Review: The Bad Queen: Rules and Instructions for Marie - Antoinette by Carolyn Meyer

Synopsis from book jacket:
Marie- Antoinette is given endless instructions before she leaves Austria at the age of fourteen to marry the dauphin of France.  In her new home at the grand palace of Versailles, her every move is scruntinized by the cruel and gossipy members of the French court.  Marie-Antoinette tries to adhere to their stifiling rules of etiquete, but sometimes, this fun-loving young woman can't help by indulge herself with scandalous fashions, taboo recreations, elaborate parties - and even a forbidden romance.

Most damaging to her reputation is that after years of marriage, Marie -Antoinette has not fulfilled the most important requirement to produce an heir to the throne.  Sadness and frustration lead the young queen to become ever more recklessly extravagant in her ways, much to the outrage of the poor and suffering common people of France.

When angry revolutionaries arrive at Versailles to take her and the king to Paris, Marie-Antoinette has no idea what horrors are in store.  The luxurious life she led, and the monarchy she spent her life serving are about to come crashing down.  Though she would be remembered by the revolutionaries as an obscene spendthrift, perhaps Mare-Antoinette had more in common with them than they thought - for she too was a rebel who lived by her own rules.

Was This Book Worth My Time?
Yep.

Without my even noticing it, I choose a lot of historical fiction on my last trip to the library.  Like I said in an earlier post, I am not a history buff.  Embarassingly enough, I didn't know much about Marie-Antoinette before reading this book. 

I know a lot now, and I found that has much to do with the way the book is written. It is written strictly in 1st person - an awesome decision on the author's part because it helps to make Marie-Antoinette more real to the reader.

The story flows seamlessly and tells of a girl who really is just trying to do what she must do -obey. I think that, to some extent, the book does help to shift the idea that Marie-Antoinette was shelfish to an idea that she was loyal and maybe even a little misunderstood. 

I did like the book, and I think that for those girls who want to read about "princessess and drama" this would be a book that they would enjoy. 


What Bothered Me About the Book?
Not a thing.

Review: Sources of Light by Margaret McMullan

Synopsis from book jacket:
All you have to know now is that a camera is like your eye.  To foccus, keep on eye clocked while you're looking with the other.  It brings everything closer.  You can hide behind a camera.

It's 1962 and the heat of Jackson, Mississippi, holds more than a potential romance with the wrong kind of boy for fourteen year old Sam.  There's also the hand me down dresses and bobby cock from cousin Tine.  There's a gift from her mother's new friend, Perry - a balck Asahi Pentax camera.  there's their stoic maid, Willa Mae.  There are lunch counter sit-ins and black voter registeration drives that turn violent.

In a world that sees only in black and white, this is the year Sam learns to use her camera for shades of gray.


Was This Book Worth My Time?
Without a doubt. McMullan does an amazing job of giving so many raw emotion and detail that you, as a reader, begin to immerse yourself in the story - you become Sam.  It is not easy after that to ignore what Sam feels as she and her mother are targeted for being supporters of the African American vote. 

I was impressed by the shear amount of history that was intertwined into the book.  It never is protrayed as history because you are living it in this book.  McMullan is a fantastic writer, and this is a book that I would suggest to my students.  It is an easy, but thought-provoking read that does stay with you after you've turned the last page. 

What Bothered Me About the Book?
The only thing that bothered me was the realization of how many people suffered during segregation in the south.  It is always hard to me grasp history concepts, but this book makes you see just how unjust the actions against African Americans and their white friends were.

Review: The Cardturner by Louis Sachar

Synopsis from jacket:

The summer after junior year of high school looks bleak for Alton Richards. His girlfriend has dumped him to hook up with his best friend. He has no money and no job. His parents insist that he drive his great-uncle Lester to his bridge club four times a week and be his cardturner—whatever that means. Alton’s uncle is old, blind, very sick, and very rich.



But Alton’s parents aren’t the only ones trying to worm their way into Lester Trapp’s good graces. They’re in competition with his longtime housekeeper, his alluring young nurse, and the crazy Castaneda family, who seem to have a mysterious influence over him.


