Bibliography: Cohn, Rachel and David Levithan. (2010). Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares.  New York: Knopf Books for Young Readers.  IBSN: 978-0375866593 (hc) 978-0375859557 (pb)

Plot Summary:  On his own in New York for the Christmas holidays, Dash finds a red moleskine notebook in the J.D. Salinger section of the Strand bookstore.  The notebook contains a challenge from the mysterious Lily.  Are Dash and Lily destined to meet in real life?  Or do they only live in the notebook they pass back and forth?

Critical Analysis:  One of my dreams is to visit New York City during the Christmas season.  With this book, I felt like I was there.  I really liked the clever collaboration, and I will need to go back and read their other  joint novels (Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist, Naomi & ely’s No Kiss List) to see what other fun I missed.  The dares were fun, Lily’s crazy family who assisted her and Dash’s diverse group of friends just added to the story.  Lots of humor and wit along with holiday details and a New York back drop make this an excellent holiday read for teens and adults.

Review Excerpts: “Cohn and Levithan use a familiar but fun formula for this holiday-themed collaboration–think Saint Nick & Norah–mixing an enticing premise with offbeat characters and some introspective soul searching….there are more than enough amusing turns of phrase and zigzag plot twists to keep their attention”–Publisher’s Weekly

“The spirit of the season amplifies Dash and Lily’s loneliness and heightens the connection between them, in another surefire hit from the creators of Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist (2006).”–Booklist

“As they did in Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist (Knopf, 2006), the authors combine their talents to write an appealing book. It makes readers long to buy a notebook, begin filling its pages, and find a friend who might turn out to be more. This book will spend as much time off the shelf as Lily’s notebook.”–School Library Journal

Reviewed from public library e-book copy.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.

]]> http://readspace.net/2011/12/holiday-reading-dash-lilys-book-of-dares-by-rachel-cohn-and-david-levithan/feed/ 0 http://readspace.net/2011/10/review-the-sherlockian-by-graham-moore/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=review-the-sherlockian-by-graham-moore http://readspace.net/2011/10/review-the-sherlockian-by-graham-moore/#comments Tue, 18 Oct 2011 15:19:54 +0000 http://readspace.net/?p=1625 Bibliography: Moore, Graham. (2010).  The Sherlockian.  New York: Grand Central Publishing.  ISBN: 978-0446572590

Plot Summary:  Sherlockian and minor researcher Harold White is thrilled to be inducted into the Baker Street Irregulars.  And then a real-life murder mystery worthy of Holmes himself lands in his lap–a prominent Doyle scholar is dead after announcing he has found a long missing diary of Doyle.  Harold and his encyclopedic knowledge of Holmes is on the case, criss crossing the Atlantic in hopes of finding the diary and the killer.  Unless someone else gets there first…

Critical Analysis:  I liked but did not love this book.  I found the beginning at the convention to be wonderful, and the end with the solution and denouement also well done.  I liked the character of Harold, but I thought the story dragged quite a bit in the middle.   The character of Harold is quite endearing as are all the details from Holmes stories.  I felt like there was too much of Harold and the female journalist and not enough else.  The parallel story with Doyle and Bram Stoker held my interest a little more, I enjoyed the details of the Suffuragists and the writing and theater scenes of the time, but left me thinking what I really want is a mystery series featuring Stoker.  That sounds like fun to me.  I will most likely read the next in the series to see how it fares.

Review Excerpts: “Moore’s debut cleverly sets an accidental investigator on the track of an old document within the world of Sherlock Holmes buffs, though the results may please those with only a superficial knowledge of the great detective.”–Publisher’s Weekly

“The problem with Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes stories is that there aren’t enough of them. Fans try to fill the gap with spin-offs, some of which work better than others. This engaging riff on the familiar themes by first-novelist Moore is one of the best.”–Booklist

“…Moore does an excellent job of making his characters and settings feel real, using his thorough knowledge of the Holmes stories to good effect. Given the enduring popularity of Sherlock Holmes, this title is an excellent choice for public libraries and historical mystery fans…”–Library Journal

“While occasionally heavy-handed and coincidental, Moore’s fiction provides a shrewd take on the noted author and his legendary scion.”–Kirkus Reviews

Reviewed from public library copy.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.

