Have you ever read Frankenstein? There have been so many film adaptations that Frankenstein has become part of American pop culture, but the original book is actually considered classic literature. Written by Mary Shelley, the wife of well-known Romantic poet Percy Shelley, it was originally published in 1818 and has been popular with readers ever […]
Crossed (Matched, book two), by Ally Condie, 2011, Book Review
This is a continuation of the story of Cassia and the two men she loves. She is leaving behind Xander, perfect Xander who is destined for greatness within the Society, Xander, to whom she is Matched, and looking for Ky, the Aberation who has been sent to die in the Outer Provinces, the man who […]
Peter and the Sword of Mercy, by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson, 2009, Book Review
This final book in the Starcatchers series was an afterthought by the authors, written at the request of readers who weren’t satisfied with a trilogy. It’s crafted with the same humor and style, but it takes place twenty years after the others and, incidentally, one year before Mr. Barrie published his classic Peter Pan play […]
The Graveyard Book, by Neil Gaiman, 2008, Book Review
Because of the title, I went into this a little leery. And the first few pages didn’t help. It starts with a man creeping through a house holding a knife. “The knife had done almost everything it was brought to the house to do, and both the blade and the handle were wet…The hunt was […]
Matched, by Ally Condie, 2010, Book Review
Matched is the first in a trilogy of dystopian YA fiction by Ally Condie that I’ve heard so much about on the web I had to read it for myself. It’s good enough that I want to finish the trilogy, but at the same time, it doesn’t feel very original. Maybe I’m just burning out […]
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, by John Boyne, 2006, Book Review
This is a startling look at the holocaust through the eyes of a nine-year-old German boy. Bruno is the son of a Nazi Commandant. As a result of a promotion, Bruno and his whole family leave their lovely home in Berlin and follow Father to his new assignment—head of Auschwitz concentration camp. Bruno can see […]
The Giver, by Lois Lowry, 1993, Book Review
Imagine a world that is efficient, safe and painless. Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it? No one is rude, crime is not a problem, no one ever goes hungry. Every member of the community contributes in a helpful, organized manner, and life glides along as easily as sled runners on a snowy hill. Except there are […]
The Time Pirate: A Nick McIver Time Adventure (Book Two), by Ted Bell, 2010
Nick’s adventures continue. The Nazis have invaded France, Poland, Belgium, and Holland. England has declared war on Germany. Winston Churchill is the new Prime Minister of England. America has promised aid to England. And the first of four tiny Channel Islands has fallen to the Nazi invasion. Will Nick’s island be next? Not if he […]
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, by J. K. Rowling, 2007, Book Review
It took me fall, winter, and spring, but I finished my third venture through the Harry Potter series. And you know what? I enjoyed it as much as the first time. I’m amazed at the imagination and intricacy of the books, and I’m doubly amazed at how much I forget in a few years’ time. In […]
Eragon, by Christopher Paolini, 2003, Book Review
If ever there was a credit to homeschooling, Christopher Paolini would be it. Graduated from high school at age 15, he began working on what would become Eragon, book one of the Inheritance Cycle, a four-book fantasy series. I admit I went into this book skeptically, and it took several chapters before I warmed to […]