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Book Review

Crying Laughing by Lance Rubin

Publishing date: November 19, 2019

Read courtesy of netgalley.com

5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

If we couldn't get more of Denton Little, at least we have Winnie Friedman. Cleverly written story about comedy without being forced and corny -- quite an achievement. Makes me want to start an improv club for my students!

Even though I know a bat mitzvah is for girls and a bar mitzvah is for boys, and the reader is told about the character's bat mitzvah, I still found myself [pleasantly] surprised when I absorbed that the protagonist was a female and not a male. This is a good thing since I was able to break myself from stereotypical thinking early in the story. I think that the character is Jewish also makes for a subtle take on the humor that other ethnicities might not have inherent in their culture, the subtleties between puns and sarcasm, which are so integral to Jewish and Yiddish parlance. In other words, this mix of character development worked very well for this story. 

And speaking of inherent ... sporks are inherently funny. Just sayin'...

Teens will relate to the cute humor throughout the story, too. For example, categorizing potential relationships as "hope-will-flirts," "neutral-will-flirts," and "please-don't-flirts" is funny and quite teenager-ish.

While the humor carries the story afloat, the author does an a-ma-zing job of showing a teen's understanding of complicated adult conversations. Winnie's father has ALS, and the subject is handled honestly from the patient-, the parent, and the family-perspectives. All of the characters are treated with equal humanness and not made into oversimplified caricatures. 

The few criticisms I have do not deter from the 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ or the story. There are just a few times where the writing is too PC or 'too' inclusive just to fit in with the contemporary times....Jews, hijabs, and trigger warnings. There are also some contemporary references that might date the book before it's ready to be a thing of the past: Polly-O string cheese (specifically Polly-O), the TV show Parks and Rec, Totes McGotes, and FOMO.

Regardless, I loved this book and cannot wait to get it for my high school library!

A STRATEGY FOR ELICITING SELF-COMPASSION

Life can be challenging. Sometimes these challenges arise when things don’t work out the way we’d prefer. Sometimes we create our own struggles without realizing it. Sometimes bad things just happen.

Many of us, when we’re in the midst of a personal challenge or struggle, put unnecessary pressure on ourselves. We lament our circumstances and beat ourselves up for not making the right choice or behaving in a way that could have (theoretically) helped to avoid this problem. Some of us even self-flagellate about how we suck in general, and that our personal crappiness is why these life struggles arise.

Beating ourselves up like this doesn’t help, and I would like to offer a strategy that may, at the very least, help us be gentler with ourselves in order to deal with our struggles more skillfully.

READ MORE --->

The Stone Rainbow
by Liane Shaw
Pub Date: 17 Sep 2019  
Read courtesy of NetGalley.com

My first note to myself early in the book was, "As a straight person, I've been curious about this. Maybe I'll find out," in reaction to Jack wondering how to find out if someone he might be interested in is gay or not.   It ends up that I don't explicitly "find out," due mainly to the fact that there's nothing to "find out." One simply asks someone, no different than a straight person finds out if a straight person is interested in return -- and sometimes the person isn't straight! People are people! (I also didn't find out because Jack's crush, Benjamin, isn't shy about liking other guys.)

The author's message is clear throughout the book. "I don't live in a fantasy land where being gay is easy. It should be. I don't know why it isn't. Why would anyone care who I decide to spend time with?" and "I'll always have a different heaven from hers. In her heaven, everyone starts fresh, reborn into something better than before. Blind men can see, and the lame can walk...and I would guess the gays become "straight" if they make it that far." [Powerful in the declaration that some see "straight" people as better than "gay" people, that "straight" is something to aspire to.] And the more obvious parade rally cry, "Kindness rules": "If everyone just decides to treat everyone else with kindness, it all goes away. Intolerance,, disrespect, racism, homophobia, misogyny, bullying...all wiped out with one simple command. Be kind."

