Tag Archives: book review

Book Review: Cards on the Table by Agatha Christie

Posted on by
2
Amazon.com: Cards on the Table: A Hercule Poirot Mystery (Hercule Poirot Mysteries, 15) (9780062073730): Christie, Agatha: Books

When Mr. Shaitana, a flamboyant yet slightly sinister collector and party host, reveals to famous detective Hercule Poirot his newest “crime collection” – that of criminals who have evaded justice – Poirot naturally has some misgivings. These suspicions come to a head during an evening bridge party with the “collected” people, when Shaitana is murdered in full view of the entire room, all of whom have a reason to want their host dead.

The interesting aspect of Shaitana’s bridge party was the even matching of detective to murderer – four of each. The former group consisted of the previously mentioned Hercule Poirot, the mystery writer Ariadne Oliver, Superintendent Battle of Scotland Yard, and secret serviceman Colonel Race. In the latter group, Shaitana had “collected” Dr. Roberts, Mrs. Lorrimer, Anne Meredith, and Major Despard, each one with a criminal past.

Lacking a clear suspect, the detectives are forced to go far back into each person’s history to find the psychological connection between previous crimes and the murder of Shaitana. However, it quickly becomes clear that the murderer has only grown bolder with time, and as red herrings abound, the killer is not afraid to strike again…or again.

Cards on the Table is certainly a departure from Agatha Christie’s usual affair, but the plot is no less tightly woven, nor the end less surprising for it. Christie keeps the reader guessing throughout the novel until the dramatic final reveal. I would definitely recommend this book to fans of Christie, or investigative novels in general, because it provides a new perspective to crimes and motives.

-Mahak M.

Cards on the Table by Agatha Christie is available for checkout at the Mission Viejo Library.

Book Review: The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

Posted on by
6

Wow. As someone who spends hours having an existential crisis and constantly reads sad books to feel something. I think this book may have broken me.

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab is an absolutely brilliant book, if you understand it’s simple complexities. However I will admit, it’s not everyone’s cup of tea.

The book is set around Adeline LaRue, an eccentric young women set on living her own life. No restrictions, no arranged marriages, and plain freedom. But in France, 1714 she’s forced to marry a man she doesn’t love. Desperate to escape she prays to the gods as her mentor, Estelle, taught her. However, she went against Estelle’s greatest warning. “Never pray to the gods that answer after dark.” A god answers Addie, granting her freedom and also immortality. The consequence, you might ask? She will live forever alone, without being remembered by anyone she’s seen or met. She will never leave a mark on the world.

When she turns to her village, no one remembers her. To them she is a stranger, a traveler, someone foreign and lost. But once she was a daughter, a friend, and now she is nothing. Desperate, she flees and decides to travel the world.

I’ll spare you the boring details because this book sadly has little to no plot. Instead you just watch a lonely girl wander the world, stealing to live, and slowly losing herself in the process. No one remembers her except for Luc, the god who cursed her. Who visits her every year on her birthday to try and claim her soul. But Addie hasn’t given up and refuses to die despite being alone.

But one day, in New York, March 13, 2014. The boy in the bookshop remembers her name. He remembers her. For the first time in hundreds of years, Addie hears the words, “I remember you.” Three small worlds, that tug Addie’s heart.

Because of all the people in the word who have forgotten Addie, the boy in the bookstore is someone special. Or at least- now he is to Addie. The rest of the story is a blur of tragic backstories, clothes tinged with alcohol, and running through the rain. Classic hopeless romantic tropes that may or may not have made me swoon.

But as I said before, this book will break you. Because what qualifies as love? Is it someone you have a connection with? Is it someone who you know everything about? Honestly who knows. However V.E. Schwab decided to write a triangle of sorts. It may be a love triangle between a god desperate to obtain her, a forgotten girl, and a boy who just wants to be loved. Or it’s just three “people” connected by horrible misfortunes. But none the less, it can only end in one pair.

