Category: Book Reviews

Categories
Graphic Novels

Snapdragon by Kat Leyh

Snapdragon doesn’t have a lot of friends but who would’ve thought she would befriend the town outcast, Jack. Everyone says Jack’s a witch, but in reality she’s just an old lady who wear crocks and sells roadkill skeletons on Etsy. They meet when Snap’s dog, Good Boy, gets hit by a car and Jack nurses him back to health.

One day, Snap stumbles upon a group of kids at her school playing around with a dead possum, poking it with a stick. Snap gets furious and shoos them away. Of course, they make fun of her because that’s what every bully does, but Snap doesn’t care. She’s just worried because she notices what no one else saw…a litter of baby possums, now motherless. Her classmate Louis breaks away from the cool crowd to find out if Snap is okay, and despite their differences they establish a friendship.

In asking Jack for help with the baby possums, Snapdragon unwittingly begins uncovering family secrets including the truth behind her family’s curse, experiences the joys of late night horror movies with your BFF, and confirms her suspicions that magic and witchcraft are real, after all.

This book is very different from other graphic novels that I have read. It shows the point of views of a diverse cast of characters including a range of races and characters in the LGBTQ+ community. This is a story of acceptance, learning your strengths, and knowing your self-worth.

In most of the book the full-color illustrations are very bright and vibrant, but when the characters have flashbacks it turns shadow-like, with the use of one or two colors to accentuates certain features. During dramatic moments the author makes panels slanted and zooms in for close ups.

Snapdragon is for readers who enjoy uncovering family legends, coming out stories, friendships, and a little touch of magic.

Categories
YA Reads

Don’t Pigeonhole Me! -a Mo Willems Sketch Book

“Always think of my audience, but never think for my audience”

-Mo Willems

Mo Willems is one of the most memorable children’s authors of all time. Writing books like Don’t Let The Pigeon Drive The bus, Knuffle Bunny, Elephant and Piggie, Because, This Is Not A Good Idea! and more! Of course every person has their alter-ego. In Don’t Pigeonhole me!, we see a compilation of sketchbooks that allow us to explore the more mature-side of one of our favorite children’s authors.

In Don’t Pigeonhole Me! each section begins with a small summary of the sketchbook and the process of its publication. The first few sketchbooks are basic doodles that will most likely give you a quick chuckle or two. In sketchbooks like “I’m Fine” we get too see a story line that is illustrated through drawings meant to demonstrate the very simple sentences. We can even see the early birth of our favorite pigeon in the original “DON’T LET THE PIGEON DRIVE THE BUS!” and “The Pigeon Tells A Story.”

As someone who personally enjoys art, I tried to read some of the comics slowly, over and over to try to fine some deep meaning but then I realized that not all art has a powerful meaning behind it. Comics like “The Red Truck” and “Olive Hue Show Mutts” are perfect examples of this because they are silly, simple and funny.

Mo Willems did an excellent job showing us his complex and quite hilarious mind, and I loved every part of it. The Mo Willems sketchbook compilation is a well executed book for all mature audiences.

Categories
Battle of the Books

Movie vs. Book: Lord of the Rings Trilogy

For years, people have debated if the book is better than the movie or if the movie is better than the book. This series will be focusing on these two questions and answering that million dollar question: which is better?

 The book

The Lord of the Rings, one of the most iconic books out there written by J.R.R Tolkien. Filled with mystical creatures and beings, the story takes place in somewhere called Middle Earth. The story starts off, when nineteen Elves from Eregion forge a total of nineteen rings made for a total of nineteen people: three for the the Elves, seven for the Dwarves, and nine for mankind, but not only nineteen rings were made, one forged at the peak of Mount Doom stands out above all. Created by Sauron, The Dark Lord, this ring is filled with malevolent power and corruption. It’s purpose is to rule over all Middle Earth and end the era of mankind. To avoid this, one must destroy the ring. This is the destiny of a Hobbit named Frodo.

The book is filled with descriptions about beautiful landscapes, lifeless war zones and dangerous creatures, such as orcs and giant spiders. The book also shares with us the emotions of the main characters, such as the fright Frodo experiences when he tries to hide the ring from the nine kings, now known as The Nazgûls.

