The Reader's Code

There are two types of readers in this world.

There are the readers that do it for fun - for something to do, for following trends (e.g. the Hunger Games, Divergent, etc.), for finding out what happens. Those are the readers that will leave a book unfinished more often than not, who will think of a book as just that - a story about things that happen.

Then there are the Deep Thinkers. This is, in my opinion, a whole category of personality, but it also is a type of reader. If someone is a Deep Thinker, they will almost certainly be a serious reader.
Serious readers don't just read - they take in the book, they want to know what's next - they give it a little place in their heart. Every book you read marks their view on the world a little - alters how they think in almost unrecognisable ways. But these changes are there. How different would a person be if they had never read those books? How different are the minds of light readers and the serious readers? My guess is . . . pretty damn different.

I don't know about other Deep Thinkers/serious readers, but me? I read for the SOUL. I fill up my soul with stories and reading and grand escapades, characters and different worlds. Writers are creators of worlds, (and I could think of so many "what if's" on that tangent, but that's another post) creators of PEOPLE - like they are the gods of their little created worlds. And when I read, I immerse myself in it completely. It's like a time warp: I can sit down to flip through a few pages, but I end up being sucked in - and after what feels like ten minutes, I look up to the clock and am shocked to see that a whole hour has passed.

Me in a book store is like an alcoholic in a liquor store. There's so much potential, so much to be read, so many unsung and undiscovered gems possibly lying around! I discovered the Lunar Chronicles, and I can only hope it's possible to find a new series just as good after I have read it all (only 2 BOOKS LEFT. And they haven't come out yet).

But what if I never do? After I've read those last two books for the first time, I can never read them for the first time again, and though they will still be spectacular, magical books, it's never quite the same as reading it for the first time (though the Lunar Chronicles feel fresh upon every read, something you don't really get with other book series). What if I will never discover gems again, and will spend my life mourning that?
AIEIEIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

What I was hoping to say, without having to go too off tangent, was this: an important value in a serious reader is that they follow an unanimous code:

1. You must never, ever spoil a story for someone. This includes giving away the plot twists, the book endings, and giving them any information as to what happens in the story - whether it's just one book or a whole series. Trust me - serious reader or not, that someone will not thank you for it. And you will have violated your honour as a reader who respects the sacred sanctity of reading.

2. If reading a series, you must read the books in their proper order. Skipping a book, because it isn't available in the library or for whatever reason, isn't a good option. It spoils the book you missed, so that you won't be surprised and will never know the joy in reading that book for the first time. You will never know what you were missing in that. Also, it's just proper to read them in order.

3. If a movie based on the book comes out, you must read the book before watching the movie. More often than not, the book is the better of the two - and besides, it tells how things really happened. A movie might give you a distorted view of the story. Also, movies include surprises (audio sets the mood, and visuals - well, we all know the monster-jumps-out-of-the closet-theme!), but if you read the book after seeing the movie, you can't really be surprised. The experience of watching the movie is so much better when you know how things happened, but have yet to a) cement your mind's eye visual of the proceedings, b) see it all come to life.

If there's anything you think should be included in this code, leave a comment, but I think this is what's most important. It sort of encompasses the respect for reading that we should all have.

The Lunar Chronicles

My book pitch of Cinder, from the Inspire Teen Reads Contest I entered (copyright to me):

It’s not often that one encounters a book that one can read over and over, and never get tired of it. It’s not every day one finds a story that will sweep you into its world – where every moment and every rush will be your own. It’s so rare to read something that can soothe you upon your delving in, like a cup of hot chocolate when you come inside from a winter day, and keep you there.

So where might one find such a story?

Enter Cinder, by Marissa Meyer, based on the original Grimm fairy tale “Cinderella.” Though it shares most of the same story elements, new factors weave the story into a fantastic young adult fiction creation that will surpass your hopes and expectations.

The resemblance to the old tale stops at the ball, the prince, and the stepmother. Cinder, the protagonist, lives in a futuristic world where cyborgs and androids are just as common as humans, when a lethal pandemic is running rampant with no cure in sight, and most importantly, when there is a sub-branch of the human race living on the moon, called the Lunars, who can control minds.

