The Giver (The Giver Quartet #1) by Lois Lowry

Jonas lives in a perfect society--no pain, no crime, no unhappiness. But when he receives his life assignment to be the Receiver of Memories, he discovers secrets about the past, and the terrible choices that make this world possible.

In the perfect future world in which Jonas lives, twelve-year-old children are given their life assignments at the Ceremony of Twelve. Jonas is shocked when he is chosen to be the new Receiver of Memories, a mysterious position of honor held by only one person at a time.

He is trained by the previous Receiver, now called the Giver. The training consists of transferring to him memories of a past--before the imposition of Sameness--that the others in the community can't even imagine, in which there was war, hunger, and disease, but also color, weather, and strong emotions. Gradually Jonas comes to understand, and resent, the choices that had to be made to create his world, and the terrible secrets behind its perfection.

This is an excellent book and will give you plenty to think about.

I'am totally in love with the author. Currently i'am also reading his many short story books..!

This has always and will always continue to be one of my all time favorite books. I strongly recommend reading it even if you don't enjoy dystopian novels

I can't wait to put my hands on the second installment .

5 Out Of 5 stars.

Tweet

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

by Stephen Chbosky

Gud read..but not satisfied..
Charlie is an outsider, a typical wallflower. He gets bullied at school and prefers taking the forty minute walk home instead of the school bus. Charlie is sixteen years old and when he starts high school, his life is going to change forever.

In a series of letters written by Charlie and sent to an anonymous person we learn about his life, his new friends, his family and especially Charlie himself. He writes about school and his English teacher, Bill, who gives Charlie extra books to read. Charlie then writes essays about them. He would like to become a writer some day.

Charlie himself is a mystery. He has mental problems, gets angry, sees things and then passes out. Right before he started high school his best friend shot himself, but there is also another, worse reason for his problems. At school Charlie meets Patrick and Sam, both of whom are outsiders too, just cooler ones. Patrick is gay and before his stepsister Sam introduced him to "good" music, he was a popular kid. They introduce Charlie to all kinds of new things. Parties, drugs and rock music become new parts of Charlie's life and for the first time he knows what it really means to have good friends.

What makes this book so special and authentic is its reality. As an adult it takes you back to when you were a teenager, as a child it shows you what lies ahead and as a teenager it inspires you. And as we all know there is no other time when finding out who you are and where you belong to is more immediate than when you are a teenager.

Tweet

The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians #1)

A fabulous, funny novel full of suspense. It has a great story line, full of twists and turns. You'll never get bored reading this. It's just jam-packed with great characters, personalities and scenes. When you think it's all over, there's a monster around the corner. It's not unusual for Percy to bump into Medusa or Ares, or come across three furies on a bus!
Percy Jackson is a normal kid, living in New York with his mum and step-dad "smelly Gabe". Gabe Ugliano reeks of beer and gone-off garlic pizza, wrapped in sweaty gym-shorts. He uses Percy to help him with his secret gambling funds, and secretly hates Percy. Percy gets bullied at school and has dyslexia, but one morning on a school trip, he accidentally vaporises his maths teacher. His entire world changes when he realises he is a demigod.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a witty, adventurous story. Until I read this, I was really missing out!!
All in all, I enjoyed Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief and found it to be a fast and captivating read. I recommend this especially to mid-school and high school teenagers and even tweens. It is especially good to find a book that appeals to such a wide range of individuals, particularly boys. You will find it entertaining regardless of your age.

Tweet

The Sins of the Father (The Clifton Chronicles 2) By Jeffrey Archer

The Sins of the Father is Volume 2 in The Clifton Chronicles, a family saga by Jeffrey Archer that began with Only Time Will Tell and centers on Harry Clifton, the son of a Bristol dock worker who died under mysterious circumstances and an impoverished woman who went above and beyond the duties of a mother to ensure her son received the education he deserved.  The latest installment in the series picks up right where Only Time Will Tell left Off.
The drama of the Cliftons and the Barringtons continues at top speed in The Sins of the Father. Archer grabs readers’ attention by plunging them into the action from the first page, shifting frequently between different characters’ points of view, peeling back another layer of the story in nearly every chapter, and knowing exactly when to leave readers dangling in suspense.
The book is divided into sections by character, with overlapping years so that readers follow each of them over the course of the war.  This narrative structure works so well here because the characters are well developed and could each have a novel of their own.  Moreover, Archer connects all of them a strong central character — Harry, a reluctant hero who is made out to be almost saintly at times but is very real in his emotions and mistakes.
As in Only Time Will Tell, Archer leaves readers with another cliffhanger ending.  That usually drives me crazy, but at least I was expecting it this time.  I highly recommend this series for readers who enjoy fast-paced books with a little war and a lot of family secrets and well developed characters.  There’s a lot going on in these books, and sometimes they might cross the line into unbelievable, but they really are meant to be escapist reads.  I just hope I don’t have to wait too long for Volume 3(THE BEST KEPT SECRETS)
What made Only Time Will Tell enjoyable was the narrative: the story was told through multiple points of view, each version of the tale carried forward the element of suspense. Sins..., however, has a comparatively staid narrative. While the tale is still told through different characters’ perspectives, the story trudges on towards a predictable end. Like its prequel, part deux of Harry’s story ends with a cliffhanger — rather gimmicky, considering the year-long wait for its sequel.

