Unsouled

The Unwind and Unwholly series are great books. Unsouled is the third one. Reader beware: there are four in the series, not the typical trilogy. And while a critique may be that Unsouled seems drawn out, I reserve judgment until the last book is out. It's not quite fair to judge it yet bases only on that. Hopefully what seems stretched out and added just to make the book longer and turn it into a fourth book is just setting up the last book.

I did feel like the characters got old toward the end of the book. I was just a bit tired of the story, setting, and characters. In contrast, I never tired or got bored of the Divergent characters.

I like the questions created and discussed in this book. Shusterman brought in more philosophical arguments and reasoning in this books than in the others.

While I wouldn't say it's bad, I might call it forgettable. I do feel like Shusterman was trying so hard for character development and reconnection with the characters that all the scenes in the book are a little too long. It feels like he added every thing he could. And much of it doesn't seem to further the plot. But I could be wrong. I think with the movie rights already sold that he's starting to write for a movie and not just the book. Which makes the characters seem less authentic.

The book has a lot of Snarky leading the stork army. A lot of Lev and Connor on a reservation. Really a lot of hiding from the authorities. More background and interaction with the people who invented the technology to unwind which is probably the most interesting thing in there.

Overall, it was a quick read. While reading it, I loved it. Afterwards, it was just okay. But still worth the read and hopefully the last book will pull it all together.

Allegiant - Big Spoiler!

There are lots of opinions out there about this book, the final in the Divergent series by Veronica Roth. Some people don't like it. Some people love it. Some think there is too much character development and not enough government conspiracy details and others agree with them, but liked that.

Here's my take on the book. My first critique is that the duel voices telling the story (Tris and Four...because I just can't bring myself to call him Tobias) aren't distinct. They both sound so similar that I had to look back to remember who was narrating. I recall this as a problem with the previous books as well, so I wasn't that put out by it and even kind of expected it. So it didn't bother me.

My second critique is that although I absolutely loved the book, I was disappointed in the lack of details regarding the government role in the whole Chicago experiment. Was David a rouge government agent? Or was the US government in control of him? I think that Allegiant is more about human nature than conspiracy, which was disappointing. While I loved all the human nature and character development, I wished there were more about the government.

SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And the end. Oh. My. I got so involved with the characters of this trilogy that when Tris died, I was shocked. I wept. I went back and forth from hating Roth for her ending to loving her. It's really the first of the genre to kill off the main character. I love it. I hate it. The message that is told about true sacrifice is beautiful. Caleb wanted to sacrifice his life out of guilt and Tris knew better. Sacrifice should be done out of love. With a pure motivation. So while I wept at Tris' death, I also wept at the love and forgiveness her death portrayed. And I also love the redemption of Four and his mom. The overarching themes of forgiveness and sacrifice are amazing in this book.

Overall, great series. I highly recommend it. And while a little disappointed with the dystopian aspect at the end, I think overall it's the best trilogy in the genre.

Gossamer

I've already sung praises for Lois Lowry. And here I go again. Gossamer is an interesting little book. It's a juvenile fiction book that is great for middle-upper elementary school age kids (and apparently adults as well).  It is well written for what it is and highly creative.

The main players are dream givers. A young one is being trained in the art of giving dreams to humans. It has some heavy details of a fathers' abuse in it, so beware. If you let your 8-9 year old read it, they need to know themselves well, have a strong sense of justice, and not be persuaded by other ideas.

Number the Stars

Lois Lowry is one of my favorite authors. Yes, I know she writes youth fiction meant for middle to upper elementary or middle schoolers. But her books are classics or classics in the making. They are well written, great characters, and sweet story lines.

She has written a jewel of a book, Number the Stars, about a little girl in Denmark during the German occupation. Her family helps smuggle out their Jewish friends. It's full of the typical tense solider moments. Will the Jewish family make it or will they get caught? It's written from a child's perspective, which gives a sweet childish innocence mixed in that we rarely see. Great book to introduce kids to the Nazis and WW2. And a quick, easy read for adults.

Phoenix Rising

Phoenix Rising by Karen Hesse is a great little book. It's juvenile fiction but really good. I read it to make sure of was appropriate for my 3rd grader. I'll wait to let her read it until we study chemicals in school since it's a book about a radiation leak, although it is appropriate for her to read now. Maybe a "damn" or two is the only thing in there. The main character, Nyle, is growing up with her grandmother on a farm. There is a radiation leak near their town and the book is about the affects of it. A sick boy and his mother end up living in their farmhouse with them. The relationships in the book are sweet, as are the characters.

I would recommend for adults as well as older kids. If you read it as an adult, just keep in mind it's meant for kids.

Stone From the River

This book is good in theory; it just didn't capture me quickly enough to keep my attention. It is well written though. It's about a dwarf growing up in Germany. There were too many stories about her growing up and not enough plot. Which means the character development was great. And if I could get captured by the plot that was slowly developing, I think it would turn out to be a great book. I gave it 102 pages before moving on. Maybe I'll try again when I have more energy.

Illuminations

Another book for my list of favorites. Maybe even in my top 3 favorites. Definitely my favorite of this genre, which is historical fiction. Are there any other ways I can say this is one of my favorites?!

It's about a woman, Hildegard von Bingen who lived in the 1100s and at a young age was made to be walled up in a monastery along side a mentally unstable woman.

The plot was riveting. I love that it's historical fiction and Mary Sharratt brings the story to life. She writes with authentic language of monastic life in 1100s, but is still very readable.

Leave theology at the door before reading. It's not supposed to be about correct or incorrect theology. And the theology just doesn't matter. It's the psychology and the challenging of gender roles that matters. Hildegard bucked the system of what women did in the 1100s, but did it respectfully and graciously. She lived in compromise, but without sacrificing her beliefs.

If there is one book that you read this year, this should be it. It'd also be the perfect book club book. Men and women alike will like it. People of faith and those without. It's just about the perfect book.