Girl with a Dragon tattoo

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson


My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I know this book was HUGE. Everyone has been reading it and recommending it. So much so that I took a break from reading all the teen book I have for work. It was something different.




I will say the mystery element had me second guessing myself all the way through the book. I read quite a few and usually guess the bad guy or the twist. While I did suspect parts of this plot early in the book, the author had be second guessing myself so much that I was loath to put the book down even when I was sure I didn't like the book.




While I loved the mystery element, I was annoyed by the ending of the personal part of the story. It just felt unnecessarily bleak to me. Overall, a good read though many American readers may find the style a bit formal and the start a bit slow. It's a style that I seem to see in more European books....though I will admit that I tend not to read much literary fiction for adults from American authors.




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Clementine by Pennypacker

Clementine by Sara Pennypacker

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I LOVE LOVE LOVE these books!  If you have a child making the jump from readers to chapter books these are great.  It's hard to find cute, fun, stories for this skill level.  There is tons of junk, but not a ton of good stories with realistic kids who find solutions to problems on their own with guidance from adults (who are there and NOT the enemy). 



My only problem?  There aren't more of them.  So Sara please keep writing them!







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Rise of Renegade X

The Rise of Renegade X by Chelsea Campbell

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I really liked this book.  I've seen a few kids as superheros and liked a few but thought most were kind of cheesy.  By casting the main character as a villain, he is free not to be perfect from the start and I have to say even though I love the teens at my library, it's A LOT easier seeing them as super villains than heroes.



Some of the characters are rather flat and stereotypes, but it seems more intentional than a weakness in the book.  I'd pair this with maybe Hero by Moore. Give to fans of the movies Sky High, KickAss, or Scott Pilgrim.



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