BEST YOUNG ADULT BOOKS I'VE READ - MINI BOOK REVIEWS

Young Adult books aren't just for youth anymore. Agree? 😊

Sekarang, aku lebih meminati buku dalam kategori Young Adult. Masih menganggap diri ini muda. Sebab tu masih baca buku dalam kategori Young Adult walaupun haha, faham sendirilah. 

Basically, buku dalam kategori Young Adult adalah cerita mengenai remaja yang masih bersekolah. Haha. Bila baca buku Young Adult, terasa diri ini masih dalam usia muda remaja. Gitu 😝 

Setakat sekarang, aku dah baca tujuh buku dalam kategori Young Adult yang masih belum dibuat review. Disebabkan banyak sangat (bagi aku, angka 7 itu banyak for book reviews), jadi aku ambil keputusan untuk singkatkan review buku. 

Maka terhasillah entri ini. Mini Book Reviews. Masalahnya, mini ke? Wait and see 😅 

Jom baca mini book reviews mengenai empat buku yang telah aku baca. Mana tahu ada yang korang berkenan untuk baca jugak nanti =D Lagi tiga buah buku, aku akan review later =) 

1) ALL THE BRIGHT PLACES by JENNIFER NIVEN

SYNOPSIS

Is today a good day to die? 

Finch is fascinated by death and he constantly thinks of ways he might kill himself. But each time, something good no matter how small stops him. 

Violet lives for the future, counting the days until graduation when she can escape her Indiana town and her aching grief in the wake of her sister's recent death. 

When Finch and Violet meet on the ledge of the bell tower at school, it's unclear who saves whom. And when they pair up on a project to discover the "natural wonders" of Indiana, both Finch and Violet make more important discoveries. 

It's only with Violet that Finch can be himself - a weird, funny, live-out-loud guy who's not such a freak after all. And it's only with Finch that Violet can forget to count away the days and start living them. 

But as Violet's world grows, Finch's begins to shrink. 

MY THOUGHTS

Suicide is a huge theme in the book. Dan sesungguhnya aku tak suka akan tema suicide. But I still read this book because I want to know the reasons why someone can ever think of suicide. 

Masih aku tidak boleh faham sebab Finch bunuh diri. Haha. Kenapa terlalu singkat fikiran untuk bunuh diri? Kau muda lagi weii, masih panjang kehidupan dan terlalu awal untuk habiskan kehidupan kau begitu saja. Manusia yang rugi. 

Namun begitu, aku suka hubungan antara Finch dan Violet. Bagaimana mereka yang berbeza personaliti dipertemukan dan menjadi kawan. Violet berubah menjadi lebih baik tetapi tidak bagi Finch. 

And I did not like the ending. Obviously, because I want a happy ending. 

Tapi buku ini masih aku rekomen untuk baca sebab buku ini mengingatkan aku akan kehidupan yang aku lalui sehingga sekarang. 

Good and bad things happen in life. And I believe that bad things happen in life to teach us how to look at good things in a whole new light. 

Favourite Quotes:

You have to live your life like you'll never be sorry. It's easier just to do the right thing from the start so there's nothing to apologize for. 

The great thing about this life of ours is that you can be someone different to everybody. 

If you are suffering from things you can't control: It's not your fault. And asking for help is okay.

Rating: 4/5

2) THIRTEEN REASONS WHY by JAY ASHER

SYNOPSIS

Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a strange package with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers several cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker - his classmate and crush - who committed suicide two weeks earlier. Hannah's voice tells him that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he'll find out why. 

Clay spends the night crisscrossing his town with Hannah as his guide. He becomes a firsthand witness Hannah's pain, and as he follows Hannah's recorded words throughout his town, what he discovers changes his life forever. 

MY THOUGHTS

Suicide again. Haha. Entah apa pasal aku baca buku mengenai bunuh diri je ni? Hii. 

Aku suka buku ni!! Serius suka! Aku suka akan storyline buku ini. Kisah Hannah dan 13 sebab kenapa dia bunuh diri. Baca buku ini dengan penuh perasaan ingin tahu dan membuatkan aku habis baca buku ini dalam masa empat hari. 

