Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Son of a Gun


I received an early reviewers copy of “Son of a Gun”. It is a powerful book that I truly enjoyed.  One of the things that makes this book both horrific and interesting is that the story is told from the viewpoint of a child.  The horrors that a young brother and sister have to endure during the Liberian Civil War are appalling.  Not only that, but once they escape the war they still have to endure more evil. 
This is a true story and is written for young adult readers.  I am a middle school language arts teacher and truly believe that any book that gets a student to read is a good book, however, I believe that some people would take exception with children reading this book.  Some scenes that are depicted both during and after the war are both unsettling and graphic.   I would recommend this book for a 13 and up audience.  Young readers will find the book to be interesting and easy to relate to, since the narrator is their age.  The size of the book is not intimidating to readers and I do expect that many students will want to check this book out of my personal classroom library.  Also, this book may help some young readers to realize just how fortunate they are.  The word choice of the author and sentence complexity is appropriate for the audience. I enjoyed the book and found it was an easy read for an adult, but still informative and interesting.

Monday, February 6, 2012

Review of "Everything Romance"


“Everything Romance” incorporates cute date ideas, romantic quotes, fun facts, recipes, and short anecdotes in order to be an excellent, well-rounded book.  If you are in the mood to simply pick up a book and read some up-beat romantic entries this is the book for you.  With my busy daily schedule I really enjoyed that I didn’t have to keep in mind a plot or storyline, but could instead pick up the book and turn to a random page and read an inspiring romantic item for the day. 
My favorite parts of the book were the fun facts and trivia about romance.  There were many that I was unaware of before.  Also, I enjoyed the short anecdotes my favorite involved a lady in a wedding gown being involved in a small car accident. 
This book had no salacious content and would be appropriate for any age level.  It may be the best for newlyweds as a wedding present, or as an anniversary present for couples further along in their romance.
I received a copy of this book from Waterbrook Multnomah for the purpose of the review.

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

The Canary List Review




“The Canary List” incorporates elements of all kinds of genres.  Horror, mystery, fantasy, and religion are all intertwined in this thriller.  At first, I found the book difficult to be engaged with, but as it progressed the character development and moral questions that were raised became made the book become a more interesting read.

Is it ok to do evil things as long as the greater good will be served?  “The Canary List” reminded me vaguely of “Angels and Demons”.  I learned a little about the Catholic Church as I read, but I never felt like I was being preached to.  I did feel that the author missed a few opportunities that would have made this book go from good to great.  So many of the characters spend time focusing on their past, but their present and future is left open.  Only one character appears to be any better off than they were at the start of the book.

As a teacher, I feel comfortable placing this book within my classroom library and not receiving flack for it.  My students, I feel, will enjoy “The Canary List” and it will keep them engaged.

That's a Great Answer 2nd Edition


I teach Language Arts at the middle school level and found this book to be very applicable to direct classroom instruction.  Often, I read material that is “pie in the sky” and does not share direct and explicit ideas that can be immediately used.  I found the availability of the information to be applied directly to my current classroom lessons to be my favorite part of the book. The other parts of the book I found to be positive are:

- The explicit examples as mentioned above are by far the best part of the text and need to be reiterated.

- The gradual release model of instruction was applied in the examples.  This is something my principal is always asking us to incorporate.

- An explanation as to why the new common core standards are important to the field of teaching.

-Rubrics for selecting picture book and other literature.  This is important as a simple list of texts is ever changing.

-I liked that there was an emphasis on reading.  Being a Language Arts teacher I feel that often, other subject areas such as History, Science, and yes, even Math need reading skills. This text was applicable to all subject areas.  The open-ended question style could be applied to a passage from any subject area.

I received a review copy in Adobe format so I did not get the chance to use the CD that is included with the book so I cannot comment on it.  I did find the text to be a valuable tool and would recommend that others teachers use it to come up with new ideas in their classroom

Monday, November 28, 2011

Playground by 50 Cent Review


“Playground” is a well-written, engaging story.  The main character, Butterball, has had a rough year.  Like many teens, he is desperately searching for acceptance.  He wants nothing more than to be “the big man on campus”.  However, it seems at every turn an obstacle lies in his path.   He is overweight, new to his school, and has anger issues he can’t even begin to explain.  After jumping an “ex” friend on the playground Butterball’s life becomes more and more complex.  The reader is left wondering for most of the book why the assault occurred.  When we do learn what prompted Butterball’s anger “Playground” becomes even more intriguing.  This coming of age story has a twist dealing with acceptance that I think few will see coming. 

The book is told in the first person with a great amount of detail going into exploring where Butterball is coming from. Teens will be able to easily relate to Butterball’s feelings of isolation and peer pressure.  I can honestly say I was more than pleasantly surprised by 50 Cent’s writing ability.  I did not expect this book to be nearly as good as it was.

Also, from the standpoint of a middle school English teacher I was slightly concerned about the content being inappropriate for my classroom library.  “Playground” does have some cursing, but never uses the “F” bomb.  It never delves into sex and the violence is limited.  I feel comfortable recommending this book to my students and putting on my classroom shelf.

I highly recommend “Playground”.