I was NOT disappointed

Hollow City came, saw, and conquered. The only complaint that I have is that because I'm reading a series in progress I have to wait an unspecified amount of time for the next book in the series. That's the only fault I found with this delightful sequel. Just as in the first novel, Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, Riggs expertly wove in photographs to tell a seamless story full of mystery, adventure, and friendship. Yes, these children have extraordinary abilities. Yes, they're being chased by creatures that are scarier than any monster we imagine might be under our bed. Yes, this is a book you need to go out and read.

With that case closed, I picked up The Spy: A Tale of the Neutral Ground by James Fenimore Cooper (the author of The Last of the Mohicans which is another fabulous read). This story focuses on the time period of the American Revolution and is at once an adventure and a romance. The main hero is a tragic yet admirable man named Harvey Birch who the reader follows through a story which bounces back and forth between American/Continental and British lines. For those of you who have read any of Cooper's previous works you will recognize that this style is his forte. Luckily, the copy that I have has the added benefit of being gorgeously illustrated so I'm a little freakishly excited jazzed to get started on it. I can't wait to update you all!!

I hope that you're not letting Daylight Savings Time win and you're keeping those pages turning, dear readers!!

So here's my take on #zombie: I loved the concept for this story. A zombie invasion that began because a computer hacker unleashed a subroutine through every available avenue on the Internet? BRILLIANT. As someone who uses social media on a daily basis (who doesn't these days?), it was a chilling thought that by clicking on what first appears as an innocuous link on Twitter I could become a mindless destroyer of humanity. However, it didn't hold my attention as I had hoped it would. Line has a tendency to drift and focus on minutiae that has no bearing on the tale. Re-telling of information previously stated is also another issue. Also, I didn't really feel connected to the protagonist, Ven. I didn't especially care if she made it through the apocalypse or not. Your main character needs to at least be somewhat relatable/likeable (at least I think so) to keep the interest of the reader. If I hadn't felt obligated to review I probably would have given up despite the fascination of the story's concept. In conclusion: great concept and some really great wit but could stand a bit of tightening up on storyline and characterization.

Next up is Hollow City by Ransom Riggs (yay signed copy!). This is the sequel to Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children which if you'll remember I reviewed this back in August. SPOILERS AHEAD IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE FIRST IN THIS SERIES. The story continues the journey of the main character Jacob and his peculiar friends as they try to escape from the wights and hollowgast who are after Miss Peregrine (who is stuck in bird form). The children are stuck in Jacob's past which means it's WWII making things even more complicated and dangerous. There only hope is to find another loop and an ymbryne (like Miss Peregrine) who can protect them and get Miss Peregrine back to human form. I'm only on Chapter 2 and I'm riveted. This guy is seriously a talented writer. I can't wait to see what kind of a journey this book takes me on.

Meh

I'm not entirely sure what I was expecting from The Alice Behind Wonderland but I came out of this book feeling less than impressed. The main focus was on Dodgson's photography and in particular the photos that he took of Alice Liddell (with main focus on this image). I suppose I thought that this would further my knowledge of the man behind the famous stories of Wonderland and the girl called Alice. However, its narrowed focus on only one aspect of the man (and his relationship with the Liddells) left me feeling disappointed. The book covers Dodgson's fascination with photography and the history of photography itself. Briefly, Winchester touched on the controversy surrounding his "child friends" of which he took many photographs (some of them in the nude). I do appreciate that he made it clear that during this time period (the late 19th century) this was not seen as anything more than an attempt at capturing innocence and purity onto film. Nowadays, the first thought through anyone's mind is PEDOPHILE which we can neither confirm or deny because any evidence was erased long ago (Dodgson removed several pages from his diary or at least someone removed them for him). If you want a tiny glimpse into the man behind one of the world's most famous fairytales then you should take a look at this book. However, I recommend that you delve further and pick up some supplemental reading such as Morton Cohen's Lewis Carroll: A Biography.

I guess I was in the mood for children's fairytales after reading the above so I picked up Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne. The copy I have came from a used bookstore and it is GORGEOUS. The illustrations and text placement (falling from the top of the page, circling around the illustrations, etc) make this a delightful read for readers of any age. Most of us know all about Pooh and his friends in the Hundred Acre Wood because of the cartoons and movies but have you actually read the first volume of stories that the cartoons were drawn from originally?  I haven't and I am pretty excited to rectify this oversight on my part. Already I'm enjoying the light fluffiness of the stories (each chapter is treated as a standalone). Take me along on your journeys, Pooh Bear!

Good news and bad news

The good news is that I thought Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children was fantastic and there is a SEQUEL (not due out until January 2014 though). The bad news is that I'm already finished with it and the sequel isn't out until January 2014. JANUARY 2014. Okay, maybe I should review this or something. Firstly, I would like to thank Ashley for asking me to read this (and for loaning me her copy). This book is a perfect example of magical realism gone so very right. The author, Ransom Riggs, uses vintage photographs to bring the story to life for the reader. They're so beautifully woven into the storyline that you (well, if you're like me at least) look forward to them every few pages. I really dig photographs (especially those found in old family albums) and I thought it was a clever device for transporting the reader into the world that he had created. These children are "peculiar" because of their abilities and these same gifts make them vulnerable. I don't want to say anymore because I want you to go read this immediately. GO NOW. OH and they're turning it into a motion picture due out in 2015. EVERYTHING IS HAPPENING. Edit: It's actually coming out September 30, 2016 and I'M EXCITED.

Okay if you managed to make it through the paragraph above I have to assume that you're a hardcore fan of mine (hi mom!) and I really appreciate you sticking it out with me. The next book up is another title from NetGalley which means it hasn't been published yet and therefore will not be readily available to you. However, it will be beneficial for me to trundle through it so I can let you know if I think it's worth your time. The book is Countdown: Our Last, Best Hope for a Future on Earth? by Alan Weisman. The basic question that this book is trying to answer is how humanity can come into balance with the earth. He travels the globe asking questions about limiting the growth of humans (not a new concept), ecosystem development (is the earth strong enough to hold all of us?), and what the economy of this newly stabilized (and shrunken) world might look like. I find nonfiction works about the state of our world and our place in it highly compelling which is why I gravitated toward this one. I imagine a world of possibilities that I never even imagined are about to be opened before me!

If a book has an overabundance of grammatical errors I find it exceedingly difficult to enjoy the experience. I'd love to sit down with the editors of Edge and find out just what they were thinking when they thoughts this book was okay to go to print. Also, it read like I should have had prior knowledge of events as if there were a prequel. There is no prequel, guys. This is the first in a series. I guess you gather that I don't highly recommend this one. The premise was a good one. The idea that society had degenerated into such violence that the majority of individuals walked around with sheathed knives is a novel one. However, I don't think this book was ready to deliver. Don't waste your time.

In awesome news, I met up with a friend to exchange books and the one she recommended is Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs (great name). Photographs from the past are used to help create fictional stories about children set apart on a deserted island because they may (re definitely) have been a danger to society. I glanced at the photographs and I can already tell that for those easily spooked this book will keep you up at night. Good thing I've mostly gotten over my fear of the dark. Here we go!