BOOK IT!

I love reading. (Insert "Duh!" here.) I love reading entirely too much for a filmmaker. I should be watching movie after movie. And don't get me wrong, I watch plenty of movies, too. But I learned to read when I was four years old, and ever since then I've been an official Devourer of Books. Why, some people ask, do I love to read so much? Many reasons, most of them sounding more like apple-polishing pleas for adult approval than actual truth. But I assure you, these reasons are the truth.

There's just something so magical about curling up with a book and some chocolate on a stormy day and losing yourself in a magical land--be it Hogwarts, Alagaësia, Never Land, Terabithia, Transylvania, or Narnia--or another time (my personal favorite is 19th-century Europe, but any foreign country or different time has potential). There have been times when I've sworn that my best friend was Eoin Colfer or Beverly Cleary--or, of course, the unbeatable J.K. Rowling. You just can't get that kind of intimacy from a movie. That's not to say you get nothing from movies--I'd be a pretty terrible director if I went around saying things like that--but you get a different kind of intimacy from movies, and that's only good movies. (I have yet to feel any kind of personal bond with anything that Michael Bay has directed. Yes, even though he's used some of my favorite actors. Sorry, Bay-Man, just not feeling the love there.)

Here's the thing: When you read a book, there is some little part of it that becomes inarguably yours. The characters and places look just the way you imagine them to look, regardless of the author's description. There is always that one character who you can't help but identify with, and sometimes you want to identify with them and sometimes you don't, but invariably you do whether you want to or not. You can picture the battle scenes or love scenes just the way you want to, without a pretentious director or MPAA ratings board to get in the way.

Does this still sound like I'm dumping on movies? I'm not. I write and direct movies, for Pete's sake! I want to be a professional filmmaker! Why would I dump on movies? I'm just saying, having grown up as a reader, there will always be some part of me that refuses to accept that it's impossible for books to solve everything...and I will never, ever stop ranting at the inept directors and producers who ruin my favorite books when they make botched attempts to turn them into movies. If you're going to make a book into a movie, for the love of all that's holy, do it right.

That little rant now being officially over, I have a new summer reading guide for anyone who reads this blog. Don't freak out, it's not for a grade. (Sorry, couldn't resist.) These are some books I've read (and, in some cases, re-read) this summer, in varying moods and conditions, and if you can read even just one or two of these before you head back to school or off to college, you should. I've even broken them down by occasion! Check it out:

If you're looking for adventure, read... The Peter and the Starcatchers series by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson

Why: Why NOT should be the question! Read as a stand-alone or as a prequel to Peter Pan, these books--Peter and the Starcatchers, Peter and the Shadow Thieves, Peter and the Secret of Rundoon, and Peter and the Sword of Mercy--are nothing short of absolutely amazing. I don't care if you're twelve (the age I was when I first started reading these epic books) or eighteen (guess how old I am now?) or, hell, even forty (*coughPARENTScoughcough*), you will fall in love with Peter, Molly, Leonard, Fighting Prawn (yes, that IS the character's actual name), Ammm, and even the villainous Black Stache, First Officer Slank, and would-be evil assistants Mr. Smee and Little Richard. Oh, and P.S.--if Mr. Grin and Lord Ombra don't scare you half to death, you are either comatose or inhuman. (Or you are Lord Ombra yourself, in which case I must ask you, why in the hell are you reading a human girl's blog?)

If you're feeling nostalgic, read... Sisterhood Everlasting by Ann Brashares

Why: If The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants was among your first set of young adult books (and yes, I do belong in that camp of young women), and you fell in love with Tibby, Carmen, Lena, and Bridget from the first page, this book will not disappoint...unless your favorite character is Tibby, in which case be prepared to cry your eyes out (mainly because she has literally no dialogue in the entire novel, and we only hear about her through flashbacks). But seeing the Sisterhood at thirty is every bit as captivating as seeing them at fifteen, and I tell you this much, it was worth the wait (and the terrible fan fiction in the interim) to see our girls all grown up.

