Book Scavenger by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Book Scavenger is about a girl named Emily and her love of puzzles and books as well as her friend James who loves codes and puzzles. She has recently moved to San Francisco (not ‘Frisco) because her family moves around a lot, practically every year. It is their thing and they have been doing it her whole life. The parents have a whole blog about living in all 50 states. Emily is part of an online book community that is all about leaving clues and finding books. A book finds its way into Emily’s hands and a scavenger/treasure hunt begins. You can find clever code-breaking, close confrontations, and compassionate connections.
What a fun book! I know I am not the intended audience for this book but I enjoyed it so much. Jennifer Chambliss Bertman wrote an engaging and engrossing, wonderful piece of work. I kept on wanting to read to find out what happened next and to find out what was at the end of the path. Surprisingly I liked the main character even if it is a children’s book. She wasn’t too annoying as you could expect from a child. The one thing that made me shake my head was that SHE WRITES IN BOOKS! Unforgiveable. She was young and had a bit of self-centeredness which contributed to the conflict within the story. It made me waver a little bit in liking her but it was only for like a second. Her friend and sidekick James was awesome! He was quirky and smart and a good friend. Also, Steve was just creative and not cheesy at all. I loved that whole idea and how Jennifer interjected Steve into different situations. I was not a fan of Mr. Quisling (I am guessing you pronounce it like Quizling) as he just seemed like an asshat of a teacher. Overall, I would highly recommend this for younger readers and even for adults that love adventure stories with codes. It has a literary element as well bringing in classic authors and a little history.
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Tag: fun
Intrigue, Codes, and Fun at Bletchley!
The Bletchley Riddle by Ruta Sepetys
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This was a very fun read! I do start out a little annoyed by one of the characters. I get the typical precocious young person character, but I did find myself saying shut up and listen in my head once or twice. Maybe it is because I am getting older or something. She did grow on me, and I definitely found myself on her side through the remainder of the book though. The mystery of finding out the truth and following clues/riddles is a genre I like. Can I figure it out? Do I want to figure it out? Code breaking and the intelligence aspect is intriguing. It is a quick and enjoyable read. It kept me engaged and I wanted to keep going to find out what happens. I finished it within a day. The bones of the setting and story are based in truth including Bletchley Park and Alan Turing with World War II going on. I love when books do that. They add fictionalized elements to something historical that is interesting already. There were many topics I had to look up and get some more real-life information on including buildings and people. I love learning which is one reason I love to read. The sibling relationship was relatable and believable. There were several supporting characters who I enjoyed such as Colin, the local boy, and his mom. The author created a couple characters to create obstacles and it helped create tension. It is definitely a young reader novel but it is still worth it as an adult. It is easy and entertaining.
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