Wonder by R. J. Palacio - BOOK REVIEW

Title:  Wonder
Author:  R. J. Palacio
Publisher:   Alfred Knopf Books for Young Readers, a division of Random House
Release Date:  February 14, 2012
Hardcover, 320 pages
ISBN 10:    0375869026
ISBN 13:  9780375869020
The Book Depository / Amazon

Goodreads description:

I won't describe what I look like. Whatever you're thinking, it's probably worse.

August (Auggie) Pullman was born with a facial deformity that prevented him from going to a mainstream school—until now. He's about to start 5th grade at Beecher Prep, and if you've ever been the new kid then you know how hard that can be. The thing is Auggie's just an ordinary kid, with an extraordinary face. But can he convince his new classmates that he's just like them, despite appearances?

R. J. Palacio has written a spare, warm, uplifting story that will have readers laughing one minute and wiping away tears the next. With wonderfully realistic family interactions (flawed, but loving), lively school scenes, and short chapters, Wonder is accessible to readers of all levels.

My Take: 

What a wonder of a book!

First sentence:  I know I'm not an ordinary ten-year-old kid.

August (Auggie) is 10-year-old born with a cranio-facial abnormality that, in spite of who he is inside, makes him stand out in a crowd.

This is the story of his first year in school, told in the first person through various viewpoints - Auggie, his sister Olivia(Via), her boyfriend Justin, her friend Miranda, and Auggie's friends Jack and Summer.

I love how this story is told in a realistic, "that's just the way it is" fashion - even Via, who is a teenager, pretty much rolls with the fact that most of the attention goes to Auggie - with all of the surgeries that he has had, that's just to be expected.  She's always stuck up for him, and never, until this first year of her going to a new high school, felt at all ashamed of his appearance.

Auggie?  Well, he's just a great kid - a Star Wars fan, an XBox-playing, joke-making, pretty smart little dude who loves his family and their dog Daisy, bought off of a homeless guy for $20 by Auggie's father.  He has a loving and imperfect family, he doesn't feel sorry for himself (much), and seeing the world through his eyes made this reader even more grateful and appreciative.

Of course we run into the casually (and not so casually) cruel kids and adults, but Auggie, who wasn't too keen on the idea of going to school, manages to make some friends, and, if he doesn't blend in, at least people get used to him.  Then a boy he thought was his friend seems to turn against him, and we all feel the hurt.  Another boy starts a bullying campaign, and here is where we see Auggie's true strength come to the fore.  His friendships are tested, and his friends make the reader proud.

At the end of this book, and throughout the last pages, I was wiping away tears, the kind of tears inspired by hope and a touch of the happy.

This book is geared to middle readers (8-12 years old), but is definitely one that everyone should read.  Teachers, homeschoolers, parents, and even adults - pick this one up - you will love it as much as I did.

And you will LOVE Auggie!  This one will definitely be showing up on my "Best of" list for 2012; it's a winner all around.

QUOTES (from an ARC; may be different in final copy):

Auggie:  I know ordinary kids don't make other ordinary kid run away screaming in playgrounds.

Auggie:  I think it's like the Cheese Touch in "Diary of a Wimpy Kid".  The kids in that story were afraid they'd catch the cooties if they touched the old moldy cheese on the basketball court.  At Beecher Prep, I'm the old moldy cheese.

Summer:  So I just went over and sat with him.  Not a biggie.  I wish people would stop trying to turn it into something major.
He's just a kid.  The weirdest-looking kid I've ever seen, yes.  But just a kid.

Writing:  5 out of 5 stars

Plot:  5  out of 5 stars

Characters:  5 out of 5 stars

Reading Immersion:  5  out 5 stars

BOOK RATING:  5  out of 5 stars

BLOGGERS:  Have you reviewed this book? If so, please feel free to leave a link to your review in the comments section; I will also add your link to the body of my review.

Read an excerpt

BUY IT:  At Amazon, The Book Depository, through the publisher's website,  and through other on-and-off-line booksellers.

One of my listed titles for the 2012 150+ Reading Challenge

Disclosure:  I  received a  complimentary eGalley of this title from the publisher through Netgalley to facilitate my review.  No other compensation was received and I was not required to post a positive review.

Ten Rules for Living with my Sister by Ann Martin - BOOK REVIEW

Title:  Ten Rules for Living with my Sister
Author:  Ann Martin
Publisher:   Feiwel and Friends, a division of Macmillan
Release Date:  September 27, 2011
Hardcover, 240 pages
ISBN 10:    031236766X
ISBN 13:  9780312367664
The Book Depository / Amazon

Goodreads description:

Pearl’s older sister Lexie is in eighth grade and has a boyfriend. Pearl’s only boyfriend is the family’s crabby cat, Bitey.  Lexie is popular. Pearl is not, mostly because of the embarrassing Three Bad Things that happened in school and which no one has forgotten. Everything Pearl does seems to drive Lexie crazy. On top of that, their grandfather is moving into their family’s apartment and taking over Pearl’s room. How will these sisters share without driving one another crazy?

Pearl is good at making lists of rules, but sometimes, life doesn’t play by the rules!

My Take: 

Pearl Littlefield is nine years old and in 4th grade.  Her best (and only) friend is Justine Lebarro, who's seven years old and in 1st grade (for the second time).  Lexie is Pearl's older sister, thirteen years old and in 8th grade.  Pearl wants be be as good at or better at something (anything) than Lexie.  Pearl's mom is a writer of children's books who works from home and her father is a university professor of economics.

