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Showing posts with label James Dashner. Show all posts
Showing posts with label James Dashner. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 19, 2015
TTT: Heading Back to School ... Wait, What?
A Top Ten Tuesday post is probably the last thing I should be publishing today, considering how behind I am on reviewing books. But, yeah. I just couldn't resist today's topic since it's a freebie. Yay!
My friend messaged me a bookish question on Facebook yesterday and I thought a Top Ten list would be the perfect way to answer her query. She will be starting her first year of teaching this Fall. As she's trying to collect books for her classroom library, she asked which titles I would recommend stocking for her upcoming 6th graders. This is a little tricky as kids this age want to read more mature books, but (in my opinion, anyway) they're not necessarily ready for hard-core YA novels yet. In fact, there's been a bit of a brouhaha at my kids' elementary school about the recent availability of teen books in the library. So, in thinking of volumes for a 6th grade classroom, I tried to come up with stories that are exciting/complex enough to hold an older reader's attention, while still being appropriate, especially for a school library. Be sure to let me know whether you agree or disagree with my choices and what additional books you would suggest to my friend. I'm sure she'd appreciate as much feedback as possible.
Before we get to that, though, why don't you join in the Top Ten Tuesday fun? It's super easy. Just go on over to The Broke and the Bookish, read the easy-peasy instructions, and jump on the bandwagon. It's a good time, I promise.
Now, on to my list. First of all, I would make sure I stocked lots of great classic lit, like The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis, The Diary of Anne Frank, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the Anne of Green Gables books by L.M. Montgomery, etc.
Assuming I already had those on hand, these are the Top Ten Books/Series I Would Buy for a Sixth Grade Classroom Library:
1. Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling—Most kids discover the wonders of Harry Potter long before sixth grade. If they haven't, they need to. This is also a series that kids (and adults!) love to re-read, so the more copies of the books a school has, the better.
2. The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins—Although these books are pretty violent and grim, it's a YA series that definitely appeals to middle grade readers. While it doesn't provide the most uplifting reading in the world, the series features books with tight prose, lots of action, and thought-provoking moral questions.
3. The Percy Jackson series (and spin-offs) by Rick Riordan—These books are popular with readers of all ages. Sixth graders love them as much as fourth graders do. Also, watch for Riordan's new series based on Norse mythology—the first book will be coming out in October, I believe.
4. The Lunar Chronicles series by Marissa Meyer—Although this is a YA series, it's squeaky clean. It's also got memorable characters, vivid writing, plenty of action/adventure, and a sci fi twist that makes it stand out from the crowd. Sure, the books are "re-booted" fairy tales, but there's plenty for both girls and boys to love about this series.
5. The Alex Rider series by Anthony Horowitz—When my son was in 5th and 6th grade, these books were his absolute favorite. Alex Rider is sort of a young James Bond. I haven't read any of the novels, but they're very popular at my kids' elementary school and come highly recommended by my son.
6. The Maze Runner series by James Dashner—Like #5, these books will appeal to reluctant readers, especially those of the male variety. With dystopian elements, a mystery, and lots of action/adventure, this series is another really popular one.
7. The Gallagher Girls series by Ally Carter—I don't know how much literary merit these books have, but who cares? They're clever, upbeat, and tons of fun. My 13-year-old daughter and I both adore this series.
8. The Unwind series and, really, anything by Neal Shusterman—If you read this blog on any kind of a regular basis, you already now that I'm a huge Shusterman fangirl. His books are complex, imaginative, and thought-provoking. I love the Unwind series best of all, but I also really recommend his Skinjacker series.
10. The Al Capone books by Gennifer Choldenko—I adore this trilogy about families living on Alcatraz Island during the time it housed a working prison (and a very famous inmate). It's a fascinating historical series that is unique, interesting and full of heart. I love it.
I could seriously go on and on about this subject! So, what do you think of my choices? Which books/series would you buy/not buy for a 6th grade classroom? I'd love to hear your answers and I know my friend would, too.
Happy TTT!
