Hunger Games (2008)

Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins is like Survivor on steroids. In a futuristic land called Panem, one boy and one girl are selected by drawing to represent their district in a competition called Hunger Games. The lone survivor is the winner and returns home to live comfortably for the rest of their life. Katniss lives with her widowed mother and younger sister in the 12th district where the main occupation is coal mining. Since her father was killed in the mines, she has learned to sneak outside the electrified fence to supplement her family's food with animals she hunts with a bow and arrow. When her sister is chosen for the games, she volunteers to go in her place and is paired with Peeta, the son of the town's baker.

Comparisons to the TV reality shows that seem to have taken over television these days is easy. Competitors are mentored by previous winners from their district and they are fed, dressed, and prepped for the program. They receive a locator which is injected in their arm and are presented to the county in televised interviews. Cameras cover their every move.

The action is riveting. Some of the kids have been training for this competition since they were very young so they are larger, stronger, and more skilled with weapons than our heroes. Some of the competitors are even smaller and weaker than Katniss but all of them have a talent that helps them survive for a time. The biggest enemy of all of them is the Capitol, host of the games, who is not adverse to using tricky tactics to make the game more interesting for the viewing audience.

I highly recommend this book to readers who enjoy a good action book with a little science fiction thrown in. Kids killing each other may be disturbing but happily enough, there are rules against cannibalism so we are spared there. ;-}
My rating for this book: ++++

Generation Dead (2009)

Many schools have had to deal with integration problems. Different races, different sexualities, different abilities, or conditions such as HIV/AIDS have shaken up the social structure of schools through the years. Now, Oakvale High is presented with a new influx - the undead - or biotically different, to be more politically correct. Daniel Waters introduces us to several teens in the middle of this turmoil. Phoebe is friends with Adam and Margi (all living) and has a crush on Tommy (undead). Pete is a narrow minded, violent bully who doesn't believe that BDs belong in his school, much less on his football team. Tommy is our window into this new phenomenon. We follow all of these kids as they (and we) learn more about BDs and their developing culture.

Waters has created an interesting scenario for studying the dynamics of prejudice; overt and unintentional. How and where do they live? Do they have bodily functions and feelings? What does one do when you have a crush on one of them? He has chosen a perfect subject to study the different facets of integration by creating a totally new and inplausible subject that doesn't parallel any existing relationship.

A small complaint I have about this book is the cover. At first look, one might assume it is a book primarily aimed at young women but it is equally from boys' points of view and includes many detailed scenes on the football field. Unfortunately, I fear that most boys would be put off by the cover with a zombie cheerleader. They would be missing out on an excellent read.

I highly recommend this book for readers who enjoy books about difficult relationships.
My rating for this book: ++++

WikiHow

"The How-to Manual that You Can Edit" http://www.wikihow.com/

Have you ever caught yourself saying "I wonder how I could...." and then stopped because you don't know where you could look up something or who could answer your question? Here's where you can find the answer! I put a link to this site on my iGoogle page and read a new "How To" everyday. Today was a wonderful article on how to bake cookies. There are always pictures that help demonstrations and links at the bottom to related articles and resources.

I learned how to make the most darling pop up cards for Christmas. I read about how to braid a horse's tail. Choose the Education and Communications category and get lots of articles on homework help (How to Do Your Homework on Time if You are a Procrastinator) and presentations (How to Create Less Annoying Powerpoints). Were you curious about how to make a crop circle? Here's the place to learn how.

Of particular interest is the category "Youth." In these pages are all sorts of things to try of special interest to young people. Young people are invited to help edit these pages so here's your chance to step up to the plate and show how much you know about a topic.

Fun and informative, this is a great site.

Death in the Air (2008)

This is the second book in the series by Shane Peacock about the young Sherlock Holmes. The boy Sherlock lost his mother in the first book, Eye of the Crow, and now lives with an old apothecary, Sigerson Bell, who teaches the boy about poisons and self defense. One of the very intereesting aspects of this book is how Sherlock connects parts of London with sites in Charles Dickens' novels. It surely puts the Holmes character into historical perspective.

Sherlock's drive to solve the near death of a trapeze artist is fueled by the desire to help Bell financially and to continue to hone his investigatory skills. With the help of an underground character, Malefactor, he ties in the acrobatic accident with a major theft. The police detective, LeStrade, who appears in the grownup Holmes stories, is the son of a detective from Scotland Yard and recognizes Holmes' talents even though his father does not.

This is a wonderful series and I look forward to reading more of them. Readers of mysteries and historical fiction will enjoy the physical action and tour of historical London.
My rating for this book: +++

The Tale of One Bad Rat (1995)

This is a fabulous graphic novel which portrays a young girl who runs away from an abusive household and how she finds herself with the help from, of all people, the author Beatrix Potter. Bryan Talbot is the British author-illustrator who has created this story which takes Helen to the streets of London where she falls in with a group of homeless kids. She finds that one of the unfortunate effects of abuse is being unable to form relationships and ends up running away from them, too. She ends up working in a pub for an older couple in the countryside where Beatrix Potter was inspired to write and illustrate her books. The rest of the story is a satisfying one of self-realization and eventually confronting her parents in order to begin the healing process.
I think anyone who has suffered abuse might find hope in this book and I highly recommend it. The only warning about this book is the heavy use of unfamiliar cockney slang in the street scenes.
My rating for this book: ++++

The Quest of the Fair Unknown (2008)

Imagine that you were born in the forest and grew up knowing only your mother. Imagine that just before she died she told you only that your father was a knight of the Round Table. Off you go in the world with only that knowledge. Beaufils (his mom's name for him which translates to "handsome son") goes off in search of his father. Well, it seems that almost everyone he meets in off in search of one thing or another. During this time in history, if there wasn't anything going on, the kings would send the knights off on quests so they wouldn't hang around fighting each other. Beaufils finds his way to Camelot, meets King Arthur, and realizes that finding out who his father is will not be as easy as he thought.
This book reminded me of The Little Prince, a French book about a boy who leaves his home planet and meets a lot of interesting characters. I love the subtle humor in this book.

