Megan Rambles About Under The Never Sky

Under The Never Sky by Veronica Rossi

From Goodreads:  Since she'd been on the outside, she'd survived an Aether storm, she'd had a knife held to her throat, and she'd seen men murdered. This was worse.

Exiled from her home, the enclosed city of Reverie, Aria knows her chances of surviving in the outer wasteland - known as The Death Shop - are slim. If the cannibals don't get her, the violent, electrified energy storms will. She's been taught that the very air she breathes can kill her. Then Aria meets an Outsider named Perry. He's wild - a savage - and her only hope of staying alive.

A hunter for his tribe in a merciless landscape, Perry views Aria as sheltered and fragile - everything he would expect from a Dweller. But he needs Aria's help too; she alone holds the key to his redemption. Opposites in nearly every way, Aria and Perry must accept each other to survive. Their unlikely alliance forges a bond that will determine the fate of all who live under the never sky.

This book is sooo good! I loved everything about it!

The world. Oh wow, the world! Veronica Rossi created one of the most amazing worlds I have read in a long time. It was so completely developed, and I felt like I was really there. And then I was also thankful that I wasn't there, because the world was kind of scary! I mean the storms? And creepy cannibals? Yeah scary. But I was never really confused about anything in the world. It all made sense, and there seemed to be an explanation for the way everything worked. This is really helpful in a dystopia, because the world is often so different from our own that we need those explanations in order to understand everything.

I also loved the characters of this book! Aria was an amazing main character! I loved watching her change throughout the course of the book. She starts out as this sheltered girl, thrown out of her home, who has no idea what she's doing. So she basically just fumbles around, getting herself into trouble. Slowly as the story unfolds you get to see her change into this strong girl, who was pretty bad ass.

Perry! I loved him!! He was so kind, and caring. His best quality was probably how he was so determined to protect the people he cared about. And then there was Roar! He was so funny, and I fell in love with him from the second he showed up! I'm really looking forward to seeing more of all of the characters in the second book!

Another really cool aspect of this book was the writing and the setup of the book. I loved that the story alternated between Perry and Aria's points of view. I felt like it allowed me to get to know the characters much better, because you got to see them through two different people's eyes. You also got to see parts of Aria through Perry's eyes that you couldn't see through her own, and vice-versa. It was so easy to understand their characters because of it, and I think it really added to the story. Plus, I was lucky enough to get to meet Veronica Rossi, and she is really nice, and really funny!

So, to sum this up, Under the Never Sky is an amazing book about a really well developed dystopian world with awesome characters, and awesome writing. So basically everything about the book exceeded my expectations, and you should go read it immediately. Also, if you ever have the chance to meet Veronica Rossi, I highly recommend it! She is nice, and totally awesome!

-Megan

Rachel Rambles About The Probability of Miracles

The Probability of Miracles by Wendy Wunder
From Goodreads:
Dry, sarcastic, sixteen-year-old Cam Cooper has spent the last seven years in and out hospitals. The last thing she wants to do in the short life she has left is move 1,500 miles away to Promise, Maine - a place known for the miraculous events that occur there. But it's undeniable that strange things happen in Promise: everlasting sunsets; purple dandelions; flamingoes in the frigid Atlantic; an elusive boy named Asher; and finally, a mysterious envelope containing a list of things for Cam to do before she dies. As Cam checks each item off the list, she finally learns to believe - in love, in herself, and even in miracles.

A debut novel from an immensely talented new writer, The Probability of Miracles crackles with wit, romance and humor and will leave readers laughing and crying with each turn of the page.

This book made me feel all the feelings. All of them. And I have absolutely no idea how I'm supposed to talk about it. So I'm sure this will go well. You know what? Let's just make a list, okay? I can get through a list without crying. I think. Hopefully.

Things I love about this book:

1. Cam. She is cynical and sarcastic and she pretty much hates the world. Some readers might struggle with the constant negativity and dry humor, but I could relate to it really well.

2. Cam's mom and sister. Her mother provides the necessary optimism and cheerfulness and hopefulness to cancel out some of Cam's cynicism. Her little sister is in those joyous tween years where she wears a lot of pink and is practically glued to her phone. These characters get a little annoying sometimes, but at the end of the day, they are a really good family.


