This is a fantasy book written for young teens, probably around 12. Kristie, 11, started it a few months ago but didn’t finish it. She said it seemed good but she got caught up in a different series at school. So I thought I would try it out for her. And I’m kind of glad I did.
Content
Alanna of Trebond is being sent of to learn to be a lady, but that is the last thing she wants. Her twin brother is supposed to become a night, likewise the last thing he wants. So they switch places. He goes to the convent, not to become a lady but to be taught in the arts of sorcery. Alanna becomes Alan of Trebond and begins her training as a page on her road to knighthood.
Alanna forms many friendships during her training, including prince Jonathan and George, king of thieves. Although Alanna only desire is to become a knight, she has the Gift and must learn to use sorcery as well as chivalry to succeed.
recommendation
I give this book 10 out of 12 buttered rolls. Alanna is a heroine that I truly enjoyed. She is quick witted and likeable. Her trials are realistic and fantastic at the same time. All in all, a fun read.
We received the Amber Brown collection as a gift after our last house fire. These books are suggested for ages 7 & up. I love to see my kids read and was excited to try out a new set. I read all eight this week.
You Can’t Eat your Chicken Pox, Amber Brown
It’s the summer following third grade and Amber Brown is crossing the pond. She has an aunt in London and when her parents separated, her dad moved to Paris. Unfortunately, Amber comes down with chicken pox on the second day in London. Kind of a cute story, but really weighed down with the parent line. Amber has a “Dad book” that she talks to because she misses her dad so much. When her dad insinuates that he wasn’t sure her chicken pox were real or if they were a story to keep the two apart, I got uncomfortable.
I’m only a kid. Why do I have to worry about all of this?
I tend to agree. I realize that not all kids have a perfect family life. But this is pretty heavy for a 7 year old to read.
Amber Brown Goes Fourth
It’s the beginning of fourth grade and Amber Brown misses her best friend who moved away before summer vacation. Lots of kids have a hard time with the beginning of the new school year and trying to make new friends. It seems fairly realistic in the way the fourth graders relate to one another. But the storyline gets high-jacked with negative emotions. Yes, Amber Brown resolves to “go fourth” with determination, but there is so much negative, so much worrying. Young children should be reading light-hearted stories where the “conflict” is how much of a mess they made and how much trouble they are going to get in.
Amber Brown Wants Extra Credit
When Amber Brown’s school work begins to suffer, she vows to do better. But there are so many things that have her worried and make it hard to focus on school. Her mom wants her to meet her new boyfriend. Amber wants things to go back to the way before the divorce. Her biggest fear is that she might like the boyfriend and that wouldn’t be fair to her dad. It’s a lot for a nine-year old to deal with.
Forever Amber Brown
This book deals with change. Some changes are good and we chose them. Others are kind of forced on us. When Amber’s mom receives a marriage proposal, the two of them head to Alabama to stay with their best friends and make some decisions. Amber likes the time spent with her best friend, Justin, who moved away just 6 months earlier. While there, she learns that change is inevitable, but she will forever be Amber Brown.
Amber Brown Sees Red
This book is full of silly episodes, beginning with skunks in the school. Yeah, just a little unrealistic but kids would totally eat it up. More negativity as Amber’s dad announces his intention of moving back to New Jersey. And what children’s series doesn’t have a bad haircut as the icing on the cake.
Amber Brown is Feeling Blue
Amber is forced to choose between her parents. Thanksgiving with Mom and boyfriend Max in Washington State, or New York City with her dad. There is also a new girl in her class, Kelly Green. Despite a rocky first day together, the two girls become friends. The story dwells so much on Amber’s emotional turmoil, that the character development is seriously lacking.
I, Amber Brown
It’s Christmas time, but this book fails to spread the holiday cheer. As Amber’s father moves back from Paris, they begin a joint-custody routine. Amber even pits the parents against each other when her mom says no to pierced ears, but her dad doesn’t know about that conversation. When dad finds a place to rent nearby, Amber loves the family that lives upstairs.
Amber Brown is Green With Envy
This is the last book in our box set, but not the last one in “the colorful world of Amber Brown.” But these books just aren’t very colorful to me. In this book, there is more fighting between the parents and Mom and boyfriend decide to move to a new house so ex-husband won’t have a history there. And Amber is mad about it. Dad goes on a date. And Amber is mad about it. Once again, the whole book is filled with anger and negativity but everything is supposed to be all better with the last two lines…
Life can be very confusing . . . . filled with good things and filled with bad things.
But it’s my life . . . . . and I have choices.
Recommendation
I only give this series 2 out of a dozen buttered rolls. It was pretty easy reading for the age suggested 7 & up. The books are not a “numbered series.” I read Amber Brown is Feeling Blue first and was totally confused. The author spends very little time in character development so if you read them out of order, you will be lost. So I looked on the “Box,” figured out the order and followed the story line much better. They should be read in order, even if the author won’t tell you what that order is.
And then there is the content. The cover promises an “Always Bright, Amazingly Bold, Amber Brown. I disagree. Amber was rarely bright (whitty or positive), and her boldness flirted with rude and disrespectful because it was always aimed at her parents. Divorce is real, it is ugly, but I doubt these books would help a child cope. They took real situations and dwelt on the negative. I don’t think you can spend 150 pages filled with hate, anger, and malice, then say “but it’s my life” and expect it all to be better.
I am grateful that my children are not in Amber’s situation. Maybe a child from a broken home would find comfort in these books, confirmation that they are not the only ones that feel this way. Still, I think there has to be a better, more healthy way to help children cope with those feelings.
I don’t usually read non-fiction books but this one makes three in a row. I always liked historical fiction books, because I could learn the history while being entertained. In fiction the satire used as social commentary is often much more enjoyable than reality. But Jax suggested Josh read Three Against Hitler, so I thought I would try it after he was done. The hardest part about reading this book was knowing that it really happened just the way it said.
Style
Three Against Hitler follows your basic autobiography or even a memoirs format. With the help of Jerry Borrowman, Rudi Wobbe tells the story of his life. The title felt a little deceiving to me though. If you are a history buff you may know the name Helmuth Huebener. Although Helmuth plays a vital role in the events of the book, it is not his story. I wanted the book to follow all three of the boys more closely (in fact there was a fourth boy who is mentioned throughout and I wonder why it was not Four Against Hitler). A third party documentary would have been able to do that better. But this is Rudi’s story and he tells of things from his own first hand knowledge.
Content
Brief history lesson. Helmuth Huebener, Rudi Wobbe, and Karl-Heinz Schuibbe were three LDS teenagers at the start of WWII. They witnessed the atrocities committed by the Nazi’s on a very personal level, as friends and church members were attacked for various reasons. But unlike many who accepted the propaganda or suffered in silence, these three spoke out against the regime.
Helmuth and Rudi listened to BBC News Reports and distributed flyers contradicting Nazi propaganda. Helmuth’s contempt for Hitler was blatant as he wrote flyers entitled, “Hitler the Murderer” and “Only Hitler is the Guilty One.” Helmuth and Rudi recruited others to help spread their anti-Nazi flyers. Unfortunately, they were ultimately caught and that was just the beginning. Four young men, three under the age of 17, were charged with “Preparation to High Treason and Aiding and Abetting the Enemy.” All four were found guilty to one degree or another, and sentenced as adults.
“In the movies the story always ends at a dramatic moment like this. But time goes on for the living. So it did for me.”
–Rudi Woobe
The rest of the book follows Rudi’s imprisonment, liberation by the allies, and life after the war. Rudi showed great faith and gratitude amid his trials. He lived a life dedicated to truth and personal freedom. I cried as he recounted reentering one of the prisons 40 years later. It is because of people like Rudi that evil is kept at bay.
Recommendation
I give this book 10 out of 12 buttered rolls. My only real criticism is that I wanted more detail, more history, more facts about each of the individuals involved. However, it is a wonderful account of young men who are willing to think and act for themselves. These are the type of young men I want my boys to look up to.
We had the flu at our house last week and I read Mafia to Mormon while I was down for my 24 hours. Often times, non-fiction books can be heavy and laborious to read. But not this one. And let me assure you, you don’t have to be a Mormon to enjoy and learn from this book.
True Story
Let me begin with a very brief overview. Mario Facione was a member of the Italian Mafia in Detriot back in the 60’s and 70’s. But all of that began to change when he was flew into Salt Lake City, Utah, looking for his next big scam. We got our copy from Jax’s grandmother’s estate so there was a little something extra tucked in the front cover. Grandma Petersen had clipped a newspaper article from the Deseret Morning News on Dec. 6, 2005. Entitled “Utah scam led to LDS faith and a new life for Mafioso,” by Doug Robinson, the article added to the intrigue of the book.
“As the title suggests, Facione joined the LDS Church and gave up his life of crime. After doing a fireside a few years later, he was approached by a woman about doing a book. Facione declined.
“‘I was scared,’ he says. ‘ I told her when I get through talking you won’t want to do this. When this gets on the street, you’ll evaporate with your family.’
“She persisted. He finally relented. He talked, she wrote (she still does not want her name published). Facione put the project off for two more years because ‘I had to wait for two guys to leave the scene,’ he says, meaning they had to die. He also did a thorough check of the statute of limitations. The book took 18 years to complete.”
Content
The book encompasses how Mario got involved with the Mafia and his subsequent role as their “cash cow.” But when two Mormon missionaries, who he mistakes for Feds, show up at his door, he finds his convictions changing rapidly. His religious conversion is accompanied by loss of fortune and family, and his struggle to transition between two lifestyles, resulting in his potentially lethal request to get out of the mafia.
The book might be described as Mario’s realization of what is meant by the saying ” you cannot serve two masters.” While discussing the many deals made in his life where a man’s word is his bond, Mario states, “Everything still comes down to a deal in my life, only this time the deal is between me and the Lord.”
Recommendation
I give Mafia to Mormon 12 out of 12 dozen rolls. This book had me laughing, crying, and gasping in unbelief as I root for a member of the mafia. And no, you don’t have to be a Mormon to enjoy it.
Alanna: The First Adventure (Book 1 in the Song of The Lioness Series) by Tamora Pierce
We received the Amber Brown collection as a gift after our last house fire. These books are suggested for ages 7 & up. I love to see my kids read and was excited to try out a new set. I read all eight this week.
y brief overview. Mario Facione was a member of the Italian Mafia in Detriot back in the 60’s and 70’s. But all of that began to change when he was flew into Salt Lake City, Utah, looking for his next big scam. We got our copy from Jax’s grandmother’s estate so there was a little something extra tucked in the front cover. Grandma Petersen had clipped a newspaper article from the Deseret Morning News on Dec. 6, 2005. Entitled “Utah scam led to LDS faith and a new life for Mafioso,” by Doug Robinson, the article added to the intrigue of the book.