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This is the first Darren Shan novel that I have read (I have read some graphic novel adaptations previously), and despite some reservations, I enjoyed it very much.  ZOM-B kept me happily entertained on a flight to OKC; it’s a fast read, with blistering action and compulsively readable prose.  I gobbled this up in just a few hours, and was disappointed when I reached the last page, because this one comes to a painful, screeching halt.  It has no ending, just one of those annoying To Be Continued on the last page.  While I now feel invested in the series and will be on board for the next volume, I worry that the next book won’t work for me as well.  This one hit at the right time; with Halloween looming, I was in the mood for something scary, and being trapped on a plane for was few hours, I needed something to occupy my time and keep me from wallowing in boredom.  ZOM-B did that; in spades.  I don’t know if I will feel the same way, or have the right circumstances, when ZOM-B Underground hits stores February of next year.

B is a high school student, and after hearing reports of a zombie invasion in an Irish town, B’s father laughs the news off as a hoax.  When B’s mother voices her concern, her husband reacts violently, silencing her fears.  B isn’t sure what’s going on, but if the videos and the pictures of rotting dead people viciously attacking and eating helpless people is true, B doesn’t know what to do.  When the zombies show up at school, chaos erupts.  Only those brave enough, and willing to do anything to survive, will live through the massacre.  Will B make it out of school alive?

B is a hard character to like.  After years of trying to fend off his father’s abusive attacks, both on B and on B’s mother, B is exhausted.  Playing along with his father’s racially biased views in order to avoid beatings, B comes across as just as bigoted and narrow-minded as his dad.  While he tries to deny his prejudice, because, hey, he has a black friend, it’s hard to ignore the things B says and does.  The intolerance towards other cultures is a strong theme in the book, but it is so heavy-handed that at times it didn’t work for me.  It grated on my nerves.  Yes, B’s dad is a bully and a jerk, but I didn’t need to be reminded of that every other page. 

B has a lot to deal with at home as his father’s temper often flares out of control.  When news of a zombie plague hits the news, everyone laughs it off as an elaborate joke.  When B’s worst nightmare comes true and the zombies overrun  school, it seems as though the world is ending.  Only quick thinking and brutal reactions keep B and a small handful of students alive.  The zombies are relentless, and B’s little group is shrinking fast.  One after another is picked off and eaten by the ravenous zombies.  Soon, it’s everyone for themselves.  While the small group is forced to work together, it is painfully obvious that the peace will only hold as long as it is mutually beneficial.  If tossing a student or two to the zombie mob will buy the more ruthless survivors a reprieve from a painful death, so be it.  The group dynamics  were always shifting, which made the read even more suspenseful, because you never knew when someone would be sacrificed or eaten by the zombies. 

This is a fun, fast, gory read, right up until that dreaded, hated, To Be Continued.  I like a little more closure to my books, but as this is the first in a projected 12 book series, I guess I need to get used to running into a lot of brick walls.

Grade:  B/B-

Review copy provided by publisher

Happy Saturday! Thanks to Little Brown, I have THREE sets of the cutest board books to giveaway!  I SAY, YOU SAY OPPOSITES! and I SAY, YOU SAY ANIMAL SOUNDS! by artist Tad Carpenter, released on September 11th, and now you have a chance to win a set!

From the publisher:  

I SAY, YOU SAY OPPOSITES! and I SAY, YOU SAY ANIMAL SOUNDS! are interactive and endlessly entertaining lift-the-flap board books that emphasize "word prediction," an important language development step for young readers. As parent readers call out the animal on each page, the child reader is encouraged to triumphantly respond with the correct answer, hidden beneath the flap. Fun and educational, this call-and-response technique offers a playful interactive reading experience and is a delightful and exciting way for children to learn words.

With a bright, retro-style palette and round-eyed animals, the I SAY, YOU SAY board book series is perfect for today’s hip babies and parents.

Tad Carpenter is an illustrator and designer living in Kansas City, Missouri, and an adjunct professor in graphic design and illustration at the University of Kansas. You can visit him at www.tadcarpenter.com.

Here are some interior pages so you can see the cuteness for yourself!

I SAY, YOU SAY OPPOSITES!

So cute!!

Fox leaves Turtle in the dust!

Later, Alligator!!

I SAY, YOU SAY ANIMAL SOUNDS!

So adorable!

Happy piggies!

The nightowls are bothering one of their neighbors!

