very good
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Best of 2014, Part 3: Humour
While much of my 2014 reading from the humour genre came from rereads of my favourite comic strip collections, there were a few new standouts for me: Tails Don’t Lie: A Decade of Dog Cartoons (70 in Dog Years) by Adrian Raeside I’ve long enjoyed Canadian cartoonist Raeside’s The Other Coast comic strip, along with Read more
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Best of 2014, Part 2: Children’s Fiction and Young Adult
My picks for top 5 children’s and top 5 YA fiction I read this year: Murder Most Unladylike (Wells and Wong #1) by Robin Stevens The Return of Zita the Spacegirl (Zita the Spacegirl #3) by Ben Hatke Now Look What You’ve Done (Timmy Failure #2) by Stephen Read more
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Review: I’ve Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella
Review: I’ve Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella Source: ebook, published February 14, 2012 by Dial Press Verdict: Very Good Book Description: Poppy Wyatt has never felt luckier. She is about to marry her ideal man, Magnus Tavish, but in one afternoon her “happily ever after” begins to fall apart. Not only has she lost Read more
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Picture Book Picks: Wintry Reads
There’s just something so welcoming about winter-themed picture books! Stories about polar bears, penguins and other winter creatures; stories about the changes of the season; stories about playing in the snow, going sledding, snuggling up by a roaring fire… Here, in no particular order, are some of my favourite wintry reads: Singing Away the Dark Read more
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Spotlight: The Timmy Failure series by Stephan Pastis
As a big fan of Stephan Pastis’ acerbic yet contemplative Pearls Before Swine comic strip, I couldn’t wait to read Pastis’ middle-grade Timmy Failure series. I was in for a treat. Our protagonist, Timmy Failure, comes from a long line of Fayleures (his ancestors changed the spelling of their name). He lives with his mother Read more
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Review: Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King
Review: Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King Source: Hardcover, Published October 12th 2010 by Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers Verdict: Very Good/Excellent Book Description: Vera’s spent her whole life secretly in love with her best friend, Charlie Kahn. And over the years she’s kept a lot of his secrets. Even after Read more
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Review: The Girl in the Park by Mariah Fredericks
Review: The Girl in the Park by Mariah Fredericks Source: ebook, Published April 24th 2012 by Schwartz & Wade Verdict: Very Good Book Description: When Wendy Geller’s body is found in Central Park after the night of a rager, newspaper headlines scream,”Death in the Park: Party Girl Found Strangled.” But shy Rain, once Wendy’s Read more
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Review: Burning Blue by Paul Griffin
Review: Burning Blue by Paul Griffin Source: Hardcover, Published October 25th 2012 by Dial Verdict: Very Good Book Description: How far would you go for love, beauty, and jealousy? When Nicole Castro, the most beautiful girl in her wealthy New Jersey high school, is splashed with acid on the left side of her perfect face, Read more
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Review: Hex Hall (Hex Hall #1) by Rachel Hawkins
Review: Hex Hall (Hex Hall #1) by Rachel Hawkins Source: Hardcover, Published March 2 2010 by Hyperion Books Verdict: Very Good/Excellent Book Description: Three years ago, Sophie Mercer discovered that she was a witch. It’s gotten her into a few scrapes. Her non-gifted mother has been as supportive as possible, consulting Sophie’s estranged father—an elusive Read more