Teen/YA Review: Across the Great Barrier

I enjoyed The Thirteenth Child by Patricia C. Wrede so much that when I finished it, I immediately picked up the second book in the trilogy, Across the Great Barrier. I flew through it and loved it just as much as the first book. Wrede’s world of the Wild West with magic added in is fascinating and peopled by real, in-depth characters

In this second novel, Eff finishes high school and continues working for a professor at the Northern Plains Riverbank College in her town. Because of her experience the previous summer, she is asked to join a scientific expedition heading West, past the Great Barrier Spell, to further identify flora and fauna in the unexplored areas and check on regrowth after a devastating insect infestation in the settlements the previous year. Eff is thrilled to be heading back out into the wilderness, though her mother fears for her safety.

Meanwhile, Eff’s brother Lan (who is a seventh son of a seventh son and therefore a very powerful magician) and their best friend, William, continue their studies in magic in great eastern universities. Eff continues to be wary of her magical powers. She now knows that there is nothing inherently unlucky about being a thirteenth child, but she is still having trouble getting past the mental roadblocks that have been in place since early childhood.

Out West, Eff and the rest of the expedition discover things they’ve never even known could exist, struggle against obstacles (including saber cats and Columbian sphinxes), and try their best to help the settlements when unforeseen dangers crop up. As in the first book, Across the Great Barrier is filled with adventure and magic in the setting of the Wild West. Through the hardships and mysteries they encounter, Eff continues to grow not only physically but emotionally and magically as well, as she learns more about her own particular brand of magic and how to control it. It is an exciting, fast-paced story full of likable characters that I finished quickly. Now I am ready for book #3 – I can’t wait to see what happens to Eff and Lan next!

339 pages, Scholastic

NOTE: As with the first book in the series, Across the Great Barrier is marketed toward teens but is perfectly appropriate for older middle-grade readers as well, especially those who enjoyed the Little House and Harry Potter books!

    

It's Monday 1/28! What Are You Reading?

We had a very busy week here! We took our sons and two friends up to the Poconos to my mom's house for a weekend of snowboarding, to celebrate my son's 15th birthday. The boys all had a blast, and I finally got some reading time, in front of the fire in the condo!

Here's what we read last week:

• I finished Pigs in Heaven by Barbara Kingsolver and loved it even more than the first novel, The Bean Trees. I never wanted it to end, and days later, I am still thinking about Taylor and Turtle. Two of the best books I have ever read!
• I am now reading I Still Dream About You by Fannie Flagg, this month's selection for one of my book groups. It's well-written and I am enjoying it, but Pigs in Heaven kind of ruined me for any other novel right now! I did get a lot of reading time in this weekend while the kids were snowboarding, though.
• I also slipped in a quick little book, Tales from Outer Suburbia by Shaun Tan. I don't quite know how to describe it because it is so unique and quirky. I see that it is officially categorized as a children's/teen book (one review says grade 4 and up; another says grades 7-12), but some of the wit and irony is clearly aimed at adults. I will try to review it this week, so I can describe it more fully. Anyway, I liked it!
• My husband, Ken, is reading The Likeness by Tana French. He still thinks the plot of this one is a bit far-fetched, but he's enjoying the excellent writing and sometimes even laughs out loud!
• Jamie, 18, had a busy week with school and snowboarding, but he continued to read Shaman's Crossing, Book 1 of the Soldier's Son trilogy by Robin Hobb. He says it's OK, but the fantasy world in this novel has guns and he prefers fantasy worlds that are pre-gun.
• Craig, 15, is still reading The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros for his freshman lit class.

We were so busy last week that I didn't have time to write any reviews, but I did FINALLY sign up for some 2013 reading challenges - check out my choices and let me know what you have signed up for.

What are you and your family reading this week?

(What are you reading Monday is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey, with a kid/teen version hosted by Teach Mentor Texts.)

Craig and his two friends enjoying the slopes!

2013 Reading Challenges

Well, here it is, January 23, and I still have not signed up for any 2013 Reading Challenges. I only began doing reading challenges a couple of years ago, and I like to stick to those that will help me read the things I want to read, without adding any pressure or extra obligations. It's about time I made some decisions and got off my butt. huh?  So, OK, here we go...(drum roll)...

My Reading Challenges for 2013:

2013 Where Are You Reading Challenge, hosted by Sheila at Book Journey -
This was my very first challenge (in 2011), though I took the no-stress approach and just tracked the locations where my books took place, rather than making any attempt to hit a certain target.  My final tally for 2011 included 20 different states and 11 different countries, and in 2012, I visited 27 states and 6 countries through my books.  We'll see if I can beat that in 2013!

2013 TBR Pile Reading Challenge, hosted by Evie at Bookish -
Like I said, I like to take on challenges that help me meet my goals, and one of my biggest on-going goals is to whittle down the ever-growing TBR pile! Last year, for another challenge, I had a goal of reading 12 books from my TBR shelf, and I managed to read (almost) 11 (that last one was finished in early 2013). Pretty pathetic to have only read 11 books off my own shelves last year, right? So, I am signing up at the A Friendly Hug level, to read 11-20 books from my TBR piles. I have already read two, so I am off to a good start.

