Book Review: Bird by Crystal Chan

I admit that I have been tempered to jump off my roof.

'Grandpa stopped speaking the day he killed my brother, John. His name was John until Grandpa said he looked more like a Bird with the way he kept jumping off things, and the name stuck. Bird’s thick, black hair poked out in every direction, just like the head feathers of the blackbirds, Grandpa said, and he bet that one day Bird would fly like one too. Grandpa kept talking like that, and no one paid him much notice until Bird jumped off a cliff, the cliff at the edge of the tallgrass prairie, the cliff that dropped a good couple hundred feet to a dried-up riverbed below. From that day on, Grandpa never spoke another word. Not one.

The day that Bird tried to fly, the grown-ups were out looking for him – all of them except Mom and Granny. That’s because that very day, I was born.'

Twelve-year-old Jewel never knew her brother, but all her life she has lived in his shadow. Then one night, on her birthday, she finds a mysterious boy sitting in her oak tree. His name is John. And he changes everything.

This book is very tearfully. I cried a lot because there is some sad parts. I mean it deal with family and different forms of abandonment. It done very well and it is a good read. I could probably write essay on the themes in this book (but won't because this is a review after all). 

This is a character driven book. It centres on the family's relationships with each other. Bird's death overshadows everything and has messed up their relationships. There very much still in a state of extreme grieving. Jewel is very lonely and doesn't feel like she can actually talk honestly to anyone in her family. I don't want to say much about John (the boy in the tree) as it bit spoiler, but I really like the contrast his family background brings in comparison to Jewel's.

There also interesting stuff about duppies and generally spirits, like how to ward them off. 

Overall, I gave it 5 out of 5 stars for erratic rocks. It book that you will make you feel things and it very relatable.

Book Review: My Swordhand is Singing by Marcus Sedgwick

It has way old school vampires and passed the graveyard test so that all you really need to know.

In a bitter winter, Tomas and his son, Peter, settle in a small village as woodcutters. Tomas digs a channel of fast-flowing waters around their hut so that they have their own little island kingdom. Peter doesn't understand why his father has done this, or why his father carries a long, battered box, whose mysterious contents he is forbidden to know. 

But Tomas is a man with a past--a past that is tracking him with deadly intent. As surely as the snow falls softly in the forest of a hundred thousand silver birch trees, father and son must face a soulless enemy and a terrifying destiny.

 This book features old folktale vampires. You know 'your loved one coming from the grave to drink your blood' type of vampire, the ones that actually resemble zombies more than a modern interpretation. There is other mythology as well, like the Shadow Queen. It creepy and tensed. There is this big complex plot building up, it seems more for the benefit of the next book. There is actions scenes and madden runs whilst as having a good plot for all the action to take place in.

Characters are alright, Peter is lonely youth with his only friend
being a horse that's older than him. Him and his dad moved around a lot and the local villagers don't like strangers because you always blame the people you barely know for the blood sucking monsters attacking people. There some sort of romance. I've got to say that I don't really read Marcus Sedgwick for his characters, they do tend to be a bit bland. It the actual story I come for. I think my favourite character was the horse.

Overall, I give 4 out of 5 stars for singing hands. I definitely read next (and I think final) book in the series. Though, I don't feel the rushing need to go out and find it (especially since my library doesn't have the next one). It worth if you like vampires, that are scary, and have interested to read something based on the old mythology.

Book Review: The Dead Men Stood Together by Chris Priestley

Have you ever pick up a book and wonder why you picked it up?
 
'The Devil is coming to your house.’

Crazy words begin a gripping story of madness, demons and death. Home from the sea, a boy’s uncle entrances him with tales of life aboard ship and of foreign lands. Soon the boy decides to join his uncle on his next voyage.

A violent storm blows the ship off course and the crew find themselves marooned in a sea of ice. As their despair grows, an albatross seems to befriend them and restore their hope. But seized by an evil madness, the uncle kills the great bird with his crossbow, and so condemns all on board to unimaginable horrors, of which life in death is the greatest . . .

This book and me didn't really mix well. I'm not why I initially wanted to read it either. I think it was because I had been tempted to buy another book by Chris Priestley. It just kinda dull. I don't know maybe if you like adventures stories for the sake of adventure, then it might be the book for you. It just wasn't mine.

I think my biggest problem is motivation. I mean most of the event that happen because of one person, but I never understand his motivation for doing what he doing. I suppose it might not be him doing per say, maybe just puts things in motion for spite but doesn't actually know what his actions will do. I don't buy insane and kinda evil as motivation since he wastes a lot of his own time.

My favourite character was the Harbour Master's son. What a shame he was barely in it. I guess the characters all fine, but I didn't feel much sympathy towards any of them and their fates. Maybe the protagonist's mum, I have a soft spots for mums (Hi mum, though you don't read my reviews and I don't really want you on my blog at all. I wish to leave, if you reading this now. Bye).

I found myself rather bored once we got to the second half of our sea voyage. All of the bad stuff happening, just wasn't that interesting. It was bit boring after a while. I had to make my self finish the last half of the book.

I gave this book for teaching the lesson of not trusting strangers just because they're family and not to leave home (well, that's what I got as the morals). I gave it 2 out of 5 stars for dead birds. I recommend it to people who like adventure without purpose and younger than me.

Book Review: Confessions of an Almost Girlfriend by Louise Rozett

This a sequel, why don't they ever make that clear on Netgalley?


If you’re not true to yourself, why should anyone else be?
In her second year of high school Rose Zarelli is determined to become Rose 2.0 - as in, innovative...superior...improved.
Improved how? Well, Rose is setting some ground rules. This year she absolutely most definitely will NOT:
1) do things just because other people want her to
2) randomly shoot her mouth off
3) worry about whether she’s someone’s girlfriend—or not.
And most important of all she determined to tell off Jamie Forta, the boy who might just have broken her heart, once and for all and move on.
After all she’s older and smarter now. She can totally pull this off.
How hard can it be? Right? Right?

This book was rather baw. It has all these issues in it Homophobia, bullying, child abuse, spouse abuse, drug addiction, grief and the mention of a creepy sexual experience. I did not care about any of these as I did not care for any of the characters. Which is quite the fault for contemporary romance, it's not like it's fantasy or something plot driven. You shouldn't really care about the characters. Frankly, there all could have dropped dead and it would have just been something that happened.

Also why is every punishment being banned from sports. Are American schools really that dumb? Very convenient that everyone that needs punishing takes a sport very serious.

It was just a very what was the point? I was hoping for something more than the romance. You did have some friendship action going on but it was rather stereotypical. I just no. I'm not actually sure now why I wanted to read this book, it weird I really can't remember.

It just seem all unlikely, the author was just shoving issues into the book. I get the whole "Trying to show that you don't really know what going on with other people and why they do the things they do" but it didn't feel real.

I didn't get the ending, why the hell did no one just tell the police the truth?

Basically no one learned or gained anything. I gave it the baw rating of 2/5 stars and recommend it to someone who has yet to go High School so that would mean preteens over here and likes that sort of thing.