Bibliography

Plot Summary:  The summer before eighth grade, and Drew is working in her mother’s cheese shop where she hangs out with surf bum Nick (who she also has a crush on.)  When she isn’t working, she plays with her pet rat and ponders her dead father’s Book of Lists.  When she met Emmett in the alley behind the shop after closing one night, she never expected the friendship and adventure that would follow.

Critical Analysis:  This quiet unassuming book is almost perfect.  A perfect picture of what it is like to have your everyday existence interrupted, to allow a stranger to become a friend, to widen the circle of your life.  It is about small events that change us and how we have to take a chance to grow and become the person we are going to be.  At least partially autobiographical in nature, Reinhardt’s mother also owned a gourmet cheese shop, it is also a perfect snapshot of atmosphere, time, and place.  I hope that librarians are preparing their booktalks using the details of rats, cheese and the Book of Lists to entice readers to pick this up.  They won’t be disappointed.

Review Excerpts: “Laced with mystery and fascinating details about Drew’s chief interests—rats and cheese—this quiet novel invites readers to share in its heroine’s deepest yearnings, changing moods, and difficult realizations. Strong imagery…will stay with readers.”–Publisher’s Weekly

“Reinhardt has written another book that will resonate with any readers learning to spread their wings and fly.”–School Library Journal

“[A]  lucid voice that is thoughtful and entertaining without being showy….There is a hint throughout of being a step removed that balances the immediacy of the events being related and the power of hindsight….Quiet yet immensely appealing.”–Kirkus Reviews

Reviewed from publisher provided advanced copy.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.

Bibliography

Plot Summary:  Leaving a destroyed Paris behind them, Nicholas takes the twins Josh and Sophie (and the pages of the codex) to London, dangerous territory of Dr. John Dee, in hopes of finding Gilgamesh the King to awaken the twins’ elemental magic of water.  With Pernelle trapped on Alcatraz and Scatty missing, the group will need all the help they can get.  Thank goodness London is also the home of Francis’ friend Palamedes and Shakespeare.  The twins and Nicholas will need all the help they can get to fight their way out of London to the location of the ley lines that will hopefully take them to California and Pernelle.

Critical Analysis:  Usually I don’t have patience for long books that are part of longer series that seem to go on and on.  For some reason,  The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel is a rare exception.  I think it is partly because of its basis in legend and mythology.  There is something so elemental in these creatures and their powers that speaks to Jung’s archtypes and collective unconscious.  It takes a real skill in crafting a plot to make these ideas and creatures both new and familiar.  Secondly, I love the historical figures.  If Nicholas and Pernelle can be immortal, then it makes sense that others might be as well.  And I like the fact that people become immortal for different reasons in different ways.

I find the twins to be perhaps the least interesting part of the story–they exist to drive the plot and to be acted upon.  For me, the characters that interest me most are Nicholas and Pernerlle.  I like that we get even more glimpses of who they are, their past in this entry in the series.  I would like even more of that, or perhaps a prequel.  I think this book has great appeal to both boys and girls, and while a bit violent in places, I think could go down into upper elementary.  I highly recommend the audio version, as it makes the action seem even more realistic.

Review Excerpts:  ”This book is a must-read for fans of the series, but even they will tire if the author doesn’t get to the point with reasonable dispatch.”–School Library Journal

“The intricacy of weaving so many legends into one complicated contemporary conglomerate is a fascinating juggling act, though plot is sometimes sacrificed for simply piling on new characters—which leads to some narrative bloat. Immersively imagined, this series remains a great choice to fill the post-Potter vacuum.”–Booklist

“Master yarnspinner that he is, Scott expertly cranks up the suspense while keeping his now-large cast in quick motion…this page-turner promises plenty of action to come.”–Kirkus Reviews

“Teens familiar with the previous two books or fans of adventure fantasies like Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson and the Olympians series will eat this one up.”–VOYA

Reviewed from public library audiobook.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.

