3 Mini Contemporary Reviews

Today I thought I’d do a group set of mini reviews for some contemporaries that I’ve read this month. I owned a physical copy of all of these books and listened to the audio while I was driving.   If you like YA contemporary then keep on reading.

Kill All HAPPIES by Rachel Cohn

Kill all HAPPIES is about a three best friends who decide to throw one last senior party at their favorite local joint which happens to be closing down. But with a mean teacher, big mouth students, and area fanatics of the joint in the mix it will be hard to keep this party on the DL. (Down low) This story takes place within the span of 24 hours. Each chapter is a different hour and it gives you a pretty detailed play by play. I won’t lie I wasn’t impressed with this story in the beginning. Maybe I’m too out of touch with what it feels like to graduate high school. But I kinda thought the characters were one dimensional jerks and really, what teacher actively hates her students this much. She’s a teacher and personal grudges are ridiculous. But I slowly realized that this book is more about the friendship between Vic, Fletch, and Slick. They are realizing that growing up means redefining who you want to be instead of who everyone says you are. They are finding out that sometimes growing up means growing apart. But most of all they are trying to hold on to their last time together and these fleeting moments. I can relate to these sentiments so much. So much so it drove the story for me and made me cry once.

As for the audio, it was pretty good. The narrator’s voice wasn’t irritating and I thought she did a good job putting the right amount of sass into the character’s voices.

Paperweight by Meg Haston

This is about a girl with a major eating disorder who is sent to a facility. The thing is she doesn’t plan on staying long because she plans to kill herself on the anniversary of her brother’s death, which she blames her self for. First off TRIGGER WARNINGS for ED, suicide, and self harm. I honestly had a hard time listening to some of the chapters in this book. It was descriptive without being gory. But the emotion was there and it was hard pressing. I did think the story overall needed to be told. I love tough stuff stories and getting to see other characters learn to manage mental illness. If you can handle the suicide talk and like stories like Perks of Being a Walkflower or Speak then I think you will enjoy this book.

Audio was great. I thought it was kind of run of the mill. Nothing special but not bad in anyway. I did catch the emotions of each scene which I think is important. Overall I recommend this audio.

Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King

This was my first A.S. King and I’m glad to say I enjoyed it. This one is about Vera, whose childhood best friend Charlie recently died. The thing is they weren’t exactly friends when he died. She was mad at him. So now she is seeing his ghost everywhere and consumed with guilt. The book mixes a little magical realism with contemporary. Just enough that you’re wondering what is in her head and what is really happening. I loved the way Vera’s grief is handled and her relationship with her father. It’s always nice to see parental growth in YA. Once again, if you like mental illness stories then I do recommend this one.

Audio for this one was pretty good. She had good intonation and just brought something sincere to the story.

 

Well I hope you enjoyed these reviews today. Comment down below and let me know if you’ve read any of these books. Or if you’re interested in reading any of them. I hope you’re having a marvelous Monday! TTFN.