Audiobook: Everyone On This Train is a Suspect

1 Comment

by Benjamin Stevenson
Read by Barton Welch
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Or listen at Libro.fm
Others in the series: Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone
Content: There was some swearing, including a couple f-bombs, and (of course) some murders. It’s in the mystery section of the bookstore.

Ernest Cunningham has spent the last year since his book about his “true” experiences came out attending festivals and enjoying modest success. However, he’s been given a fairly sizeable advance for a second book, which he’s having trouble writing. So when he’s invited to go on the Ghan – a train that travels the width of Australia from Darwin to Adelaide – as part of the Australian Mystery Writers festival, he accepts. What he hopes for is inspiration – most notably in the form of a super popular mystery writer – and what he gets is a couple of murders to solve.

Much like Stevenson’s other book, this one is the thing while spoofing the thing, though this one isn’t nearly as fun as I thought the first one was. It started out strong and fun, but it got bogged down near the middle – granted, that may have had something to do with the car trouble we were having at the time – and by the end, I wasn’t sold on the solution (granted, we were driving 40 miles per hour in a rental car after having spun out in a snowstorm, so I my opinion may be a bit off). I did have fun, and there were some real laugh-out-loud moments. The Australian narrator was a lot of fun to listen to again, and I liked how he made the characters – both British and American ones as well as Australian ones this time – pop.

But, I’m not sure this format works more than once.

We the Sea Turtles

Leave a comment

by Michelle Kadarusman
First sentence: “In 2003, a leatherback turtle traveled from a remote island chain in Indonesia to the Oregon coast in the western United States of America.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Review copy provided by the publisher.
Content: The chapters are short, and pretty easy to comprehend I read this book for the Cybils, and this reflects my opinion and not that of the whole panel.

This book is a series of short stories connected because they are all set on islands, with mentions of turtles. They are all environmental in nature, either with concerns about climate change or how to better live on the land. They range around the world – from children in Canada and the US to Indonesia and Australia. The stories were pretty simple, most only a few pages long. I liked that there was a book addressing the environmental concerns of children this age, though I do wish the stories were longer and delved more deeply into the issues that were brought up. I liked the diversity in the book, and I did appreciate that most chapters had a land acknowledgment before them. I just wish there was more to it.

Ink Girls

Leave a comment

by Marieke Nijkamp and Sylvia Bi
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Content: There are some intense moments. It’s in the Middle-Grade Graphic Novel section of the bookstore.

Cinzia is a printer’s apprentice in the fictional city of Siannnerra, where her master is insistent that the city’s people need to know the Truth. But when she puts out an avvisi about the Lord Councilman, the principessa’s brother, it gets her arrested, and Cinzia is on the run. She makes an unusual friend – the principessa’s daughter – and the two of them work together to find the proof that the Lord Councilman really is as corrupt as the avvisi says he is. It’s not easy, especially for a couple young girls who are on the run from the soldiers.

I really liked this graphic novel. I like the historical feel of it – it feels like medieval/Renaissance Italy, even though the setting is fictional. And I liked that the girls worked together with the people of the city – the ones those in power ignore – to bring down a corrupt official. There was enough tension and action to keep the pages turning, and I liked how the girls’ characters came across.

I haven’t read Nijkamp’s other books, and I think I need to fix that.

Audiobook: Iron Flame

Leave a comment

by Rebecca Yarros
Read by Rebecca Soler & Teddy Hamilton
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Or listen at Libro.fm
Others in the series: Fourth Wing
Content: It’s super sweary, super violent, and lots of on-screen sexytimes. It’s in the Romance section of the bookstore.

Spoilers for Fourth Wing, obviously.

This picks up right after the events of Fourth Wing, with Violet recovering from the venin attack. From there, they go back to Basgaith for graduation and year two. But this year is a lot different. First off, Xaden and his dragon are stationed away from the War college so he and Violet are basically forced to spend their weekends together because of their bonded dragons. Of course, they don’t mind. (#sexytimes) Then there’s the wacked-out, facist new head of the war college, who has it out for Violet – like to the point of nearly killing her several times. And then there’s the whole rebellion and the fact that Navarre is hiding the impending Doom from its citizens. 

On the one hand, Soler is still delightfully unhinged (especially sped up 1.5x) and makes these books enjoyable. Because, there’s so much that is just plot holes. I was actually shouting at the audiobook this time; Violet – nay, all the characters, really – were just slow and not askign the right questions. And there were several WTH moments. And then there was the fact that it was just a LOT. A LOT of violence. A LOT of sex. A LOT of trying to make relationship work. A LOT, period. 

Will I read the next one? Maybe. Probably. They’re still fun, even if this one wasn’t as much fun as Fourth Wing was. 

Mexikid

Leave a comment

by Pedro Martín
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Review copy pilfered from the ARC shelves at work.
Content: There is some bullying and teasing by siblings, and talk of death. It’s in the Middle-Grade Graphic Novel section of the bookstore.

