betweenshelves

[betweenshelves]

Playlist: Leah on the Offbeat

"Girls/Girls/Boys" by Panic! at the Disco / "Drumming Song" by Florence + the Machine / "Perfect Places" by Lorde / "Take a Walk" by Passion Pit / "Stubborn Love" by the Lumineers / "Helpless" by Phillipa Soo (Hamilton) / "Dive" by Ed Sheeran / "White Blank Page" by Mumford & Sons / "You Will Be Found" from Dear Evan Hansen / "Flaws" by Bastille

http://www.between-the-shelves.com/2018/05/character-playlist-leah-burke.html

[betweenshelves]

Playlist: Avengers

Because I'm so very excited about the new Avengers movie, Avengers: Infinity War, that's basically all that's on my mind this week. For example, all my Instagram posts this week will be comic book themed, and I'm going to try to fit in some comics reading. This also means that I'm going to theme my April playlist after the Avengers--though I'll probably fit in some songs in tribute to the other characters that will be in the movie (like the Guardians of the Galaxy). Without further ado, a playlist in tribute to Avengers: Infinity War.

"Shoot to Thrill" by AC/DC

"The Wolves" by Ben Howard

"Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" by Pentatonix

"Kill of the Night" by Gin Wigmore

"Pompeii" by Bastille

"We Come Running" by Youngblood Hawke

"Left Hand Free" by Alt-J

"The Chain" by Fleetwood Mac

"Helpless" by Sir Sly

"Not Giving In" by Rudimental

[betweenshelves]

Review: Modern Romance

The reason Aziz Ansari gives for writing this book is that he was looking everywhere for a modern book about dating, but couldn't find one. So this is where his book comes in! In Modern Romance, Ansari examines the ways that dating has changed over the years with the implementation of technology. His driving question was: since technology has theoretically made dating easier, why are so many people frustrated?

A lot of the points that Ansari brings up are interesting and valid. One of the sections I found most interesting was about the power behind texting conversations. Since texting is many people's main mode of communication, there are a lot of implications behind a variety of things in text messages, especially when it comes to time. How long do you wait before texting someone back? What does a wait to return a text mean when you're dating someone? Ansari examines all these questions, and I just found the communication patterns fascinating.

The book was a bit tainted, though, with the recent allegations that came out against Ansari. If you're someone that's seen Ansari's show, Master of None, he didn't seem like one of those people who would have these sorts of allegations come out about him. Even his comments about dating in his book seemed that way, so learning of his behavior on that date tainted the book slightly for me. The information he was presenting was still interesting, but perhaps I won't take some of his advice to heart.

Read more at: http://www.between-the-shelves.com/2018/04/review-modern-romance.html

[betweenshelves]

I have been told, sometimes, the most healing thing to do is remind ourselves over and over and over: Other people feel this too.

Andrea Gibson (via quotemadness)

[betweenshelves]

Review: Champion

June and Day thought that they had finally been able to work on an effective peace solution for the Republic and that all would be quiet. At least, until a new plague breaks out in the Colonies that they blame the Republic for. Now, the Republic is on the brink of war once again--and they don't have enough resources to win. The only thing that can save them is Day's brother, Eden, but Day isn't willing to give him up to the Republic once again. Will Day and June be able to save the Republic, or will it end in destruction?

Possibly the strongest book in the trilogy, there are new developments at every turn that Day and June have to navigate in order to save their country. But the complicated past of their country makes Day question whether saving the Republic is the right thing to do, or if they should just let it crumble and a new government take over. Lu raises some very valid questions within this ending that could apply to any country or government that is crumbling--and I think the characters within this society deal with it in a very realistic way.

Read more at: http://www.between-the-shelves.com/2018/03/review-champion.html

[betweenshelves]

Review: Prodigy

After the events in Legend, June and Day are now on the run from the Republic--and the Patriots might be their only way to survive. But trusting them might put them in even more danger, especially since the Patriots are willing to go to any length in order to bring down the Republic. Will June and Day go along with their most recent plan, or will they take a different path? The only thing that tripped me up about this installment was the pacing; at times, it felt slightly off to me. The pace overall didn't feel even, making the timeline included within the book slightly difficult to follow. But the end left room for the final book in the trilogy, and left enough open to make me want to read the final book. Overall, the characters made up for the flaws in the plot and the formatting still helped to build the voices of both June and Day.

