The Maze Runner

The Maze Runner

James Dashner

Thomas wakes up in complete darkness, in a box. When it opens he is "welcomed" by too many boys that he can count, varying from ages 12-17. He can't remember anything but his name. Everyone else seems to be the same. Not one of the boys knows why they are there but they carry on with daily living. Every night the giant doors close between the Maze and the Glade and every night the Runners must make it back before they close. Otherwise they spend the night in the Maze with the Grievers. And NO ONE has made it until morning. This all seems familiar to Thomas until something other than supplies turns up in the box that he arrived in. Or is it someone? 

The first line of the book wasn't even what got me hooked. It was the last line of a note that the publisher included at the beginning: "Thanks James, I didn't want to sleep for a week anyway". I didn't sleep for 3 days straight from pure fear of a Griever haunting my dreams. Every page makes you feel like you are right there next to Thomas as clueless as he is because just like the reader, the characters have no idea what's going on. Definitely not for the faint hearted and some might think of it as a boys club book but girls who like whine-less characters and fast, straight to the point action packed themes, will love it.
The amount of adrenaline that this book generates from it's action scenes is amazing and I found myself looking over the page to see what happens at the end of every chapter as I couldn't wait. I recommend NOT doing that because you'll end up not doing anything with your life until you finish the entire book. It just gets better and better the more you read and it is so well written that you will start to talk like a Glader immediately. You will laugh, you will cry, you will anticipate and you will pee your pants with both excitement and fear. But whatever you do, don't get stung by a Griever.

The Outsiders

The Outsiders

S.E. Hinton

Set in the 50s, the world is divided into two groups. Socs (Socials) and Greasers. Ponyboy is part of the Greasers gang along with his two older brothers Sodapop (the heartbreaker) and Darrel/Darry (the father figure).  His coming of age story begins when he leaves the movie theatre with Paul Newman in mind and gets jumped by a pack of Socs. The next thing Ponyboy is looking at "is Johnny's hand. He was clutching his switchblade, and it was dark to the hilt." 

Short review: I dare you to not carry all of Ponyboy's emotions. I dare you to not see where Darry is coming from and why he's such a hardass. I dare you to not fall in love with Sodapop. I dare you to try and put this book down while reading.

Substantial review: It's hard to imagine that S.E. Hinton was only 15 when she wrote The Outsiders. She writes with such vision and purpose that you feel as if you are involved in every detail of the story. The 50s gave birth to the teenage rebel and all things teen. The Outsiders is all about teenagers. Adults are only mentioned as formidable parents or teachers. Ponyboy is smart and polite but thinks that he needs to toughen up so he can be more like his older brothers and their friends. He likes to read and there are few mentions of other books in here such as Gone with the Wind. He's the one that gets mostly A's in English. This is suitable for 14+ readers boys and girls. Classics have no gender.
Hinton teaches you to think and shows you how others think. The events that take place in Ponyboy's life are not unpredictable but when you experience them through his narrative, they are explosive. Get ready for "movie star handsome good looks", "dangerous moods" and don't forget to comb your thick greasy jet black hair back. And above all else, stay golden.

A Mammoth in the Fridge

A Mammoth in the Fridge

Michaël Escoffier & Matthieu Maudet

Noah found a Mammoth in the fridge. No really, he did and it's stuck. Mum calls the fire brigade and the Mammoth runs off scared. He runs up a tree and it's up to Noah to rescue him. Mammoths like  carrots, right?

The title alone should entice everyone to read this quirky picture book. With only four colours used throughout the book, the illustrations are simple but different and compliment the overall feel of the story. Easy enough to read and is straight forward for beginners such as 3 year olds. The Mammoth and his silly nonsense is a cute bedtime story that represents the innocence of a child's imagination.  

Divergent

Divergent

Veronica Roth

Beatrice Prior has grown up in the Abnegation faction. They are selfless. The other three factions are Candor (the honest), Erudite (the intelligent) and Dauntless (the brave). On the same day every year, every sixteen year old must choose which faction they will belong to for life. Do you choose where your family are or where you belong? An aptitude test helps you decide but Beatrice's results are inconclusive. Which faction does she choose? Or does the faction choose her?

It took a little bit of the plot to get to the point but once it does, you will be hooked. It starts off as your typical Dystopian teen novel with the exception of being set in Chicago. Beatrice doesn't feel like she's selfless enough to belong to Abnegation. When she does make her choice of which faction she wants to join, it's nothing like she's ever expected. She makes friends, gets a love interest and learns about hard work and perseverance. The action and violence is constant and you will never predict who lives and who doesn't. Because of the violence I would say that this is best for 14+ readers and Roth does a super job of describing a girl's romantic feelings and what comes after. Ladies, watch out for Four. He wont help your feelings for fictional characters. Be prepared to leave reality because this book will be all you can think about. It is mainly written for girls but one thing is for certain, faction before blood.

