Book Review: The Story of Kullervo

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The Story of Kullervo by J.R.R. Tolkien
The Story of Kullervo 
by J.R.R. Tolkien, Verlyn Flieger (editor )
4 out of 5 stars on GoodReads


Kullervo’s uncle murders his father, and Kullervo vows to find revenge. He grows up wayward and wild and without compassion for anyone except his twin sister. With the help of the magical hound, Musti, Kullervo escapes the murderous machinations of his evil uncle. Kullervo has set his hand against the whole world, and he ruins crops, creates a wasteland in the forest, commits mass murder, and generally reeks destruction wherever he goes. His story is tragic for everyone involved.

This short story, one of Tolkien’s very early attempts at rewriting myths, includes a great deal of poetry, a tragic plot, and the delicious rich language that characterizes all of Tolkien’s works. Most of the book is commentary, essays, and notes about the story, its Finnish roots, and its influence on Tolkien’s later writing.  Continue reading →

Book Review: Peter Duck

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Peter Duck by Arthur Ransome
Peter Duck: A Treasure Hunt in the Caribbees (Swallows and Amazons, #3) 
by Arthur Ransome
5 out of 5 stars


The Swallows and Amazons are preparing for a peaceful sail down the Channel, with Captain Flint and their new Able-Seaman Peter Duck, when they are followed and attacked by real life pirates! The pirate captain, Black Jake, is determined to kidnap Peter Duck, who knows the location of a long-lost treasure, buried on Crab Island in the Caribbean Sea. Only the brave Swallows and Amazons, with all their sailing know-how, can bring their ship safely across the Atlantic to search for buried treasure with the evil pirates at their heels.

Just as wonderful reading it the second or third time! There is so much action and adventure, I couldn’t put it down! I love how the story guides you gradually from the everyday business of the ship into the fantastical plot twists, so that you barely notice that the story has taken a wild turn at the end. It all seems so perfectly plausible by the time you get there. Truly brilliant story-telling!

As always, I am completely in love with each and every character! The Walker family are so close to my heart, and the Amazon girls are deliciously full of moxie.
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Book Review: Aunt Jane’s Nieces at Work

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Aunt Jane's Nieces at Work by Edith Van Dyne
Aunt Jane’s Nieces at Work (Aunt Jane’s Nieces, #4) 
by Edith Van Dyne (Pseudonym), L. Frank Baum


3 out of 5 stars on GoodReads
In this fourth book in the series, Kenneth is getting involved in politics and is sadly losing the election to become a State Representative. The three nieces decide to help him in his campaign, and they fight against dirty politicians, ignorant country voters, and shady political dealings that threaten to overwhelm the campaign. Along the way, they befriend the country people, and help a farmer to find his missing daughter.

I get bored with politics, so I didn’t especially enjoy the plot, but I liked how the mysteries were surprising and interesting. I loved how the girls help Kenneth to set up a rally that throws their opponent’s arguments out the door, how they discover the underhanded political deals, and they aid in solving the mystery of the missing farmer’s daughter. Continue reading →

Book Review: A Hobbit, a Wardrobe, and a Great War

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A Hobbit, a Wardrobe, and a Great War by Joseph Loconte
A Hobbit, a Wardrobe, and a Great War: How J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis Rediscovered Faith, Friendship, and Heroism in the Cataclysm of 1914-18 
by Joseph Loconte

5 out of 5 stars of GoodReads
I thoroughly enjoyed this book about the effect that WWI had on two of my favorite authors, how their experiences translated into the stories they wrote, and how their faith in God was strengthened and established despite the horrors of war.

This is heartbreaking to read, because it gives such detailed personal accounts of the war, the suffering and fear they went through, and the terrible losses of friends and family. But it is also wonderfully interesting to learn about the history of that time, and the misguided Utopian philosophies that were shattered by the war.

I was impressed with the scholarly yet accessible writing style, and the way in which the historical and personal information was organized and presented in each chapter. This clearly explained how Tolkien’s and Lewis’ personal experiences were entwined in the larger story of the war, and the popular philosophies and political thinking of the time.

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Graphic Novel Review: The Scarlet Rose

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Scarlet Rose #1 by Patricia Lyfoung

Scarlet Rose #1 
by Patricia Lyfoung
2 out of 5 stars on GoodReads


Maud’s father is murdered by an assassin looking for a book containing the secret to a great treasure. Maud swears to avenge her father’s death, and wants to join a bandit named the Fox, who steals from the rich to give to the poor. Maud has to move in with her aristocratic grandfather, who only wants to control her and force her to marry a nobleman. Maud becomes the masked Scarlet Rose, and works on her fencing skills so she can become a highway bandit, and get one step closer to her father’s killer.

