Girl on a Plane by Miriam Moss // Thrilling and Unique

Girl on a Plane, by Miriam Moss
Publication: September 12, 2017, by HMH Books for Young Readers
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Historical
Pages: 288
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
Rating: 

Bahrain, 1970. After a summer spent with her family, fifteen-year-old Anna is flying back to boarding school in England when her plane is hijacked by Palestinian terrorists and taken to the Jordanian desert. Demands are issued. If they are not met, the terrorists will blow up the plane, killing all hostages. The heat becomes unbearable; food and water supplies dwindle. All alone, Anna begins to face the possibility that she may never see her family again. Inspired by true events, this is a story about real people facing horror with courage and resilience.

My Thoughts:

Girl on a Plane has been on my radar for over a year now - I feel so bad that I haven't given it a chance yet and allowed myself to become aware of the gorgeous writing Miriam Moss provides. This is my first time reading a story about a hijacking, and let me just say that this seems so real. It's actually based on the true story of Miriam's, who actually experienced a hijacking in her own life. Obviously, the two stories do differ, as the protagonist in this story is not Miriam, but a fifteen-year-old girl named Anna, who is returning home to England after spending time in Bahrain, where her father works for the military. I can easily admit that this was one of the most heartbreaking stories I have ever read. To read about a young character who is forced to experience such a traumatizing experience without her loved ones really did it for me. I was on the verge of shedding many tears as I read Anna's story, and saw her struggle for strength.

This story is actually historical, taking place in 1970. The setting actually played a huge role in shaping the way the novel progressed, and showed the culture of the times. Characters in the book, such as David, had an Etch-a-Sketch, which made me remind myself of the time period in which this story took place, and I found it quite interesting. This was seriously one of the most emotional stories I've read. We definitely have the ability to see growth in each of the characters, including Anna and her family, who are forced to live in the unknown by not knowing what is happening to their daughter. Additionally, this book showed a different take on hijackings, as Anna's plane was steered towards a vacant desert in Jordan, ruled by Palestinian rebels. I was able to learn more about the struggles endured by these people and learn about their reasoning for doing what they did. Obviously, it is unacceptable for these events to occur, but Moss clearly showcased the perspectives of both sides.

One of the major themes highlighted in this novel was innocence. Having a protagonist who is so young made the story so special and important. I loved reading about this through a teenager's experience instead of an adult's, as Anna's innocence showed that she did not know much about what was happening and didn't know how to deal with the situation. It just made the story steer away from fiction and caused it to become real. 

Girl on a Plane was entertaining, thrilling, and SO SO SO different than anything I've ever read before. If you're seeking a story that will change your life and cause you to appreciate what you have, read this. 

*A review copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for a honest review. Thank you so much!*

What are some other YA books based on true stories?

The Girl Before by J.P. Delaney // Thrilling and Messed Up

The Girl Before, by J.P. Delaney
Publication: January 24, 2017, by Ballantine Books
Genre: Adult Fiction, Mystery, Thriller
Pages: 320
Format: ARC
Source: BEA/Publisher
Rating: 

Emma:
Reeling from a traumatic break-in, Emma wants a new place to live. But none of the apartments she sees are affordable or feel safe. Until One Folgate Street. The house is an architectural masterpiece: a minimalist design of pale stone, plate glass, and soaring ceilings. But there are rules. The enigmatic architect who designed the house retains full control: no books, no throw pillows, no photos or clutter or personal effects of any kind. The space is intended to transform its occupant—and it does.
Jane:
After a personal tragedy, Jane needs a fresh start. When she finds One Folgate Street she is instantly drawn to the space—and to its aloof but seductive creator. Moving in, Jane soon learns about the untimely death of the home’s previous tenant, a woman similar to Jane in age and appearance. As Jane tries to untangle truth from lies, she unwittingly follows the same patterns, makes the same choices, crosses paths with the same people, and experiences the same terror, as the girl before.

