All the Way Home by Patricia Reilly Giff

 

Goodreads synopsis: It’s August 1941, and Brick and Mariel both love the Brooklyn Dodgers. Brick listens to their games on the radio in Windy Hill, in upstate New York, where his family has an apple orchard; Mariel, once a polio patient in the hospital in Windy Hill, lives in Brooklyn near the Dodgers’ home, Ebbets Field. She was adopted by Loretta, a nurse at the hospital, and has never known what happened to her own mother. Someday, somehow, she plans to return to Windy Hill and find out. When a fire destroys their orchard, Brick’s parents must leave the farm to find work. They send him to live in Brooklyn with their friend Loretta, even though Brick knows that their elderly neighbors need his help to pick what’s left of the apples. The only good thing about Brooklyn is seeing the Dodgers play–that, and his friendship with Mariel. Maybe, together, they’ll find a way to return to Windy Hill, save the harvest, and learn the truth about Mariel’s past.

My rating: 3 stars.

Content warnings: PG.

My thoughts: I expected more baseball from this book, but overall it was sweet and a neat read. It didn't have the normal kid's book complaint where things just start to happen and then it ends. It definitely felt like a whole and complete story, and one with a bit more depth than normal at that. It was sweet and an enjoyable story, and my only complaint is that the baseball it mentioned on the back cover wasn't in the story as much as I thought it would be. But certainly worth the read.

Germ by Robert Liparulo

 

Goodreads synopsis: If you breathe...It will find you.

The list of 10,000 names was created for maximum devastation. Business leaders, housewives, politicians, celebrities, janitors, children. None of them is aware of what is about to happen--but all will be part of the most frightening brand of warfare the world has ever known.

The germ--an advanced form of the Ebola virus--has been genetically engineered to infect only those people whose DNA matches the codes embedded within it. Those whose DNA is not a match simply catch a cold. But those who are a match experience a far worse fate. Within days, their internal organs liquify.

Death is the only escape.

The release of the virus will usher in a new era of power where countries are left without defense. Where a single person--or millions--could be killed with perfect accuracy and zero collateral damage. Where your own DNA works against you.

The time isn't coming. It is now. Pray the assassins get you first.

My rating: 3 stars.

Content warnings: R. Graphic violence.

Thoughts: Virus thrillers aren't quite as much fun as they used to be.

That being said, it was still a fun ride, even if it did take me a while to read. The action was tense and exciting. And it was definitely nice to read a thriller without any sex scenes or constant profanity. And to have a religious character not to be the butt of constant jokes or ridicule.

I don't have much else to say about it, but I look forward to reading more of the author's work.

Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli

 

Goodreads synopsis: He’s a boy called Jew. Gypsy. Stopthief. Runt. Happy. Fast. Filthy son of Abraham.

He’s a boy who lives in the streets of Warsaw. He’s a boy who steals food for himself and the other orphans. He’s a boy who believes in bread, and mothers, and angels. He’s a boy who wants to be a Nazi some day, with tall shiny jackboots and a gleaming Eagle hat of his own. Until the day that suddenly makes him change his mind. And when the trains come to empty the Jews from the ghetto of the damned, he’s a boy who realizes it’s safest of all to be nobody.

Newbery Medalist Jerry Spinelli takes us to one of the most devastating settings imaginable—Nazi-occupied Warsaw of World War II—and tells a tale of heartbreak, hope, and survival through the bright eyes of a young orphan.

My rating: 4 stars.

Content warnings: PG. Some childhood roughhousing, and several mentions of dead bodies. Implied Nazi violence.

Thoughts: I was not expecting anything from this book after the way Stargirl turned out. But this book was so beautiful, and heartfelt I couldn't believe it was the same author. It was so interesting to see the child's perspective, and the innocence associated with the events happening around the narrator. I don't know that I've ever seen a book that took quite that route and it was startling and thought provoking.

You can also see the narrator grow and mature as the book progresses, and it's very subtle, but very neat to see.

