Pam T's Shootin' for 75 in 2012

Charlie-barley pudding and pie,
kiss the kitties and make them cry.

ADULT READS will go here

1. The complete Jack Russell
by James McKay
2. The Jack Russell terrier handbook
by Coile, D. Caroline
3. Ultimate Jack Russell terrier
by Mary Strom
4. The Jack Russell Terrier:Courageous Companion (Howell's Best of Breed Library)
by Catherine Romaine Brown
5. Mother Knows Best:the natural way to train your dog
by Carol Lea Benjamin
6. Poodles for Dummies by Susan Ewing
7. The Mouse and the Christmas Cake by Anon
8. Why Do Dogs Like Balls? :more than 200 canine quirks, curiosities, and conundrums revealed
by D. Caroline Coile
9. The Song of Achilles: A Novel
by M. Miller **
10. The Help *****

11. Swarm ***
by VW Larson
12. Rotters ****.5
13. Up: A Mother and Daughter's Peakbagging Adventure ***
14. Running with Kenyans
15. Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail
16. Wonderful Adventures of Mrs. Seacole in Many Lands
17. Wednesdays were Pretty Normal: A Boy, Cancer, And God
18. Frommer's New England Day by Day
19. Green Beans and Ice Cream
20.

YA READS

1. A Million Suns
by Beth Revis ***
2. Hollowland
by Amanda Hocking ****
3. Prized
by Caragh O'Brien ****
4. The Hunt
by Andrew Xia Fukuda ****1/2
5. The Way We fall ***
by Megan Crewe
6. Yummy: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty
by G. Neri ****1/2
7. Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass: The Story Behind an American Friendship *****
by Russell Freedman
8. Beauty Queens
by Libba Bray ***1/2
9. Switched
by Amanda Hocking ***1/2
10. Fever
by Lauren DeStafano ****

11. The Wicked and the Just 4.5 or 5 Stars, I'm thinkin' on it
12. Paintings from the Cave
by Gary Paulsen
13. Enclave
by Ann Aguirre
14. The Scorpio Races *****
15. Taken
by Zia Marie
16. The Fault in Our Stars****
17. All the Good Children ****
by Catherine Austen
18. Unwind
19. How To Take Over Teh Wurld a LOLCat Guide to Winning
20. Variant

21. "Unraveling" by Elizabeth Norris **
22. Ashes, Ashes
23. Green Heart by Alice Hoffman *****
24. Ashfall ****.5
25. The Eleventh Plague
by Jeff Hirsch ***.5
26. Rot and Ruin ****
27. Tomorrow,when the war began ****
28. The Giver
29. Bitterblue
30. Divergent

31. Ashen Winter****
32. Partials
33. Shatter Me
34. Insurgent ***
35. Drowned Vault (Ashtown 2) ****.5
36. X Isle
37. A Monster Calls *****
35. The Last Days
36. 13 Reasons Why
37. Never Fall Down
40. Dust ***

41. Shadow and Bone
42. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
43. Confusions of Princes
44. Marcelo in the real world
45. Girl in the Arena
46. FEED by MT Anderson
47. The Infects
48 Seraphina
49. Shadows
50. The Drowned Vault

51. SOMETHING STRANGE AND DEADLY
52. Pale
53. Dragon of the Seas
54. Outpost
55. The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen
I'm not convinced this one is YA.
56. Navigating Early
57. Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi Volume 1
58. The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls
59. Article 5
60. Age of Miracles

61. Eve and Adam
62. Jewel of the Kalderash
63. Zom-B
64. Every Day
65.
66.
67.
68.
69.

70.

MIDDLE GRADE READS

1. The Enemy ***
by Charlie Higson
2. Darth Paper Strikes Back
by Tom Angleberger *****
3. The Strange Case of Origami Yoda *****
4. Cabin Fever**** 1/2 (Wimpy Kid)
by Jeff Kinney
5. Stuff On My Mutt the book

6. Empty 0Stars for Adults, 2 for teens
7. Over Sea, Under Stone ***
8. Lockdown: Escape from the Furnace (can't recommend to adults)
9. Deadly Pink****
10. The Unwanteds

11. Crispin: Cross of Lead by Avi **
12. Teenboat
13. Coraline: The Graphic Novel very good
14. Road Trip by Gary Paulsen
15. secret of the Fortune Wookiee
16. The Horse and the Plains Indians: A Powerful Partnership
17. The Beetle Book
18.
19.

