All posts by Kasey

About Kasey

Reads things. Writes things. Fluent in sarcasm. Willful optimist. Cat companion, chocolate connoisseur, coffee drinker. There are some who call me Mom.

Review: The Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy by Anne Ursu

Blogger's Favorites, Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Middle Grade 8-12, , , , , , ,
The Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy by Anne Ursu

The Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy
Anne Ursu
Walden Pond Press
Published October 12, 2021

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About The Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy

If no one notices Marya Lupu, it is likely because of her brother, Luka. And that’s because of what everyone knows: that Luka is destined to become a sorcerer.

The Lupus might be from a small village far from the capital city of Illyria, but that doesn’t matter. Every young boy born in in the kingdom holds the potential for the rare ability to wield magic, to protect the country from the terrifying force known only as the Dread.

For all the hopes the family has for Luka, no one has any for Marya, who can never seem to do anything right. But even so, no one is prepared for the day that the sorcerers finally arrive to test Luka for magical ability, and Marya makes a terrible mistake. Nor the day after, when the Lupus receive a letter from a place called Dragomir Academy–a mysterious school for wayward young girls. Girls like Marya.

Soon she is a hundred miles from home, in a strange and unfamiliar place, surrounded by girls she’s never met. Dragomir Academy promises Marya and her classmates a chance to make something of themselves in service to one of the country’s powerful sorcerers. But as they learn how to fit into a world with no place for them, they begin to discover things about the magic the men of their country wield, as well as the Dread itself–things that threaten the precarious balance upon which Illyria is built.

My Review

I went into this book intrigued by the premise and expecting it to be good. Instead, it kind of blew me away. I was totally hooked when I met Marya and her awful family. From the beginning, I knew there was more to her than meets the eye, and I felt like I just had to keep reading to find out what it was.

Also, the tapestries! Okay, so in the book, the weavers and embroiderers have a secret language. They use symbols to mean different things– like a crescent moon placed near the artist’s signature means she doesn’t believe the story the tapestry tells. An embroidered cushion might tell a whole family’s history. I’ve never seen anything like that in a book before, and I LOVE it! I love the way that secret impacts so many parts of the story.

The way that Marya and the other girls wrestle with the way they’re treated just broke my heart. Watching them take courage and band together and be one another’s strength was so awesome. It reminded me a little bit of the spirit of GIRLS WITH SHARP STICKS, but written for a younger audience. I loved that vibe about it, though.

I think readers who enjoyed THE RAVEN HEIR or THE OTHER SIDE OF LUCK will really enjoy this one and its celebration of friendship, equality, and courage.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
I think Marya and her family have white skin. Her best friend at school has brown skin.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
Some characters have magical ability. For the men, this is seen as an asset, and they are trained and given wealth and prestige. For the women, this is seen as evidence that they’re evil, and they’re sent to an asylum.

Violent Content
A powerful force called the Dread threatens the kingdom. No one knows how it spreads, but it is deadly.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of THE TROUBLED GIRLS OF DRAGOMIR ACADEMY in exchange for my honest review.

Review: What Breathes Through Its Butt by Dr. Emily Grossman

Book Review and Content, Middle Grade 8-12, Nonfiction, , , , , , , , , ,

What Breathes Through Its Butt: Mind-Blowing Science Questions Answered
Dr. Emily Grossman
Illustrated by Alice Bowsher
Bloomsbury USA Children’s
Published November 10, 2020

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About What Breathes Through Its Butt

A funny and interactive book that explains the surprising science behind everyday kid questions.

Why is your elbow called your funny bone? How could you escape the grip of a crocodile’s jaw? Which animal can breathe through its butt? This book uncovers the amazing scientific explanations behind all sorts of questions that can pop into our heads. Can an egg bounce? How can a giraffe’s ridiculously long neck contain the same number of bones as a human’s? How much does the Internet weigh? With delightful interactive features that invite readers to guess answers to questions and make links between different scientific concepts, this is a great book for reluctant readers and STEAM lovers alike.

My Review

Okay, so I’m kind of embarrassed that it took me so long to review this book. I received a copy of WHAT BREATHES THROUGH ITS BUTT from the publisher, but I hadn’t asked for it. This past year I’ve really struggled to keep up with reading and posting reviews in ways that I never struggled before between the pandemic, family stuff, and my own health issues. I’m trying to get caught up, though, and so here I am, posting about this book at last.

One of the reasons it took me SO LONG to read this book is that, to be honest, I found the format of it kind of off-putting. The font is more of a handwriting style font and while it’s broken up into different sections with drawings alongside, I felt like it looked chaotic.

Now that I’ve read the book, I think the font choice might have been designed to support the book’s informal, conversational feel, which if true is a cool idea. I just… yeah. For me, it made the book harder for me to read.