The plot is predictable and full of Robin Hood tropes. The characters are boring and obvious. The writing is blah. The artwork is okay, but nothing special. It’s not horrible, but it’s not good either. I’ve read worse, but I’ve also read much better.
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Book Review: The Tea Dragon Society

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The Tea Dragon Society by Katie O'Neill
The Tea Dragon Society 
by Katie O’Neill


3 out of 5 stars on GoodReads
In this graphic novel, Greta’s mother is teaching her to be a blacksmith, but Greta is distracted when she befriends a tea-shop owner with a pet tea dragon. As Greta learns to care for the tea dragons, she befriends a whole new group of people in the society dedicated to protecting their tea dragons, and brewing the delicious tea leaves harvested from their horns. But will Greta ever return to her blacksmithing lessons, or have a tea dragon of her own?

I love the whimsical artwork! The colors and lines are soft and sweet. I thought the plot was adorable and lovely. The little tea dragon creatures are the cutest thing ever created! But there were some confusing things about this book that make it difficult to review.

My main problem is that there is a homosexual couple in this book. One of them is a human and the other is some kind of furry llama-looking guy with a long tail. I did not appreciate this kind of political/philosophical posturing in an otherwise lovely children’s book about dragons.
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Book Review: Red Riding Hood

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Red Riding Hood by Sarah Blakley-Cartwright
Red Riding Hood 
by Sarah Blakley-Cartwright (Goodreads Author), David Leslie Johnson, Catherine Hardwicke (Introduction by)
1 out of 5 stars on GoodReads

Valerie’s sister is killed by the horrible Wolf. Valerie has to choose to marry the rich young blacksmith, or run away with her childhood friend, Peter, who is an outcast.
I’m DNFing this stupidity. Boring. Instalove of the worst kind. Mediocre writing. Rotten characters. Bleh.
I got to page 88, and had to quit. When they agree to run away together after having only exchanged about twenty words and one moonlit horseback ride, I’m done with this nonsense.

It also annoyed me that the girls run off in the middle of the night to the boys’ camp to flirt with them. What was the point of that whole scene?

Book Review: The Wish Stealers

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The Wish Stealers by Tracy Trivas
The Wish Stealers 
by Tracy Trivas
3 out of 5 stars on GoodReads


A cute little book about a middle-school girl, Griffin, who tries to return stolen wishes to their rightful owners before an evil curse catches up with her.

The plot is okay, but predictable and not exactly mind-blowing. The characters are good, but not really memorable. The writing is adequate, but nothing special.

I did like the theme about fighting off the evil inside of us, and not letting our anger or our circumstances turn us into a bad person. There’s some great little lessons about good and evil, light and darkness, as Griffin thinks carefully about what it means to embrace the right and reject the evil in our lives.

One thing that I really liked about this book is that both of Griffin’s parents are in the picture, talking to her, giving advice, showing up, and being a family. In so many books, children have no parents or only one parent or an absent parent, because it forces the protagonist to be more independent. It was lovely to see a normal healthy family that all get along, and support and love one another. It added so much depth to the plot and characters!

Book Review: The Little Red Wolf

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The Little Red Wolf by Amélie Fléchais
The Little Red Wolf 
by Amélie Fléchais (Illustrator)

2 out of 5 stars on GoodReads


What the hay kind of bedtime story is this?!?! The last line reads, “In his rage, misfortune struck. So sad and horrible, that he could never forgive himself.”
And that’s it! That’s the end. Everyone depressed and distraught forever. OMG, what is WRONG with this story?

The artwork is so lovely, so beautiful. Subtle colors and lines, pretty little details of forest flora and fauna. The beginning is whimsical and sweet as a little wolf travels through the forest to take a dead rabbit to his grandmother’s house. He follows a butterfly, and explores a little mousey hole, and stops to look at a beetle.

Then it gets gross.

First of all, dead rabbit in every scene, just laying there in the basket, being dead and all. Also, the little wolf gets hungry and decides to eat just one of the rabbit feet as a snack. Oh, yum. Dead bloody rabbit feet. Never mind the bones. Continue reading →

Book Review: Death at Blenheim Palace

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Death at Blenheim Palace by Robin Paige
Death at Blenheim Palace (Kathryn Ardleigh, #11) 
by Robin Paige

3 out of 5 stars on GoodReads

 

In this book Charles and Kate Sheridan are visiting the Duke of Marlborough, and they start investigating the disappearance of a housemaid. But the other guests are up to all sorts of hijinks, and it’s difficult to sort out the clues from the red herrings.

The plot is a little thin and sometimes obvious, and every tiny detail is drawn out and repeated again and again. I do like the characters, and there is some good drama. I mostly enjoy reading about Charles and Kate doing their sleuthing, because they make such a sweet couple and a good team.