.
.
48

ELEMENTARY AND YOUNGER #KIDLIT READS

1. Happy birthday, Martin Luther King
by Marzollo, Jean
2. As good as anybody : Martin Luther King and Abraham Joshua Heschel's amazing march towards freedom *****
by Michelson, Richard.
3. Martin Luther King Jr. Day
by Margaret McNamara
4. Martin Luther King Jr.
by Wil Mara
5. Martin's Big Words: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
by Doreen Rappaport and Bryan Collier
6. A Picture Book of Martin Luther King, Jr.
by David A. Adler
7. George Washington by Lola Schaefer
8. George Washington by Cassie Mayer
9. Abraham Lincoln Lola Schaefer
10. Abraham Lincoln Barbara Knox

11. My Little Pet Dragon (A picture book for toddlers and preschoolers) by Scott Gordon ***1/2
12. Little Chick's First Day!
by Paula McBride ****
13. Abe's Honest Words ****
14. George Washington Carver (rookie biographies)
by Bowdish
15. George Washington Carver: the peanut scientist
by the McKissacks
16. Frederick Douglass : leader against slavery
by the McKissacks
17. Love twelve miles long ****1/2
by Armand, Glenda.
18. Sojourner Truth's step-stomp stride
by the Pinkneys
19. "Knock-Knock Jokes"
by Judy A. Winter
20. The Story Of Ruby Bridges
by Robert Coles ***

21. Clifford's Valentines
22. I love you, dear dragon
23. Valentine mice!
24. The Story of Ruby Bridges (scary)***
25. Through my eyes
26. Cesar Chavez (Photo Illustrated Biographies) by Lucile Davis
27. Harvesting hope : the story of Cesar Chavez by Kathleen Krull
28. A Picture Book of Cesar Chavez (Picture Book Biographies) by David A. Adler
29. E-mergency
by Tom Lichtenheld ****
30. The Battle Begins bk#1 Underworlds ****.5
by Tony Abbott

31. Wumbers
32. Up Dog
33. Up Cat
34. Where's Eddie
35. Dog Number 1, Dog Number 10
36. Best best friends
37. Wemberly worried
38. Will I have a friend?
39. Minette's feast : the delicious story of Julia Child and her cat
40. Dragon's Merry Christmas

41. Dragon's Halloween
42. A Friend for Dragon
43. Dragon's Fat Cat
44. Oink-a-doodle Moo
45. Facial Features
46. Every Little Thing
47. Mice by Rose Fyleman, Lois Ehlert (illus)
48. Sleeping Beauty
49. Pokemon Adventures: Yellow Caballero: Evolution Action
50. Ten Tiny Toes

51. Nighttime Ninja
52. Bailey Bunny and His Lucky Singing Boots
53. Ash battles his rivals!
54. Silly stories to tickle your funny bone
55. The Three Cabritos
56. Sherlock Bones and the Missing Cheese
57. "Unspoken" by Henry Cole
58. House Held Up by Trees
59.
60.

Attempted and Put Aside Books go here

1. Desert Angel
by Charlie Price (too shallow. Moving on...)
2. Froi of the Exiles
by Melina Marchetta (totally surprised, but this book has horrible writing. gag)
3. Wonder (didn't like the writing style and wasn't drawn into the story. Others will like this though)
4. Tankborn (for middle graders, this book suffers from to much jargon and a plot that's not innovative enough for older readers)
5. Under the Never Sky
6. Starters Okay but more of a mystery than I was in the mood for.
also
7. Feed by Mira Grant. Didn't get past the 100-page test.
8. Sgt. Frog. Volume 1
9. UnWholly

10.
11.

Good books that aren't meant to necessarily be read all the way through

1. Poodle clipping and grooming : the international reference
by Kalstone, Shirlee.
2.

Welcome back!