Entering is easy! Just fill out the Rafflecopter widget below.  Extra entries for following and tweeting.   US mailing addresses only, please.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Revived is so not what I was expecting, based on the vibes I got from the cover.  I was expecting something creepy and scary, but this book isn’t.  It’s the story of a girl who finally learns how to make emotional connections with her peers, how to trust others, but more importantly, it’s the story of a girl who finally realizes how precious life really is.

Daisy has a rather skewed view of death.  She’s died five times, and been Revived every time.  Starting with a tragic bus accident when she was a young girl, she has been part of a top secret government experiment most of her life.  She’s an orphan, and she’s being raised by two agents working on the project.  Her life is shrouded in secrecy, and because she has to keep so many things private, she has never really had a friend.  When you are constantly forced to up and move, changing your identity, it’s hard to put down roots.  In the past, Daisy never really minded.  Once she meets Matt and Audrey, her idea of what’s important in life changes abruptly.  Life is precious, especially if you only have one life to live.

I liked Daisy a lot.  She’s smart and mature for her age, distant emotionally and not sure what to make of kids her age.  Audrey and Matt completely change her life.  She starts to feel comfortable in her new home, and she doesn’t want to have to move again.  She wants to be like a normal kid.  The problem with Daisy is that she’s not a normal kid.  No matter how you slice it, she is different, and after she learns that her new best friend is terminally ill, she has a very rude awakening.  After most people die, they are dead forever.  Being part of the Revive project, Daisy never really grasped the concept that death is final.  Her deaths never are, so she has developed a blasé attitude towards life and living.  It’s not until she sees, first hand, how brutally painful death is that she begins to appreciate the lives she’s been given.

Parts of the book did disappoint me.  I thought the background on the Revive project was minimal at best,  but as the focus of this story is Daisy and her friendships, this was a minor quibble.   There were too many convenient coincidences, but overall, I enjoyed getting to know Daisy.  She is likeable, and I found her voice compelling.  This was an engrossing read for me, and I polished it off in just two reading sessions.  While the ending is satisfying, I would not be opposed to revisiting Daisy in the future, and that’s saying a lot, because I am normally

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Now Is The Time For Running is a heartbreaking book.  Thinking of the horrible way that people treat each other is sobering and distressing.  I don’t know how Deo, a 14 year-old boy, was able to keep struggling to survive.  His life in Zimbabwe with his mother, grandfather, and brother is hardly an easy one.  They don’t have much other than each other.  Deo has a homemade soccer ball, and he lives to play the game in his dusty village.  His life is shattered when soldiers come to visit, destroying everything that he has in just few awful moments of blood and senseless violence.  Some of the villagers voted against the ruling Zed party, and those treasonous votes, in a sham of an election, have brought death to everyone.

Deo and his older, mentally challenged brother, Innocent, flee from the only home that they have ever known.  They have nowhere safe to go.  They have no relatives to care for them.  In an effort to save them both, Deo decides that they will make the dangerous border crossing to South Africa, a terrifying and perilous journey that almost gets them killed.  There are crocodiles, lions, hyenas, and the scariest predator of them all – men with guns – to evade.  Once in South Africa, they face a different kind of hell – xenophobia from native South Africans and people who won’t hesitate to take advantage of them.

Based on current events, including the 2008 riots in Alexandra, the life of a refugee is not kind to Deo or Innocent.  The book is so gripping because it is set against a backdrop of recent events.  It’s hard for me to think of a child being put through these terrible challenges.  I don’t think I could have survived the crushing poverty or the devastating heartache chronicled in this book.  Deo is forced to age beyond his years, and he must also live with the consequences of his decisions.  Guilt almost destroys him, but ultimately, soccer saves him when he has hit rock bottom.  The game gives him the strength, and most importantly, the hope, to continue living.

Grade: B+ leaning towards an A-

Review copy provided by publisher

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I love the premise of Substitute Creacher.  Ms. Jenkins’ class is full of very naughty and very unrepentant children.  One day in late October, these misbehaving kids discover a surprise – they are going to have a substitute teacher!  Nothing prepares them for the creacher – er, teacher – who lumbers through the door.  Mr. Creacher is green, he has eight legs, and he has eyes in the back of his head. Literally!  Will he be able to gain control of Ms. Jenkins unruly class?

