Books I Didn't Get Around to Talking About in 2016

Well the new year is here. I read a lot more than what I was expecting over 2016. I have a long list of books waiting to still be put up to review. The problem is I have so many things that pull me this way and that. I am finding it hard to find any kind of dedicated time to do anything, let alone have some me time on my own computer! If you could see my youtube main page you would just shudder. Paw Patrol, and toy opening videos abound.

So I think going forward I will blog when I can. Hopefully eventually I can be more consistent but for now I can only do what I can do. There may be more blog posts where I talk about more than one book. We will see how it evolves.

Today I am going to post about two books in the middle school age bracket.

from goodreads

The first is a book called Disenchanted: The Trials of Cinderella by Megan Morrison, who also gave us the book Grounded.

This book is about a girl named Cinderella who is trying to find herself and change the world. She grew up poor, but is now thrust into the world of the elites, all who look down on her and her humble beginnings. This is a book about how one person really can make a difference. It is also how pride and prejudices occur on both sides of the economic divide.

This was a wonderful read. This was almost YA instead of middle school, as far as audience. This book deals with difficult home life, labour laws and the importance of protection from workers, this dealt with fashion, school, and finding our own way.

The book was told from three different points of view, which really worked with this story.

In the character of Cinderella we have a strong young woman who sticks to her guns. Though she sees the world in black and white, she is not adverse to trying to see others points of view.

In the character of Prince Dash we see a person who is for the first time in his life vulnerable. He is tentative and unsure, yet he wants to make a difference. It was great to see him evolve and become who he wanted to be rather than someone who a curse was dictating how he should be.

In the character of Serge, we get to see how much we risk losing when we don't stick to what we know to be right. How much are we willing to turn a blind eye to in order to make it to the top.

All of these characters show that introspection of ourselves is a good thing. They show it is good to have morals and to stand by them.

My only complaint and I had that with her last one is the covers. They look so juvenile and really give the story a discredit. When you pick it up you think you are just getting another run of the mill revamp of some fairy tale. When in fact you are getting a really well written, original world, that has dark bits and is not always fun and rosy. So please don't let the cover fool you. This is an amazing book and just one of what is turning out to be an amazing series.

from goodreads

The next book I want to talk about today is The Secret of Valhalla by Jasmine Richards.

This book is about a boy named Buzz and a new friend of his Mary. When people are disappearing around his village, most notably a weather woman, Buzz and Mary realize there is more going on than meets the eye.

This was a classic fun adventure book for middle graders. There wasn't a ton of character development but you got enough to know what these people were like. This was a very fast paced book. Which definitely helped with the action, but sometimes it felt a bit too fast.

I liked that she didn't bog you down in norse lore. You got enough information that you knew what was going on, and she piqued my interest to learn more about different norse legends.

I think this is a stand alone book, but I would love to know more about the unfortunately named Buzz and the village he is living in. I think there could be more stories to explore there. I think anyone 9 and up will love this book.

Under the Visible Life by Kim Echlin

from good reads

3.5 stars

Well Christmas has come and gone. And not nearly as much reading was done. I think the problem was a) I got a puzzle for Christmas that I was excited to work on and b) right now the book I am reading, while excellently written, just isn't holding my interest or pulling me in. There are some books where you just can't put it down, while others you can put it down with ease. I hope that this book picks up a bit and pulls me in.

It might be the timing of it too. Right now I am feeling the time crunch because there are four books on my to read list for this year that I want to get done, but I have to read this one first because of the hold list at the library. It is never great when you have to read a book then in there because of outside factors. It is much better if you get to choose the timing of the book. I can feel the lure of the other books so strongly.  I think I might just return it and put it on hold again. I think it would be the perfect spring/summer read.

What do you think? Do you believe in the timing of books?

Synopsis

This is a story that follows two women from two completely different world. They are both having to survive in a world that has been set up against them. Through their love of music, especially jazz, they are able to connect and become each others support.

My Thoughts

I really enjoyed this book. This was definitely one where I couldn't put it down. I wanted to know what was going to happen to these two women.

