Saddest Book I've Ever Read

July 2, 2009

The Shadow in the North

 

 

I recently read a book with a sad ending that got me thinking about the saddest book I have ever read.  I really don't like sad books so I don't read that many, but I think the winner would have to be Shadow in the North by Philip Pullman.  By the end of the book I was so sad I refused to read the third book in the trilogy for years and years.  I won't spoil it and tell you why it is so sad, but trust me it is.  What is the saddest book you have read? 

Jamie

Featured Review: My Sister's Keeper

July 2, 2009
My Sister's Keeper Author: Jodi Picoult
Bibliographic Information: Published 2004, 423 pages
Genre/Subject: General Fiction
Call number: Fiction, HS, HS PBK

Anna was born as amarrow donor for her sister Katie. When her parents ask Anna for one of her kidneys to give to Katie, Anna sues her parents.

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To Finish or Not to Finish?

June 29, 2009

Book Worm by BrittanyCulver

People's comments on the "To Peek or Not to Peek" post earlier reminded me of another question I have been wanting to ask you guys: 

If you are reading a book just for fun - i.e., not for a school assignment - and you realize after a few pages that you are just not enjoying it very much, do you:

a) Quit that book and try another one because this is your free time and you deserve a FUN book?

or

b) Power on through to the end because something about the book attracted you to it in the first place and you want to see if it gets better?

or

c) Slog on through to the end because when you start a book, you always finish it, no matter what?

Feel free to go back and leave a comment on the "To Peek or Not to Peek?" post, too.

Hope

("Book Worm" photo, above, by BrittanyCulver and found in the Creative Commons section of Flickr.com)

PS - I know it's time for another Featured Review.  That will be next, I promise!

Do You Have a Favorite Genre?

June 27, 2009

Yesterday was a very busy day here at the library.  Lots of teens were looking for books from their school's required summer reading list.  Lots of other teens were looking for something good to read just for fun.  Three different people asked me specifically for mysteries.

And that got me wondering: do YOU have a favorite genre?  And if so, what is it? 

For example, when you have the chance to read whatever you want, do you usually choose mysteries?  Or fantasy?  Or sports books?  Or historical fiction?

Or do you read a lot of different kinds of books, depending on your mood?

Hope

("Barcelona Detective" photo by saxsolrac taken from the Creative Commons area of Flickr.com)

Your Alternate Universe?

June 23, 2009

This week I read a new science fiction novel called The Walls of the Universe.  It was written by Paul Melko.  It is about a teenager named John who goes out to the barn one morning to feed the animals as usual, but this time he finds...himself lurking in the shadows!  The other John ("John Prime") is a version of John from an alternate universe.

John Prime shows John the device that is strapped to his chest.  That is how he got to this universe and many others, each of them sort of the same as, and sort of different from, this one.  John Prime offers to let John try the device for himself.  John can't resist the adventure.

The only problem is, John Prime neglected to mention that the device only goes forward.  There is no way for John to return to his own universe!

Now that John is out of the way, John Prime plans to make a fortune in John's universe by "inventing" the Rubiks Cube.  He also plans to hit on the cheerleader that John has been too shy to speak to. She is a part of almost every universe that John Prime has visited, and he is therefore quite comfortable talking to her now.

In the meantime, John travels from universe to universe, sometimes barely escaping danger as he tries to figure out how the device works and how he can get home.

The Walls of the Universe is a real page-turner - a fun, fast-paced read. 

It got me thinking about who and what would be the constants in my universes, if I could travel from one to another.  Would my library co-workers show up in every other world, for example?  I also wonder how I would be different or the same from one universe to the other.  Would I be richer than I am now, for example?  Would there be no clean, hot, running water?  (Sadness!)

What about you?  If you could visit yourself in an alternate universe, what do you suppose would be the same about you and your life?  What do you hope or fear would be different.

Hope

("Pinwheel Galaxy" photo above by Ethan Hein)