2013 Audio Book Challenge, hosted by Theresa's Reading Corner -
I always have an audio book going on and enjoy them very much, though I am pretty slow with them. My old '92 VW doesn't have a CD player or iPod dock, so since I can't listen in the car, it takes me a while to get through an audio book!  Last year I listened to 10 audio books, so I guess I will shoot for....oh, what the heck, I will go for Going Steady, 12 audio books. I better get listening!

Those Books I Should Have Read 2013 Reading Challenge, hosted by Reading with Martinis -
For years, I have been wanting to read some of the classics my kids are reading for school. At the same time, there are a few really major authors I have never read but really want to (and never seem to get to). So, I went in search of challenges that might help in these goals, and found this one that brings both together! It's perfect for what I want - to read some of those books I have always been meaning to read but never get to, both classics and more modern books. I think I will just start at Level 1 - 6 books.

Some of the books I hope to finally read as a part of this challenge:

• A Margaret Atwood novel
• A Jane Austen novel
• An Ian McEwan novel
• The House on Mango Street (my son is reading it for freshman lit now)

It's Monday 1/21! What Are You Reading?

It doesn't feel like a Monday with my sons home from school - I'm getting a late start here!

We had a really great reading week last week - lots of outstanding books and we continued our sequel mania:

• I finished The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman for my neighborhood book group and absolutely loved it, as did most of the others in the group. It was my first-ever e-book, and I enjoyed the experience - especially being able to highlight quotes and look up words in the dictionary with just a touch of a finger. Read my review here.
• As soon as I finished that book, I went back to Across the Great Barrier by Patricia C. Wrede, but I had been squeezing in a page or two here and there, so I was almost done by then and finished quickly! It was just as good as the first book in the series, The Thirteenth Child, and now I am ready to read book #3!
• I am now reading Pigs in Heaven by Barbara Kingsolver, another highly anticipated book. I read the first book, The Bean Trees, over New Year's and couldn't wait to get into the sequel. It is excellent so far - a compelling story but it almost doesn't matter because Kingsolver's writing is so vibrant, clever, and witty and her characters so real and likable.
• My husband, Ken, finished Meg Gardiner's Ransom River and enjoyed it very much. He said he would definitely read more of her novels.
• Then, Ken returned to Patrick Ness' Chaos Walking trilogy and quickly read book #3, Monsters of Men. He loved the entire trilogy, as did our son - now I need to read it!
• Ken is now reading Tana French's The Likeness - he very much enjoyed In the Woods a few months ago. He says the premise of this one seems a little unbelievable to him so far, but she's a good writer.
• Jamie, 18, has been reading like crazy this week, enjoying the extra free time during Winter Session (he's just taking one class and living at home). He blew through re-reading the entire Seven Realms series by Cinda Williams Chima, finishing book 2, The Exiled Queen, re-reading book 3, The Gray Wolf Throne, and reading the latest #4, The Crimson Crown. Jamie says this is one of his favorite series, and he just got a friend at college into it, too!
• Now, Jamie is reading a new book he bought with a Christmas gift card, Shaman's Crossing, Book 1 of The Soldier Son Trilogy by Robin Hobb. This is one is grown-up fantasy rather than YA - he's at that age where he still enjoys teen and YA books but is starting to cross over into adult fiction. We started him a few years ago on authors like King, Crichton, Ludlum, and Heinlein. He is also having fun with his new Kindle Fire - he "bought" 11 new e-books yesterday, 10 of which were free! He does love a bargain.
• It was mid-term week for Craig, 15, so he did no reading other than studying for exams.

I wrote one review last week, of The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman. I also wrote my weekly Weekend Cooking post. I am determined to finally commit to some 2013 reading challenges this coming week!

What are you and your family reading this week?

(What are you reading Monday is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey, with a kid/teen version hosted by Teach Mentor Texts.) 

It's Monday 1/14! What Are You Reading?

Another busy week...when are they not busy?  I devoted much of my writing time to a project I am working on but did fit in some blog posts here and there.

And we all enjoyed our reading time - it was Sequel Week at our house!