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
New 39 Clues-ish Series Off to a So-So Start
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(Image from Barnes & Noble)
I'm used to people asking me what I'm reading. Happens all the time. But, I can honestly say that I've never gotten that question from a young boy (one I didn't birth, anyway). I had to chuckle when I saw this kid sneaking covert glances at the cover of my book—A Mutiny in Time by James Dashner. When I showed it to him, he gasped. "Is that like, a new 39 Clues book?" he asked. I told him the Infinity Ring series was like 39 Clues, but not the same. To which the skeptical youth replied, "It really looks like a 39 Clues book." I proceeded to give him a point-by-point compare/contrast lecture on the differences and similarities between the two series (I didn't, really). Maybe I should have though, because I could tell the kid remained unconvinced. He really believed I was holding out on him. The encounter made me smile, not just because of the boy's hardheaded refusal to accept the fact that Scholastic might really be publishing a new 39 Clues-ish series, but because I could see the naked book hunger in his eyes. If I had been closer to finishing A Mutiny in Time, I swear I would have handed it over to the kid, just because I love putting shiny new stories into the hands of eager readers.
If you, like this boy, doubt my book smarts, let me tell you for sure and certain—the Infinity Ring series is not a 39 Clues spin-off. It's a brand new adventure series. Yes, the books are the same size and shape as the 39 Clues ones and yes, each volume will be written by a different children's author. Like 39 Clues, the Infinity Ring also has an online game that lets you interact with the story even more. I'm sure there are even more similarities, but since I haven't actually read any of the 39 Clues books (Shhh—don't tell the kid), I don't know what they might be.
How about this—I'll give you a little plot summary and you can decide for yourself:
Junior high school students Dak Smyth and Sera Froste are best friends and fellow geniuses. One day, they decide to sneak into the lab of Dak's scientist parents. There, they discover the Infinity Ring, a gadget that seems to be designed to catapult a person backward and forward in time. Theoretically, anyway. The device doesn't actually work. That is, until Sera gets hold of it. With her super brain, she manages to make the gizmo work, a feat which astonishes the adult Smyths. Not to mention freaks them out, because now that the invention is functioning, it's bound to bring them all kinds of unwanted attention. Which is exactly what happens. Several different organizations want the Infinity Ring so badly that they're willing to do almost anything to get it. In order to save Dak's parents, who are now lost somewhere in time, Dak and Sera agree to help the Hystorians, an ancient group whose members are tasked with fixing moments in history that have gone awry. Mending these little errors turns out to be no small job. Are Dak and Sera up to the challenge? Or will the Smyths be lost in time forever?
Although there's nothing especially original about A Mutiny in Time, it's still a fun, fast-moving adventure that's going to keep young readers entertained while teaching them a little history at the same time. I would have liked better developed characters, snappier dialogue and some surprising twists and turns, but, yeah, I guess I'll have to wait for the next few books in the series to get that. Overall, I'm not blown away by the series start. It's got potential, though, so we'll see where it goes ...
(Readalikes: Reminds me of other time travel series for kids, like The Magic Treehouse books by Mary Pope Osborne [although the Infinity Ring series is geared toward a little bit older readers])
Grade: C+
If this were a movie, it would be rated: PG for scenes of peril
To the FTC, with love: I received an ARC of A Mutiny in Time as well as a finished copy (which I donated to the library at my children's elementary school) thanks to the very generous folks at Scholastic. Thank you!
Although there's nothing especially original about A Mutiny in Time, it's still a fun, fast-moving adventure that's going to keep young readers entertained while teaching them a little history at the same time. I would have liked better developed characters, snappier dialogue and some surprising twists and turns, but, yeah, I guess I'll have to wait for the next few books in the series to get that. Overall, I'm not blown away by the series start. It's got potential, though, so we'll see where it goes ...
(Readalikes: Reminds me of other time travel series for kids, like The Magic Treehouse books by Mary Pope Osborne [although the Infinity Ring series is geared toward a little bit older readers])
Grade: C+
If this were a movie, it would be rated: PG for scenes of peril
To the FTC, with love: I received an ARC of A Mutiny in Time as well as a finished copy (which I donated to the library at my children's elementary school) thanks to the very generous folks at Scholastic. Thank you!
