The Sky is Everywhere - Jandy Nelson (best book of the month)

RTW (Road Trip Wednesday): Best Book of the Month - hosted by YA Highway. (go there to check out other YA-er's fave reads this month and participate by writing your own post and linking in.)

How cute is this trailer!!! Love love love :)



I just loved this book so much I don't even know where to begin...

Maybe with the back blurb?:

What's wrong with me? 
What kind of girl wants to kiss every boy at a funeral, wants to maul a guy in a tree after making out with her (dead) sister's boyfriend the previous night? 
Speaking of which, what kind of girl makes out with her sister's boyfriend at all?
Lennie Walker - sisterless, lasagne maker, Heathcliff-obssessed and hopelessly in love...




So I saw a fair few raves about this and, had just come out of a bit of a binge read of grief-type books, so I thought I wasn't in the mood for another one... somehow, (I think partly the cute trailer), I caved.

But this book, IMO, is in a whole league of it's own.

The writing is intensely beautiful. Oh - I did some serious sentence-crushing. Reading this was like being submerged in emotion and love and all things wild and mad and crazy and the grief was just so poignant and the feelings so real that I became completely absorbed.

The love story.

Whoah.

So, there's this kinda love triangle. By that I mean, two guys, both getting some action from Lennie. But it's not an ordinary love triangle or cliché - to the point that even saying triangle somehow feels wrong.... it's like the characters are so fused with emotion that it bubbles over and explodes in love and moments of passion. The complications in this didn't feel like a contrived plot point, but like a real character driven mess of pain and desire and world-crushing love. I also didn't think it was a manipulative device to tear up readers, and there's no choosing of teams, just an ache for Lennie and Joe and Toby.

And the love between Lennie and one of her men. It's intense, and an all the way full-blown connection, more so than most YA I read. However, due to the stunning writing, I was into it the whole way. I believed in it, for sure :) Sigh...

I was so into the love scenes but in the midst of it, a little knot of tension was gnawing away in the pit of my stomach the whole time. Takes a talented author to get to me like that.

Basically, this book hit me hard emotionally.

The book itself? It. Is. Stunning.

The paperback isn't really a paperback, it's like the material on those funky little Bibles - if you know what I mean :) - and the pages are bound, and inter-spliced throughout are little hand-written poems on full colour pages (some carved into tree bark, on music scores, on a takeaway cup). You see some of these pages when you watch the trailer above - all photos from the actual book. Tell me you watched the trailer, yeah?

I haven't said much about the actual plot - it's best if you just get in and read it. I don't know if my review has really done this book justice..?

I was so inspired/wowed/stunned/in love after reading this that I ordered three more copies and sent them out to three of my Aussie buddies - couldn't help but share the love. I haven't told them yet... (unless it's you and you're reading this post...fingers crossed, hey?) And they better love it as much as I do! ;)

What's the best book you read this month?

Loving Author Kaitlin Ward's Aussie YA Pick for this month :)

Oh - and watch the trailer. Seriously.

The Sky Always Hears Me and The Hills Don't Mind - Kirstin Cronn-Mills

I borrow the car again from Grandma and drive out to my hill. I scream I AM A BIG FAT ZERO, plus I AM SWEARING OFF KISSING FOREVER, and I HATE BEING A SECRET SEX FIEND, about sixteen times each. Then I sit very still and watch a hawk swirl over the fields. I have to get a new life before I go crazy. (back cover)

Sixteen-year-old Morgan lives in a hick town. Her mom was killed in a car accident when she was two, her dad drinks, and her stepmom is a non-entity. Her boyfriend Derek is boring and she can't stop staring at her coworker Rob's cute butt. Then there's the kiss she shared with her neighbor Tessa . . . But when Morgan discovers a devastating secret about the one person she completely trusted, her entire world crashes and she must redefine her life and herself.

Compelling and complex, The Sky Always Hears Me is a fast-paced narrative with raw humor and a heart-wrenching twist. (goodreads synopsis)

Début Author: 2009

Me: First of all, how awesome is the title! <3 it, plus, love the cover too - the colours in the sky and the text look striking against the girls head. It's calling out to you, isn't it?

I really liked this book. 


It's definitely the kind of book I would have loved as a teenager.  The main thing I loved, was Morgan. She's the coolest of narrators. I connected with her voice on the very first page. I love that feeling of only having read a page and realising, 'I am going to love this book.'