So I have one question for anyone who wants to or has read this book. The same question I wondered after reading this book. Can you be manipulated into loving someone without knowing? And would you still love them?

–Ashley Y.

The Invisible Life of Addie Larue by V.E. Schwab is available for checkout at the Mission Viejo Library. It can also be downloaded for free from Overdrive.

Book Review: American Betiya by Anuradha Rajurkar

Posted on by
Reply

American Betiya by Anuradha D. Rajurkar is a soft and bittersweet novel about an Indian-American girl’s journey through love and heartbreak.

When high school senior Rani Kelkar begins a romance with tattooed and moody school-bad-boy Oliver, she is forced to hide the fact from her Indian immigrant parents, and sneak around behind their backs, as she is not allowed to date yet.

At first, the relationship is perfect- Oliver makes her feel seen, makes her feel beautiful, in a way that no one has ever done before. But soon, Oliver’s problems with drugs and his family lead to him demanding more from Rani- pressuring her into situations she’s not comfortable with, and disguising increasingly alarming racial microaggressions as offhand comments and jokes. Eventually, things with Oliver come to a head- and Rani must choose between her first love and her family.

I really enjoyed this book, as it dealt with an issue I hadn’t really seen discussed in popular media before- the fetishization of women of color, and the seemingly harmless microaggressions and gaslighting they face. The content of the book really resonated with me as well- as a daughter of Indian immigrants, I fully understood Rani’s often-complicated relationship with her family, and what she initially saw in Oliver. Rani’s longing for India and her grandparents and extended family was a familiar feeling to me. However, Rani’s complete inability to recognize any sort of red flags in her relationship with Oliver was frankly frustrating. I understand that she was infatuated with him, but even then, she repeatedly brushed off or simply refused to acknowledge his questionable behaviors. Even so, this was an incredible read!

-Vaidehi B.

Book Review: Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Posted on by
Reply

This book is officially my new favorite young adult contemporary romance novel. It is the absolute cutest and most exciting read I’ve had in a while, so let this review be your wake-up call to go and find yourself a copy.

Anna Oliphant’s normal childhood in Atlanta, Georgia has been torn away from her ever since her father became a bestselling author. Sent away right in time for senior year, she now has to spend her last year of high school at a boarding school in Paris, France. Thus, leaving behind her best friend, Bridget and to-be dreamy boyfriend, Toph. This was the year she was going to finally get all the right people in her life, but now she has to start all over.

At the beginning of the book she finds herself in her new dorm at the School of America in Paris (SOAP) watching her parents walk out of the door. They leave her behind and abandon her to this foreign city where she can’t even speak French! However, as Anna has her first breakdown, Meredith, a girl from the dorm adjacent to hers, comes by to check up on her.

Meredith and her whole friend group are the people Anna hold close through her first few days at SOAP, and they soon become her best friends there. There’s Rashmi and her boyfriend Josh, but no one quite compares to Étienne St. Clair. When she first meets him he looks like a dream. The most perfect hair and devilish grin, his English accent and witty remarks. All the girls fawn over him, and for good reason, but there’s one thing that isn’t quite right. His flaw, his one letdown is that he already has a girlfriend.

So, as our emotionally-wrecked Anna longs for home she also finds herself appreciating the beauty of Paris. Late nights walking the streets, days spent at the movies, lab partners with you-know-who, the worst tragedies, and the most hurtful of betrayals, Anna truly experiences it all in the most romantic city on Earth.

I adamantly and seriously believe that anyone who even has the slightest interest in reading a rom-com turned book/epic boy-meets-girl should at least try to find a copy. When I tell you this book is phenomenal, it is phenomenal. It’s so phenomenal that I finished it during a 5-hour flight and could not put it down. It’s really that good. So, thank you author Stephanie Perkins for bringing this book and these characters into my life! Happy reading!

-Katherine L.

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. It can also be downloaded for free from Overdrive.