• I continued reading Across the Great Barrier by Patricia C. Wrede, sequel to The Thirteenth Child, and was totally engrossed in it but had to set it aside mid-week to start a book for this week's neighborhood book group. I never read two books at once (especially two novels), but I admit I have been squeezing in a few pages here and there!
• I am now reading The Light Between Oceans by M. L. Stedman in preparation for my Wednesday book group discussion. I waited for the library as long as I could, but I was #150 on the waiting list when I signed up weeks ago! I finally gave up waiting. To save money (and time), I bought the e-book on my husband's Kindle and have been reading it that way - this is my first ever e-book! I prefer the feel of a real book, but I really love being able to look up words in the dictionary without setting my book aside, especially with all the unfamiliar Australian words in this book. The novel itself is excellent so far.
• I also read a short story, "The Paper Menagerie" by Ken Liu. It was the January selection for Books on the Nightstand's new Project Short Story. I haven't read short stories since high school and really enjoyed this first one. Check it out and join in the discussion!
• My husband, Ken, quickly finished The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness, sequel to The Knife of Never Letting Go, and is now eager to read the last book of the trilogy!
• He decided to take a break from that story, though, just to keep things interesting, and is now reading Ransom River by Meg Gardiner, one of my Christmas gifts to him. I chose this novel because it was recommended by Stephen King who says Gardiner is one of his favorite authors! On the very first page, Ken read me a passage, saying Gardiner definitely has a way with words.
• Jamie, 18, read Ruins by Orson Scott Card, sequel to Pathfinder which he and I both loved. He was completely deaf to anything we said while he read the last chapters of the book and said it was amazing!  I'm next in line for this one.
• Now, Jamie is re-reading a favorite series, Seven Realms by Cinda Williams Chima. He lent the first book to a friend at college last week, who read it in a single night and begged for more! He inspired Jamie to re-read the series and then read the newest book. So far, Jamie has read book 1, The Demon King, and has started on book 2, The Exiled Queen. He bought #3 and 4 on his new Kindle last week and shared them with his friend, so he is all set to read the entire series (so far). Jamie says this is one of the best series he's ever read (and that is saying something!)
• Craig, 15 (as of yesterday!), is still reading The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros for his freshman lit class. He says it's OK, but he doesn't like the way the chapters are on random subjects, rather than following a chronological order. I want to read this one when he is finished.

I wrote one review last week, of The Thirteenth Child by Patricia C. Wrede. I (finally) posted my 2012 Year-End Summary, including Best of 2012 List. I posted a similar summary and Best of 2012 List for kids/teen/YA books. And, I wrote a Weekend Cooking post yesterday, with a few recipe links from this past week.

What are you and your family reading this week?

(What are you reading Monday is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey, with a kid/teen version hosted by Teach Mentor Texts.) 

Happy 15th Birthday to my son yesterday!

Middle-Grade/Teen Review: The Thirteenth Child

Ever since my son read The Thirteenth Child by Patricia C. Wrede in 2010, he has been telling me, “Mom, you just have to read this book – it’s so good!” With my overflowing piles of books waiting to be read, it took me a while, but I finally found time to read it at the end of 2012. My son was right, as usual! It is a well-written and unique novel, a sort of combination of Harry Potter and Little House on the Prairie that I enjoyed so much that I immediately started reading its sequel when I finished.

Eff (don’t ever call her by her full name, Francine) was the thirteenth child born in her family, a circumstance that is considered not only unlucky but disastrous in her culture. Her twin brother, Lan, born just a few minutes later, was not only the fourteenth child in the family but the seventh son of a seventh son which makes him not just lucky but also gives him extra-special magic powers. While her entire community discriminates against Eff from the very start of her life, Lan is treated with reverence and even a bit of fear.

As enticing as that beginning sounds, the setting of this novel is even more fascinating. It is set in the United States during the time of pioneers and western expansion, but it is an alternative history, where magic is an integral part of everyday life. Certain facts of history are the same as our own history but other aspects differ. For instance, there was still a war between the states, but it was known as the Secession War, and it occurred several decades earlier than our own Civil War.

The Great Barrier Spell protects all of the states and territories east of the Mammoth River (aka Mississippi River) from both natural and magical wildlife. The bears and mammoths, sphinx cats and steam dragons, and all the other dangerous wildlife are unable to cross the barrier, allowing people to live peacefully and without fear.  But, after the war, westward expansion booms as the nation’s need for more space grows, and more and more families join settlements west of the Great Barrier Spell. Each settlement is required to have its own magician, someone professionally trained to help maintain the settlement’s protection spells.

In that setting, Eff (living in a town just east of the Great Barrier Spell, on the edge of the western frontier) struggles to overcome the challenge of her birth order, with her family’s support. She and Lan go to school, become friends with their next-door neighbor, and learn magic, but Eff is constantly worried that something terrible will happen to her or those she loves.

This novel has everything: adventure, magic, friendship, and family, with details of pioneer life added in. It is fast-paced and exciting with a warmth and depth uncommon in many adventure stories. Kids that enjoyed the Little House books or Hagrid’s Care of Magical Creatures class in Harry Potter will especially love Eff and Lan’s world. And when you finish The Thirteenth Child and are dying to hear more, there are two more sequels already released to keep you reading happily.

NOTE: The Frontier Magic trilogy is officially labeled as teen fiction, but I’m halfway through the second book and think they would be perfectly appropriate for older middle-grade readers, too.

344 pages, Scholastic

 

Best of 2012 & Year-End Summary

I finally sat down and took a look back at all the books I read in 2012. It was definitely a good reading year!

I read a total of 64 books in 2012, plus 2 that I did not finish (one of which I spent a week on!). The type breakdown is:

• Adult Fiction = 26 books
• Memoir =3
• Nonfiction (not memoir) = 1
• Middle-Grade Fiction = 15
• Teen/YA Fiction = 18
• Picture Books = 1

Of those 64 books, 10 of them were audio books.

