Posts filed under 'Fable/Fairy Tale/Fantasy'
“Graceling”
As a fantasy book for teens, especially for girls, Graceling by Kristin Cashore, is nearly perfect. The heroine, Katsa, has just the kind of power in life that girls often dream about. (The first time a man tries to grope her, she kills him effortlessly.) Though she is spirited, strong, good and able to make her own decisions, men still find her very attractive and one very beautiful man is more than willing to sacrifice himself for her—a reversal of the roles we commonly experience in real life.
In Katsa’s world there are people called Gracelings who have special powers. They can be identified by the fact that they have two different colored eyes (Kasta’s are blue and green). Sometimes it takes awhile before they find out what their special grace is. Often they are employed by the kings in their seven kingdoms. Katsa has the misfortune of being the niece of the ruthless King Randa. When he finds out that her grace gives her the ability to kill or hurt anyone without being harmed herself, he uses her as a sort of henchman. She does his bidding, but as she comes of age, she also comes into her own power. She creates a secret council which works against Randa’s evil influence and later she turns away him altogether.
Enter Po, a graceling prince with one eye silver and one eye gold. He, too, is an excellent fighter. The two work together to save a young princess. They have constant battles of wills, yet Po (sigh deeply here) understands all of Katsa’s moods and is willing to do just about anything to be her true love. Unlike many such fantasy stories, in Graceling, Katsa doesn’t want to be under the command of a man, and that means she refuses to marry, taking Po as a lover.
My real criticism of the book is that it could have been much shorter, as the writing is redundant. Characters will have conversations—You don’t love me—yes I do—followed by a summary of the conversation—she felt that he didn’t love her, but he said that he did. Not only does this happen again and again, but it happens again and again on the same topic—you don’t love me ‘round five’ and the fifth round summary. However, the up side of this is that it adds to the total number of pages in the book, so you can impress your teacher by reading 475 pages—and you can do it quickly without having to pay too much attention because if you miss one train, it’ll be coming around again very soon.
This is a super-popular book, one of YALSA’s top ten of 2009. COHS students who’ve read it love it, and I’m guessing you will, too.
Add comment April 1, 2010
“The Siege of Macindaw”
I’ve said before that I love this series–The Ranger’s Apprentice. This is the sixth book. Will, the ranger’s apprentice of the series’ title, now has his own fief to protect. It is a cold northern area with little activity–at least in normal times–but it has strategic value as a gateway to Arulen. However, in the fifth book of the series, Will is fooled into trusting treacherous people. Now in book six, when the Castle of Macindaw has been overthrown, Will must save Alyss by recruiting the outcasts of the fiefdom, an apparent wizard, and his old enemies-turned-friends, the Scandians.
Lots of fun and magic tricks! I’m waiting for book seven, which I understand is the last of the series.
Add comment December 9, 2009
“Girlfriend Material,” “The Waters & the Wild,” “The Disreputable History of Frankie Landu-Banks”
I’ve mentioned before that we purchase books from the Junior Library Guild because they make great choices. Here are recent purchases that looks good:
Excerpted from the Junior Library Guild Reviews:
Girlfriend Material
Kate had been looking forward to a fun summer at home in Utah taking a fiction writing class, playing tennis, and hanging out at her best friend’s pool. Instead, she is on her way to Cape Cod with her mother. The only saving grace for Kate is the chance to renew her friendship with Sarah, the daughter of her mom’s friends. But two things soon become clear to Kate: Sarah never considered Kate a friend, and Kate’s mom isn’t just spending time away from her husband; she is considering a divorce. Could anything save this from being the worst summer of Kate’s life?
JLG Reviewers Say: Although filled with references to the literary classics Kate adores (Ernest Hemingway, Vladimir Nabokov, Jane Austen, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Robert Frost, and Agatha Christie), Girlfriend Material has all the trappings of a great beach read, including a fast-paced storyline, relatable characters, and a setting one can get lost in. Through Kate, readers are transported to idyllic Dryer’s Cove, where well-to-do New Englanders summer in spacious homes situated along the bay. Readers join Kate as she explores her relationships and picturesque surroundings.
The Waters & the Wild
Bee believes she is a changeling. Always feeling somewhat awkward and out of step with other kids her age, Bee finally finds her place in the world when she befriends two other outcasts, one a self-professed alien and another who insists she is a reincarnated slave. Their friendship works a magic that lets Bee feel as if she can do anything—except stop her shadowy double from haunting her.
