Category: Friday Fifteen

Friday Fifteen

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Happy Friday, guys! Let’s get this holiday weekend kicked off with some fifteen-word (or fewer) book reviews:

1. How to Save a Life by Sara Zarr
Unsure about the dual narrators initially, but both Jill and Mandy were real and distinct.

2. Blue Ginger: East Meets West Cooking with Ming Tsai by Ming Tsai, Arthur Boehm
Interesting recipes with well-balanced flavors. Probably not for a beginner cook.

3. Enna Burning by Shannon Hale
With great (fire) power comes great responsibility. Nice look at the costs of war.

4. The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
First chapter is arresting. Wish I’d been as captivated by the rest.

5. Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle’s Magic by Betty MacDonald
The “Thought-You-Saiders” cracked me up. First memory of a book making me laugh like that.

Friday Fifteen

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Apparently it’s already the last Friday in June. I think I need a few more weeks before I’m mentally ready to move into July. Maybe a few fifteen-word (or fewer) book reviews will help.

1. Freckle Juice by Judy Blume
A great read-aloud in first grade. At least freckle juice is safer than tanning beds.

2. The Outlaws of Sherwood by Robin McKinley
I wish I’d read this in middle/high school. Great take on the Robin Hood legend.

3. Orlando: a Biography by Virginia Woolf
Orlando is an immortal, gender-switching Brit who meets famous historical figures. Doctor Who, anyone?

4. The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker
Great concept and lovely writing, but never felt like the characters came to life.

5. Snowbound (The Baby-Sitters Club Super Special #7) by Ann M. Martin
A Super Special without a cool vacation? Nice try, guys.

Friday Fifteen

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Hey guys, guess what? It’s the first Friday of summer! The days might be longer, but the book reviews aren’t. Fifteen words or less, here we go!

1. Harold!: Photographs from the Harold Washington Years by Antonio Dickey (Photographs), Antonio Dickey, Marc PoKempner (Photographs), Ron Dorfman (Editor)
Helped with this one when I was an intern. Really interesting Chicago history, great photographs.

2. I Was a Teenage Fairy by Francesca Lia Block
Read this one a lot in high school. Knew “androgynous” on the SATs because of this.

3. Miss Nelson Is Missing! by Harry Allard
Freaked me out as a kid. Didn’t like the teacher getting “replaced” by someone scary.

4. The Story of the Sea (Childcraft: the How and Why Library #7) by World Book-Childcraft International
Have I mentioned I love the ocean and sea creatures?

5. The Baby-Sitters Club: Friends Forever : The Movie by A.L. Singer, Ann M. Martin
A novelization of the movie based on the book series. Of course I read it.

Friday Fifteen

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Happy Friday, everyone! It’s almost Father’s Day, so let’s take a look at the dads of literature in this week’s collection of fifteen-word book reviews:

1. Danny the Champion of the World by Roald Dahl
A novel full of heart about a boy, his dad, their caravan, and pheasant poaching.

2. Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt
Gorgeous writing; read this a dozen times as a kid. Tuck himself is heartbreaking.

3. The Chosen by Chaim Potok
Compelling novel with complicated father-son relationships. Love the last scene with Reuven and his father.

4. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
Awesome, touching adventure about siblings who cross the universe to save their father.

5. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Atticus Finch wins the “best fictional dad” award. Stunning novel all around.

Friday Fifteen

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Anyone else feel like they’ve had about ten days in this week? Glad it’s finally Friday and time for the Friday Fifteen:

1. Lon Po Po by Ed Young
The wolf comes to visit in this gorgeous, creepy take on Red Riding Hood.

2. Lucky Jim by Kingsley Amis
I think it’s supposed to be funny. Might have read it too young.

3. Samantha Saves the Day (American Girls: Samantha #4) by Valerie Tripp
I continue to want to spend the summer in Piney Point wearing nautically-themed outfits.

4. Richard III by William Shakespeare
At 16 I wrote a malevolent character with a hunchback, thought I was sooooo clever.

5. Girl Goddess #9 by Francesca Lia Block
Reread this collection a lot in high school. “Dragons in Manhattan” was probably my favorite.

