Find Momo by Andrew Knapp

Find Momo: A Photography Book by Andrew Knapp
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I read, visualized, soaked up this wonderful book of photographs through Canada and the US as readers try to find border collie, Momo in each photograph. But I liked even more, Andrew Knapp's down to earth love of his dog, his surroundings and his internet followers who have become very special to him as they rise and champion the many Momo sightings. A visual adventure children, teens, and adults will all enjoy!

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Skink-No Surrender by Carl Hiaasen

Skink--No Surrender by Carl Hiaasen
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I listened to this Amazing Audiobook as part of The 2015 Hub Challenge and Hiaasen's plot was funny, gripping, and compelling. Read by Kirby Heyborne, the plot of Malley who goes missing in Florida with cousin Richard (aided by Skink, a 70 yr old ex-governor and supposedly dead) in pursuit was so awesome to listen too. I loved learning about the Florida wildlife (gators, wild boars, herons, loggerhead turtles and extinct woodpeckers) while grinding my teeth as Richard and Skink tracked Malley through all kinds of weather, water, and mosquitos. This is a must read adventure that keeps you riveted and riled to the bitter end.

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This One Summer by Jillian and Mariko Tamaki

This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I read this book as part of The 2015 Hub Challenge but I have had it on my TBR because it received so many kudos! This graphic novel covers one summer and two friends at the shore. We fleetingly meet arguing family members, teens with problems, and friends who are beginning to have differences of opinions. I loved the illustrations, I kept going back and looking over the panels; Jillian Tamaki's illustrations are gorgeous, real, and bold. The bluish cover becomes rich black and white illustrations within the book. The main characters, Rose and Windy celebrate what they love about Awago Beach (turkey jerkey, amazing breezes, and bike rides) and we see Rose is beginning to outgrow building forts and become more interested in what is going on with the teens in the store. The spare words and amazing graphics make this a graphic novel many will enjoy!

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The Princess in Black by Shannon Hale and Dean Hale

The Princess in Black by Shannon Hale
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I LOVED this book! Shannon and Dean Hale have crafted a Princess story kids will love! Who can resist a perfect princess who is also The Princess in Black guarding her kingdom from monsters and any kind of bad guys? With humor in both words and illustrations (LeUYEN Pham)the Hales have crafted a laugh out loud book kids will relate to (and read ove and over again)- this could be a play they act out when they are with their friends- right down to the toenail clippings!!!Very enjoyable and highly recommended! I know I am going to be reading this to my granddaughter and giving it to my daughter to read to her students.

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Black Dove, White Raven by Elizabeth Wein

Black Dove, White Raven by Elizabeth Wein
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Disney Book Group and Disney-Hyperion for the ARC, Black Dove, White Raven by Elizabeth Wein. Once again, Elizabeth Wein has crafted masterful historical fiction you can’t put down. Teo and Emilia’s lives are unconventional; they are raised together as brother and sister; but they are not. Really nothing in their life is normal. Their mothers are women stunt pilots; one white, one black with an enduring friendship and devotion to family. When Teo’s mom, Delia (Black Dove) dies in a freak stunt accident; Em’s mom, Rhoda (White Raven) raises Em and Teo as her children. But in the 1930’s being black and raised by a white woman is fraught with all kinds of problems. Rhoda flees to Ethiopia, where Delia dreamt of an equal future for her son where racism did not exist. As they fall in love with their new life in Ethiopia; history, war, and slavery threaten to disillusion this family of pilots and dreamers. Wein has thoroughly researched this engaging tale told from Em and Teo’s point of view through letters, school assignments, flight logs, and fantastical adventures. Beautiful, gripping, and tense, you will root for Rhoda and her brood, as war threatens to decimate their tranquility.

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Define "Normal" by Julie Ann Peters

Define "Normal" by Julie Anne Peters
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I listened to this amazing audiobook from the Hub Challenge and LOVED it. Both girls are fantastic protagonists, although the story is told solely from Antonia's point of view; she is peer counseling Jazz Luther who is the total opposite of Antonia. As I listened to this compelling audiobook I realized why I love Julie Ann Peters books- she gets teens. This book is no different- both Jazz and Antonia have "stuff" going on and teens will love reading or listening to this book; can seeming "opposites" get along, trust each other, and become friends? Highly recommended!

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Top 10 Reads- Books on My Spring TBR list!

Top Ten Tuesday is a fun meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.  For more information, or to join the fun yourself, check out their blog! This is a short list of books I have on Goodreads that I want to read this spring (plus all the other Hub Challenge books I am reading until June)
1. Fairest by Marissa Meyer

2. I Was Here by Gayle Forman

3. The Crossover by Kwame Alexander

4. The Boy in the Black Suit by Jason Reynolds

5. When I Was the Greatest by Jason Reynolds

6. The Winner's Curse by Marie Rutkoski

7. The Winner's Crime by Marie Rutkoski

8. Vanishing Girls by Lauren Oliver

9. Hold Me Closer: The Tiny Cooper Story by David Levithan

Fat Boy vs. The Cheerleaders by Geoff Herbach

Fat Boy vs the Cheerleaders by Geoff Herbach
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I read and loved Stupid Fast by Geoff Herbach and listening to this Amazing Audiobook for the Hub Challenge was a treat. Chunk also known as Gabe has a great voice- he snarls, balks, teases and most of all loves band. When his summer band camp is stopped due to no funds, Chunk raises his voice, leads a rally, loses weight (due to his grandfather and stress)and gets the girl. I totally loved Nick Podehl’s narration, he had the best voices for everyone and gave the story depth and humor, highly recommended if you are looking for a humorous read!

