My Year in Books
Dairy Queen
by Catherine Gilbert Murdock
D.J. Schwenk is a cow. No, she's not fat and not terribly ugly, but she spends her entire life doing exactly what other people expect her to do- never making decisions for herself, never standing up for what's important to her, never taking any risks. And she certainly never talks about it- not if it's important or might make trouble. Ever since her dad's been hurt and her older brothers went off to college- never to return- D.J.'s been the one keeping their dairy farm afloat. All the responsibility, all the work, it's all resting on her shoulders. And of course she does it, because who else will if she doesn't? So she drops out of sports, fails her classes, and spends all day every day working her butt off. And then Brian shows up. Brian- quarterback of the rival football team, who's soft and whiney and never has to work for anything. But if he wants to start this season his coach demands that he spend the summer training with D.J. What's in it for her? It could be the summer she learns to talk, to say what she means, and quite possibly redefine who she is.
This one keeps rolling around in my head- I really like the characters and their story. I hear there's a sequel, which I fully intend to get my hands on soon!
Peeps
by Scott Westerfield
I love this guy! He continues to write edgy, interesting, and completely original stories. I've had my fill of vampire stories lately, especially as the market has been flooded with attempts to rival the popular Twilight series. Most of them have been outrageously disappointing. But Westerfield takes a different angle with this one. 19 year old Cal, biology major and Texas native, is new to New York when he becomes infected with a life-altering parasite, which is not only incurable but also extremely contagious when not careful. Unfortunately for Cal, he infects several people close to him before he knows about his condition. As parasite-positives (PEEPS), his past girlfriends have now gone crazy and turned canabalistic as their bodies react to the parasite, transforming them into vampires. Cal is the rare exception who carries the parasite but exhibits none of the horrible symptoms. As a Carrier, Cal is recruited into the centuries-old Night Watch, where he tracks Peeps and hunts down the unfortunate victims. But all is not as it seems, and Cal soon realizes that he's not sure who his friends- or his enemies- really are.
Tamar- A Novel of Espionage, Passion, and Betrayal
by Mal Peet
Wow. This may be the most excellent book I've read in a very long time. So excellent in fact, that the minute I finished it I had to turn it back to the beginning and start re-reading bits and pieces, just to keep the magic going!
The story takes place both in World Word II Holland and in present day England. Two undercover British agents are sent into Holland to help organize the resistance against the Nazi invaders. Working under code names, Tamar and Dart are sent to a small Dutch village to help the locals organize ways to undermine the Nazi army. Working under extremely perilous conditions, the two men must work as a team to to keep the operation covert. But Tamar has had the extreme fortune of being placed in the same hideout as he was kept months before, where he fell in love with the brave and beautiful Marijke. To protect his working relationship with Dart, he says nothing of his love. But then Dart too falls in love with Marijke, and under a cloud of stress and amphetamine produced paranoia, Dart allows his jealousy to eat away at him, leading to their eventual demise.
Meanwhile- back in modern day England, 15 year old Tamar (named by her grandfather) has been left a box by her recently deceased grandfather, who threw himself off a balcony after his wife lost her battle to Alzheimer's. Inside the box is a jumble of unexplained items- a passport, a puzzle, a wad of money. Can Tamar put the pieces together to decode her grandfather's last message to her? Who was he? And what has he been hiding all these long years since the war?
Outrageously good.
Savvy
by Ingrid Law
My daughter had a sleepover this weekend, and I was in charge of staying out of their way. So I plopped myself down in an out-of-the-way corner with a box of chocolates and this rather hefty book. What a treat! Despite it's 340 pages, this story was quick and entertaining with an original story and interesting characters. Luckily for us it's set to be a Golden Sower for next year!
Mibs Beaumont is about to turn 13, which is a big year for everyone. But in the Beaumont house, 13 is the year they get their "savvy". For her older brother, Fish, it's the ability to create hurricanes. Rocket can summon electricity, Grampa Bomba can cause the earth to shake, and her mother has the savvy to do everything with perfection. Mibs doesn't know what her savvy will be, but she's hoping it will be something useful. But when her Poppa is hurt in a terrible car accident, Mibs spends her 13th birthday less worried about her savvy and more worried about making it down to the hospital to be at her father's side. This leads to a wild adventure that will help Mibs discover her savvy and change her life forever. What fun!
The Glass Cafe or, The Stripper and the State; How My Mother Started a War with the System that Made Us Kind of Rich and a Little Bit Famous
by Gary Paulsen
I'll read just about anything by Gary Paulsen, and usually I'm pretty satisfied. This story had character, but it annoyed me at the same time. It's about this kid, Tony, who's writing his story and attempting to take all his writing teacher's good advice. Tony lives with his mom, Al, who's a really good parent and also happens to be a stripper. When Tony uses some of his mother's colleagues as the subject for his artwork the state decides that Tony's mother is an unfit parent and attempts to take him away. Unfortunately for them, they don't realize what a smart and protective parent Al really is!
