Rating: Genre: Young Adult First sentence: When I stepped out into the bright sunlight from the darkness of the movie house, I had just two things on my mind: Paul Newman and a ride home. Favorite Quote From the Book: The fight for self-preservation had hardened him against caring. Publisher: Puffin; PLATINUM EDITION edition (April 20, 2006), Paperback, 208 pages / ISBN 978-0142407332 Summary from Amazon: This enduring classic is the story of the Curtis brothers – Daryl, Sodapop, and Ponyboy, who are struggling to keep what’s left of their family together in 1960’s Oklahoma. Their love extends out to their adoptive family – the fellow “greasers” that make up their world. With Johnny Cade, Dallas Winston, and Two-Bit Matthews, the brothers do the best they can in a world that looks down upon them for being “grease” rather than “Soc.” –Reviewed by Jodi Turchin After Thoughts: This has long been a favorite read of mine. Like many who come to love the book, I first read it in high school and have read it several times since. Ponyboy pulls you into his world immediately and you get so caught up in the struggles he faces that they become your…
The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton
The Last Apprentice: Revenge of the Witch (Spook’s Apprentice #1) by Joseph Delaney
Rating: Genre: Fantasy, YA First sentence: When the Spook arrived, the light was already beginning to fail. Favorite Quote From the Book: If you can’t make a mistake, you can’t make anything. Publisher: HarperCollins (September 6, 2005), Hardcover, 368 pages / ISBN 0060766182 Summary from Amazon: Capturing witches Binding boggarts Driving away ghosts For years, Old Gregory has been the Spook for the county, ridding the local villages of evil. Now his time is coming to an end. But who will take over for him? Twenty-nine apprentices have tried–some floundered, some fled, some failed to stay alive. Only Thomas Ward is left. He’s the last hope; the last apprentice. Can Thomas succeed? Will he learn the difference between a benign witch and a malevolent one? Does the Spook’s warning against girls with pointy shoes include Alice? And what will happen if Thomas accidentally frees Mother Malkin, the most evil witch in the county … ? After Thoughts: I picked this book up yesterday after work. I was wandering the isles of the bookstore just enjoying the atmosphere and the cover caught my eye. Needless to say, it was worth the money I paid for it . It’s an easy read…
Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan
Rating: Genre: Fantasy, YA First sentence: Look, I didn’t want to be a half-blood. Favorite Quote From the Book: Publisher: Disney-Hyperion (March 21, 2006), Paperback: 400 pages / ISBN 0786838655 Review by Matt Berman: Percy Jackson, dyslexic and hotheaded, has been kicked out of yet another school. But stranger things are happening around him, and soon he finds himself at Camp Half Blood, a refuge and training ground for children of the Greek gods, who are still around and causing trouble for humans. He discovers that his dyslexia is caused by his brain being hardwired for Greek, and his hotheadedness is because, well, he’s a hero. All too soon he discovers which god is his father, and that he is a pawn in a titanic battle between the gods that may ignite World War III. Accompanied by a daughter of Athena and a young Satyr, Percy is sent to retrieve Zeus’ lightning bolt from Hades, who supposedly stole it. But things are even more complicated than he and the gods imagined, and there are dangerous plots afoot. After Thoughts: I really enjoyed reading this book. I have been a fan of mythology for a long time. There is a lot…
The Velveteen Rabbit By Margery Williams
This is a wonderful story about love and the impact toys have on children and their imagination. It was one of my favorite bedtime stories as a kid. Amazon.com Review: A stuffed toy rabbit (with real thread whiskers) comes to life in Margery Williams’s timeless tale of the transformative power of love. Given as a Christmas gift to a young boy, the Velveteen Rabbit lives in the nursery with all of the other toys, waiting for the day when the Boy (as he is called) will choose him as a playmate. In time, the shy Rabbit befriends the tattered Skin Horse, the wisest resident of the nursery, who reveals the goal of all nursery toys: to be made “real” through the love of a human. “‘Real isn’t how you are made,’ said the Skin Horse. ‘It’s a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real.’” This sentimental classic–perfect for any child who’s ever thought that maybe, just maybe, his or her toys have feelings–has been charming children since its first publication in 1922. (A great read-aloud for all ages, but…
The Chosen by Chaim Potok
This is one of my all time favorite books. I first discovered it when I was in 6th grade, and have reread it many times since then. It’s a book that has really affected the way I look at the world and changed my life. This book truly is a must read. I really liked the concise review I found on Littera Scripta Manet, So I decided to just copy from there rather than write my own review: In The Chosen, Potok tells the story of two Jewish boys in 1940’s Brooklyn–Reuven and Daniel–who form an unlikely friendship after a baseball hit by Daniel, a Hassidic, strikes Reuven, a Modern Orthodox, in the eye. As their friendship develops, so does the social and political climate as the boys’ fathers react differently to the potential for an Israeli state at the conclusion of World War II. Ultimately, the boys successfully maintain their friendship, while responsibly dealing with the conflicts between their fathers and their beliefs. The novel’s themes include the strength of friendship, the pursuit of truth, religion & the secular world, and father-son relationships; a father’s advice on friendship; two views on how to raise a son; serious religious study;…
