The Perks of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

This book is really different because it is a view of teenage life through the eyes of a teenage boy. This was very different because usually, the books I read are from a girl's perspective, so it was interesting to see the differences. This book is about a boy, Charlie, and him going through the ninth grade. He has two best friends, Patrick and Sam. the entire book is also written through Charlie's letters to an anonymous person, so that made it even more interesting to read. The only thing I didn't like about the book was the fact that Charlie was writing to an anonymous person, and they weren't writing back. I the book would have been better if the person responded to Charlie's letters. I really like books that are written entirely out of letters and diary entries, like the other books I read by Jacelyn Moriarty. The end of this book was somewhat surprising, but also, it confused me a little bit. Charlie ends up in a hospital, and his judgement is impaired, so he becomes a little unreliable as a narrator. Overall, I really liked this book, and I would recommend it to people who like realistic fiction books. Also, because the narrator is a boy, I would recommend this for both guys and girls to read.

The Murder of Bindy Mackenzie by Jacelyn Moriarty

I read this book because i have read another book by this author. Unsurprisingly, they were in the same format and writing style: the book was written entirely through diary entries, letters, and emails. The Murder of Bindy Mackenzie is about a girl , Bindy, trying to survive Ashbury High School. She is an overachiever, an organization freak, and doesn't have many friends. Through her letters, memos, diary entries, and emails, we learn about her thoughts and interactions with people. She is a goody-two-shoes, geeky kind of girl, so why is someone trying to murder Bindy? READ TO FIND OUT! This book is very funny and the end is very unexpected. I loved the other book I read by Jacelyn Moriarty, The Year of Secret Assignments, and the writing style in this book was very similar. I like books that are written in primary sources like letters and diary entries because it gives me a view into the character's mind, something that cannot happen if the story is being told by a narrator. For example, Bindy is seen as a nerdy, imperfect girl when she views HERSELF as the smartest, most organized person ever. The view is a little different when someone is describing themselves. This is also a surprising and a little random ending but it was a great book!!! I recommend this to people who like funny books and this type of writing style.

My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult

I read the New York Times review for My Sister's Keeper: http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/18/books/books-in-brief-fiction-poetry-147680.html?pagewanted=1
I definitely agree with this review. Usually I don't read book like these that have SO much drama in them, but this one, as the review describes it is "some awkward combination of a sci-fi novel and a movie on the Lifetime Channel." Although this book does include a lot of drama, my love for the plot line overshadows it. In this novel, the protagonist, Anna, sues her parents for rights to her own body after being forced, year after year, to donate organs and tissues to her sister, Kate, who is dying of cancer. The conflict is that if Anna doesn't donate her kidney to her sister, she will die. The thing that I love about the story line of this book is that the protagonist, Anna is forced to do something wrong, like allowing her sister to die, if she wishes to reach her goal. I feel like this makes the book more realistic. Also, the reactions of the other characters to Anna's lawsuit makes the book more realistic. Anna's mother obviously wants to save her daughter, so she wants to lawsuit dropped. Her brother, who feels that she should do what she needs to thinks that she should continue on with it. Kate, her dying sister, has mixed feelings, but in the end I feel like she wants Anna to do whatever would make her happy.I loved this book and I would recommend this book to people who like realistic fiction and surprise twist endings!!!