coming of age

Nightshade by Andrea Cremer

 in Book Reviews / Books / Fantasy / Hot Off The Press / Older Readers / Otherworldly / Young Adult by

THIS BOOK HAS NOT YET BEEN RELEASED AND OFFICIALLY COMES OUT OCTOBER 19TH 2010

Summary

Calla Tor has always known what her destiny will be. She will become the Alpha Female of a werewolf pack. Her mate, Ren Laroche, was already decided. But she does agree that he is sexy. She, in her position, does not get to choose who she can love. There are rules from the Keepers. The Guardians do as they are told, but if they do well they get rewarded with education, money, cars, and food. But she and her mate, since they are alpha’s, run the pack, they fight side by side, and guard a sacred site for the Keepers. But when she saves a boy hiker from a bear, she realizes her mistake. But he then is gone. But when she goes to school, he is the new student. The Keepers want him protected. The overseer of the new pack, Logan, want the alpha female and male to watch over him. They were going to be his “Guardian.” But this strange boy invites her in. She actually loves him. But loving him could cost them their lives. But is love the ultimate sacrifice?

Review

This was an interesting book. Unexpected things happened. It was about werewolves but it was pretty realistic. This might be a read again for me. The characters were interesting because of the way they were described. I thought that the story’s base line was interesting with the she and he wolf and then a human in between. There was quite a lot of blood mentioned in the book. This is because when a Guardian is severely injured with a magic weapon, they have to drink another guardians blood. There is a ginormous arachnid in the book and there are some other squeamish parts. The violence is my only complaint about the book. There was a lot of it. There are also creatures which are shadows and they are kind of creepy.

Hope that my readers enjoy it when it comes out.

A Million Shades of Gray by Cynthia Kadohata

 in Book Reviews / Books / Fiction / Hot Off The Press by

Vietnam 1973. What  Y’Tin wants  in life is to be an elephant handler. But not just a handler,  the best handler in his village. He loves his elephant, Lady, and his deep devotion and attachment to her is makes him want to spend all his time with her. Though the Vietnam War has been fought in his country, and his father worked for the American Special Forces Y’Tin has had a peaceful life in his village. However, it changes suddenly with the arrival of fighters from the north who overtake his village. Everything Y’Tin thought his life was about changes.

Set in the Central Highlands of Vietnam in 1973 – 1975 this story is set in the later stages of the Vietnam War, after the United States has withdrawn and  the south of Vietnam is left to defend itself against the onslaught from the north. Cynthia Kadohata paints the details of the lives of  the Dega people of the Central Highlands  clearly and draws the reader into the joys and sadness of village life. The world of a teenage boy and his elephant comes to life in her descriptions of school, family, war.

Cynthia Kodahata weaves a story that is brutally real and engrossing. Her writing draws you in and through her words you are able to discover the world of the Highland people of Vietnam. She spares no one in setting out her story, and the American role in the later stages of the war aren’t overlooked. She doesn’t skimp on the details of the brutality of war and its impact on people, and has clearly researched the topic thoroughly. I found myself wondering several times if the content was too much for the younger reader, as the details of conflict are clearly described. However, that is what makes the books so powerful. It is a fictionalized account of what happened, and serves as a lesson to younger readers who don’t know the history, or older readers who have forgotten.

This is great writing, and it is no wonder that Cynthia Kadohata is an award-winning writer. An excellent, but sobering read.

by Guest blogger M.O.M.

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

 in Book Reviews / Books / Interesting / Older Readers / Young Adult by

Summary

In Sue Monk Kidd’s The Secret Life of Bees, 14-year-old Lily Owen, neglected by her father and isolated on their South Carolina peach farm, spends hours imagining a blissful infancy when she was loved and nurtured by her mother, Deborah, whom she barely remembers. These consoling fantasies are her heart’s answer to the family story that as a child, in unclear circumstances, Lily accidentally shot and killed her mother. All Lily has left of Deborah is a strange image of a Black Madonna, with the words “Tiburon, South Carolina” scrawled on the back. The search for a mother, and the need to mother oneself, are crucial elements in this well-written coming-of-age story set in the early 1960s against a background of racial violence and unrest. When Lily’s beloved nanny, Rosaleen, manages to insult a group of angry white men on her way to register to vote and has to skip town, Lily takes the opportunity to go with her, fleeing to the only place she can think of–Tiburon, South Carolina–determined to find out more about her dead mother.

-Amazon.com summary

Review

This was really a heart warming book. It was very sweet. This is definitely a mother-daughter book because it is really about women. This book is something that I would recommend to any girl over the age of 12. There is nothing inappropriate as such, it is just weighty issues talked about. This book I might read again because it was so good.

I had wanted to read this book this summer because it was part of my summer reading list, but my mom did not know whether it was suitable or not. She checked out about 10 websites. They all really said the same thing. They all said that it was ok for teenagers. And my personal opinion is that it is great for any girl of the ages 12 and up. I must warn you that there are some racial comments because Lily stays with African-Americans and T. Ray is racist. In the beginning of the book, there is a little violence, someone gets hit on the hit and there is some racial language again. That is the only thing to watch out for. Other wise this was a great book and I would recommend it to all girls. Boys might not like it so much because this book is about women and there are some mentions to female body parts. Otherwise it is great.

I also just wanted to mention that Sue Monk Kidd makes her characters come alive in the book. She describes them very well. I felt like Lily was alive and T. Ray was actually in the room (which was kind of scary because he was so mean). Her writing is very good and she makes the words on the page come alive. I actually felt like I was part of what was happening or was a spectator to what was happening.

I hope that you enjoy the book.

Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

 in Book Reviews / Books by

Summary

It all started when Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert wanted to adopt from the local orphanage. They asked for a boy because Matthew was getting old and they need new and younger hands on the farm. But to their dismay they got a girl. Marilla was determined to send Anne back to the orphanage but Matthew wanted to give her a chance to prove herself, and then they would decide. It took a while for Anne to win her foster mothers heart. When she finally did, Marilla was glad she kept her. After a while, Anne needed to go to school and when she went, life was awful. She was put in to corner as punishment many times and she was given a spanking when she got home but that never stopped her from being cheerful. And the addition of friends makes it an interesting book.

Review

This is a heart warming book. This is an example of the expression ‘Never judge a person by their appearance.’ That is what Marilla did. This is a very old book, and it was written around 1908, so the writing is more sophisticated. The sentences are longer, the words are complicated, and the descriptions are detailed. At first I had trouble reading it but when you read the first chapter or two, it is easier (notice how I said EASIER) to understand. This is a great book and should be read by the ages 12 and up and the grades 6 and up. This book is a book to buy. It is a keeper.

Who is L.M. Montgomery???

L.M. Montgomery (Lucy Maud) was born in Clifton P.E.I., Canada in 1874. She has a considerable body of work. She wrote one book of poetry, 23 works of fiction, an autobiography, a book on courageous women, a life’s worth of journals (5,000 pages), 450 poems, and over 500 short stories. Her most famous book was Anne of Green Gables with the heroine Anne. She died on April 24, 1942. She was buried in Cavendish P.E.I. But even to this day people still love the many books that she has written.anne-of-green-gables-cover1

My Rating of the Book: ♩♩♩♩♩

Happy Reading!!!

 

 

Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick

 in Book Reviews / Books / Fiction / Young Adult by

Summary

The boy, Steven, play the drums, he has a crush on the hottest girl at school who probably doesn’t even know he exists and is always in an argument with his younger bother, Jeffery. But when his brother gets leukemia , his whole life changes. And dangerous pie, well you will have to read the book to find out.

Review

It is a good book, but it is very depressing. If a child does not understand that life is a precious thing, then they should read this. This book should not be read by people who have had a serious illness in their family. This book is for the grade 6-8 and the age of 12-16.

Happy Reading!!!

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