Wonder by R.J. Palacio

I would love to read this book with a group of kids and have a discussion. I imagine that anyone with a book club or reading group of 4th-7th graders added this to their list of titles. The author brings up so many adolescent topics and themes in the context of a boy who feels normal but physically is not. Most of the supporting characters mirrored this with deceiving appearances hiding something emotional or internal. I thought that was just terrific.

I also liked learning about the other characters through their own voices. I wasn't expecting to read Via, Justin, Will, and Summer's thoughts and I thought the author worked that in nicely. Sometimes their narrations would overlap what August just experienced, but often their sections advanced the story which takes place over his 5th grade year. (note: I kept thinking they were older than 5th grade, in part because in this book 5th grade is middle school.)

There are great pop culture references to Star Wars, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, and Tolkien. I was not as impressed with the song quotes.

All of this praise aside, I would be surprised if this took the Newbery. Yes, it earned loads of starred reviews and made many Newbery prediction lists. Yes, it is a terrific book that kids will also likely enjoy very much, which is not always the case with a Newbery Award winner. But for me, outside of the character of August I didn't find the writing exceptionally distinguished.

Mr. and Mrs. Bunny - Detectives Extraordinaire! by Mrs. Bunny

Last week, Flavorwire published 10 of the Weirdest Children's Book Authors of All Time. It's a fun list and a nice reminder that there are some wickedly fun and interesting children's authors out there. I'd like to add to that list with the deliciously unusual Polly Horvath.

Her latest book is Mr and Mrs. Bunny-Detectives Extraordinaire! by Mrs. Bunny (translated from the Rabbit by Polly Horvath) and illustrated by Sophie Blackall.

Let's just take a moment and reflect on the wonderful genius of pairing Horvath with Blackall. Perfection.

Mysteries have been the buzz around our house lately. My husband and I shared Sherlock fever this past month.* It didn't escaped my 8 year old who read and loved this collection as well as this series which surprised me by being by Jennifer Holm! (thanks to our children's librarian Michelle for the recommendation on that series)

Like most of Horvath's novels, I know she isn't everyone's cup o tea. There's quite a bit of nonsense so readers without that sense of play and patience will likely not finish it. I easily put it down quite a bit myself. Examples? Okay, how about... Madeline's hippy irresponsible parents who insist on being called Mildred and Flo, Prince Charles coming to Madeline's school to present end-of-the-year awards, Craigslist, Google, Smart cars, The Olde Spaghetti Factory, knitting with used dental floss, Big Macs, Glade PlugIns, rabbits eating stir fry and mac & cheese, and a hundred other non sequiturs. Yes, yes, but get on with the mystery!

Like Madeline, I felt frustrated that she can't find her kidnapped parents. Stick with it, though, because it all turns out wonderful in the end.

Critics love this book. I would like to hear about children. My son  narrowed his eyes at it and passed. He was also reading Order of the Phoenix at this time so it's hard to compete with that. Perhaps as a read aloud? I wonder at the book's broader possibilities with a narrator to help with the humor. Hm...

*Watch all 3 episodes for free on PBS until 6/19!

Summer at Forsaken Lake ... coming soon!

It's no secret here that I am a fan of Michael D. Beil and his Red Blazer Girls mystery series. Earlier today I read that he has a new book (separate from RBG) out this summer. The RBG Facebook page also mentioned it is geared a little more towards boys. Double hooray!

Summer at Forsaken Lake comes out in June by Knopf Books for Young Readers!

In anticipation, Mr. Beil has released his childhood 8mm film "The Seaweed Strangler" as a book trailer. Check it out below. It's pretty fun. I especially like the victory swing around the pier post after the Strangler finishes with a victim. C'mon summer!

What We're Reading at Our House - 5

I'm going to cram this post with our list of reads over the past month. Thanks to encouragement from his friends at school, my son discovered that he isn't afraid of Goosebumps after all and has embarked on a steady diet of RL Stine for 2 months. He has taken a few breaks.

Invisible Inkling by Emily Jenkins and illustrated by Harry Bliss
Thumbs up from 8 year old and there's more on the way.  Emily Jenkins (e. lockhart) is so reliable.  We ate a lot of ice cream while reading it. Hey, a mom has to do what a mom has to do to make it a complete reading experience.

