The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry

Several years ago, I received The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin as an e-galley, but I couldn't get it to download to my Kindle. I knew that I was missing something really good, but I figured I would just wait until it was published and read it then. And then, as it tends to do, time passed. Finally, after hearing friend after friend, not to mention lots of reviewers, talk about the beauty of this book, I was able to get my hands on it. And I was not disappointed.

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry is about a recently widowed bookseller in his late thirties. A.J. Fikry owns the only bookstore on Alice Island, a fictional island in the area of Nantucket. He isn't a particularly lovable character, he's rather prickly in the beginning, but that is a bit understandable. His wife, whom he adored, died very unexpectedly nearly two years before we meet him. Then his prized possession, and future retirement, a rare, early edition of a book by Edgar Allen Poe, is stolen. Life does not seem to be going the way A.J. had hoped it would. Then everything changes when someone leaves something very unexpected in his bookstore for him. The isolation that A.J. has spent so much time crafting for himself suddenly evaporates as he becomes more and more connected to the people of Alice Island.

This book is really just lovely. I adored this book and my only regret is that I waited so long to read it. This would make a wonderful selection for any book club as there is so much to discuss. This is the kind of book you will want to hug, to curl up and hold these characters and their words. I am disappointed that I cannot tell you more without telling too much, so I will just reiterate that you really must read this book. I will leave you with a quote from A.J. Fikry, taken from when he describes a book he has recently discovered and loved:

"Every word the right one and exactly where it should be. That's basically the highest compliment I can give. I'm only sorry it took me so long to read it."

The Girl with All the Gifts by M.R. Carey

I love hearing about a book through the grapevine. I love when lots of people that I know from lots of different places like a book that isn't yet mainstream. That is how I found The Girl with All the Gifts by M.R. Carey. So what were people saying about it that peaked my interest? Not much, actually. I read several things that basically said, "I can't tell you what this book is about, but it is so good." Oh, the intrigue! I don't usually share 'back of the book' summaries, but this time I'll make an exception:

Melanie is a very special girl. Dr. Caldwell calls her "our little genius."

Every morning, Melanie waits in her cell to be collected for class. When they come for her, Sergeant Parks keeps his gun pointing at her while two of his people strap her into the wheelchair. She thinks they don't like her. She jokes that she won't bite, but they don't laugh.

I was pretty sure I knew where this was going, but I wasn't positive and sometimes I really like that. And I wouldn't tell you, either, except that a movie version is being released and you're sure to see the trailer (oh, heck, here you go...) and figure it out anyway, I'll just go ahead and let the cat out of the bag. Melanie is a ten-year-old zombie. And do you want to know the other trick of it? She doesn't know it yet. Melanie lives on a military base approximately twenty years after the Breakdown. She is being taught, but she is also being studied. She loves school, but she especially loves her teacher, Miss Justineau. It is a strange world, but Melanie works hard to understand it.

This book was captivating and thrilling. Last night, I stayed up far too late just to finish it. It is a bit frightening (it's the end of the world as we know it), but also very sad. Melanie and others like her are just children and the way they are treated is heartbreaking. This book explores the idea of a greater good. Is evil okay if it will help everyone else? Does that even qualify as evil?

I loved how this book was written. At one point, the words "tropical brainforest" were used and the literary nerd in me couldn't move on until I had said it aloud several times. I also love how emotional this book is. Nothing is purely evil. Nothing is purely good.

Read this one. I think you'll really like it.

My Diary from the Edge of the World by Jodi Lynn Anderson

We love our library. I may have mentioned that before, but it is a truth that bears repeating. We have a wonderful library and the kids and I love to just browse its shelves. During a recent day off school, we made just such a trip to our library and I saw this one, My Diary from the Edge of the World by Jodi Lynn Anderson, sitting on the shelf just calling out to me. The cover art is beautiful and no matter how much someone tells me not to judge a book by its cover, sometimes I can't help it. This book features Gracie Lockwood, young girl living in plain, old Cliffden, Maine. You know, just the regular world with school and homework, Dairy Queen and Circle K, dragons and sasquatches. Oh, wait. That last part didn't sound right to you? Well, that is what caught my attention, too.