JLG Reviewers Say: As spiky and otherworldly as Bee herself, Francesca Lia Block’s slim novel, The Waters & the Wild, gives readers a visceral sense of the hazards of adolescence through the imagery of magic and fairy tales. With language both ethereal and sparse, Block brings to life the feelings of what it is like to be young and strange with all the energy and immediacy that accompanies it. “And then with the curse, or, in this case, blessing, of the unpopular, the unathletic, the overweight, the strange, they vanished like shadows into the spring night.”
The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks
JLG Reviewers Say: Frankie Landau-Banks, a sophomore at the prestigious Alabaster Preparatory Academy, thought she had her school’s social dynamics figured out. But when she begins dating the gorgeous and witty senior Matthew Livingston and hanging out with his rich, popular friends, Frankie senses there’s something that they’re not telling her. She soon discovers that they are members of an all-boys secret society. Frankie lets them keep thinking she’s just a cute, clueless girl, all the while implementing a plan with a seemingly impossible goal: to take over the Loyal Order of the Basset Hound. A 2009 Printz Honor Book.
Add comment December 1, 2009
“Gulliver’s Travels” Student Reviews 2009
The following reviews by COHS students are on “Gulliver’s Travels” by Jonathan Swift.
Genre: Wild frontiers and exotic lands/ European historical fiction
Pages: 271
Reviewer: Andrea Z.
In the novel Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift, the reader is introduced to the main character named Lemuel Gulliver who goes on extraordinary adventures. The first location he goes to is the island of Lilliput. There he meets people that are about six inches tall. He learns their customs, and becomes friends with the king, but he eventually departs from this strange land. Once he returns home he again sets sail and becomes stranded on the land Brobdingnag. He soon discovers that this land is inhabited by giants. He becomes friends with a farmer and he starts making a profit out of Gulliver. He is soon sold to the queen and is taken care of by the farmer’s daughter. After about two years of living there an eagle captures him and drops him in the ocean where he is rescued by his own kind. One again he ventures off inot the world and goes to Laputa, Balnibarbi, Luggnagg, Glubbdubdrib and Japan. Laputa is a flying island and the people there are devoted to music and mathematics. Then he basically goes to the other places just to get back home which he eventually does. Despite his past mishaps he once again goes out to sea and lands on Houyhnhnms, a land where horses are the rulers. He eventually leaves this land by force and once he arrives back home he is unable to live a normal life.
I really enjoyed reading this novel. The author uses a lot of detail in describing the places Gulliver went. I still wonder why Swift capitalizes random words but it was a great new experience for me. The adventures the main character went on were very strange but life changing at the same time. What I learned from this novel is to accept people for who they are. I also learned that everyone is different. I highly recommend this book to others.
1.The author’s purpose in writing this book was to inform the readers on how different people are and how people in other lands have customs we are not used to.
2. The theme of this novel is the limits of human understanding and the thesis of the novel is understanding different customs.
3. The author supports the thesis by learning the ways of other people. “Learned men appointed to teach the author their language” (30)
4. The only issue in this book is trying to fit in and the author solves this by learning the inhabitants’ ways.
6 comments June 3, 2009
“The Alchemist” Student Reviews 2009
The following review of “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho was written by COHS student Danielle L. (Ms. Waddle reviewed this book on an earlier post.)
Pages: 208
Santiago was a young boy who was following his dream. He had always wanted to travel so he became a shepherd. Santiago was constantly having a dream that he would find gold at the pyramids. One day He met an old man who turned out to be a king named the king of Salem in Tarifa; he tells him that he should go to the pyramids and gives him the location of the buried tresure. Santiago sells his sheep and goes to Africa to find the tresure, unfortunatly he gets all his gold stolen. He quickly finds a job with a cristal marchant so that he could return home and buy sheep. For a year he works with the merchant, and he makes a great amount of money. At this point he has totally forgotten about the treasure, but when he recognizes the two rocks the old king had given him he goes back to looking for the treasure.
I really enjoyed the book. You would think that the theme is really cheesy, but the author develops it in a realistic manner that makes the story great! I really like the fact that he doesn’t sugar coat anything, but he doesn’t make it really depressing.
1. Follow your dreams but be careful and wise by doing so, it may take a while but in the end it will pay off.
2 Follow your dreams
3. The author creates many obstacles that the main character has to face to follow his dream. The main character (Santiago) is faced with good and bad “omens” which he is supposed to follow. He becomes discouraged at certain points but he kept going.
4. Sometimes people aren’t wise about they way they live there life. They do things just for money. The book shows that you should follow your dreams because “it is written”, but at the same time you should be wise about it and don’t forget about your surroundings.
