January 2004 books

[dirtylibrarian]

Concept stolen from holyoutlaw and other book minded types.

The River Between Us
Richard Peck
Teen Fiction
Civil War. Lost limbs. Mysterious fancy ladies from New Orleans. Secret heritage.
Enjoyable, though a bit light.

Overboard
Elizabeth Fama
Teen Fiction
Doctor parents. Angry teen. Indonesia. Ferry accident. Survival.
Exciting.

Love
Toni Morrison
Adult Fiction
Jealousy. Secrets. Lies.
Pretty darn good.

The Canning Season
Polly Horvath
Teen Fiction
Terrible parents. Decapitation. Bears. Ancient aunts. Dark. Funny. Gruesome.
Delightful book on tape.

Birdland
Tracy Mack
Teen Fiction
NYC post 911. Grief. Loss. Family. Poetry. Film making. Diabetes.
Moving, but not weighty.

(Lost and Found?!) – not yet published
Sara Ryan
Teen Fiction
Can’t say anything yet, except that I LOVED it.

The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon: The Story of Apollo 11 Astronaut Michael Collins
Bea Uusma Schyffert
Tween Non-fiction
Forgotten astronaut. Moon landing. Lots of lists. Smart graphics. Batchelder Award honor book.
Pretty good...I learned a thing or two.

The Way a Door Closes
Hope Anita Smith
Tween Novel in Verse
Happy family. Unemployment. Frustration. Abandonment. Hope.
Fairly good.

The Wee Free Men
Terry Pratchett
Book on Tape
Child witch. Clan of tiny blue men. Sinister fairytales. Bad dreams come true. Triumph of smarts over magic.
Delightful! Great for teens and adults.

Olive's Ocean
Henkes, Kevin
Tween Fiction
Note of a dead girl. Family. Grandma’s place on the beach. First kisses and trickery. Writing.
Quite nice book.

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay
Michael Chabon
Adult Fiction
Trained escapists. Nazis. Golem. Comic books. Family. Tenderness. Epic. Pulitzer.
Great stuff...took me months to finished, then I was disappointed it was over.

Metropolis
Osamu Tezuka
Manga
Robots. Private eye. A.I. Trouble.
My crank was unturned.

Notes from a Defeatist
Joe Sacco
Adult Graphic Novel
Short bits from Sacco’s oeuvre.
I prefer his bigger works.

Mortal Souls
Steven Grant
Adult Graphic Novel
Horror. Cops. Living dead. Flat characters.
Yawn.

Nightmare Alley
Spain Rodriguez
Adult Graphic Novel
Desperation. Geeks. Carnies. Grifters. Re-interpreted classic noir.
Dark, interesting, but left something to be desired.

A Stir of Bones
Nina Kiriki Hoffman
Tween Fiction
Friendly ghost. Friendly haunted house. Very mean father. Useless mother.
Alright, if you like that sort of thing.

Comments

[sararyan.livejournal.com]

hey, thanks for keeping all the vital seekrits of the book. :)

also, i love this review format. concise & to the point!