I really appreciate how Roumani crafted this story set around the time of the Arab Spring. The narrative has two points of view starting with a young middle school age boy living in Syria who has gotten swept up, along with several of his friends in the protests against the unjust establishment through street art. When the group of boys has a close call, Kareem’s parents make use of the time they have remaining on a visa (the specific type I
forget) to send him to the United States to live with family there. That’s where the other perspective – his cousin Sam/Samira – comes in. Sam is dealing with fairly typical middle school issues like wanting to fit in as well as friendship strain before being confronted with the serious reality of the events in Syria which directly affect her family as well as how anti-Muslim bias becomes more noticeable in their small town. Sam’s growth provides such a good opportunity for readers, especially those of the target age group to challenge their own worldview. While nowhere near as hard hitting and heavy as As Long As the Lemon Trees Grow – a novel also set during the Syrian Civil War – I think that this novel does a really good job presenting this tragic part of recent history for middle schoolers. I recommend this book.
When I first saw this book on the SCASL YA list, I did not look forward to it. I have read more than enough Greek myth retellings with most of them falling short of basic satisfaction. Right before starting to read this book, I realized that this same author wrote a middle grade book – Worst Case Collin – that hit me right in the feels. Discovering this gave me hope that this book would not disappoint me in the way that so many others have. I’m
happy to report that this book met that expectation and obviously surpassed my initial expectations. This book also read quicker than I realized since I did not know previously that Caprara wrote it in verse. She made an excellent choice with that style since most Greek myths come to us in some sort of poetic form. This story retells the myth of Arachne and how she became the spider from which scientists derived the arachnid name. I appreciated Caprara’s take and how she covered the time of Arachne’s life. If you like Greek myth retellings, I recommend this on.
This is one of those books that’s difficult to review because it is so average. In this science fiction novel, the main character reluctantly joins her researcher parents who have been gone for six years on a planet that could potentially harbor human life. In this world, the people travel these long distances as data with the body being printed fresh at the other end based on the initial scan. This also means that if an accident occurs, the
body can be reprinted in exact detail missing only the memories formed since the initial scan. The narrative hinges on those three things – printing bodies, people as data (with the possibility of data corruption), and memories. Kirby tells the story in two different timelines with the same point of view character …sort of. (If I say any more I would venture into possible spoiler territory.) I have a hard time pinpointing anything the author did poorly or well which makes review writing difficult. If you enjoy science fiction, you may enjoy this one but I cannot recommend it either way.
I wish I had liked this more. I wanted to end my reading of the SCASL list books on a high note but instead went out with a whimper. This book features a competition style Ocean’s 11 caper game with the winner receiving anything they wish for. The main character, part of a family renown in the criminal world got an invitation but had no intention of competing, wanting to go to an elite gymnastic camp instead. That all
changes when in a last minute job with her mom goes wrong resulting in her mom being kidnapped and held for ransom. The main character has no choice now but to compete and to win. Enter the classic series of escalating challenges, gut-wrenching eliminations, surprising love interests, and a last minute betrayal set in motion from the start of the book and you have this book. I have seen all this done before. This author used a basic boiling plate and left it void of personal touch. I will not continue in the series.