It’s that time again! The Incredibooks Summer Read-a-Thon is back for its fourth year. This time, we need your feedback. We want to know what you think about a few things as we plan for the Read-a-Thon. So hop on over to our Read-a-Thon survey and fill it out. It’s short and won’t take you more than a few minutes. The survey will be open for a week and will close on March 19th.

Once you’ve finished that, you’ll want to check out the Read-a-Thon site. Be sure to sign up to be notified when registration is open!

We’re also looking for people to sponsor the Read-a-Thon this year. If you or someone you know would like to sponsor an event that promotes literacy, please go to our sponsorship information page.

Den of Thieves (A Cat Royal Adventure) (Hardcover)
by Julia Golding
ISBN: 1596434449

Price: USD 12.71
40 used & new available from USD 5.95

Cat Royal’s patron Mr. Sheridan is tearing down his London theatre so he can build a bigger one. There’s just a small problem with that: the theatre is Cat’s home! Realizing what he’s done, Mr. Sheridan sends Cat to France to do some spying for him. When Cat gets there, she immediately gets tangled up in the French Revolution and enters a dangerous world where everything hangs on the will of the people.

As is the usual Cat Royal formula, Cat finds herself in a complicated situation that is quite tense and edge-of-your-seat exciting. The storyline here is excellent, the characters dimensional and complex. Unfortunately, all this greatness is marred by language that gets a little salty at times. Den of Thieves sets up a few events for the next Cat Royal book, which (not to spoil that review!) cut back a lot on the objectionable elements. All that to say that in my opinion, Den of Thieves is probably the low point of the series. But keep going, as the next one is much better.

I did a radio interview about Incredibooks with 101 WQFL today. Here it is:

Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell: A Novel (Paperback)
by Susanna Clarke
ISBN: 1582346038

Price: USD 10.85
305 used & new available from USD 0.10

There has not been a practical magician in England for several hundred years. So the people are astonished when Mr. Norrell, a small, quiet gentleman who has been studying the subject for much of his life, proves that he is, in fact, the next great magician. More than that, he intends to restore magic to England and even aid the country in the war against Napoleon Bonaparte.
In the midst of this rises a second magician, the young and dauntless Jonathan Strange. Strange has an uncanny knack for magic, and despite some rather grave differences of opinion between the two of them, Mr. Norrell takes him on as a pupil. Perhaps their most serious disagreements are about the Raven King, a mysterious figure in history who was responsible for much of the magical foundation. As time goes on, Strange becomes more and more intrigued with the Raven King and the more perilous forms of magic, risking not only his partnership with Norrell but everything that he holds dear.

If I do not restrain myself, I’m going to gush about this book. Problem is, if I force myself to slow down, I’m left speechless. This novel is 782 pages long, and I was enthralled to the very last one. It is incredible. The writing style itself is so beautifully similar to that of Jane Austen and other writers of that period, I could scarcely believe this was such a recent publication (2004). It is intricate, delightful, terrifying, and captivating. I have never come across anything quite like it. The antagonist alone was one of the most uniquely and well-done characters I’ve read. Everything is brilliant, right down to the use of footnotes to enhance the story and add to the seeming reality.
Now, all that to say… I don’t feel that I can go about recommending Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell to everyone. My one single—but substantial—reservation about this book is the heavy involvement of magic. I do not mind magical things in fantasy realms, but this particular story grounds magic firmly in reality, in Europe, in the 1800s. Given that Susanna Clarke is not a Christian author, it creates some gnarly situations. So, is this book for you? I cannot say. You will have to do your own research and choose for yourself.

Anne’s House of Dreams (Paperback)
by Lucy Maud Montgomery
ISBN: 1438512287

Price: USD 10.30
19 used & new available from USD 10.10

Anne and Gilbert finally get married and move into their house of dreams. What follows is the account of their life there and their interactions with their new neighbors. There’s Miss Cornelia, who has some fun quirks; Captain Jim, a retired sailor; and then there’s Leslie, whose tragic life makes Anne reach out to her.

And really, there’s not much of a throughline here. Most of this fifth Anne book involves small, one or two chapter stories. We get plenty of L. M. Montgomery’s signature Anne humor and heartwarming here, though, and it only gets better with the second read. I do prefer some of the other books in the series better, but I did find this one quite enjoyable.

That’s right! Today we posted our 500th review. It’s been almost five years since we started reviewing books and we’ve had lots of fun on the way. We’re not stopping yet by any means. On to review number 600!

Shark Lady: True Adventures of Eugenie Clark (Paperback)
by Ann Mcgovern
ISBN: 0590447718

Price: USD 4.99
125 used & new available from USD 0.10

Ever since she was a child, Eugenie Clark wanted to swim with sharks. She spent hours in the aquarium watching the fish in fascination and dreaming of the day when she would be able to study them in the wild. And when she grew up, she got that chance.

This book chronicles Dr. Eugenie Clark’s life, albeit in a somewhat condensed form. Shark Lady was one of my favorite books when I was somewhere in the eight to ten years old range. It has lovely illustrations, and is told in an engaging manner without being too choppy or “watered down” for young kids.

Sam Small Flies Again: The Amazing adventures of the Flying Yorkshireman (Hardcover)
by Eric Knight
ISBN:

Price: —
7 used & new available from USD 3.34

Sam Small is the most extraordinary man in Yorkshire, which, of course, means the whole world. Throughout the book, Sam manages to get into several absurd situations, such as splitting his personality so that there are two Sams, finding a talking dog, learning how to fly, and turning into a German officer and planning an attack on Britain by accident.

Sam Small is in an episodic format, so each of the ten stories can stand alone. Some of the stories contain material that is unsuitable for younger readers, similar to James Herriot’s books, and much of the humor may not be understood by a younger reader. Older readers will find Sam Small to be enjoyable and hilarious. Do not skip author’s note as it explains the origins of the main character and includes a beautiful piece about writing in general. The Yorkshire dialect takes a bit of getting used to, but the book is well worth it. Despite the title, Sam Small Flies Again is Eric Knight’s only book about Sam.

Freddy the Politician (Hardcover)
by Walter R. Brooks
ISBN: 1585670804

Price: —
10 used & new available from USD 49.88

The Beans are going on a trip to Europe, so the farm animals decide to form a republic and elect a president who can run things in the Beans’ absence. It seems like a good idea, but a couple of newcomers to the farm are scheming to be elected and seize control — not only of the Bean farm, but of the surrounding farms as well. And when Simon and his gang of rats are discovered to be in on the plot, things do not bode well for the election. The Bean animals must stick together and solve this problem.

This is one of the earlier Freddy books, so some of the characters aren’t developed as much as they are later in the series. Nevertheless, I found this a quite enjoyable read. Sadly, though, this book is hard to find now-a-days.

Anne of the Island (Anne of Green Gables, Book 3) (Mass Market Paperback)
by L.M. Montgomery
ISBN: 0553213172

Price: USD 5.99
732 used & new available from USD 0.10

Anne is off to college! There she meets many new friends and stays in touch with just as many old ones. In between exams, finding the perfect house to rent, various escapades, and college social life, Anne must accept that she has grown up. Which means entertaining a few suitors…

Anne of the Island follows a somewhat more condensed style as four years of college are condensed into a single book. This feels rather rushed to me, especially with the suitors bit of my synopsis going on. It’s no secret that Anne discovers somebody she loves by the end of the book, but with the time so squished together, I never felt like I got to know some of her options. That’s really my biggest complaint, though, and it’s certainly no reason to pass up this delightful third Anne book.