You have Katherine who decides to take charge of her destiny. The man in her life might have done her wrong, but she had a dream and she wasn't going to wait around for some guy to help her get there. I like how the author shows the struggles and hardships she goes through to find her success. Sometimes we just see the end result of someone's success without seeing how they struggled to get where they got. Life isn't always easy. It is hard work.

Mahsa was a lovely character and your heart goes out to her. Her struggles would have been so difficult. Coming from a culture which see women as mere commodities would be hard to break from. The trickery of her uncle and her feelings of being stifled and unable to escape I can't even imagine. Her character allowed us to see how living in two different worlds can be difficult and exhausting. It is like living a lie or being pulled in two.

There is definitely something you can learn from each woman.

The one thing that dragged the book down was the abstract discussion about music. I like music but I don't need to delve into it's mysteries. I just I don't "get it". While the music was the unifying factor in the book it got a bit much sometimes.

On the whole a very lovely read.

Punishment by Linden MacIntyre

from goodreads

4 stars

This year I finally made it out to Waterloo Public Library's Battle of the Books. It is when local celebrities champion the books for Waterloo Reads which are the Evergreen Award nominated books by the OLA. I have wanted to go for a few years but it would never work out. Something else was always going on. But this year was my year. What a fun night! There were a lot of people and we all had a great evening of laughs, fun and really yummy food. At the end of the night we voted for what book we thought should win. If your community ever does a book battle I highly recommend going. You will have such an enjoyable evening.

Synopsis

Tony Breau is retired and moved back to his home town in Nova Scotia. He left his position as a guard at the penitentiary under a bit of a cloud. When a young woman is found dead, Tony finds himself in the centre of things. He reconnects with a love from his past, and is haunted by a young man he tried to help.

My Thoughts

There are some books that quietly get into your heart. This is one of them. MacIntyre does a superb job at showing what small town life can be like. Enchanting, yet, stifling. Tony is a great main character. He is not in your face. In fact, he is rather a reluctant hero.

This book shows the difficulties people can face when they try to repent and change. People's memories are long and they remember your misdeeds even if you have completely changed. It is hard to get out of that shadow. It is hard to be given a second chance. It is hard to be relabelled.

This book really has everything, mystery, self reflection, love. It shows the price we can pay for doing the right thing. It shows the need for morals and for honesty. It questions how we view and think of others. It is definitely a worthwhile read.

Margaret Sanger: A Life of Passion by Jean H. Baker

from goodreads

2 stars

Christmas is coming soon! Every year that I am a parent I feel less excited and geared up for Christmas. It's not that I don't like Christmas, I do. I think it is the fact that I am doing everything now. My parents gave me a lovely Christmas experience every year. My mom would bake, we would have delicious food with all the trimmings. We had nice gifts. Not overly extravagant or plentiful, but nice. We would all sing Christmas Carols together as mom played the piano. We would go tobogganing. It would be a fun time of love, friendship and memories.

Flash forward to now and I am the person who is supposed to be presenting this Christmas magic and honestly I don't have the inclination. I don't feel like baking for hours on end. I don't feel like making a turkey with all the trimmings. I don't feel like getting anyone any presents (though I am not heartless and I do). And I don't prioritise practice time so I am not as good as my mom so their is rarely Carol singing. Tobaganning is fun but it sucks when you have to drive to a snow hill instead of having it right outside your front door (like my childhood home.) But, I guess this is when I can think, what is my energy level and what little bit of magic can I sprinkle into my kids experiences.

Hopefully in a few years when I don't have a crazy baby that constantly puts things in his mouth and when I feel like I am more put together I will feel more excited for the Christmas season and put more effort into making it super special for my family. Until then, well, at least we have a tree!

Synopsis

This is a biography on the woman who was the face of the early birth control movement in the United States.

My Thoughts

This book was weird. I loved it, I loathed it, I became apathetic to it.

