04. November Blues, by Sharon M. Draper. * * * * finished 02/11/2008

[http://www.amazon.com/November-Blues-Sharon-M-Draper/dp/1416906983/]

316 pgs. 2007. Fiction: Realistic fiction.

Audience: grades 7-12

Summary: November Nelson learns she is pregnant from her first time with Josh, and fears she has no one to turn to, until she finds solace in the arms of Josh's cousin Jericho.

Review: November is a smart, intelligent girl who plans to go to college. When she becomes pregnant, her life of skinny jeans and college plans is suddenly thrown upside-down. Unlike some books about teen pregnancy, this one completely catalogs the physical drawbacks of pregnancy-- the swollen feet, the digestive issues, the nausea, and everything else that happens when one's body changes.

Instead of just focusing on November's physical pregnancy, Draper also focuses on the pettiness of high school interactions and the solid friendships that can be formed between social outcasts. In a parallel plot, Draper focuses on November's friend Jericho, who is dealing with issues of anger regarding his cousin Josh. Jericho becomes a true friend to November just when she needs it the most.

Unlike many YA novels, November isn't left to deal with these issues on her own; her mother is a constant force in the book, being both angry and supportive of her daughter's various choices. She helps November to negotiate a difficult offer that is presented by Josh's parents, one that will change her life whether she takes it or dismisses it.

Draper's characters are nicely rounded and fleshed out, and their emotions and reactions are real and true. The dialogue-- whether playful banter or cutting insults-- is similar to that you'd find between teenagers, though Draper has left out the curse words that would likely appear when real-life, petty high school girls have a showdown. November's emotional state is delicately and precicely drawn, and Draper does an excellent job of showing the impact that one girl's pregnancy can make on her life and the lives of everyone around her. A must-read for high school girls, and definitely a book for older middle-school girls to consider.

Awards: King Honor Book, 2008. Expect this one to be an Abe Nominee soon.

Similar: The Battle of Jericho is the prequel to this book; you may wish to read it first. Other similar titles include The First Part Last, by Angela Johnson; Make Lemonade, by Virginia Euwer Wolff; and Hanging on to Max, by Margaret Bechard.

37. The House at Riverton - Kate Morton...I did enjoy this book in the end, but it took an awful long while to get going, nothing really happened for about 500 pages except build up, yes it was interesting, but i'm not sure it is as good as the fuss people are making about it!

38. Outcast - Michelle Paver...This book was not as good as the previous three in the series, it lacked the suspense that the others had and again not a lot really happened, i will probably read the next two tho!

39. Purple Hibiscus - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie...Again the start of this book was disappointing, but by the end I was gripped. It was an interesting and terrifying story in turns about Nigeria, a country I know very little about, but the extent to which a family deals with abuse and the way which religious zealotism was treated in this book was fascinating.

 

11. Stop in the Name of Pants! - Lousie Rennison
Summary from play: Sound the Cosmic Horn for bestselling author Louise Rennison's ninth book of the confessions of crazy but loveable teenager Georgia Nicolson! Now that Georgia has finally won over gorgey Masimo, the Italian Stallion, her old friend and lip-nibbling partner Dave the Laugh has popped up again. Will Georgia go to Pizza-a-gogo land to visit dreamy Masimo? Or could her perfect boy be closer than she thinks. A Sex Kitty's life is never simple! More hilarious confessions from our fave teen drama queen, Georgia Nicolson.

Now I know I slated the last book, but I actually enjoyed this book. It was like going back to how the books originally were - funny, Georgia not being that annoying, moments of seriousness. I was really pleased that Rennison finally showed a much softer side to Georgia, in a wonderful twist involving Angus, that I was not expecting. Dave still pops up, but it is becoming glaringly obviously that the series may finally be coming to end, as Rennison hints hugely that Dave has something to tell Georgia, and let's face it, we know exactly what that is going to be. If you were becoming slightly disillusioned with how this series was panning out, give this book a go. It may just restore the faith you once had in Rennsion and Georgia.

