New Lands (2013)

New Lands (Chronicles of Egg #2). Geoff Rodkey. 2013. Penguin. 336 pages. [Source: Review copy]

I hung my head over the side of the Thrush and watched the prow carve the seawater into a hissing spray. Viewed up close, the Blue Sea wasn't all that blue, and I wondered--for the umpteenth time in the past few days--who had named it that, and why they hadn't bothered to get it right.

I really enjoyed the first book in the series. Egg and Guts are on a quest, and the journey ahead of them is dangerous and uncertain. These two somewhat unlikely friends make a great pair! I didn't have much of an opinion on Guts in the first book, but he definitely grew on me in the second. (The way he named his hook, Lucy, the way he loves to play guitar, how he loves his foreign language lessons, etc.) I also enjoyed the two female characters, Kira, a native (Okalu), and Millicent Pembroke. (I have mixed feelings on Millicent though). One of my favorite characters, however, is a minor one. I really loved seeing Burn Healy again!!!

If you enjoy adventure-fantasy with a historical feel, then this series might satisfy! I enjoy the action, the adventure, the humor. I really like the way these two are narrated! 

© 2013 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Secrets At Sea (2011)

Secrets at Sea. Richard Peck. 2011/2012. Penguin. 256 pages. [Source: Review Copy]

I definitely enjoyed this animal fantasy novel by Richard Peck. Helena, our narrator, is the oldest surviving sibling in a family of mice. Her mother and two sisters shared the same fate--drowning, and her father also had an unfortunate accident. So Helena is the oldest, she's the boss, supposedly. Do the other mice like being obedient? Not so much. Helena has two sisters: Beatrice and Louise and one brother: Lamont. They live with the Cranston family. When the Cranston family decides to go to Europe in an attempt to marry their oldest daughter off (Olive), the mice family has an important decision to make. Do they stay behind in the empty house and take their chances, or, do they dare risk it all and travel with their human family? Helena takes the advice of an aunt (who tells fortunes) and they decide to go with their family. They even decide to take an interest in their humans, they will be trying to help them...

I especially loved this one once the journey began. I loved meeting all the other mice on board the ship. I loved seeing the society of mice. And the romance in this one are sweet. The novel is set in the Victorian period, and ends with Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee.

© 2013 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

The Unruly Queen (1996)

The Unruly Queen: The Life of Queen Caroline. Flora Fraser. 1996/2009. Anchor Books. 560 pages. [Source: Library]

George IV married Caroline because his father (and/or parliament) agreed to pay off his debts if he got married. This marriage was a complete disaster. Not only was it a loveless marriage, it was extremely bitter! He HATED his wife. And I believe she hated him as well. Half the biography focuses on the bickering and the back-and-forth correspondence between her legal advisers, his legal advisers, and King George III. The situation was complex because George III and George IV (he was Prince of Wales, but it's easier for me to just call him George IV) did not get along at all. They fought continuously. Their relationship was extremely strained. There were times when George III sided with "the injured Princess" Caroline instead of with his son. His wife was at various times popular with the people as well. George IV, well, he wasn't very well-liked. He had a habit of spending lots of money and wanting parliament to pay all the bills. He also had more than a few mistresses. Some of these mistresses were in favor with society--were popular enough, I suppose--others were NOT. He was never faithful to Caroline; he never even pretended to like her or love her. He made it clear that he hated to be even in the same room with her. For better or worse, the two did have one child together. (Princess Charlotte was conceived within the first month of marriage.) Princess Charlotte was more popular than her mother and father.

The biography is very detailed. It details correspondence and records. It follows Caroline's movements from her marriage to George through her death--just three weeks after her husband's coronation. She was banned from attending. For Caroline was not always on good terms with her in-laws. Sometimes she enjoyed the favor of George III and his wife. Other times, her treatment was barely civil. There were definitely times she embarrassed the family and they disapproved of her.

The Unruly Queen was an interesting read.



© 2013 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Sunday Salon: Reading When We Were Very Young (1924)

When We Were Very Young. A.A. Milne. 1924. 100 pages. [Source: Library]

 If I loved poetry more, I think I would appreciate When We Were Very Young more than I do. I found the introduction charming. It does contain plenty of poems that I like, love, or even adore. Poems that are easier perhaps to adore if you were lucky enough to have heard them sung. (Winnie the Pooh: 17 Songs from the Pooh Song Book: Starring Jack Gilford. The album features: "Sing Ho! For the Life of A Bear," "Cottleston Pie," "Lines Written By A Bear of Very Little Brain," "Oh! The Butterflies are Flying," "I Lay On My Chest," "3 Cheers for Pooh," "They All Went Off To Discover the Pole," "Christopher Robin is Going," "Missing," "In the Fashion," "Halfway Down," Buckingham Palace," "Politeness," "The Christening," "Brownie," "Lines and Squares," and "Vespers."). My favorite poems from When We Were Very Young are:
 

Buckingham Palace
Lines and Squares
Politeness
Missing
Halfway Down
Teddy Bear

From Teddy Bear

A bear, however hard he tries,
Grows tubby without exercise.
Our Teddy Bear is short and fat
Which is not to be wondered at;
He gets what exercise he can
By falling off the ottoman,
But generally seems to lack
The energy to clamber back.

From Missing

Has anybody seen my mouse?
I opened his box for half a minute,
Just to make sure he was really in it,
And while I was looking, he jumped outside!
I tried to catch him, I tried, I tried...
I think he's somewhere about the house.
Has anyone seen my mouse?

From Buckingham Palace

They're changing guard at Buckingham Palace--
Christopher Robin went down with Alice.
Alice is marrying one of the guard.
"A soldier's life is terrible hard,"
Says Alice.

Do you have a favorite Milne poem? 

© 2013 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Week in Review: August 4-10

Duke. Kirby Larson. 2013. Scholastic. 240 pages. [Source: Review Copy]
Pride and Prejudice and Kitties. Jane Austen, Pamela Jane, and Deborah Guyol. 2013. Sky Horse Publishing. 208 pages. [Source: Library]
Queen Emma and the Vikings. Harriet O'Brien. 2005. Bloomsbury. 288 pages. [Source: Library]
Cotillion. Georgette Heyer. 1953/2007. Sourcebooks. 362 pages. [Source: Review Copy]
Highway Robbery. Kate Thompson. 2008. HarperCollins. 128 pages. [Source: Library]
Royal Mistress. Anne Easter Smith. 2013. Simon & Schuster. 489 pages. [Source: Review Copy]

The Road to Oz. L. Frank Baum. 1909. 272 pages. [Source: Bought]
Is The Bible True...Really? Josh McDowell and Dave Sterrett. 2011. Moody. 144 pages. [Source: Bought]
Weakness Is The Way. J.I. Packer. 2013. Crossway. 128 pages. [Source: Review Copy]
God Knows My Name: Never Forgotten, Forever Loved. Beth Redman. 2010. David C. Cook. 192 pages. [Source: Bought]

© 2013 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews