Book Review: Dreams of Gods and Monsters

Dreams of Gods and Monsters
By Laini Taylor
Little, Brown, and Company, 2014
Reviewed from ebook
Audience:  Grades 9 and up
ISBN:  9780316134071
Publication Date:  April 8, 2014

Days of Blood and Starlight left us in a cave with chimera and seraphim in an uneasy peace, Mik playing the violin with Zuzana by his side and no mention of the relationship between Karou and Akiva.  Dreams of Gods and Monsters backs up a little bit to give this moment more context.  Angels descend on earth.  It is a sight met with curiosity and wonder, but the seraphim are uneasy, and Karou and the chimera army, not to mention Akiva and the Misbegotten know what Jael is really up to.  Meanwhile, Eliza, a runaway from a religious cult, is wondering how this angel invasion relates to her, the supposed chosen one of her former faith.  She ends up in Morocco studying a mass grave of chimera hosts, and inadvertently meets Zuzana and Mik, who manage to heal her after running a bait and switch on Karou's nefarious "aunt".  Then there are problems between the Misbegotten and Chimera as they try to unite to fight a common enemy, another brewing seraphim and chimera romance, rifts in Eretz that could bring everything crashing down, and more small plot lines that will confuse, delight, and enrapture readers.  

It's all a little much.

But it's like eating a death by chocolate cupcake.  It's too much, but it's glorious and you can't stop, and is that another cupcake?  Yes please!

Just know this:  If you enjoyed Daughter of Smoke and Bone, and Days of Blood and Starlight, you will be satisfied.  You will be drunk on chocolate cupcakes and begging for more.  You will question the ending because it's resolved but open, and you hear that Laini Taylor is working on another project, when there is still material in Eretz that could be explored.  Maybe she is leaving that for the fan fiction writers, of which I assume there are many.  Not being a fan fiction girl myself, I don't know.  But I might have to check it out in the future.  

Looking back on the whole series now, I would have to say that I am pleasantly satisfied with it.  In so many series, there are multiple ways that it could have worked out, and while that is the case here, I feel that it was always running toward this type of ending for Karou and Akiva.  The final book delved deeper than I imagined it could, but I loved it.  I loved learning more about the seraphim and the war they were fighting on the edge of Eretz that had nothing to do with chimera.  I loved learning about the first fall to earth, and seeing all the minor players in the final book get what was coming to them, especially the "aunt".  Oh, I hated her!  Just remembering the whole thing now makes me want to go back and start over.  

I'll be looking forward to whatever Laini Taylor has in store for readers next.  Until then, I'll just have to gaze longingly at the amazing vacation photos on her blog.

Happy Reading!

Book Review: Loot

Loot:  How to Steal a Fortune
By Jude Watson
Scholastic, 2014
Reviewed from NetGalley
Audience:  Grades 5-7
ISBN:  9780545468022
Expected Publication Date:  June 24, 2014

This heist caper starts in Amsterdam, where young March watches his famous jewel-thief father fall to his death.  With his last words, he tells March to "find jewels", but after following some clues left in the getaway pack, March gets caught and finds his twin sister Jules.  The pair are sent to a group home back in the states where they meet Darius and Izzy, two other wards of the state, and together the group learns about the moonstones that cursed March and Jules ten years ago, and how they can get them back.  From there, it's a race across the country for this band of young thieves to beat Oscar Ford, their parents former partner, to the stones and change their fate.  

Let's take a minute to talk about Jude Watson.  Writing as Jude Watson, she produces plot driven, engaging tales of action and intrigue, but she can flip a switch an be herself, Judy Blundell, author of the National Book Award winning What I Saw and How I Lied, a book full of literary prose and plot twists.  That much talent in one person seems quite unfair, but it's beautiful to see both sides of her writing.

Back to Loot.  As a Watson novel, you can bet this is all plot and action.  It's a typical caper novel, with a little more drama than the Swindle series by Gordon Korman, but a natural next step for fans of that series.  I would absolutely compare it to the 39 Clues series in terms of action and pacing, but I do feel like we get a slightly deeper look at the characters.  They become quite the supportive family, which is something readers are sure to notice.

While this book wraps up nicely, I do wonder if this could be the start of a series.  Part of my hopes it will stand alone.  There are so few books of this nature that stand alone, but after a while, the series becomes stale and readers age out of the reading level (again, Swindle, I'm looking at you!).  But if this were to become a series, it would be nicely done, I'm sure.  I can't see Jude Watson putting her name on an inferior product, even when she was writing Star Wars formula fiction, it was good formula fiction.

For a fast-paced heist caper, readers will find none better in the middle grade section than Loot.

Happy Reading!

Book Review: Super Red Riding Hood

Super Red Riding Hood
By Claudia Davila
Kids Can Press, 2014
Reviewed from NetGalley
Audience:  Preschool to Grade 2
ISBN:  9781771380201
Expected Publication Date:  August 1, 2014


Ruby loves superheroes, so when she puts on the special red cape that her grandmother made her, she become Super Red Riding Hood!  Ruby gets ready to pick raspberries in the forest by putting on her rubber boots, grabbing her flashlight, packing her lunch box, and finally donning her cape.  Nothing can scar this superhero, until she hears a loud grumbling and comes face to face with a wolf!  She outsmarts him and finds out that he might not be as bad as he seems, and he learns that girls can be superheroes too.  