My Thoughts:

THIS WAS ONE OF THE MOST INSANE BOOKS I'VE EVER READ. I-N-S-A-N-E. By insane, I mean mind-warping and messed-up and super-cool. It was interesting and had the coolest concept I have ever read about. And you can tell that it's a popular one due to the fact that it is actually becoming a movie (thanks to Universal)! I would have given this a pure five-star rating if the ending was more clear. This book left me guessing, aching for more, and aching for my questions to be answered. It seemed rushed and it just did not provide me with fulfillment, you know? Most of the time, I feel like the purpose of books and the reasons for books existing is to entertain audiences and, by the end, provide some sort of closure. This, sadly, did not, which is why I had to deduct a star from the rating. HOWEVER: this was still a great, pretty awesome read I totally recommend to everyone.

What J.P. Delaney basically writes about, in a nutshell, is about the house on One Folgate Street. It's a psycho house, in case you were wondering. And how do we know this? Because of the rules. Yeah; there are like 200 CRAZY rules that come with living in the house. And they're not your typical "NO PARTIES" kinds of rules: THESE ARE MESSED UP, control-freak kinds of rules. Two protagonists, which J.P. Delaney switches between (Emma and Jane), both experience the horrors of the home and deal with the owner, who is creepy too.

Let's just say that this entire novel has some creepy vibes. The romance (if that's what you can call it0 was weird though intriguing and I am just really interested in seeing more literature by the author. IT'S GOING TO BE SO GOOD. I CAN'T WAIT.

The Girl Before really made me question everyone I know, to be quite honest. XD It's just a book that shows how we really do not know the people we interact with. There's mystery to everything and the situations we put ourselves in may have consequences.

*A review copy was provided by the publisher via BookExpo America in exchange for a honest review. Thank you so much!*

What is the most 'messed up' book you've read?

Master Harold... and the Boys by Athol Fugard // A Play Filled With Important Themes

Master Harold... and the Boys by Athol Fugard
Publication: October 13, 2009, by Vintage
Genre: Adult Fiction, Play, Classic
Pages: 55
Format: Paperback
Source: Borrowed
Rating: 

This play about a young white boy and two African servants is at once a compelling drama of South African apartheid and a universal coming-of-age story. Originally produced in 1982, it is now an acknowledged classic of the stage, whose themes of injustice, racism, friendship, and reconciliation traverse borders and time.

My Thoughts:

From all the books I was required to read this year for school, Master Harold... and the boys honestly was the best. As you can see from my five-star rating, it wasn't amazing. It wasn't life-changing. But I can admit that it was very excellent, and enjoyable. Even though it seemed rather simplistic from the fact that it literally featured three present characters in one boring setting (a room in the midst of a rainy day in South Africa, it was meaningful and special. More books (or plays) need to address the issues highlighted by Fugard's writing. It's also SUPER important to have high school-aged teens read this so that they can use the lessons and topics addressed in the real world. That's one of the reasons why I personally love reading: it teaches us things without us even knowing. It just becomes second-nature to spread the loving messages that authors attempt to showcase.

THIS PLAY WAS ALSO REALLY SAD AND MEANINGFUL. Especially in the way that if you read the background story of the author, you can tell that the story is based on the author's life, in a way. Athol Fugard lived a similar life to the play's main character, Hally. Hally's family is fortunate to be white and wealthy, allowing them to receive some extra help from two black men who are forced to see that even the connections and relationship they established with Hally did not change anything about the way society works. It's heartbreaking. 

This is a tiny, QUICK read so I highly recommend picking it up at any time. You'll understand the message immediately and it'll come so easily. It's important to realize the themes and use them in modern literature.

Master Harold and... the boys is a read everyone should pick up. You know those lists that state, "30 Books to Read Before You Die"? Yeah, this should be on all of those lists. Help me make that happen by reading this meaningful, deep story.

What are some classics that talk about racism?

