Traveling Through Books

  Title: Love Letters to the Dead Author: Ava Dellaira Publisher: MICHEL LAFON Read in:   Nook eBook Genre: Young Adult Fiction   I had high hopes for this book; not simply because the protagonist has my name. It was recommended by authors I love as a phenomenol debut book. And while it wasn't bad. It was far from impressive. I felt like I was reading a the stories of Perks of Being a Wallflower and   Speak combined together. The big twist was highly predictable. But if the author, Dellaira, can find some originality there is hope for her to become a great author. She has many beautiful phrases and metaphors throughout the novel and her characters are well-devolped and easily identified with. However, I just couldn't fall in love with this book because I found it so very unoriginal. It made me want to re-read the two books I mentioned above. I hope that Dellaira finds a story of her own to tell- her writing can be beautiful. 

  Title: The Ocean at the End of the Lane Author: Neil Gaiman Read In: Nook eBook Genre: Fiction/Fantasy Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers   I love Neil Gaiman; he is an incredibly talented and probably strange man. If you're unfamiliar with his accomplishments and work, I highly suggest you check him out (http://www.neilgaiman.com/).     The Ocean at the End of the Lane is a short fiction book that is really like an adult fairy tale (not the Disney kind). It is written in first person narrative from an adult perspective of the protagonist's childhood memory. It tells the story of a magical, or spiritual, family that he encounters. Though like a fairy tale, I think this book reads like a mix of fantasy and magical realism. It is very well written. It is rather dark. I loved it. The story is not very complex, but it is deep and at under 200 pages it is a great read for this busy time of year.   The book is also ...