Book Reviews

Wonder is a coming of age fiction starting with a boy named August. August, who has never been to school before, has to learn the hard way of fitting in. He was born with mandibulofacial dysostosis, which caused August's cheeks and other facial features like the mouth, ears, and eyes, to form differently at birth. When I first read this book, I was so intrigued from the first page, and this book taught me so many life lessons, and that you shouldn't care what others think of you. The story explains August's battles, the overwhelming feelings he encounters, from friends, and family, all while having the trouble of people's reaction to his face. August taught me to be brave and have courage to do things that are new or challenging. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone struggling to find themselves in life, it taught me so much.

The Myth of Sisyphus is a newer interpretation of the traditional story from greek myth. Camus tells about how someone can be happy even when they can only perform meaningless actions. Some of it can be a little hard to wrap your mind around with all of the philosophical language, but its a very fun read. It is very interesting to see interpretations from various different perspectives of the myth of Sisyphus, and it changes the definition of true happiness in certain situations.

Much like Ajax Penumbra 1969 helped fill in some of the lore for Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore, Robin Sloan expounded on his book Sourdough with The Suitcase Clone. This short story doesn’t necessarily share any of the main characters from Sourdough, but it gives some insight about the mysterious “creature” that’s in the sourdough while also providing an interesting look into intellectual property theft when it comes to specific wines—which itself is reason enough to read this short story.

Sloan takes a somewhat unorthodox approach to the point of view here, which took some getting used to. His language bordered on being too flowery, and it lost me as to what was happening at least a few times. But in terms of straight vibes, The Suitcase Clone successfully gives off that eerie, otherworldly feeling that helps add to the mystery of this almost microorganism entity. Reading this story is what I would imagine taking mind-altering drugs would be like as one travels the countryside of France. It’s not something I would do personally, but I can see the appeal of it.

As it’s a distinctly different feel when compared to the standard analog/digital style Sloan uses in his other, full-length books, I’m glad this backstory wasn’t forced into the main plotline for Sourdough. You don’t really gain any huge revelations as part of this prequel story, but rather have a context for the weirdness that ensues in the main book this stems from. As a fan of this author, I’ll always read anything he puts out, but The Suitcase Clone almost feels too experimental for me to get my head around.

A trippy vibe that sets up some of the weirdness in Sourdough, I give The Suitcase Clone 3.5 stars out of 5.

This book was very good. I loved the authors development of characters and plot in the book. The romantic scenes were very age appropriate for 13 year olds. I was intrigued by how she explained the main storyline and how the main character came to be.

Marissa Meyer's Cinder is a sci-fi retelling of the classic tale Cinderella. It follows Cinder, a young cyborg mechanic, as she struggles with the people's discrimination against her and her fear of the deadly plague slowly overtaking the Earth. With the looming threat of universal war, and her complicated relationship with the crown prince, Cinder is caught up in political drama, scientific breakthroughs, love, loss, and shocking realizations about her past.

This book deals with heavy themes of discrimination as Cinder is made an outcast for her cybernetic makeup. It also displays themes of racism in the behaviors of the citizens of the Earth and Moon towards each other. Throughout the story the stereotypes of both sides challenged and understanding is established between the groups.

This book was a unique and interesting read keeping the reader invested through every twist and plot point. I would highly advise it for young adult readers who enjoy sci-fi, fantasy, or just classic fairy tales.

Where do I even begin...This book started off in a dystopian world. Where magic existed, underground fights, and a corrupt gonverment. The most compelling feature of Caster is it's magic system. In the dystopain city of Lotusland, magic is not a "free gift." It is a destructive force that draws energy directly from the Earth, causing enviromental catasrophes, like earthquakes and pollution. Worse, "full casting" physically hurts the caster, leaving painful wounds that serev as a constant reminder of what using this power costs. Sixteen year old Aza Wu is our main character, and our protaganist. Driven buy adult responsiblties, a theme that is rooted in the story's Chinese inspired setting. She carries the weight of her family's survival on her shoulders. Her journey isn't about saving the world; it's a personal struggle, to pay off gang debts, svae the family tea house, and solve the mystery of her sister's death. Aza is flawed and often makes reckless descisions, but her loyalty makes her a character you can't help but root for. While the ending can feel slightly abrupt or flat for those hoping a tidy resolution, it perfectly sets the stage for a bigger conflict. The writing is sharp and can make you see the world thorugh your mind's eye, making the tournament duels feel cinematic and urgent. Caster is a spellbinding and pulse bounding read that will leave you wondering, what's next?

