Archive for Three Stars
PURITY by Jackson Pearce Book Review
Publication Date: April 24th 2012 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Rating: 
– Acceptable | 
Book Summary: A novel about love, loss, and sex — but not necessarily in that order.
Before her mother died, Shelby promised three things: to listen to her father, to love as much as possible, and to live without restraint. Those Promises become harder to keep when Shelby’s father joins the planning committee for the Princess Ball, an annual dance that ends with a ceremonial vow to live pure lives — in other words, no “bad behavior,” no breaking the rules, and definitely no sex.
Torn between Promises One and Three, Shelby makes a decision — to exploit a loophole and lose her virginity before taking the vow. But somewhere between failed hookup attempts and helping her dad plan the ball, Shelby starts to understand what her mother really meant, what her father really needs, and who really has the right to her purity.
Purity by Jackson Pearce Book Review Overview:
- Oh hey, this book is more about sex; there’s friendship and father/daughter relationships and mourning (intense!)
- I loved the relationship between Shelby and her dad; it was so nice to read about how they both grew closer because of this debutant ball
- Would have liked an ending that was a bit more tied up
PURITY by Jackson Pearce is so straight-forward to the point that it was predictable – but it’s not something that is necessarily a bad thing. Jackson Pearce makes the reading experience a fun one regardless of the predictability because of her relatable characters and the overall execution of the novel. However, I still found that something was missing from PURITY to leave a lasting impression in my mind.
The main thing that stood out to me about PURITY by Jackson Pearce was the fact that this book actually manages to cram a lot of heavy and serious material in such a little and pretty package. From the very first page, you know as a reader that PURITY by Jackson Pearce is way more than just a book about a girl trying to lose her virginity on a deadline. Shelby is still mourning the loss of her mother, and she keeps her memory alive by keeping the three promises she made to her mother before she died. PURITY by Jackson Pearce is about Shelby’s internal struggle to live by these promises.
I absolutely enjoyed reading how Shelby mended her relationship with her dad. More than anything, this book is about how a father and daughter learn to cope and live after the death of a wife and mother. Shelby and her dad had a truly awkward relationship at the beginning of PURITY by Jackson Pearce, so it was such a rewarding treat as a reader to see them slowly bridge the gap between them.
I felt as if the ending of PURITY by Jackson Pearce left me hanging for more. I didn’t expect the ending to be tied up complete with a Happily Ever After, but I shouldn’t have felt like the ending was so abrupt.
I enjoyed PURITY by Jackson Pearce and I can see why so many readers are her fans. I look forward to reading her other novels. However, while I enjoyed PURITY as I read it, but it was missing something for me to leave a lasting impression.
Other Book Reviews:
Mermaid Visions
A Reading Nook
RJ Does Books
About the Author
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Find the Author
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Jackson Pearce currently lives in Atlanta, Georgia, with a slightly cross-eyed cat and a lot of secondhand furniture. She recently graduated from the University of Georgia with a degree in English and a minor in Philosophy and currently works for a software company even though she auditioned for the circus (she juggled and twirled fire batons, but they still didn’t want her). Jackson began writing when she got angry that the school librarian couldn’t tell her of a book that contained a smart girl, horses, baby animals, and magic. Her solution was to write the book herself when she was twelve. Her parents thought it was cute at first, but have grown steadily more concerned for her ever since.
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Book Review, Three Stars - Audience: Young Adult, Author: Jackson Pearce, Book: Purity, Borrow It, Genre: Contemporary, Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers | 
1069 words
SCARY SCHOOL by Derek the Ghost Book Review
Series: Scary School, #1
Publication Date: June 21st 2011 by HarperCollins
Rating: – Acceptable |
Book Summary: You think your school’s scary?
