Exit, Pursued by a Bear by E.K. Johnston

Title: Exit, Pursued by a Bear
Author: E.K. Johnston
Publisher: Dutton Books for Young Readers
Release Date: March 15th 2016

Source:Library

Summary from Goodreads:

“I love you,” Polly says suddenly when I’m almost to the door.

“I know,” I say.

Hermione Winters has been a flyer. She’s been captain of her cheerleading team. The envied girlfriend and the undisputed queen of her school. Now it’s her last year and those days and those labels are fading fast. In a few months she’ll be a different person. She thinks she’s ready for whatever comes next.

But then someone puts something in her drink at a party, and in an instant she finds herself wearing new labels, ones she never imagined:

Victim. Survivor. That raped girl.

Even though this was never the future she imagined, one essential thing remains unchanged: Hermione can still call herself Polly Olivier’s best friend, and that may be the truest label of all.

Heartbreaking and empowering, Exit, Pursued by a Bear is the story of transcendent friendship in the face of trauma.

“I love you,” I say, because I really, really do.

“I know,” says Polly.

Review

If I were to describe this book in one word it would be friendship.  The friendship between the main character Hermione and her best friend Polly is the friendship most people strive for.  It is a friendship that never fails and is there through every good thing and every terrible thing.  The relationship between these two girls is one to be cherished and it makes for a truly heart-warming read.

Hermione needs her friends and family after her traumatic life event.  The author does an incredible job of not shying away from the hard words and tough situations that follow Hermione's rape.  The emotions felt honest and while at times, passages were hard to read they felt real.  I thought I had parts of the story predicated but was proved wrong.

This book will not be for everyone has it deals with some tough issues but it is well worth the read.  Exit, Pursued by a Bear is a book about a girl that is drugged and raped but survives with the help of family, friends, and cheer leading.  The story will pull you in and hold on to your heart strings until the very last page.

Belzhar by Meg Wolitzer

Title:Belzhar
Author: Meg Wolitzer
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Release Date:September 30th 2014
Source: BEA 2014 & Library

Summary from Goodreads:
If life were fair, Jam Gallahue would still be at home in New Jersey with her sweet British boyfriend, Reeve Maxfield. She’d be watching old comedy sketches with him. She’d be kissing him in the library stacks.

She certainly wouldn’t be at The Wooden Barn, a therapeutic boarding school in rural Vermont, living with a weird roommate, and signed up for an exclusive, mysterious class called Special Topics in English.

But life isn’t fair, and Reeve Maxfield is dead.

Until a journal-writing assignment leads Jam to Belzhar, where the untainted past is restored, and Jam can feel Reeve’s arms around her once again. But there are hidden truths on Jam’s path to reclaim her loss.

From New York Times bestselling author Meg Wolitzer comes a breathtaking and surprising story about first love, deep sorrow, and the power of acceptance.

Review

I am not going to lie, I really did not really know the summary going into this book; I saw that the library had it in audio format and so I figured I would give it a try.  The narrator just drew me in right away and held me captive through the whole story. I think if it was not for the narrator I may have not enjoyed the book as much. As I write this review I am trying to think what genre/category this book fit into.  It is a contemporary issues book at heart but then there is magic weaved into the story, not your wizards kind of magic either.  The magic here is far more subtle.

What hooked me was the setting and the entire premise.  An alternate school that caters to students that have faced something and are a bit scarred emotionally or socially and unable to be in a more traditional high school environment.  The story revolves around each student in the Special Topics English class; each student has to face their struggles with the help of their classmates and journals.
I really enjoyed the character development and friendship building.  The students really learned to trust one another and confide in each other.  It is a short book,so it goes by very quickly.  

Why just 3 stars though... The main character. She just got on my nerves and I found her to be more annoying as the book progressed.  Her voice was immature and whiny.  The longer I sat here and thought about the book the more a small things started to bug me.  I did not care for the big twist in the plot which really weakened the overall story for me.  

The best way to describe this book is interesting.  Belzhar tried to tackle some issues while blending magical elements and deep character development.  It works out in some aspects of the plot but not in others.

