Book Reviews

Here are a few more book reviews, and it looks like once again, I have more children's books than adult ones. I swear that I do read adult books, but I keep getting recommendations for children's, so that's what I've mostly been reading. 

 Run for the Hills by Kevin Wilson, adult fiction, 2025

Apparently, I put this book on hold a while back, but I didn't remember it when it showed up in Libby. Somebody, somewhere, must have recommended it, so I checked it out. I read this as an e-book. Not my preferred way, but that was what was available. 

The book is about a group of 4 half-siblings who take a road trip across the country to find their father. Their father, Charles, was a good father until he disappeared and never made contact with them again. Each time he left, he reinvented himself and started a new family elsewhere. They would all be happy until his child was around 10 years old, and then he left. He was a different person each time. First, he was a mystery writer; next, a farmer; then a basketball coach; and finally, a filmmaker. 

The oldest sibling, Ruben, who was in his 40s, hired a private detective to find out what happened to his father. Through this, he learned that he had half-siblings. He started in Boston and went to Tennessee, where he met Mad, his sister, and convinced her to go to California to find their father. Along the way, they met and their other two siblings, and they all ended up doing the road trip together. None of them knew about the others, so there was a lot of shock and disbelief when they were approached. The group eventually finds their father and confronts him with all the questions they've had over the years.

Most of the book revolves around the four strangers getting to know each other as they drive across the country. They are bonded by the fact that they had the same father who left each of them. I enjoyed that part of the book.

The premise of the story was intriguing, and I was compelled to read to find out what the father's story was. Personally, I found the reasons given for the father's behavior at the end to be weak. But you can give it a read and see what you think.

Enola Holmes Mystery Series by Nancy Springer, children's mystery (middle grades)

Enola Holmes Mystery Series is a six-book set of stories about Enola Holmes, Sherlock Holmes's fourteen-year-old sister. There is a recurring theme throughout the books. Enola's father died when she was four, and her mother disappeared on her fourteenth birthday. With no proper guardians, her brothers want to send her to boarding school to become a proper lady. Enola does not want to go, so she runs away to London and is in hiding. She is also hoping to find her mother, and along the way, she finds mysteries to solve. Enola is very clever and outsmarts her famous detective brother again and again.  I reviewed the first book in my last Book Review post. Below are the next two in the series.

The Case of the Left-Handed Lady by Nancy Springer, 2007

This is the second book in the series, and it picks up where the first one left off.  This one finds Enola posing as a secretary for a perditorian (finder of lost people). She is working for an imaginary male boss because women are considered too brainless to do serious work. Lady Cecily disappears, and Enola eventually finds and saves her. 

The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets by Nancy Springer, children's mystery, 2008

In book #3, Dr. Watson goes missing, and Enola sets out to find out what happened to him. She has to reinvent herself to remain in hiding, so now she is disguised as a beautiful, cultured woman. She solves the mystery of Watson's whereabouts and leads Sherlock to him without revealing her own location.

I am enjoying this series. The language is rich, the descriptions are vivid, and the mysteries are interesting. Enola is a clever, spunky, very likable heroine.  Although they are marketed for children, I think adults would enjoy them as well. Because they are written for children, there is no sex and no foul language. But there is violence and detailed descriptions of the poor in London in the late 1800s. That was not a pretty picture. 

Ward has read all six now and said there is a satisfying ending to the story arc throughout the books. While each could be read as a standalone, they are better read in order. I have ordered the next two from the library.

Note: Eleven years after the original six books were published, the series was revived with at least three more books. Also, Netflix has made two movies based on the books, with a third one in production. 

Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling, children's fiction (elementary and middle grades), 2017

Kris recommended this book in the comment section of the last Book Review post. So, I promptly put it on hold and recently read it. 

The book is about Aven and her friend, Conner, both of whom suffer from disabilities. Aven was born with no arms, and Conner has Tourette's Syndrome. Barking is his main tic. They meet when Aven's family moves to Arizona to manage a dying western-themed park and become good friends as they bond over not fitting in and feeling like freaks at times. 

As they navigate school, Aven also decides that they need to solve the mystery of who actually owns the ranch on which the theme park is located. While Conner does not have strong support from his parents, Aven does and is a positive and resilient girl.

While the book deals with some difficult issues, it is a feel-good story with a surprise ending. It also does a good job of presenting the ups and downs of the disabilities and the feelings that come with those.  

The book was critically acclaimed and was on many "Best of" lists. In addition, it is part of some school curricula. While this book is written more on an elementary/middle school level (certainly more than Enola Holmes), I thought it was an enjoyable read. Ward also read the book and liked it.  

