Дорослішання художника

Дзвінка Матіяш

Марта з вулиці Святого Миколая

 

З того, що мені сказала мама, мені здалося, що ця книжка буде глибока. Не просто глибока, а що там буде якась велика трагедія.

Наприклад, у «140 децибелів тиші» Андрія Бачинського у хлопця померли батьки, і після аварії він втратив слух і мову – одним словом, уже спочатку зрозуміло, що йтиметься про дуже серйозні проблеми.

Я чекала такого самого від «Марти…». Мушу сказати, мені навіть сподобалося, що книжка не була тим, що я очікувала. Я була приємно здивована.

Мені сподобалося й те, що у Марти була «криза». Вона обманювала, дратувалася, а потім була розчарована в собі. Ще вона не могла малювати. Це показує, що стосунки з друзями і родиною сильно впливають на те, як ти висловлюєш свою думку. Особливо творчу думку (малювати, писати, співати…).

Ще мені здалося цікавим те, що книжка описує той період часу, коли Марта емоційно дорослішає. Це дає читачам змогу порівнювати себе з нею і показує, що вони не одні такі.

Загалом, мені ця книжка здалася особливою в найкращому розумінні цього слова. Нібито описуються буденні події, але говориться не тільки про верхній шар, а глибше. Можливо, тому що Марта – художниця. А можливо, тому що в неї дорослі друзі. Якщо в тебе дорослі друзі, ти і сам стаєш дорослішим.

«Марта з вулиці Святого Миколая» явно піде на мою поличку улюблених книжок.

Єдине, що мені не сподобалося, це те, що близько кінця Марта сказала: «Те, що це був чоловік, а не жінка, зрозуміло. Не знаю, чи є хоч одна настільна гра, яку придумала б жінка». Ці слова мене обурили і дещо розчарували. Особливо враховуючи те, що автор книжки – жінка. Пошукавши в інтернеті, я виявила, що все ж є ігри, створені жінками. По-перше, Елізабет Меґі створила гру «Землевласник», на основі якої потім випустили усім відому «Монополію». Вона також створила кілька інших настільних ігор. Про інших жінок-творців ігор можна почитати ось тут. Хоча мушу визнати, що часто жінки є не винахідниками гри, а дизайнерами або співтворцями (разом зі своїми чоловіками).

Дуже раджу «Марту з вулиці Святого Миколая» та іншу книжку Дзвінки Матіяш – «День сніговика».

До зустрічі, читальні сови!

Matchmaker

The Perfect Man

by Jenny Markas

I enjoyed it
You would like this book if you like Comedy and Romance
Review: It's very interesting and funny. I felt sorry for the main character, Holly, because her mom kept moving the whole family across the country every time she broke up with a new boyfriend. The most interesting part was how Holly tried to make an illusion of a "perfect man" for her mom so that her mom doesn't move again because she finally has a permanent life. She gives her mom flowers and writes her e-mails. All from her "perfect man". But when it's time for the perfect man to show his face, what will Holly do? In the book, Holly, her mom and her sister travel all around the country and never stop in one place for long. I would not like that. I like the character Holly and I can relate to her because she tires to play matchmaker and she has many unique ideas. You would like this book if you like realistic books and romance. (And even thought I usually don't like romance this book was interesting.) I think the author choose this title because Jean, Holly's mom is forever on the lookout for a perfect man. Also because Holly makes the pretend idea of the perfect man to make her mom happy and then later he actually appears. The cover depicts Jean, Holly, and Holly's sister, Zoë laying in a circle with their hair entangled. It shows how they are alike but different. I like the cover, but a good idea for the cover would have been the picture of Ben that Holly took, and in the background, the ideas that Ben gave her, like roses, happy music, and orchids, and the things that Ben and Jean have in common, like the moon, crossword puzzles and cooking. That would have been a really cool cover. There is also a movie about this book.

