Movie Monday: Captain American: Civil War

I vowed not to watch anymore superhero movies after a glut of them with my husband and two sons a couple of years ago, but I made an exception for this one for several reasons last week: my friends on Pop Culture Happy Hour (one of my fave podcasts) assured me it was one of the better superhero movies, with a fully developed plot; I do enjoy seeing Robert Downey, Jr. in movies; and it happened to be showing at the best time for us in our local theater last week when we went for $5 Tuesdays (a rare event for us to go to the theater!). So, we saw Captain America: Civil War on the big screen.

First, the title is somewhat misleading. Though Captain America does play a large role in this movie, it's not all about him. This is truly an ensemble cast of superheroes. In fact, as the title does accurately depict, it's about a civil war among superheroes.

Apparently, the Avengers created a lot of chaos and damage the last time they saved the world. The world is getting kind of fed up with having to clean up their messes after they swoop in to save the day. In particular, one country, Sokovia, where the latest destruction occurred (see last Avengers movie, apparently) now leads efforts internationally to reign in the superheroes and give them some oversight. In fact, representatives of over 100  countries are gathering in Vienna to sign the Sokovia Accords, which will create a UN panel to oversee the team and determine when and where they should be called in to help.

This causes a rift among the Avengers. Some, including Tony Stark aka Iron Man, played by Robert Downey, Jr., are wracked with guilt over what happened in Sokovia and agree that there should be some oversight of them. Others, led by Steve Rogers aka Captain America, played by Chris Evans, are against any kind of oversight and believe the Avengers should continue as they have been - dispatching themselves whenever and wherever they see a need for their services. The Avengers each choose sides on this conflict and are splintered by the disagreement.

Meanwhile, the building where the Sokovia Accords are to be signed is bombed, and it seems that Bucky Barnes aka Winter Soldier is responsible. Captain America firmly believes that his old war buddy is innocent or was set up, but the Iron Man team thinks he's letting his personal feelings interfere and that they should be  - carefully and responsibly - trying to capture Bucky. As you might have guessed, multiple fights, chases, and battle scenes ensue as the two sides of the Avengers each seek different resolutions, including one really cool battle (even I had to admire it) between the two factions of superheroes, with some extra muscle they each pulled in to help. In fact, the highlight of the movie was when Tony Stark visits a very young Peter Parker, who is just starting out as Spiderman and is mostly unknown, and recruits his help.

That complicated synopsis is just the tip of the iceberg. When PCHH said this movie has plenty of plot behind it, they weren't kidding. It's a very complex plot, and sometimes we weren't entirely following it. In fact, there were a bunch of characters whose superhero names were never spoken during the movie but it was assumed the audience would know (we didn't). This is the downside of skipping a couple of years' of superhero movies; this one, as is true of others, relies heavily on past Avengers' movies. My husband and I kept whispering to each other, "Wait, who is THAT?" There were some characters with a fair amount of screen time whom I didn't know until 10 minutes ago when I looked the movie up on IMDB to write this review!

Our approach was to just go with the flow. We tried not to get annoyed when we didn't know who someone was, and most plot points were eventually explained. We just went along for the ride. And it's quite a ride! Nonstop action, plenty of battles, plus a bit of character development for the more major characters and a good dose of humor. That last element is - for me - what makes the difference between an incredibly boring, barely watchable superhero movie and one that I can enjoy. Of course, there is plenty of humor from Robert Downey, Jr, in his usual wise-cracking mode as Tony Stark, but the best moments in the movie come from a surprising source: Tom Holland as the very young Spiderman, on his first big gig and (over)eager to impress "Mr. Stark."

So, lots of action, a complex plot, and some good laughs - all in all, not a bad way to spend a couple of hours (actually a bit more). And if you are a fan of superhero movies and the Avengers anyway, then certainly, this is a movie you'll love.

[For those in the know, the other superheros in Civil War (and the all-stars who played them) include Black Widow (Scarlett Johanssen), Falcon (Sam Wilson), War Machine (Don Cheadle), Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), Vision (Paul Bettany), Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen), Ant-Man (Paul Rudd), and introducing Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman), who will have his own movie later this year.]

Captain America: Civil War is now out in theaters (we are rarely so current on movies!).

It's Monday 6/13! What Are You Reading?

Wow, what a quiet week here! With both sons off on trips with their friends, the house was unbelievably quiet...which was just what I needed after the crazy, chaotic graduation week.

So, I devoted my week to catching up and getting back in the groove of blogging.

