Book Review: Unlocked by Karen Kingsbury

Hello everyone,

Today’s review is on Unlocked by Karen Kingsbury.

Last time I read Unlocked, I was a junior in high school and absolutely loved Karen Kingsbury’s books and read most of the Baxter Family series. I decided to reread Unlocked because last year I decided to reread the Baxter Family books (up through Love Story) so that I could refresh myself on what had happened before I read the latest books about the Baxter Family. And in the Above the Line series, one of the books that makes an appearance is Unlocked, so I thought it would be good to reread it before I moved onto the Bailey Flannigan series. I don’t know if it’s because I’ve grown up in the last eight years or if there are certain topics that I think differently about now than I did back when I was in high school, but I honestly didn’t love this book as much as I did the first time I read it.

One of the first things that I did not like about this book is that is a seemingly anti-vaccinations undertone, going so far as assuming that the main character’s autism was due to vaccinations he received when he was three. I’m not hear to write a treatise about why vaccinations are important, but rather to say as someone who works with the public on a daily basis, I see the definite need for most vaccinations. Also, autism is a genetic condition, not some illness that can be caught, and it hasn’t really ever been proven academically that there is truly a connection between vaccinations and autism. However, I feel that to discuss this several times throughout the book as the “cause” of autism rubbed me the wrong way. Again, I’m not here to argue about the subject of vaccinations, but just that I didn’t like that that was an undertone that was in the book, especially for the first 100 pages.

Secondly, a lot of the characters are flat throughout the novel, and everything seems to be solved neatly in the end by the power of prayer. I’m not saying I don’t believe in the power of prayer, I do, but for everything to end perfectly like that is not an accurate depiction of how God answers prayer. Sometimes His answer is no for reason we may never understand.

I almost put this book down and decided to call it quits, but I’d already made it this far and also, I was curious to see if it got any better and to see if there was a reason why I loved it over eight years ago. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much I ended up loving about it, except it was nice that there was a happy ending, but things seemed tied up to neatly. The novel deals with some hard issues like bullying and suicide, but in the end the bullies magically seem to turn over a new leaf, at least for one night. I felt that there was more that could have been done, but it just seemed very rushed to get to the end.

Overall, I can’t really remember why I thought this book was one of the best that had been written when I was a junior in high school. It was cheesy, attempts to deal with hard topics but doesn’t spend enough time on them, and then there was of course trying to subtly blame the main character’s autism on vaccinations that also bugged me. I would like to say that this hasn’t put me off Karen Kingsbury’s books for good, but this one was just disappointing because it also has a lot of potential too. 2/5 Stars.

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

Join my email list

By clicking submit, you agree to share your email address with the site owner and Mailchimp to receive marketing, updates, and other emails from the site owner. Use the unsubscribe link in those emails to opt out at any time.

Processing…

Success! You're on the list.

Whoops! There was an error and we couldn't process your subscription. Please reload the page and try again.

Book Review: Surrender Bay (Nantucket #1) by Denise Hunter

Hello everyone,

Today’s review is on Surrender Bay by Denise Hunter.

**BEWARE! SPOILERS AHEAD!**

A few weeks ago I reviewed The Accidental Bride by Denise Hunter, and if you happened to read that one you would know that I found it just okay, not bad, but not great either. So I was a bit nervous about reading one of her other books because she seems like an author I could really like, but I was afraid that whatever I picked up next wouldn’t live up to my expectations. However, I got over it and decided to pick up Surrender Bay, which is book one in her Nantucket series, but they can also be read as stand-alones because they aren’t really connected in anyway (I don’t know this to be a fact, but it is something that I read about, I’ll have to see how true this is in the future!). I’ll admit I was nervous, even though the story sounded interesting, I tried not to get my hopes up…but I was pleasantly surprised, I really enjoyed it, so much in fact that I read most of it in one sitting!

Surrender Bay follows Samantha Owens (known as Sam) who is a single mother and left behind everything 11 years ago on Nantucket, working several menial jobs just to get by and make at least some kind of life for her and her daughter, Caden. However, one day she learns that her estranged step-father has died and that she has inherited his cottage, her childhood home that contains a lot of bad memories. Since she desperate to give her daughter the life that she deserves, she decides to face her demons and revisit the island she once called home. While there she wants to fix up her childhood home and get it ready to sell so that she can use the money towards a better life for her and her daughter. But she doesn’t expect run into her former best friend, Landon Reed, who declared his love for her just before she left town. Eleven years later and he still pines for and is excited and surprised to see her back and sees this as a chance to win her heart, however she pushes him away with good reason, she has terrible secret from the past that if he knew could destroy any sort of relationship that they have.

