With Valentines Day fast approaching, most people tend to focus on celebrating their relationships but did you know that a lot of people also break up on Valentines Day too? It is a truth universally acknowledged that break ups suck whether or not you are the dumper or the dumpee. With this in mind, I thought I would do three different types of book lists that reflect different stages of relationships. Today's list, Love Will Tear Us Apart (which is inspired by my favorite Joy Division song, comprises of books where the main characters have gone through a serious break up and/or their love has gone unrequited.

Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte- A beautiful, dark, and heart wrenching book of love, brutality, and betrayal. Catherine Earnshaw must choose between the good and socially acceptable Edgar Linton or her childhood best friend and soul mate Heathcliff. Cathy's final decision, which may surprise you, and the revenge that follows will tear both the Lintons and Earnshaws apart for generations.

 The Boyfriend list : (15 guys, 11 shrink appointments, 4 ceramic frogs and me, Ruby Oliver) by E. Lockhart- Ruby, aka Roo, Oliver was a moderately popular at her high school until she quickly become a social pariah. In order to figure out what is causing her panic attacks, Roo begins seeing a psychiatrist and makes a list of all her past boyfriends in an attempt to understand where her life went wrong. Ruby is a loveable character. Her dialogue and introspection are right on target, which makes this book painfully real and quite addictive to read.

The Breakup Bible by Melissa Kantor- Jen Lewis is having a great junior year.  She is the features editor of the school paper, and she's dating Max Brown, the paper's editor-in-chief. Everything is perfect until Max gives her the "maybe we should be friends" speech. Jen is shell shocked and wonders how she is going to deal with her breakup. Her misery only intensifies when her grandmother gives her a book that she heard about on the radio. Dr. Emerson's The Breakup Bible claims that "there's no reason a woman can't get over a breakup very quickly if she'll just follow a few basic commandments." Jen is doubtful. What does Dr. Emerson know about her and Max? The Breakup Bible tackles the aftermath of a high school romance with honesty, humor, and wit.

An Abundance of Katherines by John Green- Can you calculate how long your relationship will last? Colin Singleton likes to think so. After being dumped by a series of girlfriends (19 to be exact) who all share the first name of Katherine, Colin is on a mission to prove his theorem: The Theorem of Underlying Katherine Predictability, which will predict the future of all relationships. Green's signature of smart characters, witty dialogue, and thought provoking subjects shine through giving dumpees everywhere hope after going through a horrible break up.

Audrey Wait! by Robin Benway- What happens when you break up with your boyfriend who is in a band? Why, he writes a song about the break up of course! Welcome to Audrey Cuttler's world. After dumping her self-involved Evan, the lead singer of a little band called The Do-Gooders, he writes, “Audrey, Wait!,” a break-up song that’s now the number one song in the country. Suddenly Audrey is  a famous celebrity. Will she ride the fickle wave of her fifteen minutes of fame or will she put it behind her? Audrey Wait! is a must read for those who love romance and music.

 Song of Sparrow by Lisa Ann Sandell-

A retelling of Lord Tennyson's popular poem The Lady of Shallot. Elaine, the Lady of Shalott, is hopelessly in love with Lancelot, who has his sights on another woman.

 

Lament: The Faerie Queen's Deception

by Maggie Stiefvater- Deirdre Monaghan is a timid but incredibly gifted musician. She's about to discover that she is not quite human either. Deirdre is a cloverhand,  one who can see faeries. Deirdre finds herself infatuated with a mysterious boy named Luke, who suddenly enters her ordinary suburban life. Luke is hiding a secret: he is a gallowglass, a soulless faerie assassin on a mission to kill. Is Deirdre his next target? Lament is a beautifully written dark faerie fantasy that features authentic Celtic faerie lore and a had an ending that made my jaw drop.

Naomi and Ely's No Kiss List by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan- Naomi and Ely are best friends. Naomi loves Ely and Ely loves Naomi, but prefers to be in love with boys. In order to compromise and keep their sanity, they both create a "No Kiss List" of people neither of them is allowed to kiss, which works out fine until Bruce shows up. Bruce is Naomi's boyfriend, so there's no reason to put him on the List., but on a whim Ely kissed Bruce, who is now questioning his own sexuality. The result? A rift of universal proportions and the potential end of "Naomi and Ely: the institution." Can these best friends come back together again? A YA book with college bound students that explore the different shades and complexities of love.

