Good Guys

I do love the Property Brothers.  And so it was good to listen to It Takes Two:  Our Story with my mom.  It does seem like they are.  I remember one part of the book talks about a trip that they took to India where they heard parents who had no regard for their girl children.  This was shocking to me and then I read Sold and then I started digging around and I found that it is, sadly, more common than I had thought.  I am not picking on Indians, because we know that here in the US there are the same kinds of "parents." But it was weird that I would hear about it first in this book and then end up reading Sold and learning more. 

Staying Fit for David Levithan

In my life long quest to be approved by David Levithan I am continuing my battle with the bulge.  Mr. Levinthan, I am 120.5 lbs, where I was 338 on December 31 of 2013.  I am 5'4.  I am good now?  Regardless, I am going to keep at it, Mr. Diversity!  I read Dave Barry's Stay Fit and Healthy Until You;re Dead is a great self-help book.  Especially when we read so much about the benefits of laughter.  Very funny. 

Drawing Lines

I really loved the boy, Michael, in The Lines We Cross.  Talk about being brave.  His parents were just the worst.  The worst.  They just made my skin crawl.  Especially the mom because she was an "educator."  Yeah, the dumbest educator ever.  Great book, even though I don't usually like books not set in the US!  Also, it was interesting to see the similarities between idiocy in the US and idiocy and hatefulness in Australia. 

Tough

Sold was a hard, hard and important book.  Lakshmi's innocence is painful in the face of the horrors to which she is subjected.  And it is a very real story, though this is a work of fiction.  And it isn't just in far-off countries where this happens.  It is right here.  What kind of people do these kinds of things?  Monsters.  That is all I can think. 

To Pass the Time

Everything I Never Told you seemed like a lot of books I have read before, some of them even this year.  I didn't have anything to listen to and this was available and I didn't hate it.  I didn't even dislike it.  It was just there.  A solid 3 stars if you haven't read anything like it before, but a 2.5 if you have.  It was just a little too laid out for the reader.  Kinda like Mr. Obvious as to why the husband and wife acted as they did.  I mean, if I could get it, I bet everyone else did, but the author spelled it all out too much, the connections.  I don't think I am saying this right! 
It was kind of like this:
Husband wants daughter to be popular.  Says or does something to her to convey that.
Next scene in book is a flashback to when he was her age and was not popular.
Wife wants daughter to be a doctor.  Says or does something to her to convey that.
Next scene in book is a flashback to when her dreams of being a doctor were alive and then crushed.
It was just a little too...yeah, I guess spelled out?

Being Brave

As Brave as You is an interesting title.  At first I didn't get why it was the title of the book (which is wonderful, by the way) but then I thought about it for a second and it is a great fit.  There are so many brave actions in this book.  From Genie to Ernie to Grandpop.  Great book about what scares us and what happens when we are brave or when someone is brave for us.  What other wonderful things can I saw about Jason Reynolds!

The Greatest

When I Was the Greatest is by Jason Reynolds, who is for sure, one of the greatest writers out there.  I loved this book and I loved the father who has faults but wow, what love.  I loved the main character and the love that he has for his friends and family.  I loved the reason why the boxing coach taught him how to fight.  Pay careful attention to the conversation that the coach has with Ali that causes him to decide to teach him how to box.  It is pretty beautiful, but so quick that you might miss it.  Great book. 

Not the guy from Rush

J. Paul Getty is not, as far as I know, related to Geddy Lee from Rush.  Still, Painfully Rich:  the Outrageous Fortune and Misfortunes of the Heirs of J. Paul Getty was good!  I have to admit that I thought Geddy was spelled Getty, so that could be why I was confused.  The book is now called All the Money in the World, which is the name of the movie that just came out.  I saw it on Christmas Day with my mom.  I had listened to most of the book prior to seeing the movie so it was a different experience for me.  I enjoyed the movie a lot, but I did fall asleep.  I was tired!  I think reading the book before the movie is a good idea though, because you get a bigger picture.  Also, the kidnapping of John Paul Getty III is just a chapter in the book.  But it does have a lot of detail. It was sad to read about this family.  It was hard to envy them, even though they are super rich.  But it was hard to feel sorry for them, too.  But it was not like I was passing judgement, really.  It was just more or less, well, some people do have horrible lives here on earth.  They do.  But I think that money can make the horrible a little less horrible sometimes.  But it doesn't make it not horrible.  It can be horrible either way. 

Any book that Jason Reynolds recommends...

is probably going to be amazing.  I heard him talk about his newest book on MashReads and he recommended Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward.   It won the National Book Award this year and as far as I am concerned, I can't imagine a better choice.  I listened to her on the New York Public Library's podcast, which was recorded on the day before the book came out and just found her to be fascinating.  It was neat, too to to hear that she hopes one day to write a middle grade fiction book!  Can you imagine?!
Excellent.

