Entwined is a novel length retelling of “The Twelve Dancing Princesses.” (Retellings of this tale seem to be popular—I talked to author and frequent Reads 4 Tweens reviewer Jocelyn Koehler about that.) This version deals with the logistical issue of giving birth to 12 daughters by having the youngest being born right before the mother […]
The Princess Bride
March 22, 2013 by 3 Comments
Review written by Jonathan Lavallee. I’m sure most people have seen the movie and not read the book, turning this book into every one’s favourite book that they’ve never read. The Princess Bride is a story about William Goldman editing out all the boring bits of a beloved childhood book that his father had read […]
The Penderwicks at Point Mouette
February 8, 2013 by 1 Comment
The Penderwicks at Point Mouette is the third book about the Penderwick Family. It assumes, as I will, that you’ve read the other two. (In fact, I accidentally picked up this one when I meant to read the second one and by the first paragraph knew I was missing part of the story—and honestly, if […]
How NOT to Spend Your Senior Year
January 10, 2013 by Leave a Comment
I decided to give the Romantic Comedies line one last chance by reading How NOT to Spend Your Senior Year by Cameron Dokey, since she’s one of my favorite authors. While the writing was better—I appreciate Dokey’s tendency to have her narrators tell the story directly to the reader—the plot was still convoluted to the […]
The Penderwicks on Gardam Street
January 8, 2013 by Leave a Comment
The Penderwicks on Gardam Street, the sequel to the delightful The Penderwicks, gives us some insight into what life is like for the lovely Penderwick family when they’re at home. We get more insight into Martin Penderwick (always called “Mr. Penderwick in the text, like the reader is friends with the girls and he’s very […]
My Sister the Vampire 9, 10, &11
December 6, 2012 by 3 Comments
We managed to get the next three My Sister the Vampire books through Scholastic, so we’re all caught up now! Rather than write three separate reviews, I’m going to do them all together. I’m just going to assume you’re familiar with the series. If not, you can read about the earlier books here and here. […]
Belle
December 3, 2012 by Leave a Comment
Belle is Cameron Dokey’s retelling of “Beauty and the Beast.” Like all of Dokey’s work, it’s very readable and is an interesting take on the story that inspires it. I’ve read a lot of retellings of “Beauty and the Beast.” This one doesn’t really break any new ground, but it was enjoyable to read. Like […]
Sunlight and Shadow
November 15, 2012 by Leave a Comment
Sunlight and Shadow is another fairytale retelling by Cameron Dokey. I think this is bordering on obsession for me! This one is a version of “The Magic Flute” which is a story I wasn’t familiar with. It’s essentially an origin story of how the Sun and Moon came to share precedence in the world, with […]
My Life in Pink and Green
November 9, 2012 by Leave a Comment
My Life in Pink & Green tells the story of Lucy, a 7th grader who helps her mom and grandma at their drugstore. The store is struggling, and Lucy tries to find ways to help save the family business. She loves makeup and makeovers, which she uses to start her own little business. When she […]
The Goose Girl
October 15, 2012 by Leave a Comment
The Goose Girl is extrapolated from the fairytale of the same name. Overall, it does a good job of staying true to the fundamentals of the tale while creating a complex story that stands well on its own. The basic plot is the same—a princess (Ani) travels with her handmaid (Selia) to marry a prince. […]
