sindri_inn_arsaeli's reviews
1142 reviews

Bird Watch by Christie Matheson

5.0

Beautiful illustrations, and simple engagement for readers young and old to find the birds on each page. Great book to foster the love of bird watching and the skills of noticing in young readers!

Wild Places: The Life of Naturalist David Attenborough by Hayley Rocco

4.5

Can't Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne

adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

Both a great book and a great job by the reader, highly enjoyable audio! This book labels itself cozy romance/fantasy, and does a great job at both. This didn't mean boring at all, there were certainly still problems to solve, but what made it cozy was really the fact that all the characters could be trusted. There were a very small number of known "bad guys", and the rest of the cast of characters, all the folk of Tawny, were sincere in their feelings and drives. I loved the pair of politicians in Tawny and their little rivalry, because it was clear that they both truly loved the town and want what's best for it, they just have different strengths to do that. They'll make a great pair some day! 
HOWEVER - I didn't actually know going on to this book that is was kicking off a series! So while the main problem is resolved by books end, the second big problem is left to be solved in a later book. Good thing I'll be happy to come back for more!

Were-Geeks Save Wisconsin by Kathy Lyons
Did not finish book. Stopped at 30%.

Based on the title and description, I went in thinking this would be more humourous/satirical that it turned out to be. The story I do think was trying to be funny, but also trying to be heavy romance, and instead of feeling seamless it came across to me like the plot couldn't pick which genre it was. I do not enjoy erotic, full description romance, and did also feel a little duped by the cartoony cover art and punny title when I got to the first sex scene, pretty early in the plot. That was where I decided not to finish the book at all. Futher description behind spoiler filter, but I also opted out after finding the description of "geeks" to feel like it was going to be a weird fetish.

The first sex scene was uncomfortable to read, as neither party was entirely comfortable with what was happening either. Nero because he didn't want to get involved emotionally, but knew he had to physically, and Josh because it felt like a supernatural version of being drugged at a bar. I think Nero even had a line that is immediately ignored saying basically "it doesn't have to be sex, but sex is best, and if you don't you'll die". Now it did sound like the alien character was about to create a zombie geek werewolf right after that, but even as intriguing as that sounded, I found that none of the story was holding me to finish after finding out the romance style was a poor fit for me.

Uncovering the Logic of English: A Common-Sense Approach to Reading, Spelling, and Literacy by Denise Eide
Did not finish book. Stopped at 50%.

This was a continuing education read, but as I am not actually a phonics educator at all I'm a librarian who just needs to be versed enough in the basics to converse with teachers, I think I really only needed the introduction. All 180+ pages of detailed rules was a little too in the weeds for me.

The Guardians of Kawts by Weston Fields

adventurous fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated

2.75

High on potential, but in need of closer editing.
As a debut novel, there's definitely some unique ideas going into this story. I think it suffers most from an overabundance of those ideas, and an occasional lack of basic plot outlining. The timeline often seems entirely unsure of itself, dragging what should be breakneck action into far too long an execution, and then whipping through events that feel like they should take weeks or months to evolve in what sounds like days. But the more jarring parts of the story are the sudden introduction of characters, backstory, or other details that are vastly important to one scene, and then they are either forgotten or ignored for long chapters before returning.
The dialogue shows marked improvement from the start of the book to the end, becoming more natural, so I feel like future endeavors by Weston Fields should only get better from here, but it does feel like a freshman work at this point.

The Story of Silence by Alex Myers
Did not finish book. Stopped at 12%.

I was really intrigued by the claimed history and the premise of the book. It really just came down to being too wordy. I wasn't gripped by the framing story and found it a distraction, and there was just too much flowery over description, even for trying to imitate the style of medieval texts. It was a Libby loan with others waiting for it, and I just decided I couldn't slog through it fast enough and passed it on.

The Class with Wings by Paul Fleischman

informative inspiring fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

What a BEAUTIFUL book! The basic story is a teacher telling a class about the migration of vireos, tiny birds that migrate long distances between South and North America. But instead of a video, or a lecture, or reading a book about the material, the teacher has the students close their eyes and imagine themselves as the birds. The beauty of the book is in being told by the students, who can't wait for their teacher to give them wings. I absolutely love how the class tells the story collectively, as one voice. Small individual voices pop up on the pages, showing a single student relating directly to something they've learned. The cooperative storytelling allows the reader to feel included in the lesson. "I" means "we" throughout the telling, and "we" includes "you", the reader, as well. Hannah Salyer's soft, expressive illustrations perfectly portray the events unfolding in the imagination of the children. I love the little brown auras she uses to show how the children and the birds are connected, the same. And I love the modern trend of including an afterword of information for adult readers, for the parents, teachers, and caregivers, to continue the excitement of a book for kids who want to know more! My kids have used the Merlin bird app for years in our backyard, and it was really neat to see it featured here!

Castle Swimmer, Volume 1 by Wendy Martin

4.0

This is a poorly crafted review, but I finished late at night and still want to jot down last thoughts. Very cute, unfinished story waiting for the next installment. I really enjoyed the little extras at the end explaining the mechanics of some of the culture for the sharks, including the materials they use for scrolls and armor. I would have loved to see a side by side comparison of many of the prophecies with a brief interpretation from each tribe, maybe like a rundown of a few Kappa had already interacted with. I have some guesses of what's coming next, but I think that might give me a better chance at correct foreshadowing. The ending for this book felt fairly abrupt, and I know that the online version is far more complete, so I hope to see book two soon!

The Crossing Place: A Journey Among the Armenians by Philip Marsden

adventurous challenging reflective medium-paced

4.0