The Movie

In December of 2001, The lord of the rings was released in the theaters and received a total of 91% of rotten tomatoes and a score of 8.8 in IMDb. Throughout the United States, the movie was praised by it’s scenery and the amazing acting of each and every character, such as the acting of Ian McKellen, as the wizard Gandalf. As David Denby from The New Yorker stated,

“Consistently beautiful and often exciting — despite some dead passages here and there, it’s surely the best big-budget fantasy movie in years.”

David’s compliment is also supported by one of the lines from the first book The Fellowship of The Ring.”The braids of her dark hair were touched by no frost; her white arms and clear face were flawless and smooth.”

This was one of the thousands of compliments given to the Lord of the Rings by critics and, well the general public itself. The movie has been watched over and over by the public and fans, although some have called out some flaws that the movie had as well, for example Jonathan Rosenbaum from The Reader had stated,

“It’s full of scenic splendors with a fine sense of scale, but its narrative thrust seems relatively pro forma, and I was bored by the battle scenes.”

This is also supported by the first book and it shows that the battle of Minas Tirith was 3 chapters long!! and has a total of 30 pages.

Therefore, The Lord of the Rings wasn’t perfect, but it did meet the expectations of mostly everyone.

With these results we can conclude that the movie is BETTER than the book, by pure scenery and elaboration towards the script. Well, that concludes all for this second post! See you in the next Movie vs Book.

Categories
YA Reads

What if it’s Us by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera

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It’s the summer and Arthur is in New York. He lives in Georgia but every summer his mother sends him to New York City to stay in her office. Thanks to Broadway plays he believes in the universe and romance.

One day when he was walking to the post office he sees this handsome boy.  He can’t resist- he has to go up and talk to him! They start to make small talk and with butterflies in his stomach, Arthur realizes this boy is gay, like him.

Arthur notices he has a big box with a name on it, Hudson. It’s probably his name but Arthur doesn’t want to be creepy and ask. Once they both dropped their stuff off, they head back outside. They’re so engrossed in conversation that they don’t see a marching band coming towards them! The band separates them, and they lose each other.

Arthur gives up and goes back to the office, but he can’t get that Hudson boy off his mind. Neither can the Hudson boy. They want to find each other so badly but it seems impossible. How can they track each other down without even knowing their names?

When I read this book I instantly got hooked on to it. It shows both of the main characters perspectives and has such a good story line. There’s some parts that made me  parts that made me really emotional because Arthur  was trying his hardest to look for “Hudson”, he wanted to be with him and love him but he tried everything. I think people who like romance will really enjoy this book.

What if it’s us by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera can be found in the library under FIC ALB.

Categories
Chapter Books YA Reads

Scythe: Book review

Scythe by Neal Shusterman (FIC SHU) takes place in the future, a future where there is no war, no hunger and no misery. Humanity has conquered everything, even death and has encountered the secret to eternal youth.  We surpassed our greatest fears. We are the top of the food chain. We are gods. Although a new problems has arose. The population. Since no one is dying, the populations grows. Rapidly. To solve this problem, an organization has arisen from the shadows with one simple objective. Thou shalt kill.

Citra and Rowan must apprentice Scythe Faraday, although neither of them is pleased.  In doing so they must study various subjects including, Bokator, an ancient martial exclusive to scythes, Killcraft, and various other subjects that have to do with the art of taking life. Only one of them will be chosen, whoever succeeds will become the next scythe, while the other will just return to their regular life.

Scythe is a spectacular book. A book that will make you question, do we really want eternal life? Neal Shusterman has taken what all men and women have always dreamed and revealed the dark truth behind it. If you like action-packed and mysterious books, Scythe is the book for you.

Categories
Book vs. Movie

Movie vs. Book: Wonder

For years, people have debated if the book is better than the movie or if the movie is better than the book. This series will be focusing on these two questions and answering that million dollar question: which is better?

The Book  246px-Wonder_Cover_Art

Wonder by R. J. Palacio is filled with emotional content and heart breaking moments, Wonder is packed with characters with intimate and difficult problems, all of which they all try to overcome. One of these characters is a ten-year-old boy named August with a facial problem, who has a tough time fitting in. Others with a social problems, and acceptance by their peers, you get the idea. To be honest the mood that represents this book at first is heart warming, but as you proceed through the book it gets more serious and a bit extreme such as August being called Dark Sidious, a star wars character who’s face is burned. I recommend this book to those out there with insecurity, people who feel left out and for people how just don’t feel like they fit in.

