[Humor Writer Posts: 32 Status: Offline]

Absolutely loved A MONSTER CALLS by Patrick Ness.  I blogged about this amazing book and a few other favorites from this year:  http://donnagephart.blogspot.com/2012/06/book-so-good.html.  Would love to hear about your favorites!

[Shannywriter Posts: 507 Status: Offline Believe in yourself and never give up WWW]

Just finished Sweetly by Jackson Pearce and now reading Crossed by Ally Condie.
One of my students gave me a B&N gift card so of course it took me an hour to decide on two books. So hard to pick!!

[Z-cat]

Just finished THE NIGHT STRANGERS by Chris Bohjalian (for grownups)
and now I'm getting around to reading CITY OF EMBER, finally.

[terrylynn Posts: 144 Status: Offline writing outdoor adventures WWW]

I just finished Carolyn Mackler's THE EARTH, MY BUTT, AND OTHER BIG ROUND THINGS.  That was a great book.  I loved Virginia, felt for her, cheered for her, and really enjoyed watching her find her power.

I agree, I loved that book too!

[terrylynn Posts: 144 Status: Offline writing outdoor adventures WWW]

I just finished one of my favourite books of this year. Perhaps of all time. I loved it soooo much.  :love3: Serious love.

Grave Mercy by Robin Lafever

[G.R. Posts: 633 Status: Offline I love kids' books!]

I just got around to finishing Jonathan Safran Foer's Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (I had already seen the recent film version a few months ago). A very odd book -- especially when the boy is narrating -- but very touching too, especially when the backgrounds of the grandmother and the renter are explained.

[jodyjl Posts: 389 Status: Offline]

Finished two pretty intense books these past two days...both with strong voices:

SOMEDAY THIS PAIN WILL BE USEFUL TO YOU
EVERYTHING IS FINE

[Kris K]

Reading BIG MOUTH & UGLY GIRL. Interested in seeing how an accomplished novelist such as Joyce Carol Oates handles YA.

[majanecka Posts: 77 Status: Offline]

Read The Star Quilt by Nancy Turner.  Loved it.

[Raynbow Gignilliat Posts: 596 Status: Offline]

I just finished DELIRIUM and PANDEMONIUM by Lauren Oliver. I loved BEFORE I FALL, so picked these up. They're the first two books in a dystopian trilogy. Even though I'm a little burnt out with dystopians, I really enjoyed these. 

[updog]

I'm finally getting around to reading the first in Cassandra Clare's Mortal Instruments series, City of Bones. Up next Holes, by Louis Sachar.

[jodyjl Posts: 389 Status: Offline]

Just finished our own Amber Turner's SWAY...a lovely, quirky, touching middle grade novel with a very fine voice.

I highly recommend.

Congratulations, Amber, on a terrific first novel.

[olmue Posts: 3,528 Status: Offline WWW]

I just finished WITCHLANDERS, by our own Lena Coakley. So lovely! I'm glad to see that straight fantasy seems to be making somewhat of a comeback.

[ChristineSarmel Posts: 228 Status: Offline WWW]

Finally got around to IMAGINE by Jonah Lehrer. It's amazing. By far the most interesting and well-written non-fiction I've read in a while.

[Shannywriter Posts: 507 Status: Offline Believe in yourself and never give up WWW]

Now reading Desires of the Dead by Kimberley Derting.

[Turtle9 Posts: 79 Status: Offline]

Just finished The Returning by Christine Hinwood, and absolutely loved it, though be warned it's not an easy read.

[Mike Jung]

I'm plowing through a stack of ARCs - I just finished Sarwat Chadda's THE SAVAGE FORTRESS, which is excellent, and Raina Telgemeier's DRAMA, which is also excellent. I just started Peter Salomon's HENRY FRANKS (which is creepy and fantastic so far), and next up is Kim Baker's PICKLE.

[Christine B. Posts: 367 Status: Offline WWW]

I'm reading an ARC, too: Shannon Hale's PRINCESS ACADEMY: PALACE OF STONE. I am enjoying it -- I loved the character Miri from the first book and the sequel places her in a different environment, which is fun.

[olmue Posts: 3,528 Status: Offline WWW]

Kenneth Oppel's THIS DARK ENDEAVOR. Yesterday I read JEFFERSON'S SONS, which was good and thought-provoking and of course, as it was meant to, made me mad that this country ever tolerated slavery.

[C. Lee]

I was lucky enough to win Audition from Naomi Bates great blog and loved reading the book. Then J. Haight and S. Robinson at The Secret DMS Files of Fairday Marrow bestowed a copy of Amazon on me. I enjoyed reading this "You decide how to survive" book. Great summer fun.

[LindaB Posts: 332 Status: Offline I want to write!]

I just finished Morpheous Road by D.J. McHale, who wrote the Pendragon series. While I generally don't like ghost stories, I was intrigued when he read the first chapter of the third book when he spoke at the Miami Book Fair in November. I liked it. It gave me just enough goosebumps but didn't scare me out of my mind (which is why I usually don't read ghost stories). I'll go on to read the second book in the series. It's a good boy book, by the way.

[AnneB Posts: 3,751 Status: Offline]

Size 12 and Ready to Rock, Meg Cabot's latest Heather Wells book. Up waaay too late gobbling it up.

[terrylynn Posts: 144 Status: Offline writing outdoor adventures WWW]

I'm reading BitterBlue which took a while to get into, but now I'm thoroughly sucked in.

[Ruth Donnelly Posts: 659 Status: Offline WWW]

I just read Secrets of Truth and Beauty by Megan Frazer and loved it. My 18-y.o. daughter read it, and she loved it, too. Great characters. It just grabbed us from page 1 and never let go!

[carterhiggins Posts: 40 Status: Offline K-6 librarian, PB/MG author, blogger WWW]

Reading and loving VIOLET RAINES ALMOST GOT STRUCK BY LIGHTNING by Danette Haworth.

[ChristinefromCorona Posts: 806 Status: Offline]

Fathomless (YA) by Jackson Pearce, an ARC I found at ALA (the book's coming out in September).   

[Juliarts2003@yahoo.com Posts: 1,564 Status: Offline Truth, Puffin/Speak, 1/19/2012 WWW]

I am stuck in adult-book world. :ahh

P.G. Wodehouse is the current author of choice. He is so clever!

[Ruth Donnelly Posts: 659 Status: Offline WWW]

Wonderstruck. Yes, I finally got around to it! I like it, and the parts where the visual and text stories intersect are quite cool. It's going quickly despite the thickness, thanks to all the pictures.

[AnneB Posts: 3,751 Status: Offline]

{Julia! Welcome back! It has been ages since I've seen your avatar!}

I'm just starting The Maeve Binchy Writers' Club, which apparently is a series of short pieces born from a college-level course she taught. Maeve Binchy is one of my favorite writers...especially in audiobook form, as most of them have superb narrators. Sure and I end up speaking like me great-grandmothers for days after, but 'tis a wee price to be paid.

[Juliarts2003@yahoo.com Posts: 1,564 Status: Offline Truth, Puffin/Speak, 1/19/2012 WWW]

{Julia! Welcome back! It has been ages since I've seen your avatar!}

...

Aw. thanks, AnneB! It's nice to be back!