Annette's Book Spot

Monday, May 23, 2011

Monday Memories -- Never Tease a Weasel

Welcome to my meme, Monday Memories, where I feature favorite books we've loved from the past. You can link to an old review, or write something new about a beloved book from your past. Really, what's important is not the book, but why it is memorable to you. So, have fun reminiscing, and leave a comment below, so we can all enjoy your memories.

I also wanted to let you know about another wonderful blog that you should check out. Ashley @ Books from Bleh to Basically Amazing does a weekly post called Memory Monday. She has been posting about her childhood memories of books. What's great about Ashley's site is that she is asking for guest posts for her Memory Monday event! So hop on over there and check it out. I'm hoping to do a guest post for her soon!

Never Tease a Weasel, by Jean Conder Soule

This is another book in verse that I really loved. I can remember my mother reading this book to me, and I can remember reading it to myself too! The message is "be kind to animals" and here's the refrain:

But never tease a weasel, / Not even once or twice. / A weasel will not like it-- / And teasing / isn't / nice!

The link above is to the newer version of the book with new illustrations. My cover picture is of the old book that I remember. I'm glad it's been reprinted because I think it is a timeless story that children will still love today. Do any of you remember this book?

Share one of your cherished book memories!

You can do a Monday Memories post on your blog. Copy my button and link back here, so others can see all the other posts. Leave a comment below with the link to your post.

Or, just leave one of your Monday Memories right here in the comments.

Be sure to visit some other blogs that have posted their links. Thanks!

Sunday, May 22, 2011

In My Mailbox - the Postman has been Busy!

Thanks to The Story Siren, once again, for hosting this fun event. Some weeks are very slow, book-wise, but this week was an exception. My mailbox was active, and I've been going through a lot of books from the library. So, here's what this week has brought:

Books Won:

The Weed that Strings the Hangman's Bag, by Alan Bradley (won from Random Buzzers)

The Scorch Trials, by James Dashner (signed, won from Mrs. Boswell's Book Bag)

Fablehaven, by Brandon Mull (signed, won from Mrs. Boswell's Book Bag)

For Review:

Very Bad Men, by Harry Dolan, from the publisher
Devil May Care, by Jolene Ballard Gutierrez, from the author
Cuentos, by Edwin Stark, ebook from the author
Verita, by Tracy Rozzlynn, ebook from the author

From the Library:

Rules of Attraction, by Simone Elkeles

The Maze Runner, by James Dashner

Wish You Were Dead, by Todd Strasser

Love is the Higher Law, by David Levithan

All of these books from the library are on our Abe Lincoln Award nominated titles list, and I'm trying to read all of those.

I hope you have a great reading week! I'll be looking forward to your IMM posts. Thanks for stopping by, please come back soon!

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Book Review: Reality Check by Peter Abrahams

Reality Check is another great mystery for teens, and I’m really happy about that. I don’t seem to find many good teen mysteries.

There is a lot of build up to the actual mystery. Cody is a regular football playing high school boy, looking forward to his junior year on the field. His girlfriend, Clea, is from the “other side of the tracks.” Her family is filthy rich, and her father is very demanding.

Clea’s father decides to send her to Hong Kong to be with her uncle for the summer, and then when she returns, she tells Cody that she’s going to a private school in Vermont for the rest of high school. Cody know it’s because her father doesn’t approve, and because he feels like they are too different, he breaks up with Clea before she leaves for school.

Abrahams then spends 40 pages going into Cody’s football career being destroyed because of an injury, and his slowly failing school and eventually dropping out. As a reader, I didn’t understand why this much detail was necessary. It didn’t seem to be integral to the story. Then Cody finds out that Clea is missing. She was riding her horse through the mountain trails, and her horse came back without her. Cody goes to Vermont to help with the search.

The mystery then gets going. All is not what it seems, as Cody finds out when he gets to know some of the kids at Clea’s school and the townspeople in the area. I won’t say any more about what happens, but Cody, of course, plays a big part in the solution. The pacing was good enough to keep my interest, and I didn’t figure out what was going on until Cody did.

