The Reason I Jump

The Bookworm says... Yes. The Reason I Jump by Naoki Higashida leaves me speechless every time I read it. Naoki Higashida was thirteen when he wrote this book, and he was also autistic. He still is. He learned how to communicate using an alphabet grid that included the entire  Japanese hiragana (the most basic alphabet), and the characters for "yes", "no", and "finished". Through this grid, Naoki was able to answer the questions about autism that we have all been asking. Translated into English, Naoki Higashida provides the answers to questions about autism, such as "Why do you jump?", that we have so desperately needed. 

This book helped me understand so many things about my autistic brother that I had been completely clueless to before. If you know any autistic child or adult, please read this book. It helps you understand them on a new level. 

"True compassion is about not bruising the other person's self-respect."

The Probability of Miracles

The Bookworm says... Yes! The Probability of Miracles by Wendy Wunder was a fantastic book! Campbell has cancer, and she has it bad. Neuroblastoma is practically incurable in teens and adults. The doctors tell her she needs a miracle. So, her mom decides they should move from Orlando to Promise, Maine where miracles are said to occur daily. From flamingos in winter and purple daffodils, it's hard for Cam to deny that there's something going on in this town. The mysterious boy Asher that keeps popping up in her life might have something to do with that. Cam has to overcome her doubt of all things supernatural, and see if that will be enough to save her from this disease that is holding the reins of her life.

This was a lovely book! Honestly, it was a cover buy. This cover is so beautiful and the reason I picked it up. I've been pleasantly surprised! Though a bit predictable and cliche, the character development/character qualities and the strange occurrences thought up in this book prove it to be a heartbreaking yet heartwarming tale of living with disease. 

"The present moment can be chopped up into infinitely smaller present moments. This moment is forever. And it is all that matters."

My Best Everything

The Bookworm says... Yes. My Best Everything by Sarah Tomp was great! Lulu has to get out of Dale. She can't be confined to small town life for entirety. She's marking down the days until she gets to escape to the sunny campus of the University of San Diego. Every day gets an "X" on the calendar... Until the day she finds out her tuition money is gone. Lulu needs to find a way to make her money, and fast. A 400$ deposit is due soon, or Lulu is stuck in Dale forever. Everyone else seems to get what Lulu wants, and she's stuck settling for her small town Virginia life when she meets Mason. Mason tried to give Lulu a way out, but he also gives her a reason to stay. 

This book was really good! If I'm being honest, I wouldn't have picked it up by myself. Generally I prefer contemporary books, and the plot description just wasn't doing it for me. However, my mom bought me this, and once I started it, I was hooked. Just the right amount of sweet and sour (and a little bit of cornmeal and yeast) sprinkled through the novel, I laughed and cried. I would definitely recommend  this book to anyone looking for a nice, light read!

"When you drive off into the sunset, remember, the road comes back too."

Broken Skies

The Bookworm says... Absolutely! Broken Skies by Theresa Kay was a terrific book. 10 years ago, the Collapse wiped out 90% of the human population. Now, the remaining humans live in seclusion, sharing the planet with E'rikon aliens. Jax is different from most of the girls in their settlement; she refuses to wear gowns and prance around like a show pony. Alongside her twin brother Jace, she hunts, fights, and sneaks past the gates whenever possible. After a traumatizing past event, Jax cannot be touched and has frequent panic attacks. She relies heavily on Jace, as he is the only one that can get through to her to calm her down. One day, her curiosity gets the best of her; Jace ends up a prisoner of the E'rikon and Jax ends up with an unlikely E'rikon friend named Lir. On her journey to rescue her brother, Jax becomes fatally close with Lir, and discovers that she isn't as different from other girls as she thought. Over the course of the novel, Jax fights the battles against her anxiety and panic attacks, and attempts to figure out where loyalties lie and who the true enemy is. 

This book was excellent! Initially, Jax reminded me of Merida from the Disney movie Brave. (And may or may not be how I picture her...) Generally, I'm not into dystopian novels. Until I read this, I probably couldn't have told you my favorite. Now it's Broken Skies. As the novel is told through Jax's point of view, the development of her character was terrific. The mystery of her anxiety/panic attacks was intriguing and captivating. The characterization of Lir through Jax's eyes was great. I do think the ending felt a little rushed, but that didn't take away from the novel at all. The plot was brilliantly thought through and held my attention perfectly. This book has been on my mind constantly for the past 24 hours. (Spoiler alert for the little blurb after the quote!!)