Alton soon finds himself intrigued by his uncle, by the game of bridge, and especially by the pretty and shy Toni Castaneda. As the summer goes on, he struggles to figure out what it all means, and ultimately to figure out the meaning of his own life.


Through Alton’s wry observations, Louis Sachar explores the disparity between what you know and what you think you know. With his incomparable flair and inventiveness, he examines the elusive differences between perception and reality—and inspires readers to think and think again.





Was this book worth my time?
Sure. 

I loved the way this book was written as if Alton was just telling his story.  It was full of humor and sarcasm.  I also liked the way it ended with the awful, immature parents getting what they deserve (or even a little better than they deserve).  I fell in love with Trapp and was continually reminded of both of my grandfathers.

What bothered me about the book?
 I spent most of the book skipping over the parts where Alton, Trapp, and Toni playing bridge or talked about bridge.  I think if I had given the rules and description a better read I might not have been confused and bored by the game. I wonder if some of my students would "hang on" through those parts or just put it down and choose another books. 

I also found the book to be predicable.

Review: I am Number Four by Pittacus Lore

Synopsis from book jacket:
Nine aliens and their guardians are hiding on Earth … protected by a charm that means they can only be killed in numeric order, three are already dead. John Smith is Number Four.



John has to keep moving: he’s got to outrun his past; escape his mortal enemies the Mogadorians;and blend into normal student life. But above all he must pray his newly found powers – alien legacies from home Planet Lorien – don’t give him away before he can complete his destiny, unlock his powers and protect his future.


In the beginning we were nine.


We left when we were very young, almost too young to remember. Almost. And now …


Three are gone.


We are here to keep our race alive, which was almost entirely obliterated. We’re just trying to survive.


Six are left.


But we are hunted, and the hunters won’t stop until they’ve killed us all.


They caught Number One in Malaysia.


Number Two in England.


And Number Three in Kenya.


I am Number Four.






I know that I am next.





Was This Book Worthy My Time?
Interestingly enough, I first heard of this book on my Facebook page. I logged on the week before Mockingjay was released, and I saw an ad in the corner of my screen that read something like, "Need something to tide you over until Mockinjay comes to bookshelves? Read I Am Number Four." I immediately put my name on the waiting list at the library and waited patiently for it to come to me.






I was apprehensive about the ideas of aliens as I am not usually a science fiction lover. After beginning this book, though, I quickly realized that this book wasn't anything like the stereotypical alien story. It opened my eyes to a world I didn't think I would be interested in. I think the fast-paced storyline and the little bit of teenage drama makes for an excellent combination.



John, the protagonist, is a typical teenage except for the fact that he is really an alien. I loved that the authors didn't spend much time talking about the fact that he was an alien, but I wonder how the fans of real science fiction would feel about it.



I also loved the idea of "Pittacus Lore" being the leader of Lorien and also the author of the book. It gives the book a little mystery. All in all, this book is something fresh and new in that it doesn't have to do with vampires. I am thankful to these authors for giving the YA world another great book for boys Let's face it, there aren't many.



I think that this book will take off over the course of the next year especially with the movie due out in February.





What Bothered Me About This Book?

If the authors do intend on making this a six book series, it doesn't seem like they give enough of a back-story to give the series a takeoff that will be needed to make the series successful. I would've liked to have learned a little bit more about Lorien and John's life before earth. I do think that the idea of giving John's history through his dreams is a good one, but I think these authors will have to take it up a notch if they want the books to get the same fan-base as Harry Potter.



Sidenote: The authors James Frey and Jobie Hughes wrote this book under the collective alias "Pittacus Lore".