Get a load of these teachers:
“Ms. Fang,” an 850-year-old vampire
“Dr. Dragonbreath,” who just might eat you before recess
“Mr. Snakeskin”–science class is so much more fun when it’s taught by someone who’s half zombie
“Mrs. T”–break the rules and spend your detention with a hungry “Tyrannosaurus rex”Plus
Gargoyles, goblins, and Frankenstein’s monster on the loose
The world’s most frighteningly delicious school lunchAnd
The narrator’s an eleven-year-old ghost
Join Charles “New Kid” Nukid as he makes some very Scary friends–including Petunia, Johnny, and Peter the Wolf–and figures out that Scary School can be just as funny as it is spooky
Scary School by Derek the Ghost Book Review Overview:
- A fun (and totally not too scary) book for young early chapter book readers
- Loved seeing the various characters illustrated in each chapter
- Reminded me of Louis Sachar’s Wayside School series
SCARY SCHOOL by Derek the Ghost is not my typical read. I usually don’t read this young, but I decided to give it a shot because his email pitch was so convincing and his website is so awesome. I have a younger sibling and a bunch of younger cousins so I wanted to give this book a shot and see if it was something that they might end up liking.
SCARY SCHOOL by Derek the Ghost had me feeling a little nostalgic. It reminded me of Louis Sachar’s Sideway Stories from Wayside School series – which i had read while growing up. Scary School is not your ordinary school. There’s a giant T-rex on the school faculty and a one-fanged teacher who teaches monster math… Dying is a daily occurrence – but don’t worry, you’ll probably end up coming back as a ghost. Each chapter focuses on a different character and by the end of the book, readers will have met a colorful (and frightening) variety of students, teachers, and faculty monsters – I mean, members.
I was afraid that I would be a little too old to get the jokes and the silly antics in the book, but I admit that I did end up laughing out loud a few times. I can only imagine just how funny this book would be to a younger audience. The playful illustrations only added to the fun. It was great seeing the different whacky characters illustrated in each chapter.
Overall, SCARY SCHOOL is a fun refreshing first in a chapter book series by Derek the Ghost. If Hogwarts and the Wayside School were somehow able to make a baby, Scary School is what you’ll get.
About the Author
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Find the Author
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Derek is an eleven-year-old ghost who haunts the classrooms and hallways of Scary School, writing down all the spine-tingling often hilarious things that go on there. Despite his ghostly state, Derek still enjoys reading comic books and hopes to one day become a master ninja. If that doesn’t work out, he will continue to share the fun of this very special, very secret school, so all kids can experience the scariest school on earth. Derek the Ghost communicates through the first-time ghost whisperer Derek Taylor Kent, who is a writer and performer in Los Angeles, California.
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Book Review, Three Stars - Audience: Middle Grade, Author: Derek the Ghost, Book: Scary School, Borrow It, Genre: Humor, Publisher: HarperCollins | 877 words
ZERO by Tom Leveen Book Review
Publication Date: April 24th 2012 by Random House Books for Young Readers
Rating: – Acceptable |
Book Summary: For aspiring artist Amanda Walsh, who only half-jokingly goes by the nickname Zero, the summer before college was supposed to be fun—plain and simple. Hanging out with her best friend Jenn, going to clubs, painting, and counting down the days until her escape. But when must-have scholarship money doesn’t materialize, and she has a falling out with Jenn that can only be described as majorly awkward, and Zero’s parents relationship goes from tense to relentless fighting, her prospects start looking as bleak and surreal as a painting by her idol Salvador Dali. Will life truly imitate art? Will her new, unexpected relationship with a punk skater boy who seems too good to be real and support from the unlikeliest of sources show Zero that she’s so much more than a name.
Zero by Tom Leveen Book Review Overview:
- Zero has quite the abrasive personality so it was at first hard for me to like her as a protagonist
- I just couldn’t relate to the band scene, even though I would have loved to
- Hopeful and realistic ending
Meet Zero. She’s an aspiring artist. Unfortunately, her lack of self-confidence (and lots of family drama) prevents her from going after her dream: to attend a prestigious art school in Chicago. It’s supposed to be Zero’s fun, laid-back summer before college. Instead, she’s stuck at home with one less friend, living in a house where her parents never stop arguing.
