3 Books That Changed My Life

Every book I read in some way changes the way I see things. Every page impacts me, but there are a few select books that have altered my life. There are a few novels that have shook me so hard that it is something I can never recover from. These next three books have changed the way I look at everything. They have made me see love different, made me realize the importance of living in the moment, and have made me question my own beliefs.

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

Me Before You would be the book I would say has changed me the most. This novel didn't just change the way I see books, but the way I see life. Me Before You gave me everything, and all from a genre I don't often reach for- Adult Contemporary. Me Before You follows a woman name Lou who is struggling to find her place in the world and a job that fits with her quirky personality. When a position for a caretaker comes available she jumps right on the chance. However, she winds up having to take care of Will- an arrogant, rude, and blunt man who recently became a quadriplegic.

This book made me question everything I know about love, about making scarifies, and made me rethink what I once thought about the quality of living. Me Before You is probably the most thought provoking novel I've ever read. Not just that, it's probably the most emotionally invested I've ever been with a book. It brought out feelings I never knew I had and is so beautiful. This is the number one book I would/do recommend to anyone and everything. Even non-readers would enjoy this.

"All I can say is that you make me... you make me into someone I couldn't even imagine. You make me happy, even when you're awful. I would rather be with you - even the you that you seem to think is diminished - than with anyone else in the world."

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

I know, I know how "cliché", but I don't care. This book was probably the first book too actually break my heart. It's gorgeous and lyrical filled with one quotable line after another. TFIOS manages to give you so much in such a short amount of time. Hazel Grace is sick and manages to find happiness in a new "friend", Augustus Waters. This novel and their relationship showed me just because you're dying doesn't mean you can't still see the beauty in the world. It shows us how important it is to live in the moment and make sure you don't take a single second of it for granted. John Green made me realize there isn't just one type of love, that there are many, and each one is just as stunning and as important as the others. It doesn't matter if you've seen the movie, you should still pick up the book.

"You don't get to choose if you get hurt in this world...but you do have some say in who hurts you. I like my choices."

Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma

Goodness, did this book take me by surprise. Never did I think a book about incest, yes incest, could or would break my heart. But God, Forbidden did it. This is another book that made me question my morals. Forbidden follows Maya and Lochan, a brother and sister who are struggling to take care of their siblings due to an absent alcoholic mother. The more responsibility they take on the closer the two become and their bond becomes something more than it should. I never fathomed that by the end of this book I would be cheering for a brother and sister to end up together, but I was. I was a freaking mess by the time I got to the end. It's also very rare that I like books that have such a slow build. Trust me when I say this book has the snowball effect. It starts out slow and steady and as it heads to the end it just keeps getting bigger and bigger till it hits the end and leaves you speechless. Forbidden had me wondering "if it's not hurting anyone is it really so wrong?", and two years later I am still wondering the same exact thing.

"At the end of the day it's about how much you can bear, how much you can endure. Being together, we harm nobody; being apart, we extinguish ourselves."  

-Angela

Paper Towns Movie Review

As usually just left the theater and came straight home to do a review. Before I get started on all the juicy details there are two things I want to go right ahead and get out of the way. First, yes, WE GET BLACK SANTA!!!! and Two the cameo that was hinted at is as perfect as people said. Seriously when "it" happens everyone in the theater died. So happy, so cheeky, so John Green. Loved both of these things. 

On too the movie and the review. If you don't know Paper Towns is about a boy named Q who is just floating through his last few weeks of high school. He mainly just hangs out with his two closet friends, pining over his crush from childhood from afar, and living within the comfort zone he has made for himself. That is until his crush, Margo, sneaks into his room one night asking him to come with her to right 9 wrongs. 

First casting for this film was spot on. We know that Nat Wolff (Q) is going to be adorable, sweet, and entertaining. It's a given, he's just so charming. He nails awkward teen boy right on the head. We know Cara Delevingne (Margo) was going to be fun to see for her first "real" on screen performance. And yeah, she was great to watch... But there is no doubt in my mind who really stole the show. Justice Smith (Radar), Austin Abrams (Ben), and Jaz Sinclair (Angela). These up and comers really made this film. Especially Austin Abrams, who brought so much comic relief to this film. The moments he is on screen are so hilarious. There wasn't a second he was present that I didn't find myself laughing. Both Austin and Justice brought so much life to Radar and Ben. If anyone else would have been casted I don't think the film would have been as fun as it was. Nat, Justice, and Austin have so much on screen chemistry there's no way you wont fall in love with these three. They're the perfect band of misfits. All these characters managed to capture all the teenage angst you're hoping for. 

Paper Towns is a coming of age story that manages to avoid labels therefore avoids a lot of the usual cliches. Don't stress though it is for sure a John Green film. It's relate-able, fun, and of course packs a powerful message.  The pace of the film matches that of the book. It starts off with a bang, levels out in the middle, then delivers a strong ending. Like TFIOS, Paper Towns stays pretty close to the reading material it's based off. Though there is one big change from the book to film, there is no question as to why it was changed. It gave the story more of a push (in my opinion) to a more a proper ending. Even the small/"big" changes were perfectly done and I feel readers of the book wont be disappointed in the things that are altered. If you're not a reader than the ending might be something you wont see coming...the story ends in a way that manages to defy expectations and eschew the "teen-movie-romcom" norm. The ending was personally my favorite part of the film. The prank scenes are fun and will have you laughing, the little details are much appreciated, and the heavier moments hit hard much like the book.

