TsalagiWriter
Review
3 Stars
The Heart of Everything That Is: The Untold Story of Red Cloud, An American Legend
The Heart of Everything That Is: The Untold Story of Red Cloud, An American Legend - Tom Clavin, Bob Drury

While advertised as an untold biography of Red Cloud, and it does definitely touch on his life, I would say this is more of a history book. Interesting to read, but a bit dry at times.

Review
3 Stars
Six Creepy Sheep
Six Creepy Sheep - Judith Ross Enderle
This is a cute Halloween counting book. Six sheep dress up as ghosts to go trick-or-treating. They keep getting scared until only one sheep is left. Very nice illustrations and a fun little book.
Review
4 Stars
The Halloween Legion: The Great Goblin Invasion by Martin Powell
The Halloween Legion: The Great Goblin Invasion - Diana Leto, Patrick Thorpe, Thomas Boatwright, Martin Powell

Fun graphic novel - these are definitely my type of superheroes! I love Halloween. Illustrations were pretty nice. I enjoyed the story and really hope for more volumes. The characters were awesome, but a bit underdeveloped. Hope that will be remedied if there are future volumes.

Really enjoyed this.

Review
3 Stars
The Story of the Jack O'Lantern by Katherine Tegen
The Story of the Jack O'Lantern - Katherine Tegen, Brandon Dorman

I think the story could have been a bit more detailed, but it was nice overall. Liked the illustrations, especially those of the Jack O'Lanterns.

Review
4.5 Stars
The Dead Girls of Hysteria Hall by Katie Alender
The Dead Girls of Hysteria Hall - Katie Alender

Delia just inherited a house, but not just any house - it was once an institute for troubled females. But many of the patients weren't insane, just strong willed. And it seems even in the death the house wants to keep the girls locked away.

Delia learns that when she gets trapped in the house.

I wouldn't say this book is necessarily original, but it was well-written. And very thoughtful concerning death. Gave me a lot to think about at times.

I liked Delia. I could relate to her, especially her rebellious nature. And the fact that her parents were somewhat overprotective. She was a good character that changed throughout the book.

The story was interesting and I thought the ending was quite nice. 4 and a half stars.

Review
4 Stars
The Misadventures of Grumpy Cat and Pokey Volume 1
The Misadventures of Grumpy Cat and Pokey!, #1 - Ken Haeser, Ben McCool, Elliott Serrano, Steve Uy, Ben Fisher, Royal McGraw

This is a really cute graphic novel featuring Grumpy Cat and her brother Pokey. The artwork is nice and there are many stories in here. I did find myself laughing out loud more than once. Can't wait for the next volume.

Review
3 Stars
Daughters of Eve by Lois Duncan
Daughters of Eve - Lois Duncan
Daughters of Eve is a school club, but much more like a secret society where each member takes an oath to never repeat anything that is said between their sisters. And soon the girls realize with the help of Ms. Stark just how badly they are treated by the men in their lives. But they begin to wonder if what they are doing is really right.

Since Lois Duncan passed away recently, I decided to readDaughters of Eve since this is a book of hers I hadn't yet read.

Suspenseful, but definitely maddening. I don't know if I can that any of the men in this book are even likable. Some are definitely worse than others, but this book had me so mad at times. And I know the teacher, Ms. Stark, might have seemed crazed, but in all honesty, her ideas weren't really all that radical. The teacher definitely had the right idea in encouraging the girls to be independent and not try to fit the typical role that women are expected to play. However, thinking that all men are horrible and trying to get revenge isn't good either.

I kind of feel like the book makes feminism not look so good. Not all feminist are man-haters. I did like the book, though.
 
 

 

Review
5 Stars
Faking Normal by Courtney C. Stevens
Faking Normal - Courtney C. Stevens

No one knows what happened to Alexi over the summer. And she deals with it on her own, hiding in her closet and scratching her neck.

And when Bodee, who has secrets of his own, comes to live with Alexi's family, she discovers an unlikely friend. As they lean on each other for support, they give each other the strength to face their secrets.

I'm sure there will be spoilers in my review. I thought this book sounded good, but I ended up loving it. I think Alexi and Bodee are such amazing characters. They're flawed. They're broken. But that just made them so relatable to me.

And I love their interactions with each other; their care and gentleness. It was so sweet.

Alexi has to come to terms with being raped, and not only that but who raped her. And Bodee is dealing with his mother's death. His own father killed her.

This book deals with some heavy issues, but it is very well-written. The author has a unique voice and a nice style of writing. And her characters, especially Alexi and Bodee, are very real. They are relatable.

I loved this book. I loved Alexi and Bodee. I loved how they were with each other. I just think this is such a good book. It has become a favorite of mine.

Review
3 Stars
Ballots for Belva by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen
Ballots for Belva: The True Story of a Woman's Race for the Presidency - Courtney A. Martin, Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen, Courtney E. Martin

A great book to learn quickly learn some about Belva Lockwood, a woman who ran for President in the 1880s! Of course, she was not the first - Victoria Woodhull was - but you have to admit it took a lot of guts for her to run, especially considering the time she lived in.

 

I plan on reading more about this amazing woman.