Things I Really Liked

Apart from that, though, I actually enjoyed this book a lot more than I expected to. The conversational style that Dr. Grossman uses kept the pages feeling fun and light. Each section begins with a multiple choice question, like, “How much does the whole of the internet weigh?”, or “Which animal alive today has the strongest bite?” The reader sees four possible answers to pick from, and then the text begins to explore each of the possible answers.

The questions are a bit all over the place, so it’s not a book that focuses on any single topic. There are questions about space, animals, the human body, light, and more.

I’ve never seen a format like this before, but I’m a huge fan now. It made the book feel really interactive, and I found myself invested in reading the answers every time. I thought the illustrations were really fun and cute and definitely matched the tone of the book.

I haven’t read tons of juvenile nonfiction, but of what I’ve read, this book does the best job showing science in action. Each section starts with a question. Then it invites the reader to form a hypothesis. Then it looks at and compares evidence. I’ve never seen a book kind of just DO science the way this one does, and in such a friendly, fun way!

Honestly, I expected to like this book about 25% as much as I actually like it. I’m still not a huge fan of the font choice, but I love the way it makes science accessible and fun. It’s easily the kind of book you can get carried away reading. I think it’s a great pick for a school or classroom library or a budding science lover.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
Illustrations show a racially diverse group of kids.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
As you already guessed from the title, this book has some mildly crude language and explores animal behaviors including pooping, burping, and passing gas and the science behind why they happen or their impact on the environment.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
None.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support running this blog. I received a free copy of WHAT BREATHES THROUGH ITS BUTT in exchange for my honest review.

Review: Tonight We Rule the World by Zack Smedley

Book Review and Content, Contemporary, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , ,

Tonight We Rule the World
Zack Smedley
Page Street Kids
Published October 12, 2021

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Tonight We Rule the World

In the beginning, Owen’s story was blank . . . then he was befriended by Lily, the aspiring author who helped him find his voice. Together, the two have spent years navigating first love and amassing an inseparable friend group. But all of it is upended one day when his school’s administration learns Owen’s secret: that he was sexually assaulted by a classmate.

In the ensuing investigation, everyone scrambles to hold their worlds together.

Owen, still wrestling with his self-destructive thoughts and choices.

His father, a mission-driven military vet ready to start a war to find his son’s attacker.

The school bureaucrats, who seem most concerned with kowtowing to the local media attention.

And Lily, who can’t learn that Owen is the mystery victim everyone is talking about . . . because once she does, it will set off a chain of events that will change their lives forever.

Heartbreaking and hopeful, this is a coming-of-age story that explores how we rebuild after the world comes crumbling down.

My Review

First, there are a lot of things about this book that I really liked. I felt like Owen’s character was really real and gripping. I loved the way the friendships with his group developed and especially the scene on the beach with them. So many of those moments felt exactly the way I remember my high school friendships feeling, so reading them was super nostalgic for me.

I also thought it was interesting that on one side, Owen had his dad and his family’s struggles with his dad’s PTSD and how to respond to it. Then on the other side, there’s Owen with a relationship that spirals into abuse. It highlighted how complex relationships can be– how there can be good elements tangled in with toxic or abusive ones and how difficult that can be to sort out.

It was also really weird for me as a reader because as I read some of the conversations between Owen and his abuser and Owen’s thoughts as he scrambled to stay ahead of the gaslighting and manipulation, I realized I’d been in those same conversations before, in Owen’s shoes. So that was both validating but also kind of ripping open a past wound I wasn’t prepared for? I think it was good, but I just didn’t expect to experience that.

I guess all of that together makes this book one of those to approach with attention to triggers. The story raised some really good points about toxic and abusive relationships and consent. It also explores some gender stereotypes in a way that may expose some prejudices or expectations we may not realize we have. I know it did that for me.

I think readers who like dark, issue-driven stories with memorable characters will want to check out TONIGHT WE RULE THE WORLD. I’d recommend it to fans of Courtney Summers or Lauren Oliver.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 16 up.

Representation
Owen is diagnosed with ASD and is bisexual. His dad is a Marines veteran with PTSD.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used somewhat frequently.

Romance/Sexual Content – Trigger warning for rape.
Several references to masturbation. Kissing between boy and girl, making out. One scene showing rape.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
One scene showing rape. Several scenes show some gaslighting and manipulation. This escalates to physical violence on multiple occasions. Owen recalls a memory in which he woke his dad up in the middle of the night and his dad hit him due to his PTSD.

Drug Content
Some references to teens smoking pot and drinking alcohol.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of TONIGHT WE RULE THE WORLD in exchange for my honest review.

