Eleven is a fine little novel about Winnie’s 11th year. She’s dealing with growing up in different ways than her best friend of many years. Imagination starts to give way to boys and fashion. Nothing earthshattering happens, which is kind of nice. It’s just school, friends, boys, parents, and siblings. It’s full of stuff like […]
Hapenny Magick
April 26, 2012 by 4 Comments
Hapenny Magick tells the story of Maewyn, a young Hapenny (they remind me a little of Hobbits) who lives with her cruel guardian, Gelbane. Although Hapenny aren’t supposed to be magick, it turns out that Mae is. When other Hapennies start disappearing, Mae has to figure out how best to fulfill her responsibilities—does she stay […]
My Sister the Vampire, Books 1-7
April 19, 2012 by 2 Comments
Honestly, I can’t remember what happened in each individual My Sister the Vampire book and it’s hardly worth writing individual reviews. They’re relatively short and should ideally be read in order—each one picks up where the last left off. They’re cute and sweet and my daughter loves them. My only complaint is that they’re so […]
Dinocalypse Now
April 17, 2012 by 1 Comment
Dinocalypse Now isn’t written specifically for younger readers, but with dinosaur attacks, talking apes, Neanderthals, dirigibles, and jet packs, a lot of kids will find it intriguing. It’s set in the world of Spirit of the Century—if you’re not familiar, it’s a bit like the world of Indiana Jones and The Mummy but with even […]
Snow in Summer
April 13, 2012 by Leave a Comment
Snow in Summer: Fairest of Them All is a variation on Snow White set in the late 1940’s in the hills of West Virginia. Snow in Summer, our Snow White analogue, is a farmer’s daughter instead of a princess. She reads books and fairy tales, including Snow White, and often compares herself to characters in […]
Mockingjay
April 10, 2012 by 4 Comments
Mockingjay, the final book in the trilogy (see my reviews of The Hunger Games and Catching Fire), brings Katniss’ story to its brutal but overall logical end. Katniss becomes the face of the rebellion—the Mockingjay—a tool of politicians on both sides of the conflict. Finally she violently takes things into her own hands and fights […]
Lily Dale
April 9, 2012 by 1 Comment
Although this series is made up of four books—Awakening, Believing, Connecting, and Discovering—they’re really better considered a complete novel split into four parts. In fact, they’re probably best read back to back. (I only figured out the A, B, C, D naming convention as I started the fourth novel.) The series follows high school senior […]
The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making
April 4, 2012 by 1 Comment
Review written by Jonathan Lavallee The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making is about a girl named September who is unhappy with the way things are going in her life. Her father is off fighting in the war and her mother spends too much time working at the factory. She […]
Catching Fire
March 29, 2012 by Leave a Comment
Catching Fire is the sequel to The Hunger Games. It continues pretty much where the last book left off, and having survived the Hunger Games hasn’t actually solved any of Katniss’ problems. She needs to set off on the victory tour—the publicity stunt the government uses to keep the Hunger Games fresh in everyone’s mind. […]
The Phantom Tollbooth
March 28, 2012 by Leave a Comment
I remember loving The Phantom Tollbooth as a child and I was pleasantly surprised by how well it held up. I read it out loud to my kids, which allowed me to explain some of the jokes and the overall metaphorical plot (why words and numbers require rhyme and reason to reach their full potential). […]