The Fault In Our Stars

The Fault in Our Stars

by John Green

One of the best I have read

You would like this book if you like Stories about Friendships

Review: This book was one of the best that I have ever read. It is very sad, but amazing through the sadness. The relationship that Hazel and Gus share in this book is really deep and it is amazing that they have a bond like that. What was most interesting is how Gus worries whenever something happens to Hazel, even though he might not be in perfect condition himself, and she does the same for him, even thought she has lung cancer and is still sick. How they care about each other is amazing. In the book, near the end, Hazel and Gus travel to Amsterdam. I would really love to travel to Amsterdam, and the detailed descriptions of some of the places/ things (like the Anne Frank house) made me want to go the even more. I'm not really sure if I can relate to any of the characters too much, because both Hazel and Gus have cancer, and Isaac is blind. But I can relate to both Hazel and Gus because they care for each other and other people deeply even thought their sickness is in the way. I have noticed (through books and life) how people/ characters who were in the hospital for a long time or suffered from a disease have a different way of thinking. They think deeper than some people do. I think that even though I haven't really been through a life-changing event, I can see the world that way too ( some people are just born that way!). Like one of the quotes from the book "Some infinities are bigger then other infinities.", some people have the ability to reach deeper. I would recommend the book to anyone who is okay with books not having happy endings. This book is really good. I think my friend Chloe would also like it because it talks about the Anne Frank house and Amsterdam and me and her have talked about going to Europe. The title of this book is "The Fault In Our Stars" and at the part when Augustus dies, Hazel is thinking about the universe and how the stars did not go well for Hazel and Gus, and so the book is called that. Also, earlier, Gus says "You gave me forever within a number of limited days. And I'm grateful for that." You can tell that the book will not have a "happy ending". And that's when Hazel (and me) realize that " You don't get to choose if you get hurt in this world, but you do have some say in who hurts you." ( sad, right? But also true...) There are two covers for this book. One depicts Hazel and Gus laying face to face in the grass, which I like but it makes you think that the end will be happy, while it's not. The other just has the title and author's name in black letter's in white cloud-like shapes with a blue background and quotes from the book. I like both covers, but the second one, a little more.

A tough question I found in this book is when Hazel says "I'm a grenade and at some point I'm going to blow and I would like to minimize the casualties, okay?" to Gus, and she's trying to distance herself from him even though he loves her and she loves him.

The Face on the milk carton

The Face On the Milk Carton

Caroline B Cooney

          I don’t know what you’re thinking after you’ve read the title. Maybe you’ve read ahead and are already deciding whether to read this book or not. Well there are 4 books about Janie, so if you decide you know enough from this story, you can just read the 2^nd, 3^rd or 4^th books.

          This book and this series are focusing on an ordinary 15-year-old named Janie. She has flouncy, wild red hair. Janie has ordinary parents that might be just a little bit overprotective. She has no brothers or sisters. She has two best friend named Adele and Sarah-Charlotte. She also has a crush on the boy-next-door, Reeve Shields. As the book proceeds Janie will date Reeve.

          One ordinary day, Janie is sitting in the school cafeteria. Janie is lactose intolerant, which means she can’t have dairy products. But she sees a MISSING picture of a little 3-year-old girl with red hair and tight pigtails, in a pink and white polka dotted dress. She was stolen at a shopping center in New Jersey. Her name is Jennie Spring. Janie remembers that dress with the pink and white polka dots.

          Later she finds a box in the attic with the name Hannah on it. No one in her family is named Hannah. And in that box is the dress with the pink-and-white polka dots. So who’s Hannah and are her parents that she loved all her life (or maybe not), kidnappers?

          Her parents realize that she’s found something and tell her, Hannah was their daughter, but when she was 16, she left and joined a religious cult. She never came back to her parents, until one day she showed up hand-in-hand with a little girl in a polka-dot-dress. Hannah says that this is her daughter Janie. She says that she won’t be able to raise her well within the cult, so take her, enjoy her.

