Author Archives: theroseandvine

Another Neil Gaiman book this week. I got put in this reading circle because I caved and told my professor (big Gaiman fan) that I liked the last book we read by him. Rest assured, all of two followers of this blog, my grudge against Gaiman for not adhering to a single audience type remainsContinue reading “Unnatural Creatures Review”

Last week we read “I am Malala” and I am just now getting to writing the review because quarantine inspires either an apathy that sinks into the bones and cannot be conquered in a timely matter, or a burning desire to make progress on every creative venture I’ve ever said I do not have theContinue reading “I am Malala Review”

This week, we read “A Wizard of Earthsea” by Ursula K. Le Guin. This book detailed the origin story of the great mage Sparrowhawk, or Ged, to use his true name. This story is kind of hard to summarize without giving a lot of the plot away, so suffice it to stay it is aContinue reading “Wizard of Earthsea Book Review”

I would like to start out by saying that Neil Gaiman as an author infuriates me to no end by his refusal to pick a category and stick with it. When I hear the name “Judy Blume” I know what she writes. Stephen King, R.L.Stine, Mary Pope Osborne, same thing. Neil Gaiman? Nope! Is itContinue reading “Review of Neil Gaiman’s “Odd and the Frost Giants.””

This week we read “Cinder” by Marissa Myer. A sci-fi retelling of the classic fairy-tale, this Cinderella reboot features a sassy cyborg princess who fixes droids to support her evil stepmother and two step sisters. While doing so, she runs into the handsome prince who needs his old nanny robot fixed so that he canContinue reading “Cinder Review”

Hello, this is a book review not a love letter, sorry to disappoint. Actually I’m not that sorry. Let me begin by saying that this book is dear to my heart. It is so original, so lyrical and powerful, that I come back to it again and again, sometimes to just flip through and readContinue reading “The Book Thief Stole My Heart”

So this week we read “Monster” by Walter Dean Myers, a very compelling novel that I sped through in two hours before proceeding to write my lesson plans for the week and then forget about this assignment until twenty minutes before its due date. The story is told from the perspective of a young manContinue reading “Monster Review”

Laurie Halse Anderson’s novel “Speak” is a shocking narrative, and it is meant to be. The story follows a young girl, Melinda,  who is raped at a party and then ostracized by her peers for calling the cops. Over the course of the novel, she gains the courage to speak out about her experience whenContinue reading ““Speak” Review”