Add in a grouchy neighbor (Mrs. Mott), who hates dogs and kids, and Pearl has about all she can do to remember NOT to do "underwear visits" to Lexie's room (otherwise, a "No Pearl" sign goes up on Lexie's door), and find a way to keep out of Mrs. Mott's way.

Pearl loves lists, like this one:

Five Reasons Lexie Thinks She's So Great

1.  She almost gets straight A's.
2.  She has a boyfriend and his name is Dallas, which is not a plain name like Bob or Jim.
3.  She has a best friend who is her own age, plus more friends, including the two Emmas.
4. She is allowed to go places without a grown-up.  Of course, she has to stay in our neighborhood, but she can still to to the movies and to stores and over to her friends' apartments, where they put on nail polish.
5. She has her own cell phone and her own computer and her own KEY TO THE APARTMENT.

When Pearl's Daddy Bo (her grandfather) has a fall and breaks his shoulder, her parents decide that Daddy Bo has to live with them until an opening comes in a good assisted living facility.  For Pearl and Lexie, this means that they will have to move in together, which makes Pearl happy and Lexie .. well, not so much :)  Pearl makes up a new list, "Ten Rules for Living with my Sister", which she hopes will make it easier for them to get along.  One of the rules (#3) reads:  Try not to tease Lexie, sometimes this is hard because she says stupid things.

This is such a fun book; even though the protagonist is a girl, it would be a great book for a boy middle reader as well.  Pearl is such a cool kid.  From her unique perspective, she chronicles her Daddy Bo's slow descent into what seems to this adult reader to be Alzheimer's Disease, even ending up clear across town at Daddy Bo's old house which has been sold.  Her relationship with her sister Lexie teeters between adulation and pestering (typical for siblings with this age difference - I have 3 girls 5 years apart myself).  She is artistic, creative, and full of mischief, even while she tries her best to do the right thing.

This adult reader smiled and even laughed as she read, and I guarantee that this one will be a hit with anyone who loves a vivacious, witty, and, at times, bratty, protagonist.

QUOTES (from an ARC; may be different in final copy):

I stood in the hall and called, "Lexie!  Oh, Lexie!  How long is the silent treatment going to last?"  I counted to five.  "Lexie!  Oh, Lexie!  I said, how long is the silent treatment going to last?"  I waited five more seconds.  "Lexie!  Oh, Lexie!  How long is-"
Lexie flung her door open so fast the the NO PEARL sign almost blew off.  "I DON'T KNOW!  UNTIL I'M NOT MAD ANYMORE, OKAY?" she yelled.

....I really, really, really, really, really, really, really wanted to move into hers.  I hardly ever even got to see inside her room.  The door was usually closed and those signs were usually hanging.  Here was my chance to live in her room.  To observe my big sister up close, as if Lexie were an animal in the woods and I were a nature specialist with a fancy camera.

"Pearl Littlefield, whose shoes are those?" asked Mrs. Mott with her squinty eyes fastened on the sneakers.  I don't know why Mrs. Mott always calls kids by both of their names.
"They're my grandfather's, Sheila Mott," I replied.
Mrs. Mott shrugged up her shoulders.  I was sure she had more questions for me, but my rudeness had quieted her.  As the elevator doors were opening, though, she said, "Just remember who you're talking to."  (I could see that her lips were ready to add "Pearl Littlefield" to the end of her sentence, but she thought better of it.)

Writing:  4.5 out of 5 stars

Plot:   4 out of 5 stars

Characters:  4.5 out of 5 stars

Reading Immersion:   4 out 5 stars

BOOK RATING:  4.25 out of 5 stars

BLOGGERS:  Have you reviewed this book? If so, please feel free to leave a link to your review in the comments section; I will also add your link to the body of my review.



If your browser doesn't support embedded video, you can view the trailer here.

Read an excerpt

BUY IT:  At Amazon, The Book Depository, through the publisher's website,  and through other on-and-off-line booksellers.

One of my listed titles for the 2012 ARC Reading Challenge

One of my listed titles for the 2012 150+ Reading Challenge

Disclosure:  I  received a  complimentary ARC of this title from the publisher to facilitate my review.  No other compensation was received and I was not required to post a positive review.

Noah Barleywater Runs Away by John Boyne - BOOK REVIEW

Title:  Noah Barleywater Runs Away
Author:  John Boyne
Publisher:   David Fickling Books, a division of Random House
Release Date:  May 10, 2011
Hardcover, 240 pages
ISBN 10:    0385752466
ISBN 13:  9780385752466
The Book Depository / Amazon
Age Range: 8-12 years old

Goodreads description:

In Noah Barleywater Runs Away, bestselling author John Boyne explores the world of childhood and the adventures that we can all have there. Noah is running away from his problems, or at least that's what he thinks, the day he takes the untrodden path through the forest. When he comes across a very unusual toyshop and meets the even more unusual toymaker he's not sure what to expect. But the toymaker has a story to tell, a story full of adventure, and wonder and broken promises. And Noah travels with him on a journey that will change his life for ever. A thought-provoking fable for our modern world from the author of the bestselling and critically acclaimed Boy in the Striped Pyjamas.

My Take: 

Noah Barleywater is 8 years old.  He lives at the edge of the forest, and one morning, while everyone is asleep, he slips out of the house and runs away to find a great adventure.  At the first village he comes to, he meets an apple tree that seems to actually shy away from him.  By the time he reaches the second village, his encounter with the apple tree that morning has made the papers, and his accidental encounter with a very short man has him quickly moving on.

