Becky's Book Reviews: December 2024

Thursday, December 19, 2024

106. Little Christmas Carol

106. Little Christmas Carol. Charles Dickens. (This is a lightly adapted/abridged edition). 1843/2024. 144 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, illustrated read aloud, classic]

First sentence: Marley was dead, to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that. The register of his burial was signed by the clergyman, the clerk, the undertaker, and the chief mourner. Scrooge signed it, and Scrooge's name was good upon anything he chose to put his hand to. Old Marley was as dead as a doornail.

Premise/plot: Little Christmas Carol places Charles Dickens' classic Christmas tale within an animal woodland. (All the animals are woodland creatures.) The text adds in a little here and there in reference to that. (It isn't so much that it is obnoxious). This is an illustrated edition of A Christmas Carol.

My thoughts: I love, love, love, love, love, love, love the illustrations in Little Christmas Carol. I have read A Christmas Carol dozens of times, I always find it enjoyable and compelling. I am so glad I read it.

Wednesday, December 18, 2024

105. Grenade

Grenade. Alan Gratz. 2018. 270 pages. [Source: Review copy] [3 stars] [historical fiction, world war II, mg historical]

First sentence: An American bomb landed a hundred meters away--Kra-KOOM!--and the school building exploded.

Premise/plot: Grenade is set towards the end of the second world war in Asia; Okinawa to be precise. It has dual narrators--for a bit--an American soldier (Ray) and an incredibly young drafted from [middle] school boy (Hideki). These two will come face to face--each with a grenade--and well, you can guess the rest.

War is front and center in this one, namely how horrible, atrocious, evil, horrifying, terrifying, traumatic, and always, always, always wrong it is. Each chapter features another layer of trauma.

My thoughts: Grenade is super-intense and heavy. I personally did not care for it. The reason why I did not like it probably (may not) bother you. So this one may still be a good fit for you.

One reason why I didn't particularly care for this one is the spiritualism. Maybe that is not the right word. There is a character that speaks with the dead, communes with the dead, gives messages from the dead, etc. There's also a strong belief in generational curses. It's just--for me--an odd read.

104. Quagmire Tiarello Couldn't Be Better

Quagmire Tiarello Couldn't Be Better. Mylisa Larsen. 2024. 240 pages. [Source: Library] [3 stars] [mg fiction, realistic fiction]

First sentence: When Principal Deming asked Quagmire Tiarello what he was planning on doing with the first day of his summer vacation, Quag did not tell him that he planned on sleeping in until at least noon.

Premise/plot: Quagmire (Quag) is NOT having the best summer ever, or even a decent summer--not really. His mom's mental health is spiraling out of control [again] and Quag is barely holding the family together. He is spending some time with the girl of his dreams at art camp, all the while pretending to have a great interest in birds. But for the most part, he's dreading the ultimate crash that will come. Will he get the help he needs when it does?

My thoughts: I don't know that every library has a division of just two categories--a book is either J for juvenile or Teen for teen. I do wish there was an MG section. I can see why teens might not want to read about an eighth grader [almost ninth grader]. But the main character seems WAY too old for juvenile. Does it matter where it's filed? Maybe. Maybe not. Probably not. Just that this is definitely a book with teen characters dealing with hard life issues. That might be appealing for younger readers. I don't think the main "problem" is exclusively a problem that only teens deal with. Quagmire's mom's mental health is a MESS and it is really effecting Quagmire on every level. This is a coming of age story of sorts about how he finds the help he needs even if it isn't easy or natural to ask for help and be honest about how awful things are at home.

Monday, December 16, 2024

103. Velveteen Rabbit

103. The Velveteen Rabbit. Margery Williams. Illustrated by William Nicholson. 1922/2014. Random House. 48 pages. [Source: Review copy] [5 stars] [fantasy, children's classic]

First sentence: THERE was once a velveteen rabbit, and in the beginning he was really splendid. He was fat and bunchy, as a rabbit should be; his coat was spotted brown and white, he had real thread whiskers, and his ears were lined with pink sateen.

Premise/plot: Do you know what it is to be real? One little Christmas bunny will learn this and plenty of other life lessons in Margery Williams' classic tale The Velveteen Rabbit.

The Velveteen Rabbit opens with a young boy receiving a rabbit for a Christmas present. All is lovely for the rabbit that first day. But the toy is quickly forgotten. He becomes one toy of many, many, many toys. He's not exactly special to the boy or the other toys. In fact, I'd say the other toys bully him a bit. All except for the Skin Horse, the oldest toy in the nursery. It is this horse that tells the Rabbit all about being real, what it takes to be real, what it feels like, how it changes you, etc.

"Real isn't how you are made," said the Skin Horse. "It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real." "Does it hurt?" asked the Rabbit. "Sometimes," said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. "When you are Real you don't mind being hurt." "Does it happen all at once, like being wound up," he asked, "or bit by bit?" "It doesn't happen all at once," said the Skin Horse. "You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't often happen to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand." "I suppose you are real?" said the Rabbit. And then he wished he had not said it, for he thought the Skin Horse might be sensitive. But the Skin Horse only smiled. "The Boy's Uncle made me Real," he said. "That was a great many years ago; but once you are Real you can't become unreal again. It lasts for always." (5-8)

My thoughts: The Velveteen Rabbit is one of my favorite Christmas books. I love the nursery magic. I love the ending. It was originally published in 1922. The story and illustrations in this edition are original. This is a beautiful edition of the book. One of the best I've seen.

The Velveteen Rabbit was published several years before A.A. Milne's Winnie the Pooh and House at Pooh Corner. Chances are if you enjoy one, you'll enjoy the other.

Do you have a favorite toy-come-to-life fantasy?

Thursday, December 12, 2024

102. Christmas Eve Love Story

Christmas Eve love Story. Ginny Baird. 2024. 416 pages. [Source: Library] [3 stars] [adult romance, mostly clean romance, holiday, Christmas, time loops, fantasy]

First sentence: Annie Jones hurried out of the snow and in through the employee entrance at Lawson's Finest in her red knitted pom-pom hat and peacoat, clocking in on her department store app, and---ahh!--almost mowing down Santa.

Premise/plot: Annie Jones is entering the twilight zone. Mostly. This holiday romance features a time loop [on Christmas Eve] where the heroine has twelve chances to make a good 'first impression' on security guard, Braden Tate. Of course, that isn't the only thing she must get right to make it to Christmas morning. There are twelve cycles of Christmas Eves. Some things change. Some things are inevitable.

My thoughts: I enjoyed this one. I did. Did it *need* to be 416 pages? Probably not. Honestly I think it would have been better at about 350-ish pages. However, the repetitiveness helped me at times get caught back up of the story. The truth is, I started this one in mid-November, it got moved in the library stack, I forgot about it completely, then picked it up yesterday and read the rest of the book. So I read the first half of the book in one sitting and the last half of the book in one sitting--but three weeks in between. Again, I enjoyed this one. If this was a movie, no doubt, I'd watch it--probably again and again depending on how well it's done.

Wednesday, December 11, 2024

101. Still Sal

101. Still Sal. Kevin Henkes. 2024. 256 pages. [Source: Library] [j fiction, j realistic fiction, family, school, 5 stars]

First sentence: "You're embarrassing me," Sal said to her father. Her voice squeaked with emotion. Papa had been singing. He stopped. He glanced around the kitchen. "It's just us," he said. "How can I be embarrassing you?" "Well," said Sal, "then you're practicing for when you'll embarrass me later."

Premise/plot: Still Sal is the sequel to Oh, Sal. Oh, Sal is the spin-off of Kevin Henkes' The Year of Billy Miller. Sal, our heroine, is now six (Poppy, her younger sister, is two; Billy, her older brother, is ten) and preparing for the first day of first grade. She has a vision, a plan, she knows exactly how she wants first grade to go. Fortunately-unfortunately, things don't go according to plan. She's in the "wrong" class with the "wrong" teacher and separated from her neighbor-friend, Griff. Meanwhile at home, Sal is having to learn how to share her room with Poppy who has graduated to a big-girl bed. Sal's struggles are super realistic.

My thoughts: I really enjoyed this one. I loved Oh, Sal and Still Sal so much--much more than The Year with Billy Miller. I love the emotional life of the character. The problems or obstacles that Sal faces are realistic and relatable. The writing and characterization are great.

