The Book Review Club (September 2022)

Welcome to the September 2022 edition of the Book Review Club. I don't know what the weather is like in your neck of the woods. But, here, in Southern California we are melting in a heat wave. Thank goodness for books! We have reviews and recommendations for both kids and adults. Perfect timing for fall (and, hopefully, cooler) reading. Under my post are links to terrific reviews by terrific reviewers. Enjoy.

NO WAY HOME (YA, thriller)

By Jody Feldman

For me, it's been a summer of reading adult and middle-grade books. I wasn't actively avoiding YA. It was more about what I'd put on hold at the library vs what actually came in and who loaned me what and which book migrated to the top of TBR pile. Anyway, I knew Jody's (one of our intrepid reviewers! and a terrific middle-grade writer!) YA debut was coming out in August, and I'd preordered it. Always fun to have a book you're looking forward to! Thank you, Jody!

In NO WAY HOME, teen protagonist Tess Alessandro travels to Rome as part of a summer exchange program. Her host family's daughter, Sofia, stays with Tess's family in Washington, DC. Tess is particularly excited about the program because her family has roots in Italy. And, quite frankly, what teen wouldn't be excited about a summer in Italy. Well, unless they experience what Tess went through. :)

So, I start reading. And I'm motoring along, enjoying all the snippets of Italian and the sightseeing and the food descriptions. It's bringing back memories of my summer in St. Pierre (French island near Newfoundland). I'm commiserating with Tess whose Italian isn't all that great. Then there's the stress of staying in someone else's home. Not to mention having to make new friends at school. 

Suddenly... BAM! I hit chapter 8 (which happened to be 16% into the book. I noticed because I read NO WAY HOME on my Kindle). EVERYTHING changes. Tess's host parents (Angelica and Francesco Rossis) wake her up for a video call with their daughter. Who drugged Tess's parents! Who's brandishing a knife while Tess's parents sleep in the background! The Rossis confiscate Tess's passport, credit cards and cell phone. They threaten to murder her parents unless she commits a series of crimes. Wow! Tess teams up with a fellow student to solve the mystery and keep Tess's parents alive. There's a little romance. A lot of betrayal. Family secrets. Twists and turns galore. 

NO WAY HOME is perfect for readers who enjoyed WITH MALICE by Eileen Cook. (Here's my review.) If you're looking for a YA thriller, this NO WAY HOME is for you.

(Dear FCC: bought. Yes, I know Jody. But I just review what I like.)

And now....onto the rest of our reviews. Please click through. You won't want to miss a single one!

MIDDLE GRADE FICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Jenn Jilks: STEALING FROM WIZARDS by Ryan Consell (MG, fantasy)

ADULT FICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Jody Feldman: THE THURSDAY MURDER CLUB SERIES by Richard Osman (mystery/thriller)

Ray Potthoff: LONE WOLF by Jodi Picoult (contemporary)

Sarah Laurence: SMALL THINGS LIKE THESE by Claire Keegan (contemporary)

NONFICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Lucy Sartain: BRAT: AN 80s STORY by Andrew McCarthy (memoir)

Margy Lutz: THE LAND OF LITTLE RAIN by Mary Hunter Austin (nature, memoir)

Patti Abbott: TASTE: MY LIFE THROUGH FOOD by Stanley Tucci (memoir)       

Note to Reviewers: Any errors (broken link, missed review, etc), just shoot me an email or leave a comment. Thank you so much for your reviews!

The Book Review Club (May 2014)

Welcome to our May Book Review Club! Did you know that it used to be considered bad luck to get married in May. "Marry in May and you'll rue the day."* However, it's always been considered good luck to read our book reviews. We won't steer you wrong. That goes for any month! Enjoy!
*From:http://www.ducksters.com/history/mayinhistory.php 

THE GOLLYWHOPPER GAMES: THE NEW CHAMPION
 by Jody Feldman

This middle-grade novel by our very own Jody Feldman (click through for cute website) is a companion to the wildly successful THE GOLLYWHOPPER GAMES. By wildly successful, I mean it's on TWENTY-SIX state reading lists. I expect we'll see the same kind of love for THE GOLLYWHOPPER GAMES: THE NEW CHAMPION. Because it's that good.

In a nutshell (stolen from the Harper Collins website): 
The Golly Toy and Game Company's Gollywhopper Games was such a big success the first time, the company's executives have decided to host the competition again. Cameron and Spencer Schein have scored two highly sought-after slots in the regional round—will one of the Schein brothers make it all the way to the finals? Favorite characters from the first book make guest appearances, and a new cast of competitors, both boys and girls, get set to compete against (and with) Cameron and Spencer. There are twists and turns and complications in this page-turner of a race to the finish line!
What I loved:  the puzzles. They are seriously fun. Here are a couple of examples. 1. What is a normal decibel level for everyday conversation? Greater or less or equal to 85? 2. How many species of flightless birds are there? More or less or equal to 4? 3. What rhymes with a synonym for "more angry"? And the answers are... Ha! I am so not giving you the answers!

