Shelfari

New Releases and Shelfari Readers

   

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

by Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows

“The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows is a delightfully engaging book about the island of Guernsey in 1946. The entire book is told through correspondence between Juliet Ashton, a writer working on a story about the German occupation in Guersey during WWII, the members of the eponymous society, her agent, and her erstwhile boyfriend. Each letters sparkles with the writer's personality from Juliet's world-weary writer to Isola's gruff affection to Dawsey's sweet, unassuming observations of the world around him. The story flows quite easily without the extraneous detail of a novel told in the normal format. We may not see every scene and those we do see are only from one perspective, but the authors build suspense and romance in equal measures. When the truth about Juliet's feelings are finally exposed, I couldn't help but breathe with a little catch in my throat. This book reminded me of the joy I find in reading. Not a word was wasted, and every page was a wonder.”  ~Clockstein 

 

The Dangerous Days of Daniel X

by James Patterson & Michael Ledwidge

“Daniel X is just your average fifteen year old, but only if your average fifteen year old is a bona fide Alien Hunter. When Daniel was three his parents were killed by The Prayer, a ruthless praying mantis-like creature from another world. Since then Daniel has made it his life's mission to hunt down The Prayer and all the other evil aliens that are determined to destroy Earth. Armed with nothing more than his unique powers, three not so imaginary friends, and his charming wit, Daniel sets off on whirlwind journey to kick some major alien butt.

James Patterson has most recently left his mark on the young adult market with his smash hit Maximum Ride series. This time around he shifts gears and brings us a strange and delightful science fiction tale that is loads of fun for all ages. Daniel X is a memorable and endearing character that is constantly full of surprises. Patterson and Ledwidge have collaborated to give us not only a fantastic new character, but also a fantastic story that is impossible to put down.

After sloshing my way through Patterson's mediocre Sail, I was beginning to wonder if he had indeed lost his edge. Daniel X is a refreshing reminder that Patterson still has what it takes to craft page turning fiction. After this engaging new offering fans both young and old will be begging for more Daniel X.”  ~Jachism 

 

Moscow Rules

by Daniel Silva
“Daniel Silva is one of my favorite thriller writers. His hero, Gabriel Allon, is a restorer of religious art and an assassin for an Israeli agency called "the Office". He's an intriguing character. I've read all of the Allon series, and I recommend them to thriller fans.”  ~Suzanne F

 

Waiter Rant: Thanks for the Tip—Confessions of a Cynical Waiter

by The Waiter

“Good writing, but I find myself lacking too much sympathy for the self-admittedly arrogant writer of this prose. Some parts are humorous jabs at selfish customers, and the occasional glimpse of deep humanity.”   ~Eris

YA Summer Read: Life As We Knew It

(YA Member Review of Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer)

                                  

This is an incredible book that could change the way you look at the moon.

In what is probably the present-day, an asteroid is known to be heading towards the moon. The scientists don't think it's going to be any kind of a problem, but they reveal how conceited they can be when it turns out the asteroid was of sterner stuff then expected. The moon is hit so hard it causes it to move closer to the earth.

The result includes vast tsunamis, major earthquakes, and the eruption of numerous volcanoes. The seashores and their cities are destroyed around the world. A blanket of ash from the volcanoes causes colder weather. The very structure of civilization breaks down as there is no more electricity. No more shipments of food or fuel.

The story is about a girl named Miranda who keeps a diary of what happens. She has two brothers and a mother; the father has divorced the mother and remarried another woman who is now pregnant, but there seem to be no major hard feelings between any of them.

The story becomes one of survival, and what they all must do in order to try to find some way to survive the climate changes and the loss of any kind of “normal” life. They have to find a way to heat the house, get food and water, deal with diseases, and deal with the breakdown of civilization as gangs do what they want, hired thugs guard the hospital, and houses are ransacked on a regular basis.

It's all done very realistically. Miranda not only has to deal with all the changes going on, but her own friends either die, move away, or become religious zealots (or a combination of two or more of those). She has to grow up quickly, and to care for others at an age where she's still used to being cared for herself.

It's a very frightening story, and a very readable story. It's one of the best novels of its type that I have ever read. I put it in the “must read” group.”

By Ranko

A Memoir of Africa

Shelfarian Review: When A Crocodile Eats the Sun

The Zulus and the Vendas of southern Africa believe that a solar eclipse occurs when a crocodile eats the sun. It is “the very worst of omen” explains Zimbabwean-born and raised author Peter Godwin. The prediction comes to pass and is recounted in this “white African’s” memories of Zimbabwe, an articulate, wrenching narrative of personal and political struggle that is both eloquent and tragic.

Godwin’s native Zimbabwe was once a land of promise and potential. Under the repressive regime of post-civil war dictator Robert Mugabe, the country becomes home of “the world’s fastest shrinking economy,” the politics of envy, reverse racism and “ethnic cleansing”. It’s a country where local “commanders” adopt names like “Hitler Hunzvi” and “Stalin Mau Mau.” It’s a country where Mugabe’s “farm seizure program” and “land redistribution” schemes are little more than government-sanctioned stealing. It’s a country of massacres, thievery and thuggery, hyperinflation, collapses in farm production, fuel and food shortfalls and a disintegrating, phantom infrastructure. It’s a mess. But it’s not the only thing that’s a mess.

Godwin writes, “This is what this vile president (Mugabe) has done to us – made scavengers of us all and stripped these grown men of their dignity as they fight over a worn bike tire. Reduced us all to desperadoes and thieves, made us small and bleak and old and tired. Made us lose our love of life itself. Split our families and left my parents impoverished, alone, afraid”. As the country disintegrates, so does Godwin’s family.

Beginning and ending with his father’s death, which parallels the country’s, Godwin chronicles the activities and excesses of the Mugabe government over eight years - July 1996 to February 2004. He reports on kangaroo courts, threats, intimidation, violence, extortion, massive voter fraud, mayhem, “Mugabe’s race-baiting stagecraft,” and marauding “war vets” and their effect on his family and friends. Godwin also details some of the desperate, often futile but courageous attempts of opposition parties and private citizens to stay the madness or aid their neighbors and friends.

Possibly the most wrenching portion of Godwin’s tome is chapter 17. Here the conflicted son and sibling narrates the deteriorating physical health of his parents, the reburial of his sister Jain, and the death throes of his home country. As Zimbabwe descends further into madness, Godwin’s elderly, frail parents resolutely refuse to leave, clinging to their farm and his mother’s clinic, where she’s served as a physician for decades. Godwin’s distant, aloof father, George, to whom the book is dedicated, reluctantly – and finally - reveals his own family secrets and the source of his “autobiographical amnesia.”

When a Crocodile Eats the Sun is a haunting, harrowing narrative of the disintegration of a family and a country. Exquisitely written with fascinating detail and occasional rough edges, Crocodile is a highly readable, heart-rending memoir brimming with panache, pathos, hope and despair. A modern tragedy too powerful to ignore.

~Kikero