Recommend Fridays

Recommended Fridays is a once-a-week spot, created by Amanda from Stuck in YA Books, where participating bloggers can recommend one of their favorite reads from any genre of their choosing. Bloggers who participate are asked to post the banner on their post and add their direct links in the comments below. If other bloggers are participating be sure to stop by and let them know.

I just recently read this book, and it is amazing. I really love that it is a retelling of Hansel and Gretel, since I haven't ever seen a modern retelling of that fairytale before.

SYNOPSIS:

As a child, Gretchen's twin sister was taken by a witch-like monster in the woods. Ever since, Gretchen and her brother, Ansel, have felt the long branches of the witch's forest threatening to make them disappear, too.
 When their stepmother casts Gretchen and Ansel out as teens, they stumble upon a sleepy Southern town and are invited to stay with Sophia Kelly at her sweet shop. Sophia molds candied magic: coveted treats that create confidence, bravery, and passion.
Life seems idyllic and Gretchen and Ansel finally start to forget their haunted past - until Gretchen meets handsome local outcast Samuel, who gives Gretchen a reason to fear Sophia: girls have been vanishing at Sophia's annual chocolate festival, taken by the insatiable 'witch' of Gretchen's nightmares. Can Gretchen save herself, the girls of Live Oak, and Sophia? 
Of one thing, Gretchen is certain: a monster is coming, and it will never go away hungry.

Recommend Fridays (1)

Book Review: Guantanamo Boy by Anna Perera

 

Khalid is a 15-year-old from Rochdale spends his time doing what most boys his age do. He plays computer games and spends time with his friends. He also wishes that he was brave enough to tell Niamh that he cares about her.

He isn’t too excited about going to visit his family in Pakistan, but his mom and dad want him to come with them. So he goes. Khalid’s life turns into a nightmare when he is kidnapped from his aunt’s house and ends up being held for two years, without being charged, in the world’s most notorious prison – Guantanamo Bay.

When I first started this book, I thought I might not like it, because I was getting annoyed with the authors style of writing. The words just didn't seem to flow, and the story was going very slowly, but after he went to Pakistan, I got more into the book and really felt that the story was getting better. There were not too many graphic details about the torture that Khalid went through during his stay at the prison, just enough to give you a glimpse of what he was feeling, but not enough for the book to be disturbing to younger teens. I believe that people should know about the bad things in this world that some of us are sheltered from.

The emotions and trauma displayed by this young man have been portrayed so realistically, I felt like I was experiencing them with him. I don't want to go into detail as it would be more than spoilers, they would ruin the storyline for people who want to read it.

I really commend Anna Perera for writing a book on this subject. This is the first young adult book that I have read that deals with the Guantanamo Bay prison. I think its a very important message read that anyone over thirteen or fourteen should read. 

This book was given to me by the Albert Whitman & Company for review, but this has in no way influenced my opinion of the book.

IMM

This week was AMAZING! I got so many books; some from the library, some won, some bought, and some received for review!
 

First of all, I received Guantanamo Boy by Anna Perera and Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King for Review from the publishers. I flipped out when I saw these on the doorstep, since these are my first review copies! I will be putting up reviews in a couple of days.

From the Library:

Outside in by Maria V. Snyder

We'll always Have Summer by Jenny Han

The Nine Lives of Chloe King Bind up by Liz Braswell

Sweetly by Jackson Pearce

Ashes, Ashes by Jo Treggiari

Nevermore by Kelly Creagh

Game of Thones Book One by George R.R. Martin

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

The Stand by Stephen King (Over 1400 pages, Holy Cow!)

I also bought some books from the bookstore:

The Confessions of Nat Turner by William Styron