Review: Tattoos on the Heart by Gregory Boyle

Book Review and Content, Christian World-View, Memoir, Nonfiction, , , , , , , , ,

Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion
Gregory Boyle
Free Press
Published March 9, 2009

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Tattoos on the Heart

How do you fight despair and learn to meet the world with a loving heart? How do you overcome shame? Stay faithful in spite of failure? No matter where people live or what their circumstances may be, everyone needs boundless, restorative love. Gorgeous and uplifting, TATTOOS ON THE HEART amply demonstrates the impact unconditional love can have on your life.

As a pastor working in a neighborhood with the highest concentration of murderous gang activity in Los Angeles, Gregory Boyle created an organization to provide jobs, job training, and encouragement so that young people could work together and learn the mutual respect that comes from collaboration. TATTOOS ON THE HEART is a breathtaking series of parables distilled from his twenty years in the barrio.

Erudite, down-to-earth, and utterly heartening, these essays about universal kinship and redemption are moving examples of the power of unconditional love in difficult times and the importance of fighting despair. With Gregory Boyle’s guidance, we can recognize our own wounds in the broken lives and daunting struggles of the men and women in these parables and learn to find joy in all of the people around us. TATTOOS ON THE HEART reminds us that no life is less valuable than another.

Father Gregory Boyle’s sparkling parables about kinship and the sacredness of life are drawn from twenty years working with gangs in LA.

My Review

I feel like I’ve seen tons of examples lately of what I do not believe or agree with in my faith. I didn’t realize the level to which I was exhausted by and deeply upset about the ugliness of people preaching hate in the name of Christianity. It has kind of made me nervous or hesitant to read faith life books because I’m sometimes afraid I’ll find more of the same “righteous” hate in those pages, too?

My mom told me about this book years ago, but I had never read it. I had an audiobook version, though, so when I needed a new evening read recently, I decided to try out TATTOOS ON THE HEART.

So I began reading this book, and it’s cover to cover a message of compassion. It’s about seeing other people as loved and valuable, even the people that most of us overlook or are afraid of. I couldn’t stop reading. This book put words– and far more than words, because this man and his organization have been living these words for decades– to things that I believe but hadn’t been able to frame into sentences.

I read chapter after chapter, feeling like, here is a person I want to pull up a chair and learn from. This is a person whose life and values I want to emulate. He’s also an incredible reader and storyteller, so sometimes I’d get lost in the book for its personal stories about the people Fr. Boyle has met and experiences he’s had.

I cried and laughed as he related stories about gang members’ and former gang members’ lives. My heart felt full when he told about the way a community emerged to love people that so often get left behind or treated as unlovable or less valuable.

He connects the stories to greater ideas really well, too. Each chapter kind of focuses on one idea and tells stories that show those things in different ways. He talks about God as not only being loving and gentle, but also as One who delights in people.

Conclusion

Reading this book felt like having a full glass of water for the first time after a long, hot day. I didn’t know how much I needed to hear his message, and to hear someone with much more learning in scripture than I have to be preaching that message.

I don’t know. Probably I’m doing a terrible job with this review. I feel like it’s hard to put things into words. After I listened to this book as an audiobook, I bought the ebook. I’ve already gone back to highlight some parts, and I suspect this book will be one I reread periodically, too.

If you want to find out more about the gang intervention program, it’s called Homeboy Industries. They have some cool merchandise and great information about what they do on their website.

Fr. Boyle’s second book, BARKING TO THE CHOIR, is now on my reading list, too. I’ve started the audiobook version already, and it’s just as good so far.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Contains many stories of gang members.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used somewhat frequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
The author is a Jesuit minister and founder of Homeboy Industries. The book references sources from several different faiths but relates Christian values and beliefs throughout.

Violent Content
Multiple references to gang-related shootings and violence. Some descriptions of domestic violence and child abuse.

Drug Content
References to drug and alcohol abuse.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support running this blog.

Review: We Light Up the Sky by Lilliam Rivera

Blogger's Favorites, Book Review and Content, Sci-Fi, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , ,

We Light Up the Sky
Lilliam Rivera
Bloomsbury YA
Published October 26, 2021

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About We Light Up the Sky

Pedro, Luna, and Rafa may attend Fairfax High School together in Los Angeles, but they run in separate spheres. Pedro is often told that he’s “too much” and seeks refuge from his home life in a local drag bar. Luna is pretending to go along with the popular crowd but is still grieving the unexpected passing of her beloved cousin Tasha. Then there’s Rafa, the quiet new kid who is hiding the fact that his family is homeless.

But Pedro, Luna, and Rafa find themselves thrown together when an extraterrestrial visitor lands in their city and takes the form of Luna’s cousin Tasha. As the Visitor causes destruction wherever it goes, the three teens struggle to survive and warn others of what’s coming–because this Visitor is only the first of many. But who is their true enemy–this alien, or their fellow humans? Can Pedro, Luna, and Rafa find a way to save a world that has repeatedly proven it doesn’t want to save them?