Read more at: http://www.between-the-shelves.com/2018/03/review-prodigy.html

[betweenshelves]

Review: Legend

What was once the United States has now become the Republic, a country that's always fighting both inside and out. June is the Capitol's prodigy--groomed to be an important part of the government from the beginning. Day is the Capitol's most wanted criminal--stealing in order to help his family survive. When June's brother is murdered, Day is the one wanted for the crime. But as their paths cross, June begins to learn about the Republic she's always defended and the secrets that it is desperate to keep hidden.

Told in alternating points of view, we get two extremes from the Republic--one that has everything and one that has nothing. This helps to not give the reader a biased view of this society, giving the reader a clearer overall view of the new society. As someone who reads a lot of dystopian fiction, this book was able to utilize a different take on the post-apocalyptic future, and one that I'm interested in learning more about in the later novels. Read more at: http://www.between-the-shelves.com/2018/03/review-legend.html

[betweenshelves]

Representation Matters

The movie Love, Simon was released this past weekend, to an overwhelmingly positive reception. Not only did it receive 91% on Rotten Tomatoes, people took to Twitter, exclaiming how much they loved the movie. I was definitely one of these people--I read Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda awhile ago, and this movie definitely did it justice (from what I can remember. A re-read of the book is now a must). The importance of this is tenfold, and this is something you can see just through searching the tag #LoveSimon on Twitter. Both adults and teens alike can't stop talking about how much they loved this movie--the adults wishing that this was a movie that they had when they were teenagers. As a first major studio gay teen rom-com (that made $11.5 million in its first weekend!), it's on par with the profit of John Green movies in the theater. And that's amazing, for a lot of people. Jeff Zentner, another fantastic YA author, put it best after seeing the movie: "We just saw Love, Simon, and it was beyond perfect. I loved everything about it. The performances were pitch perfect, so deeply sympathetic and hilarious. The movie was perfectly cast (1/5). The musical cues were amazing. The comic beats killed me. The romantic beats killed me. Imagine the best of John Hughes and then turn everything up two or three clicks. Go see this movie!! And read the book!! It's just as delightful (2/5)!! I forgot to mention how deeply moving it is. It's cliche to say something will make you laugh and cry, but it really will (3/5). One more thing that kept running through my head while watching it: evil people can win political elections and hold power. But while they do... (4/5). our country's center of gravity is going to keep shifting out from under them, because good people are better at telling good stories. And stories shift our culture (5/5)." The shift toward giving voices to oppressed populations is easily seen within one of my favorite things--young adult literature. Love, Simon has shown that it's possible for these stories to make it to the big screen and be successful. Go see Love, Simon--and then buy the book. And while you're reading the book, listen to the playlist I made for Simon! Maybe download the soundtrack for the movie too, because it also doesn't disappoint.

Read all my thoughts on the movie at: http://www.between-the-shelves.com/2018/03/representation-matters.html

[betweenshelves]

A Playlist for Simon Spier

"The Biggest Lie" by Elliott Smith

"Closer" by Tegan & Sara

"Electric Love" by BØRNS

"Bloom" by The Paper Kites

"Love Me" by The 1975

"Always" by Panic! At the Disco

"True Love Waits" by Radiohead

"Until We Get There" by Lucius

"First Time He Kissed a Boy" by Kadie Elder

"Like Gold" by Vance Joy

[betweenshelves]

Harry Potter Poster Series - Created by Simon Fairhurst

Prints available for purchase at the artist’s Etsy Shop.

[betweenshelves]

Review: March

"Fury spends itself pretty quickly when there's no fury facing it."-John Lewis, March

A graphic memoir was a really effective way to tell this story, as the images really help to portray the significance of the Civil Rights Movement. Utilizing the Obama's inauguration also put into perspective all the work this movement did--and, in a current context, all the work it still needs to do.

If nothing else, these books show that young people have the power to create change. Many of the first participants in the Civil Rights Movement were college students, and their fight created the change they wanted to see. It reminded me of the high school students arranging a march for stricter gun control; marches were partly how the Civil Rights Movement gained momentum as well.

Read more: http://www.between-the-shelves.com/2018/03/review-march.html

[betweenshelves]

[betweenshelves]

Potterheads, this is for you!

[betweenshelves]

Review: This Darkness Mine

“All imperfections glare in the spotlight.” -Mindy McGinnis, This Darkness Mine

For all appearances, Sasha Stone’s life is perfect: she’s first chair clarinet, at the top of her class, and has a loyal boyfriend. Her path to Oberlin is still in place, at least until Isaac Harver comes into her life. When she’s around him, she’s trouble; when she learns that she absorbed her twin in her mother’s womb, she’s convinced it’s her sister’s heart that’s in love with him. Sasha quickly begins to lose control on the perfect life that she had–will she be able to get it back? 

