Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Drama by Raina Telfemeier. Review from Uncorrected Proof. Pub Date 9/12.

Guest Post by Addie, my 9-year-old daughter

DRAMA is about girl named Callie who is in a acting class at school. She likes a boy who finds out he is gay in acting class. Callie loves to read acting books at the library. In this book Callie is a set designer and at the end of the she becomes the stage manager.

I would recommend this book to my friends because I think they would like it. Callie learns about gay people and how she can still be friends with them.



My reaction:  Well, I guess I probably should have read this first before giving it to Addie! I think the topics covered were a bit over her going-into-4th-grade mind. She'll understand it better when she's in 6th or 7th. I do think it's funny that when I asked what she liked about the book or what she learned from it, she wrote the 2nd paragraph. She then told me that she doesn't have any gay kids in her class at school, so I had to explain that they may not know it yet or not want to share. It was quite the interesting conversation!

I thought the book was adorable. Sweet read about junior high romance--for those who are straight, bi, gay or questioning.  The graphic novel is written like a play in acts, and the fact that the characters are all involved in the middle school play only supports the play-within-a-play concept.




The Lady of the Rivers by Philippa Gregory, Read by Bianca Amato

Philippa Gregory has always been one of my fav authors. When I was growing up, my high school librarian didn't really buy any YA books--I had to buy those at Waldenbooks at the mall or read books from my mom's library. But my H.S. librarian loved historical romances, so there was plenty of Philippa Carr and Victoria Holt.

In this title, Jacquetta meets Joan of Arc as a young girl, and then rises through the English and French monarchy. Jacquetta has to marry the old Duke of Bedford, but he doesn't want her physically--he just wants her powers of seeing the future. This is the time when alchemy is frowned upon by the church, but the rich are exploring it anyway. As a widow duchess, Jacquetta rebels and marries her husband's squire. But the wheels of fate are still nice to Jacquetta and they rise through the ranks to be very close to the House of Lancaster in England.

I found this fascinating because I didn't know this story. Usually historical fiction of this era starts with Henry VIII and his women, so I liked this earlier time. The narrator's voice was soothing, the accents wonderful, and the 15 disks went quickly!

Sunday, June 10, 2012

Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver, Read by Sarah Drew

I really enjoyed Delirium last year, so I was anxious to read this sequel. I wanted to wait and listen to the audio though--Sarah Drew is one of the narrators that I really like!

Lena is back and living in the wilds, with the help of her new friends. Eventually Lena ends up going undercover and working for the Resistance, which is where she meets Julian. She is thrown together with someone she shouldn't care about, but, of course, they end up falling in love. I'm really, really hoping that the 3rd book doesn't have a love triangle between Lena, Julian, and Alex, her love from the first book. Lena seems to have a habit of falling in love with every cute boy she comes into close contact with--stop that, Lena!

On the other hand, this was an enjoyable, fast listen, and I'm looking forward to the third book. :)