The D.U.F.F.

The D.U.F.F - Lexile Level 650 

I was honestly quite surprised by this book.  I assumed that it was a normal YA novel about a girl that did not like herself and would be dealing with her own emotional issues.  Though that is a portion of the book, more of it dealt with blatant sex between two teens.  Kody Keplinger weaves a very interesting tale that I was able to read in one sitting. 

Bianca is young girl that never thought of herself as anything more than a protective friend.  It is not until she runs into her most hated foe, Wesley Rush.  Wesley tells Bianca that he wants to be friends with her so that he can get her friends to like him, and then sleep with them.  She is appalled by this notion, and even more disgusted when he explains that she is the D.U.F.F. (Designated, Ugly, Fat, Friend) and that she is merely fodder for his quest.  After this incident, Bianca starts to think of herself in a different way, as the DUFF.  She mulls over this idea, and starts to question her own beauty and self-worth.  Wesley continues to pursue a fake friendship with Bianca, as she continues to rebuff him.  Unfortunately, she is paired with him for a school project and finds herself forced to spend time with him outside of the classroom.  At first she tries to get Wesley to come to her house so that she feels safe and on her home field. 

Bianca is dealing with problems at home as well.  Her mother is on a book tour, and her father is home…waiting for his wife to return.  Her father is a recovering alcoholic, and as the stress of his estranged marriage hurt him more and more, he begins to drink again.  Because of this, Bianca is forced to go work with Wesley at his house.  It is at that time that she finds that, while rich, Wesley is completely alone at home, as his parents are constantly travelling and neglect Wesley and his sister (who lives with her grandmother), and Wesley is left to live his life of depravity without anything calling him out on his inappropriate actions.  Though Bianca is completely repulsed by Wesley’s actions, she is attracted to him physically.  In order to avoid dealing with her troubles at home, she decides to sleep with Wesley and begin a relationship that is completely based on sex. 

Their relationship continues as her life becomes harder, and finally she realizes that she is in love with Wesley.  In order to keep herself from committing to a relationship, she tells Wesley that their relationship is over.  She then tries to begin a relationship with another man, but still cannot fully commit, as her mind is always with Wesley.  Bianca struggles with keeping her secrets, maintaining her friendships, and accepting herself. 

This book may speak to many teens, but it is certainly not acceptable literature for younger teens.  There are many adult situations, and extremely large amounts of profanity.  I would not agree that this is meant for young adults between the ages of 14-17.  I did enjoy this book, but it really would be a better read for adults ages 18-24. 

 

Watch the Book Trailer with Kody Keplinger!

 

Twilight

 

Twilight - Lexile Level 720

Twilight was the first best seller for author Stephenie Meyer.  The book shares the themes of love, trust, and personal strength.  I found Twilight to be a very good read for reluctant readers.  The plot shares the story of Bella Swan, an antisocial young woman who is thrust into a new life when she moves to Forks, WA to live with her father.  The students of Forks high school attach themselves to Bella, as she is new and interesting.  Bella becomes friends with a small group of students, but her interest is piqued by the members of the Cullen family, especially Edward.  She is drawn to him, but at first he seems completely repulsed by her.  While experiencing her day-to-day life, she also rekindles a friendship with a young boy named Jacob.  Jacob is the son of her father’s close friend.  Jacob seems to like Bella, but she only has eyes for Edward.  When Edward finally returns Bella’s attempts to get to know one another, she finds that she yearns to be near him.  Edward tries to push her away, but in the end they find that they love one-another.  A side story deals with the rest of the Cullen family and how they are dealing with Edward and Bella’s relationship.  Of course, this being a YA novel, there is an antagonist that aims to kill Bella and in doing so destroy Edward.  Though the writing of this novel is definitely for teens, I found it to be enjoyable to read.  I look forward to reading the remaining novels in the series. 

Obviously, everyone knows of the Twilight Saga, and teens have flocked, for years, to see the many movies that will be culminating in the final movie in the next month.  I find that having students read books before seeing a movie is more useful than reading it afterwards, but I think that students would still find this series interesting even after seeing the movie.  Stephenie Meyer had started to write a companion novel to Twilight.  It was called Midnight Sun.  This book was to be Twilight from the perspective of Edward.  I definitely recommend reading the sections that Meyer has released.  It is amazing to read the book from a different perspective, and I found myself laughing at Edward’s reactions to Bella.  All-in-all, I recommend this book if you are looking for easy reading, but do not mind a longer book.

Midnight Sun

http://www.stepheniemeyer.com/pdf/midnightsun_partial_draft4.pdf

Twilight movie trailer

 

 

The Hunger Games trilogy

The Hunger Games
Lexile Level
810

Catching Fire
Lexile Level
820

Mockingjay
Lexile Level
800

I recently read The Hunger Games trilogy. As an avid reader, I found myself drawn into this series and just could not stop myself from reading all of the books in one weekend! I was very impressed with the descriptive writing that Suzanne Collins was able to incorporate into these books. It was easy to be drawn into the story of Katniss Everdeen and her trials in the Hunger Games.
Teaching 8th grade Language Arts opened me up to these books originally. I will be teaching the original book this spring and decided that it would not hurt to start reading the series now. My 8th grade students will be reading The Hunger Games this spring, and I think that they will love the book. It is almost guaranteed that this will have already seen the movie, but I believe that reading the book will open their eyes to how much a movie differs from a book.

Though most may choose Katniss as their favorite character, I found that the character of Haymitch was mine. He comes off as a terrible human being, void of feeling, when you read the first book. However, as the books progress, you find that the character of Haymitch grows exponentially. Through the series we find that he was a tribute during the second Quarter Quell. During a Quarter Quell, the tributes are exposed to a Hunger Games that is much different from a average game. Haymitch's Quarter Quell required that there be double the amount of tributes. This means that Haymitch was required to compete against 48 tributes instead of the normal 24. The fact that he won speaks volumes about his resiliency and intelligence. He was able to outsmart the game makers by using the arena against the other tributes.

Katniss, though she would not admit it, is very much like Haymitch. As the series continues, she even starts to admit to herself that they are similar in some ways. The Hunger Games take a tool on any tribute that survives, but because she is able to form a close love/hate relationship with Haymitch, I believe that it helped her to be successful. Haymitch pushed her to survive. I enjoyed the relationships that developed between the characters, but Haymitch and Katniss were my favorites!

The Hunger Games - Movie Trailer