Albert of Adelaide

I didn't really know what I was getting myself into with Albert of Adelaide. I guess I was sort of hoping for a platypus on an adventure and kind of picturing Perry the Platypus in my head. That's how Albert of Adelaide presents itself. Albert is a platypus who has escaped from the zoo in Adelaide to find the Old Australia where he can be with other platypuses and live in the wild and be free. It seems like this will be quite the adventure of a read. 

Except it's not.  It's kinda lame. The story line is heavy on over-description and the characters were fairly flat and not very distinct from one another. It's really just about Albert suddenly becoming friends with different animals, then suddenly making enemies with others, and lots of fighting that's boring to read. I can't even think of anyone I would recommend this book to. Maybe those who like Westerns? That's my best bet. I just didn't enjoy this novel. 

*I won this novel from Goodreads FirstReads. All opinions expressed are my own. 

The Knight, the Princess & the Magic Rock: A Classic Persian Tale

The Knight, the Princess and the Magic Rock is a retelling of a classic Persian tale. I was initially excited to read it because it looked like an adventure book, and because it's Persian lore, I was sure I hadn't heard of it before. But, really? To be completely honest? I thought it was pretty lame. Basically everything is wrapped up with the power of prayer. I mean, I'm all about prayer, but in a children's book that is about a princess and a magic rock, I didn't get how prayer related. It's really just not the book for me. 

*I won this novel from Goodreads FirstReads. All opinions expressed are my own. 

Mayfly Requiem

Lani, a child of time, is the narrator of Courtney M Privett's Mayfly Requiem. It is his apology, his requiem. And in his two thousand plus years on earth, he hurt his sister, Dia. But how? And why? And is his apology enough? 

It took a bit of time to get into the novel, to understand the character, setting, and style. Once I did, I liked the novel, the story, the characters. At times it was very gripping. At other times . . . not so much. It's a harder piece to read. It's not an easy book; you can't dive right in an read it in a sitting or two. Not to discourage you, it's worth the time to read. It's kind of fantasy, but almost mystic, too, I guess, but it's also a whole other world than this one. At first it seems post-apocalyptic or dystopian, maybe it is. I am having a hard time putting this novel into a genre, finding the perfect niche. But that's part of what's so neat about this book, is it's not quite like any other that I have read. But I wanted to know the ending, I wanted to know why Lani had to apologize, what he did. It kept me reading. I don't know if this "review" has done this novel justice, but I sure do think it's worth the read, so give it a shot! 

*I won this novel from Goodreads FirstReads. All opinions expressed are my own. 

The Things I Do For You

The Things I Do For You by Mary Carter is about a married couple, Bailey and Brad, who live in New York. Baby-hungry Bailey is new to the world of real estate, but before she can get her big sale, she's called to the hospital. Brad has been in an accident with his great-aunt, who shouldn't have been driving.

Brad has a near-death experience, and sees himself in "the light." Previously agnostic, he is quite a different person. Bailey is a little annoyed by his undying optimism, but she still loves Brad. Nothing can change that, even an entire personality change. At first Bailey thinks it's survivors guilt, but it seems to be more than that. All Brad wants to do is talk about his experience and joins on online group for folks with experiences like his.

Brad finds out that his great-aunt has left her secret wealth entirely to him, which he then uses to buy a broken-down lighthouse upstate to turn into a bed and breakfast. Needless to say, Bailey is less than pleased, but goes along with his idea. The B&B, along with the continual presence of Brad's near-death experience, his support group, and secrets Brad has been keeping from Bailey, put their marriage vows to the test. Will Brad and Bailey make it? 

At first, I didn't really like Bailey. It bugged me how much she let Brad walk all over her. But then her faults started to show too, and while Bailey and I will never be friends, I became engrossed in the story. I wanted to know all the secrets. I wanted to know if Brad and Bailey made it. 

