Science Fiction

Two weeks ago Hayley, Joseph, and Abby discussed two inaugural titles from Blink, Zondervan’s new YA title. Today they’re back with two more. Both these ...

Janie and Betsy team up once again to bring you reviews of three recent scientific fiction works! Janie does the first and Betsy the second ...

The Reluctant Assassin (W.A.R.P., #1), by Eoin Colfer.  Hyperion, 2013, 352 pages.   Reading Level: Middle grades, ages 10-12 Appropriate for: ages 15-up Bottom Line: ...

***THE GIVEAWAY PART OF THIS POST IS OVER. *** ENDER’S GAME POSTS: Introduction, Week 1: Sci-fi and Orson Scott Card, Week 2: Ender vs Peter, ...

This fall, Zondervan Publishers is introducing a new imprint called “Blink.”  According to Zondervan marketing v-p Chrisynethia Floyd, “They are for anyone, regardless of faith ...

THE BOOK REVIEW When Edgar Met Cecil.  Peachtree Publishers, 2013.  32 pgs.  Ages 4-8. Kevin Luthardt is an author-illustrator who has had a pretty big ...

As Emily informed us yesterday, September is science and science-fiction month, featuring our read-along of Orson Scott Card's classic novel, Ender's Game.  To celebrate, we're ...

As the cinematic version of City of Bones hits theaters this week,

Got a novel idea? It’s easier than ever to get published, but if the imprint on the spine of your masterwork is Xlibris or iUniverse, ...

Son, by Lois Lowry.  Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2012, 393 pages. Age/interest level: 12-up. Lois Lowry’s The Giver, published in 1993, has become an iconic title ...

Origin, by Jessica Khoury.  Penguin, 2012, 393 pages. Reading Level: Young Adult, ages 12-15 Recommended for: ages 16-up (please note: the recommended age is not ...

Today's reviewer, Jack Mertens, is a 17 year old high school student living in Louisiana where he is, among other things, an avid reader and ...

The Adoration of Jenna Fox, by Mary E. Pearson.  Holt, 2008, 265 pages. Reading Level: Young Adults, 15-18 Recommended for: ages 15-18 and up Bottom ...

Since Susanne Collins’ Hunger Games trilogy (reviewed here) has sparked so much discussion in school cafeterias and dorm rooms (not to mention break rooms and ...

Suzanne Collins: The Hunger Games, Scholastic, 2008, 374 pages.  Catching Fire, Scholastic, 2009, 391 pages.  Mockingjay, 2010, 387 pages.  Age/interest level: 14-up. READER ADVISORY: This ...

The Apothecary, by Maile Meloy.  Putnam/Penguin, 2011, 353 pages. Reading Level: Young Adults, ages 12-15 Maturity Level: 5 (ages 12-14) Bottom Line: The Apothecary is ...

Last Wednesday, I sat down with a friend at the Regal Cinema nearby to watch "the feel bad movie of Christmas." For the uninitiated, that's ...

Previous posts: Introduction, Part One: Setup, Part Two: Development. Climax?  Isn’t it a little early for that?  Most of us have the idea that the ...

Previous Posts: Introduction Part One: Setup Almost all the main characters have been introduced and the potential conflicts are in place.  Now development: that phase ...

Beginning our first-ever Readalong: here's the Introduction. The action takes place at three fictional locations: Edgetow, a university town similar to Cambridge, but smaller; St. ...

In the summer of 1945, George Orwell wrote a review for the Manchester Evening News, beginning, "On the whole, novels are better when there are ...

Divergent, by Veronica Roth. Katherine Tegan Books (HarperCollins), 2011, 487 pages. Reading Level: Young Adult, ages 12-15 Recommended for: Ages 15-18 and up Bottom Line: ...

Airborn, by Kenneth Oppel.  HarperCollins, 2004, 355 pp.  Skybreaker (2007); Starclimber (2009). Reading Level: Middle grade, ages 10-12 Recommended for: Ages 10-12 and up One-line ...

Leviathan, by Scott Westerfield, illustrations by Keith Thompson.  Simon Pulse, 2009, 434 pages plus historical note. Reading Level: Young Adult, ages 12-15 Recommended for: Ages ...

Example of Clanker technology from the 1914-ish world of "Leviathan." According to Wikipedia, the term was probably coined by science-fiction writer K. W. Jeter as ...