Two Good Books

I just finished reading "The Last Summer (of You & Me)" by Ann Brashares, which I picked up at Target a week ago when I was looking for something light. I'd read her "Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" series for teens a while back, so I thought I'd give her first novel for adults a try.

It had a slow start and a feeling, probably around page 250 of the 353-page book, that now was the time when her characters needed to move on from their gloomy situations and get to the part where they were supposed to learn and grow from their mistakes. Still, I couldn't put it down. She made me love the characters, despite their faults, so I was invested in their stories.

The last book I read before that was "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern. It's a brand new novel and a debut for the writer. I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED it. Think Harry Potter for grown-ups, but in one book, not seven, and with an interesting romantic element that didn't make it feel like a book for women and not men. It has something for everyone -- romance, mystery, magic -- especially magic. Go out now and buy it or put your name on the waiting list for it at your local library.

I heard that a movie studio bought the film rights and I cannot wait to see someone translate Morgenstern's words into a visual experience, since the circus is so wonderfully described in the book. You can literally smell the popcorn and caramel apples and sense the smoke from the bonfire and picture the black-and-white tents and animated clock that keeps watch over everything.

Next, I'm going to read one of three Anita Shreve novels that I borrowed from a friend, "A Wedding in December." I love Anita Shreve, but I can't digest three of her books in a row. They're too dark and depressing to read all at once, so I'll spread them out a bit.

Fortunately, my brother gave me a $50 Barnes & Noble gift card for my birthday, which I used online tonight. So in a week or so, I'll have five new books sitting on my doorstep. I ordered "The Death Cure," the final book in James Dashner's "Maze Runner" series; "Looking for Alaska" by John Green, whose "Paper Towns" I loved; "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" by Jonathan Safran Foer, because I saw the trailer for the movie coming out on Christmas Day and it looked good; "The Uglies" by Scott Westerfeld, the first in a teen series that includes "The Pretties," "The Specials" and "The Extras"; and "A Northern Light" by Jennifer Donnelly, whose "Revolution" I really enjoyed.

For anyone keeping track, all but "Extremely Loud" are teen fiction. We'll just call it research, since I'm now doing my first read-through on my second book, a teen novel.