While Beauty Slept by Elizabeth Blackwell

Genre: Adult, New Adult, Young Adult, Traditional

Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

I love fairy tales. I love them eve more when someone has taken a fairy tale and put such a spin on it that it stays with you for days.  “While Beauty Slept” is one of those fairy tales.  This is the Sleeping Beauty story with major changes.  I have to say that out of all of the fairy tales I grew up with, Sleeping Beauty was one of my least favorites, until now.

The main character Elise has lived a hard life up to the age of 14.  It is after someone in the market calls her a name, that her mother tells her the truth about her father that helps her understand why her father treats her the way he does.  Her mother has always expected so much from her because she wants her to go far in life.  Her mother had worked as a seamstress in the castle until something happened.  Elise is determined to work at the castle.  After the death of her mother and several of her brothers from illness she leaves home and heads to her aunt’s house.  There she stays for a couple of weeks being groomed for work in the castle.  This is just the beginning of her new life.  She moves quickly up the ranks becoming the personal maid to the queen.  Don’t think this is one of those feel good Disney type books because it is not.  This one is full of love and love lost, betrayal in all forms. There are the friendships formed and lost, and so much grief.  The emotions throughout this book bring you right into the world.  I could visualize all of it.  It isn’t often that I am that involved in the story.  I was hooked from the moment Elise catches her granddaughter Raimy in her trunk.  With everyone else asleep she pulls her on her lap and says to her, “I will tell you a tale….”

If you are someone who loves fairy tales and fairy tale retellings then I would say this is a must read.  It would definitely be for the older Young Adult reader, New Adult Reader or Adult.  I look forward to reading much more by this author.

Student Saturday: Gone by Michael Grant

I try to change up my reviewers.  However, I have some very prolific readers this year. They are the ones reading so much and so fast, then turning in several reviews at one time.  So for the next several weeks you will be seeing reviews by this student.

Student Reviewer: Elizabeth B.

Genre:  Young Adult, Science Fiction 

I really enjoyed Gone by Michael Grant. There was a kid named Sam Temple. In the book he was the kind of person who would jump into a burning building to save a little kid or help drive the bus when the bus driver had a heart attack. At his high school, on a regular day, all of a sudden everybody over the age of 14 started disappearing. The kids, all ages, had to fend for themselves. There were eventually traitors and bad guys, and a war between kids was unfolding.  All the kids took matters into their own hands, with no adults. Some kids wanted to be in control, some did not. I really liked this book because even with a huge headache, I still had an urge to keep reading. I could relate to this book because at one point in my life, I was actually thinking the same thing. What if there were no parents, no adults? Oh yeah, and to make matters worse, some of the kids magically have powers. Would you love to live there?

King Burue Changes the Rules by Natalija Bajlo

Genre:  Children, Picture Book, Traditional

Source:  I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

The author of the book is an eight year old who has written a wonderful fable.  Goose King Burue is a kind and fair king who always follows the rules.  One day while flying around he met a Japanese Parrot named Kimiko.  He fell in love and asked her to marry him.  Then he realized he had broken one of the rules. The rule stated that only a goose could marry a goose.  He didn’t know what to do. He tried to disguise her to look like a goose, but that did not work.  He flew off to think and find the answer.  He met and talked with many friends.  He met eagle and his companion pelican, then he met bunny and porcupine, finally he met frog and chameleon.  They had all broken the rule.  They understood how important all the rules were except the last one.  The King flew to his grandfather to ask him and met his companion a flamingo.  He learned he could change the rules and that, “kindness, honesty and happiness are not found in the color of someone’s fur or feathers.  I love the lessons taught in this story. This is a simple way of teaching children that you should like someone and treat them kindly based on what is in their heart.  I would gladly read more books by this author.

About the Author

Natalija Bajlo, eight-year-old author of King Burue Changes the Rules, is an extraordinary young lady who is very observant of the world around her. It is with an open heart that she adamantly delivers her message based on how she was taught to treat others. When Natalija is faced with issues at school where kids seem to act quickly to ridicule others, she does the opposite and speaks out on behalf of the one being challenged. The true beauty in her refusal to see the differences in people lends itself to seeing more of the uniqueness in them instead.

About the Illustrator

Illustrator Amene Beheshti, is quite a unique and talented young lady. Born in the Persian province of Qom in 1986, Amene was in love with colors and colorful pencils ever since she created her first drawing. She received her degree in painting from Iran’s Isfahan Art University in September, 2013. Now, Amene works as an illustrator and shows her feelings via her illustrations. When she had the opportunity to read Natalija’s book, Amene felt an instant connection to the meaning of the story that served as inspiration for her delightful drawings of the characters and the world in which they live. Children will be enthralled with the messages in her illustrations and how playful they are with such a creative twist. Amene has many great visual stories to tell through her art. We anticipate seeing much more of her in the near future and look forward to more collaborations.

