Thursday, September 23, 2010

Greener Grass

Hola, Greener Grass by Caroline Pignat is next up on the list. Kit, is a teenage girl living on a humble farm in Ireland. Her family is just scraping by and that is from mostly relying on their potato crop. But bad luck is on the way and when the whole season's harvest is spoiled by a mysterious disease. How will Kit's family pay the rent? In all, this book is just really depressing. Her life is really horrible, and to know that this probably actually happened to someone makes it worse. The writing is good and the characters are expressed well but it is just so sad. Good book, awfully sad story, two and half stars.

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Plain Kate

Hola... so I just read this book called Plain Kate, by Erin Bow, and I thought I would review it. Kate is a carver, and her skill is so great that she has earned herself the nickname "witch-blade", which isn't really a good thing. This is because in her town, the burn witches at the stake. Pleasant, yes? Well anyway, when her favorite person in the world is killed—her father— Kate has to fend for herself. One day a mysterious stranger comes with an even more mysterious proposition for Kate. Here is what I think about this book: Kate is exactly as she is described, plain. She has no personality and is really quite bland. This book has very dark undercurrents that push throughout the whole story but that don't stop it from feeling oddly disjointed. The only memorable characters are Taggle, the cat, and Linay, the stranger. In all, I didn't really enjoy this book much. Two stars.

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Gordon Korman

HOLA!!! Yesterday Gordon Korman came to my school! He wrote two of the 39 Clues books. You know, the series written by a bunch of different authors, anyway, he was super cool! And the 39 Clues are really good! (You should totally read them!)

Friday, September 17, 2010

Healing Spell

Hola.....this isn't a very well known book, Healing Spell, by Kimberly Griffiths Little. Livie is a very tomboyish girl living on the banks of the bayou with her two sisters, her father, and her unconscious mother. See, her mom is in a coma, and Livie knows why... because it was her fault. While her family struggles with the care of her mother, Livie has her own challenges to face. Filled with funny quirks, the characters in this book are very realistic. They each have tons of personality and give the sad story a happy twist. Even though the idea of the story is depressing the over all effect isn't all that sad. It was a good enough story, although not particularly memorable. Three stars.

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

The Dark Hills Divide

HO-LA! Don't you just LOVE the new setup? I do! Right now I am thinking about The Dark Hills Divide, by Patrick Carman. Alexa, the amazing heroine of this series, lives in a walled city, used to keep the monsters of the Dark Hills away. While in the city, she witnesses the death of her very good friend, Warvold. This is just the beginning of an interesting chain of events that results in Alexa discovering a secret that leads her far away, meeting some very strange characters, and trying to save the place she has always called home. I thought that these books where good for what they were. Not exactly the most challenging read, but still exciting enough to hunt down the next book in the series. If you ever find yourself at a loss for a book to read, (I hope not, I do this blog so you won't!) The Dark Hills Divide is worth your time. Three stars.