Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Book Review: Moonstone by Marilee Brothers

Here is another teen with magical powers book.  Everyone seems to be trying to cash in on the Twilight/Harry Potter craze.  I don't know why  authors seems to be unable to have an original idea.  I really think that young adults would be happy with a book that doesn't involve witches, werewolves, or vampires.  OK, I will now remove myself from the soapbox and continue my review.

Moonstone is centered around our heroine, Allie.  Allie has no idea that "magic" really exists, let alone that she has a destiny intertwined with the magical world.  Much like other popular teen magic stories, Allie comes from a broken home with a mother that seems to be a "good-for-nothing."  Thus, she has grown up faster that the average teen and has many adult like responsibilities.

The characters in Moonstone are fully developed even if several of them are unlikeable.   I found myself really detesting some of the lazier characters in the story.  I don't often find myself disliking a book because of secondary characters but this may be one of the exceptions.  That being said, I did like how real the characters actions were in different situations.  Allie seems to struggle with some of her decisions to be good.  She also isn't always nice to everyone.  Come on, who in the real world is always perky and sweet?  I also liked her love interest in the story.  He isn't your typical prince charming type.  He is an ex-gang member whom the police and everyone else thinks is still trouble.

Would I recommend this book?  I think I would recommend it to a real young adult but not to other adults that like reading juvenile fiction.  Will I read the other two books in the series?  Yes, but only when I'm wanting something simple and quick to read without the need to invest much into it.

I received a copy of The Moonstone Series from Bell Bridge Books through Netgalley.com for review.  I was not required to give a favorable review and all views are my own.

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Book Review: Surprised By Laughter: The Comic World of C.S. Lewis by Terry Lindvall Ph.D.

Here is another one of those hard reviews.  I hate writing about books that I didn't like.  I'm always afraid that someone will not give a book a good look if I say that it was awful.  Do you like how much faith I have in my power of influence?   That being said, I did not like this book even one little bit.

When I read the description of this book, I was excited.  What do you think?

All of his life, C. S. Lewis possessed a spirit of individuality. An atheist from childhood, he became a Christian as an adult and eventually knew international acclaim as a respected theologian. He was known worldwide for his works of fiction, especially the Chronicles of Narnia; and for his books on life and faith, including Mere Christianity, A Grief Observed, and Surprised by Joy. But perhaps the most visible difference in his life was his abiding sense of humor. It was through this humor that he often reached his readers and listeners, allowing him to effectively touch so many lives.
Terry Lindvall takes an in-depth look at Lewis's joyful approach toward living, dividing his study of C. S. Lewis's wit into the four origins of laughter in Uncle Screwtape's eleventh letter to a junior devil in Lewis's The Screwtape Letters: joy, fun, the joke proper, and flippancy. Lindvall writes, "One bright and compelling feature we can see, sparking in his sunlight and dancing in his moonlight, is laughter. Yet it is not too large to see at once because it inhabited all Lewis was and did." 

Doesn't that sound like a look into all the funny things C.S. Lewis did and  was inspired by?  Well, that's what I thought it was going to be about.  It turns out to be a much more serious look into the study of laughter and humor in general.  It does refer to Lewis but isn't about Lewis.  I'll be honest, I didn't make it through the third chapter.  I had to force myself to read that far.

So,  if you are looking for a study and discussion on laughter & humor and how C.S. Lewis used it, this may be a good book for you.  It is not for you if you are looking for a light hearted look at Lewis' life.


 Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
 




























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Terry Lindvall takes an in-depth look at Lewis's joyful approach toward living, dividing his study of C. S. Lewis's wit into the four origins of laughter in Uncle Screwtape's eleventh letter to a junior devil in Lewis's The Screwtape Letters: joy, fun, the joke proper, and flippancy. Lindvall writes, "One bright and compelling feature we can see, sparking in his sunlight and dancing in his moonlight, is laughter. Yet it is not too large to see at once because it inhabited all Lewis was and did."
Surprised by Laughter reveals a Lewis who enjoyed the gift of laughter, and who willingly shared that gift with others in order to spread his faith.

Monday, February 13, 2012

Book Review: Eye of the Sword by Karyn Henley

This book is the second book in the Angelaeon Circle series.  It will be released on March 14, 2012.  Not having read the first book in the series I was a bit leery about how well I'd like this one.  I've found that you spend a good amount of time trying to fill in the blanks in the storyline.  I am happy to say that this book did a good job of making a stand alone story.

The hero of our story is Trevin.  He serves as a comain (like knight) to King Laetham.  He is also in love with the princess Melaia.  We follow Trevin on his quest to prove his worth to the King and Melaia.  The quest is full of good and evil, as any good quest does. Here is an excerpt from the back of the book.


