Hunger Games fans rejoice, we have a prequel in our midst! The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes follows Coriolanus Snow—yes, that Snow!—during the tenth annual Hunger Games. Snow is one of 24 Academy seniors chosen as a mentor, but has been given the embarrassing task of mentoring the girl from District 12.
Read MoreThis is one of those books that initially intimidated me: it is a “classic”, so I lumped it together with others like The Count of Monte Cristo or The Grapes of Wrath (both of which I was not particularly fond of when I read them in grade school). However, per Macklemore’s suggestion, I thought I would give it a shot.
Read MoreI told myself I would not buy any more books until I finish reading all the ones I own but have not yet read, but I broke my own promise three days ago to purchase The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken. The previews of the upcoming movie peaked my interest, and of course I was even more interested when I discovered it was based on a book series. The books were written for teens, the characters have powers, and it's set in a mildly realistic dystopian society---basically, my favorite type of book.
Read MoreFive years ago, five cheerleaders died within a month of each other. Two in a car accident, two murdered, and one committed suicide. After a quick investigation, the police pinned the murder on a neighbor; when they entered his home to take him into custody, the suspect allegedly had a gun and police shot him dead. Monica's school wants to hold a service to remember the tragedy five years ago, including the suicide of her older sister, but Monica just wants to forget it all. However, clues are starting to arise hinting that the police got it all wrong.
Read MoreOf all the books assigned in English class over the course of my high school career, this is the only one I read in its entirety. I remember relishing the dystopian setting and praising Huxley for his scarily innovative views on what the utopian future would look like, considering he wrote Brave New World in 1932. Naturally, I was excited to pick up this title for a bit of light summer reading, but quickly regretted this decision. Though the dystopian society was everything I remembered and more, I could not get past one glaringly abhorrent character: John.
Read More"In an all-too-realistic near future, the government has placed a limitation on the speech of women and girls - one hundred words a day. The price for exceeding one's daily quota is a painful electric shock administered via the counter adorning each female wrist…. If you had only one hundred words a day, what would you do to be heard?”
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