Not by Sight

by Kate Breslin
Hennepin County Library paperback 369 pages
genre: Christian fiction, historical, romance

I loved this! Although the ending was predictable, I got swept up in the story and have already requested Breslin's other published book. Taking place during WWI, Grace Mabry is a wealthy young lady who wants her brother home from the front. She attends a costume ball she was not invited to so that she can hand the young men (conscientious objectors) a white feather - symbol of cowardice. She hopes to shame them into joining the war effort so that the war will be over sooner. Okay, that sounds kind of silly, but it's really just the set-up so she can make eyes at our hero, Jack Benningham - "dashing heir to the Earl of Stonebrooke." I enjoyed the intrigue (what's Clare's story?) and the verbal sparring between Grace and Jack. It wasn't a very substantive story (I didn't mark any pages for tonight's book club discussion), but I liked it!

Ms. Marvel

story by Willow Wilson
art by Adrian Alphona and Jacob Wyatt
Hennepin County Library hardcover unpaged
genre: YA superhero graphic novel

At first, I didn't care for this book. But it quickly became a story I couldn't put down and decided I *must* buy for my school. Sixteen-year-old Kamala Khan sees herself as a Jersey City girl, not a Pakistani who does what her parents want. She loves superheros, gaming, and being independent. When she becomes Ms. Marvel and tries to do the right thing, she has some classic coming-of-age moments in the midst of the action adventure against "The Inventor" (aka Birdman). Great story!

Kazumi Magica 1: The Innocent Malice

by Masaki Hiramatsu
art by Takashi Tensugi
Hennepin County Library paperback 144 pages
genre: YA manga, adventure, magic

I got this based on a student's recommendation. I hated it. I asked the student what it was that she liked about it. "The adventure, trying to help people."

It is geared to a middle-school audience (based on the main characters, who are far more physically developed than most middle school girls but identify as middle school). Three girls can do magic and turn into super-fighters with special powers. The story opens with a girl in a suitcase, naked. Yeah.

The story develops that a female police detective was trying to increase her rank and esteem, so she planted a bomb, kidnapped Kazumi, removed her clothing (it's never clear why), put her in the suitcase, and set up an elaborate switched-suitcase scheme.

I don't like manga in general - the art, the exaggerated facial expressions, the back-to-front reading. The reason I buy as much of it for my collection as I do is that it is popular and some readers absolutely devour the books! I don't think I have money for this title. I'd be more likely to buy the Black Butler series (requested a few years ago).

Sixth grader (Class of 2022) was S.I.M.

A Brother's Journey: Surviving a Childhood of Abuse

by Richard B. Pelzer
CHS media, hardcover, 261 pages
genre: memoir

I borrowed this from Chaska H.S. for a student, but couldn't return it without reading it myself. Richard was Dave Pelzer's (A Child Called It) younger brother. He was the "Little Nazi" who helped their mom in her regime of abuse toward Dave. Once Dave was out of the house, Richard became her target.

These books are horrifying, though the writing is not especially good. I think what fascinates (and repels) is that a human being could have been so evil and no one stopped her. Some have said that the brothers have exaggerated if not outright lied about the abuse. I don't have trouble believing the abuse itself. Humans are amazing in their ability to inflict pain on others. It's heart-breaking when parents do these kinds of things to their own children.

This book leaves me with the question of how social workers, teachers, nurses, etc. can break the cycle earlier. How can we rescue kids, build up families before a child is in the ER?

Harry Potter - all of 'em

by J.K. Rowling

Over the last month-ish, I've re-read all seven HP books. I'm not sure why, since I've had such a huge pile of other books to read. I think it's a de-stress mechanism. But I stayed up 'til midnight last night to finish The Deathly Hallows. That was stupid. I need more sleep. I did, however, enjoy reading the books!

 

Funny. I have a blog entry from 2010 on HP #1-7. That must have been the first time I re-read them all. Then this entry from 2015. Now I'm listening to the audiobooks. Jim Dale does a marvelous job narrating them! The holds / wait times are long. I requested Sorcerer's Stone earlier in the summer (while working at Mackin) and listened to it sometime in August. Then I requested Chamber of Secrets. I got that last week and just finished listening (mostly in my car, but sometimes while doing chores). Now I'll request Azkaban.  

All's Fair in Love and Cupcakes

by Betsy St. Amant
Hennepin County Library paperback 305 pages
genre: Christian realistic fiction

This was nice, but a little boring. Most of the conflict was the main character's insecurities and doubts. Kat Varland and Lucas Brannen have been best friends for about a decade (teenagers to mid-20s). They're both super nice and smoking hot, but the new "feelings" they each have for the other are ignored because they don't want to ruin their friendship. Sigh. Cupcakes and an LA competition, some snarky people, yada yada. Book club discussion is tonight. It will be interesting to hear others' reactions. I am tempted to recommend it to Stacie just for all the baking (and a recipe at the end that looks really good).

page 139 - "What if her destiny, God's plan for her life, was to remain at Sweetie Pies? What if she was already living out her calling and just needed to be content where God had placed her? Put aside her dreams, put aside her desires, and bloom where planted?" I can relate to wondering if I'm following God's plan or not!

page 305 - I hated that the story ended with her smashing a cupcake into his face. Really?! And he had made it for her all by himself. That's just rude.

Men of Stone

by Gayle Friesen
PRMS hardcover 216 pages
genre: YA coming-of-age, realistic fiction

Liked:

• characters, especially Ben, with three sisters and a distant mom / friends Fish and Stan / great-aunt Frieda coming for a visit
• each character's passion (dancing for Ben)
• the connections between what he's learning in school and Frieda's story of Russia during the war
• great cover photo
• clever connection of "men of stone" theme between soldiers during the war, bullies, and Ben when he decides to get revenge

Disliked:

•  not enough to draw in most middle school readers (this one will be deleted and donated)
• Ben's determination to do things on his own
• not having a good resolution to Stan's story line

I started reading this only on lunch breaks, but wanted to finish it so I brought it home.

Lumberjanes: Beware the Kitten Holy

by Noelle Stevenson and Grace Ellis
artwork by Brooke Allen
Hennepin County Library paperback
genre: YA graphic novel

I'm tired and can't think straight. I liked, but didn't love this. Liked: spunky female characters, quirky story line, kept my interest. Didn't like - the line in the "pledge" that's blacked out and replaced with "then there's a line about God or whatever" . . . why not just write the pledge with what would be true for these characters? It also seemed to end rather abruptly (or perhaps it's just the pause before the next issue). In any case, good not great sums it up for me. Tough girls at a scouting-type camp. Odd boys who seem very Jekyll/Hyde. A mystery. Adventures.

Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania

by Erik Larson
read by Scott Brick
Hennepin County Library audiobook 11 discs
genre: non-fiction, history

This was incredibly well-researched and well-written. It was also extremely depressing. Author of The Devil in the White City, Larson has once again done his homework and relies upon a tremendous amount of primary source material (letters, diaries, telegrams, record books, etc.) to piece together the events leading up to the U-boat attack on the passenger liner on May 7, 1915. It made me so sad to hear the politics and "could have beens" behind this terrible tragedy. Brick's vocal work is wonderful, drawing the listener in. The captain of the Lusitania (William Thomas Turner) and the captain of U-boat 20 (Walther Schwieger) are brought to life powerfully.

It is interesting to tie the events of WWI in this story with what was happening in The Family Romanov which I read earlier this summer.

Seeker

by Arwen Dayton
Hennepin County Library hardcover 429 pages
genre: YA fantasy, action

This was a little too violent and dark for me. An interesting story, with unique characters in the Dreads and the Seekers. Also a strong sense of history, with more to be unveiled in future books. The main teen characters, Quin, Shinobu, John, (and to a certain degree Maud, the Young Dread) weren't as fully developed as I would have liked. The athame stones, lightning rods, whipswords, and other out-of-time items were creatively written. But the ugliness in the story of what these Seekers are being trained for was a complete turnoff. I won't read book two or buy this one for my collection.

The One Thing: the surprisingly simple truth behind extraordinary results

by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan
Hennepin County Library hardcover 225 pages
genre: non-fiction motivation

I admit defeat. This book is simply not the "right one" for me right now. It's also five days overdue at the library and I cannot renew it. So I'll have to cycle back to it at some point. The end-of-chapter "Big Ideas" would probably be sufficient to get the gist of the book. So far, I have found it to be oversimplified (but that's kind of the point).

page 35 - "Achievers operate differently. They have an eye for the essential. They pause just long enough to decide what matters and then allow what matters to drive their day." I need to be more like this and less swept along by the various and sundry things that crop up in my day!

Chapter 4 "Big Ideas" - Go small, go extreme, say no, don't get trapped in the "check off" game - I think I need to scan and save the blurbs with this . . .

page 79 - "When you gamble with your time, you may be placing a bet you can't cover." So true!

page 91 - Dweck and mindset. Interesting that I recently read an article that doesn't praise her work, but questions it.

There was also an interesting section on willpower. So many ideas running through my brain and so little time to process and discuss! I only got as far as page 104. I am torn about requesting it again . . . Perhaps I'll make note of it in my library bin and see if I have time in a few months to tackle it.

Red Queen

by Victoria Aveyard
Hennepin County Library hardcover 383 pages
genre: YA fantasy adventure

This was really good! I could hardly put it down. The Reds - people with red blood - are kept in subservience, poverty, and desperation. The Silvers - people with silver blood and special abilities - stay in power with periodic shows of their "superiority" with mandatory attendance at competitions.

Mare Barrow is a red, but she's different. And when she attracts the attention of some very special Silvers, crazy things happen. I must buy this for PRMS!

