Book Review: Winger by Andrew Smith

Winger (Winger #1)
by Andrew Smith

GoodReads/ Amazon/ TBD

Summary:

Ryan Dean West is a fourteen-year-old junior at a boarding school for rich kids in the Pacific Northwest. He’s living in Opportunity Hall, the dorm for troublemakers, and rooming with the biggest bully on the rugby team. And he’s madly in love with his best friend Annie, who thinks of him as a little boy.

With the help of his sense of humor, rugby buddies, and his penchant for doodling comics, Ryan Dean manages to survive life’s complications and even find some happiness along the way. But when the unthinkable happens, he has to figure out how to hold on to what’s important, even when it feels like everything has fallen apart.

Filled with hand-drawn info-graphics and illustrations and told in a pitch-perfect voice, this realistic depiction of a teen’s experience strikes an exceptional balance of hilarious and heartbreaking.

*****

Marden's Review 

Have you ever felt satisfied and dissatisfied at the same time? Relived but also in pain? Happy but also sad? (I'm sounding more like one of those annoying commercials that sell stupid products) Well, being honest, I hate feeling like that, and Winger by Andrew Smith just made me feel like that... This is the third time I read a book by Andrew Smith (who I miss and admire for being a great person, teacher, and writer), and frankly, I was not expecting such emotional ride with Winger (maybe because The Marbury Lens was a totally different kind of book, and my head was not prepared for this). And I call it a ride because it really is a roller coaster of emotions.

The story is not new at all. We have seen the picture of a scrawny kid trying to get his first girlfriend many times in books, movies, and even in music, but is Smith's humor and tenderness that makes Winger so refreshing. I never felt like reading a cliche story, or expecting the obvious. Everything I read of Winger felt unique, charming, and natural. Plus, there are some funny comic strips throughout the story (like Diary of a Wimpy Kid for teens). And there is also a variety of really good themes--from puberty to high school romance, and more.

The book is also emotionally distinct, at least it was for me. Put it this way (and this reflection can be very personal): when you read a book about two lovers who are ill and about to die, you grieve because of discovering the suffering of the characters, but not because you are actually feeling their pain (unless, like them, you are also dying). Winger presents more average characters, with flaws and issues we are used to see; thus, it is easy for me to relate in a more personal way, not that I'm a high school Rugby player, but I'm also a skinny guy who falls in love once in a while, and who tries to be a better friend every day. So certain emotions were more vivid in me when I read the book. Again, this may vary depending on the mood or the things you are going through, but I truly cannot find any other explanation of why this book feels so emotionally different.

I won't give spoilers, but I have to say that the ride becomes dark when you are not expecting; however, darkness comes with a good and fulfilling message about true friendship.
Winger is a special coming-of-age that never drops its pace, humor, and kindness.

"I found out something about words. There are plenty of words I can put on paper, words I can see with my eyes and scribble with my hand, that I never had the guts to say with my mouth."

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A Joint Review: If I stay & Where She Went by Gayle Forman

Recently, my friend Marden read If I stay by Gayle Forman. And since I just finished re-reading Where she went for the fourth time, I'd like to share this double review about this amazing duology by this amazing author.

I hope that if you haven't read this series you give it a try. These two books are just great!

 

Rating: 5 stars

GoodReads/ Amazon/ TBD

Summary:

On a day that started like any other, Mia had everything: a loving family, a gorgeous, admiring boyfriend, and a bright future full of music and full of choices. In an instant, almost all of that is taken from her. Caught between life and death, between a happy past and an unknowable future, Mia spends one critical day contemplating the only decision she has left. It is the most important decision she'll ever make. Simultaneously tragic and hopeful, this is a romantic, riveting, and ultimately uplifting story about memory, music, living, dying, loving.

Marden's Review

Beautiful. Heartfelt. Unpretentious.

This reading was a challenge: I started reading it in Spanish (eBook) and then suddenly I received by mail the paperback in English--as part of a contest/giveaway/gift--so it was kind of difficult to adapt to the author's style when I switched languages. Because, admit it, when a book is translated to "X" language the result is a change on style (and that's something I hate).
So, I'm not gonna review this book by the way it is written, but the way it is composed.

I found beautiful the way flashbacks make deep echoes in Mia's decision. It feels as if you can take part of that decision, too.
I liked the movement between past and present. Just to know if that memory (past) will make Mia stay or leave (present) was heartfelt.
You get to understand Mia's incertitude without asking yourself why it is so hard, why the whole point of the story is about that "simple" decision. And that's because you get so many happy memories turned into thoughtful tears.