Review
3 Stars
Troublemaker by Leah Remini
Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology - Rebecca Paley, Leah Remini
I love King of Queens. It is a show I've watched often and really enjoy. I knew Leah Remini was a Scientologist but never paid much mind to it. And honestly, I've always been a bit curious about Scientology because - and let's be honest - it is strange.

And I decided to read this because I was curious what Leah had to say about Scientology. But this book is about more than just that, of course. It details Leah's childhood, life growing up, her career as well as life in Scientology. I enjoyed just reading about her life in general.

I knew some about Scientology but had a limited knowledge prior to reading this book. I have to say that I don't blame her for leaving the church. And it is something I would never join.

An enjoyable biography by a good and funny actress.


 
 

 

Review
5 Stars
A Devil and Her Love Song Volume 13 by Miyoshi Tomori
[ Devil and Her Love Song, Volume 13 BY Tomori, Miyoshi ( Author ) ] { Paperback } 2014 - Miyoshi Tomori

This is the final volume in A Devil and Her Love Song and it was a really good volume.

Over the course of these 13 volumes, I have watched these characters grow and change. And I have to admit, I have become attached to them. I was always looking forward to reading the next volume and now I have no more to read.

I think the love that Shin and Maria have is so sweet. And the circle they have, the fact they always have each other and are there for one another. I guess this series is really about transformation, finding out who you are and finding people who will accept you for just being you.

I love this series. It is one of my favorite manga series and I'm sad it is over. But it was very good, very moving at times. I love Maria and I just feel a connection to her. In some ways, I can relate to her. This series is definitely something I would read again.

Review
5 Stars
A Devil and Her Love Song Volume 12 by Miyoshi Tomori
A Devil and Her Love Song Volume 12[DEVIL & HER LOVE SONG V12][Paperback] - MiyoshiTomori

This was a really good volume. And I felt so bad for Maria at parts. It made me tear up. I do think her and Shin are cute together.

I think it was really sad that he had to go to America for surgery. Looking forward to the final volume of this manga

Review
3 Stars
I Am A Witch's Cat by Harriet Muncaster
I Am a Witch's Cat - Harriet Muncaster, Harriet Muncaster

In this picture book, a little girl believes her mother is a good witch. And every witch needs a cat. So, the little girl becomes a witch's cat.

A really cute story with nice illustrations.

Review
3 Stars
Gratitude by Oliver Sacks
Gratitude - Oliver Sacks

A short book of essays that the author wrote about life, aging, illness, and dying. A nice little inspirational book about having gratitude for the things and people in your life.

Review
4 Stars
A Devil and Her Love Song Volume 11 by Miyoshi Tomori
Devil and Her Love Song, Vol. 11 (A Devil and Her Love Song) - Miyoshi Tomori

This is a heavy volume. Maria meets her father. The man who raped her mother. and rightfully so, Maria is angry at this man.

But Maria sees now that he is a Priest and has been a foster parent to Shintaro.

Maria is right in her anger. And I honestly can't blame her for hating him. Yes, he helped in her creation, but while doing a horrible act.

There was a theme of a forgiving in this volume and I did like that. However, I felt the forgiveness that was given to Maria's father happened too quick.

Sure, he is living a different life. But does that change what he did? Does that change how it affected Maria's mother and even Maria herself? Rape is serious and not something simple to be pushed aside.

And I am not saying that Maria shouldn't forgive him. I felt, though, that she was being forced to forgive him because he had changed because he was now doing good things. I felt especially Shintaro was forcing forgiveness because Maria's father had been good to him.

And forgiveness isn't something that happens fast. You can't forgive quickly. It is a progress, not for the person that you're forgiving, but for you. Forgiveness takes work and you need to work through things before you can truly forgive. And that's okay.

It is okay to feel anger when something horrible is done to you or someone you love. And I wish Maria would have been able to work through it more, instead of the author making her forgive so quickly.

This was still a good volume. A lot of character growth for all of them. And I just wonder what Shin is doing? Does he feel bad? Does he feel he's not good enough for Maria now?

I can't believe there are only two volumes left. But I'm looking forward to reading the next two.

Review
5 Stars
A Devil and Her Love Song Volume 10 by Miyoshi Tomori
A Devil and Her Love Song, Vol. 10 - Miyoshi Tomori

In this volume, Shin finally decides to tell Maria how he really feels about her.

I would say there is a lot of depth to this volume. Shin and Maria have their first real fight, which they have to learn how to make up.

And because of Shin finally admitting how he feels, which results in holding and kissing Maria, it brings the memories flooding back of her mother. Perhaps Shin was being forceful, or I just wonder if it just doesn't look worse than what it was.

It seemed that when he started kissing and holding her, she froze and just laid there. She knew what was happening, but the memories resurfacing just made her lay there. It was like she couldn't do anything.

And Maria always blames herself. She feels that she causes people to hate themselves. I really don't think she does. She is truthfully and doesn't hold back, but I don't see anything she's done to make people actually make them hate themselves. Some people, like Anna, do place the blame on her. But that is just her own problems and I think she feels she needs to blame someone.

This volume also deals with depression and I feel that it was handled well. And in the flashbacks, we learn more about Maria and her mother. I just feel sorry Maria had to come into the world the way she did.

And Shintaro needs to go. He's not cute nor funny. Honestly, I feel he is just a major creeper. He is always there, even intruding on private conversations and private moments between Shin and Maria.