The Book Thief is a very emotional book set in Nazi Germany during WW2. The story follows a young girl named Liesel Meminger, who is sent to live with a foster family and finds a love for books, even though the world around her is falling apart. One of the most unique parts of the story is that it is narrated by Death, which gives everything a different and interesting perspective. What makes this book so good is how it connects you to its characters. The author uses creative language and symbolism making every detail important. Liesels relationships, especially with her foster parents and Rudy (her best friend) feel real, raw and deep. There are a few downsides: the pacing is a little slow at times, especially in the middle and the narration could be confusing for some. Death also reveals future events which can take away the suspense at times. Overall, The Book Thief is a very good book that leaves a lasting impact. Its emotional, meaningful and is different from much of the stories about WW2. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys historical fiction or character-driven stories.

I picked the book Lesson in Chemistry because I'm currently taking Chemistry and this bright cover and its status as a PPLD top checkout caught my eye. The story follows Elizabeth Zott, scientist who ends up hosting a TV cooking show to teach women about science. I loved Elizabeth’s fierce intelligence, but it was frustrating to read about the blatant sexism she faced in the lab. I really related deeply to Elizabeth’s struggle for professional respect, making this one of my favorite reads of the year.

I chose this book after seeing the movie adaptation announced, since I wanted to understand the true history behind the headlines. This non-fiction storyline investigates the chilling "Reign of Terror" in the 1920s, where members of the Osage Nation in Oklahoma were murdered one by one after oil was discovered under their land. What I enjoyed most was how David Grann writes like a novelist; the pacing is so fast that you forget you are reading a history book. However, the sheer level of injustice described was deeply upsetting to process. It definitely surprised me because I had never learned about this specific part of American history in school.

I chose this book because I had heard so much about the story and wanted to see if the rest of the book was just as haunting. The plot of the main story involves a small town gathering for an annual ritual that seems innocent at first but ends with a shocking twist that I truly did not see coming. What I enjoyed most was Jackson's ability to make the mundane feel terrifying, however some of the shorter sketches felt a bit unfinished compared to the other in the bunch.

I picked up this book because the title made me curious about what happens after the school bell rings, and I know PPLD recommends it often. This book tells a story of ten short sections about different students from the same middle school all walking home in the same direction. I really liked how the stories were funny and relatable, but they also had some deeper moments that made me think about my own friends. My favorite part was seeing how the characters' paths crossed in small ways, though I wish some of the stories were a little longer because I wanted to know even more about the kids! It didn't quite end the way I expected, which was a cool surprise.

I chose to read this book because I loved the beautiful cover art and I had seen it on several PPLD reading lists for students. The story begins when a robot named Roz opens her eyes for the first time and discovers she is alone on a remote. She has to learn how to survive by observing the animals, but the island's inhabitants aren't so sure about their new "monster" neighbor. I was surprised by how much emotion a story about a robot could have, and it made me think a lot about how we treat nature. I really related to the way Roz felt like an outsider trying to fit in, and it’s definitely one of the best books I’ve read lately.

Even though it was written in the 90s, the premise of Parable of the Sower intrigued me because it was set in our near past of 2024. That its themes focused on the end of the world being brought about by climate change and wealth inequality was also eerily prescient enough for me to want to read how Octavia E. Butler thought things would play out in the “future.” Perhaps part of me wanted some amount of optimism; but ultimately, it’s just a depressing examination of current failures.