In the third village, he comes across a strange-shaped building with an odd tree beside it.  A talking dachshund and a talking (and very hungry) donkey tell him that the building is a toy shop, and that the tree is indeed an unusual one.  Noah walks into the shop, where the toys are all made of wood and painted with extraordinary colors, with one wall full of nothing but puppets. As Noah turns, the door seems to disappear and the puppets seem to surround him and talk to him.  When the toymaker comes up from the basement, he and Noah end up taking a meal together and talking.  A wooden box full of puppets, each with it's own story, make up the tale of the toymaker's life.  As the magical toymaker talks of each one, Noah comes to realize that adventure may not be all it's cracked up to be.

This is a magical tale which will bring smiles to the reader's face.  A modern fable with hints of an older fairy tale, this is a tale that can be enjoyed by younger readers at face value, but can also be appreciated by older readers for its nuance and deeper meanings.  If you have middle readers, this should be on their shelves.

QUOTES (from an ARC; may be different in final copy)

He stared at it, trying to use his X-ray vision to see through the branches until he remembered that he didn't have X-ray vision - that was a boy in one of his books.

'You're interested in the stars then?' I asked.
'Very,' admitted the Prince.  'I'd like to be an astronomer, if I'm honest, but my parents won't let me.  They say I have to be King.'  He pulled a face, as if they had told him he had to go to bed early because they had a long journey ahead of them in the morning.

'I've never really trusted people who live at the edge of the forest,' remarked the donkey. 'They seem like a very unsavory lot.  I've gone there myselfa few times, just to see what it was like, and I've noticed that they do the most extraordinary things.  Do you know, I once saw a young woman holding a Labrador on a lead as they walked along together, as if she owned him or something.'

Writing:  5 out of 5 stars

Plot:   4.5 out of 5 stars

Characters:  5 out of 5 stars

Reading Immersion:   4 out 5 stars

BOOK RATING:   4.5 out of 5 stars

BLOGGERS:  Have you reviewed this book? If so, please feel free to leave a link to your review in the comments section; I will also add your link to the body of my review.

Read an excerpt

BUY IT:  At Amazon, The Book Depository, through the publisher's website,  and through other on-and-off-line booksellers.

 

This book is a listed title for my 2011 ARC Reading Challenge

Disclosure:  I  received a  complimentary copy of this title from the publisher through Shelf Awareness to facilitate my review.  No other compensation was received and I was not required to post a positive review.

eGalley Wednesday - July 6, 2011 - Angel Burn by L. A. Weatherly and In Front of God and Everybody by KD McCrite

It's Wednesday!  Time for another chance to link up our eGalley reviews!  The linky stays open all week, and the only requirement is that your review(s) must be of eGalleys (Galley Grab, NetGalley, etc.)

Grab the button below, place it in YOUR eGalley review and join in! Link up throughout the week!  And don't forget to visit the other participants!

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Up for review this week are two titles:  Angel Burn by L.A. Weatherly, and In Front of God and Everybody by KD McCrite:

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Title:  Angel Burn
Author:  L.A. Weatherly
Publisher:  Candlewick Press
Release Date:  May 24, 2011
Hardcover, 464 pages / ISBN 10: 0763656526  / ISBN 13: 9780763656522
The Book Depository / Amazon  / Goodreads / Publisher

Age Range:  14 and up

Willow Fields has always been a bit different - she can fix cars and does psychic readings on the side.  She and her mom Miranda, who suffers from catatonic schizophrenia and needs a caretaker, both live with her Aunt Jo, whose charitable acts does not come without complaint (lots of complaint).

When Beth Hartley, one of the popular girls at school, comes to Willow for a psychic reading, her vision of Beth's future is not a rosy one, and when Beth quits school to join the Church of the Angels, Willow feels responsible and wonders what she can do to get Beth back.

Alex Kylar has been an Angel Killer since he was seven.  After his mother was killed by an angel, his father Martin joined up and took Alex and his older brother Jake with him (picture the television show "Supernatural", only with a larger band of hunters).  Now that Alex is on his own, he receives his kill orders via text directly from the CIA, and one of these texts sends him to Willow's town.  When Willow is put in danger, they end up on the run together.

In this book, the angels are BAD angels (mostly).  They feed off of human energy, and the effect is called Angel Burn.  Angel burn causes insanity, MS, cancer, Parkinson's, AIDS, and a host of other illnesses in humans.  The feeling that the victims get, however, is one of euphoria and devotion, and has spawned a religious following (The Church of Angels).

Although there are some slow points (especially a bit after the middle of the book as Willow and Alex hide out), there is plenty of heart-pounding action and good character development.  Both Willow and Alex are wonderful protagonists, completely believable (Willow coming to terms with what she learns, for example - she doesn't just jump in with both feet saying, "Oh! Well then, let's go kill some angels" - she has the perfect amount of skepticism and self-doubt).

The ending of this first in a trilogy is perfect; tying together many of the elements in a satisfying way, but letting us know that there's more story to come.

QUOTE (from a galley; may be different in final copy):  

"Not all of us feel that we have a divine right to use humans as cattle."

Book Rating:   3.5 out of 5 stars

Parents:  There is a romance, but a well-paced one, not the typical, "Oh, you're so hot; I think I'm in love; let's hit the sack together" romance that seems to typify much of YA romance.

Read an excerpt (PDF)

View the trailer (Flash)

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Title:  In Front of God and Everybody
Author:  KD McCrite
Publisher:  Thomas Nelson Publishers
Released:  May 10, 2011
Paperback, 304 pages /  ISBN 10: 1400317223 / ISBN 13: 9781400317226
The Book Depository / Amazon  / Goodreads / Publisher

April Grace Reilly is eleven years old and lives in Cedar Ridge, Arkansas.  She's had her share of snooty city folk looking down on her and her family, and when a couple in a shiny car pull up the drive and are rude, she goes inside the house and lets her 14-year-old sister Myra Grace (who LOVES city folk) deal with them.  THEN she finds out that they're her new neighbors, and her mom finds out that she was rude, and then she has to go with her mother to apologize, and it doesn't matter that they were rude first. 