Everything You Need to Ace World History in One Big Fat Notebook

Posted on by
4

This book covers the social studies units from 6th to 8th grade. It starts off with 6th grade, covering prehistory and the Paleolithic era. It overviews hunter-gathers, early society, and the beginning of the domestication of plants and animals. Then we move onto the Neolithic era, where hunter-gatherers slowly become unnomadic. They begin to live in villages and alter land to their needs. This becomes the Iron Age when people started to smelt iron, copper, gold, and other ores. The Iron Age is also when early civilizations spring up like Mesopotamia (Sumerians, Akkadia, and Babylon), Ancient Egypt, Bantu, Kush, Phoenicia, Israel, Jerusalem, The Indus River Valley, Maurya Empire, Ancient China, Ancient Greece (Athens, Sparta), and Ancient Rome. The book intricately explains how each civilization had its own impact on everyday culture. Next, the book covers the Middle Ages (including the Byzantine Empire, Islam, Aztecs, Mayans, Medieval India, China, Medieval Japan, Middle Age Europe, and the European Crusades). The Middle Ages goes from 400 CE to 1500 CE. Next comes the Renaissance and Reformation (1350-1650) and the Age of Exploration (1400-1800). 

The Age of Exploration was when Columbus discovered America, and this lead to the Revolution and Enlightenment in Europe (1500-1865). This is included revolutions in science, math, monarchies rising and falling, the U.S revolution, the French revolution, the U.S civil war, the industrial revolution, and the Women’s Rights Movement. Next comes the Era of Imperialism (1800-1914). This was when Africa became a popular colonization spot, when Japan modernized, and the Spanish-American War. That leads to world conflict including WWI, The Great Depression, Political Shifts, and WWII. Finally, we have Post WWII – Today. This final unit covers the changes in Europe, The Cold War, Independence Movements, and Global events. 

This book has helped me a lot during essays and narratives we have to make in class. It is a great read, despite essentially being a glorified notebook. This book also has definitions, diagrams, drawings, and vocab words you might need to know. To sum it up, the book Everything You Need to Ace World History in One Big Fat Notebook (by the people who made Brain Quest) is an amazing history study guide from grades 6th-8th. Whether it is for fun, or if this book sounds like it would be helpful, I recommend reading this book.

-Izzy W.

Book Review: Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson

Posted on by
2

Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson follows a young boy named Jess Aarons who aspires to be the best and fastest runner in the whole fifth grade. One day, a new family is moving into the old Perkins home and Jess meets the young girl, around his age, who is moving in with her family to the country. Leslie Burke is a city girl. She is strange to others, they say she dresses weird and she isn’t like all the other girls. Leslie and Jess then become friends over time during school. They talk about things and enjoy each others’ company. They spend their days together hanging out and they even create their own secret and special place just for themselves. A place where they can just be themselves and have fun together called Terabithia.

Together they ruled Terabithia, letting their imaginations roam free in their kingdom. On one morning, an upsetting and horrible accident strikes for the two kids. But because of this event, Jess gains the courage and strength to move forward. It shows Jess that he could be more than he thought he could be and it gives him a new goal and reason for living.

This story was beautifully written. The characters had great chemistry with each other and worked well. All characters, including the side characters, were well written and enjoyable even if we didn’t get to interact with them as much. The ending was unexpected and abrupt which I thought brought more impact on the story; especially since the accident can easily happen just like that in real life. Warning! This book is better for more mature readers because of the topics it will go over. Overall, I enjoyed this story very much even though it was a quick read. Even in such a short story, it got me attached to the characters and impacted me hard. I really enjoyed it and would recommend to those who would be interested.

-Nicole R.

The Bridge to Terebithia by Katherine Paterson is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. 

Book Review: The Last Man by Mary Shelley

Posted on by
1

The Last Man, though a largely unknown work written by Mary Shelley, is quite a masterpiece. 

