book recommendation

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

~ SamanthaWho ~ 15 Comments

The Nightingale by Kristin HannahThis one is absolutely incredible! The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah is a story that must be shared and read over and over again. Hannah shares with us the story of two sisters, Vianne and Isabelle, young women living in France during WWII. Hannah has done a fantastic job here, the book has great character construction and many different dynamics running throughout.

The elder sister, Vianne, has always been the weak one. When her husband is drafted for the war she has no choice but to stay strong for her daughter. Through Vianne’s story we get a glimpse into the life of a mother trying to survive through German occupation, while starving, freezing, and hosting German officers in her home.

Isabelle, the younger sister, is wild and has few thoughts for the consequences that her actions will cause. All her life she has felt unloved, a motherless girl being pushed away from a father and sister who cannot cope with the loss, kicked out of every boarding school she’s attended. When she joins the resistance against Germany she finds herself right in the center of it all.

The Nightingale is a beautifully written story and so terribly sad. These women are so brave, and although they are fictional, they represent very real people. I loved this book and highly recommend it to everyone, not only historical fiction lovers.

The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henriquez

~ SamanthaWho ~ 5 Comments

The Book of Unknown AmericansThe Book of Unknown American, written by Cristina Henriquez, focuses on the lives of immigrants from South and Central America living in the United States. I was drawn into this story because of the multiple perspectives that Henriquez writes from. Readers look through the eyes of children and adults, citizens and undocumented residents and learn of each of these character’s frustrations.

While the book contains narratives from many characters, the main story follows Maribel, a girl who has suffered a traumatic brain injury; which causes her family to move to the US in an attempt for a better life and a school with supportive programs. She meets a boy living in the same apartment complex and when she seems to be improving after spending time with him, they find an unexpected connection between them.

To be honest, the ending of this book disappointed me. While I felt that the story was interesting, I felt like the final scenes strayed from that main topic and became unfocused. I wish Henriquez had gone further with her characters because I would have liked to learn more about them.

On the whole, I enjoyed this book for the perspectives of multiple immigrants living in the U.S. and for the insights into the hardships experienced while looking for a better life.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

~ SamanthaWho ~ 14 Comments

The Night CircusThe Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern is an enchanting story centered on a young girl and boy, Celia and Marco, who are unknowingly bound together. Their mentors have each entered these “special” children into a magical challenge that plays out over the course of their lives. The arena for this challenge is none other than a night circus, a traveling group that shows up unannounced across the globe.

The circus becomes completely intertwined with the challenge, filled with tents full of magic and fantastical illusions. Morgenstern did a good job of illustrating the challenge with stunning descriptions that help the reader imagine the unknown.

Along with these magical enchantments, I was drawn into this story because of the wacky characters with their bizarre, and sometimes stunning, acts. For me, this wasn’t a page gripping book, but it was very well written and I was intrigued all the same.

Another twist to the story comes when these challengers start developing feelings for each other…Will they fight to the finish or will love triumph all? You’ll just have to pick up The Night Circus to find out!

I’ll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson

~ SamanthaWho ~ 11 Comments

I'll Give You The Sun by Jandy NelsonA few pages into I’ll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson, I was feeling a bit skeptical about the story. While my attention was instantly caught by all of the imagery and colorful descriptions, I wasn’t sure how an entire book like that would go. I had no reason to worry though because this story was pretty fantastic.

Through I’ll Give You The Sun, a YA novel focused on twin siblings, we witness the very complex relationship between Jude and Noah. While the pair is obviously deeply connected, the siblings simultaneously harbor aggressively competitive feelings that cause them to do awful things to one another. The book switches between loving interactions and vicious fights, an interesting aspect that kept me completely enthralled.

The heartfelt characters and their wild imaginations were what really pulled me into the story. Their stories made me feel for them, for their pain, their passion, their lies and their loves.

Are YA novels only for teens? Definitely not when it comes to I’ll Give You The Sun.

 

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

~ SamanthaWho ~ 11 Comments

Ready Player One by Ernest ClineWhat does it mean when you’re flight’s delayed? This past weekend it meant that I had more time to read! With the extra time, I was able to dive into Ready Player One by Ernest Cline, a sci-fi novel set in the year 2044.

USA Today describes the story pretty perfectly:

“Enchanting…Willy Wonka meets The Matrix.” – USA Today

In this story, Earth has plummeted into decay and Cline paints a horrifying picture through his “stacks”, trailers that are stacked up on top of each other and are only stabilized by weak metal pipe structures.

People escape this harsh reality through Oasis, a virtual world where people can be whoever, or whatever, they want. The creator of Oasis, James Halliday, has passed away and left behind the challenge of a lifetime. Whoever can solve his highly complex scavenger hunt filled with puzzles, video game challenges, and 80’s pop culture trivia, will win Halliday’s fortune and control of Oasis. Wade Watts, an anti-social teenager, finds himself catapulted into fame when he finds the first piece of Halliday’s puzzle.

As someone who is not very savvy in video game jargon, I thought Cline did a pretty good job of keeping technical descriptions straightforward. Despite a few scenes where my mind wandered in the face of ultra-detailed descriptions, I was able to keep up for the most part.

I don’t read a lot of sci-fi books, but I enjoyed Ready Player One. The story was interesting, the dialogue was entertaining and the topics were relatable. Cline brought depth to the story by touching on issues that the world is dealing with today, including global warming, pollution, monopoly power, and the risks that technology presents to overpower our lives so much so that we forget to live in reality.

Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

~ SamanthaWho ~ 4 Comments

Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi AdichieAmericanah, written by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, is an excellent read and I hope to do it justice with this review.

Americanah brings light to issues of race and self-discovery through the story of Ifemelu and Obinze. Growing up in military-ruled Nigeria, Ifemelu and Obinze were raised looking towards futures abroad, moving to America or Europe to study and begin a career.

 

One of my favorite quotes from the book explains this mentality of searching outside their native country for opportunities:

“…the need to escape from the oppressive lethargy of choicelessness. They would not understand why people like him, who were raised well fed and watered but mired in dissatisfaction, conditioned from birth to look towards somewhere else, eternally convinced that real lives happened in that somewhere else, were now resolved to do dangerous things, illegal things, so as to leave, none of them starving, or raped, or from burned villages, but merely hungry for choice and certainty,” (pg. 341).

This is a smart novel that really made me think. I was engaged and eager to see where both Ifemelu and Obinze’s journeys would lead them. The frustration and helplessness of their experiences starting out in new countries had me gripping the book. Despite working incredibly hard, they seemed unable to get their footing.

One particularly interesting aspect of this book is the blog that Ifemelu creates to discuss issues of race and life as an immigrant in America. She has always had a problem containing her opinion, especially in inappropriate situations, but that’s what makes her so great- her ability to speak up when others won’t.

Americanah is a love story, a story of self-discovery, and a story of speaking honestly and openly.