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Love Letters to the Dead by Ava Dellaira

Love Letters to the Dead by Ava Dellaira
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I read this amazing audiobook as part of the Hub Challenge and it was awesome. Laurel is still reeling from the death and loss of her older sister, May. She has transferred to a new school, and her first assignment is to write a letter to a dead person. This assignment beings a year long letter writing campaign from Laurel to Kurt Cobain, Judy Garland, River Phoenix, Amelia Earhart, Amy Winehouse, poets and many more...What I liked about these letters is that Laurel researches each subject and the reader learns about the lives of these dead people and we see parallels to May, Laurel, and her family. As Laurel struggles with her guilt, her silence, her own self image, and her idealization of May...who will she become? As a reader, I savored the New Mexico setting, the flawed (but real)characters, the letters, and Laurel's journey. Highly recommended, teens will relate to Laurel, Sky, Natalie, Hannah and their daily lives in high school.

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3rd Top Ten Tuesday

This week the Broke and Bookish are taking as their topic Top Ten Books from the last three years and of course I have too many; this is my 3rd and final list of favorites!!!
1. All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven-compelling first novel of love, death, and finding oneself.

2. Bright Before Sunrise by Tiffany Schmidt-  Brighton and Jonah will surprise you and melt your heart.

3. Jasper Dent Series by Barry Lyga - what would you do if your father was a serial killer?

4. Eliot Schrefer books-Endangered and Threatened- For animal lovers, African animals in distress.

5. Ruta Sepetys books - Between Shades of Gray and Out of the Easy -Genocide and prostitution, historical fiction

6. Marissa Meyer Lunar Chronicles- Cinder, Scarlet, Cress- twists on fairytales, great reads!

7. The Unwind Dystology by Neal Shusterman - all of them!

8. Curse Workers series by Holly Black - Urban fantasy- White Cat, Red Glove and Black Heart

9. Seraphina by Rachel Hartman - Great female protagonist, Half dragon Seraphina

10. Scar Boys by Len Vlahos- friendship, love of music and a band tour.

10. Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein - Rose uses her poetry and storytelling with her concentration camp friends to as a way to remember life.

10. If You Find Me by Emily Murdoch - found living in the woods, how will 2 sisters survive?

10. The Impossible Knife of Memory by Laurie Halse Anderson - PTSD affects a family.

10. The Legend Series by Marie Lu -Legend, Prodigy, Champion- Dystopian Romance

10. Reality Boy by A.S. King -Dysfunctional family

10. The Diviners by Libba Bray - 1920s serial killer on the loose

10. The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater- If Blue Sargent kisses a boy, will he really die?

Shadow Scale by Rachel Hartman

Shadow Scale by Rachel Hartman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Books for Young Readers and Random House Children’s for this ARC, Shadow Scale by Rachel Hartman. This second Seraphina book warmed my heart---Half-dragon Seraphina is key to trying to save her country from war with the dragons and also help the half-dragons unite (her garden of grotesques consists of half-dragons Orma conditioned her to create and tend to every evening---very interesting). On the other hand, warmed as in made my blood boil, with the heinous half-dragon Jannuola, who has the ability to use her dragon light to possess people, hook her evil into them, and make them do her bidding. At every turn, Jannoula thwarts Seraphina while making the human/villagers believe she is blessed and a compassionate do-gooder. Rachel Hartman did such an awesome job with her deep world building, fully meshed characters (Abdo, Eskar, Camba, Ingar, and Blanche- to name a few of my favorites) and the magical, mystical history of the dragon world; I was spell bound and captivated. I rooted for Seraphina and her many conflicts. Will she deliver the ityasaari to Prince Lucian Kiggs and Queen Gisselda? A ripping good read, highly recommended for fantasy/dragon lovers!

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2 Top Ten Tuesday

 

 

This week the Broke and Bookish are taking as their topic Top Ten Books for the last 3 years; this is my 2nd post bc I have so many books I just loved and highly recommend.
1. The Carnival at Bray by Jessie Ann Foley Sixteen year old Maggie misses her beloved Uncle and begins a new life in Ireland.

2. Jennifer E. Smith books - The Geography of You and Me, This Is What Happy Looks Like- great romances.

3. Daniel Kraus' Scowler and Rotters made me a horror fan, couldn't put them down!

4. Andrew Smith's Winger - you will laugh and cry with Ryan Dean West as he navigates life.

5. Never Fall Down by Patricia McCormick - she befriends a survivor of the Cambodian genocide and tells his story.

6. The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black- Girl protagonist meets vampires!


7. I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson,  her words evoke such wonderful colors, images, and emotions.
 
8. Under the Never Sky Trilogy by Veronica Rossi---a dystopian heart pounding must read!

9. The Story of Owen by E.K. Johnston - dragon slaying stories told by his bard.

10. Gabi, a Girl in Pieces by Isabel Quintero- Funny, authentic, Gabi is a Mexican American protagonist who loves to write and draw and ruminate.


My final post will follow with my last 10 faves of the past three years--- I have so many!!!