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August 9, 2015February 7, 2018 One Man Book Club

Alcatraz versus the Shattered Lens

5/5 stars

Alcatraz versus the Shattered Lens by Brandon Sanderson

Brilliant. I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to get to Alcatraz. A worthy review will be forthcoming.

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Dan Grover is the book-loving dad of six reluctant readers and the founder of One Man Book Club, a place for fellow parents and other content-conscious readers to find books they (and their kids!) will love.

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#TheRuleofThree (The Rule of Three, Book 1) #TheFightforPower (The Rule of Three, Book 2) #WilltoSurvive (The Rule of Three, Book 3) By: #EricWalters My Rating: Four out of Five stars Imagine: Everything with a circuit board breaks. Thanos-snap instant. No warning. Lights. Phones. Cars. Computers. Gas pumps. Semi Trucks. Airplanes--in mid-air. Kids are stuck at school. Parents can't get home from work. Fire departments can't respond. Police cars don't run. Garbage can't get picked up. Hospitals can't save lives. No electricity. No water. No money. No refrigerator. No microwave. Everything. How fast would the grocery stores run out of food? How would you get drinking water? How would you keep your kids warm? How would you protect your family? There are a lot of books about the de-evolution of society if it were to all shut down. The Rule of Three is the only one I've read that's accessible to young people. Any story on the subject is terrifying. Why? Because it could happen. The Rule of Three does a great job putting us in the middle of it. It’s the story of 16-year-old Adam and how he, his family, and his community respond to this scenario. Through team work and group cooperation, they accomplish great things—including defending themselves against those who want to do harm. Themes of ethics, friendship, problem solving, being prepared, family love, making hard decisions, society, and human rights are thoughtfully considered. It’s age appropriate middle grade. Unlike most books on this topic, there is no language and no sex. There are violent situations, but no gore. Plenty of drama. It’s a great way for you and your young readers to ask, “What if?” and “How prepared am I?” There is a right-wing slant on issues around the role of government and gun control, just in case that consideration is important for you. Happy reading! #onemanbookclub #bookstagram #readersofinstagram

#Skyward By: THE #BrandonSanderson My Rating: FIVE out of FIVE stars What happens when the king of Fantasy writes Science Fiction? You get magical science fiction... ...and it's awesome! Three generations ago, humans crash landed on a deserted planet. Giant underground living spaces, tech manufacturing facilities, and layers of orbiting space debris that block the stars are all that's left of an earlier civilization. It's enough to survive...and even enough to build a fleet of space fighters to defend themselves against the aliens who want to destroy them. Skyward is packed with awesome. White-knuckled, star-fighter versus alien dogfights. A patented Sanderson magic system disguised as science-fiction-future-space-tech. A mysterious star-fighter with advanced AI...think what would happen if Eragon had bonded with a spaceship instead of a dragon. Prejudice to overcome. Questions to answer. Redemption to find. Friends to make. Lessons to learn. Hubris to outgrow. The characters. The story. The funny. The sad. The strong, female lead. The ingredients are all there, and Skyward delivers. I loved this book! Skyward is the first in a three or four book series. Book two, Starsight, is scheduled for Fall 2019. While Skyward certainly teases a larger story arc, there are no cliff-hangers here to prevent you from jumping on the bandwagon early. Skyfall should be on the Christmas list of every reader, young an old. 12 and up should be able to enjoy Skyward. There are character deaths, bullying, and fighting. No language, no gory violence, no sex. Happy Reading! #onemanbookclub #bookstagram #readersofinstagram

