REVIEW | Code Name Verity

CODE NAME VERITY by Elizabeth Wein

Genre: Young Adult, Historical Fiction

Publication Date: May 15, 2012 

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion (Reprint edition) 

Format: Paperback

Pages: 368 pages

Source: Bought 

SYNOPSIS

Oct. 11th, 1943-A British spy plane crashes in Nazi-occupied France. Its pilot and passenger are best friends. One of the girls has a chance at survival. The other has lost the game before it's barely begun.

When "Verity" is arrested by the Gestapo, she's sure she doesn't stand a chance. As a secret agent captured in enemy territory, she's living a spy's worst nightmare. Her Nazi interrogators give her a simple choice: reveal her mission or face a grisly execution.

As she intricately weaves her confession, Verity uncovers her past, how she became friends with the pilot Maddie, and why she left Maddie in the wrecked fuselage of their plane. On each new scrap of paper, Verity battles for her life, confronting her views on courage, failure and her desperate hope to make it home. But will trading her secrets be enough to save her from the enemy?

A Michael L. Printz Award Honor book that was called "a fiendishly-plotted mind game of a novel" in The New York Times, Code Name Verity is a visceral read of danger, resolve, and survival that shows just how far true friends will go to save each other.

THOUGHTS

For some reason, I started reading Code Name Verity with high expectations. I had not read a bad review about it, so I made the mistake of thinking that it was one of those universal books everyone enjoys. Although it is not extremely well-known, a few share of people have reviewed it positively and I guess I understand where the love comes from, but this was sadly not for me. 

Code Name Verity follows the story of two best friends in the middle of World War II, told through non-conventional forms of storytelling. Even though I want to, I can't reveal much about the plot because it will take away from the experience. Both characters get the chance to tell the story, but it is clear that Maddie is the one that takes the spotlight, seeing as she is the protagonist of both stories. Maddie is not a terrible character. In fact, I admire her determination to ignore gender roles and do whatever she wants, but I could not connect to her character at all. I found myself wishing the story could revolve around Verity, simply because her job sounded much more interesting. Maddie is a pilot who climbs up the ranks and manages to get jobs that are usually given to men, but the constant talk about planes was not interesting enough for me. 

I can't explain why I didn't care for the characters as much as I wanted to, but it deeply affected my opinion of this book. Certain parts that should have made me angry or sad did not stir any emotions in me and I found myself simply flipping the page to continue reading and hoping that in the next chapter, I would feel something. 

I truly appreciate what this book was trying to do and that's why I can't give it a lower rating. I'm a sucker for anything that talks about the role women played on important historical events, but this was boring. I felt like it could have been done differently to make it more engaging, or maybe it just wasn't the right book for me.  

RATING

BOUT OF BOOKS 12.0 | wrap-up

I am proud to say that I succeeded my expectations for this read-a-thon. I thought I would give up in the middle of the week, claiming to be too busy to participate, but I actually managed to read a few books and a whole lot of pages. Click here if you want to check out my daily progress. I also interacted with a few participants on Twitter. Overall, I had a wonderful time.

Now, here are the results:

BOOKS FINISHED: 4

GONE GIRL by Gillian Flynn 

Pages: 422 pages

Thoughts: 

• Gone Girl was definitely an addictive read and a great choice for the read-a-thon. I went in with pretty high expectations and I think the book delivered, although I was kind of disappointed with the big twist. 
• At first, I honestly thought I would be one of the few people that did not enjoy this book. Even though it took me a while to get fully immersed in the story, it was definitely worth putting up with the first fifty pages. 
• The characters in this book are amazing, complex and frustrating in the best way possible. Flynn proves that having conventionally likeable characters as the protagonists is not the only route an author can take in order to write a successful book. 
• I just want to point out the entire chapter that talked about "cool girls" and what girls do for men - it was incredible. 

RATING

SECONDS by Brian Lee O'Malley 

Pages: 336 pages

Thoughts: 

• It's been a long time since I read a graphic novel and after many wonderful reviews for this one, I had to pick it up. 
• The art in this is awesome! It's exactly the style I enjoy. I found myself wishing I could stare at the pages for hours. I even re-read the first 50 pages before I continued with the rest of the book. 
• Seconds had a promising beginning and middle, but I wished the ending could have been a little bit longer. I felt it was kind of rushed or maybe I read it too fast, it just didn't work for me. Still, that's just the last part of the book and I completely adored the rest. 
• Many, many people have enjoyed this so I would definitely recommend it. 