Plot Summary:  The Secretary of the Navy asks John Mahoney, Speaker of the House, to have his fix it guy, Joe DeMarco, investigate his nephew’s claims that fraud is being committed at a naval base in Bremerton, WA.  With the help of retired DIA agent, Emma, they discover it isn’t fraud, but an espionage ring.  When spies begin to show up dead, it seems the their control may be after more than just top secret information.

Critical Analysis:  On the surface, the premise of some of Lawson’s books seem rather like that of other political thrillers being written today.  But the devil, as they say, is in the details.  (I am tempted to go back and reread Inside Ring just so I can write a review of it here–so much about the politics between the different groups and agencies in Washington, it seems absurd but only because it is probably true.)  Here Lawson tells us everything there is to know about how a naval base works.  And, incidentally, how someone might go about infiltrating said base to collect classified information.  Fascinating stuff.

But what sets Lawson apart are his characters.  Joe DeMarco, of course, who so human and so real, and who has that quality that I love in many protagonists of my favorite mysteries and thrillers–a desire for truth, justice and helping others that ignores politics, what it is good for his career and the fact that he could end up dead.  But we also have Emma, who made an appearance in the first book.  What I love about Emma is that she is older, retired, but still sharp and on her game.  And I know that Lawson has to have written her back story and hope that means that she might appear in other entries as well.  And then there is the Speaker himself, John Mahoney.  Lawson makes him as stereotypical as they come and then gives him hidden strength and cunning to get out of the tightest spots.  He’s what you love to hate about politicians and yet in the end he supports DeMarco and Emma.  I have a long road trip coming up, I think I’ll add the next DeMarco book to my listening stack.

Review Excerpts: “…[I]t’s the character of DeMarco, a man of insecurities, weaknesses and outright defects, that separates this new series from the herd. DeMarco also has a dry, self-deprecating sense of humor that contrasts nicely to the solemn gravity of his professional circumstances.”–Publisher’s Weekly

“[T]he author (a former civilian contractor for the U.S. Navy) works in plenty of the kinds of details only an insider could know. At once a solid thriller and a revealing look behind the scenes of American politics, the tale will appeal to a wide spectrum of readers.”–Booklist

Reviewed from public library audiobook.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.

Bibliography

Plot Summary:  Prom is supposed to be the best night of your life, right?  Not for popular Bliss who catches her BFF and boyfriend making out.  Not for bad girl Jolene who can’t believe that she is dressed in pink ruffles risking her rep for a guy who is late.  Not for Meg who just wanted a night to be a normal teen but whose date stood her up. Each existing in her own circle of high school, they find each other on this less than magical night and decide to get revenge–throw in a few frat parties, karaoke, breaking and entering, a trip to the emergency room, a makeover and a stop at Dairy Queen.  Three girls who couldn’t be more different realize they might have something in common after all.

Critical Analysis:  This novel reads like the best teen prom movie that you’ve never seen.  Hear that, Hollywood?  Someone should buy the rights ASAP.  Frothy and fun and full of girl power, McDonald hits all the right notes.  Her characters maybe a little true to type, but in this case, it works perfectly with the madcap plot of revenge they concoct and carry out together.  Each learns something about herself and the others over the course of the night.  And if the ending is a little too good to be true, what’s the harm in providing hope that three very different girls from different worlds might come to be friends through sharing an intense series of adventures?  Light and frothy fun, perfect for prom season and teen girls dreaming about prom and prom haters alike.  I love McDonald, her three young adult novels each  little different but wonderful in their own right.  Please write faster!