The Willoughbys by Lois Lowry
If you’ve ever wished to be part of an ‘old fashioned story’ then this is the book for you. Lois Lowry has done it again, though this book has a distinctly different flavor than her other books. You can definitely taste the influence of such authors as Roald Dahl or L.M. Montgomery. The book has a certain twisted nature but leaves you content that everything works out in the end. It is a quick read and easily finished in an afternoon. In the book, Lowry pokes fun at some of English Literature’s most famous ‘worthy and winsome orphans’ while honoring them at the same time. Tired being neglected by their horrible parents, the four Willoughby Children concoct a plan to become orphans themselves. Meanwhile, Inspired by the tale of Hansel and Gretel, their parents are trying just as hard to get rid of them. Like most old fashioned stories, this one also includes a very capable nanny, and an extremely wealthy benefactor. Don’t let the stereotypes fool you though, this old fashioned story is brand new. One of the best things about the book is the way Lowry plays with you as the reader. She almost smothers the story with…
A Wrinkle In Time By Madeleine L’Engle
Meg Murry’s Father has been gone for two years and no one knows exactly why. All they know is that he was working on a top secret government project. It has been a difficult time for the whole family, but especially for Meg and her younger brother Charles Wallace who was only a baby when he left. One day a very special visitor, Mrs. Whatsit, arrives and helps Meg, Charles Wallace, and their friend Calvin set out on a great adventure to rescue him. In order to do this they travel through time and space and meet some very interesting people along the way. They find their father trapped on a far a way planet ruled by IT which controls the minds and lives of all who live there. When Charles Wallace falls under the power of IT, it is up to Meg to try and save the day. This book is another all time favorite of mine. “A Wrinkle In Time” like so many children’s books can be read and appreciated at many different levels. It has many different themes including the power of choice, finding a happy medium, exploring spiritual and religious ideas, and discovering what really matters…
Little Britches by Ralph Moody
This is a wonderful true story about how a young boy learns some of life’s best lessons while working a small ranch with his father. I love simple heartfelt stories like this, and like the cover says it is a perfect book to read aloud. If you are like me and believe that you are what you read, then you will learn a lot from this book. Amazon.com review: Without the flamboyance or the caricature of other “life with Father” books this tells, simply, directly of the Moody family and their life in Colorado. Father’s health necessitated a move and all seven of the Moodys moved to a godforsaken little ranch. There Little Britches learned how to face a situation, through emphatic lessons and Father’s kindly but firm insistence on cause and effect. This is the story of hard luck, stubborn pride, and altruistic community endeavor, for Father is the one who evolves a solution for the water problem, and of the implanting of an honest, moral philosophy. It is the story too of Little Britches’ first earnings, of his interrupted schooling, of his Indian friend, Two Dog, who added to the excitement of the new life, of the many…
The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart
IÂ thought this book was pretty great. It is a wonderful story, but a little slow in places. I agree with the review that the book could have been shortened easily. However, I am the kind of person who loves to read thick books and this didn’t bother me too much. It is another book that is sort of old fashioned and a little “Roald Dahlish”. It has that same sort of flavor. Anyway, it’s worth checking out. Review from Amazon.com: *Starred Review* “Are you a gifted child looking for Special Opportunities?” This curious newspaper ad catches the eye of orphan Reynie Muldoon. After taking exams that test both mind and spirit, Reynie is selected along with four other contestants–Sticky Washington, a nervous child with a photographic memory; irrepressible Kate Weatherhill; and a tiny child who lives up to her name, Constance Contraire. The children soon learn they’ve been chosen by mysterious Mr. Benedict for an important mission: they are to infiltrate the isolated Learning Institute for the Very Enlightened, from which messages of distrust and compliance are being broadcast into the minds of the world’s citizens. Debut novelist Stewart takes some familiar conventions–among them, an orphan struggling against evil…
The Hollow Kingdom Trilogy
This is one of the best fantasy series that I have read in a long time. The beginning for me was a little slow when you find the protagonist, Kate, and her sister Emily move to the country to live with some distant relatives. But once the story really begins you’re hooked. The girls find themselves in the company of goblins, and not just any old goblins but the Goblin King himself with his own band of misfits. He has come to steal Kate away and make her his bride. After a lot of trouble, Kate agrees to go with him on one condition. He must rescue her sister who has been kidnapped by a dastardly cousin. There are several reasons why I loved these stories. The biggest one being that it shows familiar fairytale villains in a friendly light.  The characters are well developed and engaging, The adventure is original, and the experience is one you will want to repeat over and over again. You can visit the Author’s website at claredunkle.com