Mama Reads

Starting with I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have to Kill You, Ally Carter’s Gallagher Girls Series is fun, escapist fiction that will thrill the hearts of teen girls everywhere.  Cammie Morgan attends the prestigious Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women, an all-girls private school.   What the outside world does not know is that the Gallagher Academy is really a school for spies.  With classes such as covert operations and advanced encryption and having to speak one of 14 different languages every night at dinner, the students at Gallagher are ready for anything except what to do if a boy likes you.  I personally would prefer a little more spy stuff, but your typical teen would probably find the mix just about right.  The first book is mostly a stand-alone but the author does start to develop a little deeper story arc as the series progresses.  I’m always up for some “comfort food” reading so I will be checking out book #4 when it comes out this summer!

I’ve discovered something fun over at Booking Mama –  The Shelf Discovery Challenge.

 Grap a copy of Shelf Discovery: The Teen Classics We Never Stopped Reading by Lizzie Skurnick and join the challenge. Reminisce about your favorite reads from younger years and read the essays by some fabulous authors about their favorites.  

Then, head over to Booking Mama where:  “The Shelf Discovery Challenge will run for six months (November 1, 2009 – April 30, 2010). To join me in this challenge, all you need to do is grab a copy of SHELF DISCOVERY and pick out what six books you want to read (of course, you can read more than six!) Then, after you read a book, just write a “book report” to share your thoughts with others! ”

I am so excited!  As soon as I get my copy I will pick my 6 books and post them here.  What are your choices?

Just finished reading Catching Fire (The Second Book of the Hunger Games)
for book club. A quick, easy read that like the first one, leaves you wanting more! Katniss, our heroine from the first book, is just as compelling and like all teenagers, just as confused. As a winning “tribute” she should have been set for life, but finds herself sucked into a political movement and, as punishment, into the next Hunger Games. Unlike a lot of middle books in a trilogy, this one is not just a placeholder to move the story along but compelling in it’s own right. 5 stars!

I love the post-apocalyptic genre so here are some other recommendations!

Dies the Fire: A Novel of the Change
A flash, and the world no longer has electronics or explosives, throwing us back to an era of swords and heroes.

The Postman (Bantam Classics)
Classic collapse of civilization. Forget the movie. Great for book club discussions.

The Stand: Expanded Edition: For the First Time Complete and Uncut (Signet)
I know, I know, but again, forget the TV movie. While I think the last 1/4 of the book falls short, the first part is fabulous. People forget that King is actually a good writer most of the time and dismiss him because of the subject matter.

The Road (Movie Tie-in Edition 2008 of the 2006 publication)
Now to preface, I hate the way McCarthy writes. He just doesn’t do it for me. I’ve tried to read All the Pretty Horses 3 times and just can’t do it. I can however, recognize that while not my style, this is a good read. Very dark though…

Parable of the Sower
Vastly underappreciated author! Isn’t it strange how in so many post-apocalyptic stories all the survivors are in Oregon?

That’s probably enough for now but I will leave you with one last thing… I Am Legend (Widescreen Two-Disc Special Edition)
I have not read the book but this movie was so good I actually forgot it was Will Smith. (weak ending but you can’t have everything!

Terrier (The Legend of Beka Cooper, Book 1)

I like Tamora Pierce. She writes wonderfully strong-willed female characters. That being said, the Beka Cooper series is my favorite of all. Pierce has really come into her own, adding strong writing to her already strong plots and characters. Terrier takes place in her familiar kingdom of Tortall but preceding the other series set in the same locale. Beka is actually the great-great-great-grandmother of Aliane of the Trickster series. Beka lives in the lower city and is training with the provost’s guard, essentially she is a cop. This book covers her first year of traning and is told as Beka’s diary. A must read for fantasy lovers and suitable for age 13 and up.