Tag Archive | love

J is Just Myrto, by Laurie Gray (book review) – first Socrates’ wife, then his student

Apr12

book cover of Just Myrto by Laurie Gray published by Luminis Books | BooksYALove.comOrphaned with no dowry,
Given away as a second wife,
Learning to love and to learn.

This intriguing piece of historical fiction brings to life Myrto, the second wife of noted philosopher Socrates in ancient Greece, who learns much from her husband, yet despairs of ever being recognized for being herself, instead of always in relation to men.

How do you introduce yourself to the world?
**kmm

Book info: Just Myrto / Laurie Gray. Luminis Books, 2014. [author site]  [publisher site]   Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

My book talk: With no dowry, Myrto is relieved to become a second wife instead of a slave in Athens, little dreaming that her philosopher-husband would open her mind and soothe her soul.

As he teaches her, Socrates teaches invites the young woman to think and reason, just as he does with his male students, but no woman is her own person in ancient Greece.

During this turbulent time in Athens, men in power are threatened by Socrates’ teachings and challenges to ‘the way it’s always been’ so the great man is soon torn away from his young bride.

Can she persuade Socrates to escape, to leave Athens for safety?
How can she discover what she should do to better the world?
Will she ever be “just Myrto” instead of someone’s daughter or sister or wife?

Walk the dusty streets of Athens with thinkers, wonderers, and worriers in this novel of questions and interesting answers. (One of 6,000 books recommended on www.abookandahug.com)

H is haiku – All the Words Are Yours, by Tyler Knott Gregson (book review)

Apr9

book cover of All the Words Are Yours: Haiku on Love by Tyler Knott Gregson published by Tarcher Perigee |BooksYALove.comThree lines,
a handful of syllables each,
boundless emotion.

In this heartlifting hardback, poet and photographer Gregson pairs his profoundly simple haiku with evocative photo backgrounds, collecting the best from his tumblr in a celebration of love and togetherness.

“There’s time we can waste
and there’s time we can treasure.
Please have both with me.”

–  perfect for National Poetry Month.
**kmm

Book info: All the Words Are Yours: Haiku On Love / Tyler Knott Gregson. Tarcher Perigee, 2015.  [author site]  [publisher site]  [author video interview] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

My book talk: A Montana poet and photographer celebrates the many sides of love in this collected volume of haiku paired with photos, originally posted daily on his tumblr.

“Love me as I am,
see me for who I will be,
forgive who I was.”

Hand-written on sticky notes or set down on paper with an old-fashioned typewriter, each haiku says love, every day.

“It’s okay you know,
to be carried now and then,
Strength too needs a rest.”

G is for Galgorithm, by Aaron Karo (book review) – perfect formula for romance?

Apr8

book cover of Galgorithm by Aaron Karo published by Simon Pulse | BooksYALove.com“Be different.
Notice her. Tell her.”
The magic formula for romance (mostly).

Shane has it all figured out on paper, helping guys (even one of his teachers) connect with the girls they adore from afar. Being a victim of an epic breakup makes him empathetic, informed, and way leery of getting involved again himself, until….

This May 2015 title will be out in paperback as Me You Us  in June 2016, but why wait to find out if Shane can really math-out personal attraction? (and why on earth did they change the title??)

Can attraction + the right words actually = love?
**kmm

Book info: Galgorithm / Aaron Karo.  Simon Pulse, 2015. [author site]  [publisher site]  [book trailer] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

My book talk: Shane quietly coaches guys with dating advice, but during his senior year the California teen discovers that his own true love is his best friend and that she doesn’t realize it.

His never-fail “galgorithm” for getting a girl’s attention has helped many a nerdy high school guy become confident enough to ask out the girl of his dreams, but Shane isn’t ready to use his own advice after a terrible breakup during sophomore year.

Hanging out with his best-friend-since-forever Jak, missing her already before they’ve even left for college, Shane finds himself on a double date with a client and his sweetie – then things get crazy.

Is Tristen really trying to keep Shane from spending time with Jak?
Can a teacher use the Galgorithm too?
What happens when the infallible system fails?

