Review: How My Summer Went Up in Flames

How My Summer Went Up in Flames

Author: Jennifer Salvato Doktorski
Pages: 320
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Read: May 4-5, 2013
Source: From publisher for review via YA Books Central

Description from Goodreads:
Rosie’s always been impulsive. She didn’t intend to set her cheating ex-boyfriend’s car on fire. And she never thought her attempts to make amends could be considered stalking. So when she’s served with a temporary restraining order on the first day of summer vacation, she’s heartbroken—and furious.

To put distance between Rosie and her ex, Rosie’s parents send her on a cross-country road trip with responsible, reliable neighbor Matty and his two friends. Forget freedom of the road, Rosie just wants to hitchhike home and win back her ex. But with every mile marker that passes, Rosie discovers a new sense of self…and that sometimes the best revenge is moving on.

First Sentence: "I wasn't always the kind of girl who wakes up in the first day of summer vacation to find herself on the receiving end of a temporary restraining order."

Review:
Thanks to April of Good Books and Good Wine, I'd been warned not to have high expectations going into How My Summer Went Up in Flames. Doktorski's debut had been high on my must-have list ever since the cover reveal (will I ever learn), so this reality check was needed. Prepared to dislike the novel, I was actually pleasantly surprised. Though flawed, Doktorski's debut still kept me entertained and flipping pages.

Okay, guys, believe it or not, but I haven't actually read too many road trip novels. It's a super popular sub-genre of contemporary fiction, but I only really started reading contemporary novels this past year. How My Summer Went Up in Flames has convinced me that I need to read more of them, because this book totally simulated a vacation. It's like I got to visit a whole bunch of touristy places I wouldn't actually want to go, so I can cross them off. Success!

Driving across country with her best friend Matty and brothers Spencer and Logan, Rosie visits so many sights. They pack a lot into their trip. It's seriously impressive how much they get done. Also, I love how much focus Doktorski gives to the music playing as they drive. Music is essential to a road trip, so I loved knowing what they were listening to. Also, Spencer rules for playing Al Simon as they drove to Graceland. *sings "We're going to Graceland, Graceland, Memphis, Tennessee"*

Doktorski also does a great job with the characters. All four of them felt like real people, though Rosie I didn't like, and I'll tackle that soon. However, I thought Matty and Spencer were utterly adorable and delightful. I only wish Rosie wouldn't roll her eyes and turn her music up over their dorky discussions of Star Trek, because I dig that. Logan, too, though not my favorite, has depths to him. Doktorski captures a lot of the awkwardness of time spent trapped together: the tiffs, the silences, the uncomfortable moments where personal space is invaded.

With novels in a first person perspective, one's enjoyment can be seriously impacted by the personality of the main character. In this case, the MC was the big negative to the book. Rosie, short for Rosalita, should be awesome. She's half-Ecuadorian and half-Italian, and she's very passionate. Plus, she has a distinct personality, so I do give Doktorski serious props for that. However, Rosie's also seriously obnoxious. She is seriously judgmental, selfish, and hypocritical. She slut-shames, even though she almost had sex with her boyfriend (she didn't because she wasn't ready which is great, but also means she's not opposed to sex before marriage), she judges girls who show too much skin, and she judges girls who drink, though she does a couple of times too. There's also a double standard to her mean thoughts; Rosie's predisposed to dislike females she comes in contact with, but sizes up every guy as a dating prospect, not judging them for drinking, bare skin, or sexual activity.

I'd been hoping that Rosie set his car on fire in a bit of overenthusiastic vengeance. Instead, it was an accident that happened while she was stalking him after the breakup. Rosie's crazy, completely obsessed with Joey. His birthday is even the password to her voice mail. All of this made her really difficult to relate to in any way. Also, I couldn't support the romance, because she's obviously not mentally stable enough to be in a relationship. I wish the ending had stayed more open-ended.

For those who can stomach Rosie, How My Summer Went Up in Flames will be a fun, summery read. Doktorski's well-drawn characters and humor show talent, and I still hold out hope for her sophomore novel, Famous Last Words, to be released later this year.

Rating: 3/5

Favorite Quote: "'Four years!' I shout, louder than I intended. But I can't imagine what I would have done to Joey if he'd screwed around on me after we'd been together that long. It would have cost him a testicle, I think."

Altered States - Bush

Altered
Altered, Book 1

Author: Jennifer Rush
Pages: 323
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication Date:  January 2, 2013
Source: Gifted by Bekka of Pretty Deadly Reviews for review & giveaway during Dystopian August

Description from Goodreads:
When you can’t trust yourself, who can you believe?

Everything about Anna’s life is a secret. Her father works for the Branch at the helm of its latest project: monitoring and administering treatments to the four genetically altered boys in the lab below their farmhouse. There’s Nick, Cas, Trev . . . and Sam, who’s stolen Anna’s heart. When the Branch decides it’s time to take the boys, Sam stages an escape, killing the agents sent to retrieve them.

