Jan 28
Twisted
Twisted is another piece of great YA fiction from Laurie Halse Anderson – this one about a boy with a whole lot of problems, most of which are related to dysfunctional family issues. I wasn’t sure I was going to like the book. It started with a teen boy working off his community service hours after spray painting his high school. Turns out, spray painting the high school was a good decision – compared to the what he really thought about doing.
I liked Tyler. I liked Hannah and Yoda too. And I liked a good number of the adults in the story, as well. And the ending – pretty much perfect.
Jan 26
Mozart's Last Aria
How did Mozart really die? Was he poisoned? And by whom? And why? Mozart’s Last Aria is about Mozart’s sister and her efforts to find the answers to those questions – and in the process, we see Mozart as a bit of a radical feminist, which was kind of nifty. Fun little whodunit and Madame Mozart is fabulous, as are all of the female characters in the book. The guys aren’t bad, but it’s the women who are best – much like in The Magic Flute...
Jan 23
The Scrapbook of Frankie Pratt
TW and I argued over who put this one in the library bag. I’m sure I did – she’s sure she did, even though she did not bother to read it and was going to return it to the library without reading it (or without giving me a chance to read it. I rescued it from the return bin and I’m darn glad I did. The Scrapbook of Frankie Pratt was the perfect late night read last night, after finishing John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars.
The scrapbook images were fun. The scrapbook text was a lot like a diary, which made it an actual book to read. I liked it. I even liked the happily ever after ending for the Vassar feminist of the 40s.
Jan 23
The Fault in Our Stars
I hate kid cancer books. Kind of like the kids in The Fault in Our Stars hate cancer books, ok maybe not like they do – since I’m not a kid with cancer, but still – hate them. I just hate them.
The only redeeming value in this one (and it’s a big redeeming value) is that John Green wrote it. That pretty much says all you need to know. And all I’m going to say since I don’t want to give any spoilers or anything remotely spoiler-ish.
The kids are great. Their parents are nicely written. The stupid author, who is so NOT John Green, is well done. I loved the wish genies. IN the heart of Jesus – brilliant. And yes, I even cried a bit at the end – even though I was SURE I wouldn’t.