If you're feeling frustrated, read... The Airman by Eoin Colfer

Why: Eoin Colfer is a genius. We know this. But here's why Airman is literally the best thing that he has ever written (excluding the first Artemis Fowl book, because we all know that saying ANYTHING is better than that pretty much amounts to blasphemy). Airman is a classic story of ambition, treachery, and mistaken identity...with a twist. The villain of this book is a master mindf**ker. Honestly, you do not want to mess with this guy, or he will make you think that your son is dead or that your father considers you a traitor. You will cry (if you're a girl), throw the book (if you're a boy), root for Conor (if you're human), and laugh your ass off (if you appreciate Colfer's sense of humor).

If you love a good mystery, read... The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

Why: Chances are, by this time you're shaking your head, because really, what Colfer-loving girl would recommend something as dark as The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo? But it's amazing, it really is. This is a murder mystery to beat all murder mysteries. The twist ending alone is worth the entire book--but thankfully, that's not the only attribute. Anyone who reads this book will envy, pity, and admire Lisbeth Salander in equal amounts. I know I did...and that was just after seeing the film. The book is even better. Trust me.

If you love Shakespeare, read... Something Rotten by Alan Gratz

Why: I know most modernizations of Shakespeare end up making everyone involved look ridiculous. (Yes, Stephanie Meyer, I'm looking at you as you shamelessly rip off The Merchant of Venice and Romeo and Juliet.) But Something Rotten does not belittle the Bard or make the author look like a fool working on a high-school English project. It makes Hamlet perfectly believable as a modern story. And, yes, the ending IS slightly changed--but you really can't have every single character die in a first-person novel, can you? Someone has to be alive to tell you how the story ends...and I'd better shut up before I give the whole thing away.

If you're looking for a good romance, read... Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

Why: Because it's classic and beautiful. End of story.

...

Oh, fine. I'll explain further. I'll explain how one night, I stayed up until four AM reading this book even though I already knew how it ended, because it was just that freaking good. I'll explain that my best friend and her lover resemble Rochester and Jane so much that it's actually quite unnerving. I'll explain that I was fed up with Gothic literature until I read this book. There. Is that enough to entice you to read it, or will I have to go into my long analysis of how it would be better for everyone if Rochester had just told Jane his secret from the start?

If you're sad about the end of the Harry Potter books, read... The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Why: You will fall in love with Katniss Everdeen right from the start. Yes, I know this book has been compared to Twilight. I know it has been endorsed by Stephanie Meyer. But I'm telling you, Katniss would eat Bella Swan for breakfast, have Edward for dessert, and then tell Jacob to stop whining, man up, and help her hunt. You have to admire her courage, her tenacity, and her undying loyalty to her family and friends. To quote the single decent line from the otherwise-crappy Eragon movie: "That's the spirit...one part brave, three parts fool."

If you're a chick-lit fan and proud of it, read... The Season by Sarah MacLean

Why: Yes, it's straight-up historical chick-lit. But it's good. If you're looking for a good, old-fashioned romance mixed with a good old-fashioned murder mystery, this is the book for you. If you're looking for a guilty pleasure that doesn't smack of Twilight, look no further. The Season is the perfect book to hide behind your math textbook in class (do people even still do that, or do we all just text under the desk nowadays?).

If you're bored, read... A Cold Day in Paradise by Steve Hamilton

Why: This is the book that started it all. And by "all," I mean the brilliant-beyond-brilliant Alex McKnight mystery series. (Yes, I know I'm a murder-mystery whore...we'll get to that later.) Alex McKnight is so rough-and-tumble you can't help but picture Denis Leary (or Hugh Laurie as Dr. House, whichever you prefer) when you read his character description, with a heart of gold and a tendency to royally screw things up with the slightest misstep. He's the anti-hero you can't help but root for, and Steve Hamilton is a kick-ass writer with one hell of a knack for suspense. If you're bored, you won't be after you read this. It's a win-win.

If you love sci-fi, read... Future Eden by Colin Thompson

Why: I read this book six years ago and have never, ever gotten tired of it since. The heroine is a TALKING CHICKEN, for Pete's sake. How is that NOT awesome? I mean, come on...a TALKING CHICKEN has to SAVE HUMANITY. You can't beat that. And just so you have no excuse NOT to read this in-freaking-credible book...

Future Eden e-book

Have fun, my lovelies! ;)

Also...on a parting note...does the fact that I want to walk into my first day of McDaniel orientation wearing this outfit mean that there's something wrong with me? Just wondering...