          But something still doesn’t add up. The milk carton says that she was STOLEN from New Jersey. So are her parents still lying? Janie has very mixed feelings.

Janie doesn’t share this with anybody but Reeve, her new boyfriend. So one day, in Reeve’s jeep, they decide to skip school. They go to New Jersey and find the Springs’ address. They see two tall redheaded boys walk in. Janie remembers baby twins. She doesn’t want to believe her own memories. How could her loving parents be kidnappers?

Later, they put the story together. Hannah was going home to take a break from the cult and stopped a New Jersey shopping center. She saw a 3-year-old girl in a pink-and-white-polka-dot-dress who seemed to be pouting. She gave her ice cream and then took her for a ride… That’s how she ended up taking Janie (A. K. A. Jennie Spring) to her parents, the Johnsons. She said that it was her own daughter, you can be better parents, enjoy her. Enjoy her, oh how they did! Raised her like their own girl, tried so hard not to make a mistake, like they feared they did with Hannah. And now – Janie is calling New Jersey.

          My library doesn’t have the second book, so I started reading the third one, and from it I understood, that Janie went to live with her real family in New Jersey, behaved like a brat, treating them like scum and then went back to the Johnson’s. Now THAT is bad. If your little girl has been missing for twelve years, you’ve been worrying about her for twelve years, and when she is found, when she finally comes back to you, she says that she likes her other family and her other life better. Now, how would you feel? I mean, I understand Janie’s position, but she could at least respect them. She could at least TRY to be a good daughter…

Іда Б.

«Іда Б.» Кетрін Ханніґан

Ida B. Katherine Hannigan

Я часом думаю, що, якби я була одна в класі, тобто вчилася вдома, я могла б набагато швидше закінчити школу. Героїня цієї книжки вчилася вдома…

…поки її мама не захворіла на рак. Тепер Іді Б. треба йти в звичайну школу. Вона через це дуже дратується, бо коли була менша і ходила до школи, вчителька відмовлялася кликати її Іда Б. і називала просто Іда. З того часу Іда Б. повертатися у школу не захотіла. Вона виконувала завдання до обіду, потім їла й бігла надвір – гратися зі струмочком (який був дуже балакучим) та всіма яблунями, що росли в їхньому саду. Так-так, не в струмку, а зі струмком. Бо ж він, так само як і дерева, вміє розмовляти.

Коли тато каже Іді, що їй треба повертатися до школи, її серце стає маленьким холодним камінчиком, неспроможним на любов. (Не переживайте, потім усе буде добре.)

Та коли Іда Б. іде до школи, всі до неї добрі. Правда, дехто ображається, бо вона гаркає і бурчить. Її друг Райлі пробує залучити її до своїх ігор на майданчику, хоче, щоб вона була його партнером на уроках і таке інше.

Крім того, міс Вашингтон, учителька Іди Б., зовсім не така, як та, що була у дівчинки у першому класі.

Завдяки турботі та увазі вчительки та друзів Іда Б. вирішує всі свої проблеми та знову стає хорошою люблячою дівчинкою.

Книжка мені сподобалася, бо я переживала за Іду, дивувалася, коли вона робила щось не дуже розумне (хоча зі мною теж таке часом трапляється) і раділа, коли в неї нарешті усе налагодилося.

Мені було дуже цікаво читати «Іду Б.» ще й тому, що я знала, що, якщо у мене виникнуть якісь питання, я можу спитати в авторки, бо ж Кетрін живе через дорогу від моєї школи. Так і сталося – міс Ханніґан прийшла до нас на урок. Але про це я розповім в іншому дописі, який викладу згодом. До зустрічі та приємного читання!

