“Sometimes people don’t know why they’re climbing. They only know it’s better than hurting standing still.”
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My main issue wit✰ 3.25 stars ✰
“Sometimes people don’t know why they’re climbing. They only know it’s better than hurting standing still.”
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My main issue with why I was not able to click with it more was the ambiguity surrounding Noah, Finn's father's characterization and death. It was revealed to us in tidbits - little glimpses here and there, that I would have had to take notes in order to paint a cohesive image of him to get a better sense of him as the hero his son saw him as. For The trouble with Heroes is that we tend to create a persona of them that we look up to; that we admire their admirable qualities for. ...more
“OK, one curse is bad enough - especially when you have the school show coming up — but a thousand curses? And that is the only explana
✰ 3.5 stars ✰
“OK, one curse is bad enough - especially when you have the school show coming up — but a thousand curses? And that is the only explanation for what followed... ”
“Meet Dexter Foreman, age 12, newest student at Wolf’s Eye Middle School—and also America’s youngest senior citizen. . . .”
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✰ 3.5 stars ✰
“Meet Dexter Foreman, age 12, newest student at Wolf’s Eye Middle School—and also America’s youngest senior citizen. . . .”
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I was really angry/annoyed with Dexter's parents' willful negligence in even checking up on their kid's schooling; I get that they're working in foreign services, but how self-centered and self-focused can you be on work that you're not even bothered to express some concern? Like a couple of check-ups every now and then doesn't go a long way, does it?? ...more
“When a wind blows, they sway, and when they sway, they do it all together. There’s not a storm fierce enough to topple any of t
✰ 2.25 stars ✰
“When a wind blows, they sway, and when they sway, they do it all together. There’s not a storm fierce enough to topple any of them.”
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One might argue that the main reason this did not click with me is because I've never spent A Day at the Beach, so I'll never be able to envision how it is a diverse tapestry of diverse people - young and old, rich and famous - who wish to enjoy the cool waves and sand on a summer day. ...more
“For doesn’t anyone who dreams of time travel imagine that they’d travel to change something, fix something, learn something—all to so
✰ 3.5 stars ✰
“For doesn’t anyone who dreams of time travel imagine that they’d travel to change something, fix something, learn something—all to somehow improve their present?”
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If there's one painting I have re-emulated more than any other in my life, it would have to be Van Gogh's Starry Night, no doubt one of the most recognizable painting in art history. ...more
“HASTE, TRAVELER: THE SUN IS SINKING NOW: HE SHALL RETURN AGAIN, BUT NEVER THOU. THUS THE GLORY OF THE WORLD PASSES AWAY. I WASTED TIME,
✰ 3.25 stars ✰
“HASTE, TRAVELER: THE SUN IS SINKING NOW: HE SHALL RETURN AGAIN, BUT NEVER THOU. THUS THE GLORY OF THE WORLD PASSES AWAY. I WASTED TIME, AND NOW DOTH TIME WASTE ME.”
A middle grade read that touches upon forgiveness and friendship and memory that unfolds in a strange twist of cataclysmic climatic events that unravel truths laid buried for far too long. ...more
“How was I supposed to change the sucky things in my life without magical assistance?”
Well, Emma, considering how your wishes didn't quite work out according to plan, I suppose it is safe to say that you're just gonna have to live life like the rest of the plebeians, and realize that it's not all that bad being just as you are. ...more
“Helen Elizabeth Harper,” she whispered. “My friend and your enemy.”
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I'm sure there's been some moment ✰ 3 stars ✰
“Helen Elizabeth Harper,” she whispered. “My friend and your enemy.”
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I'm sure there's been some moment in your life where you may have hurled these taunts at someone 'you'll be sorry' or 'you'll regret messing with me' or 'you'll rue the day you crossed me', or better yet, 'You mess with me. You mess with my whole family!' No? Just me? ...more
“... the truth was, he didn’t want to waste the light either. You never knew when you’d need it and not have it.”
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✰ 4 stars ✰
“... the truth was, he didn’t want to waste the light either. You never knew when you’d need it and not have it.”
