I can't believe I've never done this challenge before, as it's right up my alley. It's time for the 2013 Hub YA Reading Challenge. Many of these books are already on my TBR list. overflowing with booknerdy excitement!
From February 3 to June 22, read at least 25 of the 83 books from a list of eligible titles (all are award winners). A bonus challenge is to read all 83--that's my goal.
The prize? In addition to experiencing the best of contemporary YA lit, be entered to win a YALSA tote bag filled with YA books! Squeee!
I'll be starting with Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Cabin Fever by Jeff Kinney. Next up? The Fault in Our Stars by John Green.
Now excuse me, I have some reading to do, as I'm starting a week late...
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Cabin Fever is the sixth installment in the Wimpy Kid series.
Greg Hefley is desperately trying to stay on Santa's nice list, while also finding a way to keep his virtual pet happy and outfitted in the latest fashions (which requires real money). Of course, Greg's schemes don't turn out the way he intended and he is soon on the run from the law. Worse yet, a blizzard blows into town and (gasp!) traps him in the house with his mom and brothers. Which is worse? Greg isn't too sure.
My favorite quote from the book: “So I've started wearing sweatpants to bed because I really don't need Santa seeing me in my underwear.”
I can't wait to share this hilarious book with my students. They love the rest of the series and I'm sure this one will be a big hit as well.
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
I love John Green's writing and I marked lots of great lines as I read that I intended to use in my review. In the end, though, this simple and repeated exchange between Hazel and Augustus says it all.
"Okay?'
"Okay."
They meet at a cancer support group--Hazel is terminal, but her tumors are being kept at bay for the foreseeable future and Augustus is in remission, but missing a leg. As our protagonists fall in love, awkwardly and sweetly, they know that their "forever" will be brief. After all, "[s]ome infinities are bigger than other infinities."
What I loved most about this beautiful, humorous, and heartbreaking story is how real the love story and the friendships feel. Hazel and Augustus fear that their lives will be meaningless, that they will be forgotten when they die. What each finds in the other is a glimpse of what their lives have meant to another. Just like in our real, everyday lives, these ordinary characters find the extraordinary in each other. And that's what love is.
"Okay?"
"Okay."
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
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