Now, both boys (young men now, really) are back home, the TV is on nonstop, and the house is noisy and chaotic again - but it's nice to have them home. They leave again in a few days for the Firefly music festival here in Delaware. They are making the most of summer vacation!

Here's what we all read last week:

• I am still reading The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater, the fourth and final book in her The Raven Cycle series, which I have been wanting to get to since it was released in April. It's great, just like the first three, and I can't wait to see how it all wraps up! I have less than a hundred pages to go. This is my first Big Book of the Summer.
• I've been listening to The Magnificent Mya Tibbs: Spirit Week Showdown by Crystal Allen & Eda Kaban, a middle grade audio book. This is the start of a new series with a spunky 4th grade heroine and a fun, cowgirl setting in Texas.
• My husband, Ken, read The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon by Stephen King, another of the books we inherited from my dad (I listened to this one on audio years ago) - it's an uncharacteristically brief novel for King (suspense, not horror), about a young girl who gets lost in the woods.
• Now, Ken is reading When Darkness Falls by James Grippando, another of my dad's books. This one is a thriller.
• Jamie, 21, finished re-reading the first two books in the A Pattern of Shadow and Light trilogy by Melissa McPhail: Cephrael's Hand and The Dagger of Adendigaeth and is still reading book 3, Paths of Air. Not much reading time for a 21-year old on a Caribbean cruise with his friends!

 I worked on blog catch-up last week:

Movie Monday: A Walk in the Woods, adaptation of Bill Bryson's memoir

TV Tuesday: Humans, a unique and compelling TV show

Summary of Books Read in April - yes, April! Catching up...

Fiction Review: The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henriquez - family drama, story of first love, and a peek at the lives of modern immigrants

Middle-Grade Review: Some Kind of Courage by Dan Gemeinhart, a story of family & friendship set in 1890's Washington

Saturday Snapshot 6/11: It's Summer!

 
What are you and your family reading this week?    

What Are You Reading Monday is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date, so head over and check out her blog and join the Monday fun! You can also participate in a kid/teen/YA version hosted by Unleashing Readers.

Join the Big Book Summer Reading Challenge! Just click the link to read the rules - super-easy for summer! You only need to read one "big book" (400 pages or more) to participate. Join the fun & sign up today! 

Saturday Snapshot 6/11: It's Summer!

Saturday Snapshot is hosted by West Metro Mommy Reads. 

Wet & cool has given way to hot and humid (though we still had some cool-ish days this week), and spring blooms and h=turned into lush summer greenery. A few photos from a hike at our local nature center this week (plus one from our yard & one from my son's graduation!):

Our irises bloomed last week: gorgeous but brief

Beginning of the trail at the nature center

Boardwalk through lush marsh & woods

Me, enjoying a hike!

Cool stream passing along the trail

My son's high school graduation last Saturday!

Hope you are enjoying a great weekend!

Middle-Grade Review: Some Kind of Courage

I recently listened to the middle-grade novel Some Kind of Courage by Dan Gemeinhart on audio and was riveted by the fast-paced drama about a grieving but brave boy set in 1890’s Washington state.

Joseph is a young boy who has lost everyone he cared about. His mother and sister died of illness, so it was just him and his pa. Then his father died, too, in a terrible accident. Joseph was left to live with Mr. Grissom, a man who treated him like slave labor. When Mr. Grissom sells Joseph’s horse, Sarah, to a traveling horse trader, it’s the last straw. Joseph makes a break for it, taking the money from the sale of the horse and his pa’s gun (which Mr. Grissom had taken) and heading off on his own after the horse trader. Sarah is the only family Joseph has left, and he is determined to get her back.

In the first town he stops in, Joseph learns where the horse trader was headed and also meets a young Chinese boy who seems to be all alone, too. A shopkeeper explains that the boy came into town with some adults who all died of illness, leaving him on his own. Although the boy speaks no English – and Joseph certainly doesn’t speak any Chinese – Joseph manages to convey an invitation to him, and the boy joins him on his journey.

The two young boys encounter a lot of danger along the way – both animals and people, bad weather, Indians, and eventually, the horse trader they are following, who turns out to be unscrupulous. Despite the language barrier, a friendship gradually forms between the two very different boys, and they help each other through the challenging journey. Joseph’s quest to recover Sarah is single-minded, and he is determined not to fail.

I enjoyed this Old West adventure, set in a time and place that is not often covered in fiction. The historical details were interesting throughout, but this novel is also action-packed and full of drama. Joseph’s parents brought him up to be a kind and tolerant boy, unlike many of the people he encounters on the road, so readers see the kinds of prejudices that existed at that time (as now) against those deemed different and the respectful way that Joseph deals with others. This is a rousing adventure, but with plenty of heart, a story that is ultimately about family and friendship.

