REVIEW: The Maze Runner

The Maze Runner
Author: James Dashner
Publisher: Delacorte Press
374 Pages
Genre: YA, dystopian fantasy

I have to admit that I had a hard time getting into this book at first. Very rarely will I say this -- seeing the movie before reading the book helped me get through this story.

As I read the beginning of this novel, I was picturing what I saw in the movie. Thomas arriving on an elevator to a glade surrounded by walls, not knowing where he was, or who he was. I had the plot playing in my mind like another movie while reading Dashner's words. I like to immerse myself in a book as I read it, but there was something about this one that made that escape difficult. I think part of it was the constant use of slang. I understand that the Glade boys had somewhat made up their own language, but it was a bit overused. Maybe it was just the overall writing style. I had trouble getting to know these characters and forming that reader/character connection. The characters were thinly developed stereotypes....the newcomer, the experienced leader, the mysterious female, the crazy one....it was like Lord of the Flies with a maze added.

But....I have to add that the story was a good enough adventure to keep me reading to the end, even if Dashner's writing style was a bit difficult for me to read.

The plot doesn't involve a lot of side twists. It's a lot of pure description and the author telling the reader what they are seeing, feeling, and simple plot devices to move the story along. But, this is a middle-grade or YA novel. I don't have a problem with the plot advancing in a way that a 5th grader could relate to or understand. The book was written for that age! Read this book for what it is .... a dystopian fantasy adventure written for 5th-8th graders, but enjoyable for adult readers as well. The plot moves the story along more so than the characters. The characters seem to be types rather than individuals that readers will get to know, or personally like. As a reader, I ended up rooting for the group as a whole, rather than any one character. Good vs evil. Or the group vs the unknown.

The basic premise, without spoilers, is this: A boy, Thomas, awakens in an elevator surrounded by other boys. None of them have any memories from before they arrived in the glade. The glade is surrounded by high walls. Every morning, a door opens into a large maze. And each night it shuts. Inside the maze are monsters that kill. Every day, the boys work. Every boy has a job. The fastest, smartest boys become Maze Runners. Runners investigate the maze, trying to find a way out or to discover something about why they are in the glade. But something is changing. Soon after Thomas appears in the elevator, a girl arrives. She shouldn't be there. New people only appear at certain times and it wasn't time. Plus, Thomas thinks he knows her. They can communicate telepatically with only each other. What does this mean? Will they solve the maze? Where did they come from? And why can't any of them remember?

It is the strength of the story premise that provides the magic for this series, not Dashner's writing. I am going to continue reading the series because the first book ends on a definite cliff hanger. I'm continuing on to the 2nd book because I want answers. This time, I'm reading the book before I watch the movie. I'm used to the slang now and will do my best to immerse into the story.

It isn't the characters that keep me reading.....it's the story. The characters are just plot points that get me closer to the final answer -- what is going on here?

Rating: 6/10
Some violence, not overly graphic
Ages 10+

REVIEW: Tell the Wind and Fire

Tell the Wind and Fire
Author: Sarah Rees Brennan
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
368 Pages
Publication date: 4/05/2016
*This review based on Advanced Readers Copy provided by publisher in exchange for a fair review.*

In the future, New York is a city divided. Those living in the Light side of the city enjoy wealth and opulence, while those in the Dark struggle to survive. Armed guards and a wall keep Light divided from Dark. A revolutionary group, sans-merci, wants to bring down the Light, to free the Dark from oppression, and they are willing to use any means to accomplish their goals. The penalty for aiding the sans-merci is steep. Treason is punishable by instant death at the hands of the Light Guard.

Lucie Manette was born in the Dark city, but her father was from the Light. She gained celebrity when she was allowed to move from Dark New York to the Light. One night while travelling home, her boyfriend is pulled off the train by the Light Guard and accused of treason. Lucie must think fast to save her boyfriend's life. Help comes from an unexpected stranger, and her life will never be the same.

Tell the Wind and Fire is a modern re-telling of A Tale of Two Cities. Sarah Rees Brennan does an excellent job of giving the story a new, magical twist. Her book is just as emotional as Dickens' classic. I was left with tears in my eyes as the story came to a close. Enjoyable read!!

This book will be released on April 5th, 2016.

My rating: 8/10
Middle-Grade Fiction
Ages 12+

REVIEW: Einstein's Beach House

Einstein's Beach House
Author: Jacob M. Appel
Publisher: Pressgang
179 pages
*This review based on .pdf version provided free in exchange for honest review*

I'm not often left without words (as my husband would attest with a grin on his face). I've read, discussed, and reviewed a lot of books in my time. It's not often I read one, especially a collection of short stories, that leaves me grasping for the right words. I've been pondering what to say in this review for days after finishing this book of 8 short stories by Jacob Appel. The best I can come up with is this:

Ecclectic. Witty. Brilliant.

I don't give praise lightly. Although I was provided with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, the free book doesn't have any effect on my opinion. I receive many free books to review. But this one is special. I thoroughly enjoyed each and every story. Nothing about these stories is old hat, or reworked dusty plotlines. I found myself finishing a story and wondering what interesting adventure the next one held in store for me. A childless couple who adopts a depressed hedgehog, a real estate lie that takes on a life of its own, a custody battle over a tortoise. Each story was something new and different, providing an interesting, unusual peek into the lives of the characters. The stories deal with the dark life struggles we all share -- divorce, mental illness, death, growing old, forgiveness, disillusion, lost love, revenge -- but in an ecclectic, magical blend of tragedy, comedy and the absurd.

Appel has a true gift for story telling. I'm not going to give a synopsis of each story. other than the small snippets I've given above. To me, telling more is akin to spoilers. For this collection, a reader should experience each story cold, without any knowledge of what is to come, until they read it for themselves. Not knowing makes it more fresh and surprising. These stories are amazing! Enjoy!

My rating: 9/10
Adult themes. Minor profanity. Ages16 & up.
Excellent short story collection!

I'm going to read my own damn books! The 2016 TBR project!

I have a seriously backed up TBR shelf. I have so many books that my built-in floor to ceiling bookshelves are crammed full. Just eyeballing my shelves, I'm guessing I have about 600 books? Maybe more. My books are no longer sorted by genre because I have too many. Often books fall off the shelves because they are stacked and too crowded. I have no room for new books, so every trip to the bookstore just compounds the problem.

I can't stand it! My books are my most prized possessions, and my shelves are a mess! Not only that, I write in the same room. The chaotic shelves distract me. I spend more time trying to straighten my books than I do working on my book. I can't stand it anymore!!!

So, I am taking steps to remedy the situation. 2016 is the year I tame my wild TBR shelves! I saw a challenge online and decided to join.

Read My Own Damn Books.

Yes!! A challenge with no rules, other than reading books languishing on my TBR and dumping out DNF and unwanted books that are taking up space. When I finish books, I'm going to trade or donate them, limiting "keeper'' shelf space to a minimum. Then my shelves can be organized and display my books properly! And, I can write in that room without bugging out about my books being disorganized.

My goal:

1. I am going to limit myself to 4 new books per month. This only includes books I buy for myself. Gifts given to me do not count.

2. I have to read then trade/donate more books per month than I bring into the house. This count DOES include any books gifted to me. My ultimate goal is to read & clear at least 100 books from my shelves by the end of 2016, and to trade/donate any books I am not actually going to read or use.

3. As I clear shelf space, I will begin to re-organize my books by genre and author.

4. I will use the library more. Books that I'm only going to read once, I will check out from the library, read them and return. I will also use our local library's digital services where I can borrow ebooks and audio books online, rather than buying them. That saves me $ to buy the new releases and others I really want as a physical book, rather than books I'm going to quick read and forget about.

This will allow me to display my books the way I want them! I will be so happy!! I'm going to READ MY OWN DAMN BOOKS!! :)) Yay!! I've needed to do this for SO long!

Interested in paring down your TBR pile as well??  You can find this challenge, and join up with others who are also reading their own books here at Estella's Revenge

REVIEW: A Curious Tale of the In-Between

A Curious Tale of the In-Between
Author: Lauren DeStefano
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing, Inc
228 pages
Published September 2015
Review based on Advance Uncorrected Proof

Just as the title states, this is a very curious tale that deals with some pretty heavy topics -- death, suicide, mental illness, grief -- but in a magical way. Pram speaks to ghosts. From birth, she has been able to see them and talk to them. But, for whatever reason, she can't speak with the ghost of her dead mother. She lives with her aunts, who shield her from the truth about her mother's suicide. And she has her best friend, Felix, a ghost.

She meets a boy at school who has also lost his mother. She bonds with Clarence over their shared loss. The kids plan to find Pram's father, a sailor who might not know she exists, and also enlist the help of a spiritualist to allow Clarence to speak with his dead mother. But, their plan is in jeopardy because Lady Savant is not what she seems.

This is Lauren DeStefano's first middle-grade book. This eerie story teaches a lesson about love, loss and the power of friendship. Despite dealing with dark emotions and topics, the story is not scary. It is totally appropriate for middle-grades 4-7.

I very much enjoyed this book. DeStefano tells a beautiful tale that can't help but have an emotional impact on young readers and adults alike. It delves into serious subjects that affect kids - parental death, loneliness, and betrayal - without going too far. The end result is a lyrical, hauntingly beautiful story about a girl caught between the land of the living and the spiritual world.

My Rating: 8/10
Dark topics, but age appropriate.
Grades 4-7

A lesson in patience: children who hate reading

I have loved books since before I could read. I remember begging my parents and siblings to read to me all the time when I was very small. Finally, my older brother taught me to read so that I would stop asking. Since then, I have read everything I can get my hands on!