The first few chapters that dealt with Sanger's early life I found really interesting. I liked learning about the events that caused her to pick up the crusade of birth control. I am profoundly grateful for the women who did. I am definitely a woman who has taken advantage of the ability to choose when to have children and how many. It is such a foreign concept to me, living now, that birth control could ever been seen as something not normal. But the obstacles men put up against birth control was crazy. Their arguments didn't even make sense! It was heartbreaking hearing about the women who were told by their doctors not to have any more children but where denied the tools and knowledge on how to prevent further pregnancies.

This book did a good job and delving into these contrary policies and showing how commonsense birth control was and how birth control was really a class thing.

If Baker had just left the book at this, the beginnings of the birth control movement, this would have been a fantastic read. Unfortunately she continued into the rest of Sanger's life. The writing was good. The subject I found boring. Perhaps if I was more inline with some of Sanger's other views such as open marriage and eugenics I would have found more interest. But since both those practices are abhorrent to me I just kept flicking the pages waiting for the book to end. I just didn't care about her private life. I think she was egocentric and catty. So perhaps the rating I gave should be higher, because you can't fault the author on the life of their subject. I just didn't care for it and the book just dragged on and on and on. Like I never thought it was going to end.

While it lost the passion it had at the beginning this was a quasi worth while read. If you are going to read it just read the first few chapters. They are full of interest and vitality. Otherwise it might be worth getting a different title if you want to learn about the birth control movement as a whole.

Mark of the Plague by Kevin Sands

from goodreads

4 stars

Christmas time is coming. And that means that the library is closed on more often. That means I had to do a stock up to make sure I had enough to get me through. For me nothing is worse than when you finish a book and don't have the next one waiting there to get started. I like to have at least two by my nightstand so I know I will not have in reading gap. When there are so many books you want to read you cannot have reading lulls. It is finish one, get on to the next. (Yes, I know I have a bit of a reading problem. My husband can tell you all about it.)

Last Christmas I went on a bit of a nordic crime spree reading all of Asa Larsson's Rebecka Martinsson series. This year it is a bit of a mix, yet I just noticed that three off them are either set in Scandinavia or talk about Scandinavian culture. Weird, as that was totally not planned.

What do you like to read during the holidays? Do you go for a mix or is there a particular theme?

Synopsis

This is the second installment in the Blackthorn Series. Christopher is waiting for a new master, but that is going to take awhile as the Apothecary guild as left London because of the plague outbreak. With the plague has come a prophet stating who will be the next afflicted. Then a man shows up with a supposed cure for the plague. Is this too good to be true?

My Thoughts

This was an excellent sequel. It has definitely insured success for the rest of the series.

Once again we had a fast paced story filled with riddles and codes. There was danger, friendship and sacrifice. You will laugh, gasp and cry. Your emotions will be in constant flux.

What I really like about Sands is his ability to expose kids some dark aspects of the world in which we live, without making them feel scared or making things seem hopeless. Through his characters we see people who are out for themselves, who are willing to kill in order to get what they want, we see people abuse others, we see people who are hungry an scared. Yet through his characters we see tenacity, we see people still willing to make a change and have things be better, we see people who stand by one another, we see people picking themselves up and dusting themselves off and persevering. What great lessons. Yes, life isn't perfect and there are people who do some pretty bad things but we can stay true to ourselves and do what we can do for a better world.

All in all this was a fantastic thrill ride. A strong addition to a very promising series. I would recommend this for a mature 10 year old and up.

Grounded: The Adventures of Rapunzel by Megan Morrison

from goodreads

5 stars

This year we decided to give Miss G quite a few books for Christmas. Man, picking them out was so hard to do. My husband and I had a limited time to be out together getting gifts and by the time we got to the bookstore Mr. S was done. I mean for a kid who usually makes no noise and is chill, he was starting to fuss a bit and we knew we had about 10 minutes before total meltdown. There are so many cool looking books out right now that it was hard to choose. You need to pick a book that is not too easy but not so long or difficult otherwise they will get frustrated. You need to make sure it is about something they are interested in, but that you wouldn't mind reading aloud to them with out going insane.

In the end I went with some classic children's stories. You can't go wrong with books that have stood the test of time, right?

Synopsis

Rapunzel is living an idyllic life up in her tower. When a young man climbs her tower and steals a flower from her she decides to leave and get it back and protect Witch.