3. Cam's nana. She's the best character ever. She's freaking hysterical, and I was cracking up at pretty much everything she said.

4. ASHER. Oh my. Cute Boy Alert, everyone. And here's the thing about Asher: he really pissed me off sometimes. There were several points in the book where I kind of wanted to shake him and be like WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! Because he screws up a lot (as done Cam). But I think it made me appreciate him even more. He has a whole bunch of flaws, Cam has a whole bunch of flaws, the characters are realistic and normal and human and NOT PERFECT.

5. Promise, Maine. Can I please move to this town now? It's small and weird and fascinating and I really want to go there.


6. The relationships. Unlike many YA books, this book doesn't center around a romantic relationship. The Probability of Miracles is focused on family, and the struggle a family goes through when one of its members is sick. There is also a romantic relationship between Cam and Asher, but it's not what the entire book is about, which is really refreshing.


7. The humor. This book is about cancer. CANCER. Which is sad and depressing by default, right? BUT IT'S ALSO REALLY FUNNY AND HAPPY. Wendy Wunder manages to mix the seriousness of cancer with the sarcasm and wit of the characters and the situations they find themselves in, therefore she must be a genius.

This book made me cry, but it also made me laugh a lot. If you are looking for a book that makes you feel ALL THE FEELINGS, you should definitely pick this up. The Probability of Miracles is a book that will stick with me for a long time. I just can't get the characters and the town and the story out of my head.

-Rachel

Saturday Seven #3

This week's Saturday Seven topic is...

Books All High Schoolers Should Read

As high school freshman, we believe our peers would benefit greatly from reading the following books. If you are a high schooler or you know a high schooler, you should definitely considering reading these books.

(Also it occurs to me now that this post is insanely long, so I apologize for that. These are books that mean a lot to us, so we have many things to say about them.)

1. Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

Rachel: This book is absolutely amazing. I connected with the characters, and I laughed and cried and screamed at the situations I read about. It is a really heavy book--it is about a girl who commits suicide--but Jay Asher handles the heavy things perfectly. Instead of focusing on the dark and depressing, Thirteen Reasons Why has a lot of suspense that will keep you turning the pages. I read it in one sitting because I literally was unable to put it down.

I like this book because it tells a good story with good characters, but I also feel like it impacted me in a big way. It's about rumors and bullies and little actions that seem insignificant, and what happens when all those things build up. This is a story that I still think about months after reading, and I often feel the need to revisit it.

Megan: This book really impacted me too. It isn't an easy topic to read about by any means, but Jay Asher wrote it perfectly. I couldn't put this book down! I was so invested in what happened to the characters that I cried right along with them. Having had an experience with a friend who thought about killing himself, this book really hit home for me, and I could really relate to the characters. Jay Asher wrote an amazing book that really captures the emotion and the power behind how our actions can affect other people. I highly, highly recommend reading this one.

2. Hate List by Jennifer Brown

Rachel: Hate List is about a school shooting and the consequences. The main character is a seemingly normal teenage girl whose boyfriend showed up at school one day with a gun. He killed other students before eventually shooting himself.

What surprised me most about this book was Nick, the shooter. The story is shown from many different angles, and it's difficult to decide how to feel about him. Obviously, he is the shooter, and so you should hate him, right? But reading the book from his girlfriend's point of view, she has many memories of him--memories where he was happy and kind and caring. Hate List explores the effects of a school shooting on the parents and students and teachers. It was really hard to read at times, but overall, I think this is an important story that needs to be shared.

3. Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

Rachel: I've read this maybe three or four times. The first time was about a year ago, when I was almost done with eighth grade. I'm really glad I read it when I did, because I think this is a good book to read before starting high school. The main character, Melinda, starts off her freshman year of high school with no friends and a big secret. She is ostracized by her peers, and throughout the book, Melinda navigates problems with old friends, new friends, her parents and home life, and most importantly, the event that changed everything.

Honestly, this book is kind of heart-breaking. Melinda is completely alone, and I just want to reach into the book and save her. She has a very dry sense of humor which I think a lot of high-schoolers can relate to. Laurie Halse Anderson is a genius. I've read a lot of books about a lot of characters, but this book is...different. Melinda's voice is so clear in my head, and she is a character who will stick with me forever.