Tweet

Windmils Of Gods By Sidney Sheldon

How a story is presented in the beginning, middle, & end is an essential factor that keeps the readers of into pages. Sidney Sheldon did it well on his Windmills of the Gods, & successfully placed a strong ingredient that surprises readers every now & then. The pacing is perfect. The plot is excellent. The story itself is well-researched. Windmills of the Gods is one of the greatest suspense stories I've had read, and Sidney Sheldon succeeded in hooking me up with such a breath-taking story, a fast-paced journey unto the world of politics & its darkest mysteries, the hidden risks behind intellect & fame, the roller coaster ride to the international secrets, sex & murder at their worst, a family at danger in every choice to take, and the survival amidst greedy interests and deceits in a game of life. There are only a few writers who can bring it on; and Sidney Sheldon is one worth to get such prestige.!!###

Tweet

A Thousand Splendid Suns By Khaled Hosseini

A Thousand Splendid Suns starts with the story of Mariam, a young girl who lives on the edge of Herat with her mother. Mariam was born out of wedlock, and the first part of the novel follows her as she grows into a woman. The second part of the novel shifts to the story of Laila, a 9-year-old girl who lives near Mariam. Although both girls' stories are interesting, it was not clear during my first reading how they connected or where the novel was going.
In Part III, Mariam and Laila's stories converge. This is where the novel really takes off and becomes hard to put down. For those readers who read The Kite Runner and are afraid during the first part of the novel that A Thousand Splendid Suns will never pick up the momentum of Hosseini's debut work, fear not. It will all come together, and you will appreciate the time Hosseini spent developing the characters in the first hundred pages or so.
A Thousand Splendid Suns starts in the 1960s and ends in 2003. One of the things I liked most about the novel was the personal view it gave into Afghanistan's history. Regime change, war, hope, and oppression are the backdrop of the novel. Laila and Mariam's stories provided a powerful glimpse into life under Soviet occupation, then under warlords, and finally under the Taliban.
Overall, I highly recommend A Thousand Splendid Suns. Hosseini has written another page turner that moves quickly despite how difficult it is to internalize the sad and violent content that runs throughout the book. This is not light reading, but it is very good reading.

Tweet

Only Time Will Tell By Jeffrey Archer

OMG...!
love the book..freaken amazing..
it has got..
HISTORY
SECRETS
LOVE
PASSION
&
FRIENDSHIP..
it has everything a brilliant story needs..
Jeffrey Archer is a master story teller and in this book, he weaves a tale so unforgettable and as a reader you will be left yearning for more. Only Time Will Tell is a family saga that spans through generations. This the first part of a five volume series, rest of which will be published in the coming years. The main protagonist of this book is a man named Harry Clifton. Harry is introduced as a child, the son of a dock worker, who died in war. His mother is a waitress who toils hard to secure her son’s future. Harry is a gifted child and this gift wins him a scholarship to an exclusive boys’ school, which in the time to come will shape his future. As he enters into adulthood, Harry finally learns how his father really died, but the awful truth only leads him to question, was he even his father?
This tale is set in 1920′s and later years and the author has captured the era vividly in words. I could almost picture them in my head. The novels also touches many aspects of the social-economical environment of Great Britain at that time- the disparity between the rich and the poor, the dilemma in the minds of the people with World War II around the corner and many more. All the characters are beautifully sculpted but the one that stands out to me is Harry’s mother – Maisie. She is an example of perseverance and an epitome of motherly love. It is only for her sacrifices, Harry’s life had been different from his father’s or uncle’s. However, she feels her one thoughtless action has jeopardizes so many lives. If it was not for her, this story would not be written. Mr. Tar is another unforgettable character. He plays a big role in shaping Harry future and to Harry, he was a fatherly figure whom he could turn to for advice.
The narration in the story shifts through each of the main characters and hence the reader knows the story from various perspective. It makes the story even more engaging. But, the ending of the novel took me for a surprise and I nearly gasped! Needless to say I am really looking forward to the next book in the series.#@#@#@#

Tweet