The Forgotten Knight by Eilie Deritter

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy

Source:  I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinons expressed here are y own.

From Goodreads:

Sir Christopher of Calidore has had better days. He has no kingdom to defend, he is locked in a curse, and then he found himself swimming a moat and battling a wizard - all to rescue the most spoiled princess in Christendom. Now, he and his companion, a mysterious sorceress who was once advisor to his former liege, are escorting the opinionated princess home. Along the way, they are forced to battle evil and help those they find in need. With a little assistance from some strange friends during their journey, they struggle to find a way to change their destinies, break the curse that binds them together and reclaim their lives.

My Thoughts:

I really enjoyed this book and its fairy tale qualities. The first adventure is the rescue of a Princess trapped in a mirror. He battles a Cyclops, ogres and wizards. All along the way he leans on his faith. But what is the secret that will break the curse and who knows it?  This is why you must read the book.  You must read it for the adventures, for the faith Christopher has in his friends and in his God.  You must read it for the twists and turns you don’t see coming.   Finally you must read it for the ending that is not at all the way fairy tales should end.  But, I guarantee you that you will enjoy it. I remember before school let out for winter break, one of my students, a sixth grader, telling me I needed to help her find some romance books.  I told her the type of romance books that are out there are not appropriate for teens in my opinion.  This book has magic, friendship, loyalty and love, all rolled into one.  It is a clean read and one I can now recommend to that student.  I am so glad I had the privilege of reading and reviewing this book for the author.

Adam Forever and Adam's Caverns by Lawrence Lapin

Genre: Adult, Science Fiction
Source: I purchased them

Adam Forever 

This was a strange book, intriguing, but strange.  Adam Boatwright is a geneticist.  His wife is afraid she will inherit breast cancer and have to go through what her sister is going through.  Adam decides to try to find a way to prevent his wife and others in the world from developing this cancer.  As a geneticist he works on what he believes is a cure.  The cure will keep the virus active in the body while preventing cancer. As always, there is a side effect, immortality.  Adam can’t just test this on anyone so he does the unthinkable and tests it on himself.  It is here we run into the normal issues that would arise.  Is it ethical? Who should be allowed this treatment if the known outcome would be immortality?  As I read this it played in my head like a movie.  I could see future events that could become very difficult and in some cases catastrophic.  If you have a race of people who all have immortality, how do you weed out the bad ones?  Who has the right to play God and choose who gets to live and who doesn’t?

Adam’s Caverns

In the second book in the series we have gone beyond the treatment and immortality issue.  As a scientist, Adam and a group of his friends prepare for the end of the world.  A meteor is going to crash into the earth and only a few will survive.  Adam and his friends stockpile embryos, animals, plants and other things they will need to repopulate the earth once life is destroyed by this meteor.  But, like all societies, even the post-apocalyptic ones, life isn’t perfect and never goes as planned.  There is fighting among them and among a group who survived in Antarctica.  Once again we are face with all types of ethical and social issues.  This book was actually better than the first one.  If you are into this type of read then I would definitely recommend it.

She is Mine: A War Orphan's Incredible Journey of Survival - Stefanie Fast

Genre: Adult, Autobiography
Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

This is such a heartwrenching story, and yet it is so full of hope.  No one knows the path many in this world walk or have walked. Very few could walk and survive the path Stefanie Fast walked. I am not real familiar with the Korean War since it was many, many years before my time. However, I remember hearing similar stories after the Vietnam War. An American soldier fathers a child with a Korean mother. It is bad enough the mother is left pregnant and unwed, but the baby is mixed which is an absolute taboo.  When she is four years old the family has had enough.  Her mother takes her to the train station and abandons her.  She spends years looking for her mother.  The abuse and atrocities she goes through make it a miracle she survived.  God looked down on her and had great plans for her.  She did survive.  This is one of those books you will start and continue to read until you have finished it.  You will need your tissues as this will break your heart and the warm it.  It made me hurt for every child today who goes through hardships.  It makes me appreciate my years growing up and the love I had.  I highly recommend this book.