Megan: I've read this book twice, both incidentally for my English class in 8th and 9th grade. Melinda's character has really stuck with me though. She has an incredibly sarcastic, almost negative way at viewing everything around her, especially her high school. Which, let's be honest, is the way more than half of teenagers view everything. Myself and Rachel both included. That immediately made me like Melinda, because Laurie Halse Anderson did an awesome job of making her so easy to relate to.

Melinda deals with a LOT of crap in this book. It shows how it isn't easy being so hated by everyone in your school. But she also has this really big secret that none of them know about. It makes you stop and think about how we don't really know what's going on with other people, and we only know what they choose to tell us. I think everyone should read this book and use the lessons that you can learn from it.

4. Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

Rachel: This book does not have a likable main character. Sam is popular and pretty and perfect and well, she's kind of a bitch. At first, I really hated her and I didn't understand why anyone would want to read a book about such a terrible character. But this book really surprised me.

In the book, Sam relives the last day of her life seven times (side note: OH LOOK AT THAT SEVEN DAYS AND IT IS SATURDAY SEVEN HOW AWESOME). Each day brings a new problem, a new struggle, a new lesson. Sam learns a lot about the way she treats her friends and classmates and family. She starts to put herself in other people's shoes, and realize how her actions can affect them. By the end of the book I wouldn't say she's exactly a likable character, but you can at least understand her. The story is interesting, and the journey Sam goes on is extremely powerful.

Megan: You know that girl who thinks she's totally perfect, everyone loves her, and everyone wants to be her? Yeah, that's basically Sam at the start of this book. Sam is the nasty typical popular girl who goes to parties and matches outfits with her best friends on purpose. Which is typically the kind of people I don't like at school (no offense to them of course) and not the best characters to read about. At first I wasn't sure I was going to like the book because I couldn't understand why Sam thought the way she behaved was okay. 

Once she started reliving the day she died, (7 times. Not really a fun experience) I started to like Sam more. She slowly realizes what people really think of her, and how just changing one little mean comment can affect the entire outcome of her day. I loved how powerful and how well written this book was. It had me crying by the end because it was such a powerful story. 

5. The List by Siobhan Vivian

Rachel: Eight completely different girls are brought together because of one list. The list has the names of the prettiest and ugliest girls in school. The idea of a list like this is disgusting and wrong and ugh. But stuff like this happens, and I'm glad there's a book out there that addresses it.

For me, this book is all about the characters. Each girl is different and complex and they all have their own problems to deal with. You get to see the world from the perspectives of popular girls and naive freshman and athletic girls and social outcasts, and how the list affects each of them. Every character has strengths and weaknesses. Maybe if every teenage girl read this, they'd stop judging each other and treating each other the way they do.

6. How to Save a Life by Sara Zarr

Rachel: I don't even know what to say about this book, other than this: It is beautiful. The story is told from the point of view of two teenage girls who at first, seem completely different. They each have their own problems that they struggle with, and they wind up in situations that I think a lot of teenagers can relate to. Each of their voices is distinct and unique in my head, and I find myself thinking about these characters often. Not to be all dramatic, but this book touched my heart. It's devastating and hopeful at the same time, and oh my god please read this book.

7. Shine by Lauren Myracle

 

Rachel: Last but definitely not least, Shine. It's about a teenage girl and a small town and a hate crime. The main character Cat's best friend is assaulted, with the words Suck this, faggot written on his chest in blood, and Cat is determined to find out who did it to him. This book is not a light read at all. It's dark and gritty and disturbing, but most importantly, it's honest. Nothing is sugar-coated in Shine. There's drugs and cursing and poverty and violence and intolerance. This is not exactly a fun book to read, but at the same time, it's an important story. This book opened my eyes, and I'm very glad I read it.

Megan: Okay, so I haven't read the other books on this list yet because they are all in the giant TBR pile I am drowning under. However: I know for a fact that they are all amazing. Partially because I trust Rachel, and also because they are so real. All of these books are the types of books that some people argue teenagers my age shouldn't read. Being a teenager, I realize that this is kind of crazy. None of the subjects these books deal with are made-up, although the characters and the specific situations might be. All of these subjects are things that teenagers either deal with or could deal with in their lives. So why not put the books out there to let them read about it? Giving them the information can only help them. 

