Three Little Words by Sarah N. Harvey is about a 15-year-old boy who learns he has a secret half-brother just across the ocean, at least he had before running away. Strangers come to Sid, our protagonist, asking for his help in finding someone he has never met. I saw this book sitting on my teacher’s shelf and picked it up out of pure boredom. I had no interest in reading, yet once I started, I didn’t put it down until I finished two days later. Since then, I have finished reading three more books within ten days. Some of the books listed have a shocking lack of checkouts, and I wish to inspire someone to give one a try.
Three Little Words was very enjoyable for me. I liked and understood the characters, I smiled at the witty dialogue and teared up at the more emotional parts. The story follows Sid in finding his lost half-brother. He grew up in a happy foster family with people he could consider his parents. When finding out he could see his biological mother and brother an ocean away, he had been understandably perplexed. There is understandable character development, chill-inducing dialogue, and cute side stories. It is truly a beautiful story that I’d recommend to anyone who’s trying to get into reading!
Coraline (Neil Gaiman) may have been my least favorite out of the bunch. It wasn’t bad, but I couldn’t get into it as much as the others. Though, my taste in books is somewhat strict. I like realistic fiction, coming-of-age, and slice-of-life stories (with plausible drama,) so my opinion on Coraline does not mean it is a bad book/story. I struggle to get into books that have a fantasy aspect, and Coraline is very ‘out of this world.’ If you’ve watched the movie, then you should understand most of what happens in the book. The book Coraline is still very different from the movie, one of the most shocking differences being the absence of a character, Wybie Lovat, the loner boy she meets in the forest. A lot of the book is about Coraline walking around her new house and seeing her old neighbors or exploring the forest when everything is turned upside down. Some of the descriptions were very disturbing, so I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys light horror and the premise of Coraline. It isn’t the same as the movie, but familiar.
I have spent my entire class periods and lunches in the library looking for a new book (I ended up empty-handed), but what intrigued me was my lack of knowledge of Hero, by S. L. Rottman. There was no description on the back, and barely any context on the cover page. The book started somewhat slowly inside a classroom of teenagers and a troubled kid. There are moments when it’s glaringly obvious the author hasn’t been a kid for a while, but it wasn’t enough to make me want to put it down, not even close. I didn’t expect it to be perfect, and I still could understand and resonate with the characters who had been my age. I understood everyones’ sides, views, and theories with the information provided in the book. Once I started to get into the story, I was hooked and finished it that day. Sean, our main character, has a troubled home life and acts out at school in fights. It gets to the point he is sent down to a local farm to spend community service hours as a punishment when he slowly starts to learn that that farm is a good place he wants to call home. It is very sweet and ended with me believing everything would be okay.
Out of these four books, The Fall by James Preller is one of my favorites. It contains sensitive subjects, following the diary of a teen boy who had been friends with someone who committed suicide. It shows the realization, the pain, and the recount of all of their memories in a way that is realistic. The girl, Morgen, had been severely bullied. At some points, our protagonist, Sam, had been pressured into bullying her as well. It isn’t a happy book, but some of the memories, moments, and dialogue made me smile, even if there is a looming feeling of dread, knowing what can’t be undone.
Reading isn’t everyone’s thing, but I’ve written an article about ‘how to get into reading’ and figured it was time I followed my own advice. It started with pure boredom. Walking around the classroom, analyzing a bookshelf, and picking up a book that caught my attention, and yet it may have changed my life. I love reading and am glad to have been bored in class–and have some free time. If you want to get into reading, there is no other advice to give other than to just do it. Find something that piques your interest, pick it up, and read.