Extras: In collecting stories about the American prom experience (being from Britain, McDonald didn’t have the American prom night), McDonald was surprised to hear from many teens that they felt pressure and stress surrounding the event.  So she set up PROMyourway.com “to encourage a ‘prom-positive’ message, and help teens make prom an experience that matters to THEM. You don’t need to buy into the stereotypical image to have a good time - prom can be whatever you want it to be : a way to give back to your community; a force for social change, and – yes – an amazing party where everyone’s invited!”

Check out Aimee Ferris’ site for her book, WillWorkForPromDress.com to see pictures of young adult authors in their prom best.

Review Excerpts:  ”…[T]he novel is lightly wicked fun in formal wear, filled with bickering, breaking and entering, and quick getaways. The girls basically play to type, but grow enough to make their journey an amusing diversion.”–Publisher’s Weekly

Reviewed from publisher provided advanced copy.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.

Levine, Gail Carson. (1997). Ella Enchanted. New York: HarperCollins. ISBN: 978-0060275105 (hc) 978-0064407052 (pbk)

It is funny to me how some books stick out in my mind.  I associate this book with when I was starting out as a librarian.  I remember how it and other books by Levine were very popular and we couldn’t keep them on the shelves.  But even though I had read it, I couldn’t recall much about the book itself.  Listening to it on audio, it was like reading it again for the first time.  So charming, so witty, so well plotted.  And Eden Riegel did such an excellent job in reading it.  Levine was not the first to retell or reimagine a fairy tale, but she was so successful I believe it led to many others we have today that otherwise may not have been published, and for that we should all be thankful!

Reviewed from public library audio book.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.

Plot Summary:  They should all be dead.  But when a mysterious man offered them a chance to live, they took it.  Maddy escaped a plane crash, Liam the sinking of the Titanic, and Sal a horrible fire.  From different times, they come together in New York to relive the events of 9/11 over and over;  learning about time travel and looking for time shifts that mean someone else has altered history for their own gain.  When just such a shift is detected, they realize they must stop whoever has unleashed the power of the Nazis on the present Earth or the world itself may be destroyed.

Critical Analysis:  I really like the hook of this book, the first in a series, young people rescued from death for a bigger purpose of saving the world.  And the author does a nice job of setting up this world, where time travel is possible and the characters live in a loop that repeats over and over again.  I thought having the loop be 9/11 was an insightful choice, imagine having to live that series of events again and again.  The details of the machines, the computers, the clone, the travel are fun.  The characters themselves are interesting with clear-cut personalities.

But I didn’t find myself loving this book.  First of all, I find Nazis a very obvious choice.  Yes, they are evil, yes, there are parallels between events then and events today.  But it isn’t very subtle, is it?  Second, most of the events were outside the characters’ control.  They spent a lot of time reacting to circumstances and not much time changing those circumstances.

Finally, I found the whole book to be very somber and serious.  I realize almost dying and then saving the world is not all sunshine and light, but especially the second half of the book was unrelenting in its dreariness.  The question is, though, what do readers in the target audience think?  I would love to know what kind of kid/teen appeal this title has.

Review Excerpts: “Time travel produces plenty of fodder for reader education and introspection….The villain even has his own internal demons; nothing is too black or white and victory is hard-won in Scarrow’s world. Despite some unevenness, this series is off to a promising start with plenty of potential and gusto.”–VOYA

“This is an interesting premise populated by engaging, well-developed characters….While the ending brings closure, there are still plenty of opportunities for a sequel, possibly multiples, to follow.”–Kirkus Reviews

Reviewed from publisher provided advanced copy.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.

Plot Summary: At the end of A Whole Nother Story, Ethan Cheeseman and his three children escaped the various n’er do wells by hopping in their time machine and heading to the past to end the family curse and stop the murder of their beloved wife and mother.  Easier said than done–the  machine lands them in the middle of the 17th century, where they are being chased by witch hunters and pirates and a team from the future while trying to get a cursed goblet back to its rightful owner.  Even if they complete their quest, there is a chance the time machine is beyond repair.

