Audiobook Review: Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune

TJ Klune's take on the afterlife in Under the Whispering Door is creative and entertaining.

Wallace is a pretty nasty person. He's a lawyer who only thinks of himself and the bottom line. He has alienated any family or friends he ever had. When he finds himself dead, he simply cannot believe it. He is met by a reaper, who escorts him to a tea shop which is a waypoint between life and death.

Hugo, the owner of the tea shop, and the reaper, May, are there to help Wallace (and others) accept their new state and transition to the afterlife (which is through the Whispering Door on the fourth floor.)

Other residents of the tea shop include Hugo's grandfather and his dog who both are dead, but for some reason have never gone through the door.

The setting and story are very creative and stories of others who have passed through the tea shop, as well as "live" customers, add to the entertainment.  And the budding romance between Hugo and Wallace adds the romantic element.

Kirt Graves is the audiobook narrator and is absolutely perfect for this story.

It isn't sad, and the ending provides more happiness than is maybe deserved. Under the Whispering Door will make you think about death in a different way.

Published by Tor, 2021, Macmillan Audio
Audiobook obtained from Cloud Library
 384 pages

Rating: 4/5

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Book Review: The Librarian of Auschwitz, by Antonio Iturbe

The Librarian of Auschwitz is a very popular book, so I probably don't need to tell you much about it. It was a very difficult book to read.

I've only recently returned to war books after suffering some burnout, and The Librarian of Auschwitz is the first concentration camp experience book I have read in a long time.

Dita is definitely a hero. Her resilience is what impressed me most. I don't think we can really know how we would react after being treated so brutally- being worked to the bone and starved. Witnessing horrible atrocities and constantly worrying that you are the next victim. I tend to think I would have given up. I hope I never have to find out.

I found myself reading faster and faster, just wanting to get through it. I know these books are "good for me," but they really tear me up and affect me long after I've finished reading. I know that is supposed to happen. But I'll definitely wait a while before I read another tale of such inhumane experiences. 

Yes, The Librarian of Auschwitz is fiction, but Dita is a real person and is still alive! These experiences are true, even if some of the people are fictional. The endnotes were probably my favorite parts of the book because Iturbe talks about writing the book, meeting Dita, and life since the publication of the book.

The book was translated by Lilit Thwaites. The Librarian of Auschwitz is a book that everyone should read, but prepare yourself before you do.

Published by Henry Holt & Co. BYR, 2017
eBook purchased
432 pages

Rating: 4.5/5

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Book Review: The Window, by Amelia Brunskill @ameliab

The Window is a twisty mystery that kept me guessing until the very end.

Jess's twin sister, Anna, falls to her death from her bedroom window.  Jess thought that Anna told her everything, but perhaps there was a lot going on that Jess didn't know about.

Everyone thinks Anna's death was accidental.  Everyone except Jess.  She can't give up on figuring out why Anna was sneaking out.  Jess begins to find out things about her twin that she never knew and is surprised by what she finds.  It still doesn't make sense, though, especially the toxicology report, and Jess isn't going to give up.

There are several twists, and the reader is taken in different directions along with Jess. I admired Jess's perseverance.  And I enjoyed the developing friendship between Jess and Nick. I wish it could have turned out differently.

I think most readers will be surprised by the ending, which is always a good thing for a mystery. The characters are interesting and realistic. The pacing is excellent, and it makes The Window a quick read.  Teens who enjoy a good mystery, including reluctant readers, should be pointed to The Window.

Published by Delacorte, April 3, 2018
eARC obtained from NetGalley
352 pages

Rating: 4.5/5

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Book Review: 13 Minutes, by Sarah Pinborough

13 Minutes isn't an ordinary story.  Don't think you have it figured out -- well, at least not a first.

Tasha ends up in the freezing river and is clinically dead for 13 Minutes. She wakes up not remembering anything of the entire 24 hours before she ended up there.

Tasha is the most popular girl at school, and along with her two friends, Jenny and Hayley, are called The Barbies. Becca used to be Tasha's best friend, along with Hayley, but when Jenny showed up, Tasha was quick to discard Becca.

Now, after Tasha's accident, Becca decides to visit her in the hospital.  After Tasha recovers she reconciles with Becca and they start to build a new friendship.  Hayley and Jenny don't like this. And they are acting very weird about Tasha's accident.

So begins Tasha's and Becca's attempt to figure out what really happened to Tasha and what did Jenny and Hayley have to do with it?

