By Philip Reeve This is a steam punk industrial revolution sci-fi fantasy story set in a time when the major cities of the world are individual self-contained entities that travel across the barren earth. This is a world eat world time and bigger, stronger cities chase after smaller, weaker cities and towns and devour them, […]
The Vanderbeekers and the Hidden GardenBy Karina Yan Glaser Another run-of-the-mill summer has just started for Josie, Oliver, Hyacinth and Laney (a.k.a. the Vanderbeekers). Their sister Isa is away at music camp, but otherwise things are pretty standard at their Harlem brownstone. But when their beloved upstairs neighbour, Mr. Jeet, has a stroke, and his […]
The Last by Katherine ApplegateThe Last is book #1 in the Endling Series by Katherine Applegate. It is the story of Byx, the baby of her pack, and a member of the nearly extinct dairne species. Dairnes are dog-like creatures that have magical abilities and are able to glide when they spread their arms and expand […]
IllegalBy Eoin Colfer and Andrew Donkin, illustrated by Giovanni Rigano Ebo and his siblings know they must leave their home in Ghana to make a better life in Europe. Sisi, his sister, has already gone. When Kwame, his brother, disappears, Ebo follows. He is determined not to be left behind. When he meets up with […]
The Thirteenth Tale By Diane Setterfield “There is something about words. In expert hands, manipulated deftly, they take you prisoner. Wind themselves around your limbs like spider silk, and when you are so enthralled you cannot move, they pierce your skin, enter your blood, numb your thoughts. Inside you they work their magic.” (p. 8) […]
By Kristen Ciccarelli I would like to preface this review by stating that I read this entire book in one day. It was it was raining, it was the long weekend, and it was just that good! In the beginning, there was the Namsara: the child of the sky and spirit, who carried love and […]
The Summer Before the War By Helen Simonson The Summer Before the War is a slow burning story of the inhabitants of Rye, England at the outbreak of World War I. Despite the threat of war, in typical British style, the inhabitants of Rye keep calm and carry on. Focusing on the everyday lives of […]
One Came HomeBy Amy Timberlake Thirteen-year-old Georgie Burkhardt’s older sister, Agatha, has disappeared. To her family’s horror, a mostly unidentifiable body is found on the wagon road to another town and everyone assumes it’s Agatha. But even though the body is wearing Agatha’s blue-green dress and has the same auburn hair, Georgie does not believe […]