Amanda Hamm (Author of Dear Jane Letters)

Amanda gave

to:

Plain Proposal (Daughters of the Promise, #5)
by Beth Wiseman (Goodreads Author)

My rating:

This book had some issues. My biggest complaint was that the author's biggest weakness seemed to be dialog. Sometimes the characters were kind of stiff and other times they were clearly saying something only to explain a point to the reader. And the ...more

Amanda gave

to:

The Magic of Ordinary Days
by Ann Howard Creel

My rating:

I read this book, like at least a few others, becuase I enjoyed the Hallmark channel movie based on it. Usually when I watch a movie version first, I am excited to read all the parts that were cut out for the movie. But I just didn't feel like I wa...more

Amanda gave

to:

The Emerald Atlas (The Books of Beginning, #1)
by John Stephens

My rating:

While it is possible for a plot to be too simple, this author seemed to believe that his story would get better and better the more complicated he could make the plot. What we end up with is three protagonists who are rarely together so we have to fo...more

Amanda gave

to:

Guys Read: Funny Business
by Jon Scieszka

My rating:

There is a pretty wide range of stories here so it was hard to give it a rating as a whole. I came up with three stars as an average. Getting more young boys into reading is a very noble goal so I had higher hopes. A few of these had messages that I'...moreThere is a pretty wide range of stories here so it was hard to give it a rating as a whole. I came up with three stars as an average. Getting more young boys into reading is a very noble goal so I had higher hopes. A few of these had messages that I'd rather my own boys were not exposed to, particularly humor at the expense of others. I hope some of the other guys read collections are better.

Best of Friends (2 stars) - This is a story about a kid pretending to be friends with someone he doesn't like so that he can get something he wants from him. Besides the fact that this is a terrible message for kids, the story was just kind of dull.

Will (4 stars) - Will is about a class of kids who all sprout oddities (wings, super powers, etc) and then one of the few kids who doesn't gets to be the real hero. I liked this story, but didn't think it was particularly funny. Seemed like it would fit better in a sci-fi collection.

Artemis Begins (5 stars) - The only 5 star effort was this gem about growing up in a house with five boys and their various personalities. I knew how it was going to end right away, but still enjoyed the lead up. This was the only one that made me laugh out loud.

???? - The story by Jeff Kinney was not available for the proof.

Dear Lady Author (3 stars) - This is a series of letters between a kid and an author for a school assignment. The first letter and response were great, but then it really doesn't go anywhere after that.

A Fistful of Feathers (3 stars) - This is a story about a boy whose father decides to "make a man out of him" by getting a live turkey shortly before Thanksgiving. The boy then believes the turkey is out to get him. The story probably would have been 5 stars if it had been edited down to about half. It dragged on and on.

Kid Appeal (2 stars) - Two boys need an idea to enter a contest. Pretty dull and unbelievable and most of the "gags" were about how one boy or the other was stupid. Fifth-graders not knowing the answer to 20 plus 20 is not funny.

What? You Think You Got It Rough? (1 star) - Terrible story about a kid with an abusive grandfather. Most of it is dialog and all the characters have grammar that makes your brain hurt. It was torture to finish it.

My Parents Gave My Bedroom to a Biker (4 stars) - A mildly amusing, but mostly just weird, story about exactly what the title says. Not a bad read.

The Bloody Souvenir (4 stars) - I had a hard time rating this one because I had a hard time reading it. It's not for the squeamish and I am very squeamish. But I still saw the merit and got a couple of grins out of it. I think many boys would enjoy it.(less)

Amanda gave

to:

Jane's Fame: How Jane Austen Conquered the World
by Claire Harman

My rating:

I enjoyed this book. It was informative and occasionally entertaining. Clearly, a lot of research went into it (there are about 30 pages of notes and sources), but parts of it felt overly drawn-out, as though the author wanted to mention every source...more

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	Dear Jane Letters 3.30 avg rating — 20 ratings — published 2007 — 3 editions	My rating:
	Tightening the Knot 3.00 avg rating — 12 ratings — published 2009 — 3 editions	My rating:
	Double Take: My First Year as a Mother of Twins 3.17 avg rating — 6 ratings — published 2010 — 2 editions	My rating:
	Weathering Evan 4.00 avg rating — 4 ratings — published 2012	My rating:
	Zero Station by Amanda Hamm (Goodreads Author), Hamm, Amanda 3.00 avg rating — 4 ratings — published 2007 — 3 editions	My rating:

Amanda gave to: Plain Proposal (Daughters of the Promise, #5) by Beth Wiseman (Goodreads Author)	My rating:
This book had some issues. My biggest complaint was that the author's biggest weakness seemed to be dialog. Sometimes the characters were kind of stiff and other times they were clearly saying something only to explain a point to the reader. And the ...more
Aug 10, 2011 09:53am · see review
Amanda gave to: The Magic of Ordinary Days by Ann Howard Creel	My rating:
I read this book, like at least a few others, becuase I enjoyed the Hallmark channel movie based on it. Usually when I watch a movie version first, I am excited to read all the parts that were cut out for the movie. But I just didn't feel like I wa...more
Aug 10, 2011 09:51am · see review
Amanda gave to: The Emerald Atlas (The Books of Beginning, #1) by John Stephens	My rating:
While it is possible for a plot to be too simple, this author seemed to believe that his story would get better and better the more complicated he could make the plot. What we end up with is three protagonists who are rarely together so we have to fo...more
Aug 10, 2011 09:42am · see review
Amanda gave to: Guys Read: Funny Business by Jon Scieszka	My rating:
There is a pretty wide range of stories here so it was hard to give it a rating as a whole. I came up with three stars as an average. Getting more young boys into reading is a very noble goal so I had higher hopes. A few of these had messages that I'...more
Oct 05, 2010 11:41am · see review
Amanda gave to: Jane's Fame: How Jane Austen Conquered the World by Claire Harman	My rating:
I enjoyed this book. It was informative and occasionally entertaining. Clearly, a lot of research went into it (there are about 30 pages of notes and sources), but parts of it felt overly drawn-out, as though the author wanted to mention every source...more
Oct 05, 2010 11:38am · see review

Amanda Hamm

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