Gracie lives in a world that sounds exactly like us, shocking in its unremarkableness, except for the supernatural creatures that are viewed the same way we view squirrels and butterflies. Included in this strange world are dark clouds that arrive to take someone away when it is their time to die. Gracie has noticed a cloud making its way down their street and it has her concerned. Her family is sure that the cloud is coming for Gracie's sickly younger brother Sam, so in an attempt to protect him, the Lockwoods leave town. They know the cloud can follow them, but they have a plan for that. They are determined to go all the way to the edge of the world so that they can cross over into The Extraordinary World. Though most people have never heard of it, and those who have believe it is a myth, Gracie's father believes it is another dimension which they can reach after a very perilous journey across their own world. They will risk sasquatches, yetis (larger versions of sasquatches), and abominable snomen (larger versions of yetis); witches, ghosts and ghost ships, and giants. It's not your average family road trip novel, but it sure does have imagination.

I loved this book when it began. There was just something so funny about the way the ordinary was mentioned right along with the extraordinary, like when Gracie casually recalls a dragon burning down a TJ Maxx recently. No big deal. Happens all the time. As the story progressed, I did begin to get impatient and lose interest a bit and there were even times I wasn't sure I wanted to finish it, but I pressed on and by the time I reached the last few chapters, I was glad I had kept at it. Your middle grade reader would love it.

 My favorite quote comes from Gracie's mother:

"Books are the way to stretch out people's souls, and I won't have children with small souls."

What I've Heard- Talking As Fast As I Can

I loved Gilmore Girls. I have fond memories of watching it while I nursed my first child and I remember how sad I was when it ended. When the new episodes aired on Netflix this past fall, I wasn't sure how I felt about it. Perhaps my expectations and hopes were too high, or perhaps I've grown and changed. Either way, I liked it well enough, but not like I used to.

That all said, when I read that Lauren Graham was writing a book about her Gilmore Girls years, Talking As Fast As I Can, I knew I would have to read it. Right away, I put my name on the library reserve list, but the audiobook actually came in first, so I thought, "Hey, why not listen to Lauren talking as fast as she can?" It was a good choice. You know that I usually don't listen to books I haven't read yet, and this is a prime example of why I have that rule. Wait! Don't get me wrong- it was a wonderful book and a very fun experience. The only problem I have is that I wasn't able to mark the passages that I would like to share with you here. It's a lot harder to put sticky notes on my favorite parts of an audio book.

This book was fun and funny. I loved all the background information about how Lauren got into acting and all the hard work that led up to her success. She makes it very clear that she WORKED her way to stardom; there was no easy path for her and she is very encouraging of anyone working their way toward any kind of dream. I also really loved her writing advice. This is Lauren's second book, her first being a work of fiction, Someday, Someday Maybe. The main takeaway for me was to just keep going. Just keep writing. Set a kitchen timer and block out any distractions and WRITE.

This book also had lots of behind the scenes information about both the original Gilmore Girls and the new episodes. Lauren kept a diary during the filming of the new episodes and has lots of detailed info. The only complaint I had about listening to this as an audiobook is that I missed out on what sounded like some great photos. I believe there was a PDF file on the CDs I borrowed from the library, but I've returned it already and can't check. I liked listening to this and I think you will, too.

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

I have had Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver on my To-Read list for years. When I saw that the movie version was being released March 3rd, I knew it was finally time to get to it. Before I Fall is about Samantha Kingston, a senior in high school and one of the four most popular girls in school, along with her friends Lindsay, Ally, and Elody. Samantha is having a pretty good day, but it turns out to be her last day. Strangely enough, she then proceeds to repeat this last day over and over again.

