Paperboy by Vince Vawter

This was the February pick for my neighborhood book club. It's another one off the Beehive Award Nominees table, and it was also a Newbery Honor book for 2014. Using his own life experience with a severe stutter, Vawter creates a simple story about a stuttering 11-year-old boy growing up in Memphis in 1959. The main character (whose name you don't learn until the end of the book) takes over his friend's paper route while he's out of town one summer. He meets some interesting neighborhood characters along the way and allows his naive innocence to put him in danger's way. 

One of my first thoughts about this book was how different our world was back then. The boy is put in some pretty sketchy situations that would make any mom nervous, from flirtatious older women to strangers inviting him in and a downright dangerous homeless man. I found myself distracted a bit by the minor characters and the problems they brought to the table that were never resolved. The author hinted at a lot of possible story lines with different characters, but most of them never came to fruition. The paperboy himself was forgettable and seemed a little too naive to me.

One member of my book club listened to the audiobook version of Paperboy and said the author's note at the end was very interesting to listen to. Vawter still has a bit of a speech impediment, which was audible in the small section he read aloud at the end. 

I do think this could make an good pick for a 4th-6th grade boy. Sometimes it's hard to find good "boy" reads in that age range. It has a wide variety of characters and introduces a different era of the not-too-distant past that they may not be familiar with. That being said, I didn't think it was great, and I certainly didn't think it deserved a Newbery Honor. When I was in elementary school, the Newbery Award was reserved for the best of the best. It seems these days, many of the Newbery books are just so-so, including this selection.

Overall Rating: 3 stars

Content Warnings: There are a couple scenes of adult drunkenness and hints of domestic violence.

Target Audience: Upper elementary to middle school boys

The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown

In this inspiring true story, a team of nine rural boys from Washington cause the nation and the world to pause and reconsider everything they know about the sport of rowing. Most of the story focuses on Joe Rantz, the ultimate underdog, who fought against amazing odds to end up as one of the top rowers for the University of Washington in the 1930s. As the Washington boys work towards their Olympic dreams, Hitler and his minions are carefully crafting the 1936 Olympic Games to show the world a beautiful facade hiding horrors no one had possibly yet imagined. For fans of Unbroken, this rowing team competed at the same Olympics as Louie Zamperini.

After reading Unbroken, I saw this book suggested on Amazon and immediately put it on hold at my library. It took a couple months to make its way to me, so I was a little extra anxious to get started with it when I finally got my hands on it. I wasn't disappointed! Who doesn't love an underdog story? I'm amazed that, even though I knew how it would end, there was still so much suspense leading up to each event. The author did an excellent job of building the story to make you feel part of it and get your hopes up each time the team competes.

Joe Rantz's story is pretty amazing. Just like when I read Unbroken, I came away with a sense of how different life was back then. These men had real work ethic and weren't afraid to live on bare bones for the chance to go to a university and be on the rowing crew. They dedicated themselves to school and sport. It's rare to find people today with the same work ethic that existed back then.

I also found it interesting to read about some of the preparations for the 1936 Olympics. Hitler and his right-hand man, Goebbels, put an insane amount of effort and money into the facade they built to hide the gruesome reality of Germany at that time.

Overall, I loved this book. The only reason I give it 4 stars instead of 5 is for the excessive descriptions in some sections. The pace dragged a little at certain points of the book. Where Unbroken kept me turning pages and intrigued every step of the way, The Boys in the Boat, was easy to put down here or there. Other than the slow parts, this was an excellent read. I knew nothing about rowing before I picked this up, but that didn't matter. The author explains the intricacies of the sport well enough that by the end, you understand how miraculous the ending is.

Overall Rating: 4 stars

Content Warning: There is some brief, scattered language, but not much. Some adult topics are grazed over, but nothing graphic is discussed.

Target Audience: Anyone looking for a fascinating, true story, fans of Unbroken, anyone who's interested in rowing.

Skinny by Donna Cooner

Based on the author's own life experiences, Skinny takes on a heavy subject matter in a YA format. Fifteen-year-old Ever has been overweight for most of her short life. We encounter her as she makes the decision to have gastric bypass surgery to (hopefully) transform her into a more confident young woman ready to take on what life brings her. In Ever's experiences leading up to and following her surgery, she is constantly haunted by "Skinny", the voice in her head telling her she'll never be good enough. Ever soon discovers getting rid of "Skinny" will take a lot more than a surgery, as she tries to conquer the mental and emotional battle that follows gastric bypass.

I picked this book up because it was on the Beehive Award Nominees table at my local library. It looked like a quick, easy read and sounded interesting. I really didn't know much about gastric bypass surgery before reading this book. It was fascinating to learn about the months of preparation and weight loss that have to occur before the surgery and the strict diet and lifestyle in the months following.

My biggest hang-up with this book is the intended audience as a young adult novel. I have a 13 year old girl living in my house, and I've been a teenage girl myself. Self-esteem is not at the top of the list for characteristics of teenage girls. Many teens struggle with perceived weight issues, even when they're not actually overweight. Skinny is full of a lot of negative self-talk and weight related put-downs. Although I understand the issues addressed are real for some teens, I think teen girls have enough negative self-talk going on in their own heads without having to read more in a book. I would guess that most teenagers don't even really understand what gastric bypass is or when it's necessary, so I could see a teenage girl with low self-esteem and slight weight issues thinking this could be a solution to her problems. Part of my hesitation probably stems from what I know about a friend who developed an eating disorder in middle school and eventually died from it. Suffering from low self-esteem and a warped body image, my already skinny friend watched a video about eating disorders in our 7th grade health class. The video gave her ideas of how to hide the eating disorder from her parents, which helped foster the disease that eventually killed her. I do think it's important for teens to be given honest, open information about real life. I just don't know that a book like this offers the right message for teens who are already struggling with similar issues.

Overall Rating: 2 stars

Content Warning: heavy subject matter and a lot of name calling, including some foul names

Target Audience: Definitely not teenage girls. I just don't know that I'd recommend this one to anyone.

Don't Judge a Girl By Her Cover by Ally Carter (Gallagher Girls #3)

In the 3rd installment of the Gallagher Girls series, Cammie Morgan (spy girl in training), finds herself stuck in the middle of a complex kidnapping plot intertwined with a presidential campaign. As she tries to uncover who is behind it all, she discovers secrets much darker and deeper than she ever imagined.

Ally Carter stays true-to-form in this Gallagher installment, providing an easy, entertaining read with a little bit of intrigue. Although the premise of the whole series (top secret school for spy girls in training) is a bit far-fetched, it is highly amusing and will keep you laughing. Any girl who has watched Alias has tried to channel her inner Sydney Bristow at some point. This series does the same thing for teenagers. I particularly liked Don't Judge a Girl by Her Cover because of the new insights into Cammie's history. The first two books seemed to just introduce a lot for the series. This book was the first one that seemed to delve into something a little deeper.

For me, this series is a perfect "in between" read. When I've just finished a lengthy novel, something really serious or anything non-fiction, this series provides a quick refresh before I jump into the next thing on my to-read list. Because of that, I haven't finished the series yet. I just pick them up as a quick 1 day read here or there. However, I'm confident Ally Carter will deliver with the final 3 in this series as well!

Overall Rating: 4 stars

Content Warning: These are pretty squeaky clean. There might be a mild swear word here or there, but I honestly can't remember any. I'd have no problem letting my 13 year old read this (and probably would have let her read them 2 years ago).

Target Audience: Teenage girls or women looking something quick and fun

The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty

When I finished What Alice Forgot, I was undecided if I wanted to read more by Liane Moriarty. However, the next day The Husband's Secret popped up on my Overdrive queue. I figured it would be a quick read, and with rumors of a movie in the works, I thought I'd just go ahead and read it. The Husband's Secret tackles the strange tale of Cecelia, a picture-perfect mom who discovers a letter written by her husband years before. He intended for her to read after his death, since it reveals a life-altering secret. As Cecelia's ideal life comes crashing down around her, she tries to piece together her husband's past mistakes and figure out how to keep living life under the burden of the secret. 

In the first few chapters, I had figured out what "the secret" was, so all that was left was to find out how Cecelia and her husband would move on with life. Much of the story is extremely contrived and rests on 3 women's lives intersecting at just the right moments. My biggest issue with the story line was the ending, where "the secret" comes out in the open. The resolution seems completely unrealistic given the serious nature of "the secret". I had a hard time believing any real human beings would let it play out that way given the characters' emotions that had been revealed throughout the book.