AGH!!

All American Boys was so good and so real that by the end of the second chapter I had to listen backwards. 
When a book is so heartbreaking/real/frightening I skip to the end and listen backwards, just to make the ending a little easier on myself it is a horrible ending and just to confirm it will "all be okay" if it is a hopeful ending.  I won't give away the ending here, but this was just so powerful, I had to take it in chunks.  Excellent. 

Someday

when I'm awfully low...this is for-sure worth watching.    Someday Angeline is not a must-read.  It's not a must-skip either.  But for me it wasn't a must-read.  I probably won't read the second one.  But then again, I might.  I mean, it wasn't horrible at all.  It just wasn't all that exceptional or entertaining.  Not love, but not bad!

In a Short Story Collection

this year I was introduced to J.A. Jance.  For some reason I used to think that Jance was British and you know how I am about off-putting Briticisms, so I never gave her much thought.  The short story captured my interest though and so I thought I would try the first in the Joanna Brady series, Desert Heat, even though I am not big on female detectives.  This was good though.  I did enjoy it very much and I hope to read the second one and keep going if it is as good as this one was!  It's set in the real town of Bisbee, AZ. 

Katherine How Great Thou Art

I like the way that that Quakers talk in Lyddie.  I really liked Lyddie.  But that is not surprising, knowing the author is Katherine Paterson.  There are some very funny lines in Lyddie.  And the power of reading is subtly shown here.  This takes place in Lowell, MA and there still in an area in Lowell known as The Acre.  Bette Davis was born there, in Lowell. There is a lot to learn here.  And just an excellent story to enjoy. 

Jason Reynolds Love

I have LOTS of love for Jason Reynolds who has become one of my favorite authors in a short time.  The Boy in the Black Suit was excellent.  Very real and powerful and sorrowful and hopeful and joyful.  After hearing Reynolds on that podcast I fell in love with him and was not surprised at all by the bravery and honesty of his characters.  Once I had the honor of officiating at a funeral like one of Love's grandmother.  And it is something I will remember always and it is something that taught me a great deal and really makes me understand the whole "death where is thy victory" deal.  Because death, you ain't nothin'!

It-lee

I have never been to Italy and never had a desire to go, except to see all of the incredible art.     But after reading Love & Gelato I think I would like to go!  This was a very sweet story about love and parenthood and loss. 

Pretty Darn Powerful

What Girls are Made Of was really good.  And it was made even better with the author's note, but it would have been really good even if she hadn't given some great testimony as to why she wrote the book and why it written in the starkly honest way that it is.  She admits that there are parts that may offend some people.  But she explains why that is totally okay.  I was not offended, but I was surprised- not shocked, but surprised by the graphic nature of parts of the book.  You can tell though that it is not done gratuitously, that the inclusion of such frank descriptions make a really good point.  Tough book, good book.  But yeah, it may offend people.  Another great book from Arnold.

Before and After

The Ethan I was Before has a great cover and a great title and it really is a great book.  I just thought that the end dragged just a wee-wee bit with the fox cubs.  The fox cubs were the only thing that kept this from being a 5 star for me, but I get why they were important.  This was an incredibly powerful book.  If there could have been some other way to work in heroism/sacrifice by Coralee, for me, this would have been one of the best books I read all year.  Highly recommended, but the foxes just took a lot a way for me. 

Wondering how I missed this?

Except for the fact that I am the fool who didn't read Hatchet until I was 44.  Mockingbird was a wonderful book.  One of the best I have ever read.  Sadly timely, compassionate, lovely. 

Being from Pittsburgh

Saving Marty just didn't do it for me.  Now keep in mind that I listened to the book and it was read with a southern accent and it wasn't set IN Pittsburgh, but in Southwestern PA and I do know that some people see this region as being part of Appalachia.  Indeed, it is in the Appalachian Mountain region and all.  But I think it was a stretch to say that there was a Pittsburgh Jamboree.  Not that there is anything wrong with that.  It just didn't feel "real" to me.  If you live in Southwestern PA and found this to be a correct portrayal, please correct me though! 

Bat Boy

Remember him?
Well A Boy Called Bat has nothing to do with him.
It just reminded me of him.  The name only.
I really like Elana K. Arnold's Burning and A Question of Miracles.  I loved them, actually and so I was excited to see ABCB.  It was a really good look into the world of a kid with exceptional abilities.  I mean, what I loved about it is that it isn't a BOOK ABOUT A KID WITH EXCEPTIONAL ABILITIES.  It is a book about a kid.  And this kid does have special gifts and special needs.  And he also is just like every other kid, too.  Because all kids have special gifts and needs.  I just found it interesting, her take on the whole thing.  And also that the book description, on goodreads at least, doesn't say, "BAT has X" or whatever.  In other places he is described as being on the autism spectrum, but it is all very chill and low-key and respectful and real.  And I am excited that it is a series!

