The Book Thief - Markus Zusak

Zusak, Markus. 2012. The Book Thief. London: Definitions.

Rating 5 stars

(review in Indonesian, click here)

“Hard times were coming. Like a parade.”

Honestly, I’m not that kind of girl with strong knowledge in history. Whether in national or international history. Therefore, I usually steer away from historical-fiction novel. I’m afraid that my already-poor history knowledge will mix up with the fiction in those novels. Because I’m not sure I can differentiate which thing is fictive, which thing is historical fact. So, I started Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief on that wary note.

Well, at first I didn’t actually know that this is a historical-fiction novel. The back cover of the book doesn’t give away much (as it should). And I also intentionally didn’t watch its movie before I could finish the book. I noticed it is a historical-fiction after I read some first pages. Apparently this is a fiction novel set in Nazi German under Hitler’s authority. Sounds horribly boring.

The English version that I have consists of 584 pages… of pure awesomeness. I don’t want to sound like I over-praise it. But really though, I guess I never read a book cleverer and more beautiful than The Book Thief. It really was one satisfying reading experience!

Why We Broke Up – Daniel Handler [DNF]

Handler, Daniel. 2011. Why We Broke Up. New York: Little, Brown and Company.

Rating 2 stars.
(review in Indonesian, click here)

I stopped at 32% of this book. And, boy oh boy, it was a real struggle to get to 32%.

Its intimidating title kept me away for quite a long time. But, after breaking my own romantic relationship very recently, I guess there’s no better time to finally start reading this book. You can say, I held my hopes high before reading Why We Broke Up.

This book form is this (very long) letter written by Min to Ed Slaterton, her ex-boyfriend. Its content explains why they broke up in the end. Not only sends him a letter, Min also sends some goods that she acquired in the meantime of their relationship. There are many random things. From a bottle cap when they first talked, a movie ticket, a rip of a poster, a truck toy, and other small things that she fits in in a box. For each thing, Min elaborates the story behind it and she closes her stories with “and that’s why we broke up”.

Shift - Em Bailey

Bailey, Em. 2012. Shift. Great Britain: Electric Monkey.

Rating 5 stars

I often read books before I go to sleep every night, because that’s how I roll since I was a kid. If the books are not interesting enough to keep me awake, I don’t mind because those books still help me to beat my sleep deprivation. As you may guess, the amount of books that keep me awake through the night is, of course, far more many than the books that don’t. But, books that keep me awake AND haunt me in my sleep are quite rare, I believe. 

This book. This book is one of those books that makes me lost my sleep time, and when I did sleep, it haunted my ugly dream. I admit, I had a nightmare after I read this book. It jabbed me right in my supposedly brave-heart.

I enjoy this book so much. I can’t believe that NONE of my Goodreads friends have read it (or maybe they just don’t put it on their bookshelves, I don’t know).

Mara Dyer Trilogy (Book 1-3) – Michelle Hodkin [SPOILER, obviously]

Hodkin, Michelle. 2011, 2012, 2014. The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, The Evolution of Mara Dyer, The Retribution of Mara Dyer. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Overall Rating 2,5 stars.

Sigh. Another stellar debut, another love to give. I decided to pick it up and read it, solely because of the amazing cover on the first book of this series, the other two are not very satisfying but I couldn’t care less after I finished the first book. I think that is the kind of cover that will always attract my attention. You know, mysterious, dark, sharp picture, and doesn’t show any particular face to be judged. Totally my type of cover, yes. Safe to say, I knew nothing about this book until I read it, I even didn’t know its genre.

I know now, I should never judge a series if I don’t read its whole series. By that, maybe I did an unfair judgment with Marked, but that is one awful book though, ugh. I love the first two book of Mara Dyer Trilogy, but after reading the final installment, my love was fading pretty fast. I’m bumped because I can’t give more than 2,5 stars for this series, believe me, I really want to love this more. But the last book crushed me, and not in a good way either. Despite the failed ending of this series (I’m getting to that later), I really like Michelle Hodkin’s writing style (she has good humor) and I still will pick up her future novels, I guess. Now, shall we talk about who Mara Dyer is?

Lucid - Adrienne Stoltz & Ron Bass

Stoltz, Adrienne and Ron Bass. 2012. Lucid. New York: Razorbill.

_­Rating 5 serious stars

This is a story about a girl who whines a lot more than I tolerate and a girl who is so lonely she often makes up stories about strangers around her. And I should say I am pretty shocked myself for being able to finish the story until the very last page, let alone crown it with a five-star rating.

It’s definitely not a happy story, but I smiled in some parts of it. It’s not a sad story either, but I cried anyway in the end, complete with an ache in my heart and all.

Marked - P. C. Cast & Kristin Cast [DNF gladly]

Cast, P. C. and Kristin Cast. 2010. Marked. United States: St. Martin's Griffin.

Rating 1 generous star

 

Below is my review in Goodreads that I wrote after I read this horrible thing:

I stopped at 42% of the book.

Apparently, this demonic chic Zoey Redbutt is so exotic and awesome so she has the right to trash-talking everybody else. I'm so very done with this piece of crap.

That's all I got to say, at first. But I guess I did an injustice deed by writing that short unclear review, although I show my disliking toward this book quite clearly, but that's beside my point. It is unfair for future readers of this book because they wouldn't get enough warning to not read this crappy crap. So here I am, warning you... no, I give you proof! Please proceed reading if you want to see all the evidences I managed to collect.

The Blood of Olympus - Rick Riordan (not sure if this is a review or not, but surely it contains SPOILER!)

Riordan, Rick. 2014. The Blood of Olympus. New York: Disney Hyperion.

Rating KYAAAAAA 5 STARS KYAAAAAAA!!!

I know it's early. I know this awesome thing just came out a couple days ago. I know you REALLY don't want to accidentally stumble in my blog and read this uncool spoiler. Oh by the way, SPOILER ALERT! SPOILER ALERT! Read on your own risk.

It's not exactly a review though. It's a jumble mess of my feelings. Yo, guys, I actually wanted to review this book along with its nine books before this, but I guess I'll settle with only this one for now. I don't know. I'm kind of planning to make reviews for Percy Jackson and the Olympians series and Heroes of Olympus series separately, but... what's the point? Based on this, I review books so I don't just forget what I've read. The problem is, I read this whole series repeatedly and I remember every bits in every scenes! I've read the other nine books ninth times each, so far. So, yeah.

Dear Rick Riordan, The Myth Master, I hope this is not really the end of Percy's adventure. Please plan to make something, anything, with Percy in it. I wish you work on Percy Jackson/Kane Chronicles crossover more. You've hinted (or so I wished) that there will be another story regarding to that. Well, just so you know, I'M PRAYING FOR IT!

The Transcriptionist - Amy Rowland [DNF!]

Rowland, Amy. 2014. The Transcriptionist. North Carolina: Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill.

Rating no star whatsoever!

(not going to review this in Indonesian, 'cause who cares anyway?)

I received this via NetGalley, but I wish I didn’t.

I don’t want to sound like an ungrateful douchebag because, well, I did requested it in the first place, and I didn’t finish reading it. Seriously, I had tried really hard to, at least, finish it. I even didn’t expect to be able enjoying the story anymore, I JUST WANTED TO FINISH IT.

Just now, I peeked reviews of this book in Goodreads... and shocked. I saw MANY glowing reviews about The Transcriptionist. Almost all the people that have read this, praise it. And now I get hesitated about my own brain capacity. The thing is, this book is constructed by supposedly ‘smart’ and ‘deep’ words and lines, and the author inserts some supposedly interesting facts and details (that BORED ME TO HELL). I felt the author just tries too hard to impress, really. And to be honest,

Tabula Rasa - Kristen Lippert-Martin

Lippert-Martin, Kristen. 2014. Tabula Rasa. New York: Egmont USA.

Rating 3,5 stars
(review in Indonesian, click here)

I received this book via NetGalley, it is expected to be published in September 2014.