Characters are unpretentious. They are not trying to impress you, they are just a family of musicians whose lives have been changing over the years.

The Verdict: A story of sadness and happiness coming in waves, but no pain at all--she's a ghost after all.
When you read it, you live in Mia's mind. The so natural and indecisive mind.

“Love, it never dies. It never goes away, it never fades, so long as you hang on to it. Love can make you immortal”

 

Rating: 5 stars

GoodReads/ Amazon/ TBD

Summary:

It's been three years since Mia walked out of Adam's life. 

And three years he's spent wondering why. 

When their paths cross again in New York City, Adam and Mia are brought back together for one life-changing night. 

Adam finally has the opportunity to ask Mia the questions that have been haunting him. But will a few hours in this magical city be enough to lay their past to rest, for good - or can you really have a second chance at first love?

Lis' Review

The first time I read Where She Went by Gayle Forman was on February 20th, 2012. Two years ago. And I read it because it was the winner of some GoodReads Award. I was curious, and I was so damn intrigued with the reviews. I read If I stay a month before, I gave it 5 stars, but I cannot even compare how much I adore Where She Went when I finally was able to read it.
You know, I don’t do rereads. I can’t do it because I don’t have much time to read and I love to be surprised with the twists and turns of the stories, and I don’t have that with re-reads. However, I read Where She Went twice that year, and the once again every year. So, probably this is the book I’ve read more times in my life.
Now, about Where She Went.
This book is told from Adam’s POV, and let me tell you this: This is probably the best male POV I’ve ever read.
Gayle Forman did an amazing job creating a strong and unforgettable voice for this character. She did an incredible job portraying his loneliness and the deep hurt in his soul.
I honestly hated Mia the first half of this book. Knowing everything she did to him, knowing she broke him and left him, I hated her and I loved Adam. Because he saved her and then he took her place.
This book is unputdownable, it’s fast passed and beautiful. It’s heartbreaking and realistic.
While Adam had everything a boy ever wanted. Fame, money, a beautiful girlfriend, he was lost inside; he was losing himself and everyone around him. He was agonizing, and then when Mia appeared again in his life, we are able to understand how strong and painful a true love is.
This book is about second chances. It breaks you and then fixes you.

If you read If I Stay because of the movie, I seriously recommend you Where She Went. You won’t be disappointing. You’ll love it.
Where She Went is one of the best books out there!

“I look at her there in the shadows of the shut-down city, her hair falling onto her face, and I can see her trying to figure out if I’ve lost it. And I have to fight the urge to take her by the shoulders and slam her against a shuttered building until we feel the vibrations ringing through both of us. Because I suddenly want to hear her bones rattle. I want to feel the softness of her flesh give, to hear her gasp as my hip bone jams into her. I want to yank her head back until her neck is exposed. I want to rip my hands through her hair until her breath is labored. I want to make her cry and then lick up the tears. And then I want to take my mouth to hers, to devour her alive, to transmit all the things she can’t understand.” 

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Marden & Lis' Review: Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

Eleanor & Park

Author: Rainbow Rowell

Rating: 4 stars

GoodReads/ Amazon/ TBD

Two misfits.

One extraordinary love.

Eleanor... Red hair, wrong clothes. Standing behind him until he turns his head. Lying beside him until he wakes up. Making everyone else seem drabber and flatter and never good enough...Eleanor.  

Park... He knows she'll love a song before he plays it for her. He laughs at her jokes before she ever gets to the punch line. There's a place on his chest, just below his throat, that makes her want to keep promises...Park.

Set over the course of one school year, this is the story of two star-crossed sixteen-year-olds—smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try.

 

Marden's Review

Sometimes, too much realism in fiction can be overwhelming.

The author is good in portraying the not-handsome boy and the not-hot girl in terms of physical descriptions--and I guess that's the only reason the novel can be described as realistic--but I did not find a way to be identified with these characters, even though they are not perfect (like me!).
Eleanor is a very self-seeking girl. She shows no compassion towards Park, instead she only seeks for passion in their relationship. On the other hand, Park is affectionate. He really cares for her, and their relationship as well.

As you see, I like Park but Eleanor, mmmmm not so much.
But beyond characters, I love the way the author narrates the story. The pace of Park-meets-Eleanor was great. The humor, and the mood was fantastic.