Scholastic

Fiction Review: The Book of Unknown Americans

I was interested in reading The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henriquez when I first read its plot synopsis but even more eager to read it when I heard it was actually set here in Delaware, where we live. It’s the second smallest state in the nation (and few people know where it is), so it’s rare for books to be set here. Last spring, I had the honor of meeting Cristina at Booktopia VT and talking to her about our shared state. This enticing novel finally made its way to the top of my overflowing TBR stacks, and I thoroughly enjoyed the heartfelt, moving drama set in an immigrant community, as did all the members of my book group.

As the book opens, Alma Rivera, her husband, Arturo, and their teen daughter, Maribel, have just left everything and everyone they know behind in Mexico and traveled 30 hours in a pickup truck from the border to arrive in Delaware. Arturo’s new job waits for them, just over the border in Pennsylvania. In Mexico, Arturo ran his own very successful construction company, but here in the U.S., he will be laboring 10 hours a day on his feet in a pitch-dark, dank mushroom farm. The family felt they had no choice because Maribel had suffered a brain injury from an accident, and the options for her in Mexico were limited. So, they traveled thousands of miles to enroll her in a special school that they hope can help her to recover some of her brain function.

The tiny, run-down apartment they move into is a far cry from their beautiful home in Mexico, but they try to settle in to their new lives. They gradually meet their neighbors in the apartment complex, all Spanish-speaking immigrants themselves. The Toro family is especially welcoming, and their teen son, Major, feels an immediate connection to Maribel, despite her limited ability to communicate. Bullied at school and feeling like an outsider himself, he sees a kindred spirit in Maribel.

Although the Riveras and the Toros are the main characters in this novel and most chapters are narrated by a member of those two families, along the way, we also get the stories of other immigrants living in the apartment complex. They come from a wide variety of countries throughout Central and South America (and are understandably annoyed when they are all called “Mexicans”), and they each came to the United States for a different reason. What they all have in common, though, is wanting a better life…though few of them are better off here in the U.S. than they were in their home countries. They work in menial jobs (often very different from their chosen careers), live in the run-down apartment complex, and endure terrible prejudice.

In this way, Henriquez tells the story of two families – and specifically of the love between two misfit teenagers – but she also tells the story of a broad and diverse group of people who have all been typecast in their new lives in America. There are stories full of hope, stories full of tragedy, and everything in between. The one bright spot in most of their lives is the community – the family – they have built here among each other, far from their real families.

My book group overwhelmingly enjoyed this novel, and our discussions were far-ranging. The book works on two levels: as an intricate, well-told story of families and first love and as a rare peek into an insular community that is often misunderstood. This novel makes you both feel and think. Our discussion ran the gamut from details about the story itself to the bigger picture of immigrants in America today. The fact that it was set right here in our own town – including many recognizable landmarks and the immigrant community we see every day – made it all the more powerful and thought-provoking. This compelling story will keep you turning the pages, wanting things to work out for the characters…and it will also make you think.

286 pages, Vintage Contemporaries

Me Meeting Cristina Henriquez at Booktopia VT 2015

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Books Read in April

Yes, you read that right - April. This is a lateness record even for me! May was crazy busy, but now that we are past our son's graduation, I am trying to catch up!

I didn't want to skip my April summary completely, though, because April was an amazing reading month for me. I read a total of 9 books, which is a LOT for me (which partly explains why it took me so long to finish all my April reviews). Here's what I read:

• Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys, YA historical fiction (Prussia, Poland)
• The Lightning Queen by Laura Renau, middle-grade audio (Mexico)
• The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens, adult fiction/suspense (Minnesota)

• Something New: Tales from a Makeshift Bride by Lucy Knisley, graphic memoir (IL/NY)
• The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy by Rachel Joyce, adult fiction (UK)
• Blog, Inc. by Joy Deangdeelert Cho, nonfiction 

 

• Upside-Down Magic by Sarah Mlynowski, Lauren Myracle & Emily Jenkins, middle-grade audio 
• The Big Dark by Rodman Philbrick, middle-grade audio (New Hampshire)
• Life Expectancy by Dean Koontz, adult fiction/suspense (Colorado)

Wow! So, how did I manage a record-setting reading month? Well, Dewey's 24-Hour Readathon was in April, which helped. I listen to a few middle-grade audios which tend to be shorter than YA or adult. And one of my books, Blog, Inc., I started last September and finally finished! Of the 9 books I read, 2 were nonfiction (rare for me), 1 was YA, and 3 were middle-grade (and also audio). It was a nice variety of books, all enjoyable!