This book is the fourth Echo Falls Mystery by Abrahams. I’m not sure why the books are called that. I didn’t see “Echo Falls” mentioned anywhere in this book, unless I missed it. This classic mystery would appeal to both girls and boys who like this type of story. It does take a while to get going, but if you can stick it out, it’s worth the effort.

I’ve posted about the Illinois’ Abraham Lincoln High School Book Award previously. This book is one of the 2012 nominated titles, and that’s why I read it.

Published by Laura Geringer Books, 2009
Copy obtained from the library
330 pages

Rating: 3/5

Friday, May 20, 2011

Blog Hopping at the End of the Week!

Jennifer, at Crazy-For-Books hosts the Book Blogger Hop every week. Go over there and join in -- it's lots of fun and a great way to discover some new and exciting blogs! This week's question is:

If you were given the chance to spend one day in a fictional world (from a book), which book would it be from and what would that place be?

Hogwarts, of course! What a great place to explore -- I'm not sure a day would be enough, but I'd love that opportunity. I'm thinking this will be a common answer, but still a good one!

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you'll come again. Please leave a comment so I can visit you too!

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Book Review: Across the Universe by Beth Revis

Across the Universe has a lot to offer young adults who like a science fiction story about interstellar travel.

The story begins with Amy, a teenager, watching as her parents are cryogenically frozen for a 350-year trip aboard the Godspeed to colonize another planet. Amy is then frozen herself.

We are then introduced to Elder, a teenage boy on the ship many years later, who is being trained to govern the ship by Eldest. It seems that things have not gone as planned, and the ship is very different than when it left the earth.

Amy is mistakenly unfrozen, almost killed, and is stunned by the conditions of the ship and its inhabitants. Elder is enamored with Amy—she is so different than the people he is used to. But then other things begin to go wrong. Other people are accidentally unfrozen and killed in the process. Who is doing this? Elder is beginning to suspect that Eldest is keeping a lot of secrets from him, and this isn’t how his training is supposed to go.

It all gets very confusing for these travelers. There’s danger, there’s mystery, there’s lots of deceit, and I don’t think any reader will be able to figure it all out before the end of the story. Revis does a good job of pulling you in. The tension builds slowly but steadily. I could feel for Amy—she’s so lost and disoriented, and of course she misses her parents terribly.

I got frustrated with Elder. It seemed like he should have had many questions a lot earlier—but then, he had been born on this ship and raised with certain beliefs that he has had no reason to question.

Even though this book is almost 400 pages, it reads quickly. The chapters alternate between Amy and Elder’s point of view. It’s one of those books that you want to throw across the room once in a while because it just seems like everyone needs to wake up and figure things out! So, you really need to get to the end, and it’s an easy book to read, so that part isn’t difficult. All is not solved though, as this is the first book of a planned trilogy. I'll be anxious to see what is in store for these teens.

There are subtle lessons about the mistakes of history and what causes a society to fail that could make this book worthy of discussion in a classroom or book club. Teens who like science fiction and mystery will be drawn to this story. I will not hesitate to recommend this to both girls and boys since there are two strong main characters of the opposite sex.

Published by Razorbill, 2011
Personal copy won from Aimee at Getting Your Read On
398 pages (qualifies for my 350 Page Book Challenge!)

Rating: 4/5

I'm Featured over at GReads!

Ginger, who blogs about books at GReads has featured me this week as her "Blogger Behind the Book." Please go check it out, and while you're there, you should check out the rest of her blog. She does a great job, and if you don't already follow her, you should.

Thanks!

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Winner - Giveaway of Engineering Infinity

The winner of Engineering Infinity is

Vivien!

Congratulations! I've emailed the winner.

Book Review: Never Let Me Go, by Kazuo Ishiguro

I have mixed feelings about Never Let Me Go. I really didn’t like the story, but I liked the way it was told.

