Ritualo's Reviews

  Bibliography:  Leatherdale, M. B., & Charleyboy, L. (2017). #NotYourPrincess: Voices of Native American Women . Annick Press Ltd.   ISBN: 978-1-549--00586-2 Plot Summary: An anthology of Native American Women's stories. The stories include poems, quotes, short stories and interviews by Native American women. The stories are a collection that deal with the struggles of Native American women. Struggles with things such as identity, abuse, discrimination, sexism and addiction are among those discussed.  Each contribution includes a relevant artwork created by the author or another Native American woman.  Critical Analysis:  The authors do an excellent job of taking the theme of each writing and grouping them into 3 subtopics with narratives that relate to each other on some level.  Each is unique in its style and language but most reference a struggle of some type. Helen Knott recounts instances of sexual abuse, how girls were encouraged to kee...

  Bibliography:  Judge, L. (2018). Mary’s Monster: Love, Madness and How Mary Shelley Created Frankenstein . Wren & Rook.     ISBN: 978-1-725-42401-2 Plot Summary: This novel in verse is told through Mary Shelley's perspective.  It follows her beginning at the age of 14 when, after her father remarries, Mary is sent to live with a family in Scotland. Two years later she returns home to her dysfunctional family where she soon meets Percy Shelley, a young  married poet. The two soon run away with Mary's younger sister, Claire, and are faced with adversity as they experience debt, an affair, and the loss of a child. When death begins occurring all around her, Mary uses writing to deal with all the trauma.  Her love of science and literature are unified in her book with the development of her "creature" and they help her come to terms with her heartache as well as address man's attempt to control nature.  Critical Analysis: Though there may b...

  Bibliography:  Brown, D. (2021). In the Shadow of the Fallen Towers: The Seconds, Minutes, Hours, Days, Weeks, Months, and Years after the 9/11 Attacks . Etch, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.   ISBN:978-0-358-22357-3 Plot Summary:   In this graphic novel, Brown recounts the events of 9/11.  We see the story through several different perspectives of people who were there: firemen, policemen, family members and survivors.  The story details the emotions Americans felt as they watched the towers fall, and the aftermath of cleanup that took several months.  Brown also covers America's efforts to capture Osama Bin Laden and other leaders of Al Qaeda.  Critical Analysis: The amount of research Brown did is evident throughout as he brings to light lesser known aspects of the effects of 9/11, such as the 2 Marines who took it upon themselves to search the pile for survivors, and what really happened to the survivor who was rumored to have surfed do...

Bibliography:  Riggs, R. (2011). Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children . Quirk Books. ISBN: 978-1-59474-476-1 Plot Summary:  The story follows Jacob Portman, a young man whose grandfather mysteriously dies. While out one day, discovers a hidden orphanage nearby. The orphanage houses children with very unique abilities and is run by the fabulous Miss Peregrine. Adding to its strangeness the orphanage exists in a time loop to protect its residents from monsters. Jacob soon discovers more secrets of the peculiar world and his own unique heritage. Together With the help of the children, he will face new challenges and dangers. Critical Analysis:  Riggs use of language creates a vivid imagery throughout the book, phrases such as "I could see tongues of dense fog licking over the ridge in the distance" (101) and "the violence inside was almost cartoonish, like the work of some mad impressionist who painted only in red" (200). Word choice was not overly simple, but m...

  Bibliography:  Lu, M. (2017). Warcross . G.P. Putnam’s Sons. ISBN: 978-0-399-54796-6 Plot Summary: Emika Chen is a bounty hunter. She chases after people who illegally gamble on the virtual game, Warcross. But she is behind on rent, threatened with eviction, and has barely enough money to feed herself.  So when the Warcross championship begins, she jumps in as an audience member. When a valuable power-up is exposed, she hacks into the game to steal it and is immediately caught.  But rather than getting into trouble, the game's inventor wants to hire her to spy on the tournament players to deal with a security problem.  But what she finds is much more serious and the person she idolized is not who she thought he was at all.  Critical Analysis: A great book for reluctant readers. The language is simple, but not overly so and is appropriate for a middle or high schooler.  An elementary student that read at a higher level could enjoy as well as the langu...

  Bibliography:  LeGuin, U. K. (1968). A Wizard of Earthsea . Bantam Books. ISBN: 0-553-26250-5 Plot Summary:  Ged is a young boy, born with magical abilities, who grows into a master wizard. But he is arrogant and jealous, which will lead him to accept a challenge that results in his releasing a dark entity into the world. To overcome the error of his ways, Ged begins a journey through the islands of Earthsea, learning the true nature of his power, and how to use magic responsibly. Through his journey, he learns to embrace both the dark and light sides of him, to find balance in the end. Critical Analysi s: Though a relatively short read (under 200 pages) may attract reluctant readers, the use of language may deter these readers as it is very dignified and eloquent. The words are not complicated, but the way they are used is fairly sophisticated. For example, "Few and short as were the streets of Thwil, they turned and twisted curiously among the high-roofed houses, an...