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams // My First 'Southern' Classic Experience

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, by Tennessee Williams
Publication: September 17, 2004, by New Directions
Genre: Adult Fiction, Play, Classic
Format: Paperback
Source: Borrowed
Rating: 

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof first heated up Broadway in 1955 with its gothic American story of brothers vying for their dying father’s inheritance amid a whirlwind of sexuality, untethered in the person of Maggie the Cat. The play also daringly showcased the burden of sexuality repressed in the agony of her husband, Brick Pollitt. In spite of the public controversy Cat stirred up, it was awarded the Pulitzer Prize and the Drama Critics Circle Award for that year. Williams, as he so often did with his plays, rewrote Cat on a Hot Tin Roof for many years—the present version was originally produced at the American Shakespeare Festival in 1974 with all the changes that made Williams finally declare the text to be definitive, and was most recently produced on Broadway in the 2003–2004 season. This definitive edition also includes Williams&rsquoi; essay “Person-to-Person,” Williams’ notes on the various endings, and a short chronology of the author’s life. One of America’s greatest living playwrights, as well as a friend and colleague of Williams, Edward Albee has written a concise introduction to the play from a playwright’s perspective, examining the candor, sensuality, power, and impact of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof then and now.

My Thoughts:

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof was literally a high school student's dream. Or, in other words, MY DREAM. I always wanted to read a book that took place in the South or Mississippi so this was it. Although this is an older play published during a time in which it was difficult to talk about "controversial issues" like gay rights and so forth, it delivers a message effectively and shows readers that these issues and topics should be spoken about. Tennessee Williams is an excellent writer who is able to create a memorable play out of one setting and a small cast of characters. That is what amazes me, and is causing me to become more interested in reading plays and that kind of literature.

This play had a cast of characters I surely will not forget about due to their distinct personalities. We have Maggie, the wife of Brick, and she is who the play is really named after. Maggie is one of those stereotypical Southern characters who is all in for the old money and lives a luxurious life on a plantation. Brick, her husband, is absolutely troubled and is an alcoholic, drinking away his problems, even though he is the favourite child. His parents adore him, and despise his brother and his wife who are secretly waiting for Big Daddy to die and leave the estate to them. It's all about family drama, honestly.

I believe that more people should become aware of Williams and his writing, and the messages that his stories spread. Of course, A Streetcar Named Desire is his most popular story, however, this one should be crowned as just as popular.

When reading, I especially enjoyed the message that this story spread and the pacing. I found it relatively interesting and captivating, better than the recent plays I have been reading for school. This did not seem like something I was forced to read for school, you know? You know how Shakespeare can be boring and/or difficult to understand, causing you to find no motivation to read? Well, this was the complete opposite. I actually looked forward to English class to pick this one up and analyze, read and enjoy.

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof was my first 'southern' classic experience. We constantly hear about Harper Lee's books and Gone With the Wind, but Tennessee Williams' writing should be more frequently heard of. It was a true, real read.

What are some other good 'southern' classics?

Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller // A Lovely Classic

Death of a Salesman, by Arthur Miller
Publication: October 28, 1976, by Penguin USA
Genre: Adult Fiction, Play, Classic
Pages: 140
Format: Paperback
Source: Borrowed
Rating: 

Ever since it was first performed in 1949, Death of a Salesman has been recognized as a milestone of the American theater. In the person of Willy Loman, the aging, failing salesman who makes his living riding on a smile and a shoeshine, Arthur Miller redefined the tragic hero as a man whose dreams are at once insupportably vast and dangerously insubstantial. He has given us a figure whose name has become a symbol for a kind of majestic grandiosity--and a play that compresses epic extremems of humor and anguish, promise and loss, between the four walls of an American living room.