I keep using the word love :)

It's about Morgan and her life in a small town where she works at a grocery store (and perves on 19 year old Rob), is the girlfriend of popular jock-hottie Derek and next door-neighbour to Tessa who kisses her outside in the middle of the night. These three friends complicate all her teen-ish-hormonal feelings and general angst. She also has an alcoholic father and an enviously awesome Grandma, two little brothers who I personally feel proud of and a love of all things literary.

There's no huge inciting incident and, despite the blurb, no majorly huge event occurs (I kept guessing what was going to happen - little weird twists and scenarios that...never happened) although the secret she uncovers would really shatter your world. It's more of a read about Morgan and the cool crazy mad mess that is her life.


I think you just have to settle into a groove and go with the flow. I don't think everyone will be into this book - it's kind of quirky (in the coolest of ways. definitely not dorky) and it definitely has it's moments of tension and conflict - but what mostly kept me turning the pages was the voice and the fact that I have a little bit of a crush on Morgan. She's snarky and fun and ironic and oh-so-confused but just lovely lovely lovely. The humour in this book is definitely my style. I was smiling a lot of the time while reading it :)

Oh, and Morgan? She thinks about sex. A fair bit. Just, you know, a heads up there :) There's also a bit of language and some themes that make it an upper YA kinda read. 

Stuff to Love:

1. Morgan is really into words and writing and she's always writing/thinking up little fortune cookie snippets that are a cute commentary of her life (here's the first few ones I flipped too):

• Be careful of hotties searching for toothpicks. 
• Never hitch your star to someone who will live in a small town for the rest of his life. 
• When in doubt, go to sleep.
• Do not enjoy uninvited kisses.
• For value, buy the creamed corn.

2. I loved the ending - although I'm sure it will annoy some people :)


3. Morgan drives out to the hills and yells random things out (see blurb up the top) - and, I think, that's what being a teen is all about - feeling everything so intensely that you just have to get out in the open and scream your lungs out about it.


4. There's a lot of options in Morgan's life and the path isn't clear cut and the read isn't at all predictable. 


5. I didn't find one character to be cliché - but all beautifully and compellingly flawed. Along the way, most characters surprised me - with sides of their personality. Definitely richly drawn characters - impressive to find that in some of the more minor characters.

If it sounds like your kinda book - go here to look inside and read the first chapter  


I hope I managed to convey somewhere in here just how much this book rocks! 

Here's two very similar YA covers. One a debut that's not released yet (Mermaid's) the other a UK edition of Jaclyn Moriarty's latest. They are a different model, but I like them both :) All three covers have a distinct atmosphere and feel - I think they're all successful. Or maybe I'm just into looking at the backs of peoples heads?

A winner and some cool Aussie links

Thanks for all the cool recommendations :) I wish I could have more than one winner! Maybe in my next give-away...


So I used random.org and it gave me #1 - which is Rachael aka Horserider.Message me with your address and which book you'd like :)

Cool Aussie Linkage:

Okay, okay - so I know the contest I just had was about male protags. But this week I stumbled across this post over @ Fiction Focus - The Top Ten Female Protags in Recent Australian YA and I can't help but link to it. 



In other news, Australia’s most prestigious literary prize, the 2010 Miles Franklin Award, announced its winner: Truth by Peter Temple (he won $42 000! Whoah). 


I am most excited, however to see two YA's in the short-list of six books (out of all Australian fiction!). One of them being by my own very favourite Sonya Hartnett ( I have crushed on her since I was a teen). She is just the best kind of reading experience and a reminder why books rule the world.

Butterfly already won the Astrid Lindgren Award and here's a mini blurb from here: Butterfly is a gripping, disquieting, beautifully observed novel that confirms Hartnett as one of Australia’s finest writers. 

Agreed! :)

some cover love here. <3

About Sonya Hartnett: she wrote her first novel when she was thirteen and it was published when she was fifteen. Nearly every book she's published has won awards, some multiple. 



The other YA in the short-list was Jasper Jones by Craig Slivey  which has also won other awards. It has been marketed as Australian's own To Kill a Mockingbird. I haven't read it ...yet :)


Speaking of Aussie YA that rules the world - I made a page with some of my favourite reads. I'll keep updating it as I read more awesome stuff from Down Under. You can see I have highlighted Sonya as one of my all-time fave authors :) she also made my Top Ten YA of all time list with Wilful Blue which impacted me greatly as a teen.

xx Nomes

The Covers of Graceling - Kristin Cashore

Cover Comparison Thursday is a weekly meme hosted by Bailey @ Abyss. Head over there and link to your blog to join in.

