quick read. I did feel like some of the writing was a bit "fluffy," but at the same time it is a YA book and that part of the charm.  I did like the main characters, but I thought that they were lacking just a touch in depth. I would have loved to gotten to know them a bit more. All in all though, none of these things were large enough flaws that would prevent me from very eagerly awaiting the next book (to be released November 2011) or recommending it whole-heartedly to a friend.  I read it in two sittings because the author did such a great job of keeping everything moving and her writing definitely has an appealing flow to it. Two thumbs up!

So, if you're looking for a great book, in the same vein as The Hunger Games, then definitely try Matched by Ally Condie! And if you do, please let me know what you think! Happy reading.

Book recommendation!

 So, call me crazy, but I got Tina Fey's new memoir, Bossypants, a day ago and already finished it within 24 hours. It's just that good! A few pages in and I was laughing out loud, and that continued throughout the entire book. It's the perfect mix of wit, sarcasm, humor...and I thought the writing was just excellent.

The book is a memoir, so it's chock full of tales from her youth, all the way up to today. It's funny, it's personal, it's the kind of book you can't put down. Quite simply: if you like to laugh, then this book is for you!

If you get it, let me know what you think. Happy reading!

9 book recommendations for your weekend

Happy Friday everyone!  If you're anything like me, this weekend you will more than likely find yourself in a bookstore someway or another, running your hands over all of the books, flipping through the pages, and skimming over the first few pages of those that catch your eye.  One of my most favorite things to do is spend an hour or two wandering through our local bookstore, making lists of all the titles I'd like to read.  I can't get enough of books, and before I became a teacher I actually worked in a bookstore.  It was heaven.  And now, even though I've been using my beloved Kindle for over a year, I still purchase and swoon over all of the books in our local shop, and our library continues to grow. Today I thought I'd put together a list of 9 books I really love- some are my all-time favorites, a couple are recent reads, a few are of the young adult genre.  So, if you're looking for something new to read this weekend, bring this list out with you, and see if any of these English-teacher approved books strike your fancy! Have a great weekend.

The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins
She's Come Undone, by Wally Lamb
The Glass Castle, by Jeanette Walls
The Center of Everything, by Laura Moriarty
The Uglies, by Scott Westerfield
A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeline L'Engle
Swallow the Ocean, by Laura. M. Flynn
Lucky, by Alice Sebold
The Bell Jar, by Sylvia Plath

3 things: a book, a movie, and an album

Hello everyone! This post was from Sunday morning, but when I started going into labor I pulled it! I rescheduled it for today. :) Friday I will begin sharing my wonderful guest blog features, so get excited!

Today I thought I'd share three things: a book, a movie, and an album!

1) a book

My blog has been lacking a bit in my normal book recommendations for one reason, and that reason is...HARRY POTTER! I've been reading the HP books for the very first time, and I recently finished book four. I'm trying to go slow so I can savor every bit of the series, so I decided to take a small break before I start book five. It's hard though, because I have the last three books stacked up on my nightstand, taunting me, but my Kindle is also full of samples of great books I've been looking forward to checking out. On a related note: did you know on the Kindle you can get the first chapter (or sometimes couple of chapters) sent to your device for free? I always do this to make sure I want to read the book before I commit to spending the nine or so dollars on it, and I'd say it's one of my favorite features of the Kindle. So, during my Harry Potter break this week I've read a few books in my downtime (aka waiting to have a baby time), and there was one in particular that I really enjoyed.

I am going to include a short summary from Publisher's Weekly, but I've shortened it because if you're anything like me, you dislike hearing too much about a book!

Near the start of this outstanding novel of psychological suspense from Edgar-winner Lippman (Life Sentences), Eliza Benedict, a 38-year-old married mother of two living in suburban Maryland, receives a letter from Walter Bowman, the man who kidnapped her the summer she was 15 and is now on death row. The narrative shifts between the present and that long ago summer...

This is the first book I'd read by this author (it was published just a few months ago) and I was really impressed by not just her style of writing, but her ease of story-telling. Her characters have great depth, and as a reader I started to really feel like I knew these people, and I got to live a bit in their experiences, which was an experience in itself. I found this novel to be fascinating, dark at times, but overall an intriguing read that I'd recommend to anyone who is looking for a new book!

2. a movie

Yesterday Hank and I went and saw "Morning Glory." I love Rachel McAdams, Diane Keaton, and Harrison Ford (along with a lot of the other minor actors), so you'd have to imagine my happiness when I first came across this preview over the summer:



Hank wasn't too keen on seeing it, but throughout the entire movie I glanced at him to find him laughing, smiling, and even maybe, sorta, kinda having a little tear in his eye. In the end, he enjoyed it. And as for me? I LOVED it. I found it to be motivating, inspiring, and uplifting. It went beyond a "chick flick" and I thought it was a lot of genres rolled into one; romantic comedy, a feel-good film, a "finding yourself" kind of movie, and yes, a movie that girls would enjoy. But my husband loved it too! There's something for everyone. I highly recommend this movie!

3. an album

I'm quite late on the Mumford & Sons bandwagon, but recently this album has been on repeat in our house close to everyday. It's just that good. I adore these guys- their music, their voices, and those cute scruffy faces. But, on the small chance you haven't yet fallen in love with this band, give this little playlist a listen, and then head over to their website to buy their album! Enjoy!