It's a funny and entertaining story- a very fast read, but Tony writes in run-on sentences that absolutely drove me crazy! For a kid who claims to read a lot and who obviously pays attention to his teacher's writing lessons, he needs to learn the power of the period. I'm sure those who are also struggling writers will identify with Tony's voice, but as a fan of proficient writing, it made me crazy.
Now You See It . . .
by Vivian Vande Velde
When Wendy finds a mysterious and magical pair of sunglasses in her front yard she's suddenly able to see things she's never been able to before! Spirits of the not-quite-dead, cheerleaders who appear as hags, handsome fairy princes . . . and without warning Wendy is hurled into a dangerous world where magic reigns, where lives are in danger, and where she must make decisions to force herself to find a new sense of bravery and character.
I really liked this story at the beginning. The author writes funny, sharp-witted characters, and I thought it was going to be more of an I-see-dead-people kind of story. But then the fairies and little blue men started to show up, with an added time-travel twist, and it became a little too much for me. For true fantasy lovers, this might be a great read. For me, it was a struggle to finish.
Impossible
by Nancy Werlin
Lucinda Scarborough is the daughter of a woman who got pregnant at age 18, had the baby, and went crazy. Her grandmother got pregnant at 18, had the baby, and went crazy. So did her great-grandmother and great-great-grandmother. Now Lucinda is 18 and the curse that has damned the women in her family is upon her. She discovers that in order to defeat the curse she must find a way to do three impossible tasks. But if they're impossible, how can she ever win? Is she destined to fall into the same madness as her mother?
This one's by the same author as one of our most popular books, Rules of Survival. I was excited to get my hands on it, and while I liked it, I wasn't sure I loved it. It might have been because I listened to it on audio and the narrator had an irritating voice, but I wasn't disappointed when it finally ended. If nothing else, it was unusual.
Sunrise Over Fallujah
by Walter Dean Meyers
Walter Dean Myers has a way of creating his character's voice so that they feel real, like a secret peek into their head. I was anxious to read this story because I've liked his other books so much and because, frankly, I wish I had a better understanding of what our soldiers are doing over in the war in Iraq and Afghanistan.
I wish I liked this book more, but instead I found it tedious and confusing. Maybe that was the point- maybe that's the life of a soldier- but as a reader it made for a tough read. Not my favorite, but it won't stop me from reading more by this author.
The Schwa was Here
by Neal Shusterman
Calvin Schwa is invisible. Not literally- if you look really hard, you might notice him, but most people don't see him at all. Except for Anthony Bonano, who doesn't know why, but he likes the Schwa and he wants to help him uncover his mysterious life story. Together the two of them put together a string of social experiments, which turn into a lucrative business, which ends up with them being blackmailed into working for the creepiest, most offensive guy in the neighborhood. Through a series of unfortunate events, Antonio helps uncover the events that have led to the Schwa's invisible existence. But is there a way to bring the Schwa out of his invisibility forever? What happens will change all their lives!
I have to admit, I almost didn't read this book because of the weird title. I didn't "get it". But it's one of those books that one I started, I was engaged from the beginning. It's funny, original, and absolutely entertaining. The best I've read in a long while!
March Toward the Thunder
by Joseph Bruchac
Louis Nolette is a 15-year-old Abenaki Indian who has the joined the Union army to fight in the Civil War in hopes to earn enough money and respect to buy a plot of land for his family. He becomes a part of the Fighting 69th Brigade, a fierce Irish infantry unit famous for their bravery in battle. Through his eyes we see the horrors of combat, the daily torture of war, and occasionally the miracles that exist even despite the bloody battles.
This was a pretty good read, but not an easy one. Because so many of the characters are Irish, Bruchac uses authentic language and sentence structure, which makes the book pretty difficult to follow at times. It gives interesting insight into the way Native Americans were thought of at the time and a fresh look at the Civil War.
Car Trouble
by Jeanne DuPrau
Boring and predictable.
I love DuPrau's The City of Ember, but this one totally disappoints. Boring characters, boring plot- it's a wonder I finished it at all.
Franny Parker
by Hannah Roberts McKinnon
This was the other preview book I was assigned to read, and while it was a charming old-fashioned story, I don't think it's a book that most middle-school girls will find believable. It is saccharine sweet with characters that are simply too good, too colorful, too charming to believe. Franny lives in a small rural town with her family. Most families are feeling the strain of a terrible drought, and Franny has her hands full running her own animal hospital. When new neighbors move in down the road, Franny quickly finds a connection with the boy who lives there. But when his dad shows up to make trouble, Franny has to find a way to help him. I didn't believe it and I didn't love it. I'd pass on this one.
