book review – Page 11

February 7, 2014

Book Review: Red Rain

This month’s theme is self-published books by homeschooled authors. It’s a repeat theme from last January, but all new books.

“The real world won’t accept me, ma’am. I won’t sign the file.”

Summary
The pressure on Philadelphia, her father, and the other Christian’s in their tiny compound is growing. In the government school for Christians, the children are offered an opportunity to be adopted into “normal” families. Philadelphia refuses. She is shocked when she returns home and told by her father that she should have accepted. He’s received word that his services are needed on Mars. The summons is not optional, and Philadelphia is not allowed to accompany him. Mars. The same place her brother went and never returned.

My Thoughts
I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I started this book, but it had me hooked from the very beginning. Sci-fi isn’t usually my thing, but stories of persecuted Christians always intrigue and challenge me. So, persecuted Christians on Mars? Why not? When Christians talk about reclaiming the sci-fi genre from the largely amoral path it has taken, this is the type of book their talking about. Who knows. If more Christians pop up on Mars, I might become a regular reader of sci-fi. 😉

January 31, 2014

Book Review: The Door Within

*Reposted Review: First posted August 10, 2012*

“What can I do?” Aidan pleaded. “I can’t fight. I even had a middle schooler beat me up once.”

Aidan is upset about his family moves. Lonely and restless, he ventures into his Grandfather’s basement in search of adventure. He doesn’t expect scrolls to magically appear, but they do. When Aidan chooses to believe what the scrolls say, he becomes part of an adventure bigger than he ever imagined. He enters the land of Alleble, and joins the Glimpses of the realm in a fight against the evil Lord Paragor. Can a teenager from the Mirror Realm save many from death?

Great book! I highly recommend The Door Within and the other two books in the trilogy. I read all three of them in a week! The Door Within gets off to a little bit of a slow start, but stick with it. It gains momentum through the whole book (you won’t be able to put it down), and the beginning is important in the grand scheme of things. Allegorical components add rather than distract from the story, and there’s no magic to worry about.

Author: Wayne Thomas Batson
Audience: All Ages
Genre: Christian Fantasy
Pages: 311
Publisher: Tommy Nelson

Book Review: Raising Dragons

Summary
Arthurian legend meets contemporary fantasy and ties together with an allegorical twist. Billy, the main character, doesn’t know what to do. His struggle with bad breath is getting out of control. It doesn’t just stink, his breath is hot enough to set off the fire detector and sprinkler system in the school bathroom. Billy’s about to learn a secret about his past, make a new friend, and discover an old enemy.

The fact is, Billy is half-dragon. His father is a dragon from the day’s of King Arthur, and took human form to escape renegade dragon hunters that killed good dragons along with the bad. Billy’s new friend, Bonny, is also half dragon. Instead of scalding breath, she has wings she hides in a backpack. Their school principle, a descendant of the dragon hunters, is hunting for them. Billy finds himself struggling to learn to trust God as he tries to stay a step in front of the dragon hunter and come to terms with his father’s identity.

Thoughts
The writing in this story (and subsequent books) is amazing. Bryan Davis keeps the story moving at rip-roaring speed and you never want to put it down. At the end of book one, you can’t get to book two fast enough. That said, books that combine ‘other worldliness’ (i.e. Dragon’s that can turn into humans) with real world (God and salvation) always make me a little uncomfortable. I feel more doctrinally safe in worlds like Narnia that are separate from ours and allow our world’s rules to stay the same while allowing the allegorical stuff to work beautifully in the other world. Maybe that’s just me. In any case, that overlapping of worlds is the only concern I have with these books. On the other hand, dragons, half-dragons, and dragon hunters running around in modern day US and England is kinda fun! 🙂 Also, if you read it, try thinking of the sword Excalibur as a picture of the Bible. I totally missed that parallel my first time through the series and it gives the books a whole new depth.

P.S. Scary content might make this book/series unsuitable for kids under 13.

What do you think of combining real life faith with fantasy elements like dragons?

January 17, 2014

Book Review: The Royal Ranger

“I’ve been telling you, Maddie. You are no longer a princess. And you can no longer behave as if you are. You are my apprentice. You are no better than anyone else here in Redmont–Not Jenny, not the stable boy at the castle, not the youngest of the Battleschool apprentices.

“On the other hand, you are no worse than any of those people either. You’re an equal among equals.”

Story Synopsis
Will Treaty, now a grown man in possession of just as much fame as Halt, is consumed with a need for revenge. With the person closest to his heart dead because of the actions of an outlaw band, he is determined to hunt down every responsible person and kill them. He doesn’t care what he has to sacrifice to reach this objective. His worried friend and the current ranger commander, Gilan, is on the brink of being forced to expel Will from the ranger corps.

Gilan isn’t the only one with someone to worry about either. Horace and Cassandra (aka Evenlyn) are frustrated and worried about their daughter, Madelyn. Headstrong, spoiled, and a little too full of herself, Maddie seems determined to defy her parents wishes. It’s only a matter of time before she gets herself into significant trouble. Something must be done.

And so it’s decided. It’s time for Will to take an apprentice and for the ranger corps to accept it’s very first female apprentice. Only time will tell the wisdom and effectiveness of the decision.