Thanks so much, Jim! Can't wait to type in my first read.

Hey, Pam! Glad to see you back!

Thank you guyettes! Ever so glad to be back. I've got some MLKing kidlit books lined up for the new year. Plus some books on Jack Russell Terriers


Charlie-Amanda and Ling -- kiss kiss!


Go Skins!
Even at 5 months Charlie is a big fan.

Love the animal pics, Pam.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year, back at cha, Stasia!

First book of the new year:

Happy birthday, Martin Luther King
by Marzollo, Jean

Very nice book for younger readers. It makes the man 'accessible' to little children and is one of the few books that clearly explains what MLK and others were fighting. Talks about separate water fountains and schools.

--------

If you're wondering why I'm reviewing this,
it's for a book list I'm pulling together for an article.

One down, only 74 to go! Woot! ;)

lol!!! You made me laugh (outloud) and my husband's looking at me like what?!? Guess you have to be a bookie get the giggles over this monumental first step.

btw, number 2 down.

As good as anybody : Martin Luther King and Abraham Joshua Heschel's amazing march towards freedom
by Michelson, Richard.

Moving right along. Only 73 to go now!

Starred

Yay, animal pictures!!!

Well then, here's the latest member of the family. Rodger Pippin is 12 weeks.




Feel Free to leave pictures of you own furry family members. (or furless as the case may be)

>18 elfchild:

Hiya ElfChild!!!!!!

Ah, how cute! He looks very much at home.

Pip and Charlie get along very well. They play and play and play all day.
(Makes it easier on me... and the Cat!)

#21> Hi Pam! I'm caught up now...I busily starred threads without reading and have been trying to catch up on 2-3 a night and then keep up with the ones I have read. Your new addition is a cutie.

Is that a cockapoo? Looks like our old one, Tawnie, who died last year at the ripe old age of 15.

Thanks. We're having fun with our 2 pups. Can't wait until both are house trained!

BW, I was over on your thread admiring the books you've got underway. Let me know what you think about Fire. I liked it more than Graceling, but other people feel the opposite. I was also sorry to see that The Adventures of Tintin was a disappointment. But you saved me from tracking it down.

I'm onto reading about JRTs and MLK currently.

ok... I rarely go to the Vine forum.. but wanted to follow you here to post about your
chirstmas ham. I have never bought a Honey Baked Ham.. but I do like the spiral cut
hams as far as slicing them for dinner goes. I am not a huge fan of ham... but the family
likes it. I bought a Sugardale spiral cut ( half) ham... on rd's suggestion I slathered it with brown mustard and
then added my usual can of beer. It was fantastic. I actually bought a second half as it
went so quickly and I needed" company" food.. and it was just as good.. so.. even though I didn't
read the entire thread there.. I thought I would carry my two cents here.. hope you don't mind.

cute pics :) btw

Mmmm. I NEVER mind talking about food. And you've made me so hungry I've taken a break after reading your post to snag some crackers and brie. (Alas, no wine!)

Yarii got back to me via email to say that his ham was delicious. What you've done to the Sugardale sounds fantastic though. I'd never heard of using beer but it sounds like it would be very complementary to the piggy-flavor. How exactly do you 'apply' the beer. (I'm thinking one for the ham, one for the cook)

Well, after coating the ham liberally with the brown mustard, I simply pour it over.. and of course there is one for the cook! I use beer in chili, tortilla soup, to lift the yummy stuff off of the skillet when I make pork chops and a bit to do a quick steam of burgers when I cook them... to make sure they are cooked through. oh.. and in stew... and sometimes fish ...

As I said though, the mustard idea is from rd.. I have done the beer thing for years, and just added instead of replacing :) Yummy result.. oh.. and I make beery chicken too.. brown chicken( that has been dredged in seasoned flour ) in a pan that you used to crisp up several strips of bacon in.. steam with beer...Usually I make home fries before this.. and add them to the pan after the chicken is browned then steam with beer.. yummy goodness.

Found you, yay! Your thread is going to be fantastic for my library trips with the kids. I'll look for some MLK books next time I'm there.

And the poodles are so cute!