Spring semester of senior year is a roller coaster ride for Shane, Jak, and several interested parties in this particular dating game. (One of 6,000 books recommended on www.abookandahug.com)

E for Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon (book review) – allergic to everything but love

Apr6

book cover of Everything Everything by Nicola Yoon published by Delacorte | BooksYALove.comCan’t ever leave her house,
Any particle could kill her,
but love can stop your heart, too…

Such a rare medical condition, yet Maddy has survived her severe autoimmune diseases to reach age 18, just as new neighbors move in next door to her airlock-sealed house, and she can see Olly there.

Surprising turns (this book reached bestseller status before I got to write about it – oops), longing for change, and a chance to love.

If you suddenly became allergic to something wonderful, how would you cope?
**kmm

Book info: Everything, Everything / Nicola Yoon. Delacorte Press, 2015.  [author site]  [publisher site]  [author video interview] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

My book talk: Medically fragile Maddy is no longer content to stay airlocked into safety when Olly moves next door, and the teens strike up an enticing online friendship.

Her severe autoimmune disorders were diagnosed in childhood shortly after Dad and her brother were killed, so Maddy has lived in a sealed house for years, tutored online, cared for by her doctor mother and longtime nurse.

At 18, she knows she will never go away to college or learn to drive, but is content with the arrangements that allow her to stay relatively healthy… until Olly and his family move next door.

What would it be like to touch someone besides Mom and Carla?
How can Olly share the world with her without killing her?
What if the truth is only partly true?

A friendship story, a love story, with health report charts and emails and doodles – about everything Maddy thinks she knows and wants to know. (One of 6,000 books recommended on www.abookandahug.com)

B for Both of Me, by Friesen (book review) – they meet, yet only 1/2 of him remembers her

Apr2

book cover of Both of Me by Jonathan Friesen published by Blink |booksYALove.comCounting stars,
traveling light and often,
avoiding entanglements, until…

Scam artist teen always on the move meets an artistic young man with two personalities and a near-psychic knowledge of what she’s running from – how can Clara resist trying to tap into what Elias “sees”?

But Clara never planned on falling for Elias or struggling to understand his dissociative identity disorder or making a road trip toward answers that could imperil them both.

Completely different worlds from the dystopia that Friesen brought us previously in Aquifer  (my notes here), the Salem that calm Elias wanders through in his mind, the minutely ordered existence that angry Elias tries to catalog, and the everyday world that Clara longs to leave behind.

Is there ever just one personality inside you?
**kmm

Book info: Both of Me / Jonathan Friesen. Blink, 2014.  [author site]  [publisher site]  [book trailer] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

My book talk: Dual-personality Elias somehow knows more about her past than Clara wishes to recall, but their journey to verify the answers stretches both young people’s affection and endurance – and Elias’ hold on reality.

(One of 6,000 books recommended on www.abookandahug.com)

A for Along the Way, by Jacqueline Kolosov (book review) – 3 friends on a pilgrimage

Apr1

book cover of Along the Way by Jacqueline Kolosov published by Luminis | BooksYALove.comShould have broken in those boots before walking 500 miles…
Should have trusted her instincts about that young man…
Should have been ready for miracles on the pilgrimage…

Three far-flung friends walk the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage from the French Pyrenees to the Spanish coast, each for her own reasons, encountering heartache, love, physical woes, and personal victories in their month together during the summer after graduation.

Ask for this travelogue in three voices at your local library or independent bookstore – they may have to invoke interlibrary loan or special order, but it’s worth the wait!

Can you ever be fully prepared for a journey that’s guaranteed to change your life?
**kmm

p.s. Happy first day of the Blogging from AtoZ Challenge! I’ll recommend 26 books in 26 days of April, A to Z.

Book info: Along the Way: Three Friends, 33 Days, and One Unforgettable Journey on the Camino de Santiago / Jacqueline Kolosov. Luminis Books, 2015.  [author blog]  [publisher site]  Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

My book talk: Walking the Camino de Santiago brings three young women closer together as the childhood friends meet other pilgrims from around the world, push their own physical and emotional limits, and find what they didn’t even know they were seeking.

