Book Review: In the Shadow of the Sun

This book was provided by Kid Lit Exchange (definitely check out their awesome, new website!!!). All opinions are my own. :)

In the Shadow of the Sun by Anne Sibley O'Brien

Review: At a time when North Korea has emerged a one of the most dangerous nations in the world, this June 2017 book by Anne Sibley O'Brien is nothing if not timely. Set in North Korea, 12 year old Mia is on a guided tour with her older brother Simon and their father. During their visit, Mia receives a phone containing horrific photos of starving people, dead babies. She feels a responsibility to get these photographs out to the public, but when their father is arrested for supposedly spying, Mia and Simon decide to run to China, taking the phone, and it's dangerous content, with them. The novel is the story of the incredible hardships they face as they make their way through the North Korean countryside. 

This is an exciting novel with a completely realistic representation of the political and cultural conditions that shape the lives of the people of North Korea. It almost felt as if parts of the novel were excerpts of a journalistic narrative. What I loved about the novel was that Mia's story is interrupted with short vignettes of some of the people whom are associated with Mia and Simon, some more directly than others, such as one of their tour guides, a member of the police force, and a teenager who has been conscripted into the military. These mini-stories give the reader a look into the lives of numerous people living in North Korea and how the current regime affects them and their families. It was fascinating and I have already recommended the novel to some of my students.

Rating: 5/5

Book Review: Girls Who Code: The Friendship Code

My cyber-security, tech-minded husband was thrilled when I opened my latest bookmail from KidLitExchange to find the first book in the Girls Who Code series. He immediately started flipping through it, asking me if I knew what the different lines of code meant. (insert eye roll here)

Girls Who Code: The Friendship Code by Stacia Deutsch

Review: Girls Who Code: The Friendship Code is a sweet story about a sixth grader named Lucy who is a member of her school's coding club. After Lucy begins receiving mysterious notes written in code, she turns to some of the other members of the club to help her figure out the mysteries. Reminiscent of The Babysitters Club series, this would be a good book to introduce the basics of programming and computer science to students, whether at a STEM school or just to have on hand in the library/classroom.

While geared towards middle grades, I felt it was better suited for upper elementary, as the writing was pretty simplistic and it lacked any conflict. The conflict that was mentioned (a year-long estrangement between Lucy and her former best friend) was seemingly resolved after a few words to one another. The characters, while diverse, were very one-dimensional. However, the themes of friendships and problem-solving are ones that are both universal and positive, and I could see how it might help to spark an interest in computer programming for students.

Rating: 3.5/5

Book Review: Pepipacifoofoo

Pepipacifoofoo by Theda Fresques

Review: This Kickstarter book is a sweet story of a fairy named Pepipacifoofoo who provides pacifiers for babies and then helps to wean those same children by exchanging pacifiers for gifts in order to pass the pacifiers on to new babies. For parents who might be struggling to get their children to wean from their pacifiers, this might be the answer to their prayers. My only worry with the book is that it seems to glorify pacifiers, stating that babies who were given pacifiers grew up to be happy boys and girls. Does this mean that parents who opt to not use pacifiers with their children will have unhappy boys and girls as they grow up? I can see some parents being discouraged with that (unintended) message, or maybe I just overthink things....? Overall, I can see this story really helping parents to wean their children from their pacifiers, and children really enjoying the illustrations and story as a whole.

Rating: 4/5

Rook Review: When Planets Fall

I was so excited to receive my first physical book mail from KidLitExchange in the mail last week. Book mail is the best mail. :)

When Planets Fall by Abby J. Reed

Review: I was initially drawn to When Planets Fall because the three characters from whose perspectives the story is told all have some sort of disability that sets them apart from others in the novel. Breaker has a prosthetic leg, named Circuit, which causes him back pain where the harness rests and pain where Circuit rubs against the remaining portion of his leg. The prosthetic impacts his mobility, but he does not feel comfortable without it, so he deals with the pain. Malani not only has metal wings that set her apart from everyone else physically, but also has PTSD from when she was kidnapped when she was younger. Luka has debilitating migraines, (and may also be a sociopath) but that only adds to his character. Rather than having characters who were the perfect hero or heroine, the author made Breaker, Malani, and Luka more real by not only ensuring that their disability was discussed and not glossed over, but also that they found ways to cope with these differences, something that I think all readers will.

Even with the storyline and well-developed characters, I did struggle to stay invested at points. Malani is not a sympathetic character; Breaker risked his life, as well as the people in his compound, to free her from the Heron, and she is really mean to him in return, both in her thoughts and actions. Also, some of the vocabulary was a little confusing. Instead of "year," "month," "week," "day," "hour," "minute," and "second," they said "cycle," "monsa," "septdia," "dia," "hora," "min," and "sec." Since they were on a different planet, I understand having different words if they represented different lengths of time, but that did not seem to be the case.

While I struggled initially to get invested in the novel, almost to the point of setting it aside entirely, I powered through and ended up really enjoying the storyline and character development. I really liked how unpredictable everything became near the end and how there was not a happy ending as one would have thought. With the novel ending how it did, I am really excited to see where the author takes the next two novels.

Rating: 3.5/5

Book Review: The Peculiar Incident on Shady Street

This blog was originally intended as an assignment for my first library media studies graduate class. However, since that course is ending this week and I am not sure if we will be required to continue the blog with any of my future courses, I have decided to re-purpose it a bit... 

In following Kate Olson (aka The Loud Library Lady) on Instagram, I learned about KidLitExchange, a program she created in which "kid lit" is submitted to readers to review, which means that the books receive more reviews. As an avid book reader, I wanted to be involved before I even finished reading the description. Over the weekend, I received my first KidLitExchange book via NetGalley and I am super excited to share the review here!!! :)

The Peculiar Incident on Shady Street by Lindsay CurrieReview: This book is SO good! It is a middle grades ghost story, something I did have to remind myself of a few times while reading, as the story is told from the perspective of a 12 year old girl (insert all the internal struggles of a tween who is forced to leave her friends and life in Florida in order to move to Chicago because of her dad's new job...), but I really found myself sucked into the story itself due to all the details which helped to move the plot along. Currie did a phenomenal job of laying out the creepy details of the ghost story / haunted house Tessa and her family have moved into, and I found myself getting goosebumps during some of the ghost-related scenes. While I felt the Tessa-Cassidy storyline was unnecessary and did nothing for the plot itself, hence the half star deduction, the actual ghost story and theme of friendship were both great, making this a must read for all middle grades students when it is released on October 10th!
Rating: 4.5/5