Latte Rebellion by Sarah Jamila Stevenson 4/5 Stars



Delish cover art, LITERALLY, I want to inhale it!

 I chose this book from the YA Debute Author Challenge because I am raising racially mixed children, then as I was reading I realized that it was my story as well!
Without giving too much of my own story, I really identified with the narrator of the novel.  All of the expectaions, whether negative or positive, of your family, your classmate, your co-workers, teachers and society as a whole places on a person, or group of people based on their ethnicity or race.
The narrator really lets us share her anger, fear and angst of being a racially mixed teenager. She lets the reader know what she is thinking at all times, but holds back a lot from her friends and family for fear of hurting them or because she thinks she may sound dumb. 
The back story to the novel is how sometimes friendships grow apart, people grow in seperate directions.  While I was hurting from the main character, Asha, I was also happy that she was growing so much as person to realize when you have to move on.
Since I have this on my Kindle, I really hope to share someday with my own kids.  I'm not sure about people who got their copies in print, but the Kindle version had quite a few typos.  It's didn't take aways from the story in anyway, I'm just sayin...

Quick Summary:
A senior in high school of mixed ethnicities realizes, after an altercation with another student, that there aren't any clubs at her school that address the needs of the student population of mixed ethniciites and starts one. There is and Asian Club, a Black Club and a Chicano Club, none of which she and her two other friends feel they identify with.
At first it starts out as a way to make some extra cash, with a catchy phrase and some t-shirt sales, but as the message reaches more people she realizes that its a real issue.  That 60 years before she was born, her parents may not have been allowed to marry.
Some people don't like her group's message and this is where the conflict begins. Also, she feels that her parents wouldn't understand the devotion to the movement, much less if it's taking time away from her being the perfect straight A student.

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

Tessa is a teen that travels by herself to London to meet her older brother and ends up getting kidnapped.  Someone wants to use her "changing" abilities for bad.  Enter the Good guys that take her in to protect her.  I usually figure out the twists and turns in these pretty quickly, so it was great to be kept in the dark up until the end.  There is a romance triangle in the making.  Which really sucks, because really?? Only a masochist would hook up with Will.  Girls need to stop trying to save boys like this. 

Clare is setting it up to be a good series, but I just liked her Mortal Instruments characters more. I missed them when the last book was done.  With this book I was almost relieved to say good-bye.  The only one that I would want to see/hear more of would be Jem.  Everyone else I felt was just too whiny.

I thoroughly enjoyed Cassandra Clare's Mortal Instruments Series.  This new series I'll see through because know I need to know what happens.  Not so much because I care about the characters. 
This story takes place in Victorian London and I think that the story was very well evolved for the time period.  I remember reading many romance novels of this time period.  The setting has a lot to do with the behaviors of the characters.  I found it interesting how most women during this time would have killed for an opportunity like Jessie's and she wanted to be a lady and raise babies.
I'm invested for the rest of the books, I'll read it when I have time, but I am not as anxious for the next installment as I am for City of Angels.

Choker by Elizabeth Woods

Let me start with : This is a good read! Yes it's YA, yes it was a lil' on th

e predictable side...but...

While I read this with two other friends, it seems that I was the only one that had the end figured out.  When I shared my predictions one of my fellow reader, her reaction completely threw me off and had me rethinking the plot.

Lonely, bullied girl Cara gets a visit from her childhood BFF that assists her in a manic makeover.  You know that as soon as a makeover is set up most of the problems will melt a way.  Not true with Choker.  Problems get worse, which is good.  The story gets sicker and more twisted and I loved it!

It is beyond creepy and therefore I totally enjoyed it.  It was a fast read made especially faster by the building tension. 

There were some editing flaws, I blame the editor.

Kudos to Elizabeth Woods on her debut novel.

3/5 Stars!

New Challange

I've been following two reading bloggers for the past year and take a lot of their suggestions when they rave about books.  Especially YA books.  One happens to also be an educator in a Dual Language school, so I have a certain kinship to her.

So following in their footsteps, I'm joining their 2011 reading challenge. I already convinced one friend to join me, maybe others will as well, Hint
Hint!

My friend and I have chosen on Choker by Elizabeth Emma Woods