Cake Pop Crush

Cake Pop Crush

Suzanne Nelson

        Have you ever had to fight for something that mattered to you? Like maybe not throwing away an old piece of furniture, or keeping an old pet instead of putting it to sleep. Maybe it was something that mattered to the community. Or, if you were fighting for something or someone when a war was going on. If you have, then you’ll know what this is all about. If you haven’t, then I suggest that you read this sweet like a cake pop book.

Ali’s dad owns the little bakery (Say It With Flour) in town. She loves the little shop even though her dad is afraid to try anything new after Ali’s mom died, so he keeps it old-fashioned. When a sleek Perk Up opens right across the street, Ali’s dad worries that they might have to close up. Even without the Perk Up they didn’t have very many customers and now they only have their three loyal customers and that’s it. So Ali talks her dad into letting her sell her cake pops at the shop. Then she advertised (with the help of her friend Gwen). A bunch of new customers come to the shop. Her dad thanks her. They sell good until Perk Up starts selling cake pops too. But then Ali holds a jewelry show, to help her friend Gwen. She sells good there, but Sarah, a girl from school, puts black food coloring in them. The show is ruined! And even worse - Ali’s dad says that she can’t sell cake pops anymore. Ali thinks the person, who put the food coloring in the cake pops is Dane, the boy who’s dad owns Perk Up, Inc. (They are part-time friends, one day they are happily talking, the next day Ali is accusing Dane of something.) But really Dane is innocent, like I said before, it was Sarah who put the food coloring in the pops. Later, Ali will believe Dane, but now she’s just plain mad.

Ali is in a bake-off with Dane. They are fighting for the right to cater Sarah’s birthday party. I probably forgot to mention that besides being the most stuck-up girl in their school, she’s also the richest. Her dad is the mayor of their city. They both bake awesome cake pops. Most of the judges voted for Ali, but Sarah lied and said Dane was the winner because she likes him. Later, when Dane tells Ali, she gets to cater Sarah’s party, Sarah has to help out at Say It With Flour because of the “misunderstanding” and Ali gets to be interviewed at Renata DeLuca, her favorite cook’s show. Mayor Chan, Sarah’s dad asked Ali and her dad to make a thousand cake pops for the new mall opening in town, and Ali’s dad says that with that money and the money from catering Sarah’s party the bakery doesn’t have to close. Happy ending!!

Gwen and Harris are dating, Ali made up with Tansy, her other friend who she had a fight with earlier. And the book ends with Ali and Dane kissing. They finally became real friends (and even more than that!) Definitely happy ending!

An Enola Holmes Mystery

The case of the Missing Marques: an Enola Holmes Mystery

Nancy Springer

         Do any of you readers like Sherlock Holmes mysteries? Well, have you people heard that he has an older brother (just a tiny bit older) and a sister who is ten years younger than him? Well, by the way he does. His sister’s name is Enola, which, spelled backwards is alone. Do any of your names spelled backwards mean anything? I f yes then tell me what. If no, don’t worry. I’m Airam J.

        Enola’s mom leaves Ferdinand estate, where she lives with Enola, and their three servants. (Don’t worry about the servants, they are treated practically like family.) When Enola’s brothers find out, they come to the estate. Mycroft is confused because Enola’s mom wanted payment for butlers, maids, stable boys and seamstresses. When he finds none of the above at the estate he is very mad. Sherlock says that she wanted money for her escape. Enola can’t believe that her mother left. Then Sherlock leaves to go back to London and Mycroft wants to put Enola in a boarding school for young ladies. But Enola doesn’t want to wear a corset, bust enhancer and other things that I won’t mention here (you’re welcome gentlemen). She decides to escape. Her baggage—she hides in her ladies undergarments. When the carriage taking her to the boarding school stops at the graveyard, so she can supposedly say good-bye to her father, she takes her bike and escapes. She knows her brother, the legendary Sherlock Holmes, will be able to find her pretty easily, so she goes where her brothers will least expect her to go, to London, right under their noses. She meets up with another runaway – a boy who got really sick of his mom’s baby treatment. Together they escape from Squeaky and Cutter, two cutthroats. They pay a lady to hide them. Then Enola’s new friend (without even knowing it) distracts her brother. Enola escapes once again. Later she once again changes her image. She learns that her mother is with the gypsies. She plans to go find her in the Spring.