Progress on 2016 Reading Challenges:
This is my favorite part of my monthly summary - updating my Reading Challenges! Still not much progress on my Read Your Own Damn Books Challenge - only two of these NINE were TBR books from my shelf! For the Monthly Motif Reading Challenge, April was Best of the Best month (award winners) - The Life We Bury won multiple awards. I read two more nonfiction books for my 2016 Nonfiction Reading Challenge, but STILL no classics for the 2016 Classics Challenge! For my Travel the World in Books Reading Challenge, I read books set in Poland and Mexico.  I am also tracking the states my books are set in, even though there is no Where Are You Reading challenge this year - I added 4 new states this month!

TV Tuesday: Humans

Last fall, my husband and I started watching Humans but only got halfway through the season when it was pulled from our cable's On Demand. So, we were thrilled when it was recently added to Amazon Prime! We re-watched the first episode and then realized we didn't remember much and ended up watching the entire season in less than two weeks.

This brilliant joint project between American AMC and British Channel 4 is an engrossing sci fi series with a great cast.  The show is set in London in the present or near future in a world where robots have become so advanced, they are almost impossible to tell apart from humans. These Synthetics or Synths have become an integral part of human life, working at manual jobs, in people's homes as servants, and even working as prostitutes.

In the first episode, we meet a normal suburban family who has just gotten their first Synth. Husband Joe is exhausted by wrangling the three kids and the house while his wife, Laura, works as a lawyer with frequent trips out of town. So, one day on a whim, he buys a Synth to help around the house. They name her Anita, and she is an instant hit with adorable little Sophie. Teenaged Toby is taken with her as well but for entirely different reasons, as he quickly develops a crush on the beautiful feminine Synth. Teen daughter Mattie, though, who is a very skilled computer programmer, is distrustful of the Synth. Worst of all, when Laura returns from her business trip, she is furious that Joe made this decision without her, a bit creeped out to have a Synth in the house, and soon also quite jealous at the way her family comes to depend on Anita.

Meanwhile, we see glimpses into other lives nearby, both Synth and human. George, an elderly man (played by William Hurt), has memory problems and relies on his equally-aging (and malfunctioning) Synth, Odi. The Health Service wants to replace Odi, but he has become like a part of the family to George. We see a pair of police officers who are tasked with investigating any crimes related to Synths (which are rare), and one of them goes home to a handsome Synth physical therapist in his house who is helping his wife recover from a car accident. Most intriguingly, we are introduced to a young man named Leo who seems to have a sort of family made up of Synths that are unlike the typical ones. He refers to a Synth named Max and another named Fred as his brothers, and in the first episode, visits a prostitute Synth named Niska, promising that he is trying to break her out. These unusual Synths that Leo knows seem to be more human-like, even able to feel pain.

Believe it or not, most of that is all packed into the first episode or so! There is a lot going on here, but it all comes together, with surprises and plot twists around every corner. Humans works on two different levels. It's a fast-paced, action-packed sci fi tale about the Synths themselves, their development, and whether or not they might be a danger to humans in some way. At the same time, though, the show also has a more thoughtful, emotional side. It focuses on how the Synths interact with humans (like how George relies on Odi or Laura is jealous of Anita) as well as the relationships  between humans. In addition, woven throughout are intriguing moral questions about the Synths and the ways they are used by humans, especially as we get to know those in Leo's family who seem to be conscious.  It's a compelling and intricate story with many layers that kept us watching every night until we'd finished the first season!

Season 2 of Humans is in production now and due out in 2016 in the UK and 2017 in the US (uh-oh, we may have to re-watch season 1 for a third time!). Season 1 is currently available for free on Amazon Prime. Watching the trailer makes me want to watch the whole season again now!

Movie Monday: A Walk in the Woods

Last week, with most of our favorite TV shows finished with their winter or spring seasons and summer TV shows not yet started, my husband and I decided to watch a movie one night. We chose from among the free movie options on Amazon Prime and settled on A Walk in the Woods, a movie based on Bill Bryson's hilarious memoir of walking the Appalachian Trail with a friend. We had both loved the book and also used to be avid backpackers ourselves. It turns out that those two things kept us from really loving this movie. It was light and pleasant but not much more.

