Book Review: Awkward

Awkward by Svetlana Chmakova

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Awkward has been a favorite in my classroom all year and I'm just getting to it in preparation for book club next year. I'm so glad I read it. It has a cast of diverse characters as two clubs, Art Club and Science Club, battle it out for a spot at the school's club fair. Penelope (Peppi) is in Art Club and on her first day at school, she did the most terrible thing to this kid who tried to help her and she's trying to say she's sorry--still trying. As she finally begins to be friends with the boy, Jaime, she realizes he's in Science Club. How can they be friends if their friends hate one another?

Peppi isn't a flawless character, which I appreciate. She makes a lot of mistakes and her friends make a lot of mistakes. Luckily, they learn a lot from their mistakes and also how to save their club.

The teachers are also lovely. I loved the Science teacher. She's very strict, orderly, and possibly a ninja in a previous career? There are many rumors surrounding her and how terrifying she is--even though she isn't and helps out our main character multiple times.

A second book recently came out about another student in Art Club and it looks fabulous. I'd love to hear about all these characters eventually and hope this becomes a longer series.

Review: The Girl Who Drank the Moon

The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The Girl Who Drank the Moon is told from multiple perspectives throughout the book. The omniscient quality of the narrator allows us to know the "secrets" right away--there isn't a whole lot to unravel. However there is still a question of how things will unfold and if the characters themselves will understand the truth and what that will mean for them--and if they'll figure it out in time.

Luna is our main character, sacrificed as the youngest baby in the Protectorate, and now being raised by Xan (a witch), Glerk (a swamp monster), and Fyrian (a tiny dragon, who is more of a sibling than a guardian). Every year Xan rescues a baby left in the bog and flies him or her to a town and a loving family. Only when she rescues Luna, she falls in love with her and accidently feeds her too much moon, enmagicking her. But Luna's magic is so intense that it becomes dangerous and Xan must encase the magic deep within her. And now, as she nears thirteen, Luna's magic is slowly returning.

During this time we also see both heroes and villains from the Protectorate as they try to make sense of all the terrible suffering that happens in their village. Over the course of thirteen years we witness the lives of the people of the Protectorate through Antain's eyes. Antain begins as an elder in training, but we can see right away that this won't go very well for him because he questions the decisions and traditions of the elders that lead to the misery surrounding his town.

One of the issues I had with The Girl Who Drank the Moon was the constant change of perspective. The omniscience meant that we knew a lot, but we knew a lot because we saw the same moments in time from different perspectives--and sometimes not just two. It made the story seem to stretch out instead of move forward. It also made it more difficult for me to really relate to Luna. We don't even really get anything from her perspective until we're a good ways into the book because it takes awhile for her to grow up.

And that's when the story really started. I felt like a lot of it was background building and it was long and arduous building. It could have been shorter.

I would only recommend this to middle grade readers who are already comfortable with fantasy books. I feel like even good readers who don't have much basis in fantasy might be thrown off by it. Overall, it was an okay book and once the story gets going, it's compelling--it just might take a while for that to kick in.

View all my reviews

Review: A Madness So Discreet

A Madness So Discreet by Mindy McGinnis
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I love historical fiction that doesn't put romance as a center plot line. LOVE IT.

Mindy McGinnis has put her main character Grace into a terrible situation: she's in a mental asylum, placed there by her family because of the fact that she's been found pregnant. No one can know that she's pregnant, it would be terrible for the family because it would uncover secrets that would ruin them all. And Grace hasn't spoken since. While there she meets a strange doctor who recognizes her intelligence and schemes to take her out of there by pretending he botched a procedure on her and they will need to hide that from her affluent and very powerful father. He takes her away to a new asylum, one that is run with dignity and care. Although Grace must continue to hide her voice, she accompanies the doctor as he visits crime scenes in an attempt to use the new science of criminal psychology. Very soon, they discover that there is a serial killer in their midst.

We meet a number of characters throughout the book who live in the asylum. Some truly do have mental health disorders, but others do not. Most are women who are put there by husbands or fathers simply to get them out of the way. Some are ill, but mentally ill, and so they are committed so their family members do not have to deal with them. The conditions at the first place Grace is living in are deplorable. There is a lack of food, lack of medical care, and patients would often be beaten or hit. Some of them were locked in cellars for long periods of time. Unfortunately, this is what many asylums were like. The one in which Grace travels to was much nicer. Patients were treated with respect and care. It is a comparison that Grace makes often during her time there.

A Madness So Discreet is about many things, but I believe it is very much about how women have been viewed in the past. Not only are we shown multiple women who have been sent to live in asylums not because they needed help, but because they were different, needed medical attention, or were defiant, but the serial killer is targeting young women--mostly prostitutes. As you read the Dr.'s and Grace's surmising about the killer and his or her motives, you can see this played out even more.

The best part, is that there is no romance. There is no love interest. It truly is about Grace. I loved this book and I'm looking forward to reading more of her books! I think I might try outThe Female of the Species.