Let me start out by saying, and this is based on a couple other reviews I read too, that yes, this book is marketed as a Christian fiction book and it was published by a Christian publishing house, however some readers might be surprised that there are no mentions of God, Jesus or the Gospel throughout the novel. But there is a reason for this and it is definitely still a Christian fiction book. At the back of the edition that I was reading there was a short interview with the author and one of the questions she’s asked is why there aren’t any overt references to God, her reason is that Surrender Bay, as well as the other books in this “series” are meant to be an allegory of Zephaniah 3:17 which says,

“The LORD your God is in your midst,

a mighty one who will save;

He will rejoice over you with gladness;

He will quiet you by His Love;

He will exult over you with loud singing.” (ESV)

And after having read the novel, I can see how it covers the phrase, “He will quiet you by His love;” without getting into it too much and spoiling the ending for those of you who are reading it, Landon’s love for Sam perseveres even though she tries her best to push him away and hurt him, which is similar to how God loves us, even though we continue to rebel against Him because we think we are unworthy of love. One line that I really liked in Surrender Bay that sort of encapsulates the theme of this book is “Love is not earned, love is a gift.” And this statement was said several times by Landon and it is one that stuck with Sam after he had said it to her.

As far as characters go, Sam is stubborn and determined to run away from her past, at times it was annoying, but when seen through the framework of this novel being an allegory, in some ways she is an accurate representation of how humanity constantly runs from God and rebels against Him. Although Landon in some ways is a representation of God’s love, he is still a flawed character in some ways, but not in a way that is disturbing. Then there is Caden, she constantly gives her mother attitude, and Sam struggles to figure out how to mend their relationship, however I would like to say that at the end of the novel the relationship between mother and daughter is restored when both of them realize what they’ve been doing wrong in regards to their actions and words towards each other.

Overall, Surrender Bay  was a great read, and as I mentioned before I devoured it. While there were a few minor flaws to the novel, it was entertaining and it captured my attention from beginning to end. I’m looking forward to reading more of Denise Hunter’s books in the future, especially the other books that make up this series. 4/5 Stars.

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

Join my email list

By clicking submit, you agree to share your email address with the site owner and Mailchimp to receive marketing, updates, and other emails from the site owner. Use the unsubscribe link in those emails to opt out at any time.

Processing…

Success! You're on the list.

Whoops! There was an error and we couldn't process your subscription. Please reload the page and try again.

Book Review: Matilda by Roald Dahl

Hello everyone,

Today’s review is on Matilda by Roald Dahl.

Matilda has been one of my favorite books ever since I was in elementary school, however I can’t remember if I watched the movie adaptation first, or if my parents read the book to me. I do know that it is a book I’ve kept rereading ever since I read for the first time, in fact I’m pretty sure I felt very accomplished when I read it the first time because I think I considered it to be “a big book” to read. There was something magical about Matilda that I loved, I think it was because the story was one that gave me hope that good can triumph evil, or rather that horrible people will eventually be vanquished. As a kid I needed this as I was going through a rough time at school and was constantly picked, even by those who claimed to be my friends. I was constantly told by teachers that I wouldn’t amount to anything, and by reading Matilda I longed to be extraordinary like her. Even though I’ve never had the kind of powers that Matilda displays in the book, I did prove the naysayers wrong in my own way.

But enough of my trials as a child, let’s jump into the review. I reread Matilda for a book club that I’ve started at work and I decided that this would be the first book we discussed, partly because I was still trying to decide which books to read and discuss, and partly because I thought it would be interesting to start off with one of my childhood favorites. I also rewatched the movie starring Mara Wilson as Matilda (this was one of my favorite movies as a kid!), which was a great experience as always.

When I read Matilda this time around there were several things that stuck out to me that I don’t think I noticed before, or maybe I did but I just never remembered them. First, I like how the author explains some of the words that he uses, I found this fascinating, especially since this was one of the things that bugged me about A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket, but that’s due to the fact that it was excessive at times. However, Roald Dahl uses it sparingly throughout the book. Another thing that stood out to me was the introduction when the narrator talks about how children aren’t as great as their parents make them out to be. I felt like this was a great way to introduce readers to an extraordinary little girl who’s parents thought she was nothing but a nuisance. I also appreciated how Matilda is shown as almost a typical child, and is not this paragon of virtue that most heroines are made out to be, she can be a smart-alec at times, and is very inquisitive. I feel like this made her even more human-like. Miss Honey is another great character, but I seemed to notice this time around that she tends to be a little self-serving at times and for some reason a lot more mousy than I remember. And of course there is the villain, Miss Trunchbull, Roald Dahl does a fantastic job of painting someone so villainous that in the end you’re glad that she gets what she deserves!

