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Running with Sherman
by Christopher McDougall

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Running with Sherman was about SO much more than teaching a rescue donkey to run in a challenging race. It covers everything from the animal human bond to the health benefits of living off the grid. It is weirdly inspiring and positive and made me feel refreshed and energized just reading it. Perhaps I enjoyed it because of my own love of all things furry, perhaps because burro racing was a topic about which I knew nothing but for whatever reason I loved every page. Highly recommended.

The Memory Thief by Lauren Mansy

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I am intrigued by the idea of a person (rather than a disease) being able to steal memories. That’s what made me pick up this book and I’m so glad that I did. I loved it. I know that the background a person brings to a book impacts how they read it so perhaps events in my life made this book sing especially sweetly to me... I know it hasn’t received great reviews on Library thing but I thought it had a little bit of everything; adventure, romance, heartbreak, twists.... Granted, I do think the romance developed pretty quickly but who am I to say it couldn’t happens that fast?
There were lots of passages that stuck out for me but these two were my favourites:

“If I dwelled on my regrets, I wouldn’t have the strength to get out of bed every morning. We can’t forget what we’ve done, but it’s what we do with those regrets that mould us. We’re given a past to learn from and grow, but sometimes the greatest mistake can change your future for the better.”
and
“Hardly a minute goes by when I don't think of him, but in a way isn't that a lovely thing Julietta? To be so loved that you're always near one's thoughts? I see him every day through the memories we made together,...

Everything Sad is Untrue
by Daniel Nayeri

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The voice of middle school student Khosrou is beautiful and heartbreaking. The story jumps from his present day Oklahoma classroom to his past life in Isfahan and occasionally takes a detour into myths of demons and palaces and magic carpets. It took me a while to get invested in the story but it was well worth persisting. I only hope that the students who read this will also read enough to get themselves hooked. This is a memorable refugee story, one that will stay with you long after you’ve finished reading.

Mindwar (Book One of the Mindwar Trilogy) by Andrew Klavin

9/28/2014

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Rick Dial was a star quarterback for his Putnam Hills High School team until a car accident crushed his legs and made him dependent on crutches to even hobble 100 meters. Unsure of who he is without his athleticism, and embarrassed by his physical weakness, Rick retreats to the safety of his bedroom where he throws himself into video games and masters them. One day, while hobbling down the street, he is abducted by a government agency who convince him that the skills he displays during video play; coolness, quick thinking, and fearlessness are exactly the skills they need to combat a Russian cyberthreat to America known as the Realm. They want Rick to enter the Realm, and defeat the crazy genius who is masterminding the plot to control and disrupt American computer systems.
The biggest drawback is that, although Rick's body is fully functioning within the Realm, any injuries he sustains while in there are real, and when he withdraws from the Realm, the injuries remain. If he is killed while inside the Realm, he will remain in a coma forever in the real world. In spite of the very real threats to his existence, Rick realizes that this is a battle he has to face.
This is book one of a trilogy, guaranteed to be loved by those who enjoyed The Matrix or Ender's Game.

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SYLO by D.J. MacHale

7/22/2013

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I picked this book up because I enjoyed MacHale's Pendragon series, and I love science fiction.
Tucker is the back up player for a senior tailback named Marty Wiggins, and Tucker is one of the last people to talk to Wiggins before he dies on the football field of unknown causes. Freaked out by what Wiggins said and how he looked, Tucker convinces his best friend, Quinn Carr to go for a late night bike ride. The boys see some kind of huge dark shadow out over the water, and then witness an incredible explosion. The next day, military personal descend onto their island, and quarantine the entire island indefinitely. Shortly after that, a second citizen dies in a similar fashion to Wiggins. The boys want answers, but no one is giving them any.
This is a fast moving adventure - one that I think decent male readers will enjoy.

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Mila 2.0 by Debra Driza

6/12/2013

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Sometimes it's the simplest things that are life-changing.
Mila and her best friend end up both liking the same new boy at school, so when Kaylee picks up Hunter on the side of the road, she forces Mila into the back of the pickup. Some intentional rough driving throws Mila from the truck, and rips her arm, exposing not tissues and tendons, but wires and white fluid. Mila finds out from her "mom" that she is really a Mobile Intel LIfelike Android. The problem is... she doesn't feel like a machine. Shortly after the truck incident, Mila and her mom are attacked by agents they mistakenly believe are military men, and then they realize more than one group is after them.
Mila 2.0 is well written, fast -paced and very engaging. Even as I was admiring her machine-like efficiency, my heart was breaking for her circumstance. Thoroughly enj

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    Janice’s quotes


    "It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities."— J.K. Rowling

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    Middle School former Teacher Librarian - then MYP math and science. Update... VERY recently retired! Still adjusting that I'm not just on summer vacation!!! 
    I believe there is no such thing as a non-reader; just people who haven't discovered what they want to read.
    If you read my reviews, please leave me a comment - I'd love to know that you're out there.

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    Janice's bookshelf: read

    Siege and Storm
    liked it
    Siege and Storm
    by Leigh Bardugo
    Just didn't enjoy it as much as Shadow and Bone. I just felt like the author was really trying a bit too hard to draw this story out. I was able to put it down several times and I couldn't put Shadow and Bone down so there's the differen...
    Ruin and Rising
    really liked it
    Ruin and Rising
    by Leigh Bardugo
    The Grisha triology is a fantasy series that I really enjoyed. I reread the last book because I thought I wasn't remembering something. I'm a bit confused because I've started King of Scars and Nikolai isn't as I remembered. Don't want...
    Don't Wake Up
    it was ok
    Don't Wake Up
    by Liz Lawler
    A Very Large Expanse of Sea
    it was amazing
    A Very Large Expanse of Sea
    by Tahereh Mafi
    I’m not usually someone who enjoys a story that is predominantly about the attraction between two people BUT I did like this one. The setting is one year after 9/11 and 16 year old Shirin, an American born Muslim whose family moves freq...
    Two Can Keep a Secret
    really liked it
    Two Can Keep a Secret
    by Karen M. McManus
    I love a good mystery, and although I correctly guessed the murderer in the first chapter, I still thoroughly enjoyed the twists and turns.

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