A Perfect Ambition: The Worthington Destiny

by Dr. Kevin Leman and Jeff Nesbit
mine paperback 306 pages
genre: Christian realistic fiction

I wish I hadn't had to buy this, but it wasn't available in libraries . . . It was formulaic and ended in a huge cliffhanger. Ugh. I hate that.

page 26 - "People in general believed what they wanted to and ignored what they didn't want to know about." Too true!

page 27 - interesting way to introduce a secondary character . . . is it Will, or someone new? Yeah, someone new.

page 84 - I had just been thinking there was no way the firstborn kid in a dynastic family wouldn't carry "the name." Andrew, son of William Jennings Worthington VI? Question answered . . . William Andrew Jennings Worthington VII. Yep.

page 153 - Democrats / Republicans / neither

page 161 - Dem / Rep and religion - " . . . she wished that people would stop equating their religious beliefs with their political beliefs." Billy Graham a democrat? Didn't know that. Interesting ideas here.

page 283 - "multitasking was a myth." Fits with the ideas in professional books I've been reading.

page 291 - What?! Talk to Sean, immediately! He needs to know the truth about his parentage!

page 301 - Ugh . . . dirty politics and money and power. Again, talk to Sean.

Cliffhanger - really?! Don't feel compelled to read it though I'm curious.

The Smartest Kids in the World and How They Got That Way

by Amanda Ripley
Hennepin County Library audiobook 7 discs
read by Kate Reading
genre: non-fiction, education

This is worth a re-read. Ripley, a journalist, followed three American teenagers who studied abroad (Finland, Poland, and South Korea). She also interviewed countless exchange students who came to America, teachers, principals, parents, and politicians. Her thorough research brought out some very interesting differences between the United States and other countries who are outperforming us in education.

One of her biggest findings had to do with expectations - in other countries, adults have high expectations of students, especially in math, and students strive to achieve. Not so much in the U.S. where classes are much easier than in other countries.

She pointed out that it is harder to become a teacher in these other countries, with fewer, more exclusive universities offering programs that lead to teaching degrees. Those countries with higher expectations of their teachers also give them more autonomy in their classrooms.

She suggested that in other countries, students have freedom to fail and learn from the consequences. In the U.S., there are so many second chances, lowered standards, and work-arounds that students aren't really ready for the real world or the rigors of the work place. Rigor came up a lot, especially in regard to exit exams.

She did point out that Finland, Poland, and South Korea are much more homogenous than the U.S., but she also shared statistics from other countries with higher populations of immigrants that are more successful than U.S. schools. She also pointed out that the U.S. spends much more money per pupil than most other countries, but has worse results.

The system in South Korea sounds horrible to me. That country (according to the author) has the highest suicide rate among adults in the entire world! The hagwons (cram schools) sound too intense to be believed. As much as I am passionate about education, this doesn't sound like a good solution.

One student observed that "meeting expectations was mostly a matter of hard work" in talking about exit exams and systems (like Korea) that have high expectations of students. The author observed that "kids are kids" - in every country she visited, they like to play video games, talk to friends, etc.

I thought I had made other notes about this book . . . perhaps I'll uncover a scrap of paper and need to add to this. This book gave me a lot to think about in terms of my role with my students. I can't reform the country's education system, but I can do my best to stretch my students.

The author and reader both did excellent work on this.

Mary: the Summoning

by Hillary Monahan
Hennepin County Library hardcover 252 pages
genre: YA horror

I don't like horror stories, but I can see how this would appeal to readers who like to be creeped out. Four girls "summon" Bloody Mary in a mirror. One of the girls, Jess, is the instigator. But when Mary "escapes" the mirror and comes after her best friend Shauna, things get out of hand. Ironically, my least favorite part involved Jess' personality and "friendship" choices. I'll probably buy this for my collection, but I will never re-read it. Though it's a debut novel, it definitely could have a follow-up book . . .

Red Madness: How a Medical Mystery Changed What We Eat

by Gail Jarrow
Hennepin County Library hardcover 157 pages plus extras
genre: YA non-fiction, history, medicine

This was very well-written! It was interesting and drew me along as she uncovered the story behind the illness Pellagra. I may have heard of it before, but didn't have much knowledge at all. Often times, a purely chronological approach frustrates me as a reader but this one kept me wanting to find out what caused the illness and how it was cured. Fascinating stuff for early 1900s America! Joseph Goldberger (and others) were truly medical heroes for the work they did in discovering this dietary deficiency disease. The "4-D" of dermatitis (skin rash), diarrhea, dementia, and death were devastating for far too many people for too long (especially poor people).

Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Pull Together and Others Don't

by Simon Sinek
Hennepin County Library audiobook 7 discs
read by the author
genre: non-fiction leadership

Random notes:

I did not love the author's reading of his book. He has such a strange accent and way of pronouncing some words. Catch his stuff at http://99u.com/videos/20272/simon-sinek-why-leaders-eat-last or not.

Sigh. Some of this is such old ground that I've had covered in other books. I suppose a review can be helpful, though. Brain chemicals - dopamine, endorphin, serotonin, cortisol, and oxytocin - and how they affect humans. Yep. Still can't tell them apart, but I understand that there's a biological basis for why we do what we do.

Generations and how their life experiences affect how they lead and think in a business environment. Greatest generation, Boomers, Generation X, Gen Y/Millenials. (Interesting summary of generations at http://www.marketingteacher.com/the-six-living-generations-in-america/)

Rule 1 - Keep It Real (personal contact)
Rule 2 - Keep It Manageable (150 or fewer people in a group)
Rule 3 - Meet the People You Help (see the personal impact / we are social animals)
Rule 4 - Give Them Time, Not Just Money (more value)
Rule 5 - Be Patient -( trust takes more than 7 days to develop but should be there in less than 7 years)

Develop a culture of sharing / collaboration (e.g. Post-It notes and 3M's culture around "mistakes"). Innovation happens in a culture of sharing. Create a strong circle of safety.  We follow the leader if the leader has integrity. Lots of Marine Corp examples. Made me curious . . .

There were leadership lessons.
1 - So Goes the Culture, So Goes the Company
2 - So Goes the Leader, So Goes the Culture.
3 - Integrity Matters
4 - Friends Matter
5 - Lead the People, Not the Numbers

One of my biggest issues with a book like this is that I'm not the leader at PRMS. I can be a leader in my classroom and I can impact PRMS, but ultimately my principal has the leader's burden on her shoulders. This book was primarily geared toward business, although Sinek used a lot of military examples as well. Overall, interesting but not very helpful. Lots of good real-world examples (both positive and negative).

I'm kind of amazed that there is so much of this author's content online . . . . including TED talks. I guess he's a really big deal.

My Heart and Other Black Holes

by Jasmine Warga
Hennepin County Library hardcover 302 pages
genre: YA fiction, coming-of-age, suicide

I was nervous about a book dealing with suicide. Middle schoolers are as much at risk for depression and suicide as older teens are (and they are much less able to think / talk through things in general). This is beautifully written. Aysel (pronounced like "gazelle" without the initial letter) and Roman meet online to be suicide partners. As they meet to plan how they will end their lives, they start to like one another and find joy in their time together. Their pain, their fears, their past all start to get unpacked as they talk. I don't want to wreck the story for another reader. It's a pretty quick book, but very much worth the time and energy. Still struggling whether I will or won't buy it for my collection. Tough stuff to deal with.

page 40 - "What people never understand is that depression isn't about the outside; it's about the inside. Something inside me is wrong. Sure, there are things in my life that make me feel alone, but nothing makes me feel more isolated and terrified than my own voice in my head."

page 180 - "I wonder if joy has potential energy. Or if there is potential energy that leads to joy, like a happiness serum that lingers in people's stomachs and slowly bubbles up to create the sensation we know as happiness."

page 228 - "I guess he's right: I am a flake. But maybe meeting Roman has helped me to understand myself better. Yes, I'm broken. And yes, he's broken. But the more we talk about it, the more we share our sadness, the more I start to believe that there could be a chance to fix us, a chance that we could save each other."

Ink and Ashes

by Valynne Maetani
Hennepin County Library hardcover 380 pages
genre: YA mystery, action, relationships, coming-of-age

The cover of this book looks intense and I expected another hard-core teen novel. It was surprisingly mild. The protagonist is 17 years old and never been kissed. There's almost no swearing at all. Some of the story seemed slow in developing.

That said, it kept me interested until the end. Trying to figure out who was doing frightening things to Claire, why they weren't targeting her brothers, how these things fit in with her father's past . . . It was an interesting book.

I feel as though I ought to write a synopsis here, but I don't feel like it. Amazon says, "Claire Takata has never known much about her father, who passed away ten years ago. But on the anniversary of his death, she finds a letter from her deceased father to her stepfather. Before now, Claire never had a reason to believe they even knew each other. Struggling to understand why her parents kept this surprising history hidden, Claire combs through anything that might give her information about her father . . . until she discovers that he was a member of the yakuza, a Japanese organized crime syndicate. The discovery opens a door that should have been left closed. The race to outrun her father's legacy reveals secrets of his past that cast ominous shadows, threatening Claire, her friends and family, her newfound love, and ultimately her life. Winner of Tu Books New Visions Award, Ink and Ashes is a fascinating debut novel packed with romance, intrigue, and heart-stopping action."

I liked it and may buy it for school. The Japanese culture aspect was interesting - the author's explanation at the end added to the story.

The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, & the Fall of Imperial Russia

by Candace Fleming
Hennepin County Library hardcover 253 pages
genre: YA non-fiction, history

This is an extremely well-written and interesting book about the Romanov family and what happened in Russia at the end of their rule. The photographs and primary source excerpts (letters, diaries, etc.) are invaluable to understanding what happened. I especially love that the author balanced the Romanov story with what was happening in the lives of peasants and workers. The contrast could not be more stark! It stuns me that Nicolas II and Alexandra had no clue how impoverished their people were. And I am very creeped out that the empress' fascination with icons and religion allowed her to be so swayed by Rasputin.

