Search Results for: blog girl in a cage jane yolen and robert j harris

The Rainbow Goblins – Ul de Rico

I had The Rainbow Goblins book on my desk for several weeks now. I’ve been trying to figure out how to describe it. It’s a picture book. But I wouldn’t show it to young children. It’s a fairy tale where good triumphs greediness, but it’s message is subtle. I was first introduced to Ul de Rico’s The Rainbow Goblins by an art teacher with a masters degree in gifted education. She used the book to introduce lessons in color. The pictures are oil-on-oak panel paintings. The paintings have a unique vivid look, and also feel very magical and otherworldly. The … Continue reading →

Lady of the Roses – Sandra Worth

I’m a historical fiction junkie anyway, and “Lady of the Roses” was right up my alley. I truly enjoyed this read from a well-versed writer. Fifteen-year-old Isobel is an orphan, and her guardianship has been turned over to Marguerite d’Anjou, the Queen of England and wife to Henry VI. The War of the Roses wages on, with Lancastrians fighting against Yorkists. Isobel sides with the Lancastrians, and she fits in well at court. But when Sir John Neville arrives at court, he turns Isobel’s world upside down. They are instantly drawn toward each other, but he’s a York. Knowing their … Continue reading →

Beneath a Marble Sky – John Shors

“Beneath a Marble Sky” is the first novel for John Shors, but I would not have guessed it. His imagery is stunning, his word choice nearly flawless – I would have credited this book to a much more seasoned novelist. The book is a historical fiction set around the building of the Taj Mahal. We have all heard the story of the king who loved his wife dearly and was heartbroken when she died, and so he created a mausoleum in her memory and caused it to be the most beautiful building on earth. Shors took that kernel of information, … Continue reading →

Uglies – Scott Westerfeld

I have seen this young adult science fiction novel reviewed in countless places, and decided I’d better give it a try. It sounded interesting, but I didn’t expect to like it as much as I did. Tally Youngblood lives in Uglyville. Across the river, she can see New Pretty Town, where she will go to live in just a few short months. When she reaches her sixteenth birthday, she will undergo plastic surgery and all of her faults will be erased. She will be made absolutely lovely, and then she can go live in New Pretty Town, because she will … Continue reading →

What I Call Life – Jill Wolfson

“What I Call Life” is a young adult fiction novel set around the Pumpkin House, an orange building filled to the brim with foster children who operate under the care of the Knitting Lady. When Cal Lavender’s mother has another one of her “episodes,” this time in a public library, eleven-year-old Cal isn’t fazed. This is normal behavior for her mother. Soon she’ll snap out of it and everything will be fine, until the next time. But the authorities are called and Betty is taken off for treatment, while Cal is taken to the Pumpkin House. She doesn’t know what … Continue reading →

Mira, Mirror – Mette Ivie Harrison

We all know the story of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. But we don’t know a lot about the wicked queen, and we know even less about her magic mirror. “Mira, Mirror” by Mette Ivie Harrison takes us on a journey through a different perspective of the fairy tale, into the past of the wicked queen and that mirror. The book is told through the point of view of Mira, a young girl who doesn’t possess any real beauty of her own. She is sold to the neighborhood witch for a cord of firewood, and becomes an apprentice to … Continue reading →

Billy Creekmore – Tracey Porter

“Billy Creekmore” by Tracey Porter was an unexpected delight for me. The story of a young boy who was left at a cruel orphanage, I thought it would be depressing and gloomy. It did have depressing moments, but Billy’s spiritedness and determination to survive pulled it out of the gloom and made it remarkable. When Billy was born, he opened his eyes and gestured at the ceiling, saying, “There.” It shocked his midwife so much, she said he must be communing with spirits. His mother’s heart was weak to begin with, and she didn’t survive the birth, and his father … Continue reading →

Dealing with Dragons – Patricia C. Wrede

“Dealing with Dragons” is a simply delightful young adult fantasy about a princess named Cimorene. Like all princesses, she is expected to act with a certain amount of decorum and she’s being educated in very useful things like embroidery and how to get rescued by princes, although she never can remember when she’s supposed to scream and when she’s supposed to simper. She sneaks off to various parts of the castle and learns a little bit of magic, a little bit of sword play, and the basics of cooking, but her parents find out about her clandestine education and forbid … Continue reading →

A Summer to Die – Lois Lowry

Meg is not as beautiful or popular as her older sister Molly. She has always envied her sister’s golden hair, perfect complexion, and the way all the boys look at her. Meg’s the smart one, she is told, but that doesn’t do a whole lot to boost Meg’s self-confidence when she feels like she’ll never be pretty. Meg’s father is asked to write a book. Unable to work in town, he moves his family out to a small house in the country, and Meg and Molly must share a room. This is hard on both girls – Molly wants her … Continue reading →

Tennis Shoes Among the Nephites – Chris Heimerdinger

In the novel that launched LDS author Chris Heimerdinger’s successful career, we meet Jim Hawkins, a teenage boy who’s been in a lot of trouble lately. He’s causing heartache to his parents and grandmother with his attitude toward church, and he needs a wake-up call in the worst way. His grandmother, ever vigilant about her family, says a special prayer that something will happen to Jim that will bring the spirit into his life. Garth Plimpton is Jim’s exact opposite. Nerdy where Jim is cool (or at least, where Jim perceives himself to be cool) Garth has studied the scriptures … Continue reading →