Max the Mighty - Rodman Philbrick

I absolutely loved Freak the Mighty. So much so, that when I saw our library had Max the Mighty, I knew I needed to get it.

Max seems lonely, once again. He's still being teased for being tall and looking like his dad (the felon that killed his mother) and once again, he's not feeling smart.

One day, Max is just walking, minding his own business, when he hears a girl scream. This is when he meets Rachel, also known as Worm (named this for being a bookworm).

Later, Max meets Worm and her mother, and learns the "Undertaker" is her step-father. The Undertaker is a large, mean man, who drives a hearse and "threatens" people using the bible as his defence. Feeling uneasy about it all, Max finds his way to Worm's house where he sees her mom, crouched down, beaten, and he hears the screaming. Max bursts in, grabs Worms, and runs off.

Max believes he can take Worm home, and his grandparents will help, but when he gets there, he finds the Undertaker has called the police and have accused Max of hitting his wife and kidnapping his step-daughter.


Thus begins the adventures of Max the Mighty and Worm. Worm believes her father can help, and not wanting to leave her alone, Max accompanies her on their adventure, hitchhiking, riding a train, and meeting people, good and bad, along the way.

This is another one of those awesome, feel good, easy reads.

Freak the Mighty - Rodman Philbrick

I recently joined a book club. I'm terribly excited, as it's been years since I've been part of one. We shall meet the last Wednesday of every month, and the hostess gets to choose the book.

September's book is Freak the Mighty by Rodman Philbrick. It's a YA book, so I got a copy from our school library, but hadn't gotten a chance to read it. On Friday, I covered a G7 class, and students had 30 minutes of reading their assigned books. I figured, if the students were reading, so should I. And wouldn't you know it, there was a copy of the book in the classroom.

So I started reading. And then I was upset that the 30 minutes had gone by so quickly, as I was really enjoying it, so of course, I had to come home and finish it.

Freak the Mighty, is the story of best friends, Kevin and Max. Kevin walks with leg braces but is super intelligent. He reminded me a little of Sheldon from Big Bang Theory. Max is on learning support, and a very large boy. He looks like his father, who is currently in jail for killing his mother. He's being raised by his grandparents, who seem to be a little afraid of him. These two boys are as opposite as they come. And yet, they become the best of friends. Max often carried Kevin on his shoulders, and together they are Freak the Mighty. Together they go on quests and fight dragons. As a team, they are unstoppable.

This is a book for every Middle Schooler. Just make sure you have tissue handy.

milk and honey - rupi kaur

During my first day at Project Zero, our study group looked at a poem for a text rendering protocol. Here's the poem we read;

For the protocol, the poem is read silently. Then, 3-4 people are asked to read it out loud. We are then split into 3 groups. One group creates a musical interpretation, one group a dramatic interpretation and one group a visual artistic interpretation. At the end of the study group, our fellow mentioned she chose this poem because most of her 8th graders carry around a copy of the book.

Needless to say, I had to look this girl up.

milk and honey is a collection of poems split into 4 sections/chapters;  the hurting, the loving, the breaking, the healing. Each poem deals with some aspect of love, femininity, abuse and violence. Some poems are sweet. Some are harsh. But they all connect in some way to what a lot of teenagers are going through.

Our fellow mentioned all her eighth graders loved this book. While I did too, I'm not sure all those poems are appropriate for 13 year olds. But then again, am I trying to shelter them?

TLOS6 Worlds Collide - Chris Colfer

Chris Colfer's The Land of Stories has come to an end. And while it's sad, the conclusion was fabulous.

When we last saw our beloved twins, Alex had been placed under an evil spell and was wrecking havoc. So now it's time for Connor and his army to try to save Alex, fight the witches AND beat the Grand Army. Phew!

Chris Colfer does an amazing job of tying up all, and any loose ends. All our characters are revisited. Any questions you may have had are answered. Characters you may have wondered about, or forgotten about, are back. And we even get a glimpse into the future.

The Land of Stories has been amazing for a couple reasons.
1) I absolutely loved the series. I would mark down the date for the next books' release and anxiously wait for it.
2) Ethan discovered the series last summer. We spent many days discussing it, making predictions and sharing our favourite moments. This time around, we argued over who got to read it first, and then shared our favourite moments.

What will we do now?

Spelled - Betsy Schow

"Girl of Emerald, no man can tame. Burn down the world, consumed by flames."

This is the curse placed on Dorthea's family. And because of this curse, our dear princess has never left her castle. And this has also probably been the reason she's turned into an incredibly self-centred brat!!!!