As much as I enjoyed this book, I probably won't buy it for PRMS. My students don't use non-fiction books much (except for history day research) and I can't possibly afford all the titles that might be useful. Sad truth.

Page 234 - makes me want to re-read The Kitchen Boy. "He (Yurovsky) ordered the kitchen boy, Leonid Sednev, to pack his things. . . . In truth, the commandant did not want the fourteen-year-old to be among the murder victims." I know TKB (Zimmerman) is fiction, but it was one of the first books I ever read relating to the Romanov murders and it captured my attention.

In her bibliography, Fleming writes about the importance of primary resources. "The heart of all research is the firsthand accounts and eyewitness testimonies of those who lived through an historical event." Perhaps I should buy this book for my collection, just to share the power of primary sources for my young researchers! She goes on to talk about the power of first-person accounts and different perspectives. Good stuff.

How It Went Down

by Kekla Magoon
Hennepin County Library hardcover 325 pages
genre: YA realistic fiction

I really liked this book, though I was able to read it in one sitting (riding home from the lake). There are LOTS of characters, so it could get quite confusing to read in separate sittings. Tariq Johnson is killed by a white man in front of lots of witnesses, but they saw and heard things differently. Those different perspectives make a very rich story about inner city kids and the power of gangs.

My favorite characters were Jennica (Noodle's girlfriend until she decides she wants out of "the life", Tyrell (Tariq's best friend and only other holdout to the 8-5 Kings gang), and Tina (Tariq's little sister with a very unique perspective on situations. This was a very good thinking story - the author shows the different ways people interpret the same situation. It kind of made the cops look like the bad guys, though . . . I look forward to discussing this with the others at Litwits.

Vanishing Girls

by Lauren Oliver
Hennepin County Library hardcover 357 pages
genre: YA mystery, coming-of-age, relationships

I didn't like this book but I recognize its merit for older teen readers. My issues?

1. Immediately got the sense that I was being jerked around as a reader. Reminiscent of We Were Liars (Lockhart) and The Raft (Bodeen), I knew there was something behind "what happened" in the accident. I could never really get into the character's stories, because I was trying to psych out what was real and what wasn't. Is she actually in a coma and dreaming this? Did one of the sisters die? Why is the author yanking the reader's chain?

2. The alcohol, illegal drugs, dangerous choices . . . yeah. Don't want this "normal teenage behavior" in my middle school collection. This is more appropriate for older, more jaded readers.

3. The sisters' love/hate relationship was incomprehensible to me. I "get" the older / perfect vs. the younger / "bad girl" dynamic, but why did Dara (younger) keep dragging her older sister into things? And why did Nicole go along with it?

4. Nicole "protecting" her little sister did way more harm than good. I understand that parents who are getting a divorce may not be aware of what is really going on, but they were seeing a therapist and ignoring warning signals. It also just bugged me that Nicole was addressed by "Nick," which made me initially think it was a brother/sister thing.

Okay. It wasn't that bad, but I personally just didn't like it. Parker is a great character. The FunLand bits were good. The Madeline Snow disappearance was interesting.

Daddy Long-legs and Dear Enemy

by Jean Webster
Hennepin County Library paperback 348 pages
genre: fiction, relationships

I read this after our book club of April 2015 (and watched the movie of Daddy Long-legs as well). I didn't realize I hadn't blogged it until going through my never-ending pile of paper scraps . . .

I was surprised by the author's descriptions of "feeblemindedness" and other non-PC language. Since this was written in 1912 (over 100 years ago!), it shouldn't have surprised me so much.

My notes (from a few months ago) are limited, but I jotted some character names:
Jervis Pendleton
Jerusha Abbott (Judy)
Sallie McBride (her friend from college)

I remember thinking that I liked the book Dear Mr. Knightley better than this "original." I definitely liked both books better than the movie.

The second book in this volume, Dear Enemy, is more about Sallie and her love-hate relationship with the doctor of the orphanage. Judy and Jervis are off in happy-ever-after married life. Sallie is running the orphanage with the help / hindrance of the Irish (?) doctor. I liked it, but didn't love it.

I believe these excerpts are both from Dear Enemy. I should have grabbed some of the sweet / funny / wonderful scenes, but these were ones that jumped out at me. How much has changed in literature in 100 years!

Lunch Lady and the League of Librarians

by Jarrett Krosoczka
Hennepin County Library paperback unpaged
genre: Children's graphic novel fiction

I didn't enjoy this one quite as much (because the librarians are evil and planning world domination), but once again a trio of students watch / help the lunch ladies save the day. I really may need to buy this series . . .

Lunch Lady and the Cyborg Substitute

by Jarrett Krosoczka
Hennepin County Library paperback unpaged
genre: Children's graphic novel fiction

I don't remember where I first heard about this author, but I love the video of him sharing his books and honoring his childhood lunch lady. The lunch ladies are crime-fighting superheroes at an elementary school. I am tempted to buy it because it's just plain fun (and some of my less-skilled readers would probably find it at their level). It's a delightful little tale.

I Didn't Do My Homework Because . . .

by Davide Cali with artwork by Benjamin Chaud
Hennepin County Library hardcover unpaged
genre: Picture book

What a cute, clever book about a boy who comes up with wild excuses for why he can't hand in his homework. "My brother and I were kidnapped by a circus." The illustrations are detailed and fun to examine.

Teach Like a Champion: 49 Techniques that Put Students on the Path to College

by Doug Lemov
Hennepin County Library audiobook 10 CDs + 1 DVD
genre: non-fiction, teaching profession

I didn't finish this book . . . but I found it quite interesting. Lemov did quite a bit of research in classrooms across the country. He took the examples of teachers who dramatically improved their students' learning experience and distilled common factors. Things like "No Opt Out" give teachers tools for getting students who say "I don't know" a safe way to participate and learn. I watched a part of the DVD and appreciated seeing examples. I simply don't have time to read everything I have from the library right now. I may return to this one . . . however, most of the example so far (first fifth of the book) apply to whole-classroom instruction. This is something we are getting away from at my school. I am going to focus on other books right now.

Added 8/14/15 (original post was 7/29/15):
Found a note with a quote that came from this book . . . "Reluctant students quickly come to recognize that 'I don't know' is the Rosetta Stone of work avoidance." The section that I listened to with the advice on how to make certain that students participate in a positive way has really stuck with me. I may need to get this book back and spend time with it. Just this little piece - not letting kids off the hook if they respond, "I don't know" is huge.

Comments below added 10/6/15

I found a scrap of paper. "Demography is not destiny" - this is interesting in that so many researchers say that where and to whom kids belong (nature vs nurture) determines a lot of what their future lives will be like.
Also, I made a note that the author highlighted an exemplary professional. The example was of Julie, an administrator who left her home at 5:50 a.m. (so she could ride a bus with her students) and returned home at 8:00 p.m. Wow. She may be an excellent educator, but she's a crappy mom. How can a parent justify being away from family for more than 14 hours a day on a regular basis? That's horrible!

Pure Grit: How American World War II Nurses Survived Battle and Prison Camp in the Pacific

by Mary Cronk Farrell
Foreward by First Lieutenant Diane Carlson Evans
Hennepin County Library hardcover 133 pages plus glossary, timeline, etc.
genre: YA non-fiction, history

This wasn't as gripping as I expected. Perhaps because I've read enough accounts of WWII experiences so that I'm a bit jaded? The writing was very appropriate for middle-school. The photographs and documents included in the book were superb. I especially liked the first-person accounts that were included, though I got quite confused at which nurse was which.

The most enlightening part was chapter 19 "Forgotten." On page 119, "After four grim years of war, Americans wanted heroines to raise their spirits. But no framework existed in the 1940s for people to understand women who had acted with enduring courage and strength on the battlefield and as prisoners of war - women who had acted like men." The expectation that these women would just settle down and "return" to some kind of normal life after what they had been through . . . mind-boggling. Many of their children didn't know about their war service until decades later.

Water from My Heart

by Charles Martin
Carver County Library hardcover 363 pages
genre: Christian fiction, adventure, romance
*Spoiler alert - some of the excerpts toward the end give away plot points.*

I didn't love the first half of this book. Charlie Finn is a drug runner who keeps people at arm's length. The chapters alternating between his past and his present just serve to make him less likable in his old work (playing poker while at Harvard and high finance with Marshall) as well as the evils of being a drug runner in the Miami area.

But halfway through the book, he gets violently ill (from fresh salsa) in Nicaragua. He meets Pauline and her daughter Isabella. And the story gets better and better from there until the end. So worth the read! I wish the author had focused (and/or the editor deleted liberally) the negative and repetitive first half.

page 144 - When he asks Pauline how she can stand to help people when they have so little going for them. "When I first traveled to the States to study, I was struck by how everyone I encountered spent their days working feverishly to make enough money to buy a better tomorrow. Here, people are content - they buy what they need today and leave tomorrow to God." So true! Our culture seems to be busy busy busy going somewhere and it's all about having money and control. But none of us can control our futures.

page 186 - This was just a giggle to me. Charles Martin doesn't come across as a strong Christian author. But this sentence caught my attention. "What I didn't realize at the time was that my half-fast proposal . . . " At first I thought it was a typo, then I realized he didn't want to use the vernacular. I had to read "half-fast" a few times before I realized it was a deliberate choice to avoid swearing!

page 216 - The first encounter with the title - "Aqua de mi corazon" - "Water from my heart" I loved the story of her father and digging the well.

page 242 - Charlie describing the emotional release that can come from crying. "The proof lies in the source. They did not fall from my head. They poured up and out of my heart."

page 270 - "I might not be in league with other evil men, but over my life, I'd looked away, gone on my merry way, done nothing to prevent or hinder - or rescue. While not an active instigator, I'd been passive. An accomplice even. That passivity had only served to multiply. Maybe that was the toughest thought to swallow. The effect of my life had been to multiply evil, not fight it. Not eradicate it." When we talk about our legacy at church, I think about what I want to achieve. What really matters. I couldn't live with myself if I felt that the effect of my life had been to multiply evil.