That's a few less books overall than last year, but 3 of the 64 were more than 800 pages and each of those took me more than 3 weeks to read!

Now comes the tough part - choosing my favorites! I enjoyed everything I read this year (except for one of the books that I did not finish). You might conclude that means I like everything, but really, that's just because I tend to choose what I read carefully, based on what I like and reviews from people whose tastes are similar to mine. My book groups make sure I don't get stuck in any ruts!

So, my Top Ten Kids/Teen/YA Books Read in 2012 are (not in order):

• Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick
• Dead To You by Lisa McMann
• Okay for Now by Gary D. Schmidt
• Everfound by Neal Schusterman
• Young Fredle by Cynthia Voight
• Looking for Bobowicz by Daniel Pinkwater (also, my family's favorite audio of all time!)
• The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
• Greetings from Planet Earth by Barbara Kerley
• The Thirteenth Child by Patricia C. Wrede
• The Girls of No Return by Erin Saldin

 (you can check out my top ten list of grown-up books read in 2012 at Book By Book.)

And, for a little extra fun, here are a few superlatives (thanks for the idea, Tanya!):

Best Middle-Grade Book of the Year:

Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick
 

 
 Best Audio Book of the Year:

Okay for Now by Gary D. Schmidt

Best Teen/YA Book of the Year: 

The Fault in Our Stars by Lisa McMann 

Best Kid/Teen/YA Book by An Old Favorite Author:

Dead to You by Lisa McMann  

Best Kid/Teen/YA Book by a New Author:

  The Girls of No Return by Erin Saldin
 

What were YOUR favorite kids/teen/YA books of 2012?

It's Monday 1/7! What Are You Reading?

Ahhh....Monday morning - a new week in a new year, and I am (almost) alone in the quiet house (college son is still asleep) and ready for a fun and productive week!

Lots of great reading lately - it was a week of sequels for our whole family!

• I finished The Thirteenth Child by Patricia C. Wrede, an inventive middle-grade/teen novel that offers an alternate history of pioneer times in the U.S. in a world where magic and magical creatures exist. It's like a cross between Little House on the Prairie and Harry Potter!
• I was enjoying the story so much that I am now reading book #2 in the series, Across the Great Barrier, which follows the adventures of young Eff as she graduates from school and goes along on an expedition to catalog the wildlife in the Far West, past the Great Barrier Spell (which keeps wildlife, both natural and magical, away from the established towns and cities east of the Mammoth River). It's fun to just jump right into a sequel when you've enjoyed a book, instead of having to wait for it to be released.
• My husband, Ken, finished The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness (a dystopian YA novel recommended by our son) and loved it so much that he is now reading book 2, The Ask and the Answer. Now both of them are telling me I have to read this series!
• In between, while traveling home from Oklahoma, my husband read West of Sheridan by Dean Ross, a post-apocalyptic novel, on his Kindle.
• Jamie, 18, finished City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare, after first re-reading the first 4 books of the Mortal Instruments series! This is one of his favorite series.
• Now he is reading a sequel that he and I have been eagerly awaiting for over a year: Ruins by Orson Scott Card, the sequel to Pathfinder which he and I both loved.

With some time off, I was able to post quite a bit on my book blogs last week. I wrote two reviews, The Fault in Our Stars by John Green and The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver. I LOVED both of these books, so check them out.

I also posted my December Reading Summary and my 2012 Reading Challenge Wrap-Up. Finally, I wrote a Weekend Cooking post about the quick and easy comfort foods we had this past week.

What are you and your family reading this week?

(What are you reading Monday is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey, with a kid/teen version hosted by Teach Mentor Texts.)

Teen/YA Review: The Fault in Our Stars

After hearing rave reviews  of John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars all year, I finally got a chance to read it myself, just before the end of the year. A young friend of mine lent it to me after I squealed in delight seeing her reading it! It was just as wonderful as everyone said it was and surprisingly funny and warm for such a serious subject matter.

Seventeen-year old Hazel has had terminal cancer for much of her young life. A miracle drug has given her more time, but she and her doctors know that it is only a temporary reprieve.  Her life is pretty routine and depressing until the day that a new guy shows up at the kids’ cancer support group she attends. Augustus Waters is unlike anyone Hazel has ever met before. He is honest and funny and is a big believer in metaphor. Oh, and he’s gorgeous, with a crooked smile that Hazel loves.

Life with Augustus around is much more interesting, but there are still plenty of dark clouds on the horizon. Adding to their troubles, Hazel and Augustus’ friend Isaac needs another eye surgery for his cancer that will leave him blind. Despite these enormous challenges, the three friends keep each other laughing…and support each other when the tears and anger come. Hazel also finds support from a favorite novel that she relates to and has read dozens of times:

“My favorite book, by a wide margin, was An Imperial Affliction, but I didn’t like to tell people about it. Sometimes, you read a book and it fills you with this weird evangelical zeal, and you become convinced that the shattered world will never be put back together again unless and until all living humans read the book. And then there are books like An Imperial Affliction, which you can’t tell people about, books so special and rare and yours that advertising your affection feels like a betrayal.”

