Arlen Kimmelman's Blog (36)

Book review: All Our Broken Pieces by L. D. Crichton

Publishing date: May 7, 2019

Read courtesy of NetGalley.com

I didn't think I'd enjoy a sappy love story, but that's OK, because this wasn't sappy. I really liked these believable characters. Kyler was very romantic, and Lennon made for a very good example of how to understand OCD in others.

The OCD portion of the story was handled very well, both normalizing and explaining how it's not normal, or rather…

Book Review: The Similars by Rebecca Hanover

Publishing date: January 1, 2019

read courtesy of netgalley.com

I'm going to start at the end... there's a sequel in waiting. That gives you an idea about the ending: it's a cliffhanger. Unfortunately, I'll never find out how it all ends; I won't be purchasing the sequel for my high school library. I'm not sure how much my students recognize cliched writing, but since it interfered with my enjoyment of the book, I'm…

Book review of

XL by Scott Brown

Pub Date: 26 Mar 2019

Read courtesy of netgalley.com

I love Scott Brown's writing style: interesting vocabulary, descriptive metaphors, a glimmer of breaking the fourth wall, and a bit of dry, subtle humor. It works. If you don't like being given one of the funniest lines of a movie during a trailer, don't read the next part of this sentence since I'm going to ruin a chuckle for you: car mitzvah, when you turn 16…

Book Review: What We Buried by Kate A. Boorman

To be published February 26, 2019

Read courtesy of Netgalley.com

Riveting. RIVETING!

From the double-meaning title to the adept use of flashbacks entwined with the glimpses of memory, What We Buried by Kate A. Boorman epitomizes a psychological thriller. I'm so glad I read this and cannot wait to get this book for my high school library.

I read this in one sitting, from 9am to 2pm on a Sunday, and it was time well…

Book review: Roam by C. H. Armstrong

Book Review:

Any Second by Kevin Emerson

Pub. date: November 20, 2018

Read courtesy of netgalley.com

5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review!

I cannot wait to get this book for my high school's library!

My students are taught to be an upstander instead of a bystander. In Any Second, Maya did this... and beyond. Kevin Emerson wrote a story that is both unique and scarily possible, which is what makes it such a compelling read.

Emerson did a great job with the pace of the…

Book Review

Body Swap by Sylvia McNicoll

Read courtesy of www.netgalley.com

Publication date: 09 Oct 2018

Things I'd Rather Do Than Die

by Christine Hurley Deriso

Pub Date: 18 Sep 2018

Read courtesy of www.Netgalley.com

I recently reviewed Christine Hurley Deriso's All the Wrong Chords, which I loved. I really wanted to like Things I'd Rather Do Than Die as much, but alas, I give it 4 instead of 5 ⭐. I also read Deriso's Acknowledgment section of this novel, and I'm glad she took the advice of her editor; having the main…

Book Review: Moonrise by Sarah Crossan

courtesy of www.netgalley.com 

publish date: May 8, 2018

Sarah Crossan brought me into a world I don't think I'll ever encounter in my own life, but she brought me into it nonetheless. Great job helping me to be a part of someone else's life, especially when I'd have no understanding otherwise.

What it is like having your older brother on death row, having a…

https://pollyannapollyanna.blogspot.com/2018/04/book-review-what-you-left-me.html

What You Left Me

by Bridget Morrissey

publication date June 5, 2018

courtesy of www.netgalley.com

Magical realism.  As a result of a drunk driving accident during their high…

Preview read courtesy of http://netgalley.com

"How You Ruined My Life"

By Jeff Strand @Jeff Strand

Publication date: April 3, 2018

Thanks to netgalley.com for providing this advanced readers copy.

Humor without curse words! A high school punk rock band without curse words! A book that would work in either middle school or high school without curse words!

"How You Ruined My Life" is a humorous story based on the premise of…

Plague Land by Alex Scarrow

Read through NetGalley

publishing date December 1, 2017

No spoilers in this review...

Getting this review in under the wire! But.... Plague Land is GREAT! To be honest, I wasn't getting into it at first, but I soon couldn't put it down! And for those of you who don't like cliffhangers, this isn't one; though, it does leave itself open for a sequel!

Just enough…

The Comic Book Story of Video Games by Jonathan Hennessey and Jack Mcgowan, published by Ten Speed Press, publication date October 3, 2017.

This is my first non-fiction review, so be gentle on me :o)

I'll begin by saying how surprisingly interesting I found the subject to be; I intended to read this to see if my high school Manga-loving students would like this. I've decided that, even if they wouldn't, the…

The Princesses of Iowa My book review of The Princesses of Iowa by M. Molly Backes due out 5/8/12.