Cinder herself is a cyborg, which makes her a second-class citizen, with no memories of her past before the operation. Gone is the doe-eyed Cinderella who waited for magic to let her go to the ball and make all her wishes come true. This story is about an intelligent, tough young woman and how her personal life conflicted with an interplanetary crisis. She is someone worth rooting for in the face of adversity, and Cinder had never wished for silk gowns or true love. All she’d ever wanted was equality and freedom.

Like when dreaming, plunging into this book brings me peace and complete obliviousness to the outside world. On the inside, though, I’d be in a whirlwind – feeling rather blushy when a certain Prince Kai came into the picture, catching my breath when the tempo picked up, altogether as though I was in Cinder’s shoes, every step of the way. I find myself feeling her indignation, her relief, her gaiety, and her worries. Cinder is so real, so much like young women today – it’s impossible not to relate to her, and the problems she must face: not being accepted, the death of loved ones, family crises.

And it isn’t just a book with a plot – it’s a story, in every sense of the word. You have an ultimate evil, an ultimate hero; you have the adventure, you have the conspiracy. It can be told with all the detail of the book, but I think it could also be told as a whispered bedtime story, or a legend, passed down through generations. When I have children, I’m not going to tell them the fairy tale of Cinderella. I’m going to tell them what happened to Cinder, an orphaned cyborg with empowered character, determination, humour, and a strong ability to love.

This story is magical in a way that you might never notice if you were looking for it. It’s a million little things: Cinder’s sarcasm, the comic relief in the form of Cinder’s android sidekick, every one of the plot twists, and the feeling of anticipation when you remind yourself that, for better or for worse, there is a sequel. This story is not finished yet.

You’ll never think of fairy tales the same way again. I know I won’t.

Don't think for a moment that you know what's going to happen. You don't.

Revel in it.

P.S. I tied for third place in that contest. :D
inspireteenreads.com

"Not recommended for under Thirteen Years of Age"

I've been reading a lot of "teen girl" books. Like, I read the Princess Diaries series when I was - what - ten years old?? even when it had some sort of "Teens Only" recommendation for it. Lame. I understood everything perfectly, except for some media references by Mia "Pop Culture Princess" Thermopolis.

Then we have books like "How I Lost You" by Janet Gurtler, which has intimate references and makes me totally frustrated with the main character, Grace: her best friend, Kya, often needs rescuing and Grace to have her back. Like trying to save someone who's drowning, Kya is pulling Grace down too, who should start looking out more for herself, following her own dreams.

I read TTYL, by Lauren Myracle (and its sequels TTFN and L8R, G8R) about twice already and am reading them for the third time. They do have swearing and references to physical intimacy - which I try to skip over - but otherwise, reading them is like reading a note from your best friend.

To be honest, books for teen girls are for all ages. They're harmless - other than that, of course, it was with their help and my classmate's "awkward" references that I pieced together what "Slept with him" was. At least I'm not that stereotypical kid who asks, "Where do babies come from?"

It's enough that the Fertilization Process is known to everyone and yet no one discusses it openly - always using lame code words - but to be the one person who really is clueless? No one would have told me what sex was if I'd asked. I mean, before I kind of put 2 and 2 together, I'd thought that babies came when someone got married - like an outsidish process would spiritually instill a baby. I don't know, OK? I was eight years old and questioning the theory when I thought so!!

But I digress.

Once you know what everyone's blushing about, then there's really nothing to keep you from reading these books. They're not so bad, and the point is not about swearing or intimacy, it's something that other books can be about - friendship, adventure, et cetera. If you go on Wattpad? Do NOT go to Romance genres. I repeat: do NOT go to the Romance genre books!! The intimacy there is sooooo tacky and cheap.

What YOU want is the deep stuff, something not all "teen" books have. Get something timeless, not something meant for romance. After all, teen books reflect our changing thought waves and erring waves. If you're not careful, they could instill sarcasm and sharp words for the novel, not the smiles and good reviews every author wants.