Student Saturday: Tuesdays at the Castle by Jessica Day George

Student Reviewer: Shalyn W.
Genre: Middle Grade, Traditional, Fantasy

The book Tuesdays at the Castle starts out with the Castle Glower growing a new room because it is bored. The parents of a girl named Celie and her other siblings. She is advised to watch them, but when her parents disappear will she be able to keep them away from this room? I can relate to this book because my mom keeps many secrets away from me. I really liked this book because usually  I'm not a fan of traditional fiction. I would recommend this book to new tradional readers.

The Last Orphans by N.W. Harris

Genre: Young Adult, Apocalyptic
Source: I received a copy to faclitate my review. The opinions expressed are my own.

From Goodreads:
One horrifying day will change the life of sixteen-year-old Shane Tucker and every other kid in the world. 

In a span of mere hours, the entire adult population is decimated, leaving their children behind to fend for themselves and deal with the horrific aftermath of the freak occurrence. As one of the newly made elders in his small town, Shane finds himself taking on the role of caretaker for a large group of juvenile survivors. One who just happens to be Kelly Douglas—an out-of-his-league classmate—who, on any other day, would have never given Shane a second glance. 

Together, they begin their quest to find out why all of the adults were slaughtered. What they find is even more horrifying than anything they could have expected—the annihilation of the adults was only the beginning. Shane and his friends are not the unlucky survivors left to inherit this new, messed-up planet. No, they are its next victims. There is an unknown power out there, and it won’t stop until every person in the world is dead. 

A spine-tingling adventure that will have you gasping for breath all the way until the last page, The Last Orphans is the first book in an all-new apocalyptic series.

My Thoughts:
My first thought while reading this book was that it should be made into a movie.  Any time I read a book and it becomes so visual, I have to believe it would make a great movie.  I also believe that only really talented authors can do this.  I loved the way that the heroes were those people we would least expect to be heroes.  They would be the ones we wouldn't give a second thought to.  The method the author chose to kill off the adults was terrifying to me.  I can only imagine what a teen would think.  This is so different from most apocalyptic type of books.  Would I recommend this?  You bet!  Will I read it again?  Definitely.  Then I'll sit back a wait, impatiently for the next book.  I love finding new authors and I am so glad I have found this one.

Don't Forget Me Bro by John Michael Cummings

Genre:  Adult, Realistic Fiction
Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own

From Goodreads:
In this heartfelt journey, families contain all of it. There’s simply no tidy, predictable emotional or dynamic boundary to draw around these most primal of human units. Even those who don’t know their biological families have collective relationships that daily test their autonomy, individuality, self-worth and dreams. Cummings, who’s spent more than three decades writing about human beings, mainly of the everyday American persuasion, excels in uncovering those beneath-the-skin familial stories that realistically probe uncomfortable, often invisible, areas of life. When families and their perceptions of mental illness collide, as happens with such gritty persistence in Don't Forget Me, Bro all the discomfort of relationships, normal and otherwise, comes to the fore.

My Thoughts:
I loved this book.  The author takes the reader on an emotional rollercoaster.  We get a look at a dysfunctional family and the damages done through abuse.  We also look at a family dealing with mental illness.  The tension the author was able to write into this book made it so real.  I felt at times as if I was in the room with Mark.  I almost could not breath. This is a story of a dysfunctional family that is dealing with grief and life to the best of their ability.  If nothing else this book made me take a look at my own family, a coloer look.  I believe after reading this book that all families are dysfunctional in some ways, yet we are all still family.  I will definitely recommend this book.

About the Author:
John Michael Cummings’ short stories have appeared in more than seventy-five literary journals, including North American Review, The Kenyon Review, and The Iowa Review. Twice he has been nominated for The Pushcart Prize. His short story “The Scratchboard Project” received an honorable mention in The Best American Short Stories 2007. His novella The House of My Father, from which his debut novel was adapted, was a finalist in the 2006 Miami University Novella Contest.

The Night I Freed John Brown is Mr. Cummings’ powerful first novel for young readers. A native of Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, he draws on his own experiences growing up in this intriguing historic town.

John Michael Cummings lives in Orlando with his cat, Sentry

Student Saturday: Bad Unicorn by Platte F. Clark

Student Reviewer: Luis O.
Genre: Middle Grade, Fantasy
Source: I picked this book because I thought it would be funny...And it was

This book started with a boy called Max. He finds an old book he used to read whe he was a childe. The book was called "The Codex". It was show and tell and Max wanted to demonstrate teh book he had found. When he read he read aout unicorns. People started laughing so Max went to another page and read about Frobbits. When he finished reading the teacher said, "I believe I said the assignment was to read a chapter from a historical fiction book."  I recoment this book to kids that like humor.