Class of 2011: YA Superlatives Blogfest DAY THREE

December 29, 2011December 28, 201134 Comments

Today is Day Three of the The Class of 2011: YA Superlatives Blogfest, a fun and interactive way to highlight and share your favorite YA novels, covers, characters, and story elements, hosted by Jessica Love, Tracey Neithercott, Alison Miller, and me. The Class of 2011: YA Superlatives Blogfest spans four days, beginning December 26th and culminating this Friday, December 30th.

Hopefully you’ve been participating throughout the week, but if not, that’s okay! Just draft today’s post (you can find the topics listed below or on the original post) and then scroll to the bottom of THIS post and add your link to the link list.

I’ve had a blast dropping by the participants’ blogs so far, and I look forward to stopping by your blog to read about your Class of 2011 selections!

And speaking of selections, here are mine for Day Three:

Elements of Fiction

Again, my books published in 2011 Reading List:

Crossed, The Future of Us, Hushed, Want to Go Private?, The Scorpio Races, The Pledge, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, Daughter of Smoke and Bone, Chain Reaction, Forgotten, Notes From the Blender, The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, Ripple, Hourglass, A Need So Beautiful, Chime, The Day Before, Forever, Moonglass, Beauty Queens, Boyfriends With Girlfriends, Forbidden, Wither, Divergent, Invincible Summer, Trapped, Where She Went, We’ll Always Have Summer, Cryer’s Cross, Across the Universe, Desires of the Dead, Lola and the Boy Next Door, Imaginary Girls, and The Liar Society

And my favorites in the way of Fictional Elements:

Most Envy-Inducing Plot (Or, the plot you wish you’d thought of yourself.) – Easy. The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler. The idea of using Facebook as a way to “travel” to the future is brilliant. There’s also the addition of the numerous nineties mentions that brought nostalgia to a whole new level.

Most Wonderful World-Building – I have to go with Laini Taylor’s The Daughter of Smoke and Bone. There are so many worlds in this story: Prague, Marrakesh, the backwoods of Idaho, and the world beyond the portal doors. While submerged in Smoke and Bone, it was as if I was a willing and active member of all these worlds. I’ve even added Prague on my Must-Visit list! Honorable Mention: The Scorpio Races because by the end of the story, I felt Thisby.

Most Formidable World (Or, the setting I most definitely would NOT want to travel to) – While Lauren DeStefano wrote about Wither‘s world beautifully, there’s no way I’d ever want to visit it. Plural marraige and a painful awareness of the (early!) age at which I’ll die? No thank you!

Most Wanderlust-Inducing (Or, the setting I’d happily travel to) – Jenny Han’s We’ll Always Have Summer. I’ve been romanced by its quaint little beach town setting, Cousins, since I read The Summer I Turned Pretty, the first book in this series. Honorable Mentions: Moonglass by Jessi Kirby and Invincible Summer by Hannah Moskowitz — Can you tell I love the beach?

Loveliest Prose – This was a very difficult choice, but I have to go with The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater because it was so incredibly emotive, yet never overdone. I imagine dual narration is quite a challenge to pull off, but Scorpio‘s Sean and Puck were unique and vibrant, as was their world. Honorable Mention: Imaginary Girls by Nova Ren Suma and Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor. Every sentence = Enviable.

Best First Line – Laini Taylor’s Daughter of Smoke and Bone: “Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love. It did not end well.” Says it all.

Most Dynamic Main Character – Briony Larkin from Franny Billingley’s Chime. Oh, how I adore this girl! She’s so feisty and loyal and clever and intense. Her inner monologue was a joy to read, sometimes heartbreaking and sometimes hilarious. I want to know her! Honorable Mentions: Sean Kendrick from The Scorpio Races, Tris from Divergent, and Karou from Daughter of Smoke and Bone. All were SO memorable.

Most Jaw-Dropping Finale – The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin because really… did ANYONE see THAT coming?! The last few pages of Mara sealed the deal: I simply must read its follow-up. Honorable Mention: Cryer’s Cross. Yowza. That ending blew me away!

Best Performance in a Supporting Role – Ruby, from Imaginary Girls by Nova Ren Suma. This girl was so colorful, so full of life, such a force to be reckoned with, I loved her and hated her with equal intensity. Entirely fleshed out and incredibly well written.

Best Use of Theme – I’m choosing two here, because they both did what’s nearly impossible: Taught an important lesson in an entertaining way. I’m not going to give those lesson away, of course. If you haven’t read these books, I recommend them both! First, The Day Before by Lisa Schroeder:

And second, A Need So Beautiful by Suzanne Young:

There you have it… My selections for Elements of Fiction. What do you think?

And if you’re participating in the Class of 2011: YA Superlative Blogfest, please click on the image below to drop your link:

And don’t forget to check out what some of the Bookanistas are up to today…

Shannon Messenger shouts about twelve 2012 releases she can’t wait for–and a pre-order giveaway!