While I loved the art, the rhyming prose seemed a little forced, and it didn’t flow smoothly.  Mr. Creacher tries some tough love on his misbehaving children, sharing with them the fates of previous delinquents he’s taught over the years.  There was the boy who brought a shark to class,  the sad, sad tale of Keith, a boy who wouldn’t stop eating glue, as well as a few other miscreants who were so naughty that they met with a dreadful end. 

Mr. Creacher’s portfolio of rascals is amusing, and the prose is lively and humorous.  The rhymes didn’t always work for me, but the illustrations make this book a winner.  The large, eye-catching pictures chronicle the fates of previous naughty kids in vivid, action-packed panels that are reminiscent of a vintage comic book.  Boys will eat this book up.  The light horror elements and comic mayhem will keep them engaged to the end of the story.

Grade: B-

Review copy provided by publisher

Review:

Wow, I thought this was a great read!  I love the feel good ending, and thought the illustrations were wonderful.  Gerry, the young protagonist, thinks she is a fairy princess.  She loves sparkles and everything pink, and she never leaves home without her tiara.  When she’s cast as the jester in the ballet production of The Crystal Princess, she’s disappointed.  Not only will she not be allowed to wear the crystal princess’s beautiful and very sparkly white dress, she has to wear a silly hat and shoes with pointed toes and annoying bells.  What is a fairy princess to do, but to try to take all of these setbacks in stride.  When a mishap during the show threatens the production, can a jester save the day?

This is a fun picture book, with a very charming protagonist.  I loved Gerry, and I loved her dance instructor, too.  The compelling narrative drives the story, and the prose kept me thoroughly entertained as I followed along with Gerry as she makes the best of a small setback.  She doesn’t want to be a clown, not when she is so skilled at being a princess.  Why can’t her ballet instructor she that she’s meant to play the part of the princess?  Her attitude changes during the course of the play, and the ending left me smiling.  The whimsical illustrations fit perfectly, and the colorful drawings give energy to the story.  This very fun read will being out the fairy princess in everyone.

Grade: A

Review copy provided by publisher

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Chamelia is a very fun and colorful picture book.  Chamelia is a chameleon, but contrary to the rest of her species, she doesn’t want to blend in, she wants to stand out.  After learning that standing out makes it hard to fit in, she learns to compromise but still be herself. 

I love the illustrations and the use of bright fabrics to make Chamelia pop off of each page.  The other chameleons are shades of a very pale green, but the title character is a darker, more vivid green.  The illustrations are muted shades of pastels, while Chamelia is a bright splash.  She is also an accessory queen, with tasteful shoes and purses to prove that she truly is a fashionesta. 

In her eagerness to stand out, though, she occasionally stumbles by being too different from her peers.  This gets poor Chamelia down in the dumps, and a brightly attired but very unhappy chameleon is a sad sight indeed.  With some help from her parents, Chamelia learns how to stand out, but still fit in at school.

I loved the message in Chamelia, and hope that it helps younger readers to find the courage to be themselves. 

Grade: B+

Review copy provided by publisher

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I have mixed feelings about this book.  I enjoyed reading it, and I felt a connection with Max, the main character, from the very first page.  The story is deliciously creepy and suspenseful, and I couldn’t put it down.  Which leads to my dissatisfaction; the ending is abrupt, and there were so many unanswered questions that I feel a bit, dare I say, cheated?  The other two books in the series are only loosely connected, and don’t have the same characters.  So I am at a loss here; do I get all gushy about the run-up to the ending, or do I focus on my disappointment with the not so tidy finale? 

Max and his family move from the city to a seaside village during the war, where his father, an eccentric watchmaker, believes they will be safe from the tragedy of a seemingly never ending conflict.  From the moment they arrive, Max feels uneasy in his new surroundings.  The clock in the train stations runs backwards.  The creepy garden behind their yard has eerie statues of a circus troop clustered around a clown, which seems to move and change every time Max sees it.  The house has a sad history, as well; the only child of the former residents drowned tragically in the sea. 

After some unsettling accidents happen in the house, Max and his sister Alicia are both frightened.  There’s their youngest sister’s scary cat, those freaky statues, and things that seem to go bump in the night.  With their new friend, Roland, they are determined to discover the secret behind the unsettling events that keep happening.

The tense atmosphere kept me turning the pages, and I was even creeped out a few times.  I hate clowns, they are scary and wrong, and so I was a little leery every time Max so much as glanced over at the garden of statues.  The kids find themselves in several life threatening situations, which got my heart tripping in a panic.  Why, why, why do the characters in horror stories insist on putting themselves in danger?  Max, Alicia, and Roland are all very clever, so I wanted to shake them every time they did something that got them into trouble.  Agh!  Common sense!  Please, just use a little bit of it!