Until next time...

Book Reviews

The Summer Getaway by Susan Mallery, adult fiction, 2022

Although I'm not going to the beach this summer, I thought I would try a beach read. 

The Summer Getaway is a relationship-driven story about Robyn and the family that revolves around her. They all have their issues and decisions to make about what's next for their lives. Eventually, everyone ends up in a mansion on the California coast to work things out.

This is an easy read, and perfect if you don't want to read about anything serious. Nothing horrible happens, but there are definitely problems. 

While the book was very readable, I grew tired of the constant yearning Robyn and her new friend, Mason, had for each other. The story would have been just as compelling without focusing so much on that. 

Also, there is explicit sex in the book--a little more than I think was necessary. However, I recall a talk by a romance author where she said that her editors always told her to add more sex. I guess they knew what sells.

Even though Susan Mallery has written well over 100 books, this is the first one of hers I've read. I will probably read another one, but not anytime soon. 

The Superteacher Project by Gordon Korman, children's fiction (ages 9-12), 2023

Gordon Korman is one of my favorite children's authors, so when I was looking for some not-too-serious reading at bedtime, I picked up this book. 

The Superteacher Project follows the same formula as many of his other books. It takes place in middle school, with the story told from the different perspectives of the various characters, including an oddball teacher. Sometimes when chapters alternate among characters, they can be hard to follow, but not this time.

The story begins with a new 7th-grade teacher at Brightling Middle School, Mr. Aidact, who happens to be a robot. He is part of an experiment from the Department of Education. The other teachers know about "him", but the students and parents do not. Mr. Aidact is very realistic, and no one suspects that he's different for a while. Eventually, the secret is out, and things don't go well.

The book starts out slowly, but it is building the foundation for the later parts of the book. I didn't like some of the characters, but they were important to the story. (And let's face it. Middle school is not the most likable age, in general.) I found it very interesting to see how Mr. Aidact was learning and adapting from the circumstances around him. The last third of the book is a compelling read as the story culminates in a very satisfying ending.

The book raises some important questions about how fine the line between humans and robots can be.

I recommend this book. It was the perfect bedtime reading for me.

The Case of the Missing Marquess by Nancy Springer, children's mystery (middle grades), 2006

During our vacation, we watched two Netflix movies about Enola Holmes with one of our hosts. When we got home, I picked up the book they were based on since I'm always curious about how the two compare. 

The Case of the Missing Marquess is the first in a nine-book series about Enola Holmes, the much younger sister of Sherlock Holmes. In this first book, Enola's mother goes missing, and she contacts her older brothers, Mycroft and Sherlock, for help. They are much older, and she has not seen them for 10 years. The last time was when she was four years old, after their father died. 

When it becomes evident that Enola has been raised without the proper graces of the upper class, her brothers decide that she will be sent to boarding school. Enola does not want to go, so she runs away to look for her mother. Along the way, she encounters a marquess who is assumed to be kidnapped. 

The book takes place in London during Victorian times and fully describes the deplorable conditions that existed in the East End at the time. These might be too much to read about for a sensitive, younger reader. It also points out the difficulties that women had then, which Enola and her mother are rebelling against.

It turns out that Enola has excellent deduction skills like her brother, Sherlock, and uses them to look for her mother and maneuver her way through the various situations she finds herself in. There are ciphers to solve, flower meanings, and logical lists that the reader is a part of.

In both the movie and the book, Enola is a clever, independent, sensible girl and a very likable character. The book got very good reviews and won several awards. Ward, who wanted a break from the grittier adult mysteries he was reading, liked the book and has read four in the series so far. We both recommend this book.

BTW, the movies deviate from the book about 1/3 of the time, but the essence of the characters remains the same. I also recommend the movies.

The Backyard Bird Chronicles by Amy Tan, adult nonfiction, autobiography, 2024

Tan did all the illustrations for
the book, including the cover art.

A friend got me this book for my birthday, coincidentally just after someone told me that their book club was reading it. The Backyard Bird Chronicles was a New York Times #1 bestseller with rave reviews. However, it was somehow not on my radar. I'm so glad that I received it as a gift and got to read it.

Amy Tan is a very successful fiction writer, most notably for The Joy Luck Club. However, this book was a departure from her usual fiction fare. In 2016, Tan was upset with the direction of things in our country and turned to her backyard for solace. She has always liked nature from early on, so this seemed like a natural thing to do. She became obsessed (her words) with the birds there and started nature journaling. The book is based on entries from her journals. As part of her nature journaling, she drew pencil sketches of what she was seeing and also became an accomplished bird artist.