That's my opinion on it anyway. So almost any YA book that deals with a difficult subject is probably a good book for teenagers to be reading.

Wow. Those are some pretty heavy topics. Sorry to be all dark and dismal, but these are all amazing books that we have a lot of feelings about. 

Here is a picture of a rainbow I found on the internet. Hopefully it will cheer you up.

Anyway. If you've read any of these books, share your thoughts in the comments. Do you think these books should be read by the average teenager?

Rachel Rambles About Until I Die

Until I Die by Amy Plum
From Goodreads:

Kate and Vincent have overcome the odds and at last they are together in Paris, the city of lights and love.

As their romance deepens there’s one question they can’t ignore: How are they supposed to be together if Vincent can’t resist sacrificing himself to save others? Although Vincent promises that he’ll do whatever it takes to lead a normal life with Kate, will that mean letting innocent people die? When a new and surprising enemy reveals itself, Kate realizes that even more may be at stake—and that Vincent’s immortality is in jeopardy.

In Die for Me, Amy Plum created a captivating paranormal mythology with immortal revenants and a lush Paris setting. Until I Die is poised to thrill readers with more heart-pounding suspense, spellbinding romance, and a cliff-hanger ending that will leave them desperate for the third and final novel in the series.

ALL OF THE FEELINGS. ALL OF THEM.
SWOONING AND SQUEALING AND SCREAMING AND OH GOD THE ENDING JUST WOW THIS BOOK IS AMAZING AND CAN SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME WHERE BOOK THREE IS THANKS.

^ I typed this little tidbit about three seconds after finishing this book. After that, I waited a while before writing this ramble, in the hopes that I would eventually be able to understand my feelings and put them into words.

A few days later, I am still sitting here like an idiot, staring at my computer screen screaming ALL OF THE FEEEEELINGSSSS! So I haven't really made a lot of progress.

Listen. I loved Die For Me. It was absolutely amazing. And so obviously I was really excited to read the sequel. I wasn't really sure what to expect from the sequel. Could it possibly be as good as the first book??

Imagine my surprise when I discovered Until I Die was EVEN BETTER than Die For Me.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wow. Just, wow. This book blew me away. While I was reading it, I was gasping and screaming and awwwwing and having very strong reactions to everything (which annoyed my sister, who was sitting in the room with me yelling WHAT NOW?!). The twists and turns this book took were something I was not expecting...at all.

There was quite a bit of tension in Kate and Vincent's relationship--understandable, considering the events that occurred in the first book. But even when things were weird between them and secrets were being kept, I still really enjoyed reading about their relationship. They weren't angry and fighting all the time, which was refreshing. The romance that was present in the first book only strengthened, and there were definitely a lot of swoony OMG VINCENTTTTT moments for me. :)

Kate goes through a major transformation in the series. At the start of the first book, she is still reeling from the death of her parents. She kinda curls up in a ball in the corner and sleeps all the time, unable to feel alive again. Once she meets Vincent, of course, things begin to change. By the time we get to Until I Die, Kate is a very strong and lively character who I absolutely adore. She's thrown into a world that she knows next to nothing about, all because she fell in love, and she handles it extremely well. She is smart and brave and logical about everything, and she is not going to sit on the sidelines and let her gorgeous revenant boyfriend fight for her.

The side characters in this book are just as lovely as they were in Die For Me. Georgia is crazy and bubbly, and I really love the strong sister relationship between her and Kate. One of the reasons I like Kate so much is that she doesn't ditch her family for her boyfriend. She's very honest with her sister, and Georgia even helps her solve some of the supernatural problems she's dealing with.

Jules and Ambrose were extremely flirtatious, and they add a lot of comic relief to this book. Oh man, can they please be real?!

The setting of this book is absolutely gorgeous and I would like to go to Paris immediately. I love the romance and the characters and the action and the plot and the bad guys and...

OMG THE ENDING!!!! Wow. Let's just say I am BEYOND excited for the third (and final!) book.

