Book Review - Zombie Tag by Hannah Moskowitz

In this novel the reader finds a boy named Wil whose older brother died six months ago.  Wil's family is falling apart - his mother is distant and his father drowns himself in work.  He feels that if his brother could just come back, everything would go back to normal.  When Wil discovers that there is a secret bell that, if rung, can bring back the dead, he makes it his mission to steal it and bring his brother back.  He knows there is a chance that zombies can terrorize the town and kill everyone, but it is a chance he is willing to take if it means he could have his brother back.
However, when Graham returns, he is not the same.  Graham is not a brain-thirsty zombie bent on annihilating the human race.  Far from it - he doesn't seem to care about anything.  He cannot feel emotions.  Graham - the brother that was so full of life and excitement - is now a hollow shell of his former self.  He doesn't feel anything, and he acts as if he is oblivious to anything in the outside world.
At first, Wil and his parents are euphoric about Graham's return.  However, once Graham shows no sign of becoming his former self, Wil decides he must take matters into his own hands and bring Graham back from oblivion.  He will do whatever it takes to bring Graham back from the dead emotionally.
I have to say, this book exceeded my expectations.  Many books I have read about zombies that are geared towards junior high students have been gory or creepy.  This is actually a very interesting portrayal of death. Graham tries to articulate what it means to die - how a person is changed - without getting spiritual.  And it helps you to think about if you were given the opportunity to bring back a deceased loved one, would you do it?  In Stephen King's Pet Cemetery we are faced with the same moral dilemma - but, you know, it has A LOT more horror.  Whereas King freaked you out and got you scared, Moskowitz actually made you think about the Zombie and how it would affect them.  It is a great twist to a "zombie" book!
I also like the "growing up" idea implanted in the book.  Before Graham died, he and Wil made a promise to never grow up.  When Graham comes back, he is indifferent, unconcerned; more like a "grown-up" in Wil's eyes.  The transition from kid to adult is evident in the living to dead relationship and adds a great layer to the story.  Loved it!
Now, for my issues - after Graham died, his family moved across town to a new house.  When Graham "woke up" he went to the new house and not the one he actually lived in.  How did he know?  Where did he receive the information that his family moved?  That really, REALLY bothered me.  Also, what was up with the zombies wanting tea?  Anthony's Grandma asked for some, and Graham was drinking it when he returns from the dead.  Moskowitz made a point of letting the reader know that, but never explained why.  It felt as if that was something important and would be explained later, but it never was.
Overall, I would give this book a good 8 out of 10 stars.  It was nice to see zombies in a new light.

Book Review: Fortunately, the milk by Neil Gaiman

Hello, all!
I was very excited when I received this book in my last book order, and I must say I was not disappointed!
This is a story of a father - a father who must get some milk from the corner store after his children realize they are out.  They MUST have their breakfast, and it MUST be cereal! (The father also realized that if there were no milk for the children's cereal, there would also be no milk for his tea, and that would be a complete and total travesty!)
The children wait....and wait...and wait.  When he finally returns, he explains why it took him so long to get the milk.  He has just returned from an adventure through time with a dinosaur in a hot air balloon (which, we discover, is actually called a "Floaty-Ball-Person-Carrier").  He has encountered all manner of creatures including, but not limited to, aliens, pirates, and piranhas (although the last group is certainly suspect, since the father did not give a rational explanation as to how he came to cross their path).And fortunately, he had the milk, which is the quintessential piece in his extraordinary adventure.  Without it, he would not have survived - in fact, the whole world was at stake!
This book was fantastic! Neil Gaiman is a master storyteller (very much like the father in the book), and the illustrations by Skottie Young gave the book a great whimsical feel.  My kiddos that have enjoyed A tale dark and Grimm, Origami Yoda, and Diary of a wimpy kid will find this an enjoyable read.  Two thumbs up!

The hostage prince by Jane Yolen and Adam Stemple

In this first installment of the Seelie Wars, Yolen and Stemple introduce us to the main characters that we will follow in the trilogy.  Aspen is a Seelie prince living as a hostage in the Unseelie court, his freedom is the price paid to prevent a war between the two.  Snail is a midwife apprentice with a mysterious past (I am sure we will learn more about that later).  The unlikely pair are on the run after circumstances beyond their control cause the two countries to be at war.  They must escape dungeons and traverse the wild countryside, encountering trolls and merfolk on their way to Aspen's homeland and freedom - or so they hope.

This book was a good introduction to the characters and world of the Seelie and Unseelie.  However, it was plainly an introduction.  The action really does not begin until two thirds of the way through the book, and by then I had already begun to lose interest.  I like series, in fact I LOVE series, but I love it more when the books can stand alone and make a good story - especially the first in the set.  If the first set is nothing but setup for the rest of the series, I feel a little disappointed.  And that was this book.  It was a setup, and it was discouraging to read.  I wanted to love it - I love Yolen and I love series, but this one missed the mark for me.  

 

Book Review: The Path of Names by Ari Goelman

Dahlia is a 13 year old girl who loves all things related to magic.  She enjoys a good slight-of-hand and spends her time trying to master the art of misdirection.  One thing she is not interested in is Camp Arava - the Jewish summer camp that her parents are forcing her to attend.  She is dreading three weeks of outdoor activities, sing-alongs, and announcements in Hebrew.  Worst of all, her older brother happens to be one of the camp counselors, and by the end of the first day has all of the campers calling her "Squirt".  

So when she arrives and sees two young girls walk through the walls of one of the cabins, she thinks she has found someone who shares her affinity for magic.  She soon discovers that Camp Arava has a dark and mysterious past.  Children have disappeared from the area before, and Dahlia is the only one who can stop the disappearances from happening again.