Oh my. You have GOT to come up with a McKait's "Cooking with Beer" book... or thread... or blog! I could really go for some beery Tortilla Soup right now.

:) I should huh? I have given the recipe away a time or three..
I am currently making pork chops with an old bay rub.. browned with onion and
steaming in beer.. lol and of course there is beer bread, but not today... low on beer.

Hi Cushla! So glad you've dropped in. I've been over looking at your photos. Beautiful.

(I suppose I should post pictures of the 'less furry' kids too :)

LOL! Low on beer here too. I don't suppose the Pizza delivery guy would stop and get me any. I've got a stack of new books to read -- some on Geo. Washington, and some on Geo. Washington Carver, and one YA by Beth Revis -- so I don't want to cook tonight. (Besides one kid is down for the count with whininess and a tummy ache. Chicken soup for her, pizza or leftovers for everyone else.)

The Revis book is #2 in the Across the Universe series: A Million Suns.

Anyone read #1?

I love no cooking days :)

Yay! Chicken Wings and Hawaiian Pizza. (no beer)

And yes, no cooking days make cooking days more special.

and vice versa

BTW, I was going through my books and here's a list of books I'm looking forward to the next in the series:

--Froi of the Exiles The Lumatere Chronicles, Book2 after Finnigan of the Rock Mar 13, 2012 REQ
--The Gathering of the Lost: The Heir of Night Book Two (YA) (March 27, 2012)

--Dark Inside #2 Rage Within (YA) (unkn date) September 4, 2012
--Daughter of Smoke and Bone #2 (YA) September 18, 2012
--Century #4 by Pierdomenico Baccalario (MG and up) September 25, 2012

--Monstrumologist #4 (YA) (unkn date)
--Raider's Ransom #3 (MG and up)(unkn date)

--Ashes #2 (YA) (unkn date)
--Hellbent #3 (Adult) (unkn date)

--The Cabinet of Earths #2 (MG and up) (unkn date)

--Seeds of Rebellion (Beyonders) Mar 13, 2012 REQ
-- Blood Red Road (unkn date)
--The Chemical Garden- Fever February 21, 2012 DONE

AND then again the other books just added to TBDesired

--The Dark Is Rising
-- Night Circus
--The Enemy DONE
--Ashfall
--The Apocalypse Gene
--Enclave
--the summer set
--Dr. A's Habits of Health
Kosher Chinese -- Michael Levy
All Good Children by Catherine Austen
The Elephant Mountains
by Scott Ely

The Edge of Forever by Tom Morris

Just finished Mother Knows Best:the natural way to train your dog by Carol Lea Benjamin.

Her approach is to look to mama-dog to learn how to teach. It's definitely a book I'm going to have to read more than one. Lots to absorb.

sounds interesting :)

I got Charlie to STAY! Pip is just working up to sitting.

I'm going to look to see if she wrote any books on training children.

I've read four Easy-reading books (accelerated reading level under 2.5) on Lincoln and good ole George Washington.

I like Knox's book better when it came to Lincoln --because it covered the Civil War better -- and the Washington books were a toss up. Mayer's book had super simple sentences, but Schaefer's more information.

#42> I had to look up a comparison chart for AR since our school uses Guided Reading. Sounds like stuff my kiddo should be able to read on her own. Thank you...I'm off to see if my library has those.

And I dislike pointing to my website --it seems self-promotional :( -- but if you want to see some sample pages, I've got some I scanned here: http://goodbooksforkids-lists.blogspot.com/2012/01/3-easiest-books-about-abraham...

Washington isn't up yet.

Lincoln by Scaefer
Guided Reading Level: M

Lincoln by Knox
Guided Reading Level: N

==========
I haven't ever investigated Guided Reading before. How do you like it?

Well, finish A Million Suns by Beth Revis and unlike the vast majority of reviewers, I was under impressed. (In fact, just between you and me, I started to skim.)

Why? Well, plot wasn't that innovative or interesting to me. There were elements of the mystery that were definitely intriguing, but others that were predictable. (Who would die and when.) And I do desperately hate it when part of a plot hinges on people doing something that I think no reasonable person would do. I mean, if someone's threatening you with major physical violence... would you just decide to keep it to yourself to show 'you're strong' (aka like in some silly romance novel) without actually taking action to load up on heavy protective gear.