To prove himself worthy of a princess, Trevin must first defeat the terror of his past.

In Camrithia, a land of shadows and mystical secrets, Trevin lives to serve King Laetham. But his heart belongs to the princess, Melaia. When the king sends Trevin on a dangerous quest to find the missing comains, he must leave Melaia to the advances of a swaggering Dregmoorian prince.

Challenged to prove his worth, Trevin throws himself into his quest. Challenged to prove his love, Trevin undertakes a second mission—find the harps Melaia seeks in order to restore the stairway to heaven. Through fire caves, rogue winds, and murderous threats, Trevin remains steadfastly dedicated to his quest—even when he is falsely accused of a heinous crime. As Trevin’s time runs out, he realizes he must face the shame and horror of his own past and the terror-dream that has come to life. Will he have the courage to finish what he has started?

This is a Christian book aimed at the young adult market.  I thought that it was a very entertaining story.  I'm even going to get the first in the series.  It was that interesting.  I liked the setting, being set in a medieval type land.  I liked the characters being human, angels, immortals, or some combination of the two. 

If you or your young reader likes action/adventure tales, this is a good choice.  I'm sure they would be happy with it.

I received this book for review from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishers.  All opinions are my own and I was not obligated to give a positive review.

Friday, February 3, 2012

February Books

Here is the stack of books waiting to be read by me this month.  I'm not so sure I'm going to be able to get through all of them.  Let's talk about them from the bottom up.  Shall we?

Choosing Simplicity:  Real People Finding Peace and Fulfillment in a Complex World by Linda Breen Pierce--  I've started reading this one and so far it is AWESOME.  It has individuals stories about how they came to desire the simple lifestyle.  It features all kinds of different levels of simplicity so you can find someone to relate.    I did have to put this book away because it was make me sad that I couldn't do, right now, all the things that I want to.  I will continue to pick it up and read but only in short bursts.  That is all I can handle right now.

Surprised by Laughter: The Comic World of C.S. Lewis by Terry Lindvall-- I received this book to review.  It is about C.S. Lewis and his "joyful approach to life."  Well, I must admit to struggling with this one.  I'm two chapters into it and it is just talking about how laughter impacts us.  It hasn't been the biography type book, that I thought it was going to be, at all yet.  I will be posting a review of it later.  Right now, I'm forcing myself to read a chapter here and there.  UGH! I hope it improves soon.

Water For Elephants by Sara Gruen--  I feel like I'm the late one on this book.  I've read the first chapter and it really caught my attention.  The character of Jacob already feels very real.  I'm excited to get back to this one.  I had to put it aside while I finished up a book from last month.

Eat Here: Homegrown Pleasures in a Global Supermarket by Brian Halweil-- This one has been on my wish list for a while.  It looks at the local food movement.  It, also, discusses the current world wide food delivery system and how it effects local farmers.  I'm excited to read this one and hope it motivates me to buy more local items.

Eye of the Sword: A Novel (The Angelaeon Circle) by Karyn Henley--  Another one that I've received to review.  This is the second in a series.  I have not read the first one.  I'm hoping that this won't be a problem.  After reading the first chapter,  it looks to be a good one.  It seems like a Christian Sci-Fi.  I'm a sucker for a good knight, princess, angel, evil monster book.  I think this one will be a quick read.

Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin-- I got introduced to this book by a recommendation from a patron of paperbackswap.com.  I have already finished this one.  It was a quick one-day read.  I really enjoyed it.  The story is about a 15 y/o girl who dies unexpectedly.  We then follow her into the afterlife.  The authors depiction of the afterlife was one that I hadn't really seen before and I thought it was a good one.  If you like Young Adult Fiction, then you should give this one a look.

Mrs. Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs-- The picture above is of my Kindle.  I am in the middle of this unusual book.  I'm really enjoying it so far.  Why this book is so unusual is that it uses pictures, snapshots, to help enhance the story.  Even on the Kindle this adds a whole new level to the believability of a fantasy book.  This is another one that I think should be a quick read.  I haven't managed to make it quick but it's my first on the e-reader and I'm still getting used to it.

Bard: The Odyssey of the Irish by Morgan Llywelyn-- This one I haven't really investigated very much.  I've read other books by Morgan Llywelyn and really liked the detail and history included.  This one being about a bard and Irish, I just couldn't pass it up.

Well, that is quite a list for the short month of February.  We will see if I can manage to get them all in during the self-imposed time limit.  Upon reading back over this post, I've discovered that I read the first chapter of many books.  I didn't realize that I did that before.  Even at the ripe old age of 41, we can still learn things about ourselves.