Hazel does end up sharing her favorite book with Augustus, but I don’t want to say much more about what happens because the plot includes some surprises. The relationship between the three friends – and especially between Hazel and Augustus – is at the heart of this novel.  John Green’s talent for realistic teen dialogue shines through, and the book is filled with warmth, depth, emotion, and surprising humor. I literally did laugh and cry while reading it. A book that can make me feel such a wide range of emotions is certainly a winner.

313 pages, Dutton Books

 

It's Monday 12/31! What Are You Reading?

Happy New Year's Eve! Do you have big plans for tonight? Fancy parties? Times Square? We bought our little New Year's Eve party pack at Target and will celebrate here in Oklahoma with my father-in-law. I love being in the Central Time zone for New Year's Eve, so we can watch the ball drop on TV and be in bed by 11:10!  So, that gives you an idea of our wild plans. At least we now celebrate at 11 - we used to celebrate at 8 pm for the kids! I've included a photo below of a happier time when both Grandma and Grandad were still with us.

Well, it may be New Year's Eve, but it is also Monday and that means it is What Are You Reading Day! Despite our very hectic holiday week, we have all been able to read quite a bit, thanks to travel time:

• I finished The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, and it was just as good as everyone said it was!
• To choose my final books of the year, I scoured the overflowing To-Be-Read shelves in my bedroom, trying to satisfy as many of my 2012 reading challenges as I could!  One of my personal challenges was to read 12 books from my TBR shelves, so I reluctantly ignored some of the newer books I got for Christmas. I started to read Pigs in Heaven by Barbara Kingsolver, which good friends have been recommending to me for years, but I quickly realized that it wasn't the first book in the series (the books can stand alone but I prefer to read them in order), so after 20 or so pages, I switched to The Bean Trees (the first book) by Barbara Kingsolver, which has also been languishing on my shelves for years! I loved, loved, loved this book and can't believe it took me so long to get to it!! Now I am dying to get back home, so I can go back to Pigs in Heaven.
• I am now reading The Thirteenth Child by Patricia C. Wrede, a teen/YA novel that my older son has been telling me to read for years (see the pattern here?). It's an alternate history set out on the Western prairie in pioneer times where there are dragons and wooly rhinoceroses, along with the bison, and magic is used to keep people safe from the big creatures. It's kind of like Little House on the Prairie meets Harry Potter - I'm enjoying it so far.
• My husband, Ken, just finished The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness, another YA novel our son has been begging us to read. Ken absolutely loved it and can't wait to get home to read the rest of the trilogy!
• Since that was the only book he brought on our trip, Ken is now reading a novel on his Kindle, West of Sheridan by Dean Ross, a post-apocalyptic story set in the West, near Yellowstone. It sounds interesting.
• Jamie, 18, finally has some time to read, though games on the computer and his new Kindle Fire are distracting him! He finished City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare (book 4 in the Mortal Instruments series) and is now - finally - reading book 5, City of Lost Souls. He wanted to read this months ago, when it was first released, but first he re-read the rest of the series!
• Craig, 14, is definitely distracted by all the games, TV shows, and movies on his new Kindle Fire!  He did download two books - much to my surprise - and has started reading Fast Track to Sailing by Steve Colgate.

I actually managed a few blog posts this week, once we arrived at my father-in-law's house. I posted a review of Time and Again by Jack Finney (which I loved) and a fun summary of the books we gave and received for Christmas.  I also wrote a Weekend Cooking post about the southern tradition of eating black-eyed peas for good luck on New Year's Day, with my recipe for Hoppin' John. Check it out - there's still time to get your good luck for the new year! Finally, I posted some photos from a very cool display at my local library called The United States of YA - perfect if you need inspiration for the Where Are You Reading Challenge!

What are you and your family reading this week?

(What are you reading Monday is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey, with a kid/teen version hosted by Teach Mentor Texts.)

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

YA Novels Across the US

I was surprised to walk in my local library last week and see this fabulous display, The United States of YA: read Your Way Across the USA:

(sorry for the glare - it was a shiny sign!)

It's a display showing a YA book set in every one of the 50 states! Isn't that great? This display appealed to me even more because for the past two years, I have participated in Book Journey's Where Are You Reading Challenge. If you are also enjoying this challenge and need to fit in another one or two states this week before the year ends (or want to participate next year!), here are some close-ups of the display (click on a photo to see it even larger) to help you fill out your Where Are You Reading checklist:

The past few weeks, I have been choosing my books based on trying to finish my 2012 reading challenges, including Where Are You Reading! I really enjoy tracking the settings of the books I read and plan to participate again in 2013, so this display will come in handy!

Have fun reading your way across the USA!

It's Monday 12/24! What Are You Reading?

Busy, busy, busy holiday week!  No time for blogging. I probably shouldn't even by typing this, but I couldn't stand to miss a Monday post!  So, just a quick one, then back to wrapping gifts and cooking.

