The best book of 2014 was the first book I read this summer, Half Bad. Nathan lives in a black and white world. Witches are either good whites or bad blacks. The problem is that Nathan is gray; his father is the most feared black witch and his mother was a white witch. Uncertain which parent Nate would take after, he has grown up hated, feared, isolated, and abused. In the beginning of the book, Nathan is being held in a cage and trained like an animal to use his gifts to hunt his father and prove his goodness. When Nathan escapes, his must prove to the world and himself if he is good or bad or a little of both. This is the most fascinating and original novel that I have read in a long time, and I can't wait for the end of March to bring me book two, Half Wild. As you read, you are not sure if Nathan is good or bad, but it is easy to see that white regime of good has brought only horrors to him. You won't be able to stop thinking about this tale of good and evil and everything inbetween. This is a must read!
Half Bad by Sally Green
The best book of 2014 was the first book I read this summer, Half Bad. Nathan lives in a black and white world. Witches are either good whites or bad blacks. The problem is that Nathan is gray; his father is the most feared black witch and his mother was a white witch. Uncertain which parent Nate would take after, he has grown up hated, feared, isolated, and abused. In the beginning of the book, Nathan is being held in a cage and trained like an animal to use his gifts to hunt his father and prove his goodness. When Nathan escapes, his must prove to the world and himself if he is good or bad or a little of both. This is the most fascinating and original novel that I have read in a long time, and I can't wait for the end of March to bring me book two, Half Wild. As you read, you are not sure if Nathan is good or bad, but it is easy to see that white regime of good has brought only horrors to him. You won't be able to stop thinking about this tale of good and evil and everything inbetween. This is a must read!
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Red Rising by PIerce Brown For generations, humans have been working below the surface of Mars to make it habitable. Darrow and his family are Reds, proud miners who believe their short, poverty-stricken and dangerous lives are helping to rebuild humanity. Then Darrow's life is destroyed, and he learns that Mars has been built upon lives. Mars is habitable, and Golds, the ruling class, are living like gods while Darrow's people are left to suffer indefinitely. Darrow vows to change that and undergoes a terrible process to become a Gold, enter their ruling academy, and destroy them from within. This first novel from Pierce Brown was action-packed and thought-provoking. After terrible tragedy, Darrow is reborn like a phoenix from his former life. After Darrow gets into the Gold Academy, the true test of terror begins. The war games in Ender's Game have nothing on the brutality and brilliance of the Gold Academy. Darrow also struggles as he figures out how to become a winning, respected leader and must befriend the people he is trying to destroy. I cannot wait to read the next book, Golden Son, which is coming out in January, to find out what Darrow will do next to confound and amaze the Golds and who will join him in his quest for rebellion. HIghly recommended. Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina by Misty Copeland If you dream it, you can achieve it. Misty Copeland's meteoric rise in the world of ballet exemplifies these words. Starting from humble origins, Misty and her five siblings were constantly moved around the country as their mom lived with and married many men. She took her first ballet class at age thirteen at a Boys and Girls Club, and the teacher discovered she was a prodigy. The combination of family issues, being a black ballet dancer in a world still mostly lily white, and the pressures of her publicized talents has made Misty's road to becoming a soloist in the prestigious American Ballet Theatre challenging. It was fascinating to learn about her rocky road to fame. I am not a big fan of biographies, but I wanted to read this one because I was so impressed with Misty's eloquence when she judged on So You Think You Can Dance this past summer. I was intrigued to find out how a black woman fought her way to the top in the predominantly white world of dance. It was disappointing to read that despite her accomplishments, she has still not been named a principal dancer, the highest honor, at ABT, especially since they have never had a black principal dancer. I was so impressed how she continues to stay positive as she has to fight so hard for every victory and has been denied much based on the color of her skin. For many of her stories, I think there is another side to the story, but this does not take away from what she has accomplished. Unremembered by Jessica Brody One girl survives a plane crash that kills the rest of its passengers. She is unharmed, she has no memory, and her name cannot be found on the passenger manifest. Quickly, she realizes that these things do not add up and learns that she possesses a variety of abilities that are not quite human. The only clue she has to her identity is a heart locket with an an eternity symbol and the words S & Z=1609 on it. When she meets a boy who claims to know her secrets and be her true love, she must figure who she is and who she can trust if she is to stay free. I was quickly sucked in to Sera's search for answer. I loved Sera's analytical mind as she searched for answers and struggled to trust her heart. I just wanted more answers about who she is. Hopefully, book 2 of the series explains more. Trial by Fire by Josephine Angelini Lily Proctor, who lives in modern day Salem, has such severe allergies that she can barely be a normal teenager. When she goes to her first party, what happens there is so humiliating that she wants to disappear. During her attack, she is pulled to another version of Salem, Massachusetts. Here, witches rule and monsters have overrun the world. Lillian, the version of Lily in this world, is the terrifying, all-powerful, head witch who dragged her into this world. Where she was weak at home, she now has the power to become the most powerful of witches. As her power grows, so does her love for the man who is afraid to trust her. As Lillian's reign of terror threatens even more lives, Lily will have to defeat herself to save the world that she has grown to love. This is a strong addition to the supernatural romance genre. Having a family of allergy sufferers, I love the idea that the things that paralyze them in this world would make them powerful in another. The attraction between Lily and her mentor and mechanic Rowan is sizzlingly tense, and I like that just as we were not sure if Snape was evil or not, the reader is not sure if Lillian is as evil as she pretends to be. Although a bit bogged down with all the magic rules of this world, I still can't wait to read the next volume of this new series by the author of Starcrossed. Torn Away by Jennifer Brown Each year we practice our tornado drills. No one takes it too seriously even though less than 20 years ago nearby Spencer, SD, was nearly wiped out by tornadoes. Jersey lives in Elizabeth, Missouri, where tornadoes are more common, and Jersey is used to the drill. However, when these tornado sirens go off, a tornado hits. Jersey, home alone, cowers in the basement as a tornado takes off with her home, family, and life. Torn away from all she holds dear, Jersey must live with strangers as she fights not to get blown away by the tornado that took so much from her. This emotional tale of survival from a life-shattering natural disaster is moving. Your heart will break with Jersey as she is eaten up with guilt about her last words to the people she loved most in the world. The words she can never take back or change. It makes you want to tell you want to stop reading and grab your family in a hug and tell them how much you treasure them. I think the author's words were so raw and honest because she spoke in Joplin, Missouri, weeks after an EF-5 tornado killed 150 people and leveled the town. I was swept into Jersey's story and couldn't put this book down. |
AuthorMs. Smith has been the librarian at Washington HS in Sioux Falls, SD, since 2005. She enjoys reading, watching K-Dramas, Harry Potter and hanging out with her family. Archives
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