page 296 - This is when he talks to the bones of Alejandro Santiago Martinez and his wife, down in the well. He had already given her mother's locket to Pauline. Moving, touching. I like this scene. It's like a confessional.

page 306 - When the water is rising and he is stuck. "The sin of my life had been and remained indifference, and in that instant, I was indifferent to my own death."

page 311 - When Zaul asked Charlie to teach him how to do wood working. "For growing up with such privilege, there was a lot Zaul had not done. Evidence that money did not buy experience." I think this is so true of a lot of privileged kids! Some of my students have so little experience with chores, yard work, or other life experiences that middle class and poorer kids have to do!

page 314 - "I realized that Leena shined a light everywhere she went. She was a walking headlight. A coming train. A rising sun. Unafraid, she walked into the darkness, and when she did, the darkness rolled back as a scroll." I want to be a woman who shines light into the darkness! I love this imagery.

page 315 - I can so relate to this! Charlie is agonizing over his role in the closure of the Cinco Padres Coffee . . . and "Get it off my chest and dump it on hers under the guise of being truthful when in reality I just wanted to make myself feel better?" Sometimes, it's hard to know what your motives are in telling someone the truth. If it will hurt them, you have to weigh carefully what to say and how to say it. "Like gasoline in a Styrofoam cup, it was eating me from the inside out."

page 322-3 - Wow. Almost to the end of the book and we learn about a momentous, life-changing day in Charlie's life when he was seven or eight years old. That would have helped to make his character and personality traits a bit more logical for readers like me. I don't usually like a book if I don't like the protagonist. This one took me a while to warm up to!

page 344 - Makes me think of Sunday's sermon on hope. "I'd been letting the pain of my past dictate the hope and promise of my future. . . . If she was right and hope was the currency of love, then I'd been broke a long time."

page 359 - author's notes at the end were really interesting! I'm glad Marin included them. "Indifference is the curse of this age. We need to hear that. Indifference is evil, and it could not be further from the heart of God."

page 361 - LOVED this part about the real-life man named Moises and the faith he lives. I love the report of signs and wonders in his community in Nicaragua. "With a budget of zero, Moises has planted seven or eight churches and invests his time, encouragement, and leadership in some thirty more. He gives when he has nothing - which is all the time."

Yep. This was a really wonderful book!

"Virals

by Kathy Reichs
Hennepin County Library audiobook 8 discs
read by Cristin Milioti
genre: YA murder mystery

I started to read this in eBook format, but didn't get far. Then I got the audiobook and kept renewing it. Finally, I was in "just get it done" mode. A lot of my middle schoolers (and a few adults) have raved about this series. I'm not sure if it's the story itself or the reader's voice, but I didn't love it. Considering how much I love the TV show Bones, I thought I would love stories by Reichs. This just didn't work well for me.

Tory (Victoria) Brennan is the fictional Temperance Brennan's niece. Mom died and Tori went to live with her father Kit (Christopher), who didn't even know that he had a child! Tori is 14, intelligent, and missing her mom. A science nerd, she befriends Hiram, Ben, and Shelton, who are also science geeks. Most of their parents work in animal research on nearby Loggerhead Island, where Professor Karsten is in charge. They live on Morris Island but go to school in Charleston.

The "young-ness" of the story was part of what bothered me, though it's very middle-school appropriate. Whitney and the cotillion were ridiculous. Just say no, Tory. The wolves, research, many break-ins, skeleton, clues, bad guys . . . there was enough action to keep the story moving. Just not sure I feel like reading book two.

Everybody Sleeps (But Not Fred)

by Josh Schneider
Hennepin County Library
genre: picture book

This one is fun! The artwork is great - there are fun details in each picture (I think the chicken coop is my favorite). Although this is ideal for a parent to read to a child at bedtime, I can see uses for it in a classroom. I don't love the rhyming text, but it works for this story.

In Real Life

by Cory Doctorow and Jen Wang
Hennepin County Library paperback 175 pages
genre: YA graphic novel, gaming

This is a definite "buy" for my collection. Most kids will skip the intro (which talks about economics and the power of the internet for organizing) but totally "get" the story. Anda is a girl gamer who hasn't connected with many friends in her new community. When she gets started playing Coarsegold (an online MMRPG), her world starts to open up. Her online persona begins to change her IRL identity. Parental clashes, a realization of other people's lifestyles, and moral dilemmas confront her. Great story, wonderful art!

Wolfie the Bunny

by Ame Dyckman, illustrated by Zachariah OHora
Hennepin County Library
genre: picture book

I liked this one the best of the picture books I've read so far. Mama and Papa bunny find a wolf pup in a basket outside their door and adopt him. Dot shouts, "He's going to eat us all up!" At every juncture, mama and papa are crazy about their new child and Dot tries to sound the alarm. When Dot and Wolfie (dressed in a bunny outfit) go to the carrot market to get more food, a bear grabs Wolfie and shouts "Dinner!" Dot's reaction is beautiful.

This one has some nice applicable lessons about sibling relationships.

My Teacher Is a Monster! No, I Am Not.

by Peter Brown
Hennepin County Library
genre: picture book

Bobby's teacher is portrayed as a hideous green-skinned monster as she gives directions, yells at Bobby when he throws paper airplanes, etc. But when he runs into her outside of school, helps rescue her hat, quack with the ducks, etc. she becomes a normal human teacher.

Cute, interesting. Still not sure I'll buy one for my collection.

The Book With No Pictures

by B. J. Novak
Hennepin County Library
genre: picture book

I don't know if I'm just too far removed from reading to young ones or what . . . this didn't really float my boat. The enjoyment comes from the humor in having the reader say silly words and sounds (and then object to it). I'm trying to think of how this could be used in the context of my teachers and their classrooms. Perhaps our Litwits discussion will give me some ideas.

Dog vs. Cat

by Chris Gall
Hennepin County Library
genre: picture book

Enjoyed it but didn't fall in love with it. Mister and Missus pick out a dog and a cat and have them share a room. Challenges arise. Then a newcomer arrives - a baby! The artwork is interesting. I love the last page. Not sure it's something I'll add to my collection on my limited budget.

Talon

by Julie Kagawa
Hennepin County Library hardcover 446 pages
genre: YA fantasy romance

I liked this. I may even read the next book in the series, if my "to be read" pile ever shrinks! I think I need to buy some of this author's YA books for school.

Talon is the secret dragon organization. Dante and Ember are "twins" - nest mates, but in their human form they are brother and sister. Sent to Crescent Beach, CA for the summer to learn how to assimilate with other humans and prepare for the next stage of their training, Ember fully embraces the experience. In fact, she starts falling in love with Garrett, a human.

Garrett is a soldier in the Order of St. George. They are sworn to destroy all dragons. He and his partner Tristan are sent to Crescent Beach on a mission to locate a "sleeper" dragon and destroy it before it can fully mature.

Throw in rogue Dylan (aka Cobalt), the evil trainer Lilith, and lots of action and romance. Fun read!

Crossover

by Kwame Alexander
Hennepin County Library hardcover 237 pages
genre: YA (though HC lib marks it "Children's") realistic fiction, basketball

Twins Josh (aka Filthy McNasty) and Jordan (aka JB) tell their story in prose poetry. Lots of basketball and brotherly dynamics. The thread of their father's career and health run throughout. JB's girlfriend Alexis (Miss Sweet Tea) changes the relationship between the two boys.

I didn't love it, but will probably buy it for my boys who love sports and don't love to read. My favorite parts were Josh's love of English and use of vocabulary words. Also, having mom as the Assistant Principal - no fun for any kid.

Trillium

by Jeff Lemire
Hennepin County Library paperback unpaged
genre: YA graphic novel, Sci-Fi romance

I didn't love it or hate it. Interesting story. Nika, xeniologist from 3797, accidentally goes to Peru in 1921 and runs into William, a WWI soldier still suffering from PTSD (though it wasn't called that, of course). The temples and the Trillium flower have strange powers.

I struggled a bit with the part of the book where you were to read one story line by flipping the book upside down and then the other storyline right side up. I also didn't get the logic of when they switched lives - how did it also switch a few key other people, but not everyone in their respective worlds? Why did Commander Pohl go so kill-crazy?

Anyhow, I like graphic novels a lot, and this author is an Eisner-winner, but I don't think I'll be buying this one for school. The artwork is also not a style I love.

We All Looked Up

by Tommy Wallach
Hennepin County Library hardcover 370 pages
genre: YA realistic fiction, coming-of-age
(Spoiler alert! Ending of book info at the bottom!)

This one is definitely more for a high school reader than my middle schoolers. An asteroid is heading for Earth, with a 66.6% chance of it hitting and ending all life. Things that used to have great meaning suddenly don't. Lots and lots of alcohol, sex, and strong language.

Peter - handsome kind athlete, trying to decide what really matters
Stacy - his superficial girlfriend
Andy - slacker who just wants to get laid before he dies
Bobo - Andy's best friend and drug dealer - seriously messed up
Misery / Samantha - Peter's sister, Bobo's girlfriend - so incredibly lost




Anita - smart girl who has always done what she is supposed to do, but really wants to be a singer


There were other characters, but these are the main ones. The story is told third-person, but from their perspectives.