I first noticed about this book when I saw it in a shelf of a Goodreads fellow. The cover looks cool, and I became very interested when I read the blurb. It says, this book is The Bourne Identity meets Divergent. Well, I haven’t read Divergent yet, but judging from the hype so far, looks like it’s a pretty decent read. And of course, I was AND am a huge fan of The Bourne series, so I was instantly curious about this one. Further reading the blurb, this book is about a girl who lost her memories (my favorite kind of story!). In a nutshell:

Gimme da book! Me WANT!

So, I requested its ARC (advance reader copy) via NetGalley. Although the publisher notes that they are preferred members from US and Canada only, I couldn’t help but just tried my luck, I was really eager to be able reading this! Then, I got the book and I totally did this,

Sila ke-6: Kreatif Sampai Mati - Wahyu Aditya

Aditya, Wahyu. 2013. Sila ke-6: Kreatif Sampai Mati. Yogyakarta: Penerbit Bentang.

Rating 5 stars
(review in Indonesian, click here)

I read since I can remember things. In fact, I have this photo of maybe 2-year old me, was sitting and reading a book, an upside-down book, but still, it’s like a sign that I will become a booknerd, right? I guess, booknerds always end up on wanting to write their own books. I do want to write my own book too, someday. In my elementary days, I used to write a bunch of short stories with no endings, a bundle of corny poems, and even some messy drama scripts. Almost all of them are never to be seen by other people’s eyes but mine. As I grew up, I became less and less productive in creating my ‘work’, although I always have it in my mind to write my own book, up until now. I have these fears and insecurities that make me hesitate and stop me from writing my own book. Then, this book came and slapped me with its to-the-point and simple words.

Fear is the biggest opponent of creativity.

Well, not really ‘slapped’, because this book is so so very very funny, I mean it in a kind way. The author, Wahyu Aditya a.k.a Wadit, delivers all his ideas in a hilarious informal way. There are lots of Wadit’s tips, although not earthshakingly new, still feel fresh and are told really well.

Cruel Beauty - Rosamund Hodge

Hodge, Rosamund. 2014. Cruel Beauty. United States: Balzer + Bray.

Rating 4 stars
(review in Indonesian, click here)

Well, this is the problem if I write a book review after finished reading it TWO MONTHS ago. I almost forgot the effect of this book to me, it leaves a vague feeling now. And I’ve read many books in these two months (some of them I’m crazy about), so I’m not really euphoric anymore about Cruel Beauty. But anyway, let’s start the review which I’m sure will be a mess kind of review.

The Truth About Alice - Jennifer Mathieu

Mathieu, Jennifer. 2014. The Truth About Alice. New York: Roaring Brook Press.

Rating 4 stars
(review in Indonesian, click here)

I received this book via NetGalley, it is expected to be published in June 2014.

“But mostly I just go through every day and I do what people expect of me.”-Josh

Alice Franklin, the main character in this book, has a good reputation in her school. But, one bad rumor in a small town can cause a long different story. Alice is known as a slut/ho/whore because Brandon Fitzsimmons says he slept with Alice in Elaine O’Dea’s party, and at the same night same party, Tommy Cray did it too. Alice is then known as a killer when Brandon Fitzsimmons is dead over a car crash because he’s sexting with Alice while driving. Alice’s days are not the same anymore since Brandon died, remembering this guy was the most popular guy in town. Rumor after rumor don’t stop after that. People don’t care if the rumors are true or not, they just believe it right away, because it’s easy to believe a rumor when everyone seems to talk about it and agreed on it. When really, the ones who know the truth are Alice and a few people who choose to not say it.

ChinAlive - Bob Jonas

Jonas, Bob. 2013. ChinAlive. Charleston: Vagabond Librarian Publishing.

Rating 2,5 stars
(review in Indonesian, click here)

I received this book from GoodreadsGiveaway.

Sets in China where the 2008 Olympics is being the biggest project for its government, the adventure of Charlie Evers begins. Charlie, a 12 years old American boy, has been living in China for years with his parents and has acquired to learn the local language fluently. To complete his school assignment, Charlie needs to do a research about the Yangtze River, therefore he surfs the internet using his father’s computer. After so many clicks and links, Charlie is stranded into a pro-democracy group chatroom, it’s a secret movement and obviously illegal in China. The ever curious Charlie asks questions that eventually will have him takes major part in the history of remaking China.

