BOOK REVIEW: Sunrise Over Fallujah

Birdy is a kid from Harlem who ended up enlisting in the military against his father's wishes. Now he's part of "Operation Iraqi Freedom." Along with other members of his unit, they are tasked with stabilizing Iraq and creating good relations with the Iraqi people. In a very unstable country with people who do not trust them, every time Birdy's unit is sent on a mission, they fear that it will be their last.

This fictional account of war brings some very realistic feelings and images to life. It's a very insightful story about what it feels like to be away from home, to have a new "family" with members of your unit and to have fight for something you're not sure you believe in.

Great "war" book.

BOOK REVIEW: Sarah's Key

Most people have heard of Auschwitz and know the Germans' role in Nazi movement, however the French involvement was much less known. Sarah's key is told from alternating perspectives - Sarah was a 10 year old girl who was captured and imprisoned in the Vel d'Hiv roundup in France in 1942... fearing for her life and the safety of her family, she locks her brother in a cupboard inside their home before the police arrest them, thinking she will be able to come back for him. Hers is a story of survival at the concentration camps.

Fast forward several decades to 2002, and you get the other perspective - an American journalist, Julia, living in France is asked to write a story about France's involvement with concentration camps and about the Vel d'Hiv round-up for the 50th anniversary. Reluctantly, knowing that this will be an unpopular story, Julia agrees. As she begins to discover and uncover more and more truths about the round-up, she finds an unexpected family connection to Sarah.

Each chapter alternates between Julia/2002 and Sarah/1942 and is truly captivating. At first I found myself wanting to skip Julia's part to learn more about Sarah, but eventually, Julia's story is so interesting that you want to skip Sarah's story to learn more about Julia. This is an excellent book... I couldn't put it down. While I typically am not drawn to historical fiction, I made myself read this one, and I'm so glad that I did.

Highly Recommended... One of my favorites.

BOOK REVIEW: Hereafter

Amelia knows nothing about herself except that she is dead. She drifts alone on the shores of river, not knowing how she died, where she is or even what her last name is. One night there is a car accident on the bridge over "her" river. As the driver of the car, Joshua drowns, Amelia has an overwhelming urge to save him. With no way to touch him, she can only will him to live. Through her persistence, Joshua is eventually brought to safety. Amazingly, Joshua seems to be able to see Amelia when no one else can. Joshua and Amelia quickly develop a deep relationship, but that relationship becomes threatened by Joshua's grandmother, who can also see spirits and mistakenly thinks Amelia is the spirit that haunts their river, and also by the actual evil-spirit who wants Amelia all to himself.

Can Joshua and Amelia fight the forces that threaten to keep them apart? Will they be able to figure out who Amelia is, and what happened to her before she's taken away?

This is a good book with an interesting story. Some parts may seem a little over the top - such as how quickly the relationship between Amelia and Joshua develops, but anyone who can overlook minor issues will definitely enjoy this book.

BOOK REVIEW: Dead Connection

Murray is a loner who loves nothing more than to go to the local cemetery and spend time with his "friends," the deceased. Murray can hear them, and he enjoys sitting with them and talking to them. All is well until the cemetery caretaker's daughter, Pearl, tries to befriend him, and at the same time, Murray begins to hear the voice of girl, Nikki, who has recently gone missing. Can Murray trust Pearl with his secret - that he can talk to dead people? Will Pearl believe him? And, can Murray piece the puzzle together and help Nikki's murderer be discovered without making a spectacle of his "ability"?

This story is told from multiple perspectives. Each chapter is the voice of one of the main characters. At times the perspectives complicate the story, and the amount of characters adds to the confusion, but those who are willing to stay with the book and read it quickly will enjoy it and not fall into too much confusion.

Overall, I liked the mystery element of the book, but it wasn't ALL that I hoped for... would definitely recommend it though.

BOOK REVIEW: Flip

Alex goes to sleep on a cold December night in South London; when he wakes up, it's June, and he is in North England. Looking in the mirror, he discovers that he no longer looks like himself. Going downstairs in a strange house, the family seems to recognize him, only they're calling him Flip (short for Phillip). Alex tries to find out what has happened, how he ended up in Flip's body and what has happened to his body and his family. Along the way, Alex meets new people, tries to deal with Flip's various friends and girlfriends, attempts to follow Flip's pattern of life and struggles to piece together what exactly has happened.

While their are some benefits to being Flip - he's popular, he's athletic, he has several girlfriends - Alex misses his family, and his own life. The risks Alex takes, the revelations about Alex's body and family and the struggle to be Flip, makes this a page-turner.

Recommended.

BOOK REVIEW: You Are Not Here

Annaleah is devasted... her boyfriend of three months has tragically died from an unknown heart condition during a basketball game. That would be bad enough, except that no one knew Annaleah was dating Brian. Brian went to a separate school, Annaleah had never met his parents and she didn't know his friends. Struggling to come to grips with his death, along with grieving over something no one knew about, Annaleah loses herself. She pulls away from family and friends and spends all of her time in the cemetery at Brian's grave. As summer wears on, and Annaleah starts to piece her life back together, she begins to learn things about Brian and their relationship that makes her realize it was far from perfect.

This novel-in-verse is a quick, captivating read. Readers will relate to Annaleah's grief and feel for her as she learns difficult truths about the boy she thought she loved.

Recommended.

BOOK REVIEW: Water for Elephants

Jacob Jankowski, a 90 year old, cranky, nursing home resident, reflects back on his life as a circus worker during the Great Depression. Jacob is the son of a vet, who was studying to follow in his fathers footsteps. After being orphaned by a car accident that took both of his parents lives, Jacob discovers that his parents were badly in debt from helping people during the difficult Great Depression era. Alone, broke and homeless, Jacob wanders aimlessly until he finds work with a traveling circus.

Jacob's relationship with the mistreated animals, poorly treated circus workers, the star of the marvelous equestrian act - Marlena, and the ill-tempered,circus director husband of Marlena, August, develops throughout the book. The story offers romance, friendship, murder, robbery, heroism, a fight to survive and a love of all living things.

I was reluctant to read this book just based on the title and summary alone because I typically am not drawn to historical fiction or anything really about circuses/animals... the story simply didn't interest me until I started reading it! It was such a great book - full of surprises and anticipation about what was going to happen next. It's one of those books where you feel like the character has no way out, and you wonder, "How will he ever be able to escape this?" The cruelties of August and other circus administrators is unfathomable. This story keeps you wondering until the end!

Highly recommended.