This week I have ten covers for Kristin Cashore's Graceling

        US and Canada

                                                                                                                                                                                           

I love this cover. It's very distinctive and stands out (in a way that could become iconic) I love the textured look of the colours in the background and the blues and greens look great against the yellow. The font is perfect and I love the reflection in the sword. 

UK, Australia and New Zealand Adult Edition

This is the one I own :) It's really different to the US one, but I like it. A lot. When I was reading it, I kept flipping to the front to look at it :) I love the stance of Katsa and her outfit and the snow in the background and the font. I loke how the snow in the foreground blends into the clouds in the background. I think it matches the atmosphere of the book and personality of Katsa.

UK, Australia and New Zealand Young Adult Edition

Okay, so I love the Adult version of this - but the YA version does not a lot for me. It just looks too dark and doesnt have the same atmosphere. It doesnt have the same little details, a lot more bleak...

UK Large Print Edition

Katsa reminds me of a nun here. A nun who is about to play cricket with her sword. And what's going on with the sky? It looks like a pond. It looks like a book for old people. (actually, maybe that's why? It is the large print edition, haha ;)

German (title translates to:"One Who Has been Given A Gift")

I like this cover. I love all the swirly stuff on the left hand side and on her neck. I'm liking the font and the hairstyle's looking pretty funky. But I'm not sure it's all that well suited to the story, it could be a cover to any book, really. Still, nice, nice :)

French

Not bad. For some reason makes me think of Dr Zhivago. Anyway, I like the colours and the feel of it. I like looking at it. Obviously, Po is a lot hotter than the boy on this cover (despite sharing his name with a tellytubbie). I like the looks on their faces: intelligent and determined. they look like people I'd like to read about, on some sort of an adventure...

Denmark

This kinda looks like one of those classic texts you have to read in high school. It's making me think of The Pilgrim's Progress. It's not calling out to me. I kinda feel bored just looking at it.

Finland

I know Katsa cuts her hair, but I definitely think her long hair makes for a much more appealing cover. Something niggles at me with this one. It looks a bit like the girl has been superimposed over a background and she's not really in the scene. And the legs? For some reason I keep thinking her body has been swivelled around at the waist and her crotch is her butt and her knees are the back of her knees. It also looks like it was published in a different generation.

China

So, this one makes me grin :) it looks like exactly the kind of thing the Chinese would love, lol. It is arresting, the purple and blue, against the streak of blonde hair and the flawless porcelain face. I do like the bodice, not sure what's going on there with the collar? feathers? Because it's so busy with details, the pure face stands out. So, I wouldn't really say this is a fave, but I do think it's quite arresting.

In Catalan (language) Spain and Andorra

This one's hard for me to comment on. I am so used to seeing the US version, that it startles me. But if i forget about the US version and just look at this...wow. It's really striking. I love the indigos and blues and greys and the silver title looks stunning. The gold and blue in the sword looks particularly compelling against the background. I <3 this one. I think I may even like it better than the US colour scheme...

What about you? Which cover is calling out to you? Please, please, feel free to lay the love on ones that amused me :)

Two Fab YA's from a Male POV - and a Give-away

Over in the Young Adult Forum @ Absolute Write the lack of male protags in YA often comes up in threads. So true, so true... So I wanted to highlight two awesome reads starring male protags (both read this year).

Both of these books I randomly picked up not having not heard of them. I was only a few chapters into I Know It's Over when I was thinking, mate, this book is good.

I really love that feeling of having zero expectations about a book and then being wowed. Like an unexpected gift.

I Know It's Over - C K Kelly Martin


PURE. UNPLANNED. PERFECT. Those were Nick’s summer plans before Sasha stepped into the picture. With the collateral damage from his parents’ divorce still settling and Dani (his girl of the moment) up for nearly anything, complications are the last thing he needs. All that changes, though, when Nick runs into Sasha at the beach in July. Suddenly he’s neck-deep in a relationship and surprised to find he doesn’t mind in the least. But Nick’s world shifts again when Sasha breaks up with him. Then, weeks later, while Nick’s still reeling from the breakup, she turns up at his doorstep and tells him she’s pregnant. Nick finds himself struggling once more to understand the girl he can’t stop caring for, the girl who insists that it’s still over. (goodreads)


The first thing I noticed is that it is blurbed by Jaclyn Moriarty <3! "This book is compelling and unswervingly honest. It takes on real complex issues with a light, deft touch. The second half broke my heart a little every page or so." Awesome blurb, hey?