Alright, let me admit it: when I first found out that I was going to be an Ambuzzador for ZERO by Tom Leveen, I thought, “Uh-oh… This is not the kind of contemporary that I read.” And, I’m not going to lie; it’s true. I like sweet, romantic contemporaries and the cover does not give that impression at all. It looks edgy and punk rock and not me. But I was determined to give ZERO by Tom Leveen a shot. And this is one of those cases where I shouldn’t have judged a book based on its cover.
Amanda, a.k.a Zero was a tough protagonist to like based on first impressions. Zero has a pretty abrasive personality and it took me a while to find something about her that I could relate to. At first I couldn’t help thinking, Geez, what a Negative Nancy! Amanda was really overly critical and cynical about almost everything. But once I learned more about her, I understood why she acts that way. After a while, I related immensely with Amanda. Every now and then, a girl feels self-conscious about her body. It’s really only with time that a girl comes to love herself. Furthermore, I really could relate with Amanda’s frustrations with the college system. It is unbelievably expensive nowadays and it’s terrible how the cost of education can prevent one from going after their dream.
Music plays a huge role in ZERO by Tom Leveen. Unfortunately, I’m pretty much the complete opposite of an audiophile. As much as I would have loved to relate with the whole punk rock scene, it just didn’t happen. I wanted to get into the music as much as Zero did but for someone who isn’t into music as much, I think it’s hard to imagine being part of the audience of a concert. There are so many mentions of different bands in ZERO by Tom Leveen and my music knowledge is so limited that I couldn’t tell if they were real or fake bands. (I never really did find out…) However, I do think it would have been awesome to have actually heard some of the songs that Tom Leveen had written for the book.
Furthermore, there is a pretty realistic romance in ZERO by Tom Leveen. Mike is pretty likeable and I think he is one of the things that was key for Amanda’s character development. His encouragement to push her to follow her dreams as well as his own passion for his music really helps prioritizes Amanda’s goals in the near future.
ZERO by Tom Leveen also touches on a little bit of LGBTQ issues in the form of Amanda’s best friend. Initially, I thought Amanda was homophobic, but after I kept on reading I thought her reaction to be quite normal. It doesn’t matter if Jenn is straight or gay. If it had been me and one of my friends (guy or girl) I think I would have been freaked out at first if I really didn’t see it coming. I’m glad how their friendship developed in the book.
Lastly, art is essential to the book. If you’re not familiar with Salvador Dali, or have never even heard of him, go look him up on Wikipedia before reading ZERO by Tom Leveen. I think it’s important for a reader to at least be familiar with some of the works that inspire Amanda so much in the book.
While I enjoyed reading ZERO by Tom Leveen quite a bit, I think what makes this book different from a four-star book is memorability. I just don’t think that ZERO by Tom Leveen will leave a lasting impression on me, despite the fact that I liked reading it. The ending of ZERO by Tom Leveen was perfect. I couldn’t have been more satisfied with Amanda and I was really glad on how much she had matured over the course of the book.
I would recommend ZERO by Tom Leveen to readers who love contemporary novels – especially those about art and/or music.
Other Book Reviews:
Dreamland – Teen Fantasy
Wear the Old Coat
About the Author
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Find the Author
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Tom Leveen was born and raised in Arizona, where he lives with his wife. Party is his first young adult novel. Tom was previously the artistic director of Chyro Arts Venue, an all-ages performance space hosting live music, theatre, visual art, and independent film, where he enjoyed watching new, YA bands taking the stage for three years.
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Book Review, Three Stars - Audience: Young Adult, Author: Tom Leveen, Book: Zero, Borrow It, Genre: Contemporary, Publisher: Random House | 1395 words
- Action Packed
- Hahaha Funny
- Keeps You Guessing
- Heartwarmer
- Makes You Think
- Masterful World-Building
- Must Buy
- Page-Turner
- Poetic Prose
- Romantic Read
- Tear-Jerker
