Literature Young Adult Fiction » J-L http://www.literatureyoungadultfiction.com YA Readers Reviewing Books. Thu, 29 Jul 2010 09:18:25 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 Review: Winter’s Passage by Julie Kagawa http://www.literatureyoungadultfiction.com/review-winter%e2%80%99s-passage-by-julie-kagawa/ http://www.literatureyoungadultfiction.com/review-winter%e2%80%99s-passage-by-julie-kagawa/#comments Tue, 27 Jul 2010 09:32:10 +0000 First Mate Keira http://www.literatureyoungadultfiction.com/?p=1146

by First Mate Keira

Title: Winter’s Passage (Book 1.5 in Iron Fey Series)
Author: Julie Kagawa
Format: Kindle ebook
File Size: 211 KB
Grade Reading Level: Grade 7+

Summary: Winter’s Passage explores the gap of time between Iron King and Iron Daughter. If you remember, Meghan Chase made a deal with Ash, prince of the Winter court, to go with him willingly back with him to the heart of Unseelie territory and into Queen Mab. Winter’s Passage starts when Ash comes to collect on this promise. The journey is not without its challenges. On the way to Tir na nog an ancient rarely seen enemy begins to hunt them…and according to Ash nobody ever wins against it.

Why I started this book:

I just finished reading Iron King and wanted to know what happened next and didn’t want to wait for the release of Iron Daughter. I got a copy from the publisher. It's a free ebook for a limited time online and might still be—you will have to check it out.

Likes:

  • The ancient scary enemy is the Big Bad Wolf. Kagawa writes deliciously thrilling fight scenes between the Big Bad Wolf, Ash, and Meghan.
  • That Meghan isn’t a complete dead weight in a fight. Yay girl power!
  • When Meghan doesn’t abandon Ash during a golden opportunity, it confuses him and yet shows him just how human she is… which frightens him because he knows this loyalty of hers will get her hurt in his home court. Poor faery boy.
  • The continuance of Meg and Ash’s relationship. He drops his icy demeanor around her and they get very close. You can’t question his love for her even if his loyalties must go to his mother, Queen Mab.
  • I think fans of the series should read this before starting Iron Daughter because it’s very illuminating, and while portions of it are found in reminisce on Meghan’s part in the second book, they have a stronger punch set within the novella.

Buy: Winter's Passage (Kindle)

Rating: 5 Treasure Chests

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by First Mate Keira

Title:The Iron King
Author: Julie Kagawa
Format: Kindle Ebook
Page Count: 368 (Paperback)
Grade Reading Level: Grade 7+

Summary: Meghan Chase is just your ordinary unpopular girl trying to navigate the hierarchy of high school, get her driver’s permit, and possibly a date with the hottest boy. Her best friend, Robin Goodfellow, calls her princess, an endearment she despises. What she doesn’t know is just how apt that nickname is because she is the bastard daughter of Oberon, King of the Seelie fairies and of Summer. When her younger half brother, Ethan, is kidnapped and taken to the Nevernever, Robin sheds his glamour and reveals that he is her protector and Puck, yes that Puck, from Shakespeare’s play A Midsummer Night’s Dream. In very little time Meghan finds her whole world turned upside down and that rescuing her brother will require help, loads of help, in the form of a cat, an Unseelie prince, and her best friend.

Why I started this book:

I requested a reader copy from the publisher because I love romances and was eager to read something from Harlequin’s new teen romance line. I picked this novel also because I had seen the title appear a lot on the YA blogosphere.

Likes:

  • Julie Kagawa is absolutely brilliant. Her world building is vibrant, full and lively, and it literally leaps off the page. I enjoyed her new type of fairy species—a masterful stroke that really gives the story a new dimension. I would go into more details but it’s so much more fun discovering the answer for yourself.
  • Ash, the Unseelie prince, is a spectacularly drawn character. He’s that aloof hero whose motives are hard to determine. He hides a soft heart behind a cold hard façade and makes for a truly forbidden love interest. Yum.
  • Puck, he’s the wayward merrymaker who at times isn’t the best judge of when too far is too far. I have a feeling he’s also in love with Meghan but as of yet hasn’t made his feelings known and Meghan views him as her best friend, not a love interest.
  • Grimalkin or Grim, the cat. He reminds me of the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland and is another fantastic well drawn character. He’s sarcastic, condescending, and witty. He trades favors and barters without a plan seemingly in mind in order to extract another promise or favor from someone else. You can find him wherever something interesting is taking place.

