fiction
Recent Reads: Fantasy, Children’s, Graphic Novels
MK Books Unboxing
I just mailed out all these books to various Missionary Kids!
Book Review: Castle in the Air
Castle in the Air by Diana Wynne Jones
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I adore this book! The first book in this trilogy was fantastic and I had high expectations for this one too, and I was not disappointed. I love the old-fashioned fairytale style!
At first, I was wondering, “Where are Sophie and Howl? I want Sophie and Howl.” but they came into the story just perfectly later on, and I was so pleased.
This book follows the magical adventures of Abdullah, who is a carpet merchant. When he buys a magic carpet and falls in love with the Sultan’s daughter, you think you’re in for an Aladdin retelling, but the story is so much more than that. Abdullah travels north to Ingary, where the first book was set, and meets a magical cat, an irate genie, power-hungry djinns, an old soldier who is not who he seems to be, wizards, witches, and an alarming amount of princesses. Continue reading
Book Review: Juliet Dove, Queen of Love
Juliet Dove, Queen of Love by Bruce Coville
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I listened to this on audiobook, and I think that really made a difference to the story, hearing an entire cast of characters reading the dialogue. There was so much acting and expression put into every sentence that it made the story really come alive!
This is the tale of Juliet, who is a shy young teen with a literary and artistic family. When a mysterious woman gives her an enchanted amulet, every boy in town starts to fall in love with her. It’s up to Juliet and her new rodent friends from the Magic Shop to unravel the mystery of the amulet, and get Juliet out of the ancient love story she is doomed to relive.
First of all, I love stories that bring in the old Greek gods into modern settings (because of Percy Jackson). Secondly, I love stories with wise-cracking rats or mice. And thirdly, I love stories with strong family relationships with both a mother and father present and involved and actually parenting (instead of dead, divorced, or absent). Continue reading
Side Characters Who Need Their Own Book
Comic Review: Delilah Dirk and the Turkish Lieutenant
Delilah Dirk and the Turkish Lieutenant by Tony Cliff
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I love it so much!!! Action and adventure and friendship and travel and everything… Ah, so good!
So this is the story of two unlikely traveling companions, who go looking for adventure and go up against a dirty pirate king. They escape from hoards of bad guys in Delilah’s flying boat, and then stop for a cup of Selim’s famously delicious tea and biscuits. Continue reading
Book Review: Wizard’s Castle
Wizard’s Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I enjoyed this so much more reading it for the second time! This delightful fairy tale follows Sophie, who has been cursed by a witch to look old even though she’s only 18. Sophie ends up in the house of the Wizard Howl, where the front door magically opens into four different places. (This book has also been published as “Howl’s Moving Castle”.)
The world-building is brilliant! The magic system is really imaginative and interesting. The characters have such great dialogue and good development. I just adore this book! Continue reading
Book Review: Floors
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
This is the story of Leo, who lives in a hotel that resembles an amusement park more than a hotel. There are secret rooms, secret elevators, and secret trains running through the in-between hidden floors of the hotel. When the owner of the hotel, Mr. Whippet, goes missing, he leaves clues for Leo to follow throughout the hotel, discovering its secrets, and saving the hotel from being torn down. But he insists that Leo take a friend with him for safety, so Leo brings the new bellboy, Remi, along for his adventures. Leo also has to bring one of the ducks from the hotel’s pond along with him as he explores the hotel, and Betty the Duck proves more useful than he expected! Continue reading
Book Review: The Adventures of Superhero Girl
The Adventures of Superhero Girl by Faith Erin Hicks
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
These comics are wonderfully clever and fun! They are set up almost like daily comic strips with little punchlines, but with a longer story line too.
Superhero Girl has some awesome superpowers, but struggles to pay her rent, buys capes at secondhand thrift stores, and suffers from insecurity because her brother is a cooler, more popular superhero. When she has to put up with snarky comments from Skeptical Guy AND battle an alien monster, Superhero Girl has to call up all her patience and superhero know-how to save the day, and get her laundry done. Continue reading
Luminous Libro 