-Rachel

Hey everyone! It's Megan. So I finished this book like a day or two after Rachel. I agree with everything that she said above. This book blew all of my expectations completely out of the water. All of the relationships between the characters developed really well in this book. I love Jules and Ambrose, the sister relationship between Kate and Georgia. It was a nice change that she didn't lock herself away from her family. Kate actually confides in her sister.

Plus, the Parisian setting is completely amazing. It drags me in whenever I read these books! The characters are awesome, and the ENDING. I don't even....JUST WOW. ALL OF THE FEELINGS.  I don't know what is going to happen in the next book, and it's scary!! I can't wait for book three!!

-Megan

Rachel Rambles About The List

The List by Siobhan Vivian
From Goodreads:

An intense look at the rules of high school attraction -- and the price that's paid for them.

It happens every year. A list is posted, and one girl from each grade is chosen as the prettiest, and another is chosen as the ugliest. Nobody knows who makes the list. It almost doesn't matter. The damage is done the minute it goes up.

This is the story of eight girls, freshman to senior, "pretty" and "ugly." And it's also the story of how we see ourselves, and how other people see us, and the tangled connection of the two.

This book is told from the perspectives of eight different girls. EIGHT. That's a lot of narrators! And potentially, eight narrators could end really terribly. It could be confusing or there could be no character development and it could take away from the story. But that is not the case with this book. 

Siobhan Vivian manages to make each girl a character of many layers. Each girl stands out. Each girl is wildly different from the rest of the girls. And the constantly switching points of view is not confusing at all.


The book centers around a list posted at a high school, with the names of the ugliest girl in each grade and the prettiest. Hundreds of copies of this list are printed and passed around school.


Which is disgusting. This kind of crap actually happens in high schools. There were certain parts of this book that literally made me sick to my stomach at the way people treat each other. It turns me into a giant squid of anger and I just want to run around screaming WHHHHYYY!?!?!?!? No one should have to deal with anything as cruel as a list like this. 

The list was a really good way to explore what teenage girls deal with on a daily basis. Between problems with body-image and friends and boys and school work, everyone is struggling with something, whether you're pretty or ugly, popular or not popular.

This is the kind of book that I want to shove into the hands of every high-schooler and make them read it immediately. BECAUSE THIS KIND OF STUFF HAPPENS EVERYDAY. (I'm sorry. I'm having a really hard time not ranting right now.)


Anyway, I'm really glad I read this book. All teenage girls should read this. The List deals with many difficult topics that high schoolers struggle with on a daily basis, while still managing to be an interesting and entertaining story. I'm seriously considering buying hundreds of copies of this book and shoving into the hands of random people at school. 


-Rachel

Rachel and Megan Ramble About Insurgent

Insurgent by Veronica Roth
From Goodreads:

One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves—and herself—while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.

Tris's initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable—and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must fully embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so.

New York Times bestselling author Veronica Roth's much-anticipated second book of the dystopian Divergent series is another intoxicating thrill ride of a story, rich with hallmark twists, heartbreaks, romance, and powerful insights about human nature.

Rachel: Oh. My. God. This. Book. Holy. Wow. Divergent is one of the best books ever, so obviously I have been super excited for the next installment. I didn't think things could get any better in Insurgent. I thought Divergent had set the bar too high for any other book to possibly live up to it. Yeah...no. I LOVE LOVE LOVE Divergent, so I'd probably rate it about a million stars. And Insurgent? A BILLION STARS. This is the first book in a really really long time to completely and crazily exceed my super high expectations. 

Megan: OH MY GOD YES! There aren't words for how good this book is! I love when I feel like I'm literally getting sucked into a book, and that's how this one was every single time I opened it. I love the world Veronica Roth created in Divergent, because sadly, I can kind of see it actually happening sometime in the future. Cause, you know, people are stupid. Plus, how can you NOT love Tobias?? OHMYGODHE'SSOHOTAHHH Yeah, okay so I'm a BIT obsessed with him. No big deal! But he's totally mine. *HUGS* *glares at everyone else*

Rachel: WOAHWOAHWOAHWOAH. We will SHARE Tobias/Four (I swear, he goes by two names just to confuse me). Because I love him too. Also, I believe we should probably say something intelligent about the book. So, um. Okay. One of the things I really love about Insurgent is the relationship between Tris and Tobias. They are never overly sappy or romantic, and they somehow manage to always remain logical and smart about their feelings for each other. They have a lot of issues in this book, which is completely natural considering the state of the world they're living in. But they were never all, "WELL LOVE CONQUERS ALL SO WE'RE GOING TO BE TOGETHER FOR EVER AND EVER AND EVERYTHING WILL BE PERFECT". And even when they were fighting and tense around each other, they never acted like, "WELL I HATE YOU NEVER SPEAK TO ME AGAIN I WANT NOTHING TO DO WITH YOU". They are always totally realistic about everything, which is so refreshing and wonderful.