This is a fun take on a classic fairy tale.  The illustrations are colorful and slightly reminiscent of comic books without being too overwhelming.  I do have to mention that the e-galley I received was rather poorly formatted and I missed out on some of the action, but once those problems are fixed in final production, the story will be clear and flow well.

What other fairy tale characters could have super powers?  We already have Rapunzel's Revenge, but maybe Jack and Jill have some special powers, or Goldilocks could be more than she seems.  Use this book as a starting point for more fairy tale-superhero mash-ups.

Happy Reading!

Book Review: Hug Me

 

Hug Me
By Simon Ciraolo
Flying Eye Books, 2014
Reviewed from Edelweiss
Audience: Preschool-Kindergarten
ISBN:  9781909263499
Expected Publication Date:  September 9, 2014

Felipe is just a normal cactus, except he wants to be hugged.  He is not in a family of huggers, however, and when he meets a friend (a balloon) the results are rather disastrous.  He goes off in search of a new family, but no one wants to hug him, so he learns to live alone.  That is until he finds someone else that is equally unhugable, but still deserving of love.  Readers will appreciate this sweet little cactus that just wants a friend and will also enjoy the friend that he finally makes.

Hug Me would be a great addition to a story time on plants, friends, or even just hugging.  Readers will immediately understand why Felipe isn't getting a hug, but maybe they could suggest other animals or things that might hug Felipe, like a porcupine.  Readers could even write a similar story with an unhugable animal like a skunk or possum, although I might be the only person that thinks possums are completely unloveable.

This sweet little book is likely to delight readers and leave them a little more sympathetic to the plight of the cactus.

Happy Reading!

Book Review: Andy, Also

Andy Also
By Maxwell Eaton III
Blue Apple Books, 2014
Reviewed from Edelweiss
Audience:  Preschool to Grade 3
ISBN:  9781609054571
Expected Publication Date:  August 5, 2014


In this short chapter book/graphic novel adventure, Preston and Andy have an identity crisis of sorts.  Preston insists on being called Andy which angers the original Andy who then somehow becomes Doctor Turkeyfeet, which in turn confuses the original Doctor Turkeyfeet.  In the next chapter, the animals strike up a band much to the dismay of Andy, the original.  Finally, Preston, once again Preston, tricks Andy into a foot race with 100 insulted bunnies.  If it all sounds a little too strange, that's because it is, and young readers will love every word!

I enjoyed this sequel to Okay, Andy!  Like most buddy books, you have one fanciful character and one curmudgeon and plenty of fun. The dialogue is easy to read and the action is snappy and will provide plenty of laughs.  

My only problem would be cataloging this book.  Where would you put it?  Picture book, easy reader, chapter book, graphic novel?  I think the case could be made for all of these.  I would like shelve this in the easy reader section despite the designation as a beginning chapter book.  The chapters are more like simple stories to me.

One final thought, this book would be great for a simple reader's theatre or class play.  Each chapter could easily be played out by students and they would greatly enjoy the humor.

And how surprising is it that I actually posted a book review?  I'm just as shocked as you are!

Happy Reading!

5 Things: Lunch Date

5 Things to Brighten Your Day

Despite the BS that May Get in Your Way

1. I can tell that today will be best spent doing busy work and rocking out to Pandora radio.  This might even be the kind of day to curate a new station.

2.  The fact that I get to leave work early today to go to the dentist entirely makes up for the fact that I have to go to the dentist.  Unless he tells me I have a cavity, in which case, I should have stayed at work.

3.  I have a lunch date today with my hubby and the dog.  Exciting stuff!

4.  The Kindle reading app on my computer.  Helping me covertly pass the time since 2012.

5.  After seven weeks, we're finally done with the doctor recommended birthing classes.  I was not a fan, so if you are given the option to take them, do yourself a favor and just watch 20+ hours of birthing videos online and you will essentially have the same experience.  Or, just go with the flow because when your pregnant, the birth is going to happen whether or not you take the class.

5 Things: Rainy Days

5 Things to Brighten Your Day

Despite the BS that May Get in Your Way

1. Pre-8 am Ke$ha.  It's just ridiculous to hear a party song on the way to work.  

2.  I'm a farmer's daughter, so I know that a well-timed rain is a beautiful thing, and while those mowing hay are a little irked by it, we're dry and need the rain for the crops.

3.  Today I will make my fourth donation to Locks of Love.  I'm so ready to get my hair cut after two years of growing it out.  If I were smarter, I would cut my hair in March and have nice, short, cool hair all summer long, but I'm not that smart, so getting it cut in early summer will have to do.

4.  There's another Kate Spade flash sale, but I'm only window shopping!  My Visa is still in recovery from all of the little things that we are picking up here and there for our new arrival.  

5.  Yesterday was my first day volunteering at Colchester Library!  It was a drive-by story time of sorts, but so much fun.  There were about 30 kids gathered on the lawn outside the library, which happens to sit on a busy highway, and did I mention there was an alpaca?  There were plenty of things competing for the kids' attention, but most of them were engaged with the stories.  Yesterday was Wacky Pets so I read One Cool Friend by Toni Buzzeo and The Day Jimmy's Boa Ate the Wash by Trinka Hakes Noble.  Better yet, I've been asked to do a little more next week, so I'll add a book and another activity. That's all fine with me!