Paper Towns: 3 Stars

Paper Towns by John Green 

John Green is one of my favorite authors who happens to write books I don't really care about. I think he is funny and brilliant, but not necessarily in his books. I follow a lot of what he writes and says outside of his books, and can't get enough.  For that reason, I keep reading his books.

Paper Towns is a book about a nerdy boy and the popular girl next door he is in love with. They were friends as kids, but as they grew up, they stopped spending so much time together. One night, Margo (the popular girl) climbs into Q's (the nerdy boy) window and wants to sneak out with him to extract revenge upon those who have wronged her. After a night of adventure, Margo doesn't show up to school for a few days and Q sets off to find her.

As with Green's book Looking for Alaska, Paper Towns shows a boy who likes a girl based upon what he created in his mind, and not really the person. Q seems to miss that Margo came to him not out of unrequited love, but because he was close and had a car. He then spends most of his time and energy (and his friends' time and energy) in search of a girl who hadn't given him the time of day in years. I liked this because it's more realistic than most movies/books.

As with his other novels, my favorite character was a side character.  Radar was Q's best friend. Along with having a fun personality and being a loyal friend, Radar had to live with parent's who had the world's largest black Santa collection that they showed with pride. It was an awesome side character to put in a book and added an element of sarcasm and humor.

In the end, I thought the book was okay, but not great. It was boring in the middle and I hated both Margo and Q throughout the majority of the book. Once again, I am not sure if I am disappointed because the book wasn't that great, or if I built up anticipation because of the author. Read for yourself and tell me what you think.

Rating: R (language and sexual content) 

Recommended for those who enjoy: coming of age stories, teenage love stories, and sarcasm.

A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail: 4 Stars

 

 A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail by Bill Bryson

Bill Bryson decided to hike the Appalachian Trail; a feat that requires walking over 2,000 miles. The book chronicles his adventures with his friend, Stephen Katz. It starts with him buying his equipment and he immediately had me hooked. His reaction to the prices and "necessities" of a sporting goods store is similar to my own. His sarcasm and wit knew no end. 

Eventually he starts out on the trail and the journey begins. Starting off slow and inexperienced, Bill and Stephan eventually find themselves keeping up a decent pace and giving advice to less experienced hikers. They interact with several different kinds of people from the entertaining to the annoying. 

Bryson also gives us a wonderful history lesson on the Appalachian Trail; something I know very little about. There are also towns along the trail with fascinating histories, such as Centrailia, PA, which has been burning underground since 1962, making it a ghost town. 

Bryson talks about the ups and downs of life on the trail. He has the ability to break away from time, schedules, electronics, and really free his mind. He also accounts of the number of people who have died on the trail, whether because of accidents, bear attacks, or murders (two girls were murdered during his time on the trail). 

Bryson is an excellent writer with an excellent ability to keep you hooked. I was thoroughly impressed with his adventures and would love to try other books by him.

Rating: PG-13

Recommended for those who enjoy: sarcasm, nature, and journeys.

The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell: 2 Stars

The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell by Chris Colfer

You might know Chris Colfer from his role in the show Glee or you might not. At age 24, the young actor has only recently been brought into fame.  But that didn't stop him from publishing his own book series; a series he has been working on since childhood. 

In The Wishing Spell, Alex and Conner are 12-year-old twins who recently lost their father. Each twin is dealing with the loss in their own way: Alex is reading and studying more, while Conner is becoming more outspoken and hanging out with his friends. Even though they are opposites, the twins are still close and both concerned for their mother who has had to work extra hard to make ends meet. Lucky for them, they also have a grandmother who watches out for them and even gives them gifts, such as The Land of Stories, a book that has been in the family for years. But they soon learn it's no ordinary book when the kids fall in and find themselves in a world of fairy tales. 

The fact that Colfer started this as a young child is not surprising since it seems like it was written by one. The writing is weak, the characters are one-dimensional and generic, the plot is unimaginative (since it seems the be like a combination of many others), and the end result is boring.

The book contained several grammatical errors (I wish I had written a few down as examples, but I didn't).  Also, Colfer showed his inexperience and youth by immediately describing every character in detail when they were introduced. Most experienced writers find more creative ways to keep the story flowing and still describe the characters. Colfer had to stop progress in the story line to describe them. He also made the conversations in the book obnoxious by ending nearly every line with "said the character". By the time you were done reading the conversation, you were so sick and tired of hearing the word "said". These writing issues left the story choppy and were very distracting.

Both the main characters, Alex and Conner, were generic. There was the nose-stuck-in-a-book, teacher's pet, no friends, loner Alex.  And then there was the teacher's nightmare, snarky, popular, struggling in school Conner. The characters lacked any amount of depth. By the end of the book, neither character had grown or developed in any way. This made them a rather boring pair to read about.

The story itself left a lot to be desired. The story was essentially several other stories, just wrapped into one. There were elements of Inkspell, The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, as well as some elements from popular shows and movies. The story felt like a redundant tale and seemed to lack imagination.

At the end of the day, Colfer has written an excellent FIRST DRAFT of a book. I really wish he had taken the time and energy to go back and rework this story into something much better. I think if he were not famous, no one would have even heard of this book.

That being said, for being so young and having so many other things on his plate, Colfer shows a lot of promise as an aspiring writing. He will only get better with time and a much more persistent editor. I would be interested to see what he produces in 10 to 20 years.

Rating: PG

Recommended for those who enjoy: fantasy, children's books and sarcasm.

Dirty Chick: 4 Stars

Dirty Chick: Adventures of an Unlikely Farmer by Antonia Murphy

After living most of her life in San Francisco, Antonia and husband Peter move to New Zealand to escape into a quiet life of farming. Antonia had some experience with chickens (although, it wasn't the *best* experience) and she felt like she could tackle a life of farming quite easily. But it turns out it wasn't everything she thought it would be.

Dead chickens, escaping cows, spitting alpacas, and cute lambs that grow into ugly sheep were only the tip of the iceberg of all the problems Antonia had to face in her new life. By far the most challenging was becoming a mother of a son with disabilities and a very frolicsome daughter.

Antonia Murphy holds nothing back and she explains everything that happened to her in her first year as a farmer. This book is not for the faint of heart, as she describes in vivid detail what goes into raising animals and children. With a raw sense of humor and sarcasm pouring out of every page, she is sure to get you laughing and crying out in disgust all at once. Her wit and personality draw you into the story and make you feel like she is an old friend telling you stories around a fireplace as you sit around drinking hot cocoa. By the end of the book, you feel like you have a new friend.

The story reminded me of different experiences I had in my life, despite never having lived on a farm nor having raised children. My parents had chickens when I was a kid, which somehow made me think we were farmers. I remember watching Sesame Street one day with my brother and laughing at a clip of young kids reacting to a baby chick. I told my brother "City kids are so funny!" and my mom laughed and laughed thinking "Aw honey, you are a city kid!".

If you are looking for a light-hearted tale of one woman's journey from city kid to farmer, look no further than Dirty Chick.  You won't be disappointed.

Rating: PG-13

Recommended for those who enjoy: sarcasm, sassy female protagonists, and child rearing tales.