Megan Miranda marvels at UNDER THE NEVER SKY

Corinne Jackson gushes over THE MATCHMAKER AND THE GHOST

Stasia Ward Kehoe gets psyched for 2012

Class of 2011: YA Superlative Blogfest DAY TWO

December 28, 2011December 28, 201126 Comments

Today is Day Two of the The Class of 2011: YA Superlatives Blogfest, a fun and interactive way to highlight and share your favorite YA novels, covers, characters, and story elements, hosted by Jessica Love, Tracey Neithercott, Alison Miller, and me. The Class of 2011: YA Superlatives Blogfest spans four days, beginning yesterday and culminating this Friday, December 30th.

Hopefully you participated yesterday, but if you didn’t, that’s okay! Just draft today’s post (you can find the topics listed below or on the original post) and then scroll to the bottom of THIS post and add your link to the link list.

I had a blast dropping by the blogs of all yesterday’s participants, and I look forward to dropping by your blog to read about your Class of 2011 selections!

And speaking of selections, here are mine for Day Two:

Popularity Contest (Characters who fit each topic from ANY 2011 YA book!)

Again, my 2011 Reading List, in no particular order:

And from those, my Most Popular List:

Class Clown – I could have gone with any of the lovelies from Beauty Queens, or Declan from Notes from the Blender, but I’m choosing a more nuanced clown: Josh, from Jay Asher and Carolyn Macker’s The Future of Us. While he wasn’t particularly outgoing or boisterous, that kid had me laughing out loud on several occasions. Loved his subtle sarcasm and witty inner monologue!

Most Likely to Become a Rock Star – Sam Roth from Maggie Stiefvater’s Forever. He’s knows what an uncertain future feels like, so I think he’d do everything in his power to reach his musical goals. Plus, Grace thinks he’s really talented.

Mostly Likely to Start a Riot – Luis Fuentes from Simone Elkeles’s Chain Reaction. He’s not afraid of anything, and he’ll do whatever it takes to prove a point, dangerous or not. In fact, Luis’s reckless behavior had my heart going double-time for the last quarter of this book!

Biggest Flirt – Brooklyn, from Kimberly Derting’s The Pledge. She’s all about strutting her stuff for the guys, but there’s definitely more to Brook than meets the eye–which is why I loved her so much!

Fashion King and/or Queen – Cricket Bell and Lola Nolan from Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins. For him: narrow, pinstriped pants and an arm full of rubber bands. For her: themed outfits, colorful wigs, amazing make-up–everyday a different persona. They’re a match made in fashion heaven. ♥

Girl You’d Most Want For Your BFF – This one was hard… I almost went with Karou from Daughter of Smoke and Bone. She’s awesome, but she’s not exactly present all the time, so I’m going with Briony Larkin from Franny Billingsley’s Chime. I love her for all the reasons I love Karou (brave, clever, and loyal), plus, Briony is someone who can be counted on to drop by with a pint of ice cream (or a bottle of wine?) after a rough day.

Boy You Wish You’d Dated in High School – Adam Wilde from Gayle Forman’s Where She Went. He’s devoted and brooding and musical and he loves deeply, with everything in him. And that scene from If I Stay where he cries… Good grief! Gets me every time!

Most Likely to Become President – Four from Veronica Roth’s Divergent. He’s able to overcome the few things that scare him, he leads without evoking fear in others, and he makes decisions based on what’s best, not necessarily what’s popular. I’d vote for him!

Quirkiest Character – Harley from Across the Universe by Beth Revis. I could never quite put my finger on what it was about Harley that I appreciated, but I suppose that was part of his charm. He was eccentric and unpredictable and artistic and never played by the rules. Love that!

Villain You Love to Hate – Facebook, from The Future of Us :). One of the most inimitable antagonists I’ve encountered.

Favorite Parental Figure – This might be an unconventional choice, but I pick Brimstone from Laini Taylor’s Daughter of Smoke and Bone. Strange and distant as he is, there’s an obvious and fierce love between Brimstone and Karou that feels boundless.

(Source Unknown)

Coolest Nerd – Cricket Bell from Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins. Yes, friends, Cricket is a nerd. But it’s that bumbling awkwardness and observable intelligence that makes him so adorably charming. What girl wouldn’t find a guy like Cricket irresistible?

(Illustration by Simini Blocker)

There ya have it! My Popularity Contest selections! Thoughts?

And if you’re participating in the Class of 2011: YA Superlative Blogfest, please click on the image below to drop your link:

RTW: Stepping into the Spotlight…

October 5, 2011October 4, 201124 Comments

Road Trip Wednesday is a ‘Blog Carnival,’ where the ladies at YA Highway post a weekly writing- or reading-related question for participants to respond to on their own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.

Today’s Topic: Tell us which supporting characters you think deserve the spotlight! Who deserves their very own YA novel?

Wow. There are so many fabulous supporting characters I’d love to know more about, particularly when it comes to back story. Two, specifically, come to mind:

Tobias (or Four) from Veronica Roth’s Divergent. Everything about him fascinates me, but I find his relationship with his father and his choice to be Dauntless particularly interesting. Tobias is so genuine and courageous and direct, I believe that he could absolutely carry a novel of his own. Plus, it would be amazing to read about his relationship with Tris from his point of view.

I think Alaska from John Green’s Looking For Alaska would also make a remarkable protagonist. I’m always fond of a well-written unreliable narrator, and I think John Green could make Alaska just that. She had an incredibly intriguing back story, and I’d love to know more about what made her so rash and fanatical and intense.