March: Book One

Lewis, J. & Aydin, A. (2013). March: Book One. Marietta, GA: Top Shelf Productions.

Adult/YA / Graphic Novel / Nonfiction / Historical

I gave this 5 of 5 stars.

Goodreads Blurb (excerpt):
March is a vivid first-hand account of John Lewis’ lifelong struggle for civil and human rights, meditating in the modern age on the distance traveled since the days of Jim Crow and segregation. Rooted in Lewis’ personal story, it also reflects on the highs and lows of the broader civil rights movement. Book One spans John Lewis’ youth in rural Alabama, his life-changing meeting with Martin Luther King, Jr., the birth of the Nashville Student Movement, and their battle to tear down segregation through nonviolent lunch counter sit-ins, building to a stunning climax on the steps of City Hall.


March provides excellent information presented in a format that will likely draw-in a wide base of readers -- including reluctant readers -- to learn about these very important events in the civil rights movement.  Nate Powell's illustrations really convey each character's emotions and feelings, and of course, given that it's autobiographical from the much respected US Congressman John Lewis adds the punch to make this graphic novel a must-read for young adults and adults alike.  Lewis does a great job of honoring both black and white activists of the times and reminding readers of the struggles in trying to protest in non-violent ways -- especially when so many were (are?) so quick to resort to violence to "solve" problems. 

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me a copy in exchange for my honest review -- the only kind I give.

ABOUT REPRESENTATIVE JOHN LEWIS: (from Goodreads) Congressman John Lewis (GA-5) is an American icon, one of the key figures of the civil rights movement. His commitment to justice and nonviolence has taken him from an Alabama sharecropper’s farm to the halls of Congress, from a segregated schoolroom to the 1963 March on Washington, and from receiving beatings from state troopers to receiving the Medal of Freedom from the first African-American president. 

Find out more on Congressman Lewis:

WEBSITE, FACEBOOK, or TWITTER 

CBS This Morning featured an amazing segment on the award-winning March series created by Congressman John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell, calling Lewis a "civil rights superhero."  Click to view!

 

RELATED:

Published Jan. 2015

 

Instant Memory: How to Improve Memory Instantly! (The INSTANT-Series)

(2014). Instant Memory: How to Improve Memory Instantly! (The INSTANT-Series). NY: Instant-Series Publication.

Adult / YA / Self-help / Informational

I gave this book 3 of 5 stars

CURRENTLY $0.99 ON AMAZON!

"The good news is that the quality of our memory is not set in stone the moment we are born." -- Instant Memory: How to Improve Memory Instantly

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          I just finished reading Instant Memory and liked the content and the practical information provided. The quick read -- it's just 40 pages or so and has lots of white space -- reminds readers that the brain is a muscle and must be exercised to keep it at its healthiest. As promised, the book provides memory tricks and methods that have been around as long as the hills and are effective. I immediately tried the Mind Palace Method and the Chunking Method (to memorize a list and an account number, respectively) and found that these methods really worked! A third method, the Peg Method and its various iterations, wasn't as effective for me and felt more like it was just an extra level of memorization, so I lost interest in that one; however, it may work for others. The book also offers reminders of basic memory boosters that readers often forget about in their harried lives: paying full attention, avoiding multitasking, engage all of your senses, and visualizing, to name a few.  

          Unfortunately, the book is full of writing errors, which is problematic for me. There are punctuation errors and agreement errors, which many can overlook, but there are also some sentences that don't make sense at all, and other phrasings (like in many sub-headings) that are awkwardly written and/or have random, distracting question marks at the end. It is not that the book is written too informally -- I'd be okay with that -- it's that the book is not well written; hence the 3 stars.  A thorough, professional editing would go a long ways in taking this book to the next level and raising the quality and clarity.   

          There are bunches of books in the Instant Series, with topics ranging from speed reading to meditation. Click here to check out their website.  

          Thank you to the publisher, who provided me a free eBook copy in exchange for my honest review --- the only kind I give.  

You can also follow Instant Series on Facebook, Twitter, or Google+

Living a Life That Matters: from Nazi Nightmare to American Dream

Lesser, B. (2011). Living a Life That Matters: from Nazi Nightmare to American Dream. Las Vegas: Remembrance Publishing.

Adult / YA / Audiobook / Memoir

I gave this audiobook 5 out of 5 stars

As we pass the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz concentration camp, I thought I'd post this review of a book as an encouragement to keep informed and remember the horrible mistakes of the past so that they aren't repeated.

"Despite our differences, we share a common humanity, and it is better for all of us to honor our shared humanity rather than to despise our differences." Ben Lesser. What an incredible life this man has lived, and what an incredible optimism he has maintained through the unspeakable horrors, tortures, and indignities he survived. His message is so much more than "never forget." So much more.

I enjoyed hearing the parts Lesser narrated himself the most. Actor Jonathan Silverman was very good, but the pacing was off for me: listening to him at regular speed was too slow, and the next notch up (at 1.25x) made him sound really anxious? excited? I think this book would be better read anyhow, in order to let the subject matter sink in more. Lesser's memories are brutally honest and raw and real, making his story scarier and more evil than any fiction story could be.

Lesser does an excellent job of putting everything in context, so that younger readers (or older readers who don't know their history) have a broader understanding of what was happening. Sadly, tragically, there are no good answers to Lesser's repeated question: how did the rest of the world let the Holocaust happen? 

Thank you to Sync summer audio program for providing this free audiobook with absolutely no strings attached! As appreciation, I gave this book my honest review-- the only kind I give.

UPDATE: Mr. Lesser wrote an incredible blog entry about now being the ONLY survivor of the Dachau death train. . . incredible. Click the picture to go to his blog entry.

70 Years Later, With the Death Train

 

CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT SURVIVOR BEN LESSER, THE ZACHOR HOLOCAUST REMEMBRANCE FOUNDATION, OR TO PURCHASE THE BOOK.

 

Take a stand and be the voice for the six million voices that were silenced. By uniting together we can stop the world from acquiring amnesia. SHOUT IT OUT! Spread the word and envision yourself conveying a timeless message that your children’s children can see and feel for eternity.

Manga Classics: The Scarlet Letter

Hawthorne, N. and King, S. (2015). Manga Classics: The Scarlet Letter. Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada: Udon Entertainment.

YA Literature / Classic / Manga

I gave this book 5 out of 5 stars

"Was it simply that her scarlet letter sat bold upon her breast, while the sins of others were hidden in their own hearts?"

This illustrated retelling of The Scarlet Letter was very well done and will be appealing to reluctant readers and others who want to know the story without reading the novel. I can see it actually encouraging someone to read the original after finishing this manga version.  

The story is framed nicely with the addition of the 19th century discovery of the 17th century parchments which tell Hester Prynne's story.  SunNeko Lee's drawings are rich in expression and imagery -- like overlaying pages with what look like shards of glass when Hester is remembering her past -- and the drawings flow very naturally even for someone with little to no experience reading manga. It was greatly appreciated that a short, easy to follow manga tutorial was placed at the start of the book.

There were a couple of typos and minor edits needed, which I am assuming will be corrected in the final version, but overall, this was a fantastic alternative to the original novel, which stays true to Nathaniel Hawthorne's messages on hypocrisy, sin, guilt, and judgment.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me an eBook proof copy of this book in exchange for my honest review -- the only kind I give. 

Wildfire - Volume 1

Hawkins, M. (2014). Wildfire,Volume 1. Berkeley, CA: Image Comics.

Graphic Novel / Sci Fi / Adult / YA

I gave this book 5 out of 5 stars

This is an outstanding graphic novel taking a "what if" scenario on genetic modification. I appreciated that the author didn't preach any political agenda and also that he didn't feel the need to throw in gratuitous sex scenes, naked people, and profanity, as seems to be the norm in any graphic novel these days. The story has more than enough action and interest to keep readers engaged, and the illustrations -- wow! Stunning, and some of the scenes were so realistic that they could have been photographs.  The panels of the Hollywood hills on fire will definitely stay with readers.  

A super cool feature of the book is at the end, the author has included tons of information on GMOs, its science and history, U.S. emergency response teams, and loads of links for readers to educate themselves.  I look forward to the sequel coming out. . . just when you thought it was safe again!! I recommend this book for young adults and older. 

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me a free eBook copy in exchange for my honest review -- the only kind I give. 

The Forgotten Girl

Bell, D. (2014). The Forgotten Girl. NY: Penguin Group.

Adult / Adult for YA / Mystery

I gave this book 3.5 of 5 Stars on Goodreads

High school mystery gets solved twenty-seven years later.  The Forgotten Girl is mostly told through dialogue, which isn't a problem for me but made it feel less like a suspense novel and more voyeuristic -- like I was listening around the corner to private conversations.  Author Bell does a great job setting-up the story with the prologue and readers will take note of the last line there, an ominous foreshadowing of things to be revealed.