RATING

STATION ELEVEN by Emily St. John Mandel

Pages: 333 pages

Thoughts: 

• I feel like I'm one of the few that did not love this book. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it, but I found myself more interested in certain parts of the story than the book as a whole. 
• For some reason, I could not care about Kristen. It's not that she was a terrible character, but I liked reading about the rest of the characters a bit more. 
• Although the book is marketed as a post-apocalyptic novel, I thoroughly enjoyed the entertainment business aspect of the story. I adore reading about famous fictional people. 
• I don't think I will be picking up books about viruses/pandemics for a while. They're just not for me. 

RATING

WINGER by Andrew Smith

Pages: 439 pages

Thoughts: 

• Oh, Winger... It is an easy read, but the topics are not definitely not light. This is not a terrible book, seeing as I read it in a day, but entertaining is usually not enough for me. I can ignore a few, tiny details that bother me but I couldn't with this one. 
• I'm not entirely sure I liked Ryan Dean. I just couldn't picture him as a real person - maybe if he was a bit older... I can't pinpoint what I didn't like about him. I feel like his problems were solved too easily. 
• I hated the constant 'I'm not gay or anything' reassurance Ryan Dean had to give himself whenever he talked to Joey. It got kind of annoying after a while. 
• That ending? It broke me. It pains me to think that things like that happen. 

RATING

BOOKS NOT FINISHED: 1 

CODE NAME VERITY by Elizabeth Wein 

Pages read: 238 pages

Thoughts so far: 

• I had a bit of trouble getting into the story and connecting with Maddie. 
• I'm finding myself bored at times. It's not a bad story, but maybe it's just not for me. 

TOTAL PAGES READ: 1768 pages

I'm so glad I decided to participate in this read-a-thon, it really pushed me to read a bit more than I usually do in a week. To those who participated, how many pages or books did you manage to read?

-- Loony 

BOUT OF BOOKS READ-A-THON 12.0 | updates

For some reason, I always decide to participate in read-a-thons even if I'm bound to fail miserably. I have all the intentions of spending the week reading as much as I can, but things I did not expect come up and I end up forgetting my original plans. This time? I really want to finish as many books as possible. I'm incredibly excited for this and I'm hoping I don't give up. Currently, I don't have a TBR for this particular read-a-thon because I want to choose the books based on what I feel like reading in that exact moment.

I will be updating my progress in this particular post and I will be doing a wrap-up once the read-a-thon comes to an end. 

PROGRESS

DAY ONE | january 5th, 2014 

Books started: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Currently reading: - 

Books completed today: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
Total books completed:  1

Pages read: 422 pages

Total pages read: 422 pages

Thoughts: I could not stop reading Gone Girl. Although the first part was a bit slow, I managed to get hooked by the second part and had no trouble finishing it. It truly was a disturbing read, but I absolutely adored that.

DAY TWO | january 6th, 2014

Books started: Seconds by Brian Lee O'Malley

Currently reading: -

Books completed today: Seconds by Brian Lee O'Malley
Total books completed: 2

Pages read: 336

Total pages read: 758 pages

Thoughts: I felt the need to read one of the graphic novels I got for Christmas and as expected, I flew through it! I don't think I will be picking up another one for this particular read-a-thon, because I'm in the mood to read a lot and graphic novels tend to end pretty quickly. 

DAY THREE | january 7th, 2014

Books started: Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel 

Currently reading: Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
Books completed today: -

Total books completed: 2
Pages read: 137 pages

Total pages read: 895 pages

Thoughts: I started Station Eleven today after struggling to choose my next read. I'm enjoying it so far, but I kind of want to take my time with this one. I don't mind if I finish it on Friday.  

DAY FOUR | january 8th, 2014

Books started: -

Currently reading: -

Books completed today: Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
Total books completed: 3

Pages read: 196 pages

Total pages read: 1091 pages

Thoughts: So, I reached the 1000 pages mark! I didn't have this goal in mind, but it's nice to know I reached it. Station Eleven was so so good, a lot different than I thought it would be. 