Like all fairytales, Dorothea's parents would like to see her married. They arrange a marriage between her and a prince, she's met once and thought he was the gardener. Needless to say, she's furious!

Wanting to escape this nightmare, Dorothea makes a wish from some orb thingy that was given to her by the Grey-Witch-disguised-as-a-child. Have you ever heard, "be careful what you wish for?" Yeah well, that's an understatement. The wish causes her parents to disappear, protective barriers to be broken and her would-be-husband into a chimera. 

So now Dorothea, Kato (the dog-groom) and Rexi (think she was the cook) are on a quest to fight the evil witch.

For a YA book, it was ok. The best parts were the cute references to modern day things (flitter for twitter, Hans Christian Louboutin shoes instead of Christian Louboutins). Each chapter also starts with a quote from another (made up) book which was quite amusing. 

But Dorothea was a brat. And I really struggled to find any redeeming qualities in her. Yes, she does grow up, but it comes really late, and suddenly. Even as fun as Rexi was, she irritated me. Actually, come to think of it, when Dorothea got on my good side, Rexi not so much. Hmmm.....

The Playbook - Kwame Alexander

Kwame Alexander has become one of my newest favourite YA authors. I truly believe all Middle Schools should not only have his books in their library, but that his books should be added to the curriculum.

Unlike the other two books of his that I read, The Playbook  isn't a novel written in prose/poems. Instead, each page contains one rule. While it seems these would be rules on basketball, they are in fact amazing life rules. Each rule is an inspiration for life. Each rule is accompanied by an amazing photograph as well as some inspiring words from athletes and role models. There are some great biographical stories to inspire students to never give up, including one autobiographical snippet.

It's one of those books you want to give to teachers and coaches. It's one of those books to give your child when s/he's feeling down and defeated. It's one of those books your students will love and gain some inspiration and motivation from.

It's one of those books you'll want to read again and again.

Secret Lies Dirty Little Alibis - Jamie Blair & Dawn Rae Miller

There is nothing that Dawn Rae Miller writes that I do not like. And thanks to her, I've discovered another great author in Jamie Blair.

Secret Lies Dirty Little Alibis is the final instalment in the Kiss Kill Love Him Still trilogy.

This one picks up where book 2 ended. With the psycho Chloe causing havoc on our 4 beloved....friends??????

It continues to shift POV between the four ladies. Ladies! Yes, that's the word....cause really....were they....are they friends????

Anyways, I digress...

Each girl shares her thoughts about Chloe and who killed Jackson. Every time you think you know, another twist comes around the corner. We learn more about Haddie's dad and Livie's mum. We even get some insight into Val's parents. And it gets all wrapped together with a pretty bow that laughs at you when you reach the end and yell "But wait!!!! What about....."

Booked - Kwame Alexander

Kwame Alexander

has done it again.

He brings a heartfelt story

written in prose.

Twelve-year old Nick

is a book-hating,

soccer loving boy.

He has an immense

vocabulary;

Thanks to his dad's requirement

that he read the dictionary,

from A-Z. 

While soccer may be his life,

Nick does attend

Etiquette classes. 

Here the focus is on

good manners,

proper etiquette

and dancing. 

And it allows Nick to get closer

to his crush.

But things are not always rosey.

He has a difficult teacher.

He has an annoying classmate.

And his bike gets stolen

by bullies!

And then...

Mom moves to Kentucky

to take a job as a horse trainer.

And Nick has feelings

of abandonment

he must face.

Soon Nick discovers

that language can help him

charm a teacher,

impress a girl,

deal with menacing bullies

and help him express his emotions

when his parents' marriage

falls apart. 

"The poems 

were cool.

The best ones were

like bombs,

and when all the right words

came together

it was like an explosion."

Sisterhood Everlasting - Ann Brashares

I remember reading The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants in my early twenties. I really enjoyed the series. I liked the idea of these four lifelong friends and their connection. And when book 4 came to an end, I was ok with that. I was even ok with how the movie version put books 2-4 into one movie.

And then I saw this. Sisterhood Everlasting takes place ten years later. The girls are almost thirty. I guess that means they are no longer girls. Lena lives a solitude life. She teaches. She paints. She pines over her lost love. Bree is still the fun loving girl who needs to move. A lot. Carmen is a famous actress living in New York engaged to, well... let's be honest, he's an arse. And Tibby. Well two years ago Tibby and Brian moved to Australia. She hasn't been in touch much. And this brings sadness to everyone. Even the reader.