View all my reviews

Mini-Review: A Time to Dance

A Time to Dance by Padma Venkatraman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I just finished A Time to Dance by Padma Venkatraman and highly recommend it. Veda, an award winning dancer of traditional Indian Bharatanatyam, is in a horrific accident that leads to having one foot amputated. Dancing is all she has known and now it is taken away from her. However, Veda is fierce and will not go down without a fight. She's just going to have to relearn everything she ever knew about dance and life. Told in verse, Padma Venkatraman paints beautiful images that not only allow you to see the movement of Veda's world, but to hear music as she does, and feel her pain, humiliation, and hope.

View all my reviews

Review: Passenger

Passenger by Alexandra Bracken
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

This time traveling adventure will take you through various historical events and destinations as Etta and Nicholas search for a tool that could change their entire lives, both past, present, and future. In order to save her mother, Etta goes in search of the astrolabe, a tool wanted by Cyrus Ironwood who is keeping her mother hostage. Nicholas follows her after being promised his freedom from the Ironwoods if he makes sure Etta follows through on her promise to return it. Neither wants to tell the other the truth, but as they journey through time it becomes harder and harder to keep the truth a secret from one another.

Overall, I did enjoy this book. The pacing was pretty well done as Etta jumps from one time period to the next, following clues her mother left behind. She and Nicholas are thrown into various times that force them to adapt rather quickly, despite not having the right attire or means to acquire them. All while running from evil men chasing them throughout the time periods so they can get to the astrolabe first.

What I didn't like:
The romance between Etta and Nicholas was somewhat contrived. From the very beginning (as soon as they saw one another across a ship) they are taken with each other. And it's not just that they like one another--they are meant to be together. After one look. I wanted there to be some work on either or both of their parts, but it just came too easily. The only problem was that they were from two different time periods and someone would have to leave their time period in order for a relationship to be had.

Will I read the second book?
I haven't' decided yet. Probably. The place in which Alexandra Bracken leaves us, is one in which I must find out the end. Nicholas...I need to see him in Wayfarer after that ending. So many things revealed at the end that I'm going to need some closure here.

Happy Reading!

View all my reviews

Book Review: Wintersong by S. Jae-Jones

Wintersong
S. Jae-Jones
St. Martin's Press, 2017
Genre: YA/NA, Fantasy
Rating 3 out of 5

*Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. 

Liesl has spent her life in the shadow of her beautiful sister and talented brother, listening to the reveling in the stories her grandmother tells her of the Goblin King.  Now, at 19, she has left that fantasy world behind and resigned herself to the life of a spinster--until her beautiful sister is taken by the Goblin King.  Now Liesl must go to the Underworld and return her sister to the world above, but her Goblin King won't make that task easy for her.  In her quest, Liesl, who has spent most of her life believing she is less than, begins to discover who she is and what talents she possesses.  She also begins to see the Goblin King as more than just her Goblin King--which could be detrimental if she plans to return to the world above.

Some spoilers are included below.

I struggled with Wintersong.  Most of it I really enjoyed--especially the first half.  Liesl spends much of the first half of the book looking for her sister Kathe, finding her in the Underworld, and then figuring out a way to escape with her.  The Goblin King is constantly making this difficult for her, but Liesl is determined to rescue her sister--she must do so.  The pace of the first half of the book was fairly quick.

I had a hard time really liking Liesl in the beginning.  She never chose herself.  She was always looking at herself as less-than and therefore her needs and desire were less-than. Her entire focus is on taking care of others--but not herself.  In order to make sure others are taken care of, she must deny herself.  But by the second half of the book, she embraces her desires, her wants, her needs.  Unfortunately, I still didn't like her that much.  But I was still rooting for her.

The writing itself is beautiful.  Despite the fact that you're in a fantasy world, it's easy to picture yourself there and to see what Liesl sees.  You can understand much of what she's feeling and the pain.  SPOILER ALERT!:  When the Goblin King refuses Liesl's advances, I felt for her so much that I thought I was going to cry.  Liesl doesn't understand--and neither did I completely--and she is hurt in so many ways that this is just one more thing he has done to her.  Every time he refuses her, I felt her hurt.

One thing I wasn't a huge fan of was the romance between Liesl and the Goblin King.  It was haphazard, confusing, and off and on.  Her desire for him was intense within romance scenes, but then it would fade out and I couldn't tell if she wanted him because she wanted him, or if she wanted him because he broke her down--which she spoke of often.  That's what really pulled me out of the romance.  Every time they had intense romantic scenes, they were described in very rough and animalistic ways, which isn't a big deal to me.  It was the afterward that brought me out of the story. Liesl spoke about how he broke her down.  There were many references to his breaking her.  In most cases I would not be okay with it, but knowing the rest of the story, maybe I can accept this?  But can I?