If You Come Softly by Jacqueline Woodson- Sometimes your relationship suffers from outside forces that force you to break apart. After meeting at their private school in New York, fifteen-year-old Jeremiah, who is black and whose parents are separated, and Ellie, who is white and whose mother has twice abandoned her, fall in love and then try to cope with peoples' reactions.

Atonement by Ian McEwan- On a hot summer day in 1935, thirteen-year-old Briony Tallis witnesses a moment's flirtation between her older sister, Cecilia, and Robbie Turner, the son of a servant and Cecilia's childhood friend. Briony's desire to be center stage, her inability to understand adult motives, and her wild imagination brings about a crime that will change all their lives. An eloquent novel on love, war, loss of innocence, class, guilt and forgiveness that engages the engages the reader on every conceivable level. It is a book that I wish I had written.

There are tons of books out there that fit in today's category, but these are the ones that stood out to me.  What books would you put on this list? Please let me know in the comments. I hope you stay tuned to tomorrow's list: Bizarre Love Triangle.

  There are some interesting projects going on in the book and movie worlds in the upcoming months. A lot these tidbits are brand new to me and some of which I learned earlier this week. I found them interesting and thought I would share the knowledge.

Book News!


Clare has also released a Youtube video indicating what will not happen in City of Fallen Angels. You can see that video here. Thanks to Linds@bibliophile brouhaha for the heads up!




Speaking of Valentines Day, Maggie Stiefvater will be releasing a video of her reading the first few pages of Forever on her Facebook page at 12 PM EST. Don't worry if you forget the date, it will stay up indefinitely.






  Earlier this week, there were rumors floating around that L.J. Smith was fired by HarperTeen/Alloy and will no longer be writing any Vampire Diaries books. The author confirmed this information midweek. You can read her reactions here. I, personally have not read the books, but I am addicted to the TV show. The Vampire Diaries TV show fans can rest assured that the show is not in danger of being cancelled since the tv series is following a different storyline than those of the books. The upcoming book The Return: Midnight will still be published and released in March. Stefan’s Diaries are series related books and was not written by L.J. Smith.


Movie News!


 

Deadline has reported that Selma Gomez will play Hannah in the film adaptation of Jay Asher's phenomenal debut novel 13 Reasons Why. From what I know about Selena from her work at Disney, she seems a bit too nice to play Hannah, but I can we'll wait and see. I'm actually more interested in who will play Clay.





   According to Cinema blend, Emma Watson (Yep, Hermonie for you HP fans) and Logan Lerman (he played Percy Jackson from Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief) will be starring in a film adaptation of The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Author Stephen Chbosky will be writing the screenplay as well as directing the film too. I didn't care much for the book, but I know many of my students who adore it and I'm sure will be looking forward to the movie.

  Deadline reports Ralph Fiennes, who in my opinion is a fantastic actor, will direct his very first film, Coriolanus, which is a contemporary adaptation of Shakespeare’s classic play about the titular Roman warrior. The movie also costars Ralph Fiennes, Gerard Butler, Vanessa Redgrave, Brian Cox, Jessica Chastain and James Nesbitt. Shakespeare + Fiennes + Butler = A must see movie! 

You probably are well aware of the upcoming Red Riding Hood movie that Catherine Hardwicke is directing as well as two ongoing projects on adapting the Snow White fairytale, but did you know that there will also be a retelling of Jack and the Beanstalk? I didn't. Deadline reports that Nick Hoult, known mainly from his role on BBC's Skins, will play Jack in a "scary revisionist take on the Jack and the Beanstalk mythology". Bill Nighly and Stanley Tucci costar in the film too. 

Deadline is also reporting that Deepa Mehta known for her Earth Trilogy (Fire, Earth, and Water) is currently directing a film adaptation of Salman Rushdie's controversial novel Midnight Children. 