We Are All Weird – Seth Godin

Godin, Seth. 2011. We Are All Weird: Saatnya Menjadi Orang Aneh. Bandung: Penerbit Kaifa.

Rating 2 stars
(review in Indonesian, click here)

Between normalcy and weirdness, there are mass and time period. That’s the whole point I got from We Are All Weird, and I think that’s one of the most interesting points from this book. The idea is refreshing and explained very well in the beginning of the book. Yes, the whole point is explained in the beginning. The social community where we are belong can be seen like a bell curve below,

The amount of people in the normal group (in the box) is bigger than the weirdo (outside the box). But, as time goes, the normal is getting less and less, they are stepping outside of the box and became weird eventually. There’s this time when slavery towards black people is perfectly normal, there’s this time when women with zero right to vote is normal, and further more in Indonesia there’s this time when mass people killing is considered heroic AND normal! (Have you seen The Act of Killing?) But again, the time flies, and some things considered as normal in the past is perspectively changing, and it will be very weird now if those things still exist. The point is, normalcy and weirdness are not absolute.

Taman Api – Yonathan Rahardjo

Rahardjo, Yonathan. 2011. Taman Api. Jakarta: Pustaka Alvabet.

Rating 2,5 stars
(review in Indonesian, click here)

Thank you, Pustaka Alvabet, for giving me this book in exchange for honest review.

We live in a world where being normal is to be attracted toward opposite sex. So, generally any human being who is attracted toward the same sex, known as gay, is considered as abnormal. ‘Normal’ is a situation that is usual compared to most others. In that case, those who are attracted to the same sex are unusual and considered as abnormal. But, what if the normal situation is the contrary from what happened now. What if being normal is when people attracted to the same sex, and those who are attracted to the opposite sex are forced to ‘repent’ and must to be attracted to the same sex. Well? Kind of nauseating, isn’t it? Perhaps that’s what gay people feel all this long. Moreover, how does it feel for those who choose the ‘rougher’ path by becoming gender benders or transsexuals? What are their stories?

The Husband – Dean Koontz

Koontz, Dean. 2007. The Husband. Jakarta: Pustaka Alvabet.

Rating 5 stars
(review in Indonesian, click here)

Thank you, Pustaka Alvabet, for giving me this book in exchange for honest review.

Why I read it in the first place?

I was surfing in the internet, hopping from one online book store to another. In one certain store, I saw The Husband by Dean Koontz, the English version, cheap, used but still in good condition. Somehow, I interested to check the information about the book. After some searching, I was kind of curious with it and simply added The Husband in my wishlist (like my wishlist needs to be longer). One day, I was just checking books in Pustaka Alvabet’s website, and found myself surprised. I didn’t know The Husband by Dean Koontz has been translated into Indonesian, and apparently it’s published by Pustaka Alvabet. They publish many great books really, but somehow I don’t see their books in book store as much as other books from different publishers. So, I e-mailed them, asked them to send me this book in exchange for honest review in this blog. And here it is, the said review.

Nightmare Hour – R. L. Stine

Stine, R. L. 2003. Saat-saat Seram. Jakarta: PT Gramedia Pustaka Utama.

Rating 3,5 stars
(review in Indonesian, click here)

Why I read this book in the first place?

I got up one day and decided to read this book because I wanted to participate in Blogger Buku Indonesia (BBI) monthly event, posting bareng (members post reviews in the same day). For November, the themes were Graphic and Horror. For Graphic, I’ve already posted review of Generasi 90an by Marchella FP, but I only reviewed it in Indonesian. And Nightmare Hour by R. L. Stine is my entry for Horror, obviously. To see Indonesian review for this, here.

FINALLY, after kept it for ten years in my shelf, unread, I managed to finish this book. I don’t know, I’m not a fan of horror anymore I guess. While back then, when I’m 13 or so, I was an official member of Goosebumps fans club. I occasionally received swag from them, sent to my house. Various kind of it, but the most EPIC from them all would be a human-sized poster of a skeleton sits menacingly calm in front of cupboard full of books, having a cup of tea, and IT GLOWS IN THE DARK! Like I said, epic. So, buying Nightmare Hour at that time was only normal for me. But, there’s a reason why I was hesitant to read it until this long....