The pacing is where I really wasn't happy.  Like I said at the beginning, the first half of the book was well-paced.  We're with Liesl and her sister when the Goblin King first appears in their fringes, we're with her as she tries to come to terms with the fact that her sister has been taken, when she has to fight her way to the Underworld.  We're with her when she finally arrives and must navigate the confusing parties and goblin lore as she tries desperately to save her sister.  Then she becomes the Goblin QUeen and everything just slows down.  Not much happens besides the romance scene and playing music.  I'm also not much of a musical person so a lot of what Liesl talks about in the way of composing sonatas was lost on me.  It something I had to get through in order to get to the next part of the story where something else happened.

Overall, I enjoyed Wintersong by S. Jae-Jones.  It could have been paced a little quicker in the second half, but it was still good.  If you're looking at this for younger readers, there is some pretty heavy sex scenes, a lot of talk about death (he is the king of the Underworld after all), and other themes that don't sit very well for younger audiences.  I would say readers should be at the very least in high school--not a middle grade book.

The Baby-Sitters Club: Kristy's Great Idea

The Baby-Sitters Club: Kristy's Great Idea
Raina Telgemeier, Ann M. Martin
GRAPHIX, 2015
Genre: graphic novel, middle grade, friendship
Source: Borrowed from School Library
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Yes, ladies and gentleman who grew up in the 80's-90's, the Baby-Sitters are back and they are in graphic novel form.  One of my students came up to me at the start of the school year to ask if it was okay if she read this book and held up the graphic novel.  At first I didn't quite register what book she was holding up, but asked her why she thought she couldn't read it.  "It's all pictures," she told me and flipped through the pages.  I nodded and told her that they're called graphic novels.  She asked again if she could read it and I asked her if she enjoyed it.  When she finally realized that I would not be telling her that it didn't count and she had to find a "real" book she scampered away as if she was getting away with something. Little did she know that I was thrilled to see her reading this!

At some point during this discussion, I focused in on the title and on the inside was thinking, "I need to read this!"  Now, I'm not a huge graphic novel person.  I don't have anything against them, they're just not what I gravitate towards.  I do, however, gravitate towards Ann M. Martin and The Baby-Sitters Club so as soon as our school library's copy was returned, I snatched it up and sped through it, allowing all my students to see me reading a graphic novel in the process.

It was awesome!  Raina Telgemeier did a fantastic job depicting the story and translating it into graphic form.  It made me feel nostalgic for my old copies of The Baby-Sitters Club, which may be in my parents' basement still, or may not.  I have a modge podge of the novels in my classroom and ever since I read this book and pointed out that they're also in novel form, they've been flying off the shelves as well as the graphic novles.  I may need to invest in more...

So go check it out!

Book Review: The Seventh Wish

The Seventh Wish

Kate Messner
Bloomsbury USA Children's, 2016
Genre: Middle Grade, Realistic Fiction, Family, Drug Abuse
Source: Purchased
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

All Charlie wants is a new Irish dance dress for her upcoming competition--and a little more attention from her parents.  This year is a little rough because her sister Abby just started college and Charlie is used to having her there.  With her next door neighbor and his grandma, she starts ice fishing in hopes of selling the fish to earn money for her dress.  When she catches her first fish it's small and calls out to her to release it in exchange for a wish.  Charlie wishes, not expecting anything to happen, but when her wish does come true it's not exactly the wish she had wanted.  Willing to try again, Charlie starts making wishes to help her friends, but they aren't exactly working.  Then her sister comes home from college and things are suddenly pulled out from under Charlie when she finds out that Abby is battling a drug addiction.  Can her wishes help cure her sister and make everything the way it used to be? 

I loved this book.  Charlie is your typical middle school student.  She is focused on school and dance and wants more of her parents' attention.  When her dance competition is pushed aside for her parents' work and personal commitments, she accepts it, but she's not happy about it.  She wants to be with her friends and do a good job on her science project.  When Charlie and her parents discover that Abby is addicted to heroin, life gets harder.  Now instead of spending Sundays working on her science project and going to dance class, Charlie is at Abby's rehab for visitors' day.  Instead of worrying about dance and homework, she's worrying about if her sister will get better.

This book is a great look at what it's like to have a family struggling with an addiction.  It's not just Abby struggling; her entire family is having a hard time as well.  Charlie is embarrassed to tell her friends what's going on and she's having problems getting her homework done on the weekends.  Another dance competition is coming up and she desperately wants to go, but she won't be able to if Abby is still in rehab.  Her parents are trying to get insurance to pay for the program that Abby is in and everyone is trying to understand how this happened.

Kate Messner has taken a very serious and difficult topic and woven it into Charlie's life.  Ultimately this book isn't about drug addiction, but about a girl who really wants a new dress for dance so she can move up to the next level.  It's about Charlie, who is trying to wish all the bad stuff away for her friends and herself and realizing that it doesn't really work that way.

Abby's addiction is presented in a way that is appropriate for middle grade readers and it's very likely that kids will relate to what Charlie experiences as they see family members who struggle with different addictions.  I think it's extremely important that kids see themselves in what they read, and these are, unfortunately, experiences that some kids have.  They need those reflections in literature.  It's definitely a book I'll be sharing with my 6th graders this year as I use it for a Read Aloud in the fall.

