From the Back of My Shelf (10): The Orange Houses by Paul Griffin

From the Back of My Shelf is a bi-monthly event, that happens on the 2nd and 4th Fridays of the month where you pull a book from the back of your shelf (with a 2009 release or prior) and review it. It's a way to read some of those books that have been gathering dust while new books came out. Feel free to join in and participate, and link your reviews up in the Mr Linky below. Check out more in my intro post here here.

The Orange Houses
Paul Griffin
Publisher: Dial
Release Date: June 11, 2009
Pages: 160

Rating:  2.75 stars

Meet Tamika Sykes - Mik to her friends (if she had any). She's hearing impaired and way too smart for her West Bronx high school. She copes by reading lips and selling homework answers, and looks forward to the time each day when she can be alone in her room drawing. She's a tough girl who never gets close to anyone, until she meets Fatima, a teenage refugee who sells newspapers on Mik's block. Both Mik and Fatima unite in their efforts to befriend Jimmi, a homeless vet who is shunned by the rest of the community.
The events that follow when these three outcasts converge will break open their close-knit community and change the lives of those living in the Orange Houses in explosive and unexpected ways.

I was very excited for this one after reading Paul Griffin's Stay With Me. Sadly, this one did not live up to the expectations I had for it.

I was not crazy about this one being told in third person. It made the story very hard to get into as it was so disjointed. The story was also told from 3 POVs, and that was too much for this book. I liked the idea of it, but considering the book was only 150 pages, it was too little for each character.

Most of the characters were great. I had a bit of an issue with Tamika, as to me, it felt like she didn't have the strength and courage to keep going. There was nothing holding her back but her own attitude, and because of that I was not too keen of her. I really liked both Fatima and Jimmi. They were definitely my two favorite characters of the book. Fatima was such a good soul.

There was definitely a plot, but there wasn't much to it in my mind. The characters all had a worthy story to be told, but there wasn't a lot of continuity between the plot points.

This was a book that had a lot of good things about it, but was not executed the best. I had a hard time getting past the writing, as it was just so disjointed that I couldn't get into the story.

Imaginary Girls by Nova Ren Suma

Imaginary Girls
Nova Ren Suma
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Release Date: June 14, 2011
Pages: 352
Source: Publisher

Rating: 2.75 stars

Chloe's older sister, Ruby, is the girl everyone looks to and longs for, who can't be captured or caged. When a night with Ruby's friends goes horribly wrong and Chloe discovers the dead body of her classmate London Hayes left floating in the reservoir, Chloe is sent away from town and away from Ruby.



But Ruby will do anything to get her sister back, and when Chloe returns to town two years later, deadly surprises await. As Chloe flirts with the truth that Ruby has hidden deeply away, the fragile line between life and death is redrawn by the complex bonds of sisterhood.

Imaginary Girls was a book I had heard high praises for and had high hopes for, but sadly it didn't live up to the hype and expectations I had. I found myself confused for the majority of the book. The plot was interesting, but I found it underdeveloped, probably due to my high confusion. The characters were a mix - some I liked, while others I found incredibly shallow and completely unlikable. Things were pretty much split down the middle of things I did and didn't like, but probably tipped more towards the not as positive side.

The book had an addictive quality, that kept me wanting to read. Part of this was because I wanted to read so that some of my questions could be answered, but the plot was also really interesting. It was a really unique idea - the one thing I didn't like is that I felt like there was this hint of paranormal throughout the entire book, but I was never completely sure if that was the case or not. I like books to just come out and tell me.

It wasn't until somewhere around the 280 mark out of 352 pages that I started to get a glimmer of hope that some of my questions would be answered. That glimmer turned out to be a fallacy, and the book ended without out really answering all my questions. I am not a fan of when books have so many questions that need to be answered and those questions merely get answered with more questions. I am fine with not knowing some things, but I honestly felt like I knew nothing that was going on until the last 20 pages, and even then all my questions were not answered.

The characters were a real mix. I really did like Chloe - I thought she was a great character. I liked her voice and thought she really stood her own ground, despite being cast as a sort of Ruby junior. Ruby on the other hand, I did not like one bit. I found her very shallow, unrelatable, and just too self centered.

Suma writes just beautifully. The descriptions were vivid and every page just flowed together this beautifully woven story.

I love the cover - it is absolutely stunning. It's very eerie looking to me. Imaginary Girls was an interesting book, but it is more a book I'd recommend waiting to get from the library. Parts were great, others just good, and others could have been better.

While there were a lot of aspects I was not as of fond of, I really can see where others would like it. I don't like not being told everything, and characters really are one of the biggest aspects of a book for me. I didn't like one of the two main characters - so that holds a lot of influence over my impression.

Here are some reviews of others who have loved the book:
Icey Books
The Book Pixie
Frenzy of Noise

Exposed by Kimberly Marcus

Exposed
Kimberly Marcus
Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Release Date: February 22, 2011
Pages: 288

Rating: 2.5 stars

In the dim light of the darkroom, I'm alone, but not for long.
As white turns to gray, Kate is with me.
The background of the dance studio blurred, so the focus is all on her
legs extended in a perfect soaring split.
The straight line to my squiggle,
my forever-best friend.


Sixteen-year-old Liz Grayson is photogirl—sharp, focused and ready to take the world by storm with her camera. But Liz's entire life is called into question when her brother is accused of a crime—and the accuser is Liz's own best friend. As the aftershocks from that accusation rip through Liz's world, everything she thought she knew about photography, family, friendship and herself, shifts out of focus. And for the first time in her life, Liz finds herself unable to trust her own point of view. Told in stunning, searingly raw free verse, Exposed is Kimberly Marcus's gut-wrenching, riveting debut and will appeal to fans of Ellen Hopkins, Laurie Halse Anderson and Virginia Euwer Wolff.


Exposed's premise intrigued me from the start. My first thought after reading it was actually, oh maybe it'll be like Speak! And then I noticed it would be in verse and I thought - hey cool, kind of like Ellen Hopkins. I really wanted to like Exposed more but it just came up short of my expectations I had for it.

My big thing with Exposed was that I had trouble connecting with the story and characters. I am not huge on poetry, and I refused to pick up any books in verse until last semester I had to read Impulse by Ellen Hopkins for my YA Lit class at school. Exposed just didn't make me feel anything for the characters - and with the situation at hand, I thought it'd be an emotional fiesta.

 Now that's not to say the writing wasn't good - I absolutely loved the writing of the verse. There were so many beautiful phrasings that when I read them I just smiled.

I also had a bit of an issue with the relationships in the book. None of them felt authentic. I found Liz and Kate's friendship really odd. The one relationship that seemed to work in the book was Liz and Brian. I found them adorable in the few appearances Brian made.

I really like the cover - It's quite eerie and it's a cover that really makes me think for a second when I look at it. Exposed is a fast read - I read it in about an hour and a half. I just didn't feel much of anything and I just breezed by the pages. For me it's a book that I'd suggest waiting to get from the library or borrowing from a friend.

While I wasn't super crazy about this one, here are some reviews of others that were:

Good Choice Reading
Stacked Books
Y.A. Love