Liked: the growth and interaction of these characters, the realness of their struggles
Disliked: the darkness of so much of the conversation and behavior

page 27 - What a horrible library! Sounds like it's stuck in the 50s . . . "no one other than the librarians, toddling about behind the desk and in the circulation room, begrudgingly lending out their precious books. They seemed to see students primarily as things to be shushed." Okay, I know this is irrelevant to the overall story, but it's a sensitive spot to me.

page 172 - When Anita and her mom are fighting about the Bible and what is going on. It saddens me when people use the Word as a way to prove their point or to control others, rather than as instruction. Her parents don't demonstrate Jesus' love at all.

page 335 - When Anita, Eliza, and Misery are talking in the hotel room. "And there in the darkness of the hotel room, scarcely more than twenty-four hours before the maybe end of the world, the three of them managed to laugh together. It turned out that no amount of terror could stop the great human need to connect. . . . Real winning was having the most to lose, even if it meant you might lose it all." I love this scene because it gets at the heart of what really does matter most in life. There are a lot of great conversations between the characters in this book.

page 346 - Peter and Eliza in the car after the big scene at the apartment . . . Eliza telling her made-up story about the world and second chances and mercy . . . poignant scene, especially considering what follows.

Spoiler: I love that the author ended the story without saying whether the asteroid does hit or passes by. A lot of the tension in the book was the "what if" factor - what if the asteroid doesn't hit and life goes on? What if we will all die in X days? I don't skip ahead to the end, so that tension was present to the very end of the book. Excellent!

I'll Give You the Sun

by Jandy Nelson
Hennepin County Library hardcover 371 pages
genre: YA realistic fiction, coming-of-age

What an incredible book! Told from the points of view of twins (but at different times), Noah's 13-year-old self and Jude's 16-year-old self shape our understanding of what has happened. There is so much going on in this book, I don't even know how to blog about it. My reaction when I finished was wonderful / horrible / amazing / sad . . . Pages 288-9 is the only part I marked. It was hard for me to read when Noah had his meltdown after Brian kissed Courtney and Noah confronted his mom. So much emotion is wrapped into this book - love, fear, hope, betrayal, truth, and lies. I think it's a bit too mature for my middle school readers, but perhaps I'm wrong. The more sophisticated readers would love it! But it may be too much of a reach book for the majority of my readers.

Big themes: art and art history, homosexuality, superstitions, surfing . . .
Coolness: the parrot asking where Ralph is, Oscar's British self, Guillermo's mad genius

Bone Gap

by Laura Ruby
Hennepin County Library audiobook 7 discs
read by Dan Bittner
genre: YA mystical fiction
* Spoiler at the bottom!

The more I listened to this story, the more I got drawn into it. What an incredible story! It's unlike anything I've read before. It's told from multiple points of view - Finn, his brother Sean, Rosa, Petey (Priscilla), and Charlie Valentine. It is mostly Finn's story. From getting beaten up by the five Rood brothers to riding a mysterious horse through the night, Finn experiences life intensely. Called "Moon Face," "Side Track," and other names, Petey learns the truth.

Words I jotted while listening in my car: mystical quality, imaginary, magic, dream, unreal, scarecrow, corn, cold . . .
Is the man/professor a vampire?
I'm frustrated / mad at Sean! He should listen to his brother and believe him!

Loved the resolution! Loved learning what is up with "Bone Gap."

This is such an odd, interesting story. Not sure if it will appeal to my students. I'm curious to talk about this at our Litwits gathering!

Face-blindness / the corn and crows being alive and communicating / Polish

Strike: The Farm Workers' Fight for Their RIghts

by Larry Dane Brimner
Hennepin County Library hardcover 162 pages
genre: non-fiction YA

This was a quick read and very interesting. I had never even heard of Larry Itliong (a Filipino who was active in the labor union movement before Cesar Chavez was on the scene). This book was very informative and somewhat heart-breaking, as all David and Goliath stories are when David suffers so much and Goliath is supported by politicians, the media, etc.

The perspectives of Governor Ronald Reagan and President Nixon make me sad (and help me understand why my mom was so passionate in her political perspectives). Also when Chavez started hanging out with Charles Dederich, the change in his own leadership style saddens me. I wonder what his wife thought about that. Chavez was tape-recorded saying, "Every time we look at them (the farm workers), they want more money. Like pigs, you know." Later in the afterward, the author writes, "For me, the most troubling aspect of Chavez was his relationship with Synanon founder Charles Dederich and Dederich's apparent influence over him."

I think the author did a wonderful job researching this book and kept a balanced tone throughout. Also in the afterward, she wrote "The critics' views notwithstanding, Chavez deserves credit for a lot of accomplishments, but he didn't achieve them alone." I love that she included the perspectives of Itliong, Philip Vera Cruz, Dolores Huerta, and Pete Velasco. I don't know that I would buy this for my collection, because I have such a small budget and I'm spending more on fiction than non-fiction (because of how students research). That makes me sad, because this is a very well-written and informative book.

A Casual Vacancy

by J.K. Rowling
Hennepin County Library audiobook 15 CDs
read by Tom Hollander
genre: adult fiction

I only made it through seven of the CDs (not even halfway!). I have wanted to read this since it came out, but my curiosity could not overcome my dislike. Hollander's vocal work was wonderful, but the story was just too negative. Referred to as a "big novel about a small town," this book reminded me of Sinclair Lewis' Main Street. Nasty, small-minded people. Very little to like about it.

I had to make notes because there were so many characters:
Simon - abusive / running for parish council
Ruth - nurse
Andrew - angry teen / wants Gaia / BFFs with Fats
Paul - little brother

Cubby / Collin Wahl - administrator / teacher, mocked by kids, nervous disorder, inordinately attached to Barry Fairbrother
Tessa Wahl - school counselor, has some deep dark secret
Stuart "Fats" Wahl - nasty teen boy

Barry & Mary Fairbrother - he dies of a brain aneurism at the outset of the story (leaving the casual vacancy of the title), she struggles with grief and being a single mom

Howard Molisand (?) - I never quite caught their last name, deli owner, nasty human being, obese
Shirley - wife, also nasty but covers it in smothery sweetness, adores her son

Miles Molisand - pathetic boor, appeases his parents, smug lawyer
Samantha - his wife, chesty and showy and terribly unhappy
Lexi
Libby

Paminda & Vikram Jawanda - She is a g.p. and was a close ally of Barry's on the council. He is a stunningly gorgeous heart surgeon.
Sukvinda - one of their children, feels unworthy and is bullied badly. She cuts herself. Gaia seems to be her only friend.

Gavin - commitment coward, partner in law with Miles, target for Samantha's rage and frustration
Kay - social worker, trying to get Gavin to treat her as a partner
Gaia - Kay's daughter, stunningly gorgeous, unhappy to have moved from London to Pagford

Terri - druggie mom who can't parent
Crystal - her teen daughter who is managing the best she can, with lots of the F word and misbehavior, was on Barry's rowing team and lost an advocate when he died
Robbie - 4 years old and still in diapers

So much nastiness - Simon's abuse, Sukvinda's cutting, Andrew's use of porn, the F word, . . . and general meanness, selfishness, and greed. I found myself not really caring about these people, except perhaps Crystal. But there is too much of this story to extract one thread. The smallness of Pagford and everybody being in everybody else's business just didn't hold my attention enough.

Kudos to Rowling for branching out from her Harry Potter books, but I'm not yet a fan of her adult fiction.

The Shadow Hero

by Gene Luen Yang, artwork by Sonny Liew
Hennepin County Library, paperback 152 pages plus extras
genre: YA graphic novel, superhero

What an intriguing book! I wish I had read it before TeenLitCon. Yang is a fascinating man and his work is stunning. A little bit of history (both about Chinese Americans and about the Golden Age of comic books), this is the story of four ancient spirits and the fall of imperial rule in China. More than that, it's the story of a boy named Hank who aspires to nothing more than to be a grocer like his father. His mother, however, wants him to become a superhero. This is a delightful story on many levels. I will definitely buy it for my collection. The extras include a full-color reproduction of the first issue of The Green Turtle, published by Blazing Comics in 1944.

Afterlife with Archie

by Roberto Aquirre-Sacasa with artwork by Francesco Francavilla
Hennepin County Library paperback unpaged
genre: YA graphic novel, zombies

I grew up reading and loving Archie comics! In this one, a horrible accident leaves Jughead's beloved Hot Dog dead. When he brings the dog to Sabrina (the Teenage Witch), she defies her aunts and reanimates the dead creature. Mayhem ensues. Not sure if kids nowadays are familiar with Archie, Veronica, Betty, and the rest of the gang, but they'll love the gore and mayhem. Yep. I'll buy this one for PRMS.

First book off the Litwits 2015 list! About time I got started!

The Eyes of the Amaryllis

by Natalie Babbitt
PRMS hardcover 128 pages
genre: YA historical, supernatural

Wow. When I was weeding books like crazy this spring, it was hard. This is another that looked brand new, but it was published in 1977 and is stamped "Pioneer Ridge Freshman Center." So I read it to see if it should have been kept. No.

Jenny goes to stay with her Grandma Geneva at the house on the coast. Jenny is going to help grandma, who injured her ankle. Grandma is obsessed with checking the shoreline for items sent to her by her long-dead husband . . . whose ship sank decades earlier. Jenny gets sucked into the allure of being free at the beach, even though it involves middle-of-the-night searches of the shoreline for "a sign." (The tides dictate the day.) One day, she finds the figurehead from the ship - the Amaryllis was named for the flower and had the masthead of Geneva. Blah blah blah. At least it was short.