Audiobook Review: Vivian Apple at the End of the World

Vivian Apple at the End of the World

Katie Coyle
Narrated by Julia Whelan
Dreamscape Media LLC, 2015
Genre: Post-Apocalypse, YA, Science Fiction
Source: Audiofile, SYNC free downloads
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

In the alternative world of Vivian Apple, the Church of America has led much of the world to believe that "The Rapture" will be coming.  Vivian does not believe, despite the other predictions that have come true: floods, extreme weather conditions, mass shootings.  After spending Rapture's Eve at a party with her best friend Harp, Vivian returns home to find two holes in her believer-parents' bedroom--and no trace of either of them.  Even with all the signs that the rapture has happened and everyone else (even some believers) have been left behind, Vivian and Harp don't buy it.  With Harp and the help of mysterious Peter, she sets off on a cross-country trip to find out the truth.  

This is a crazy scary world where Believers have pretty much taken over all of America.  Top government officials are believers, people have pulled their kids out of public school because they won't teach Church of America doctrine, young girls are getting married, people buy Church of America food, and anyone who is not "traditional" is considered evil.  It only gets worse after the Rapture and those who have been left behind are trying desperately to prove they are worthy of being raptured in the second round.  The truth behind this world, the fact that it could so easily be the one we live in right now, is what makes it scary.

Vivian is a great character who begins the book timidly, not believing anything about the rapture and seriously baffled as to why her parents do believe.  She does what she's told and follows rules.  She studies hard because she knows that as soon as the rapture passes and it doesn't actually happen, she's going to be able to apply to colleges and get an education.  Except then it does happen--or seems to happen--and where did following the rules and being a good girl get her?

I didn't expect to like this book so much, but it was so good and I had to find out what was going on and what Vivian finds in her search for the truth.  If you like books about the end of the world, Vivian Apple is a great choice.  The performance of the audiobook was also perfect, with Julia Whelan portraying Vivian Apple perfectly. I highly recommend this book and there is a second one that you can read: Vivian Apple Needs a Miracle.

Book Review: Raymie Nightingale

Raymie Nightingale

Kate DiCamillo
Candlewick Press, 2016
Genre: middle grade, family, friendship
Source: purchased for my classroom
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Raymie's father ran off with a dental hygienist and she hasn't heard from him since.  Her mother has been quiet and seems lost.  But Raymie has a plan.  If she can win the Little Miss Central Florida tire competition then she'll get her father back.  Unfortunately, she has Louisiana Elefante, whose parents were performers, and Beverly Tapinski, who wants to sabotage the contest, in her way.  In addition, she has to learn to twirl a baton, but her teacher is crazy and she hasn't learned a thing yet.

Raymie is a thoughtful and bright young girl.  She's hurt and confused that her father left one day out of the blue and her mother just sits and stares now.  So now she has come up with a plan to fix everything.  She's managed to find an adult who will talk with her honestly in her father's secretary.  She's kind and gives Raymie advice, but for the most part Raymie is on her own with the help of her two friends.

Louisiana Elefante is wispy and beautiful, sings like an angel, and faints--a lot.  She's a bit kooky and claims Raymie and Beverly as her best friends almost immediately--much to Beverly's chagrin.  It's difficult to ignore her, because Louisiana seems to need friends who will help her.  Beverly Tapinski is sick and tired of pageants--and she's not afraid to say so.  She has a tough life and covers that up by putting up a tough front that no one will mess with.  Both Raymie and Louisiana annoy her, but she always seems to be helping them out since she's not afraid of anything and they are.

Told from Raymie's point of view, we learn about all three girls and watch as their friendship evolves.  It's a charming story and good read for middle grade readers.  There are funny parts--especially when Louisiana is in the picture--but there are also some sadder parts as the reader begins to realize more about each girl.

Kate DiCamillo writes great stories for young readers, introducing them to interesting characters who are true to life.  It's easy to believe we can meet them randomly on the street one day, or find them in our own best friends.  Definitely a great read for middle grade readers!

Book Review: Every Last Word

Every Last Word
Tamara Ireland Stone
Amy Rubinate (narrator)
Ideal Audiobooks, 2015
Genre: YA, Contemporary, Mental Illness
Source: Thanks to SYNC Audio for the free audio files!
Rating: 4 out of 5


Samantha McAllister has a secret that she's been hiding from her best friends, The Eights, since she was eleven.  Samantha has OCD, the purely obsessional kind where she starts thinking about one topic or problem or just a teeny tiny idea and she can't move past it.  She's obsessed with the number three and will drive around until the milage on her car ends with a three before parking.  Somehow she has done a tremendous job of keeping this from her friends who are the most popular girls in school and have very high expectations for how they should all look, act, feel, etc.  When Samantha meets Caroline, though, she's pulled into the world of Poet's Corner.  With Caroline's help, Samantha begins to write and share with this group of writers.  But as she finds herself becoming more entrenched in Poet's Corner, she realizes that there are a lot of secrets and eventually she will have to start letting them out--if she can manage it. 