Review: Epitaph Road by David Patneaude

Synopsis from book jacket:
2097 is a transformed world. Thirty years earlier, a mysterious plague wiped out 97 percent of the male population, devastating every world system from governments to sports teams, and causing both universal and unimaginable grief. In the face of such massive despair, women were forced to take over control of the planet--and in doing so they eliminated all of Earth's most pressing issues. Poverty, crime, warfare, hunger . . . all gone.
But there's a price to pay for this new "utopia," which fourteen-year-old Kellen is all too familiar with. Every day, he deals with life as part of a tiny minority that is purposefully kept subservient and small in numbers. His career choices and relationship options are severely limited and controlled. He also lives under the threat of scattered recurrences of the plague, which seem to pop up wherever small pockets of men begin to regroup and grow in numbers.


And then one day, his mother's boss, an iconic political figure, shows up at his home. Kellen overhears something he shouldn't--another outbreak seems to be headed for Afterlight, the rural community where his father and a small group of men live separately from the female-dominated society. Along with a few other suspicious events, like the mysterious disappearances of Kellen's progressive teacher and his Aunt Paige, Kellen is starting to wonder whether the plague recurrences are even accidental. No matter what the truth is, Kellen cares only about one thing--he has to save his father.


Was This Book Worth My Time?
Sure.

I think the Epitaph Road is a book for those kids that really like dystopia or post-apocalyptic books.  It poses great questions.  What would the world be like if women were in power? Aren't women sympathetic and caring? Can there be evil lurking in those motherly personalities?

I was interested throughout the book to find out how Dr. Mack, Keelen's mom, and Aunt Paige all played a part in the way the society functions.  Patneaude does present a conflict pretty early on so that did keep me reading; however, I wouldn't say that it had me on the edge of my seat. 

It's an okay book, and I'm glad I picked it up.  Would I buy it for my classroom library? No.

What Bothered Me About the Book?
I learning quickly that mysterious post-apocalyptic novels need to be FULL of action for me, or I will become disengaged quickly.  This was the case with Epitaph Road.  I wasn't really into the book until Keelen and the girls arrived at the lab and began to unravel important information. 

I also felt the book stayed very much on the surface for most of the book, and we never really delve into why these women want to stay on top, or why Kellen's dad decides to leave his son behind.  I feel like if I had been given these sort of answers, I might have been more connected.

Review: Three Black Swans by Caroline B. Cooney

Missy and her cousin Claire are best friends who finish each other’s sentences and practically read each other’s minds. It’s an eerie connection—so eerie that Missy has questions she wants to put to her parents. But she’s afraid to ask. So when Missy hears an expert discussing newborn babies on the radio, it makes her wonder about her family.







Missy just can’t let go of those nagging questions, and decides to use a school project about scientific hoaxes to try to uncover the answers. She enlists Claire to help. As part of the project the girls perform a dramatic scene that is captured on video at school. After the video is posted on YouTube, Missy and Claire realize that they’ve opened Pandora’s box and much more than they ever imagined has come out. Not only are their identities called into question, but so is the future of everyone involved.






In this riveting, heartrending story by thriller author Caroline B. Cooney, the truth changes the lives of three families—as the bonds of blood must withstand the strains of long-hidden secrets that are at last revealed.
 
 
Was This Book Worth My Time?
Sadly, no.
 
I was anxious to get my hands on this book as Caroline B. Cooney usually has great mysterious storylines with lots of action. 
 
The premise of the book lead me to believe that this book would be no exception to her other novels.  However, after delving in I realized that, this time, that may not be the case. 
 
I liked that the book held some form of mystery in that I did keep reading to find out what exactly was the connection between the three identical girls, and there were moments when I found myself second guessing my predictions.  At one time, I believed they might have been cloned after learning a little more about the sketching Dr. Russo. 
 
 What Bothered Me About the Book?
The many different points of view all stuck in one chapter were quite confusing to me. A chapter that was supposed to be all about how Claire another had a point of view of her parents.  There wasn't really a clear transistion, and I could see how that might be something that might make readers stay away from the book. 
 
I also had a problem with ending.  Without spoiling the ending for readers, I really thought the whole "mystery" was going to be way more complex, and the end I was a little disappointed to read that it was actually not so mysterious afterall. 
 
I never really was "in the dark" as I read through the book.  There wasn't any "shocking" elements.