/rant

#44> I know that you have a website and even if I didn't it doesn't seem self-promotional to me to point out a list of related books/reviews in one spot. It's hard to tell what I think of Guided Reading since it is kindergarten and my daughter is reading 'well above grade level' Mostly I use the leveling information to compare what she is reading at home with what they are sending home for her to read on the weekend to make sure they are not too out of whack (which they were for much of the first quarter) and to talk to the teacher about which skills are the 'least advanced' (her teacher's words since she is 'not behind in any way'). It's been interesting for me to note that the techniques that they use in her class for decoding words are very similar to the ones I use instinctively. Mostly I try to read with and to her every day. That is harder with a 2-year-old about and sometimes it is just bedtime, which doesn't feel like enough, but she's also starting to voluntarily read some picture books and not just books labeled "reader". Sorry...that's probably more than you wanted to know.

yep. what elfchild said....

Sounds like Guided Reading is a good deal like AR. AR numbers correspond to a month in the school year --like 2.5 means the 5th month in the 2nd Grade -- but as a tool it's more useful to compare book levels, rather than as an accurate guide.

Dave, for example 'could' read at the 4th grade level in the 2nd grade... but the AR level designation helped me to not suggest books at the 6th grade level, unless we were going to read them together.

The Mouse and the Christmas Cake by Anon

This is a short poem, circa 1854 about a mousy. I put it under Adult books because it's more likely that adults would like it than children.

Free at Amazon and Archive.Org

====================

Also read these short downloads (available at Amazon)

The Adventures of Leaf Man by Rebecca Shelley

This short story is almost really good. The concept is a question of what Leaf man, who has but one day to live, should do with his time.

also,

11:15: The Making of a Halfling.

I disliked the story, but gave it 3 stars over at Amazon because I know there are going to be boys (and some girls) that are going to like it. Writing though, wasn't sophisticated enough for me.

Hollowland by Amanda Hocking

This is a quick fun read of the zombie-persuasion. I enjoyed it, but with qualifying notes.

First: it's for older Young Adults. There's a sex scene that though no particularly racy, or interesting, wouldn't be appropriate for tweens and some young teens.

Second: violence. It wasn't graphic enough to offend me, but if goo isn't your forte...

Third: the reader, or at least the seasoned reader, must be in a mood to disengage the Reality clutch. There is some really silly stuff in the book. Like a chick laying on her back with a zombie ready to snack on her, and her finding a car battery just behind her on the ground, and lifting it up and using it as a weapon. (Author has apparently never hefted a car battery)

CONCLUSION:

There are just some unlikely events that take place in this book, but if you are looking to be lightly entertained and have a taste for zombies! then look no further.

This is book#1. Book #2 is in print. Book is FREE for kindle/kindle software.

Just read 2 little books for young ones on my Kindle Fire.

My Little Pet Dragon (A picture book for toddlers and preschoolers) by Scott Gordon has wonderful artwork and since it's free for anyone who has kindle-software I can hardly not recommend it. The dragon is just so adorable.

Little Chicks First Day was the second book and I quite liked the concept and art. The story is basically one of a chick hatching and wondering where it's mother is. It looks here and there, but it doesn't find mom until it hears a rooster crow.

This book would make a good read-aloud, but I have to warn you that you need to ignore the punctuation. It's just wrong. As is the rooster crow leading the chick to it's mom. (Kids won't care of course.)

Free and recommended.

-----
edited for typu

*waving* at Pam

I made a pie, Stasia. And I'm rather surprised but it came out very well. Yay! for National Pie Day.

------
I'm so surprised that I misspelled pie.

Just finished Prized by Caragh O'Brien.

This is the second book in the series, following Birthmarked.

Recently I read a short 'bridging' story and it made me wonder if I had mis-judged the first book. However Prized is just as well written and just as engaging, with even better characterizations. Perhaps the only negative is that I had to suspend my disbelief a little further than I would have liked.