Secrets of a Charmed Life

by Susan Meissner
Carver County Library paperback 386 pages
genre: Christian historical fiction

I am so glad we have book club tonight! I liked, but wasn't head-over-heels in love with this one. I wonder what Jodi thought of it. It takes place during WWII, primarily in London, but also in the countryside where the children are evacuated. The story opens with a history student scoring an interview with a secret story of what happened during the evacuation of the children during WWII.

page 11 - "If you don't know history, then you don't know anything. You are a leaf that doesn't know it is part of a tree," - Michael Crichton. I'm not a huge fan of history, but I recognize the importance of it. I loved this quote from Crichton.

page 89 - the description of Charlotte made me think, "I want to be like this!" ". . . her skin was wrinkled but in a nice way, as if she had one day started smiling and then had never stopped." This really resonated for me. Throughout the story, what Charlotte says and does (and how she says and does it) made me think about the kind of person I am and who I want to be.

page 109 - When Charlotte invited them to pray at their first meal together. "It had been a long time since Emmy and Julia had been in the same room with someone who spoke to God out of reverence." This makes me think of the importance of being true to God - we never know when we are setting an example.

page 142 - The foreshadowing is more like foreshouting. "She would look back on that moonlit night and wonder and wonder and wonder what she would have done had she considered that the owl that awakened Julia was divinely sent so that she wouldn't leave Thistle House that night."

page 185 - "But on that Sunday morning when fires still burned and the dead were still being carried out and the extent of the destruction still could not be fathomed, a missing seven-year-old was just another calamity in a collection of calamities the likes of which no one had seen before." So much of our personal tragedies are wrapped within a framework of what else is happening.

page 216 - "Grief sapped her of mental clarity and made her feel weak. She could not be a companion to it now. All that mattered was finding Julia." So true that grief can sap you. This also resonated for me.

page 252 - "Thistle House is for people who love and care for one another. We respect one another in this house, Emmeline. We carry one another's burdens. We weep for one another and we laugh with one another. We hold one another by the hand when the lights go out and when the way seems hopeless. We work together and we share the table together and we pray together. No matter how old we are or what we are called." Love this! Sounds like a home motto you could hang on your wall!

page 268 - Talk about collapsing a story line! "The next two years were spent in a mindless routine . . . " Well. That helps to grow her up to legal age!

page 291 - Well. I had to read this page twice. I didn't think she would go there and do that . . . knowing what had happened to her mother. And where did this come from? "But life is lived at the moment you are living it, she thought. No one but God in heaven has the benefit of seeing beyond today." And is that supposed to be an absolution of her mistakes? I may have to re-read this page a third or fourth time . . .

page 331 - The scene where Julia and Frannie are in the boat and Frannie is seeking reassurance from the mute Julia. Julia's nods and the word "maybe" were significant. "The girl who knew what war was like was telling her not to give up hope." Hope is powerful!

page 359 - ". . . if I know anything about time, it is that it stretches to walk with you when you grieve. The rest of the world may zoom past at breakneck speed, but when you are learning to live with loss, time slows to the pace of your breathing."

page 381 - I love Colin, the money, and the way things worked out for Thistle House!

page 384 - the end of the interview. This didn't really work for me. We don't get to know Kendra well enough to really care about her story. And Isabel is a bit enigmatic about her purposes here.

My ending frustration is that the neighbor didn't just leave a not in the flat! How hard would it have been?!?! Okay. Overall, a wonderful story.

Lady Catherine's Necklace

by Joan Aiken
PRMS weeded / donated, hardcover, 272 pages
genre: YA fiction, styled a la Pride and Prejudice

This was published in 2000 and was still in excellent (i.e. never read) condition. I weeded it from the collection because of its age and lack of readers, but took it from the discard pile because I love Jane Austen and was curious. The Pride and Prejudice characters and references were mildly enjoyable (no Elizabeth or Darcy except a brief mention). The style was familiar enough to be Austen-honoring, but the plotting was much faster-paced. I like that Anne de Bourgh was more lively and personable away from her mother. I liked the Maria Lucas character as she helped Charlotte and wrote letters and pined for FitzWilliam. The de Laval siblings were shifty and untrustworthy from start to finish. It's sort of a mystery and sort of a character analysis. I'm glad I weeded it.

When Elephants Fight: The Lives of Children in Conflict in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, and Uganda

by Eric Walters & Adrian Bradbury
PRMS hardcover 89 pages
genre: non-fiction for middle school readers, war impact

The kid stories were the best part of this. The photographs were also quite good. The background info was bland and quite frankly, I had to force myself to read through it. Not sure a middle schooler would persist. The title is from a proverb: "When elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers." The truth of this observation - that innocents suffer when bigger powers battle - doesn't really come through in the book's text. I'm not sure how the authors could have made the info on the conflicts more interesting or relevant to young readers, but I wish they had. The other thing that kind of bothered me was how old some of these conflicts are . . . with so much fighting and suffering going on right now, why use such old examples?

Uganda / Jimmy / 2000s
Sri Lanka / Annu / 1990s
Afghanistan / Farooq / 1990s
Bosnia / Nadja / early 1990s
Sudan / Toma / recent 2000s

I was also surprised by how many people escaped from violence and moved to Canada! Or perhaps the authors are Canadians and they went with the people with whom they had contact.

Killing Lincoln: The Shocking Assassination That Changed America Forever

by Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard
C. Chapman's hardcover 315 pages plus index
genre: non-fiction history

Cina loaned this to me quite a while ago . . . and I had a hard time getting into it. I'm not sure if it's because I've already read books about Lincoln's assassination or that O'Reilly's style is so flamboyant (that it makes me question the veracity). I enjoyed his Killing Kennedy book more than this one and I'm not sure why.

page 257 - "Incredibly, eighty-seven of these brave men will drown in their painstaking weeklong search for the killers." Seriously?!?! Eighty-seven men searching the swamps of Maryland to find John Wilkes Booth and David Herold DIED? That is horrible! If this is true, then the search for Lincoln's killers exacted quite a toll. (Survived fighting in the Civil War but died searching for two assassins in the swamps. Makes me think of soldiers who get home from Iraq and are murdered in their neighborhood by thugs.)

page 262 - "But even after the burial, Lincoln's body will never quite be at rest. In the next 150 years, Lincoln's casket will be opened six times and moved from one crypt to another seventeen times.  His body was so thoroughly embalmed that he was effectively mummified." I would be curious to know when and why he was exhumed all these times.

page 276 - The guy who shot JWB was Boston Corbett. "Boston Corbett, in his own way, is as much a zealot as Booth. Only his passion is religion. Incredibly, years before, Corbett cut off his own testicles with a pair of scissors after experiencing a moment of lust." Really? Really? How does a man do this? Physically, mentally, emotionally . . . . can't imagine.

page 292 - Major DUH! moment. I knew of the attempt on William Seward's life before. (What kind of coward tries to murder a man on his sickbed?) It still amazes me that Seward and his three children (especially Frederick, who had his brains bashed out) survived the attacks that night. And of course I already knew about Seward's Folly (the purchase of Alaska, which turned out to be an incredible investment, given the gold and oil found there). What I didn't realize until reading this is that they were one and the same! I felt kind of dumb having 2+2=4, but I had just not realized it before. Cool stuff, learning.

page 313 - in their notes, O'Reilly / Dugard list many books that were helpful in their research. "thanks to the magic of Google's online books, many of the older titles can be easily accessed" Love it! I tell my students during History Day research that GoogleBooks can be a good source of titles that are hard to find in print form.

I am glad I am done with this and can return it to Cina. I am glad I learned some new stuff. I don't think I'll read O'Reilly's Killing Jesus book. I'm kind of curious to go back and see what I wrote about the first one of his I read . . .

The Rent Collector

by Camron Wright
Scott County Library paperback 264 pages
genre: adult fiction

Oh my. This book was amazing! I had gotten it from Carver County for Ann for her book club, but had also requested a copy through Scott County. She read and returned the one I got for her. I read this one but haven't had the chance to talk with her yet. I got the sense she didn't care for it much . . . I'm curious to know her thoughts.

This fiction story is based on real people and real events - set in a garbage dump in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, here are the main characters:
Ki Lim (dad) and Sang Ly (mom) with baby Nisay (constantly sick with diarrhea) are pickers of trash - anything they can resell for money for food
The Rent Collector (Sopeap Sin) is a nasty woman who comes to get the money from the people living on the dump for the person who "owns" the land.
Lucky Fat - an orphan boy with a round face and a happy disposition
Maly - a girl who is coming of age and afraid to be sold into prostitution by her brother
Others in the dump - family members, the healer in the village, the foreign doctors, the Khmer Rouge, the gangs, and others play key roles.

Because this is such an amazing, wonderful book, I do not want to write any spoilers! Suffice it to say that I love literacy and how it can change lives. I love that the author based his story on real people (and included photos at the end!)

page 67 - When Sang Ly is trying to find "literature," her sister Narin remembers a memorized poem her mother had whispered to her over and over when she was young. "Laugh with me, monkey. Bring impish tricks and mischievous heart. Help sorrow waft and cheer restore before the sun sets red. . . . " It is lovely and it is an opening for Sang Ly to grow in her understanding of literacy.

page 80 - I'm no history buff, but the issue of people choosing not to "get involved" in other people's struggles is not specific to any one era or culture. This got my attention, though. "During the Khmer Rouge revolution in the mid to late 1970s, more than a million Cambodians were slaughtered by the vicious dictator Pol Pot and his government. Since that genocide, those who managed to survive have raised an entire generation of children who have been taught that to stay alive in the world, it's best to lie low, mind your own business, and let others do the fighting."

page 124 - I love love love different versions of the Cinderella story!!! I am too lazy to scan and include the pages of Sarann's story, but the characters mention "Ye Xian in China, Tattercoats in England, Aschenputtel in Germany, Critheanach in Scotland, Nyasha in Africa, Cinderella in North America" . . . and it makes me kind of sad that the Disney video is the story version most people have experienced. I could do an entire unit on these different Cinderella stories!

page 201 - I cried at this point. The healer has just given her a photo of her dad (who died the night she was born) and when she says that they live in the dump, he replies "It doesn't matter where you live, Sang Ly, it is how you live." This scene struck me as both poignant and powerful.

page 220 - More crying. Sopeap has written her story for Sang Ly. "Only later would I realize that there are no words harsh enough, no paragraphs wide enough, no books deep enough to convey the weight of true human sorrow."

This book is well worth reading! If, like me, you get curious about the author's son's film, find more at www.riverofvictory.com .

Reading this also made me think of Trash by Andy Mulligan.