"When the dreams finally come, they're not at all what I expect. My dreams once again focus on me, me in danger, me crying, me shaking... It's not the fear or the blood of those I killed filling my head, but my own." 

(Spoiler alert!!) I wish there was more on the Jace/Flint relationship!! When it comes down to it, I TOTALLY ship that. 

Anna and the French Kiss

The Bookworm says... Oui! Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins was a lovely book. Anna loves Atlanta. She's excited to be a senior, and excited about her bubbling almost-relationship with Toph. It's smooth sailing, until her father decides to ship her off to Paris. The newest member of the 25 (now 26) person senior class of the School of America in Paris, Anna doesn't speak a word of French. She makes new friends: Mer, Josh, Rashmi, and Étienne St. Clair. Oh, St. Clair. Anna and St. Clair. St. Clair and Anna. Instant best friends, so close that a romantic relationship seems inevitable. Except St. Clair has a girlfriend. And Anna kindasortamaybe has a boyfriend. Her heart is in Atlanta, but also very present in Paris. Through a series of touristy activities and some classical films, Anna and St. Clair attempt to work out the broken pieces of their friendship/relationship, while fixing each other in the process. 

I really enjoyed this book! It was definitely very cliché, set in the City of Love. A little cliché never hurt anyone! I'm happy to say it lived up to my high expectations set for this book, and that I cannot wait until I have a chance to buy the rest of this romantic Stephanie Perkins trilogy. 

"For the two of us, home isn't a place. It's a person. And we're finally home."

To All The Boys I've Loved Before

The Bookworm says... Yes! To All The Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han was great! Lara Jean is the type to be consumed by love. She falls in love, and can't concentrate on anything else. So, she writes love letters to the boys she loves. Once she writes, seals,  stamps, and locks away her letters in a box, she can finally go about her daily life. One day, her letters get mailed. Lara Jeans secret love letters to her loves throughout the years have been delivered, and whether the boys knew about her feelings before, they're about to find out. 

I had heard so much about this book, it would practically be a crime not to read it. I had very high expectations, and it met them! My only complaint would be that after about 90 pages, the rest of the book is fairly predicable. However, that didn't make it less enjoyable! 

"My letters set me free. Or at least they're supposed to."

Read Between the Lines

The Bookworm says... Yes! Read Between the Lines by Jo Knowles was a lovely book that I had the pleasure to read an advance copy of. The release date is set for March 2015. Living in a small town, the whole cast of typical high school characters is there: the nerd, the jocks, the (almost) high school dropout, the cheerleaders, the closeted basketball star, and the one cheerleader that always seems to be overweight. The day begins with Nate breaking his finger in gym class. His middle finger, earning him the nickname "Finger Boy". Throughout the day, throughout different points of view, relationships will end, they will begin. People will lose friends, people will find friends. They will defend their pride. And most of all, they'll let their middle fingers fly. This was an excellent book and I can not wait for the official release! 

"I don't know when finding Grace's boyfriend's parties became more important than trying to find ourselves. Maybe it's because we became afraid of what we'd find." 

**official release is March 10, 2015!

The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender

The Bookworm says... Yes! The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton was a really good  book! Generation upon generation of the Roux family have been blinded by their ability to love. Ava and Henry are not spared from this fate. Henry doesn't speak, yet he is still a kinder heart than most. Ava is born with a full set of wings, yet very much just a girl with a heart that's too big for her body. 16 year old Ava Lavender just wants to understand her family and the world that se has been shielded from, but she has a hard time seeing around her curiosity. Ava Lavender seeks to unveil her family history and the stories of the people around her, and try to just be a normal girl (which proves to be quite hard with a pair of wings). 

Honestly, the whole beginning of this book came off as very strange to me. If I had been the type to stop reading a book when it disinterested me, I wouldn't have finished it. But let me tell you- the second half of this book is incredible. 

"Love makes us such fools."