Review: All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

Synopsis: Theodore Finch and Violet Markey are two teens who meet at the top of their school's bell tower. Both of them are there to look over the ledge and feel, for even just a moment, what it might be like to take the leap. When Violet teeters on the edge, scared to death of falling after realizing just how close to the edge she is, Finch helps her down and starts an unlikely friendship. The eclectic pair, both struggling with different mental illnesses, partner for a school project that leads them across the state of Indiana and into a relationship that will allow the two of them to express themselves in ways they never could before. While Violet begins to heal, though, Finch, despite his best efforts, teeters on the brink of losing control. Though their future may be up in the air, one thing is for sure: both of them have been changed forever.

       Review: Seeing as how I have heard this book compared to both Rowell's Eleanor and Park and Green's The Fault in Our Stars, I knew this would probably lead to some tears and heartache, both for the characters and for myself. Boy, did I assume correctly. 

       Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I had heard a lot of hype on booklr, booktube, etc., and it lived up to it. It's one of the better books that I've read recently. 

       Let's start with talking about my favorite character: Violet. I love this character for a multitude of reasons, but mostly, because I loved the fact that she starts off with two completely paradoxical characteristics: a fear of life and a fear of death. I feel like this is a very relatable thing for anyone who has gone through something traumatic (Violet was in a car accident with her sister earlier in the year) and/or has experienced the death of someone close (in Violet's case, her sister). At the beginning of the book, she is overwhelmed with grief, and it has paralyzed her into a very unhealthy place. So afraid of going back to normal and moving on, though, she doesn't feel like she can talk about her problems. She feels stuck in this place, that I feel many have probably been in, of just wanting to sit in her sorrow and not get better. 

       Then comes Finch with his blue eyes and his adventures and his ability to get her into a car for the first time in almost a year. Slowly, she begins to remember what it is like to live and to love and to remember the good times without holding the bad ones over everything. She remembers what it feels like to find value in herself instead of shame and guilt. This character development was probably my favorite throughout the entire book. She finds a way, even in the last heart-breaking pages of this book, to embrace the bad things in her life and make herself better because of them. 

       Finch.... Where do I start with this boy? He is.... lovely, maddening, beautiful, and annoying all at once. He is one of those characters that makes me want to open the book at the beginning and start back over, just to try and understand him better and to relate to him better. I had a hard time with Finch, in all honesty. I never quite knew what to make of him, and there were times when I just didn't understand why he was feeling or doing the things that he was, but then again, maybe he didn't either. 

       You see, Finch's mental illness is not revealed until towards the end of the book, but the signs of there definitely being something wrong is apparent to the reader through out. It is troubling to read through his emotions and his thoughts and to try to relate when you have never experienced something like it before. 

       Which I think is what makes his point of view so important. This book could have been solely from Violet's POV,  but I think the conversations that can start because of this book are all because of Finch's POV. He is a character who knows that something isn't quite right with the things he feels and thinks, but he buries all of it. He buries it because of his family, because of bullies, because of the title 'freak' and because of the stigma that he knows comes across with being diagnosed with a mental illness. 

       I won't ruin the end of the book for you all, because I think it is fundamental to the impact of this story. I don't think, had the ending been different, had certain things worked out or not have happened, that the conversations that need to occur after reading this book would take place. This book is the perfect opportunity to talk about a lot of things: relationships with parents; romantic relationships; the impact of education, educators, and counselors on those who are fundamentally different from their peers; the stigma that comes along with having or knowing someone with a mental illness, bullying, mental illness itself, death, mourning, and suicidal thoughts. Something talked about a lot in the book is the stigma that comes along with all of these topics, and I think that this books is truly going to give people the chance to bulldoze those stigmas and actually have a chance to have these conversations. 

       There were a few small problems that I had with it, including the characters saying things that sounded like very forced "teenage" things to say (This is a common problem in YA, I feel, because adult authors want to be able to relate to teens, when really, it just throws the reader off from what's trying to be said.). There were also a couple of times when I felt what the characters said or did was out of character, especially one instance at the end of the book when Violet says something to one of her friends about how feeling depressed and having suicidal thoughts don't concur, in her mind, with being popular and loved. I felt like this was something very out of character and something that Violet, with all that she had gone through and experienced herself, would have realized by now. 

       Besides these things, I enjoyed this book immensely. It's one of those books that sticks with you and keeps you thinking about it and its characters days after finishing it. It's one of those books that you want to lend out just so you can have someone to talk to about it. It's one of those books that makes you want to get involved and to help begin the important conversations that have to be had. I would have to agree that this book is similar to Eleanor and Park and The Fault in Our Stars. Perhaps not quite on the same level as these two (and let's face it these two books just take the cake in my mind, so they're hard to beat), but still very similar, both in story and in the importance of the conversations that can be sparked from it. 

       I would recommend this book to... everyone. I was going to make a list of people who may like it, but I don't care if you usually read books like this or not: Read it. Start talking about it. Start making a difference. Because this books matters. Talk about these things that affect so many people who are stigmatized into feeling like they don't have a voice to openly discuss the things they struggle with on a daily basis. 