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
WICKED, You've Got Some 'Splaining to Do ...
(Image from Indiebound)
(Note: While this review will not contain spoilers for The Scorch Trials, it may inadvertently reveal plot surprises from The Maze Runner. As always, I recommend reading books in a series in order.)
Thomas and the other Gladers thought beating the maze would be the end - of their confusion, of their suffering, of their fear. They thought wrong. Escaping the maze brought a little respite, but not much and not for long. Now they are, once again, fighting for survival in a treacherous arena, under the watchful eye of WICKED. Once again, they have no choice. Once again, they're battling for their lives.
In The Scorch Trials, James Dashner continues expanding the world he introduced in The Maze Runner. It's a world gone wrong, a world where the too-hot sun beats down on the Earth, relentlessly frying everything in its path. It's a world where a deadly virus has been unleashed, ravaging the few humans that remain. It's a world controlled, but not totally, by WICKED. As Thomas and the other boys navigate the strange landscape, they will encounter everything from zombies to blistering heat to homicidal, man-made monsters. If they survive, they win both information and freedom. If they don't
, well, death might be a kinder alternative to life in this crazy new version of the world.
While The Maze Runner offers some heart-pumping action, The Scorch Trials kicks it up a notch. Or two. Or ten. The book's an intense, action-paced thrill ride that just doesn't stop. Ever. I raced through it as fast as I could to see if - and how - the Gladers would survive this impossible challenge. WICKED's cruel manipulations throughout the "trial" make the story even more twisty and turny. I loved all the conflict and intrigue, so much so that I almost didn't realize how little the overall plot advances in this volume of the series. Because, really, we don't learn a whole lot about WICKED, its intentions, or even the overall state of the destroyed world. A little bit, yes, but not a lot, which left me a mite disappointed in a novel I otherwise really enjoyed. Still, I'm counting down the days until October 11, when The Death Cure makes its appearance, and all the answers are finally revealed. All I can say is, WICKED, you've got some 'splaining to do ...
(Readalikes: The Maze Runner by James Dashner and The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins)
Grade: B-
To the FTC, with love: I bought The Scorch Trials with some of the millions I make from my lucrative career as a book blogger. Ha ha.
Monday, January 24, 2011
This Dashner Dude Has Potential, Methinks
(Image from Indiebound)
Atticus "Tick" Higginbottom has always lived a fairly ordinary existence, until o
ne day, it takes a turn for the super strange. When the 13-year-old receives a mysterious letter in the mail, he's sure it's a joke. Except that something about the cryptic message seems almost ... familiar. And yet, it makes no sense at all. Nor do all the strange things that are suddenly happening to Tick. Or the funny people he encounters in the woods outside his home. The more clues he gets, the more anxious he feels - some crazy, catastrophic event is coming and he still can't figure out what it is or how he's supposed to prevent it from happening.
ne day, it takes a turn for the super strange. When the 13-year-old receives a mysterious letter in the mail, he's sure it's a joke. Except that something about the cryptic message seems almost ... familiar. And yet, it makes no sense at all. Nor do all the strange things that are suddenly happening to Tick. Or the funny people he encounters in the woods outside his home. The more clues he gets, the more anxious he feels - some crazy, catastrophic event is coming and he still can't figure out what it is or how he's supposed to prevent it from happening.
When Tick sends out a plea on the Internet, he finds two other kids who are also receiving confusing messages. Together, they piece together a very odd story, one that involves alternate realities, a greedy bald lady, time travel, and even more confounding clues. Only one thing is clear: life as they know it will be altered forever unless Tick and his friends can figure out how to stop a powerful villain. But that will require courage. And cunning. Tick can't even stand up to the kids who bully him at school. How can a kid like him be expected to save the world?