Anna is torn between following Sam or staying behind in the safety of her everyday life. But her father pushes her to flee, making Sam promise to keep her away from the Branch, at all costs. There’s just one problem. Sam and the boys don’t remember anything before living in the lab—not even their true identities.

Now on the run, Anna soon discovers that she and Sam are connected in more ways than either of them expected. And if they’re both going to survive, they must piece together the clues of their past before the Branch catches up to them and steals it all away.

First Sentence: "For most of the last five years, I wasn't allowed in the lab."

Review:
Despite the slightly more boy-friendly cover (maybe? I'm guessing. It seems like it holds more boy appeal than some, but I'm not sure about the shirtless guy), Altered is definitely what we generally quantify as a girl book. The main subject of the book, it's driving force, is romance, with all of the science-fiction-y aspects coming second. If you're in the mood for a really hardcore dystopian novel, this is not the one I would recommend.

We'll start with the things that I liked. The best part was Rush's writing style. Her writing is neither overly ornate nor laughably simple. I thought it worked with the story and the intelligence/education level of the heroine, Anna, from whose perspective we see. The only downside, which I'll extrapolate on later, was the tendency towards hackneyed phrases when it came to romance.

The science stuff was definitely cool. Though much of why this is happening and precisely who is responsible for it remains unanswered, Rush has not left her readers completely in the dark like some dystopian authors like to do. I hope to learn more about the processes and any special skills the boys have in the next book. I've always been a sucker for stories about people with special powers, whether mutated or scientifically-given, so this was right up my alley. So far, the book is not especially dystopian, although I think it does qualify, since the government does know of and fund the Program. Still, it's definitely not the best example of one.

There were, however, quite a few things I did not like. First off, there's the characterization. I hardly feel any connection to any of these characters, even Anna. Since I'm looking a the world through Anna's eyes, I ought to care whether she gets Sam, the boy she's been obsessed with for years...but I don't. Other than the fact that she likes to draw and drools over Sam, I know very little about her. She's sometimes sarcastic, but otherwise she's mostly just naive and kind of boring. The boys are a bit more interesting, with Sam being the one I have the least interest in. Actually, the character I liked best was definitely Nick, who I think was supposed to be the one that I didn't like.

It will likely not come as a surprise to find that I did not ship Sam and Anna, since I wasn't invested in either one individually. The biggest problem I had with them as a ship was that there didn't seem to be any reason for them to be into one another, aside from the whole physical attraction thing. Sam seems so much cleverer than Anna, and they really don't seem to share any interests aside from living. There was never anything to explain why she crushed on him so hard or any conversations between the two about something normal to show a real connection, a possible basis for a relationship not driven by heightened we-could-die-at-any-moment emotions. As far as I can tell, their feelings are manufactured solely by the conditions in which they find themselves.

Perhaps the biggest reason that I couldn't handle them, though, was how obnoxious Anna was whenever she thought about him. She indulged in the kinds of phrases YA heroines love to bandy about that always make me want to punch everything. Here are a couple (though they're from the ARC and could be changed pre-publication):

"If I had known the night before would be our final night together, I would have spent more time with him.
     I would have told him how much he meant to me, that not a second went by when I didn't think about him."

Let's analyze this, shall we? It should be noted that this is early on in the book and Sam has expressed zero interest in her romantically at this point. Her phrasing implies a stronger connection than they had (they played chess together at night, which he always won). What really irritates me is the second half where she says that 'not a second went by' without thoughts of him. Really?! How does she manage to function? Well, she kind of doesn't. She really doze zone out a lot while thinking of him, but, still, think about the implications. When she's taking a dump, she thinks of Sam. All of her dreams? About Sam. NO.

"I fought for air but came up short, like I was drowning, like the panic had filled my mouth, my nose. I gulped. Sam tipped my head back and air trickled into my lungs. This was not happening. Those men were not dead. And Dad was not shot. And I was not so close to Sam that I could feel his breath on my face."

 This quote is worse, as the first can be dismissed as merely a poetic flight of fancy, exaggeration used to show the scale of her love (obsession). This one, though, not so much. Let me add some context: Sam has just shoved her against a rough brick wall, only to stop her from punching him but still. Her first reaction is panic. Okay, good so far. Then disbelief at all the crazy shit that went down (many men were killed so the boys could escape). Realistic response. Her final reaction? Squeeing over how close she is to Sam. *headdesk* This guy just killed a bunch of people, shot your father, and shoved you into a wall and you're STILL distracted by how sexy he is. Oh, HELL TO THE NO.