Rating: 

4 out of 5 Cups of Tea

        Your Pemberley Reader,

              Acacia

Author Spotlight: Ally Carter

    Today, I wanted to introduce a new section to my blog: Author Spotlights. I want to try and do these at least once a month. Basically, I'll be talking about specific authors that I love, whether recently discovered or having read their books for years.

    I will be starting off with one of my favorite authors in YA literature today, Ally Carter. 

    Carter is the author of three separate YA series: the Gallagher Girls series, the Heist Society series, and the Embassy Row series. I began reading Carter's books in late 2008 or so, and ever since I have loved each and every one. I was thirteen at the time and going through a CIA and FBI loving stage. I wanted anything having to do with spies or anyone undercover, and I found exactly that in Carter's books. 

    Her first series, Gallagher Girls, is all about a school that trains teenage girls to become the next generation of spies and world leaders. When I thought I couldn't love Carter's books anymore, she came out with Heist Society, which follows a team of teen thieves who, in Robin Hood-esque style, thieve for good. It's amazing. Then, this past year, she came out with the first in a new series, Embassy Row, which is about a young girl living on Embassy Row among ambassadors and children from all around the world. 

 

    The first books I read by Carter were the Gallagher Girl books. I read the first two quickly, and I remember waiting for the third to come out. Here's the thing about Carter's books, though: I binge read them. They are fairly short novels, and after waiting over a year for each new installment, I always manage to read through the new book within a day or two. This means waiting prolonged periods of time, reading for a day or two, and then waiting even more prolonged periods of times. For years I did this, as I followed the Gallagher Girls series. The Heist Society allowed for a bit less waiting, however, because even though it wasn't the same characters or story, it still meant more amazing characters and plots from Carter. 

    I love the Heist Society and Embassy Row books nearly as much as I love the Gallagher Girls series, but I don't think anything will ever replace the amazing feeling I get while reading the Gallagher Girls series. I grew up with them. I literally shared my junior high and high school experience with these characters. It was a heart-breaking moment when this series ended, especially since the last book, which chronicles the girls' last semester of senior year, came out just after I had graduated high school and was about to move to Seattle for my first year of college. It seemed fitting that their last chronicled adventure happened the same year I graduated. It felt like the perfect ending to the series and to my high school years. 

    These books are the perfect mix of light and dark, funny and serious, fun and dangerous. I highly recommend them for anyone who wants a book to fly through on a weekend off, for anyone who loves spies, thieves, or foreign affairs, and for anyone who loves books with widely diverse and eclectic groups of characters. 

    These books are also, in my opinion, the perfect books for those between the ages of 11-13 who are wanting to start reading outside of the kid's section. I know that these books made my transition from kid's book to YA books much easier, and they hold a very special place in my heart for that exact reason. 

    Have you read any of Ally Carter's books? Do you have a favorite? Let me know in the comments below! 

    If you haven't read any of her books, I highly recommend any of them. Read them all. Go splurge and buy yourselves one of these 10 amazing books. I promise you won't be disappointed. 

        Your Pemberley Reader,

              Acacia

An Out of Control Bibliophile

    Confession time...

    My name is Acacia, and I have a book-buying problem.

    Now, for a long time, my book-buying habits were not that bad. Before the age of sixteen, I got money from birthdays, parents, and holidays, that was about it. My transportation was also dependent on my parents willingness to drive me to the bookstore. Any books I got, I usually read right away or relatively soon after getting them. The number of books I had owned for years and had never read was very small.

    However, at the age of sixteen, a problem began to grow. I had my license, which meant I could drive myself to the book store whenever I wanted, for however long I wanted. I also had a tutoring job and was still receiving good chunks of money here and there from my parents. I also was managing to get hundreds of dollars in giftcards for holidays and birthdays. All of this resulted in the creation of a book-buying monster.

    I buy books at a rate that should not be allowed. I go to the bookstore for one specific book and walk out with three others I had no intention of buying. I purposefully set aside money not for food, but for books. In high school, this problem grew, but was not quite as problematic as it is now. In 2012, I read 100 books (a goal which I was very proud to have finished at the time). I don't know how many books I bought that year, but it was a lot. I read 100 books, and didn't even make a dent in my growing TBR pile.

    When I started college, my parents gave me a bi-weekly allowance so that I would have money to go do things with friends and not have to worry about finances while at school. About a third of this goes into my savings for a rainy day, another third for food and activities with friends, and the last third for books. The problem: while at college, I manage to read far less than I ever did high school. So, I buy a lot of books while I'm at school, but I have no time to read them.

    Over the years, all of this has resulted in a growing TBR pile that I have, as of late, been feeling the weight of. I have been forced to admit that I have a problem, and I am going to take this time to list the ways in which I will be eradicating myself of it.

    So, here are the ways in which I am going to slowly, but surely, take down the monster that has become my TBR pile.

1) Getting rid of books. 
    Oh, how this hurts to even talk about. I don't get rid of books. I love owning my own personal library. Even if I never reread my books, I love keeping them after I've read them. Who knows, one day I may decide to reread it or lend it out and I will be so happy to still have it. However, I have books that I have owned for years, but have never read. These are the books that I bought at the age of 15 or 16 with every intention of reading them, but they just kept getting pushing farther and farther down the TBR pile. So, as of the end of June, I have resolved to go through and get rid of a good chunk of these books. I think this will help me feel much better about the size of my TBR pile.