My Thoughts

I think the majority of the world would agree that Harry Potter is one of the best if not the best kids series of all time. Well, this new Tyme series by Megan Morrison is going to give Harry Potter a run for its money. Morrison has created a well thought through, rich world.

I love how this is not just a retelling of the same old story. Morrison puts her own twist on things as she tells the story of a girl who has lived in a tower, who has been loved by witch. You see from her perspective how witch wasn't the evil person everyone thinks she is. You see how Rapunzel truly loved her, she knew no different. You see how the world is so much bigger than Rapunzel's tower. The land of Tyme is truly interconnected.

Rapunzel and the character Jack were the perfect combination. Witty dialogue, they could be silly but also serious when necessary. The dimensions of these characters were amazing.

I like how Morrison takes care of possible plot holes. For example. Rapunzel had a ton of hair. Hair is heavy. How would she be able to walk around through the woods with all that hair and not get it all messed up and crazy. Well Morrison had a great answer that made sense. So smart. There were some other things like that were taken care of easily and believably. See, what I mean about a well thought out world. I also loved the acorns. Read the book and you will see what I mean.

This is a book of adventure, discovery, resourcefulness, trickery and ultimately love. This is a fantastic debut to what is sure to be a fantastic series. My words cannot do justice to how great these books are. Don't let the childish cover fool you. This is a book that any YA reader or adult would love. Pick it up. Read it. You will not be disappointed.

Belle: The Slave Daughter and the Lord Chief Justice by Paula Byrne

3 stars

When I think about slavery my mind usually goes to the cotton fields of the southern United States. These fields were the source of fear, heartache and cruelty. They led to the American Civil War. They led to books, poems, artwork, legends and films. They are big on the North American consciousness.

What we often forget is that slavery happened other places before the hey day of the cotton fields of the south. There were plantations of all kinds in Barbados, Jamaica, the Bahamas and other islands that make up the Caribbean. Yet, these stories seem to get lost or pushed aside in the collective knowledge of slavery. At least, it seems like that from the Canadian and American perspective.

The writers of history have successfully erased the violence and cruelty of European slave ships and plantations. They seem to have only pegged it to southern Americans. It is astounding how we can easily cleave to some knowledge and conveniently forget others. For that reason I am so glad that we have dedicated historical writers, always looking for truth which leads them to look at things from different angles. We all have chequered pasts, we should not feel doomed by them but we need to know about them so we can learn and have a more positive outlook on our future.

Synopsis

This is a glimpse into the abolition movement in England by way of a picture of Dido Belle.

My Thoughts

Well this is a tough book review.

On the whole this was a very interesting read about a section of history we often forget, the slave trade of the British Empire. Since they were one of the first governments to abolish the slave trade we usually cast them in a great light and think, "Oh the commonwealth is so good because we decided not to have slaves, unlike those crazy Americans". Yet, the commonwealth did participate and participate fiercely in this heinous practice. This book brings to light some of the travesties such as the slave ships, what happened to runaway slaves, and the view of woman slaves and their offspring. Through Byrne's research and the stories she found a thorough picture was painted of the slave trade in the Caribbean. That history was interesting and sobering.

But the book isn't called "The Slave Trade of the Caribbean". This book is about Belle, (well actually, her name was Dido) or at least, it is supposed to be about her. And in the end, you really don't know more about her than you did at the beginning. You know there is a picture, you know that she existed and did live with her Uncle who happened to be a Lord Chief Justice but that's it. You don't know her thoughts, you don't know if she persuaded her uncles views. Everything that was said about her or her relationships was nothing more than inferences or extrapolations. It was not really fact.

This book was advertised as a biography of sorts which is very misleading. I think calling it a biography is a bit of a stretch.

For this misdirection the book was sort of disappointing. The readers thought they were going to be learning about Belle and her life, instead we got a history 101 on the British slave trade and the abolition movement of the late 18th century.

I did enjoy this book, it was readable and I found the history to be well researched an presented in a readable manner. It was worthwhile reading. However, it was not the content that was advertised. So if you decide to read it you have been warned. Reader beware.