What a fun and hilarious book!  I LOVE April Grace; she's sassy and smart.  Her parents are wonderful; her Grandma has a new, irritating beau that April Grace has well-founded suspicions of; her sister Myra Grace is big-sister irritating.  As April Grace is taught lessons of kindness by her mother and father, she also finds a way to learn from her new neighbors, and sees that they aren't the only judgmental ones.

I smiled throughout this one.  April Grace is a wonderful character.  Her example of sibling love:

I gave serious thought to sticking out my foot and tripping her so she'd fall face first into some dirty underwear, but if she fell down the stairs and ended up breaking her head or something important, I'd be blamed for it.  Plus, I'd have to do all her chores.

The next April Grace book, Cliques, Hicks, and Ugly Sticks, is due to be released in December, 2011.  It is already on my to-buy list!

QUOTES (from a galley; may be different in final copy):  

"Come here, dear," she said.  "These people want to meet an actual little hillbilly."

I'll tell you one thing:  Isabel St. James was no prize to look at the day before, when she had her makeup on.  But after she'd been bellowing like a newborn calf for half the morning, it hurt my eyes to look at her.  She'd do the rest of us a world of good if she'd wear a bag over her head.


Book Rating:   5 out of 5 stars

Buy		Read

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That's all for this week.  As always, you can click the Amazon or Goodreads links to find other reviews.  





Link up!

Disclosure:  I received complimentary eGalleys of these titles through the publishers to facilitate my reviews.  No other compensation was received and I was not required to post  positive reviews.

 

These books are listed as titles for my 2011 ARC Reading Challenge

Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier - BOOK REVIEW

Title:  Ruby Red
Author:  Kerstin Gier
Publisher:   Henry Holt and Co. Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Macmillan
Age Range:  Grade 7 and up, Ages 12 and up
Release Date:  May 10, 2011
Hardcover, 324 pages
ISBN 10:    0805092528
ISBN 13:  9780805092523
The Book Depository / Amazon

Goodreads description:

Gwyneth Shepherd's sophisticated, beautiful cousin Charlotte has been prepared her entire life for traveling through time. But unexpectedly, it is Gwyneth, who in the middle of class takes a sudden spin to a different era! Gwyneth must now unearth the mystery of why her mother would lie about her birth date to ward off suspicion about her ability, brush up on her history, and work with Gideon, the time traveler from a similarly gifted family that passes the gene through its male line, and whose presence becomes, in time, less insufferable and more essential. Together, Gwyneth and Gideon journey through time to discover who, in the 18th century and in contemporary London, they can trust.

My Take: 

Gwyneth "Gwenny" can see ghosts.  She's always been able to see them; in fact, the Honorable James Augustus Peregrin Pympoole-Bothame, better known as James, at her school gets downright insulted when she doesn't say hi to him.

That's not the only way she's different from your average 1912 Hyde Park teenager, however.  You see, her family has a time-travel gene that is only present in one girl of each generation, and only comes out in teen years.  In Gwyneth's family, that person was always thought to be her cousin Charlotte, who has been groomed and trained for future time travel adventures her whole life.  Next to blond-haired, feminine Charlotte, Gwyneth feels almost ignored by her grandmother, Lady Arista, and her aunt, Charlotte's mother Glenda.

Time travel is first presaged by a slight dizzy spell, and Charlotte has been feigning them for a little while.  When Gwyneth starts to have a dizzy spell here and there, she doesn't tell her family, even though they worry her just a little bit, but on her way to the store for her Great-Aunt Maddy (who is a wonderful character), she suddenly slips to another time.  Gwenny's best friend Lesley insists that she needs to tell her family, and when she does, the adventure begins.  She meets the other present time traveler, Gideon de Villiers, whose family also has the gene, and together, they are tasked with going to past travelers to collect a tiny bit of their blood to put in a chronograph, the original having been stolen by Paul de Villiers and Lucy, Gwyneth's "cousin". 

This is a colorful adventure, filled with all of the elements that make for a good middle reader/young YA book.  You have a hot, aloof guy, an unconventional heroine who was not aware of her abilities, a wonderfully supportive bestie, a mysterious old Count who may or may not be able to read minds, and quite a bit of mystery that begins to be peeled away.

This is the first in a trilogy, and while the adult reader may find it a bit formulaic (there were times when I also felt that it was a bit slow), I think that the targeted age group would find it fun.  I like Gwyneth's voice; she was irreverent and funny.  The series is a big hit overseas, and I can see why.

Parents:  No parental advisories on this one; it's a good, clean read.

QUOTES (from an ARC; may be different in final copy):

"You're not so bad as a friend yourself," said Lesley.  "I mean, you'll soon be able to bring me back cool stuff from the past.  What other friend can do that?  And next time we have a history test, you can research the whole thing on the spot."

Poor Robert.  But at least he didn't look like a drowned body.  Some ghosts thought it was fun to go around looking the way the did when they'd just died.  Luckily I'd never yet met one with a hatchet in his head.  Or without a head at all.

"Nick and I think it's a good thing you have the gene instead of Charlotte, even if Aunt Glenda says you have a pea-sized brain and two left feet.  She's so rude."

Writing:  3.5 out of 5 stars

Plot:   3.5 out of 5 stars

Characters:  4 out of 5 stars

Reading Immersion:  3.5 out 5 stars

BOOK RATING:   3.6 out of 5 stars

BLOGGERS:  Have you reviewed this book? If so, please feel free to leave a link to your review in the comments section; I will also add your link to the body of my review.

