Less Than Zero by Bret Easton Ellis

Set in Los Angeles in the early 1980's, this coolly mesmerizing novel is a raw, powerful portrait of a lost generation who have experienced sex, drugs, and disaffection at too early an age, in a world shaped by casual nihilism, passivity, and too much money a place devoid of feeling or hope.

Clay comes home for Christmas vacation from his Eastern college and re-enters a landscape of limitless privilege and absolute moral entropy, where everyone drives Porches, dines at Spago, and snorts mountains of cocaine. He tries to renew feelings for his girlfriend, Blair, and for his best friend from high school, Julian, who is careering into hustling and heroin. Clay's holiday turns into a dizzying spiral of desperation that takes him through the relentless parties in glitzy mansions, seedy bars, and underground rock clubs and also into the seamy world of L.A. after dark.

When prompted to choose a book that illustrated a mental illness for my Child and Adolescent Psychopathology class, I decided to choose this book--Less Than Zero by Bret Easton Ellis. Books like this reflect so well what is the magic of books; they take to into a world that you might never ever want to go into, and allow you to get an idea of what some experiences are like. In this book, you are taken on a journey of teenage sex and drugs in the '80s. You aren't going to get connected to any characters, but it's a reflection of Clay's, the main character, lack of connection.

A few years ago, I went through a phase where I only read books involving these themes, but this novel outweighs all the others. At the same time, it's such a messed up novel and you just have to read it to see what I'm talking about. Considering its heavy themes, this is not at all a good book for middle schoolers, but I mostly would recommend it for college students and older. It's a short read and can easily be read in a night. From the start of the book, I was intrigued to see how the novel unwinds, and I was left speechless.

Have a great week!

-NBW

Buy it here: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/less-than-zero-bret-easton-ellis/1100619413?ean=9780679781493

Announcing: The NBW Bookshelf is now on Twitter!

Be sure to follow your favorite book blog on Twitter @TheNBWBookshelf! Also use the hashtag #TheNBWBookshelf or #NewBookWednesday to tweet about books I've posted about or books you recommend I read.

Tweet on!

-NBW

Over You by Emma McLaughlin and Nicole Kraus

The authors of the bestselling novel The Nanny Diaries, Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus, bring you the story of a girl who gets her heart broken…and figures out a foolproof way to get over her ex.

Over You’s Max Scott had a hard time getting over Hugo, the boy who dumped her. Now it’s Max’s mission to help NYC girls get over their broken hearts fast, and with dignity. Now Max’s life is better than she ever imagined it could be. Her new business, Ex, Inc., is booming. Better still, her friendship with Ben, a truly sweet guy, could turn romantic. But when Hugo reenters the picture, Max realizes that she isn’t over him. At all.

Funny, touching, and romantic, Over You is the kind of book every girl will fall head over heels for.
 

Over You is more than just a great teen read, it's a book that will bring out creativity in readers. Max's business Ex, Inc. is one of the most awesome fictional businesses I've ever read about, so get ready to fall head-over-heels for this novel. Even during her times of pain, you will be routing for Max the whole time. This is a pretty short read that's barely cheesy and will leave eager to see what happens to Max. McLaughlin and Kraus created a wonderful story that evokes girl power, and reflects on the complications of moving on from an ex-boyfriend/girlfriend. I highly recommended this book for middle school and high school girls, however I read it in college and I really enjoyed it, so I hope you do too.

Happy Wednesday!

-NBW

Buy it here: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/over-you-emma-mclaughlin/1108621104?ean=9780061720451

Palo Alto by James Franco

Now a “provocative” and “impressive” (Variety) film from director Gia Coppola (Francis Ford Coppola’s granddaughter)—starring Emma Roberts, James Franco, Nat Wolff, and Val Kilmer—the fiction debut from James Franco that Voguecalled “compelling and gutsy.”

James Franco’s story collection traces the lives of a group of teenagers as they experiment with vices of all kinds, struggle with their families and one another, and succumb to self-destructive, often heartless nihilism. In “Lockheed” a young woman’s summer—spent working a dull internship—is suddenly upended by a spectacular incident of violence at a house party. In “American History” a high school freshman attempts to impress a girl with a realistic portrayal of a slave owner during a classroom skit—only to have his feigned bigotry avenged. In “I Could Kill Someone,” a lonely teenager buys a gun with the aim of killing his high school tormentor, but begins to wonder about his bully’s own inner life.

These “spare and riveting” (O, The Oprah Magazine) stories are a compelling portrait of lives on the rough fringes of youth. Palo Alto is, “a collection of beautifully written stories” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review) that “capture with perfect pitch the impossible exhilaration, the inevitable downbeatness, and the pure confusion of being an adolescent” (Elle).

Features a bonus essay by James Franco on Gia Coppola's film adaptation.