Title: Making Money
Author: Terry Pratchett
Published: 2007
Pages: 476
Synopsis: Who would not wish to be the man in charge of Ankh-Morpork's Royal Mint and the bank next door? It's a job for life. But, as former conman Moist van Lipwig is learning, life is not necessarily for long. The Chief Cashier is almost certainly a vampire. There's something nameless in the cellar (and the cellar itself is pretty nameless), and it turns out that the Royal Mint runs at a loss. A three-hundred-year-old wizard is after his girlfriend, he's about to be exposed as a fraud, but the Assassins' Guild might get him first. In fact, a lot of people want him dead. Oh. And he has to take the Chairman for walkies.
Rating: 4/5
Review: Great fun, I'm really loving Moist's character and hopefully TP will be well enough to get another Moist book done. It wasn't as good as 'Going Postal' but it was just as fun, full of random giggleworthy stuff and great plot twists... Vetinari rocks as usual and Mr Bent is a great character who I'd love to hear more of.... great fun, recommended!

Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village by Laura Amy Schlitz

Not since Kate DiCamillo's The Tale of Despereaux have I found myself agreeing with the library gods' choice for the Newbery Award. Therefore, I was delighted to read this year's winner, which blends poetry and prose as well as artful illustrations to depict life in the middle ages. My only criticism: the book was too short! I devoured the 58 pp. in less than an hour and I was hungry for more. Bravo Laura Amy Schlitz!

Title: Trouble in the Village
Author: Rebecca Shaw
Genre: Novel

Plot: In the last Turham Malpas story, big-name actor Hugo arrives in the village and almost destroys the marriage of the rector and his wife, Caroline. In this novel the rector, Peter, disappears so he can have some time to think about his relationship. In the meantime, the village church gets a new verger, and although he seems like a good candidate, he has connections that bring crime and danger itno the village. Once Peter returns, it is up to him and Caroline to decide whether there is enough of their marriage left to save.

Quote: "According to him the verger at St. Thomas's is a mainstay of the Church of England. I have heard said the Archbishop consults him on theological matters from time to time."

Grade: B+
Review: This novel mixes danger and mystery into the lives of the villagers, which makes it more similar to the first few books in the Turham Malpas series. It is a really good return. Lots of shady characters, marital discord, major village events, and all around good things.

Currently reading: A Village Dilemma
On the list: The Queen's Secret, Courts of Love, He's Just Not that Into You

I have slowed up some in the last 2 months and I am hoping to get back on the wagon now. I just started the L.J. Smith Night World Series.

Until then here is book 27/50 

 

It was a three day weekend which means I got through three of the books on my pile. Two were highly mediocre (one amazingly so) and the third made me mad, but in a good way.

Let's start with the one that made me mad. It was called Onion Girl by Charles deLint and it made me mad for only good reasons. The first was because it started out very like a story I started to write once, so very similarly, in fact, that (even though I suppose I gave up on it years ago), I now don't feel comfortable starting a story that way for fear of being accused of plagiarism. The second reason was that he did it so WELL that I was jealous. The third (which I didn't count because I was slightly embarrassed of it) was that I ended up highly jealous of the main characters, who find their way into the world of magic. When I was a kid (and even when I was less of a kid, to be entirely honest) that was all I wanted in the world, and DeLint's writing is SO good that it brought up all of those mostly-buried dreams, stuck them in my face and said "See, you never got that one wish". Which meant the rest of me loved it, because it reminded me of the vast internal life that I let go of about six years ago and, oddly, it let me take hold of it again. The story is about a young woman knocked over in a hit and run accident who, consequently, finds herself, though she's lost the ability to move awake while awake, able to dream herself into the world of magic. Some of her friends have always been able to get there, one way or another, and she's excited to finally find her way there, though she, in trying to avoid the "Broken Girl" (that's how she refers to her shattered body) spends more and more time sleeping and less time trying to heal.

It was an amazing book, and I didn't mind too much that it seemed to be in the middle of some series or other. It stood by itself pretty well, though, and I'm assuming the other books (if there really are other books) focus on this girl's friends, not on her.

Mediocre book #1 is Recursion by Tony Ballantyne. It had potential which it never quite reached. It's mostly about reality and being human (and what counts or doesn't count as reality or being human). There are three separate storylines that sort of intersect, one of a girl in an asylum trying to escape the AI Watcher, who supposedly guides humanity, one of a guy who gets shanghaid into a war with another AI and its parasitic machines, and one of a guy stuck in a virtual simulation.

Mediocre book #2 is SO mediocre that all I could remember about it this morning was that the cover was black and green. I couldn't (and still can't) remember what it was called, who wrote it, or even what it was about. Since I finished it LAST NIGHT, that's pretty bad. Since then I've remembered vaguely what it was about, a boy fighting against AIs that have taken over the world and going on spirit quests and things. His name his Tom. His little sister's name is Weed. The AI he's particularly upset with is Telemachus.

