House of Night Series (books 1-5) by P.C. Cast & Kristin Cast

"House of Night is a thrillingly engaging book series that follows 16-year-old Zoey Redbird, who gets “Marked” by a vampyre tracker and begins to undergo the “Change” into an actual vampyre. She has to leave her family in Tulsa and move into the House of Night, a boarding school for other fledglings like her.

It’s within the school’s walls that the heart of the action takes place as Zoey meets new friends, finds love, comes to terms with how her life will be different now and begins to realize her awesome new powers.

Here’s the deal though: Yes, Zoey’s a vampyre now. But she’s still a teenager – with all the humor, angst and confusing feelings any other teenager has." ~http://www.houseofnightseries.com/pages/overview.html

This summary is accurate and vague.  The first two books were good, obviously or I wouldn't have continued.  Books three and four were okay and by book five and six I didn't care.  I actually started book six got about seventy-five pages in and realized that the characters annoyed me and I didn't care about their drama so I stopped and put it down.  I returned it to the library unfinished (which I rarely do).  I will probably revisit it later this year but we'll just have to see.

I can't say that the ideas involved were horribly new but pieces were different.  All vampire (or vampyre) novels involve a 'Change' and this one was no different.  Some involve it being lovely and easy, others indicate it is violent and painful.  This takes a bit of both ideas and winds them together with a bit of a 'Harry Potter boarding school' twist.  Taking a brief moment to compare this series (thus far) to Harry Potter I have to point out that HP is by far superior.  The writing, ideas, etc but one aspect, the time line, was much more agreeable.  In HP each book is a year in the school life of the main character, by book six in the House of Night series only two months had gone by.  There was entirely too much drama for one person (supernatural or not) for that short a period.  It would have been a tad more enjoyable had the time line been longer, at the point that I put the book down the characters had become way too melodramatic, foolish, one-sided, and unbelievable (in a bad way).  The main character, Zoey, turned from a decent, fairly moral person to a complete ho...which I'm sure was the intent of the authors to show how difficult her life was.  The only positive in her personality which remained throughout the series was loyalty to her Grandmother, her Goddess, and her friends.  

If you choose to read even one of these books remember that it is for young 'adults'.  Had it not been for the sexual nature of some of the scenes I would say it would be geared toward those around twelve or thirteen years old.  It's simple minded, has a predictable plot, overly dramatic (I mean seriously, you really want us to believe all that happened in two months???), and finally the characters went from endearing to annoying in a very short time.  Perhaps wait a month between each book as this might help with the annoyance factor.  Should I finish the series I'll write an update about the last three books.  At this point I would say skip it.

hush, hush by Becca Fitzpatrick

Romance was not part of Nora Grey's plan. She's never been particularly attracted to the boys at her school, no matter how hard her best friend, Vee, pushes them at her. Not until Patch comes along. With his easy smile and eyes that seem to see inside her, Patch draws Nora to him against her better judgment.

But after a series of terrifying encounters, Nora's not sure whom to trust. Patch seems to be everywhere she is and seems to know more about her than her closest friends. She can't decide whether she should fall into his arms or run and hide. And when she tries to seek some answers, she finds herself near a truth that is way more unsettling than anything Patch makes her feel.

For she is right in the middle of an ancient battle between the immortal and those who have fallen -- and, when it comes to choosing sides, the wrong choice will cost Nora her life.~simonandschuster.com

What can I say?  I'm a sucker for paranormal romances.  Who could say "no" to something with a fallen angel? The first book in this trilogy/series was fun.  I actually finished it in one day and was glad the library (which is around the corner) had the second one.  Although based on the description the reader is already aware of Patch's status as fallen angel the main character, Nora, has no idea.  This little tale is all about the bad boy, following your intuition, ignoring your intuition, and sacrificing it all for love.  Not an entirely new plot but entertaining none-the-less.  It was nice to read something decent that didn't have vampires, werewolves, or witches.  It was definitely more geared toward young and I mean high school "adults".  If you are looking for something super simple this might be up your alley but don't buy it, it's totally not worth it.  Go visit your library, if for some reason they don't have it they can find it for you for little or no charge.

Elantris by Brandon Sanderson

"Elantris was beautiful, once.  It was called the city of the gods: a place of power, radiance, and magic.  Visitors say that the very stones glowed with an inner light, and that the city contained wondrous arcane marvels.  At night, Elantris shone like a great silvery fire, visible even from a great distance.
Yet, as magnificent as Elantris had been,its inhabitants had been more so.  Their hair a brilliant white, their skin an almost metallic silver, the Elantrians seemed to shine like the city itself.  Legend claimed that they were immortal, or at least nearly so.  Their bodies healed quickly, and they were blessed with great strength, insight, and speed.  They could perform magics with a bare wave of the hand; men visited Elantris from all across Opelon to receive Elantrian healings, food, or wisdom.  They were divinities.
And anyone could become one.
The Shaod, it was called. The Transformation.  It struck randomly - usually at night, during the mysterious hours when life slowed to rest.  The Shaod could take beggar, craftsman, nobleman, or warrior.  When it came, the fortunate person's life ended and began anew; he would discard his old, mundane existence and move to Elantris.  Elantris, where he could live in bliss, rule in wisdom, and be worshipped for eternity.
Eternity ended ten years ago."  ~Back of Book

Yes.  I finally did it.  I'm commenting about a book by Brandon Sanderson, currently my favorite author.  He found his way into my hands through a different book several years ago but this was his debut.  This book allowed readers and critics a glimpse into the skilled and delightful storyteller he is.  It's an interesting concept, humans becoming gods then those same gods becoming...repulsive, detested, reviled.  They become a sort of undead creature.  As humans they could be anything from a beggar on the street to royalty then suddenly they were gods and those humans left behind came to seek their help.  Can you imagine it?  I can't but some how Sanderson created the possibility and I believed him.  What if that great blessing became a curse?