The Cassandra Compact – Robert Ludlum & Philip Shelby

Ludlum, Robert and Philip Shelby. 2004. The Cassandra Compact. Jakarta: PT Gramedia Pustaka Utama.

Rating 4,5 stars
(review in Indonesian, click here)

 

Why I read it in the first place?

I simply read this book because it’s the work of Robert Ludlum (and Philip Shelby, his co-author for this book). And I really feel ridiculous because I read it just now when this book had actually been there in the shelf since I was in junior high school, and that’s a long time ago. It belongs to my Papa actually, but let’s considers it mine. It’s mine. My first encounter with Ludlum’s books is when I was in senior high school, I read The Jason Bourne series that are TOTALLY SUPER AWESOME! For a long time, I thought The Cassandra Compact is by Tom Clancy. Because my Papa accidentally put this book in between two books of Clancy, that I haven’t read either. I know Tom Clancy just passed away recently, and there’s this uproar because everybody felt the same feeling, they lost a very great thriller master. Unfortunately I haven’t read any Clancy’s book, perhaps next month.... Anyway, what I’m trying to say is, I read this book just because I finally acknowledged this as the work of Robert Ludlum (and Philip Shelby). I need to hunt other Robert Ludlum’s soon.

Nothing Left to Lose – Kirsty Moseley + Author Interview + INT Giveaway! *CLOSED*

Moseley, Kirsty. 2013. Nothing Left to Lose. Self-published.

Rating 4 stars.

I’m participating in Release Day Blitz for Nothing Left to Lose by Kirsty Moseley which is TODAY! Yay! November 5th, finally you’re here! I received the e-book ARC for participating, thanks Kirsty.

So, guys. This will be slightly different than my other review, because my other review doesn’t usually contain Author Interview or International Giveaway! I am so excited I think I’ll combust in any seconds! Without further ado, let’s see my two cents about this book (I know you’ll skip my review and just jump to the rafflecopter giveaway! Meanie!).

The Fault in Our Stars – John Green

Green, John. 2012. The Fault in Our Stars. New York: Dutton Books.

Rating 3,5 stars
(review in Indonesian, click here)

Why I read this in the first place?

This is my first John Green’s. I actually surprised myself because I willingly read this book. It’s against my own reading policy, really. But, here’s the story behind it. I was surfing in Youtube and stumbled upon this video. This girl in the video talks about The Fault in Our Stars. She highly praises it and clearly states that she literally bawled her eyes out while reading the book. And, here’s me, a type of reader who doesn’t find utter attraction into tragic fiction stories, or books that are purposely written to made its readers cry it a river.

A little out of topic, I never really have a solid reason to explain my reading fondness.... I guess, for most part in me, I read as an escape. That’s why I prefer a story with happy-ending. I want to feel happy, so I read books, I want to entertain myself. Well, the world has already given enough tragedy, so why do I want to spare time to read tragic fiction, right? It’s different if it comes to tragic non-fiction. I could easily accept it as a reality or a figment of human history, because I know that reality is not always beautiful but needed to be faced strong-heartedly nonetheless. And that’s why I feel unthrilled to give chance to tragic fiction books.

So, why the heck did I read this insanely famous tearjerker book? Again, the fault is in that Youtube video. The girl says, after reading The Fault in Our Stars, there’s a song came up into his head, it’s Forever and Always by Parachute. Being me, I was more curious to hear that song than to read the book. So I googled the song. (Illegally) downloaded it. Found the lyric too. Listened to it with lyric on screen. Cried my heart out. Listened to it again. Still made me bawled. Listened to it one more time. I STILL EFFING CRIED! Seriously. Until you read this review, I still will cry whenever I hear that song. It’s painfully beautiful and tragic beyond anything. I like that song so much. And somehow it made me felt responsible to also read The Fault in Our Stars, although both (the song and the book) are completely unrelated.