Tomorrow When the War Began

Tomorrow When the War Began

John Marsden

Ellie and her group of friends (including the intriguing Lee) are planning on going camping in the bush. When they return from 'Hell' they find things have gone terribly wrong. Their families have disappeared and all signs point to foul play. When they venture into town, they come across something that they only joked about. Invasion and war.

Ellie is a great role model for young girls (and older ones too) as she isn't afraid to speak her mind, is smart and logical and can drive recklessly and light petrol filled tanks on fire when needed. The action in this book is never ending and it has a great balance with full conversations between the eight friends. There's a character that everyone can relate to, the right amount of romance and even a dirty joke thrown here and there (recommended for 15+ readers). Even though it's told from a girl's perspective, the male characters are just as important and young boys will definitely be entertained. Lawn mowers blowing up, people getting shot and houses getting destroyed by missiles -every event is described with such detail that you just want crawl into the book physically and live it. 

The reader learns about the necessities in life and what's important to one may not be as important to another. This one moment in the book is thought provoking and a great conversation starter. If your country was invaded, what possessions would you save? Would you surrender? Would you fight?  Everyone has to make a decision. You have to make a decision. What would you do to survive?

Northern Lights

Northern Lights

Philip Pullman

Lyra has been running around Oxford causing havoc for the scholars who are obliged to pass on their knowledge to her. One evening while hiding in the retiring room she witnesses an event that will led to the biggest adventure she could imagine. One word that will forever remain the cause of it all...Dust. Lyra and her daemon Pantalaimon, won't stop until they find this dust. Even if it means death.

Philip Pullman has managed to create a world so incredibly unreal that you can't help but immerse yourself into it completely. This is a world where everyone has a daemon, an animal companion that represents the humans soul. As children, the daemons can willfully change into any animal form. From moth to wildcat, until they hit puberty when the daemon takes a permanent appearance. The bond between the two is so unbelievably intense throughout the book that you feel as if you have a daemon beside you and you know exactly what that bond feels like. This is Pullman's greatest victory in the novel. I still get chills when I think about it. 

Lyra is a fantastic character for two reasons. She likes to get up to mischief and isn't afraid of saying what's on her mind. Definitely a tomboy, she is a natural born leader but has a heart of gold. Even though she is young, this book is quite intelligent and some parts are quite hard to understand. You'll have to read it again to fully understand the text but it doesn't lack imagination. You'll be making your own views of 'Dust' before you know what it is. It has a huge religious tone but only the older readers would really understand it. There's just enough violence to keep the action going and it's definitely a dark story. Recommended for readers 13+. Towards the end of the book, be prepared to not do anything. Trust me, don't make any plans. They will not happen. Even though it's a trilogy, book hangover guaranteed. 

Penguin's Hidden Talent

Penguin's Hidden Talent

Alex Latimer

There's a talent show about to happen in Penguin's town but Penguin has no talent. All his friends have one like Bear. He juggles appliances and Albatross can swallow a whole marlin! They all try to help him but all Penguin can do is hiccup. He is quite organised and helpful. What talent will Penguin reveal?

Penguin feels inadequate compared to all the other animals as they can do great things.  Doesn't matter if you don't have a medal or can't play an instrument, it's about figuring out what you're good at and not to compare yourself with others. What becomes of Penguin is a good message to kids (and everyone else) that everyone has a skill, you just have to find it and use it. The illustrations are extremely cute and Latimer uses a lot of block colors which can be quite simple but they are effective and delightful.

This is a talent show not to be missed, even the King of Norway makes an appearance.

Oh, the Places You'll Go!

Oh, the Places You'll Go

Dr Seuss

Dr Seuss  encourages YOU to take on this thing called Life. You'll go far, you'll meet challenges and sometimes things wont go the way you want. But keep on moving and you'll get there, wherever you want to go.

This book is Dr Seuss through and through with crazy words and impeccable rhymes. You could be a teenager just finishing high school, in your 20s figuring out university/gap year or in your 40s still wondering about life, this book will inspire you in every way possible. The illustrations remind me of the scene in Dumbo where he drank some potent water (my guess is VODKA) and started to have hallucinations. Colours, swirls and true Dr Suess characters like the Hakken-Kraks. It's the go to graduation gift but it even talks about slumps "where you're not in for much fun" so you could be having a crisis at any age ( 27) and the main thing to remember is "step with care and great tact and remember that Life's a Great Balancing Art."

