Half Brother by Kenneth Oppel

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


How would you feel if you had a chimpanzee as a little brother?
Ben Tomlin's father moved the family to British Columbia for that very reason. Nobody had asked Ben, his Dad had accepted the new job before he told Ben anything about the move.
It was 1973. Richard Tomlin was a behavioral scientist interested in whether humans were the only animals capable of learning language. He wanted to find out if chimpanzees could learn American Sign Language. So he accepted a position at a university half way across Canada.
Ben spent his thirteenth birthday unpacking boxes at his new house. Now he was in a new town, Victoria, living in a new house and going to a private school.
For the experiment a particular chimp had to be found. It had to be a baby, because the whole experiment relied on raising it just like a human.
They named their chimp, Zan.
At first Ben thought that having a chimpanzee as a member of the family was the weirdest thing in the world and he resented him because of the move and because it made him look weird at school. But as he begins to work with Zan, spending time with him and teaching the chimp his first sign, Ben's feelings about his feisty new half brother begins to change.
What does Zan learn?
What do Ben and his family learn?
Can this experiment succeed?




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The Twin's Daughter by Lauren Baratz-Logsted

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Mystery, romance, drama mix together in this book of identity swapping/stealing. The story is set in the past and the author has managed to create a Victorian era feel to her prose. He choice of language and syntax adds to the dated setting very successfully. The story was good with a final twist.



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A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I could not read this book in one sitting - it was too heart wrenching. I needed time to compose myself. Conor experiences nightmares in the shape of a yew tree monster. The nightmares are connected to his mother's fight with breast cancer. The portrayal of Conor's anguish, anger, and desperation is so real that my heart was breaking most of the time I was reading. Have the Kleenex handy.



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Uprising by Margaret Peterson Haddix

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Have you heard of the Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire of 1911? You may have heard it mentioned on the radio or TV as it is the 100 year anniversary. It was the catalyst for many of the safety laws enacted that we all enjoy in the workplace.
Back in 1911 many young women were working at the factory when fire broke out. These girls were trapped in the fire by locked doors and insufficient fire escapes. In the end, 146 girls were killed in the fire. An investigation faulted the working conditions of the factory as well as the locked doors as leading to the fire. This tragedy led to new laws about working conditions in factories. But did you know that many of the girls who worked at the factory had walked out on strike 13 months before to protest the conditions at the factory? They were fighting for the right to unionize as well as for safer conditions. Uprising follows three girls who meet during the strike. They come from different backgrounds -- two immigrant factory workers and one rich girl who wanted to help. The three become good friends and fight for the good of all -- until the end. Of the three friends, two die. Who will survive and who will perish?




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Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


After her aunt's death, Tessa Gray comes to England hoping to start a new life with her older brother, Nate. She is met by the Dark Sisters and imprisoned for many weeks and is trained to take her 'rightful' place by their master, the Magister. Tessa finds out that she is a Downworlder, a warlock with special shape-shifting abilities.
Tessa may not know much about magic, but she knows that the Dark Sisters are evil, and the menace they serve wants to marry her!
Tessa escapes with the help of two Shadowhunters. They take her to the Institute, a hidden, protected place. And that's just the beginning, for as the weeks go by she meets some very interesting people--only a few of which are fully human.
t is hard to know who to trust...and who to love – and for sure she finds herself falling in love with someone at the institute.
The Victorian setting is nice.




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Liar by Justine Larbalestier

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I have thought more about this book than most others I have read in my whole life.
It leaves you with more questions, and a huge desire to discuss the story with another who has read it.

Is lying by definition fiction. In that case Liar by Justine Larbalestier is the epitome of fiction. A mystery novel set in New York, where Micah Wilkins is a senior and an habitual liar: she lies about everything - her gender, her father's business, her family -- everything. Nobody believes a word she says.
She tells us she will tell us the truth as one of her classmates has been viciously murdered. Micah wants to come clean and tell us about it and how she is affected. And the mystery continues because do we believe her?
I've never read a book quite like this. I was compelled to read on and find answers to the mysteries, but are there any answers? Really, the only certainty is that Micah is a troubled girl (or is she even a girl?).




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Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by Lish McBride

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Both horrific and witty, scary and funny, here is a great story.
Sam: college dropout, hamburger flipper considers himself normal and a little aimless. All it takes is a game of potato hockey and a knocked out light on a Mercedes to change Sam's world from normal to paranormal. The event throws him into the sights of an evil and powerful necromancer named Douglas Montgomery. Sam turns out to be a necromancer too, making him Douglas's target for either slavery or death.

With the help of a bunch of friends, including a talking head, and some unusual acquaintances, witches, werewolves, a seer and a Harbinger, Sam has to figure out how to escape Douglas, keep his loved ones alive, and use his power while avoiding the nastier side of his new-found attributes.

The story can be gory and violent at times but this is off-set by witty dialog and comebacks. I couldn’t put it down, wanting to find out how Sam bested Douglas.

Recommended.




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