A Kiss in Time

A Kiss in Time by Alex Flinn was one of the best books I've read this year- I may have read other things that were good or okay, but this book was amazing. You know the book is good when you find that you've turned so many pages that you haven't even realized it because you're so caught up in the story. This is the second book I've read by Flinn (the first being Beastly), and I have to say that she does three great things with her writing: she executes the male voice to a "t", she creates a realistic modern day fairytale story, and her writing is so modern and such a great example of the teen voice that it doesn't seem like you're reading but that you're talking to someone.

This novel is told through two different character's narration: Jack, the typical teenager who was sent (against his will) on a tour around Europe with his best friend Travis, and Talia, the (spoiled) Sleeping Beauty-esque princess who ends up pricking her finger on a spindle, sending her entire kingdom into a deep sleep for about 200+ years. Jack and Travis end up stumbling upon Talia's kingdom, and her, when they break away from their boring tour guide to look for a beach, which has the potential to have nude girls. Jack doesn't know why he suddenly has the urge to kiss the beautiful sleeping princess, but once he does he regrets it: Talia is annoying, ungrateful, and used to being pampered. But once Talia comes to and realizes that nothing awaits her in a kingdom that no one realizes exists, she decides to hitch herself to Jack, in the hopes that she can convince him that he is meant for her and is her true love.

I absolutely LOVE this book- it's funny, clever, and was a great spin-off of Sleeping Beauty. I definitely recommend this book- in fact, I'm planning on buying it soon.

Book of a Thousand Days

So I finally finished reading Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale, and I must say that I liked it- not as much as Princess Academy, but definitely more than Goose Girl. I took me a while to get into the story simply because it didn't grasp me at the very beginning, but I trekked on because of all of the rave reviews I had heard about the book. I dare say that I'm glad I didn't put it down, and after the third attempt to read it, I finally finished it.

This book tells the story of Dashti, a mucker girl (somewhat like a farmer), who ends up becoming a lady's maid to the Lady Saren, one of the princesses in the land. Within minutes of Dashti saying she will serve her lady, Lady Saren's father locks both of them within a tower due to Saren's disobedience. As each day dawns, Dashti narrates their lives in locked up solitude, and she quickly learns why they are both locked in the tower; two of Lady Saren's suitors show up outside the tower with intentions to break both girls free. Saren fears both men-especially the one that could harm her and her kingdom, yet refuses to leave the tower out of fear. Though this story is supposed to be a record of the seven years that the girls are in the tower, it's when they both break free that the real story and adventure begins.

Again, this isn't the best thing that I've read by Hale, but it definitely wasn't the worst. I think Shannon Hale's books are hits and misses- you have to find the right one for you. I think the reason why I like Princess Academy so much is because it was the first Shannon Hale book that I read. It's different and it's a different take on the fairytale genre. A lot of people think I'm crazy because I don't like Goose Girl yet think I'm crazy that I like Princess Academy, but again, Goose Girl was the first Shannon Hale book that they read- ergo, they like it. If you're looking for a Shannon Hale book to read, I recommend Princess Academy or Book of a Thousand Days. They didn't fail me, so hopefully they won't for you either!

Emmy and the Incredible Shrinking Rat

Emmy and the Incredible Shrinking Rat by Lynne Jonell was one of the best books I've read in a long time. I never really thought to pick this book up, simply because I'm somewhat out of my children's lit phase and am currently in a YA lit phase (and am now moving onto adult lit- I'm growing up, sad!), but I was told it was good, and so thought, "What the hey?" Definitely one of the better decisions I've made in a while.

So this tells the story of Emmy, a very good and somewhat boring girl who likes to sit by the class' pet rat because he isn't good at all. One thing is out of the ordinary though: Emmy can talk to the rat. What seems like just another story about a good little girls turns into a crazy adventure into the rat's (aka Ratty's) life. I really can't tell too much of the plot because it will give away basically the whole plot, but I can tell you that Emmy has an evil nanny Miss Barmy who is horrible and tries at every turn to keep Emmy aloof from potential friends, and remaining as a good girl. But why? This is the question that lingers as you continue reading, and is crucial to the plot. I loved this fun little romp through the eyes of Emmy and her rat. I loved this so much that I'm planning on reading the sequel, Emmy and the home for Troubled Girls. This is definitely worth buying and reading- I hope you enjoy it!

Smiles to Go

Smiles to Go by Jerry Spinelli was an okay read. It was recommended to me by a friend who has gave it rave reviews, but I found it to be just okay. Definitely not my favorite book by Spinelli, but entertaining to say the least. This tells the story of Will Tuppence and revolves around the death of the proton. Will was told when he was little about how protons never die-which changed Will's life when he was a kid. It's when the first reports of proton death make the news that Will's life changes forever. From then on, Will decides to take more risks and document his life from the day the proton died. The story is full of heart, friendship, and unique personality. This is definitely an interesting take on the coming of age story; the sub-plot of Will's little sister being the biggest pain in his backside and their run-ins was funny to read, and being the older sibbling, I definitely related. Once again, not the best Spinelli novel I've read, but his definitions of character, voice and humor ring true, and is what Spinelli does best.

Wonderland

Wonderland by Tommy Kovac and Sonny Liew was a fun read, and an interesting twist on the original Alice in Wonderland tale. It isn't necessarily a "book" so much as it's a comic book, or a "graphic novel" as the book publishing snobs now call them- whatever. It looks like a comic book, ergo it IS a comic book. There isn't too much to say about this book other than the illustrations are BEAUTIFUL and full of depth and dynamic, and the storyline is interesting.

