HALF BAD By Sally Green

As with many of the other books I've read recently, I found this one on the returns shelf at work and I liked the look of it so I thought I'd give it a shot. Just in time to, just as I was craving something of the fantasy genre.

I must say that this is a jolly good read. It well written, it's easy to read and it's incredibly satisfying.

Half Bad is set in an England where witched are common and living among the 'fains', also known as the normal, unmagical people. There has been war between the good white witches and the supposedly evil black witches, however for one young boy, things aren't as easy as black and white. Nathan is a half code. His mother was a white witch, and his father is the most notorious and feared black witch in the country. Scared of Nathan, the council keep him chained up for a couple of years. When he turns seventeen, Nathan must have received his Giving or he'll die. The only snag is that the only living relative of Nathan is his father and no one has seen him in years, so he sets off in search of Mercury, the only witch who can save him now.

As I said previously, this is a really satisfying book. There's not so much in this book to analyse. Just to enjoy. The protagonist is lovable and relateable, the antagonists are hateable and there are just enough twists and turns to keep the story interesting while keeping it so you don't have to think to much, just sit back and enjoy the story.

I would definitely like to read the sequel and then the third part when it comes out later this year. This is a book I would recommend to anyone and everyone, a brilliant read.

LOOKING FOR ALASKA By John Green

This is the second of John Green's books that I have read, the first being The Fault in Our Stars (Which incidentally earned itself a place on my Book of the Month list in January of this year), which I loved and therefore it would only make sense to enter this book for my reading challenge under that category of 'A book by an author you love but haven't read yet'.

Having previously read The Fault in Our Stars, and being absolutely blown away with it, and it hitting the top of my all time favourite books list in the skip of a heart beat, I'm not going to lie, I had high hopes for this one, and is I expected, the awesomeness that is John Green delivered again! I can't say that it hit the same level as TFIOS, because I don't think anything every will, but that is in no way at all, me saying that this is not a good book. It is! It is an amazing, gripping, perfectly poignant book which everyone should read.

This is the story of Miles Halter, a boy with few aspirations, a knack for learning famous last words and soon to become Pudge to his new friends, as he starts a new life at Culver Creek Boarding School where he meets the infamous and beautiful prankster, Alaska Young.
Pudge does exactly as his parents tell him not to, gets involved with smoking, sex, getting into trouble, the whole shebang, but his heart is broken after a terrible 'accident' which leaves the entire school without Alaska.

This is an amazing story which really shows how death can tear us apart as much as it can bring us together. As the reader you are forced into choosing sides between characters who are friends with each other, friends with you. Its a fact of life that everyone with die eventually, but it doesn't make things any easier when it finally happens to someone you know and love.

I would recommend this to any one of the age to read Young Adult fiction, due to a small number of graphic scenes and a running message of alcohol abuse and smoking. This is a funny and yet heart breaking book which will stay with you for an awfully long time to come.

Mr Green...  I salute you. 

THE FAULT IN OUR STARS by John Green

I'm not quite sure how, but it seems that currently I seem unable to pick up a bad book, as once again I have managed to find yet another absolutely exemplary book. THE FAULT IN OUR STARS is a book that I have previously heard many a great review on and after seeing it appear on our college book club reading list, I figured I would give it ago and I have no regrets what-so-ever about doing so. I cannot remember the last time that I read an entire book within the space of twenty four hours.

The story is of a young cancer sufferer who believes she will never find love and fears doing so in case she should hurt anyone, however no matter how hard she tries, she cannot stop love carving it's path in her life. This books presents excellently the powerful image that love conquers all. It is a tear-jerking, heart-wrenching story that inspires and forces you to realise just how lucky we really are. One thing that reading this book has done for me is that it has made me look at my own life in a completely different light.

I think my favourite element of this book it Augustus's obsession with metaphors, particularly the cigarette metaphor of holding the killing thing between you're teeth but not giving it the power to kill. I found this really thought provoking and almost empowering to an extent, however it was also a bit scary realising just how much power human really have. I found this metaphor obsession the most charming and attractive thing about Gus and at times I almost found myself falling for him,

The other thing that I found really difficult about this book was the revelation that our life-time hero's may never live up to our expectations and may very well disappoint should we ever meet them in real life, I suppose, in a way, this is Green emphasising the importance to separating fantasy and reality. To make sure that fantasy and dreams keep their magic, they must never cross with the truth and the true reality. I really did feel very hurt when our two main characters got to meet their hero and he dismissed them as a pair of sick children. I found him a very brutal character, however I feel that the way he presented his opinion of cancer was necessary for us to develop the feelings that we do towards Hazel, Gus, Isaac and the other young people.

Throughout the beginning of the book, I expected it to be the story of  Gus supporting Hazel to the end and I never expected Green to turn it around and to juxtapose the characters in such a way that it almost appears as if Hazel is the healthy one, supporting her terminally ill boyfriend. This I think is what makes the story all the more heart-breaking, you manage to steel yourself to the idea that Hazel will die and then all of a sudden, we lose Gus who seemed so well recovered. This just goes to show the unpredictable nature of cancer.

It is a book that not only would I recommend, but I really do feel that it needs to be read. Yes it is a tough read, but it is made bearable by the comic relief Green has used throughout. I believe that it is an important book as well as a gripping page turner. It shows really well how this awful disease effects more than just the sufferer, and it also illustrates ass differing human natures beautifully as well. I beg of you, please add this inspiring and empowering book to you're reading list.