kailey_luminouslibro's reviews
3794 reviews

Ariadne Oliver's friend Mark hears about the murder of a priest who had a list of names tucked into his shoe. He had written down the list after hearing a deathbed confession, and was promptly murdered in the street only moments later. Mark goes to Ariadne for advice as he becomes more and more deeply involved in this mystery. He hears rumors about a place called The Pale Horse, where witches and mediums call on dark forces. But surely that is all nonsense, and no one could believe that witchcraft would really kill a person with a mere thought.

This mystery has a very creepy atmosphere, since Mark gets weirded out by the witchcraft and begins to wonder what connection there could be with the murder of the priest. He can't tell what is real and true anymore, and starts to think that maybe these witches are really calling on spirits or something. But his rational mind tells him that it must be all fake and there has to be a scientific explanation for what is happening.

I love how chaotic Ariadne Oliver is. She's so scatter-brained in the way she talks, because her mind is running a million miles a minute, but if you can follow her train of thought, it makes perfect sense. She's the one who has the flash of brilliance that gives Mark the final clue to solve the mystery and save the day!

The writing really emphasizes the creepiness of the Pale Horse and the people involved. The eerie mood pervades every aspect of the story and gradually infects each character as they get more and more involved. At the start, they scoff at the idea of witchcraft, but then they start to wonder and they get confused. But it's all illusion and suggestion and ambience.

Mark meets a young lady, Ginger, who can help him to uncover certain facts, and together they follow a line of inquiry that puts them both in danger. Ginger proves herself to be up to the challenge, but Mark is worried for her safety. The romance between them is quick but intense because there is so much as stake. I really enjoyed seeing them get closer as they investigate together.

The plot kept me guessing right up to the end, and I had no idea who the murderer could be. Agatha Christie always surprises me!

A young Moroccan stableboy named Agba is charged to take care of a new foal. The foal's mother has died, and Agba feeds the foal with camel's milk. He names the foal Sham. When Sham is grown, the Sultan sends him and Agba to France. Sham is to be a princely gift for the French king, but when they arrive, Sham is half-starved and worn from the journey, so he is sent to be a common cart horse. Eventually Sham is bought by a new owner and taken to England with Agba sticking closely to his side. They make some new friends, and find new enemies. Agba has many troubles, but he is determined to stay with Sham and care for his favorite horse as if they were brothers.

No wonder this book won the Newberry Medal. It's wonderfully written! I loved all the adventures that Agba has along with Sham, and the close relationship between boy and horse. It's so sweet to see how they understand each other without words. Sham trusts Agba completely, and Agba knows exactly how to care for Sham. They stick close together through thick and thin.

The plot moves along quickly from adventure to adventure in Morocco and France and England. We meet a lot of diverse characters along the way, some of the kind and generous and some of them selfish and cruel.

I loved the thoughtful writing style. There are quiet moments of peace and frightening scenes full of drama and delightful triumphs followed by devastating defeats. So many ups and downs in the plot, and each one is emotionally intense because the writing brings forward the depth of Agba's character in a thoughtful way.

This book includes short stories about witches and wizards from the ancient past of the Harry Potter world. These legends are enjoyed by wizard children at Hogwarts just as fairy tales about Cinderella and Snow White are well-known in the muggle world.

I always enjoy rereading this one, especially for the commentary from Dumbledore. Very clever and hilarious!
Each story has a moral lesson about life and death, good and evil, and the power of love. The writing style is very similar to classic fairy tales.

2024 Update: Rereading this book in Spanish was a lot of fun. It gave me a fresh new enjoyment of the stories and all the magic!

Queenie's father is in jail, and the kids at school tease her about it. Queenie pretends not to care, but she always end up in trouble for fighting, throwing rocks, and skipping school. On a field trip in the woods, Queenie sets up a log to be a trap for the boy who teases her the most. He falls and breaks his leg, and Queenie is forced to pay the doctor's bill. Queenie starts to wonder if being bad is really all that good. It might be better for her to behave herself, but she has all this anger inside that needs a way to get out.

I did not like Queenie's character at all. She's selfish and angry and bitter. She has no self-control at the beginning, but by the end of the book she learns some self-control. She's also just gross. She chews tobacco and spits. She smokes cigarettes. She takes joy in throwing rocks at birds and squirrels and killing them. She is dirty and rude. By the end of the book, she learns to keep her temper a bit better, but she is still a nasty child.