Letters from a Christmas Elf: Unexpected humor for any season By: Kurt and Kirsten Johnston My Rating: Four out of Five Stars I'm so glad to know my family is normal, at least according to the Johnston standard. Which doesn't say much... ...um... Never mind. Kurt and Kirsten Johnston have written some great Christmas Letters over the years, even before their first (of eight!) kids joined the party. Letters from a Christmas Elf: Unexpected Humor for any Season, is a compilation of all those letters--complete with the goofy silliness of what happens when you're raising teens to tots at the same time and in the same house! Told from the perspective of the (un)lucky elf assigned by Santa to keep tabs on the Johnston family through the year, we get an insiders peek into the life of a family that takes not taking yourself too seriously to a whole new (and enviable) level. While reading their true-story escapades made me smile, discovering my own family isn't as crazy as I thought was the true win for me. This book would make a great gift for anyone who needs a reminder that kids are obnoxious, parents are winging it, no family is perfect, and that's the way it's supposed to be. Happy Reading! #onemanbookclub #bookstagram #readersofinstagram

#BridgeofClay By: #MarkusZusak My Rating: FIVE out of FIVE stars I loved Bridge of Clay, but I encourage you to judge carefully. This book is going to polarizing, and there’s a strong chance you’re going to hate it. Read on. Bridge of Clay is heavy. Can you bear it? Here’s what you need to know. This story is about 5 brothers, their mom who died, and their dad who left them. It’s about mothers and sons and brothers and fathers. If you are or have any of those, you’ll feel the weight. It’s about grief, cancer (yep, a cancer book. Dang it.), anger, forgiveness, and love…mostly love. If you’ve experienced any of those, you’ll feel the weight. If you love your mom. If you love your wife. If you love your dad. If you love your husband. If you love your kids. If you love your siblings. If you love your parents. If you love your pets. If you love art. If you love books. If you love. If you’ve experienced loss. If you’re not perfect. If you’ve had a hard time forgiving. If you’ve been forgiven. You’ll feel the weight. You might even cry. Or at least you’ll want to. Because it’s heavy. Markus Zusak is a tremendous writer…I’ve never read anything like him. He’s less an author and more a word painter. His words and phrasing–beautiful…incredible…amazing. It seemed with every page turn I found another example where I had to shake my head, close my eyes, and let the awe wash over. Warning!!! There’s a good chance you’re going to hate this book! I predict many disappointed fans of The Book Thief. The words and phrasing…I called it beautiful, you might call it whimsical and ambiguous. I called the word-painting fascinating, you might call it grating. Don’t be misled: there’s nothing straightforward in Bridge of Clay. It’s allusion, it’s allegory, it’s foreshadowing, it’s talking about things on page one you won’t understand until page 500. I suggest you download a sample and test it out before you jump in, because this one is not for everyone. But if you’re up for it, if you think you can handle it, if you’re patient enough…pick it up and take on the weight. When the burden is lifted, the light is marvelous. Cont'd in comments #onemanbookclub #bookstagram

So, last night I'm falling asleep and hear my phone chime with this text from my 12 year old, who should have been asleep two hours ago... THIS is why I do what I do. I've said it before and I'll say it again: God bless Jo and Harry!

#ThePlayofDeath (#TheHangmansDaughter, #6) By: #OliverPotzsch My Rating: Four out of Five Stars It's hard to say exactly why I keep coming back for more of The Hangman's Daughter. Is it the gruesome mysteries that must be solved? Is it the detailed historical fiction set in the uneducated, unhygienic, highly superstitious time period we call the dark ages? Instead of romanticized kings and queens living in comfortable castles, is it the true depictions of life in this time period that fascinates? The body odor, the rats, the torture, the "medical" practices, the missing teeth, the open sewers, the executions... Yep. All of those. Even the awkward translation from German is kind of endearing--after 6 books I think they're doing it on purpose. The Play of Death is fun and gruesome, a murder mystery disguised as historical fiction of a time period not typically depicted quite this honestly. As in each book, the mystery is solved by Hangman Jacob Kuisel and his family. Each book stands alone, so you don't need to worry about reading them in order. Watch out for a bit of language, gruesome murders, scenes of mid-evil torture and executions, and cringe worthy hygiene and medical practices. There is a non-graphic rape scene in this book. 16 and up will enjoy The Hangman's Daughter stories. Happy Reading! #onemanbookclub #bookstagram #readersofinstagram

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