The Movie  wonder-movie

The movie on the other hand is almost as similar as the book itself. The plot is the same and some of the lines in the movie are as identical to those in the book, but most of the time skips some. Even though the book delivers the content in a unique way, such as giving extreme detail and expressing the characters thoughts and feelings, the movie does the same thing but in a visual way which gives the audience a different point of view. Such as when August tries to snap out of the fantasy he lives in, in which he thinks he’s normal ten-year old, which sadly he is not. He ends up crying and we see his parents giving him comfort. This is a time where the movie show a feeling instead of using voice over.

With these results we can conclude that the book is BETTER than the movie, by just pure detail and elaboration towards the descriptions within the book. Well that concludes all for this first post!

Categories
Picture Books

Ogre Eats Everything by Bethany Roberts

Have you ever wondered how it would be to have an ogre as a roommate?

Ogre and May Belle live together in a house with a garden. He is the mindless monster, and she’s like his parent even though she’s a kid. When Ogre eats the tulips in her garden, May Belle has to teach him how to plant them back and what he should and shouldn’t eat.

This book has three chapters, each a different story about Ogre and May Belle.

In my opinion I think it’s a great book for early readers because of its cartoonist look and its teaching about the world the ogre. You can find this book in our Early Reader section under the call number E ROB.

Categories
Picture Books

“This is not my hat” by Jon Klassen

41qS3oDZ5gL._SY361_BO1,204,203,200_This is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen  is a book narrated by a tiny fish that stole a hat from a big fish. The tiny fish assumes that the big fish won’t find out who stole the hat or even notice it’s gone!  He is a thief and the big fish just wants his hat back!

This book is very thought provoking, character centered, ironic, and open ended. It appeals to readers from PreK through 3rd. You will like this book if you enjoy little stories that have ironic comedy that leaves you to piece together what happened.

You can find this book in the illustrated book section (blue stickers) under PIC KLA.

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Truth is Stranger Than Fiction YA Reads

Truth is Stranger Than Fiction Debut

Image curtsy of the New York Times.

Real Life:

In Leogane, Haiti there was a small hospital that was lacking oxygen. The oxygen was only enough for 24 hours, leaving the hospital with a difficult choice to make; provide the oxygen to the adults recovering from strokes and other dangerous conditions or send the new born children, clinging for dear life?

According to Monday New York Times article, Haiti is under a political crisis leading the country on to the brink of collapse. An uprising against president Jovenel Moïse has manifested into violence. Although the country has undergone multiple political and economical crises before, this has to be the worst of them all.

To read the complete article, click here.

Fiction:

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On the corner of American street and Joy road, Fabiola Toussaint realizes that what she thought would be an American dream would be an American nightmare. As soon as Fabiola arrives in the United States, her mother was apprehended by U.S. Immigration.

What will happen as Fabiola is left to maneuver a new life, school, home and relationships in a new world she knows nothing about.

You can find this book in the fiction section with the call number FIC ZOB.

Categories
Battle of the Books

Battle of the Books April

In honor of April’s National Poetry Month, Battle of the Books pitted Shel Silverstein’s Where the Sidewalk Ends against Jack Prelutsky’s My Dog May be a Genius.

 

Shel Silverstein explained that his book Where the Sidewalk Ends is about him making poems about how an adult should take a rest from everything that is happening and think of them as a kid again.

The book My Dog May be a Genius is just different kid poems that Jack made so that kids can have fun while reading the book and enjoy their time reading.

We decided we should go to 3rd, 4th and 5th graders. A lot of kids in third grade choose Where the Sidewalk Ends and a lot of the 5th graders chose My Dog May be a Genius, but the fourth graders tied!

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This the graph of how many people chose Where the Sidewalk Ends and how many people chose My Dog May be a Genius Where the sidewalk end has 53.2% votes and My dog may be a genius has 46.8% votes. Many students wrote that Where the Sidewalk Ends inspired them to make poems and a fifth grader said that the book My Dog May be a Genius was very funny and he wants to make book just like it.

In my opinion I think that these both books are very special and inspiring in their own ways. I also think that the book Where the Sidewalk Ends is very weird but in a good way because they are supposed to be poems that are trying to bring adults back to a kid and it reminds me of something I would want to read when I am an adult too. Something about the book My Dog May be a Genius is that it is very childish and for kids that want to imagine different things. I think that if I would have to choose one it would be Where the Sidewalk Ends because I feel like it has a bigger story during each poem, but I think that My Dog May be a Genius will catch the kids attention.

Stay tune for next month which we will be doing DC vs MARVEL