Her observations are detailed, curious, and at times sad. As she puzzles out what she is seeing, her storytelling gifts come out. I learned alongside her as she discovered new things about the birds and found this excellent book fascinating, funny, and moving. I highly recommend it even if you are not a bird or nature lover.

Until next time...

Book Reviews, Children's version-almost

 Here are a few more book reviews. 

Counting Lost Stars, by Kin Van Alkemade, adult historical fiction, 2023

This is a complicated story about two women during World War II. One, Corneila, is a Christian who realizes that she is working with a computer project that is helping Hitler find Jewish people. She hides extra punch cards to have some kind of record of people who are being targeted.

Meanwhile, she falls in love with her Jewish neighbor, Leah, and they devise a plan for her to escape before the soldiers come for her. However, plans go awry, and it is Corneila who ends up in a concentration camp. 

This story alternates with one in 1960, where Rita becomes pregnant by a college professor, which gets her kicked out of college. Her college experience lands her a job working with an old computer, and with some sleuthing, she eventually finds Corneila's computer cards, which help a friend uncover the truth about his mother, who had been in a concentration camp. (How's that for a run-on sentence?)

(Now, how about some sentence fragments. 😀)

Interesting early computer discussions. Main characters are likable. Jewish treatment during WWII horrendous. Two lesbians, loving relationships. Lot's of examples of how there were double standards between men and women. When people were upset, they threw up a lot. 

Good book. Recommend it.

 The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin, children's mystery (ages 9+), 1978

This is a children's classic that won the 1979 Newbery Medal for the year's most distinguished contribution to American Children's Literature, along with several other awards.

The Amazon synopsis:

"A highly inventive mystery begins when sixteen unlikely people gather for the reading of the very strange will of the very rich Samuel W. Westing. They could become millionaires, depending on how they play the game. All they have to do is find the answer—but the answer to what? The Westing game is tricky and dangerous, but the heirs play on—through blizzards, burglaries, and bombings. Sam Westing may be dead ... but that won't stop him from playing one last game!

Ellen Raskin has created a remarkable cast of characters in a puzzle-knotted, word-twisting plot filled with humor, intrigue, and suspense."

This book is beloved by many, and I read it with my kids when they were younger. I don't remember much about it except that Wally and Theo liked it. I decided recently to give it another try. This time, I listened to it with Ward.

Ward and I both had mixed reactions. First, there were some beautiful descriptions and writing within the complicated story. However, the story didn't always make sense. Characters did things without obvious motivation or significance to the story. Also, not everything in the book seemed child-friendly. Many bad things happen in kids' books, but they are usually viewed from the perspective of the child. Not so much in this book. 

In the preface of the book, it was mentioned that while Raskin was writing this book, she didn't think about whether it was for adults or children; she just wrote. Also, she said she never plots a story. She just writes and sees where the story takes her. Both of those statements seem to explain the flaws we found. With all that being said, there are some interesting twists to the story. 

I didn't like the book as much as I had hoped, possibly because I was reading it with adult sensibilities. Ward didn't like it at all. But I know we're in the minority. The School Library Journal ranked it #9 of all time in a survey of the best children's novels. To each their own.

Breaking into the Light by John Cochran, children's fiction (grades 5-8), 2024

This is a serious children's book about Reese, whose father is addicted to opiates. The situation reaches a breaking point, prompting Reese and his mother to leave his father and live in a trailer on a farm owned by his mother's friend. Also, on the farm are two other kids who are living with their grandparents after their parents died in a traffic accident. The older brother has Down syndrome.

The book does a good job exploring the feelings of Reese and his mother in this roller-coaster story. There is personal growth for everyone, and the book ends with hope.

The author of the story watched family members struggle with addiction and wanted to help them, but didn't know how. He wanted to write a book for kids who may be struggling with the same thing. I think he has done an excellent job with that and highly recommend this book.

Library Girl by Polly Horvath, children's fiction (ages 9-12), 2024

You know me, if there's the word Library in the title, I will be drawn to it, and this book was no exception.

This is a fun little story about Essie, who was found in the stacks of a library and raised there by 4 single librarians who always wanted a baby. They are afraid to turn her in, so they set up a room for her in their inner office. She doesn't go to school, but is educated by reading extensively. Eventually, when Essie is eleven years old, they let her take short trips outside the library. And that's where the story really begins when she meets a boy who she thinks looks like her. There are some interesting plot twists that come with this.

The style of the story reminds me of a fairy tale in that the characters are mostly one-dimensional, and they all live happily ever after. 

