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Christine A. (965 KP) rated After Zero in Books
Nov 14, 2018
I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book so I could give an honest review. We all have said things that keep us up at night, regretting, worrying, replaying, and wishing we could have said something else. Elise, in "After Zero" by Christina Collins, has figured the perfect way to never have to stress over her regrettable words. She starts to keep track of how many words she speak in school. A good day would be if she was able to get through the entire day without speaking only two words. Her perfect day would involve speaking zero words.
SPOILER ALERT
I had worked with children for much of my life and have dealt with children who also have selective mutism and other anxiety disorders. Connecting with a child who had selective mutism was one of the most rewarding and challenging moments of my career. Looking at him you could see he wanted to connect but was terrified to. Elise is the same. She desperately wanted to connects with those around her. Collins accurately describes Elise's internal struggle and gives Elise a voice for us to hear. I would encourage middle school aged children and older to read this to help with understanding others that are different. I look forward to reading Collins' next work.
SPOILER ALERT
I had worked with children for much of my life and have dealt with children who also have selective mutism and other anxiety disorders. Connecting with a child who had selective mutism was one of the most rewarding and challenging moments of my career. Looking at him you could see he wanted to connect but was terrified to. Elise is the same. She desperately wanted to connects with those around her. Collins accurately describes Elise's internal struggle and gives Elise a voice for us to hear. I would encourage middle school aged children and older to read this to help with understanding others that are different. I look forward to reading Collins' next work.
YA Sci-Fi with dog-fighting spaceships!!
A young girl, Spensa (call sign: Spin), wants to escape her life and follow in her father’s footsteps into the Defiance Defense Force. Except her father died in terrible circumstances - he was killed by his own people in a battle against their enemies, the Krell. He has been labelled a coward, the stigma of which has stuck with the whole family. Spensa doesn’t believe it, and wants to restore his reputation. Those in charge of admission to the flight school believe she carries the same ‘defect’ as her father, and set out to make it extremely difficult for her to attend. She isn’t allowed to stay at the school to sleep or eat, and so she finds a cave nearby, where she sleeps, eats and discovers an old spaceship. She goes about repairing the ship, and finds that it has an AI called M-Bot. Something which those on Detritus have no access to.
The beginning of the book was a bit ‘teenage-angsty’, but it did develop into a really good book, with dog fights galore (think Top Gun with space ships!). And M-Bot really made it for me. After THAT ending, I’m definitely looking forward to the next book!
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher!
The beginning of the book was a bit ‘teenage-angsty’, but it did develop into a really good book, with dog fights galore (think Top Gun with space ships!). And M-Bot really made it for me. After THAT ending, I’m definitely looking forward to the next book!
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher!
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Little Monsters (2019) in Movies
Nov 27, 2019
The most wholesome zombie film you will ever see
The biggest takeaway from Little Monsters is just how damn heart warming it is. Seriously.
The plot revolves around a group of young school children and their teacher becoming trapped at a petting farm whilst on a school trip, due to a zombie outbreak at an absurdly close military facility.
The conflicting styles of lighthearted family comedy, and typical zombie violence work pretty well, and offer up a solidly entertaining and genuinely funny movie, in a market that runs the risk of becoming increasingly saturated.
Lupita Nyong'o and Alexander England are two fantastic leads with great chemistry. The character growth attributed to both of their characters isbl great and is a huge part of why I enjoyed Little Monsters so much.
Josh Gad also stars and offers up a lot of humour with his character.
The cast is rounded out by a group of stupidly adorable kids, and combined with a witty and tight script, ensured I was smiling for the whole run time.
There's some decent zombie gore littered throughout, with some respectable practical effect, but please know, that Little Monsters is absolutely intended as a comedy, so don't watch it expecting to be scared!
Overall, if you like zombie comedy, then you could do a lot worse. Little Monsters is genuinely funny and extremely wholesome. Give it a go!
The plot revolves around a group of young school children and their teacher becoming trapped at a petting farm whilst on a school trip, due to a zombie outbreak at an absurdly close military facility.
The conflicting styles of lighthearted family comedy, and typical zombie violence work pretty well, and offer up a solidly entertaining and genuinely funny movie, in a market that runs the risk of becoming increasingly saturated.
Lupita Nyong'o and Alexander England are two fantastic leads with great chemistry. The character growth attributed to both of their characters isbl great and is a huge part of why I enjoyed Little Monsters so much.
Josh Gad also stars and offers up a lot of humour with his character.
The cast is rounded out by a group of stupidly adorable kids, and combined with a witty and tight script, ensured I was smiling for the whole run time.
There's some decent zombie gore littered throughout, with some respectable practical effect, but please know, that Little Monsters is absolutely intended as a comedy, so don't watch it expecting to be scared!
Overall, if you like zombie comedy, then you could do a lot worse. Little Monsters is genuinely funny and extremely wholesome. Give it a go!
Christine A. (965 KP) rated The Swallows in Books
Jan 30, 2020 (Updated Jan 31, 2020)
I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book so I could give an honest review.