If your browser doesn't allow for embedded video, you can view the trailer here.

Read Chapter One

BUY IT:  At Amazon, The Book Depository, through the publisher's website,  and through other on-and-off-line booksellers.

 

This book is included in my list for the 2011 ARC Reading Challenge

Disclosure:  I  received a  complimentary copy of this title from the publisher to facilitate my review.  No other compensation was received and I was not required to post a positive review.

eGalley Wednesday - June 1, 2011 - Wrapped by Jennifer Bradbury, and Solace by Belinda Mckeon

It's  Wednesday!  Time for another chance to link up our eGalley reviews!   The linky stays open all week, and the only requirement is that your  review(s) must be of eGalleys (Galley Grab, NetGalley, etc.)

Grab the button below, place it in YOUR eGalley review and join in! Link up throughout the week!  And don't forget to visit the other participants!

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Up for review this week are two titles:  Wrapped by Jennifer Bradbury (YA), and Solace by Belinda Mckeon:

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Title:  Solace
Author:  Belinda Mckeon
Publisher:  Scribner, an imprint of Simon and Schuster
Release Date:  May 17, 2011
Hardcover, 288 pages / ISBN 10: 1451610548  / ISBN 13: 9781451610543
The Book Depository / Amazon  / Goodreads / Publisher


This is the story of a generational and cultural divide between a father and his son.  It is also the tale of a binding tragedy and the gulf of loneliness between them in today's Ireland, slowly sinking into poverty and hardship.

Tom is a farmer, married to Maura, a nurse.  They have two grown children, Nuala, who is married and lives far enough off that her family rarely sees her, and Tom, who lives in Dublin, a perpetual student who has been working on his thesis for far too long, with a professor whose patience with him is running thin.

At the beginning of the novel, we can tell something very bad has happened - the kind of something bad that makes everyone treat a person with overabundant kindness and kid gloves.  We then journey back to read about the events that led to this.

Tom is a stubborn, taciturn, hard-working farmer who is disappointed that Mark doesn't want to farm the land that will be his one day.  He does not consider Mark's studies important (after all, he should have been done some time ago), and does not understand why Mark won't come down more often to help.

Mark is impatient with his father, and quietly resentful of Tom's attitude towards his studies and his demands on his time.  When he meets a young woman named Joanne, and she quickly becomes pregnant, he is finally thrust into the role of a grown-up, but the situation with his father worsens because Joanne is the daughter of a man who perpetrated a great wrong against Tom, and the bad blood between the families simmers hot even now.

Although the writing here is impeccable, the story has quite a few places that could have been tightened down a bit; I found myself wanting to skip ahead to where something actually happens.  The tension between Tom and Mark is exquisitely and painfully captured, but at the end of the book, I felt vaguely dissatisfied.  I wish Tom could have been more fleshed-out, and I felt that there was no true resolution.

QUOTE (from a galley; may be different in final copy):  

..when she told him she was keeping the baby, he was stunned by the relief that coursed through him.  It was ludicrous, wanting it so much.  He had no job.  He had no money.  No away of providing for a child.  And with Joanne, he barely even had a relationship.  The had been sleeping together for not much more than a month; how could she be pregnant?

Book Rating:   3.5 out of 5 stars

Sensitive Reader:  Some sex, profanity, and sexual references; however, there are no graphic sex scenes.

Browse Inside the Book

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Title:  Wrapped
Author:  Jennifer Bradbury
Publisher:  Atheneum, a division of Simon and Schuster
Released:  May 24, 2011
Hardcover, 224 pages /  ISBN 13: 9781416990079 / ISBN 10: 1416990070
The Book Depository / Amazon  / Goodreads / Publisher

Age Level:  7th Grade and above; 12 years old and up

It is June, 1815 in London.  Our unconventional protagonist is Agnes Wilkins - 17 years old, who speaks 10 languages, and is making her debut, albeit a bit unwillingly.  She's also an avid fan of the novels of A Lady (Jane Austen's pen name) and would love to find her own Mr. Darcy, even though her parents would be wholly disapproving.  When getting ready for one's debut, part of the preparation beforehand is to attend a few select parties, and the first one she is to attend is at the home of Lord Thomas Showalter, one of the most eligible bachelors in town.  When she gets there, she finds out that it is an "unwrapping" party, where guests "unwrap" an Egyptian mummy to find the relics and treasures often wrapped with the body.  When it is Agnes' hesitant turn, by the time she actually musters up the nerve to unwrap her portion, everyone's attention is taken by Lord Showalter's explanation of a previously unwrapped treasure.  Rather than sharing her find, something makes her tuck the jackal's head into her bodice.  The unwrapping is abruptly terminated by a message that advises Lord Showalter that the wrong mummy was delivered - THIS mummy is important.

Agnes finds herself followed on her breakaway walk in the garden, and, having successfully eluded her would-be attacker, when the party breaks up, the attacker is found dead hanging out of one of the carriages in front of the house.  Soon, other people who attended the party are being attacked and burglarized, and, with the help of hew new friend Caedmon who works at the British Museum where the mummies end up, Agnes determines to find out the who, why, and what of it.  On the way, she finds herself eluding Lord Showalter (who wants someone to declare their intention for her when she hasn't even had a chance to officially debut and meet other suitors?), sneaking out her house in the middle of the night, dressing as a boy, and insisting to her romantic French lady's maid Clarisse that is ISN'T a love affair that she's slipping about for.