In the movie, Robert Redford plays Bill Bryson (a real-life famous author whose memoirs and nonfiction books are often hilarious and always informative). The movie departs from the book in quite a few ways, so I will focus on the movie's plot here. Faced with aging and attending a friend's funeral, Bill decides to walk the entire Appalachian Trail. His wife, played by Emma Thompson, is not at all happy with his decision and is concerned about his safety, but he can't be dissuaded. He calls every friend he can think of, old and new, to find someone to accompany him, but most of them think he's crazy and have no desire to join his ill-conceived mission. One friend, though, does respond: Stephen Katz, a childhood friend from Iowa, who has had the opposite life that Bill's had, filled with trouble with alcoholism and the law, and never leaving their hometown. Katz is played by Nick Nolte, who is - by far - the highlight of the movie.

So, the two old friends (and I do mean OLD) fly to Georgia and set off on the AT. They hike along, meeting other hikers, encountering a few minor problems, with plenty of beautiful montages of scenes along the AT and some adventures off the trail as well.

I think this movie would probably be far more enjoyable if you have NOT read Bryson's book and if you have no experience of backpacking yourself. For us, the departures from the book made no sense and the two characters' experiences were so far off from reality as to be distracting. For starters, Bryson was in his 40's when he tried hiking the AT, not his 70's. I read that this was Redford's project, though, so obviously, he couldn't play the lead if it were a guy in his 40's. The part that really didn't make sense to us was that the funniest parts of the book don't appear in the movie - all the trouble and challenges Bryson and Katz encountered in trying to hike 10-12 miles a day with heavy packs with absolutely no experience and no preparation at all. In the book and in the movie, Katz was especially out of shape, so this led to some hilarious passages in the book (all told in Bryson's exaggerating style). In the movie, they just jumped right into hiking 10 miles a day carrying packs (which weren't nearly big enough for long-distance backpacking) with very few problems - two out-of-shape men in their 70's! OK, I'm done with with the rant.

So, why is this movie still enjoyable and not a total disaster? Because of Nick Nolte. He's always been a favorite actor of mine, and he does his thing here - acting like the gruff but lovable guy who's always getting into trouble. All of the laughs in the movie are his, and it's fun, as always, to watch him. Overall, the movie (much like the severely airbrushed photo on its cover!) is light and shallow, with a few thoughtful moments toward the end. It has some funny moments but is lacking in the kind of belly laughs induced by the book it is based on. It was a pleasant hour and 45 minutes with a few laughs, but I'm glad it was free! It actually had decent user ratings on Amazon and Redbox, so perhaps we were biased from our own experiences and enjoying the book so much.

A Walk in the Woods is available for streaming free on Amazon Prime and is available on DVD through both Netflix and Redbox.

If you are interested in reading some of Bryson's books, A Walk in the Woods is very funny and definitely recommended, but my favorite of his is The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid, about his childhood in the 50's in Iowa.



         

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

Not much time for books or blogging last week. Our youngest son graduated from high school on Saturday, we had 6 family members staying with us for the weekend, and we hosted a party Saturday evening with 50 guests! So, my week was spent preparing for all of that revelry. It was a great weekend (though exhausting). Yesterday, everyone left one by one - family back to Rochester, oldest son off on a cruise with his friends, youngest son off to the beach with his friends (a Delaware tradition for grads), Mom to the train station.

This morning, I am enjoying the quiet solitude (can hear the birds singing outside) and starting to resume normal life. I have a lot of catch-up work to do!

Here's what we read last week - when we found a spare moment!