Pura Belpré Honor-winning author Lilliam Rivera examines the days before a War of the Worlds-inspired alien invasion in this captivating and chilling new novel.

In a haunting, genre-bending YA, award-winning author Lilliam Rivera explores the social and racial ramifications of an alien invasion from the perspective of three Latinx teens.

My Review

I read and loved NEVER LOOK BACK, a retelling of the Greek myth Orpheus and Eurydice by Lilliam Rivera, so when I saw this new book, I pretty much knew I was going to have to read it.

Sci-fi isn’t my top preferred genre, but I have found that I love a solid contemporary story that incorporates science fiction into the story. I don’t know if that makes a whole lot of sense. I think it’s the difference between reading a romance novel, where the romance IS the story, versus reading a story where the romance is a subplot. The alien encounter is pretty much the focus of this particular story, but it’s also firmly centered around Luna, Rafa, and Pedro’s connections to each other and their individual grief. That part of the story– grief and connections– is what really hooked me.

I loved that the relationships they build with each other aren’t just part of a character arc, but they also play into the final battle of the story. I felt like that elevated the whole story from interesting to compelling.

On the whole, I really liked this book. I haven’t had a lot of reading time lately, so if I didn’t like it, probably it would have sat on my night stand waiting for me. Instead, I found myself grabbing it to read a chapter while I waited in a parking lot or in the few minutes I had before starting dinner. The short chapters and sharply focused narrative made it easy to pick up and put down, and the realistic characters kept me eager to come back for the next chapter.

I think readers who enjoyed WHEN LIGHT LEFT US by Leah Thomas or who like character-driven sci-fi will love this book.

Content Notes for We Light Up the Sky

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Pedro, Luna and Rafa are Latinx. Pedro has dated boys and girls. Rafa develops feelings for a boy.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used somewhat infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
References to sex. Kiss between boy and girl. One boy kisses another on the cheek.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
Several scenes show descriptions of violent attacks on people. Some references to police brutality.

Drug Content
References to smoking pot.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of WE LIGHT UP THE SKY in exchange for my honest review.

Review: The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket

Book Review and Content, Contemporary, Middle Grade 8-12, , , , , , ,

The Bad Beginning (A Series of Unfortunate Events #1)
Lemony Snicket
HarperCollins
Published September 30, 1999

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About The Bad Beginning

Dear Reader,

I’m sorry to say that the book you are holding in your hands is extremely unpleasant. It tells an unhappy tale about three very unlucky children. Even though they are charming and clever, the Baudelaire siblings lead lives filled with misery and woe. From the very first page of this book when the children are at the beach and receive terrible news, continuing on through the entire story, disaster lurks at their heels. One might say they are magnets for misfortune.

In this short book alone, the three youngsters encounter a greedy and repulsive villain, itchy clothing, a disastrous fire, a plot to steal their fortune, and cold porridge for breakfast.

It is my sad duty to write down these unpleasant tales, but there is nothing stopping you from putting this book down at once and reading something happy, if you prefer that sort of thing.

With all due respect,
Lemony Snicket

My Review

Lemony Snicket is one of the few authors, I think, who can do something like write a letter to the reader instead of paragraphs of back cover copy and it honestly works. His writing is playful and he breaks all kinds of conventions but in such a clever way that I never mind. I actually started reading this book years ago to my daughter when we’d read aloud together before she went to bed, but I think she loved the story so much she must have started reading it on her own since I wasn’t going fast enough in those few minutes before bed. Ha! That’s writing success right there.

Anyway, so I kind of knew the rest of the story because she and I had talked about it, but I’d never read the whole book on my own. And lately, to be honest, I’ve just needed the pick-me-up that cheeky middle grade books can be.

I liked this book a lot, but it’s really weird thinking back on my experience reading it. There are a lot of dark moments: the children are placed with a guardian who pretty much treats them like free labor. He’s controlling and creepy and obviously a villain.

The relationships between the children are so great. They each have really different personalities (Sunny is my favorite), and each add something special to the story.

I’m not sure if I’ll be able to read and review the whole series, because I’m terrible about finishing a series, and this one is 13 books! As it is, I still haven’t finished the last book in Snicket’s All the Wrong Questions series. But I definitely liked THE BAD BEGINNING enough to read more of this series.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
Major characters are white. The story is set in England.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
An adult tries to trick a child into marrying him. It’s clear the intention is financial.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
An adult threatens to kill or harm one or all of the children. One is placed in a cage.

Drug Content
Several adults drink wine and behave badly.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support running this blog.