Tag Archives: Scholastic

Review: Shatter City by Scott Westerfeld

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Shatter City by Scott Westerfeld

Shatter City (Imposters #2)
Scott Westerfeld
Scholastic
Published September 17, 2019

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Goodreads

About Shatter City

When the world sees Frey, they think they see her twin sister Rafi. Frey was raised to be Rafi’s double, and now she’s taken on the role . . . without anyone else knowing.

Her goal? To destroy the forces that created her.

But with the world watching and a rebellion rising, Frey is forced into a detour. Suddenly she is stranded on her own in Paz, a city where many of the citizens attempt to regulate their emotions through an interface on their arms. Paz is an easy place to get lost . . . and also an easy place to lose yourself.

As the city comes under a catastrophic attack, Frey must leave the shadows and enter the chaos of warfare – because there is no other way for her to find her missing sister and have her revenge against her murderous father.

My Review

It’s been a long time since I’ve read anything by Scott Westerfeld, and SHATTER CITY made me realize how silly that is. I LOVE his books! It’s so easy to connect with the characters and the internal struggle that Frey faced in wanting to be herself but continually finding herself stuck impersonating her sister.

I also really enjoyed the references to the Uglies series, which I also loved reading. It felt like sharing inside knowledge with Frey. (You can read this series without ever reading UGLIES. The references aren’t critical to the story.)

One interesting element in the story happens when Frey visits a city called Paz. While she’s mistaken for her sister, she undergoes surgery to have “feels” installed. These are buttons on her inner forearm that trigger different emotions when she presses them.

At first, Frey thinks they’re weird and stupid and that she’d never use them. But as she experiences difficult and traumatic situations, her thoughts about the Feels experience a shift. When she finds herself again surrounded by people without the Feels, she experiences another shift. I found that process interesting. It reminded me of the way we tend to judge people– perhaps especially people with mental health issues who take medication– who make choices we can’t imagine making for ourselves. But then when we find ourselves in the same situation, we make the very choice that seemed to unimaginable before.

I don’t think the Feels are supposed to represent medication or be a metaphor for that, though the topic of Feels as a remedy for depression does come up in the story. It just made me think of the way we sometimes judge others who live a different way than we do.

I really liked this book, and definitely recommend it. I think fans of THE HUNGER GAMES and MATCHED by Ally Condie will love it.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 12 up.

Representation
One minor character is nonbinary. Another minor character is gay.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
Brief kissing between boy and girl.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
Situations of peril and some battle violence.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support the costs of running this blog. I received a free copy of SHATTER CITY in exchange for my honest review.

Review: A Snicker of Magic by Natalie Lloyd

Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , ,

A Snicker of Magic
Natalie Lloyd
Scholastic
Published February 25, 2014

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About A Snicker of Magic
Midnight Gulch used to be a magical place, a town where people could sing up thunderstorms and dance up sunflowers. But that was long ago, before a curse drove the magic away. Twelve-year-old Felicity knows all about things like that; her nomadic mother is cursed with a wandering heart.

But when she arrives in Midnight Gulch, Felicity thinks her luck’s about to change. A “word collector,” Felicity sees words everywhere—shining above strangers, tucked into church eves, and tangled up her dog’s floppy ears—but Midnight Gulch is the first place she’s ever seen the word “home.” And then there’s Jonah, a mysterious, spiky-haired do-gooder who shimmers with words Felicity’s never seen before, words that make Felicity’s heart beat a little faster.

Felicity wants to stay in Midnight Gulch more than anything, but first, she’ll need to figure out how to bring back the magic, breaking the spell that’s been cast over the town . . . and her mother’s broken heart.

My Review
A Snicker of Magic has been on my to-be-read list for a super long time, and I’m so glad I finally made time to read it. I loved the way the author used words and the description of how Felicity sees them to add to the story. Also loved her friendship with Jonah and the Beedle, who performs anonymous good deeds for others.

Felicity wrestles with her parents’ separation on her own, often feeling like her mom is too sad to approach about her dad’s absence. She worries about her mom a lot and feels torn between her loyalty to her family and her desire to put down roots and have a real friend someplace. Those feelings made it so easy to love her and root for her throughout the story.

Be warned—this story will probably leave you with a fierce craving for ice cream, especially for one of Dr. Zook’s famous ice cream flavors. Yum!