Dani, Piper, and Tessa met as kids in Chicago, but live far apart now, so this 500 mile pilgrimage from France through Spain is their chance to reconnect before college and journey beyond their own comfort zones.

How can they balance family expectations with their own dreams?
Are the girls walking away from problems or toward understanding?
Cute guys in France and Spain – distractions or companions?

Three voices, three hearts, one long path taken step by step. (One of 6,000 books recommended on www.abookandahug.com)

How to Be Brave, by E. Katherine Kottaras (book review) – live large is mom’s last request

Nov21

book cover of How to Be Brave by E Katherine Kottaras published by St Martin Griffin Teen | recommended on BooksYALove.comA challenge from her late mom,
a best friend willing to do anything,
a chance for an epic senior year… and maybe love.

Meet Georgia (and snarky best pal Liss) in this excerpt, courtesy of the publisher – check out her Do Everything Be Brave List, then get the whole story of how she tackles the list, copes with heartbreak, and struggles with body image.

This isn’t one of those “my mom died and I will mope through life until someone else makes it worthwhile” stories. Georgia creates her own ups (and downs), although Liss and Evelyn are with her for many things.

I loved the way that Georgia would reframe negatives into possibilities (although not always with ease) and the winding routes that her thoughts took as time passed, too.

Don’t miss the interactive book trailer so you can help Georgia ‘be brave’ – http://howtobebravebook.com/

What’s on your Do Awesome Stuff list?
**kmm

Book info: How to Be Brave / E. Katherine Kottaras.  St. Martins Press/ Griffin Teen, 2015. [author site]  [publisher site]  [interactive book trailer] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

My book talk: Inspired by her late mother’s letter, Georgia makes a list of daring things to do during her senior year, little realizing how much she and her friendships and her dreams will change along the way.

Her Greek-American father tries to keep their Chicago restaurant going despite his grief, and Georgia tries to break out of her shell by following Mom’s advice to “go do anything you like – in fact, do everything” with an I Want to Live Life list – including jump out of a plane, cut class (no, she never has), learn how to draw like Mom, ask him out…

So she and best friend Liss and new pal Evelyn start in the middle of the list and work their way around to tribal dancing (and maybe Georgia will ask Daniel out, some time).

But one ill-timed party fractures their friendship, and senior year’s zip turns to blah.

Is it worth doing the adventures on her list alone?
Can she ever get Liss back on her side?
Will she be brave enough to leave behind her mom’s artistic style?

Change is scary, but staying the same on-the-sidelines-of-life chubby girl is not an option for Georgia after Mom’s last request entreating her to learn How to Be Brave.
(One of 8,000 books recommended on www.abookandahug.com)

Temple of Doubt, by Anne Boles Levy (book review) – truth too strong for doubter priests

Nov19

book cover of The Temple of Doubt by Anne Boles Levy published by Sky Pony Press | recommended on BooksYALove.comOnly the Temple spells can heal,
medicines are forbidden –
what can a young herbalist do?
Well, save the world, for starters…

Hadara’s questioning nature is constantly tested in a world where only the god Nihil is allowed to doubt, especially when its priests force her to help them search for a fallen star that they claim is evil.

Grab this recent release at your local library or favorite independent bookstore and travel to a world where being uncertain can be deadly.

Doubts… what’s your strongest?
**kmm

Book info: The Temple of Doubt / Anne Boles Levy. Sky Pony Press, 2015. [author site]  [publisher site]  [book trailer] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

My book talk: On a world where doubt is a god’s privilege alone, a less-than-devout teen helps the priests search for a fallen star and is caught up in a tangle of faith and politics that endangers her family and her own sanity.

Hadara resents the priests of Nihil, ever ready to punish her family for herb-gathering instead of relying on the capricious god of doubt to heal through unreliable spell-casting.