Pedro is one of nine children, the son of immigrant parents – he and his younger siblings were born in the US; his parents and older siblings immigrated from Mexico – which makes him, a “Mexikid”. Not really Mexican enough, but also not really American enough. And then, one Christmas break, Pedro’s family drives back to their hometown to fetch his abuelito and bring him back to live with them. It’s a life-changing trip, not only because of the adventures Pedro has but because of the things he learns about his family.

I thought this was a lot of fun! I loved how Martin portrayed his boisterous, big family; you could tell that family is super important to him. Sure, the siblings fought and teased, but there was genuine affection there. And I liked how he brought in his family history while relating the events of the trip they took. It was entertaining, funny, and thoroughly enjoyable to read about this particular time in history. I liked the art – and the ways Martin used the art to tell his story.

Highly recommended.

Tethered to Other Stars

Leave a comment

by Elisa Stone Leahy
First sentence: “Wendy and Tom sat on the plastic-wrapped sofa in the middle of the sidewalk and stared up at the crooked house.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Content: There is bullying and name calling and both racist microagressions as well as racist behavior. It’s in the Middle Grades (grades 3-5) section of the bookstore.I read this book for the Cybils, and this reflects my opinion and not that of the whole panel.

Wendy’s family used to live in a bustling Latine neighborhood of their Ohio town, one where there were lots of families like hers. But then La Migra – ICE – started taking more and more people; parents would disappear, families gone overnight. And Wendy’s parents became unnerved. So they found the cheapest fixer-upper in a nearby town, one that was more white, in hopes that La Migra would leave them alone. Because, while Wendy’s dad was adopted by an American relative when he was little, and Wendy and Tom were born in America, Wendy’s mom has a green card, and maybe that’s not quite enough for ICE. The best thing is to keep their heads down and not make any waves.

Except, at Wendy’s new, mostly white, school for gifted student, she’s finding it hard to keep her head down. She make friends with a Black girl, K. K.; and a Muslim one, Yasmin; and the daughter of a white pastor who is giving sanctuary to a woman whom ICE is trying to deport. And when their little group becomes targets for the richer, whiter kids in school, things get, well, a bit messy.

It sounds like a lot, and it is, but Leahy makes it work. Wendy is the first-generation daughter of immigrant parents, and Leahy weaves that in. She weaves in treating those who are looking for a new, better home in America humanely. She weaves in STEM – Wendy is fascinated with space and astronomy and wants to be an astrophysicist. And she weaves in the real ways in which white kids absorb the opinons and actions of their parents. You can tell what kind of parents the kids have by the way their kids treat those not like them.

It’s a good book with a good heart, and some tense moments. And in the end, I loved how everyone grew, learned, and changed for the better.

When Sea Becomes Sky

Leave a comment

by Gillian McDunn
First sentence: “Some summers are the funnest and some summers are the longest but last summer was perfectly ordinary until the day we found the hand.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Content: It’s got short chapters and some illustrations. It’s in the Middle Grade (grades 3-5) section of the bookstore. I read this book for the Cybils, and this reflects my opinion and not that of the whole panel.

Bex and Davey have always been a duo, biking together or rowing around the marshes of their island. And this summer starts like every other one, except it hasn’t rained in 313 days and the water levels are lowering. And with the lower water levels, a hand appears in the marshes. Not a dead hand (ew), but a metal one. And with developers wanting to build a bridge to the island from the mainland, Bex and Davey are afraid that would mean the end of the statue they found before they even had a chance to figure out who made it.

Thus begins an adventure as Bex and Davey try to figure out what the statue is, and who the artist was that created it. And the answers they find will surprise everyone.

I like McDunn’s books. They’re quiet and sweet and portray everyday challenges in a very accessible light. This one is no exception, though it packs a bit more punch than I’ve come to expect from her. I do think the developer plotline was a bit underused, but I liked how the artist’s plot was resolved, and how it all came full circle in the end. I also like the environmental angle with the drought. It was well done and quite enjoyable.

Leeva at Last

Leave a comment

by Sarah Pennypacker
First sentence: “Leeva Thornblossom flew outside the instant she heard the Nutsmore Weekly thunk against the door.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Content: There is some exceptionally bad parentingbordering on neglect and abuse, but if you’re reading Roald Dahl, this one will be fine. It’s in the Middle Grade (grades 3-5) section of the bookstore.

Last week my 17-year-old daughter and I watched the movie version of Matilda again. It had been a while since we had seen it, and we were in the mood for something fun and familiar. We talked the whole way through – about how horrible the Wormwoods were (and how much fun Danny DeVito and Rhea Pearlman were having playing them) and how despicable Miss Trunchbull was. We talked about how Dahl loved to write terrible adults and sometimes terrible children, but how there’s always one good adult to help the good children through. 

