Book review - Duet

 

Title: Duet

Author: Elise Broach

Genre: realistic fiction/magical realism

Similar books: Flora & Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo

                      Fleabrain Loves Franny by Joanne Rocklin

Rating:

 

charming and not overly dramatic

Summary (provided by publisher): Welcome to the world of Mirabelle, a young goldfinch who loves to sing and dreams of becoming a musical star. She lives with her family in the backyard of a piano teacher, and she is quickly intrigued by Mr. Starek's newest pupil. Michael Jin is an eleven-year-old keyboard sensation, but lesson after lesson, he refuses to play.  With the prestigious Chopin Festival looming at summer’s end, how will he be ready in time?  Mirabelle is responsible for Michael’s breakthrough—to her own astonishment, she sings the Chopin piece he is beginning to play at the piano. It is their first duet.
Thus begins a secret adventure that will take Mirabelle and Michael further than they ever imagined—in music, in friendship, and in solving the mystery of a lost piano that could be worth millions.  A house full of treasures holds the clues. There, Mirabelle, Michael, and their friend Emily will make an important discovery that links the great composer Frederic Chopin, the trailblazing author George Sand, and the French Romantic painter Eugene Delacroix.
A fast-paced, history-rich mystery will have young readers hooked as they root for boy and bird in this beautifully told novel, full of emotion and suspense.

My opinion: At face value, this is a story about a boy and a bird that learn to recognize their own abilities and rely on their shared strength to accomplish things. Even more than that, though, there is a celebration of the beauty, artistry, and near magic of music and musicians. Of their instruments. Broach addresses the way that the same song played by the same artist may sound different with different instruments. Composition affects resonance which can become important with instrumental music. It was cool to see that explored in any book, much less one for children. And that exploration as well as the historical mystery involving Chopin is explained with enough detail to be interesting without ever becoming overwhelming. There's enough tension and mystery to keep the reader engaged but nothing that will become too much for sensitive kids.

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley

Pick 6: music

 Have you ever noticed that characters in novels tend to have the same hobbies? They're either athletes, aspiring writers, or musicians. For this list, I gathered titles where being a musician plays an important role in the plot. So, here are six books published in the last six months that in some way feature musicians

6 new books about musicians

1. The Way I Say It by Nancy Tandon
2. The Legend of Brightblade by Ethan M Aldridge
3. Wrath by Marcus Sedgwick
4. Scout is Not a Band Kid by Jade Armstrong
5. A Duet for Home by Karina Yan Glaser
6. Duet by Elise Broach
   

Book review - Gideon Green in Black and White

 

Title: Gideon Green in Black and White

Author: Katie Henry

Genre: Mystery

Similar books: Cold by Mariko Tamaki

                      Dead Weight by Terry Blas

Rating:

 

quirky, but reasonably entertaining

Summary (provided by publisher): Gideon’s short-lived run as a locally famous boy detective ended when middle school started, and everyone else—including his best friend, Lily—moved on while Gideon kept holding on to his trench coat, fedora, and his treasured film noir collection. Now he’s sixteen and officially retired. That is, until Lily shows up suddenly at Gideon’s door, needing his help.
He might be mad at her for cutting him off with no explanation, but Gideon can’t turn down a case. As a cover, Gideon joins Lily on the school paper. Surprisingly, he finds himself warming up to the welcoming, close-knit staff . . . especially Tess, the cute, witty editor-in-chief.
But as the case gets bigger than Gideon or Lily could have anticipated, Gideon must balance his black-and-white quest for the truth with the full colors of real life—or risk a permanent fade to black.

My opinion: It's a plot we don't often see: the once loved child detective finds the world has moved on and his interests in solving mysteries now make him an outcast. And much like in the lesser known movie "Mystery Team" we have a young detective used to finding missing toys and observing strange goings on at a neighbor's house suddenly confronted with the realities of real, dangerous crime. While the book has it's amusing moments it leans more into the noir feel. It shoots for grit, often falling a bit short, leaving the reader in a bit of a no-man's land of tone. Gideon's development as a character, having to confront his own short comings and learn to rely on and trust other people, give the book some depth and heart, making it worth a read.

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley

Watercolor bookmarks

 A lot of my craft supplies are still packed and stored from my move so I've started small on this week's craft project. The good news: it looks super cool and is easy for just about anyone to do. All you need is some heavy paper (I used watercolor paper), watercolor paints, a fine tipped marker, and some good scissors. 

Swirl paint all over your paper and let it dry. The pattern doesn't matter, just whatever looks good to you. While the paper is drying, cut out your template. I drew a stylized feather for my main design.

Once my watercolor was dry, I traced my template on the paper. Again, placement doesn't matter, just whatever looks good to you. I was able to fit about 6 feathers on my paper. Go over the outline and any details with your marker and then cut it out. 

 

lovely watercolor feathers

 

After cutting out my feathers I had some decent sized scraps of paper left, so I also made some llamas.

Book review - Gone Dark

Title: Gone Dark

Author: Amanda Panitch

Genre: adventure/survival

Similar books: 96 Miles by JL Esplin

                      How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff

Rating:

 

sort of loses the track towards the end

Summary (provided by publisher): When seventeen-year-old Zara escaped her father’s backwoods survivalist compound five years ago, she traded crossbows and skinning hides for electricity and video games…and tried to forget the tragedy that drove her away.
Until a malware attack on the United States electrical grids cuts off the entire country’s power.
In the wake of the disaster and the chaos that ensues, Zara is forced to call upon skills she thought she’d never use again—and her best bet to survive is to go back to the home she left behind. Drawing upon a resilience she didn’t know she had, Zara leads a growing group of friends on an epic journey across a crumbling country back to her father’s compound, where their only hope for salvation lies.
But with every step she takes, Zara wonders if she truly has what it takes to face her father and the secrets of her past, or if she’d be better off hiding in the dark.

My opinion: Most of us have probably entertained the idea: what happens to the world if the grid goes down? It should come as no surprise then that authors explore this in teen novels. In this case we have a character with the perfect skill set to survive in an emergency. She knows how to protect herself, where to go for safety, and has emergency supplies ready to go. This can't protect her from chaos, though. From random events that make her survival much less of a guarantee. It informs her choices, makes her and her crew more likely to survive to be sure. The first couple of chapters are tense and action packed. As her group travels, though, their challenges become increasingly strange. Society seems to be crumbling at an accelerated pace. As they face bizarre foes, my ability to engage with the plot waned. What began as an interesting though experiment became chaos and meaningless violence.

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley
 

Graphic Novel Spotlight - The Well

 

The Well by Jake Wyatt

In this book Wyatt has presented us with a unique concept. The set-up is actually fairly familiar if you read much fantasy - a group of isolated islands, largely held captive by a monster. But we don't jump directly into the secrets that lead to the situation. Instead our protagonist gets involved with wishes, with the magic at the core of the area. Through an impending curse she, and thus the reader, learns about fleeting, destructive, or selfish all consuming nature of wishes. The story is equal parts reflective and action oriented, perfectly suited to the graphic novel format. 

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley

Non-fiction book review - The Astronomer Who Questioned Everything

 

The Astronomer Who Questioned Everything By Laura Alary

 I love reading these children's biographies and recognizing what the reader is meant to apply to their own life from the details that the author gives focus. In this book Alary devotes most of the focus on Mitchell learning to ask questions, to be curious in an era that didn't encourage such things for girls. So the reader can gather the importance of thinking for yourself when it comes to innovation The story is fairly simple, easy enough for elementary readers to follow. The illustrations are stylized but not to a degree that makes them hard to follow. A solid addition to a picture book biography collection, especially one with a STEM focus.

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley