Wednesday 28 December 2011

Faves of 2011 Book Awards: The Scenes

The Faves of 2011 Book Awards are hosted by Nomes at Ink Crush.


Day Three: The Scenes

1. Best first chapter
The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle. Beagle's beautiful, whimsical prose is evident from the very first line, instantly pulling me in and effectively setting the tone for the rest of the novel: "The unicorn lived in a lilac wood, and she lived all alone. She was very old, though she did not know it, and she was no longer the careless colour of sea foam, but rather the colour of snow falling on a moonlit night. But her eyes were still clear and unwearied, and she still moved like a shadow on the sea..."



2. Best climax
Don't ask me how I got to my age without knowing what happened in The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, but the climax completely blew me away. 


3. Best ending
Amy and Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson is designed in a scrapbook style, with photos and receipts scattered throughout. The final receipt on the last page made me smile and do a happy sigh - it says so much while saying so little.


4. Best plot twist/revelation (no spoilers!)
The revelations in the final third of I Came to Say Goodbye by Caroline Overington are heart-breakingly amazing.


5. Scariest/most disturbing scene
While it didn't turn out to be a very scary book, the first third of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs is pretty frightening. The scene where Jacob is in the basement at the old house, and it suddenly gets dark and you can hear the peculiar children coming, and then they peer down into the hole at Jacob - eep! I'm getting goosebumps writing about it now.


6. Steamiest scene (or sweetest/sexiest kiss award)
This is a hard one, but I think the absolute steamiest (AND sweetest) scene would have to be Alex and Brittany in the garage in Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles.

   
7. Best swoon-worthy moment
Etienne meeting Anna at the top of Notre Dame in Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins. Swooooon! 


8. Biggest nail-biting moment
When Katniss pulls back her bow at the end of Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins. 


9. Most hilarious scene
There are so many funny moments in Beauty Queens by Libba Bray. I especially loved the commercial breaks and footnotes. But the scene that comes to mind most when I think about the funny is when the reality show pirates crash land, and the girls subsequently go nuts over being near boys again.


10. Most heart-breaking/tear-jerker moment
Oh boy, there were quite a few of these. Like, pretty much all of Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. Perhaps the most heartbreaking of all was Tommy, screaming in agony as his heart breaks. It's overwhelming in the book, and brilliantly portrayed by Andrew Garfield in the movie (check out the two minute mark in the trailer below to catch a glimpse).




 
BONUS: Favourite meet cute
Anna literally running into Etienne in the hallway in Anna and the French Kiss. Cuteness.

What were your fave scenes of 2011?

9 comments:

  1. I love Anna and the French Kiss in general - it's just so cute, fun and quirky.

    And now I really must read Never Let Me Go. If there's a heartbreaking scene in there, I'm in!

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  2. @Alexa - Pretty much all of Never Let Me Go is heartbreaking! If you like your heart broken, you'll love it ;-)

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  3. Great choices :) I love Anna and the French Kiss and Beauty Queens was hilarious! I have a copy of Amy and Roger on my shelf that I have been meaning to get to. Hopefully I will finally get to it soon

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  4. I love your choices! Anna and the French Kiss is amazing! I really want to read Never Let Me Go. I saw the movie, and it was great but I bet the books great too (:

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  5. @Jess - Thanks! Amy and Roger is almost as much fun as Anna. Almost!

    @Tabitha - The book is great. I would say the movie is slightly better, or at least a more enjoyable experience. The book is amazing, but not exactly enjoyable to read, if you know what I mean.

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  6. Tommy! Sob! :(

    I did a lot of breath holding in Mockingjay. Love that book.

    I have never read a Libba Bray book, and I've heard a lot about this author. I must put that on my list. :D

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  7. This was my first Libba Bray, but I'm keen to read more of her work

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  8. i REALLY want to read I came to say goodbye (my library even has it ~ not sure what i am waiting for?) loved reading your list

    (thanks for joining in)

    x Nomes

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  9. I highly recommend it, Nomes! :-)

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