Monday, May 19, 2014

All Our Yesterdays

Thank you for attending TBF 2014 at Nazareth this past Saturday. Today's review is by guest blogger Florence who read Cristin Terrill's All Our Yesterdays

This story is told through the perspective of time-traveler Em who is being held by The Doctor in a secret military base along with Finn, the boy she loves, who resides in the cell next to hers. Em finds a set of instructions in the drain of her cell, which she has been obsessing over for months, that she left there for herself to execute. The note tells Em "You have to kill him." and she knows immediately that her worst fear and hardest choice to live with is the last possible way to stop The Doctor from destroying the world. The story is also told from the perspective of Marina and follows her traumatic story with her best friend James whom she's loved since she can remember. When James' brother is shot and killed she makes it her mission to help him find the killer and to be there for him in any way she can, even if that means putting herself in danger. All Our Yesterdays by Cristin Terrill creatively and brilliantly explains time travel and builds a chaotic world where the characters race against the clock to save the world and alter the course of history. This sci-fi novel filled with time-travel, adventure and true love is a must read and will keep is readers intrigued until the very last word, which leaves them wanting more.

Friday, May 16, 2014

Book Review: Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi

It’s a tough life on light crew. Every day is full of danger, crawling through the dark hulls of abandoned, beached ships, searching for wire and metal salvage. To Nailer, it’s the only life he’s ever known, and even though he hates it, he has to find some way to support himself. Especially since there are so few people he can trust.

After a devastating hurricane, Nailer and Pima, his best friend, make the discovery of a lifetime – a swank ship, filled with all sorts of riches, riches that can get them out of this life. But when they scavenge the ship, they find something they weren’t expecting – a survivor. Against his better judgment, Nailer decides to rescue the girl, Nita, and she reveals that if they help her get back to her family, she’ll reward them handsomely. But dozens and dozens of miles of wasteland are between them and the nearest drowned city that they could venture to. Not to mention the goons trying to catch Nita, dead or alive – including Nailer’s father. Nailer isn’t quite sure what he’s gotten into, but he is going to survive.

Ship Breaker was an AMAZING book. As you probably know from my reviews, I don’t generally enjoy dystopias, but Ship Breaker…well I guess you could call it a literary dystopian thriller. There’s a reason it won the Printz Award and was a National Book Award finalist. Ship Breaker defies all expectations, and goes by so quickly that you’d can’t believe it isn’t only 200 pages. And once you’re finished, you’ll just sit there thinking, “What did I just read? I need to read it again.” I was extremely impressed with Paolo Bacigalupi’s novel, and I definitely plan on reading it again. You should definitely check it out and buy it if you have the money.

Just a reminder that the festival is TOMORROW!! (I can’t believe it, can you?) You all should come bright and early at 8:45 for the author parade and stay as long as you can – you won’t regret it. Can’t wait to see you all there! :)



Happy Reading!
Elizabeth

Book Review: My Life in Pink and Green by Lisa Greenwald

Wow! TBF is tomorrow! I hope you are excited as we are about the festival. Guest blogger Carli submitted this review of Lisa Greenwald's My Life in Pink and Green. Happy Reading! - Kim

The book My Life in Pink and Green by Lisa Greenwald is a terrific story that teaches the importance of family and maintaining a business. It deals with drama-queens, cute boys, family, money, the environment, girly things, and your average girl who isn’t exactly average. The main character Lucy Desberg works at her family-run pharmacy, Old Mill Pharmacy, with her grandma and her mom. When the business is put in jeopardy due to overdue mortgage payments, and not enough business Lucy takes it on as her duty to save it. She helps a popular (2-time homecoming queen) high school girl, Courtney Adner with a major hair dilemma and suddenly the pharmacy is full of girls desperate for her help, asking for makeovers. Thanks to her older sister Claudia, Lucy has been in love with beauty and make-up since she was little. She puts her great ideas to use to help save the pharmacy. She also is trying to help the environment by using eco-friendly ideas with the help of her mom. Along the way she has to help her best friend Sunny with boy drama, and even deals with some herself. The book is full of beauty tips, business tips, and some great quotes. It is truly an amazing book that every preteen or teenage girl should read.

Thursday, May 15, 2014

Guest Blogger Book Review: Unwind Dystology #1: Unwind by Neal Shusterman

Neal Shusterman is kind of a big deal in the world of YA literature. Check out his super cool website. Better yet, come meet him at TBF on Saturday!

In this dystopian tale, the Pro-Choice and Pro-Life armies reach an agreement that end the Second Civil War in America. The two sides agree to end the practice of abortion but create an alternative called "unwinding." Between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, a parent may choose to retroactively get rid of a child by having every part of their bodies harvested to be "donated" to another person. Unwinding ensures that the child's life doesn’t “technically” end by transplanting all the organs in the child's body to various recipients. This becomes an accepted practice in society. It also allows for troublesome or unwanted teens to be easily unwound. The book follows three teens who all become runaway Unwinds: Connor, Risa, and Lev.

Unwind is a gripping, thought-provoking novel. I kept wanting to read on to see how each runaway Unwind grappled with their terrifying reality. This book will make you review your own ideas about abortion, organ donation, religion, and politics. Unwind is the first book in the Unwind Dystology. Unwholly is book #2 and Unsouled is book #3.

-Carly

Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Guest Blogger Book Review: We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

3 days until ‪#‎TBF2014‬! I'm pretty excited about meeting E. Lockhart, the author of We Were Liars on May 17th!

Cady is a part of the beautiful and distinguished old money Sinclair family. She has grown up spending her summers on their private island off the coast of Massachusetts. Every year she is reunited with her cousins, Johnny and Mirren and the nephew of Johnny’s mother’s boyfriend, Gat. Something happens during “summer 15” when Cady, Johnny, Mirren and Gat are all fifteen years old. Cady no longer remembers anything about that summer due to traumatic brain injury and must piece together what happened. There is love, loss, and plenty of secrets. Stick with the story until the end-- it has an amazing twist.

We Were Liars is a great, quick read. It is beautifully written and unlike any other book I’ve ever read. E. Lockhart did a wonderful job of crafting memorable characters and she set just the right pace for the story. I spent days thinking about Cady, Johnny, Mirren, and Gat. It was fun to flip back to earlier parts to see what I missed the first time around. Check it out!

-Carly

Monday, May 5, 2014

Guest Blogger Book Review: Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes

12 Days until #TBF2014! I am so excited to meet our authors this year, including Jonathan Auxier, who wrote Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes.

Peter Nimble is an orphan who has taken up a life of thievery to support himself. Peter was blinded when he was a child ; this makes his other senses more powerful and Peter of the best thieves in his port village. One night, Peter steals a box from a traveling haberdasher. There are pairs of magical eyes inside the box- each has a different power. Soon, Peter is given a quest, accompanied by Sir Tode, a knight who has some problems of his own. Peter and Sir Tode find themselves trying to solve a riddle in the Just Deserts. There they meet many interesting characters and find danger.

Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes is a fun read. I really enjoy the narrator's commentary about the events in the novel. I recommend this book for anyone who enjoys fantasy or interesting characters. Check out the book's website: http://www.peternimble.com/

Jonathan Auxier's new book, The Night Gardener, is being released on May 20th.

Check out Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes at your local school or public library. Meet Jonathan Auxier at TBF on May 17th!

Happy reading!

-Kimberly