February and March Wrap Up

February and March were two months where I read books that I would consider important reads for people of all ages. Only one of the books would not be categorized as Young Adult, but could be read by anyone. These were books that I wasn't forcing myself to read. I picked them up, because those were the books that I wanted to read in that moment. That helped a lot in helping me read the books quickly and take them in as much as possible. Towards the end of March, those last three books I read were pretty close together.

February 2017

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling
It took me a long time to get through this book, but it wasn't the actual book that slowed me down, it was me. I just wasn't motivated to pick up the physical book, but once I was able to borrow an e-book version from the library I got through it a lot quicker. I also saw the movie and I can't really say that I loved it. So far my favorite book has been Prisoner of Azkaban.

Monster by Walter Dean Myers
I finally picked this book up after seeing it at Barnes and Noble almost every time I went in there. This is not a traditionally formatted book. It's written in the form of a screenplay. These different book formats are interesting, but can sometimes take away from the story. That was not the case for this book. It's not the type of book where the ending is going to make complete sense and makes you think about why certain things happen and how they got to that point.

March 2017

Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
I love Trevor Noah's comedy and his stand-up, and that's how I've gotten to know about him. He took over The Daily Show in 2015, so most people probably know him from that. Born a Crime is a collection of stories about his life growing up in South Africa during apartheid. It's a perfect blend of his comedy, story telling, and information about living in South Africa during that time.

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
I went out to get it as soon as I could and read it right after that. I wanted to read it before people really started sharing their opinions on it. Without giving too much away, this book was initially inspired by Oscar Grant and the Black Lives Matter movement. Other books have touched on the subject, but the hype that The Hate U Give got months before it even debuted brought an attention to it that was well needed. This gives you another perspective to something that is discussed on the news, but we never get to see the personal side of it.

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
Initially I wasn't going to read this book. Then my thirteen year old brother picked it up. Soon after that I started seeing the trailer for the Netflix show pop up everywhere. I borrowed it from my brother and started reading it really knowing nothing about it. I had a hard time deciding what to rate this, so I didn't. It's an important read, especially for someone around my brother's age where they're about to begin high school and these sort of experiences start happening more. Maybe not even to them personally, but just so that they're aware that bullying, sexual assault, rape, and so many other things that most are unaware of are things that kids deal with.


I'm currently reading something completely different. After reading books that dealt with heavy topics, I wanted to take a bit of break and then maybe I'll pick something else up related to those books.


Currently Reading
Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes

Currently Reading, but sort of on the back burner
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling
Paper Princess by Erin Watt