The Knife of Never Letting Go

The Knife of Never Letting Go

Patrick Ness

"Poo Todd, Poo." Manchee is Todd Hewitt's dog. Manchee can talk. Todd is the youngest boy in Prentisstown at 13 years old. A town only of men. That can hear each other's thoughts. Noise. The 'Noise' germ/plague killed off the women long ago. It's always noisy in Prentisstown.  When Todd turns 14 he will become a man...until he feels the silence.

There are so many good things about this book that I'm going to list them. 

1. The animals talk.
2. Ness writes Todd's speech as he would say it. With spelling mistakes and mis pronunciations.
3. The Noise of some men (the mad ones) is written in a different and bold font for you to be able to see and feel the emotion.
4. It has swear words.
5. Every chapter is full of adventure and high intensity action.
6. It's a trilogy therefore 3x of Todd Hewitt and his Noise.
7. You have no idea how it's going to end.

Exceptionally written and definitely not for the faint hearted. For readers 14+ but the content isn't anything to be concerned about so if younger readers are advanced readers (as in reading is their life) then they should be a part of this. 

If this novel was alive, it would be chaos walking.

This Moose Belongs to Me

This Moose Belongs to Me

Oliver Jeffers

Wilfred finds a moose. He names him Marcel. Wilfred gives commands to Marcel. Marcel does what he wants. One day, someone else claims Marcel was his moose first. What will Wilfred do?

I can't express enough how amazing Oliver Jeffers is. He delivers yet another visually stunning picture book and double whammy's it with a quirky and random story about a kid finding a moose and keeping him as a pet. This is by far Jeffers' best detailed illustrated book. Due to the detailed landscapes, they really should dominate the page but he somehow manages to bring the focus to Wilfred and Marcel throughout the book. You can pick out a Jeffers drawing out of a million along with the font. As always the font is the same and is what I like to call the 'Olly-J' font. This is perfect for the kid that reacts to visuals and has a creative mind. Adults, you are not excluded. Pick it up now!
-Marcel says so.

Legend

Legend

Marie Lu

This is a dystopian Los Angeles and a plague has broken out. Day is a 15 year old and he is from the Republic's slums. June is a 15 year old and she is from the Republic's wealthiest district. Day is the Republic's most wanted criminal. June is the Republic's prodigy. Both meet under false pretences but a mutual attraction happens. Is June's beloved Republic all that they seem or is Day just another delinquent? Both are fighting for something but  one of them must decide who to believe. 

This is a fast paced page turner written from both character's perspectives. Starts off with Day who you learn is the epitome of rebellion. Bad boy doing right with family values is sure to make the girls swoon. June is the kick ass no nonsense girl with intelligence to beware of. The story gets straight to the point and doesn't drag. It's a great read for the feminist within or the guy who wants action and the girl, in other words, every person ever. If you liked The Hunger Games, you will definitely love this. Once finished, you will be wanting more and you will get it with the second in the trilogy. 

The Perks of being a Wallflower

The Perks of being a Wallflower

Stephen Chbosky

Charlie is a 15 year old who is just about to start his freshman year at high school. He is shy. He loves to read. He is weird. But he is a wallflower. He writes to his "friend" about the experiences he has from day to day. A coming of age story, one day Charlie's life changes when he meets Sam and her stepbrother Patrick. Together, they become "infinite". 

The thing I love most about this book (amongst many others) is that Charlie says everything that we're thinking out loud. There's something about him that everyone can relate to. Published in 1999, it's definitely relevant to teens today. Chbosky writes about taboo subjects that society is still afraid to talk about. Sex, homosexuality and childhood traumas are just some of them but they are presented with such ease and normality that you find they are naturally part of the story and not to be controversial.  Although, I would recommend this title for readers aged 15+. 

Always a big fan of books that mention other books, this one does not disappoint. Charlie is led by his English teacher who introduces him to some great novels of literature such as To Kill a Mockingbird, Naked Lunch and The Great Gatsby. This is this generation's Catcher in the Rye.

I Want My Hat Back

I Want My Hat Back

Jon Klassen

The Bear's hat is gone. He wants it back. He wanders around the forest asking every animal he sees, if they've seen his hat. One of them is not as honest as he seems. 

I Want My Hat Back is a straight to the point page turner with fantastic illustrations. Klassen uses simple but captivating watercolour drawings and his subjects show very little expressions until a pivotal moment which mirrors your own reaction. Dreaming of when the inside jacket will become a wallpaper print, I recommend this book to those who love understated illustrations and a good chuckle throughout a short yet delightful read.