• I finished - and really enjoyed - A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki, an intricate, interwoven story about a Japanese teenager and a woman writer in British Columbia (I love stories about connections). 
• I also finished Persepolis 2: The Story of a Return by Marjane Satrapi. I was inspired to read this wonderful memoir sequel by two things: my son's World Lit class just read Persepolis (which I read and loved last year), and I joined Emma Watson's feminist book group on Goodreads, Our Shared Shelf (oh, yeah, Emma and I are best buds now), and her choice for June is Persepolis, so I wanted to read the second volume. It was just as good - and fascinating - as the first. This second volume focused on Marji's coming-of-age, her adolescence, and moving into adulthood.
• Now, I am reading my first Big Book of the Summer! I started The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater, the fourth and final book in her The Raven Cycle series, which I have been wanting to get to since it was released in April. It is nice to be back among Blue, Gansey, and the rest of the group.
• I finished listening to The Mystery of Hollow Places by Rebecca Podos on audio, a teen/YA novel with a unique plot. The 17-year old main character is looking for her mother, who left when she was very young, and her father, who just recently disappeared. Her dad writes medical mystery novels, so she is using what she's learned from his novels to track down these two very personal mysteries of her own. It was good - both a mystery and an intricate look at relationships and family. 
• My husband, Ken, just finished The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick, which I gave him for Christmas. We have enjoyed the first few episodes of the TV adaptation on Amazon Prime, so I thought he'd like the novel. He says it's completely different from the TV show. I haven't heard his final thoughts on the book yet since I was already asleep when he finished it last night!
• Jamie, 21, finished re-reading the first two books in the A Pattern of Shadow and Light trilogy by Melissa McPhail: Cephrael's Hand and The Dagger of Adendigaeth and then finished book 3, Paths of Air. He is now on break from college for the next 5 weeks and planning to read a LOT! He loaded his phone up with a bunch of Kindle books before he left on a Caribbean cruise yesterday, but I don't know which ones he chose.
• Craig, 18, was the high school graduate this weekend, and I can assure you that he will not read anything at all until he starts college in the fall!

No blog posts last week, other than my Monday post. I will be catching up this week, so check back!

What are you and your family reading this week?    

What Are You Reading Monday is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date, so head over and check out her blog and join the Monday fun! You can also participate in a kid/teen/YA version hosted by Unleashing Readers.

Join the Big Book Summer Reading Challenge! Just click the link to read the rules - super-easy for summer! You only need to read one "big book" (400 pages or more) to participate. Join the fun & sign up today! 

It's Monday 5/30! What Are You Reading?

Aauggh! How is it possibly Memorial Day, with June 2 days away, already? Last week, it was raining and cold - I wore a sweater out to dinner with friends. This weekend, it was 90 and humid, and I wore shorts out to dinner (with the same friends!). The weather craziness made the onset of summer seem even more abrupt. We spent much of the weekend preparing for next weekend's big event: my son's high school graduation. We planned a small party that is now up to about 40 people! Eeek!

More importantly, this weekend was the official kick-off for my annual Big Book Summer Challenge! Click on the link to read the rules (super easy for summer!) - you only need to read at least 1 book of 400 pages or more to participate. Join the fun!

Here's what we've been reading this week:

• I am still reading A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki, which I had to temporarily set aside to get my review book read on time. I am loving it so far - an intricate, interwoven story about a Japanese teenager and a woman writer in British Columbia (I love stories about connections). I have become very attached to the two main characters! It's a long book, but I am almost finished and still enjoying it.
• I rarely read two books at once, but I make an exception for graphic novels. My requested Persepolis 2: The Story of a Return by Marjane Satrapi came in at the library. I was inspired to read this wonderful memoir sequel by two things: my son's World Lit class just read Persepolis (which I read and loved last year), and I joined Emma Watson's feminist book group on Goodreads, Our Shared Shelf (oh, yeah, Emma and I are best buds now), and her choice for June is Persepolis, so I wanted to read the second volume. Just as good - and fascinating - as the first so far.
• I have been listening to The Mystery of Hollow Places by Rebecca Podos on audio, a teen/YA novel with a unique plot. The 17-year old main character is looking for her mother, who left her and her father when she was very young, and her father, who just recently disappeared. Her dad writes medical mystery novels, so she is using what she's learned from his novels to track down these two very personal mysteries of her own.
• My husband, Ken, is still reading The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick, which I gave him for Christmas. We have enjoyed the first few episodes of the TV adaptation on Amazon Prime, so I thought he'd like the novel. He says it's completely different from the TV show. It's good that he's reading his Christmas gifts because it's almost Father's Day, and I've already chosen his new books!
• Jamie, 21, finished re-reading the first two books in the A Pattern of Shadow and Light trilogy by Melissa McPhail: Cephrael's Hand and The Dagger of Adendigaeth. Now, he's started book 3, Paths of Air. With finals the past two weeks, he hasn't had much reading time. He finishes exams tomorrow, and then he can relax and read nonstop!

Last week's blog posts - there won't be much time for blogging this week or next!

TV Tuesday: The Night Manager, a British import, a spy thriller starring Hugh Laurie

Middle-Grade Review: Upside-Down Magic, a fun magic novel that tackles some important real-life issues

Middle-Grade Review: The Big Dark by Rodman Philbrick, a compelling sci fi novel

2016 Big Book Summer Challenge - join the fun!

My Big Book Summer - Check out the Big Books I plan to read this summer

What are you and your family reading this week?    