My Thoughts:

I had mixed expectations for Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman solely because I did not want another Great Gatsby redo or copycat. I had previously heard that the American Dream is a major theme featured in this play, and I was quite skeptical of it as the message usually tends to be the same in these kinds of story: money isn't everything. DON'T LET YOUR EXPECTATIONS CHANGE YOUR EXCITEMENT FOR THIS PLAY: this was a fantastic play that was so impressive and easy to analyze. In fact, Miller's writing made analyzing fun for me. I'm usually not the type of person who's interested in seeing beyond the lines and trying to distinguish the author's purpose for writing a certain piece of literature. However, in Death of a Salesman, it was impossible to not search for some extra meaning. 

To quickly summarize the story, this basically focuses on the Loman family, specifically on Willy Loman and his struggles of living in a world which highlights the importance of gaining some kind of American Dream. Willy is a travelling salesman who travels around New England and the New York City area. The point of attack of this play allows audiences to enter the point of time in Willy's life where he is realizing that he has a greater potential and deserves a better job, and life. However, Willy establishes a facade towards his family, causing them to believe that Willy is more "well-liked" and successful than he seems. This disturbs the relationship amongst Willy and his eldest son, Biff, who views Willy as a role model.

I enjoyed reading every single page of this play. In fact, I would be totally interested in seeing this being performed live. I love the realistic aspect of the play, as it surely addresses the lives of many Americans to this very day. The tensions in the relationships of the characters were interesting to examine, and made me become more interested in the 20s era of the twentieth century. As for any flaws in the story, if I were to give this play a five star rating, it needed an extra dash of something. Some kind of entertainment or plot twist or suspense, as, evidently, the fate of Willy Loman is already spoiled to us readers from the title. Whoa, how surprising it is that Willy's story will end in tragedy and he will die. This cannot even be identified as a spoiler. It's just common sense. The ending is where I can say that the book lost its entertainment aspect and caused readers to look in between the lines of the play. I do not know if that is my favourite approach to reading a story, that's for sure.

Death of a Salesman is some excellent, classic literature that should be continued to be read in classrooms all over the world. I found that it was easy to be entertained whilst reading it, and to analyze it for academic purposes (I had to read this for school, so finding some 'greater' message was beneficial). But even if you're not a student, READ THIS. Pick it up - it is not some kind of play that is difficult to understand (COUGH Shakespeare COUGH)! 

What are some other works of literature that focus on the American Dream?

Top Girls by Caryl Churchill // Difficult to Comprehend

Top Girls by Caryl Churchill
Publication: July 15, 2008, by Bloomsbury
Genre: Adult Fiction, Play
Pages: 176
Format: Paperback
Source: Borrowed
Rating: 

Set in the early Thatcher years, Top Girls is a serminal play of the modern theatre, revealing a world of women's experience at a pivotal moment in British history. Told by an eclectic group of historical and modern characters in a continuous conversation across ages and generations, Top Girls was hailed by The Guardianas "the best British play ever by a woman dramatist."

My Thoughts:

Top Girls, from all of the books I was required to read for my English literature class, was the one I was the most excited for. However, it proved to be the worst one out of the four I read, especially due to the confusion it provided me with. Perhaps if I were to see a live performance of this play in a theatre, I would have enjoyed it more. However, this can easily be crowned as the most confusing play I have read. Move over, Shakespeare, Caryl Churchill is a playwright who may be taking your place in terms of confusing literature. To make it clear, I had mixed feelings about this play. It was quite boring and absolutely confusing - the overlap of dialogue especially made me react like: O_O

Even from the cover, it is easy to identify this book as feministic. And there's nothing wrong with that; today's society is strongly associated with the feminist movement and I feel as if this play is perfect for those interested in this topic. However, I was unable to find something unique or even shocking about this play that provided me with some huge, grand message. The message or 'moral' of the play was just cheesy and expected, which made me dislike the story more.