The book starts off with the importance of friendship, character interaction, and responsibility. Lionel (the main character), and his sister are orphans who first live a childhood of seclusion. However, they soon become friends of Prince Adrain, whose parents had known each other in their younger days. Though the depth of their camaraderie is somewhat unclear, the message sticks with readers as plot progresses. To illustrate, when I came across Lionel’s introduction to Adrian and the ties they began to form, it was crucial to take note of those moments in order to understand what was to come

(some vague spoilers will be mentioned in the next few paragraphs) 

Though the main topic of The Last Man is about annihilation, there are a few sections that precede the primary focus: Adrian’s illness, his revival of health through Lionel’s care, certain love relations and marriages occur, and the loss of love through the years. Therefore, observe these parts as a reader, and see what they might mean to you. It could significantly affect your perspective when the plague comes and begins to ravage the population. In hindsight, Mary Shelley adds these events prior to the disease in order to evoke certain emotions, whether it be sorrow, anguish, or pity. Books that make us feel are much more worthwhile than bland narration, as the miseries each character must endure allows such novels to feel closer to home, even if the cause of their pain is different from ours. To cry, laugh, and raise happiness are general sensations that enable authors to make the most of their craft. Anyhow, onto the plague.

The plague starts off in Eastern Europe and Asia, and eventually spreads to infect the Americas, Greece, and England (where the main protagonists reside). Therefore, a slow ruination of Lionel happens as he’s forced to witness the destruction of his countrymen. Moreover, as the illness consumes the globe, Lionel notices a shift in human behavior. He explains fear as a common reaction, an emotion so thick in the atmosphere that it’s as dominant as the air he breathes. In other words, he realizes that people are foolish to think themselves superior to the forces of nature. 

Before I come to a full resolution, a “character” that is hidden through most of the book, though which strikes me as significant, is Death. As described by Lionel, Death was a creature which originally came at night, a “thief which preyed on life.” However, as the plague began to plunder, it took on a new title – a conqueror. Therefore, Shelley’s creative attempts at figurative language gives room for the rise of certain themes, such as the truths of survival and existence. 

In short, The Last Man is about the realities of life, a reminder that we are expendable. 

-Emilia D.

Book Review: Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo

Posted on by
Reply

A fast-paced novel, Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo is a young adult fantasy novel that is the first book in the Shadow and Bone trilogy. Creating a whole universe, Bardugo immerses her reader into the Grishaverse, a world where some have powers that allow them to practice the Small Sciences.

Those who possess powers are called Grisha, and they are split further into orders: Corporalki, Etherealki, and Materialki. The Corporalki can manipulate the human body. Because of their power, Corporalkis are the most feared type of Grisha even though they can both help and harm a person. Mainly known as summoners, the Etherealki can manipulate natural elements. Being able to manipulate wind, air, and fire, these Grisha are crucial in any fight. Lastly are the Materialki, or Fabrikators. These Grisha can manipulate materials like metal, glass, and chemicals.

So, in Shadow and Bone, the majority of the events happen in the war-torn Ravka. Ravka has been plagued with war for years suffering the loss of citizens and patriotism. However, this war with their northern and southern countries is not their biggest problem. Long ago, an ancient Grisha Shadow Summoner ripped a gap in the center of Ravka, thus creating the Shadow Fold.

The Shadow Fold stretches from the northern to southern borders of Ravka, splitting Ravka into west and east Ravka. An ugly scar on the map, the Shadow Fold is pitch-black and filled with lethal monsters called volcra. When the Fold was first created, a prophecy mentioned the only thing that will destroy the Fold is a Sun Summoner. More detrimental than the war, the Shadow Fold prevents the full might of Ravka from coming together to restore power, peace, and patriotism.

With all of the background information covered, the main character can now come into play. Drafted into the military, Alina Starkov is a cartographer at the beginning of the novel. Along with her life-long best friend Malyen “Mal” Oretsev, they both plan to make a crossing through the Shadow Fold. However, when they enter the Fold and a volcra attacks Mal, Alina lets her true light shine, literally. To save her friend, light explodes out of her, burning away the volcra. Stunned at what just happened, the Etherealki bring the skiff back to east Ravka and take Alina to the Darkling.

