Department of Mind-Blowing Theories by Tom GauldMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
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Wednesday, April 29, 2020
Thursday, April 16, 2020
Saturday, April 11, 2020
Review: Amelia Westlake Was Never Here
Amelia Westlake Was Never Here by Erin GoughMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
This isn't a review so much as a musing, as I am only about 1/3 of the way through the book.
I sometimes wonder why most of my friends look askance at YA or young teen books. There is a lot of depth and relevance to them, even if their target audience is younger than we are. In this case, I am thinking about the similarities between Will and Harriet and the warring factions of my own self. For most of my life, I tried to be Harriet - the good girl, the one who follows the rules, does well at playing the academic and professional game. But lately, I am much more tempted by my Will side - the one who sees injustice, complacency, and wrong, and refuses to shut up about it. There is a lot to think about, with the story mirroring some of my own problems. What does it mean to be a good friend? What does it mean to be a good person?
______
I have now finished the whole book and, while I still feel it has some very interesting insights for me, I will acknowledge that it is definitely more of a YA book than I thought at first. That isn't bad, as it is designed to appeal to the typical YA audience, but it does have a few characteristics that would make it less appealing for adults. The hijinks and tricks do get a bit much after a while. And the adults are a bit less nuanced than I might wish. Overall, I still really like the book and would recommend it. And, its primary appeal for me is still the same: the tension between doing what is right and following the rules. I am especially glad that the ideas of being a good friend and being a good person are addressed in several ways, for each of the characters.
And my antenna are always out to see how parents and other adults are treated in Australian YA literature, especially to notice what is different from how they are treated in American books for the same audience. This book seems to treat the adults at the school similarly to how American books would treat them, but the parents, especially Will's mother are treated as I see many Australian books do: the parent doesn't disappear, so that the child may solve her problems on her own, rather the parent is there and seen, but doesn't take a hand in the action until she is asked. Harriet's school friend's parents - though only shown briefly at the end - are similarly supportive.
Overall, interesting and a good read.
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Wednesday, April 8, 2020
Review: Amelia Westlake
Amelia Westlake by Erin GoughMy rating: 0 of 5 stars
This isn't a review so much as a musing, as I am only about 1/3 of the way through the book.
I sometimes wonder why most of my friends look askance at YA or young teen books. There is a lot of depth and relevance to them, even if their target audience is younger than we are. In this case, I am thinking about the similarities between Will and Harriet and the warring factions of my own self. For most of my life, I tried to be Harriet - the good girl, the one who follows the rules, does well at playing the academic and professional game. But lately, I am much more tempted by my Will side - the one who sees injustice, complacency, and wrong, and refuses to shut up about it. There is a lot to think about, with the story mirroring some of my own problems. What does it mean to be a good friend? What does it mean to be a good person?
View all my reviews
Friday, March 20, 2020
Wednesday, March 18, 2020
Tuesday, February 25, 2020
Review: Wally the Wordworm
Wally the Wordworm by Clifton FadimanMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Another book I wanted to like more than I actually did. I love the idea that authors shouldn't shy away from using big words, because the big words help a child want to learn them. But I prefer the big words to be used in the service of the story, not just left dangling there as enticement to look them up in a dictionary or on the Internet. A few of the words are used correctly, a few more are explained with the text or the illustrations, but many are just thrown in there because they are weird or interesting. They are left hanging out there with no real purpose.
The other thing is that the words don't come in any particular order. They jump around all through the dictionary and it makes no story sense why one word appears where it does and the next one follows. They are neither linked in sequence or in a reasonable story line.
I like idea. I like the illustrations. I think the book could have been better.
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