Lauren Oliver, You've Done it Again

I was 13 when I did NaNoWriMo for the first time. That was before I had ever read any Young Adult books, before I had ever finished a draft of any of my novels, before I began telling myself, "I want to be a published writer."

For those of you unfamiliar with Nano, they have a list of special pep-talks sent to the Wrimos (participants) by successful authors. Lauren Oliver was one of the pep-talkers the first year I ventured to do Nano. I really liked her pep-talk, so I decided to check out her books.

I was instantly hooked by Delirium. I remember lying on my bed, my eyes rapidly moving across page after page, devouring the words as quickly as possible to find out what would happen. Oh, geez, I wish I could go back to that first time I read the book. To be sure, I've re-read it multiple times, but there's something about the first time you read a book that you can never get back no matter how many times you re-read it.

Pandemonium was awesome, too. I didn't think it was as good as Delirium, but I honestly wasn't expecting it to be. That being said, I was not at all disappointed in it. It was still way better than most books. And that dang cliff hanger ending. . . even worst than the first=)

One thing I really like about Lauren Oliver is that her books aren't "video game books." That's what my dad calls books with action scene after scene. Even though her books are crazy exciting, Lauren knows how to write those mellow, everyday moments that everyone has. Though the Delirium trilogy takes place in the future, it is still so normal. People are still people, as they are today, and as they were a thousand years ago. People who are still making their way through life. People succeeding and failing, loving and hating, laughing and crying.

I just finished Requiem. As I closed the book, I was left with a strange array of emotions. The first one, I can't tell you, because it's a spoiler=) But after that feeling, I was like "Oh. My. Goodness. I just finished Delirium." The fact that I had finished the series made me want to cry more than the book actually did! And yes, my eyes did tear up multiple times while reading it. I was/am filled with a total awe of Lauren Oliver. She is such a talented writer who deserves all the attention and success that she is receiving and more.

Requiem was utterly beautiful. If there's one word that would describe the Delirium series, it's beautiful. So real, so honest, so soulful, so beautiful. Lauren Oliver, you've done it again. I hope someday I will be able to write as beautifully as you can.

(I would give the Delirium series a PG14 rating as a whole– probably PG13 for the first book, but PG14 for the last two. The books deal with some mature subject content, some language, and there is some sexual content.)

What I've Been Up To

Hello, dear readers. So sorry that I've been a bit MIA. Things have been sort of crazy in my formally quiet little life. Well, actually, my life has never been what one might call quiet. However, if I had been cruising along the highway of life at 60 MPH, now it's more like 120 MPH.

Let me enlighten you. Here's what's been going on in my reading/writing world:

1. I have been reading a lot more, which I am quite pleased about, considering how crazy things are. I'm still not reading as much as I was when I was homeschooled, but I have been reading more than I did in the beginning of the year. I'm currently reading Scarlet, book 2 in the Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer. LOVED book 1, Cinder-- definitely a book that will be reviewed soon=) But I might have to shelf Scarlet for a bit because my hold on Requiem (book 3 in the Delirium series by Lauren Oliver) just came in! I've been DYING to read it.

2. I mentioned before that I'm working on a new story. Progress on that is slow, but it's coming along. I'll try and post an excerpt soon. That leads me to thing number 3. . .

3. Preparations for Camp Nanowrimo! I'm going to camp this April because I really want to write the mentioned story. I'm absolutely in love with my characters already and I'm really enjoying writing their story. I've never done Camp Nano, but I think it would be a great way to help my story along. Plus, my birthday is in April, so Nano is the best present ever!


Now, here's what's been going on with everything else:

1. Toledo. I mentioned before that we're moving, which is crazy stuff in itself. Selling our house, buying a house, and registering in a new school (I'm SUPER excited about this new school, just thought I'd throw that out there) has been demanding most of my family's time. Even though I guess I personally don't have to sell our house or buy one, it still weighs heavily on my mind. Which is sort of dumb, considering that there's nothing I can do about it.

2. School, meh. Pretty self-explanitory. I've been working crazy hard to keep my grades up because of this new school I'll be going to.


And here's a sneak peak at some things coming soon on AM Station:

1. Cinder/Scarlet book review! Already spoke a bit about that, stay tuned!

2. Guest post! I'm pretty sure Perks of Being a Wallflower is going to be reviewed, but more on that later.

3. Camp Nanowrimo updates! I highly encourage you to take part in this upcoming camp. It sounds like it's going to be AMAZING!

Thanks for reading, guys. You all seriously rock my world-- thank you for taking the time to read my blog=)