Good, solid, fun read. ****1/2

Ooh, The Song of Achilles showed up today. I took it along when I went to pick up the boy at school. I'm not surprised that other LTer's have given it 4.5 stars.

=========

Oh, also made my first blueberry-raspberry pie. It tastes okay but was too runny. Being winter I used frozen berries (3 c. blue/ 1c rasp) and I'm wondering if that's where the problem lies. I let them defrost and didn't see extra liquid.

Other than that, 1/3 c. cornstarch
1 c. sugar
vanilla
zest of lemon
cinnamon

Finished...

... YA book, The Hunt by Andrew Xia Fukuda
and
... MG book, Darth Paper Strikes Back by Tom Angleberger

I can't praise Darth Paper highly enough. It's a delightful, satisfying read that both Dave (9) and I (really old) enjoyed.

The Hunt, on the other hand, was tense as heck. You won't find any sparkly vamps here. (Actually disturbed my sleep, so of course, I've got to recommend it... as long as violence and yuckiness don't disturb you.)

Just finished Yummy: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty.



Graphic novel about an 11 year old boy caught up in a gang who accidentally shoots and kills an innocent little girl. Based on real life, the author does an excellent job of laying out the tragedy of Yummy's life. He's a bully, but also a victim.

The Story Of Ruby Bridges by Robert Coles
This book takes a religious approach, and could be a little scary for younger readers. It's at the 4th grade reading level.

The Song of Achilles: A Novel

I feel bad not liking this one, but I don't. Fortunately for Ms. Miller, many other people love it.

just keeping up...

Hey Girlfriend. I've been following your thread(s) as well :)

Oh ma gosh. Just starting reading Beauty Queens by Libba Bray when NPR did a piece (or re-ran it, not sure) on THE HELP movie. I was so intrigued I took a Look Inside. Then had to buy it. Enjoying The Help tremendously though I don't like that so much of the story is now about the white girl, Skeeter.

Read 3 #kidlit books about Cesar Chavez. (see near top of page) The ones I recommend would be the Krull and Adler books. The first is at the 3rd grade level. The second book is 5th grade.

Currently reading Queen Bees and Wannabes: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends, and Other Realities of Adolescence

Mwaa-ha-ha. Experimenting with cookies! Trying to make them healthier.

I have now adapted Choc. Chip Cookies so that they no longer have chips, just one M&M or none and 1/2 cup Toasted Whole Wheat Bran.

They are delightfully soft and gooey when they come out of the oven; then they become wonderfully crisp.

The children will never know what hit them!

Just finished Beauty Queens by Libba Bray. It's funny and features some profound insight into the state of modern girldom, but unfortunately it suffers a bit from being too long. To be fair, this is a problem for most humorous writing. And in the case of this book, I thought Libba took too long in making her point with the characters. They held hands too long. Kissed for too long....

Worth reading though. Not worth purchasing imho.

Just finished Switched by Amanda Hocking and Fever by Lauren DeStefano.

Switched is okay and suitable for younger YA folks. May be too sweet for old farts like myself. Will not be looking for #2.

Fever is a bit long, imo, and a bit melodramatic in places with a strong dose of angst, BUT a nice follow up to book #1 in the Chemical Garden Trilogy. Will be looking for #3.

==========

almost forgot. Starting The Wicked and the Just by J. Anderson Coats. Great beginnings.

Finished Enclave, a YA dystopia and Jeff Kinney's latest Wimpy Kid book, Cabin Fever.

Both were good. "Cabin Fever" really made me laugh. Aguirre's book was entertaining.

Finished my first self-published book out of my READING SMALL challenge. Taken (Taken Trilogy) by Zia Marie was pretty darn good. Much better than comparable books like I am Number Four.

Also finished The Scorpio Races which is one of the best books I've read in ages.

Up next in one or two of these (I can't decide):
The Night Circus
The Book Thief
All Good Children
Froi of the exiles

All Good Children is creeping me out. The author, Cath Austen, has done a good job in making the chemical Stepford-ication of children plausible. They are thugs afterall. At least the main characters aren't ideal children by any means. I can see why it would happen and I can be horrified at the same time.