I loved the setting; the sleepy coastal village was perfect for a horror story.  You’ve got the hidden dangers lurking in the waters, sudden, violent storms, an isolated beach.  Yeow!  All of the components for a scary en

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Review:

Me…Jane caught my attention for two reasons.  First, it is illustrated by Patrick McDonnell, and I love his Mutts series.  Second, it is about Jane Goodall, and she’s a woman whom I admire very much.  She proved that women could conduct meticulous research in difficult conditions, and she made many startling discoveries while observing chimpanzees in Tanzania.  When I was in high school, I wanted to be like Jane Goodall, until I figured out that the bugs in the jungle were the size of soccer balls. 

Told with charming illustrations, Me…Jane follows the title character as she and her stuffed chimp explore the environment around her home.  Always fascinated with the outside world, Jane studied her backyard, taking detailed notes and making drawings of her observations.  I’m impressed by how hard she worked at cataloging the flora and fauna around her, perfecting skills that would become so important later in her life.  I love the theme of this picture book, too, and think it is an important one for kids to constantly be exposed to.  Everyone has dreams, and everyone has the ability to make them come true, if they are willing to work hard enough.

The visuals are delightful and capture Jane’s sense of adventure and wonder as she explores the world around her.  To compliment the simple, yet expressive illustrations, the narrative is sparse, but the prose carefully emphasizes the importance of following your dreams.

Grade: B+

Review copy provided by publisher

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Twelve-year-old Lanesha lives in a tight-knit community in New Orleans’ Ninth Ward. She doesn’t have a fancy house like her uptown family or lots of friends like the other kids on her street. But what she does have is Mama Ya-Ya, her fiercely loving caretaker, wise in the ways of the world and able to predict the future. So when Mama Ya-Ya’s visions show a powerful hurricane–Katrina–fast approaching, it’s up to Lanesha to call upon the hope and strength Mama Ya-Ya has given her to help them both survive the storm.

Ninth Ward is a deeply emotional story about transformation and a celebration of resilience, friendship, and family–as only love can define it.

Review:

Ninth Ward is a wonderful book about a young girl who finds strength in adversity.  In the middle of the worst natural disaster in our country’s history, she learns to be true to herself and learns to accept who she is.  I loved Lanesha, and as Katrina approached, I started to feel just as uneasy as she did.  As her  guardian, Mama Ya-Ya, becomes more and more unsettled by the approaching storm, there is a frightening shift in their relationship.  Lanesha has always thought that Mama Ya-Ya was the strongest, wisest woman she knew, but the impending disaster makes her see that she needs to step up and be strong herself.  Lanesha didn’t have much in the way of material goods, but boy, this girl has such a strength of spirit and such a kind heart that you begin to wonder with growing dread – how will this terrible disaster change her?

The description of the storm is terrifying – loud, impossibly powerful, frighteningly intense, this is like something from your worst nightmare.  It is a monster raining havoc on the helpless Lanesha and Mama Ya-Ya, as they cower in their ancient house and pray that it isn’t reduced to rubble around them.  It came to life and made my heart pound.  But what really scared me while reading about Katrina was knowing what happens next.  How will Lanesha and Mama Ya-Ya survive what happens after Katrina’s fury passes, when the storm surge devastates the levees and lets the waters from the Mississippi pour into the already battered Ninth Ward?  The gates of hell have opened; how much can one young girl live through?

I was a little nervous about picking up this book because I remember Katrina so vividly.  I, however, was blessed to be an outsider looking in with horror at the damage done by this horrible storm.  I remember the rage and frustration I felt that our government couldn’t get it together enough to quickly and efficiently get relief supplies to the people who so desperately needed them.  The scenes from the Superdome are a travesty – how could a disaster of this magnitude happen here, in the wealthiest country in the world?  We were supposed to be prepared.   This was the best our leaders could do?  And to blame the victims for their own misery?  What kind of compassion is that?

Ninth Ward puts a very human face on the awful events that tore New Orleans apart. It’s a book about love, hope, and friendship.  It’s about the strength of a community, strength in adversity, and the very powerful will to survive in the midst of a disaster.  It’s also about learning who you are and never giving up.  This is one of the best books I’ve read this year, and I can’t recommend it enough.