We have a bunch of important characters, none of whom we get to know well, but all of whom we definitely get impressions that stick. Jason, the main character, and his wife, Nora, are really kind of boring. I kept thinking there would be some spark or action there, but nada. I will say that given the couple's history we're given, I found Nora's tolerance for Jason's shenanigans ridiculous. Also ridiculous to me were secondary character Hayden's shenanigans -- no twelve-step program endorses endangering your life and the lives of your loved ones in the name of making amends. Sierra, Hayden's daughter, is a bit cliche as the girl who managed to turn-out good despite her mother's lack of parenting skills. Also cliche was the repetition of how Jason and Nora didn't-have-kids-so-couldn't-possibly-understand thing.  The most interesting character to me was Logan, the boy who disappeared on graduation night, twenty-seven years earlier.

What kept me reading was the slow unraveling of what happened to Logan.  Layer after layer is peeled away to reveal an ever-expanding circle of people who's lives were impacted by his disappearance. The gossip in me just had to know the truth. By the same token, that slow unraveling, with the lack of any real climax to the story, made the book end in a bit of a whimper.

There is mild profanity and violence, references to alcohol and drug use, and one sexual situation that isn't overly graphic. Though it's classified as an adult novel, it's way more tame than many young adult novels on the market and fine for that audience. And it moved from a 3 Star rating to a 3.5 Star rating simply because I liked it enough that I found myself reading for hours at a time when I should have been doing other things.

Thank you to Shelf Awareness for providing me a free ARC in exchange for my honest review -- the only kind I give.

Psycho Thrill: Tell-Tale Twins

Marley, R. (2014). Psycho Thrill: Tell-Tale Twins. Bastei Entertainment.

Adult / Adult for YA / horror / supernatural
(originally published in German, 2013)

I gave this book 5 of 5 stars on Goodreads


His memory blank to the events of the night before, Edgar Allen Poe awakens to find himself in a dark cellar with his slightly older doppelganger. The man forces Poe into a disguise, gives him mysterious instructions, and pushes him out the door, where Poe finds he's running for his life to escape both earthly and supernatural dangers alike. Within a week, the doppelganger is dead and buried as Edgar Allen Poe, while the very much alive Poe finds himself sailing to England as he enters a realm more horrific and unbelievable than any of his own novels. PSYCHO THRILL: TELL-TALE TWINS is one of a series of German horror novellas that thrills from start to finish.

Cool. Creepy. Quick. TELL-TALE TWINS is a must read for any fan of Edgar Allen Poe and at less than seventy pages, it packs a real punch for the readers' small time investment. Author Robert C. Marley manages to introduce complex scientific subject matter in a concise manner so that readers accept it as fact with minimal suspension of disbelief. The horror element is spine tingling, and kudos to translator Toby Axelrod for getting this right in the English version -- the descriptions will make a reader's nose crinkle and skin crawl. Surprisingly, for such a short story, there are several characters of importance, yet each is well-written and memorable. Poe is portrayed in a variation from how he's historically defined, but it only adds to his mystery.  The ending was fulfilling, and truly, TELL-TALE TWINS could spin into a series of Poe adventures that would this reader would love to see written.

This book was reviewed for Readers' Favorite, who provided me a free eBook in exchange for my honest review -- the only kind I give.

Hollow City (Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children, #2)

Riggs, R. (2014). Hollow city. The second novel of Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children. NY: Quirk Books.

YA Fantasy / Paranormal / Historical Fiction

I gave this book 4 out of 5 stars.

CHECK OUT THIS CREEPER TRAILER 
 (watch to the end)



THE ENDING! BAM! Game changer! The next book will be able to go an entirely different direction, and I love the possibility of where and how it will unfold.

Though this is definitely a middle book, again, I thought Riggs nailed it. How he wrote workable storylines to fit around vintage pictures was truly amazing. I loved reading along, coming to a description, and turning the page to see it. This just worked for me. It's an incredibly creative way to write.

There is a lot of action in this book, and the tale is somewhat more dark and grim than the prior book. There are lots of new characters introduced, and a few scenes that seemed unnecessary; however, I feel like they are going to come into play later. Without giving a spoiler, I will just say I loved the one word whispering hospital patient in London.

