Armchair BEA: 2011 Favourites

This post is part of my week-long participation in Armchair BEA 2011.





Since there are zillions of awesome books still to come out this year and next, and I don't want to seethe in jealousy at all the awesome reads that people at BEA are picking up, I thought I would focus on the awesome-ness that I have read. Here are just a few of the great books I've read so far this year, both new releases for 2011 and some "older" books that I've enjoyed.


Favourite 2011 Releases

Divergent by Veronica Roth: This book made my favourite covers, favourite heroines, AND my book boyfriends shelves on Goodreads. Plus if you follow any YA book blogs at all you've probably been tripping over positive reviews for this one. Let me tell you, they don't lie.

The Liar Society by Lisa & Laura Roecker: Speaking of liars... I swear this is the book version of Veronica Mars. For serious. And I don't make that comparison lightly. You're welcome in advance. [My Review]

Where She Went by Gayle Forman: Oh, Adam. You're an emo rocker who makes a lot of stupid decisions, but you love Mia SO MUCH that it breaks my heart. Seriously, if you haven't picked up 'If I Stay' or this one, you are missing out big time. Gayle's writing is breathtaking. [My Review]



Favourite "Older" Books Read in 2011

Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta: This book is "HOLY CRAP" amazing. If you haven't read it, go read it now. Seriously, you won't regret it. It easily made its way on to my favourite books ever list. [My Review]

Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead: Please ignore the hideous covers and focus on the books, which are amazingly well written. I am not a vampire fan at all, but these books are totally engaging, filled with some of my favourite characters ever. [My Series Spotlight]

Darkest Powers Trilogy by Kelley Armstrong: Really enjoyable characters and fast-paced storylines. There's nothing particularly original about the plot, but Kelley makes it all her own. I really fell in love with the characters, and I loved how action-packed the books were.


So, fellow Armchair-ers, what books are your 2011 favourites? I can't wait to get some book recs, as well as check out which titles you're looking forward to yet this year.

Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta

Release Date: September 1, 2008
Publisher: HarperTeen
Pages: 419
Series: n/a
Review Source: Library

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)
"What do you want from me?" he asks. What I want from every person in my life, I want to tell him. More.

Abandoned by her mother on Jellicoe Road when she was eleven, Taylor Markham, now seventeen, is finally being confronted with her past. But as the reluctant leader of her boarding school dorm, there isn't a lot of time for introspection. And while Hannah, the closest adult Taylor has to family, has disappeared, Jonah Griggs is back in town, moody stares and all.

In this absorbing story by Melina Marchetta, nothing is as it seems and every clue leads to more questions as Taylor tries to work out the connection between her mother dumping her, Hannah finding her then and her sudden departure now, a mysterious stranger who once whispered something in her ear, a boy in her dreams, five kids who lived on Jellicoe Road eighteen years ago, and the maddening and magnetic Jonah Griggs, who knows her better than she thinks he does. If Taylor can put together the pieces of her past, she might just be able to change her future.

My Thoughts:
I think this might be one of the best books I’ve ever read. I can easily place it within my new favourites, and probably also within my favourites of all time. I know I definitely need to own a copy ASAP so I can bug everyone I know to read it. Since library school I’ve paid a bit more attention to award winning books, but I don’t necessarily pick them up. It's a bit different with YA, but award winners bring to mind boring literature that’s way above my head. Well this is not at all the case with Jellicoe Road, in case you were having doubts. I’ve read so many gushing reviews of this book, and I wasn’t sure how it could possibly live up to them. I trained myself as I started reading: “Don’t get your hopes up. Don’t expect something amazing.” Well maybe it’s good that I did do that, but either way I came out of this with hope soaring within me. It’s almost implausible that a book so wrapped up with themes of grief could leave me with so much hope, yet that’s the beauty of Marchetta’s story. She takes simplistic actions and emotions and shakes them up, intertwining two slightly parallel stories, creating something absolutely breathtaking.

If you enjoy straightforward stories with a clean narrative this might not be the book for you. Melina Marchetta does not give you outright answers: she makes you work a bit to figure out what exactly has gone on. This is not to say that you need to be a detective to work everything out. If you have patience and some common sense you should be able to figure out the connection between the two stories written within these pages, in fact, sometimes figuring things out before Taylor, the main character, does herself. ‘Jellicoe Road’ is not quite as confusing as some people make it out to be. It’s disjointed and poetic, and sometimes you may be frustrated with the jumping around, but the way the story is told is so rewarding I can’t imagine it any other way. Even right now I’m having a hard time pinpointing what exactly about this novel is so amazing, probably because I don’t think it’s just one thing. It’s the writing, the characters, the overarching message... everything comes together so wonderfully to tell a story that will probably make you both laugh and cry. I hope I have convinced you to pick up this book, because I don’t think that you’ll regret it. Some final words: Jonah Griggs = amazing. Just trust me on that one.

Rating:
[5/5]

Find Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta on Goodreads, Book Depository, & Amazon.ca

Armchair BEA: Introduction

This post is part of my week-long participation in Armchair BEA 2011.

Introducing Me

Hello everyone! I am so excited to take part in Armchair BEA for the first time. For those who don’t know me, I’m Ashley and I’m from Southwestern Ontario, Canada. I’ve been blogging on Book Labyrinth for about 9 months now. In some ways I can’t believe it’s been that long, and in others I feel like I’ve been blogging for forever. Besides on the blog, you can also find me on Twitter and Goodreads.

I graduated from library school at the end of last year, and I’m still hoping to find a library job. In the meantime I’ve been taking some certificate classes online and doing a little bit of part-time administrative work. When I’m not reading you can probably find me watching TV. Yes, I’m a TV addict! You can check out this post to read about some of my favourites.

Book Labyrinth focuses on Young Adult fiction. I’ve always like YA, but I think I read even more of it now in my mid-20s than I did when I was a teenager. To me YA epitomizes good fiction… there are relatable (and generally likeable) main protagonists, fast pacing, and interesting plotlines. I also like how YA encompasses all the different genres. My favourite books are usually contemporary romance or dystopian, but I also read paranormal books, science fiction, fantasy, etc. The YA market is way more open to cross-genre books, which is something that I find interesting and exciting.

Armchair BEA seemed like a great opportunity to connect with other bloggers who couldn’t be in New York for actual BEA but who still wanted to network. My goals for this week are to participate in some great discussions about book blogging and to do a lot of blog hopping to “meet” some new bloggers.

Thanks so much for visiting Book Labyrinth, and I hope that we all have a great Armchair BEA experience!