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Showing posts with label sad. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sad. Show all posts

Savvy

*****

Ingrid Law

Mibs isn't popular by any means. In fact, quite the opposite. But that's okay because she only has one more day left at school.

That's because, tomorrow Mibs turns 13. And in her family, that's a really big deal. 13 is when the Beaumonts get their savvy. A savvy is like a special power, or, as Mibs calls it, a special know how. Rocket Beaumont makes electricity. Fish Beaumont makes storms. And Mrs. Beaumont does everything pretty much perfectly. Mr. Beaumont, however, doesn't have a savvy. And he's been in an accident.

Now Mibs finds herself on a mission. Believing she has discovered her savvy, she heads to the hospital to rescue her father. But her savvy still has a few surprises in store. As do the rest of people inadvertently along for the ride!

Really, really cute book. This is one of the Virginia Young Reader books this year and totally worth the read. The book looks long (especially since it's only available in hardback), but it's really a quick read. The characters are great. Each one is entirely believable and lovable. You won't be able to put it down!

If you liked this book, check out:
Harry Potter Series
Septimus Heap Series
Charlie Bone Series
The new book by Ingrid Law coming out in 2010.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

*****

JK Rowling

Ever wonder what might happen if you break a silly rule? You just might find yourself facing dangerous, possibly deathly tasks and losing your best friend! Of course, this time, Harry didn't actually break the rule. Someone did that for him. But who? And why? And how is he going to fawn over Cho, keep up with his studies, avoid Rita Skeeter, and learn to dance while preparing for the tasks?

Is it wrong that I find the premise of this book slightly hilarious? I mean, they say this tournament is dangerous. People have died! But then everything seems perfectly safe to me*. Either way, it's an enjoyable read. Even though there are sad parts, it's still mostly a light book. Nothing compared with the darkness that is to come in the next 3!

*except, of course, for that one little flaw. But that wasn't exactly planned.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

*****

JK Rowling

Prepare for a turn for the worse.

Voldemort is back. No one believes it. In fact, while Harry has been trapped in Little Winging with his horrible aunt and uncle, the wizarding world has been doing their best to discredit him...and Dumbledore.

When Harry is finally whisked back into "his world," he finds a gloomy group known as The Order of the Phoenix fighting a losing battle against propaganda, disappearances, and dark recruitments. Even at school, Harry faces a lot of opposition.

Which is a shame, because Harry could really use the help of his friends. Plagued by bad dreams, a distant mentor, classes (or should I say torture sessions) with Snape and, worst of all, another new Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor, this one worse than any so far, Harry feels all alone. He takes some comfort in his after-school-activities, such as the secret DA club he and his friends have formed, but when it all comes down to it, Harry will need to be the one who once again stands up to the Dark Lord.

This book made me so angry! Don't get me wrong, I loved every second of it, but Umbridge...OOOOH that woman! There was some incredible action, especially near the end, and I cried several times (like when Molly encountered the bogart!). But in the end, I was mostly numb with disbelief. How could anything end so bitter-sweet? (Although, if you think this was bitter-sweet, wait 'til you read the last one!)

If you like this, look for:
Harry Potter Series
Septimus Heap Series
Twilight Series
Charlie Bone Series
Percy Jackson Series

three little words

*****
Ashley Rhodes-Courter

Ashley is a toddler when 'they' take her from her mother. Throughout the next decade of her life, she is shuffled from foster home to foster home. Sometimes the parents are godsends. Sometimes they are so abusive, she can't see her way out. Separated and reunited with Luke, her younger brother, and a mother who just can't seem to get it together, Ashley can only rely on herself.

I debated posting this book at all. But I have some very mature readers and I think you can handle it, if not just yet. I'm definitely rating it R or maybe higher because it's very mature. But as I read all 320-some pages in one day, I thought I better share it with you. It's a memoire (autobiography) of a girl who has lived through it all. You won't be able to put it down and you just may cry!