Kathy is our narrator, and she switches from present day (late 1990s) as a carer, to her time she spent at an exclusive boarding school called Hailsham when she was a child. This school is special, and it’s a while before we realize what’s special about the school, and we really never know the entire story – that’s part of what bothers me about this tale. I wanted more details. I want to know more about the donors, the veterans, and the carers. I want to know more about the history of this process, how it came to be acceptable, and how it was accomplished.

We learn a lot about the characters—their thoughts, feelings, experiences, and their interpretations of their lives. That’s what is special about this book-- the characters and how they deal with their lot in life as they grow up and realize all the ramifications of being donors.

Ishiguro’s writing is beautiful and fluid. The characters are all different and believable – not necessarily lovable. Throughout the book I didn’t think there was going to be a happy or even hopeful ending in store. I thought the ending was acceptable, given the subject matter. It's hard to say a lot about this book because I don't want to reveal any important plot points. The discovery of what it going on is essential to the enjoyment of the story.

I read this book because I saw the previews for the movie, and I always want to read the book before watching. I’m very interested to see how this works out on the screen – the best part of this novel was Ishiguro’s writing, so I don’t have much hope for the movie.

Published by Vintage Books, 2005
Copy obtained from the library
288 pages

Rating: 2.5/5

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Book Review: The Compound, by S. A. Bodeen

The Compound is a uniquely plotted book that kept me enthralled throughout. The story is narrated by Eli, whose family is rushing to an underground compound where they will be saved from a nuclear attack.

Everyone in Eli’s family doesn’t make it in time before Eli’s father locks the door. Eli’s twin brother and his grandmother are left outside. Eli’s father, one of the wealthiest men in the world, has built and equipped this facility with everything necessary for survival for the 15 years it will take to make the earth hospitable again.

So the family is lucky, right? They have all the comforts of home, and although devastated by the loss of the rest of their family, Eli, his mother and father, and his two sisters have a somewhat normal existence.... for a while. Of course, things begin to go wrong. Eli’s father, who has always had strange habits, begins to act even more peculiar. There are several problems with the food supply. Will they survive the 15 years?

Like I said, Bodeen kept me turning the pages. There’s always something happening—this is definitely a plot-driven story, but I did feel a connection to Eli. Even though he was a really strange teenager, he had been through a lot, and part of the book is about him coming to terms with his own behaviors. The other members of the family are not as relatable, but they do add to the story.

Yes, there are some unrealistic things going on. Parts of it are a bit far-fetched. But for middle school kids, I think they will eat this story up. If you read this book without too critical of an eye, it’s a fun ride, and there are some unexpected twists along the way to keep up the excitement.

I’ve posted about the Illinois’ Abraham Lincoln High School Book Award previously. This book is one of the 2012 nominated titles, and that’s why I read it. The Compound was very popular when it first came out, and I think it has the potential to get some votes.

Published by Feiwel and Friends, 2008

Copy obtained from the Library

245 pages

Rating: 3/5

Monday, May 16, 2011

Monday Memories: Madeline

Welcome to my meme, Monday Memories, where I feature favorite books we've loved from the past. You can link to an old review, or write something new about a beloved book from your past. Really, what's important is not the book, but why it is memorable to you. So, have fun reminiscing, and add your link below, so we can all enjoy your memories.

I loved Madeline, by Ludwig Bemelmans when I was little. She was the coolest orphan I knew! This was one of my aunt's favorite children's books and she was the one that introduced me to Madeline. It was written in 1940, and still appeals to kids today, I think because of the rhythm. The story begins:

"In an old house in Paris that was covered in vines, lived twelve little girls in two straight lines ..."

This series is still being continued by Bemelmans' grandson. I can't wait to read these to my grandkids, like I read them to my kids. Well... actually I CAN wait....

Share one of your cherished book memories!

1. Do a Monday Memories post on your blog. Copy my button and link back here, so others can see all the other posts.

2. Enter your Monday Memories link in the Link List below.
3. Visit some other blogs who have posted their links.