At first I thought this was just a romance novel, which felt a little light and fluffy and not holding my attention, but it took a more serious turn. I found myself immediately drawn into things that happen in real life... and I cannot believe people do this to others. But they do, and the author offered a way to counteract violence with grace.  This story didn't need to be written in great literary prose in order for a clear message and interesting story to come through.

https://pollyannapollyanna.blogspot.com/2018/04/book-review-what-you-left-me.html

What You Left Me

by Bridget Morrissey

publication date June 5, 2018

courtesy of www.netgalley.com

Magical realism.  As a result of a drunk driving accident during their high school graduation, friends get connected through dreams to the friend who "is stuck" in limbo from his injuries. I might have liked this better if the characters beyond the three main characters were more developed. The other 'friends' are not stereotypical; it's just that they're not described enough for me to empathize or connect with any of them. They are more like plot devices than participants.

My suspension of disbelief isn't working when someone with a class rank of 11 gets over a year to make up one exam in order to keep her class rank. The real pressures of high school report cards, class rank, and accountability required magical realism to make this work.

I'd like to think teens are smarter than to ditch in the middle of their high school graduation ceremony in order to go on a drunk joy ride all while expecting to return to the ceremony and have no one notice they'd been gone. The ditch, the drinking... as well as magically connecting to one's alphabetical neighbor for the first time at graduation? 

I did appreciate the humorous lightness Morrissey offered throughout the story, but it wasn't enough to undo the falseness of the ending, "Do you really think you had control over what was going to happen to you?" Yes, don't get into a car with your impetuous, impulsive drunk friend.

Hope Is Our Only Wing
by Rutendo Tavengerwei
Pub Date: 10 Sep 2019
read courtesy of Netgalley.com

Note: Let your readers know that there is a glossary at the back of the book. Because I read this as a digital galley, I didn't find the glossary until after I finished reading, and it would have been helpful to have been aware of it earlier.

I agree with prior reviews that this is a middle school book, but I also think that it's not as easy a read as others have noted. While the vocabulary is not too difficult (besides the references to African terms, for which there is a glossary), the concepts of politics and disease and cultural references might pose a challenge for some students. We're lucky, however, in this time of the Internet, that we have the ability to easily quench our curiosities. For example, as a result of a reference to "Oliver Mtukudzi's timeless voice," I was able to find out that he died recently, January 2019, and hear an example of his sound on YouTube (https://youtu.be/p-JUy6p0Qpw). And though I could figure out what ZESA was from context, I could also look up that it's the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority.

As an educator, I was drawn to the words of wisdom one character's grandfather imparted, one "could quit if it was the instrument that was making him miserable. But if it was the learning he was trying to avoid, he would have to toughen up."

In spite of the unfamiliarity with the setting, readers will be drawn in by the developing friendship between the two main characters. As readers we're given room to experience the interplay of actions and feelings the two girls experience rather than being explicitly spoon fed what to think and feel. I liked that about Tavengerwei's style. I think sophisticated middle school readers will like this story.

Book Review

The Twilight Man

a graphic novel by Koren Shadmi

Publish date: 08 Oct 2019

Read courtesy of Netgalley.com

I don't care whether you're a fan of "The Twilight Zone" or not. This graphic novel biography about Rod Serling is excellent. It's strength is that it showed the evolution of the man and his storytelling. The drawings were clear and not confusing while maintaining drama and emotion. It was a quick read for 169 pages. And the ending didn't disappoint; well, in real life it did, but this iteration of the storytelling did not. I cannot wait to get this for my high school library!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I had this book on my TBR shelf forever, because I read other Pushing the Limits books before I read this one, which is #1 in the series. I also made this series (and author) a FAVORITE because I can't put them down- reluctant readers, guys and girls will LOVE these books- they move fast and furious, lots of drama and yearning, fights, secrets and lies- what more could you want! In this book, Echo is a "broken" girl just looking to go back to normal- before her family was shattered by so many events. She was once popular, dating the jock, loving life - now she can't remember a life altering event, has mandated therapy sessions, has to tutor bad boy, foster child Noah Hutchins. Noah has lots of problems too and it is these issues that have them conspiring to get some much needed secret information in the counselor's files at school. I loved the build-up in their friendship, the snarky comments, the increasing love interest, and the drama of everyday high school and home life. I read the book after this FIRST but it did not stop me from turning those pages at all hours of the night or wee early morning. I am now going to make sure I read every book by Katie McGarry because they are just so real, teens will see themselves in Noah, Echo, their friends or they will learn a little bit more about themselves from this world of riveting world of angst, love, and loss. If you like Simone Eckeles, Perfect Chemistry series, you will LOVE Pushing the Limits, highly recommended.