Suddenly, for no apparent reason, those who are hit with the Shaod (The Transformation) are "half done".  They are undead with no need to eat but the hunger remains.  They do not heal so a stubbed toe or paper cut could cause increasing agony to the point of madness.  They are not longer beautiful but repulsive, their skin blotchy and blackish.  Someone else who had read this book referred to them as zombies, at first I disagreed but upon reflection I can see the correlation.  Undead creatures wandering a dead city.  Horrifying.

Imaging being engaged to a normal person and then when you arrive for the wedding (you are from somewhere else, it's an arranged marriage but your excited about it) and to meet him for the first time you find out he's dead.  What you don't realize is he's not dead but his parents would rather he was because he's been taken by the Shaod and deposited into Elantris where all those creatures are held, imprisoned.

Sanderson doesn't stop there.  He also incorporates a holy war.  Just as in our day and our world religions dot the earth and just like always each believes that theirs is the only one that is incorruptible.  Throughout our history countries have gone to war in the name of God.  Sanderson's world is exactly the same but determining who are the good guys and who are the bad guys is a full-time job.  Throughout the novel you are given a glimpse into three main characters:  Raoden (the crown prince), Sarene (his betrothed), and Hrathen (Fjordell high priest).  Each looks at the world and at each other in a vastly unique way.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book and it gave me a lot to think about.  It wasn't my favorite book by Sanderson as I found a few pieces of information that left me confused or wondering about.  He has a knack for tieing up loose ends, but in this debut I was left wondering on a few minor things...a minor complaint given my experiences with other famous authors.  This book begins a major theme seen in all of his books (minus his children books...which I haven't read yet) and while the theme is similar the way it is presented is different.  I'll definitely be reading it again.  A fun read for sure!

A Place of Their Own by John Vickrey Van Cleve & Barry A. Crouch

"Using original sources, A Place of Their Own: Creating the Deaf Community in America" traces the history of deaf people in America.  It views deafness not from the perspective of pathology, but of culture, not as a disease or a disability to be overcome, but as the distinguishing characteristic of a distinct community of individuals whose history and achievement are worthy of study.  Focusing on the development of the American deaf community during the nineteenth century, "A Place of Their Own" brings history to bear on the reality of deafness and provides fresh and important insight into the lives of deaf Americans." -Back of the Book

I started this book thinking it was something else.  I asked my husband about it and he recommended it and, considering the his job as an ASL Interpreter as well as a highly sought after presenter and teacher (for interpreters and ASL classes), so I decided to give it a go.  This nonfiction work was quite an eye-opener.  I had been aware of several aspects of Deaf History based on my ASL classes in college and my exposure to the Deaf Community as the wife of an interpreter but fully understanding the struggles they went through, and continue to go through, was somewhat surprising.

Many people in American culture view Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone, as a great man.  Indeed many people discuss in detail how amazing and insightful he was and I can't disagree if we are talking about some pieces of his life.  Others, though, I would have to disagree with.  Ironically Bell's mother was deaf and he married a deaf woman but he spent a large part of his life (after inventing the telephone - if I remember correctly) working to 'cure' deafness, undermining the community indicating that they were not intelligent enough to hold jobs other than those taught at residential or day schools.  He spent time undermining the residential school system in an effort to seclude deaf individuals from others with deafness.  When I look at this I can't help but wonder what he was so afraid of.

Like so many other cultures and minorities this book concentrates on their struggles.  In many areas of the text they were compared to others who have been attacked with the sole purpose of eradication (Jews) or enslavement (Blacks).  An interesting point that the authors pointed out was that unlike other minorities the Deaf would never be able to communicate in the native language of America (English).  There are many who are oral (lip read), others who use American Sign Language (ASL), a combination of the two, as well as other methods of communication.  But those that lip read only grasp at a low percentage (I think around 20%) of what is being said.  Interpreters are used to ensure that the true message and intent is received and given. 

This book was so interesting that I was annoyed at how it ended.  One of the most successful protests by a minority group (in my opinion) was the Deaf President Now! protest/rally at Gallaudet University in Washington D.C.  The university was over 100 years old, the only Deaf school of Higher Education in America (and the world?) yet it never had a deaf president.  The students, faculty, and staff expressed their desire for a Deaf President but their request was ignored and a hearing woman with NO experience with the Deaf Community was hired.  The protesters closed campus and refused to attend class, allow others on campus, etc. until their demands were met.  Eventually they were and a Deaf president was hired (I. King Jordan).  The reason I was annoyed by the ending is that it was so abrupt.  They only gave a small preview of the rally and didn't talk to anything else that was going on at the time (late 1980s).  The first printing was 1989 which explains a bit but the fifth printing was 1998...I mean seriously...couldn't they update the text?  Give us more information?

This book is great if you are interested in history, minorities, pathology, Deaf Culture, America, American Universities, education etc.  It addressed everything from some of the methods used to cure deafness (including puncturing the eardrum with a needle!), educating those that are deaf, creating a purely deaf State, organizations, American Sign Language (both the inception and the attack), the attempt to bar Deaf people from marrying other Deaf or at all, employment, and the brief view of the Deaf President Now! rally.  I will definitely be reading more on this topic.  I promise you'll be surprised at what you learn!