This book is interesting.  I do not know much about the Jewish religion or the Hebrew culture, so I found the information about Kabbalah, or Jewish mysticism, very interesting.  I did get lost when it came to numbers for letters, different words having the same meaning, and mazes spelling things, but I tried to keep it together. Dahlia's character was likable, but she was a bit too forward thinking for a normal 13 year old.  She thought about consequences, and put two and two together much quicker than your average junior high student.  I also know nothing about summer camp other than what I learned in the movie The Parent Trap, so I had a hard time envisioning some of the situations.  

Overall, I found the story to be decent and the characters, although a bit predictable, enjoyable none the less.  This is a book that I would recommend to my more steady readers (and I already have).

Book Review:  A Confusion of Princes by Garth Nix

Imagine that you have always been told that you are far superior than everyone else.  Your entire life you have been led to believe that when you become of age, you will be a full-fledged prince of the empire, held in high esteem and able to get and do whatever you want.  Your body has been enhanced with machinery, telekinetic powers, and all the advanced technology available.  

Then imagine that you become of age, and the first thing that happens is someone tries to kill you.  This is the life of Prince Khemri, a prince of the Empire, who discovers that being a prince is not all it is cracked up to be.  He finds that he is one of millions of princes who constantly backstab, duel, form alliances, double-cross, and kill to get what they want.  They are able to be reborn into a cloned adult version of themselves if they are deemed worthy by the "Imperial Mind", the omniscient and omnipresent being that can see everything in the empire, but in some situations they never come back.

Khemri dreams of being a prince that has adventures all over the universe, but he finds that being a prince is more about doing what you are told by the imperial mind, superiors, and even his Master Of Assassins.  When Khemri is given an offer he cannot refuse, he must shed all of his princely powers and technology, and learn how to survive as a human.  Khemri must learn the value of life and what it means to be human if he ever wants to return to his rightful place as a prince of the empire.

Overall, I liked the book.  The narration was great - Khemri is recounting his life and adds little snipits here and there that show his sarcastic and humorous side.  The storyline is unique - I found it interesting how princes are "created" and not "born" and anyone, male or female can be a prince.  I also liked the transformation Khemri undergoes from cocky prince to helpful human.  I must admit, however, space-y sci-fi is not my forte.  I had a hard time with the names and explanations of various types of star cruisers, solar systems, worm holes, and the like.  But I could see the story underneath all of that, and I liked it.  

So, if you are a space-y sci fi kind of person, try this book out!

Book Review:  The Weight of Water by Sarah Crossan

Every once in a while I find a book that I enjoy NOT because it has lots of action or a suspenseful plot, but rather because of the simple truths that the author conveys in a timeless story.  This is one of them.  The Weight of Water is the story of 12 year old Kasienka, a Polish girl who has immigrated to Coventry, England with her mother.  Told in verse, this story illustrates the hardships that she and her mother face from day one.  They have left the familiarity of Poland to try to locate Kasienka's father, a man that abandoned them several months before.  Kasienka feels that perhaps he does not want to be found, but her mother clings to the hope that they will reunite and begin life anew together.  In the meantime, Kasienka begins going to school, and must endure the bullying and awkwardness of "junior high".  She discovers first love as well as cruelness in her classmates as she tries to understand the complexities of friendship and acceptance.  Kasienka's only reprieve from the stress of her home and school life is the community pool.  She is a powerful swimmer and feels most confident while in the water.
This book is simple yet very powerful at the same time.  Many students, no matter what their background, can relate to Kasienka's predicament - she is not in control, and she feels like she is being pulled from all sides by puppet strings.  The prose writing style conveys the emotions perfectly - if this had been a full-fledged novel, I feel like it might have been bogged down.  This is a great novel that I would highly recommend to anyone!

Welcome back!

Welcome back to school!
I hope everyone had a fantastic summer!  I cannot wait to share more books with you this year!
Over the summer I began thinking about "old" media (books and movies).  So, in an effort to cross things off of my bucket list, I began watching old films and reading old books that I have heard of but never actually seen or read.
As far as books go, I would like to highlight Mary Poppins by P.L. Travers.  I picked it up because of the movie coming out this fall, Saving Mr. Banks.  I wanted to see how the "Mary Poppins" we all know and love is different from the original "Mary Poppins" written by Travers.  Let me tell you, they are as different as they come!  In the book, Mary Poppins comes to 17 Cherry Tree Lane after a nanny has quit.  She does not get a letter penned by Jane and Michael, and no other nannies are turned away by the wind.  She is strict, and a bit cross with the children - almost mean - which is something I was not expecting.  She endears herself to the children by showing them a world unlike any they have ever experienced.  She tells them of a cow that cannot stop dancing, takes them to meet her Uncle that floats on his birthday (this one was in the movie), shows them what goes on in the zoo at night, takes them on a trip around the world, that sort of thing.  With each adventure, the children wonder if what they have experienced actually happened or if it was just a dream.  She is still strict with the little ones (by the way, there are FOUR Banks children - Jane and Michael have twin siblings, John and Barbara), but she does seem to care about them.  The wind changes at the end of the book and she just up and leaves without saying goodbye.
Now, I may make P.L. Travers roll over in her grave when I write this, and it is against all I believe as a librarian, but I liked the movie version much better.  In the book, Mary Poppins is mean.  She snaps at the little ones, she is sarcastic, and she fusses at them quite a bit.  Now, this could be a generational thing - maybe that was how nannies treated children in early turn of the century London, I do not really know.  It must be that I need to read more installments of the Mary Poppins series in order to see how she changes the lives of the Banks family members.  I might try the next book, but I am in no rush to continue the series.  I do love the movie, though!