Isaiah Roby's Blog: MI Book Reviews, page 126
April 9, 2018
Bingo Love
“When Hazel Johnson and Mari McCray met at church bingo in 1963, it was love at first sight. Forced apart by their families and society, Hazel and Mari both married young men and had families. Decades later, now in their mid-’60s, Hazel and Mari reunite again at a church bingo hall. Realizing their love for each other is still alive, what these grandmothers do next takes absolute strength and courage.”
I went to the bookstore and told myself I was buying a single book. I left with that book,...
April 4, 2018
Looking for Group
“Dylan doesn’t have a lot of experience with comfort. His room in the falling-down Village Estates can generously be categorized as “squalid,” and he sure as hell isn’t getting any love from his mother, who seemed to—no, definitely did—enjoy the perks that went along with being the parent of a “cancer kid.”
Now that Dylan’s suddenly in remission, all he’s left with is a lingering OxyContin addiction and a hunger for something—anything—but the life he’s known.
His only escape has been in the f...
March 28, 2018
Grand & Humble
“Harlan’s a popular kid and Manny’s a geek. But something strange is happening to both of them. Harlan is slowly losing his grip because he’s plagued by panic attacks he can’t control. And Manny has started having nerve-racking nightmares that leave him exhausted and terrified. In this complex and original novel, popular author Brent Hartinger takes us on an intense psychological journey as Harlan and Manny struggle with a fear they can’t name. It’s a journey that eventually leads downtown, w...
Iron Gold
“They call him father, liberator, warlord, Reaper. But he feels a boy as he falls toward the pale blue planet, his armor red, his army vast, his heart heavy. It is the tenth year of war and the thirty-second of his life.
A decade ago, Darrow was the hero of the revolution he believed would break the chains of the Society. But the Rising has shattered everything: Instead of peace and freedom, it has brought endless war. Now he must risk everything he has fought for on one last desperate missio...
March 26, 2018
A Preview of Some of The Books I will be Reviewing This Year!
Hey everyone!
2018 has been going slowly but surely along (and somehow also too quickly). I wanted to share a preview of some of the books I’ll probably reading as the year progresses. Admittedly, I have three whole shelves of books to read at home, not including the books I’m going to show you. I have a book and note book hoarding problem. XD I’ll freely admit that.
Last weekend when I was in New Hampshire with my family, we stopped at a book store we frequent whenever we are in the area, To...
March 25, 2018
The English Patient
By Michael Ondaatje
With ravishing beauty and unsettling intelligence, Michael Ondaatje’s Booker Prize-winning novel traces the intersection of four damaged lives in an Italian villa at the end of World War II. Hana, the exhausted nurse; the maimed thief, Caravaggio; the wary sapper, Kip: each is haunted by the riddle of the English patient, the nameless, burned man who lies in an upstairs room and whose memories of passion, betrayal, and rescue illuminate this book like flashes of heat light...
March 19, 2018
Pink: Omnibus Edition
“Riley Taylor, a girl living in 2095, underwater Brooklyn, is leaving her abusive home. She hopes that a spot in the military will provide enough cash to last her several years on her own. The service is always looking for new recruits to fight the many wars the United States is involved in. Trouble is, only 20% of those who enter the service will survive the three year term and collect the handsome stipend waiting for them at the end. She’s willing to take the chance, but once she gets in, s...
Mary’s Monster: Love, Madness, and How Mary Shelley Created Frankenstein
By Lita Judge
A young adult biography of Frankenstein’s profound young author, Mary Shelley, coinciding with the 200th anniversary of its publication, told through free verse and 300+ full-bleed illustrations.
Mary Shelley first began penning Frankenstein as part of a dare to write a ghost story, but the seeds of that story were planted long before that night. Mary, just nineteen years old at the time, had been living on her own for three years and had already lost a baby days after birth. S...
March 15, 2018
In Between
“Rachel has always wanted one thing, true love. She has dreamed about her perfect wedding since she was little and it seems she will finally get it with her fiancé Ethan. However when Rachel meets Tom, an elegant, smart conceited lawyer, everything she believes and feels is called into question. This is a captivating story about the power of distance, lack of time spent between couples, and confusion that put Rachel In Between the two men. Caught in the web of the consequences of their decisi...
March 14, 2018
Turn Your Pain into Art
By Ariel Bloomer
In this hilarious, candid, and warm debut, Icon For Hire vocalist Ariel Bloomer bares her soul and shares her struggles, coupling accessible autobiography with practical advice and inspiration for navigating the messiest parts of life. From growing up a passionate but troubled spiritual seeker to chasing her rock n’ roll dreams, Bloomer’s journey illustrates the importance of cultivating self-love and the transformational nature of creativity, and how to access the artist ins...