Verdict: Let's keep this book in the fiction section (yes, this goes for those who told me that it was a "very realistic" novel). 

Lis' Mini-Review. 

I enjoyed this book.
I really did. Though, I wasn't the biggest fan of Eleanor & Park.

You see, I do find this story realistic, specially the ending, but I had a hard time trying to connect with Eleanor. She wasn't not what I expected and I think that sometimes she didn't deserve Park's love.
What I can tell you is that the writing of this book is gorgeous. I adored the narration and the language, it was almost lyrical and beautiful.

Also, I loved the setting and the world-building (yes, it's in the past years, and it was as my parents told me). The mention of some great songs was also something I'm thankful for.
Eleanor & Park is a great book, a must read if you like the not-so-typical love story. And even if this is not your usual read, I bet you'll enjoy it anyway.

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Book Review: Paper Towns by John Green

Paper Towns

Author: John Green

Rating: 5 stars.

GoodReads/ Amazon/ TBD

Summary:

Quentin Jacobsen has spent a lifetime loving the magnificently adventurous Margo Roth Spiegelman from afar. So when she cracks open a window and climbs back into his life — dressed like a ninja and summoning him for an ingenious campaign of revenge — he follows. After their all-nighter ends and a new day breaks, Q arrives at school to discover that Margo, always an enigma, has now become a mystery. But Q soon learns that there are clues — and they’re for him. Urged down a disconnected path, the closer he gets, the less Q sees of the girl he thought he knew.

Marden's Review.

"Oh my God, Margo Roth Spiegelman is the female version of Christopher McCandless!"

That was my opinion when I closed this book. I finished reading it minutes ago, and still I'm reluctant to believe that page 305 marks the ending of this precious and clever story. But it's Green's story, so of course it is ambiguous, but comforting at the se time (even when you need/want more...).

Paper Towns, is one of the best teenage stories I've ever read. It is smart, funny, and full of metaphors.

The way it is structured is perfect. Three parts. Each with its own pace, and analogy.
The humor is a mixture from Looking for Alaska (not too perverted), and The Fault in Our Stars (but not too soft).
Q, Margo, Radar, Ben, and Lacey. They are my new best friends. And please don't judge me, Alaska Young fans, but I think I sympathize more with Margo than with Alaska. She is more curious, and just as the book describes her, a real "mystery."

Conclusion: Green did it again. You know what you have to do if you haven't read it.
And I finish with here my favorite quote (analogy), The Vessel:

"And I mean, yeah, once the vessel cracks open, the end becomes inevitable [...] But there is all this time between the cracks start to open up and when we finally fall apart. And it's only in that time that we can see one another, because we see out of ourselves through our cracks and into others through theirs [...] Before that, we were just looking at ideas of each other [...] But once the vessel cracks, the light can get in. The light can get out."

 

 

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Guest Review: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

The Night Circus

Author: Erin Morgenstern

Order it: Amazon/ B&N/ TBD

Add to Goodreads

RATE: 5 stars

Summary:

The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night.  

But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway: a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them both, this is a game in which only one can be left standing. Despite the high stakes, Celia and Marco soon tumble headfirst into love, setting off a domino effect of dangerous consequences, and leaving the lives of everyone, from the performers to the patrons, hanging in the balance.

Marden's Review. 

Magical

Is the only word that can describe this masterpiece. I loved it from the cover to the end. Since I started the first chapter, I needed to slow down my reading to be able to catch all the details that put such a fantastical, and mysterious feeling.

I know the book is not considered a thriller, but those secretive characters transform the drama into a thrilling adventure.

The romance is unique. Both main characters, Marco and Celia, are not the same tragic lovers, even if the story meant to be. The rest of the characters are well presented, especially Prospero and Alexander--are they the bad guys? 

The tone reminded me when I used to go to the circus with my family, when I was in my home country. I used to love circuses, because of the smell of popcorn and "magical smoke," as I used called it. It was fascinating to remember all those memories while reading a black-and-white-story.

I know some people didn't understand the ending, in my case it was easy, because I already knew the trick, you want to know it? It is called: Imagination.When you read The Night Circus focus your eyes on the words, and let your imagination do the rest--that's the key to enjoy fully (I'm pretty sure it works with any other fantasy).

Anyway, this book has become in one of my favorites. (I wish I could give 6/5 stars).

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