The Deep Freeze of Bartholomew Tullock
by Alex Williams
This one was sent to me by the district office to review way back in September. it has sat on my desk untouched ever since. I was even tempted to cheat a look up a review from Amazon to pass along with it- but alas, I'm not a cheater. So I finally forced myself to pick it up and read it over winter break- and what a read it was! I can totally see this one made into a movie some day- it's got a great creative plot, lots of twists and turns, and amazing adventure. It takes place in the land of Pinrut, which has been plagued by snowstorms for as long as almost anyone can remember. Our main characters, the Breeze family, are genius fan makers in a place where no one needs a fan. Desperate for money and on the verge of losing their house to the villainous millionaire Bartholomew Tullock, the Breeze family must find a way to save themselves and their entire community from his evil ways. Fabulously entertaining, this is a story that everyone should pick up!
Swindle
by Gordon Korman
Griffin Bing has always been the Man with the Plan- the Guy with a Scheme for everything. But sixth grade is turning out to be a bad year for him and his plans. His mom and dad are facing financial troubles, and it looks like they're going to have to sell the house and move away. So when he finds an old Babe Ruth rookie baseball card in an old abandoned house, Griffin thinks all their problems might be solved. When he takes the card to a dealer, he gets swindled into accepting a hundred and twenty bucks for it, only to find out hours later that its actually worth close to a million dollars. To get the card back and save his family it's going to take the plan of all plans- a masterpiece of scheming. The result is a suspenseful and entertaining page-turner that twists and turns and doesn't disappoint. Can't wait to read the next in the series, Zoo Break!
Perfect
by Natasha Friend
13-year-old Isabelle Lee hates her family, hates her life, hates everything about herself. Ever since her dad unexpectantly died a little over a year ago, everything has turned for the worse. Her mother cries all the time, and won't even talk about her dad. Her little sister is a terror. And every time she looks in the mirror all she can see is how disgusting she looks. The only thing that fills her emptiness is eating. Eating and eating and eating. But she can't allow herself to be fat on top of all her other problems, so Isabelle secretly learns to purge. When her mom finds out, Isabelle is forced to attend "Group" where she's forced to go through lame psycho-babble with a bunch of freaks. Except for one. A girl who doesn't belong there- just like Isabelle. A girl who, unlike Isabelle, has the perfect life. Ashley Barnum's the girl Isabelle has always wanted to be. But sometimes perfect isn't all it's cracked up to be . . . Sometimes perfect is just really good acting . . . What will it take for Isabelle to realize the price of perfection? Is it a price she's willing to pay? I'm looking forward to reading the sequel!
The Dead and the Gone
This is a companion novel to one of my favorites, Life as We Knew It. Once again, a giant meteor has struck the moon, throwing it out of it's orbit and completely turning the world upside down. All coastal cities are destroyed by giant tidal waves, satellite and communications are down, and people are desperate. Volcanoes erupt, and the ash blocks out the sun, causing dramatic changes in the weather which cause crops to fail and food to become dangerously scarce. This story revolves around Alex, a 17-year-old Puerto Rican New Yorker, who's father is out of the country and who's mother leaves for work just before the devastation hits and is never heard from again. It's up to him to make decisions and care for his two younger sisters, but every decision he makes seems to create more problems and frustration. It's a frightening world he now lives in, and it's up to him to save his family. It's a gripping story, one that I couldn't bring myself to put down until the final desperate ending!
The Shining
by Stephen King
We spent fall break up in Estes Park where we visited the famous Stanley Hotel, inspiration of this Stephen King classic horror novel. We started by watching the movie, which was pretty dumb, but then toured the hotel and watched a creepy show on supposedly real ghosts at the hotel. I finally had to read the book myself. While this is definitely not a book you'd find in our middle school library, it was an entertaining and satisfyingly creepy read. Once again, the book was ever-so-much better than the movie, and amazingly different. Here's to REDRUM!
Slam
by Walter Dean Meyers
17-year old Slam is counting on basketball to be his ticket out of the neighborhood, but life is always throwing him complications. While he's got talent, he needs to get his life together if he's going to make anything of himself. There's a reason this book has won prestigious awards- it's got an amazing voice and an inside view into the head of a struggling kid from the inner city.
What I Call Life
by Jill Wolfson Cal Lavendar knows what she is and isn't. She the author of her own story. She's the girl who handles things, the girl who doesn't let other people get to her. But when her mom shows her crazy side in the middle of the public library, Cal finds herself in a life that isn't hers- somebody else's story. Placed in a group home where everyone has their own theories about life, Cal is forced to look beyond herself and accept a new version of her life story. This book cleverly weaves life lessons into the stories told by the group home manager, known only as the Knitting Lady. While I didn't find the dialogue between the girls completely believable, it was a story worth reading.
Zombie Blondes
Rarely do I ever NOT finish a book- even when it's not a favorite. But I just couldn't spend another minute with this one. The writing was so bad! The characters were weak and unbelievable, and the wording was so horrible that I had to read and re-read paragraphs over and over just to make them make sense. Attractive cover, but a book I'll never recommend- it's not worth the time.