Starry Eyes, by Jenn Bennett

Starry Eyes by Jenn Bennett is about a spectacular adventure with some cuteness, fun, romance and heartbreak.

Best friends-turned-best enemies Zorie and Lennon are stranded together after a camping trip that goes wrong. With no one but each other, they are forced to face their issues. With witty jabs and insults as they try to make it back to safety. Fighting each other while also fighting off the forces of nature, what could possibly go wrong?

Both Zorie and Lennon are dealing with some major things happening in their lives and the one person that they would typically confide in, (each other) has been MIA. The solitude of the trail and camping allows them to open up to each other and share the things that have come between them. And they are some pretty major things. Now I'm not much of a hiker or camper, you might be able to convince me on this glamping thing, but I absolutely loved what Bennett created here.

This was such a unique setting to use for these characters and I adored Lennon's love for the trail and how it allowed him the time to come to terms with the things happening in his life. As always Bennett manages to weigh some heavy and overwhelming issues with lighthearted moments, and the story is so lovely and emotional and as always, the romance is sweet and delightful and I just want more and more.

This was a quick read but a a feel good adorable YA contemporary that I may re-read just because this  book did not let me put it down at all! I highly recommend this to YA contemporary romance fans and invite you to fall in love!

This was my first time reading Jenn Bennett's work and I can't wait to jump into more of it. *JK*

This One Summer, by Jillian Tamaki

This One Summer, a graphic novel by Jillian Tamaki, is a brilliant story about friendship, family, and all the confusing and fascinating feelings that go along with growing up.

Each summer since they could remember, Rose and Windy's families met up at Awago Beach where the girls would spend two carefree weeks swimming, watching movies, eating sugary snacks, and just being kids. Needless to say, Rose has been looking forward to summer all year long. But this summer things have changed, and not for the better...and Rose would give almost anything to get back that innocence of those past summers. Rose, now almost a teenager, finds she's occasionally annoyed by Windy's childish behavior (Windy is a couple years younger). Why did these things about her old friend never bother her before? What's more, Rose's mother is constantly angry about something mysterious, something she won't talk about, and this is causing nearly constant tension between her parents. Nothing about Awago Beach is the same anymore, and this worries Rose. 

Then, when things couldn't get any more complicated, they do! Rose and Windy suddenly find themselves in the middle of some very grown-up drama involving a group of local teens. And they are forced to open their eyes to the reality that Awago Beach may not be (and may never have been) the idyllic sanctuary they always believed it to be.

I don't read a lot of graphics, preferring print books, but This One Summer caught my eye--and I'm glad I picked it up. Characterization is phenomenal and the theme (the struggle and confusion of being caught between childhood and adolescence) is something that's universally understood. I'd definitely recommend this one! --AJB