The questions of identity, and the way the book deals with that was also touching. Definitely one of the best WWII era books I've read in a while.

The Martian by Andy Weir

 

Goodreads synopsis: Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars.

Now, he's sure he'll be the first person to die there.

After a dust storm nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded and completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive—and even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone long before a rescue could arrive.

Chances are, though, he won't have time to starve to death. The damaged machinery, unforgiving environment, or plain-old "human error" are much more likely to kill him first.

But Mark isn't ready to give up yet. Drawing on his ingenuity, his engineering skills—and a relentless, dogged refusal to quit—he steadfastly confronts one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after the next. Will his resourcefulness be enough to overcome the impossible odds against him?

My rating: 5 stars.

Content warnings: R. Frequent cursing, and some sexual comments.

Thoughts: This was another reread, but I really do love this story. Watney's narrative voice is so strong and so hopeful that it's hard to come away from this story and not feel encouraged and excited to take on life's challenges and find the humor in everything. It's a strong story with a lovely message, and if foul language doesn't bother you, I'd highly recommend it.

Operation Grendel by Daniel Schwabauer

 

Goodreads synopsis: It’s the war story he’s dreamed of. But the battle may cost him his mind.

Military journalist Raymin Dahl thinks he’s finally getting the story of a lifetime. Secret peace talks on a remote tropical moon are about to surrender five colonized worlds—and six hundred million civilians—to a ruthless enemy.

But when his commanding officer, Captain Ansell Sterling, is fatally wounded before the negotiations can begin, Dahl can no longer just report on the mission. He’s ordered to complete it. With help from the AI embedded in Sterling’s comms bracelet, Dahl must impersonate his commander—a Marine Corps hero and psychological operations expert.

However, Sterling’s AI may be luring him to surrender more than he realizes. And the mission Corporal Dahl thinks he’s running isn't the only operation underway.

My rating: 3 stars.

Content warnings: PG-13. Some sci-fi violence.

Thoughts: I think I read this book a little too fast and missed a couple things that would have made it easier to follow, but I did really enjoy it. Especially near the end, thematically I really appreciated something it was saying, and it's no surprise since I mostly agree with this author's perspective on things. The ending was mindblowing, and something I'm still churning over for myself, but it was worth reading and a lot of fun.

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Goodreads synopsis: Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed.
Soon afterward, his death is a national headline. Some are calling him a thug, maybe even a drug dealer and a gangbanger. Protesters are taking to the streets in Khalil’s name. Some cops and the local drug lord try to intimidate Starr and her family. What everyone wants to know is: what really went down that night? And the only person alive who can answer that is Starr.

But what Starr does—or does not—say could upend her community. It could also endanger her life.

Inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, this is a powerful and gripping YA novel about one girl's struggle for justice.

My rating: 4 stars.

Content warnings: R. Excessive language, some violence and sexual content.

Thoughts: Well written, evocative, and definitely worth the read. 

Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

 

Goodreads synopsis: Tally is about to turn sixteen, and she can't wait. In just a few weeks she'll have the operation that will turn her from a repellent ugly into a stunning pretty. And as a pretty, she'll be catapulted into a high-tech paradise where her only job is to have fun.

But Tally's new friend Shay isn't sure she wants to become a pretty. When Shay runs away, Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world—and it isn't very pretty. The authorities offer Tally a choice: find her friend and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all. Tally's choice will change her world forever....

My rating: 3 stars.

Content warnings: PG. Some kissing and minor violence.

Thoughts: I think a friend summed this book up well when she described it as "middle grade, but YA." And that seems about right to me. The way it's written feels rather like a middle grade novel, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. The story moves quickly, perhaps a bit too quickly for the high concept Westerfeld has, but quick enough to hold the reader's attention. It takes a while for the story to have actual stakes, but once it does I was surprised how heavy those stakes actually were. And the characters are pretty generic, but they fit their roles and have some interesting moments. All in all it's a fun read with an interesting (if rather juvenile) world, and a cliffhanger ending that makes the next book that much more intriguing.