2) No more binge buying books. 
    Any time I decide on buying a book, I will be buying just that, one book. One step at a time, one book at a time.

3) Buy a book, read that book. 
    From now on (or at least until my TBR pile has been made much, much, much smaller), if I buy a book, I must immediately read that book. See, I often buys books, but then take years to read them. Now, if I buy one, it will immediately be read and never even see the TBR pile. This way, the TBR pile does not grow.

4) Read at least a classic a month. 
    A good chunk of my TBR pile is made up of classics. I love classics, but I don't read as many as I should, both as an English major and as someone who owns so many of them. So, to assure that these are being read, I will read at least one classic per month.

5) Read two, buy one.
    So, to tackle the TBR pile for good, I will be implementing this new rule: For every two books I read off of my TBR, I may buy one book. So, I will read two books, buy one, read the book I buy, read two more books from my TBR pile, buy a book, read that book, on and on and on. I think this will allow me to get through my TBR pile without feeling constricted to it. It will also allow me to keep buying books, but not add to my TBR pile.

    With these rules in place, I am hoping to take down the looming monster that my TBR pile has become. Summer is coming up soon, which means I will be able to read a lot more than I do while in school and tackle the TBR pile faster.

    I'm feeling confident that this will work, and I will let you all know how it's going in a few months. Hopefully by then my TBR pile will be much, much smaller than it is now.

        Your Pemberley Reader,

              Acacia

April Wrap-up and May TBR

Hello all!

    Today, I will be doing my first monthly wrap-up and TBR! This is basically where I will shortly discuss the books I have read in the past month and then talk about the books I want to read in the next month (To Be Read = TBR). 

April Wrap-up

    1) Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas

    This is the third book in A Throne of Glass series, and if you haven't picked up this series yet, drop everything you are doing and go buy the first book (A Throne of Glass) right this second. I won't say too much, because at some point I want to do a review of this series, but please, do yourself a favor and read this series! 

Rating: 

5 out of 5 Cups of Tea

    2) The Shadow Cabinet by Maureen Johnson

    This is also the third in a series (The Shades of London series), and I was very excited to pick this one up. The second book ends on a bit of a cliffhanger and so I was excited to find out what happened. I was not disappointed! This book keeps you on your toes, and, as if the suspense isn't enough, it's downright creepy at times. Definitely worth getting the first in the series (The Name of the Star) if you haven't read it! 

Rating: 

4 out of 5 Cups of Tea

    3) The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness

    I did a book review on this one, which you can find here: Review: The Knife of Never Letting Go 

Rating: 

2.5 out of 5 Cups of Tea

    4) Fairest by Marissa Meyer

    This is a companion book in The Lunar Chronicles. It follows Queen Levana and her rise to power on Lunar. I'm a huge fan of this series, and so I was excited to get an inside look into the mind of the antagonist. It was a good read, but not my favorite of the series. If you're a fan of this series, I would definitely look into getting this book! If you're not reading this series, go buy Cinder and fall in love with it. 

Rating: 

4 out of 5 Cups of Tea

May TBR

    I will be finishing up my second year of university this month, along with two visits from my parents, and mid-terms, so I'm aiming to read four books and one manga, but realistically, only three or four of these will probably be read. 

    1) The Tragedy Paper by Elizabeth Laban

    I have had this book for a little over a year, and when I got it, I was very excited to read it. I had heard such good things about it, but somehow it kept getting shifted farther and farther down my TBR pile. I'm actually currently reading this one, and I'm really enjoying it so far. I think it's going to be a good, emotional read. I've heard it get compared to Thirteen Reasons Why and Looking for Alaska, both of which I love! Hopefully it lives up to the hype I've heard.

    2) The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

    I have had this book for such a long time. I'm pretty sure I recieved it as a gift from my dad when I was little, but I just never read it (Sorry, Daddy). I'm finally going to read it though! Hopefully I like it!

    3) All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

    I have heard both good and bad things about this book, and I know it's been really big in the booklr and booktube world since its release. Because I'm limiting myself on how many books I can buy, I've had to wait to get it, but I am looking forward to finally reading it! 

    4) A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness 

    I have no idea why I bought this book. I guess it looked good when I got it, but that was like a year or so ago. It was never at the top of my list to read, and I'm not sure when I thought I was going to want to read this over all the other books I have. I've decided to give it a go this month, though. I'm hoping I end up liking it. 

    5) Alice in the Country of Hearts, Volume 1 by QuinRose and Soumei Hoshino

    I picked this up this weekend, because one of the books I have to check off for my book challenge is a graphic novel. I know this is a manga and not a graphic novel, but I'm not entirely sure what the difference is, and so I have made the executive decision to count it. I'm hoping I enjoy it!

    Have you read any of these? Did you like any of my April books as much as I did? Will I enjoy the books on my May TBR? Let me know by leaving a comment and don't forget to follow! 

        Your Pemberley Reader,

              Acacia