That's really all I want to say about the plot. It seems like the ending--like we all know what happens--at about 60% of the book. I must say, I almost got a bit bored prior to this point.  There was a little bit of a drop in pace, but that makes the rest of the book even better! So how can the wrap-up be over 100 pages long? Like I said, you haven't figured it out--yet.

13 Minutes is a well-crafted page-turner that you won't be able to stop thinking about. It is very entertaining, if tragic, to see how everything unfolds.  Pinborough carries the reader along as all is revealed, and it's a juicy ride, fraught with betrayal, romance, back-stabbing, and lies!

Give 13 Minutes to your teens who love twisted, exciting mysteries that will easily keep their attention. I think 13 Minutes would be a great option for reluctant readers.  It grabs you, and it reads fast. Enjoy!

Published by Flatiron, October 3, 2017
Copy obtained from the library
343 pages

Rating: 4.5/5

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Book Review: Scythe by Neal Shusterman

I don't know what's the matter with me, but Scythe is yet another "did not finish" for me.

I really like the unique premise.  Since there is no more natural death by accident or disease, there are a group of people called Scythes that pick and choose which people must die to keep population growth to a minimum.  The story is about two teens that have been chosen to be trained to be Scythes.

I read half of Scythe and decided it was not for me.  I've been reading for over a week, and I'm only halfway through! I just keep finding things to do besides reading.  So, why?

I think one thing is the flippant, almost tongue-in-cheek tone of the story.  It almost seemed light and humorous at times.  I found this incongruous.  Secondly, I felt the pace really bogged down.  It was time for something to happen, and I was losing patience.

The premise is great, and I'm looking forward to the movie, but when I find myself hesitating to read, then I need to move on.

A couple of my book club kids really loved Scythe, so this is a "me, not the book" thing (and, after all, I'm not the intended audience.)

Published by Simon & Schuster BFYR, 2016
Copy obtained from the library
250/435 pages

Rating: DNF

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Book Review: The Inexplicable Logic of My Life, by Benjamin Alire Saenz @BenjaminAlireSa

The Inexplicable Logic of My Life is about the characters.  It is a "coming-of-age" story.  And it's a good one.  I don't tend to enjoy these books as much, but when done well, I can appreciate it.

Sal is our narrator. He's the adopted white son of a single Mexican father who is gay.  His father knew his biological mother and was there when Sal was born.  His grandmother has been very close to Sal, kind of substituting for his mother.

Sal's best friend is a neighbor girl, Samantha.  She has grown up with a single mother who hasn't always been there for her. Fito is another friend who is trying to be successful even though his mother is a drug addict.

These three kids are trying to navigate their way through their senior year of high school.  Sal isn't sure he wants to go to college yet, and his father is pressuring him to get that application essay finished.  All three of the teens will suffer tragedy in their lives. They lean on each other and mostly on Sal's dad, who is a gem.

The Inexplicable Logic of My Life takes a profound look at the family.  Sal is exceptionally lucky, especially in contrast to his friends, to have his dad and his extended family.  Even though he wonders about his mom and his biological father, he learns to appreciate what he has. He isn't perfect, though.  Lately, it seems like his fists have a mind of their own, and Sal is having a hard time dealing with his anger appropriately.  He learns that sometimes he's not the only one dealing with difficult issues, his dad needs Sal's support too.

The friendships are genuine.  Fito isn't a teen that would normally be in this circle, but Sal recognizes something special in him and brings him in. Don't expect a romance.  Samantha and Sal's relationship is based on nothing more that true friendship, and neither of them ever consider each other as a romantic interest.  Kind of refreshing.

It is a moving story.  It kept me interested. although at times I felt it was a bit drawn out. Teens who may be feeling the pressures of life (and most of them are) will find something valuable in The Inexplicable Logic of My Life.

Published by Clarion, March 7, 2017
eARC obtained from NetGalley
464 pages

Rating: 4/5

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Book Review: Fracture by Megan Miranda

The plot of Fracture was intriguing but I had a hard time feeling some of the emotions of the characters.

Delaney falls through the lake and her best friend and neighbor, Decker, pulls her out. She is underwater for eleven minutes and should be dead but she wakes up from a coma several days later and appears to be normal.

She goes home and tries to resume her life, but every once in a while she feels an itching in her brain and feels compelled to follow wherever her brain takes her. She's drawn to people who will soon die. And a mysterious boy, Troy, is always there because apparently the same thing has happened to him.

The plot through the book as Delaney works out what is going on is compelling. She is drawn to Troy, but also doesn't agree with his actions. Her relationship with Decker and her parents is all over the map. And that's where I had some problems with the narrative. There would be conversations among the characters, whether it was Delaney and her mom, or with Troy or Decker, and they would get angry. And sometimes the anger didn't make sense to me. Or they would be angry and then not, and it didn't make sense. I just couldn't understand the situation enough to totally buy into the emotions. I really didn't understand Delaney's mother at all. There were bits and pieces about her issues, but not enough for me to understand her reactions towards Delaney.

So, I think the premise is awesome. Plot is done very well. Characters and their reactions sometimes were confusing to me. I read this for my teen book club which meets today. I'm anxious to see what they thought.

Published by Walker Children's, 2012
Copy obtained from the library
262 pages

Rating: 3/5

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Book Review: Adrift, by Paul Griffin

If you can get past the simplistic writing in Adrift, there's an exciting story to be told.

Matt and John meet Driana, JoJo and Stef on the beach and they invite the boys to their mansion in the Hamptons for a party. Stef decides it is a perfect night to windsurf. But the other four think the sea is to dangerous and go to rescue Stef. Thus begins a harrowing story that pushes their survival abilities to the limit and tests their humanity.

Griffin isn't afraid to kill off characters, and the reader is told right at the beginning that not everyone comes home. There are gruesome parts and rivalries that threaten to destroy all hope of survival.

Adrift is a fast-paced very quick read. The main problem I had was the simple, choppy sentence structure. It was almost rhythmic. Subject-verb-predicate. Subject-verb-predicate. Most sentences are about 9 - 12 words in length. There are no complex sentence constructions. Maybe that's good if the intended audience are low level readers, but even a sophisticated middle school reader may find this too simple.

Adrift grabs you and doesn't let go. The ending is not all happy and perfect. Things are better, but as the beginning of the book indicates, none of them came back whole.

I would highly recommend Adrift to reluctant readers who like survival stories. The narrator is a boy, but girls will also enjoy it.

Published by Scholastic, July 28. 2015
ARC obtained from Library Media Connection Magazine
228 pages

Rating: 3/5

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Book Review: The Great Zoo of China, by Matthew Reilly

To say The Great Zoo of China is action packed just doesn't seem like enough. I'm not sure I've ever read a book that was so relentless.

CJ is our main character. She's been invited to write an article for National Geographic on a new, very secret zoo being constructed in China. After she gets there, along with some other reporters and Hamish, her brother and photographer, they discover that this zoo isn't just large -- it's a zoo for dragons.

The tour guides go through all the descriptions of how the dragons have come to be alive and how the zoo is perfectly safe. These very large and dangerous animals are well under control. They have all kinds of barriers to allow visitors to get close, but the dragons will leave them alone. It's perfectly safe. Nothing can happen. Cue the Jurassic Park  music....

The Great Zoo of China has a Jurassic Park theme, and that story is even mentioned by the characters in the book when they are on the tour. There is an added element in that not only do the dragons overcome the safeguards and become lethal, the management of the zoo is also trying to kill all the witnesses!

Did I like CJ? I have no idea. There is basically no character development in The Great Zoo of China. When all hell breaks loose, she takes over. She is way too cool under pressure. As a matter of fact, everyone is too cool. There is no panic, no screaming, no yelling or harsh words or anything. They all just follow what CJ says without question. No one argues. There's even another character that might be more qualified to lead the group, but he doesn't step up. It was weird.

The action is non-stop. I mean that. There's never a break. I think if the group could have reached temporary safety a couple of times and maybe communicated, bonded, built trust, got to know each other, planned together, it would have been more realistic. But we never get to know any of the characters and they don't get to know each other. I've never read a survival story like that.

The Great Zoo of China is very gory. The descriptions are explicit and almost cinematic in their quality. People get their faces ripped off, and things squirt and pop, and, well, you get the idea. Just be prepared for that.

The premise is excellent. The descriptions of the process of hatching the dragons, building the zoo, and all the safeguards seems very plausible. I fell for it. I even bought the innate intelligence of the dragons and how they managed to overpower the humans. I just really didn't like the breakneck pace where the characters just went from one gruesome, deadly encounter to another. And, of course, CJ was always spared -- usually at the very last second in some very unlikely way.

If you like action, The Great Zoo of China is your book. You don't want to miss it. If you like a relentless, fast paced survival story, pick this up. If you enjoyed Jurassic Park, you will probably enjoy The Great Zoo of China. If you need to connect with characters -- you will not get that in this book.

Published by Gallery Books, January 27, 2015
eARC obtained from NetGalley
416 pages

Rating: 3/5

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