I liked this book more than I had anticipated.  From the description and the first chapter or so I thought this was going to be about a bunch of mean girls--and it is in a way.  The Eights are truly mean girls who just exacerbate Samantha's OCD and anxiety, creating hierarchies of friendship within their group.  Intentionally leaving one girl out of an invitation and letting her know. Awfulness.  But it's also about Samantha learning not only how to step away from them, but how to accept herself.  PLUS!  I was totally thrown by events in the last few chapters.

Samantha is dealing with a serious mental illness throughout this book, and her life.  She meets weekly with a psychiatrist, is on medication to help control her obsessions and help her sleep, and her parents are super supportive and help her work through obsessive thoughts.  This isn't is a story about a girl who is magically cured of her mental illness and never needs to see her psychiatrist or take meds again.  She makes progress, yes, but she still has a network that surrounds her.

Poetry is a huge component of this book.  Teens writing poetry that is deep and meaningful to them and shows who they are.  It's not the poetry you'll study and try to write in college, which I appreciated because it made it more realistic.  It was very emotional and held everything these kids needed to say or experience or hold onto while they struggled through their days in high school.  It reminded me of the poetry I wrote in high school and kept tucked away inside notebooks and folders for my eyes only. It's a way that Samantha uses to help channel some of her anxiety and obsessions.

I really enjoyed how we were able to walk with Samantha through her journey.  I liked her story.  Yes she has OCD and struggles with it, but I think that this story is still very relatable even if you don't suffer from a mental illness.  She's a high school girl dealing with cliques and trying to find herself--a self that she's comfortable with and can accept.  Something we're all trying to do!

If you liked this review please consider following me!

Book Review: The Secret Healer

The Secret Healer
Ellin Carsta
Terry Laster (Translator)
AmazonCrossing, 2016
Genre: Historical Fiction
Source: Amazon Lender Library
Rating: 1 out of 5 stars

The Secret Healer is a historical fiction novel set in the 14th or 15th century--I honestly can't remember when.  The main character, Madlen, is a young girl training to be a midwife, but her mentor dies tragically before she can be trained and Madlen is devastated.  However she goes to help a rich woman whose pregnancy is in danger, but the baby has already been lost and Madlen must do what she can to save the mother.  It isn't long before she is charged, setting off a chain of events that causes Madlen to flee her home and seek shelter with an aunt she has never seen before. It isn't long before she's helping others who need help and the official Inquisitor is looking for her.  All Madlen wants is to help others, but instead she finds herself being hunted down by her society because she is a woman.

This story was incredibly difficult to believe in any way.  First of all, the characters are never fully developed--not even Madlen.  There is a lot of quick jumping over parts or skimming through a section, going in and out of points of view, and focusing on miniscule characters or events that you expect to come back but never do.  This could be in part because it's a translation, but I'm not sure because I feel like I should be able to see the characters develop and understand them more, but I don't.  They go from one idea and suddenly switch to the opposite with not explanation or development towards that change.

Also, Madlen and her aunt are given many liberties.  Her aunt lives alone, as a widow, and makes her own money.  This is perfectly acceptable, even though she has been a widow for many years and would most likely have been shunned or not allowed to work--even at being a seamstress--without her husband.  She has an awful lot of power for a woman at this time.  I would have guessed that this may have made more sense in the 1800s or early 1900s, except for the fact that Madlen is being persecuted for cohorting with the devil due to her knowledge of healing.

I did finish this book, but there was a lot of skimming towards the end.  It ends exactly as you would guess a fluffy read would.  If you're looking for a historical fiction, this one would probably be a bit disappointing because it isn't at all believable.  There is some romance, but it was rushed, just as the rest of the novel was. Maybe in German it would read differently, but I'm not sure.

Book Review: Goodbye Stranger

Goodbye Stranger
Rebecca Stead
Wendy Lamb Books, 2015
Genre: Middle School, Friendships, YA, Growing Up, Making Mistakes
Source: purchased for my classroom library
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Bridge, Emily, and Tabitha are starting middle school and everything is different, but they have made a pact to stay friends--and no fighting allowed.  Even though they're different and each has their own niche that they find at school, they still remain true to one another.  Sherm starts to get to know Bridge and knows she's super important to him, but what does that really mean?  And an unknown girl is struggling with what it means to be a friend on Valentine's Day as her world seems to crumble around her.  

I loved this book!  It's about friendship, love ( not the romantic kind), making mistakes, and acceptance.  Bridge is so incredibly lucky to have two best friends who are amazing (and they are lucky to have her as well).  Each of them has their own personality and goes about life in their own way.  When Bridge decides to start wearing cat ears all the time, Emily and Tabitha aren't really getting it, but they don't make her change.  They are honest with her and tell her that they don't really get it and ask when she'll stop wearing them, but it never really feels like they're trying to get her to change.  When she tells them she likes wearing her ears, the friends accept that.