But then, our three friends receive a letter from Tibby. She has arranged a trip for them all to Greece. Just like they had done ten years ago. Each girl is excited for the same, but different reasons. And our friends' lives are utterly changed by what happens in Greece.

What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. But what happens in Greece alters the lives of our four friends.

I'll admit, I was a little weary of reading this book, no matter how excited I was. Reunion books can sometimes let you down. But I devoured this one. I loved it. Maybe it's because of the week I've had. But this book seemed perfect to me.

An Author's Odyssey - Chris Colfer

An Author's Odyssey is book five in Chris Colfer's Land of Stories series. When the series first began, he brought us to the land of fairy tales. Slowly, he introduced other elements of literature, that gets one excited, not just about his books, but for the literature that exists.

In this one, we see a combination of our favourite fairy tales characters, some literary characters and now Connor has brought his own characters to life. A character who creates characters! Gotta love it!!

When we last saw our heroes, the Masked Man had gathered all the most villainous villains for modern day literature to take over the Fairy World. Connor realizes that the way to fight the Masked Man's army is to gather one of his own, from his own short stories. So he and Alex set out to enter the world of Connor's imagination and bring these characters to life, to fight the battle to end all battles.

The bulk of this book is spent with Connor entering his stories and we see more of his growth. He is no longer the lazy boy from book 1. We also see Alex soften a little. She was always, to me, the "chosen one". She was a gifted student. She became an apprentice to the fairy godmother and then one herself. I don't think she ever truly appreciated Connor or noticed his qualities. I also loved how their mother and step-father were willing to babysit all the characters as Connor brought them home.

Now to wait another year before the battle begins....

Return to the Isle of the Lost - Melissa de la Cruz

On our way back from Vegas, Ethan saw this book at the airport and asked if I'd buy it for him. After reading it, he asked me to please read it too. Who am I to refuse?

This is definitely a book for the young. It takes place after the Disney Movie, The Descendants.

Mal, Evie, Carlos and Jay have found their place in Auradon. They are good. They are happy. They are settled.

But then, each of them receive strange messages telling them to return to the Isle. Upon their return, they learn of a group called the Anti-Heroes who believe that just because their parents were evil, they are not destined to follow this path. But there are also those who want evil to prevail.

Our four friends are set on a quest within the Endless Catacombs of Doom. They are each tasked with finding their parent's talisman to prevent them from returning to power. Each task forces them to face their true fears. The doubts they have about who they are and what they are.

For the pre-teen Disney fan, it's a great book that continues the story of the children of villains. And if they saw the movie, it's an extension to the story.

Morning Star - Pierce Brown

I absolutely loved Golden Son and was utterly heartbroken with it's ending. I was so invested in Darrow, that I could not handle how it ended, I needed a break before starting Morning Star. And even once I started it, I had to go about it slowly, doing the whole Friends-Joey-book-in-freezer thing. But I plowed through. I survived the many heart attacks it provided. And I'm so happy I did.

When we last saw Darrow, he had been captured. Betrayed. All was lost. We begin Morning Star not shortly after this. Oh no. But almost a year later. Yes, that's right. For almost a year our dear Darrow has been tortured!

But finally, he is saved. And once this happens, our story begins.

Just like the others books, this one is filled with action. We have war, loss, betrayal. We have family, love and reunions. We see Darrow struggle with what he still wants to fight for, with his own struggle of whether or not he is worthy.

Leap of Faith - Jamie Blair

I am a huge Dawn Rae Miller fan. So much so, that I stalk her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. I giggle anytime she comments on one of my Twitter or Instagram posts.

She co-wrote a new series I'm enjoying, with Jamie Blair. I had never heard of Jamie Blair. But then I learnt that she wrote one of my favourite characters from that book, so I had to read something of hers.

She's amazing. She sent me a copy of Leap of Faith so I could read one of her books. It's gotten mixed reviews on Goodreads, so I wasn't sure what to expect.

Leap of Faith doesn't have a slow beginning. The action starts right away. Your emotions are tested right away.

Faith is 17 and lives with her awesome sister and horrible mother. Her mother agrees to be a surrogate for some shady people, and really doesn't take care of herself. Faith decides she needs to save this baby. So when her sister is born, Faith takes her and is on the run.

She becomes 19 year old teenager mom Leah. And she finds what she's never had before. A family. People who care for one another. People who look out for one another. It's like a dream.

What I love the most about Dawn Rae Miller is her ability to make you connect to her characters. And Blair has that same, or maybe better, ability. The whole time I read this book, I wanted to give Faith/Leah a hug. I wanted to tell her not to worry. I wanted to help ease her pain.