Although James Dashner may be most well-known for his YA dystopian novels (The Maze Runner, The Scorch Trials), he began his career writing middle grade fantasy. The 13th Reality: The Journal of Curious Letters is the first book he published nationally, and the beginning of what promises to be an intriguing series. Although the story crawls along at times, it is, for the most part, an exciting adventure that will appeal to both boys and girls. The writing's so-so, but there's enough mystery and humor to keep children engaged. Like I mentioned, though, it does drag in places - by the time we hit about Page 300, my kids were bored with the whole thing. Neither one wanted me to finish reading the book to them. I ended up reading the finale on my own. Although the book could definitely use some slimming down, I enjoyed it for the most part. The sequels don't hold any interest for my kids, but I'll be checking them out. This Dashner dude has potential, methinks.
(Readalikes: Other than the other books in the series, I'm not sure what to compare the book to. Any suggestions?)
Grade: C
If this were a movie, it would be rated: PG for fantasy violence
To the FTC, with love: I bought The 13th Reality: The Journal of Curious Letters using a portion of the millions I make from my lucrative career as a book blogger. Ha ha.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Though Reminiscent of The Hunger Games, The Maze Runner Offers Its Own Thrills
(Image from Barnes & Noble)Who: Dozens of teenage boys, one a month for the last two years
What: Thrust into the Glade, a walled fortress surrounded by a complicated stone maze with no discernible end
Where: If there's anything beyond the maze, the boys have yet to find it.
When: Memories of the "real" world - time, space, all that - are vague at best.
Why: That's the biggest question of all, isn't it?
When Thomas awakes in the dark of a moving elevator, he knows only one thing: his name. He can't remember his age, his address, his family - nothing. Only the vaguest of memories linger in his mind. And no matter how hard he searches its empty recesses, he can find no explanation for his arrival in this strange new world called the Glade. Dozens of boys already live in the ramshackle community, but nobody knows why they've been brought here. All they know is that every night the impregnable stone walls around the place close by themselves. And the boys are mighty glad to be locked in their fortress. What lies beyond is an impossible stone maze guarded b
y strange, bloodthirsty monsters. The Glade is hardly heaven, but what awaits outside it is, most certainly, hell.
y strange, bloodthirsty monsters. The Glade is hardly heaven, but what awaits outside it is, most certainly, hell.Despite the fact that his memory's been emptied, Thomas has a disconcerting feeling that he's been in the Glade before. He can't figure it out, he just knows he belongs here somehow. He also knows he can't stay. None of them can, a fact which becomes crystal clear when, for the first time, a girl crawls out of the elevator. The strange event can only signal one thing: things are changing in the Glade. And not for the better. No one knows how to solve the maze, no one knows what - if anything - lies beyond it, no one knows how to defeat the creatures that roam its corridors. Leaving the Glade is suicide, but Thomas has to try. The questions ricocheting inside his brain need answers and he'll stop at nothing to get them.
Reminiscent of The Hunger Games, James Dashner's The Maze Runner introduces a violent new world where teenagers fight for survival every day of their lives. Dashner's characters, of course, know very little about the whys and wherefores that structure their new existence, which is the primary reason this book works so well. It's a modge podge of genres - mystery, adventure, dystopian, sci fi - blending together to create a story that's both intriguing and exciting. If Suzanne Collins had never burst onto the YA scene with her blockbuster trilogy, I would have found Dashner's series a lot more original. As is, the idea feels familiar, but certainly not wrung out. I did want a lot more freshness from this book, especially when it came to character development, dialogue and general wordplay. Still, the plot kept me guessing. And reading. And rooting for our doomed, but going-down-fighting heroes. So while I much prefer Katniss Everdeen to Dashner's ragtag cast, I still enjoyed The Maze Runner. Rumor says Book Two, The Scorch Trials, is even better. I happen to have me a copy. Guess what I'll be doing today?
(Readalikes: The Scorch Trials by James Dashner; The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins; also reminded me a little of the Gone series by Michael Grant)
Grade: C
If this were a movie, it would be rated: PG for violence/intense situations and very vague sexual innuendo. While there are no real American cuss words in the book, the boys have their own lingo, some of which is reminiscent of modern profanity.
To the FTC, with love: I bought The Maze Runner with a portion of the millions I make from my lucrative career as a book blogger. Hee hee.
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