Farewell Tour of a Terminal Optimist by John Young
Combine a standard "kid with cancer" story and a standard "unexpected road trip" story and that's a fair idea of what to expect from this book. It's not entirely predictable, of course. A couple of unique twists. More importantly, the background attitude is unique. Connor displays an unusual blend of optimism and existential dread.
My So-Called Bollywood Life by Nisha Sharma
Initially, I was not impressed by this book. The typical romance tropes hit hard. I rolled my eyes hard and sighed a lot. It wasn't until I reached the final quarter of the book that I realized that this was intentional, that Sharma was using tropes to make a point. Is it a point that I entirely agree with? No. She's talking about destiny and free-will essentially being the same thing. Even though I disagree, at least I can see why she's using so many chiches. A good choice for fans of teen romance and rom-coms.
I decided sort of last minute yesterday to participate in Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon, so I haven't done any of the typical readathon prep. But, since I find myself without obligations today, I'll give it a shot. This is my official starting line post. I'll be posting updates throughout the day.
I'm
always interested to see how novels treat sensitive topics. They explore
an issue like grief from a number of perspectives. Here are six novels
written in the last six months that have grief as a central issue.
6 new novels about grief
1. Fragments of the Lost by Megan Miranda
2. All Three Stooges by Erica S Perl
3. This is Not a Love Letter by Kim Purcell
4. Broken Beautiful Hearts by Kami Garcia
5. When Light Left Us by Leah Thomas
6. The Beauty that Remains by Ashley Woodfolk
Power in Numbers by Talithia Williams
Shorter profiles are my favorite way to introduce people to historical figures. By giving us five to ten pages of history and influence we're able to appreciate an overview and determine which figures we want to explore in greater detail. And what better way to inspire girls to innovate in STEM fields than to give them a host of brilliant women to model their lives after. Yes, we need to show them how cool STEM subjects are but we also need to show them that they have heroes already in the field.
More information: Power in Numbers releases May 8.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley
Title: Running on the Roof of the World
Author: Jess Butterworth
Genre: realistic fiction
Similar books: Escape from Aleppo by N.H. Senzai
What Elephants Know by Eric Dinerstein
Rating:
 |
| intriguing |
Summary (provided by publisher): A story of adventure, survival, courage, and hope, set in the vivid Himalayan landscape of Tibet and India.
In this contemporary story, Tash lives in Tibet, where as a practicing Buddhist she must follow many rules to avoid the wrath of the occupying Chinese soldiers. Lately, things have been relatively peaceful, as long as Tash and her family hide their religion and don’t mention its leader, the Dalai Lama.
The quiet is ruptured when a man publicly sets himself on fire in protest. Soldiers break into Tash’s house and seize her parents. She narrowly escapes, and soon she and her best friend, Sam, along with two borrowed yaks, flee across the mountains, where they face blizzards, hunger, a treacherous landscape, and the threat of discovery and capture. It’s a long, dangerous trip to the Indian border and safety—and not every member of the group will survive.
This page-turning high adventure introduces young readers to a fascinating part of the world and the threat to its people’s religious freedom. Running on the Roof of the World will appeal to fans of such topical survival adventure stories as A Long Walk to Water and Never Fall Down.
My opinion: I know very little about Tibet. We don't learn much in school, not about the culture nor about the invasion. This book gives us a brief glance into indigenous culture, but that's all. We see the restrictions on behavior, speech, religion. We get events, not motivations or historical context. I could see using this as part of an educational unit but I'm not certain it stands well on it's own.
More information: Running on the Roof of the World releases May 1.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley.
With Spring finally, actually here, I feel the need for a change in wardrobe. For me, that means a trip to the thrift store. One of my recent thrift finds was this sundress.
I'm not really big on sundresses but I liked the weight and color and with the elastic in the waistline I knew it wouldn't be difficult to convert it to a skirt. It did have a small grease stain on the skirt but that was easily covered with some art.
