1. The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith
It was o.k., nothing special. Didn't make me want to read any more in the series.

2. In the Cut by Susanna Moore
Creepy/weird & kind of gross. It has sex and mystery, but not good writing.

3. About a Boy by Nick Hornby
Not sure what the hype was about this book. I thought it was slow. The character of Will is way over-praised seeing as how he's basically a scam artist.

4. The Giver by Lois Lowry
My second favorite book ever. I love it so much. I wanted to re-read it before the movie botches it.

5. The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty
Maybe if I had read this before I saw the movie (years ago), I would've like the book better. It just didn't seem as scary as I'd hoped.

6. Charm & Strange by Stephanie Kuehn
YA that relies on a past hidden/secret tragedy to lead the story. I liked it.

7. The Land of Stories 3: A Grimm Warning by Chris Colfer
I love these stories. Fairy tales are so good! However, this one ended with a major cliff-hanger & it will be a year, at least, before it's resolved!

8. House at the End of the Street by Lily Blake
Mystery/thriller. I read the book, then watched the movie - though the book was written based on the book. Good twist that played out well in my mind as I read the book; however, it didn't translate as well to screen.

9. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sàenz
One of the best books ever written, IMO. Ari & Dante are teenagers who come to meet, become best friends, & discover growing up, & figuring themselves out. Wonderful story.

10. Conversion by Katherine Howe
This was a cool story that connects the Salem Witch Trials to today and is based on a true story of girls who began having tics and other medical issues with no explanation. Fun read.

11. Doctor Who: The Shakespeare Notebooks by James Goss
No. I mean, maybe if I new more about Shakespeare I would have been more interested. This book basically puts the Doctor in some of Shakespeare's plays because the Doctor & Shakespeare knew one another.

12. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
I had to re-read this before the movie comes out this fall. Great trilogy, as a whole, and this one is a tear-jearker.

13. A Better World by Marcus Sakey
Second story in the Brilliance series. It took me a few chapters to get in to this story, but I ended up enjoy it and wondering what's going to happen next.

14. The Lowlands by Jhumpa Lahiri
I wasn't sure I'd really like this, but the descriptions of the settings were what really hooked me in - the story takes place in India (past and modern-day) and in Rhode Island. It's about family relations and what one will do to make a family work.

15. The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
Long. Loooonnnnnnggggggg. 771 in over-sized paperback. Very daunting. But, I loved it! Great story. However, I felt the last couple hundred pages were a little slow, though quite a bit happens. Definitely worthy of all the awards it receives.

16. Ask the Passengers by A.S. King
It was o.k. the connection to the lead character and "the passengers" wasn't really there, but at times it worked. Mainly about a teenager coming to terms with her sexuality.

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1. The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin
I really liked this story. It's the second book to The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer. Book 3 comes out later this year & I'm excited to read it. It's a mystery/thriller, which is what I like most.

2. It’s Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini
But it wasn't funny. A kid checks himself into a mental ward because he has suicidal thoughts. Whereas I give the character credit for trying to take control of his life, it just played out too easy.

3. The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff
I thought this would be scary. It wasn't. It was a babies who are kidnapped for ritual purposes & replaced with "people" who are sort of vampire-like.

4. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews
"Me" (Greg): crappy filmmaker who often writes in script form.
"Earl": Every other word out of his mouth was a curse word or something tacky & typically degrading to women.
"The Dying Girl" (Rachel): No character development here. She dies.
Terrible story.

5. This Is Not a Test by Courtney Summers
This is a sort-of zombie book, I guess. Slow & there is no conclusion.

6. Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline
I really liked this book. It was a tear-jearker though. I feel really bad for kids who had to go through this, not knowing where they would end up or who with. Really good story.

7. Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson
Pretty forgettable for an Anderson book.  Deals with teen issues, as most of her books do. Not terrible, but not very memorable.

8. One Last Thing Before I Go by Jonathan Tropper
This was a funny one.  A dysfunctional family story, but has heart.

9. Panic by Lauren Oliver
I like Lauren Oliver - mostly her Delirium series - but this story wasn't up to par. A game that high school seniors play is called "Panic". They can win a lot of money if they make it all the way through.  Sounds daring.  Didn't turn out so.

10. Serena by Ron Rash
I read it because I thought I might want to see the movie.  That's iffy.  Slow. Very slow. It did get pretty good about the last 100 pages, but getting there took a while.

11. Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan
This book was cute, but I don't think that's what the authors where going for. I had 2 problems with this book: 1) Lily is supposed to be 16, yet she acts like a 12-year-old, giggly little school girl. Which ends up being creepy because Dash seems too old for her. 2) Who talks like these kids? I don't know any adults who speak as witty/quick-witted as Dash, and being a teacher, I certainly don't know any teenagers who do.The book's storyline is a fun concept, it just doesn't play out.

12. Horns by Joe Hill
I thought this would be scary, too. I wanted a good horror story, what I got was a story about infidelity and a guy who turns into the devil. Not as good as I'd hoped.

13. Trash by Andy Mulligan
Another book I read because a movie is being made.  It was ok.  Boys who live in poverty near/on/in a trash heap find something that leads them to become outlaws and involved in a murder case.

14. This is Where I Leave You by Jonathan Tropper
This story made me literally LOL.  The family in the story is totally dysfunctional (a Tropper theme, apparently).  I watched the movie trailer & it's seem they've changed a few things, but it should be pretty good with Tina Fey & Jason Bateman.  Good read.

1. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
This was a 3rd-time re-read. How could I not? It's wonderful, it's endearing, it's heartbreaking, it's just lovely. Plus I had to read it again before the movie comes out (1 week!). I'm not thrilled with the casting, but having John Green involved in making the film gives me hope.

2. The Distance Between Us by Kasie West
Good story about a girl & a guy from separate worlds - he's rich, she's poor - and how those worlds affect their lives and the lives of those around them.

3. The Babysitter by Andrew Coburn
The cover of this book makes it look like a horror story and the title sort of seems that way as well; however, it's not a horror story. It's more of a crime/drama, mystery/thriller. The book starts off with a dead babysitter and the story that ensues is about who committed the crime. I thought it was a good, quick read.

4. Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour by Morgan Matson
I loved this book! It's a sweet story, that doesn't rely too heavily on a sad backstory. It really made me want to get a friend and take a road trip.

5. Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige
As a huge fan of all things The Wizard of Oz, this sounded like a really cool take on what happens after Dorothy leaves - then returns - to Oz. However, this book is in a series & I didn't know that until I'd finished the book. I wondered why not much had happened and I was on the last hundred-ish pages and then it just ended with no real conclusion to this part of the story. Based on that, I wasn't really impressed.

6. Brunette Ambition by Lea Michele
How could I not enjoy anything by Lea Michele? I can't! She's perfection. Actually, this was interesting and fun to read. Not really logical for the average person to use some of her tips (because some of it could become costly), but she's just interesting and I enjoy her.

7. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian by Sherman Alexie
This book showed up on some banned book list, which made me want to read it. It was quite good and humorous. I can understand how some people would be offended by some of the content, but really there is nothing "ban-worthy" about it.

8. The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin
This was weird and cool. It's a trilogy, with Book 3 coming out this fall (Book 2 is on my shelf to read). It's about a girl who wakes up in a hospital, from a coma, to find out she survived an accident that 3 friends did not. She moves away to try and come to terms with what happened, but she realizes "problems" tend to follow.

9. The Edge of Nowhere by Elizabeth George
This book was actually very similar to "Mara Dyer" in it's mysteriousness and tone. A colleague had me read this. It's also a series (not sure how many, but Book 2 is available now). I'm curious to find out what happens next to the lead character.

10. I’d Like to Apologize to Every Teacher I ever Had by Tony Danza
As a teacher, I know Danza got a lot of things right in this book. Obviously, it was an "experiment" and he has money to back up his life when his 1 year of teaching is over - and most real teachers don't have that fallback (if they did, they would not be teaching!). But he hit the nail on the head with standardized testing, schools meeting their AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress), and the struggle to connect with students when school is so testing focused. I enjoyed the read and was glad others see my job as it is.

11. The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart
As a teacher and avid reader, I can appreciate the way this book was written, I just didn't like the way it was written (mostly 3rd person, but I felt like there was some 1st person in there, too, and a lot of back and forth).  Also, I didn't feel as I could identify with any of the characters, nor did I really care about them - rich, boarding school kids. At first, I thought Frankie was a pretty cool, sneaky, savvy girl, but the last page just got me. All of the sudden, I, too, saw her as psychotic (as some of the other characters did) and expect a book 2 where she goes off and kills everyone at school. I hate to say that, but that's the feeling the book left me with.  I think this is one of those books where you either really love it or you hate it.