When a star falls from the sky and Azwan high priests from the far-off capital need her help to navigate the Wild, the teen and her mother must obey. Hadara’s reaction to one of their soldiers is unexpected, as is the sudden contact by the Gek people of the Wild and the mysterious illness now sweeping through Port Sapphire.

Was it a only falling star or something far more deadly?
Can Hadara keep her healing secrets from the Azwans?
Can she keep the Azwans’ spells away from her family?

Learning her grandparents’ long-hidden legacy, watching the foreordained path of life in her remote town veer wildly off-course, Hadara must hold true to her own beliefs in the face of authority and try to survive until her own birthday. First in a series. (One of 6,000 books recommended on www.abookandahug.com)

Willful Machines, by Tim Floreen (book review) – big worries for First Son, first love

Oct31

book cover of Willful Machines by Tim Floreen published by Simon Pulse | recommended on BooksYALove.comRogue robots,
attacks on America,
risky new love (trumps all the threats!)

Artificial intelligences gone self-aware are US government prisoners, or so AI-in-the-cloud Charlotte claims, as she directs terrorist robot attacks against their captors who are legislating flesh-and-blood as the only humans.

Intrigued by hot new student Nicolas, closeted Lee weighs following his heart against the daunting expectations of his presidential father and war-hero grandfather in this near-future adventure-love story.

What makes a being human?
**kmm

Book info: Willful Machines / Tim Floreen. Simon Pulse, 2015.  [author site]  [publisher site]   Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

My book talk: Constantly watched by bodyguards and dronecams, Lee completes his robotic creations and endures boarding school for future world leaders, until new student Nico steals his heart and a self-aware computer threatens world peace – what should US President’s teen son do now?

His mother killed by humanoid robot Charlotte that she helped to create and his father propelled to the Presidency by the resulting Human Values backlash, Lee can’t imagine what his war-hero grandfather/headmaster or dad would do if they discovered he was gay.

But so-hot Chilean transfer student Nico looses Lee’s tightly-boxed heart as they evade surveillance for stolen moments alone – until Lee’s clever robots turn against them, controlled by Charlotte who demands release of imprisoned 2B humanoids.

Can Lee really trust Nico?
Is Charlotte acting alone?
Just how different are humans and self-aware machines?

At the gothic elite school built atop a waterfall, secrets long-buried threaten not only Lee and Nico’s happiness, but humankind’s role on earth in the not-so-distant future.

 

Numbers, by David A. Poulsen (book review) – friendly teacher, hostile beliefs

Oct20

book cover of Numbers by David A. Poulsen published by Dundurn |BooksYALove.com review Popularity or individuality,
Leader or follower,
History is written by the victors.

Mr. R knows every kid at school by name, crafts the most interesting lessons ever, and wants to rewrite a particular part of history in their minds. Eventually, Andy questions his favorite teacher’s views, but is it too late?

Ask for this re-released Canadian title at your local library or favorite independent bookstore – it’s worth the wait if they need to order it, trust me!

When it comes to teachers, where’s the line between sharing beliefs and recruiting to a cause?
**kmm

Book info:  Numbers / David A. Poulsen. Dundurn, 2015. [author site]  [publisher site] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

My book talk: Wondering if he’ll ever fit in at his Canadian high school, Andy basks in the attention of his history teacher, but must decide how far to follow as Mr. R strays far from the textbook during their Holocaust project.

Andy started off on the wrong foot the first day of freshman year, isn’t doing well at this dating thing, and is just tolerated by The Six misfits who aren’t exactly fans of being in school.

As year 10 students, they’re finally in Mr. R’s modern history class where every lesson is interesting. But Mr. Retzlaf’s ideas about the Holocaust don’t agree with what’s usually taught, and only Patti stands up to him.

How can someone as cool as Mr. R be wrong?
Why aren’t problems with girls and his alcoholic uncle and history as simple to fix as old cars?
Can ex-girlfriend Diana really hate him enough to carry out the ultimate revenge?

As some of The Six plan a terrible crime to gain Mr. R’s approval, Andy must decide what he believes and what to do about it. (One of 6,000 books recommended on www.abookandahug.com)