I'm a fan of Victoria Miles and her work. I enjoyed Mimi Power, but there were times when I wanted to kill Waby, the little sister. I don't recollect my two younger brothers or two younger sisters or either of my own two children being nearly so annoying! (They are, after all, still alive.) Mimi Power is 10 years old and has a seriously irritating 3 year old sister. Waby, (Lily Jean) can ruin any event or outing with instant hysteria when she doesn't get her own way. This causes problems for their whole family, but Mimi in particular since she narrates the story. If you are a fan of Junie B Jones you will probably like this book. As annoying as she is, I admit that some of Waby's antics had me chuckling. One chapter titled "Waby Goes to the Dentist" contains one sentence. "I don’t think I have to tell you how this went." In another incident their father brought home a very expensive piece of prehistoric poop and Waby got her hands on it. I laughed out loud. I read parts of it to my partner much to his disgruntlement, since he was reading a "serious" book. My complaint is that even while she worried about her art and buying clothes, Mimi herself didn't feel real to me. All of the humor and most of the grief comes about because of Waby. Perhaps it is because of this that Mimi's character never seems developed fully. What does come through is that these two girls love each other. (Perhaps this is why all little sisters and brothers survive?) In spite of my piddling complaints, I can think of at least 5 kids off the top of my head I would recommend this book to. This feels like the first in a series. I hope to get to know Mimi better in later books. I'll read them, if only to find out what kind of mischief Waby gets herself into.
“Life can be long or short, it all depends on how you choose to live it. It's like forever, always changing. For any of us our forever could end
in an hour, or a hundred years from now. You can never know for sure,
so you'd better make every second count. What you have to decide is how
you want your life to be. If your forever was ending tomorrow, is this
how you'd want to have spent it?” This is my first Sarah Dessen novel. It won't be my last. While it may not have made me "sawooon," it was still a delightful, light read. It's about grieving and getting through it. It's about trying to be perfect and letting go enough to realize that being who you are is good enough. It's about friendship and what happens to us without it. It's about family. It's about loss, acceptance and forgiveness.
Macy's father died traumatically. Since then she and her mother have lived together in a shallow, sterile existence. Macy works hard to be perfect so her mother won't worry about her. On the outside she looks "fine, just fine," but really, Macy is miserable. Her sister, Caroline, who has successfully dealt with her
grief and been able to move on, does her best to support them, to help
them realize that, “Grieving doesn't make you imperfect. It makes you human,”
but they are trapped in their safe, regimented world. Then when Macy makes new friends and starts to be happy again, her worried mother grounds her. It looks like not even Caroline's advice can save her. There were times while I was reading this book when I was very angry with Macy's mother. Honestly, I suspect I would been much more vocal about my unhappiness than Macy was. In the end I realized that perhaps Macy's way was better. It was certainly better for Macy and her mother.
If you like realistic fiction that can make you cry, you will like this one. This book is probably more of a teen (12 +) than tween book. Mostly this is because there are parties where drinking takes place.
I tried hard to read Appelt's, The Underneath, but the evil in it terrified me. In spite of that, I have had numerous children come to me with the book clasped tight against their heart, asserting it is the best book they have ever read. So when Keeper came along, I didn't know quite what to think. Honestly, I avoided making a decision and consequently never purchased it. When I found it as an audio book in the public library, I decided I should give it a try.
I'm so so so glad I did.
First off, it is truly a beautifully written book.
It's a story about an odd sort of family who live on a road that borders the Gulf of Mexico. Keeper is a young girl who has had a DISASTER of a day. It was all because the crabs for the special blue moon gumbo told her they wanted to be set free. As a result of listening to them she ended up hurting all the people she loved most in the world. To make amends, she set off in the dead of the night of a blue moon in search of her mermaid mother.
Second, It is truly a beautifully written book.
It's a dreamy whirlpool of a story. With each
drowsy rotation the story picks up and combines details into an increasingly complex, richer narrative. It spirals round and round revealing itself through the different perspectives of the characters. The reader, pulled deeper and
deeper into its world, hangs on the cusp of that vortex. Each time it winds itself back to Keeper, not only do we learn more about her, we also see her spin closer and closer to calamity.
Third, It is truly a beautifully written book.
The language is pure poetry. It is magical, tense and harrowing. This should mean I could probably sell a large number of kids on it. But at the same time it is V E R Y slow paced. It edges snaillike towards the final climax - and even that is satisfying, but not spectacular. This is more of a book about characters and how they came to be who and where they are than it is about plot.
I will most certainly get a copy for the library. I am positive I will find enough readers to justify its purchase. Perhaps I can convince a teacher to read it out loud to his or her class.
I was completely engaged by the reality and inhabitants of Goredd, a world populated by dragons and humans. An uneasy peace between the two groups has prospered over the last 40 years. Just as the anniversary is approaching, a royal prince is murdered.
Seraphina, the protagonist, is half dragon and half human. Her life depends upon keeping this secret. Yet her gift for music, inherited from her dragon mother, has brought her to the notice of the human court.
She is drawn into the murder investigation as companion to the royal guardsman, Prince Lucian Kiggs, to determine if dragons were involved in the prince's death. Eventually they discover that this is just the first move in a convoluted plot to destroy their world as they know it.
I was gripped by the plot, but seduced by the passages about music. I became the musical instrument wherein Hartman's words played haunting refrains and melodies.
Last Airlift won the non-fiction Red Cedar Club Award this year. All the students at Dickens who have read it enjoyed it immensely. I even have a couple creating a book trailer for it. Because I hadn't yet got around to reading it, last weekend I took it home. It is indeed a great and emotional read. (Imagine me sitting on the ferry trying to surreptitiously wipe tears from my eyes.) It deals gently with a difficult topic. It is the true story of Tuyet, a young girl who was on the last plane taking children (mostly babies and toddlers) out of Vietnam just as the war was coming to a close. According to the notes at the end of the book, the Vietcong were planning on fostering all the children with families and killing the ones that were either half American or not perfect. Tuyet, because of her deformed leg and foot, was sent with the rest of the younger children out of the country. This book follows her on her journey from her home in the orphanage to a new home in Canada. It helps us understand how challenging it was for her even when she reached the safety of her new country and a loving family. This would make a great companion book to Inside Out and Back Again.
I am nearly converted to science fiction fandom after reading this book. Like many of the titles I have been reading recently, it was recommended to me many times by students. We have two copies in the library and it is almost always checked out. I snatched it up on Thursday to bring home and read on the weekend. I lied and told one of the kids that I had no idea where it was. I'm really glad I did. I was surprised by how easily I slipped into Robison Wells' world. I started and finished it in one session. Benson, a 17 year old foster kid, applied for a scholarship to Maxfield Academy, a private boarding school, and got in. He hoped his life would improve. Once there he discovered that not only is life more restricted, it is also dangerous. People are not who they seem to be. Escape seems impossible, yet not escaping will probably mean certaindeath. I admit to being terrified on more than one occasion. This book has it all: hints of romance, suspense, tension, and violence. It has a remarkable plot twist. It was indeed a great read. However, I must admit that I am now freaked out that some younger readers in grade 4 have been reading (and recommending) it. I read somewhere that adults read differently from children. As an adult and a parent I am keenly aware of what might happen to thecharacters. Children on the other hand read the same material as a great adventure. I hope this is true.
Still I am in a quandarysince it has been on a shelf to be read by any student. Now I am not sure this was a good idea. I don't think I can remove it, but I might get younger readers to get their parents' permission before reading it.
Sometimes a great book needs its time. This is true about this one for me. I tried a couple of times to get into it and kept getting stalled at the part where Piper McCloud and her parents were at the the July 4th picnic, Piper's first social outing. I have been told by numerous readers (including my mother!) that it is a really really good read. I conceded that they might be right since since the two copies we have in the library are always checked out. I used this as an excuse to not try it again. Truthfully, I probably still wouldn't have read it except for two things. First, a grade seven girl at the school returned a library copy and asked if I had read it. I confessed I had tried but couldn't get past the picnic. She told me that is the closest thing to boring in the book and that it got a lot more exciting after that. Second, on the very same day, Piper, a grade 3 girl at our school actually brought me her copy to read. I believe the Gods and Goddesses were trying to tell me it was this book's time for me. I came home from work and started to read. I stopped to eat supper and clean up the kitchen afterwards. Then I went back to reading. I apologize for not finishing this book earlier. It is indeed brilliant. Piper McCloud's parents had been married for 25 years before Betty discovered she was pregnant. Piper arrived soon after. She seemed to be a normal baby until she started floating off her bed and around the house. Then there was a time that she floated outside the house and was carried off by a storm. Betty and Joe attempted to keep her a secret by home schooling her and keeping her away from other people. They forbade her to fly, but Piper couldn't stop herself.
Eventually she was discovered and taken to a facility called I.N.S.A.N.E. by Dr. Hellion. There she met other children who possess special powers. At first Piper was content. Soon she came to realize that things at the facility were not what they seemed and that they were all in terrible danger. The book is brilliantly written. I have no excuse for not becoming enthralled by it earlier. The Midwestern farming setting is beautifully portrayed. All the characters, even the evil Dr. Hellion are well developed. Piper is a spunky indomitable character you can't help but admire. It is nearly impossible not to fall have in love with Conrad. I dare you to read this book and not care about all of them. Forester has created a story that has such an authentic feel to it, you can nearly believe it is real. On the one hand this book is an engaging adventure novel. On the other it is about learning to accept who you are. It is about coming to terms with the fact that life and people are full of changes. It's about friendship and love and the power we wield when we embrace them. I am going to be pushing this book at all the readers at the school.
