The Lion of Mars by Jennifer L. Holm

 

The Lion of Mars | Jennifer L. Holm | Science Fiction | 2021 | Science Fiction | Grades 3-7 | 4.0 Reading Level | 272 pages | 5 hours 45 minutes listening time

The story opens with a small group of adults and children who live in a small colony on Mars sent from the United States.  You learn that the adults were selected to be the first to live on Mars. The children are orphans who have been delivered to the compound in order to have kids live on Mars. The main character is Bell who is an eleven-year-old boy who has never known life on earth. He is fascinated with earth animals and is always curious about life. One thing he wonders about is why they have been warned to never associate with the other colonies on Mars from other countries. What is wrong with meeting the people in the Chinese, Finnish, or French colonies? They always stay to themselves and it is a bit lonely. 

Eventually, the children in the United States colony need help when all of the adults get sick and they find out that they cannot get help from Earth.  They are forced to venture out and find help from the questionable colonies and they are not sure if it will be wise or even safe. 

I enjoy books on the relational side of science fiction that concentrate more on people and daily life on a planet outside of earth.  This book features the daily tasks, concerns, and living on Mars. Heartbreak and death are part of the plot. The importance of relationships is also highlighted. 

I listened to an interview with the author about this book and she said she imagined starting a new colony on Mars to be like the pioneers of the past. They often were alone and had to rely on each other to survive. They would most often never return to their place of birth. 

I read this book in one sitting and I hope there will be at least a sequel. I enjoyed it a lot!

When You Trap A Tiger by Tae Keller

When You Trap A Tiger | Tae Keller | 2020 | Fantasy | Grade 3-7 | 4.1 Reading Level | 304 pages | 7 1/2 hours listening time

Lilly and her mother and sister move into their grandmother's home because she is ill. Lilly meets a tiger that no one else can see. The tiger tells her that her grandmother stole the stories which are Korean folktales. The tiger wants to make a deal and is willing to heal the grandmother if Lilly can get back what was stolen.

There is no doubt that the family relationships are very loving. The writing is lovely and the Korean folktales connection was very interesting. This book will be loved by many readers.

I was underwhelmed. This book just won the Newbery award and so I was looking for the 5-star feelings but couldn't find them. I was somewhat confused by the folktale storyline about the Tiger and its meaning. I thought it was a sad story and I never really connected with the characters. I was sorry about that because it will make it hard for me to sell this book to other readers.

Furthermore by Tahereh Mafi

 

Furthermore | Tahereh Mafi | Fantasy | 5.5 Reading Level | Grade 4-7 | 8 hours listening time

This is a very whimsical and charming fantasy about a boy and a girl who are looking for her father who has been missing for at least three years. They discover a world called Furthermore with plenty of enchantment and magical rules to make their journey dangerous and impossible. The writing is so clever and lovely. It made me stop and reread to enjoy the words.

If you love fantasy worlds with plenty of adventure then this is a good choice.  The illustrated cover was just so beautiful and captured my interest. 

A Fatal Grace | The Cruelest Month | Louise Penny

 

Book #2 | Winter (1 year after book #1 which takes place in October)

Boxing Day Murder at the Curling Tournament

Three Pines is more familiar to me this time and so I wasn't as confused by the characters and am more used to the writing style.  In this visit, it is Christmas and the village is making festive preparations. You meet a women named CC who imagines herself to be the next Martha Stewart and yet everyone who knows her or meets her is just turned off by her philsophies, decorations, and personality.  She has moved to the village with her daughter and husband. The day after Christmas, a curling tournament is held on the lake.  CC is murdered in open air by electricution and noone sees the murder.  Inspector Gamache is called in to investigate.  Meanwhile something is amiss in his professional life and there are hints that trouble is brewing for him too. 

Book #2 | Spring | 2007

Easter Seance Murder at a Haunted House

A famous pychic is visiting Three Pines and the villagers decide to do a seance at the old Hadley house which is thought to be evil and hanted.  On Easter evening, during the event, someone dies of fright or perhaps it is murder. Inspector Gamache is called in to investigate.  We learn more hints about what professional trouble is happening in his life.  

This book opens with a funny scene of the villagers hiding chocolate Easter eggs and then finding them all eaten up the next morning by the wildlife. This happened several years ago and so now they just hide wooden eggs. It has become dangerous to be in the area during this time because bears have been known to be appearing each year looking for more chocolate.  Also quite whimisical, Ruth Zardo, the elderly, quirky town poet hatches and fosters duck eggs.  

Twins by Varian Johnson

 4 Stars | Varian Johnson | Graphic Novel | 2020 | Grades 3-7 | 256 pages | 2.9 reading level

This book has been on so many 2020 book lists and it is about twin sisters, so I had to read it. Francine and  Maurine are starting 6th grade and Francine is beginning to want to have her own identity. She plans on running for president of the class and also begins to dress differently. The twins aren't even in the same classes anymore. Maureen finds out later that it was a request of her twin sister. She is hurt and lashes out and even runs against her for president.  Sixth grade will be a year with a lot of changes and growth for both of them. 