I'm disappointed this is the one of Moriarty's books that is being made into a movie. It's my least favorite of the 3 I've read. If you didn't love What Alice Forgot, I doubt you'll like this one. If you're just looking for a quick, light beach read, this could be entertaining enough. But don't buy it. This is definitely a library read!

Overall Rating: 2 stars

Content Warning: Like all of Moriarty's books, this one has quite a sprinkling of language, including quite a few f-words. There are some sexually suggestive scenes, but nothing graphic. "The secret" is a bit dark, and the event it refers to is described but isn't graphic.

Target Audience: Women looking for a light read with a bit of intrigue.

What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty

What Alice Forgot can be found on many a Pinterest list labeled "Books So Good You Can't Put Them Down". I did, indeed, read this one in less than 24 hours. It's a quick, easy read considering the length. I loved the way the author built the story. Alice, a nearly 40 housewife and mother going through a nasty divorce, one day finds herself waking up with a bump on the head and an interesting case of amnesia. She has lost the last 10 years of her memory and thinks she is 30, blissfully in love with her husband, and pregnant with their first child. Moriarty writes the story the way Alice gains her memory back - piece by piece. Each interaction with different friends or family members help Alice start to piece together what happened in the last 10 years to lead to her not-so-happy current life. It definitely kept me reading until the end. 

Without spoiling too much, Alice (at 40) is....not the nicest. She's burned a lot of bridges. I was so sad for her as she realized how many relationships she'd ruined. It would be so bizarre to wake up one day and find out the people you thought were closest to you didn't like you much anymore. As she started to get her memory back, she made some interesting choices that I didn't quite understand or agree with. I did like the ending, although it pulled together rather quickly considering how detailed the rest of the book was. I liked the book enough that I figured I'd try another Moriarty book. See my review on The Husband's Secret for my take on that.

Overall Rating: 4 stars

Content Warning: There is some foul language sprinkled through the book, though not excessive. There are a handful of f-words (that mostly come from 1 character). There is some sexual innuendo but nothing super graphic.

Target Audience: This is pure chick lit. Adult women only.

Where'd You Go, Bernadette?

Where'd You Go, Bernadette? is a humorous, quirky book with a touch of mystery. The story is told through the eyes of Bernadette's young daughter, who is trying to make sense of a complicated adult world around her. Her mother has disappeared, and she tries to figure out where she has gone by piecing together emails, messages and other documents from her mother's files. Online reviews rave about Bernadette's humor and characters. I enjoyed the book, but I didn't think it was as great as the reviews said. I mostly kept reading just to find out where she disappeared to! As Bernadette's back story unfolded, I felt sad for her sense of lost identity while simultaneously being outraged at her willingness to drag her whole family down with her self-pity. I think if I met her in real life, she would drive me crazy! Overall, it was a quick, fun read, but nothing that will top my favorites list or that warrants a second paragraph in my review!

Overall Rating: 2 stars

Content Warnings: There is some foul language sprinkled throughout the book, including a few f-words.

Target Audience: Adult women. I can't imagine a man being interested in the storyline of an eccentric woman (don't they get enough of that in daily life?!), and I don't think teens would be that intrigued either.

The Lady of Bolton Hill by Elizabeth Camden

When I picked this up at the library, I didn't realize it was Christian fiction. Considering that, I guess this was pretty good. The story line was more interesting than most Christian fiction I've read, and it wasn't quite as cheesy. There was a decent amount of suspense and a good romance.

My biggest problem with the book was the main character. She drove me crazy! Clara was raised with a silver spoon in her mouth. Despite a brief episode in jail for an article she wrote while in London, she really hasn't had hard things happen to her. Daniel, on the other hand, has experienced horrible tragedies in his life that have shaped him into a cynical, angry man. Clara's continued attempts to preach to him and convince him of the error of his ways were a bit hard to swallow. She had no understanding of what he'd been through and couldn't understand why he wouldn't just turn his life over to God. She also spent time trying to convert every person who crossed her path, including hardened criminals. I'm all for sharing your faith with others, but she was a little much. You have to take people for what they are and accept that their experiences have led them down a different path than your own. This girl could use a good walk in someone else's shoes.

Overall Rating: 2 stars

Content Warnings: It's Christian fiction, so it's squeaky clean. There is quite a bit of preachy stuff, so if that's not your things, then I wouldn't pick it up.

Target Audience: Teen girls or adult women looking for a clean read with a decent story line but can be forgiving of an annoying main character.