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Book Review

The Liars of Mariposa Island

by Jennifer Mathieu

Publication Date 17 Sep 2019

Read courtesy of NetGalley.com

I have to be honest; I forgot what the title of this book was while I was reading it. Now that I see it has the word "Liars" in it, the book makes more sense. It's about liars. I like the book a 1/2 star better than I did before remembering the title.

The story is about a dysfunctional family fooling itself at every turn. Each family member lies to him/herself and, in turn, to each other. And it's not the kind of lying that's obvious; it's a self-preservation technique, yet it crumbles rather than coheres the family. On the other hand, some of the lying is so obvious that it's hard to believe its believed. 

I enjoyed the point in the book when the reader is finally let in on the biggest lie perpetuated by the two teen children in the family. Once it is revealed, the mother's self-denial becomes more apparent and more dysfunctional.

The mother's lie to her children comes to light later in the story; however, it's revealed in too obvious a manner. It felt the plot point that allowed this lie to emerge lacked narrative creativity (been there, done that). 

The story includes sex, and drugs, and boozy beach parties. These feel gratuitously included to "appeal" to teen readers.

Finally, the ending was abrupt. The only truth to the story is that no one wins in the end, including the reader. 

Preview read courtesy of http://netgalley.com
"How You Ruined My Life"
By Jeff Strand @Jeff Strand
Publication date: April 3, 2018

Thanks to netgalley.com for providing this advanced readers copy.

Humor without curse words! A high school punk rock band without curse words! A book that would work in either middle school or high school without curse words!

"How You Ruined My Life" is a humorous story based on the premise of opposite finances. Two high school cousins who haven't seen each other in 10 years have to live together for three months. Rich cousin from California has to live with poor cousin in Florida. The author does a good job of creating the main characters' personalities including having the reader flip-flop back-n-forth over which cousin is the crazier one.

Written as if the Florida cousin is narrating the story to the reader, the first-person storytelling effectively conveys the desperate need for the cousin to have the reader on his side, while at the same time admitting how awkward his convincing is. Struggling readers may need some reminding that the style of writing is at times conversational, at times an internal dialogue, and at times a brief, stray off topic - just as anyone relaying a longer story might stray off topic.

The book comes across as a battle of wits and wills, pranks and pratfalls, while at the end there's a bit of a Bildungsroman. This sets up the possibilities of a conversation with readers if they would forgive and forget or hold a grudge, if they would go one with their intended paths or forge a new plan for their futures.

Though humorous books are sometimes a hard sell, I'd purchase this for my HS library (and recommend it to our MS library) because it's an accessible, light-hearted read.

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23209924-the-water-knife" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img border="0" alt="The Water Knife" src="https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1411059576m/23209924.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23209924-the-water-knife">The Water Knife</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1226977.Paolo_Bacigalupi">Paolo Bacigalupi</a><br/>
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1380408851">5 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
Loved this audiobook narrated awesomely by Almarie Guerra ; The Water Knife is an adult environmental cautionary tale about the effects of water drying up throughout the United States. Angel is a water knife from Las Vegas who ensures that his boss keeps the water coming for her "Arcolody" developments. But something is up and it will pit California, Arizona and Nevada against each other as they vie for the water that is dwindling to dust. As the rich get richer and the poor get poorer, circumstances will bring Angel, Maria (poor and surviving by her wits) and Lucy (hard core journalist who writes about those who have died because of the vanishing water) together in a climax that will call into question their humanity and allegiances. Awesome, I loved Bacigalupi's Ship Breaker and this book was just as thrilling a read!
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/62411-bjneary">View all my reviews</a>