The writing is boring. It goes on and on about the household chores and the chickens and milking the cow and churning the butter. If those things were written in some enchanting way, then it might be fun to hear about the chores, but it's just boring.

Lincoln Noah visits Barrow, Alaska, the northernmost town in all of the United States. He stays with some friends of his father, the Ologak family. The head of the family, Vincent Ologak, is the captain of a whaling team who camp out on the ice. They have a quota of only a few whales that they are legally allowed to hunt each year. Lincoln's uncle came to Barrow years ago to protest against the whales being hunted, but Lincoln hasn't heard from him in a long time. Lincoln is hoping to find out what happened to his uncle, but no one will talk about him. Lincoln joins the Ologak whaling team and finds out why whaling is so central to the Iñupiat culture.

I loved learning about the Iñupiat culture and language and traditions in this book! The whole book is centered around respecting and preserving this unique culture, and it was absolutely beautiful to learn about all of it through the eyes of Lincoln Noah. There is a glossary of Iñupiat words and phrases at the back of the book, but most of the time, the phrases are translated right there in the narrative too.

Lincoln has a very open mind, ready to learn about these new friends he has met. He listens, he carefully observes, he considers and mimics. He doesn't try to force his own ideas or his own values onto others. He notices the little details of daily life on the ice. He notices the reactions of the people around him, and adjusts his own behavior accordingly. He is respectful and patient and curious. He quickly earns the respect and admiration of each person he meets.

But still, there is a lot of conflict for Lincoln, and he doesn't quite fit in with his new friends. There are people at the whaling camp who are bitter and angry, and they take it out on Lincoln. He responds with patience and compassion, but also with strength and resolve that does not allow any foolish aggression to find its mark.

Then there are the whales! The beautiful bowhead whales seem to call to Lincoln in a special way. We learn about their migratory habits, their young, what they eat, and how they survive in the rivers and lakes between the shifting ice. There is a kind of mysticism around the relationship between the Iñupiat and the whales they hunt, and Lincoln begins to see that you have to respect nature and listen to what the wind and the sky tell you if you want to understand whales and be worthy of hunting them.

Lincoln learns a great deal, grows as a person, and embraces the Iñupiat culture, but ultimately he has to decide within himself what kind of person he wants to be. When he is forced to make the difficult decisions, he has to figure out what his core values really are, and whether or not they align with the same values of his Iñupiat friends.

I loved the thoughtful writing style and the beautiful Iñupiat culture! I loved the character development and the mystic whales. Such a compelling story!

DNF at page 80
I knew that this was a graphic novel about a really bad guy, but wow. It's all alcohol and prostitution and kidnapping and murder and violence and guns. This book does not gloss over the ugliness.
There is a lot of nasty profanity and graphic violence, and I just couldn't stomach it anymore. Horrid.

Hannalee and her family move to Atlanta after the Civil War, hoping to find work. Her brother, Davey, lost his arm fighting as a soldier in the Confederate Army, and there isn't much work available that a one-armed man can do. Hannalee and her mother both get jobs to help the family, but Atlanta is overrun with Yankee soldiers and all of Georgia is under martial law. Hannalee worries that the Yankees will be rude and violent, but she discovers that many of them are kind and friendly people.

This was an interesting look at a very weird time in history for Georgia. I liked that the book includes many true historic elements, giving a clear look into history through the lens of these characters.

Hannalee is a complex character. She is torn between being loyal to the Confederacy and hating the Yankees or befriending some really lovely people who just want to help. Eventually, she works through her feelings about the war and learns to move forward with her new friends no matter their race or their politics or their status in life. She learns that there are good and bad people on both sides of the war, and not every issue is as black and white as she used to believe.

I liked the writing pretty well, but it was nothing special. The characters are interesting, but, other than Hannalee, not very memorable. The plot moves along, but I found myself skipping over some of the descriptive paragraphs.

In this final book of the graphic novel trilogy, Kaidu and Rat are trying to recover the lost secret weapon of the ancient people of the Nameless City - a formula for exploding fire. They think it will be easy to sneak into the palace and steal back the book containing the formula; after all, they have snuck in and out of the palace many times before. But their only route past the walls has been demolished, and they will have to find some other way to get past the guards and into the inner library. Meanwhile Kaidu's father is trying to reach the other nations and gather military support to take back the city from the traitors among the Dao.

I loved these characters so much! Kaidu and Rat have so many emotional scars, but they find strength and support in their friendship. They have to trust each other absolutely through their adventures. No matter what other cultural or political changes may come up, these two remain loyal to each other, open to listen and respect their differences.