Thank you for not just a great read, but for sharing it with me.

Murder Madness Such Sweet Sadness - Jamie Blair & Dawn Rae Miller

I had a fabulous weekend. We saw some animals, and I got a lot of reading done. Murder Madness Such Sweet Sadness was the perfect book to read. It's funny, thrilling, mysterious. and an easy read for the weekend.

MMSSS begins with Val in jail. She's spent a week here. She's been arrested for the murder of Jackson. But after a week, she is set free. And Jackson's murderer continues to walk free.

Val, Haddie, Reggie, and Livie. Four girls, who seem to have nothing in common. Well other than they were all involved with Jackson. Oh, and they all have secrets they would prefer were kept that way.

But suddenly there's the appearance of The Fifth. She knows their secrets and is happy to share them with everyone. The girls are now thrown together to discover who The Fifth is. They are determined to find Jackson's killer. And to keep their secrets safe.

What can I say, other than I loved this! It's one of those fun books. You laugh with them. Roll your eyes at their utter stupidity. You also wonder who the real killer is; Marucs? (But he gets killed. Spoiler alert) Livie's mom? Haddie's dad? Val's boyfriend (Bet you didn't think of that one!) The Fifth?

Golden Son - Pierce Brown

Ok, I'm still heartbroken over the ending, so I'll be keeping this one short.

Golden Son is part two of the Red Rising series. Darrow is now part of the Golds, the ruling class, but his enemies are out to get him.

Darrow is forced to betray friends, confide in friends, and make friends with the enemy. He is torn between his love for Eo, and his new love for his friends and Mustang.

This book is  heart wrenching. It will tear you in all directions. These are not characters in a book. They are real.

And once I've recovered, I'll pick up the final book and see how it all ends.

Wish me luck.

Never Never Part Three - Colleen Hoover & Tarryn Fisher

Ok, I'll admit, I've been waiting for this book. I thoroughly enjoyed the first two, and could not wait to see how it all ends.

In Part One, we meet Charlie and Silas. At 11:00am, one day at school, they suddenly realize they have no memory. They do not know who they are, where they are, or what's going on. They learn about each other, and learn they are in the same predicament.

In Part Two, Silas "awakes" in his car with no memory but surrounded by notes that tells him he's lost his memory again. He learns about Charlie, but she's gone missing. He needs to find her, and find out what's happening.

So now comes Part Three. Charlie and Silas are together in a motel room when it happens again. Only this time, Silas remembers the last 48 hours. But only the last 48 hours, and Charlie still remembers nothing.

As they continue to learn about their past, Silas decides that this all happened because they are soul mates, and by breaking up, they made this happen. So, not only do they try to learn what they were like before, they need to learn how to fix it, Silas needs to get Charlie to fall in love with him, oh and they have like 48 hours to do this.

While it was fun reading how Silas tried to get Charlie to fall in love with him, there seemed to be more missing. Charlie learns more about herself and her father. But a lot of this seemed to be passed over, and not dealt with.

But, I started my Sunday afternoon feeling overwhelmed with all sorts of things going on. I decided to turn everything off, and read a book. And since this relieved a lot of my stress and made me feel happy, I've decided to focus on the good stuff about the book, and not worry about the unanswered questions.

Red Rising - Pierce Brown

Red Rising was released 2 years ago. How could I not know that? Somehow this managed to slip my radar. But I found it. And oh, am I glad I did!

Meet Darrow. He's a Red, the lowest class "citizen" in a futuristic coloured-coded society. The Reds are miners on Mars. They believe they serve a greater purpose. They are making Mars livable for future generations.

But then Darrow and his wife are arrested for entering a garden they are forbidden to. During their punishment, Darrow's wife, Eo, sings the forbidden song. Her punishment is death.  Reds are not allowed to bury their loved ones, but Darrow cannot handle the thought of his wife not getting what she deserves. This means death for him.

But Darrow is saved. And he is shown the great lie. Mars is livable. There are cities that prosper. The colours live wonderful lives, while the Reds are slaves. He is told he's the chosen one. Chosen by Ares himself to bring justice for all Reds.

Darrow is transformed into a Gold. This transformation is painful, but is nothing compared to what he will face.

Darrow is sent to infiltrate the prestigious Institute, the training academy that produces all the top leaders of Society. His job is to rise as high as he can within the Gold ranks. The only catch, is he must survive the Institute and all the tests thrown at him.