Last Minute Thoughts: The worst part of the book is that it ended! The next in novel in the series cannot come too quickly for me. I can’t wait to read The Iron Daughter.

Buy: The Iron King (Harlequin Teen)

Rating: 5 Treasure Chests

P.S. The Iron King is the perfect story to read for any Twilight fan looking for a new series to love.

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by First Mate Keira

Title: Ella Enchanted
Author: Gail Carson Levine
Format: Paperback
Page Count: 240
Grade Reading Level: 6-8 Grade

Summary: Not long after Ella of Frell’s birth did her life take a sudden and most serious turn for the worse. She was enchanted by Lucinda, a fairy who flouts all the rules and thinks little of the consequences. Forced obedience, is a perfectly lovely gift after all! (Cue massive shudder!) Ella hates her gift and rightly calls it a curse. The only thing she wants in the whole world it to break it.

Why I started this book:

I first read this book back in 8th grade. It’s been on my favorites shelf ever since. It was so good that I ran out to get the rest of Levine’s works. (Side note: Ella Enchanted is her best novel, the rest are not all that good.)

Likes:

  • Lucinda is not evil; she’s just a bit deluded and puffed up on her own awesomeness.
  • Prince Charmont or Char as he goes by is a wonderful sweet guy. When I first read the name I thought it was so cool to see an updated and fun way of saying Prince Charming.
  • Arieda’s and Ella’s friendship. It was so strong that even after months and months of separation and zero communication that it made me envious. Best friends like that are hard to find!
  • I loved how Ella’s curse was finally lifted. It was very moving and empowering!
  • Mandy, the Cook, and her magical fairy book that she gave to Ella. I think a Kindle is a good equivalent, don’t you? Haha.
  • Hattie is the perfect teenage snooty girl villain. I loved her even as I detested her.

Dislikes:

  • Sir Peter – the father’s an idiot and self-serving. He deserves Dame Olga (vulgar) and her daughters Olive (greedy), and Hattie (conceited).

Last Minute Thoughts: The book and movie share names and some basic world building but little else.

Buy: Ella Enchanted (Paperback)

Rating: 5 Treasure Chests

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by BookWatch, guest reviewer

Title: Hattie Big Sky
Author: Kirby Larson
Format: Paperback
Page Count: 304
Grade Reading Level: Grades 7-9

Summary: This book is about 16 year old Hattie Brooks who is an orphan living with her aunt and uncle in Iowa in 1918.  She inherits a homestead in Montana and travels on her own to claim it.  It is the middle of winter and she must learn to survive alone in harsh conditions and determine how she will fence the homestead and cultivate a crop so she can keep it. She has less than a year to accomplish this. This book also confronts the prejudice against her closest neighbor, a German American farming his own homestead during World War I.  When you are reading this book you feel like you are right there with Hattie. It is a very personal account and it includes letters she writes to her home newspaper and to her best friend who is in Europe fighting World War I.

Why I started this book:

My favorite books are the Newberry Award winners.  I have a goal of reading all of them and I have quite a few to go. This is a Newberry winner.

Likes:

  • When you are reading this book you feel like you are right there with Hattie. It is a very personal account and it includes letters she writes to her home newspaper and to her best friend who is in Europe fighting World War I.
  • It is based on the true account of the author's great-grandmother. I found her courage amazing, not only in facing dangers and harsh conditions but in standing up for what she knew was right and being a true and loyal friend.

Buy: Hattie Big Sky

Rating: 5 treasure chests.

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by Second Mate Embry, guest reviewer

Title: Indian Captive: The Story of Mary Jemison
Author: Lois Lenski
Format: Paperback
Page Count: 320
Grade Reading Level: Ages 9-12

Summary: Mary Jemison is living a normal life in the past during the years of British colonization of America until one day a man comes running by saying that the Indians are going to attack. Her dad ignores the warning and continues to plant his corn. They attack and she is separated from her family and kept captive amongst the Indians. They call her Corn Tassel for her hair. She’s tried to runaway to get back to her family but the Indians keep bringing her back. She is to become like them, but Mary doesn't want to be an Indian. It’s based on a true story.

Why I started reading this book:

It was a literacy book in my class and I read it for school as an assignment.

Likes:

  • Most books I’ve read about historical America usually have the European population capturing the Indians and I liked that this was the reverse of that scenario.
  • I enjoyed the different Indian names (Shining Star, Squirrel Woman, Red Bird, Little Turtle, Running Deer, etc.) and I thought that it was cool that their names sort of reflected the character and their personality.
  • The Indians only captured Europeans to replace dead members of their tribe.
  • The most interesting part of the book was when one of the captured Europeans was running the gauntlet! The Indians were trying to kill him and if he made it out alive he would be considered a true Indian.

