Saturday, May 19, 2012

The Other Half of My Heart by Sundee Frazier

The Other Half of My Heart was an incredible book about biracial twins. Before I read this book, I had no clue twins of two different skin colors could exist. I though that a child of a black person and a white person would be the 'average' of the parents' skin tones. Yet Kelli's skin is a dark brown and Minni's (short for Minerva, after her grandmother) is super pale. The plot follows the two girls as they are sent to stay with their grandmother down south to compete in the 'Miss Black Pearl of America' pageant. The book revolves around the racism in the pageant, in their grandmother, and in the rest of the world. The book is told through Minni's POV, so you get to know her very well, however, I fell like you could get to know Kellie better. I subway this book for kids ages 11-13. I think this book is definitely worth the read. Happy Reading, Native New Yorker!

Friday, May 11, 2012

Above World by Jenn Reese

Every time I go to the library I literally look at all the books in the children and young adult sections. Like many of the books I read, I found Above World in this way. I expected it to be okay. It was much better. Above World takes place in a future world where due to overpopulation, technology was created to allow people to live underwater, in the skies, etc. The technology that allows Aluna and her friend Hoku to live underwater is failing. They travel to the above world where they are captured by the people of the sky. Aluna and Hoku befriend then and though a series of events they end up at HydroTech, where their technology is powered. It is there they must fight Fathom, an evil ruler who is stealing the power that should be used to fuel the technology of the undersea people. The book ends on a cliff hanger that is perfect. Keeps me wanting more, but not too much so that I'm dying and angry at the author for not writing faster. Above World is 368 pages long. There is a small amount of both romance and violence, but not enough that if would bother anyone who objected to those things. I recommend it for boys and girls ages 10-14. If you liked Above World, you might also like The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan. Happy reading, Naitive New Yorker!

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Mockingjay, the final book in the Hunger Games series, was very good. This book centers around Katniss's stay in district 13 and the uprising of the other districts. This book is probably also the one with the most romance drama and in the end you do find out if she ends up with gale or Peeta. Another (unrelated) thing is that this book is the only booking I ever read in which I cried. The ending is very full of both action and emotion. While the official ending would have left me plain sad, the prologue ends the book on a lovely bittersweet note. Mockingjay is truly wonderful book. This book, like the others, has plenty of violence. So again, be warned. I say 12+ for it, but a mature 12. Also if you have a lot of nightmares, this book is a bad idea. Anyway, I loved it, and if you did too, I'd read the first two Hunger Games books along with Collins's Gregor the Overlander book. Happy Reading, Native New Yorker!

Friday, May 4, 2012

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games was magnificent. Catching Fire was almost so. Don't get me wrong, it was good, just not 'that' good. In the first book, Katniss stirs up emotion in the districts by defying the rules of the Capitol's games. She is now marked for death by the Capitol. She gets sent to a new arena because it's the 75th games, a quarter quell. In this games the tributes are chosen from existing victors, so Katniss is shipped off for a second year in a row. But now she is a target of the Capitol. This quarter quell is a one to remember. After the perfect wonderfulness of the first book, I was hoping for something a bit better. However, I was satisfied. I recommend this book for 12+. Do take note though, this book also contains plenty of violence and at one point, Katniss gets drunk. So read with caution. If you liked Catching Fire, you'll probably also like Mockingjay, the final book in the trilogy, and the Gregor the Overlander series, which was also written by Collins. Happy Reading, Native New Yorker!