That all sounds quite harsh, I know, but Altered was a fun, if mindless read. I definitely intend to continue with the story and hope that, since Rush's writing is good, that she will develop further with her characters. Personally, I would love to see a wrench thrown into the story...like Anna starting to like Nick instead? That would be awesome. My opinion: fun book with sexy boys and action scenes but with some major issues.

Favorite Quote: "You're the only person I trust. That's not something you waste."

"Living in a cage
Washing in a birdbath
Sinking in a fish bowl
On a broken farm
I try to never lie
I really do
I wonder if my friends
Will get me through
Conscious of the was as best we can
17 ways to kill a man
States we've been through"

Remember: Every comment on a post during Dystopian August is an entry to win one of fourteen dystopian/post-apocalyptic novels IF you've filled out the form from this post.

She Hates Me - Puddle of Mudd

Boys Over Flowers

Author: Yoko Kamio
Volumes: 37
Publisher: VIZ Media

Brief Summary:
Tsukushi Makino wants nothing more than to get through high school without attracting the notice of the impossibly wealthy, snobby and self-absorbed people with whom she attends Eitoku Academy. The only reason she's there is that her parents think her marrying rich is the only way they'll ever escape poverty. Eitoku is essentially run by a group of four incredibly wealthy and handsome boys. If they don't like a student, they put a red card in that kid's locker and torture that individual until they drop out. One day, Tsukushi challenges the leader of the F4, Tsukasa, and rather than going down and dropping out, she fights back.

Review:
Warning: this review may contain spoilers.

For a lot of people when they think of manga, they'll probably think either of a battle manga, like Naruto, or an over-the-top melodramatic romance series, of which Boys Over Flowers is a perfect example. It is in every way absurd and improbable. There is nothing of the real world about it. Every page oozes with romantic drama, love triangles and betrayal, not to mention amnesia (oh wait, I just did).

However, I did read the whole thing (twice...because I wanted to review it and my memory was fuzzy), although I have no plans to read it ever again. At the outset, I actually rather liked the story, even though I find a school so in the thrall of its students preposterous. I mean, at one point, Tsukushi is tied up and dragged behind a moving vehicle in front of the school. In what universe would a teacher or administrator not put a stop to this, if only for liability's sake? (I told you it was over-the-top.) Plus, why would these guys allow people to call them the Flower 4? Yes, that's what the F stands for. SUPER LAME!

What I liked though was Tsukushi's spirit. She's not particularly attractive, she's poor and she's not even brilliant. Still, she refuses to let others make her feel like she's worthless. If only to spite others, she finds resources within herself to face the challenges and pain life gives to her. That trait I found to be rather admirable.

Another thing I appreciated at the beginning was that this is not another story where the girl pines away for the guy she's been obsessed with, waiting for him to want her. Instead, Tsukasa is desperately in obsession with her, but unable to make her his. This brings me to one of the many in this story that I just cannot get over or accept. His frustrated longing for her makes him do something stupid, namely to attempt rape in the school. He doesn't actually do it, but he does force kisses and rip open her shirt. As much as the story takes the reader in hand, I find it impossible to ever forgive such behavior.

This may be why, even though after that incident Yoko Kamio tries really hard to show the reader Tsukasa's true feelings for Tsukushi, I just don't buy it completely. Even now, after reading all 36 volumes and Jewelry Box, and additional volume she added to close some plot lines, I still ship Tsukushi more with Rui Hanazawa. His character grew into such a great person and it's really a shame.

A lot of what happens here is just awful. Still, there's a reason it's so incredibly popular. It's addictive, much like Gossip Girl and Twilight. The lives and loves it depicts are in now way something to emulate; they're a car crash and you just want to watch, even though you hate yourself for it.

P.S. Yoko Kamio's actually the author of one of my favorite manga's Cat Street, which is not yet licensed in the U.S. It's so much better than this one, her most famous work.

Rating: 2.5/5

"Met a girl, thought she was grand
Fell in love, found out first hand
Went well for a week or two
Then it all came unglued

In a trap, trip I can't grip
Never thought I'd be the one who'd slip
Then I started to realize
I was living one big lie

She fucking hates me
Trust
She fucking hates me
La la la love
I tried too hard
And she tore my feelings like I had none
And ripped them away"

Sakura Kiss - Chieko Kawabe

Ouran High School Host Club

Author: Bisco Hatori
Volumes: 18
Publisher: Viz Media

Brief Summary:
Haruhi Fujioka is super apathetic. She takes no pride in her appearance as a girl, so, on her first day at Ouran (the rich people's high school to which she is a scholarship student), she wears one of her dad's old sweaters, big glasses and doesn't brush her hair. Wandering around, she stumbles across Ouran's host club, enterprising young boys who flirt with the girls at their school for profit. While there, Haruhi, in her effort to escape, accidentally breaks a super expensive vase. To earn the money to pay them back, they require her (they think she's a boy) to work as a host.