• I finished reading Time and Again by Jack Finney, the last of my Christmas gift books from LAST Christmas!  I loved this novel about traveling back in time to 1882 NYC so much that it's characters are still with me days after I finished it - that's the sign of a great book!
• Now I am FINALLY reading The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, one of the year's top YA (and adult) novels that I have been wanting to read for many months - fitting it in just before the end of the year!
• My husband, Ken, finished Defending Jacob by William Landay last week and loved it! He said he can't tell me much about it without giving away surprises - I can't wait to read it!
• Ken has now started The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness - both he and I have been wanting to read this trilogy for a long time - our son says it is great!
• Jamie, 18, is still re-reading City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare, book 4 in the Mortal Instruments series. He's been busy playing with his brother and cousins so hasn't had much reading time since coming home.
• I am still listening to Wildwood by Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis, a middle-grade audio book, though I don't have much time to listen with a house full of people!

What are you and your family reading this week?

(What are you reading Monday is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey, with a kid/teen version hosted by Teach Mentor Texts.)

It's Monday 12/17! What Are You Reading?

I am waaaay behind today, but the whole week is going to be like this - not much time to squeeze in blogging this week.  My son and I made our trek to the Lyme doctor today (90 minutes away) - nice to have him feeling well enough to do the driving!  But that is just the beginning of a very busy week that will end with a large group of family members arriving for the weekend.

Good thing we have our books for a little downtime here and there:

• I finished Greetings from Planet Earth by Barbara Kerley, a very good middle-grade novel set in 1977 - you can read my review here.
• With Christmas quickly approaching and new books on my wish list, I decided I better finish the books I got as gifts LAST Christmas! So, I am now reading Time and Again by Jack Finney, a classic time travel novel my husband gave me that I just never found time for. I love time travel plots and am enjoying it very much.
• Last night, we read a new holiday picture book with our sons. Yes, they are 14 and 18 now, but they still enjoy our traditions of watching holiday movies and kids' specials and reading from our collection of holiday books together (see a list of our favorites). We read The Santa Trap by Jonathan Emmett and Poly Bernatene. It's clever and funny, though quite a bit darker than our usual holiday fare! I will post a review this week.
• My husband, Ken, finished The Big Burn by Timothy Egan, after I read it and raved about it. He enjoyed reading about the formation of the U.S. Forest Service and the suspenseful scenes of the Great Fire.
• Ken is now reading one of his birthday gifts from October, Defending Jacob by William Landay, a novel he and I have both been wanting to read.
• Jamie, 18, is home from college, with no responsibilities for a few glorious weeks! He is looking forward to enjoying some reading time and is currently re-reading City of Fallen Angels, book #4 in Cassandra Clare's Mortal Instruments series.
• Craig, 14, is reading The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros for his freshman lit class. He says it is good so far but a little hard to follow because it doesn't follow a chronological order. I'm looking forward to reading this one when he is done!

I posted two new reviews last week: Middlemarch by George Eliot and Greetings from Planet Earth by Barbara Kerley, a middle-grade novel.

I also posted a Top Ten New To Me Authors I Read in 2012 list (for grown-up books) and a similar list of new to me kids/teen/YA authors. And, in this season of Best Of lists, I posted a link to the New York Times' 100 Notable Books of 2012 and a discussion of BookPage's Best Children's Books of 2012 (and 2011 and 2010!).

What are you and your family reading this week?

(What are you reading Monday is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey, with a kid/teen version hosted by Teach Mentor Texts.)

Middle-Grade Review: Greetings from Planet Earth

Barbara Kerley is the author of several award-winning picture books, but Greetings from Planet Earth is her first middle-grade novel. I thoroughly enjoyed this distinctive and engaging book and look forward to reading more from her in the future!

In 1977, Theo’s 12^th birthday is bittersweet. His mom, grandma, and older sister celebrate with him and give him nice gifts, but his father is still missing. His dad joined the Army and went to Vietnam, but he never returned; it was years before Theo heard the term MIA because his mother never talks about his dad. But even knowing his dad is MIA still leaves Theo with a lot of questions about him because he barely remembers the father that left when Theo was 5 years old. No one ever wants to talk about him, but finally, Theo’s grandma begins to tell him about his dad.

At the same time, Theo’s mind is also occupied by his class project. Voyager 2 will leave Earth in the summer carrying golden records to bring greetings from earth into space. Theo’s class is making their own golden record, and Theo needs to figure out what his contribution will be. What is the most important thing about Earth? And its people? Theo considers and discards many ideas for his photo and recording, as he gradually learns more and more about his missing father.

Greetings from Planet Earth seamlessly blends light-hearted fun, facts about the moon, and introspective drama into a single, agreeable story. It captures the excitement of the early space era, along with the thoughtfulness of a young boy’s search for both his identity and his father. The characters are all real and likable, and the story moves along at a fast-pace and even has some surprises hiding along the way. It’s an excellent novel for middle-grade readers of both genders who enjoy realistic stories with some depth and heart.