Hooray! The last book in the Night Watch series comes out today!

51/75

Edit: The highly mediocre book is called Prometheus Road and is by Bruce Balfour. Also, Last Watch apparently did NOT come out yesterday, though it does seem to have become available on Amazon yesterday. I'm highly confused.

39. Company of Liars: A Novel of the Plague, by Karen Maitland. 548 pages. (2008)

Grade: B+

It is England in 1348. The Black Death has arrived, and seemly endless rain has come with it. A company of people gathered from the edges of society (to use the cover's description: "a scarred trader in holy relics, a conjurer, a musician and his apprentice, a deformed storyteller, an adolescent couple on the run, a midwife, and a rune-reading girl") travel across England fleeing the plague, and in search of open towns, food, and shelter.

I liked this book - it had a great period atmosphere. It is important to remember the title when reading it - they are ALL liars, in one way or another.

Note: I actually read and reviewed this back in April but forgot to give it the required tags on my own LJ to make it appear in my book review section, hence it is now numbered out of order...

( Book One of The Dresden Files. )
Final marks out of ten: 10 out of 10. Can't fault this. Definitely on the keeper list and definitely will be reading more of this series.

Final comment: A good opening to a series without being a prelude book; nicely complete and well rounded with enough appetite-whetting involved regarding the more complex parts of this modern supernatural settings.

Note: I reviewed the first of the Dresden books back in April but due to tag mismanagement it fell off the count and has now been numbered out of order, hence the sudden jump in number...

( Book Two of the Dresden Files. )
Final marks out of ten: 10 out of 10 as per the first instalment. A thoroughly enjoyable read.

Final comment: Can't fault it: well paced, good plot exposition, great character development. Nice continuity.

Serenity: Those Left Behind by Joss Whedon, Brett Matthews & Will Conrad (Graphic novel, science fiction, crime)

From the back of the book:

Here's how it is - in a universe filled with hearts and minds as cold as the reaches of space, one small Firefly-class starship named Serenity takes its ragtag crew of mercenaries, outlaws and fugitives in search of a job, any job, that'll earn them enough cash to afford that most elusive commodity - peace.

Joss Whedon, creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, unveils a previously unknown chapter in the lives of his favourite band of space brigands in this prequel to the Serenity feature film - the blockbuster follow-up to Whedon's hit TV show Firefly.

My thoughts:

This was my first graphic novel; I only bought it because I am a Firefly/Serenity fan. I found reading it rather awkward: I wasn't sure whether to look at the pictures before reading the dialogue, or read the dialogue before looking at the pictures. I think maybe I'm too old to be able to appreciate the graphic novel properly. I found this one rather confusing. I suppose if I persevered I would become familiar with the conventions and they would become easier to follow. Having said all that, I did enjoy the story told here although there were no great surprises. It seemed very Firefly, and fitted well with canon. The dialogue was convincing and the artwork, mesmerising, however, it didn't engage me as well as either a TV episode or prose would have done. There was nothing to get my heart racing. It was far too static.

I'll keep this on my shelf as it is so very pretty to look at. I am tempted to write a fanfic based on the plot of this graphic novel. I find it so much easier and so much more engaging to read prose.

Fiction list

4 / 50 books. 8% done!

Next book: Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T. S. Eliot

30.  Are You There Vodka?  It's Me, Chelsea by Chelsea Handler.  I love the show Chelsea Lately on E! and actually saw this book advertised in Maxim magazine. I found it to be hilarious, especially the personal essay about babysitting a six year old and a fourteen year old.  Wish I owned it, but if wishes were trees...

31.  Everything's Eventual by Stephen King.  Several short stories were fascinating in this collection, but for crying out loud did the Dark Towers story have to take up half the book? The thing is big enough to be a dictionary the way it is.  I especially enjoyed the story about the guy that was getting an autopsy while still alive.  And I find Mr. King to be very funny.

32.  Johnny Angel by Danielle Steel....why do I keep reading these?  A very fast read, typical of Steel's writing.  Not my favorite.

This little update was a little while coming because I was working on finishing The Stand before I posted. I need to be more than just a weekend reader ~_~ But at least I've passed the halfway point.

