You know it's ironic — just yesterday GReads asked the question: "Book Mourning: does this happen to you? When you finish an amazing book, do you find yourself at a loss to pick up another one? What was the last book that left you feeling so bewildered? & what did you do to overcome it?" I flippantly answered that I couldn't remember the last time it happened to me.
Little did I know that hours later (around 2pm) that I would finish one of the most amazing novels EVER and be in complete book mourning.
Yes, blogosphere, I am in complete book mourning over "Wither" by Lauren DeStefano. While I am not a fan of the cover (weird I know) I am completely in love with this book. I almost reread it today simply because my mourning is that bad! I don't know what to do with myself. I keep thinking of Linden and Rhine (okay, but mostly Linden) and I just NEED to know what happens next. The worst part? The book isn't even "officially" out yet! It's been such a long time since I've felt the loss of a good book — and I've read some great books this year already. But DeStefano has written such an amazing, elaborate, depth-filled novel that right now I can't imagine reading anything else!
I thought I'd pick up a "lighter" quick read to recover from my heart being wrenched out of my body and my soul sucked into the pages of "Wither" so I tried picking up "The Lipstick Laws" and got a few chapters in before putting it down indefinitely. While the protagonist is supposed to be a high school sophomore it seemed like she was more of a middle school student. Maybe I'm 'too old,' but I just couldn't connect to the "mean girl" plot. While, yes, I could have continued reading as I hear it is an okay read — surprisingly it was extremely hard to read something so "light" after reading a book like "Wither" where my whole heart and soul were consumed by the plot and characters.
The worst part, this isn't the first book I've put down this week.
I've been waiting since December for "Entice" by Carrie Jones to get finally get to me; I swear, there were a million holds on it. When it arrived I excitedly picked it up and was almost instantly disappointed. Now, I liked "Need " and I liked "Captivate. " Yes, the dialogue bothered me but the story made up for it. Only a few pages into "Entice" and the dialogue had my skin crawling with the immature and sort of "dumbed down" dialogue. I felt like I was reading a book with a 6th grade protagonist.
It was extremely hard for me to put "Entice" down simply because it was the end of the series. I'd made it this far, waiting that long — why not just suck it up and finish the book?! But the truth of the matter is, for me, I didn't need to know what was going to happen to Zara and Nick. I did however like Astley a lot and am a little curious as to his fate — but not enough to continue reading. Now, just because I didn't like "Entice" doesn't mean that I won't eventually get a copy for my classroom.
"Need" has mysteriously vanished from my classroom and "Captivate" has been checked out several times; I have no doubt that those same students will love "Entice." And I know many of my students will adore "The Lipstick Laws" because of the "mean girl" plot and the more shallow characters. It's just not for me. I'm not afraid to have books on my shelves that I didn't like; what kind of teacher would I be if I only had my favorites out!
But, I'm still a bit disappointed in myself — two "did not finish" in one week! And, the ebook I was really excited to read "Plan B" is all funky on my Nook. None of the text on the Chapter Title pages show up. I've tried deleting the current copy and uploading another and no luck. So I think, in order to survive this vicious bout of mourning without the immolation of any other potentially great reads, I'll try a nonfiction book. Yes, nonfiction. No, I've never reviewed a nonfiction book or even read one recreationally. We will see how this goes. My choice of poison: "Jane Austen: A Life Revealed."
Besides that, my Saturday has been eventful. I worked out, finally talked to D (we're done fighting — thank goodness. Longest 48 hours of my life!), went to eat with my cousins and their kids, met my other cousins and their kids at a wrestling meet in town, and got my hair cut! Great day.
What about you? Do you feel about about your DNF list? How do you recover from such an amazing book that you can't imagine reading anything else? Look for my review of "Wither" on Monday!