After

TITLE: After

AUTHOR: Francine Prose

PAGES: 330

MY RATING: (4 out of 5)

INSIDE COVER BLURB: The shootings in Pleasant Valley were fifty miles away, but at Central High a grief and crisis counselor is hired, security is increased, and privileges are being taken away.

No one knows why.

If you break the new rules the punishment is severe. And the rules keep changing every day.

School feels like a prison.

It's for their protection, yet fifteen-year-old Tom Bishop and his friends learn that things are far more sinister than they seem. Students and teachers begin disappearing.

There's no way to stop it.

Nationally best-selling and acclaimed author Francine Prose has written a haunting novel about what happens when protection goes too far and what it means to have freedom extinguished--in the name of safety.

MY REVIEW: I loved every minute of this book. The subject matter is so scary based on the fact that something like this could actually happen, and how easily it would be to accomplish something like this. The only thing that I would say I didn't like was the ending of the book. It seems as though it was left open for the possibility of a sequel, but I don't think it was. Now, if a sequel ever does come out, I'll be the first one there to buy it. Basically, this book is worth your time to read.

Just Listen

TITLE: Just Listen

AUTHOR: Sarah Dessen

PAGES: 371

MY RATING: (2.5 out of 5)

BACK COVER BLURB: Annabel Greene is the girl who has everything. At least, that's what she portrays in her modeling shoots. But Annabel's life is far from perfect. Her friendship with Sophie ended bitterly, and her older sister's eating disorder is weighing down the entire family. Isolated and ostracized at school and at home, Annabel retreats into silen acceptance. Then she meets Owen--intense, music-obsessed, and determined to always tell the truth. And with his guidance, Annabel learns to just listen to herself and gains the courage to speak honestly. But will she be able to tell everyone what really happened the night she and Sophie stopped being friends?

MY REVIEW: This book was okay for me. I've been wanting to read a Sarah Dessen book for a long time and I finally got a hold of one. I do hope that the next book of hers that I read is a little bit better and holds my interest more. With all of that said, the book wasn't bad. It was alittle bit slow and slightly predictable, but a predictable book can be good sometimes. I've definately not lost hope for Dessen though and will be seeking out another of her books to read.

The Diary

TITLE: The Diary (Large Print Edition)

AUTHOR: Eileen Goudge

PAGES: 310

MY RATING: (3.5 out of 5)

INSIDE COVER BLURB: A bestselling author known for her storytelling prowess, "Goudge's characters leap from the page ready to engage readers" (The Denver Rocky Mountain News), and never more so than in The Diary, that begins when two sisters searching in their mother's attic are given the shock of their lives...

Elizabeth Marshall's grown daughters had no idea their mother's old diary would turn the image of their parent's happy marriage upside down. For upon reading the opening pages, they learn that the love of their mother's life was not their father! And the desperate-to-know answers to their questions reside with Elizabeth who, after a massive stroke, lies mute and near death in a nursing home. Will pages of her diary provide the truth they seek?

MY REVIEW: I had a good time reading this book. It seemed like a really fast read for me because I have never read a large print edition before, so it felt like I was flipping through the pages pretty fast, but then I guess I would have been even if it wasn't a large print book. The story line was very intriguing and kept you wondering what was going to happen next in the mother's diary and how her two daughters were going to react to it. Reading this book reminds you that everyone has a past, even your own parents. It makes me wonder about the past experiences of my parents before they met.