22. Squee Jhonen Vasquez [5/5]
Pure awesome. Though I wish more of the book was actually about Squee, because nearly half of it is a collective of random comics. At least with JTHM, the majority was actually JTHM with the odd page or two of other stuff, such as Happy Noodle Boy. But still, it was all good ^_^

23. Dominion Steven Savile [4/10]
I really am not enjoying this trilogy. I read this book because it was a gift from a friend. If he gives me the third and final, I will read it because a) it was a gift, and b) because it ends the trilogy. But I'm in no rush. No rush at all. They are poorly written, choppy and they get pretty boring. They can be pretty pointless at times, actually.

24. Vampire Hunter D: Vol. 4; Tale of the Dead Town Hideyuki Kikuchi [9/10]
Another excellent edition to the series. My only problem was that it was a touch short, but I don't mind so much. I was pretty surprise by the twist in the plot too! I never suspected the bad guy :P And I was very happy with the book connections this one made. Most of the books so far could pretty much be stand alone, but in this one, there was another character who connected back to the first novel. The whole story takes place in a floating city and for some silly reason, this exerpt really amused me:
Squinting, the mayor replied, "Last death would be two years ago, missing person would go three or four months back. Exact cause of death isn't known, but most likely they got drunk and fell off the town. I'll make you a list of names and addresses."

25. Wuthering Heights Emily Brontë [4/10]
No. This book bored me out of my skull. I really don't understand why it was so popular and why it's considered a classic. I mean, I can understand the value of a published female writer in her time, but that's it.

26. The Stand Stephen King [7/10]
This book was really good. I've only ever read one other book by King, and that was In the Eyes of the Dragon, which is totally unlike his usual books, and I read that about six or seven years ago. I docked this one points because the climax of the plot line was really really disappointing. Like in all 823 pages [I have the original print of this book], I think the climax last all of... 10 pages. Maybe. The characters were all really well developped though, and I really liked some of the character combinations he played with.

26 / 50 (52.0%)

Reading:
Vampire Hunter D: Vol 5; The Stuff of Dreams
Mayyyybe I'll try finishing Dune haha
Other than that, I've got nothing. I need more books >_>


ps. I rate books and graphic novels on different scales.

EDIT:

I was just reading over my entry from April and I realized I forgot a book! Silly me. It's not in order, but I'll add it just the same.

27. I Am Legend Richard Matheson [4/10]
This book was a huge disappointment. It could have been so much better. The novel I had was 330-ish pages, so I expected something a lot better than the 170 page story it actually was. The additional 160 pages were poorly written short stories. I honestly do not understand how Matheson can be compared to the likes of Stoker. It irks me.

27 / 50 (54.0%)

The Joys of Love by Madeleine L’Engle: Madeleine L'Engle is my favorite author, so naturally I couldn't resist when I saw that they'd released a new novel of hers. It's the story of a young woman named Elizabeth who is passionate about becoming an actress despite her guardian aunt's disapproval. L'Engle herself worked in the theater as a young woman, her granddaughter Lena describes the story in the book's introduction as her grandmother's love-letter to the theater. It was a very pleasant Sunday-afternoon read. I didn't love it the way I've loved some of her other books, but I enjoyed it and I cared about the characters.

The Straight and Narrow Path by Honor Tracy: This took some tracking down since it was published in the 50s and is long out of print, but was well worth it. It's a very funny story about the squabbles between Protestants and Catholics in a small Irish village. Tracy is particularly good at summing up characters in just a few lines so that you can see them perfectly clearly. It had the same kind of humor and satisfying writing as Stella Gibbons' Cold Comfort Farm, which I also love.

Adored by Tilly Bagshawe: If you're in the mood for a big sexy beach read, this would be the one. It's the story of a legendary Hollywood actor and his family. Lots of delicious drama!

Accidentally on Purpose by Mary Pols: Mary Pols hadn't intended to have children until she was married, but when she found herself pregnant by a man she barely knew at age 39 she knew she might never have another chance to be a mother. The book is a memoir of her pregnancy, the birth of her son, getting to know (and learning to accept) her baby's father, and at the same time dealing with the death of her parents. It's a touching story about figuring out how to handle what life throws at you.

A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly: This is a YA book, and a Michael L. Printz award winner. It was inspired by a true story. Mattie Gokey, a sixteen year old farmer's daughter living in New York state's north woods in 1906, has a decision to make. She dreams of being a writer and going to college, but her poverty-stricken family needs her at home. When a mysterious death takes place in the camp where she is working, Mattie suddenly gets a new view or the world and what it means to settle for less than you'd hoped for in life.