Lisa Lutz's latest, The Swallows, introduces Alex Witt, a teacher with a past. She is hired at Stonebridge Academy and asks her creative writing students to answer innocent questions so she can get to know them. "What do you love? What do you hate? What do you want?" The answers surprise Alex. They are not innocent and reveal much more about the students and the school's activities than she expects. The students reveal online bullying and a private message board. She encourages the female students to fight back and fight they do.
While I have not worked at a boarding school, I have worked at urban schools. The online bullying and message board are all too real. So is the school's attitude that "boys will be boys". Lutz uses her characters to show the dark side of technology and teenagers. This is not a young adult book. It is a book for adults which is set in a school.
The writing in The Swallows is witty while covering dark topics. Lutz's word choices and writing style keep the book from being too dark.
I added several of Lutz's books, including the Spellman Files series, to my "want to read" list.
This 200-word review was published on Philomathinphila.com on 1/30/20.
Lisa Lutz's latest, The Swallows, introduces Alex Witt, a teacher with a past. She is hired at Stonebridge Academy and asks her creative writing students to answer innocent questions so she can get to know them. "What do you love? What do you hate? What do you want?" The answers surprise Alex. They are not innocent and reveal much more about the students and the school's activities than she expects. The students reveal online bullying and a private message board. She encourages the female students to fight back and fight they do.
While I have not worked at a boarding school, I have worked at urban schools. The online bullying and message board are all too real. So is the school's attitude that "boys will be boys". Lutz uses her characters to show the dark side of technology and teenagers. This is not a young adult book. It is a book for adults which is set in a school.
The writing in The Swallows is witty while covering dark topics. Lutz's word choices and writing style keep the book from being too dark.
I added several of Lutz's books, including the Spellman Files series, to my "want to read" list.
This 200-word review was published on Philomathinphila.com on 1/30/20.
Ronnie (304 KP) rated One of Us Is Next in Books
Mar 22, 2020
Exceeded my expectatations
Karen M. McManus brings us One Of Us Is Next, the sequel to her best-selling book, One Of Us Is Lying. The book picks up at Bayview high where everyone is still reeling from the death of school gossip boy, Simon Kelleher a year ago, when a copycat decides to open up a school-wide game of lethal truth or dare. Choosing truth reveals your darkest secrets but dare gets fatally dangerous quickly.
One Of Us Is Lying is easily one of my favourite books of all time, so I was over the moon when I found out there was going to be a sequel. I was nervous that One Of Us Is Next wouldn’t live up to my extremely high expectations, but it exceeded them. It’s always risky for an author to revisit old characters in a new story, but Karen M. McManus does it exceptionally well. I found myself completely hooked by the book and I had no idea who was behind the game of truth or dare. It was great to see new relationships form throughout the book and watch broken relationships heal. I will admit that it took me a while to get through the book, as I struggled to remember who many of the characters were and what role they played in the first book.
One Of Us Is Lying is easily one of my favourite books of all time, so I was over the moon when I found out there was going to be a sequel. I was nervous that One Of Us Is Next wouldn’t live up to my extremely high expectations, but it exceeded them. It’s always risky for an author to revisit old characters in a new story, but Karen M. McManus does it exceptionally well. I found myself completely hooked by the book and I had no idea who was behind the game of truth or dare. It was great to see new relationships form throughout the book and watch broken relationships heal. I will admit that it took me a while to get through the book, as I struggled to remember who many of the characters were and what role they played in the first book.
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Central Intelligence (2016) in Movies
Aug 6, 2019
When we get those High School reminder cards in the mail or messages on social media, many of us disregard them because we don’t want to relive the past due to our geekiness, bullying, or awkward moments that we all go through. Some of us avoid them altogether because we don’t want to be reminded of the possibilities that existed with youth if we had not lived up to them. In Central Intelligence, Calvin Joyner (Kevin Hart) is tackling the malaise and mundanity that comes with adulthood.
He doesn’t feel as though his life panned out quite like he hoped it would have when he graduated. He was elected “most likely to succeed” and the most popular kid in school, however, those accolades did not translate into “Real World” success. He is contacted by a former classmate, Bob (Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson) and is quickly involved in a web of international espionage. Johnson and Hart’s chemistry rivals that of Wilder and Pryor.
The timing and freshness to the humor keeps the film moving without any lulls or without the moments being forced. The entire movie is fun and allows for audiences to have a new comedic duo that they can look forward to in the future. Central Intelligence allows us to laugh at ourselves and the reflect on the absurdities associated with trying to relive the “glory days” of our youth.
He doesn’t feel as though his life panned out quite like he hoped it would have when he graduated. He was elected “most likely to succeed” and the most popular kid in school, however, those accolades did not translate into “Real World” success. He is contacted by a former classmate, Bob (Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson) and is quickly involved in a web of international espionage. Johnson and Hart’s chemistry rivals that of Wilder and Pryor.
The timing and freshness to the humor keeps the film moving without any lulls or without the moments being forced. The entire movie is fun and allows for audiences to have a new comedic duo that they can look forward to in the future. Central Intelligence allows us to laugh at ourselves and the reflect on the absurdities associated with trying to relive the “glory days” of our youth.
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