Critical Analysis:  I found the second book in this series to be a little harder to get into then the first.  Perhaps some of the charm and wackiness of the characters and humour is wearing thin, or perhaps it has become harder for “Dr. Soup” to maintain the same level of hilarity and hijinks across a second book.  I’m sure it will matter little to the book’s target audience, kids in upper elementary, and Iwill say I was glad for the new sock puppet and was laughing out loud when the Cheesemans were trying to escape the villagers and the witch hunter.

That being said, I still really enjoyed the return Cheesemans, as normal and loving a family as can be, even with their time traveling and quests to break a curse and stop a murder.  Even among all the madcap adventures that Soup manages to show us more about their characters and even makes room for a little growth.

Review Excerpts: “The incessantly comic commentary is a bit hit-or-miss but over the course of these nonstop rollicking adventures, there are hits, and hilarity, aplenty.”–Children’s Literature

“This is a quirky, madcap tale….With such a variety of insane characters…there are many laugh-out-loud moments. Although this title stands fairly well on its own, it is especially recommended for libraries where the first book is popular.”–School Library Journal

Reviewed from publisher provided advanced copy.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.

Plot Summary:  Thomas and the Gladers solved the maze and escaped the Grievers, but it turns out there is more in store for them.  Sun flares have destroyed the Earth and a deadly virus called the Flare is rampaging through the remaining population.  WICKED, the group behind the maze, has infected the group with the Flare.  They have just two weeks to travel across 100 miles of hot and scorched land to reach a safe house and receive the cure.  Separated from Theresa, learning about other groups going through the trials and dealing with snatches of disturbing memories, Thomas starts to question everything including his part in the trials.

Critical Analysis:  The Maze Runner was all about getting out of the maze and hope for safety and survival.  All characters were focused on the hope of what lay beyond.  The Scorch Trials ratchets up the tension and suspense from the beginning.  From feeling safe to feeling exposed, from hope to fear and desperation, Thomas and the boys have to figure out all over again how to work together.  Each boy has a distinct personality, but interestingly enough the power in this second volume comes from the group, how they work together to fight for their lives.  So Dashner makes us care about Thomas and Theresa but we root for the group, and each member who is lost is like losing a limb.

While some of this feels familiar (zombies created by a virus,  an earth scorched and destroyed. a mysterious group pulling the strings), Dashner has some crazy additions of his own–the metal blobs that stick to the boys’ faces and basically swallows their head, first smothering them and then causing their heads to basically fall off.  Dashner excels at ratcheting up the suspense and doling at just enough details about the mysterious group behind it all to raise more questions than answers.

I see many people suggesting this as a readalike for The Hunger Games, and I can see some superficial similarities.  For me, Dashner is darker, more raw and edgier in tone and style.  Perhaps it is the loss of hope and twistiness, especially in the second book.  Just when it seems like things are safe…Please, Mr. Dashner, can I have some more?  If I were making comparisons, I would say it has real parallels to Lord of the Flies and might be a great companion or independent read for an English class.

Review Excerpts: “In any case, fans who are already hooked will gobble this down, particularly those who don’t mind anemic female characters and a high body count.”–Publisher’s Weekly

“Readers of the first book will quickly be swept up in the suspense and nonstop action—this would make a dandy video game, as Thomas confronts one gruesome danger after another.”–Children’s Literature

“Readers will be on the edge of their seats with this thrilling story, and it is also makes a great match for fans of The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins”–VOYA

“The unresolved ending will leave readers impatiently waiting for the conclusion to the trilogy”–School Library Journal

“Taut and bleak, continually intriguing and surprising, this is a solid sequel that keeps both Thomas and readers wondering what is really going on.”–Kirkus Reviews

“The wickedly violent action and rush to figure out what’s actually going on help distract from a number of gaping plot holes. Fans will want this one, too, but know that Dashner still has an awful lot of explaining to do in the upcoming finale.”–Booklist

Reviewed from publisher provided advanced copy.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.