  There has been a recent trend in mashing up classic novels with the paranormal, especially after the success of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame Smith . Soon other titles seemed to follow: Jane Slayre by Charlotte Bronte and Sherri Browning Erwin and Little Vampire Women by Louisa May Alcott and Lynn Messina just to name a few. While I haven't read these titles per se, I have read their reviews and a few excerpts which seem to be humorous in the tongue in cheek sort of way and attempts to perhaps draw new readers into reading the original classics.  So when I saw the tagline for The Cellar by A.J. Whitten as "Romeo and Juliet meet the living dead" on Netgalley, I couldn't help but be intrigued and thought bringing the paranormal and classic mash up for the younger audience might be cool. The Cellar is scheduled to be in print on April 6, 2011. I received an advanced readers copy of this title for the purpose of an honest review.

   But her sister, Heather, doesn't share Meredith's repulsion. Heather believes Adrien is the only guy who really understands her. In fact, she may be falling in love with him. When Adrien and Heather are cast as the leads in the school production of Romeo and Juliet, to Heather, it feels like fate. To Meredith, it feels like a bad omen. But if she tries to tear the couple apart, she could end up in the last place she'd ever want to be: the cellar. Can Meredith convince her sister that she's dating the living dead before it's too late for both of them?

Review:  The Cellar by A.J. Whitten is a campy, horror book that is no different from the B-rated teen horror movies that are playing in your local movie theater. The novel is clearly plot driven and has very minimal character development. Meredith and Heather are two sisters who have recently lost their father in a car accident. The family is mourning and the various family members seem to be in different stages. Meredith keeps her emotions hidden and tries to be the strong one in the family. Heather, who was present in the accident that claimed her father, is numb and suffering from survival's guilt. Their mother, who is virtually absent both literally and physically in the novel, expressions her emotions by going on shopping sprees. Now enter Aiden, the hottest guy in Meredith and Heather's high school. He is described as being physically attractive and mysterious because he: a) wears sunglasses all the time and dresses like Justin Timberlake and b) drives a red Camero. There is definitely something off about Aiden, which you can tell from the way that he talks and seems to hypnotize others around him. The author does not leave any mysterious behind Aiden's identity and we know right away that he is a zombie looking for his next meal and mate.
  The fifth grader in me who had a R.L. Stine's Fear Street reading phase would have loved this book, but as an adult I didn't like it very much. There are some good suspenseful moments where Meredith finds the little clues to Aiden's puzzle and her budding romance with Sam, her sister's ex-boyfriend. Advanced readers will obviously know what is going on and predict the book's ending long before it unravels for the characters. There are also large plot holes in the book such as how is able to see if he has no eyes behind his sunglasses? How does his zombie powers work? And when does he precisely fall in love with Heather?
  The book does have interesting potential such as explaining Aiden's background and the mythology behind zombies, actually using Shakepeare's famous play as context (the play is only mentioned because it is a school play where..surprise!...Aiden and Heather play the lead roles), and digging deeper into Meredith and Heather's grief, however, the author does not address these topics in depth. I also noticed that the book is inconsistent with it's tone and the writing from too many different viewpoints (Meredith, Heather, and Aiden) hinders the novel.
  Overall The Cellar is a campy horror novel that will disappoint you if you want to take it seriously. It may work well with some reluctant readers, but I don't think it has a wide mass appeal.

Rating: 2 stars

Words of Caution: There is some minimal language and a few gory, scary scenes. If this would be a movie, I think it would be rated PG-13. Recommended for Grades 7 and up.

If you like this book try: For a contemporary setting involved with zombies and other paranormal creatures try Infinity by Sherrilyn Kenyon or for more of a traditional, creepy, zombie novel try The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan.

  I normally don't judge a book by its cover, but I can't help but cringe at a horrible cover such as the one for Nevermore. A goth and a cheerleader in a pink dress doesn't shout out "Read Me" to me. In fact, I was a bit hesitant to pick the book up. All I could keep thinking is: "Didn't I just a book like this before?", but I must say that the connection to Edgar Allen Poe and a few glowing reviews from fellow bloggers made me reconsider. I wish I could say that I loved the book as much as my fellow bloggers, but I didn't.