What else I loved: You definitely do not have to read the first book before reading this one. The author has written this companion in such a brilliant way that it works as a standalone. That said,  you'll want to read both books. Because once you find your way into the world of the Gollywhopper Games, you'll try to hang out there as long as you can.

What else I loved: You only think you figured out the ending!

An unexpected bonus: Okay, this is going to sound weird. But we're all friends. Plus, what gets posted on The Book Review Club, stays here.  Right?  Anyway, this middle-grade fiction actually made me stop and think, in an adult way, about sibling rivalry. What kinds of rivalries have gone on, are going with my own four kids? How well have I handled it over the years? How much sibling rivalry have I been unaware of? I don't expect a middle-grade novel to make me mull things over. But I love that this one did. Thank you, Jody Feldman!

 To the FCC: Jody Feldman is a friend of mine. In fact, we've broken bread together in two different states. At my request, Jody sent me an ARC of this book. But no one paid me or compensated me in any way for this review. I wouldn't have reviewed this book if I hadn't loved it. And Jody would've understood. Because that's the kind of awesome she is.

And now . . .  links to the rest of the reviews. Click through, kick back and enjoy!


MIDDLE GRADE/YOUNG ADULT BOOK REVIEWS

Alyssa Goodnight: A SNICKER OF MAGIC by Natalie Lloyd (MG)

Jody Feldman: THE YEAR OF BILLY MILLER by Kevin Henkes (MG)


Linda McLaughlin: DIVERGENT trilogy by Veronica Roth (YA)

Stacy Nyikos: THE LUNAR CHRONICLES (CINDER, SCARLET, CRESS) by Melissa Meyer (YA)

ADULT BOOK REVIEWS

Patti Abbott:  ORDINARY PEOPLE by Judith Guest

Sarah Laurence: TEMPTING FATE by Jane Green

 POETRY

Jenn Jilks of Cottage Country: LIVING WITHOUT THE ONE YOU CANNOT LIVE WITHOUT
                                                  by Natasha Josefowitz



Note to Reviewers: Any errors (broken link, missed review, etc), just shoot me an email or leave a comment. Thank you so much for your reviews!

Regarding my recent travels...

Oh, the people I've met and the places I've gone...

In Columbia, MO, I stayed with my very good friend, Mary. A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away (North San Diego County), Mary and I worked together as speech pathologists. We've managed to remain good friends despite Mary's tendency to be TOO HONEST. Sorry, no picture as we weren't feeling photogenic.

I visited four fantastic schools in Columbia: Smithton Middle School, Lange Middle School, Columbia Independent, Gentry Middle School. Thank you to Scholastic reps Jenny Hagan and Karen Harris for setting up the visits, getting me to the schools, feeding me, being my friends. We were quite the team! An extra special thank you to Karen who sent me on the road to Kansas with a bag full of licorice!

Me and Jody Feldman.We FINALLY met in real life. I know Jody from the Class of 2k8, where she was our fearless Co-President. By the way, we're actually way, way cuter in person. Way.

This is a partial group shot at lunch at the Kansas School Librarians conference. Here is what I learned:

KANSAS SCHOOL LIBRARIANS ARE MY PEOPLE!

Yes, yes, they love kids and books AND THEY LAUGH AT ALL MY JOKES! There were many reading teachers at the conference too. Kansas school librarians rock! Kansas reading teachers rock!

Meet Juanita Jameson, a knowledgable, friendly, uberfun Kansas school librarian. Thanks for hanging out with me, Juanita!


Here I am with Gordon Korman. Yes, THE Gordon Korman. Thank you for the photo, Ken Harton, School Librarian and Photograher Extraordinaire, Great Bend Middle School, Kansas

I presented with fellow authors (in alpha order):PJ Hoover, Stacy Nyikos, Suzanne Morgan Williams and Zu Vincent.

And this was all last week. I was having so much fun that I really wasn't ready to come home. Well, except, of course, to see Mr. Summy and the kids!

Book #2 is ....

done. And turned in.

Yay!

I have to say, though, clicking on that button to send her to off to meet her editor was tough. It took me about an hour to actually press down.

Like watching your child walk into the classroom on the first day of kindergarten.

Anyway, the manuscript really is gone. Temporarily. She's spending time with the very loving and capable Editor Wendy. After that, there'll be a revision letter. And then she'll come back home and we'll hang out again together until about August.

And what did I do on this first day of empty nest syndrome?

I had a very very excellent cup of Typhoo tea (thanks to one of my sisters). And settled in to begin reading the following books:

The Gollywhopper Games by Jody Feldman
A Curse Dark As Gold by Elizabeth C. Bunce
A Drowned Maiden's Hair by Laura Amy Schlitz
A Thousand Sons by Khaled Hosseini

Tomorrow, I'll catch up on my blog reading, meet a good friend for coffee and take a much deserved nap.

An aside: There's an interesting post up today on the class of 2k8's blog about MP Barker's characters for A Difficult Boy.