243 pages, Scholastic

 

BookPage's Best Children's Books of 2012

I enjoy reading BookPage each month (I pick it up at my local library) - that's where I get a lot of my ideas for my TBR list.

Here is their list of Best Children's Books of 2012.  I haven't read a single one of them yet!  I am always behind.  The Fault in Our Stars is on my shelf, though, waiting to be read...does that count? Actually, I do hope to read it before the end of the year.

Hey, I wonder if I've read any of their Best Children's Books of 2011?  Well, I did a little better - I've now read 2 books off the 2011 list: Wonderstruck and Okay for Now, both excellent and among the best books I read this year.  But that's still not very good after 2 years!

OK, one more try.  Here is BookPage's Best Children's Books of 2010.  I've read 6 of these!  So, I do get around to the best books eventually...I am just perpetually behind.

I guess I need to get busy in 2013 and read some of these!  How many of the Best Children's Books of 2012 (or 2011 or 2010) have you read?

Top Ten New To Me Authors I Read in 2012

It's Tuesday and this week's Top Ten list at The Broke and the Bookish sounded like one I could manage: Top Ten New To Me Authors I Read in 2012: 

• Veronica Roth - Divergent
• Brian Selznick - Wonderstruck
• Erin Saldin - The Girls of No Return
• John Green (yes, finally!) - An Abundance of Katherines
• Augusta Scattergood - Glory Be
• Paolo Bacigalupi - Ship Breaker
• Cynthia Voight - Dicey's Song
• Moira Young - Blood Red Road
• Lauren Oliver  - Leisl and Po
• Julie Schumacher - The Unbearable Book Club for Unsinkable Girls 

Some of these were first-time authors; others very well-known authors I'd just never read before. I enjoyed all ten of these very much and would certainly be interested in reading another book by any of these authors.
How about you?

What new-to-you authors did YOU try in 2012?

(I focused this list in authors of kids/teen/YA books. For my list of new-to-me grown-up authors, check out my list at Book By Book).

It's Monday 12/10! What Are You Reading?

Ahhhh...Monday morning and I am all alone in a quiet house.  We saw friends and had some fun on Saturday, but Sunday was a busy, exhausting day.  Ready to catch up today and start a new week!

I did have a satisfying reading week:

• I finished The Big Burn: Teddy Roosevelt and the Fire That Saved America by Timothy Egan just moments before my book group meeting.  Unfortunately, I was too sick to go to the meeting and was very disappointed because I loved the book and was looking forward to discussing it.  Here's my review - I still want to discuss it so be sure to leave comments!
• After that, I went back to my book-in-progress and...I FINISHED MIDDLEMARCH!  Woohoo!  Yes, it only took me a month, but I did finish this hefty classic...and enjoyed it very much.  Review to come this week.
• My reading strategy for the rest of the month is to focus on beefing up my 2012 Reading Challenges (especially reading from my TBR shelves) and reading as many books as possible to wrap up the year!  I was also craving some kids/teen/YA reading after my month-long relationship with Middlemarch.  So I am now reading Greetings From Planet Earth by Barbara Kerley, a middle-grade novel about a 12-year old boy in 1977 who is obsessed with space travel...and with learning more about his father who was MIA in Vietnam.  It's great so far.
• On audio, I went back to a middle-grade audio book I started many months ago and then set aside, Wildwood by Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis.  I picked it up where I left off and am enjoying it so far.
• My husband, Ken, finished The Fifth Witness by Michael Connelly. 
• Ken is now reading The Big Burn by Timothy Egan, after hearing how much I liked it!
• I think both of our sons have been too busy with school work for much reading lately.

I finally found some time and energy to catch up on blogging last week.  I posted two reviews:  The Big Burn by Timothy Egan and The View From Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg.  I also posted my November Reading Summary and two wish lists: Top Ten Books I Wouldn't Mind Santa Bringing Me and another Top Ten wish list for kids/teen/YA books. And finally, I posted my weekly Weekend Cooking post.

What are you and your family reading this week?

(What are you reading Monday is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey, with a kid/teen version hosted by Teach Mentor Texts.)

Middle-Grade Fiction: The View From Saturday

E.L. Konigsburg is well known for her award-winning children’s literature, having won two Newberry Medals for From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler and this novel, The View from Saturday.  We listened to the audio of From the Mixed-Up Files… together as a family, as well as another Konigsburg novel, The Mysterious Edge of the Heroic World.  Unfortunately, my teenage sons don’t like listening to audio books together anymore (sniff, sniff), but I enjoyed listening to this one on my own.

The View from Saturday is about a sixth-grade Academic Bowl team, but to my surprise, very little of the story is actually about the competition itself.  This novel is more of a character study, examining the lives of each of the four team members and how they came to know each other and become friends.  Ethan, who is very smart but rarely talks, feels like he lives in the shadow of his high-achieving older brother.  Nadia, with a halo of bright red hair, meets Ethan for the first time when her grandfather marries his grandmother down in Florida, and they both visit during the summer and end up saving turtles together.  Noah, by a strange accident, ends up acting as best man at the wedding of Ethan’s grandmother and Nadia’s grandfather.  The fourth and final Academic Bowl team member is Julian, who is new to the area, with an unusual and exotic background that makes him fodder for the school bullies.