Uglies

This is the beginning of one of the best trilogies I have ever read. Better even than The Hunger Games. This is the Uglies trilogy, and (duh) Uglies is the first book.

The first sentence was a good and funny eye-catching phrase: "The sunset sky was the colour of cat vomit." Unusual way to start a book (and series).

Uglies sets a scene that I found myself looking upon for the rest of the trilogy. (Oops . . . I shouldn't give anything away before I do those books, too!) The main character is a fifteen-year-old girl by the name of - *reverence* - Tally Youngblood. She lives in a futuristic world about 300 years after our generation, whom everyone calls the Rusties, because we wasted metal and messed up the planet almost beyond recognition (but someone released an oil-eating bacteria into the air, bringing a halt to our maddening rampage across the Earth). In Tally's world, everyone gets an operation at 16 years old that makes you supermodel gorgeous: every bone in perfect shape, strong muscles, face perfectly in proportion, eyes big and vulnerable, lips full, body slim, perfect eyesight and teeth made of the stuff they use to build airplanes. Anyone normal, anyone with a natural-born face, anyone under 16 - in other words, without the Barbie doll beauty of the operation - is considered ugly.

I couldn't make myself stop reading, especially the first time when everything that happened made you want to know what would happen next. The beginning phrase led you to Tally's sneaking across a river into the closely-watched New Pretty Town, where uglies were banned and new pretties lived (which, alone, had me drinking up the covert secrecy). Then, Tally learns to hoverboard (I found myself wishing I were in her generation just for being able to fly). After, she meets cruel pretties known as Special Circumstances: beautiful, but in a predatory way, with the dangerous grace of a wolf or hawk that calls up humanity's most ancient and instinctive fears.

Who could stop reading after that? It's one net after another, and when the book ends on a cliffhanger, you know the story's not over yet, but a whole new book begins. You just keep on reading, getting happily twisted into Scott Westerfeld's web of Tally's generation.

P.S. Bonus points for the font the book was written in.

Cammie Morgan's Plan to Thwart The Enemy

In Don't Judge a Girl by her Cover, thereis finally a (kind of) solid enemy that the main character(s) have to outwit/thwart/etc. In the first book, there was no enemy (just a hurdle) and in the second book, the main characters are trying to figure out if who they suspect is an enemy - but this is the book where the point in the series is really begun to be cultivated.

So how did Cameron, Macey, Elizabeth and Rebecca try to thwart the kidnappers who were (they thought) after Macey?

The problem was: an unknown enemy wanted to capture Macey - and the second problem was that the four Gallagher Girls didn't know:
Who was after Macey (they thought)?
Why did they want to capture her? (They knew the goal of the mystery attackers was take and not kill because . . . the masked attackers were very good fighters, and Cam and Macey only only just got away.)
How could they keep her safe?

So they researched organizations and groups that might have a reason to kidnap Macey, or possibly a grudge of some kind towards her and/or her family (etc.) But mostly, it could have been anyone.
The more forward course of action was following Macey outside the school, and to all the appearances she and her family were making - including the campaign party and the appearance that Mr. Solomon took them and their classmates to for a CoveOps exercise.

This way, Cam/Bex/Liz thought, they could secretly protect Macey, make sure she was safe, even through every security detail she was surrounded with. They wanted to be sure themselves - and this turned out to be a very good thing, because while CIA, Gallagher teachers and graduates might be very good spies and protectors - Macey's roommates knew her, which was why they were able to find her when she ran away (and everyone else followed a false trail somewhere to Europe) at Mr. Solomon's cabin by the lake. They were able to bring her back.

But then it turned out that the Circle of Cavan wasn't after Macey after all - it was Cammie. Which, if they had known so, would most likely have not used their plans and kept Cammie inside the mansion as much as possible instead.
The reasons for the Circle needing Cammie are revealed in Only the Good Spy Young and Out of Sight, Out of Time (the rest of the books in the Gallagher Girls series). Happy reading!!