DAY FIVE | january 9th, 2014

Books started: Winger by Andrew Smith 

Currently reading: -

Books completed today: Winger by Andrew Smith
Total books completed: 4

Pages read: 439 pages 

Total pages read: 1530 pages

Thoughts: I wasn't planning on finishing this book today, but it was easy to fly through this one. I had a few problems with it, but I enjoyed it. 

DAY SIX | january 10th, 2014

Books started: Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein 

Currently reading:  Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
Books completed today: -
Total books completed: 4

Pages read: 71 pages

Total pages read: 1601 pages

Thoughts: I couldn't get much reading done today, but I feel like I've done pretty great the past five days and I could take it easy. 

DAY SEVEN | january 11th, 2014

Books started: -

Currently reading: Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
Books completed today: -
Total books completed: 4  

Pages read: 167 pages

Total pages read: 1768 pages

Thoughts: I couldn't finish Code Name Verity, but I'm not too angry about that fact because I was having a bit of trouble getting into it. 

REVIEW: Noggin

NOGGIN by John Corey Whaley

Genre: Young Adult, Science Fiction
Publication date: April 8th, 2014
Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 340
Source: Bought

SYNOPSIS 

Listen — Travis Coates was alive once and then he wasn’t.

Now he’s alive again.

Simple as that.

The in between part is still a little fuzzy, but he can tell you that, at some point or another, his head got chopped off and shoved into a freezer in Denver, Colorado. Five years later, it was reattached to some other guy’s body, and well, here he is. Despite all logic, he’s still 16 and everything and everyone around him has changed. That includes his bedroom, his parents, his best friend, and his girlfriend. Or maybe she’s not his girlfriend anymore? That’s a bit fuzzy too.

Looks like if the new Travis and the old Travis are ever going to find a way to exist together, then there are going to be a few more scars.

Oh well, you only live twice. 

THOUGHTS

With a premise as unique as this one, it is hard not to be curious - especially because it only prepares you for the first few pages. To be quite honest, I had no idea what to expect when I started reading. I understood the fact that the main character, Travis, has been given a chance to live again, but it still gives the author many options of where to take the story. This could be a very science-driven story, seeing as it is classified as science fiction, but it reads as a contemporary. It's almost like a glimpse of what would happen after a character dies, except he comes back to life five years later and no one knows exactly how to handle it. 

Although the main character can be quite frustrating at times, it is hard to blame him. He was frozen at sixteen and he wakes up as a teenager still, but he is forced to deal with the effect five years has had on the people around him. He is placed in a difficult position, torn from acting his "age" and acting like an adult just to fit in with the friends he had in his previous life. This opens the door to the recurring theme of pretending, which the characters do a lot of in this book. Travis manages to notice this flaw in the people around him, but it is hard for him to admit that he is just like them. 

Dealing with growing up and being left behind by those you used to call your friends is something the main character has a hard time doing and it is quite interesting to see how he starts embracing his new life. His decisions can be quite brash, but he is sixteen and even if time has passed for the people around him, he is stuck in the past. The problems in this book are all very typical of contemporary novels, but with a twist. Still, there are times in which I almost forgot that his head had been frozen for several years and that it had been attached to a body that it is not his own. 

If you're looking for a contemporary with fun characters, but want it to be slightly different from the rest, then this is the right book for you. If you're more interested in how exactly does the character's body work and the more scientific aspects the synopsis mentions, then you might be disappointed with this one. Overall, it was an interesting read, but I felt like it was missing something to make it a bit more memorable because I honestly expected something else. I strongly suggest than you read this book thinking it is a contemporary because I made the mistake of thinking it would revolve a little less on real problems. 

RATING

TOP TEN BOOKS OF 2014

Seeing as I'm terrible with introductions, I figured that a list of my favorite books of 2014 would be a great way to get to know me as well as the type of books I enjoy the most. Although it would be wonderful to be able to do this in a certain order, I just can't choose the right book for the number one spot. Without further ado, here is the list of books that made 2014 such an awesome year. 