This novel has a rather slow start in the first half, but somewhere in the second half, it becomes "that" book - the one that you can't read quickly enough to find out what's going to happen next.  The ending is fantastic, and leaves enough room for a great sequel.

These are the types of adventures I loved to read when I was younger (and still do).  If you can have a little patience with the slow start knowing that it will pay off later, pick this one up (for yourself, or for the YA reader in your house).

QUOTE (from a galley; may be different in final copy):  

I felt it unwise to point out that a horde of London's wealthiest and most fashionable citizens preparing to pillage a centuries-old Egyption mummy like a Christmas pudding was perhaps as far from the real world as I could imagine. 

Parents: You can feel good about your middle reader reading this one.  There's a hint of romance, and a small amount of referenced violence, but a lot less than watching Roadrunner and Wiley Coyote cartoons.

Read Chapter 1

Book Rating:   4 out of 5 stars

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That's all for this week.  As always, you can click the Amazon or Goodreads links to find other reviews. 

Link up!



Disclosure:  I received complimentary eGalleys of these titles through the publisher to facilitate my reviews.  No other compensation was received and I was not required to post positive reviews.

 

These books are listed as titles for my 2011 ARC Reading Challenge

eGalley Wednesday - May 25, 2011 - The Descent of Man (Desinger), The Summer Before Boys (Baskin), and Long Drive Home (Allison)

It's Wednesday!  Time for another chance to link up our eGalley reviews!  The linky stays open all week, and the only requirement is that your review(s) must be of eGalleys (Galley Grab, NetGalley, etc.)

Grab the button below, place it in YOUR eGalley review and join in! Link up throughout the week!  And don't forget to visit the other participants!

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Up for review this week are three titles:  The Descent of Man by Kevin Desinger, The Summer Before Boys by Nora Raleigh Baskin and Long Drive Home by Will Allison:

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Title:  The Descent of Man
Author:  Kevin Desinger
Publisher:  Unbridled Books
Release Date:  May 3, 2011
Hardcover, 272 pages / ISBN 10: 1609530438  / ISBN 13: 9781609530433
The Book Depository / Amazon  / Goodreads / Publisher

When Jim and his wife Marla wake to find two men attempting to steal their car, while Marla waits inside and calls the police, Jim tiptoes out to the scene.  Seeing the door of the thieves' truck open, and no clear path to keeping his own car, he hops into the truck and hightails it out of there.  Sort of a "Hah! NOW what are you two going to do?" kind of moment ... until he realizes that what he just did makes no real sense, and he dumps the truck in a vacant field and leaves it (not before vandalizing it, though).

The thieves? Two brothers with a long history of criminal activity and violence -  one with a chemical imbalance that makes him dangerous.  When Jim doesn't admit his act to Sgt. Rainey, the investigating officer, he begins his descent and traps himself in a spiral where events become more and more threatening and dangerous.

This is a rather introspective novel interlaced with action, with Marla and Jim's marriage sharing center stage with the encounters and events that spring from the attempted car theft and Jim's reaction to it.  A wine steward going from mild to wild?  Could happen; we all have it in us to resort to vengeance or thoughtless actions when provoked.   But, although the beginning chapters felt likely, as events become more and more out of control, I felt that it may have been taken too far for believability.  Click on the book cover to see it better; see the monkey at the end and what he has in his hand?  That's somewhat of a clue.  I found it interesting, with a good writing style, but never became invested in any of the characters.

QUOTE (from a galley; may be different in final copy):  

But this is a male quandary:  If we just stand there and watch we feel like idiots; but (depending of course on what we do) we can also feel like idiots for having acted.

Book Rating:   3.5 out of 5 stars

Read an excerpt

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Title:  The Summer Before Boys
Author:  Nora Raleigh Baskin
Publisher:  Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Released:  May 10, 2011
Hardcover, 224 pages /  ISBN 10: 1416986731 / ISBN 13: 9781416986737
The Book Depository / Amazon  / Goodreads / Publisher

Age/Grade Level:  9-12 years old, grades 4-7

It is the summer of 2004, and Julia is staying with her Aunt Louisa (who is really her sister, 22 years older than Julia).  Her father was laid off from IBM and is now manager of a gas station and has to work a lot, and her mother, who joined the National Guard, was deployed 9 1/2 months ago.  She and her niece Eliza (who she calls her cousin, since they're both 12) are best friends, with their own imaginary games, including one where they fantasize about parasol and carriage days.  Uncle Bruce, Eliza's father, works at Mohawk Mountain Lodge, which has been around since 1862, and Julia and Eliza spend a lot of time exploring the grounds.  This summer is different than others, however, since Julia is starting to notice boys, and is becoming less interested in the imagination games that have bound her and Eliza together.

This is a lovely coming-of-age novel that I think pre-teens and tweens will enjoy and relate to.  Julia's worry about her mother, and her growing crush on a particular boy, will resonate with many.  The familial relationships are well-written and believable.  I enjoyed it; it made me recollect that awkward "in-between" feeling - when you're not quite a little girl any longer, but not really old enough to be a young woman.

QUOTE (from a galley; may be different in final copy):  

They come in person.  They come to your house in their full dress uniform and then you know.  You know it's not good news. 

Book Rating:   4 out of 5 stars

Parents:  This is a good clean read.

Read an excerpt

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Title:  Long Drive Home
Author:  Will Allison

Publisher:  Free Press, an imprint of Simon and Schuster
Released:  May 17, 2011
Hardcover, 224 pages /  ISBN 10: 1416543031 / ISBN 13: 9781416543039
The Book Depository / Amazon  / Goodreads / Publisher

Narrator Glen Bauer opens this story with a letter to his daughter Sara, 8 years old and 6 at the beginning of the events of this novel.  The letter is written to be given to her much later, when she is able to understand and forgive.