The first half of Parable of the Sower really paints a picture of some scarily accurate predictions for the state of society today. Even if people deny the effects of climate change, this book shows an even more extreme world that could be in our future if we do nothing to reverse it. Of course, climate change is really the exacerbating force that drives the wealth disparity present in this book into apocalypse territory. The depressing part of this book is how the only realistic solution is to give up and start over.

With the onslaught of awful things that happened in this book, it lost its entertainment appeal as the hits kept coming. Perhaps it was my desire for escapism—that it would give a way to fix these broken things that we currently have no control over—that ultimately wasn’t met. And while I agree the current system should probably be demolished and built from the ground up with empathy (or even “hyper-empathy”), I still think there are things we can also do to fight what’s happening. Even if this book predicted a lot of bad things , I hope we can work to make some good.

A gauntlet of eerily prescient bad news for modern times, I give Parable of the Sower 3.5 stars out of 5.

An amazing book that was absolutely thrilling, enticing, and heart-wrenchingly emotional! One of my all time favorites and it will always be near and dear to my heart. It's full of adventure, growing from trauma, and making new connections with people you never would have expected. In a whole world of fantasy this book was absolutely fire (see what I did there :) !!!

It was the most perfect, cheesy romance imaginable! While being unfortunately highly unrealistic, Poppy and Alex's story was so silly and fun to go along with. Honestly a refreshing read that wasn't too heavy but had enough weight to have a good plot!

Uncle Tom’s Cabin is one of those iconic literary texts that evaded my entire educational career. Remedying this, I have finally sat down to read this famous book, and I think more people would benefit from its narrative if they’re encouraged to read it as well. While the events are fictitious, the world Harriet Beecher Stowe paints with her words is probably closer to reality than most people at the time realized, thus educating people (mainly Christians) about how their beliefs should not be aligned with slavery in any way.

First and foremost, the format of Uncle Tom’s Cabin is still entertaining. The story itself is strong because it shares so many similarities with things happening in the lead-up to the Civil War. Things that most people of the time were likely ignorant of. We may take these events as common knowledge after all the history books that have been written about slavery, but to those in its contemporary era who didn’t know this was happening, it’s quite an enraging piece of literature that spurs one to action. The trick with reading it today is making sure to actually engage with the original material.

Partly because of all the adaptations of this work, some themes and characterizations are lost as people associate with the versions of Uncle Tom’s Cabin that ultimately form negative stereotypes for African Americans. I went into this book expecting these things but was pleasantly surprised to find that these characters really shined in their depiction of humanity. That there’s hope to defeat such an ugly beast of humanity’s greed makes me wonder if any other modern works will be written that expose things in a way to get the masses mad about what’s currently happening in our world.

A well-written exposé on the evils of slavery, I give Uncle Tom’s Cabin 4.5 stars out of 5.

The Outsiders is a great book for many reasons. One of the reasons is the personal development. The Outsiders follows the story of Ponyboy Curtis as he is faced with many challenges. The action and emotional moments in the book kept me interested the whole book. I recommend this book because it shows how you can overcome challenges just like Ponyboy.

This book follows the adventure of a misfortunate scholar named Humphrey Van Weyden. During a trip by boat he is knocked over board and finds himself saved and in the service of the unfeeling tyrannical captain Wolf Larsen. Throughout the book Van Weyden philosophically debates with his counterpart Wolf Larsen on kindness and intellect versus survival of the fittest. Van Weyden is eventually forced to confront Larsen and make his way back to civilization.

The book spends most of its narrative highlighting the absolute differences between the two main characters. Due to this focus the books story tends to be slower and sometimes repetitive. The book provides an excellent example of how environment shapes character and what beliefs are most important when confronted by challenge. The book has a compelling concept that unfortunately suffers from an excess of dialogue and not enough story progression or narrative.