"Does everyone have a title?" Beaufils asked.
"No," Gawain replied. "It's a special privilege, and the people who have a title sometimes
think it makes them very special indeed."
Beaufils smiled at Gawain's witticism. He had to be joking, of course; Beaufils knew that
people would never really think they were special just because of extra words tacked onto
their name.

Readers who enjoy Round Table stories will love this book and others by this author.
My rating for this book: ++++

Breaking Dawn (2008)

I have finally been able to finish the last book in this series by Stephenie Meyer and I am not at all disappointed with the ending. I can't talk too much about this book without spoiling the story so I will just say that Ms. Meyer has left the possibility open for a spinoff series featuring Jacob. There was a discussion about the difference between shape shifters and werewolves that seemed to come from nowhere and which gave me the feeling that we would see more on that topic!
This series was all about love between two very different people and the sacrifices we sometimes have to make for the success of the relationship. Of course, the sacrifices made for this relationship could be considered much greater than most of us would have to make but we are just ordinary humans after all, right?
It is a great pleasure to have a series of books that introduce new characters and situations. When you have finished one book you can look forward to the next. It's almost like reading one humongous book!
I am now looking forward to seeing Twilight, the movie.
My rating for this book: +++++

Momma Mia! (DVD, 2008)

The word that keeps coming back to me for this movie is "exuberant"! I think that Meryl Streep is able to add a level of dignity to every movie she is in, even the comedies, and she has shown me a new side of her with her singing and dancing. (I was surprised to learn she trained to be an opera singer when she was young.) Her character, Donna Sheridan, lives with her daughter on a small Greek island running an old inn. The story opens with 20-year old Sophie (Amande Seyfried) telling her two bridesmaids how she read her mother's diary and learned that there were three men (Pierce Brosnan, Collin Firth, and Stellan Skarsgard) who could be her father and that she sent wedding invitations to all three. Will she learn which one is her father?
This is a musical which incorporates songs originally performed by the 70s rock group, ABBA. I was a big fan of this group because their music was so sing-alongable and it was so hard to sit there during the movie and refrain from singing along.
I have to say that Pierce should stick with straight acting. But otherwise, this is a must see movie.
My rating for this movie: +++++

World Without End (2008)

This book takes place in 14th century England in a town called Wigleigh and chronicles the lives of people in various levels of society such as nuns and monks, earls, serfs, and merchants and their relationships between each other. It takes over 1000 pages to tell their stories. One of the things you learn from this book is that it sucked to be a woman during those times and it sucked big time if you were a poor woman. Our characters face one disaster after another: collapsed bridge and cathedral, plague, rape, famine and all the other things people had to live through at that time. No electricity, steam engines, or printing press to make life easier. The only technological advance was the loom. But through it all, people fell in love, had babies and raised them, and made do the best they could. Giving up was not an option for these folks.
This is indeed a hefty book but it reads fast. Conversations and descriptions aren't very deep and you get caught up in the battle of good and evil and you are carried along in the currents that carry our characters through their lives.
I read this book in my car while my daughter was in meetings. It definitely helps having a place to read with little distraction.
I highly recommend this book to people who enjoy historical fiction and aren't intimidated by large books.
My rating for this book: +++++

Battlestar Gallactica

This science fiction series produced by the SciFi Channel has got to be one of the most extraordinary series I have seen in a long while. I have to admit that I have not watched the series as it was originally shown, but I am catching up with the series by renting the DVDs through Netflix. The star of the show is Edward James Olmos, an actor who is able to portray strength and power with a very restrained manner. The series opens after a Cyborg rebellion on the plant of Caprica. Most of the human population is annihalated by nuclear weapons but there is still a large number of humans on various space ships, one of which is the Gallactica commanded by Commander Adama (Olmos). They manage to stay together through a series of "jumps" trying to evade the Cyborgs until they manage to shake them. The senior most government member, Colonial Secretary of Education, played by Mary McDonnell assumes the position of President and, together with Adama, begin the task of organizing the ships, inventoring supplies and personnel, and discuss finding a new home world. Complicating this is the fact that there are Cyborgs hidden among the crews. They have a number of models which look human.
I don't want to rehash the many twisting plot lines but I hope I can entice you to enjoy this series. I have been watching the episodes with my son and not one has gone by without an "OMG" or two. The twists and turns in this series make every episode exciting and leave me waiting for the next one to arrive.
I admit to being a big fan of all the Star Trek series and other scifi series such as Babylon 5 and Firefly but this show outshines other series like a nova. Rent the series at Blockbuster or another company, make up a bucket of popcorn, and strap yourself in for a ride!
My rating for this series: +++++