Mindy McGinnis also wrote Female of the Species, which I absolutely loved, but this book was very different from that, for me. While the writing is strong and well-done, the overall effect of this book is odd, which you can definitely see by looking at the other reviews. 

The plot of this book is twisty and shocking, and the less you know about it, the better. There were parts, however, where I went back a few pages to re-read, because I thought: “did that really happen?” Every time, it did. It made the plot confusing at times, because some of the twists were jarring, but this didn’t take away from the quality of the writing. The writing is extremely well done, I just didn’t connect with the characters or the plot, taking away much of my connection to the narrative. 

Overall, if you’re looking for something weird, dark, and shocking, this book would probably be for you. For me, it’s probably not something I’ll ever revisit. 

Read more at: http://www.between-the-shelves.com/2018/02/review-this-darkness-mine.html

3/5 stars

[betweenshelves]

Review: The Diabolic

“A Diabolic is ruthless. A Diabolic is powerful. A Diabolic has a single task: Kill in order to protect the person you’ve been created for.” -S.J. Kincaid, The Diabolic

Nemesis was created to protect the daughter of a Senator: Sidonia. Sidonia is the reason for Nemesis’s whole existence. Now, in order to keep protecting her, Nemesis must become Sidonia and take her place in the palace of the Emperor. Her time in the court shows Nemesis how broken their society has become, as well as one thing never would have ever believed: there’s more humanity in her than she could possibly know. 

There’s a lot of violence in this book that seemed to turn people off, but I thought it fit for the world that Kincaid has created. The opening scene shows Nemesis killing someone in order to show her worth to the family that wants to buy her. She’s been engineered to kill in order to protect the person that she’s connected to. The violence makes sense, in a world run by a family that literally kills each other to stay in power. Since this was originally intended as a standalone novel, the many deaths in the novel absolutely make sense. I’m curious to see where the story is taken in the second book.

Overall, I thought the action and character development were well balanced here, and Nemesis’s voice remained steady throughout the novel. She never wavered from who her character, despite learning new things about herself throughout the text. 

4/5 stars

Read more at: http://www.between-the-shelves.com/2018/02/review-diabolic.html

[betweenshelves]

Review: Watchmen

“All we ever see of stars are their old photographs.” -Alan Moore, Watchmen

Superheroes have been banned from the US, forced to go back to their lives as civilians. But a killer starts to stalk those who have previously lived lives as vigilantes; and Rorschach is determined to find them. As he tries to unravel the mystery behind the killer, the lives of other superheroes are brought to light. 

This is a layered narrative that absolutely deserves all the praise that it gets. All of the layers work together in order to give you the full picture of the characters, and of the desperate situations that they’re facing. The influence of the narrative is absolutely apparent, given that the book itself was written in the 80s. We owe a lot to Watchmen, especially if you’re an avid graphic novel reader. 

As an exploration of the superhero genre, much of the story is dark and doesn’t include much hope. All of the characters are psychologically complex, and none of them can be labeled as completely good. Adding all the elements together, the narrative is complex and it’s clear why this graphic novel is studied so much more than all the others. 

Read more at: http://www.between-the-shelves.com/2018/02/review-watchmen.html

5/5 stars

[betweenshelves]

Review: Spill Zone

“People think there’s something hidden in the Spill, fairies in those wisps of light. They’re wrong…The Spill Zone shows everything.” -Scott Westerfeld, Spill Zone

No one really knows how the Spill came about. Since no one can figure out its origins, only government scientists are allowed inside. But Addison knows how to get in, and she uses the images she creates to her advantage. It’s the only way she can support herself and her little sister. She’s desperate to find out what happened the night the Spill Zone was created. 

On its own, I don’t feel like much happens in this volume. You’re introduced to Addison’s world, and introduced to future conflicts, but that’s pretty much it. I was frustrated with the lack of explanation we got in this volume, explanation that I know will probably come later. There wasn’t much wow here for me, but there is enough interest for me to pick up the next book and see where it goes. Overall, there were too many threads that weren’t tied up here, and while I’m usually a fan of that, this felt too incomplete to me. 

Read more at: http://www.between-the-shelves.com/2018/02/review-spill-zone.html

3/5 stars