What I did appreciate was the abundance of characters Churchill wrote about, and how they were all women. There was not one male character (even though they were mentioned and alluded to), and this gave women more of a dominant role in this play, which I am sure many would adore to hear about. Each character represented a distinct personality trait, and they all came from different points of history, and some are even fictional characters. That was super cool, but to this very day, I am unable to distinguish why the author utilized these fictional and historical characters in the first act(?) of the play. Eeeeek.

The pacing of the play was quick and left me entertained; my class was able to read this play in two days, which is quite a record as most teachers tend to spend an abundance of time analyzing every statement and searching for dramatic devices. Whilst doing so, I was able to read this fairly quickly. The relationships created by the playwright were also very touching and heartwarming. The uniqueness and weirdness of this story will surely not be forgotten. I guess that factor makes me enjoy the book even more?

Top Girls lacked a sense of clarity in the writing which makes me identify it as a book I kind of enjoyed. Kind of. While it did entertain me with its fast-moving plot and interesting characters, the story lacked a unique message that will stun its future audiences. 

What is your favourite British play?

Instructions for a Secondhand Heart by Tamsyn Murray // Heartwarming and Simply Beautiful

Instructions for a Secondhand Heart by Tamsyn Murray
Publication: December 7, 2017, by Poppy
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary, Romance
Pages: 313
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
Rating: 

Jonny knows better than anyone that life is full of cruel ironies. He's spent every day in a hospital hooked up to machines to keep his heart ticking. Then when a donor match is found for Jonny's heart, that turns out to be the cruellest irony of all. Because for Jonny's life to finally start, someone else's had to end.

That someone turns out to be Neve's twin brother, Leo. When Leo was alive, all Neve wanted was for him (and all his glorious, overshadowing perfection) to leave. Now that Leo's actually gone forever, Neve has no idea how to move forward. Then Jonny walks into her life looking for answers, her brother's heart beating in his chest, and everything starts to change.

Together, Neve and Jonny will have to face the future, no matter how frightening it is, while also learning to heal their hearts, no matter how much it hurts.

My Thoughts:

I've read many books with a similar concept to this one, but this book is something special. Instructions for a Secondhand Heart by Tamsyn Murray was a story that initially seems to be similar to the rest, however, the author utilized a different take to the story and shocked me. This novel certainly had its flaws with being a story that was difficult to 'get into' and start to understand, however, once the understanding portion sunk into my mind, enjoying and loving the story came easily. If you're looking for a story that will possibly cause you to shed some tears and catch a glimpse of what love is actually like, read this gorgeous novel. I am especially complimenting the author's writing style, which was fresh, unique and entertaining. I can certainly call this one of the better love stories I've read about this year.

This is a dual perspective novel, focusing on two characters who initially seem to be complete opposites and have no connection. However, unfortunately, a death brings the characters together: the death of Neve's twin brother, Leo. When Leo dies in a tragic accident, Neve finds it difficult to move on and even find the will to live. Leo's death allows a teenage boy, Jonny, to receive a life-altering heart transplant which allows him to live. Ultimately, Jonny becomes curious about his donor, and eventually discovers Neve and starts a relationship with her... and things blossom.

Of course, this is a romance story. HOWEVER, IT'S NOT CHEESY. At least, I didn't find it cheesy in any way. This had two characters who had quite interesting personalities. Neve and Jonny fit each other SO WELL, but this was only because they both were different and had their own problems and flaws which were highly evident throughout the novel. Through the plot, Murray showcased the issues individuals face when they encounter death and illness, and how people can easily be connected without expecting it. 

What I loved most about this story is the ending. OH MY. It was definitely emotion-filled and will cause you to shed a tear... or two. I'm telling you: you will not want to miss this gorgeous story. It's a perfect one for a nice winter evening by the fireplace. 

READ THIS BOOK AND FALL IN LOVE. Okay? Okay. Let's all appreciate Tamsyn Murray's writing and beg her to write another novel soon!

*A review copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for a honest review. Thank you so much!*

What is the most recent 'heartwarming' story you've read?