Overall, this was a delightful reread and I hope to someday reread this to my children and that they get as much enjoyment as I have over the years. I highly recommend this book for anyone who is a fan of dark humor, magic, and/or just an all-round fun read. 5/5 Stars

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

Join my email list

By clicking submit, you agree to share your email address with the site owner and Mailchimp to receive marketing, updates, and other emails from the site owner. Use the unsubscribe link in those emails to opt out at any time.

Processing…

Success! You're on the list.

Whoops! There was an error and we couldn't process your subscription. Please reload the page and try again.

Book Review: The View from Saturday by E. L. Konigsburg

Hello everyone,

Today’s review is on The View from Saturday by E. L. Konigsburg.

I’m sure when people see the name E. L. Konigsburg, one of the first titles (and probably only title) that pops into their mind is From the Mixed Up Files of  Mrs. Basil  E. Frankweiler – I have yet to read this one, but it is on my list! However, The View From Saturday is another one of her works for which she won a second Newberry Award Medal for. I had never heard of it until my boyfriend/fiance recommended it to me a few months ago (as well as the quote, “I am a passenger of spaceship earth”). I also received a copy of it for my birthday in September (thanks again to my amazing boyfriend for another great book! :)) I started reading it.

The View from Satruday follows a group of four sixth-graders who make up their middle school’s academic team, which is lead by their teacher, Mrs. Olinski, who is in a wheel-chair due to a car accident she was in several years before the start of the story. She has just returned to teaching and in her homeroom class are the four students that will make up her classes academic debate team. She doesn’t know exactly why she picked this particular group of students, only that she did, and it turns out to be a really good decision.

The book opens up in the middle of the the final event that they have as an academic team, Regionals, and as a new question is about to be asked, Mrs. Olinski reflects back on how the team came to be, and as each student answers, we are told a little bit of the backstory of how they became friends through some unusual happenstance. First, Noah ends up being the best man at the wedding between Nadia’s grandfather and Ethan’s grandmother, Nadia ends up meeting Ethan while visiting her grandfather and new grandmother, Ethan gets an invitation to a tea party (as do Nadia and Ethan) which is hosted by new student, Julian. And pretty soon all four of the are on the academic team, but how they were chosen is a mystery to all involved.

This was an enjoyable read and I loved getting to know each of the characters as the novel progressed. Nadia could be a little bit of a pain at times, especially when she thinks that she is better than Ethan when she meets him. But considering all that she had been through it makes sense. Noah was funny, and sarcastic at times, but it was interesting to see him wrestle with having to write a thank-you note to his grandparents for staying with them over the summer. Then there is Ethan, who seems nice, but also a bit of a loner. He just wants to get out of the shadows of the success of his older brother, to which he believes he is a sore disappointment to everyone he meets who knew his brother. Then there is Julian the new boy who is an Indian boy who’s father has moved into the old Sillington house, which he wants to turn into a bed and breakfast, and it is Julian who starts it all by inviting the other three children over for tea one Saturday afternoon. It was interesting to see Julian adapt to a new culture, as well as still stick to his principles about what he believes to be right or wrong. And even though he is bullied, he still responds with politeness to those who make fun of him. I think out of all of the characters Julian is my favorite because of just how he responds to others, and even how he is the one to get the group together for a tea party, which then turns into a regular event. In some ways it can be said that he is the father of The Souls, which is what the group choose to call themselves.

Overall, this was a really good book, and I definitely recommend it, especially for middle-grade readers. It was a little bit different from what I was expecting, but I did love the style of vignettes throughout the story, as well as flashback scenes from the perspective of Mrs. Olinski. There were also some great supporting characters in this book, that definitely added to the plot. I’m looking forward to reading some of E. L. Konigsburg in the future. 4/5 Stars.

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

Join my email list

By clicking submit, you agree to share your email address with the site owner and Mailchimp to receive marketing, updates, and other emails from the site owner. Use the unsubscribe link in those emails to opt out at any time.

Processing…

Success! You're on the list.

Whoops! There was an error and we couldn't process your subscription. Please reload the page and try again.