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Sunday, February 27, 2011

Sorcery & Cecilia by Patricia C. Wrede & Caroline Stevermer

I realized this week-end that I have five (yes, five) books sitting around in various states of half-read sadness. So, I picked one up & made it my quest to finish it. The result – a very cool and fun read that I will probably go through again to catch what I missed. Sorcery & Cecilia was written by two authors who took turns writing the letters between the two main characters without discussing where the story was going. A very fun & challenging idea, and an activity I would love to try with my students to stretch their writing.


Summary: It is time for another London season, and cousins Kate and Cecy find themselves woefully separated, with Kate in London under the watchful eye of Aunt Charlotte with the goal of landing a well-to-do husband while Cecy remains at home in Essex with her father & Aunt Elizabeth. The novel consists of their letters to one another, and through these letters the reader sees a mystery develop.

In the world of Sorcery & Cecelia, magic is very real and wizards/witches are well-trained and respected members of society. Kate finds herself caught in a case of mistaken identity when a witch tries to poison her while she attends a ceremony at the Royal College of Wizards. Kate finds herself entering into a sham engagement with the Mysterious Marquis, both for her own protection and to save him from entering into any dangerous entanglements. Cecy, meanwhile, is trying to discover the true motives of their wizard neighbor, Sir Hilary, all the while learning to use her own magical skills.

The story is full of romance, intrigue, suspense, and polite society. If Jane Austen and J.K. Rowling had written a novel together, this might be the result. Any fan of Austen’s mannerly fiction will enjoy this, and those who have a soft spot for magical escapades will find themselves drawn in as well.

Themes:
Love
Good vs. Evil

Age Appropriateness:
Grades 5 & up

Areas of concern (content):
Foul Language: none
Nudity/Adult Content: none
Violence: none

Sunday, February 13, 2011

House of Dark Shadows - Dreamhouse Kings Book 1 by Robert Liparulo


I was travelling this past week, so I depended on my Kindle for my reading fix. (Really, it is amazing just how fast you hit the airline weight limit when you pack a few books!) I had picked up the first three books in Robert Liparulo’s Dreamhouse Kings series at a Scholastic warehouse sale, but hadn’t dug far enough into the pile to retrieve them. Then I just happened to download one on my Kindle, and here I go! Another awesome YA series for me to introduce my students (and readers) to!


Summary: If I had to describe House of Dark Shadows in a few words, it would be these: creepy, tense, surprising. Xander is less than thrilled with his family’s move from Los Angeles to Pinedale, a small town in the middle of nowhere. Then the family finds their dream house – a Victorian that needs some fixing up, but has lots of possibilities. The house and the area around it give Xander and his siblings, David & Toria, plenty of room to explore.

The children soon discover that there is something about the house that simply isn’t normal. Odd footprints appear in the dust, sounds seem to travel from the wrong direction, and a linen closet transports David to a locker in a local school. Xander & David soon discover that the linen closet isn’t the only magical door in the house and they begin their adventures in earnest, traveling to exotic and dangerous destinations. But the house has even more secrets, and some of them will change the lives of Xander, David, & Toria much like it once did the life of someone they love.

This book kept me turning the pages. It is an excellent horror/adventure book for young adult readers, and even tweens. I admit to reading it in well-lit rooms, as there were parts that creeped me out. I am ready to dig into the next two books in this series!

Themes:
Family
Secrets & Honesty

Age Appropriateness:
Grades 5 & up

Areas of concern (content):
Foul Language: none
Nudity/Adult Content: none
Violence: moderate – scenes of death in the Coliseum, etc.