27 comments June 2, 2009
‘Like Water for Chocolate” Student Review 2009
The following are reviews by COHS students for “Like Water for Chocolate” by Laura Esquivel.
Genre: Magical Realism
Pages: 246
Reviewer: Alejandra Q.
Like water for Chocolate is a story about a girl, Tita De La Garza, who wants to marry her love, Pedro. But her mom, Mama Elena, does not approve of it. Since Tita is the youngest of the family, she must care for her mom until the day she dies. Mama Elena does, however, let Tita’s sister, Rosaura, marry Pedro. Pedro accepts just to be able to stay close to Tita. This hurts Tita very much. All her emotions pour out into her food while she’s cooking, and everyone who eats it feels what she’s feeling. Mama Elena, however does not like Pedro being there in the house to distract Tita, so she sends Pedro and Rosaura off to San Antonio. From there, a bunch of wacky stuff starts happening between the whole family.
I really enjoyed the book. I started reading it, and did not stop until I finished. I love how it connects to the Mexican Culture, it gives me a chance to compare to certain things. The story is told really good and is really easy to follow along to the story line. This book I would definitely recommend to someone else.
1. The author’s purpose of telling the story was to tell us the story of a girl, who has to go through her life seeing the man she loves married to her sister.
2. The theme of the book is how traditions in family are not always a good thing. Tita did everything she could to change the family tradition.
3. This is shown by everything that Tita does. When she hears that her sisters daughter is destined to take care of her mother until she dies, Tita is automatically heartbroken because she knows what its like to be in that position.
4. The main issue the book raises is that Tita’s mom wont let her get married because she’s the youngest of the family. Tita’s mom lets Tita’s sister, Rosaura, marry the guy.
1 comment June 2, 2009
“Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” Student Reviews 2009
The following are student reviews of “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” by Lewis Carroll.
Genre: Fantasy
Pages: 208
Reviewer: Hannah A.
Alice falls asleep under a tree and travels to a wonderland. When she’s asleep, she meets mad hatters, white rabbits, and a crazy queen. She is trying to get out the whole time, but she just can’t do it. It helped her realize that not al reality is as it seems.
I think it was written well and Lewis Carroll got his point across. It was hard to follow part of the time, and it was disturbing, but I liked it.
1. He wrote it for a little girl and her sister’s who had read the original text.
2. The theme of the book is that sometimes you can get carried away with things and sometimes reality is not the way it seems.
3. Alice starts off reading under a tree, unsuspecting of anything because she’s a young girl. She is then transported to Wonderland where she cannot figure out whether what she’s seeing is real or not, testing her judgment.
4. It addresses the fact that many things in reality are not as they seem, because they are all clouded by our judgment and because of the government. Lewis Carroll was showing this when Alice was in Wonderland because she wasn’t able to tell if what she was seeing was real or not.
Reviewer: Logan J.
Alice is a young girl that follows a white rabbit down a mysterious rabbit hole. After growing and shrinking many times, she is able to meet many strange characters. She encounters things that she has never heard of, while all the time forgetting who she is. After playing a frightening game of croquette with the Queen, she finally wakes up to find her sister watching over her. As Alice explains the dream to her sister, she wonders if it was really a dream or reality.
I really liked this book! I thought it was bizarre and twisted just enough. I know that my thinking pattern is a little different then others, so I completely understood the story and it was easy for me to follow. I can see where this book might be a little difficult for others to read, though. The language used is different from every day talk.
1. He wrote it to entertain a little girl that he knew.
2. The theme of this book is that reality is not always what it seems to be. It is also is not to as too many questions and interrupt. Alice did so and learned that it only get others that could help you upset at you. The thesis of the story is Alice is stuck in Wonderland, and she does not know how to get out.
3. Lewis Carroll develops this thesis by expressing Alice’s worries and having her ask directions from multiple people. She also constantly reminisces about her cat Dinah, “Oh, my cat Dinah”……. “Oh well Dinah would never….”
4. The main issue raised is “How is Alice going to get home?” Although the book is about her getting home, it seems as if the author really wants to make it difficult for her to do so. Carroll likes to pick fun and tease his main character, thinking that he would have liked to make Alice stay in Wonderland.
Reviewer: Savanah H.
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland follows the imaginative adventures that the main character, Alice, faces in her journey to go home. Her journey starts off as she adventures into a land that she is unfamiliar with. She goes through obstacles to get home. She faces many events that she is not familiar with, but she gets through the struggles. She realizes that her adventure only happened because she was dreaming and escaping her reality.