Some elements of A Snicker of Magic reminded me of Be Light Like a Bird in terms of a girl wrestling with family issues and mom with wanderlust who takes on a town crisis.

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Cultural Elements
Characters appear to be white. Jonah is in a motorized wheelchair. The story takes place in a small Tennessee town.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
A couple references to Felicity’s aunt saying some “unsavory words.”

Romance/Sexual Content
Felicity’s mom asks if she has a crush on a boy from school. A girl kisses a boy on the cheek.

Spiritual Content
In the story, some members of the town once had magic that could do amazing things. One woman could sing up a storm. Another could turn invisible. Some could play music that set the whole town dancing. Two brothers used their magic against each other and left the town cursed. The story follows Felicity’s research into understanding the curse (some characters believe there’s no such thing) and whether it can be broken.

Violent Content
None.

Drug Content
Felicity’s aunt smokes cigarettes.

Review: The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke

Book Review and Content, Clean Fiction, Fantasy, Magical Realism, Middle Grade 8-12, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , ,

The Thief Lord
Cornelia Funke
Scholastic, Inc.
Published January 1, 2000

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

The adventure begins when an apparently grief-stricken couple hire detective Victor Getz to track down their missing nephews: Prosper, age twelve and Bo, age five. Instead of languishing in the chill of the Venice streets as their aunt fears, Prosper and Bo have allied themselves with a band of urchins led by a boy who calls himself the Thief Lord.

When a shop owner whispers to the group of a special task for the Thief Lord worth an enormous amount of money, the kids are quick to relay the information to their leader. But not even the Thief Lord could foresee what would happen if the artifact is recovered and the magical merry-go-round is rebuilt.

Quirky characters and quick humor make it easy to get lost in Funke’s award-winning, whimsical tale. Sections from Victor’s point-of-view keep the story grounded and realistic, balancing the children’s idealism and limited understanding of the world around them.

The story creates several moments in which its characters have opportunities to choose how to respond to situations and face grave consequences. When the children discover the true identity of the Thief Lord, they must reevaluate their relationships with him. Some respond with understanding and loyalty, but others embrace feelings of betrayal and remain unforgiving. When the merry-go-round is restored and its magical properties discovered, the children must decide whether it should be used at all.

The variety of narrators make this novel a great read for young and old alike. Recommended especially for readers who enjoy realistic fiction with a twist of fantasy.

Profanity and Crude Language Content
Very mild profanity.

Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violence
Mild.

Drug Content
None.

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Review: Pie by Sarah Weeks

Blogger's Favorites, Book Review and Content, Clean Fiction, Contemporary, Middle Grade 8-12, , , , , , ,

PIE
Sarah Weeks
Scholastic
Published October 1, 2011

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Beloved Aunt Polly’s death leaves Alice miserable and the small town of Ipswitch floundering. Her world-famous restaurant serving free pies must close, but as the will is settled, everyone wonders who will get Polly’s award-winning pie crust recipe? No one is more surprised than Alice when Aunt Polly’s attorney presents her with Lardo, her aunt’s grumpy cat and sole inheritor of the coveted recipe. News ricochets through town. In its wake a mysterious villain vandalizes Polly’s shop and catnaps Lardo (in case the rumors that the recipe is tattooed on the feline’s enormous belly are true.)

Alice’s mother refuses to listen to Alice’s claims that the cat has been abducted and instead rages against her sister’s leaving her out of her will. It’s up to Alice and the local grocery delivery boy to solve the mystery and rescue Lardo amid the whole town’s frantic attempts to recreate Polly’s famous pies.

An unexpected guest reveals the final pieces of Aunt Polly’s will, leaving Alice and her mother dumbfounded. While Alice knows the knot of grief inside her will never fully disappear, she finds a way to cope with the loss and keep her aunt close in her memory and in her sweet baked treats.

Though it grapples with a young girl’s first experience with grief, PIE is an overwhelmingly sweet story, packed not only with tender moments and humor but over a dozen pie recipes, ranging from the all-American classic Apple Pie to the unexpected Green Tomato Pie. This is a great story to read aloud – with frequent breaks to do a little baking! What a great opportunity to bond with middle readers both in literature and in the kitchen.

Language Content
No profanity or crude language.

Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violence
None.

Drug Content
None.

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