I'm Still Reading (and Blogging)!

Hello all! It's been a slow reading month for me and I haven't really read anything worth blogging about, but not to worry, I'll be back on schedule as soon as I have something interesting to share. =) In the meantime, feel free to recommend books for me and/or send me your reviews of what you're reading!

The Other 50!

Here's the list of the second half of the 100 books I read this year! For the first half, click this link: http://inexhaustiblesourceofmagic.blogspot.com/2012/09/the-first-50.html. If you are interested in more information or my opinion on any of these books, just ask! The ones that I reviewed on this blog are click-able links, in case you missed that particular review. Happy reading. =)

51. 9/7 Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott 5/5 stars
52. 9/8 Go Ask Alice by Anonymous 5/5 stars
53. 9/12 The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman 4/5 stars
54. 9/12 Forever... by Judy Blume 5/5 stars
55. 9/15 Black Duck by Janet Taylor Lisle 5/5 stars
56. 9/17 Dark Places by Gillian Flynn 5/5 stars
57. 9/20 Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson 5/5 stars
58. 9/24 Keesha's House by Helen Frost 4/5 stars
59. 9/25 Stolen by Lucy Christopher 5/5 stars
60. 9/28 The Rag and Bone Shop by Robert Cormier
61. 10/1 The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie 4/5 stars
62. 10/4 Dare Me by Megan Abbott 5/5 stars
63. 10/9 American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang 4/5 stars
64. 10/10 Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen 4/5 stars
65. 10/11 The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier 5/5 stars
66. 10/22 Zoo by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge 5/5 stars
67. 10/22 Anatomy of a Boyfriend by Daria Snadowsky 4/5 stars
68. 10/31 Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi 4/5 stars
69. 11/1 Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury 4/5 stars
70. 11/5 Every Day by David Levithan 5/5 stars
71. 11/6 A Tale Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz 5/5 stars
72. 11/15 Impulse by Ellen Hopkins 5/5 stars
73. 11/17 The Wave by Todd Strasser 5/5 stars
74. 11/19 Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret by Judy Blume 4/5 stars
75. 11/28 The Maze Runner by James Dashner 5/5 stars
76. 11/30 Mississippi Trial, 1955 by Chris Crowe 5/5 stars
77. 12/2 The Pregnancy Project by Gaby Rodriguez 4/5 stars
78. 12/7 Kill Alex Cross by James Patterson (an Alex Cross novel) 5/5 stars
79. 12/13 Into the Darkest Corner by Elizabeth Haynes 5/5 stars
80. 12/18 Boy Toy by Barry Lyga 5/5 stars
81. 12/20 The Giver  by Lois Lowry 5/5 stars
82. 12/26 Change of Heart by Jodi Picoult 5/5 stars
83. 12/28 My Point...And I Do Have One by Ellen DeGeneres 4/5 stars
84. 1/7 An Adundance of Katherines by John Green 4/5 stars
85. 1/9 The Scorch Trials by James Dashner (The Maze Runner Trilogy Book 2) 5/5 stars
86. 1/12 Teach Me by R.A. Nelson 4/5 stars
87. 1/16 The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer 5/5 stars
88. 1/17 Matched by Allie Condie 5/5 stars
89. 1/25 Sloppy Firsts by Megan McCafferty 4/5 stars
90. 1/28 Frankenstein by Mary Shelley 4/5 stars
91. 2/1 How They Met, and other stories by David Levithan 5/5 stars
92. 2/4 The Death Cure by James Dashner (The Maze Runner trilogy Book 3) 5/5 stars
93. 2/12 Crossed by Ally Condie (Matched trilogy Book 2) 4/5 stars
94. 2/15 Merry Christmas, Alex Cross by James Patterson 4/5 stars
95. 2/16 Bury Me Deep by Megan Abbott 4/5 stars
96. 2/19 The Funny Thing Is... by Ellen DeGeneres 5/5 stars
97. 2/23 The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Leguin 2/5 stars
98. 2/23 Monster by Walter Dean Myers 5/5 stars
99. 2/26 Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson 5/5 stars
100.2/28 Shakespeare: The World as Stage by Bill Bryson 4/5 stars

Book #98: Monster, and Book #99: Speak

Book #98: Monster by Walter Dean Myers
5/5 stars
Book #99: Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
5/5 stars

I'm reviewing these two novels together because they are pretty closely related. Some of you may remember reading one or both of these novels in high school. I decided to revisit them, now a few years older, and I still love them just as much, maybe more.

Monster is the story of Steve Harmon, a 16-year-old African American boy on trial for murder. He claims not to have done it, but no one believes him, because plenty of people are testifying that he was involved as a lookout. He is on trial with a man who seems to definitely have been involved, which makes him look even worse. Steve, an aspiring filmmaker, writes Monster in screenplay format, with a few of his journals in between. It's a quick, fresh read, that will keep you questioning until the very end.

Speak is about a high school freshman named Melinda, who has a terrible secret that no one knows. Something happened at a summer party to make all of her old friends hate her. She begins high school alone, and quickly becomes a selective mute. The only thing that seems to help her cope is her art class. As the novel goes on, you learn her secret, and see the struggle that Melinda faces on a daily basis.

Both of these novels are considered modern Young Adult classics. They're two novels that are often taught in high school and actually loved by students. They deal with the struggles of two teens whose voices are being silenced, a feeling that many people, teen and adult, can probably identify with from one point in their lives. While these two novels are presented in different ways and deal with different struggles, both are deep and easily draw readers in. They're timeless YA novels that appeal to adults as well, and approach issues that aren't always acknowledged as much as they should be. If you haven't read these, give them a try. If you have, why not revisit an old friend? Happy reading. =)

What I'm reading now...

1. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams (sci fi)

2. Literacy and Longing in L.A. by Jennifer Kaufman and Karen Mack (fiction)