The four of them begin to become friends when Julian invites them all to a tea party.  Their teacher, Mrs. Olinski, who has returned to teaching for the first time since an accident that left her in a wheelchair, isn’t entirely sure why she has chosen these four for her team, except that each one just seems to be the right choice at the right time.  The team is very successful together, as the opening scene of the Academic Bowl shows, but more importantly, the four kids become friends and each becomes more comfortable with who she or he is, through their experiences both in school and out.

This is essentially the story of outcasts finding their place in the world.  Each of the four kids – and their teacher – is a bit of a geek and feels out of place at the beginning, until they find each other and begin to bond.  It’s a warm story of unlikely friendship, with touches of gentle humor throughout.  I have to admit that my 14-year old son was right – he wouldn’t have enjoyed this book much, despite having been on his own middle school’s Academic Bowl team.  He just prefers more action and suspense in his books (when he reads at all!).  But kids who enjoy real-life stories of real-life kids overcoming obstacles and finding friends will enjoy this novel as much as I did.

Simon & Schuster Audio

Top Ten Books I Wouldn't Mind Santa Bringing Me

I haven't had the time to participate in The Broke and The Bookish's Top Ten Tuesday meme in quite a while, but I couldn't resist this week's topic: the Top Ten Books I Wouldn't Mind Santa Bringing Me.  I thought I would have trouble coming up with 10 because I already have so many books waiting to be read here, but I came up with so many that I needed two lists!  So check out Book By Book for my Top Ten wish list for grown-up books.  And here are my Top Ten choices for kids/teen/YA books:

• Liar and Spy by Rebecca Stead - because I loved When You Reach Me.
• Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein - because it sounds fascinating and I keep hearing rave reviews.
• Son by Lois Lowry (and also Gathering Blue and Messenger) - because I really liked The Giver.
• Every Day by David Levithan - because it sounds completely unique.
• The Paladin Prophecy by Mark Frost - because I just read a review and it sounds great.
• My Family for the War by Anne C. Voorheeve - because it is about an aspect of WWII I know little about (the kindertransport).
• Paper Towns or Looking for Alaska by John Green - because he is one of the top authors in the world now, and I've only read 1 of his novels (and The Fault in Our Stars is already on my shelf witing!).
• Safekeeping by Karen Hesse - because it sounds like a different, more introspective kind of post-apocalyptic novel.
• Shadow on the Mountain by Margi Preus - because it looks at WWII from childrens' perspectives.
• Ruins by Orson Scott Card - this one is kind of a cheat because we already have it, but I am dying to read this sequel to Pathfinder!

How about you?  What books do you want Santa to bring this year?

It's Monday 12/3! What Are You Reading?

Whew...busy weekend!  I'm actually glad it's Monday, and I am alone in the quiet house.  I really need to do better at finding time for fun and relaxation on the weekends - I definitely have trouble letting go of the to-do list and just chilling.

We had a pretty good week, though a rough start.  I think we were all exposed to a virus during our Thanksgiving week visits, so my youngest son was home sick for several days last week.  Fortunately, it only affected my older son and I for a day each, though.  So, I felt like my week started on Thursday!  No wonder the weekend was so busy.

We did enjoy some reading time last week, though:

• I am STILL reading Middlemarch by George Eliot, though I had to set it aside a few days ago....just temporarily!  I am less than 100 pages from the end now, and I do plan to finish it later this week.
• Since my other book group meets this Wednesday, I decided I better start that book!  We are reading and discussing The Big Burn: Teddy Roosevelt & the Fire That Saved America by Timothy Egan. I bought this book for my brother-in-law last Christmas, and I am thoroughly enjoying it so far.  We are huge National Park fans, so this book is right up my alley.
• I finished the middle-grade audio book I was listening to, The View From Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg. I enjoyed it very much and will write a review this week.
• My husband, Ken, is reading The Fifth Witness (a Lincoln Lawyer novel) by Michael Connelly and enjoying it.
• Jamie, 18, is still reading City of Fallen Angels, book #4 in Cassandra Clare's Mortal Instruments series, I think...he seems very busy at college.  I'm sure he'll make up for it during his long winter break by reading non-stop!
• Craig, 14, has been reading short stories for his freshman literature class, including classics like The Most Dangerous Game, The Gift of the Magi, and one of my favorites, A Sound of Thunder by Ray Bradbury (the story that coined the phrase "The Butterfly Effect").

I posted one review last week: Rule Number Two, an excellent memoir by a psychologist who served in Iraq and is also a wife and mother.

I also posted a discussion of the Washington Post's Best Books of 2012 list and the New York Times' 25 Notable Children's Books of 2012 as well as my weekly Weekend Cooking post (I did a lot of cooking this week!)

What are you and your family reading this week?

(What are you reading Monday is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey, with a kid/teen version hosted by Teach Mentor Texts.)