Atlantia by Ally Condie

Title:Atlantia
Author: Ally Condie
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Release Date:October 28th 2014
Pages: Hardcover, 298 pages
Source: Library

Summary from Goodreads:
Can you hear Atlantia breathing?

For as long as she can remember, Rio has dreamt of the sand and sky Above—of life beyond her underwater city of Atlantia. But in a single moment, all her plans for the future are thwarted when her twin sister, Bay, makes an unexpected decision, stranding Rio Below. Alone, ripped away from the last person who knew Rio’s true self—and the powerful siren voice she has long hidden—she has nothing left to lose.

Guided by a dangerous and unlikely mentor, Rio formulates a plan that leads to increasingly treacherous questions about her mother’s death, her own destiny, and the complex system constructed to govern the divide between land and sea. Her life and her city depend on Rio to listen to the voices of the past and to speak long-hidden truths.

Review

I have not read any of Ally Condie's other work; there are quite a number of mixed reviews so I have stayed away but Atlantia peeked my interest so I thought I would give it a try.  Atlantia was not for me.  By a quarter of the way in, I was already struggling and starting to really lose interest in the characters.  I actually decided to listen to the audiobook since the narrator is the same person that reads The Lunar Chronicles which are FANTASTIC audio books.  Even her awesome narration could not save the book for me.

The world building was rough, there is the below where most of the story takes place and the above is the mysterious, desirable place. (A bit like Little Mermaid) Though the details of how exactly they were living underwater, walking/swimming I seemed to have read right over them or they were not there because I could barely visualize the below.  On top of the rough world building, you have predictable characters.  The lack of originality in some of the plot points just had me losing more and more interest as the story progressed.  The pacing was slow and boring until the last couple chapters which then brought on more predictable scenes.

Unfortunately, Atlantia's promise of a unique underwater world full of sirens and politics just fell incredibly flat for me.  The world, the characters, the supernatural aspects, and even the love story were just mediocre and boring at times. 

Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins (with San Fran Photos!)

Title: Lola and the Boy Next Door
Series: Anna and the French Kiss #2
Author: Stephanie Perkins
Publisher: Dutton Books
Release Date: September 29, 2011
Pages: 338
Source: Library, Audiobook

Summary from Goodreads:
Budding designer Lola Nolan doesn’t believe in fashion...she believes in costume. The more expressive the outfit--more sparkly, more fun, more wild--the better. But even though Lola’s style is outrageous, she’s a devoted daughter and friend with some big plans for the future. And everything is pretty perfect (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the dreaded Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket, return to the neighborhood.

When Cricket--a gifted inventor--steps out from his twin sister’s shadow and back into Lola’s life, she must finally reconcile a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door.

Review

I am completely smitten with this book. Lola and the Boy Next Door is FULL of personality. From Lola's costumes and her profound questions, to Cricket's eccentricities and his endearing awkwardness, to Calliope's ice-skating career and Max's rock band, to Lola's two amazing dads and the San Francisco backdrop, to costars Anna and Etienne! I loved every minute of it and found this book to be incredibly memorable and completely satisfying. 

Lola and Cricket were adorable together and I loved going on this romantic journey with them, even if, admittedly, at times I just wanted them to be together already (!!!!!). But this book was about so much more than just the two of them. Lola and Cricket each had their fair share of family drama going on that we watch unfold - Lola's train wreck of a mom showing back up, Calliope's ice skating prospects taking a huge toll on Cricket's family, and more. And Lola had some boyfriend Max drama as well. But no matter what tough situation Lola and Cricket found themselves in I thought they handled themselves remarkably well and some important lessons can be learned. 

I don't know why I waited so long to read this book and I only finally read it because I was going to San Francisco and wanted to read it before my trip. But don't make the same mistake I did and wait! Lola and the Boy Next Door is one of the most original contemporary books I have ever read and believe it or not, I loved this one more than Anna and the French Kiss. 

And in the spirit of this book, I wanted to share some of my San Francisco pictures, some pictures are of places that Lola visits in the book and others that are just iconic San Francisco pictures. PS, this is my new favorite city in the US.