Darrow is a wonderful character. He is torn between who he is, who he believes his wife wanted him to be, and who he feels he's become. He makes friendships, but knows one day, this friends will be his enemy. He struggles with being true to himself, and being true to his disguise.

The best part of not knowing about this trilogy until now, is I don't have to wait a year for book 2!

Winter - Marissa Meyer

The Lunar Chronicles has come to an end with Winter.

Winter is a lovely princess, the step-daughter of Queen Levena. She is admired by all the Lunar people, and despite the three scars on her face, it is said she's more beautiful than the Queen. And unlike to Queen, she does not need to use her glamour to make it appear she's beautiful. She just is. But not using her glamour, means her mind plays tricks on her.

Winter despises her stepmother. She doesn't like the way Levena treats the people of Luna. She doesn't like the way Levena treats her. She knows Levena would never approve of her feelings for Jacin, the palace guard.

But now, it's time for Winter to stand up to her stepmother. She joins Cinder, Scarlet, Wolf, Cress and Thorne in their effort to launch a revolution and de-throne Levena.

Meyer does a great job of building up to the war. She also answers questions we have had since book one. We learn more about the disease, Letumosis, and how the shells were treated. We see Cinder's reactions and thoughts about what to do if she wins and becomes Queen Selene. We learn more about the class system in Lunar, the Nobles vs the Shells.

The Lunar Chronicles was one that I loved at first, but then started to loose some interest. But I'm glad I stuck with it, and finished the series. It was great. Even the play on Snow White in this one.

Fairest - Marissa Meyer

I am a huge Cinderella fan. I have a collection of different Cinderella books. So years ago, when Cinder came out, I gobbled it. But as the series continued, I felt it lost a little something. But I still wanted to see it through, so I continued on.

Fairest is a novella, the story of Queen Levana, and fits in between book 3, Cress and book 4, Winter. And it fits nicely.

Queen Levana is not a nice queen. Since we're talking fairy tales, think of the Evil Queen and Maleficent, rolled into one. And that would be Queen Levana.

Fairest is her story. I almost expected to like her. Often, when a novella comes out, with the "other side" of the story, there's something almost humane about this character, and although you still do not like them, you soften a little towards them.

Not here! I love how Meyer keeps true to the Levana from her previous books. There are times you want to feel bad for her, you may also start to pity her, but Meyer reminds you, that she is evil. Pure and simple.

Having not been as eager towards the series as I had previously been, Fairest was fantastic. It's gotten me excited again. I am looking forward to seeing how this story ends.

Kiss Kill Love Him Still - Jamie Blair & Dawn Rae Miller

I'm a huge Dawn Rae Miller fan. Her books have never let me down, so when I heard she co-wrote a new book, well, I just had to get it.

On Goodreads, Dawn Rae Miller has said, "If you like Pretty Little Liars, John Tucker Must Die and/or Gossip Girl, you'll enjoy Kiss Kill Love Him Still". Well, while I've never seen PLL and don't really recall John Tucker, I did enjoy GG, so of course this would be for me!

Kiss Kill Love Him Still is an easy read. And I can so see it as a TV show. The characters are lovable, yet not likable. They are horrible people, yet they are not. They have bad attitudes yet are funny. They are probably the most shallow characters you'll meet. And since you know this, there's no surprise! You just enjoy the story.

Jackson Landis is found dead. At first, it's unsure if it's accidental, suicidal, drug-related or homicide.

Reggie is distraught. She was his drug dealer. He exchanged sex for drugs, but the thing is, she fell for him. She was also with him the night he died, but he got a text and kicked her out.

Haddie is an overweight, frumpy student who works at the library. In exchange for sex, Haddie wrote Jackson his term papers. Oh, and she too fell in love with him. But if her father ever found out that her purity ring was just for show, she'd loose her trust fund. Hopefully Jackson took this secret to his grave.

Livie is Jackson's girlfriend. Only she's ignorant of his extra-curricular activities. Her activities include shoplifting, which Jackson has videos of. She can only hope to find them before someone else does and she's arrested for grand larceny.

Val is the girlfriend of Jackson's roommate. But she's also in love with Livie. And Jackson knew this, so he was blackmailing her.

Each girl has their reason to love him, yet want him dead. Which one did it? Or did any of them?

Kiss Kill Love Him Still is told in the point of view of each girl. We see their love, hate and fear. And we learn that Jackson had a lot of secrets. And while he was good at keeping secrets, he also shared small bits, as protection. So whoever killed him, must have wanted their secret dead along with him!