Some may be disappointed in the romance element that was building pretty strongly in the first book. I am not one of those people. There is enough going on that a realistic, sixteen-year-old boy's first love story would have been a distraction. It's good that Jacob's love interest is in her 80s. There is a little schnogging, but it's not the focus of the book. Sensitive readers, there is violence, and several pretty horrific scenes with pictures to help the imagination along. There is a bit of historical fiction woven into the story, which adds to the horror. 

The Adventures of Superhero Girl

Hicks, F.E. (2013). Adventures of Superhero Girl. NY: Dark Horse.
YA Comic / Humor

I gave this 4 out of 5 stars.

She's an ordinary young woman: she shrinks things in the laundry, she forgets to wear sunscreen, she is short on cash and needs a paying job, she's living in the shadow of her uber-successful older brother. Oh, and she can leap tall buildings and has superhuman strength and regularly kicks the butts of ninjas and monsters wreaking havoc on her town! She is Superhero Girl, named because she kinda waited too long to give herself a cool name and that one stuck. Such is her life.

Superhero Girl's "ordinary-ness" is what makes this book of comic strips fun. The drawings are well-done, and though the book of strips don't exactly pick-up one after the other, they are sequential and enough to give readers a clear picture of the struggles of being a superhero when you still have to be a productive citizen in the world.

Young adults and adults alike will enjoy the humor and sarcasm in this book. There is comical violence - duh, she's a superhero kicking ninja/monster butts and social drinking of alcohol, but it's appropriate since Superhero Girl and her friends are likely of age.

I'm a fan!

I won this book in the Sam Houston State University Library School HBRC 2013. Thanks, SHSU!

The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender

Walton, L. (2014). The strange and beautiful sorrows of Ava Lavender. NY: Candlewick Press.
Young Adult / Adult / Fantasy / Magic
320 pages

I gave this book 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Check out the book trailer!

Tragical, magical, and fantastical! This is not a flowery, fluttery tale of teenage love. This is a multi-generational tale of the rawness, pain, and agony of love -- and the consequences to everyone in love's path. Ava's story truly begins with that of her great-grandmother, and the story flows seamlessly from there. Family that goes before us, we are reminded, never truly leaves us.

Walton's writing is amazing. The imagery is stunning and readers will be able to conjure the exact scenes with Walton's descriptions. Characters come to life and fade from life in both believable and fantastic ways.  

Something about the story -- more than it just being multi-generational -- reminded me of Gabriel Garcia Marquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude.  Perhaps it's the unfolding of the generations of stories, and then the rapid rewinding and swirling-together of them at the end.  It is dizzying in the most satisfying way.

I would recommend this to mature high school aged readers and higher, and I almost would say this is an adult book that works for young adults, not vice-versa. It is violent - there is rape, murder, and suicide. There is consensual sex (both teenaged and adult) and explorations of sexuality.  Nothing is overly graphic in the descriptions, but the descriptions are such that they are powerful scenes that stay with the reader long after reading them. And though there is plenty to which a teenager can relate -- Ava as a teen is very relate-able, wings and all -- there is also plenty to which only an adult can relate by virtue of life experience.

Thank you to NetGalley and Candlewick Press for providing this free ARC in exchange for an honest review. I give no other!

FBP: Federal Bureau of Physics Vol. 1: The Paradigm Shift

FBP: Federal Bureau of Physics Vol. 1: The Paradigm Shift by Simon Oliver, Robbi Rodriguez (illustrations)

I gave this book 3 of 5 stars on Goodreads.
Adult, graphic novel
Publication date: February, 2014

The premise is a very interesting one -- that the "laws" of physics we've all known are basically failing. I was fine with the graphic novel not giving us the particulars of why, for example, gravity is failing or dark matter is showing up in row houses. Oliver did a good job of setting the concept forth in such a way that readers could just accept that in this world, physics fixes are a needed norm.

What I didn't like were the illustrations. The colors were great and really contributed to the sci-fi, funky vibe; however, the drawings were just a little too sloppy. For example, I really wanted to have a good, lasting impression of how the main character, Adam Hardy, looks. Other characters are somewhat more defined, but Adam is. . . messy.

I felt like the ending was a bit abrupt, but overall, this series has potential, and with six more installments, things could get even more interesting.

This is an adult graphic novel, but I think mature and sci-fi loving young adults would enjoy it. For those readers, be aware there are sexual situations, pot smoking, and some strong language.

Thank you to Vertigo Comics and NetGalley for this free ARC.