The progression of this story was pretty unexpected, and not entirely in a good way, to be honest. This YA novel begins in a slow-burning fashion, focusing largely on the main character, Seth, and his memories: very character-driven. Yet about a third of the way in, there is quite a twist, that changes the whole tone of the novel, and ultimately leaves more questions and confusion at the end of everything. There is the sense that Patrick Ness is trying to create an ambiguous ending for the reader […]
“Because maybe if the gesture is grand enough, and perfect enough, it won’t be unrequited at all and I, Graham William Posner— lanky, pale, glasses, and with a penchant for fantasy worlds— will actually get the girl…”
Graham is in love with his best friend Roxy, and he has decided to confess his feelings at New York Comic Con. When their favorite author, the reclusive and fictional Robert Zinc, announces that he will be making a surprise appearance, it seems like the stars have aligned. All Graham has to do is camp out all night, bribe his friend into letting him have the second ticket, and he can confess his love after the panel. It’s a recipe for nerdy love! Unfortunately, for […]
“Crying doesn’t do anything except make me soggy and tired. But getting good and pissed, that’s the type of fuel that keeps a person marching through one shitty day after another…”
Save Kate Karyus Quinn’s third book about weird stuff happening to and around teenagers is my favorite yet. She started with Another Little Piece, about an ancient spirit that bargains with teenage girls. They get their deepest desire, but at a very high cost. (Don’t You) Forget About Me was the story of a town so perfect that people live for centuries. If only there wasn’t the tiny problem of teenagers causing mischief, mayhem, dismemberment, and death. Down with the Shine is about a girl […]
“Because some days, the damn dress just won’t zip…”
Dumplin’ showed up in a few reviews a few weeks ago and it sounded like something right up my alley, so when it appeared on my library’s digital download site, I snapped it up and read it in about two or three days. You guys. It’s fantastic. In Clover City, Texas, the Miss Teen Blue Bonnet Pageant is just about the biggest thing in town. Willowdean’s mom, a former Miss Teen Blue Bonnet, is the head of the pageant, and she prides herself on being […]
Standardized testing is the enemy
When we left the McQuarrie kids, they were fighting the evil FunTime empire. At the end of the last book, the principal had called all the Rebels’ parents in for a meeting, which didn’t got as she had planned. The parents began to realize that maybe FunTime wasn’t the best educational product. And the kids learned that they had allies in the grown-up and teacher world. As ever, Tommy is building a case file about the FunTime situation, with all the kids contributing a chapter. […]
The Origami Yoda saga continues. . . .
And we’re back at McQuarrie Middle School. Dwight’s back too, and now the kids have a new common enemy: The FunTime Education System. Like I said in an earlier review, the author has an opinion about standardized testing and schools teaching to the test. It is not a good opinion, and it is an opinion which I share. As to the kids at McQuarrie. So, the school failed the standardized testing last year, which ain’t good. As a parent, I’d probably be pulling my kid […]
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