Rate Your (book) Date!

During February we ran a fun event called Blind Date with a Book and many students took a leap of faith and grabbed a book without knowing what it was about at all! Part of the program was that if you went on a date and wrote a mini-review you got to pick a book off the free book shelves. I was pleased to get several reviews back! Here are a few snippets:

The Fairy Ring
By: Mary Losure

Frances was nine when she first saw the fairies. They were tiny men, dressed all in green. Nobody but Frances saw them, so her cousin Elsie painted paper fairies and took photographs of them "dancing" around Frances to make the grown-ups stop teasing. The girls promised each other they would never, ever tell that the photos weren’t real. But how were Frances and Elsie supposed to know that their photographs would fall into the hands of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle? And who would have dreamed that the man who created the famous detective Sherlock Holmes believed ardently in fairies — and wanted very much to see one? Mary Losure presents this enthralling true story as a fanciful narrative featuring the original Cottingley fairy photos and previously unpublished drawings and images from the family’s archives. A delight for everyone with a fondness for fairies, and for anyone who has ever started something that spun out of control.

Rate you date!  "Sad, beautiful yet complex. At first I thought it was just another fairy story, but when I read it I was inspired by the two girls."

Dear Blue Sky
By: Mary Sullivan

A timely, eye-opening novel showing how war affects families on both sides

Ever since her brother Sef left for Iraq, Cassie has felt like her life is falling apart. Her parents are fighting over her brother having gone to war. Her smart, beautiful sister is messing up. Her little brother, who has Down syndrome, is pretending he's a Marine. And her best friend no longer has time for her. In her loneliness Cassie turns to a surprising source of comfort: Blue Sky, an Iraqi girl she meets through her blog. The girls begin a correspondence and Cassie learns that when Blue Sky says "I want my life back," she means something profound, as she can no longer venture out in her destroyed city. Cassie takes strength from Blue Sky's courage and is inspired to stop running away from the pain, and to reclaim her life. (from goodreads.com)

Rate your Date!  "The story is about a modern day war in Iraq. The girl's family is falling apart but she finds out about Blue Sky. It is a good story."