Review | Saint Anything: Of pizza, first loves & delinquent brothers ❀

Publication: 05/05/2015

Publisher: Penguin

Pages: 417

Source: Bought

Genre: YA | Contemporary

My Rating: 4/5

First line: "Would the defendant please rise."

♪ Velvet Underground - I'll Be Your Mirror ♪

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If you frequent the YA section at the bookshop, there is almost zero per cent chance you haven't heard of Sarah Dessen. I'd pin her novels as the YA equivalent of adult contemporary literary giants like Nicholas Sparks and Jodi Picoult - formulaic, but oh-so fuzzy and warming, sprinkled with a dusting of real-life lessons and wisdom on top. Dessen has this brilliant ability to create characters that invoke empathy in her readers, and for me, Saint Anything was no exception.

[Review] Amy & Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson

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Publication: 28/10/2008

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Pages: 343

Source: Bought?

Genre: YA {Contemporary}

Violence | Sexual Content | Profanity

Book Tunes

♪ U2 - Where the Streets Have No Name ♪
♪ Tracy Chapman - Fast Car ♪
♪ Michelle Branch - Carry Me Home ♪

My Rating

5/5 stars

My thoughts

Loved this so much! Why did it take me so long to finally read this book? If it weren't for decluttering and purging my book collection I might NEVER have gotten around to it, and what a waste that would have been.

*US*

I have always loved the idea of reading more road trip books, and while I admit to not having read many in the past, if many more that are to pass through me are as enjoyable as Amy & Roger's Epic Detour I must pursue more of them in future. This book really honed in on the idea that it is not in the destination, but the journey itself, and the people with whom you travel. Amy and Roger were not on a road trip for fun, but rather as a means of transporting her mum's car to their new home on the other side of the country . . . but what starts as a little detour from her mum's carefully plotted itinerary, calculated by mileage and fuel efficiency, ends up being the trip of a lifetime.

[Review] Everything Beautiful by Simmone Howell

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Publication: 28/10/2008

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Pages: 288

Source: Swapped?

Genre: YA {Contemporary}

Violence | Sexual Content | Profanity

Book Tunes

♪ x ♪

My Rating

4/5 stars

My thoughts

{AU}

I'm not sure if there was any particular reason why I finally decided to pick this book up, I think I just came to the conclusion that it was time. I didn't know too much about Everything Beautiful other than that it was an Aussie YA book set in a religious summer camp, and therefore would be a good summer read.

[Review] When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon

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Publication: 30/05/2017

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Pages: 380

Source: Bought

Genre: YA {Contemporary}

Violence | Sexual Content | Profanity

Book Tunes

♪ Landon Pigg - Falling In Love At A Coffee Shop ♪

My Rating

5/5 stars

My thoughts

2017 has been a glorious melting pot of POC (People of Colour) and #ownvoices YA releases and I am so okay with that! One of the more iconic books of the year is When Dimple Met Rishi - it seemed as though everyone and their cats were reading it! And I knew I would adore it too, but I'll admit I felt reluctant to delve into it at first: after all, you can only ever experience a book for the first time once. It took me HALF A YEAR to finally pick this one up. Insanity! I don't think I could have loved When Dimple Met Rishi any more than I did! This one is definitely a keeper!

[Review] Want to Go Private? by Sarah Darer Littman

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Publication: 01/08/2011

Publisher: Scholastic Press

Pages: 330

Source: Borrowed

Genre: YA {Contemporary}

Violence | Sexual Content | Profanity

Book Tunes

♪ BANKS - Beggin for Thread ♪

My Rating

4.5/5 stars

My thoughts

The world is not a safe place. Books like this are vitally important to help prevent minors from falling victim to sexual predators from the Internet. I know what it's like, I used to prowl online chatrooms, Habbo Hotel and the like as a high school student, and trust me, there was an abundance of creeps out there. Luckily I never did come across any creeps who had the opportunity to exploit me in person in my naivete, but I suppose I know more than anyone else just how easy it might be, how real and scary this issue is. We NEED books like Want to Go Private? in the world. We need these books to be shared and discussed.