That was some party...

The Party was a good, I-want-to-keep-reading book.  The characters were real in that they weren't all good or all bad.  I especially liked Jeff. 
I know this book is an adult book, but I also think it could be enjoyed by older teens.  It's a toughie.  It isn't a literary book, but it is a quick read. 

Sweet Boy

I think that Archer is one of the sweetest characters I have come to know.  I really enjoyed The Best Man very much for the ways in which it is just really not a big deal that some people are gay and some people are straight.  I mean it is a big deal to SOME people in this book, sure.  But the book isn't about the struggle for acceptance by the majority.  In The Best Man, the people who seem to have an issue with those who are attracted to those of the same sex are in the minority.  And that was refreshing.  And loving.  And Christian.  I really, really liked this one!

I LOVE Jason Reynolds

And I really loved Patina.  I loved it so much that the ending made me so mad!!!!!  Great, great book!  Lots to think about here, especially the pressure that Patina puts on herself.  What a great kid.  I loved this book. 

Dear Martin, You would love this book.

Dear Martin was just so excellent.  I bought it when I saw that it had made the list of finalists for the Morris Award.  May I also admit that the Morris Award was completely unknown to me before I saw the email from YALSA announcing the finalists?  I am embarrassed, but I am transparent!  Relevant, real, amazing writing. I didn't know until I looked at her web page that Nic Stone is female.  Not a big deal or even a deal, but I am always impressed when an author can just really speak in the voice of someone different from they.  So good.  This one should be a Printz Honor for sure.  Only Auma's Long Run is higher in my opinion.  But man, this is close!

Far from the Tree was a very good book.  There were just so many OUTSTANDING YA books this year that it might be hard for it to stand out.  Compared to Auma's Long Run, Long Way Down, The Hate U Give and Dear Martin, it's hard to see this as THE Printz.  An honor book?  Sure!  As long as those I listed above are honor books as well, with Auma getting the big prize (in my imaginary world this will happen).  But this was an excellent book with so many emotions and great characters.  Very heart-felt and heart-rending.  Well recommended.  

Cuba and China and Pittsburgh

It seems to me that I have been reading a lot about Cuba this year.  But I probably haven't.  But when I saw that My Brigadista Year was set in Cuba, I was excited.  I knew I was going to read it, because for one, it was Katherine Paterson!  And I was SO excited about the skype visit at our middle school when she was in Pittsburgh last week so I wanted to read it and Stories of My Life before that day.  Well, it turns out I got SO SICK on Friday and was sick until Wednesday morning.  I was heartbroken to have missed the visit.  I talked to the middle school librarian and she got to ask TWO questions of Ms. Paterson.  One was what one year in her life would she live over again if she could.  And Paterson was like, "Ohh!  That is a good question!," and she went on to eliminate years that she wouldn't want to live over again, but she didn't really have one year that she would want to for sure.  What a great, great question.  And listening to Stories of My Life (for two days I have been trying to link this and it keeps crashing!  I have NO idea why!) I can see why that would be hard for Paterson!  The other question was is her new book available in Cuba? (It isn't yet but they are working on it.)  That surprised me because I think it is a really balanced view.  But I am not sure how balanced Cuba is these days.  But there was a lot in this book that I didn't know about before I read it.  One thing that surprised me is that Castro wanted to eliminate illiteracy in Cuba and by his organizing of Cubans, he did!  It seems to me that in a true dictatorship, a dictator wouldn't want people to have that kind of power.  I find it sadder to think that in our country we still have so many roadblocks to literacy for so many.  And also in our country, reading was not allowed to be learned by those who were enslaved.  Just very telling, indeed.
Anyway, I am so thankful that at least I got to read these great book and I hope that some day I will get to see Ms. Paterson again!  But if I don't see her here, before one of us crosses the Jordan, I will surely see her there.  What a great place Heaven will be!

Spy vs. Spy

Spy School Secret Service is the fifth in the Spy School series and I feel like the pacing was JUST right for me as far as my weird tastes are concerned.  If you are the kind person who enjoys stories in which the hero is falsely accused for there is a case of mistaken identity and the majority of the book or movie is all about the person proving innocence, then we are not a like.  This stuff just drives me crazy!  I feel so bad for the person.  I can like the book or movie, but I have to skip to the end to make sure it all turns out okay!  But basically, I don't enjoy the experience at all.  I thought this was going to go down that way.  But I love Erica Hale and I love Stuart Gibbs and I love this series!  So all was okay!