Erica says...
Hello, Universe is a sweet story about a timid boy named Virgil, a boy named Chett who acts like a bully, a girl named Valencia, who is deaf and has accepted the idea of not needing friends, and a girl named Kaori, a self-proclaimed psychic. The story line is simple, but engaging. This story is largely about friendship, the connection between people, and the idea that good things are not just coincidences. It's a very feel-good read with positive messages. Rating: 5/5
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Erica says...
Wow. This is just a beautiful book! The story is beautiful, the writing is beautiful, the characters are beautiful. This story is written by author Katherine Applegate, and is told by a peaceful gorilla named Ivan. Ivan is such a lovable character and this is a surprisingly deep, meaningful, emotional story- all conveyed through the simple and sincere Ivan. I highly recommend this book to readers of all ages. The story contains messages of courage, love, loyalty, emotional awareness, friendship, acknowledging trauma/hurt, healing, and selflessness. This is a great family book. It does contain sad instances of animals being injured or killed, but without graphic descriptions. Rating: 5/5 Erica says...
I've been in a graphic novel craze recently, and the Zita the Spacegirl trilogy have been the best graphic novels I've read so far! These books are exactly what I've been looking for in a graphic novel- clean, fun, exciting, neat characters, great artwork, positive messages, family-friendly, and enjoyable for any age (probably starting around 8 years old +). I was reluctant to try these books at first because of all the hype! But now I see that these books get a lot of attention for very good reason! Zita is a very caring girl who is loyal to her friends, is strong and courageous, and wants to get back home (after being transported onto another planet to rescue her friend- who she accidentally sent into outerspace...) Love these books! I'd rate the series 5 out of 5! Rating: 5/5 Erica says...
Crush by Svetlana Chmakova is a wonderful graphic novel about a middle school boy navigating his first crush. At first he is in complete denial, but eventually he comes to terms with the situation and tries to navigate it the best he can- often resulting in awkward silences and blurting out whatever words first come to mind. This was a fun, great read, with positive messages about forgiveness, friendship, and respecting others. It also addresses the issues of respecting other people's bodies and speaking respectfully about others. The main character, Jorge, is a positive role model who is very respectful and stands up for others who get picked on. The graphic novel was very family friendly, but did contain 2 or 3 instances of swearing (used in positive slang describing how cool something was). I'd recommend this to middle school aged kids and up. It was a very enjoyable read for me, as an adult! I'd give it 5 out of 5 stars! Rating: 5/5 Erica says...
I loved this graphic novel by Jen Wang. It is a juvenile fiction and I think it would be a great book for kids (8-10ish or older), teens, and adults! I thought it was a beautiful, touching, and very real story. It left me feeling very uplifted and satisfied, and was a relaxing 1-2 hour leisure read! You know the books that just leave your heart feeling warm, content, and inspired? This graphic novel was one of those for me. The story is about Christine and Moon, two young girls who form a beautiful friendship. But their friendship doesn't go perfectly smoothly. The bumps along the road they experience, as well as how they learn to deal with a range of challenges (from jealousy, personality conflicts, insecurity, parents' expectations, and even financial and medical challenges), make the story beautiful and meaningful. I'd definitely recommend this one! And I'd rate it 5/5! Rating: 5/5 Erica says...
Stormrise by Jillian Boehme has quickly moved to my list of top favorite books! It is Jillian Boehme's first published novel and I think she did wonderfully! It was published in September 2019, so pretty recently, and I'm so glad I stumbled upon this gem! Our library is doing a pick up option during the corona virus precautions. So I logged onto the website and started checking out anything and everything that looked interesting. Mostly picture books and kid books to keep my littles entertained. But I'm so glad I happened across Stormrise and gave it a try! I haven't been able to stop thinking about this book. I read it in about 3 days and finished it about a week ago. But the memory of the book is so vivid in my mind that in my mind it feels more like a movie than a book! I guess I have very vivid pictures in my mind of the scenery and my favorite parts of the book. I don't want to spoil the story line, but just want to write about some things I love about this book. So here it goes! I love the combination of themes! From finding one's self as a woman in a world with strong patriarchy and gender stereotypes, martial arts, fantasy, dragons, and magic, romance, sacrifice, family relationships, loyalty, brother and sisterhood, action and survival, and more. I love the strong contrasts between good and evil. Lust and love. War and peace. Equality and prejudice. Sincere hard work and desire for recognition. Selfishness and selfless sacrifice. The contrasts between lust and sincere, unconditional love especially struck me. I love the characters and their earthy names, like Rain, Storm, Willow, Forest, River, Cedar, etc! I loved Rain. I relate to her character because I have never felt that I easily fit into womanly stereotypes or stereotypical roles and personality traits. I like the settings. Especially the camping and wildlife. I love the descriptions of the nature and scenery. I like the dragons and the beautiful descriptions that bring them to life! I enjoyed the creativity. This book didn't follow the typical pattern that I sometimes expect from fantasy or fiction books. It kept me engaged and felt so vivid and real to me. I like how the book left me feeling. I finished the book feeling inspired and motivated and in awe. I loved the Christ figure symbolism. I loved the heart-wrenching sacrifices that were made out of pure love to save others. I'd recommend Stormrise. It is a young adult novel and contains some things that might be hard to read for sensitive individuals. I am quite sensitive myself. To me this book was worth reading because of the uplifting messages, enlightening contrasts, and overall inspired feeling it left me with. I'd rate it 5 out of 5, and would probably go as far as to say it's my new favorite book. Rating: 5/5 |