The Absolute Value of Mike

I LOVED this ARC!  The only thing I didn't like was the fact that every single character in the story, excluding no one, was dealing with the death of a loved one.  It made the story sad and I don't usually like sad books.  I actually got to talk to the author again when I was in the middle of the book (see my last post) and someone else pointed out this, but she said she didn't purposly do it, but looking back everyone did have a loved one die.  I really liked how each chapter was titled (a math term and the definition) and how the cover was designed (256 pages + (y) + x squared = a novel).  I enjoyed how Mike's dad was a engineer and math genius and wanted Mike to be to, but Mike did not want to.  Mike was a different kind of engineer, and, as he figured out at the end of the book, he was alot better at engineering life instead of mathimatics.  I found this story nice and enjoyed it thouroughly.  Thank you, Kathy, for sending me the ARC!

Rating:  *****

Mockingbird

Why are the best books written this year all sad? I mean, really! Mockingbird starts off with a school shooting where the main character, Caitlin’s, brother dies (well, it didn’t really happen during the book, more like right before), then continues to be sad all the way to the last chapter. But, previously, Out of My Mind made me cry! Autism Spectrum Disorders are a popular topic nowadays, not just in books but as something that adults talk about A LOT. Although Caitlin has Asperger’s Syndrome, that is not what makes this book so great. The fact that it is so sad and well written and the author has put lots of thought into it and Caitlin and all of the other characters seem real makes it great. Most adults would think that kids without disabilities wouldn’t like books with main characters like Catlin (Mockingbird) and Melody (Out of My Mind) and Jason (Anything But Typical) that have disabilities, but I recommend this book to all kids (probably age 12 and up, but some 8 or 10 year olds could read it too).


Rating: *****