Soundtrack Saturday (28)

Happy Saturday to all of you Hardcover Lovers! It's time for another edition of Soundtrack Saturday! My small meme, Soundtrack Saturday, is a feature original to The Hardcover Lover that I developed after thinking of potential ELA projects. It helps readers and bloggers showcase the songs that they think of when they are reading by creating bookish soundtracks.

As with all bookish memes, there are a few steps to follow to help you create your own perfect Soundtrack Saturday post:

• Choose a book that you've read or are currently reading
• Create a mini (four songs) or full soundtrack (ten-fifteen songs) for that book based on characters and plot details
  
  • For more detailed instructions, please visit the meme's homepage.
• Please credit me somewhere in your post
  
  • It can be as simple as "Soundtrack Saturday was created by Erin at The Hardcover Lover."
• Leave a comment on my blog post if you enjoy the feature
• Add your name to the link-up tool at the bottom of the post

If you're able to create your own album art, go for it! I sometimes do, but other times, I get so busy that I just end up using the book's cover.

ARC Review: Devoted

Title: Devoted

Author: Jennifer Mathieu

Publisher: Roaring Brook Press

Publication Date: June 2, 2015

Goodreads | Amazon 
Source: eARC from Macmillan 
Goodreads | Amazon

A godly girl keeps a cheerful countenance.
A godly girl never tempts a boy.
A godly girl always keeps sweet.

Rachel Walker is devoted to God. She prays every day, attends Calvary Christian Church with her family, helps care for her five younger siblings, dresses modestly, and prepares herself to be a wife and mother who serves the Lord with joy.

But Rachel is curious about the world her family has turned away from. What is she to make of the boy recently returned from camp Journey of Faith with newfound piety? Or of her mother’s miscarriage and resulting depression? And how should she respond to Lauren, the girl who left the church several years ago and who has recently returned to town?

Rachel knows she should find solace in her beliefs, but she can’t shake the feeling that her devotion might destroy her soul.

  My Review

It's only been a few short months since I've read Mathieu's stunning debut, The Truth About Alice, but I can tell you that the synopsis for this book, Devoted, is what really pushed me to read Alice. I don't know why - because I'm not a fan of books about religion - I had to read this book, but I did. I am one hundred percent glad that I read it because it's eye-opening and beautifully troubling. 

Upon meeting Rachel Walker, I just knew I was going to like her. There was just something about her easy-going disposition that drew me in, and then I got to know her and realize that she's not a simple character. She's a complex character, but for reasons that are beyond her control. What I really liked about her was her determination. She's going to be a character that will serve as a role models for the teens who will read this book because she's determined to change her own life, even if it means hurting the people she loves and the people who are trying to help her. She's independent, but not too fiercely independent, and I think kids, especially the shy ones, will really be able to relate to her.

Ms. Mathieu's writing is wonderful in this book because she really lets her characters tell the story. It's beautiful because she doesn't try hard to make the words pop. They just flow from one word to the next, one paragraph to the next, and one chapter to the next. I felt like I was watching everything develop on screen as it was happening because it's just detailed enough to really provide the backdrop and the actions of the characters.

Another thing that I loved about this book was the lack of romance. It's hard to find that in contemporary YA these days.  While Mathieu touches on first crushes and secondary characters' love lives, she really lets the familial and friendships shine. It's a breath of fresh air, and if you're looking for a contemporary sans romance, reach for this book.

Honestly, I'd recommend this book to everyone who reads YA. I'm sure it will be challenged, but hey... good books are often challenged because they make people think. And trust me, you're really going to think about this one. It really helps readers see that sometimes what people perceive as good can really be a terrible situation, and this book will let readers see that and help them to form their own opinions.

Jennifer Mathieu is an English teacher, writer, wife, and mom who writes books for and about young adults. Her debut novel, THE TRUTH ABOUT ALICE, was published by Roaring Brook Press on June 3, and her second book, DEVOTED, will be out June 2, 2015.

Her favorite things include chocolate, pepperoni pizza, and this super hilarious 1980s sitcom about four retired women called The Golden Girls. She can basically quote every episode. 

Jennifer lives with her husband, son, one rescue dog, one fat cat, and another cat that is even fatter than the fat cat.

When it comes to what she reads, Jennifer loves realistic young adult fiction, creative nonfiction, super scandalous tell-all memoirs and unauthorized biographies, and basically anything that hooks her on the first page.

 

Waiting on Wednesday (19)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly bookish meme created and hosted by Breaking the Spine that spotlights the upcoming releases that bloggers and readers are currently anticipating.

It's very easy to participate in the meme. All you need to do is make a post about an upcoming release that you're waiting on, make sure you've linked back to Breaking the Spine, and then add your name to the link-up tool.

What I'm Waiting On...

Title: Devoted
Author: Jennifer Mathieu
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Publication Date: June 2, 2015

Rachel Walker is devoted to God. She prays every day, attends Calvary Christian Church with her family, helps care for her five younger siblings, dresses modestly, and prepares herself to be a wife and mother who serves the Lord with joy. But Rachel is curious about the world her family has turned away from, and increasingly finds that neither the church nor her home school education has the answers she craves. Rachel has always found solace in her beliefs, but now she can’t shake the feeling that her devotion might destroy her soul.

Why I'm Waiting...

Okay... so I'm kind of cheating on this one because I have an ARC, but I haven't read it yet and I probably won't get to it until late April or early May. 

I really enjoyed Jennifer's debut novel, The Truth About Alice, so I'm more than a little curious to see how she handles this book. It's definitely different, and probably a book I normally wouldn't go for, but I was obsessed with the movie, The Ultimate Sin/In God's Country. (I don't know why it has two titles...) I'm interested in seeing how Rachel handles herself before and after her beliefs are shaken. 

What Are You Waiting On...

Feel free to let me know if you're also waiting on Devoted or any other books in the comments. Also, feel free to leave any links to your Waiting on Wednesday posts because I would love to check them out and see what you're all waiting on.