I enjoyed the book and recommend it, especially for elementary school children. 

Until next time...

Book Reviews

Hello. Here are reviews of more books I've been reading recently. This time, I talk about two adult books and two children's books. If you read here very often, you may have seen that I include children's books from time to time in my reviews. This is a carryover from when I worked as a children's librarian, where I was made aware of the many good children's books that are out there. (But just like adult books, there is a fair share of not-so-good children's books.) 

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen, historical fiction, 2006

This is another book that I'm late to the game to read. Over 10 million copies have been sold, and I remember it being very popular at the library. 

The story follows a train circus during the 1930s Depression era, and switches back and forth between a present-day 93-year-old Jacob and a young 20-something Jacob. Dire circumstances and chance find Jacob working in the circus, and it is a brutal life at times. At the core of the book is a love story, but it also features numerous subplots and rich descriptions of life in a circus. I didn't think the present-day part of Jacob's story was necessary at first, but the past and present weave together for a perfect ending.

The book is well written and very descriptive. You can tell it was well researched. Besides Jacob, the characters surrounding him slowly develop into complex people whom you root for (or hate). However, the book is often difficult to read because circus life at that time was challenging to horrendous for both the animals and the people involved. I almost stopped reading because of that, but I'm happy that I didn't.  

I now understand why this book was so popular with both the public and the critics. Water for Elephants has been made both into a movie and a Broadway musical, neither of which I have seen. However, I recommend the book. 

The Littlest Library: a Novel by Poppy Alexander (pseudonym for Sarah Waight), fiction, 2021

I picked this book up at the library because I am drawn to any book about libraries. I had no idea what it was about except what I saw on the cover.

The story revolves around Jess, who moves to a quaint English village after her grandmother, who raised her, passes away, and she loses her librarian job. Jess is never one to take risks, so this move is totally out of character for her and difficult. She buys an old run-down cottage with a red phone booth on the lawn. She's not allowed to move it, so she decides to turn it into a little library using her grandmother's books. The books bring the town together, and Jess slowly makes friends, including a hunky man whom she initially detests. And in the end, they all live happily ever after.

This was an easy read, and it was just what I was looking for after reading Water for Elephants. I always enjoy reading about bringing a garden and cottage back to life, and this was no exception. The story is predictable, but it had just enough going on to hold my interest. If you're looking for a comfortable read, I recommend this book.

Faker by Gordon Korman, children's middle grade fiction, 2024

Gordon Korman is a prolific children's author whom I enjoy, so when I saw this new book at the library, I picked it up.

Twelve-year-old Trey lives with his father and younger ten-year-old sister. His mother left years ago and is out of the picture. Trey's father is a con artist and moves his family from place to place, relocating when his investors discover that they have been swindled. He uses his children to help him make contacts by enrolling them in private schools or living in the rich part of town. After a gig is up, they discard everything and assume new identities while lying low in a location where the US has no legal jurisdiction. His father justifies the family "business" by saying the rich people they target don't need the money he takes from them.

Moving all the time is hard on Trey because every time he makes friends, he has to leave and never even has a chance to say goodbye. They finally move to a town where he attends public school and begins living in the real world for the first time, and he likes it. Trey starts to question the family business while studying an ethics unit in school. Eventually, he comes to understand that the family business is not as innocent as his father has led him to believe, and Trey gives his father an ultimatum. 

The book had Korman's typical insightfulness into characters' emotions and the complexity of situations. However, I was uncomfortable with the premise of the father raising his kids to believe that his con games were okay. Maybe that's because I'm an adult and a parent. I don't know if a kid reading this would be bothered in the same way, or they would tune more into the emotions of Trey and his disappointment in not being able to develop more than superficial relationships. I didn't like the book's premise, so I don't recommend it. If you're an adult looking for a good children's book, I would recommend Korman's Unteachables instead.

Into the Uncut Grass by Trevor Noah, children's fiction, 2024

Although this book came out last October (probably in time for Christmas), I only recently heard Trevor Noah talking about it on TV. I liked Noah's memoir, Born a Child, so when I saw this on display at the library, I checked it out. 

Noah describes the book as a picture book, but not a children's book. It's a read-aloud book for all ages. A boy and his bear embark on an adventure into the uncut grass because the boy thinks his mother has too many rules. They encounter various creatures (a gnome, a snail, and coins) that teach them life lessons. 

I found the prose engaging, and the charming pictures were the perfect accompaniment to the story. I appreciated that the lessons were not too heavy-handed. The book is printed on high-quality paper and is nicely bound, so I think it would make a nice gift. I will consider giving it in the future.

Until next time...