There are nonfiction biographies about famous people, then there are books like Blonde, which fuse fictional narration techniques with mostly biographical details of a person’s life. While not entirely historically accurate, it is intrinsically entertaining. In fact, I would deem that Blonde is perhaps the most entertaining version of Marilyn Monroe’s life to be put to the page (given that you're listening to the abridged version like I did). It might be too over-erotic in places, but the trauma of being deemed and treated like a sex symbol for decades really comes into focus in this intimate portrayal of Norma Jeane.

Blonde is interesting in the way that it almost feels like an autobiography from Marilyn’s perspective. The almost breathless whispering affectation comes across and has such a well-thought-out explanation as to really convey Monroe’s internal monologue through these words. The progression of her life feels completely out of her control, but her ability to adapt and make the most of what she wanted to get out of it. That her endless stream of male suitors feels more like a used doll passed down the line instead of something she actively pursued really highlights how little autonomy women of the era had—even women as well-known as Marilyn Monroe.

Trying to make Monroe’s life into something more puritan would have been a disservice to the effect she had on society. While this could have been done in a less explicit manner, it drives home the central themes of the book. From a modern context, even 26 years after its original 2000 release, Blonde shows how oppressive the patriarchy was/is. Objectification has not improved in the meantime, even if the #MeToo movement has made voices calling out abuse more prevalent. In the end, Marilyn’s life is tragic, and the contextualization in Blonde merely brings this into uncomfortable focus.

An intimate and semi-fictional account of Marilyn Monroe, I give Blonde 4.5 stars out of 5.

I recently read "What the Woods Took" by Courtney Gould and I loved reading it. Each chapter left me wanting to keep reading and know what happens next. I loved the plot twist with what happens with *spoilers* Hannah. Gould did a great job, in my opinion, building the relationships that the main characters were building throughout their time in the forest, she also did well with Devin and Sheridan's relationship. I think it was well written and the descriptions made me feel like I was actually there. The scenes where the main characters were fighting the mimics and trying to survive were amazing. I loved reading "What the Woods Took" and highly recommend it if you are into thriller books.

Caraval circles around two sisters, Scarlett and Donatella, or Tella. These sisters live on an island called Trisda that their father governs. They also have a shared interest; they both have dreams of seeing the magical performance of caraval, where it is said that the audience participates in the show. During caraval, some go mad, some get lost in the beauty and extravaganza, some simply go for the adventure, yet most go for all three. Caraval is run by the magical caraval master, Legend, who's identity has remained a mystery by most people. The point of caraval is to play with the mind of the people involved, yet it is all supposed to be only a game. Scarlett and Tella fear they aren't able to travel to caraval due to the fact that their father doesn't allow them to leave their island, yet a chance arises when a sailor gives them an offer.

This book was so magnificent. I don't know if I've read a book and needed it into a movie so much. It was a magical experience and although I am now on the third book, and final, book in this series, I do think this one was my favorite for sure. I will admit that I usually get pretty picky about my characters in book, I liked most of them in this one. Overall a great, attention grabbing book.

As my children get into longer books (and can pay attention to audiobooks), I’ve appreciated some of the stories that they have chosen. One such book was Jacky Ha Ha by James Patterson. The story of a goofy kid trying to find her purpose—or at least who interacted with adults who saw her promise—was an amusing coming of age tale. The problem with the narrative was mostly around the negligent father figure who was absent for most of the story. This subplot was my main qualm with the book.

The titular character in Jacky Ha Ha frames the story as an acceptance speech years in the future, where she no longer suffers from the stuttering that gained her this nickname. The presence of mentors at her school who saw her clowning as a potential for improv and acting is the engagement I want from those who are teaching my kids, so I appreciate that push to have Jacky try things that might make her embarrassed or push her outside her comfort zone. These days, it seems rare that someone outside the family would show an interest in mentoring a child who is frequently in detention, so I like to think that people like that still exist.

Unfortunately, the familial conflict revolved around Jacky suspecting that her father was having an affair. The number of evenings he was outside the home, leaving the large family of kids to fend for themselves for dinner was honestly grossly negligent. The explanation for his absence in the end wasn’t the satisfying twist it was meant to be because it still glossed over the fact that Jacky had made this whole scenario up because he wasn’t there to actually parent these kids. Overall, that left a sour taste as it was such a crux to the plot.