I know it sounds odd to begin a review about Pennypacker’s book this way, but that’s what I thought about quite a lot while reading Leeva at Last. Leeva Thornblossom is the good child, self-educated (not magical though), smart, and kind with absoutely despicable parents. Her parents are obsessed with Fame and Money, so much so that they make Leeva do everything else. Her mother is the mayor of the town, and is practically a facist dictator. Her father is the town treasurer, and is embezzling money (or rather, having Leeva do it becuase she’s Good at Math) becasue he’s obsessed with having it (yes, he is storing it all in boxes in the attic). One day, though, Leeva sneaks out through the hedge, discovers the libary and the kind librarian and her nephew, and her life changes for the better. 

I kept comparing it to Matilda because it felt so much like it, from the plot and the characters to the illustrations done by Matthew Cordell (which felt very Quentin Blake-y). It evoked the spirit of Roald Dahl, and yet… I’m not sure it quite succeeded. Dahl is not a kind writer. He is not a sweet writer, and he doesn’t pull any punches. Miss Trunchbull is, simply put, evil. And the children in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory are atrocious. There is nothing redeemable about them, and there is something quite terrrifying. Pennypacker got the unredeemable bits about Leeva’s parents – in the end, while they don’t get their comuppance, they are not redeemed – but they’re not terrifying. They’re just silly. And kind of annoying. Which, if you’re trying to channel Dahl, kind of misses the mark. 

Even so, Leeva was a fun little book, and I think it’s admirable that Pennypacker attempted to write something that tried to be like Dahl. I’m sure there will be many people over the years who come to thoroughly love this one. 

Audiobook: Check & Mate

Leave a comment

by Ali Hazelwood
Read by Karissa Vacker
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Or listen at Libro.fm
Content: There is swearing, including multiple f-bombs, talk of sex, and off-page sex. It’s in the Teen section (grades 9+) of the bookstore.

Mallory Greenleaf was once a chess prodigy. Her grandmaster father would take her around to tournaments, and she would play. And win. But then, four years ago, when she was fourteen, she quit. Since then, her father left the family and then died in a car accident, her mother deals with a chronic pain condition, and Mallory has been keeping everything together by working as an auto mechanic. 

Then, her best friend badgers her into playing at a charity tournament, and she inadvertantly beats Nolan Sawyer, the number one player in the world. From there, Mallory gets sucked back into the world of chess, winning a paid fellowship, and she begins winning again. The difference this time? She and Nolan are like magnets. Sometimes repelling each other, but also inexplicably drawn together. 

This one was super fun. I don’t know how it is in Hazelwood’s other books, but she does younger siblings really well. Mallory’s sisters were a lot of fun, and I found myself laughing aloud several times. I liked all the chess stuff (I really enjoyed watching The Queen’s Gambit a couple years ago) and Hazelwood can write tension really well. I like that she’s tackling things like sexism in the chess world, as well as blaming yourself for the mistakes of others, and learning how to let go of having a super strict control on your life. Mallory and Nolan’s relationship was a good one – a lot of push-and-pull, and some great banter, with a really good resolution. 

And Vacker’s narration – she read When In Rome – was absolutely delightful. I do need to listen to her read more books, because I thoroughly enjoy listening to her. 

In short: it was a quick read that was tons of fun to listen to. 

What Happened to Rachel Riley?

Leave a comment

by Claire Swinarski
First sentence: “Ms. O’Dell, I hope that you’re having a good winter break.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Content: There is harassment by middle school boys. It’s in the Middle Grade (grades 3-5) section of the bookstore. I read this book for the Cybils, and this reflects my opinion and not that of the whole panel.

Anna Hunt is the new girl at her middle school in Madison, Wisconsin, and she’s noticed something odd: no one talks to Rachel Riley. Not a word. This is weird because Anna’s discovered – through the miracle of social media – that Rachel used to be popular. So, Anna – nominally as part of an application to a podcasting camp – decides to get to the bottom of why no one will talk to Rachel anymore.

Everyone seems reluctant to talk about what happened at the end of 7th grade. But as Anna digs deeper, what she finds might just shake up their 8th-grade year as well.

I love a good story told through found documents, and this one was fun. There were some prose sections, so it wasn’t entirely found documents, but much lot of it was. And it’s a smart story as well. I liked how Anna had to piece things together, and how the reader was never too far ahead, so I never felt like I was waiting for Anna to catch up. I loved the dynamic of Anna’s family, and how she slowly made friends at her school – moving right before 8th grade is hard, and I liked how Swinarski portrayed that.

When I finished, my takeaway to my kids was “Middle school boys are the worst”, to which they said, “You just now figured that out?” Which is sad in its own right. Still, I like a good book where girls stand up to the harassment that is ignored in middle schools and hopefully, make their school a better place.

A good story.