1.  I'LL GIVE YOU THE SUN by JANDY NELSON

I don't think I would have enjoyed this book as much as I did if I was not a big fan of art, but it is still a heart-wrenching story that is worth a read. I absolutely fell in love with the characters and the way they expressed their feelings through different forms of art. The different array of emotions I felt while reading this book was kind of crazy - I sometimes had to stop reading to digest what had happened. Any book that makes me feel all the feels deserves a spot on this list. 

2. THE CUCKOO'S CALLING by Robert Galbraith

Ah, the lovely J. K. Rowling does it again. Although I was a bit skeptical about reading this book because I'm not used to reading full-on mystery and detective novels, I had to read it for a book club. It's not like I didn't enjoy it - I definitely did. I fell in love with Cormoran Strike and Robin and with trying to find out who had committed the crime. Even though I also read the second one this year, I still liked this one better. Still, I'm excited to read more about Strike and the plot twists Rowling comes up with. 

3. ISLA AND THE HAPPILY EVER AFTER by Stephanie Perkins

I feel like I've been waiting my entire life for this book, but if Stephanie Perkins is writing it? I'm willing to do a whole lot of waiting. Although this book received mixed reviews, I absolutely adored it. I feel like Isla is the character I could relate to the most and I liked that it was a bit different from the Lola and Anna format. Plus, I would give this book a five star rating just for that part with Anna and St. Clair. I CRIED TEARS OF JOY. 

 4. READY PLAYER ONE by Ernest Cline

Video games and 80's references? Count me in! Even if I'm not an expert on either of those subjects, I still enjoyed this book a lot. I'm just obsessed with the idea of a completely immersive gaming experience, but I'm still aware that nothing compares to real life. I don't have much to say about this book other than it was so much fun. It is one that I recommend to the geeky people in my life. I feel like my dad would love this book, too bad he is not much of a reader. 

5. NEVER LET ME GO by Kazuo Ishiguro 

Although this is one of those rare cases in which I watched the movie before reading the book, it did not take away from the experience. I loved every second I spent with this book. I can't find the words to describe what it made me feel. It left me empty and absolutely frustrated, but I loved it so much. I'm hoping to read another book by Ishiguro this year, because he definitely knows how to write a good book. 

 6. JANE EYRE by Charlotte Bronte
I was expecting to enjoy this book, but I was not expecting to fall completely in love with it. Just ask the people around me - I couldn't stop raving about this book while I was reading it. I even made my boyfriend listen to the entire story of Jane Eyre and Mr. Rochester because I could not stop thinking about it. Jane Eyre is definitely one of my favorite literary female characters ever. It does not hurt that she reminds me a lot of my best friend.

7. THE BRIEF WONDROUS LIFE OF OSCAR WAO by Junot Díaz
I debated whether or not I should include this book on my list because I had originally given it four stars, but I realized that it definitely left an impact on me and the rest of the people in my English Honors class. I fell in love with the brutal honesty and rawness of the story and with Díaz' writing. He truly is a genius and this book completely deserves the Pulitzer award it won. I was so obsessed with this book, I even learned a few quotes from it by heart.

 8. ELEANOR & PARK by Rainbow Rowell

I read this book at the right time, because I could relate to everything Eleanor was feeling, from her insecurities to the scary thing that is falling for someone. I found myself re-reading certain passages of the book and even took pictures to send to one of my friends just to have someone to share my love for this book with. I read Fangirl this year too and I adored it, but I had to give this spot to Eleanor & Park. 

9. ARISTOTLE AND DANTE DISCOVER THE SECRETS OF THE UNIVERSE by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

I had no idea what to expect when I started reading this book. To be honest, I'm a sucker for books with cool character names on the title and that is what first caught my eye. I wasn't even completely sure if the story had a romantic aspect to it, but I'm so glad it did. The book was much more than that, but I love the interactions between Dante and Aristotle and fell in love with them both. The way Sáenz manages to capture the emotion with such a simple writing style is truly admirable. 

10. THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY by Oscar Wilde
I almost forgot to include this book because I read it in January of 2014, but I loved it so much. Although I knew the basics of the story, I wasn't expecting to encounter such interesting characters and brilliant quotes. I never know what to say about classics because I feel like it has all been said before, but I just know this is a book I will be re-reading in the future. Preferably in the Penguin Clothbound Classics edition.






That's it for this list! Until next time,

x, Loony.