However, I felt like there were too many story lines going on. There's the baby-hungry Bailey with hesitant Brad line. There's the Bed and Breakfast, with guests, with possible ghosts, both the aunt and the old lighthouse ghosts. There's the near-death experience

rearing it's ugly head, along with the support group. This could have easily been been taken apart and written into two or three novels instead of one. It wasn't confusing, just a little overwhelming and scattered. It left some things unclear instead of delving in deeper. 

In the end, I liked The Things I Do For You, [though I could have done without the epilogue. Unnecessary  and he sounded much younger than 20] and recommend it as a chick-lit romance. Once you get into it, it would make a great beach or vacation read. Be forewarned, however, there's a little bit of sexy-time talk and some curse words. Read on, my friends!

*I won this novel from Goodreads FirstReads. All opinions expressed are my own. 

The Pig War

When I joined goodreads, one of the first things I loved, ya know, besides the whole thing about it being a website for books, was the giveaway section. For real? Free books? I was all in. Still am, if you want to send any my way! :)

The first book I received was The Pig War by Mark Holtzen. In exchange for the free book, they like the reader to review it. Perfect. I review all the books I read anyway! But since I did get this book for free, I took reviewing it a little more seriously than I would do otherwise. I read with more of an analytical eye than I usually do, so I will be pointing out things I didn't like or feel should have been clarified, but I do it with the aim of being helpful, not harmful!  It's obvious though the writing that Holtzen cares deeply about his novel and this story is dear to his heart; writing a novel is no small feat! The Pig War is a cute book, but it's obviously a first novel and just isn't quite there yet.

Our main character, Kell, has been marooned to the island of Mobray with his younger sister Grace to stay with their grandfather, who they'd never really met, as their parents are stuck in a foreign country. While on the island, Kell discovers an old revolver and ancient journal. While investigating their origins, he is directed towards The Pig War, which he'd never heard of before. [Neither had I!] In their research of The Pig War, Kell is set on a crazy adventure, and on the way, Kell learns about The Pig War, his aloof grandfather, and maybe a little about himself! 

The first problem I ran into with The Pig War, is that I didn't know how old Kell and Grace were. It made it hard to understand them as characters because I didn't know if their behavior was unique or stereotypical. The character development and consistency throughout was a problem. Kell and Grace didn't seem true to life. A kid like Kell is hard to find these days. At one point in the novel, he says he wanted to spend his summer doing "research." He doesn't say what he wants to research, just that he does, which I found odd. He just doesn't seem like any 12-year-old I know. [And I work with 6th graders!] Bookish, yes. Borderline obsessed with books and knowledge over anything else? I don't know. It made it hard to connect with Kell because I found him so stereotypical yet unreal. It almost would have seemed more real to me if The Pig War took place in the seventies or eighties. Folks were less distracted by electronics back then. It's almost like Kell would have fit in better back then, seemed more real. [Does that make sense?]

I also was unsure about the novel's demographic. I didn't know if it was written as an adult, for adults, looking back on his coming-of-age summer or for the young boys themselves. Ultimately, I decided that The Pig War  would be a good book for advanced middle school readers. It's strong on narrative, instead of action, which is more difficult for lower level readers, and the age of the characters would definitely appeal to readers that age. So it would be great for smart sixth graders. Unfortunately, my sixth graders are required to read novels with over 150 pages, so I can't recommend this to any of them for their school work. And heaven knows they don't read out of class! This also puts The Pig War in competition with the beloved Rick Riordan and Suzanne Collins.  

Overall, [oh, I'm so cliche! It's late, don't hold it against me!] I found The Pig War to be a good first novel from Holtzen, despite the fact that I read it like a draft. As previously mentioned, because I got it for free, I wanted to be as helpful and honest as possible. The Pig War just isn't *quite* there yet. Which, really, is good. Authors who succeed at their first novel (ie: SE Hinton) seem to go downhill, and I would like Holtzen to go up as a writer. We all want to improve in our endeavors. So, Holtzen, keep writing! And readers, at least give the back of The Pig War a read. You just might love it!