65. Westfallen (book #1)

65. Westfallen. Ann Brashares and Ben Brashares. 2024. 384 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars] [MG speculative fiction, MG science fiction, MG dystopia, TIME TRAVEL, alternate history]

First sentence: Let me ask you this: What's the worst thing you've ever done? Really think about it. Well, multiply your thing by a billion and you don't even get close. Sorry to brag. It's just...your thing? It's the Cheeto-dust thumbprint you left on the basement sofa. It's an ant's toe you stepped on. And then you said, "Sorry!" and the ant went, "No worries, mate!" Because the ant's British, I don't know. 

My thoughts (preview): Ever been HOOKED on a premise????? It doesn't happen all that often, though it does happen. This is the case with Westfallen. The premise had me at HELLO. Reading the synopsis raised my expectations immeasurably, and it did NOT, I repeat did NOT disappoint. 

Premise/plot: Six kids working together (with the best intentions)--separated by time--manage to destroy life as we know it. Shocked I was able to sum up an entire book in one sentence? Me too. 

Henry, Lukas, and Frances were at one time best, best, best friends though in recent years they've grown apart--far apart. Alice, Lawrence, and Artie are friends as well. These six friends become connected by a radio.

Alice "saves" her brother's radio from the trash. It's broken and her brother, Robbie, is gone--presumably for the war. Her two friends, Lawrence and Artie, are near by and interested in seeing if they can fix the radio.

Henry is burying his gerbil, Zeus, when he discovers a long-buried radio. His (former) friends are there for the funeral. All are interested in this buried "treasure" of sorts. 

All six kids are SHOCKED when the radio works. The two sets of friends refer to themselves as "Mars" and "Jupiter." It takes time for them to realize that the new friends they've made aren't living in the same year. Henry, Lukas and Frances are in 2023....and Alice, Lawrence, and Artie are in 1944. Both are in the same house, same street, same city. 

Will innocent casual conversation lead to the unwinding of the universe?????

My thoughts: I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED THIS ONE. Mostly. I will say that the CLIFF HANGER ending was while not a huge surprise a bit disappointing. If the cliff hanger leads to a book two, then YES PLEASE. If it does NOT lead to a book two then readers everywhere have been robbed. 

I loved the premise. I loved the characters. I loved the plot. This is one I could easily see myself reading again and again and again.


© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

September Monthly Reflections

In September, I read nine books. Will I read more in October? Maybe. Maybe not.

Books reviewed at Becky's Book Reviews

64. Speaker for the Dead. Orson Scott Card. 1986. 382 pages. [Source: Library] [audio book, science fiction, sequel]

Books reviewed at Young Readers


68. Scaredy Squirrel. Melanie Watt. 2008. Kids Can Press. 42 pages. [Source: Bought] [5 stars, picture book, emotions and feelings, animal fantasy]
69. The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the BIG Hungry Bear. Don and Audrey Wood. 1984. 32 pages. [Source: Bought] [5 stars, picture books, animal fantasy]
70. Turtle with a Toolbox. Beth Ferry. Illustrated by Dudolf. 2026. 32 pages. [Source: Library] [picture book, 3 stars]
71. Cheeky Book of Bear Butts. Jonathan Fenske. 2026. 36 pages. [Source: Library] [picture book, 3 stars]
72. The Secret Life of Dog Toys. Kelly Dipucchio. Illustrated by Jennifer Harney. 2026. 40 pages. [Source: Library] [picture book, 4 stars]
73. Starman: The Cosmic Voyage of David Bowie. Matthew Cordell. 2026. 48 pages. [Source: Library] [nonfiction biography for young readers, 3 stars]


Books reviewed at Operation Actually Read Bible

none

Bibles reviewed at Operation Actually Read Bible


7. New American Standard Bible Reference Edition. 1971. Lockman Foundation. 1730 pages. [Source: Bought]

8. New Marked Reference Bible (KJV). God. 1983. Zondervan. 1753 pages. [Source: Bought]

Yearly Totals for 2026

Totals for 2026
Books Read in 2026	166
Pages Read in 2026	42442
January Totals
Books Read in January	21
Pages Read in January	5119
February Totals
Books read in February	24
Pages Read in February	4225
March Totals
Books read in March	18
Pages read in March	4099
April Totals
Books read in April	16
Pages read in April	6386
May Totals
Books Read in May	11
Pages read in May	4067
June Totals
Books read in June	26
Pages read in June	4767
July Totals
Books read in July	18
Pages read in July	3239
August Totals
Books read in August	23
Pages read in August	6965
September Totals
Books read in September	9
Pages read in September	4095

© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Century of Viewing, September

September I watched twenty-four things....but only two were five-star movies! I DID finish my Century of Viewing challenge!

My two five star movies were Beginning of the End and The Trespasser.

The four and four and half star movies I watched were:

• Leanne Season 2
• You Can’t Take It With You
• Our Dancing Daughters
• Zotz!
• Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion
• Project Hail Mary
• Return to Babylon

Since I've finished the century of viewing challenge, I thought I'd share some of my favorites from each decade. If last year's century of viewing challenge focused on SILENT movies particularly silent comedies. This year's challenge I watched a good many k-drama series.

1920s:

I gave three five-stars for this decade. Metropolis. The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. The Trespasser.

1930s:

I gave one five-star for this decade. Modern Times.

1940s:

I gave two five-stars for this decade. Dance, Girl, Dance. Du Barry Was a Lady.

1950s:

I gave nine five-stars for this decade: Sunset Boulevard. Limelight. Call Me Madam. War of the Worlds. You Can't Run Away From It. No Time for Sergeants. 4D Man. Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Incredible Shrinking Man.

1960s:

I gave three five-stars for this decade: Twilight Zone season 1. Music Man. If A Man Answers.

1970s

I gave two five-stars for this decade: Towering Inferno. The Sunshine Boys.

1980s

I gave six five-stars for this decade: Steel Magnolias. Overboard. Can't Buy Me Love. Clue. Back to the Future. Ivanhoe.

1990s

I gave twelve five-stars for this decade: What About Bob. Strictly Ballroom. Groundhog Day. Forrest Gump. While You Were Sleeping. Star Trek First Contact. You've Got Mail. Ever After. The Thirteenth Floor. Galaxy Quest. Frequency. Blast from the Past.

2000s

I gave six five-stars for this decade: Return to Me. Shrek. The Gospel of John. Bride and Prejudice. Shrek 2. Zathura.

2010s

I gave four five-stars for this decade: It's You I Like. Boss Baby. Lego Batman.

2020s

I gave five five-stars for this decade: The Moon. Strong Girl Nam-Soon. VHS Christmas Carols. Wonderfools. Teach You a Lesson.

© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Week in Review #40

No books finished this week.

Century of Viewing #40

1920s

• 1920 Why Change Your Wife? Gloria Swanson is always enjoyable to watch. The plot of this one, well, is morally questionable and exceedingly ODD but extremely very SOAP OPERA melodramatic. Husband (soon to be Cheating Husband) is tired of his wife not wanting to foxtrot and dress....scantily. He leaves her for a lingerie model. Wife #1 overhears gossipers calling her frumpy decides to wear as few clothes as possible. Cheating husband sees wife #1 looking amazing. Decides wife #2 was a mistake. A banana peel gets involved....obviously...because why wouldn't it. And the two women end up fighting--literally--over Injured Cheating Husband. He divorces Wife #2 who moves on to another guy EXTREMELY quickly. Wife #1 becomes Wife #3. And now she loves fox trotting....scantily clad.
• 1922 Blood and Sand. My second Valentino movie, I think???? Set in Spain. He's an el matador. He makes bad choices. Though to be fair, he does try a bit at least to resist temptation. But not too terribly much. His character definitely could have profited from reading the book of Proverbs.
• 1923 The Pilgrim. Charlie Chaplin stars in 'The Pilgrim' as an escaped convict who finds himself posing as a minister--a terrible misunderstanding, though he does deliver a sermon on David and Goliath--when he plays the hero, he's given a second chance....in Mexico. But the end credits showing him walking along with one foot in Mexico and one in Texas.

1970s

• 1977 Valentino. This was a LONG biopic of Rudolph Valentino. It is absolutely rated R. I do want my two hours back--mostly. If it was a musical--which it is not--I'd say it has Evita vibes. VERY melodramatic. VERY over-the-top. I have extreme doubts that it's true to his actual life.

2010s

• 2013. Return to Babylon. A silent movie about silent movie stars. This movie features biographical sketches--though facts may be disputed here and there--of the first Hollywood celebrities. Focusing more on 'scandals' and tragedies than anything else. THOUGH not always. (There wasn't anything particularly scandalous about the sketch of Gloria Swanson). It is a very intriguing film. Because it was filmed on a hand-cranked camera and it captures the style of that era. The soundtrack was fabulous.

2020s

• 2022 Moonfall. Is it a great movie? No, no it isn't. Could it have been better if it was trimmed up and a bit shorter? I say yes. Was it enjoyable to watch my best friend? DEFINITELY. I had been wanting to watch this one for a while. And I'm so glad I finally did. It's predictable but fun enough if your expectations are not high. Science fiction. Moon is not the moon. Earth in danger. From the director of Independence Day and The Day After Tomorrow.

© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Week in Review #39

This week I finished three books. Two Bibles and a science fiction novel.

64. Speaker for the Dead. Orson Scott Card. 1986. 382 pages. [Source: Library] [audio book, science fiction, sequel]

7. New American Standard Bible Reference Edition. 1971. Lockman Foundation. 1730 pages. [Source: Bought]

8. New Marked Reference Bible (KJV). God. 1983. Zondervan. 1753 pages. [Source: Bought]

Century of Viewing #39



2010s

• 2013-2014. Flip or Flop seasons one and two. I haven't added this to my spreadsheet. It feels so shallowly fluffy that it's not worth the add. Each episode is about twenty minutes. A couple buys houses to flip them. DRAMA happens each episode as problems with the house are found. Will they make money or will they lose money. I find myself yelling at them a LOT. But the show is strangely addictive precisely because it's not very intelligent.

2020s

• 2026. Project Hail Mary. I am glad I read the book first. I think it does help viewers make sense of the movie. The movie is definitely centered on one or two characters. And much of the 'story' is told through flashbacks. If you've read the book, you know everything and there isn't much of a reveal or surprise--for better or worse. But it also helps the film make sense. What I disliked most has nothing to do with the story or the acting--but the soundtrack. I'll clarify, the VOLUME or lack thereof of the soundtrack. If you turn it up so you can hear the dialogue, everything is way too loud. Not a loud that is easily tolerated. It isn't just a few scenes where it's too loud--like you'd expect in a science fiction movie or an action movie. But the score of the movie itself is overpowering. The score is good, mind you, but it doesn't have to be louder than the dialogue to move you. As for story, man wakes up alone on space ship....later he comes across another person alone on a space ship....they become friends and together save the universe. It is definitely all about the relationship between these two. It is EMOTIONAL in places.

© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews