MADreads

What do Gatsby, Shakespeare and an alien parasite have in common?
Novels to the Screen (big and small)

Shelley Diaz of School Library Journal has compiled a nice list of teen (and kids) books that are coming to the screens in your neighborhood. The first to jump out at me is the film adaptation of Stephanie Meyer's The Host. I'm curious about this ...read more

Reviewed by Jane J - Central on March 21, 2013 | 1 comment

I want to be her or her or her (and me)
A review of I Want to Be Her!: How Friends and Strangers Helped Shape My Style by Andrea Linett

 This is a cool little book. It's kind of a style memoir written by an established fashion editor. Andrea Linett's first job out of school was as a receptionist at Sassy magazine (the magazine that profoundly influenced my own style), where she quickly worked her way up to fashion editor. After a stint as a fashion writer and editor at Harper's Bazaar, she went on to co-found ...read more

Reviewed by Molly - Central on March 20, 2013 | 0 comments

Leaping before looking
A review of Learning to Swim by Sara Henry

 “If I’d blinked, I would have missed it. But I didn’t, and I saw something fall from the rear deck of the opposite ferry: a small, wide-eyed human face, in one tiny frozen moment, as it plummeted toward the water.” Troy Chance makes a split second decision as ferries pull away from each other and dives into the fifty degree water. No one else saw the child fall and she's sure that she's his only chance. And finding a small boy in a cold lake isn't the only challenge she now faces. ...read more

Reviewed by Jane J - Central on March 19, 2013 | 0 comments

Check please
A review of The Dinner by Herman Koch

 It’s a relatively rare occurrence when a translated title receives a great deal of attention in the US due mainly in part to the lack of titles being translated for the American market (the University of Rochester put the figure optimistically at 3% of all published titles). That would make the success of Herman Koch’s thriller The Dinner remarkable, but it feels even like more of a coup as The Dinner is a dark, convoluted tale surrounding one family’s moral dilemma that goes ...read more

Reviewed by Katie H. on March 18, 2013 | 0 comments

Sleep never looked so good
A review of Sleep Like a Tiger by Mary Logue

 A precocious little girl does not want to go to sleep. After some gentle coaxing from her patient parents, she settles into the bed she loves, climbing in and asking if everything in the world goes to sleep. Her parents tell her about many animals – from tiny snails to whales and the strong tiger, too – and how they sleep. The little girl gets cozy in her own bed and drifts off, thinking of those animals snug in their beds. With its soothing flow of words and soft, dream-like illustrations, ...read more

Reviewed by Madeleine on March 15, 2013 | 0 comments

Long list of excellent women
Women's Prize for Fiction

The 2013 Longlist for the Women's Prize for Fiction (formerly the Orange Prize) has been announced, and I have to say I think the judges are going to have a hard time narrowing this down to a short list. And I think it's wide open as to which one will walk away with the prize. Here are the contenders: Life After Life ...read more

Reviewed by Jane J - Central on March 14, 2013 | 0 comments

Wow. Just wow.
A review of The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate

 Katherine Applegate was recently awarded the 2013 Newbery Medal for most distinguished contribution to American Literature for Children for her book The One and Only Ivan. I completely agree. This may be one of the best books I've ever read.  Ivan is a silverback gorilla living in a run-down roadside circus mall (I know, I know, but these places really do exist) with Stella, a retired circus ...read more

Reviewed by Molly - Central on March 13, 2013 | 3 comments

How to budget for lamb and strychnine
A review of Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carriger

 It's been a while since I've read a rave-worthy young adult novel. But lately I've hit the bonanza with several titles hitting on all notes. Some of the hits aren't yet published so I'll leave those for a future post, but one of them is out and available and I'm thrilled that I can tell you about it. Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carriger is set in the same ...read more

Reviewed by Jane J - Central on March 12, 2013 | 0 comments

Dark, disturbing, and totally worth it
A review of Tenth of December: Stories by George Saunders

 I have a feeling that George Saunders is an acquired taste. After reading some ecstatic praise (the New York Times Magazine headline “George Saunders Has Written the Best Book You’ll Read This Year” was pretty blunt), I picked up his latest collection of stories, Tenth of December. Not being one to read stories on a regular basis, nor a subscriber to The New Yorker¸ Harper’s Magazine or McSweeney’s (publications that have featured these stories), I was not at all ...read more

Reviewed by Katie H. on March 11, 2013 | 1 comment

Don't touch
A review of Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

 Juliette has spent the last few years in a mental institution, but she's not crazy. At least, she doesn't think she is. All she knows is that whenever someone touches her, they are injured -- sometimes fatally. The Reestablishment wants to use Juliette's powers to torture resistors. Adam, the one boy who has ever treated Juliette like a human, wants to show her a better life. This exciting story is filled with surprises and romance at every turn. Can love conquer all? ...read more

Reviewed by Krissy on March 8, 2013 | 0 comments
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Recent Comments

Katharine on Edgars announced
Totally agree with The Last
Kylee on Not your grandma's gray-haired ex-FBI agent
Thanks! I also loved Carlo -
CarolK on Not your grandma's gray-haired ex-FBI agent
You caught the essence of
Molly - Central on Wow. Just wow.
That is sad.  RIP, Ivan. 

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