Boys on My Bookshelf

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Morpheus Road: The Light

Morpheus Road Book One: The Light by D.J. MacHale

New York: Aladdin, 2010

ISBN: 9781416965169

341 pages

3 out of 5

Marshall Seaver is being haunted.

It begins with mysterious sounds, a fleeting face outside a window, a rogue breeze--all things that can be explained away. That is, until he comes face-to-face with a character who only exists on the pages of a sketchbook--a character Marshall himself created.

Marshall has no idea why he is being tormented by this forbidding creature, but he is quickly convinced it has something to do with his best friend, Cooper, who has gone missing. Together with Cooper's beautiful but aloof sister, Sydney, Marshall searches for the truth about his friend while ultimately uncovering a nightmare that is bigger and more frightening than he could ever have imagined.

Number one New York Times best-selling author D.J. MacHale launches his eerie new trilogy with a story so packed with chilling suspense, readers will want to sleep with the light on.

I disagree. Each ghostly episode feels like a carbon copy of the last, except the setting is different. I never felt myself get nervous for the characters when they were in danger. This is either the result of scenes not actually being frightening (at least from my point of view) or my not having concern for the characters (or both). Either way, it's not how I like to feel about a novel.

Basically, I feel the plot was not as strong as it could've been. There is a mystery element, which I admit it added up for me as the characters figured it out (a plus). But overall it felt weak. Some elements seemed tied in at the last minute that seemed they could have played a larger part. Perhaps these elements will be fleshed out further in the remaining titles, but it seems they could have had higher prominence at this point.

Another issue I had with the novel was the narrator. Most of the time Marsh's voice was consistent and believable. Occasionally it seemed like there were "oh yea, he's a teen" moments added in and it always threw me off the story. I like to get lost and getting tossed out makes it hard to do so.

So far this sounds like a not-so-good review, so why would I give it three stars? Two reasons: I kept reading and the ending. Although I encountered problems throughout the novel, it intrigued me enough to continue reading, and the ending sealed the deal. The next novel will not be at the top of my must read list, but I'm curious enough to take a look.

Sunday, September 5, 2010

In My Mailbox (3)

IMM is a meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren. She was inspired by Alea of Pop Culture Junkie. Since the idea is to share titles, I'm including everything.

Sorry for the lack of photos. It's been a long week.

Bought:

The Hunger Games , Catching Fire, and Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
(apparently I'm a freak for not reading these earlier)
Little Lord Fauntleroy by Frances Hodgson Burnett

Borrowed:
Slant by Laura Williams
The Thin Executioner by Darren Shan
To Heal the Heart of a Child: Helen Taussig, M.D. by Joyce Baldwin
Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science by John Fleischman

And WON!!! (So exciting!! I never win anything!)

Yummy: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty by G. Neri
Thanks so much to Ari of Reading in Color and Lee and Low Books!

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Do Not Pass Go

Do Not Pass Go by Kirkpatrick Hill

Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2007

ISBN: 9781416914006

229 pages

4 out of 5

Deet's world turns upside down when his father is arrested for drug use. It doesn't seem possible that kind, caring Dad could be a criminal! After all, he only took the pills to stay awake so he could work two jobs. Now what will happen? How will Deet be able to face his classmates? Where will they get money? And most importantly, will Dad be okay in prison?

Hurt, angry, and ashamed, Deet doesn't want to visit his father in jail. But when Mom goes back to work, Deet starts visiting Dad after school. It's frightening at first, but as he adjusts to the routine, Deet begins to see the prisoners as people with stories of their own, just like his dad. Deet soon realizes that prison isn't the terrifying place of movies and nightmares. In fact, Dad's imprisonment leads Deet to make a few surprising discoveries--about his father, his friends, and himself.

With moving realism, Kirkpatrick Hill brings to light the tumultuous experience of having a parent in jail in this honest and stirring story of a young man forced to grow up quickly.

This is one instance where I feel the above description does not do the novel justice. Most readers realize that these blurbs are meant to get your interest without giving away everything, but there are many more elements to this story that are more interesting than Deet visiting his father in jail. Don't get me wrong, the approach the novel takes to this subject is very compassionate and could be helpful to someone who's parent/other relative/friend has landed in jail for a non-violent crime.

The novel is set in a small town in Alaska, so when someone gets arrested everyone recognizes the name in the paper. This is something Deet is terribly afraid of, but Deet is terribly afraid of quite a few things. Deet's introduction actually establishes him as being a bit OCD and critical of the way his parents manage their lives. As the story progresses, Deet learns a lot about what it takes to keep up a household while keeping up with school.

One of my favorite elements from this book is the conversation between Deet and his English teacher. Throughout the novel Deet keeps a quotations notebook for class. He selects quotations and writes about that quote, and his English teacher responds. It's is through this "conversation" that Deet reveals what the experience has taught him.

As might be noticeable from my disconnected thoughts above, I'm having trouble writing about this book. I really enjoyed it. It's a book that I want to tell all about so to not ruin it I'm trying to keep my fingers in check.

This is a 2010-2011 Sunshine State Young Reader's Award nominee.

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Niceties

Just an FYI that my classes have started again so my posting schedule might have to change. Expect at least two days a week and I'll hopefully get to continue reading fun stuff along with not as fun stuff. For now, enjoy the cute kitty.