Frankie Pickle and the Closet of Doom by Eric Wight
I picked this out for my son because it is part comic, part chapter book. He enthusiastically approved of my choice although the reading level falls a little below what he normally reads. Still, a fun book is a fun book! We'll get the next one at our next library visit.

Saxby Smart Private Detective in The Curse of the Ancient Mask and Other Case Files by Simon Cheshire and Pictures by RW Alley
My 3 year old picked this off of the JFic shelves at our library and said it was for his brother. He picked a good one! Mysteries are generally a sure-fire hit and this met with approval. There are 3 stories in this volume and the reader is given clues to figure out the mystery.

Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick
Yes, it is good. So far I've seen it on both Caldecott and Newbery lists. 8 year old had no interest in reading it.

Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys
I love a book that is a learning experience and offers another perspective on WW2, which are stories I generally avoid because the truth of the stories wrecks me. When her family is taken in the night and she is in her nightgown you know that it isn't going to be well and it's not a short trip. Take your boots! Your jackets! Omg there's a woman with a newborn?! Nooooo!!! I did find it very hard to believe that no one opened that suitcase earlier. Also, an epilogue. Another highly buzzed book by a first time author.

Junonia by Kevin Henkes
A sweet, simple story for the younger set. I loved Alice Rice, which rhymes with nice. Alice is a sensitive girl who feels change keenly and events leading up to her 10th birthday are not what she anticipated. The more I think about this one the more I like it. Younger books are overlooked by committees, but there is sophistication in this short story. (And it also takes place not far from where I grew up in Florida.)

Small Acts of Amazing Courage by Gloria Whelan

I have to say that this book let me down. Such a great title, too! British rule of India and the rise of Gandhi are certainly interesting and exciting topics. My disinterest came when Rosy went back to England and met up with her Aunt Louise. I would have preferred more India, Isha, the ophanage, and the Club.

The Red Blazer Girls: The Mistaken Masterpiece by Michael D. Beil

After 3 books, Sophie Jeanette St. Pierre still holds a place in my heart as one of my favorite 12-year-old narrators. Author Michael D. Beil's 3rd Red Blazer Girls novel brings back the New York girls for another adventure in after-school sleuthing. Previously they solved logic and math puzzles to find a missing ring and a twice-stolen violin.

Father Julian enlists the Red Blazer Girls Detective Agency (Sophie, Becca, Margaret & Leigh Ann) to help him determine the age of a painting. He asks the girls to sort through a box of old family photos to find images of the painting in hopes of being able to date it. See, if the picture is older than 1961 then it's an original Pommeroy. If it's later, it's a fake.

Add to this sub-plots about a couple of young movie stars and a dog with strange behavior, Sophie's rocky relationship with classmate Livvy, and Sophie's very own mystery of mysterious packages arriving at her house for her. A pot of dirt? Huh?

Beil returns with the clever chapter titles ("So, who wins in a fight between a crocodile and a unicorn?" and "In which I set loose an army of killer ants on Livvy. Okay, not really, but a girl can fantasize, can't she?"), vocabulary words, puns, and literature references. The girls are reading short stories about conflict and irony in their English class. One in particular is "The Interlopers" by Saki. How's that for light middle grade reading? And don't worry, he's also brought back the Charles Dickens references. Speaking of references, the movie filming is called "No Reflections" which is based on a best-selling teen paranormal romance. Ha! And the shady art dealers? The Svindahls. Double ha! Everything is a puzzle to figure out.

Sure there are many convenient plot developments and many times someone just happens to see someone or something, etc.  I also marvel at the girls schedules: homework, school, swim practice, band practice, solving mysteries. This book took a little bit more time to engross me, but once the mystery kicked into full gear it was another exciting ride to the finish. This time the reader is shown 4 photographs and the answer to the mystery is solved by figuring out the clues that link them together. I loved flipping back to those pictures each time an "Ah ha!" moment came up.

These are fun, fun books. I eagerly await the next one.

Red Blazer Girls on Facebook with links to articles about the author and series.

Okay for Now by Gary D. Schmidt

Not much room to add to the slew of glowing reviews about this novel. Agreed: the cover is great (ahem, baseball). Agreed: it stands alone from the multi-award winning The Wednesday Wars even thought it is a companion novel. Agreed: the awkward play storyline.* Agreed: Nobody in the world writes like Gary D. Schmidt.