Some Assembly Required

by Arin Andrews
Hennepin County Library hardcover 239 pages
genre: non-fiction memoir

A student requested this title, which was not in my collection, so I got it from the public library for her. I was curious (especially with all the recent press about Caitlyn Jenner), so I renewed it and read it myself. Arin was born Emerald, but never liked the girly dress-up (including pagaents) during her childhood. She was what I think of as a tomboy. As a teen, she struggled with her identity and sexual orientation. Eventually, Arin and mom went to a therapist to talk through some of the issues arising.

As of the writing of this book (2014), Arin had been taking hormone therapy and had "top surgery," but had not yet had "bottom surgery." This was an interesting (and to me, sad) book. I'm glad I'm aware of it, because it is well-written and could be a helpful book for kids struggling with LGBTQ issues and needing support.

There were a lot of passages that I thought about tagging, but I'll just include this one. It's worth thinking about and talking about. As Emerald, this child attended a Christian school with traditional Bible-based beliefs.

"For all the religion I was faced with at Lincoln, I was starting to realize that I felt much more spiritual when I was in the woods or any other sort of natural surrounding. The feel of bark against my cheek while I was up in a tree gave me more peace than scripture ever did. It was becoming increasingly harder for me to ignore the hypocrisy of the students at my school - they claimed to be Christians, but it was in image only. The fact that they could quote the Bible and showed up at church every Sunday didn't prevent them from being relentlessly cruel."

Menopause for Dummies

by Marcia Jones, Theresa Eichenwald, and Nancy W. Hall
Hennepin County Library paperback 342 pages
genre: non-fiction health

I wanted to know what was "normal" as I head toward my second half-century on the planet. I feel a lot better knowing that my current symptoms aren't really very troublesome at all. I am also confident that I will NOT be a good candidate for hormone therapy (because of my Factor V Leiden clotting issue.)

page 48 - "Fuzzy thinking is common when you're deprived of sleep or your hormones are in flux. When we say fuzzy thinking, we mean the feeling that you're just not with it today - as though you're walking through a fog or you just can't concentrate on what you're doing. Fuzzy thinking can be the result of interrupted sleep (which is extremely common during menopause)." I'm glad it's not just me losing my mind . . . I hate the feeling of fuzzy thinking! And it has been happening all too often lately.

page 120: "Water-based lubricants, such as Astroglide, are healthier for vaginal linings. Avoid petroleum-based products." Not an issue yet, but good to know!

I marked pages 236-7, but I'm not sure why . . . it's dealing with "controlling cardiovascular disease" and most of this info is old news to me. Perhaps it was the section on dealing with bone loss . . .

page 271-280 - great info on warming up and cooling down / hold each stretch for 10-30 seconds

• walk or cycle for 5-10 minutes to get warm
• stretch upper torso and arms by clasping hands above head, interlocking fingers / push palms upward / stretch until you feel tightness and hold
• clasp hands behind back / slowly and carefully life arms, stretch until you feel tightness and hold
• stand close ot a wall with one leg forward / bend front leg at knee and keep back leg straight / put hands on wall / stretch forward keeping back foot flat on the floor / switch legs and repeat
• lie flat on back / stick one leg up in the air / grab thigh of that leg / slightly bend leg on the floor / gently pull leg toward chest keeping leg straight / switch legs
• sit on floor with both legs extended straight out in front of you / bend one leg so your knee touches your chest / lean forward, reach out, and touch your toes / switch legs
• lie on back / raise legs in the air and bend at the knees / grab both legs behind and below knees / keep back flat to the floor while pulling thighs in toward chest 

Flax seed is highly recommended . . . buy in small amounts because it has a short shelf life. Use a grinder to grind it over foods. Very good for bone density and heart health!

The Prince of Mist

by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
Hennepin County Library audiobook 5 discs
translated by Lucia Graves
read by Jonathan Davis
genre: YA mystery, suspense

Liked: music and sound effects, which added to the story

Diskliked: slow pacing, odd character development (is Max supposed to be a young child or a maturing teenager?), illogical plot development (the evil guy has the kid confronted, then just goes away . . . ),

Why was this set during WWII? Just so that the family had to relocate to avoid the war? So that Roland was in danger of being "called up"?

Why did Roland (17 y.o. if he's on the verge of being called up) become best friends with Max (14? 15? 12?)?

The love story didn't fit well with the creepy ghost story. The time / clock / watch theme didn't GO anywhere! Even in the author interview at the end of the story, he basically just says that it's his "thing," to play with the notion of time standing still or going backward. Dumb.

The cat, the statues, the ship . . . there was potential here, but it was ultimately a disappointing story. I had been curious about it since genrefying my media center. Guess I can get rid of this one.

Six Suspects

by Vikas Swarup
Hennepin County Library audiobook 14 CDs
read by Lyndham Gregory
genre: realistic fiction

I only got through one and a half discs . . . it was taking too long for the story to come together. I think I was on suspect number three or four . . . and I didn't really care who killed Vicky Rai. He was a jerk who deserved it. I got this because I LOVE the story of Q&A (aka Slumdog Millionaire, which I NEVER want to see). But I just couldn't get into this one; each new suspect had a new story and my brain was having trouble keeping it all straight. Gregory's vocal work is wonderful, but this story didn't catch me.

"Seven years ago, Vivek Rai murdered Ruby Gill in a restaurant in New Delhi because she refused to serve him a drink. Now Vicky Rai (pronounced "Rye") is dead, killed at a party he had thrown to celebrate his acquittal. Six of the guests are discovered with guns in their possession and are taken in for questioning. Who are these six, and what were they doing that night? In this elaborate mystery we join Arun Advani, investigative journalist, as the lives of the six unravel: a corrupt bureaucrat, an American tourist infatuated with an Indian actress, a stone-age tribesman on a quest to discover a sacred stone, a Bollywood sex symbol with a guilty secret, a mobile phone thief who dreams big, and an ambitious politician prepared to stoop low. Each is equally likely to have pulled the trigger." (from the back of the case)

Trapped

by Michael Northrup
PRMS discard, paperback 232 pages
genre: YA suspense, survival

Published in 2011, I removed this from my collection because of water damage it had sustained (not sure when or by whom). It sounded intriguing enough that I wanted to read it to see if it was worth replacing. Seven kids are stuck at school when a monster snowstorm sends everyone else home early. Theoretically, parents are on the way to get them. The teacher who is with them goes out to get help, since all phone lines are down. He never comes back. It keeps snowing. The power goes out. The heat goes off. The roof collapses on part of the building.

This book had suspense, but not much action (or dynamic character development). The author does a great job of foreshadowing! But not much really happens. And only one person dies for sure (that we know of by the end of the book). Scotty Weems is our narrator, along with his buddies Pete and Jason. Bad boy Les, outcast Elijah, and beautiful girls Krista and Julie are the not-so-interesting kids.

I did like on page 122 and page 155 when the characters decide to pray (since they're on day four and the snow is about 18 feet deep).

 "It was probably the ten thousandth time I'd heard Jason say "Jesus," but it was the first time I'd heard him mean it." So true! People use that precious name of power and sacrifice in such casual and even profane ways. But when people get desperate, they call on Him differently.

 

"Oh, such, now you're religious. Where was that on about fifty-one of the last fifty-two Sundays?" Love this!

 

The Rediscovered Railway Mysteries & Other Stories

by John Taylor
Hennepin County Library audiobook 2 CDs
read by: Benedict Cumberbatch
genre: mystery

Inspired by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's work, the author created four new adventures (theoretically "old" ones) told from Watson's point of view. Although not as good as Doyle's stories, they were enjoyable (though Louie always guessed the villain before me). The vocal work was wonderful, of course.

Crusher

by Niall Leonard
Hennepin County Library audiobook 6 discs
read by Daniel Weyman
genre: YA mystery adventure

This was pretty intense! Finn Maguire is a dropout working a crappy job at a fast-food place with a pinhead boss. When he comes home from work one day, he finds his dad dead. Things go from bad to worse when the cops see him as the prime suspect, he gets tangled up with organized crime, and people betray him. Poor kid! There were a few little bright spots, but mostly it was a dark story. Definitely worth listening to, though. Finn is a believable and likable character. Weyman's vocal work is superb.

Truth Stained Lies

by Terri Blackstock
Hennepin County Library hardcover 299 pages
genre: Christian fiction, mystery

Liked:
- quick read
- suspence
- character of Michael

Disliked:
- not a very well-developed story
- book club discussion - only two of us read it and the other reader panned it!

"Cathy Cramer is a former lawyer and investigative blogger who writes commentary on high-profile homicides."

When her brother Jay is arrested in connection with his wife's murder, Cathy and her sisters Juliet and Holly work hard to exonerate him and save their nephew.

The first part of the book was full of mystery and clues; the second half was suspenseful.

I marked a bunch of spots but don't want to blog about them. Mostly characters struggling with their faith and some witnessing to others. I also liked Holly being kind to Mrs. Haughton.

Take Me There

by Susane Colasanti
Hennepin County Library audiobook 6 discs
read by Macleod Andrews, Angela Dawe, and Sarah Grace
genre: YA realistic fiction, romance

I think what I like best about Colasanti's books are the catchy covers . . . the two stories I've read so far haven't really made me a fan. This one has three narrators telling the same story from their individual perspectives in two overlapping story chunks. James was my favorite character by far. I especially like his home life and connection to Mrs. Schaefer. Most of the hand-wringing by Rhiannon and Nicole is immature and overwrought. Nicole's very serious secret gets overshadowed by the angsty teen approach to everything from note-passing to crushing on her math teacher. The slang seemed horribly outdated, but perhaps it's coming back into vogue and I'm just not aware? At least this is "clean" enough for my middle school kids.

Savage Drift (Monument 14 #3)

by Emmy Laybourne
PRMS hardcover 305 pages
genre: YA dystopian

When the teens see a picture of Josie in a newspaper, Niko determines to go get her out of the "O Camp." Astrid's pregnancy is not smooth, but she's terrified of being taken away like other pregnant women who have disappeared. Jake and Dean fight constantly. Action. Adventure. Danger. Another exciting story about teens impacted by a future apocalyptic weather and NORAD-based emergency. Wonderful writing! I hope she is working on more books, though I'm glad she wrapped up this story in three books.

Sky on Fire (Monument 14 #2)

by Emmy Laybourne
Hennepin County Library hardcover 215 pages
genre: YA dystopian future

Most of the kids load up into the bus to try to make it to the Denver International Airport. Astrid wants to stay for two big reasons. Dean decides to stay with her. The events that happen to both groups of kids make this a real page-turner!

One funny (to me) aspect of this story is the near-future predictions and situations. When the catastrophic storms hit, the network is down and everyone stresses because their "mini-tabs" (cell phone / entertainment devices) don't work. (I can completely picture that world.) On page 214, "Printed papers have made a comeback with the interruption of the Network." :-) Some of us still like printed papers, but the demise of traditional newspapers certainly does seem imminent.

One thing I wish - that somewhere in the story the author included information on what is happening on the rest of the planet. This is a fantastic series, though, and I need to finish book three!

Monument 14

by Emmy Laybourne
Hennepin County Library audiobook 6? CDs
read by Todd Haberkorn
genre: YA dystopian future

Tomi and I listened to this on the way to and from school. She took it home to finish over the weekend (with her mom) and had to get the second book Monday morning! She finished it in a few days and book three as well . . .

I finished the audiobook and lent it to Tom C. He enjoyed M.T. Anderson's Feed so much, I thought he might like this one, too.

It's 2024 and en route to school, a tremendous hailstorm hits. The bus carrying the high school kids ends up on its side with the hail pelting through the windows and injuring the kids. Mrs. Wooly, the driver of the elementary school bus, delivers the little kids to safety and returns to get the "big kids." The action and danger are intense. An earthquake and the release of biological weapons from NORAD make this group of Colorado kids a fascinating experiment as they hide away in a Greenway store! This book had me - I've already read book two (after Tomi) and I'm on book three now.

Haberkorn is a great reader! Dean is a bit too much of a wuss for me (for a protagonist), but the characters are interesting and varied.

Something, Maybe

by Elizabeth Scott
Hennepin County Library audiobook 5 CDs
genre: YA romance
read by Ellen Grafton

I couldn't finish even one CD. At first, I wasn't sure if it was the story or the narrator that was troublesome. Then I knew that whether the story was worth the time or not, I simply could not listen to the voice anymore! It was nasal? Whiny? Just plain irritating!

The story is about Hannah, whose father is an elderly playboy-type. Her mother is a has-been actress who tries to capitalize on her looks. Hannah just wants to disappear. Hannah has a crush on co-worker Josh, who is attractive, smart, and civic-minded. Her co-worker Finn is just irritating. What will it take for her to get Josh to really notice her?

I'll probably never know unless I am holding a print copy of this book in my hands.

Heir of Fire (Throne of Glass #3)

by Sarah J. Maas
YAC hardcover 569 pages
genre: fantasy adventure

I read this because none of my Young Adult Choices readers wanted to read book three in a series that they hadn't read books one and two of . . . and since I had read book one, I "got" the characters and storyline to enough of a degree to tackle this one. I read it a little at a time each day over lunch, then finally brought it home last weekend to finish it.

Liked:
- characters, especially Rowan
- mystery / what will happen next
- Celaena's growth as an individual and her ability to handle her powers
- the writing is much better than in book one. She has developed as an author!

Disliked:
- three different story lines, especially with the witches. Since I didn't read book two, I may have missed some major plot developments
- after 569 pages, I want to know the outcome! There will be at least one more book . . .

Legend

by Marie Lu
Carver County Library paperback 304 pages
genre: YA dystopian fiction, romance, adventure

Set in a future world where the USA is now the Republic (west), the Colonies (east), and the Patriots (mercenaries), Day is a criminal and June is a soldier prodigy. The author gives a nod to Les Miserables in this story of law and order (June, the Republic) against the criminal element (Day).

Engaging story! I can see why my students want book two right away. I got this book club kit for my sixth grade book club (discussion today) and although it's a bit mature for them, I think they'll like it.

Hold Still

by Nina LaCour
Hennepin County Library audiobook 6 discs
read by Emma Galvin
genre: YA coming-of-age

Caitlin's best friend Ingrid committed suicide at the end of their sophomore year in high school. Caitlin's parents have done everything they can to help their daughter deal with her pain. Most of the book deals with Caitlin's thoughts, memories, and struggles. Photography, Ingrid's last journal, building a tree house, a new friend (Dylan - a lesbian who is new to school) and a potential boyfriend - Taylor - all help her work toward healing.

Liked it okay, but it was pretty depressing. At times, I wanted to shake her and tell her to get a grip! The reader had a wonderful voice and made the story come alive, but it wasn't what I was in the mood to read. Just too sad.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

by Stephen Chbosky
PRMS paperback 213 pages
genre: YA coming of age

I finally read this! It is almost always checked out from my media center. The movie looks pretty interesting.

Charlie seems to be so incredibly naive to the point of being stupid. His identity is formed based on his relationships to other people. In fact, his young English teacher encourages him to think for himself - to be a filter and not a sponge.

Liked:
- Character development, especially siblings Patrick and Samantha
- True-to-life scenarios from high school
- Vivid descriptions

Didn't like:
- OLD technology! Published in 1999, it's hard to believe that Chbosky included mix tapes and darkroom developing . . . have things really changed so much in 16 years? I wonder if kids even know what mix tapes are.
- casual drug use

I was surprised by Charlie's revelation toward the end of the book. It completely changed the story for me.

Dear Mr. Knightley

by Katherine Reay
Hennepin County Library paperback 317 pages
genre: Christian romance

Now I have to see the movie Daddy Longlegs . . . or read the book. This story was inspired by that 1912 book by Jean Webster (but I had never heard of it before). Delightful little story about a girl named Samantha Moore who moved through the foster care system and ended up at Grace House, a group home. A benefactor offers her a scholarship to attend journalism school and she initially turns it down, wanting instead to work and live in an apartment (and to be away from Grace House).

page 26 - Sam's introspection and different perspective than Kyle, the boy she goes running with. I like the Sam / Kyle scenes. They are dynamic and interesting. (as on page 56 when Coach Ridley intervenes during one of their runs and she thinks  - "I don't like losing. And I don't like criticism.")

page 69 - "Consider it grace - a gift unwarranted and undeserved." / also I have a post-it that says "Katie!" because the narrator writes "Then I'm coming after you if this turns weird."

page 123 - Again, with Kyle, she says, "I finally stopped my inane chatter and told him the truth about school and all my other struggles. It helped us both - shared failure is always a comfort." Truth is powerful, indeed!

page 141 - I love when she writes about The Voyage of the Dawn Treader and Aslan. "There's no Aslan in the real world, so there's no hope. Mrs. Muir would say I'm wrong. She says there is hope in God and hope in Christ." I love how this sweet couple, the Muirs, share their faith, their lives, their home . . . I want to be like that!

page 147 - "Maybe that's what love is - sacrificing yourself to save another . . . " Again she was talking with and about Kyle. That kid was my favorite character in this book! I love how he encouraged Sam to share their stories.

page 149 - "As we headed to bed, Mrs. Muir prayed for me. No one has ever done that before." Love love love this!

page 216 - "Love spills out of these people. That's what I want. Settling for anything less is a lie." It's ironic that she's writing about love to Mr. Knightley . . .

page 267 - The Ridleys' prayer when they have dinner after adopting Kyle. Awesome!

page 280 - "How can I not believe that there is a God who exists and loves, when the people before me are infused with that love and pour it out daily?"

page 301 - The story was so captivating until this point. The rest was pretty much a let-down. Her big revelation about Ebenezer Scrooge realizing that others were more important than he was . . . just lame.

I loved the romance, the Kyle/Sam growth dynamic, the literary allusions (though there were some I had to look up!), and the overall tone of the story. I liked many of the characters.

 

I wrote the above after reading this book for the first time in 2015. Now that our book club has read four other Reay titles, I was curious about her very first being my favorite. I re-read it yesterday (08.30.2020) and can affirm that it IS my favorite Reay book. I love it!

Living Dead Girl

by Elizabeth Scott
Hennepin County Library audiobook 3 CDs
genre: YA realistic fiction (horror!)
read by: Kate Reinders

Oh my word. This story was awful, but well-written. It opens with a fifteen-year-old girl "Alice" who has been with Ray for five years, ever since he took her from a school trip. He has beaten her, threatened her, and brutally raped her. This story was absolutely gripping. I am both sad and glad about how it ended. The reader was very effective.

After Visiting Friends: A Son's Story

by Michael Hainey
Hennepin County Library audiobook 7 CDs
genre: non-fiction memoir
read by Dan John Miller

This was not as captivating as I expected it to be. His father died when he was only six years old. He grew up to be a reporter; his dad had been a "slot man" - a lead night editor at a Chicago paper. His dad's death impacted his childhood and his adulthood . . . in an almost obsessive way. I had some compassion for his struggles and his desire to find out what actually happened the night his dad died, but it all seemed overwrought and overblown. The father / son connection was important, and I can't relate to that. Plus, this wasn't my life story. It is definitely thoroughly researched but includes his introspection and wonderings along with the facts.

I Am Number Four: The Lost Files: Hidden Enemy

by Pittacus Lore
PRMS paperback 403 pages
genre: YA fantasy adventure

The three stories - Five's Legacy, Return to Paradise, and Five's Betrayal - are just enough to tide me over until the next installment comes out. This is a very addictive series. Action, relationships, a few surprises. Since this book focuses on Five and Mark James, it is one of my least favorite in the series.