Tuesday, December 10, 2024

100. Let It Glow

Let It Glow. Marissa Meyer and Joanne Levy. 2024. 292 pages. [Source: Library] [mg fiction, winter holidays, 3 stars, friendship, family]

First sentence: "You're getting to be such a pro with those chop-sticks," my grandmother said.

Premise/plot; Aviva and Holly are identical twins [both adopted] who have never met....until one day at a retirement/assisted living center. Aviva's grandmother (Bubbe) and Holly's grandfather (Gramps) are [or soon will be] residents there. The senior center is having a "Christmas pageant." Aviva is excited to participate though not sure if she'll feel comfortable being the only Jewish kid participating. Holly has no intentions of participating--though behind the scenes work might not be horrible. But when these two meet, they know what has to be done: a hair cut and the old switcheroo. Holly will learn all about Hanukkah from Aviva's family and Aviva will learn all about Christmas from Holly's family. The problem? Well, Aviva has spent almost half the book firmly criticizing her family for NOT being Jewish enough, for never celebrating Hanukkah, for never observing anything at all. When the family finally concedes and says YES, YES, YES we will do that this year, Aviva jumps ship to go celebrate Christmas. The logic is missing. Aviva goes from being highly critical of all things Christmas--she's OFFENDED by a plate of Christmas cookies, for example...to jumping at the opportunity to celebrate Christmas. It also doesn't make sense that Holly would abandon her mom and Gramps when he is not in the best of health.

My thoughts: As an adult reader, I am overthinking most of the plot of this one. It just seems to be lacking in logic. I wish the twins could have gotten to know each other without switching places. The song the girls write may pass as good fun for younger readers, but, not necessarily for me.

I liked this one well enough. I think the "flaws" that I see, the intended audience probably wouldn't think twice about.

Monday, December 02, 2024

99. All the Beautiful Things

99. All the Beautiful Things. Katrina Nannestad. 2024. [October 30] 352 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, mg historical, mg fiction, world war II]

First sentence: 'Come on, Anna! Take a swing at me!' Udo bounces around on the landing at the top of the stairs. The floorboards squeak and creak beneath the balls of his feet.

Premise/plot: All the Beautiful Things by Katrina Nannestad is historical fiction set in Germany during the second world war.

That isn't much of a summary. YET, this one is so wonderful, so compelling, so moving, and yes, beautiful, that words do not do it justice...at all. No matter what I say--short or long--it won't capture what this book IS and how it makes one feel.

Anna has a younger sister, Eva, whom she must hide from the Nazis. Eva is too "different" mentally, intellectually, to be a part of the ideal race. She has developmental needs which would make her expendable, let's say. But hiding comes with a cost....

Again, I can't do this book justice.

My thoughts: I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE love this one. It is beautiful. It is heartbreaking. It reminds me--emotionally speaking--of The Book Thief. The narrative, the characterization, the story, everything was practically perfect in every way. This may not be a super-easy story being set during World WAR II, but it is a story that is worth it.

98. Unsinkable Cayenne

98. Unsinkable Cayenne. Jessica Vitalis. 2024. [October 29] 304 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars] [verse novel, historical fiction, realistic fiction, mg fiction, coming of age]

First sentence: I don't know what the owners
have against trees
but I wish they'd plant a few
between their squished sites.

Premise/plot: Cayenne has spent most of her life living in a van with her family. Her parents like the free-spirited, nomadic, no roots lifestyle). But life in the van is cramped with five people. (She has twin [younger] siblings.] But her father has recently taken a job in a small Montana town. Cayenne wants to a) fit in, b) fit in, c) fit in. She knows that this will take a LOT of hard work since she'll need to change everything about herself. It will take concealing her unusual past and her family's poverty. Will Cayenne make friends? make the right sort of friends? Can she fit in with the "normal" crowd?

This book is full of struggles, struggles, and more struggles. Yet it isn't without its bright moments of hope and joy.

It is set in the fall of 1985. The recent discovery of the wreck of the Titanic is a hot topic in her history class. Though perhaps it is the teacher who is most thrilled.

This verse novel is sprinkled with PLENTY of eighties details. However I am not convinced that all the eighties details fit in for the fall of 1985. I have no proof either way.

My thoughts: I really LOVED this one. Perhaps it didn't have to be written in verse. However, this coming of age novel has so much heart. I really loved spending time with these characters.

The ending IS not tied in bows. This is probably for the best.