Megan: I know! It was so refreshing to see a couple who could fight and have arguments, but then turn around and be civil to each other at the same time. They didn't drag everyone around them into their problems by refusing to speak to each other. Plus, I love Tris. She is so completely bad ass!! But at the same time, she's human. In this book, she has to go through SO MUCH. When that happens with characters, there is a very fine line between them being crazy overemotional and annoying, being normal, and being so stone cold that you wonder how an actual person could react to their situation like that. Veronica Roth got that PERFECTLY. Tris goes through ALL OF THIS CRAP ALL AT ONCE, and, ready for this? She. Isn't. Okay. She has issues, and problems, but it made the book SO much more REAL that way. And she still managed to be incredibly brave, strong, and kick ass while losing it a little bit on the inside. I kind of wish I was her.

Rachel: YES. I really have nothing else to add to that. I mean, Tris is a badass and I love her so much. TOPIC CHANGE: I loved seeing more of the different factions in this novel, especially Amity. Each faction was so drastically different from the others, and it was really interesting seeing what life was like in each faction.

Megan: ooh YES!  I loved seeing all of the different sides of the factions and how they're all connected. It was also really cool how Tris was constantly learning from each individual faction and there was something new to learn in each one. There's a bad and good side to each faction, and you really got to see that in this book.

Rachel: *scrolls up* I think we've covered pretty much everything. So if you're one of the three people in the world who has not yet read Divergent...PLEASE VISIT YOUR DOCTOR IMMEDIATELY. If you have read Divergent, you are awesome and we should be best friends. Please feel free to start fangirling Veronica Roth in the comments. I would be happy to join you. Also, you should probably just drop everything and start reading Insurgent RIGHT THIS MINUTE. Because it is absolutely amazing.

Megan: Yes! Yes it is! It might even be better than Divergent! (crazy right??) And oh the ending. I did NOT see that coming, and there was much staring at the ceiling and demanding, "WHAT. JUST. HAPPENED." So basically you should read this book like NOW.

Rachel: We hope you enjoyed our rambling! :) Have you read Divergent or Insurgent? What did you think? Let us know in the comments! (But no spoilers, please!)

Oh and by the way, LOOK HOW DAUNTLESS I AM: 

 

It occurs to me now that I'm in a pretty awkward position. But I was trying to balance my phone on a box of tissues and get the clothes and the hair and everything in the shot and also I am a teenage girl so I have to take a gazillion pictures just to find one I'm satisfied with so...whatever. I did my best. 

I'd choose Dauntless not because I'm brave or anything (hahahhahahaha no), but because I love the whole idea of overcoming fear and also wearing black and getting tattoos and dying hair cool colors and throwing knives. Sounds fun, right? :D

Okay so this picture is also in an awkward position. But I also had the same problems as Rachel. Also, the necklace Tahereh Mafi gave me! Woohoo!

Megan: So as cool as I think dying my hair weird colors and wearing black is, I dressed up as someone from Erudite! Why? Well, I'm a nerd, so if you think about it it kind of makes sense. 

If I had to actually choose a faction, I would probably choose either Dauntless or Erudite. I'm not particularly brave, but being Dauntless seems fun, and I think I could learn to get over my fears. Plus I'd get the bonus of not getting weird looks when I wear all black. I could also probably pull of Erudite though. 

We completely fail at taking pictures.

 Anyway.

What faction would YOU choose?

Rachel and Megan Ramble About To Kill a Mockingbird

To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
From Goodreads: The unforgettable novel of a childhood in a sleepy Southern town and the crisis of conscience that rocked it, To Kill A Mockingbird became both an instant bestseller and a critical success when it was first published in 1960. It went on to win the Pulitzer Prize in 1961 and was later made into an Academy Award-winning film, also a classic.

Compassionate, dramatic, and deeply moving, To Kill A Mockingbird takes readers to the roots of human behavior - to innocence and experience, kindness and cruelty, love and hatred, humor and pathos. Now with over 18 million copies in print and translated into forty languages, this regional story by a young Alabama woman claims universal appeal. Harper Lee always considered her book to be a simple love story. Today it is regarded as a masterpiece of American literature.

Rachel: So I read a book for school. And one way to make me hate a book is to force me to read it, which is why I usually have mixed feelings about said book. The book Megan and I read in our ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL Freshman English class is To Kill A Mockingbird. We have varying opinions of this novel, so we're going to analyze the hell out of our feelings and things in a completely unprofessional way that has nothing to do with essays or assignments or school or anything.

Megan: YES. Personally I think our English class should be like this anyway. Just express our feelings in completely irrational ways without essays and all of that crap. Because all of that ruins books for me. I really hate when we're reading a book and my teacher keeps saying, "Look! Similie! Metaphor! Great Figurative Language!" I'm pretty sure you aren't supposed to read books like that. BUT ANYWAY. Enough about the suckishness of school. On to the book! It's one of the first books I think you and I have ever disagreed on!

Rachel: It seems you have no appreciation for Good American Literature. I really liked this book. The whole part about it being written from a second-grader's point of view was definitely weird at first, but I grew to love Scout as a main character. And all the history! And the life lessons! I feel so smart after reading this book. Also: ATTICUS IS MY FAVORITE CHARACTER. HE IS SO AWESOME.

Megan: I liked Atticus a lot! I didn't hate this book, there were definitely some things that annoyed me though. In the beginning Scout's voice was hard to follow because she tried to explain everything at once. But I did get used to it by the end of the book. I did also like the lessons that Atticus taught Scout throughout the book, and they were really relevant to the story and time period. I liked the second half of the book much better though. The first half was rough for me to get through.

Rachel: Yeah, I mean the book was definitely boring at times. Because, you know, it's an English Class Book, with Hidden Meanings That The Author May Or May Not Have Even Meant that we have to discuss at length and whatever. Naturally, these kind of books aren't always exciting. But once it got to the trial, everything was so interesting and I couldn't put the book down.

Megan: Yeah I liked that part much better than the beginning. The whole trial was really interesting and I liked that you found out all of these hidden things about the characters in the second half of the book. This was one of those books that you really had to get past the beginning in order to start to like it. I thought the ending was pretty good too, and it was surprising.

Rachel: Oh, Boo Radley! *hugs* (On a side note, I think we can definitely use this conversation for some kind of essay/project/assignment thing in school.)

Megan: I loved Boo! I felt bad for him throughout the whole book. I'm a big believer in the Leave the Poor Guy Alone He Just Wants A Friend thing. (Also I think this is a brilliant idea. Our teachers would be so proud)

Rachel: Oh and Jem? I am really not a fan of him. In fact, I hate him. SORRY JEM! This isn't necessarily a bad thing, because obviously I'm having strong feelings about the characters, which is good. But seriously. What an obnoxious and annoying boy. I mean, he has some redeeming moments, but for the most part he just annoys me.

Megan: Hahaha oh I know! He was just so annoying. He spent the entire book like "oh I'm too good to hang out with my little sister. I'm a MAN now so I know best!" Idk I just didn't like him at all. I did like Miss Maudie though, even if I couldn't keep all of the neighbors straight.

Rachel: I know. There were A LOT of characters in this book that were really hard to keep track of. I just want to point out again that ATTICUS IS MY FAVORITE CHARACTER. Seriously. He's the best ever.

Megan: *scrolls up* I feel like you said that already. *points* BUT OH WELL. He is really awesome! Also: Dill Harris. I love that kid.

Rachel: Hahaha, yeah. I wish I had a Dill when I was little. He's awesome.

Megan: He is like the ultimate best friend for a little kid.

Rachel: So in conclusion! Atticus is THE BEST EVER, Dill is pretty awesome too, Jem is annoying, we hate our English class, this book was pretty good. Were you forced to read this in school too? Tell us all of your feelings about everything ever what you thought of To Kill A Mockingbird!