Hearing of this impossible light, the Darkling drags Alina to his tent to receive an explanation. A descendant of the Shadow Summoner who created the Shadow Fold, the Darkling commands all Grisha. When the Darkling coaxes the light out of Alina once more, Alina, the Darkling, and Mal realize that they have the prophesized Sun Summoner in their midsts. From this event, the rest of the trilogy kicks into gear, and Alina’s adventure never stops.

Even though this fantasy world seems complex, Bardugo’s ability to simplify and condense information allowed me to fly through these books in a couple of days. This trilogy leaned more towards the easier side of reading, but the plot lacked no excitement or surprises. I would most definitely recommend this book series, along with her other Grishaverse books, Six of Crows duology and King of Scars series. These books provided me with some of my favorite characters to date, and I hope people at least try them out! Happy reading!

(Only if you’ve read the series) Which team are you on, the Darkling, Mal, or Nikolai?

-Katherine L.

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. It can also be downloaded for free from Overdrive.

Book Review: Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

Posted on by
3

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is an incredibly interesting and, at times, deeply unsettling novel on just how far humanity will go to suppress what it doesn’t understand.

The book is set in a dystopian future- the United States has become a massively powerful republic, and all news coverage and media are centered around a single event: the “War,” which the Republic is winning. It centers around a seemingly ordinary firefighter named Montag- but in this universe, firefighters do not put out fires. They light them, burning down houses which contain contraband items, usually books.

On one such night, Montag witnesses one woman refuse to leave her house, choosing to burn with her books- and is unsettled. How important must books be if she is willing to die with them? From the smoldering wreckage of the house, Montag takes a single book home with him. On his way home, he meets a teenager named Clarisse, who is out alone, walking in the night. Clarisse expresses the beauty of the night, and how the fallen autumn leaves “smell like cinnamon.” Montag is again deeply uncomfortable- primarily because he himself never thought to look up at the night sky or focus on the smell of fallen leaves. Soon, wracked with guilt about his crime of taking a book, Montag decides he will simply read a few pages to satisfy his curiosity, and then burn the book. But what he finds will change his life forever….

I, personally, have a love-hate relationship with this book. The dialogue is clumsy, the expositions are vague, and the setup and lead-ins for the plot are often simply nonexistent. However, what makes Fahrenheit 451 so memorable is the ideology rather than the imagery. There are indeed some beautifully-written passages where Bradbury fully lives up to the term “author” and beyond- but the idea that the slow eradication of culture and eccentricity is the individual citizen’s fault as much as it is the government’s really rings true in today’s society especially.

-Vaidehi B.

Fahrenheit 451 is available for checkout at Mission Viejo Library. It is can also be downloaded for free on Overdrive.

Book Review: Girl, Serpent, Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust

Posted on by
Reply

In the vast city of Golvahar resides a princess named Soraya, forced to be hidden away from the public eye. Cursed, she was born with the ability to kill any living being with a mere touch. Her yearning to be a part of her family and society flourishes with the years she stayed concealed in the gardens, watching everyone’s lives from a far distance. But all changes when a demon creature (div) who holds the knowledge to break her curse is captured and being held in the palace dungeon. A beau who perceives her past the poison running through her veins vows to help her but to what extent will she go to get what she desires? And will the choices she makes conform her into the monster she always tried not to become?

This enthralling tale of self-discovery and will power kept me hooked from the very beginning. Melissa Bashardoust takes stories from Persian mythology and makes a fascinating queer fairytale with many elements from Sleeping Beauty. The secrets told in the most unexpected times compels the readers to think deeper into the true meaning of “monster” and what it takes to be a hero. Told in the perspective of Soraya herself, we see the loneliness she had been through firsthand, allowing us to relate to and perhaps find ourselves in her story.

-Saanvi V.

Girl, Serpent, Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. It can also be downloaded for free from Overdrive.