Review of Five Flavors of Dumb by Antony John

Title: Five Flavors of Dumb
Author: Antony John
Published by: Dial
Pages: 338
Source: Won in a contest
Format: Hardcover
Rating:

Summary from Goodreads: The Challenge: Piper has one month to get the rock band Dumb a paying gig.

The Deal: If she does it, Piper will become the band's manager and get her share of the profits.

The Catch: How can Piper possibly manage one egomaniacal pretty boy, one talentless piece of eye candy, one crush, one silent rocker, and one angry girl? And how can she do it when she's deaf?

Piper can't hear Dumb's music, but with growing self-confidence, a budding romance, and a new understanding of the decision her family made to buy a cochlear implant for her deaf baby sister, she discovers her own inner rock star and what it truly means to be a flavor of Dumb.

Absolutely brilliant.  I loved this story from the first page to the last.  From the unique storyline, to the crazy, messed-up characters this book had all the elements for a great read. 

Piper is almost 100% deaf and somehow through unexpected circumstances, lands the job of managing an amateur rock band.  Piper is a character you instantly like.  She's spunky, a bit moody, and like a lot of teenagers...insecure.  Piper takes on this gig without really knowing much about music.  Not only does she have to understand the industry, but also to really feel what makes music that magical element that it is.

The band itself is made up of some pretty awesome people who will completely change your opinion of them by the end of the novel.  The ones that I originally liked I ended up seriously disliking, and the ones that I didn't care about at the beginning I ended up loving.  Each character in this novel added so much depth.  You know how there is usually one character that doesn't really matter to you or is often forgettable.  This didn't happen for me.  All of the characters made the story what it is. 

The things that really made this story great was how people change and how our opinions of people can change also.  Five Flavors of Dumb threw a lot of stereotypical people at you, but also makes you realize that there may not be stereotypical people after all.  Everyone, no matter who they are, has a little bit of rocker in them, and Antony John lets that shine through in his characters. 

The one aspect I had a bit of trouble with at the beginning is Piper's family.  I felt really bad for Piper and I think she often got the short end of the deal.  Her dad was a complete jerk and her mom just didn't seem to have all her priorities straight.  Throughout the novel I understood their dynamic a little more and by the end things had changed enough that I was happy with how it ended.  In fact, I was more than happy.  The ending was ridiculously awesome! 

I am so happy I gave this book a chance and I hope to read more by this author someday.   

Review of Saving June by Hannah Harrington

Title: Saving June

Author: Hannah Harrington

Published by: Harlequin Teen

Pages: 304

Source: Publisher/NetGalley
Format: ebook
Rating: ★★★★

Summary From Goodreads: When her older sister commits suicide and her divorcing parents decide to divide the ashes, Harper Scott takes her sister's urn to the one place June always wanted to go: California. On the road with her best friend, plus an intriguing guy with a mysterious connection to June, Harper discovers truths about her sister, herself and life.

A heartbreaking and beautiful ride.  Saving June is one of those books that sneaks into your heart and stays there long after you've put it down.  Hannah Harrington creates these characters who are so wonderfully flawed that you have to love them.  Harper is hell bent on being the un-perfect daughter.  She is snarky, defiant and broken now that June is gone.  She is so completely lost in her grief and turmoil, that she plans a trip with her best friend and a new mysterious guy to scatter June's ashes in California to hopefully find some closure for both June and her.

Harper, Jake and Laney's rode trip is unforgettable and I'm a little jealous that I wasn't invited along.  With quite a few unexpected stops, it lightened the mood of the book and helped Hannah, Laney and Jake discover more about themselves and what they want out of life.  There is a nice, slow building of the relationship between Jake and Harper.  Along the trip they get to learn more about one another and where they fit into the other's life.  At times they are frustrating, because it's obvious they are both keeping secrets.  But as they say it all comes out in the wash and when it does come out expect vibrant fireworks!

One of the things I loved about this book was all the music.  Jake is an authority on music.  He listens to everything from The Rolling Stones, to Billie Holiday, to ABBA.  It is really nice to see how music has shaped his life and how much it means to him.  I love that he shares his passion no matter if Harper or Laney want to hear it or not.  The eclectic taste of music is refreshing and Hannah Harper weaves it perfectly into almost every adventure they had.

Saving June is a wonderful story that is so much more that a girl and her grief, it's really about self-discovery and finding out who you want to be.