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There is a magic to how Tamora Pierce was able to wind Briar's Story full circle in which it has been one year since he and his fellow mates, or rather his sisters, arrived at Winding Circle. It's been a far cry from his days as an urchin, one where it comes as an unwelcome shock at how unrecognizable his past self was, when life on the streets was once all he knew. 'Who am I?' he wondered for a moment, shocked. Who am I really?'...more
The stakes are more dangerous than ever for cousins Weatherby and ✰ 3.5 stars ✰
“We are who we say we are.”
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The stakes are more dangerous than ever for cousins Weatherby and Jack Hunt, as they and their fellow members of the Liar Society continue to solve the many puzzles and intricate tricks laid forth for them that serve as just few of the many hurdles they have to overcome to become part of Last Heir, a secret society of liars. ...more
“But moving forward is not the same thing as giving up. No matter what comes of this place, we take our memories with us.”
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✰ 2.75 stars ✰
“But moving forward is not the same thing as giving up. No matter what comes of this place, we take our memories with us.”
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If Goodreads and Edelweiss would have included the Magical Realism tag, I definitely would have been less inclined to check it out. Heck, if I had done a little research of my own beforehand and found out that it was written by the same author of that magical talking typewriter middle grade read, which I avoided last year, I would have been more prepared for what's to come. ...more
“Let me tell you something, Dee Dee: never say you want to see a ghost. You will definitely be sorry.”
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✰ 3.5 stars ✰
“Let me tell you something, Dee Dee: never say you want to see a ghost. You will definitely be sorry.”
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Horror and heartbreak tinged with an overwhelming sense of loss and regret, followed by a bittersweet happiness of love and forgiveness. ❤️...more
“‘Who? What? When? Where? Why?’ Those are the answers you seek... They’re the keys to solving the mysteries of the world.”
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✰ 3.5 stars ✰
“‘Who? What? When? Where? Why?’ Those are the answers you seek... They’re the keys to solving the mysteries of the world.”
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Who really stole the narrative was Alex's Grandpa, Pete. This time around, the case is deeply personal to him, a family-oriented crime that has him question his own capabilities as the esteemed Herald reporter he always considered himself, and whether or not he's doing right by entertaining his grandson with his pursuit of unsolved mysteries. ...more
“Magic is not a toy,” Niko continued. “It is not a convenience. It is a precious thing... It means something different to everyone.”
✰ 3.75 stars ✰
“Magic is not a toy,” Niko continued. “It is not a convenience. It is a precious thing... It means something different to everyone.”
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There's something about knowing that you're in capable hands that makes a story all the more promising. And that is a credit to Tamora Pierce for once again dishing out an entertaining adventure, one that shines light on each character without missing a beat in the narrative. It's so fluid that you don't even sense the change, rather are enveloped in it. ...more
“Grief is weird. You think it’s gone and then, bam, it hits you all over again.”
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I may not have ✰ 3.5 stars ✰
“Grief is weird. You think it’s gone and then, bam, it hits you all over again.”
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I may not have been entirely sold on the experimental middle school, eleven-year-old Lenny's father and his fellow peers set up for their kids at the college campus where they teach, but I was totally feeling Lenny's pain. ...more
Reading latest middle grade releases definitely puts into perspective just how much you're not the target audience, when protagonists like twelve-year-old aspiring journalist, Josie says, 'I don’t know what Murder, She Wrote is'. Oh, the disrespect! ...more
With a volatile character like Tris at the helm, who's struggl✰ 3.5 stars ✰
“What strange turns life takes.”
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With a volatile character like Tris at the helm, who's struggling to weather (pun intended) her own thunderous talents, it comes on the heels of destructive and disastrous pirate attacks, an unexpected visit from her past, and the swiftly changing developments in the friendships she's forged upon arriving in Winding Circle, that will leave no doubt that this certainly is Tris's Book — 'Am I a mage or am I not?' — where she takes the dogged and determined steps forward to embrace her powers and accept herself as the gifted mage that she is. ⚡
After a bit of an unsteady start with some slightly problematic eyebrow-raising comments, the story quickly picks up the action as the danger escalates and conflict arises in their midst. While trying to find a balance between training and safeguarding their home, Winding Circle may have been off more than one too many spells to keep the dark forces at bay. ...more