everydayreading's reviews
2090 reviews

Jacob Have I Loved by Katherine Paterson

2.0

There's no use lying about it; I was deeply disappointed in this book. I absolutely loved Bridge to Terabithia, which I read about two years ago, so I had high hopes for this book. It was a small book, with a nice cover, and I liked the feeling of holding it in my hands. Basically, I would have enjoyed this book far more if I'd just held it instead of actually opening it and reading it. I started it in the car on the way up to Oklahoma City and finished it the next day. And I only really enjoyed about fifteen minutes of the total reading. Even with my super-speed reading, I find that to be a very very poor ratio.

Read my complete review at http://everydayreading.blogspot.com/2007/07/jacob-have-i-loved.html

Peter and the Starcatchers by Dave Barry

4.0

I love Dave Barry. My parents both adore Dave Barry, as does my grandmother, and they've been reading or handing off various columns and books of his to me for as long as I can remember. I've read practically every column he's ever written and most of his books. For some reason, though, I've never read his novels, Big Trouble and Tricky Business. I love his non-fiction columns, so I was less interested in his fictional books. Then, when I went home for Christmas, my brother was reading the second of Dave Barry's juvenile books, called "Peter and the Shadow Thieves." I asked him how they were, and he raved about them. Even at eleven-years-old, I trust his advice, so a few weeks ago (I clearly don't trust his advice in a TIMELY manner), I picked up the first one at the library.

This is a fun book. I think I've mentioned before that I really adore re-tellings of classic or widely-known stories. I think Beauty (Robin McKinley) is excellent, and I love Ella Enchanted (Gail Carson Levine). There's just something so thrilling about watching the pieces fit together when you already know what the end result is. This book fits right into that category. It's the story of how Peter Pan became, well, Peter Pan.

Read my complete review at http://everydayreading.blogspot.com/2007/05/peter-and-star-catchers-by-dave-barry.html

The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron

2.0

Overall, I just can't understand why this book won the Newbery, unless it was a sad year for children's lit. I just started listening to another Newbery book, A Wrinkle in Time," and in the introduction, the author comments that adults don't understand this book, but children "get it." I feel like this book is the exact opposite; I'm sure some adults felt like it was deep and meaningful and rich, but I suspect many children will find it a bit dull and depressing. Also, I found the book to be a bit of a paradox in that it seemed like an adult message with a childishly simple (and often hole-filled) plot.

It's certainly not a book I would recommend to my brother or any other kid that was the recommended age. It just wasn't that great and it certainly wasn't memorable. I've read Newbery's that moved me to tears, like Bridge to Terabithia and Walk Two Moons. I've read ones that I thought about for weeks afterwards, like The Giver. I've read ones that just charmed the socks off of me, like Caddie Woodlawn. This book did none of these for me. It will likely be most remembered for the wild publicity and protests that the inclusion of the word "scrotum" caused.

Read my full review at http://everydayreading.blogspot.com/2007/06/higher-power-of-lucky-by-susan-patron.html

Peter and the Shadow Thieves by Dave Barry, Ridley Pearson

4.0

I really liked the Peter and the Star Catchers, but this book was even better. The plot was tighter (and quite unpredictable), the characters more developed, and the story just raced along. The bad guys were scarier to me than the previous ones, and the situation was both more fantastic and more desperate than the last book. I loved that George Darling was introduced into the story. I literally could hardly put this book down - I was so anxious to see what was going to happen next.

This book is, however, fairly dark and scary (of course, I'm also a total wimp). I wouldn't read it as a nine-year-old, that's for sure. But get a bit older than that, and I think just about anyone would really enjoy this story.

Read my complete review at http://everydayreading.blogspot.com/2007/06/peter-and-shadow-thieves-by-dave-barry.html

The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale

5.0

The plot is certainly basic enough fairy-tale material, but Hale makes it something really wonderful. I haven't enjoyed a book as much as I did this one in quite a long time. It read quickly, but I felt that it had substance. It didn't feel, as so much has recently, like junk food. Perhaps the thing I appreciated most was a heroine I really liked and could admire. Ani is a very real character, well-developed, with actions and emotions that feel natural and uncontrived. So many of the female lead characters in books seem flat, petty, or stereotypical. If I had a daughter, I'd want her to have literary role models like Ani - smart, self-sufficient, unafraid, and caring.

Read the rest of the review at http://everydayreading.blogspot.com/2007/01/goose-girl-shannon-hale.html

Enna Burning by Shannon Hale

5.0

http://everydayreading.blogspot.com/2007/04/enna-burning-by-shannon-hale.html

River Secrets by Shannon Hale

4.0

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

2.0

I heard a lot of good things about this book, but it was a little too simplistic and crude for me.

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

5.0

You can't compete with Jane Eyre - it's one of the finest books ever written. Read it and love it.

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

5.0