Like the after-death equivalent of  Groundhog Day.

As Sam progresses through these days, she begins to wonder if there is a reason for it and if there is anything she can do to change her situation. At the beginning of this book, Sam is just awful. Mean Girl through and through. When her first thought as she is dying is of a girl she and her friends teased for being "fat", this is how she felt about it:

That's just the kind of thing that kids do to each other. It's no big deal. There's always going to be a person laughing and somebody getting laughed at.

Sam's friends are just as bad, or in the case of Lindsay, their ring leader, worse. It is Lindsay who decides who the group hates and, sadly, they unquestioningly follow her. These are the kind of sharks I am afraid my children will encounter when they enter high school. Or worse, that they will be. Sam and her friends know they have power over their peers and they love it. Fortunately, as the story progresses, Sam begins to change. She begins to see other people with a different perspective. She learns more about their individual experiences and understands them more. She is also less likely to blindly follow the group.

I really liked this book and I really enjoyed that it was the kind of book I couldn't wait to read. When it first began, it had a very sour flavor- so mean!- but as I read on, I was relieved by the improvements in Sam. It has been a few years since I was in high school, but much to my surprise, it continues to prove a microcosm of the world. Some people don't really change as they grow up and so it was much more relatable than I expected.

I have marked this as "Required Reading" because I think it could really help bring some perspective to teens who read it. High school feels like the only thing that matters while you are in it. Once you have moved on, it is so much less important. And yet, it is an opportunity to learn, to grow, and hopefully to be kind. This book did contain lots of references to sex (though no actual scenes), alcohol, smoking and drugs so be aware of that if you are sharing it with your teen, but I still think it is a valuable perspective of those formative years.

The only complaint I have is that it didn't end like I would have liked, but the beauty of an imagination is that I can rewrite it any way I would like.

I'll leave you with the movie trailer and this final quote:

Maybe for you there's one thousand tomorrows. or three thousand, or ten, so much time you can bathe in it, roll around in it, let it slide like coins through your fingers. so much time you can waste it.

But for some of us there's only today. And the truth is, you never really know.

What I Heard- First Frost

Sarah Addison Allen is one of my favorite authors for books that are just fun and sweet. I have just finished listening to the audio version of First Frost and I loved it. The narration is well done and the writing lends itself beautifully to being read aloud. Add this one to your audio files. You'll be glad you did. 

Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt

In Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt, Ally Nickerson is having quite a difficult time at school. She always has, but with moving every year or so as a military family, she's been able to hide it from her teachers and her family. Ally can't read and by 6th grade it is getting harder to get by without that particular skill. Things just seem to get worse for her until one day she suddenly has a new teacher, Mr. Daniel. Mr. Daniel is exactly the kind of teacher we would all like to have. He is kind, he is understanding and he sees each of his students as they are and individualizes their learning. Ally does what she can to keep her problem from him, but eventually she can keep it a secret no longer.

This was such a sweet, wonderful book. The title, Fish in a Tree, refers to this quote by Albert Einstein:

Ally, like a lot of young people, learns differently. She is certainly not stupid, but it takes one teacher paying the right amount of attention to see that and then to convince her of it. Ally is smart, but not in the ways that are measured at school. She is funny and kind and just the type of character that makes for a good role model in books for children. This book provides plenty of examples of students that don't have an easy road, but the concept of "grit" is well explained and demonstrated.

This book is also excellent for teaching a little compassion. Not everyone has the same experiences and my favorite thing about reading is exploring the life of someone else. Maybe the reader is the "weird kid" at school and is able to see that weird kids turn out to be pretty interesting. Or maybe the reader is the "cool kid" who isn't always very nice and can see the consequences of bullying or exclusion. Or maybe the reader is just a regular kid- is there really such a thing?- who learns that everyone around them has something special, themselves included.

I highly recommend this book, especially for teachers, but I think anyone can enjoy it. My 9-year-old has been impatiently waiting for me to finish so she can have her turn.