Listen. I feel terrible. I really do.
I know that there are a lot of you out there that LOVE this book and the series as a whole, but I am not one of you. I was tempted by this book because I knew it was a dystopian novel, and those are all the rage right now. I wanted it to be an exciting as The Hunger Games and have as intriguing a premise as Divergent, but for me, it was none of those things and didn't even bother to establish itself as something uniquely different either. I found myself having a hard time connecting with Thomas, the main character. While I was cheering for him and genuinely wanted him to succeed, it was in a supportive spectator way, not like the crazy, obsessed fan I was when I was rooting for Katniss to survive or when I was wishing death on Tris's enemies. I found myself uninterested in the slow reveal of his character. I didn't care about his past or finding out about his future. No, I just wanted him to win because he was the "good guy," and even the twist at the end didn't make me interested enough to find out what future challenges awaited him. I apologize to all you Maze Runner fans. What would you recommend I try next?
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People say you should never judge a book by its cover, but I do. I saw this book, tiny as it was, and thought, "Psht. I can read this in a day." The thing is, I did read it in a day. Once I picked it up, I could NOT put it down, and if you like a good story, you won't be able to either.
Deltora Quest tells the story of Lief, who journeys through distant lands in search of the stones his people need to defeat the villain who has taken over the land of Del. Lief and his two companions, Barda and Jasmine, use their collective skills to defeat the obstacles in their path. What I love so much about this book is that each character brings something special to the journey, and each obstacle helps Lief get closer to his goal, but these obstacles also bring him closer to his friends. They each learn about themselves, but also learn about the many different creatures and people that make up the world around them, which is what makes this a great book for any student. Out of all the great features of the book, my favorite feature is the puzzles. In each book, there is at least one puzzle the characters have to solve, and silly as it might seem, I LOVE PUZZLES. As soon as I see one, I immediately stop reading and ponder the puzzle until I either figure it out or can't take it anymore and read ahead for the answer. If you are like this too, try it out! And thank you, dear student, for the recommendation! I'm Not Dying with You Tonight by GILLY SEGAL AND KIMBERLY JONES is the story of an unlikely partnership between Lena, a black fashionista and social butterfly, and Campbell, a shy, white transplant from Connecticut who is still trying to find her way in her new home. Campbell and Lena meet when Campbell is working at a concession stand during their school's football game. A fight between the long-time rival teams spirals into a brawl, and Lena and Campbell are forced to flee the concession stand and find a way to get home safely. With Campbell's dad out of town and Lena's boyfriend unable to reach them, the two must find a way to get through the riots at their school and in their town.
I enjoyed this book because it highlights some of the assumptions we make about others and how detrimental those assumptions can be to our ability to relate to people. Lena and Campbell both have assumptions they make about the other without even realizing it. As they travel through the city and are confronted with dangerous situations, one after the other, they have to figure out how to get beyond those assumptions and work together to get to safety. I believe that we all have assumptions, and we all have things that connect us to one another. This book made me think about focusing more on the connections, and I enjoyed that. When Dimple Met Rishi, by Sandhya Menon, is an adorable story about the unlikely relationship between Dimple Shah and Rishi. Patel Dimple, an aspiring coder, and Rishi, an aspiring engineer, both have very clear plans for their individual futures, but all of that changes when they meet at InsomniaCon, a local app development competition. Dimple reevaluates her priorities and all that she has planned for her future, while Rishi has to decide whether to be practical or passionate. Since Rishi and Dimple's "chance" meeting was the result of an arrangement between their parents, both characters have to figure out how to honor their parents while finding their own way in the world. What I loved most about this novel is that touches on a few important themes. First, there's the constant struggle between holding on to the time-honored traditions of our families versus being willing to accept more modern and progressive ways of living. In addition, there's the question of following a passion or following the rules that we create for ourselves (or that others create for us). Finally, it's a story about love, not just the dating kind, but the self kind and the family kind, and I love love. Note: This novel does include some mature topics. Thank you, my awesome student, for your recommendation! Break the blog with your book recommendations. Old books. New books. Red books. Blue books. All the books! Leave a comment to tell me about your favorites or just tell me which weren't worth your time. I'm all ears. Photo by kyle smith on Unsplash |
AuthorMs. Singletary teaches 8th grade ELA. Archives
September 2020
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