Alex's This and That

The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I reread The Outsiders after watching the Great American Read. I had read it as a teen and reread it some years later as well. I know many people said they identified with Ponyboy and the others, but nothing in my teens was remotely like their lives. I grew up in a rural area and never knew any 'greasers'. if we had them, I never knew anything about it. I also have not ever really identified with any of the other great 'coming of age' books either, books like Catcher in the Rye or A Separate Peace.

Having said all that, the narrative is compelling and does leave on a hopeful note about life and family.



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MARVEL's Avengers: Infinity War: The Heroes' Journey by Marvel

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This was actually decent in between the movies book. Written for kids, it still reads well and is a good tale. It was the first book I'd read in this verse and liked it fairly well. But then I am a huge fan of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It features, Roger, Romanov and Wilson, Tony Stark, Thor, Dr. Strange, Wong and a pretty good chapter about Nebula.





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A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This book was fantastic!

If i have read Le Guin before, I do not remember it.

This was the FIRST fantasy novel of its kind written expressly for teens though I see it as more universal than that. It is the story of Ged, a young sorcerer who learns how little he knows when he attempts things beyond his skill or knowledge and creates a shadow that he must deal with before he can do anything.

several people at the book group that I am in found it old fashioned but I found it wonderful without all the flowery and useless language of modern fantasy.

Loved it and will read more Le Guin.



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The House on the Cliff by Franklin W. Dixon

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


These boys lead action packed lives! Helping their father catch smugglers this time, Frank and Joe with the help of their school pals, take on drug smugglers who use an old pirate's hideout to evade the authorities.

These are a simple, fast reads and the stories are action packed! I think they are a bit dated but if people can read about vampires and zombies, then a couple of straight laced boys shouldn't be too much of a challenge!





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Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Someone on Dreamwidth mentioned loving this book so I decided to give it a try. It's about a girl, her freshman year at college, writing fanfiction and boys.

I don't remember ever being so young at 18 and I'm not entirely sure I was. They seem so young and silly in some ways. I guess part of that is I never had all that dorm and sorority junk. I went to a Community college for 2 years, got married and went to a university the other 2 years as a 'townie'. I was a grown woman with a home and a husband. I had no time for much else.

The fanfiction bit is about a story that is a knockoff of Harry Potter, which I never really got into. Never saw the charm of grown women writing stories about a bunch of kids and their very strange teachers... and never could see Harry as anything more than a child.

So I did not actually identify with Cather OR her fanfiction so much, but it was still a nice book. The characters were sweet and so young and adorable.



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Death Is Like a Box of Chocolates by Kathy Aarons

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Not a bad cozy... a chocolate/book store! What more could a person want than coffee, chocolates and books? Michelle and her best friend own this store and end up being amateur sleuths as well when the neighbor is murdered. It has the obligatory 'town like Mayberry' which amuses me since I live near, Mount Airy, the town that Mayberry was actually based on. There are LOTS of secrets in the tiny town and we get to find out several of them.

This one moved fast and kept me turning pages right up until the end. Oh and it has recipes in the back.

Wonder if Coco shows up in the other two?





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Murder in an English Village by Jessica Ellicott

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This book was a complete delight! It was set in the UK in the 1920s. Beryl is an American adventuress who decides she needs a little quiet and shows up at the home of her old school friend, Edwina. Ed is as staid and steady as Beryll is wild and unfettered and the two fo them set about solving mysteries. They are sweet and funny and so is their little town, Walmsley Parma. The characters are delightful and some are even more than delightful - wait'll you meet the 'gardener'!

Jessica Ellicott is a new author to me but I am certainly going to read more of her books. She writes under several names and has several different types of mysteries!

I can't wait for the next one!



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A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I knew this book would break my heart... I just had no idea how many times. It's a simple book about a simple man and the complicated life he ends up with. It's about love and loss and mostly about life. Ove is man who wants few things, but mostly he wants to be left alone by everyone.

When new neighbors move in, it become obvious that he will not be left alone. Ever again.

I laughed and cried as his story unfolded slowly, weaving the past and present into the story of a A man called Ove.

Read it. It's worth the time.



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