It’s summer! Our book discussion summer series “Claws to Read” starts off with… The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater Find it in our library: The Raven Boys Summary: Though she is from a family of clairvoyants, Blue Sargent’s only gift seems to be that she makes other people’s talents stronger, […]
Welcome to the Dark House — Teen Review
Published on :–review by Kara, teen reviewer Welcome to the Dark House by Laurie Faria Stolarz Seven kids are flown out to the middle of nowhere after winning a competition to meet the infamous Justin Blake, a director whose horror films have a cult following. The weekend is designed to be a Justin […]
Brave New World — Teen Review
Published on :–review by Josh, teen reviewer Brave New World by Aldous Huxley Thought-provoking, ominous, and poignant. In a society so bizarre it is practically impossible to envision, we are left in awe at the state of this utopian world. This is not the main theme of the novel, though. On the […]
Dorothy Must Die — Teen Review
Published on :–review by Kara, teen reviewer Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige So here’s the plot. Amy, a girl who is neglected by her mother and abandoned by her father, has a sucky life. Not only has she been ostracized because she lives in a trailer park, but, after ignoring Al […]
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian — Teen Review
Published on :–review by Julia, teen reviewer The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian follows Junior, a boy living on an Indian reservation, through times of loss, disappointment, success, and most importantly, hope. Junior’s character is easy to relate to as […]
Ruin and Rising — Teen Review
Published on :–review by Kara, teen reviewer Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo ***SPOILERS for those who have not read the first two books in the series: Shadow and Bone & Siege and Storm.*** We last saw Alinas as she was going underground with the Apparat and we pick up with her being […]
Shadow and Bone — discussion recap
Published on :May’s book discussion pick was Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo What we did Shadow and Bone author Leigh Bardugo brightened up our meeting by joining us via Skype! Each attendee asked multiple questions about the book, her ideas, and career. We also discussed her book at length […]
Between Shades of Gray — Teen Review
Published on :–review by Kara, teen reviewer Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys Lina and her family are taken during the middle of the night by the NKVD, who are known today as the KGB. Lina and her family are deported from their home country of Lithuania and charged under Soviet Penal […]
Stranger — Teen Review
Published on :–review by Josh, teen reviewer The Stranger by Albert Camus The concept of this novel alone is thought-provoking enough to spend hours analysing. A man arrives in a city in France after his mother dies, and after killing someone in self-defense, is put on trial; the main driving force of […]
Sound and the Fury — Teen Review
Published on :–review by Josh, teen reviewer The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner Grammatical rules become non-existent, time irrelevant, and confusion normal in this emotionally-charged novel about a family and their mentally retarded son; but goddamn, it’s sure done well. Faulkner divides the book into three separate sections, each of […]