Friday Fifteen

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Can you guys believe it’s already the last Friday in May? Although I can’t say I’m too upset–I’m psyched to move into June and into full-on summer weather. Let’s start the weekend with a few fifteen-word (or fewer!) book reviews:

1. Whatever Happened to Janie? by Caroline B. Cooney
Jane finds her real family, acts like a brat to them. Pre-Weasley family of redheads.

2. Cheaper by the Dozen by Frank B. Gilbreth and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
Fun memoir about a big family in early 1900s. TLC’s got nothing on the Gilbreths.

3. Brave Irene by William Steig
Irene battles winter to deliver a ball gown. Frequently read this on my own.

4. Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
Interesting look at pre- and post-colonial Nigeria, but more interested in Obierika than Okonkwo.

5. The Hostile Hospital (A Series of Unfortunate Events #8) by Lemony Snicket
The VFD mystery heats up–and a reference to Clarissa Dalloway makes this one a winner.

Friday Fifteen

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So glad it’s Friday! Let’s start the long weekend with some fifteen-word (or less!) book reviews.

1. Beauty by Robin McKinley
My favorite Beauty and the Beast novel. Love that Beauty is close to her sisters.

2. The Crucible by Arthur Miller
Excellent look at society terrorized by hate, hysteria. Would ove to see a good production.

3. Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel by Virginia Lee Burton
Burton’s illustrations are fantastic, and I love a good inanimate object story.

4. Dawn’s Wicked Stepsister (The Baby-Sitters Club #31) by Ann M. Martin
Not everything’s ideal when your mom marries your BFF’s dad? Who could have foreseen this?

5. Poems on the Underground ed. by Gerard Benson, Judith Chernaik, Cicecy Herbert
Collection of classic and contemporary poetry featured on the Tube. Such a cool project!

Friday Fifteen

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Finally Friday! And a beautiful Friday here, so let’s kick the weekend off with some good ol’ fifteen-word book reviews:

1. Bee Season by Myla Goldberg
Enjoyed the first half, didn’t connect with the second–didn’t feel like the same characters.

2. Emily’s Runaway Imagination by Beverly Cleary
Made me realize there were a few Salems in the US. Some outdated racial awkwardness.

3. The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare
A romantic comedy with stunningly complex characters. Portia can be cruel, Shylock can be sympathetic.

4. We Are in a Book by Mo Willems
Metafiction for the preschool set, as only Willems can do.

5. Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen
Robin Hood with a kickass lady thief? Teen Annie would have been all over this!

Friday Fifteen

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Happy Friday, everyone! It’s almost Mother’s Day, so let’s celebrate early with a few mother-themed fifteen-word book reviews:

1. Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan
Quiet and sensitive novel about a mail-order bride who becomes an awesome stepmom.

2. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
Mrs. Weasley wins Mom of the Year for her line “Not my daughter, you bitch!”

3. Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flag
Idgie and Ruth combat racism, serve barbecue in Depression-era Alabama. Read it, immediately started rereading.

4.Matilda by Roald Dahl
Clever Matilda has a heinous family, so she forms a new family with Miss Honey.

5. Grandma Gets Grumpy by Anna Grossnickle Hines
Grandmas get upset sometimes–they were moms once, after all.

Friday Fifteen

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It’s the first Friday in May and I couldn’t be happier about it. There are flowers blooming now, guys! There are buds on trees! And (in case you’ve missed the last couple of posts), I’m psyched about heading to the NESCBWI conference. Certainly, this calls for a New England kidlit author and illustrator-themed Friday Fifteen:

1. Strega Nona by Tomie dePaola
Of course Italian grandmothers have magical powers. Whimsical and wonderful art.

2. Jumping Off Swings by Jo Knowles
Sensitive look at what it means to be a “slut” in high school.

3. Hush, Little Dragon by Boni Ashburn
Can I use the phrase “darkly adorable?” Hilarious text, awesome illustrations by Kelly Murphy.

4. One for the Murphys by Lynda Mullaly Hunt
About hope, family, and what it means to be in foster care. Love Carley.

5. The Sneetches and Other Stories by Dr. Seuss
Only remember “The Sneetches,” but it’s way good. Seuss was from Springfield, MA, don’tcha know.