Tag Archives: Young Adult

Tidings of Great Boys by Shelley Adina (All About Us)

On Reading

Synopsis: Lady Lindsay MacPhail tries to blend her new friends from fancy Spencer Academy into her old life in Scotland, over a Christmas holiday that spirals out of control. Review: Tidings of Great Boys is another breezy addition to Shelley Adina’s young adult series about a group of Christian teens in a tony boarding school. It’s a cute story, and I enjoyed Mac’s energy and spunk. The plot was a bit far-fetched, but I’m okay with that. YA doesn’t always have to be realistic.

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Fade to Blue by Sean Beaudoin

American Literature

Synopsis: Sophie Blue is so goth she’s roadkill, at least in her dreams, as she searches for her lost father and tries to find herself. Review: Fade to Blue is very, very hip and very, very stylish–so much so that it made me feel old because I didn’t really get it. I am kind of old, closer to middle- than teenage, so maybe that’s okay. The writing is fantastic, and the plotting creative, but I just didn’t click with it. I think many teens will,…

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Another Faust by Daniel and Dina Nayeri

American Literature 3 Comments

Synopsis: Five teenagers at an elite Manhattan private school game the system–because they’ve sold their souls to the devil. Review: When I picked up Another Faust, my expectations were low. I figured it was going to be yet another first in a series capitalizing on Gossip Girls and Twilight. Don’t get me wrong–I figured I would like it–but I didn’t expect anything more than light entertainment. So I was thrilled to realize that Another Faust was a spiritual and literary heir to the Gothic tradition…

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Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

American Literature 4 Comments

Synopsis: A 6-year-old wunderkind enters Battle School to train to defeat the aggressive, invading Buggers. Review: This was actually my first foray into audiobooks on the iPod. I am a huge fan of podcasts, but had yet to tackle a book during the time I spend pushing my stroller and nursing Superfast Toddler to sleep. I figured Ender’s Game was a good entrée, since I have read it before and it wasn’t terribly long, only 11 hours. Since it only took me 2 or 3…

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The Straits by Jeremy Craig

American Literature 1 Comment

Synopsis: After losing his mother and his sister in a devastating hurricane, high school student Jim now faces losing the FEMA trailer he shares with his aunt, so he turns to gambling to win the money to save them. Review: I just had to review The Straits, because author Jeremy Craig lives in my neighborhood! A mutual friend told me about the book and it sounded right up my alley. I really enjoyed it. The Straits refers to the trailer park where Jim and his…

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Eyes Like Stars by Lisa Mantchev

American Literature 5 Comments

This is a guest post by Superfast Toddlers awesome babysitter Namiko, a teenage girl who loves loves loves to read. She reminds me a lot of myself at her age, and we swap books back and forth. Synopsis: When Beatrice Shakespeare Smith is told to leave the only home she has known, the Théâtre Illuminata, she is given one chance to prove that she is a valuable member of the company. Review: I re-read a lot. It’s just the way I am, but I don’t…

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Interview With Michelle Knudsen (The Dragon of Trelian)

American Literature 2 Comments

This is Day 2 of the blog tour for The Dragon of Trelian, and I’m delighted to offer an interview with author Michelle Knudsen! Her blog can be found here, and here’s her bio: Michelle Knudsen is the author of 40 books for children. Her best-known title is Library Lion (Candlewick Press), which was a New York Times bestseller and has been translated into several languages. Her latest book is a middle-grade fantasy novel called The Dragon of Trelian. Formerly a full-time children’s book editor,…

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The Dragon of Trelian by Michelle Knudsen

American Literature 3 Comments

Synopsis: A mage-in-training and a princess psychically linked to a dragon must work together to save the royal family from an evil sorceress. Review: The Dragon of Trelian has a lot of familiar elements, but fortunately it manages to feel fresh. Princess Meglynne is feisty and hot-tempered and imperial, but she’s not just tempestuous. She’s got a core of true courage that’s really appealing. Apprentice mage Calen struggles with feelings of inadequacy, but he’s also prone to an arrogance that tempers his naivete. The dragon…

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The Dark Planet (Atherton, Book 3) by Patrick Carman

American Literature 4 Comments

Synopsis: Edgar must leave Atherton, the only home he’s ever known, to finish his creator Dr. Harding’s work on the poisoned Dark Planet. Review: The Dark Planet, a stirring conclusion to the Atherton trilogy of science fiction adventures for middle grade readers, finds Edgar heading off his home planet towards the Dark Planet, where children like him are worked as slaves tilling a despoiled earth. It’s his own journey into Mordor–except the plot of the Atherton trilogy owes more to “Lost” than Tolkien. The world…

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Rivers of Fire (Atherton, Book 2) by Patrick Carman

American Literature 1 Comment

Synopsis: With Atherton inverting, a young boy with a penchant for climbing and his friends go on a journey of a lifetime through the hidden corridors of the only world they’ve ever known. Review: Rivers of Fire, being the middle book in a trilogy, concerns itself with questions of war and evolution. Everything on Atherton is in flux, from society to the ecosystem to geology itself. I don’t want to give too many spoilers for book 1; suffice it to say that our heroes remain…

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