Description: Cheerleader Isobel Lanley has the worst luck. Of all the people in her English class, she is assigned to work on an English project with the goth Varen Nethers. The English project is to write a paper based on any American writer. Varen, an obsessed fan of the dark and weird, chooses Edgar Allen Poe. Not only does Isobel have to deal with the strange attraction to Varen, but she is also caught up in the nightmare world where the stories he and Poe have created come to life. Will they escape the dream world and come back to reality or will they lost to the dark forever?

Review: I really wanted to love Nevermore, especially since I love reading Edgar Allen Poe, but this book didn't click with me. The book is huge, 543 pages long, and the first half of the book is quite slow and centers on setting up the main characters. Isobel is the quintessential blond, popular cheerleader who is dating a jock who is incredibly possessive of her. I was worried she'd retain the cheerleader stereotypes, however I was glad to see her slowly change and realize that her so-called friends are nothing but bullies and are awful to those unlike them. It just takes her a really, really long time to come to this revelation and do something about it. We also meet the second main character, Varen (nice anagram of Raven, don't you think?) Nethers, the classic gloomy, silent goth who sits in the back of the classroom and has a troubled family. While we do see these characters break out of their stereotypes, I couldn't really connect with them and didn't feel attached to them. I didn't really care for Isobel. I thought she was nice and I guess determined to do was right, but nothing about her made her stand out to me. I thought Varen was interesting, however, I was a bit disappointed in not getting to know him. We only get a brief scene of what his life is like, but I wanted to know more. Actually, I didn't think I got into their heads as much as I wanted to. 
  Isobel and Varen's relationship is predictable and of the instant attraction kind, but I honestly didn't see any sparks. I did see signs where Isobel seems to be more curious and wanting to get to know Varen better, but I didn't think Varen really took an interest in her. So when it was revealed that Varen did indeed felt the same way about Isobel, I was a bit confused. Due to my disattachment with the main characters, I wasn't invested in the conflict nor did I sense an urgency when Varen's life is in danger. 
  What also bothered me about the book is that things don't get interesting until the characters of the dream world appear, which is the last 100 pages. The nightmarish images and allusions to Poe's poems and stories such as The Raven and The Masque of the Red Death are plenty, however, readers who aren't familiar with Poe's work may be quite confused as to what is happening. I thought the author's real talent shined through in the dreamworld, however, if she explained why Varen loves Poe so much besides "just because" it would have made the dream world much more powerful and meaningful.The power of Poe's work is that the horror doesn't hit you right away, but rather it seeps into your bones once you are done and just begin to understand it. When I read the nightmarish scenes in Nevermore, they were definitely creepy and dark, but I didn't get chills nor did I have trouble sleeping which I always do whenever I read a great horror book.
  It may sound like I hated this book, but really I feel indifferent. I didn't love it nor did I hate it, but I do feel let down. Nevermore is the first book in a trilogy and I'm not sure if I care enough to read the rest of the series. If you're still on the fence about reading it, I suggest you read Jenny@Supernatural Snark's review or Danya@A Tapestry for Words' review for a second opinion.

Rating: 3 stars

Words of Caution: There is some language and disturbing images. Recommended for strong 7th graders and up.

If you like this book try: The Complete Works of Edgar Allen Poe by Edgar Allen Poe, Wake series by Lisa McMann, or Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll.

 I'm a big Maggie Stiefvater fan and I noticed she posted information about a live author chat that she and other great authors are participating in tonight at 8 PM EST. Maggie is participating in an author retreat at Branson, Missouri where a live chat with four or five authors from the retreat from 8:00 PM to 9 PM EST at http://www.livestream.com/jacksonpearce. Readers can ask them any questions you'd like (no guarantees they'll answer or give any spoilers away though) and they're all yours for an hour. Unfortunately, I missed out on the other previous chats from previous days and am kicking myself for not paying more attention. Gah, I hate when I missed out on these things due to my stupid cold!

So the authors that are participating tonight are:









Maggie Stiefvater who is the author of the phenomenal Wolves of Mercy series (Shiver and Linger), which if you haven't read them you must do so now! Also read her books set in the faerie world, Lament and Ballad.