Starting Froi of the Exiles by Melina Marchetta. I really enjoyed Finnikin of the Rock and I'm hoping this is a worthy follow up.

Well, didn't start Froi of the Exiles until today. Read The Fault in Our Stars instead. Good book, but I thought it was about 5 pages too long.

Froi of the Exiles is pretty awful and I would warn people to read an excerpt before committing their dollars. The following single sentence is what led me to take the book back after a mere 55 pages.

"In Isaboe and Finnikin's private chamber, away from the prying eyes of their people and the world of their court that forced them to be polite and restrained, they spoke of Charyn and Froi and Rafuel of Sebastabola and curses and the last borns and Sarnak, and then Charyn again and taxes and empty Flatland villages, and then Charny again."

I would also add that Froi's been made a rather flat character. A person who can perfectly pick up a language as well as skill in every fighting method ever.

======
edited for
typu

Cath Austen, has done a good job in making the chemical Stepford-ication of children plausible.

Yeah.. our society is working on that every day... :(

Book Thief and Night Circus, both good reads !

I tried to get into both books but I think I'm just not ready to be done with action dystopias yet.

6. Empty


Most definitely do not recommend to my adult buddies unless they'd like a report on the ramifications of a gas and oil shortage. Might be a good book for some middle-schoolers.

on my dystopia list I wrote:

Ker...thunk! That's the sound you'll hear as you are whacked over the head with Ms. Weyn's MESSAGE. She very clearly lets middle-schoolers know what the ramifications of running out of oil and gas will be. There won't be Bic pens or contacts or nail polish or even buses to drag students to school -- the only place to get a hot shower. No language, violence, or other warnings.

--------------------
edited rather late
to add image

Swarm


It's what we used to call in the old days, a testosterone-driven novel. It was a fun read with better than average plotting, although typical single layered characters. I had high hopes for the book in the beginning but then the author hit me with two major fails. Don't read further if you don't want to know what they were.

#1, just hours after his two children were unexpectedly grabbed from their beds and brutally eviscerated, he was hitting on some chick.

#2, said chick proceeded to loose all of her edge and cleverness by the middle of the story and became a playboy bunny wanna-be.

Safe to Continue

That said, I still managed to enjoy the book and I give it 3.5 Stars.

Over Sea, Under Stone is book #7 in the Middle-Grade category. It's written in a classic style. A family adventure that might be too slowly paced for some kids.

YA Category
26. Rot and Ruin ****
27. Tomorrow,when the war began ****

Enjoyed these YA dystopias. Rot & Ruin is unique in the zombie-driven stories I've run across because it's sympathetic to the walking dead. Tomorrow, When the War Began is on several dystopia lists but I'm not sure it qualifies. It's more of a 'my country is invaded, now what are we teens going to do about it' story. Intriguing look at Australian rural life.

.
.
78 books total in all categories

28. The Giver ((79 & 30 kid books total))

So glad I finally got to read this one. The writing is lovely. Mysterious.

Divergent is fast-paced action dystopia.
First person story telling by a strong female lead. Recommended.

Under the Never Sky has found it's way back to the library. I am soooo glad I didn't purchase this one.

You have been warned.

Well, Rotters was unexpected. I was expecting zombies not grave robbers. Well written.

Finished Ashen Winter. It's still action packed and guy-friendly, with features of interest, but I didn't think it was as strong a story as Ashfall. Perhaps a little too long in places. Good series though.

Been away but have still been reading:

Up: A Mother and Daughter's Peakbagging Adventure
Shatter Me
Insurgent
Drowned Vault (Ashtown 2)
X Isle
A Monster Calls

A Monster Calls was very very good. Haven't weep like that in a long while.
X Isle was far better than I expected. Comparable to Lord of the Flies

Drowned Vault was also good, as was Shatter Me.

I was disappointed with Insurgent. But I don't tend to like books where the plot is moved ahead mainly due to the stupid choices the protagonist makes.

'UP' was interesting. I just can't figure out why it was written.

Avi's Crispin Cross of Lead was just awful.

Oh. Didn't notice until today that I made my 100!!!!!!

*high five*