I wanted to read this book because I am also a twin and wanted to see how Varian Johnson tells their story. He is also a twin and so I think he nailed the drama that happens in this book. I am very surprised that he wrote about girls since he and his brother are identical twins. I Googled and learned that he wanted to write this story for his daughters. He also wanted this to be a story where they could see Black kids as the stars of the story. 

I thought the illustrator did a great job. She added lots of details that aren't in the writing but add so much. For example, the girls were headscarves to bed to protect their hair. I am sure she had fun drawing all the outfits, hairstyles, and school and family scenes.  Shannon Wright mentioned in an article I read that she was burned out drawing books that were sad and heavy. This project was what she needed. I hope these two team up and bring us more books about Francine and Maurine!

True To You by Becky Wade

3 Stars | Becky Wade | Christian Romance | 2017 | 384 pages | 2018 Christy Book Award

Nora Bradford runs and owns a historical village in her town. She also loves to help people with genealogical research questions. She meets a former Navy SEAL named John Lawson who needs help finding his biological mother. He was abandoned at birth and has never been able to learn his mother's identity. He has a medical condition in which he needs some answers from his blood relatives. Nora agrees to help and despite the two being so different, romantic feelings start to rise. The information that is uncovered in their research is something neither of them ever imagined and it brings them to a pause to figure out the implications. 

This story is a typical romance until towards later in the book where the new information gets really interesting. It almost felt like it was from another book!  I think I was missing some depth from Nora. She seems to be happy-go-lucky and you don't really see her deepest feelings underneath her quirky and sunshiny personality.  This is a sweet and clean romance with a touch of intrigue which is what probably made it a Christy Award winner.  I would have liked a bit more depth, but overall it was a good story. Nora has two sisters who each have a story to tell in this series called The Bradford Sisters. 

 

Recursion by Blake Crouch

 

4 Stars | Black Crouch | 2019 | Science Fiction /Thriller | 336 pages

I needed to read something different and I picked this time travel thriller.  It is quite the ride and it was a page turner. It does get complicated as time travel tends to do, but I just ignored the parts that I couldn't quite figure out. I wonder if the author feels the same way when they write such imagined technical plot lines? 

This is a story of a woman who is a scientist and is trying to figure out a way to help her mother who has dementia get her memories back.  Turns out that other people are more interested in her research for villainous reasons. As a result of her experiments getting into the wrong hands, there is a epidemic of something called false memory syndrome happening to people. The results are often destructive as people are not able to cope. 

There are lots of different timelines going on in this book which you would expect from a time travel book. However, it was a great read and a good change of pace.  

Katie The Catsitter by Colleen AF Venable

4 Stars | Colleen AF Venable | 2021| Graphic Novel | Grades 3-7| 3.0 Reading Level | 224 pages 

This is a great graphic novel about friendships, villains, heroines, and cats. Lots of cats! In fact, Katie finds herself taking care of 218 of them.  She is catsitting to earn money to go to summer camp with her friends.  Living in a city, in an apartment building, she tries her hands at all kinds of odd jobs.  Most of her jobs are flops.  Then she finds this very strange job taking care of so many smart cats.  They have lots of special skills and even though they can destroy the apartment in the evening, when the owner comes home all is fixed and ready as though nothing happened.  Katie also becomes suspicious of the woman who owns all these cats.  What is she doing out late every night? Does it have anything to do with the news reports about the crime happening in the city? 

What a fun story and a perfect graphic novel for the younger middle grade reader.  I hope there are more to come!

The Littlest Voyageur by Margi Preus

 

4 Stars | Margi Preus | 2020 | Historical/Animal Fiction | Grade 2-5 | 4.7 Reading Level| 176 pages | 2 1/4 hours listening time

I wanted to give this book a hug when I was done because it was so sweet and fun. I adored this feisty little red squirrel who stows aboard the canoe of a group of French Canadian voyageurs who are leaving Montreal for their journey to Grand Portage. Along the way you learn about what the voyageurs go through as they make their way on their mission to transport for the fur trade. 

There are lots of extras in the back of the book that help with the French words and pronunciations, history, and information about squirrels too. Don't let the French turn you off...you can read this aloud to kids with just a little bit of practice.  Margi Preus has a YouTube channel where she has many videos with read alouds of the chapters. Don't miss this great little book. 

Here is my video book review of this book.

The Star Crossed Lovers of Tuscany

Lori Nelson Spielman | Contemporary Fiction | 2020 | 4 Stars

I loved this story. I felt like I went on vacation to Italy! Since we haven't been traveling at all, this was exactly the book I needed to read. It is funny, warm, and a great escape. Food, scenery, and interesting family dynamics are all part of the reading experience. 

An elderly aunt takes her two grand nieces with her to Italy where she plans to meet the love of her life. Now, in their family, it is said that the second-born daughter has been cursed and will never marry. All three are in this category and yet the aunt is on a mission to change this. 

There is also a second timeline to follow as we learn about the great aunt's younger self and why she is convinced that she will meet her love in Italy.