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll is a well written novel. It captures the reader’s interest and takes them on a journey in which they can possibly relate to their own dreams. I think that it expressed the imaginative mind of a child; I was able to relate her imagination to mine. The novel could have been longer; it would have been more page turning if it had more of an adventure to it. All in all it was a great book and interested me in many different ways.
1. Carroll’s purpose in writing this book was to show the imaginative minds of children.
2. The theme of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is imagination is key; without imagination one cannot enjoy life peacefully with relaxation.
3. The author, Lewis Carroll, uses the method of the literary element, imagery. He describes the scenery so well that the reader feels as if they are there.
4. The main issue that the book raises is that imagination can be a relaxing way to get away from reality. The stance that the book takes in resolving the issue is that being imaginative can relax one’s mind, but it can be taken to a beyond what is reasonable.
Add comment June 2, 2009
“The Last Olympian”
I have a brand new copy of this latest (and last—5th) installment of the “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” series by Rick Riordan. It’s a hardcover format. I thought it would be fun to give it away to any COHS student out there who is a Percy Jackson fan and may not have a copy. If any COHS student writes about why s/he likes the Percy Jackson series as a comment on this blog, I’ll give him or her the book. If more than one answers, I’ll choose my favorite answer.
I loved ‘The Last Olympian” as much as the rest of the Percy Jackson series. It’s action-pack from the first scene. Though this completes the series, this is an indication that we will see another series on heroes as the oracle gives this prophecy:
Seven half-bloods shall answer the call.
To storm or fire, the world must fall.
An oath to keep with a final breath,
And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death.
Add comment May 26, 2009
“A Kiss in Time”
A Kiss in Time
by Alex Flinn
Talia is a beautiful royal princess whose minor rebellion against her overprotective parents results in the very thing they fear most. She pricks her finger on a spindle and sends the entire kingdom of Euphrasia into a sleep that can only be broken by true love’s kiss. Jack is a twenty-first-century American slacker who has been sent by his parents to spend the summer in “sucky” Europe. Jack has an idea of what happens when you kiss a sleeping princess, but that doesn’t mean he’s ready for the result in this modern take on the classic tale of Sleeping Beauty.
JLG Review: A funny, irreverent romantic adventure, A Kiss in Time manages to skip between two very different characters’ points of view while still remaining sweet and engrossing. Alex Flinn handles the voices of her main characters (selfish, sulky Jack and spoiled, temperamental Talia)—and their subsequent transformations—with affection and good humor.
NOTE: COHS Titans–The above review is excerpted from the Junior Library Guild. (Meaning that I didn’t write it and don’t want to take credit from something I didn’t do!) We belong to the Junior Library Guild and purchase four books from them each month, so we have access to these reviews. I’m going to start posting excerpts from the reviews in the hope that you will see what great books we get from JLG–and come check them out! If you want to read the whole review, ask your English teacher. I have made copies for him or her to post in the classroom.
Add comment April 21, 2009
“The Sorcerer of the North”
“The Sorcerer of the North” (Book 5 in “The Ranger’s Apprentice” series) by John Flanagan
I’m sure this book—and the series—is being marketed as a guy’s book—which it is—but I loved it. In fact, I’ve read all five of the books in the series and recommend all of them to anyone interested in adventure or fantasy.
Though books 2-4 follow, chronologically, right on the heels of the last, book 5, “The Sorcerer of the North,” begins with five years having passed. Will is now a true Ranger on his own rather than just Halt’s apprentice.
Will is assigned to the Fief of Seacliffe, a place where there is little action, because he is new to the job and needs some practical experience. However, very soon he is called to a secret assignment. On the kingdom’s northern border, Castle Macindaw appears to be beset by sorcery. Even those who don’t believe in such stuff cannot attribute their problems, such as ghost sightings and possession by evil, to anything else. And Lord Orman, the son of the deathly-ill proprietor of the castle, appears to be involved in practicing dark arts.
Will is to discover what is happening by going in disguise as a roving musician. Alyss, also no longer an apprentice, but a Courier in her own right, is also dispatched when things get rough. She, too, is in disguise—as a dimwitted, self-centered woman of noble caste. She and Will are romantically interested in one another. Even some Skandians with evil intent (the treaty of the last book is in jeopardy) make an appearance.
Although I did miss some of the characters I’ve come to know, especially Princess Cassandra (and Halt until he finally appeared about halfway through the book), I liked seeing Will with more responsibility for his own fate.
Add comment January 7, 2009
