Everwild

Throughout writing this blog, I have realized something:  each book is very unique from another and that is what makes reading them so wonderful.  Because of this, I have decided that I am going to try out a new reviewing format.  Each books is unique, so I do not think the reviews should be so structured.  Let me know in the comments if you like this format or if I should continue with how I was writing reviews before.  Thanks for reading my blog!

General Analysis

Book Title: Everwild (second book of the Skinjacker Trilogy)

Author: Neal Shusterman

Publish Date: November 1, 2009

Genre: Young Adult Paranormal Fantasy

Plot:  The Chocolate Ogre wants to help those that are stuck in Everlost reach their light.  Mary Hightower wants the population of Everlost to grow, not get smaller as the children in Everlost reach the light at the end of the tunnel.  Allie the Outcast continues to desire to travel to her home and find out what happened to her parents the day that she died.  Each meet exciting adventures along their way.  Will these three meet up again, or will they live in separate areas of Everlost?

Overall Thoughts: I absolutely LOVED this book.  Neal Shusterman never ceases to amaze me with the originality that he puts into each one of his books.  The story was full of plot twists.  In this book, we really get to know the characters that we have come to love from Everlost and learn to love them even more than we did before.

In Depth Analysis

Neal Shusterman is one of my favorite authors.  He really knows how to include action and suspense throughout his novels.  His characters are always changing (sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worst).  In Everwild, Shusterman really develops the personalities that we began to love in Everlost.  We really get to know each character.  Although the book is written in third person, Shusterman allows the reader a glimpse into the thoughts of each character which really connects the reader to the book.  

Even though I felt like I knew each character in the book, the characters contuinually did things that I did not expect.  This novel is filled with a lot of plot twists that Shusterman introduced oh so well.  The action and suspense were really bumped up in this novel, and it ended up being a much better novel than Everlost.  If this novel was a recipe, I would say it included a hand full of of action, a pot full of suspense, and the perfect amount of romance.  Everwild ended in a cliff hanger and I cannot wait to read the next novel in this amazing trilogy, Everfound.

Final Statements

Recommended Reading Age:  I would recommend this book to ages 12+.  The novel is a little bit dark.

Overall Rating:  5/5

Future Reviews and Reads

Of course, I cannot wait to read Everfound, but I am not sure when I can get my hands on a copy of it.  I do not think that my library has a copy of this book.

As always,  you can check out which books I am currently reading on the right side of my blog.  Additionally, I am always up for suggestions of books to read.  Please leave them in the comments.

A Review on the Volume 1 of Two Manga Series: Death Note and Kingdom Hearts

As you may or may not know, I am a huge fan of manga and graphic novels.  My favorite part about them is being able to see what the author envisioned for each of the scenes as he or she was writing.  I also like that they tend to be quicker reads than novels.  In the last week, I have started reading two manga series: Death Note and Kingdom Hearts.  Here is my review on the first volume of each of these manga series.

Death Note

General Analysis

Book Title: Death Note, Volume 1: Boredom

Author: Tsugumi Ohba

 Illustrator:  Takeshi Obata

Publish Date:  October 10, 2005 (United States)

Genre:  Young Adult Paranormal Fantasy

Plot:  A teenage boy, Light Yagami, finds the Death Note that a Shinigami dropped on Earth. The holder of the Death Note has the ability to kill anyone on earth as long as he knows their name and knows how they look.  Light decides that he wants to use the Death Note to rid the world of criminals and to make a utopia where everyone is no longer harmed by these criminals, but Light does not realize what he has gotten himself into when he starts to use the Death Note.

Overall Thoughts: I really enjoy this series so far.  The plot is very intense and the characters are believable.  The story is filled with action and suspense.

In Depth Analysis

Characters:  The characters are really believable.  They have a depth to them that is rarely seen in manga.

Writing Style:  The writing style for this manga is amazing.  The plot is very well thought out and very intricate.  As soon as you feel you understand all the rules of the Death Note, another rule is sprung on you that changes the plot dramatically and keeps you on your toes.

Likes:  I love the plot and the development of both the plot and the characters.

Dislikes:  I do not like that this is such a dark read, but the plot is so enjoyable and so mind boggling that I continue to enjoy the story that is presented.

Final Statements

Recommended Reading Age:  Because of the dark nature in the manga series, I would recommend this to teenagers 16 and above.  There is not and cussing in this first volume, but the book is very violent.

Overall Rating: 5/5

Kingdom Hearts

General Analysis

Book Title: Kingdom Hearts, Volume 1

Author: Siro Amano

Publish Date: October 11, 2005 (United States)

Genre:  Young Adult Fantasy

Plot:  When a storm hits his island, fourteen-year-old Sora is swept into a mysterious land where he meets Court Wizard Donald and Captain Goofy, who are on a mission to find King Mickey and return him to his throne at Disney Castle.  (Taken from GoodReads because I could not think of a description due to the confusing nature of the plot).

Why I Read this Book:  I have played the video game and wanted to know more of the story behind the video game.

Overall Thoughts: The plot was very confusing and I did not understand what was going on most of the time.  I loved the idea of the story line, but how it was presented was lacking in quality.

In Depth Analysis

Characters:  Most of the characters we already know from Disney, but the author has put a good amount of originality to them while keeping the characters true to their nature.

Writing Style:  The writing style of this volume was were I thought the manga was lacking.  The beginning of this volume was very confusing and the story line was really hard to follow.  There were so many questions left unanswered.

Likes:  I love the idea of the plot in this series.  The way the author integrates the stories that we already know from Disney into a brand new story is very creative and original.  I love to speculate which story from Disney will integrate itself into the story line next.

Dislikes:  Writing style (see above)

Final Statements

Recommended Reading Age:  There does seem to be a dark nature to this series; therefore, I would recommend this book to ages 12 and older.  The darkness of the manga does not seem to be too overwhelmingly scary.

Overall Rating: 3/5

Future Reviews and Reads

I am continuing to read The Language of God by Francis S. Collins and Jesus Freaks by dc Talk.  They continue to be quite good.

I am also reading Everwild by Neal Shusterman, which is the second book in the series entitled Skinjacker.  It is much better than the first book, Everlost, which I also enjoyed.

I am also reading Harry Potter Page to Screen: The Complete Filmmaker's Journey which is very interesting.  I am learning os much about the filmmaking process.