books read in January

[orangerful]

So long January 2017. You were a strange month...though I think probably a reasonable portent of things to come.

ANYWAY, let's talk about BOOKS! Because I feel like I will be reading a lot of fantasy this year to escape reality. It will be the best way to relax.

The Inquisitor's Tale: Or, The Three Magical Children and Their Holy Dog by Adam Gidwitz

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This book is so well done on so many levels. It may be "children's fiction" but there is something here for readers of all ages. Gidwitz uses his passion for Medieval history and storytelling to weave a tale infused with real historical figures, locations, and legends that may inspire you to read beyond the book to find out more (and don't worry, Gidwitz includes an annotated bibliography to help get you started).

If you're read his previous series, A Tale Dark & Grimm, the same snarky humor pops up in this book as well. But there are also great discussion topics, like theology and prejudice, that make this story a little bit heavier than the fairy tale retellings.

It's funny, it's serious, it's light-hearted and also full of sorrow. A great read! And also, I've been told, a great listen! Bump this up on your TBR pile right now!



Burn Baby Burn by Meg Medina

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Marisol Ramirez is the perfect narrator to give voice to a story taking place in New York City. Her voice is clear but she has just enough of the downtown accent to give the story the right feel. This is a great read for teens who like realistic fiction, coming of age stories. There are a few intense moments, but this is mostly a story about growing up.



Dark Matter by Blake Crouch

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I am seriously hovering over that 5th star right now, I just can't decide if it was amazing or not. It was pretty damn good. A great bit of science fiction, with enough of a thriller aspect to keep me up at night, turning the pages into the late hours. Fantastic!



The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Glad to find another Newberry Award winner that I can approve of! Beautiful language, reminiscent of Peter Beagle's The Last Unicorn with that mix of innocence and melancholy that both kids and adults will understand. Great fantasy story with magical characters that you will miss when you finish the book.



Unicorn vs. Goblins by Dana Simpson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Another cute entry in this series. Phoebe's time at music camp was my favorite part.



Razzle Dazzle Unicorn by Dana Simpson

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Not the best in the series. Still adorable though.



View all my reviews

Comments

[icecoldrain.livejournal.com]

We're all going to be escaping into books for sure this year!

I'm def checking out two of these books. I love seeing what other people are reading :P

[ragnarok-08.livejournal.com]

Those books sound good :)

[night-owl-9.livejournal.com]

Yay books!

Yeah, January's been a strange month for me too.

[meathiel]

I really want to read "The Girl who drank the Moon" - it sounds interesting.

[trepkos.livejournal.com]

Any of these good for an 8 year old? (I keep buying her books but I have no idea if she ever reads any of them).

[snogged.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you read some good books in January.

[erychan86.livejournal.com]

YAS! I read 6 books too this month! *high 5*

I've heard of The Girl Who Drank the moon... I don't remember where... But yes, I've heard good things about it! (I think it was Eric who mentioned it now that I think about it) The Inquisitor's Tale: Or, The Three Magical Children and Their Holy Dog sounds very nice too!

[orangerful.livejournal.com]

Hm, I guess it depends on her reading level and sense of humor? She might enjoy the 'Phoebe and her Unicorn' series. What kind of stuff does she read? I work enough with kids books that I could totally recommend some titles for you. :) But none of these are simple chapter books. I LOVE "The Buddy Files" and "The Haunted Library" for simple chapter books that have great stories and characters.

[orangerful.livejournal.com]

It just won the Newberry Award so it has been popping up all over the place. Definitely recommend it. And Inquisitor's Tale was FANTASTIC! Check it out if you can, it is so much more than a kid's book.

[elizalavelle.livejournal.com]

Oooh more books!

I definitely want to give Dark Matter a try but The Girl Who Drank the Moon is now looking really interesting too. So does Burn Baby Burn!

I'm going to need a time turner just for my reading list!

[orangerful.livejournal.com]

It was a good month for books! I hope you get to read at least one of these, they were all good!

[kseenaa.livejournal.com]

There needs to be more scifi books written and translated. I live with a scifi nerd and he is always saddened at the lack of scifi in the libraries. What can I do? If there's none translated, I can't buy it. :-/

[orangerful.livejournal.com]

I wonder why there isn't much Swedish scifi? Maybe you should start translating as a side business ;P

[kseenaa.livejournal.com]

I have no idea why that is. It's strange. There's a couple writers, which my hubby told me about and apparently they are very good, but there's not that many of them. :-P Scifi is apparently not a big thing in this country.