Cookies & Milk – Read It and Rate It

Cookies & Milk by Shawn Amos Historical Fiction Review #1 * * * * Stars (Great!) The book “Cookies & Milk” is really a page turner. Page after page, there are always exciting events. It starts off with a boy named Ellis Bailey Johnson. It was the last day of school and, instead of going home, he and his dad went to an abandoned warehouse and Ellis was told by his father that they were … Read more

Of Mice and Men – Read It and Rate It

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck Classic Historical Fiction Review #1 * * * Stars (Pretty good) George and his best bud Lennie are migrant workers in California. Lennie isn’t always the brightest, however. Will they be able to reach their dream of owning a farm? Or will Lennie’s childish ways get in the way of that? Review #2 * * * * Stars (Great!) Of Mice and Men is about two men going … Read more

Yearling – Read It and Rate It

The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Adventure Classic Historical Fiction Realistic Fiction Review #1 * * * * * Stars (Amazing!) Jody is the only child (though he had siblings born before him, none of them survived) of Penny Baxter, “sound as copper itself,” and Ory, his stern, yet loving mother. Free willed and full of the wild spirit yet willingness of young boy living in rural Florida in the late 1800s (around 1870). Jody, … Read more

Killer Angels – Read It and Rate It

Killer Angels by Michael Shaara Historical Fiction Review #1 * * * * * Stars (Amazing!) Coined as one of the best stories about the Civil War of all time, Michael Shaara brings you the famous battle of Gettysburg – from both the Confederate and Union armies. It is split up into three days, and significant events take place on each day. John Buford of the Union army chooses the high ground. Lee’s army marches … Read more

Long Walk to Water – Read It and Rate It

A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park Adventure Historical Fiction Realistic Fiction Review #1 * * * * Stars (Great!) This book follows two stories. It starts with the story of Salva Dut in 1985. Throughout his life, the only home that Salva knew until the age of 11 was the small, South Sudanese village he lived in. He’s forced to flee his village to avoid the ongoing civil war in his country. … Read more

Hattie Big Sky – Read It and Rate It

Hattie Big Sky by Kirby Larson Adventure Historical Fiction Realistic Fiction Romance Review #1 * * * * Stars (Great!) It’s the first World war. Hattie Inez Brooks lives with her rather harsh and VERY opinionated aunt, and her passive and a bit kinder uncle. She’s living a humdrum life, nowhere close to where she wants to be, when she gets a letter from her Uncle Chester. In it, he deeds his homestead in Montana … Read more

Castaways of the Flying Dutchman – Read It and Rate It

Castaways of the Flying Dutchman Castaways of the Flying Dutchman series, book #1 by Brian Jacques Adventure Historical Fiction Mystery Review #1 * * * * * Stars (Amazing!) Ye all have heard of the Flying Dutchman, that cursed ship that has been cursed to sail the seas forever… Woe to the sailor who sees Captain Vanderdecken and his ghostly crew… Sometime in the near future, those who see this ship shall be cursed to … Read more

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe – Read It and Rate It

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz Historical Fiction LGBTQ+ Romance Review #1 * * * * * Stars (Amazing!) Aristotle Mendoza is angry. At 15 years old, his older brother’s in prison, his father seems a million miles away, and he wakes up every morning hoping the world will be different. Then one day he meets Dante. In Ari’s head, Dante’s a kid who’s his exact opposite. Ari … Read more

One True Way – book review

One True Way Shannon Hitchcock Historical Fiction (1977) LGBTQ Realistic Fiction * * * * Stars (Great!) When Allie Drake and her mom move from New Jersey to North Carolina, Allie makes a friend – Sam – at her new middle school almost immediately. Sam introduces her to all the other kids, facilitates her getting onto the newspaper staff (Allie Drake, Staff Reporter!), and promises to teach her how to ride her horse. They quickly … Read more

All These Bodies – book review

All These Bodies by Kendare Blake Historical Fiction Mystery Supernatural Suspense Thriller * * * * Stars (Great!) It’s 1958 and Michael Jensen, aspiring teen journalist, gets the opportunity to interview the prime suspect in a string of unusual murders, 15-year-old Marie Catherine Hale, where the victims have been found exsanguinated (drained of all their blood). She’s caught red-handed (and red everything else as she’s covered in the blood of the dead when she’s arrested), … Read more