Purple Hibiscus: The Highlight of my Summer Reading

Every once in a while I feel the urge to read something literary (sort of like when you sometimes crave broccoli). Chimimanda Ngozi Adichie's Purple Hibiscus had been chilling on my bookshelf for months, so I decided to give it a little attention. I had no idea that it would be the best book I read all summer!

Purple Hibiscus is the story of Kambili, a 15-year-old girl living in Enugu, Nigeria during a time of great political turmoil. Kambili and her brother Jaja come from a wealthy and highly-esteemed family, and are sheltered from the poverty and political unrest just beyond their doorstep.  But life for the members of Kambili's family is not as perfect as it seems, and her father's unrealistic expectations of his wife and child place great strain on their household. When Kambili and Jaja go to visit their progressive aunt and cousins and return to the house, they are able to look at their situation with new, more critical eyes.

My Summer Reading List! (Sort of)

It's time to go back to school, and I've been pretty terrible about updating the blog this summer (too busy reading!). Here are *some* of the books I read this summer! I've included a "book hook" for each (two statements about the book, a question, and a "recommended for" blurb). What did you read this summer?? 

CONVERSION- And you thought your high school experience was hard.

Let's be honest - we all judge books by their covers. Conversion has one of those covers that just screams "read me." On top of that amazing cover art, this book is about a girl who lives in present-day Salem, Massachusetts (yes, that Salem), and the narrative flips back and forth between the real-life characters who inspired The Crucible and the fictional girls living in Danvers, MA. Sounds good, right?

THE COLDEST GIRL IN COLDTOWN: Yes, I still read vampire books.

“Even from the beginning, that was the problem. People liked pretty things. People even liked pretty

things that wanted to kill and eat them.” 

E. Lockhart's WE WERE LIARS

A beautiful and distinguished family.
A private island.
A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate, political boy.
A group of four friends -- the Liars -- whose friendship turns destructive.
A revolution. An accident. A secret.
Lies upon lies. 
True love.
The truth.