What Are You Reading Monday is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date, so head over and check out her blog and join the Monday fun! You can also participate in a kid/teen/YA version hosted by Unleashing Readers.

Join the Big Book Summer Reading Challenge! Just click the link to read the rules - super-easy for summer! You only need to read one "big book" (400 pages or more) to participate. Join the fun & sign up today! 

 

My 2016 Big Book Summer

I have just announced the 5th year of my challenge, Big Book Summer Challenge, so I guess I should be the first to sign up!

I really enjoyed tackling some big books the last few summers, and I'm looking forward to doing it again and finally reading some of these bricks that have been collecting dust on my shelf (NOTE: for this challenge, a Big Book is defined as a book with 400 pages or more).

I don't know if I will get to all of these, but I like to have some options to choose from.  These are all currently on my shelves, waiting patiently to be read (along with many others!). I actually chose 6 this year because none of them are 700-1000 pages long, as in some years - these are mostly  in the 400-500 page range:

• The Marvels by Brian Selznick, 665 pages (middle-grade)
• Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell, 507 pages
• The Many Lives of John Stone by Linda Buckley-Archer, 444 pages (YA)
• The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater, 438 pages (YA)
• The Likeness by Tana French, 466 pages
• To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis, 493 pages

I like to alternate between grown-up books and kids/teen/YA books, so I have three of each on this list.  Most of these have been collecting dust on my shelf for many years, so all of these qualify for my Read Your Own Damn Books Challenge! This looks like a long list, but most of the books are under 500 pages (and the longest one is half pictures), and the kids/YA ones usually go pretty quickly.

I'm so excited for summer now!

How about you?  Are you up for tackling a Big Book (or two or three) this summer?  Join me and sign up for the 2015 Big Book Summer Challenge!

2016 Big Book Summer Reading Challenge

Image(s): FreeDigitalPhotos.net

A few years ago, I came up with the idea to use the relaxed freedom of summer to tackle some of the biggest books on my TBR shelf that I'd been wanting to read but never seemed to have the time for.  Both of my book groups take time off during the summer, so with no interfering commitments, I declared it The Summer of the Big Book and really enjoyed delving into some hefty tomes, like The Passage and Pillars of the Earth.

It was so much fun that four years ago, I created this challenge so that YOU can join me! And here it is Memorial Day weekend again and the official start of summer 2016. So join in the fun!

The Details:
Hey, it's summer, so we'll keep this low-key and easy!

• Anything over 400 pages qualifies as a big book.
• The challenge will run from Memorial Day weekend (starting May 27 this year) through Labor Day weekend (Labor Day is September 5 this year).
  
• Choose one or two or however many big books you want as your goal.  Wait, did you get that?  You only need to read 1 book with over 400 pages this summer to participate! (though you are welcome to read more, if you want).
• Choose from what's on your shelves already or a big book you've been meaning to read for ages or anything that catches your eye in the library - whatever peaks your interest!
• Sign up on the links list below or on the 2016 Big Book Summer Challenge page.
• Write a post to kick things off - you can list the exact big books you plan to read or just publish your intent to participate, but be sure to include the Big Book Summer Challenge pic above, with a link back to this blog.
  
• Write a post to wrap up at the end, listing the big books you read during the summer.
• You can write progress posts if you want to and/or reviews of the big books you've read...but you don't have to!  There is a separate links list below for big book review posts.

That's it!  Go check out your shelves and your TBR list and sign up below!

(Don't have a blog?  No problem!  You can still participate in the challenge - just leave a comment in the Comment section, stating your goals for the Big Book Summer Challenge.)

Check out my own list of books to read for the challenge.

New this year: I started a group on Goodreads for the 2016 Big Book Summer Challenge, where we can talk about Big Books and our progress on the challenge. If you don't have a blog, you can also use the Goodreads group to sign up for the challenge, post updates, and show which Big Books you are reading!

At the end of the summer, there will be a Big Book Giveaway! After Labor Day, I'll select one name from among the participants (bloggers who leave a link below as well as those without a blog who leave a comment to announce their participation or participate through the Goodreads group) and will offer the winner a choice from a selection of Big Books from my own shelves - probably most of the titles I read this summer and perhaps a few others to choose from.

And help spread the word on Twitter with #BigBookSummer (you can follow me at @suebookbybook).

Be sure to include a link to your kick off blog post (not your homepage):


   

    An InLinkz Link-up

   


Come back to this page during the summer to add a link whenever you review a Big Book or post a progress report:


   

    An InLinkz Link-up

   

Middle-Grade Review: The Big Dark

During Dewey’s Readathon last month, I listened to The Big Dark by Rodman Philbrick on audio anytime I wasn’t able to be reading a book. This what-if science fiction novel for middle-graders is so compelling that I finished the entire book in one day!

Charlie is enjoying a rare view of the Northern Lights on New Year’s Eve with his mother and sister when there is a sudden bright flash, and all the power goes out. On the baseball field where most of his little town in northern New Hampshire is watching the lights, cars stop running, headlights wink out, and even flashlights quit working. Over the next days – and weeks – the power stays out, and Charlie’s town slowly realizes the power is out everywhere – no electricity, gas-powered vehicles don’t work, no radio, and even batteries don’t work. Charlie’s science teacher thinks it was caused by solar flares.

Isolated and frightened, Charlie and his community first band together to help each other, sharing firewood and food and lending a hand where needed. Not everyone is interested in working together, though. There is an anti-government, survivalist compound on the outskirts of town, and they are well prepared for this kind of disaster and have no intention of sharing anything. They also question the authority of the town’s part-time deputy, who has taken on the role of leader during the emergency. Things really get dangerous when someone burns down the only store in town because its owners are Jewish.

Without the store – and its pharmacy – Charlie gets worried about his mother. She is a diabetic and will run out of insulin soon, and there is nowhere else nearby to get any. Determined to save her, Charlie sets off on skis for a larger town 50 miles to the south, where there is a hospital and he hopes he might find medicine. He is setting off for the unknown, though, and could just as likely find anarchy and violence in the bigger town.

I was completely engrossed in this suspenseful story right from the beginning. It has a post-apocalyptic feeling to it, even though you don’t know whether this situation will turn out to be temporary or permanent. The characters feel real, and I was rooting Charlie on to succeed in his mission. There is plenty of action and tension in the story, but it is also an in-depth study of human nature, examining issues of family, community, and tolerance. I was glued to my iPod from beginning to end of this gripping story and want to read more of Philbrick’s novels.

Scholastic

NOTE: When I checked for other novels Philbrick has written, I realized I have read one of them – Zaneand the Hurricane – which was also excellent.

Middle-Grade Review: Upside-Down Magic

I recently enjoyed listening to the audiobook of Upside-Down Magic by Sarah Mlynowski, Lauren Myracle, and Emily Jenkins, a book for younger middle-grade readers. At first, I thought it might be just a fun little story about a magic school, but it turned out to have more depth than I expected and tackled some important topics for kids….in a very fun way.

Nory is nervous about her Big Test, the entrance exam for Sage Academy. For starters, it is the most prestigious magic school around, and she desperately wants to start 5^th grade there in the fall, following in the footsteps of her older brother and sister. Plus, her father is the headmaster. In Nory’s world, kids go to regular school through 4^th grade, but since magic skills usually start around age 10, everyone starts at magic schools in 5^th grade.

There are five different types of magic, according to your natural abilities. Some kids, like Nory’s older brother, are Flares and can create fire. Others, like her sister, are Fuzzies, and have talents for attracting and working with animals. There are also Flickers and Flyers and Fluxers, like Nory. Fluxers can turn into different kinds of animals. The problem is that Nory doesn’t turn into regular animals; she turns into her own creative combinations, like the beaver kitten that chewed her father’s office up while she was practicing for her test.

The test for Sage Academy requires that Nory turn into a kitten – just a plain, cute, black kitten, not a beaver kitten or a bat kitten or any of the other wild combinations that happened when Nory practiced. The kids all say that Nory’s magic is wonky, and when she is put into a special Upside-Down Magic class at a regular magic school, she figures it means that she is in a remedial class. Her new teacher, though, has other ideas. She wants to teach the kids in her class to embrace their differences and learn how to perfect their own unique brands of magic.

Although Upside-Down Magic is about a magic school for kids, this sweet, funny novel has more in common with Fish in a Tree (a novel about learning disabilities) than with Harry Potter. It works on two levels: as a story about kids learning to use magic with often funny results and on a deeper level, about learning that it’s OK  - and even great! – to be different. 

As the kids in Nory’s class get to know each other and start to feel comfortable with their own wonky magic, they learn that being different can have its own rewards…and can even be valuable. The lessons that Nory learns along the way are very clearly applicable to non-magic kids, too, whether they struggle with learning disabilities, physical or mental illness, autism or are just the “weird” kids in school who march to the beat of their own drummers. This fun novel set in a magic world lets all kids know that it’s OK to be different.

Scholastic