I'm going to say that he weaves this story. I know it's one of those forbidden review words, but that's what he does in all his novels. How he takes words and phrases and events and moves them in and out of his storytelling is genius. It makes the reader reflect and wonder what is it he is trying to put together and the result is a deep and involved reading experience. A reading experience that you feel. The plot is not pushed forward. He builds it gently and purposefully. Or as Doug says, "which you might remember if you cared." I love this. Love it.

3 more things to add:


1. The shout-out to the librarian cataloging all those Houghton Mifflin books (publisher of this novel) = fun.

2. In The Wednesday Wars, the passage where Holling says his sister's name for the reader ranks as one of the most memorable reading experiences of my life. I will never forget sitting in my car in a parking lot at work and wiping tears from my eyes as I listened to the CD. There's one of those in this one. Thanks, Mr. Schmidt.

3. I was worried reading this book. Ack! What if one day my sons don't like Gary D. Schmidt books?! I panicked for a moment. But only just that.

Note to the video: For 2 or 3 years we arranged for Mr. Schmidt to come to TLA. Every year there was some kind of transportation snafu. He finally came the year I was chair and I will forever regret the scant amount of time I was able to hear him speak.

*Okay, I will say that this could be what holds it back from proper medal award winning.

P.S. If anyone wants to talk about Doug's Dad & Ernie Eco with me I'd like to hear your thoughts on that in the comments.

The Penderwicks at Point Mouette by Jeanne Birdsall

http://www.jeannebirdsall.com/about/point_mouette.html

During the ALA Media Awards earlier this year, Patti and I discussed our desire to read a book and review it together as a chat. We tossed around ideas and one of mine was The Penderwicks. I never read them and I knew a new book was due out later this year. I checked out the first book and finished it very quickly. My thoughts:  adorable.  It's also very retro in its design, its references to pop culture, and its genre. I'll explain this last one more below.) I also thought it wouldn't make quite the juicy conversation that Patti and I usually like to have so here I am on my own. Book 3 The Penderwicks at Point Mouette was released May 10, 2011.

Now just because I said it wasn't juicy doesn't mean I think less of them.*

EDITED IN LIGHT OF WSJ ARTICLE "DARKNESS TOO VISIBLE"

Okay, Friends. Are you going to tell me that none of the Penderwicks books were on those B&N shelves? Because it sounds like these are the books this mom might want. Shocker: these best-selling novels aren't books about cutting and sex abuse.  Heavens! The Penderwick Family Honor wouldn't stand for that nonesense. Penderwick stories are  about family. Funny stories about families. Interesting stories about families. No swearing, no meanness, just a pleasant view into the lives of 4 girls and a couple boys. They go to school. They read (other non-cutting/sex abuse books - all hard core classics that would please any parent who refuses to let their child read books post-1965). The girls like math (!) and science (!) and soccer (!). They have good friends. They are good friends. They are (rather) obedient children. They take care of and love each other.

Granted this series is geared a little bit younger than what the article chose to talk about, but 13 year olds would totally dig these stories. The oldest is 13 and there's kissing! And let's face it, 13 year old girls really really like kissing books no matter what their mothers might think otherwise. So let's hear it for the non-edgy-but-still-rockin' YA. It's a great big YA world out there. There's something for every one. Just because you haven't found it doesn't mean it doesn't exist. If you can't find it yourself, ask your teacher or librarian.

*Oh yeah, about the novel: there's a surprise for one of our friends that I totally didn't see coming. Rosalind is MIA except phone call snippets which allows more time for Skye, Jane & Batty to have their stories. Mr. P, Iantha and Ben are also out of the picture, but we do get Aunt Claire. My heart still belongs to Skye though Jane nearly stole the show this time. And I want to go to Maine for the summer. It's June and it's hot enough here in FL.  This is book 3 of what will be 5 books.

What I've Been Reading

Been awhile since I did a post. I have been furiously reading for the Lone Star Committee, the Texas Library Association reading list for middle schoolers. And of course, I had to read Mockingjay when it came out.

Anyway, here are a few of the really good books I have read recently...