Emily makes some mistakes in this book--some BIG mistakes.  They're in middle school now and boys are a much bigger deal and one keeps texting her.  In fact, he's the boy everybody is in love with.  They start by texting pictures back and forth, innocent pictures, until it's not so innocent anymore and suddenly Emily's world has been turned upside down.  Tabitha and Bridge are the best two friends to help her through this.  I honestly found myself wishing that every person out there--boy or girl--got to have friends as strong and true as this trio.

In middle school there are so many issues kids go through as they are learning how to grow up.  They're no longer little kids, but they're not in high school yet and it's really a confusing and rough time.  This book shows kids from different walks of life, with different family dynamics and skills and experiences who are all coming together.  It shows a positive view of a group of female friends.  No stereotypical bickering, fighting over boys, or being generally mean and demeaning towards each other or other girls.

I was a little confused for the first few sections because in addition to Bridge, Emily, and Tabitha, we also have another female voice who is unnamed until the end.  It was confusing as her story kind of linked up with the others, but it was written in second person.  I think it was supposed to put me in her place and help me enter the story, but it didn't.  I can see how it could really confuse someone who isn't as skilled a reader.

If you enjoyed this review, please consider following!

AudioBook Review: The Sin Eater's Daughter

The Sin Eater's Daughter

Melinda Salisbury

Performed by Amy Shiels

Scholastic, 2015

Genre: YA, Fantasy

Source: borrowed through SYNC--thank you!

Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

Twylla spends her days locked in a tower, surrounded by guards.  No one will touch her, not even her guards, because every moon she must drink a poison to prove to everyone that she has been chosen by the gods.  As such, it is her job to execute traitors to the throne by touching them and thus poisoning them.  Twylla is lonely.  Even the prince, who is immune to her touch and her betrothed, has not spent much time with her, or even there at the castle.  When a new guard comes to watch over her, Twylla begins to learn more about the world outside of her country, and thus more about the world within the palace.  At the same time, the prince is finally beginning to take notice of her, leaving Twylla with a choice: her country or her heart.

There was a lot going on here.  Twylla loves her guard who just doesn't seem to get that he has to play by some rules or he'll make things really messy for both himself and Twylla.  She's betrothed to the prince.  Although he is a spoiled young prince who speaks down to those around him, doesn't seem too terrible--next to his mother at least.  The queen is a horrible and awful woman and that is obvious within the first chapter or so.  She is evil.  Twylla tries to stay out of her way, but it's impossible because the queen seems to seek her out in order to make her miserable.  One day she will take her place.  

Oh yeah, and then there is all this information about the sin eater, Twylla's mother, who is paid to eat at a person's burial in order to ingest all of the deceased's sins.  We learn through many of Twylla's musings and flashbacks that certain foods are representative of certain sins and that there is an order to the eating.  If Twylla had not been discovered as the chosen one of the gods, she would be training to be the next sin eater.  The whole sin eater part didn't really have an importance to the story, except it helped to show the belief system of their people.  

I wasn't really that thrilled and kept waiting for this book to be over.   Both love interests were annoying, neither one really representing the true choice she should have gone with.  Twylla herself was somewhat annoying as well.  I was waiting for her to DO something.  Make a choice.  Say something.  Fight back.  Anything, but she felt very passive in all instances.  At one point I expected her to break out of her tower, but instead someone always comes for her and lets her out.  The only time she leaves on her own, she wanders back to the prince.

Thanks for reading and if you enjoyed this review, please follow me!

  

Book Review: George

George
Alex Gino
Scholastic Press, 2015
Genre: Middle Grade, LGBTQ, Realistic
Source: Borrowed from public library
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

George feels like he's a girl, but all anyone sees is a boy.  They call her a boy, refer to how she'll be a man one day, and expect her to do things a boy would do--like use the boys' restroom.  It's hard and she has no one to confide in, to talk about how she feels.  So she hides the teen magazines in her closet and keeps her thoughts to herself.

When their teacher announces auditions for the class play of Charlotte's Web, George knows she has to have the part of Charlotte.  Her best friend Kelly helps her out, but how can George show everyone what she already knows--that she is a girl?

This is an important book about a transgender youth who is struggling.  You can see how miserable George is from the first pages when she's hiding magazines in the back of her closet, terrified that her brother or mom might find them.  She tries to make herself unseen by the bullies at school, but often fails at this.  She thinks that she's found the perfect solution to her problem--the play.

George has a great mom who works hard and does her best to make sure both of her children are happy, but she doesn't really see George for who she is.  Her older brother is a teenager who is more concerned with his life, but he's not a jerk.  He's actually pretty accepting.  Plus she has Kelly, her best friend.  WIthout Kelly, George would not have had the courage to do what she wanted.  I loved their relationship--especially because it wasn't a perfect friendship.  It was a real friendship.

I highly recommend this book, especially for middle schoolers.  It's a story about acceptance and understanding of someone who is different.  It may even be a book that helps someone feel more confident in being who they are, which is what George ultimately wants--to be who she is.  I also think this is a great book for anyone who works with youth.  It's a quick and easy read that can help remind you of your role in a child's life, even if it is for a short time.

If you liked this review, please consider following me!

