Book Review: How To Ruin A Summer Vacation by Simone Elkeles

How to Ruin A Summer Vacation by Simone Elkeles
Pages: 234
Location: YA Fiction


Summary: Amy Nelson lives with her mother and tolerates her father on those very rare occasions when he calls her for five minutes or tries to see her.  Basically, she's written him off and kept him out of her life, which doesn't seem to bother him one bit. 

Then out of the blue, Amy gets a call from her father.  He wants her to spend the summer in Israel with him so she can meet his side of the family.  Of course, Amy doesn't want to go.  Even though her father is Israeli and Jewish, she isn't so she doesn't want to waste the summer with a bunch of people she doesn't know. 

However, after talking to a friend, Amy finally decides to take her father up on his offer.  Israel is very different from Chicago, where Amy grew up.  There is only one bathroom in a house full of people.  Everyone has weird names.  Her cousin doesn't seem to like her.  It seems as though it will be a long summer. 

But then Amy meets Avi.  Well, she falls on him.  And since he's friends with her cousin, he keeps turning up.  Amy can't stand him and his arrogant attitude.  She might even hate him.  He's cute and every thing but...well, he's really cute...OK he's super hot, but a jerk, right?  Right?

Amy's trip goes from being long and boring, to ending way too fast.  Will she see Avi again?  Does she really want to?

Review:  This was a fun, fast read.  For the most part, Amy is a really likable character.  She definitely has her flaws and she can be a little too obnoxious or needlessly stubborn sometimes, but these flaws make her character seem more real and believable. 

Reading about Israel was interesting, especially because had points of views from a westerner (Amy) and native Israelis (her family and their friends).  The reader really does learn a lot about Israel and Israeli culture but none of it reads like a textbook or travel guide.  The information is given in a natural way through conversation and observations.

And the slow building relationship between Amy and Avi will keep you flipping pages.   There is definite animosity and dislike between the two at the beginning and right up to the end, even though their relationship has slowly changed, you still don't know if they are going to end up liking each other or totally hating each other.

Bottom line:  If you like romance, foreign lands, and a fun, light reads then definitely check out How to Ruin a Summer Vacation by Simone Elkeles.

War for the Oaks by Emma Bull

Here we have another Save Us book.  War for the Oaks by Emma Bull is in danger of ending up in the Used Book Sale.  Are you willing to try to save it?

Where to begin.  There is a lot in this book.  We may as well start with the cover - another lackluster affair.

It may not look spectacular, but the cover features two key elements of the story - a dog and the mean streets of Minneapolis. 

Eddi McCandry sings rock and roll.  But her boyfriend just dumped her, her band just broke up, and life could hardly be worse.  Then, walking home through downtown Minneapolis on a dark night (just like on the cover!) she finds herself drafted into an invisible war between the faerie folk.  Now, more than her own survival is at risk - and her won preferences, musical and personal, are very much beside the point.

See, Eddi is walking home when she discovers she is being followed by a phouka - a man who spends part of his time as a dog (just like on the cover!).  This man/dog/phouka has been appointed Eddi's guardian.  There is a war between the Seelie and Unseelie Faeries and Eddi has been drafted by the Seelie Court  because of a great power in her soul.

See?  There is a lot here.  But it is a lot of awesome.  This book has music and fantasy and will keep you flipping pages to see how things will end.

Check this book out and give it a second chance.  Find it on display in the teen section of the library.

Wait...You Haven't Read This?!

Susane Colasanti has written some great novels, such as: When It Happens, Waiting for You,  Something Like Fate.  Her books are about characters that the reader can relate to and by the end of the book, feels like they are good friends.

Her latest novel, Keep Holding On is just another in a line of great reads.  This is the story of Noelle, a girl having a rough time at school.  Her home life isn't great.  She lives in constant fear that people will find out about it.  She's also dating a guy she really isn't that into.  Who is she really into?  Julian Porter.  Oh yeah.  But does he even know she's alive?  Doubtful.  No wait, make that definitely not.  Noelle tries to keep her head down and stay off the radar.

But then Julian starts talking to her and Noelle is even more nervous and stressed out.  Should she give Julian a chance and risk a broken heart or should she stay in a dead end relationship with Matt? 

This isn't just a story about love, though.  There is also a lot of bullying that happens and the story follows how Noelle and her friends react to and deal with bullying when it goes too far.

If you've read Sarah Dessen or Elizabeth Scott, or other Susane Colasanti books, you will definitely want to pick this one up. 

Doctor Illuminatus by Martin Booth

Another installment in the Save Us book campaign.  Today we have Doctor Illuminatus by Martin Booth.  If any of you have read the Artemis Fowl series by Eoin (prounounced "Owen" by the way) Colfer, he has a blurb on the front of this book.  What does it say?  "I love this book."  That is a pretty good endorsement.  The Artemis Fowl series is good, so Colfer is no stranger to good books.

I actually really like the cover of this book.

I only just noticed now there is a person in the bottle on the cover.  It makes sense for the story, though.  The inside cover blurb:

Real Magic is Dangerous Magic in this modern-day battle against the dark side of ancient alchemy...

When siblings Pip and Tim move with their parents to an old English country estate and hear a strange knocking from within the walls of the ancient home, they can hardly believe their eyes.  A mysterious boy named Sebastian, the son of a medieval alchemist, emerges and claims that he has been asleep for nearly six hundred years.

