Kicking off our newly renamed If You Ask Me... feature are Jessica B. from Ellaville, GA and her neighbor to the north, Maria from Atlanta. Below, they plan their character-filled birthday parties, present some pretty compelling arguments for why books are ALWAYS better than their big-screen counterparts, and share some poignant quotations from their favorite books.Jessica from Ellaville, GA
If you could trade places with any character from a book for a day, who would you be and why?
If I could trade places with any character from a book for a day it would be Ruby from Sarah Dessen's book, LOCK AND KEY. I would want to be Ruby for a day because I want to see how she gets her strength firsthand.
What is the last book you read? Would you suggest it to a friend? Why or why not?
The last book I read was TRICKS by Ellen Hopkins. I suggested this to my sister and friends because the way Ellen writes the stories and intertwines them is simply fascinating.
Name three characters from a book that you'd like to invite to your birthday party.
I would invite Jamie Sullivan (A WALK TO REMEMBER), Ruby (LOCK AND KEY), and Susie Salmon (THE LOVELY BONES) to my birthday party.
Do you have a favorite quote from a book? If so, what is it?
"I cut to focus where my brain is racing. I cut to make physical what I feel inside. I cut to see blood because I like it. I don't like to cut, but I can''t give it up."
-Veronica, IMPULSE by Ellen Hopkins
I love this quote because it explains so much in so few words.
What movies have you seen that were based on books? Did you like the book or film version better? Why?
I have seen The Lovely Bones, Twilight, New Moon, A Walk To Remember, How To Deal, and Danielle Steele's The Ring. I like the book versions better because I feel that you get the whole story and not just implied feelings.
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Maria from Atlanta, GA
If you could trade places with any character from a book for a day, who would you be and why?
I think I would like to trade places with Emily from the book SAME DIFFERENCE by Siobhan Vivian. She''s good at art, has good friends, and not to mention a super hot boyfriend. :)
What is the last book you read? Would you suggest it to a friend? Why or why not?
TWENTY BOY SUMMER by Sarah Ockler. I would recommend it to a friend because, despite the title, it was a really deep book.
Name three characters from a book that you'd like to invite to your birthday party.
Gemma Doyle from the Gemma Doyle Trilogy, Auden from ALONG FOR THE RIDE, and Wes from THE TRUTH ABOUT FOREVER.
Do you have a favorite quote from a book? If so, what is it?
"Forever was so many different things. It was always changing, it was what everything was really about. It was twenty minutes, or a hundred years, or just this instant, or any instant I wished would last and last."
- THE TRUTH ABOUT FOREVER by Sarah Dessen
Tell us about your top three favorite books of all time.
There are so many books that I just LOVE, but currently these are my favorites:
THE BOOK THIEF by Markus Zusak
GOSSAMER by Lois Lowry
THE TRUTH ABOUT FOREVER by Sarah Dessen
I don't feel like I'm giving all those other wonderful books the justice they deserve.
If you had the opportunity to meet any author (dead or alive), who would you choose to meet, and what three questions would you ask him/her?
Sarah Dessen or Libba Bray. I would ask both of them where they got their inspiration from: from something in their own lives or something else. I think I would ask Libba why she chose for Kartik to die in THE SWEET FAR THING. And Sarah.... as a realistic fiction writer myself, I would want to know how she gives the story the twist that still makes the story good, but still realistic (if that makes any sense). :)
What movies have you seen that were based on books? Did you like the book or film version better? Why?
My Sister's Keeper: The book was MUCH better. In the movie, they changed one of the most important parts of the plot.
Inkheart: I thought the movie was really good, but the book was definitely better because there was a lot more detail.
And of course, Twilight: I think the movie was fairly accurate, but I liked the books a lot better.
And now The Lightning Thief is out! Psyched to see it!
Tell us about your favorite book series.
The Gemma Doyle Trilogy by Libba Bray
Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld
A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snickett