The plot is fantastic and imaginative! Kaidu and Rat get into lots of mischief and dangerous adventures. You get a sense of the depth of the characters and the history of the city. They have to decide what the future of the Nameless City is going to look like, but still respect its past history.

In this third book, we see Rat begin to lay aside her sad past and heal those old emotional wounds. She has to let go of her anger and grief, and learn to live beyond her limited perspective. She has a vision of what the city could be like in the future where people of all nations could live in harmony together. It is that vision that gives her strength to endure.

I love the world building. This book answers some of the questions about the ancient people who first built the city. Now that Kaidu and Rat know the mystery of the secret weapon the ancient people developed, they have to decide what to do with it. It was intriguing to see how the political landscape keeps changing as the nations come together to decide the fate of the city. There are many different cultures that are not blending very well due to prejudices and political unrest, but the friendship between two young people might just be the answer. Kaidu and Rat are determined to protect the city and each other.

The artwork is excellent, and every page is colorful and full of energy! This is such a satisfying end for a great trilogy!

In this second book of the graphic novel trilogy, Kaidu and Rat are doing everything they can to protect the monks of the Stone Heart. The monks are the keepers of knowledge in the Nameless City, but the Dao military leaders think they must be hiding the secret weapon that the ancient peoples used to blast through the rock of the mountains. Kaidu and his father are loyal to the Dao general, but they are forced to choose between their loyalties or the truth.

I loved these characters so much! Kaidu is very open in his ideas. He doesn't just follow the crowd. The rest of the Dao look down on the native people of the Nameless City, but Kaidu is curious about them and respectful of everyone. The rest of the Dao are very focused on military might, but Kaidu prefers book-learning and wisdom just as his father does. Rat has grown up on the streets, and she teaches Kaidu to run across the rooftops, free from the crowds in the streets below. It's really interesting to see how their friendship develops.

The plot is fantastic and imaginative! Kaidu and Rat get into lots of mischief and dangerous adventures. You get a sense of the depth of the characters and the history of the city.

In this second book, we see more of Kaidu and his father growing closer. They haven't known each other for very long, and their relationship is still very tenuous. Kaidu's father has always been so busy with working and politics and trade agreements, and now he realizes that he should have taken more time with Kaidu. It's really lovely to see how father and son begin to grow closer.

I love the world building. This book answers some of the questions about the ancient people who first built the city. There is a mystery behind the construction of the city, and Kaidu and Rat are very curious about it. It was intriguing to see how the political landscape keeps changing as the General and his counselors propose different ideas for the future of the city. There are two different cultures that are not blending very well due to prejudices and political unrest, but the friendship between two young people might just be the answer. Kaidu and Rat are determined to protect the city and its ancient secrets.

There is a gay side character who is described as having a crush on someone's brother, but we never meet the brother or see them together.

The artwork is excellent, and every page is colorful and full of energy! I can't wait to read the rest of this trilogy! 

Kaidu moves to the city to visit his dad and attend soldier training along with other young students. His people, the Dao, conquered the Nameless City thirty years before, but tensions still run high between the Dao and the native people. He begins to explore the city and befriends a native girl who calls herself Rat. They uncover some secrets about the city and their loyalties are tested. Kaidu's father is a counselor to the ruling General of the city, and Kaidu and Rat get involved in the shifting politics of the Dao.

I loved these characters so much! Kaidu is very open in his ideas. He doesn't just follow the crowd. The rest of the Dao look down on the native people of the Nameless City, but Kaidu is curious about them and respectful of everyone. The rest of the Dao are very focused on military might, but Kaidu prefers book-learning and wisdom. Rat has grown up on the streets, and she teaches Kaidu to run across the rooftops, free from the crowds in the streets below. It's really interesting to see how their friendship develops.

The plot is fantastic and imaginative! Kaidu and Rat get into lots of mischief. At first it's just some fun adventures, until things take a nasty turn and suddenly they are in serious danger. The action moves along pretty quickly, but you get a sense of the depth of the characters and the history of the city.

I love the world building. This first book introduces the city and some of its history, but there are many questions about the ancient people who first built the city. There is a mystery behind the construction of the city, and Kaidu and Rat are very curious about it. It was intriguing to see how the political landscape keeps changing as the General and his counselors propose different ideas for the future of the city. There are two different cultures that are not blending very well due to prejudices and political unrest, but the friendship between two young people might just be the answer.

The artwork is excellent, and every page is colorful and full of energy! I can't wait to read the rest of this trilogy!