Sebastian reveals that they are in danger: His father's bitter enemy, de Loudeac, has also awakened from a centuries-long slumber and is determined to use the secrets of alchemy to evil ends.  Soon, Pip and Tim find themselves entangled in a web of intrigue, sorcery, and horror as they join Sebastian in his quest to foil de Loudeac's villainous scheme.  But can the madman be stopped? 

Alchemists searched for the magical elixir that would bring immortality.  Remember Nicholas Flamel in Harry Potter?  If you were a fan of the Harry Potter series and have been looking for another great magical story, this might be the book for you.  There is a lot of action and suspense..  It is worth checking out. 

Find it on display in the teen section of the library.  Save it before the book sale (which is coming up March 30!!)

Glint by Ann Coburn

Day 3 of the Save Us book campaign features Glint by Ann Coburn.  Unlike the first two books featured here, this book isn't saddled with a completely tragic cover. 

Now, I thought it was just the library copy of the book that made the girl's face look weird, but that is definitely the design.  I don't know if it is part of the story or just a design I don't understand but part of her face looks haunted for sure. 

Here is the summary from the inside jacket flap:

 Ellie and her little brother Danny spend their lonely days making up stories about a young girl in a world of dragons and shapeshifters (Oh!  Maybe her face is weird because she's a shapeshifter!) a girl as brave and cunning as they would like to be.

Five years later, Danny disappears.  The police have no clues.  They fear he is dead, but Ellie knows better.  She also knows that she is the only one who can find him. 
At the same time, in the world Danny and Ellie imagined, a young girl named Argent sets off on a quest of her own to reclaim a stolen dragon hatchling. 

As each girl makes her way closer to her goal, the boundaries between the worlds of fantasy and reality begin to blur (Oh!  Maybe her face is weird because the boundaries between fantasy and reality are blurring!) until it's unclear where one world ends and the other begins. 

If you've even played Make Believe and wondered what would happen if you're imaginary worlds and characters were real, this is a story for you.  There are twists and turns in the plot and great characters you will never forget.

Crabbe by William Bell

It is Day 2 of the Save Us campaign and I urge you to try to save some books from being put into the Used Book Sale.

The feature today is Crabbe by William Bell.  This is another one that isn't winning Book Cover of the Year.

That isn't the clearest image but you get the idea.  If you like the outdoors and have ever felt like running away, this is the book for you.

One night, just before final exams, 18-year-old Franklin Crabbe - smart, rich yet unhappy and a semi-alcoholic - packs his gear and drives away into the woods to disappear completely.  Totally unprepared for bush life, Crabbe nearly perishes until he meets someone else who has her reasons to hide. 

Basically,even though Crabbe seems to have it all, he isn't happy and decides to throw in the towel and bug out.  The problem is, this book was written in 1992 and Crabbe hasn't been watching shows like Surivorman, Man vs. Wild, or Dual Survival.  He has no idea how to survive in the woods.  And probably to his great surprise, he almost dies. 

This is a great story. Aside from being an adventure survivalist story, it is also a story about friendship and dealing with tough issues in life.   It follows Crabbe as he tries to solve his problems in every way imaginable, except actually facing them and dealing with them. 

If you want to give Crabbe a second chance and maybe save it from being sent to the book sale, stop in the teen section where it will be on display and check it out!

Save Us: Homebody by Orson Scott Card

It's almost time for another Woodward Memorial Library Used Book Sale.  This means we're cleaning things out and making space on the shelves.  While "weeding" (as we call it in library world) the teen section, I've come across some great books that have been some what overlooked.  Many of them have terrible covers (yes, the secret is out - people judge books by their covers a lot!) or just look a little bit old.  However, I have picked a few of these titles out with the hopes that someone out there may be willing to give them a try.   I will feature one of these books each day and have them on display in the teen section.  Will you help save them??

The first book on the chopping block is Homebody by Orson Scott Card.  I'm not going the lie, the cover of this book is not going to win it any awards.

There it is.  Let's just take it in for a moment.

Ok.  We agree the cover isn't the best BUT the story sounds really good.  Here is a summary from the book:

A master craftsman, Dan Lark could fix everything except what mattered most, his own soul.  After tragedy claimed the one thing he loved, he began looking for dilapidated houses to buy, renovate, and resell at a profit - giving these empty shells a second chance at a life he denied himself.

Then in a quiet Southern town, Dan finds his biggest challenge: a squalid yet sturdy mansion that has suffered decades of abuse at the hands of greedy landlords and transient tenants.  While two charming old neighbor ladies ply him with delicious cooking, they offer dire warnings about the house's evil past.  But there is something about this building that pushes Dan on, even as its enchantments grow increasingly ominous.  Will finishing the house offer Dan redemption, or unleash the darkest forces of damnation upon him?

If you skimmed that, please allow me to summarize:
Haunted house, murder, danger and threatening supernatural forces.

It has all the elements of a great story.  Orson Scott Card also wrote Ender's Game which is fantastic if you've never read it.  It makes me hopeful that he's been able to recreate some of the magic here in Homeboy.

If you're a Stephen King fan or you like the book (or movie) The Amityville Horror, you should give this book a try.  Stop in WML and see what you think.  It will be on display in the teen section. 

Check out this book and give it a second chance!