Mini Book Reviews: My Brilliant Friend, The Golden Compass...

Source

Published: October 19th, 2011 by Europa Editions

Genre: Historical Fiction, In Translation

Format: Audiobook, 12 hours and 38 minutes, Own

Rating: 4 stars

Publisher's Summary:

The story begins in the 1950s, in a poor but vibrant neighborhood on the outskirts of Naples. Growing up on these tough streets the two girls learn to rely on each other ahead of anyone or anything else. As they grow, as their paths repeatedly diverge and converge, Elena and Lila remain best friends whose respective destinies are reflected and refracted in the other. They are likewise the embodiments of a nation undergoing momentous change. Through the lives of these two women, Ferrante tells the story of a neighborhood, a city, and a country as it is transformed in ways that, in turn, also transform the relationship between her protagonists, the unforgettable Elena and Lila.

My Thoughts:

I had forgotten about the prologue by the time I got to the end of the book. Lila goes missing and Lenu begins to tell us a story about her and Lila in Naples. And I'm left wondering who the brilliant friend is... Elena becomes an unreliable narrator and so you never quite know which story to believe or who's the good guy. And that's the point. We're human and we're all unreliable and messy. Such a fantastic story. Did she really disappear? I must keep reading to find out more...

Source

Published: December 6th, 2012 by Courtney Milan

Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance

Format: Kindle, 270 pages, Own

Rating: 3.75 stars

Publisher's Summary:

Sometimes love is an accident.

This time, it’s a strategy.

Miss Minerva Lane is a quiet, bespectacled wallflower, and she wants to keep it that way. After all, the last time she was the center of attention, it ended badly—so badly that she changed her name to escape her scandalous past. Wallflowers may not be the prettiest of blooms, but at least they don't get trampled. So when a handsome duke comes to town, the last thing she wants is his attention.

But that is precisely what she gets.

Because Robert Blaisdell, the Duke of Clermont, is not fooled. When Minnie figures out what he’s up to, he realizes there is more to her than her spectacles and her quiet ways. And he’s determined to lay her every secret bare before she can discover his. But this time, one shy miss may prove to be more than his match...

My Thoughts:

I was pleasantly surprised at how much I liked this one. I'd heard it was a step above some of the usual historical romances available and so I took a chance. While romances aren't my faves, this one was right up my alley with a strong female character and a witty and kind alpha male. I deplore the weak damsel and the alpha male dynamics in romances so this was different and I liked it. The storyline was also great with women's rights and class rights in England.

Source

Published: March 26th, 2019 by One World

Genre: Graphic Novel, Memoir, Non-fiction

Format: Hardcover, 400 pages, Library

Rating: 4 stars

Publisher's Summary:

A bold, wry, and intimate graphic memoir about American identity, interracial families, and the realities that divide us, from the acclaimed author of The Sleepwalker’s Guide to Dancing.

“By turns hilarious and heart-rending, it’s exactly the book America needs at this moment.”—Celeste Ng

“Who taught Michael Jackson to dance?”
“Is that how people really walk on the moon?”
“Is it bad to be brown?”
“Are white people afraid of brown people?”

Like many six-year-olds, Mira Jacob’s half-Jewish, half-Indian son, Z, has questions about everything. At first, they are innocuous enough, but as tensions from the 2016 election spread from the media into his own family, they become much, much more complicated. Trying to answer him honestly, Mira has to think back to where she’s gotten her own answers: her most formative conversations about race, color, sexuality, and, of course, love.

“How brown is too brown?”
“Can Indians be racist?”
“What does real love between really different people look like?”

Written with humor and vulnerability, this deeply relatable graphic memoir is a love letter to the art of conversation—and to the hope that hovers in our most difficult questions. 

My Thoughts:

This is a very powerful memoir in graphic novel form. I truly enjoyed her story. And there's so much to chew on.

Source

Published: August 27th, 2001 by HMH Books for Young Readers

Genre: Memoir, Juvenile, Non-fiction

Format: Paperback, 208 pages, Library

Rating: 4 stars

Publisher's Summary:

At the age of fourteen, Francisco Jiménez, together with his older brother Roberto and his mother, are caught by la migra. Forced to leave their home in California, the entire family travels all night for twenty hours by bus, arriving at the U.S. and Mexican border in Nogales, Arizona. In the months and years that follow during the late 1950s-early 1960s, Francisco, his mother and father, and his seven brothers and sister not only struggle to keep their family together, but also face crushing poverty, long hours of labor, and blatant prejudice. How they sustain their hope, their good-heartedness, and tenacity is revealed in this moving, Pura Belpré Honor-winning sequel to The Circuit. Without bitterness or sentimentality, Francisco Jiménez finishes telling the story of his youth. 

My Thoughts:

I read this one for G's school for the Battle of the Books. I really enjoyed his story. He's a very accessible writer for both adults and kids. It was hard to read about him and his brother surviving without their parents for a year, and all of the discrimination they experienced from other children and their parents. I'm sure he glossed over many of his more terrifying experiences and his utter heartbreaks along the way. But his is a story many white kids will learn from. And especially in our political climate, his story is one we need to hear.

Published: July 9th, 1995 by Scholastic UK

Genre: Young adult, Fantasy

Format: Paperback, 399 pages, Own

Rating: 5 stars

Publisher's Summary:

Lyra is rushing to the cold, far North, where witch clans and armored bears rule. North, where the Gobblers take the children they steal—including her friend Roger. North, where her fearsome uncle Asriel is trying to build a bridge to a parallel world.

Can one small girl make a difference in such great and terrible endeavors? This is Lyra: a savage, a schemer, a liar, and as fierce and true a champion as Roger or Asriel could want.

But what Lyra doesn't know is that to help one of them will be to betray the other...

A masterwork of storytelling and suspense, Philip Pullman's award-winning The Golden Compass is the first in the His Dark Materials series, which continues with The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass.

My Thoughts:

I read this aloud with G. And oh boy, we had a great time! We both loved Lyra's and Pantalaimon's adventures trying to save the world and her friend Roger from the Gobblers. The thing I love most about this book is how intelligent Pullman is. He adores his readers and he knows how smart they are. He's writing for teens and he treats them with respect.

His world-building is amazing. Nothing is easy. Everyone has different motives and everyone is definitely human. Not all good, not all bad. You can tell Pullman is a student of philosophy and has a smart writing style to weave it all in. We had some great discussions while reading. It's a beautiful and intelligent fantasy novel. And Lyra is a whip-smart character. We have started The Subtle Knife and it's just as good as The Golden Compass.