I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai and Christina Lamb Autobiography Biography Nonfiction Review #1 * * * * Stars (Great!) This is the real-life story of Malala Yousafzai, a current activist who fights for female education. She is the youngest Nobel Peace Prize winner at age 17. In Swat Valley in Pakistan, females couldn’t even go out due to being at risk … Read more
In Limbo by Deb JJ Lee Biography Graphic Novel Memoir Nonfiction * * * * Stars (Great!) Deborah is Korean American (she came to the US with her family when she was 3) and she’s struggling to find a path for herself. Her mother has Great Expectations for her future and becomes angry and physically violent with Deb when she fails to get perfect grades, speak Korean fluently, and become a musical virtuoso. Deb wants … Read more
Vern: Custodian of the Universe Tyrell Waiters Adventure Graphic Novel Science Fiction * * * Stars When Vern’s prospects dry up he moves back home and his grandma immediately gets him a job as custodian at a tech company called Quasar. It’s not what he’d expected. He *does* have to clean up a lot of messes, but they seem to involve weird eyeballs creeping through spatial rifts. Vern eventually discovers that Quasar is messing with … Read more
The Other Family Doctor: A Veterinarian Explores What Animals Can Teach Us About Love, Life, and Mortality by Karen Fine, DVM Biography Nonfiction * * * * Stars (Great!) Karen Fine’s grandfather was her inspiration for becoming a veterinarian. His patients were human, but Karen admired the commitment and care he offered them (he practiced in South Africa and made house calls). She writes about her experiences in vet school, which is arguably at least … Read more
Earth Unaware The First Formic War bk#1 by Orson Scott Card and Aaron Johnston Science Fiction * * * (Pretty good) Free miners are the first to encounter the Formics as the aliens head toward Earth with unknown intent. This follows the stories of a couple of the miner families and a corporate entity who must put aside their differences to warn the Earth of the aliens’ impending arrival. The encounters they have indicate that … Read more
Fairy Tale by Stephen King Adventure Fantasy * * * * Stars (Great!) Charlie Reade made a bargain with the universe to pay it back if his father stopped drinking and he finds an opportunity to make good on his word when he rescues his cantankerous neighbor after a fall. Mr. Bowditch is old and grumpy and cherishes his independence, but he reluctantly accepts Charlie’s assistance when that seems to be the only way he … Read more
Ex-Yakuza & Stray Kitten vol. 1 by Riddle Kamimura Funny Realistic Manga * * * Stars (Pretty good) Sabu the kitten is taken in by a young man named Jin with a grim appearance and many scars and tattoos. Is he Yakuza?? Everything about him terrifies Sabu! But Jin is only ever gentle and kind. Sabu learns that he is going to “work” at a cafe “staffed” by other adoptable animals that Jin has taken … Read more
Can I Recycle This? A Guide to Better Recycling and How to Reduce Single-use Plastics by Jennie Romer Nonfiction * * * * Stars (Great!) Good information on the recycling process/stream. If your town supports curbside recycling, what happens to those items that go into your recycling bin? Are they really getting recycled? Are you sure what you’re adding is actually recycleable? You’ll want to check with your local waste management company to be sure, … Read more
Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher Adventure Fantasy Romance * * * * Stars (Great!) When Princess Marra learns that her older sister is trapped in an abusive relationship, she vows to find a way to release her from her torment. This involves a lengthy quest to acquire the tools and companions she needs to do so – a bone dog, a gravewitch, her own fairy godmother (who is actually much better at curses than … Read more
The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi Science Fiction Suspense * * * * Stars (Great!) Jamie Gray finds himself out of work when the food delivery startup he works for downsizes him during the pandemic. Fortuitously, an acquaintance offers him a job with an animal rights organization he works for – conveniently leaving out the fact that the “animals” are in fact not of this world and that he’ll need to travel to another … Read more