Review:
As that summary probably tells you, Ouran High School Host Club is completely over the top ridiculous. It's a reverse harem with an uninterested heroin, which is definitely the best kind. Haruhi finds being surrounded by the most attractive guys at school boring, often frustrating.

This absurdness and crazy comedy is what Ouran does best. Hatori embraces that this story has nothing to do with the real world. After a while, she writes in, for example, that for narrative purposes, years will pass without the characters moving up a grade. While I do think that's ridiculous, I accept it, since Hatori drew attention to it, rather than just pretending time wasn't passing. I respect that she was willing to acknowledge the crazy. In case you're curious, they do eventually age.

The series maintains consistency pretty well throughout the volumes. I can't remember any terrible story lines off the top of my head, which is definitely doable with most shoujo manga. I'll tell you all about that in an upcoming review (I'm about to reread Boys Over Flowers just so I can review it).

My main criticism of the story was always that I shipped Haruhi with a character that did not get to win her heart. This still makes me sad, but, by the end, Hatori had me at least partially convinced that the winning guy was the right one. Whatever. Kyouya's still my favorite; I have a weakness for the tall glasses-wearing ones.

Rating: 3.5/5

Hair / Crazy in Love from Glee

Beauty Pop

Author: Kiyoko Arai
Volumes: 10
Publisher: Viz Media

Brief Summary:
Kiri has amazing hair cutting skills, learned from her father, one of the best stylists in Japan. Unfortunately, Kiri no longer gets joy from cutting hair, ever since she accidentally cut her mother's ear as a child. Still, she helps people out when they need it. In this way, she attracts the notice and rivalry of the self proclaimed genius stylist, Narumi, of her school's Scissors Project, a group of boys all determined to open a salon when they grow up.

Review:
Beauty Pop is a shoujo manga that focuses more on the subject matter than on romance. The early volumes are very similar to some other makeover manga, in that they don't have quite as much plot and each chapter centers around a different makeover. The later volumes involve more romance and more leveling up in the stylists' skills.

My favorite thing about this manga is that, despite being a reverse harem shoujo series , the heroine is not constantly concerned about having a boyfriend or focused on romance. Actually, the best word to describe Kiri might be apathetic. Her hairstyle is practical not pretty, as are her clothes. She's sarcastic and disinterested. In fact, when the romance comes into the series, it's the boys who suffer from desperation not the female character, which is rather nice to see.

The first time I read this, I remember being hugely disappointed by the way the romance turned out, as I had been rooting for an entirely different guy to win. This time through, prepared for the ending, I was more okay with it.

Although not one of my favorite series, Beauty Pop definitely has good features and is worth a read for a shoujo fan. Recommended to fans of The Knockout Makers, Ouran High School Host Club or My Heavenly Hockey Club.

"Give me a head with hair
Long beautiful hair
Shining, gleaming, streaming, flaxen, waxen"

The Beauty in Ugly - Jason Mraz

Ugly Duckling's Love Revolution

Author: Yuuki Fujinari
Volumes: 4
Publisher: Yen Press

Brief Summary:
Hitomi's brother takes care of her and he does a pretty good job, because he loves her so much. Still, his love causes him to overlook her unhealthy habits. This enables her to put on a lot of weight. The weight doesn't stop her from making friends, even really hot ones, but she's worried about her health. Will Hitomi's diet succeed? Will one of the hot guys in the apartment complex her brother runs fall in love with her?

Review:
This was one weird manga, and believe me I know. What's weird is that it's a shoujo manga with no romance. It's hinted at, but never goes anywhere. Hitomi loses the weight and, Bam!, that's the end of the story. Shoujo is all about romance, so it's very strange for it not to be included. Stranger yet, this is a reverse harem manga, and she still doesn't get to have one of the like eight bishounen surrounding her.

What was cool, if not incredibly realistic, was how popular Hitomi was, regardless of her appearance. All of the hottest guys in school were friends with her and wanted to spend time with her. One of them even seemed to have a crush on her. Everyone in the manga was pretty nice, even the ones that were gruff on the surface. It would be nice if people really were this encouraging and focused on internal beauty.

Of course, I do think it undoes some of that message that Hitomi was depicted as a chibi character a lot, like on the cover of volume one. Also, she didn't get to have the typical large pretty eyes of a manga character. Fat people get little dots for eyes. Umm, what is that about? People's eyes stay the same size no matter their weight, but, sure enough, when she got skinny, she got pretty girl eyes. Uncool.

If this manga does anything at all, it endorses working out and staying healthy, perhaps suggesting that you will get yourself a bunch of sexy friends if you do so. I will not be revisiting this one, but it was interesting enough, so long as you know what to expect from it.

"She's so big hearted,
But not so remarkable
Just an ordinary humble girl"