         This book is really good. I especially think that girls should read it. In fact, this next paragraph that I’m going to write is JUST for girls, so if you’re male, just skip it.

        Hey, ladies! I really think you should read this book. I mean, how many of you ever read a book, like a Sherlock Holmes mystery and think “Hey, what the heck, where are all the female characters?” I think that all the time. This book is really good and its about a girl!

        Okay, hi everybody. And now… drumroll please… bye everybody!

Черепаха в раю

Черепаха в раю

Дженніфер Л. Холм

 

Turtle in Paradise

Jennifer L. Holm

Якщо ви думаєте, що я писатиму про черепаху, яка якимось чином потрапила в рай, то ви помиляєтеся. Якщо ви хотіли блог про черепаху – то, вибачте, втрапили не туди. Черепаха (англ. Turtle) – ім’я дівчинки, яка живе з мамою і не знає свого тата.

«Черепаха в раю» Дженніфер Л. Холм – дуже гарна книжка. До того ж, тоненька, так що дуже раджу її тим, хто не любить товсті книжки.

Коли мама Черепахи іде на нову роботу, дівчинці доводиться переїжджати. Мама працює прибиральницею, а нова господиня не любить дітей. Тож мама відсилає Черепаху до тітки в Кі Вест, на Флориду.

Коли Черепаха приїжджає туди, то жахається: ґрунтові дороги, маленькі хатки… Дівчинка не уявляє, як вона тут буде жити. До того ж виявляється, що тітка її не чекала, бо мамин лист прийшов не на ту адресу.

У тітки – троє синів. Найстарший, Бінс, – віку Черепахи. Він – член Памперсового клубу. Цей клуб займається малюками селища і отримує за це цукерки. Керміт трохи молодший і завжди ходить хвостиком за старшим братом. Найменший, Баді, ще досить маленький, і часто пісяє в штани.

Спочатку Черепаха сумна, бо скучає за мамою і намагається призвичаїтися до нового міста. Та згодом вона знаходить спільну мову з братами, а тітка, хоч і бурчить, але видно, що любить Черепаху. Тож дівчинці вже не здається, що містечко, де живе тітчина сім’я, аж таке погане. Особливо після того, як вона й її брати знайшли скарб і поділили його. А ще є Слоу Пок (Slow Poke). Черепасі потрібні були гроші, і він запропонував їй, щоб вона допомагала йому збирати на березі губки. Слоу Пок дуже добрий, тому Черепаха з ним подружилася.

Я вам ще не розповіла, що мама Черепахи зустрічається з Арчі. Мама вже зустрічалася з іншими чоловіками, і все закінчувалося однаково: вони її покидали. Та Черепаха з мамою вважають, що Арчі інакший. Він називає дівчинку «принцесою»… На жаль, вони помиляються. Він ще гірший…

Та все ж це книжка з хепі-ендом: у кінці Черепаха дізнається, хто її тато. Ім’я лишу в секреті, скажу лиш, що це справді хороша людина.

«Черепаха у раю» мені дуже сподобалася, бо Черепаха долає усі труднощі і старається з усіма дружити. Книжка торкнулася мого серця, особливо кінець.

Ще хочу сказати таке: рай для кожного свій. Для когось це канікули на березі моря, для когось – поїздка в ресторан, а ще для когось – просто бути вдома, разом із сім’єю. Та у всіх наших «раїв» є спільна риса: де б ми не були, ми хочемо в наш рай. Подумайте, де ваш рай. Па-па!

 Мої відгуки можна також читати у блозі про дитячу літературу «Казкарка», у рубриці «Книжки».