Wonderland tells the tale of Maryann, the maidservant to Mr. Rabbit/the white rabbit (this is the maidservant that Mr. Rabbit mistakes Alice for in the movie). The book pretty much takes you on a fun romp through Wonderland, exploring the interesting (and odd) nooks and crannies of the place. While there you meet the Queen of Heart's other sisters (the Queens of Spades, Clubs and Diamonds) as well as the newly transformed drugged Caterpillar, and find a rebel group of animals who follow the Alice Monster and her teachings. Odd though this book may be, it's a nice break away from reality and what may be the norm in reading. Though the book is beautiful to flip through, there isn't really a storyline to the book. I'm not sure if I would ever read it again because there wasn't any foundation to the tale, but I know I'll end up flipping through it just for the illustrations.

Savvy

Savvy by Ingrid Law was a bit of a disappointment for me. I was so excited to read this book because of its premise and amazing cover, but was letdown once I began to learn about what makes a "savvy" for each person in Mississippi Beaumont's (Mibs) family. A savvy is a magical power of sorts- Mibs' grandpa can move mountains and land, her brother can create hurricanes, and one of her great-aunts went back in time 20 minutes every time she sneezed. On her mother's side of the family, every time a kid in their family turns 13, their savvy presents itself, which is where the beginning of this book opens up: Mibs is a day away from her 13th birthday and she can't wait to find out what her savvy is. But then her dad gets in a car accident the day before her birthday, and suddenly all Mibs can hope for is a savvy that can save her poppa. It's when Mibs believes that her savvy can help her dad wake up from his coma that she decides to steal a bible salesman's bus to try and wake her dad up from his coma with the help from her savvy.

WARNING: I'm about to tell you Mibs' savvy in the next paragraph- brace yourselves.

I wanted to like this book. I really did. And I even spent more time trying to get through the author's overreached prose than I normally do with any other given book. But this book was somewhat of a flop to me. I think one of the problems that I had with the premise of the story was how Mibs' savvy presents itself. After having an awesome setup of literal earthshaking savvys that had something to do with the physical world around them (ground moving, creating hurricanes, moving back in time when sneezes commence, etc.), hers felt not only like a letdown, but like she was given a lesser savvy because she was a girl (Law actually leans towards this reasoning in the book). I don't want to read about a main character who's power is to hear people's inner thoughts through their body art- mainly because (and I know this is going to sound prejudiced and biased, and totally horrible of me) the people who get tattoos are not people that I want to be associated with. No offense to anyone who has a tattoo, but I really don't want to hear the thoughts of people who have them. To me, it just seems as if their thoughts are dirtier (again, I'm sorry to anyone who may be reading this who happens to have a tattoo). Having a main character that associates with those kinds of people (and Law seems to make it a good thing) bothers me. I don't want it to bother me, but I can't help it. It was at this point (once Mibs' savvy presented itself) that I decided to skim the rest.

I felt Law was trying too hard- the main idea of the story was great until it got to the turning point where Mibs' father gets hurt. I love her idea of savvys and powers, but I could tell that this was her first book; Law had no idea where to take the story after coming up with the great story idea. Also, it felt as if she was trying too hard to make her prose "cute" or "whimsical" and original. That drove me crazy. If she would just take out the random "prosy-poetical" one-liners, the story would flow better and keep me from my mental grinding and mumbled curses.

I can see how the premise of the book made it a contender for the Newbery, but I don't think it should have won an honor position at all. Law's lack of control of the language throughout the novel was obvious that it was her first novel and that she didn't have experience under her belt. I am, however, extremely glad this book didn't win the Newbery; I think that Savvy should have gone through a couple more revisions before it was sold to the general public. Hopefully Law will grow out of her overreaching, "cutesy", lofty prose by the time she writes her next novel. Either that, or her editors should do a better job of editing her paragraph structure.

Coraline

I read the graphic novel. I saw the movie in 3-D. I finally read the book. Man, it took a long time to get me to read this book. I really enjoyed the story, but the third time around was a little bit of an overkill. Don't get me wrong- I liked the book and the story's premise, but just reading the book after I had seen the movie and read the graphic novel not too long ago was a little much and really repetitive. But nonetheless, it's still a good read.

Coraline by Neil Gaiman is about one very bored girl who has just recently moved with her parents into a house in the English countryside. The house is so big that it's separated into four different parts with a crazy old man named Mr. Bobo living upstairs with his circus of mice, and the two eccentric ex-actresses Mrs. Spink and Mrs. Forcible living in the basement part of the house with their pack of Highland terriers. In her effort to curb her boredom and fight the dreary weather, Coraline visits both apartments to talk with the boarders, but finds only older people who don't listen to anything Coraline has to say, who constantly pronounce her name incorrectly- they say CAroline and not COraline.

Through Coraline's endless wanderings she ends up finding a little door in her house that opens to a wall of bricks, yet when she unlocks it a second time in the middle of the night, finds that it leads to another world. Of course she explores the world and sees that it's an alternate reality that was set up by her Other Mother, a woman who looks exactly like her mom but has black buttons for eyes, and seems to want to constantly please Coraline so that she will stay there with her other parents forever. Other than the fact that her other parents are extremely creepy, the other world seems nice enough: her toys all come to life and play with her, the cat that followed her through the doorway can speak to her, and her food and clothes options are exciting and limitless. Yet Coraline knows there's something not right about the other world, and trying to get back to her real world and parents is a little challenging when your Other mother wants to sew buttons on your eyes so that you can stay with her forever.

The story is truly engaging and creative; we've all been in Coraline's situation, trying to find things to do to take away the boredom. Gaiman has a certain mastery over his character descriptions and his attention to detail that makes the story that much more clever and enjoyable to read. I definitely recommend this book to anyone, just don't read it three times within a couple of months!