The Boneshaker by Kate Milford
The town of Arcane, Missouri sits near a crossroads where strange things are known to happen and the Devil is said to walk. When a creepy medicine show comes to town, it's up to thirteen-year-old Natalie to save not just her family but the whole town. Reminiscent of Bradbury, Sterling, and King, the Boneshaker conjures a world of wonder, evil, and great strength. Natalie is a great protagonist and Milford weaves a dark mystery that is not quickly or easily resolved. It's really hard to believe that this is her first book!

I really liked the characters, especially the supporting ones. Old Tom is fascinating; at first he seems one dimensional, but as you read the story, he becomes more than you expected. Even Natalie's parents and friends (except maybe the boys) develop and change. The "villain" turns out to be much more nuanced than just a con artist or evil person who consorts with demons; you eventually discover that even he has reasonable motivations and desires.

Countdown by Deborah Wiles
In the Fall of 1962, in the midst of the Cuban Missile Crisis, Franny Chapman struggles to understand herself, her family and friends, and the whole crazy world.

The main buzz on this books seems to be about the pictures and nonfiction bits scattered throughout. Some people have found it distracting; some love the integration of information. I myself really enjoyed it. Much of the information was things I would have looked up while reading this story anyway. And I always like pictures from the time period when I am reading historical fiction. I found this device to be atmospheric, helpful, and a great tension-releaser at times.

Both The Boneshaker and Countdown have gotten Newbery buzz...

Okay, I really needed a graphic novel fix, um break. So I read this...

Beasts of Burden: Animal Rites by Evan Dorkin and Jill Thompson
In Burden Hill, strange things keep happening and the only ones to notice are the dogs and cats of the neighborhood. So, of course, they are the ones who are trying to stop it. Zombies, ghosts, witches, giant killer frogs--you name it, it is coming to Burden Hill.

Beasts of Burden features a small cast of dogs and one cat, all pets, who are just doing there best to keep their neighborhood safe. Ace is the leader, a calm and resourceful husky with a small wild streak. Jack is level-headed and kind, while Rex may look large and dependable, but is actually a coward. Whitey is a bit spastic and Pugsley is the continual voice of desent and complaint, yet always seems to join in and help out. Orphan is the cat, a stray whom the dogs take in, with a rough past and an interesting set of skills and connections.

Oh, and don't miss the beautiful artwork. Full color paintings and good attention to the details of how animals move and look make the pictures a pleasure to read as well. Thompson is best known for her work in The Sandman, Scary Godmother, and Magic Trixie. Once again, her talent and sense of color shine through.
Check it out while I eagerly await the next volume!

Birthmarked by Caragh O'Brien
Gaia Stone has just delivered her first baby and taken it to the city to become part of a wealthy family, when she discovers that her parents have been arrested for keeping records of births. Now she must infiltrate a structured and controlled caste society to save them or die trying. More dystopian fiction. Deals with reproductive rights and the question of the good of the one vs the good of the many.

I'll admit, it took me awhile to get into this one. It starts a bit slow, but once it picks up, it's pretty intriguing. I like that there were no easy answers, no definite good or bad, and that the characters, at least most of them, continually question themselves, their motives, and the system.

I am very eager to read the sequel.

Behemoth by Scott Westerfeld
I reviewed Leviathan, the predecessor to Behemoth, last year and I wasn't that sure about it. Review is here. However, on rereading (well, listening to the excellent Alan Cummings audiobook) I kind of fell in love with the whole world of it.

So when I read Behemoth, it swept me up. The crew of the Leviathan, including Deryn/Dylan and Alek and his Austrians, arrive in Constantinople (hereon referred to as Istanbul). Unfortunately, Austria-Hungary is now at war with Brittain, so the captain has effectively placed the Austrians in captivity. So they escape, or at least half do. And join in the Ottoman revolution...

The relationship between Alek and Deryn slowly develops and a couple people do discover both their secrets (well lots discover Alek's). Politics, intrigue, and lots of walker battles make this episode of the story fast-paced and full of revelations. We finally find out what is in the eggs! Not what I expected, but I love it!

Westerfeld's masterful, slow revelation of character and his fabulous fight and chase scenes make this a fun read. I got to the end and screamed with joy to find out where the crew is headed next. Can't wait a whole year for Goliath!!!!!