Dislikes:

  • I wish it was more suspensful. I thought I would be very wrapped up in what would happen next and it was really more “Mary throwing herself a pity party, mumbling woefully about not being able to escape, and refusing to eat Indian food.” I just wanted to shake her to get her to stop moping and to start doing something.
  • Some of the language was hard to follow as it was full of older style dialogue instead of the contractions and language we use today.

Buy: Indian Captive: The Story of Mary Jemison

Rating: 2.5 Treasure Chests

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by Captain Yarr

Title: Diary of a Wimpy Kid Dog Days
Author: Jeff Kinney
Page Count: 214
Format: Hardcover
Grade Reading Level: Ages 9-12

Summary: No matter what Greg does he can never enjoy his summer. Even if he is liking his summer, it won’t last long and/or will probably turn out badly. This summer he’s juggling between his family, friends, and his love life. Will he loose his best friend? Will he get Heather Hills to fall in love with him? As things are Greg isn’t sure which is worst: his summer or going back to school.

Why I Started the Book:

I liked all the previous books and put this title on hold at the library. My place on the hold list was fairly low and I got the book in time to devour it over the weekend.

Likes:

  • I like the chapter (or day) that Greg used his Ladybug (his cell phone that only calls 911 or his house) for the first time and almost gets his day arrested. It was funny!
  • I enjoyed Manny in this book because he never cared about what was going on; he just wants to have a good time.
  • The humor is as good as the rest of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. You will definitely chuckle to yourself as you read.

Dislikes:

  • I never found out how Greg and Rowley paid back Mr. Jefferson back for ordering all the fruit smoothies at the clubhouse. Even though it wasn’t as important as some other problems, I really wanted to know.
  • If I were to choose a title for this book, I wouldn’t name it Dog Days. There are only some parts in the story that involve a dog, and he’s not even the main problem in the story!

Last minute thoughts: I hope Jeff Kinney will add another book to the series because I enjoy reading them and don’t want to see the end of the books.

Buy: Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days (Hardcover)

Book Rating: I give this book 3.5 treasure chests!
tc35

Originally posted 2009-11-11 03:13:50.

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by Captain Lyaf Yarr

Title: Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw
Author Jeff Kinney
Page Count: 217
Format: Paperback
Grade Reading Level: Ages 9-12

Summary: Greg is writing in his journal (diary) again and is facing  more problems than ever before. He is getting into more trouble while trying to fix each of these problems. According to his dad, Greg should act more like his ex-neighbor, Lenwood Heath. His dad wants to send him to a summer conditioning program at Spag Union to change him from a troublemaker to a normal kid. Will Greg have to spend his entire summer at a conditioning program? Will he convince his dad to not send him to the program? What will be the last straw?

Why I Started This Book:

I already read the other two books of this series and enjoyed them both.

Likes:

  • The idea of the diary is still pretty awesome. It just appeals to me. I think it would be fun to read another diary or journal by a different author and compare it to the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series.
  • Greg is a fun character. I love that he is so wimpy in appearance, but that his attitude isn’t wimpy. It's funny that he thinks he’s perfect as can be.
  • I like Greg's best friend, Rowley. He's immature. my favorite things he did was getting into a pillow fight with six year olds.
  • Oh and one last note: Greg's mom is funny. Hehe.

Dislikes:

  • I didn't like Greg's dad; he hears what Greg says but he doesn't listen. That's just bad parenting!
  • Some things were so stupid that they became funny. I wish it had been more funny and less stupid. Boys!
  • When he was wearing his mom's bathrobe and stood under the heat vent - why did he get in trouble for this? Makes no sense to me.

Last minute thoughts: I didn’t enjoy this book as well as the first one, but liked it better than the second one. I would like to read Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days soon and other books by Jeff Kinney.

Buy: Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw

Book Rating: I give this book 3 Treasure Chests.
tc3

Originally posted 2009-10-22 03:54:35.

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by Captain Lyaf Yarr

Title: Diary of a Wimpy Kid
Author: Jeff Kinney
Page Count: 217
Format: Paperback
Grade Reading Level: Ages 9-12

Summary: Greg is starting middle school and his mom buys him a “Journal” (diary). In it he writes all of his problems, events, and whatever is happening in his personal life. The book follows him through his first year in middle school and it isn’t exactly as Greg thought it would be.

Why I Started This Book:

I knew kids at school who had read this book and liked it and when my mom heard about it she told me I should grab it from the library. I did and I grabbed another one too, just in case the first was any good.

Likes:

  • I like the idea of reading someone’s diary. I’ve always wanted to without being caught and yelled at for invading their privacy.
  • In this book I liked the moldy cheese that was always on the basketball court and never came off. I was kind of grossed out when I found out what happened to it at the end of the story, but I thought it was funny.
  • I loved the comedy in the book; sometimes it was funny because it was stupid, but I was laughing all the time anyway.

Dislikes:

  • In this book there wasn’t just one major problem. It was more like ten problems, and they weren’t very big problems except one. I thought it was kind of weird reading with more than one problem going on. It’s not something I’m used to and I’m not sure really how I feel about it.
  • I didn’t especially like the fact that there were so many pictures in this book. Not that I didn’t enjoy the picture it’s just that it took up most of what could have been text, and it felt like I could finish ten pages in ten seconds.

Last minute thoughts: I was never tired of reading this book. I was eager what would happen next.

Buy: Diary of a Wimpy Kid

Book Rating: I give this book 3.5 Treasure Chests, and I will read the second one soon!
tc35

Originally posted 2009-10-07 03:37:11.

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by Pirate Cook Cutlery, guest reviewer

Title: Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules
Author: Jeff Kinney
Format: Hardback
Pages: 216
Grade Reading Level: Ages 9-12

Summary: Greg Heffley is in his second year of Middle School. Pretty much, his brother Rodrick, can get Greg to do anything Rodrick wants because Rodrick has some blackmail material on Greg. Their mother is trying to get them to play nice, but with competitive streaks a mile wide will that ever be possible?

Why I Started This Book:

My mother and older sister told me about this book and got it from the library for me. I don’t usually choose to spend my time reading, but this looked cool enough so I began it and finished it within two days. Personal record! Awesome!

Likes:

  • This book is really funny. I would disturb family members by chuckling out loud.
  • The cartoons made this book a breeze to get through and were part of the humor that really made this book awesome.
  • I liked Manny the youngest Heffley boy. He was the tattler and would tattle on both Greg and Rodrick.

Dislikes:

  • I thought it was kind of stupid that Greg wrapped himself in toilet paper when he was wet. Wouldn’t he be a soggy chunky mummy and not just a normal mummy? Talk about icky.
  • Rodrick’s science project. It was silly, but stupid. Come on, really, Do Plants Sneeze?

Last minute thoughts: I am going to go back and start with book one as soon as I can.

Buy: Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules

Book Rating:4 Treasure Chests
tc4

Originally posted 2009-10-09 03:29:37.

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by Captain Lyaf Yarr, the pilot of this here vessel.

Title: Schooled
Author: Gordon Korman
Page Count: 208
Format: Paperback
Grade Reading Level: 6-8

Summary: Capricorn (Cap) Anderson has always been home schooled until his teacher and hippie grandma, Rain, falls out of a tree. Now he goes to Claverage Middle school and stays with Mrs. Donelly and her daughter Sophie. At school Cap sticks out like a sore thumb. He gets elected for eighth grade president and wins! But being president wasn’t what Cap wanted. Not at all! At home, Sophie is giving him a hard time, but when Cap goes missing everyone gets worried and thinks he died. They even plan a memorial from him. Did Cap really die? And how will he survive school until Rain is better again?

Why I Started This Book:

I read Schooled because it was on a list of books for my grade level, and if I read all of the books on the list I get to go to a party. So I’m reading all of them! I made Schooled a priority when I first heard what the book was about I couldn’t wait to put my nose in it!

Likes:

  • I like all the characters. The author wrote them well and gave everyone a personality and place.
  • This is a good book because of Gordon Korman's writing style. He wrote each chapter as a different person's point of view. Reading a book like that was a change, but I enjoyed something different.
  • Schooled has a great plot. The idea of a home schooled eighth grade hippie being forced to go to normal school for the first time is very creative!
  • I like the ending of this book because it was what I wanted to happen, but it wasn’t how I thought it would be given. I won't tell you how it ends. Instead I'll make you read the book to find out.

Dislikes:

  • The story was good but it didn’t capture me fully, some parts and characters weren’t as interesting as others.

Last Minute Thoughts: I would read it over again, and I will read more books by Gordon Korman.

Buy: Schooled by Gordon Korman

Book Rating: I give this book 4.5 treasure chests!
tc45

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Originally posted 2009-09-09 03:43:32.

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