We've all had those days - someone cuts you off in traffic and then flips YOU off; a bicycle rider suddenly veers in front of you, causing you to suddenly hit your brakes; then you head out to the highway where someone is riding your tail in the right hand lane at 60 MPH - you may just tap your brakes to give them a little wake-up call.  Harmless, really .. after being frustrated by inconsiderate drivers and dangerous moves, you just want SOMEone to pay a bit of attention to what they're doing, right?

Glen, who runs a small accounting business from home, has a very bad driving day - with his daughter in the car - one in which another driver confronts him and flashes a gun in his waistband.  Then a second encounter with a different driver causes him to make that "little" gesture ... kind of like tapping the brakes - only the other driver is now dead.

It really could happen to many of us.  And if the police only look at you as a witness, would you admit to your part in it?  This narrative shows us how one wrong move can change the course of our lives from better to worse; utterly absorbing and believable, I was drawn in to the pages from beginning to end.  A most excellent read.

QUOTE (from a galley; may be different in final copy):  

I remember telling myself people didn't go to prison for accidents.  Then again, just because I hadn't meant to hurt anyone didn't mean what I'd done was accidental.


Book Rating:   5 out of 5 stars

If your browser doesn't support embedded video, you can view the trailer here.

Read an excerpt

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That's all for this week.  As always, you can click the Amazon or Goodreads links to find other reviews.

Link up!





Disclosure:  I received complimentary eGalleys of these titles through the publishers to facilitate my reviews.  No other compensation was received and I was not required to post  positive reviews.

 

These books are listed as titles for my 2011 ARC Reading Challenge

Lost Island Smugglers by Max Elliott Anderson - BOOK REVIEW (Middle Readers)

Title:  Lost Island Smugglers
Author:  Max Elliot Anderson
Publisher:   Port Yonder Press
Paperback, 150 pages
ISBN 10:     1935600028
ISBN 13:  9781935600022
The Book Depository / Amazon

Goodreads description:

Sam Cooper had just moved to Harper’s Inlet where he met Tony and Tyler. While Tony’s father was away on a buying trip, the boys took one of the rental sailboats out for a diving adventure. Everything went well until the biggest storm Tony had ever seen blew up from out of nowhere, and the boys found themselves stranded on Lost Island. But, if they thought the worst had happened, they were wrong. The boys discovered a secret hideout that was used by men in high powered speedboats. Sam and his friends knew the men were up to something, only they didn’t know what. They had to find a way to stop them, but how? And, even if they did, the boys could never tell anyone about it. Lost Island Smugglers is a story with danger, excitement, and heart-pounding action. Author Bill Myers reports, "Sam Cooper Adventures are like good, family movies . . . as an ordinary kid finds himself in exciting and extra-ordinary adventures!" And author Jerry B. Jenkins adds, "Max Elliot Anderson brings a lifetime of dramatic film and video production to the pages of his action adventures and mysteries." Young readers report that reading one of Anderson’s action-adventures or mysteries is like being in an exciting or scary movie.

My Take: 

This is our second Max Elliot Anderson title; the first was Barney and the Runaway (click the title to see the review).

I say "our" because Mr. Anderson writes books for boys, specifically books that like adventure books. and this was a read-together for Bebe Boy James and I.

Sam Cooper is 11 years old.  His dad is a research biologist, which means that they move a lot.  In the beginning of the book, they see a news article about a drug raid only three blocks from their house, which makes Sam think that maybe their NEW move to Harper's Inlet (a town north of Miami) is going to be a GOOD idea.

On the drive to their new home, Sam overhears a conversation at a rest stop which puzzles him, a snippet about "running boats with shark's teeth and blood".  He is put off by the appearance of the man holding the conversation, and "almost" tells his parents about it, but decides not to.

Once they're settled in, Sam meets some new boys in Sunday school:  Tyler and Tony.  Tony's dad owns the marina, where he rents boats and runs a scuba diving school.  When Tony's dad offers free lessons to Tony and two of his friends,  Sam persuades his parents to let him attend.

As Sam's friendship with these two develops, he realizes that he has some misgivings about Tony.  Tony is rather brash and arrogant, and likes to take chances, which gives Sam the feeling that he can't trust him.  This feeling only intensifies when Tony tries to talk the other two into a solo scuba diving trip, which Sam knows his parents would not allow.  Despite his misgivings, he allows himself to be talked into it, and he heads off into what will be a dangerous adventure.

The theme of drug running flows through this book, as does the theme of family.  Sam's family is very supportive, doing simple things such as taking their meals together (his friends tell him he's lucky).  Sam's struggles with some of his decisions, going against his first inclination just to fit in, and we see how peer pressure can easily be succumbed to, and also how doing what you know is right is better than going along.

Parents:  This is a wholesome book that boys will relate to and enjoy.  The lessons that are included as part of this adventure are fully integrated into the story, unlike many books where we see a "preachy" sort of lesson which just pops up out of nowhere. Bebe Boy James and I discuss chapters as we go along, and some of his remarks were:  "I'D want to get rid of all of the drug dealers, too!" and "If you know it's wrong, you shouldn't let someone else talk you into it". 

We enjoyed it, and James was so caught up once the boys got in their fix that we ended up reading past our planned reading time just so he could find out what happened.

QUOTES

He had never made friends this fast before, and nowhere in the rest of the United States, not in all the places he had lived before, had he ever been friends with someone like Tony.

"Mom and I do lots of things for special reasons.  That's because we only get one shot at being your parents and showing you what we think is important.  Right now, you're one of the most important things in our lives."