A good story about mentoring troublesome kids, but with some troubling parental neglect, I give Jacky Ha Ha 3.0 stars out of 5.

When I was first introduced to the book, The Other Half of Church, I thought it might cover topics similar to Thinking Fast and Slow where the authors would explore how neuroscience affects the religious experience that comes with attending / participating in church. While there was some discussion of these ideas, most of this text focused on the feeling of belonging that we get when we’re part of a group of like-minded individuals. This “hesed” appears to be vital for a healthy church, but it doesn’t really dive deep enough into the brain science that the early chapters promise.

Perhaps my expectation was that The Other Half of Church would get into how individuals can make snap judgements that can determine their initial desire to be included in a particular church, but then get deeper into the relational part of life with Christ by a focused attention on the Scriptures and prayer. A few of the early chapters address some of this, but about half-way through, the book pivots into how the larger organic church (not the individual) needs to deal with that feeling of belonging.

The discussion of the “hesed” was truly a useful topic to cover. Some chapters even dealt with shame and how it’s not necessarily a bad thing when correcting others to align them with the collective “this is who we are” mentality that comes with hesed. Ultimately, the church thrives on these feelings, which themselves are spawned from the way our brain makes connections with communities. However, I don’t think it quite addresses how that belonging can sometimes be a trap for churches looking to expand or enliven their congregations if they don’t address some of the cultural understandings of the modern church and how they might drive potential members away.

A useful primer on “hesed” and the feeling of belonging, I give The Other Side of Church 3.5 stars out of 5.

Determining he is not hallucinating or going crazy when he experiences his rare edition of The Great Gatsby showing him words like "murder" and making strange noises, Daniel Freund is thrown into a self-led homicide investigation in his own neighborhood. One problem: the death occurred three years ago and was deemed an open-and-shut suicide by the local police. Daniel must work together with retired detective Israel Abramovitz to prove his notion that his neighbor was actually murdered.

This book is a fairly short read and even without much background information, readers are gripped by a realistic main character and an easily followed mystery. David Finkle's writing style just might be one of my favorites...ever. It is witty to the max and frank, with resigned humor in every metaphor. I appreciated that this book includes only the mystery and excludes anything unrelated (like coinciding personal events or emotions of the main character). The end leaves readers satisfied and with a memorable impression--I even looked David Finkle up afterwards to see if I could read anything else of his.

10/10 recommend if you like The Great Gatsby, murder mysteries, candid humor, and just an overall good read.

I’m skeptical of any franchise that feels the need to explore the world of their original, highly successful franchise with a prequel. Often, it adds nothing other than some background that ultimately doesn’t matter because we all know how things start with the original stories. That being said, after watching and enjoying the movie adaptation of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (2023), I figured I would give the book a shot. Once again, Suzanne Collins broke my expectations with some of the best writing and continued world-building in literature.

Following the rise of the main villain of the Hunger Games trilogy, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes provides engaging and well thought out plot twists that show the reader the specific circumstances that led to the rise of Coriolanus Snow. That I was actually rooting for this kid all the while knowing what he would eventually become is quite a feat to pull off. Foreshadowing aside, there was the same heart in this book that made one empathize with Katniss in the original trilogy. Unfortunately, despite being given the chance to stop the Hunger Games entirely, Snow instead uses them to build his career.

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes excels in showing that even among the elite, there is a vast difference between the haves and have-nots. Perhaps this is the whole point: it’s a metaphor for the culture wars we’re fighting to distract us from the class war we should be fighting. Who cares if someone is from District 12 or District 1 if the formerly entitled individuals from the Capitol are basically in the same situation? The trouble is that once someone like Snow has a taste of the good life, he’ll do whatever it takes to get it back.

A rare prequel that expands its social commentary from the original books, I give The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes 4.5 stars out of 5.

