Entries Categorized as 'Fiction'
Posted by Ruth
Categories: Advanced Readers, Adventure, Fantasy, Fiction, Review
Tags:George Bryan Polivka, Scary, Seafaring
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Packer Throme, burdened with an uncertainty and a guilt about his life, resolves to sneak aboard the Trophy Chase, a fine ship manned by the pirate Scatter Wilkens. Or rather, the recent pirate. Wilkens has turned fisherman in the quest to find and hunt the legendary Firefish, fearsome creatures that bring a high price on the market. Packer has information about them and hopes to join in with the intent of learning enough of the trade to help out his hometown. But things are not as easy as they seem, and soon even Panna, his love back home, is swept into adventure.
A very interesting read with much food for thought. From what I gathered, it employs the “turn the other cheek” policy to the point where, boiled down, it’s almost saying that it is wrong to fight or resist when you are confronted or even accosted by an evil person. And I believe there is something to be said about fighting for justice. However, the main theme throughout is really trusting God with everything, including your life. That, I agree with wholeheartedly. I’m still mulling over the rest; it’s a well-crafted novel. The Hand That Bears the Sword, part two of the trilogy is available as well, and The Battle for Vast Dominion, the concluding book, has just been published the beginning of this year.
Posted by Becca
Categories: Fantasy, Fiction, Review, Younger Readers
Tags:Animals, Birds, Dragons, Easy Read, Good Read Aloud, My Father's Dragon, Quick Read, Ruth Stiles Gannett
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After rescuing the baby dragon from Wild Island, Elmer starts his journey home. The dragon is happy to fly Elmer home, but a storm at sea lands them both on an island populated only by canaries. While there, Elmer learns something terrible: the king canary is dying of curiosity about a secret and the other canaries are curious to know what the secret is. Elmer knows that the only way to cure the canaries is to have the king tell his secret. But is the king willing?
Elmer and the Dragon picks up where My Father’s Dragon leaves off. In fact, all three books in the series could be combined into one book. Though this book is geared toward younger readers, it makes a fun quick read for the older audience.
Posted by Rebekah
Categories: Advanced Readers, Fiction, Review, Science Fiction
Tags:Jules Verne, Long Read, Seafaring
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The English brig James Cook, under the command of Captain Gibson, carries out costal trading in the Pacific waters off the coast of New Zealand. Unbeknownst to the Captain, his bosun Flig Balt and a no-good sailor called Vin Mod are plotting a mutiny. Between the two of them, they manage to infiltrate the crew with ruffians who have agreed to help them murder Captian Gibson and anyone who sides with him. The would-be mutineers have the advantage until the James Cook picks up two Dutch castaways, Karl and Peter Kip. Angered by the Kip brothers’ interference, Flig and Vin decide to carry out their plan with one small modification: To pin the murder on the Kips. Trapped by a mound of evidence (provided by the wily Vin Mod), the Kip brothers are convicted and sentenced to hard labor for life in the penal colony of Port Arthur. Can Mr. Hawkins, the only friend the Kips have left, find some scrap of material proof that they are innocent?
Frankly, I was a bit disappointed in this one. It was easy to put down, and rather repetitive. Of course, it might be the translation, as it was originally written in French, but then Verne was French, so one would assume all his books were originally in French. The ending caught me by surprise. It was scientific, but strange-sounding to the point of improbability. There were sections about the history of some of the islands in that area, which might be interesting to anyone wanting to know the times they were discovered and by whom.
Posted by Ruth
Categories: Adventure, Fantasy, Fiction, Incredibook!, Older Readers, Review
Tags:Animals, Bryan Davis, Dragons, Dragons in Our Midst, Long Read, Scary
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Several months after the conclusion of Raising Dragons, Bonnie’s father suddenly appears on the scene, claiming that Irene (Bonnie’s mother) is, in fact, still alive, but in critical condition. He insists that the only way Irene can recover is if Bonnie goes with him, so despite suspicion, Bonnie and her father depart for Montana. Billy, Professor Hamilton, Walter, and Billy’s mother uncover more clues and decide that things are not as they seem. They set off to the rescue, guided partly by a book that contains some of Merlin’s prophecies. But unknown dangers await both Bonnie and Billy, trials that will put to test not only their courage, but their faith.
I’m not sure whether the appropriate word to sum this book up would be “Wow” or “Whoa.” Both are entirely applicable. Plot twists and mysteries completely pack this book, and you can hardly stop to catch your breath between chapters while racing through with that age-old question of, “What happens next?” A very, very powerful story. I did rate it five stars, but I should note that in my personal opinion, it ranks at more like four and a half. However, this is entirely due to the fact that I have a rather severe case of medical phobia, and so a great deal of the content in The Candlestone I found to be unnerving. Setting that aside, this story is not to be missed!
Posted by Jordan
Categories: All Ages, Fiction, Picture Books, Review
Tags:Easy Read, Funny, Good Read Aloud, McBroom, Quick Read, Sid Fleischman
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Josh McBroom, his dear wife Melissa, and their eleven children, Willjillhesterchesterpeterpollytimtommarylarryandlittleclarinda, all head West to find better farm land. On arriving in Iowa, they meet scrawny Hector Jones, who sells them eighty acres of land, not a tree stump on it, for ten dollars. The catch? When the McBrooms reach their new farm, it turns out to be a one acre pond that is eighty acres deep. Things seem to be going poorly for them, until one extremely hot summer day, when the pond dries up, and they find out that the soil underneath is so rich, anything will grow in it within a few minutes! Of course, neighbor Jones is not happy and will stop at nothing to get the farm back.
The story contained within McBroom Tells the Truth is good enough to keep everybody turning the pages. It’s a sort of picture book, in that there are pictures on every page, but the book runs almost fifty pages and takes quite awhile to read aloud. As you may have guessed, McBroom Tells the Truth is full of silliness and is most definitely a tall tale. Fleischman must have loved writing these, since there are many, many more books about McBroom and his wonderful one acre farm.
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