Friday 6 December 2013

'Tis The Season To Get Reading....

Christmas is not just a time to devour turkey, chocolate, and pretty much everything- I love the time it gives you to get stuck into a book. Recently, I've rediscovered my love of reading- but have been too lax in my reviewing. In no particular order, here are my 4 top reads for the festive season...

AND THE MOUNTAINS ECHOED- KHALED HOSSEINI



Following up two brilliant books like 'The Kite Runner' and 'A Thousand Splendid Suns' was always going to be a challenge- but Hosseini has certainly managed it with this touching novel. A love story of multiple dimensions- a servant with his master's wife, a master with an unexpected love interest- and between a brother and his long-lost sister, you'll find yourself yearning for reunions of all sorts. Hosseini really does have a beautiful story-telling manner- the way the stories all subtly intertwine brings a gratifying unity to the novel. One that you will slowly fall in love with!

THE DIVERGENT TRILOGY- VERONICA ROTH



I'm counting these all as one because- trust me- you'll have to read one after the other. If you loved Hunger Games, you won't be able to resist these; Tris, the female protagonist of these novels is just as inspirational, strong and likable as Katniss. The worlds that these two girls inhabit are very different indeed.

In the Divergent novels, a world exists where everybody is born into a 'Faction'. These factions each champion a favourable quality in society- bravery, selflessness, truth, kindness and knowledge. When the faction members turn sixteen, they have to decide whether to stay in the faction they were born into- or to move to one more suitable, and risk losing touch with their family forever. Tris is one such teenager- and the decision she makes does not only impact her life, but ultimately the whole system. I can't say anymore without spoiling anything- just read these books, become emotionally invested in Tris and the world around her, and you will be unable to forget these books in a hurry.

THE FAULT IN OUR STARS- JOHN GREEN



When I worked at Waterstones, everybody was raving about this teenage book- so typically, in my stubborn fashion, I left it well alone until a year later. I read this book straight after the Divergent series; in hindsight, nothing was ever going to compare to that. Sixteen-year-old Hazel was certainly a great narrator, providing a fresh outlook on teenage cancer. Gus, Hazel's love interest from the cancer support group she attends, is a fanciable hunk with a difference- handsome, sporty, yet with an atypically quirky wit.

Comedy interspersed with tragedy is always an especially poignant combination; though a few conversations within the novel felt a little forced, on the whole the characters interacted with each other very naturally. Green may not have a particularly distinctive writing style, but he does come up with some beauties of lines, like when Hazel describes how she "fell in love the way [she] fell asleep- slowly, then all at once." With such linguistic gems, and a conclusion that you will not see coming, this book is definitely worth a read.

THE UNIVERSE VERSUS ALEX WOODS- GAVIN EXTENCE



I always love discovering debut novels- it's great reading something from a completely fresh perspective. With this novel, that certainly applies to the author himself, and his protagonist- the quirky, smart, socially awkward Alex Woods. We meet Alex as he is about to drive back into the UK after a trip to Europe...and just happens to have a heap of a marijuana in the glove compartment. Oh, and an urn on the passenger seat. The reader, and of course the police, are quick to make assumptions about this strange boy who seems too cool and calm, and certainly not having an 'epileptic seisure' like he claims. In an attempt to explain himself, Alex starts telling his own story, from the pinnacle moment his life took a strange turn. I won't spoil the surprise; all I will say is that it is, quite literally, out of this world...

This story is by no means just about Alex- the wonderfully cranky Mr. Peterson will endear himself to you, whether you start off liking him or not. His and Alex's unlikely friendship is one that brings out the best in them both, and takes them both to places neither of them imagined. Alex's mother is also a kooky delight, as is edgy Ellie.

Outer space, a moody pensioner, an underdog becoming the hero of his own story, and ultimately a serious moral question; Extence's writing hits all sorts of notes, together making a harmony of a novel.



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