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Monday, May 24, 2010

Winner of Hero Type!

Thanks to all who commented! I used random.org to plug the names in and the winner is:

Amber Gilmer!


Amber, I will be in touch and getting the book to you soon!



I'll have more contest throughout the summer. Keep reading.

Sunday, May 02, 2010

Heroes - and a book contest

I have a signed copy of Hero Type by Barry Lyga to give away. In thinking about how to do that, I got to thinking about what makes someone a hero. I remember several years ago filling out my Myspace profile page and putting that very question in the "heroes" section-what makes someone a hero?

Is a hero someone who saves a life? Someone who excels in sports? Someone who is in the military or on the fire department or a law enforcement officer? Someone who stands up for his or her beliefs?

What happens when our heroes do something to get themselves knocked off their hero pedestal? Golden boy Tiger Woods has been criticized recently for his behavior and one of the things people are saying is that as role model he should have known better. Was he a hero before this happened?

I want your thoughts. I have a signed copy of Hero Type to give away. I will randomly choose the winner using one of the randomizing websites. This contest will close on May 23 at 11:59pm central time. I also have post cards from The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy & Goth Girl, Goth Girl Rising, & Boy Toy that I will include in this contest.


Here's how you can win and earn extra entries:

1. Comment on this blog post telling me what, in your opinion, makes someone a hero. You get one entry for your first comment only.

2. Post a link to this contest on your blog, facebook, twitter, etc. and send me the link (you can send me the link in comments, or send it to sandilu (at) hotmail (dot) com- please put "hero type contest" in the subject line.) You will get one entry for every place you post.

This is open to anyone. People outside the US are welcome to enter as well. I look forward to reading what you have to say!

COMMENTS NOW CLOSED!

April books

I didn't read nearly as many as I had wanted to, but summer break is only three weeks away so maybe I can get more read :)

April
Prom ~Laurie Halse Anderson (215 pages)
Need~Carrie Jones (290 pages)
The Dead Tossed Waves~Carrie Ryan (407 pages)
Twilight The Graphic Novel vl 1~Stephenie Meyer/Young Kim (224 pages)
Captivate ~ Carrie Jones (258 pages)
Hero Type~ Barry Lyga (304 pages)

6 books 1698 pages

cumulative 30 books 8187 pages


Prom is about a girl who has no intention of going to Prom but when the sponsoring teacher runs off with the prom money, Ashley is roped into helping. Along the way, she learns about herself.

Need & Captivate follow a girl who goes to live with her step-grandmother. She is being stalked by a man who turns out to be a pixie and discovers that a few other people in her town have secrets of their own. She becomes involved in a battle between the weres (as in werewolf, weretiger, etc) and the Pixies, and finds out her biological father is not human.

The Dead Tossed Waves is a follow up to the fabulous Forest of Hands and Teeth and picks up several years later. The story centers on Mary's daughter as she deals with the undead. I don't want to give too much away, but go read these two books! I cannot wait for the third installment.

Twilight the Graphic Novel - I am an unapologetic Twilight fan and I like graphic novels. The illustrations in this are well done and the story itself is preserved. My only complaint is that it is only the first half of Twilight and I didn't realize that until I had already bought it.

Hero Type is reviewed in the previous post. A boy goes from zero to hero after saving a classmates life then back to zero when he is seen throwing away some Support the Troops ribbons. A great story about standing up for your beliefs and thinking for yourself.

March books
February books
January books

Hero Type by Barry Lyga

Hero Type Hero Type by Barry Lyga


My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Kevin Ross saves a classmate from a serial killer and goes from a nobody to hero overnight. But his reasons for being in the right place at the right time are not exactly something he wants everyone to know and he doesn't exactly feel like a hero. His time at the top doesn't last long when he is seen removing some 'Support the Troops' ribbons from his car and he goes from hero back to zero. Suddenly, he is viewed as someone who doesn't support the troops and hates America.


My Thoughts:
I love Barry Lyga's writing style and characters. Hero Type takes place in the same school as Goth Girl Rising & Boy Toy and characters from those books make brief appearances.
One of the things I loved the most about this book is that I agree with Kevin and I love that he stands up for his beliefs. I think it is important for people to think for themselves. I support the troops and love America, but I don't have to have ribbons on my car or say the pledge at every gathering to prove it.

Like Kevin says, "I guess what I'm saying is that I wish people would think for themselves. Don't just do what everyone else does- use your own brain and figure things out for yourself. If you want to put a ribbon on your car because it's important to you, then great-just don't do it because everyone else is doing it or because you're afraid not to. Because freedom of speech is pretty pointless if everyone keeps saying the same thing." (Hero Type, pp 136-137)

View all my reviews >>