Books On Beechwood

is a most satisfactory mystery set in Glasgow and the Isle of Lewis by Alex Gray, a welcome new member of the Tartan noir pack which includes Ian Rankin and Val McDermid. It is a taut, gripping whodonit with great character development.

 

by Ann Brashares This book comes from a good series so obviously it’s good. It’s about Carmen, Lens, Bridget and Tibby. Three summers ago, the sisterhood was going to dive into their first summer apart. Now they are entering their third. Lena is trying to find out who she is. She has a job & is going to art school. Her nasty old grandmother (the one who tried to get her & Kostos together the first summer) has been living with Lena since Babi, her grandgather died. Carmen want a job so she volunteers her time to look after Lena’s grandmother. She immediately regrets this decision because while at tan ice cream shop, she meets a guy she wants to date. Bridget is off to soccer camp again. You’ll never guess who she sees there & once more Bridget is crazy in love. Finally Tibby. She’s figuring out what the pants have trying to tell her all this time. And trying to figure Brian out as well. Girls In Pants, part 3, fits in great with the other 2 in the series. I hope there will be more. Ages 12 and up.

Reviewed by Gabby Belyea, age 11

John Irving‘s new book is an entirely engrossing, very funny coming of age story with all the quirks we have come to expect from him. Having read all the recent reviews and learning how close to the bone the story is makes one realize what a deft touch he has.

 

by Stephen Clarke is a true summer read; it is light and funny and can be excused for slipping into silliness from time to time. An Englishman opening a business in France is frustrated and amused by the reception he gets from his Parisian colleagues but ultimately he becomes comfortable in the country and finds he is at home there and can handle the problems he has to deal with. It is laugh-aloud and a commentary on the French that is amusing if sometimes exaggerated in its criticism.

by Catherine Jinks is the first of a four volume adventure series about Pagan, a young man living during the time of the Crusades. It takes place in Jerusalem and is exciting, fast-moving and historically interesting. Books 1 and 2 are now available in paperback.

 

by Cornelia Funke, author of the well-received “Thief Lord”, is now available in paperback. Meggie’s father is a bookbinder, but he has a secret he’s been hiding from her for many years. Her adventures are told in a fresh, honest voice at a pace that will leave readers breathless and wanting more. Look for its sequel, “Inkspell”, coming out October 2005.

by J.K. Rowling is the second-to-last book in the seven-part series about the Boy Who Lived. Harry’s sixth year is both his darkest and funniest thus far. Characters that have been part of a brilliant background tapestry spring to life and are given incredible new dimension. Harry and his friends will try to get one step closer to defeating He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, but at what great and terrible cost?

by Joanna Goodman is the humourous story of Lilly and Milton Zarr and their three very modern daughters. The reader can easily identify with the three girls, Estelle, Erica and Jessie, as each deals with the ups and downs of life in general. The message in the end is one of hope-hope for love, future career opportunities and renewed relationships. This is a very pleasant read by a young author who is very wise in the way of the modern world.

by Andrea Levy. This novel, set in London in 1948, tells the story of Queenie Bligh, her husband, Bernard, and her Jamaican lodgers, Gilbert Joseph and his wife Hortense. The four narrators reveal their hopes and dreams for a new life. They soon find, however, that the country is changing very slowly. Prejudice, the strength of the empire, love and war are themes which Levy explores as the characters soon come to terms with post-war England.

by Colm Tobin. This novel reveals the hopes and despair of novelist, Henry James, during five significant years of his life. The loneliness of the writer, his inability to resolve his sexual identity and his search for love are identified and explored. At the conclusion of the novel, the reader has gained a deeper respect and appreciation for this writer and for the times in which he lived.