In My Mailbox (7/27 to 8/1)

In My Mailbox was started by The Story Siren and Alea from Pop Culture Junkie. If you want more details, click here. In My Mailbox exlores all the books that I get in a week, whether it's in the mail, borrowed from a friend, borrowed from the library, or bought from a bookstore.

Recived:


Jumping Off Swings by Jo Knowles (ARC/ August 2009/ Candelwick)

Ellie remembers how the boys kissed her. Touched her. How they begged for more. And when she gave it to them, she felt loved. For a while anyway. So when Josh, an eager virgin with a troubled home life, leads her from a party to the backseat of his van, Ellie follows. But their "one-time thing" is far from perfect: Ellie gets pregnant. Josh reacts with shame and heartbreak, while their confidantes, Caleb and Corinne, deal with their own complex swirl of emotions. No matter what Ellie chooses, all four teenagers will be forced to grow up a little faster as a result. Told alternately from each character’s point of view, this deeply insightful novel explores the aftershocks of the biggest decision of one fragile girl’s life — and the realities of leaving innocence behind.

I'm so excited to read this! I've wanted to read this since I first heard about it and now I have my own copy of it(:


After by Amy Efaw (ARC/ August 2009/ Viking Juvenile)

An infant left in the trash to die. A teenage mother who never knew she was pregnant . . .

Before That Morning, these were the words most often used to describe straight-A student and star soccer player Devon Davenport: responsible, hardworking, mature. But all that changes when the police find Devon home sick from school as they investigate the case of an abandoned baby. Soon the connection is made—Devon has just given birth; the baby in the trash is hers. After That Morning, there’s only one way to define Devon: attempted murderer.

And yet gifted author Amy Efaw does the impossible— she turns Devon into an empathetic character, a girl who was in such deep denial that she refused to believe she was pregnant. Through airtight writing and fast-paced, gripping storytelling, Ms. Efaw takes the reader on Devon’s unforgettable journey toward clarity, acceptance, and redemption.

I think this book sounds amazing! I'm really excited to read it.


And Then Everything Unraveled by Jennifer Sturman (Already Published/ July 2009/ Point)

Delia Truesdale has no idea her life's about to change forever. She's too busy enjoying the California summer. Her internet tycoon mother, T.K. Truesdale, is out of town, and that means Delia can spend all her time at the beach, surfing. That is, until everything unravels.

Her mother suddenly goes missing, and everyone thinks she's dead - excpet Delia, who knows T.K.'s way too organized to simply disappear. But Delia's still sent to New York to live with her two aunts - a downtown bohemian and an uptown ice queen.

And in case that's not bad enough, she also has to deal with a snooty new school and trying not to fall for the wrong guy. Oh, and finding her mother.


As she delves deeper into the tangle of conspiracies and lies surrounding T.K.'s disappearance, Delia begins to suspect that the wrong guy may be the right guy...and that some secrets - especially the dangerous ones - were never meant to be unraveled.

At first, I didn't really want to read this book, but now I'm kind of excited.


Airhead by Meg Cabot (Already Published/ April 2009/ Point)

Em is considerably more interested in playing computer games with her friend Christopher than in befriending the A-list girls who rule her high school. A freak accident mortally injures Em and leaves superstar model Nikki brain dead. After a transplant operation, Em wakes up in Nikki’s body and learns that she must keep her identity a secret and live her life as Nikki. Readers who are willing to swallow the brain transplant idea will find that the rest of the story goes down easily enough; there’s plenty to entertain readers with stars in their eyes as well as those who disdain the pop-culture glamour of Nikki’s life. Besides the juxtaposition of Em’s world with Nikki’s, there are elements of humor and glimmers of compassion for the rich and famous in this first-person story. Toward the novel’s end, “Nikki” enrolls in Em’s old school. Can the girl inside that too-perfect body reconnect with the boy she secretly loves? Stay tuned.

I've never read anything by Meg Cabot before, but I heard she's amazing so I can't wait to find out for myself(:


Being Nikki by Meg Cabot (Already Published/ May 2009/ Point)

Things aren't pretty for Emerson Watts.

Em was sure there couldn't be anything worse than being a brainiac the body of a teenaged supermodel.


But it turned out she was wrong. Because that supermodel could turn out to have a mother who's gone mysteriously missing, a brother who's shown up on her doorstep demanding answers, a former best friend who's intent on destroying Stark Enterprises to avenge the death of his lost love, and a British heartthrob who's written a song about her that's topping the charts.


How can Em balance all that with school, runway shows, and weekend jaunts to St. Johns - especially when she's got ex-boyfriends crawling out of the woodwork who want more than just a photo op; a sister who is headed to the high school cheerleading championships; a company she represents that seems to be turning to the dark side...

Not to mention trying to convince the love of her life that models aren't really airheads after all...especially one model in particular.


But then, nobody said it was going to be easy being Nikki.

The sequal to Airhead, yay(:

Borrowed:


Giving Up the V by Serena Robar (Already Published/ June 2009/ Simon Pulse)


What's So Wrong With Waiting

Spencer Davis just turned sixteen. But unlike most hormonal teenagers who seem obsessed with sex -- like her entire crew of friends -- Spencer just doesn't get it. She'd rather wait for the right guy and the right moment. But that moment may be arriving sooner than she'd thought.

Enter Benjamin Hopkins, a new transfer student who seems to have his eyes on our V-card-carrying heroine. He's gorgeous, funny, suave, athletic, and capable of making Spencer's knees wobble with a single glance. Spencer has never felt this way about anyone before, but is Ben truly V-worthy?

I've been wanting to read this forever! And now, thanks to Ashley, I finally can!


Bad Girls Club by Judy Gregerson (Already Published/ July 2007/ Blooming Tree Press)

Destiny has a secret. She's been told not to tell anyone what happened to her, her mom, and her little sister at Crater Lake. She also can't tell anyone that sometimes her sister is covered in bruises. Her friends all want her to report her parents, but Destiny won't tell the school counselor. If she does, it could cost her little sister's life or possibly her own. When the secret becomes too much to carry and the truth she knows becomes a lie, Destiny has to make a decision. Will she find the strength to speak the truth or will she drown in the lies? Will she discover her own worth and the voice she needs to cry it out, or will she remain what her mother has always called her -- a bad girl?

Another borrow from Ashley(:



Annie's Baby (Already Published/ December 2004/ HarperCollins)

Sparks (It Happened to Nancy) shares another slice of a troubled teen's life, this time focusing readers' attention on the topic of teen sex and pregnancy. The first, most excruciating entries in 14-year-old Annie's diary trace her victimization and impregnation by a manipulative and sadistic boyfriend. Completely obsessed with 16-year-old Danny ("He called me an 'Earth Angel.' And I think I'm going to commit myself completely to being just that for him, no matter what!"), Annie is less prepared than readers for the devastating fall she takes the day her home pregnancy test comes out pink. The remaining, more solution-oriented segments of the book convey Annie's arduous climb from rock-bottom ("I CANNOT BEAR TO FACE IT! I WILL NOT!") to a state in which she can confront her mistakes and plan for herself and her child. With the support of her exceptionally tolerant mother, patient teachers and a nonjudgmental therapist (supposedly Sparks), Annie changes from a self-deprecating romantic ("Could plain me possibly be good enough for awesome him?") to a more level-headed realist, who learns, painfully, to put her baby's needs before her own. The book carries a strong anti-abortion sentiment and has an aura of soap opera as well. However, it provides a plethora of objective and valuable information about sex, pregnancy and birth control, and even includes a "What Is Love?" quiz to help girls assess their relationships. An appendix lists relevant statistics, crisis and information hotline numbers, and other useful resources.

The third book borrowed from Ashley for this week(:

I got amazing books this week! I'm so excited to start reading them.

What did you get?

-Lexi(: