Category: Uncategorized

Thursday, November 8, 2018

Check, Please! #Hockey, Vol. 1 by Ngozi Ukazu

Bitty is an exceedingly charming vlogger, former junior figure skating champion, baker, and hockey player; he is also a student at Samwell University. In this graphic novel, Bitty takes us through the highs and lows of being a student athlete on a competitive hockey team as well as his growing attraction to the temperamental but very good-looking captain, Jack.

This book came to be after a very successful Kickstarter campaign for Ngozi Ukazu’s popular webcomic series of the same name. This coming-of-age story perfectly captures the joy of college and friendship with the complications of second-guessing oneself on a consistent basis. The artwork is simple, colorful, and seamlessly flows from page to page. Easily read in on sitting, this is a book you’ll gobble up and want more of as soon as possible!

Call # GN Uk1ch

Review by Vicki

Monday, October 22, 2018

Wildcard by Marie Lu

In Marie Lu’s riveting sequel to Warcross, Emika Chen must choose a side as the destiny of free will hangs in the air. Emika is on a mission to put a stop to the formidable plans of Hideo Tanaka, a young billionaire who created the sensational virtual reality game known as Warcross. After uncovering the secrets behind Hideo’s NeuroLink algorithm used to create the virtual reality images of Warcross, Emika, a teenage bounty hunter from New York, discovers an additional threat. A bounty has been placed on her head and her chances of survival relies on Zero and his team, skilled hackers known as the Blackcoats who previously caused many problems for Hideo. Emika groups with her world championship Warcross team, the Phoenix Riders, to face the problems around her, soon discovering that Zero and the Blackcoats aren’t all what she’d initially thought. Set in ultramodern Tokyo, Wildcard provides a spectacular finale to the first book in a fast-paced, intense read.

Wildcard is a fantastic and thought-provoking book that sparked many emotions. The setting was portrayed vividly, as it was a huge aspect of the story’s plot. The setting, along with the unique and complex characters featured, arose questions involving the future: What will happen if technology evolves to be the way it is in Wildcard? The storyline was fast-paced and although there were some slower parts of the book, they were still interesting and helpful in the progression of the story. One important point to take note of is that Warcross, which is the first book in the duology, must be read before Wildcard. Wildcard picks right up after Warcross ends and there is no reintroduction of the characters or background of the story, so it would be best to read the two books back-to-back. The climax of the book featured many plot twists, keeping the reader on edge, and the structure of the book was helpful and easy to follow. Furthermore, the characters were highly diverse and the narration was effective, although it would have been nice if there were some reminders on the previous events of Warcross. All in all, Wildcard presents a well-balanced blend of action and stimulating questions, tying the whole duology together in a way that doesn’t disappoint.

Call # Fiction L9605wa2

Student review by Cadi

Wednesday, October 17, 2018

My Sister Rosa by Justine Larbalestier

In My Sister Rosa, Che Taylor is a normal teenager living an abnormal life. His negligent parents, entrepreneurs from Australia, live a hectic lifestyle, constantly starting new businesses in different parts of the world, causing the family to move frequently. From the start of the book the story is set in New York, the newest location Che’s parents have opened a business in.

Che tries to live as normal a life as he can, setting goals for himself like becoming a better boxer and practicing sparring (against his parents’ wishes), getting a girlfriend, but most importantly, keeping his little sister Rosa under control to prevent her from hurting anybody.

Che alone has always sensed something was wrong with Rosa ever since she was a baby – her pets’ mysterious deaths, her compulsive lying, and her alarming lack of empathy. Rosa’s behavior grows more and more disturbing, and Che alone seems to be the only one to take notice of her psychopathy; his parents’ negligence and absence in his life and the family’s constant moving causes Che’s feelings of detachment from his parents and inability to make friends. He feels isolated in the world and his feelings of helplessness worsen as Rosa’s behavior grows more sinister and he seems to be the only one to notice.

Eerily compelling themes of crime, psychopathy, and passion depicted in this book are told in first-person by Che Taylor – an intelligent, perceptive, and engaging narrator. This book is a must-read for teens as it covers many issues a lot of readers can relate to, like peer pressure, social conflicts, and making friends. The psychological information on criminal behaviors are fascinating, well-woven into the story without being too boring or dense to read. Author Justine Larbalestier does a great job in this book, giving us a gripping, psychological thriller that will definitely keep you on your toes.

Call # Fiction L321m

Student review by Amina

Wednesday, October 10, 2018

Thornhill by Pam Smy

In 2017, Ella has just moved into a home next to a former all-girls orphanage called Thornhill, and her slow discovery of its mysterious inhabitant is told solely through images. These images alternate with Mary’s unhappy diary entries from when she suffered through living at Thornhill in 1982. This diary chronicles targeted, repeated bullying as well as her continuing struggle to communicate, as Mary reports that others describe her as “selectively mute.” Ella’s and Mary’s stories converge in an unlikely way with an ending that is both shocking and provocative.

Smy expertly balances showing and telling in these parallel narratives that build and sustain two thoroughly engaging, suspenseful mysteries. The gradual reveals about Ella’s and Mary’s circumstances are paced perfectly throughout the storyline, resulting in a page-turner that is made especially exciting by its cleverly detailed black-and-white pictures; peppered within seemingly straightforward images are smaller subtle ones and hidden, haunting details that make lingering over them satisfying and necessary. Instead of individual panels, artwork spread across entire pages, adding weight and fullness to the lush and precise gradations of black and white. Ella’s portions have no dialogue, with the exception of some hand-written notes, which parallels smartly with Mary’s own self-chosen silence to create a radiating sense of loneliness. This deeply psychological story about abuse, neglect, and human connection across several generations is haunting yet entirely satisfying.

Call # Fiction Sm91th

Review by Vicki

Friday, October 5, 2018

Warcross by Marie Lu

Orphaned college dropout turned bounty huntress, Emika Chen, survives a futuristic New York City by using her expert hacking skills to uncover illegal gamblers – specifically those who bet on the virtual reality game Warcross, created by prodigy billionaire Hideo Tanaka. Emika’s decision to hack the opening ceremony of the international Warcross championships for some quick money gets her noticed by Tanaka and tapped to join the competition; however, she’s not just a competitor. She’s gathering intel for the game creator and is on a mission to figure out who is trying to destroy the world-renowned tournament.

Emika’s fierce intelligence, rainbow-colored hair, inventive tattoos, and surprising but plausible vulnerability all combine to create a heroine worth reading about. She is also surrounded by an inspiring, nuanced ensemble of supporting characters who reflect the diversity of an international arena, including representation of characters with disabilities and who are LGBTQ. This story presents an added sophisticated layer of asking profound questions about our world, our society, our technology, and our future – what will happen when technology evolves to be like the kind depicted here? Emika borders on being an anti-hero as so much of her power comes from illegal hacking, yet one cannot resist cheering emphatically for her and also hoping that when immersive yet potentially dangerous technology like the kind in this book becomes a reality, someone just like her will be around to do the right thing.

This impressive blend of heart-stopping action and philosophical questioning is remarkable; given that it has only one follow-up book to round out a duology (Wildcard published Sept. 18, 2018 – review to come!), the cliffhanger conclusion suggests a satisfyingly robust but manageable second narrative arc that will likely present a similarly well-paced combination of addictive adventure and provocative questions.

Call # Fiction L9605wa

Review by Vicki