Kid's favorite comic artists come together to create this collection of stories on the theme of lunch. These quick stories will entertain and just might introduce young readers to new authors.
Showing posts with label 24 hour read-a-thon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 24 hour read-a-thon. Show all posts
Sunday, July 21, 2019
Book 11 Complete - Comics Squad
Kid's favorite comic artists come together to create this collection of stories on the theme of lunch. These quick stories will entertain and just might introduce young readers to new authors.
Book 10 Complete - The Apostles' Creed
I had some reservations about starting a theological exploration this late in a readathon, but it turns out my fears were largely unfounded. While Mohler's exploration is thorough, it's also clear. He breaks down the Creed phrase by phrase, examining it's meaning and providing ample evidence of it's Biblical truth.
Book 9 Complete - Lunch Lady and the Summer Camp Shakedown
The Lunch Lady graphic novel series is always a safe bet for quick and funny entertainment. While the stories aren't complicated they are fun to read. Like an episode of Scooby Doo. That's especially true of this volume, set at summer camp and involving a swamp monster.
Book 8 Complete - Aru Shah and the End of Time
I was a pretty big fan of the Percy Jackson series when it was introduced and remain a fan of the construction so I was on board with the idea of this book. Chokshi presents us with a pair of female demi-gods, part of the Hindi mythology, on a mission to prevent the end of the world. They are, as is often the case in fables, deeply flawed and yet immensely likeable characters. Their flaws balance out their strengths, keeping them mostly human. I listened to this one as an audio book. It's well narrated, funny and exciting with a dynamic voice.
Saturday, July 20, 2019
Book 7 Complete - Rainbow Brite
I never watched Rainbow Brite when it was on tv (a bit before my time). I've never seen in in reruns or on streaming or anything like that. So I have no idea if this is an accurate representation of the plot of the original series. I do know that I like what I read. There's a fair amount of magic, to be certain. But there's a hint of science too, a brief explanation of the different wavelengths of light. This is a quirky book but tells a reasonably coherent story.
Book 6 Complete - Estranged
Estranged by Ethan M Aldridge
Changelings may be my favorite of the mythological beings and are, in my opinion, woefully under-represented in fiction. A good changeling story explores duality - the changeling and the human he replaced. And that's exactly what this graphic novel does. It examines the life of a magical being above ground and his human counterpart below, how each envies the other and brings a unique perspective into their interactions. Aldridge has created an involved world with a wide variety of creatures, each having a specific role to play in the social strata of the World Below. The illustration style is reminiscent of Ben Hatke's work and worth examining all on it's own.
Book 5 Complete - Moth & Whisper
Imagine a world where your identity is your most valuable commodity, where you're tracked everywhere you go and it's basically illegal to be unknown. That's the world of this book. Anderson and Hickman introduce us to this world and to Nikki, a teen on the run, searching for missing parents. Parents who are the world's greatest thieves. Nikki has taken over both their roles while searching for information about their whereabouts. It's a complex world but one that's well portrayed visually so we aren't weighed down with expositional dialogue. The text and illustrations work together well to tell a complete story. This is a great book, both to read and to simply admire visually.
Book 4 Complete - The Lying Woods
Oddly enough, the whole "discovering that my rich dad is an embezzler" is an increasingly common theme in teen fiction these days. This is a fairly strong entry in the genre. We have elements of family secrets and worlds colliding; of the truth about a person's actions at odds with your emotional connection to them. And there are hints of The Count of Monte Cristo in the plot, so that's fun too. A truly solid read.
Book 3 Complete - Beyonders
If you have any interest in secret societies, history mysteries, or conspiracy theories, than this is the book for you. Building off of the Voynich manuscript and the Antikythera mechanism, Jenkins spins a complex world of early computer programming and predictions, of secret societies at war with one another.
Book 2 complete - Little White Lies
Personally, I've never had much interest in debutantes. That high society stuff is a far cry from my own world experience. I can't deny that the ins and outs of this plot are compelling, though. Barnes has woven a complex plot of family secrets and the dark underbelly of polite society. We see a group of young ladies working a plot at multiple levels to reveal a series of dangerous secrets, all while presenting a front of refinement and class.
Book 1 Complete - How We Became Wicked
Plague stories are usually a pretty exciting proposition. In this case, we have people transformed into a near childlike state of wonder and excitement but with a violent tendency. They are off hand about murder. They want to kill and are fairly open about that desire. No mindless zombies here. It makes their presence unsettling to be certain but not overly frightening. Yates does some interesting things with perspectives and timelines, revealing truths about the world in which his protagonists live in a metered way. Not especially pulse-pounding but an interesting read.
24 in 48 Readathon Starting Line
Hi friends! I find myself with a mostly free weekend, so I decided last minute to participate in the 24 in 48 Summer Readathon. This is a fun, low pressure readathon and a great way to check some titles off my TBR list. Check in with me over the next 24 (ish) hours and see how I'm faring.
Sunday, April 7, 2019
Book 7 complete - Speechless
Grief is a complicated thing. Especially when you didn't particularly like the deceased person. Schmitt takes the reader through those complex emotions in a darkly humorous, often uncomfortable, but ultimately edifying way.
Book 6 complete - Doctor Who
Doctor Who is always a solid read and perfect for the late night hours (when I actually read this, before falling asleep for a couple of hours - whoops!). Adventure and humor without a lot of complex though. This collection introduces a number of new characters, a couple of complete story arcs, and contains the conclusion of a larger arc as well.
Saturday, April 6, 2019
Book 5 complete - An Assassin's Guide to Love and Treason
I think my favorite part about this book is the insanity it paints around the original productions of Shakespeare plays. Constant changes to the text during rehearsal. Men dressed as women and, at times, playing up that reality. The historical context of the plot to assassinate the queen was certainly interesting but it couldn't hold a candle to the image of Shakespeare wandering around like a madman, needlessly inventing words.
Book 4 complete - My Life as a Diamond
I'm not a sports oriented person. At all. So I generally avoid sports themed books. The exception: when sports are a metaphor for a greater life lesson. And that's the case here. I find that baseball, in particular, is often used as a life metaphor and it works for me. This is a delightful, heartwarming story of self-acceptance and rising above other people's judgement.
Book 3 complete - It Wasn't Me
Breakfast Club meets school mystery. A disparate group of middle schoolers realize they don't know much about each other as they are forced to work through which of them committed an act of bullying. My expectations were pretty low but Levy blew me away. While the resolution is exactly what you might expect, the journey is worth it.
Book 2 complete - Astrid the Unstoppable
A clever, if decidedly foreign feeling, adventure for fans of Pippi Longstocking and the work of Polly Horvath.
Book 1 complete - All Our Broken Pieces
Periodically, I read teen romances. Romance is in no way my favorite genre but on occasion a book transcends simple romance, tells a more complex story. This book makes a strong stab at being more. It is, at heart, still a romance and has some tropey, eye-rolling moments and overly convenient plot points. Still, a decent read.
And we're off
Once again, I find myself generally obligation free during Dewey's Hour Read-a-thon so I figure I'll read today. This is my official starting line post. I'll be posting here as I finish books so check in with me through the day.
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