Some of the best science fiction ever written has its basis in reality. These “what-if” scenarios often pull from actual processes and procedures that help ground them while still being entertaining. Knowing that Michael Crichton always digs deep into the science of his stories, it’s no wonder that The Andromeda Strain is an engaging examination of what happens when an unknown pathogen comes to Earth and wreaks havoc on the biosphere in odd and mysterious ways. Of course, the core of this story is the safety steps it takes to combat a terrifying virus.

This book mostly splits into two stories: one about the tragic effects of the titular “Andromeda Strain” and one about the purification rituals the scientists need to perform in order to come up with a way to counter it. Half is hazmat suits performing autopsies to learn what happened, and half is multi-layer clean-room (and extreme contingency) protocols to ensure this deadly virus cannot escape the facility meant to research it. Both parts of this book are engaging in their own way, with their twists and reveals that drive the story forward.

My singular qualm with this book is that there’s all this build-up and tension as more details are revealed, only for the climax to be anticlimactic. That there’s ultimately no need for a vaccine or protocol to keep the population safe makes it feel like all that work was ultimately wasted. Still, I really enjoyed The Andromeda Strain for the peek into extremely competent individuals following highly detailed rules meant to keep everyone involved (and even the whole world) safe from the alien virus. It might come across as stiff and more non-fiction than many would like, but I’d almost consider this book as an early example of today’s hard sci-fi.

A journey of competence that lacks some payoff, I give The Andromeda Strain 4.5 stars out of 5.

I love historical fiction. That is why I loved the book refugee. The reason why it was not a five star is because it was hard to follow all three stories but other than that, it was a great and wonderful book. Refugee helped me learn about the historical event through three different stories. I loved comparing all of the stories and their timelines. Refugee is a very clean book for all teens.

I love Edenbrooke so much, when I read it became one of my new favorite books. The main character is belittled in regard to how perfect her sister is, and she just lives in the shadow of her sister. Edenbrooke is the perfect example of a main character finding her own story. The romance is real and makes you not want to stop reading. The plot is loveable which makes you fall in love with the book. It is simple but beautiful, Julianne Donaldson did a fabulous job.

Continuing the story of the Hero association infiltrating the Monster HQ, the Class S heroes have been shown to demonstrate their value of power against the Dragon level monsters all while keeping a really good dialogue between the two sides. The art style, as always, is phenomenal especially on the fight scenes. The story so far has been so good now that we get introduced to more characters and lore behind the Monster King Orochi's origins.

While the Arthurian legend has always fascinated me, I wasn’t entirely sure how much of what I knew was just condensed through other adaptations and interpretations and what was in the original story. I finally took it upon myself to read through this huge multi-volume set to find out what it’s actually about. To say it disappointed me would be an understatement. Perhaps it’s the prose, or the translation, or just the story structure, but I have never been so bored by a piece of literature since I forced myself to read Ulysses .

Early on, Le Morte D’Arthur had enough recognizable events to keep me engaged. The origins of Arthur’s birth. The Sword in the Stone. Lady of the Lake and Excalibur. Then, things fell apart. So much of the focus in this book was on random battles and jousts that I could hardly believe the famous stories that were gleaned from this tome even existed in this form. After a while, I was just forcing myself to sit through it just to say that I’d covered the source material.

Considering this is the earliest story (aside from the Bible) that I’ve read all the way through, it can be forgiven for being obtuse and unfocused. I’m more glad that the salient story beats have been distilled in Cliff Notes and other adaptations so that I don’t have to dive in and tackle this unwieldy story again. My curiosity wanted to make sure I wasn’t missing anything, but my masochism forced me to finish it. Ultimately, if you’re also curious to read the original manuscript that inspired so many drama-filled tales of chivalrous knights, I’d say just pick up something that covers all the good bits and ignore the original.

An overly long book that doesn’t even seem to focus on anything it’s known for, I give Le Morte D'Arthur 2.0 stars out of 5.