Aku seram bila baca beberapa ayat dalam buku ni, "And if you're listening to these tapes, you're one of the reasons why.", "Do not take me for granted..again. You're being watched.". Automatik, aku tengok sekeliling lepas baca ayat ni. Hihi. 

Kadang-kadang, benda yang kita anggap kecil bagi kita boleh jadi besar pada orang lain. Niat kita nak bergurau tapi gurauan itu sudah melebihi had dan menyebabkan orang tersebut makan hati sampai membawa ke mati. Itulah yang jadi pada Hannah. 

Aku suka watak Clay. Dia seorang lelaki yang charming, baik, dan yes, he's in a good list. Aku rasa sedih sebab Clay dan Hannah tak sempat untuk berkawan rapat. Kalau berkawan rapat, mungkin Hannah tidak mengambil keputusan untuk bunuh diri. 

Because Hannah needs someone to understand and believe her despite everything people heard. Dan aku percaya, Clay adalah "that someone". 

Aku suka akan cara penyampaian Hannah mengenai semua 13 sebab. Mungkin intonasi hati aku ketika baca buku ni tenang je. Seperti aku juga mendengar tapes itu.

I loved the ending. Ohh I loved Clay 😍

I would recommend this book to all. Tema suicide tapi storyline menarik 👍

Ieyra bagitahu yang dia lebih meminati adaptasi drama novel ini. Tapi aku tak sempat nak tengok lagi. Nanti nak juga tengok. Thank you Ieyra for the link =)

Favourite Quotes:

Because it may seem like a small role now, but it matters. In the end, everything matters. 

Sometimes there's no around to tell you to be quiet...to be very quiet. Sometimes you need to be quiet when you're all alone. Like me, right now. 

Sometimes we have thoughts that even we don't understand. Thoughts that aren't even true, that aren't really how we feel. But they're running through our heads anyway because they're interesting to think about. 

If my love were an ocean, there would be no more land.
If my love were a desert, you would see only sand.
If my love were a star...late at night, only light.
And if my love could grow wings, I'd be soaring in flight.

If you hear a song that makes you cry, you don't want to cry anymore, you don't listen to that song anymore. But you can't get away from yourself. You can't decide not to see yourself anymore. You can't decide to turn off the noise in your head. 

Put me underneath God's sky and know me
Don't just see me with your eyes.
Take away this mask of flesh and bone and
See me for my soul.. Alone.

To miss her each time I pull in a breath of air. To miss her with a heart that feels so cold by itself, but warm when thoughts of her flow through me. 

Rating: 4.5/5

3) ONE OF US IS LYING by KAREN MCMANUS

SYNOPSIS

A story of what happens when five strangers walk into detention and only four walk out alive. Everyone is a suspect, and everyone has something to hide.

Pay attention and you might solve this. 

On Monday afternoon, five students at Bayview High walk into detention.

Browyn, the brain, is Yale-bound and never breaks a rule.

Addy, the beauty, is the picture-perfect homecoming princess.

Nate, the criminal, is already on probation for dealing.

Cooper, the athlete, is the all-star baseball pitcher. 

And Simon, the outcast, is the creator of Bayview High's notorious gossip app. 

Only Simon never makes it out of that classroom. Before the end of detention, Simon's dead. And according to investigators, his death wasn't an accident. 

On Monday, he died. But on Tuesday, he'd planned to post juicy reveals about all four of his high-profile classmates, which makes all four of them suspects in his murder. Or are they the perfect patsies for a killer who's still on the loose?

Everyone has secrets, right? What really matters is how far you would go to protect them. 

MY THOUGHTS

Aku tahu mengenai buku ini daripada Claudy. Put on list untuk beli nanti memandangkan buku ini baru saja diterbitkan. Mungkin lambat lagi untuk keluar E-Book. Tapi, haha, dalam masa beberapa minggu, dah ada E-Book weii! Aku terus download dan baca. Apa mahu tunggu lagi? Hihi. 