"We need to go down for a better look," Sam said.
"You mean you need to," Tony said.  "I need to stay right here."
"Yeah," Tyler added.  "My mom would want me to hide behind this log; I know she would."

Writing:  3.5 out of 5 stars

Plot:   4 out of 5 stars

Characters:  3.5 out of 5 stars

Reading Immersion:  4 out 5 stars

BOOK RATING:   3.75 out of 5 stars

BLOGGERS:  Have you reviewed this book? If so, please feel free to leave a link to your review in the comments section; I will also add your link to the body of my review.

Author Blog

BUY IT:  At Amazon, The Book Depository,  and through other on-and-off-line booksellers.

Disclosure:  I  received a  complimentary copy of this title from the author to facilitate my review.  No other compensation was received and I was not required to post a positive review.

Kat, Incorrigible by Stephanie Burgis - BOOK REVIEW

Title:  Kat, Incorrigible (A Most Improper Magick)
Author:  Stephanie Burgis
Publisher:  Atheneum Books for Young Readers, a division of Simon and Schuster
Release Date:  April 5, 2011
Hardcover, 304 pages
ISBN 10:    1416994475
ISBN 13:  9781416994473
The Book Depository / Amazon

Goodreads description:

Twelve-year-old Kat Stephenson may be the despair of her social-climbing Step-Mama, but she was born to be a magical Guardian and protector of Society--if she can ever find true acceptance in the secret Order that expelled her own mother. She’s ready to turn the hidebound Order of the Guardians inside-out, whether the older members like it or not. And in a society where magic is the greatest scandal of all, Kat is determined to use all her powers to help her three older siblings--saintly Elissa, practicing-witch Angeline, and hopelessly foolish Charles--find their own true loves, even if she has to turn highwayman, battle wild magic, and confront real ghosts along the way!

My Take: 

It is 1803, and Kat (Katherine Ann Stephenson) is 12 years old and a bit too feisty (make that A LOT too feisty) for her time.  Her older sisters, Elissa and Angeline, are always lecturing her about propriety, as is her disapproving stepmother.  Her brother Charles, having been sent down from Oxford for bad behavior, is holed up in his bedroom, trying to avoid debtor's prison for his gambling debts.

When we first meet Kat, she is leaving her house at night dressed as a boy, determined to get to the city to make money in order to keep her sister Elissa from being sold off to an old man for marriage, which Stepmama insists on.  Kat's father is a clergyman, and one of Stepmama's biggest complaints (besides Kat and her mother, who died 10 days after Kat was born) is the lack of money to indulge her tastes.  Shortly after Kat finds her Mama's magic books under Angeline's bed (where they are definitely NOT supposed to be, since Stepmama made Papa lock all of Mama's things up in a cupboard), an apparently vacant-eyed Frederick Carlyle shows up as a result of Angeline's spell to bring her true love to her.

Kat breaks into the locked cupboard and finds a golden mirror, and suddenly, she is transported into a Golden Hall, where she meets a woman named Lydia (Lady Fotherington) who joined the Order the same year Mama did, and Mama's tutor, Aloysius Gregson, who informed her that she is a Guardian, a power that can only be inherited by one child in each generation of a family.  Lady Fotherington disapproved of Mama and HER errant ways, and she also disagrees with the idea of Kat being a Guardian as well.  Kat herself isn't too fond of the idea, either, and when she finds a way to get home, she tries to get rid of the mirror.  Unfortunately, no matter where she puts it or where she goes, the mirror follows her.

As Kat works to escape the legacy of the Guardians, Elissa, always proper, is set to meet and marry Sir Neville, who is rumored to have caused his first wife's death.  With her marriage, her brother will escape debtor's prison and thus her family's honor will be saved.  Angeline continues to dabble in their mother's magic books, and as they travel to Grantham Abbey, home of their Stepmama's second cousin, the mirror also travels with them.

With highwaymen, magic, fun, wit, and Kat's continued brushes with trouble, this is the sort of adventure that even this adult reader found delightful.  Kat is the type of unconventional girl that we love to read about, and the villains in this piece are sinister enough to make you root for the good guys.

A wonderful middle-reader set in Regency England, Kat, Incorrigible should be a huge hit with readers of all ages.

QUOTES

For me, Mama's cabinet had been full of mysteries and secrets to be puzzled out, like an adventure.  For them, it had been full of memories.  And I had broken all of them.


Looking into Sir Neville's hard, dark eyes, I couldn't believe for an instant that he had killed his first wife out of jealousy, or for any other reason as simple as that.  But I was absolutely certain that he had murdered her.  He couldn't be allowed to marry Elissa.


Stepmama let out a scream and fainted. I was so pleased, I could have hugged her.  A crowd of older women fluttered to her side, trying to revive her.  It was almost as much diversion as we needed.

Writing:  4 out of 5 stars

Plot:  4 out of 5 stars

Characters:  4.5 out of 5 stars

Reading Immersion:   4 out 5 stars

BOOK RATING:   4.125 out of 5 stars

Other Reviews:

It's All About Books

BLOGGERS:  Have you reviewed this book? If so, please feel free to leave a link to your review in the comments section; I will also add your link to the body of my review.

If your browser doesn't support embedded video, you can view the trailer here.

Read an Excerpt:   Excerpt 1 / Chapter 1 / Chapter 2

BUY IT:  At Amazon, The Book Depository, through the publisher's website,  and through other on-and-off-line booksellers.

 

This is one of my listed titles  for the 2011 ARC Reading Challenge

Disclosure:  I  received a  complimentary copy of this title from the publisher to facilitate my review.  No other compensation was received and I was not required to post a positive review.