Paper Towns isn't my favorite John Green book... because lets be real, nothing compares to TFIOS. I think the film surpassed the book, and for that I'm thankful. Paper Towns is a film about living each moment, about seeking a great perhaps, and about seeing people for more than face value. All these wonderful values are laid out for us and delivered so strongly. Really satisfied with the film and it has me very excited about seeing the soon to be Looking for Alaska. The casting, direction, and soundtrack were all stunning. Very happy with the way this sweet film played out and I don't think John Green fans will be disappoint. Great summer film.

9/10 Stars 
-Angela 

Angela's April Wrap-up

Fallen Too Far- Abbi Glines

Never Too Far- Abbi Glines

Sea of Stars- Amy Bartol

The Law of Moses- Amy Harmon

Making Faces- Amy Harmon 

Kaleidoscope Hearts- Clarie Contreras

Beautiful Stranger- Christina Lauren

Beautiful Player- Christina Lauren 

Beautiful Secret- Christina Lauren

Beautiful Beloved- Christina Lauren 

Chase Me- Tessa Bailey

Unteachable- Leah Reader (Re-Read)

Me Early and the Dying Girl- Jesse Andrews

Easy- Tammara Webber

Ready Player One- Cline Ernest

The Brilliant Light of Amber Sunrise- Matthew Crow

Aftermath- Tom Lewis 

 April kind of went by in a blur. I felt really sluggish when it came towards reading. Think my month started out so strong, with such great reads, that by the end of the month it made me kind of "whatever" towards anything I picked up. Regardless of that this month was really good reading wise. I nailed out a lot of books I wanted too, managed to squeeze in one re-read, all while re-watching seasons 1-3 of Teen Wolf... So I guess overall it turned out to be a pretty productive month. I managed to knock out 17 books, which clearly is a high number, but fell short of my goal of 20 each month.

As far as my April favorites went I have a few. Sea of Stars, The Law of Moses, Making Faces, Beautiful Player, Beautiful Secret, Beautiful Stranger, and Unteachable all make the list. I wont talk too much about Unteachable since I don't really like to include re reads in favorites (because clearly I liked them enough to go back so it's kind of a give.), but I will again say how much I loved this book! It's amazing! Anyways, all the other ones were new too me this month. Sea of Stars and Beautiful Secret were both new releases in April and both nailed it! Sea of Stars was an amazing second book in the Kricket Series and I can barely breathe waiting for the next book. What a cliffhanger! If you also couldn't tell I fell pretty heavy into some Christina Lauren novels this month. They have steadily became two of my favorite authors. They have this fun, witty way of writing that has won me over. As far as my top picks go I would have to say that Beautiful Stranger and Sea of Stars take that spot. Both were fun, action packed, good time reads and both have made it onto my favorites shelf. I would like to mention that even though The Law of Moses wasn't my overall top book(s) this month that it was still by far the most unique thing I've read not just this month, but in a very long time.

When it came to book let downs I only have 1.5. 1.5??? How can I have a half fail?? Well it's because I enjoyed the book and it was great, it just didn't give me what I was hoping for... And that is Me Earl and the Dying Girl. This book was hilarious, fun, and scattered brained. For all those reasons and a handful of others it had me enjoying it. But when I was done reading it I was just... I don't know. I just wanted more. People kept comparing it to TFIOS and it was nowhere near that book. Me Earl and the Dying Girl is becoming a movie and from the trailers we've seen so far, I think that it will be better film than book. So that is why I'm kind of throwing it into my fail pile. It was a good book, but it had the potential to be an amazing book, and just missed the mark. My number one fail without a doubt is Never Too Far. I HATED this book. This is the second book in the Rosemary Beach Series. If you saw my review for the first, then saw my review of the second you might have gotten whiplash. Book one Fallen Too Far was great so I figured that Abbi Glines would continue that momentum into book two, but it was like a completely different person wrote it. After reading the first few chapters I should have just put it down, but sadly didn't. I think this book is what ruined the rest of the month for me. I still can't grasp how a story went from such a high to such a low so fast. I'm on the fence about wither or not to finish the series so I guess we'll see.

With all that said and done I am SO excited to go into May! Mainly because at the very end of it Leah and I are headed to New York for BookCon!!!! CAN'T FREAKING WAIT!!!! We are on the edge of our seats waiting for the list of signing times to be posted. As far as panels go so far we only plan on attending one, and that is John Green's Papertowns Panel. Hopefully once everything is posted Leah and I will be able to post a little something up on the blog to let yall know who will be seeing and what are plans are for those few days! Can't wait to see everyone in the big apple!

Oh and if there isn't a review posted for one of the books then listed it will be up in May. Since I have so much going on with work, friends, books, and travel my reading might be a little light in May so I have them set to post during that time.

Well till next time.

XOXO
-Angela