[FOR THE PARENTS] Lie to Me by Kaitlin Ward

"Lie to Me," by Kaitlin Ward follows the story of a young girl who found herself in the hospital after falling - or being pushed - off a cliff.  The entirety of the book consists of her questioning everyone around her as she tries to find the answers as to what really happened to her.  Was she pushed?  Or was it an unhappy accident?  And if she was pushed, then...who hates her enough to want to kill her?

This was recommended to me by a reluctant reader at the school I'm currently teaching at. She absolutely consumed this book and another by the same author. She's 13, a typical middle school girl and I think the exact demographic that this book is aimed for.

I'm 29, well-read and I figured out the mystery just from reading the back cover. I'm not this book's demographic and it's not a book that is going to transcend ages.  It's very much meant for middle school readers and there's nothing wrong with that. 

I think this is an excellent book for reluctant readers because the action starts from the beginning. It does grab you from the first page and doesn't let you go, which is fantastic for those who find reading boorish.  There's quite a bit of romance and I would even say the romantic aspect is a bit more prominent than the mystery aspect, which I was a bit bummed about, but for young girls, it's certain to keep them entertained.

Most readers will likely gather what the mystery is at least halfway through the book, but there is enough of a creep factor to keep them reading.  

What I liked:

• The heroine and her brother have a nice relationship
• Depression is handled delicately and mental illness in general is not portrayed as anything to be ashamed of.
• Bisexuality is represented well, as is lesbianism.
• The family unit is solid and there is respect for the parents.
• Adults are not made out to be the bad guys and are turned to for help.

What I would warn parents about:

• There is a lot of physical contact; while there is no sex, there is plenty of kissing, handholding, etc.
• There is one scene in particular where she grabs her boyfriend by the belt in her bedroom while they're kissing; it does imply that they could go further, but they don't
• There is quite a lot of mention of homosexuality (bisexuality & lesbianism)

Who I would recommend this for:

• Young people who are questioning their sexuality.
• Reluctant readers. (Her writing style is very easy to read and flows well.) 

Overall, I think this is a nice 7th or 8th grade book for a quick read and might get those reluctant high school readers finally opening a book! 

ANNOUNCEMENT: Blogging Return & Upcoming Series!

Well, hello everyone! 

It's no secret that I've been gone from this blog for quite some time.  I even need to relink my social media accounts so that I can stop seeing those strange smiley faces!  I wanted to re-evaluate the way I wrote reviews; how much subjectivity do I want to place in a review?  How do I feel about the star system? (Spoiler: I don't like it and therefore do not give star ratings anymore unless it's a 5* because it just resonated with me.)  How do I want my reviews to be formatted?  Who am I trying to reach? 

All of these have been on my mind as I've toyed with the idea of coming back to book blogging and book reviewing.  Literature has, and always will be, my first love.  And I'm so grateful that I've been able to translate that love into others through my profession.

I've been having a great time living life and settling into my role as a teacher.  I've been teaching for 8 years now but I've been a middle school teacher for the past 4.  I'm currently finishing my MA and working part-time as an English and History teacher at an Orthodox Jewish school.  (They have their Judaic studies in the morning and their General studies in the afternoon.)  Teaching middle school has really opened my eyes to what students are reading and how much I want to encourage parents to let their students read and read voraciously.  Trust me, middle schoolers know so much more than you think and being exposed to new concepts is only going to help them become better adjusted adults. 

Thus my new series that I'll be starting on here is going to be called FOR THE  PARENTS.  These are going to be reviews of middle school/YA books where I will tell you what I liked about the book while also being open and honest about the content so that you can decide if your child is ready for it.  I do really recommend that parents think long and hard.  Literature is a good thing.  Reading is a good thing.  I hope that these reviews will help parents encourage their children rather than restricting them.

I've also been doing so much traveling, as you can see from some of the pictures I've been placing in this post. (I do have a travel blog here, by the way, if you're curious!)  Traveling and reading are my true passions, my true hobbies.  I've been lucky enough to travel to over 20 countries and teach in 4 of them.  And soon that will be 5!  I am currently in the midst of accepting a job in Kuwait for the upcoming 2020-2021 school year as an English teacher at an American Academy.

So what does this mean for my reading preferences?  On top of the FOR THE PARENTS series, I'd like to also start a BECOMING CULTURED series, where I read works by people of other cultures and about other cultures, whether it be historical or current.  This can include fiction and nonfiction, too.  I have been adoring traveling to new places, learning about events and seeing things for myself - as well as meeting absolutely lovely people - and now I'd like to take my mind there, too, when I'm unable to travel due to work. 