As a writer, I am a little in awe of the non-chronological time-line.  Plus, the male POV is truly outstanding. It's honest and raw (such a cliché word, but, hey, it's true) and complex. And, things just don't turn out how you expect them too. 


Not going to review it, just wanting to tell you that I loved it :) And, I am definitely going to be reading more work by C K Kelly Martin. 


You can read Adele @ Persnickety Snarks review and also what Courtney Summers has to say about it. (both are pretty amazing reviews...)


What My Girlfriend Doesn't Know - Sonya Sones


My name is Robin.

This book is about me.

It tells the story of what happens when after almost 15 pathetic years of loserdom, the girl of my dreams finally falls for me.

That seems like it would be a good thing, right? Only it turns out to be a lot more complicated than that.

Because I'm not gonna lie to you -- there are naked women involved. Four of them, to be exact. Though not in the way you might think.

Don't get me wrong -- my girlfriend's amazing. But the way things have been going lately, I'm starting to believe that the only thing worse than not getting what you want, is getting it. (goodreads)

This book, I just loved it.

First off, it is a verse novel. And I find most verse novels to be compelling and richly drawn. I read this curled up in bed on a rainy day and flew through the pages. The thing about this book is it gets cooler and cooler as it goes on.

There were parts in it where my heart just ached for Robin and Sophie. I was definitely cheering them on. And, some events in the book filled me up with warmth in the best kind of uplifting way. Other events broke my heart and had me holding my breath - I definitely felt the tension and Robin's pain.

This book feels like high school and reminds me why teenagers are so cool and such an incredible age-group to read about. It reminds me how hard it is to be a teenager - but also how awesome it feels.

By the end, I just had this happy feeling :) In fact I have a happy feeling now just thinking about it.

Have you read either of these? What did you think? 

Now for a give-away - yay!

The winner will receive their choice of either I Know It's Over or What My Girlfriend Doesn't Know - just sharing the love :).


I use The Book Depository - so it's open internationally.

To Enter 

Leave a comment (below) and recommend to me either: a favourite verse novel, or a favourite YA novel with a male protag. And I'll use a random number thingy and announce the winner on Sunday the 27th :)

Penguin Australia's YA Blog - get a free book today :)

Today I stumbled across Penguin Australia's Young Adult blog. Which looks awesome and will keep me updated on all things YA.

Anyway, I was flicking around on it and if you subscribe to their email newsletter - which is full of news, competitions and giveaways (including give-away's of proof copies and ARCs) - you get a free book.

Whoo Hoo!

You can chose from the three choices below. I chose Beautiful Creatures (my library already has the other two in its catalogue. Probably should check them out...). Has anyone read Beautiful Creatures yet? What did you think? I'll probably let you all know what I think ;)

Go here to subscribe - anyone can subscribe, of course, but the free book is only for Australians :( However, I know all my wannabe Aussie overseas buddies are all pumped for me...

Speaking of free books, tomorrow I will be having a give-away - the winner will win their choice of one of two YA books I read and loved this year starring a male protag. ( I <3 YA with male MC's)

xx Naomi

Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac - Gabrielle Zevin

From Goodreads: If Naomi had picked tails, she would have won the coin toss. She wouldn’t have had to go back for the yearbook camera, and she wouldn’t have hit her head on the steps. She wouldn’t have woken up in an ambulance with amnesia. She certainly would have remembered her boyfriend, Ace. She might even have remembered why she fell in love with him in the first place. She would understand why her best friend, Will, keeps calling her “Chief.” She’d know about her mom’s new family. She’d know about her dad’s fiancée. She never would have met James, the boy with the questionable past and the even fuzzier future, who tells her he once wanted to kiss her. She wouldn’t have wanted to kiss him back. 

But Naomi picked heads. 

After her remarkable debut, Gabrielle Zevin has crafted an imaginative second novel all about love and second chances.


From me :)
I was surprised I enjoyed this as much as I did. Surprised because despite loving the premise of Elsewhere, I kinda got bored in it.


I think to enjoy a head trauma/amnesiac book, it's best just to go along for the ride and read the story not getting all caught up in the logistics of the scenario, yeah?


Things about the book:
Naomi was a popular girl, with a jock boyfriend and a goofy best friend, Will.
When she loses four years worth of memories, she doesn't really get who she turned out to be. Doesn't find anything appealing about her boyfriend, or even her favourite hobbies. She doesn't remember that her mum and dad are divorced -- or that her mum is remarried with a four year old daughter (her half-sister) and her dad is engaged to a dancer. She can't remember how to drive or if the pills in her bedside table means she's not a virgin any more. 


It definitely sucked me in.


Around about the middle of the book, I started feeling the restless-want-to-start-skimming feeling. But then, the book kinda changed direction (in the coolest of ways) and I was super into it again. And it occurred to me that while I could see how some plot threads would be resolved, I really had no idea where the book was headed. 


And I like that feeling. 


I also wasn't sure how I wanted things to be resolved, which is another feeling I like - because it feels like various outcomes could satisfy me.


I didn't connect all that well to Naomi (same problem-o I had with Zevin's début novel). This didn't stop me from enjoying it, but it does stop me from raving about it. There's plenty going on plot wise, and I especially like how well drawn some of the other characters are -- it makes them interesting and their actions unpredictable yet still realistic.


Random stuff:

• It was slightly unnerving continuously seeing my name in print.
• I kept getting James (new bad-boy crush) and Will (best bud) mixed up in the first half. Odd, I know. The names don't even really resemble each other, apart form being one syllable slightly generic names.
• The back of the book has deleted scenes and extras, which greatly amused me. I have often thought about the idea of keeping deleted scenes in a book (mainly as when I snip my own fave scenes from my writing (due to pacing/plot diversion) I'd still love to keep them, you know?
• Included in the extras is a few pages of all the CD mixes Will made for Naomi - complete with all the title tracks. Love it :)

Overall: I had a good time reading it. And I love amnesia type novels - provides a compelling platform for conflict and mystery. It's definitely an original read and also makes you think... about life and stuff :) I think I am between I like it and I really like it :)

Oh - on the topic of amnesia books. My all time fave is The Land of the Living by Nicci French. Totally absolutely recommending it :)

Blog Award and Seven Things About Me

So the ever-awesome Caitlin, Bri and Bailey  have all chosen me for a Blog Award! Which is super cool as my blog is only a baby (3 and a half weeks old) and I already feel very welcomed to the blogosphere. Thanks guys :) Edit: Plus again from Erin thank you thank you :)


So now I have to:

1) thank and link back to the person who gave you this award

2) share seven things about yourself

3) pass this along to fifteen bloggers... 

Seven Things About Me:

1. Since I was a little girl I've always wanted to be an artist and write and illustrate children's books, along the way I became a Primary School teacher.  Last year I decided to write a YA novel as I am always reading YA,  and since then I've written two MS's but have a lot to learn.  Here's one of my more recent pics: A boy and his invention - a draft for a children's book I was toying with making (the pic is a bit blurry, but if you click on it you can see it better)

2. I was married two days after I turned twenty and had three kids by the time I was twenty-four. And b/c I can - here they are:

           Sam                                                  

Reuben

Carissa                                  

3. Right now my husband is in Uganda (see pic below) and I am doing the single mum thing for four and half weeks. He is really into all things Social Justice and is doing some aid work and research with orphan soldiers from the LRA army (like in Blood Diamond). He is always reading world-changing poverty/social justice books while I'm reading my YA and other fiction :) Aaand - I just got off the phone from him (finally got through) and he was in a car crash today, where the vehicle rolled a few times and they landed upside down and had to crawl through the window while the radiator was leaking everywhere - all drama and explosion-y. I know (!) 

4. I have never tasted: coffee, tea, mangoes, avocado, vegemite, olives, mayonnaise, sour cream,  porridge (ugh!), sun-dried tomatoes, soft cheeses, white wine, salmon, chai, oh, I could go on forever... name a food and I probably haven't tried it yet :) 

5. One of my first TV crushes was Macgyver. I know, I know :) I still get hacked out about it... And, I had a copy of this poster on my wall.  Heheheheh.

I don't really do crushes any more...except, maybe a slight appreciation for this guy ;)

                             

6. I am really accident-prone. I've broken my nose five times, but I think the crooked nose look kinda suits me :)

7. I go by drummergirl on Absolute Write - but I actually play the guitar :) (my husband plays the drums) but I like to think I drum to my own beat in life. haha - so corny that I'm grinning as I type it. 

And, because it'd take forever, I'm just going to choose 5 fab bloggers to tag :)

1. Creative A @ Headdesk who I've beta-ed for and will totally be famous one day :)

2. Rachael @ Writer's Chasm who is a fellow Dr Who nutter addict enthusiast.

3. Angie @ Daydream Believer - who writes the best reviews and has one of the most compelling first chapters ever :)

4. Girl Friday @ My Girl Friday who is an Aussie living in the ever-cool Melbourne and co-incidently just started watching Friday Night Lights this week (like me)

5. The lovely Jill Wheeler who I admire for her shopping abilities :) (Buying gifts, one for you, one for me style :)

Courtney Summers Next Book - Fall For Anything

Fall For Anything - Courtney Summers third book set for release December 21st 2010 - yay for christmas readng :)  This is the blurb taken from Goodreads


I stare at the bonfire until I realize it’s fallen quiet and everyone is staring at me. 
“Oh. It’s okay,” I say to Deacon. “It’s okay.” 
“Sorry about your dad,” Deacon says. “That was supremely f***** up.” 
“Yeah,” I agree. “It was.” 
“Is it true your mom’s like, catatonic?” 
“Deacon!” Jenna. 
“What?” Deacon asks. “It’s not like we’re not all thinking it.” 

A gritty story of one girl’s attempt to make sense of her father’s untimely death…


Ooooh - sounds good, right?  I became a lifelong fan of all things Courtney Summers after devouring her first two books. Has anyone not read these yet?  

Anyone else dying hanging out for the new book?


Check out Courtney's Blog - on her latest post she teases us with some info on the cover for Fall For Anything. And check out this post for some recommendations of books/movies she recently read and loved :) Books she hearts below:

Of which I haven't read any yet! 


Although Stolen is in my library's catalogue, but since being short-listed for CBCA (Children's Book Council of Australia Awards - biggest awards for Aussie YA) it's no longer available for regular peeps like me as it's doing the rounds with the librarians. Check out the 2010 short-list for best book of the year. 


I am also a fan of C K Kelly Martin, so I really should bump The Lighter Side of Life and Death up my wish list a little.


And Dirty Little Secrets is another debut I'm super interested in.

Finding Cassie Crazy/The Year of Secret assignments - CCT

Cover Comparison Thursday (CCT) is a brand new weekly meme (now!) hosted by Abyss to showcase international covers of a certain book, and share our opinions on each.

(and this is the first week (whoo Hoo!), so feel free to join in on your blog and link in at Abyss - and check out the international covers of Twilight there).

Here are the covers of one of my favourite books by the wonderfully funny and whimsical  Jaclyn Moriarty.

This is the Australian edition (and the one I own). I like it a lot. I like the image of the three girls, laughing, It feels natural and I so want to be friends with them. I also love the colours and the blue/white title text which looks striking to me over the black and white school uniform. I'd pick this one up for sure.

UK Cover. Hmm, I think this would stand out in a bookshop, but it doesn't actually inspire me much. Maybe it looks better in person? Although I do think it's a cute idea, the ransom-style letters on the strawberry.

This is the German Edition. I actually don't mind the pink background, but not sure if I like the texture of it? It looks a little busy against the texture of the strawberry. I think it's interesting that they pretty much used the same idea as the one above, but found a different strawberry for the image :)

So, here's the US copy - complete with a title change. I love the new title - it sounds very mysterious. I also love how fun this cover looks. I love the font and the smiley face and the white background. It's simple, but eye-catching. This is one I'd pick up and check out.

And... here's a brand new paperback edition for the US to coincide with the release of the Ghosts of Ashbury High. When I first saw this one, I wasn't sure about it - but now I love it. I love the blues, and green and orange/yellows. I love the upturned collar and the blue nail polish. It definitely has my attention.

New 2010 UK Edition

The thing that I find interesting about these four different covers is they're all so different (including a title change) yet all the same book. I love the new US one, but I would have a different impression about the books content if comparing it to the German one, you know?


The other thing about these covers are they are actually part of a larger set that matches the other titles in the Ashbury/Brookfield High Series. I 've chucked a few up below so you can see how they work as a part of the series:

These are the new release US covers:

These are the old US covers

These are the UK ones:

Overall: I like the Australian Finding Cassie Crazy AND the New US The Year of Secret Assignments (with the secret-agent girl). I love both titles for the book, not sure which title is my favourite. Maybe The Year of Year of Secret Assignments, as it is more attention grabbing.

What do you guys think? Would you be drawn to any of them? Which is your fave?