During one of my first few weeks at NYU, I was wondering around the NYU Bookstore and stumbled upon this book. Between the fact that it was written by James Franco, and that it looked like a nicely written book full of teenage angst, I knew I had to buy it. The part I loved most about Palo Alto was it's raw honesty of all the characters. Franco did not let any detail become a small detail in this book of essays. None of the essays are random either, it makes up one larger story. Luckily if you have not had the chance to read Palo Alto yet, it's a very quick read (only 240 pages), so you could easily read it before the film comes out on May 9! I would recommend this book to anyone 17 and up (warning--some parts are very NSFW). I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did, and I can't wait to see how Gia Coppola portrays it in the film version.

Have a great week! 

-NBW

Buy it here: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/palo-alto-james-franco/1100404609?ean=9781476778389

Side Note: As I would normally post the trailer for books that have a movie portrayal, I decided not to for this book just because there's something special about imagining the characters in your head as you wish, instead of imaging a character that someone chose for you to imagine. However, after you finish reading the novel, definitely go check out the trailer on Youtube, and get excited that there's less than a month until the film comes out in theaters!

The Spectacular Now by Tim Tharp

This National Book Award Finalist is now a major motion picture — one of the most buzzed-about films at Sundance 2013, starring Shailene Woodley and Miles Teller.

SUTTER KEELY. HE’S the guy you want at your party. He’ll get everyone dancing. He’ ll get everyone in your parents’ pool. Okay, so he’s not exactly a shining academic star. He has no plans for college and will probably end up folding men’s shirts for a living. But there are plenty of ladies in town, and with the help of Dean Martin and Seagram’s V.O., life’s pretty fabuloso, actually.

Until the morning he wakes up on a random front lawn, and he meets Aimee. Aimee’s clueless. Aimee is a social disaster. Aimee needs help, and it’s up to the Sutterman to show Aimee a splendiferous time and then let her go forth and prosper. But Aimee’s not like other girls, and before long he’s in way over his head. For the first time in his life, he has the power to make a difference in someone else’s life—or ruin it forever.

The Spectacular Now by Tim Tharp is one of the best books I have read this year. It captures your attention from the first page to the last, and it honestly makes you want to see the movie. Sutter Keely is someone everyone wants to be friends with--he's fun-loving and has a big heart. He's one of those characters you either will fall in love with and hope for the best for him, or you'll hate him and hope for the worst. All the stress that Sutter goes through is completely relatable: applying to college, missing his ex, divorced parents/a runaway father. This book will keep you laughing and "awwing" the whole time. Since this novel is a bit inappropriate, I wouldn't recommend it to a middle-schooler, but I think it's fine for high schoolers and older (I read it while in college). It's definitely top of my list, and a perfect summer read!

Have a great (sunny) day!

-NBW

Buy it here: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/spectacular-now-tim-tharp/1100290954?ean=9780385754309

Check out the trailer: (via: youtube.com)

Revenge of the Girl With the Great Personality By Elizabeth Eulberg

A hilarious novel from Elizabeth Eulberg about taking the wall out of the wallflower so she can bloom.

Don't mess with a girl with a great personality.

Everybody loves Lexi. She's popular, smart, funny . . . but she's never been one of those girls, the pretty ones, who get all the attention from guys. And on top of that, her seven-year-old sister, Mackenzie, is a terror in a tiara, and part of a pageant scene where she gets praised for her beauty (with the help of fake hair and tons of makeup).

Lexi's sick of it. She's sick of being the girl who hears about kisses instead of getting them. She's sick of being ignored by her longtime crush, Logan. She's sick of being taken for granted by her pageant-obsessed mom. And she's sick of having all her family's money wasted on a phony pursuit of perfection.

Revenge of the Girl With the Great Personality is great young adult read with a great message. As Ashlee Simpson once sang about "living in the shadow of someone else's dream," Lexi wanted to become the girl who everyone was talking about, not the assistant to the girl everyone was talking about (aka her little sister). Between her selfish mother and bratty little sister, Lexi barely had time to really care about how she looked, but after a dare she took with her best friend, Lexi discovered the magic of fashion and makeup. However, she realizes that people don't just like her for her new look, but they liked her because she gained a new sense of confidence to go along with her great personality. Elizabeth Eulberg does a great job of distinguishing the difference between changing yourself for others and changing yourself for yourself. If I could describe this book in one phrase, it would be "Toddlers & Tiaras meets Mean Girls." Young readers, this is a perfect spring break/summer read, and with it's cheesy (in the best way possible), fast-paced storyline, you're not going to want to put it down!

Happy April! See you next week!

-NBW

Buy it here: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/revenge-of-the-girl-with-the-great-personality-elizabeth-eulberg/1112220586?ean=9780545477000

Just For Fun: The 14 Stages of Book Addiction (via: Buzzfeed.com). It's 100% true (for me, at least).

http://www.buzzfeed.com/kalialicia/the-14-stages-of-book-addiction-f9n7

                                                  (Via: http://realitytvgifs.tumblr.com)