Book Review: The Elite and The One

The Elite
by Kiera Cass
Harper Teen, 2013
Genre: YA, Romance
Source: borrowed from library
Rating: 2 out of 5

The One
by Kiera Cass
Harper Teen, 2014
Genre: YA, Romance
Source: borrowed from library
Rating: 3 out of 5

In the second and third installments of The Selection series, America Singer is still in the race for Prince Maxon's heart.  While he's giving her time to come to terms with her feelings for him and whether or not she wants to be queen, America is just trying to manage her way through the competition.  Aspen's appointment as her guard doesn't help her figure out her feelings because every time he is near her, she remembers him and how he loved her.  Plus, Maxon is spending a lot of time with the other girls, now that there's only six of them, and America doesn't like it.  It isn't until she takes a risk and Maxon's father wants her gone, does she realize just how much she truly does love the prince and how she will fight to be the one he chooses.  Now she has the King out to sabotage her even more than the three remaining girls.  America finds herself in the middle of political upheaval, trying to win a competition, help her country, and stay true to herself.

I decided to include review for both of these books together because I raced through them within a few days in order to find out what happened in the end.  I will say that The Elite was even more of the same, with America beginning to get a little more interesting.  With six girls in the competition, it became more aggravating that Maxon continued to date all these girls and America (as well as the others) was expected to sit around and wait for him.  What helped move the story along was the addition of some political and moral dilemmas America finds herself in and how she reacts towards them.  Each reaction causes more problems for her and those she loves.  But it wasn't until the last book that I really felt that this took shape and America's role in her country became solidified--even if she doesn't become queen.  Also there some surprising parts that I wasn't expecting to happen.

The most annoying parts of the book were the love triangle-ness, which somewhat diminishes within the third book, but not really.  It would be more accurate to say it just got too complicated and muddled to be a triangle anymore.  What made me enjoy the third book was how America came into her own and stuck by her beliefs in all ways that she was given a chance to do so.

I will not go on and read the other books that deal with future children of Illea.  For me, the door is closed on the Selection since I now know how this selection ended.  That's all I needed and now I can move on to another book.

If you liked this post please Follow Me!

Audiobook Review: The Selection

The Selection
Kiera Cass
Performed by: Amy Rubinate
Harper Teen, 2012
Genre: YA, Romance
Source: Purchased
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

America Singer is a Five, an artist and is in love with Aspen, who is a Six.  They meet in secret and hope to one day be able to marry, but America knows her mother would never approve.  When the King and Queen announce that The Selection will soon begin, America is pressured by her family and Aspen to enter.  She does, hoping to get them off her back, but when she is picked as one of The Selected, America must leave her family, her life as a Five, and travel to the capital of Illea where she will compete against thirty five other girls from many different castes for the heart of Prince Maxon.  Although she doesn't want to, America goes because she knows it will help her family financially, planning to keep herself there as long as possible without actually vying for the prince's affection.  When she meets Prince Maxon, though, America realizes that maybe she will have to rethink her plans, but can she really compete against all these other girls, some of whom are Twos?

Illea is a country set up in a caste system, allowing people within a caste to only perform certain jobs, therefore keeping them stuck financially, except if they are able to marry up or, in rare cases, to buy their way up to the next level.  It's a horrible system and we see that immediately through America's home life.  Although she loves Aspen, who is a caste below her, she cannot let her family know this or they would stop her from seeing him.  If she were to marry him, she would become his caste.  The Selection is a process meant to appease the masses, allowing multiple girls from the lower castes to compete for the prince's love and ultimately the crown.  It's ridiculous.

I'm not sure why I read this book, honestly.  Many of my students have read it and a few friends and everyone loved it, but I kept cringing at the comparison to The Bachelor.  I cannot stand that show (sorry if you're a fan).  So why did I read it?  Peer pressure.  I opted to listen to it instead on my runs, thinking that might make it better.  I'm not sure it did because I was not a fan of the performance itself.  What I did enjoy was the buildup of whether or not America would stay and whether or not Maxon would let her. Although I am pretty sure how it's all going to end up, there is enough back and forth that I can't tell just HOW it will happen.

Some things I'm not a fan of: the love triangle.  OH MY GOSH the love triangle.  I am so annoyed by America's back and forth of Aspen to Maxon and back to Aspen, but not when Maxon is with her, then it's back to him again.  Ugh.  Plus, the whole thing where Maxon is dating multiple women at the same time, but America is forbidden to even be thinking about or communicating with someone else is so....annoying.  It truly bothers me.  And as I just finish reading the second book and am already on book three, I'm even more annoyed by all of this silliness.  Because that's what it is.  Silly.

Yet here I am, needing to find out what happens.  Wanting to know how she ends up with Maxon, because at this point (knowing there are books out already about their future children and whatnot) it's obvious that will happen.  So there is something to be said about the quality of the story because it is keeping me interested.  I do wish they had gotten someone else to read this audiobook, though.  I think I may have enjoyed it more than I did.  I chose to read  the second and third one instead of listening to them.

Please consider following me for more reviews and bookish writings.

Book Review: The Star-Touched Queen

The Star-Touched Queen
Roshani Chokshi
St. Martin's Griffin, 2016
Genre: Fantasy, YA, Romance
Source: Purchased
Rating: 1.5 out of 5


Maya has been cursed with a horoscope promising death and destruction in her future marriage, almost promises that she'll live out her life as she pleases, without being married off to help her father's kingdom.  But then she's told that she will choose her future husband in a ceremony and that the choice she makes will determine how her kingdom will survive.  She chooses Amar.  He takes her into his kingdom, a magical place with portals to other lands and secret doors locked to her until the moon has completed it's phase.  Maya is almost certain that behind those doors are truths that she should know and she questions her choice to follow Amar.  As she unravels her past and the past lives before that, Maya begins to understand that there is much more to this world and her place within it.

I loved the description of this book and it really is what pulled me in, but this book wasn't what I expected.  I got lost quite a lot in the flowery descriptions which really put me out of the story.  In the first chapters she's in her father's kingdom and dealing with the other women in the harem who have ostracized her based on her horoscope.  This part felt real to me.  There was still some mysticism with a mysterious visitor.  I even went along when Maya and Amar travel to another realm, but then nothing seemed concrete at that point.  I couldn't find anything in which to ground myself.  There is so much flowery language coupled with the strange mysticism and unknown that it was just too much.

Although I did finish, I was really waiting for it make more sense.  I had a difficult time with this one.

If you like this review, please consider following me!

Book Review: The Other Wes Moore

The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates
Wes Moore
Spiegle & Grau, 2011
Genre: Nonfiction, Memoir
Source: Borrowed
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

What It's All About

Two boys with the same name, living in similar neighborhoods not very far from each other, without fathers in their lives.  So how come one ended up with a Rhodes Scholar and successful career and the other is serving a life sentence in prison for murder?  Where did things change for these young men who grew up with so many similarities?  Wes Moore chronicles his life and also the other Wes Moore's life, piecing together different periods of their lives and presenting them side by side.  He doesn't offer answers, but shows how each of their lives allowed for different paths at various points in time and where those paths led them.  

My Thoughts

I was drawn into The Other Wes Moore almost immediately.  The story of both men's lives was heartbreaking at times and I would look out at my class as I was reading, wondering which way my students would go.  Although I don't teach in an inner city school, I see the same things with kids being pulled into bad choices and parents who are desperately trying to do their best, but also trying to make enough money to keep a roof over their heads and be there to help with homework.  Would my words be enough today?  Did my short temper earlier just make it easier for someone to take a different path?

What I liked about this book was that the author didn't give a reason for the difference.  He simply showed the differences that were there.  Both boys had many of the same or at least similar experiences, but the author managed to find himself a Rhodes Scholar, interning at the White House, and a successful businessman.

At the beginning of each chapter, snippets of conversations between the Wes's are shared as they discuss different aspects of their lives.  These all take place in prison as the author visits the man who shares his name in prison. They have insightful discussions that cause the author to consider his own beliefs and understanding of the world.

Overall, I think The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates is an important read for everyone, especially people who work with youth.

Please consider following me if you enjoyed this review!

Book Review: The Rose and the Dagger

The Rose and the Dagger
Renee Ahdieh
G.P. Putnam's Sons, 2016
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Romance
Source: Purchased
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

What It's All About

Shahrzad has been torn apart from Khalid, but is reunited with her family and trying to find a way that she can make her way back to her true love.  The problem is that she has found herself in the company of Khalid's enemies and must make them believe that she is with them and not Khalid.  In secret, Shahrzad begins testing new found powers, hoping to find a way to use them to help end the war and the curse that keeps her from her caliph. But finding her way back to him, may mean abandoning her family.

My Thoughts

I was very much looking forward to reading this book and I enjoyed it for the most part, but it wasn't what The Wrath and the Dawn was.  We started hearing from Shahrzad's sister, but I wasn't really excited about that.  She ended up being more annoying.  Also, Shahrzad lost her zest and her bite, becoming lost a bit in all the many things that were happening.

There was a lot of mysticism that came into play in this book, but I never felt like it really played out.  Shahrzad goes off in search of help to break the curse and begins training to help control her powers, which seems like a big and important thing.  It seems as if this should be part of the plot, leading us to her being able to command her powers, but she doesn't seem to really use them.  It all gets pushed to the back burner and I'm wondering how necessary it was at all because it pulled me out of the story.

The ending was perfect, though!  The number of twists and turns!  All I have to say is that there were at least 3 times I had to stop reading and walk away because I was so worked up over what had happened.  Because things really go crazy at the end.

Overall, if you read The Wrath and the Dawn, you need to read The Rose and the Dagger.  Just be prepared for some heavy doses of mysticism that was only hinted at in the first book.

If you want to check out my recent discussion re-reading TWATD, then click here.
If you want to check out my original review of TWATD, then click here.

Please consider following me if you enjoyed this review!