If you have been following along at home, we have been covering my 2013 reading and picking out favorites. We kicked it off on New Years Day with some basic statistics …
- 73 total books read
- 17,705 pages
- 49 were fiction
- 20 were aimed at Young Adult, Middle Grade, or Children’s audiences
- 24 were non-fiction
- 12 were audiobooks
… and I listed my top five in the fiction category.
Yesterday, we tackled Non-Fiction. Today I want to discuss a third category which I am calling books for younger readers. I read a mix of young adult, middle grade, chapter books, children’s literature, etc. So I am going to just include all of those in their own category.
So here are my five favorites from that grouping:
I had this on my To Be Read list for sometime and my mother-in-law was kind enough to buy it off my wish list. I then saw in audio format at the library and decided to listen to it in the car. It turned out to be nothing like I expected but it was creative and entertaining enough to make this list. I will post a review here shortly.
When we think of imaginative fantasy you often think of world building-authors who create alternate worlds that are so detailed and functional that they seem real. Stiefvater instead creates these wonderful characters and uses them to illustrate how magic infuses our world. The result is a captivating mix of the weird, quirky, wonderful and dangerous.
This is a series that pulls you forward even as you seek to savor it. It balances those equally enjoyable sensations and that is what makes it great. If you like fantasy, and/or paranormal, young adult literature this series is a must read. But the characters and prose are enjoyable no matter what genre you tend to read. Good storytelling escapes easy classification and this is good storytelling.
It takes a simple concept like running to the corner store to buy milk and turns it into an adventure. There is creative word play, whimsical characters and even a few plot twists. I enjoyed the wit and creativity of the story. My kids loved it as a read-aloud bedtime story. And I my third grade daughter can read it on her own. And we all loved the evocative illustrations which add another layer of fun to the story. Truly a book for the whole family.
I have enjoyed this series (both the chapter books and the children’s picture books) and so grabbed this one from the library just before vacation. It turned out to be a great addition and perhaps my favorite of the series so far. Interesting characters and some tension filled plot twists make for filling in the back story on the guardians a fun ride. Look for a longer review soon.
So there you have it. Two books (and a new favorite series) from an author I had not read before, two books from favorite authors, and an unexpected but entertaining book from another author I had not previously read. Not surprisingly, all have a fantastical element as that is mostly the genre I read in the younger reader group. But all were unique in style and tone with very different authors. Fun all around.
Already an old man, desert guide Issa has seen thousands of dawns. One particular morning, however, the desert reveals something new; something that changes his life. Tucked away in a narrow cave, shielded from a treacherous dust storm by a faithful camel, a baby girl lies wrapped in fine cotton and wearing half of a star medallion around her neck. Issa names the girl Mariama. As years pass, Issa loses his sight, and Mariama becomes his eyes. So Issa doesn’t see the pattern on the robes of a mysterious young traveler who comes through their village, or the medallion he wears. Who is this young stranger, and what does his arrival mean for the life Issa and Mariama share in the desert?
