Top Ten Tuesday: April Showers

by Elena

There’s absolutely nothing better than curling up in bed with the most charming romance you’ve ever read, with a spring shower coming down outside. And what better time to share my favorite books than during springtime? 

 

1. The Upside of Falling by Alex Light

This novel follows two teens grappling with family issues. Book nerd, Becca Hart, tells her friend she has a boyfriend to avoid embarrassment, and Brett Wells, the popular football captain, steps in to fake date Becca. As they lean on each other for support through difficult times, their relationship blossoms into something neither of them could have imagined. 

 

2. Tell Me Three Things by Julie Buxbaum

Jessie moves to LA to live with her father and his new wife, while still grieving the loss of her own mother. During her first week of school, she received a mysterious text from SN. They help her navigate high school and intense emotions, while keeping their identity secret. Meanwhile, she feels herself falling for her moody, quiet English partner. Will SN ever reveal their identity? Or will her silly adventures to discover who they are be all for nothing? 

 

3. The Do-over by Lynne Painter

Emilie wakes up on Valentine’s Day, only to experience the worst chain of events of her life. Unable to wait for the day to be over, she goes to bed, but inexplicably wakes up in a time loop. The day repeats over and over until she finally realizes: there are no consequences for her actions. Will she wake up the next day, or is she destined to be stuck repeating the same day for the rest of her life? 

 

4. Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven

America’s fattest teen, Libby Strout, and Jack Masselin, a boy with face-blindness, form an unlikely bond. Together, the pair navigates bullying, vulnerability, and everyday struggles in high school. Though they seem an unlikely pair, could they be perfect for each other? 

 

5. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

This heart shattering book follows the tragic love of Hazel Grace Lancaster and Augustus Waters, two terminally ill teens. The book represents the difficulty of living with cancer, the joys of being in love, and the pains of loss and grief. 

 

6. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

A vampire and a werewolf fall in love with a human? Bella Swan is trapped in a love triangle with the two most handsome boys in Forks, Washington, but they are mortal enemies. This book (as well as its following saga) is a classic, especially among teenage girls, and for a reason. The perfect book for a hopeless romantic, especially one who loves a good romantasy filled with swoony moments, as well as moments sure to make your jaw drop and your heart race. 

 

7. Love & Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch 

Travel and romance. Who wouldn’t want that? Except Lina doesn’t want anything except to be with her mother. Unfortunately for her, that isn’t an option anymore. Struggling with the loss of her mother, she must move to Tuscany to spend the summer with Howard, the father she’s never met. Following her mother’s footsteps through her journal, will she even have enough time for Lorenzo, the charming Italian boy who offers to help her track down her mother’s past life? You’ll just have to wait and see in this perfect European love story. 

 

8. If He had Been With Me by Laura Nowlin

Laura Nowlin delivers the perfect, soul-crushing, tear-jerking slow burn romance. Childhood best friends Finny and Autumn drifted apart in high school, but will they be able to make it back together, or will they just be left wondering what could have happened? 

 

9. What to Say Next by Julie Buxbaum

An unexpected friendship forms when Kit Lowell joins socially isolated David Drucker at lunch. Attempting to process her father’s death, David just might be exactly what she needs. Incredibly smart and yearning for Kit, he can’t believe his luck. But when things take a turn for the worse, will their friendship disappear as fast as it formed? Every novel from Julie Buxbaum is extremely entertaining, and this one is no different. 

 

10. Better Than the Movies by Lynne Painter

They’ve been enemies forever, but still, Liz needs all the help she can get. She enlists her neighbor, Wes Bennett, to help her capture the attention of her long-term crush. Somehow, though, her goal seems to switch, and she finds herself falling for Wes. This insanely viral book is popular for a reason and will make you gasp, laugh, and smile ear-to-ear. 

Top Ten Tuesday: Mainstream Popular Authors that I Still Have Not Read

Written by Grace H.

The Winter Park Library’s Teen Book Guild is excited to join in on the bookish fun of Top Ten Tuesdays! Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, Top Ten Tuesday is a widespread trend in which book bloggers create a “Top Ten” list in response to a different topic each week.

This week, and for our first Top Ten Tuesday post, the theme is:

Mainstream Popular Authors that I Still Have Not Read.

There’s practically an infinite number of books in the world, and a practically infinite number of authors. But there’s never enough time to read them all. What well-known authors have you not gotten around to reading yet? For me, many of these names will be instantly recognizable as forerunners in the YA genre.

1. Marissa Meyer
2. Rainbow Rowell
3. Leigh Bardugo
4. Neal Schusterman
5. Renée Ahdieh

6. Maureen Johnson

7. Becky Albertalli

8. Stephanie Meyer
9. Jerry Spinelli
10. Jennifer Armentrout

I’m very excited to eventually get around to reading these popular authors’ works, but for now, they remain on my TBR. Look out for more Top Ten Tuesdays in the coming weeks!

-Grace H.

Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

Reviewed by Alexandra M.
Grade 9

Vampires, werewolves, and humans oh my! These characters may sound like a very strange combination of personalities, but they all fit together nicely in Stephanie Meyer's novel, creatively named Twilight. The book contains many different elements. Twilight has a central theme of a love story between a vampire and a human; it also has many smaller themes, morals, and stories. Each of these themes has a unique never before seen twist to it. This made for a very interesting book.

Bella Swan sounds like an average name for an average girl. Bella Swan is anything but average. She was never one to be pulled into the crowds or into peer pressure. She was fine being on her own and doing what she wanted to do, unlike some of the girls at her Arizona high school. She decides to move to a much cloudier place ( Forks, Washington ) to live with her father. Her parents are separated. She thinks she would prefer the quiet life rather than a more demanding one in Arizona. Though she does like Forks better, she could have never imagined why. She meets a boy, Edward, and they are instantly attractive to each other. Though this is no average teenage romance. He is a vampire. While he loves Bella, he must resist killing her for her blood. A huge problem comes up when another vampire vows to kill Bella. Edward must stop this other vampire, if he can't, then the love of his life will die.

The characters in this book were very well planned out and defined. Each one had such a unique personality. Each member of the Cullen "clan", Edward's family, had their own unique, and sometimes surprising, traits. For example Alice was described as shy at first, but then surprisingly outgoing! This made for a little humor every now and then. The setting was described well, mostly in the way Meyer describes the mood of each different setting, for example when she describes how the mood of Forks differs from the mood of Arizona. The conflict and the author's style were both very good. The style really kept you reading, and the conflict even more so, such as when Edward and Bella first meet, there is a lot of tension.

This book is definitely something to be recommended. The author's style itself made the book hard to put down; this style combined with the theme made the book impossible to put down. Every teenager or young adult can probably make some sort of connection with this book because it discusses what everyone goes through in high school, but with a big twist of course. This book is suitable for almost all ages.