My Thoughts
From the first rumors about a female ranger’s apprentice, I was apprehensive about this book. The last thing I wanted to see was the well loved characters in this well loved series used to promote a feminist agenda. Or even just to tell a story with feminist overtones. I was pleasantly surprised. The overall concept could be considered feminist, but even if a message of this type was intended, it didn’t take precedence over good story telling. Yay!

The whole story was great. Maddie’s journey from spoiled princess to thoughtful, self-sacrificing ranger was delightful. It reminded me a little of Hugh’s similar journey in Sir Malcolm and the Missing Prince. The rest of the story was typical John Flanagan adventure and humor. Fans of the series won’t be disappointed!

Any other Ranger’s Apprentice fans out there?

January 10, 2014

Book Review: By Darkness Hid

“Come to the stables an hour before sunrise tomorrow. Your training mustn’t interfere with your duties to the manor. Tell no one of this for now. If I decide you’re worthy, I’ll talk to Lord Nathak about reassignment to me.”

Young Achan Cham’s life is worse than that of a slaves. As a stray, he’s the lowest of the low, destined for a life of servitude and degradation. Despite his unpromising future, Achan’s a fighter. When a famous but enigmatic knight shows an interest in training Achan, the young man jumps for the opportunity. Maybe someday he can make something of himself after all. If the strange voices in his head don’t make him insane first.

I read this book early in 2013 and didn’t have any complaints when my brother purchased the other two books in the trilogy. The beginning is admittedly cliched–a slave with dreams of bettering himself and a girl posing as a boy (she’s the other main character). Starts like that never bother me. Especially the slave one. And By Darkness Hid soon leaves any such complaints in the dust. You’ll be drawn into the characters struggle to protect the people they love and tell friends from enemies. And by the end of the book…well, don’t blame me if you can’t wait to buy the next one.

January 3, 2014

Book Review: The False Prince

“Hail His Majesty, the scourge of my life,” Conner said to Roden and Tobias as he stomped up the stairs. “I fear the devils no longer, because I have the worst of them right here in my home!”

The Ranger’s Apprentice meets The Prince and the Pauper in this exciting story. Sage, a young orphan boy, has plenty of wit and daring. When Connor, a nobleman with questionable intentions, selects Sage and four other orphans for something special, it doesn’t take Sage long to determine the man’s intentions. The country is on the brink of civil war, enemy nations are poised to attack, and the royal family is dead. Connor needs someone to fill the throne. At the end of their training, one boy will be selected as the false prince. The other boys will be disposed of.

It’s not often I read, much less enjoy, a recently published, secular book. The False Prince was an enjoyable exception. After reading a couple positive reviews from friends, I reserved this book at the library. Once I got into it, I couldn’t put it down. While Sage does possess some undesirable traits (i.e. a penchant for theft), he generally exhibits good character qualities. The book as a whole contains no inappropriate content that would make me hesitant to recommend it (refreshing!). I couldn’t wait to get my brother to read it.

Have any of you read The False Prince yet? Does it sound like something you would like?

December 20, 2013

Book Review: Silent Night

“I looked up this holiday of yours,” he said, seeming to ignore the question. “It was very enlightening.”

Jeffry Floyd is one of the few (maybe the only!) people who would spend Christmas Day dying instead of accepting an invitation to celebrate with the woman he’s falling in love with. Of course, Floyd isn’t technically a person and he doesn’t really understand Christmas. He does know that he’s tired of Joseph Adams asking him if he’s okay. The truth is, he isn’t. And he doesn’t know if he ever will be again.

Let me start by saying that if you haven’t read first six supervillain books, you shouldn’t start with this one. Go back to the beginning and work on catching up. Silent Night is a short story that fits right in with the longer books in the series. Not the most polished writing style, but the quirky, loveable characters make up for it. This story jumps around a lot, making it a bit hard to follow at times, but you’ll get the hang of it. 😉 It’s a nice follow up to book six, and a nice filler while fans wait for the next “season”.

Read my review of book 1, Supervillain of the Day.

P.S. Because of Christmas, there won’t be a Guess a Quote this Monday.

December 13, 2013

Book Review: The Ultimate Gift

When Theodore’s best friend dies, the aging lawyer is left in charge of Red’s will. The most unique aspect of the will sends Red’s great-nephew, Jason, on a year long journey of gifts. Not ordinary, material gifts, but gifts of discovery. After a pampered, privileged life, Jason finds himself struggling to learn the value of money, family, giving and more. He must learn each lesson to Theodore’s satisfaction in order to continue his great-uncle’s challenge and obtain The Ultimate Gift.

This book is not a Christmas story, but I wanted to read it and the topic seems fitting for Christmas. I started reading this book with two expectations, and (largely because of my expectations) ended up feeling let down. I anticipated a highly emotional story (this was because I’d seen the movie) and I expected a strong faith element (because of the Christian publisher). When none of the gifts included anything about God and the ending just barely mentioned Him, I felt dissatisfied. I mean, any gift that doesn’t include Him falls short of “ultimate” in my book. My expectations aside, the book was ok. More of a fictional essay than an actual story, though. The narrative never goes very deep. All tell and Despite being written for adults there is nothing objectionable. I’d be perfectly comfortable reading this with young children. So, if you’re looking for an easy read with good morals, you might enjoy this. And while you’re thinking about it, watch the movie. This is a rare case of the movie being better than the book (I love the movie)!