Keeper by Kathi Appelt

The first thing I experienced when reading Keeper was frustration. I found the start agonizingly slow. It bounced back and forth between Keeper waiting for the tide to come in (and waiting and waiting…and waiting…and then waiting some more) back to what led her to get in the boat in the first place. And what led her to get into the boat isn’t fully revealed until almost 200 pages. I feel torn about this. On the one hand not revealing it all at once added to the suspense and kept the story moving, on the other hand I was left feeling like Keeper was majorly overreacting for a large chunk of the story. Feeling like that made it hard for me to understand or empathize with her decisions (you know because I spent my time wondering why she was being such an idiot).

At the same time the narrative switches off between characters and these characters include an elderly man, a seagull, some dogs, and other important adults. That part I loved. It added sweet perspectives and some magic into a story that at its heart is about a girl coming to terms with her absent mother.

There is a lot of repetition going on in this book. Not only do we get scenes replayed, becoming fuller and longer bit by bit, but we also get phrases (“the world unto itself” is one) repeated throughout the story. Appelt is really playing with language here. Alliteration and rhythm are ever present. It gives the book a real sense of place and an identifiable style.

At the end we have a breakthrough moment where Keeper dredges up a memory of her mother that is equally heartbreaking and infuriating. We learn the truth of Keeper’s mother as well as how Keeper got her unusual name. Possible spoilers ==> what I wondered is did she really not have a name for 3 years of her life? Seriously? They just had pet names for her? I find this hard to believe. And is Keeper her real name or another pet name (and if it’s a pet name it seems like a hella weird choice). Those thoughts led me to ones on whether or not Keeper even has a birth certificate which is certainly outside the scope of this story. Anyhow, with respect to drama, Keeper’s name scores an A, it was a very dramatic scene and I choked up reading it, but it was definitely problematic for me.<== End of spoilers. In the end, I did enjoy this book. I loved the shifting perspectives, the beautiful use of language. I loved how the story was resolved for Keeper, but perhaps even more so for Dogie and Signe and for Mr. Beauchamp. Everything is tied up nicely, but it feels right. It feels like this is where they were headed from the beginning and they’ve finally caught up to where they are supposed to be.

More Spoilers ==> Was I disappointed that her mother wasn't a mermaid? Maybe a little. But I did sort of love how mermaids were real, even if her mother was just a crappy mother. <== end of spoilers.

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Book Source: Library Copy

House of Dolls by Francesca Lia Block and Barbara McClintock

When I heard Francesca Lia Block wrote a middle grade/juvenile book I immediately wanted to read it. Her magic-realism LA punk fairy contemporary fantasies don't have wide appeal, but those of us who get it sure do love it.

House of Dolls is an honest to goodness sweet little book. Barbara McClintock's fabulous illustrations are a welcome and wonderful bonus. There's a whimsical French feel to her drawings which adds to the fashion fabulousity of Block's living doll house tale. The book design is enough of a reason to pick the title up and give it a whirl and the page count barely reaches 61.

Madison Blackberry is a young girl who has everything but friends and affection from her parents. She inherited a fantastic doll house that belonged to her grandmother complete with a real bonsai tree, a lake (made from an old mirror), and trunkfulls of exquisite clothes for the 3 doll inhabitants. Madison is an unhappy girl and she reflects this unhappiness on her dolls. There's happiness in the end when the adults finally take notice of our Madison (with help from the dolls and grandma) and she in turn returns that happiness back to the dolls.

Block's usual themes of unconditional love and acceptance fill the story. Young girls who would rather take fashion advice from Tavi than what the Disney Channel churns out would make likely candidates for this book.

source: checked out from my library

Killer Pizza by Greg Taylor

Fourteen-year-old Toby gets his first summer job at "Killer Pizza" where all menu items go with the theme--for example, "Mummy Wraps," "The Monstrosity," and "Creature Double Feature." While he tells everyone he just wants to earn some extra cash, he really wants to become a famous chef and enjoys the chance to cook everyday. Then he finds out that "Killer Pizza" is just a cover for a secret organization that fights monsters and other creatures of the night. Now he must decide whether or not he wants to be a M.C.O. (Monster Combat Officer).

This book is full of adventure and somewhat campy monster craziness. I mean, what 14-year-old boy doesn't want to be an MCO? Heck, I want to be an MCO! And the end papers are great; it looks like the inside of a greasy pizza box.

I really liked the characters, although again as in many YA novels, the parents and other adults are barely there. Even the bad guys aren't very flushed out. But in this case, that kind of makes sense. It goes well with the B-movie, monster thriller vibe. Hey, and at least it's not vampires!

This is definitely a book that you want to talk up to your tween and younger teen boys. Not that some girls won't love it, too, but the boys are definitely the target audience. If they love R. L. Stine, Darren Shan, and all things monster, they will love this one.

Oh, and it's on the Lone Star List, too.

Reviewed from Library copy.

Thanksgiving at the Inn by Tim Whitney

Life has been tough for Heath Wellington III since his mother walked out on him and his father, Heath Wellington, Junior (aka Junior). Junior is a recovering alcoholic with failed literary aspirations, and he seems to take all his frustrations out on Heath. He shows very little affection toward his son, makes him do chores when he isn't in school, and forces Heath to wake up at 6:00 in the morning, even during vacations and holidays. It's even worse when Heath is wrongly suspended from school and his father believes that he really did cheat on the history test. But then Heath's grandfather (aka Senior) dies suddenly, and they travel to Massachusetts to attend the funeral and to fulfill the stipulations of a very unusual will: they must manage Senior's bed and breakfast inn for three months, as well as fulfill a host of other stipulations.

At the inn, Heath works out his punishment for the school suspension by doing almost all of the chores. At the same time, he meets a motley assortment of characters. There's Winsted, the elderly man who used to lead the prayers at Senior's factory. Then there's Mustang Sally, a tattooed ex-convict who works as a mechanic and a children's author. Carter, the very quiet Harvard graduate who spends his time watching the news, and Mrs. Farrel, a woman giving away her late husband's fortune. As Heath works on the farm and gets to know these people, he finds new ways of living and new ways of looking at life. Unfortunately, Junior continues to serve as a harsh and unyielding taskmaster, ignoring his son for the most part and shirking his responsibilities at the inn. Readers will wonder: will Junior ever change? Will we learn why Heath was suspended from school? Will Heath and Junior ever have a good relationship? Will they be able to keep the inn? Do they even want to?

On the whole, I really enjoyed reading this book. The story of a father and son's struggle is classic and always relevant, and Tim Whitney breathes new life into this telling. He has also created some truly memorable characters and offered insights into human nature with "The Three Kinds of People" and the "Secret Garden." It's a nice read that you can easily get through in a few sittings but packs quite a punch at times.

My only real criticism is based on the end of the book. This is going to be hard to explain without spoilers, but here goes. I know that the author could only write so much or the book would be too long, but I almost felt that the resolution came too quickly, that the characters changed too fast. I would liked to have seen more development in that area so that the ending seemed a little more possible. As it stands, it's not impossible, but I do wonder if it would have actually happened that quickly. I think the author, in the afterward, attempts to address this issue, but a better solution would have been to develop this part of the plot further in the main body of the book.

That being said, I really did like Thanksgiving at the Inn. I can see it being popular with older middle grade and younger high school students. I think boys might be more drawn to the book, but girls can also relate to the parent-child struggle portrayed in the book. I would love to see more from Tim Whitney in the future. Maybe a sequel?

Book received from the publisher for review

When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

I picked this one up because of all the buzz it has been getting on blogs as well as the fact that our library system has picked it as part of our library's Mock Newbery. I generally don’t read as many books for the Elementary grade set so I wasn’t sure how I would like it. Turns out I really liked it, couldn’t put it down.

I won't go into the plot too much since everyone has been buzzing about this, but it is a story set in late 70s NYC about 12 year old Miranda, her friends, mysterious notes, and the $20,000 Pyramid.

Besides that, though, the writing is fantastic. Miranda has a strong voice, a compelling, funny, and totally believable voice - despite the fact that we’re dealing with some out-there occurrences. Like notes that show up in strange places…like other things I won’t mention in case you haven’t read the book. This is very much a mystery and the mystery is central to the story, but there are a lot of other things going on too. An important focus of the book deals with friendship and how it changes. The author does manage to tie this back into the mystery, which was pretty incredible and made for much holding-of-breath. All the characters were so full of life. Miranda’s mom, Richard, Jimmy, Annemarie, and others. I enjoyed hearing about their lives so much. It was a quirky story. Funny, but also heartfelt.

I must admit though, that I left the book on a down note. I forgive it because it rang so true, but Dang! Talk about injecting some realism into a story.... It is excellently written, has a complicated plot, but still manages to be very accessible.