Ini adalah buku pertama yang aku habis baca dalam list >> Books I Want to Read in Three Months.

I loved this book so much!! It was very hard to put down once I started reading it. Full of surprises! Storyline yang berbeza daripada buku Young Adult yang lain. 

Throughout the story, there were a lot of twists, new secrets, shocking truths being revealed and it made the whole thing very exciting. 

Aku terus baca sebab tak sabar nak tahu ending. Tak sabar nak tahu siapa pembunuh. And who's the killer? Please read this book and you'll be shocked! 

A bit of romance in this book and I totally enjoyed it. Hihi. Sweet gitu percintaan antara Nate dan Browyn 😍

Overall, I honestly really enjoyed this book. The writing was good and the plotting was awesome. I did see the plot twist at the end on who's the killer and I was a little disappointed by it, but still a very enjoyable read. 

It's awesome and worth reading. 

Please. Please read this book 😉

Favourite Quotes:

The social media alone-it's like you can't make a mistake anymore, can you? It follows you everywhere.

You find out who your real friends are when stuff like his happens. Turns out I didn't have any, but I'm glad Cooper does.

Rating: 4.5/5

4) BY YOUR SIDE by KASIE WEST

SYNOPSIS

What to do when you fall for the person you least expect?

When Autumn Collins finds herself accidentally locked in the library for an entire weekend, she doesn't think things could get any worse. But that's before she realizes that Dax Miller is locked in with her. Autumn doesn't know much about Dax except that he's trouble. 

Still, she just keeps reminding herself that it is only a matter of time before Jeff, her almost-boyfriend, realizes he left her in the library and comes to rescue her. 

Only he doesn't come. No one does. 

As Dax and Autumn first grudgingly, and then not so grudgingly, open up to each other, Autumn is struck by their surprising connection. But can their feelings for each other survive once the weekend is over and Autumn's old life, and old love interest, threaten to pull her from Dax's side?

MY THOUGHTS

Aku start baca buku ini semasa percutian di Pulau Redang. Tiada line internet dalam bilik dan aku memilih untuk baca buku ini. Bilik gelap, kawan lain dah tidur dan aku masih membaca. Hii. 

This was an overall good read for me. Surprisingly I loved the storyline even though I think that it's a bit of cliché. 

I loved how the relationship between Dax and Autumn developed. From a stranger to a lover. Betullah kata orang, first impression is important but everyone deserves a second chance. Itulah yang terjadi kepada Autumn. Jatuh cinta dengan lelaki yang minta dijauhkan dari dulu. 

It's okay to tell someone about your anxiety disorder, Autumn. At least, your friends will not think anything bad about you. If only they know the truth. 

Love is in the air but yes, friendship is an important theme in this book. I loved all the characters and how they fit each other very well. 

I would recommend this book. It is a cute book. And now, I want to get trapped inside a library too. Of course, trapped with someone as sweet and handsome like Dax. Haha. 

Favourite Quotes:

What was I scared of? Letting someone close? Handling him the power to hurt me? Letting go of control? Possibilities don't hurt as much as realities. Possibilities are exciting and endless. Realities are final.

Compromise was - giving up something for another thing you wanted more.

Sometimes anxiety would hit me sideways like that, when I wasn't expecting it. When it didn't seem logical. When I thought I'd done the perfect job of talking myself through the trigger. It's like my heart wouldn't listen. 

Why do you care what people think so much?

My independence day. The day I let go of caring, of worrying, of everything. The day I first tasted freedom. 

There's nothing wrong with thinking things through. But it's important to make the decision that's right for you. 

Rating: 4/5

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Fuhh! GAGAL! Gagal wei nak buat mini book reviews!

Panjang pulak entri ini. Seronok berkongsi mengenai buku dan tidak sedar entri ini sangat panjang. Hihi. 

Pada mereka yang berjaya baca sampai habis, well done and thank you for reading ^_^ 

Which book you choose to read among these four books? Any suggestion for Young Adult books? 

Please let me know in the comment section below.

Happy to hear your thoughts =)