My oldest son loves books. My step-children all love to read. And my husband too. But....my youngest son....getting him to read anything was a constant battle. Now there were reasons...he is dyslexic. Learning to read for him was a constant struggle. It really affected how he felt about books. Reading was a punishment for him, not something he enjoyed. Finally, I homeschooled him for 2 years to give him the one-on-one attention he needed. With lots of phonics work, he learned to work around the problem. But, he still hated reading. The only thing he was willing to read were instuctions for video games and webpages about games, software, or Minecraft how-to manuals. I tried every sort of book I could think of....ones I liked as a child such as Harry Cat's Pet Puppy, The Cricket in Times Square, The Mouse and the Motorcycle. He would read them because he had to, but there was no enjoyment.

I found that part of the problem was me. As a bookish person, I had a hard time understanding how he could dislike reading. I had to step back and realize that each person is different. His experience with books was not a good one because of his learning disability. My pushing books on him was just like someone fixing liver 27 different ways, telling me that I would come to like it if I ate it every day. No way. For Josh, reading was something he had to grow into. He had to discover what he liked and ease into it. He just needed time to stop associating reading with his struggle with dyslexia and start seeing books as outlets for his imagination. So I backed off. I kept offering books, but I let him start deciding what he read.

When he discovered the fact that some movies he enjoyed such as Harry Potter, Maze Runner, and Divergent were actually based on books, he started showing more interest in trying to read those books. I told him that a lot of content from the books was left out or changed in the movie versions. To illustrate my point, I showed him an old after-school special of The Mouse and the Motorcycle. Whole plot points were changed, and big sections of the story were left out. I also told him that some characters and situations in the Harry Potter novels were left out or significantly changed in the movies. The only way for him to learn about Nearly Headless Nick wanting to join the Headless Hunt would be to read the books!  It was like a light came on inside him. Suddenly, he wanted to read!! Josh returned to public school this year. He loves it. He has made lots of friends and is thriving. And he reads his assignments and library books for Accelerated Reader points without much complaining.

He loves science fiction. I started showing him YA book series that seemed to fit him. Rick Riordan's Heroes of Olympus series caught his eye. He asked for the first book, Lost Hero. Every night he sits and reads for at least 15 minutes, telling me how much he is enjoying the story. My son. The book hater. Reading a 600+ page book by CHOICE. He loves Harry Potter. He whipped straight through book 1, and is now reading book 2. When we went to the bookstore last week, he asked for a copy of Throne of Glass. Then this month a fan fiction book based on Five Nights at Freddy's (a video game), The Silver Eyes, was published. It was the first time he begged me to order him a book from Amazon. His bookshelf is quickly filling up. My lovely secret sisters from OTSPSecretSister sent him some great books to try as well. HE HAS A TBR SHELF!!

Not every child who dislikes reading is going to turn a corner and become a bookworm. But with patience, they can find books that they like and want to read. Joshua still hates books that he is forced to read for school. Right now, his class is reading The Black Stallion and he doesn't like it. Every night I have to listen to him complain about "the stupid horse book.'' He is not interested in the slightest. But, like it or not, it is a fact of life that at times everyone has to do what they have to do. It's a life lesson. So each night he reads the required chapter for school, then he gets to switch to something he does want to read. We are taking turns reading chapters of The Silver Eyes out loud to each other. He's learning to use inflection (and character voices) when he reads out loud....it just makes me smile!

So, if you have a child who hates to read....just give them space to discover books that they enjoy. Reading might never become their favorite pastime but over time they can learn to find some enjoyment in the written word.

REVIEW: Fowl Language: Welcome to Parenting

Fowl Language: Welcome to Parenting

Author/Artist: Brian Gordon

Genre: humor

Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing

Publication Date: March 2016

*I was provided an advance copy of this publication in exchange for providing an honest review*

As a mom and a grandma, I know from experience that parenting takes a lot of serious work, but also requires a good sense of humor. Without being able to laugh at mishaps, every parent would be a basket case by the time their children reach adulthood. 

Fowl Language: Welcome to Parenting is a collection of cartoons that really strike at the heart of the matter. As a parent, we all experience delightful things such as bodily fluids at inopportune moments, bad music recitals, school plays, embarrassing questions, temper tantrums....and this lovely collection of hilariously cute cartoons covers the wide spectrum of parental emotions and situations. Good and bad. 

Kudos to Brian Gordon for a job well done. This book is witty and very clever! I loved it! Parents and grandparents of any age will enjoy this collection of cartoons. It would even be a good gift for first time parents-to-be, so they know what they are getting into. ;) Then it won't be a surprise the first time their clothing is covered in vomit or poo, or their toddler is kicking and screaming on the floor at

the grocery store. It isn't often that cartoons make me laugh out loud, but I was cackling almost the entire time I was reading. I even called my husband into the room a few times to read with me. Soon we were sharing memories of parental moments that live in infamy in our household....walls smeared with baby poo, a toddler running naked through a family barbecue, our son sharing his ice cream cone with the dog....

Just a joyful read! The book is 130 pages with full color art, published by Andrews McMeel Publishing. 

Rating: 9/10

Not for children...some profanity and adult topics

Absolutely hilarious! 

Ages 16+