So, that's basically my long winded way of saying I'm back to book blogging & book reviewing and I hope to connect with the community again.  Let's get reading!

BOOK REVIEW | The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

"The circus arrives without warning..."

It is a place of dreams, all in black and white, with spots of red on certain customers.  In this circus, you can watch a trapeze act that defies gravity, enter into a tent of stories, witness kittens jump through hoops, make wishes on wells, have your fortune read and more.  It is opened from sunset to sunrise and only stays a few weeks before packing and changing location.  Maybe it will come back to your town, but maybe it won't.

The Night Circus is a beautiful book about a whole cast of characters.  We have Celia, the magical protege; Marco, the studious student; Tsukiko, the contortionist; Bailey, the dreamer; Herr, the clockmaker; Poppet and Widget, the eccentric twins; Chandresh, the master; Tara, the one who saw too much; and many more.  They all work in a magical circus doing various activities, from performing to creating tents to handing out food.

What makes this circus so magical is that inside, unbeknownst to anyone except for the players, lies a game.  The rules are vague, the boundaries are flimsy and not even the participants really understand what's going on.

"I have never fully grasped the rules of the game, so I am following my instincts instead."

I would say how the game works is exactly how this book was written.  The language Morgenstern uses is beautiful and poetic, but very often it was hard to imagine exactly what she meant because she constantly keeps her reader in mystery.  This is done on purpose to create an atmosphere that could perfectly mimic the circus.  Although I loved how atmospheric this book was, sometimes not understanding the game and the temporal displacement of the novel were a bit too much.  There desperation of the characters was never properly conveyed to the reader, but we were told often of how one of the players was exhausted/on the brink of a meltdown, etc.  I never saw these meltdowns or complaints.  I never felt them.

As the game progresses and more and more lives are at stake, I could never really feel how on edge everything was.  There were very few moments when the circus would have a ripple that would cause something drastic, and when these drastic things happened I felt the panic in the moment, but never the build up.  Because the rules and stakes of the game were so vague, it was hard to feel any crescendo towards a climax.

The novel is full of beautiful imagery that gives a new name to originality:

"When she opens her eyes, they are standing on the quarterdeck of a ship in the middle of the ocean.  Only the ship is made of books, its sails thousands of overlapping pages, and the sea it floats upon is dark black ink."

"Inside, the train is opulent, gilded, and warm.  Most of the passenger cars are lined with thick patterned carpets, upholstered in velvets in burgundies and violets and creams, as though they have been dipped in a sunset, hovering at twilight and holding on to the colors before they fade to midnight and stars."

 In a way, a lot of the creativity of this story reminded me of The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making.  Beautiful images, exciting prospects, interesting concepts.  The writing is what really propelled the book from being a nice read to being an amazing one.

Overall, I would recommend this book for fans of beautiful writing, for fans of experimental writing and for those that like fairy tales.  If you're the kind of reader who needs proper foreshadowing and likes to have concepts and situations thoroughly explained to them, this might not be a book for you.  For me, however, this book was beautiful and possibly the type of book you could read and re-read, finding more and more hidden secrets within.

BOOK REVIEW | The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

 5 creepy and magical stars.

The Graveyard Book is a deliciously creepy tale of a young boy who is raised in a graveyard by the dead. Nobody Owens ran to the graveyard when he was a baby after his parents and older sibling had been murdered. When the ghosts of the Owens family - a nice family who had always wanted children - saw him, they decided to keep him immediately. And thus, the graveyard became the baby's home, and Nobody became his name.

I've only ever read Stardust by Neil Gaiman before, but I think I'm starting to understand his style: a little bit of creepy, a little bit of action and a whole lot of magic. There are ghosts and ghouls abound in this book, as well as secret orders, and ancient tomb, a spirit animal - or what I think is a spirit animal, anyway - and a man who is both dead and alive. Nobody can "fade" himself and haunt a person and uses these tricks to his advantage to get out of some sticky situations, as well as for dealing justice at his school when needed.

I listened to the audiobook version of this, which was narrated by Neil Gaiman himself, and wow... I really recommend it. I'm in the car for three hours a day because of my job and my transit to school and this really added a nice little kick to my day. Even the kids I watch liked it and kept asking questions about it! Gaiman has a very versatile voice and can do heaps of different character voices, which always made me laugh. He also has a very soothing voice, so be careful lest he lull you to sleep like he did to me once.

This book is magic. Gaiman himself is probably magic. Highly recommended in whatever format you choose